The context is the “Feast” of Tabernacles, at which there was traditionally a water-pouring ceremony (cf. He is the everlasting, unchanging God (Isaiah 40:28, Malachi 3:6) and He is good all the time (Psalm 100:5). This would require a work of the Spirit of God changing their hearts and, historically, it took place when they were restored to the land after the Babylonian exile. In Isaiah 6:3, the seraphim call one to another, saying: Holy, holy, holy is the LORD of hosts; the whole earth is full of his glory!” (קָדֹ֧ושׁ׀ קָדֹ֛ושׁ קָדֹ֖ושׁ יְהוָ֣ה צְבָאֹ֑ות מְלֹ֥א כָל־הָאָ֖רֶץ כְּבֹודֹֽו׃ () I’m wondering about the meaning of repeating three times קָדֹ֛ושׁ (qādōš, "holy"). This is as it should be, but that does not mean we have no difficulties with our understanding of the “Trinity.” Specifically with regard to the Holy Spirit, there has been no small debate in two areas that are of special concern in the present essay: (1) the degree of revelation of the person and divinity of the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament as compared to the New Testament (compare, for example, the Jewish view outlined briefly above), and (2) the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer in the Old Testament as opposed to the New Testament, regarding the Holy Spirit’s “regenerating” and especially “indwelling” of believers in the Old Testament.7. Any meaningful understanding of the Holy Spirit of God in the Bible will need to begin with an understanding of the term “spirit.” The various ways ruakh (“spirit”) is used in the Hebrew Bible contributes a great deal to our understanding of the revelation of the person and divinity of the Holy “Spirit” in the Old Testament and in the New. Hebrew for ChristiansCopyright © John J. ParsonsAll rights reserved. This also is new compared to Old Testament believers. The Jewish leaders had sent “priests and Levites” (v. 19) to question John about who he was (vv. Moreover, the way we come to understand “the things that are freely given to us by God” by his grace through faith in Jesus Christ (v. 12b; cf. In the New Testament the situation is very different, almost reversed. The meaning of God is holy, holy, holy reflects His eternal nature, divine perfection in the Trinity, and supreme holiness. What Does it Mean to be a Child of God as an Adult? This is especially the case regarding whether or not the Holy Spirit indwelt Old Testament believers like he does New Testament believers (for the latter see especially Rom 5:5, 8:9; 11, 1 Cor 2:12; 6:19–20; Gal 4:6; 1 John 3:24; 4:13). of place, sacred, holy, chambers of priests Ezekiel 42:13, camp of Israel Deuteronomy 23:15, + מָרוֺם of heaven Isaiah 57:15 (but of ׳י Du Ry, and [reading ׳בְּק as holy, ב essent.] See the helpful review of the debate in Claus Westermann, Genesis 1-11: A Commentary, trans. In reality, there is probably a combination of things going on here. 2–4). Interestingly, Mark 15:37 puts it this way: “And Jesus uttered a loud cry, and breathed his last” (Greek ejxevpneusen [exepneusen]; note the root pneuma [“spirit”] in this verb). What I have written here is something of a phenomenology of the Holy Spirit based in the Old Testament. See Gen 1:1a, “In the beginning God …,” and recall the repeated formula, “And God said…,” beginning in verse 3 and running through the whole chapter as the common introduction to each creative movement of God. vv. Similarly, like physical water, one can drink of the Spirit as water that gives life to the human spirit (e.g., John 7:37-39).