No 32

(Tri-Unity in the Old Testament)

The term “trinity” has been used to explain the nature of God for approximately 1600 years. Choosing this particular word was unfortunate and incorrect because when Christians use this term (which any dictionary will describe as three), we unconsciously communicate the concept of polytheism or the belief of three gods. If we look this word up in a dictionary and it has a capital “T”, the description refers to God in three persons but with a small “t”, the word means three. The word “trinity” was coined to refer to the plurality of God and yet maintain the thought of “unity”. The choice of this word was well-intended by Christians at the time but for non-Christians, it conveys a message that is often misunderstood. A better word is tri-unity which communicates the idea that God is one but, at the same time, consists of three distinct persons.

The Old Testament has many many references to the plurality of God. We have looked at some already (see studies # 10, 76) so this will be a refresher course. One of the foundational Biblical passages in Judaism is the schema (which means hear) and it can be found in Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD” and as we saw in study # 76, the word used for “one” here is the Jewish word “echad” which means one but in the sense of plurality. In the account of creation, this word appears in Gen 1:5 where the Bible indicates that on the “first” day, God created light – “one” day but in two parts, morning and evening. Another occasion where the word “echad” is used is when God describes the husband and the wife becoming “one” flesh (Gen 2:24). In Numbers 13, Moses describes what the spies brought back from the land of Canaan; in Eschol, they found “one cluster of grapes”. Likewise, in Ezra 2:64 we read “The whole congregation together was forty and two thousand three hundred and threescore,” The word “echad” is again used to denote one congregation but with a plurality of members.

However, there is a Hebrew word that denotes absolute oneness. – “yachid”; such as one man, one hand or one apple, etc. Here is another foundational passage of the Bible in Judaism and it is found in Genesis 22 where the Lord asks Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac “And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of”. The word “only” here means one in an absolute manner. In Proverbs 4:3, we read “For I was my father’s son, tender and only beloved in the sight of my mother” The word “only” means one. One last Scripture is in Zechariah 12:10 where we read “and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son” The word “only” means one again. Therefore, these Old Testament authors knew that God was made up of a tri-unity and isn’t it unfortunate that the scribes, Pharisees and Sadducees of Jesus’ time didn’t pick up on this truth?