I continue from where I left off (https://islamunmasked.com/2020/06/16/does-the-quran-reject-christs-eternal-generation-pt-1/).

Is Begetting the same as creating?

 Contrary to the assertion of the Muhammadan, begetting and creating are not necessarily synonymous as far as the Holy Bible is concerned.

For instance, Israel’s king is said to have been begotten by God on the day he began ruling on God’s throne as God’s earthly representative:

“But as for Me, I have installed My King Upon Zion, My holy mountain. I will surely tell of the decree of the Lord: He said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You (yalidtika).’” Psalm 2:6-7

“‘I have made a covenant with My chosen, I have sworn to My servant David: Your seed I will establish forever, And build up your throne to all generations.’… Then You spoke in a vision to Your holy one, And said: ‘I have given help to one who is mighty; I have exalted one chosen from the people. I have found My servant David; With My holy oil I have anointed him, With whom My hand shall be established; Also My arm shall strengthen him. The enemy shall not outwit him, Nor the son of wickedness afflict him. I will beat down his foes before his face, And plague those who hate him. But My faithfulness and My mercy shall be with him, And in My name his horn shall be exalted. Also I will set his hand over the sea, And his right hand over the rivers. He shall cry to Me, “You are my Father, My God, and the rock of my salvation.” Also I will make him My firstborn, The highest of the kings of the earth.’” Psalm 89:3-4, 19-27

“However the LORD God of Israel chose me above all the house of my father to be king over Israel forever, for He has chosen Judah to be the ruler. And of the house of Judah, the house of my father, and among the sons of my father, He was pleased with me to make me king over all Israel. And of all my sons (for the LORD has given me many sons) He has chosen my son Solomon to sit on the throne of the kingdom of the LORD over Israel. Now He said to me, ‘It is your son Solomon who shall build My house and My courts; for I have chosen him to be My son, and I will be his Father.’” 1 Chronicles 28:4-6

“Then Solomon sat on the throne of the LORD as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him.” 1 Chronicles 29:23

“Blessed be the LORD your God, who delighted in you, setting you on His throne to be king for the LORD your God! Because your God has loved Israel, to establish them forever, therefore He made you king over them, to do justice and righteousness.” 2 Chronicles 9:8

“And now you think to withstand the kingdom of the LORD, which is in the hand of the sons of David; and you are a great multitude, and with you are the gold calves which Jeroboam made for you as gods.” 2 Chronicles 13:8

Now, who would claim that David and his heirs were not already consciously alive before God begot them to reign on his throne over Israel?

Interestingly, the NT writings ascribe Psalm 2:7 to Jesus’ post-resurrection ascension into heaven to sit enthroned alongside the Father:

“And we preach to you the good news of the promise made to the fathers, that God has fulfilled this promise to our children in that He raised up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, ‘You are My Son; today I have begotten You (gegenneka).’” Acts 13:32-33

“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, having become as much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they. For to which of the angels did He ever say, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You (gegenneka)’? And again, ‘I will be a Father to Him And He shall be a Son to Me’?” Hebrews 1:3-5

Once again, who would even argue that Christ wasn’t already alive before he physically ascended into his Father’s heavenly presence to begin his reign as King of kings and Lord of lords?

“Men and brethren, let me speak freely to you of the patriarch David, that he is both dead and buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, He would raise up the Christ to sit on his throne, he, foreseeing this, spoke concerning the resurrection of the Christ, that His soul was not left in Hades, nor did His flesh see corruption. This Jesus God has raised up, of which we are all witnesses. Therefore being exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He poured out this which you now see and hear. For David did not ascend into the heavens, but he says himself: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”’ Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly that God has made this Jesus, whom you crucified, both Lord and Christ.” Acts 2:29-36

“and what is the exceeding greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His mighty power which He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, FAR ABOVE all principality and power and might and dominion, and EVERY NAME that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come. And He put all things under His feet, and gave Him to be head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” Ephesians 1:19-23

“Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. For Christ has not entered the holy places made with hands, which are copies of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us; not that He should offer Himself often, as the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood of another—He then would have had to suffer often since the foundation of the world; but now, once at the end of the ages, He has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. And as it is appointed for men to die once, but after this the judgment, so Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation.” Hebrews 9:23-28

“and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler over the kings of the earth. To Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood,” Revelation 1:5

“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.” Revelation 17:14

Does Being Created Imply Non-Existence?

It may come as a surprise to this Muhammadan to learn that even the verb create doesn’t necessarily imply something being created from nothing, e.g., bringing something into existence/being from non-existence/being. Nor does it mean to be created from matter.

For instance, the Jewish writings describe God creating wisdom before all things:

“I, wisdom, dwell in prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion… The LORD created me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old. Ages ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth. When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. Before the mountains had been shaped, before the hills, I was brought forth;” Proverbs 8:12, 22-25 Revised Standard Version (RSV)

“Wisdom was created (ektistai) before all things, and prudent understanding from eternity.” Sirach 1:4 RSV

However, this does not mean that the Lord brought wisdom into existence from nothing. Rather, wisdom came forth from God himself, since it proceeded from his mouth so to speak:

“For the LORD gives wisdom; From His mouth come knowledge and understanding;” Proverbs 2:6

“Wisdom will praise herself, and will glory in the midst of her people. In the assembly of the Most High she will open her mouth, and in the presence of his host she will glory: ‘I came forth from the mouth of the Most High, and covered the earth like a mist. I dwelt in high places, and my throne was in a pillar of cloud. Alone I have made the circuit of the vault of heaven and have walked in the depths of the abyss. In the waves of the sea, in the whole earth, and in every people and nation I have gotten a possession. Among all these I sought a resting place; I sought in whose territory I might lodge. Then the Creator of all things gave me a commandment, and the one who created me assigned a place for my tent. And he said, ‘Make your dwelling in Jacob, and in Israel receive your inheritance.’ From eternity, in the beginning, he created me (ektise me), and for eternity I shall not cease to exist.’” Sirach 24:1-9 RSV

As such, wisdom has eternally existed as an essential characteristic of God which the Lord employed to create all things:

“O LORD, how manifold are Your works! In wisdom You have made them all. The earth is full of Your possessions—” Psalm 104:24

“The LORD by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding He established the heavens; By His knowledge the depths were broken up, And clouds drop down the dew.” Proverbs 3:19-20

This leads me to my next point, which I will pick up in the third part of my rebuttal (https://islamunmasked.com/2020/07/12/does-the-quran-reject-christs-eternal-generation-pt-3/).

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