pre-incarnateadj.
/priːɪnˈkɑːnət/, /priːɪŋˈkɑːnət/, U.S. /ˌpriənˈkɑrnət/, /ˌpriɪnˈkɑrnət/, /ˌpriɪŋˈkɑrnət/ Theology.
Existing before the Incarnation; spec. designating Christ in his divine pre-existence.
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the world > the supernatural > deity > Christian God > the Trinity > the Son or Christ > [adjective] > pre-incarnate
pre-incarnate1761
1761 J. Stonhouse Universal Restitution 167 The pre-incarnate delinquency of man seems to be no less clearly implied in the contract and covenant between the father and the Logos touching our redemption.
1868 J. B. Lightfoot Epist. Philippians (1885) 131 Does the expression..refer to the pre-incarnate or the incarnate Christ?
1895 S. D. F. Salmond Christian Doctr. Immortality iv. iii. 459 Is it a ministry of the pre-incarnate Christ, the disembodied Christ, or the risen Christ?
1961 PMLA 76 163/1 From the nativity scene toward the end of the poem it becomes clear that, fantastically enough, the boy was some kind of pre-incarnate Christ.
1992 Gazette (Montreal) (Nexis) 18 Jan. 18 We believe in the absolute and essential deity of Jesus Christ, in His eternal existence with the Father in pre-incarnate glory.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, March 2007; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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adj.1761