Untitled Document
CAN JESUS CHRIST BE BOTH MAN AND GOD?
Some would say that the answer to that question is yes, because as we read in Luke 1:37, “With God nothing shall be impossible”. Some, however would answer with a no, one can not be both man and God. This paper will present the Scriptural proof that Jesus Christ is both Man and God.
There is no question that Christ was, while on earth, fully Man. The question that we will study in this paper is whether He was also fully God. We will look at the following headings in the search for truth in this all important study:
What Do The Old Testament Prophets Say As To Who The Messiah Will Be?
How Are We To Understand The Title “Son Of God”?
Scriptures Which Prove That Christ Is God
Titles of Jehovah Ascribed To Christ
WHAT DO THE OLD TESTAMENT PROPHETS SAY AS TO WHO THE MESSIAH WILL BE?
As we study just a few Old Testament prophecies concerning the Messiah, we will see that their testimony is that the Messiah was not a mere man, but God. I assume that all Bible believing Christians believe that Christ is the Messiah, therefore; if the Messiah is God, and Christ is the Messiah, Christ is God.
Isaiah 40:3, “The voice of him that crieth in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of Jehovah“.(The KJV has “the Lord” but the Hebrew is “Jehovah”.) We read in Matthew 3:3 a quote of Isaiah 40:3. “For this is he (John the Baptist) that was spoken of by the prophet Esaias, saying, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord, make His path straight”. The one for whom John the Baptist was preparing the way was Christ. John the Baptist was fulfilling the prophecy of Isaiah who wrote that he would prepare the way for Jehovah. By comparing the prophecy (Is. 40:3) with the fulfillment of prophecy (Matt. 3:3) we see that the “voice of him crying in the wilderness” was preparing the way for Jehovah, Who is God. Since Christ was the One for Whom John the Baptist was preparing the way, we must conclude that Christ was Jehovah, i.e. God in the flesh. (For further evidence that Christ is Jehovah, please see the paper on this web-site Jesus Christ Is The Manifestation of Jehovah.)
Isaiah 9:6 is another Old Testament Messianic prophecy which tells us that the Messiah will be God. “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, Counseller, The mighty God, the Everlasting Father, the Prince of Peace”. It is obvious that this prophecy is about the Messiah, the title “Prince of Peace” tells us that. Also the fact that the “government shall be on His shoulders” tells us that this is a Messianic prophecy. That being the case, we may not simply neglect the title “Mighty God” as if it didn’t apply to the same Messiah. Therefore, we learn from this passage also, that the Messiah was to be God, i.e. “Emmanuel, God with us”.
There are Bible believing Christians that point out, correctly, that the Hebrew word translated “mighty” in the phrase “mighty God” in Is. 9:6 is often used of men as well as of God. The inference is that “mighty El” does not refer to deity. Let us look at the phrase “mighty God” as it occurs in other Old Testament passages to see what we can learn of this phrase.
The phrase in Hebrew is “gebbohr El“. It occurs in Deut. 10:17, “For Jehovah your Elohim is God of gods, and Lord of Lords, a great El, mighty and terrible”. Please note that the title “mighty El” does not denigrate God, it exalts Him as God of gods and Lord of lords.
Another verse where we find the phrase “mighty El” is Jer. 32:18, “….the great the mighty El, the Jehovah of hosts is His Name”. Please note that “El” is one of the titles of Jehovah. That is to say, El is Jehovah.
Consider also Neh. 9:32, “Now therefore our Elohim, the great the mighty and the terrible El Who keepest covenants and mercy, let not all the trouble seem little before Thee that cometh upon us…”.
In order to really understand the title “El” let us look at some of the Scriptures in which we find the title used.
It is used of Jehovah in II Sam. 22:32, “…Who is El, save Jehovah?” It is also used of Jehovah in I Sam. 2:3, “…Jehovah is an El of knowledge”. Consider also Psalms 118:29, “El is Jehovah which has shewed us light”. See also Ps. 140:6, “I said unto Jehovah, Thou art my El“. Other passages which tell us that “El” is one of the titles of Jehovah are Deut. 3:24, Ps. 50:1, Ps. 85:8, Ps. 94:1, Ps. 95:3, and Is. 42:5.
In several verses the context makes it clear that “El” is used of the One true God. See for example Is. 45:22, “I am El and there is none else“. Numbers 23:22, “El brought them out of Egypt”. See also Gen. 35:1, Job 9:2, Ps. 68:35, Ps. 90:2 and Daniel 11:36.
“El” is used of idols or false gods as in Is. 45:20, “pray unto a god that cannot save”. Also Is. 44:10, “el is a molten image”. See also Ex. 34:14, Ps. 81:9, Judges 9:46, Josh. 22:22 and Mic. 7:18.
It is used of angels in Ps. 29:1 and 89:6.
It is used of God in contrast to man as in Is. 31:3, “The Egyptians are men and not El…”. Ezek. 28:2, “….thou art a man and not El”. Also Ezek 28:9, “..thou shalt be a man and no El”. Also Hosea 11:9, “For I am El and no man”.
“El” is also translated “might” and “power” in. for example Gen. 31:29 and Deut. 28:32. This gives us it’s basic meaning. It also helps us to understand one of the many characteristics of Jehovah as revealed by this particular title. That is to say, it reveals Jehovah as a God of strength and might.
But what is crucial to our present study is that “El: is never used of man”. That is to say, no man has ever been referred to as “el” in the Bible, except for the Man Jesus Christ, Who is the manifestation of God. “Thou shalt call His Name Emmanu-el” (Is. 7:14).
The Hebrew word “el” is incorporated in some of the names found in the Old Testament, for example Dani-el and Samu-el.. But those names mean “judge of God” and “heard of God” respecitively. The names that incorporate “el” do not refer to Daniel and Samuel as God, they are but servants of God.
Coming back to Is. 9:6, we must conclude that the phrase “mighty God”, far from implying less than deity of the Messiah, it describes the Messiah as God at His most mighty and powerful.
Again, the Messiah is God, Christ is the Messiah, therefore, Christ is God.
There is some controvercy about the meaning and translation of Psalm 110:1. In the KJV it reads, “The Lord (Jehovah) said unto my Lord, ‘Sit Thou at My right hand, Until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool”.
Let me begin by saying that the phrase “My right hand” is not to be interpreted literally, but figuratively. “At my right hand” is a phrase often used in the Bible to express a postiion of power, authority and favor. That is proved in the paper on this web-site Sit Thou At My Right Hand.
Ps. 110:1 is quoted in the New Testament seven times. By studying all seven occurrences we will learn a great deal of what this verse has to say about Who Christ is. We will see that this verse is quoted several times by our Lord Himself to prove that Messiah is the Son of God. But it is just as true that Messiah was the Son of Man. Both are equally true, and neither truth detracts from the other.
The first time Ps. 110:1 is quoted in the New Testament is in the context of Matthew 22:41-44. In verse 41 we learn that Pharisees were gathered together and Jesus asked them, “What think ye of Christ, Whose Son is He”? And the Pharisees answered, “The Son of David” (verse 42). And our Lord’s answer is significant, “He said unto them, ‘How then doth David in spirit call Him Lord, saying The Lord said unto My Lord, Sit Thou at My right hand, until I make Thine enemies Thy footstool”. If David then called Him Lord, how is He his Son?”
The point Christ was making to these Pharisees was that David refers to the coming Messiah as “Lord” and this proves that the Messiah was going to be much more than mere man. Who could David, the King of Israel have possibly called Lord other than God Himself? No one!! Therefore, the lesson of this discourse is that the Messiah, Jesus Christ is the Son of God.
Going now to the second time Psalm 110:1 is quoted in the New Testament, we find it in Mark 12:36. Once again Christ asked, this time of the common people, “How say the scribes that Christ is the Son of David? For David Himself said by the Holy Ghost, ‘The Lord said unot My lord, sit Thou on My right hand, till I make Thine enemies Thy footstool. David therefore, himself calleth Him Lord; and whence is He then his son?” (verses 35-37). This is the same point made in the same way as we read in Matthew 22. That point being that David would not have called his own son “Lord” unless He were God.
Luke 20:41-42 is the third time Ps. 110:1 is quoted and it is quoted to prove the same point as was Matthew 22 and Mark 12. That David would not have called his own son “Lord” unless He was God.
Acts 2:34-35 is the fourth occurrence of the quote and shines a different light on the quote. In this context Peter is making the point stated in verse 30, “Therefore being a prophet (referring to David) and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his loins, according to the flesh, He would raise up Christ to sit on His throne”. As mentioned above, Christ is the Son of Man and the Son of God. One truth does not negate the other. In this context, Peter is pointing to Christ as the Son of Man. So when Peter, in verse 34 quotes Ps. 110:1 it is to show that Christ fullfilled the prophecy given to David, that “the fruit of his loins” will fulfill the prophecy of Ps. 110:1. To suggest that this proves that Christ is the Son of Man is true, but we must also consider the other references to this Psalm which were quoted above to prove that Christ is the Son of God. Both are true, neither cancels out the other.
The fifth time Ps. 110:1 is quoted is in I Cor. 15:25. Because it does not shed any light on our study we will not dwell on it. I will however comment on verse 28 as that has sometimes been used to try to prove that Christ is not God. “And when all things shall be subdued unto Him then shall the Son also Himself be subject unto Him That put all things under Him”. Some believe that the fact that “the Son” will be subject to “Him” that that proves that Christ is not God. In the paper on this web-site The Trinity: Is God Three Persons In One? I give my reason for believing that “the Son” in this verse refers to one of the titles of God. It is the office of Son that is subject to God.
Going now to the sixth quote of Pslam 110:1 which is found in Heb. 1:13. Let us examine this chapter so that we may put the quote in its context. Note verse 4, “Being made so much better than the angels, as He hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they”. Note that it was not something He did that gave Him a “more excellent name” than the angels, it was “by inheritance”. In other words, it was because who He is, not by what He had done that gave Him that more excellent name. Who is “more excellent” than the angels “by inheritance” if not God? The point of this entire chapter is found in verse 3, “Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His person….”. Man could never be the “express image of His person”. This can be said only of Christ as the Son of God. Therefore, we may conclude that once again this quote is being used to prove that Christ is God.
The last time the Psalm is quoted in the New Testament is in Heb. 10:13. Here the point is that Christ as priest offered Himself once a sacrifice for sin. This is in contrast to every other priest who because of their own human sin nature could not really satisfy the requirements of God as a righteous sacrifice. As in Act 2, the Psalm is quoted to show that Christ is the Son of Man. But as in Acts 2, this does not cancel out the other truths we have learned in the quotes of the Psalm in the New Testament, i.e. Christ is fully Man and fully God.
Let us return to the Psalm in the Old Testament. Does it refer to Christ as God as in Matthew, Mark, Luke and Hebrews 1 or does it refer to Christ as Man as in Acts 2 and Heb. 10? I must say that I just don’t know. Either way, it would be truth. But the important issue is that Christ is not one or the other, Christ is both fully Man and fully God.
One further comment on Ps. 110. It is said by some that “Adoni” (translated “my God”) is never used of God, which proves to some that Christ is not God. However, the paper on this web-site A Study Of The Hebrew Word “Adoni” will prove from scripture that “Adoni” is indeed used of God.
How Are We To Understand The Title “Son Of God”?
We are told in Romans 8:14 that “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God”. And in Gal. 3:26 we read, “Ye are all the sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus”. All believers are sons of God. Does that mean that Christ was no different than any believer, just a man? One difference between Christ and believers is that Christ is “the only begotten” Son of God. But let us continue with a study of the title “Son of God” when used of Christ.
As we study the Scriptures quoted below, we will see that it is absolutely imperative that we consider the context in which the phrase occurs. That is to say, as we will see, when used in reference to Christ, the title “Son of God” must refer to the deity of Christ, or these passages make no sense, or we have men worshipping a mere man, Christ.
Before we look at some of the Scriptures which tell us the true meaning of the title “Son of God” when used of Christ, we must first determine that He was not Joseph’s Son, but God’s. We read in Luke 1:35, “And the angel answered and said unto her, ‘The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy Thing Which shall be born of thee shall be called the the Son of God'”. Let us be very clear on this matter. Christ was called the Son of God because (therefore) the Holy Ghost came upon Mary and God was His Father in a very unique way.
Some may be led to the false conclusion that Christ’s line was traced back from Joseph in Luke 3, therefore giving the false impression that Joseph was His father. Let us look however, at Luke 3:23, “And Jesus Himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli”. There are two things worthy of note in this verse. One, Joseph was the “supposed” father of Christ, but as we learned in Luke 1:35, he was not, God was His Father. The second thing of note is the fact that in Matthew 1:16, we read, “And Jacob begat Joseph…”. Here we read that Jacob was Joseph’s father. In fact it is expressed in no uncertain terms that Jacob begat Joseph. But in Luke 3:23 we read that Heli, not Jacob was Joseph’s father. This seeming contradiction is made clear when we realize that Heli was Joseph’s father in law and so he was only legally Joseph’s father.
Why is this important in regard to the genealogy of Christ? Because Heli was not Joseph’s father, he was Mary’s father. So in Luke the genealogy we read is actually Mary’s, not Joseph’s. Mary was Christ’s mother, God was His Father.
Matthew tells us quite specifically in 1:18, that Joseph was not the father of Christ. “Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: when as His mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost”.
Now that we understand that Christ is God’s Son, let us see how those to whom Christ came as Messiah, i.e Israel, understood the title “Son of God”.
In Matthew 14:26-33 we read of Jesus walking on water and calming the winds. In verse 33 we read, “Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped Him, saying, ‘Of a truth Thou art the Son of God'”. When Christ walked on water He conveyed the truth that God has authority over all the elements of the earth. When His disciples saw Him do that, they worsipped Him as God, Who has all authority over the elements. And what they said in that worship was He was the Son of God. His disciples understood that the title, “Son of God”, refered to His deity.
A similar proof of the fact that the title “Son of God” when used of Christ, means that He is God, is found in John 9:37-38. “When He found him (the blind man whom He had healed), He said unto him, ‘Dost thou believe on the Son of God?’ He answered and said, ‘who is He, Lord, that I might believe on Him?’ And Jesus said unto him, ‘Thou hast both seen Him and it is He That talketh with thee. And he said, ‘Lord, I believe’. And he worshiped Him“. Once again, the man worshipped Christ once he discovered that He was the Son of God. Only God is worthy of worship. The man was worshipping God and he recognized Him as such when he realized that he had been speaking with the Son of God.
In Luke 22:70-71 we have in part, the scene of Christ being questioned before His crucifixion. “……..Then said they all, ‘Art Thou then the Son of God?’ and He said unto them, ‘Ye say that I am’. And they said, ‘what need we any further witness? for we ourselves have heard of His own mouth”. The Lord’s accusers believed that His saying that He was the Son of God was enough to hand Him over to be crucified. Surely, if the phrase “Son of God” meant nothing more than a mere believer, this would not have been sufficient evidence to put Him to death. Some might object that Christ never actually said that He was the Son of God. But that is not the point here. The point is that the Jewish leaders questioning Christ understood that the title “Son of God” meant that the Son of God is God. Even though Christ did not say that He was the Son of God, there is more than ample Scriptural evidence to prove that He was.
In John 5:18 we read “Therefore the Jews sought the more to kill Him, because He not only had broken the Sabbath, but said also that God was His Father, making Himself equal with God”. And in John 19 we read of His appearance before Pilate. John 19:7, “The Jews answered him, (Pilate)’We have a law, and by our law He ought to die, because He made Himself the Son of God“. The Jews understood full well that His title “Son of God” meant that He was God, that’s why they tried to kill Him in John 5 and the reason they gave in John 19 for wanting to crucify Him. We may conclude therefore, that to be the Son of God made Him equal to God. Only God can be equal to God. Christ was/is God.
Matthew 27:54, “Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, ‘Truly This was the Son of God“. Even the centurions realized that this was no ordinary man, i.e. merely a man who believed. Realizing the magnitude of His death they agreed that this was the Son of God. This statement makes absolutely no sense unless we see that “Son of God” refers, in the case of Christ, to Him as deity.
In Acts 8:27-38 we read of the Ethiopian eunuch reading from Isaiah 53. Phillip “preached unto him Jesus” (verse 35). Finally, the eunuch said, “See here is water. What doth hinder me to be baptized?” (verse 36). “And Philip said, ‘If thou believest with all thine heart thou mayest’. And he answered and said ‘I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God“. Here is a man who wanted to be baptized, to identify himself with Christ. His confession to prove his sincerity was that he believed that Jesus Christ was the Son of God. It is clear that in this context he was not confessing that Christ was a mere man who was a believer. He was confessing that Christ was God. How did he express that conviction? By declaring that Christ was the Son of God. Therefore, he understood, as should we, that the title “Son of God’ means that He was and is deity.
Acts 9:20, “And straightway he (Paul) preached Christ in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God”. If this title did not mean that Christ was God, what then would be the importance of Paul teaching that He was the Son of God? It is clear that in this context, “Son of God” means that Christ is God.
The importance of the truth that Christ is God is spoken of in at least two passages. John 20:31, “But these are written that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing you might have life through His name”. Please note what was necessary to believe in order to have life. We must believe that He is the Christ and that He is the Son of God. It is inconceivable to think that “Son of God” in this context refers to a mere man who is a believer.
Consider also I John 4:15, “Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God”.
Other Scriptures Which Prove That Christ is God
John 1:1, “In the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God”. The Greek word translated “was” in the phrase “in the beginning was the Word” is “en”. I am indebted to Sam Shamoun for his article on the deity of Christ. He wrote, “en is the imperfect tense of the verb eimi and denotes continuous existence or action in the past. And, “how continuous depends on the context”. The context is about God, Who is, of course, eternal, i.e. He had no beginning and no end. John, through the Holy Spirit, tells us that the Word was with the eternal God. Logic and the imperfect tense dictates that the Word Who was with God is also eternal.
1:14, “..and the Word became flesh”.
John 3:13, “No one has ever gone into heaven except the one who came from heaven-the Son of Man”. Here our Lord refers to Himself as the Son of Man. But the fact that no one had been in heaven but God, and Christ came from heaven, proves that Jesus Christ is God.
5:18, The Jews tried to kill Him “because He was calling God His own Father, making Himself equal with God“. If Christ was making Himself equal to God, does that not prove that He was equal to God? To say that He was not equal to God would make Him a liar. Therefore, we must conclude that He was indeed making Himself equal to God. And how could He have been equal to God unless He was God?
John 1:18, “No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, Which is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him”. The word translated “declared” means “revealed”. If Christ were not God He could not have revealed God..
John 8:58-59, “Jesus said unto the, ‘Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I AM“. Then they took up stones to cast at Him…”. The Jews understood that Christ was saying that He is the I AM of the burning bush, that is why they wanted to stone Him. There is no question that I AM is God. Christ said that He is the I AM. We cannot escape the truth that Christ is saying in this verse alone, that He is God.
In John 20:27-28 we read of Thomas’ acceptance of Who Christ is. And what he says after coming to that realization is important. “And Thomas answered and said unto Him, ‘My Lord and my God“.
In Hebrews 1:3, the writer says of the Son (verse 2) “Who being the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His Person……”.Bullinger’s note on the phrase “express image” is helpful. He writes, “The word means the exact impression as when a metal is pressed into a die, or as a seal upon wax”. Again, if Christ were not God, He could not be the exact impression of God.
Matthew 1:23, “Behold a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a Son, and they shall call His name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.”
Titles of Jehovah Ascribed To Christ
In the paper on this web-site Jesus Christ Is The Manifestation of Jehovah I have given many of the titles of Jehovah ascribed to Christ. In my opinion, this goes a long way towards proving that Christ is Jehovah. Some however, object to that reasoning and have said that these titles do not mean that Christ is Jehovah, as I believe they do, but only that Christ is doing the Father’s will in fulfilling those titles. Let us look at just two of these titles to see if that objection is valid.
Hosea 13:4, “Yet I am Jehovah thy Elohim….There is no Savior beside Me”.
Note Jehovah says, “There is no savior beside Me”. If Jehovah had sent His Son to be the savior of the world in His stead, He could not have said that there was no savior beside Him. So Jehovah did not relinquish the office of savior by sending His Son. Jehovah became flesh in the Person of Jesus Christ.
Job 19:25, “For I know that my Redeemer liveth, and that He shall stand at the latter day upon the earth”. Note that Job knew that his Redeemer would stand on the earth. That points us to Christ. We know that Jehovah is our Redeemer from these passages and more.
Psalm 19:14, “Let the words of my mouth…be acceptable O Jehovah, my strength and my Redeemer“.
Is. 41:14, “Jehovah and my Redeemer”.
Is. 43:14, “…..I will help thee saith Jehovah, your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel…”.
We can not say that Christ was only sent to be the Redeemer, because Jehovah is our Redeemer and Jehovah will stand upon the earth. We must conclude therefore, that Christ, who will stand upon the earth is Jehovah our Redeemer.
Jehovah is God, Christ is Jehovah in the flesh, Christ is God.
Conclusion
Our question is; can Christ be both God and Man? There is no doubt in any believer’s mind that Christ was the Son of Man. He was fully Man, that is proven in any number of ways in the New Testament.
I have tried to show that Christ is/was fully God. He was the Messiah who was prophesied as being God.
He was the Son of God, a title, which when used of Christ, was used in reference to His deity.
There are several passages that show that He was God including some in which He Himself claims His deity.
I have quoted two passages which ascribe to Christ the titles of Jehovah.
John tells us that in order to have life we must believe that Christ is the Son of God. The context of that title, when used of Christ proves that Christ is God.
In short, Scripture is clear that He is Man and Scripture is equally clear that He is God. Therefore, where Scripture is clear we have no choice but to accept it regardless of whether it fits human reason.
I would like to hear your thoughts. Please e-mail me at: [email protected]