The Trinitarian Claim

Trinitarians claim that Jesus must be Yahweh because Yahweh will not give His glory to another but God did give His glory to Jesus.

Examination of the Claim

1. God the Son Needs to be given Glory?

In places like John 17, Trinitarians see that Jesus was given God's glory and so they conclude this verse necessarily means that Jesus is Yahweh because Yahweh will not give His glory to another. The first problem with this claim is obvious. To have a divine nature is by definition to have the glory of God. If Jesus is/was God, why would He need to be given this glory? And claiming this is only the glorification of the man Jesus and not Jesus according to his divine nature does not pan out since the very premise of the Trinitarian claim is that the glory in question here denotes his deity. You can't have it both ways. First, deity does not need to be given glory. And second, since the Trinitarian premise is that this glory denotes deity, to claim Jesus was only being glorified in his humanity is to therefore claim his humanity was being made into deity. It is a never ending circle of nonsense.

2. Jesus Gives the Same Glory to His Disciples

Trinitarians make the following observations:

God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory... 1 Peter 1:21

... Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honour... Hebrews 2:9

The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, the God of our fathers, . Acts 3:13 Now, Father, glorify Me together with Yourself, with the glory which I had with You before the world was. John 17:5

So since Yahweh said He will not give His glory to another, Trinitarians conclude Jesus must also be Yahweh in addition to the Father since God gave Jesus His glory.

In addition to the fact that the speaker of Isaiah 42:8 is God the Father, Trinitarians are also avoiding the implications of the following passage. Jesus prays that his disciples will be given that very same glory.

The glory which You have given me I have given to them, that they may be one, just as we are one.... that they may see my glory which You have given me. John 17:22-24.

And there are even more problems for the Trinitarian concerning their claim.

A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God. 1 Corinthians 11:7.

But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory unto glory.... the glory of Christ, who is the image of God. 2 Corinthians 3:18-4:4

So if the very same glory is given to the disciples, what sense does it make to claim that since Yahweh will not give his glory to another that it means Jesus was given this glory only because he is Yahweh? The disciples were not Yahweh yet they were given the same glory God gave to Jesus.

3. The Father is Speaking at Isaiah 42:8

The second serious problem for this claim is also very obvious. We only need to go back a few verses and find out who, specifically, is speaking.

Behold, My Servant, whom I uphold; My chosen one in whom My soul delights. I have put My Spirit upon Him; He will bring forth justice to the nations. He will not cry out or raise His voice, Nor make His voice heard in the street. A bruised reed He will not break And a dimly burning wick He will not extinguish; He will faithfully bring forth justice. (Isaiah 42:1-3).

Further to the point, we can absolutely verify the identity of the speaker because Matthew quotes this particular passage:

Jesus, aware of this, withdrew from there. And many followed him, and he healed them all, and ordered them not to make him known. This was to fulfil what was spoken by the prophet Isaiah: "Behold, my servant whom I have chosen, my beloved with whom my soul is well pleased. I will put my Spirit upon him, and he shall proclaim justice to the Gentiles. He will not wrangle or cry aloud, nor will any one hear his voice in the streets; he will not break a bruised reed or quench a smoldering wick, till he brings justice to victory; and in his name will the Gentiles hope." (Matthew 12:16-21).

Here it is quite clear that Jesus is the servant and the One who puts His Spirit upon Jesus is specifically God the Father. So in this case, Yahweh the speaker is one, the Father, and Jesus who He anoints is necessarily another. Hence, it is quite clear that Isaiah 42:8 cannot possibly refer to the Son. This fact is similar to Luke 4:18-19, also a quotation from Isaiah:

There was given to him the book of the prophet Isaiah. He opened the book and found the place where it was written, "The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim release to the captives and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty those who are oppressed, to proclaim the acceptable year of the Lord."

It is quite clear that both of these verses allude to Jesus' baptism at the Jordan where the Father anointed Jesus with His Holy Spirit. The speaker at Isaiah 42:1ff. is the Father as made clear by Matthew. Therefore, if the Father is speaking at Isaiah 42:1ff., then it is the Father who says, "I am the LORD, that is My name; I will not give My glory to another." The Trinitarians are claiming that the speaker, Yahweh, is excluding everyone else and since Jesus received glory from God then he must be Yahweh. However, when it is realized that the speaker is the Father, the Trinitarian claim actually now results in the Father excluding Jesus.

Although he has no evidence whatsoever for his claim, the Trinitarian needs to claim that the speaker here is the Triune God, not just the person of the Father. His claim implies that the Father is Yahweh and Jesus is also Yahweh and so Yahweh as the speaker here includes Jesus. And because this concept of Yahweh includes Jesus, then Jesus is not excluded when Yahweh says, "I will not give my glory to another."

However, the Trinitarian claims completely backfires since the speaker here is postively identified as God the Father who puts his Spirit on Jesus His Chosen One. Therefore, according to the Trinitarian intepretation of the words, "I will not give my glory to another," the Father excludes everyone else including Jesus. Hence, Jesus is NOT Yahweh since it is the Father making this statement. The Trinitarian interpretation is shown to be quite impossible since the Father would be excluding Jesus rather than including him.

Analysis of the Evidence

1. The Context of Isaiah 42:8: God's Chosen Servant Israel

We have already seen that the speaker of Isaiah 42:8 is necessarily God the Father. But there is more in this context which tells us what is really going on here in this verse.

Isaiah 48:11

But first let us have a look at Isaiah 48:11:

For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.

Here we find YAHWEH makes a statement very similar to Isaiah 42:8. Now notice who Yahweh is speaking to:

Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel. (Isaiah 48:1).

"Jacob" in Isaiah

In Isaiah, the nation of Israel is depicted as God's servant Jacob. This is because Jacob was also given the name Israel by the angel with whom he struggled all night long. The nation of Israel is so-called because they are all the descendants of Israel, that is, Jacob. For this reason, the nation of Israel is being depicted as Jacob God's servant and Jacob God's chosen.

But now listen, O Jacob, My servant, and Israel, whom I have chosen... Do not fear, O Jacob My servant... O Jacob, also Israel, for you are My servant. I have formed you, you are My servant, O Israel. Isaiah 44:1-2, 21.

Jacob My servant, and Israel My chosen one. (Isaiah 45).

Notice how the above language is the same language as Isaiah 42:1 where Yahweh is referring to his chosen servant. This is the nation of Israel depicted as God's servant Jacob. The reason this verse also applies to Jesus is because Jesus was the King of the Jews and King of Israel and therefore all Israel were his subjects and he represented all Israel in and of himself.

Now notice the context of Isaiah 48:11:

Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are called by the name of Israel....
For my own sake, for my own sake, I do it, for how should my name be profaned? My glory I will not give to another.

God will not give his glory to another besides who?

2. The Trinitarian Blunder

If a man says to his wife, "I will not give my love to another," she does not suppose he will not give his love to ANYONE. But that is how Trinitarians are reading this verse. When we read all the facts, the Trinitarian mistake becomes clear. Yahweh is not saying, "I will not give My glory to another besides Me" or "I will not give My glory to ANYONE," but "I will not give my glory to another besides Israel My chosen servant.

For the Lord has redeemed Jacob, and will be glorified in Israel. Isaiah 44:23.

You are my servant, Israel, in whom I will be glorified. Isaiah 49:3.

They are Israelites, and to them belong the sonship, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. Romans 9:4.

Behold, you shall call nations that you know not, and nations that knew you not shall run to you, because of the Lord your God, and of the Holy One of Israel, for He has glorified you. Isaiah 55:5

Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD has risen upon you.... No longer will you have the sun for light by day, Nor for brightness will the moon give you light; But you will have the LORD for an everlasting light, And your God for your glory. Isaiah 60:1,19.

Now carefully regard these passages:

But now, thus says YHWH, your Creator, O Jacob, And He who formed you, O Israel, "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name; you are Mine!... Everyone who is called by My name, and whom I have created for My glory, whom I have formed, also whom I have made." Isaiah 43:1-7

I will put salvation in Zion, to Israel My glory. Isaiah 46:13.

Israel is God's glory and was created for God's glory and to be God's glory. If we honestly appreciate the context, it is abundantly clear that the words "I will not give my glory to another" do not mean "I will not give my glory to another [besides me] but mean "I will not give my glory to another [besides my chosen servant Israel]."

4. A Proper Interpretation

We have two passages which essentially convey the same concept:

I am the YHWH, that is My name and I will not give My glory to another nor My praise to graven images. 42:8

For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And My glory I will not give to another. 48:11

When we read the context of each of these two passages, it is quite clear that Yahweh does not mean "I will not give my glory to another [besides Me]." He means "I will not give my glory to another [besides my chosen servant Jacob/Israel]." Yahweh himself says he created his chosen servant Israel for "MY Glory" and that Israel is "MY Glory." God will not give his glory to the nations or his named will be profaned as we see at Isaiah 48:11. The nations worship graven images. Therefore, to give His glory to the nations would be for YAHWEH to give praise to graven images, and vice versa, as we see at Isaiah 42:8.

Hear this, O house of Jacob, who are named Israel.... For the sake of My name I delay My wrath, and for My praise I restrain it for you, in order not to cut you off. Behold, I have refined you, but not as silver. I have tested you in the furnace of affliction. For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And My glory I will not give to another. Listen to Me, O Jacob, even Israel whom I called. Isaiah 48:1-12

Another besides who? Another besides Israel.

Conclusions

The Trinitarian claim is first plagued with the problem that men are created in the image and glory of God, we are being transformed into the same image of God as the risen Christ, and the glory which God gave to Jesus is also given to his disciples. Moreover, the speaker at Isaiah 42:8 is shown by Matthew to be God the Father. The Father therefore says he will not give his glory to another. Hence, the Trinitarian claim blows up in their own presence because once it is realized the speaker is the Father they have unwittingly exluded Jesus from identity as Yahweh with their own interpretation of this verse.

Blinded by their eagerness to create a Triune God, Trinitarians have made an obvious blunder by violently ripping Isaiah 42:8 and 48:11 out of its context. Since Yahweh himself tells us that Israel is created for "MY glory" and Israel is "MY Glory," we have no choice but to understand the words "I will not give my glory to another" as "I will not give my glory to any one else but Israel by chosen servant."
They are Israelites, and to them belong the sonship, the glory, the covenants, the giving of the law, the worship, and the promises. Romans 9:4.

I will put salvation in Zion, to Israel My glory. Isaiah 46:13.

Last Updated: January 8, 2014