Topical Encyclopedia
Definition and Nature:The term "Deity" refers to the divine nature or essence of God, encompassing His attributes, character, and the fullness of His being. In Christian theology, Deity is understood as the supreme, eternal, and unchangeable nature of God, who is the Creator and Sustainer of all things. The concept of Deity is central to the understanding of God's identity and His relationship with creation.
Biblical Foundation:The Bible affirms the Deity of God from the very beginning. In
Genesis 1:1, it is declared, "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." This foundational statement establishes God as the ultimate source of all that exists, highlighting His omnipotence and sovereignty.
The Deity of God is further revealed through His attributes, which include omniscience, omnipresence, omnipotence, holiness, justice, love, and mercy. In
Isaiah 46:9-10, God declares, "I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me. I declare the end from the beginning, and ancient times from what is still to come. I say, ‘My purpose will stand, and all My good pleasure I will accomplish.’"
The Deity of Christ:Central to Christian belief is the Deity of Jesus Christ, the second person of the Trinity. The New Testament affirms that Jesus is fully God and fully man. In
John 1:1, 14, it is written, "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us." This passage underscores the eternal nature of Christ and His incarnation.
Jesus Himself claimed Deity, as seen in
John 10:30, where He states, "I and the Father are one." The apostle Paul also affirms Christ's divine nature in
Colossians 2:9, "For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity dwells in bodily form."
The Deity of the Holy Spirit:The Holy Spirit, the third person of the Trinity, is also fully God. The Spirit's Deity is evident in His attributes and works. In
Acts 5:3-4, Peter confronts Ananias, saying, "Ananias, how is it that Satan has filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit... You have not lied to men, but to God." This passage equates lying to the Holy Spirit with lying to God, affirming the Spirit's divine nature.
Trinitarian Understanding:The Christian doctrine of the Trinity encapsulates the understanding of Deity as one God in three persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Each person is fully and equally God, sharing the same divine essence. This mystery is reflected in the Great Commission, where Jesus instructs His disciples in
Matthew 28:19, "Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."
Worship and Reverence:The Deity of God demands worship, reverence, and obedience. The first commandment, as given in
Exodus 20:3, states, "You shall have no other gods before Me." This command underscores the exclusivity of worship due to the one true God. The Psalms are replete with calls to worship the Lord for His greatness and majesty, such as in
Psalm 95:6, "Come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the LORD our Maker."
Conclusion:The concept of Deity is foundational to understanding the nature of God as revealed in the Bible. It encompasses the fullness of God's attributes and His triune existence, calling believers to a life of worship and devotion to the one true God.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
n.) A god, goddess or Supreme Being.
2. (n.) The collection of attributes which make up the nature of a god; divinity; godhead; as, the deity of the Supreme Being is seen in his works.
Greek
2320. theotes --deity...deity. Part of Speech: Noun, Feminine Transliteration: theotes Phonetic Spelling:
(theh-ot'-ace) Short Definition:
deity, Godhead Definition:
deity, Godhead.
...896. Baal -- Baal, a Canaanitedeity
... Baal, a Canaanitedeity. Part of Speech: Proper Noun, Indeclinable Transliteration:
Baal Phonetic Spelling: (bah'-al) Short Definition: Baal Definition: Baal...
1175. deisidaimonia -- a religion, superstition
... Cognate: 1175 (akin to 1174 , see there) -- properly, dread of a pagandeity "inspiring"
a "token show of respect" (religious gesture) -- especially religious...
1140. daimonion -- an evil spirit, a demon
... Transliteration: daimonion Phonetic Spelling: (dahee-mon'-ee-on) Short Definition:
an evil-spirit, demon Definition: an evil-spirit, demon; a heathendeity....
2435. hilasterion -- propitiatory
... Phonetic Spelling: (hil-as-tay'-ree-on) Short Definition: a sin offering, covering
Definition: (a) a sin offering, by which the wrath of thedeity shall be...
2413. hieros -- sacred, a sacred thing, a temple
... 2413 (an adjective) -- properly, (because associated with God's , ); consecrated
todeity and therefore "," ie because acceptable for God's service....
697. Areios Pagos -- "the Hill of Ares," Areopagus, a hill in...
... Areopagus, Mars' Hill. From Ares (the name of the Greekdeity of war) and a derivative
of pegnumi; rock of Ares, a place in Athens -- Areopagus, Mars' Hill....
2203. Zeus -- Zeus, the greatest of the pagan Gk. gods
... instead of it a (probably cognate) name; Dis (deece), which is otherwise obsolete;
Zeus or Dis (among the Latins, Jupiter or Jove), the supremedeity of the...
624. Apollonia -- Apollonia, a city in Macedonia
... Apollonia. From the pagandeity Apollon (ie The sun; from apollumi); Apollonia,
a place in Macedonia -- Apollonia. see GREEK apollumi....
2299. thea -- a goddess
... of theos Definition a goddess NASB Word Usage goddess (2). goddess. Feminine of
theos; a femaledeity -- goddess. see GREEK theos. (theas) -- 1 Occurrence....
Strong's Hebrew
1286. Berith -- a Shechemitedeity.... 1285, 1286. Berith. 1287 . a Shechemite
deity. Transliteration
... Berith. Word
Origin short. form of Baal Definition a Shechemite
deity. Berith
...1078. Bel -- a chief Bab.deity
... a chief Bab.deity. Transliteration: Bel Phonetic Spelling: (bale) Short Definition:
Bel.... form of Baal Definition a chief Bab.deity NASB Word Usage Bel (3). Bel...
1408. Gad -- "fortune," a Bab. god.
... god. Fortune, a Babyloniandeity A variation of gad; Fortune, a Babyloniandeity --
that troop. see HEBREW gad. 1407, 1408. Gad. 1409 . Strong's Numbers.
433. eloah -- God, god
... God, god. Probably prolonged (emphat.) From 'el; adeity or theDeity -- God, god.
See 'elohiym. see HEBREW 'el. see HEBREW 'elohiym. 432, 433. eloah. 434...
1168. Ba'al -- a heathen god
... Baal, plural Baalim The same as ba'al; Baal, a Phoeniciandeity -- Baal, (plural)
Baalim. see HEBREW ba'al. 1167, 1168. Ba'al. 1168a . Strong's Numbers.
4432. Molek -- a heathen god to whom Isr. sacrificed children
... sacrificed children NASB Word Usage Molech (8). Molech. From malak; Molek (ie King),
the chiefdeity of the Ammonites -- Molech. Compare Malkam....
6465. Peor -- a mountain in Moab, also a god worshiped there
... Peor. From pa'ar; a gap; Peor, a mountain East of Jordan; also (for Ba'al p'owr)
adeity worshipped there -- Peor. See also Beyth p'owr. see HEBREW pa'ar....
1712. Dagon -- a god and an idol of the Philistines
... 1). Dagon. From dag; the fish-god; Dagon, a Philistinedeity -- Dagon. see
HEBREW dag. 1711, 1712. Dagon. 1713 . Strong's Numbers.
5370. Nergal -- a heathen god
... Word Origin of foreign origin Definition a heathen god NASB Word Usage Nergal (1).
Nergal. Of foreign origin; Nergal, a Cuthitedeity -- Nergal. 5369, 5370....
1187. Baal Peor -- "Baal of Peor," a Moabite god
... Baal-peor. From Ba'al and p'owr; Baal of Peor; Baal-Peor, a Moabitishdeity --
Baal-peor. see HEBREW Ba'al. see HEBREW p'owr. 1186, 1187. Baal Peor. 1188 ....
Library
Vision of theDeity.
... EXPOSITION OF THE APOCALYPSE. Vision of theDeity. "After this, I looked,
and behold, a door opened in heaven: and the first voice...
TheDeity and Humanity of Christ, John 1 3-Jan 14 Col. 9 16 Eph. 3...
... Hymns. Book 1. Hymn 1:2. Thedeity and humanity of Christ, John 1. 1-3
14. Col. 9. 16. Eph. 3, 9 10. 1 Ere the blue heavens were...
That theDeity is Incomprehensible, and that we Ought Not
... Book I. Chapter I."That theDeity is incomprehensible, and that we ought
not.... TheDeity, therefore, is ineffable and incomprehensible....
Concerning the Nature ofDeity: that it is Incomprehensible.
... Book I. Chapter IV."Concerning the nature ofDeity: that it is incomprehensible....
For the first mover is motionless, and that is theDeity....
For if thisDeity Requires a Black, that a White Skin...
... Book III. 43 For if thisdeity requires a black, that a white skin? For
if thisdeity [4070] requires a black, that [4071] a white...
But Suppose that theDeity was Present in that Very Stone...
... Book VII. 51 But suppose that thedeity was present in that very stone?
[5031] But suppose that thedeity was present in that...
ThatDeity Should be Born in Our Nature, Ought not Reasonably to...
... IV."Apologetic Works. Chapter XXV. ThatDeity should be born in our
nature, ought not reasonably to present any strangeness?...
TheDeity and Humanity of Christ. John 1:1,3,14;Col. 1:16
... HYMNS AND SPIRITUAL SONGS IN THREE BOOKS. HYMN 2 Thedeity and humanity of Christ.
John 1:1,3,14;Col. 1:16. LM Thedeity and humanity of Christ....
Sundry August Titles, Descriptive ofDeity, Applied to the Son...
... Chapter XVII."Sundry August Titles, Descriptive ofDeity, Applied to the
Son, Not, as Praxeas Would Have It, Only to the Father....
TheDeity of the Holy Spirit.
... THEDEITY OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.... This leaves it beyond question that the Holy Spirit
occupies the position of Jehovah (orDeity) in the New Testament (cf....
Thesaurus
Deity (3 Occurrences)... 2. (n.) The collection of attributes which make up the nature of a god; divinity;
godhead; as, the
deity of the Supreme Being is seen in his works.
...Abi (2 Occurrences)
... genitive. Further still, it is claimed that either the word father or the
word king may, in a name, be a designation of adeity....
Godhead (5 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary. 1. (n.) Godship;deity; divinity; divine nature or
essence; godhood. 2. (n.) TheDeity; God; the Supreme Being....
Anthropomorphism
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (n.) The representation of theDeity, or of a polytheistic
deity, under a human form, or with human attributes and affections....
Tammuz (1 Occurrence)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary. 1. (n.) Adeity among the ancient Syrians, in honor
of whom the Hebrew idolatresses held an annual lamentation....
Assur (2 Occurrences)
... Assur, the localdeity of the place, became the national god of Assyria.
It is uncertain whether thedeity gave the name to the...
Asshur (133 Occurrences)
... Assur, the localdeity of the place, became the national god of Assyria.
It is uncertain whether thedeity gave the name to the...
Ashtoreth (3 Occurrences)
... The moon goddess of the Phoenicians, representing the passive principle in nature,
their principal femaledeity; frequently associated with the name of Baal...
Sherghat
... Assur, the localdeity of the place, became the national god of Assyria.
It is uncertain whether thedeity gave the name to the...
Golden (86 Occurrences)
... one passage (Amos 8:14) though it was a chief center of the bull worship (1 Kings
12:30)-may be due to the fact that the worship of the femaledeity was the...
Resources
Is the deity of Christ biblical? | GotQuestions.orgWhat occurred at the Council of Nicea? | GotQuestions.orgWhat are the strongest biblical arguments for the divinity of Christ? | GotQuestions.orgDeity: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.comBible Concordance •
Bible Dictionary •
Bible Encyclopedia •
Topical Bible •
Bible Thesuarus
