Wednesday, August 31, 2016

Is Jesus the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?

In this presentation, unless otherwise noted, the World English Bible World English Bible version will be quoted.
In Exodus 3:13-15, we first read a question that Moses presented to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:6), and then the response to that question:
Exodus 3:13
When I come to the children of Israel, and tell them, “The God of your fathers [Exodus 3:6] has sent me to you;” and they ask me, “What is his name?” What should I tell them?
Let us now read Jehovah’s response to that question:
Exodus 3:14
God said to Moses, “I AM WHO I AM [EHJEH ASHER EHJEH],” and he said, “You shall tell the children of Israel this: ‘I AM [EHJEH] has sent me to you.'”
Then Ehyeh identifies Himself as the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob:
Exodus 3:15
God said moreover to Moses, “You shall tell the children of Israel this, ‘Yahweh [Jehovah], the God of 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 to all generations.
The name – I AM WHO I AM – in Exodus 3:14 is often rendered into English as EHJEH ASHER EHJEH. The short form “I AM”, in Exodus 3:14, is often rendered in English as simply EHJEH. EHJEH and JEHOVAH should not be thought of as two different names; they are simply two forms of the same name.
It is often claimed, especially by trinitarians and Mormons, that Jesus is Jehovah (or, as some prefer, Yahweh), the God of the Old Testament.
Some use scriptures such as John 1:1 and John 8:58 to support their claim.
Some have even gone so far as to claim that the Father of Jesus is NOT “I AM” (EHJEH), the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, of Exodus 3:14,15. These who claim that the Father is not EHJEH thus claim that only Jesus is EHJEH, JEHOVAH, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who spoke to Moses.
If it was actually Jesus who claimed to be Ehjeh, Jehovah, in Exodus 3:14,15, then this would mean that Jesus is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, and that Jesus’ name is “I am” – EHJEH, etc. Trinitarians allege that this was Jesus, whom they further allege to be the second person of their triune God. They thus claim that the God of the Bible is three persons, all whom they claim to be the “one God” of the Bible.
In the Bible, however, we actually find no teaching of a trinity, nor do we find any mention at all of a trinue God. Additionally, we do not find any place in the Bible in which the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is ever once presented as more than one individual (or, person). Furthermore, we do not find any scripture in the Bible that ever presents Jesus as being the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, although some read that thought into several scriptures. Indeed, in the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is ALWAYS presented as being one individual (or, person). In the Bible, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is ALWAYS distinguished from the Messiah, the one whom He anointed and sent.
How do we know that it was JEHOVAH — the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob of Exodus 3:14,15 — who sent Jesus? In Isaiah 61:1, the Messiah is prophetically presented as saying:
The Spirit of the Lord Jehovah is on Me, because Jehovah has anointed Me to preach the gospel to the meek. He has sent Me....  -- Green's Literal.
Jesus, in effect, showed that he was the one anointed by Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14), when he quoted the words of Isaiah 61:1 as recorded at Luke 4:17-20. It was the indeed, Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, of Exodus 3:14,15, who anointed Jesus, and who sent Jesus.
If examined closely, one can see that the entire Bible is fully at harmony with itself without adding the trinity doctrine.
Nor is there is any scriptural reason to add any kind of doctrine into the Bible that Jesus is Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
It was the “God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob” of Exodus 3:14,15, who declared that He would raise up a prophet that would be like Moses. Moses told the children of Israel:
Deuteronomy 18:15 - Jehovah your God shall raise up to you a prophet from among you, of your brothers, one like me; you shall listen to him. -- Green's Literal.

Moses then related to Israel what Jehovah had said to him:

Deuteronomy 18:18 - I shall raise up a prophet to them from among their brothers, one like you; and I will put My Words in his mouth; and he shall speak to them all that I shall command him.

Notice that it was Jehovah, EHJEH, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15), who said to Moses that He would raise up a prophet from among the children of Israel. It was Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15), who said that He would put His words into the mouth of this prophet, and that this prophet would speak all that Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob would command of him. Thus, rather than proclaiming that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is the Messiah, the prophet Moses shows that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob says that He will send the Messiah, and that this prophet would speak His words.
We will next look at Psalm 110:1, which states, according the American Standard Version:

Jehovah saith unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, Until I make thine enemies thy footstool.

David thus identifies the Messiah as sitting at the right hand of Jehovah, not as Jehovah Himself.
In Acts 2:32-36, Peter applies “Jehovah” from Psalm 110:1, not to Jesus, but rather to the Only True God (John 17:3), the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. — Exodus 3:14,15.
Acts 2:32
This Jesus God raised up, whereof we all are witnesses.
In Acts 2:32, Peter is speaking of when God raised Jesus up from the dead. “God” in Acts 2:32 refers to one person, not three persons, nor does “God” in Acts 2:32 refer to Jesus.
Acts 2:33
Being therefore exalted by the right hand of [Jehovah – Psalm 110:1], and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured forth this, which you now see and hear.
Peter states that Jesus, having been raised from the dead, has been exalted to the right hand of Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. — Exodus 3:14,15.
Acts 2:34
For David didn’t ascend into the heavens, but he says himself, ‘[Jehovah – Psalm 110:1] said to my Lord, “Sit by my right hand,
Thus, Peter identifies “God” of Acts 2:32 as Jehovah of Exodus 3:14,15, and Peter also shows that Jesus sits at the right hand of Jehovah, not that Jesus is Jehovah.
Acts 2:36
“Let all the house of Israel therefore know assuredly that God has made him both Lord and Christ, this Jesus whom you crucified.”
Peter consistently speaks here of “God”, not as being three persons, but as being one individual, and identifies that one individual as “Jehovah” of Psalm 110:1. He does not at all identify Jesus as being the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob; Peter consistently distinguishes “God” from “Jesus of Nazareth”. Peter does not here or anywhere else ever include Jesus as being the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
That Peter is referring to EHJEH — I AM — the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (of Exodus 3:14,15) as the God and Father of Jesus may be further seen by Peter’s words as recorded in the next chapter beginning with Acts 3:13, which reads:
Acts 3:13
The God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, the God of our fathers, has glorified his Servant Jesus, whom you delivered up, and denied before the face of Pilate, when he had determined to release him.
In Acts 3:13 Peter speaks of the same God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob who spoke to Moses, and who declared His name to be “I AM” (EHJEH), as recorded in Exodus 3:14,15. Rather than saying that it was Jesus who spoke to Moses in Exodus 3:14,15, as many have claimed, Peter declares that it was the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (of Exodus 3:14,15) who glorified Jesus, and that Jesus is Jehovah’s servant.
Think!
Does this read at all as though Peter thought that Jesus IS the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?
But we have even further evidence as we read more of Peter’s words from Acts 3:14,15:
Acts 3:14
But you denied the Holy and Righteous One, and asked for a murderer to be granted to you,
Acts 3:15
and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, whereof we are witnesses.
Again, Peter distinguishes Jesus from EHJEH (I AM), the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Acts 3:13; Exodus 3:14,15), and declares that the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob had raised Jesus from the dead.
Let us continue with Acts 3:18:
Acts 3:18
But the things which God announced by the mouth of all his prophets, that Christ should suffer, he thus fulfilled.
Again, Peter, by his words recorded in Acts 3:18, speaks of EHJEH (I AM), the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, not as Jesus, nor as three persons, but as one individual, and he states that this one individual was the One who foretold Jesus by means of all His prophets.
Acts 3:19
Repent therefore, and turn again, that your sins may be blotted out, that so there may come times of refreshing from the presence [Greek, transliterated, Prosopon, Strong’s 4383, face] of [Jehovah — Psalm 80:19],
Acts 3:20
and that he [Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob — Acts 3:13; Exodus 3:14,15] may send Christ Jesus, who was ordained for you before,
Acts 3:21
whom the heaven must receive until the times of restoration of all things, whereof God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets that have been from ancient times.
Peter continues to distinguish Jehovah [EHJEH/I AM] of Exodus 3:14,15, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, from Jesus. It is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Acts 3:13) who sent Christ Jesus! In common reasoning, if Bob sends Jack on an errand, no one thinks that Jack is Bob. Likewise, the default reasoning is that Jesus is NOT Jehovah who sent Jesus.
However, to believe that Jesus is Jehovah (Yahweh) of the Old Testament, one has to throw the default reasoning out the window, and rely greatly upon the spirit of human imagination so as add assumption upon assumption to the scriptures in order to make the scriptures appear to be saying the very opposite of what they do say.
In Acts 3:22, Peter connects the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Acts 3:13; Exodus 3:14,15) with Jehovah who said he raise up a prophet like Moses, as we read in Deuteronomy 18:15-18.
Acts 3:22
For Moses indeed said to the fathers, ‘[Jehovah — Exodus 23:17; 34:23; Deuteronomy 3:24; 9:26;18:15,17] will raise up a prophet to you from among your brothers, like me. You will listen to him in all things whatever he says to you.
Peter’s words in Acts 3:22 definitely demonstrate that Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob of the Old Testament (Acts 3:13), who spoke to Moses at Exodus 3:14,15, is NOT Jesus.
Let us now look at Hebrews 1:1,2:
Hebrews 1:1
God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,
Hebrews 1:2
has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the [ages].
Who is “God” in these verses, and who is Jesus? “God” is said to have spoken “through the prophets” in the days of the Jewish “fathers”. Was this not the “God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob of Exodus 3:14 who spoke through the “fathers” of Israel?
Numbers 12:6
If there be a prophet among you, I [Jehovah] will make myself known to him in a vision, I will speak with him in a dream.
It was Jehovah/Ehjeh of Exodus 3:14,15, who declared that he speaks to the prophets of Israel. — Numbers 12:6
Exodus 4:30
Jehovah had spoken to Moses. -- Green's Literal.
Exodus 6:2,3
And God spoke to Moses and said to him, I am Jehovah. And I appeared to Abraham, to Isaac and to Jacob as God Almighty, and by My name JEHOVAH I have not been known to them. -- Green's Literal.
Therefore, it was “Jehovah/Ehjeh”, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15) who spoke through the prophet Moses. — Exodus 4:30; 6:1,2; 6:10; 7:8; 8:1; 21:1; 13:1, etc.
Joshua 1:1
Jehovah spoke to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses' minister, saying,,… -- Green's L
It was “Jehovah/Ehjeh”, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15) who spoke through the prophet Joshua. —Joshua 1:1; 4:8,15; 20:1; etc.
1 Samuel 9:17
When Samuel saw Saul, then Jehovah answered him.... -- Green's Literal.
It was “Jehovah/Ehjeh”, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15) who spoke through the prophet Samuel. — 1 Samuel 9:17.
1 Kings 5:5
Jehovah spoke to my father David. -- Green's Literal.
1 Kings 8:15; 2 Chronicles 6:4
And he said, Blessed be Jehovah, God of Israel, who spoke by His mouth with my father David. -- Green's Literal.
It was “Jehovah/Ehjeh”, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15) who spoke through the prophet David. —1 Kings 5:5;18:15; 2 Chronicles 6:4.
2 Samuel 12:7
And Nathan said to David, You are the man! So says Jehovah, the God of Israel, I anointed you as king over Israel….” -- Green's Literal.
It was “Jehovah/Ehjeh”, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15), who spoke through the prophet Nathan.–2 Samuel 12:7.
2 Kings 10:10
Jehovah has done that which He spoke by the hand of His servant Elijah. -- Green's Literal.
It was “Jehovah/Ehjeh”, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15) who spoke through the prophet Elijah. — 2 Kings 10:10.
Isaiah 20:2
Jehovah spoke by Isaiah the son of Amoz, saying,... -- Green's Literal
It was “Jehovah/Ehjeh”, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Exodus 3:14,15) who spoke through the prophet Isaiah. —Isaiah 20:2.
Let us return now to Hebrews 1:1,2:
Hebrews 1:1
God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,
Hebrews 1:2
has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the [ages].
For those who say that the Father is not Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, notice that Hebrews 1:2 refers to “his Son”, that is, to the Son of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Most definitely, then, “God” In Hebrews 1:1 is the God and Father of Jesus (Ephesians 1:3; 1 Peter 1:3), He who is Ehjeh, Jehovah, of Exodus 3:14,15, and Jesus is identified as the Son of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
Does Hebrew 1 ever state Jesus as being the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, or that Jesus is a person of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob?
See our studies:
As we have seen, Jesus, the prophet like Moses, came in the name of Jehovah, as prophesied in Deuteronomy 18:15-19; if Jesus is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, then it would mean that Jesus’ name is Jehovah, and thus, that Jesus came in his own name. However, Jesus indicated that he did did not come in his own name. — John 5:43.
The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, by means of his holy spirit, reveals through the scriptures that He Himself (Jehovah) is the only true God, the unipersonal God and Father of the Lord Jesus. Jesus has One who is the Supreme Being over him; Jesus is not his Supreme Being whom he worships, prays to, and who sent him, and whose will he carried out in willful obedience. (Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Matthew 4:4 [Deuteronomy 8:3; Luke 4:4]; Matthew 4:7 [Deuteronomy 6:16]; Matthew 4:10 [Exodus 20:3-5; 34:14; Deuteronomy 6:13,14; 10:20; Luke 4:8]; Matthew 22:29-40; Matthew 26:42; Matthew 27:46; Mark 10:6 [Genesis 1:27; Genesis 2:7,20-23]; Mark 14:36; 15:34;Luke 22:42; John 4:3; 5:30; 6:38; 17:1,3; 20:17; Romans 15:6; 2 Corinthians 1:3; 11:31; Ephesians 1:3,17;Hebrews 1:9; 10:7; 1 Peter 1:3; Revelation 2:7; 3:2,12
For links to studies in general regarding Jesus and his God:
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Sunday, August 28, 2016

John 1:14 - Was God Almighty Made Flesh?

Many often point to John 1:1,14 and claim that God (the Supreme Being) was made flesh. This is usually tied with John 1:1 in translations that make it appear that the Greek word THEOS as applied to the Word is the Supreme Being. Then according the reasoning, God who is the Word in John 1:1 was made, or became, flesh.

Many often say that God became flesh without realizing their own self-contradiction. If God Almighty made God Almighty flesh and took the name Jesus, then Jesus would not have been a man, but his flesh would be God Almighty. The scripture has to be changed to suit the hypostatic union or dual natures of Jesus dogma, since these would have it that Jesus' flesh is not God, but that his flesh is the human being Jesus, nor their alleged Supreme Being Jesus. To satisfy the dogma that Jesus exists on two levels of being at once, the claim is made that the Supreme Being Jesus "took" the flesh so as become the human being Jesus while at the same time remaining the Supreme Being. Actually, no scripture says that God Almighty "took on" flesh, as many like to imagine, assume, add to, and read into what is stated in John 1:14, and some other scriptures. It was the LOGOS of God Almighty (Revelation 19:13) that became flesh, not God Almighty. Before the Logos became flesh, he "was" THEOS, having the divine quality of being a mighty one, similar to the way that the angels are gods, mighty ones. (John 1:1,2,14; 17:1,3,5; Psalm 8:5; Hebrews 2:7) While he was in the days of his flesh (Hebrews 5:7), he no longer had the celestial glory that he had when had been with the only true Supreme Being, else why would have asked for that glory to be returned to him? --John 17:5; 1 Corinthians 15:39-41.


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John 8:58 - Past Tense Translations of Ego Eimi

We are presenting here some of the translations that put “ego eimi” of John 8:58 in some kind of past tense form; please note that our quotes from the translations does not mean that we are representing the translators as agreeing that Jesus is not Jehovah. Although the translations presented do recognize that Jesus was using the Greek present tense to represent a past tense situation, we understand that most of these translators probably assume from this that Jesus was still claiming to have been uncreated, although, such a thought is not actually inherent in the words that Jesus used.

A Bible, A New Translation – James Moffatt – “Truly, truly I tell you,” said Jesus, “I have existed before Abraham was born.”
https://studybible.info/Moffatt/John%208
Moffatt was a trinitarian, but he showed the past tense understanding of this verse.

Twentieth Century – “In truth I tell you,” replied Jesus, “before Abraham existed I was.”
Translated by a company of twenty scholars representing the various sections of the Christian Church

The Bible-An American Translation,  E.  Goodspeed – Jesus said to them, “I tell you, I existed before Abraham was born!”

The New Testament in the Language of the People – Then Jesus said to them, “I most solemnly say to you, I existed before Abraham was born.”
Translated from the Greek by CHARLES B. WILLIAMS

Peshitta, Lamsa Translation – Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Before Abraham was born, I was.

Murdock’s Syriac New Testament Translation – Jesus said to them: Verily, verily I say to you, That before Abraham existed, I was.

The following were given to us by others and we have not been able to verify them; nevertheless, we have no reason to doubt what is presented.


We are not sure which translations above were produced by trinitarian believers, but probably most of them were translated by trinitarians. 

Some other translations (these are gleaned from lists given by others -- we have not actually verified all renderings as presented below. Some may be listed more than once.):

The New Testament Or Rather The New Covenant - S. Sharpe: “I was before Abraham”.

The New Testament in the Language of the Day – W. G. Beck: “I was before Abraham”

The Simple English Bible: “I was alive before Abraham was born”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Simple_English_Bible

The New Testament in the Language of the People – C. B. Williams: “I existed before Abraham was born”

The Unvarnished New Testament – A. Gaus: “I have already been”

The Authentic New Testament – H. J. Schonfield: “I existed”

The Complete Gospels – R. J. Miller (Editor): “I existed”
New American Standard Bible 1963-1970 editions: “I have been” – alternative rendering. 

The United Bible Societies Hebrew New Testament has ani hayiti "I was" not ani hu "I he" (often rendered as "I am he"). 
George R. Noyes, Unitarian - The New Testament (Boston, 1871). "Before Abraham was born I was already what I am" and (in the 1904 edition) "I was"
The Twentieth Century New Testament (TCNT) supervised by J. Rendel Harris and Richard Francis Weymouth (Britain, 1900). "I have existed before Abraham was born"
J. A. Kleist S.J. and J. L. Lilly C.M., Roman Catholic - The New Testament (Milwaukee, 1956). "I am here – and I was before Abraham!"
J. M. P. Smith and E. J. Goodspeed An American Translation (1935) "I existed before Abraham was born!"
The New World Translation (1950, 1984) "before Abraham came to be, I have been."; (2013) "From before Abraham was, I have been"
 William F. Beck, Lutheran - The New Testament in the Language of Today (St. Louis, 1963). "I was in existence before Abraham was ever born"
Kenneth N. Taylor, The Living Bible (Wheaton, 1979). "I was in existence before Abraham was ever born!"
The poet Richard Lattimore, The Four Gospels and the Revelation (New York, 1979). "I existed before Abraham was born"
ed. Stanley L. Morris, The Simple English Bible (1981) "I was alive before Abraham was born"
C. B. Williams, The New Testament in the Language of the People (Nashville, 1986).
New Believers Bible, New Living Translation, (1996): “Jesus answered, “The truth is, I existed before Abraham was even born!”
The Concise Gospel and The Acts, C.J. Christianson, (1973): “I existed even before Abraham was born.”
New Simplified Bible: “Jesus said, I tell you the truth, I existed before Abraham was born.”
The New Testament in the Language of the People, Charles B. Williams, (1937): “Then Jesus said to them, “I most solemnly say to you, I existed before Abraham was born.”
Below have not yet been edited....

Cotton Patch Version, (1970): “To this Jesus replied, I existed before Abraham was born.”

New Testament, Noli, M.F.S., (1961): “Jesus answered them: Well, well, I tell you, I existed before Abraham was born.”

The Original New Testament, H.J. Schonfield, (1956): “I tell you for a positive fact, I existed before Abraham was born.”

The New Testament of Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, George Swann, (1947): “Jesus said to them, verily, verily I say unto you, I existed before Abraham was born.”

The Clarified New Testament, P.G. Parker: “Jesus answered, before Abraham existed, I existed.”

A Translators Handbook to the Gospel of John, Nida: “Before Abraham existed, I existed, or I have existed.”

The Documents of the New Testament, G.W. Wade, (1934): “Jesus said to them, in very truth I tell you, before Abraham came into being, I have existed.”

The Complete Gospels Annotated Scholars Version, Miller, (1992): “I existed before there was an Abraham.”

The Bible, A New Translation, Dr. James Moffatt, (1935): “Truly, truly I tell you,” said Jesus, “I have existed before Abraham was born.”

The New Testament Or Rather the New Covenant, Sharpe, (1881): “I was before Abraham was born.”

The Worldwide English New Testament Bible: “Jesus answered, I tell you the truth. I already was before Abraham was born.”

Good News for the World, (1969): “Jesus answered, I tell you the truth. I already was before Abraham was born.”

International English Version, (2001): “I was alive before Abraham was born.”

International Bible Translators, (1981): “Jesus said to them, I am telling the truth: I was alive before Abraham was born!”

The Simple English Bible, (1978): “Jesus said to them, I tell you the truth: I was alive before Abraham was born.”

The Four Gospels and Revelation, Richmond Lattimore, (1979): “Truly, truly I tell you, I am from before Abraham was born.”

New Covenant, J.W. Hanson, (1884): “Jesus said to them, truly, truly, I say to you, I am before Abraham was born.”

A Literal Translation from the Syriac Peshito Version, James Murdock, D.D., from 5th century manuscripts, (1896): “Jesus said to them: Verily, verily I say to you, That before Abraham existed, I was.”

Twentieth Century New Testament: “In truth I tell you,” replied Jesus, “before Abraham existed I was.”

The New Testament According To The Eastern Text, George Lamsa Translation, (1940): “Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, Before Abraham was born, I was.”

The Curetonian Version of the Four Gospels, Burkitt, from 5th century manuscripts, (1904): “Before Abraham came to be, I was.”

The Old Georgian Version of the Gospel of John, P. Blake, M. Briere, in Patrologia Orientallis, Vol. XXVI, faxcicle 4, Paris, from 5th century manuscripts, (1950): “Before Abraham came to be, I was.”

Ethiopic-Edition: Nouvum Testamentum Æthiopice, T.P. Platt, revised by F. Praetorius, Lepzig, (1899: “Before Abraham was born, I was”

The New Testament, Curt Stage, (1907): “Before Abraham came to be, I was.”

The New Testament, Kleist & Lilly, (1956): “I tell you the plain truth. replied Jesus, I am here - and I was before Abraham.”

New American Standard Bible, 1963 and 1971 editions alternative rendering: “I have been”

The New Testament, George Rh. Noyes, D.D., “Professor Of Hebrew and Other Oriental Languages and Dexter Lecturer on Biblical Literature in Harvard University”, (1869): “Jesus said, truly I tell you, from before Abraham was, I have been.”

“The Four Gospels” According to the Sinaitic Palimpsest, Agnes Smith Lewis, from a 4th-5th century manuscript, (1886): “He said unto them, 'Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I have been.”

The New Testament in Hebrew, Franz Delitzsch, 1937 edition: “Before Abraham was, I have been.”

The Unvarnished New Testament, Andy Gaus: “Truly, truly I tell you, Before Abraham was born, I have already been.”

The New Testament (in German), Friedreich Pfaefflin, (1949): “Jesus: Before there was an Abraham, I was already there.”

The New Testament in Hebrew, Isaac Salkinson and David Ginsberg, 1941 edition: “I have been when there had as yet been no Abraham.”

Translation of New Testament, Wakefield, G., (1795): “Jesus said unto them: Verily verily I say unto you, before Abraham was born, I am He.”

Ledyard, G.H. New Life Testament, (1969): “Jesus said to them, for sure I tell you, before Abraham was born, I was and sum and always will be.”

The Coptic Version of the New Testament in the Southern Dialect, George William Horner, (1911): “Before Abraham became, I, I, am being.”


“Jesus said to them, Truly, truly do I say to you, From before Abraham was, I have been.”-THE NEW TESMAMENT TRANSLATED FROM THE GREEK TEXT OF TESCHENDORF BY GEORGE R. NOYES, D.D., HANCOCK PROFESSOR OF HEBREW AND OTHER ORIENTAL LANGUAGES, AND DEXTER LECTURER ON BIBLICAL LITERATURE, IN HARVARD UNIVERSITY

 Note  regarding what is stated concerning The United Bible Societies Hebrew New Testament: Biblical Hebrew is not the same as modern Hebrew. While "ani hayiti" in modern Hebrew is indeed "I was", "ani hu", evidently taken from the Biblical Hebrew, means "I - he." The verb "am" is not actually there in the Hebrew; it is supplied in English by translators, as in Isaiah 43:10. "Ani Hu" itself is not concerned with time; in English, it could be rendered, "I am he;" "I was he;" "I will be he;" etc. Its contextual usage in Isaiah 43:10 indicates, however, that it should be understood as "I am he."

If any know of more translations, or have more information related to this, please let us know in the comments form below.

Some of the above translations treat the present indicative verb (transliterated as "eimi") in John 8:58 as a historical present (using the present tense in a past context), while some others treat it as what some scholars call the progressive past (or, durative present, extending from the past to present). Some scholars contend that the historical present is only used in narrative form, and claim that Jesus' statement in John 8:58 is not a narrative form. This, however, does not do away with the fact that the present tense verb is still used in a past tense context. We do not know of any other scripture in the New Testament wherein a present tense verb is used in a past tense context wherein modern translators have refused to render the present tense verb into English with some kind of past tense expression. It should be apparent that the "triune God" dogma has influenced most (but not all) trinitarian translators to make an exception to John 8:58.

In general, when a present tense verb is used in a past context, it is expressing a condition existing in the past that continues to the present (or, it expresses what some scholars call the "historical present"). We will present some quotes from some online Biblical Greek lessons concerning this:
3. Extending-from-Past Present (Present of Past Action Still in Progress) 
The present tense may be used to describe an action that, begun in the past, continues in the present. The emphasis is on the present time.
Luke 15:29 I have served you for these many years.
http://www.bcbsr.com/greek/gtense.html
2) {DURATIVE PRESENT
Some grammarians call this the progressive present. An action or a state of being which began in the past is described as continuing until the present. The past and the present are gathered up in a single affirmation. An adverb of time is often used with this kind of present, but a verb alone is sometimes sufficient as in the final example given below. This use of the Greek present is usually translated by the English present perfect. Although impractical to bring out in English translation, the full meaning is that something has been and still is.}
a) [Compare Luke 13:7]: 
"Behold, I have been coming for three years seeking fruit on this fig tree, and I have found none."
 "I have been coming" = "erchomai" = lit., "am coming", present, indicative
"I have found none" = "ouch heuriskO" = lit., "am finding", present, indicative 
Note that context establishes that the action portrayed is not absolutely continuous to the extent that when it has begun, it is unceasing; but it is an action which is nevertheless ongoing in a repetitive manner - He comes one time, ends, and then another and another comes, goes and then it comes again.
http://www.biblestudymanuals.net/new_testament_greek.htm
Then, just to show you why Greek tenses are only secondly concerned with time, we have a thing in Greek called an historical present. We actually have it in English, too. If I were going to tell you about why I had a shoulder operation, I’d say, “Well, it’s a beautiful day, and I am up in the mountains skiing, and the snow is falling, and it is bright and sunny, and I’m skiing through the trees like an idiot…” Could you hear what I did? It happened twenty years ago, but I am using the present. Why do I do that? It makes it vivid, it drives the story home.
Greek does this same thing, such as in this particular passage. You get down to “and he said,” λέγει is present tense. But the whole context is something about the past is being told. So translations almost always translate this kind of present as a past tense.
https://www.biblicaltraining.org/library/greek-verbs/greek-tools-for-bible-study/william-mounce

For more studies related to the Biblical usage of I AM , see our resource page:
Ehjeh and "I am" 

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Saturday, August 27, 2016

John 13:13 - Jesus is Teacher and Lord

You call me, 'Teacher' and 'Lord.' You say so correctly, for so I am. -- John 13:13, World English.

This scripture is often presented as proof that Jesus is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. (Exodus 3:14,15) Obviously, since there is nothing in Jesus' words that would mean that he was claiming to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, what many trinitarians do is imagine beyond what is written so as "see" such an idea in what Jesus stated.

Actually, all that Jesus was claiming is that he is indeed Teacher and Lord. Jesus came to teach us the things which he had heard from his God and Father (John 8:28), whom he declared to be "the only true God." (John 17:1,3) This was part of his commission as the foretold prophet like Moses, of whom Jehovah stated: "I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak to them all that I shall command him." (Deuteronomy 18:15-19) Thus, what Jesus taught was the words of Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. This does not mean that he is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Some misuse the KJV by crossing John 3:13 with Old Testament verses in which the KJV renders the Holy Name as "the LORD" (such as Psalm 118:27 and 1 Kings 18:39), and claim that since Jesus expressed that he is "Lord" in John 13:13, that this means that Jesus is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Of course, this would seem to rely either on the ignorance of the readers regarding God's Holy Name as it has been changed in the King James Version, and/or else rely on the false assumption that in the New Testament, the word transliterated as KURIOS (meaning lord, sir, master, etc.) must always refer to the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Actually, as has been shown elsewhere, KURIOS, when applied to Jesus, does not mean Jehovah (Yahweh) of the Old Testament. Although it is obvious that in the extant New Testament manuscripts in many cases the Holy Name has indeed been changed to forms of KURIOS, this does not mean that KURIOS always means Jehovah.

Jesus, of course, is the only way to his God and Father, Jehovah. (John 14:6) 

Jesus is the one who is foretold that Jehovah has put in charge of Jehovah's sheep, and thus, he is "lord" or "master" of Jehovah's sheep. (Ezekiel 34:23,24; John 10:11,14,29) It is Jehovah who anointed Jesus (Isaiah 61:1,2) and who has made Jesus to be both "Lord' and "Christ." (Acts 2:36)  God has exalted Jesus to the highest position in the universe, next to God Himself. (Acts 2:33,36; 5:31; Philippians 2:9; Ephesians 1:3,17-23; 1 Corinthians 15:27; Hebrews 1:4,6; 1 Peter 3:22) Nothing in any of this means that Jesus is Jehovah, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.

Some point to the usage of "I am" at the end of Jesus' statement, evidently with the thought that Jesus was claiming to be "I am" of Exodus 3:14,15. This would seem to separate Jesus' statement that affirms that he is a teacher and lord so to take it totally out of context in order to make it appear that Jesus was claiming that his name is EHJEH of Exodus 3:14. Taken in context, we see that Jesus, in stating "I am" in John 13:13, was simply affirming that he is teacher and lord, not that he is EHJEH of Exodus 3:14.






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Wednesday, August 24, 2016

1 John 5:7 - The Usage of "HEN" and Trinity

"For there are three that bear record [in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth,] the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one."


One scripture that is often presented to support the trinity is 1 John 5:7,8. We believe the evidence is overwhelming that the part in brackets above were never written by John, but are an interpolation. We have no doubt that John did not write the words as they appear in the King James Version and some other translations in 1 John 5:7, but these words, even as they appear in the KJV, do not say anything at all about three persons in one God, nor three aspects of God, nor three modes of God, etc. One has to add the trinitarian (or modalist) doctrine to the words and then read the doctrine into the words, even as they appear in the KJV.

Thus, there is nothing at all in 1 John 5:7,8, even in the KJV, that offers any proof of the trinity, that is, three separate and distinct sentient/ominscient persons in one ominiscient being, or modalism, that is, the belief that God is one person who has revealed himself in three forms or modes (Father, Son, Spirit), all three modes being the one God, except that one would imagine, assume, and read such dogma into what appears there.

The general presentation of what God has revealed through the holy spirit throughout scriptures is that the only true God sent Jesus, not that Jesus is the only true God who sent Jesus. The holy spirit reveals through the scriptures that Yahweh (Jehovah) is the only true God, the God and Father of the Lord Jesus and that Yahweh (Jehovah) is the God and Father of the Lord Jesus. Jesus has one who is the Supreme Being over him; Jesus is not his Supreme Being whom he worships, prays to, and who sent him, and whose will he carried out in willful obedience. -- Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Matthew 4:4 (Deuteronomy 8:3; Luke 4:4); Matthew 4:7 (Deuteronomy 6:16); Matthew 4:10 (Exodus 20:3-5; 34:14; Deuteronomy 6:13,14; 10:20; Luke 4:8); Matthew 22:29-40; Matthew 26:42; Matthew 27:46; Mark 10:6 (Genesis 1:27; Genesis 2:7,20-23); Mark 14:36; 15:34; Luke 22:42; John 4:3; 5:30; 6:38; 17:1,3; 20:17; Romans 15:6; 2 Corinthians 1:3; 11:31; Ephesians 1:3,17; Hebrews 1:9; 10:7; 1 Peter 1:3; Revelation 2:7; 3:2,12.

As far as 1 John 5:7 is concerned, the word hen -- translated "one" -- is neuter, and thus its application would have to be a neuter "one".

The trinitarian phrases "treis hypostaseis en mia ousia", ("three persons in one substance"), or "mia ousia, treis hypostaseis" ("One essence in three persons"), cannot be what is being referred to, since the Greek word "ousia" is not neuter, but feminine, thus as shown in the phrases, the Greek word "mia" is used, not "hen".

Likewise, "theos" (as alledgedly, three in one God) is masculine and would require the Greek word "heis", as appears in 1 Corinthians 8:6 as "heis theos" (one God).

Believing that God has not left us without a testimony concerning this, we seek to compare spiritual revealment with spiritual revealment. (1 Corinthians 2:10,13) We see a similar testimony in John 17:11,21,22. Here Jesus prays for the his followers to be one with him, one with his Father, and one with each other. He uses the Greek word "hen" in each usage. Jesus certainly did not pray that they be all one being or one God, which would be nonsense, but that their unity may be one in mind, heart and will. Since the oneness for which He prayed for them was not a oneness of being or oneness of nature as the Supreme Being, the oneness between Him and the Father cannot be that of being, because Jesus in John 17:11,22 prays that the oneness for which He prayed on their behalf be patterned after the oneness that exists between the Father and himself: "That they may be one as we are." Hence the oneness between the Father and Jesus is not one of being, nor as one God, but one of mind, heart and will. Moreover Jesus defines this oneness in verse 21 as follows: "that they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me [Yahweh was in Jesus by his holy spirit, (John 14:17,20) and I in thee [Jesus was in the Father (John 14:10,11,20) by accepting and keeping the Father as his head, i.e,, by his being and remaining in the consecrated attitude]."

Other scriptures show that the oneness of Jesus with his God and Father, and oneness of God, Jesus and the followers of Jesus, is a oneness of spirit [disposition]. (1 Corinthian1 s 6:17; Ephesians 4:4; Philippians 1:27) Since the Greek word for spirit [pneuma] is neuter, the Greek neuter "hen" is used of this word.

Regardless, there is nothing, even in the KJV, in 1 John 5:7 about the trinity doctrine, nor the modalist/oneness doctrines.
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1 John 5:7 - One God Who is Three?

"For there are three that bear record [in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth,] the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one." -- 1 John 5:7

(Greek words are given with English transliterations throughout)

This is the only passage in the whole Bible that gives any color to the trinity or "oneness" doctrines. However, the bracketed portion (see above) of this passage is almost universally recognized as an interpolation. It appears to have been first put into the Greek text in the tenth century. It is true that some late Latin, Vulgate MSS., copies a few centuries before, do contain it. This interpolation was first inserted into some Vulgate manuscript and was later translated into the first Greek text having it. Had this text been in the Bible when the trinitarian controversies were going on in the fourth to the eighth centuries, certainly the trinitarians who were hard pressed by their opponents to produce such a text, would have used it as a proof text. But none of them ever appealed to John as the author of this, thus providing a good reason to conclude that it was then not in the Greek manuscripts. It has been suggested that it may have crept into the Latin text by a copyist taking it from the margin, where it was written by somebody as his comment on the text, and this comment was assumed to part of the text, and thus it was inserted it into the Latin text itself, from which, as just said, it became translated into a Greek manuscript in the tenth century. 

Nevertheless, without the added phrase, the verse reads in context: "This is he that came by water and blood, [even] Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is the truth. For there are three who bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in one." -- 1 John 5:6-8, American Standard Version.

These three witnesses spoken of are in agreement of one testimony. The context shows that it is God's testimony concerning His Son. "If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater." (1 John 5:4,9) As the Son is the great expression or revealer of the Father, we should expect this important testimony of the three witnesses to have reference to the revelation of God's love for the world. "God is Love," (1 John 4:16) and He wants us to believe it. Paul thus writes: "Because the love of God is shed abroad [made known] in our hearts by the Holy Spirit, which is given unto us." (Romans 5:5) Here is one of the three witnesses telling us of God's love for us while we were yet sinners. How are we to know that love? What is the Spirit's testimony --the record that God gives concerning His Son?

We thus have the testimony of the spirit, in that Jesus was anointed, or made christ, by means of the holy spirit, the power of which was seen in the works of God that were performed through Jesus, and it is the spirit that witnesses to the believer (especially by means of the Bible writers) concerning Jesus. -- Isaiah 61:1; Matthew 4:1; 12:18,28; Mark 1:12; Luke 4:1,14,18; John 3:34; 14:26; 15:26; Acts 1:2; 10:38; 1 Corinthians 2:10.

The water evidently refers to water baptism, which signifies "washing of water by the Word." -- Ephesians 5:26

The blood, of course, refers to the blood of Christ representing Jesus' human soul (including his body of flesh) which was poured out for our transgressions. -- Isaiah 53:10; Mark 14:24; Luke 22:20; Romans 5:9; Colossians 1:14; Hebrews 9:14; 10:10,12; 1 Peter 1:19; 2:24; 3:18; 1 John 2:2;  4:9,10; 5:11; Revelation 1:5.

Nevertheless, the Textus Receptus has the added words "in heaven the Father, the Word and the holy Spirit, and these three are one. And there are three that bear witness in earth."

If these words were not part of the original text, it is simple and easy to be understood, and fully in accord with all the remainder of the Scriptures. 

On the other hand, let us suppose that John did actually write those words. Does this offer proof of the trinity doctrine? No, it still does not provide a reason to add all kind of trinitarian assumptions to the Bible. The sense of what is stated should be that the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit agreed in bearing one testimony in heaven.  

What does this phrase actually state? Does of speak of the three as being "one God"? It says nothing about the three being one God, but it does say that there are three who are bearing witness in heaven. It is similar to what Jesus said as recorded in John 8:17,18. Who and of what are they bearing witness to in heaven? Perhaps to the angels? Maybe. Concerning what? The context: "Jesus is the Son of God". (1 John 5:5) Do the angels in heaven need this witness borne to them? The context shows that the witness is actually for humans on earth: "Who is he who overcomes the world, but he who believes that Jesus is the Son of God?" By world, John is speaking of the world of mankind into which Jesus came (John 1:10), not the world of the angels, nor even the world of the material universe.

Nevertheless, even if we do assume that the bracketed portion of the verse is genuine, it still would not offer any proof that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are one God. This only says that in some way these three are one.

The Greek word used for "one" here as well as in John 10:30 is hen (Strong's # 1520). This is neuter in Greek, not heis, masculine, or mia, feminine.

The phrase that is used in Greek, however, to describe the trinity is "treis hypostaseis en mia ousia", ("three persons in one substance"), or "mia ousia, treis hypostaseis" ("One essence, three persons"). With this in mind let us see if this really applies, either in John 10:30 or 1 John 5:7,8.

John could not have been referring to the Father, Son and holy spirit as one God, for the masculine word Theos (Greek God) cannot be supplied; for the Greek form for "one" in that case would have to be heis (masculine for one), as found in the phrase "one God" in 1 Corinthians 8:6. Nor can the Greek word for being or substance (ousia) be supplied after it, because ousia is feminine, which would require the feminine of one, mia, as illustrated in the Greek trinitarian phrases given above. We would have to supply a neuter noun, e.g., like pneuma (as meaning disposition)* after hen in this text: "these three are one (hen) disposition." It could not be theos (God) or ousia (Being), which would respectively require the masculine heis and the feminine mia.
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*http://www.biblestudytools.com/lexicons/greek/kjv/pneuma.html

Whatever is meant by their being one, the same meaning would also have to apply to the oneness of Jesus and the Father with the church, for Jesus prayed: "That they may be one as we are." (John 17:11) "That they may all be one; even as you, Father, are in me, and I in you, that they also may be one in us." -- John 17:21.

When Jesus prayed (John 17:11,21,22) that all of the saints may be one (hen, not heis, nor mia) he did not pray that they be all one being or one God, which would be nonsense, but that their unity may be one in mind, heart and will. Since the oneness for which He prayed for them was not a oneness of being or oneness of nature as the Supreme Being, the oneness between Him and the Father cannot be that of being, because Jesus in John 17:11,22 prays that the oneness for which He prayed on their behalf be patterned after the oneness that exists between the Father and himself: "That they may be one as we are." Hence the oneness between the Father and Jesus is not one of being, nor as one God, but one of mind, heart and will. Moreover, Jesus defines this oneness in verse 21 as follows: "that they all may be one, as thou, Father, art in me [Yahweh was in Jesus by his holy spirit, (John 14:17,20) and I in thee [Jesus was in the Father (John 14:10,11,20) by accepting and keeping the Father as his head, i.e,, by his being and remaining in the consecrated attitude.

Hence, 1 John 5:7 does not by the Greek word hen prove that the Father and Son are one being (essence, ousia) any more than 1 Corinthians 3:8 proves by the word hen that Paul and Apollos were one being; but the same word and form of that word, proving Paul and Apollos to one in heart, mind and will, gives presumptive evidence that the same word and form that word in John 10:30 proves the same of the Father and Son. 1 John 5:8 indicates that the word "hen" -- one -- is being used of common agreement, not of "one God", or "one Being/Substance."

1 Corinthians 3:23; 11:3 are passages that also strongly prove Jesus' inferiority to the Father, and the Father's being the only Supreme Being, "that [thus the Father and the Son, by their spirit, disposition, being in them and they by their spirit of consecration, being in them (1 John 5:20; Colossians 3:3; 1 Corinthians 12:12,13] they also may be one in us . . . that they may be one, even as we are one." Thus these verses prove that the same kind of oneness as exists between the saints, also exists between the Father and Son and vice versa. Therefore, since the oneness that exists between the saints is not oneness of being or of the nature of being the Supreme Being, but one of heart, mind, and will, the oneness that exists between the Father and Son is not one of being or of the nature of being the Supreme Being, but one of will, heart, and mind.

Additionally, we might say, if the logic were valid that the oneness of the three in 1 John 5:7 must be that of being, we would have to say that Paul and Appolos were one being (1 Corinthians 3:6-8)! Of course Jesus and his Son are two separate beings. Hen being used of them in 1 Corinthians 3:8 (not mia, which would be necessary to agree with the feminine ousia, being) proves that their oneness was not one of being but of agreement in spirit, disposition. -- Acts 4:32; 1 Corinthians 1:10; Ephesians 4:3-6,13; Philippians 1:27; 2:2; 4:2.

The Father, Son, and holy spirit are one in disposition, one in heart, mind, purpose and will; but not one God. The Bible nowhere states that there are three persons in one God. Nor does it ever say that there is a being called God who is more than one person. In the Bible, one person IS one personal being, and one personal being IS one person always, and never more than one.

Furthermore, if the Father and the Son were but one omniscient being, they would be the same sentient being -- having the same sentiency, and they could not be the two beings bearing required witness, as John 8:17,18 says they were, since the law required at least two different beings to be witnesses sufficient to establish a matter. But since they gave sufficient witness, they must be two beings. Therefore their oneness is not that of being -- for they are two beings. It must be that of mind, heart and will. Accordingly, John 10:30 does not prove the Son's equality with the Father. Rather, it proves the Son's subordination to the Father. John 17:21, which shows the kind of unity that exists between them to be connected with the Son's being in the Father, implies that the Father is the Son's head that the Son is His in the sense that believers are Christ's, in subordination to him. Thus Jesus must be subordinate to the only true Supreme Being (John 17:1,3; 1 Corinthians 3:23; 11:3), even as the headship of Christ makes the Church subordinate to Christ (Colossians 1:18; Ephesians 1:22,23; 4:15; 5:23,24, compared with Colossians 3:19).

It was Satan who, in producing a counterfeit for everything in the Bible, counterfeited the true God as one Being composed of three persons, a dogma that, in effect, contradicts the basis of salvation through Jesus as given in the Bible. Yet, the trinitarian usually ignores the self-contradiction of declaring three sentient beings -- three persons each his own separate and distinct sentiency -- as all one omniscient being. The real reason for rejecting the trinity dogma, however, is that no such concept is even once presented in the Bible. Thus, this unbiblical, unreasonable and unfactual distinction between the words *person* and *being* when referring to a personal being should be avoided, for there is no scriptural reason for reading such into the Bible. It is surely an error invented by Satan to deceive -- a work of darkness, a concept that is NOT found anywhere in the Bible, and yet is also a self-contradiction, which no one can understand or explain, while Bible doctrines are all explainable and understandable. Not that we can understand absolutely everything about God, but what the Bible presents is understandable in relation to what is revealed, and it is understandable that there are things about God that we do not understand.  -- Ronald R. Day, Sr.

See also our links to studies related to 1 John 5:7.


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