Much of the Trinitarian deception is afforded by word trickery. It is a clever word game that uses the same words but shifts the definitions attached to those words; it is a game that shifts the concepts behind those letters. This game of concept shifting is best demonstrated with the fallacious "Jesus is God" routine. This statement means two different things in Trinitarianism and Trinitarians shift back and forth between both meanings when promoting their apologetic. At one moment, "Jesus is God" means "Jesus is divine by nature" and in the next moment it means "Jesus is God by identity." One statement answers "what" he is and the other "who" he is. Indeed, leading Trinitarian scholars insist the words "and the Word was God" at John 1:1 mean "and the Word was divine by nature." In fact, the word "God" necessarily means "divine by nature" for the Trinitarian at John 17:3. In other words, they try to make sure the word "God" does not refer to an identity. Trinitarians do the same thing in the statement, "Jesus is both God and man." Here, the word "man" refers to Jesus' nature and so does the word "God." The statement actually means, "Jesus is both divine by nature and human by nature." It is a statement referring to "what" Jesus is. Trinitarians continually change definitions between implicitly defining "God" as "who" and then implicitly defining "God" as "what" during their argumentation. Fallacy of equivocation.

Words have concepts behind them. These concepts can be deceptively shifted by false teachers like a moving curtain behind a scene. Perhaps you have seen old movies where a car is not really moving but the scene behind them is moving and so it appears the car is moving. It is a clever illusion, a deception. Written words themselves do not contain their own concepts but are given concepts by the human beings using those sets of letters. The concepts are behind the written words. Concepts, definitions, are attached to those words. When human beings see written letters on a page, or hear audible words spoken, they must assume the concept which is being attached to a word. So if one says, "I was chairman of the board," we know the word "board" has a certain concept attached to it that is quite different than, "I was hit over the head by a board." In such a case, it is quite easy to see there are two different concepts attached to an identical set of letters. We simply changed the scene behind the word because the context demanded it. Both words are appear exactly the same to our eyes and sound the same to our ears but the concepts behind the words are very, very different. In this case, it was quite easy to see the difference. But this is not always the case. Sometimes, when we are speaking with someone, they will use a definition of a word that means one thing and we are assuming another thing. Such is the case with the statement, "Jesus is God." When English speaking readers see the word "God" they immediately assume that someone is being identified because the capitalized word "God" looks and behaves like a name and we use names to identify people and implicitly answer a question which begins with "Who?" However, Trinitarians use the very same word to mean "Who" in one breath and to mean something entirely different in the next.

The Trinitarian apologetic is largely based on the idea that Jesus has a divine nature, that is, the nature of deity. This idea refers to what he is, not who he is. However, Trinitarians use the statement, "Jesus is God" to make the assertion that Jesus is divine by nature. This is extremely deceptive because people are duped into believing Jesus is being identified as "God" because English speakers have been trained to assume someone is being identified when they see a capitalized word that looks and behaves like a capitalized name. Trinitarians afford this word game by shifting back and forth between both concepts and few people ever notice the difference.

What Trinitarians try to do is demonstrate that Jesus has a divine nature by using the statement, "Jesus is God." Here they are referring to "what" he is, not "who" he is. There is no problem in doing this as long as their line of argumentation is correct. However, once they are successful in accomplishing their goal, they then proceed to conclude that have proved "Jesus is God" but now they suggestively imply they have proved Jesus is God by identity. They wish to claim they have proved Jesus is the one God who created the universe. Hence, they suggest that since they have proved what he is, they have proved who he is by using the very same words. In short, they deceive others by shifting the concept behind the words implicitly and suggestively whenever it is convenient for them to do so.

The extent of this deceptive illusion can be demonstrated from a Biblical truth. When God created Adam and Eve, He named them both "adam" (Gen 1:27; 5:2). The word "adam" is the Hebrew word for humanity, human being, both male and female. It is essentially equivalent to our English word "human." So we can say "Eve was adam" which means "Eve was human." It refers to Eve's human nature. However, as soon as we say "Eve was Adam," we are making a huge mistake because the capitalized word "Adam" refers to Eve's husband and is not a word used to refer to Eve's human nature. The word "Adam" answers the question "Who?" The word "adam" answers the question "What?"

However, Trinitarians succeed in using the capitalized word "God" to identify God and to refer to the divine nature of God. The parallel use of the word "Adam" would be to use that capitalized word to refer both to Eve's nature and to Eve's husband. So if we used the word "Adam" like Trinitarians use the word "God" we could say "Eve was "Adam" meaning Eve was human. And then once we have proved Eve was human with the words "Eve was Adam," we would then proceed to claim Eve is to be identified as "Adam." And we would be quite dishonest to do so. This is what Trinitarians are doing with the capitalized word "God."

Illustrating the Deception: Qualitative and Quantiative Terms

The word adam is the Hebrew word for "human," whether male or female. Adam was actually called "the adam" in the Bible just as God was called "the god." Thus, Adam was adam, Eve was adam, and Seth was adam. Adam was human, Eve was human and Seth was human. The word adam is here used in a qualitative sense. It is also correct to write, "Adam was Adam." This is a quantitative use of the same word. It sounds the same as the qualitative sense but the capital letter changed the intent of the word from qualitative to quantitative. Since Adam is quantitatively the person Adam, we can say Adam is Adam. However, it is completely incorrect to say, "Eve was Adam," or "Seth was Adam." This would be a totally inappropriate use of English capitalization conventions and would mislead the reader into thinking that Eve and/or Seth are being identified as the person Adam. So while we can write, "Eve was adam," we cannot write "Eve was Adam." Hence, to be honest and true to readers we must ensure that we do not capitalize the word "adam" when we are using the word in a qualitative sense. The word "adam" is not a name but the word "Adam" is a name. Although they sound the same they signal different ideas. The very same thing is true with the word "God." Although it sounds like a qualitative word when spoken, it behaves like a name and signals a quantiative entity when written. The word "God" is just as misleading as the word "Adam" when the word "god" is intended instead just as the word "adam" is intended instead.

Inappropriate use of Capitalization
Qualitative		Quantitative
Meaning	Written Statement	Written Statement	Meaning
It is sandy colored	It is sandy	It is Sandy	It is the person "Sandy"
Eve was adam by nature	Eve was adam	Eve was Adam	Eve was the person "Adam"
The Word was god/deity by nature	The Word was god	The Word was God	The Word was the identity known as "God"

Note carefully how a capital letter changed everything. A capitalized word in English has much power and suggestive meaning and the misuse of capitalization can lead to quietly constructed yet tremendous blunders.

	Adam & his son	God & his son	Sense	Implied Question
True	Adam was Adam	God is God	Quantitative	Who
True	Adam was adam	God is god	Qualitative	What
True	Seth was adam	The Word was god	Qualitative	What
True	Seth was adam	The Word was adam	Qualitative	What
False	Seth was Adam	The Word was Adam	Quantitative	Who
False	Seth was Adam	The Word was God	Quantitative	Who

The Power of Suggestion

Quantitative names identifying persons sound exactly like qualitative words describing attributes. The statement, "It is Sandy" sounds just like "It is sandy." However, these two statements mean two completely different things and if we misuse these terms we commit the deceptive fallacy of equivocation. In the same way, "Jesus is god" meaning "Jesus is divine by nature," sounds just like "Jesus is God," meaning "Jesus is that personal being God by identity." Saying "Jesus is god" is the same as saying "Eve was adam" and saying "Jesus is God" is the same as saying, "Eve was Adam." Therefore, if we were speaking out loud to someone they would not even know the difference between those two statements. So if a Trinitarian demonstrates Jesus was god and then proceeds to claim he has proven that Jesus was God, and since you cannot see the capital letter that is spoken and not written, a person listening to such words could be easily duped. And even worse, the written statement "Jesus is God," meaning "Jesus is divine," is identical to "Jesus is God," meaning "Jesus is God by identity." They are identical statements which mean two different things. There are two different concepts behind the words. The two statements both sound and look exactly the same but convey concepts which describe two completely different ideas. This is how Trinitarians do their trickery. They claim Jesus is divine by nature by saying, and writing, "Jesus is God" when they are referring to his nature. However, this has exactly the same ring to human ears, and to the human mind which hears these words when read, as the statement "Jesus is God" when used to indicate who the Word was by identity. So Trinitarians suggestively imply they have proved Jesus is "God" by identity and because the two statements look, sound, and have the exact same ring for both meanings of "Jesus is God", this illusion is quite persuasive and subtlely effective. Hence, innocent folks are easily duped by this fallacy.

Having the divine nature of God does not make one God by identity anymore than having the nature of Adam makes one Adam by identity. In fact, the Bible explicitly teaches that we too will share the divine nature of God when we are resurrected. This does not mean we will be God. In fact, the Bible teaches explicitly that we are already partakers of the divine nature. This does not make us "God" anymore than it makes Jesus "God." The capitalized word "God" is a word which translates "the god" in Greek and is reserved for the Father of Jesus Christ.

This is but one example of the many fallacies employed by Trinitarians. When exploring Trinitarian doctrine and when dialoguing with Trinitarians, one must be extremely guarded and careful concerning their statements and their crafty terminology. The suggestively shift the meanings of words like "God" and "being" halfway through their argumentation process. The result is a completely fallacious conclusion that sounds totally correct to the unwary listener who is thereby left completely deceived by their illusions.

Last Updated: March 25, 2011