Jesus Christ is the God of the Old Testament

A number of different groups are now claiming that God the Father was the God who dealt with human beings during Old Testament times. That is simply not true. It was Jesus Christ who created Adam and Eve. And it was Jesus Christ who dealt with Moses and the people of Israel. It was Jesus Christ who dealt with the Old Testament prophets, sending them to the people of Israel.

Now the point is that claiming that God the Father dealt with human beings during the Old Testament is clearly a challenge to Jesus Christ’s status and position within the greater plan of God. It is a way of dishonoring Jesus Christ, something that has serious consequences. What was Jesus Christ doing during OT times, if not working with human beings? Has He always existed together with God the Father? Or did God the Father create Jesus Christ?

Or, as some people believe, did God the Father and Jesus Christ take turns in dealing with human beings? Did God the Father sometimes deal with human beings, while at other times Jesus Christ dealt with human beings? Is that what happened? Exactly what was Jesus Christ’s status during OT times?

Beware of people who put forward clever-sounding arguments that challenge Christ’s existence as God during the Old Testament. Before considering any such arguments we all need to establish the clear and unambiguous facts about what the Bible tells us about Jesus Christ’s OT existence. And there is a lot. With the facts as a foundation, we can then evaluate any arguments that challenge those facts.

So let’s look at some Scriptures.

All things are delivered unto Me of My Father: and no man knows the Son, but the Father; neither knows any man the Father, except the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him. (Matthew 11:27)

That’s a very clear statement. It means that Abraham and Moses and King David did not “know” God the Father. Before New Testament times no human being “knew” God the Father. This means that God the Father had not personally dealt with any human being during the Old Testament.

The Greek word twice translated in this verse as “knows” is “epiginoskei”, a form of the verb “epiginosko”. Now the Greek verb “ginosko” is the basic verb for “to know”, and “epiginosko” is a strengthened form of the verb “ginosko”. “Epiginosko”, here used with the accusative case, implies a greater level of understanding (i.e. of “knowing”) than merely referring to “ginosko”.

So note:

Jesus Christ did not say that “no man ginosko the Father”! Christ said that “no man epiginosko the Father”. You might ask: what’s the difference here? Why argue about “ginosko” and “epiginosko”? You either know someone or you don’t, right? Well, it’s not quite that simple.

The point is this:

A very few individuals in Old Testament times (e.g. King David) did in fact “know” about the existence of God the Father. But that’s all they knew. They didn’t actually know anything about the person and the character and attributes of God the Father, other than that this particular God was in authority over Jesus Christ. And they didn’t know Him as “the Father”. And none of them had any kind of relationship with God the Father. And none of them prayed to God the Father.

So in New Testament Greek terms we might say the following:

While a very few people in the OT “ginosko” (knew about the existence of) God the Father, none of them “epiginosko” (were personally acquainted with) God the Father. And that is basically what Matthew 11:27 tells us, that they didn’t really “know” the Father personally.

It is exactly the same as the first part of this verse, where Christ said: “no man knows the Son, but the Father”. Yes, hundreds of millions of people “know” (i.e. “ginosko”) about the existence of Jesus Christ; but they don’t know (i.e. “epiginosko”) what Jesus Christ is really like, and they don’t have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. They don’t understand Christ’s responsibilities during Old Testament times, and what Jesus Christ will do in the future. It is God the Father who has to “reveal” the true Jesus Christ to them and to us.

It is somewhat like Jesus Christ telling certain people, who will claim to have spoken in Christ’s name, “I never knew you” (Matthew 7:23). Christ is obviously aware of the existence of all human beings. And here in Matthew 7:23 Christ used the basic word “ginosko”, meaning that Jesus Christ had not at any time been involved in the lives of those people in any way.

This point is also clear from Matthew 16:16-17.

And Simon Peter answered and said, You are the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed are you, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood has not revealed it unto you, but My Father who is in heaven. (Matthew 16:16-17)

The point is this: While multiple millions of people are aware of Jesus Christ’s existence, the only ones who really “know” Jesus Christ are those people to whom God the Father has revealed this understanding. And in Matthew 11:27 Jesus Christ tells us that before His ministry no human being had ever really “known” (i.e. “epiginosko”) God the Father, including those very few people during that period who were somewhat aware of (i.e. “ginosko”) the Father’s existence.

Really knowing and understanding something (“epiginosko”) is on a different level from being vaguely aware of someone’s existence.

So all by itself Matthew 11:27 tells us that people in Old Testament times hadn’t really known God the Father, because God the Father had not been the God who personally dealt with human beings. And if God the Father had not dealt with Noah and Abraham and Moses and the prophets, then the only option is that Jesus Christ was the God who dealt with Israel during the Old Testament period.

There is no other option!

Now let’s look at Psalm 110.

The LORD (“YHVH”) said to my Lord (“Adonai”), sit you at My right hand, until I make Your enemies Your footstool. (Psalm 110:1)

(Comment: The Masoretes vowel-pointed this word in verse 1 as “Adoni”. But that was an arbitrary and wrong decision on their part. They really should have vowel-pointed it as “Adonai”, in reference to God, as they in fact correctly did in verse 5.)

Here David is speaking about two different individuals. One individual David called “YHVH” (basically meaning “the Eternal”), and the other individual David called “Adonai” (meaning “my Lord”). Clearly David shows that YHVH is in charge, and that Adonai is under the authority of YHVH.

(As an aside, when we understand that YHVH basically means “the Eternal”, then that isn’t a personal name. It is an attribute. And it can certainly apply to all the individuals who have always existed. Jesus Christ is also YHVH, because He has always existed along with God the Father. And those are the only two Beings who are “eternal”.)

The first question is: WHO does David refer to as “Adonai” (my Lord)? At this point David was King over Israel, and he had no human rulers who were over him in authority. So Adonai cannot be a human being.

But Adonai also cannot be God the Father, because this verse shows that Adonai is under the authority of YHVH. And there is no “Lord” or “ruler” over God the Father. Therefore David’s reference to “my Lord” cannot refer to either God the Father, or to any human being. It is also self-evident that David’s “my Lord” cannot be a reference to either an angel or to a demon.

As the Apostle Paul says:

But to which of the angels said He at any time, Sit on My right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool? (Hebrews 1:13)

Paul’s point is that the verse he is quoting is not speaking about angels.

So by a process of elimination there is only one other Being in existence who has not been excluded from the possibility of being David’s “Lord” in Psalm 110:1, and that one being is Jesus Christ.

Again, there is no other option!

Hebrews 12:2 likewise tells us that it is Jesus Christ who sits at the Father’s right hand.

Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of God. (Hebrews 12:2)

And the only Being who can make decisions about what Jesus Christ will do is God the Father. So in Psalm 110:1(not necessarily in most other verses in the Old Testament) YHVH refers to God the Father.

Having established that in this verse YHVH is a reference to God the Father, further proves that here Adonai cannot be a reference to any human being. Why not? Because God the Father is here speaking to someone, but no human being has ever heard the voice of God the Father. As Jesus Christ plainly said:

And the Father Himself, who has sent Me, has borne witness of Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor seen His shape. (John 5:37)

This means that the God who spoke the ten commandments at Mount Sinai (see Exodus 20) could not have been God the Father. And so this again reveals Jesus Christ as the God who dealt with Israel.

And Adonai in Psalm 110:1 cannot be a human being.

In plain terms: God the Father said to Jesus Christ: “sit at My right hand until ...”. Why did God the Father say this? Why “until”? The word “until” imposes a time limit. Why can’t Jesus Christ sit at the Father’s right hand without any time limits? Why only “until” Christ’s enemies have become His footstool?

Do you know what this verse is actually saying?

Psalm 110:1 is a prophetic reference to the resurrected Jesus Christ sitting at God the Father’s right hand until the seventh Trumpet is blown at the time of the end. Then Jesus Christ leaves the Father’s right hand and returns to this earth with the holy angels, to usher in the first resurrection. Then Jesus Christ rules for 1000 years, followed by ruling during the period allotted to the people in the second resurrection. And then God the Father burns up this present universe, to replace it with the new heaven and the new earth.

And on the new earth Jesus Christ will again sit at God the Father’s right hand.

Next, what does sitting at God the Father’s right hand signify? It signifies a certain degree of equality with God the Father. Don’t misunderstand what I am saying. Not equality in terms of authority or rank, but in the sense of a certain status, sharing certain things with God the Father.

In analogy, in the kingdoms of old the common people didn’t sit at the king’s right hand. No, those who sat with the king were the nobles, the rulers, the high officials in the country. They were not equal with the king regarding authority or rank, but they had attained a certain status that made them eligible to sit at the table with the king at state banquets, council meetings, etc. This analogy obviously falls short, but it is somewhat like Jesus Christ sitting at God the Father’s right hand. Jesus Christ is by far God the Father’s most important counselor.

This statement about sitting at the Father’s right hand can only be a reference to Jesus Christ. There is no other option! No angel ever sits at God the Father’s right hand. And certainly no physical human being will ever sit at the Father’s right hand.

To continue with Psalm 110:

The next verse shows what Jesus Christ will do when He leaves the Father’s right hand. He will rule from Zion for 1000 years. But notice something that is often overlooked. During the millennium Jesus Christ will “rule over His enemies” (Psalm 110:2). The Hebrew word here translated as “enemies” refers to people who are hostile towards Jesus Christ, and that will be during the millennium.

That is why Jesus Christ will rule with “a rod of iron” (Revelation 2:27; 12:5; 19:15). You don’t rule over people who love you and respect you with “a rod of iron”. No, ruling with a rod of iron applies to ruling over enemies and those who hate you. For such people Jesus Christ’s rule during the millennium will be seen as harsh and cruel ... that’s what a rod of iron represents, ruling very strictly over enemies. They are the people who are deceived by Satan, when Satan is released for a short while after the 1000 years. And they will form a very sizable portion of people during the millennium. Their number is referred to as “the sand of the sea” (see Revelation 20:7-8).

They are “enemies” of Jesus Christ throughout the whole millennium. And Christ will rule over them very strictly, but without taking their lives, except for one occasion. A very large part of them will actually rebel against Christ during the millennium, and five-sixths of them will be killed ... that’s the story of Ezekiel 38-39. The one-sixth whose lives are spared (a huge number) go back to their respective areas and ensure that there will be no further open rebellions for the remainder of the 1000 years. But the numbers of enemies of Jesus Christ will again continue to grow for the rest of the millennium. And they will only openly rebel against Christ once Satan has been released for that short period of time. Satan is merely the catalyst to bring their already existing spirit of rebellion out into the open.

The next verse in Psalm 110, verse 3, shows that during the millennium very many other people will be willingly and eagerly submissive to Jesus Christ’s rule. And for them Christ’s rule is not going to be with a rod of iron, not at all. For them Christ’s rule will be an enormous blessing.

Now let’s look at verse 4.

The LORD (YHVH) has sworn, and will not repent (change His mind), You are a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek. (Psalm 110:4)

So God the Father is again speaking. Who is He speaking to? God the Father is still speaking to the One David identified as “my Lord” (i.e. Adonai). So God the Father is saying these words to Jesus Christ.

The expression “You are a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek” might in modern English be stated as “You are for ever a priest with the rank and status of Melchizedek”. So God the Father tells Jesus Christ that Christ will have the same position and status as Melchizedek had previously had.

Now that tells us something about the identity of Mechizedek during the time of Abraham. Jesus Christ, who is God, can never be given the role and status of any mortal human being, because that would be a staggering put-down for a God-Being. That would be like telling a military General that he will be given the rank and status of a Corporal, an obvious huge demotion. So when Jesus Christ is given the rank of Melchizedek, the only possibility is that Mechizedek was also a God-Being. No human being could ever be “an example for Jesus Christ to emulate”. So Melchizedek could not have been a mortal human being. And that is exactly what Paul explained in Hebrews 7, that Melchizedek had “neither beginning of days nor end of life”.

Again, by a process of elimination we can establish that Jesus Christ Himself had functioned as Melchizedek for a period of time during the Old Testament. In Psalm 110:4 God the Father is stating that during the millennium Jesus Christ will fulfill the same role He had fulfilled as Melchizedek in the Old Testament. There is no other individual this statement in verse 4 could possibly apply to. That role in the millennium will be to deal with and work with all the people who freely submit their lives to God, who seek to walk with Jesus Christ.

Let’s continue with Psalm 110.

The Lord (“Adonai”) at Your right hand shall strike through kings in the day of His wrath. He shall judge among the nations, He shall fill the places with the dead bodies; He shall wound the heads over many countries. (Psalm 110:5-6)

Here the Masoretes correctly vowel-pointed the word to read “Adonai”. It is obviously the same Adonai as in verse 1. So first they vowel-pointed the individual at the Father’s right hand as “Adoni”, and four verses later they vowel-pointed the same individual at the Father’s right hand as “Adonai”. This shows that they didn’t really understand this psalm.

Next, the “my Lord at Your right hand” is Jesus Christ at God the Father’s right hand. When Christ returns He is angry, and many people will die. “Wounding the heads over many countries” means that Jesus Christ will assume rulership over “many countries”, and the human rulers will be demoted, if not killed.

The reference to “striking through kings” and to “dead bodies” shows that at His return Christ will be dealing with His enemies, who represent the majority of mankind. These verses in Psalm 110 apply to Christ’s second coming, and they are about starting to rule with a rod of iron, including at His return imposing the death penalty on vast numbers of people, when the last plagues are poured out.

This whole short Psalm is speaking about Jesus Christ, who was David’s “my Lord” (i.e. “Adonai”).

There is one other point about “sitting at the Father’s right hand” that we should take note of. God the Father is supreme over everything and everyone in existence. And no created being will ever “sit at the Father’s right hand”. God will never elevate any individual, created by God, to the status of being a co-ruler with God the Father, which is what “sitting at the Father’s right hand” signifies. Therefore the one who is invited to sit at the Father’s right hand must have been a God along with God the Father for past eternity. From this perspective Jesus Christ is again the only option for “Adonai” in verses 1 and 5.

Let’s look at a few other Scriptures that also make clear that Jesus Christ is the God who dealt with Israel in the Old Testament.

And He said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven. (Luke 10:18)

When did that happen?

That happened at Satan’s rebellion, a very long time before the creation of Adam and Eve. This means that at the time of Satan’s rebellion Jesus Christ was already a God Being, to have witnessed that event, since Christ clearly has never been an angel.

Another Scripture.

Jesus said unto them, Truly, truly, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am. (John 8:58)

For this statement the Jews wanted to kill Him (verse 59). In this verse Jesus Christ is not only claiming to have existed before Abraham. He is also making the point that He was the God who had dealt with Abraham. That is another inference for this statement, which those hostile Jews understood quite clearly. The Jews recognized that “I am” is a reference to the God who had dealt with Moses (see Exodus 3:14).

He was in the world (“kosmos”), and the world (“kosmos”) was made by Him, and the world (“kosmos”) knew Him not. (John 1:10)

“Kosmos”, translated as “world”, does not refer to the planet Earth. “Kosmos” refers to humanity, the human beings all around this planet Earth. This verse tells us that human beings were created by Jesus Christ. The last part of this verse makes quite clear that “kosmos” refers to the total human population of this planet. The statement that “the kosmos knew Him not” doesn’t mean the planet Earth didn’t know Christ. It means that human beings, the world’s population, didn’t know Jesus Christ.

So this verse establishes Jesus Christ as the One who created Adam and Eve. A similar statement is recorded a few verses earlier, in John 1:3.

All things were made by Him; and without Him was not any thing made that was made. (John 1:3)

This tells us that everything that was created, was created by Jesus Christ. So Jesus Christ is the God who spoke in Genesis 1, and when He spoke things were created. John 1:3 means that Jesus Christ was God before the creation of Adam.

Has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He (God the Father) has appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds (“aionas”, meaning “the ages”); (Hebrews 1:2)

God the Father is the Creator. But God the Father instructed Jesus Christ to do the actual creating. While John 1:10 shows that Christ created humanity, Hebrews 1:2 shows that Jesus Christ in fact also created “the ages”, the different epochs. “The ages” include the time when God created the angels, the time when God created the universe, the time of Satan’s rebellion, the creation of humanity, the flood, the confusion of the languages at Babel, the whole Old Testament period, the New Testament period, and still to come, the millennium. All these are a part of “the ages”.

Saying that Christ created the ages is another way of saying that Jesus Christ developed the whole revised plan of salvation, in which revised plan Jesus Christ’s sacrifice for our sins is the most important part. In other words, Jesus Christ volunteered to lay down His life for our sins, rather than being pressured by God the Father to do so. And in so doing, Jesus Christ created “the ages”.

This statement goes much further back than the creation of man ... and back then Jesus Christ was already a Creator God. And this statement also reveals Jesus Christ’s involvement in revising the plan of salvation after the flood.

For by Him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by Him, and for Him: (Colossians 1:16)

In this verse Paul is saying that Jesus Christ created everything, including the angels, who are invisible. The only option here is that Jesus Christ was also a God together with God the Father.

And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world (“aionon”, again meaning “the ages”) has been hid in God, who created all things by Jesus Christ: (Ephesians 3:9)

This verse makes the same point as Colossians 1:16.

Your throne, O God (Elohim), is for ever and ever: the scepter of Your kingdom is a right scepter. You love righteousness, and hate wickedness: therefore God (Elohim), Your God (Elohim), has anointed You with the oil of gladness above Your fellows. (Psalm 45:6-7)

These two verses speak about two Gods, both of whom are identified as “Elohim”. And one Elohim is anointed by the other Elohim. The only possibility here is God the Father anointing Jesus Christ to be King of kings, and Lord of lords during the millennium. “Your fellows” is a reference to all the people in the first resurrection, who will rule with Jesus Christ.

Jesus Christ the same yesterday, and today, and for ever. (Hebrews 13:8)

Paul’s intent here was to refer to three consecutive periods of time! “Today” refers to the time of Christ’s ministry and the early New Testament period. “For ever” refers to all future time. “Yesterday” refers to all past time, the Old Testament period.

This verse states that Jesus Christ existed as God during Old Testament times, even as He is a God right now. He is still the same Being He has always been.

And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ. (1 Corinthians 10:4)

This is a plain statement that the God who dealt with Israel at the time of the exodus from Egypt was Jesus Christ. Let’s look at something else Jesus Christ said:

And now, O Father, glorify You Me with Your own self with the glory which I had with You before the world (”kosmos”, humanity) was. (John 17:5)

Two things we should notice here. Firstly, Jesus Christ is boldly asking God the Father to give Him the identical glory that God the Father has right now, and has always had. No created being would ever dare to approach God the Father and then say: I want You to give me the same glory that You have. For any human being that would be extremely presumptuous.

The principle here should be obvious!

Only someone who is also God, someone who has the same traits and attributes as God the Father Himself has, could ever say this to God the Father. If Jesus Christ had not existed as a God Being before the creation of Adam, then this request in John 17:5 would have amounted to the same sin that Satan is guilty of. Recall that Satan had said, amongst other things:

I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. (Isaiah 14:14)

For that attitude Satan will be punished for all future eternity. But that is exactly what Jesus Christ was saying in John 17:5, that He, Jesus Christ, wanted to be like God the Father, with the same glory.

Satan had also said:

For you have said in your heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: (Isaiah 14:13)

For that attitude Satan will be punished forever. But Jesus Christ had the same desire ... to sit with God the Father on the Father’s throne.

To him that overcomes will I grant to sit with Me in My throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with My Father in His throne. (Revelation 3:21)

Only someone who Himself has always been God can possibly ever sit with God the Father on the Father’s throne! That is a principle that can never be violated!

No created being can ever, ever sit on the throne of God the Father! Revelation 3:21 is absolute proof that Jesus Christ was God during Old Testament times, and also before the creation of this universe. Anyone who attempts to negatively explain away that the God‑attribute is required for anyone to sit on the Father’s throne understands nothing about the mind of God, never mind deliberately trying to explain away an "uncomfortable" Scripture.

Let’s note that Jesus Christ asserted that He had possessed this glory with the Father before the creation of mankind. Anyone who has "the glory of God" must also be God. It is impossible to have the glory of God without actually being God!

So in this verse Christ was saying: restore to Me My God Being status, which I had with You before the creation of mankind. This statement means that Jesus Christ had been God in the past! And it means that being glorified as a God Being after His resurrection was not something new for Jesus Christ.

Right, we have now looked at quite a few Scriptures that establish that Jesus Christ has always been God, and that He was the God who dealt with human beings during Old Testament times. At no time during the Old Testament did God the Father ever personally deal with any human beings. It was always Jesus Christ who was the God who dealt with Israel.

DEALING WITH CONFLICTING CLAIMS

So here is the situation:

If someone presents certain Scriptures that supposedly prove that Jesus Christ has not always existed, that He was supposedly at some point created by God the Father, then we should certainly desire to carefully examine those Scriptures. It is the truth we want to establish.

However, such “new Scriptures” cannot do away with John 1:3, 10 and John 5:37 and John 8:58 and John 17:5. And they cannot do away with Colossians 1:16 and Ephesians 3:9 and Hebrews 1:2, 13. And they certainly cannot do away with Psalm 110:1-7 and Psalm 45:6-7 and Matthew 11:27.

Anyone who claims, based on some other verses, that Jesus Christ was created by God the Father must first explain why all the above verses don’t show that Jesus Christ has always existed. Only after all of these verses have been explained to not mean that Christ has always existed, should we then look at the “new Scriptures” that supposedly prove that Jesus Christ was created by God the Father.

Why must this be done first?

It must be done first because those are the Scriptures our established understanding is based on. Those Scriptures are not the ones that challenge our present understanding. No, those Scriptures are the reason why we accept our present understanding. Anytime you want me to accept some “new understanding”, you need to first show me why my present understanding is not correct. Once you have done that �" proved that the Scriptures on which my understanding is based don’t in fact support my present understanding �" then you have opened the way for “new understanding” to be examined on its own merits.

But if you are not able to do that, if you can’t explain that all the above Scriptures don’t prove that Jesus Christ has always existed with God the Father, then there is no point in looking at your “new Scriptures”, because all the originally-used Scriptures still continue to show that Jesus Christ has always existed.

When we want to establish any specific biblical teaching, then all the Scriptures that can possibly apply to that teaching must in some way be reconciled! By “reconciled” here I mean that the Bible is reconciled as not contradicting itself.

It can never be a case of: this group of Scriptures shows that Jesus Christ has always existed, while this other group of Scriptures shows that Jesus Christ was created by God the Father. It can never be a case of using some Scriptures to argue against other Scriptures. And it is not that one of these two groups of Scriptures eventually “wins the argument”. That is simply not an acceptable possibility, when we are dealing with the Bible.

It must always be a case of both groups of Scriptures being “reconciled” towards one set of correct explanations.

The most common form of “reconciliation” in this type of situation is that one set of Scriptures does apply to the teaching under discussion, while the other set of Scriptures does not apply to the teaching under discussion. In other words, one of the two sets of Scriptures actually has nothing to do with the teaching under discussion.