Jesus is Jehovah in the New Testament: Index
1. INTRODUCTION
Here belatedly is my "Jesus is Jehovah in Mark," being the sixth in my series, "Jesus is Jehovah in the New Testament," which
[Above: St. Mark fresco by Fra Angelico (c.1395-1455), San Marco Monastery, Florence: Wikipedia.]
contains every verse in the gospel of Mark (not including the disputed Mk 16:9-20) which indicates that the Lord Jesus Christ of the New Testament is Jehovah (Heb. Yahweh) of the Old Testament, incarnate (Jn 1:1-3, 14,18). For further introductory details, see also my "Jesus is Jehovah": "in the New Testament," "in Matthew," and "in Galatians." This is the second, after my Jesus is Jehovah in Matthew, unpacking of my web page "Jesus is Jehovah (Gospels & Acts)."
2. JESUS HAS NAMES & TITLES OF JEHOVAH
I AM. When Jesus walked on the Sea of Galilee, He said to the frightened disciples "it is I; be not afraid" (Mk 6:50; Mt 14:27; Jn 6:20). The Gk actually is ego eimi, "I AM." Therefore, "in this miracle account `Jesus is portrayed as filling the role ... of Yahweh ... `It is I [ego eimi]; do not be afraid' (Matt. 14:27; Mark 6:50; John 6:20)" :
"Perhaps Jesus' most dramatic miraculous demonstrations of his power over nature ... were his acts of feeding the multitude and of walking on the Sea of Galilee ... the Gospel accounts of Jesus walking on the sea allude rather clearly to the account in Exodus 14-15 of the Israelites' crossing of the Red Sea. The Israelites walked in `the midst of the sea' (Exod. 14:16, 22, 27, 29 NASB) and crossed to the other side (Exod. 15:16). Likewise, the disciples' boat was `in the middle of the sea' (Mark 6:47 NASB) and they also `crossed over' the sea (Mark 6:53). A strong wind from the east blew across the Red Sea and, close to daybreak, the Egyptians found it increasingly difficult to drive their chariots as they attempted to follow the Israelites (Exod. 14:21, 24-25). Likewise, an adverse wind blew across the Sea of Galilee ... from the east; this wind also blew close to daybreak and made it difficult for the disciples to row their boat (Mark 6:48). According to Mark, the disciples had the same problem as the Egyptians: their hearts were hardened (Exod. 14:4, 8, 17; Mark 6:52) ... in this miracle account `Jesus is portrayed as filling the role ... of Yahweh.' ... Jesus added, `It is I [ego eimi]; do not be afraid' (Matt. 14:27; Mark 6:50; John 6:20). This statement echoes statements by the Lord God in Isaiah ... `Do not fear ... When you pass through the waters, I will be with you ... so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he [ego eimi] ... I am the LORD ... your King:' Thus says the LORD, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters. (Isa. 43:1-2, 5, 10, 15-16) ... In later poetic reflection on this defining moment in Israel's history, biblical authors pictured God walking on the sea ... Your way was through the sea, your path, through the mighty waters ... (Ps. 77:16-20) By walking out to the disciples' boat on the sea, Jesus demonstrated a mastery over the forces of nature unparalleled among human beings ... Jesus walked across the raging waters of the Sea of Galilee and spoke divine words of assurance and sovereign control to his disciples. No wonder, according to Matthew, the disciples responded by worshiping Jesus and affirming that he was God's Son (Matt. 14:33) ... what they had witnessed was a display of God's own numinous power incarnate." (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, "Putting Jesus In His Place," pp.204-206).
"`I Am' Among the other important features of the Johannine presentation of Jesus is a recurrent form of expression that functions to indicate vividly his transcendent significance, `I am [Ego eimi]' ... there are in ... John ... a number sentences in which `I am' is itself the stated claim ... In ... John 8:58 ... Jesus applies the expression `I am' in this absolute form ... The immediate outraged response of the crowd - they prepare to stone him (8:59) - indicates the enormity of what the expression connotes ... it is either (as the crowd judges) blasphemy or truly expresses an astonishing claim ... Note the following examples: `Unless you believe that I am, you will surely die in your sins' (8:24); `When you lift up the son of man, then you will realize that I am' (8:28); `When this [what Jesus has foretold] happens, then you will believe that I am' (13:19). Clearly, in all these cases `I am' itself expresses a vital christological claim that can be perceived, and either believed or rejected, with momentous consequences ... this use of `I am' ... alludes to ... Old Testament passages where God uses the same sort of self-referential language, particularly passages in Isaiah (e.g., LXX Isa. 43:10, 25; 45:18 for uses of Ego eimi) ... So in the story of Jesus walking on the water in John 6:16-20 ... and ... Mark 6:50/Matt. 14:27) ... this absolute use of `I am' in the Gospels amounts to nothing less than designating Jesus with the same special referential formula that is used in the Greek Old Testament for God's own self-declaration. " (Hurtado, 2005, "Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity," pp.370-371).
Lord. Jesus called Himself "the Lord" (Mk 5:19-20 & Mk 11:1-6) and even "Lord of the sabbath" (Mk 2:28; Mt 12:8; Lk 6:5), "a reference to Himself as the creator of the sabbath" but "Yahweh was ... Lord of the sabbath":
"Jesus referred to Himself as `Lord of the Sabbath,' a reference to Himself as the creator of the sabbath. When some Pharisees rebuked Jesus for allowing His disciples to pick grain on the sabbath, thus breaking the law, by `working,' He said that it was all right because he was `Lord of the Sabbath' (Matthew 12:8) ... For the Jew, Yahweh was both author and Lord of the sabbath ... The Jews who heard Him considered His words blasphemy ... Incensed at His claiming authority that only God could have, they tried to kill Him (Matthew 12:14) ... according to Deuteronomy 6:4 and Mark 12:29, there can be only one Lord." (McDowell & Larson, 1975, "Jesus: A Biblical Defense of his Deity," pp.36-37).
Son of God. Jesus is " the Son of God" (Mk 1:1; 3:11-12; 15:39); "Son of the Most High God" (Mk 5:7; Lk 1:32; 8:28) or simply "the Son" (Mk 13:32; Mt 24:36); Jesus is the Father's "beloved Son" (Mk 1:11; 9:7). That is, Jesus is equal in nature with God the Father (Jn 5:17-18; 10:30-33; 19:7):
"Christ as the Son of God. ... according to John 5:18, the Jews sought to kill Jesus `because not only was he breaking the Sabbath but he was also calling God his own Father, making himself equal to God ' (NWT). The Jews, therefore, did not understand the expression Son of God as Jehovah's Witnesses apparently do. For the latter, the term means someone inferior to the Father. By the Jews of Jesus' day, however, the term was interpreted as meaning full equality with the Father, and it was on account of this claim that they sought to kill him ... Christ's calling himself the Son of God was interpreted by the Jews as a claim to equality with the Father." (Hoekema, 1972, "Jehovah's Witnesses," pp.132-134).
In the Parable of the Tenants (Mk 12:1-9; Mt 21:33-41; Lk 20:9-16), Jesus is the Owner of the vineyard's (God's) "beloved son" (Mk 12:6; Lk 20:13). That Jesus' claim to be the Son of God is a claim to equality of nature with God is evident in that when Jesus admitted to the high priest before the Sanhedrin that He was "the Christ, the Son of the Blessed [God]" (Mk 14:61-62; Mt 26:63-64); the high priest denounced it as "blasphemy ... worthy of death" (Mk 14:63-64). See also below on "Son of man."
Second Person of the Trinity. Father, Son and Holy Spirit were present at Jesus' baptism (Mk 1:9-11; Mt 3:16-17; Lk 3:21-22):
"[Mk 1:10-11]. This is one of the great `trinitarian' passages of the New Testament. Here the Spirit and the Father both bear witness to the Son. As in the book of Genesis God created by His word and through the Spirit (Gen. 1:2-3), so it was fitting that, at the very commencement of God's new work of re-creation, there would be the same operation of the whole Godhead. Here, on Jordan's banks, God speaks His word again, and again the Spirit is brooding over the waters, as in Genesis (Gn. 1:2)." (Cole, 1989, "The Gospel According to Mark: An Introduction and Commentary," pp.108-109).
Son of man. Jesus is "the Son of man" (Mk 8:31; 9:9,12,31;10:33,45;14:21,41) who has "authority on earth to forgive sins" (Mk 2:10; Mt 9:6; Lk 5:24); is "lord even of the sabbath" (Mk 2:28; Mt 12:8; Lk 6:5); who will come again "in the glory of his Father with the holy angels" (Mk 8:38; Mt 16:27; Lk 9:26); "in clouds with great power and glory" (Mk 13:26). Jesus is thus claiming to be the "one like unto a son of man" in Dn 7:13-14 "who came with the clouds of heaven" and was brought before "the ancient of days" (God) and "given ... a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve him ...an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away." That this is a claim by Jesus to equality with God is evident that when Jesus repeated His claim before the Sanhedrin, that He was "the Christ, the Son of the Blessed" and He be "sitting at the right hand of Power [God]" and then "coming with the clouds of heaven" (Mk 14:61-62) the high priest denounced it as "blasphemy ... worthy of death" (Mk 14:63-64). See also above on "Son of God":
"The Heavenly Man (Daniel 7:13) The other Old Testament text to which Jesus alludes is Daniel 7:13-14, in which Daniel says (ESV, emphasis added), `I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. Jesus' allusion to `the Son of Man ... coming with the clouds of heaven' clearly would have been recognized by his learned interrogators as a reference to Daniel 7:13. Jesus was claiming to be the figure described as `one like a son of man' and to possess his kind of authority ... Daniel's description of `one like a son of man' is a symbolic, visionary description of a figure who is actually divine. In Daniel's vision, the humanlike figure possesses all judgment authority and rules over an everlasting kingdom ...`The image of riding the clouds is reserved for God ... outside of this text in Daniel (Exod. 14:20; 34:5; Num. 10:34; Ps. 104:3; Isa. 19:1) ... That Jesus had Daniel's `one like a son of man' in mind when he used this title is evident from other places where he explicitly quotes Daniel 7:13 (e.g., Mark 13:26; see also Mark 8:38). So, when Jesus alluded to Daniel 7:13 and Psalm 110:1 in his response to Caiaphas's question, he was making a staggering claim. Jesus was claiming to be a heavenly, divine figure who would be seated at God's right hand, exercising divine rule forever over all people everywhere ... The response of the religious leaders to Jesus' statement is not surprising. In their minds, Jesus had committed blasphemy by claiming that he belonged right alongside God ..." (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.245-247).
Holy One of God. Jesus is "the Holy One of God" (Mk 1:24; Lk 4:34; Jn 6:69). But Jehovah is "the Holy One" (Hos 11:9) and "the Holy One of Israel" (2Ki 19:22; Ps 89:18; Isa 1:4; 5:24; 10:20, 41:14,16,20; Jer 51:5).
Bridegroom. Jesus is "the bridegroom" (Mk 2:19-20; Mt 9:15; Lk 5:34-35; Mt 25:1-13; Jn 3:29; Eph 5:23-32; Rev 21:2,9; 22:17). But God or Jehovah is the bridegroom (Isa 62:5; Jer 2:32; 3:1; Hos 2:19).
King of the Jews. Jesus is "the King of the Jews" (Mk 15:2,9,12,18,26; Mt 2:2; 27:11, 29, 37; Lk 23:3,37-38; Jn 18:33,39; 19:3,19,21). He is reigning But Jehovah is King forever (Ps 10:16); the great King above all (Ps 95:3); who will one day be King of all the earth (Zec 14:9).
3. OLD TESTAMENT PASSAGES ABOUT JEHOVAH ARE APPLIED TO JESUS
Mk 1:2-4 = Isa 40:3 & Mal 3:1. Jesus is Jehovah who came. John the Baptist prepared the way for the coming of Jehovah (Mk 1:2-4; Isa 40:3; Mal 3:1). But it was Jesus who came (Mk 1:7-9, 14-15):
"If we compare the early chapters of Mark with Isaiah 40, we see from another perspective that Jesus' claim to forgive sins is a claim to deity. In Isaiah, God announces that Israel's sins have been removed and her chastisement is over (vv. 1-2). Then a voice calls for the way to be cleared for the coming of the Lord (vv. 3-5). His presence is once again going to inhabit the Promised Land, and his people are going to be restored to that land. The `good news' for Jerusalem is that God is coming with might to rule (vv. 9-10). He will begin by gathering his flock and leading them (v. 11). Now look at the opening chapters of the Gospel of Mark. It begins with an announcement of `the good news' (1:1). Mark explicitly quotes Isaiah 40:3 (1:3), which he says is fulfilled in John the Baptist, who preaches forgiveness of sins (vv. 4-6) and announces that the one coming after him is mightier than he (vv. 7-8). Then Jesus shows up, and John baptizes him (vv. 9-11). Jesus goes out into the wilderness and returns, preaching the `good news' of God's kingdom rule (vv. 12-15). He begins by calling people to follow him (vv. 16-20) and starts demonstrating his `authority' by casting out demons, healing the sick, and cleansing the leper (vv. 21-45). It is in this context that Jesus heals the paralyzed man and forgives his sins (2:1-12). His actions are all part of the `program' of the Lord God coming to the land to rule, forgive, restore, and lead his people.'" (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.211-212. Emphasis original)
Mk 12:36; Ps 110:1. Jesus is David's Lord. Jesus applied Ps 110:1 "Jehovah saith unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, Until I make thine enemies thy footstool" to Himself (Mk 12:35-37; Mt 22:41-46; Lk 20:41-44; Ac 2:34-35; Heb 1:13; 10:13): "In the religious and cultural milieu of Jesus' day, to claim to sit at God's right hand was tantamount to claiming equality with God":
"Sitting in the Big Chair (Psalm 110:1) ... Psalm 110:1, in which David says, The LORD [YHWH] says to my Lord ['adoni]: `Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.' (ESV) ... Jesus identified the second person ('my Lord') as the Messiah when he applied the text to himself. ... How, Jesus asks, could the Messiah be David's son and also be his Lord (Mark 12:35-37)? ... The Messiah would not be a mere Davidic king but would be a universal sovereign, sitting at God's right hand, honored as Lord even by his ancestor David. A careful examination of Psalm 110:1, and Jesus' application of it ... to himself, reveals how remarkable Jesus' claim was and why it seemed to the Sanhedrin to be blasphemous. It was one thing to enter God's presence ... But to sit at God's right side was another matter altogether. In the religious and cultural milieu of Jesus' day, to claim to sit at God's right hand was tantamount to claiming equality with God ... " (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.243-245).
4. JESUS HAS ATTRIBUTES OF JEHOVAH
Holy. Jesus is "the Holy One of God" (Mk 1:24; Lk 4:34; Jn 6:69).
Authority. Jesus "taught them as having authority, and not as the scribes" (Mk 1:22; Mt 7:28-29). Jesus gave His disciples "authority over the unclean spirits" (Mk 6:7). Jesus' words will not pass away (Mk 13:31; Mt 24:35; Lk 21:33). "Jesus speaks with absolute confidence that what he says ... is the absolute truth. `Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away' (Matt. 24:35; Mark 13:31). No rabbi, no priest, no prophet would ever say `my words' here ... Isaiah, one of Israel's greatest prophets, said, `The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever' (Isa. 40:8). Jesus makes the equivalent claim for his own words ...":
"Nor did Jesus speak like a prophet. In the Old Testament, prophets did not speak in their own name or treat their own words as the word of God. Instead, when they prophesied, they would generally introduce God's message with a formula such as `thus says the Lord' ... Jesus never uses such an introductory formula. Instead ... Jesus typically introduced his comments by saying, `I say to you' ... Moreover ... Jesus uses an introductory locution that appears to be unparalleled: `Amen I say to you' (often translated `Truly I say to you'). Jesus' habit of beginning a sentence with the word `Amen' has no precedent in the Old Testament, nor have scholars found any precedent in the rest of ancient Jewish literature. This expression invests what Jesus is about to say with religious authority and assurance even before he says it. Jesus speaks with absolute confidence that what he says-that everything he says-is the absolute truth. `Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away' (Matt. 24:35; Mark 13:31). No rabbi, no priest, no prophet would ever say `my words' here; they would confidently say that God's words will never pass away, but no pious Jew would dare claim that his words would never pass away. Yet Jesus made such a claim. Isaiah, one of Israel's greatest prophets, said, `The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever' (Isa. 40:8). Jesus makes the equivalent claim for his own words ..." (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, p.215).
Glory. Jesus will come again "in the glory of his Father with the holy angels" (Mk 8:38). Jesus was "transfigured before" Peter, James and John such that "his garments became supernaturally white (Mk 9:2-3; Mt 17:2).
Omniscient. Jesus knew what the disciples were arguing about (Mk 9:33-35).
5. JESUS DOES WORKS OF JEHOVAH
Miracles. Healing miracles. Jesus healed those possessed by an "unclean spirit" (Mk 1:23-27); "fever" (Mk 1:30-31); "all that were sick" (Mk 1:32-34), "them that were possessed with demons" (Mk 1:32-34); "casting out demons" (Mk 1:39); "a leper" (Mk 1:40-42); a paralytic (Mk 2:3-12; Mt 9:1-7; Lk 5:17-26 NIV); "a man there who had his hand withered" (Mk 3:1-5); "he had healed many ... as had plagues ["diseases" NIV]" (Mk 3:10); "a man with an unclean spirit" (Mk 5:1-16); "a blind man" (Mk 8:22-25); "a blind beggar" (Mk 10:46-52); a child with "a dumb spirit" (Mk 9:17-27). Jairus' daughter was raised from death (Mk 5:22-24; 35-42). A woman was healed of her haemorrhage by merely touching Jesus' garment (Mk 5:25-29); "a few sick folk" (Mk 6:5); "as many as touched him were made whole" (Mk 6:56). A little girl who had "an unclean spirit" was healed by Jesus without Him seeing her (Mk 7:25-30). Jesus made "even the deaf to hear, and the dumb to speak"(Mk 7:32-37).
Nature miracles. Jesus in a boat stilled a storm on the Sea of Galilee by commanding it to "be still" (Mk 4:35-41; Mt 8:23-27; Lk 8:22-25). Jesus commanded demons to enter a herd of pigs (Mk 5:11-13; Mt 8:30-32; Lk 8:32-33). He fed a crowd of "five thousand men" with "five loaves and the two fishes" (Mk 6:38-44;Mt 14:19-21; Lk 9:13-17; Jn 6:5-14) and another "about four thousand" with "seven loaves" and "a few small fishes" (Mk 8:1-9; Mt 15:32-38). On another occasion Jesus walked on the Sea of Galilee and stilled the wind (Mk 6:47-52; Mt 14:23-33; Jn 6:16-21) But it is Jehovah God alone who commands the sea and it obeys Him (Job 38:8-11; Ps 65:5-7; 89:8-9; 107:23-30) and who treads the waves of the sea (Job 9:8; Ps 77:19):
"The miraculous feeding of over five thousand people (the one miracle of Jesus' earthly ministry reported in all four Gospels) has obvious associations with the feeding of the Israelites with manna in the wilderness shortly after the crossing of the Red Sea. In John's extended account of the aftermath of this miracle, Jesus explicitly compares it to the giving of manna (John 6:31-33, 49-51, 58). According to Exodus, God, not Moses, gave the Israelites the manna (Exod.16:4, 8,15). Rather than casting himself in the `role' of Moses, Jesus actually casts himself both as the Lord who gives the bread and as the bread itself `I am the bread of life. Whoever comes to me will never be hungry, and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty... . the bread that I will give for the life of the world is my flesh' (John 6:35, 51)." (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, p.204).
Jesus last miracle was His cursing of a fig tree (symbolising Israel) and it withered in a day (Mk 11:13-14,20-21; Mt 21:18-20).
Forgave sin. Jesus forgave sin, which only God can do (Mk 2:3-12; Mt 9:1-7; Lk 5:17-26):
"... Mark 2:10 (`the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins') ... Up to this point, all Jesus' activities in Mark are commensurate with his being a charismatic healer: gathering followers, teaching, casting out demons and healing. But in forgiving sins Jesus' action is without parallel and is outside the scope of the law. Besides, there is nothing known in any Jewish literature of any person, including the Messiah, who can or would be able to forgive sin, except God. Therefore ... in his healing (and forgiving) he is acting for God or, perhaps, even as God." (Twelftree, G.H., 1999, "Jesus the Miracle Worker," p.65).
"Jesus actually forgives people of their sins ... It's his call (Acts 5:31; Col. 3:13) ... We are not talking here about Jesus forgiving people with whom he had personal grievances. We are referring to Jesus forgiving persons of every sin they had ever committed. The Gospels report at least two separate incidents when this occurred. One of these involved an immoral woman who came to Jesus, crying; she wet his feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, and anointed his feet with perfume (Luke 7:36-38). The Pharisee who was Jesus' host was offended, but Jesus told him, `Her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little:' He then said to the woman, `Your sins are forgiven:' The reaction of the others who were there is quite understandable. `Who is this who even forgives sins?' they asked (Luke 7:47-49). On another occasion, four men brought a paralyzed man to Jesus in the hope that Jesus would heal him. The first thing Jesus did was say to the paralyzed man, `Son, your sins are forgiven' (Mark 2:5; similarly Matt. 9:2; Luke 5:20). Some scribes standing by thought what Jesus said was blasphemy; they were saying to themselves, `Who can forgive sins but God alone?' (Mark 2:7; Luke 5:21) ... If we compare the early chapters of Mark with Isaiah 40, we see from another perspective that Jesus' claim to forgive sins is a claim to deity ... It is in this context that Jesus heals the paralyzed man and forgives his sins (2:1-12). His actions are all part of the `program' of the Lord God coming to the land to rule, forgive, restore, and lead his people.'" (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.211-212. Emphasis original)
Lawgiver. Jesus set aside the Old Testament ceremonial law by "making all meats clean" (Mk 7:19). Jesus overrode the Law of Moses' provision for a bill of divorce (Mk 10:2-12; Dt 24:1).
Covenant. Jesus instituted a covenant in His blood (Mk 14:24; 9:20; 10:29; Mt 26:28) which was the "new covenant" (Lk 22:20; 1Cor 11:25; 2Cor 3:6; Heb 9:15; 12:24), prophesied by Jeremiah (Jer 31:32-33; Heb 8:8-10); replacing the "old covenant" (2Cor 3:14; Heb 8:13) or "first covenant" (Heb 9:1,18). But the Old Covenant was instituted by Jehovah (Ex 24:7-8; 34:10,27, etc), so for Jesus to set it aside would be blasphemy, unless Jesus is Jehovah.
Punishment. The demons know that Jesus will "torment" them (Mk 5:6-7; Mt 8:28-29; Lk 8:27-28).
6. JESUS RECEIVES HONOUR & WORSHIP DUE TO JEHOVAH
Worship. Jesus is "worshipped" by "a man with an unclean spirit" (Mk 5:2,6) as "Son of the Most High God" (Mk 5:7) and Jesus did not rebuke that worship. People fell at Jesus' feet (Mk 5:22,33; 7:25; Lk 8:28,41,47; Jn 11:32; Rev 1:17) but He did not rebuke them. Yet the apostles (Acts 10:25) and angels (Rev 19:10; 22:8) did rebuke those who fell at their feet.
7. OBJECTIONS TO JESUS BEING JEHOVAH
Not omniscient? Jesus did not know who had touched His garment (Mk 5:25-34; Lk 8:43-48). Nor did He know the "that day or that hour" of His return (Mk 13:32; Mt 24:36). But in His incarnation Jesus had voluntarily given up the independent exercise of His divine attributes (2Cor 8:9; Php 2:5-8; Heb 2:9):
"As with all the other divine attributes of the Son of God ... A similar paradox pertains to his omniscience. By virtue of being the divine Son, Jesus was in some sense omniscient, knowing the hearts of the people around him; yet, by virtue of his incarnation, Jesus also experienced the normal limitations of human knowledge. The New Testament states that Jesus grew in wisdom (Luke 2:40, 52) and that he `learned obedience' through his sufferings (Heb. 5:8). Most famously ... he denied knowing the day or hour of the end of the age. `... But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.' (Matt. 24:34-36; Mark 13:30-32) Christians who affirm the deity of Christ take different approaches to resolving this paradox ... A third approach agrees that distinguishing the two natures is a key to resolving the paradox but suggests a different way of framing the resolution. According to this approach, the divine Son of God knew everything, yet chose in his earthly life not to have that knowledge as part of his conscious, human awareness in regards to such matters as the timing of his future return ... However we resolve the difficulty of his lack of knowledge of certain matters during his earthly life, Jesus has no deficiency of knowledge now. The limitations on his knowledge were aspects of his self-imposed act of humbling himself to share in our mortal human nature (Phil. 2:6-7; 2 Cor. 8:9). Now, following his resurrection and ascension, in Christ `are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.... For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily' (Col. 2:3, 9). ... When the disciples asked the risen Jesus if it was then time for the kingdom to be restored to Israel-an event they associated with the end of the age-he replied, `It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority' (Acts 1:7). Here, Jesus did not disavow knowing the timing of the event in question, as he had before his death (Matt. 24:36; Mark 13:32) ...." (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.120-122, 322 n19).
Not good? Jesus was called "Good Teacher" by a Jewish ruler and He answered him "Why do you call me good? ... No one is good-except God alone" (Mk 10:17-18; Lk 18:18-19 NIV). Opponents of Jesus' deity claim this proves that He is not God, but in fact since Jesus is good (2Cor 5:21; Heb 4:15; 7:26; 1Pet 2:22; 1Jn 3:5) it proves that Jesus is God:
"... Mark and Luke also report Jesus asking, `Why do you call me good?' Jesus was not denying being good; he was pointing out that human beings are not good and therefore, since the young man who approached Jesus regarded him as a merely human `teacher,' he should not have addressed him flatteringly as `good teacher' (Mark 10:17; Luke 18:18). If anything, Jesus' statement in context implies that Jesus is more than human, since Jesus goes on to summon the young man to follow him in order to be complete (Matt. 19:18-21; Mark 10:19-21; Luke 18:20-22)." (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.304-305).
Not omnipotent? To sit at Jesus' right and left hand in the Kingdom is not Jesus' to give but is the Father's prerogative (Mk 10:35-40; Mt 20:20-23). However, the Son voluntarily subordinates Himself to the Father's will (Mk 14:36; Mt 26:42; Lk 22:41-42):
"[Mk 10:40] This is a reminder that even the Son is in loving submission to His Father; it is not left to Jesus but only to the Father to dispense such honours at will. So, too, the time of the 'last hour' is hidden from Jesus deep in the mind of God (13:32); and yet this is not theological 'subordinationism', for it is voluntary acceptance of this position by the Son. Humility and submission are not popular Christian virtues, but they are basic, for they are founded on the 'servant' example of Jesus Himself (verse 45)." (Cole, 1989, p.243).
One God. Jesus quoted Dt 6:4 that "The Lord our God, the Lord is one" (Mk 12:28-29). In the original Hebrew, the word "one" is 'echad which can mean a compound unity. For example the same word 'echad is used of the "one flesh" of husband and wife (Gn 2:24); "one people" comprising many individuals (Gn 11:6; 34:16,22); " one voice" of "all the people" (Ex 24:3); "one cluster of grapes" (Num 13:23); and "one stick" joined to "another stick" making a compound "one stick" (Eze 37:16-17):
"... 'ehad ... one ... ... It is closely identified with yahad `to be united' ... It stresses unity while recognizing diversity within that oneness ... in Ex 24:3 `with one voice' expresses that all Israel was involved in entering into the Covenant with Yahweh. The concept of unity is related to the tabernacle, whose curtains are fastened together to form one unit (Ex 26:6, 11; 36:13). Adam and Eve are described as `one flesh' (Gen 2:24) ... In Gen 34:16 the men of Shechem suggest intermarriage with Jacob's children in order to become `one people.' Later, Ezekiel predicted that the fragmented nation of Israel would someday be reunited, as he symbolically joined two sticks (37:17). Once again Judah and Ephraim would be one nation with one king (37:22) ... Diversity within unity is also seen from the fact that 'ehad has a plural form, 'ahadim ... In the famous Shema of Deut 6:4, `Hear, O Israel ... the LORD is one,' the question of diversity within unity has theological implications. Some scholars have felt that, though `one' is singular, the usage of the word allows for the doctrine of the Trinity ... The NT also is strictly monotheistic while at the same time teaching diversity within the unity (Jas 2:19; 1 Cor 8:5-6) ... The lexical and syntactical difficulties of Deut 6:4 can be seen in the many translations offered for it in the NIV. The option `the LORD is our God, the LORD alone' has in its favor both the broad context of the book and the immediate context ... Zechariah employs the text with this meaning and applies it universally ..: `The LORD will be king over all the earth; in that day the LORD will be (the only) one, and His name (the only) one' (14:9 NASB)." (Harris, et al, eds, 1980, "Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament," Vol. I, p.30).
In fact the Messianic Jewish Torah Observant Followers of Yeshua in its Statement of Beliefs cites Dt 6:4 as evidence that "The nature of YHWH is a compound unity" and adds that "Yeshua of Natzeret ... is YHWH who appeared among mankind in the flesh":
"Statements of Belief .... YHWH [the LORD] is our Elohim. He is echad [One]. He alone is YHWH. Deuteronomy 6:4. .... The nature of YHWH is a compound unity expressed in the aspects of Abba [God, the Father], Yeshua [Salvation, Jesus, the Son, Messiah] and the Ruach HaKodesh [the Holy Spirit/Breath] in this age. Matthew 28:19. ... Yeshua of Natzeret [Nazareth] is the Messiah of Israel, the Savior of the world, the King of kings and Lord of lords. He is YHWH who appeared among mankind in the flesh, and now is glorified with all power in Heaven and in Earth, at the right hand of Abba. John 1:12-14, 18." ("Torah Observant Followers of Yeshua - Statement of Beliefs," December 28, 2006).
And as previously explained: "That the Lord Jesus Christ is revealed in the New Testament as being Jehovah (Heb. Yahweh) of the Old Testament come in the flesh, does not preclude the other two Persons of the Holy Trinity (Mt 28:19; 2Cor 13:14; 1Pet 1:2): the Father (Dt 32:6; Isa 63:16; 64:8; Mal 1:6) and the Holy Spirit (Lk 4:18 = Isa 61:1; Acts 5:3-4,9; 2Cor 3:17), also being, as revealed in the New Testament, Jehovah: the one Triune God."
8. CONCLUSION
Again, because of the above evidence that Jesus of the New Testament is the incarnate (Jn 1:1-3, 14,18) Jehovah (Yahweh) of the Old Testament and there being no valid objection against it, then Jesus is Jehovah in the Gospel of Mark!
See full quotes below hyperlinked from the above brief quotes and references.
PS. The previous (fifth) post in this series was "Jesus is Jehovah in 2 Thessalonians " and the next (seventh) post is "Jesus is Jehovah in 2 Corinthians."
Stephen E. Jones.
My other blogs: CreationEvolutionDesign & The Shroud of Turin
"As with all the other divine attributes of the Son of God, there is another side that results in paradox. We saw that the Son is uncreated and yet became a human being; that he is immutable and yet grew up from infancy to adulthood; that he is omnipotent and yet experienced weariness, sleep, and even death; that he is omnipresent and yet walked from place to place like any ordinary human being. His divine attributes are his by virtue of his eternal identity as the Son of God; his finite, human limitations are normal human attributes that he has by virtue of his becoming a man in the Incarnation. A similar paradox pertains to his omniscience. By virtue of being the divine Son, Jesus was in some sense omniscient, knowing the hearts of the people around him; yet, by virtue of his incarnation, Jesus also experienced the normal limitations of human knowledge. The New Testament states that Jesus grew in wisdom (Luke 2:40, 52) and that he `learned obedience' through his sufferings (Heb. 5:8). Most famously, although Jesus predicted that the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple would occur within the lifetime of his generation, he denied knowing the day or hour of the end of the age. `Truly I tell you, this generation will not pass away until all these things have taken place. Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away. But about that day or hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but only the Father.' (Matt. 24:34-36; Mark 13:30-32) Christians who affirm the deity of Christ take different approaches to resolving this paradox. Some Christians suggest that Christ gave up omniscience and other infinite attributes of deity in order to become a human being. ... The principal difficulty with this explanation is that it seems to be incompatible with the immutability of God. Furthermore, if Christ could not be omniscient and also be human, then it would seem that, on this view, Christ is still not omniscient, since according to the New Testament the risen Christ is human (Luke 24:39; Acts 17:31; 1 Cor. 15:47; 1 Tim. 2:5). A second approach is to attribute Jesus' lack of knowledge strictly to his human nature alone. Jesus is simultaneously omniscient with respect to his divine nature and not omniscient with respect to his human nature. When he says that `the Son' does not know, he uses this divine title merely as a self-designation, and not to mean that what he says applies to himself in his divine nature. This is a possible explanation, but it can be charged with implying that natures know or do not know, whereas knowing and not knowing are properties of persons, not natures. To put it more simply Jesus did not say, `My human nature does not know,' but rather said that he did not know. A third approach agrees that distinguishing the two natures is a key to resolving the paradox but suggests a different way of framing the resolution. According to this approach, the divine Son of God knew everything, yet chose in his earthly life not to have that knowledge as part of his conscious, human awareness in regards to such matters as the timing of his future return. Some theologians put it this way: the Son had the knowledge available to him by virtue of his divine nature but chose not to use that knowledge in his human life. This explanation allows Christ to know what is in people's hearts, to know that he will die and then rise from the dead on the third day, and the like, while not knowing things he did not need to know to accomplish his mission. ... The chief difficulty with this approach is that we do not really understand what it would be like to be omniscient and choose to experience a lack of knowledge. Then again, we are hardly likely to understand what it would be like to be God incarnate in the first place. However we resolve the difficulty of his lack of knowledge of certain matters during his earthly life, Jesus has no deficiency of knowledge now. The limitations on his knowledge were aspects of his self-imposed act of humbling himself to share in our mortal human nature (Phil. 2:6-7; 2 Cor. 8:9). Now, following his resurrection and ascension, in Christ `are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.... For in him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily' (Col. 2:3, 9). ... When the disciples asked the risen Jesus if it was then time for the kingdom to be restored to Israel-an event they associated with the end of the age-he replied, `It is not for you to know the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority' (Acts 1:7). Here, Jesus did not disavow knowing the timing of the event in question, as he had before his death (Matt. 24:36; Mark 13:32). On the other hand, he did not actually claim to have that knowledge either, but again refers to the timing as a matter of the Father's prerogative." (Bowman, R.M., Jr. & Komoszewski, J.E., "Putting Jesus In His Place: The Case for the Deity of Christ," Kregel: Grand Rapids MI, 2007, pp.120-122, 322 n19. Emphasis original).
"Perhaps Jesus' most dramatic miraculous demonstrations of his power over nature, other than his own resurrection (John 2:19-22; 10:17-18; 20:27-28), were his acts of feeding the multitude and of walking on the Sea of Galilee. These two miracles occurred one after the other, and both echo miracles experienced by the Israelites in the Exodus (Matt. 14:13-33; Mark 6:33-52; John 6:1-58; cf. Luke 9:12-17). As various scholars, both conservative and liberal, have observed, the Gospel accounts of Jesus walking on the sea allude rather clearly to the account in Exodus 14-15 of the Israelites' crossing of the Red Sea. The Israelites walked in `the midst of the sea' (Exod. 14:16, 22, 27, 29 NASB) and crossed to the other side (Exod. 15:16). Likewise, the disciples' boat was `in the middle of the sea' (Mark 6:47 NASB) and they also `crossed over' the sea (Mark 6:53). A strong wind from the east blew across the Red Sea and, close to daybreak, the Egyptians found it increasingly difficult to drive their chariots as they attempted to follow the Israelites (Exod. 14:21, 24-25). Likewise, an adverse wind blew across the Sea of Galilee and, based on the geography, it also would have been blowing from the east; this wind also blew close to daybreak and made it difficult for the disciples to row their boat (Mark 6:48). According to Mark, the disciples had the same problem as the Egyptians: their hearts were hardened (Exod. 14:4, 8, 17; Mark 6:52). According to Eric Eve (and many other commentators), in this miracle account `Jesus is portrayed as filling the role, not of another Moses, but of Yahweh.' [Eve, E., "Jewish Context of Jesus' Miracles," Continuum: New York, 2002, p.384.] We suggest that this conclusion needs to be restated in a more nuanced way. Jesus appears, in fact, to fulfill the role of a greater Moses and of Yahweh. Jesus' response to the disciples' fear encompasses both roles. Moses had told the Israelites, `Take heart!' (tharseite, Exod. 14:13 LXX) and Jesus told the disciples the same thing: `Take heart!' (tharseite, Matt. 14:27; Mark 6:50). But then Jesus added, `It is I [ego eimi]; do not be afraid' (Matt. 14:27; Mark 6:50; John 6:20). This statement echoes statements by the Lord God in Isaiah, where he speaks of a kind of `new Exodus' when the Jews would be restored to their land: `Do not fear, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by name, you are mine. When you pass through the waters, I will be with you; and through the rivers, they shall not overwhelm you; Do not fear, for I am with you; ... so that you may know and believe me and understand that I am he [ego eimi] ... I am the LORD, your Holy One, the Creator of Israel, your King:' Thus says the LORD, who makes a way in the sea, a path in the mighty waters. (Isa. 43:1-2, 5, 10, 15-16). The most striking aspect of the account is, of course, Jesus' actually walking on the sea. In the historical Exodus miracle, the Israelites crossed through the sea but on dry land. In later poetic reflection on this defining moment in Israel's history, biblical authors pictured God walking on the sea: When the waters saw you, O God, when the waters saw you, they were afraid; the very deep trembled. The clouds poured out water; the skies thundered; your arrows flashed on every side. The crash of your thunder was in the whirlwind; your lightnings lit up the world; the earth trembled and shook. Your way was through the sea, your path, through the mighty waters; yet your footprints were unseen. You led your people like a flock by the hand of Moses and Aaron. (Ps. 77:16-20) By walking out to the disciples' boat on the sea, Jesus demonstrated a mastery over the forces of nature unparalleled among human beings. Moses was merely the human agent through whom the Lord led the Israelites across the dry bed of the Red Sea. Jesus walked across the raging waters of the Sea of Galilee and spoke divine words of assurance and sovereign control to his disciples. No wonder, according to Matthew, the disciples responded by worshiping Jesus and affirming that he was God's Son (Matt. 14:33). They did not understand it at the time, but what they had witnessed was a display of God's own numinous power incarnate." (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.204-206).
"Jesus actually forgives people of their sins. We pointed out earlier that Jesus decides who gets to know the Father (and by implication who does not). Likewise, Jesus decides whose sins are forgiven. It's his call (Acts 5:31; Col. 3:13). Jesus started forgiving people even before his death on the cross. (Think of it as debt resolution in advance based on an imminent payment.) We are not talking here about Jesus forgiving people with whom he had personal grievances. We are referring to Jesus forgiving persons of every sin they had ever committed. The Gospels report at least two separate incidents when this occurred. One of these involved an immoral woman who came to Jesus, crying; she wet his feet with her tears, wiped them with her hair, and anointed his feet with perfume (Luke 7:36-38). The Pharisee who was Jesus' host was offended, but Jesus told him, `Her sins, which were many, have been forgiven; hence she has shown great love. But the one to whom little is forgiven, loves little:' He then said to the woman, `Your sins are forgiven:' The reaction of the others who were there is quite understandable. `Who is this who even forgives sins?' they asked (Luke 7:47-49). On another occasion, four men brought a paralyzed man to Jesus in the hope that Jesus would heal him. The first thing Jesus did was say to the paralyzed man, `Son, your sins are forgiven' (Mark 2:5; similarly Matt. 9:2; Luke 5:20). Some scribes standing by thought what Jesus said was blasphemy; they were saying to themselves, `Who can forgive sins but God alone?' (Mark 2:7; Luke 5:21). Jesus responded by asking them a hypothetical question: `Which is easier, to say to the paralytic, `Your sins are forgiven,' or to say, `Stand up and take your mat and walk'?' (Mark 2:9; cf. Matt. 9:5; Luke 5:23). Hypothetically, it is easier, of course, to forgive someone's sins than to make a paralyzed man walk. Thus, if Jesus has the ability to make the man walk, his claim to have the ability to forgive the man's sins should be accepted. Jesus then backs up his claim: `"But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins"-he said to the paralytic -`I say to you, stand up, take your mat and go to your home"' (Mark 2:10-11; cf Matt. 9:6; Luke 5:24) ... If we compare the early chapters of Mark with Isaiah 40, we see from another perspective that Jesus' claim to forgive sins is a claim to deity. In Isaiah, God announces that Israel's sins have been removed and her chastisement is over (vv. 1-2). Then a voice calls for the way to be cleared for the coming of the Lord (vv. 3-5). His presence is once again going to inhabit the Promised Land, and his people are going to be restored to that land. The `good news' for Jerusalem is that God is coming with might to rule (vv. 9-10). He will begin by gathering his flock and leading them (v. 11). Now look at the opening chapters of the Gospel of Mark. It begins with an announcement of `the good news' (1:1). Mark explicitly quotes Isaiah 40:3 (1:3), which he says is fulfilled in John the Baptist, who preaches forgiveness of sins (vv. 4-6) and announces that the one coming after him is mightier than he (vv. 7-8). Then Jesus shows up, and John baptizes him (vv. 9-11). Jesus goes out into the wilderness and returns, preaching the `good news' of God's kingdom rule (vv. 12-15). He begins by calling people to follow him (vv. 16-20) and starts demonstrating his `authority' by casting out demons, healing the sick, and cleansing the leper (vv. 21-45). It is in this context that Jesus heals the paralyzed man and forgives his sins (2:1-12). His actions are all part of the `program' of the Lord God coming to the land to rule, forgive, restore, and lead his people.'" (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.211-212. Emphasis original)
"Nor did Jesus speak like a prophet. In the Old Testament, prophets did not speak in their own name or treat their own words as the word of God. Instead, when they prophesied, they would generally introduce God's message with a formula such as `thus says the Lord' (over 400 times) or `the word of the Lord came' to such-and-such prophet (about 100 times). Jesus never uses such an introductory formula. Instead, as we have just noted, Jesus typically introduced his comments by saying, `I say to you' (about 145 times). While it is possible for mere humans to use those words in various contexts without implying any exalted claims for themselves, the way Jesus uses them (in deliberate contrast to the most highly respected religious authorities of Jewish tradition) does imply such claims. Moreover, seventy-four or seventy-five times Jesus uses an introductory locution that appears to be unparalleled: `Amen I say to you' (often translated `Truly I say to you'). Jesus' habit of beginning a sentence with the word `Amen' has no precedent in the Old Testament, nor have scholars found any precedent in the rest of ancient Jewish literature. This expression invests what Jesus is about to say with religious authority and assurance even before he says it. Jesus speaks with absolute confidence that what he says-that everything he says-is the absolute truth. `Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will not pass away' (Matt. 24:35; Mark 13:31). No rabbi, no priest, no prophet would ever say `my words' here; they would confidently say that God's words will never pass away, but no pious Jew would dare claim that his words would never pass away. Yet Jesus made such a claim. Isaiah, one of Israel's greatest prophets, said, `The grass withers, the flower fades; but the word of our God will stand forever' (Isa. 40:8). Jesus makes the equivalent claim for his own words. As Ben Witherington points out, `Jesus believed he spoke not merely by inspiration and thus for God, but also with divine power and authority and for himself... No ordinary or even extraordinary person, whether teacher or prophet, spoke this way.' [Witherington, B., III, "The Christology of Jesus," Fortress: Minneapolis, 1990, pp.188-189]" (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, p.215).
"Sitting in the Big Chair (Psalm 110:1) ... Psalm 110:1, in which David says, The LORD [YHWH] says to my Lord ['adoni]: `Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool.' (ESV) The Hebrew makes it clear that by `the LORD' and `my Lord' two different persons are in view. Jesus identified the second person ('my Lord') as the Messiah when he applied the text to himself. Earlier in Mark, Jesus points out something peculiar about this statement. The Jews typically expected the Messiah simply to be a descendant of David who would prove to be the ultimate human warrior-king. Yet David calls the future Messiah his `Lord:' How, Jesus asks, could the Messiah be David's son and also be his Lord (Mark 12:35-37)? Some modern readers of the Bible have suggested that Jesus was here denying that the Messiah would be a descendant of David, but this really misses the point. Jesus is not denying that the Messiah would be a descendant of David but is pointing out that somehow the Messiah would be much more than that. The Messiah would not be a mere Davidic king but would be a universal sovereign, sitting at God's right hand, honored as Lord even by his ancestor David. A careful examination of Psalm 110:1, and Jesus' application of it (in conjunction with Daniel 7:13) to himself, reveals how remarkable Jesus' claim was and why it seemed to the Sanhedrin to be blasphemous. It was one thing to enter God's presence and yet another to sit in it. But to sit at God's right side was another matter altogether. In the religious and cultural milieu of Jesus' day, to claim to sit at God's right hand was tantamount to claiming equality with God. ... For Jesus to claim that he would sit at God's right hand was akin to claiming, in an `Oriental' cultural context, that he would be entitled to have his head as high as that of the king. Jesus, then, was claiming the right to go directly into God's `throne room' and sit at his side. The temerity of such a claim for any mere human would be astonishing to the Jews of Jesus' day. The priests of the Sanhedrin, to whom Jesus made this claim, could not, as a rule, even go into the inner sanctum of the temple, known as the Holy of Holies. Many of them probably had never been inside it. The Holy of Holies could be entered only on a specific day in specific ways by one specific person. Failure to follow the instructions exactly resulted in death. On the Day of Atonement, the high priest entered the Holy of Holies, carrying. the blood of a bull as offering for personal purification and the blood of a ram as offering for atonement for the people. This was followed by a change of garments and ritual washings (Lev. 16). In other words, one entered into God's presence in the temple cautiously. If entrance requirements to the earthly Holy of Holies were so strict, we can imagine what the Sanhedrin priests would have thought about Jesus claiming to have the right to enter God's heavenly presence. After all, the earthly temple was, according to Josephus, viewed as a model of the heavenly one [Josephus Antiquities 3.181-87]. Worse still, though, Jesus was claiming that he was going to enter permanently into the heavenly Holies of Holies and sit down. Jesus might as well have claimed that he owned the place! Indeed, that is what his statement amounted to. As Darrell Bock has put it, Jesus' claim `would be worse, in the leadership's view, than claiming the right to be able to walk into the Holy of Holies in the temple and live there!' [Bock, D.L., "Jesus According to Scripture: Restoring the Portrait from the Gospels," Baker: Grand Rapids, 2002, p.375]" (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.243-245).
"The Heavenly Man (Daniel 7:13) The other Old Testament text to which Jesus alludes is Daniel 7:13-14, in which Daniel says (ESV, emphasis added), `I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed. Jesus' allusion to `the Son of Man ... coming with the clouds of heaven' clearly would have been recognized by his learned interrogators as a reference to Daniel 7:13. Jesus was claiming to be the figure described as `one like a son of man' and to possess his kind of authority. It is often mistakenly assumed that the title `Son of Man' refers simply to Jesus' humanity. It is true that the common phrase `son of man' is another way of saying `human being,' and that when used in this sense in the Old Testament it most often stresses human frailty and dependence (see, e.g., Pss. 8:4; 80:17 NASB; nearly a hundred occurrences in Ezekiel; cf. `sons of men' in Isa. 52:14 NASB). When Daniel 7:13 speaks of `one like a son of man,' however, it is to indicate that this figure has a human appearance or likeness (in contrast to the beasts of Daniel's vision) and yet is not simply or merely human. In this respect, `son of man' is more like the figure of God at the end of Ezekiel 1: `And above the dome over their heads there was something like a throne, in appearance like sapphire; and seated above the likeness of a throne was something that seemed like a human form. Upward from what appeared like the loins I saw something like gleaming amber, something that looked like fire enclosed all around; and downward from what looked like the loins I saw something that looked like fire, and there was a splendor all around. Like the bow in a cloud on a rainy day, such was the appearance of the splendor all around. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD.' (Ezek. 1:26-28, emphasis added) In all likelihood, then, Daniel's description of `one like a son of man' is a symbolic, visionary description of a figure who is actually divine. In Daniel's vision, the humanlike figure possesses all judgment authority and rules over an everlasting kingdom. The notion of frailty and dependence is absent. The description of the figure as coming with the clouds also identifies him as divine, since elsewhere in the Old Testament the imagery of coming on clouds is used exclusively for divine figures: `The image of riding the clouds is reserved for God or as a description of pagan gods in the Old Testament, outside of this text in Daniel (Exod. 14:20; 34:5; Num. 10:34; Ps. 104:3; Isa. 19:1). So the image shows how intimately the function of the Son of Man is tied to divine authority even though the description is of a human. [Bock, D.L., "Jesus According to Scripture: Restoring the Portrait from the Gospels," Baker: Grand Rapids, 2002, pp.345-346] Jesus frequently used the phrase `Son of Man' in conjunction with his messianic role, effectively giving it the force of a title. That Jesus had Daniel's `one like a son of man' in mind when he used this title is evident from other places where he explicitly quotes Daniel 7:13 (e.g., Mark 13:26; see also Mark 8:38). So, when Jesus alluded to Daniel 7:13 and Psalm 110:1 in his response to Caiaphas's question, he was making a staggering claim. Jesus was claiming to be a heavenly, divine figure who would be seated at God's right hand, exercising divine rule forever over all people everywhere. This claim to divine authority creates a great deal of irony in Jesus' hearing before the Sanhedrin. As the Son of Man who sits at God's right hand, Jesus exercises the authority of God. So while the religious leaders thought they sat in judgment over Jesus (and were seeking his death!), Jesus asserted they were actually the ones on trial. The response of the religious leaders to Jesus' statement is not surprising. In their minds, Jesus had committed blasphemy by claiming that he belonged right alongside God. What's more, Jesus undermined the authority of the religious establishment by suggesting that their examination of him was a farce and that in the end he would be judging them. `Not only had Jesus made himself too close to God, he had also created a great, irreversible gap between himself and the leadership.' [Bock, D.L., "Blasphemy and Exaltation in Judaism: The Charge Against Jesus in Mark 14:53-65," Baker: Grand Rapids, 2000, p.209] Indeed, he had claimed to occupy `the highest place in heaven:' [Hengel, M., "Studies in Early Christology," T & T Clark: Edinburgh, 1995, p.155]" (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.245-247).
"Matthew 19:17 reports Jesus' comment as follows: `The good is one' or possibly `One is the good' (heis estin ho agathos). Mark 10:18 and Luke 18:19 read, `No one is good except one: God' (oudeis agathos ei me heis ho theos). Mark and Luke also report Jesus asking, `Why do you call me good?' Jesus was not denying being good; he was pointing out that human beings are not good and therefore, since the young man who approached Jesus regarded him as a merely human `teacher,' he should not have addressed him flatteringly as `good teacher' (Mark 10:17; Luke 18:18). If anything, Jesus' statement in context implies that Jesus is more than human, since Jesus goes on to summon the young man to *follow him* in order to be complete (Matt. 19:18-21; Mark 10:19-21; Luke 18:20-22). Matthew's wording ('Why are you asking me about the good?') does not change the meaning; rather, on the assumption that Matthew's account is based on Mark, it avoids the possible misunderstanding that Jesus was denying being good." (Bowman & Komoszewski, 2007, pp.304-305 n.3).
"[Mk 1:10-11]. This is one of the great `trinitarian' passages of the New Testament. Here the Spirit and the Father both bear witness to the Son. As in the book of Genesis God created by His word and through the Spirit (Gen. 1:2-3), so it was fitting that, at the very commencement of God's new work of re-creation, there would be the same operation of the whole Godhead. Here, on Jordan's banks, God speaks His word again, and again the Spirit is brooding over the waters, as in Genesis (Gn. 1:2). Mark does not say that the Spirit descended on Jesus only at His baptism, however, still less that He only then became the Son of God. Mark is clear that Jesus is already Messiah and God's Son (1:1): what he is describing here is a vision that either Jesus or John had, after the baptism, as a sign confirming the existing reality of the person and status of Jesus. The voice from heaven (11) is a combination of Psalm 2:7, which deals with the Messiah, and Isaiah 42:1, which deals with the suffering Servant. This creative fusion of two concepts is a perfect expression of the double nature of the work of Jesus. The Greek word agapetos, translated beloved, has also the nuance of 'only' when applied to a child, and so was particularly appropriate here. The other word for son in Greek, pais, can mean both son and 'servant', so would have been doubly appropriate when describing Jesus, but although used of Jesus in Matthew (12:18) and Acts (3:13), Mark does not use the word at all, for whatever reason." (Cole, R.A., 1989, "The Gospel According to Mark: An Introduction and Commentary," The Tyndale New Testament commentaries, [1961], Inter-Varsity Press Leicester: UK, Second edition, pp.108-109. Emphasis original).
"61... 'ehad ... one, same, single, first, each, once ... It is closely identified with yahad `to be united' ... It stresses unity while recognizing diversity within that oneness ... Zephaniah's mention of people serving God `with one shoulder' (3:9) likely means `shoulder to shoulder,' solidly united. Likewise in Ex 24:3 `with one voice' expresses that all Israel was involved in entering into the Covenant with Yahweh. The concept of unity is related to the tabernacle, whose curtains are fastened together to form one unit (Ex 26:6, 11; 36:13). Adam and Eve are described as `one flesh' (Gen 2:24), which includes more than sexual unity. In Gen 34:16 the men of Shechem suggest intermarriage with Jacob's children in order to become `one people.' Later, Ezekiel predicted that the fragmented nation of Israel would someday be reunited, as he symbolically joined two sticks (37:17). Once again Judah and Ephraim would be one nation with one king (37:22) ... Diversity within unity is also seen from the fact that 'ehad has a plural form, 'ahadim ... In the famous Shema of Deut 6:4, `Hear, O Israel ... the LORD is one,' the question of diversity within unity has theological implications. Some scholars have felt that, though `one' is singular, the usage of the word allows for the doctrine of the Trinity ... The NT also is strictly monotheistic while at the same time teaching diversity within the unity (Jas 2:19; 1 Cor 8:5-6) ... The lexical and syntactical difficulties of Deut 6:4 can be seen in the many translations offered for it in the NIV. The option `the LORD is our God, the LORD alone' has in its favor both the broad context of the book and the immediate context. Deuteronomy 6:4 serves as an introduction to motivate Israel to keep the command `to love (the LORD)' (v. 5). The notion that the LORD is Israel's only God suits this command admirably ... Zechariah employs the text with this meaning and applies it universally ..: `The LORD will be king over all the earth; in that day the LORD will be (the only) one, and His name (the only) one' (14:9 NASB)." (Harris, R.L., Archer, G.L. & Waltke, B.K., eds, 1980, "Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament," Moody Press: Chicago IL, Twelfth printing, 1992, Vol. I, p.30).
"Christ as the Son of God. The most recent Jehovah-Witness publication in which their view of the person of Christ is set forth and defended is a 64-page booklet published in 1962, entitled `The Word' - Who Is He? According to John. ... The authors claim that the title Son of God .. implied that Christ was ... a person inferior to God the Father ... In proof of this contention the authors adduce Christ's discussion with the Jews who had taken up stones to stone him, recorded in John 10. Though Jesus here said, `I and the Father are one,' the authors contend, he did not claim to be equal to the Father, but rather claimed to be less than God ... Jesus, it is said, here only claimed to be the Son of God; hence the Jews were quite in error when they thought Christ was uttering blasphemy. By way of refutation, it should first be pointed out that, according to John 5:18, the Jews sought to kill Jesus `because not only was he breaking the Sabbath but he was also calling God his own Father, making himself equal to God' (NWT). The Jews, therefore, did not understand the expression Son of God as Jehovah's Witnesses apparently do. For the latter, the term means someone inferior to the Father. By the Jews of Jesus' day, however, the term was interpreted as meaning full equality with the Father, and it was on account of this claim that they sought to kill him. This point becomes quite clear when we compare John 10:33 with 10:36. The former verse reads, `We [the Jews] are stoning you [Jesus], not for a fine work, but for blasphemy, even because you, although being a man, make yourself a god" (NWT) [KJ, ASV, and RSV: `make yourself God.']. The latter passage reads, `Do you say to me whom the Father sanctified and dispatched into the world, "You blaspheme," because I said, I am God's Son?' (NWT). Putting together these two verses (if we translate verse 33 as in the standard versions), we see that Christ's calling himself the Son of God was interpreted by the Jews as a claim to equality with the Father." (Hoekema, A.A., "Jehovah's Witnesses," [1963], Eerdmans: Grand Rapids MI, 1972, Reprinted, 1990, pp.132-134. Emphasis original).
"`I Am' Among the other important features of the Johannine presentation of Jesus is a recurrent form of expression that functions to indicate vividly his transcendent significance, `I am [Ego eimi],' used in a variety of statements. In particular, there are in GJohn [Gospel of John] a number sentences in which `I am' is itself the stated claim, and other sentences in which `I am' is followed by predicates that express Jesus' significance. In the preceding discussion of preexistence I cited John 8:58, one of several instances where Jesus applies the expression `I am' in this absolute form (i.e., without a predicate) to himself. The immediate outraged response of the crowd - they prepare to stone him (8:59) - indicates the enormity of what the expression connotes in the narrative: it is either (as the crowd judges) blasphemy or truly expresses an astonishing claim. Other Johannine instances of this absolute form confirm that it functions as an important christological expression. Note the following examples: `Unless you believe that I am, you will surely die in your sins' (8:24); `When you lift up the son of man, then you will realize that I am' (8:28); `When this [what Jesus has foretold] happens, then you will believe that I am' (13:19). Clearly, in all these cases `I am' itself expresses a vital christological claim that can be perceived, and either believed or rejected, with momentous consequences. Yet, equally, to perceive the claim requires some special knowledge of the significance of this `I am' formulation, for it is as strange-sounding and mysterious in Greek as it is in literal translation. ... Indeed, this use of `I am' is probably influenced by, and alludes to, Old Testament passages where God uses the same sort of self-referential language, particularly passages in Isaiah (e.g., LXX Isa. 43:10, 25; 45:18 for uses of Ego eimi). In fact, in the Old Testament passages the Greek expression, and the Hebrew expressions it translates, appear to function almost like the name of God. So in the story of Jesus walking on the water in John 6:16-20, Jesus' use of the expression (v. 20) both identifies him (in the sense of `It is I') and also probably signals readers that this is an epiphanic scene (the same seems to be the case in the Synoptic versions of this story too, in Mark 6:50/Matt. 14:27). This latter connotation is also suggested dramatically in John 18:5-6, where the soldiers sent to arrest Jesus fall to the ground when he utters the expression. A few examples of this sonorous expression appear in the Synoptic Gospels, and they are also clearly intended to have a connotation beyond mere self-identification. Most importantly, in light of the biblical passages to which the obvious allusions are directed, this absolute use of `I am' in the Gospels amounts to nothing less than designating Jesus with the same special referential formula that is used in the Greek Old Testament for God's own self-declaration. That is, the `I am' expression as used in GJohn reflects the belief that Jesus is in some direct way associated with God. I shall say more on this later in this chapter, but the basic point here is that this appropriation of the `I am' expression reflects a daring christological conviction, and itself constitutes a breathtaking devotional move. In the Isaiah uses to which direct allusion is made in GJohn, `I am' expresses the uniqueness of the God of Israel. The application of this self-designation formula to Jesus can indicate only that those who did this associated him with God `the Father' so closely that he can rightly share in its self-referential usage. The Hebrew expression most often translated into Greek as Ego eimi is 'ani hu' (`I am He,' Isa. 41:4; 43:10; 46:4), and in one case 'ani Yhwh ('I am Yahweh,' e.g., Isa. 45:18). Other relevant biblical expressions are `I am Yahweh/the Lord' (often with further identifying phrasing; e.g., Exod. 20:2; Ezek. 33:29; 36:36; 37:6,13; 39:28; Isa. 44:6, 24). `I am [+ predicate]' statements abound especially in religious texts of the ancient world, but the absolute form, Ego eimi, does not occur in classical Greek literature; it is in fact very difficult to posit any assured uses of the expression in sources prior to (or not influenced by) the New Testament writings except for the uses in the Greek Old Testament such as those cited here (and others, e.g., Deut. 32:39). " (Hurtado, L.W., 2005, "Lord Jesus Christ: Devotion to Jesus in Earliest Christianity," Eerdmans: Grand Rapids MI, pp.370-371).
"Jesus referred to Himself as `Lord of the Sabbath,' a reference to Himself as the creator of the sabbath. In Exodus 31:13, 17 God said, `You shall surely observe My sabbaths; for this is a sign between Me and you... It is a sign between Me and the sons of Israel forever.' For the Jew, Yahweh was both author and Lord of the sabbath. When some Pharisees rebuked Jesus for allowing His disciples to pick grain on the sabbath, thus breaking the law, by `working,' He said that it was all right because he was `Lord of the Sabbath' (Matthew 12:8). As C. S. Lewis says,
Here is another curious remark: In almost every religion there are unpleasant observances like fasting. This Man suddenly remarks one day, `No one need fast while I am here.' Who is this Man who remarks that His mere presence suspends all normal rules? Who is the person who can suddenly tell the school they can have a half holiday? [Lewis, C. S. "What Are We To Make of Jesus Christ?" The Grand Miracle: Essays from God in the Dock. New York: Ballantine, 1983, p. 113]
The Jews who heard Him considered His words blasphemy. Then, that same sabbath day, He went into their synagogue and made a point again of `working,' healing a man, which further infuriated them. That, too, was breaking the sabbath according to their understanding. Incensed at His claiming authority that only God could have, they tried to kill Him (Matthew 12:14). To reiterate, according to Deuteronomy 6:4 and Mark 12:29, there can be only one Lord." (McDowell, J. & Larson, B., 1975, "Jesus: A Biblical Defense of his Deity," Here's Life Publishers: San Bernardino CA, pp.36-37).
"The linking of healing and forgiveness and the general import of Mark 2:10 (`the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins') mean that the reader can always take Jesus' ministry of healing as dealing not only with sickness but also with sin through forgiveness, a point adumbrated in the cleansing of the leper. In this a parabolic dimension of the miracles is revealed. Up to this point, all Jesus' activities in Mark are commensurate with his being a charismatic healer: gathering followers, teaching, casting out demons and healing. But in forgiving sins Jesus' action is without parallel and is outside the scope of the law. Besides, there is nothing known in any Jewish literature of any person, including the Messiah, who can or would be able to forgive sin, except God. Therefore, although Jesus is being portrayed as a healer, he is more than that: in his healing (and forgiving) he is acting for God or, perhaps, even as God." (Twelftree, G.H., 1999, "Jesus the Miracle Worker: A Historical & Theological Study," InterVarsity Press: Downers Grove IL, p.65).
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