Good Companion Books

                                             
     People who are taught to believe that God is a Trinity, and that Jesus is the second person of this triune God, are often directed to John 1:1 as one of a number of alleged scriptural validations for some facet of that teaching.  Begun in November of 1991, over fifteen years in the making, this listing of 296 renderings (principally of the third clause), along with many of their translators' explanations, has been brought together with the thought of furnishing a comprehensive tool to facilitate addressing certain questions regarding a more accurate translation and, therefore, better understanding of this verse.

     This Annotated Bibliography* - Second Edition: Corrected & Revised, is now over 500 pages (8 1/2" by 11"), offering a detailed, bibliographic listing from 15 different language sources, covering materials stretching through 2,000 years.**

     Although the principal focus of this work is centered on John 1:1, many of the other scriptures typically used by Trinitarians -- that is, in attempts to substantiate their view that Jesus is God or that God is a Trinity -- are also addressed, covered in among our 25+ appendixes.  And yet, this is not to the exclusion of many of the other topics often associated with the numerous issues raised by the Greek wording and subsequent, various translations of this most controversial scripture, John 1:1.

     By means of this unique publication, it is our purpose is to provide for the general reader, as well as the dedicated student of the Bible, a sampling of what has been offered by many, well respected Bible scholars, down through the centuries (Trinitarian and non-Trinitarian alike), that is, as to the many appropriate, alternative renditions of this particular, so called, Trinitarian proof text.
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  *BIBLIOGRAPHY: Where possible, we have listed the Author (s) Name (s); their Birth/Death Dates; their Degrees/Qualifications; the Full Title of Work; the Publisher Place, Name and Date; Page Number (s); the Library of Congress Call & Card Number or, the British Library Shelf mark (Call) & System Number.

**ANNOTATED: By way of our footnotes and endnotes, although not always in agreement with many of their final interpretations, we have attempted to provide for our readers what each scholar had to say, that is, as to their explanations and/or justifications for having worded the third clause of John 1:1 as something different from the typical, Trinitarian influenced rendering, "and the Word was God."  Perhaps to the surprise of some is the fact that the work's represented herein are those as produced by Trinitarian and non-Trinitarian alike. 
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     The use of this expression ( holy trinity ) doesn't appear in any Bible printed, John 1:1 still remains the most common scripture in which many have chosen to support the holy trinity doctrine. Since the Father and the Son in this verse John 1:1 are the only ones mentioned ( no 'Spirit' ) other scriptures are used to provide, according to Trinitarians, a clearer picture in support of the holy trinity doctrine.

     The Book, 'What About John 1:1?', will discuss in great detail the origin of the trinity docrtine, have the trinity explained as holy trinity or not and explain why it is virtually impossible for this concept to exist considering every scripture used by believers of the holy trinity doctrine. It will provide an extremely clear picture of why and where the holy trinity doctrine came to be accepted into the Church, the beginnings of the holy trinity doctrine and a detailed reference and guide book for honest students of the Bible who want to learn more about the origin of the trinity docrtine, trinity explained associated with the teachings of the holy trinity doctrine as presented by believers of this confusing holy trinity concept.

1 Timothy 2:5  For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.

Psalms 83:18 That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth.

A Reconsideration of the Roman Catholic-Protestant Doctrine

of the Trinity in Light of the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures

 

In Divine Truth or Human Tradition the author critically examines the viewpoints and Scripture expositions of prominent evangelical scholars and apologists—including popular author and debater Dr. James R. White (author of The Forgotten Trinity), John MacArthur (President of The Master’s Seminary), Robert Bowman Jr. (author of Why You Should Believe in the Trinity), Robert Morey (author of The Trinity, Evidence and Issues), R. C. Sproul, and others…

 

 

According to what has long been considered mainstream Christian “orthodoxy,” the doctrine of the Trinity (the idea that the true God of the Bible is—in the ultimate sense—a mysterious being made up of three co-equal and co-eternal persons) is not only central to the Christian faith, but absolutely necessary for one to accept in order to be counted as a true Christian and be saved. Such a demand on a Christian’s faith has come across as strange and perplexing to many, especially so in light of the fact pointed out by one respected Trinitarian:

 

“[The Trinity] is not clearly or explicitly taught anywhere in Scripture, yet it is widely regarded as a central doctrine, indispensable to the Christian faith. In this regard, it goes contrary to what is virtually an axiom [that is, a given, a self-evident truth] of biblical doctrine, namely, that there is a direct correlation between the scriptural clarity of a doctrine and its cruciality to the faith and life of the church.” (Millard J. Erickson, God in Three Persons, p. 11. Emphasis added)

 

Understandably, this fact has raised questions in the minds of Christians and truth-seekers alike ever since the doctrine was first decreed as mandatory to confess in the late 4^th century. Many Christians have wondered: How can a doctrine that is not clearly or explicitly taught in the Bible be considered mandatory to accept in order to be a true practitioner of the Christian faith? Since it is not taught by Scripture in a straightforward way, is it possible that the doctrine of the Trinity is not an authentic representation of God’s nature and of the original apostolic faith? Were the councils correct in decreeing that it is obligatory for Christians to accept the concept of the Trinity in order to be saved? Or, does such a pronouncement go beyond the original apostolic doctrine? Few Evangelical Christians have been willing to explore these issues in depth. Most are familiar with the arguments commonly advanced to defend the idea. But how many are familiar with alternative (yet scripturally harmonious) ways to understand the classic “proof-texts”? Surprisingly—as research has revealed—Trinitarians themselves provide most of the alternative answers.

 

Table of Contents

 

    Introduction

 

1  The True God—the “Trinity”

    or “the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ”?

 

2  “God the Son…” or the Son of the Living God?

 

3  The Father-Son Relationship

 

4  The “deity” of Jesus Christ

     With appending essay by Solomon Landers:

     An Early Coptic Translation and John 1:1c

 

5  The Apostolic Testimony

    Philippians, Colossians, and the letter to the Hebrews

 

6  The “I am” statements of the Gospel of John

 

7  “Trinity” in the Old Testament?

 

   8  The Holy Spirit

 

Appendix: (1) Thoughts on the Name “Christian” (2) The Tetragrammaton (3) Insights and Notes on the Divine Name (4) Donald Macleod on “the form of God” (5) 1 Corinthians 15:28 interpreted by a Trinitarian Apologist (6) A Unitarian Perspective on the Messiah’s “pre-existence” (7) Letter on John 6:13, 14 (8) Jesus Christ as “the First and the Last”

 

Available at Amazon.com

http://divinetruth.homestead.com/index.html

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Or get the book and read the First Chapter in electronic format through the author’s website.