What is the Holy Spirit, a person, force, or part of a Trinity?

Many are confused on this issue due to erroneous traditional teaching. Traditionally, belief in a trinitarian three-in-one being has been the central doctrine of the churches for centuries. Historically, many have maintained that those who do not affirm belief in the trinity are heretics. Various trinitarian concepts exist, but generally, the trinity teaching is that there are three persons in the Godhead: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost; yet, together, they are but one God. The doctrine says that the three are coequal, almighty, and uncreated, having existed eternally in the Godhead. Supporters of the trinity say that it is founded not only on religious tradition but also on the Bible. But is this true?

Strangely, the word “trinity” is not once mentioned in the Bible. Upon thorough investigation, we find the trinity is a doctrine that is read into the Bible rather than one derived from it. Surely, if belief in the trinity were essential to one’s salvation, God would have made it very clear. We need to prove all things by God’s Word and hold fast to that which is good or true (1 Thessalonians 5:21).

Some are confused by such scriptures as John 14:16–17, 26; 16:7–8, 13. They ask, “Why does the Bible use the pronoun ‘he’ to describe the Holy Spirit if it is not a person?” In the above passages, the Holy Spirit is referred to as the “Comforter.” “Comforter” is masculine in the Greek language.

According to Greek rules of grammar, you must use a masculine pronoun to refer to a masculine noun. Since “comforter” is masculine in Greek, a masculine pronoun is used. That is why “he” is used in many cases where it refers to the antecedent “comforter.”

In some cases, “he” is used in the King James Version, whereas the original Greek uses “it.” The reason is that the translators believed in the trinity themselves and interpreted rather than translated. John 14:17 is a good example. The pronouns “he” and “him” should have been rendered “it” as they are in Greek. They refer to the word “spirit,” which is neuter in Greek. Therefore, the pronouns that refer to them must also be neuter. Notice Romans 8:16: “The Spirit itself beareth witness...” The King James translators have correctly translated the Greek pronoun in the neuter gender.

Another scripture that is often misunderstood is Matthew 28:19. Notice that the disciples are to be baptized “into”—the inspired original Greek eis means, here, “into,” rather than “in”—“into the NAME of the Father and the Son and of the Holy Spirit.”

This verse does not say that all three are persons. People give names to many things that are not persons. Everything, whether a person, place, or thing, has a name. Personification does not prove personality either in Greek or in English. When we say, “Stop in the name of the law,” we are not referring to a person. We mean that which the law stands for, its authority.

What is the name into which converts are to be baptized in order to receive the Holy Spirit? The name is “GOD.” We are called the “sons of God” or “God’s sons”—just as human beings bear the names Johnson, Robertson, and Jackson, meaning the sons of John, Robert, and Jack originally. God is the family name of the divine Kingdom. It is the Father from “whom the whole family in heaven and [on] earth is NAMED” (Ephesians 3:15). The Father’s name is GOD in English.

Notice: “I have manifested Thy name unto the men...” said Jesus to the disciples. “Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me ...” (John 17:6, 11). What is that NAME by which the church is kept?—“the Church of God” (1 Corinthians 1:2; 2 Corinthians 1:1; Acts 20:28; and many other places).

For further evidence proving that the Holy Spirit is not a person, turn to Matthew 1:20. Here, we read that Christ was conceived of the Holy Spirit. Yet Christ calls God His Father, not the Holy Spirit (John 14:16). If the Holy Spirit were a person, it would be Christ’s Father. Proof positive that the Holy Spirit is not a person but the power, or means, God the Father uses—much as a man uses electricity for energy, light, or heat.

All that is shown by the mentioning of the Holy Spirit in this verse is that the Holy Spirit belongs to the family of God. It is the essence or power of God.

Consider further: if the Holy Spirit were a person, Jesus Christ prayed to the wrong individual! Throughout the four Gospels, we find Christ speaking to God—not the Holy Spirit—as His Father.

Some may be confused by the words found in 1 John 5:7–8.

“For there are three that bear record [in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.]”

Notice words in brackets [ ]. They were not written by the Apostle John but were added later. They are not found in any of the old manuscripts of the inspired Koine Greek and were not found in the manuscripts of the Latin Vulgate until the eighth century after Christ. In view of this, these words give no credence or authority for belief in a trinity.

The Ryrie Study Bible says, “Verse 7 should end with the word record. The rest of verse 7 and all of verse 8 are not in any ancient Greek text.”

The Scofield Reference Bible says, “It is generally agreed that v. 7 has no real authority, and has been inserted.”

A.T. Robertson’s Word Pictures commentary adds, “Some Latin scribe caught up Cyprian’s exegesis and wrote it on the margin of his text, and so it got into the Vulgate and finally into the Textus Receptus by the stupidity of Erasmus.”

The Critical and Experimental Commentary says of this section that the verse was not found in the Latin Vulgate until the eighth century. The New Interpreter’s Bible states, “This verse in the KJV is to be rejected…It appears in no ancient Greek MS [manuscript].”

The Pulpit Commentary states, “[These] words which are not contained in a single Greek uncial manuscript, nor in a single Greek cursive earlier than the fourteenth century (the two which contain the passage being evidently translated from the Vulgate), nor are quoted by a single Greek Father during the whole of the Trinitarian controversy, nor are found in any authority until late in the fifth century, cannot be genuine.”

The Abingdon Bible Commentary concludes, “When Erasmus published his first Manuscript edition, he was chided by Stunica for having omitted the passage about the trinity in 1 John 7:7–7. In a rash moment, Erasmus said that if the passage could be found in a single Greek Manuscript, he would insert it. The passage was translated from the Latin Vulgate and