In John 3:16 Jesus called Himself God’s “only begotten Son.” There are some who take this as evidence of Jesus being not divine, alleging that something that is “begotten” is created. What does it mean to be the “only begotten Son”?
The phrase “only begotten” appears six times in the New Testament. Five times it was used by John (John 1:14, 18; 3:16, 18; 1 John 4:9) and one time by the Hebrews writer (11:17). If we wish to understand what it means to be the “only begotten Son,” then we must examine all of these passages to see what can be learned from each. That being said, every time John uses the phrase, he talks about Jesus, but the Hebrews writer talks about Isaac. There in Hebrews 11, the heroes of faith are recounted and Abraham is listed among them for a number of reasons, one of which being his sacrifice of Isaac. What is interesting about this usage is that the Greek word behind the phrase literally means “only child,” yet Isaac was not Abraham’s only child. Even back in Genesis 22, where the story is found, Isaac is called Abraham’s only son, but he is not. So what are we to make of this?
Most commentators remark that Isaac is the only child of Abraham through Sarah, which is true enough. However, there must be something more behind the usage other than a literal, born child. The “only begotten,” then, denotes a special relationship. Isaac is the “only begotten son” because he is the child of promise. Jesus is the “only begotten Son” because He is a part of the Triune Godhead. Jesus is not a begotten creature, but the Creator.
