What does the mystery of the Holy Trinity tell us about the Son before the Incarnation?

Answer 1

My interpretation of Scripture does not include a 'trinity' concept for the Godhead. Whenever The Bible speaks of the Holy Spirit, it usually points directly to the awesome power of God and the Son - aka 'the Spirit of Christ.' It usually presents itself symbolically as fire, wind, water - but never as a person. The Godhead in Scripture has two divine beings now - 'the God' who became the Father and the Logos or the Word who became the Son - Jesus. The 'trinity' only confuses and masks this.

Consider that Jesus was begotten by the Holy Spirit and calls Himself the Father's Son and not any other 3rd person. Jesus prays to the Father only. The fact that the Holy Spirit is absent in human form and is never truly addressed by any of the prologues in the New Testament would amount to a massive disrespect of the Godhead if the Spirit is not within the Father and Son - and all His saints - doing God's works.

The 'mysterious' concept was developed in the 4th Century AD by the Roman Church and has caused confusion amongst the masses for centuries. Many will point to various Scripture in vain attempts to validate this theory. In my opinion, if this was such an intricate and vital part of our knowledge to lead us to salvation, surely Jesus would have taught it. God doesn't do anything with first revealing the details of it to mankind:

Amos 3:7 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

7 Surely the Lord God does nothing

Unless He reveals His secret counsel

To His servants the prophets.

Numbers 11:29

But Moses said to him, "Are you jealous for my sake? Would that all the Lord's people were prophets, that the Lord would put His Spirit upon them!" (Get that - God's Spirit).

Matthew 10:19-20New King James Version (NKJV)

19 But when they deliver you up, do not worry about how or what you should speak. For it will be given to you in that hour what you should speak; 20 for it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of your Father who speaks in you. (Again it is God's Spirit and God is Holy, hence Holy Spirit).

Another Answer:

Putting the discussion of the 'Holy Trinity' aside, I'll attempt a partial answer to the remainder of the question, ... tell us about the Son before the Incarnation... in other words, before Messiah "became flesh and dwelt among us" (John 1:14).

A) "In the beginning was Miltha. And that Miltha was with Elohim. And Elohim was that Miltha. This was with Elohim in the beginning" (John 1:1-2). The word 'Miltha' is Aramaic, the language spoken by Messiah and his disciples. It not only has no direct English equivalent, it has no direct equivalent in anylanguage, including Hebrew. As close as we can get are words such as 'Manifestation,' 'Word,' 'Instance,' 'Substance.'

B) Most English translations read: "In the beginning was the Word" ('Word' from the Greek logos). "And the Word was with God."

C) Let's put that back into Hebrew: "Beresheeth (in the beginning) was the Dabar haShem (Word of the Name). And Dabar haShem was along with haShem."

That's better! But I wish in this case the English translators had chosen "Manifestation" instead of "Word" (since it was Dabar who blew the breath of life-- 'Holy Spirit' -- into Adam's nostrils, and whose finger carved the Ten Commands into stone, etc., etc.). Worse still, here in John 1:1 these Greek-into-English translators reversed the order of the proper nouns in the last sentence of the verse ("And the Word was God"), and later made up the word 'Godhead,' further morphing the doctrine of the 'Holy Trinity' into the doctrine of a 'Triune God'! For shame!

But, please, let's allow Scripture to interpret Scripture! Isaiah 55:11, "So shall my Debar (the Word of haShem) be that goes forth out of my mouth: he shall not return unto me reikam (in vain, ineffectual); but he shall do that which I please, and he shall accomplish the purpose whereto I sent him."

A) John 1:1-2 from Peshitta English Aramaic Critical Edition, Netzari Press, 2011