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allah of islam is the great deceiver.

fortniteroleplayer

fortniteroleplayer

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Many people do not realize that the Quran not only describes Allah as the best of all deceivers, but it also depicts him as a misleader who causes people to be deceived and misled from the path of salvation.

Many are also unaware of the fact that two of the 99 names of Allah happen to Al-Hadi (“the guide”), i.e. the one who guides, and al-Mudill (“the misguider/misleader”), e.g. the one who misleads and causes to go astray.

The Muslim scripture contains passage after passage stating that it is Allah who makes people go astray, since he is free to mislead and disgrace whomever he so desires:

Say (O Muhammad): "O Allah! Possessor of the kingdom, You give the kingdom to whom You will, and You take the kingdom from whom You will, and You endue with honour whom You will, and You humiliate whom You will. In Your Hand is the good. Verily, You are Able to do all things.” S. 3:26 Hilali-Khan
Then what is the matter with you that you are divided into two parties about the hypocrites? Allah has cast them back (to disbelief) because of what they have earned. Do you want to guide him whom Allah HAS MADE to go astray? And he whom Allah HAS MADE to go astray, you will never find for him any way (of guidance). S. 4:88 Hilali-Khan
And We sent not a Messenger except with the language of his people, in order that he might make (the Message) clear for them. Then Allah misleads WHOM HE WILLS and guides whom He wills. And He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. S. 14:4 Hilali-Khan
And he whom Allah guides, he is led aright; but he whom He sends astray for such you will find no Auliya' (helpers and protectors, etc.), besides Him, and We shall gather them together on the Day of Resurrection on their faces blind, dumb and deaf, their abode will be Hell; whenever it abates, We shall increase for them the fierceness of the Fire. S. 17:97 Hilali-Khan
“… Thus Allah leads astray WHOM HE WILLS and guides whom He wills. And none can know the hosts of your Lord but He. And this (Hell) is nothing else than a (warning) reminder to mankind.” S. 74:31 Hilali-Khan
The Quran further says that there is no guide for the one whom Allah has misled:

A day when ye will turn to flee, having no preserver from Allah: and he whom Allah sendeth astray, for him there is no guide. And verily Joseph brought you of old clear proofs, yet ye ceased not to be in doubt concerning what he brought you till, when he died, ye said: Allah will not send any messenger after him. Thus Allah deceiveth him who is a prodigal, a doubter. S. 40:33-34 Pickthall
It is ironic that Allah is described as doing the very thing which Satan is said to do, namely, mislead people from the path!

Hast thou not regarded those who assert that they believe in what has been sent down to thee, and what was sent down before thee, desiring to take their disputes to idols, yet they have been commanded to disbelieve in them? But Satan desires to lead them astray into far error. S. 4:60 Arberry
And he entered the city at a time of unawareness of its people, and he found there two men fighting, - one of his party (his religion - from the Children of Israel), and the other of his foes. The man of his (own) party asked him for help against his foe, so Musa (Moses) struck him with his fist and killed him. He said: "This is of Shaitan's (Satan) doing, verily, he is a plain misleading enemy (mudillun mubeenun)." S. 28:15 Hilali-Khan
Now, it makes sense for Satan to want to deceive and mislead people from God’s path since his purpose is to see them destroyed. But why would Allah want to do so if he is truly an omni-benevolent being who desires the good for all his creation?

A Muslim may interject that Allah only misleads the evildoers who refuse to believe and repent. The problem with this argument is that the Quran makes it absolutely clear that no person is capable of desiring to believe and repent unless Allah has granted it to him. The Muslim scripture is emphatic that Allah has to will for a person to believe and repent in order for that individual to be able to do so.

However, it is quite evident from the Quran itself that it isn’t Allah’s will to guide everyone, since it is his desire to mislead some of his creatures in order to destroy them:

“Whosoever wishes will take heed. None will take heed except if God wills. He is the source of righteousness and the source of forgiveness.” S. 74:55-56 Quran: Reformist Translation (QRT)
“This is a reminder, so let whoever wills take a path to his Lord. You cannot will, except if God wills. God is Knowledgeable, Wise. He admits whoever/whomever He wills to His mercy. As for the wicked, He has prepared for them a painful retribution.” S. 76:29-31 QRT
“If We had sent down to them the angels, and the dead spoke to them, and We had gathered before them everything, they still would not acknowledge except if God wills. But most of them are ignorant.” S. 6:111 QRT
And had Allah willed, He could have made you (all) one nation, but He sends astray WHOM HE WILLS and guides whom He wills. But you shall certainly be called to account for what you used to do. S. 16:93 Hilali-Khan
In fact, a person can’t even apostatize, or turn away from Islam, unless Allah has willed that s/he should do so:

The chiefs of those who were arrogant among his people said: "We shall certainly drive you out, O Shuaib, and those who have believed with you from our town, or else you (all) shall return to our religion." He said: "Even though we hate it! "We should have invented a lie against Allah if we returned to your religion, after Allah has rescued us from it. And it is not for us to return to it UNLESS Allah, our Lord, SHOULD WILL. Our Lord comprehends all things in His Knowledge. In Allah (Alone) we put our trust. Our Lord! Judge between us and our people in truth, for You are the Best of those who give judgment." S. 7:88-89 Hilali-Khan
The Muslim scripture is also clear that a person whom Allah has chosen to mislead can never be guided, whereas the one whom he has been pleased to guide can never be misled by anyone:

Whomever God sends astray will not have any ally after Him. You will see the transgressors, when they see the retribution, saying: "Is there any way we can go back?" You will see them being displayed to it, in fearful humiliation, and looking, while trying to avoid looking. Those who acknowledged will say, “The losers are those who lost themselves and their families on the day of resurrection. The transgressors will be in a lasting retribution.” They had no allies to help them against God. Whomever God misguides will never find the way. S. 42:44-46 QRT
If you (O Muhammad) covet for their guidance then verily Allah guides not those whom HE MAKES to go astray (or none can guide him whom Allah sends astray). And they will have no helpers. S. 16:37 Hilali-Khan
Is not Allah Sufficient for His slave? Yet they try to frighten you with those (whom they worship) besides Him! And whom Allah sends astray, for him there will be no guide. And whomsoever Allah guides, for him there will be no misleader (mudillin). Is not Allah All-Mighty, Possessor of Retribution? S. 39:36-37 Hilali-Khan
No wonder the Quran says that Allah doesn’t take misleaders as his helpers:

And (remember) when We said to the angels; "Prostrate to Adam." So they prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He was one of the jinns; he disobeyed the Command of his Lord. Will you then take him (Iblis) and his offspring as protectors and helpers rather than Me while they are enemies to you? What an evil is the exchange for the Zalimun (polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc). I (Allah) made them (Iblis and his offspring) not to witness (nor took their help in) the creation of the heavens and the earth and not (even) their own creation, nor was I (Allah) to take the misleaders (al-mudilleena) as helpers. S. 18:50-51 Hilali-Khan
This makes absolute sense since why would the Islamic deity need anyone to help him mislead people when there is no one better than Allah at leading people astray in order to destroy them?

And yet the Quran speaks of people being punished for misguiding others from Allah’s path:

And when some hurt touches man, he cries to his Lord (Allah Alone), turning to Him in repentance, but when He bestows a favour upon him from Himself, he forgets that for which he cried for before, and he sets up rivals to Allah, in order to mislead others from His Path. Say: "Take pleasure in your disbelief for a while: surely, you are (one) of the dwellers of the Fire!” S. 39:8 Hilali-Khan
And of mankind is he who purchases idle talks (i.e. music, singing, etc.) to mislead (men) from the Path of Allah without knowledge, and takes it (the Path of Allah, the Verses of the Qur'an) by way of mockery. For such there will be a humiliating torment (in the Hell-fire). S. 31:6 Hiali-Khan – cf. Q. 14:30; 16:25; 22:3-4, 8-9
What this basically means is that Allah is going to torture individuals for causing people to stray even though it was Allah’s will that they do so!

In other words, Allah is going to basically torment people in hell for doing the exact thing that was predetermined for them to do, and who do not have the ability to choose not to do it!

To make matters worse, if Allah has decided to destroy a people he first sends them the guidance of Islam, and then commands them to do evil in order to have a reason to wipe them out!

And Allah will never lead a people astray after He has guided them UNTIL He makes clear to them as to what they should avoid. Verily, Allah is the All-Knower of everything. S. 9:115
Whoever is guided is guided for himself, and whoever is misguided is for his own loss. No person shall carry the load of another, and We were not to punish until We send a messenger. And when We desire to destroy a town, We command its men who leave at ease, and they commit ungodliness in it, then the Word is realized against it, and We destroy it completely. S. 17:15-16
It is obvious why Allah would first send a nation whom he intends to destroy the knowledge of the religion. By receiving the message, the people are now culpable for rejecting it, which means that Allah now has the green light to go ahead and obliterate them. After all, as the above text makes clear, the Islamic deity will not destroy a group to whom a messenger hasn’t first been sent to warn them.

No wonder the Quran says that Allah shall not be questioned by anyone:

He will not be questioned as to that which He doeth, but they will be questioned. S. 21:23
It is obvious that Muhammad knew that his conception of God raised a host of moral problems which could not be satisfactorily answered. He, therefore, chose to scare people away from questioning his view regarding the deity with eternal torture in order to keep them obedient to his demands and desires.

Contrast this with the teachings of the Holy Bible. The inspired Scriptures emphatically proclaim that the true God desires that none of his human creatures perish and die, but that they repent from their wickedness so that they might live:

Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? … Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin. Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord GOD; so turn, and live.” Ezekiel 18:23, 30-32
Yahweh calls out to the entire inhabited earth which he has created to turn to him and believe that he alone is a righteous God and Savior, since he desires that they all should be saved:

“For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (he is God!), who formed the earth and made it (he established it; he did not create it empty, he formed it to be inhabited!): I am the LORD, and there is no other. I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I the LORD speak the truth; I declare what is right. Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, you survivors of the nations! They have no knowledge who carry about their wooden idols, and keep on praying to a god that cannot save. Declare and present your case; let them take counsel together! Who told this long ago? Who declared it of old? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no other god besides me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none besides me. Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return: To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.” Isaiah 45:18-23
And:

“Now at Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet. He was crippled from birth and had never walked. He listened to Paul speaking. And Paul, looking intently at him and seeing that he had faith to be made well, said in a loud voice, ‘Stand upright on your feet.’ And he sprang up and began walking. And when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian, ‘The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!’ Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and wanted to offer sacrifice with the crowds. But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out, ‘Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. In past generations he allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways. Yet he did not leave himself without witness, for he did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.’” Acts 14:8-17
God even determined where and when everyone would live in order that they might seek for him and be saved:

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” Acts 17:24-31
This is also the reason why Yahweh chose to raise up a righteous Servant, in order that he might bring God’s salvation to the ends of the earth so that all the Gentiles might be saved along with Israel:

“Listen to me, O coastlands, and give attention, you peoples from afar. The LORD called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name. He made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away. And he said to me, ‘You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.’ But I said, ‘I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my right is with the LORD, and my recompense with my God.’ And now the LORD says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him—for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD, and my God has become my strength—he says: ‘It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.’ Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers: ‘Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.’ Thus says the LORD: ‘In a time of favor I have answered you; in a day of salvation I have helped you; I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people, to establish the land, to apportion the desolate heritages, saying to the prisoners, “Come out,” to those who are in darkness, “Appear.” They shall feed along the ways; on all bare heights shall be their pasture; they shall not hunger or thirst, neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them, for he who has pity on them will lead them, and by springs of water will guide them.’” Isaiah 49:1-10
According to the NT, this promise was fulfilled when God sent forth his Son to assume the role of the Servant spoken of in Isaiah:

“And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.’… Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, ‘Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.’” Luke 2:10-11, 25-32
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” John 3:16-18
"Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, ‘He told me all that I ever did.’ So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.’” John 4:39-42
“If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.” John 12:47
“And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.” 1 John 4:14
“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, AND TO the Lamb!’ And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, ‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.’ Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, ‘Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?’ I said to him, ‘Sir, you know.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’” Revelation 7:9-17
Moreover, the Holy Bible plainly teaches that the great deceiver who misleads people from the truth isn’t God, but the devil or Satan himself!

“And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.” Revelation 12:9
“Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while… And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." Revelation 20:1-3, 7-10
The Scriptures further tell us that Satan deceives people by using various means including human agents such as the antichrist, also known as the beast or the lawless one, whom the devil empowers to perform signs and wonders in order to cause people to stray away from believing in the Gospel:

“And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, ‘Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?’ And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain. If anyone has an ear, let him hear: If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints. Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.” Revelation 13:1-18
The Holy Bible also makes it quite clear that the only ones whom Satan is able to mislead and destroy are those whom God has become absolutely fed up with for refusing to repent of their sins and accepting the truth which God has made so plain to them. God, therefore, justly hands such reprobates over to their own desires and gives them what they want, which is to believe in anything except the truth of God:

“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 – cf. Romans 1:18-28; Psalm 81:8-16
This means that God will never allow Satan to mislead any one who truly seeks after God and desires to know him, but will make sure to reveal himself to such a person as he has promised:

“But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. Deuteronomy 4:29
“And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.” 1 Chronicles 28:9 – cf. 2 Chronicles 15:2
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me. When you seek me with all your heart, I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.” Jeremiah 29:11-14
“And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” Hebrews 11:6
The simple fact of the matter is that a Muslim will not find such comparable statements in the Quran. There are no verses which say that Allah loved the world, or that he desires that every creature that he has made to turn to him and live since he doesn’t take any delight in destroying the wicked.

In fact, the Quran goes out of its way to show that Allah doesn’t love everyone since he only loves faithful Muslims:

Lo! those who believe and do good works, the Beneficent will appoint for them love. S. 19:96 Pickthall
The Muslim scripture plainly says that Allah loves those who perform good deeds (2:195), those who are pure (2:222), those who are righteous (9:7), and those who fight in his cause (61:4). And yet when it comes to the transgressors (2:190), the ungrateful sinners (2:276), the unjust (3:57), or the proud (4:36), Allah has absolutely no love for them. And, as the following verses make clear, if you are not a Muhammadan, one who fully submits to Muhammad and his religion, then do not count on Allah loving you at all:

Say: If you love Allah, then follow me, Allah will love you and forgive you your faults, and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. Say: Obey Allah and the Apostle; but if they turn back, then surely Allah does not love the unbelievers. S. 3:31-32 Shakir
Then turn thy face straight to the right religion before there come from Allah the day which cannot be averted; on that day they shall become separated. Whoever disbelieves, he shall be responsible for his disbelief, and whoever does good, they prepare (good) for their own souls, that He may reward those who believe and do good out of His grace; surely He does not love the unbelievers. S. 30:43-45 Shakir
This basically means that Allah’s love is no greater or higher than disbelieving sinners according to Jesus, and therefore does not come close to the love that the true God has for all his creatures, including his enemies:

“The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The LORD is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.” Psalm 145:8-9
“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” Luke 6:27-36
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” Romans 5:8-11
In light of this, it is an absolute insult and even outright blasphemy to say that the deity so described in the Quran is the same God revealed in the Holy Bible. The Quranic depiction of Allah best describes Satan rather than the infinitely holy and loving God whom the Lord Jesus came to perfectly manifest by his life and sacrificial death:

“‘Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.’ Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.’ Philip said to him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.’” John 14:1-11
As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.” John 15:9-15
“but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,” Hebrews 1:2-3
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another… And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world… By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:8-11, 14, 17-19
“And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” 1 John 5:20
Unlike the Islamic deity who capriciously and arbitrarily creates people for the sole purpose of tormenting them in hell, like some sadist who gets off on inflicting excruciating torture on others,

Whoever Allah guides, then he is the guided one; and whoever He leads astray, then they are the losers. We have created for hell many jinn and men. They have hearts, yet they do not comprehend; they have eyes yet they do not see; they have ears yet they do not hear. They are like cattle; nay, they are even more astray. S. 7:178-179
Had your Lord wished, He could have made all the people one nation, but they still would continue to disagree; Except whom your Lord has mercy upon; and for that He has created them. The word of your Lord came true: "I will fill hell with the Jinn and the humans together!" S. 11:118-119 QRT
If We had wished, We could have given every person its guidance, but the word from Me has taken effect, that I will fill hell with Jinn and humans all together. S. 32:13 QRT
The God revealed in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ doesn’t delight in afflicting or punishing the sons of men,

“For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men.” Lamentations 3:31-33
But actually grieves and weeps over having to destroy them for their wickedness and persistent rebellion:

“And when he drew near and saw the city, HE WEPT OVER IT, saying, ‘Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.’” Luke 19:41-44
Such a God is truly worthy of our love and worship, for he alone is worthy to be called God!
n several articles (1, 2, 3, 4) we have made mention that the Quran teaches outright that Allah is capable of lying and deceiving people. In fact, one of the titles which the Quran ascribes to Allah is khayru al-makireen, that Allah is "the best deceiver/schemer/conniver" (cf. S. 3:54; 8:30).

We want to continue our discussion regarding Allah being a deceiver by examining what the Quran says supposedly took place in paradise between Allah and Satan (called Iblis in the Quran) at the time of Adam’s creation. The Quran claims that Allah commanded all the angels to worship Adam, which Satan did not do, prompting Allah to ask him the reason why:

(Allah) said: "O Iblis (Satan)! What is your reason for not being among the prostrators?" [Iblis (Satan)] said: "I am not the one to prostrate myself to a human being, whom You created from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud." (Allah) said: "Then, get out from here, for verily, you are Rajim (an outcast or a cursed one)." [Tafsir At-Tabari] "And verily, the curse shall be upon you till the Day of Recompense (i.e. the Day of Resurrection)." [Iblis (Satan)] said: "O my Lord! Give me then respite till the Day they (the dead) will be resurrected." Allah said: "Then, verily, you are of those reprieved, Till the Day of the time appointed." [Iblis (Satan)] said: "O my Lord! Because YOU MISLED ME, I shall indeed adorn the path of error for them (mankind) on the earth, and I shall mislead them all. Except Your chosen, (guided) slaves among them." (Allah) said: "This is the Way which will lead straight to Me. Certainly, you shall have no authority over My slaves, except those who follow you of the Ghawin (Mushrikun and those who go astray, criminals, polytheists, and evil-doers, etc.). And surely, Hell is the promised place for them all. It (Hell) has seven gates, for each of those gates is a (special) class (of sinners) assigned." S. 15:32-44
What makes this exchange rather shocking is that Satan accuses Allah of deceiving or misleading him! Here is what the text in question exactly says:

[Iblis (Satan)] said: "O my Lord! Because you misled me (aghwaytanee), I shall indeed adorn the path of error for them (mankind) on the earth, and I shall mislead (walaoghwiyannahum) them all. S. 15:39
Note the various translations of this specific text by the different versions of the Quran:

Said he, 'My Lord, for Thy perverting me …' Arberry
[Satan said]: "My Lord, since you misguided me, …" Majid Fakhry - An Interpretation of the Qur'an (approved by Al-Ahzar University)
'Lord,' said Satan, 'since You have thus seduced me, …' N.J. Dawood
"My Lord, since you have misled me, …" Thomas Cleary
He said, "O my Lord! because thou hast beguiled me, …" Rodwell
He said, 'O my Lord! for that Thou hast seduced me ...' Palmer
[The devil] replied, o Lord, because thou hast seduced me, … Sale
The parallel version of this story reads slightly different:

(Iblîs) said: "Because You have sent me astray (aghwaytanee), …" S. 7:16
Here is how various versions translate this passage:

Said he, 'Now, for Thy perverting me, …' Arberry
Satan said: "Because You have misled me, …" Fakhry
'Because You led me into sin …' N.J. Dawood
He said: Now, because Thou hast sent me astray, … Pickthall
He said: "Because thou hast thrown me out of the way, …" Y. Ali
He said, "Since You have willed that I go astray, …" Thomas Cleary
He said, "Now, for that thou hast caused me to err, …" Rodwell
said he, 'For that Thou hast led me into error, …' Palmer
The devil] said, because thou hast depraved me, … Sale
Moreover, here is how some Muslim commentators explained S. 7:16:

(He) Iblis (said: Now, because Thou hast sent me astray) just as You made me err from guidance, (verily I shall lurk in ambush for them) for the children of Adam (on Thy Right Path) the religion of Islam. (Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs; source; bold and underline emphasis ours)
Said he, 'Now, because You have sent me astray (fa-bi-ma aghwaytani means bi-ighwa'ik, 'for Your sending me astray': the ba' is for oaths, and the response of the oath is [the following]) verily I shall sit in ambush for them, that is, for the Children of Adam, on Your straight path, that is, on the path that leads to You. (Tafsir al-Jalalayn; source; bold and underline emphasis ours)
What makes this even more interesting is that this particular word is always used in its various forms with a negative connotation:

"Certainly, you shall have no authority over My slaves, except those who follow you of the Ghawin (Mushrikun and those who go astray, criminals, polytheists, and evil-doers, etc.). S. 15:42
And recite (O Muhammad) to them the story of him to whom We gave Our Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.), but he threw them away, so Shaitan (Satan) followed him up, and he became of those who went astray (alghaweena). S. 7:175
Then they both ate of the tree, and so their private parts appeared to them, and they began to stick on themselves the leaves from Paradise for their covering. Thus did Adam disobey his Lord, so he went astray (faghawa). S. 20:121
And the (Hell) Fire will be placed in full view of the erring…Then they will be thrown on their faces into the (Fire), They and the Ghawun (devils, and those who were in error). S. 26:91, 94
So he became afraid, looking about in the city (waiting as to what will be the result of his crime of killing), when behold, the man who had sought his help the day before, called for his help (again). Musa (Moses) said to him: "Verily, you are a plain misleader (laghawiyyun)!" S. 28:18
Those about whom the Word will have come true (to be punished) will say: "Our Lord! These are they whom we led astray (aghwayna). We led them astray (aghwaynahum), as we were astray (ghawayna) ourselves. We declare our innocence (from them) before You. It was not us they worshipped." S. 28:63
So we led you astray (aghwaynakum) because we were ourselves astray (ghaweena). S. 37:32
Your companion (Muhammad) has neither gone astray nor has erred (ghawa). S. 53:2
And because Allah misled Satan the devil will now mislead others!

[Iblis (Satan)] said: "By Your Might, then I will surely mislead (laoghwiyannahum) them all," S. 38:82
It is, therefore, clear from the foregoing that Satan was raising a serious charge against Allah’s character by basically identifying him as one who perverts, deceives, or misleads people from the true path!

It seems that the reason why Iblis felt that he had been misled is because Allah condemned him for not obeying a command which was given to the angels:

And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate yourselves before Adam.". And they prostrated except Iblis (Satan), he refused and was proud and was one of the disbelievers (disobedient to Allah). S. 2:34
And surely, We created you (your father Adam) and then gave you shape (the noble shape of a human being), then We told the angels, "Prostrate to Adam", and they prostrated, except Iblis (Satan), he refused to be of those who prostrate. S. 7:11
And (remember) when your Lord said to the angels: "I am going to create a man (Adam) from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud. So, when I have fashioned him completely and breathed into him (Adam) the soul which I created for him, then fall (you) down prostrating yourselves unto him." So, the angels prostrated themselves, ALL OF THEM together. S. 15:28-30
And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate yourselves to Adam." They prostrated (all) except Iblis (Satan), who refused. S. 20:116
And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate unto Adam." They prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He said: "Shall I prostrate to one whom You created from clay?" S. 17:61
(Remember) when your Lord said to the angels: "Truly, I am going to create man from clay. So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him (his) soul created by Me, then you fall down prostrate to him." So the angels prostrated themselves, ALL OF THEM: S. 38:71-73
Note that both Suras 15 and 38 expressly say that ALL the angels prostrated in obedience to Allah’s directive. Yet according to the Quran Iblis is a jinn, not an angel!

And (remember) when We SAID TO THE ANGELS; "Prostrate to Adam." So they prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He was one of the jinns; he disobeyed the Command of his Lord. Will you then take him (Iblis) and his offspring as protectors and helpers rather than Me while they are enemies to you? What an evil is the exchange for the Zalimun (polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc). S. 18:50
In light of the foregoing, why did Allah blame Satan for not obeying an injunction which was imposed upon the angels and not the jinn? And doesn’t this demonstrate that Satan had a valid argument against Allah for being deceptive and misleading the devil since he blamed him for not obeying a command which wasn’t directed to him at all?

Satan may have also felt misled because of the fact that Allah condemns the worship of creatures:

Surely, those who are with your Lord (angels) are never too proud to perform acts of worship to Him, but they glorify His Praise and prostrate before Him. S. 7:206
And from among His Signs are the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. Prostrate not to the sun nor to the moon, but prostrate to Allah Who created them, if you (really) worship Him. S. 41:37
So fall you down in prostration to Allah, and worship Him (Alone). S. 53:62
And yet here he was watching Allah command angels to worship a creature!

A Muslim may claim that Satan falsely accused Allah of leading him astray, that Satan’s words shouldn’t be taken at face value since he is a liar and a slanderer. The first problem with this response is that Satan doesn’t always lie but, as even the Islamic sources themselves admit, can speak the truth:

And (remember) when Shaitan (Satan) made their (evil) deeds seem fair to them and said, "No one of mankind can overcome you this Day (of the battle of Badr) and verily, I am your neighbour (for each and every help)." But when the two forces came in sight of each other, he ran away and said "Verily, I have nothing to do with you. Verily! I see what you see not. Verily! I fear Allah for Allah is Severe in punishment." S. 8:48
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri:
The Prophet said, "If while you are praying, somebody intends to pass in front of you, prevent him; and should he insist, prevent him again; and if he insists again, fight with him (i.e. prevent him violently e.g. pushing him violently), because such a person is (like) a devil."
Narrated Muhammad bin Sirin: Abu Huraira said, "Allah's Apostle put me in charge of the Zakat of Ramadan (i.e. Zakat-ul-Fitr). Someone came to me and started scooping some of the foodstuff of (Zakat) with both hands. I caught him and told him that I would take him to Allah's Apostle." Then Abu Huraira told the whole narration and added "He (i.e. the thief) said, ‘Whenever you go to your bed, recite the Verse of "Al-Kursi" (2.255) for then a guardian from Allah will be guarding you, and Satan will not approach you till dawn.’" On that the Prophet said, "He told you the truth, though he is a liar, and he (the thief) himself was the Satan." (Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 495)
More importantly, the Quran actually agrees with Satan since it unashamedly admits that Allah does deceive and mislead people!

"And my advice will not profit you, even if I wish to give you good counsel, if Allah's Will is to keep you astray (yughwiyakum). He is your Lord! and to Him you shall return." S. 11:34
And my sincere counsel will not profit you, if I desire to counsel you sincerely, if God desires to pervert you; He is your Lord, and unto Him you shall be returned.' Arberry
There are other passages which, though not using the same word, teach the same point:

Then what is the matter with you that you are divided into two parties about the hypocrites? Allah has cast them back (to disbelief) because of what they have earned. Do you want to guide him whom Allah has made to go astray? And he whom Allah has made to go astray, you will never find for him any way (of guidance). S. 4:88
And We sent not a Messenger except with the language of his people, in order that he might make (the Message) clear for them. Then Allah misleads whom He wills and guides whom He wills. And He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. S. 14:4
A Muslim may further say that Iblis’ response shows that his reason for not bowing to Adam had nothing to do with Allah’s order being directed to the angels, but out of pride and arrogance due to his being created from a superior element (fire) than man (dust). This really doesn’t solve the problem since one must account for the reason Satan thought he had been misled.

Here is a better explanation of the data, one which takes into account all the information provided by the Quran: Iblis’ refusal to bow may have been due to pride at first but he may have later realized that Allah hadn’t directed this command to him, but to the angels. He may have further reflected that Allah was commanding the angels to do the very thing which was forbidden, namely worshiping a creature. After reflecting on all this Satan concluded that he had been duped, even deceived, by Allah since the intention was to cast Iblis out of paradise.

Whatever the case, whatever the explanation, this point stands out clearly: Satan accused Allah of being a perverter, a misleader, with the Quran agreeing that this is what Allah truly is, going so far as to boast that Allah is actually the best schemer/deceiver of them all!

Unless noted otherwise, all of the citations were taken from the Hilali-Khan version of the Quran.


n several articles (1, 2, 3, 4) we have made mention that the Quran teaches outright that Allah is capable of lying and deceiving people. In fact, one of the titles which the Quran ascribes to Allah is khayru al-makireen, that Allah is "the best deceiver/schemer/conniver" (cf. S. 3:54; 8:30).

We want to continue our discussion regarding Allah being a deceiver by examining what the Quran says supposedly took place in paradise between Allah and Satan (called Iblis in the Quran) at the time of Adam’s creation. The Quran claims that Allah commanded all the angels to worship Adam, which Satan did not do, prompting Allah to ask him the reason why:

(Allah) said: "O Iblis (Satan)! What is your reason for not being among the prostrators?" [Iblis (Satan)] said: "I am not the one to prostrate myself to a human being, whom You created from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud." (Allah) said: "Then, get out from here, for verily, you are Rajim (an outcast or a cursed one)." [Tafsir At-Tabari] "And verily, the curse shall be upon you till the Day of Recompense (i.e. the Day of Resurrection)." [Iblis (Satan)] said: "O my Lord! Give me then respite till the Day they (the dead) will be resurrected." Allah said: "Then, verily, you are of those reprieved, Till the Day of the time appointed." [Iblis (Satan)] said: "O my Lord! Because YOU MISLED ME, I shall indeed adorn the path of error for them (mankind) on the earth, and I shall mislead them all. Except Your chosen, (guided) slaves among them." (Allah) said: "This is the Way which will lead straight to Me. Certainly, you shall have no authority over My slaves, except those who follow you of the Ghawin (Mushrikun and those who go astray, criminals, polytheists, and evil-doers, etc.). And surely, Hell is the promised place for them all. It (Hell) has seven gates, for each of those gates is a (special) class (of sinners) assigned." S. 15:32-44
What makes this exchange rather shocking is that Satan accuses Allah of deceiving or misleading him! Here is what the text in question exactly says:

[Iblis (Satan)] said: "O my Lord! Because you misled me (aghwaytanee), I shall indeed adorn the path of error for them (mankind) on the earth, and I shall mislead (walaoghwiyannahum) them all. S. 15:39
Note the various translations of this specific text by the different versions of the Quran:

Said he, 'My Lord, for Thy perverting me …' Arberry
[Satan said]: "My Lord, since you misguided me, …" Majid Fakhry - An Interpretation of the Qur'an (approved by Al-Ahzar University)
'Lord,' said Satan, 'since You have thus seduced me, …' N.J. Dawood
"My Lord, since you have misled me, …" Thomas Cleary
He said, "O my Lord! because thou hast beguiled me, …" Rodwell
He said, 'O my Lord! for that Thou hast seduced me ...' Palmer
[The devil] replied, o Lord, because thou hast seduced me, … Sale
The parallel version of this story reads slightly different:

(Iblîs) said: "Because You have sent me astray (aghwaytanee), …" S. 7:16
Here is how various versions translate this passage:

Said he, 'Now, for Thy perverting me, …' Arberry
Satan said: "Because You have misled me, …" Fakhry
'Because You led me into sin …' N.J. Dawood
He said: Now, because Thou hast sent me astray, … Pickthall
He said: "Because thou hast thrown me out of the way, …" Y. Ali
He said, "Since You have willed that I go astray, …" Thomas Cleary
He said, "Now, for that thou hast caused me to err, …" Rodwell
said he, 'For that Thou hast led me into error, …' Palmer
The devil] said, because thou hast depraved me, … Sale
Moreover, here is how some Muslim commentators explained S. 7:16:

(He) Iblis (said: Now, because Thou hast sent me astray) just as You made me err from guidance, (verily I shall lurk in ambush for them) for the children of Adam (on Thy Right Path) the religion of Islam. (Tanwîr al-Miqbâs min Tafsîr Ibn ‘Abbâs; source; bold and underline emphasis ours)
Said he, 'Now, because You have sent me astray (fa-bi-ma aghwaytani means bi-ighwa'ik, 'for Your sending me astray': the ba' is for oaths, and the response of the oath is [the following]) verily I shall sit in ambush for them, that is, for the Children of Adam, on Your straight path, that is, on the path that leads to You. (Tafsir al-Jalalayn; source; bold and underline emphasis ours)
What makes this even more interesting is that this particular word is always used in its various forms with a negative connotation:

"Certainly, you shall have no authority over My slaves, except those who follow you of the Ghawin (Mushrikun and those who go astray, criminals, polytheists, and evil-doers, etc.). S. 15:42
And recite (O Muhammad) to them the story of him to whom We gave Our Ayat (proofs, evidences, verses, lessons, signs, revelations, etc.), but he threw them away, so Shaitan (Satan) followed him up, and he became of those who went astray (alghaweena). S. 7:175
Then they both ate of the tree, and so their private parts appeared to them, and they began to stick on themselves the leaves from Paradise for their covering. Thus did Adam disobey his Lord, so he went astray (faghawa). S. 20:121
And the (Hell) Fire will be placed in full view of the erring…Then they will be thrown on their faces into the (Fire), They and the Ghawun (devils, and those who were in error). S. 26:91, 94
So he became afraid, looking about in the city (waiting as to what will be the result of his crime of killing), when behold, the man who had sought his help the day before, called for his help (again). Musa (Moses) said to him: "Verily, you are a plain misleader (laghawiyyun)!" S. 28:18
Those about whom the Word will have come true (to be punished) will say: "Our Lord! These are they whom we led astray (aghwayna). We led them astray (aghwaynahum), as we were astray (ghawayna) ourselves. We declare our innocence (from them) before You. It was not us they worshipped." S. 28:63
So we led you astray (aghwaynakum) because we were ourselves astray (ghaweena). S. 37:32
Your companion (Muhammad) has neither gone astray nor has erred (ghawa). S. 53:2
And because Allah misled Satan the devil will now mislead others!

[Iblis (Satan)] said: "By Your Might, then I will surely mislead (laoghwiyannahum) them all," S. 38:82
It is, therefore, clear from the foregoing that Satan was raising a serious charge against Allah’s character by basically identifying him as one who perverts, deceives, or misleads people from the true path!

It seems that the reason why Iblis felt that he had been misled is because Allah condemned him for not obeying a command which was given to the angels:

And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate yourselves before Adam.". And they prostrated except Iblis (Satan), he refused and was proud and was one of the disbelievers (disobedient to Allah). S. 2:34
And surely, We created you (your father Adam) and then gave you shape (the noble shape of a human being), then We told the angels, "Prostrate to Adam", and they prostrated, except Iblis (Satan), he refused to be of those who prostrate. S. 7:11
And (remember) when your Lord said to the angels: "I am going to create a man (Adam) from sounding clay of altered black smooth mud. So, when I have fashioned him completely and breathed into him (Adam) the soul which I created for him, then fall (you) down prostrating yourselves unto him." So, the angels prostrated themselves, ALL OF THEM together. S. 15:28-30
And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate yourselves to Adam." They prostrated (all) except Iblis (Satan), who refused. S. 20:116
And (remember) when We said to the angels: "Prostrate unto Adam." They prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He said: "Shall I prostrate to one whom You created from clay?" S. 17:61
(Remember) when your Lord said to the angels: "Truly, I am going to create man from clay. So when I have fashioned him and breathed into him (his) soul created by Me, then you fall down prostrate to him." So the angels prostrated themselves, ALL OF THEM: S. 38:71-73
Note that both Suras 15 and 38 expressly say that ALL the angels prostrated in obedience to Allah’s directive. Yet according to the Quran Iblis is a jinn, not an angel!

And (remember) when We SAID TO THE ANGELS; "Prostrate to Adam." So they prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He was one of the jinns; he disobeyed the Command of his Lord. Will you then take him (Iblis) and his offspring as protectors and helpers rather than Me while they are enemies to you? What an evil is the exchange for the Zalimun (polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc). S. 18:50
In light of the foregoing, why did Allah blame Satan for not obeying an injunction which was imposed upon the angels and not the jinn? And doesn’t this demonstrate that Satan had a valid argument against Allah for being deceptive and misleading the devil since he blamed him for not obeying a command which wasn’t directed to him at all?

Satan may have also felt misled because of the fact that Allah condemns the worship of creatures:

Surely, those who are with your Lord (angels) are never too proud to perform acts of worship to Him, but they glorify His Praise and prostrate before Him. S. 7:206
And from among His Signs are the night and the day, and the sun and the moon. Prostrate not to the sun nor to the moon, but prostrate to Allah Who created them, if you (really) worship Him. S. 41:37
So fall you down in prostration to Allah, and worship Him (Alone). S. 53:62
And yet here he was watching Allah command angels to worship a creature!

A Muslim may claim that Satan falsely accused Allah of leading him astray, that Satan’s words shouldn’t be taken at face value since he is a liar and a slanderer. The first problem with this response is that Satan doesn’t always lie but, as even the Islamic sources themselves admit, can speak the truth:

And (remember) when Shaitan (Satan) made their (evil) deeds seem fair to them and said, "No one of mankind can overcome you this Day (of the battle of Badr) and verily, I am your neighbour (for each and every help)." But when the two forces came in sight of each other, he ran away and said "Verily, I have nothing to do with you. Verily! I see what you see not. Verily! I fear Allah for Allah is Severe in punishment." S. 8:48
Narrated Abu Said Al-Khudri:
The Prophet said, "If while you are praying, somebody intends to pass in front of you, prevent him; and should he insist, prevent him again; and if he insists again, fight with him (i.e. prevent him violently e.g. pushing him violently), because such a person is (like) a devil."
Narrated Muhammad bin Sirin: Abu Huraira said, "Allah's Apostle put me in charge of the Zakat of Ramadan (i.e. Zakat-ul-Fitr). Someone came to me and started scooping some of the foodstuff of (Zakat) with both hands. I caught him and told him that I would take him to Allah's Apostle." Then Abu Huraira told the whole narration and added "He (i.e. the thief) said, ‘Whenever you go to your bed, recite the Verse of "Al-Kursi" (2.255) for then a guardian from Allah will be guarding you, and Satan will not approach you till dawn.’" On that the Prophet said, "He told you the truth, though he is a liar, and he (the thief) himself was the Satan." (Sahih Al-Bukhari, Volume 4, Book 54, Number 495)
More importantly, the Quran actually agrees with Satan since it unashamedly admits that Allah does deceive and mislead people!

"And my advice will not profit you, even if I wish to give you good counsel, if Allah's Will is to keep you astray (yughwiyakum). He is your Lord! and to Him you shall return." S. 11:34
And my sincere counsel will not profit you, if I desire to counsel you sincerely, if God desires to pervert you; He is your Lord, and unto Him you shall be returned.' Arberry
There are other passages which, though not using the same word, teach the same point:

Then what is the matter with you that you are divided into two parties about the hypocrites? Allah has cast them back (to disbelief) because of what they have earned. Do you want to guide him whom Allah has made to go astray? And he whom Allah has made to go astray, you will never find for him any way (of guidance). S. 4:88
And We sent not a Messenger except with the language of his people, in order that he might make (the Message) clear for them. Then Allah misleads whom He wills and guides whom He wills. And He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. S. 14:4
A Muslim may further say that Iblis’ response shows that his reason for not bowing to Adam had nothing to do with Allah’s order being directed to the angels, but out of pride and arrogance due to his being created from a superior element (fire) than man (dust). This really doesn’t solve the problem since one must account for the reason Satan thought he had been misled.

Here is a better explanation of the data, one which takes into account all the information provided by the Quran: Iblis’ refusal to bow may have been due to pride at first but he may have later realized that Allah hadn’t directed this command to him, but to the angels. He may have further reflected that Allah was commanding the angels to do the very thing which was forbidden, namely worshiping a creature. After reflecting on all this Satan concluded that he had been duped, even deceived, by Allah since the intention was to cast Iblis out of paradise.

Whatever the case, whatever the explanation, this point stands out clearly: Satan accused Allah of being a perverter, a misleader, with the Quran agreeing that this is what Allah truly is, going so far as to boast that Allah is actually the best schemer/deceiver of them all!

Unless noted otherwise, all of the citations were taken from the Hilali-Khan version of the Quran.
 
All religions are Oedipus Complex cope.
 
picgifs-didnt-read-lol-2671119.gif
 
I read every word and I still believe Allah
 
Allah was the moon god
 
1=3

Dnr, christcuck
 
Even Pakistan named one of its cities Islamisbad.
 
Do you know the word used for GOD Is One? Btw Eternity plus Eternity plus Eternity is still Eternity. GOD isn't limited, or a satanic moon god like urs lol.


View: https://youtube.com/shorts/nFoQPRZy8Jw?feature=share

The Bible is full of contradictions, Christians believe that the earth is 6000 years old, the sun revolves around the earth etc. It is very clearly a false religion and full of polytheism and idolatry.

Doesn't really matter though, christianity is dying and has the largest rates of apostasy. Islam on the other hand is the fastest growing because tawheed is the truth. Mohammed Hijab mogged David Wood so hard in this debate it isn't even funny

View: https://youtu.be/3k6MBedWTww
 
Only read the first paragraph. Religion is a waste of time.
 
Doesn't matter. At least sharia law is based.
 
The Bible is full of contradictions, Christians believe that the earth is 6000 years old, the sun revolves around the earth etc. It is very clearly a false religion and full of polytheism and idolatry.

Doesn't really matter though, christianity is dying and has the largest rates of apostasy. Islam on the other hand is the fastest growing because tawheed is the truth. Mohammed Hijab mogged David Wood so hard in this debate it isn't even funny

View: https://youtu.be/3k6MBedWTww

hajib got DESTROYED ARE U SRS?!?!!? HOW DARE YOU FUCKING FILTHY LOSER MENTION THE BIBLE AS FALSE?
the shitan/quran says the sun sets in a muddy spring and that the fucking STARS ARE MISSLES IN THE SKY. ur prophet was a fucking PEDO BITCH



View: https://youtu.be/rI1KdZNiVzs


1673519325769
7ij49hyseef21.png
118506138_155000736254075_7919200517910249258_n.jpg


muslims and pisslam are one of the most biggest Jokes in the world.
 
The Bible is full of contradictions, Christians believe that the earth is 6000 years old, the sun revolves around the earth etc. It is very clearly a false religion and full of polytheism and idolatry.

Doesn't really matter though, christianity is dying and has the largest rates of apostasy. Islam on the other hand is the fastest growing because tawheed is the truth. Mohammed Hijab mogged David Wood so hard in this debate it isn't even funny

View: https://youtu.be/3k6MBedWTww

muslims bow to a rock. Nothing to see here, case closed.
 
least obvious priest
 
The Bible is full of contradictions, Christians believe that the earth is 6000 years old, the sun revolves around the earth etc. It is very clearly a false religion and full of polytheism and idolatry.

Doesn't really matter though, christianity is dying and has the largest rates of apostasy. Islam on the other hand is the fastest growing because tawheed is the truth. Mohammed Hijab mogged David Wood so hard in this debate it isn't even funny

View: https://youtu.be/3k6MBedWTww

1=3

Dnr, christcuck
Some Christians believe that. A "day" in English Genesis isn't necessarily a 24 hour period. Also the trinity doesn't really have scriptural basis, it isn't a necessary tenet to believe in Christianity. The only reference to the trinity in the Bible is only in the Vulgate and Bibles derived from the Vulgate which came about by a copying error: 1 John 5 verses 7-8

Also "christcuck" doesn't quite hit right when it comes from a follower of medieval Joe Smith, a dark triad conman that thought he was visited by a demon (an angel of light) until his wife and women around him convinced him he actually spoke to God. "And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light."
 
Some Christians believe that. A "day" in English Genesis isn't necessarily a 24 hour period. Also the trinity doesn't really have scriptural basis, it isn't a necessary tenet to believe in Christianity. The only reference to the trinity in the Bible is only in the Vulgate and Bibles derived from the Vulgate which came about by a copying error: 1 John 5 verses 7-8

Also "christcuck" doesn't quite hit right when it comes from a follower of medieval Joe Smith, a dark triad conman that thought he was visited by a demon (an angel of light) until his wife and women around him convinced him he actually spoke to God. "And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light."
The Trinity is all throughout the Bible.
again the quran says the sun sets in a muddy spring, the stars are missiles in the sky to fight devils, they bow to a fucking rock like pagans, it looks like a toilet. Legit low iq camel piss drinking satanic religion.
their false god says all this stuff is sin, but in "jenna" or w.e he then allows u to do it and fuck virgins, their god is a hypocrite and false.
their symbol comes from moon god. @Ricordanza is even a self proclaimed pedophile like his prophet who had sex with a 9 year old Aisha.
 
u really think some satanic false meme will change what the Bible Actually Say's? Like how JESUS openly accepted Worship, but when someone tried to bow to an angel, the angel rebuked them, and to Only worship GOD? Fool.

Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

That word for Mighty GOD is El Gibor which is only used one other time in reference to YHWH.


The Angel of The LORD,
is YHWH but not The FATHER. That's why HE was bowed to and called YHWH and not the other two angels.
 
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Many people do not realize that the Quran not only describes Allah as the best of all deceivers, but it also depicts him as a misleader who causes people to be deceived and misled from the path of salvation.

Many are also unaware of the fact that two of the 99 names of Allah happen to Al-Hadi (“the guide”), i.e. the one who guides, and al-Mudill (“the misguider/misleader”), e.g. the one who misleads and causes to go astray.

The Muslim scripture contains passage after passage stating that it is Allah who makes people go astray, since he is free to mislead and disgrace whomever he so desires:

Say (O Muhammad): "O Allah! Possessor of the kingdom, You give the kingdom to whom You will, and You take the kingdom from whom You will, and You endue with honour whom You will, and You humiliate whom You will. In Your Hand is the good. Verily, You are Able to do all things.” S. 3:26 Hilali-Khan
Then what is the matter with you that you are divided into two parties about the hypocrites? Allah has cast them back (to disbelief) because of what they have earned. Do you want to guide him whom Allah HAS MADE to go astray? And he whom Allah HAS MADE to go astray, you will never find for him any way (of guidance). S. 4:88 Hilali-Khan
And We sent not a Messenger except with the language of his people, in order that he might make (the Message) clear for them. Then Allah misleads WHOM HE WILLS and guides whom He wills. And He is the All-Mighty, the All-Wise. S. 14:4 Hilali-Khan
And he whom Allah guides, he is led aright; but he whom He sends astray for such you will find no Auliya' (helpers and protectors, etc.), besides Him, and We shall gather them together on the Day of Resurrection on their faces blind, dumb and deaf, their abode will be Hell; whenever it abates, We shall increase for them the fierceness of the Fire. S. 17:97 Hilali-Khan
“… Thus Allah leads astray WHOM HE WILLS and guides whom He wills. And none can know the hosts of your Lord but He. And this (Hell) is nothing else than a (warning) reminder to mankind.” S. 74:31 Hilali-Khan
The Quran further says that there is no guide for the one whom Allah has misled:

A day when ye will turn to flee, having no preserver from Allah: and he whom Allah sendeth astray, for him there is no guide. And verily Joseph brought you of old clear proofs, yet ye ceased not to be in doubt concerning what he brought you till, when he died, ye said: Allah will not send any messenger after him. Thus Allah deceiveth him who is a prodigal, a doubter. S. 40:33-34 Pickthall
It is ironic that Allah is described as doing the very thing which Satan is said to do, namely, mislead people from the path!

Hast thou not regarded those who assert that they believe in what has been sent down to thee, and what was sent down before thee, desiring to take their disputes to idols, yet they have been commanded to disbelieve in them? But Satan desires to lead them astray into far error. S. 4:60 Arberry
And he entered the city at a time of unawareness of its people, and he found there two men fighting, - one of his party (his religion - from the Children of Israel), and the other of his foes. The man of his (own) party asked him for help against his foe, so Musa (Moses) struck him with his fist and killed him. He said: "This is of Shaitan's (Satan) doing, verily, he is a plain misleading enemy (mudillun mubeenun)." S. 28:15 Hilali-Khan
Now, it makes sense for Satan to want to deceive and mislead people from God’s path since his purpose is to see them destroyed. But why would Allah want to do so if he is truly an omni-benevolent being who desires the good for all his creation?

A Muslim may interject that Allah only misleads the evildoers who refuse to believe and repent. The problem with this argument is that the Quran makes it absolutely clear that no person is capable of desiring to believe and repent unless Allah has granted it to him. The Muslim scripture is emphatic that Allah has to will for a person to believe and repent in order for that individual to be able to do so.

However, it is quite evident from the Quran itself that it isn’t Allah’s will to guide everyone, since it is his desire to mislead some of his creatures in order to destroy them:

“Whosoever wishes will take heed. None will take heed except if God wills. He is the source of righteousness and the source of forgiveness.” S. 74:55-56 Quran: Reformist Translation (QRT)
“This is a reminder, so let whoever wills take a path to his Lord. You cannot will, except if God wills. God is Knowledgeable, Wise. He admits whoever/whomever He wills to His mercy. As for the wicked, He has prepared for them a painful retribution.” S. 76:29-31 QRT
“If We had sent down to them the angels, and the dead spoke to them, and We had gathered before them everything, they still would not acknowledge except if God wills. But most of them are ignorant.” S. 6:111 QRT
And had Allah willed, He could have made you (all) one nation, but He sends astray WHOM HE WILLS and guides whom He wills. But you shall certainly be called to account for what you used to do. S. 16:93 Hilali-Khan
In fact, a person can’t even apostatize, or turn away from Islam, unless Allah has willed that s/he should do so:

The chiefs of those who were arrogant among his people said: "We shall certainly drive you out, O Shuaib, and those who have believed with you from our town, or else you (all) shall return to our religion." He said: "Even though we hate it! "We should have invented a lie against Allah if we returned to your religion, after Allah has rescued us from it. And it is not for us to return to it UNLESS Allah, our Lord, SHOULD WILL. Our Lord comprehends all things in His Knowledge. In Allah (Alone) we put our trust. Our Lord! Judge between us and our people in truth, for You are the Best of those who give judgment." S. 7:88-89 Hilali-Khan
The Muslim scripture is also clear that a person whom Allah has chosen to mislead can never be guided, whereas the one whom he has been pleased to guide can never be misled by anyone:

Whomever God sends astray will not have any ally after Him. You will see the transgressors, when they see the retribution, saying: "Is there any way we can go back?" You will see them being displayed to it, in fearful humiliation, and looking, while trying to avoid looking. Those who acknowledged will say, “The losers are those who lost themselves and their families on the day of resurrection. The transgressors will be in a lasting retribution.” They had no allies to help them against God. Whomever God misguides will never find the way. S. 42:44-46 QRT
If you (O Muhammad) covet for their guidance then verily Allah guides not those whom HE MAKES to go astray (or none can guide him whom Allah sends astray). And they will have no helpers. S. 16:37 Hilali-Khan
Is not Allah Sufficient for His slave? Yet they try to frighten you with those (whom they worship) besides Him! And whom Allah sends astray, for him there will be no guide. And whomsoever Allah guides, for him there will be no misleader (mudillin). Is not Allah All-Mighty, Possessor of Retribution? S. 39:36-37 Hilali-Khan
No wonder the Quran says that Allah doesn’t take misleaders as his helpers:

And (remember) when We said to the angels; "Prostrate to Adam." So they prostrated except Iblis (Satan). He was one of the jinns; he disobeyed the Command of his Lord. Will you then take him (Iblis) and his offspring as protectors and helpers rather than Me while they are enemies to you? What an evil is the exchange for the Zalimun (polytheists, and wrong-doers, etc). I (Allah) made them (Iblis and his offspring) not to witness (nor took their help in) the creation of the heavens and the earth and not (even) their own creation, nor was I (Allah) to take the misleaders (al-mudilleena) as helpers. S. 18:50-51 Hilali-Khan
This makes absolute sense since why would the Islamic deity need anyone to help him mislead people when there is no one better than Allah at leading people astray in order to destroy them?

And yet the Quran speaks of people being punished for misguiding others from Allah’s path:

And when some hurt touches man, he cries to his Lord (Allah Alone), turning to Him in repentance, but when He bestows a favour upon him from Himself, he forgets that for which he cried for before, and he sets up rivals to Allah, in order to mislead others from His Path. Say: "Take pleasure in your disbelief for a while: surely, you are (one) of the dwellers of the Fire!” S. 39:8 Hilali-Khan
And of mankind is he who purchases idle talks (i.e. music, singing, etc.) to mislead (men) from the Path of Allah without knowledge, and takes it (the Path of Allah, the Verses of the Qur'an) by way of mockery. For such there will be a humiliating torment (in the Hell-fire). S. 31:6 Hiali-Khan – cf. Q. 14:30; 16:25; 22:3-4, 8-9
What this basically means is that Allah is going to torture individuals for causing people to stray even though it was Allah’s will that they do so!

In other words, Allah is going to basically torment people in hell for doing the exact thing that was predetermined for them to do, and who do not have the ability to choose not to do it!

To make matters worse, if Allah has decided to destroy a people he first sends them the guidance of Islam, and then commands them to do evil in order to have a reason to wipe them out!

And Allah will never lead a people astray after He has guided them UNTIL He makes clear to them as to what they should avoid. Verily, Allah is the All-Knower of everything. S. 9:115
Whoever is guided is guided for himself, and whoever is misguided is for his own loss. No person shall carry the load of another, and We were not to punish until We send a messenger. And when We desire to destroy a town, We command its men who leave at ease, and they commit ungodliness in it, then the Word is realized against it, and We destroy it completely. S. 17:15-16
It is obvious why Allah would first send a nation whom he intends to destroy the knowledge of the religion. By receiving the message, the people are now culpable for rejecting it, which means that Allah now has the green light to go ahead and obliterate them. After all, as the above text makes clear, the Islamic deity will not destroy a group to whom a messenger hasn’t first been sent to warn them.

No wonder the Quran says that Allah shall not be questioned by anyone:

He will not be questioned as to that which He doeth, but they will be questioned. S. 21:23
It is obvious that Muhammad knew that his conception of God raised a host of moral problems which could not be satisfactorily answered. He, therefore, chose to scare people away from questioning his view regarding the deity with eternal torture in order to keep them obedient to his demands and desires.

Contrast this with the teachings of the Holy Bible. The inspired Scriptures emphatically proclaim that the true God desires that none of his human creatures perish and die, but that they repent from their wickedness so that they might live:

Have I any pleasure in the death of the wicked, declares the Lord GOD, and not rather that he should turn from his way and live? … Therefore I will judge you, O house of Israel, every one according to his ways, declares the Lord GOD. Repent and turn from all your transgressions, lest iniquity be your ruin. Cast away from you all the transgressions that you have committed, and make yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! Why will you die, O house of Israel? For I have no pleasure in the death of anyone, declares the Lord GOD; so turn, and live.” Ezekiel 18:23, 30-32
Yahweh calls out to the entire inhabited earth which he has created to turn to him and believe that he alone is a righteous God and Savior, since he desires that they all should be saved:

“For thus says the LORD, who created the heavens (he is God!), who formed the earth and made it (he established it; he did not create it empty, he formed it to be inhabited!): I am the LORD, and there is no other. I did not speak in secret, in a land of darkness; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek me in vain.’ I the LORD speak the truth; I declare what is right. Assemble yourselves and come; draw near together, you survivors of the nations! They have no knowledge who carry about their wooden idols, and keep on praying to a god that cannot save. Declare and present your case; let them take counsel together! Who told this long ago? Who declared it of old? Was it not I, the LORD? And there is no other god besides me, a righteous God and a Savior; there is none besides me. Turn to me and be saved, all the ends of the earth! For I am God, and there is no other. By myself I have sworn; from my mouth has gone out in righteousness a word that shall not return: To me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear allegiance.” Isaiah 45:18-23
And:

“Now at Lystra there was a man sitting who could not use his feet. He was crippled from birth and had never walked. He listened to Paul speaking. And Paul, looking intently at him and seeing that he had faith to be made well, said in a loud voice, ‘Stand upright on your feet.’ And he sprang up and began walking. And when the crowds saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in Lycaonian, ‘The gods have come down to us in the likeness of men!’ Barnabas they called Zeus, and Paul, Hermes, because he was the chief speaker. And the priest of Zeus, whose temple was at the entrance to the city, brought oxen and garlands to the gates and wanted to offer sacrifice with the crowds. But when the apostles Barnabas and Paul heard of it, they tore their garments and rushed out into the crowd, crying out, ‘Men, why are you doing these things? We also are men, of like nature with you, and we bring you good news, that you should turn from these vain things to a living God, who made the heaven and the earth and the sea and all that is in them. In past generations he allowed all the nations to walk in their own ways. Yet he did not leave himself without witness, for he did good by giving you rains from heaven and fruitful seasons, satisfying your hearts with food and gladness.’” Acts 14:8-17
God even determined where and when everyone would live in order that they might seek for him and be saved:

The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything. And he made from one man every nation of mankind to live on all the face of the earth, having determined allotted periods and the boundaries of their dwelling place, that they should seek God, in the hope that they might feel their way toward him and find him. Yet he is actually not far from each one of us, for ‘In him we live and move and have our being’; as even some of your own poets have said, ‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ Being then God's offspring, we ought not to think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone, an image formed by the art and imagination of man. The times of ignorance God overlooked, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent, because he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed; and of this he has given assurance to all by raising him from the dead.” Acts 17:24-31
This is also the reason why Yahweh chose to raise up a righteous Servant, in order that he might bring God’s salvation to the ends of the earth so that all the Gentiles might be saved along with Israel:

“Listen to me, O coastlands, and give attention, you peoples from afar. The LORD called me from the womb, from the body of my mother he named my name. He made my mouth like a sharp sword; in the shadow of his hand he hid me; he made me a polished arrow; in his quiver he hid me away. And he said to me, ‘You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified.’ But I said, ‘I have labored in vain; I have spent my strength for nothing and vanity; yet surely my right is with the LORD, and my recompense with my God.’ And now the LORD says, he who formed me from the womb to be his servant, to bring Jacob back to him; and that Israel might be gathered to him—for I am honored in the eyes of the LORD, and my God has become my strength—he says: ‘It is too light a thing that you should be my servant to raise up the tribes of Jacob and to bring back the preserved of Israel; I will make you as a light for the nations, that my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.’ Thus says the LORD, the Redeemer of Israel and his Holy One, to one deeply despised, abhorred by the nation, the servant of rulers: ‘Kings shall see and arise; princes, and they shall prostrate themselves; because of the LORD, who is faithful, the Holy One of Israel, who has chosen you.’ Thus says the LORD: ‘In a time of favor I have answered you; in a day of salvation I have helped you; I will keep you and give you as a covenant to the people, to establish the land, to apportion the desolate heritages, saying to the prisoners, “Come out,” to those who are in darkness, “Appear.” They shall feed along the ways; on all bare heights shall be their pasture; they shall not hunger or thirst, neither scorching wind nor sun shall strike them, for he who has pity on them will lead them, and by springs of water will guide them.’” Isaiah 49:1-10
According to the NT, this promise was fulfilled when God sent forth his Son to assume the role of the Servant spoken of in Isaiah:

“And the angel said to them, ‘Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.’… Now there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon, and this man was righteous and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel, and the Holy Spirit was upon him. And it had been revealed to him by the Holy Spirit that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord's Christ. And he came in the Spirit into the temple, and when the parents brought in the child Jesus, to do for him according to the custom of the Law, he took him up in his arms and blessed God and said, ‘Lord, now you are letting your servant depart in peace, according to your word; for my eyes have seen your salvation that you have prepared in the presence of all peoples, a light for revelation to the Gentiles, and for glory to your people Israel.’” Luke 2:10-11, 25-32
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” John 3:16-18
"Many Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman's testimony, ‘He told me all that I ever did.’ So when the Samaritans came to him, they asked him to stay with them, and he stayed there two days. And many more believed because of his word. They said to the woman, ‘It is no longer because of what you said that we believe, for we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this is indeed the Savior of the world.’” John 4:39-42
“If anyone hears my words and does not keep them, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world.” John 12:47
“And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world.” 1 John 4:14
“After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, ‘Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, AND TO the Lamb!’ And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God, saying, ‘Amen! Blessing and glory and wisdom and thanksgiving and honor and power and might be to our God forever and ever! Amen.’ Then one of the elders addressed me, saying, ‘Who are these, clothed in white robes, and from where have they come?’ I said to him, ‘Sir, you know.’ And he said to me, ‘These are the ones coming out of the great tribulation. They have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb. Therefore they are before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence. They shall hunger no more, neither thirst anymore; the sun shall not strike them, nor any scorching heat. For the Lamb in the midst of the throne will be their shepherd, and he will guide them to springs of living water, and God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’” Revelation 7:9-17
Moreover, the Holy Bible plainly teaches that the great deceiver who misleads people from the truth isn’t God, but the devil or Satan himself!

“And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.” Revelation 12:9
“Then I saw an angel coming down from heaven, holding in his hand the key to the bottomless pit and a great chain. And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years, and threw him into the pit, and shut it and sealed it over him, so that he might not deceive the nations any longer, until the thousand years were ended. After that he must be released for a little while… And when the thousand years are ended, Satan will be released from his prison and will come out to deceive the nations that are at the four corners of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them for battle; their number is like the sand of the sea. And they marched up over the broad plain of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city, but fire came down from heaven and consumed them, and the devil who had deceived them was thrown into the lake of fire and sulfur where the beast and the false prophet were, and they will be tormented day and night forever and ever." Revelation 20:1-3, 7-10
The Scriptures further tell us that Satan deceives people by using various means including human agents such as the antichrist, also known as the beast or the lawless one, whom the devil empowers to perform signs and wonders in order to cause people to stray away from believing in the Gospel:

“And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. And the beast that I saw was like a leopard; its feet were like a bear's, and its mouth was like a lion's mouth. And to it the dragon gave his power and his throne and great authority. One of its heads seemed to have a mortal wound, but its mortal wound was healed, and the whole earth marveled as they followed the beast. And they worshiped the dragon, for he had given his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, ‘Who is like the beast, and who can fight against it?’ And the beast was given a mouth uttering haughty and blasphemous words, and it was allowed to exercise authority for forty-two months. It opened its mouth to utter blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and his dwelling, that is, those who dwell in heaven. Also it was allowed to make war on the saints and to conquer them. And authority was given it over every tribe and people and language and nation, and all who dwell on earth will worship it, everyone whose name has not been written before the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb that was slain. If anyone has an ear, let him hear: If anyone is to be taken captive, to captivity he goes; if anyone is to be slain with the sword, with the sword must he be slain. Here is a call for the endurance and faith of the saints. Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon. It exercises all the authority of the first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. It performs great signs, even making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, and by the signs that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by the sword and yet lived. And it was allowed to give breath to the image of the beast, so that the image of the beast might even speak and might cause those who would not worship the image of the beast to be slain. Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name. This calls for wisdom: let the one who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is 666.” Revelation 13:1-18
The Holy Bible also makes it quite clear that the only ones whom Satan is able to mislead and destroy are those whom God has become absolutely fed up with for refusing to repent of their sins and accepting the truth which God has made so plain to them. God, therefore, justly hands such reprobates over to their own desires and gives them what they want, which is to believe in anything except the truth of God:

“Now concerning the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ and our being gathered together to him, we ask you, brothers, not to be quickly shaken in mind or alarmed, either by a spirit or a spoken word, or a letter seeming to be from us, to the effect that the day of the Lord has come. Let no one deceive you in any way. For that day will not come, unless the rebellion comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction, who opposes and exalts himself against every so-called god or object of worship, so that he takes his seat in the temple of God, proclaiming himself to be God. Do you not remember that when I was still with you I told you these things? And you know what is restraining him now so that he may be revealed in his time. For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work. Only he who now restrains it will do so until he is out of the way. And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will kill with the breath of his mouth and bring to nothing by the appearance of his coming. The coming of the lawless one is by the activity of Satan with all power and false signs and wonders, and with all wicked deception for those who are perishing, because they refused to love the truth and so be saved. Therefore God sends them a strong delusion, so that they may believe what is false, in order that all may be condemned who did not believe the truth but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” 2 Thessalonians 2:1-12 – cf. Romans 1:18-28; Psalm 81:8-16
This means that God will never allow Satan to mislead any one who truly seeks after God and desires to know him, but will make sure to reveal himself to such a person as he has promised:

“But from there you will seek the LORD your God and you will find him, if you search after him with all your heart and with all your soul. Deuteronomy 4:29
“And you, Solomon my son, know the God of your father and serve him with a whole heart and with a willing mind, for the LORD searches all hearts and understands every plan and thought. If you seek him, he will be found by you, but if you forsake him, he will cast you off forever.” 1 Chronicles 28:9 – cf. 2 Chronicles 15:2
“For I know the plans I have for you, declares the LORD, plans for wholeness and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will hear you. You will seek me and find me. When you seek me with all your heart, I will be found by you, declares the LORD, and I will restore your fortunes and gather you from all the nations and all the places where I have driven you, declares the LORD, and I will bring you back to the place from which I sent you into exile.” Jeremiah 29:11-14
“And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.” Hebrews 11:6
The simple fact of the matter is that a Muslim will not find such comparable statements in the Quran. There are no verses which say that Allah loved the world, or that he desires that every creature that he has made to turn to him and live since he doesn’t take any delight in destroying the wicked.

In fact, the Quran goes out of its way to show that Allah doesn’t love everyone since he only loves faithful Muslims:

Lo! those who believe and do good works, the Beneficent will appoint for them love. S. 19:96 Pickthall
The Muslim scripture plainly says that Allah loves those who perform good deeds (2:195), those who are pure (2:222), those who are righteous (9:7), and those who fight in his cause (61:4). And yet when it comes to the transgressors (2:190), the ungrateful sinners (2:276), the unjust (3:57), or the proud (4:36), Allah has absolutely no love for them. And, as the following verses make clear, if you are not a Muhammadan, one who fully submits to Muhammad and his religion, then do not count on Allah loving you at all:

Say: If you love Allah, then follow me, Allah will love you and forgive you your faults, and Allah is Forgiving, Merciful. Say: Obey Allah and the Apostle; but if they turn back, then surely Allah does not love the unbelievers. S. 3:31-32 Shakir
Then turn thy face straight to the right religion before there come from Allah the day which cannot be averted; on that day they shall become separated. Whoever disbelieves, he shall be responsible for his disbelief, and whoever does good, they prepare (good) for their own souls, that He may reward those who believe and do good out of His grace; surely He does not love the unbelievers. S. 30:43-45 Shakir
This basically means that Allah’s love is no greater or higher than disbelieving sinners according to Jesus, and therefore does not come close to the love that the true God has for all his creatures, including his enemies:

“The LORD is gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love. The LORD is good to all, and his mercy is over all that he has made.” Psalm 145:8-9
“But I say to you who hear, Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, bless those who curse you, pray for those who abuse you. To one who strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also, and from one who takes away your cloak do not withhold your tunic either. Give to everyone who begs from you, and from one who takes away your goods do not demand them back. And as you wish that others would do to you, do so to them. If you love those who love you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. And if you do good to those who do good to you, what benefit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. And if you lend to those from whom you expect to receive, what credit is that to you? Even sinners lend to sinners, to get back the same amount. But love your enemies, and do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return, and your reward will be great, and you will be sons of the Most High, for he is kind to the ungrateful and the evil. Be merciful, even as your Father is merciful.” Luke 6:27-36
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” Romans 5:8-11
In light of this, it is an absolute insult and even outright blasphemy to say that the deity so described in the Quran is the same God revealed in the Holy Bible. The Quranic depiction of Allah best describes Satan rather than the infinitely holy and loving God whom the Lord Jesus came to perfectly manifest by his life and sacrificial death:

“‘Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me. In my Father's house are many rooms. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also. And you know the way to where I am going.’ Thomas said to him, ‘Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’ Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him.’ Philip said to him, ‘Lord, show us the Father, and it is enough for us.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, “Show us the Father”? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves.’” John 14:1-11
As the Father has loved me, so have I loved you. Abide in my love. If you keep my commandments, you will abide in my love, just as I have kept my Father's commandments and abide in his love. These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full. This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, that someone lays down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.” John 15:9-15
“but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,” Hebrews 1:2-3
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another… And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world… By this is love perfected with us, so that we may have confidence for the day of judgment, because as he is so also are we in this world. There is no fear in love, but perfect love casts out fear. For fear has to do with punishment, and whoever fears has not been perfected in love. We love because he first loved us.” 1 John 4:8-11, 14, 17-19
“And we know that the Son of God has come and has given us understanding, so that we may know him who is true; and we are in him who is true, in his Son Jesus Christ. He is the true God and eternal life.” 1 John 5:20
Unlike the Islamic deity who capriciously and arbitrarily creates people for the sole purpose of tormenting them in hell, like some sadist who gets off on inflicting excruciating torture on others,

Whoever Allah guides, then he is the guided one; and whoever He leads astray, then they are the losers. We have created for hell many jinn and men. They have hearts, yet they do not comprehend; they have eyes yet they do not see; they have ears yet they do not hear. They are like cattle; nay, they are even more astray. S. 7:178-179
Had your Lord wished, He could have made all the people one nation, but they still would continue to disagree; Except whom your Lord has mercy upon; and for that He has created them. The word of your Lord came true: "I will fill hell with the Jinn and the humans together!" S. 11:118-119 QRT
If We had wished, We could have given every person its guidance, but the word from Me has taken effect, that I will fill hell with Jinn and humans all together. S. 32:13 QRT
The God revealed in the Person of the Lord Jesus Christ doesn’t delight in afflicting or punishing the sons of men,

“For the Lord will not cast off forever, but, though he cause grief, he will have compassion according to the abundance of his steadfast love; for he does not willingly afflict or grieve the children of men.” Lamentations 3:31-33
But actually grieves and weeps over having to destroy them for their wickedness and persistent rebellion:

“And when he drew near and saw the city, HE WEPT OVER IT, saying, ‘Would that you, even you, had known on this day the things that make for peace! But now they are hidden from your eyes. For the days will come upon you, when your enemies will set up a barricade around you and surround you and hem you in on every side and tear you down to the ground, you and your children within you. And they will not leave one stone upon another in you, because you did not know the time of your visitation.’” Luke 19:41-44
Such a God is truly worthy of our love and worship, for he alone is worthy to be called God!
n several articles (1, 2, 3, 4) we have made mention that the Quran teaches outright that Allah is capable of lying and deceiving people. In fact, one of the titles which the Quran ascribes to Allah is khayru al-makireen, that Allah is "the best deceiver/schemer/conniver" (cf. S. 3:54; 8:30).

We want to continue our discussion regarding Allah being a deceiver by examining what the Quran says supposedly took place in paradise between Allah and Satan (called Iblis in the Quran) at the time of Adam’s creation. The Quran claims that Allah commanded all the angels to worship Adam, which Satan did not do, prompting Allah to ask him the reason why:


What makes this exchange rather shocking is that Satan accuses Allah of deceiving or misleading him! Here is what the text in question exactly says:


Note the various translations of this specific text by the different versions of the Quran:


The parallel version of this story reads slightly different:


Here is how various versions translate this passage:


Moreover, here is how some Muslim commentators explained S. 7:16:


What makes this even more interesting is that this particular word is always used in its various forms with a negative connotation:


And because Allah misled Satan the devil will now mislead others!


It is, therefore, clear from the foregoing that Satan was raising a serious charge against Allah’s character by basically identifying him as one who perverts, deceives, or misleads people from the true path!

It seems that the reason why Iblis felt that he had been misled is because Allah condemned him for not obeying a command which was given to the angels:


Note that both Suras 15 and 38 expressly say that ALL the angels prostrated in obedience to Allah’s directive. Yet according to the Quran Iblis is a jinn, not an angel!


In light of the foregoing, why did Allah blame Satan for not obeying an injunction which was imposed upon the angels and not the jinn? And doesn’t this demonstrate that Satan had a valid argument against Allah for being deceptive and misleading the devil since he blamed him for not obeying a command which wasn’t directed to him at all?

Satan may have also felt misled because of the fact that Allah condemns the worship of creatures:


And yet here he was watching Allah command angels to worship a creature!

A Muslim may claim that Satan falsely accused Allah of leading him astray, that Satan’s words shouldn’t be taken at face value since he is a liar and a slanderer. The first problem with this response is that Satan doesn’t always lie but, as even the Islamic sources themselves admit, can speak the truth:


More importantly, the Quran actually agrees with Satan since it unashamedly admits that Allah does deceive and mislead people!


There are other passages which, though not using the same word, teach the same point:


A Muslim may further say that Iblis’ response shows that his reason for not bowing to Adam had nothing to do with Allah’s order being directed to the angels, but out of pride and arrogance due to his being created from a superior element (fire) than man (dust). This really doesn’t solve the problem since one must account for the reason Satan thought he had been misled.

Here is a better explanation of the data, one which takes into account all the information provided by the Quran: Iblis’ refusal to bow may have been due to pride at first but he may have later realized that Allah hadn’t directed this command to him, but to the angels. He may have further reflected that Allah was commanding the angels to do the very thing which was forbidden, namely worshiping a creature. After reflecting on all this Satan concluded that he had been duped, even deceived, by Allah since the intention was to cast Iblis out of paradise.

Whatever the case, whatever the explanation, this point stands out clearly: Satan accused Allah of being a perverter, a misleader, with the Quran agreeing that this is what Allah truly is, going so far as to boast that Allah is actually the best schemer/deceiver of them all!

Unless noted otherwise, all of the citations were taken from the Hilali-Khan version of the Quran.


n several articles (1, 2, 3, 4) we have made mention that the Quran teaches outright that Allah is capable of lying and deceiving people. In fact, one of the titles which the Quran ascribes to Allah is khayru al-makireen, that Allah is "the best deceiver/schemer/conniver" (cf. S. 3:54; 8:30).

We want to continue our discussion regarding Allah being a deceiver by examining what the Quran says supposedly took place in paradise between Allah and Satan (called Iblis in the Quran) at the time of Adam’s creation. The Quran claims that Allah commanded all the angels to worship Adam, which Satan did not do, prompting Allah to ask him the reason why:


What makes this exchange rather shocking is that Satan accuses Allah of deceiving or misleading him! Here is what the text in question exactly says:


Note the various translations of this specific text by the different versions of the Quran:


The parallel version of this story reads slightly different:


Here is how various versions translate this passage:


Moreover, here is how some Muslim commentators explained S. 7:16:


What makes this even more interesting is that this particular word is always used in its various forms with a negative connotation:


And because Allah misled Satan the devil will now mislead others!


It is, therefore, clear from the foregoing that Satan was raising a serious charge against Allah’s character by basically identifying him as one who perverts, deceives, or misleads people from the true path!

It seems that the reason why Iblis felt that he had been misled is because Allah condemned him for not obeying a command which was given to the angels:


Note that both Suras 15 and 38 expressly say that ALL the angels prostrated in obedience to Allah’s directive. Yet according to the Quran Iblis is a jinn, not an angel!


In light of the foregoing, why did Allah blame Satan for not obeying an injunction which was imposed upon the angels and not the jinn? And doesn’t this demonstrate that Satan had a valid argument against Allah for being deceptive and misleading the devil since he blamed him for not obeying a command which wasn’t directed to him at all?

Satan may have also felt misled because of the fact that Allah condemns the worship of creatures:


And yet here he was watching Allah command angels to worship a creature!

A Muslim may claim that Satan falsely accused Allah of leading him astray, that Satan’s words shouldn’t be taken at face value since he is a liar and a slanderer. The first problem with this response is that Satan doesn’t always lie but, as even the Islamic sources themselves admit, can speak the truth:


More importantly, the Quran actually agrees with Satan since it unashamedly admits that Allah does deceive and mislead people!


There are other passages which, though not using the same word, teach the same point:


A Muslim may further say that Iblis’ response shows that his reason for not bowing to Adam had nothing to do with Allah’s order being directed to the angels, but out of pride and arrogance due to his being created from a superior element (fire) than man (dust). This really doesn’t solve the problem since one must account for the reason Satan thought he had been misled.

Here is a better explanation of the data, one which takes into account all the information provided by the Quran: Iblis’ refusal to bow may have been due to pride at first but he may have later realized that Allah hadn’t directed this command to him, but to the angels. He may have further reflected that Allah was commanding the angels to do the very thing which was forbidden, namely worshiping a creature. After reflecting on all this Satan concluded that he had been duped, even deceived, by Allah since the intention was to cast Iblis out of paradise.

Whatever the case, whatever the explanation, this point stands out clearly: Satan accused Allah of being a perverter, a misleader, with the Quran agreeing that this is what Allah truly is, going so far as to boast that Allah is actually the best schemer/deceiver of them all!

Unless noted otherwise, all of the citations were taken from the Hilali-Khan version of the Quran.
Dnr, jfl at abrahamists, mang
 

OT Adumbrations and Evidences for the Trinity


The doctrine of the Trinity is interwoven throughout the entire warp and woof of the Old Testament; it is not merely found in a discrete passage or proof-text here and there. For example, from the beginning to the end of the Old Testament, plural nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs and adjectives are regularly used for God, at least in the Hebrew text. A cursory list follows:

  • The word Elohim is used thousands of times for “God”; Adonai is used hundreds of times for “Lord”; both of these words are plural nouns in Hebrew.
  • A number of passages speak of the “faces” or “presences” or “persons” of God (Exodus 33:14; Deuteronomy 4:37; and Job 13:8).
  • God refers to Himself as “Us,” “Our,” and “We” (Genesis 1:26, 2:18 (LXX), 3:22, 11:7; Isaiah 6:8, and 41:21-24),2 a phenomenon that is reflected in virtually every English translation.
  • The OT says of God, “they caused me to wander” (Genesis 20:13), “they appeared” (Genesis 35:7), “they drew nigh” (Deuteronomy 4:7), “they went” (2 Samuel 7:23), and “they judge” (Psalm 58:11).
  • The OT calls God our “Creators” (Ecclesiastes 12:1), “Makers” and “Husbands” (Job 35:10; Psalm 149:2; Isaiah 54:5).
  • The OT says that God is “holy” (Joshua 24:19; Proverbs 9:10, 30:33), another plural.
All of this (and more) can be found in the Old Testament in spite of the fact that singular words are readily available in each instance where these words occur. If the prophetic authors of the Bible were unitarians, we wouldn’t expect them to speak about God in this way. Indeed, unitarians do not typically speak this way in ordinary conversation and fall all over themselves trying to explain them when they are brought up.4

One might say the use of plural expressions is customary among polytheists, but then in the case of polytheism it only needs to be pointed out that right alongside such plural references to God are singular words, even emphatic declarations that there is only one God. These singular references to God are just as disconcerting to polytheists as the plural references are to unitarians.

The same thing can be said for many other peculiarities distinctive of Old Testament revelation about God, such as when God speaks to or about another person who is identified as God or Lord (Psalm 2, 110:1, Isaiah 13:17-19; Hosea 1:7; Amos 4:10-11; Jeremiah 50:40; Malachi 3:1; Micah 5:2; Zechariah 2:8-11, 12:10, 13:7)5 or when the Biblical authors refer to more than one person as Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Genesis 19:24;6 Psalm 457). Once again, this does not sit well with either unitarians or polytheists; the former because it implies personal plurality within the Godhead, contrary to their unitarian assumptions; the latter because it implies the essential unity of these divine persons, contrary to their polytheistic assumptions.

In addition to plural words and the divine distinctions pointed out above, mention can be made of the triadic prayers, benedictions, and doxologies of the Old Testament (e.g. Genesis 48:15-16; Numbers 6:24-26; Isaiah 6:38 see also Isaiah 33:22; Jeremiah 33:2; Daniel 9:19),9 which given their formulaic character, cry out for some kind of explanation. This cry has fallen on deaf unitarian ears and has been met with equally mute unitarian lips for a reason: this is not the way unitarians would naturally speak of their “god”.

The OT further specifies the nature of divine plurality by identifying the three persons of the Godhead. These three persons are all distinguished from each other, and yet, in various ways, are identified as God: the Father (e.g. Deuteronomy 32:6; Isaiah 63:16, 64:8, Malachi 2:10); the person variously designated as the Messenger of the LORD (Heb. Malakh Yahweh), Word, or Son of God (e.g. Genesis 16:7-14, 21:17-18, 22:9-18, 28:10-22 (cf. Genesis 31:11-13), 32:22-32 (cf. Hosea 12:3-4); Exodus 3, 13:21 (cf. 14:19), 23:20-22; Numbers 22:21-41; Judges 2:1-5, 6:7-24, 13:3-22, 2 Samuel 24:16; Psalm 2, 110:1, Isaiah 7:14, 9:6, 63:9; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Proverbs 30:4; Zechariah 1:10-11, 12:8; Malachi 3:1); and the Holy Spirit or Spirit of God (e.g. Nehemiah 9:20; Job 26:13, 33:4; Psalm 104:30, 106:32-33, 139:1-24, 143:10; 2 Samuel 23:1-3; Isaiah 11:2, 40:13; Ezekiel 11:5; Micah 2:7).

Finally, in addition to the above passages that separately speak of one or another person of the Godhead, assigning to them the names, attributes, and prerogatives of God, there are many passages which mention all three persons together, assigning to each a role in the divine works of creation, providence, and redemption. For example: 1) Genesis 1:1-3 mentions God creating all things by His Word and Spirit; 2) the same thing is reiterated in Psalm 33:6; 3) Isaiah 42:1 speaks of God, His Servant/Chosen One, and His Spirit, by which He will bring justice or righteousness to the world; 4) Isaiah 48:12-16 has the First and the Last, i.e. the eternal God, speaking of a time when He is sent by the LORD God and His Spirit; 5) in Isaiah 61:1, the person who is sent with the good news, i.e. the Gospel, says the LORD has anointed Him with His Holy Spirit, Who is upon Him; and 6) Isaiah 63 tells of the LORD, the Angel [Lit. Heb. Messenger] of His Presence, and the Holy Spirit bringing about salvation.


An Objection Considered


The assumption that pre-Christian Jews did not believe in the Trinity is often allowed to run rough-shod over the evidence available from the OT. Not only is this irrelevant – since the question is not what ancient Jews in general allegedly believed but what the Jewish prophets taught as they were borne along by the Holy Spirit – but it isn’t true in the first place. The Aramaic Targums and a wide body of inter-testamental literature give evidence of (at least) a nascent Trinitarianism among some Jews. Often what some people present as evidence against Jewish Trinitarianism comes from modern anti-Messianic Jewish sources, not from the writings of ancient Jews; when appeal is made to Jewish writings of the inter-testamental period, it is usually in a very selective way.


Beating A Retreat


Since post-Quranic Islamic theology says that the Old Testament has been corrupted, many Muslims may be tempted to say it is no consequence that the Old Testament teaches that God is Triune, because they can just fall back on this expedient. In addition to the fact that the Qur’an does not support the idea that the text of the Old Testament has been corrupted,10 this fall-back position has some serious problems. Not only would such a maneuver in the face of the evidence undermine any ability of Muslims to prove, beyond the solitary witness of Muhammad in the Qur’an, that they are purveyors of the original message of the prophets, it would mean that the doctrine of the Trinity: 1) predated Christianity, since we have OT manuscripts from before the Christian era, which is contrary to the thesis that it was invented by the early church; and 2) was invented by the Jews, since these manuscripts were primarily in their hands at that time, contrary to the thesis that pre-Christian Jews did not believe in the Trinity. Such conclusions run contrary to stock-in-trade notions argued by Muslim apologists, especially when it comes to assessing the evidence for the Trinity provided by the New Testament,11 and look suspiciously like ex post facto rationalizations to resist the otherwise obvious falsification of the thesis that the Old Testament does not reveal the Trinity.


Conclusion


In the nature of the case, as a summary of the evidence, the above has hardly attempted and much less achieved a comprehensive presentation of the case that can be made for the Trinity from the Old Testament (or a comprehensive refutation of the arguments that are levied against it). Nevertheless, the above has shown something of the fact that this doctrine is found in the Old Testament, and something of just how pervasively it is found in the prophetic writings.

Consequently, the Old Testament does not support the idea that God is like the unitarian deity Muhammad supposedly thought He was. This leaves Muslims on the horns of a dilemma: either Muhammad did not reveal the same message as the prophets, which falsifies his claim to be the Messenger of God; or God’s message through the prophets has been corrupted, which makes Muhammad’s repeated claim that the previous prophets brought the same message as he did un-verifiable, which in turn falsifies in another way his claim to be a prophet since he said it could be verified from their writings. Either way the above has shown that the Old Testament teaches the doctrine of the Trinity and this means Muslims are bereft of any basis of appeal in the prophetic writings, either when it comes to arguing against what is taught in the New Testament about the Trinity, or of establishing any precedent for Islamic Tawheed.

Throughout the Holy Scriptures God declares his absolute sovereignty and unique Deity. The inspired prophetic writings emphasize the point of Yahweh being unlike anything in creation, especially the false gods worshiped by the nations:

“There is none like you among the gods, O Lord, nor are there any works like yours. All the nations you have made shall come and bow down before you, O Lord, and shall glorify your name. For you are great and do wondrous things, you alone are God.” Psalm 86:8-10
"Let the heavens praise your wonders, O Yahweh, your faithfulness in the assembly of the holy ones! For who in the skies can be compared to Yahweh? Who among the heavenly beings is like Yahweh, a God feared in the council of the holy ones, great and terrible above all that are round about him? O Yahweh God of hosts, who is mighty as you are, O Yahweh, with your faithfulness round about you?” Psalm 89:5-8
“Who is like Yahweh our God, who is seated on high, who looks far down upon the heavens and the earth?” Psalm 113:5-6
“To whom then will you liken God, or what likeness compare with him? … To whom then will you compare me, that I should be like him? says the Holy One. Lift up your eyes on high and see: who created these? He who brings out their host by number, calling them all by name; by the greatness of his might, and because he is strong in power not one is missing. Isaiah 40:18, 25-26
“Who is like me? Let him proclaim it, let him declare and set it forth before me. Who has announced from of old the things to come? Let them tell us what is yet to be.” Isaiah 44:7
“There is none like thee, O LORD; you are great, and your name is great in might. Who would not fear you, O King of the nations? For this is your due; for among all the wise ones of the nations and in all their kingdoms there is none like you.” Jeremiah 10:6-7
One area which brings out Yahweh’s uniqueness quite clearly is his Being or mode of existence. The prophetic writings testify that Yahweh is multi-personal in nature, i.e. the true God is an eternal Being who exists as more than one Divine Person, which is unlike any other being in all creation.

For example, in one particular text the prophet Isaiah not only refers to Yahweh as the One who created the cosmos but also speaks of Yahweh being sent by Yahweh and his Spirit!

“… I will not yield my glory to another. Listen to me, O Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I AM he; I am the First and I am the Last. My own hand laid the foundations of the earth, and my right hand spread out the heavens; when I summon them, they all stand up together. Come together, all of you, and listen: Which of the idols has foretold these things? Yahweh's chosen ally will carry out his purpose against Babylon; his arm will be against the Babylonians. I, even I, have spoken; yes, I have called him. I will bring him, and he will succeed in his mission. Come near me and listen to this: From the first announcement I have not spoken in secret; from the time it came to be I have been there. And now the Lord Yahweh has sent Me, with his Spirit. This is what Yahweh says — your Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel: ‘I am Yahweh your God, who teaches you what is best for you, who directs you in the way you should go.’” Isaiah 48:11b-17
Needless to say many Christians over the centuries have taken this passage as an OT witness to the Trinity, as can be seen from the following commentaries.

and now the Lord God and his Spirit hath sent me; in the fulness of time, in the likeness of sinful flesh, to preach the Gospel, fulfil the law, and to redeem and save the Lord's people. Here is a glorious testimony of a trinity of Persons in the Godhead; Christ the Son of God is sent in human nature, and as Mediator Jehovah the Father and the Spirit are the senders of him; and so is a proof of the mission, commission, and authority of Christ, who came not of himself, but was sent of God, (John 8:42), it may be rendered, "and now the Lord God hath sent me and his Spirit"; both were sent of God, and in this order; first, Christ, to be the Redeemer and Saviour; and then the Spirit, to be the Convincer and Comforter; see (John 14:26) (15:26) (16:7,8) (The New John Gill Exposition of the Holy Bible; underline emphasis ours)
And:

sent me--The prophet here speaks, claiming attention to his announcement as to Cyrus, on the ground of his mission from God and His Spirit. But he speaks not in his own person so much as in that of Messiah, to whom alone in the fullest sense the words apply (Isa 61:1; Joh 10:36). Plainly, Isa 49:1, which is the continuation of the forty-eighth chapter, from Isa 48:16, where the change of speaker from God (Isa 48:1, 12-15) begins, is the language of Messiah. Lu 4:1, 14, 18, shows that the Spirit combined with the Father in sending the Son: therefore "His Spirit" is nominative to "sent," not accusative, following it. (Jamieson, Fausset, Brown Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; underline emphasis ours)
There were several renowned Church fathers who also believed that this text was an explicit witness to the blessed and glorious Trinity.

(3) Origen of Alexandria
That the Savior and the Holy Spirit were sent by the Father is made clear in Isaiah when, speaking in the person of the Savior, it is said, And now the Lord God sent me and his Spirit (48:16). It must, however, be recognized that this passage is ambiguous. Either God sent, and the Holy Spirit sent the Savior, or as we understand it, the Father sent both the Savior and the Holy Spirit.
(4) Origen of Alexandria
Isaiah declares: And now the Lord God sent me and his spirit (48:16). This passage is ambiguous. Does it mean that the Father and the Holy Spirit sent Jesus, or that the Father sent Christ and the Holy Spirit? In my view the second interpretation is correct. First, the Savior had been sent, then the Holy Spirit was sent, and in this way the prophet’s saying might be fulfilled; and, to insure that the fulfillment of the prophecy should also be made known to posterity, the disciples of Jesus recorded what happened.
(5) Augustine
If both the Son and the Holy Spirit are sent to where they already are, the question arises what can really be meant by this sending of the Son or of the Holy Spirit – the Father alone is nowhere said to have been sent. About the Son the apostle writes, When the fullness of time had come, God sent His Son, made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem those who were under the law (Gal 4:4). He sent His Son, made of a woman – by woman of course, as presumably every Catholic knows, he did not intend to suggest loss of virginity, but merely difference of sex according to Hebrew idiom. So then, by saying that God sent His Son, made of a woman, he shows plainly enough that it was in being made of a woman that the Son was sent. Thus inasmuch as he was born of God he already was in this world; in that he was born of Mary he was sent and came into the world.
Furthermore, he could not be sent by the Father without the Holy Spirit. On principle, when the Father sent him, that is, made of a woman, he cannot be supposed to have done it without his Spirit. And in any case there is the clear testimony of the answer given to the Virgin Mary when she asked the angel, How shall this happen? The Holy Spirit shall come upon you, and the Might of the Most High shall overshadow you (Luke 1:34-35), and Matthew says, She was found to be with child of the Holy Spirit (Matt 1:18). There is even a prophecy of Isaiah in which Christ himself is to be understood as saying about his future coming, And now the Lord God, and his spirit, has sent me (48:16). (The Church’s Bible – Isaiah: Interpreted by Early Christian and Medieval Commentators, translated and edited by Robert Louis Wilken with Angela Russel Christman and Michael J. Hollerich [William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, Grand Rapids, Michigan/Cambridge UK, 2007], pp. 360-361)
And:

THE LORD SENT ME AND HIS SPIRIT JEROME: When all things were made by the Father, he [the Son] was there with him, in whom the Son rejoiced when he said, I am he who always was with the Father and in the Father and never was without the Father, and who now speaks, and due to the weakness of the flesh I assumed, I say that 'the Lord has sent me and his Spirit.' In this short verse we are shown the mystery of the Trinity. COMMENTARY ON ISAIAH 13:16. (Isaiah 40-66: Old Testament (Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture), edited by Mark W. Elliot, Thomas C. Oden general editor, IVP Academic (September 30, 2007), Volume XI, p. 104)

Yahweh sends Yahweh to save and judge


Isaiah wouldn’t be the only prophet who believed that Yahweh could send Yahweh since we find another instance of this very same phenomenon in a post-exilic prophetic writing:

“Come, O Zion! Escape, you who live in the Daughter of Babylon! For this is what Yahweh of hosts says:After He has honored Me and has sent Me against the nations that have plundered youfor whoever touches you touches the apple of His eye- I will surely raise My hand against them so that their slaves will plunder them. Then you will know that Yahweh of hosts has sent Me. Shout and be glad, O Daughter of Zion. For I am coming, and I will live among you,’ declares Yahweh. Many nations will be joined with Yahweh in that day and will become My people. I will live among you and you will know that Yahweh of hosts has sent Me to you. Yahweh will inherit Judah as his portion in the holy land and will again choose Jerusalem. Be still before Yahweh, all mankind, because he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.’” Zechariah 2:7-11
Here, Yahweh sends Yahweh to dwell with his people and to judge the nations who have plundered them!






Isaiah’s Multi-Personal Creator and Maker


There is plenty of evidence from the inspired book of Isaiah itself for viewing Isaiah 48:16 as a revelation of the Trinity in the OT period.

In the immediate context of Isaiah 48 Yahweh claims to be the One who laid the foundations of the earth and spread out the heavens, which is simply another way of saying that Yahweh created/fashioned/made and sustains the heavens and the earth. This is a point that Isaiah often makes:

“Thus says God, Yahweh, who created (bōrē’) the heavens and stretched them out, who spread forth the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people upon it and spirit to those who walk in it:” Isaiah 42:5
“Thus says Yahweh, your Redeemer, who formed you from the womb: ‘I am Yahweh, who made all things (ōśeh kōl), who stretched out the heavens alone, who spread out the earth by myself” Isaiah 44:24
“Thus says Yahweh, the Holy One of Israel, and his Maker (wəyōsərō): ‘Will you question me about my children, or command me concerning the work of my hands? I made (āśiti’) the earth, and created (bara) man upon it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host.’” Isaiah 45:11-12
“For this is what Yahweh says— he who created (bōrē’) the heavens, he is God; he who fashioned (yoser) and made (wə‘ōśāh) the earth, he founded it; he did not create (bara’ah) it to be empty, but formed (yəsārāh) it to be inhabited — he says: ‘I am Yahweh, and there is no other. I have not spoken in secret, from somewhere in a land of darkness; I have not said to Jacob's descendants, “Seek me in vain.” I, Yahweh, speak the truth; I declare what is right.’” Isaiah 45:18-19
However, in one specific text Isaiah refers to Yahweh as Israel’s Makers:

For your Husbands are your Makers (bō‘ălayikə ‘ōśayikə) — Yahweh of hosts is his name — the Holy One of Israel is your Redeemer; he is called the Gods of all the earth (Elōhêy kāl-hā’ārets).” Isaiah 54:5
Here Isaiah uses the plural for ba’al (to marry, rule over, own, possess etc.) and asah (to make, fashion, produce, work etc.), indicating that Israel’s God is a multi-personal Being.

Interestingly, the oldest extant copy of Isaiah that was found among the Dead Sea Scrolls contains a variant reading which further corroborates that Yahweh is multi-personal:

Thus says the God (ha El) AND God (Elohim) who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread the earth and its produce, who gives breath (neshamah) to the people upon it, and spirit (ruha) to those walk on it.” Isaiah 42:5 (The Dead Sea Scrolls Bible – The Oldest Known Bible Translated For The First Time Into English, translated and with commentary by Martin Abegg Jr., Peter Flint & Eugene Ulrich [HarperOne; 1 edition, November 17, 1999], p. 337; bold and capital emphasis ours)
This version of the text clearly distinguishes God (ha El) from the God (Elohim) who made the heavens, thereby implying that there were actually two distinct Divine Persons who were speaking to and through Isaiah!(1)

Isaiah wasn’t the only inspired writer to refer to a plural Maker and Creator:

“Remember also thy Creators (bōrə’eykā) in days of thy youth, While that the evil days come not, Nor the years have arrived, that thou sayest, ‘I have no pleasure in them.’” Ecclesiastes 12:1 Young’s Literal Translation (YLT)
In this text the author uses the plural of bara (to create, fashion, form, shape etc.). And:

“But none says, ‘Where is God my Makers (‘osaay), who gives songs in the night,’” Job 35:10
The word ‘osaay is the plural participle of asa’, thereby indicating that the inspired writer of Job was aware that God is multi-personal. In fact, this same writing speaks of the Spirit of God as creating man and fashioning the heavens:

By his Spirit (ruho) the heavens were made fair; his hand pierced the fleeing serpent.” Job 26:13
The Spirit of God has made me (ruha-’el ‘āśātənî), and the Breath (neshamat) of the Almighty gives me life.” Job 33:4
In this last passage the author equates God’s Spirit with his Breath, an important connection as we shall see.

The Psalms also attribute the work of creation and restoration to the Spirit of God:

“When you hide your face, they are dismayed; when you take away their breath/spirit (ruham), they die and return to their dust. When you send forth your Spirit (ruhaka), they are created (yibare'un); and you renew the face of the ground.” Psalm 104:29-30
These passages are obviously echoing and reflecting on what the Genesis account of creation says concerning Yahweh creating by his Spirit:

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep; and the Spirit of God was moving over the face of the waters… Then God said, ‘Let US make (na'aseh) man in OUR image, after OUR likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Genesis 1:1-2, 26-27
“Then Yahweh God formed man of dust from the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life (neshamat chayyim); and man became a living being.” Genesis 2:7
By interpreting these texts in light of one another it is apparent that Yahweh was speaking to the Spirit who was present at creation, inviting him to assist Yahweh in creating man in their own image and likeness. This helps us understand what the inspired author of Genesis meant when he said that Yahweh breathed the breath of life into the first man, i.e. this is simply a metaphorical way of describing Yahweh sending forth his Spirit to animate the body of the first man and to give him a rational spirit or soul of his own. After all, Yahweh is not a physical being and therefore doesn’t physically breathe.

This further helps us to better appreciate the connection that Job 33:4 makes between Yahweh’s Spirit and his Breath, e.g. the Spirit is the Breath of God and is therefore simply two ways of speaking of the same Divine entity through whom God gives life to his creatures.

We will have a lot more to say concerning the Divine Personhood of the Holy Spirit shortly.




A Triune Creator?


Another interesting fact to consider is that, according to Genesis, Yahweh also used his spoken Word to bring things into existence.

And God said, ‘Let there be light’; and there was light.” Genesis 1:3
This, perhaps, explains why we find references in the canonical Scriptures to God creating by his Word as well as his Spirit:

By the Word of Yahweh the heavens were made, and all their host by the Breath/Spirit (ruha) of his mouthFor he spoke, and it came to be; he commanded, and it stood forth.” Psalm 33:6, 9
We find this same point repeatedly made throughout the non-canonical Jewish writings:

“Let your every creature serve you; for you spoke, and they were made, You sent forth your Spirit, and they were created; no one can resist your Word.” Judith 16:14
“And I said, O Lord, thou spakest from the beginning of the creation, even the first day, and said thus; Let heaven and earth be made; and your Word was a perfect work. And then was the Spirit, and darkness and silence were on every side; the sound of man's voice was not yet formed.” 4 Ezra 6:38-39
“O you that have made the earth, hear me, that have fixed the firmament by the Word, and have made firm the height of the heaven by the Spirit, that have called from the beginning of the world that which did not yet exist, and they obey you.” 2 Baruch 21:4
And according to one Jewish source it was the Word of Yahweh who created and formed the heavens and earth, and who also created man in his own image!

“From the beginning with wisdom the Memra (Aramaic for ‘Word’) of the Lord created and formed the heavens and the earth... and a Spirit of mercy from before the Lord was blowing over the surface of the water… And the Memra of the Lord created the man in his (own) likeness.” Genesis 1:1-2, 27 Targum Neofiti
What these preceding examples show is that specific OT writers, as well as non-canonical Jewish sources, believed and understood that creation was brought into being by three distinct entities, i.e. God, his Word and his Holy Spirit were responsible for creating all things. In other words, these Jewish authors believed that it was the Trinity that brought creation into existence!

Some of these sources even go so far as to describe God’s Word as a living, conscious personal entity, i.e. Philo, the Targums, Wisdom of Solomon etc.

This is where the NT comes in since, not only do the NT writings agree that the Word of God created all things, the inspired Greek Christian scriptures take it a step further and claim that this very Word became a flesh and blood human being whose name is Jesus Christ!

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God; all things were made through him, and without him was not anything made that was made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men… He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world knew him not… And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth; we have beheld his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father.” John 1:1-4, 10, 14
“That which was from the beginning, which we have heard, which we have seen with our eyes, which we have looked upon and touched with our hands, concerning the Word of life -- the Life was made manifest, and we saw it, and testify to it, and proclaim to you the Eternal Life which was with the Father and was made manifest to us -- that which we have seen and heard we proclaim also to you, so that you may have fellowship with us; and our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son Jesus Christ." 1 John 1:1-3
Someone may interject and say that the Hebrew Scriptures testify that Yahweh also used both his wisdom (also equated with his knowledge and understanding) and power to create the universe,

“O Yahweh, how manifold are your works! In wisdom have you made them all; the earth is full of your creatures.” Psalm 104:24
“Yahweh by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding he established the heavens; by his knowledge the deeps broke forth, and the clouds drop down the dew.” Proverbs 3:19-20
“It is he who made the earth by his power, who established the world by his wisdom, and by his understanding stretched out the heavens.” Jeremiah 10:12
Wouldn’t this prove that God is more like a quintinity?

Not at all since the NT not only teaches that the Lord Jesus is the eternal Word but it also states that he is God’s Wisdom and Power:

“but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the Power of God and the Wisdom of God.” 1 Corinthians 1:24
Since Jesus is identified as both the Power and Wisdom of God this means that the Word, Wisdom, and Power that God used to make and fashion all created things refer to one and the same Divine Person, namely the Son of God!


Isaiah’s Tri-personal God in Action


Returning to the book of Isaiah, there is one passage where the prophet attributes the work of salvation to three distinct entities:

“I will tell of the kindnesses of Yahweh, the deeds for which he is to be praised, according to all Yahweh has done for us— yes, the many good things he has done for the house of Israel, according to his compassion and many kindnesses. He said, ‘Surely they are my people, sons who will not be false to me’; and so HE became their Savior. In all their distress HE too was distressed, and the Angel of his Presence saved them. In HIS love and mercy HE redeemed them; HE lifted them up and carried them all the days of old.” Yet they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit. So he turned and became their enemy and he himself fought against them. Then his people recalled the days of old, the days of Moses and his people— where is he who brought them through the sea, with the shepherd of his flock? Where is he who set his Holy Spirit among them, who sent his glorious Arm of power to be at Moses' right hand, who divided the waters before them, to gain for himself everlasting renown, who led them through the depths? Like a horse in open country, they did not stumble; like cattle that go down to the plain, and the Spirit of Yahweh gave them rest. This is how you guided your people to make for yourself a glorious name. Look down from heaven and see from your lofty throne, holy and glorious. Where are your zeal and your might? Your tenderness and compassion are withheld from us. But you are our Father, though Abraham does not know us or Israel acknowledge us; you, O Yahweh, are our Father, our Redeemer from of old is your name.” Isaiah 63:7-16
Here we find mention of Yahweh saving his people by the Angel of his Presence or Face, which is an obvious reference to the Angel whom Yahweh says bears his very name or essence and who appears all throughout the Pentateuch, or the five books of Moses:

“Behold, I send an Angel before you, to guard you on the way and to bring you to the place which I have prepared. Give heed to him and hearken to his voice, do not rebel against him, for he will not pardon your transgression; for my Name is in him. But if you hearken attentively to his voice and do all that I say, then I will be an enemy to your enemies and an adversary to your adversaries. When my Angel goes before you, and brings you in to the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Per'izzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jeb'usites, and I blot them out, you shall not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do according to their works, but you shall utterly overthrow them and break their pillars in pieces. Exodus 23:20-24
“Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, ‘Thus says your brother Israel: You know all the adversity that has befallen us: how our fathers went down to Egypt, and we dwelt in Egypt a long time; and the Egyptians dealt harshly with us and our fathers; and when we cried to Yahweh, he heard our voice, and sent an Angel and brought us forth out of Egypt; and here we are in Kadesh, a city on the edge of your territory.” Numbers 20:14-16
We also have a reference to Yahweh’s Holy Spirit whom the inspired prophet describes as having personal attributes, such as emotions, and granting rest to God’s people, i.e. the Holy Spirit of Yahweh saved and led the Israelites during the time of Moses even though they rebelled and grieved him.

What makes these specific claims concerning the Spirit rather amazing is that other inspired writings testify that Yahweh was responsible for granting his people rest and that he was the One whom the Israelites grieved and rebelled against in the wilderness!

“And he said, ‘My Presence will go with you, and I will give you rest.’” Exodus 33:14
How often they rebelled against him in the wilderness and grieved him in the desert! They tested him again and again, and provoked the Holy One of Israel. They did not keep in mind his power, or the day when he redeemed them from the foe; when he wrought his signs in Egypt, and his miracles in the fields of Zo'an. He turned their rivers to blood, so that they could not drink of their streams. He sent among them swarms of flies, which devoured them, and frogs, which destroyed them. He gave their crops to the caterpillar, and the fruit of their labor to the locust. He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycamores with frost. He gave over their cattle to the hail, and their flocks to thunderbolts. He let loose on them his fierce anger, wrath, indignation, and distress, a company of destroying angels. He made a path for his anger; he did not spare them from death, but gave their lives over to the plague. He smote all the firstborn in Egypt, the first issue of their strength in the tents of Ham. Then he led forth his people like sheep, and guided them in the wilderness like a flock. He led them in safety, so that they were not afraid; but the sea overwhelmed their enemies. And he brought them to his holy land, to the mountain which his right hand had won. He drove out nations before them; he apportioned them for a possession and settled the tribes of Israel in their tents. Yet they tested and rebelled against the Most High God, and did not observe his testimonies, but turned away and acted treacherously like their fathers; they twisted like a deceitful bow. For they provoked him to anger with their high places; they moved him to jealousy with their graven images.” Psalm 78:40-58
It is clear from these examples that the blessed prophet ascribes to the Holy Spirit language that is explicitly and uniquely used of Yahweh! This leads us to our next section.


The Binitarian Implication of Isaiah 48:16 – The Divine Personhood of the Holy Spirit


There are some who reject the view that in Isaiah 48:16 it is Yahweh who says that Yahweh has sent him and his Spirit. These expositors and scholars take the position that it is actually the prophet himself who is speaking and interjecting his comments at this point.

II. The prophet himself, as a type of the great prophet, asserts his own commission to deliver this message: Now the Lord God (the same that spoke from the beginning and did not speak in secret) has by his Spirit sent me, Isaiah 48:16. The Spirit of God is here spoken of as a person distinct from the Father and the Son, and having a divine authority to send prophets. Note, Whom God sends the Spirit sends. Those whom God commissions for any service the Spirit in some measure qualifies for it; and those may speak boldly, and must be heard obediently, whom God and his Spirit send. As that which the prophet says to the same purport with this (Isaiah 61:1) is applied to Christ (Luke 4:21), so may this be; the Lord God sent him, and he had the Spirit without measure. (Matthew Henry Complete Commentary)
And:

(6) Theodoret of Cyrus
It is the prophet who speaks here. I do not speak in my own name, he says, but as one who has been sent by the God of all and the all-holy Spirit. He clearly shows that there is another being referred to besides the person of God [the Father]((the person of the Spirit, so as to refute the Jews and the mad ravings of Sabellius)).... For he says: The Lord sent me and his spirit (48:16). Often he speaks of the one God. For example: I am the first, and I am forever (48:12). And: Before me there was no other god, nor shall there be any after me (43:10). He also speaks of the properties of the persons, sometimes of the Son and the Father, sometimes the Father and the Holy Spirit. So on the subject of the Son and the Father, he said: Because God is in you, and there is no god besides you (45:14). And on the subject of the Father and the Spirit: The Lord sent me and his spirit (48:16). (The Church’s Bible – Isaiah: Interpreted by Early Christian and Medieval Commentators, p. 361; comments within double parentheses ours)
This position would still be supportive of God being multi-personal since we would still end up with two distinct Divine Persons, e.g. Yahweh and his Spirit whom he sends to empower his prophets to successfully carry out their missions, a point repeatedly made throughout the prophetic literature:

“Now these are the last words of David: The oracle of David, the son of Jesse, the oracle of the man who was raised on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, the sweet psalmist of Israel: ‘The Spirit of Yahweh speaks by me, his word is upon my tongue. The God of Israel has spoken, the Rock of Israel has said to me:’” 2 Samuel 23:1-3a
You gave your good Spirit to instruct them, and did not withhold your manna from their mouth, and gave them water for their thirst… Many years you did bear with them, and did warn them by your Spirit through your prophets; yet they would not give ear. Therefore you did give them into the hand of the peoples of the lands.” Nehemiah 9:30
“And the hand of Yahweh was there upon me; and he said to me, ‘Arise, go forth into the plain, and there I will speak with you.’ So I arose and went forth into the plain; and, lo, the glory of Yahweh stood there, like the glory which I had seen by the river Chebar; and I fell on my face. But the Spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet; and he spoke with me and said to me, ‘Go, shut yourself within your house.’” Ezekiel 3:22-24
And the Spirit of Yahweh fell upon me, and he said to me, ‘Say, Thus says the LORD: So you think, O house of Israel; for I know the things that come into your mind.’” Ezekiel 11:5
“But as for me, I am filled with power, with the Spirit of Yahweh, and with justice and might, to declare to Jacob his transgression and to Israel his sin.” Micah 3:8
“They made their hearts like adamant lest they should hear the law and the words which Yahweh of hosts had sent by his Spirit through the former prophets. Therefore great wrath came from Yahweh of hosts.” Zechariah 7:12
In fact, Isaiah not only claims that the Spirit has emotions and grants salvation to the people of God, the prophet also speaks of the Spirit restoring or regenerating the earth. Isaiah also believed that the Spirit gathers all of God’s people to Yahweh and enables them to keep covenant faithfulness:

“The fortress will be abandoned, the noisy city deserted; citadel and watchtower will become a wasteland forever, the delight of donkeys, a pasture for flocks, till the Spirit is poured upon us from on high, and the desert becomes a fertile field, and the fertile field seems like a forest.” Isaiah 32:14-15
“Look in the scroll Yahweh and read: None of these will be missing, not one will lack her mate. For it is his mouth that has given the order, and his Spirit will gather them together.” Isaiah 34:16
“This is what Yahweh says— he who made you, who formed you in the womb, and who will help you: Do not be afraid, O Jacob, my servant, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen. For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour out my Spirit on your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.” Isaiah 44:2-3
“‘The Redeemer will come to Zion, to those in Jacob who repent of their sins,’ declares Yahweh. ‘As for me, this is my covenant with them,’ says Yahweh. ‘My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth, or from the mouths of your children, or from the mouths of their descendants from this time on and forever,’ says Yahweh.” Isaiah 59:20-21
The only way that the Spirit could replenish or restore the earth and empower countless numbers of individuals to walk in obedience to God is if he is omnipotent and omnipresent, which are exclusively Divine attributes!

Isaiah even describes Yahweh’s Spirit as an incomprehensible and omniscient Being who needs no one to instruct or counsel him:

“Who has understood the Spirit of Yahweh, or instructed him as his counselor?” Isaiah 40:13
In light of the above it is absolutely certain that the prophet believed that the Spirit of Yahweh is a fully Divine Person who has all of God’s essential attributes, e.g. the Spirit creates, regenerates, replenishes, empowers, saves, guides, instructs, preserves, has emotions etc.

Hence, even if one were to deny that Isaiah 48:16 is a Trinitarian “prooftext” this wouldn’t undermine the fact that this passage is still an explicit witness to God being multi-personal in nature.

This concludes the first part of our discussion. Please move on to part 2.


Endnotes

(1)
The following verse may be another example where we have two distinct Divine Persons speaking to and through the prophet:

“Thus says Yahweh, the King of Israel and his Redeemer, Yahweh of hosts: ‘I am the First and I am the Last; besides me there is no god.’” Isaiah 44:6
The phrase, “and his Redeemer” either refers to Israel, i.e., Israel’s Redeemer, an interpretation that is brought out more clearly by the following translation:

“This is what the LORD says — Israel's King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.” NIV
Or it actually refers back to Yahweh, meaning Yahweh’s Redeemer. If the second explanation is the correct one then this means that there are two Yahwehs in view, namely, Yahweh the King of Israel and the Redeemer whom Yahweh has appointed whose name is Yahweh of hosts. As we shall see in the second part of our analysis this latter interpretation has the support of the over all context of both Isaiah and the prophetic Scriptures, as well as the witness of the NT which refers to God the Father sending forth his fully Divine Son to become a man in order to save God’s people and the world:

“But as he considered this, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream, saying, ‘Joseph, son of David, do not fear to take Mary your wife, for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit; she will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus (Yeshua – ‘Yahweh is Salvation’), for he will save his people from their sins.’ All this took place to fulfil what the Lord had spoken by the prophet: ‘Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and his name shall be called Emmanuel’ (which means, God with us).” Matthew 1:20-23
“But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law, to redeem those who were under the law, so that we might receive adoption as sons. And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, ‘Abba! Father!’” Galatians 4:4-6
“By this we know that we abide in him and he in us, because he has given us of his own Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son as the Savior of the world.” 1 John 4:13-14
 
u really think some satanic false meme will change what the Bible Actually Say's? Like how JESUS openly accepted Worship, but when someone tried to bow to an angel, the angel rebuked them, and to Only worship GOD? Fool.

Isaiah 9:6 For to us a child is born, to us a Son is given, and the government will be on His shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

That word for Mighty GOD is El Gibor which is only used one other time in reference to YHWH.


The Angel of The LORD,
is YHWH but not The FATHER. That's why HE was bowed to and called YHWH and not the other two angels.
How about Jesus's own words, zionist faggot?

"because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I." John 14:28

"The Lord our God, the Lord is one" Mark 12:29

"I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me." John 5:30

"I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." John 20:17
 
How about Jesus's own words, zionist faggot?

"because I go to the Father; for the Father is greater than I." John 14:28

"The Lord our God, the Lord is one" Mark 12:29

"I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me." John 5:30

"I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God." John 20:17
OOOOOOh so no answers? Just copy and pasted out of context quotes u satanic defeated troll Lol!
 
OT Adumbrations and Evidences for the Trinity

The doctrine of the Trinity is interwoven throughout the entire warp and woof of the Old Testament; it is not merely found in a discrete passage or proof-text here and there. For example, from the beginning to the end of the Old Testament, plural nouns, pronouns, verbs, adverbs and adjectives are regularly used for God, at least in the Hebrew text. A cursory list follows:

  • The word Elohim is used thousands of times for “God”; Adonai is used hundreds of times for “Lord”; both of these words are plural nouns in Hebrew.
  • A number of passages speak of the “faces” or “presences” or “persons” of God (Exodus 33:14; Deuteronomy 4:37; and Job 13:8).
  • God refers to Himself as “Us,” “Our,” and “We” (Genesis 1:26, 2:18 (LXX), 3:22, 11:7; Isaiah 6:8, and 41:21-24),2 a phenomenon that is reflected in virtually every English translation.
  • The OT says of God, “they caused me to wander” (Genesis 20:13), “they appeared” (Genesis 35:7), “they drew nigh” (Deuteronomy 4:7), “they went” (2 Samuel 7:23), and “they judge” (Psalm 58:11).
  • The OT calls God our “Creators” (Ecclesiastes 12:1), “Makers” and “Husbands” (Job 35:10; Psalm 149:2; Isaiah 54:5).
  • The OT says that God is “holy” (Joshua 24:19; Proverbs 9:10, 30:33), another plural.
All of this (and more) can be found in the Old Testament in spite of the fact that singular words are readily available in each instance where these words occur. If the prophetic authors of the Bible were unitarians, we wouldn’t expect them to speak about God in this way. Indeed, unitarians do not typically speak this way in ordinary conversation and fall all over themselves trying to explain them when they are brought up.4

One might say the use of plural expressions is customary among polytheists, but then in the case of polytheism it only needs to be pointed out that right alongside such plural references to God are singular words, even emphatic declarations that there is only one God. These singular references to God are just as disconcerting to polytheists as the plural references are to unitarians.

The same thing can be said for many other peculiarities distinctive of Old Testament revelation about God, such as when God speaks to or about another person who is identified as God or Lord (Psalm 2, 110:1, Isaiah 13:17-19; Hosea 1:7; Amos 4:10-11; Jeremiah 50:40; Malachi 3:1; Micah 5:2; Zechariah 2:8-11, 12:10, 13:7)5 or when the Biblical authors refer to more than one person as Yahweh, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob (Genesis 19:24;6 Psalm 457). Once again, this does not sit well with either unitarians or polytheists; the former because it implies personal plurality within the Godhead, contrary to their unitarian assumptions; the latter because it implies the essential unity of these divine persons, contrary to their polytheistic assumptions.

In addition to plural words and the divine distinctions pointed out above, mention can be made of the triadic prayers, benedictions, and doxologies of the Old Testament (e.g. Genesis 48:15-16; Numbers 6:24-26; Isaiah 6:38 see also Isaiah 33:22; Jeremiah 33:2; Daniel 9:19),9 which given their formulaic character, cry out for some kind of explanation. This cry has fallen on deaf unitarian ears and has been met with equally mute unitarian lips for a reason: this is not the way unitarians would naturally speak of their “god”.

The OT further specifies the nature of divine plurality by identifying the three persons of the Godhead. These three persons are all distinguished from each other, and yet, in various ways, are identified as God: the Father (e.g. Deuteronomy 32:6; Isaiah 63:16, 64:8, Malachi 2:10); the person variously designated as the Messenger of the LORD (Heb. Malakh Yahweh), Word, or Son of God (e.g. Genesis 16:7-14, 21:17-18, 22:9-18, 28:10-22 (cf. Genesis 31:11-13), 32:22-32 (cf. Hosea 12:3-4); Exodus 3, 13:21 (cf. 14:19), 23:20-22; Numbers 22:21-41; Judges 2:1-5, 6:7-24, 13:3-22, 2 Samuel 24:16; Psalm 2, 110:1, Isaiah 7:14, 9:6, 63:9; Jeremiah 23:5-6; Proverbs 30:4; Zechariah 1:10-11, 12:8; Malachi 3:1); and the Holy Spirit or Spirit of God (e.g. Nehemiah 9:20; Job 26:13, 33:4; Psalm 104:30, 106:32-33, 139:1-24, 143:10; 2 Samuel 23:1-3; Isaiah 11:2, 40:13; Ezekiel 11:5; Micah 2:7).

Finally, in addition to the above passages that separately speak of one or another person of the Godhead, assigning to them the names, attributes, and prerogatives of God, there are many passages which mention all three persons together, assigning to each a role in the divine works of creation, providence, and redemption. For example: 1) Genesis 1:1-3 mentions God creating all things by His Word and Spirit; 2) the same thing is reiterated in Psalm 33:6; 3) Isaiah 42:1 speaks of God, His Servant/Chosen One, and His Spirit, by which He will bring justice or righteousness to the world; 4) Isaiah 48:12-16 has the First and the Last, i.e. the eternal God, speaking of a time when He is sent by the LORD God and His Spirit; 5) in Isaiah 61:1, the person who is sent with the good news, i.e. the Gospel, says the LORD has anointed Him with His Holy Spirit, Who is upon Him; and 6) Isaiah 63 tells of the LORD, the Angel [Lit. Heb. Messenger] of His Presence, and the Holy Spirit bringing about salvation.


An Objection Considered

The assumption that pre-Christian Jews did not believe in the Trinity is often allowed to run rough-shod over the evidence available from the OT. Not only is this irrelevant – since the question is not what ancient Jews in general allegedly believed but what the Jewish prophets taught as they were borne along by the Holy Spirit – but it isn’t true in the first place. The Aramaic Targums and a wide body of inter-testamental literature give evidence of (at least) a nascent Trinitarianism among some Jews. Often what some people present as evidence against Jewish Trinitarianism comes from modern anti-Messianic Jewish sources, not from the writings of ancient Jews; when appeal is made to Jewish writings of the inter-testamental period, it is usually in a very selective way.


Beating A Retreat

Since post-Quranic Islamic theology says that the Old Testament has been corrupted, many Muslims may be tempted to say it is no consequence that the Old Testament teaches that God is Triune, because they can just fall back on this expedient. In addition to the fact that the Qur’an does not support the idea that the text of the Old Testament has been corrupted,10 this fall-back position has some serious problems. Not only would such a maneuver in the face of the evidence undermine any ability of Muslims to prove, beyond the solitary witness of Muhammad in the Qur’an, that they are purveyors of the original message of the prophets, it would mean that the doctrine of the Trinity: 1) predated Christianity, since we have OT manuscripts from before the Christian era, which is contrary to the thesis that it was invented by the early church; and 2) was invented by the Jews, since these manuscripts were primarily in their hands at that time, contrary to the thesis that pre-Christian Jews did not believe in the Trinity. Such conclusions run contrary to stock-in-trade notions argued by Muslim apologists, especially when it comes to assessing the evidence for the Trinity provided by the New Testament,11 and look suspiciously like ex post facto rationalizations to resist the otherwise obvious falsification of the thesis that the Old Testament does not reveal the Trinity.


Conclusion

In the nature of the case, as a summary of the evidence, the above has hardly attempted and much less achieved a comprehensive presentation of the case that can be made for the Trinity from the Old Testament (or a comprehensive refutation of the arguments that are levied against it). Nevertheless, the above has shown something of the fact that this doctrine is found in the Old Testament, and something of just how pervasively it is found in the prophetic writings.

Consequently, the Old Testament does not support the idea that God is like the unitarian deity Muhammad supposedly thought He was. This leaves Muslims on the horns of a dilemma: either Muhammad did not reveal the same message as the prophets, which falsifies his claim to be the Messenger of God; or God’s message through the prophets has been corrupted, which makes Muhammad’s repeated claim that the previous prophets brought the same message as he did un-verifiable, which in turn falsifies in another way his claim to be a prophet since he said it could be verified from their writings. Either way the above has shown that the Old Testament teaches the doctrine of the Trinity and this means Muslims are bereft of any basis of appeal in the prophetic writings, either when it comes to arguing against what is taught in the New Testament about the Trinity, or of establishing any precedent for Islamic Tawheed.

Throughout the Holy Scriptures God declares his absolute sovereignty and unique Deity. The inspired prophetic writings emphasize the point of Yahweh being unlike anything in creation, especially the false gods worshiped by the nations:







One area which brings out Yahweh’s uniqueness quite clearly is his Being or mode of existence. The prophetic writings testify that Yahweh is multi-personal in nature, i.e. the true God is an eternal Being who exists as more than one Divine Person, which is unlike any other being in all creation.

For example, in one particular text the prophet Isaiah not only refers to Yahweh as the One who created the cosmos but also speaks of Yahweh being sent by Yahweh and his Spirit!


Needless to say many Christians over the centuries have taken this passage as an OT witness to the Trinity, as can be seen from the following commentaries.


And:


There were several renowned Church fathers who also believed that this text was an explicit witness to the blessed and glorious Trinity.


And:



Yahweh sends Yahweh to save and judge

Isaiah wouldn’t be the only prophet who believed that Yahweh could send Yahweh since we find another instance of this very same phenomenon in a post-exilic prophetic writing:


Here, Yahweh sends Yahweh to dwell with his people and to judge the nations who have plundered them!






Isaiah’s Multi-Personal Creator and Maker

There is plenty of evidence from the inspired book of Isaiah itself for viewing Isaiah 48:16 as a revelation of the Trinity in the OT period.

In the immediate context of Isaiah 48 Yahweh claims to be the One who laid the foundations of the earth and spread out the heavens, which is simply another way of saying that Yahweh created/fashioned/made and sustains the heavens and the earth. This is a point that Isaiah often makes:


However, in one specific text Isaiah refers to Yahweh as Israel’s Makers:


Here Isaiah uses the plural for ba’al (to marry, rule over, own, possess etc.) and asah (to make, fashion, produce, work etc.), indicating that Israel’s God is a multi-personal Being.

Interestingly, the oldest extant copy of Isaiah that was found among the Dead Sea Scrolls contains a variant reading which further corroborates that Yahweh is multi-personal:


This version of the text clearly distinguishes God (ha El) from the God (Elohim) who made the heavens, thereby implying that there were actually two distinct Divine Persons who were speaking to and through Isaiah!(1)

Isaiah wasn’t the only inspired writer to refer to a plural Maker and Creator:


In this text the author uses the plural of bara (to create, fashion, form, shape etc.). And:


The word ‘osaay is the plural participle of asa’, thereby indicating that the inspired writer of Job was aware that God is multi-personal. In fact, this same writing speaks of the Spirit of God as creating man and fashioning the heavens:


In this last passage the author equates God’s Spirit with his Breath, an important connection as we shall see.

The Psalms also attribute the work of creation and restoration to the Spirit of God:


These passages are obviously echoing and reflecting on what the Genesis account of creation says concerning Yahweh creating by his Spirit:


By interpreting these texts in light of one another it is apparent that Yahweh was speaking to the Spirit who was present at creation, inviting him to assist Yahweh in creating man in their own image and likeness. This helps us understand what the inspired author of Genesis meant when he said that Yahweh breathed the breath of life into the first man, i.e. this is simply a metaphorical way of describing Yahweh sending forth his Spirit to animate the body of the first man and to give him a rational spirit or soul of his own. After all, Yahweh is not a physical being and therefore doesn’t physically breathe.

This further helps us to better appreciate the connection that Job 33:4 makes between Yahweh’s Spirit and his Breath, e.g. the Spirit is the Breath of God and is therefore simply two ways of speaking of the same Divine entity through whom God gives life to his creatures.

We will have a lot more to say concerning the Divine Personhood of the Holy Spirit shortly.




A Triune Creator?

Another interesting fact to consider is that, according to Genesis, Yahweh also used his spoken Word to bring things into existence.


This, perhaps, explains why we find references in the canonical Scriptures to God creating by his Word as well as his Spirit:


We find this same point repeatedly made throughout the non-canonical Jewish writings:


And according to one Jewish source it was the Word of Yahweh who created and formed the heavens and earth, and who also created man in his own image!


What these preceding examples show is that specific OT writers, as well as non-canonical Jewish sources, believed and understood that creation was brought into being by three distinct entities, i.e. God, his Word and his Holy Spirit were responsible for creating all things. In other words, these Jewish authors believed that it was the Trinity that brought creation into existence!

Some of these sources even go so far as to describe God’s Word as a living, conscious personal entity, i.e. Philo, the Targums, Wisdom of Solomon etc.

This is where the NT comes in since, not only do the NT writings agree that the Word of God created all things, the inspired Greek Christian scriptures take it a step further and claim that this very Word became a flesh and blood human being whose name is Jesus Christ!


Someone may interject and say that the Hebrew Scriptures testify that Yahweh also used both his wisdom (also equated with his knowledge and understanding) and power to create the universe,


Wouldn’t this prove that God is more like a quintinity?

Not at all since the NT not only teaches that the Lord Jesus is the eternal Word but it also states that he is God’s Wisdom and Power:


Since Jesus is identified as both the Power and Wisdom of God this means that the Word, Wisdom, and Power that God used to make and fashion all created things refer to one and the same Divine Person, namely the Son of God!


Isaiah’s Tri-personal God in Action

Returning to the book of Isaiah, there is one passage where the prophet attributes the work of salvation to three distinct entities:


Here we find mention of Yahweh saving his people by the Angel of his Presence or Face, which is an obvious reference to the Angel whom Yahweh says bears his very name or essence and who appears all throughout the Pentateuch, or the five books of Moses:


We also have a reference to Yahweh’s Holy Spirit whom the inspired prophet describes as having personal attributes, such as emotions, and granting rest to God’s people, i.e. the Holy Spirit of Yahweh saved and led the Israelites during the time of Moses even though they rebelled and grieved him.

What makes these specific claims concerning the Spirit rather amazing is that other inspired writings testify that Yahweh was responsible for granting his people rest and that he was the One whom the Israelites grieved and rebelled against in the wilderness!


It is clear from these examples that the blessed prophet ascribes to the Holy Spirit language that is explicitly and uniquely used of Yahweh! This leads us to our next section.


The Binitarian Implication of Isaiah 48:16 – The Divine Personhood of the Holy Spirit

There are some who reject the view that in Isaiah 48:16 it is Yahweh who says that Yahweh has sent him and his Spirit. These expositors and scholars take the position that it is actually the prophet himself who is speaking and interjecting his comments at this point.


And:


This position would still be supportive of God being multi-personal since we would still end up with two distinct Divine Persons, e.g. Yahweh and his Spirit whom he sends to empower his prophets to successfully carry out their missions, a point repeatedly made throughout the prophetic literature:


In fact, Isaiah not only claims that the Spirit has emotions and grants salvation to the people of God, the prophet also speaks of the Spirit restoring or regenerating the earth. Isaiah also believed that the Spirit gathers all of God’s people to Yahweh and enables them to keep covenant faithfulness:


The only way that the Spirit could replenish or restore the earth and empower countless numbers of individuals to walk in obedience to God is if he is omnipotent and omnipresent, which are exclusively Divine attributes!

Isaiah even describes Yahweh’s Spirit as an incomprehensible and omniscient Being who needs no one to instruct or counsel him:


In light of the above it is absolutely certain that the prophet believed that the Spirit of Yahweh is a fully Divine Person who has all of God’s essential attributes, e.g. the Spirit creates, regenerates, replenishes, empowers, saves, guides, instructs, preserves, has emotions etc.

Hence, even if one were to deny that Isaiah 48:16 is a Trinitarian “prooftext” this wouldn’t undermine the fact that this passage is still an explicit witness to God being multi-personal in nature.

This concludes the first part of our discussion. Please move on to part 2.


Endnotes

(1)
The following verse may be another example where we have two distinct Divine Persons speaking to and through the prophet:


The phrase, “and his Redeemer” either refers to Israel, i.e., Israel’s Redeemer, an interpretation that is brought out more clearly by the following translation:


Or it actually refers back to Yahweh, meaning Yahweh’s Redeemer. If the second explanation is the correct one then this means that there are two Yahwehs in view, namely, Yahweh the King of Israel and the Redeemer whom Yahweh has appointed whose name is Yahweh of hosts. As we shall see in the second part of our analysis this latter interpretation has the support of the over all context of both Isaiah and the prophetic Scriptures, as well as the witness of the NT which refers to God the Father sending forth his fully Divine Son to become a man in order to save God’s people and the world:
dance-lmao.gif
 
OOOOOOh so no answers? Just copy and pasted out of context quotes u satanic defeated troll Lol!
"My father is the one true God, the father is greater than I am, by myself I can do nothing"

NOOOO Jesus, you are the same god with the father and the holy ghost don't listen to the satanic trolls lol!
83
 
"My father is the one true God, the father is greater than I am, by myself I can do nothing"

NOOOO Jesus, you are the same god with the father and the holy ghost don't listen to the satanic trolls lol!
View attachment 695394
3 Persons, 1 Being/GOD. GOD can be 3 Persons, yet One Being/Essence, HE'S GOD. So of course JESUS can talk to The FATHER and pray to HIM while on earth. JESUS became man, a suffering Servant, humbled HIMSELF, and while on earth The FATHER was HIS GOD, yet it already foretold HE would acsend to The FATHER.

John 17:5
And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.

oh wow loooook. The Glory JESUS shared with The FATHER before the world began. JESUS was there with the FATHER.
 
Nobody is going to read the 50k words you posted multiple times, retard.
. JESUS became man, a suffering Servant, humbled HIMSELF, and while on earth The FATHER was HIS GOD, yet it already foretold HE would acsend to The FATHER.

John 17:5
And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.

oh wow loooook. The Glory JESUS shared with The FATHER before the world began. JESUS was there with the FATHER.
 
3 Persons, 1 Being/GOD. GOD can be 3 Persons, yet One Being/Essence, HE'S GOD. So of course JESUS can talk to The FATHER and pray to HIM while on earth. JESUS became man, a suffering Servant, humbled HIMSELF, and while on earth The FATHER was HIS GOD, yet it already foretold HE would acsend to The FATHER.

John 17:5
And now, Father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began.

oh wow loooook. The Glory JESUS shared with The FATHER before the world began. JESUS was there with the FATHER.
Is Jesus the word? God created the word. Why would the word be one with God that created the word?
 
Is Jesus the word? God created the word. Why would the word be one with God that created the word?
Ooooo so you know all about it I see huh. I just showed you that JESUS was there before the foundation of the world, Glory WITH THE FATHER.


The WORD was With GOD, and The WORD Was/IS GOD. So u lost and got Debunked.
 
Not gonna read all that but which of the 100000000 versions of the bible do you follow?
 
This Allah you keep talking about sounds based. Maybe I should go worship him
 
Ooooo so you know all about it I see huh. I just showed you that JESUS was there before the foundation of the world, Glory WITH THE FATHER.


The WORD was With GOD, and The WORD Was/IS GOD. So u lost and got Debunked.
Jesus prayed that his followers also be "one with god" in the exact same way that he was, therefore we are all God. Trinity is false, every follower of Jesus is perfectly one with God. John 17:21–22 :soy: DEBOONKED.
 
Jesus prayed that his followers also be "one with god" in the exact same way that he was, therefore we are all God. Trinity is false, every follower of Jesus is perfectly one with God. John 17:21–22 :soy: DEBOONKED.
False, completely out of context, what did u spend the last 10 minutes looking up a debunked desperate "attack" on Christianity? Lol
I'll ask one question for u and Ik u can't explain

"I and the Father are One" "If you've seen Me, you've seen The Father"
He is also called Almighty God and Mighty God in the Old and New Testament.
I will ask u one simple question let's see if u will answer,

Why did JESUS willingly openly receive Worship from people, and them calling HIM Lord, yet never rebuked them. But the angels would always rebuke people when a human bowed to them, and the angel would tell them to only worship GOD?
 
False, completely out of context, what did u spend the last 10 minutes looking up a debunked desperate "attack" on Christianity? Lol
I'll ask one question for u and Ik u can't explain

"I and the Father are One" "If you've seen Me, you've seen The Father"
He is also called Almighty God and Mighty God in the Old and New Testament.
I will ask u one simple question let's see if u will answer,

Why did JESUS willingly openly receive Worship from people, and them calling HIM Lord, yet never rebuked them. But the angels would always rebuke people when a human bowed to them, and the angel would tell them to only worship GOD?
It says right in the Bible. Jesus was one with God and so are his followers. I am God and so are you. Yay! DEBOOONKED!
 
Jesus prayed that his followers also be "one with god" in the exact same way that he was, therefore we are all God. Trinity is false, every follower of Jesus is perfectly one with God. John 17:21–22 :soy: DEBOONKED.
Btw proof of how stupid u are, the Jews wanted to kill JESUS because HE claimed to be The SON OF GOD, making HIMSELF EQUAL to GOD.
u are such a low iq retarded satanic troll faggot lol
 
It says right in the Bible. Jesus was one with God and so are his followers. I am God and so are you. Yay! DEBOOONKED!
so u couldn't explain my question why JESUS was worshipped and the angels told people to not bow to them but only worship GOD. LOL
u just took a out of context passage u prob found online that had been debunked thousand times already lmfao
 
so u couldn't explain my question why JESUS was worshipped and the angels told people to not bow to them but only worship GOD. LOL
u just took a out of context passage u prob found online that had been debunked thousand times already lmfao
So u coldnt expwain why jesus say the father is gweater den he? LMFAO deboonked
 

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