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WHAT DOES 1 CORINTHIANS 15:47 TRULY MEAN?
I get asked all the time what certain verses mean and I have to look them up unless they are very familiar verses to me. And then after I looked up the verses for myself then I remember what they mean in the light of the whole word of Almighty God. So let us begin this study in God’s word by reading this verse of Scripture to refresh our memory.
1 Corinthians 15:47.
“The first man is of the earth, earthy: the second man is the Lord from heaven.”
This verse is used by BOTH the Oneness Christians and the Trinitarian Christians to try and prove that Jesus is Yahweh Himself. The Oneness Christians interpret the word “Lord” as meaning Almighty God Yahweh Himself who manifested Himself to become the Son of man, Jesus but yet REMAIN the fully Almighty God at the SAME time having TWO natures, one divine, and one human. And Trinitarian Christians interpret the word “Lord” as being God the Son who came down from heaven and incarnated himself to become flesh but yet REMAIN the fully Almighty God Yahweh Himself having TWO natures at the SAME time, one divine, and one human.
In other words, Oneness Christians do NOT believe that Jesus PRE-EXISTED as God’s Son in eternity past. They believe that Yahweh ALONE existed in eternity past as the ONE true God in ONE person. And Trinitarian Christians believe that Jesus literally pre-existed in eternity past as God the Son, the second person of the Trinity Godhead that is made up of three separate persons in the ONE true God.
So then, what is the TRUE meaning of 1 Corinthians 15:47? Does the phrase “the Lord FROM heaven” prove that Jesus PRE-EXISTED in eternity past? And if so, then HOW did Jesus pre-exist? Did Jesus pre-exist as Almighty God Yahweh Himself who is ONE God in ONE person called the Father? Or did Jesus pre-exist as God the Son, the second person of a Godhead Trinity God? Or did Jesus pre-exist only in the mind and plan of Yahweh to bring His Son into existence at his virgin birth?
What does the Bible itself teach us on this subject of WHO Jesus is in the LIGHT of the WHOLE word of Almighty God? The first rule of interpreting the Scripture correctly is to read the CONTEXT. So we will start by reading the immediate context and then we will expand the context if the immediate context is not clear. The immediate context is usually three to ten verses before and after the verse you are studying.
Please read 1 Corinthians 15:44-49.
“It is sown a natural body; it is RAISED a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body.
45. And so it is written, The first man Adam was made a living soul; the last Adam was made a quickening spirit. (The first Adam is referring to the first human being in Genesis chapter 2 and the last Adam is referring to Jesus)
46. Howbeit (Or however) that was NOT first which is spiritual, but that which is natural; and afterward that which is spiritual. (In other words, all human beings are FIRST sown in the world with a NATURAL mortal body of flesh and blood. And THEN, if the person is found worthy to receive an immortal spiritual body of flesh and bones, then the spiritual body comes AFTER the natural body)
47. The first man is of the earth, earthy: (Meaning that like Adam the first STATE of every human is earthly, as in, all human beings are MORTAL) the second man is the Lord from heaven. (Meaning that the Son of MAN Jesus was MADE Lord by Almighty God Yahweh the Father. This verse also means that the first man, Adam, has not yet received his “spiritual” body of immortality. Right now, Jesus is the ONLY human who has been GLORIFIED and has received the divine nature of immortality FROM heaven)
48. As is earthy, such are they also that are earthy: and as is heavenly, such are they also that are heavenly.
49. And as WE have borne the image of the earthy, WE shall ALSO bear the image of the heavenly.”
The Greek word translated as “FROM” heaven has many meanings. One of those meanings is “ORIGIN”. And the word “origin” means the SOURCE from where something came.
Here is how E-Sword defines the Greek word that is translated as “FROM” heaven.
G1537
ἐκ, ἐξ
ek ex
ek, ex
A primary preposition denoting origin (the point whence motion or action proceeds), from, out (of place, time or cause; literally or figuratively; direct or remote): - after, among, X are, at betwixt (-yond), by (the means of), exceedingly, (+ abundantly above), for (-th), from (among, forth, up), + grudgingly, + heartily, X heavenly, X hereby, + very highly, in, . . . ly, (because, by reason) of, off (from), on, out among (from, of), over, since, X thenceforth, through, X unto, X vehemently, with (-out). Often used in composition, with the same general import; often of completion.
So then, the source of the Son of MAN being MADE Lord came FROM heaven. Jesus did not make himself to be Lord. It was Yahweh the Father who MADE the Son of MAN, Jesus to be both Lord and Christ.
Please read Acts 2:36.
“Therefore let all the house of Israel (And let all Christians) KNOW ASSUREDLY, that God has MADE that same Jesus, whom you have crucified, BOTH Lord and Christ.”
Let us go back and read the first two verses of the immediate context of verse 47 because I did not really comment on the meaning of Jesus being MADE a “quickening Spirit”.
1 Corinthians 15:44,45.
“It is sown a natural body; it is RAISED a spiritual body. There is a natural body, and there is a spiritual body. (Jesus had a NATURAL mortal body FIRST and then God RAISED that mortal body from the grave and CHANGED the mortal body of Jesus to a SPIRITUAL immortal body that will never die. So in the light of the whole word of God the phrase spiritual body means the divine nature of immortality and NOT that Jesus was resurrect as a spirit being)
45. And so it is written, The first man Adam was MADE a living soul; (Or Adam and EVE were MADE mortal human beings. FOR you see, WHY would God guard the tree of LIFE to keep Adam and Eve from eating from the tree of life if so be that God created Adam as an immortal human being) the last Adam was MADE a quickening spirit.”
This verse does not say that Jesus was resurrected as a “spirit”, but rather it says that Jesus was resurrected and made a “QUICKENING” spirit. And when we COMPARE Scripture with Scripture we can see that this verse means that Jesus was GIVEN the power and the authority to GIVE eternal life to whomsoever he chooses is worthy to receive eternal life.
Please read John 5:25-30.
“Verily, verily, I say unto you, The hour is coming, and now is, when the dead shall hear the voice of the Son of God: and they that hear shall live. (To me, this verse is saying two things. The hour that is “NOW” refers to the “spiritual” dead who will hear and receive the promise of eternal life in the world to come. And the hour that is “COMING” refers to the first resurrection of the dead in Christ to being given eternal life to rule and reign with Jesus is the world to come for 1000 years. For you see, not everyone who is dead will hear that voice of Jesus at the second coming. ONLY those who hear and obey the voice of Jesus in this present world will be given eternal life at the second coming of Jesus. But WHERE did Jesus get this power and authority to raise the dead?)
26. FOR (Or BECAUSE) AS the Father has life in himself; SO has He GIVEN TO the Son to have life in himself;
27. AND has GIVEN him authority to execute judgment ALSO, BECAUSE he is the Son of MAN. (So then, Jesus did NOT come down from heaven AS already being the Lord FROM heaven. But rather, it was AFTER the cross that the Son of MAN was MADE Lord who will BE coming FROM heaven at the SECOND coming of Jesus)
28. Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice,
29. And shall come forth; they that have done good, unto the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, unto the resurrection of damnation.
30. I can of my own self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just; because I seek not my own will, but the will of the Father which has sent me.”
The Greek word translated here as the Father which as “SENT” me LITERALLY means the one SENDING me, as in the present tenses. And also, in the light of the context, I would say this means the Father will be sending Jesus at the second coming to raise the dead IN Jesus Christ and give eternal life to all the faithful Christians. For you see, the CONTEXT is about Jesus being given the power and the authority to RESURRECT the dead.
I do not know how many Christians have noticed that Jesus was not called God until AFTER the cross. Thomas called Jesus my Lord and my God AFTER the cross. If you remember, Thomas doubted that Jesus was resurrected and he said unless I put my own fingers in his side and in the nail prints of his hands I will not believe our Lord, as in, our master or our teacher has risen from the dead. Also, I do not know how many Christians have noticed that Jesus ascended into heaven right after talking to Mary Magdalene early Sunday morning on the day God raised him from the dead. And then that very same evening Jesus came back down from heaven and appeared to his disciples.
Now, if you have noticed that, have you ever noticed that Jesus told Mary Magdalene to NOT TOUCH him BECAUSE he had not yet ASCENDED to his God and Father and then that SAME day in the evening he specifically told his disciples to HANDLE him and TOUCH him to see for themselves that he is NOT a SPIRIT? For all the Scriptures on this subject, please read the study “WAS JESUS RESURRECTED AS A SPIRIT?” But for now, my point is that clearly seeing that the Son of MAN, Jesus was MADE both Lord and Christ by Yahweh the Father AFTER the cross then 1 Corinthians could NOT possibly mean that an already pre-existing Lord came down from heaven.
To me, this verse 47 of 1 Corinthians chapter 15 means the Lord that will RETURN from heaven at his second coming. For you see, Jesus was MADE Lord after the cross. So then, the SOURCE of the Son of MAN being MADE Lord is from heaven. And if we broaden the context even further we can see that Jesus BECAME the FIRSTFRUITS unto God. And that means that Jesus is the FIRST human being to be GIVEN the divine nature of IMMORTALITY.
Please read 1 Corinthians 15:20-28.
“But now is Christ risen from the dead, and become the firstfruits of them that slept.
21. For since by MAN came death, by MAN came also the resurrection of the dead.
22. For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive.
23. But every MAN in his OWN ORDER: (In other words, there are THREE HARVESTS and three resurrections. One harvest has already taken place. The resurrection of Jesus has already taken place. So ORDER #1 was the Son of MAN, Jesus) Christ the firstfruits; (That was ORDER #1) afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. (This will be ORDER #2 the second harvest of firstfruits unto God. This will take place in the very near future at the SECOND coming of Jesus)
24. Then comes the end, (Or then comes ORDER #3 the THIRD and FINAL harvest of the saints. This final harvest of people that will receive the divine nature of immortality like Jesus did will take place at the END of the Millennial reign of Jesus) then he (Speaking of the now glorified Son of MAN who was MADE the Lord of lords and the King of kings) shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when He shall have put down all rule and all authority and power.
25. For he must reign until He has put all enemies under his feet. (In other words, Jesus must reign for 1000 years until Yahweh the Father has put all the enemies under the feet of His Son Jesus)
26. The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. (Speaking of hell and death being cast into the Lake of Fire after the 1000 year reign of Jesus has ended)
27. For He has put all things under his feet. But when He says all things are put under him, it is manifest that He is excepted, which did put all things under him. (In other words. Paul is saying do NOT misunderstand what I am saying. It should be already obvious to you but just to be sure please know and understand that when Almighty God Yahweh the Father said that he put all things under the feet of His Son Jesus it should be clearly known that Yahweh the Father is the exception. To say this another way, Yahweh the Father is NEVER under and subject to His Son Jesus whom He Himself has put everything else under His Son’s feet)
28. 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.”
Can you not see my dear brothers in our Lord Jesus Christ, that Jesus is our BROTHER, a FELLOW human being who was the FIRST human being to be GIVEN the divine nature of immortality? Yes, there is no doubt that Jesus was anointed ABOVE his FELLOWS. There is no doubt that Jesus is the HEAD of the church or the called-out ones. But the Bible also teaches us that Almighty God the Father is the HEAD of His Son Jesus. To us, as Christians, there is but ONE God who alone is the Father. And to us there is but ONE Lord who alone is the Son of Almighty God the Father. Some Christians may argue that I am teaching that there are TWO Gods and there is only ONE God. But what they have failed to see is that there is only ONE TRUE God that has set up or appointed many Gods to rule for Him over parts of His creation. So the Bible itself teaches us that there is only one ALMIGHTY God who alone is THE God OF Gods. Please read the study “ARE THERE TWO GODS?”
Also, below is a complete list of all the studies that I have which show WHY I no longer believe in the doctrine of the Trinity and why I can NEVER believe in the doctrine of Oneness. I assure you that every verse that SEEMS to be saying that Jesus pre-existed in eternity past has another meaning that does NOT contradict any other verses of Scripture in the entire Bible.
Thanks for reading, and may God bless you richly as you continue to seek the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of Almighty God.
And to me, the truth concerning who Jesus TRULY is, according to the Bible ITSELF, is the Biblical Unitarian view of Jesus.
Once Christians, Jews, Muslims, and even atheists understand the REASON that Yahweh CREATED the Son of MAN, Jesus, was to have DOMINION over the work of Yahweh’s hands.
And after you understand that the REASON that Yahweh did that is to STILL His ENEMIES, Satan and the fallen angels.
Then you can understand that God made His human Son to become “a” Lord, “a” King, and “a” God, under and subject to his God and Father in order to JUDGE Satan and the fallen angels.
For a deeper understanding of this WAR that Lucifer and one third of the angels waged against the throne of Almighty God, please read the studies under the subject category called ** Q-0 Why Are We Here? Is God at WAR? **.
More studies are coming in this SHORTER Biblical Unitarian view of who Jesus is according to the WHOLE word of God.
If you have a PARTICULAR verse of Scripture that you would like to know the sound Biblical Unitarian meaning, then please email me at MarkatAMatterOfTruth@Gmail.com and let me know.
For further and more in-depth studies on this subject of Jesus being created to STILL the enemies of Yahweh, please read the studies called D-25. A NEW LOOK at JOHN 1:1, In the BEGINNING!
And also read the study called D-28. The PRE-ADAMIC LUCIFERIAN FLOOD!
At the top of my homepage, there are subjects or categories which contain compiled lists of ** ALL Studies! ** I have written on that particular subject. So, if a link within a study is broken, then click on ** ALL Studies! ** to find the suggested study.
Or you can scroll down to the MORE dropdown menu list to find those studies as well.
Thanks again for reading, and may God bless you richly as you continue to seek the TRUTH of the WHOLE word of Almighty God.
And to me, the truth concerning who Jesus TRULY is, according to the Bible ITSELF, is the Biblical Unitarian view of Jesus.
And again, for ALL of the studies on the Biblical Unitarian view of Jesus, please click on the subject heading ** D-0 The BIBLICAL UNITARIAN VIEW of Jesus! **
And for the SUBJECT on the true foundation of the church, please click on the subject heading ** C-0 The TRUE FOUNDATION of the Church! **
This way you can just send ONE link to those who you want to share the TRUE sound Biblical FOUNDATIONAL teachings of the church that Jesus and his Apostles taught in the first century church.
Your brother in our Lord Jesus Christ,
Brother Mark.
My heartfelt prayer is that all Christians RETURN to the TRUE FOUNDATION of the church that is taught by the very Apostles of Jesus in the first century.
So let us all come into the UNITY of the faith and return to what Jesus and his Apostles taught us in SIMPLICITY in the New Testament.
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