by Jim MacIntosh
The short answer is ‘No’, but we need to keep in mind that Jesus Christ is the only eternal Son of the Father but the Father has many sons which will be explained below.
What prompted this question is the increasingly use of this phrase among us. During a recent Breaking of Bread, no fewer than four of those taking part in worship used this phrase. This is a new development in phraseology among us; it was never used until very recently. Where does it come from? Is it scriptural? What difference does it make?
This phrase appears to come from the wording in several of the modern-language versions of the Bible of the expression “His only begotten Son” that we find in the King James Version in such verses as John 1:18, John 3:16, John 3:18, and 1 John 4:9. In the original Greek, the words we read as “only begotten” come from μονογενη (monogenes), which is rendered as “one and only” in several of the modern-language versions, although some other of those versions, including the ESV, translate μονογενη simply as “only”. This word μονογενη includes in its meaning the thought of “only” or “only one”. But it includes so much more.
The best way to understand μονογενη is to break it down into its parts: μονο (mono) and γενη (genes). The first part, μονο, means only or only one. The second part γενη, means kind. Put them together and you get one of a kind. Strongs and most Greek lexicons agree with that. The French Louis Segond version translates it as “unique”, and “unique” means the same thing in English as it does in French. One source I checked rendered μονογενη as “peerless”. So, the modern-language versions are taking the first part of the word and are ignoring the second part.
The same Greek word is used in Hebrews 11:17 – By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten (μονογενη) son. Did Abraham have only one son? Of course not, Isaac was not even Abraham’s eldest son. In addition to Ishmael, Abraham fathered sons through Keturah. So, the term “only begotten” in Hebrews 11:17 cannot possibly mean “one and only” or simply “only”. Isaac was one of several sons, but he was a son in a way that was unique and special, different from any of the others.
Let’s ask the same question regarding John 3:16; does God have only one son? In the book of Job we find angels referred to as sons of God, see Job 1:6 and Job 38:7. So is Adam also called the son of God, see Luke 3:38. In fact, every saved person is a son or daughter of God, according to John 1:12: “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His Name”. In the same way as Isaac was to Abraham, the Lord Jesus is the Son of God in a way that is unique and special, different from any of the others. To be fair, the extent to which the Lord Jesus is unique and different from the other sons of God is vastly more than the extend to which Isaac was unique and different from the other sons of Abraham. But the word μονογενη and not simply μονο, applies to both. Thus it would be Scripturally inaccurate to refer to the Lord Jesus as God’s one and only Son.
There are two negative consequences to using the modern-language approach to μονογενη (only begotten). The first consequence is ascribing an inaccuracy regarding the relationship between God the Father and God the Son. No truths in Scripture are more important than this relationship, and it is a favourite target of the cults. The Lord Jesus spoke of it often, for example, “I and My Father are one” (John 10:30). And the Father testified of it as well – “And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17, Matthew 17:5). That Jesus Christ is God and is coequal with the Father is critical to our appreciation of both and is fundamental to our salvation. This relationship is not that of the only Son, but that of the only Son Who is deity and Who possesses all of the attributes of deity.
The second negative consequence of translating μονογενη as “one and only” is to belittle the relationship that we as Christians have with our Father. Consider Hebrews 2:10: “For it became Him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the Captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings”. Also consider John 1:12: “But as many as received Him, to them gave He power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on His name”. These verses among others spell out the reality that our salvation brings us into the very family of God through adoption. Consider Romans 8:15: “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father”. We should note that although the Greek word rendered “sons” in John 1:12 can also be rendered “children”, the Greek word rendered “sons” in Hebrews 2:10 is the plural of the very same word rendered “Son” in John 3:16.
To conclude the longer answer, is the Lord Jesus God’s one and only son? No.