What is the Image of God?

[PaulThomson]

Elohim created man in His own image.
In the image of Elohim He created him, male and female, He created them. God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number."


Using Scripture, or even any extra-biblical ideas, how do understand, see, or even guess what is meant by His image?

My perspective is that man was created as spirit, soul and physical body. God is also spirit, soul but immaterial body.

 

[indenturedservant]

My perspective is that man was created as spirit, soul and physical body. God is also spirit, soul but immaterial body.

I understand your perspective on man. How would you relate that to God's image as mentioned in Genesis 1?

 

[GWH]

Here is a cut / paste from within my commentary on the Book of Daniel:

Reflective narrative:
Dust, Breath, and the Making of a Living Soul​

From the very beginning, Genesis invites us to listen carefully—not only to the words it uses, but to the story those words are wrapped in. One detail that can trouble thoughtful readers is this: the phrase often translated “living soul” in Genesis 2:7 is the same Hebrew expression used for animals in Genesis 1. If both man and beast are described as nephesh chayyah— “living beings”—does that flatten the difference between them? Are humans, in God’s eyes, just another animal with more vocabulary? Genesis itself will not let us draw that conclusion.

In Genesis 2:7 we are given a simple, holy sequence: “The LORD God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul” (v.7). The order matters. First God forms the man from dust—Adam’s body, senses, and natural capacity for mind and consciousness are crafted by God’s own hands.

Then comes the turning point: God breathes into his nostrils the breath of life, and this is the moment the text defines as Adam becoming nephesh chayyah. The breath is not a small detail; it is the hinge of the scene. Genesis is not merely telling us that Adam is alive, but that his life is personally bestowed—formed by God, and enlivened by God’s breath.

Animals, too, are called nephesh chayyah in Genesis 1, but notice how differently their story is told. God speaks, the waters and the earth bring forth living creatures, and they are declared to be nephesh chayyah—living beings. God gives them life, and they move, breathe, and fill the earth. The same phrase is used, and the shared language tells us that both animals and humans receive their life from God. Yet Scripture lingers over Adam in a way it does not linger over the animals. It does not pause to describe God forming an animal from the dust and breathing into it the breath of life in the same intimate, hands-on sequence. That personal formation-and-breathing scene is reserved for Adam alone. The shared term joins humanity to the living creation; the special narration marks humanity as uniquely addressed by God.

This is where the image of God enters the picture. Humanity is not made “in the image” merely because it is alive, or even because it can think. Genesis 1 makes the distinction plain: mankind is created in God’s image and likeness (v.26–27). Genesis 2 then gives us the close-up: dust shaped by God’s hands, life imparted by God’s breath. The words may be shared with the animals, but the calling is not. Man is not only alive; he is created to stand before God, to reflect God, and to bear a likeness Scripture never assigns to the beasts of the field.

And here is an interpretive layer that many readers find compelling—one that the narrative itself seems to invite. Genesis 1 and 2 together show something more: man is made in God’s image because God not only shapes him from dust but also breathes His own Spirit—His holiness—into him. Adam does not just live; he lives as one in whom God’s own righteousness and presence dwell. In that sense, the phrase “living soul” takes on a richer meaning for Adam than it ever could for the animals. The same words are used, but here they are filled with a new weight: man is a living being because God has breathed into him; he is a living soul because that breath is holy.

This interpretive lens also explains the depth of what was lost when Adam sinned. After rebellion, Adam did not suddenly stop breathing.

He remained, in the ordinary sense, a living being. But he was driven from the Garden, cut off from the immediate presence of God. The holiness that once dwelled within him could not remain at peace in a vessel now stained with sin. In this reading, the “death” that begins in Eden is not merely biological; it is relational and spiritual—separation from the life of God.

So one may say it like this: that breath—that Spirit—returned to the One who gave it, for there is no other place in the universe that can hold God’s righteousness but God Himself. Adam continued as a living creature, but no longer as the Spirit-filled living soul he had been in Eden. In a sense, he returned to what he had been the moment before God breathed: dust shaped into a human being, alive now in a natural sense, but emptied of the holiness that once made him truly fit for God’s presence.

Seen this way, the shared phrase nephesh chayyah no longer undermines humanity’s uniqueness; it clarifies it. All creatures live because God gives life. Yet only man is explicitly said to bear God’s image, and only man’s coming-to-life is told with this intimate sequence—formed by God, breathed into by God, and placed before God with a calling that reaches beyond the animal world. And from the moment that holiness departs, the great question of Scripture is born: How will God once again restore His presence to humanity so that we may move from merely being living creatures to once more being what we were made to be—fit for fellowship with Him, able to stand in His presence without shame? That is the story the rest of the Bible tells.

I will comment on your commentary as I read it:

Yes, Genesis does describe both humans and animals as souls, so the begged question is what is the difference?
IMO, humans differentiate from animals when they have God-consciousness and moral conscience. I think Genesis itself indicates that conclusion. The part that matters more than making Adam/man's body is Gen. 1:26-27--the supernatural superanimal capacity. THAT is more the hinge or point when man turns from believing God to being deceived by the devil.

Yes, animals and humans receive their life from God, and nature is created by God, which is why it is miraculous. Scripture lingers over Adam because God does not have a plan of salvation or fellowship with animals. This is where you mention the image of God, which does not refer to life or ability to think along lines determined by instinct. The divine image graces humans with the potential to become indwelt by God's own/Holy Spirit.

Unfortunately, Adam and Eve did not cooperate but instead became sinners. This was possible because God created humans "very good" but not perfect. The HS is not given until a sinful soul repents of ignoring GW. The spirit/breath in animals is not the HS. After A&E sinned, they remained physically alive but were dead spiritually and cut off from the Garden/fellowship with God. I trust that you will discern that I agree with most of what you said but would amend a couple of points. Notice that Genesis presents A&E as sinning immediately rather than fellowshipping with God for awhile before sinning.

As you noted, the great question of Scripture is born: How will God once again restore His presence to humanity so that we may move from merely being living creatures to once more being what we were made to be—fit for fellowship with Him, able to stand in His presence without shame? That is the story the rest of the Bible tells.

Amen.
(Next? :^)

 

[UnoiAmarah]

Elohim created man in His own image.

As I am sure you know, Elohim is plural, represents lesser Gods or lights.

Thus as it written, "For as the Father has life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself; " John 5:26

Seems pretty self-evident considering that in the beginning was the Word and the Word was with God and the Word was God.

In the image of Elohim He created him, male and female, He created them. God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number."

Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. John 5:19

Humm, so if the LORD created man, male and female and the two became one, then is the Holy Ghost, the Spirit and Word joined together as one LORD, who knows, the answer might be blowin in the wind.

 

[GWH]

Physical traits are not irrelevant at all.God made us in this way for his purpose through his word within our DNA.
I'll even explain how God made a way for you into this world.
Your mother and father who are in the image of the water, and the blood got together.
When a man and woman come together it is like a tabernacle, or Ark.
Picture the Ark of the covenant.On the Ark are 2 cherubim that represent the 2 witnesses.
When the seed passes over from a man to the women,that seed is an offering on the Ark unto the Lord.
The seed is spirit, and it's in the image of Jesus THE seed.
He is bringing it unto himself as scripture states.
When a seed is growing inside a woman it's like being inside the secret place behind the temple veil.
there's a correlation between between a spiritual growth like the Levites entering through the temple veil, and a physical growth
inside a women womb.
Around 9 months the baby "passover" and comes into the world as God's witness the same way the Levites came out of the secret place as his witness.
We are consecrated coming into this world and that is only made possible by the way God made us.In his image,spirit,water,blood.

Psalm 139:14
I will praise thee; for I am fearfully and wonderfully made: marvellous are thy works; and that my soul knoweth right well.

That's just one way how God brings all things unto himself.There's so many things that are right into front of us which we do not "see."
All is connected by spirit,water,blood.By the blood of his cross he brings all things unto himself.
In his "image" he created them.

​

Re "Physical traits are not irrelevant at all.God made us in this way for his purpose through his word within our DNA.":
God can make bread out of rocks and people from dirt. His purpose is for us to accept GW and become spiritual beings.

Re Psalms 139:4: Yes, God's physical creation is wonderful, and spiritual heaven will be beyond wonderful!

 

[indenturedservant]

Elohim is plural, represents lesser Gods or lights.

Yes, it is plural.

Wouldn't "lesser gods" indicate polytheism? Maybe I've misunderstood what you mean by lesser gods. What is a lesser God that could have been involved with the One God of creation?

Holy Ghost, the Spirit and Word joined together as one LORD

Modern theology dictates the three, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are separate. It is interesting that you see a way to perhaps picture them as One.

With that, do you have such an image in mind?

 

[ThunderPen]

Colossians 1:15
Christ is the image of the invisible God.
Having hands feet eyes and so forth.
We were made in His image, having hands feet eyes and so forth.

 

[GWH]

Colossians 1:15
Christ is the image of the invisible God.
Having hands feet eyes and so forth.
We were made in His image, having hands feet eyes and so forth.

Col. 1:15 says Christ is the image/incarnation of the invisible God.

The rest is your humble/fallible opinion.

Eph. 4:24 says we become made in Christ's image as we put on righteousness/holiness,
NOT hands and feet.

 

[PaulThomson]

I understand your perspective on man. How would you relate that to God's image as mentioned in Genesis 1?

The divine Persons are spirit because they are conscious. John 4:24, Ps 143:10, 1 Cor 2:11

The divine Persons have souls because they have feelings and thoughts. Heb 10:38 Psa 5:4; Psa 147:11; Psa 149:4; Isa 42:1; Mal 1:10; Mat 12:18;

The divine persons have bodies because they occupy space (Ps. 139:8, Acts 17:28) and can interact with things in space. They have eyes (Deut 11:12, Ps. 34:15), meaning they have faculties capable of observing things: they can see things. They have hands (Ps. 95:4), meaning they have faculties that function like hands: they can hold things and move things and manipulate things. They have ears (2 Sam 22:7, Ps. 18:6), meaning they have faculties that function like ears: they can hear things, etc.

 

[indenturedservant]

The divine Persons are spirit because they are conscious. John 4:24, Ps 143:10, 1 Cor 2:11

The divine Persons have souls because they have feelings and thoughts. Heb 10:38 Psa 5:4; Psa 147:11; Psa 149:4; Isa 42:1; Mal 1:10; Mat 12:18;

The divine persons have bodies because they occupy space (Ps. 139:8, Acts 17:28) and can interact with things in space. They have eyes (Deut 11:12, Ps. 34:15), meaning they have faculties capable of observing things: they can see things. They have hands (Ps. 95:4), meaning they have faculties that function like hands: they can hold things and move things and manipulate things. They have ears (2 Sam 22:7, Ps. 18:6), meaning they have faculties that function like ears: they can hear things, etc.

Thanks for adding that.

 

[ThunderPen]

says we become made in Christ's image as we put on righteousness/holiness,
NOT hands and feet

Genesis says we were created in the image of God. Jesus Christ is God in the flesh.
2 Timothy 3:16
The literal image of God, the part of God that can be seen.
And we have the same visible attributes as Jesus, hands, feet, etc. We were made, male and female, in the image of God, literally.

"Let us (Father and Son and Spirit) make man in our image"

 

[GWH]

Genesis says we were created in the image of God. Jesus Christ is God in the flesh.
2 Timothy 3:16
The literal image of God, the part of God that can be seen.
And we have the same visible attributes as Jesus, hands, feet, etc. We were made, male and female, in the image of God, literally.

"Let us (Father and Son and Spirit) make man in our image"

Col. 1:15 says Christ is the image/incarnation of the invisible God.
Eph. 4:24 says we become made in Christ's image as we put on righteousness/holiness.

You say: The literal image of God, the part of God that can be seen. And we have the same visible attributes as Jesus,
hands, feet, etc. We were made, male and female, in the image of God, literally.

Jesus said in John 6:63, "The Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you are spirit
and they are life, yet there are some of you who do not believe."

 

[Lifted_by_the_word]

Re "Physical traits are not irrelevant at all.God made us in this way for his purpose through his word within our DNA.":
God can make bread out of rocks and people from dirt. His purpose is for us to accept GW and become spiritual beings.

Re Psalms 139:4: Yes, God's physical creation is wonderful, and spiritual heaven will be beyond wonderful!

I'm sharing how we are made in his image.And not just us, but in all things in his image he created them.
Our physical selves manifests from our DNA code.The code is the word of God.So physical traits are not Irrelevant,but it is God who makes a way for us through his word to be his witnesses.
The DNA code within us makes us living words made flesh.
That is so amazing to me knowing this,so I share it and few receive it.

Everything connects by his word.We,man came from the dirt.
Decomposition like plant, and animal matter must be born again.But before that there is death.Bring Born again is by spirit,water,and the blood.

By his word thunder and lightning bring death.Lightning can cause fires and bring destruction upon the land,but the rain brings healing.The cloud itself is spirit.See,God is spirit and he came in a cloud in Exodus.
When God speaks it is like thunder.
I'm sorry for explaining this way.
They come in his image.
When you look at a thunderstorm it is the word bringing judgement.Because in the image of the spirit,water,blood it comes.

Colossians 1:16-20 reveals all this as truth.

I want to post this video from Youtube about a sister in Christ who also says the same thing about storms.

I'm not disagreeing with you.Scripture says God's word is spirit.When he spoke things into existence they became flesh.
Meaning they manifested.
If what he spoke is spirit and it became flesh,then you know it is by spirit,water,and the blood like Colossians 1:16-20 says.

 

[GWH]

I'm sharing how we are made in his image.And not just us, but in all things in his image he created them.
Our physical selves manifests from our DNA code.The code is the word of God.So physical traits are not Irrelevant,but it is God who makes a way for us through his word to be his witnesses.
The DNA code within us makes us living words made flesh.
That is so amazing to me knowing this,so I share it and few receive it.

Everything connects by his word.We,man came from the dirt.
Decomposition like plant, and animal matter must be born again.But before that there is death.Bring Born again is by spirit,water,and the blood.

By his word thunder and lightning bring death.Lightning can cause fires and bring destruction upon the land,but the rain brings healing.The cloud itself is spirit.See,God is spirit and he came in a cloud in Exodus.
When God speaks it is like thunder.
I'm sorry for explaining this way.
They come in his image.
When you look at a thunderstorm it is the word bringing judgement.Because in the image of the spirit,water,blood it comes.

Colossians 1:16-20 reveals all this as truth.

I want to post this video from Youtube about a sister in Christ who also says the same thing about storms.

I'm not disagreeing with you.Scripture says God's word is spirit.When he spoke things into existence they became flesh.
Meaning they manifested.
If what he spoke is spirit and it became flesh,then you know it is by spirit,water,and the blood like Colossians 1:16-20 says.

God's Spirit/Being is multidimensional:
physical that is manifested by His four-dimensional space-time creation/world (Rom. 1:20), and
spiritual that is perceived/manifested by a fifth dimension called His HS/Word/Love (John 6:63, Rom. 5:5).

 

[God-fearing]

Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

Interesting topic

 

[GWH]

Gen 1:26 And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

Gen 3:22 And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever:

Interesting topic

Yes.

Gen. 1:27. “God created man in his own image, male and female.” The word “image” seems to mean with the capacity to communicate with God and make moral choices (GN 1:26-31). The essential aspect of being a human rather than a robot or subhuman creature is God consciousness and moral conscience, which enables a person to experience love and meaning. This is what makes humans different from animals, whose behavior is governed mainly by instinct.

Souls have awareness of “the requirements of the law”, which may be perceived via creation (Rom. 1:20). Although image refers to God’s personality rather than to sexuality, it does seem that here we have equality of the sexes indicated. Thus, this verse has political implications.

 

[UnoiAmarah]

. What is a lesser God that could have been involved with the One God of creation?

The eternal One is symbolized as a living being of invisible light that does not change in form or substance. (I can cite you the scriptures if you like but I think you already known them.)

A person can only speak of that which they know or testify to those things he has seen.

So how can one know of the nature of the eternal? can the eternal nature been seen in this universe?

4 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female,
5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?
6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. Matt 19:4-6

Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. John 5:19

Thus, as Elohim made man, male and female; the eternal One made Elohim, Spirit and Word.

 

[indenturedservant]

The eternal One is symbolized as a living being of invisible light that does not change in form or substance. (I can cite you the scriptures if you like but I think you already known them.)

A person can only speak of that which they know or testify to those things he has seen.

So how can one know of the nature of the eternal? can the eternal nature been seen in this universe?

4 And he answered and said unto them, Have ye not read, that he which made them at the beginning made them male and female,
5 And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh?
6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. Matt 19:4-6

Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise. John 5:19

Thus, as Elohim made man, male and female; the eternal One made Elohim, Spirit and Word.

Thank you for explaining that. I just wanted to clarify what you meant. Your response was quite more informative and articulate. I'm glad I asked.

 

[TruthDefender]

The invisible God made us the way his image looks

[Jesus] Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: Colossians 1:15​

Not just every creature, but all creation.

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

 

[ChristRoseFromTheDead]

Not just every creature, but all creation.

“He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation.”
‭‭Colossians‬ ‭1‬:‭15‬ ‭NKJV‬‬

Yes, but it actually says "of all creation". He is creation's firstborn, but that doesn't mean he was 1st created. It means he is the πρωτοτόκος, the son who inherits the birthright of the first born son. As an example, Jacob was not the first born son, but God chose him to be the firstborn (πρωτοτόκος) who inherited the promises to Abraham and Isaac. So Jesus is the πρωτοτόκος who inherited all of the promises.

G4416 πρωτοτόκος prototokos (prō-to-to'-kos) adj.
first-born.