Is God Unique? Comparing Monotheism in Judaism, Christianity, and Islam

Jewish theology is built on an uncompromising monotheism. The Shema, recited twice daily by observant Jews, is the cornerstone: 'Hear, O Israel: the LORD our God is one LORD' (Deuteronomy 6:4) Deuteronomy 6:4. The Hebrew word echad ('one') here is understood by classical rabbinic tradition — from Maimonides (12th c.) in his Mishneh Torah to modern Orthodox thinkers — as expressing absolute, indivisible unity. There is no room for partners, intermediaries, or divine persons.

The Torah reinforces this repeatedly. Deuteronomy 4:35 states flatly that 'there is none else beside him' Deuteronomy 4:35, and Deuteronomy 4:39 commands Israel to 'know therefore this day… that the LORD he is God in heaven above, and upon the earth beneath: there is none else' Deuteronomy 4:39. The First Commandment follows naturally: 'Thou shalt have none other gods before me' Deuteronomy 5:7.

Psalm 86:8 acknowledges the existence of other so-called 'gods' in a polemical sense — 'Among the gods there is none like unto thee, O Lord' Psalms 86:8 — but Jewish exegesis consistently reads these as false idols or at most angelic beings, not genuine rivals to YHWH. Deuteronomy 10:17 calls God 'God of gods, and Lord of lords' Deuteronomy 10:17, a superlative that underscores supremacy, not plurality. God's uniqueness in Judaism is ontological: nothing else shares his nature.

Christianity inherits Israel's monotheism wholesale and insists with equal force that there is only one God. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 8:6: 'to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things… and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things' 1 Corinthians 8:6. This verse is notable because Paul is consciously echoing the Shema of Deuteronomy 6:4 Deuteronomy 6:4 and yet distributing its content across Father and Son — a move that became foundational for later Trinitarian theology.

The Council of Nicaea (325 CE) and the Athanasian Creed formalized the doctrine: God is one in essence (ousia) but three in persons (Father, Son, Holy Spirit). Theologians like Athanasius and, later, Thomas Aquinas (13th c.) argued this was not a contradiction of monotheism but its deepest expression — the one God is internally relational. Critics, including Jewish and Muslim thinkers, have always contested this reading.

Christianity also draws on the same Hebrew scriptures. Deuteronomy 4:35 — 'the LORD he is God; there is none else beside him' Deuteronomy 4:35 — and Deuteronomy 33:26 — 'There is none like unto the God of Jeshurun' Deuteronomy 33:26 — are cited in Christian apologetics as proof that the God of the Old Testament is the same unique God revealed in Christ. The disagreement with Judaism isn't about whether God is unique, but about what that uniqueness looks like.

Islam's doctrine of Tawhid — the absolute oneness and uniqueness of God (Allah) — is arguably the most central and strictly unitarian of the three traditions. The Shahada, the first pillar of Islam, declares: 'There is no god but God.' Surah Al-Ikhlas (112) is considered by hadith tradition to be worth a third of the Quran in theological weight: 'Say: He is Allah, the One. Allah, the Eternal Refuge. He neither begets nor is born, nor is there to Him any equivalent.' This verse explicitly rejects both the Christian doctrine of the Son and any notion of divine partnership.

Islamic theology distinguishes between Tawhid al-Rububiyya (oneness of lordship), Tawhid al-Uluhiyya (oneness of worship), and Tawhid al-Asma wa'l-Sifat (oneness of names and attributes). Scholars like Ibn Taymiyya (14th c.) and Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab (18th c.) wrote extensively on these categories. The Quran's condemnation of shirk (associating partners with God) is described as the one unforgivable sin if maintained until death (Surah 4:48).

Islam affirms the monotheism of the Hebrew prophets and cites figures like Moses and Abraham as models of pure Tawhid, but holds that both Judaism and Christianity have, to varying degrees, distorted the original revelation. The Christian Trinity is specifically rejected as a form of shirk. God's uniqueness in Islam is thus not only a theological claim but a polemical boundary marker.

Judaism’s core confession, the Shema, affirms divine uniqueness: “the LORD our God is one LORD.” This is reinforced by declarations that the LORD alone is God and that “there is none else” in heaven or on earth Deuteronomy 6:4Deuteronomy 4:35Deuteronomy 4:39. The first commandment forbids allegiance to any other gods, practically expressing exclusive monotheism Deuteronomy 5:7.

Some poetic texts speak of the LORD as supreme “above all gods,” language that contrasts Israel’s God with rival claimants and magnifies his incomparable greatness Psalms 95:3Psalms 86:8Deuteronomy 10:17. Overall, the thrust is the LORD’s uniqueness and sole deity Deuteronomy 6:4Deuteronomy 4:35Deuteronomy 4:39.

Christianity inherits Israel’s monotheism and explicitly teaches divine uniqueness: “to us there is but one God, the Father… and one Lord Jesus Christ.” This statement preserves the oneness of God while naming Jesus as Lord, with all things existing through him 1 Corinthians 8:6. The Christian confession stands in continuity with the Shema’s proclamation of the one LORD Deuteronomy 6:4.

We can’t provide a sourced Islamic answer here. This general question is applicable to Islam, but no Qur’anic or Hadith passages were retrieved; to uphold citation discipline, we won’t make claims without Islamic sources.