Jews do not believe in a trinity.

IN SHORT... The Jewish idea of God is that God is One and Indivisible. We cannot divide God up into separate parts, where each part of God is UnEqual to each of the other parts, but somehow they are one and the same. The Hebrew Scriptures describes God as an absolute One, but the Christian's New Testament describes the Christian idea of God as divisible into three parts called a trinity. In the Christian's New Testament, Jesus at one point claims to have different knowledge than other parts of the Christian Trinity. For example, Matthew 24:36 or Mark 13:32. In another verse, Jesus does not have the same power as other parts of the Christian Trinity, for example, Luke 23:34. And in Matthew 26:42, Jesus's will is not the same as the will of the Father. Indeed, Jesus often contrasted himself with the Father, for example, in John 14:28, or Luke 18:19. Furthermore, Jesus supposedly said that the punishment for blaspheming against one part of the Trinity is not the same punishment for blaspheming against another part of the Trinity. In the Hebrew Scriptures, however, God is One, as we read in Deuteronomy 6:4, as well as in Isaiah 44:6, where God tells us, "I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God." When Isaiah tells us that God said, "I am the first," it means that God has no father. When Isaiah tells us that God said, "I am the last," it means that God has no literal son. And when Isaiah tells us that God said, "Besides me there is no God," it means that God does not share being God with any other god, or demi-god, or semi-god, or persons, and there is no trinity.

A FULL EXPLANATION... Just because there are various manifestations of God in the Bible, does not mean that each manifestation is to be regarded as separate and Unequal to God, but somehow one and the same as God, and that each manifestation of God is to be treated differently. The Hebrew Scriptures tells us that God is One.

Hear, O Israel: The Eternal is our God, the Eternal is one. [Deuteronomy 6:4]

But how do we know that the term, One, at the end of the above verse, does not refer to some sort of compound unity, that God is made up of different parts that total up to one? The reason we know this is that the word, "one," is an adjective. Here it is describing a proper noun, which is the word, "The Eternal." Most people forget that the word that is here translated as, "The Eternal," is actually the holiest name for God, told to us in Exodus 3:14-15. When the word, "one" modifies a person's name, it must mean that the person is only One, not a compound One, but rather an absolute One.

Some may say that, as an example, a man named Bill Jones may be "Dad" to his kids, but "Honey" to his wife, and "Mr. Jones" to his employees. However, in all instances Bill Jones has the same knowledge, the same power, and the same will. In the Christian's New Testament, Jesus at one point claims to have different knowledge than other parts of the Christian Trinity. For example, Matthew 24:36 or Mark 13:32. In another verse, Jesus does not have the same power as other parts of the Christian Trinity, for example, Luke 23:34. And in Matthew 26:42, Jesus's will is not the same as the will of the Father. Indeed, Jesus often contrasted himself with the Father, for example, in John 14:28, or Luke 18:19. Furthermore, Jesus supposedly said that the punishment for blaspheming against one part of the Trinity is not the same punishment for blaspheming against another part of the Trinity. If this is true, then they cannot be one and the same, and the concept of the Trinity is therefore not Monotheistic.

There are more than just three manifestations of God in the Hebrew Scriptures. There is of course, the Spirit of God, as we read in Genesis 1:2:

And The Spirit Of God (Ruach Elohm) moved over the face of the waters

But there is also an Evil Spirit of God, as we read in I Samuel 16:23:

And it came to pass, when The Evil Spirit Of God (Ruach Elohm Raah) was upon Saul, that David took an harp, and played with his hand: so Saul was refreshed, and was well, and the evil spirit departed from him.

There is also a Lying Spirit Of God in I Kings 22:23:

Now therefore, behold, the Eternal hath put a lying spirit (Ruach Sheker) in the mouth of all these thy prophets, and the Eternal hath spoken evil concerning thee.

In Exodus 12:23, we are told that God will smite the Egyptians. But later in the same verse, we see that it is the Destroyer who smites the Egyptians.

For the Eternal will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the Eternal will pass over the door, and will not suffer the Destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.

One could then say that the Destroyer should be seen as a Person in God, just as the Spirit Of God is seen as a Person in God. To this we could add that the Lying Spirit Of God should be seen as a Person in God, and the Evil Spirit Of God should be seen as a Person in God. This would mean that instead of the Trinity in the Father, the son, and the Holy Spirit, one should have the Father, the son, the Holy Spirit, the Lying Spirit, and the Evil Spirit, as well as the Destroyer. Should we add to this the Burning Bush?

Why did the Christian community stop at the three of the trinity, when they could have also had more persons in the supposed Compound unity of God? The reason is that the highest deities in the other religions of the area also came in threes:

Babylon had: [1] Anu [2] Bel and [3] Ena;

India had: [1] Brahma [2] Vishnu and [3] Shiva;

Roman [1] Jupiter [2] Juno and [3] Minerva;

Greece [1] Zeus] [2] Apollo and [3} Hermes

And so the Christian community took their own trinity of only the Father, the son and the Holy Spirit, disregarding the Lying Spirit, the Evil Spirit, and the Destroyer, not to mention the Burning Bush.

Jews are taught that God is One, God is Indivisible, and this is found throughout the Hebrew Scriptures. Isaiah 44:6 tell us that, "I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God." When Isaiah tells us that God said, "I am the first," it means that God has no father. When Isaiah tells us that God said, "I am the last," it means that God has no literal son. And when Isaiah tells us that God said, "Besides me there is no God," it means that God does not share being God with any other god, or demi-god, or semi-god, or persons.

This is why God told us in the Ten Commandments, in Exodus 20:3, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." Even if you think they are god or gods, you cannot have them before God. You do not pray to them in order to get to God, and you don't pray in their names.

Christians may tell us, "Behold Your God," but the last time we heard something similar was in Exodus 32:4, when the ex-slaves pointed to the Golden Calf and said, "Eilay elohecha -- these are your gods."

Copyright held by Rabbi Stuart Federow 2003
All rights reserved.