God the Father and Son
The Proverbs has a few very unusual yet revealing verses in (1) Proverbs 8:22-24:
“The Lord possessed me at the beginning of His way, before His works of old.
“I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, or ever the earth was.
“When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no fountains abounding with water” Proverbs 8:22-24 (KJ21).
Other translations:
Lamsa Peshitta: “The LORD created me as the first of his creation, before all of his works.
TLB (Living Bible): The Lord formed me in the beginning, before he created anything else.
Others translate, “I was brought forth” as;
EXB (Expanded Bible), GW, GNT, HCSB, NET: I was born before there were oceans or springs overflowing with water,
JUV: I was begotten before the depths, before the existence of the fountains of many waters.
NIV: When there were no watery depths, I was given birth
WYC: I was conceived
(2) And in Proverb 30:4:
“Who hath ascended up into heaven or hath descended? Who hath gathered the wind in His fists? Who hath bound the waters in a garment? Who hath established all the ends of the earth? What is His name, and what is His Son’s name, if thou canst tell?” Proverb 30:4.
This is confirmed in the NT
“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation” Colossians 1:15. Many other translations translated the last part as “the firstborn of all creation.”
(3) And in Psalms 2:7-8
“I will declare the decree: The Lord hath said unto Me, ‘Thou art My Son; this day have I begotten Thee.
“Ask of Me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for Thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for Thy possession” Psalms 2:7-8.
God was revealing about himself yet teasing his readers by asking what his name is, and what his Son’s name is.
The Father is the only true God, which the Son acknowledges; how this could happen is because the Son is carrying the name of the Father: for in John 17:3, it says, “And this is life eternal: that they might know Thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom Thou hast sent.”
In Deuteronomy 6:4 it declares, “The LORD our God, the LORD is One,” the central monotheistic confession of Israel.
And in Isaiah 45:5, it says, “I am the Lord, and there is none else; there is no God besides Me.”‘
(4) But the key to understanding this apparent contradiction lies in a key Scripture in Exodus.
Speaking to Moses, God the Father, said:
“Behold, I (Father) send an Angel (his Son as the Messenger) before you to keep you in the way and to bring you into the place which I have prepared. Beware of Him (his Son, Yeshua) and obey His voice; do not provoke Him (Yeshua), for He will not pardon your transgressions; for My name is in Him Exodus 23:20-21; hence YHVH’s name is in his Son, Yeshua.
Another translation by the Targum Exodus 23:21-24; promising an “enemy of thy enemy.”
Behold, I will send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee in to the place of My habitation which I have prepared.
Be circumspect before Him, and obey His word, and be not rebellious against His words; for He will not forgive your sins, because His word is in My Name.
For if thou wilt indeed hearken to His Word, and do all that I speak by Him, I will be the enemy of thy enemy, and will trouble them who trouble thee.
For My Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee to the Amoraee, and Pherizaee, and Kenaanaee, Hivaee, and Jebusaee; and I will destroy them. Exodus 23:20-24 Jonathan
Sames with Judges, where judges carries the authority and name of God. Exodus 22:8 If the thief is not found, then the master of the house shall be brought to the judges (H430 elohiym in the Hebrew, ‘God’ as in Genesis 1:1) to see whether he has put his hand into his neighbor’s goods. Exodus 22:28 “Thou shalt not revile God [or judges as in KJ21], nor curse the ruler of thy people.
A sense of Royalty: At times of Royal duty, Prince William carries all the authority of King Charles, his father. An egg thrown at him is as good as one thrown at the king.
Samuel was not just a high priest, but also a judge and a prophet of God.
Now it came to pass when Samuel was old that he made his sons judges over Israel. 2 The name of his firstborn was Joel, and the name of his second, Abijah; they were judges in Beersheba. 3 But his sons did not walk in his ways; they turned aside after dishonest gain, took bribes, and perverted justice.
4 Then all the elders of Israel gathered together and came to Samuel at Ramah, 5 and said to him, “Look, you are old, and your sons do not walk in your ways. Now make us a king to judge us like all the nations.”
6 But the thing displeased Samuel when they said, “Give us a king to judge us.” So Samuel prayed to the LORD. 7 And the LORD said to Samuel, “Heed the voice of the people in all that they say to you; for they have not rejected you, but they have rejected Me, that I should not reign over them. 1 Samuel 8:1-7.
If Samuel, a prophet, was already such a special envoy of God, how much more if His Son would be here!
(5) John 1:1 reads, “In the beginning was the Word (logos; λόγος), and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” The Word existed “in the beginning” and, eventually, “became flesh and dwelt among us” as the Messiah (John 1:14). Yet John also notes that this Word “in the world” prior to the appearance of Yeshua (John 1:10), and those who “received” the Word before his transformation were called “sons of God.”
“But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to those who believe in His name,” John 1:12.
So Q. when did the Word of God come into our world before the advent of the Messiah, and who received this Word according to the Scriptures?
(6) Answer. First time as in Genesis when the three ‘angels’ appeared before Abraham.
And when the Word stood before Abraham in Genesis 18:22 And the men turned their faces from thence, and went toward Sodom; but the Lord stood yet before Abraham (Bullinger): “Jehovah stood yet before Abraham.”
(7) At first, Samuel thinks that Eli is calling him, but the priest tells him that it’s actually the voice of God (see 1 Sam 3:4-9). After three divine calls, God appeared physically to Samuel when “the Lord came (bo’; בוא), and stood (H3320 yatsab; יצב)” before the boy (1 Samuel 3:10).
Second times he appeared before Samuel. God’s interaction with the prophet Samuel is a good example of the Word in the Hebrew Bible. As the young Samuel serves as an apprentice under Eli the priest at the Temple in Shiloh, the Lord calls to him several times.
“And the Lord came and stood (before Samuel), and called as at other times, “Samuel, Samuel.” Then Samuel answered, “Speak, for Thy servant heareth” I Samuel 3:10. This happened because “the Word of the Lord (v7)” wasn’t yet revealed to him.
Just a few verses later, we learn that God makes these kinds of physical appearances through the Word: “The Lord continued to appear at Shiloh, for the Lord revealed himself to Samuel at Shiloh by the Word of the Lord.”
“And the Lord appeared again in Shiloh, for the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the Word of the Lord” 1 Samuel 3:21.
Thus, the meetings between God and Samuel support John’s claim that the Word came into the world of ancient Israel and that Israelites like Samuel received the Word. For John, it would be this same Word who would one day become flesh in Yeshua the Messiah.
The ending gave the clue that it was the Son appearing before Samuel on behalf of His Father.
Hence we have two instances where the Word acting on behalf of the Father appeared before men: (1) when the Word appeared and stood before Abraham, Genesis 18:21-23; and (2) And the Lord appeared again in Shiloh, for the Lord revealed Himself to Samuel in Shiloh by the Word of the Lord, I Samuel 3:21.
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