The Trinity Revealed in the Old Testament (#1)
Series on the Trinity and the Deity of Christ
The majority of Hebrew rabbis maintain that there is no basis in the Hebrew Scriptures for believing in three distinct Persons who comprise the One True God.
Advocates of “one-person monotheism” often claim that the doctrine of the Trinity was not present in original Scripture, but rather developed slowly over the first four centuries of the Christian era.
Critics from groups such as Islam, the Iglesia ni Cristo (INC-1914), and modalists argue that a Triune Godhead is illogical, relying on the argument that 1 + 1 + 1 must always equal 3. However, careful study of the Hebrew Scriptures (Genesis through Malachi) reveals clear indications of divine plurality and multi-person interactions within the Godhead.
This lesson examines key passages in the Old Testament using the New King James Version (NKJV) to highlight texts that point toward the Trinity.
Scriptural Proof Points
Genesis 1:1–2
“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form, and void; and darkness was on the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters.”
Analysis: This passage reveals two distinct entities present at Creation: God (Elohim) who speaks, and the Spirit of God hovering over the waters.
Isaiah 63:16
“Doubtless You are our Father... You, O LORD, are our Father...”
Analysis: The Old Testament explicitly acknowledges God in the personal role of a Father to His people.
Jeremiah 31:9
“...For I am a Father to Israel, and Ephraim is My firstborn.”
Analysis: Reaffirms the Fatherhood of God within the Old Testament narrative.
Isaiah 48:16
“Come near to Me, hear this: I have not spoken in secret from the beginning; from the time that it was, I was there. And now the Lord GOD and His Spirit have sent Me.”
Analysis: All three Persons appear in a single verse: the speaker (”Me”), the sender (”the Lord GOD”), and “His Spirit.” The speaker refers to His pre-existence from the beginning, pointing toward the pre-incarnate Son being sent by the Father and the Spirit.
Proverbs 30:4
“...Who has bound the waters in a garment? Who has established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son’s name, if you know?”
Analysis: This passage attributes creation and sustaining the earth to God Almighty, while explicitly asking for the identity of His Son, pointing to a divine Father-Son relationship.
Psalm 45:6–7
“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You love righteousness and hate wickedness; therefore God, Your God, has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions.”
Analysis: Two distinct entities are referred to as Elohim (God). One divine Person addresses another as “O God” whose throne is eternal, and then refers to “God, Your God” who anoints Him. Hebrews 1:8–9 explicitly quotes this passage, identifying the Father addressing the Son as God.
Daniel 3:25 (Corrected from Daniel 3:35)
“’Look!’ he answered, ‘I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire; and they are not hurt, and the form of the fourth is like the Son of God.’”
Analysis: King Nebuchadnezzar observes a fourth divine figure protecting the faithful in the furnace, prefiguring the presence of the Son.
Daniel 7:9, 13
“...The Ancient of Days was seated... I was watching in the night visions, and behold, One like the Son of Man, coming with the clouds of heaven! He came to the Ancient of Days, and they brought Him near before Him.”
Analysis: Two distinct heavenly figures are presented: the Ancient of Days (God the Father) and the Son of Man (the Son, who approaches Him on the clouds—a divine attribute in Hebrew Scripture).
Isaiah 9:6
“For unto us a Child is born, unto us a Son is given... And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.”
Analysis: A direct prophecy of the Incarnation (referenced in John 1:14 and Galatians 4:4). The promised Child is explicitly called “Mighty God.”
Deuteronomy 6:4
“Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!”
Analysis: The Hebrew word for “one” (‘echad) often denotes a compound unity (e.g., Genesis 2:24, where two become “one flesh”) rather than an absolute, solitary mathematical unit (yachid).
Genesis 18:1–2
“Then the LORD appeared to him by the terebinth trees of Mamre, as he was sitting in the tent door in the heat of the day. So he lifted his eyes and looked, and behold, three men were standing by him...”
Analysis: Yahweh appears to Abraham in a physical manifestation alongside three figures, showing an early narrative representation of divine manifestation.
Genesis 19:24
“Then the LORD rained brimstone and fire on Sodom and Gomorrah, from the LORD out of the heavens.”
Analysis: The text distinguishes between Yahweh executing judgment on earth and Yahweh in heaven—indicating plurality within the divine name Yahweh.
Genesis 6:3
“And the LORD said, ‘My Spirit shall not strive with man forever...’”
Analysis: The Spirit is described as possessing personal agency—capable of striving and interacting directly with human conduct.
Psalm 104:30
“You send forth Your Spirit, they are created; and You renew the face of the earth.”
Analysis: The Spirit actively participates in creation alongside God, demonstrating divine creative power rather than acting as a mere impersonal force.
Note: Series #1a will follow to clarify the grammatical and theological usage of the term Elohim.