Post by iris89 on Nov 14, 2007 10:29:59 GMT -5
Sequel #3 to The Trinity, So Called The Central Doctrine of Christianity Is NOT As Billed:
INTRODUCTION:
Some will read Isaiah 9:6, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” (American Standard Version; ASV), and due to what they have heard from others draw the WRONG conclusion that Jesus (Yeshua) Christ is his Father, Almighty God (YHWH). This is due to their wrong bias that there is a “three-in-one-god” or Trinity, and they fail to realize that the resurrected Jesus (Yeshua) Christ and his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), are two distinct personalities or beings. One the subordinate to the other, the superior or one of higher authority.
They say that Jesus (Yeshua) Christ has the attributes of his Father, Almighty God (YHWH); therefore, he must be his Father, Almighty God (YHWH). But is this reasonable? Let’s consider the divinity of Christ ‘cut to the bare bone’ to see how unreasonable this way of thinking truly is. Many claim are made with respect the Divinity of Jesus Christ, but when we use a little reasoning on the subject it is seen as much ado about nothing.
Sure he is divine as clearly shown by common sense as follows:
The son of a dog is a dog; whereas, a son of Almighty God (YHWH) is of course a god or godlike thus divine. This is clearly shown by the meaning of the word as follows:
(from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
divine (GOD-LIKE) adjective
connected with a god, or like a god:
The Ayatollah described the earthquake in Iran as a divine test.
Some fans seem to regard footballers as divine beings.
England have fallen so far behind in the championship that their only hope of victory is divine intervention (= help from God).
Just because you've been promoted that doesn't give you a divine right (= one like that o***od) to tell us all what to do.
Oxford Dictionary
divine = /d"van/ adjective (-r, -st) 1 of, from, or like God or a god; sacred. 2 colloquial excellent. verb (-ning) 1 discover by intuition or guessing. 2 foresee. 3 practise divination. noun theologian. divining-rod dowser's forked twig. divinely adverb.
Wordsmyth Dictionary
1. a religious scholar or clergyman. Similar Words exegete , minister , cleric , clergyman , bishop , theologian , prelate , priest , religious
2. Definition 2. (cap.) God (usu. prec. by the). Synonyms Godhead {godhead (2)} , Divinity {divinity (2)} , Omnipotent {omnipotent} , Omniscient {omniscient} , God {god (2)} , Deity {deity (4)} Similar Words celestial
3. Definition 3. (sometimes cap.) the spiritual or godlike, as opposed to the earthly or worldly. Similar Words divinity
The American Heritage(r) Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. Divine
SYLLABICATION: di·vine PRONUNCIATION: /61/wavs/43/D0304300.wav/61/wavs/43/D0304300.wavd-vn ADJECTIVE: Inflected forms: di·vin·er, di·vin·est
1a. Having the nature of or being a deity. b. Of, relating to, emanating from, or being the expression of a deity: sought divine guidance through meditation. c. Being in the service or worship of a deity; sacred. 2. Superhuman; godlike. 3a. Supremely good or beautiful; magnificent: a divine performance of the concerto. b. Extremely pleasant; delightful: had a divine time at the ball. 4. Heavenly; perfect. NOUN: 1. A cleric. 2. A theologian. VERB: Inflected forms: di·vined, di·vin·ing, di·vines
TRANSITIVE VERB: 1. To foretell through or as if through the art of divination. See synonyms at foretell. 2a. To know by inspiration, intuition, or reflection. b. To guess. 3. To locate (underground water or minerals) with a divining rod; douse. INTRANSITIVE VERB: 1. To practice divination. 2. To guess. ETYMOLOGY: Middle English, from Old French devine, from Latin dvnus, divine, foreseeing, from dvus, god. See dyeu- in Appendix I. V., Middle English divinen, from Old French deviner, from Latin dvnre, from dvnus.
A very intense subject easily put to rest by a little common sense and reasoning, but if we consider Genesis 1:11-12, “And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit–trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good.” (ASV). These two scriptures show us a principle of creation that holds throughout all of creation, namely that ‘LIKE BRINGS FORTH LIKE’ so why should anyone reasonably conclude differently with regard to the case of Jesus (Yeshua) Christ. If his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), is the supreme being, as he is, why should we expect him to be anything less than a lesser god? Let’s consider the definition of “deity.”
DEFINITION OF DEITY:
Let’s consider exactly what the term “deity” really means and how it is applied. To do this, let’s first consider the Apostle John’s use of the Koine Greek term for “deity”. When discussing the question on whether use of "Deity" for John's use of "theos" within the third clause is proper, might there be something else to consider? de·i·ty noun [-ties pl{ural}.] 1. A god, goddess, or divine person. 2. Divine nature or status; godhead; divinity. - the Deity, God. [<F{rench}. déité <L{atin}. deus, god]. "Funk & Wagnalls New Practical Standard Dictionary of the English Language; Britannica World Language Edition, Compiled Under the Direction of the Editorial Staff of Encyclopaedia Britannica; 'Em-ha-type Method of Pronunciation.'" Funk, Charles Earle (b.1881- d.?), Editor. 2 vols. vol. 1 - A-P. vol. 2 - Q-Z. (New York, New York; Funk & Wagnalls Co., 1955), vol. 2 (braces ours). PE1625 .S712 1955 / 56001830.
— <*> - de*i*ty (de'-te) n....1. A god or goddess. 2. Divinity. 3. Deity. God. ?< Lat{tin}. deus.?. "The American Heritage Dictionary." 3rd Edition. (New York, New York: Dell Publishing, A Division of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.; Houghton Mifflin Company, 1992), p. 227 (braces ours). PE1628 .A623 1992 / 92-851.
- <*> - de*i*ty / de'eitee,...1 a god or goddess. 2 divine status, quality or nature. 3 (the Deity) God. "The Oxford American Dictionary of Current English." (New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 1999), p. 205 (bold theirs). PE1628 .O8617 1999 / 99-39972.
- <*> - de*i¦ty (de'? te) n....1. the state of being a god; divine nature; godhood. 2....[3.] - the Deity God. "Webster's New World Dictionary of American English." 3rd College Edition. Neufeldt, Victoria (b.?-d.?), Editor-in-Chief. Guralnik, David B. (b.1920-d.2000), Editor-in-Chief Emeritus. (New York, New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc., 1994), p. 363. PE1628 .W5633 1993 / 93-2961.
- <*> - de*i*ty (de' i te)...1. a god or goddess. 2. divine character or nature; divinity: Her deity is manifest in her actions. 3. the estate or rank o***od: The king attained deity after his death. 4. the character or nature of the Supreme Being: the deity of Christ. 5. a person or thing revered as a god or goddess: a society in which money is the only deity. 6. the Deity, God; Supreme Being. "The Random House College Dictionary, Based on the Random House Dictionary of the English Language, the Unabridged Edition." Urdang, Laurance (b.?-d.?), Editor-in-Chief; Flexner, Stuart Berg (b.?-d.?), Managing Editor. (New York, New York: Rand McNally and Company, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1973), p. 350. PE1625 .R29 / 73-175504.
- <*> - Deity (di * ti)...1. the state or rank o***od; godhood; the personality o***od; godship; esp[ecially] with poss[ive] pron[oun]. b. The divine quality, character, or nature of God; Godhood, divinity; the divine nature and attributes, the Godhead. c. The condition or state in which the Divine Being exists. Obs. 2. A divinity, a divine being, a god; one of the gods worshiped by a people or a tribe. b. An object of worship; a thing or person deified. 3. (with capital) A supreme being as creator of the universe; the Deity, the Supreme Being, God. (Especially as a term of National Theology, and without explicit predication of personality.) "The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, Complete Text Reproduced Micrographically." 2 vols. (Oxford, Great Britain: Oxford University Press, 1971), vol. i - a-o, p. 675 (152) (parenthesis theirs). PE1625 .N53 1971 / 72-177361.
- <*> - Although this approach to the subject may seem to some to be a bit too simplistic, does anyone else see what I am seeing? Please take note that, although "Deity" has the meaning of "God" (with capitals for both), "deity" means "a god." Therefore, when it is that Bowman (or, for that matter, any others) attempt to use "Deity" for John's second use of "theos," they are, in fact, just substituting another term which, when spelled with a capital "D", means the same thing as "God." If, on the other hand, they wish to be utilizing a term to somehow convey something different than this, they must either use "deity" or "a deity" instead. Whereas, each of these dictionaries give "a god" as the first meaning to use of the term (with all but one spelling it in all lower case), it should be noted that it is not untill the later definitions do we find its use (when capitalized) to mean "God", 'the Supreme being.' Furthermore, there is this: "[The Biblical use of the term] 'God' does not connote a 'divine essence' that can be shared by a number of beings, even though there may be a number of beings who are called 'god.' In this sense, theos functions slightly differently than does the English term 'deity.' Although we use 'deity' to refer both to God ("the Deity") and to a property (as in the "deity of Christ"), 'god' does not refer to a characteristic or property the possession of which renders one 'divine.' Rather, 'God' in biblical texts and Jewish thought either refers to the one and only God or, when used of a human figure, relates that figure to God by the exercise of some divine prerogative that is further exercised by God's authority." Taken from: Thompson, Marianne Meye (b.?-d.?), Professor of New Testament Interpretation, Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. "The God of the Gospel of John." (Grand Rapids, Michigan: W.B. Eerdmans, c2001), Chapter 1, "The Meaning of 'God,'" p. 46. BT102 .T525 2001 / 2001-040379.
So now let’s consider “deity” as applied to Jesus (Yeshua) Christ.
Some doubt the deity of Christ, but one of the greatest Bible scholars of all times, the great German Bible scholar and translator, Dr. J. J. Griesbach; Nor the Bible scholar and translator James Moffat, translator of "The New Testament: A New Translation," who stated in his translation at John 1:1, "... the Logos was divine"; Nor the Bible scholar and translator E. J. Goodspeed translator of ": An American Translation," who stated in his translation at John 1:1, "... and the Word was divine".
The point of Christ's divinity was made very pointedly by the great scholars and translators of the British Empire in their translation, "The New English Bible, (NEB)" at John 1:1 that reads, "When all things began, the Word already was, The Word dwelt with God, and what God was, the Word was.".
Now let's reason together, we all know that a son is a lot like the father from our own experience. So if Jesus (Yeshua) is the Son of God as testified to in over 40 scriptures in the Bible, we would expect that he would be a lot like his Father (YHWH). What would this mean, simply that he would be a deity like his Father (YHWH) and that he would be divine like his Father (YHWH). Why do some take this statement of what should be obvious to all with an explanation of surprise? Because they wrongly believe he and his father are one and the same; an impossibility as should be obvious to all.
Now let's look at what the meaning of divinity is in several dictionaries:
(from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
divine (GOD-LIKE) adjective
connected with a god, or like a god:
The Ayatollah described the earthquake in Iran as a divine test.
Some fans seem to regard footballers as divine beings.
England have fallen so far behind in the championship that their only hope of victory is divine intervention (= help from God).
Just because you've been promoted that doesn't give you a divine right (= one like that o***od) to tell us all what to do.
Oxford Dictionary
divine = /d"van/ adjective (-r, -st) 1 of, from, or like God or a god; sacred. 2 colloquial excellent. verb (-ning) 1 discover by intuition or guessing. 2 foresee. 3 practise divination. noun theologian. divining-rod dowser's forked twig. divinely adverb.
Wordsmyth Dictionary
a religious scholar or clergyman. Similar Words exegete , minister , cleric , clergyman , bishop , theologian , prelate , priest , religious
Definition 2. (cap.) God (usu. prec. by the). Synonyms Godhead {godhead (2)} , Divinity {divinity (2)} , Omnipotent {omnipotent} , Omniscient {omniscient} , God {god (2)} , Deity {deity (4)} Similar Words celestial
Definition 3. (sometimes cap.) the spiritual or godlike, as opposed to the earthly or worldly. Similar Words divinity
It is like Jesus (Yeshua) said at Matthew 23:24, but let's look at the context, Matthew 23:13-33, " But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater d**nation. 15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. 16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. 19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon. 23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. 25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. 28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. 29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the d**nation of hell?" ((Authorized King James Bible; AV)
Let's be inline with Titus 2:1, "But speak thou the things that become sound doctrine:" (Douay Rheims Catholic Bible; DRCB), and not in line with 2 Corinthians 4:4, "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of unbelievers, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not shine unto them."(DRCB) who do NOT recognize Jesus (Yeshua) as a separate divine being from his Father (YHWH) who is his Father's (YHWH's) master worker and is an obedient Son and follows his Father's (YHWH's) directions.
Of course Trinitarians try and twist Bible scripture to mislead everyone if possible and one scripture they like to twist is John 14:9, "Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and dost thou not know me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; how sayest thou, Show us the Father?" (ASV). Of course to take the Trinitarians understanding of Jesus' (Yeshua's) would be a serious contradiction with respect to what he said elsewhere in the Bible. But when we consider John 6:46, "Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he that is from God, he hath seen the Father." (ASV); and John 12:45, "And he that beholdeth me beholdeth him that sent me." (ASV) it is clear that Jesus (Yeshua) is referring to the facts or reality that he has his Father's, Almighty God's (YHWH's), attributes so in that sense seeing his is like seeing his Father. This can be the only understanding that is correct as John 12:45 made it clear that he, Jesus (Yeshua), was NOT his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), but had been sent by him - once more testifying to a subordinate to a superior or higher authority relationship between Jesus (Yeshua) and his Father, Almighty God (YHWH). This fact is made certain by John 5:37, "And the Father that sent me, he hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his form." (ASV) ; once more testifying to a a subordinate to a superior or higher authority relationship between Jesus (Yeshua) and his Father, Almighty God (YHWH) since he clearly shows he was sent and that no one has seen his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), at any time besides himself. This is further testified to at John 5:19, "Jesus therefore answered and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father doing: for what things soever he doeth, these the Son also doeth in like manner." (ASV) where he testifies that he can do nothing of himself, but depends on his Father, Almighty God (YHWH); and again testified to at John 8:28, "Jesus therefore said, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself, but as the Father taught me, I speak these things." (ASV).
Remember Exodus 20:3, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” (American Standard Version; ASV). But Jesus (Yeshua) is not before him, but as I have been telling you, is subordinate to him, Almighty God (YHWH).
See Part Two of Sequel #3
INTRODUCTION:
Some will read Isaiah 9:6, “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” (American Standard Version; ASV), and due to what they have heard from others draw the WRONG conclusion that Jesus (Yeshua) Christ is his Father, Almighty God (YHWH). This is due to their wrong bias that there is a “three-in-one-god” or Trinity, and they fail to realize that the resurrected Jesus (Yeshua) Christ and his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), are two distinct personalities or beings. One the subordinate to the other, the superior or one of higher authority.
They say that Jesus (Yeshua) Christ has the attributes of his Father, Almighty God (YHWH); therefore, he must be his Father, Almighty God (YHWH). But is this reasonable? Let’s consider the divinity of Christ ‘cut to the bare bone’ to see how unreasonable this way of thinking truly is. Many claim are made with respect the Divinity of Jesus Christ, but when we use a little reasoning on the subject it is seen as much ado about nothing.
Sure he is divine as clearly shown by common sense as follows:
The son of a dog is a dog; whereas, a son of Almighty God (YHWH) is of course a god or godlike thus divine. This is clearly shown by the meaning of the word as follows:
(from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
divine (GOD-LIKE) adjective
connected with a god, or like a god:
The Ayatollah described the earthquake in Iran as a divine test.
Some fans seem to regard footballers as divine beings.
England have fallen so far behind in the championship that their only hope of victory is divine intervention (= help from God).
Just because you've been promoted that doesn't give you a divine right (= one like that o***od) to tell us all what to do.
Oxford Dictionary
divine = /d"van/ adjective (-r, -st) 1 of, from, or like God or a god; sacred. 2 colloquial excellent. verb (-ning) 1 discover by intuition or guessing. 2 foresee. 3 practise divination. noun theologian. divining-rod dowser's forked twig. divinely adverb.
Wordsmyth Dictionary
1. a religious scholar or clergyman. Similar Words exegete , minister , cleric , clergyman , bishop , theologian , prelate , priest , religious
2. Definition 2. (cap.) God (usu. prec. by the). Synonyms Godhead {godhead (2)} , Divinity {divinity (2)} , Omnipotent {omnipotent} , Omniscient {omniscient} , God {god (2)} , Deity {deity (4)} Similar Words celestial
3. Definition 3. (sometimes cap.) the spiritual or godlike, as opposed to the earthly or worldly. Similar Words divinity
The American Heritage(r) Dictionary of the English Language: Fourth Edition. Divine
SYLLABICATION: di·vine PRONUNCIATION: /61/wavs/43/D0304300.wav/61/wavs/43/D0304300.wavd-vn ADJECTIVE: Inflected forms: di·vin·er, di·vin·est
1a. Having the nature of or being a deity. b. Of, relating to, emanating from, or being the expression of a deity: sought divine guidance through meditation. c. Being in the service or worship of a deity; sacred. 2. Superhuman; godlike. 3a. Supremely good or beautiful; magnificent: a divine performance of the concerto. b. Extremely pleasant; delightful: had a divine time at the ball. 4. Heavenly; perfect. NOUN: 1. A cleric. 2. A theologian. VERB: Inflected forms: di·vined, di·vin·ing, di·vines
TRANSITIVE VERB: 1. To foretell through or as if through the art of divination. See synonyms at foretell. 2a. To know by inspiration, intuition, or reflection. b. To guess. 3. To locate (underground water or minerals) with a divining rod; douse. INTRANSITIVE VERB: 1. To practice divination. 2. To guess. ETYMOLOGY: Middle English, from Old French devine, from Latin dvnus, divine, foreseeing, from dvus, god. See dyeu- in Appendix I. V., Middle English divinen, from Old French deviner, from Latin dvnre, from dvnus.
A very intense subject easily put to rest by a little common sense and reasoning, but if we consider Genesis 1:11-12, “And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit–trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so. And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good.” (ASV). These two scriptures show us a principle of creation that holds throughout all of creation, namely that ‘LIKE BRINGS FORTH LIKE’ so why should anyone reasonably conclude differently with regard to the case of Jesus (Yeshua) Christ. If his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), is the supreme being, as he is, why should we expect him to be anything less than a lesser god? Let’s consider the definition of “deity.”
DEFINITION OF DEITY:
Let’s consider exactly what the term “deity” really means and how it is applied. To do this, let’s first consider the Apostle John’s use of the Koine Greek term for “deity”. When discussing the question on whether use of "Deity" for John's use of "theos" within the third clause is proper, might there be something else to consider? de·i·ty noun [-ties pl{ural}.] 1. A god, goddess, or divine person. 2. Divine nature or status; godhead; divinity. - the Deity, God. [<F{rench}. déité <L{atin}. deus, god]. "Funk & Wagnalls New Practical Standard Dictionary of the English Language; Britannica World Language Edition, Compiled Under the Direction of the Editorial Staff of Encyclopaedia Britannica; 'Em-ha-type Method of Pronunciation.'" Funk, Charles Earle (b.1881- d.?), Editor. 2 vols. vol. 1 - A-P. vol. 2 - Q-Z. (New York, New York; Funk & Wagnalls Co., 1955), vol. 2 (braces ours). PE1625 .S712 1955 / 56001830.
— <*> - de*i*ty (de'-te) n....1. A god or goddess. 2. Divinity. 3. Deity. God. ?< Lat{tin}. deus.?. "The American Heritage Dictionary." 3rd Edition. (New York, New York: Dell Publishing, A Division of Bantam Doubleday Dell Publishing Group, Inc.; Houghton Mifflin Company, 1992), p. 227 (braces ours). PE1628 .A623 1992 / 92-851.
- <*> - de*i*ty / de'eitee,...1 a god or goddess. 2 divine status, quality or nature. 3 (the Deity) God. "The Oxford American Dictionary of Current English." (New York, New York: Oxford University Press, 1999), p. 205 (bold theirs). PE1628 .O8617 1999 / 99-39972.
- <*> - de*i¦ty (de'? te) n....1. the state of being a god; divine nature; godhood. 2....[3.] - the Deity God. "Webster's New World Dictionary of American English." 3rd College Edition. Neufeldt, Victoria (b.?-d.?), Editor-in-Chief. Guralnik, David B. (b.1920-d.2000), Editor-in-Chief Emeritus. (New York, New York: Simon & Schuster, Inc., 1994), p. 363. PE1628 .W5633 1993 / 93-2961.
- <*> - de*i*ty (de' i te)...1. a god or goddess. 2. divine character or nature; divinity: Her deity is manifest in her actions. 3. the estate or rank o***od: The king attained deity after his death. 4. the character or nature of the Supreme Being: the deity of Christ. 5. a person or thing revered as a god or goddess: a society in which money is the only deity. 6. the Deity, God; Supreme Being. "The Random House College Dictionary, Based on the Random House Dictionary of the English Language, the Unabridged Edition." Urdang, Laurance (b.?-d.?), Editor-in-Chief; Flexner, Stuart Berg (b.?-d.?), Managing Editor. (New York, New York: Rand McNally and Company, 1968, 1969, 1972, 1973), p. 350. PE1625 .R29 / 73-175504.
- <*> - Deity (di * ti)...1. the state or rank o***od; godhood; the personality o***od; godship; esp[ecially] with poss[ive] pron[oun]. b. The divine quality, character, or nature of God; Godhood, divinity; the divine nature and attributes, the Godhead. c. The condition or state in which the Divine Being exists. Obs. 2. A divinity, a divine being, a god; one of the gods worshiped by a people or a tribe. b. An object of worship; a thing or person deified. 3. (with capital) A supreme being as creator of the universe; the Deity, the Supreme Being, God. (Especially as a term of National Theology, and without explicit predication of personality.) "The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary, Complete Text Reproduced Micrographically." 2 vols. (Oxford, Great Britain: Oxford University Press, 1971), vol. i - a-o, p. 675 (152) (parenthesis theirs). PE1625 .N53 1971 / 72-177361.
- <*> - Although this approach to the subject may seem to some to be a bit too simplistic, does anyone else see what I am seeing? Please take note that, although "Deity" has the meaning of "God" (with capitals for both), "deity" means "a god." Therefore, when it is that Bowman (or, for that matter, any others) attempt to use "Deity" for John's second use of "theos," they are, in fact, just substituting another term which, when spelled with a capital "D", means the same thing as "God." If, on the other hand, they wish to be utilizing a term to somehow convey something different than this, they must either use "deity" or "a deity" instead. Whereas, each of these dictionaries give "a god" as the first meaning to use of the term (with all but one spelling it in all lower case), it should be noted that it is not untill the later definitions do we find its use (when capitalized) to mean "God", 'the Supreme being.' Furthermore, there is this: "[The Biblical use of the term] 'God' does not connote a 'divine essence' that can be shared by a number of beings, even though there may be a number of beings who are called 'god.' In this sense, theos functions slightly differently than does the English term 'deity.' Although we use 'deity' to refer both to God ("the Deity") and to a property (as in the "deity of Christ"), 'god' does not refer to a characteristic or property the possession of which renders one 'divine.' Rather, 'God' in biblical texts and Jewish thought either refers to the one and only God or, when used of a human figure, relates that figure to God by the exercise of some divine prerogative that is further exercised by God's authority." Taken from: Thompson, Marianne Meye (b.?-d.?), Professor of New Testament Interpretation, Fuller Theological Seminary in Pasadena, California. "The God of the Gospel of John." (Grand Rapids, Michigan: W.B. Eerdmans, c2001), Chapter 1, "The Meaning of 'God,'" p. 46. BT102 .T525 2001 / 2001-040379.
So now let’s consider “deity” as applied to Jesus (Yeshua) Christ.
Some doubt the deity of Christ, but one of the greatest Bible scholars of all times, the great German Bible scholar and translator, Dr. J. J. Griesbach; Nor the Bible scholar and translator James Moffat, translator of "The New Testament: A New Translation," who stated in his translation at John 1:1, "... the Logos was divine"; Nor the Bible scholar and translator E. J. Goodspeed translator of ": An American Translation," who stated in his translation at John 1:1, "... and the Word was divine".
The point of Christ's divinity was made very pointedly by the great scholars and translators of the British Empire in their translation, "The New English Bible, (NEB)" at John 1:1 that reads, "When all things began, the Word already was, The Word dwelt with God, and what God was, the Word was.".
Now let's reason together, we all know that a son is a lot like the father from our own experience. So if Jesus (Yeshua) is the Son of God as testified to in over 40 scriptures in the Bible, we would expect that he would be a lot like his Father (YHWH). What would this mean, simply that he would be a deity like his Father (YHWH) and that he would be divine like his Father (YHWH). Why do some take this statement of what should be obvious to all with an explanation of surprise? Because they wrongly believe he and his father are one and the same; an impossibility as should be obvious to all.
Now let's look at what the meaning of divinity is in several dictionaries:
(from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
divine (GOD-LIKE) adjective
connected with a god, or like a god:
The Ayatollah described the earthquake in Iran as a divine test.
Some fans seem to regard footballers as divine beings.
England have fallen so far behind in the championship that their only hope of victory is divine intervention (= help from God).
Just because you've been promoted that doesn't give you a divine right (= one like that o***od) to tell us all what to do.
Oxford Dictionary
divine = /d"van/ adjective (-r, -st) 1 of, from, or like God or a god; sacred. 2 colloquial excellent. verb (-ning) 1 discover by intuition or guessing. 2 foresee. 3 practise divination. noun theologian. divining-rod dowser's forked twig. divinely adverb.
Wordsmyth Dictionary
a religious scholar or clergyman. Similar Words exegete , minister , cleric , clergyman , bishop , theologian , prelate , priest , religious
Definition 2. (cap.) God (usu. prec. by the). Synonyms Godhead {godhead (2)} , Divinity {divinity (2)} , Omnipotent {omnipotent} , Omniscient {omniscient} , God {god (2)} , Deity {deity (4)} Similar Words celestial
Definition 3. (sometimes cap.) the spiritual or godlike, as opposed to the earthly or worldly. Similar Words divinity
It is like Jesus (Yeshua) said at Matthew 23:24, but let's look at the context, Matthew 23:13-33, " But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater d**nation. 15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. 16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. 19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon. 23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. 25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. 28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. 29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the d**nation of hell?" ((Authorized King James Bible; AV)
Let's be inline with Titus 2:1, "But speak thou the things that become sound doctrine:" (Douay Rheims Catholic Bible; DRCB), and not in line with 2 Corinthians 4:4, "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of unbelievers, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not shine unto them."(DRCB) who do NOT recognize Jesus (Yeshua) as a separate divine being from his Father (YHWH) who is his Father's (YHWH's) master worker and is an obedient Son and follows his Father's (YHWH's) directions.
Of course Trinitarians try and twist Bible scripture to mislead everyone if possible and one scripture they like to twist is John 14:9, "Jesus saith unto him, Have I been so long time with you, and dost thou not know me, Philip? he that hath seen me hath seen the Father; how sayest thou, Show us the Father?" (ASV). Of course to take the Trinitarians understanding of Jesus' (Yeshua's) would be a serious contradiction with respect to what he said elsewhere in the Bible. But when we consider John 6:46, "Not that any man hath seen the Father, save he that is from God, he hath seen the Father." (ASV); and John 12:45, "And he that beholdeth me beholdeth him that sent me." (ASV) it is clear that Jesus (Yeshua) is referring to the facts or reality that he has his Father's, Almighty God's (YHWH's), attributes so in that sense seeing his is like seeing his Father. This can be the only understanding that is correct as John 12:45 made it clear that he, Jesus (Yeshua), was NOT his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), but had been sent by him - once more testifying to a subordinate to a superior or higher authority relationship between Jesus (Yeshua) and his Father, Almighty God (YHWH). This fact is made certain by John 5:37, "And the Father that sent me, he hath borne witness of me. Ye have neither heard his voice at any time, nor seen his form." (ASV) ; once more testifying to a a subordinate to a superior or higher authority relationship between Jesus (Yeshua) and his Father, Almighty God (YHWH) since he clearly shows he was sent and that no one has seen his Father, Almighty God (YHWH), at any time besides himself. This is further testified to at John 5:19, "Jesus therefore answered and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father doing: for what things soever he doeth, these the Son also doeth in like manner." (ASV) where he testifies that he can do nothing of himself, but depends on his Father, Almighty God (YHWH); and again testified to at John 8:28, "Jesus therefore said, When ye have lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that I am he, and that I do nothing of myself, but as the Father taught me, I speak these things." (ASV).
Remember Exodus 20:3, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” (American Standard Version; ASV). But Jesus (Yeshua) is not before him, but as I have been telling you, is subordinate to him, Almighty God (YHWH).
See Part Two of Sequel #3