'I AM' in John's Gospel

iyd eipt and its Significance in Johannine Christology.

I. Significant'I AM' Passages in the OT:

Exodus 3:14-1514 God said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AMU [LXX: iyto itpr 6 div]; and He said, "Thus you shall say

to the sons of Israel, uI AM [LXX: 6 riiv] has sent me to you."'15 God, furthermore, said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, "The LORD, the Godof your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you.' This is

My name forever, and this is My memorial-name to all generations.

Exodus 6:2-82 God spoke further to Moses and said to him, "I am the LORD;3 and I appeared to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, as God Almighty, but by My name, LORD, I didnot make Myself known to them.4 uI also established My covenant with them, to give them the land of Canaan, the land in which theysojourned.5 "Furthermore I have heard the groaning of the sons of Israel, because the Egyptians are holdingthem in bondagg and I have remembered My covenant.6 "Say, therefore, to the sons of Israel, "I am the LORD, and I will bring you out from under theburdens of the Egyptians, and I will deliver you from their bondage. I will also redeem you with anoutstretched arm and with great judgments.7 "Then I will take you for My people, and I will be your God; and you shall know that I am theLORD your God, who brought you out from under the burdens of the Eryptians.8 uI will bring you to the land which I swore to give to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and I will give itto you for a possession; I am the LORD."'

Deut 32:3939 "See now that I, I am He, and there is no god besides me; it is I who put to death and give life. Ihave wounded and it is I who heal, and there is no one who can deliver from My hand.L)C(: l6ete l6ete 6tr dyri eiFtr, rcci oirc 6onv 0edq r.l"r1v 6po0

III. The Use of 'ego eimi'inthe LXX and'ani hu' inthe Hebrew for ISAIAH 40'66:

Isa 4I:4- "Who has performed and accomplished it calling forth the generations from the beginning? "I, theLORD, am the first, and with the last. !4IIe."'Isa 43:10- "You are My witnesses," declares the LORD, "And My servant whom I have chosen, so thatyou may know and believe me and understand that I am IIe. Before me there was no God formed, andthere will be none after me."

Isa 43:25- "I, even I, [LXX: 6y<6 e ipr, iy<i e ipl] am the one who wipes out your transgressions for Myown sake, and I will not remember your sins.Possible LXX trans.: "I am 'I AM' who blots out transgressions"

Isa 46:4-54 Even to your old age I will be the same, and even to your graying years I will bear you! I have done

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it and I will carry you; and I will bear you and I will deliver you.5 "To whom would you liken me and make me equal and compare me, that we would be alike?

LXX: Isa 46:4 3og ynTrtog (yvpoug) iy<i eiFlr. rot B<oq dv rotcrylTrcronte, 6Ya1 eil[. iyrodvelopor ripdv, iyo inotrpcl, KcLt iYo dvnoo, iyol dvcrl,n\ropot, KCrt otgottl dpdq.Trans 46:4- *Until old age I anr, and till you grow old, I am."

Isa 47:88 "Now, then, hear this, you sensual one, who dwells securely, who says in your heart, "I am

[L)O(: 6yri eipl], and there is no one besides me. I will not sit as a widow, nor know loss ofchildren.'

Isa 5l:1212 "f, even I, [LXX: 6y<5 e ipl 6yci eipl] am He who comforts you. Who are you that youare afraid of man who dies and of the son of man who is made like grass,

Isa52;6-76 "Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore in that day I am the one who isspeaking, "Here I am."' [L)O(: hoti ego eimi autos ho lalon, pareimif7 How lovely on the mountains Are the feet of him who brings good news, who announcespeace and brings good news of happiness, who announces salvation, and says to Zion, "Your Godreigns!"

Note Brown JohnYoL I: o'There is even evidence that the use of €yrr6 e ipt in L)O( of Deutero-Isaiah came to be understood not only as a statement of divine unicity and existence, but also as adivine name."

III. 66I AM' Passages in John:

JoIn4:26- l6ye r c0rfr 6'lr1ooOq,'Eyrri e lpt, 6 lal6v oor.

Context: The Woman at the Well.OT Reference: Isa. 52:6Significance: Christ as the Eschatological Revelation of God.David Mark Ball, 'I AM' in John's Gospel.

"'When Jesus says 'I am he who speaks,' he thus takes the words of Yahweh andapplies them to himself. The day of which Isaiah speaks is also paralleled in Jesus'discussion about the day when true worshipers will worship in spirit and in truth. Ifthe Isaiah passage is in mind, Jesus' claim is not only in the light of the messiah'scoming (v.25), but in the light of the LORD's coming in redemption to Zion (Isa.52.8,9)...Jesus' words make him out to be the fulfillment of the LORD's promisethat the people would know his name, and also know that it is he who speaks.Jesus' identity as messiah is therefore an identity which includes an identificationwith Yahweh. (pp. 179-80).

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John 6:20- 6 6t l6yet c0roig,'Eyoi eipt, pi QoBelo0e.

Context: Jesus walks on water.Background:

The name and presence of YHWH as a reason for 'no fear' in the OT-Gen26:24-The LORD appeared to him the same night and said, "I am the God of

your father Abraham; do not fear, for I am with you. I will bless you, andmultiply your descendants, for the sake of My servant Abraham'"

Gen 46:3- He said, "I am God, the God ofyour father; do not be afraid to godown to Eg;pt, for I will make you a gteat nation there-Jer 1:8- "Do not be afraid of therrq for I am with you to deliver you," declares the

LORD.Ier 46:28- "O Jacob My servant, do not fear," declares the LORD, "For I am with

you. For I will make a full end of all the nations where I have driven you,yet I will not make a fulIend ofyou; but I will correct you properly and byno means leave you unpunished."

Ier 42:ll- "Do not be afraid ofthe king of Babylon, whomyou are now fearing;do not be afraid of him,' declares the LORD, "for I am with you to saveyou and deliver you from his hand.

Note also the idea through Isaiah 43:lsa43:1,2- 'But now, thus says the LORD, your Creator, O Jacob, and He who

formed you, O Israel, "Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have calledyou by rulme; you are Mine!" (2)"When you pass tluough the waters, I willbe with you; and through the rivers, they will not overflow you- When youwalk through the fire, you will not be scorched, nor will the flame burnyou.

43:5- "Do not fear, for I am with you; I will bring your offspring from the east,and gather you from the west.

43:ll-12_ (l l)"I, even I, am the LORD, and there is no savior besides me. (12) "Itis I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, and there was no strangegod among you; so you are My witnesses," declates the LORD, "And I amGod.

The comrnand of the LORD for Israel not to fear is accompanied in both Isaiahand Jeremiah by the idea that He alone is Savior.Jesus has again taken words reserved for YHWH alone and applied them toHimself.Note the contextual significance of walking on water with Isa. 43:.2;thereisprotection despite the waters about to crash down upon the disciples. Jesus in thecontext reveals himself as Savior- a job reserved for YHWH alone according tothe OT.

Morris argues that here iyrri e ipr is a means of self-identification (310 n.aa). However, he

does sight Dodd as rightly pointing out it is a referent to the divine name.

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Beasley-Munay suggusts that Job 9:8 might be in mind and more obviously Ps.77:16,19:*Job 9:8- "'Who alone stretches out the heavens and tramples down the waves of the sea;"*Ps 77:16-19- (16) The waters saw you, O God; the waters saw you, they were in

anguish; the deeps also trembled. (17) The clouds poured out water; the skies gaveforth a sound; your rurows flashed here and there. (18) The sound of your thunderwas in the whirlwind; the lightnings lit up the world; the earth trembled and shook.(19) Yow way was in [or through] the sea and your paths in the mighty waters,and your footprints may not be known.

This would be Exodus language, which highlights the second Exodus and therevelation of glory of God. This is right in ling with the Isaiahic background David MarkBall argues for. Murray firrther correctly notes'oThere is indeed evidence that theexpression N'l;'t 'lN came to be regarded as the name of God... The occurrences of 6yrri

eipt in sayngs of Jesus indicate not an identification ofhimself with God but a solidarityor union with hirn, expressions of himself as "God's eschatological Revealer in whom Godutters himself' (Schnackenburg 2:88). The combinations of 6yrri e ipt with various symbolsmay be said to summarize his role in revelation and salvation' (90).

However there is an identification of Jesus with God in the sense of the laterChristological Creeds' definition that he is homoousiawiththe Father yet a distincthypostaseis or personae. In other words, Jesus can use the sacred divine name in referenceto himself precisely because of who he is. He speaks of himself in a way far beyond theancient prophets who can similarly be described as revealers of God's comingeschatological program. Jesus is the one in whom God 'utters himself but in a way thattranscends OT revelation (cf. John 1 : 1- 1 8; Heb. I : 1-4). The eschatological revelation ofGod is Son-revelation who is just as much the €yrri e ipt as the Father is €yrri e iprt.

John 8:18- Eyrri e ipr 6 pcprupt0v nepi Epcuro0 xci pcprupet nepi 6po0 6 n6p{cq pe narrip.The allusion to the OT is seen here only from the L)O(, according to David MarkBaIl. In the L)O( of Isa. 43 the LORD himse$ along with His servant, bearswitness and testifies that He alone is LORD and can save'

ooThus when Jesus claims to be the one who bears witness, he seems to betaking on the role which was to be accomplished by the 'servant of theLORD' in Isaiah. Jesus' witness is valid because he identifies himself withthe role of the servant, as well as because the Father bears witness withhim." (Ball 186-7).

Morris notes, "If Jesus really stands in the relationship to God in which he says hedoes, then no mere human is in a position to bear witness. No mere human canauthenticate a divine relationship" (p 393).

JoInS:24-2824 elnov o0v 6plv 6rt dno0cveloOe €v ralE dpcpr(crq 6pt0v' 3dv ycp pri; ntore6o4redrr €yui eipt, dno0qveio0e Ev tcig dpapriarq {rriv.25 dleyov odv a0rQ, I0 r(g el; elnev cdtoig 6'IqooOg, Tiv cpXiv 6 rt rai lal6 6piv;26 nolld d1t-r nepi 6ptiv lclelv xci xpivetv' dll'6 ndptf cq Fe <iflqO{q €ottv, xdyri &

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{xouoa ncp'odroO rqOra ldrn eig tdv x6o1rov.27 o0r Syvt'roav 6rt rdv ncrr4pc odroiq Eleyev.2g elnev'o$v [cr3roiq] 6'lqoo0q,'Orqv 6tf uioqre rdv uidv ro0 dvOptittou, tdteyvrrioeoge drt Eyr,i eipr, xli dn; €prcuroO notri o66r4v, dlld xc0riq i6(5ofiv pre 6 ncrriproOra 1cfu0.

Linked with this declaration of "I am" is John's 'Christology from above'. Since

Jesus is tru|y the ''I atrl it must follow that is origin is not from this earth (cf. John'sPrologue). The NIV's translation: 'tf you do not believe that I am the on I claim to be'totally obscures the divine revelation of the name associated with Jesus. The specificcontent of belief is that Jesus is the "I am" (note: dtt). The context of belief is veryspecific, content of faitlr, while often obscured by more modern existentialist conceptionsof faith" is something that the reformers did not miss with their notion of faith as notitia,ossensus, andfiducia.

Despite the ensuing debates regarding Lordship salvation, the claim of Christ hereis that one must believe that He is the'T AM", the sacred divine name associated withYHWH in the OT. In other words, Jesus is God (John l:l;20:28) but not just any god butspecifically the one and same God revealed in the OT, now in the climax of revelationshown to be triune.

lnv.25 it is still asked of Jesus, '\vho are you"? The Pharisees fail to see whoJesus is in relationship to the Father. This, according to the rest of John's gospel isbecause they do not know who the Father is to begin with, similarly belief has not beengranted to them thus they remain in darkness.

Verse 28, we have the important association of the "Son of Man" title with the "I AM".

Ridderbos' hesitancy to see €yt'i e ipr as divine identication is noteworthy. Hewrites that 8:28 with the words 'believe that I am (he)' "do not refer to the ontologicalrelationship of the Son with the Father but to his action as the one sent by the Father. Or,in Calvin's words, o'I am he" does not relate to Christ's divine being but to his office"(301).

-He further quotes Calvin in a footnote "[on v.24] Some ancients have misappliedthis to the divine essence of Christ. He is in fact speaking of His office towardsus...[on v. 28] That I am.I have already said that this does not refer to Christ'sdivine essence, but to His office. This appears still more clearly from the context,where He affirms that He does nothing but at the command of His Father. For thiswas as good as sayng that HE was sent by God and performs His officefaithtully." (qtd. Ridderbos 301 n. 150)

-Unbeknownst to Calvin, the modern world runs amuck with its over zealousdivision and separationoffunctional vs. ontological ChrLstology. While our viewof €yrri eipr might be influenced by a desire to correct the avoidance of ontology, itremains best to see €yti e ipr as predication of deity, perhaps 'divine essence'per

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^re does add too much ofthe church creedal language while misunderstanding theuse of the divine name in the OT. Maybe we should prefer Bauckham terminologyof 'divine identity'. IN this regard we can synthesis Calvin to saw that Jesus isontologically and functionally the 6yrri e ipr, he is sent by the Father yet he is alsoautotheos, which Calvin rigorously maintains elsewhere. Thus it is still proper tospeak of Jesus as ontologically God.

6yrrl eipi most likely denotes the personal name of God. We have shown how it isused in Deutero-Isaiah and other key OT phrase. It should be added that the namedenoted a very specific way of describing God. He was the one who knew the end fromthe beginning and would act that the eschatological climax of salvation-history in order todeliver his people.

Here John shows that the Son is Syui eipt as well as the Father. There working isnot in contradiction but in consistency. It is the very plan of the Father (who is the tyuieipt) to send the Son (who is also the €yri e ipr) in order to enact the Father'seschatological program. This says as much about their unity as it says about theirdistinction as personae. The later church was correct in concluding: Opera trinitotisindivisa sunt (the works ofthe Trinity are indivisible).

Beasley-Murray, John2"d ed.; "It is significant that the absolute 3yrr1 e ipr shouldoccur twice in this paragraph: in the context of the feast and in the related 'l arrf'of v 58.It certainly indicates the unity of Jesus as Revealer and Redeemer with God the Father; itconceivably could also carry the further implication of Jesus as the representative of God'speople binding themto the Father (so Bruce, 193)" (131).

The theme echoed from the OT in this section is that only YHWH can deliver.David Mark Ball rightly notes that 'Tesus is to be closely identified with the Father iscompletely consistent with Johannine Christology (cf. 1.1; 10.30).'Eyti e ipr identifiesJesus with Yahweh's saving action and even with Yahweh himself...The Son'sidentification with the Father is so close that he can even take words from Isaiahconcerning the LORD's role as the only God, and use them ofhimself. Just as knowledgeof Yahweh's identity will be revealed in an act of history, so will knowledge of the Son'sidentification with the Father" ('I Am' in John's Gospel 193).

John 8:58- elnev a0roiq 'IqooOE,'Apriu dpr)v liyo 0;riv, npiv'Appqql yevio0ar dyr,J elpi.

Note the distinction between the two verbs: yrvolrol (to come to be) and eipr (tobe). It is important that eipr is not in the imperfect but in the present tense form of theword. John is denoting more than preexistence. (cf. John 1:l-'Ev opXfr frv 6 ldyog).Rather he is associating the divine name with Jesus. Jesus expressly claims to be "I AM".'Apriv dpilv ldyt'r Opiv may highlight the pronouncement of revelation. Jesus has revealedhimself in the name reserved for YHWH alone.

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Johneipt.

Abraham was the one clearly called by YHWH while he was still a pagan worshiping othergods. David Mark Ball points out the reference to Abraham in Targum Isaiah 43:10-13:

'oI am he that is from the beginning, yea the everlasting ages are mine, andbeside me there is no god. I even I, am the Lord; and beside me there is nosavior. I declared to Abraham your Father what was about to come; Idelivered you from Egypt... Yea from everlasting I am He, and there isnone that delivereth from my hand."

*Leviticus 24:16-o'Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of the LORD shallsurely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. The alien as well as

the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death."-If Jesus was not who he said he was, then the Jews had every right to stone him.There willingness to stone him shows a lack of faith in hirn, which is typical of theportrayal of Jews in John's gospel.

Augustine- "As man he flees from the stones, but woe to those from whose hearts ofstone God flees (cited in Schnackenburg, 2:224).

13:19- dn' dprr l6yur 0plv npd ro0 yevr6o0cr, fvq ntotedo4re 6rcv ydvr;rat drt Eyoi

Psalm 4l:9 is quoted: "Even my close friend in whom I trusted, who ate my bread,has lifted up his heel against me."The context of the Psalm may be important: (10) But you, O LORD, be graciousto me and raise me up, that I may repay them. (11) By this I know that you arepleased with me, because my enemy does not shout in triumph over me. (12) Asfor me, you uphold me in my integrity, and you set me in your presence forever.An possible allusion to Isaiah 43:1G-"You are My witnesses," declares the LORD,'And My servant whom I have chosen, so that you may know and believe me andunderstand that I am IIe. Before me there was no God formed, and there will benone after me."Just as the YHWH in the Old Testament chose the twelve tribes of Israel to be Hiswitness, so Jesus chose twelve disciples, one of whom would betray Him. Israelwas called to believe in YHWH alone. In light of the eschatological climax ofGod's salvation history and the revelation of Himself this faith must now be faith inChrist. In John's gospel only those who place faith in Christ are he ones whoactually know the Father and have faith in him.This might contextual refer back to Isaiah 40-66 (or any general OT that proclaimsthat only YHWH knows the future). In this major section it is YHWH alone whoknows the end fromthe beginning. Here Jesus being able to say ahead oftime whatwill come to pass is an indication ofwho He is. Prediction ofthe future is notevidence of deity per se since a true prophet of YHWH could tell the future. Yetall ofthis combined, especially in light of Jesus laying down His life for His

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disciples (as the ebed YHWII) carurot go unnoticed.Note also- Ezek24:24 "Thus Ezekiel will be a sign to you; according to all that hehas done you will do; when it comes, then you will know that I am the LordGOD."

John 18:5-85 dnerpiOqoav c0rQ,'l4ooOv rdv Nc(opalov. l6ye t cdroig,'Eyr,i elpt. eiorrire r 6ixci'lod8cq 6 napc6t6o0g c0rdv pet'ctirr0v.6 rriq odv e lnev or3roiq,'Eyrri elpt, dnfrlOov eig rd 6n(otl xai dneoov lqrc(.- t^ j t7 n<ihv odv En4ptirrlorv adrodg, Tivc (rlretre; oi 6i e lncv,'Iqoo0v rdv Na(opclov.8 dnerpi04'lr1oo0E, Einov 0ptv 5rt 6yr,i e tpt' e i odv Ept (qrelre, dQere rodtouE6n<iye rv'

This might be seen as the climax of the "I AM" statements in John's gospel. Herethe very name is the reason the guards are repealed. The carefirl reader who has beentracking John's Christology up until this point (including but not limited to the 'I AM's)see that Jesus is clearly the one who lays down his life of his own accord. His been seizedis not only apart of his messianic mission but the very function of his being sent by theFather.

Clearly the guards were unable to seize Jesus except that he has allowed them.Contextually, Jesus stops Peter from resisting. It is now "Jesus' time" where arethroughout the whole gospel it was not yet. It is appropriate that as the proper time thereis one more reminder that Jesus is the "I AM".

The irony should not be missed. As the guards want to seize Jesus, Jesus revealsthe true identity of the one whom they wish to seize.

BrovtnJohnvol.Il *The adversaries of Jesus are prostrate ontheir face before hismajesty, as so there can be little doubt that John intends 66I AM" as a divinename...The Johannine scene illustrates that Jesus has God's power over the forcesof darkness because he has the divine name" (818).

David Mark BaIl notes that Jesus response functions on two levels, yes he is JesusofNazereth but he there is more to him in light of the environment in which they werewritten. "In that environment, the Gospel writer can take simple words and, by the waythey are formulated (8.24,28; 13.19) as well as by the reactions to them (8.58; 18.5,6,8),allude to a background where Yahweh alone is God and Saviour. In the Gospel, thesewords are taken up by Jesus and applied to himself' (201).

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IV. Conclusion

Ball's conclusion (p. 203): "By using the words Syui eipt, Jesus takes upon himself a phrase thatspeaks ofthe fact that Yahwetr, the one true creator God will come to his people and savethem. As such the phrase is eschatological, expressing the time when the LORD will cometo Zionand when the messenger will proclaim 'The LORD reigns' (52.6,7)... While thewords 'I am' may not be profound in themselves, the way that they are formulated n Jolnpoints the reader to these words in Isaiah for a correct understanding ofwho Jesus is. Theuse of the phrase in Isaiah fits well with John's own Christology and suggests that Johnsaw the events and words of Jesus' life as a fulfilment of that day when Israel would seethe salvation of Yahweh. By the way he uses iyr'i e ipr he wishes his readers to see thesamg.tt

Jesus has identified Himself with the divine name both in the functions he carries out butalso in the way that the divine name of €yt5 e ipr is applied directly to his person. This use of Eyuie ipr in such a way to denote who is remains thoroughly consistent with Johannine Christology inits entirety but most significant with such assertions that "the Word was with God and the Wordwas God" or he claims to be equal to God, or the climax with Thomas' confession to Jesus as'My Lord and my God."

John shows that Jesus is fully and completely God who became flesh. Truly we havebeheld his glory. John's use of €yr,i e i;rt shows us that Jesus is YHWH, the living sovereigncreating and saving God. This God, although one essence, is three persons: Father, Son and HolySpirit.

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