Monday, September 21, 2015

ECHAD vs YACHID (Answering Objections to Modalism)


 Hear, O Israel: The LORD  (YHWH) our God is one LORD (YHWH): —Deuteronomy 6:4

This article is an excerpt from my book entitled "Godhead Theology."

 The Objection
The Hebrew word for “one” employed in the Shema (Deut 6:4) is the word echad; and according to the Pluralists, especially Trinitarians, echad has one in a compound sense as its primary meaning. Texts such as Genesis 2:24 (Adam and Eve become “one [echad] flesh”), Genesis 34:16 (the men of Shechem suggest intermarriage with Jacob's children, in order to become “one [echad] people”),  Ezekiel  37:17 (two sticks, representing Judah and Ephraim become one [echad] stick), are held up to demonstrate how more than one can be one. Therefore, according to them, the Shema is announcing the Trinity with the word echad. It is, further, pointed out by the Trinitarians that there was a perfectly good word in the Hebrew for an absolute one, and that if the Holy Spirit wanted to convey the idea of God being a solitary one this particular Hebrew word would have been used; the word they refer to is yachid. Since, they postulate, that the Holy Spirit did not use the word yachid, it was the Holy Spirit’s intent to introduce the God of Israel as a compound one.

Modalism’s Response
This chapter is a companion to our previous chapter in Section Three, Chapter XXV, page 275, entitled How Is God One? There, we worked with the Greek masculine and neuter words for one,  “heis” and “hen” respectively. The reader is encouraged to review that chapter before proceeding further here.
To began with, this argument from the Pluralists’ camp is bogus, and totally without merit. In fact it is so much so that it is loathsome for this writer to spend time and energy on a rebuttal.  But since so many of the unlearned are lead captive by theological midgets that would present such arguments for the Trinity, space must be allotted to this exercise. As we examine this particular objection to the Monarchian faith, the truth of the Hebrew echad and yachid will dispel any and all confusion on the matter. Remember: Nothing suffers from examine except error.
We first take up the Hebrew word echad (Strong’s #H259). 
The Hebrew echad is used in the same manner as the English word one. It may show a compound one, or an absolute one. Like our English word, echad commands the domain of both the absolute and the compound. The meaning of any word, in any language, is not determined by its semantical domain, but by its context (this is a point to remember when considering how echad is used in the Shema). Echad stresses singleness, while at times (very few) recognizing diversity within that oneness.  A window into its uses is the book of Ezra: out of 15 occurrences (my count) 11 address an absolute one, while 4 reference a compound or metaphorical one. This ratio, however, is not representative of the usage of the word throughout the Hebrew Scripture. The word is used close to 1000 times, and only rarely is used as a compound. Echad addresses an absolute one in its vast majority of occurrences. According to my count, and I am being generous, echad addresses a compound or metaphorical one only 28 times out of 952 occurrences—if Strong is correct, or out of 962 occurrences—if Gesenius is correct. Due to the different forms of this word, there exists a slight discrepancy between scholars as to the number of occurrences. That being said, the reader is encouraged to look in a Strong’s Concordance at the word “one;” there, the reader will see what I speak of here. After seeing this evidence one time, one will forever scorn the charge that echad has as its primary meaning a compound one.
According to Strong’s Concordance, the use of echad breaks down thusly: one, 687x; first, 36x; another, 35x; other, 30x;  any [one], 15x; once, 13x; eleven, 13x; every [one], 10x; certain [one], 9x; an, a [one], 7x; some [one], 7x; misc. 87x. Echad is used as a noun, adjective, or adverb, as a cardinal or ordinal number, and is often used in a distributive sense: each or other. It is closely identified with yachad “to be united” (but so is yachid) and with ro'sh “first, head,” especially in connection with the “first day” of the month (Gen 8:13). 
A few of the most difficult texts are examined in this paragraph. The phrase “as one man” can mean “all at once” (Num 14:15); and, when Gideon was told he would defeat Midian “as one man” it meant “as easily as if the Midianites were a single man” (Jud 6:16)—there is no compound one here.  Adam and Eve are described as becoming “one flesh” (Gen 2:24), which references future conception, and birth in particular—there is no compound one here.  Plus, there is the sense that Eve was taken out of Adam and was his counterpart, and as such completed him when they two came together in sexual union (Gen 5:1-2)—again, even in this understanding, it is not a compound one that is in view, but a reuniting of two halves that make one whole.  Later, Ezekiel predicted that the fragmented nation of Israel would someday be reunited, as he symbolically joined two sticks (37:17); the two sticks became one, such as the divided Israelites becoming the Israel of God in the Messianic Kingdom. Once again Judah and Ephraim would be one nation with one king (37:22)—there is no compound one indicated in this prophecy: a literal and absolute one kingdom is in view.  Abraham was viewed as “the one” (echad) from whom all the people descended (Isa 51:2; Mal 2:15), the one father of the nation. Malachi 2:10 asks the questions: “Have we not all one (echad) Father? Has not one (echad) God created us?” In the famous Shema of Deut 6:4, “Hear, O Israel....the LORD is one” (echad), the verse concentrates on the fact that there is but one God and that Israel owes its exclusive loyalty to Him alone (Deut 5:9; 6:5).
For over 1500 years the Hebrew scholars read and taught the Shema and never one time considered echad as referencing a unity of entities in their Godhead. Not until the development of the Trinity was the unthinkable thought. And the Shema received a new reading.
There is convincing evidence (of the meaning, and scholarly understanding, of the Hebrew echad) presented by discovering how the word was translated by the Greek translators, who wrote the Septuagint. The Septuagint (LXX) is the Old Testament translated into the Greek language (third century B.C.). The Greek language also has very different words for our English word “one.” We will consider two of those words; heis, the masculine, and hen the neuter. Heis is used when an absolute one man is referenced. Hen is the neuter word for one, and is used when two men are said to be one in unity—one in a compound sense. The neuter hen is demonstrated by 1 Corinthians 3:8 that presents he that plants and he that waters as being one (hen). If the Trinitarians are correct and echad of Deuteronomy 6:4 is the primary Hebrew word for a compound one, we would expect that when it was translated into Greek the translators would have rendered echad as hen. They did not. The Greek translators translated echad as heis. Heis is the Greek word for an absolute one. What is more, when Mark wrote the Jesus-saying “The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord:” (Mark 12:29), he, too,  employed heis for the word one. (Please see Chapter XXV for further treatment on the words heis and hen.)

Secondly, we consider the Hebrew word yachid.
Strong’s #H3173
Brown-Driver-Briggs have the following to say about the word “Yachid:”

1 only one, especially of an only son, Genesis 22:2,12,16 את בנך את יְחִידְךָ thy son, thine only one, אֵבֶל יָחִיד Amos 8:10; Jeremiah 6:26 mourning for an only son, כמספד על היחיד Zechariah 12:10; Proverbs 4:3 רַךְ וְיָחִיד לפני אמי; so feminine יְחִידָה Judges 11:34.
2 feminine יְחִידָה as substantive Psalm 22:21; Psalm 35:17 יְחִידָתִי my only one, poetic for my life, as the one unique and priceless possession which can never be replaced (in each "" נַפְשִׁי).
3 solitary, Psalm 25:16 כי יחיד ועני אני; Psalm 68:6 מוֺשִׁיב יְחִידִים בַּיְתָה causing solitary, isolated ones (i.e. friendless wanderers or exiles;  אֲסִירִים) to dwell at home (Lag Ch and others מֵשִׁיב bringing back home). 

 Yachid is found in only 12 places throughout the Hebrew Scriptures:  Gen 22:2, 12, 16; Judges 11:34; Ps 22:21; 25:16; 35:17; 68:6; Prov 4:3; Jer 6:26; Amos 8:10; Zech 12:10.
12 Occurrences: 
  1. Genesis 22:2, “... thy son, thine only [son] Isaac, ...”
  2. Genesis 22:12, “ ... thy son, thine only [son] from me.”
  3. Genesis 22:16, “... and with dances: and she [was his] only child; ...”
  4. Psalm 22:20, “... from the sword; my darling from the power ...”
  5. Psalm 15:16, “... thee unto me, and have mercy upon me; for I [am] desolate and afflicted.”
  6. Psalm 25:16, “... I am desolate and afflicted.”
  7. Psalm 35:17, “... from their destructions, my darling from the lions.”
  8. Psalm 68:6, “... setteth the solitary in families: ...”
  9. Proverbs 4:3, “... tender and only [beloved] in the sight ...”
  10. Jeremiah 6:26, “... thee mourning, [as for] an only son, most bitter ...”
  11. Amos 8:10, “... it as the mourning of an only [son], and the end ...”
  12. Zechariah 12:10, “... for him, as one mourneth for [his] only [son], and shall be in bitterness ...”

The suggestion, by the Pluralists, that yachid should have been the word used by Moses if he intended to say that God is one person/entity/individual is rejected for the following reasons:
  • First, in Genesis 22:2,12 Isaac is called Abraham’s “only” (yachid) son. There is no word for “son” in the texts. The important thing to acknowledge is that Abraham had another son; yet Isaac is called yachid. Obviously, the meaning here is uniqueness and or preciousness, i.e. the type of son.
  • Secondly, yachid is used in Psalms 25:16 and 68:6 to describe the emotion of loneliness.
  • Thirdly, yachid, from Psalm 35:17, means: “my only one, poetic for my life, as the one unique and priceless possession which can never be replaced” (Brown-Driver-Briggs).
  • Fourthly, and perhaps, most importantly, yachid is never translated “one” in the Scripture. Above we give every place where yachid is used. It has the meaning of “only,” “only child,” “desolate,” “darling,” “solitary,” and “only son,” but is never rendered as one. It is true the word has a meaning of only or alone, but not just that; yachid’s meaning includes uniqueness, and preciousness. We maintain that yachid was not used to describe the unity of the Deity because it would not have been appropriate.  If yachid would be used to describe God, it would not necessarily tell us how many Gods there were (Isaac was called yachid, though he was not Abraham’s only son), but what kind of God. The sense of singularity or plurality is derived from the singularity or the plurality of the noun, not the word “one.”
There is, however, a Hebrew word for one that could have been used to say that God was a plurality of persons united together as one—that word is yachad (Strong’s #H3161; see Brown-Driver-Briggs, page 402). Yachad is the source of both of our words, echad and yachid. This word does indeed mean to “unite together into one.” That this word was available and the Holy Spirit did not inspire Moses to employ it, in describing Yahweh’s oneness, is all telling.

 Addressing The Lie That The Jews Changed Echad To Yachid
There is a false narrative making its rounds, that after the development of Christianity the Jewish scholars edited the Shema to read yachid instead of echad. To call this story a lie is proper and correct. 
The origin of the Lie may come from confusing the Bible text with the Thirteen Principles of Faith composed by Maimonides. Maimonides (aka Rambam; 1135-1204) was physician to the Sultan Saladin and communal leader of Egyptian Jewry, as well as an important figure in the codification of Jewish law. As such, he was acquainted with Roman Catholic apologetics and interpre-tations of the Old Testament. It's possible he may have encountered Catholic use of the word echad to prove that Moses himself hinted at the Triunity of the Godhead, as mentioned in Deuteronomy 6:4. To counter this idea, Maimonides opted to employ the noun yachid in his "Second Principle of Faith."
“I believe with perfect faith that the Creator,
blessed be his name,
is a Unity [yachid],
and that there is no Unity [yachid] in any manner like unto his,
and that he alone is our God, 
who was, is, and will be.”

The truth is: Echad has never been edited out of the Shema, because it is the proper word to describe Yahweh’s absolute solitary Oneness. In every form of the Shema, both ancient and modern, echad stands in each one.

 Apostolically Speaking
☩ David Ignatius
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The above is an excerpt rom the author's book entitled "Godhead Theology" which may be purchased from amazon at the following link: 
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Apostolically Speaking
☩☩ Jerry L Hayes
(Mar David Ignatius)


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Read other essays from the Bishop on the subject of the Godhead:

"The Dual Nature Of Jesus Of Nazareth"

"The Worlds, Made By The Son"

"Hebrews 13:8 vs 1 Corinthians 15:28"

"Glory With The Father"

"Philippians 2:6-8, Answering Trinitarian Objections"

"How Is God One?"

"Hebrew Monotheism"


"The Apostolic Creed"

"Jesus Is Father God"

"Homoousia And The Creed Of Nicaea"

"The Triquetra And Modalism"

"Modalism, Simultaneous Or Sequential?"

"Micah 5:2-4, An Exegesis"


"Elohim, the Plural form For God"

"Can the Deity of Jesus Be called The Son Of God?"

"Mathematical Equation For The Godhead"

"Hebrew Monotheism, Second Edition"

"Jesus, On God's Right Hand"

"The Name of the Deity" (The Tetragrammaton)

"Christology of the Apostolic Church Fathers"

"Christian Modalism challenged by the Greeks"

"The Apologists and the Logos Christology"

"Logos Christology"

"The Seven Spirits of God"

"Historical Numerical Superiority of the Monarchians"

"How Is God One?" Second Edition

"Creed of Nicæa (Creed of the 318) Affirmed"

"Another Comforter (Answering Objections to Modalism)"

"The Godhead Teaching of Ignatius of Antioch"

"Hebrews 1:8, (Answering Objections to Modalism)"

"Godhead Theology of the Tabernacle of Moses"

"Proper Biblical Understanding of the Word 'Person'"

"Defense of Isaiah 9:6, Answering Objections to Modalism"
https://bishopjerrylhayes.blogspot.com/2017/04/defense-of-isaiah-96.html

Defense of 1 Timothy 3:16 (Answering Objections to Modalism)


Godhead Theology is a study of Christian Godhead theology. ... Was He God or not? In Godhead Theology Bishop Jerry Hayes follows that debate through the first 300 years of the Church's history. Our book is in five sections: Section One ... demonstrates Modalistic Monarchianism as the original orthodoxy of the Chruch; Section Two introduces the Apostolic Creed ... ; Section Three is an affirmation of Modalistic Monarchianism; Section Four is Modalism's responses to objection from the pluralists Trinitarians, Binitarians, Arians and Semi-Arians. Included are two comprehensive indexes: Subject Index and Scripture Index. 613 pages.

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