Introduction
In today’s study, I want to explore the deeper meaning behind “Examining the Father’s Oath to the Son – Genesis 22:15.” As I examine this verse, I see a striking connection between the oath God makes to Abraham and the promise fulfilled in Christ. How do these events relate? What does this oath reveal about God’s faithfulness and redemptive sacrifice? Throughout this article, I will examine these questions and deepen our understanding of the covenant between God and humanity. The Bible has few passages that report the Father and the Son making an oath. We will analyze these passages and compare the differences we find in both. After that, we will seek to understand why there is such a difference.
The Oath Made by Jesus Christ
The Angel of the Lord
Let’s start with the text of Revelation 10:
Revelation 10:1-2 – “And I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow over his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire; and he had in his hand a little book open : and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot upon the earth.“
The text above relates a vision that John received on the island of Patmos. At the beginning of the chapter, John begins this vision by describing the coming of a “angel“. It is not just any angel that appears to you in a vision. It is a “strong angel” He is coming “dressed in a cloud“, possessing a “celestial rainbow” over his head. In Revelation 4:3, in the heavenly vision, John sees the Father sitting on the great throne, and above him is also seen a “celestial rainbow“. But in this vision of Revelation 10, it is not the Father who appears, for His presence could not be compared to that of a “strong angel“. Here is presented another person, however, one who like the Sovereign of the universe can carry a “bow” over his head.
John’s description continues about this “angel“. He says that his “face was like the sun“, and the “his feet like pillars of fire“. Both descriptions are identical to the being who appeared in the vision of Revelation 1:12-17, which was Jesus in His glorified form. These descriptions show us that in this vision John was seeing the person of Jesus! Some may ask why John saw a “angel“. The word “angel” in the Bible describes the presence of an angelic being, as well as it can mean a “messenger“, as for example in Revelation 14:6-9, Revelation 18:4, etc.
Some translations even include the word “messenger” in some Bible verses instead of “angel“, according to its context. Already in Revelation 10, Jesus comes as “messenger” in the vision. Jesus is not a “angel“, but is the divine Son of God. Regarding this vision, we find the following text that confirms it:
“The mighty Angel who instructed John was none other than Jesus Christ.” – Ms, 40, 1900
Oath Made
What is the difference between the oath made by the Father and that of the Son? Continuing to read the text of Revelation 10:
Revelation 10:5-6 – “And the angel which I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things that are therein, that there should be delay no more.“
In the above verse, we see Jesus in his glorified form taking an oath. Notice how he performs this act. He “raised his hand to the sky“, and by whom did he swear? By “he who lives forever and ever“. These are two points we need to pay attention to. The way he swore, and by whom he swore! This reference”who lives forever and ever” was already mentioned in the book of Revelation, in chapter 4. The 4 living creatures and the 24 elders worshiped the Almighty God who is seated on his throne, and identifies him as being the one “who lives forever and ever“:
Revelation 4:9,10 – “And when the living creatures gave glory and honor and thanks to him who sat on the throne, who lives forever and ever, the twenty-four elders fell down before him who sat on the throne and worshiped him who lives forever and ever, and cast their crowns before the throne, saying…“
The Linen Man as seen by Daniel
In other words, Jesus took his oath citing the Father. This same account also appears in the book of Daniel:
Daniel 12:5-6 – “Then I, Daniel, looked, and behold, two others stood, one on this side of the river’s brink, and the other on the other side of the river’s brink. And he said to the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, ‘When will the end of these wonders be?’“
In Daniel’s vision, he sees two angels “by the river“, and one of them asks a question”to the man dressed in linen“, which was “over the waters of the river“. That “man dressed in linen” is the same one that appeared in vision to Daniel in chapter 10, where we find the following description:
Daniel 10:5-7 – “Then I lifted up my eyes and looked, and behold, a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with fine gold of Uphaz. His body was like beryl, his face was like lightning, his eyes were like flaming torches, his arms and his feet were like the gleam of burnished bronze, and the voice of his words was like the voice of a multitude. And I, Daniel, alone saw the vision.“.
Similarity to John’s Vision
The way the prophet Daniel describes this “man dressed in linen” is similar to John’s vision on the Isle of Patmos of the glorified Jesus (Revelation 1:12-17). This means that Daniel saw the person of Jesus in his vision. Although both prophets use different words, their comparisons are still similar, which indicates that they saw the same being. And Daniel continues his account in chapter 12, saying:
Daniel 12:7 – “And I heard the man clothed in linen, who was upon the waters of the river, who lifted up his right hand and his left hand toward heaven, and swore by him that liveth for ever that it should be for a time, times, and half a time…“
What was that “the man dressed in linen” did? He “raised his right hand and his left hand to heaven“, and “swore by him who lives forever“. Again we find the same pattern we saw in Revelation 10. In Daniel’s vision, Jesus also raised his hands to heaven and swore “by the one who lives forever“, that is, by His Father.
The Oath Made by the Father
Now that we have seen how Jesus makes an oath, let us look in the Bible at what Almighty God does when he also makes an oath. What is the difference between the Father’s oath and the Son’s? We can find this story in the story of Abraham when he had to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac (at the end of the story, God intervenes and prevents his son from being sacrificed). Let us read the story:
Genesis 22:15-17 – “Then the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time out of heaven, and said, ‘ By myself I have sworn,’ declares the Lord (YHWH), ‘because you have done this deed and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and multiply your descendants as the stars of the heavens and as the sand on the seashore; and your descendants will possess the gates of their enemies.’“
By Whom Did the Father Swear?
Notice that someone announces the message to Abraham. There is a spokesman here, identified as “the angel of the Lord“. Abraham does not see the “angel of the Lord“, for he cries out his voice “from the heavens“. But this “angel of the Lord” does not say his words, he makes it clear that the message is spoken by “Sir“, and the “Sir” here is the tetragrammaton “YHWH“, that is, God Almighty. And by whom did He swear? The Lord said:
Genesis 22:15 – “… By Myself I have sworn, says the Lord [Yahweh]…“
Notice that there is a subtle difference here between the oaths of Jesus and the Father. The Son swore in the name of the Father, but the Father swore by Himself! Notice again Jesus’ oaths:
Revelation 10:6 – “…and swore by him who lives forever and ever…“
Daniel 12:6 – “…and swore by him who lives forever…“
The question remains, why did Jesus swear by the Father and not by Himself, just as the Father had done? And why did the Father swear by Himself, and not by someone else?
Why does the Father swear by Himself and the Son swear by the Father?
Now, let us understand the difference between the oath of the Father and that of the Son. We find this answer in the text of Hebrews 6:13, where it says:
Hebrews 6:13 – “For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he could swear by no one greater, he swore by himself“
God swore by Himself precisely because He is the Sovereign of the universe and there is no one greater by whom He could swear. However, this was not Jesus’ attitude. Even though He was in His glorified form, He did not swear by Himself, but rather by His Father, which shows us that the Father is greater than Jesus, even in His glorified form. When He was on earth, Jesus Himself said that the Father was greater than Him, as we can read below:
John 14:28 – “You have heard that I said to you, ‘I go away and I am coming to you.’ If you loved me, you would rejoice because I said, ‘I go to the Father.’ For my Father is greater than I.“
Many who believe in the Trinitarian doctrine try to justify the text of John 14:28 with the fact that Jesus was in human form. But as we have seen in this study, even though Jesus was in his glorified form, he shows us that he is less than the Father, and the Father is greater than him! It is not a question of incarnation, but rather of who each one is! The Father is the Sovereign of the universe, the only being who “lives forever and ever“, He who has no beginning or end. Jesus is His Son, and does not and will never occupy the position of Sovereign of the universe, for that is the prerogative of the Father alone, He who is the “One True God” (John 17:3).
Conclusion: Genesis 22:15
The Father’s oath makes it clear that He is above all, including His Son. The Son’s oath also makes it clear that there is One who is greater than Him, who allows Him to swear in the name of this Being. If the Son were in the same position of equality as the Father, in the same sense that the Trinitarian doctrine teaches, then the Son could not swear by the Father, for He would not be greater than Jesus.
In this way we can conclude that Jesus’ words in John 14:28 show us the real position between the two, regardless of the form in which Jesus finds himself, human or glorified.
May God bless us!
