1 = 3, 3 = 1. The Plurality and
Mathematics of God
And The Iglesia Ni Cristo
By Jason Stevens
http://www.dk777.com/inctrinity.pdf
http://www.dk777.com/trinityfaq.pdf
INTRODUCTION
This document has been written and compiled in order to express and discuss the mathematics of God, that our one true and amazing God is one entity, being and Lord. But while our gracious God is one entity it is the belief of most Christians that He is comprised of three unique and distinct persons as will be demonstrated and analyzed in this document.
While in discussion about the deity of Jesus Christ with a great friend the comment was made that 1 + 1 +1 = 1? How could this be that just does not add up? The conclusion is that when a person who believes in the plurality of God makes the statement that the Father, the Son (Jesus Christ) and Holy Spirit are one they are making 3 different gods or do not know how to do math. This is not the case of the Christian whom is labeled as a Trinitarian. Trinitarian Christians believe that all of the verses where Jesus makes claims to be “one” with the Father and “equal” with the Father, where followers and disciples refer to Jesus as “Our God and Savior” and verses that describe the plurality of God all are in agreement with each other and are of the fact that all three are truly One. That God = the Father, Son and Holy Ghost. 1=3, 3=1. In this study many verses will be discussed and analyzed as to what the Bible and scripture says about this issue and whether or not the conclusions of those who reject the trinity make solid, biblical and rational arguments. If you are a Biblical Unitarian (belief that God is only the Father) I encourage you to note down all of their/your doctrinal beliefs and compare them to all of the verses I point out and discuss.
Believing in Jesus Christ means believing who he is and who he claimed himself to be. Jesus is clear that you must believe 100% who Jesus Christ claimed himself to be or you will die in your sins unsaved.
John
But he continued, "You are from below; I am from above. You are of this
world; I am not of this world. I told you that you
would die in your sins; if you do not believe that I am the one I claim to
be, you will indeed die in your sins."
John 14:6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except
through me.”
Acts
It is extremely important for us
to know who exactly Jesus Christ is because it is through Jesus Christ we are
saved. I hope this study will give everyone the clear understanding of these
facts in the Bible as God has spoken them to us.
Secondly this study will cover certain areas of religious groups that are called “One true” churches, focusing on one. These churches consider themselves to be the one and only true church of God and that all other churches and doctrines are either false or apostatized and going to hell. These “One true” churches have many doctrinal similarities the main one being most all deny the deity of Jesus Christ.
Before we begin there are a few baseline understandings that must be made in order to properly debate this issue from a Christian or anti-Trinitarian position. The first is that there is one true God (Jehovah) of the Bible. It must be made clear that the Bible emphatically states that there is one God and one Creator and that no other gods may be worshiped. God has many different names that describe His many attributes.
Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear, O
Secondly is that the Holy Scriptures in the Bible are inerrant and infallible. They are God breathed and fully inspired by God without error. There is no greater book of truth that has stood up over thousands of years as that of the Holy Scriptures. This means that there are no conflicts between any verses or parts in the Bible. When a debate occurs around what a particular verse means it is important to read the verse in context. Meaning to read before and after the verse or the entire section or the entire chapter. We must read the word of God in consistency and context. We cannot just pick and choose what we want to read and believe, as this is how many people become lost and misled.
Here are some common descriptions
of churches that are considered to be a “
1.”They all claim to be the restoration of Christianity; they are the only true Church, the remnant, movement, and only organization of God. All others are in error.”
2.”They all have extra biblical authority. The Bible is never enough; it cannot be understood apart from the messenger or leaders and that they can only interpret the Bible correctly or that God has revealed only to them additional necessary information of salvation.”
3.”They all deny the deity of Jesus Christ. They all deny that Jesus is the eternal God made flesh.”
4.”They all deny salvation by grace alone. OTC’s emphasize that works are absolutely necessary for salvation and membership or involvement in their church is required.”
The primary way to tell if your church or religion is a false religion or cult is to test and review their teachings against what the Word of God says. Many verses will be twisted, taken out of context, miss-interpreted or greatly falsified to conform to the false teachings and ideas that the founder had created. For your own spiritual health and salvation you must test your churches teachings and search deep down with the power of the Holy Spirit whether or not what they teach is the truth of God. Please try to understand what the verse says, not what your church or religion says it means, what if they are wrong? Many are.
2 Timothy
WHO CAN
UNDERSTAND THE WORD OF GOD?
I would like to briefly
expound upon number 2 “They all have extra biblical authority. The Bible is
never enough; it cannot be understood apart from the messenger or leaders and
that they can only interpret the Bible correctly or that God has revealed only
to them additional necessary information of salvation.”
Most all OTC’s, sects and
aberration church groups teach the doctrine that only the messenger who founded
their church or those in its administration can know and understand the Word of
God and no one else. The main reason for this is control and concealment. If
one is teaching something un-Biblical one must conceal it and not let the flock
or congregation question what the administration and pastor is teaching. A sign
of a truly inspired
The first step is to have
faith that it was by divine inspiration that the authors of Scripture wrote
from. The words in the Bible are not just those of narrators but of God
himself.
2 Timothy 3:16
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for
teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,
Peter 1:19-21 “And so we have the prophetic word confirmed, which you do well to heed as a light that shines in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts; knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of any private interpretation, for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”
Private means by one
person alone, everyone who can read the Word of God can understand the Word of
God. If one can read the Word of God, they can understand it.
2 Corinthians
1:13
For we
do not write you anything you cannot read or understand.
And it is only what is
written in the Bible that is the Word of God.
1 Corinthians 4:6
Now, brothers, I have
applied these things to myself and Apollos for your benefit, so that you may
learn from us the meaning of the saying, "Do not
go beyond what is written." Then you will not take pride in one man
over against another.
Romans 16:25 Now to him
who is able to establish you by my gospel and the proclamation of Jesus Christ,
according to the revelation of the mystery hidden for long ages past, 26but now revealed and made known through the prophetic
writings by the command of the eternal God, so that all nations
might believe and obey him
How does one understand
the Word of God?
1 Corinthians 2:10-14 “but God has revealed it to us by his Spirit.
The Spirit searches all things, even the deep things of God. For who among men knows the thoughts of a man except the man's spirit within him? In the same way no one knows the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God. We have not received the spirit of the world but the Spirit who is from God, that we may understand what God has freely given us. This is what we speak, not in words taught us by human wisdom but in words taught by the Spirit, expressing spiritual truths in spiritual words. The man without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him, and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually discerned.”
What OTC’s fail to tell
you is that even during the time of Jesus and in the first days of the Apostles
founding the early church there were many false teachers and deceivers. Jesus
and the Apostles warned the churches many times of this. Satan started on day
one trying to create confusion, miss-interpretation and lies to deceive people.
Does not every Christian have the Holy Spirit inside of them? Is not every
believer told to know the scriptures?
Romans 8:9-11
9You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit, if the Spirit of God lives in you. And if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Christ. 10But if Christ is in you, your body is dead because of sin, yet your spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, he who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you.
1 Cor
19Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 20you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.
Matthew
Luke 24:45 "Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures."
God allows all of our
minds to understand the Scriptures through the power of the Holy Spirit. The
Holy Spirit teaches, councils and guides us. We are encouraged to do so just
like the Bereans did.
Luke
John 14:26 “But the Counselor, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you.”
Acts
Acts
1 Timothy
Everyone, all public are
to read and learn the Word of God. For the Scriptures are not for “private
interpretation”! The reason why people stay in these false religions and cults
is because they do not read and understand Scripture for themselves. They do not
devote themselves to the reading of Scripture. I encourage everyone to take
what your church and leaders say and apply the test of Scripture against it
just like the Bereans did. I also encourage you to do the same for this study.
2 Peter 3:15-17 “Bear in mind that our Lord's patience means salvation, just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave him. He writes the same way in all his letters, speaking in them of these matters. His letters contain some things that are hard to understand, which ignorant and unstable people distort, as they do the other Scriptures, to their own destruction. Therefore, dear friends, since you already know this, be on your guard so that you may not be carried away by the error of lawless men and fall from your secure position.”
There are some scriptures
that ignorant and unstable people distort. The reason why God just does not
appear out of the sky and make Himself known and crystal clear is that he wants
our decision to follow him to be from the heart and be real. There are some
people who needed to see miracles to believe, but God wants us to believe by
faith and faith alone, for that is the greatest.
We are commanded to be
stewards of God.
1 Corinthians 4:1-3
Let a man so consider us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. 2 Moreover it is required in stewards that one be found faithful. 3 But with me it is a very small thing that I should be judged by you or by a human court. In fact, I do not even judge myself.
And now a few words about
Bible translations, most all cults either create or generate their own
translation or use many different (true and perverted) translations to make
their points. Debate on the validity of certain Bible translations, especially
the modern new age translations is a study in itself. I do cover one of them
later on. I am sticking to the three translations that I consider to be the
most valid and accurate, the KJV, NKJV and NIV. I say this for the following
reasons; I believe strongly that only translations based primarily on the
Textus Receptus are valid. Those translations that choose to render
translations based on Alexandrian manuscripts or the Vaticanus or the Sinaiticus
I consider to be suspect and at the worst perverted and incorrect. While the
NIV does this the general meaning of all of these verses are 95% consistent
between the three I am using.
As a reference I only
consider translations listed at www.bible.com
and www.biblegateway.com to
be accepted in rebuttals (not Lamsa or Moffatt). If one translation has a
widely varying meaning in contrast to the general consensus of all others, that
translation is considered suspect. As always it would be best to go back to the
Greek of the Textus Receptus to get the full original meaning of the word or
verse but that is a bit beyond the scope of this study. At the above web sites
you may compare many different Bible translations against each other. The great
news is that 99% of the time they are all in agreement.
WHAT TRINITARIANS DEFINE THE TRINITY TO BE
Since “One true” churches, cults and other
groups have varying doctrine and theology of God and permutations or
perversions of the Trinity a true Trinitarian definition needs to be defined
for reference in this study. While OTC”s and anti-Trinitarians will disagree
and challenge the plurality or definition of the plurality of God for this
study you must understand our (Trinitarian) beliefs and what we believe the
Word of God says and means.
We believe that God is One (Echad). That there is no other God but God (Elohim) and Lord (Adonai, Yahweh) and all creation and life was created by Him and that he is Lord and Master of all. We believe that God is comprised of three unique, co-equal, and co-eternal individual persons, God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. Trinity is tri (three) unity (one), tri+unity= Trinity. One is defined as “being a single entity, unit, object, or living being”
We do not believe that there are three different gods. We do not say the Father is the Son, the Son is the Spirit or the Spirit is the Father because they are distinct. We believe that they are three eternal persons and that these persons are distinct from one another and are differentiated as Persons but are of one being. We believe that “the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are all deity, fully equal and God. God eternally exists as three persons, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, and each person is fully God, and there is one God”.
Here are some common simple examples for reference. Lets take an egg for example. An egg consists of the eggshell, the egg yoke and the egg white. But it is one egg. Another simple example is H2O, it can exist as water, ice or steam, but in any form it is all H20. Another example would be a human. Lets take Bob for example; Bob has a brother named Dan, a son named Tim and a grandson named Paul. Bob is Dan’s brother but he not Tim’s brother. Bob is Paul’s grandfather but he is not Tim’s grandfather. As you can see, an entity can be more than one thing all at the same time of being in itself one. This is how we view God. God is one but is also three distinct Persons all at the same time. When Bob is being a grandfather to Paul he is not being a grandfather to Dan but he is still being himself, Bob. When a person or church denies one of the three aspects of the plural God other schisms are created and this is how many different false doctrines are created.
There are many times where Jesus Christ claims to be “One” with the Father and where it is mentioned that God is one, or there is one God. I would like to give an English definition of the word “one” for use in the rest of this study.
one (wun)
adj.
- Being a single entity, unit, object, or living being.
- Characterized by unity; undivided: They spoke with one voice.
- Of the same kind or quality: two animals of one species.
- Forming a single entity of two or more components: three chemicals combining into one solution.
- Being a single member or element of a group, category, or kind: I'm just one player on the team.
- Being a single thing in contrast with or relation to another or others of its kind:
THE PLURALITY OF GOD – EVIDENCE OF THE TRINITY
To begin this study on the deity of Jesus Christ and the belief by Trinitarians that God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit are one lets start at the beginning and work our way through. I will underline the verses in order as I go from Genesis to Revelation. For all members of “One true” churches just one verse typically is not going to convince you or change your mind. However you will need to weigh all of the verses with inductive and deductive logical reasoning and make the decision and conclusion, do they all agree with one another and mean what they say, and say what the mean? Please review all of the verses I present with a deep concern and love for the truth of God.
There are some people unfortunately who will not take the time to read through this entire study on their own I have found out. While I hope this is not the case and I encourage all to read this study fully, I have created a Trinity FAQ that summarizes in much shorter form most of the main body content of this study.
http://www.dk777.com/trinityfaq.html
Genesis 1:1 “In
the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.”
Question, if God created Jesus Christ and Jesus did not exist before his time on earth, how could these following verses be correct and also who then exactly did the creating of the universe?
Hebrews 1:1-2 “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe.”
Question, if God created the heavens and the earth but through Jesus the universe was made, doesn’t that signal Jesus is God? Or did God just use Jesus to make the universe by giving him special powers? The thought of special powers is not anywhere in the Bible. Many verses in the OT talk about how God, Elohim, created the universe. Is the simple conclusion that, God created, Jesus made, and they are one?
The following verses about Jesus all inductively confirm and backup the above thought. Again reading these verses in context it is clear that the subject of these verses is Jesus Christ.
John 1:3 “Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.
Colossians
Jude
Hebrews
John 17:5 And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.
This following quote is confirming that it is God who made. God did not endow a separate Jesus with special powers to create the universe. God saw all that He had made. Do these verses conflict or do they confirm? They only conflict if one believes that the Son and the Father are not one.
Genesis 1:31” God saw all that he had made, and it was very good. And there was evening, and there was morning—the sixth day.”
Genesis
Genesis
Genesis 11:7 "Come, let
Us go down there and confuse their language, so
that they will not understand one another’s speech."
Question, if God is only God the Father, singular, then why does He refer to himself in plural form?
“The majority of the time in the Old Testament God referred to Himself in the plural form. (i.e, "Elohim", which is the plural of "Eloha"). There are many OT scriptures where God refers to Himself as "Us" and "We" in plural form. The two plural nouns that are applied to God: God and Lord are almost always plural. These two plural nouns (God - Elohim, Lord - Adonai) are the two most frequently used nouns of God in the Old Testament. Not only are the nouns plural but also the verbs such as make are plural. The plurality of Hebrew verbs follow the noun (us). This is not the case in English.”
The second critical point about this verse is the words image and likeness. Man is created in the plural likeness of God. The question is if you do not believe that the Son and the Holy Spirit are the other components of the plurality of God what is? Many OTC’s veer off in many directions at this point. Some think it was angels, other spirits, and even other gods. Besides some made up ideas we can know through the Bible that at least three entities existed at the time man was created, God, Cherubim and Angels. So the question is can man or Jesus be made by Angels or in the image of angels? We are certainly not made in the image of Cherubim.
1 Corinthians 6:3 “Do you not know that we will judge
angels? How much more the things of this life!”
How can man judge that which created him? If angels are included in "Let US make", then angels AND God are equally our creator. Does it directly say anywhere in the bible that angels created anything or are the creator of man? I cannot find any. Also if God created the angels why would He need the angles to create man?
Does the Bible say angels are the image of God or is Jesus the image of God?
2 Corinthians 4:4 "see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. "
Colossians
Hebrews 1:3 "And He is the radiance of His glory and
the exact representation of His nature,
and upholds all things by the word of His power.
When He had made purification of sins, He sat down at the right hand of the
Majesty on high, "
We are told not to worship angels. We are also told that the Son is superior to angels. I am going to skip ahead and quote the entire chapter of Hebrews 1. These words are so great and pertinent I will highlight in red.
“8But about the Son He says,
"Your throne, O God, will last for ever and ever,””
This is quoting Psalm 45:6-7
6 Your throne, O God, will last forever and ever;
a scepter of justice will be the scepter of your kingdom.
7 You love righteousness and
hate wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has set you above your
companions
by anointing
you with the oil of joy.
God the Father is calling
God the Son (Jesus) GOD!!!!
Psalms 110:1
The LORD says to my Lord:
"Sit at
my right hand
until I make
your enemies
a footstool
for your feet."
2 The LORD will
extend your mighty scepter from
you will rule in the midst of your enemies.
There are many references of God the Father to God the Son in the Old Testament specifically in prophetic verses about the Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 1
The Son
“1In the past
God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various
ways, 2but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed
heir of all things, and through whom he made the universe. 3The Son is the radiance of God's glory and the exact representation of his being, sustaining
all things by his powerful word. After he had provided purification for sins, he sat
down at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven. 4So he became as much superior
to the angels as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs.
5For to which
of the angels did God ever say,
"You are my Son;
today I have
become your Father"? Or again,
"I will be
his Father,
and he will
be my Son"? 6And again, when God brings his firstborn into the world, He
says,
"Let all God's angels worship him." 7In speaking
of the angels he says,
"He makes
his angels winds,
his servants
flames of fire." 8But about the Son he says,
"Your throne, O God, will last
for ever and ever,
and righteousness will be the scepter of your kingdom.
9You have loved
righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God,
has set you above your companions
by anointing you with the oil of joy."
10he also says,
"In the beginning, O Lord, you laid the foundations of the
earth,
and the heavens are the work of your hands.
11They will perish, but you remain;
they will all
wear out like a garment.
12You will roll
them up like a robe;
like a
garment they will be changed.
But you remain
the same,
and your
years will never end." 13To which of the angels did God ever say,
"Sit at
my right hand
until I make
your enemies
a footstool
for your feet"? 14Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve
those who will inherit salvation?”
The answer is rhetorical. The conclusion from reading all of these verses is the simple and clear one that Jesus is not an angel, angels are not in the likeness or image of God but Jesus is, that God is plural and that the plurality of God is not angels, other spirits or gods but Jesus and the Holy Spirit. God even calls the Son, God!
Lastly every place God has a conversation with angels, he never uses a plural we or us. A good example is Genesis 18. If there ever were a place or time to use us/we/our this would be it. However as you will see that does not happen.
Genesis 18:16-17 "Then the [three] men rose up from there, and looked down toward Sodom; and Abraham was walking with them to send them off. Yahweh said, "Shall I [not we] hide from Abraham what I am about to do,"
The question is who then was this person walking on earth, in the flesh, with Abraham? Lets move on.
Genesis 18, 19 - Genesis 19:24 “Then the LORD rained
down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens.”
It is clear that one of these three “men” in this passage of Genesis was God, Yahweh.
Genesis 18:13 “And Yahweh said to Abraham, "Why did Sarah laugh, saying, ‘Shall I indeed bear a child, when I am so old?’"
Genesis 18:17 "Yahweh said, "Shall I hide from Abraham what I am about to do"
There were also two angels present.
Genesis 19:1 "Now the two angels came to Sodom in the evening as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to meet them and bowed down with his face to the ground. "
Genesis 19:13 "for we are about to destroy this place, because their
outcry has become so great before Yahweh that Yahweh has sent us to destroy
it."
Right here the angels who are apart and away from the third man (Who was God in the flesh) state that God sent them and the word Yahweh that was used for the third man, was not used here on these two to describe them. These two angels and the third man, who is God, are separate and are not one. Otherwise a plural form would have been used in the case if angels and God were one, the plural of God. This did not happen.
Now here is the main point of this passage I am getting to:
Genesis 19:24 “Then the LORD rained down burning sulfur on Sodom and Gomorrah—from the LORD out of the heavens.”
Genesis 19:24 "Then Yahweh [on earth in human form] rained on Sodom and Gomorrah brimstone and fire from Yahweh [in spirit form in heaven] out of heaven."
There are two different and unique Yahweh’s present, one on earth, speaking with Abraham and the other in Heaven. “Then the Lord, from the Lord.” That is the use of the differentiating word from. The common understanding is that God became flesh on Earth, as God the Son, Jesus Christ at this time. The word Yahweh is used for both the God on earth and the God in heaven, as they are one, but the word from in this context represents two different persons. What did the early church, the “non-apostatized” church understand this to say?
180 AD Irenaeus "Then the LORD rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah fire and brimstone from the LORD out of heaven." For it here points out that the Son, who had also been talking with Abraham, had received power to judge the Sodomites for their wickedness.”
200 AD Tertullian "That is a still grander statement [of Christ’s deity] which you will find expressly made in the Gospel: A much more ancient testimony [of Christ’s deity] we have also in Genesis: "Then the Lord rained upon Sodom and upon Gomorrah brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven." Now, either deny that this is Scripture; or else (let me ask) what sort of man you are, that you do not think words ought to be taken and understood in the sense in which they are written, especially when they are not expressed in allegories and parables, but in determinate and simple declarations?"
When God manifests Himself in the flesh on Earth, He uses God the Son when he does so. Jesus has dominion and power on Earth, is the Creator of the Earth and universe and is God in the Flesh (John 1:14)
Deuteronomy 6:4-6
4 Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one. 5 Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. 6 These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts.
I have stressed and underlined the word Echad previously in quoting this verse. The following quote is why this is so important and expresses the understanding of the word one (Echad). Excuse the missing words.
Biblical Oneness Defined
“The third word that needs to be examined in the opening statement of the Shema is the word (…). This word is a combination of two Hebrew words in construct form: (…) anachenu, which means "we" or "our," and (…) Elohiym, pronounced Eloheem, which is one of the names of God. When the final! or mem sophit is dropped from the word (…) and the (…) ending is added, the result is the constructed word (…) which means "our God" or "God of us." We want to consider the word as it appears before the construct form. This would be the word (…) which is usually translated "God" but which has a greater meaning of "God above all Gods." The root of this word is (…) (El) and this word, which is in the singular form, is often translated "God" as well. El also has a deeper meaning of power, strength, and might, conveying the idea that our God is a God of strength and power.
It is not our intention to delve into Hebrew grammar, but some points need to be made for the purpose of further discussion. The word El as stated above is in the singular form. The word Elohiym (pronounced Eloheem) is in the plural form. Hebrew words are unique because they can show number, gender, and direction depending upon the prefixes and suffixes that are attached to the root word. For the sake of this discussion, we will only consider the gender and number of the words (…) and (…). Again, we must start with the root of the word, which in this case is (…) (El) and defined as "God." If we wanted to make the word El dual (that is, plural showing more than one but less than three), we could simply add the ending (…) making the word (…) (Eloheyim). This would make the word plural (dual), two in number. Since the word ends with the dual ending of (…) and the final mem (…) or mem sophit, this word is also masculine. In order to make the word plural with reference to "three" as well as masculine, we would write it (…). The (…) ending makes the word masculine and plural, three or more. This is a very important fact in the opening verse of the Shema and would almost make the Shema obscure without this understanding. Understanding this plurality in the Godhead is a very different concept than polytheism. To believe in the plurality in one God does not make one a believer in polytheism. With this understanding, we can see that the first part of the Shema could read, "Hear, understand, and act on the fact, O Israel, the Lord, the God of us [three in number, masculine], the Lord is echad." “
One In Unity
“Now we are ready to consider the most important word in this passage, (…), (pronounced echad). It is this word that brings the richness of understanding and sets the stage for a concept that is developed throughout the rest of the Word of God. Echad has been translated "one" in the Bible. While it certainly does convey the numerical meaning of "one," it should be pointed out again that in Biblical Hebrew, we do not really need a separate word to show a number. This can be done quite easily by the suffix that is added to the root of a word. Once again, a Hebrew word can show not only number, but gender and direction. Since we have a word already present that shows both plurality and gender, there is really no need to specify the number one. Stated another way, the use of the word echad to specify number is not only redundant but contradictory. There must be a deeper meaning to this word. According to Gesenius Hebrew/Chaldee Lexicon To The Old Testament, (…) (echad) means, "to unite, to join together, to be in unity."2 Echad also conveys the idea of being "bound together" like the cords of a rope. The tighter the cords are bound, the greater the strength produced. Echad does indeed mean "one" but it is a oneness that is produced by unity. We see this idea of echad in Genesis 2:23-24 when Adam said, "This is now bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh: she shall be called woman because she was taken out of man. Therefore shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one ((…) echad) flesh." Here we see two distinct individuals declared as "one" flesh. This is not talking about one in number but one in unity, harmony, peace, and the sharing of common goals. Adam and Eve were joined together, twisted, bound, and wrapped together in singleness of purpose.
In Matthew 19:3-6 Jesus says that when a man and woman are married, the two of them become one (…) flesh. They are united, joined, and wrapped together like the cords of a rope. They have singleness of purpose in marriage, and no man should try to destroy that unity. This unity does not destroy the diversity nor the individuality of the people in the relationship.
This is the very idea presented in the Shema. We have seen that Eloheem (…) is both plural and masculine. What is being said in this statement, "Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one"? Israel: hear, understand, and act on the fact that our God is a God of unity, and that this plurality and unity of the Godhead is tightly bound together like the cords of a rope. They have singleness of purpose, and you should partake of this unity by sharing the same goals with God.”
http://www.restorationfoundation.org/volume%2011/44_17.htm
Douglas A. Wheeler, Ph.D., TH.D
Job 40:6-9 “Then the Lord spoke to Job out of the storm: 7 “Brace yourself like a man; I will question you, and you shall answer me. 8 Would you discredit my justice? Would you condemn me to justify yourself? 9 Do you have an arm like God’s, and can your voice thunder like his?””
Hmm, to whom is the ‘Lord’ (God) speaking / referencing to with Job out of the storm here? Why reference externally, “like God’s” not like mine, “thunder like his” not thunder like mine”? If God is not plural and God is only the Father this verse seems to make no logical sense. However for those who believe in a plural and triune God, it makes perfect sense.
The Lord God continues speaking to Job in the following verses out of the storm:
Job 40:15-19 “Look at the behemoth, which I made along with you and which feeds on grass like an ox. 16 What strength he has in his loins, what power in the muscles of his belly! 17 His tail sways like a cedar; the sinews of his thighs are close-knit. 18 His bones are tubes of bronze, his limbs like rods of iron. 19 He ranks first among the works of God, yet his Maker can approach him with his sword.”
“His Maker” not Me or I. We see the same externally referenced non-singular use of nouns here. In the Genesis section above we clearly see who our “Maker” is, the Son of God, Jesus Christ, who sits at the right arm of God the Father.
A now a word from God on those who cunningly and with error and folly spread lies about God such as the cults and false religions this study references to:
Job 42:7-8 “After the Lord has said these things to Job, he said to Eliphaz the Temanite, “I am angry with you and your two friends, because you have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has. 8 So now take seven bulls and seven rams and go to my servant Job and sacrifice a burnt offering for yourselves. My servant Job will pray for you, and I will accept his prayer and not deal with you according to your folly. You have not spoken of me what is right, as my servant Job has.”
Reading Job one can see how many foolish and false men preach and teach utterly false notions of God just as the friends of Job did. They may sound like they know what they are talking about and their debating skills may be in such a way as to be very convincing. However look at the serious response that God has to such men. Does God stop accepting the prayers of these types of people? It is wise to be 100% certain of that what you preach and teach. I for one do not want God angry with me for teaching falsities.
Isaiah 6:1 “In the year of King Uzziah’s death, I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and
exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple.”
Isaiah 6:8 "Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, "Whom shall I send,
and who will go for Us?""
Besides of the use again of the plural “Us” and Elohim, this verse as well as Isaiah 53:1 are referenced in the New Testament by John in John 12.
John 12:37-45 “37Even after Jesus had done all
these miraculous signs in their presence, they still would not believe in him.
38This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet:
"Lord, who has believed our message
and to whom
has the arm of the Lord been revealed?”
39For this reason they could not believe, because, as Isaiah says elsewhere:
40"He has
blinded their eyes
and deadened
their hearts,
so they can
neither see with their eyes,
nor
understand with their hearts,
nor turn—and
I would heal them.] 41Isaiah said this because he saw
Jesus' glory and spoke about him.
42Yet at the
same time many even among the leaders believed in him. But because of the
Pharisees they would not confess their faith for fear they would be put out of
the synagogue; 43for they loved praise from men more than praise from God.