{"id":45097,"date":"2026-09-18T23:09:02","date_gmt":"2026-09-19T04:09:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/?p=45097"},"modified":"2026-09-18T23:39:27","modified_gmt":"2026-09-19T04:39:27","slug":"podcast-402-craig-is-right-about-eternal-generation-but","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/podcast-402-craig-is-right-about-eternal-generation-but\/","title":{"rendered":"podcast 402 \u2013 Craig is right about eternal generation, BUT . . ."},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"powerpress_player\" id=\"powerpress_player_5279\"><audio class=\"wp-audio-shortcode\" id=\"audio-45097-1\" preload=\"none\" style=\"width: 100%;\" controls=\"controls\"><source type=\"audio\/mpeg\" src=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/trinities\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/podcast\/trinities402.mp3?_=1\" \/><a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/trinities\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/podcast\/trinities402.mp3\">https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/trinities\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/podcast\/trinities402.mp3<\/a><\/audio><\/div><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_links_mp3\" style=\"margin-bottom: 1px !important;\">Podcast: <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/trinities\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/podcast\/trinities402.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_pinw\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Play in new window\" onclick=\"return powerpress_pinw('https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/?powerpress_pinw=45097-podcast');\" rel=\"nofollow\">Play in new window<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/media.blubrry.com\/trinities\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/podcast\/trinities402.mp3\" class=\"powerpress_link_d\" title=\"Download\" rel=\"nofollow\" download=\"trinities402.mp3\">Download<\/a><\/p><p class=\"powerpress_links powerpress_subscribe_links\">Subscribe: <a href=\"https:\/\/open.spotify.com\/show\/7FuUF9DZM3zhtN41n6RJ6l\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_spotify\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Subscribe on Spotify\" rel=\"nofollow\">Spotify<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/subscribebyemail.com\/trinities.org\/blog\/feed\/podcast\/\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_email\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Subscribe by Email\" rel=\"nofollow\">Email<\/a> | <a href=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/feed\/podcast\/\" class=\"powerpress_link_subscribe powerpress_link_subscribe_rss\" target=\"_blank\" title=\"Subscribe via RSS\" rel=\"nofollow\">RSS<\/a><\/p><div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-full is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"892\" height=\"601\" src=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/cropped-version.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-45099\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.484178563818453;width:340px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/cropped-version.png 892w, https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/cropped-version-450x303.png 450w, https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/cropped-version-768x517.png 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 892px) 100vw, 892px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The Christian internet recently lost his mind when <a href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/1op3QM5RUKk?si=zZebljC7GyNQ2Cg4\">a short video<\/a> went viral in which Dr. William Lane Craig points out that <strong>the New Testament does not teach that the Father &#8220;eternally generates&#8221; the Son.<\/strong> He also professes skepticism about that traditional, catholic doctrine. Does this make him a heretic? <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In this episode I react to his <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=kpCkHX7MdJ8&amp;t=6s\">follow-up video<\/a> in which <strong>Craig assures those concerned about heresy that he&#8217;s merely asking questions<\/strong> and repeats that he&#8217;s agnostic about eternal generation. But as I explain, he is and long has been <em>clearly <\/em>committed to the falsity of that doctrine. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This incident helpfully highlights the questions of what we should do when later traditions clash with Scripture and whether a Protestant should view the &#8220;ecumenical&#8221; councils as authoritative. Along the way, we also look at early Christian theologies, Craig&#8217;s idiosyncratic and easily refuted Trinity theories, and silliness about the immanent Trinity vs. the economic Trinity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here&#8217;s the video version of this podcast, of course, without the customary Thinking Music (TM). <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"nv-iframe-embed\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"trinities 402 - Craig is right about eternal generation,  BUT . . .\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/bIsJyycA8eI?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Here are some Old Testament passages in which &#8220;the Word of the LORD&#8221; is personified. Unaccountably, at one point in this video, Dr. Craig denies that there are any such passages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cHe sends out his command to the earth; his word runs swiftly.\u201d Psalm 147:15<br \/><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cSo shall my word be that goes out from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose.\u201d Isaiah 55:11<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Links for this episode:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"640\" src=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/isnt-it-essential-2-1024x640.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-45105\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.600006366790819;width:413px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/isnt-it-essential-2-1024x640.png 1024w, https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/isnt-it-essential-2-450x281.png 450w, https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/isnt-it-essential-2-768x480.png 768w, https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/isnt-it-essential-2.png 1504w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=kpCkHX7MdJ8&amp;t=6s\">Dr. Craig Responds to Heresy Accusations Over the Nicene Creed<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/podcast-291-from-one-god-to-two-gods-to-three-gods-john-1-and-early-christian-theologies\/\">podcast 291 \u2013 From one God to two gods to three \u201cGods\u201d \u2013 John 1 and early Christian theologies<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/how-john-1-was-intelligible-in-the-first-century\/\">How John 1 was intelligible in the first century<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=nb4TogqyTrw&amp;t=1849s\">Dale Tuggy &#8211; What John 1 Meant (UCA Conference 2021)<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/randalrauser.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/09\/ijst_153.pdf\">Rauser, &#8220;Rahner\u2019s Rule: An Emperor without Clothes?&#8221;<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rtmullins.com\/podcast\/episode\/1e4ab4e2\/ep-201-eternal-generation-for-dummies\">R.T. Mullins, The Reluctant Theologian Ep. 201 Eternal Generation for Dummies<\/a><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image\">\n<figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"631\" src=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book-recommendation-1024x631.png\" alt=\"\" class=\"wp-image-45103\" style=\"aspect-ratio:1.62284072196571;width:452px;height:auto\" srcset=\"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book-recommendation-1024x631.png 1024w, https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book-recommendation-450x277.png 450w, https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book-recommendation-768x473.png 768w, https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/book-recommendation.png 1392w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1024px) 100vw, 1024px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.rtmullins.com\/podcast\/episode\/2d510e44\/ep-164-the-trinity-with-william-lane-craig\">R.T. Mullins, The Reluctant Theologian Ep. 164 The Trinity with William Lane Craig<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Three-Persons-Four-Views-Philosophical\/dp\/1666719056\">One God, Three Persons, Four Views: A Biblical, Theological, and Philosophical Dialogue on the Doctrine of the Trinity<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Tuggy, <em><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Monotheism-Heresy-Bible-Biblical-Unitarianism\/dp\/1737578328\">Monotheism, Heresy, and the Bible: Essays on Biblical Unitarianism<\/a><\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Craig, &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/ojs.uclouvain.be\/index.php\/theologica\/article\/view\/16583\">Is God the Son Begotten in His Divine Nature?<\/a>&#8220;<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">This week&#8217;s thinking music is &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/freemusicarchive.org\/music\/lemon-knife\/lemon-knife-instrumentals\/two-atomic-heroes-instrumental\/\">Two Atomic Heroes (Instrumental)<\/a>&#8221; by <a href=\"https:\/\/freemusicarchive.org\/music\/lemon-knife\/\">Lemon Knife<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"nv-iframe-embed\"><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Dale Tuggy - Why the NT Jesus is not fully divine\" width=\"1200\" height=\"675\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/l_ZeKzAvaYg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Craig professes skepticism about &#8220;eternal generation&#8221; and the Christian Internet loses its mind.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":45099,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"neve_meta_sidebar":"","neve_meta_container":"","neve_meta_enable_content_width":"","neve_meta_content_width":0,"neve_meta_title_alignment":"","neve_meta_author_avatar":"","neve_post_elements_order":"","neve_meta_disable_header":"","neve_meta_disable_footer":"","neve_meta_disable_title":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[37,21,16,58,75,100,47,9,57,77,3,210],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-45097","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-apologetics","category-bible","category-books","category-creeds","category-divine-attributes","category-dynamic-monarchian","category-papers","category-philosophy","category-podcast","category-protestant","category-theories","category-william-lane-craig"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45097","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=45097"}],"version-history":[{"count":7,"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45097\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":45107,"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/45097\/revisions\/45107"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/45099"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=45097"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=45097"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/trinities.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=45097"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}