In this post I present some of the biblical data which points to Peter’s primacy over the Apostles.

I begin with some of the many verses where Peter is singled out for particular functions and specific privileges:

“While He was still speaking, they came from the house of the synagogue official, saying, ‘Your daughter has died; why trouble the Teacher anymore?’ But Jesus, overhearing what had been spoken, said to the synagogue official, ‘Do not be afraid, only believe.’ And He allowed no one to accompany Him, except Peter and James and John the brother of James. And they came to the house of the synagogue official; and He saw a commotion, and people loudly crying and wailing. And entering in, He said to them, ‘Why are you making a commotion and crying? The child has not died, but is asleep.’ And they began laughing at Him. But putting them all out, He took along the child’s father and mother and His own companions, and entered the room where the child was. And taking the child by the hand, He said to her, ‘Talitha kum!’ (which translated means, ‘Little girl, I say to you, arise!’). And immediately the little girl stood up and began to walk, for she was twelve years old. And immediately they were completely astounded. And He gave them strict orders that no one should know about this, and He said that some food should be given to her to eat.” Mark 5:35-43

“And Jesus was saying to them, ‘Truly I say to you, there are some of those who are standing here who will not taste death until they see the kingdom of God having come in power.’ And six days later, Jesus took with Him Peter and James and John, and brought them up on a high mountain alone by themselves. And He was transfigured before them; and His garments were shining intensely white, as no launderer on earth can whiten them. And Elijah appeared to them along with Moses and they were conversing with Jesus. And Peter answered and said to Jesus, ‘Rabbi, it is good for us to be here; let us make three booths, one for You, and one for Moses, and one for Elijah.’ For he did not know what to answer; for they became terrified. Then a cloud formed, overshadowing them, and a voice came out of the cloud, ‘This is My beloved Son, listen to Him!’ And all at once when they looked around, they saw no one with them anymore, except Jesus alone.” Mark 9:1-8

“Immediately He made the disciples get into the boat and go ahead of Him to the other side, while He sent the crowds away. And after He had sent the crowds away, He went up on the mountain by Himself to pray; and when it was evening, He was there alone. But the boat was already many stadia away from the land, being battered by the waves; for the wind was against them. And in the fourth watch of the night He came to them, walking on the sea. Now when the disciples saw Him walking on the sea, they were terrified, and said, ‘It is a ghost!’ And they cried out in fear. But immediately Jesus spoke to them, saying, ‘Take courage, it is I; do not be afraid.’ And Peter answered and said to Him, ‘Lord, if it is You, command me to come to You on the water.’ And He said, ‘Come!’ And getting out of the boat, Peter walked on the water and came toward Jesus. But seeing the wind, he became frightened, and beginning to sink, he cried out, saying, ‘Lord, save me!’ And immediately Jesus stretched out His hand and took hold of him, and said to him, ‘You of little faith, why did you doubt?’ And when they got into the boat, the wind stopped. And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, ‘You are truly God’s Son!’” Matthew 14:22-33

“Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, saying, ‘Who do people say that the Son of Man is?’ And they said, ‘Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets.’ He said to them, ‘But who do you say that I am?’ And Simon Peter answered and said, ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’ And Jesus answered and said to him, ‘Blessed are you, Simon Bar-Jonah, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. And I also say to you that you are Peter (Petros – Aram. Kepha), and upon this rock (petra – Aram. Kepha) I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.’ Then He warned the disciples that they should tell no one that He was the Christ. From that time Jesus began to show His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem, and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised up on the third day. And Peter took Him aside and began to rebuke Him, saying, ‘God forbid it, Lord! This shall never happen to You.’ But He turned and said to Peter, ‘Get behind Me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to Me; for you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but man’s.” Matthew 16:13-23

“He brought him to Jesus. When Jesus looked at him, He said, “You are Simon the son of John; you shall be called Cephas (which is translated Peter).” John 1:42

“Now when they came to Capernaum, those who collected the two-drachma tax came to Peter and said, ‘Does your teacher not pay the two-drachma tax?’ He said, ‘Yes.’ And when he came into the house, Jesus spoke to him first, saying, ‘What do you think, Simon? From whom do the kings of the earth collect tolls or taxes, from their sons or from strangers?’ And when Peter said, “From strangers,’ Jesus said to him, ‘Then the sons are exempt. However, so that we do not offend them, go to the sea and throw in a hook, and take the first fish that comes up; and when you open its mouth, you will find a stater. Take that and give it to them for Me and you.’” Matthew 17:24-27

“Then Peter answered and said to Him, ‘Behold, we have left everything and followed You; what then will there be for us?’ And Jesus said to them, ‘Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel. And everyone who has left houses or brothers or sisters or father or mother or children or farms for My name’s sake, will receive one hundred times as much, and will inherit eternal life. But many who are first will be last; and the last, first.’” Matthew 19:27-30

“And the Lord said, Simon, Simon, behold, Satan hath desired to have you, that he may sift you as wheat:but I have prayed for thee, that thy faith fail not: and when thou art converted, strengthen thy brethren.” Luke 22:31-32 Authorized King James Version (AV)

I cited the AV here because it helps the readers see that the singular pronouns “thee,” “thy,” and “thou,” are all singular in the Greek. What this means is that Jesus specifically prayed for Peter and assigned him the task of restoring the other disciples.

There’s a whole lot more:

“And Jesus said to them, ‘You will all fall away, because it is written, ‘I will strike down the shepherd, and the sheep shall be scattered.” But after I have been raised, I will go ahead of you to Galilee.’ But Peter said to Him, ‘Even though all may fall away, yet I will not.’ And Jesus said to him, ‘Truly I say to you, that today, this very night, before a rooster crows twice, you yourself will deny Me three times.’ But Peter kept saying insistently, ‘If I have to die with You, I will not deny You!’ And they all were saying the same thing also. Then they came to a place named Gethsemane; and He said to His disciples, ‘Sit here until I have prayed.’ And He took with Him Peter and James and John, and began to be very distressed and troubled. And He said to them, ‘My soul is deeply grieved to the point of death; remain here and keep watch.’ And He went a little beyond them, and fell to the ground and began to pray that if it were possible, the hour might pass from Him.

“And He was saying, “Abba! Father! All things are possible for You; remove this cup from Me; yet not what I will, but what You will.” And He came and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, ‘Simon, are you sleeping? Could you not keep watch for one hour? Keep watching and praying that you may not come into temptation; the spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.’ And again He went away and prayed, saying the same words. And again He came and found them sleeping, for their eyes were very heavy; and they did not know what to answer Him. And He came the third time, and said to them, ‘Are you still sleeping and resting? It is enough; the hour has come; behold, the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners. Get up, let us go; behold, the one who betrays Me is at hand!’” Mark 14:27-42

“As a result of this many of His disciples went away and were not walking with Him anymore. So Jesus said to the twelve, ‘Do you also want to go?’ Simon Peter answered Him, ‘Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life. And we have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.’ Jesus answered them, ‘Did I Myself not choose you, the twelve, and yet one of you is a devil?’ Now He was speaking of Judas the son of Simon Iscariot, for he, one of the twelve, was going to betray Him.” John 6:66-71

“When Jesus had spoken these words, He went forth with His disciples to the other side of the Kidron Valley, where there was a garden, into which He entered with His disciples. Now Judas also, who was betraying Him, knew the place, for Jesus had often gathered there with His disciples. Judas then, having received the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons.

“So Jesus, knowing all the things that were coming upon Him, went forth and said to them, “Whom do you seek?’ They answered Him, ‘Jesus the Nazarene.’ He said to them, ‘I am He.’ And Judas also, who was betraying Him, was standing with them. So when He said to them, ‘I am He,’ they drew back and fell to the ground. Therefore He again asked them, ‘Whom do you seek?” And they said, ‘Jesus the Nazarene.’

“Jesus answered, ‘I told you that I am He; so if you seek Me, let these go their way,’ in order that the word which He spoke would be fulfilled, ‘Of those whom You have given Me, I lost not one.’ Simon Peter then, having a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s slave, and cut off his right ear; and the slave’s name was Malchus. So Jesus said to Peter, ‘Put the sword into the sheath; the cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?’” John 18:8-11

“Now on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene came early to the tomb, while it was still dark, and saw the stone already taken away from the tomb. So she ran and came to Simon Peter and to the other disciple whom Jesus loved, and said to them, ‘They have taken away the Lord out of the tomb, and we do not know where they have laid Him.’ So Peter and the other disciple went forth, and they were going to the tomb. And the two were running together; and the other disciple ran ahead faster than Peter and came to the tomb first; and stooping and looking in, he saw the linen wrappings lying there; but he did not go in. And so Simon Peter also came, following him, and entered the tomb; and he saw the linen wrappings lying there, and the face-cloth which had been on His head, not lying with the linen wrappings, but folded up in a place by itself. So the other disciple who had first come to the tomb then also entered, and he saw and believed. For as yet they did not understand the Scripture, that He must rise again from the dead. So the disciples went away again to where they were staying.” John 20:1-10

“After these things Jesus manifested Himself again to the disciples at the Sea of Tiberias, and He manifested Himself in this way. Simon Peter, and Thomas called Didymus, and Nathanael of Cana in Galilee, and the sons of Zebedee, and two others of His disciples were together. Simon Peter said to them, ‘I am going fishing.’ They said to him, ‘We will also come with you.’ They went out and got into the boat; and that night they caught nothing. But when the day was now breaking, Jesus stood on the beach; yet the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. So Jesus said to them, ‘Children, do you have any fish?’ They answered Him, ‘No.’ And He said to them, ‘Cast the net on the right side of the boat and you will find some.’ So they cast, and then they were not able to haul it in because of the great number of fish. Therefore that disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord.’ So when Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put his outer garment on (for he was stripped for work), and cast himself into the sea.

“But the other disciples came in the little boat, for they were not far from the land, but about two hundred cubits away, dragging the net full of fish. So when they got out on the land, they saw a charcoal fire in place and fish placed on it, and bread. Jesus said to them, ‘Bring some of the fish which you have now caught.’ Simon Peter went up and drew the net to land, full of large fish, 153; and although there were so many, the net was not torn. Jesus said to them, ‘Come, have breakfast.’ None of the disciples dared to question Him, ‘Who are You?’ knowing that it was the Lord. Jesus came and took the bread and gave it to them, and the fish likewise. This is now the third time that Jesus was manifested to the disciples, after He was raised from the dead.

“So when they had finished breakfast, Jesus said to Simon Peter, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love Me more than these?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ He said to him, ‘Tend My lambs.’ He said to him again a second time, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love Me?’ He said to Him, ‘Yes, Lord; You know that I love You.’ He said to him, ‘Shepherd My sheep.’ He said to him the third time, ‘Simon, son of John, do you love Me?’ Peter was grieved because He said to him the third time, ‘Do you love Me?’ And he said to Him, ‘Lord, You know all things; You know that I love You.’ Jesus said to him, ‘Tend My sheep.’

“‘Truly, truly, I say to you, when you were younger, you used to gird yourself and walk wherever you wished; but when you grow old, you will stretch out your hands and someone else will gird you, and bring you where you do not wish to go.’ Now this He said, signifying by what kind of death he would glorify God. And when He had spoken this, He said to him, ‘Follow Me!’ Peter, turning around, saw the disciple whom Jesus loved following them; the one who also had leaned back on His bosom at the supper and said, ‘Lord, who is the one who betrays You?’ So Peter seeing him said to Jesus, ‘Lord, and what about this man?’ Jesus said to him, ‘If I want him to remain until I come, what is that to you? You follow Me!’” John 21:1-21

“And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight. And as they were gazing intently into the sky while He was going, behold, two men in white clothing stood beside them. They also said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand looking toward heaven? This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in just the same way as you have watched Him go into heaven.’ Then they returned to Jerusalem from the mount called Olivet, which is near Jerusalem, a Sabbath day’s journey away.

“And when they had entered the city, they went up to the upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James. These all with one accord were continually devoting themselves to prayer, along with the women, and Mary the mother of Jesus, and His brothers. And in those days, Peter stood up in the midst of the brothers (a crowd of about 120 persons was there together), and said, ‘Men, brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled, which the Holy Spirit foretold by the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide to those who arrested Jesus. For he was counted among us and received his share in this ministry.’

“(Now this man acquired a field with the price of his unrighteousness, and falling headlong, he burst open in the middle and all his intestines gushed out. And it became known to all who were living in Jerusalem; so that in their own language that field was called Hakeldama, that is, Field of Blood.) ‘For it is written in the book of Psalms, “Let his residence be made desolate, And let no one dwell in it”; and, “Let another man take his office.” Therefore it is necessary that of the men who have accompanied us all the time that the Lord Jesus went in and out among us—beginning with the baptism of John until the day that He was taken up from us—one of these must become a witness with us of His resurrection.’

“And they put forward two men, Joseph called Barsabbas (who was also called Justus), and Matthias. And they prayed and said, ‘You, Lord, who know the hearts of all men, show which one of these two You have chosen to take the place of this ministry and apostleship from which Judas turned aside to go to his own place.’ And they cast lots for them, and the lot fell to Matthias; and he was added to the eleven apostles.” Acts 1:9-26

“And when the day of Pentecost had fully come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues like fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance… But Peter, taking his stand with the eleven, raised his voice and declared to them: ‘Men of Judea and all you who live in Jerusalem, let this be known to you and give heed to my words. For these men are not drunk, as you suppose, for it is the third hour of the day.’… Now when they heard this, they were pierced to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, ‘Men, brothers, what should we do?’ And Peter said to them, ‘Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and your children and for all who are far off, as many as the Lord our God will call to Himself.’ And with many other words he solemnly bore witness and kept on exhorting them, saying, ‘Be saved from this crooked generation!’” Acts 2:1-4, 14-15, 37-40 – Cf. 3:1-26; 4:1-31; 5:1-39

“And on the next day, as they were on their way and approaching the city, Peter went up on the housetop about the sixth hour to pray. But he became hungry and was desiring to eat. And while they were making preparations, he fell into a trance and saw heaven opened up, and an object like a great sheet coming down, lowered by four corners to the ground, and there were in it all kinds of four-footed animals and crawling creatures of the earth and birds of the sky. And a voice came to him, ‘Rise up, Peter, slaughter and eat!’ But Peter said, ‘By no means, Lord, for I have never eaten anything defiled and unclean.’ Again a voice came to him a second time, ‘What God has cleansed, no longer consider defiled.’ And this happened three times and immediately the object was taken up into heaven.

“Now while Peter was greatly perplexed in mind as to what the vision which he had seen might be, behold, the men who had been sent by Cornelius, having asked directions for Simon’s house, appeared at the gate; and calling out, they were asking whether Simon, who was also called Peter, was lodging there. And while Peter was reflecting on the vision, the Spirit said to him, ‘Behold, three men are looking for you. But rise up, go down and accompany them without taking issue at all, for I have sent them Myself.’ And Peter went down to the men and said, ‘Behold, I am the one you are looking for; what is the reason for which you have come?’ And they said, ‘Cornelius, a centurion, a righteous and God-fearing man well spoken of by the entire nation of the Jews, was directed by a holy angel to summon you to his house and hear a message from you.’

“So he invited them in and gave them lodging. And on the next day he rose up and went away with them, and some of the brothers from Joppa went with him. And on the following day he entered Caesarea. Now Cornelius was waiting for them and had called together his relatives and close friends. And when Peter entered, Cornelius met him, and fell at his feet and worshiped him. But Peter raised him up, saying, ‘Stand up; I too am just a man.’ As he talked with him, he entered and found many people assembled. And he said to them, ‘You yourselves know how unlawful it is for a man who is a Jew to associate with a foreigner or to visit him; and yet God has shown me that I should not call any man defiled or unclean. That is why I came without even raising any objection when I was summoned. So I ask for what reason you have summoned me.’

“And Cornelius said, ‘Four days ago to this hour, I was praying in my house during the ninth hour; and behold, a man stood before me in shining garments, and he said, “Cornelius, your prayer has been heard and your alms have been remembered before God. Therefore send to Joppa and invite Simon, who is also called Peter, to come to you; he is lodging at the house of Simon the tanner by the sea.” So I sent for you immediately, and you have been kind enough to come. Now then, we are all here present before God to hear all that you have been ordered by the Lord.’ And opening his mouth, Peter said: ‘I most truly comprehend now that God is not one to show partiality, but in every nation the one who fears Him and does righteousness is welcome to Him. As for the word which He sent to the sons of Israel, proclaiming the good news of peace through Jesus Christ—He is Lord of all—you yourselves know the thing which happened throughout all Judea, starting from Galilee, after the baptism which John proclaimed.

“You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how God anointed Him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how He went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. And we are witnesses of all the things He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem. They also put Him to death by hanging Him on a tree. God raised Him up on the third day and granted that He appear, not to all the people, but to witnesses who were chosen beforehand by God, that is, to us who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. And He commanded us to preach to the people, and solemnly to bear witness that this is the One who has been designated by God as Judge of the living and the dead. Of Him all the prophets bear witness that through His name everyone who believes in Him receives forgiveness of sins.’

“While Peter was still speaking these things, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who were listening to the word. And all the circumcised believers who came with Peter were astounded that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they were hearing them speaking with tongues and magnifying God. Then Peter answered, ‘Can anyone refuse water for these to be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we did?’ And he ordered them to be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ. Then they asked him to remain for a few days.” Acts 10:9-48

“And after there had been much debate, Peter stood up and said to them, ‘Brothers, you know that in the early days God made a choice among you, that by my mouth the Gentiles would hear the word of the gospel and believe. And God, who knows the heart, testified to them giving them the Holy Spirit, just as He also did to us; and He made no distinction between us and them, cleansing their hearts by faith. Now therefore why do you put God to the test by placing upon the neck of the disciples a yoke which neither our fathers nor we have been able to bear? But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.’” Acts 15:7-11

“Then three years later I went up to Jerusalem to become acquainted with Cephas, and stayed with him fifteen days. But I did not see any other of the apostles except James, the Lord’s brother. (Now in what I am writing to you, I assure you before God that I am not lying!) Then I went into the regions of Syria and Cilicia. And I was still unknown by sight to the churches of Judea which are in Christ; but only, they kept hearing, ‘He who once persecuted us is now proclaiming the good news of the faith which he once tried to destroy.’ And they were glorifying God because of me.” Galatians 1:18-24

“Then after fourteen years I went up again to Jerusalem with Barnabas, taking Titus along also. And I went up because of a revelation, and I laid out to them the gospel which I preach among the Gentiles, but I did so in private to those who were of reputation, lest somehow I might be running, or had run, in vain… But from those who were of high reputation (what they were makes no difference to me; God shows no partiality)—well, those who were of reputation contributed nothing to me. But on the contrary, seeing that I had been entrusted with the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised (for He who worked in Peter unto his apostleship to the circumcised worked in me also unto the Gentiles), and recognizing the grace that had been given to me, James and Cephas and John, who were reputed to be pillars, gave to me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship, so that we might go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. Only they asked us to remember the poor—the very thing I also was eager to do.

“But when Cephas came to Antioch, I opposed him to his face, because he stood condemned. For prior to the coming of certain men from James, he used to eat with the Gentiles, but when they came, he began to shrink back and separate himself, fearing the party of the circumcision. And the rest of the Jews joined him in hypocrisy, with the result that even Barnabas was carried away by their hypocrisy. But when I saw that they were not straightforward about the truth of the gospel, I said to Cephas before everyone, ‘If you, being a Jew, live like the Gentiles and not like the Jews, how is it that you compel the Gentiles to live like Jews? We are Jews by nature and not sinners from among the Gentiles; nevertheless knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the Law but through faith in Jesus Christ, even we have believed in Christ Jesus, so that we may be justified by faith in Christ and not by the works of the Law; since by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified.” Galatians 2:1-2, 6-16

I briefly sum up some of the manifold blessings given to Peter, which set him apart:

Peter was one of three Disciples to witness the resurrection of Jairus’ daughter, the transfiguration and Jesus’ prayer in the Garden.

Peter was inspired by God the Father to confess that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the living God.

Peter was given the Aramaic name Kepha (Cephas in Greek transliteration, which is Petros in Greek) to signify that he is the Rock upon which Christ will be building his Church.

Peter led the Disciples in finding a replacement for Judas.

Peter was the one to preach to the masses of Jews on the Day of Pentecost.

Peter performed the first miracle in the name of Jesus after Christ’s physical ascension into heaven.

Peter was personally commissioned by the Holy Spirit to open the gates of the Kingdom to the first Gentile converts.  

Peter was one of the three main pillars of the Jerusalem church. 

APOSTOLIC LISTS

What makes the different Apostolic lists so interesting is that Peter is mentioned first in every one of them, whereas the rest of the names do not follow a uniform pattern. The one exception is Judas, who happens to be mentioned last in three of the lists.

“And summoning His twelve disciples, Jesus gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Now the names of the twelve apostles are these: The first, Simon, who is called Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother; Philip and Bartholomew; Thomas and Matthew the tax collector; James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus; Simon the Zealot, and Judas Iscariot, the one who betrayed Him.” Matthew 10:1-4

“And He went up on the mountain and summoned those whom He Himself wanted, and they came to Him. And He appointed twelve (whom He also named apostles) to be with Him and to send them out to preach, and to have authority to cast out the demons. And He appointed the twelve: Simon (to whom He gave the name Peter), and James, the son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James (to them He gave the name Boanerges, which means, ‘Sons of Thunder’); and Andrew, and Philip, and Bartholomew, and Matthew, and Thomas, and James the son of Alphaeus, and Thaddaeus, and Simon the Zealot; and Judas Iscariot, who also betrayed Him.” Mark 3:13-19

“And when day came, He called His disciples to Him and chose twelve of them, whom He also named as apostles: Simon, whom He also named Peter, and Andrew his brother; and James and John; and Philip and Bartholomew; and Matthew and Thomas; James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon who was called the Zealot; Judas the son of James, and Judas Iscariot, who became a traitor. Luke 6:13-16

“And when they had entered the city, they went up to the upper room where they were staying; that is, Peter and John and James and Andrew, Philip and Thomas, Bartholomew and Matthew, James the son of Alphaeus, and Simon the Zealot, and Judas the son of James.” Acts 1:13

RESURRECTION APPEARANCES

When a group of Jesus’ women followers discovered the empty tomb, they were informed by an angel to tell the disciples that Christ had been raised from the dead and would be appearing to them in Galilee:

“And he said to them, ‘Do not be amazed; you are looking for Jesus the Nazarene, who has been crucified. He has risen; He is not here; behold, the place where they laid Him. But go, tell His disciples and Peter, “He is going ahead of you to Galilee; there you will see Him, just as He told you.”’ And they went out and fled from the tomb, for trembling and astonishment were gripping them; and they said nothing to anyone, for they were afraid.” Mark 16:6-8

Note how the angel personally singles out Peter by name.

Jesus also made a special post-resurrection appearance to Peter alone:

“And they stood up that very hour and returned to Jerusalem, and found gathered together the eleven and those with them, who were saying, ‘The Lord has really risen and has appeared to Simon.’” Luke 24:33-34

“For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures, and that He appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve. After that He appeared to more than five hundred brothers at one time, most of whom remain until now, but some have fallen asleep. After that, He appeared to James, then to all the apostles, and last of all, as to one untimely born, He appeared to me also.” 1 Corinthians 15:3-8

THE CATECHISM ON THE IDENTITY OF THE ROCK

It might shock some readers to learn that the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that the Rock upon which the Church is built is Peter and his confession:

424 Moved by the grace of the Holy Spirit and drawn by the Father, we believe in Jesus and confess: ‘You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.’⁸ On the rock of this faith confessed by St. Peter, Christ built his Church.⁹ “To preach. . . the unsearchable riches of Christ”¹⁰ (https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P1D.HTM)

552 Simon Peter holds the first place in the college of the Twelve;²⁸³ Jesus entrusted a unique mission to him. Through a revelation from the Father, Peter had confessed: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Our Lord then declared to him: “You are Peter, and on this rock I will build my Church, and the gates of Hades will not prevail against it.”²⁸⁴ Christ, the “living Stone”,²⁸⁵ thus assures his Church, built on Peter, of victory over the powers of death. Because of the faith he confessed Peter will remain the unshakeable rock of the Church. His mission will be to keep this faith from every lapse and to strengthen his brothers in it.²⁸⁶ (https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P1L.HTM)

881 The Lord made Simon alone, whom he named Peter, the “rock” of his Church. He gave him the keys of his Church and instituted him shepherd of the whole flock.⁴⁰⁰ “The office of binding and loosing which was given to Peter was also assigned to the college of apostles united to its head.”⁴⁰¹ This pastoral office of Peter and the other apostles belongs to the Church’s very foundation and is continued by the bishops under the primacy of the Pope.. (https://www.vatican.va/archive/ENG0015/__P2A.HTM)

Hence, it isn’t either/or but rather both/and, since it is Peter’s confession that qualifies and enables him to be that spiritual rock foundation, which Christ uses to build his Church. Nor is Peter the Church’s foundation apart from the rest of the Disciples, but in perfect union with the other holy Apostles and Prophets:

“for through Him we both have our access in one Spirit to the Father. So then you are no longer strangers and sojourners, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being joined together, is growing into a holy sanctuary in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit.” Ephesians 2:18-22

“Then one of the seven angels who have the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and spoke with me, saying, ‘Come here, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.’ And he carried me away in the Spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the holy city, Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, having the glory of God. Her brilliance was like precious stone, as a stone of crystal-clear jasper. It had a great and high wall. It had twelve gates and at those gates, twelve angels; and names have been written on those gates, which are the names of the twelve tribes of the sons of Israel. There were three gates on the east and three gates on the north and three gates on the south and three gates on the west. And the wall of the city had twelve foundation stones, and on them were the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.” Revelation 21:9-14

Unless stated otherwise, scriptural references taken from the Legacy Standard Bible (Bible).

The Book of Hebrews describes Jesus as YHWH God Incarnate, as well as the very Wisdom and Son of God who became a human being (Cf. 1:1-3, 6, 8-12; 2:5-18; 3:3-6). In fact, the inspired author states that it was the prehuman Jesus whom Moses beheld and for whose sake he gave up the riches of Egypt:

“By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible.” Hebrews 11:24-27 New International Version (NIV)    

He thought that being insulted for the sake of the Messiah was of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. By faith he left Egypt, without being afraid of the king’s anger, and he persevered because he saw the one who is invisible.” International Standard Version (ISV)

The following chart will help the readers see how the writer of Hebrews has identified Jesus as both YHWH and YHWH’s own Wisdom, since he has taken OT references and/or terminology about YHWH and divine Wisdom and applied all of that to Christ.  

JESUS

YHWH

“but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir (kleronomon) of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. He is the reflection (apaugasma) of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word.” Hebrews 1:2-3a   “When he had made purification (katharismon) for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high (en hypselois),… And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says, ‘Let all God’s angels worship him.’” Heb. 1:3b, 6   “But of the Son he says, ‘Your throne, O God (Ho Theos), is forever and ever, and the scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom.’… And, ‘In the beginning, Lord (Kyrie), you founded the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands; they will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like clothing; like a cloak you will roll them up, and like clothing they will be changed. But you are the same, and your years will never end.’” Heb. 1:8, 10-12

“Arise, O God (Ho Theos), judge the earth: for thou shalt inherit (kleronomeneis) all nations.” Psalm 81[Heb. 82]:8 LXX   “for wisdom, the fashioner of all things, taught me… For she is a reflection (apaugasma) of eternal light…” Wisdom 7:22, 26   “Great is the Lord who made it; at his orders it hurries on its course… Because of him each of his messengers succeeds, and by his word all things hold together.” Sirach 43:5, 26   “Who is as the Lord our God? who dwells in the high places (en hypselois),” Palm 112[Heb. 113]:5 LXX   “… and let all the angels of God worship him;… and the Lord shall purge (ekkathariei) the land of his people.” Deuteronomy 32:43 LXX   “In the beginning thou, O Lord (Kyrie), didst lay the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands. They shall perish, but thou remainest: and [they all] shall wax old as a garment; and as a vesture shalt thou fold them, and they shall be changed. But thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.” Psalm 101:26-28 LXX (Heb. 102:25-27)

FURTHER READING

JESUS AS THE ETERNAL CREATOR IN HEBREWS

The Book of Hebrews and Jesus as Creator

JESUS THE ETERNAL CREATOR AND SUSTAINER

THE NWT TESTIFIES THAT THE TRINITY IS THE ETERNAL CREATOR!

In this post I excerpt Dr. James R. White’s discussion of Jesus’ I AM statements. It is taken from his book The Forgotten Trinity: Recovering the Heart of Christian Belief, Revised & Updated, published by Bethany House Publishers, Grand Rapids, MI 2019, Chapter 6. I Am He, pp. 94-104.

John’s literary artistry was not limited to the prologue of his Gospel, nor was it confined to the direct assertion of the deity of Christ through calling Him “God” (1:1; 20:28). He found subtle ways of teaching this truth as well. One method that John presented, that the other Gospel writers did not use, is found in Jesus’ use of the phrase I am.

Look at these passages from the gospel of John:

“Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24).

Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am” (John 8:58).

“From now on I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He” (John 13:19).

They answered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He said to them, “I am He.” And Judas also, who was betraying Him, was standing with them. So when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground. (John 18:5-6)

In each of these verses a particular Greek phrase appears: ἐγὼ εἰμί (ego eimi). The New American Standard Bible renders this Greek phrase as “I am He.” The fact that the word “He” is italicized is very important, for this means the word itself is not found in the Greek¹ and is being supplied by the translators in an effort to smooth out an awkward English phrase. John makes sure, through the use of context, that we do not miss the point he is making by recording these words of Jesus. One might wonder, “Why don’t the other gospel writers pick up on this?” Mark does record an example of the phrase (Mark 14:62), but he does not emphasize it the way John does. There might well be a simple answer to the question. When Mark wrote his gospel, it was not his purpose to emphasize the same truths about Christ’s nature as John would decades later. It seems quite probable that John, with more time to reflect upon the events of the Lord’s ministry, found in these words an insight that later events and developments in the church proved useful and necessary.

The first question that we have to tackle is straightforward: how do you translate the phrase properly? This is not a controversy in most of the instances above. The vast majority of scholarly translations render it the same way: “I am He,” with the “He” in italics. But when we come to the clearest and most obvious of the passages, John 8:58, a few translations give a different rendering, emphasizing the idea that Jesus is merely claiming preexistence. How then should the phrase be translated at John 8:58? Once we consider this, we need to establish some Old Testament background, and then we can take all the appearances of the phrase in John as a group and determine what John is communicating to us.

How Should We Translate It?

There are a very small number of translations that avoid a direct translation of the phrase at John 8:58 (in particular). Moffat renders it, “I have existed before Abraham was born!” The Twentieth Century New Testament has “before Abraham existed I was.” The Jehovah’s Witnesses’ New World Translation renders ego eimi as “I have been.”

Allegedly many of these translations are viewing the phrase as what Dr. A. T. Robertson called a “progressive present.”² There are many instances in historical narrative or conversation where the Greek will use a present tense verb that is best rendered in English by the perfect tense. John 15:27 would be a good example: “because you have been with me from the beginning.” The verb is in the present tense, but the context makes it clear that it is in reference to both the past and the present. Robertson notes that this is a common idiom in the New Testament, though he also adds the fact that, in his opinion, John 8:58 is “absolute” and should be rendered as such (which he always does in his works³). It should also be noted that it is the deficiency of the English that is to blame for the rendering–to place weight on the meaning of the English perfect tense when rendering the Greek present tense in this way would be in error.⁴

So why should John 8:58 not be rendered in this way? Why do so few translations follow this path? Because to translate it that way is to miss the entire context and content of what is being said! The vast majority of translators see, as do many commentators, that there is a clear differentiation being made here between the derivative existence of Abraham and the eternal existence of the Lord Christ. Many scholars rightly point out the same contrasting of verbs as seen in the prologue of John⁵ as well as the same kind of differentiation found in the Septuagint Greek rendering of Psalm 90:2. They also recognize that the response of the Jews would be rather strong if this was simply a claim of preexistence. The oft-repeated charge of blasphemy as found in John makes this clear. Rather, the usage of a term used of God himself (as will be shown later) would be sufficient to bring the response of verse 59, where the Jews pick up stones so as to kill Him.

The phrase was so understood by the early church as well. Irenaeus showed familiarity with it as “I am,”⁶ as did Origen⁷ and Novatian.⁸ Chrysostom wrote, “As the Father used this expression, `I Am,’ so also doth Christ; for it signifieth continuous Being, irrespective of time. On which account the expression seemed to them to be blasphemous.”⁹ The context of this passage is far too strong to allow this to be rendered as a simple historical narrative, resulting in the conversion of the present indicative into a perfect tense.¹⁰

Old Testament Background of Ego Eimi

It happens all the time: we are in a hurry to make a point, so we jump from one point to another quickly, skipping a few necessary points in between. There’s always that one person in the bunch who stops you and makes you go back and trace your argument, step by step, rather than allowing you to condense things a bit and make better speed.

When dealing with theological issues, we often condense things and make connections that, in reality, take a little more proof than we have offered. This is nowhere better illustrated than in the connection that is alleged to exist between Jesus’ words in John 8:58 and the words of Yahweh in Exodus 3:14, “I am that I am.” You will find references to Exodus 3:14 in most commentaries on John 8:58, yet those who deny the deity of Christ cry “foul!” and argue that such an immediate connection can’t be made. The strongest argument they can present is that the ego eimi portion of Exodus 3:14 isn’t really the assertion of divinity: the ho ohn portion is (ho ohn being translated as “the Being” or “the One Existing”).

As far as the argument goes, this is true. However, the claim that Jesus’ words in John 8:58 (and the other passages) should be connected to Exodus 3:14 does not exist in a vacuum. There is a line of argumentation, a very solid one, that leads us from John 8 back through Isaiah to Exodus 3. We need to trace that path before we can make the statement that Jesus is, in fact, using a name of deity of himself in John’s gospel.

The closest and most logical connection between John’s usage of ego eimi and the Old Testament is to be found in the Septuagint rendering of a particular Hebrew phrase, ani hu, in the writings (primarily) of Isaiah.¹¹ The Septuagint translates the Hebrew phrase ani hu as ego eimi in Isaiah 41:4; 43:10; and 46:4. In each of these instances the phrase ani hu appears at the end of the clause, and is so rendered (or punctuated) in the LXX (just as in these seven examples in John). The phrase ego eimi appears as the translation of a few other phrases in Isaiah as well that are significant to this discussion. It translates the Hebrew anoki anoki hu as ego eimi in 43:25 and 51:12. Once (52:6) ani hu is translated as ego eimi autos (basically an even more emphasized form). And once (45:18) we find ego eimi kurios for ani Yahweh! This last passage is provocative in that it is in the context of creation, an act ascribed to Jesus by John (John 1:3) and other New Testament writers (Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:2-3).

The use of ani hu by Isaiah is a euphemism for the very name of God himself. Some see a connection between ani hu and Yahweh as both referring to being.¹² That it carried great weight with the Jews is seen in 8:59 and their reaction to the Lord’s usage of the phrase. If one wishes to say that Jesus was not speaking Greek, but Aramaic, the difficulty is not removed, for the identification would have been just that much clearer!

There seems to be a direct connection between the Septuagint and Jesus’ usage of ego eimi. In Isaiah 43:10 we read, “In order that you may know and believe Me and understand that I am He.”¹³ In John 13:19, Jesus says to the disciples, “From now on I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He.”¹⁴ When one removes the extraneous words (such as the phrase that connects the last clause to the first) and compares these two passages, this is the result:

Isaiah 43:10: hina pisteusete … hoti ego eimi

John 13:19: hina pisteusete … hoti ego eimi

Even if one were to theorize that Jesus himself did not attempt to make such an obvious connection between himself and Yahweh (which would be difficult enough to do!), one must answer the question of why John, being obviously familiar with the LXX, would so intentionally insert this kind of parallelism.

Another parallel between the usage of ego eimi in John 13:19 and its usage in Isaiah has to do with the fact that in 13:19 Jesus is telling them the future-one of the very challenges to the false gods thrown down by Yahweh in the passages from Isaiah under consideration (the so-called “trial of the false gods.”) This connection is direct in Isaiah 41:4, “Who has performed and accomplished it, calling forth the generations from the beginning? `I, the LORD, am the first, and with the last. I am He.'” Here the “calling forth” of the generations-time itself-is part of the usage of ani hu. The same is true in John 13:19. In the same chapter of the book of Isaiah referenced above, in verse 22 we read, “Let them bring forth and declare to us what is going to take place; as for the former events, declare what they were, that we may consider them and know their outcome. Or announce to us what is coming.” That this reference to knowledge of the future would appear in the same section that uses ani hu as the name for God, and that this would be introduced by the Lord himself in the same context in John 13:19 is significant indeed. Hence, though some would easily dismiss the ani hu/ego eimi connection,¹⁵ or ignore it altogether,¹⁶ the evidence is overwhelming that this connection is intended by John himself.

Understanding John’s Message

It is not hard to understand why there have been many who have not wished to make the connection that John makes between Jesus and Yahweh. One cannot make this identification outside of a Trinitarian understanding of the Gospel itself, as one can certainly not identify Jesus as the Father in John’s Gospel. If Jesus is identified as ego eimi in the sense of the Old Testament ani hu, then one is left with two persons sharing the one nature that is God, and this, when it encounters John’s discussion of the Holy Spirit, becomes the basis of the doctrine of the Trinity!¹⁷ An interpreter who is unwilling to dismiss the words of Scripture as simply “tradition” (and hence nonauthoritative) or to interpret Scripture in contradiction with itself (as in a violation of strict monotheism in the positing of a being who is quasi-god, mighty, but not “almighty”) will be hard-pressed to avoid the obvious conclusions of John’s presentation. Lest one should find it hard to believe that John would identify the carpenter from Galilee as Yahweh himself, it might be pointed out that he did just that in John 12:39-41 by quoting from Isaiah’s temple vision of Yahweh in Isaiah 6 and then concluding by saying, “These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory and he spoke about Him.” The only “Him” in the context is Jesus; hence, for John, Isaiah, when he saw Yahweh on His throne, was in reality seeing the Lord Jesus. John 1:18 says as much as well.¹⁸

It is self-evident that such a far-reaching and in reality astounding claim as is made by the Lord Jesus in John 8:24, 58 is hard to accept outside of the highest estimation of His person. Indeed, Augustine wrote,

Weigh the words, and get a knowledge of the mystery. “Before Abraham was made.” Understand, that “was made” refers to human formation; but “am” to the Divine essence. “He was made,” because Abraham was a creature. He did not say, Before Abraham was, I was; but, “Before Abraham was made,” who was not made save by me, “I am.” Nor did He say this, Before Abraham was made I was made; for “In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth;” and “in the beginning was the Word.” “Before Abraham was made, I am.” Recognize the Creator-distinguish the creature. He who spake was made the seed of Abraham; and that Abraham might be made, He Himself was before Abraham.¹⁹

But can the usage of ego eimi withstand that much weight? A large number of believing Christian scholars certainly think so. Leon Morris has written,

“I am” must have the fullest significance it can bear. It is, as we have already had occasion to notice … in the style of deity.²⁰

B. B. Warfield has written concerning this,

… and again, as the most impressive language possible, He declares…: “Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am,” where He claims for Himself the timeless present of eternity as His mode of existence.²¹

The great expositor J. C. Ryle noted,

Let us carefully note what a strong proof we have here of the pre-existence and divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ. He applies to Himself the very name by which God made Himself known when He undertook to redeem Israel. It was “I AM” who brought them out of the land of Egypt. It was “I AM” who died for us upon the cross. The amazing strength of the foundation of a sinner’s hope appears here. Believing on Jesus we rest on divinity, on One who is God as well as man. There is a difference in the Greek verbs here employed which we should carefully notice. The Greek for “was” is quite different from the Greek for “am.” It is as if our Lord said, “Before Abraham was born, I have an existence individual and eternal.”²²

Luther, like Augustine before him, wrote in no uncertain terms,

The Lord Christ is angry below the surface and says: “Do you want to know who I am? I am God, and that in the fullest sense. Do as you please. If you do not believe that I am He, then you are nothing, and you must die in your sin.” No prophet, apostle, or evangelist may proclaim and say: “Believe in God, and also believe that I am God; otherwise you are damned.²³

A. T. Robertson certainly did not see any linguistic problems here:

I am (ego eimi). Undoubtedly here Jesus claims eternal existence with the absolute phrase used of God. The contrast between genesthai (entrance into existence of Abraham) and eimi (timeless being) is complete. See the same contrast between en in 1:1 and egeneto in 1:14. See the contrast also in Psa. 90:2 between God (ei, art) and the mountains (genethenai).²⁴

And finally, William Hendrickson put it rather bluntly:

The “I am” here (8:58) reminds one of the “I am” in 8:24. Basically, the same thought is expressed in both passages; namely, that Jesus is God! “²⁵

There simply is no way that John could have been any more obvious in his intention to invest in ego eimi a significance far beyond the simple function of identification that it can, and does at times, perform. In 8:58 the Jews pick up stones to stone Jesus. The other two times this occurs are right on the heels of claims to deity as well-first in John 5 where Jesus has just claimed equality with the Father both by calling God His own Father in very special terms as well as claiming the same right to work on the Sabbath as the Jews understood to be God’s in upholding the universe; secondly in John 10 after Jesus claims that He and the Father are one in their role of bringing salvation to God’s elect–His “sheep.” In both instances John spells it out clearly that these claims were understood to be claims to equality with God can 8:58 then be different?

In John 13:19, the introduction of the phrase in the context of the revelation of future events, just as is found in Isaiah, even to the point of nearly quoting the LXX rendering, is far too specific to be overlooked. And in 18:5-6, John even repeats himself just to make sure no one can possibly miss the reason why the soldier fell back upon the ground:

They answered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He said to them, “I am He.” And Judas also, who was betraying Him, was standing with them. So when He said to them, “I am He,” they drew back and fell to the ground.

Twice John repeats the phrase ego eimi, emphasizing that it is the uttering of these words that causes the soldiers to draw back and fall down. Some have tried to say that the soldiers were simply amazed that Jesus would so boldly identify himself and that they stumbled in the darkness.²⁶ But such is far beyond the realm of meaningful interpretation, for it not only reads a good bit out of the immediate text, but it also isolates this passage from the rest of John’s gospel. When 8:24, 8:58, and 13:19 are allowed to speak their peace, as well, the reason for the soldiers’ discomfort and humiliation is all too obvious. John’s meaning cannot be mistaken.

If each of these instances were examined solely in a vacuum, separated from the others, without any thought of the entire book of John, one might see how their collective significance could be missed. But this is not the way of scholarly interpretation. These statements are not made in a vacuum–they are placed in a book that is rich with meaning and purpose. We have asserted that John intends the entire Gospel to be read through the “interpretive window” of the prologue of 1:1-18. Given the teachings of that passage, can one seriously doubt the meaning of ego eimi in the above examined passages? It would seem not.

We might do well, then, with this understanding in mind, to look at Jesus’ words at John 8:24: “Unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins.” Jesus here gives us the content and object of saving faith-real faith is that which focuses on the real Jesus. A faith that demands a change in Jesus before a commitment is made is not real faith at all. The Jews standing around Him during this conversation most assuredly would not have denied that He was a man–but that was not sufficient for faith. Some had only recently proclaimed Him as Messiah–but that was not sufficient for faith. Some might hail Him as a prophet or a miracle worker, blessed by God-but that was not sufficient for faith. Some today say He was a great moral teacher and philosopher-but that is not sufficient for faith. Some call Him “a god” or a great angel-but that is not sufficient for faith. No, Jesus himself laid down the line. Unless one believes Him for who He says He is–the ego eimi–one will die in one’s sins.²⁷ There is no salvation in a false Christ. If we are to be united with Christ to have eternal life, then we must be united with the true Christ, not a false representation. It is out of love that Christ uttered John 8:24. We would do well to heed His words.

CHAPTER SIX

1. The specific phrase ego eimi occurs twenty-four times in the gospel of John. Thirteen of these times it is followed by a clear predicate (John 6:35; 6:41; 6:51; 8:12; 8:18; 10:7; 10:9; 10:11; 10:14; 11:25; 14:6; 15:1; 15:5). Some of these instances would be John 6:35, “I am the living bread” or John 10:11, “I am the good shepherd” (ego eimi ho poimen ho kalos). Three times the usage does not fall into a clear category-these would be 4:26, 6:20, and 9:9. In 4:26 Jesus says to the woman at the well, “I am, the one speaking to you” which is strangely reminiscent of the LXX rendering of Isaiah 52:6. In 6:20 it seems to be a rather straightforward self-identification to the frightened disciples in the boat. And in 9:9 we find the man who had been healed of his blindness insisting that he was indeed the man of whom they spoke. This last instance is similar to the sayings as Jesus utters them, in that the phrase comes at the end of the clause and looks elsewhere for its predicate.

Given the above, we are left with seven uses that have been described as “absolute.” These would be John 8:24; 8:28; 8:58; 13:19; 18:5; 18:6; and 18:8. It is very significant that in each of these instances, the phrase comes at the end of the clause. We will note why it is important when we look at the usage of the phrase in the Septuagint.

2. A. T. Robertson, A Grammar of the Greek New Testament in the Light of Historical Research (Nashville: Broadman Press, 1934), 879-880, describes the “progressive present”:

This is a poor name in lieu of a better one for the present of past action still in progress. Usually an adverb of time (or adjunct) accompanies the verb…. Often it has to be translated into English by a sort of “progressive perfect” (‘have been’), though, of course, that is the fault of English…. “The durative present in such cases gathers up past and present time into one phrase” (Moulton, Prol., 119)…. It is a common idiom in the N.T…. In Jo. 8:58 eiui is really absolute.

3. See A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1932), 5:158-159.

4. Daniel Wallace in Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics: An Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), 530-531, has commented on the translation of this passage:

The text reads: πρὶν Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι ἐγώ εἰμι (“before Abraham was, I am”). On this text, Dennis Light wrote an article in defense of the New World Translation in the Bible Collector (July-December, 1971). In his article he discusses ἐγώ εἰμι, which the New World Translation renders, “I have been.” Light defends this translation by saying, “The Greek verb eimi, literally present tense, must be viewed as a historical present, because of being preceded by the aorist infinitive clause referring to Abraham’s past” (p. 8). This argument has several flaws in it: (1) The fact that the present tense follows an aorist infinitive has nothing to do with how it should be rendered. In fact, historical presents are usually wedged in between aorist (or imperfect) indicatives, not infinitives. (2) If this is a historical present, it is apparently the only historical present in the NT that uses the equative verb eiµi. The burden of proof, therefore, lies with the one who sees εἰμι as ever being used as a historical present. (3) If this is a historical present, it is apparently the only historical present in the NT that is in other than the third person.

The translators of the New World Translation understand the implications of ἐγώ εἰμι here, for in the footnote to this text in the NWT, they reveal their motive for seeing this as a historical present: “It is not the same as ὁ ὤν (ho ohn, meaning `The Being’ or `The I Am’) at Exodus 3:14, LXX.” In effect, this is a negative admission that if ἐγώ εἰμιs is not a historical present, then Jesus is here claiming to be the one who spoke to Moses at the burning bush, the I AM, the eternally existing One, Yahweh (cf. Exod 3:14 in the LXX, ἐγώ εἰμι ὁ ὤν. See the preceding discussion of the prologue of John, chapter 4.

6. Irenaeus, Against Heresies in Philip Schaff, The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids: Eerdman’s, 1983), 1:478.

7. Origen, Against Celsus in Alexander Roberts and James Donaldson, The Ante-Nicene Fathers (Grand Rapids: Eerdman’s, 1981), 4:463.

8. A Treatise of Novatian Concerning the Trinity in Roberts and Donaldson, The AnteNicene Fathers, 5:624-625.

9. Chrysostom, Homilies on St. John in Schaff, The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, 14:199.

10. Henry Alford, in his New Testament for English Readers (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdman’s Publishing Company, 1983), 2:547, added,

As Lucke remarks, all unbiassed (sic) explanation of these words must recognize in them a declaration of the essential pre-existence of Christ. All such interpretations as “before Abraham became Abraham” i.e., father of many nations (Socinus and others), and as ‘I was predetermined, promised by God’ (Grotius and the Socinian interpreters), are little better than dishonest quibbles. The distinction between was made (or was born) and am is important. The present, I am, expresses essential existence (see Col. 1:17) and was often used by our Lord to assert His divine Being. In this verse the Godhead of Christ is involved; and this the Jews clearly understood, by their conduct to Him.

11. Hebrew: אֲנִי־ הֽוּא. This connection is either directly made or alluded to by Leon Morris, The New International Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospel According to John (Grand Rapids: Eerdman’s, 1971), 447, 473; by Merrill C. Tenney, The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: John (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1981), 99; and by F. F. Bruce, The Gospel of John (Grand Rapids: Eerdman’s, 1983), 193, 288.

12. Morris, The Gospel According to John, 473.

13. In the LXX this is rendered thus: ἵνα γνῶτε καὶ πιστεύσητε καὶ συνῆτε ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι (hina gnote kai pisteusete kai sunete hoti ego eimi).

14. In Greek the last phrase is ἵνα πιστεύσητε ὅταν γένηται ὅτι ἐγώ εἰμι (hina pisteusete hotan genetai hoti ego eimi).

15. M. James Penton, “The `I Am’ of John 8:58,” in The Christian Quest (Winter): 1988, 64.

16. R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of John’s Gospel (Minneapolis: Augsburg Publishing House, 1943), 614-615.

17. Indeed, many of the denials of the rather clear usage of ego eimi in John 8:24; 8:58; 13:19; and 18:5-6 find their origin in preconceived theologies that are nearly unitarian, subordinationist, or so enamored with naturalistic rationalism as to be anti-supernatural. A good example is given by C. K. Barrett: “It is not however correct to infer either for the present passage or for the others in which ego eimi occurs that John wishes to equate Jesus with the supreme God of the Old Testament…. Note that in v. 28 it is followed by `I do nothing of myself, but as the Father taught me I speak these things … I always do the things that are pleasing to him’, and in 13:19 by `He who receives me receives him who sent me’ (13:20). Jesus is the obedient servant of the Father, and for this reason perfectly reveals him. ego eimi does not identify Jesus with God, but it does draw attention to him in the strongest possible terms” The assumption of the unipersonality of God as well as the ontological subordination of the Son that underlies Barrett’s comments and clouds his normally clear exegesis is striking.

18. We will look more closely at the identification of Jesus as Yahweh in chapter 10.

19. Tractate XLIII in Schaff, The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, series I, 7:244.

20. Leon Morris, The Gospel According to John, 473. A footnote on the same page reads:

Ego eimi in LXX renders the Hebrew אֲנִי־ הֽוּא which is the way God speaks (cf. Deut. 32:39; Isa. 41:4; 43:10; 46:4, etc.). The Hebrew may carry a reference to the meaning of the divine name hwhy (cf. Exod. 3:14). We should almost certainly understand John’s use of the term to reflect that in the LXX. It is the style of deity, and it points to the eternity of God according to the strictest understanding of the continuous nature of the present eimi. He continually IS. Cf. Abbott: “taken here, along with other declarations about what Jesus IS, it seems to call upon the Pharisees to believe that the Son of man is not only the Deliverer but also one with the Father in the unity of the Godhead” (2228).

21. B. B. Warfield, The Person and Work of Christ (Philadelphia: Presbyterian and Reformed, 1950), 60.

22. Ryle, Expository Thoughts, 573.

23. Martin Luther, “Sermons on the Gospel of John Chapters 6-8,” in Luther’s Works, Jerislav Pelikan, ed. (Saint Louis: Concordia Publishing House, 1959), 365.

24. A. T. Robertson, Word Pictures in the Greek New Testament, 5:158-159.

25. William Hendrickson, New Testament Commentary: The Gospel of John (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1953), 67.

26. Greg Stafford, Jehovah’s Witnesses Defended (Huntington Beach, Calif.: Elihu Books, 1998), 144, goes so far as to say that the falling back of the soldiers “need mean no more than that `the men who came to make the arrest … were so overcome by His moral ascendancy that they recoiled in fear.'” Stafford goes on to speak of the soldiers being “taken aback by his fearless demeanor.” Of course, men had been taken aback by the Lord’s pure moral stature many times in His ministry-but had never fallen over as a result.

27. This reality is virtually important when discussing the Trinity with those of other faiths, and especially when engaging our Muslim friends on this topic; Muslims struggle mightily with the idea of the Incarnation. It is accurate to say that Islam presuppositionally rejects the very possibility of Incarnation. Allah would never enter into His creation for any reason or purpose whatsoever. Hence, they reject the claim that Jesus is the Son of God in any sense whatsoever, often misunderstanding the Christians claim as entailing some kind of physical sonship (see esp. Surah 5:116 in the Qur’an for an explication of this; also, the author’s book, What Every Christian Needs to Know about the Qur’an, chapters 4 and 5, go into depth on this topic.) Yet Muslims are quick to claim an acceptance of Jesus as the Jewish Messiah and as a great prophet of God who was virgin born and performed many great miracles in His life. Of course, the Qur’an denies that Jesus died upon the cross, and hence there can be no resurrection (Surah 4:157). But it is important to point out, in light of John 8:24 and the entire New Testament witness to Jesus, that believing in Him as a prophet or even as a miracle worker is insufficient. Jesus’ own words testify that unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins. It is just this claim of deity that Islam denies in its teachings about Jesus. (Ibid. pp. 207-210)

FURTHER READING

THE UNCREATED WORD ENTERS CREATION

JESUS: JEHOVAH OF HOSTS

Carmen Christi: A Reformed Perspective

BEYOND THE VEIL OF ETERNITY

The following is taken from Dr. James R. White’s book The Forgotten Trinity: Recovering the Heart of Christian Belief, Revised & Updated, published by Bethany House Publishers, Grand Rapids, MI 2019, Chapter 9. Jehovah of Hosts, pp. 131-139.

When I share the truth about the Trinity and the deity of Christ with Jehovah’s Witnesses, I often begin with something like this:

I believe in the Trinity because the Bible teaches the doctrine. No, the Bible doesn’t use the specific word “Trinity” any more than it uses the specific word “theocratic” or “Bible.” Instead, it teaches the doctrine by teaching the three pillars or foundations that make up the doctrine. The first such pillar is that there is only one true God, Yahweh, the Creator of all things. The second is that there are three divine persons, the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. The Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Spirit, and the Spirit is not the Father. Three persons who communicate with one another and love one another. Finally, the third pillar is the teaching that these three persons are completely equal in sharing in the divine Being. This would include the deity of Christ and the personality of the Holy Spirit. This is where we directly disagree. May I show you from the Bible how it teaches these truths?

Jehovah’s Witnesses believe the Trinity is nowhere to be found in Scripture, so they are quite confident that you will fail in attempting to support the Trinity from the Bible. So I press on:

I assume you would agree with me that there is only one true God, Yahweh, or as you pronounce it, Jehovah. I believe the name “Jehovah” refers to the very divine Being, the eternal God who created every thing. We can agree, I assume, that the Father is identified as Jehovah.¹ But I believe that the Bible identifies Jesus as Yahweh, as well, and the Spirit is the Spirit of Yahweh. Each of these three persons share the one divine name, Yahweh or Jehovah. May I show you a few passages of Scripture that make this identification?

At this point I can go to a large number of passages where the New Testament writers think nothing of applying to the Lord Jesus passages from the Old Testament that were written in reference to Yahweh.² But I have found two particular passages to carry the most weight in communicating this truth to those who believe that Yahweh is God, believe the Bible is true, but reject the deity of Christ: Hebrews 1:10-12 in comparison with Psalm 102:25-27, and John 12:3741 in comparison with Isaiah 6:1-10.

ETERNAL CREATOR

There can be no confusion about the intended meaning of the psalmist who penned these words in Psalm 102:25-27:

Of old You founded the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. Even they will perish, but You endure; And all of them will wear out like a garment; Like clothing You will change them and they will be changed. But You are the same, and Your years will not come to an end.

The first thing to establish in fairly and honestly dealing with the passage is what it meant in its original context. The entire psalm is written about Yahweh. Verse 1 indicates it is a prayer to the LORD. The use of the all-caps form LORD is the standard English means of indicating that the underlying Hebrew term is Yahweh, or Jehovah. Some Bibles, such as the Jerusalem Bible, or the New World Translation published by the Watchtower Society, use the term “Jehovah” or “Yahweh.” Throughout Psalm 102 this term is found, indicating plainly that the psalm was originally written in praise of Yahweh. This is important, for it is the context of the words found in verses 25 through 27.

The psalmist speaks in these verses of the unchanging and eternal nature of Yahweh. He does so by contrasting the changing creation with the unchangeable Creator. One of the primary “evidences” God uses to demonstrate His unique nature and sole standing as the one true God is that He is the Creator.³ This is the case here. Yahweh founded the earth (Psalm 24:1; 78:69; 89:11; Proverbs 3:19; Isaiah 48:13), and the heavens are described as a “work” of His hands (Psalm 19:1). On the most basic level, then, the universe itself is a dependent creation, while God is eternal and unchanging. They are temporal and will pass away, but God is eternal, and He will “endure.” They are like an old garment that we throw away when it becomes old and useless. But He does not age. He does not change. His years have no number and will never come to an end. As Moses had said, “from everlasting to everlasting, You are God” (Psalm 90:2).

Why is it important to focus on what this passage means? Because it is speaking of characteristics that are unique to the one true God. This will become vitally important when we look at the means some use to avoid the weight of these passages as they are used in the New Testament.

The writer to the Hebrews shows no compunctions in taking this passage from the Psalter–a passage fit only for describing the eternal Creator himself-and applying it to Jesus Christ. Here is how he does it in Hebrews 1:8-12:

But of the Son He says,

“YOUR THRONE, 0 GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER, AND THE RIGHTEOUS SCEPTER IS THE SCEPTER OF HIS KINGDOM.

YOU HAVE LOVED RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HATED LAWLESSNESS; THEREFORE GOD, YOUR GOD, HAS ANOINTED YOU WITH THE OIL OF GLADNESS ABOVE YOUR COMPANIONS.”

And,

“You, LORD,” IN THE BEGINNING LAID THE FOUNDATION OF THE EARTH,

AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS;

THEY WILL PERISH, BUT YOU REMAIN;

AND THEY ALL WILL BECOME OLD LIKE A GARMENT,

AND LIKE A MANTLE YOU WILL ROLL THEM UP;

LIKE A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED.

BUT YOU ARE THE SAME,

AND YOUR YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END.”

An entire string of Old Testament passages are presented, each intended to demonstrate the superiority of Christ. Verse 8 begins by introducing the words of the Father regarding the Son. Verse 10 continues the same theme, again giving us the words of the Father relevant to the Son. It is vital to understand that verses 10 through 12 are, in fact, addressed to the Son. It is Jesus who is addressed as “LORD” in verse 10, and it is His activity in creation, and His unchanging nature, that is revealed in the rest of the passage. The significance of this is clear when one realizes that the writer to the Hebrews is directly applying the passage from Psalm 102:25-27⁵ to the Son. The meaning of the original is beyond dispute. The fact that it is speaking of unique characteristics of the true God is likewise unarguable. Therefore, the fact that Hebrews applies such a passage to the Son tells us what the writer himself believed about the nature of Jesus Christ. One simply could not meaningfully apply such a passage to a mere creature, no matter how highly exalted.

What does it mean that the writer to the Hebrews could take a passage that is only applicable to Yahweh and apply it to the Son of God, Jesus Christ? It means that they saw no problem in making such an identification, because they believed that the Son was, indeed, the very incarnation of Yahweh.

The only way “around” this kind of direct identification of the Son as Yahweh is to point out that using an Old Testament passage of someone in the New Testament does not, of necessity, argue for identity of person. For example, in Hebrews 1:8, the writer applies a passage that was originally about one of Israel’s kings (possibly Solomon) to the Lord Jesus. Does this mean that Jesus is Solomon? Aside from the impossibility of such an identification in the first place, such an argument misses a very important distinction. The connection between the Lord Jesus and Solomon has to do with a shared characteristic: kingship. But kingship is not a unique attribute of Solomon. There have been many kings. So while citing a passage about Solomon of Jesus doesn’t make Jesus Solomon, citing a passage about a unique characteristic (creatorship, immutability, eternality) of Yahweh does make Jesus Yahweh, for no one else shares that characteristic. Being a king didn’t make Solomon who he was, but being eternal and unchangeable does define who Yahweh is.

Allow me to illustrate. If I wanted to identify someone as Solomon by using a citation from the Old Testament, I would not do it by citing a passage that is merely about Solomon as a king, for that would not prove identity but rather position. There were other kings, like David, or Hezekiah. Simply identifying someone as a king wouldn’t tell me which king I had in mind. If I instead applied a unique description of Solomon, that would convey identity. If I, for example, said that such and such a king had 700 wives and 300 concubines (1 Kings 11:3), who else could I be referring to but Solomon? That would distinguish which king I had in mind and would communicate identity. In the same way, if I were to merely call a person “loving,” I would not, by so doing, be identifying that person as God, even though God is, indeed, loving. God is love, but there are others who express love and are loving. It is not unique to God to love. But if I were to say that someone is eternal, the Creator of all things, and unchanging, that would communicate identity, for there is only one who is eternal, unchanging, and the Creator of all things. And this is what the writer to the Hebrews does in 1:10-12. Hence the error of the attempt to avoid the force of the identification of Jesus as Yahweh here in Hebrews 1.⁶

WHO DID ISAIAH SEE?

Toward the end of Jesus’ public ministry as recorded by John we find an incident where a group of Greeks seek out the Lord Jesus. The significance of the passage often goes right past us because we are looking more at the encounter than a little comment John tacks on to the end of his citation from Isaiah:

But though He had performed so many signs before them, yet they were not believing in Him. This was to fulfill the word of Isaiah the prophet which he spoke: “LORD, WHO HAS BELIEVED OUR REPORT? AND TO WHOM HAS THE ARM OF THE LORD BEEN REVEALED?” For this reason they could not believe, for Isaiah said again, “HE HAS BLINDED THEIR EYES AND HE HARDENED THEIR HEART, SO THAT THEY WOULD NOT SEE WITH THEIR EYES AND PERCEIVE WITH THEIR HEART, AND BE CONVERTED AND I HEAL THEM.” These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him. (John 12:37-41)

The struggle with the meaning of the words from Isaiah often causes us to fly right past verse 41. Yet what does John mean when he says that Isaiah “said these things because he saw His glory and spoke of Him”? Who is the “Him” to whom Isaiah refers?

We have to go back a little to see that John cites two passages from the book of Isaiah. In verse 38 he quotes from Isaiah 53:1, the great “Suffering Servant” passage that so plainly describes the ministry of the Lord Jesus Christ. John says the unbelief of the Jews, despite their seeing signs, was a fulfillment of the word of Isaiah in Isaiah 53. He then goes beyond this to assert their inability to believe and quotes from Isaiah 6 and the “Temple Vision” Isaiah received when he was commissioned as a prophet:

In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, The whole earth is full of His glory.” And the foundations of the thresholds trembled at the voice of him who called out, while the temple was filling with smoke. (Isaiah 6:1-4)

In this awesome vision, Isaiah sees Yahweh (the LORD) sitting upon His throne, surrounded by angelic worshipers. The glory of Yahweh fills his sight. Isaiah recognizes his sin and is cleansed by the Lord, then commissioned to go and take a message to the people. But the message is not one of salvation, but of judgment.

He said, “Go, and tell this people: `Keep on listening, but do not perceive; keep on looking, but do not understand.’ Render the hearts of this people insensitive, their ears dull, and their eyes dim, otherwise they might see with their eyes, hear with their ears, understand with their hearts, and return and be healed.” Then I said, “Lord, how long?” And He answered, “Until cities are devastated and without inhabitant, houses are without people and the land is utterly desolate” (Isaiah 6:9-11).

John cites the heart of the message of judgment given to Isaiah and sees the hardheartedness of the Jews, who had seen the miracles of the Lord Jesus and heard His words of grace as the fulfillment of these words.

Then John says, “These things Isaiah said because he saw His glory, and he spoke of Him.” John has quoted from two passages in Isaiah, Isaiah 53:1 and Isaiah 6:10. Yet the immediate context refers to the words from Isaiah 6, and there are other reasons why we should see the primary reference as the Isaiah 6 passage. John speaks of Isaiah “seeing” “glory.” In Isaiah 6:1 the very same term is used of “seeing” the LORD, and the very term “glory” appears in verse 3.⁷ Even if we connect both passages together, the fact remains that the only way to define what “glory” Isaiah saw was to refer to the glory of Isaiah 6:3.⁸ And that glory was the glory of Yahweh. There is none other whose glory we can connect with Isaiah’s words.⁹

Therefore, if we ask Isaiah, “Whose glory did you see in your vision of the temple?” he would reply, “Yahweh’s.” But if we ask the same question of John, “Whose glory did Isaiah see?” he would answer with the same answer-only in its fullness, “Jesus’.” Who, then, was Jesus to John? None other than the eternal God in human flesh, Yahweh.

If the apostles themselves did not hesitate to apply to the Lord Jesus such unique and distinctive passages that can only meaningfully be applied to deity, to the Lord Jesus, how can we fail to give Him the same honor in recognizing Him for who He truly is?

A Special Text

There is another place where the apostolic identification of Jesus as Yahweh incarnated is found, but is almost never noticed. And for those of us involved in the defense of the faith, it is rather ironic that we have so often missed its clear witness.

Every apologist knows the words of 1 Peter 3:15: “But sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to give a defense before anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is within you, yet with gentleness and respect.” But very few have noticed that Peter is quoting from, or at least directly alluding to, a particular passage from Isaiah in these words. The final words of verse 14, “Do not fear them, nor be troubled,” comes directly from Isaiah 8:12. So do not miss the import of the next verse:

It is Yahweh of hosts who you should treat as holy,

And He shall be your fear,

And He shall be your dread.   

Peter actually continues the citation of Isaiah right into verse 15, but we almost never see it! The “Lord” of 1 Peter 3:15 is Yahweh from Isaiah 8:13! If I could expand the translation then, “But in your hearts, honor (sanctify, set apart as holy) the Messiah (Christ) as Lord (kurios, in Isaiah 8:13, Yahweh), always being ready to give a defense. …” Here, writing to everyone in the congregation (not just elders), Peter is clearly giving everyday, “normal Christian living” instructions based upon the shared belief and reality  that Yahweh had entered human flesh as the Messiah, Jesus! The Christian’s everyday life was to be ordered by that astonishing reality! Few texts show how basic and fundamental this truth was in the early church.  

Chapter Nine: Jehovah of Hosts

1. For Mormons who reject this identification (Mormonism identifying the Father as “Elohim” and the Son as “Jehovah”), see such passages as Isaiah 53:6 and Matthew 22:41-45, where the Father is identified as Yahweh. See also James White, Letters to a Mormon Elder (Minneapolis, Minn.: Bethany House Publishers, 1993), 67-75.

2. Here is a partial listing of other passages that can be developed along these lines:

Matthew 1:21; Psalm 130:8; Isaiah 35:4 [God will save His people]

Matthew 3:12; Revelation 6:16; Psalm 2:12; Psalm 76:7 [Fear God]

Matthew 5:18; Mark 13:31 [God’s Word is eternal; Jesus’ Word is eternal]

Matthew 25:31-46; Psalm 50:6; 59:11; 96:13 [God is Judge, Jesus is judge]

John 1:3; Isaiah 44:24 [Yahweh alone created all things]

John 1:7-9; Isaiah 60:9 [God is light] John 7:37-38; Jeremiah 2:13 [Yahweh the fountain of living water]

John 10:11; Psalm 23:1; 100:3 [The Good Shepherd]

John 12:41; Isaiah 6:1 [The vision of Isaiah-Yahweh’s glory]

John 14:6; Psalm 31:5 [God is truth]

John 14:14; 1 Corinthians 1:2 [Prayer to Jesus]

 John 14:26; 16:27; Romans 8:9; 1 Peter 1:11; Nehemiah 9:20; 2 Samuel 23: 2-3 [Spirit of YHWH/God/Christ]

John 17:5; Isaiah 48:11 [Will not give His glory to another]

Acts 1:8; Isaiah 43:10 [Witnesses of Whom?]

Acts 4:24; 2 Peter 2:1; Jude 4 [Who is our Master?] Romans 10:13; Joel 2:32 [Call on the name of…]

Ephesians 4:8-9/Psalm 68:18 [God leads the captives …]

Philippians 2:10-11; Isaiah 45:23 [Every knee will bow…]

Colossians 1:16, Ephesians 5:25, 27; Romans 11:36 [All things are to God …]

Colossians 1:17; Acts 17:28 [We exist in God]

Colossians 2:3; 1 Timothy 1:17 [Only wise God … treasure of wisdom]

2 Timothy 1:12; Jeremiah 17:5 [Trust in Yahweh-believe in Jesus]

Hebrews 1:3; 1 Timothy 6:15 [Jesus’ power-God is only sovereign]

Hebrews 1:10; Psalm 102:25 [Jesus is Yahweh] Hebrews 13:8; Malachi 3:6 [God changes not]

James 2:1; Zechariah 2:5 [Lord of glory]

1 Peter 2:3; Psalm 34:8 [Taste that Yahweh is good]

1 Peter 3:15; Isaiah 8:13 [Sanctify Yahweh]

Revelation 1:5-6; Exodus 34:14 [Glorify Jesus]

Revelation 1:13-16; Ezekiel 43:2 [God’s voice is the voice of Jesus]

Revelation 2:23; 1 Kings 8:39 [Jesus searches the hearts]

Revelation 3:7; Revelation 15:4 [God alone is holy]

3. See the discussion of this fact in chapter 3.

4. The New World Translation of Jehovah’s Witnesses inserts the name “Jehovah” 237 times in the text of the New Testament. When the NT cites an OT passage that uses the name Yahweh, the NWT will use “Jehovah,” replacing the Greek term “Lord” or “God” that appears in the text. At other times, the NWT will simply remove the term “Lord” and replace it with “Jehovah.” The translation is inconsistent, however, in when it will insert the divine name. In a number of places, replacing “Lord” with “Jehovah” would teach the deity of Christ. For example, Paul says that no man can say “Jesus is Lord” except by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:3). Even though some of the Hebrew documents the Watchtower Society cites in support of their insertion of Jehovah have “Jesus is Yahweh,” the Society would not, of course, translate it that way. In the same way, if the NWT was consistent, they would have the word “Yahweh” here at Hebrews 1:10, replacing the word “Lord.” But this would teach the deity of Christ, hence, the replacement is not made.

5. The wording is almost identical to that found in the Greek Septuagint translation of Psalm 102:25-27.

6. This argument is put forward by Greg Stafford in Jehovah’s Witnesses Defended (Huntington Beach, Calif.: Elihu Books, 1998), 49-50. The circularity of Stafford’s arguments is illustrated by the comments that precede this discussion. In trying to avoid the plain teaching of Hebrews 1:10-12 that Jesus is the Creator of all things, Stafford notes that God created all things through the Son (Hebrews 1:2), and writes, “Clearly, then, in context Hebrews 1:10-12 could not be teaching that Jesus is the Creator, for here, in the opening words to the Hebrews, it is clearly stated that God made all things “through” His Son” (p. 48). This is circular argumentation, for it assumes the conclusion Stafford wishes to reach. It assumes unitarianism. The fact that the Son is differentiated from the Father is admitted by all. But unless one assumes that the term “God” must always and only refer solely to the Father (unitarianism), the entire argument collapses. The Son is the one through whom the Father made all things (Hebrews 1:2) and He is Yahweh, the eternal Creator, for the Father, Son, and Spirit are all identified as Yahweh. There is no contradiction between allowing both truths to coexist. Only the authority of the Watchtower forces Stafford to downplay the plain meaning of the one passage to uphold his unitarian interpretation of the other.

7. The connection is actually closer than first glance might indicate, for the Greek Septuagint (the LXX) contains both the verb form John uses in verse 1, eidon, and departing from the Hebrew text, it contains at the end of the verse the reading tes doxes autou meaning “the house was full of His glory.” This is the same phraseology used in John 12:41, ten doxan autou, (the accusative for the genitive) meaning “he saw His glory.” The use of the same phraseology makes the connection to the John [sic – Isaiah] 6 passage unbreakable.

8. Or, more likely, the term “glory” used in the LXX in verse 1.

9. Stafford insists that we look only at Isaiah 53 for the reference to John 12:41, but he does not deal with the verbal parallels to the Greek LXX. In fact, one will search in vain in Isaiah 53 for eiden/eidon being used with “glory”; and one will not find the phrase ten doxan autou or anything similar to it. The term “glory” only appears once in Isaiah 53, and that in a completely separate context. (Ibid., pp. 213-214)

FURTHER READING

THE UNCREATED WORD ENTERS CREATION

JESUS: THE I AM HE INCARNATE

Carmen Christi: A Reformed Perspective

BEYOND THE VEIL OF ETERNITY

JWS AGREE: ISAIAH SAW CHRIST!

JWS, PETER & CHRIST’S DEITY

NWT: A PERVERTED TRANSLATION