Short answer
No. The Bible itself shows Jesus as a servant of God (﷾), not as God. In John's Gospel, after what it describes as the resurrection, he still spoke of "my God, and your God". He called the Father "the only true God" and said "my Father is greater than I". He taught that the one sent is not greater than the one who sent him. His power was given to him, and he did not know the day or the hour of the end. Peter, one of his disciples, called him "a man approved of God". The letter to the Hebrews says he was made a little lower than the angels. Islam says the same: the Qur'an calls Jesus a messenger of Allah (﷾), who told his people to worship "my Lord and your Lord".
| In the Bible | God (﷾) | Jesus |
|---|---|---|
| Is he a man? | ||
| Can he be tempted? | ||
| Has anyone seen him? | ||
| Does he pray to another? | ||
| Does he know the Hour? | ||
| Was his power given to him? | ||
| Was he sent by another? | ||
| Does he have a God? |
- Yes
- No
Full explanation
He still has a God
In John's account, after what it describes as the resurrection, Jesus sends word that he is going to "my God, and your God". That is the same God his disciples worship. In Revelation, the last book of the Bible, he speaks from heaven and says "my God" four times in one verse. Ephesians calls the Father "the God of our Lord Jesus Christ". ("Christ" is a title meaning "anointed": the one God (﷾) chose for a task.) One who has a God is not God.
“Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.”
“Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name.”
“That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him:”
The only true God (﷾), and the one He sent
In prayer Jesus calls the Father "the only true God". He names himself separately, as the one God (﷾) sent. He says the Father is greater than he is. He says again and again that he was sent. He gives his disciples this rule: the one sent is not greater than the one who sent him. By his own rule, the Father who sent him is greater. When a man called him good, he answered that none is good but one, that is, God (﷾).
“And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent.”
“Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.”
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, The servant is not greater than his lord; neither he that is sent greater than he that sent him.”
“Jesus said unto them, If God were your Father, ye would love me: for I proceeded forth and came from God; neither came I of myself, but he sent me.”
“And Jesus said unto him, Why callest thou me good? there is none good but one, that is, God.”
His power and knowledge were given to him
Jesus says that all power "is given" to him. God (﷾) is given nothing. He says that no one knows "that day and that hour" of the end, "neither the Son, but the Father". In Acts, just before he is taken up to heaven, he still says the times are in the Father's power. The book of Revelation opens by saying that God (﷾) gave its message to him.
“And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.”
“But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.”
“And he said unto them, It is not for you to know the times or the seasons, which the Father hath put in his own power.”
“The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:”
His first followers called him a man and a servant
Peter was one of Jesus' disciples. Preaching in Jerusalem, he calls Jesus "a man approved of God", and says God (﷾) did the miracles through him. In the next chapter he calls Jesus God's servant. Matthew applies to Jesus God's words "Behold my servant". The letter 1 Timothy says there is one God and one go-between, "the man Christ Jesus". Jesus calls himself "a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God".
“Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know:”
“The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up, and denied in the presence of Pilate, when he had determined to release him.”
“Behold my servant, whom I have chosen; my beloved, in whom my soul is well pleased: I will put my spirit upon him, and he shall shew judgment to the Gentiles.”
“For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;”
“But now ye seek to kill me, a man that hath told you the truth, which I have heard of God: this did not Abraham.”
Christ under God (﷾), now and at the end
Paul, a Christian missionary of the first century, ranks them plainly: "the head of Christ is God". He says that at the end the Son himself will be made subject to God (﷾). He also keeps them apart in his creed, his statement of belief: one God (﷾), the Father, and one Lord, Jesus Christ.
“But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God.”
“And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all.”
“But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him.”
Ranked with the angels
Hebrews is a letter in the New Testament by an unnamed early Christian writer. It says Jesus was "made a little lower than the angels" so that he could suffer death. God (﷾) is never made lower than anything He created, even for a time. The same letter says Jesus was "made so much better than the angels" and got a better name by inheritance. Peter says the angels and powers were "made subject unto him" at God's (﷾) right hand. So his authority over them was given too. A rank that is made, lowered and then raised is received from God (﷾), and God (﷾) receives nothing.
“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.”
“Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.”
“Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him.”
What the Bible says God (﷾) is, and what it shows of Jesus
The Law says God (﷾) is not a man. James says God (﷾) cannot be tempted, yet Jesus was led into the wilderness to be tempted. John's Gospel and the First Letter of John both say that no man has seen God (﷾) at any time, yet thousands saw Jesus. In Matthew's account, Jesus fell on his face and prayed to his Father, "not as I will, but as thou wilt". God (﷾) does not pray, and He has no will above His own.
“God is not a man, that he should lie; neither the son of man, that he should repent: hath he said, and shall he not do it? or hath he spoken, and shall he not make it good?”
“Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man:”
“Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.”
“No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.”
“No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us.”
“And he went a little further, and fell on his face, and prayed, saying, O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I will, but as thou wilt.”
| Question | God (﷾) in the Bible | Jesus in the Bible |
|---|---|---|
| Is he a man? | “God is not a man” | “a man approved of God” |
| Can he be tempted? | “God cannot be tempted with evil” | Led into the wilderness “to be tempted of the devil” |
| Has anyone seen him? | “No man hath seen God at any time” | Thousands saw him |
| Does he pray? | He prays to no one | “not as I will, but as thou wilt” |
| Does he know the Hour? | The Father knows it | “neither the Son, but the Father” |
| Does he have a God? | No one is above Him | “my God, and your God” |
One who has a God is not God.
The verses Christians rely on
Christians read the opening of John's Gospel as naming Jesus, the Word, as God. They read Thomas's cry after the resurrection as a confession that Jesus is God. They also point to Jesus' words "Before Abraham was, I am". And they point to Hebrews 1:8, where the Son is addressed as "O God". Each is answered verse by verse below.
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
“And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.”
“Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.”
“But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.”
John 1:1, "the Word was God"The oldest Greek copies, all in capitals, do not mark "God" apart from "god". Goodspeed and Moffatt translated it "divine". The same Gospel's Jesus calls the Father "the only true God".
Thomas: "My Lord and my God"Eleven verses earlier, Jesus speaks of "my God, and your God". John says he wrote so that readers believe Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of God".
"Only his human nature"Mark 13:32 sets the Son against the Father, not one side of him against another. Chalcedon calls him "one and the same Son".
What the Qur'an says about Jesus
The Qur'an says that those who say "Allah is Christ" commit blasphemy, which means speaking against God (﷾). It quotes Jesus telling Israel to worship "Allah, my Lord and your Lord". John's Gospel has Jesus say the same thing: "my God, and your God". The Qur'an calls Jesus a messenger, a Word from God (﷾) and a servant. It gives a plain sign that he is not divine: he and his mother ate food.
“They do blaspheme who say: "Allah is Christ the son of Mary." But said Christ: "O Children of Israel! worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord." Whoever joins other gods with Allah,- Allah will forbid him the garden, and the Fire will be his abode. There will for the wrong-doers be no one to help.”
“O People of the Book! Commit no excesses in your religion: Nor say of Allah aught but the truth. Christ Jesus the son of Mary was (no more than) a messenger of Allah, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a spirit proceeding from Him: so believe in Allah and His messengers. Say not "Trinity": desist: it will be better for you: for Allah is one Allah: Glory be to Him: (far exalted is He) above having a son. To Him belong all things in the heavens and on earth. And enough is Allah as a Disposer of affairs.”
“He said: "I am indeed a servant of Allah: He hath given me revelation and made me a prophet;”
“Christ the son of Mary was no more than a messenger; many were the messengers that passed away before him. His mother was a woman of truth. They had both to eat their (daily) food. See how Allah doth make His signs clear to them; yet see in what ways they are deluded away from the truth!”
“Jesus saith unto her, Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.”
A messenger of Allah (﷾)
A Word from Allah (﷾)
A servant of Allah (﷾)
He and his mother ate food
DivineIt calls it blasphemy to say that Christ is Allah (5:72).
Verse by verse
John 1:1 — Gospel of John, chapter 1, verse 1
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”
Cited for
Christians read "the Word was God" as saying that Jesus, the Word, is God.
The response
The oldest Greek copies are written all in capitals, so they do not mark "God" apart from "god". Whether to print "God" or "divine" is the translator's choice. The translator Edgar Goodspeed rendered the clause "the Word was divine". James Moffatt wrote "the Logos was divine" (Logos is the Greek word for "Word"). The Bible also calls Moses "a god" to Pharaoh, and calls Israel's judges "gods". Jesus himself pointed to the judges when he was accused of making himself God.
Where it lands — A title the Bible gives to Moses and the judges does not make its bearer the One God.
John 20:28 — Gospel of John, chapter 20, verse 28
“And Thomas answered and said unto him, My Lord and my God.”
Cited for
Thomas called Jesus "my God", and Jesus accepted it.
The response
Eleven verses earlier in the same chapter, Jesus says he is going to "my God, and your God". His reply to Thomas blesses those who believe without seeing; it gives no title. A few verses later John's Gospel states why it was written: so that readers believe Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of God". It does not say: so that readers believe he is God.
Where it lands — John's own statement of purpose is that Jesus is the Christ, and in the same chapter Jesus has a God.
John 8:58 — Gospel of John, chapter 8, verse 58
“Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.”
Cited for
Jesus used God's name "I am", so he claimed to be God.
The response
The man born blind says the same Greek words, ego eimi, of himself in John 9:9 ("I am he"). No one takes him to be God. In the Greek Old Testament, the name God gives Moses is ho on, "the One who is". Jesus does not say it. God (﷾) told Jeremiah, "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee". So a prophet can exist in God's (﷾) plan before his birth. His hearers took up stones, but that shows what they thought, not what he claimed. In John 10, when they take up stones again and say he makes himself God, he corrects that charge.
Where it lands — "I am" is an ordinary phrase in John's Gospel, not a claim to be God.
Hebrews 1:8 — Epistle to the Hebrews, chapter 1, verse 8
“But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.”
Cited for
The Father says to the Son "Thy throne, O God", so the Son is God.
The response
Hebrews is quoting Psalm 45, a wedding song for a king of Israel. The next verse tells him "God, thy God, hath anointed thee", and Hebrews quotes that verse too. The words can also be read "God is thy throne", as the Revised Standard Version notes in its margin.
Where it lands — The one addressed has a God who anointed him, so the verse cannot make him that God.
Hebrews 2:9 — Epistle to the Hebrews, chapter 2, verse 9
“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.”
Cited for
Jesus was lower than the angels only for a short time, when he took on human nature in order to die. Hebrews 1 shows that as the Son he is above the angels.
The response
Hebrews 1:4 itself says he was "made so much better than the angels" and "obtained" his name by inheritance. Hebrews 2:9 says he was "made a little lower than the angels". Both lower and higher are ranks he was given. The God (﷾) of the Bible says "I change not". He is not made lower or higher than anything He created.
Where it lands — Hebrews gives Jesus a rank that was made and given, first below the angels and then above them. God (﷾) has no rank given to Him.
Mark 13:32 — Gospel of Mark, chapter 13, verse 32
“But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.”
Cited for
Jesus did not know that day and that hour only in his human nature, while on earth.
The response
The Bible never says the limit was lifted. In Acts, just before he is taken up to heaven, Jesus still says the times are in the Father's power. The last book of the Bible opens by saying God (﷾) gave its message to him.
Where it lands — Even at the end of his time on earth, what Jesus knows of the future is given to him by God (﷾).
Perspectives
Mainstream Christian
Jesus is God the Son, the second person of the Trinity, fully God and fully man. John's Gospel says the Word was God. The creeds, which are statements of belief written by church councils at Nicaea in 325 and Chalcedon in 451, define it.
John 1:1 says the Word was God, which Christians read as meaning that Jesus, the Word, is God.
Rebuttal
The oldest Greek copies are written all in capitals, so they do not mark "God" apart from "god". Goodspeed and Moffatt, two twentieth-century translators, both wrote "divine". The Bible also calls Moses "a god" to Pharaoh and the judges "gods", and the same Gospel's Jesus calls the Father "the only true God".
Thomas addressed the risen Jesus as "My Lord and my God". Christians read this as a confession that Jesus is God.
Rebuttal
Eleven verses earlier, Jesus speaks of "my God, and your God". He answers Thomas by blessing those who believe without seeing. A few verses later John says he wrote so that readers believe Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of God", not that he is God.
The verses that show Jesus praying, not knowing or being sent describe his human nature only.
Rebuttal
Mark 13:32 says the Son does not know, set against the Father, and does not limit this to his human side. The Bible never says the limit was lifted. Just before he is taken up, Jesus still says the times are in the Father's power. Chalcedon calls Christ "one and the same Son", and that Son says "my Father is greater than I".
The Islamic perspective
Jesus is one of the greatest messengers of God (﷾), born of a virgin and given miracles, but a servant of God (﷾) and not God. His own words in the Bible agree with the Qur'an.
In John's account, Jesus speaks after what it describes as the resurrection. He still calls the Father "my God", the same God (﷾) as his disciples'.
Jesus calls the Father "the only true God" and names himself separately as the one God (﷾) sent.
Jesus says the Father is greater than he is. He teaches that the one sent is not greater than the sender.
Jesus says that the Son does not know "that day and that hour". In Acts, just before he is taken up, he still says the times are in the Father's power.
Peter preached Jesus as "a man approved of God", through whom God (﷾) did the miracles.
Paul places Christ under God (﷾), both now and at the end.
Hebrews says Jesus was made a little lower than the angels and was made better than them. Peter says the angels were made subject to him.
Jesus was tempted, was seen by thousands and prayed that his Father's will be done. That does not fit the Bible's own description of God (﷾).
The Qur'an teaches that Jesus is a messenger and servant of Allah (﷾). He told his people to worship Allah (﷾) alone.