The phrase 'only begotten of the Father' indicates that His relationship with the Father is ____ .

• A. eternal
• B. temporal
• C. mortal
• D. mutual

Answer: (A)

The main idea here is the nature of Jesus’ relationship to the Father as expressed by “only begotten of the Father.” Begotten in this sense points to an eternal, unique Sonship—Jesus is the Son who comes forth from the Father from all eternity, sharing the same divine essence, not created in time. This implies an unchanging, eternal bond within the Trinity, rather than a relationship that began or ends with a moment in history or that involves mortality. So the relationship is eternal. The other options describe things that don’t fit that eternal, indivisible soteriological bond: temporal would suggest a beginning in time, mortal would imply vulnerability to death, and mutual would imply a reciprocal relationship rather than the eternal begetting of the Son.