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Scripture Reading: Exo. 3:2, 4, 6-7, 14-15
In Genesis 48:15-16 Jacob said, “The God who has shepherded me all my life to this day, / The Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys.” The revelation of the Trinity in Genesis ends with the Angel of God [Elohim] and the Angel of Jehovah (16:10; 21:17-18; 22:11-12; 31:11-13; 48:15-16). Exodus stresses two matters concerning the Trinity: the Angel of God, or the Angel of Jehovah, and the Spirit of God. An angel is one who is sent by God. The Spirit of God is the One who comes from God to reach man and, in a deeper sense, to enter into man. One who is sent to us may come to us but not enter into us, but the Spirit comes from God to reach us not only objectively but also subjectively by entering into us. In Exodus God is the Angel of God, who is sent to be with man, and the Spirit of God, who comes to reach man in a subjective way. In the New Testament the One sent by God to us was Jesus Christ, the second of the Trinity. In John the Lord often said that He was sent by the Father (e.g., 5:36; 6:57; 8:16; 12:49; 14:24). Then this sent One said that He would ask the Father to send another Comforter, the Spirit (vv. 16, 26; 15:26). These two, Christ and the Spirit, in the New Testament are the fulfillment of the Angel and the Spirit in Exodus. Christ, the second of the Trinity, came as the sent One to be with us, and the Spirit, the third of the Trinity, came to reach us and even enter into us. We need to enter into the deeper revelation of the Trinity.
Exodus 3:2 says, “The Angel of Jehovah appeared to him [Moses].” Verse 4 continues, “When Jehovah saw that he had turned aside to look, God called to him.” Verse 6 says, “He said, I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” He and I in verse 6 refer to the Angel of Jehovah in verse 2. The Angel of Jehovah is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. This threefold mentioning of God indicates the Trinity. Verse 7 says, “Jehovah said, I have surely seen the affliction of My people.” Here we see that the Angel of Jehovah is Jehovah Himself. Verses 14 through 15 say, “God said to Moses, I AM WHO I AM. And He said, Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you...Jehovah, the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob...This is My name forever, and this is My memorial from generation to generation.” The Angel of Jehovah is Jehovah; God; the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob; and the I AM WHO I AM, the great I AM.
In the Old Testament there are two basic divine titles in Hebrew, the first language used for the revelation of God’s Scriptures. The first title, Elohim, indicates God. In the Scofield Reference Bible, Dr. Scofield says that Elohim (God) is “formed from El = strength, or the strong one, and Alah, to swear, to bind oneself by an oath, so implying faithfulness.” Hence, Elohim denotes God’s attributes — His strength, power, and might with His faithfulness. In other words, Elohim is the mighty and faithful One.
The second basic divine title in Hebrew is Jehovah. According to Dr. Scofield, Jehovah is “literally (as in Exo. 3:14), ‘He that is who He is, therefore the eternal I AM.’ But Havah, from which Jehovah, or Yahwe, is formed, signifies also ‘to become.’” Hence, Jehovah denotes God’s existence. He is the self-existent and ever-existent One, the great I AM, the great TO BE, to be whatever we need. Whatever we need, He is.
Jesus, Jehovah our Savior, in the New Testament is this great I AM. Jesus, a name that comes from Greek, means “Jehovah the Savior,” or “the salvation of Jehovah,” in Hebrew. In John 8:24 the Lord said to the Jews, “Unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins.” When the Lord said, “Believe that I am,” He meant, “Believe that I am Jehovah your God.” Verse 28 says, “Jesus therefore said to them, When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am.” Then in verse 58 the Lord said, “Before Abraham came into being, I am.” According to grammar, it seems that the Lord should have said, “Before Abraham came into being, I was.” But the Lord Jesus is Jehovah, the I AM.
The divine title Jehovah is used in relation to man’s creation (Gen. 2:7) and man’s salvation (3:21).
Seven compound names of Jehovah reveal Him as meeting every need of His people. Jehovah-jireh means “Jehovah will provide” (22:13-14). This indicates that Jehovah is our Provider. Jehovah-ropheka means “Jehovah your Healer” (Exo. 15:26). Jehovah-nissi means “Jehovah is my banner” (17:8-15). A banner is a sign of triumph, victory. Because Jehovah is the Warrior fighting the battle for us and triumphing over all our enemies, He is our triumph, our victory. Jehovah-shalom means “Jehovah is peace,” or “Jehovah of peace” (Judg. 6:24). Jehovah-ro‘i means “Jehovah is my Shepherd” (Psa. 23). Jehovah shepherds us and takes care of us. Jehovah-tsidqenu means “Jehovah our righteousness” (Jer. 23:6). Jehovah-shammah means “Jehovah Is There” (Ezek. 48:35). This means that Jehovah is present for us to enjoy Him. Thus, Jehovah provides, heals, and triumphs over the enemies and shepherds us, He is our peace and our righteousness, and we enjoy Him.
The Angel of Jehovah (Exo. 3:2) is Jehovah Himself (v. 4), and Jehovah is God, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob (vv. 4, 6). That the Angel of Jehovah is the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob implies that He is threefold, the Triune God. The God of Abraham refers to the Father, the God of Isaac refers to the Son, and the God of Jacob refers to the Spirit.
The Lord has burdened me and given me the grace to uncover many “diamonds” in the “mine” of the Scriptures showing that Christ is truly all-inclusive. As God’s sent One, Jesus is the Angel of Jehovah, who is Jehovah and God. Furthermore, the Angel of Jehovah being the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob indicates that Jesus is the Triune God — the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. Jesus Christ, the incarnated God, came not only to the New Testament saints but also to Abraham in the Old Testament. In Genesis 18 He came to Abraham in the form of man with a physical human body. Abraham washed His feet and fed Him with a meal, which He ate.
In Genesis 48:15-16 Jacob said at the end of his life, “The God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked, / The God who has shepherded me all my life to this day, / The Angel who has redeemed me from all evil, bless the boys.” The God before whom Abraham and Isaac walked and the God who shepherded Jacob all his life was the Angel who redeemed him from all evil. The following book, Exodus, reveals that this Angel is Jehovah, God, and the Triune God. This precious One is everything — He is our Provider, our Healer, our triumph, our peace, our Shepherd, our righteousness, and our enjoyment. This Old Testament revelation of the Lord’s all-inclusiveness seems to belong to the New Testament. However, there are many riches in the Old Testament that cannot be found in the New Testament.
The Angel of Jehovah being Jehovah and God, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, implies the Divine Trinity for saving God’s people into the enjoyment of the Divine Trinity. This point is based on Exodus 3, in which the Angel of Jehovah told Moses, “I have come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians and to bring them up out of that land to a good and spacious land, to a land flowing with milk and honey” (v. 8).
The Divine Trinity came as the sent One (the Angel) to save God’s people into the enjoyment of the Divine Trinity from their fallen state, their slavery in Egypt (vv. 8-10), to serve the Triune God (v. 12); to be God’s firstborn son (4:22-23), implying the impartation of the divine life into God’s redeemed people; and to hold a feast to the Triune God (5:1), implying the enjoyment of God’s redeemed people with the Triune God. God’s redeemed people enjoyed the Triune God with the Triune God. To hold a feast to the Triune God is to enjoy the Triune God as our feast, and we enjoy this feast with Him. This indicates again that the Trinity is for God’s dispensing of Himself into His redeemed people for their enjoyment. The underlying thought in the Bible is that the Divine Trinity is not for doctrine or teachings but for the dispensing of God into us for our enjoyment. The Divine Trinity is for God’s dispensing and our enjoyment.
The title Jehovah refers to the first and the second of the Trinity in different portions of the Scriptures, proving that the three of the Trinity are one. In the Old Testament the Angel of Jehovah, who was Jehovah Himself and was fulfilled in Jesus in the New Testament, refers to the second of the Trinity. However, in Revelation 1:4-5 the expression Him who is and who was and who is coming, which indicates Jehovah as the ever-existing I AM, refers to the first of the Trinity. This also shows that it is impossible to systematize the Trinity.
We have seen in the Old Testament that the Angel of Jehovah is Jehovah Himself and that Jehovah is Elohim [God], the threefold God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Abraham was the father, Isaac was the son, and Jacob, the naughty one, was under the transformation of the Spirit. Thus, the threefold God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob is the Triune God. The Angel, Jehovah, God, and the Triune God are all one person.
The Triune God comprises God the Father, God the Son, and God the Spirit. Some think that it is heretical to say that Christ is the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. However, in Exodus 3 the Angel of Jehovah said to Moses, “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob...I AM WHO I AM” (vv. 6, 14). Furthermore, as the sent One of God, the Angel of Jehovah is fulfilled in Jesus in the New Testament. Thus, Jesus Christ is Elohim with the divine attributes, full of strength and faithfulness, and He is also Jehovah, the self-existing and ever-existing One, the great I AM, the great TO BE. As the I AM, Christ is everything — He is the Angel of Jehovah, Elohim, God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit, our Provider, our Healer, the Warrior who triumphs over all our enemies, our peace, our Shepherd, our righteousness, and the One who is present for our enjoyment. The Bible thus reveals that Christ is truly all-inclusive.
