Q: Throughout Scripture each person of the Trinity speaks. Some passages are clear that it’s the “Holy Spirt” or “the Lord” or “Jesus.” But what about the Old Testament–Who would be speaking in the Old Testament when it says “the Lord” or other references like that? For example, 1 Samuel 3? And does it matter who speaks since they are all “God”? Are we to understand them differently?

A: The simple, clear, biblical answer is this: When the Old Testament says “the LORD spoke,” it means God truly spoke. The text doesn’t always tell us which person of the Trinity was speaking, and that’s okay. Scripture is clear that the Father, Son, and Spirit are one God, sharing one will and one authority. So we don’t obey differently based on who speaks—we obey because God has spoken. The distinctions within the Trinity help us understand how God works, but never lessen the weight of what He says.

Here’s a little more meat behind that summary.

First, when the Old Testament says “the LORD” (YHWH), it is intentionally identifying the one true God, not distinguishing between Father, Son, and Spirit the way the New Testament later does. Consider your example of 1 Samuel 3. The text simply says “the LORD called Samuel.” From the author’s standpoint, the speaker is YHWH — Israel’s covenant God. That lack of specificity is by design; it’s not a deficiency. So we are right and faithful to simply say God is speaking—truly, personally, and authoritatively.

That is not to say the Old Testament never hints at distinction in regards to God speaking. It does, but implicitly, not explicitly. For instance, “The Spirit of the LORD said to me…” (2 Sam 23:2), “The Angel of the LORD” who speaks as God and yet is distinguished from God (Gen 16; Exod 3), and when God speaks of Himself in plural terms (Gen 1:26; Isa 6:8). We don’t have much explanation in this texts beyond the description, but there is a sense of distinction. So it’s probably wisest to see these as Trinitarian foreshadowings, though the OT saints would not yet have articulated it like we do when we say things like “This is the Father speaking” or “This is the Son speaking.” Thankfully, Scripture does not require us to identify which person is speaking.

Which leads me to add this — let’s be careful not to specify divine speaking voices to the extent that we muddy the Trinity. We must be careful here. Why? Because even when Scripture itself does utilize an implicit or explicit distinction, it is not meant to lessen the authority of the voice. When God speaks, the whole Trinity is involved—even if one person is more visibly active. As I said earlier, there is one will, one authority, one divine purpose.

Which begs the question: Does it matter which person speaks? Yes and no—depending on what we mean. Yes, because it can help us understand God’s work better. In redemptive history, the persons of the Trinity often operate in recognizable patterns: The Father sends, the Son reveals and accomplishes redemption, the Spirit applies, empowers, and guides. That helps us understand God better—but it never changes how seriously we take His word.

That’s when we say no, it doesn’t matter. We don’t want to separate the voice of God in such a way that we unintentionally create a hierarchy within it. It does not matter who speaks in terms of authority or obedience. The Father is fully God, the Son is fully God, and the Spirit is fully God. So God’s Word always carries God’s authority. We do not rank commands based on who spoke. Obedience is never optional based on Trinitarian distinctions.

So back to the passage in 1 Samuel 3. We can say that God personally spoke to Samuel, initiating relationship and calling his servant into obedience. This is what God’s word required — a response.

And that actually fits beautifully with a Trinitarian worldview in our time as well: The same God who spoke to Samuel has now spoken finally in His Son and continues to speak by His Spirit through the Word.