EGO EIMI : Christ’ Pre-Existence And The Use Of “I AM”
By Bro. Nathan
“Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am.” (Jn. 8:58) KJV
Unitarians, Arians, and other groups repeatedly gives misinterpretation and mistranslations of this verse for the use of Christ of “I AM” (Gr. ἐγὼ εἰμί - ego eimi) to defend his divinity against Jews who question his authority as the Son of God. same does sa mga groups that deny that Jesus is God, they are questioning his divinity and even his pre-existence. some of them say na isa lamang itong statement ng notional pre-existence, i.e nag-exist lang na idea at not as a person; and some say na it shows pre-existence pero si Jesus Christ ay hindi God at hindi si Jehovah ng Old Testament. these interpretations ay mga deliberate na misinterpretations sa text. Jesus Christ existed before he was born and he is divine (Jn. 1:1-14; 17:5-24; Phil. 2:5-11; Heb. 2:7-9) at hindi lamang isang basta-bastang idea or isang human or angel lang.
Firstly, ang backround ng verse na ito is where Jews questions the divinity of Christ and Christ proves to them his divinity as the Son Of God. Jesus said to them na “your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw it, and was glad” (v. 56). even Abraham rejoiced that Jesus Christ came down to earth. Jehovah himself was on earth fulfilling his purpose. disbelieving Jews then asked him “Thou art not yet fifty years old, and hast thou seen Abraham?” (v. 57). Jesus then answered ‘...Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am” (v. 58). Jews there questioned Christ kung paano niya nakita si Abraham kahit na he himself ay wala pang fifty years old while si Abraham ay matagal nang patay. Jesus doesn’t need to be that old to see Abraham, for he already saw Abraham before Abraham came to be. he is the God that Abraham communicated to himself, Jehovah. it is Jesus himself, the “I AM” (Ex. 3:14). you now have there both the pre-existence and the deity of Christ. he is not just an idea or a lesser being at that time.
Secondly, It is further proven that it is Jesus Christ who is the God of the Old Testament that was Abraham saw and rejoiced seeing his day. in Genesis 18 ay there are three men who visited Abraham and showed them hospitability and reverence. one of them said to them na magkakaanak sila (v. 10) and Sarah laughed dahil masyado na silang matanda para magkaanak. the visitor then repeated what he said na magkakaanak sila ni Abraham and said na “Is any thing too hard for the LORD?” (v. 14). the next year, they had a son and named him Isaac which means “laughther”. what God had to them was kept and fulfilled (Gen. 21:1-3) which shows us na it is possible that the birth ni Isaac was the day that Abraham rejoiced. furthermore, one author wrote :
“ What's curious is that the text is not at all clear who or what was this mysterious visitor. The chapter begins by saying the Lord [Yahweh] appeared to Abraham, and looking up he saw three men (Genesis 18:1). After overhearing one of the visitors say that she will give birth, Sarah laughed. In response, the text says, "But the LORD [Yahweh] said to Abraham: 'Why did Sarah laugh . . . Is anything too marvelous for the LORD to do? At the appointed time, about this time next year, I will return to you, and Sarah will have a son" (Genesis 18:13-14). Also, Genesis 18:22 saying, "Then the men turned away from there and went toward Sodom, while Abraham was still standing before the Lord [Yahweh]." But there were three "men" who visited Abraham (Genesis 18:2) and only two angels came to Sodom (Genesis 19:1). Where was the third "man"? Apparently, the third "man" was the one still talking to Abraham, the Lord (Genesis 18:22). Our English translations say "Lord" in Genesis 18, but the Hebrew text gives the divine name YHWH ("I AM WHO AM").
Let's rewind back to our original passage in John 8. Jesus said Abraham "rejoiced to see my day." If this is the day of the miraculous birth of Isaac, then "my day" means the day of the mysterious visitor's return to Abraham and Sarah, who is YHWH ("I AM WHO AM"). If Abraham's visitation was a theophany (an appearance by God) then Jesus' application of the divine name fits perfectly with the whole discussion on Abraham. He visited Abraham. He is "I AM." It also explains why the Jews wanted to stone Jesus. (G. Michuta, Behind the Bible: What The Bible Assumes You Already Know [Livona, Mich.: Nikaria Press, 2017], 169-71)
Thirdly, ang grammar ng John 8:58 sa Koine greek further proves ang deity at pre-existence ni Jesus Christ as opposed to claims ng mga groups who reject it. what the Greek says ay πρὶν Ἀβραὰμ γενέσθαι ἐγὼ εἰμι (prin Abraham genhestai ego eimi - before Abraham was, I Am) and with the construction nito, it shows extension from the past which shows its currently occuring but in the past time. as said by one grammarian ng Koine Greek :
“ Extension from Past. When used with an expression of either past time or extent of time with past implications (but not in past narrative), the present tense signals an activity begun in the past and continuing to present time: Lu 13:7 ιδου τρια ετη αφ ου ερχομαι ζητων καρπον . . . και ουχ ευρισκω, it is now three years since I have been coming looking for fruit . . .and not finding it; Lu 15:29 τοσαυτα ετη δουλευω σοι, I have been slaving for you all these years; Jn 14:9 τοσουτον χρονον μεθ υμων ειμι . . .; have I been with you so long . . .?; Ac 27:33 τεσσαρεσκαιδεκατην σημερον ημεραν προσδοκωντες ασιτοι διατελειτε, today is the fourteenth day you have been continuing on the alert without food; Jn 8:58 πριν Αβρααμ γενεσθαι εγω ειμι, I have been in existence since before Abraham was born. This is a form of the continuation realisation of the imperfective aspect, and similar uses are found with the imperfect tense and with imperfective participles.” (K.L. McKay, A New Syntax of the Verb in New Testament Greek: An Aspectual Approach [Studies in Biblical Greek; New York: Peter Lang, 1994], 41-42.)
Jesus Christ pre-existed and was God at hindi isang created being as some groups claim. he is God and not just human in nature and an angel.
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