it follows,and these three are one; which is to be understood, not only of their unity and agreement in their testimony, they testifying of the same thing, the sonship of Christ; but of their unity in essence or nature, they being the one God.
So that, this passage holds forth and asserts the unity of God, a trinity of persons in the Godhead, the proper deity of each person, and their distinct personality, the unity of essence in that they are one; a trinity of persons in that they are three, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and are neither more nor fewer; the deity of each person, for otherwise their testimony would not be the testimony of God, as in 1Jo 5:9; and their distinct personality; for were they not three distinct persons, they could not be three testifiers, or three that bare record.
This being a proper place, I shall insert the faith of the ancient Jews concerning the doctrine of the Trinity; and the rather, as it agrees with the apostle's doctrine in words and language, as well as in matter.
They call the three Persons in the Godhead three degrees: they say ,"Jehovah, Elohenu (our God), Jehovah, De 6:4; these are the three degrees with respect to this sublime mystery, in the beginning Elohim, or God, created, Ge 1:1, &c.'
'And these three, they say, though they are distinct, yet are one, as appears by what follows :"come see the mystery of the word; there are three degrees, and every degree is by itself, yet they are all one, and are bound together in one, and one is not separated from the other.'
'Again, it is said ,"this is the unity of Jehovah the first, Elohenu, Jehovah, lo, all of them are one, and therefore: called one; lo, the three names are as if they were one, and therefore are called one, and they are one; but by the revelation of the Holy Spirit it is made known, and they by the sight of the eye may be known, dxa Nyla atltd, "that these three are one": and this is the mystery of the voice which is heard; the voice is one, and there are three things, fire, and Spirit, and water, and all of them are one in the mystery of the voice, and they are but one: so here, Jehovah, Elohenu, Jehovah, they are one, the three, Nynwwg, forms, modes, or things, which are one.'
'Once more ,"there are two, and one is joined unto them, and they are three; and when the three are one, he says to them, these are the two names which Israel heard, Jehovah, Jehovah, and Elohenu is joined unto them, and it is the seal of the ring of truth; and when they are joined as one, they are one in one unity.'
'And this they illustrate by the three names of the soul of man ;"the three powers are all of them one, the soul, spirit, and breath, they are joined as one, and they are one; and all is according to the mode of the sublime mystery,''meaning the Trinity."
Says R. Isaac worthy are the righteous in this world, and in the world to come, for lo, the whole of them is holy, their body is holy, their soul is holy, their Spirit is holy, their breath is holy, holy are these three degrees "according to the form above".
--Come see these three degrees cleave together as one, the soul, Spirit, and breath.''The three first Sephirot, or numbers, in the Cabalistic tree, intend the three divine Persons; the first is called the chief crown, and first glory, which essence no creature can comprehend , and designs the Father, Joh 1:18; the second is called wisdom, and the intelligence illuminating, the crown of the creation, the brightness of equal unity, who is exalted above every head; and he is called, by the Cabalists, the second glory ; see 1Co 1:24 Heb 1:3.
This is the Son of God: the third is called understanding sanctifying, and is the foundation of ancient wisdom, which is called the worker of faith; and he is the parent of faith, and from his power faith flows ; and this is the Holy Spirit; see 1Pe 1:2.
Now they say that these three first numbers are intellectual, and are not twdm, "properties", or "attributes", as the other seven are. R. Simeon ben Jochai says ,"of the three superior numbers it is said, Ps 62:11, "God hath spoken once, twice have I heard this"; one and two, lo the superior numbers of whom it is said, one, one, one, three ones, and this is the mystery of Ps 62:11.'
'Says R. Judah Levi ,"behold the mystery of the numberer, the number, and the numbered; in the bosom of God it is one thing, in the bosom of man three; because he weighs with his understanding, and speaks with his mouth, and writes with his hand.'
'It was usual with the ancient Jews to introduce Jehovah speaking, or doing anything, in this form, I and my house of judgment; and it is a rule with them, that wherever it is said, "and Jehovah", he and his house or judgment are intended ; and Jarchi frequently makes use of this phrase to explain texts where a plurality in the Godhead is intended, as Ge 1:26; and it is to be observed, that a house of judgment, or a sanhedrim, among the Jews, never consisted of less than three.
They also had used to write the word "Jehovah" with three "Jods", in the form of a triangle,yy yas representing the three divine Persons: one of their more modern writers has this observation on the blessing of the priest in Nu 6:24:"these three verses begin with a "Jod", in reference to the three "Jods" which we write in the room of the name, (i.
e. Jehovah,) for they have respect to the three superior things.'' Respons. contr. Arian. obj. 10. & de Trinitate, c. 4. Contr. Arium, p. 109. De Unitate Eccles. p. 255. & in Ep. 73. ad Jubajan, p. 184.
Contr. Praxeam, c. 25. Zohar in Gen. fol. 1. 3. Ib. in Lev. fol. 27. 2. Ib. in Exod. fol. 18. 3, 4. lb. in Numb. fol. 67. 3. lb. in Exod. fol. 73. 4. lb. in Lev. fol. 29. 2. Sepher Jetzira, Semit. 1.
Sepher Jetzira, Semit. 2. Ib. Semit. 3. R. Menachem apud Rittangel. in Jetzira, p. 193. Tikkune Zohar apud ib. p. 64. Apud ib. p. 38. Zohar in Gen. fol. 48. 4. Jarchi in Gen. xix. 24. Vid. T. Bab. Beracot, fol.
6. 1. & Gloss. in ib. & Sanhedrin, fol. 3. 2. R. Abraham Seba in Tzeror Hammor, fol. 113.