Jesus was like his brothers/sisters in every way except he was without sin (Hebrews 4:15-16; 1 Peter 2:21-25).
The Apostle Paul writes under inspiration: "For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh" (Romans 8:3, KJV)
So Christ was manifested in the "likeness" of sinful flesh (ἐν ὁμοιώματι σαρκὸς ἁμαρτίας), but he himself "condemned sin in the flesh" (κατέκρινε τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐν τῇ σαρκί). Zerwick's Grammatical Analysis of the Greek NT states:
"ὁμοίωμα likeness; not identity, because not prone to sin, not mere resemblance, as truly flesh" (p. 475).
See BDAG Greek-English Lexicon for more info on ὁμοίωμα.
Sporadic theological and historical musings by Edgar Foster (Ph.D. in Theology and Religious Studies and one of Jehovah's Witnesses).
" God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh" - basically a human, without the sin element
ReplyDeleteHebrews Ch.3:7NKJV"You have made him [d]a little lower than the angels..."
ReplyDeleteHebrews Ch.2:9NKJV"But we see Jesus, who was made [f]a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone."