"Few today would take issue with Rudolf Bultmann’s oft-quoted line that 'In describing Christ as _God_ the New Testament still exercises great restraint.' The list of passages which seem explicitly to identify Christ with God varies from scholar to scholar, but the number is almost never more than a half dozen or so. As is well known, almost all of the texts are disputed as to their affirmation—due to textual or grammatical glitches—John 1:1 and 20:28 being the only two which are usually conceded without discussion. Among the more highly regarded passages are Rom 9:5; 2 Thess 1:12; Titus 2:13; Heb 1:8; and 2 Pet 1:1." Daniel Wallace
Reply: I wouldn't give John 1:1 and 20:28 such a pass, as they are heavily discussed as well. See John 20:28 and Men as Gods and Alternate Interpretations of John 20:28 and Questions on John 1:1 and John 20:28. Most of this entire blog is devoted to John 1:1, and I even have a book on the topic (see above)
As for the others mentioned:
Romans 9:5
"...God, who is over all, [be] blessed forever. Amen." NWT
"May God, supreme above all, be blessed for ever! Amen" New English Bible
"God, who is over all be blessed for ever." Revised Standard Version
"Blessed for evermore be the God who is over all!" Moffatt
"May God, who rules over all, be praised forever!" Good News Bible/TEV
"God who is over all be blessed forever." Smith&Goodspeed's An American Translation
"God who is over all be forever praised." NIV footnote
"May God, supreme above all, be blessed for ever! Amen" Revised English Bible
"I pray that God, who rules over all, will be praised forever!" Contemporary English Version
"He who is over all, God, blessed unto the ages." Rotherham's Emphasized Bible
"God is over everyone, Praise Him forever." Simple English Bible
"God be blessed who is above all things forever." Unvarnished NT/Andy Gaus
God who is over all be blessed forever." New American Bible
"God is over everyone, Praise Him forever." International English Bible
Many many others translate it similar to the NASB, "and of whom is the Christ according to the flesh, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen" which also does not contain a reference to Christ's deity.
By translating this properly, we maintain the proper focus of this verse.
"Some editors punctuate this verse differently and prefer the translation, 'Of whom is Christ according to the flesh, who is god over all.' However, Paul's point is that God who is over all aimed to use Israel, which had been entrusted with every privilege, in outreach to the entire world through the Messiah." Romans 9:5 footnote, New American Bible w/Revised New Testament and Revised Psalms
Titus 2:13
"of the great God and of our Savior Jesus Christ." NWT 1950
"of the great God and of our Savior Jesus Christ." New American Bible
"of the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ." American Standard Version
"of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ." King James Version
"of the great God and our Saviour." Revised English Bible margin
"of the great God and our Saviour." New English Bible margin
"of the great God and of our Savior Christ Jesus." Moffatt
"the magnificent God and of our Saviour Christ Jesus." 21st Century NT
"the great God and our Savior." New Revised Standard Version margin
"the great God and our Savior." Revised Standard Version margin
"our great God and our Savior Jesus Christ." Contemporary English Version margin
"great God and our Saviour, Jesus Christ." Concordant Literal NT
"the great God and our Savior Christ Jesus." Rotherham
"the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ" Worrell New Testament
"the great God and our Savior" New American Standard Bible margin
"the Great God, and of our Deliverer Jesus Christ" The Original New Testament, Schonfield
"our Great God and the appearing of our Deliverer, Yeshua the Messiah" Jewish NT
"our great God and our Savior Jesus Messiah." The Power New Testament-Revealing Jewish Roots
"the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" Catholic Douay Bible
"the great God and our Savior Jesus Christ" Good News Bible margin
Hebrews 1:8
"God is your throne forever." NWT 1950
"God is your throne forever and ever." Smith&Goodspeed's An American Translation
"God is thy throne" Revised Standard Version margin
"God is thy throne" Brooke Foss Westcott, The Epistle to the Hebrews [Macmillan And Co., NY, 1903]
"God is your throne forever and ever." Byington's Bible in Living English
"God is your throne" New Revised Standard Version margin
"It is God who is your throne for ever and ever." God's New Covenant-A New Testament Transl., by Heinz W. Cassirer
"God is thy throne" New English Bible margin
"Your throne is God for an age of ages." Unvarnished NT
"Thy throne is God" 21st Century NT
"Thy throne is God" American Standard Version margin
"God is your Kingdom" Good News Bible margin
"Great Prince, your throne is for ever and ever" The Complete Bible in Modern English by Ferrar Fenton
"God is thy throne" Moffatt
As to the Nominative for the Vocative use "Your throne, O God," the New American Bible says in the footnote here,
"O God; the application of the name 'God' to the Son derives from the preexistence mentioned in vv. 2-3; the psalmist already used the it of the Hebrew king in the court style of the original. See the note on Ps 45, 7 [which says, "The king in courtly language, is called 'god,' i.e., more than human, representing God to the people."]"
2 Peter 1:1
"the righteousness of our God and the Saviour Jesus Christ" ASV
"the righteousness of God and our Saviour Jesus Christ" KJV
"of our God and the Saviour Jesus Christ" Revised Standard Version margin
"our God and the savior Jesus Christ" New American Bible margin
"the righteousness of our God and of our Savior Jesus Christ" International English Bible-God Chaser's Extreme NT
"the righteousness of our God and our Savior, Jesus Christ" Literal Translation of the HOLY BIBLE by Jay P. Green Sr.
"of our God and the Saviour Jesus Christ" New Revised Standard Version margin
"the righteousness of our God and of our Savior Jesus Christ" Simple English Bible
"the righteousness of our God and of our Saviour Jesus Christ." Wesley's NT
"the righteousness of God and our Savior Jesus Christ" Third Millenium Bible
"our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ" Kleist & Lilly New Testament and Lamsa's Bible
"of our God and our Savior Jesus Christ" Webster Bible
"our God and our Saviour" God's New Covenant by Heinz W. Cassirer
"of God and of Jesus our Master." Schonfield's Original New Testament
"of our God and of our Deliverer Yeshua the Messiah" Jewish New Testament
"of our God, and the Saviour, Jesus Christ" Concordant Literal New Testament
"share the faith that God in his justice has equally allotted to us; as well as that of our Saviour Jesus Christ." 21st Century NT
Again, the consensus is that Christ is NOT "definitely God" at 2 Peter 1:1, especially as he differentiates between God and Jesus in the following Scripture, "Grace and peace be yours in abundance through the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord." NIV
Couple this with how the Epistles are usually started, we have to come to the honest conclusion that Jesus was not called God at 2 Peter 1:1:
"Paul, a servant of Christ Jesus, called to be an apostle and set apart for the gospel of God" Romans 1:1 NIV
"Paul, called to be an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,... Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." 1 Corinthians 1:1-3 NIV
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,... Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Corinthians 1:1-3 NIV
"Paul, an apostle--sent not from men nor by man, but by Jesus Christ and God the Father...Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" Galatians 1:1-3 NIV
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God,...Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ."
Ephesians 1:1-3 NIV
"Grace and peace to you from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Php 1:2 NIV
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,...We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you" Col 1:1-3 NIV
"To the church of the Thessalonians in God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" 1 Thess 1:1 NIV
"To the church of the Thessalonians in God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ...Grace and peace to you from God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." 2 Thess 1:1,2 NIV
"Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus by the command of God our Savior and of Christ Jesus our hope,...Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord." 1 Tim 1:1,2
"Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Lord." 2 Tim 1:2
"Paul, a servant of God and an apostle of Jesus Christ...Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior." Titus 1:1-4 NIV
"Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ." Phm 1:3 NIV
"In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son..." Heb 1:1 NIV
"James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ" James 1:1 NIV
"Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!" 1 Pet 1:3 NIV
"our fellowship is with the Father and with his Son, Jesus Christ." 1 John 1:3 NIV
"Grace, mercy and peace from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Father's Son, will be with us in truth and love." 2 John 1:3 NIV
I'm not sure why 2 Thess 1:12 was even included. Most of my Bibles (I have hundreds) translate like the RSV Bible does: "according to the grace of our God and the Lord Jesus Christ."
"The ancient Fathers have taken little notice of this text, as appears from the researches of Mr. Wordsworth. .... 2 Thess. i. 12 cannot be appealed to in proof that Christ is called God.-G. HOLDEN: Script. Test. p. 181."
It is manifest that in the present passage there is no absolute necessity for detaching KURIOU from IHSOU CRISTOU, in order to couple it with QEOU.-BISHOP MIDDLETON: Doct. of the Greek Article, p. 526. [So also Dr. J. P. Smith, in Script. Test. vol. iii. p. 316.
Here we have THN CARIN TOU QEOU HMWN KAI KURIOU IHSOU CRISTOU. But in a connection of this nature, and in phraseology like this, we often find QEOS unequivocally distinguished from KURIOS; e.g. 2 Thess. i. 2, CARIS...APO QEOU PATROS KAI KURIOU IHSOU CRISTOU, comp. 1 Thess. i. 1. Col. i. 2 (Text. Recep.) Phil. i. 2. Eph. i. 2, &c. Yet this text (2 Thess. i. 12) has been adduced by Granville Sharp and others, as a proof-text for the doctrine of the Trinity, on the ground that the want of the Greek article before KURIOU must necessarily attach KURIOU to QEOU. In this case, then, if such a conclusion is legitimate, it would follow that PATROS HMWN is also an appellative of I. CRISTOS but where in all the New Testament is there any analogy for this? - PROFESSOR STUART on the Greek Article, pp. 76, 77.
"There is scarcely one text alleged by the Trinitarians which is not otherwise expounded by their own writers".—John Locke (Common Place Book)
"When we consider further the fact...that Christ is nowhere called God in any unambiguous passage by any writer of the New Testament and that it is nowhere recorded that he ever claimed this title, we cannot reasonably regard this abstinence from the use of the term as accidental." Ezra Abbot
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