IMAGE
OF GOD
Imago Dei – His Spiritual
Likeness; GOOD & HOLY – His Natural Image; REASON &
WILL
First
Word
·
Wikipedia - Philosophers and Theologians
for millennia have debated the exact meaning of the phrase Imago Dei,
Image of God. “The Image” or
“Likeness” asserts that human beings are created in the image and likeness
of God.
·
Ancient Jewish scholars argued that being made in
the Image of God does not mean that God possesses human-like features, but
rather the statement is figurative language for God bestowing special honor
unto humankind, which He did not confer unto the rest of Creation. Being
in the Image of God is the faculty of reason that enables one to become
most God-like when that person develops the capacity to partially grasp
the nature of God’s ultimate reality.
·
The Book tells us right away that Adam
was made in the LIKENESS and IMAGE of God and then moves on to tell us that Seth was made in the
image and likeness of Adam. I think that
is something to ponder, as neither Cain nor Able are
mentioned. As we move through the Book we find that it is the Godly line of Seth
that is followed and will eventually be the
line thorough whom our Messiah, the Lord Jesus Christ will come; so it is Seth’s
line that we should study to discern the image and likeness of God, not Cain’s.
·
Was Satan the Father of
Cain?
- Many believe that he was and there are teachings out there with scripture
from The
Book that is used to support
it. I will leave that up to you to
decide. – NYOBS 71.02 – SATAN FATHER OF CAIN
Genesis 9:6 - Man was made in God’s very own image
6 Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.
6 Whoever sheds the blood of man, by man shall his blood be shed, for God made man in his own image.
(ESV)
Genesis 1:26-28 – Adam
was created in the likeness of God,
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man (Adam) in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” (ESV)
26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.”
27 So God created man (Adam) in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.
28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.” (ESV)
Genesis 5:1-3 – Seth
was created in the image of Adam
1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God.
2 Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created.
3 When ADAM had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own LIKENESS, after his IMAGE, and named him SETH. (ESV)
1 This is the book of the generations of Adam. When God created man, he made him in the likeness of God.
2 Male and female he created them, and he blessed them and named them Man when they were created.
3 When ADAM had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own LIKENESS, after his IMAGE, and named him SETH. (ESV)
Apocrypha
·
The
Apocrypha contains
books that may or may not be written by the author as its title might suggest as
many were just outright FAKES, therefore most were left
out of our Bible, but I find they shed a lot of light on what the people were
thinking during that time.
·
God’s Image or Likeness is His attributes; like that
of COMPASSION; with examples of reaching
out to others with physical and financial help, having the desire to lift
others up. – This is His image of LOVE.
·
Man was made in God’s
Image
to be able to SEE, HEAR and SPEAK with KNOWLEDGE and with His COUNSEL to have understanding of what is GOOD and what is EVIL. – We were made in His
likeness to UNDERSTAND, ADMINISTER, RULE and JUDGE
concerning
His commandments and “The Law of Life”.
·
Mortal man differs from
all other creatures because of his self-reflective, rational nature of thought
processes - His capacity for abstract, symbolic as well as concrete
deliberation and decision-making, this is truly being made in God’s image, no
other creature on earth has been given this likeness.
·
Before we go
any further, you must get this; God in
His awesome mercy created and surrounded man with everything he could possible
need before He created him and then set him smack dab down in the middle of it.
This Image of God is LOVE, MERCY and COMPASSION.
·
Man was created to
have “the hope of eternal life”; to be ETERNAL just like God and that
attribute comes by the way of “FREE WILL”. - God did not create Death nor does He
take pleasure in it, however man’s Free Will can reject the spiritual and moral
likeness of God.
2 Enoch 65:1-2
– God created the physical and the spiritual
1 And Enoch answered all
his people saying: Hear, my children, before that all creatures were created,
the Lord created the visible (physical) and invisible (spiritual) things.
2 And as much time as there was and went
past, understand that after all that he created man in the likeness of his own
form, and put into him eyes to SEE, and ears to HEAR, and heart to reflect (THINK), and intellect wherewith to
deliberate. (REASON).
1 The Lord with
his hands having created man, in the LIKENESS of his own face,
the Lord made him small and great.
2 Enoch 44:3 - Compassion to lift up,
help and give to the needy
3 Blessed is the man
who does not direct his heart with malice against any man, and HELPS the
injured and condemned, and RAISES the broken down, and shall do CHARITY to
the needy, because on the day of the great judgment every weight, every
measure and every makeweight (will
be) as in the market, … and according to his measure shall take his
reward.
Wisdom of Solomon 1:13-14 – Created all things, but
not death
13 For God made NOT DEATH:
neither hath he pleasure in the destruction of the living. - For he created all things,
14 that they might HAVE THEIR BEING: and the generations of the world were healthful;
and there is no poison of destruction in them, nor the kingdom of death upon
the earth:
Acts 17:28 – In God we live, move and have our
being
28 for “In Him” we live and move and HAVE OUR BEING’; “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ (ESV)
28 for “In Him” we live and move and HAVE OUR BEING’; “‘For we are indeed his offspring.’ (ESV)
Wisdom of
Solomon 2:23 – Created with the hope of
eternal life
23 For God created man TO BE IMMORTAL, (full hope of eternal life) and made him to be an image of his
own eternity.
1 The Lord created
man of the earth, and turned him into it again.
2 He gave them few days, and a short
time, and power also over the things therein.
3 He endued them with strength by themselves,
and made them ACCORDING to his image,
4 And put the fear of man upon all flesh, and
gave him dominion over beasts and fowls.
Sirach 17:5 – Gave man Understanding
and Speech
5 They received the
use of the five operations of the Lord, and in the sixth place he
imparted them UNDERSTANDING,
and in the seventh SPEECH, an interpreter of the cogitations thereof.
Sirach 17:6 – Gave Counsel to speak, see, hear and understand
6 COUNSEL, and a tongue, and eyes, ears,
and a heart, gave he them to understand.
Sirach
17:7-10 – Filled man with
knowledge of Good and Evil
7 Withal he filled them with the KNOWLEDGE of understanding, and shewed them GOOD and
EVIL.
8 He set his eye upon their hearts, that he
might shew them the greatness of his works.
9 He gave them to glory in his marvelous acts forever,
that they might declare his works with understanding.
10 And the elect shall praise his holy name.
Sirach 17:11
- Gave them the law of life
11 Beside this he gave them knowledge, and THE LAW OF LIFE for a heritage.
Sirach 17:12
– Gave them His judgments and commandments
12 He made an everlasting covenant with them,
and shewed them his JUDGMENTS.
13 Their eyes saw the majesty of his glory,
and their ears heard his glorious voice.
14 And he said unto them, Beware of all
unrighteousness; and he gave every man COMMANDMENT concerning his neighbor.
2 Esdras
8:44 – Gods’ mercy surrounded man - all his
needs met
44 Even so perishes MAN also, which is formed
with thy hands, and is called thine own image, because thou art like
unto him, FOR WHOSE SAKE YOU HAVE MADE ALL
THINGS,
and likened him unto the husbandman's seed
Satan
·
Is Satan made in the Image of God? – Well if
the definition is that the Image is wisdom, knowledge, reasoning, speaking and
ruling, then the answer would be YES. – But if you look at the CROWN CREATION of God which is man
created out of DIRT, then the answer is NO.
·
The Book tells us
that there is something intrinsically different about mortal man as he has
promises that “angelic beings” do not have and man alone is touted as
being created in the Image of God,
however I must still leave that door open recognizing God’s Sovereignty.
Image - Likeness
·
Moses is the writer of
Genesis,
if you didn’t already know that, and it is he that tells us that God created
man in His own image after His likeness.
·
Some theologians make a
distinction
between Image of God and Likeness of God. The image of God and
the likeness are similar, but at the same time they are different.
·
The Image refers to the human's natural
resemblance to God, it involves the “natural attributes” of God; the
power of REASON and
WILL.
·
The Likeness referred to a natural,
innate resemblance to God and consists of the “spiritual attribute” of
the MORAL QUALITIES of God.
·
When Adam fell, he lost the likeness,
but the image remained fully. - Humanity as humanity is still complete, but the
good and holy was spoiled and lost in the fall. – HOLD
THAT THOUGHT
·
I have another thought; the New Testament seems
to consider the “Image” and the “Likeness” as the same and focuses on putting
off the “OLD NATURE” and putting on the “NEW NATURE”. It’s not the Old
Nature that is being renewed, it’s the New Nature that is being brought one
degree to another into the glory of the image of God. – SELAH –
·
Jesus is the fullness of
the Image of God
and we share in that when we strive to be like Him and in our efforts try to
reflect His knowledge, righteousness and Holiness.
·
The Book
says WE SHALL BE LIKE
HIM.
Genesis 1:26 – Man made in the Image and Likeness
of God
26 God said, “Let us make man in our IMAGE, after our LIKENESS.
26 God said, “Let us make man in our IMAGE, after our LIKENESS.
Colossians 3:9-10 – The new nature is after the
image of God
9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices
10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge AFTER THE IMAGE OF ITS CREATOR. (ESV)
9 Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices
10 and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge AFTER THE IMAGE OF ITS CREATOR. (ESV)
Ephesians 4:22-24 – Then new nature is the
likeness of God
22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires,
23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds,
24 and to put on the new self, created after THE LIKENESS OF GOD in true righteousness and holiness. (ESV)
22 to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires,
23 and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds,
24 and to put on the new self, created after THE LIKENESS OF GOD in true righteousness and holiness. (ESV)
Colossians 1:9 –Wisdom and Understanding of His
will
9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the KNOWLEDGE of His will in all spiritual WISDOM and UNDERSTANDING, (ESV)
9 And so, from the day we heard, we have not ceased to pray for you, asking that you may be filled with the KNOWLEDGE of His will in all spiritual WISDOM and UNDERSTANDING, (ESV)
Colossians 2:2-3 – Wisdom & Knowledge of God’s
Mystery Jesus
2 to reach all the riches of full assurance of UNDERSTANDING and the knowledge of GOD’S MYSTERY, which is Christ,
3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of WISDOM and KNOWLEDGE. (ESV)
2 to reach all the riches of full assurance of UNDERSTANDING and the knowledge of GOD’S MYSTERY, which is Christ,
3 in whom are hidden all the treasures of WISDOM and KNOWLEDGE. (ESV)
2 Corinthians 3:18 – We are being transformed into
His Image
18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the SAME IMAGE from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (ESV)
18 And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the SAME IMAGE from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (ESV)
1 John 3:2 – We shall be like Him
2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM, because we shall see him as he is. (ESV)
2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears WE SHALL BE LIKE HIM, because we shall see him as he is. (ESV)
Last
Thoughts
·
Even after the fall of man, mankind still reflects
the Imago Dei, the Image of God.
·
The Hebrew word for Image
is “selem” which translates shadow, resemblance
or reflection.
·
Imago Dei, the image of God is not
a quality that we possess as mankind, but rather a condition in which man
lives. – Man reflects God, he is not a little god as taught by the Word
of Faith Movement.- NYOBS 70.12 – FAKE FALSE
TEACHERS
·
If we want to know what the image of God
looks like, we need to look no further than God’s only begotten Son; Jesus the
Christ who is the exact imprint of the Image of the invisible God. - “The Believer”
is predestined
and is NOW being transformed one degree at
a time into that very same image. - It’s in the Book
- NYOBS 29.28 –
PREDESTINATION REVISITED
2 Corinthians 4:4-7 – Jesus Christ is the Image of
God
4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of CHRIST, who is THE IMAGE OF GOD.
5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.
6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.
4 In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of CHRIST, who is THE IMAGE OF GOD.
5 For what we proclaim is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, with ourselves as your servants for Jesus’ sake.
6 For God, who said, “Let light shine out of darkness,” has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.
7 But we have this treasure in jars of clay, to show that the surpassing power belongs to God and not to us.
(ESV)
Hebrews 1:3 – Jesus is the exact image of God’s
person.
3 He (Jesus) is the radiance of the glory of God and THE EXACT IMPRINT OF HIS NATURE, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, (ESV)
3 He (Jesus) is the radiance of the glory of God and THE EXACT IMPRINT OF HIS NATURE, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, (ESV)
Colossians 1:13-15 – Jesus is the image of the
Invisible God
13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,
14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
15 HE IS THE IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE GOD, the firstborn of all creation. (ESV)
13 He has delivered us from the domain of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son,
14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins.
15 HE IS THE IMAGE OF THE INVISIBLE GOD, the firstborn of all creation. (ESV)
Romans 8:29 – The believer predestined to the Image
of the Son
29 For those whom he foreknew he also PREDESTINED to be conformed to the IMAGE OF HIS SON, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. (ESV)
29 For those whom he foreknew he also PREDESTINED to be conformed to the IMAGE OF HIS SON, in order that he might be the firstborn among many brothers. (ESV)
1 Corinthians 11:7 – MAN is the Image of the glory
of God
7 For a MAN ought not to cover his head, since he IS THE IMAGE and GLORY OF GOD, but woman is the glory of man. (ESV)
7 For a MAN ought not to cover his head, since he IS THE IMAGE and GLORY OF GOD, but woman is the glory of man. (ESV)
2 Corinthians 3:18 – We are transformed into the
same image
18 And WE all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, ARE BEING TRANSFORMED INTO THE SAME IMAGE from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (ESV)
18 And WE all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, ARE BEING TRANSFORMED INTO THE SAME IMAGE from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (ESV)
In the
multitude of counselors,
there is wisdom.
Proverbs 11:14
I am grateful to those that went before me
providing concepts, ideas, historical
information, and scripture verses. Because of them I can stand on their
shoulders
and see further that I otherwise ever could
have.
A Commentary; Critical,
Experimental and Practical - Eerdmans
All the Women of the Bible – Edith
Deen
Antiquity of the Jews – Flavius
Josephus Matthias
Apocrypha – Goodspeed
Baker Commentary on the
Bible – Elwell
Bible Almanac; The – Packer-Tenney-White
Bible Commentary – F.B. Meyer
Bible Dictionary – Harper and Row
Bible Dictionary – Nelson’s
Dake’s Annotated Bible – Dake
English Standard Version
Bible – ESV
Expositor’s Bible
Commentary – Frank E. Gaebelein
Forgotten Books of Eden; The – World
Illustrated Bible
Dictionary; The – Tyndale
Image of God; The – John Piper
Interlinear Greek-English
New Testament - Baker
King James Version Bible –
KJV
Lost Books of the Bible; The - World
Lost Books of the Bible; The - Bell
Matthew Henry’s Commentary - Zondervan
Missing Books of the Bible; The – Halo Press
Mysteries of the Bible – Readers Digest
Nag Hammadi Library; The – James M. Robinson
Nave’s Topical Bible - Zondervan
New International
Dictionary of the Bible; The – Douglas -
Tenney
New International Version
Bible (2011) – NIV
NOTE: The “new” NIV has been corrupted and made gender
neutral. AVOID IT.
Secrets of the Dead Sea Scrolls – Hugh J.
Schonfield
Thru the Bible – J. Vernon
McGee
Vincent’s Word Studies of
the New Testament – Mac Donald
Who’s Who in the Bible – Paul D. Gardner
Wycliffe Bible Commentary;
The – Pfeiffer & Harrison
Wikipedia –
Zondervan Pictorial
Encyclopedia of the Bible; The – Tenney
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