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NASB | Genesis 1:26 ¶ Then God said, "Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; and let them rule over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the sky and over the cattle and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Genesis 1:26 ¶ Then God said, "Let Us (Father, Son, Holy Spirit) make man in Our image, according to Our likeness [not physical, but a spiritual personality and moral likeness]; and let them have complete authority over the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the cattle, and over the entire earth, and over everything that creeps and crawls on the earth." [Ps 104:30; Heb 1:2; 11:3] |
Bible Question:
In Genesis 1.26 "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth." When God said *us* and *our* who are the others he is speaking to and referring of? From the statement it seems that God was not alone. |
Bible Answer: Hello, zerotheory. Welcome, and I trust your user name bears witness that you prize truth over theory! The words 'Us' and 'Our' of Genesis 1:26 are the first clear indication in Scripture of the triunty of God. However, even in Genesis 1:1 which begins with "In the beginning God..." the Hebrew name translated 'God' is Elohim, a plural form of El. See also Genesis 3:22 and 11:7. And please note the bracketed explanation that the Amplified Bible gives to Genesis 1:26. So you see that the existence of the Trinity didn't just suddenly be revealed (and it certainly didn't just suddenly become a reality) at the time of Jesus' baptism, [see Matthew 3:16,17], although this passage clearly delineates all three Persons of the Trinity. Pagan religions are known to accuse Christianity of being polytheistic, saying that Christians worship three gods. The Bible does not teach that there are three gods. It teaches that there is one God who manifests Himself in three Persons, God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. --Hank |