Of all God’s children, who is the firstborn? Paul says Jesus is God’s firstborn, having been there before he made anything else. But the gospel of John suggests that Jesus wasn’t created in the beginning, much less born. He was just always there. So the only way Jesus could be God’s firstborn would be if God had no other children before Jesus was actually born, 2000 years ago.

Is that really the case? The Bible says it’s not. Instead, it calls David God’s firstborn.

God also says Ephraim is his firstborn son, and Ephraim was born long before David. But wait, that same verse also says God is Israel’s father. And Israel was Ephraim’s grandfather. So Israel must be a son of God who was born before Ephraim, right?

Yep, the Bible does indeed call Israel God’s firstborn son, and the firstfruits of all he has created. But that doesn’t make sense. Plenty of people lived before Israel. Weren’t any of them children of God?

The real firstborn must be Adam, who the Bible says was the son of God who lived before any of those other people.

Unless you count Wisdom. Wisdom says she was the first of God’s works, which would make her yet another firstborn that predates even Adam.