You won’t find the word “trinity” in your Bible—so is the idea of a three-in-one God even biblical?
I’ve been working through the Bible book by book, and every once in a while I’ll come across a clause that mentions all three members of the Holy Trinity: God the Father, God the Son (the Lord Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit.
Not one God in three phases. Not three different gods coexisting. One divine being, three offices.
Credit: Crossway Bibles. The ESV Study Bible. Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008. (Logos Bible Software edition)
Here’s a list of single Bible verses that explicitly reference all three members of the Trinity.
Oh, and I better give some credit to Logos Bible Software on this. That tool makes it easy to find verses that refer to some of the Trinity members via pronouns. For example, Matthew 12:28 refers to all three members of the Trinity, but since Jesus is speaking, he is only referred to with the pronoun “I.” Good luck trying to figure this out with a regular concordance!
1. Matthew 3:16
“After being baptized, Jesus came up immediately from the water; and behold, the heavens were opened, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove and lighting on Him.”
2. Matthew 12:28
“But if I [Jesus] cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God has come upon you.”
3. Matthew 28:19
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit . . .”
4. Luke 3:22
“And the Holy Spirit descended upon Him [Jesus] in bodily form like a dove, and a voice came out of heaven, “You are My [the Father’s] beloved Son, in You I am well-pleased.”
5. John 14:26
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My [Jesus’] name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”
6. John 15:26
“When the Helper comes, whom I [Jesus] will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me . . .”
7. Acts 1:4
“Gathering them together, He [Jesus] commanded them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait for what the Father had promised, “Which,” He said, “you heard of from Me . . .”
8. Acts 2:33
“Therefore having been exalted to the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, He [Jesus] has poured forth this which you both see and hear.”
9. Acts 10:38
“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him.”
10. Romans 1:4
“Who was declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead, according to the Spirit of holiness, Jesus Christ our Lord . . .”
11. Romans 8:9
“However, you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him.”
12. 1 Corinthians 6:11
Such were some of you; but you were washed, but you were sanctified, but you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God.
13. 2 Corinthians 13:14
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with you all.
14. Galatians 4:6
Because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!”
15. Ephesians 1:17
That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give to you a spirit of wisdom and of revelation in the knowledge of Him.
16. Ephesians 2:18
For through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father.
17. Ephesians 2:22
In whom [Jesus] you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.
18. Titus 3:6
Whom [the Holy Spirit] He poured out upon us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior.
19. Hebrews 9:14
How much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
20. 1 Peter 1:2
According to the foreknowledge of God the Father, by the sanctifying work of the Spirit, to obey Jesus Christ and be sprinkled with His blood: may grace and peace be yours in the fullest measure.
(Thanks to Logos Bible Software’s Clause Search, making this list was a lot easier than it looks.)
Of course, there are more passages that mention all three Trinity members (1 Co 12:4–6; Eph 1:13–14; 4:4–6; Jude 20–21), and many more that describe the relationships between the three persons of the Trinity.
You’ll also find a few passages in the Old Testament that mention all members of the Trinity (depending on your interpretation). One example is Isaiah 48:16, in which many believe it is Jesus who says, “and now the Lord GOD has sent Me, and His Spirit.” Many scholars also suggest that the enigmatic “angel of the Lord” we see in the Old Testament is actually Jesus.
Do you wish you knew the Bible better?
The Beginner’s Guide to the Bible gives you an overview of what the Bible is, what it’s for, and what it’s all about. You’ll walk away from it with enough knowledge to have a thoughtful conversation about the Bible with a pastor, an atheist, or anyone else.
More about the Trinity
The Trinity is so mysterious and intriguing, you’ll probably never feel like you know enough about it—I certainly won’t. Here are a few places to study more:
Still want more? Good news! Friend, former boss, and meticulous theologian Phil Gons has put together the master reading list on the Trinity.
Not one verse in the Bible says that the Holy Spirit is God. There are verses saying the Father and the Son are God, that they are one, but not a single verse says the same. God has a body (as evidenced in Christ), a soul (God said he has a soul in more than 4 verses), and a Spirit (the Holy spirit). God is the Father and Son, (as Jesus confirmed when he said when you see him you see the father. The Holy Spirit is of God, it is not God. Similarly, our spirit is of us, it is not another person within us. This is why you will not find Trinity or triune anywhere in the Bible. Convince me with scripture that actually says that the Holy Spirit is God. You will find that for the Father and Son only.
John 14:26
“But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My [Jesus’] name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all that I said to you.”
6. John 15:26
“When the Helper comes, whom I [Jesus] will send to you from the Father, that is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father, He will testify about Me . . .”
As Jesus proceeded from the Father, so likewise did the Holy Spirit and He (person) is one with God.
Our spirit that is within us is us the flesh and blood is only the earthly shell.
Thank you Jeffrey.
Jeffrey,
Good list of verses. Keep up teaching sound doctrine and using good resources. S. Michael Houdmann is a friend of mine and his site Gotquestions.com is full of good info as you so correctly sited. I am a missionary to Brazil and find doctrines like the Trinity very helpful in understanding our Great Lord and Creator, the Son of Salvation, and The Indwelling Spirit. So many cults and offshoot “Christian” religions error greatly in their practice because of foundational misunderstandings about the character of God. I just want to encourage you and your wife to keep up the fight for sound doctrine and reasonable teaching amidst the ever-growing vast ocean of ideas. Still truth not only can be found in the Scriptures, it is plainly evident and it exposes the errors of those seeking to oppose it. God bless to you both.
Thanks for sharing this, it is a good resource.
Matthew 26:36-44 clearly states that God and Jesus have separate wills.
Matthew 24:36 teaches us that God has knowledge that Jesus does not possess.
Then we have FOUR separate accounts the same event: the Baptism of Christ
Mark 1:10-11
Matthew 3:16-17
John 1:32
Luke 3:22
All of which demonstrate that Jesus was separate bodily from both God and the Holy Spirit
The Bible therefore teaches us that God and Jesus have separate bodies, separate knowledge and separate wills.
There are then separate beings.
Which in no way devalues Christ, His sacrifice or His station at the right hand of His Father.
Jesus is the pathway. God is the destination.
Yo Kranz!
All the verses do not prove Jesus is God Almighty. Jesus is the SON of GOD. Please check the word order!
What did Jesus say about all this?
Revelation 3:12 [Jesus, the SON of GOD is speaking here]
The one who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God. Never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him lthe name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name. [English Standard Version]
What??? Jesus four times mentioned ‘MY GOD’ [caps added]. What is this? You claim Jesus is ‘God’ yet, Jesus HAS A GOD. HIS FATHER!
Of course, at the end of the above prattle you admit your ignorance AND your trinity being false by stating the [t]rinity so so MYSTERIOUS! [caps added]
By your very words you admit you have NO understanding of the trinity doctrine which is par for the course. Oh yeah, go read Vos’ five these and Houdmann’s summary. Who are these guys? Do they have books in the Bible? Did they walk and talk with Jesus?
Your 20 cites of the three things of your trinity mentioned in one verse is absolute proof of the trinity, which you DO NOT understand.
If you do not understand it, why the heck are you teaching it?
More from Jesus:
John 14:28
Ye heard how I said to you, I go away, and I come unto you. If ye loved
me, ye would have rejoiced, because I go unto the Father: for the Father
is greater than I. [ASV]
Please note the final five words.
John 20:17
Jesus said to her, “Do not cling to me, for I have not yet ascended to
the Father; but go to my brothers and say to them, ‘I am ascending to my
Father and your Father, to my God and your God.’”[ESV]
One question:
Whose words carry more weight?
A. Thomas
B. The Jews
C. Vos and Houdmann
D. Jesus
Thanks for reading, Bob.
You say, “Your 20 cites of the three things of your trinity mentioned in one verse is absolute proof of the trinity, which you DO NOT understand.”
“Mention” is not the same as “prove.” Perhaps you’re mistaking this post for an argument for the existence of the Trinity. (It’s not.)
But I’d better just answer your question (else I’ll be here all day).
Obviously Jesus’ words carry more weight than anyone else’s. But that leads to a bit of a problem—one that your question brings up.
ou edited your comment to emphasize Thomas’ skepticism (adding “Doubting”), and I presume that you did so because one of the proof texts that Trinitarians use to argue for Christ’s deity is Thomas’ exclamation upon seeing the risen Jesus: “My Lord and my God!” (Jn 20:28)
If Jesus didn’t think he was God, you’d expect him to say something like, “Ugh. You still don’t get it! It’s me! Non-god Jesus! God just raised me from the dead. How many times do I have to tell you: I AM NOT GOD.”
But instead he says, “Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed.”
And then the author (let’s go with tradition and call him John) says right afterward, “these are written that you may believe” (v31). You’d think John (who made a big ordeal about Thomas not believing) would say something like, “Now kids, Thomas only got it half right. Jesus is Lord, but we all know he’s not God. Got it?”
But no, we don’t get that.
If Jesus and John believed Jesus was not God, then you’d think they’d tell us otherwise at the climax of this gospel.
—Perhaps you’re mistaking this post for an argument for the existence of the Trinity.—
How could this post be nothing otherwise. The closing portion of this post invites readers to learn ‘More about the Trinity.’
Then what is the purpose of this post then? To teach us more about mud wrestling or how to make homemade apple dumplings?
Then you have the ‘trinity shield’ at the top.
— “If Jesus and John believed Jesus was not God, then you’d think they’d tell us otherwise at the climax of this gospel.”
No!! Jesus and John had no need to. It was obvious to them, just as it is today that Jesus in not God Almighty.
Prove the negative???
Jesus stated the answer four times in Revelation 3:12. It is really expected for Jesus to satisfy the notion that he has to deny everything he is not?
He said over and over that he is the SON of GOD. Notice the two words before God.
Hmmmm… the title of the post:
“20 Bible verses that mention all Trinity members”
I think you mean John 8:58, not Matthew.
That’s called a red herring. Rather than reply to what was said, you change the subject.
John 8:58 is a direct reference to Ex 3:14. The Jews understood this. And Jesus didn’t say, “NO, you misunderstand my meaning.”
Jeffrey, great article! I really love your stuff, but rarely comment. However, I was looking for a way to donate toward this project ( or maybe your Logos library – I know my logos addiction isn’t cheap). Is there a donate page somewhere? I bet there are enough of us who would pay an annual cost that you could have a premium offset cost of the site and Logos tools. Just a thought.
Acts 7:55
But being full of the Holy Spirit, he gazed intently into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God.