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Jesus as ‘I Am’ (John 8:58)

I delivered this message at Spring Creek Bible Church on April 7, 2019, as part of The Names and Titles of Jesus series.

Prefer what I actually said? Read the transcript (lightly edited for readability).

Introduction

I’ve been asked to speak in our series on the names and titles of Jesus on Jesus as “I Am.”

If I were to exposit a single text for my message tonight, it would be John 8:58. But instead of focusing on a one passage, we’ll be surveying each of the texts where Jesus said, “I am,” with a special focus on John’s Gospel.

When we talk about Jesus as “I Am,” what are we referring to? In short, there are a group of texts in the New Testament where Jesus says “I am” without anything following to answer who or what he is.

This is potentially significant, because in the Old Testament the Lord, Yahweh, identified himself to Moses as “I Am” (Ex 3:14). He also repeatedly said “I am” without anything following it in Isaiah like Jesus did in the Gospels.

On the other hand, “I am” was equivalent to “I am he” or “It’s me” or “It is I,” if you prefer to be grammatically correct. If you knock on a locked bedroom door at your house and the person inside asks, “Who is it?” you most likely reply, “It’s me.” In Greek you’d do this with “I Am” or EGO EIMI.

If I were to ask, “Who here is from Bellingham?” You might reply, “I am.” You don’t need to repeat the predicate, since it’s implied by the context.

So when Jesus said “I am,” was he simply acknowledging to be the one people were looking for or talking about, or was he claiming identity with the Lord, Yahweh, the “I Am” of the Old Testament?

That’s the question we’ll explore together tonight.

Outline

I’ve organized my message into four parts:

We’ll

  1. give a brief overview of the relevant New Testament passages,
  2. examine their possible Old Testament backgrounds,
  3. evaluate whether the New Testament passages are pointing to the Old Testament and making the claim that Jesus is Yahweh, and then
  4. draw out a few applications for our lives.

Before we dig in, let’s open in prayer and ask for God help and blessing.

Prayer

Dear Heavenly Father, thank you that we can be here tonight to consider you, our great God, and your son, Jesus, the one who makes the invisible God visible and brings your saving and protecting presence to your people by your Spirit. Please bless our study and consideration of these passages of Scripture. Help our minds to understand them rightly. Help our hearts to believe, embrace, and love the truths—and the One—we meditate on. And equip us to live out lives that reflect that we “know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.” We want to believe, feel, and live in a way that brings you glory. So help us, we pray, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

1. Identifying the New Testament Texts

Let’s begin by briefly looking at the New Testament passages where Jesus says, “I am.”

We’ll begin with John’s Gospel, where, perhaps unsurprisingly, all but four of the 20 instances occur.

John’s Gospel

There are two groups of “I am” statements in John.

The 7 Metaphorical “I Am” Statements

John’s Gospel is well known for these seven metaphorical “I am” statements.

Jesus is

  1. the Bread of Life (6:35, 41, 48, 51),
  2. the Light of the World (8:12),
  3. the Door of the Sheep (10:7, 9),
  4. the Good Shepherd (10:11, 14),
  5. the Resurrection and Life (11:25),
  6. the Way, the Truth, and the Life (14:6), and
  7. the True Vine (15:1, 5).

A metaphor is “a figure of speech in which a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable” or “a thing regarded as representative or symbolic of something else, especially something abstract.”

Jesus wasn’t literally bread. But there was something about bread that made it a good picture or illustration of something true about Jesus.

These seven metaphors take on a few different expressions in some of the passages.

  1. The Bread of Life (Jn 6:35, 41, 48, 51)
    1. The bread of life (6:35, 48)
    2. The bread that came down from heaven (6:41)
    3. The living bread that came down from heaven (6:51)
  2. The Light of the World (8:12)
  3. The Door of the Sheep (10:7, 9)
    1. The door of the sheep
    2. The door
  4. The Good Shepherd (10:11, 14)
  5. The Resurrection and Life (11:25)
  6. The Way, the Truth, and the Life (14:6)
  7. The True Vine (15:1, 5)
    1. The True Vine (15:1)
    2. The Vine (15:5)

These metaphorical statements teach us about Jesus’ role as our savior.

These seven sayings are unique to John’s Gospel. They don’t occur in any of the other Gospels.

Each one of these could be its own message and rich study. Our brother Scott MacDonald blessed us with Jesus as the Good Shepherd last week. But we’ll not be looking at these metaphorical “I am” statements tonight.

Instead, we’ll look at the non-metaphorical absolute “I am” statements.

The 7 Absolute “I Am” Statements

What are less known, and more debatable, are John’s seven absolute “I am” statements of Jesus.

Let’s briefly look at the relevant statement in each. We’ll come back later and examine them in more detail.

  1. The woman at the well (Jn 4:26): The woman at the well said to him, “I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us.” Jesus *said to her, “I who speak to you am He [EGO EIMI].”
  1. Jesus walking on the water (6:20 // Mt 14:27; Mk 6:50): Jesus disciples were caught in a boat during a nasty storm, and Jesus walked out to them on the water and said, “It is I [EGO EIMI]; do not be afraid.”
  1. Jesus and the Jews (8:24): When Jesus was talking to the Jews, he said, “Unless you believe that I am He [EGO EIMI], you will die in your sins.”
  1. Jesus and the Jews (8:28): Later in that conversation, he said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He [EGO EIMI].”
  1. Jesus and the Jews (8:58): Jesus famously said to the Jews, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am [EGO EIMI].”
  1. Jesus predicts his betrayal (13:19): After Jesus washed his disciples’ feet, he told them of his imminent betrayal: “I am telling you before it comes to pass, so that when it does occur, you may believe that I am He [EGO EIMI].”
  1. Jesus’ arrest (18:5, 6, 8): When he was in the garden with his disciples before his arrest, he said to those looking for him, “I am He [EGO EIMI].”

These statements teach us more about Jesus’ identity, about who he is more than what he is.

Richard Bauckham makes a case for seeing seven absolute statements alongside the seven metaphorical statements, and he does so in part because of the significance of seven in Jewish literature and particularly in John’s writings.

In ancient Jewish literature, the number seven is never insignificant. It is the number of completeness. So the existence of these seven sayings scattered throughout the Gospel indicates the completeness of the salvation Jesus brings and gives.1

The Synoptic Gospels

Most of these absolute “I am” statements are unique to John’s Gospel, but one, Jesus walking on the water, has a parallel in Matthew and Mark.

Mark and Luke include two other absolute “I am” statements of Jesus from Jesus’ final hours before his crucifixion.

  1. Jesus walking on the water (Mt 14:27; Mk 6:50 // Jn 6:20)
  1. Jesus before his accusers (Mk 14:62): When the high priest asked Jesus if he was “the Christ, the Son of the Blessed One,” Jesus answered, “I am [EGO EIMI]; and you shall see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING WITH THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN.”
  1. Jesus before the Sanhedrin (Lk 22:70): The council of elders of the chief priests and scribes asked him if he was the Christ. He responded, “Yes, I am [lit. You say that I am; EGO EIMI].”

We’ll focus tonight on the seven statements recorded by John, but I’d encourage you to consider these other statements in your own study.

If Jesus intended these “I am” statements as pointers to the Old Testament, which part did he have in mind?

It’s to that question we’ll now turn.

2. Establishing the Old Testament Background

As we turn to consider the possible Old Testament backgrounds for these “I am” statements, there are two main candidates: Exodus 3:14 and Isaiah 40–55.

Exodus: The Divine Name “I Am”

In Exodus 3:14 we find one of the most important passages in the entire Bible.

The Lord, Yahweh, appeared to Moses and told him to go lead his people Israel from Egypt.

Let’s read verses 10–16.

Exodus 3:10–16: “Therefore, come now, and I will send you to Pharaoh, so that you may bring My people, the sons of Israel, out of Egypt.” 11 But Moses said to God, “Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should bring the sons of Israel out of Egypt?” 12 And He said, “Certainly I will be [EHYEH] with you, and this shall be the sign to you that it is I who have sent you: when you have brought the people out of Egypt, you shall worship God at this mountain.” 13 Then Moses said to God, “Behold, I am going to the sons of Israel, and I will say to them, ‘The God of your fathers has sent me to you.’ Now they may say to me, ‘What is His name?’ What shall I say to them?” 14 God said to Moses, . . .

. . . “I AM [EHYEH] WHO I AM [EHYEH]”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM [EHYEH] has sent me to you.’ ” 15 God, furthermore, said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘The LORD [YAHWEH], 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-name to all generations. 16 Go and gather the elders of Israel together and say to them, ‘The LORD [YAHWEH], the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, has appeared to me, saying, I am indeed concerned about you and what has been done to you in Egypt.

As God instructs Moses, he reveals himself as “I Am Who I Am [EHYEH ASHER EHYEH],” and “I am [EHYEH], and Yahweh.”

Hebrew verb tenses are different from English verb tenses. EHYEH can be past, present, or future. Most translations render it as “I am,” but just two verses earlier in v. 12 the exact same word is used as a verb and is translated “I will,” when God promises him, “I will be [EHYEH] with you.”

Elsewhere it’s translated with the past tense, “I have been,” for example, where God says to Joshua, “Just as I have been [EHYEH] with Moses, I will be [EHYEH] with you.” It’s the exact same Hebrew word in both instances, the same word we see here for God’s name.

The Hebrew word ASHER can be who, that, which, what, where, and because.

So translators propose a variety of ways to translate this:

  • “I AM” is who I am (NEB)
  • I AM I THAT AM (RAEV)
  • I AM BECAUSE I AM
  • I am who, that, or what I am
  • I will be who, that, or what I will be
  • I [always] have been who I [always] will be

The Septuagint renders is as “I am the being one,” “I am the one who is,” or “I am the one who exists.” Other LLX translations have “I am the I AM” or “I am the Being.”

None of these is wrong, and none captures the full meaning of God’s character. We probably need all of these to get a good sense of what God intended to communicate to Moses and his people.

That’s why the Amplified Bible says, “I AM WHO I AM and WHAT I AM, and I WILL BE WHAT I WILL BE.”

There is intentional mystery here. God’s character cannot be capture by human words or thoughts. Our minds cannot conceive and our tongues cannot describe the greatness of this God.

The Meaning of God’s Name

So what does God mean when he calls himself “I Am”?

This exact same Hebrew word occurs 30 other times2 in the Old Testament when referring to God:

  • Genesis 26:3: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] with you and bless you . . .”
  • Genesis 31:3: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] with you.”
  • Exodus 3:12: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] with you.”
  • Exodus 3:14: “. . . I AM [EHYEH] WHO I AM [EHYEH]” . . . ‘I AM [EHYEH] has sent me to you.”
  • Exodus 4:12: “. . . I, even I, will be [EHYEH] with your mouth, and teach you what you are to say.”
  • Exodus 4:15: “. . . I, even I, will be [EHYEH] with your mouth and his mouth, and I will teach you what you are to do.”
  • Deuteronomy 31:23: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] with you.”
  • Joshua 1:5: “. . . Just as I have been [EHYEH] with Moses, I will be [EHYEH] with you.”
  • Joshua 3:7: “. . . just as I have been [EHYEH] with Moses, I will be [EHYEH] with you.”
  • Judges 6:16: “Surely I will be [EHYEH] with you.”
  • 2 Samuel 7:6: “. . . I have been [EHYEH] moving about in a tent.”
  • 2 Samuel 7:9: “I have been [EHYEH] with you wherever you have gone . . . .”
  • 2 Samuel 7:14: “I will be [EHYEH] a father to him and he will be a son to Me . . . .”
  • 1 Chronicles 17:5: “I have gone [EHYEH] from tent to tent . . . .”
  • 1 Chronicles 17:8: “I have been [EHYEH] with you wherever you have gone . . . .”
  • 1 Chronicles 17:13: “I will be [EHYEH] his father and he shall be My son . . . .”
  • 1 Chronicles 28:6: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] a father to him.”
  • Psalm 50:21: “. . . You thought that I was [EHYEH] just like you . . . .”
  • Jeremiah 11:4: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] your God.”
  • Jeremiah 24:7: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] their God.”
  • Jeremiah 30:22: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] your God.”
  • Jeremiah 31:1: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] the God of all the families of Israel . . . .”
  • Jeremiah 32:38: “. . . I will be [EHYEH] their God.”
  • Ezekiel 11:20: “. . . they will be My people, and I shall be [EHYEH] their God.”
  • Ezekiel 34:24: “. . . they will be My people, and I shall be [EHYEH] their God . . . .”
  • Ezekiel 36:28: “. . . you will be My people, and I will be [EHYEH] your God . . . .”
  • Ezekiel 37:23: “I will deliver them from all their dwelling places in which they have sinned, and will cleanse them. And they will be My people, and I will be [EHYEH] their God.”
  • Hosea 1:9: “. . . you are not My people and I am [EHYEH] not your God.”
  • Hosea 11:4: “. . . I became [EHYEH] to them as one who lifts the yoke from their jaws . . . .”
  • Hosea 14:5: “I will be [EHYEH] like the dew to Israel . . . .”
  • Zechariah 2:5: “. . . I . . . will be [EHYEH] a wall of fire around her, and I will be [EHYEH] the glory in her midst.”
  • Zechariah 8:8: “. . . I will bring them back and they will live in the midst of Jerusalem; and they shall be My people, and I will be [EHYEH] their God in truth and righteousness.”

When you review these passages, a few patterns emerge:

  • It almost always refers to God in relationship to his covenant people.
  • It refers to God as the God or Father of his people.
  • It refers to God’s presence with his people.
  • It refers to God’s protection of his people.
  • It refers to God’s redemption and restoration of his people.
  • It refers to God’s covenant faithfulness and unchanging character to his people.
  • It refers to God’s uniqueness and transcendence as distinct from his people.

These passages reveal something of the character of Yahweh, the “I Am.”

That’s why theologians have talk about the names Yahweh and “I Am” as emphasizing that God is

  • Eternal
  • Self-existent
  • Present
  • Unchanging
  • Faithful

You see these attributes of God all throughout the contexts of these passages.

YAHWEH VS. EHYEH

What’s the difference between Yahweh and EHYEH? They’re used almost interchangeably in this passage, but then Yahweh occurs almost 7,000 times through the Old Testament, while EHYEH is never again used as a name for God.

“I am” (EHYEH) is meant to provide explanatory power to what Yahweh means.

Most scholars agree that YAHWEH and EHYEH are from the same Hebrew verb HYH, “to be.” EHYEH is the first person singular “I am.” YAHWEH is most likely derived from the third person singular “he is.” So one possibility is that EHYEH / “I Am” is God’s name from his perspective, while YAHWEH is God’s name from our perspective.

In other words, EHYEH is to “I am” what YAHWEH is to “he is.”

As Waltke says,

In the same verse, God changes his abbreviated name from the first person ʾhyh to the third person yhwh . . . because the first person is appropriate only in God’s mouth and the third person is appropriate in Israel’s mouth when they invoke/mention God’s name.3

Regardless of how you understand it, it’s clear that Yahweh and I Am are God’s name and very closely related. It’s appropriate to consider them essentially synonyms, which “I Am” shedding light on the meaning of the name Yahweh and the character of God.

Isaiah: “I Am He”

God is called “I Am” or EHYEH only in Exodus 3:14. It’s used as a verb to convey what Yahweh has been, is, or will be for his people 30 times throughout the Old Testament.

But Yahweh as “I Am” in Exodus 3:14 develops into Yahweh as “I am he.”

Deuteronomy

We see this first in Deuteronomy 32:39, which is the linchpin between Exodus and Isaiah:

Deuteronomy 32:39: See now that I, I am He [אֲנִ֤י אֲנִי֙ ה֔וּא; ἐγώ εἰμι], And there is no god besides Me; It is I who put to death and give life. I have wounded and it is I who heal, And there is no one who can deliver from My hand.

The Hebrew here is “I, I he” [ANI ANI HOO]. This Greek here is the same Greek we find in Jesus’ “I am” statements: EGO EIMI.

Here Yahweh is making a strong affirmation of his exclusivity as the only God.

Isaiah

It’s in Isaiah that we find most of these absolute “I am” statements.

We won’t look at all of them, but let me read just a few of the relevant portions of some of these.

  1. 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 [אֲנִי־הֽוּא; ἐγώ εἰμι].’”
  2. Isaiah 43:10–13: “You are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And My servant whom I have chosen, So that you may know and believe Me And understand that I am He [אֲנִ֣י ה֔וּא; ἐγώ εἰμι]. Before Me there was no God formed, And there will be none after Me. 11 “I, even I, am the Lord, And there is no savior besides Me. 12 “It is I who have declared and saved and proclaimed, And there was no strange god among you; So you are My witnesses,” declares the Lord, “And I am God. 13 “Even from eternity I am He, And there is none who can deliver out of My hand; I act and who can reverse it?”
  3. Isaiah 43:25: “I, even I, am the one [אָנֹכִ֨י אָנֹכִ֥י ה֛וּא; ἐγώ εἰμι ἐγώ εἰμι] who wipes out your transgressions for My own sake, And I will not remember your sins.
  4. Isaiah 45:18–19: For thus says the Lord, who created the heavens (He is the God who formed the earth and made it, He established it and did not create it a waste place, but formed it to be inhabited), “I am the Lord [אֲנִ֥י יְהוָ֖ה; Ἐγώ εἰμι], and there is none else. 19 “I have not spoken in secret, In some dark land; I did not say to the offspring of Jacob, ‘Seek Me in a waste place’; I, the Lord [אֲנִ֤י יְהוָה֙; ἐγώ εἰμι ἐγώ εἰμι Κύριος], speak righteousness, Declaring things that are upright.
  5. Isaiah 46:4: Even to your old age I will be the same [אֲנִ֣י ה֔וּא; ἐγώ εἰμι], And even to your graying years I [אֲנִ֣י; ἐγώ εἰμι, ἐγὼ] will bear you! I have done it, and I will carry you; And I will bear you and I will deliver you.
  6. Isaiah 48:12: “Listen to Me, O Jacob, even Israel whom I called; I am He [אֲנִי־הוּא֙], I am [אֲנִ֣י; ἐγώ εἰμι] the first, I am [אֲנִ֥י; ἐγώ εἰμι] also the last.
  7. Isaiah 51:12: “I, even I, am He [אָנֹכִ֧י אָנֹכִ֛י ה֖וּא; ἐγώ εἰμι ἐγώ εἰμι] who comforts you. Who are you that you are afraid of man who dies And of the son of man who is made like grass,
  8. Isaiah 52:6: Therefore My people shall know My name; therefore in that day I am the one [אֲנִי־ה֥וּא; ἐγώ εἰμι αὐτὸς] who is speaking, ‘Here I am.’”

These texts are strong affirmations of monotheism, of Yahweh’s exclusivity, that he alone is God and there is no one like him.4 And the Greek used in these texts is the same as the Greek we find in Jesus’ absolute “I am” statements.

Ezekiel

Ezekiel is full of similar statements, but he doesn’t use the absolute “I am.” Instead, he used “I am Yahweh.” We don’t have time tonight, but it would be fruitful to look at all of these occurrences in your own study.5

  1. The “I am he” of Isaiah becomes “I am Yahweh” in Ezekiel.
  2. It connects the “I am” strand of Isaiah with God’s covenant name Yahweh.
  3. It occurs 199 times in the Hebrew Bible.
  4. It occurs 86 times in Ezekiel.

Exodus or Isaiah as the Background

Some have argued that Exodus 3:14 isn’t the background for Jesus’ “I Am” statements, because the Greek translation of the Hebrew “I Am” (EHYEH) isn’t the same as the Greek Jesus uses. In Greek “I Am Who I Am” is translated “I Am the Being One” [EGO EIMI HO ON] or “I Am the One Who Is [EGO EIMI HO ON].” And “I Am” is translated with the Greek Participle as “The Being One [HO ON]” or “The One Who Is [HO ON].” But Jesus says EGO EIMI.

Richard Bauckham notes,

A difficulty with understanding this as the background to the absolute “I am” sayings in John’s Gospel is that neither the Septuagint nor any other known Greek translation of Exod 3:14 translates “I am” as egō eimi, which is the Greek phrase in John’s Gospel. The Septuagint has egō eimi ho ōn (“I am the one who is”) and ho ōn apestalkē me (“the one who has sent me”).6

Be he goes on to say,

This may not be an insuperable difficulty. Like most New Testament writers, the Fourth Evangelist not only uses the Septuagint when referring to the Old Testament text; he also knows the Hebrew text. And when the point he is making requires it, he may allude directly to the latter. It is possible, therefore, that the absolute “I am” sayings of John’s Gospel are based directly on the Hebrew of Exod 3:14.7

Bauckham then goes on to argue that Isaiah is probably more likely the direct background.

There is, however, another explanation of these “I am” sayings, which, at least with respect to their primary meaning, I believe is preferable—because it explains much more about this whole series of seven sayings. The Septuagint uses egō eimi in Deut 32:39 and on several occasions in Isaiah 40–55 (41:4; 43:10; 46:4, the last with the phrase repeated) to translate Hebrew ’ănî hû’, which is usually rendered in English as “I am he.” In Isa 43:25 and 51:12, where the Hebrew has the more emphatic form ’ānokî ’ānokî hû’, the Septuagint has the double expression egō eimi egō eimi.8

Bauckham is right to point to Isaiah as an important backdrop to Jesus’ absolute “I am” statements, as we saw, but I don’t think we have to choose between the two.

  1. While the Greek used by Isaiah matches the Greek used by John, Jesus and John may not have been directly quoting the Septuagint, the Greek Old Testament. The Septuagint is often a loose translation of the Hebrew. EGO EIMI is actually a better translation of the Hebrew, and Jews who knew the Hebrew would have been able to make the association to the divine name in Exodus 3:14 even though the Septuagint translation is slightly different.
  2. Isaiah’s use of “I Am” [EGO EIMI] is almost certainly rooted in Exodus 3:14.

Beale agrees,

Jn 8:58 alludes in some degree to the ἐγὼ εἰμί part of the name in Exodus (ἐγὼ εἰμί ὁ ὢν), though the primary source drawn from is Isa. 43:10, 13 which has paraphrastically developed Exod. 3:14.9

I’d encourage you to see both Exodus and Isaiah behind Jesus’ “I am” sayings where appropriate, which is the question to which we now turn.

3. Analyzing the New Testament Statements

Let’s turn now to look at the seven “I Am” statements in John’s Gospel in their larger contexts and ask whether these statements are functioning in the normal way as “It’s me,” “It is I,” “I am he,” “I’m the one you’re referring to,” or whether Jesus is making a claim to being the “I am” of Exodus 3:14 and the “I am he” of Isaiah 40–55.

1. John 4:26 (The Woman at the Well)

John 4:15–26: The woman said to Him, “Sir, give me this water, so I will not be thirsty nor come all the way here to draw.” 16 He said to her, “Go, call your husband and come here.” 17 The woman answered and said, “I have no husband.” Jesus said to her, “You have correctly said, ‘I have no husband’; 18 for you have had five husbands, and the one whom you now have is not your husband; this you have said truly.” 19 The woman said to Him, “Sir, I perceive that You are a prophet. 20 Our fathers worshiped in this mountain, and you people say that in Jerusalem is the place where men ought to worship.” 21 Jesus said to her, “Woman, believe Me, an hour is coming when neither in this mountain nor in Jerusalem . . .

. . . will you worship the Father. 22 You worship what you do not know; we worship what we know, for salvation is from the Jews. 23 But an hour is coming, and now is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and truth; for such people the Father seeks to be His worshipers. 24 God is spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth.” 25 The woman said to Him, “I know that Messiah is coming (He who is called Christ); when that One comes, He will declare all things to us.” 26 Jesus said to her, “I [EGO EIMI] who speak to you am He.”

The Greek is difficult to translate here. More literally, it is “I am—I the one who is speaking to you” or “I the one who is speaking to you—I am.”

So is Jesus claiming to be Yahweh here? The direct referent is “Messiah” and “He who is called Christ” in v. 25. This is perfectly natural Greek if Jesus were indeed just testifying to being the Messiah. But is he doing more than that?

Even if he intends only to affirm that he is the Messiah, the Old Testament provides multiple indications that Messiah is divine and himself Yahweh.

  1. Micah 5:2
  2. Isaiah 9:6
  3. Jeremiah 23:5–6

There may be an allusion to the Septuagint of Isaiah 52:6, which says,

Because of this, my people will know my name in that day, that I myself am the one who speaks [ἐγώ εἰμι αὐτὸς ὁ λαλῶν].

But let’s keep moving and come back to this question.

2. John 6:20 (Jesus Walking on the Water)

John 6:16–21: Now when evening came, His disciples went down to the sea, 17 and after getting into a boat, they started to cross the sea to Capernaum. It had already become dark, and Jesus had not yet come to them. 18 The sea began to be stirred up because a strong wind was blowing. 19 Then, when they had rowed about three or four miles, they saw Jesus walking on the sea and drawing near to the boat; and they were frightened. 20 But He said to them, “It is I [EGO EIMI]; do not be afraid.” 21 So they were willing to receive Him into the boat, and immediately the boat was at the land to which they were going.

See also Mt 14:27; Mk 6:50.

Here there is nothing for “I am” to refer back to. Instead, this could just be the “I am” of identification: “It’s me.” It’s at least that, but is it more?

Are the two miracles here pointers to a deeper meaning? Jesus walks on the water, and he teleports himself, the boat, and the disciples instantly to the shore. If Jesus did intend a deeper meaning, these two miracles would certainly be a good way to do it.

3–4. John 8:24 (Jesus and the Jews)

John 8:12–30: Then Jesus again spoke to them, saying, “I am the Light of the world; he who follows Me will not walk in the darkness, but will have the Light of life.” 13 So the Pharisees said to Him, “You are testifying about Yourself; Your testimony is not true.” 14 Jesus answered and said to them, “Even if I testify about Myself, My testimony is true, for I know where I came from and where I am going; but you do not know where I come from or where I am going. 15 You judge according to the flesh; I am not judging anyone. 16 But even if I do judge, My judgment is true; for I am not alone in it, but I and the Father who sent Me. 17 Even in your law it has been written that the testimony of two men is true. 18 I am He who testifies about Myself, and the Father who sent Me testifies about Me.” . . .

. . . 19 So they were saying to Him, “Where is Your Father?” Jesus answered, “You know neither Me nor My Father; if you knew Me, you would know My Father also.” 20 These words He spoke in the treasury, as He taught in the temple; and no one seized Him, because His hour had not yet come. 21 Then He said again to them, “I go away, and you will seek Me, and will die in your sin; where I am going, you cannot come.” 22 So the Jews were saying, “Surely He will not kill Himself, will He, since He says, ‘Where I am going, you cannot come’?” 23 And He was saying to them, “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. 24 Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; . . .

. . . for unless you believe that I am He [EGO EMI], you will die in your sins.” 25 So they were saying to Him, “Who are You?”Jesus said to them, “What have I been saying to you from the beginning? 26 I have many things to speak and to judge concerning you, but He who sent Me is true; and the things which I heard from Him, these I speak to the world.” 27 They did not realize that He had been speaking to them about the Father. 28 So Jesus said, “When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He [EGO EMI], and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me. 29 And He who sent Me is with Me; He has not left Me alone, for I always do the things that are pleasing to Him.” 30 As He spoke these things, many came to believe in Him.

There are several things Jesus’ “I am” could be pointing back to:

  1. I am the Light of the world in v. 12.
  2. I am He who testifies about Myself in v. 18.
  3. I am from above in and I am not of this world in v. 23.

It’s possible that Jesus has one or multiple of these in view, but these are no small claims. Believing that Jesus is the light of the world, the self-attesting one, and from above and not from this world is not a far cry from believing that he is the great I Am.

5. John 8:58 (Jesus and the Jews)

John 8:48–59: The Jews answered and said to Him, “Do we not say rightly that You are a Samaritan and have a demon?” 49 Jesus answered, “I do not have a demon; but I honor My Father, and you dishonor Me. 50 But I do not seek My glory; there is One who seeks and judges. 51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if anyone keeps My word he will never see death.” 52 The Jews said to Him, “Now we know that You have a demon. Abraham died, and the prophets also; and You say, ‘If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.’ 53 Surely You are not greater than our father Abraham, who died? The prophets died too; whom do You make Yourself out to be?” 54 Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory . . .

. . . is nothing; it is My Father who glorifies Me, of whom you say, ‘He is our God’; 55 and you have not come to know Him, but I know Him; and if I say that I do not know Him, I will be a liar like you, but I do know Him and keep His word. 56 Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” 57 So the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” 58 Jesus said to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am [EGO EIMI].” 59 Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him, but Jesus hid Himself and went out of the temple.

While most of the other “I am” statements can be read with a shallower meaning, everyone agrees that this one cannot. There’s nothing to point back to. The self-identifying “It’s me” is nonsensical.

This isn’t just a claim to having existed before Abraham or being eternal. There are other more natural ways to say that. This is awkward Greek in all cases, unless Jesus is here claiming to be the Yahweh, the “I Am” of Exodus 3:14.

Bauckham says,

It is clear that here “I am” indicates not only Jesus’ claim to have preexisted Abraham, but also some kind of claim to divine identity—which is taken by his hearers to be blasphemous.10

Jesus didn’t just predate Abraham, he was Yahweh, the God of Abraham.

6. John 13:19 (Jesus Predicts His Betrayal)

John 13:12–21: So when He had washed their feet, and taken His garments and reclined at the table again, He said to them, “Do you know what I have done to you? 13 You call Me Teacher and Lord; and you are right, for so I am. 14 If I then, the Lord and the Teacher, washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I gave you an example that you also should do as I did to you. 16 Truly, truly, I say to you, a slave is not greater than his master, nor is one who is sent greater than the one who sent him. 17 If you know these things, you are blessed if you do them. 18 I do not speak of all of you. I know the ones I have chosen; but it is that the Scripture may . . .

. . . be fulfilled, ‘HE WHO EATS MY BREAD HAS LIFTED UP HIS HEEL AGAINST ME.’ 19 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 [EGO EIMI]. 20 Truly, truly, I say to you, he who receives whomever I send receives Me; and he who receives Me receives Him who sent Me.” 21 When Jesus had said this, He became troubled in spirit, and testified and said, “Truly, truly, I say to you, that one of you will betray Me.”

It’s possible here that “I am” in v. 19 points back to “Teacher and Lord in v. 13 and “the Lord and the Teacher” in v. 14.

But this seems unlikely, since Jesus acknowledges that they already call him and presumably believe that he is Teacher and Lord.

It would seem that Jesus has to be referring to something more, but there’s nothing else implied from the context. Most interpreters consider this the second strongest absolute “I am” statement that has the Old Testament “I am” statements of Yahweh in view.

The NIV, GNT, NEB, REB, and TEV translators were so confident they translate EGO EIMI here as “I am who I am,” while the ISV, NAB, and other translate it with the all caps I AM.

7. John 18:5, 6, 8 (Jesus’ Arrest)

John 18:1–11: When Jesus had spoken these words, He went forth with His disciples over the ravine of the Kidron, where there was a garden, in which He entered with His disciples. 2 Now Judas also, who was betraying Him, knew the place, for Jesus had often met there with His disciples. 3 Judas then, having received the Roman cohort and officers from the chief priests and the Pharisees, came there with lanterns and torches and weapons. 4 So Jesus, knowing all the things that were coming upon Him, went forth and said to them, “Whom do you seek?” 5 They answered Him, “Jesus the Nazarene.” He said to them, “I am He [EGO EIMI].” And Judas also, who was . . .

. . . betraying Him, was standing with them. 6 So when He said to them, “I am He [EGO EIMI],” they drew back and fell to the ground. 7 Therefore He again asked them, “Whom do you seek?” And they said, “Jesus the Nazarene.” 8 Jesus answered, “I told you that I am He [EGO EIMI]; so if you seek Me, let these go their way,” 9 to fulfill the word which He spoke, “Of those whom You have given Me I lost not one.” 10 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. 11 So Jesus said to Peter, “Put the sword into the sheath; the cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?”

The “I am” statement of Jesus in this passage transparently points back to “Jesus the Nazarene” in v. 5. But did it communicate more than that?

Bauckham comments on this passage,

[W]e may be suspicious as to whether this ordinary meaning is sufficient to explain the phrase, since the reaction of the soldiers was to fall to the ground (v. 6) and since “I am” occurs three times, suggesting that this may be an emphatic climax of the series of such sayings.11

There is no way to explain the soldiers’ falling to the ground when Jesus said EGO EIMI unless Jesus momentarily unveiled some of his divine power as Yahweh.

In my view, this is a clear example of a double meaning. Jesus was both acknowledging to be “Jesus the Nazarene” and Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel.

How Many Point to the Old Testament?

So how many divine “I am” statements should we see here?

Beale sees one clear instance:

. . . among the . . . ‘I am’ statements by Jesus in the Gospel of John, only Jn 8:58 clearly can have no predicate. All the others . . . have an implied predicate (‘I am he’ or ‘it is I’) . . . .12

Carson sees two clear instances:

Although many of Jesus’ “I am” utterances recorded by John are supplied with explicit predicates (“I am the true vine,” “I am the good shepherd,” “I am the bread of life,” “I am the resurrection and the life”), two are undeniably absolute in both form and content (8:58; 13:19) and constitute an explicit self-identification with Yahweh, who had already revealed himself to men in similar terms (see esp. Isa. 43:10–11). Jesus’ opponents recognize this claim to unity with Yahweh (John 8:58–59); in 13:19–20, Jesus himself proceeds to make it explicit.13

Bauckham sees four clear instances:

While in three of the seven absolute “I am” cases, therefore, an ordinary meaning is possible and may even be superficially the obvious meaning, in the other four cases no such ordinary meaning is available.14

However, Carson later says,

These two occurrences of the absolute “I am” suggest that in several other passages in John, where “I am” is formally absolute but a predicate might well be supplied from the context (e.g., 4:26; 6:20; 8:24, 28; 18:5, 6, 8), an intentional double meaning may be involved.15

Bauckham agrees, but is even more confident:

Since in these cases, as well as in 13:19, “I am” cannot be given an ordinary meaning, it is best to take all seven occurrences as a set—understanding those cases where an ordinary meaning is possible as instances of double entendre. The Fourth Evangelist is fond of double meanings. In many such cases, Jesus’ hearers take his words in a superficially obvious sense, and so miss his real meaning. They fail to catch the symbolic or otherwise more profound significance of his words.16

I agree with Bauckham and am inclined to see a deeper meaning in all seven cases for the following reasons:

  1. The number seven is significant in John’s Gospel, so it wouldn’t be surprising to see these as a series of seven, paralleling the seven metaphorical “I Am” statements.
  2. There is at least one clear instance of a double meaning (Jn 18:5, 6, 8), suggesting that others might also have two levels of meaning.
  3. They progressively reveal more of Jesus’ divine identity, suggesting that it was intentional for the deeper meaning to be less obvious in the early “I am” statements.
  4. John is known for his use of double entendre or double meaning, so this would be consistent with his writing style (Jn 1:5; 3:3, 7–8, 14; 4:10; 11:50–51; 19:19; 19:30).
  5. Jesus regularly communicated on two levels, hiding deeper truth from some and revealing it to others (Mt 11:14–15; 25–30; 13:10–17; 33–35; Lk 10:21–22; Jn 3:3, 7; cf. 1 Cor. 1:26ff).

As Jesus says elsewhere, “He who has ears to hear, let him hear” (Mt 13:9, 43; Mk 4:9, 23; Lk 8:8; 14:35; Re 2:7, 11, 17, 29; 3:6, 13, 22; 13:9).

Some might object that we should only see a claim to identity with Yahweh where his listeners react with worship or outrage, but I don’t find that line of reasoning compelling. Whether his listeners recognized his statement as a claim to being Yahweh is not proof whether such a claim was being made or not, since often Jesus kept even his own disciples from seeing and understanding what he was saying (Lk 24:16, 31; Jn 20:14; 21:4).

4. Applying Jesus as “I Am”

There is good reason to believe that Jesus was in these statements identifying himself with Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel—both indirectly as the divine Messiah and directly as Yahweh, the “I Am,” himself.

Even if you might quibble over whether the deeper meaning is present in some of these texts, you can’t ignore the clear identification of Jesus with Yahweh in at least some of them.

But we must go beyond theological conviction. What must embrace this truth not just in our heads but in our hearts. We must go from orthodoxy (right beliefs) to orthopathy (right feelings) and orthopraxy (right actions).

So what does is look like to live in light of this truth? That Jesus, the Son of Man, the Son of God, the Lord, the Good Shepherd, is himself the great “I Am,” Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel?

Allow me to suggest seven applications drawn directly from these seven “I am” passages that can help us turn this truth into worship and obedience and apply Jesus as “I Am” to our own hearts and lives.

  1. Believe Jesus is the Messiah and can give you living water, if you want to be satisfied (4:26). If your heart is empty and longing for more, look no further than Jesus. He and he alone can satisfy the deepest longest of your heart. This is a message for saved and unsaved alike.
  2. Jesus comes to you in your need to help you and remove your fear (6:20). Are you living in fear? Fear of sickness? Fear of death? Fear of losing your job? Your marriage? You kids? Turn to Jesus. He is present. While he may not act with a miracle, he will drive away your fear and give you peace in your storm.
  3. You must believe that Jesus is who he says he is, or you will die in your sins (8:24). There is no salvation outside of Jesus. There is no other way to have your sins forgiven and have your guilt removed. Don’t look for it outside of Jesus, and don’t be ashamed to proclaim this exclusivity to others.
  4. Look to the cross to understand who Jesus is (8:28). Do you have doubts about Jesus? Who he really was? What we really did? There’s no better place to look for the strengthening of your faith than the cross.
  5. You must believe that Jesus is the “I Am,” if you want to escape death (8:58; cf. 51, 52). He wasn’t just a good man or a great teacher. He wasn’t a lesser God. He is the eternally self-existing unrivaled God of the universe. It’s by coming to this one—the way, the truth, and the life—that we escape death.
  6. Looking at Jesus’ prophecies and their fulfillments will strengthen your faith in Jesus (13:19). Do you worry about the future? Do you doubt what he has promised? Look to the one who knows the future, because he made and controls the future. Look to the record of his past promises made and kept to know that he is faithful. God gives us these signs to strengthen our faith.
  7. You must bow at the feet of the “I Am” (18:5, 6, 8). Cry out with Thomas, “My Lord and My God.” If you don’t now, you will one day when every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Yahweh, to the glory of God the Father (Phil 2:10–11).

There’s so much more we could say by way of application. Everything we learned about Yahweh, the “I am” of the Old Testament is true of Jesus and is ripe for heart application.

But we’re out of time.

Conclusion

In conclusion, Jesus is not only the promised Messiah, he is the divine Messiah. And that divine Messiah was himself Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel, the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, whose children we are by faith.

Yahweh is “I Am,” the eternally self-existing one, who is without rival, who never changes, whose promises never fail, and who is always present with his people to save.

This is Jesus.

As if we needed any more evidence, it’s right in his name. Recall that Jesus means “Yahweh saves.”

His name is also Immanuel, which means “God is with us.” In Jesus, by the Spirit, Yahweh, the great “I am,” is present with his people. Present to save, present to protect, present to rule over our lives for our good and his glory.

That is what Jesus was and is for us yesterday, today, and forever.

Behold your God.

Let’s pray.

Father, we have come face to face with the glorious and mysterious truth of your triune existence, and we bow ourselves in humble worship and adore you for who you are and for how you have revealed yourself to us through your Son and by your Spirit.

Thank you that you have made yourself known to us through Jesus and revealed your saving and protecting presence. Thank you that you are eternal, self-existing, unchanging, without equal, faithful, sovereign, and gracious.

Thank you for giving us eyes to see, ears to hear, and hearts to understand and love you. We are humbled by your sovereign grace.

You are worthy of our trust, devotion, worship, praise, and our lives.

May we live for your glory, as those who know and love you.

In Jesus’ name and by his Spirit we pray. Amen.

You are dismissed.

Notes

1. Richard Bauckham, “Monotheism and Christology in the Gospel of John,” in Contours of Christology in the New Testament, ed. Richard N. Longenecker, McMaster New Testament Studies (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), 154. ↩

2. Ge 26:3; 31:3; Ex 3:12, 14; Jos 1:5; 3:7; Jdg 6:16; 2 Sa 7:6, 9; 1 Ch 17:5, 8; Ps 50:21; Je 31:1; Ho 11:4; 14:5; Zec 2:5. ↩

3. Bruce K. Waltke and Charles Yu, An Old Testament Theology: An Exegetical, Canonical, and Thematic Approach (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2007), 365. ↩

4. See also Isaiah 45:8, 22; 46:9; 48:17. ↩

5. Consider also אָ֖נִי יְהוָ֑ה, ἐγώ εἰμι κύριος, and ἐγὼ κύριος. ↩

6. Richard Bauckham, “Monotheism and Christology in the Gospel of John,” in Contours of Christology in the New Testament, ed. Richard N. Longenecker, McMaster New Testament Studies (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), 157. ↩

7. Richard Bauckham, “Monotheism and Christology in the Gospel of John,” in Contours of Christology in the New Testament, ed. Richard N. Longenecker, McMaster New Testament Studies (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), 157. ↩

8. Richard Bauckham, “Monotheism and Christology in the Gospel of John,” in Contours of Christology in the New Testament, ed. Richard N. Longenecker, McMaster New Testament Studies (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), 157–158. ↩

9. G. K. Beale, John’s Use of the Old Testament in Revelation, ed. Stanley E. Porter, vol. 166, Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998), 327. ↩

10. Richard Bauckham, “Monotheism and Christology in the Gospel of John,” in Contours of Christology in the New Testament, ed. Richard N. Longenecker, McMaster New Testament Studies (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), 155. ↩

11. Richard Bauckham, “Monotheism and Christology in the Gospel of John,” in Contours of Christology in the New Testament, ed. Richard N. Longenecker, McMaster New Testament Studies (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), 155. ↩

12. G. K. Beale, John’s Use of the Old Testament in Revelation, ed. Stanley E. Porter, vol. 166, Journal for the Study of the New Testament Supplement Series (Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1998), 327. ↩

13. D. A. Carson, “‘I Am’ Sayings,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, 2d ed, edited by Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2001), 585. ↩

14. Richard Bauckham, “Monotheism and Christology in the Gospel of John,” in Contours of Christology in the New Testament, ed. Richard N. Longenecker, McMaster New Testament Studies (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), 155–156. ↩

15. D. A. Carson, “‘I Am’ Sayings,” in Evangelical Dictionary of Theology, 2d ed, edited by Walter A. Elwell (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Academic, 2001), 585. ↩

16. Richard Bauckham, “Monotheism and Christology in the Gospel of John,” in Contours of Christology in the New Testament, ed. Richard N. Longenecker, McMaster New Testament Studies (Grand Rapids, MI; Cambridge, U.K.: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2005), 156. ↩