Tag: blasphemy

Paradox of the Trial

Posted on by K.B. Vogelman

Paradox of the Trial

 
Possibly the greatest paradox in history occurred when Jesus of Nazareth was tried for the offense of blasphemy under God’s Law. The open question is whether or not Jesus was telling the truth…

According to the Cambridge Dictionary, a definition of “paradox” is “a statement or situation that may be true but seems impossible or difficult to understand because it contains two opposite facts or characteristics.”[1]

Blasphemy is defined in God’s Law in Leviticus where the consequences of being guilty of the offense was the death penalty.[2] Jewish sages in a Talmud Mishna and Gemara written during the era of Jesus expounded that blasphemy is uttering the name of God and also may include cursing, piercing or incorrectly blessing His name.[3]

Once Jesus said “the Father is in Me, and I in the Father.”[4] On another occasion, Jesus said “…unless you believe that I AM, you’ll die in your sins.”[5] Practically every Hebrew knew that “I AM” is another name for God.

At the height of the trial, High Priest Caiaphas asked Jesus very specifically, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” Under oath Jesus answered, “I AM.”[6] Caiaphas immediately recognized the answer of Jesus and declared it to be blasphemy.

No doubt, Jesus believed and said he is the Son of God. As a result, Jesus of Nazareth was charged with blasphemy and found guilty by the Jewish leadership.

Previously, Jesus challenged people who didn’t believe he is the Son of God should, instead, believe in the miraculous deeds he performed. Nicodemus was one of those people who believed first in the miracles that Jesus performed.[7] The miracles; however, didn’t seem to matter to those judging Jesus.

Undercurrents of the aberrant trial were hugely significant. Promises made at Mt. Sinai two thousand years earlier had implications to the location and timing of the trial and crucifixion of Jesus. Those prophetic promises and their fulfillment laid the ironic groundwork for a paradox.[8]

Scroll back even farther to the book of Genesis during the time when Abraham had moved to a new land after leaving the Ur of the Chaldees with his father and family.[9] In that new land, Mt. Moriah became the place where Abraham took his miraculously born son, Isaac, to be sacrificed to God, then saved at the last moment.[10]

Centuries later, the Hebrews escaped the slavery of Egypt and arrived at Mt. Sinai where God handed down the Law to Moses. God also made promises about the place He had chosen for their future home. The place included Mt. Moriah.[11]

In the promised land of Abraham, a city called Salem had been already built. In the process of conquering enemies in the land of Abraham, Salem was overtaken by Israel’s army and came to be known as Jerusalem encompassing Mt. Moriah.

God promised a kingdom in the land of Abraham. It was established under King David and became the kingdom of Israel.

Another of those promises by God at the place was to provide “the permanent place for His Name to dwell.”[12] In a most unusual twist, King David offered an atonement sacrifice for a grave lack of faith in God. The location of the sacrifice happened to be a threshing floor on Mt. Moriah.

Fire came down from Heaven to burn the atonement sacrifice. King David was so moved by the circumstances surrounding the sacrifice, he chose that spot to be the location for the Temple, “the permanent place for His Name to dwell.”[13]

Matthew and Luke record that Jesus was in the Temple when he referred to Isaiah 56:7 saying “My House will be called a house of prayer.”[14] Jesus claimed the Temple as his house, the place where God’s name dwells, a statement with implications to the blasphemy trial.

God promised at Mt. Sinai that the most complicated cases in the land were to be litigated in the place He chose. Jerusalem became the place, the Judgement Seat of Israel.[15] Jesus was judged in that city by the Jewish leaders of the Sanhedrin.[16]

Sanhedrin, among other responsibilities, served as the supreme court of Israel. Sanhedrin membership consisted of priests, including the High Priest, and members of influential families.[17]

Priests of God themselves were charged with standing before God to serve as judges to honor and preserve the Law.[18] Indeed, even the High Priest Caiaphas was among those who judged Jesus in the Temple, the House where God’s Name dwells.[19]

Passover, since the deliverance from the 10th plague in Egypt, is stipulated by God to occur at an appointed time, Nisan (Abib) 15th. The observance date was codified in the Law at Mt. Sinai and God promised to provide the place to observe the Passover at its appointed time.[20] The Temple in Jerusalem became the only place to offer the Passover sacrifices.[21]

If Jesus is the Son of God, the trial and crucifixion became the ultimate, multifaceted paradox. Jesus was judged at God’s appointed time for the Passover; he was tried in God’s chosen Judgement Seat of Israel in God’s chosen holy city of Jerusalem; in the Temple where God’s name is to dwell; and the judges of the trial included God’s own top-level priests in defense of God’s own Law.[22]

Was the trial of Jesus a paradox – was Jesus the Son of God or a heretic?

 

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This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] “paradox.” Cambridge Dictionary. 2023. <https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/paradox>  “The Paradox.” YouTube.com. image. 2015. <https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hRCedoRPyyo/maxresdefault.jpg> 
[2] Exodus 22:28; Leviticus 24:15-16.
[3] Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Ed. Isidore Epstein. Sanhedrin 55b-56a. <https://israelect.com/Come-and-Hear/sanhedrin/sanhedrin_55.html>
[4] John 10:38.
[5] John 8:24. ISV.
[6] Mark 14:61. ISV, NLT, NRSV. CR Matthew 9:6, 26.64; Mark 2:10-11, 8:31, 14.62; Luke 5:24, 9:22, 22:69.
[7] John 3:1-2.
[8] “irony.” Cambridge Dictionary. 2023. <https://dictionary.cambridge.org/dictionary/english/irony>
[9] Genesis 11:31.
[10] Genesis 22:1.
[11] II Chronicles 3:1; II Samuel 5:6-11. Josephus. Antiquities. Book VII, Chapter III. Ryrie Study Bible. Ed. Ryrie Charles C. “Laws relating to conquests” ref. Ex. 23:20-33.
[12] Exodus 23; 29:43-46; 33; Deuteronomy 12:11-14, 16: 11,18-20, 17:8-10; Numbers 34:1-15; I Chronicles 17:3-10. CR Exodus 30:36, 40:2-11, 34-38; Leviticus 16:2; II Samuel 7:12-13.
[13] Deuteronomy 16:1,6. I Chronicles 21:18-26. CR Exodus 12:14-15; Leviticus 23:4-8. CR Deuteronomy 16:1-8; II Chronicles 8:12-14, chapter 29, 35:1-6.
[14] Matthew 21:13; Luke 19:46.
[15] Deuteronomy 17:8. CR Exodus 19:6.
[16] Ariel, Yisrael. “The Chamber of the Hewn Stone.” The Temple Institute. 2019. <https://www.templeinstitute.org/illustrated/hewn_stone_description.htm> Ariel. “Blueprints for the Holy Temple.” <http://www.templeinstitute.org/blueprints-for-the-holy-temple.htm>
[17] “Sanhedrin.” JewishEncyclopedia.com. 2011. <https://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/13178-sanhedrin>
[18] Leviticus 19:15-18; Deuteronomy 1:16-17, 17:8-13, 19:15-21, 25:1. CR Exodus 18; 28:1; Numbers 8:14, Deuteronomy 16:18-19, 18:1-6, 21:5; II Chronicles 8:14; 19:8-11; Nehemiah 11:10-18. “Priest.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011.. <https://jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/12358-priest> 
[19] “Sanhedrin.” JewishEncyclopedia.com. 2007. <https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/13178-sanhedrin> Schoenberg, Shira. JewishVirtualLibrary.org. “Ancient Jewish History: The Sanhedrin.” n.d. <https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/the-sanhedrin> Shurpin, Yehuda. Chadad.org. “The Sanhedrin: The Jewish Court System.” n.d. <https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/4100306/jewish/The-Sanhedrin-The-Jewish-Court-System.htm>
[20] Exodus 12:14-15; Leviticus 23:4-8. CR Deuteronomy 16:1-8.
[21] Deuteronomy 16:1-6. II Chronicles chapters 8, 29, 34-35:19; Ezra 6:16-22. CR Leviticus 23:4-6; Numbers 9:2, 28:16-17. Edersheim, Alfred. The Temple – Its Ministry and Services. 1826 -1889. <https://ccel.org/ccel/edersheim/temple/temple.i.html>  Coulter, Fred R. cbcg.org. The Christian Passover. “Chapters 12-13, Part 1. n.d. <https://www.cbcg.org/booklets/the-christian-passover/chapter-twelve-when-and-why-the-temple-sacrifice-of-the-passover-was-instituted-part-one.html>
[22] Exodus 26:31-37. Deuteronomy 12:11-14, 16:18-20; 17:8-10; 18:1-8, 19:15-18.

 

 

Accursed By God When Jesus Was Crucified?

Posted on by K.B. Vogelman

Accursed By God When Jesus Was Crucified?

 

Crucifixion of Jesus of Nazareth is the fact that serves as proof for Judaism that he is not the Messiah. Jewish belief holds that a person who is hanged is accursed by God; therefore, Jesus was accursed by God disqualifying him as the Messiah:[1]

“The very form of his punishment would disprove those claims in Jewish eyes. No Messiah that Jews could recognize could suffer such a death; for “He that is hanged is accursed of God” (Deut. xxi. 23), ‘an insult to God’ (Targum, Rashi).” – JewishEnclopedia.com

Scriptural basis is found in the Law of Moses, Book of Deuteronomy. Very plainly it says that anyone who is hanged on a tree is accursed of God:

  • DT. 21:23 “his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the LORD your God is giving you as an inheritance; for he who is hanged is accursed of God.(NKJV)

Hanging of a victim was not intended to be the Jewish form of execution; instead, death was to be accomplished first by stoning, then the corpse was to be publicly hanged briefly for a day. Contrary to the Roman humiliation component of crucifixion, the Jewish-style hanging was not intended to humiliate, but rather to send a message. The Babylonian Talmud defines the process:[2]

MISHNAH

“All who are stoned are [afterwards] hanged. (Soncino)

Gemara:

“The rabbis taught: It reads [Deut. xxi. 22]: “And he be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree.””

“The rabbis taught: If the verse read, “If a man committed a sin, he shall be hanged,” we would say that he should be hanged until death occurs, as the government does; but it reads, “He shall be put to death and hanged,” which means he shall be put to death and thereafter hanged.”(Rodkinson)

Connecting “tree” and “cross” is made through translations of the Deuteronomy Hebrew text word `ets meaning “a tree or wood timber.”[3] Some 300 years before Jesus was crucified, Jewish Hebrew translators of the Septuagint LXX used the Greek word xulon meaning “tree” or “wood.” Jewish and Christian Bibles alike nearly all translate `ets as “tree” or “pole.”[4]

Crucifixion involved a victim being hanged from its wood cross-timber beam attached to an upright wood pole often called a gibbet. Therein lies the connection of the Deuteronomy Law to a cross being a “tree” or “pole.”[5]

Thousands of Jews were crucified by the Romans.[6] Some were executed as judicial punishment for committing commonly recognized serious crimes such as murder, robbery and insurrection; however, reasons for crucifixions expanded with time.

Many Jews including priests were crucified for non-criminal, nefarious reasons such as simple hatred, spitefulness or merely for entertainment.[7] Jews of the Roman era could not conceivably have viewed these hapless victims of crucifixion as being accursed by God. In fact, Jewish practice was to take great care in burying the crucified Jews before sunset:[8]

“Nay, they proceeded to that degree of impiety, as to cast away their dead bodies without burial, although the Jews used to take so much care of the burial of men, that they took down those that were condemned and crucified, and buried them before the going down of the sun.” – Josephus, Wars

Jesus of Nazareth was crucified like any other Jew by the Romans. Following customary Jewish practice after a crucifixion death, his body was taken down from the cross and buried with care by none other than two prominent Jewish Council members.[9]

A person accursed by God, according to the Talmud, was to have committed an offense so reprehensible, the punishment deserved an execution death by stoning, but execution was not enough. The corpse was to be hanged publicly whereby all would know the person was accursed by God.[10]

MISHNAH

“… the sages say:  only the blasphemer and the idolater are hanged. (Soncino)

“…but thou shalt surely bury him the same day for he is hanged [because of] a curse against God, – as if to say why was he hanged? – Because he cursed the name [of God]; and so the name of the name of Heaven [God] is profaned.(Soncino)

Gemara

“The sages, however, say: that as with a blasphemer who has denied the cardinal principle of our faith (i.e., he does not believe in God), the same is the case with an idolater who denies the might of God…” (Rodkinson)

An exception to Jewish Law was needed to distinguish the crucifixion of Jesus from that of other crucified Jews. Sanhedrin 43a describes that an exception was made for “Yeshu, the Nasarean.”[11] The exception:  Jesus was connected to the government, presumably the royal lineage of King David.

Gemara[12]

“…On the eve of the Passover Yeshu [#34 the Nasarean] was hanged…But since nothing was brought forward in his favour he was hanged on the eve of the Passover!.…With Yeshu however it was different, for he was connected with the government [or royalty, i.e., influential].’” – Soncino Babylonian Talmud translation

“Rather, Jesus was different, as he had close ties with the government, and the gentile authorities were interested in his acquittal.” – William Davidson Talmud translation

Caiaphas and the Jewish leadership found Jesus guilty of blasphemy for claiming to be I AM.[13] Problem was, Rome had prohibited executions by the Jewish theocracy.[14] The exception justified the Jewish leadership to hand over Jesus to the Romans to be executed and hanged on a tree.

Rome did not recognize a Jewish court verdict, especially for the capital Jewish crime of blasphemy. Instead, the Jewish leadership handed Jesus over to the Roman government under the accusation of failure to pay taxes and insurrection.[15] Either Roman crime would result in the same outcome – crucifixion on a cross, a wooden tree.[16]

Indeed, Jesus was judged by the Roman government for insurrection. However, the plan seemed to backfire when neither Tetrarch Herod nor Procurator Pilate found any guilt in Jesus despite admitting to Pilate that he is a King.[17]

Not guilty of any Roman crimes, Pilate still condemned Jesus to crucifixion at the strong behest of the Jews. Pilate was compelled to wash his hands of the aberrant circumstances saying, “I am innocent of this man’s blood.”[18]

Does the crucifixion of Jesus mean he was accused by God?

 

Updated October 24, 2022.

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

REFERENCES:

[1] “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/8616-jesus-of-nazareth> “God Cannot die!” TorahOfMessiah.com. 2012. <https://web.archive.org/web/20140331233206/http://www.torahofmessiah.com/godcantdie.html>
[2] Soncino Babylonian Talmud.  Sanhedrin 45b. Babylonian Talmud. Rodkinson. Chapter VI, Mishna V.
[3] “H6086.” Lexicon-Concordance Online Bible.  n.d.  http://lexiconcordance.com/search6.asp?sw=6086&sm=0&x=42&y=16> Benner, Jeff.  “Mechanical Translation of the Torah.” Deuteronomy 21:23. <http://www.mechanical-translation.org/mtt/D21.html>
[4] Net.bible.org. Deuteronomy 21:22, Hebrew text “`ets <06086>”  “Septuagint text, Greek “xulon <3586>” <http://classic.net.bible.org/strong.php?id=3586>  Bible Hub. 2017. Deuteronomy 21:22. <http://biblehub.com> Josephus, Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews. Book XII, Chapter II. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false>  “Septuagint.”  Septuagint.Net. 2014.  <http://septuagint.net>  “Septuagint.”  Encyclopædia Britannica. 2014.  Benner, Jeff A. “The Great Isaiah Scroll and the Masoretic Text.” Ancient Hebrew Research Center.  2013.  <http://www.ancient-hebrew.org/31_masorite.html> Lundberg, Marilyn J. “The Leningrad Codex.”  USC West Semitic Research Project.  2012.  <https://web.archive.org/web/20170403025034/http://www.usc.edu/dept/LAS/wsrp/educational_site/biblical_manuscripts/LeningradCodex.shtml>  The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary. Devarim – Deuteronomy, Chapter 21. <http://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9985#showrashi=true> Benner, Jeff, “Mechanical Translation of the Torah.” 2017. Deuteronomy 21. <http://www.mechanical-translation.org/mtt/D21.html>
[5] The Babylonian Talmud. Trans. Michael L. Rodkinson. 1918. Mishnah IV Gemara. <http://www.sacred-texts.com/jud/talmud.htm> Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Ed. Isidore Epstein. 1935-1948. Sanhedrin 46b Gemara.<https://israelect.com/Come-and-Hear/talmud/index.html>
[6] Josephus, Flavius. Wars of the Jews. Book II, Chapters V, XIII, XIV; Book IV, Chapter V; Book V, Chapters VI, XI. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false>  Josephus.  Antiquities of the Jews. Book XX, Chapter VI.2. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false>
[7] Josephus. Wars. Book V, Chapter XI.  Ciantar, Joe Zammit. Times Malta. “Recollections on Crucifixion – Part one.” image. 2022. <https://timesofmalta.com/articles/view/recollections-on-crucifixion-part-one.861097> 
[8] Josephus. Wars. Book IV, Chapter V.
[9] Matthew  27:57-61. Mark 15:42-47. Luke 23:50-56. John 19:38-42.
[10] Soncino Babylonian Talmud.  Sanhedrin 45b – 46a. Babylonian Talmud. Rodkinson. Chapter VI, Mishna V. 
[11] Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Ed. Epstein, Isidor. “Introduction to the Seder Nezikin.”  Soncino Babylonian Talmud.  Shachter & Freedman. “Introduction to Sanhedrin.” Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Sanhedrin Chapter VI, Folio 43a. Greenberg, Eric J. “Jesus’ Death Now Debated by Jews.” Jewish Journal. 2003. Reprinted from The Jewish Week.  <http://jewishjournal.com/news/world/8546>
[12] Soncino Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 43a; footnote #34; “Glossary” > “Baraitha” and “Tanna, Tana.”  Epstein. “Introduction to Seder Nezikin.” Soncino Babylonian Talmud.  Visotzky, Rabbi Burton L. Sage Tales – Wisdom and Wonder from the Rabbis of the Talmud. 2011. p153. <https://books.google.com/books?id=pMJYU2DTZ4UC&pg=PA153&lpg=PA153&dq=Talmud+exception+for+Jesus+of+Nazareth&source=bl&ots=ir-xCPF6a0&sig=_Nx3mW86y5dgWQWtuQmV-VidP6w&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwimzZi8yNvZAhXH44MKHf5AAEsQ6AEIXjAG#v=onepage&q=Talmud%20exception%20for%20Jesus%20of%20Nazareth&f=false> Talmud 43a. Sefaria. n.d. <https://www.sefaria.org/Sanhedrin.43a?lang=bi>  “Jesus.” Names for God. n.d. <https://namesforgod.net/jesus> 
[13] NASB. Luke 22:67-70. CR Matthew 26:63-65; Mark 14-63-65.
[14] Josephus, Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews. Book XX, Chapters IX. The Complete Works of Josephus. n.d <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false>
[15] Luke 23:1-3.
[16] Josephus.  Antiquities. Book XX, Chapter V.  Josephus.  Wars. Book II, Chapters V, XIV. Ashby, Carol. Life in the Roman Empire. n.d. “Crime and Punishment.” <https://carolashby.com/crime-and-punishment-in-the-roman-empire>
[17] Matthew 27:11; Mark 15:2; Luke 23:3, 13-15; John 18:33-38.
[18] NRSV, NASB.  Matthew 27:24; Matthew 27:24-26; Mark 15:11-15; Luke 23:20-25; John 19:4-15. Josephus. Antiquities. Book XVI. Chapters II, VI; Book XVII, Chapter XIII; Book XIX, Chapter V-VI. Josephus, Flavius. Against Apion. Book II. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850.  <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false>

“I AM” – a Blasphemy or the Truth?

Posted on by K.B. Vogelman

“I AM” – a Blasphemy or the Truth?

 

High Priest Caiaphas asked Jesus of Nazareth under oath a direct question, “’Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?’ Jesus answered ‘I Am.’”[1] To Caiaphas and other Jewish leaders, it was self-incriminating prima facie evidence – standalone proof – of blasphemy. Leviticus Law defined blasphemy to be a capital offense, death by stoning:

LV 24:16 “Moreover, the one who blasphemes the name of the LORD shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall certainly stone him. The alien as well as the native, when he blasphemes the Name, shall be put to death.” (NASB)

In the Biblical backdrop, the son of an Egyptian father and Israelite mother had been apprehended for the offense of blasphemy. In the first and only documented judgement for blasphemy in the Old Testament, the Tanakh, the son was judged by God Himself through Moses:

LV 24:13-15 Then the LORD said to Moses: “Take the blasphemer outside the camp. All those who heard him are to lay their hands on his head, and the entire assembly is to stone him.

LV 24:23 “… and they took the blasphemer outside the camp and stoned him. The Israelites did as the LORD commanded Moses. (NIV)

What exactly constituted the act of blasphemy? It was not until centuries later that the legal question was addressed in the Babylonian Talmud.

MISHNAH:  “The blasphemer is punished only if he utters the [The Divine] Name.”(Soncino Talmud)[2]

An effort to further define the Mishnah appears in the Talmud’s following Gemara where Jewish Rabbi sages to discussed the act of blasphemy. The illicit act may also include cursing, piercing or incorrectly blessing His Name.

During a blasphemy trial, special rules prohibited witnesses from quoting the blasphemy; instead, the court was to use the substitute name of “Jose.”[4] Only one witness was allowed to quote the blasphemy and all others were to simply say if they agreed with what they heard.

Upon hearing a blasphemy, judges were to rend their garments, a Jewish sign of displaying heart-rending anguish or mourning.[5] It was exactly the reaction of Caiaphas when he heard Jesus answer his question asking if he is the Messiah with “I Am.”

Great Hebrew significance of “I AM” goes all the way back to Moses and the unconsumed, burning bush. Curiosity had drawn Moses closer to the bush when a Voice called him by name. Moses asked who was speaking and the Voice responded:

EX 3:6 “I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob.” (The Complete Jewish Bible, NASB)

The Voice identify Himself as “God,” translated from ‘elohiym, the Hebrew plural masculine word meaning “God, divine ones, rulers, judges.”[6] (Translators added the preceding “I am” only as a clarifying literary aide.)

Commanded to return to Egypt and confront Pharaoh, Moses asked what he should say if anyone asked who sent him? Resoundingly, the booming Voice declared:

EX 3:14-15 “I AM WHO I AM”; and He said, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘I AM has sent me to you.”  God, furthermore, said to Moses, “Thus you shall say to the sons of Israel, ‘The LORD, 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. (NASB)

Translated into English as “I AM” from the Hebrew verb hayah, it means “to exist i.e. to be or become, come to pass (always emphatic)” – it is neither a noun nor a pronoun. God emphatically identified Himself with an on-going action verb; according to Jewish sage Rabbi Rashi – “I will be” – no beginning or end.[7]

In Hebrew, I AM is spelled YHVH, the four letter ineffable Hebrew name of God or “Tetragrammaton” derived from the root word hayah, “I AM.” According to Rashi, the Hebrew 4-letter Name is not intended to be spoken.[8] As such, the ineffable Hebrew proper name of God is translated as “The LORD” in place of the unspeakable Divine Name and also appears in other Biblical references as Jehovah, God (‘elohiym), or Adonai.[9]

Jewish translators of the Hebrew-to-Greek Septuagint LXX completed in 247 BC translated the Exodus text of both “I AM” and “The LORD” into Greek as “ego eimi.”[10] Jesus answered Caiaphas using these very same two Greek words, ego eimi.

Ego is a primary first person pronoun to be pronounced emphatically.[11] Eimi, also to be said emphatically, is “the first person singular present indicative meaning “exist’” with characteristics of present and future tenses.[12]

When Jesus answered Caiaphas’ question saying “ego eimi,” in essence he declared emphatically and authoritatively a statement of fact:  “[Yes], I Am [presently and into the future, the Messiah, the Son of God].”

A year earlier, Pharisees also believed they had heard Jesus commit blasphemy. While teaching at the Temple, Jesus several times referred to himself as ego eimi:

JN 8:12 “…I AM the light of the world…” (Jubliee)[13]

JN 8:24 “…unless you believe that I AM, you’ll die in your sins.”(ISV)[14]

JN 8:28 “When you have lifted up the Son of Man, then you will know that I AM…”(ISV)[15]

Continuing, the Pharisees accused Jesus of being possessed by a demon after he said, “If anyone keeps My word, he will never taste of death.”[16] They aptly pointed out that Abraham and the prophets had surely kept God’s word yet they were dead.[17] Jesus responded to the reference of Abraham:

JN 8:56-58 “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad.” Then the Jews said to Him, “You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?” Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM.”(NKJV)[18]

In one of the most astonishing statements in all the Gospels, Jesus not only said he actually knew Abraham, he had observed in real time Abraham rejoicing when he saw that the day of Jesus had arrived. Even more incredibly, Jesus explicitly said, “Before Abraham was, I AM” – ego eimi. Believing they had undoubtedly heard a blasphemy, the Pharisees picked up stones to kill Jesus, but according to John, it was not yet his time and Jesus escaped unharmed.[19]

Facts of the case are undisputed – under oath Jesus identified himself as I Am, the Son of God. What remains is the open question: did Jesus speak a blasphemy or the truth? If Jesus spoke blasphemy, his death sentence was truly justified according to God’s own Law.

If Jesus is the Son of God, he could not have spoken a blasphemy. In this scenario, he was unjustly judged in his own Father’s House in his own Father’s chosen judgment seat of Israel pursuant to his Father’s own Law of blasphemy.

Perhaps the greatest paradox of all time, at the Passover in the House of God Jesus declared himself to be the Son of God – a blasphemy or the truth?

 

Updated August 27, 2023.

Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a  Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License .

REFERENCES:

NASB = New American Standard Bible translation
ISV = International Standard Version translation
NIV = New International Version translation
NKJV = New King James Version translation

[1] NASB. Luke 22:67-71. CR Matthew 26:63-65; Mark 14-63-65;
[2] Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Ed. Isidore Epstein. Sanhedrin 55b (continues through 56a) <http://come-and-hear.com/tcontents.html>  CR Deuteronomy 5:11.
[3] Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Sanhedrin 56a, 66a.  The Babylonian Talmud. Rodkinson translation. Book 8, Tract Sanhedrin, Chapter VII, Mishna VI. <http://www.sacred-texts.com/jud/talmud.htm>
[4] Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Sanhedrin 56a, 66a.
[5] Lamm, Maurice. “Keriah – The Rending of Garments.” Chabad.org. 2018. <http://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/281558/jewish/Keriah-The-Rending-of-Garments.htm>
[6] “<H0430>”Lexicon-Concordance Online Bible.  n.d. <http://lexiconcordance.com>
[7] Net.bible.org. Hebrew text. Strong, James. The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. 1990.“hayah <1961>.”  The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary. 2018. Shemot – Exodus 3:14 translation & commentary. <http://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/9864#showrashi=true>  “exist;” “be/” “become,” “transitive.” Merriam-Webster. 2018. <http://www.merriam-webster.com> “<H1961>”Lexicon-Concordance Online Bible.  n.d. <http://lexiconcordance.com>
[8] Rashi. The Complete Jewish Bible with Rashi Commentary. Shemot – Exodus 3:15 commentary. Benner, Jeff, The Ancient Hebrew Alphabet. 2017. “vav.” <http://www.ancient-hebrew.org/alphabet_letters_vav.html>
[9] Soncino Babylonian Talmud. Sanhedrin 55b & footnote #20, 56a.   Martincic, Tom. “The Meaning of the Tetragrammaton.”  Eliyah.com.  n.d.  <http://www.eliyah.com/tetragrm.html>  “Tetragrammaton.” Dictionary.com.  <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/tetragrammaton?s=t>  Marlowe, Michael. The Translation of the Tetragrammaton.”  Bible Research. 2011. <http://www.bible-researcher.com/tetragrammaton.html>  “Tetragrammation.” Jewish Encyclopedia. 2011. <http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/14346-tetragrammaton>  Singer, Isidore; Adler, Cyrus, et. al.  The Jewish Encyclopedia. Volume 9. 1912. “The Seven Names.” p 163. <https://books.google.com/books?id=lfoOtGOcIBYC&lpg=PA594&ots=6qoCfVVUz7&dq=wave+sheaf+encyclopedia&pg=PA594&hl=en#v=onepage&q=seven&f=false>
[10] NetBible.com. Exodus 3:6 – Septuagint text; Hebrew text Myhlah <403>, ‘elohiym, the plural form of  ‘elowahh <0433>. Biblehub.com. Exodus 3:6 Hebrew ’ĕ-lō-hê <403>, plural form of eloah. Josephus, Flavius. Antiquities of the Jews. Book XII, Chapter II.1-6, 13-1. Trans. William Whitson. The Complete Works of Josephus. 1850. <http://books.google.com/books?id=e0dAAAAAMAAJ&printsec=frontcover&source=gbs_ge_summary_r&cad=0#v=onepage&q&f=false>  “I AM.” Names For God. n.d. <https://namesforgod.net/i-am> 
[11] Net.bible.org. Luke 22:70, Greek text.  Strong. “ego <1473> The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible. 
[12] Net.bible.org. Luke 22:70, Greek text.  Strong. “eimi <1510>” The New Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible.       
[13] Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary. John 8:12. BibleHub.com. <http://biblehub.com/commentaries/jfb/john/8.htm>
[14] Gill’s Exposition. John 8:24. BibleHub.com. <http://biblehub.com/commentaries/gill/john/8.htm> Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges. John 8:24. BibleHub.com. <http://biblehub.com/commentaries/cambridge/john/8.htm> Wesley’s Notes on the Bible. John 8:24. BibleHub.com. <http://biblehub.com/commentaries/wes/john/8.htm>
[15] Wesley’s Notes on the Bible. John 8:28. Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges. John 8:28.
[16] NASB. John 8:52.
[17] John 8:52-55.
[18] Gill’s Exposition. John 8:58. Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges. John 8:58. Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary. John 8:58. Wesley’s Notes on the Bible. John 8:58.
[19] John 8:59.