According to the inspired Scriptures, the risen heavenly Jesus is the believers’ only Master and Lord:
“For certain persons have crept in unnoticed, those who were long beforehand marked out for this condemnation, ungodly persons who turn the grace of our God into sensuality and who deny our ONLY Master and Lord, Jesus Christ (ton MONON despoten kai kyrion hemon ‘Iesoun Christon).” Jude 1:4
Interestingly, the majority of Greek manuscripts actually describe Jesus as our only sovereign God and Lord!
“… and denying our only Master, GOD, and Lord, Jesus Christ (ton monon despoten THEON kai kyrion hemon ‘Iesoun Christon).” World English Bible (WEB)
The notes provided by the New English Translation (NET) are helpful in explaining why this passage is quite significant, in fact remarkable, in affirming the Deity of Christ:
tc Most later witnesses (P Ψ 5 88 1175 1611 1735 2492 M sy) have θεόν (theon, “God”) after δεσπότην (despotēn, “master”), which appears to be a motivated reading in that it explicitly links “Master” to “God” in keeping with the normal NT pattern (see Luke 2:29; Acts 4:24; 2 Tim 2:21; Rev 6:10). In patristic Greek, δεσπότης (despotēs) was used especially of God (cf. BDAG 220 s.v. 1.b.). The earlier and better witnesses (P א A B C 0251 33 81 323 436 442 1241 1243 1739 2344 al co) lack θεόν; the shorter reading is thus preferred on both internal and external grounds.
sn The Greek term for Master (δεσπότης, despotēs) is the same term the author of 2 Peter used (2 Pet 2:1) to describe his Lord when he prophesied about these false teachers. Since δεσπότης is used only ten times in the NT, the verbal connection between these two books at this juncture is striking. This is especially so since both Peter and Jude speak of these false teachers as denying the Master (both using the same verb). The basic difference is that Peter is looking to the future, while Jude is arguing that these false teachers are here now.
tn The terms “Master and Lord” both refer to the same person. The construction in Greek is known as the Granville Sharp rule, named after the English philanthropist-linguist who first clearly articulated the rule in 1798. Sharp pointed out that in the construction article-noun-καί-noun (where καί [kai] = “and”), when two nouns are SINGULAR, personal, and common (i.e., NOT PROPER NAMES), they always had the same referent. Illustrations such as “the friend and brother,” “the God and Father,” etc. abound in the NT to prove Sharp’s point. For more discussion see ExSyn 270-78. See also Titus 2:13 and 2 Pet 1:1. (NET Bible https://netbible.org/bible/Jude+1; emphasis mine)
This is where it becomes rather astonishing.
The Greek rendering of the Old Testament, typically referred to as the Septuagint (LXX, the translation of the seventy), identifies YHWH as the believers’ one and only Lord. It even translates the Hebrew words YHWH and Adonay as despotes, in confirmation that YHWH is the only sovereign Lord God.
I include the Greek words employed in the Septuagint version (LXX) of the Hebrew Bible:
“And the Levites, Jeshua, Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabneiah, Sherebiah, Hodiah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, ‘Rise up, bless Yahweh your God from everlasting to everlasting! O may Your glorious name be blessed And exalted above all blessing and praise! You alone are Yahweh (kyrios monos). You have made the heavens, The heaven of heavens with all their host, The earth and all that is on it, The seas and all that is in them. You give life to all of them And the heavenly host bows down to You.’” Nehemiah 9:5-6
“And Abram said, ‘O Lord Yahweh (despota kyrie), what will You give me, as I go on being childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?’… And he said, ‘O Lord Yahweh (despota kyrie), how may I know that I will possess it?’” Genesis 15:2, 8
“Therefore the Lord (kyrios),Yahweh of hosts (ho despotes sabaoth), The Mighty One of Israel, declares, “Ah, I will be comforted concerning My adversaries, And I will avenge Myself on My enemies.” Isaiah 1:24
“For behold, the Lord(ho despotes), Yahweh of hosts (kyrios sabaoth), is going to remove from Jerusalem and Judah Both supply and support, the whole supply of bread And the whole supply of water,” Isaiah 3:1
“Behold, the Lord(ho despotes), Yahweh of hosts (kyrios sabaoth), will lop off the boughs with a terrible crash; Those also who are high in stature will be cut in pieces And those who are lofty will be made low.” Isaiah 10:33
“Then I said, ‘Alas, Lord Yahweh (ho despota kyrie)! Behold, I do not know how to speak Because I am a youth.’” Jeremiah 1:6
“Then I said, ‘Ah, Lord Yahweh(ho despota kyrie)! Surely You have utterly deceived this people and Jerusalem, saying, “You will have peace”; whereas a sword touches the throat.’” Jeremiah 4:10
“So now, O Yahweh (despota kyrie), please take my life from me, for death is better to me than life.”” Jonah 4:3
What this shows is that Jude has basically described Christ as the one and only Adonay YHWH (monos despoteskyrios) that became flesh!
ADONAY YHWH BECOMES FLESH
This leads me to my next point.
Christ speaks of the time when he would personally send forth prophets that would prophesy in his name. Jesus further warned against those who would call him “Lord, Lord,” while failing to obey his commandments:
“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord (kyrie kyrie),’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord (kyrie kyrie), inYour name did we not prophesy, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name do many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’” Matthew 7:21-23
“Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord (kyrie kyrie),’ and do not do what I say?” Luke 6:46
“On account of this, behold, I am sending you prophets and wise men and scribes; some of them you will kill and crucify, and some of them you will flog in your synagogues, and persecute from city to city,” Matthew 23:34
To say that these are all remarkable assertions would be putting it mildly since the Hebrew Bible proclaims that true prophets are sent forth by YHWH to prophesy in his name, and not in the name of some other god!
“Yahweh your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among you, from your brothers; you shall listen to him. This is according to all that you asked of Yahweh your God in Horeb on the day of the assembly, saying, ‘Let me not hear again the voice of Yahweh my God; let me not see this great fire anymore, or I will die.’ And Yahweh said to me, ‘They have spoken well. I will raise up a prophet from among their brothers like you, and I will put My words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I command him. And it will be that whoever will not listen to My words which he shall speak in My name, I Myself will require it of him. But the prophet who speaks a word presumptuously in My name which I have not commanded him to speak, or which he speaks in the name of other gods, that prophet shall die.’ Now you may say in your heart, ‘How will we know the word which Yahweh has not spoken?’ When a prophet speaks in the name of Yahweh, if the thing does not come about or come true, that is the thing which Yahweh has not spoken. The prophet has spoken it presumptuously; you shall not be afraid of him.” Deuteronomy 18:15-22
“‘So do not listen to the words of the prophets who speak to you, saying, “You will not serve the king of Babylon,” for they prophesy a lie to you; for I have not sent them,’ declares Yahweh, ‘but they prophesy a lie in My name, in order that I may banish you and that you may perish, you and the prophets who prophesy to you.” Jeremiah 27:14-15
“For thus says Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, ‘Do not let your prophets who are in your midst and your diviners deceive you, and do not listen to your dreams which you dream. For they prophesy a lie to you in My name; I have not sent them,’ declares Yahweh.” Jeremiah 29:8-9
“And it will be that if anyone still prophesies, then his father and mother who gave birth to him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, for you have spoken falsely in the name of Yahweh’; and his father and mother who gave birth to him will pierce him through when he prophesies.” Zechariah 13:3
Even more remarkable is the fact that the phrase Jesus employed, “Lord, Lord (kyrie kyrie),” is found in the LXX in reference to YHWH himself. This expression is used as the Greek translation of the Hebrew phrase Adonay YHWH/YHWH Adonay!
I again include either the Greek phrase or the entire Greek rendering from the LXX so the readers can see this for themselves:
“And it happened when it had completed eating the vegetation of the land, that I said, ‘Lord Yahweh (kyrie kyrie), please pardon! How can Jacob rise up, For he is small?’” Amos 7:2
“May those who hope for You not be ashamed through me, O Lord Yahweh of hosts; May those who seek You not be dishonored through me, O God of Israel,” Psalm 69:6
“Let not them that wait on thee, O Lord of hosts (kyrie kyrie ton dynameon), be ashamed on my account: let not them that seek thee, be ashamed on my account, O God of Israel.” Psalm 68:7 LXX
“But as for You, O Yahweh, O Lord, deal with me for Your name’s sake; Because Your lovingkindness is good, deliver me;” Psalm 109:21
“But thou, O Lord, Lord (kyrie kyrie), deal mercifully with me, for thy name’s sake: for thy mercy is good.” Psalm 108:21 LXX
“O Yahweh, O Lord, the strength of my salvation, You have covered my head in the day of battle.” Psalm 140:7
“O Lord God (kyrie kyrie), the strength of my salvation; thou hast screened my head in the day of battle.” Psalm 139:8 LXX
“For my eyes are toward You, O Yahweh, O Lord; In You I take refuge; do not pour out my soul to death.” Psalm 141:8
“For mine eyes are to thee, O Lord God (kyrie kyrie): I have hoped in thee; take not away my life.” Psalm 140:8 LXX
This again reinforces the fact that Jesus is that very YHWH God who became a human being for our redemption!
There’s simply no way of getting around this revealed truth of the God-breathed Scriptures.
Unless noted otherwise, scriptural citations taken from the Legacy Standard Bible (LSB).
In this article I will show how the inspired Scriptures identify the Father and the Son as YHWH by ascribing to both of them the very unique titles and characteristics, which the Hebrew Bible attributes to YHWH alone.
In the following chart, the readers will see that YHWH’s qualities of omnipotence, omniscience, and omnipresence, his role as Creator and Sustainer, his Holy, Spirit, as well as some of his specific divine names are applied to both the Father and the Son.
YHWH
FATHER
SON
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. And the earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the surface of the waters.” Genesis 1:1-2
“Thus the heavens and the earth were completed, and all their hosts. And on the seventh day God completed His work which He had done, and He rested on the seventh day from all His work which He had done. Then God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it He rested from all His work which God had created in making it. These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that Yahweh God made earth and heaven. Now no shrub of the field was yet in the earth, and no plant of the field had yet grown, for Yahweh God had not caused it to rain upon the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground. But a stream would rise from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground. Then Yahweh God formed man of dust from the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and so the man became a living being.” Genesis 2:1-7
“then listen in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and give to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men,” 1 Kings 8:39
“As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a whole heart and a delighted soul; for Yahweh searches all hearts, and understands every intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found; but if you forsake Him, He will reject you forever.” 1 Chronicles 28:9
“Now these are the last words of David. David the son of Jesse declares, The man who was raised on high declares, The anointed of the God of Jacob, And the sweet psalmist of Israel, ‘The Spirit of Yahweh spoke by me, And His word was on my tongue. The God of Israel said, The Rock of Israel spoke to me, ‘He who rules over men as a righteous one, Who rules in the fear of God,’” 2 Samuel 23:1-3
“You alone are Yahweh. You have made the heavens, The heaven of heavens with all their host, The earth and all that is on it, The seas and all that is in them. You give life to all of them And the heavenly host bows down to You… However, You bore with them for many years, And testified to them by Your Spirit by the hand of Your prophets, Yet they would not give ear. So You gave them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.” Nehemiah 9:6, 30
“Would not God find this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart.” Psalm 44:21
“Do not cast me away from Your presence And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me.” Psalm 51:11
“If You should keep iniquities, O Yah, O Lord, who could stand? But with You there is forgiveness, That You may be feared… O Israel, wait for Yahweh; For with Yahweh there is lovingkindness, And with Him is abundant redemption. And it is He who will redeem Israel From all his iniquities.” Psalm 130:3-4, 7-8
“Of old You founded the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. Even they will perish, but You will remain; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.” Psalm 102:25-27
“Where Can I Go from Your Spirit? For the choir director. Of David. A Psalm. O Yahweh, You have searched me and known me. You know when I sit down and when I rise up; You understand my thought from afar. You scrutinize my path and my lying down, And are intimately acquainted with all my ways. Even before there is a word on my tongue, Behold, O Yahweh, You know it all. You have enclosed me behind and before, And You have put Your hand upon me. Such knowledge is too wonderful for me; It is too high, I cannot attain to it. Where can I go from Your Spirit? Or where can I flee from Your presence? If I ascend to heaven, You are there; If I make my bed in Sheol, behold, You are there. If I lift up the wings of the dawn, If I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, Even there Your hand will lead me, And Your right hand will lay hold of me. If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will bruise me, And the light around me will be night,’ Even the darkness is not too dark for You, And the night is as bright as the day. Darkness and light are alike to You.” Psalm 139:1-12
“Behold, Lord Yahweh will come with strength, With His arm ruling for Him. Behold, His reward is with Him And His recompense before Him.” Isaiah 40:10
“Who has worked and done it, Calling forth the generations from the beginning? ‘I, Yahweh, am the first; and with the last, I am He.’” Isaiah 41:4
“I will say to the north, ‘Give them up!’ And to the south, ‘Do not hold them back.’ Bring My sons from afar And My daughters from the ends of the earth, Everyone who is called by My name, And whom I have created for My glory, Whom I have formed, even whom I have made… The beasts of the field will glorify Me, The jackals and the ostriches, Because I have given waters in the wilderness And rivers in the wasteland, To give drink to My chosen people. The people whom I formed for Myself Will recount My praise… I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, And I will not remember your sins.” Isaiah 43:6-7, 20-21, 25
“Thus says Yahweh, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, Yahweh of hosts: ‘I am the first, and I am the last, And there is no God besides Me.’… Thus says Yahweh, your Redeemer, and the one who formed you from the womb, ‘I, Yahweh, am the maker of all things, Stretching out the heavens by Myself And spreading out the earth all alone,’” Isaiah 44:6, 24
“It is I who made the earth and created man upon it. I stretched out the heavens with My hands, And I commanded all their host.’… For thus says Yahweh, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it; He established it and did not create it a formless place, but formed it to be inhabited), ‘I am Yahweh, and there is none else.’” Isaiah 45:12, 18
“Hear Me, O Jacob, even Israel whom I called; I am He, I am the first, I am also the last.” Isaiah 48:12
“But they rebelled And grieved His Holy Spirit; Therefore He turned Himself to become their enemy; He fought against them. Then His people remembered the ancient days, of Moses. Where is He who brought them up out of the sea with the shepherds of His flock? Where is He who put His Holy Spirit in the midst of them,” Isaiah 63:10-11
“I, Yahweh, search the heart; I test the inmost being, Even to give to each man according to his ways, According to the fruit of his deeds.” Jeremiah 17:10
“‘Am I a God who is near,’ declares Yahweh, ‘And not a God far off? Can a man hide himself in hiding places So I do not see him?’ declares Yahweh. ‘Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?’ declares Yahweh.” Jeremiah 23:23-24
“To the Lord our God belong compassion and forgiveness, for we have rebelled against Him;” Daniel 9:9
“And they made their hearts diamond-hard so that they could not hear the law and the words which Yahweh of hosts had sent by His Spirit by the hand of the former prophets; therefore great wrath came from Yahweh of hosts.” Zechariah 7:12
“Pray, then, in this way: ‘Our Father who is in heaven, Hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one. For Yours is the kingdom and the power and the glory forever. Amen.’ For if you forgive others for their transgressions, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. But if you do not forgive others, then your Father will not forgive your transgressions.” Matthew 6:9-15
“And his lord, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he should repay all that was owed him. My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your hearts.” Matthew 18:34-35
“And He answered and said, ‘Have you not read that He who created them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”? So they are no longer two, but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let no man separate.’” Matthew 19:4-6
“And when they heard this, they quieted down and glorified God, saying, ‘Well then, God has granted to the Gentiles also the repentance that leads to life.’” Acts 11:18
“And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us;” Acts 15:8
“The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything, since He Himself gives to all people life and breath and all things; and He made from one man every nation of mankind to inhabit all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed times and the boundaries of their habitation, that they would seek God, if perhaps they might grope for Him and find Him, though He is not far from each one of us; for in Him we live and move and exist, as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we also are His offspring.’ Being then the offspring of God, we ought not to suppose that the Divine Nature is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the craft and thought of man.” Acts 17:24-29
“However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you… But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you. So then, brothers, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh—for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die, but if by the Spirit you are putting to death the practices of the body, you will live. For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received the Spirit of adoption as sons by whom we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, also heirs, heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him so that we may also be glorified with Him. For as many as are being led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God… and He who searches the hearts knows what the mind of the Spirit is, because He intercedes for the saints according to the will of God.” Romans 8:9a, 11-17, 27
“yet for us there is one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him…” 1 Corinthians 8:6a
“Or what agreement has a sanctuary of God with idols? For we are a sanctuary of the living God; just as God said, ‘I will dwell in them and walk among them; And I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,’ says the Lord. ‘And do not touch what is unclean, And I will welcome you. And I will be a father to you, And you shall be sons and daughters to Me,’ says the Lord Almighty.” 2 Corinthians 6:16-18
“and to bring to light for all what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things… and to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God.” Ephesians 3:9, 19
“This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the full knowledge of the truth.” 1 Timothy 2:3-4
“For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have fixed our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all men, especially of believers.” 1 Timothy 4:10
“By faith we understand that the worlds were prepared by the word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things which are visible.” Hebrews 11:3
“in whatever our heart condemns us; for God is greater than our heart and knows all things.” 1 John 3:20
“After these things I looked, and behold, a door standing open in heaven, and the first voice which I had heard, like the sound of a trumpet speaking with me, said, ‘Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after these things.’ Immediately I was in the Spirit, and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne. And He who was sitting was like a jasper stone and a sardius in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, like an emerald in appearance. Around the throne were twenty-four thrones, and upon those thrones I saw twenty-four elders sitting, clothed in white garments, and golden crowns on their heads. And out from the throne come flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God. And before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal. And in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind. And the first creature was like a lion, and the second creature like a calf, and the third creature had a face like that of a man, and the fourth creature was like a flying eagle. And the four living creatures, each one of them having six wings, are full of eyes around and within, and day and night they do not cease to say, ‘Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God, the Almighty, who was and who is and who is to come.’ And when the living creatures give glory and honor and thanks to Him who sits on the throne, to Him who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders will fall down before Him who sits on the throne, and will worship Him who lives forever and ever, and will cast their crowns before the throne, saying, ‘Worthy are You, our Lord and our God, to receive glory and honor and power, for You created all things, and because of Your will they existed, and were created.’” Revelation 4:1-11
“Then He said to me, ‘They are done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My son.’” Revelation 21:6-7
“‘And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.’ Now all this took place in order that what was spoken by the Lord through the prophet would be fulfilled, saying, 23 “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which translated means, ‘God with us.’” Matthew 1:21-23
“For the Son of Man is going to come in the glory of His Father with His angels, and will then repay each one according to his deeds.” Matthew 16:27
“And Jesus seeing their faith said to the paralytic, ‘Child, your sins are forgiven.’ But some of the scribes were sitting there and reasoning in their hearts,’ Why does this man speak that way? He is blaspheming; who can forgive sins but God alone?’ Immediately Jesus, aware in His spirit that they were reasoning that way within themselves, said to them, ‘Why are you reasoning about these things in your hearts? Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, ‘Your sins are forgiven’; or to say, “Get up, and pick up your mat and walk”? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins’—He said to the paralytic, ‘I say to you, get up, pick up your mat, and go to your home.’ And he got up and immediately picked up the mat and went out before everyone, so that they were all amazed and were glorifying God, saying, ‘We have never seen anything like this.’” Mark 2:5-12
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through Him, and apart from Him nothing came into being that has come into being. In Him was life, and the life was the Light of men… He was in the world, and the world was made through Him, and the world did not know Him… And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth.” John 1:1-4, 10, 14
“‘These things I have spoken to you in figures of speech; an hour is coming when I will no longer speak to you in figures of speech, but will tell you openly of the Father. On that day you will ask in My name, and I do not say to you that I will request of the Father on your behalf; for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came forth from the Father. I came forth from the Father and have come into the world; I am leaving the world again and going to the Father.’ His disciples said, ‘Behold, now You are speaking openly and are not using a figure of speech. Now we know that You know all things, and have no need for anyone to question You; by this we believe that You came from God.’ Jesus answered them, ‘Do you now believe?’” John 16:25-31
“He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend My sheep.’” John 21:17
“until the day when He was taken up to heaven, after He had by the Holy Spirit given orders to the apostles whom He had chosen… So when they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, ‘Lord, is it at this time You are restoring the kingdom to Israel?’ But He said to them, ‘It is not for you to know times or seasons which the Father has set by His own authority;’… ‘Therefore it is necessary that of the men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us—’… And they prayed and said, ‘You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two You have chosen.’” Acts 1:2, 6-7, 21, 24
“… But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness.” Romans 8:9b-10 “… and one Lord, Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.” 1 Corinthians 8:6b
“Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves! Or do you not recognize about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you—unless indeed you fail the test?” 2 Corinthians 13:5
“I have been crucified with Christ, and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me. And the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” Galatians 2:20
“And because you are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’ Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God.” Galatians 4:6-7
“And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” Ephesians 1:22-23
“But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, ‘When He ascended on high, He led captive a host of captives, And He gave gifts to men.’ (Now this expression, ‘He ascended,’ what does it mean except that He also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.)” Ephesians 4:7-10
“for I know that this will turn out for my salvation through your prayers and the provision of the Spirit of Jesus Christ,” Philippians 1:19
“Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For in Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and FORHim. And He IS before all things, And in Him all things hold together… to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Colossians 1:15-17, 27
“a renewal in which there is no distinction between Greek and Jew, circumcised and uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave, and freeman, but Christ is all and in all.” Colossians 3:11
“looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from all lawlessness, and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good works.” Titus 2:13-14
“in these last days spoke to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds, who is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power; who, having accomplished cleansing for sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high… And, ‘You, Lord, in the beginning founded the earth, And the heavens are the works of Your hands; They will perish, but You remain; And they all will wear out like a garment, And like a mantle You will roll them up; Like a garment they will also be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.’” Hebrews 1:2-3, 10-12
“Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who prophesied of the grace that would come to you, made careful searches and inquiries, inquiring to know what time or what kind of time the Spirit of Christ within them was indicating as He was predicting the sufferings of Christ and the glories to follow. It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, in these things which now have been declared to you through those who proclaimed the gospel to you bythe Holy Spirit sent from heaven—things into which angels long to look.” 1 Peter 1:10-12
“Behold, He is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. Yes, amen. ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega,’ says the Lord God, ‘who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.’… And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet like a dead man. And He placed His right hand on me, saying, ‘Do not fear; I am the first and the last, and the living One; and I was dead, and behold, I am alive forever and ever, and I have the keys of death and of Hades.’” Revelation 1:7-8, 17-18
“And to the angel of the church in Smyrna write: This is what the first and the last, who was dead, and has come to life, says:” Revelation 2:8
“And to the angel of the church in Thyatira write: This is what the Son of God, the One who has eyes like a flame of fire and His feet are like burnished bronze, says: ‘I know your deeds, and your love and faith and service and perseverance, and that your last deeds are greater than at first. But I have this against you, that you tolerate the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, and she teaches and deceives My slaves so that they commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. And I gave her time to repent, and she does not wish to repent of her sexual immorality. Behold, I will throw her on a bed of sickness, and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they repent of her deeds. And I will kill her children with pestilence, and all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts; and I will give to each one of you according to your deeds.’” Revelation 2:18-23
“‘Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to his work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end… I, Jesus, sent My angel to bear witness to you of these things for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star.’… He who bears witness to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming quickly.’ Amen. Come, Lord Jesus.” Revelation 22:12-13, 16, 20
All scriptural references taken from the Legacy Standard Bible (LSB).
In these posts I will be explaining and defending a particular rule of Greek grammar that relates to the Deity of Christ, commonly referred to as Granville Sharp’s first rule.
THEOS USED FOR CHRIST
There are several places in the inspired Christian writings where Jesus is called God in an absolute sense, not in a secondary, diluted, inferior manner.
For instance, Christ is described as God in the context of being the One the Father appointed to bring all creation into existence, and who actively sustains all things by his powerful word:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (theos). He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people… He was in the world, and the world came into being through him, yet the world did not know him… And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth… No one has ever seen God. It is the only Son,himself God (monogenes theos), who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.” John 1:1-4, 10, 14, 18 New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition (NRSVUE)
“God, having spoken long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days spoke to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds, who is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power; who, having accomplished cleansing for sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high… But of the Son He says, ‘Your throne, O God (ho theos), is forever and ever, And the 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.’ And, ‘You, Lord [the Son], in the beginning founded the earth, And the heavens are the works of Your hands; They will perish, but You remain; And they all will wear out like a garment, And like a mantle You will roll them up; Like a garment they will also be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.’” Hebrews 1:1-3, 8-12
Remarkably, Hebrews has the Father attributing the following Psalm, which glorifies YHWH as the unchanging Creator and Sustainer of all creation,
“A Prayer of the afflicted when he is faint and pours out his complaint before Yahweh. O Yahweh, hear my prayer! And let my cry for help come to You… But You, O Yahweh, abide forever, And the remembrance of Your name from generation to generation… Of old You founded the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. Even they will perish, but You will remain; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not come to an end.” Psalm 102:1, 12, 25-27
To the Son, thereby identifying the Son as that very YHWH who created and preserves the entire created order!
The risen Jesus is also praised for being the Lord God of all true believers,
“Then He said to Thomas, ‘Bring your finger here, and see My hands; and bring your hand here and put it into My side; and do not be unbelieving, but believing.’ Thomas answered and said to Him, ‘My Lord and my God (ho kyrios mou kai ho theos mou)!’ Jesus said to him, ‘Because you have seen Me, have you believed? Blessed are those who did not see, and yet believed.” John 20:27-29
As well as that very God who purchased a people by his blood that he shed for their redemption:
“Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God (tou theou) which He purchased with His own blood.” Acts 20:28
And yet according to the Hebrew Scriptures, YHWH is the only Lord God that a believer confesses,
“Awake, O Lord, and attend to my judgment, [even] to my cause, my God and my Lord (ho theos mou kai ho kyrios mou).” Psalm 34:23 LXX
And who purchased a congregation for his own possession:
“Yet God Is My King A Maskil of Asaph. Why, O God? Have You rejected us forever? Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture? Remember Your congregation, which You have purchased of old, Which You have redeemed to be the tribe of Your inheritance; And this Mount Zion, where You have dwelt.” Psalm 74:1-2
Christ is further described as the eternally praised God who reigns supreme over all creation,
“whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is God (theos) over all, blessed forever. Amen.” Romans 9:5
Being that very YHWH,
“that if you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved; for with the heart a person believes, leading to righteousness, and with the mouth he confesses, leading to salvation. For the Scripture says, ‘Whoever believes upon Him will not be put to shame.’ For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord is Lord of all, abounding in riches for all who call on Him, for ‘Whoever calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’” Romans 10:9-13
Whose name Joel said a person must confess in order to be saved!
“And it will be that everyone who calls on the name of Yahweh Will be delivered; For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem There will be those who escape, As Yahweh has said, Even among the survivors whom Yahweh calls.” Joel 2:32
Moreover, Jesus is that true God and eternal life with the Father who came forth to give mankind an understanding of who and what God truly is:
“What was from the beginning, what we have heard, what we have seen with our eyes, what we beheld and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of Life—and the life was manifested, and we have seen and bear witness and proclaim to you the eternal life, which was with the Father and was manifested to us—what we have seen and heard we proclaim to you also, so that you may also have fellowship with us; and indeed our fellowship is with the Father, and with His SonJesus Christ.” 1 John 1:1-3
“And we know that the Son of God has come, and has given us understanding so that we may know Him who is true; and we are in Him who is true, inHis SonJesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life.” 1 John 5:20
This now brings me to the next two examples:
“At the same time we wait for the blessed hope and the glorious appearance of our great God and savior Jesus Christ (tou megalou theou kai soteros hemon ‘Iesou Christou).” Titus 2:13 Common English Bible (CEB)
“From Simon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ. To those who received a faith equal to ours through the justice of our God and savior Jesus Christ (tou theou hemon kai soteros ‘Iesou Christou).” 2 Peter 1:1 CEB
In both these texts, the inspired Apostles Paul and Peter are employing what has become known as Granville Sharp’s first rule. The following textual note clarifies this rule for the readers:
tn The terms “God and Savior” both refer to the same person, Jesus Christ. This is one of the clearest statements in the NT concerning the deity of Christ. The construction in Greek is known as the Granville Sharp rule, named after the English philanthropist-linguist who first clearly articulated the rule in 1798. Sharp pointed out that in the construction article-noun-καί-noun (where καί [kai] = “and”), when two nouns are singular, personal, and common (i.e., not proper names), they always had the same referent. Illustrations such as “the friend and brother,” “the God and Father,” etc. abound in the NT to prove Sharp’s point. The only issue is whether terms such as “God” and “Savior” could be considered common nouns as opposed to proper names. Sharp and others who followed (such as T. F. Middleton in his masterful The Doctrine of the Greek Article) demonstrated that a proper name in Greek was one that could not be pluralized. Since both “God” (θεός, theos) and “savior” (σωτήρ, sōtēr) were occasionally found in the plural, they did not constitute proper names, and hence, do fit Sharp’s rule. Although there have been 200 years of attempts to dislodge Sharp’s rule, all attempts have been futile. Sharp’s rule stands vindicated after all the dust has settled. For more information on Sharp’s rule see ExSyn 270-78, esp. 276. See also 2 Pet 1:1 and Jude 4. (New English Translation [NET] Bible https://netbible.org/bible/Titus+2; emphasis mine)
In fact, Peter employs four other examples of Granville Sharp’s first rule in reference to Jesus, the last of which even includes a doxology to the risen Christ:
“for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ(tou kyriou hemon kai soteros ‘Iesou Christou) will be abundantly supplied to you.” 2 Peter 1:11
“For if they are overcome, having both escaped the defilements of the world by the knowledge of the Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (tou kyriou kai soteros ‘Iesou Christou) and having again been entangled in them, then the last state has become worse for them than the first.” 2 Peter 2:20
“that you should remember the words spoken beforehand by the holy prophets and the commandment of the Lord and Savior (tou kyriou kai soteros) spoken by your apostles… but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ (tou kyriou hemon kai soteros ‘Iesou Christou). To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen.” 2 Peter 3:2, 18
The only difference in these cases is that Peter employs the word Lord instead of God, and yet they all use the same Greek construction as found in 2 Pet. 1:1. It is, therefore, inarguable that the inspired Apostle has proclaimed Jesus to be both God and Lord.
And yet since YHWH is the only great God which the OT recognizes, being the only Savior of the world,
“There is none like to thee, O Lord, among the gods; and there are no [works] like to thy works. All nations whom thou hast made shall come, and shall worship before thee, O Lord; and shall glorify thy name. For thou art great, and doest wonders: thou art the only [and] the great God.” Psalm 85:8-10 LXX
“Declare and draw near with your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who has made this heard from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, Yahweh? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior; There is none except Me. Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other.” Isaiah 45:21-22
This means that Peter and Paul are proclaiming that Jesus is YHWH God Incarnate (though not the Father or the Holy Spirit)!
In the next installment I will be addressing an objection raised by Jehovah’s Witnesses and other anti-Trinitarian groups who seek to undermine the force of Granville Sharps’ first rule in order to deny the fact of the NT identifying Christ as God in an absolute, eternal sense.
In this post I will cite another reputable authority on Philippians 2:5-11, commonly known as the Carmen Christi (“hymn to Christ,” or “Christ hymn”), who explains why this is a hymn/poem celebrating the divine prehuman existence, incarnation, and post-resurrection exaltation of Christ.
The first half of the Christ hymn describes Jesus’ willful condescension to become human, describing him as one who was already existing in the form of God but voluntarily chose to take on the form of a slave by being born as a human being.
It is the underlying Greek term, which is often translated as form, that is crucial in correctly understanding Christ’s identity according to the hymn/poem. Note how various translations render the key Greek phrase:
“Have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had. Though he possessed the nature of God (en morphe theou hyperchon), he did not grasp at equality with God, but laid it aside to take on the nature of a slave (morphe doulou) and become like other men.” Philippians 2:5-7 Goodspeed New Testament
“Though he was by nature God, he did not consider equality with God as a prize to be displayed, but he emptied himself by taking the nature of a servant. When he was born in human likeness, and his appearance was like that of any other man,” Philippians 2:6-7 Evangelical Heritage Version (EHV)
“Though he was divine by nature, he did not set store upon equality with God but emptied himself by taking the nature of a servant; born in human guise.” James Moffatt New Testament
“who, though from the beginning he had the nature of God, did not reckon equality with God something to be forcibly retained, but emptied himself of his glory by taking the form of a slave, when he was born in the likeness of men.” Montgomery New Testament (MNT)
“Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.” New International Version (NIV)
“He existed in the form (shape and nature) of God but did not try to be equal with God. He did not even consider it! He emptied (humbled) himself by taking the form of a servant. He was made in the likeness of men.” New Simplified Bible (NSB)
“For he, who had always been God by nature, did not cling to his prerogatives as God’s equal, but stripped himself of all privilege by consenting to be a slave by nature and being born as mortal man.” J.B. Phillips New Testament (PHILLIPS)
“Though the divine nature was his from the beginning, yet he did not look upon equality with God as above all things to be clung to, But impoverished himself by taking the nature of a servant and becoming like men;” Twentieth_Century New Testament
“Though He was existing in the nature of God, He did not think His being on an equality with God a thing to be selfishly grasped, but He laid it aside as He took on the nature of a slave and became like other men.” Williams New Testament
“Christ had the same nature as God. He was completely equal with God. But he did not try to keep hold of that.” Phil. 2:6 EasyEnglish Bible (EASY)
“He always had the nature of God, but he did not think that by force he should try to remain equal with God.” Good News Translation (GNT)
As the readers can see, the aforementioned translations all understood the word morphe to refer to the nature of Christ. I.e., Jesus who has always been God in nature decided to take on the nature of a slave by becoming a man.
The following New Testament commentator provides a thorough exegesis of the term morphe as it relates to Christ’s divine prehuman existence:
Morphe (“form”), based on its usage in Greek literature, refers primarily to that “which may be perceived by the senses” (Behm, TDNT 4, 745-46). Yet when this word is applied to God as here, such an understanding is quite inadequate. For God is the invisible God (Col 1:15) and has not been and cannot be comprehended by the human senses…
Some interpreters suggest doxa (“glory”) as the new meaning for morphe in this passage, since the equivalent of the external form of God in the OT was God’s glory (Exod 16:10; 24:15; Lev 9:6, 23; Num 12:8; 14:10). If this is correct, then one can picture the preexistent Christ as clothed in the garments of divine majesty and splendor, and one can explain the words, “existing in the form of God,” as exactly corresponding to the words of the incarnate Christ when he referred to the glory (doxa) he had with his Father before the world was (John 17:5; Behm, TDNT 4, 751; Fitzmyer, JBC 2, 251). Attractive as this understanding of morphe is, it seems nevertheless to founder on the fact that it cannot be applied equally to the parallel phrase morphe doulou in v. 7.
Others suggest that morphe should be understood in terms of eikon (“image”) and the entire hymn explained in light of Gen 1:26-27 and Gen 3:1-5. These interpreters see Paul, or the writer of the hymn if not Paul, working here with the familiar first Adam–second Adam motif (cf. Rom 5:18-19; 1 Cor 15:45-47). As the first Adam was in the image and likeness of God (Gen 1:26-27), so Christ, the second Adam, existed in the image of God (Phil 2:6). Whereas the first Adam wrongly tried to become like God (Gen 3:5), the second Adam either did not strive to be equal with God, or did not regard equality with God as a thing to be held on to… According to this interpretation, then, the phrase, hos en morphe theou hyperchon (“who being in the form of God”) and the expression hos estin eikon tou theou (“who is the image of God”)–found in 2 Cor 4:4 and Col 1:15–are to be regarded as synonymous…
Again, however, this explanation of morphe comes to grief fundamentally on the fact that it cannot be adopted for its second occurrence–morphe doulou–in v 7 (Collange). In addition, it seems strained and unnatural to interpret morphe by eikon, in order to compare and contrast Adam with Christ unless one holds the view that this hymn refers not at all to the preexistent Christ but only to the human Jesus, his life of humility and his exaltation to an earthly position of glory… For only then is the comparison meaningful, only then are Adam and Christ on the same footing: both earthly and both human (Cullmann, Christology, 177, who argues that Christ here is the preexistent heavenly Man, the pure image of God, the God-Man already in his preexistence; see also Glasson, NTS 21 [1974] 133-39). To argue against the view that the hymn can only refer to the earthly human Jesus is not to argue against the idea that the hymn presents Jesus as a model for Christians to follow. Although “there can be no direct duplication by mere humans of the action of a heavenly being who is seen as enjoying quasi-divine status, it is not impossible that such an action might be so described as to make it exemplary for earthly behavior, the differences notwithstanding” (Hurtado, “Jesus as Lordly Example”).
“Mode of being” (Daseinweise) is still another meaning suggested for morphe. This meaning is arrived at primarily by associating the Christ-hymn with Gnostic texts (e.g. the Corpus Hermeticum), and understanding the hymn against the background of the Gnostic myth of the “Heavenly Man,” whose rank was equal with God… “The ‘form of God’ in which the pre-existent Christ existed is not mere form but the divine mode of being just as much as the ‘form of a servant’ is the mode of being of a servant” (R. Bultmann, Theology of the New Testament [New York: Scribner’s, 1951), 1, 193; cf. also Collange, Dibelius, Gnika). Although this meaning fits the context and applies equally well to morphe theou (v 6) and morphe doulou (v 7), one should perhaps be slow to adopt it because of its strong dependence upon the “Heavenly Man” myth for its origin. This “Heavenly Man” myth has been severely criticized by Dieter Georgi (“Der vorpaulinische Hymnus,” 263-66) and others (cf. also Sanders, Christological Hymns, 66-69; and Martin, Philippians, 1976, 94-95, who summarizes Georgi’s criticisms; see also C. Colpe, Die religionsgeschichtlicheSchule [Gottingen: Vandernhoeck & Ruprecht, 1961], M. Black, “Pauline Doctrine of the Second Adam, SJT 7 [1954] 177; E. Yamauchi, Pre-Christian Gnosticism: A Survey of Proposed Evidence (Grand Rapids, Eerdmans, 1973]).
Morphe has also been interpreted as “condition” or “status.” As such it refers “to Christ’s ‘original’ position vis-à-vis God. He was the ‘first man,’ holding a unique place within the divine life and one with God. This sense of ‘condition’ would fit the meaning required in verse 7 b. He who was in the beginning … at God’s side … chose to identify himself with men and to accept the human condition, ‘in the form of a servant’” (Martin, Philippians, 1976; see also Benoit, Bonnard). An objection to this interpretation, however, is the absence of such an understanding of morphe in Greek literature (Beare, Collange, Behm, TDNT 4, 742-49; BDG; MM).
Perhaps, then the best approach to the meaning of morphe is (1) to admit that it is a word whose precise meaning is elusive, but (2) at the same time to recognize that from EARLIEST GREEK TEXTS morphe was at least used to express the way in which a thing, being what it is in itself, appears to our senses. “Morphe always signifies a form which truly and fully expresses the being which underlies it” (MM 417). Thus, when this word is applied to God, his morphe must refer to his deepest being, to what he is in himself, to that “which cannot be reached by our understanding or sight, precisely because God is aoratos: in fact the word has meaning here only as referring to the reality of God’s being” (Cerfaux, Christ, 305). Morphe theou, then, may be correctly understood as the “essential nature and character of God” (Vincent: cf. also Lightfoot, 110 and especially, 127-33).
To say, therefore, that Christ existed en morphe theou is to say that outside his human nature Christ had no other manner of existing apart from existing “in the form of God,” that is, apart from being in possession of all the characteristics and qualities belonging to God. This somewhat enigmatic expression, then, appears to be a cautious, hidden way for the author to say that Christ was God, possessed of the very nature of God (GNB, NIV, GOODSPEED, Knox, Moffatt, Phillips), without employing these exact words. It appears to be a statement made by one who perhaps, although reared as a strict monotheist and thus unable to bring himself to say, “Christ is God,” was compelled nevertheless by the sheer force of personal encounter with the resurrected and living Christ to bear witness as best as he could to the reality of Christ’s divinity.
That this is the correct interpretation is corroborated by the expression to einai isa theo (“the being equal with God”) which follows. The definite article in to einai implies that this second expression is closely connected with the first, for the function of the definite article here is to point back to something previously mentioned… Therefore to einai isa theo should be understood thus: “the equality with God of which we have just spoken equivalently by saying en morphe theou hyparchon”… But for the Son of God “while he was in the form of God, the being with God was no rapture, no harpagmos, it was his nature. No spirit, no angel had brought him into this state of being with God” and nobody else could ever bring him out of it. Only he himself could do this by voluntary choice…
Hence, in this connection the participial phrase that begins v 6–hos en morphe theou hyparchon (“who being in the form of God”), often wrongly translated as a concessive participle–“who though he was in the form of God” (RSV, NASB, Beck, Confraternity, Goodspeed, Williams), is more correctly translated as a causative: “precisely because he in the form of God he reckoned equality with God not as a matter of getting but of giving” (Moule, “Manhood,” 97). This then makes clear that contrary to whatever anyone may think about God, his true nature is characterized not be selfish grabbing, but by an open-handed giving… (Gerald F. Hawthorne, Philippians (Word Biblical Commentary) [Word Books Publisher, Waco, TX 1983], pp. 82-85; bold and capital emphasis mine)
“The hymn begins by describing Christ before the incarnation–possessed the nature of God and was equal with God. But contrary to what one might expect, the true nature of God is not to grasp or get or selfishly to hold on to things, for personal advantage, but to give them up for the enrichment of all. This is demonstrated by Christ, who, because he shared the nature of God, did not hold firm to the high position that was his by right, but rather stepped down from it. That is to say, he deliberately placed himself in the humblest of positions: he who was in the form of God became a man, a fully human being, a slave even, so that he might serve others. In the self-humbling act of the incarnation God became man and thus set himself wholly to seek the advantage and promote the welfare of his fellows…” (Ibid., p. 95; bold emphasis mine)
In support of Hawthorne’s exegesis, the Hebrew Bible teaches that YHWH is a God who is not only transcendent, but also humble enough to stoop down to the level of the contrite and brokenhearted in order to show them love and compassion:
“Qoph Yahweh is near to the brokenhearted And saves those who are crushed in spirit.” Psalm 34:18 Legacy Standard Bible (LSB)
“The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; A broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise.” Psalm 51:17 LSB
“For thus says the One high and lifted up Who dwells forever, whose name is Holy, ‘I dwell on a high and holy place, And also with the crushed and lowly of spirit In order to revive the spirit of the lowly And to revive the heart of the crushed.’” Isaiah 57:15 LSB
What we see exemplified in the Christ hymn is this willingness on the part of God to humble himself to share in the lowly status of human beings in order to redeem them from their fallenness and brokenness.
THE EXALTATION OF THE GOD-MAN
The second part of the hymn/poem celebrates God’s response to Jesus’ voluntary of act of stooping to the lowest status imaginable, humbling to become a slave and to even die the death of a slave, namely death on a cross:
“Wherefore also, God, uplifted him far on high (hyperhypsosen), and favoured him with the name which is above every name,––In order that, in the name of Jesus, every knee might bow––of beings in heaven, and on earth, and underground,––And, every tongue, might openly confess––that Jesus Christ is, Lord, unto the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:9-11 J.B. Rotherham’s(i) Emphasized Bible
God exalts Jesus to the highest position of authority in order place him above all creation, being made vastly superior to all other powers, dominions and principalities:
“and what is the surpassing greatness of His power toward us who believe according to the working of the might of His strength,which He worked in Christ, by raising Him from the dead and seating Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, FAR ABOVE ALL rule and authority and power and dominion, and EVERY NAME that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.And He put ALL THINGS in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over ALL THINGS to the church,which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.” Ephesians 1:19-23 LSB
The Christ hymn is celebrating the fact that Jesus in his post-resurrection has ascended to share in the very position and worship which belongs to YHWH alone.
To put it simply, the hymn/poem is stating that Jesus now reigns over all creation as YHWH!
This interpretation is confirmed from the fact that the Hebrew Bible expressly proclaims that YHWH alone is exalted above all creation, particularly over all other gods, and that his name alone is exceedingly high:
“That they may know that You ALONE—Your name is Yahweh—Are the Most High over all the earth.” Psalm 83:18 LSB
“For you are Lord most high over all the earth; you are greatly exalted above (hyperhypsothes hyper) all gods.” Psalm 96[97]:9 LXX
“Who is like Yahweh our God, The One who sits on high, The One who brings Himself low to see The things in heaven and on the earth?” Psalm 113:5-6 LSB
“Let them praise the name of Yahweh, For His name alone is set on high; His splendor is above earth and heaven.” Psalm 148:13 LSB
“Let the earth bless the Lord; let it sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, mountains and hills, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, all things that grow on the earth, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, you springs, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, seas and rivers, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, you whales and all creatures that move in the waters, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, all birds of the air, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, all beasts and cattle, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, you sons of men, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, O Israel, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, you priests of the Lord, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, you servants of the Lord, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, spirits and souls of the righteous, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, you who are holy and humble in heart, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever. Bless the Lord, Hanani′ah, Azari′ah, and Mish′ael, sing praise to him and highly exalt him for ever; for he has rescued us from Hades and saved us from the hand of death, and delivered us from the midst of the burning fiery furnace; from the midst of the fire he has delivered us.” Daniel 3:52-65 LXX
Remarkably, the hymn/poem even ascribes to Jesus the very worship which Isaiah proclaims shall be given to YHWH Almighty alone in acknowledgment that he is the only just God who is able to save:
“Declare and draw near with your case; Indeed, let them consult together. Who has made this heard from of old? Who has long since declared it? Is it not I, Yahweh? And there is no other God besides Me, A righteous God and a Savior; There is none except Me. Turn to Me and be saved, all the ends of the earth; For I am God, and there is no other. I have sworn by Myself, The word has gone forth from My mouth in righteousness And will not turn back, That to Me every knee will bow, every tongue will swearallegiance.” Isaiah 45:21-23 LSB
Note, again, what Hawthorne writes:
The principal idea conveyed by this verb is not, however, comparative, i.e. that Christ is now someone greater than he was before the incarnation, or possess a status superior to that which he had in his preexistent state… but superlative, i.e. that Christ, who made himself so very lowly, was made by God very high, so high in fact, that he is placed over (hyper) all things… Interestingly this verb, hyperhypsoun, is used in the LXX OT to describe Yahweh as the one who is ”exalted far above all gods” (Ps 96 [97]:9; cf. Dan 3:52, 54, 57-88[sic])…
In ancient thought onoma (“name”) was not only a means of distinguishing one individual from another, but also a means of revealing the inner being, the true nature of that individual (cf. Gen 25:26; 1 Sam 25:25), “an index of character and status”… Hence, for the hymn-writer to declare that God not only graciously bestowed (echarisato) on him a designation which distinguished him from all other beings, a title which outranked all other titles, but also that he bestowed on him a nature which coincided with that title, giving substance and meaning to it. If that title (name) is kyrios (“Lord”), as the context indicates (v 11), it ultimately means then that Christ has been given the character of Lord. This is to say, not only does Christ possess the title “Lord,” but he is Lord, the sovereign over the entire universe. All authority in heaven and earth is his by gift and nature (Matt 28:18; cf. Eph 1:20-21). This then is the extent of Christ’s exaltation–lifted by God to the position of supreme authority in the cosmic structure of things. (Ibid, pp. 91-92; bold emphasis mine)
10. God’s purpose in thus exalting Christ and bestowing on him this all-surpassing name is twofold. The first thing that God intended by his actions is expressed in the clause: hina en to onoma ‘Iesou pan gonu kampse (“in order that at the name of Jesus every knee might bow”). (1) One is the expression, “the name of Jesus” (to onomati ‘Iesou). The fact that the hymn-writer mentions the name “Jesus” at this point is not because he thinks that “Jesus” and not “Lord” is the name that is above all names. For to onomati does not mean that everyone will bow “at the name Jesus” (‘Iesou, dative), but that everyone will bow “at the name of Jesus” (‘Iesou, genitive), i.e. “at the name belonging to or that is borne by Jesus.” And that name is kyrios, “Lord” (cf. Lightfoot, Michael, Moule, Plummer). The reason he places the name of Jesus here is because by doing so he is saying that lordly power has been put into “the hands of the historical person of Jesus of Nazareth, who is not some cosmic cipher or despotic ruler but a figure to whom Christians could give a face and a name” (Martin, Philippians, 1976). He is saying that the one who emptied himself, who humbled himself, who became human in space and time, who became a slave, who was crucified, who died a criminal’s death–this one, Jesus, whom people so ill-treated, God has made both Christ and Lord (cf. Acts 2:36). He is saying that the one “who was completely obedient must now be completely obeyed” (Bonnard).
(2) The other matter of importance is that the verb kamptein (“to bow”) is followed by the preposition en and the dative–en to onomati … kampse. The significance of this lies in the fact that elsewhere, whenever this verb is used with gonu, meaning “to bend the knee” as a sign of religious devotion to someone, the object of this devotion is usually expressed by pros and the accusative (cf. Eph 3:14), or by the dative alone (cf. Rom 11:4; Isa 45:23), but not by en and the dative as here (BDG; cf. H. A.A. Kennedy, Sources of New Testament Greek [Edinburgh: T. and T. Clark 1895]).
This fact has led some to translate the expression, “so that in the name of Jesus everyone should kneel” (RV, Goodspeed), and to conclude that this clause means not that homage to be paid directly to the name of Jesus but that in Jesus homage is to be paid to God. Jesus is ”the mediator through whom created beings offer worship to God,” for it is God, not Jesus, that every knee shall bow (Beare; Caird).
The context, however, is opposed to such a translation and interpretation. Jesus has just been given the name that is above every name, the name kyrios (“Lord”), the OT name for God (YHWH). In addition, Isa 45:23, which records God as saying, “Unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance,” is woven here into the structure of vv 10-11 and applied to Jesus. It is significant that this quotation is taken from one of the OT passages that emphasizes the sole authority of God–“I am God and there is none” (Isa 45:22…). Hence, although the grammatical construction en to onomati kamptein is unique (but cf. Ps 62[63]:5; 43[44]:10; 104[105]:3; 1 Kings 8:44; see also Moule, Idiom-Book, 78), and the idea astonishing, it is nonetheless necessary to understand that the writer is here asserting that homage is indeed to be paid to Jesus as Lord, not through Jesus to God (Gnika). Therefore, the expression must be translated, “at the name” (KJV, JB, NEB, NIV, RSV) or “before the name” (Knox, Moffat), meaning that all must bring their homage to Jesus, all must fall on their knees before him to show honor to him…
Verse 11 means, then, that the hope of God is that EVERY INTELLIGENT BEING in his universe might proclaim openly and gladly (Lightfoot) that Jesus Christ alone has the right to reign. This verse together with v 10 makes clear what lay behind God’s action to exalt Christ and to share with him his own name “Lord” (kyrios, YHWH). It was in order that EVERY CREATED BEING in heaven, on earth and under the earth might ultimately be reconciled to himself by voluntarily and joyfully pledging allegiance to the one who chose the lowly path of self-effacement and of humble service to others (cf. Eph 1:10). Clearly then the purposes of God behind the acts of God are good and for the good of every creature… Finally it is to be noted that although Jesus bears the name “Lord” (kyrios), the name of God himself (kyrios translates the OT “Yahweh”),and is thus obliquely declared to be God with all the rights and privileges of God (e.g. sovereignty…), yet paradoxically Jesus does not in any way displace God, or even rival God. God suffers no embarrassment; rather he is glorified–eis doxan theou patros–for he has planned that this be so. “The Lordship of Christ is therefore within the ambit of the divine glory and far from masking it actually reveals it, and this ultimate revelation is founded on the Fatherhood of God. The true glory of God is to be Father; the Father of Christ in the first place, but also through him of the entire creation…. From this angle again… the hymn shows us that history could have consisted of relationships merely of power (v 6b: “harpagmos”) whereas it culminates with the revelation of a fatherhood inspiring confidence and love” (Collange). (Ibid., pp. 92-95; bold and capital emphasis mine)
A POSSIBLE SOURCE BEHIND THE CHRIST HYMN
Hawthorne believes that the following pericope may lie behind the formulation of the Christ hymn:
“Now before the Feast of the Passover, Jesus knowing that His hour had come that He would depart out of this world to the Father, having loved His own who were in the world, He loved them to the end. And during supper, the devil having already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, the son of Simon, to betray Him, Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into His hands, and that He had come forth from God and was going back to God, got up from supper, and laid aside His garments; and taking a towel, He tied it around Himself. Then He poured water into the washbasin, and began to wash the disciples’ feet and to wipe them with the towel which He had tied around Himself. So He came to Simon Peter. He said to Him, ‘Lord, are You going to wash my feet?’ Jesus answered and said to him, “What I am doing you do not realize now, but you will understand afterwards.’ Peter said to Him, ‘You will never wash my feet—ever!’ Jesus answered him, ‘If I do not wash you, you have no part with Me.’ Simon Peter said to Him, ‘Lord, not only my feet, but also my hands and my head.’ Jesus said to him, ‘He who has bathed needs only to wash his feet, but is completely clean; and you are clean, but not all of you.’ For He knew the one who was betraying Him; for this reason He said, ‘Not all of you are clean.’ So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, ‘Do you know what I have done to you? You call Me Teacher and Lord (ho didaskalos kai ho kyrios); and you are right, for so I am. If I then, the Lord and the Teacher (ho kyrios kai ho didaskalos), washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them.’” John 13:1-17 LSB
Here’s what Hawthorne says:
The particular shape given to this hymn, and indeed the very existence of the hymn itself, may be the result of deep meditation by Paul, or by some Christian before or contemporaneous with Paul, if Paul is not the author of the hymn… on one particular event from the life of Christ as recorded in the gospel tradition–Jesus washing his disciples’ feet (John 13:3-17). Although verbal parallels between John 13:3-17 and Phil 2:6-11 are few, but nonetheless significant, the parallels in thought and in the progression of action are startling. So precise in fact are these parallels that it is difficult to consider them the result of mere coincidence. To present this parallelism more clearly the following diagram has been prepared:
John 13:3-17
1. Jesus arises from the table and lays aside (tithesi) his outer garments (ta himatia) (v. 4).
2. Jesus takes a towel and wraps it about himself (diezosen heauton), puts water in a basin and begins to wash his disciples’ feet (a menial task often assigned to slaves; 1 Sam 25:41; cf. Mark 1:7; Acts 13:25; Str-B 2.5557) (v. 5).
3. When Jesus finishes, he once again takes his outer garments and puts them on (elaben ta himatia), and again sits down at the table (anepesen) from which he got up (v. 12).
4. Finally Jesus says: “You address me as teacher and Lord (kyrios) and rightly so, for that is what I am” (v. 13).
Phil 2:6-11
1. He emptied himself (ekenosen heauton). Moffat translates: “He laid it (his divine nature) aside” (v. 7).
2. … taking the form of a slave, being born in the likeness of human beings. And being found in human form he humbled himself (etapeinosen heauton, v. 7).
3. Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name which is above every name (v. 9).
4. … that every tongue might openly confess that Jesus Christ is Lord (kyrios, v. 11).
Perhaps, then, this act and saying of Jesus became the basis for deep insights into the nature of Christ for both John and Paul. It is not necessary to say that John was dependent on Paul or Paul on John. For John and Paul could have shared a common tradition… And yet it is interesting and instructive to observe that both the Fourth Evangelist and the author of the Christ-Hymn begin what they have to say in a similar fashion. The Fourth Evangelist begins his narrative by remarking that Jesus washed his disciples’ feet because he knew (eidos) that the Father had given everything into his hands and that he himself had come out from God (apo theou exelthon) and was going back to God (pros ton theon hypage)–a remark that gives special emphasis to Jesus’ act of humility… Paul begins his hymn by remarking that Jesus, because he existed in the form of God, did not consider this high position as a prize to be held on to, but rather to be surrendered in order that he might serve– a remark that equally emphasizes Jesus’ act of humility. (The entire hymn also preserves the descent-ascent motif that is prominent in the Johannine story.)
It is also interesting and instructive to note that the purpose of each pericope is similar. The Johannine account is an acted parable to summarize the essence of Jesus’ teaching: “Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant, and whoever wants to hold the first place among you must be everybody’s slave” (Mark 10:43-44), while the Philippians text is a hymn to illustrate powerfully Paul’s teaching, which at this point is identical with that of Jesus: humble, self-sacrificing service to one another done in love is a must for a Christian disciple who would live as a Christian disciple should (Phil 2:3-4).
Perhaps, then, the multitude of suggestions about sources of the hymn–whether it originated in heterodox Judaism (Lohmyer), or in the Iranian myth of the Heavenly Redeemer (Beare), or in Hellenistic Gnosticism (Kaseman, “Critical Analysis,” 62, 66, 72), or in Jewish Gnosticism (Sanders, JBL 88 [1969] 278-90), or in the OT servant-passages (Coppens, ETL 41 [1965] 147-50), or in the OT story of Adam (Bonnard), or in speculation about Hellenistic Jewish Wisdom (D. Georgi, “Der vorpaulinische Hymnus”), and so on, only serve to send one off in pursuit of a question impossible to answer. Perhaps the true answer to the origin of the hymn may be closer at hand, derived from that particular event of the life of Jesus outlined above (John 13:3-17). Yet although the form of this hymn may indeed owe its origin to the gospel tradition, and notably to this one incident from the tradition, yet very possibly the significance of the incident may have been effectually interpreted in terms of the religious language of any one of these systems of thought. These systems were everywhere present in the world of Paul, so that whoever composed the Philippian hymn would be heir to these ideas, able to draw on any or all of them to set forth the ultimate meaning of Jesus’ humble act of service toward his disciples. (Ibid., pp. 78-79)
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