Henry Grew on the Trinity
The following is excerpted from “An Examination of the Divine Testimony Concerning the Character of the Son of God,” by Henry Grew, published in 1824. The entire treatise is 70 pages in length, thoughtfully written and reverent. Bro. Grew preambled the publication with this quotation: “When we have humbly and attentively considered and ascertained the meaning of any proposition, we should implicitly believe it, how contrary soever it may be to our former opinion, or that of others in reputation for wisdom.” This summary of his reasonings may be of interest.
In concluding, let us review a few of the passages discussed in the preceding pages, and contrast them with Trinitarian sentiments. I am sensible that error as well as truth may receive apparent support by this method; but this is only when the most obvious and literal import of a passage is not according to the general analogy of the scriptures. Whether that is the case or not with the following, the candid reader will judge.
| Jesus Christ and His Apostles | Trinitarians |
|---|---|
| To us, there is but one God, the Father. 1 Cor. 8:6 | To us, there is but one God, the Father, Word, and Holy Ghost. |
| My Father is greater than I. John 14:28 | The Son is as great as the Father. |
| Who is the image of the invisible God, the first born of every creature. Col. 1:15 | Who is the invisible God, the uncreated Jehovah. |
| The Son can do nothing of himself. John 5:19 | The Son is omnipotent. |
| But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels, and neither the Son, but the Father. Mark 13:32 | The Son is omniscient, and knew of that day as well as the Father. |
| All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Matt. 28:18.
As thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to as many as thou hast given him. John 17:2 |
No given power can qualify the Son of God to give eternal life to his people. |
| God, who created all things by Jesus Christ. Eph. 3:9.
By whom also he made the worlds. Heb. 1:2 |
Jesus Christ created all things by his own independent power. |
| The Revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave unto him. Rev. 1:1 | The Revelation of Jesus Christ from his own omniscience. |
| For there is one God, and one Mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus. 1 Tim. 2:5 | There is one Mediator between God and man; who is also supreme God and man in one person. |
| Denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. Jude 4 | Denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ, who is also the only Lord God, and a distinct person. |
| Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles, and signs, and wonders, which God did by him. Acts 2:22 | Jesus performed his miracles by his own omnipotence. |
| For as the Father hath life in himself, so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself. John 5:26 | The Son is self-existent. |
| I live by the Father. John 6:57 | The Son lives by himself. |
| This is my beloved Son. Matt. 3:17 | This is the only true God, the same numerical essence as the Father. |
| That they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom thou hast sent. John 17:3 | That they might know thee, who art not the only true God, in distinction from the Word whom thou hast sent. |
| That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow—and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father. Phil. 2:11 | That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow—and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to his own glory. |
The fact that our divine Redeemer is called by some of the names of the Father, is considered by many as evidence that he is that very Being whose Son he is declared to be. They appear to have forgotten, that it was a common Hebrew custom to give significant names both to persons and places. Jesus Christ was called by the name of David. Was he therefore the identical son of Jesse? John the Baptist was called Elijah. Mal. 4:5. Was he therefore the very same being? If it was proper that the forerunner of our Lord should be called by this name (which signifies God the Lord), because he came “in the spirit and power of Elias,” surely, it was proper that our blessed Lord himself should be called by some of the names of the invisible Father, in whose spirit and power he came down from heaven, and of whom he is by nature “the express image.” …
I object then, to the doctrine of three persons in the Godhead:
First, Because it is not revealed in the scriptures of truth. There is not a single passage in the whole volume of divine revelation that declares either expressly or implicitly, that there are three persons in one God. There is not a single passage which reveals that the one God consists of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit….
Secondly, Because it is not only not revealed, but the contra is most plainly declared in the divine testimony. We are therein assured, not only that there is but one God, but that this one God is the Father. The Father, as “the only true God,” is as plainly distinguished from the Son as from all other beings….
Thirdly, Because I find the divine testimony of the Father, the Son, the Prophets and the Apostles, unitedly declaring the inferiority of the Son in his highest nature and character…
Fourthly, Because it is not simply above reason, but contrary to every rational faculty I possess. It is impossible for me to conceive of three persons in any sense, without conceiving of three beings….
Fifthly, Because it adequate mediator between God and man…
I object to this doctrine, Finally, Because it excludes from the universe the most glorious of all beings, God only excepted. If we should admit that the immutable Jehovah, at a certain period added to his being human nature, which is to be united with him “in one person for ever”; after all that can be said, we can have no idea of the Son of God in distinction from the Father; certainly none, except that of a mere perfect man.
Thus the most mighty and glorious works of Jehovah, “the image of the invisible God; the first-born of every creature; the well beloved and only begotten of the Father, the joy of earth, and the glory of heaven is blotted out of existence. And for this mighty loss, what is substituted? Nothing. For, beyond all controversy, there can be but one supreme God. “They have taken away my Lord, and I know not where they have laid him.” I cast my anxious eye around the universe, and most solicitously enquire, where is he who is “the beginning of the creation of God”; “the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person?” Where is “the Word of God,” who “was with God,” and enjoyed glory with him “before the world was?” And where is he to whom every knee is commanded to bow, and whom the thousands of thousands of the heavenly hosts do actually worship in distinction from him that sitteth on the Throne? Rev. 5:13. To this interesting enquiry, the system I am opposing gives me no satisfactory answer.
– Contributed