Page 19 - September 2026 - Truth & Tidings

Introduction born in terms of one who is higher and
The title Firstborn (prototokos), like the greater than every other king. To insert
into these verses ideas of a first physi-
title Son of God, can have overlapping cal birth would render them absurd.
ideas with human fathers and sons and the But if we see them as representative
divine Father and Son. Love and harmony titles that depict Israel as the most fa-
are similar features in human sons and voured nation, and David as the su-
the divine Son, but there are still many preme and preeminent king, then we can
fundamental differences. We are created understand how Christ is the firstborn.
sons; He is the eternal Son of the eternal The word firstborn is often used in
God. We must not overly press human terms of rank and preeminence and not
concepts into the divine reality. After all, chronology. Consider Job 18:13, which
the divine reality is the prototype upon speaks of the “firstborn of death”; here
which the human reflection is built. “firstborn” is used “of anything which
Just as the firstborn in the Old Testa- is chief, first of its kind … the greatest of
ment was marked by glory (Deu 33:17), deadly maladies … for disease may fitly be
strength (Psa 78:51; 105:36) and dignity called by a Hebraism, ‘the son of death.’” 2
(Gen 49:3), so is the Lord Jesus. However, And in Isaiah 14:30, which speaks of the
every firstborn in the OT was created by “firstborn of the poor,” “are those [who]
human generation and listed in human not merely belong to the race of the poor,
genealogies (1Ch 1:13), but the Lord Jesus but the poor in the highest sense and first
is uncreated. Just as He is the eternal Son rank.”
3
and Heir, He is the eternal Firstborn.
Firstborn of Every Creature
Old Testament Usage (Col 1:15)
The word firstborn can be used literally Distilling all the above OT references
of individuals but is also a title of some- and conceptions of the firstborn, there
one’s representative identity. For example, are three main ideas that are associated
God says, “Israel is my son, even my with the title: power, preeminence and
firstborn” (Exo 4:22), and about David possession.
1
He says, “I will make him my firstborn, Christ is described in Colossians as “the
higher than the kings of the earth” (Psa firstborn of every creature” (1:15). Just as
89:27). Obviously, Israel was not the first the firstborn son was the embodiment of
nation to exist, neither was David the first the father’s strength and power, we read
king in Israel. The quotation from Psalm of the Lord Jesus that “in him were the
89 shows that the psalmist thinks of first -
2 Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon.
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the KJV 3 Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the
unless otherwise noted. Old Testament.
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