Isaiah 40–49
Tell ye, and bring them near; yea, let them take counsel together: who hath declared this from ancient time? who hath told it from that time? have not I the LORD? and there is no God else beside me; a just God and a Saviour; there is none beside me. Isaiah 45:21
Introduction
The concept that human beings have the potential to grow, progress, and ultimately become like God—known historically as theosis, deification, or exaltation—stands as one of the most distinctive and inspiring doctrines in Latter-day Saint theology. While references to man’s ability to become divine have deep roots in early Christian history and Eastern Orthodox writings, its restored Latter-day Saint expression offers an expansive vision of humanity’s divine origin, nature, and eternal destiny.
At the heart of this doctrine is the foundational belief that all men and women are not merely created artifacts, but literal spirit children of divine Heavenly Parents. Inheriting a divine nature, every individual carries “seeds of divinity” within their spiritual organization. Consequently, mortal life is understood not merely as a test of creaturely obedience, but as a vital stage in an eternal progression toward godliness.
Through revelations received by Joseph Smith—including visions recorded in the Doctrine and Covenants and his historic 1844 King Follett discourse—Latter-day Saints teach that through the Atonement of Jesus Christ, obedience to gospel covenants, and learning “from grace to grace,” individuals can eventually receive a fullness of the Father’s glory. Far from implying an attempt to supplant, replace, or exist independently of God, exaltation is understood as an act of divine grace. Even in an exalted state, deified beings remain perpetually subject to and in worship of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ.
In this post, we will explore the scriptural foundations, historical emergence, and comparative nuances of theosis in Latter-day Saint thought—and how this doctrine profoundly transforms how we view God, ourselves, and our fellow human beings.
Scriptural and Historical Foundations
1. Biblical Anchors of Divine Potential
While the terminology of theosis or “deification” sounds foreign to many modern Christians, Latter-day Saints view this doctrine as a straightforward reading of the Bible. Scriptural affirmations of humanity’s divine potential begin in the Old Testament:
- The Divine Image and Likeness: Genesis 1:26–27 establishes that human beings were created in the image and likeness of God. Following the fall, God noted that man had “become as one of us,” indicating an ongoing process of approaching godliness.
- Children of the Most High: Psalm 82:6 explicitly declares, “I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of the most High”. When accused of blasphemy for claiming divinity, Jesus Christ directly quoted Psalm 82 to defend His teachings, asking, “Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?” (John 10:33–34).
- Joint-Heirs with Christ: In the New Testament, the Apostle Paul wrote that we are “the offspring of God,” adding that “if children, then heirs; heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ” (Acts 17:29; Romans 8:16–17).
- Partakers of the Divine Nature: The Apostle Peter highlighted the Savior’s “exceeding great and precious promises” that believers might become “partakers of the divine nature” (2 Peter 1:4). Furthermore, Christ promised in Revelation 3:21 that “to him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne”.
2. Early Christian Patristics and the Historical Shift
In the first few centuries following the ministry of Jesus Christ, the doctrine of deification was widespread among early Church Fathers:
- Irenaeus (ca. A.D. 202) asserted that Jesus Christ “did, through His transcendent love, become what we are, that He might bring us to be what He is Himself”.
- Clement of Alexandria (ca. A.D. 150–215) taught that “the Word of God became man, that thou mayest learn from man how man may become God”.
- Basil the Great (A.D. 330–379) described the highest human aspiration as “being made God”.
- Athanasius of Alexandria (A.D. 296–373) famously summarized this consensus of the early church fathers: “God became man, so that man might become God”.
Why did these teachings fade in Western Christian thought? The shift was largely driven by a major philosophical transition in the second century. Earliest Jewish and Christian writings assumed that God organized the universe out of pre-existing matter. However, under the influence of Greek philosophical ideas, theologians formulated the doctrine of creatio ex nihilo (“creation out of nothing”).
Creating the universe ex nihilo dramatically widened the perceived chasm between the uncreated Creator and created humanity. Over time, as Western Christianity increasingly emphasized human depravity and absolute creaturely distance, the doctrine of deification faded from Western Protestantism and Catholicism, though remaining a central tenet of Eastern Orthodoxy.
3. Line-upon-Line Restoration Through Joseph Smith
When Joseph Smith began receiving revelations in 19th-century America, prevailing Protestant theology accepted ex nihilo creation and defined God as a being “without body, parts, or passions”. Through line-upon-line revelations, Joseph Smith reopened the understanding of human origin, nature, and destiny:
- Book of Moses (1830): Clarified God’s overarching purpose: “This is my work and my glory—to bring to pass the immortality and eternal life of man” (Moses 1:39). It also revealed that in the language of Adam, God’s name is “Man of Holiness,” and His Only Begotten is the “Son of Man” (Moses 6:57), reframing the divine relationship and demonstrating that God and humanity are of the same species.
- Doctrine and Covenants 76 (1832): Joseph Smith and Sidney Rigdon beheld a vision of the celestial glory, learning that those who overcome by faith and are sealed by the Holy Spirit of promise “are gods, even the sons of God”.
- Doctrine and Covenants 88 & 93 (1832–1833): Section 88 promised that the Saints would be filled with God’s glory and “be made equal with him”. Section 93 revealed that Christ Himself “received not of the fulness at first, but continued from grace to grace” until receiving a fulness—providing a blueprint for His followers to progress from grace to grace. Section 93 also repudiated creatio ex nihilo, affirming that human intelligence and elements are co-eternal with God and cannot be created or destroyed.
- Doctrine and Covenants 132 (1843): Linked exaltation directly to the covenant of eternal marriage, declaring that those who abide by divine covenants will inherit “all heights and depths” and that “then shall they be gods, because they have no end”.
- The King Follett Discourse (1844): In his final General Conference address, Joseph Smith reflected on the death of Church member King Follett. He taught that “if men do not comprehend the character of God, they do not comprehend themselves,” revealing that God was once as one of us and that all spirit intelligences are susceptible of eternal enlargement. He charged the Saints: “You have got to learn how to be a god yourself,” emphasizing that exaltation is a gradual, ongoing process of learning and growth that extends long beyond the grave.
4. Later Formulations and the Eternal Family
Following Joseph Smith’s martyrdom, Church leaders continued to teach the doctrine of divine potential. Lorenzo Snow, the fifth President of the Church, famously synthesized the doctrine into a succinct couplet: “As man now is, God once was: As God now is, man may be”.This expansive vision of divine destiny is inextricably tied to the doctrine of Heavenly Parents. Poet and leader Eliza R. Snow expressed this foundational truth in her hymn “O My Father,” reasoning that truth eternal requires a Heavenly Mother alongside a Heavenly Father. As President Dallin H. Oaks summarized: “Our theology begins with heavenly parents. Our highest aspiration is to be like them”.
Isaiah’s Statement
Critics often point to Old Testament passages in Isaiah—such as “beside me there is no God” (Isaiah 44:6, 45:5)—to argue against a plurality of divine beings or human exaltation. Latter-day Saint scholars and theological commentators address the challenge of Isaiah’s “no other God” statements (such as Isaiah 43:10–11, 44:6, 8, and 45:5, 21) through four key scriptural and contextual insights:
1. Rhetorical Statements of Incomparability, Not Non-Existence
In ancient Hebrew rhetoric, declaring “there is none beside me” was an idiom used to express unrivaled preeminence and supreme authority, rather than an assertion that no other entities exist.
This exact rhetorical formula appears in other passages where literal non-existence is clearly not the meaning:
- In Isaiah 47:8, 10, the city of Babylon boasts, “I am, and none else beside me”.
- In Zephaniah 2:15, the city of Nineveh similarly claims, “I am, and there is none beside me”.
Neither Babylon nor Nineveh was claiming to be the sole physical city on earth; rather, each was declaring that it had no equal or rival in power and majesty. Applied to Deity, Isaiah is declaring that Jehovah has no equal or rival in power, glory, and saving capability.
2. A Warning Against Idolatry and False Saviors
Isaiah’s declarations were specifically directed at ancient Israel to warn them against their persistent temptation to worship powerless, man-made idols. Isaiah repeatedly contrasts the living God—who created the heavens and possesses the power to redeem—with idols of wood or stone that can neither hear nor save.
The primary focus of these passages is covenantal: Jehovah (Jesus Christ, speaking by divine investiture of authority for the Father) is the only God who can save and redeem Israel. Beside Him, no other savior exists.
3. Context of the Old Testament Divine Assembly
The Hebrew Bible frequently references a heavenly assembly or divine council (elohim or “sons of God”) over which Yahweh presides (such as in Psalm 82:1, 6 and Psalm 89:5–7). Exclaiming that there is “no God beside” Yahweh highlights His preeminent status as the supreme “God of gods” over this council, rather than implying that the council members do not exist.
4. Understanding “Before Me… Neither Shall There Be After Me”
Critics often point to Isaiah 43:10 (“before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me”) to argue against human exaltation. Because God/Yahweh exists eternally from eternity to eternity, no divine being precedes Him or succeeds Him chronologically to replace Him. Exalted human beings do not replace God or exist prior to or after Him; rather, through Christ’s Atonement, they become contemporaries, joint-heirs, and eternal members of His divine assembly, remaining eternally subject to Him.
5. Harmony with Latter-day Saint Belief
Latter-day Saint theology does not teach that exalted beings compete with, supplant, or exist independently of God. Exalted individuals will forever revere, worship, and remain subject to Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ as the ultimate, irreplaceable objects of eternal devotion.
Conclusion
A core and fundamental principle of Latter-day Saint theology is the belief that human beings have the potential to grow, advance, and eventually become like God. Latter-day Saints believe that by the Atonement of Jesus Christ, keeping gospel covenants, and progressing “from grace to grace,” people can ultimately attain the fullness of the Father’s glory. Exaltation is viewed as an act of divine grace, rather than an effort to supplant, replace, or exist apart from God. Joseph Smith made this concept clear by stating that “there is but one God—that is, pertaining to us.” Although Latter-day Saint worship is focused solely on the Father and the Son, this perspective does not reject the existence of other perfected beings who can legitimately be called gods.
