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Who is the Almighty God? Does the title refer to the Trinity–the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit–as orthodoxy requires? Or does Scripture provide a different answer? Let’s examine the definition of the word almighty and its usage in Scripture and in creedal history.
The first occurrence of the word almighty in Scripture is found in the book of Genesis:
Genesis 17:1 Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old, the LORD [Yahuwah] appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty; Walk before Me, and be blameless.
Yahuwah revealed Himself to Abram as God Almighty, which in Hebrew is the phrase El Shadday (or El Shaddai).
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Yahuwah revealed Himself to Abram as God Almighty, which in Hebrew is the phrase El Shadday (or El Shaddai). The word Shadday (or Shaddai) means Almighty, and it is translated as such in each of its forty-eight Old Testament occurrences. According to the Expository Dictionary of Bible Words, it “is used exclusively as a divine name.”1 In addition to Abram (Abraham), two other patriarchs, Isaac and Jacob, also knew Yahuwah by this name, as did Jacob’s son, Joseph.2
The Greek equivalent to Shaddy is Pantokrator (or Pantocrator) which comes from the words pas, meaning all or every, and kratos which means power, dominion, strength, mighty.3 Pantokrator appears ten times in the New Testament, and it is translated as almighty each time. HELPS Word Studies further defines Pantokrator as unrestricted power exercising absolute dominion.4 Moreover, The Complete Word Study Dictionary affirms that it is “spoken only of God.”5 Now that we understand the definition of Almighty, let’s look more closely at its Biblical usage.
The Athanasian Creed of the fifth century6 portrays the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as each being Almighty EL. Nonetheless, it maintains that this does not create three Almighty beings, as one would reason, but only one being.7 (This declaration, of course, is not accompanied by an explanation, Scriptural or otherwise, as to how three separate Almighty’s can remain only one Almighty.) Although not all churches recite this creed, the vast majority adhere to the tenets therein. If, as the creed states, the Father, Son, and Spirit are deemed Almighty, we should be able to find it stated in Scripture.
Each time the word Shadday appears in the Old Testament, it is about Yahuwah. The Jews of antiquity undeniably understood that the Almighty was Yahuwah the Father and that He was only one God.8 They never received any instruction or explanation that their singular God was actually a triune being. Indeed, Trinitarian apologist Robert M. Bowman, Jr., concedes that even the concept of a triune God is not to be found in the Old Testament:
All trinitarians agree that the ideas about Yahuwah expressed in the doctrine of the Trinity are not found directly in the Old Testament.
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All trinitarians agree that the ideas about Yahuwah expressed in the doctrine of the Trinity are not found directly in the Old Testament.9
Moreover, the Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics states:
There is in the Old Testament no indication of distinction in the Godhead; it is an anachronism to find either the doctrine of the Incarnation or that of the Trinity in its pages.10
Christian apologist and speaker, Don Stewart helps us understand why Yahuwah is not understood to be a plurality of persons in the Old Testament:
The doctrine of the Trinity was not clearly formulated until after the New Testament was written… The doctrine of the Trinity is not plainly revealed in the Old Testament.11
More specifically, Edmund J. Fortman, Jesuit priest and professor of theology and philosophy, conveys that the Old Testament’s authors had not even the slightest idea that Yahuwah was three in one, nor was there even an implication therein:
The Old Testament tells us nothing explicitly or by necessary implication of a Triune God who is Father, Son and Holy Spirit…. There is no evidence that any sacred writer even suspected the existence of a [Trinity] within the Godhead…. Even to see in the Old Testament suggestions or foreshadowings or ‘veiled signs’ of the Trinity of persons is to go beyond the words and intent of the sacred writers.“12
Thus, all of the forty-eight times Almighty is used in the Old Testament, it is used with Yahuwah the Father in mind since this is who its authors and audience understood Him to be based on His self-revelation.
What about the New Testament? Is there a reference to Yahuwah the Father, Yahushua, or the Holy Spirit as the Almighty within its pages? Of the ten occurrences of Pantokrator (Almighty), only one appears outside the book of Revelation:
2 Corinthians 6:18 “And I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me,” Says the Lord Almighty.
For Paul, the Almighty is Yahuwah the Father, whereas Yahushua is the Christ.
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Here, Paul instructs believers not to be bound together with unbelievers. He reasons, “What harmony does Christ have with Belial, or what does a believer have in common with an unbeliever?”13 He then quotes Yahuwah as saying, “‘I will be a father to you…,” says the Lord Almighty.” Thus, for Paul, the Almighty is Yahuwah the Father, whereas Yahushua is the Christ. This is not surprising considering that Paul writes to the same audience that the Father is exclusively Yahuwah:
1 Corinthians 8:5-6 For even if there are so-called gods whether in heaven or on earth, as indeed there are many gods and many lords, 6 yet for us there is but one God, the Father, from whom are all things and we exist for Him; and one Lord, Yahushua Christ, by whom are all things, and we exist through Him.
In Paul’s understanding, and thus in his teaching, there is only one God, the Father; this excludes the Son and the Spirit.
The remaining nine occurrences of Pantokratôr appear in the book of Revelation. Space does not permit us to examine each passage here; however, two of the verses set a clear standard by which we may interpret the rest.
Chapter 19 of Revelation records the triumphant arrival of Yahushua, the victorious king of kings and the instrument of Yahuwah’s justice:
Revelation 19:14-16 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. 15 From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
John differentiates between Yahuwah the Almighty, who is full of fierce wrath, and Yahushua, the king of kings and lord of lords, who metes out that wrath. One is termed the Almighty, the other is not.
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Here, John differentiates between Yahuwah the Almighty, who is full of fierce wrath, and Yahushua, the king of kings and lord of lords14, who metes out that wrath. One is termed the Almighty, the other is not.
The last passage we’ll examine offers the clearest answer to the question of who the Almighty is in the New Testament.
Revelation 21:22 I saw no temple in it, for the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb are its temple.
John differentiates between God, the Almighty, and the one he calls the Lamb. John’s gospel account informs us that Yahushua is the Lamb:
John 1:29 The next day he *saw Yahushua coming to him and *said, “Behold, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!
To be sure, the Yahushua is the Lamb of God, not God the Lamb.
Despite this clear evidence, some may offer Revelation 1:8 as proof that Yahushua is called the Almighty in Scripture:
Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord Yahuwah, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
According to some translations, Yahushua is the one speaking in this verse, as evidenced by the red letters used to indicate that the words belong to Yahushua. Upon closer examination, however, the context reveals that God the Father is speaking. For example, in verse one, we read that God gave the revelation to Yahushua to share with his bond-servants. In verse two, John sends a greeting from God whom he designates as “Him who is and who was and who is to come” and from Yahushua, who is designated as the Christ. Thus, John makes a clear distinction between the two:
Revelation 1:4-5 John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne, 5 and from Yahushua Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood—
In verse six, we read that Yahushua has made us priests to his Yahuwah and Father.
Revelation 1:6 and He [Yahushua, verse 5] has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Scripture records at least twenty times that Yahushua has a God!
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Indeed, Scripture records at least twenty times that Yahushua has a God! And it is this God that concludes His greeting by declaring His authority as the Almighty in verse eight and by repeating His claim from verse four to be the one “who is and who was and who is to come.”
Revelation 1:8 “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord Yahuwah, “who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.”
Although God the Father and Yahushua are both referred to as the Alpha and the Omega,15 scholars agree that this is not a designation of deity. The phrase alpha and omega, the first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, is considered by some to represent “the beginning” and “the end.” Therefore, it cannot be a reference to deity because Yahuwah, who is eternal, certainly has no beginning and or end.16
Just as in the Old Testament, the title Almighty is used exclusively for Yahuwah the Father in the New Testament and never for Yahushua or the Holy Spirit.
But what about the Athanasian Creed, which states that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are each Almighty? Most believers are unaware that the two earliest known creeds, which predate the Athanasian Creed by possibly three hundred years, agree with Scripture that Yahuwah the Father is the Almighty.
The Old Roman Creed, (c. early 2nd century):
I believe in God the Father almighty; and in Christ Yahushua His only Son, our Lord, Who was born from the Holy Spirit and the Virgin Mary…17
The Apostle’s Creed (c. mid to late 2nd century) 18:
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, the Creator of heaven and earth, and in Jesus Christ, His only Son, our Lord…The third day He arose again from the dead. He ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father Almighty…19
Charles Morgridge, author and minister, writes:
The Apostles’ Creed (so called) has no word about the Trinity. It is strictly Unitarian. It calls no person God but the Father. It calls no person Almighty but the Father. It ascribes the creation of heaven and earth to no person but the Father.20
While Morgridge’s assessment pertains to the Apostles’ Creed, the same could be said for the Old Roman Creed.
Although orthodoxy may declare Yahushua to be the Pantocrator, the Almighty, along with the Holy Spirit and Yahuwah the Father, such a claim lacks Scriptural evidence. Moreover, as the creedal statements reveal, the early Church professed Yahuwah the Father alone to be the Almighty. It wasn’t until the post-Biblical doctrine of the Trinity, which evolved over considerable time, that the term became inclusive of Yahushua and the Spirit.
No where in the early church do people say Yahushua is God Almighty.
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Professor and respected scholar Larry Hurtado, offers his evaluation:
No where in the early church do people say [Yahushua] is God Almighty. Pantocrator (ruler of all or Almighty, All Powerful) is always reserved for God until the Byzantine period. So in the first several centuries, Pantocrator, Almighty, is a term that is reserved for God the Father. It is never applied to Christ.21
One must decide if the inspired Scriptures are sufficient for determining doctrine or if the post-Biblical beliefs that developed among the Platonic-inspired Church Fathers present an acceptable matrix by which we view Yahuwah. A cautionary word must be offered, however: indeed there are significant consequences for knowingly rejecting the creed of Yahushua, and the doctrine of Yahuwah that he espoused:
Mark 12:28-29 One of the scribes came and heard them arguing, and recognizing that He had answered them well, asked Him, “What commandment is the foremost of all?” 29 Yahushua answered, “The foremost is, ‘HEAR, O ISRAEL! YAHUWAH OUR GOD IS ONE!
John 17:1 and 3 Yahushua spoke these things; and lifting up His eyes to heaven, He said, “Father…3 “This is eternal life, that they may know You, the only true God, and Yahushua Christ whom You have sent.
1 Expository Dictionary of Bible Words, Stephen D. Renn, ed., (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers, 2006) p. 27
2 Genesis 28:1-3; 35:11; 48:3; Exodus 6:2-3.
3 Strong’s Greek Dictionary #2904 kratos
4 https://biblehub.com/greek/3841.htm
5 Spiros Zodhiates, The Complete Word Study Dictionary: New Testament (AMG International, 1993), p. 1093-1094.
6Most scholars agree that the Athanasian Creed was not written by Athanasius (d. 373), and many date its origin to the fifth century. Some suggest it was written by Vincent of Lérins (c. 440) or one of his admirers. Britannica.com, accessed 1-4-20, https://www.britannica.com/topic/Athanasian-Creed
7 http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/02033b.htm
8 Deuteronomy 6:4 was the national creed, if you will, of Israel: “Hear, O Israel! Yahuwah is our God, Yahuwah is one!”
9 Robert M. Bowman, Jr., Why You Should Believe in the Trinity: An Answer to Jehovah’s Witnesses (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House, 1989), p.22.
10 Encyclopedia of Religion and Ethics, ed. James Hastings, (Edinburgh: T. & T. Clark, Vol. 6, 1919), p. 254
11 Is the Doctrine of the Trinity found in the Old Testament? Blue Letter Bible online. Accessed March 5, 2019. https://www.blueletterbible.org/faq/don_stewart/don_stewart_330.cfm
12 Edmund J. Fortman, The Triune God: A Historical Study of the Doctrine of the Trinity, (Baker Book House, 1972), p. xv, 8, 9.
13 2 Corinthians 6:14-15.
14 “King of Kings, and Lord of Lords,” this is not an indicator of deity. While Yahuwah is called by the same title in 1 Timothy 6:13-16, others have been given this name as well. For example, King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 2:27 and Ezekiel 26:7, and King Artaxerxes in Ezra 7:12, are both referred to as king of kings. Indeed, Semitic languages often use the genitive case (when a noun modifies a noun) to describe something they thought was the “best” or “highest” or “greatest.” For instance, before King Nebuchadnezzar understood who Yahuwah really was, he called Him the “God of gods” because Daniel’s God was the only God who could interpret dreams. Thus, in Revelation when Yahushua is called the king of kings and lord of lords it’s because he was exalted by Yahuwah as the ultimate king and lord, not because he is Yahuwah, himself. Yahushua even testified that Yahuwah the Father was the greater of the two. See Acts 2:36; Philippians 2:9-11; Ephesians 1:17-23; 1 Corinthians 15:23-28; John 14:28.
15 Yahuwah: Revelation 1:8 and 21:6. Yahushua: Revelation 22:13.
16 An alternative view of the meaning of Alpha and Omega: “Norton writes that these words, ‘denote the certain accomplishment of his purposes; that what he has begun he will carry on to its consummation.’” (A Statement of Reasons for Not Believing the Doctrines of Trinitarians; 1877, pp. 479, 480), https://www.biblicalunitarian.com/verses/revelation-1-8
17 https://Godwords.org/church-history/creeds-and-statements-of-faith/old-roman-creed/
18 Although called the Apostles’ Creed, it was not penned by any of the twelve apostles, and was thought to have been written about 150 AD, long after they had all expired. Many consider it to be based on the Old Roman Creed
19 https://Godwords.org/church-history/creeds-and-statements-of-faith/the-apostles-creed/
20 Charles Morgridge, True Believer’s Defense Against Charges Preferred by Trinitarians For Not Believing in the Divinity of Christ, The Deity of Christ, the Trinity, (New Bedford, 1837), p. 162-63.
21 Larry Hurtado, from a lecture entitled, “Paul’s Messianic Christology” accessed 1-4-20. Quote begins at 1:34:16. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QhgwyopHis0&t=1860s
This is a non-WLC article. Source: https://oneGodworship.com/who-is-the-almighty-God-of-scripture/
We have taken out from the original article all pagan names and titles of the Father and Son, and have replaced them with the original given names. Furthermore, we have restored in the Scriptures quoted the names of the Father and Son, as they were originally written by the inspired authors of the Bible. -WLC Team
