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--color-end: var(--bgcolor-content-end);" ><div class="content"> <div class="label gradient-to-tr" style="--color-start: #96445a; --color-end: #6f637e;">Question</div> <div class="sponsor-sidebar"><div class="desktop-show" align="center"><div class="adManager-placeholder"></div></div></div> <h1><span itemprop="name headline" property="og:title">Why is “the Word was a god” not a valid translation of John 1:1?</span></h1> <div class="actions-wrap"><div class="actions"> <a target="_blank" rel="noopener" href="https://printer.gotquestions.net/GeneratePF?articleId=93033" onClick="gtag('event', 'click', {'event_category':'engagement', 'event_label':'print'});"><img src="img/print.svg" class="questionInteract" alt="the Word was a god"></a> </div></div> <div itemprop="articleBody"> <div class="label gradient-to-tr" style="--color-start: #29a699; --color-end: #749c5a;">Answer</div><br><br> John 1:1 reads, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” Some have proposed another translation that says, “The word was <em>a</em> god” (emphasis added). This translation, however, is widely regarded as invalid for several reasons, including Greek grammar and syntax, predicate nouns in Greek, the context and purpose of John’s Gospel, and the testimony of early Christians.<br><br> The Greek phrase in John 1:1 is <em>theos ēn ho logos</em> (literally, “God was the Word”). In Greek, the word <em>theos</em> (“God”) comes before the verb <em>ēn</em> (“was”). The placement of <em>theos</em> is important because it reveals that the Word (or <a href="what-is-the-Logos.html"><em>Logos</em></a>) is truly divine.<br><br> The absence of a definite article before a noun does not necessarily render it indefinite. When a predicate noun, like <em>theos</em> in this case, precedes the verb and lacks a definite article, then it is best to see it as either qualitative or definite, rather than indefinite. Thus, translating <em>theos</em> as “a god” misrepresents the grammatical structure.<br><br> John 1:1 is not alone in its use of nouns without a definite article. In the New Testament, there are numerous examples where a predicate noun before the verb lacks an article yet is properly understood as qualitative or definite. For instance, in John 1:49, Nathaniel declares, “You are the King of Israel!” In the Greek text, there is not a definite article before the word for “King,” yet it is rightly translated as “the King,” not “a king.”<br><br> Another example of a noun lacking the definite article is John 8:39. Jesus says, “If you were really the children of Abraham, you would follow his example” (NLT). Here, the word translated “children” has no preceding article in Greek, yet the one supplied by the translators is the definite <em>the</em>. This is an accurate translation, following the rules of grammar. In the same way, the absence of an article before <em>theos</em> in John 1:1 does not dictate the indefinite translation “a god.”<br><br> The purpose of John’s Gospel is to establish the <a href="deity-of-Christ.html">full divinity</a> of the Word (the <em>Logos</em>). In the prologue, John presents Jesus as the preexistent, divine Word who became flesh (John 1:1–18). If we say that Jesus was “a god” rather than “the God,” equal to the Father in essence, then it would introduce polytheism into a religion that is unabashedly monotheistic.<br><br> John 1:14 says, “The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.” Jesus, the Word made flesh, is not lower than God but equal to Him, sharing the same divine nature as the Father (cf. John 10:30).<br><br> The early Christian community understood Jesus to be both the Messiah and God. For instance, in John 20:28, Thomas explicitly addresses Jesus as, “My Lord and my God!” Thomas’ public declaration of Jesus’ divinity strengthens the accepted translation of John 1:1 as “the Word was God.”<br><br> Furthermore, in Romans 9:5, Paul writes, “Theirs are the patriarchs, and from them is traced the human ancestry of the Messiah, who is God over all, forever praised! Amen.” Likewise, in Philippians 2:5–11, Paul describes Jesus as existing “in very nature God.”<br><br> Colossians 1:15–20 also presents Christ as “the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation,” through whom and for whom God created all things. These passages affirm the belief that the Word was God rather than “a god.”<br><br> It is the Jehovah’s Witnesses’ <a href="New-World-Translation.html">New World Translation</a> that translates John 1:1 as “the word was a god.” It is a misleading translation, as it fails to account for Greek grammar and syntax, the context and purpose of John’s Gospel, and early Christian understanding of Jesus’ divine nature. The proper translation, “the Word was God,” accurately reflects John’s intent and affirms the full divinity of the Word made flesh.<br><br> </div> <section class="homepage-sponsor desktop-hide"> <div class="desktop-hide" align="center"><div class="adManager-placeholder-mobile"></div></div> </section> <div class="related resources"><h4>For Further Study</h4> <a target="_blank" rel="sponsored noopener" onClick="gtag('event', 'click', {'event_category':'engagement', 'event_label':'chrbook'});" href="https://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?event=AFF&p=1011693&item_no=243602">John: Zondervan Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament by Edward W. Klink III</a><br><br> <a target="_blank" rel="sponsored noopener" onClick="gtag('event', 'click', {'event_category':'engagement', 'event_label':'logos'});" href="https://www.logos.com/?utm_campaign=logossubxlaunch-phase1&utm_source=gotquestions&utm_medium=advertising_display&utm_content=logossubxlaunch-phase1-gtlink">More insights from your Bible study - Get Started with Logos Bible Software for Free!</a> </div> <div class="related topics"><h4>Related Articles</h4> <a href="the-Word-was-with-God.html">What does it mean that the Word was with God (John 1:1)?</a><br><br> <a href="Jesus-Bible-Word-God.html">How can Jesus and the Bible both be the Word of God?</a><br><br> <a href="the-light-shines-in-the-darkness.html">What does it mean that the light shines in the darkness (John 1:5)?</a><br><br> <a href="Word-became-flesh.html">What does it mean that the Word became flesh (John 1:14)?</a><br><br> <a href="in-the-beginning-with-God.html">What does it mean that Jesus was in the beginning with God (John 1:2)?</a> </div> <center><strong class="return">Return to:<br><br> <a class="button-link box-shadow" href="questions-about-John.html">Questions about John</a><br><br> Why is “the Word was a god” not a valid translation of John 1:1?</strong></center> </div> </section> <section class="subscribe gradient-to-br" style="--color-start: #153c59; --color-end: #1b537c"> <div class="grid"> <div class="gradient-to-br box-shadow" style="--color-start: #2c6482; --color-end: #64547b"> <h5>Subscribe to the</h5> <h3>Question of the Week</h3> <p>Get our Question of the Week delivered right to your inbox!</p> <iframe src="scommon/qotw.htm" title="question of the week" frameborder="0" width="100%" height="100%"></iframe> </div></div> </section> <section class="share gradient-to-b" style="--color-start: #073D60; --color-end: #0A3652;"> <span>Follow Us:</span> <a target="_blank" href="https://www.youtube.com/gotquestionsorg"><img src="img/logo-youtube.svg" alt="YouTube icon"></a> <a target="_blank" href="https://www.facebook.com/gotquestions.org"><img src="img/logo-fb-simple.svg" alt="Facebook icon"></a> <a target="_blank" href="https://x.com/gotquestions"><img src="img/logo-x.png" alt="X icon"></a> <a target="_blank" href="https://www.instagram.com/gotquestionsministries/"><img src="img/logo-instagram.svg" alt="Instagram icon"></a> </section> </main> <footer> <div class="grid"><div> <div class="logo"></div> <ul> <li><a href="contact.html">Contact Us</a></li> <li><a href="citation.html">Citation</a></li> <li><a href="apply.html">Serve with Us</a></li> <li><a href="about.html">About Us</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="network"> GotQuestions.org is the primary site of Got Questions Ministries <a target="_blank" href="https://www.gqm.one"><img src="img/gqm-one.png"></a> </div> <div class="apps"> <a href="https://apps.apple.com/us/app/got-questions/id366553550" target="_blank" rel="noopener" onClick="gtag('event', 'download', {'event_category':'engagement', 'event_label':'ios-app'});"><img src="img/apple-appstore.svg" class="appSource"></a> <a href="https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.gotquestions.gqandapp&hl=en" target="_blank" rel="noopener" onClick="gtag('event', 'download', {'event_category':'engagement', 'event_label':'android-app'});"><img src="img/google-play.svg" class="appSource"></a> <a href="https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07VX73L12" target="_blank" rel="noopener" onClick="gtag('event', 'download', {'event_category':'engagement', 'event_label':'alexa-skill'});"><img src="img/amazon-alexa.svg" class="appSource"></a> </div> </div> </footer> <center><div class="bottom">© Copyright 2002-2025 Got Questions Ministries. 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