Question posted Nov 2---Sons of God

Anonymous has left a new comment on your post "The Pastor asks...":

So I have one:
The New Testament says that Jesus is the only begotten son of God. But according to the Old Testament there are other Sons of God c.f. Gen. 6, Job 1, 2, 38. Thoughts?


This is an excellent question. (by the way, unlike what you're frequently told, there are stupid questions. This is not one of them.) One of the difficulties in answering this question is lies in the differing languages of the Old and New Testaments. However, here we go:

The Old Testament writings refer to the 'Sons of God' and the New Testament references to Jesus as the 'only begotten Son' can seem confusing. Especially when you look through Scripture and see the additional reference to various people or groups as 'children of God.'


Rephrasing the question, I see the asking to be: Is there a difference between being one of the 'sons of God' and being 'God's Son'?

The first thing to note is that the word 'son' in Biblical languages, both Greek and Hebrew, could also be used to denote 'descendant' or 'in the likeness of.' A modern example would be to call Cal Ripken Jr a 'son of Lou Gehrig' because his determination and work ethic show him to be like Gehrig, though not a biologic descendant.

I think the answer hinges on a Greek word that is a little hard to translate: monogeneis. According to Thayer and Bauer, two of the primary lexicons (dictionaries) of Greek from the New Testament era, this term was used of sons (and daughters) who had a 'unique' status, whether it was by birth in being an only child, or by designation. It is this status by designation, for example, in the story of Abraham, Isaac, and Ishmael in Genesis. In the Septuagint, monogeneis is applied to Isaac, though Abraham fathred not only Isaac, but Ishmael, and children by Keturah. The 'special' or 'unique' son is Isaac.

So, Jesus is being designated as 'special' or 'unique' in the New Testament, above other 'sons of God.' In the majority of Greek usage, this 'special' or 'uniqueness' is due to being an only child, and so rolled together, we see that Jesus is the special son of God, due to His being the only one born as the Son of God, as He was in the incarnation.

The 'sons of God' phrase is used to signify the angels, who were directly created by God, and also used to signify those who followed God, taking on God's nature through behavior. (see above discussion of 'son'). However, the terminology is generally in reference to a group, and not of a specific individual. And the designation of 'monogeneis' is only applied to Jesus.

Christian understanding of the Old Testament generally sees a singular 'Son of God' to be either a prophetic vision of Jesus or someone who shows us a portion of what Jesus will be like. (Daniel 3 is an example of this: 3 men thrown in the fire, 4 are seen, and one looks like a 'Son of God.' This is best understood as the pre-incarnate Christ).

Moreover, in the New Testament, we see that we can be 'adopted' as the children of God if we accept Christ as Saviour and Lord. This adoption is possible because of the life and love of the 'unique and special, only begotten Son of God, Jesus Christ.'

16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. John 3:16 (NASB)

Thanks for taking the time to read! Doug Hibbard