Week 28: Jesus is the "Unique Son of God" (John 3:16)

John 3:16 The last three weeks, we've gone over four passages that talk about the "sons of God" in the OT.1 In Psalm 82, we saw God standing in the midst of the elohim for judgment. This was a picture of God's throne room-- of his heavenly council. These elohim were called "sons of the Most High," but they were threatened with death because they failed to exercise their authority rightly. In Psalm 97, starting halfway through verse 7, we read this: Bow down to him-- all [you] Elohim/gods.2 Zion heard and was glad, and the daughters of Judah rejoiced because of your exercising authority, Yahweh, (9) because you, Yahweh, [are] Most High (Elyon), Over all the earth you are greatly exalted ` over all the gods/Elohim. What this psalm teaches us is that Yahweh is God Most High. Even though Yahweh can be called "elohim," and the sons of God can be called "elohim," this doesn't mean that they are equals, by any means. These sons of God answer to Yahweh. They bow down to him. They are beneath him. And then last week, we looked at Job 1. There, we saw a picture of what the divine council looks like. The sons of God would come from around the world, where they had been exercising authority, to give an account of how things were going. But one son of God, the Adversary, had a special role. His job was simply to roam, and to accuse. Now, in all of this, if I talk for long enough about the "sons of God," you should eventually find yourself asking the obvious question here. Who is Jesus? Jesus is the Son of Man. But he is also the Son of God. And our whole lives, that's exactly how we've said it. He is "the" Son of God. And then, if you stop and think about it, John 3:13-18 will pop in your head: (13) and no one has ascended into heaven, except only the one from heaven having descended-- the son of man, (14) and just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, in this way the son of man must be lifted up, in order that each one giving allegiance to him will have eternal life. (16) For in this way God loved the world, so that He gave his [one and only/only begotten/unique] son, in order that each one giving allegiance to him shall not perish but shall have eternal life. (17) For God didn't send his son into the world, in order that he would condemn the world, but in order that the world would be saved through him. (18) The one giving allegiance to him isn't condemned. Now, the one not giving allegiance already has been condemned, because he has not given allegiance to the name of the unique son of God. For as often as we've heard John 3:16, if we stop to think about it, we should realize that there are things here we don't understand about who Jesus is. Especially since this is one of those verses many of you memorized in the KJV: NIV: 16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. ESV: For God so loved the world,[a] that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. KJV: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. Is Jesus the "one and only" son of God? The "only" son? The "only begotten" son? Was Jesus "born"? A wise man (Randy Jaspers) once said (paraphrasing slightly) that Greek is something best worn lightly by preachers. It should be obvious you've worked in it (if you know it), but it's not something you find yourself really talking about very much. And, as a rule, I think that's wise. But here, we are talking about the one who is at the heart of everything we are, and do. Who is Jesus, really? The Greek word here describing what type of son Jesus is, is μονογενής. When we check in one of the standard lexicons (BDAG), we read that it can mean one of two things. Either, (1) it "pertains to being the only one of its kind within a specific relationship, one and only, only." Or, (2) it "pertains to being the only one of its kind or class, unique." So let's look at some examples from the Bible and the Apocrypha. Our first one comes from the Greek OT, in Judges 11:34. "And Jephthah came to Massepha to his house, and LOOK! His daughter was coming out3 to meet him with timbrels and dancing, and this one was [his] μονογενής. There wasn't to him another son or daughter." Here, the word clearly means "only," or "one and only." Now, let's read the words of someone named "Sarah" from Tobit 3:14-15. I have no idea what this is about. I've never read it before. 14 You know, O Master, that I am innocent of any defilement with a man, 15 and that I have not disgraced my name or the name of my father in the land of my exile. I am my father's only child; he has no other child to be his heir; and he has no close relative or other kindred for whom I should keep myself as wife. 4 So the word very obviously can mean "only," or "one and only." (And it would've been nice if Heiser had acknowledged that in his book). Let's look at one more example, mostly because it's a really interesting story. Tobit 8. Basically, there is this woman named Sarah, who is single. Every time she marries someone, a demon comes and kills her husband before they can become one. And this has happened seven times. Now, she's on her eighth husband, Tobias. This is their first night as a married couple. Oh, I should say that her dad's name is Raguel. And her dad is prepared for the worst: 8 When they had finished eating and drinking they wanted to retire; so they took the young man and brought him into the bedroom. 2 Then Tobias remembered the words of Raphael [a good divine being of some type], and he took the fish's liver and heart out of the bag where he had them and put them on the embers of the incense. 3 The odor of the fish so repelled the demon that he fled to the remotest parts of Egypt. But Raphael followed him, and at once bound him there hand and foot.5 4 When the parents had gone out and shut the door of the room, Tobias got out of bed and said to Sarah, "Sister, get up, and let us pray and implore our Lord that he grant us mercy and safety." 5 So she got up, and they began to pray and implore that they might be kept safe. Tobias began by saying, "Blessed are you, O God of our ancestors, and blessed is your name in all generations forever. Let the heavens and the whole creation bless you forever. 6 You made Adam, and for him you made his wife Eve as a helper and support. From the two of them the human race has sprung. You said, 'It is not good that the man should be alone; let us make a helper for him like himself.' 7 I now am taking this kinswoman of mine, not because of lust, but with sincerity. Grant that she and I may find mercy and that we may grow old together." 8 And they both said, "Amen, Amen." 9 Then they went to sleep for the night. But Raguel arose and called his servants to him, and they went and dug a grave, 10 for he said, "It is possible that he will die and we will become an object of ridicule and derision." 11 When they had finished digging the grave, Raguel went into his house and called his wife, 12 saying, "Send one of the maids and have her go in to see if he is alive. But if he is dead, let us bury him without anyone knowing it."6 13 So they sent the maid, lit a lamp, and opened the door; and she went in and found them sound asleep together. 14 Then the maid came out and informed them that he was alive and that nothing was wrong. 15 So they blessed the God of heaven, and Raguel said, "Blessed are you, O God, with every pure blessing; let all your chosen ones bless you. Let them bless you forever. 16 Blessed are you because you have made me glad. It has not turned out as I expected, but you have dealt with us according to your great mercy. 17 Blessed are you because you had compassion on two only children. Be merciful to them, O Master, and keep them safe; bring their lives to fulfillment in happiness and mercy." 18 Then he ordered his servants to fill in the grave before daybreak. 7 μονογενής here again means "one and only." We have two only children, who God protected, and blessed. Now let's look at two examples, where μονογενής means "unique." The first is found in 1 Clement 25, where Clement describes the mythical bird called the Phoenix. And he apparently thinks this is a real thing, which is amusing: 25. Let us consider the marvellous sign which is seen in the regions of the east, that is, in the parts about Arabia. 2There is a bird, which is named the phoenix. This, being the only one of its kind, liveth for five hundred years; and when it hath now reached the time of its dissolution that it should die, it maketh for itself a coffin of frankincense and myrrh and the other spices, into the which in the fulness of time it entereth, and so it dieth. 3But, as the flesh rotteth, a certain worm is engendered, which is nurtured from the moisture of the dead creature and putteth forth wings. Then, when it is grown lusty, it taketh up that coffin where are the bones of its parent, and carrying them journeyeth from the country of Arabia even unto Egypt, to the place called the City of the Sun; 4and in the day time in the sight of all, flying to the altar of the Sun, it layeth them thereupon; and this done, it setteth forth to return. 5So the priests examine the registers of the times, and they find that it hath come when the five hundredth year is completed.8 Only the Phoenix lives for 500 years, dies, and is resurrected. lol. The bird is "one of a kind." "Unique." Now, closer to the point, let's read from Hebrews 11:17-19. (17) By faith, Abraham offered Isaac, while he was being tested, and his unique/only son, he was offering-- --the one the promises having received-- --toward whom it was said, "In Isaac, they will be named-- your seed-- reasoning that even from the dead to raise him, God was able, from which, him, also in a parable/figure he received. So here's the thing about this passage. Abraham, at this point in Genesis, has another son-- Ishmael (Genesis 16:1-4; later he will have 6 more in Genesis 26:1, 6). So Isaac is not Abraham's "one and only" son. Isaac is Abraham's "unique" son. He is the one who received the promises. Abraham's seed would be counted through Isaac. I think this is the idea behind John 3:16-18. God has lots of sons. But one son, in particular, is unique: Jesus (and Heiser was very helpful here). Let me say one more thing about the Greek word before I leave it. The KJV translates it "only begotten." Which makes us wonder, was Jesus born? The KJV here misunderstands the word. μονογενής is a compound word (again, Heiser, The Unseen Realm, was super helpful here). μόνος, γένος The KJV assumes that the last part of the word is from γεννητός -ή -όν γεννάω begotten9 But it's actually from the word we use in science, "genus" (and Brill, and Liddell/Scott lexicons both agree with this). Which means something like "class, group, species." [crosses my fingers and hopes my brother-in-law doesn't see me sciencing]. So the idea is not that Jesus was "the only born" son of God. The same book-- the gospel of John-- says that Jesus is preexistent. The Word was with God in the beginning. It's all of the other sons of God who were created beings. Let's read from Colossians 1:15-20: 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. 16 For by[f] him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things were created through him and for him. 17 And he is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in everything he might be preeminent. 19 For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. Jesus is a son of God. But Colossians shows that he is unique. Exceptional. Everything was created through Jesus-- including every other son of God. All of God's fullness dwells in him. All of the world can be reconciled to God (including fallen divine beings, apparently??), through Jesus' blood. He is "before" all things, above all things. He is the one holding everything together. And everything exists "for" him. So, originally, Psalm 82 may have bothered you because you wondered how the sons of God, and God, could both be called "elohim." I reassured you, hopefully, that Yahweh is God Most High. He is superior. I'm hoping, at the end of this, that I've managed to reassure you about Jesus, as well. God has many sons. But He has no one else like Jesus. Jesus is truly God's "unique" son. ------------------------------------------------------------------------- "Firstborn" here doesn't have to mean he was the first created. The focus is on the special status he has as the "firstborn," (so also, BDAG). David, in the LXX of Psalm 88 (Psalm 89 in our Bibles), is described like this: I found my servant David. With holy compassion I anointed him. 22 *For my hand will help him, and my arm will overpower him. 23 *An enemy will not benefit in him, and a son of lawlessness will not continue to afflict him. 24 *And I will cut up his enemies from before him, and those who hate him I will put to flight. 25 *And my truth and my mercy are with him, and in my name his horn will be raised up. 26 *And I will place his hand in the sea, and his right hand in rivers. 27 *He will call me, 'You are my father, my God, and the protector of my salvation.' 28 *And I will place him as firstborn, high above the kings of the earth. 29 *Forever I will keep my mercy for him, and my covenant is faithful to him. 30 *And I will establish his seed forever and ever, and his throne as the days of heaven. 10 -------------------------------------------------- 1 just casually slotting this in after Job 1, before Psalm 8. lol. 2 LXX (Greek OT): "Worship him, all his angels." 3 a nice example of how the imperfect verb raises expectations that something else will follow. Which really doesn't matter here. lol. 4 The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. (1989). (Tob 3:14-15). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers. 5 So a good angel? son of God? binds him, to keep him from killing this husband. 6 lol. 7 The Holy Bible: New Revised Standard Version. (1989). (Tob 8:1-18). Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers. 8 Lightfoot, J. B., & Harmer, J. R. (1891). The Apostolic Fathers (p. 68). London: Macmillan and Co. 9 Montanari, F. (2015). M. Goh & C. Schroeder (Eds.), The Brill Dictionary of Ancient Greek. Leiden; Boston: Brill. 10 Brannan, R., Penner, K. M., Loken, I., Aubrey, M., & Hoogendyk, I. (Eds.). (2012). The Lexham English Septuagint (Ps 88:21-30). Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press. --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------ --------------- ------------------------------------------------------------