Skip to main content
Bible Q

Is the Holy Spirit a person? (Acts 8:29; Acts 10:19; Acts 13:2)

Answered by . July 2, 2010 - 1:23 am

No, the Holy Spirit is not a person.

These three verses refer to the Holy Spirit speaking. To understand what this means, it is important to see what is involved in the Holy Spirit speaking.

In Ezekiel 11:5, Ezekiel records how ‘the Spirit of the LORD came upon me, and he told me to say: “This is what the LORD says …”‘. The Spirit coming upon someone was the way the prophets received their messages from God (e.g. 2 Chronicles 24:20). Note that the message the Spirit delivers to Ezekiel is “what the LORD says”, i.e. the words of the Spirit are the words of God. The same point is demonstrated in Isaiah 59:21, where God says “My Spirit, who is on you, and my words that I have put in your mouth will not depart from your mouth … “. Here again the words delivered by the Spirit are clearly identified with the words of God. God describes the Spirit as “my Spirit”. Because the Spirit is God’s, so the words of the Spirit are God’s.

Looking at other examples in the NT where the Holy Spirit speaks, it is clear that what is being referred to is the words of God, through an inspired writer (e.g. Acts 21:11; Hebrews 3:7).

The Holy Spirit is the power of God (see Luke 1:35), and is therefore the means by which God speaks to men. These references in Acts to the Spirit speaking reflect this process of God speaking to men through his Spirit.

3 Replies to “Is the Holy Spirit a person? (Acts 8:29; Acts 10:19; Acts 13:2)”

  1. Now a days there are many false teaching brings many different aggrument on Holy sprit so many new christian they are in confusion.As a church leader this is our important role to teach them about on Holy sprit.Thanku for some defination on Holy sprit.

  2. The Spirit you are refering to is the ‘Qodesh Spirit’ which in Hebrew is feminine as a nuturing mother better described as ‘the set apart Spirit’ Yahuweh. Neither Yahuweh nor HIS Spirit are persons. Yahushua is a diminished part of Yahuweh and is Yahuweh. So the concept of a trinity in 3 separate ‘persons’ is inaccurate. Yahuweh is one with 3 parts, all of Whom are Yahuweh. Regrettably man has attached a religious title to God’s Spirit as in ‘The Holy Spirit’

    • Two comments:
      1. The phrase “the Holy Spirit” occurs a large number of times in the New Testament. It is not just “a religious title”, it is one of the names the Bible uses to talk about God’s spirit.
      2. As far as the Trinity goes, see https://bibleq.net/answer/1817/.