Issued: 6/11/21 Revised: 10/13/23

PLEASE NOTE:  Because Bible versions sometimes differ from each other in crucial ways, the version quoted here will be the one that best clarifies the point being made.  For a quick comparison between versions, please go to: http://www.biblehub.com.

   All bracketed material may be authorial comments, attempts at proper syntax, or minimal rewordings of Scripture for the sake of clarity and continuity.  These emendations will not be italicized.

   The “/” will be used to signify “and/or.”  The symbol “↔” is used to connect verses corroborating each other and so establishing doctrinal truths (Matthew 18:16↔2Corinthians 13:1).

   In differentiating between Yahweh Son [Jesus] and Yahweh Father [the Most High God], lower case letters have been used when discussing the former; upper case letters are reserved for the Only and Most High God.  Since Jesus was at pains to differentiate himself from Father, we have followed his lead here.

   The term neo-Christians will be used to differentiate between false Christians and Jesus’ true followers.

INTRODUCTION

   In this series, we will examine Jesus’ divinity in terms of symbols and Messianic roles attributed to him:  Light  / Name Giver / Seed Sower / Husband / Judge of all flesh / Old Testament proxy Angel God / Sword-bearer / New Testament Interim Man God / and King/High Priest of God’s Kingdom.  For the most part, these roles are listed as they first appear in the Bible, though their meanings are explained in the New Testament for reasons stated by Jesus (Mark 4:11-12↔Isaiah 28:13), Paul (1Corinthians 2:7,10-14↔Deuteronomy 29:29, John 16:13, 1John 2:27), and Peter (1Peter 1:10-12).

   Though in Hebrews 13:8 Paul said that “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever,” he meant it in terms of entity, not name; for in his pre-existence in the Old Testament, Jesus, by virtue of sharing his Father’s name (Exodus 23:21), was known as Yahweh of hosts, the Redeemer of the Most High God, Yahweh the King (Isaiah 44:6).  However, it must be understood that whatever roles are ascribed to Yahweh of hosts/Jesus are equally applicable to Yahweh the Most High, because the latter has empowered the former to act in His stead.  So while Yahweh of hosts/Jesus may be the de facto Redeemer, God is the ultimate Redeemer; while Jesus is the de facto Creator (John 1:3↔Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2-3), God is the ultimate Creator; and since Jesus is essentially channeling God’s powers, they are both All-Mighty (Revelation 1:8, 22:13,16).

   We will return to these things later on; but in discussing the symbolism of “Light,” we will refer to Jesus as Son and to the Most High God as Father.

The Creation of Light

   Natural light is what gives the physical world its forms, shapes, colors, depths, and dimensions; in total darkness nothing can be perceived [literally] or understood [figuratively].  But the Genesis “Light” was no Bing Bang burst of energy giving rise to the universe we observe, since the cosmos was created on Fourth Day (Genesis 1:14-19).  While current scientific wisdom posits that matter existed in some quantum state prior to the Bing Bang, such matter was infinitesimally compressed and undifferentiated.  Yet Scripture talks about “waters” plus “formless and void earth” upon which God and His Spirit moved before “Light” was created (Genesis 1:1-2); thus contradicting cosmological models.  As can be seen Father and Spirit—but not Son—are clearly accounted for.

  Then, “God said, ‘Let there be Light,’ and there was Light” (Genesis 1:3), the first thing created.  If we then read the Holy Spirit’s testimony through Paul, “The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” (Colossians 1:15↔2 Peter 1:20-21); as well as Jesus’ own admission in Revelation 3:14, “I am the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God,” there is no doubt that Jesus and “Light” are one and the same.  In corroboration, the Holy Spirit through John makes the same case:  That true “Light” was coming to the world created by it (John 1:9-10); to which Jesus added the clincher:  “I am the light of the world [literally].  If you follow me, you won’t have to walk in darkness [figuratively], because you will have the light [both literally and figuratively] that leads to life” (John 8:12). 

   Thus, in accordance to the substance versus shadow argument Paul was so fond of invoking (Colossians 2:17; Hebrews 8:5-6), the shadow part of the created “Light” allegorizes faith’s ability to discern the true nature of things behind the reality our senses perceive; hence, “We walk by faith, not by sight…so we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen, since what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal” (2Corinthians 5:7, 4:18).  The substance part refers to Son, the first creature before anything else existed—which corresponds with the Father’s proclamation in Psalms 2:7:  “You are My Son; today I have become your Father.” ¹

   We should not take Psalms 2:7 to mean the embryo implanted in Mary’s womb; for that embryo contained the totality of the pre-existent Jesus who could claim to have lived before Abraham (John 8:56-58) and existed before the world was (John 1:3, 17:5).  Neither is Psalms 2:7 to be understood in the context of Jesus’ resurrection (Colossians 1:18); for prior to his death, Father had already acknowledged him to be “beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17).  Though it is true Father raised Son from the dead not as the mortal man he had been but as an immortal flesh, Son was the same spiritual entity as before—to put it prosaically, the same dog with a different collar but definitely no new Son.

   In essence, what have we just argued?  That Son was created not once but three times:  First when called into being as “Light” (Genesis 1:3); secondly as the man emerging from the embryo implanted in Mary’s womb (Luke 1:31-35); and thirdly as the immortal being brought back by Father from the dead following his crucifixion (Acts 13:30; Romans 8:11; Revelation 1:17-18).  Be it said in passing that if Father had not resurrected Son, Jesus would not be with us today.

This is why Genesis 1:1-2 pointedly establishes the existence of Father and His Spirit but not of Son, telling us that the three are not co-substantial.  There may be three persons carrying out the plan of redemption (1John 5:7); as John uses the word, “one” meaning in agreement serving Father‘s will but not consubstantial. If Father is spirit (John 4:24), so by definition the Holy Spirit must be too.  Yet Spirits in terms of invisibility?  Or Spirit within a Spirit?  Or a Spirit with two independent intellects, one subservient to the other’s will?  Certainly John 16:13, Romans 8:26-27 and 1Corinthians 2:10 support the latter contention. In contrast, Son Yahweh of hosts, as we shall discuss, can be seen and heard throughout the Old Testament.

We thus have a Dyadic rather than a Trinitarian God, plus a third person, Son, who is inferior to Them, all with specific hierarchies and roles with respect to each other.  Son tells us, for example, that blasphemies against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven, but anything said against him is forgivable (Matthew 12:31-32).  Father ranks higher than Son (John 14:28); but as Son is Father’s steward in human affairs, they are in fact two persons acting as One, Son being an extension of Father‘s will—the intended meaning of John 10:30.²  Father has a unique relationship with the Holy Spirit that does not involve Son (Romans 8:26-27).  And while the Holy Spirit knows Father’s innermost thoughts in order to reveal them—as far as allowed—to men(1Corinthians 2:7,10-13), Son admits that not even he, nor any angel in heaven, is privy to information Father has withheld for Himself (Mark 13:32; Acts 1:7).³  Add Revelation 1:1 to the mix and it becomes clear Son is not All-Knowing like Father. 

   The Apostle Paul has been accused of inventing Christianity by turning Son into the Father that Son never claimed to be.  In point of fact Son did make such claims, not only by stating he preceded Abraham (John 8:56-58) and by being present at Creation (John 17:5), but also by not contradicting Thomas’ acknowledgement of him as the Old Testament, proxy God of the Jews (John 20:28).  Thomas’ assertion is particularly suggestive given that during his ministry, Son continuously credited a higher God for the doctrine he preached (John 7:16); for the miracles he performed (John 14:10↔as did Paul in 1Corinthians 2:4-5); and by ranking Father above himself (John 14:28).  Additionally, Son taught men to fear not him but the Father Who could destroy body and soul at Armageddon (Matthew 10:28↔Revelation 20:9).  In terms of spiritual children, Son credited Father for giving them to him (John 6:39↔Hebrews 2:13); and though he was Father’s inheritor (Psalms 2:8), Son stressed that the Kingdom belonged to Father (Matthew 6:13; John 14:2).

   If any readers doubt that two Gods are being spoken of in the Bible, and that Father ≠ Son, refer to Deuteronomy 32:39, Isaiah 45:5, 46:9-10↔Daniel 4:17,35,5:21, and Revelation 3:12, 21:22-23.  But we are getting ahead of ourselves.  Let us instead go back to Son’s “Light” attributes.

   Why does Genesis specifically call Son “the Light” instead of by his proper name to make everything crystal clear?  Because Father’s “hidden wisdom” (Deuteronomy 29:29↔1Corinthians 2:7) is expressed in symbols, allegories, and parables revealed only to the faithful in order to condemn unbelievers (Mark 4:11-12; Romans 1:17; 1Corinthians 2:14; 2Corinthians 4:3-4).  And just as Son identified himself as the sower of the parable (Matthew 13:37), he also called himself “the light of the world” (John 8:12, 9:5, 12:46), so that his followers should not walk in darkness (Matthew 4:16).  If we were listening to Son rather than reading his words, it is not difficult to imagine him saying, “I am the Light of the world” to stress the link with Genesis 1:3.  Still, though suggestive, this is speculation and not proof.

   However, Father’s law requires the testimony of two or three witnesses to establish truth (John 5:31, 8:17; 2Corinthians 13:1); for which reason Son validated his ministry—as Paul later did—on the fact that Father acted jointly through him (John 10:25; 1Corinthians 2:4-5).  To which the Holy Spirit, Who inspires all Scripture (2Peter 1:20-21), added His corroboration:  “In the beginning was the Word [Son], and the Word was with God [Father]…In Him [Father] was life [Son], and the life [Son] was the light of men [the wording of John 8:12]…There was a man sent from God [Father↔Luke 1:36-37], whose name was John [the Baptist].  This man came for a witness, to bear witness of the Light [Son] that all through him might believe.  [John the Baptist] was not that Light, but was sent to bear witness of that [other] Light ⁴…which gives light [understanding] to every man…He [Son] came to his own, and his own did not receive him” (John 1:1-11).

The Creation of Darkness

   Though Son was non-existent during Genesis 1-2, he had been called into being by Genesis 1:3.  At this point in time [i.e., First Day], Scripture does not record exchanges between Father and Son; but since the necessity for Son to die in order to redeem men had been agreed upon (1Peter 1:20-21), we surmise other agendas later implied but not specifically recorded in Scripture were also formulated—for example, appointing Son as Father’s proxy God (Philippians 2:6) and proxy Creator (Hebrews 1:2).  Hence Son completed Creation from the remainder of First Day until Seventh Day, the Sabbath Son was Lord of (Mark 2:28). And since redemption implies remission of sins, there had to be a Deceiver tempting men to transgress—in short, the anti-Light symbolized in Genesis 1:4 as “Darkness.”

   Please note that although Genesis 1:5 reads, “God called the light ‘day,’ and the darkness he called ‘night,’” neither Sun nor Moon had been created; so that day and night must be symbols for something else.  Also note that whereas “Light” and much of Creation is deemed “good” (Genesis 1:4,12,18,21,31), no similar endorsement is given to “Darkness.”  Which suggests what?  That “Darkness” and the Antichrist are one and the same.

Sons of Light and Sons of Darkness

   Did Father personally have a hand in creating Satan? ⁵  By definition impossible:  Father does not tempt anyone (James 1:13), let alone create someone else to tempt men.  Also it is against His nature to engage in evildoing, being “Father of lights, with Whom there is no variation” or possibility of change [↔Malachi 3:6] (James 1:17).  Consequently, somebody else must have called Satan into being; and in the context of Genesis 1:3, only one person could have done that:  Proxy Creator Son.  “For by [Son] all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones, or dominions, or rulers, or authorities—all things have been created through him and for him” (Colossians 1:16).  And who gave Son this power?  Father:  “In these last days [the tail end of the 7,000± years of the Genesis ‘week’] He [Father] has spoken to us by His Son (John 12:49), whom He appointed heir of all things (Psalms 2:8↔Matthew 28:18; Revelation 2:27), and through whom He [Father as ultimate Creator] made the universe” (Hebrews 1:2↔John 17:5).

   Now, Son created Satan as an Archangel perfect in all his ways until his unparalleled gifts corrupted him (Ezekiel 28:12-15,17); whereupon he decided to usurp Son’s proxy God role (Isaiah 14:13-14).  Please note that Isaiah uses symbols later explained in Scripture:  “Stars of God” denoting the angelic host and a throne like Son’s at Father’s right (Mark 16:19↔Psalms 110:1).  Also note that it was not Satan’s objective—being powerless to do so—to unseat Father, but to assume the position similar to His already entrusted to Son.  Thus Satan aimed to branch out from deputized protector (Ezekiel 28:14) into power-sharer.

  Yet it is peculiar that “Darkness” was not deemed “good,” whereas Man, equally corrupted by choice (Genesis 3:6↔Ecclesiastes 7:29), was deemed so (Genesis 1:26)-27,31).  Perhaps the significance of the omission is pointing out it was foreknown that Satan would turn into Son’s antagonist; and this in turn gave meaning to other symbols involving light and darkness with respect to Son’s and Satan’s progenies amongst men.

  It is customary in Scripture to use aspects of nature to illustrate points of faith.  The behavior of ants, for example, is contrasted against men who should be busy saving their souls rather than pursuing worldly concerns (Proverbs 6:6-8↔Proverbs 10:5; Matthew 12:30; 2Thessalonians 3:10).  Wind is a symbol for conflict (Revelation 7:1) as well as absence of divine rewards (Proverbs 11:29).  Likewise heavenly bodies were created on Fourth Day to populate the heavens made on Second Day; thus Second Day “skies” were the dividing line between heavenly and human realms, whereas the cosmos proper was created on Fourth Day.  In this sense our Sun, ruling over day, symbolized Son, the morning star of Revelation 22:16 and Malachi’s “Sun of Righteousness” (Malachi 4:2).  Our Moon, with no light of its own but reflecting the Sun’s light and ruling over night, symbolized Satan, who appropriates Son’s attributes to pretend things he is not, and who Isaiah calls “son of the dawn” (Isaiah 14:12) in reference to his creation by Son.  “Stars,” of course, are angels both good and bad—created on First Day along with Satan?

   Possibly, given that the purpose of Second Day “skies” was to “separate the waters of the earth from the waters of the heavens” (Genesis 1:6-7).  “Waters” here serve two purposes:  A literal one discussed in our essay on Noah’s Floor [see The Bible On: Science / Parts I & II], and a symbolic one if we go by Revelation 17:15:  “The waters which you saw where the prostitute [Babylon the Great, the Roman Catholic Church] sits are peoples and multitudes, and nations and languages.”  Consequently, if waters below the expansion are human beings, could not the waters above the expansion be their angelic counterparts?

   Let us tackle angels and human from their respective natures.  Good angels are always portrayed as literal ‘light-emitters’ (Luke 2:9, 24:4↔Revelation 19:8), or as dispensers of ‘enlightenment’—as for example, the Archangel Gabriel (Daniel 8:6; Luke 1:26-33) or the unnamed angels explaining parts of Revelation to John (Revelation 10:9-11, 17:1-18, 19:9-10).  By contrast Satan, having no light of his own, disguises himself as an angel of light (2Corinthians 11:14) and is busy blinding “the minds of unbelievers so they cannot see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ” (2 Corinthians 4:4).  All fallen angels are imprisoned in darkness awaiting Judgment Day (2Peter 2:4; Jude 1:6), so they are literally non-luminous in some shadowy limbo.

   What about humans?  “The sons of this age are more shrewd in dealing with their own kind than are the sons of light” (Luke 16:8).  “I will rescue you from your own people and from the Gentiles.  I am sending you to them to open their eyes, so that they may turn from darkness to light and from the power of Satan to God” (Acts 26:17-18).  “You are all children of the light and children of the day:  We do not belong to the night or to the darkness” (1Thessalonians 5:5).  It could not get any clearer than this.

Conclusions

   By the Seventh Day of Creation the whole course of human history had been foreseen; the plan of redemption through Son’s sacrifice had been mapped out; and both redeemed and condemned had had their names and deeds written on “books” to be judged by (Matthew 25:34; Romans 8:29-30, 9:22-23; Hebrews 3:4; Revelation 13:8, 20:12-15).  Although Son became incarnate around the beginning of the Common Era, his person and mission had been preached to the antediluvian world by Enoch (Jude 1:14-15), whose piety earned him the privilege of being transposed alive into the heavenly realm (Genesis 5:24; Hebrews 11:5).  Furthermore we see that early on, beginning with the birth of Enos, men began calling upon Father’s name (Genesis 4:26); and as shown by Son’s interaction with Noah, “righteous [and] blameless among the people of his time” (Genesis 6:9), Father had impressed upon Son the tradition of not doing anything before first announcing divine designs to men (Amos 3:7, 4:17↔Genesis 6:13,17, 18:17-19).

   And because Son was to play multiple roles in Father’s redemptive plan, it became necessary as well to teach men not only about the synergy of their personal relationship; but to explain the significance of each role by using Biblical persons as ‘shadows’ emphasizing the ‘substance’ of Son’s Messianic attributes.  Thus Adam, Abraham, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, and many others, each exemplify one or more of Son’s roles, so that taken as a whole we have the full picture of all the Messiah embodies.

   But this investigation was to be a work in progress, stretching over millennia as Peter states:  ^“Concerning this salvation, the prophets, who spoke of the grace that was come to you, searched intently and with the greatest care, trying to find out the time and circumstances to which the Spirit of Christ [the Holy Spirit Son anoints with↔1John 2:27] in them was pointing when He predicted the sufferings of the Messiah [in Isaiah 53:1-12, the second testimony needed to validate Son’s claims] and the glories that would follow, it was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves but you [↔Daniel 12:9] , when they…preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from Heaven” (1Peter 1:10-12; see also Matthew 13:17; Ephesians 3:4-5).

   And to this day with Christendom having become a Babel of competing dogmas and false teachings; of idolatrous practices and self-serving agendas; when the divinity of Jesus is doubted, misrepresented, and even denied, the full understanding of our Messiah remains incomplete and muddled thanks to Satan’s progeny in our midst.  But all is as it should be:  “No doubt there have to be differences among you to show which of you have God’s approval” (1Corinthians 11:19); and “none of the wicked shall understand; but those who are wise shall understand” (Daniel 12:10).  Waging the battle of faith is a collective enterprise, where every “soldier” contributes his/her individual gifts/sacrifices.  Since we all must endure the opposition and contradictions from sinners Jesus himself endured and warned us to expect (John 15:19; Hebrews 12:3), “God [has] planned something better for us [to do], so that together [we all] would be made perfect” (Hebrews 11:40).

   In the next installment we will concentrate on Adam’s significance in relation to Jesus; and as much as it is possible, we will deal with Biblical characters as they appear chronologically in Genesis.  Please be advised that much material will be repeated time and again, for the way Scripture is devised does not allow for a more selective approach.  That being said, preaching is all about repetition in hopes that some particular topic will engage and capture the interest of readers leading them to enlightenment (2Corinthians 10:5; 2Timothy 2:25-26).

¹ That “today” marks the beginning of time as human beings experience it; and will stop being in God’s Kingdom following Armageddon.

² In similar fashion, the Church is one body with Jesus but subservient to him (Ephesians 5:23-24).

³ Which, be it said in passing, should be reason enough for us to ignore future doomsayers telling us the precise date the world will end.

⁴ See Matthew 3:11-12; Luke 3:15-17.

⁵ Not a name but a noun meaning ‘adversary or enemy’ (1Peter 5:8). Satan’s real name is not given in the Bible.  ‘Lucifer’ is a Christian extrapolation from Isaiah 14:12. The Islamic Koran names him as ‘Iblis.’