Hebrews 1 & Divine Simplicity

Question #44: How can Hebrews 1 simultaneously assert the Son’s full deity and distinct Personhood from the Father while preserving the one undivided essence of God?

TLDR: Hebrews, by grounding the Son’s personal identity in eternal begottenness rather than separate properties, affirms that Jesus fully shares the one divine essence with the Father while remaining a distinct Person. This emphasis on relational origin preserves God’s unity and simplicity, focusing distinction in the unbegotten-begotten relationship rather than in differing attributes (Hebrews 1:3–6; 5:5; Psalm 2:7; John 1:14; Hebrews 1:6; Romans 1:4; Psalm 45:6–7; Hebrews 1:8).

Context and The Self-Standing Givenness Approach

The Self-Standing Givenness Approach interprets reality as intrinsically relational, where being unfolds in acts of self-givenness rather than static substance. Each entity is a self-standing relational mode, fully possessing its own reality while existing in dynamic relation. In the Trinity, Father, Son, and Spirit embody the one divine essence without dividing God’s being, since they differ by eternal relations (unbegotten, begotten, proceeding). This view sustains divine simplicity by rejecting any assembly of parts and insists that personhood emerges from irreducible relational identity. Hebrews 1 exemplifies how the Son is the radiant, exact imprint of the Father’s nature, showing Him as a self-standing mode of the one God, not a lesser fragment of deity. The approach unifies biblical testimony by highlighting relationality as it appears in the text, clarifying how the one God can exist as three distinct “whos” in perfect unity.

Hebrews 1: Full Divinity, Real Distinction, and Divine Simplicity

Hebrews 1 proclaims the Son as “the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature,” using ἀπαύγασμα (apaugasma, radiance) and χαρακτήρ τῆς ὑποστάσεως (charaktēr tēs hypostaseōs, exact imprint) to show that the Son shares the Father’s essence (ὑπόστασις, hypostasis) completely. He is no lesser emanation but the perfect manifestation of the Father. At the same time, Hebrews stresses that the Son is begotten–not unbegotten–so the Father remains unbegotten, not begotten. Both fully possess one indivisible divine nature, yet relate eternally as Father and Son, united in creation and salvation without compromising God’s oneness.

Clarifying “Personal Identity” Beyond Leibniz’s Law

Now that we stand in 2025, certain Enlightenment-era views on identity can be passé when applied uncritically to Scripture. For instance, Leibniz’s law might suggest that if the Father and Son share every divine attribute, they collapse into the same Person. Yet the Bible plainly refutes that: Jesus prays to and is sent by the Father (John 17:5, John 20:21), while being the Father’s “Word” and God Himself (John 1:1, 20:28). In Trinitarian theology, “who” each Person is stems from eternal relations–unbegotten for the Father, begotten for the Son, proceeding for the Spirit–not from discrete properties that would fragment the divine essence. Hebrews 1 fits neatly here: the Father, Son, and Spirit remain distinct Persons while constituting the single, undivided God. Coupled with the Self-Standing Givenness Approach, this perspective offers a coherent interpretation of Hebrews 1.

Personal identity here refers to the unique, irreducible “who” of a being, formed not by listing attributes but by a relational stance or origin that discloses itself in real self-communication, allowing those in relationship to experience and interpret that connection. In Trinitarian theology, each divine Person holds a distinct identity by virtue of eternal relations (unbegotten, begotten, proceeding) yet shares one undivided essence. Within their mutual, perfectly complete life, believers are invited to behold this radiant reality for their sanctification–exemplified when Jesus says “I and the Father are one,” which transformed hearers like Thomas, who confessed, “My Lord and my God.”

Matthew 3:16–17, John 1:14, John 17:5, John 20:21–22, and Romans 8:14–16 all illustrate how relational events disclose each Person’s identity in a lived encounter, rather than through static attributes.

Connecting This Perspective to Hebrews 1

When Hebrews 1 calls the Son the Father’s “radiance” and “exact imprint,” it adopts precisely this relational view of identity, relying on the Son’s begottenness rather than lesser divine “properties.” He is fully God without fragmenting the Godhead. If we depended solely on property-based criteria, we could not explain how the Son shares the Father’s essence while remaining a distinct “who.” By centering on eternal relations–Father as unbegotten, Son as begotten–Hebrews 1 upholds God’s oneness of essence and distinction of Persons without contradiction.

Preserving Unity and Distinction

Hebrews 1 illustrates divine simplicity (no parts in God) by showing that even in the Son’s distinct Personhood (begotten, not unbegotten), the Godhead stays indivisible. Father and Son share the same ὑπόστασις yet are not a single Person, since the Son’s “who” is relationally defined, not by additional properties that would multiply the essence. Scripture depicts the Father sending the Son and the Son praying to the Father, both acting in perfect unity instead of as separate gods.

Why It Matters

It clarifies how the Son can be fully divine–coequal, coeternal–without collapsing into the Father. It honors the biblical testimony that the Father is not the Son, though both are truly God. It relies on a relational understanding of personal identity that moves beyond Leibniz’s law. Finally, it preserves divine simplicity: Father and Son do not split the divine substance but exist as distinct Persons in eternal relation alone.

Hence, Hebrews 1 not only declares the Son’s full deity but also points to the theological solution for “personal identity” in the Trinity that surpasses enumerating attributes. By grounding the Son’s Personhood in eternal begottenness, the text shows how He can be “the radiance of the glory of God” without being a second or lesser deity. Anchoring the Son’s identity in begottenness allows Hebrews 1 to affirm His full divinity while maintaining the Godhead’s unity, since He is the Father’s own radiance rather than a separate being. This relational approach (the Self-Standing Givenness Approach) elegantly fits with Hebrews 1, upholding the oneness of essence and the real personal distinctions in Father, Son, and Spirit–enabling one God to exist as three irreducible “whos” in undivided simplicity.

Two-Sentence Definition of Person (Extended)

A person is an irreducible, self-standing relational mode–since God is relational and personal–that conveys “who-ness” within the one divine essence, fully possessing the shared being of God while eternally distinct by relation of origin. Within the Self-Standing Givenness Approach, this understanding situates each divine Person as a unique relational mode of the one reality, giving philosophical coherence to how Father, Son, and Spirit can share a single essence yet remain distinct.

Scriptural Support for the Definition of Person

John 1:1–3: “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…” Distinction (the Word was with God) and unity (the Word was God) both emerge, exemplifying “whos” within a single reality.

John 17:5: “And now, Father, glorify Me in Your own presence with the glory that I had with You before the world existed.” Jesus’s prayer demonstrates His distinct Personhood alongside shared eternal glory, aligning with a relational Father-Son ontology.

Matthew 28:19: “Go therefore… baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” The singular “name” upholds oneness of essence, while naming Father, Son, and Spirit affirms irreducible personal distinctions.

Hebrews 1:3: “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of His nature…” The Son’s identity as “radiance” and “imprint” signifies begotten distinction and shared essence, highlighting divine simplicity and real distinction.

2 Corinthians 13:13: “The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit…” This triadic blessing envisions Father, Son, and Spirit in relational unity, each Person distinct yet fully participating in the one divine essence–demonstrating the communion central to the Self-Standing Givenness Approach.

These texts underscore how each divine Person is irreducibly relational while preserving the one, undivided divine essence. By refusing purely property-based distinctions and focusing instead on eternal relations, Hebrews 1 and related passages demonstrate a God who is one in essence yet three in personal modes–eternally relational in simplicity.

On an exegetical side note: The author of Hebrews emphasizes a sense of “now” (1:1) to highlight that salvation history culminates in Jesus’ life, death, and resurrection, fulfilling and surpassing prior modes of revelation like prophets and theophanies (Hebrews 1:1–2, John 1:1–14). The author’s aim is to underscore the finality and supremacy of the Son’s incarnate revelation rather than detailing every prior appearance (Hebrews 1:3–4). This rhetorical choice emphasizes Christ as the ultimate and definitive Word of God. Form, style, and content work together to illuminate truth but just because we don’t like the form and/or content doesn’t mean we can pretend we know better than the authors stylistic choices to communicate truths. Here in Hebrews the writer creatively and eloquently chooses to speak about the relation of revelation in the present by using the unique phrasing of the sense of nowness by employing the form of eschatology. (I’m reminded of 2 Tim 4:3-4 here)

Next Question is interrelated so be sure to check that out:

Question #45: How does Romans 11:36 speak of divine simplicity?