One of the key tenets of Christianity is that Jesus the man is also God, one of three persons of the Godhead consisting of Father, Son and Holy Spirit. The concept of the Trinity is a complex issue which I will address in another post. In this post, I am going to share various bible verses from both the old and new testament that show the idea of God also being human is a deeply rooted biblical idea.

God as Man in the Old Testament

Psalm 2

Perhaps one of the clearest passages that God has a Son is found in Psalm 2 (ESV).

Why do the nations rage
    and the peoples plot in vain?
² The kings of the earth set themselves,
    and the rulers take counsel together,
    against the Lord and against his Anointed, saying,
³ “Let us burst their bonds apart
    and cast away their cords from us.”

⁴ He who sits in the heavens laughs;
    the Lord holds them in derision.
⁵ Then he will speak to them in his wrath,
    and terrify them in his fury, saying,
⁶ “As for me, I have set my King
    on Zion, my holy hill.”

⁷ I will tell of the decree:
The Lord said to me, “You are my Son;
    today I have begotten you.
⁸ Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage,
    and the ends of the earth your possession.
⁹ You shall break them with a rod of iron
    and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.”

¹⁰ Now therefore, O kings, be wise;
    be warned, O rulers of the earth.
¹¹ Serve the Lord with fear,
    and rejoice with trembling.
¹² Kiss the Son,
    lest he be angry, and you perish in the way,
    for his wrath is quickly kindled.
Blessed are all who take refuge in him.

This Psalm has numerous references to two divine figures – YAHWEH or Adonai and his anointed / Son. Verse 3 tells us that the nations plot against the LORD and his anointed. Then verse 7 and 12 provide us with more details about the anointed – that the anointed is the LORD’s Son. And tellingly, verse 12 specifies that everyone should kiss the Son lest he be angry, for his wrath is kindled.

For further reading about the King in Psalm 2, read this fascinating article on the International Biblical Apologetics Association site: https://bibleapologist.org/who-is-the-king-in-psalm-2/

Proverbs Chapter 30

Another passage that informs the reader YAHWEH has a son is Proverbs 30:1-4 (ESV).

The words of Agur son of Jakeh. The oracle.

The man declares, I am weary, O God;
    I am weary, O God, and worn out.
² Surely I am too stupid to be a man.
    I have not the understanding of a man.
³ I have not learned wisdom,
    nor have I knowledge of the Holy One.
⁴ Who has ascended to heaven and come down?
    Who has gathered the wind in his fists?
Who has wrapped up the waters in a garment?
    Who has established all the ends of the earth?
What is his name, and what is his son’s name?
    Surely you know!

Here we see the writer expressing his profound awe of the creator who has wrapped up the waters in a garment and who has established all the ends of the earth. He then asks what is God’s name, and what is his Son’s name. It seems apparent that the writer was aware that there are at least two divine figures who are both somehow called God. However, the Hebrew bible states numerous times that God is only one. Deuteronomy 6:4 (ESV) reads: “Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.” There is certainly a mystery behind God.

The Son of Man (Daniel chapter 7)

The title that Jesus by far used most often to describe Himself was Son of Man. Some think that Jesus was merely claiming to be a human, but this is not the case. In Daniel chapter 7, Daniel recounts a terrifying vision he had about beasts and a horn, which refer to kingdoms and their king/leader respectively. Then Daniel has a vision about the Ancient of Days sitting on his throne. Daniel 7:9-14 (ESV):

⁹ “As I looked,

thrones were placed,
    and the Ancient of Days took his seat;
his clothing was white as snow,
    and the hair of his head like pure wool;
his throne was fiery flames;
    its wheels were burning fire.
¹⁰ A stream of fire issued
    and came out from before him;
a thousand thousands served him,
    and ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him;
the court sat in judgment,
    and the books were opened.

¹¹ “I looked then because of the sound of the great words that the horn was speaking. And as I looked, the beast was killed, and its body destroyed and given over to be burned with fire. ¹² As for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was taken away, but their lives were prolonged for a season and a time.

¹³ “I saw in the night visions,

and behold, with the clouds of heaven
    there came one like a son of man,
and he came to the Ancient of Days
    and was presented before him.
¹⁴ And to him was given dominion
    and glory and a kingdom,
that all peoples, nations, and languages
    should serve him;
his dominion is an everlasting dominion,
    which shall not pass away,
and his kingdom one
    that shall not be destroyed.

This is a fascinating passage. We are given a glorious image of God sitting on his throne in the throne room surrounded by the divine council or key members of God’s spiritual family. In verse 13 we are introduced to a figure called the Son of Man, who is human but is also God. This Son of Man was given dominion over the kingdoms and given his own kingdom, that all people, nations and languages should serve Him. His is an everlasting kingdom, and which shall not pass away or be destroyed. Only God has dominion over the nations and has an everlasting kingdom, so old testament readers were being primed about God having a son who is the anointed and yet is also human in some way.

Isaiah Chapter 9

A final passage from the old testament we will look at is Isaiah 9:2-7 (ESV).  

 ² The people who walked in darkness
    have seen a great light;
those who dwelt in a land of deep darkness,
    on them has light shone.
³ You have multiplied the nation;
    you have increased its joy;
they rejoice before you
    as with joy at the harvest,
    as they are glad when they divide the spoil.
⁴ For the yoke of his burden,
    and the staff for his shoulder,
    the rod of his oppressor,
    you have broken as on the day of Midian.
⁵ For every boot of the tramping warrior in battle tumult
    and every garment rolled in blood
    will be burned as fuel for the fire.
⁶ For to us a child is born,
    to us a son is given;
and the government shall be upon his shoulder,
    and his name shall be called
Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God,
    Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.
⁷ Of the increase of his government and of peace
    there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
    to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
    from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

The above passage is widely considered as one of the most powerful messianic prophecies. In introduces someone who will bring light into the darkness, but interestingly introduces this person as being born as a baby – a human. Yet he shall rule the nations and be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. These four titles are uniquely attributed to God, so it is interesting that this human child is also given these titles. This child will then grow up to sit on the throne of David and rule forever. Somehow, this child is both human and God.

God as Man in the New Testament

Now let’s fast forward to first century Israel. A child was born in Bethlehem (just as was prophesied in Micah 5:2) and a young boy named Jesus (Yeshua) was raised by Mary and Joseph. When Jesus was most likely 30 years old, he began his ministry which would culminate in his death and resurrection. According to Numbers 4:3, the minimum age a person could be a senior priest was 30.

John Chapter 8

In the gospel of John chapter 8, Jesus claims that He is the light of the world and that if people follow Him they will have the light of life. The Pharisees responded by saying that Jesus was bearing testimony of himself, therefore according to the Hebrew scriptures, his testimony was not to be believed. Jesus then replies somewhat cryptically that he knows where he came from – that he came from above whereas they were from below. The conversation heats up and the Pharisees accuse Jesus of being greater than Abraham.

⁵³ Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out to be?” ⁵⁴ Jesus answered, “If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God.’ ⁵⁵ But you have not known him. I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like you, but I do know him and I keep his word. ⁵⁶ Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” ⁵⁷ So the Jews said to him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” ⁵⁸ Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.” ⁵⁹ So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.

Note how the Pharisees reacted when he claimed to be “I AM” – they picked up stones to throw at him. They thought Jesus was falsely claiming to be God. In order to understand why, we need to briefly go to the book of Exodus 3:13-15 (ESV):

¹³ Then Moses said to God, “If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you,’ and they ask me, ‘What is his name?’ what shall I say to them?” ¹⁴ God said to Moses, “I am who I am.” And he said, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘I am has sent me to you.’” ¹⁵ God also said to Moses, “Say this to the people of Israel: ‘The Lord, 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 thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.

When Moses had the burning bush encounter with God, Moses didn’t know what to call Him, so he asked God for His name. YAHWEH replied, “I AM WHO I AM …. I AM has sent me to you.” Clearly, the Pharisees knew exactly what Jesus was claiming, but didn’t believe Him.

John Chapter 10

Jesus makes another bold claim in the gospel of John chapter 10. It was the time of the feast of dedication and the Jewish leaders asked Jesus to plainly say who he was. John 10:22-39 (ESV):

²² At that time the Feast of Dedication took place at Jerusalem. It was winter, ²³ and Jesus was walking in the temple, in the colonnade of Solomon. ²⁴ So the Jews gathered around him and said to him, “How long will you keep us in suspense? If you are the Christ, tell us plainly.” ²⁵ Jesus answered them, “I told you, and you do not believe. The works that I do in my Father’s name bear witness about me, ²⁶ but you do not believe because you are not among my sheep. ²⁷ My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. ²⁸ I give them eternal life, and they will never perish, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. ²⁹ My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all, and no one is able to snatch them out of the Father’s hand. ³⁰ I and the Father are one.”

³¹ The Jews picked up stones again to stone him. ³² Jesus answered them, “I have shown you many good works from the Father; for which of them are you going to stone me?” ³³ The Jews answered him, “It is not for a good work that we are going to stone you but for blasphemy, because you, being a man, make yourself God.” ³⁴ Jesus answered them, “Is it not written in your Law, ‘I said, you are gods’? ³⁵ If he called them gods to whom the word of God came—and Scripture cannot be broken— ³⁶ do you say of him whom the Father consecrated and sent into the world, ‘You are blaspheming,’ because I said, ‘I am the Son of God’? ³⁷ If I am not doing the works of my Father, then do not believe me; ³⁸ but if I do them, even though you do not believe me, believe the works, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me and I am in the Father.” ³⁹ Again they sought to arrest him, but he escaped from their hands.

In verse 28 Jesus says he will give his sheep (his followers) eternal life. This is also interesting because only God can give eternal life. But then in verse 30 he says, “I am the Father are one.” Immediately, the Jewish leaders picked up stones not for the good works (miracles) he had done, but because they thought he blasphemed claiming to be God. But the fact that Jesus performed numerous signs and wonders that no other human could do, should have made the Jewish leaders think more deeply about who Jesus was.

Matthew Chapter 28

The last passage we will look at is from the book of Matthew. Jesus has been crucified and resurrected and instructs his followers to meet Him in Galilee. Matthew 28:16-20 (ESV).

¹⁶ Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. ¹⁷ And when they saw Him they worshiped him, but some doubted. ¹⁸ And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

This passage is fondly called the Great Commission, where Jesus tells his disciples to make disciples of all nations and baptize in the name (singular not plural) of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Jesus is obviously claiming deity here and is equating Himself to be on the same level as God the Father.

Conclusion

These are just some passages from the old and new testament that show that the one true God – the Most High – has a duality consisting of Father and Son. When Jesus incarnated, he revealed in more detail the eternal relationship he has had with the Father. We might not be able to fully comprehend God, but we can at least apprehend Him due to the revelations that the Hebrew scriptures revealed and what Jesus taught. One day every knee shall now and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the Glory of God the Father. Amen!  

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