In the Old Testament, a person’s name was very important. It identifies an individual and represents their essences. A name was used for blessing[i] or cursing.[ii] Also, in Jewish tradition, a “name” has the sense of power or authority.[iii] A large percentage of biblical Hebrew names contain a divine name as an element[iv].
To identify God’s essence, we need to search for God’s name in Scriptures. There are various names for God in the Hebrew Scriptures. The name YHWH is the Jewish priestly name for God. YHWH is connected with the phrase ‘I am that I am’ when God is revealed to Moses in Exodus.[v] It shows that God is not born, nor made. God is immortal without beginning or end. God is spirit[vi] and has no gender. God is the beginning of all things. In ancient Israel, the general word for a god was ‘el.’ El was usually combined with another words, such as el elyon (God Most High), el shaddai (God Almighty), el olam (Everlasting God).[vii] In addition, descriptive names were used to express divine attributes such as Rahum (Merciful)[viii], Kadosh (Holy)[ix] and Tsidkenu (Righteous)[x]. As it is written in the Augsburg Confession, “there is one divine essence, which is called and which is God, eternal, incorporeal, indivisible, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness, the maker and preserver of all things, visible and invisible.”[xi]
The Augsburg Confession discusses the Trinity by stating that “Yet there are three persons, of the same essence and power, who are also coeternal: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.”[xii] In Gen.1:1-3, we clearly see the work of the Trinity. “God created the heavens and the earth.” In this verse, God the Father created everything. “The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” Here the Holy Spirit manifested itself as an activist in the creation. “God said, ‘Let there be light.’” As we can guess, the Son is taking a part in this creating work as the Word of God.[xiii]
We then question “how can be three to be one?” In the Scriptures there no exact word which translates into, “Trinity” but the trinity is contextually referred to in many ways. The concept of Trinity is contained in many passages indicating the three characteristics of God are in one being. Distinctly the Trinity concept is expressed in 1 John5:8 saying “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” Deuteronomy 6:4 says “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD (Deut.6:4).” The Hebrew word, “ehad” (one) has several meanings, sole, unique and unity. This verse clearly expresses Yahweh’s unity and exclusivity.[xiv] The word “one” in Hebrew concept means unity is a collective noun meaning family or people. One is not used as a mathematical designation. A good example is Genesis 2:24, “Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh.” The man and woman still have their own personal characteristic but they are one family. The Father, Son and the Holy Spirit are three persons. They are distinct yet are one as a unity.
Martin Luther discusses the Trinity in the Large Catechism. Luther states “We could never come to recognize the Father’s favor and grace were it not for the Lord Christ, who is a mirror of the Father’s heart. Apart from him we see nothing but an angry and terrible Judge. But neither could know anything of Christ, had it not been revealed by the Holy Spirit.”[xv] It would be difficult to understand God without some understanding of the Trinity concept.
In Exodus, God is eternal and has a relationship with the humanity. God claims this God/human relationship by stating “I am 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, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.” (Exo.3:15) God is pleased to link God’s name as God with a particular human or group of humans. We see two things: God’s humbleness and God’s love. The name expresses that God is a helper and provides for the human. God never boasts about supremacy. God is stating that Elohim is not the subject but the human is the center of this relationship. God allows us, as humans, to have the ability to establish our relationship with God/Elohim. The idea that we as humans can reach God is an extraordinary concept. When the magnitude of this concept is wholeheartedly realized our faith is changed. You (as a human) belong to me (God) forever. We will never be separated and I, God, will never forsake you. You are my child and love. Because of Me (God), you can breathe, live and prosper in this world. Because of you, I am happy and pleased. God is pleased to be called that God of Young Kim or God of each of us.
[i] For example, God changed Abram’s name to Abraham, which means that he would be a father of a multitude of nations. (Gen.17)
[ii] “Gomer conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord said the Hosea, “Call her Lo-Ruhamah, for I will no longer show love to the house of Israel, that I should at all forgive them.” (Hosea 1:6)
[iii] Jacob Neusner and William Scott Green, eds., Dictionary of Judaism in the Biblical Period: 450 B.c.e. to 600 C.e.(Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 1999), 448.
[iv] “-iah” as in Jeremiah, is a shortened form of Yahweh; “-el” as in Daniel, is another word for God. (Jacob Neusner, 448.)
[v] Dan Cohn-Sherbok, A Dictionary of Judaism and Christianity, 1st Trinity Press ed. (Philadelphia, PA: Trinity Press International, 1991), 110.
[vi] “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:24)
[vii] Jacob Neusner, 259.
[viii] “The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.” (Exodus 34:6)
[ix] “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty” (Isaiah 6:3)
[x] “The Lord of our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 23:6)
[xi] Theodore Tappert, The Book of Concord (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1989), 27.2-3
[xii] Tappert, 27.3-28.4
[xiii] “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” (John 1:1-3)
[xiv] Jenni, Ernst, and Claus Westermann, eds. Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament. 3 vols. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Pub, 1997. 78-79
[xv] Tappert, 419.65
To identify God’s essence, we need to search for God’s name in Scriptures. There are various names for God in the Hebrew Scriptures. The name YHWH is the Jewish priestly name for God. YHWH is connected with the phrase ‘I am that I am’ when God is revealed to Moses in Exodus.[v] It shows that God is not born, nor made. God is immortal without beginning or end. God is spirit[vi] and has no gender. God is the beginning of all things. In ancient Israel, the general word for a god was ‘el.’ El was usually combined with another words, such as el elyon (God Most High), el shaddai (God Almighty), el olam (Everlasting God).[vii] In addition, descriptive names were used to express divine attributes such as Rahum (Merciful)[viii], Kadosh (Holy)[ix] and Tsidkenu (Righteous)[x]. As it is written in the Augsburg Confession, “there is one divine essence, which is called and which is God, eternal, incorporeal, indivisible, of infinite power, wisdom, and goodness, the maker and preserver of all things, visible and invisible.”[xi]
The Augsburg Confession discusses the Trinity by stating that “Yet there are three persons, of the same essence and power, who are also coeternal: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.”[xii] In Gen.1:1-3, we clearly see the work of the Trinity. “God created the heavens and the earth.” In this verse, God the Father created everything. “The Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.” Here the Holy Spirit manifested itself as an activist in the creation. “God said, ‘Let there be light.’” As we can guess, the Son is taking a part in this creating work as the Word of God.[xiii]
We then question “how can be three to be one?” In the Scriptures there no exact word which translates into, “Trinity” but the trinity is contextually referred to in many ways. The concept of Trinity is contained in many passages indicating the three characteristics of God are in one being. Distinctly the Trinity concept is expressed in 1 John5:8 saying “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one.” Deuteronomy 6:4 says “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD (Deut.6:4).” The Hebrew word, “ehad” (one) has several meanings, sole, unique and unity. This verse clearly expresses Yahweh’s unity and exclusivity.[xiv] The word “one” in Hebrew concept means unity is a collective noun meaning family or people. One is not used as a mathematical designation. A good example is Genesis 2:24, “Therefore a man leaves his father and his mother and clings to his wife, and they become one flesh.” The man and woman still have their own personal characteristic but they are one family. The Father, Son and the Holy Spirit are three persons. They are distinct yet are one as a unity.
Martin Luther discusses the Trinity in the Large Catechism. Luther states “We could never come to recognize the Father’s favor and grace were it not for the Lord Christ, who is a mirror of the Father’s heart. Apart from him we see nothing but an angry and terrible Judge. But neither could know anything of Christ, had it not been revealed by the Holy Spirit.”[xv] It would be difficult to understand God without some understanding of the Trinity concept.
In Exodus, God is eternal and has a relationship with the humanity. God claims this God/human relationship by stating “I am 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, the name by which I am to be remembered from generation to generation.” (Exo.3:15) God is pleased to link God’s name as God with a particular human or group of humans. We see two things: God’s humbleness and God’s love. The name expresses that God is a helper and provides for the human. God never boasts about supremacy. God is stating that Elohim is not the subject but the human is the center of this relationship. God allows us, as humans, to have the ability to establish our relationship with God/Elohim. The idea that we as humans can reach God is an extraordinary concept. When the magnitude of this concept is wholeheartedly realized our faith is changed. You (as a human) belong to me (God) forever. We will never be separated and I, God, will never forsake you. You are my child and love. Because of Me (God), you can breathe, live and prosper in this world. Because of you, I am happy and pleased. God is pleased to be called that God of Young Kim or God of each of us.
[i] For example, God changed Abram’s name to Abraham, which means that he would be a father of a multitude of nations. (Gen.17)
[ii] “Gomer conceived again and gave birth to a daughter. Then the Lord said the Hosea, “Call her Lo-Ruhamah, for I will no longer show love to the house of Israel, that I should at all forgive them.” (Hosea 1:6)
[iii] Jacob Neusner and William Scott Green, eds., Dictionary of Judaism in the Biblical Period: 450 B.c.e. to 600 C.e.(Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Publishers, 1999), 448.
[iv] “-iah” as in Jeremiah, is a shortened form of Yahweh; “-el” as in Daniel, is another word for God. (Jacob Neusner, 448.)
[v] Dan Cohn-Sherbok, A Dictionary of Judaism and Christianity, 1st Trinity Press ed. (Philadelphia, PA: Trinity Press International, 1991), 110.
[vi] “God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth." (John 4:24)
[vii] Jacob Neusner, 259.
[viii] “The Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness, maintaining love to thousands and forgiving wickedness, rebellion and sin.” (Exodus 34:6)
[ix] “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty” (Isaiah 6:3)
[x] “The Lord of our Righteousness” (Jeremiah 23:6)
[xi] Theodore Tappert, The Book of Concord (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1989), 27.2-3
[xii] Tappert, 27.3-28.4
[xiii] “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” (John 1:1-3)
[xiv] Jenni, Ernst, and Claus Westermann, eds. Theological Lexicon of the Old Testament. 3 vols. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Pub, 1997. 78-79
[xv] Tappert, 419.65