The Trinity

All the verses quoted in this booklet are taken from The Interlinear Bible. It is not a translation full of opinions as so many are, but is a literal translation from the Hebrew and Greek words. It may read quite differently than your translation in places.

Introduction

To be known as a Christian today, it is expected that a person profess belief in the trinity. In fact, some organizations insist on it and some even go so far as to require it. How can they do that? Did you know that the word "trinity" does not appear in the Scriptures at all? So where does the concept come from? What is a trinity? Is it biblical?

From Webster's Dictionary
Trinity - a union of three in one; the state of being three; theol. The union of three persons in one Godhead: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

I John 5:7
"For there are three bearing witness in heaven; the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit; and these three are one."

In The Interlinear Bible, that entire verse is printed in italics. In that particular translation,English words printed in italics are there to promote understanding, but they do not appear in the original texts! In the Preface of the book, it says, "This text retains a few readings from the Latin Vulgate, two or three without Greek-manuscript authority (e.g. Acts 9:5-6), and one from the Complutensian Bible (I John 5:7). Although we do not accept these as true Scripture, we have allowed them to remain."

From Jamieson, Fausett and Brown, volume 6, page 643, regarding I John 5:7
"The only Greek manuscripts, in any form which support the words 'in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth…' are the Montfortianus of Dublin, copied evidently from the modern Latin Vulgate; the Ravianus copied from the Complutensian Polyglot; a manuscript at Naples, with the words added in the margin by a recent hand; Ottobonianus, 298, of the 15th century, the Greek of which is a mere translation of the accompanying Latin. All old versions omit the words."

From Peakes Commentary on the Bible, page 1038
"The famous interpolation after 'three witnesses' is not printed even in the RSV, and rightly. It cites the heavenly testimony of the Father, the Logos and the Holy Spirit, but it is never used in the early Trinitarian controversies. No respectable Greek manuscript contains it. Appearing first in a late 4th century Latin text, it entered the Vulgate and finally the New Testament of Erasmus."

What do other sources have to say? Can any of them help us understand the subject? Do they give any support for this doctrine? Or do they disprove it?

Resource Comments And Quotes

From World Book Encyclopedia, volume 19, page 363
"Trinity - is a term used of God to express the belief that in the one God there are three divine persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit (or Holy Ghost). The idea of trinity is drawn from the teaching of Christ as recorded in the New Testament. Belief in Father, Son and Holy Spirit was first defined by the earliest general council of churches. This was the First Council of Nicaea in 325. This council declared that the Spirit is of the same substance as the Father. The Eastern and Western branches of the church later disagreed as to how the Holy Spirit proceeds from the other divine Persons. The Eastern Church held that the Spirit comes from the Father and the Son comes from the Father through the Spirit. The Western Church held that the Spirit comes from the Father and Son together. Most Christians believe that Father, Son, and Holy Spirit have equal power and glory. Each has His own activity. The Father creates; the Son saves souls; and the Spirit makes holy."

From Funk and Wagnalls New Encyclopedia, 1972, volume 23, page 291
"Trinity - in Christian theology, doctrine, according to the Book of Common Prayer that in 'unity of the Godhead there be three Persons, of one substance, power, and eternity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost'. The most elaborate statement of the doctrine is to be found in the Athanasian Creed, which asserts that 'the Catholic faith is this: That we worship one God in Trinity, and Trinity in Unity, neither confounding the persons nor dividing the substance, for there is one person of the Father, another of the Son, and another of the Holy Ghost. But the Godhead of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost is all one; the glory equal; the majesty coeternal.'
"The term Trinitas was first used, in the second century, by the Christian ecclesiastical writer Tertullian, but the concept took form only in the debates on Christology. It was not until the progress of opposing parties sought, on the one hand, to degrade the divine dignity of Christ (Ebionitism in its various forms and Arianism) or, on the other hand, to confound the personality of Christ with God the Father, that the Church was led to define in the Nicaean Creed the relation of the Son to the Father and further, in the Nicaeno-Constantinopolitan Creed, the relation of the Holy Ghost to the Father."

From Sacred Origins of Profound Things, by Charles Panati, pages 302-306
   "Among the three great monotheistic religions, only Christianity embraces the Trinitarian Creed: the coexistence of God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit in a single Godhead, distinctly different, yet one and the same."
   "One might ask - as Jews and Muslims repeatedly have - isn't it cheating for a religion to be monotheistic if it recognizes three distinctly different Gods? Three Gods; three different names; three different functions: the Creator, the Redeemer, the Sanctifier. Should, Muslims suggested, this not be called 'tritheism'?
   "Significantly, the Christian books of the Bible - the Gospels, Acts, Epistles (or letters), Revelation, and the Apocrypha ('things that are hidden') - make no explicit reference to a three-fold Godhead.
   "Nor did Jesus, a Jew, perhaps with rabbinic training, violate the Judaic motto - 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God is one Lord' - in his teachings.
   "God the Father does mention God the Son in the New Testament, and the Son in turn mentions the Father and the Holy Spirit. The outline of a trinity is there, but it is never clearly delineated
   "Early in the fourth century, the Trinitarian controversy heated to the high point of heresy, pitting two theologians, Athanasius and Arius, against each other and drawing concern from the Roman emperor Constantine himself who had warmed up to Christianity and would eventually convert.
   "Today, Arius' name is a byword for heresy: the Arian Heresy.
   "Back in 320, Arius, who knew Scripture inside and out - and was a skilled propagandist and musician - insisted that Christ, the Word, Logos could only be a creature like ourselves, created by God. When he put his ideas to music and sang songs of Christ's second-rank status to God, thousands of ordinary Christians, once content in their monotheism, became aware of the passionate debate raging among bishops.
   "Christian bishops gathered at Nicaea on May 20, 325, convening the Council of Nicaea, which, after much acrimonious contention, decided upon the crucial formula for the Trinitarian doctrine, setting it forth in a credo, the Nicaean Creed. The Son, it declared, is 'of the same essence as the Father.' The creed said troublingly little about the Holy Spirit.
   "In fact, the entire lengthy creed, as first written, wrestles with logic and common sense to equate Father and Son, giving nod to the Holy Spirit only in the last passing line: 'And we believe in the Holy Ghost.'
   "The controversy raged on for some years. Later the Nicaean Creed was revised under the leadership of Basil, bishop of Caesarea. It was altered to end 'We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father'.
   "Thus, the concept of the Trinity did not take its present form until some 400 years after Christ's death."

From Brewer's Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, revised by Ivor H. Evans, page 1101
   "The Trinity - the three Persons in one God - God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost.
   "And in this Trinity none is afore, or after other; none is greater or less than another; but the whole three Persons are co-eternal together; and co-equal. The Athanasian Creed
   "The term triad was first used by Theophilus of Antioch (c. 180) for this concept; the term Trinity was introduced by Tertullian about 217 in his treatise Adversus Praxean."

From Hastings Bible Dictionary, volume 12, page 458
"Although the notion of a Triad or Trinity is characteristic of the Christian religion, it is by no means particular to it. In Indian religion, e.g., we meet with the Trinitarian group of Brahma, Siva and Visnu; and the Egyptian religion with the Trinitarian group of Osiris, Isis, and Horus, constituting a divine family, like the Father, Mother and Son in medieval Christian pictures. Nor is it only in historical religions that we find God viewed as a Trinity. One recalls in particular the Neo-Platonic view of the Supreme or Ultimate Reality, which was suggested by Plato…"

From the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, volume 4
From page 3012-3014
   "The term 'Trinity' is not a Biblical term and we are not using Biblical language when we define what is expressed by it as the doctrine that there is one only and true God, but in the unity of the Godhead there are three coeternal and coequal Persons, the same in substance but distinct in subsistence. A doctrine so defined can be spoken of as a Biblical doctrine only on the principle that the sense of Scripture is Scripture. And the definition of a Biblical doctrine in such un-Biblical language can be justified only on the principle that it is better to preserve the truth of Scripture than the words of Scripture.
   "…the doctrine of the Trinity is given to us in Scripture, not in formulated doctrine, but in fragmentary allusions.
   "The doctrine of the Trinity is purely a revealed doctrine. That is to say, it embodies a truth which has never been discovered, and is indiscoverable, by natural reason.
   "Triads of divinities, no doubt, occur in nearly all polytheistic religions, formed under very various influences. Sometimes, as in the Egyptian triad of Osiris, Isis and Horus, it is the analogy of the human family with its father, mother and son which lies at their basis. Sometimes they are the effect of mere syncretism, three deities worshipped in different localities being brought together in the common worship of all.
   "Sometimes they are the result apparently of nothing more than odd human tendency to think in threes, which has given the number three wide-spread standing as a sacred number.
   "It should be needless to say that none of these triads has the slightest resemblance to the Christian doctrine of the Trinity.
   "As the doctrine of the Trinity is indiscoverable by reason, so it is incapable of proof from reason. There are no analogies to it in Nature, not even in the spiritual nature of man, who is made in the image of God. In His Trinitarian mode of being, God is unique; and, as there is nothing in the universe like Him in this respect, so there is nothing which can help us to comprehend Him. Many attempts have, nevertheless, been made to construct a rational proof of the Trinity of the Godhead.
   "Certainly we cannot speak broadly of the revelation of the doctrine of the Trinity in the Old Testament. It is a plain matter of fact that none who have depended on the revelation embodied in the Old Testament alone have ever attained to the doctrine of the Trinity.
   "It would seem clear that we must recognize in the Old Testament doctrine of the relation of God to His revelation by the creative Word and the Spirit, at least the germ of the distinctions in the Godhead afterward fully made known in the Christian revelation."

From The Oxford Companion to the Bible, edited by Bruce M Metzger and Michael D Coogan, page 782
   "Trinity: Because the Trinity is such an important part of later Christian doctrine, it is striking that the term does not appear in the New Testament. Likewise, the developed concept of three coequal partners in the Godhead found in later creedal formulations cannot be clearly detected within the confines of the canon.
   "Later believers systematized the diverse references to God, Jesus and the Spirit found in the New Testament in order to fight against heretical tendencies of how the three are related. Elaboration on the concept of a Trinity also serves to defend the church against charges of di- or tritheism. Since the Christians have come to worship Jesus as god (Pliny, Epistles 96.7), how can they claim to be continuing the monotheistic tradition of the God of Israel? Various answers are suggested, debated, and rejected as heretical, but the idea of a Trinity - one God subsisting in three persons and one substance - ultimately prevails.
   "While the New Testament writers say a great deal about God, Jesus, and the Spirit of each, no New Testament writer expounds on the relationship among the three in the detail that later Christian writers do.
   "The earliest New Testament evidence for a tripartite formula comes in 2 Corinthians 13:14, where Paul wishes that 'the grace of the Lord Jesus, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit' be with the people of Corinth. It is possible that this three-part formula derives from later liturgical usage and was added to the text of 2 Corinthians as it was copied. In support of the authenticity of the passage, however, it must be said that the phrasing is much closer to Paul's understandings of God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit than to a more fully developed concept of the Trinity. Jesus, referred to not as Son, but as Lord and Christ, is mentioned first and is connected with the central Pauline theme of grace. God is referred to as a source of love, not as father, and the Spirit promotes sharing within the community. The word 'holy' does not appear before 'spirit' in the earliest manuscript evidence for this passage."

From the Illustrated Dictionary of the Bible, by Herbert Lockyer, Sr., editor, page 1073
"Trinity - the coexistence of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in the unity of Godhead (divine nature or essence). The doctrine of the trinity means that within the being and activity of the one God are three distinct persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Although the word trinity does not appear in the Bible, the 'trinitarian formula' is mentioned in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19) and in the benediction of the apostle Paul's second Epistle to the Corinthians (2 Corinthians 13:14)."

From The Lion Encyclopedia of the Bible, page 158
   "Trinity - this word is not used in the Bible. It is the name given to the statements about God in the creeds drawn up in the early centuries of the church to explain what is meant by saying that God is Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This is the teaching of Jesus and the New Testament as a whole. From earliest times it was stated at every Christian baptism.
   "The Jewish teaching was that there is only one God. No one and nothing must compromise that belief. Yet the New Testament writers clearly show God as the Father who created and sustained everything in his love and power, as the Son who came into this world, and as the Spirit who worked in their own lives.
   "After the end of the New Testament period the church found it necessary to work out carefully worded statements about three persons in one God, in order to uphold the truth of the New Testament against false beliefs."

Scriptures

The trinity does not appear in Judaism. The Jews are still awaiting the arrival of the Messiah. They do not accept Yahshua of Nazareth as such. They believe in only one Almighty Being. Their faith is reaffirmed daily in the quoting of the Shema as follows:

Deuteronomy 6:4
"Hear, O Israel, Yahweh our El is one."

That seems to agree with a statement within the Ten Commandments.

Exodus 20:3
"You shall not have any other gods besides Me."

With these statements it appears that the Yahweh referred to here is the only being who should be worshipped in any form or manner. Then doesn't that contradict "God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Ghost"? But the two above verses are Scriptural! And we've seen that I John 5:7 actually is not. So how is this reconciled?

Most people assume that the one they know as the "God" of the Old Testament is a hard, unfeeling being who outlined all that law for His people to follow. He is the one to killed whole nations, including the women and children. Then He sent His Son "Jesus" in New Testament times to do away with all that law and just preach love and die for the sins of the world. That is what millions of churches teach, but is that right? Is it scriptural?

Genesis 1:1
"In the beginning Elohim created the heavens and the earth."

"Elohim" is not a name. It is a title for a mighty being. In Hebrew, this is a plural word! The singular is "El". The Hebrew text, though, uses a plural word here. It is referring to more than one being!

Genesis 1:26
"And Elohim said, Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…."

Notice that! Us and Our. There is more than one individual here! The second being is not an angel, either. Angels are known as "melakim", not Elohim. So who is that second being seen here?

Pre-Existence Of Yahshua

John 1:1-4, 14
    "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with Yahweh, and the Word was Yahweh."
   "He was in the beginning with Yahweh."
   "All things came into being through Him, and without Him not even one thing came into being that has come into being."
   "In Him was life, and the life was the light of men."
   "And the Word became flesh, and tabernacled among us. And we behold His glory, glory as of an only-begotten from the Father, full of grace and of truth."

Think carefully about these words. Millions have known that Yahshua, the one the world calls Jesus, was also the one known as the Word. But notice - it says "in the beginning"! Though they may not have been called the Father and the Son in the Old Testament, they are the Ones who are being discussed here. They were both there! That is scriptural! The one we know as Yahshua is the one who did the creating, according to verse 3.

Colossians 1:16
"For all things were created in Him" -- Yahshua the Son - "the things in the heavens, and the things on the earth; the visible and the invisible; whether thrones or lordships, or rulers, or authorities, all things have been created through Him and for Him."

And in the above verse of John 1:14 it tells us He became flesh - He was born as a human baby in Bethlehem about 2000 years ago. That is when He became known to the world as the Son.

Did He ever tell anyone? Did He give any clues to His existence being longer than 30-33 years? Notice what He said to the Jews.

John 8:58
"Yahshua said to them, truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham came into being, I AM."

What? What did He mean by that? Is there a precedent for those words?

Exodus 3:13, 15
"And Moses said to Elohim, behold, I shall come to the sons of Israel and say to them, the El of your fathers has sent me to you, and they will say to me what is His name? What shall I say to them?"
"And Elohim said to Moses, I AM that I AM, and He said, You shall say this to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent me to you."

Did you catch that? The being who became Yahshua is the One who led ancient Israel! He is the One who gave them those "awful" laws.

John 18:4-6
   "Then knowing all the things coming upon Him, going forth Yahshua said to them, Whom do you seek?"
   "They answered Him, Yahshua the Nazarene. Yahshua said to them, I AM and Judas, the one betraying Him, also stood with them."
   "Then when He said to them, I AM, they departed into the rear and fell to the ground."

Why would they fall to the ground? If He was simply saying that He was Yahshua, the one they were looking for, there would have been no need for that. They fell to the ground because they recognized the name "I AM". They were aware of the Torah and of that name being given to Moses. They knew exactly what it meant, and who that being was.

Deuteronomy 32:3-4
"Because I will proclaim the name of Yahweh and ascribe greatness to our Elohim."
"He is the Rock, His work is perfect, for all His ways are just, an El of faithfulness, and without evil, just and upright is He."

I Corinthians 10:1-4
   "And I do not want you to be ignorant, brothers, that our fathers were all under the cloud, and all passed through the sea."
   "And all were baptized to Moses in the cloud, and in the sea."
   "And all ate the same spiritual food."
   "And all drank the same spiritual drink, for they drank of the spiritual rock following, and that Rock was Messiah."

Isaiah 60:16
"You shall also suck the milk of nations, and you shall suck the breast of kings, and you shall know that I, Yahweh, am your Savior and your Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob."

Who was the Mighty One of Jacob? Who is your Savior? Who died for our sins? Which being?

John 17:5
"And now Father, glorify Me with Yourself, and with the glory which I Had with You before the existence of the world."

No one knows for with certainty how long the earth has existed. We can only guess. But Yahshua has been around much longer than 2000 years.

From The Christian Passover, by Fred Coulter, pages 239-240 -
"The Hebrew word for God is Elohim, which is a plural word, a collective noun, meaning more than a single God. It is clear that Elohim means more than one person, just as the word men inherently more than one man.
"John has plainly written, '…the Word was with God…the Word was God…the Word became flesh…the only begotten with the Father.' Thus the Scriptures leave no doubt whatsoever that Jesus Christ, the Word, was with God and was God before He became flesh. There are two who are called God, or Elohim - the Father and the Word.

The New Testament clearly teaches that two Beings have existed from the beginning as Elohim. One of Elohim was made flesh and became the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus was the One, as God in the flesh, who revealed God the Father, the other Being of Elohim. God the Father was not revealed before Jesus came to reveal Him."

John 5:37
"And the Father, He sending Me has Himself borne witness concerning Me. You have neither heard His voice at any time, nor have you seen His form."

John 1:18
"No one has seen Yahweh at any time; the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He reveals Him."

Also from The Christian Passover
"These verses prove beyond any doubt that God the Father was not the God of the Old Testament. Adam and Eve saw God, and they walked and talked with Him. Moses saw God and talked with Him. The prophets heard God's voice and saw God in visions. But the Scriptures make it also clear that the One they saw was not the Father, because no man at any time has ever seen the Father, except Jesus Christ!"

Names

Most of the time in the Old Testament we see the phrase "Yahweh your Elohim", or in the King James, "Lord your God." We teach the Father's name was Yahweh. So how can we say this is the Son as well? How could they have the same name? Well, don't fathers and sons today carry the same name? We have family names, don't we?

David wrote a psalm extolling Elohim. He makes mention of the Father's name.

Psalms 68:4
"Sing to Elohim, sing praise to His name; lift up for Him who rides in the desert, by His name Yah; and exult in His presence."

The being who came in the flesh, we have known as Yahshua. His name contains the Father's name, Yah. Yah+shua = Yahshua, meaning Yah's salvation or the salvation of Yah. So if Yahweh is the family name, couldn't we have Yah Yahweh (the Father) and Yahshua Yahweh (the Son)?

Proverbs 30:4
"Who has gone up to heaven, and come down? Who has gathered the wind in His fists? Who has bound the waters in His garments? Who has made all the ends of the earth to rise? What is His name, and what is His Son's name? Surely you know."

These words were written long before the physical birth of Yahshua. The writer of Proverbs was well aware there were two beings.

Set-Apart Spirit

So what about the Spirit? Is it a separate being? On that is equal to the Father and the Son? Is it a third member of a trinity?

In the Hebrew, the word "spirit" is Strong's #7307 - ruach. It is defined as "wind; by resemblance breath; fig. life, anger, unsubstantiality; by resemblance spirit, but only of a rational being (including its expression and functions)."

The New Englishman's Greek Concordance and Lexicon lists "spirit" as Strong's #4151 - pneuma. It says, "in New Testament, always spirit. (a) the vital principle by which the human body is animated; (b) Spirit (of Christ or the Holy Spirit); (c) a simple essence without a body made of matter; angels, evil spirits (fallen angels, demons), disembodied human spirits."

Genesis 1:2
"And the earth being without form and empty, and darkness on the face of the deep, and the Spirit of Elohim moved gently on the face of the waters."

Job 33:4
"The Spirit of Elohim made me, and the breath of the Almighty gives me life."

The Spirit is there, part of the work, but the power had to come from the Almighty.

Zechariah 4:6
"Then he answered and spoke to me, saying, This is the word of Yahweh to Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit."

Luke 1:35
"And answering, the angel said to her, The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you and for this reason that holy One being born of you will be called Son of God."

It does not say here that the Son came from the Spirit. The Most High - the Father -- is included in this as well. The Spirit is the power of Yahweh. It acts and performs works in the affairs and lives of mankind - with the permission and within the will of the Father.

From the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, volume 4, page 1406
"The Spirit of God, as based upon the idea of the ruah or breath of man, originally stood for the energy or power of God."

From the Illustrated Dictionary of the Bible, Herbert Lockyer, Sr., ed., page 1008
Under "Spirit", we find - "…the Holy Spirit is the power by which believers come to Christ and see with new eyes of faith.
"The Holy Spirit appears in the Gospel of John as the power by which Christians are brought to faith and helped to understand their walk with God."

The Spirit can speak, sometimes directly, but usually through other persons. It can even speak through us today!

2 Samuel 23:2
"David said, The Spirit of Yahweh has spoken by me, and His word is on my tongue."

Matthew 10:19-20
"But when they deliver you up, do not be anxious how or what you should say, for it is given to you in that hour what you should say."
"For you are not the ones speaking, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you."

People often assume that the Spirit did not work with people until after Yahshua was resurrected and the Comforter sent. But there are numerous examples in the Old Testament. Just check in your concordance, looking under the word "spirit".

Genesis 41:38
"And Pharaoh said to his servants, can we find any man like this, in whom is the Spirit of Elohim?"

Numbers 27:18
"And Yahweh said to Moses, take Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him."

Psalms 51:11
David cried out to Yahweh, "Do not cast me from Your presence, and do not take your Holy Spirit from me."

When Yahshua was ready to ascend to the throne of Yahweh, after His resurrection, he left instructions for the disciples.

Acts 1:4-5
"And having met with them, He charged them not to leave Jerusalem, but to await the promise of the Father, which you heard of Me."
" For John indeed baptized in water, but you will be baptized in the Holy Spirit not many days after."

Acts 2:1-4
   "And in the fulfilling of the day of Pentecost, they were all with one mind in the same place."
   "And suddenly a sound came out of the heaven, as being borne along by a violent wind. And it filled all the house where they were sitting."
   "And tongues as of fire appeared to them were being distributed, and it sat on each one of them."
   "And they were all filled of the Holy Spirit, and began to speak in other languages, as the Spirit gave ability to them to speak."

Receiving The Spirit

John 14:16-17, 26
   "And I will petition the Father, and He will give you another Comforter, that He may remain with you forever."
   "The Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive because it does not see Him nor know Him. But you know Him, for He abides with you, and shall be in you."
   "But the Comforter, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, He shall teach you all things, and shall remind you of all things that I said to you."

The word here "Comforter" is Strong's #3875 - parakletos. It means an intercessor, consoler or advocate.

How do we today receive this Spirit? Is it given to everyone? Are there requirements? Or is it just dispersed at random?

Acts 2:38
"And Peter said to them, Repent and be baptized, each of you in the name of Yahshua Messiah to forgiveness of sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."

Notice, it is a gift. It is given to us by Yahweh. But there are some requirements. It isn't given to every person who lives. Scripture says that repentance of sins and baptism must come first. And yet it even goes a little farther than that.

Acts 5:32
"And we are His witnesses of those things, and also the Holy Spirit, whom Yahweh gave to those obeying Him."

Just believing alone is not enough. He expects obedience as well. We must be willing to live up to the standards He demands.

After a person repents, and is baptized, hands are laid on and a prayer is offered, asking for that gift of the Holy Spirit to be bestowed. What we are given is not a full measure of the Holy Spirit because we are still imperfect physical humans. We are given only a small amount, and are expected to exercise it so it will grow. If we are disobedient, rebellious, immortal, etc and ignore the leading of the Spirit, it will not grow. It will be choked out.

I Thessalonians 5:19
"Do not quench the Spirit."

2 Corinthians 1:22
"And He having sealed us, and giving the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts."

This earnest of the Spirit will not rule a person, though. It will not take over the recipient's mind or actions. The Set-apart Spirit of Yahweh does not force anyone to jump up and down, speak gibberish, dance, or repeat words over and over like a chant. A person with the Set-apart Spirit retains full control of him or herself and continues to make personal decisions and choices. The Spirit will not do it for you. People do not "fall under the spell of the Spirit".

The Set-apart Spirit is a wonderful gift from the Father. It will teach us more about Yahweh and Yahshua. It will bring us to deeper understanding. It will inspire us, lead us, protect us, and recall things to our minds. But only if we welcome it, use it and follow its leading, continuing in obedience to the father.

Okay, we see there are two beings - Yah Yahweh and Yahshua. We have also seen that they have a Spirit that will work with us. But is it a third Elohim? No where in Scripture is the Spirit ever referred to as an Elohim. It is not "God the Holy Ghost". It is a part of Yahweh's power that He shares with each of us to bring us closer to Him.

Proof-Texts

So what are the Scriptures used to "prove" the trinity? Are there any? Or maybe the question should be: if Yahweh intended our worship to include a trinity, why did He not say so? If the Spirit is an Elohim to be worshipped, why did He neglect to tell us so? If you will notice in His Torah, He is very clear on what He expected of the people.

At the beginning of this booklet, we looked at I John 5:7, one of the main verses to support this idea. We found that it cannot be used as a proof-text for the trinity. It was not in the original texts, but was added at a later date.

The next Scripture most-often used is from Yahshua's words in what is called "The Great Commission". This is referred to as the "baptism formula" by some churches.

Matthew 28:19-20
"Going, then, disciple all nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit."
"Teaching them to observe all things, whatever I commanded you. And, behold, I am with you all the days until the completion of the ages."

Does that sound like it establishes a trinity doctrine? Let's consider a few things.

We know the name of the Father and of the Son. What is the name of the Spirit? Does it even have a name? Did Yahweh reveal it to us anywhere in His Scriptures?
There is no statement about the Holy Spirit being an Elohim or a being to be worshipped, as part of a trinity. There is no mention of the Spirit being equal to the Father and/or the Son.
In the Greek, there were no breaks for verses and no punctuation. Could it be possible that this is saying to baptize in the names of the Father and of the Son, with the Holy Spirit doing the teaching to observe all things?
This "formula" for baptism appears no where else in Scripture.

Acts 2:38
"And Peter said to them, repent and be baptized each of you on the name of Yahshua Messiah to forgiveness of sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit."

Acts 4:10,12
"Let it be known to you all and to all the people of Israel that in the name of Yahshua Messiah the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom Yahweh raised up from the dead - in this name this one stands before you whole."
"And there is salvation in no other One, for neither is there any other name under heaven having been given among men by which we must be saved."

Acts 10:47-48
"Can anyone forbid the water that these not be baptized, who the Holy Spirit received, even as we also?"
"And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Master. Then they asked him to remain some days."

Acts 19:5
"And hearing, they were baptized into the name of the Master Yahshua."

You notice that these verses do not include the Holy Spirit the way that Matthew 28 did. Why isn't it mentioned each time, too? Do you think they leave out the Father's name as well? No, they don't. Remember, His name, Yah, is included in the name of Yahshua. So if you use only Yahshua's name, you are actually including both of them. He told us that He came, and He worked, in the Father's name.

John 5:43
"I have come in the name of My Father, and you do not receive Me. If another comes in his own name, you will receive that one."

There is one other scripture that is used to "establish" the doctrine of the trinity.

2 Corinthians 13:14
"The grace of the Master Yahshua Messiah, the love of Yahweh, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all."

Does this verse say that the Spirit is an Elohim? Does it make the Spirit equal to Yahweh and Yahshua? If we each have Yahweh's Spirit dwelling within us and we fellowship together, aren't we in the fellowship of the Spirit? It's actually that simple!

As we see here, with these few verses, there is no clear-cut statement in the Scriptures that there is such a thing as a trinity. Some people assume so from the way they interpret the verses, but it is not there. Yahweh expects us to study and to prove His truth. Once we find His truth, we are to hold on to it tightly.

II Timothy 2:15
"Earnestly study to show yourself approved to Yahweh, a workman unashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth."

I Thessalonians 5:21
"Test" - prove - "all things; hold fast to the good" -- that which is right.

Ask Yahweh to guide you as you search His Word for the truth on this matter. To study and understand the Scriptures, put all interpretations or previously heard explanations out of your mind. Just look to see exactly what the Scriptures say and sometimes, more importantly, what they do not say. In the commentaries and other various sources, these few Scriptures are the basis for the doctrine of trinity. Anything more is simply conjecture or some man's interpretation of Scriptures.

The Trinity All the verses quoted in this booklet are taken from The Interlinear Bible. It is not a translation full of opinions as so many are, but is a literal translation from the Hebrew and Greek words. It may read quite differently than your translation in places.