Father

Father is used in Scripture in several distinct senses. In its most immediate sense it denotes a male parent or ancestor, and the term is extended to any forefather or predecessor: Abraham is called "father" by his descendants across many generations (Matthew 3:9; Deuteronomy 1:11). As a title of honor and respect, "father" was applied to tribal leaders, priests, prophets, royal counselors, and teachers, as when Micah's hired Levite is called "a father and a priest" (Judges 17:10).

Most profoundly, "Father" is the supreme biblical name for God in his relationship to his people. In the Old Testament, God is Father of Israel in a corporate, covenantal sense (Deuteronomy 32:6; Hosea 11:1). Jesus radically deepened this: he addressed God as Abba (Father) in prayer and taught his disciples to do the same (Matthew 6:9; Romans 8:15), grounding this intimacy in his own unique divine sonship. The New Testament consistently distinguishes Jesus as Son of God in a way that differs qualitatively from the adopted sonship of believers, yet both relationships derive their meaning from the same Father (John 20:17).