“One” Used to Show the Superiority of God

Two Scriptures, one in the Old Testament and one in the New, are often used to support the Modalist and Trinitarian concepts of God’s oneness.  The primary Old Testament verse is Deuteronomy 6:4:  “Hear, O Israel, the Lord your God is one Lord.”   And the primary New Testament verse is Galatians 3:20: “Now a mediator is not a mediator of one, but God is one.”   In Modalist and Trinitarian theology, all other Scriptures are made to conform to the meaning attributed to these two verses.  As a spokesman for one denomination recently claimed, Deuteronomy 6:4 carries the weight of “...the full divinity of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit” and is the “biblical foundation for all Trinitarian discussions.”

There is no Scripture that generates more controversy concerning the meaning of “one” than Deuteronomy 6:4.  What meaning did God convey when He inspired Moses to proclaim, “Hear, O Israel:  The Lord [Hebrew Jehovah] our God [Hebrew Elohim] is one Lord [Hebrew Jehovah]”?  

Through these words, Jehovah is conveying a message of great significance. He is communicating to Israel through Moses and reminding Israel of an essential attribute of His nature.  What conception of Himself did Jehovah desire that Moses and all Israel draw from these words?  Did He intend to convey the message that He was only one in number—or three in one—as many have assumed?   Is this view of Deuteronomy 6:4 the correct Scriptural interpretation?  How can we know the true meaning of these words that God Himself inspired Moses to proclaim?     

In order to understand the true meaning of Deuteronomy 6:4, we must first examine it in the light of the Scriptural context in which God has placed it. The true meaning of Deuteronomy 6:4 becomes clear when we read the preceding chapters in the book of Deuteronomy.  Let’s begin with Deuteronomy 4. The chapter opens with an exhortation to Israel to keep the statutes and judgments commanded by God and delivered to them by Moses.  In the following verses, Moses reminds Israel of the greatness of their God, and admonishes them not to turn aside after false gods made in the image of humans or animals, or to corrupt themselves by worshipping the “host of heaven”—gods and goddesses of the sun, moon and stars.  Moses proclaims that if Israel fails to heed his warning, God will scatter them among the nations.  Then Moses shows God’s mercy by declaring, “But if from thence thou shalt seek the Lord [Hebrew Jehovah] thy God [Hebrew Elohim], thou shalt find Him, if thou seek Him with all thy heart and with all thy soul” (verse 29).  Continuing in Deuteronomy 4, in verse 35 we read, “Unto thee it was shewed, that thou mightest know that the Lord [Hebrew Jehovah] He is God [Hebrew Elohim]; there is none else beside Him.”  And in verse 39 we read, “Know therefore this day and consider it in thine heart, that the Lord [Hebrew Jehovah] He is God [Hebrew Elohim] in heaven above, and upon earth beneath:  there is none else.”  The reason for this emphasis is revealed in verse 40:  “Thou shalt keep therefore His statutes, and His commandments....”

In Deuteronomy 4, Jehovah/Elohim is revealing His exclusive superiority by inspiring Moses to proclaim “there is none else.”   Jehovah is clearly revealing that He alone is God.  In the following chapter, Deuteronomy 5, Moses reminds Israel of their covenant with God at Mt. Horeb (verse 2).  Moses then repeats the words of God when He spoke the Ten Commandments to Israel. Moses recounts the fear that filled Israel at the awesome manifestation of God’s presence,  and their request that Moses act as mediator between them and God.  They agreed to keep all the words of God that Moses delivered to them.  In verse 32,  Moses binds Israel to their promise by declaring, “Ye shall observe to do therefore as the Lord your God has commanded you....”

This is the Scriptural context leading up to Deuteronomy 6.  Israel is being admonished not to turn aside but to obey the commands of God because He alone is God.  As we have seen, Moses emphasizes in Deuteronomy 4 that the God of Israel is the only God when he twice states, “...there is none else” (verses 29 and 35).  When Moses later proclaims in Deuteronomy 6:4, “The Lord our God is one Lord,” he is repeating what has already been stated in Deuteronomy 4:  The Lord is the only God. 

That this is the true meaning of Deuteronomy 6:4 is verified by the New Testament.  In the Gospel of Mark, we find irrefutable proof that Deuteronomy 6:4 and Deuteronomy 4:35 are identical in meaning!  Here is that Scriptural evidence as recorded by Mark:

“And one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, and perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him,  ‘Which is the first [the foremost] commandment of all?’  And Jesus answered him, ‘The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:  And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength [Deut. 6:4-5]:  this is the first commandment.  And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour [the one near] as thyself [Lev. 19:18].  There is none other commandment greater than these.’  And the scribe said unto Him, ‘Well, Master, Thou hast said the truth:  for there is one God [Deut. 6:4]; and there is none other but He [Deut. 4:35]:  and to love Him with all the heart, all the soul, and with all the strength, and to love his neighbour as himself, is more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices’ “ (Mark 12:28-33). 

The scribe was literally saying, as it is in all Greek texts, “Well, Master, Thou hast said the truth: that He is one and there is none besides Him” (Mark 12:32). 

The Greek word translated “one” is heis.  This Greek word has several different meanings.  It can mean the numeral one (Mark 14:10, the only one (Mark 12:6), one and the same (I Cor. 10:17), or someone (John 11:49).   In Mark 12:32, as the context shows, it means “the only one” (Arndt and Gingrich, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament, p. 231).

When Jesus quoted Deuteronomy 6:4, the scribe understood Him to mean that “there is [only] one God; and there is none other but He” (Mark 12:32).  Jesus placed His stamp of approval on the scribe’s interpretation of Deuteronomy 6:4 when He said, “Thou art not far from the Kingdom of God” (Mark 12:34).  

Jesus’ own words confirm the true interpretation of Deuteronomy 6:4.  When God inspired this famous utterance through Moses, He did not intend to convey that He is “one” in number, but that He is “the only one”—the only true God.  The fact that God alone is God does not rule out the possibility that God is more than one in number.  The phrase “the only one” is qualitative, not quantitative.   It shows the exclusive superiority of God, but it does not limit God to one Being, nor does it indicate that God is three in one.   

Many passages in the Old Testament bear testimony to the fact that our God is the only Lord, and there is none other.  Here are several prime examples found in the book of Isaiah:

“To whom then will ye liken GOD [Hebrew El]? or what likeness will ye compare unto Him?” (Isa. 40:18.) 

“ ‘To whom then will ye liken Me, or shall I be equal?’ saith the Holy One” (Isa. 40:25).   

“ ‘Ye are My witnesses,’ saith the Lord [Hebrew Jehovah], ‘and My servant [Israel] Whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe Me, and understand that I am He:  before Me there was no God formed [nothing formed of God], neither shall there be after Me.  I, even I, am the Lord [Hebrew Jehovah]; and beside Me there is no saviour’ “  (Isa. 43:10-11).

“I am the Lord [Hebrew Jehovah] and there is none else, there is no God beside Me:  I girded thee, though thou hast not known Me:  That they may know from the rising of the sun, and from the west, that there is none beside Me.  I am the Lord, and there is none else”  (Isa. 45:5-6). 

“...there is no God [Hebrew Elohim] else beside Me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside Me.   Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth:  for I am God [Hebrew El] and there is none else”   (Isa. 45:21-22).

“Remember the former things of old:  for I am God [Hebrew El], and there is none else; I am God [Hebrew El], and there is none like Me” (Isa. 46:9). 

These Old Testament examples illustrate the true meaning of Deuteronomy 6:4, and Jesus’ own words in the New Testament confirm that “one Lord” in Deuteronomy 6:4 is referring to the exclusive superiority of the only true God.

Rejecting this Scriptural truth, religious philosophers engage in a subtle juggling of words to distort the true meaning of Deuteronomy 6:4.  They take a word that functions as an adjective and give it the meaning of a noun.  They then empty the noun of its meaning by viewing it as an adjective.  Although the order of words has not changed, the noun now functions in their argument as an adjective, and the adjective now functions as a noun.  

Their distortion of Deuteronomy 6:4 is a prime example of their skill in word juggling.  We have just shown that the Scriptures interpret the word “one” in Deuteronomy 6:4 as an adjective meaning “the only one.”  Ignoring this Scriptural interpretation, religious philosophers perform their functional operation on Deuteronomy 6:4 by treating the noun “Lord” as an adjective, the noun “God” as an adjective, and the adjective “one” as a noun!  “Lord” and “God” are presented in their ill-conceived webs of logic as modifying “One.”   In this manner, “Lord” (Hebrew Jehovah) and “God” (Hebrew Elohim) are turned into properties or characteristics of the “One,” and the adjective “one” is turned into a noun that names God! 

The result of this clever reversal of meaning is a logical construct so devious that no one is able to fully understand or explain it!  “One,” or God, is defined as a “divine Substance” which has three actions or actualizations—Father function, Son function or Holy Spirit function.   In the Athanasian Creed of the Catholic Church, all three are treated as consubstantial “attributes” of the deified “One,” with the function of Holy Spirit “in procession” from either the Father or the Son.    In the Arian Creed, none of these so-called “attributes” are consubstantial but are, true to ancient philosophical principles, of different hierarchical composition.  In this religio-philosophic ranking, the Son is inferior to the Father and the Holy Spirit is “in procession” only from the Father.  In both the Athanasian and Arian creeds, the whole is rendered a mystery by the subtle process of “depersonifying” God. 

Religious philosophers proclaim to the world that God is not a personal God but is an impersonal mystery defined at any given time by an actualized function.  The God of this theology is a vacuous, empty God.  The truth that the Lord is the only God and besides Him there is no other is turned into the lie that God is three functions or “actualizations” in the “One”—a nebulous “divine Substance.”  

We can be thankful that God has revealed Himself to us through His Word.  We need not be confused or intimidated by the clever arguments of theologians who philosophize on His divine nature.  The true meaning of Deuteronomy 6:4 is preserved in the Scriptures for all who are willing to accept it.  When we let the Scriptures interpret the Scriptures, there is no question that “one” in Deuteronomy 6:4 is referring to the exclusive superiority of God as “the only one.”

A Primary New Testament Example

The New Testament also uses “one” in reference to God as “the only one.”  We find this qualitative use of “one” in a much misunderstood verse in Paul’s epistle to the Galatians.  Let us examine the use of “one” in Galatians 3:20 in the light of its Scriptural context.  We will see that the word “one” is used to qualify God as “the only one” Who bound Himself in the Abramic Covenant.

“Now to Abraham and his seed [Christ] were the promises made [God’s unconditional covenant with Abraham]. He saith not, And to seeds [Israel], as of many; but as of one [Greek hen, one in essence], and to thy seed, which is Christ [Greek Christos].   And this I say, that the covenant, that was confirmed before [the Abramic Covenant of 1916 B.C.] of God [Greek Theos, the Father] in Christ [the promised Seed], the law [the Mosaic Covenant of 1486 B.C.], which was four hundred and thirty years after [the Abramic Covenant] cannot disannul, that it should make the promise [of the Abramic Covenant] of none effect.  For if the inheritance be of the law [the Mosaic Covenant], it is no more of promise: but God gave it to Abraham by promise [the Abramic Covenant].  Wherefore then serveth the law [the Mosaic Covenant]?  It was added [Greek prostithemi, placed or laid beside (the Abramic Covenant)] because of transgressions [of humans before Moses], till the seed [Jesus Christ] should come to whom the promise was made; and it [the Mosaic Covenant] was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator [Moses].  Now a mediator is not a mediator of one [Greek hen, one in essence: i.e., a mediator arranges terms between two separate parties], but God [Greek Theos] is one [Greek heis, the only one; i.e., the only party obligated in the Abramic Covenant:  no mediator was needed because there were no terms to arrange; the promise of God was unconditional]. Is the law [the Mosaic Covenant, which required conditions to be met] then against [does it nullify] the promises of God [the Abramic Covenant, which was unconditional]? God forbid: for if there had been a law given which could have given life, verily righteousness should have been by the law [the Mosaic Covenant]. But the scripture hath concluded all under sin, that the promise by faith of Jesus Christ [the promised Seed] might be given to them that believe.  But before faith came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the faith which should afterwards be revealed.  Wherefore the law [the Mosaic Covenant] was our schoolmaster [to teach us the enormity of our sin] to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.  But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster [the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ replaces the Mosaic Covenant].  For ye are all the children of God [Greek Theos, the Father] by faith in Christ Jesus” (Gal. 3:16-26).

When we examine Galatians 3:20 in its Scriptural context, the true meaning of “one” becomes evident.  The entire passage is a discourse by the apostle Paul on the relationship of the Mosaic Covenant to the Abramic Covenant.  Paul explains to the Galatian Christians that the Mosaic Covenant, with all its requirements, in no way affected the unconditional nature of the Abramic Covenant and the promise of grace through Jesus Christ.

In Wuest’s Word Studies in the Greek New Testament, Vol. 1, we find the following commentary on Galatians 3:20:  “In this verse Paul shows that the promise is superior to the law, for the former was given directly from God to Abraham, whereas the latter was given to Israel by God through a mediator.  We will examine the statement, ‘A mediator is not of one.’  The word mediator is from mesites, which in turn comes from mesos which means middle, the midst.  Thus a mediator is one who intervenes between two, either to make or restore peace and friendship, to form a compact, or to ratify a covenant.  The word in the Greek text is preceded by the definite article, making the word generic in character.  That is, Paul is not referring here to any particular mediator as Moses, but to the office of a mediator, and to mediators in general looked upon as a class of individuals.  However, this generic statement is intended to be applied to Moses, the mediator referred to in verse 19.  The word one is masculine in gender, and therefore is personal, referring to a person.  That is, a mediator does not act simply in behalf of one person.  The very genius of the word implies that the mediator stands “in the midst” of two or more persons, thus acts as a go-between.  It is not that the mediator acts in behalf of a plurality of persons that constitute one party [a class action suit], but that there is a plurality of parties between which he acts.  Thus the law is a contract between two parties....But the promise of free grace is not in the nature of a contract between two parties.  God acts alone and directly when He promises salvation to anyone who will receive it by the out-stretched hand of faith.  There are no good works to be done by the sinner in order that he might merit that salvation.  Grace is unconditional.  There are no strings tied to it.  God is One, that is, He acts alone without a mediator in respect to the promise of grace”  (pp. 106-107).

Those who attempt to use Galatians 3:20 to limit God to one in number—or three in one—are missing the true meaning of this verse and are attaching a false interpretation to Paul’s words.  The apostle Peter warned that some of Paul’s writings are difficult to understand, and we should be careful not to misinterpret these Scriptures.  Peter declared, “...even as our beloved brother Paul also according to the wisdom given unto him hath written unto you; as also in all his epistles, speaking in them of these things; in which are some things hard to be understood, which they that are unlearned and unstable wrest, as they do also the other Scriptures, unto their own destruction” (II Pet. 3:15-16).

Peter’s words clearly warn us not to interpret Scripture according to our own understanding or the opinions of others.  In order to come to a true understanding, we must carefully examine each verse in its Scriptural context.  Only by letting Scripture interpret Scripture will we be safe from false reasonings and vain philosophies  that seek to ensnare us. 

We have studied Deuteronomy 6:4 and Galatians 3:20 in their Scriptural contexts, and we have seen that the word “one” is used to identify God as “the only one.”  Now let us see how the Scriptures use “one” to proclaim the holiness of God.

“One” Used to Show the Holiness of God

Both Old Testament and New Testament describe God as the “Holy One.”  This name of God is translated from Hebrew and Greek words meaning “holy, sacred, merciful, gracious, kind.”  The actual Hebrew and Greek words for “one” are not present in the text, although the meaning is implied. 

As the texts indicate, the focus of this name of God is “Holy” rather than “One.”  The name “Holy One” does not limit God to one Being or to “one divine Substance.”  The Hebrew and Greek words that are translated “Holy One” are not intended to define or specify a number but to describe a divine attribute of God.

In the Old Testament, the name “Holy One” describes the Lord (Jehovah), the God of Israel, and in the New Testament it is used in reference to Jesus Christ.  One Old Testament reference to the “Holy One” is quoted in the New Testament by the apostle Peter, who shows that it is referring to Jesus Christ.  The original words are those of David and are found in Psalm 16:

“Therefore My heart is glad, and My glory rejoiceth: My flesh also shall rest in hope.  For Thou wilt not leave My soul in hell; neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption” (verses 9-10).

Here are some other examples of the use of this name of God in the Old Testament:

“How oft did they provoke Him in the wilderness, and grieve Him in the desert!  Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel.  They remembered not His hand, nor the day when He delivered them from the enemy.  How He had wrought His signs in Egypt, and His wonders in the field of Zoan [the most ancient of Egyptian cities]” (Ps. 78:40-43).  

“Ah sinful nation, a people laden with iniquity, a seed of evildoers, children that are corrupters: they have forsaken the LORD, they have provoked the Holy One of Israel unto anger, they are gone away backward” (Isa. 1:4).

“And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the LORD, the Holy One of Israel, in truth.  The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God” (Isa. 10:20-21). 

“So will I make My holy name known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let them pollute My holy name any more: and the heathen shall know that I am the LORD, the Holy One in Israel” (Ezek. 39:7). 

How do these references to the Lord (Jehovah) as the “Holy One of Israel” fit the apostle Peter’s interpretation of the “Holy One” spoken of by David in Psalm 16:10?  In preaching the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, Peter declared, “For David speaks concerning Him, ‘I foresaw the Lord always before My face, for He is on My right hand, that I should not be moved:  therefore did My heart rejoice, and My tongue was glad; moreover also My flesh shall rest in hope:  Because Thou wilt not leave My soul in hell, neither wilt Thou suffer Thine Holy One to see corruption’....He seeing this before spake of the resurrection of Christ, that His soul was not left in hell, neither His flesh did see corruption” (Acts 2:25-27, 31).

Peter was inspired by the Spirit of God to reveal that the “Holy One” of Israel, the Lord (Jehovah) of the Old Testament, was the One who became Jesus Christ!  The apostle Paul confirms that the “Holy One” in Psalm 16:10 is Jesus Christ (Acts 13:35).  Paul also declared to the Corinthians, “Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant, how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the sea; and were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea; and did all eat the same spiritual meat; and did all drink the same spiritual drink:  for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ” (I Cor. 10:1-4).

The apostles Peter and Paul both testify that Jesus Christ was the Lord God of the Old Testament.  The apostle John also testifies that He was the “Word”—the Spokesman for the God of heaven (John 1:1).  He was the One who spoke to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and to Moses and Israel at Mt. Horeb.  He became the “Holy One of Israel” when He mercifully redeemed Israel from bondage and entered into a covenant with them.  As Lord of the Old Testament, He established the Old Covenant with Israel.  As Lord of the New Testament, He died to end the Old Covenant and establish the New (Heb. 10:1-10).

Here are some additional New Testament references to Jesus Christ as the “Holy One”:

“The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God  [Greek Theos, the Father] of our fathers, hath glorified His Son Jesus; Whom ye delivered up, and denied Him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let Him go.  But ye denied the Holy One and the Just, and desired a murderer to be granted unto you; and killed the Prince of life, Whom God hath raised from the dead; whereof we are witnesses.  And His name through faith in His name hath made this man strong, whom ye see and know: yea, the faith which is by Him hath given him this perfect soundness in the presence of you all” (Acts 3:13-16). 

“And there was in their synagogue a man with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, saying, ‘Let us alone; what have we to do with Thee, Thou Jesus of Nazareth? art Thou come to destroy us?  I know Thee who Thou art, the Holy One of God.’  And Jesus rebuked him, saying, ‘Hold thy peace, and come out of him.’  And when the unclean spirit had torn him, and cried with a loud voice, he came out of him” (Mark 1:23-26). 

“Little children, it is the last time: and as ye have heard that antichrist shall come, even now are there many antichrists; whereby we know that it is the last time.  They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would no doubt have continued with us: but they went out, that they might be made manifest that they were not all of us.  But ye have an unction [anointing] from the Holy One, and ye know all things”  (1 John 2:18-20).

In verse 20, the apostle John is speaking of the “anointing”—the gift of the Spirit of truth—which comes through Jesus Christ, the “Holy One.”  In the last chapter of his epistle, John shows that the gift of understanding spiritual truth comes through Jesus Christ.  John declares, “And we know that the Son of God is come, and hath given us an understanding, that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ.  This is the true God, and eternal life” (I John 5:20).

The apostle John confirms that the “Holy One” of God is Jesus Christ, the Son of God, sent by the Father.  In this same epistle, John points out the testimony that the Father gave concerning His Son.  Let us examine the record of that testimony, and we will learn another Scriptural use of the word “one.”