What was Jesus's relationship with God ("the father") before Jesus became a "begotten son"?

Question

Psalm 2:7 says: “I will declare the decree:The Lord has said to Me,‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You"... See also Hebrews 1:5; 5:5 (and compare with Mark 1:9-11).

Psalms 2:7 (ignoring those that say it talks about David); and Hebrews 5:5 - clearly speak in terms of "TODAY" I have begotten thee". (emphasis on "today").

What was the relationship of Jesus to God "the father" before the day Jesus became a begotten son of God?

NOTE: I have taken care to read the posts that speak about Jesus as a son of God. They don't ask the same question as to what he was before.

Edit:

Question is addressed to those who believe that Jesus is "the word" spoken of in John 1:1; those who accept him to be the "only begotten son" or the second person in the Trinity. I am not sure whether only Trinitarians subscribe to these ideas.

My understanding of "mainstream" Trinitarian Christianity is that God has always been "the father", "the son ("word")", and "the Holy spirit". When one reads Hebrews 5:5: "Today I have begotten you", it signifies a change in relationship. Does it mean that before "THAT day", divine Jesus or "the Word" was something else to God but not a son? That is the relationship I am inquiring about.

Answer 1

Orthodox Christianity (i.e. mainstream) has always taught the doctrine of the eternal Son. There never was a time when the Son was not the Son. The question is not about that, of course, but about how the Son related to the Father prior to prophecy being fulfilled regarding this Son being called "begotten".

To answer that, the time of this begetting would have to be ascertained, in what sense he was begotten, and whether that changed the relationship of the Son to the Father.

Of note is that God speaks of the King on his holy hill, Zion, as "my Son" in the present tense - "Thou art...". And this comes before the Son is begotten. That event happens at a specific point in time - "Today". Here is a comment on that from a Protestant study Bible:

"Thou art my Son. Quoted in Acts 13:33.Heb. 1:5; 5:5. This is the Divine formula for anointing, Cp. Matt. 3:17, for Prophet; Matt. 17:5, for Priest; and Heb. 1:5,6, for King.

begotten Thee. Fig Anthropopatheia. It refers to resurrection (Acts 13:33. Rom. 1:3,4. Col. 1:18. Rev. 1:5). The Companion Bible, Bullinger, re. Psalm 2:6-7, p.724.

Before the resurrection of Christ, then, did he relate to the Father differently to this begetting by resurrection? Well, something is stated about Christ after the resurrection which gives an answer. Verse 8 has the Father saying to this now-begotten Son,

"Ask of me, and I shall give Thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth, for Thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; Thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel." (Ibid. Psalm 2:8-9)

This seems to indicate that, after his resurrection, Christ could make this request, and at some time thereafter, Christ will come in judgment of all the nations, to pour out divine wrath on those that have not been wise, who have not been instructed, those who have not served the Lord with reverential fear (combined with trembling joy), who have not kissed the resurrected Son or trusted in him. That's what verses 10 to 12 state.

The answer is that the unique and intimate relationship of the eternal Son with the eternal Father has not changed, but authority to do something particular as the resurrected Son is then granted by the Father. This authority could not be given until after the resurrection. (And, an important point, Jesus is not called "a son of God" in the Bible - he is always, but always, called "the Son of God" and "the only-begotten Son of God", which links in with him also being called "the firstborn from the dead, Col. 1:18.)

Answer 2

Let’s assume this is about Christ and not David, or if it was David as a Type of Christ, then it is still is about Christ, so we must accept Christ is in time born as a Son in some way. First off then obviously ‘Today I have begotten thee’ must be referring to the ‘humanity’ of Christ, not his ‘divinity’ as God, the eternally begotten Son proceeding from the Father without beginning.

Second, it does not really matter if one interprets this declaration of Christ’s humanity as becoming ‘a Son’ at his a) incarnation, b) his baptism by John, or c) his resurrection, as it all amounts to his human nature in either case being declared to being made a Son. (Personally I like the incarnation as my first pick Luke 1:35, but he was declared to be the Son in power on his resurrection, and a voice from heaven did declare it also in his Baptism, so I can accept any of them, yet seems best to stick with science as he was literally born a son in a virgin’s womb).

Third, it might be helpful to understand that the humanity of Christ was predestined to be made a Son of God ‘for us’, in order that we too by being united in him would be adopted sons.

For he chose us in him before the creation of the world to be holy and blameless in his sight. In love he predestined us for adoption to sonship through Jesus Christ, in accordance with his pleasure and will— to the praise of his glorious grace, which he has freely given us in the One he loves. Ephesians 1:4-6 NIV

This means God the father before the creation intended to make the God-Man in order to adopt us and make us sons. By taking upon himself a human nature, God made Jesus a unique and only natural created son. He was not adopted or brought into his sonship indirectly through any law but God created the humanity in a virgin directly, being made his natural son. Just as Adam was a natural son as God made him directly. We on the other hand were created indirectly but our new creation through being united to his humanity and having been justified are reconciled to God in his death and resurrection, made us adopted sons only.

Just as he was fashioned into our image to save us, we are fashioned into his image through new birth. Jesus is a Son, therefore we are a son. Jesus was made a king, therefore, we are a kings. He possess all things. We posses all things. We are formed into his image and become sons, not directly but in him we are adopted and made sons. He is the head we receive his benefits only as members of his body.

So what was Jesus’s relationship before he was a Son?

The question is somewhat confusing because before the man Jesus was born he had no physical existence and so one can’t ask “what his relationship to God was’ - he obviously did not exist. However, before the creation of his humanity, God the divine Son who had no beginning, being eternally begotten of the Father was predestined to assumed this human nature called ‘Jesus’ and this union would make the promised ‘Christ’ or God-Man, having two natures and only one personality. Therefore, his human nature he was eternally elect and predestined to be created, as the only natural Son of God by the Holy Spirit in a Virgin’s womb. Jesus, the man, was ‘made a Son’ in this way, by being assumed by the Eternal Son. This election, of creating a human Son, to be united with the Eternal Son, was destined in order to adopt the rest of the elect (his body) in him. In other words, the human nature of the Christ, the man Jesus, had the relationship to God as being predestined to be made his son (i.e being made one with the second person of theTrinity) before the creation of the whole universe.

Answer 3

The uniqueness of God's nature means that the metaphorical roles and relationships He assumes with respect to humans, such as 'father' and 'son,' cannot be fully captured or compared to human relationships. Consequently, questions about these ontological relations would require speculative conjectures. The sages did not seem to have described the relationship of the divine Wisdom, Logos, Spirit and Metatron with God the father. I guess, you can use the same analogy of relation that you have with your mind, to describe the relationship with God and the Logos.