Does the Bible ever refer to Jesus Christ as “God”?
Upvote:6
This answer to Does Jesus ever claim to be God, or the son of God? addresses your question, but now the verses are included for reference below and the idea of Jesus as Lord (Kyrios) which is equal to God is discussed.
There are 7 instances where the Jesus is called God (Theos) in the New Testament, which are in John 1:1, 1:18, 20:28, Romans 9:5, Titus 2:13, Hebrews 1:8, and 2 Peter 1:1.
- John 1:1 "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God."
- John 1:18 "No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known."
- John 20:28 "Thomas answered him, 'My Lord and my God!'"
- Romans 9:5 "To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ, who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen."
- Titus 2:13 "Waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ,"
- Hebrews 1:8 "But of the Son he says, 'Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.'"
- 2 Peter 1:1 "Simeon Peter, a servant and apostle of Jesus Christ, To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ:"
Also noteworthy is that Jesus is called Lord (Kyrios or Kurios) over 500 times in the New Testament, which is how both YHWH and Adonai were translated in the Old Testament into the Septuagint >100 years before Jesus came. Elohim is translated as Theos. There are multiple instances even in the New Testament where Kyrios is used to refer to God, such as the quotations that Jesus uses in Matthew 4 against Satan:
Matthew 4:7 Jesus said to him, "Again it is written, ‘You shall not put the Lord (Kyrios) your God (Theos) to the test.’”
Matthew 4:10 "...You shall worship the Lord (Kyrios) your God (Theos)and him only shall you serve."
So when you account for Jesus being called Lord, you could perhaps say that the Bible calls Jesus (equal to) God explicitly over 500 times.
Edit: the link in the question has a video that mentions how kyrios is also used in several other places in the NT to mean something much less substantial than "God." He mentioned 21 references specifically; 11 of them (over half), ironically enough, are used in parables which Jesus is using an owner/master/lord (kyrios) to represent God. He does make a good point though, that kyrios applies beyond just God or Jesus. However, we can't ignore the significance of the fact that the translations of LORD (YHWH) and Lord (Adonai) are both now Kyrios in the Greek Septuagint. It's probably also worth noting that capitalization was nonexistent in the autographs (original manuscripts) of either the Old or New Testament, as unicals (all capital letters) were the norm. For the NT, minuscules began becoming more popular around 4th-5th century I believe.
Finally, not only is Jesus Lord (Kyrios) and God (Theos), He is the King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Kyrios Kyrion)! These terms are applied to Jesus in 1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 17:14, and Revelation 19:16.
Additional resources:
"The Trinity" chapter in Wayne Grudem's Systematic Theology
The Text of the New Testament: Its Transmission, Corruption, and Restoration by Bruce Metzger and Bart Ehrman
More post
- 📝 Biblical basis for treating a second marriage as sinful even in cases of adultery?
- 📝 What happens to non-believers or believers of other religions after death?
- 📝 Did Jesus change his mind in John 7?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for speaking in tongues for deliverance and spiritual warfare?
- 📝 What is the relationship between God the Father and the Holy Spirit?
- 📝 How many modern day pages were lost by Martin Harris?
- 📝 Why is the Bible so short?
- 📝 Are there Christians that believe that God is a substance?
- 📝 Where does the Bible say to read itself?
- 📝 Did the 1st Century Church Accept the Deuterocanonical books?
- 📝 Do Catholic priests have to report child abuse confessed in secret?
- 📝 Why the resurrection?
- 📝 How did the second Vatican council (aka Vatican II) address the concept of limbo?
- 📝 How should a Christian put a decision in God's hands if there is no logical answer?
- 📝 Can Mass be celebrated at any hour of the day?
- 📝 Does the Catholic Church have any explicit teaching on marital rape?
- 📝 What did John Wycliffe teach about the fate of infants who die?
- 📝 Why has St. John or the three Nephites not come out in support of the LDS Church?
- 📝 From an LDS perspective, what is the difference between feeling the influence of the Holy Spirit and receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit?
- 📝 A Question Regarding the Relationship between God and Messiah
- 📝 Why did the blood sacrifice in Genesis take place as acceptable to God?
- 📝 In Catholic Church History, when, why and by whom did the four living creatures become associated with the four evangelists?
- 📝 What is the origin and meaning of the rosary?
- 📝 Why is the term Immanuel/Emmanuel considered to be a title rather than a proper name?
- 📝 What is a Consistory?
- 📝 Does proclaiming that all non-believers won't be saved count as passing judgement?
- 📝 Did Is. 7:14 inspire Mary to take a vow of virginity?
- 📝 Did early Protestants consider transubstantiation to be idol worship?
- 📝 Why has God created us?
- 📝 Does the Bible condemn white lies?
Source: stackoverflow.com
Search Posts
Related post
- 📝 Does the Bible ever refer to Jesus Christ as “God”?
- 📝 What does the Bible say about this question- Why do Jesus and God have two seats in heaven when they are the same God?
- 📝 For Those who deny the deity of Jesus Christ why does He at Revelation 1:8 identify Himself as the Lord God Almighty?
- 📝 If someone claims himself to be Jesus Christ does The Bible tell me to immediately disbelieve him?
- 📝 Does Jesus ever claim to be God, or the son of God?
- 📝 Why does Jesus refer to himself as the "Son of Man"?
- 📝 What exactly does it mean that Jesus Christ is the son of God?
- 📝 Does the Bible ever say that the Ark of the Covenant flew or levitated?
- 📝 What does the Bible say about God being a different type of being than man?
- 📝 Relationships between God the Father, Mary and the two natures of Jesus Christ
- 📝 Does the Bible give us any indication of why God created such a vast universe with so much stuff in it?
- 📝 Where in the Bible does Jesus refute that He is just a prophet?
- 📝 Why does Jesus have to be fully God and fully man? Is it not sufficient to be the son of God and fully man?
- 📝 Does the Bible explain why God chose Israel?
- 📝 How does the view of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints about Jesus Christ differ from Protestant Trinitarian Christology?
- 📝 What does the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints teach about who Jesus is and where He came from?
- 📝 John 1:18 - "No one has ever seen God" - How do Trinitarians reconcile this scripture with the belief that the Lord Jesus Christ is God?
- 📝 How does the Jehovah’s Witness view of who Jesus Christ is differ from Protestant Trinitarian Christology?
- 📝 What does Mormonism have to offer in regards to salvation through Jesus Christ that was not already taught in the New Testament?
- 📝 Does the Bible refer to Christian gentiles or the Church as "New Israelites", "New Israel" or "Spiritual Israel"?
- 📝 Does The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints allow polygamy in lands where it is legal?
- 📝 Where in the Bible does it mention that God mourns with us when we mourn?
- 📝 What is the biblical basis for the belief that the Lord Jesus Christ does NOT presently possess blood in his incorruptible body?
- 📝 Does the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints postulate a multi-verse?
- 📝 How do Trinitarians respond to passages in the Bible that seem to clearly distinguish between God and Jesus after his ascension?
- 📝 Did most of the people that Jesus heal believe he was God? If so, why does the Bible not record them asking for salvation?
- 📝 Does the Bible give the reasons (if any) for God choosing Abraham?
- 📝 Did Jesus ever say in the Bible to preach Christianity or his message to the Non-Jews?
- 📝 According to the Catholic Church, whom does Jesus refer to as the “ruler of this world” in Jn 16:11?
- 📝 How does a non-God Jesus sitting as King forever correct the rejection of God as King that began in Samuel's day?