We've looked at how the post-apostolic Christian writers have identified the two Gods of John 1:1 and how they used the Old Testament as the basis for their beliefs, so it is now time to look at how the New Testament authors have dealt with this same issue, and we'll begin by looking at how the writings of John factor into this discussion.
As John is the author of the Gospel of John, one would expect that his other writings may shed light upon how he looks at the first verse of his own Gospel. The prologue to the Revelation of John makes the issue clear. As the vison begins, Jesus appears to John as an angel, a human figure with flaming eyes and feet like burnished bronze, appearing in the temple, the dwelling place of Yahweh. The angel introduces himself as: "I am the first and the last and the living one." And by this introduction, He distinctly identifies himself as Yahweh. These are Old Testament titles for Yahweh. Compare the language with that of Isaiah 44:6: "Thus says Yahweh the King of Israel, and his Redeemer the Lord of Hosts: I am the first and the last." Compare also with Job: " I know my Redeemer is the Living One." The titles were the traditional titles of Yahweh.
The angel in John's vision was Jesus, for he had died and was alive again (Rev 2:8), although in other respects He was the ancient Yahweh. He could permit others to eat from the tree of life (Rev 2:7), He had the sharp sword of judgement (Rev 2:12), He was the Son of God (Rev 2:18), He had the seven spirits of God (Rev 3:1), He was the scribe of the Lamb's book of life (Rev 3:5), He sat on a throne and had a Father also enthroned. There are several other examples in Revelation that confirm that the Jesus-angel was Yahweh. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes. In Zechariah, the seven eyes were the seven spirits, the seven eyes of Yahweh. The Lamb was explicitly identified as Lord of Lords and King of Kings (Rev 17:14), both Old Testament monikers for Yahweh. He was the Faithful and True who rode out as a warrior judge, linking Him to the language of Deutoronomy 32 orignally describing Yahweh. The Lamb was also depicted as married to the heavenly city, a role identified with Yahweh in Isaiah 54. The bejewelled city wed to Yahweh in Isaiah 54 became the heavenly city and bride of the Lamb in Revelation 21. There can be no doubt that for John, the heavenly Christ was the ancient Yahweh.
In the Revelation of John, the angel figure is identifed simultaneously as Jesus and Yahweh, who is numerically distinct from and His Father, God Most High. In this respect, the writings of John confirm the early Christian teachings regarding God and the Word introduced in John 1:1.
Aside from Revelation, there are other instances in John's Gospel that portray the same reality. In John 8:58 Jesus appears to proclaim clearly to the Jewish leadership that he is Yawheh. "Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am." Here He is using the same language to refer to Himself that He used to introduce Himself to Moses from the burning bush. Jesus is not merely saying in this passage that He existed before Abraham. In the original Greek text, the 'I am' in the English is translated from the Greek 'ego eimi', which literally means 'I am.' To read it as 'I was' or 'I have been' would require a change in the tense. Additonally, when the Hebrew Bible was translated into the Greek Septuagint, the version used and quoted by the New Testament authors, the name God used to introduce Himself to Moses was translated to 'ego eimi.' Linguistically, the 'ego eimi' in both the Moses account and John's account are contextually linked. To Greek speakers, 'ego eimi' would represent the Great I Am. That is how it was translated from Hebrew into Greek. Furthermore, had Jesus merely stated that he had existed before Abraham, that wouldn't have risen to the level of blasphemy that would cause the mob to want to stone Him in the next verse. As I read it, Jesus was proclaiming Himself to be Yahweh, which is consistent with how he presented Himself to John in Revelation.
In other areas of John's Gospel, he also notes the distinctness between God Most High, or God the Father, and Jesus. I'm not going to list all of the references, they're easy enough to look up and I'll address them in turn as I continue this commentary. As one example I would point out John 14, 16-17, which includes the Great Intercessory Prayer. These chapters make clear the distinctness between the Father and the Son and also that the Father exceeds the Son. In other words, John taught that Jesus was Yahweh, or Jehovah, He was distinct from God Most High and was subject to His Father, which is consistent with what we have previously seen in the teachings of the other early Christian authors.
Next, I'll look at how this issue is addressed by other New Testament authors.
No comments:
Post a Comment