Theology: Is the Doctrine of the Trinity in the Bible?
The New Testament brings God (Father), the Son (Jesus Christ) and the Holy Spirit together in such a way as to imply that God has a Trinitarian nature. Jesus Christ is worthy of worship, and when we experience the Holy Spirit, we are experiencing God.
We will quote three important verses below, and mention many others as well. Verses like these bring together the three Persons of the Godhead. The words referring to each of the three Persons are italicized:
- Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name [singular] of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19). There is one name for all three, implying that all three are similar, and form a unity.
- The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with all of you. (2 Corinthians 13:13). This blessing implies some similarity in the three. We experience God in all three ways.
- To the exiles…who have been chosen and destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit to be obedient to Jesus Christ and to be sprinkled with his blood (1 Peter 1:1-2). We receive benefits from Father, Spirit, and Son.
For similar passages, see:
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- Romans 14:17-18
- Romans 15:16
- 1 Corinthians 2:2-5
- 1 Corinthians 6:11
- 1 Corinthians 12:4-6
- 2 Corinthians 1:21-22
- Galatians 4:6
- Ephesians 2:18-22
- Ephesians 4:4-6
- Colossians 1:6-8
- 1 Thessalonians 1:3-5
- 2 Thessalonians 2:13-14
- Titus 3:4-6
In each passage, God (Father), Son (Jesus Christ) and the Holy Spirit are brought together. Each of the three is involved in our salvation.
Such passages show that the New Testament faith is implicitly Trinitarian – that the writers already believed in the equality and divinity of Father, Son, and Spirit, yet also believing that God is one. They didn’t put it in those exact words, but they repeatedly give equal honor to the three. The word “Trinity” was invented later to summarize what the Bible teaches, just as the word “Bible” was invented to describe the collection of books that we have.
None of these passages say directly that “God is a Trinity…,” but they don’t need to. The books of the New Testament are not point-by-point lessons of doctrine. Even so, these and other Scriptures speak of God (Father), Son (Jesus) and Holy Spirit working together as one. The writers simply treat these divine Persons together as a unity in what they do for our salvation.
Theologian Alister E. McGrath makes this point in his book Christian Theology: An Introduction:
The foundations of the doctrine of the Trinity are to be found in the pervasive pattern of divine activity to which the New Testament bears witness…. There is the closest of connections between the Father, Son, and Spirit in the New Testament writings.
Time after time, New Testament passages link together these three elements as part of a greater whole. The totality of God’s saving presence and power can only, it would seem, be expressed by involving all three elements. (2011 edition, page 238)
The Bible reveals that the Father is God, Jesus the Son is God, and the Holy Spirit is God, and yet the Bible also insists that this is only one God. These biblical teachings led the early church to formulate the doctrine of the Trinity.
The Trinity has always been true. It was not clear in the Old Testament. But when Jesus came as God in the flesh, and he revealed that the Holy Spirit would continue God’s work in each disciple, it became clear that the one God had three identifiable ways of interacting with us. These three were not just temporary forms, but the way that God was all the time. This was described in the New Testament, and then described by the early church in a way that has continued through history: God is three persons in one Being.
Appendix: Texts mentioning Father, Son and Spirit
| Matthew 28:19 | baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit… |
| 2 Cor. 13:13 | The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with all of you. |
| 1 Peter 1:1-2 | destined by God the Father and sanctified by the Spirit to be obedient to Jesus Christ… |
| Romans 14:17-18 | righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit. The one who serves Christ in this way is acceptable to God. |
| Romans 15:16 | to be a minister of Christ Jesus to the gentiles in the priestly service of the gospel of God, so that the offering of the gentiles may be acceptable, sanctified by the Holy Spirit. |
| 1 Cor. 2:2-5 | to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified…. a demonstration of the Spirit…the power of God. |
| 1 Cor. 6:11 | you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God. |
| 1 Cor. 12:4-6 | varieties of gifts but the same Spirit…the same Lord…the same God |
| 2 Cor. 1:21-22 | God who establishes us with you in Christ and has anointed us, who has put his seal on us and given us his Spirit… |
| Galatians 4:6 | God has sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, “Abba! Father!” |
| Ephesians 2:18-22 | have access in one Spirit to the Father…. members of the household of God… with Christ Jesus himself as the cornerstone; in him the whole structure…grows into a holy temple in the Lord…a dwelling place for God. |
| Eph. 3:14-19 | I bow my knees before the Father…he may grant that you may be strengthened …through his Spirit and that Christ may dwell in your hearts… to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God. |
| Ephesians 4:4-6 | one body and one Spirit…one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all. |
| Colossians 1:6-8 | truly comprehended the grace of God…. Epaphras…is a faithful minister of Christ on our behalf, and he has made known to us your love in the Spirit. |
| 1 Thess. 1:3-5 | remembering before our God and Father your work …in our Lord Jesus Christ….. Beloved by God, that he has chosen you, because our message of the gospel came to you …in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction… |
| 2 Thess. 2:13-14 | God chose you as the first fruits for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and through belief in the truth. For this purpose he called you through our gospel, so that you may obtain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. |
| Titus 3:4-6 | the goodness and loving kindness of God our Savior appeared…rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit. This Spirit he poured out on us richly through Jesus Christ our Savior… |
Author: Paul Kroll. Edited by Michael Morrison in 2026