S. Michael Houdmann Supporter Got Questions Ministries

 The doctrine of eternal generation harkens back to the very early stages of the Christian church. This doctrine, along with the eternal procession of the Holy Spirit, form the basis for the comple...

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July 01 2013 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report

John Appelt Supporter

The doctrine of “eternal generation” is the belief that God the Father eternally begat or generated God the Son who derived His deity from this. But this process did not happen as shown.

The doctrine of “eternal generation” is different than “eternal Sonship” which is the belief that Jesus was always the Son of God. The New Testament designation of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit indicate they were/are three eternal Persons, the relationship within the trinity always existing. John 3:16, John 20:21, Galatians 4:4, 1 John 4:10 say God sent His Son meaning He preexisted as the Son. John 16:28, 17:5 indicate Jesus had always identified God as His Father. Eternal Sonship is a Biblical truth.

The teaching of eternal generation claims the divine essence was communicated by God the Father to God the Son. That is based on the mentions of “begotten Son” in John 1:14, 18, 3:16, 18, 1 John 4:9. But it cannot be based on this because the Greek word translated “only begotten” is “monogenes.” The first part “mono” means “only,” and the last part “genes” (with one “n”) means “being.” Together it means “being one of a kind,” or “unique.” 

Too often, “monogenes” has been thought to be derived from “gennao,” meaning “begot.” But “genn-” differs from “gen-” by having two “n’s” rather than one. One letter makes the difference between “begetting” and “being.” “Monogenes” is used for Isaac, Hebrews 11:17, and certain individuals in Luke 7:12, 8:42, 9:38. Some, but not all, were the only offspring. The emphasis in these passages is their solitary status, an only special “beloved one,” or the “only unique One.” 

“Monogenes” is wrongly translated “begotten.” Jesus was never begotten or generated by God the Father, even at His birth. Mary’s conception was “of the Holy Spirit,” Matthew 1:20. The Father did not beget the Son, but He sent Him to earth. 

In one sense, Jesus was begotten by the Father, but it is not about His birth. Three New Testament passages, Acts 13:29-33, Hebrews 1:5 and Hebrews 5:5, quoting Psalm 2:7, reveal this. These verses speak of “begotten” or Greek “gennao” (with two “n’s”) which is always about birth, begetting, bearing children, whether physically (quite often) or figuratively as in John 3:3, 1 Corinthians 4:15, 2 Timothy 2:23, and Philemon 1:10.

But “begotten” here refers figuratively to Jesus’ resurrection. He is called the first begotten from the dead, Colossians 1:18, verified by Romans 1:4. At that moment, the “today” in the passages, God decreed to Him the right to rule over the future kingdom as promised in 2 Samuel 7:12-14, and to serve as the High Priest. In only this sense is Jesus the begotten Son.

The idea of eternal generation, the Father begetting the Son in an eternal sense, is an impossible concept that is contrived to fit Psalm 2:7 and the words “only begotten Son.” Instead. Jesus is the One from eternity with unchanging inherent traits, Hebrews 13:8, always the one and only unique eternal Son of God.

August 04 2025 • 0 responses • Vote Up • Share • Report