Is the trinity in view in Genesis 1:26?

[divaD]

First of all, I'm trinitarian, likely in the same sense that others on this board are also trinitarian. So my goal is not to try and disprove trintarianism(is this even a word?) in any way , shape or form. My conclusions are based on a whole lot of thinking outside of the box, by putting 2 and 2 together based on numerous Scriptures.

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.

What's interesting about this verse..it states...And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. So then, if this is meaning the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, then why did the next verse state it this way?

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

One would think if this is meaning the trinity, the verse should have stated the following instead...So God created man in THEIR own image. But as one can see, it doesn't state that at all.

So what I'm thinking then, where would angels be at in this point in time?

Job 38:4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.
5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?
6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;
7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

The sons of God are referring to the angels. Some might argue that this wasn't referring to angels, so if not then, then what would the sons of God have been? Assuming these are angels, clearly they are present and witnessing the time God laid the foundations of the earth. So that would make them present in Genesis 1:26 as well.

What's also interesting about this, they're called sons of God. And guess what? So are we. And guess what else? At the resurrection, we become like the angels. So putting 2 and 2 together then, since angels are called sons of God, and we are called sons of God, and the fact that we become like the angels in heaven, then it's only logical that when God created the angels, he also created them in His image, and after His likeness as well.

So with all of this in mind, let's go back to Genesis 1:26-27.

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.

And God said UNTO THE ANGELS(SINCE THEY TOO WOULD HAVE BEEN CREATED IN GOD'S IMAGE, AND AFTER HIS LIKENESS), 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.

So God created man in his(SINGULAR, NOT PLURAL, BECAUSE THE ANGELS WOULD ALREADY BE IN GOD'S IMAGE) own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

So IOW, in verse 27, the idea is to make man in the same image as God and the angels, that image being solely the image of God, since the angels would already be in this image as well.

[david]

I thought about the trinity this way
From man's point of view God is one because the father, his son, and the spirit all do things perfectly in accord. From God's point of view he is three, because each of the persons has to have some way to communicate to the other two or confer with them to make a plan, so they call to one another and talk to one another as if they were three.
And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here am I! Send me.” And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “ ‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ Isaiah 6:8-9

see pic for more details
trinity.jpg

also the bible itself is aware of its usage of plural words and takes them literally
Now the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring. It does not say, “And to offsprings,” referring to many, but referring to one, “And to your offspring,” who is Christ. Galatians 3:16

You believe that God is one; you do well. Even the demons believe—and shudder! James 2:19

[Butch5]

First of all, I'm trinitarian, likely in the same sense that others on this board are also trinitarian. So my goal is not to try and disprove trintarianism(is this even a word?) in any way , shape or form. My conclusions are based on a whole lot of thinking outside of the box, by putting 2 and 2 together based on numerous Scriptures.

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.

What's interesting about this verse..it states...And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. So then, if this is meaning the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, then why did the next verse state it this way?

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

One would think if this is meaning the trinity, the verse should have stated the following instead...So God created man in THEIR own image. But as one can see, it doesn't state that at all.

So what I'm thinking then, where would angels be at in this point in time?

Job 38:4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.
5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?
6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;
7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

The sons of God are referring to the angels. Some might argue that this wasn't referring to angels, so if not then, then what would the sons of God have been? Assuming these are angels, clearly they are present and witnessing the time God laid the foundations of the earth. So that would make them present in Genesis 1:26 as well.

What's also interesting about this, they're called sons of God. And guess what? So are we. And guess what else? At the resurrection, we become like the angels. So putting 2 and 2 together then, since angels are called sons of God, and we are called sons of God, and the fact that we become like the angels in heaven, then it's only logical that when God created the angels, he also created them in His image, and after His likeness as well.

So with all of this in mind, let's go back to Genesis 1:26-27.

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.

And God said UNTO THE ANGELS(SINCE THEY TOO WOULD HAVE BEEN CREATED IN GOD'S IMAGE, AND AFTER HIS LIKENESS), 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.

So God created man in his(SINGULAR, NOT PLURAL, BECAUSE THE ANGELS WOULD ALREADY BE IN GOD'S IMAGE) own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

So IOW, in verse 27, the idea is to make man in the same image as God and the angels, that image being solely the image of God, since the angels would already be in this image as well.

Hi divaD,

What passages are you using to determine that we will be like the angles? I think the context of those passages may be critical to your understanding here.

[david]

Hi divaD,

What passages are you using to determine that we will be like the angles? I think the context of those passages may be critical to your understanding here.

We will be "like" angels.. reminds me of this verse
For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. Mark 12:25

[Butch5]

We will be "like" angels.. reminds me of this verse
For when they rise from the dead, they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like angels in heaven. Mark 12:25

Hi divaD,

The context of that passage is marriage. We will be like the angels in that we won't marry in the resurrection. I don't think Jesus is saying that human and angles will be alike in ways other than marriage. At least not in this passage.

[david]

Hi divaD,

The context of that passage is marriage. We will be like the angels in that we won't marry in the resurrection. I don't think Jesus is saying that human and angles will be alike in ways other than marriage. At least not in this passage.

hope you guys aren't confused about my name over divaD's name. LoL

i wrote that, not him.

[Sojourner55]

One thing always puzzled me about this verse being interpreted as one Person (presumably the Father) speaking to the other two: if this verse portrays man's design being communicated--as appears to be the case, wouldn't that suggest that the other two Persons did not know what the first one was thinking before He said it? That just doesn't compute for me. Either this is a case of the Hebrew not being adequately conveyed in English, or else God is speaking to individuals who are not omniscient.

I've always likened this verse to Gen 11:17, in which we see God saying, "let us go down and confuse their language..." Again I see a problem with one omniscient Person suggesting something to the other two. To me, this makes a case that God was speaking inclusively to the angels--perhaps in a council setting as depicted in 1 Kings 22:19-22:

19 Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left.
20 And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?’
“One suggested this, and another that.
21 Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will entice him.’
22 “‘By what means?’ the Lord asked.
“‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,’ he said.
“‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the Lord. ‘Go and do it.’


Given that the angels always appear on earth in the form of men--and indeed, at times may not even be recognized as an angel (Heb 13:2), is it not conceivable that the form or likeness God chose for man is the same as that in which He designed the angels? The only real objection to this view is that the angels did not actively participate in the creation of man. Yet, as I alluded to earlier, "let us" could be construed as God including the faithful angels who had not sinned, in what He planned to do. What do you think?

[quiet dove]

First of all, I'm trinitarian, likely in the same sense that others on this board are also trinitarian. So my goal is not to try and disprove trintarianism(is this even a word?) in any way , shape or form. My conclusions are based on a whole lot of thinking outside of the box, by putting 2 and 2 together based on numerous Scriptures.

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.

What's interesting about this verse..it states...And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. So then, if this is meaning the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, then why did the next verse state it this way?

27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

One would think if this is meaning the trinity, the verse should have stated the following instead...So God created man in THEIR own image. But as one can see, it doesn't state that at all.

So what I'm thinking then, where would angels be at in this point in time?

Job 38:4 Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding.
5 Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it?
6 Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof;
7 When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy?

The sons of God are referring to the angels. Some might argue that this wasn't referring to angels, so if not then, then what would the sons of God have been? Assuming these are angels, clearly they are present and witnessing the time God laid the foundations of the earth. So that would make them present in Genesis 1:26 as well.

What's also interesting about this, they're called sons of God. And guess what? So are we. And guess what else? At the resurrection, we become like the angels. So putting 2 and 2 together then, since angels are called sons of God, and we are called sons of God, and the fact that we become like the angels in heaven, then it's only logical that when God created the angels, he also created them in His image, and after His likeness as well.

So with all of this in mind, let's go back to Genesis 1:26-27.

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.

And God said UNTO THE ANGELS(SINCE THEY TOO WOULD HAVE BEEN CREATED IN GOD'S IMAGE, AND AFTER HIS LIKENESS), 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.

So God created man in his(SINGULAR, NOT PLURAL, BECAUSE THE ANGELS WOULD ALREADY BE IN GOD'S IMAGE) own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them.

So IOW, in verse 27, the idea is to make man in the same image as God and the angels, that image being solely the image of God, since the angels would already be in this image as well.

I was going to post like an hour ago and my software decided to be a pain, so have been trying to download and unistall. I thought I did post here a little but don't see it. Idk, sometimes I get my threads mixed up.

Anyway..what I don't get about the us being angels, is that angels don't create people. So the let us create, would insinuate that angels were also taking part in the creating wouldn't it?

Also, in verse 27 where it is translated "Him", it does use Elohim(H430), which is plural. I don't know if that helps any ....

[Butch5]

hope you guys aren't confused about my name over divaD's name. LoL

i wrote that, not her.

Sorry david, I didn't notice the different name.

[LookingUp]

Sorry david, I didn't notice the different name.

Different user name but same actual name (that is if david's actual name is really david). divaD is David.

[LookingUp]

One thing always puzzled me about this verse being interpreted as one Person (presumably the Father) speaking to the other two: if this verse portrays man's design being communicated--as appears to be the case, wouldn't that suggest that the other two Persons did not know what the first one was thinking before He said it? That just doesn't compute for me. Either this is a case of the Hebrew not being adequately conveyed in English, or else God is speaking to individuals who are not omniscient.

I've always likened this verse to Gen 11:17, in which we see God saying, "let us go down and confuse their language..." Again I see a problem with one omniscient Person suggesting something to the other two. To me, this makes a case that God was speaking inclusively to the angels--perhaps in a council setting as depicted in 1 Kings 22:19-22:

19 Micaiah continued, “Therefore hear the word of the Lord: I saw the Lord sitting on his throne with all the host of heaven standing around him on his right and on his left.
20 And the Lord said, ‘Who will entice Ahab into attacking Ramoth Gilead and going to his death there?’
“One suggested this, and another that.
21 Finally, a spirit came forward, stood before the Lord and said, ‘I will entice him.’
22 “‘By what means?’ the Lord asked.
“‘I will go out and be a lying spirit in the mouths of all his prophets,’ he said.
“‘You will succeed in enticing him,’ said the Lord. ‘Go and do it.’


Given that the angels always appear on earth in the form of men--and indeed, at times may not even be recognized as an angel (Heb 13:2), is it not conceivable that the form or likeness God chose for man is the same as that in which He designed the angels? The only real objection to this view is that the angels did not actively participate in the creation of man. Yet, as I alluded to earlier, "let us" could be construed as God including the faithful angels who had not sinned, in what He planned to do. What do you think?

Lots of great points.

[david]

Different user name but same actual name (that is if david's actual name is really david). divaD is David.

Oh ic. spelled backwards. gotcha

[Butch5]

Different user name but same actual name (that is if david's actual name is really david). divaD is David.

Hi Julie,

Yeah, I know, I just didn't realize it was david. I guesss I didn't look at the name.

[LookingUp]

Hi Julie,

Yeah, I know, I just didn't realize it was david. I guesss I didn't look at the name.

david called divaD "her," so just thought I'd let him in on it. I thought you might know but wasn't sure. How ya been?

That "diva" part really throws people! :-)

[quiet dove]

Oh ic. spelled backwards. gotcha

After all this time I had not picked up on that....LOL....duh