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Is Jesus The Name of God?

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The name of god as it relates to jesus

The purpose of this article is to emphasize the main theme of the Old Testament scriptures which was God’s revelation of himself as an existential being through the name of YHVH (Yahweh).  Throughout the Old Testament God’s name was revered as God himself. 

The New Testament writers, being Jews, understood and preserved this reverence and importance of the name by relating it to the name Jesus. 

In the years following the death of the apostles the importance of this connection diminished and was replaced by a more Gentile understanding gained through Greek philosophy and the influence of syncretic religions. 

My goal is to remind the serious truth-seeking Christian of the origin of our faith and its original purpose which was to glorify God through the name given to us.  And to see the identity of Jesus in light of that name.  Only through the context of the knowledge of the Jewish apostles and disciples can we come to an accurate understanding of the identity of Jesus and the importance of his name.

When we call someone’s name, we proclaim their existence.  This relationship between the name of God, Yahweh, and the name Jesus is very important because a name reveals and acknowledges the identity of a person.  When we call upon God by his name, we identify exactly who we mean when we call his name.  In our mind the name is the person.  In the name Jesus Christ, we find all the names of God that were revealed in the name Yahweh and therefore all the identities that personify him.  This creates a parallel understanding between the God of the Old Testament and the God of the New Testament. 

At the end of this article, I include a table that shows that the name Jesus is equivalent to that of Yahweh, the name of God.  For further reading on this subject, I recommend the book “Names of God” written by Nathan Stone. 

English Bible quotations from the Septuagint were taken from various sources.  LORD is capitalized when the Hebrew uses the name YHVH (Yahweh) in that quotation.  This is done for the convenience of the reader and can be verified by most versions of the Old Testament where this convention is followed.

The Septuagint is a translation of the Hebrew Bible made approximately in the 3rd Century B.C.  It was used by the Jews during a time when the Hebrew language fell out of use in the Roman Empire.  Hebrew was replaced by Greek which was the standard language throughout the empire.  It was because of this that Paul referenced the Septuagint mainly in his writings. 

The English translation of the Septuagint used here is by Sir Lancelot C. L. Brenton, published in 1851, and is considered a long-time standard. For most of the years since its publication it has been the only one readily available and has continually been in print.  It is based primarily upon the Codex Vaticanus and contains the Greek and English texts in parallel columns.

An alternative translation can be found on https://www.elpenor.org/books/septuagint-genesis/default-en.asp.

The New Testament text is taken from various translations as noted in parentheses.

References also used: Pauline Christology, Gordon D. Fee, 2010.

                                    Names of God, Nathan Stone, 1944.

The table below contains verses from Paul’s letters that reveal his understanding of who Jesus was and his relationship to YHWH of the Old Testament.  Below this table I included another table that includes Bible verses taken from other authors of the New Testament revealing the same understanding as Paul’s.
NEW TESTAMENTOLD TESTAMENT
1 Thessalonians 3:13 (NKJV)
. . . at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ with all His saints.		ZACH 14:5
. . . and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with him.
1 Thessalonians 4:16 (NKJV)
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first.		Psalm 47:5 (46:6)
6 God is gone up with a shout, the LORD with a sound of a trumpet.
1 Thessalonians 1:8 (NKJV)
8 For from you the word of the Lord has sounded forth,		Joel 1:1
1 The word of the LORD that came to Joel the son of Pethuel.
1 Thessalonians 4:15 (NKJV) 15 For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord will by no means precede those who are asleep.Genesis 15:1 
1 And after these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision,   and many more (248 times)
1 Thessalonians 5:27-28 (NKJV) 27 I charge you by the Lord that this epistle be read to all the holy brethren.
28 The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. Amen.		Genesis 24:3 
and I will adjure thee by the Lord the God of heaven, and the God of the earth, 

1 Thessalonians 5:2 (KJV)
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night.		Joel 1:15 (KJV)
15 Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction from the Almighty shall it come.
1 Thessalonians 5:2 (KJV)
2 For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief in the night		Joel 2:1 (KJV)
1 Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;
Philippians 1:6 (KJV)
6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ:		 
Philippians 1:10 (KJV)
10 That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ;		 
1 Corinthians 1:7-8 (KJV)
7 So that ye come behind in no gift; waiting for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ:
8 Who shall also confirm you unto the end, that ye may be blameless in the day of our Lord Jesus Christ.		 
1 Thessalonians 4:6 (KJV)
6 That no man go beyond and defraud his brother in any matter: because that the Lord is the avenger of all such, as we also have forewarned you and testified.		Psalm 94:1 (KJV)
1 O LORD God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself.
2 Corinthians 5:10 (ASV)
10 For we must all be made manifest before the judgment-seat of Christ; that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he hath done, whether it be good or bad.		Romans 14:10 (ASV)
10 But thou, why dost thou judge thy brother? or thou again, why dost thou set at nought thy brother? for we shall all stand before the judgment-seat of God.
1 Thessalonians 1:3 (KJV)
3 Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labour of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father;		Psalm 31:24 (KJV)
25 Be of good courage, and let your heart be strengthened, all ye that hope in the LORD.   Psalm 32:22 (33:22)(LXX) 22 Let thy mercy, O LORD, be upon us, according as we hoped in thee.
2 Thessalonians 1:7-8 (KJV)
And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
8 In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ:		Isaiah 66:15 (LXX)
15 For, behold, the LORD will come as fire, and his chariots as a storm, to render his vengeance with wrath, and his rebuke with a flame of fire.    Isaiah 66:4 (LXX) 4 I also will choose their mockeries, and will recompense their sins upon them; because I called them, and they did not hearken to me; I spoke, and they heard not: and they did evil before me, and chose the things wherein I delighted not.
2 Thessalonians 1:9 (KJV)
9 Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power;		Isaiah 2:10 (DRV)
10 Enter thou into the rock, and hide thee in the pit from the face of the fear of the LORD, and from the glory of his majesty.
2 Thessalonians 1:12 (NET1)
12 that the name of our Lord Jesus may be glorified in you, and you in him, according to[18] the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ.		Isaiah 66:5 (LXX)
5 Hear the words of the LORD, ye that tremble at his word; speak ye, our brethren, to them that hate you and abominate you, that the name of the Lord may be glorified, and may appear their joy; but they shall be ashamed. 
2 Thessalonians 2:13-14 (ASV)
13 But we are bound to give thanks to God always for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, for that God chose you from the beginning unto salvation in sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:
14 whereunto he called you through our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.		As explained by Gordon Fee, here Paul’s language brings together the full identity of the Son AND Spirit with the Father without losing monotheism.  (Pauline Christology p63).
2 Thessalonians 3:5 (ASV)
5 And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patience of Christ.  [The Lord directing must be Jesus, otherwise it should read into HIS love rather than naming God.]		1 Chr 29:18
O LORD God of Abraham, and Isaac, and Israel, our fathers, preserve these things in the thought of the heart of thy people for ever, and direct their hearts to thee.
2 Thessalonians 3:16 (ASV)
16 Now the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times in all ways. The Lord (be) with you all.		Ruth 2:4
And, behold, Booz came from Bethleem, and said to the reapers, The LORD (be) with you: and they said to him, The LORD bless thee.
2 Thessalonians 3:6 (ASV)
6 Now we command you, brethren, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that ye withdraw yourselves from every brother that walketh disorderly, and not after the tradition which they received of us.    		Joel 2:32
And it shall come to pass whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved: for in mount Sion and in Jerusalem shall the saved one be as the LORD has said, and they that have glad tidings preached to them, whom the LORD has called.
2 Thessalonians 3:12 (ASV)
12 Now them that are such we command and exhort in the Lord Jesus Christ, that with quietness they work, and eat their own bread.		 
1 Corinthians 1:2 (ASV)
2 unto the church of God which is at Corinth, even them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that call upon the name of our Lord Jesus Christ in every place, their Lord and ours:		Joel 2:32
And it shall come to pass whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved: for in mount Sion and in Jerusalem shall the saved one be as the LORD has said, and they that have glad tidings preached to them, whom the LORD has called.    
 Gen 12:8
And he departed thence to the mountain eastward of Baethel, and there he pitched his tent in Baethel near the sea, and Aggai toward the east, and there he built an altar to the Lord, and called on the name of the Lord.
1 Corinthians 1:30 (NKJV)
30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God–and righteousness and sanctification and redemption–31  that, as it is written, “He who glories, let him glory in the LORD.”		Jer 9:23(24)
but let him that boasts boast in this, the understanding and knowing that I am the LORD that exercise mercy, and judgment, and righteousness, upon the earth; for in these things is my pleasure, saith the LORD.
1 Corinthians 10:21-22 (KJV)
21 Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord’s table, and of the table of devils.
22 Do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? are we stronger than he?		Deut 32:21 (ASV)
21 They have moved me to jealousy with that which is not God; They have provoked me to anger with their vanities: And I will move them to jealousy with those that are not a people; I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation.
1 Corinthians 10:26 (KJV)
26 For the earth is the Lord’s, and the fulness thereof.		Psalm 23:1 (24:1)
The earth is the LORD’s and the fullness thereof; the world, and all that dwell in it.
2 Corinthians 3:14-16 (NKJV)
14 But their minds were blinded. For until this day the same veil remains unlifted in the reading of the Old Testament, because the veil is taken away in Christ.
15 But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart.
16 Nevertheless when one turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away.		Exod 34:34
And whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak to him, he took off the veil till he went out, and he went forth and spoke to all the children of Israel whatsoever the LORD commanded him.
Romans 10:9 (NKJV)
9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.		Joel 2:32 (3:5)
And it shall come to pass whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved:
Romans 14:10-11 (NKJV)
10 But why do you judge your brother? Or why do you show contempt for your brother? For we shall all stand before the judgment seat of Christ.
11 For it is written: “As I live, says the LORD, Every knee shall bow to Me, And every tongue shall confess to God.”    		Isa 45:22-25
22 Turn ye to me, and ye shall be saved, ye that from the end of the earth: I am God, and there is none other. 23 By myself I swear, righteousness shall surely proceed out of my mouth; my words shall not be frustrated; that to me every knee shall bend, and every tongue shall swear by God, 24 saying, Righteousness and glory shall come to him: and all that remove them from their borders shall be ashamed. 25 By the Lord shall they be justified, and in God shall all the seed of the children of Israel be glorified.
Philippians 2:9-11 (NKJV)
9 Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name,
10  that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth,
11 and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.		 
Philippians 1:6 (KJV)
6 Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: 		Isaiah 2:12 (NKJV)
12 For the day of the LORD of hosts Shall come upon everything proud and lofty, Upon everything lifted up– And it shall be brought low–  
Philippians 1:10 (KJV)
10 That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ;		Isaiah 13:6 (NKJV)
6 Wail, for the day of the LORD is at hand! It will come as destruction from the Almighty.  
Philippians 2:16 (KJV)
16 Holding forth the word of life; that I may rejoice in the day of Christ, that I have not run in vain, neither laboured in vain.		Isaiah 13:9 (NKJV)
9 Behold, the day of the LORD comes, Cruel, with both wrath and fierce anger, To lay the land desolate; And He will destroy its sinners from it.  
1 Corinthians 5:5 (NKJV)
5 deliver such a one to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus.  		Isaiah 58:13, 14 (NKJV)
13 “If you turn away your foot from the Sabbath, From doing your pleasure on My holy day, And call the Sabbath a delight, The holy day of the LORD honorable, And shall honor Him, not doing your own ways, Nor finding your own pleasure, Nor speaking your own words, 14  Then you shall delight yourself in the LORD; And I will cause you to ride on the high hills of the earth, And feed you with the heritage of Jacob your father. The mouth of the LORD has spoken.”
2 Corinthians 1:14 (NKJV)
14 (as also you have understood us in part), that we are your boast as you also are ours, in the day of the Lord Jesus.		Jeremiah 46:10 (NKJV)
10 For this is the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, A day of vengeance, That He may avenge Himself on His adversaries. The sword shall devour; It shall be satiated and made drunk with their blood; For the Lord GOD of hosts has a sacrifice In the north country by the River Euphrates.
 Ezekiel 13:5 (NKJV)
5 You have not gone up into the gaps to build a wall for the house of Israel to stand in battle on the day of the LORD.
 Ezekiel 30:3 (NKJV)
3 For the day is near, Even the day of the LORD is near; It will be a day of clouds, the time of the Gentiles.
 Joel 1:15 (NKJV)
15 Alas for the day! For the day of the LORD is at hand; It shall come as destruction from the Almighty.
 Joel 2:11 (NKJV)
11 The LORD gives voice before His army, For His camp is very great; For strong is the One who executes His word. For the day of the LORD is great and very terrible; Who can endure it?
 Joel 2:31 (NKJV)
31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, And the moon into blood, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the LORD.
 Joel 3:14 (NKJV)
14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
 Amos 5:18 (NKJV)
18 Woe to you who desire the day of the LORD! For what good is the day of the LORD to you? It will be darkness, and not light.
 Obadiah 1:15 (NKJV)
15 “For the day of the LORD upon all the nations is near; As you have done, it shall be done to you; Your reprisal shall return upon your own head.
 Zephaniah 1:7 (NKJV)
7 Be silent in the presence of the Lord GOD; For the day of the LORD is at hand, For the LORD has prepared a sacrifice; He has invited His guests.
 Zephaniah 1:14 (NKJV)
14 The great day of the LORD is near; It is near and hastens quickly. The noise of the day of the LORD is bitter; There the mighty men shall cry out.
 Zechariah 14:1 (NKJV)
1 Behold, the day of the LORD is coming, And your spoil will be divided in your midst.
 Malachi 4:5 (NKJV) 5 Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet Before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD.
Philippians 1:20 (NKJV)
20 according to my earnest expectation and hope that in nothing I shall be ashamed, but with all boldness, as always, so now also Christ will be magnified in my body, whether by life or by death.		Psalm 34:27 (35:27)
27 Let them that rejoice in my righteousness exult and be glad: and let them say continually, The Lord be magnified, who desire the peace of his servant.  
Acts 19:17 (NKJV)
17 This became known both to all Jews and Greeks dwelling in Ephesus; and fear fell on them all, and the name of the Lord Jesus was magnified.		 
Philippians 3:3 (KJV)
3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.  		Jer 9:24
24 but let him that boasts boast in this, the understanding and knowing that I am the Lord that exercise mercy, and judgment, and righteousness, upon the earth; for in these things is my pleasure, saith the Lord.
Philippians 3:8 (KJV)
8 Yea doubtless, and I count all things but loss for the excellency of the knowledge of Christ Jesus my Lord: for whom I have suffered the loss of all things, and do count them but dung, that I may win Christ,		 
Philippians 3:1-3 (KJV)
1 Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord. To write the same things to you, to me indeed is not grievous, but for you it is safe.
2 Beware of dogs, beware of evil workers, beware of the concision.
3 For we are the circumcision, which worship God in the spirit, and rejoice in Christ Jesus, and have no confidence in the flesh.		Psalm 33:20-21 [32:20-21]
20 Our soul waits on the LORD; for he is our helper and defender. 21 For our heart shall rejoice in him, and we have hoped in his holy name. 22 Let thy mercy, O LORD, be upon us, according as we have hoped in thee.  
 Psalm 35:9 [34:9]
9 But my soul shall exult in the LORD: it shall delight in his salvation.
 Psalm 40:16 [39:17]
16 Let all those that seek thee, O LORD, exult and rejoice in thee; and let them that love thy salvation say continually, The LORD be magnified. 
2 Timothy 2:19 (NKJV)
19 Nevertheless the solid foundation of God stands, having this seal: “The Lord knows those who are His,” and, “Let everyone who names the name of Christ depart from iniquity.”  		Gen 12:8
And he departed thence to the mountain eastward of Baethel, and there he pitched his tent in Baethel near the sea, and Aggai toward the east, and there he built an altar to the Lord, and called on the name of the Lord.
2 Timothy 2:22 (NKJV)
22 Flee also youthful lusts; but pursue righteousness, faith, love, peace with those who call on the Lord out of a pure heart.		Gen 13:4 4
to the place of the altar, which he built there at first, and Abram there called on the name of the Lord.
   Gen 26:25
25 And he built there an altar, and called on the name of the Lord,
2 Timothy 4:1 (KJV)
1 I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom;		This opening verse of Paul’s shows that throughout this epistle his reference to Lord refers only to Jesus.
2Timothy 4:18 (KJV)
18 And the Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me unto his heavenly kingdom: to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.		Deut 32:36 (NKJV)
36 “For the LORD will judge His people And have compassion on His servants, When He sees that their power is gone, And there is no one remaining, bond or free.
 Psalm 7:8 (NKJV)
8 The LORD shall judge the peoples; Judge me, O LORD, according to my righteousness, And according to my integrity within me.
 Psalm 135:14 (NKJV)
14 For the LORD will judge His people, And He will have compassion on His servants.

The following references are taken from letters that were not written by Paul, although Paul is a candidate for the Letter to the Hebrews.  Some of these references do not have direct equivalents to LORD of the Old Testament but they help us to understand the use of the title Lord when referenced to Jesus.  They are important to our general understanding of who they considered Jesus to be and his relationship to God as Father.   Since many of these writers were Jews writing to a Jewish audience, I included the Old Testament texts from the Hebrew version.  However, there are some from the Septuagint as well. In those references I capitalized LORD where is refers to YHVH in the Hebrew version.  

Hebrews 1:8-10 (NKJV)
8 But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your Kingdom. 10 And: “You, LORD, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands.   The dialogue here is addressing the angels and the Son.  Specifically verses 8-10 are addressing the Son.

Psalm 102:25-27 (103:25-27) 25 In the beginning thou, O LORD, didst lay the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands. 26 They shall perish, but thou remainest: and they all shall wax old as a garment; and as a vesture shalt thou fold them, and they shall be changed. 27 But thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. 
James 2:1 (NKJV)
1 My brethren, do not hold the faith of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Lord of glory, with partiality.  		Psalm 23:7-10 (24:7-10) 7 Lift up your gates, ye princes, and be ye lifted up, ye everlasting doors; and the king of glory shall come in. 8 Who is this king of Glory? the LORD strong and mighty, the LORD mighty in battle. 9 Lift up your gates, ye princes; and be ye lift up, ye everlasting doors; and the king of glory shall come in. 10 Who is this king of glory?  The LORD of hosts, he is this king of glory.    

Psalm 137:5 (138:5) 5 And let them sing in the ways of the LORD; for great is the glory of the LORD.
In the following passage, James calls upon the church to anoint with oil in the name of the Lord.  We find Luke also mentions that the church had baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus (Acts 8:16) linking the idea of “in the name of the Lord” with “in the name of the Lord Jesus.”    Paul also calls upon the name of the Lord to be used in baptism.  Linking Acts 8:16 with Acts 22:16 we come to the conclusion that they were baptized in the name of the Lord, which was equivalent to the Lord Jesus.   There are many other scriptures including Col 3:17 and Romans 10:13 which elevate the name of Jesus to the level of LORD.  
James 5:14 (NKJV) 14 Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord.Acts 8:16 (NKJV) 16 For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Acts 22:16 (NKJV)
16 And now why are you waiting? Arise and be baptized, and wash away your sins, calling on the name of the Lord.		Acts 19:5 (NKJV) 5 *When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Romans 10:13 (NKJV) 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”Colossians 3:17 (NKJV) 17 And whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him.
Revelation 17:14 (NKJV) 14 These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.”Deuteronomy 10:17 (LXX) 17 For the LORD your God, he [is] God of gods, and the Lord of lords, the great, and strong, and terrible God, who does not accept persons, nor will he by any means accept a bribe: 
Revelation 19:16 (NKJV) 16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.Psalm 136:1-3 (LXX) 1 [Alleluia.] Give thanks to the LORD: for he is good: for his mercy [endures] for ever. 2 Give thanks to the God of gods; for his mercy [endures] for ever. 3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords: for his mercy [endures] for ever. 
Acts 2:36 (NKJV)
36 “Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.”  		 

The title Lord and Savior is also unique.  Below we find several examples of it used in the New Testament where it is used of Jesus and in the Old Testament where it was used of God as LORD.
2 Peter 1:11 (NKJV) 11 for so an entrance will be supplied to you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.        Isaiah 43:11 (KJV) 11 I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour.             
2 Peter 2:20 (NKJV) 20 For if, after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the latter end is worse for them than the beginning.  Isaiah 45:21 (NKJV)
21 Tell and bring forth your case; Yes, let them take counsel together. Who has declared this from ancient time? Who has told it from that time? Have not I, the LORD? And there is no other God besides Me, A just God and a Savior; There is none besides Me.  		 
2 Peter 3:2 (NKJV) 2 that you may be mindful of the words which were spoken before by the holy prophets, and of the commandment of us, the apostles of the Lord and Savior,Isaiah 49:26 (NKJV) 26 I will feed those who oppress you with their own flesh, And they shall be drunk with their own blood as with sweet wine. All flesh shall know That I, the LORD, am your Savior, And your Redeemer, the Mighty One of Jacob.” 
2 Peter 3:18 (NKJV) 18 but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory both now and forever. Amen.Isaiah 60:16 (LXX) 16 And thou shalt suck the milk of the Gentiles, and shalt eat the wealth of kings: and shalt know that I am the LORD that saves thee and delivers thee, the Holy One of Israel.   
 Hosea 13:4 (LXX) 4 But I am the LORD thy God that establishes the heaven, and creates the earth, whose hands have framed the whole host of heaven: but I shewed them not to thee that thou shouldest go after them: and I brought thee up out of the land of Egypt, and thou shalt know no God but me; and there is no Saviour beside me. 

TABLE OF NAMES EQUATING THE NAME JESUS WITH THE NAME OF GOD
This table is composed of the compounded names of God taken from the Old Testament and matched against the existential characters and qualities of Jesus as revealed in the New Testament.  
TITLECOMPOUNDED NAMEOLD TESTAMENT NEW TESTAMNT
PROVIDERJEHOVAH-JIREH YHWH-JIREH
יְהוָה ׀ יִרְאֶה		Genesis 22:14 (NKJV)
14 And Abraham called the name of the place, The-LORD-Will-Provide; as it is said to this day, “In the Mount of The LORD it shall be provided.” 		John 14:13 (ASV)
13 And whatsoever ye shall ask in my name, that will I do, that the Father may be glorified in the Son.  
HEALER JEHOVAH-ROPHE YHWH-ROPHE
יְהוָה רֹפְאֶֽךָ		Exodus 15:26 (NET1)
26  He said, “If you will diligently obey the LORD your God, and do what is right in his sight, and pay attention to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, then all the diseases that I brought on the Egyptians I will not bring on you, for I, the LORD, am your healer.” 		Matthew 4:23 (NKJV)
23 And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all kinds of sickness and all kinds of disease among the people.
BANNER  
Not a flag, but a pole to be lifted or held up as Moses held up his rod for victory over the Amalekites. 		JEHOVAH-NISSI YAHWEH-NISSI
נִסִּֽי׃ יְהוָה		Exodus 17:15 (NET1)
15 Moses built an altar, and he called it “The LORD is my Banner,”[43]      		John 3:14 (NKJV)
14 And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up,    
  Exodus 17:9 (NKJV)
9 And Moses said to Joshua, “Choose us some men and go out, fight with Amalek. Tomorrow I will stand on the top of the hill with the rod of God in my hand.”  		1 Corinthians 1:18 (NKJV)
18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
  Exodus 17:11 (NKJV)
11 And so it was, when Moses held up his hand, that Israel prevailed; and when he let down his hand, Amalek prevailed.		 
SANCTIFICATION JEHOVAH-M’KADDESH YHWH-M’KADDESH
יְהוָה מְקַדִּשְׁכֶֽם׃		Leviticus 20:8 (KJV)
8 And ye shall keep my statutes, and do them: I am the LORD which sanctify you.		Hebrews 7:26 (NKJV)
26 For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens;
   1 Corinthians 1:30 (NKJV)
30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God–and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—
   Hebrews 10:14 (NKJV)
14 For by one offering He has perfected forever those who are being sanctified.
PEACE    JEHOVAH-SHALOM YHWH-SHALOM ‏יהוה שָׁלוֹם‎Judges 6:24 (NKJV)
24 So Gideon built an altar there to the LORD, and called it The-LORD-Is-Peace. To this day it is still in Ophrah of the Abiezrites. 		John 14:27 (NKJV)
27 Peace I leave with you, My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.
   Matthew 11:28 (KJV)
28 Come unto me, all ye that labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest.
   Acts 10:36 (KJV)
36 The word which God sent unto the children of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is Lord of all:)
RIGHTEOUSNESS JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU YHWH-TSIDKENU
‏יהוה צִדְקֵנוּ‎		Jeremiah 23:6 (NKJV)
6 In His days Judah will be saved, And Israel will dwell safely; Now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS. 		1 Corinthians 1:30 (NKJV)
30 But of Him you are in Christ Jesus, who became for us wisdom from God–and righteousness and sanctification and redemption—
   Acts 3:14 (KJV)
14 But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you;
   2 Corinthians 5:21 (KJV)
21 For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.
   Philippians 3:9 (KJV)
9 And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:
SHEPHERD JEHOVAH-ROHI YHWH-ROHI
‏רָעָה יהוה		Psalm 23:1 (NKJV)
1 The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 		John 10:11 (KJV)
11 I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd giveth his life for the sheep.
   1 Peter 2:25 (KJV)
25 For ye were as sheep going astray; but are now returned unto the Shepherd and Bishop of your souls.
PRESENCEJEHOVAH-SHAMMAH YHWH-SHAMMAH
‏יהוה שָׁמָּה‎		Ezekiel 48:35 (KJV)
35 It was round about eighteen thousand measures: and the name of the city from that day shall be, The LORD is there.		Matthew 18:20 (NKJV)
20 For where two or three are gathered together in My name, I am there in the midst of them.”  
   Colossians 1:19 (NKJV)
19 For it pleased the Father that in Him all the fullness should dwell,  
   Hebrews 1:3 (NKJV)
3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
   John 1:14 (NKJV)
14 And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
   Matthew 28:20 (NKJV)
20 teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.” Amen.
Posted on by rschut1945 · 2 Comments

What the Bible Really Says About the Trinity

My research on the topic of the Trinity began around 1970 when a friend of mine thought he would consider becoming a Jehovah Witness.  I didn’t know much about them at the time, but one thing about them stood out and that was that they did not believe in the Trinity, and they did not believe that Jesus was God. 

I began looking into why they didn’t believe in such a long-standing doctrine of the church and read about their own beliefs on the being of God and Christ.  This eventually evolved into a life-long search for truth on this important doctrine.  

There are some denominations who do not believe that the Bible is the final source or authority of all doctrines and teachings.  Some think that only bishops should make these decisions. While others think that this is the responsibility of prophets or elders who they believe are appointed by God just for this purpose.  But for the purpose of this paper I am assuming that both myself as well as the reader believe that the Word of God as recorded in the Bible is the source and authority of true doctrine and teaching.  Yet, I also believe that each of us is responsible for what we believe and what we practice.  There are enough resources today to be able to see if certain doctrines are clearly written in scripture.  And if there’s any question on a doctrine, we ought to simply withhold belief until it becomes clear without intimidation from others.  If we don’t feel certain about a doctrine, we should not have faith in it. This is exactly what Paul taught the Christians at Rome when it came to the eating or abstinence from meat offered to idols.

Romans 14:23 (KJV)
23 And he that doubteth is damned if he eat, because he eateth not of faith: for whatsoever is not of faith is sin.

IS THE TRINITY IN THE BIBLE

DEFINITION

The definition of the Trinity is really very complicated, but most people reduce it to the belief that God is three separate and distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.  Each has the essence of God and are co-equal with one another. 

In order to justify the Trinitarian doctrine as stated, the Son is presumed to be an Eternal Son without a beginning.  He always existed as a Son, and there was never a time when he did not exist as a Son.

For more information on the Son of God please click on the link below: Word Study on the Only-Begotten Son (Hypostasis) 

There is only one place in the entire Bible where the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are written together clearly with a sense of unity.  This is found in Matthew 28:19 where Jesus speaks about the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in reference to baptism.  There are other verses that include the Father, Son, and Spirit, but there is no real sense of unity attached nor is there any inference that they are individual persons. However, since they are mentioned together, I have listed them in the footnotes.1

So let’s begin our study by looking at Matthew 28:19.

Matthew 28:19 (KJV)
19  Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:

The first thing that I noticed about this verse was a troublesome phrase about the name applied to the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as being only one name.  What then was the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit? More on Matthew 28:19.

We all think we know the name of the Son, which is Jesus.  But what about the name of the Father?  And what about the name of the Holy Spirit? Take a minute to think about this question because it’s extremely important.

Since Jesus linked this phrase to a baptismal formula.  Wouldn’t it be great if we could find out the baptismal formula that was used by the early church.  We might then uncover this name that was used by all three.

In my research I found three appearances of a baptismal formula.  There was one by Paul in Acts.

Acts 19:4-6 (KJV)
4 Then said Paul, John verily baptized with the baptism of repentance, saying unto the people, that they should believe on him which should come after him, that is, on Christ Jesus.
5When they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

One might argue that Paul wasn’t there when Jesus made his statement about the Trinity and baptism because he wasn’t yet a believer at that time, so maybe he was corrected later about the proper baptismal formal.  This might have some merit to it except there are 2 more statements made by Peter, John, and Luke that we must examine.

The second one is by Peter and John.

Acts 8:14-16 (NKJV)
14  Now when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, 15 who, when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. 16  For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.

The third one is by Peter alone.

Acts 2:38 (KJV)
38 Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.

There is also another baptism recorded that helps bring this all together.

Acts 10:48 (NKJV)
And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord.

So, by using only Scripture we can see that it clearly teaches us that the only name that was used in baptism was Jesus.  This was the original and true Baptismal Formula. 

Based upon the first 2 examples we can then determine that Acts 10:48 also refers to the name of the Lord as being the name of Jesus.  It was Peter who made the statement in Acts 10:48 as well as Acts 2:38. But notice that Peter used the word Lord when referring to the name of Jesus.  This supports the idea that Jesus is, in fact, God and nothing less.  And that any time we see the phrase “name of the Lord” it refers to the name Jesus.

Example:

Romans 10:13 (KJV)
13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

We can see the importance of this connection when we link it to the Old Testament.

Joel 2:32 (NKJV)
32 And it shall come to pass That whoever calls on the name of the LORD Shall be saved.

This comes from the Old Testament, and it specifically refers to the name YHVH (‏יהוה) (LORD in all caps).  This also equates the name Jesus with the name Yahweh as the name of the LORD.

So, the original and Biblical baptismal formula was to baptize in the name of Jesus or the Lord Jesus.  It is therefore, this name that traces back to the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but we’ll look at this in more detail later. See The Eusebian Form of the Text of Matthew 28:19.

WHEN AND HOW DID JESUS BECOME THE SON OF GOD?  

Now let’s take a look at what scripture says about the existence of the Son.  Was the Son created at some point in time, before time, or did he have an eternal existence as a Son? 

The Trinitarian belief that was stated earlier said that Jesus was always the Son of God and therefore there was never a time when he was not the Son.  Let’s take a look to see if this doctrine is found anywhere in Scripture.

I think that the best place to begin such a search is to look at the scriptures that speak about the actual birth of Jesus during the time that Mary was visited by an angel.

The angel Gabriel clearly tells Mary that it was because the Holy Spirit would come upon her that this Child would be called the Son of God.

Luke 1:31-32 (KJV)
31  And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
32  He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David:

All of the verbs in this promise to Mary are in the future tense.  She will conceive.  His name will be Jesus.  He will be great.  He will be called the Son of the Highest.  And he will be given the throne of David.

But no reference is made that leads us to believe that he was already the Son of God coming down into the womb of Mary as a pre-existent Son of God.  And the verse that says David would be his father was meant in a physical way to show that this was to be a flesh and blood relationship with David.

Luke 1:35 (NASB)
35 The angel answered and said to her, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; for that reason also the [a]holy Child will be called the Son of God.

And in this verse Gabriel makes it clear what the reason was that he shall be called the Son of God.  It is because the Holy Spirit comes upon her and overshadows her—and the thing that shall be born will be called the Son of God, not that he already was the Son of God and being somehow transmigrated or transferred through her.2

It is becoming more difficult to find a meaningful translation of this verse probably because it could strongly suggest that the beginning of the sonship of Christ began in Mary’s womb.  But with a little effort I found the proper translation in the New American Standard Version.  It translates the Greek words “dio kai” (διὸ καὶ) correctly as “For that reason.”  Other versions simply use the word “therefore” which means the same thing, but is much weaker and more ambiguous than “for that reason” which refers directly to what Gabriel just said as the reason he would be called the Son of God (See BDAG pg. 250).

Just to make it clear again.  There is no reference to Jesus being the Son of God prior to his incarnation.  If the Son of God already existed as a Son, Gabriel should have made this clear.  He could have said that the Son of God shall enter into you and come through you in childbirth.  But he didn’t say anything like that. We therefore, shouldn’t speculate about something as important as the origin of the Son of God.

There are also three references given by Paul and the writer of Hebrews taken from Psalm 2 that declare that the Son was begotten in time and not eternal.

Psalm 2:7 (KJV)
7  I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.

References are also found in Acts 13:33, Hebrews 1:5, 5:5.

Of course, if we are set in our minds that Jesus was already the Eternal Son of God, one might look at it differently.  An example of this is the belief that Jesus was an angel held by the Jehovah Witnesses. In spite of the phrasing of the verses in Hebrews 1:5 and 5:5, they insist that Jesus is still an angel. But in all my dealing with heretical beliefs and cults, I’ve learned that I have to force them to first establish the likelihood of their belief being true before they can manipulate other less clear scriptures to say what they want them to say.  In other words, there needs to be irrefutable evidence that Jesus existed as the Son prior to his incarnation.  There has to be some scripture that actually says this.  Without that we are twisting scriptures to to conform to our beliefs.  I have yet to hear any such clear, irrefutable evidence in the form of scripture that makes the pre-existent Christ an eternal son.

For more information on the Son of God please click on the link below: Word Study on the Only-Begotten Son (Hypostasis) 

A RULE FOR INTERPRETING SCRIPTURE

A basic rule of interpretation that we must apply when we study scripture is noted by the John Knox Institute which says that we must use clear scriptures to interpret ambiguous ones. Here is a quote directly from their website, JohnKnoxInstitute.org:

“The answer can be summarized in a single phrase: Always interpret the obscure in light of the clear. In other words, always interpret difficult and more obscure passages by comparing them to simpler and more plain passages.” (JohnKnoxInstitute.org)

Jesus was the only revelation of God that was actually born through the flesh of child-birth by Mary.  This not only made him the only Son, but made him a unique Son as well. That is the clear teaching of Scripture and my own understanding as well.

Earlier I said that there was only one verse in the Bible that mentioned the Trinity of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in a unity, and in this verse there was clearly no mention of them being three persons.  Then what verses speak about a Trinity as the Being of God existing in three persons?  Actually—none.

Neither the word Trinity nor the concept of God being three different persons appears anywhere in the Bible.  It does not appear in John 1:1 where he says that the Word was with God and was God.  Why not?  Why did John decide to say that the preexistence of Christ was the Word and not as the Eternal Son in a Trinity of three persons?

It does not appear in Phil 2:5 where Paul teaches that Jesus was actually in the form of God, but says nothing about him being a person in a Trinity or a preexistent Son. Why not?  It seems to me a likely place to have put it.  

It does not appear in Hebrews 1:3-5 where the author spends a lot of time describing who Christ is, but nowhere mentions the Trinity of three persons.  Why not? 

If this was so important, I would think that these authors would have made sure that it was memorialized into the Holy Scriptures.

One of my favorite tests of doctrine is not simply finding where it appears in the Bible, but also questioning why it doesn’t appear in the Bible.  In my years as a Bible teacher, I found that there are many false doctrines that people believe that don’t exist in the Bible.  They simply don’t understand that it would have been so simple for Paul or others to simply have written those beliefs down clearly in one sentence, especially if it was so important.  Yet, they didn’t.  

Let’s see if we can understand more about the Biblical version of the Trinity if we look deeper into the name that Jesus was referring to in his statement in Matthew 28:19.

WHO WAS YHVH AND HOW DOES HE RELATE TO THE SON OF GOD?

By now you might be thinking that I do not believe in the Trinity or the deity of Christ, but you would be very wrong.  I believe in both.  But I do not believe in the Trinity the way Athanasius, or the Roman Catholic Church defines it, and how it is taught today in many churches.  So, what do I think is the true definition of the Trinity?

Because of the problem with the lack of Jewish scholarly input from the early church, they have drifted away from the understanding of God’s Old Testament revelations under the name YHVH a.k.a. Yahweh.  The idea of God revealing himself as YHVH had taken a backseat if not disappeared altogether in the Gentile church.

Even today the idea of YHVH has been phased out by the Trinitarian doctrine.  YHVH has always been the name of God as he revealed himself to Israel. Each revelation of himself was progressively closer to the revelation of Jesus as the Savior of Israel. But scripture never teaches that YHVH was one of three different persons. He was taught as being God himself.

There was no understanding of God being three persons according to any Jewish understanding of God nor any Old Testament scripture that I could ever find.  As a matter of fact, I searched the entire Bible and couldn’t even find one reference to God as even being one person anywhere.  And there’s a reason why.

To label God as a person would be to diminish his divine power and glory.  In order to truly know God’s essence, we would have to see God face to face, which we cannot do according to the Bible.  Therefore, we must be satisfied with God simply being God.  Perhaps it’s natural for men to want to create a god in their own image and I believe that is what happened in the 3rd Century and contiues today.

Isaiah 40:18 (KJV)
18 To whom then will ye liken God? or what likeness will ye compare unto him?

We have to stop trying to define God as though he were some kind of philosophical idea that we can control through definition. In the Jewish understanding of things, if Jesus was a true revelation of God, he would have to be YHVH and nothing else.

There is no such record in the Old Testament showing that God had a Son prior to his birth through Mary.  There are references to sons of God, but these are either of angels or believers.

God had only one name and that name was YHVH (Yahweh). Jesus confirmed this by reciting the prayer called The Shammah in Mark.

The Shammah: Hear Oh Israel.  The LORD our God, The LORD is one!

Mark 12:29 (KJV)
29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:

Why didn’t Jesus simply say:  Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is three persons?!

THE NAME OF GOD

Philippians 2:9 says that Jesus was given a name that was above all names. He was given the one name of God which was YHVH.  There is no other name greater than that name.  This name comes to us in the form of YESHUA or Jesus which means Yahweh Our Salvation.  There is only one name of God because there is only one being of God who has been revealed in numerous revelations as the name of YHVH (Yahweh).

Scripture says that there is only one name by which we are saved:

Acts 4:12 (NKJV)
Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved."

There aren’t three names that save us as in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, but only 1 name—Jesus!

So why does the church make this doctrine the litmus test for authentic Christians?

  1. It is not a belief taught by Paul, Peter, James, John, or any other Bible author.
  2. It doesn’t exist as a teaching in the Bible—either in the Old or New Testament.
  3. But it is the result of early Gentile philosophy and possibly a Pagan understanding of God blended into a doctrine and forced upon the believers in the church.
  4. Failing to accept this doctrine resulted in not only excommunication but also to torture and murder carried out by the church in the name of God. (See the story of Michael Servetus) Click here.

It is time to reunite our LORD under one name and that name is Jesus. 

The story doesn’t end here.  There is so much more to say that would fill up an entire book.  But few would actually buy it and even fewer would read it because the church would never let that happen.  Instead they put fear into the believer who challenges or even tests or questions this doctrine.  

WHAT DOES SCRIPTURE SAY ABOUT TESTING DOCTRINES?

1 Thessalonians 5:21 (KJV)
21 Prove all things; hold fast that which is good.

1 John 4:1 (KJV)
1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.

We must test any belief that takes away from the glory of Jesus’ name being YHVH.  Our faith is in Jesus as our LORD and not in the Trinity.  There is no such scripture that prevents a person from salvation because they don’t believe in the doctrine of the Trinity, but there are scriptures warning us against believing in anything other than Jesus as being our LORD and the incarnation of God. 

We must hold fast to the idea that God in Christ is a mystery:

1 Timothy 3:16 (KJV)
16 And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.

Colossians 2:2 (NET1)
2 My goal is that their hearts, having been knit together in love, may be encouraged, and that they may have all the riches that assurance brings in their understanding of the knowledge of the mystery of God, namely, Christ,

Christ is the mystery that must capture our faith as well as our imagination and awe–not the Trinity of Nicaea.

Please see my other posts relating to this topic:

History of the Trinity

  1. Matthew 3:16,17, Mark 1:10, Luke 3:22, John 1:32, Galatians 4:6, 1 Peter 1:2, ↩︎
  2. The idea that God already had a Son that was to come down through her was not an idea that Mary would have been able to understand unless Gabriel had told her this outright. Scripture cannot mean something to us today that it didn’t mean to the one originally intended to hear it. ↩︎