The Doctrine of the
Eternal Sonship and
Deity of Jesus
Christ.===ls it
Scriptural?
BY REV. HARVEY JOHNSON, D. D.
EMORY UNIVERSITY
PREFACE
If it is asked why I have written this book,
the answer is, First, because I am a New Testament
Christian, and as such, have the absolute right to
interpret the Scriptures as the Lord gives me
light. Secondly, because I find the doctrine of the
Eternity of the Son and the Deity of Christ taught
in the Nicene Creed and Confession of Faith, only,
and not in the Bible. Not only so, but the question
of the Nature of Christ's personality was never
raised until in the 3rd Century, A. D., and opinions
have been divided on the subject, even down to
the present. I repeat, that the Scripture has
nothing to say as to the Nature of Christ's body,
but He is simply known as the Son of God. and
the Son of Man.
The above is my apology for this book.
H. J.
The Doctrine of the Eternal Sonship and Deity
of Jesus Christ.—Is it Scriptural?
That Jesus Christ did not always exist as the
Son of God, is the plain teaching, both of the Old
and New Testaments. This may be seen by prop¬
er study and exposition of the Scriptures, that
speak of His being and personality, for example,
the 2nd Psalm: "Thou art my Son, this day have I
begotten Thee." Now whatever else this Psalm
may teach, it certainly does teach that there was a
time when that same Son did not exist, as such,
for that which is eternal cannot be begotten. But
the Word existed, which in due time was made
Son; so this Psalm is prophetic and points to the
happenings that took place with Mary the Mother
of Jesus mentioned in the 1st chapter of Luke, 35th
verse: ''And the angel answered and said unto her,
The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the
Power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: there¬
fore also that holy thing that shall be born of thee,
shall be called the Son of God." I have said that
the 2nd Psalm and the 7th verse, points to the
time just quoted from Luke; and if not to that, to
what does it point? and if to that, then the doc¬
trine of the Eternity of the Son must be given up.
There was in the dual personality of Christ, ■
dual natures: His natural soul and body. And
there was within His personality, the real God,
and the real Man; and there never was at any time,
any mutation, or coalescence of the two, but they
5
stood out separate and distinct, fioi'i time Hs
was begotten of the Holy Ghost, to the day of His
death, and what I mean is, that the humanity of
Jesus never, in the slightest, became God; nor did
the God in Him, in any sense, become human, for
the Scripture says, "In Him dwelt all the fulness
of the Godhead, bodily, but not that He (Jesus)
was the fulness of the Godhead, but that it dwelt
in Him only.
The Scripture also says God was f in Christ,
reconciling the world unto Himself, and not that
Christ was God. reconciling the world unto Him¬
self, for Christ was not here to reconcile the
world to Himself, but was simply the media-
tor between God and man, in reconciling the world
unto God.
No, Christ was not God, but He was the bright¬
ness of His Father's glory, and tlie express image
of His person. See Heb. 1:3. Remember the
Scripture just quoted says that He was the image,
and only the image of God.
Who ever heard of a scion being as old as his
sire, or a son as old as his father? The thing is
unthinkable, and the very idea is absurd.
Now I ask, for what purpose did Jesus exist from
all eternity? What office did he fill? What work
did he perform? I believe that Jesus was a future
purpose of God, existing in the mind of God, from
Eternity, looking to the creation of the world, the
fall and the redemption of man, hence there seems
to be no reason that Jesus should ha veactually ex-
6
isted, before He was born of Mary; and it does not
help the matter any, that John 1st and 1st says
that "In the beginning was the Word," for that
passage does not say, "In the beginning was the
Son, but the "Word," which does not mean Son;
neither is there any evidence that John had in
his mind the first chapter of Genesis, where Moses
said, "In the beginning God created the heaven
and the earth," for he is not talking about the
creation of heaven and earth, but the creation of
Jesus into the Son of God out of the Word. This
Word, John tells us was changed into flesh, and it
was generated into flesh through the Virgin Mary,
and thus becomes the Son, so could not have al¬
ways been Son; and that He was made Son, and
was made so through Mary, the following passage
teaches: "But when the fulness of the time was
come, God sent forth His son, made of a woman;
made under the law, that He might redeem them
that were under the law.— Gal. 4th and 4th. Paul
here says God sent forth His Son. From where did
He send Him? From Heaven ? Certainly not; neither
frpm His bosom, for John speaks of the Word as
being only with Him. From whence then did He
send Him forth? From Nazareth of course, where
He lived and was reared. He sent Him to
John that he might baptise Him. He then sent
Him into the wilderness, that He might be fully
prepared for his great work of redemption and
salvation. Yes, John says the Word was made
flesh, and dwelt among us, and that they, the
7
Jews, beheld his glory, full of grace and truth,
but he does not say the Son was made flesh.
Hence the Word ceased to dwell with the Father,
and for three and thirty years came and dwelt with
us, as the only begotten Son of God. - I repeat,
that the Word, the very same that was with God,
was made into flesh, by the overshadowing of
Mary by the Power of the Highest.
But another proof that Jesus did not always dwell
with God is, that none of the names He bore were
heavenly names, but all of them were earthly and
point to earth for origin and example, and not
Heaven, for the name Jesus, points to Joshua;
Christ, to the priests and prophets; and Son, to
Joseph and Mary, His earthly Father and Mother.
I have said that the Word, having been made
flesh, ceased to dwell with the Father in Heaven,
and came and dwelt with us on earth, and so we
can see the force and meaning of Jesus' prayer,
when in the 17th of John He prays: "Father,
glorify me with the glory which I had with thee,
before the world was." That glory, was the glory
He had, when He dwelt with God as the "Logos,"
and not as Son, for as such, He never dwelt with
Him at any time, as I think I have plainly shown;
and that glory was the glory He had when He
dwelt with the father in a spiritual person, and
not as at the time He prayed, and was in the state
of sinful flesh. I have said that none of the terms
applied to Jesus points Heavenward, but one and
all to Earth, except the term "The Word " for the
8
term "King" sets forth His Royalty, and "Lord"
the Governorship of His dominion.
I am quite aware there are those who are slow
to believe the Word ceased to exist as such, and
was really made flesh, though John positively says
so, in the plainest words that can be used, b,ot.h in
the original, and English. So we find expositor^
using the term "Incarnation" in order to evade
the idea of a real change of the Word; and yet
there is no fact set forth in the Scripture in plain¬
er terms than that the Word was actually made
flesh and not clothed with flesh, which the term
"Incarnate" means, and means only that, as the
following quotations show. The Standard Diction¬
ary says it means "To cause to assume' a living
bodily form, or to embody in flesh," and Worces¬
ter says it means, "To embody in flesh." So you
see this is entirely different from the words of Scrip¬
ture which say the Word was made flesh, and in
the Greek, the word used is "Egeneto" which
means "to make, or generate." The term Incar¬
nate is found in speculative and systematic theol¬
ogy only, and never in New Testament theology,
for neither the word Incarnate, nor Incarnation is
found in the Scripture, and therefore the term
Incarnate is not Scriptural, but theological only,
and so does not help to make Jesus, God. I have
said that Jesus existed from all eternity in the
mind of God, as His purpose, and not in actuality,
until He was born of Mary, because He then exis¬
ted with God in actual person, as the Word. Not
9
only so, but the elect also existed m the mind of
God before the foundation of the world, as the fol¬
io vving passage in Ephesians 1st chapter 4th and
fifth verses will show : "According as he has
chosen us in him before the foundation of the
world, that we should be wholly and without blame
before him in love." "Having predestinated us
unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to
himself, according to the good pleasure of his
will." Now the passages just quoted, show that
we who believe, also existed in the mind of God,
as already chosen in Christ before the world was.
So we likewise see that Jesus existed after the
same manner. I may also state that there also
dwelt in Jesus a human soul, for without it, He
would not have been a full fledged man, and indeed
He himself said he had a soul, when He said: "My
soul is exceedingly sorrowful." He had a soul,
and neither His soul nor His flesh ever mutated
with the God that was in Him. ■ So it is incorrect
to speak of Him as being both God and man, but
rather as man only, and God, in Him, for the Scrip¬
ture says God was in Him, reconciling the world
to Himself; so when I speak of him having dual
natures, I mean his own physical nature as apart
from His soul. I repeat, that the Word was Made
flesh, and thereby became the Son of God. Now I
wish to call attention to the fact that all advocates
of the eternity of the Son, put great emphasis on
the words of Jesus in answer to the Jews, when
He said to them : "Before Abraham was lam."
10
But that phrase in no sense expresses eternity,
either of the past or future. In other words, it
neither looks back into Eternity, nor forward
to the future, but expresses present time only, for
"am" is the present tense of the verb "to be, "and
can express only present time, so I think those who
quote that saying of Jesus so freely as a proof
text, would do well to learn what He meant by it.
And truly, the very idea of an eternal Son, except
as He existed in the mind of God as His future
purpose, is a delusive one. But let us refer again
to John 1:1 which reads : "In the beginning was
the Word, and the Word was with God, and the
Word was God." Yes, but this passage does not
say, In the beginning the Son "was," but the
"Word was;" and "The Word was God," and not
"The Son was God," because there was no Son un¬
til He was begotten of God, and born of Mary.
But suppose it did say, In the beginning was the
Son; would that prove His eternity? Certainly not,
for that would not carry Him one day beyond the
time mentioned,—that is, at "the beginning," for
there, the language used, leaves us. So we see
that the Word, became the Son of God when It was
begotten of God, and could not be before.
The name Immanuel is often quoted as proof
that Jesus was God. But I fear, they who do so,
make it prove too much, for after the same man¬
ner, we can make Joshua God, for it means "God
our helper, and Saviour." And many other men
of the Bible have names given them that would make
11
them God alsi>. Thus we .eethaL ll is m-t always
well to push our proof-texts too far And I would
here state, th it it is thought by many, that when
Jesus prayed for the "G1 >ry He had with the
Father before the world was," that He prayed to
be restored to the same state and nature possess¬
ed when He existed as the Word, and second per¬
son in the Godhead. But He does not pray for
that restoration, but to be ''Glorified with the
glory He had with the Father before the World
was," and His prayer has been fully an¬
swered, for He is now silting on the throne with
His Father, co-reigning with Him. This is much
greater glory than He had when He existed in the
person of the Word, for He then acted as the in¬
strument of God, only, but now, He reigns with
the Father, but not over Heaven and ihe other
worlds of God,—for God reigns over them—but
over this world in general, and over His people in
particular, whom He has saved out of the world*
and IS saving. And He will continue to do so until
He has. put all, enemies under His feet. And when
He shall have so done, then the Son Himself, shall
be subject unto the Father, that God may be all in
all: See 1 Cor. 15:28: "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,
that God may be all in all." So Jesus wil-1 ever
live throughout Eternity as the only begotten Son
of His Father.
12
Now let us notice the act and process of beget¬
ting the Son: God reduced the Word to flesh, or the
Logos to Sarks; not by any metamorphic process
however, but by His own Deistic fiat or decree, at
the time the Power of the Highest overshadowed
Mary, as in the beginning when He said "Let there
be light, and there was light." So now, He said,
"Let there be Conception," and there was Con¬
ception. To me, the divine process was this Go.d
reduced tne Logos or Word to a huma-nprotoplasm
or germ, when He said to the Word "Be Thou re¬
duced." an'J He was reduced, to a human person¬
ality. And the Holy Spirit inserted this germ in¬
to the ovum of- the Virgin while she was being
overshadowed by the Power of the Highest, and
in nine months time—the natural time for the gen¬
eration and birth of a child—then was born Jesus,
the Son of God. Therefore we .do not speak cor¬
rectly when we speak of the Incarnation of Jesus;
yet we do speak correctly when we speak of the
Jncaration of Go'd, for God Himself, was Incarnat¬
ed, in tjiat He dwelt in Jesus, and thus was cloth¬
ed with flesh, which is Incarnation; but on Christ's
part, the Word was. made irito'flesh, as I have just
shown, which is not Incarnation. See John 1:14,
which reads: "Kai ho Lo9os sarks egeneto: And the
Word was made flesh;" but when He ascended to
Heaven, He was made a human spirit, which is.the
second Adam in His glorified state. And the actual
humanity of Christ is shown in the fact, that God
had to raise Him up from the dead, which is proof
13
of His real humanity, for all the testimony of the
Scripture is, that God raised Him up, and not that
He got up of Himself. Noiice Acts 2:24, "Whom
God hath raised up, having loosed the pains of
death: because it was not possible that he should
be balden of it."
Acts 3:14. But ye denied the Holy One and
the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted
unto you;
15. And killed the Prince of life, whom God
hath raised from the dead; whereof we are wit¬
nesses.
26. Unto you first, God having raised up his
son Jesus, sent him to bless you, in turning away,
every one of you from his iniquities.
Acts IV:10. Be it known unto you all, and to
all the people of Israel that by the name of Jesus
Christ of Nazareth, whom ye crucified, whom God
raised from the dead, even by him doth this man
stand here before you whole.
Acts V :29. Then Peter and the other apostles
answered and said, "We ought to obey God rather
than men.
30. The God of our fathers raised up Jesus,
whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.
31. Him hath God exalted with his right
hand to be a Prince and a Saviour, for to give re¬
pentance to Israel, and forgiveness of sins.
Acts X:34. Then Peter opened his mouth and
said, Of a truth I perceive that God is no respecter
of persons:
14
35. But in every nation he that feareth him
and worketh righteousness is accepted with him.
36. The word which God sent unto the children
of Israel, preaching peace by Jesus Christ: (he is
Lord of all:)
37. That word, I say, ye know which was
published throughout all Judaea, and began from
Galilee, after the baptism which John preached;
38. How God annointed Jesus of Nazareth
with the Holy Ghost and with power: who went
about doing good, and healing all that were op¬
pressed of the devil; for God was with him.
39. And we are witnesses of all things which
he did both in the land of the Jews, and in Jerusa¬
lem; whom they slew and hanged on a tree:
40. Him God raised up the third day, and
shewed him openly;
41. Not to all the people, but unto witnesses
chosen before of God, even to us, who did eat and
drink with him after he rose from the dead.
42. And he commanded us to preach unto
the people, and to testify that it is he which was
ordained of God to be the Judge of quick and dead.
43. To him give all the prophets witness,
that through his name whosoever believeth in
him shall receive remission of sins.
Acts XIII:30. But God raised him from the
dead:
31. And he was seen many days of them
which came up with him from Galilee to Jerusalem,
who are his witnesses unto the people.
15
32. And we declare unto you tidings,
how that the promise which was made unto the
fathers,
33. God hath fulfilled the same unto us ^ their
children, in that he hath raised up Jesus again; as
it is also written in the second psalm, "Thou art
my Son, this day have I begotten thee.
34. And as concerning that he raised him up
from the dead, now no more to return to corrup¬
tion, he said on this wise, "I will give you the
sure mercies of David.
35. Wherefore he saith also in another psalm,
Thou shalt not suffer thine Holy One to see cor¬
ruption. : '
36. For David, after he had served his own
generation by the will of God, fell on sleep, and
was laid unto his fathers, and saw corruption:
37. But he whom God raised again, saw no
corruption.
Acts XVI :31. Because he hath appointed a
day, in which he will judge the world in righteous¬
ness by that man whom he hath ordained;
whereof he hath given assurance unto all men. in
that he hath raised him from the dead.
Rom. X:9. That if thou shalt confess with thy
mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine
heart that God hath raised him from the dead,
thou shalt be saved.
I Cor. VI:14. And God hath both raised up
the Lord, and will also raise up us by his own
power.
16
II Cor. IV:14. Knowing that he which raised
up the Lord Jesus shall raise up us also by Jesus
and shall present us with you.
15. For all things are for your sakes, that the
abundant grace might through the thanksgiving
of many redound to the glory of God.
Gal. 1:1. Paul an apostle, (not of men, neith¬
er by man, but by Jesus Christ, and God the father,
who raised him from the dead;)
Rph. 1:15. Whereof I also, after I heard of
your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the
saints.
16. Cease not to give thanks for you, making
mention of you in my prayers;—17. That the God
of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may
give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation
in the knowledge of him:—18. The eyes of your
understanding being enlightened; that ye may
know what is the hope of his calling, and what
the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the
saints —19. And what is the exceeding greatness
of his power to iis-ward who believe according to
the working of his mighty power,—20. Which he
wrought in Christ, when he raised him from the
dead and set him at his own right hand in the
heavenly places,
21. Far above all principality, and power,
and might and dominion, and every name that is
named, not only in this world, but also in that
which'is to come;— 22. And has put all things
17
under his feet, and gave him to be head over all
things to the church,—23. Which is hisfcody,
Romans IV:24. But for us also, to whom
it shall be imputed, if we believe on him that raised
up Jesus our Lord from the dead; —25. Who was
delivered for our offences, and was raised again
for our justification.
Romans VI:4. Therefore we are buried with
him by baptism into death; that like as Christ was
raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father
even so we should walk in newness of life.
Romans VIII :11. But if the Spirit of him that
raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he
that raised up Christ from the dead shall also
quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwell-
eth in you.
I Cor. VI:14. And God hath both raised up
the Lord and will also raise up us by his own power.
Col. 11:12. Buried with him in baptism,
wherein also ye are risen with him through the
faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him
from the dead —I Thess. 1:10. And to wait for
his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the
dead, even Jesus, which delivered us from the
wrath to come.
I Peter 1:20. (Christ) Who verily was fore-or¬
dained before the foundation of the world, but
was manifest in these last times for you.
21. Who by him do believe in God, that raised
him up from the dead, and gave him glory; that
your faith and hope might be in God.
18
Now after reading such passages as just quo¬
ted, what real ground has any one to maintain the
view that Jesus in His humanity, was other than
a real, true man, and only a man? And since it
was the sacrifice of Himself, that saved, what was
the necessity that He be God, and man? For
Christ was only the means of Salvation, in the
hands of God His Father, for He was the Type
of the Antitype,—the sin offered Lamb, for John
cried: "Behold! the Lamb of God, that taketh
away the sin of the world," and not Behold! the
God-Man, that taketh away the sin of the world."
So I ask again: Why must He have an eternal ex¬
istence, in order to be the Lamb?
It has been asked, if Jesus is not God, why
worship Him? The answer is: Because He is the
Son of God, and God has made Him the object of
worship See Hebrews 1:6, which reads as follows:
"And again, when he bringeth in the first begot¬
ten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels
of God worship him." But there is another great
fact to be noticed, and that is, Jesus never called
Himself, God; neither did His disciples, nor the
apostles after Him. And God Himself never call¬
ed Him God. Then why should we, since he is
nowhere so called in the Scripture?
I repeat that it was the purpose of God from
Eternity, that in due time, He should have a Son,
and that Son should be Jesus. And I hold He was
not Son at any time, from Eternity until He was
begotten of God, and born of Mary. But let me
19
call attention to a numbe of passages quoted from
the Old Testament to prove that the Son always
existed, and that He was always God, in the same
sense of His Father. But I am now to show that
those passages are misused, whenever so applied,
for they are not Messianic in their reference, be¬
cause they do not point to the coming Messiah,
neither in text nor context. Take for example the
45th Psalm, and Isaiah 9:6, and Isaiah 63:1. Also
Gen. 49.10 and it will be seen that not one of these
passages point to the Messiah, and therefore can¬
not be Messianic, because they are composed of so
much that cannot be applied to the Messiah. Take
for instance the 45th Psalm, and 6th verse, which
reads: "Thy throne 0 God, is forever and ever."
This language it is said, is too great to be applied
to any being who was less than God, and yet God,
in speaking to Moses in Exodus 4:16, said : "And
thou shalt be to him instead of God." And again
in Exodus 7:1, we find these words applied to
Mqses: "And the Lord said unto Moses, See, I
have made thee a god to Pharaoh." Also we find
these words in the 82nd Psalm: ' 'I have said, Ye are
gods; and all of you are children of the Most High;"
and the 7th verse reads : "But ye shall die like
men, and fall like one of the princes." This shows
that though they have the name of God applied to
them, yet they were only men. I have quoted the
above passages to show that the term God in the
Bible is more than once applied to men: yes, sim¬
ply to men, In Isaiah 63:9, no definite person is
20
addressed, neither do we know who the speaker is,
and there is not one word in the entire chapter
that gives an expositor the right to apply them to
any one, for it cannot be done without adding to
the Scripture, which is forbidden by the Scriptures
themselves. But the character of the person
spoken to, in the chapter, cannot mean Christ, be¬
cause it has Him arrayed as a great General who
is returning from a great slaughter and blood-shed;
and He has trampled His enemies under His feet,
whereas the Messiah was to come meek and lowly,
sitting on an ass; and He was to be brought a Lamb
to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her shear¬
ers is dumb, so He openeth not His mouth.
But let us turn to Isaiah 9th chapter. I quote
from the 4th verse to the 7th, to call attention to
what is there said, to see if its contents can con¬
sistently be applied to Christ the Messiah. They
read as follows:
4: For thou hast broken the yoke of his bur¬
den, and the staff of his shoulder, the rod of his
oppressor, as in the day of Midian.
5: For every battle of the warrior is with con¬
fused noise, and garments rolled in blood, but this
shall be with burning and fuel of fire.
6: 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,
Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting
Father, The Prince of Peace.
21
Now unless this prophesy was fulfilled by
Christ while He was here, that, is proof enough
that it did not point to Him, and His coming, and
therefore was not Messianic, for all Messianic
prophecies were fulfilled by Him, while He was
here. Read the fifth verse as quoted above, and
tell us when did Jesus fight that confused battle,
and shed all ihat blood; and when were His gar¬
ments rolled in blood. Now it can be readily seen
that this description could not be applied to the
Messiah, for He came to shed His own blood, to
save others, and not to destroy and trample them
in His fury. And again, if Christ was, and is, the
Mighty God, and God the Father was also- Mighty
God, then we have two Mighty Gods, and that
destroys Monotheism, and sets up the doctrine of
Polytheism, which means the worship of many
Gods, instead of one. Also if Christ was the Ever¬
lasting Father, then we have two Everlastings;
that also, destroys the doctrine of only one God.
But the truth it., that Isaiah 9th chapter and
6th verse, dees not say that the person he speaks
of is to be "Wonderful Counsellor, Mighty God,
Everlasting Father, and Prince of Peace," but
only His name shall be called that; for it is to be
remembered that the title given Him, is to consist
of those epithets that constitute the one name by
which He was to be called.
Now when was that prophesy fulfilled, and
where in the New Testament is it recorded that
Jesus was ever called Wonderful Counsellor,
22
Mighty God, Everlasting Father, and Prince of
Peace? For all Messianic prophecies must have
been fulfilled in the days of Christ, while He was
here, otherwise there is no proof that they pointed
to Him.
But there is another important thought to be
noticed in this connection—It is this : If the title
conferred would make Christ actually God—that
is, put into Him the nature of God, then when God,
in the 7th chapter and 1st verse of Exodus calls
Moses "God," it also makes him to be in the state
and nature of God. Again I ask, if it is so in the
first case, is it not, in the second? In other words
Does the simple couferring of names on persons,
transform them into God? Now if the simple call¬
ing of Moses by the name of God did not change
his nature, how could the calling of Christ by the
• name of God change His nature? For it is admit¬
ted that Jesus had a human personality as well as
Moses.
Now let us notice Gen. 49:10, which reads:—
"The sceptre shall not depart from Judah, nor a
lawgiver from between his feet, until Shilohcome;
and unto him shall the gathering of the people
ba." Now if this passage teaches that there was a
coming time, when the Sceptre or Ruler, should be
found in another Tribe than Judah, that, would be
declaring that it should pass from the prospective
grasp of Christ. Christ was to remain, and did
remain with Judah, and so did the sceptre, but the
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passage quoted, says, "when Shiloh come," it was
to depart. But when Christ came, it did not de¬
part, so the passage could not have been Messianic,
and did not point to the coming Messiah.
But now let us notice Hebrews 1:7-8, "And of
the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits,
and his ministers a flame of fire.
"But unto the Son he saith, Thy Throne, 0
God, is for ever and ever."
And let us here notice the significance of the
translation of the Greek preposition Pros. for the
particle is the same in both verses ; and the sig¬
nificance is, that means "of," and also, "un
to." But "of" is used when the angels are spok¬
en of, and "unto" is used when the Son is address¬
ed, thus showing that the angels are spoken OF,
and the Son, spoken To. This shows a wide dif¬
ference in construction and signification. For in
the 7th verse, the conversation is about the angels,
but in the 8th, the address is to the Son. A wide
difference this, and shows that God, with whom
the chapter opens is meant wherever the word,
God occurs, and that when the Son is meant, He
is so spoken of, or to, A's Son, and not as God; and
not only so, but the different translation of Pros by
the king James translators shows clearly that they
did not mean to make Jesus, God, but let Him be
the Son of God, which He was.
We now quote other passages to show that in,
and of Himself apart from the Father he could do
nothing;
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"I can of mine own self do nothing: as I hear,
I judge: and my judgement is just; because I seek
not mine own will, but the will of the Father which
hath sent me." John V:30.
"As the living Father hath sent me, and I live
by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall
live by me." John VI:57.
"Then said Jesus unto them, When ye have
lifted up the Son of man, then shall ye know that
I am he, and that I do nothing of myself; but as
my Father hath taught me, I speak these things."
John VIII :28.
"Jesus answered them, I told you, and ye be¬
lieved not: the works that I do in my Father's
name, they bear witness of me." John X:25.
"My Father, which gave them me, is greater
than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of
my Father's hand."
"land my Father are one." John X:29-30.
"No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down
of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have
power to take it again. This commandment have I
received of my Father." John X:18.
Jesus here in this tenth chapter of John and
18th verse says, He had to lay down His life be¬
cause He was commanded by His Father to do so.
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