Matthew 28:19 and The Trinity
“Therefore go and teach all nations, baptizing them in the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”
“εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου πνεύματος”
In the first place, Jesus does not say, “ὀνόματα”, which is the plural number, “Names”, as in “The Father and The Son and The Holy Spirit”, Three Names. Rather, it is clear that Jesus says, “τὸ ὄνομα”, THE NAME. In Greek, as the preposition “εἰς” is used, there is no need for the definite article, “τὸ”, as we could still say “The Name”. It is done here by Jesus for a clear purpose, to show that He has a definite NAME in mind.
The NAME is what was given to Moses, when he saw the Burning Bush in Exodus chapter 3. In verse 13 Moses says to God:
“And Moses said to God, Behold, when I come to the sons of Israel, and shall say to them, The God of your fathers has sent me to you, and they shall say to me, What is His Name? What shall I say to them?”
To which we see the reply from the Lord:
“And God said to Moses, I AM THAT I AM. And He said, So you shall say to the sons of Israel, I AM has sent me to you. And God said to Moses again, You shall say this to the sons of Israel, YAHWEH the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is My Name forever, and this is My title from generation to generation” (verses 14-15)
“Ehyeh ’ăsher ’ehyeh”, is what God told Moses, which is best translated as “I am that I am”, as the ever-present God, Who went before the Children of Israel. The Hebrew Name of God, “Yahweh”, has its root in the verb, “’ehyeh”, speaking of the “eternal, self-existence” of the God of the Holy Bible, Who is Unique, as He has no equal. Interesting, when the Jewish scholars who translated the Hebrew Old Testament into Greek, in the 2nd century BC, which has become known as the Septuagint (LXX) Version, they translated these words in verse 14, as, “ Εγω ειμι ὁ Ων”, literally, “I am He Who Exists”, or, “I am The Eternal One”. Which is what the Hebrew means. The Name YAHWEH is God’s Name forever. This is The Name that is used by Jesus Christ in Matthew 28:19. One Divine Name, for The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Thereby asserting their absolute, equal DEITY.
Next, we read, “του πατρος και του υιου και του αγιου πνευματος”, that is, “The Father and The Son and The Holy Spirit”. The Greek "article" (του), is repeated, with each noun, to show that a "distinction" of Persons is meant. “The repeated article, on the other hand, implies a separation, in themselves, or in the view taken of them” (Dr Samuel Green; Handbook to the Grammar of the Greek Testament, pages, 198-199). The Father is not the Son or the Holy Spirit. The Son is not the Father or the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit, is not the Father or the Son.
, try to find passages confirming those truths. These verses do not, of course, need to be in one place but they do need to be in the actual text of Scripture.
