Does Jesus have a beginning or is He created?
Is Jesus created? Is that what the bible really says?
Christ is called the only begotten [monogenes] Son (John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9). Is it a literal begetting of Jesus?
John 1:14 So the Word became flesh and resided among us, and we had a view of his glory, a glory such as belongs to an only-begotten son from a father; and he was full of undeserved kindness and truth.
But notice that Isaac is called the only begotten son of Abraham. Was Isaac the only (literally) begotten son of Abraham?
Hebrews 11:17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, as good as offered up Isaac, and the man that had gladly received the promises attempted to offer up [his] only-begotten [son]
In the book of Hebrews, Isaac is called the only begotten son, but Isaac was not the only son of Abraham. But rather, Isaac was the unique son and the only son of promise. The term only begotten therefore emphasizes not on the birth aspect but on the uniqueness of the son.
Christ is called the first born of all creation (Colossians 1:15). Is Jesus the first created?
Colossians 1:15 He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation
Psalm 89:27 Also, I myself shall place him as firstborn, the most high of the kings of the earth.
David is the youngest and the eighth son of Jesse (1 Sam 16:10-11) . Then how can David be placed the first-born? David is the firstborn in the sense that he is most high or pre-eminent or sovereign of all the kings of the earth. Therefore the firstborn is not the first in time, but the first in rank or position!
Gen 41:50-52 And before the year of the famine arrived there were born to Joseph two sons, whom As´e·nath the daughter of Pot·i´phe·ra the priest of On bore to him. So Joseph called the name of the firstborn Ma·nas´seh, because, to quote him, “God has made me forget all my trouble and all the house of my father.” And the name of the second he called E´phra·im
Jer 31:9 For I have become to Israel a Father; and as for E´phra·im, he is my firstborn
Gen 25:25-26 And after that his brother came out and his hand was holding onto the heel of E´sau; so he called his name Jacob. And Isaac was sixty years old at her giving them birth.
In the above texts, the time element “first” was ignored. What was important was only the special rank and dignity of the person who was called the “firstborn.” In the case of Jesus, the term first born also refers to his exalted, most high position and not to a point of time at which Jesus was born.
Jehovah Witnesses also believe that no one except Jesus was raised to immortality in the scriptures. Is Jesus the firstborn from the dead to live eternally?
Colossians 1:18 and he is the head of the body, the congregation. He is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that he might become the one who is first in all things
Jude 9 But when Mi´cha·el the archangel had a difference with the Devil and was disputing about Moses’ body
Matthew 17:3, 4 And, look! there appeared to them Moses and E·li´jah, conversing with him
Yes! Moses was raised to live eternally! (See: No man has ascended to heaven? ).
But some say that Moses and Elijah appeared only in a vision, therefore Moses did not appear literally! So were Peter and others asleep when this took place?
Luke 9:32 Now Peter and those with him were weighed down with sleep; but when they got fully awake they saw his glory and the two men standing with him.
Well, it’s not a vision, Moses was truly resurrected!
In this passage (Col 1:15-20) the term “firstborn” is used twice. As Jesus is the firstborn of creation so he is the firstborn of the dead. The second phrase, which explains the first, makes it clear that the issue is not birth. Jesus was raised from the dead but not literally born from the dead. Second, he was not the first in a temporal sense. Others were raised before Him. He was first in the sense that all resurrections whether past or future were and are dependent on His resurrection. Without His resurrection no other resurrection is possible. Verse 18 shows what that means, namely “that he might become the one who is first in all things.” As in Psalm 89 so here too, being the “firstborn” is associated with having supremacy.When the term is applied to Jesus and does not refer to his birth by Mary, “firstborn” points to Christ’s exalted position as the supreme king and ruler of the universe and does not suggest that he has been created or has emanated from God in ages past.
The term prÅtotokos therefore points to the special rank and dignity of the firstborn. However, being the first or being born is not always stressed. This is the case in Colossians 1:15. The text and the immediate context (Col 1:15-20) show that Jesus is the image of God. He has created all things. Therefore, He Himself is not created. He is the Redeemer in whom all things have been reconciled to God. He is the One who holds all things together. In Colossians 1:16-17, we find the word OTHER being inserted in the NWT to indicate that Christ created all others things after he was created by God. (The Greek/English Interlinear Translation of this passage that the Watchtower Society published reads “because in him it was created the all (things) in the heavens and upon the earth. . .). According to John1:3 If ALL things came into existence through him, then he (Jesus) cannot be created. Further, if apart or without Christ not even ONE thing came into existence, then Jesus cannot be created!
God is from time indefinite and from long ago
Psalm 93:2 Your throne is firmly established from long ago;You are from time indefinite
Jesus is from time indefinite and from long ago (early times)
Micah 5:9 And you, O Beth´le·hem Eph´ra·thah, the one too little to get to be among the thousands of Judah, from you there will come out to me the one who is to become ruler in Israel, whose origin is from early times, from the days of time indefinite
Proverbs 8:22-31 “Jehovah himself produced me as the beginning of his way, the earliest of his achievements of long ago.” It is argued that this passage refers to Jesus and teaches that Jesus was either born or created.
The context speaks about wisdom, not Jesus. The personification of the divine attribute of wisdom begins in chapter one: “Wisdom itself keeps crying aloud in the very street. In the public squares it keeps giving forth its voice.” (1:20). In chapter seven wisdom is called “my sister”; “Say to wisdom: You are my sister..” 7:4. Wisdom also lives together with shrewdness; yet another personification (8:12).
If wisdom had to be created (was “produced”) are we to conclude that Jehovah God had NO wisdom until He created it?
It is obvious that God wouldn’t be God if there was a time when He was without wisdom. Therefore, we must recognize that wisdom is just as eternal as God is. In fact, the same Hebrew word translated “everlasting” or “time indefinite” (owlam) which is used to express God’s eternal nature at Psalm 90:2 is used to express the eternal nature of wisdom at Proverbs 8:23. Thus, if Jesus is “wisdom” personified, then Jesus must be as “eternal” as Jehovah God is!
Let's see the context of Proverbs 8:22:
Proverbs 8:12 “I, wisdom, I have resided with shrewdness and I find even the knowledge of thinking abilities”.
Wisdom is identified as “I” in Proverbs 8:12 and it is the same wisdom which is identified as “me” when Proverbs 8:22 says, “Jehovah himself produced me”. Personified wisdom is also the topic in Prov 9:1-5. To apply these passages to Jesus requires an allegorical method of biblical interpretation that leads to positions incompatible with other passages. It should also be noted that no verse of this passage is ever quoted in the NT. This text, therefore is not a literal description of Christ, but a poetic personification of wisdom, poetically saying that God "got" His wisdom before He did anything -- i.e., that God has always had wisdom.
The personification of wisdom is a literary device which occurs also in other parts of Scripture. In Psalm 85:10-13 we have “loving kindness and trueness” meeting each other, “righteousness and peace” kiss each other and “righteousness itself will walk”. In Psalm 96:12 “the open field” is joyful, and “all the trees of the forest break out joyfully, before Jehovah” (See also 1 Chron 16:33; Isa 52: 9; Rev 20:13-14). This kind of allegorical language is not to be interpreted literally. Personification is a literary and poetic device which serves to create atmosphere, and to enliven abstract ideas and inanimate objects by representing them as if they were human beings.”
Proverbs 8:22-31 which contains poetic imagery therefore needs to be carefully interpreted. The first phrase in verse 22 can be translated, “The Lord possessed me (KJV, NIV); “The Lord created me” (RSV, NEB); or “the Lord begot me” (NAB). Basic meaning of the verb qanah is “to purchase, to acquire” and hence “to possess” but the other two translations are possible. Apart from qanah two other words refer to wisdom’s origin: nasak “to establish or installed” (8:23), and chil “be born or brought forth” (8:24, 25). The basic thought in this passage is always the same; wisdom was with God before creation began. Whether God created her or whether she was begotten or simply possessed is not the focus. What is central is not the manner of her origin but rather her antiquity and precedence within God’s creation. Since the language is poetical and metaphorical, it should not be used to establish anything concerning Christ’s supposed origin. Christ is the Jehovah God in the bible & there was not a time that He did not exist.
See :
Answers to objections against Christ's Diety