Being Established vs. Being Created

Both the Heavenly Temple and the Throne are described in the Bible, and they are described very intentionally and carefully with regards to their relationship to the Almighty God. They are bound to God. They are yoked to God.

These same physical structures, the Temple and the Throne, are never said in the Bible to have been created. The term created is not used for them. The word established is, but they were never created.

Likewise, Jesus is carefully described in the Bible in terms of his relationship to God. That is, he’s described as someone who is bound to God. And the term established is used for Jesus just like it is used for God’s Temple and God’s Throne. For example, in Proverbs 8 (see below), Jesus says 'From everlasting I was established.'

Notably, the word created is never used for Jesus. We deduce that if you understand how the word established is used for Jesus, you possess the key to understanding his origins. Let’s take a closer look by considering the context of the following passage, which uses the word established for our Beloved Savior.

The LORD possessed me [or brought me forth] at the beginning of his way, before his works of old. From everlasting I was established, from the age I was anointed, from the first, from former states of the Earth. 

When there were no depths I was brought forth, when there were no springs abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, before the hills, I was brought forth; while he had not yet made the Earth and the fields, nor the first dust of the World (Proverbs 8:22-26; NASB and YLT for v. 23).

So, parallel to the idea of Jesus being established is the idea of him being brought forth. Can you see that in the passage above? If not, please read it again. Being brought forth is our second key to understanding the origins of Jesus. What does it mean for him to have been brought forth?

Reminiscent of what it means to be brought forth is the idea of Jesus being led into the presence of God. In another passage we see Jesus receiving authority, glory, and sovereign power through his relationship to the Father. As you read the following passage from Daniel, you'll notice that Jesus approaches the One God and is led into God’s presence.

… One like a son of man [Jesus], coming with the clouds of Heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power… (Daniel 7:13-14)

Being Brought Forth

The idea behind Proverbs 8 and Daniel 7 is the same: God brought forth or established Jesus. In Daniel 7, that bringing forth took place when Jesus was led into God’s presence. Then, God gave Jesus authority, meaning God established Jesus as king and ruler.

The idea behind bringing forth and establishing has nothing to do with creating—isn’t that correct? So, we conclude that nothing in Proverbs 8 or Daniel 7 indicates that God created Jesus. Nothing in these passages indicates that “there was a time when Jesus was not” (the infamous words of Arius).

The magnificent event we read about in Daniel 7 looks very similar to an event Paul describes in Philippians 2 about a time when God gave Jesus equality with him. Paul says that Jesus ‘existed in the form of God’ before the incarnation, but that Jesus ‘did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped’ (Philippians 2:6). Remember that?

Paul was saying that the form of God that Jesus possessed (the divine nature, which is what gave Jesus equality with God) was something that Jesus gave up. Jesus surrendered his divine nature. He did not consider his equality with God as something to cling to. He let it go.

Jesus Got his Glory from God

Now think about it: If equality with God (Philippians 2:6) was something Jesus could leave aside, it was not an integral part of his being. Rather, it was a grace from God—the glory God had given to Jesus. God gave Jesus divine glory. And that divine glory was with Jesus for a time.

Do you believe that Jesus got his glory from God? If you don’t yet, consider another passage, one where Jesus spoke to God about the glory Jesus had before his incarnation. What glory did Jesus say he had? He called it ‘my glory, the glory you have given me’ (John 17:24). So you should have zero doubt that Jesus’ pre-incarnation glory was given to him by God. Jesus said that it was!

Proverbs 8 in Context

Now, let’s get back to Proverbs 8:22-26 since it still needs to be interpreted properly. First of all, we must understand that it’s part of a broader passage, Proverbs 8:22-31. The broader context provides an epic account of what Jesus’ relationship to God was like both prior to and during the six-day Creation event.

The complete passage is divided into two parts. The first part we read above. It describes events, activities, and relationships prior to the Creation of the visible Universe. That is, it describes events that took place before the Earth, Solar System, Milky Way, and galaxies came into existence. The second part describes the events that took place at Creation. In other words, it describes the events that took place during the six days detailed in Genesis 1.

The first part uses the expressions ‘I was established’ and ‘I was brought forth,’ because those things happened to Jesus before the Creation. Describing that epoch of history very specifically, the passage says “he [God] had not yet made the Earth… nor the first dust of the World.” What does that description tell us? That the epoch of history being described in Proverbs 8:22-26 by Solomon was prior to Creation. It happened before the Beginning.

Pre-History, Part Two

Now it’s time to consider the second part of the passage. It follows immediately after what we just read. The previous passage ended in verse 26 and this one begins in Proverbs 8:27, saying this:

When he [God] established the heavens, I was there, when he inscribed a circle on the face of the deep, when he made firm the skies above, when the springs of the deep became fixed, when he set for the sea its boundary so that the water would not transgress his command, when he marked out the foundations of the Earth; then I was beside him, as a Master Workman;

and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him, rejoicing in the World, his Earth, and having my delight in the sons of men (Proverbs 8:27-31 NASB).

So this second part of Proverbs 8 records Jesus saying ‘I was there… beside him [God].’ And the actual time of this ‘being beside God’ is given to us in the passage—can you see how it is given? The first word of this section is when, meaning that the passage is referring to a specific time in history—that specific time is ‘when he [God] established the heavens… [and] when he marked out the foundations of the Earth.’

So Proverbs 8 teaches that Jesus was with God (together in a relationship, side-by-side) when God was establishing the Heavens and the Earth. Strikingly, that’s the very 6-day span of history that John describes in his famous Prologue to the Gospel of John (1:1-2). It's also the time period when God said to someone:

Let us make mankind in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea... (Genesis 1:26)

Jesus Was With God

It’s no coincidence that John gives that part of World history the exact same emphasis Solomon gives it. What emphasis? That Jesus had a close relationship with the One God!

In the Beginning was the Word, and the Word was with the [One] God, and the Word was God. He was with the [One] God in the Beginning.

If John twice repeats that Jesus was ‘with the One God in the Beginning,’ then he’s trying to emphasize Jesus’ privileged relationship with God—Jesus’ proximity to God. Right? If that is the emphasis of John 1, then it is the perfect parallel to Proverbs 8. Remember how in Proverbs it says ‘I was there’ and ‘I was beside him [God]’? Well, that sounds a whole lot like John chapter 1 which says ‘the Word was with the One God,’ doesn’t it? It sounds a whole lot like ‘This one was with the One God.’

The Source of Christ’s Glory

So, John 1 and Proverbs 8 teach the same thing: that someone called the Word had the honor of being with God—but what does being with God mean? Among many other things, it means that Jesus’ glory depends on his relationship to God! That’s a truth you can see all over the Bible. If you don’t understand it, you don’t understand Jesus, and you haven’t listened to him:

[The Jews asked Jesus] 'Who do you make yourself to be?'

Jesus replied, 'If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. The One who glorifies me is my Father…' (John 8:53-54; LEB).

This truth, that Jesus gets his glory from the Father is one that you must apply to your own life too. What makes you great is not who you know, what title you have, or worldly prestige. IT doesn't matter whether your a senator, a military officer of rank, a person with many titles, or an elder in your community. You might be rich and famous, but your greatness has nothing to do with that.

Your greatness depends on how much time you have spent with God. The way for you to obtain a glorious resurrection and eternal life is by seeking it from God. Spend time with him, and he will lift you up. He will honor you.

[Jesus said] I do not receive honor from men… How can you believe, who receive honor from one another, and do not seek the honor that comes from the Only God? (John 5:41, 44; NKJV)