According to some, there are three who share the incommunicable attritubes of God: God the Father, his Son Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. It is claimed that if anyone has these incommunicable attributes, then the one possessing such an attribute must be God. In this document, we are focusing on the attribute of immutability.

By immutability our trinitarian neighbors mean that God does not change in his essence. According to Charles Spurgeon, commenting on Malchi 3:6, "We cannot tell you what Godhead is. We do not know what substance that is which we call God. It is an existence, it is a being; but what that is, we know not. However, whatever it is, we call it his essence, and that essence never changes." The following quoted from Sytematic Theology, by Louis Berkhof, page 58:

• "The immutability of God is a necessary concomitant of His aseity [self-existence]. It is that perfection of God by which He is devoid of all change, not only in His Being, but also in His perfections, and in His purposes and promises. In virtue of this attribute He is exalted above all becoming, and is free from all accession or diminution and from all growth or decay in His Being or perfections. His knowledge and plans, His moral principles and volitions remain forever the same. Even reason teaches us that no change is possible in God, since a change is either for better or for worse. But in God, as the absolute Perfection, improvement and deterioration are both equally impossible."

According to their reasoning, a truly unchangeable being would have been such for all eternity past, and thus if anyone is unchangeable, this would prove that such a being would have to be God Almighty. The reasoning is partly borrowed from Plato, who says that if God changed in any way, then this would mean that he was imperfect. If he is perfect, then, according to this argument, any change would mean that he is would have to change into being imperfect.

We do not argue that God's bodily substance changes, nor do we argue that his perfect character changes. But we do believe that God does change in his course of action toward peoples, events, and that he gradually accomplishes his eternal purpose toward his creation.

We also believe that God's intelligent creation will eventually possess an unchangeable perfect God-like character. The fact that creation has not had such from eternity past does not rule out that his creatures cannot possess such a quality at some point in time after creation. In this sense immutability of character could not be considered incommunicable.

Below we present the scriptures many claim show that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit all possess the supposed incommunicable attribute of immutability.

Father: Exodus 3:14; 1 Kings 8:46; Psalm 102:26-28; Isaiah 41:4, 46:11; 48:12; Malachi 3:6; Romans 1:23; Hebrews 1:11,12; Hebrews 6:17,18; James 1:17; 1 John 5:18

Son: John 8:58; 1 Timothy 2:13; Hebrews 1:11,12; 13:8

Holy Spirit: 1 Corinthians 2:13; John 14:16

Exodus 3:14: God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM," and he said, "You shall tell the children of Israel this: "I AM has sent me to you. One could read into this scripture the unchangeableness of Yahweh, but this would depend on the meaning given to the Hebrew phrase "Ehyeh asher Ehyeh", translated "I am who I am" in the World English Bible translation. See our discussion on Exodus 3:14 in the following documents:

The Tetragrammaton in Genesis
"I am" in John 8:58
The Divine Name

1 Kings 8:46: If they sin against you (for there is no man who doesn't sin), and you are angry with them, and deliver them to the enemy, so that they carry them away captive to the land of the enemy, far off or near;

Psalm 102:26-28: They will perish, but you will endure. Yes, all of them will wear out like a garment. You will change them like a cloak, and they will be changed. But you are the same. Your years will have no end. The children of your servants will continue. Their seed will be established before you.

Isaiah 41:4: Who has worked and done it, calling the generations from the beginning? I, Yahweh, the first, and with the last, I am he. Here Yahweh is speaking of his word and works being accomplished; he has the first and the last say over his works. "So shall my word be that goes forth out of my mouth: it shall not return to me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it." (Isaiah 55:11) Although the works of others are also referred to in the sense of "first and last" (1 Chronicles 29:29; 2 Chronicles 9:29; 12:15; 16:11; 20:34: 25:26; 26:22; 28:26; 35:27; Revelation 1:17,18; 2:8), there is no one else who claim this supreme position as Yahweh is the only one who has the first and last say respecting all his works and acts, and yes, he is unchangeable in carrying out his purpose from beginning to end.

Isaiah 46:11: calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country; yes, I have spoken, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed, I will also do it. -- Yahweh does accomplish that which he purposes; he does what he says he will do.

Isaiah 48:12: Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; [I am] God, and there is none like me; declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not [yet] done; saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure; calling a ravenous bird from the east, the man of my counsel from a far country; yes, I have spoken, I will also bring it to pass; I have purposed, I will also do it. - This is another scripture that shows that Yahweh accomplishes what he purposes; it is an incommunicable quality only in that only Yahweh has known the end from the beginning. (Acts 5:18; Matthew 24:36) There is nothing here however to indicate that being trustworthy in word and deed in character is a quality that can only belongs to Yahweh, for everyone who would live eternally must eventually imitate Yahweh in such unchangeable trustworthiness.

Malachi 3:6: "For I, Yahweh, don't change; therefore you, sons of Jacob, are not consumed."

This is the scripture most often quoted concerning Yahweh's unchangeableness. In some vague manner the scripture above is supposed to mean that since Yahweh does not change, and similar statements are made concerning Jesus that this means that Jesus is Yahweh. It is somehow vaguely believed that Yahweh's statement in Malachi 3:6 is an incommunicable attribute of Yahweh, and thus for someone else to possess this attribute as described in Malachi 3:6 would mean that such a person must be Yahweh.

What does Yahweh mean in Malachi 3:6 about his unchangeableness? While we believe that Yahweh is unchangeable as for as his being is concerned, this is not what he is speaking of in this verse. The Jameison-Faussett-Brown Commentary states concerning this:

the Lord--Jehovah: a name implying His immutable faithfulness in fulfilling His promises: the covenant name of God to the Jews (Exodus 6:3), called here "the sons of Jacob," in reference to God's covenant with that patriarch. I change not -- Ye are mistaken in inferring that, because I have not yet executed judgment on the wicked, I am changed from what I once was, namely, a God of judgment. therefore ye . . . are not consumed -- Ye yourselves being "not consumed," as ye have long ago deserved, are a signal proof of My unchangeableness. Romans 11:29: compare the whole chapter, in which God's mercy in store for Israel is made wholly to flow from God's unchanging faithfulness to His own covenant of love. So here, as is implied by the phrase "sons of Jacob" (Genesis 28:13, 35:12). They are spared because I am JEHOVAH, and they sons of Jacob; while I spare them, I will also punish them; and while I punish them, I will not wholly consume them. The unchangeableness of God is the sheet-anchor of the Church. The perseverance of the saints is guaranteed, not by their unchangeable love to God, but by His unchangeable love to them, and His eternal purpose and promise in Christ Jesus [MOORE]. He upbraids their ingratitude that they turn His very long-suffering (Lamentations 3:22) into a ground for skeptical denial of His coming as a Judge at all (Psalms 50:1,3,4,21, Ecclesiastes 8:11,12, Isaiah 57:11, Romans 2:4-10).

It should be apparent that the unchangeableness that is being spoken of in Malachi 3:6, is Yahweh's unchangeableness in his Word. This goes back to the oath made to Abraham: "I have sworn by myself, says Yahweh, because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son, that in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply your seed as the stars of the heavens, and as the sand which is on the seashore. Your seed will possess the gate of his enemies. In your seed will all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice." (Genesis 22:16-18) Thus Yahweh, instead of going back on his Word, states his unchangeableness toward his Word, so that he does not totally destroy the seed of Abraham.

The apostle refers to this in the book of Hebrews:

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he could swear by none greater, he swore by himself, 14 saying, "Most surely I will bless you, and I will surely multiply you." 15 Thus, having patiently endured, he obtained the promise. 16 For men indeed swear by a greater one, and in every dispute of theirs the oath is final for confirmation. 17 Wherein God, being determined to show more abundantly to the heirs of the promise the immutability of his counsel, interposed with an oath; 18 that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong encouragement, who have fled for refuge to take hold of the hope set before us, 19 which we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and entering into that which is within the veil; 20 where as a forerunner Jesus entered for us, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

Additionally, we read in Psalm 55:19 of the wicked that "they never change" (World English). Does this mean that they are God Almighty? Of course not.

There is nothing about Malach 3:6 that leads us to believe that Yahweh was speaking of a supposed incommunicable attribute that only he could possess. It should be apparent that if one learns to be the same as Yahweh in this matter that another could also possess this quality of immutability -- total unchangeable trustworthiness in word and deed -- as described here.

John 8:58: Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I tell you, before Abraham was born, I AM." The thought is read into this verse by some that Jesus is saying that he has never changed from all eternity past. In actuality all he is saying is that he has been in existence from a time before Abraham was born. See our document:

"I am" in John 8:58

John 14:16: I will pray to the Father, and he will give you another Counselor, that he may be with you forever. This scripture is given by some to supposedly prove that the holy spirit is unchangeable. So far we have not found any discussion from anyone as to how this is supposed to prove the holy spirit is unchangeable, but as far as the holy spirit carrying out the will and purpose of God, we can say it is unchangeable.

Romans 1:23: and traded the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of birds, and four-footed animals, and creeping things. This scripture shows that God is incorruptible; nothing will persuade him in corruption from righteousness, and thus in this he is unchangeable.

1 Corinthians 2:13: Which things also we speak, not in words which man's wisdom teaches, but which the Holy Spirit teaches, comparing spiritual things with spiritual things. This scripture is presented to supposedly show that the holy spirit is immutable; we concede that the holy spirit as the divine force is unchangeable in carrying out God's will and purpose.

Hebrews 1:11,12: "They will perish, but you continue. They all will grow old like a garment does. As a mantle you will roll them up. And they will be changed. But you are the same. Your years will not fail." Again, this is not speaking of Yahweh's attribute of unchangeableness of "essence", but rather that Yahweh's Son will not grow old like the present heavens and earth, so that they will be changed. Jesus, having proven his faithfulness for eternity, will not change. Unlike the present heavens and earth, he will not perish. (2 Peter 3:7,30) This is similar to 1 John 2:17: "The world is passing away with its lusts, but he who does God's will remains forever." Jesus did the will of God and has proven himself faithful even to death, thus he remains forever. There is nothing in Hebrews 1:11,12 that would lead us to believe that Jesus possesses a supposed incommunicable attribute of Yahweh.

Hebrews 6:17,18: Wherein God, being determined to show more abundantly to the heirs of the promise the immutability of his counsel, interposed with an oath; that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong encouragement, who have fled for refuge to take hold of the hope set before us. - The promises made to Abraham are unchangeable; what any other person does or does not do will does not have any bearing on their fulfillment. There is nothing here that says that anything about God having an incommunicable attribute of immutability.

Hebrews 13:8: "Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever." Doesn't this mean that Jesus is Yahweh, never changing in all history past, present and future? Taken out of context and placed in the context of traditional trinitarian teaching, one could read such a thought into what is being said. However, by saying yesterday, today, and forever, the apostle does not necessarily mean that Jesus always existed. All this states is that Jesus has not changed in his loyalty and purpose toward God. He has remained faithful. He has not changed in his character, but continues in the same love as he demonstrated from beginning and will do in throughout all eternity. To read into this some vague meaning about an unchangeable "essence" goes far beyond what is stated. We know that Jesus has changed in some ways, for instance, in that he left his glory to become a man. Now he has been highly exalted by Yahweh.

See also the following (we do not necessarily agree with all conclusions given.)

In the Beginning The Herald of Christ's Kingdom

James 1:17: Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, nor turning shadow. Again another description of Yahweh immutability of character. Yet nothing here shows that others cannot also become of such a character.

1 John 5:18: We know that whoever is born of God doesn't sin, but he who was born of God keeps himself, and the evil one doesn't touch him. -- This scripture is given by some trinitarians. We do not see any relation to immutability as an incommunicable attribute of God, however, for if it the idea that God is perfect and does not sin, and this is the immutability seen here, then it must be admitted that the sons of God also attain this immutability when they put on incorrutpion, when they become incorruptible, and that therefore such immutability is not an incommunicable attribute.
See: "With What Body Will We Be Raised?" and "Why Jesus Arose From the Dead"

We have found nothing in the scriptures that indicate that immutability, as described in the Bible, is an incommunicable attribute of Yahweh, except as it is connected to his omniscient knowledge of, and omnipotent control of all his works from beginning to end.

Last update: January 2, 2003.