Refutation of the Divinity of Christ — Page 16
16 Their First Argument—Trinity Now, pay heed to the arguments for the Trinity and their refutation. THE FIRST ARGUMENT —The first sentence of the Holy Torah: Bara Elohim. Bara is a verb; its meaning is he created — Elohim [God] is its subject. The people belonging to the Christian faith ‘prove’ the Trinity from this sentence because bara is a singular verb whereas Elohim , its subject, is plural, and an indication of the Trinity is found in it. rebuttal of this Argument Elohim is derived from eloah, and eloah is used for both the true God and false deities. Elohim is the plural of eloah. Thus, its meaning will be false gods or true gods. The plural of eloah , elohim , has been used for judges, rulers, angels, and kings as well. The plural meaning of it is not obliga- tory and essential. Eloah is used in the sense of the true God in Nehemiah 9:17, and eloah is used in the meaning of a false god in Daniel 11:37, 38; 2 Chronicles 32:15; Habakkuk 1:11; and Job 12:6. ▣ Elohim , which is the plural of eloah , has also been used for a single real person. In Exodus 7:1 and Exodus 4:16, Moses has been called elohim. God says I have made you, O Moses, elohim for the Pharaoh, and elohim for Aaron. ▣ Elohim is used in the context of plural false gods in Deuteronomy 13:7, 32:39; Judges 5:8, 10:14; 1 Kings 9:6; 2 Kings 19:18; 1 Chronicles 5:25; 2 Chronicles 13:9, 25:14; Psalms 97:7; Psalms 136:2; and Jeremiah 10:11, 11:12, 16:20.