The following article focuses on establishing the Deity of the Holy Spirit from the King James Version of the Holy Bible (KJV), also known as the Authorized Version (AV). I pray that this will bless Christians in their efforts to evangelize the lost, as they try to convince people to believe in Jesus Christ as their risen Lord and divine Savior.
JEHOVAH GOD
The Holy Bible identifies the Holy Spirit as Jehovah God, while also referring to him as the Spirit of Jehovah.
For instance, the prophet David plainly wrote that the Spirit of Jehovah is none other than the God and Rock of Israel who spoke to and through him:
“Now these be the last words of David. David the son of Jesse said, and the man who was raised up on high, the anointed of the God of Jacob, and the sweet psalmist of Israel, said, THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD SPAKE BY ME, and HIS WORD was in my tongue. THE GOD OF ISRAEL SAID, THE ROCK OF ISRAEL SPAKE TO ME, He that ruleth over men must be just, ruling in the fear of God.” 2 Samuel 23:1-3
Hence, when the Spirit speaks, God speaks, since the Holy Spirit is God!
And the very fact that David says that the Spirit speaks shows that he is a Divine Person, and not simply Jehovah’s impersonal force. More on this point a little later.
The Apostle Paul is another inspired author who testifies that the Spirit is Lord, i.e. Jehovah:
“Now the Lord is that Spirit: and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.” 2 Corinthians 3:17-18
Here we have Paul referring to the Spirit as the Lord while also identifying him as the Spirit of the Lord!
The NT even goes as far as to take OT passages where Jehovah is speaking and apply them to the Holy Spirit!
For instance, the prophet Isaiah saw Jehovah in a vision where he received his commission to become Jehovah’s spokesperson to the people of Israel:
“In the year that king Uzziah died I saw also the Lord sitting upon a throne, high and lifted up, and his train filled the temple. Above it stood the seraphims: each one had six wings; with twain he covered his face, and with twain he covered his feet, and with twain he did fly. And one cried unto another, and said, Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory. And the posts of the door moved at the voice of him that cried, and the house was filled with smoke. Then said I, Woe is me! for I am undone; because I am a man of unclean lips, and I dwell in the midst of a people of unclean lips: for mine eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts. Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: And he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged. Also I heard THE VOICE OF THE LORD, SAYING, Whom shall I SEND, and who will go for US? Then said I, Here am I; send me. AND HE SAID, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.” Isaiah 6:1-10
Remarkably, Paul cites Isaiah 6:9-10 as an example of the Holy Spirit speaking to the nation of Israel:
“And when they agreed not among themselves, they departed, after that Paul had spoken one word, Well SPAKE THE HOLY GHOST by Esaias the prophet unto our fathers, SAYING, Go unto this people, and say, Hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and not perceive: For the heart of this people is waxed gross, and their ears are dull of hearing, and their eyes have they closed; lest they should see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and should be converted, and I should heal them.” Acts 28:25-27
This means that the God who appeared and spoke to Isaiah was actually the Holy Spirit!
Acts isn’t the only book to do this, since the inspired writer of Hebrews does the very same thing when he cites the following Psalm:
“… To day if ye will hear HIS voice, Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted ME, proved ME, and saw MY work. Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, AND SAID, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known MY ways: Unto whom I sware in MY wrath that they should not enter into MY rest.” Psalm 95:7-11
And attributes it to the Holy Spirit:
“Wherefore (AS THE HOLY GHOST SAITH, To day if ye will hear HIS voice, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted ME, proved ME, and saw MY works forty years. Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, AND SAID, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known MY ways. So I sware in MY wrath, They shall not enter into MY rest.)” Hebrews 3:7-11
The author also quotes Jeremiah 31:33-34 where Jehovah promises Israel that he will forgive their sins and be their God:
“But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, SAITH THE LORD, I will put MY law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be MY people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for they shall all know ME, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, SAITH THE LORD: for I will forgive their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more.” Jeremiah 31:33-34
And, once again, applies it to the Holy Spirit!
“Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that HE HAD SAID BEFORE, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, SAITH THE LORD, I will put MY laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.” Hebrews 10:15-17
These Biblical references prove that, as far as the inspired Biblical witness is concerned, the Holy Spirit is actually Jehovah God who spoke to and through the OT prophets.
This brings me to the next section.
A DIVINE PERSON
The Scriptures are just as clear that the Holy Spirit is a Person, meaning an entity who has a mind, a will, has emotions, can speak and be spoken to etc. However, he is not a Person in the sense of being a finite creature composed of a body of some kind, which limits him to time, space, or matter. He is a Divine Person in the same sense that the Father and the Son are, and therefore is an incorporeal, infinite Being.
The Holy Bible says that the Spirit has a mind and knows what God’s will is:
“Likewise the Spirit also helpeth our infirmities: for we know not what we should pray for as we ought: but the Spirit itself maketh intercession for us with groanings which cannot be uttered. And he that searcheth the hearts knoweth what is the mind of the Spirit, because he maketh intercession for the saints according to the will of God.” Romans 8:26-27
The very fact that this passage says that God knows the mind of the Spirit, and that the Spirit knows how to intercede on behalf of believers in accord with God’s will, affirms that they are two distinct Persons who know each other intimately. It also demonstrates that the Holy Spirit is omniscient and omnipresent, since the only way for him to be able to intercede for all true believers is if he is actually present with every single one of them.
The following reference even speaks of the Spirit having a will:
“But the manifestation of the Spirit is given to every man to profit withal. For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another the word of knowledge by the same Spirit; To another faith by the same Spirit; to another the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; To another the working of miracles; to another prophecy; to another discerning of spirits; to another divers kinds of tongues; to another the interpretation of tongues: But all these worketh THAT ONE AND THE SELFSAME SPIRIT, dividing to every man severally AS HE WILL. For as the body is one, and hath many members, and all the members of that one body, being many, are one body: so also is Christ. For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one Spirit.” 1 Corinthians 12:7-13
Paul clearly teaches here that it is the Holy Spirit who personally decides which particular gift to give to each member of the spiritual body of Christ. This, once again, confirms that the Spirit is not only a Divine Person, since impersonal forces do not possess a will or volition, but that he is also omnipresent and omnipotent. After all, the Spirit must be present with every single believer in order to grant to each one a specific gift, and then empower every one of them to successfully employ it for the purpose of building up the Church of Christ.
The Scriptures further say that the Holy Spirit possesses emotions:
“But they rebelled, and vexed (maru wa’issabu) his holy Spirit: therefore he was turned to be their enemy, and he fought against them.” Isaiah 63:10
Isaiah says that the Israelites did what the Apostle Paul warned Christians not to do, namely, grieve or vex the Holy Spirit:
“And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption.” Ephesians 4:30
In fact, the people of Israel did to the Holy Spirit the very exact thing that the Psalter says they did to Jehovah:
“How oft did they provoke (yamruhu) him in the wilderness, and grieve (ya’asibuhu) him in the desert! … Yet they tempted and provoked (wayyamru) the most high God, and kept not his testimonies:” Psalm 78:40, 56
The very fact that the OT says that God’s people grieved and rebelled against both Jehovah and his Holy Spirit affirms that, much like Jehovah, the Spirit is a personal Being who possesses divine emotions.
And, as we mentioned earlier, the Holy Spirit even speaks and can be spoken to.
For instance, he spoke to the prophet Ezekiel, instructing and empowering him to carry out his prophetic role:
“Then the spirit entered into me, and set me upon my feet, and spake with me, and said unto me, Go, shut thyself within thine house.” Ezekiel 3:24
And:
“And the Spirit of the Lord fell upon me, and said unto me, Speak; Thus saith the Lord; Thus have ye said, O house of Israel: for I know the things that come into your mind, every one of them.” Ezekiel 11:5
The Spirit also spoke through the Apostles, giving them utterance on what to say, and how to say it:
“But when they deliver you up, take no thought how or what ye shall speak: for it shall be given you in that same hour what ye shall speak. For it is not ye that speak, but the Spirit of your Father which speaketh in you.” Matthew 10:19-20
Again, the Spirit must possess all of God’s omni-attributes in order to be able to do this, i.e., the Spirit needed to be with all the Apostles at the same time, no matter where they went, so that he could empower every one of them to successfully carry out God’s will. We will have more to say concerning the Spirit’s divine attributes a little later.
The Spirit was also responsible for assigning the Apostles to their respective missions, and for bringing people to them for the purpose of hearing the message of salvation:
“While Peter thought on the vision, the Spirit said unto him, Behold, three men seek thee. Arise therefore, and get thee down, and go with them, doubting nothing: FOR I HAVE SENT THEM.” Acts 10:19-20
And:
“Now there were in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas, and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul. As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost SAID, Separate ME Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So they, being sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they sailed to Cyprus.” Acts 13:1-4
The preceding examples conclusively establish that the Holy Spirit is not merely God’s power or force, but a Divine Person who, much like the Father and the Son, possesses an infinite mind, will, intellect, emotions etc.
THE CREATOR AND LIFE-GIVER
The divine Scriptures identify the Holy Spirit as the Creator who gives life to all things, since the inspired writings proclaim that the Father employed his Spirit in creating and animating the entire cosmos:
“By his spirit he hath garnished the heavens; his hand hath formed the crooked serpent.” Job 26:13
“The spirit of God hath made me, and the breath of the Almighty hath given me life.” Job 33:40 – cf. Genesis 1:1-2, 26-27; 2:4-7
It is even explicitly said of the Spirit that he is the One who gives life:
“It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.” John 6:63
“Who also hath made us able ministers of the new testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.” 2 Corinthians 3:6
God also uses the Spirit to replenish and regenerate creation:
“Thou hidest thy face, they are troubled: thou takest away their breath, they die, and return to their dust. Thou sendest forth thy spirit, they are created: and thou renewest the face of the earth.” Psalm 104:29-30
“Because the palaces shall be forsaken; the multitude of the city shall be left; the forts and towers shall be for dens for ever, a joy of wild asses, a pasture of flocks; Until the spirit be poured upon us from on high, and the wilderness be a fruitful field, and the fruitful field be counted for a forest.” Isaiah 32:14-15
“Therefore prophesy and say unto them, Thus saith the Lord God; Behold, O my people, I will open your graves, and cause you to come up out of your graves, and bring you into the land of Israel. And ye shall know that I am the Lord, when I have opened your graves, O my people, and brought you up out of your graves, And shall put my spirit in you, and ye shall live, and I shall place you in your own land: then shall ye know that I the Lord have spoken it, and performed it, saith the Lord.” Ezekiel 37:12-14
“For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another. But after that the kindness and love of God our Saviour toward man appeared, Not by works of righteousness which we have done, but according to his mercy he saved us, by the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost; Which he shed on us abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour; That being justified by his grace, we should be made heirs according to the hope of eternal life.” Titus 3:3-7
The above texts again depict the Spirit as being all-powerful and omnipresent, since this is the only way for the Holy Spirit to be able to rejuvenate all of God’s people, as well as the entire earth.
As such, this simply provides further proof that the Holy Spirit is Jehovah God (even though he is not the Father or the Son) since the Scriptures are quite emphatic that Jehovah alone created and gives life to all things:
“Thus saith God the Lord, he that created the heavens, and stretched them out; he that spread forth the earth, and that which cometh out of it; he that giveth breath unto the people upon it, and spirit to them that walk therein:” Isaiah 42:5
“Thus saith the Lord, thy redeemer, and he that formed thee from the womb, I am the Lord that maketh all things; that stretcheth forth the heavens ALONE; that spreadeth abroad the earth BY MYSELF;” Isaiah 44:24
“God that made the world and all things therein, seeing that he is Lord of heaven and earth, dwelleth not in temples made with hands; Neither is worshipped with men’s hands, as though he needed any thing, seeing he giveth to all life, and breath, and all things; And hath made of one blood all nations of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, and hath determined the times before appointed, and the bounds of their habitation;” Acts 17:24-26
“I give thee charge in the sight of God, who quickeneth all things, and before Christ Jesus, who before Pontius Pilate witnessed a good confession;” 1 Timothy 6:13
In light of the foregoing, the only way that the Bible writers could even identify the Spirit as the omnipotent and omnipresent Creator and life-Giver is if they actually thought and believed that the Holy Spirit is also Jehovah God.
POSSESSOR OF DIVINE ATTRIBUTES AND PERFORMER OF DIVINE WORKS
All throughout this article we have pointed out the fact that the Holy Bible ascribes to the Holy Spirit all of the essential attributes of Deity, as well as depicting him as carrying out specific works that the holy Scriptures proclaim are performed by God alone. Here we are going to provide some more verses in order to further solidify this point.
The Holy Spirit is presented as being all knowing, and therefore needing no one to counsel or guide him:
“Who hath directed the Spirit of the Lord, or being his counsellor hath taught him? With whom took he counsel, and who instructed him, and taught him in the path of judgment, and taught him knowledge, and shewed to him the way of understanding?” Isaiah 40:13-14
The Spirit’s omniscience can be further seen from the following citation:
“But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God. For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God.” 1 Corinthians 2:10-12
The Spirit knows the deep things of God, something which Paul says is beyond the ability of any creature to comprehend:
“O the depth of the riches both of the wisdom and knowledge of God! how unsearchable are his judgments, and his ways past finding out! For who hath known the mind of the Lord? or who hath been his counsellor?” Romans 11:33-34
The Spirit must clearly be omniscient in order to know the depths of the very thoughts and mind of God. This explains why God has given believers his Holy Spirit, since whom better to make God known to man than the Spirit of God who perfectly knows and comprehends God?
The Spirit is also omnipresent and omnipotent:
“Whither shall I go from thy spirit? or whither shall I flee from thy presence? If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. If I take the wings of the morning, and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; Even there shall thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me. If I say, Surely the darkness shall cover me; even the night shall be light about me. Yea, the darkness hideth not from thee; but the night shineth as the day: the darkness and the light are both alike to thee.” Psalm 139:7-12
There is no escaping from the Holy Spirit seeing that he is present everywhere, i.e., there isn’t a place a person can go to where the Spirit isn’t already there since the entire creation is always present before him. And:
“For I will take you from among the heathen, and gather you out of all countries, and will bring you into your own land. Then will I sprinkle clean water upon you, and ye shall be clean: from all your filthiness, and from all your idols, will I cleanse you. A new heart also will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you: and I will take away the stony heart out of your flesh, and I will give you an heart of flesh. And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and ye shall keep my judgments, and do them. And ye shall dwell in the land that I gave to your fathers; and ye shall be my people, and I will be your God.” Ezekiel 36:24-28
Finally:
“Neither will I hide my face any more from them: for I have poured out my spirit upon the house of Israel, saith the Lord God.” Ezekiel 39:29
God will place his Spirit within his people in order to empower them to perfectly obey his commands and to never turn away from him again. The only way that the Spirit could do this is if he is omnipresent and omnipotent.
Here are a couple more examples:
“And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance.” Acts 2:1-4
And:
“But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his. And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you. Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh. For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live. For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. The Spirit itself beareth witness with our spirit, that we are the children of God:” Romans 8:9-16
Once again, the only way that the Holy Spirit can indwell all believers simultaneously, enable them to perfectly speak various languages, give them life both spiritually and physically, as well as lead them to conform to God’s holy standards is if he is omnipotent, omniscient, and omnipresent. Yet the Holy Spirit must be Jehovah God in order for him to possess these divine qualities.
Therefore, with the foregoing in perspective, we must conclude that the explicit testimony of the inspired Scriptures is that the Holy Spirit is Jehovah God, even though he is not the Father or the Son.
There is a lot more evidence which we could have presented but, for the sake of brevity, this will have to suffice for now.
This article is provided by Sam Shamoun’s article. Thank him for this collected information provided. We have permission from Sam to inform people with the necessary information to teach our brothers and sisters in Christ Jesus. Trinity in Genesis 3:8 and A Unitarian Claim Regarding God’s Angel Refuted; clipped at 30:30-30:44.
