I continue from where I previously left off: HOW MANY DIVINE SAVIORS ARE THERE?.

WHAT KIND OF BEING MUST JESUS BE?

Now the only way that the Man Christ Jesus could ever be portrayed as saving individuals from their transgressions is if he is himself is YHWH God who became a human Being. And this is precisely what the inspired writings affirm as I now seek to demonstrate.

SYNOPTIC GOSPELS

Matthew’s Gospel contains the following remarkable proclamation:

“‘And she will bear a Son; and you shall call His name Jesus (Yeshua), 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, ‘Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,’ which translated means, ‘God (ho theos) with us.’” Matthew 1:21-23

Here, the angel explains why Jesus was given his name, e.g., the name Yeshua, which means “YHWH is salvation,” signifies that Christ is that very YHWH God who comes to do what the following Psalm attributes to the God of Israel:

“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 130:7-8

In other words, Jesus is YHWH God that chose to become human by being born of the Virgin for the express purpose of dwelling among his people, and to save mankind from their sins.

Now wonder Matthew writes that Jesus is the literal fulfillment of Isaiah’s prophecy that the Virgin will give birth to Immanuel. I.e., Christ is the actual physical embodiment of the true God who came to live among humanity!

PETRINE EPISTLES

Peter, who was an eyewitness to Christ, had no qualms in affirming that Jesus is both God’s Son and the Lord God that reigns forever:

“Simeon Peter, a slave and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have received the same kind of faith as ours, by the righteousness of our God and Savior, Jesus Christ (tou theou hemon kai soteros ‘Iesou Christou)… for in this way the entrance into the eternal kingdom of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ will be abundantly supplied to you… For we did not make known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ (tou kyriou hemon kai soteros ‘Iesou Christou), following cleverly devised myths, but being eyewitnesses of His majesty. For when He received honor and glory from God the Father, such an utterance as this was made to Him by the Majestic Glory, ‘This is My beloved Son with whom I am well-pleased’—and we ourselves heard this utterance made from heaven when we were with Him on the holy mountain.” 2 Peter 1:1, 11, 16-18

In fact, the foregoing verses employ a Greek construction that conclusively proves that Jesus is indeed being described as both Lord and God:

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. In fact, the construction occurs elsewhere in 2 Peter, strongly suggesting that the author’s idiom was the same as the rest of the NT authors’ (cf., e.g., 1:11 [“the Lord and Savior”], 2:20 [“the Lord and Savior”]). 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 the application of Sharp’s rule to 2 Pet 1:1, see ExSyn 272, 276-77, 290. See also Titus 2:13 and Jude 4. (NET Bible https://netbible.org/bible/2+Peter+1; emphasis mine)

This explains why this beloved and holy servant of Jesus could conclude his inspired epistle with an ascription of praise, a doxology, to the risen Son:

“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 3:18

Since doxologies can only be offered to the true God, this simply reinforces the point that Peter did view the risen Christ as God in an absolute sense.

And seeing that this blessed Apostle believed that Jesus is God in the flesh it, therefore, only makes sense that he would go around preaching that it is Christ and his name alone that saves anyone from their sins, even though he would have known that this is a function and ability that the Hebrew Bible ascribes only to YHWH:

“Now it happened that on the next day, their rulers and elders and scribes were gathered together in Jerusalem; and Annas the high priest was there, and Caiaphas and John and Alexander, and all who were of high-priestly descent. And when they had placed them in their midst, they began to inquire, ‘By what power, or in what name, have you done this?’ Then Peter, filled with the Holy Spirit, said to them, ‘Rulers and elders of the people, if we are being examined today for a good deed done to a sick man, as to how this man has been saved from his sickness, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead—by this name this man stands here before you in good health. He is the stone which was rejected by you, the builders, but which became the chief corner stone. And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.’ Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and comprehended that they were uneducated and ordinary men, they were marveling, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus. And seeing the man who had been healed standing with them, they had nothing to say in reply.” Acts 4:5-14

JOHANNINE LITERATURE

The Apostle John is quite clear that Jesus in his prehuman existence is the uncreated Word of God that created and preserves all creation, who then chose to become flesh in order to reveal the Father to the world, and to grant salvation to everyone that believes in his name:

“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. He came to what was His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him. But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God. 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… No one has seen God at any time; the only begotten God who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained Him.” John 1:1-4, 10-14, 18  

The Evangelist then concludes the Gospel with Thomas’ Christological confession that Jesus is his very Lord and God

“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.’ Why Therefore many other signs Jesus also did in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these have been written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you may have life in His name.” John 20:28-31

Since the only Lord and God that a monotheistic Jew could ever confess is YHWH,

“You have seen it, O Yahweh, do not keep silent; O Lord, do not be far from me. Stir up Yourself, and awake to my justice And to my cause, my God and my Lord.” Psalm 35:22- 23

“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

This means that Jesus must be YHWH God; otherwise, both Thomas and the risen Lord would be guilty of blasphemy for allowing a creature to view another creature as his very own Lord and God!

John went even further in his first epistle by identifying the Son as the true God and eternal life:

“If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater; for the witness of God is this, that He has borne witness about His Son. The one who believes in the Son of God has this witness in himself. The one who does not believe God has made Him a liar, because he has not believed in the witness which God has borne witness about His Son. And the witness is this, that God gave us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God does not have that life. These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. And this is the confidence which we have before Him, that, if we ask anything according to His will, He hears us. And if we know that He hears us in whatever we ask, we know that we have the requests which we have asked from Him… 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, in His Son Jesus Christ. This is the true God and eternal life. Little children, guard yourselves from idols.” 1 John 5:9-15, 20-21

John already told us in the beginning of his epistle who this eternal life 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 Son Jesus Christ. And these things we are writing, so that our joy may be made complete. And this is the message we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is Light, and in Him there is no darkness at all. If we say that we have fellowship with Him and yet walk in the darkness, we lie and do not do the truth; but if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.” 1 John 1:1-7

Jesus is that very eternal life that was with the Father whom John and the others physically touched, saw and heard!

As such, there’s simply no way of escaping the fact that Christ is the One being described as the true God since only One who is the true God can also be eternal life. Note the logic behind this argument:

1. The true God is eternal life, being the Source of all life.
2. Jesus is the eternal Life and the Source of all life.
3. Jesus, therefore, is the true God that was with the Father and who then became a human being.

And not only does John expressly tell us that it is Jesus who is that very eternal life that appeared to them, and who cleanses sinners from all their sins, the inspired Evangelist also describes Christ as being the true Light who enlightens all men unto salvation:

“There was a man having been sent from God, whose name was John. He came as a witness, to bear witness about the Light, so that all might believe through him. He was not the Light, but he came to bear witness about the Light. There was the true Light which, coming into the world, enlightens everyone.” John 1:6-9

“Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, ‘I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will never walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.’” John 8:12

“We must work the works of Him who sent Me as long as it is day; night is coming when no one can work. While I am in the world, I am the light of the world.” John 9:4-5  

“So Jesus said to them, ‘For a little while longer the Light is among you. Walk while you have the Light, so that darkness will not overtake you; he who walks in the darkness does not know where he goes. While you have the Light, believe in the Light, so that you may become sons of Light.’ These things Jesus spoke, and He went away and hid Himself from them… And Jesus cried out and said, ‘He who believes in Me, does not believe in Me but in Him who sent Me. And he who sees Me sees the One who sent Me. I have come as Light into the world, so that everyone who believes in Me will not remain in darkness.’” John 12:35-36, 44-46

This explains why John saw every created thing in the whole entire creation giving the risen Jesus the exact same worship that the Father receives, and for the exact same duration:

“And when He had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each one having a harp and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints. And they sang a new song, saying, ‘Worthy are You to take the scroll and to open its seals, because You were slain and purchased for God with Your blood people from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. And You made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they will reign upon the earth.’ Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.’ And EVERY CREATED THING which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, AND ALL THINGS IN THEM, I heard saying, ‘To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be the blessing and the honor and the glory and the might forever and ever.’ And the four living creatures kept saying, ‘Amen.’ And the elders fell down and worshiped.” Revelation 5:8-14

The aforementioned passages taken from the inspired writings of the fourth Evangelist conclusively prove that Christ is not a created being. Rather, Jesus is separate from all creation since he is the uncreated Son of God that became human, being equal to the Father in power, glory and majesty.

PAULINE CORPUS

Like the Apostles before him, Paul had no hesitation in testifying that the Christ is God Almighty who became flesh, specifically an Israelite from the seed of David:

“concerning His Son, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, who was designated as the Son of God in power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord,” Romans 1:3-4 – C.f. 2 Timothy 2:8

“Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them, according to the flesh, came the Christ, who is God over all, eternally blessed. Amen.” Romans 9:5 Evangelical Heritage Version (ESV)

Paul even describes Jesus as our Great God and Savior that came to redeem and purify a people to be his very own inheritance,

“looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ (tou megalou theou kai soteros hemon ‘Iesou Christou), 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⁽¹⁾

And who possesses the entire fullness of the divine essence in bodily form:

“For in Him all the fullness of Deity dwells bodily, and in Him you have been filled, who is the head over all rule and authority;” Colossians 2:9-10

I.e., Jesus is God Almighty that became a Man and who now has an immortal, glorified physical body of flesh (Cf. Luke 24:36-43; John 20:24-29; Acts 2:29-36; 17:30-31; 1 Corinthians 15:20-23, 45-56; Philippians 3:9-11, 20-21; Revelation 5:5; 22:16).  

The blessed Apostle further proclaims that Christ is God’s beloved and uncreated Son, the One by and for whom every created thing came into existence and who personally sustains the entire creation:

“The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For IN him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things have been created through him and FOR him. He IS before all things, and IN him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy.” Colossians 1:15-18 New International Version (NIV)

This is confirmed in the letter to the Hebrews, where Jesus is described as the Son who is the Heir of all things, being the very Lord YHWH that created and preserves all creation by his word, and who reigns as God forever and ever!

“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, the inspired writer has the Father glorifying his beloved Son with the words of the following Psalm,

“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

A Psalm where YHWH is being magnified as the unchanging Creator and Sustainer of all creation!

In other words, it is God the Father himself who identifies Jesus as YHWH God Almighty that became Man for our salvation!

Another verse worth mentioning comes from Acts where Paul gives final instructions to the Ephesian elders regarding their responsibility in protecting the church from heretics and false teachers:

“Keep a careful watch over yourselves and over the church. The Holy Spirit has made you its leaders. Feed and care for the church of God (tou theou). He bought it with His own blood.” Acts 20:28 New Life Version (NLV)

Here’s a different rendering of this text:

“So guard yourselves and God’s people. Feed and shepherd God’s flock—his church, purchased with his own blood—over which the Holy Spirit has appointed you as leaders.” New Living Translation (NLT)

Interestingly, the majority of the Greek witnesses actually read Lord and God,

“Take heed, therefore, to yourselves, and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the assembly of the Lord and God (tou kyriou kai tou theou) which he purchased with his own blood.” World English Bible (WEB)

I.e., Jesus is the Lord God who purchased the church with the blood he shed on the cross.

The foregoing shows why the inspired writers and witnesses to the risen Christ could describe Jesus as doing what God alone does, namely, saving people from their sins. They all believed and testified that the Son isn’t a creature whom the Father brought into being. Rather, they became convinced as a result of Christ’s physical, bodily resurrection that Jesus is indeed who he claimed to be, e.g., the eternal Son of God who is equal to the Father in essence and glory.

THE FATHER IS YHWH TOO

This brings me to my final point.

The same God-breathed Scriptures also testify to the Father of Christ being the one and only true God:

“I have come in My Father’s name, and you do not receive Me; if another comes in his own name, you will receive him. How can you believe, when you receive glory from one another and you do not seek the glory that is from the only God?” John 5:43-44  

“Jesus spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, ‘Father, the hour has come; glorify Your Son, that the Son may glorify You, even as You gave Him authority over all flesh, that to all whom You have given Him, He may give eternal life. And this is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom You have sent.’” John 17:1-3

“For they themselves report about us what kind of an entrance we had with you, and how you turned to God from idols to serve a living and true God, and to wait for His Son from heaven, whom He raised from the dead, Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath to come.” 1 Thessalonians 1:9-10

And since YHWH alone is the true God,

“and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, ‘Listen to me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: Yahweh is with you when you are with Him. And if you seek Him, He will be found; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you. Now for many days Israel was without the true God and without a teaching priest and without law.’” 2 Chronicles 15:2-3

“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.” Nehemiah 9:6

“There is none like You, O Yahweh; You are great, and great is Your name in might… But Yahweh is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth quakes, And the nations cannot endure His indignation. Thus you shall say to them, ‘The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.’ It is He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom; And by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens… The portion of Jacob is not like these; For the Maker of all is He, And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; Yahweh of hosts is His name.” Jeremiah 10:6, 10-12, 16

This means that the Father must also be YHWH God Almighty, even though he is not the Son nor the Holy Spirit.

THE CONCLUSION: YHWH IS A TRI-PERSONAL BEING

The evidence provided in these two posts establish beyond any reasonable doubt that the inspired Scriptures do not proclaim an uni-Personal God. Rather, these sacred books plainly testify that the one true God is an eternal, infinite multi-Personal Being. These God-breathed writings bear witness to a tri-Personal God who eternally subsists as the Father, his beloved Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Here’s a helpful breakdown of the consistent witness of God’s inspired revelation:

1. YHWH is the only God who is able to save from sins, and has chosen to do so.
2. Human creatures are incapable of saving themselves from their transgressions.
3. Jesus is identified as God who chose to save mankind by becoming human in order to die for their sins.
4. Jesus must, therefore, be YHWH God who became human.
5. The Father is expressly called the only true God.
6. Since only YHWH is the true God the Father must, therefore, be YHWH God as well.
7. Jesus is not the Father (or the Holy Spirit).
8. YHWH, therefore, cannot be a singular Person. Rather, YHWH is an eternal, uncreated multi-Personal Being who has been eternally existing as the Father and the Son (along with the Holy Spirit).

To the honest Bible believer there’s simply no way of getting around this explicit testimony to God’s Triunity.

FURTHER READING

A HERETIC PROVES THE FATHER IS NOT GOD

Jesus Christ and JWs: Who is the Jehovah That Saves?

WHO IS THE JEHOVAH THAT ONE CALLS UPON TO BE SAVED?

Shaming the Shameless: Responding to a Jehovah’s Witness

JESUS AS THEOS IN HEBREWS

JESUS CHRIST: TRUE GOD FROM TRUE GOD

REVISITED: JESUS THE TRUE GOD AND ETERNAL LIFE

ENDNOTES

(1) Like 2 Peter 1:1, Titus 2:13 is another example of a Sharp construction where Jesus is undoubtedly being described as the Great God and Savior of all believers. The following somewhat lengthy quote helps explain why this is so:

Two of the shortest books of the New Testament contain similar—and very strong—affirmations of Jesus Christ as God. In his epistle to Titus, the apostle Paul⁴⁴ states that Christians “wait for the blessed hope and the manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13). The equally short epistle of 2 Peter opens by describing its readers as “those who have received a faith as precious as ours through the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ” (1:1). Both of these texts describe Jesus using the two titles God and Savior.

Not everyone agrees that these verses call Jesus “God.” Jehovah’s Witnesses, for example, translate Titus 2:13 “of the great God and of [the] Savior of us, Christ Jesus” and 2 Peter 1:1 “of our God and [the] Savior Jesus Christ” (NWT, brackets in the original). The bracketed insertions of the word the make a significant difference. Read these verses without the bracketed insertions—especially 2 Peter 1:1—and they sound like they are referring to Jesus as both God and Savior.⁴⁵

Several factors, taken together, prove beyond reasonable doubt that both of these verses call Jesus “God.” One of these factors is the way the sentences use the article the in the construction or word arrangement that both sentences share.

The most natural way of understanding this particular construction is that both nouns refer to the same person. (In this construction, it does not matter whether the phrase includes a pronoun or where the pronoun appears.) When this construction occurs in ancient Greek using singular personal nouns that are not proper names (that is, nouns like father, Lord, king, not Jesus, Peter, or Paul), the two nouns normally refer to the same person. The first writer to analyze this construction in a formal way did so in the late eighteenth century. He was an English Christian abolitionist named Granville Sharp; for that reason, the analysis of this construction is commonly known as Sharp’s rule.⁴⁶

The New Testament contains plenty of examples supporting Sharp’s rule. The epistles of Paul, for example, refer to “our God and Father” (e.g., Gal. 1:4; Phil. 4:20; 1 Thess. 1:3; 3:11, 13) and “the God and Father” (Rom. 15:6; 1 Cor. 15:24), which certainly refer to one person by both titles God and Father. There are numerous additional examples, many of little or no theological concern…

The evidence that Titus 2:13 and 2 Peter 1:1 call Jesus God goes beyond Sharp’s rule.⁴⁸ In Titus, the expression “our Savior” (soteros hemon) occurs six times. In five of those six occurrences, the article “the” (tou) immediately precedes “our Savior” (1:3, 4; 2:10; 3:4, 6); the one exception is Titus 2:13. The obvious and only good explanation for this variation is that “our Savior” is governed by the same article that governs “great God.”

Another piece of evidence in the context of Titus 2:13 is Paul’s use of the word epiphaneia (“manifestation” [NRSV], “appearing” [NASB]), from which we derive the word epiphany. In the Bible this word occurs only in Paul’s writings, mostly in the Pastoral Epistles (2 Thess. 2:8; 1 Tim. 6:14; 2 Tim. 1:10; 4:1, 8; Titus 2:13), and always referring to the manifestation or appearing of Jesus Christ, unless Titus 2:13 is the sole exception. The close parallel between Titus 2:13 and 2 Timothy 1:10 (“the appearing of our Savior Christ Jesus”) effectively rules out the possibility that Titus 2:13 is an exception. So when Paul says that Christians are awaiting “the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (Titus 2:13 NASB), we can be sure that the one who will be “appearing” will indeed be Jesus Christ.

An alternative understanding of Titus 2:13, recently defended by evangelical Pauline scholar Gordon Fee, merits some attention. Fee agrees that Sharp’s rule applies to Titus 2:13, so that “our great God and Savior” refers to one divine person. He argues, however, that the person called “our great God and Savior” is the Father, not Christ. His view is that Jesus Christ is called “the glory of our great God and Savior.” In other words, he understands Paul to be saying that Christians are “awaiting the blessed hope and manifestation of the glory of our great God and Savior, [which glory is] Jesus Christ.”⁴⁹

If Fee is correct, what Paul says about Jesus Christ still implies his deity, since he would be affirming that the climactic, ultimate revelation of God’s glory will be the appearing of Jesus Christ at his second coming. There are, however, some strong reasons to dispute Fee’s interpretation. All of his arguments in support of that view boil down to the claim that it would be out of keeping with Paul’s way of speaking for him to call Jesus “God.” Yet it is clear that Paul departs from his usual terminology for Jesus in the epistle to Titus, since in this epistle alone he never refers to Jesus as “Lord” (kurios) and refers to Jesus at least twice as “Savior” (soter, Titus 1:4; 3:6), a term he rarely uses for Jesus.⁵⁰ Murray Harris rightly warns against “an ever-present danger in literary research in making a writer’s ‘habitual usage’ so normative that he is disallowed the privilege of creating the exception that proves the rule.”⁵¹

At least eight factors cumulatively offer strong support for understanding “Jesus Christ” to be identifying “our great God and Savior,” not “the glory,” in Titus 2:13.

1. “Our great God and Savior” is immediately adjacent to “Jesus Christ.”⁵²

2. It would be odd to speak of the manifestation of God’s glory and not mean that the one who is manifest is God.

3. Paul never refers to Jesus as God’s “glory” (although 2 Cor. 4:4, 6 comes close).

4. All other things being equal, a personal designation like “our great God and Savior” is more likely to be identified as a person (“Jesus Christ”) than is an abstraction (“the glory”).

5. Elsewhere in the Pastoral Epistles (1 and 2 Timothy, Titus), whenever Paul uses the word epiphaneia (“manifestation” or “appearing”), it refers to the manifestation of Jesus Christ (1 Tim. 6:14; 2 Tim. 1:10; 4:1, 8), not of an abstract quality related to God or Christ.⁵³

6. In as many as twelve out of eighteen times in his epistles that Paul uses the term “the glory” in the genitive case (tes doxes), it likely functions as a descriptive modifier of the preceding noun (Rom. 8:21; 9:23; 1 Cor. 2:8; 2 Cor. 4:4; Eph. 1:17, 18; 3:16; Phil. 3:21; Col. 1:11, 27; 1 Tim. 1:11; Titus 2:13). English translations often express this usage by the rendering “glorious” (see especially the NET and NIV).⁵⁴ Thus, Titus 2:13 may be better translated “the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ” (see, e.g., NKJV, NIV, NET).

7. Paul immediately follows his reference to Jesus Christ by speaking of his accomplishments for our salvation (Titus 2:14), confirming that in this context Jesus Christ is “our Savior.”

8. The pattern of Paul’s references to “our Savior” in Titus—three references to “God our Savior” each followed closely by a reference to Jesus Christ as “our Savior” (1:3, 4; 2:10, 13; 3:4, 6)—is disrupted if 2:13 does not refer to Jesus Christ as Savior.

A similar text—and one for which the exegetical issues are far simpler—is 2 Peter 1:1, which speaks of “our God and Savior Jesus Christ.” Some people argue that this text cannot call Jesus “God” because “God” is clearly distinguished from “Jesus our Lord” in the very next verse (v. 2). This objection, though, assumes that the New Testament cannot affirm both that Jesus is God and that he is distinct from God. To the contrary, in at least four other New Testament texts we find such allegedly “contradictory” statements side by side (John 1:1, 18; 20:17, 28, 31; Heb. 1:8–9). Rather than mistranslate the texts to make them seem unproblematic to our minds, we should consider the possibility that these texts are revealing a paradoxical truth about the very nature of God.

As we read along in 2 Peter, we find several more references to Jesus Christ that closely parallel the wording of the first verse [cf. 1:11; 2:20; 3:2, 18]…

Virtually everyone acknowledges that the “Lord” in these texts is the same person as the “Savior,” namely, Jesus Christ; we need offer no argument or defense of that understanding. Yet in at least two, and possibly three, of these texts the only difference between these descriptions of Christ and that in 2 Peter 1:1 is the use of kuriou (“Lord”) instead of theou (“God”). Since both Lord and God were common titles of deity in both biblical usage and in the broader culture, it is difficult to see any cogent reason to deny that Jesus is called God in 2 Peter 1:1. As Richard Bauckham points out in his commentary on 2 Peter, “There is no reason why variations on the stereotyped formula should not be used.”⁵⁵

The epistle of 2 Peter, then, opens by affirming that Jesus Christ is “our God and Savior.” It closes, appropriately, with a doxology of praise to Jesus Christ: “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To him be the glory both now and to the day of eternity. Amen” (2 Peter 3:18). The verbal parallels in those opening and closing verses between “our God and Savior Jesus Christ” and “our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ,” as well as the concluding doxology directing eternal glory to Jesus Christ, are stunningly clear affirmations that Jesus Christ is indeed our Lord and our God. Recognizing this is not merely an academic exercise; it is a summons to grow in our relationship with Jesus Christ and to begin living in such a way as to glorify him forever. (Bowman & J. Ed Komoszewski, Putting Jesus in His Place: The Case For The Deity of Christ [Kregel Publications, 2007], Part 3: Name Above All Names: Jesus Shares the Names of God, Chapter 12. Immanuel: God With Us, pp. 150-156; emphasis mine)

In this post I will seek to establish from the God-breathed Scriptures that there is only one God who is able to save from sin, and that Jesus Christ is expressly described as the God who saves those who trust in him from their transgressions. I will further show how this demonstrates that the one true God is an eternal multi-Personal Being.

YHWH: THE ONLY GOD WHO SAVES

The inspired Scriptures teach that YHWH is the only God who is able to save sinners:

“‘You are My witnesses,’ declares Yahweh, ‘And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He. Before Me there was no god formed, And there will be none after Me. I, even I, am Yahweh, And there is no savior besides Me. It is I who have declared and saved and caused it to be heard, And there was no strange god among you; So you are My witnesses,” declares Yahweh, “And I am God. Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?’” Isaiah 43:10-13

“Yet I have been Yahweh your God Since the land of Egypt; And you were not to know any god except Me, And there is no savior besides Me. I Myself knew you in the wilderness, In the land of drought.” Hosea 13:4-5  

The prophetic witness further proclaims that humans are incapable of saving one another from transgressions since the entire human race has come under the dominion of sin:

“If You should keep iniquities, O Yah, O Lord, who could stand? But with You there is forgiveness, That You may be feared.” Psalm 130:3-4 – C.f. 51:5; 58:3; 143:2; Gen. 6:5-7; 8:20-21; Job 4:17-19; 14:4; 15:14-16; 25:4-6; Prov. 20:9; Ecclesiastes 7:20, 29; 9:3; Matt. 7:11; Lk. 11:13; John 2:23-25; 7:7, 19; Rom. 3:9-20; 7:12-24; 8:5-8

Christ himself stated to his disciples that it is impossible for men to save themselves:

“And they were exceedingly astonished, and said to him, ‘Then who can be saved?’ Jesus looked at them and said, ‘With man it is impossible, but not with God. For all things are possible with God.’” Mark 10:26-27 English Standard Version (ESV)

This only reinforces the reason why YHWH must be the one who graciously chooses to redeem individuals from their transgressions.

And according to the Hebrew Scriptures this is exactly what YHWH has decided to do, namely, choosing to save people from their sins because of his name or character:

“Lamedh For Your name’s sake, O Yahweh, Pardon my iniquity, for it is great.” Psalm 25:11

“God Is My Helper For the choir director. With stringed instruments. A Maskil of David. When the Ziphites came and said to Saul, ‘Is not David hiding himself among us?’ O God, save me by Your name, And render justice to me by Your might.” Psalm 54:1

“Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of Your name; And deliver us and atone for our sins for Your name’s sake.” Psalm 79:9

“For You, Lord, are good, and by nature forgiving, And abundant in lovingkindness to all who call upon You… But You, O Lord, are a God compassionate and gracious, Slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness and truth.” Psalm 86:5, 15

“I, even I, am the one who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, And I will not remember your sins.’” Isaiah 43:25  

“‘Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, each according to his way,’ declares Lord Yahweh. “Turn back and turn away from all your transgressions, so that iniquity may not become a stumbling block to you. Cast away from yourselves all your transgressions which you have committed and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Now why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone who dies,’ declares Lord Yahweh. ‘Therefore, turn back and live.’” Ezekiel 18:30-32

“Now as for you, son of man, say to the house of Israel, ‘Thus you have spoken, saying, “Surely our transgressions and our sins are upon us, and we are rotting away in them; how then can we live?”’ Say to them, ‘As I live!’ declares Lord Yahweh, ‘I take no pleasure in the death of the wicked, but rather that the wicked turn from his way and live. Turn back, turn back from your evil ways! Why then will you die, O house of Israel?’” Ezekiel 33:10-11

“And he prayed to Yahweh and said, ‘Ah! O Yahweh, was not this my word to myself while I was still in my own land? Therefore I went ahead to flee to Tarshish, for I knew that You are a gracious and compassionate God, slow to anger and abundant in lovingkindness, and one who relents concerning evil.’” Jonah 4:2

In other words, since YHWH is a gracious God abounding in steadfast love who desires none to perish, he has chosen to summon all mankind to repentance in order that he may forgive them so that they can live forever in his presence.

As such, the entire inhabited earth must turn to YHWH for salvation since there is no other deity that can save them from sin besides YHWH:

“‘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 swear allegiance. They will say of Me, “Only in Yahweh are righteousness and strength.” Men will come to Him, And all who were angry at Him will be put to shame. In Yahweh all the seed of Israel Will be justified and will boast.’” Isaiah 45:21-25

JESUS SAVES FROM SIN

The inspired NT documents affirm that Jesus came into the world to redeem mankind from their lawlessness by offering his life on the cross as an atoning sacrifice.

SYNOPTIC GOSPELS

Matthew, Mark and Luke all agree that Jesus came to die for the salvation of the world:

“For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many.” Mark 10:45

“Now while they were eating, Jesus took some bread, and after a blessing, He broke it. And giving it to the disciples, He said, ‘Take, eat; this is My body.’ And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from it, all of you; for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins.’” Matthew 26:26-28

“Now He said to them, ‘These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all things which are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.’ Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and He said to them, ‘Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.’” Luke 24:44-47

PETRINE EPISTLES

Peter was one of Jesus closest and most intimate companions. Here is what this inspired emissary of Christ taught concerning salvation:

“knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things like silver or gold from your futile conduct inherited from your forefathers, but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and spotless, the blood of Christ.” 1 Peter 1:18-19

“For to this you have been called, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example that you should follow in His steps, who did no sin, nor was any deceit found in His mouth; who being reviled, was not reviling in return; while suffering, He was uttering no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously. Who Himself bore our sins in His body on the tree, so that having died to sin, we might live to righteousness; by His wounds you were healed. For you were continually straying like sheep, but now you have returned to the Shepherd and Overseer of your souls.” 1 Peter 2:21-25

“For Christ also suffered for sins once for all, the righteous for the unrighteous, so that He might bring you to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you—not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal of a good conscience to God—through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him.” 1 Peter 3:18-22

JOHANNINE LITERATURE

John is another disciple of Christ who testifies to Jesus coming to save all those that would believe on his name by dying for the sins of the world:

“And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” John 3:14-18

“and they were saying to the woman, ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves and know that this One is truly the Savior of the world.’” John 4:42

“This is the bread which comes down from heaven, so that one may eat of it and not die. I am the living bread that came down from heaven; if anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and also the bread which I will give for the life of the world is My flesh.” John 6:50-51

“And if anyone hears My words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.” John 12:47

“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. And if anyone sins, we have an Advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous; and He Himself is the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only, but also for those of the whole world… I am writing to you, little children, because your sins have been forgiven you for His name’s sake.” 1 John 2:1-2, 12

“By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we have loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins… We have beheld and bear witness that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.” 1 John 4:9-10, 14

“and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood—and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the might forever and ever. Amen.” Revelation 1:5-6

This next one is truly remarkable:

“After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude WHICH NO ONE COULD COUNT, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb.’ And all the angels were standing around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, ‘Amen, the blessing and the glory and the wisdom and the thanksgiving and the honor and the power and the strength, be to our God forever and ever. Amen.’ Then one of the elders answered, saying to me, ‘These, clothed in the white robes, who are they, and from where have they come?’ And I said to him, ‘My lord, you know.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the ones who come out of the great tribulation, and they washed their robes and made them white IN THE BLOOD OF THE LAMB. FOR THIS REASON, they are before the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His sanctuary; and He who sits on the throne will dwell over them. They will hunger no longer, nor thirst anymore; nor will the sun beat down on them, nor any heat; for the Lamb at the center of the throne will shepherd them and will guide them to springs of the water of life. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.’” Revelation 7:9-17

John clearly attests that Christ purchased a whole multitude of human beings too numerous to be counted from all languages and nations with his blood, whom he made absolutely sinless and worthy enough to stand before an infinitely holy God forever and ever!

Just as remarkable is the proclamation that salvation finds it source in both God the Father and Jesus Christ, since the Hebrew Bible is emphatic that YHWH alone is the source of salvation:

“Salvation belongs to Yahweh; Your blessing be upon Your people! Selah.” Psalm 3:8

“But as for me, I will sacrifice to You With the voice of thanksgiving. That which I have vowed I will pay. Salvation belongs to Yahweh.” Jonah 2:9

PAULINE CORPUS

The blessed Apostle Paul concurs with the rest of Jesus’ disciples that Christ came to save and redeem everyone who would believe on his name by offering his life as an atoning sacrifice for sins:

“for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation in His blood through faith, for a demonstration of His righteousness, because in the forbearance of God He passed over the sins previously committed;” Romans 3:23-25

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.” Romans 5:8-11

“He made Him who knew no sin to be sin on our behalf, so that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.” 2 Corinthians 5:21

“to the praise of the glory of His grace, which He graciously bestowed on us in the Beloved. In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our transgressions, according to the riches of His grace.” Ephesians 1:6-7

“Therefore, remember that formerly you—the Gentiles in the flesh, who are called ‘Uncircumcision’ by the so-called ‘Circumcision,’ which is performed in the flesh by human hands—remember that you were at that time without Christ, alienated from the citizenship of Israel, and strangers to the covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups one and broke down the dividing wall of the partition by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might create the two into one new man, making peace, and might reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, having in Himself put to death the enmity. And He came and preached the good news of peace to you who were far away, and peace to those who were near; Ephesians 2:11-17   

“and walk in love, just as Christ also loved us and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.” Ephesians 5:2

“Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ, who gave Himself for our sins so that He might rescue us from this present evil age, according to the will of our God and Father,” Galatians 1:3-4  

“Who rescued us from the authority of darkness, and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins… For in Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, And through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross—through Him—whether things on earth or things in heaven.” Colossians 1:13-14, 19-20  

“in whom you were also circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, in the removal of the body of the flesh, in the circumcision of Christ, having been buried with Him in baptism, in which you were also raised up with Him through faith in the working of God, who raised Him from the dead. And you being dead in your transgressions and the uncircumcision of your flesh, He made you alive with Him, having graciously forgiven us all our transgressions. Having canceled out the certificate of debt consisting of decrees against us which was hostile to us, He also has taken it out of the way, having nailed it to the cross. Having disarmed the rulers and authorities, He made a public display of them, having triumphed over them in Him.” Colossians 2:11-15

“It is a trustworthy saying and deserving full acceptance: that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, among whom I am foremost. Yet for this reason I was shown mercy, so that in me as the foremost, Christ Jesus might demonstrate all His patience as an example for those who are going to believe upon Him for eternal life.” 1 Timothy 1:15-16

“For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the witness for this proper time.” 1 Timothy 2:5-6

I include the following passages from Hebrews since many believe that this is an epistle, which may have been written by an amanuensis of Paul:

“But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels—Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone. For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, to perfect the author of their salvation through sufferings. For both He who sanctifies and those who are being sanctified are all of One; for which reason He is not ashamed to call them brothers, saying, ‘I will recount Your name to My brothers, In the midst of the assembly I will sing Your praise.’ And again, ‘I will put My trust in Him.’ And again, ‘Behold, I and the children whom God has given Me.’ Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, and might free those who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives. For assuredly He does not give help to angels, but He gives help to the seed of Abraham. Therefore, He had to be made like His brothers in all things, so that He might become a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. For since He Himself was tempted in that which He has suffered, He is able to come to help those who are tempted.” Hebrews 2:9-18

In the next installment I will bring out the implications of the unanimous testimony of inspired Scripture that Christ saves sinners, which is a work that the Hebrew Bible ascribe to YHWH alone: HOW MANY DIVINE SAVIORS ARE THERE? PT.2.

REFUTING ANOTHER UNITARIAN CANARD

I arrive at the final installment in the series: JESUS’ GOD PT. 2.

PAUL

In this part I will discuss Paul’s Christology in order to show that this holy servant of the risen Christ affirmed that Jesus is YHWH Incarnate, much like John did so.

For starters, we know that Paul did make it clear that Jesus is still a Man in heaven, albeit a glorified one at that:

“But our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we also await a savior, the Lord Jesus Christ. He will change our lowly body to conform with his glorified body by the power that enables him also to bring all things into subjection to himself.” Philippians 3:20-21 NABRE

“For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the MAN Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the witness for this proper time.” 1 Timothy 2:5-6

At the same time, however, he also affirmed that the risen Christ is God in an absolute sense, i.e., he isn’t merely a divine Being but is the great God and Savior of all believers.

I share some of the verses where this holy servant of Christ identifies the Son as God in an absolute sense.

TITUS 2:13-14

“looking for the blessed hope and the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ (tou megalou theou kai soteros hemon ‘Iesou Christou), 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.”

The Greek employs a particular grammatical construction, which makes it absolutely certain that Christ is being called the great God, as the following textual note explains:

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. (NET Bible https://netbible.org/bible/Titus+2; emphasis mine)

Noted Evangelical scholar and author Robert M. Bowman Jr. concurs:

7. Titus 2:13. Grammatically and contextually, this is one of the strongest proof texts for the deity of Christ. Sharp’s first rule, properly understood, proves that the text should be translated “our great God and Savior” (cf. same construction in Luke 20:37; Rev. 1:6; and many other passages). Note also that Paul always uses the word “manifestation” (“appearing”) of Christ: 2 Thess. 2:8; 1 Tim. 6:14; 2. Tim. 1:10; 4:1, 8. The view that Paul means that Jesus Christ is “the glory of our great God and Savior” has several difficulties. For example, construing “Savior” as someone other than “Jesus Christ” in this context is awkward and implausible. Such alternate explanations would never have been entertained had Paul written “the appearing of the glory of our great Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” Thus, the root problem is the assumption that Paul could not have called Jesus God. (Bowman, The Biblical Basis of the Doctrine of the Trinity, IV. The Son, Jesus Christ, is God.; emphasis mine)

The Hebrew Bible is explicitly clear that there is no other great God besides the one true God YHWH:

“For Yahweh your God is the God of gods and the Lord of lords, the great (ho megas), the mighty, and the fearsome God who does not show partiality nor take a bribe.” Deuteronomy 10:17

“So now, our God, the great (ho megas), the mighty, and the awesome God, who keeps covenant and lovingkindness, Do not let all the hardship seem insignificant before You, Which has found us, our kings, our princes, our priests, our prophets, our fathers, and all Your people, From the days of the kings of Assyria to this day.” Nehemiah 9:32

“who shows lovingkindness to thousands, but repays the iniquity of fathers into the bosom of their children after them, O great (ho megas) and mighty God. Yahweh of hosts is His name,” Jeremiah 32:18

“There is no one like You among the gods, O Lord, Nor are there any works like Yours. All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord, And they shall glorify Your name. For You are great and do wondrous deeds; You alone are God.” Psalm 86:8-10

Compare the Greek rendering of the aforementioned text:

“For thou art great (megas), and doest wonders: thou art the only [and] the great God (ho theos monos ho megas).” Psalm 85:10 LXX

ACTS 20:28

“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 (ten ekklesian tou theou) which He purchased with His own blood.”

Amazingly, the majority of the Greek witnesses actually read the church of the Lord and the God:

“Take heed, therefore, to yourselves, and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the assembly of the Lord and God (ten ekklesian tou kyriou kai tou theou) which he purchased with his own blood.” WEB

Paul’s words are remarkably similar to Thomas’ confession when the latter saw the risen Christ appear before him in his glorified physical body:

“Thomas responded to Jesus, ‘My Lord and my God (ho kyrios mou kai ho theos mou)!’ Jesus replied, ‘Do you believe because you see me? Happy are those who don’t see and yet believe.’” Common English Bible (CEB)

That Paul is describing Jesus as the God who shed his blood to ransom a people to be his own possession is made clear by the variants themselves, as Rob Bowman explains:

5. Acts 20:28: “the church of God which he purchased with his own blood.” The variant readings (e.g. “the church of the Lord”) show that the original wording was understood to mean “his own blood,” not “the blood of his own [Son]” (since otherwise no one would have thought to change it). (No one seems to have thought to understand the text to mean “the blood of his own” until about a hundred years ago.) Thus all other renderings are attempts to evade the startling clarity and meaning of this passage. (Bowman, The Biblical Basis of the Doctrine of the Trinity; emphasis mine)

Bowman further shows that “his own blood” was how the Church writers and biblical scholars read it for the first eighteen centuries:

“Although most contemporary English versions render the last part of the verse in the same way as the NASB (ESV, NIV, NKJV, HCSB, and others), many scholars and commentators in recent decades have preferred the rendering found in the NRSV (and also in REB). There is no doubt as to the reason for this preference: those who dispute the conventional translation find the language, which expresses the idea of God’s having ‘blood,’ difficult if not impossible to entertain.

“A little lesson in grammar is unavoidable in order to understand the problem with the NRSV interpretation. The disputed words usually translated “his own blood” but translated ‘the blood of his own Son’ in the NRSV are tou haimatos tou idiou (word for word, ‘the blood, the his-own’). The word idiou (‘his own’) is an adjective, which normally we would understand as modifying the noun haimatos (‘blood’). The word order here, with the adjective following the noun with a second article between them, is perfectly normal and common in Greek. Another example of this construction appears in the very same verse: ‘the Holy Spirit’ (to pneuma to hagion, word for word, ‘the Spirit, the Holy’). It was not until the latter half of the nineteenth century, that anyone proposed that the words here in question did not mean ‘his own blood.’

“The basis for the alternate translation ‘the blood of his own Son’ is that Greek can use adjectives as if they were nouns (the technical term is substantivally). Many modern scholars argue that tou idiou is such a substantival use of the adjective, and therefore means ‘of his Own,’ comparable to the use of the adjective ‘the Beloved’ (Eph. 1:6) as a kind of term of endearment.

“This reinterpretation of the text is grammatically possible and difficult to disprove absolutely, but it is hardly the most natural understanding. As we mentioned, eighteen centuries went by before anyone came up with it. The New Testament nowhere calls Jesus ‘his Own’ (ho idios), nor was this term ever picked up in the early church as a designation for Jesus. The substantival use of ho idios (or any grammatical variation, such as ton idion) is, in fact, rare in the New Testament, and in the singular occurs only once–and even then not in reference to a specific person (John 15:19). On the other hand, ho idios functions as an adjective following the noun–just as in Acts 20:28–in several New Testament texts (John 1:41; 5:43; 7:18; Acts 1:25).

“We are inclined to agree with Nigel Turner, a twentieth-century scholar of Greek grammar, who called the alternate translation of Acts 20:28 ‘a theological expedient, foisting imaginary distinctions into a spontaneous affirmation, and is not the natural way to take the Greek.’ As the Catholic scholar Charles DeVine commented sixty years ago, it is nothing more than an attempt ‘to avoid at all costs the full force of the expression “God’s own blood.”’” (Bowman & J. Ed Komoszewski, Putting Jesus in His Place: The Case For The Deity of Christ [Kregel Publications, 2007], Part 3: Name Above All Names: Jesus Shares the Names of God, Chapter 12. Immanuel: God With Us, pp. 145-146; emphasis mine)⁽¹⁾

And:

30. The first scholars to propose the alternate translation “the blood of his own” appear to have been J. A. Bengel and F. J. A. Hort; see Harris, Jesus as God, 139; and Charles F. DeVine, “The ‘Blood of God’ in Acts 20:28,” CBQ 9 (1947): 405. (Ibid., pp. 330-331)

ROMANS 9:5

The following verse is another case of the blessed Apostle glorifying the risen Christ as God in an absolute sense:

“of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God. Amen.” NKJV

Both the grammar and the context decidedly point to Jesus being described as the God that reigns supreme over all, and who is eternally blessed or praised.

The following Evangelical translators and scholars sum up the reasons why the majority of biblical exegetes and grammarians are convinced that this is another verse magnifying Christ as God:

tn Or “the Christ, who is over all, God blessed forever,” or “the Messiah. God who is over all be blessed forever!” or “the Messiah who is over all. God be blessed forever!” The translational difficulty here is not text-critical in nature, but is a problem of punctuation. Since the genre of these opening verses of Romans 9 is a lament, it is probably best to take this as an affirmation of Christ’s deity (as the text renders it). Although the other renderings are possible, to see a note of praise to God at the end of this section seems strangely out of place. But for Paul to bring his lament to a crescendo (that is to say, his kinsmen had rejected God come in the flesh), thereby deepening his anguish, is wholly appropriate. This is also supported grammatically and stylistically: The phrase ὁ ὢν (ho ōn, “the one who is”) is most naturally taken as a phrase which modifies something in the preceding context, and Paul’s doxologies are always closely tied to the preceding context. For a detailed examination of this verse, see B. M. Metzger, “The Punctuation of Rom. 9:5,” Christ and the Spirit in the New Testament, 95-112; and M. J. Harris, Jesus as God, 144-72. (NET Bible https://netbible.org/bible/Romans+9; emphasis mine)

And:

Romans 9:5 is another apparent affirmation of Jesus as God that can be translated in different ways. Consider the following translations:

. . . whose are the fathers, and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed forever. Amen. (NASB)

. . . to whom the forefathers belong and from whom the Christ [sprang] according to the flesh: God, who is over all, [be] blessed forever. Amen. (NWT)

According to the NASB and most recent major English versions, Paul refers to the Christ as “God,” whereas in the NWT and some other (mostly older) translations, he does not. In other texts that apparently call Jesus “God,” we have encountered various textual and translation disputes. Here, the difference comes down to punctuation.

If we break up the verse into lines and translate it word for word in order without punctuation, it will help us see what the issues are:

a. whose [are] the fathers

b. and from whom [is] the Christ according to the flesh

c. the one who is over all

d. God blessed unto the ages amen

Put very simply, the main options³⁵ for punctuating the verse boil down to three: (1) Put a period at the end of line b, so that lines c and d are a separate sentence. This would mean that the verse does not say that Christ is “over all” or that he is God.³⁶ (2) Put a period at the end of line c, so that line d is a separate sentence. This would mean that the verse says that Christ is “over all” but does not call him God.³⁷ (3) Treat all four lines as part of the same sentence (which may start in verse 3). This would mean that the verse says that Christ is “over all” and also calls him God.³⁸

Two considerations lead most translators to choose the third option. First, grammatically, “who is over all” most naturally modifies “the Christ” in the preceding part of the verse: “and from whom is the Christ according to the flesh, the one who is over all” (translating literally). In addition, “who is” or “the one who is” (ho on) agrees grammatically with “the Christ” (ho Christos), leading the reader to understand that “who is over all” is continuing to say something about the Christ. Paul’s wording here closely parallels a similar outburst of praise directed to God the Father in another of Paul’s epistles: “The God and Father of the Lord Jesus knows, the one who is [ho on] blessed forever, that I am not lying” (2 Cor. 11:31, authors’ translation). This means that the third line of Romans 9:5 most likely is part of the sentence that begins in verse 3. The thought that the Messiah is “over all” is certainly consistent with Paul’s teaching; in fact, the idea is repeated just one chapter later (Rom. 10:12).

The second consideration is the position of the word for “blessed” (eulogetos), which in Greek follows the word for “God” (theos). In biblical doxologies that stand as separate sentences and that use blessed, it always precedes the divine name or title (God, YHWH, etc.) in the sentence. Here are some typical examples.

Blessed be God . . . (Pss. 66:20; 68:35)

Blessed be the Lord . . . (Exod. 18:10; Ruth 4:14; Pss. 28:6; 31:21)

Blessed be the Lord forever. (Ps. 89:52)

Blessed be the Lord the God of Israel . . . (1 Sam. 25:32; Pss. 41:13; 106:48; cf. Luke 1:68)

Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ . . . (2 Cor. 1:3; Eph. 1:3; 1 Peter 1:3)

The fact that Romans 9:5 does not follow this standard biblical pattern for a doxology that stands as a separate sentence (which Paul himself uses elsewhere) makes it reasonably certain that “God blessed forever” is part of the same sentence as the preceding lines. Paul uses this sentence structure in other places in his writings, including earlier in the same epistle.

They exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is [hos estin] blessed forever! Amen. (Rom. 1:25).

The God and Father of the Lord Jesus, He who is [ho on] blessed forever. . . . (2 Cor. 11:31 NASB)

For these reasons, we can be quite confident that Romans 9:5 does, indeed, call Jesus “God.”³⁹ This text is all the more significant when we consider that it is the earliest New Testament writing that calls Jesus “God” (dating to about A.D. 57, about a quarter-century after Jesus’ death and resurrection).⁴⁰  Moreover, in Romans 9:5 we see three of the five elements we are discussing in this book pertaining to the deity of Jesus: he receives the divine honor of eternal praise; he has the divine name “God”; he shares God’s seat, holding the highest position of ruling over all creation. (Bowman & Komoszewski, Putting Jesus in His Place, pp. 146-148; emphasis mine)

As Bowman & alluded to, the very next chapter further substantiates that Paul was describing Christ as God:

“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

Astonishingly, the Apostle ascribes to Christ the following OT text which speaks of calling upon the name of YHWH in order to be saved:

“And it will be afterwards That I will pour out My Spirit on all mankind; And your sons and your daughters shall prophesy; Your old men will dream dreams; Your young men will see visions. Even on the male slaves and female slaves I will in those days pour out My Spirit… 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 2:28-29, 32

The only way that the inspired Apostle could describe Christ as that very YHWH whose name a person must confess for salvation is if he actually believed that Jesus is YHWH Incarnate!

Paul even identifies YHWH’s Spirit as the Spirit of both God the Father and Jesus Christ!

“However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. 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. 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.” Romans 8:9-11

“But when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth His Son, born of a woman, born under the Law, so that He might redeem those who were under the Law, that we might receive the adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” Galatians 4:4-6 

“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

Once again, the only way that a monotheistic Jew like Paul could refer to the Holy Spirit as being the very Spirit of Christ the Son is if he was convinced that Jesus is indeed YHWH Almighty who became a Man!

This brings me to my final example.

PHILIPPIANS 2:5-11

The following passage is believed to be a poem or hymn which the Apostle incorporated into his inspired letter. Scholars have dated this poem/hymn circa. 40s AD, within a decade of Jesus’ resurrection:

“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: 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. And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” New International Version (NIV)

Not only does this poem/hymn celebrate the prehuman, divine existence and incarnation of Christ, it also proclaims his exaltation to the status and worship, which the OT attributes to YHWH Almighty.

In fact, the poem/hymn even alludes to this fiercely monotheistic text from Isaiah:   

“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 swear allegiance.” Isaiah 45:21-23

Isaiah prophesied of a time wherein all nations will worship and confess YHWH in recognition of his being the only righteous God and Savior. And yet, here in Philippians 2 the Christians were ascribing this worship to Jesus!

What this means is that within less than a decade the first Christians (the majority of whom would have been Jews) were already proclaiming that Jesus is that YHWH God whom Isaiah predicted would be confessed and worshiped by all the nations, in fact by the entire creation!

“… But the most striking example of this is surely Philippians 2:10-11, which appropriates Isaiah 45:23-25 (originally proclaiming submission to God) to portray the eschatological acclamation of Jesus as Kyrios ‘the glory of God the Father.’

As the late renowned NT scholar Larry W. Hurtado put it:

“These applications of Old Testament Kyrios passages to Jesus connote and presuppose the conviction that in some profound way he is directly and uniquely associated with God. For example, in Philippians 2:9-11 Jesus’ status is bestowed by God, who has exalted Jesus and given him ‘the name above every name.’ The creative understanding of Isaiah 45:23 in these verses as predicting a universal acknowledgment of Jesus as Kyrios shows that being given this title must be the Greek equivalent of bearing the Old Testament name of God. We must note that Philippians 2:6-11 is widely thought to be Paul’s adaptation of a christological hymn that likely originated much earlier than the epistle in which it is preserved, and that Paul shows no need to explain or justify it. Once again, this means that Paul here IS NO CHRISTOLOGICAL INNOVATOR, at least as far as the contents of this passage and the devotional practice it reflects are concerned. Instead the passage gives us valuable historical evidence of devotion to Jesus that was so familiar that Paul could use this fascinating christological recitation as a basis for making his real point here, which is to call for appropriate Christian ethical behavior.” (Hurtado, Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity [William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, MI/Cambridge U.K. 2003], 2. Early Pauline Christianity, pp. 112-113; emphasis mine)

And:

“That emphasis upon Jesus’ high status has been struck already in v. 9, which relates the actions that represent God’s response to Jesus’ self-humbling. Following upon and responding to Jesus’ humble obedience, even to death by crucifixion, God ‘highly exalted’ Jesus. ‘Highly exalted’ here translates the same Greek verb used in Psalm 96:9 (LXX; Psalm 97:9 in the Hebrew) to praise God’s supremacy ‘far above all gods.’ God also gave to Jesus ‘the name above every name.’ Although we have no explicit reference to Jesus’ resurrection here, it is most likely that God’s exaltation of Jesus in Philippians 2:9 is implicitly linked to that event. In the New Testament, Jesus’ resurrection was not simply a revivification of him; it also involved God’s vindication and exaltation of him to a unique status–for example, ‘at the right hand’ of God (the imagery and phrasing drawn from Psalm 110:1 [LXX 109:1], a key biblical text in earliest articulation of Jesus’ status)…

“To come back to our Philippians passage, in v. 9, particularly, the reference to Jesus being given ‘the name above every name’ practically requires us to think of the traditional, devout Jewish estimation of the sacred name of God. Moreover, we probably have here another echo of Isaiah 45:18-25. In the LXX of the Isaiah passage, YHWH is the Kyrios whose supremacy is to be manifest to all. So the acclamation in Philippians 2:11, ‘Kyrios Iesous Christos’ (‘Jesus Christ/Messiah is [the] Lord’), specifies the exalted name now borne by Jesus. As astonishing as it may be, Philippians 2:9 must be seen as claiming that in some way God has given to Jesus (to share?) the divine name that was represented in Greek by Kyrios and represented in Hebrew by the tetragrammaton. As Nagata put it, ‘Vv. 10-11 make the exalted Jesus virtually God.’ As we will see shortly, however, this does not mean that Jesus eclipses the God of biblical tradition. The exalted claims made about Jesus represent a distinctive ‘mutation’ in traditional Jewish monotheism, but certainly not an outright rejection of it.” (Hurtado, How on Earth Did Jesus Became a God? – Historical Questions about Earliest to Jesus [William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., Grand Rapids, MI/Cambridge, U.K. 2005], Part I: Issues and Approaches, 4. A “Case Study” in Early Christian Devotion to Jesus: Philippians 2:6-11, pp. 93, 94-95; emphasis mine)

In light of the foregoing, the evidence from both John and Paul (in fact, the NT writings as a whole) prove beyond any reasonable doubt the first Christians did not think that Jesus was a mere human creature, nor did they think that Christ could not be God in light of the Father being his God.

Rather, these Spirit-filled preachers and writers taught and proclaimed that Jesus is God Almighty who became a Man, being both personally distinct from and essentially one with both the Father and the Spirit. Moreover, since he had become human by nature, and forever remains a Man, they saw no problem with him honoring the Father as his God while also being God in nature.

And neither should any true Bible-believing Christian!

FURTHER READING

Acts 20:28: The Blood of God

The Blood of God

Jesus: The God That Came to Purchase His Church

The Apostles’ inspired proclamation concerning the risen Christ in the book of Acts Pt. 1

JESUS AS GOD IN ROMANS 9:5

Jesus who is over all, God blessed forever! (Romans 9:5) [Part 1], [Part 2]

Carmen Christi: Worshiping Christ as God

Revisiting the Deity of Christ in Light of the Carmen Christi Pt. 1, Pt. 2

Bart D. Ehrman Proves Muhammad is a false prophet Pt. 2a, Pt. 2b

Paul’s Divine Christology Pt. 1, Pt. 2, Pt. 3

ENDNOTES

(1) There is another early attested variant, which reads “the church of the Lord”:

“Take heed to yourselves and to all the flock, in which the Holy Spirit has made you guardians, to feed the church of the Lord (ten ekklesian tou kyriou) which he obtained with his own blood.” Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition (RSVCE)

What makes this reading so intriguing is that actually confirms the absolute Deity of Christ since the Greek phrase ekklesia [ho] Kyrios was used to translate the Hebrew expression qahal YHWH, meaning the church/congregation/assembly of Jehovah: 

“He that is fractured or mutilated in his private parts shall not enter into the assembly of the Lord (ten ekklesian Kyriou [qahal YHWH]). [One born] of a harlot shall not enter into the assembly of the Lord (ekklesian Kyriou [qahal YHWH]). The Ammanite and Moabite shall not enter into the assembly of the Lord (ekklesian Kyriou [qahal YHWH]), even until the tenth generation he shall not enter into the assembly of the Lord (ten ekklesian Kyriou [qahal YHWH]), even for ever… If sons be born to them, in the third generation they shall enter into the assembly of the Lord (ekklesian Kyriou [qahal YHWH]).” Deuteronomy 23:2-4, 9 LXX

“And now [I charge you] before the whole assembly of the Lord (pases ekklesias Kyriou [qahal YHWH]), and in the audience of our God, keep and seek all the commandments of the Lord our God, that ye may inherit the good land, and leave it for your sons to inherit after you for ever.” 1 Chronicles 28:8 LXX

“Weep not with tears in the assembly of the Lord (ekklesia Kyriou [qahal YHWH]), neither let [any] weep for these things; for he shall not remove the reproaches,” Micah 2:5 LXX

Hence to speak of the Lord purchasing his church by his own blood is to identify Jesus Christ as YHWH God Almighty who became a human being!

In this post I share some of the manifold verses that go out of their way to affirm that YHWH the God of Israel is the only true God whom all nations are commanded to worship and serve.        

YHWH is the name of the only true God.

“Then Moses said to God, ‘Behold, I am about to come to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ And they will say to me, “What is His name?” What shall I say to them?’ And God said to Moses, ‘I AM WHO I AM’; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, “I AM has sent me to you.”’ And God furthermore said to Moses, ‘Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, “Yahweh, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.” This is My name forever, and this is My memorial-name from generation to generation.’” Exodus 3:13-15

“Then God spoke all these words, saying, ‘I am Yahweh your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You shall have no other gods before Me.’” Exodus 20:1-3

“God spoke further to Moses and said to him, ‘I am Yahweh; and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name, Yahweh, I was not known to them.’” Exodus 6:2-3

“Now the Spirit of God came on Azariah the son of Oded, and he went out to meet Asa and said to him, ‘Listen to me, Asa, and all Judah and Benjamin: Yahweh is with you when you are with Him. And if you seek Him, He will be found; but if you forsake Him, He will forsake you. Now for many days Israel was without the true God and without a teaching priest and without law. But in their distress they turned to Yahweh, the God of Israel, and they searched for Him, and He was found by them. Now in those times there was no peace to him who went out or to him who came in, for much confusion was upon all the inhabitants of the lands. And nation was crushed by nation, and city by city, for God threw them into confusion with every kind of distress. But you, be strong and do not let your hands fall limp, for there is reward for your work.’” 2 Chronicles 15:1-7

“Then Hezekiah took the letter from the hand of the messengers and read it, and he went up to the house of Yahweh and spread it out before Yahweh. And Hezekiah prayed to Yahweh saying, ‘O Yahweh of hosts, the God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth. Incline Your ear, O Yahweh, and hear; open Your eyes, O Yahweh, and see; and listen to all the words of Sennacherib, who sent them to reproach the living God. Truly, O Yahweh, the kings of Assyria have laid waste to all the countries and their lands and have cast their gods into the fire, for they were not gods but the work of men’s hands, wood and stone. So they have destroyed them. But now, O Yahweh our God, save us from his hand that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You are Yahweh, You alone.’” Isaiah 37:14-20  

“For your husband is your Maker, Whose name is Yahweh of hosts; And your Redeemer is the Holy One of Israel, Who is called the God of all the earth.” Isaiah 54:5

“There is none like You, O Yahweh; You are great, and great is Your name in might… But Yahweh is the true God; He is the living God and the everlasting King. At His wrath the earth quakes, And the nations cannot endure His indignation. Thus you shall say to them, ‘The gods that did not make the heavens and the earth will perish from the earth and from under the heavens.’ It is He who made the earth by His power, Who established the world by His wisdom; And by His understanding He has stretched out the heavens… The portion of Jacob is not like these; For the Maker of all is He, And Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; Yahweh of hosts is His name.” Jeremiah 10:6, 10-12, 16

“And Yahweh has a contention with Judah And will punish Jacob according to his ways; He will cause everything to return to him according to his deeds. In the womb he took his brother by the heel, And in his maturity he wrestled with God. Indeed, he wrestled with the angel and prevailed; He wept and sought His favor. He found Him at Bethel, And there He spoke with us, Even Yahweh, the God of hosts, Yahweh is His name of remembrance.” Hosea 12:2-5

“For behold, He who forms mountains and creates the wind And declares to man what are His thoughts, He who makes dawn into gloom And treads on the high places of the earth, Yahweh God of hosts is His name.” Amos 4:13

“He who made the Pleiades and Orion And overturns the shadow of death into morning, Who also darkens day into night, Who calls for the waters of the sea And pours them out on the surface of the earth, Yahweh is His name.” Amos 5:8

YHWH God is the Creator of the heavens and the earth, and the sustainer of all creation.

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth… These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were created, in the day that Yahweh God made earth and heaven.” Genesis 1:1; 2:4

“For in six days Yahweh made the heavens and the earth, the sea and all that is in them, and rested on the seventh day; therefore Yahweh blessed the sabbath day and made it holy.” Exodus 20:11  

“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. 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

“Praise Yahweh! Praise Yah! Praise Yahweh from the heavens; Praise Him in the heights! Praise Him, all His angels; Praise Him, all His hosts! Praise Him, sun and moon; Praise Him, all stars of light! Praise Him, heavens of heavens, And the waters that are above the heavens! Let them praise the name of Yahweh, For He commanded and they were created.” 148:1-5

“Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Everlasting God, Yahweh, the Creator of the ends of the earth, Does not become weary or tired. His understanding is unsearchable.” Isaiah 40:28

“Thus says the God, Yahweh, Who created the heavens and stretched them out, Who spread out the earth and its offspring, Who gives breath to the people on it And spirit to those who walk in it,” Isaiah 42:5

“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 44:24

“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

“For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen.” Romans 1:25  

“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 4:8-11

YHWH is called Elohim (God).

“To you it was shown that you might know that Yahweh, He is God; there is no other besides Him… Know therefore today, and take it to your heart, that Yahweh, He is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other.” Deuteronomy 4:35, 39

“See now that I, I am He, And there is no god besides Me; It is I who put to death and give life. I have wounded, and it is I who heal, And there is no one who can deliver from My hand.” Deuteronomy 32:39

“For this reason You are great, O Lord Yahweh; for there is none like You, and there is no God besides You, according to all that we have heard with our ears.” 2 Samuel 7:22

“Then he returned to the man of God with all his camp, and came and stood before him, and said, ‘Behold now, I know that there is no God in all the earth, but in Israel; so now please take a blessing from your servant.’” 2 Kings 5:15

“And the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad called the altar Witness; ‘For,’ they said, ‘it is a witness between us that Yahweh is God.’” Joshua 22:34  

“so that all the peoples of the earth may know that Yahweh is God; there is no one else.” 1 Kings 8:60

“And Elijah came near to all the people and said, ‘How long will you be limping between two opinions? If Yahweh is God, follow Him; but if Baal, follow him.” But the people did not answer him a word… ‘Answer me, O Yahweh, answer me, that this people may know that You, O Yahweh, are God, and that You have turned their heart back again.’… And all the people saw it and fell on their faces and said, ‘Yahweh, He is God; Yahweh, He is God.’” 1 Kings 18:21, 37, 39

“And Hezekiah prayed before Yahweh and said, ‘O Yahweh, the God of Israel, who is enthroned above the cherubim, You are the God, You alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth. You have made heaven and earth… But now, O Yahweh our God, I pray, save us from his hand that all the kingdoms of the earth may know that You alone, O Yahweh, are God.’” 2 Kings 19:15, 19

“Know that Yahweh, He is God; It is He who has made us, and not we ourselves; We are His people and the sheep of His pasture.” Psalm 100:3

“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.’” Isaiah 44:6

“I am Yahweh, and there is no other; Besides Me there is no God. I will gird you, though you have not known Me, That they may know from the rising to the setting of the sun That there is no one besides Me. I am Yahweh, and there is no other… Thus says Yahweh, ‘The fruit of the labor of Egypt and the profit of Ethiopia And the Sabeans, men of stature, Will come over to you and will be yours; They will walk behind you; they will come over in chains And will bow down to you; They will make supplication to you: ‘Surely, God is with you, and there is none else, No other God.’” Isaiah 45:5-6, 14

YHWH is called the Most High.

“Then Abram said to the king of Sodom, ‘I have raised my hand to Yahweh God Most High, possessor of heaven and earth,’” Genesis 14:22

“When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, When He separated the sons of man, He set the boundaries of the peoples According to the number of the sons of Israel. For Yahweh’s portion is His people; Jacob is the allotment of His inheritance.” Deuteronomy 32:8-9

“I will give thanks to Yahweh according to His righteousness And will sing praise to the name of Yahweh Most High.” Psalm 7:17

“Aleph I will be glad and exult in You; I will sing praise to Your name, O Most High.” Psalm 9:2

“Yahweh also thundered in the heavens, And the Most High gave forth His voice, Hailstones and coals of fire.” Psalm 18:13  

“For Yahweh Most High is fearsome, A great King over all the earth.” Psalm 47:2

“That they may know that You alone—Your name is Yahweh— Are the Most High over all the earth.” Psalm 83:18

“For You are Yahweh Most High over all the earth; You are exalted far above all gods.” Psalm 97:9

“He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High, and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David, and He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and there will be no end of His kingdom.” Luke 1:32-33  

“But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return; and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High; for He Himself is kind to the ungrateful and evil.” Luke 6:35

“Now seeing Jesus, he cried out and fell before Him, and said in a loud voice, ‘What do I have to do with You, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg You, do not torment me.’” Luke 8:28

“However, the Most High does not dwell in houses made by human hands, as the prophet says:” Acts 7:48

YHWH God rules over all things from the most exalted position in existence, which the Bible metaphorically calls his throne.

“He who sits in the heavens laughs, The Lord mocks them.” Psalm 2:4

“Yahweh is in His holy temple; Yahweh’s throne is in heaven; His eyes behold, His eyelids test the sons of men.” Psalm 11:4

“Yahweh has established His throne in the heavens, And His kingdom rules over all.” Psalm 103:19  

“Who is like Yahweh our God, The One who sits on high,” Psalm 113:5

“The heavens are the heavens of Yahweh, But the earth He has given to the sons of men.” Psalm 115:16

“In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is Yahweh of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory.’ And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called out, while the house of God was filling with smoke. Then I said, ‘Woe is me, for I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, Yahweh of hosts.’” Isaiah 6:1-5

“Thus says Yahweh, ‘Heaven is My throne, and the earth is the footstool of My feet. Where then is a house you could build for Me? And where is a place that I may rest? For My hand made all these things, Thus all these things came into being,’ declares Yahweh. ‘But to this one I will look, To him who is humble and contrite of spirit, and who trembles at My word.’” Isaiah 66:1–2

YHWH ALONE is the object of divine worship.

“—for you shall not worship any other god, for Yahweh, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God—” Exodus 34:14

“Yahweh your God you shall fear; and Him you shall serve; and by His name you shall swear.” Deuteronomy 6:13

“To this day they are acting according to the earlier customs: they are not fearing Yahweh; they are not acting according to their statutes or their judgments or the law, or the commandment which Yahweh commanded the sons of Jacob, whom He named Israel; with whom Yahweh cut a covenant and commanded them, saying, ‘You shall not fear other gods, nor worship them nor serve them nor sacrifice to them. But Yahweh, who brought you up from the land of Egypt with great power and with an outstretched arm, Him you shall fear, and to Him you shall worship, and to Him you shall sacrifice. And the statutes and the judgments and the law and the commandment which He wrote for you, you shall be careful to do forever; and you shall not fear other gods. And the covenant that I have cut with you, you shall not forget, nor shall you fear other gods. But Yahweh your God you shall fear; and He will deliver you from the hand of all your enemies.” 2 Kings 17:34-39  

“Then Jesus said to him, ‘Go, Satan! For it is written, “You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.”’” Matthew 4:10 – Cf. Luke 4:8

All scriptural references taken from the Legacy Standard Bible (LSB).

FURTHER READING

JOSEPH SMITH THE FALSE PROPHET DEBATE

THE BIBLICAL GOD VERSUS THE MORMON GODS, PT. 2, PT. 2B