There is but one God who is Creator of the heavens and the earth. That is the consistent witness of the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments. The most celebrated expression of this fact is the Shema, the prayer found at Deuteronomy 6:4 that the children of Israel were to recite when rising in the morning and going to bed at night: “Hear O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one!” This explicit monotheism contrasted sharply with the beliefs of the people groups surrounding the Israelites in the Promised Land, many of which held to the notion of a pantheon of gods who ruled the nations and often competed with one another for ultimate control.

Thus, we might expect that Genesis 1:1, the verse in which we are introduced to the God spoken of in the Shema, would contain the clearest and most explicit confirmation of his oneness that’s available in Hebrew—the singular El. Instead, it’s the plural form, Elohim, that we find in this opening passage of Scripture. At the same time, however, it’s just as clear that when the term Elohim is used elsewhere in the Old Testament, it’s applied to the same God who is the subject of the term El, the singular and unique Lord of all. When he is referred to in the third person, it’s with the singular pronouns he (Josh. 24:19), him (Deut. 4:35), his (Isa. 52:10), and himself (Psalm 50:6). Similarly, when he refers to himself (with four exceptions to be discussed below), it’s always with the first-person singular pronouns I (Ex. 20:2), and Me (Isa. 46:9).

What’s important to understand about this phenomenon is that the Bible isn’t being schizophrenic in using these two seemingly contradictory terms for the same being, God. Rather, the author of Holy Scripture, God himself, is telling us something important about himself. And it’s that complex nature of his person that Genesis 1:1 hints at in only the most rudimentary manner. But, when we take the rest of Scripture into account, that verse demonstrates itself to be just one of the many different ways that the Bible emphasizes, and brings to light, a single over-arching truth: God is a triune being.

My name is Cesar and I'm A Voice In The Desert

www.avoiceinthedesert.net

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