Part 2 - The Trinity of God
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Article I - The Triunity of God
We believe God is triune, one Being (Heb. Echad) eternally existing in three co-equal Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; these divine Persons, together possessing the same eternal perfections, work inseparably and harmoniously in creating, sustaining, and redeeming the world.
(; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; , ; ; ; )
The Word Trinity or Tri-Unity
The Word Trinity or Tri-Unity
The word trinity is never found in the Bible, though the idea represented by the word is taught in many places. The word trinity means “tri-unity” or “three-in-oneness.” It is used to summarize the teaching of Scripture that God is three persons yet one God
The word Trinity is not used in the Bible therefore the Trinity does not exist.
The word Bank is never in the Bible but the Bible teaches the idea.
The name William is never in the Bible but William exists.
Two Fallacies at Work Here
Two Fallacies at Work Here
Fallacy of Question-Framing
“When did you stop beating your wife?”
“When did you start adding words to the Bible?”
A non sequitur
This error occurs when the conclusions “do not follow” from the evidence and arguments presented.
The child with no siblings knows nothing about family relational dynamics. The only way to truly know family relational dynamics is by having more than one child.
The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love.
The person without love has known nothing of God. The only way to know God is through a loving relationship.
Non Sequitur on the Trinity: The person who believes in the Trinity of God does not truly know God. The only way to know if God is trinity is if that word occurs in the Bible.
Consider the Hebrew Bible
Consider the Hebrew Bible
What would you say is the strongest passage in support of the doctrine of the Trinity in the Hebrew Bible?
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Im Anfang schuf Gott die Himmel und die Erde.
“Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.
Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and a scepter of justice is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore, God, your God, anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions.
A psalm of David. Adonai declares to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”
Adonai will extend your mighty rod from Zion: “Rule in the midst of your enemies.”
The Lord says to my lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”
The Strongest Possible Verse for Monotheism:
The Strongest Possible Verse for Monolatry:
The Strongest Possible Verse for Trinity:
Monotheism vs. Monolatry
Monotheism vs. Monolatry
Monolatry - Commitment to one god without denying the existence of other gods.
Though all the peoples will walk each in the name of his god, so we ourselves will walk in the Name of Adonai Eloheinu, forever and ever.
For great is Adonai, and greatly to be praised. He is to be feared above all gods.
Let all who serve graven images be ashamed—who boast in idols. Bow down before Him, all you gods!
“This month will mark the beginning of months for you; it is to be the first month of the year for you.
“For I will go through the land of Egypt on that night and strike down every firstborn, both men and animals, and I will execute judgments against all the gods of Egypt. I am Adonai.
“Hear O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one.
Hear, O Israel! The LORD is our God, the LORD alone. - NJPS
The JPS Torah Commentary: Deuteronomy The Duty of Undivided Loyalty to the Lord and Constant Awareness of His Teachings (6:4–9)
The present translation indicates that the verse is a description of the proper relationship between YHVH and Israel: He alone is Israel’s God. This is not a declaration of monotheism, meaning that there is only one God. That point was made in 4:35 and 39, which state that “YHVH alone is God.” The present verse, by adding the word “our,” focuses on the way Israel is to apply that truth: though other peoples worship various beings and things they consider divine (see Comment to 3:24), Israel is to recognize YHVH alone.
Which Monotheism?
Which Monotheism?
Enlightenment Monotheism - there is one and only one (yachid not echad) God who lives separate from and detached from all things and all people.
Jewish Creational Monotheism - the belief that there is one God who by Himself with no help or aid made the cosmos by Himself.
Enlightenment Monotheism
Jewish Covenantal Monotheism - a claim about the unique creator God who defines himself by his covenant with Israel and the particular name YHWH that cannot be abstracted from his particular identity in his history with Israel. - Richard Bauckham. Jesus and the God of Israel: God Crucified and Other Studies on the New Testament's Christology of Divine Identity
The Idea stated in the Hebrew Bible
The Idea stated in the Hebrew Bible
Richard Bauckham. Jesus and the God of Israel: God Crucified and Other Studies on the New Testament's Christology of Divine Identity (Kindle Locations 1115-1116). Kindle Edition.
In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Bible Doctrine 1. Partial Revelation in the Old Testament
אֱלֹהִים
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Facts about the Hebrew Proper Noun Elohim (אֱלֹהִים)
It is a plural noun.
It uses verb forms that are singular and not plural (Genesis 1:1).
It uses pronouns that are plural in form (; ; ; ).
Then Adonai Elohim said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil. So now, in case he stretches out his hand and takes also from the Tree of Life and eats and lives forever,”
Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness! Let them rule over the fish of the sea, over the flying creatures of the sky, over the livestock, over the whole earth, and over every crawling creature that crawls on the land.”
Then Adonai Elohim said, “Behold, the man has become like one of Us, knowing good and evil. So now, in case he stretches out his hand and takes also from the Tree of Life and eats and lives forever,”
Facts About the Hebrew Word Echad (אֶחָד).
It can refer to one unique person (Jud 13:2) or certain day ()
The words of the wise are like goads, their collective sayings are like firmly affixed nails. They have been given by one Shepherd.
Do we not all have one Father? Has not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously —a man against his brother— defiling the covenant of our fathers?
It often expresses a unity while recognizing diversity.
But Adonai said to him, “Surely I will be with you, and you will strike down Midian as if it were one man.”
If you kill these people all at once, the nations who have heard this report about You will say,
Then make 50 clasps of gold, and couple the curtains one to another with the clasps, so that the Tabernacle may be one piece.
This is why a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife; and they become one flesh.
It
Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and a scepter of justice is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore, God, your God, anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions.
Who is David talking about in v. 7?
Who is David talking about in v. 7?
You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness. Therefore, God, your God, anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions.
But regarding the Son He says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, and a scepter of uprightness is the scepter of Your Kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your companions.”
A psalm of David. Adonai declares to my Lord: “Sit at My right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for Your feet.”
Psalm 110:1
Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Yeshua asked them a question,
saying, “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose Son is He?” “David’s,” they say to Him.
“Then how is it,” He says to them, “that David by the Ruach calls him ‘Lord’?
For he says, ‘Adonai said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, until I put Your enemies under Your feet.” ’
If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?”
No one was able to answer Him a word. Nor did anyone dare from that day on to question Him any longer.
Summary of the Hebrew Bible: Even without the Brit Chadashah’s teaching on the Trinity, it seems clear that the writers of the Hebrew Bible, especially David, were aware of a plurality of persons in the one God.
At Beth El shalom we believe the evidence of the Hebrew Bible points us in the direction of a Jewish covenantal monotheism, not enlightenment monotheism, that sees God as a unity with plurality who defines himself by his covenant with Israel and the particular name YHWH that cannot be abstracted from his particular identity in his history with Israel.
But even without the New Testament teaching on the Trinity, it seems clear that David was aware of a plurality of persons in one God
Considering the Brit Chadashah
Considering the Brit Chadashah
The Early Jewish Writers of Scripture held to God’s Oneness
You believe that God is one. You do well. The demons also believe—and shudder!
Therefore concerning the eating of idol sacrifices, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is no God but one.
For there is one God and there is one Mediator between God and men—a human, Messiah Yeshua, who gave Himself as a ransom for all—the testimony at the proper time.
The Early Jewish Writers of Scripture included Yeshua as part of the One God.
yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Yeshua the Messiah, through whom are all things, and we exist through Him. But that knowledge is not in everyone—some, so accustomed to idols up until now, eat food as an idol sacrifice; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled.
“who has known the mind of Adonai, that he will instruct Him?” But we have the mind of Messiah.
Brothers and sisters, my heart’s desire and my prayer to God for Israel is for their salvation.
For I testify about them that they have zeal for God—but not based on knowledge.
For being ignorant of God’s righteousness and seeking to establish their own, they did not submit themselves to the righteousness of God.
For Messiah is the goal of the Torah as a means to righteousness for everyone who keeps trusting.
For Moses writes about the righteousness that is based on Torah, “The man who does these things shall live by them.”
But the righteousness based on faith speaks in this way: “Do not say in your heart, ‘Who will go up into heaven?’ (that is, to bring Messiah down),
or, ‘Who will go down into the abyss?’ (that is, to bring Messiah up from the dead).”
But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” —that is, the word of faith that we are proclaiming:
For if you confess with your mouth that Yeshua is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
For with the heart it is believed for righteousness, and with the mouth it is confessed for salvation.
For the Scripture says, “Whoever trusts in Him will not be put to shame.”
For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord is Lord of all—richly generous to all who call on Him.
For “Everyone who calls upon the name of Adonai shall be saved.”
Romans 10:
In the beginning was the Word. The Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. All things were made through Him, and apart from Him nothing was made that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.
Who, though existing in the form of God, did not consider being equal to God a thing to be grasped.
But He emptied Himself— taking on the form of a slave, becoming the likeness of men and being found in appearance as a man.
He humbled Himself— becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.
For this reason God highly exalted Him and gave Him the name that is above every name,
that at the name of Yeshua every knee should bow, in heaven and on the earth and under the earth,
and every tongue profess that Yeshua the Messiah is Lord— to the glory of God the Father.
The Early Jewish Writers of Scripture included the Spirit as part of the One God.
He is specifically given the title God.
yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things, and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Yeshua the Messiah, through whom are all things, and we exist through Him. But that knowledge is not in everyone—some, so accustomed to idols up until now, eat food as an idol sacrifice; and their conscience, being weak, is defiled.
Acts 5:3-4
But Peter said, “Ananias, why has satan filled your heart to lie to the Ruach ha-Kodesh and keep back part of the proceeds of the land?
While it remained unsold, it was your own, wasn’t it? And after it was sold, wasn’t it at your disposal? How did this deed get into your heart? You haven’t lied to men but to God.”
He is specifically given the title Lord.
But Peter said, “Ananias, why has satan filled your heart to lie to the Ruach ha-Kodesh and keep back part of the proceeds of the land?
While it remained unsold, it was your own, wasn’t it? And after it was sold, wasn’t it at your disposal? How did this deed get into your heart? You haven’t lied to men but to God.”
But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. Now the Lord is the Spirit and where the Ruach Adonai is, there is freedom. But we all, with unveiled face beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory—just as from the Lord, who is the Spirit.
New Testament VII: 1–2 Corinthians The Spirit
THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA: If Paul had wanted to say that the Lord is a spirit, he would have left the article the out. Compare John [4:24], where in speaking to the Samaritan woman, Jesus says that God is a spirit, meaning that he does not have a body. But in this case Paul puts the article in, which proves that he is not saying that the Lord is a spirit but rather that the Spirit is Lord.
He is the personal representation of Messiah to the Disciples.
I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper so He may be with you forever— the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not behold Him or know Him. You know Him, because He abides with you and will be in you. I will not abandon you as orphans; I will come to you.
He is said to have all the traits expected of a divine being.
He is Omniscient
But God revealed these things to us through the Ruach. For the Ruach searches all things—even the depths of God. For who among men knows the things of a man, except the man’s spirit within him? In the same way, no one knows the things of God except the Ruach Elohim.
He is Omnipresent
Psalm 139:7
Where can I go from Your Ruach? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to heaven, You are there, and if I make my bed in Sheol, look, You are there too.
For the music director: a psalm of David. Adonai, You searched me and know me. Whenever I sit down or stand up, You know it. You discern my thinking from afar. You observe my journeying and my resting and You are familiar with all my ways. Even before a word is on my tongue, behold, Adonai, You know all about it. You hemmed me in behind and before, and laid Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me, too lofty for me to attain. Where can I go from Your Ruach? Where can I flee from Your presence? If I go up to heaven, You are there, and if I make my bed in Sheol, look, You are there too. If I take the wings of the dawn and settle on the other side of the sea, even there Your hand will lead me, and Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say: “Surely darkness covers me, night keeps light at a distance from me,” even darkness is not dark for You, and night is as bright as day— darkness and light are alike. For You have created my conscience. You knit me together in my mother’s womb. I praise You, for I am awesomely, wonderfully made! Wonderful are Your works— and my soul knows that very well. My frame was not hidden from You when I was made in the secret place, when I was woven together in the depths of the earth. Your eyes saw me when I was unformed, and in Your book were written the days that were formed— when not one of them had come to be. How precious are Your thoughts, O God! How great is the sum of them! Were I to count them, they would outnumber the grains of sand! When I awake, I am still with You. If only You would slay the wicked, O God! Away from me, you bloody men! For they speak about You with wicked intent. Your enemies reproach You in vain. Do I not hate those who hate You, Adonai? Do I not loathe those who rise against You? I hate them with total hatred— I consider them my enemies. Search me, O God, and know my heart. Examine me, and know my anxious thoughts, and see if there be any offensive way within me, and lead me in the way everlasting.
He is Omnipotent
Now the earth was chaos and waste, darkness was on the surface of the deep, and the Ruach Elohim was hovering upon the surface of the water.
Now the earth was chaos and waste, darkness was on the surface of the deep, and the Ruach Elohim was hovering upon the surface of the water.
He is Omnibenevolent
And hope does not disappoint, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Ruach ha-Kodesh who was given to us.
He is Eternal
He is Eternal
how much more will the blood of Messiah—who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God—cleanse our conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
Do not grieve the Ruach ha-Kodesh of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
He can be grieved
But they rebelled, and grieved His Ruach ha-Kodesh. So He turned to become their enemy. He Himself fought against them.
For the flesh sets its desire against the Ruach, but the Ruach sets its desire against the flesh—for these are in opposition to one another, so that you cannot do what you want.
He prays on our behalf.
But you, loved ones, continue building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Ruach ha-Kodesh.
In the same way, the Ruach helps in our weakness. For we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Ruach Himself intercedes for us with groans too deep for words. And He who searches the hearts knows the mind of the Ruach, because He intercedes for the kedoshim according to the will of God.
teaching them to observe all I have commanded you. And remember! I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
He receives equal honor alongside of the Father and the Son
Matthew 28:
And Yeshua came up to them and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, immersing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Ruach ha-Kodesh,
He works along side of the Father and the Son
Now the earth was chaos and waste, darkness was on the surface of the deep, and the Ruach Elohim was hovering upon the surface of the water.
Draw near to Me, hear this: Since the beginning, I have not spoken in secret. From the time it existed, I was there. So now Adonai Elohim has sent Me, and His Ruach.”
Institutes of the Christian Religion Chapter XIII: The Unity of the Divine Essence in Three Persons Taught, in Scripture, from the Foundation of the World
And it is by no means an obscure testimony which Moses bears in the history of the creation, when he says that the Spirit of God was expanded over the abyss or shapeless matter; for it shows not only that the beauty which the world displays is maintained by the invigorating power of the Spirit, but that even before this beauty existed the Spirit was at work cherishing the confused mass. Again, no cavils can explain away the force of what Isaiah says, “And now the Lord God, and his Spirit, hath sent me,” (Isa. 48:16,) thus ascribing a share in the sovereign power of sending the prophets to the Holy Spirit. (Calvin in Acts 20:28.) In this his divine majesty is clear.
Implications of the Doctrine of the Holy Spirit
Implications of the Doctrine of the Holy Spirit
A correct understanding of who and what the Holy Spirit is carries certain implications:
The Holy Spirit is a person, not a vague force. Thus, he is someone with whom we can have a personal relationship, someone to whom we can and should pray.
The Holy Spirit, being fully divine, is to be accorded the same honor and respect that we give to the Father and the Son. It is appropriate to worship him as we do them. He should not be thought of as in any sense inferior in essence to them, although his role may sometimes be subordinated to theirs.
The Holy Spirit is one with the Father and the Son. His work is the expression and execution of what the three of them have planned together. There is no tension among their persons and activities.
God is not far off. In the Holy Spirit, the Triune God comes close, so close as to actually enter into each believer. He is even more intimately involved with us now than in the incarnation. Through the operation of the Spirit he has truly become Immanuel, “God with us.”
Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, 3rd ed. (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2013), 787.
If we have the Holy Spirit nothing else matters, if we do not have the Holy Spirit nothing else matters. - Barbara Brown Taylor