I now come to the final segment of my discussion: HAS JESUS ALWAYS BEEN JEHOVAH GOD? PT. 2.

Further evidence that Christ has always possessed the divine name seeing that has always been God as to his very nature comes from Thomas’ climactic confession after beholding the risen Lord in his glorified, immortal physical fleshly body:

“But Thomas, one of the Twelve, who was called the Twin, was not with them when Jesus came. So the other disciples were telling him: ‘We have seen the Lord (ton Kyrion)!’ But he said to them: ‘Unless I see in his hands the print of the nails and stick my finger into the print of the nails and stick my hand into his side, I will never believe it.’ Well, eight days later his disciples were again indoors, and Thomas was with them. Jesus came, although the doors were locked, and he stood in their midst and said: ‘May you have peace.’ Next he said to Thomas: ‘Put your finger here, and see my hands, and take your hand and stick it into my side, and stop doubting but believe. In answer Thomas said TO HIM (eipen auto): ‘My Lord and my God!’ Jesus said to him: ‘Because you have seen me, have you believed? Happy are those who have not seen and yet believe.’ To be sure, Jesus also performed many other signs before the disciples, which are not written down in this scroll. But these have been written down so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and because of believing, you may have life by means of his name.” John 20:24-31

Earlier, Jesus had acknowledged that he truly was/is the Lord and Teacher whom the disciples were to look to:

“You address me as ‘Teacher’ and ‘Lord (ho Kyrios),’ and you are correct, for I am such. Therefore, if I, the Lord (ho Kyrios) and Teacher, washed your feet, you also should wash the feet of one another.” John 13:13-14

He now accepts his disciple’s confession of being both the Lord and God of all true believers!

For Thomas to acknowledge Jesus as his very own Lord and God would be a blasphemous assertion if Christ were nothing more than a mere creature who acted as God’s authorized agent. This is because the Hebrew Bible is emphatically clear that the only God that an Israelite can ever confess and worship is Jehovah:

“Then God spoke all these words: ‘I am Jehovah your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. You must not have any other gods besides me. You must not make for yourself a carved image or a form like anything that is in the heavens above or on the earth below or in the waters under the earth. You must not bow down to them nor be enticed to serve them, for I, Jehovah your God, am a God who requires exclusive devotion, bringing punishment for the error of fathers upon sons, upon the third generation and upon the fourth generation of those who hate me,but showing loyal love to the thousandth generation of those who love me and keep my commandments.’” Exodus 20:1-6

“You must not bow down to another god, for Jehovah is known for requiring exclusive devotion. Yes, he is a God who requires exclusive devotion.” Exodus 34:14

“When Jehovah made a covenant with them, he commanded them: ‘You must not fear other gods, and you must not bow down to them or serve them or sacrifice to them. But Jehovah, who brought you up out of the land of Egypt with great power and an outstretched arm, is the One you should fear, and to him you should bow down, and to him you should sacrifice. And the regulations, the judgments, the Law, and the commandment that he wrote for you, you should always follow carefully, and you must not fear other gods. And you must not forget the covenant that I made with you, and you must not fear other gods. But it is Jehovah your God whom you should fear, as he is the one who will rescue you out of the hand of all your enemies.’” 2 Kings 17:35-39

“You saw it, Jehovah; do not be deaf! Lord (adonay), do not stand aloof from me! Rouse and wake in defense of my cause, my God and Lord (elohay wadonay), in my behalf; Do me justice in accordance with your fairness, my God (elohay) Jehovah, let them not have their joy over me!” Psalm 35:22-24 BYINGTON

Contrast the Greek rendering of v. 23,

“Awake, O Lord, and attend to my judgment, [even] to my cause, my God and my Lord (ho Theos mou kai ho Kyrios mou).” Psalm 34:23 LXX

With that of John 20:28

“In answer Thomas said to him: ‘My Lord and my God (ho Kyrios mou kai ho Theos mou)!’”

In fact, Jesus is not only described as the God of believers, along with his God and Father,

“Jesus said to her: ‘Stop clinging to me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father. But go to my brothers and say to them, “I am ascending to my Father and your Father and to my God and your God.”’” John 20:17

The risen Christ is also said to be the object of reverence who is worshiped by every created being in existence!

“Be in subjection to one another in fear of Christ.” Ephesians 5:21

“so that in the name of Jesus EVERY KNEE should bend—of those in heaven and those on earth and those under the ground—and EVERY TONGUE should openly acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.” Philippians 2:10-11

“When he took the scroll, the four living creatures and the 24 elders fell down before the Lamb, and each one had a harp and golden bowls that were full of incense. (The incense means the prayers of the holy ones.) And they sing a new song, saying: ‘You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals, for you were slaughtered and with your blood you bought people for God out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, and you made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth.’ And I saw, and I heard a voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders, and the number of them was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, and they were saying with a loud voice: ‘The Lamb who was slaughtered is worthy to receive the power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.’ And I heard EVERY CEREATURE in heaven and on earth and underneath the earth and on the sea, and ALL THE THINGS IN THEM, saying: ‘To the One sitting on the throne AND TO THE LAMB be the blessing and the honor and the glory and the might forever and ever.’The four living creatures were saying: ‘Amen!’ and the elders fell down and worshipped.” Revelation 5:8-14

That Christ is distinguished from every created being shows he is not a creature by nature. Rather, like the Father he is uncreated, beginningless, which is why the whole creation worships him to the same extent and for the same duration that God the Father is worshiped. I.e., the Son is co-equal with the Father in essence, glory, power, and honor.  

The following Evangelical scholars help us understand just how truly significant this confession is seeing that it comes from the lips of a monotheistic Jew:

“On occasion Thomas’s statement has been interpreted as an exclamation that expresses his praise to God for the miracle of the resurrection of Jesus: ‘Praise be to my Lord and my God!’ Fatal to this interpretation is the phrase said to him (i.e. Jesus) (eipen auto), which is clearly parallel to the surrounding verses: ‘He [Jesus] said to Thomas’ (v. 27) and ‘Jesus said to him [Thomas]’ (v. 29). What we have in verse 28 is not an ejaculation made in the hearing of Jesus but an exclamation actually addressed to him. In effect Thomas is saying, ‘You are my Lord and my God.’ He recognized that Jesus, now alive from the dead, was supreme over all physical and spiritual life (‘Lord’) and one who shared the divine nature (‘God’).

“Was Thomas’s cry an extravagant acclamation, spoken in a moment of ecstasy when his exuberance outstripped his theological sense? Not at all. John records no rebuke of Jesus to Thomas for his worship. Jesus’ silence is tantamount to consent, for Jews regarded the human acceptance of worship as blasphemous. Indeed, Jesus’ subsequent word to Thomas, ‘you have believed’ (v. 29 a), implies that he accepted Thomas’s confession of faith, which he then indirectly commends to others (v. 29b). Moreover, John himself has endorsed Thomas’s confession, for it stands as his last and highest affirmation about Christ immediately before his statement of purpose in writing the Gospel (vv. 30-31).” (Murray J. Harris, 3 Crucial Questions about Jesus [Baker Books, Grand Rapids, MI 1994], pp. 94-95; bold emphasis mine)

And:

“There is essentially no controversy among biblical scholars that in John 20:28 Thomas is referring to and addressing Jesus when he says, ‘My Lord and my God!’ As Harris says in his lengthy study on Jesus as God in the New Testament, ‘This view prevails among grammarians, lexicographers, commentators and English versions.’ Indeed, it is difficult to find any contemporary exegetical commentary or academic study that argues that Thomas’s words in John 20:28 apply in context to the Father rather than to Jesus. The reason is simple: John prefaces what Thomas said with the words, ‘Thomas answered and said to him’ (v. 28a NASB). This seemingly redundant wording reflects a Hebrew idiomatic way of introducing someone’s response to the previous speaker. John uses it especially frequently, always with the speaker’s words directed to the person or persons who have just spoken previously in the narrative (John 1:48, 50; 2:18-19; 3:3, 9-10, 27; 4:10, 13, 17; 5:11; 6:26, 29, 43; 7:16, 21, 52; 8:14, 39, 48; 9:11, 20, 30, 34, 36; 12:30; 13:7; 14:23; 18:30; 20:28). It is therefore certain that Thomas was directing his words to Jesus, not to the Father. No one, of course, would ever have questioned this obvious conclusion if Thomas had said simply ‘My Lord!’ It is the addition of the words ‘and my God’ that have sparked some creative but untenable interpretations of the text.

“Thomas’s words echo statements addressed in the Psalms to the Lord (Jehovah), especially: ‘Wake up!’ Bestir yourself for my defense, for my cause, my God and my Lord [ho theos mou kai ho kurios mou]!’ (Ps. 35:23). These words parallel those in John 20:28 exactly except for reversing ‘God’ and ‘Lord’. More broadly, in biblical language ‘my God’ (on the lips of a faithful believer) can refer only to the Lord God of Israel. The language is as definite as it could be and identifies Jesus Christ as God himself.

“In identifying Jesus as God, Thomas, of course, was not identifying him as the Father. Earlier in the same passage, Jesus had referred to the Father as his God. It is interesting to compare Jesus’ wording with the wording of Thomas. Jesus told Mary Magdalene, ‘I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and to your God’ (theon mou kai theon humon, John 20:17). As in John 1:1 and John 1:18, the Father is called ‘God’ in close proximity to a statement affirming that Jesus is also ‘God.’ Here again, as in John 1:18, we do not see the apostle John distinguishing between the Father as ‘the God’ (ho theos) and Jesus the Son as only ‘God’ (theos without the article). In fact, whereas Jesus calls the Father ‘my God’ without the article (theon mou, 20:17), Thomas calls Jesus ‘my God’ with the article (ho theos mou, 20:28)! One could not ask for any clearer evidence that the use or nonuse of the article is irrelevant to the meaning of the word theos. What matters is how the word is used in context. In John 20:28, the apostle reports the most skeptical of disciples making the most exalted of confessions about Jesus, John expects his readers to view Thomas’s confession as a model to follow. Recognizing Jesus as the One who has conquered death itself for us, we too are to respond to Jesus and confess that he is our Lord and God.” (Putting Jesus in His Place: The Case for the Deity of Christ, Chapter 12. Immanuel: God with Us, pp. 142-143; bold emphasis mine)

What makes this rather amusing is that the Watchtower Society itself admits that that when an Israelite says “my God” s/he can only be referring to Jehovah his God:

“In its articles on JEHOVAH, the Imperial Bible Dictionary (Vol. I, p. 856) nicely illustrates the difference between Elohim (God) and Jehovah. Of the name Jehovah, it says: ‘It is everywhere a proper name, denoting the personal God and him only; whereas Elohim partakes more of the character of a common noun, denoting usually, indeed, but not necessarily nor uniformly, the Supreme…. The Hebrew may say theElohim, the true God, in opposition to all false gods; but he never says the Jehovah, for Jehovah is the name for the true God only. He says again and again my God…; but never my Jehovah, for when he says my God, He means Jehovah. He speaks of the God of Israel, but never of Jehovah of Israel, for there is no other Jehovah. He speaks of the living God, but never of the living Jehovah, for he cannot conceive of Jehovah as other than living.’” (Aid to Bible Understanding [Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., 1971], Jehovah. “God” and “Father” not distinctive, p. 885; bold emphasis mine)

Thus, for a monotheistic Israelite like Thomas to confess Jesus as his Lord God must mean that Jesus is Jehovah Almighty in the flesh. And since the Son is Jehovah by his very nature this means he has always possessed the name that is above every name in existence:

“Let them praise the name of Jehovah, For his name alone is unreachably high. His majesty is above earth and heaven.” Psalm 148:13

Christ is also prophetically called the Mighty God who condescended to become a human child:

“However, the gloom will not be as when the land had distress, as in former times when the land of Zebʹu·lun and the land of Naphʹta·li were treated with contempt. But at a later time He will cause it to be honored—the way by the sea, in the region of the Jordan, Galʹi·lee of the nations. The people who were walking in the darkness Have seen a great light. As for those dwelling in the land of deep shadow, Light has shone on them… For a child has been born to us, A son has been given to us; And the rulership will rest on his shoulder. His name will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. To the increase of his rulership And to peace, there will be no end, On the throne of David and on his kingdom In order to establish it firmly and to sustain it Through justice and righteousness, From now on and forever. The zeal of Jehovah of armies will do this.” Isaiah 9:1-2, 6-7

“Now when he heard that John had been arrested, he withdrew into Galʹi·lee. Further, after leaving Nazʹa·reth, he came and took up residence in Ca·perʹna·um beside the sea in the districts of Zebʹu·lun and Naphʹta·li, so as to fulfill what was spoken through Isaiah the prophet, who said: ‘O land of Zebʹu·lun and land of Naphʹta·li, along the road of the sea, on the other side of the Jordan, Galʹi·lee of the nations! The people sitting in darkness saw a great light, and as for those sitting in a region of deathly shadow, light rose on them.’” Matthew 4:12-16

And since the Hebrew Bible testifies to there being only one Mighty God, namely, Jehovah,

“In that day those remaining of Israel And the survivors of the house of Jacob Will no longer support themselves on the one who struck them; But they will support themselves on Jehovah, The Holy One of Israel, with faithfulness. Only a remnant will return, The remnant of Jacob, to the Mighty God.” Isaiah 10:20-21

This again affirms that the Son is as to his very nature Jehovah God Almighty.

Once again, since the Son has always been Jehovah he must have, therefore, always had the name. There’s simply no way around this revealed fact.

With the foregoing in perspective, we can now focus on the meaning of the texts in question:

“and all my things are yours and yours are mine, and I have been glorified among them.I am no longer in the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, watch over them on account of your own name, which you have given me, so that they may be one just as we are one. When I was with them, I used to watch over them on account of your own name, which you have given me; and I have protected them, and not one of them is destroyed except the son of destruction, so that the scripture might be fulfilled.” John 17:10-12  

As we have seen, our Lord wasn’t denying that he had always possessed the name. Rather, the point he was making was that that he had been authorized by the Father to make known to his disciples the very character and nature of God. This is brought out by the following texts:

“I have made your name manifest to the men whom you gave me out of the world. They were yours, and you gave them to me, and they have observed your word… I have made your name known to them and will make it known, so that the love with which you loved me may be in them and I in union with them.” John 17:6, 26

Christ was essentially saying that the Father would keep believers securely in union with himself due to his nature of being a God who is reliable and faithful to perfectly fulfill all of his promises to those who place their trust in him.

And since the disciples had come to know God’s nature more fully due to the revelation of the Son, they could now rest assured that God would preserve them from ever perishing since nothing in creation could ever severe them from God’s loving and sovereign protection over their lives:

“‘All those whom the Father gives me will come to me, and I will never drive away the one who comes to me; for I have come down from heaven to do, not my own will, but the will of him who sent me. This is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose none out of all those whom he has given me, but that I should resurrect them on the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who recognizes the Son and exercises faith in him should have everlasting life, and I will resurrect him on the last day.’ Then the Jews began to murmur about him because he had said: ‘I am the bread that came down from heaven.’ And they began saying: ‘Is this not Jesus the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How does he now say, “I have come down from heaven”?’ In response Jesus said to them: ‘Stop murmuring among yourselves. No man can come to me unless the Father, who sent me, draws him, and I will resurrect him on the last day.’” John 6:37-44

“My sheep listen to my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. I give them everlasting life, and they will by no means ever be destroyed, and no one will snatch them out of my hand. What my Father has given me is something greater than all other things, and no one can snatch them out of the hand of the Father. I and the Father are one.” John 10:27-30

“Who will separate us from the love of the Christ? Will tribulation or distress or persecution or hunger or nakedness or danger or sword? Just as it is written: ‘For your sake we are being put to death all day long; we have been accounted as sheep for slaughtering.’ On the contrary, in all these things we are coming off completely victorious through the one who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life nor angels nor governments nor things now here nor things to come nor powers nor height nor depth nor any other creation will be able to separate us from God’s love that is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” Romans 8:35-39

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