Who is GOD?
This is a very open ended question. I could write for years and just scratch the surface. The first thing that comes to my mind is, 'what is His name?' Biblically speaking, the answer to that question is; it depends. It depends which commentary, dictionary, encyclopedia, teacher, and/or reference book you find to be the most credible in transliterating the Hebrew tetragrammaton. I have seen those four letters represented as YHWH, YHVH, IAUE, JHVH, and JHWH. I have heard them pronounced as Yahweh, Yahveh, Yahueh, Yahvah, Jehovah, Jahahveh, and Jahweh. I do not disagree with any of these spellings and pronunciations, nor believe it necessary to do so. This does not mean that I accept every name that has been proposed to me. For example: In deference to some commonly taught beliefs, I do not believe the name Allah as the Arabic word for god. According to Ali Hassan Abdel-Kader, Ph.D. (a professor of Islamic studies at Columbia University), and Charles J. Adams, Ph.D. (a former professor of Islamic Studies at McGill University), Allah is an Arabic name for a specific god. According to these two professors, the word "Allah" is a contraction of the word "Al-Ilah". Biblically speaking, I believe three separate, but equal persons make up the one God. The three personages of God are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. There is only one true God, manifested in three distinct personages, each being omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient and unchanging.
There are some who would maintain that the Trinity argues against the unity of the Godhead. I do not see where the Trinity makes a Biblical argument against unity. The Bible repeatedly refers to God in the plural tense. Not only that, the Bible also refers to two people as a single entity. The 2nd chapter of Genesis clearly refers to a dual, as a single.
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Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall beone flesh. Genesis 2:24 KJV |
This clearly states that Adam plus Eve equal "One Flesh". Is God wrong in referring to Adam and Eve, who are obviously two people, as one?
If more than one textual reference is desired, consider this:
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And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. Matthew 19:5-6 KJV But from the beginning of the creation God made them male and female. For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and cleave to his wife; And they twain shall be one flesh: so then they are no more twain, but one flesh. Mark 10:6-8 KJV |
In both of these cases, Jesus is clearly referring to two individuals as being one.
Beginning with the first verse of Genesis, God is referred to in the plural tense. In Hebrew, the singular word for God is El. In a dual tense, the word is Elah. When someone wants to say three or more, Elohim is used. Elohim is the word translated "God" in Genesis 1:1.
Genesis 1:1 in Hebrew Beresheet Bara Elohim et ha-Shamayim et ha-EretzGenesis 1:1 KJV |
This opening declaration in verse 1 is clearly the answer. The first word is "Beresheeth", "In Beginning", which yields the name of the book of Genesis in Hebrew. The second word is "bara", "to create out of nothing". This is in contrast to similar words in the Hebrew: "Asa", "to make, fashion, or fabricate"; and "Yatsa", "to form or shape". (Isaiah 43:7 uses all three.) Most of what we see in the remainder of Genesis 1 are forms of "made." The third word, "Elohim", the name of God, seems to be a grammatical error: it is a plural noun, used as a singular. It is recognized by many Bible scholars as the first hint of the Trinity.
I have never heard anyone make the Biblical argument that Elohim is not God. In the Bible, Elohim is a plural noun that is repeatedly used with singular verbs. In Hebrew, the suffix "im" is always the mark for the plural. I am told there is no exception to this rule in the entire Hebrew language. This plurality repeatedly appears throughout the book of Genesis, even in the English translations. Here are some examples:
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And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever: Genesis 3:22 KJV Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another's speech. Genesis 11:7 KJV |
In Genesis, the creation appears to be credited to multiple creators.
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In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. Genesis 1:1 KJV |
This says God created the heaven and the earth.
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And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. Genesis 1:26 KJV |
"Us" and "our" being plural, this says man was created by more than one Being, to look similar to those Beings.
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And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. Genesis 1:7 KJV |
This says God made the heavens (there are more than one), the earth, and the seas.
The book of John states that Jesus, who is referred to as the Word, made everything that was made. If that is the case, and the other verses are true, then it logically follows that Jesus is God, and He is plural.
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In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. John 1:1-3 KJV |
The plurality is also shown by the wording of Jesus being with God, and being God. I am never "with" myself, I am myself. How could I be with myself, unless of course, I am more than one?
The book of Colossians states that Jesus created all things as well.
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Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins: Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: Colossians 1:13-16 KJV |
The book of John says that Jesus and the Father are one
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I and my Father are one. John 10:30 KJV |
In Isaiah 6, there is a vision of the throne of God
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Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed. Isaiah 6:8-10 KJV |
There is a hint of plurality in the statement "who will go for us", but that is not why I listed it. In looking at some New Testament references, John attributes this passage to Christ at John 12:40. Paul attributes this same passage to the Holy Spirit in Acts 28:25.
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He hath blinded their eyes, and hardened their heart; that they should not see with [their] eyes, nor understand with [their] heart, and be converted, and I should heal them. John 12:40 KJV And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well spake the Holy Ghost by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers, Saying, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with [their] eyes, and hear with [their] ears, and understand with [their] heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them. Acts 28:25-27 KJV |
Either Isaiah, John and Paul are not in agreement, or all three are correct in their assessment.
Then, there is the question of the Holy Spirit and the Son of God.
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And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. Luke 1:35 KJV |
The Holy Spirit comes upon Mary, and the offspring is called the Son of God. Logically speaking, this is saying one of two things: either Mary, or the Holy Spirit, is God, and the offspring is the Son of God. Since God is omniscient (possesses complete knowledge), and the angel was giving Mary information that she did not possess, Mary could not be God, leaving only the Holy Spirit.
This verse implies equality between the three distinct personages:
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Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Matthew 28:19 KJV |
Lastly, if I have all of this all wrong, someone will have to tell me the meaning of this verse:
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For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. I John 5:7 KJV |
Back in the first paragraph, I stated, "There is only one true God, manifested in three distinct personages, each being omnipotent, omnipresent, omniscient and unchanging." I have spent a fair amount of time dealing with the tripartite nature of God, here are some scriptural references that deal with the rest of that sentence.
One true God:
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Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. Isaiah 44:6 KJV As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one. I Corinthians 8:4 KJV |
Omnipotent:
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Ah Lord GOD! behold, thou hast made the heaven and the earth by thy great power and stretched out arm, andthere is nothing too hard for thee: Jeremiah 32:17 KJV And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.Genesis 17:1 KJV |
Omnipresent:
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Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee. Psalms 139:7-12 KJV Can any hide himself in secret places that I shall not see him? saith the LORD. Do not I fill heaven and earth? saith the LORD. Jeremiah 23:24 KJV |
Omniscient:
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For if our heart condemn us, God is greater than our heart, and knoweth all things. 1 John 3:20 KJV Now are we sure that thou knowest all things, and needest not that any man should ask thee: by this we believe that thou camest forth from God. John 16:30 KJV |
and unchanging:
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For I am the LORD, I change not; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed. Malachi 3:6 KJV Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and to day, and for ever. Hebrews 13:8 KJV |
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