Why does god speak as if there are other gods in Genesis?

Question

He uses "US" once and "OUR" twice in the passage below.

(GENESIS1:26) And 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 fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

If it's because humans wrote it (and they did), then they must have thought there was more than one god at the time.

It is plural in the Hebrew version as well.

Answer 1

There may be more than one God, but imagine a slightly different, realistic scenario/analogy:

President Bush says, "Let US make Iraq in OUR own image of Democracy, and after OUR own likeness of Freedom ... " Does that mean that there is more than one President of the United States?

Not necessarily. It just means that he is laying down the plan of attack to his team, which may be fellow leaders (Gods or presidents, respectively), soldiers, support personnel, or all of the above.

Answer 2

You have found one of passages in the Old Testament which imply diversity in God's unity. Another is Genesis 11:7. One of the common generic names for God, "Elohim," is actually a plural noun--but it is used with a singular verb.

The great "Sh'ma" (taken from the first word of the passage, "Sh'ma" = hear) passage, Deuteronomy 6:4, tells us, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One." But the word for "one" in that passage is "echad," which can mean "gathered into a unity" as it does in Genesis 2:24.

In Isaiah 6:8, God says, "whom shall I send, and who will go for US"

Isaiah 44:6 also has Yahweh (the personal name for God, not used for false gods) saying, "Thus says the LORD [Yahweh], the King of Israel, and His Redeemer, the LORD [also Yahweh] of Hosts, "I am the first and I am the last; besides me there is no god."

And Zechariah 12:10 has an interesting switch, speaking of the future Day of the LORD, it says, "...they shall look upon ME whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for HIM, as one mourns for his only son..."

Obviously, this is that Redeemer, pierced in His side, as well as His hands and feet, (see Psalm 22), wounded for our transgressions, crushed for our iniquities, chastised for our peace and whipped to bring us wholeness. (see Isaiah 53:5)

Although He was largely rejected by His own people, the Bible says those who receive Him are given the right to become children of God. (John 1:12)

Of course there are many passages in the New Testament that shed more light on this concept, such as John 14...but the ones above serve to show it was something that was present from the very beginning. This makes a great deal of sense when you consider that God's love and mercy are said to be from everlasting (John 17:24, Psalm 103:17) and these are qualities that require an OBJECT.

Revelation 1:17-18 sound like an echo of Isaiah 44:6 when Jesus says, "I am the first and the last. I am He Who lives, and became dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore."

This is why Christians say that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are ONE God, revealed in three persons with distinguishable roles and heirarchy, but with equal power and self-existence. It's not intended to be doublespeak, although it can sound like it; it's only intended to succinctly communicate what we understand the Bible to teach.

Answer 3

This is a really great question. In the manuscripts, and mainly in the massorah, which is a compilation of all the footnotes for the manuscripts, it tells us who was present when God was re-furbishing the earth for flesh habitation in this age. So who was present there? All of us - all souls (yes, they were all created then, before Genesis happened) and including God the Father, Christ the son, and all of the created Angels to include Satan.
So when you read that again, you know God the Father was speaking to all of us and saying lets make the flesh bodies just as we look right now- of course, the spiritual bodies are somewhat different than the flesh, but basically what you looked like there, you look like now. Its just as if you and five of your friends were sitting around making voodoo dolls, and one of you said, hey, lets make them to look like we do. (I'm not real happy with my analogy here, but you get the point). I know its simple, but most of Gods Word is very simple, and even taught in simplicity - its man who makes it difficult to understand.

Answer 4

We for a Ruler is Elizabethan (16th Century....Shakespeare and her heir James I both would have used a royal "We" when talking to others.)
However, in this case God is talking about Jesus and the Holy Spirit with him. Jesus talks about being one with the Father. The Holy Spirit is the third person in the Trinity. They are three but one. As seen when Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist. The Holy Spirit descended as a dove and the Father spoke from Heaven saying that this was His son, and He was well pleased with Him (Jesus).

Answer 5

Humans wrote the Bible not God. A good quote I keep using is the Bible is the Word of God not Written By God. So of course there will be mistakes written in the whole thing.

Answer 6

Yes, He was speaking to the Godhead - God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. Three manifestations of one God.
"In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was WITH God, and the Word WAS God."

Answer 7

He knew some people would be fooled into believing in other gods including the false belief that pagan moon god allah is the real God of the Bible.

Answer 8

In many cultures there is more than one God. Christianity has a trinity (?) The Bible is a mythical book that is filled with events that are worth questioning. It is a book of ancient civilization, becoming civilized.
To use it as a reference book for reality isn't really smart.

Answer 9

He was talking about the Trinity.

God the Father
God the Son
God the Holy Spirit.

They were all there from the beginning.

Answer 10

This is Shakespearean English ( the Language of the times - when the Bible was translated) to denote ROYALTY!

Big G= THE GOD.

Small g= denotes False god or gods.