Following the death of the Apostles, the interrelationship between God the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit eventually become a source of debate and controversy in the early church. The relationship between God the Father and the Son became a volatile issue among church leaders. Was the Son equal to God the Father or was He subject to Him? Did the Son have a beginning or had He always existed? Was the Son divine or merely human? Was the Son the same person as the Father or was He a distinct person? During the latter part of the third century and early fourth century this issue created divisions in the early church. This eventually resulted in all out persecution and warfare among fellow Christians. The following information brings to light what the overwhelming evidence of Holy Scripture has to say on this subject, in conjunction with the beliefs and writings of some of the earliest church fathers.
The Only Begotten Son/ Firstborn of All Creation
God (the Father) so loved the world, that He gave his only begotten Son; that whoever believeth in Him might not perish, but have eternal life.
“16 For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten (unique)* Son; that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. 17 For God sent the Son into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through Him.” John 3:16-17
Christ had a prehuman existence in heaven, alongside His Father, before being sent to earth.
“No one has ascended into heaven, but He who descended from heaven: the Son of Man.” John 3:13
“Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself (along side Yourself), with the glory which I had with You before the world was.” John 17:5
No one has seen God the Father at any time. The only begotten God or Son has explained or revealed Him to us, by making Him known.
“No man has ever seen God; . . .” 1 John 4:12
“No one has seen God at anytime; the only begotten God (only begotten Son, the only unique Son, God, the only begotten Son) who is in the bosom of the Father, He has explained (revealed) Him (made Him known).” John 1:18
Jesus said: “Not that anyone has seen the Father, except the One who is from God; He has seen the Father.” John 6:46
Jesus said: “And the Father who sent Me, He has testified of Me. You have neither heard His voice at anytime nor seen His form (face, appearance).” John 5:37
(Note: In referring to the Word at John 1:18, the expression, “the only begotten God,” appears in the most ancient Greek manuscripts and is a more accurate rendering of this verse. The expression, “the only begotten Son,” appears in later Greek manuscripts.)
Various Dictionaries define “beget” or “begotten” as: to generate, to pro-create, to produce, to father, to sire, to bring into being, to spawn or create, to be born or brought forth.*
Jesus Christ is the only begotten in that He was begotten, born, generated, brought forth, or created by God the Father. He (Christ) is referred to as the Firstborn of all creation, the Firstborn of every creature, and the Beginning of the creation of God. He (the Son) is the exact image or likeness of the invisible God, the very stamp of His nature. As the only begotten Son, Christ is unique! He is the only Son of God, directly created by God, without any intercession or use of a mediator. Henceforth, all things were created by Him (the Son), through Him, and for Him.
At Colossians 1:15-16, the Apostle Paul states: “15 He is the image (exact likeness, expression) of the invisible God, the Firstborn of all creation (the Firstborn of every creature, the First-Born of all creatures). 16 For by Him were all things created, both in the heavens and on the earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities– all things have been created through Him and for Him.”
Hebrews 1:3 states: “He (Christ) reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of His nature. . .”
Jesus Christ is God’s Firstborn Child
Various Dictionaries define “firstborn” as: the eldest child, a person’s first child, the first to be born, first brought forth, first in the order of birth.*
The Apostle John tells us that whoever loves the Father, loves the child born or begotten of Him, His offspring, His child, Jesus Christ.
1 John 5:1 states: “Whoever believes that Jesus is the Christ is born of God (is a born again child of God), and whoever loves the Father (the parent that begot him, Him who begot), loves the child (His child, the one born of Him, His offspring, who is begotten of Him, whom He begets, Him who is the Father’s child).”
The Beginning of God’s Creation
Jesus Christ is God’s Firstborn Son or Child. He is the Firstborn of creation or of every creature, the eldest of God’s universal family or order of creation. The Book of Revelation identifies Jesus Christ as the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning or Origin of God’s creation.
“And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write: These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true Witness, the Beginning of the creation of God (the Origin of God’s creation).” Revelation 3:14
The prophecy found at Micah 5:2 predicted the coming of the Messiah or ruler of Israel. This prophecy also revealed that Christ had an origin or beginning, a time when He was not, in the beginning.
“But you O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are (too) little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin (goings forth) is from of old (days of old, from the beginning), from ancient days (distant past, everlasting, days of eternity).” Micah 5:2
Grammatically speaking, the preposition of (as found in the above verses) would indicate that Jesus Christ was part of creation or a created being. Ex. “the Firstborn of all creation,” “the Firstborn of every creature,” or “the Beginning of the creation of God.”*
Simply put, Christ (the firstborn of all creation) had an origin or beginning, a time when He was not. Note how the scriptures clearly state that Christ had an origin, but never refer to Him [Christ] as being the Originator or Beginner. This would be a term only properly ascribed to His God and Father. God the Father begat or created His Son, in the beginning, as the firstborn of His creative works. All future creative works came by Him, through Him, and for Him.
At John 1:10 it states: “He was in the world and the world was made through Him (by Him), and the world did not know Him.”
A simple analogy of this would be if someone made the statement that, “Joe Smith had an origin,” “the first born of the Smith family,” “the first-born male of the Smith family,” “the beginning of the Smith legacy or family tree.” Certainly there would be no issue that Joe Smith was the first born of all the Smiths or the first-born child, the beginning of the Smith-family legacy. He (Joe) would have had a beginning, he himself being the first-born or eldest son of that family genealogy. It would also be grammatically understood that he was begotten by his father, having been born or brought forth, fathered, spawned, procreated, generated, as the first-born son of the family. If he were the only child and son of his father, then it would be fitting to refer to him as the only begotten son. All succeeding generations of Smiths would therefore come by him (Joe), through him, and for him.
The same would be true regarding the relationship of God the Father and his only begotten Son Jesus Christ. Christ was the only begotten or Firstborn Son of the Father. He was the only One in the beginning directly fathered, born, begotten, or created by the Father, without any intercession or use of a mediator. In this way Christ was unique, a one of a kind, and in a category of creation all by Himself! That is why Christ is the only person or entity in scripture referred to as “the only begotten Son” or “firstborn Son.” All other sons of God, both angelic and human, were created by Him (the Son), through Him and for Him, and are therefore simply referred to as “sons of God.”
In the Book of Job, the angels are referred to as “sons of God.”
Job 1:6 states: “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan also came among them.”
At Job 38:4 & 7, God is questioning Job: “4 Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell me, if you have understanding. . . 7 when the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God (angels) shouted for joy?”
In Luke’s genealogy of Jesus Christ, Adam is referred to as the “son of God.”
Luke 3:38 states: “. . . Adam, the son of God.”
A Prophetic Parallel
The scriptures draw a similar analogy with God the Father and His only begotten Son (Jesus Christ), and the patriarch Abraham (father of the Jewish race) and his only begotten son (Issac). Abraham, in listening to God’s voice, as good as offered up his only begotten or firstborn son, Issac. In doing this, he reckoned that God would raise him from the dead. This act on Abraham’s part was a prophetic scenario, which prefigured God the Father offering up His only begotten or firstborn Son and later raising Him from the dead. Just as Issac was the firstborn or only begotten son of Abraham, his only begotten son by Sarah; so Christ was God the Father’s firstborn or only begotten Son, the firstborn of creation, the beginning of the creation of God. All future generations of Abraham’s seed (the Jewish race) came through Issac (his only begotten son), just as all creation came through Christ (the only begotten Son of the Father).
Hebrews 11:17-19 states: “17 By faith Abraham when he was tried (put to the test), offered up Issac, and he that had received the promises (as good as) offered up his only begotten son;* 18 Of whom it was said, ‘In Issac shall thy seed be called.’ 19 Accounting (reckoning) that God was able to raise him up even from the dead, from whence also he received him in a figure (figuratively speaking, in the sense that Issac was figuratively dead or potentially sacrificed, he did actually receive him back from the dead).”
Although Abraham had other sons by other women, Issac was his only begotten son (his only son), by Sarah (a free woman), through whom the Messiah or promised seed was to come. (See Genesis 22:2, 12, 16 & Galatians 4:22-30)
Wisdom and the Word of God
The Bible refers to “Wisdom,” as being identified in the person of Jesus Christ. It corroborates that Jesus Christ was “Wisdom,” or the “Word,” and had a place alongside His Father in the beginning as a Master Worker. Christ as “Wisdom” was begotten, created, or born of the Father, the earliest of His achievements.
Referring to Jesus Christ as the “Word,” the Apostle John at John 1:1 states:
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (See also 1 John 1:1-2)
These verses clearly establish the divinity or deity of Jesus Christ in the beginning, as “the Word.” The following verses identify Christ as “Wisdom.”
At 1 Corinthians 1:23-24 the Apostle Paul states: “23 but we preach Christ crucified, to Jews a stumbling block and to Gentiles foolishness, 24 but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and wisdom of God.”
1 Corinthians 1:30 states: “But by His doing you are in Christ Jesus, who became to us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption.”
Psalms 104:24 states: “O LORD (Yahweh), how many are your works! In wisdom You have made them all. . . ”
Proverbs 3:19 states: “The LORD (Yahweh) by wisdom founded the earth. . .”
Jeremiah 10:12 states: “It is He who made the earth by His power, who established the world by His wisdom, and by His understanding stretched out the heavens.”
Christ identified Himself as “Wisdom.”
At Mathew 11:19, Jesus said: “The Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, ‘Behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax collectors and sinners!’ For wisdom is vindicated by her deeds.”
At Luke 11:49, Jesus is speaking as the Wisdom of God: “Therefore also the Wisdom of God said, ‘I will send them prophets and apostles, some of whom they will kill and persecute.” . .'” (Compare Matthew 23:34)
Note how various translations at Proverbs 8:22, identify Jesus Christ as “Wisdom,” the beginning of God’s creative work. Christ as Wisdom was made, created, begotten, brought forth, possessed*or formed by God the Father (Yahweh), who gave Him life. He (Christ) was the first of His works of old.
22 “The LORD made me as the beginning of His way, the first of His works of old.” JPS
22 “The LORD created me at the beginning of His created work, the first of His acts of old.” RSV & NRSV
22 “The LORD begot me the firstborn of His ways, the forerunner of His prodigies of long ago.” NAB
22 “The LORD formed me in the beginning, before He created anything else.” Tay
22 “Yahweh created me when His purpose first unfolded, before the oldest of His works.” TJB
22 “From the beginning I was with the LORD. I was there before He began to create the earth. At the very first the LORD gave life to me.” CEV
22 “The LORD brought me forth as the first of His works, before His deeds of old.” NIV
22 “The LORD created me at the beginning of his work, the first of His acts of long ago.” NOAB
22 “The LORD created me first of all, the first of His works, long ago.” TEV (ABS)
22 “The LORD formed me and brought me (Wisdom) forth, at the beginning of His way; before His acts of old.” AMP
22 “The LORD (Yahweh) possessed me the beginning of His way, the first of His works of old.” KJV & NASB*
22 “Lord Jehovah created me at the beginning of his creation and from before all of his works.” ABPE
22 “The LORD created me in the beginning of His ways for His works.” OSB
From the above scriptural references, it becomes evident that Jesus Christ (as Wisdom or the Word) was the first of God’s creative works or firstborn of His acts, in the beginning, before He created anything else. These renderings confirm and align with the scriptural doctrine found in both the Old and New Testament; Christ was the firstborn of creation, the firstborn of every creature, the beginning of the creation of God, and therefore had an origin or beginning. Henceforth, were all things created in heaven and on earth, by Him, through Him, and for Him.
(Proverbs 8:22-31 is cross referenced in most translations with Colossians 1:15-16 & Revelation 3:14, previously quoted)
Note, how in the beginning, at the first, before God made the heavens and the earth, Wisdom or the Word was brought forth, born, begotten, or given birth.
Proverbs 8:23-31 goes on to state: “23 From everlasting (earliest ages, outset of the ages, ages past, at the beginning) I was established (set up, fashioned, anointed, appointed). From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth (in the beginning, before He made the earth, at the first, before the beginning of the earth). 24 When there were no depths I was brought forth (I was born, I was given birth, I was formed), When there were no springs abounding with water. 25 Before the mountains were settled (before the mountains were created, my birth was before mountains were formed), Before the hills I was brought forth (I was given birth, I was born, He begets me, He begot me). 26 While he had not yet made the earth and the fields, nor the first dust of the world. 27 When He established (prepared) the heavens, I was there, When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep, 28 When He made firm the skies above, When the springs of the deep became fixed, 29 When He set for the sea its boundary so that the water would not transgress His command, When He marked out the foundations of the earth, 30 Then I was (working) beside Him (by His side), as a master workman (master craftsman, architect), and I was daily His delight, rejoicing always before Him (at play in His presence), 31 rejoicing in the world, His earth, and having my delight in the sons of men.”
Christ (as Wisdom or the Word) was a master workman or craftsman, alongside His Father and in His Father’s presence, in the beginning, at the creation of both the heavens and the earth.
Note Jesus’ prayer to His Father at John 17:5: “Now, Father, glorify me in your own presence (give me back the glory), with the glory that I had in your presence (with you, beside you, alongside you) before the world was made (existed, was created).”
Christ worked alongside His Father and the Holy Spirit in creating not only heaven and earth, but also the first humans (Adam and Eve). This can be seen at Genesis 1:26:
“Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness;'” Genesis 1:26
In this passage of scripture, God the Father was speaking to His only begotten Son (the Word or Wisdom), who was the exact likeness, reflection, and image of His Father. (See Colossians 1:15 & Hebrews 1:3) The following verses also verify that the Holy Spirit was active alongside the Father and the Son in the creation.
Psalms 104:30 states: “You send forth your Spirit, they are created; And you renew the face of the ground.”
Genesis 1:2 states: “The earth was formless and void, and darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was moving over the surface of the waters.”
Job 33:4 states: “The Spirit of God has made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life.”
Note what some prominent study Bibles have to say concerning Christ, as Wisdom or the Word of God.
The Scofield Reference Bible states: “That wisdom is more than the personification of an attribute of God, or of the will of God as best for man, but is a distinct adumbration (shadow) of Christ, is sure to the devout mind. Proverbs 8:22-36, John 1:1-3, & Colossians 1:17 can refer to nothing less than the eternal Son of God.”
Many translators render the passage at Proverbs 8:22, that Wisdom or the Word was created, formed, made, or given life. Concerning Proverbs 8:22, The Scofield Reference Bible states: “Some (scholars) say that “possessed” should be rendered “created,” which would thus indicate that Christ was a created being.”
The Jerusalem Bible states: “The doctrine of wisdom, thus outlined in the O.T. will be resumed in the N.T. which will give it new and decisive completion by applying it to the person of Christ. Jesus is referred to as Wisdom itself, the Wisdom of God. (Matthew 11:19, Luke 11:49, Matthew 23:34-36, 1 Corinthians 1:24-30) Like Wisdom, he participates in the creation and the preservation of the world. (Colossians 1:16-17). . . Finally St. John in his prologue attributes the characteristics of creative wisdom to the Word, and his gospel throughout represents Christ as the Wisdom of God. (John 6:35) Hence, Christian tradition from St. Justin onward sees in the Wisdom of the O. T. the person of Christ himself.”
The Harper Study Bible states: “The New testament writers looked upon Christ as the incarnate Wisdom. (John 8:51, Proverbs 8:35-36, Romans 1:24-30)”
The historical view of the earliest church fathers was that Christ had a beginning, having been begotten, created, born, or generated by His Father. He was “Wisdom” in the beginning, a “Master Worker” alongside His heavenly Father at the creation of both heaven and earth.
Justin Martyr (100-165 CE) was a theologian and an apologist, who wrote to the establishment and authorities of his day in defense of early Christians undergoing persecution. It is from his name that we derive the term, “martyr,” signifying the nature of his death as a martyr in 165 CE. Early Christian writers, such as Justin Martyr, believed that there was a moment in time before the universe began, that the Father begat or brought forth His First-born Son, the Word or Wisdom of God.
Justin wrote: “Said I, from the scriptures, that God begat before all creatures a Beginning, who was a certain rational power (proceeding) from himself, who is called by the Holy Spirit, now the Glory of God, now the Son, again Wisdom, again an Angel,*then God, then Lord and Logos (the Word);”
“For they who affirm that the Son is the Father, are proved neither to have become acquainted with the Father, nor to know that the Father of the universe has a Son; who also being the First Begotten Word of God is even God.”
“. . . that Jesus Christ is the only proper Son, who has been begotten by God, being his Word and First Begotten, and power.”
“For if you had understood what has been written by the prophets, you would not have denied that he was God, Son of the only Unbegotten God.”
“But this Offspring, which was truly brought forth from the Father, was with the Father before all creatures, and the Father communed with Him; even as the Scripture by Solomon has made clear, that He whom Solomon calls Wisdom, was begotten as a Beginning before all His creatures and as Offspring by God. . .”
“And if we assert that the Word of God was born of God in a peculiar manner, different from any ordinary generation. . .”
“And when we say also that the Word, who is the first birth of God, was produced without sexual union.”
“We have been taught that Christ is the first begotten of God, and we have declared above that he is . . . the Logos.”
“For with what reason should we believe of a crucified man that he is the first born of the unbegotten God. . .”
These writings of Justin Martyr are some of the earliest writings by early church fathers, which define the relationship between God the Father and the Son. The writings concur with the rest of Scripture, that Christ was the Word (Logos) or Wisdom. He (the Word) was the First Begotten, whom God begat before all creatures as a Beginning. The Son was begotten by God the Father, who is the only unbegotten God. Christ’s deity is established in that He is also referred to as God, Son of the only unbegotten God. Christ (the Word) was the first born, the first begotten, the first birth of God, the Offspring truly brought forth from the Father. Over the next 200 years, this theology was to be radically altered by false teachers who crept into the church.
Tertullian (150-225 CE) was another theologian and apologist, who wrote to Roman authorities in defense of early Christians. Tertullian had essentially the same beliefs as Justin Martyr, concerning the relationship of God the Father and His Son. Tertullian is often recognized as the first to coin or use the word “trinity,” when speaking of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Tertullian’s definition of the trinity would eventually conflict with the trinitarian view that was adopted in the fourth century at the council of Nicea (325 CE). Note the following:
“We have learnt that he came forth from God and was generated by that procession, and therefore is called Son of God, and God, from unity of essence with Him. For God also is Spirit.”
“He proceeds forth from God, and in that procession he is generated; so that he is the Son of God, and is called God from unity of substance with God. . .”
Note: Tertullian was correct in stating that the Son of God came forth from the Father and was generated. Webster’s Dictionary defines “generate”: to bring into existence, procreate, beget. Although correct in his analogy, it would have been more accurate for Tertullian to have stated that the Son is called God, by unity of spirit with the Father, rather than unity of substance, as God is a Spirit. God the Father dwelt in His Son and in a similar manner the Holy Spirit dwelt in His Son. All of God Himself, the fullness of God, the divine nature of God, or the Godhead, dwelt in His Son. (See John 4:24, John 14:10, Luke 3:21-22, Luke 4:14, Colossians 1:19 & 2:9, Philippians 2:6)
“That which has come forth from God is God, and the Son of God, and Both are One.”
“We worship God through Christ. Is he (Christ) not rather in heaven, . . . as the power of God, and Spirit of God, and Word, and Wisdom, and Reason, and Son of God?”
“Thus the Father is distinct from the Son, being greater than the Son, in as much as He who begets is one, and He who is begotten is another; He too, who sends is one, and He who is sent is another; and He, again, who makes is one, and He through whom the thing is made is another.”
“This is the perfect nativity of the Word, when He proceeds forth from God — formed by Him first to devise and think out all things under the name of Wisdom — The Lord created or formed me as the beginning of His ways;
Proverbs 8:22 then afterward begotten, to carry all into effect — ”
“The Son likewise acknowledges the Father, speaking in his own person, under the name of Wisdom: Proverbs 8:22 &25: ’22 The LORD formed (created) me as the beginning of his ways, with a view to (of) His own works, 25 before he made the earth, before the mountains were settled; moreover before all the hills did he beget me. . .’ Thus it is evident that it is one and the same person, which is in one place described under the name Wisdom, and in another passage under the appellation of the Word, which was initiated for the works of God.” Proverbs 8:22
Note: Tertullian was also correct in stating that Wisdom (the Son) was begotten, created, formed, and made by God, as the beginning or nativity of His ways. The terms “proceeds” and “procession” are not found in Holy Scripture, in reference to the formation and creation of the Word (Christ). The term “proceeded” is used in some translations in conjunction with such terms as, “came & came forth,” in describing Christ’s coming to earth and being sent by His Father. (See John 8:42)
“Whatever, therefore, was the substance of the Word that I designate a Person, I claim for it the name of Son; and while I recognize the Son, I assert His distinction as second to the Father.”
“You must bring forth the proof which I require of you — one like my own; that is, (you must prove to me) that the Scriptures show the Son and the Father to be the same, just as on our side the Father and the Son are demonstrated to be distinct; I say distinct, but not separate: for as on my part I produce the words of God Himself, My heart has emitted my most excellent Word,
so you in like manner ought to adduce in opposition to me some text where God has said, My heart has emitted Myself as my own most excellent Word,
in such a sense that He is Himself both the Emitter and the Emitted, both He who sent forth and He who was sent forth, since He is both the Word and God. I bid you also observe, that on my side I advance the passage where the Father said to the Son, You are my Son, this day have I begotten You.
If you want me to believe Him to be both the Father and the Son, show me some other passage where it is declared, The Lord said to Himself, I am my own Son, today have I begotten myself;
or again, Before the morning did I beget myself;
and likewise, I the Lord possessed Myself the beginning of my ways for my own works; before all the hills, too, did I beget myself;
and whatever other passages are to the same effect. Why, moreover, could God the Lord of all things, have hesitated to speak thus of Himself, if the fact had been so? Was He afraid of not being believed, if He had in so many words declared Himself to be both the Father and the Son?”
Tertullian agreed with Justin Martyr that the Son was begotten, generated, created by the Father and was the Word or Wisdom, who was sent from God. Although being one, the Son was also distinct and second from the Father, the Father being greater than the Son. “He who begets is one, and He who is begotten is another; He too, who sends is one, and He who is sent is another; and He, again, who makes is one, and He through whom the thing is made is another.” God the Father did not beget Himself, but instead begat His Son.
Origen (185-254 CE) was a Christian scholar and theologian of the third century. Origen also concurred with Justin and Tertullian that Christ was Wisdom or the Word, the first born of every creature, begotten, formed, brought forth, and created by God, the Father of the Word. God the Father is the unbegotten God, the first God, the Sovereign Ruler and primary Creator who generated or created the Word (Christ), the Wisdom of God. Wisdom (the Word) was created or formed beforehand, and is said to be the beginning of the ways of God. Out of Wisdom came the beginning of all species and creatures.
“To admit that the architect of the world is the Son of God, and that his Father is the first God and Sovereign, Ruler over all things.”
“. . . the immediate Creator, and as it were, very Maker of the world was the Word, the Son of God; while the Father of the Word, by commanding his own Son, the Word, to create the world is primarily Creator.”
“. . . the first-born of every creature is the image of God, the very Word and truth, and also the very Wisdom.”
“For he is termed Wisdom, . . . ‘The LORD created me— the beginning of his ways, and among His works, before he made any other thing, he rounded me before the ages. In the beginning, before he formed the earth, . . . he brought me forth.’ He is also styled first-born, as the apostle has declared: ‘who is the first-born of every creature.’ The first-born, however, is not by nature a different person from the Wisdom, but one and the same. Finally, the Apostle Paul says that ‘Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.'”
“Now in the same way that we have understood that Wisdom was the beginning of the ways of God, and is said to be created, forming before hand and containing within herself the species and beginnings of all creatures, must we understand her to be the Word of God. . .”
“Let him, then, who assigns a beginning to the Word or Wisdom of God, take care that he be not guilty of impiety against the unbegotten Father Himself, seeing he denies that he had always been a Father, and had generated the Word. . .”
The Firstborn of Creation & Firstborn of the Dead
The inspired writers of the New Testament reinforced the doctrine that Christ had a beginning or origin at the onset of time, in that they also refer to Christ as having been born or begotten again, a second time. This would indicate that once again, as in the beginning of creation, there was a time when the Son did not exist and was given life.
This occurred when the Son of God was dead and buried for three days and three nights in the earth. God the Father raised His Son to life, thereby granting Him life a second time. In this way, Jesus Christ was once again begotten or born, by being raised from the dead. This act of raising Christ from the dead fulfilled the prophecy found in the Psalms.
Psalms 2:7 states: “I will surely tell of the decree of the LORD (Yahweh): He said to Me, ‘You are (Thou art) My Son, today I have begotten You (begotten Thee).'”
The book of Acts explains the fulfillment of this prophecy. God the Father once again begat His Son (a second time), by raising Him from the dead, thereby granting Him life.
Acts 13:32-34 states: “33 that God has fulfilled His promise to our children in that He raised up Jesus, as it is written in the second Psalm, ‘You are my Son, today I have begotten You (Thou hast been born to Me, I have generated thee).’ 34 As for the fact that He (the Father) raised Him (Christ) from the dead, no longer to return to decay. . .”
This act on God the Father’s part, having begotten His Son by raising him from the dead, is also confirmed by the writer of Hebrews.
At Hebrews 1:5-6 it states: “5 For to which of the angels did he ever say, ‘YOU ARE MY SON, TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU?’ And again, ‘I SHALL BE A FATHER TO HIM AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME?’ 6 And when He again brings the (His) first born into the world (again introduceth the first begotten into the habitable earth, once more when He introduces the firstborn into the world, but of the time when He is to bring His firstborn Son back), He says, ‘AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM.'”
God the Father brought His firstborn Son back into the world again, having begotten him a second time, by resurrecting Him from the dead. In this way the prophecy at Psalms 2:7 was fulfilled. Once again, the true meaning of Christ being the only begotten, firstborn, Son of God is properly understood. Just as at the creation’s beginning, God the Father begat His Son by giving Him life, so God once again begat or gave life to His Son a second time, by raising Him from the dead.
The Apostle Paul draws a fitting parallel of Christ being the firstborn of creation, the firstborn of every creature, and also the firstborn from the dead at Colossians 1:15 & 18. In this way Christ is first or preeminent in all things.
Colossians 1:15 & 18 states: “15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation (firstborn of every creature, the First-Born of all creatures). . . 18 He is also the head of the body, the church; and He is the beginning (its origin), the first born from the dead (the first birth out of death, the first to return from the dead), so that He Himself would come to have first place (preeminence) in everything.”
Note, how in the above verses, Jesus is both firstborn of all creation and the firstborn from the dead, giving Him first place or preeminence in everything. The book of Revelation also confirms that Jesus Christ is the firstborn of the dead. Note Jesus’ own words:
Revelation 1:5 states: “and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead . . .”
The preposition of in the above verses indicates that Christ was part of the dead, just as he was part of creation. (Ex. “the firstborn of the dead” and “the firstborn of creation”)
At Revelation 1:18, Jesus confirms in His own words that He was truly dead and is now alive forever more, never to die again, born or begotten a second time.
Revelation 1:18 states: “. . . I was dead, and behold, I am alive forever more (and now, I am alive forever and ever). . .”
The Apostle Paul confirms this same theology, that Christ died once for all and now will never die again; death no longer has dominion over Him.
Paul wrote at Romans 6:9-10: “9 We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over Him. 10 The death He died, He died to sin, once for all, but the life He lives, He lives to God.”
Isaiah prophesied that the Christ would be cut off from the land of the living and stricken to His death, by pouring out His soul to the death.
Isaiah 53:8 states: “. . . He was cut off from the land of the living, stricken (to His death) for the transgressions of my people.”
Isaiah 53:12 states: “. . .because He poured out Himself (His soul) to (unto) death. . .”
God the Father Raised Jesus From the Dead
The Apostle Paul wrote that it was God the Father, the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, who raised Jesus from the dead by the glory of the Father and made Him to sit at the right hand in the heavenly places.
Galatians 1:1 states: “Paul, an apostle not sent from men nor through the agency of men, but through Jesus Christ and God the Father, who raised Him from the dead.”
Romans 6:4 states: “. . . so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we to might walk in newness of life.”
Ephesians 1:17 & 20 states: “17 That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him, 20 which He accomplished in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and made Him sit at His right hand in the heavenly places.”
The Apostle Paul confirmed that Christ was the first to rise from the dead and the first to be raised to immortality, the first-born among many brethren.
At 1 Corinthians 15:20, 23, 49, & 53, Paul states: “20 But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s (those who belong to Christ) at His coming. 49 Just as we have borne the image of the earthly, we will also bear the image of the heavenly. 53 For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality.”
At Acts 26:23, Paul states: “that the Christ must suffer, and that, by being the first to rise from the dead, he would proclaim light both to the people and to the Gentiles.” (See also John 3:13)
Romans 8:29 states: “For those whom He (God the Father) foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, in order that He (Christ) might be the first-born among many brethren.”
Thus, Jesus Christ was begotten by God the Father twice; first at the creation’s beginning as the firstborn of all creation, the second time when God the Father raised Him from the dead as the firstborn of the dead. In this way the Son is preeminent or first in all things.
By the beginning of the fourth century, the belief that Jesus Christ had always existed and coequal with the Father found its way into the church. Any teaching which taught that Christ was the firstborn of creation and begotten by the Father was viewed as heretical. The terms “firstborn” and “only begotten” were redefined by the Council of Nicea (325 CE) and given new meanings to fit the new theology. Instead of meaning to beget, father, create, or give birth to, the only begotten Son being the firstborn of God’s creative works; these terms now meant that Christ existed prior to, or was preeminent, having excellence, primacy, and supremacy over all creative things. In this way, proponents of this theology could say that Christ had no beginning and was coequal with the Father and of one being or substance with the Father. This kind of logic in defining such terms as first born and only begotten is conspicuously absent from Holy Scripture.
In teaching this theology, they chose to ignore the parallel that the Apostle Paul gave. Just as Christ was the firstborn of every creature or of all creation, having been created or given life; so Christ was also the firstborn of the dead, having been dead and raised to life. In this way, he is preeminent or first in all things!
*Print in red intended for clarification and/or variations from other translations.
*Strong’s Concordance defines “only begotten” (Greek, monogenes) as: only, only begotten, unique, one and only, offspring, stock, family, one of its kind, one of a class, the only of its kind.
monos: only, sole. ginomai: born, begotten, child.
*Strong’s Concordance defines “first-born” (Greek, prototokos) as: first born, first begotten (born), eldest.
protos: first, preeminent, before, principal, most important, chief. tikto: beget, bring forth, first in time, bear, produce, yield, birth, give birth, born.
prototokos (first born): from which we derive the word, “prototype.”
*Various dictionaries define “of” as: belonging to, from, proceeding from, relating to, derived from, originating or coming from.
*In the scriptural passage at Hebrews 11:17, the Greek word, “monogenes,” is used in describing Issac as Abraham’s, “only begotten son.” This same Greek word, “monogenes,” is used in describing Jesus Christ as God’s, “only begotten Son.” (See John 1:14 & 18, John 3:16 & 18, 1 John 4:9) Other verses which use the expression, “only child” or “only begotten,” are found at: (Luke 7:12, Luke 8:42, & Luke 9:38)
*Ellicott’s Commentary states: (22) The Lord possessed me in the beginning of his way.—The Hebrew word translated” possessed” in this passage (qānah) seems originally to have signified to” set up” or “establish,” and is applied (1) to the “forming” of the heavens (Genesis 14:19) and the “begetting” of a son, (Deuteronomy 32:6); next it signifies (2) to “acquire” (Genesis 4:1), (3) to “purchase” (Genesis 25:10), and (4) to “own,” as in Isaiah 1:3. From the fact that “set up” and “brought forth” are used just after as synonyms to it, it is most likely that (1) is the proper meaning of the word here, and that the sense of the passage is that Wisdom was “formed” or “begotten” before the Creation, comp. Psalm 104:24. This agrees with the rendering of the most important Greek translation, the Septuagint (έκτισε). When in Christian times it was observed how well the description of Wisdom in Job and Proverbs harmonized with that of God the Son in the New Testament, such passages as this were universally applied to Him, and the present one was rightly interpreted as describing His eternal generation from the Father. Such was the view, for instance, of Justin Martyr, Irenaeus, and Tertullian.
*Justin Martyr refers to Christ as being an angel. This appearance of Christ (as God) in the form of an Angel is called a “theophony.” At Genesis 16:7 & 13, Genesis 48:15-16, Exodus 23:20-23, Isaiah 63:8-9, Christ is referred to as “the Angel of the LORD.” (See also 1 Corinthians 10:4 and Hebrews 1:5 & 9) The Angel of the LORD is given the authority to pardon transgressions and redeem one from evil, and in some passages is referred to as God or having God in Him. The Angel of the LORD is also referred to as the Savior of the house of Israel, as one who was afflicted, and as one who is able to save and redeem those who are afflicted. (Reference above scriptural passages)
The Amplified Translation, Pg. 18 states:
“Angel of the Lord” or “of God” or “of His presence” is readily identified with the Lord God (Genesis 16:11, 13; 22:11, 12; 31:11, 13; Exodus 3:1-6 and other passages). But it is obvious that the “Angel of the Lord” is a distinct person in himself from God the Father (Genesis 24:7; Exodus 23:20; Zechariah 1:12, 13 and other passages). Nor does “Angel of the Lord” appear again after Christ came in human form. He must of necessity be One of the “three-in-one” Godhead. The “Angel of the Lord” is the visible Lord God of the Old Testament, as Jesus Christ is of the New Testament. Thus, His deity is clearly portrayed in the Old Testament.
The New American Standard Study Bible, Pg. 142 states:
“Who was this angel that went with the Israelites? Most likely the angel was a manifestation of God. God was in the angel in the same way He was present in the pillars of cloud and fire. (Exodus 13:21-22) ‘My name is in him’ means the essential nature and power of God were made known in this angel.” (Also reference John 17:22-23, & Colossians 1:19)