Chapter X – The Purpose of Christ – The Firstborn (I)

[Christ] is the Image of the invisible God, Firstborn of every creature…

prototokos (BEFORE-MOST-BROUGHT-FORTH) pases (OF-EVERY) ktiseos (CREATION)

We are already seeing further merit to the notion of Christ’s existence prior to His physical birth, in regarding Christ as God’s Image (again, not that this does prove our point, but that it gives credence to the thought.) In this article, we will pause concerning the six aforementioned truths concerning the time before creation’s inception, and instead meditate on Christ as the Firstborn of every creature, that when we return to those truths (specially truths 3 and 4,) we will not be blindsided by the revelations stressed.

The Foremost of creation, the One principal part which stands tall above all others, is Christ Himself. Just after being titled the Image of the invisible God, He is titled “Firstborn of every creature.” The juxtaposition beautifully conveys Christ again as the Mediator of God and of creation – both in stressing His relationship to God, and then His relationship to all. Every other creature we consider in Col. 1:16 will have some other identifying, lesser label than “Firstborn of every creature.”

Before we begin, please note that we are taking this label as a whole. Many expositors in Christ today will extract “firstborn” from Col. 1:15 and 18, divorcing them from the qualifying phrases which follow. They limit Christ to being a firstborn, as opposed to the Firstborn of every creature. Though we will consider the concept of “firstborn” on its own, let us not discard the genitive phrase which follows, lest we impose unnecessary boundaries upon God’s word.

A word study on “firstborn” is undoubtedly the best way to apprehend and appreciate its force in this passage. Since there are over 100 uses of the term, it would be impractical to include every use here, but I will point at a number of its usages, that we do not neglect its force and meaning.

Where better to begin dwelling on the “firstborn” than with the first notable firstborn in Israel’s history, being Isaac? When Abraham first became old, he gave to Isaac, his “firstborn” (of Sarah – not of Sarah’s handmaiden, Hagar,) all that he had. We know this from Genesis 25:5, where, after relaying the rest of Abraham’s lineage, Moses writes that “Abraham had given everything he had to his son, Isaac.”

It is clear, from this first example, that one does not literally have to be “born first” in order to be the “first born.” Isaac was indeed born second to Ishmael – yet he is bestowed the blessings that would normally go to the “firstborn.” It is a title, symbolic in nature.

We see this again with Jacob and Esau. Esau sells his birthright for his hunger, while Jacob tricks Isaac into giving him Esau’s blessings. It may be argued that “birthright” is not the same as “firstborn,” and this is true – one is a title, while the other is the function of the title. Even still, firstborn and birthright, in Hebrew, belong to the same word family, highlighting a relation to each other. Thus we read, in Genesis 27:28-29–

When [Isaac] smelled the smell of his garments, he blessed him and said: See, the smell of my son is like the smell of the full field that Yahweh has blessed. So may the One, Elohim, give you of the dew of the heavens, of the fertile soils of the earth, and abundance of grain and grape juice.

Peoples shall serve you, and folk shall bow down to you. Be master over your brothers, and may your mother’s sons bow down to you. Cursed be those cursing you, and blessed be those blessing you.

These are the blessings of the firstborn.

The role of “firstborn” goes beyond receiving great blessings, however. To see the actual function of a firstborn, we must look further to Jacob’s firstborn, Reuben (Gen. 35:23.) Reuben kept his father’s concubine, and his mother Rachel’s maidservant, Bilhah, much to his father’s chagrin. Observe Gen. 35:22–

It came to pass while Israel [Jacob] was tabernacling in [Migdaleder] that Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine. Israel heard of it, and it was evil in his eyes.

From here, there is notable tension between Jacob and his firstborn. Jacob found Joseph, instead, to be his favorite child, as he was the most innocent contrast to Jacob’s old age (Gen. 37:3.) Thus Jacob made him a distinctive tunic, creating much jealousy between Joseph and his brothers. It is not that this tunic was silly and colorful, as the Sunday School lessons have claimed. It was as if Jacob were saying, “Regardless of Reuben’s blessings, Joseph is my favorite, and if it were in my power, I would bestow upon him all the blessings I must regrettably impart to Reuben.”

A perfect storm was brewing. Lightning first flashed when Yahweh gave Joseph a dream – that his brothers and father would eventually bow down to him. Even with his bias, Jacob rebuked the implication of such a dream (Gen. 37:10,) though he did observe the word (37:11.) His brothers, of course, remained jealous – not because they did not believe it, but because they knew that if such a dream came to pass, Reuben’s blessings would be undermined. It implied that Joseph would be the one to rule, as the firstborn – not Reuben.

On the other side of Joseph’s journey, having seen Joseph’s growth, Jacob highlighted again that the blessings of firstborn would pass by Reuben, saying in Gen. 49:3-4–

Reuben, my firstborn are you, my vigor, and the beginning of my virility. Excelling in dignity and excelling in strength. Unstable like water, you shall certainly not excel. For you went up to your father’s bed; then you profaned my berth which you went up to.

Indeed, the responsibilities that came with being the firstborn were relinquished; neither did Simeon or Levi receive the effectual blessings of “firstborn.” Ultimately, of the tribe of Judah was Jesus called (Gen. 49:10.)

In the meantime, Joseph served that generation as the type of Christ. The firstborn did not receive these blessings for lack of purpose, but was given responsibility along with them, to watch out for all kin under his jurisdiction. In the case of Joseph, his family and Egypt – the primary world power at the time – were under his jurisdiction. It was his responsibility to guide Egypt, and especially Israel and his family through the seven years of famine.

The firstborn’s primary function, then, is to be the kinsman redeemer. This is the immense responsibility of taking care of every creature who encompasses the contextual “firstborn” under any given passage. There are laws imposed concerning the kinsman redeemer which must be followed by the firstborn (Lev. 25:25-55.) And, as we know, Christ fulfills the law’s obligation – including His role as Firstborn.

A Ransom for All

Our salvation from sin and death required a sacrifice. This sacrifice is Christ. Paul writes to Timothy, in 1 Tim. 2:5–

For there is one God, and one Mediator of God and mankind, a Man, Christ Jesus, Who is giving Himself a correspondent Ransom for all…

Why would Christ do such a thing? Because He is the Kinsman Redeemer, or Firstborn, of every creation. From what we have learned, it would be impossible for His sacrifice to reach all, if all were not first included in Him in this way. Though it is clear that being the “firstborn” does not require one to be “born first,” the premise of “firstborn” very strongly implies such a quality – and, indeed, in most examples, the straightforward fact is that one is firstborn by rite of being the oldest. The examples we have considered in Genesis are fascinating because they play with this intuitive understanding of the concept (and, I bet, if we did not have such a heavy debate going on in Colossians 1:15, the concept of “firstborn” would carry no such confusion among the ecclesia.)

We must ask: why would Christ be designated the Firstborn? According to the Socinian philosophers, it is not because of some sinlessness – according to our brother Liam’s argument, Christ maintained some kind of selfishness prior to His arrest in Gethsemane. Nor would Christ, during His earthly life, indicate any reason to be the Firstborn of those in the heavens! Surely, God did not foreshadow a blemished sacrifice to serve as a correspondent ransom to bring all into righteousness!

Paul answers this in Colossians 1:16 – all is created in Christ. This is indeed the reason for His title, “Firstborn of every creature.” This is not mere opinion, but actually proven by inspecting the connectives in the passage. The connective which begins Colossians 1:16, hoti, always conveys the reason why the prior statement is made. Let us briefly show a few examples of this. Observe Romans 5:3–

We may be boasting also in afflictions, having perceived that affliction is producing endurance…

Romans 6:5-6–

…we shall be of the resurrection also, knowing this, that our old humanity was crucified together with Him…

Or Romans 8:16–

The spirit itself is testifying together with our spirit that we are children of God.

These are but a few of the hundreds of examples of this principle. The reason we may boast in our afflictions, our participation in the resurrection, and the testimony of our spirits are given elaborations provided by hoti. So also, we may accept Colossians 1:15-16–

[Christ is] Firstborn of every creature, hoti in Him is all created…

Thus we may see Christ’s responsibility for every creature, with no exception. It is specifically because all is created in Him that He is said to be held accountable for them.

Firstborn Created

One is not called “firstborn” without intuitively being created. Though its literal meaning is not “first-born,” but a title, it is only ever imparted to created beings, and can only be brought about by inherited blessings. Since God is not picking up the pieces of a successor, He is not a “firstborn.” Christ, however, is “appointed enjoyer of the allotment of all” (Heb. 1:3.)

The Socinian recognizes this, but the Trinitarian is lacking this sense. There is no use of “firstborn” which has been attributed to the invisible God. Christ is considered both a visible Image of God, and the Firstborn of all creation. Therefore, we must assert that Christ is a part of that creation. On earth, it is clear that Christ is the Firstborn of Miriam (Luke 2:7.) He is said to be the Firstborn among many brethren (Rom. 8:29,) in regards to God’s calling out, justifying, and glorifying believers into the same allotment as He.

He is also later said to be the Firstborn “from among the dead,” per Colossians 1:18. Here is the lynch pin – He is called the Firstborn from among the dead because He was once actually dead, and is actually the first, both in time and rank, to be brought into permanent life. So also, He is called the Firstborn of every creature because He too has been created. Thus the “co-eternal” claim from the Trinitarians once again finds no basis in scripture.

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There remains a major objection from the Socinian camp, that “Firstborn of every creature” refers specially to the “new” creation alone. This is done by treating the different titles of Firstborn, as given in Rom. 8:29, and Col. 1:18, as interchangeable titles referring to the same event (Christ being roused from among the dead.) According to our favorite task force, Christ “became Firstborn of every creature when He was resurrected and became exalted (Col. 1:18.)” Yet this does not deal with the verse at hand, being verse 15, not 18. I will have much to say about this objection later, as we continue following the Greek language, and do not jump ahead of Paul.

Contrastive Glories

What we can comment on now is the prevailing falsehood among those in Christ who believe, for no surface reason, that all glory Christ receives is the same glory. If any among our task force disagree with the prior statement, then we are glad to see that the progressive glories of our Lord can be acknowledged in Colossians 1:15-20.

Christ has a glory that comes with His existence, being “Firstborn of every creature.” The only occurrence of this title is not given as a contingency from some other action. Unlike Ishmael, Jacob and Joseph, Christ is not said to become Firstborn of every creature by reason of His death, but by reason of creation being made in Him. Therefore, we are not meditating on an acquired glory, but an essential glory that came with His inception.

In contrast, He can be said to have acquired the exaltation spoken of in Philippians 2:9-11 by way of His humiliation, coming to be in the likeness of humanity, and enduring both death, and the death of the cross. Error among all parties persists if we do not distinguish between the two. If God had meant to say that the reason for Christ as “Firstborn of every creature” is His death, then He would have said something like,

Christ is the Image of the invisible God, Firstborn of every creature, for He died for our sins according to the scriptures, and that He was entombed, and that He has been roused the third day according to the scriptures…

Of course, no passage connects these dots, making them human reasonings founded upon two separate facts.

One glory, then, is inherent, while the other is acquired. The glory of Christ is progressively unfolded, as is the case with the glory of God. It would, indeed, be odd if Christ’s glory were displayed all at once, when God seems to be meticulous and slow-paced in revealing His light. The reason for His inherent glory is that all is created in Him.

This is an important topic – one which we touched upon in the “Exaltation” addendum, yet one we will return to in “Firstborn (II).” The second use of Firstborn speaks expressly of Christ being raised from among the dead. This connects the second use of “firstborn” with His death, entombment, and rousing. To forcefully impose this onto the first when the passage gives a different reason for the first use is nothing more than human sleight.

- GerudoKing