One Humanity - Genesis 1:26-27

 

📖 Scripture

“Then God said, ‘Let Us make humanity in Our image, after Our likeness, to rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth itself, and every creature that crawls upon it.’” So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.
– Genesis 1:26-27

🔎 Examination

The enemies of truth have long accused the saints of forcing the doctrine of Holy Trinity onto Scripture, as if we must twist God's Word to fit our theology. They seize upon passages like Genesis 1:26, insisting that the plural language is easily explained away by human reasoning. The most popular evasions are the so-called Divine Council theory and the Royal Plural excuse. These aren’t harmless academic options; they are attempts to strip the glory from the Triune God and replace it with the folly of men.

Such objections may sound clever to itching ears, but the faithful don’t build doctrine on isolated proof-texts or clever arguments. We submit to the whole counsel of God. Scripture interprets Scripture. No doctrine stands or falls on a single verse, but on the unbreakable testimony of all that God has spoken.

The first objection is the Divine Council myth. It falsely claims that when God says, 'Let Us make humanity in Our image,' He is merely speaking to angels or heavenly beings, as if the Creator needs to consult His creatures. This isn’t a minor interpretive difference; it’s a denial of the majesty, sovereignty, and uniqueness of God’s self-revelation.

The context destroys this fantasy. Nowhere does Scripture say humanity is made in the image of angels. The text is singular and uncompromising: 'So God created humanity in His own image.' The image is God's alone. To drag angels into the act of creation is a futile attempt to rob God of His glory and to ignore the plain words of the text.

Angels are never co-creators. The whole of Scripture testifies that God alone creates. Isaiah thunders that God stretched out the heavens by Himself and spread out the earth alone. The Divine Council theory invents questions the Bible never asks and cannot answer why mankind bears the image of God, not the image of created beings. This isn’t harmless speculation; it’s rebellion against the clear testimony of the Word, which is rebellion against God.

The second objection is the Royal Plural argument. Some claim God is simply using the language of earthly kings, speaking as 'we' instead of 'I.' This is historical fiction. The so-called royal plural first appears a millennium after Moses wrote Genesis. There is no evidence that the prophets or patriarchs ever spoke this way. To import this idea is to intentionally attempt to override the authority of God's Word.

Neither the Divine Council nor the Royal Plural arguments can withstand the full weight of biblical revelation. Genesis gives us glimpses; the New Testament brings the light. The Father sends the Son. The Son prays to the Father. The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son. At the baptism of Christ, all three Persons are present. The plural language of Genesis isn’t a puzzle to be explained away, but a signpost pointing to the Triune God revealed from Genesis to Revelation.

The doctrine of Holy Trinity doesn’t stand or fall on Genesis 1:26. This verse is one stone in the unbreakable fortress of God's self-revelation. The fatal error of critics isn’t that they examine verses, but that they despise God’s correction (Pr 1:7). To worship the idol of self, they rip words from the living body of Scripture and refuse to bow to the whole counsel of God.

The faithful elect don’t force Trinity onto every text, nor do we explain away what God has revealed. We allow all sixty-six books to speak with one united and harmonious voice, the voice of God. When we do, the verdict is inescapable: the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are revealed as existing eternally as three distinct, co-equal, and co-divine Persons, yet one God. To deny this is to deny the testimony of the Word… the Alpha & Omega, our first and final authority.

Holy Trinity isn’t a doctrine built on a single verse, but on the thunderous harmony of God's revelation from Genesis to Revelation. The question isn’t, 'Can one verse prove Trinity?' but, 'Will we submit to the whole testimony of Scripture?' The answer for the elect is yes, and to reject it is to reject the God who has spoken.

🤺 Action

• Examine whether you build doctrine from isolated verses or from the full counsel of God. “For I did not shrink back from declaring to you the whole will of God.” – Acts 20:27. Are your theological conclusions shaped by the entirety of Scripture, or are they based on a handful of passages detached from their biblical context?
• Test arguments carefully rather than accepting them because they sound reasonable. “Test all things. Hold fast to what is good.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:21. Have you examined claims such as the Divine Council or Royal Plural arguments against the actual testimony of Scripture, history, and context?
• Submit your reasoning to God's revealed truth. “Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He will make your paths straight.” – Proverbs 3:5–6. When God's revelation challenges your assumptions, do you yield to His Word or attempt to reshape Scripture to fit your preferences and traditions?
• Search the Scriptures diligently when confronted with difficult doctrines. “These are the very words that testify about Me.” – John 5:39b. Are you inviting and allowing Scripture to interpret Scripture, especially when studying doctrines that stretch beyond human comprehension?
• Guard yourself against confirmation bias and selective interpretation. “The first to state his case seems right until another comes and cross-examines him.” – Proverbs 18:17. Do you seek truth wherever God's Word leads, or do you search only for evidence that supports conclusions you already hold?

🧠 Reflection

The assault on God and His law is nothing new. The saints aren’t called to defend traditions simply because they are ancient, nor are we called to chase after novelties because they are uttered by men with fancy titles and hats. We are called to bow before the God-breathed, sufficient, and sovereign revelation of Scripture because it will be our judge. False teachers build their crumbling sandcastle empires on isolated texts, ignoring the unified and comprehensive witness of the whole Word. Holy Trinity isn’t the invention of theologians, but the unavoidable reality that rises from Genesis to Revelation. The more we submit to the full counsel of Scripture, the more clearly we behold the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as the one true God, worthy of all glory, honor, worship, praise, and obedience.

✝️ Study

• Q1: What does Genesis 1:26 say God declared before creating humanity? 
• Q2: What’s the difference between God’s image and likeness? 
• Q3: How does one human race and two sexes (male & female with distinct roles) reflect God’s image?
• Q4: How do cultural movements (BLM, LGBTQ+, NAR, etc.) seek to undermine what the Word reveals?
• Q5: Why does Genesis 1:27 create difficulties for the Divine Council interpretation of Genesis 1:26?
• Q6: How does the New Testament provide clarity regarding the plural language (Jesus’ baptism, etc.) found in Genesis 1:26?
• Q7: Why is it methodologically foolish and deadly to establish or reject a doctrine based upon a single verse (when more of Scripture speaks into it) while ignoring the progressive revelation of Scripture?
• Q8: How do the Divine Council and Royal Plural arguments ultimately fail to account for the cumulative biblical evidence regarding the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit while still attempting to explain away passages commonly associated with Holy Trinity? Why do these arguments arise in the first place?

Blessings & love,

Kevin M. Kelley
Pastor

BigIslandChristianChurch.com

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