Pop Quiz: Did Jesus Say He Was God?
What would you say if someone asked you, “Did Jesus say He was God?” In this post, I’ll give you a few talking points that you can use to give a thoughtful response to a question like this. But first, let me tell you a little story.
I was looking for more chips.
One day, I was at this family reunion at my in-laws’ place when a relative decided to engage me in a religious conversation. Now you have to understand that I usually don’t go looking for these kinds of discussions at parties. What I was looking for was more potato chips. Why? So I could try some of this homemade blue cheese dip–a secret family recipe!
So anyway, this woman cornered me and started talking about how Jesus never claimed to be God. In fact, she grabbed my Bible off the table, held it up as a visual aid, and said, “According to this, Jesus never claimed to be God.”
As a World Religions professor at a couple of universities, I hear this challenge a lot. The popular concept is that Jesus of Nazareth never said He was divine or never claimed to be the Son of God. But what about this? Did Jesus really say He was God? What does the historical evidence actually show?
Did Jesus really say He was God?
That’s exactly how Jesus’ original audience seemed to take it when He said, “I and the Father are one.” In fact, the Jews were ready to kill Him right there! Why? “Because you,” they said, “a mere man, claim to be God” (John 10:33).
Exodus 3:14 "Say to the Israelites, 'I AM' has sent me..."
On another occasion, He used the personal name of Israel’s God–the name revealed to Moses (Exodus 3:14)–to refer to Himself. And He even used the Torah for context, so no one would misunderstand Him: “Before Abraham was, I AM” (John 8:58). This would be about wild as telling a Muslim, “I am your God, Allah.” Don’t try that in Saudi Arabia! It’s no wonder the Jews tried to stone Him to death. That was the exact penalty for blasphemy under the Jewish legal system. It was pretty clear to everyone there that He was saying, “I am Israel’s God.”
So did Jesus say He was God? Yeah. Did He use the exact words “I am God?” We don’t read a direct quote like that in Scripture, but here’s the thing: Jesus didn’t have to say the exact words “I am God,” in order to claim to be divine. But why is this a problem?
I don’t have to say the exact words, “I am married” to indicate that I’m married. I can say “I’m her husband,” or “this is my wife,” or “It’s our 12th wedding anniversary.” The question is, what did the people who were actually a part of conversation think about what Jesus said?
So Why Don’t People Get It?
Honestly, some never look into it. They believe whatever they hear about Christianity in pop culture. Others never look into it honestly. But some will actually be open-minded and give the Bible a fair hearing. Why don’t some of these people get it right away?
Jesus claimed to be God in ways that were pretty clear to the people He was talking to. Our problem as 21st century readers, is that we might not easily get what some of Jesus’ sayings actually meant to the people who were part of the conversation. For example, Jesus also claimed to be divine when He said He was the ”Son of Man.” I’ll admit that the first time I heard this title, I thought it was kind of like Muhammad saying, “I am but a man like you” (Qur’an 41:6)—Now there’s a religious figure who never claimed to be God! But this isn’t what Jesus meant at all. Let’s take a look at the term, “Son of Man.”
Jesus claimed to be the Son of Man
“Son of Man” seems to be Jesus’ favorite thing to call Himself–He uses it 80 times in the New Testament Gospels. Interestingly, it’s only used 1 time outside the gospels (Acts 7:56). So this probably wasn’t something the church made up. How many modern worship songs can you think of that use the term, “Son of Man?” We know this title didn’t emerge later on in history and it wasn’t written back into the earlier traditions about Jesus. But why is this title important? Because it’s referring to a figure that Jews recognized as divine. Here’s what the Jewish prophet Daniel wrote (7:13-14):
In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
Here’s the point: The “Son of Man” in Daniel’s vision is rightful heir to the divine throne. According to the prophecy, He’ll rule forever. Nations will worship Him and His kingdom will be unstoppable.
Jesus claimed to be the Divine Messiah
Back to my family get-together. I asked the lady where she heard that Jesus never claimed to be God. I let her talk and explain her ideas. Then, I gently took my Bible back from her and asked, “Could you read this for me?” I turned to Jesus’ trial, as recorded by Mark (14:60-64). She read the record of Jesus’ cross-examination:
Again the high priest asked him, “Are you the Messiah, the Son of the Blessed One?” “I am,” said Jesus. “And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Mighty One and coming on the clouds of heaven.” The high priest tore his clothes. “Why do we need any more witnesses?” he asked. “You have heard the blasphemy. What do you think?” They all condemned him as worthy of death. (63-64).
Jesus publicly claimed to be the Messiah. He claimed to be the Son of God. He even used the divine name in His answer: “I AM.” Now, at the very least, Jesus answered, “Yeah, I’m the Messiah. I’m the Son of God.” At that point, the High Priest probably thought something like, “Gotcha!”
Did Jesus Say He Was God?
But then, Jesus follows up with, “I’m also the Son of Man. And you’ll see me seated at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven.” That’s when people freaked. Why? Because Jesus basically said, ”You know that guy in Daniel’s vision? That’s Me.”
The high priest didn’t misunderstand Him for a second. His response was essentially, “Yikes! You just said you’re God and everyone should worship you!” No ambiguity there. But this just expressed what Jesus already seemed to assume by walking around and doing the things He did. Things like claiming to forgive sins (Mark 2:5-11, Luke 5:20-24). He certainly didn’t object when people worshiped Him or called Him God (John 20:28-29).
Jesus said He was God
If you’re willing to look at the historical record, you’ll find that there’s a reasonable explanation for the early Christian belief that Jesus was divine: Jesus Himself said He was God. Even people who hated Jesus attest to the fact that this is what He said about Himself.
So if anyone ever asks you, “Did Jesus Say He Was God?” You can confidently say, “Yes.” Just be ready to mention at least a couple of these talking points. It doesn’t hurt to memorize at least a couple of the Scripture references, too. Try it!
But what happened at my little family get-together? The woman decided to change the topic and drop it. I don’t think she’d ever seen these reports in the Bible before. I almost felt bad for her and just let it go. After all, this was a casual family reunion and I think she got the point.
I went back to look for more chips. And I finally got to that blue cheese dip, too.
Your Turn
Has anyone ever surprised you with a challenge to the truth of an essential Christian belief when you least expected it? How easy was it to respond? Would you respond differently if you could re-live that encounter?
Header Painting: Christ Before Caiaphas by Duccio di Buoninsegna (1308-1311). Available: http://www.lib-art.com/artgallery/9373-christ-before-caiaphas-duccio-di-buoninsegna.html.
Square Painting: Christ Before the High Priest by Gerrit Van Honthorst (About 1617). Available: http://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/paintings/gerrit-van-honthorst-christ-before-the-high-priest
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My sister, part of the Way International, believes the lie that Jesus is not God. She also spreads the message as a teacher. The organization of false teachers also puts out publication and insists all readers (followers) to know their teachings and be ready to refute anyone.
The book is called “Jesus Christ is not God”
I cannot have a conversation with my sister, nor can my family.
Am I pained by this? Yes
yes john 8;58 I am who Iam
John 14:8-11
The disciples also asked if they could see the Father and Jesus basically said they already have because they’ve seen Jesus. Of course Jesus is God, hes part of the trinity!
I can’t say I’ve not answered something when presented a question, but I hope that doesnt happen!
BTW, I found your blog via google blog search and am going to follow you! Great blog! I blog on some of the same topics at lostblogger.com I hope you consider following me as well!
This very question caused me to write a book about it. So often in our western culture the media and certain scholars frame the arguments and questions, but they really do not want the answer. Jesus plainly stated He is God many times. In my book, I show that just in the book of John Jesus states this over and over again. He also demonstrates that He has the power of deity as another proof.
You can read more about it on Amazon.com: The Search for the Biblical Jesus
Thanks for the comment, Jon. Will definitely check out your book!
Jon, thanks for letting me know how you found the blog. that’s helpful to know. Will check your blog out right now!
Nathan, I just checked out your blog and I think it’s pretty cool that you do the site for Buckle. I’ve seen your work (although I can’t afford to shop there)! Thanks again for stopping by. :-)
“That’s exactly how Jesus’ original audience seemed to take it when He said, “I and the Father are one.” In fact, the Jews were ready to kill Him right there! Why? “Because you,” they said, “a mere man, claim to be God” (John 10:33).”
But you leave out the rest of the chapter where Jesus explains what he meant! The Jews were mistaken. He quotes Psalms 82 where children of God are called “gods” and then Jesus explains that everyone who knows the word of God is a child of God. Jesus even says, in verse 36, “Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son’?” This is why context is key.
“On another occasion, He used the personal name of Israel’s God–the name revealed to Moses (Exodus 3:14)–to refer to Himself.”
Firstly, “ego eimi ho on” is not a name, it’s a statement. Secondly, John 8:58 uses a different variant, leaving out the predicate “ho on”.Thirdly, this statement is, again, taken out of context. Jesus was not saying he was God. How do I know he wasn’t? Because he says just that in verse 50. What he is actually saying is that he is the Messiah, the one Abraham was looking forward to. That is why they tried to stone him and that’s why they ended up crucifying him. The charged him of claiming to be the “son of God” not God himself.
“Jesus didn’t have to say the exact words “I am God,” in order to claim to be divine. But why is this a problem?”
It’s a problem because not only does he not explicitly claim to be God, he constantly points out that he is distinct from and subservient to God. There are hundreds of verses where Jesus makes it clear that he is only doing God’s work and delivering God’s message; he makes it painfully clear that he is not the author of his message, only the messenger.
“We know this title didn’t emerge later on in history and it wasn’t written back into the earlier traditions about Jesus. But why is this title important? Because it’s referring to a figure that Jews recognized as divine. Here’s what the Jewish prophet Daniel wrote (11:13-14):”
Firstly, I just want to point out that the verses quoted come from Daniel 7, not Daniel 11. Secondly, the term Daniel used is “bar enash” which means human being, not son of man.
One should also point out that Daniel never equated this person with God. Thirdly, you need to read the rest of the chapter where Daniel interprets his dream. Pay close attention to verse 27. This is a prophecy about Israel.
“The high priest didn’t misunderstand Him for a second. His response was essentially, “Yikes! You just said you’re God and everyone should worship you!””
NO! He never says that at all! Jesus is accused of claiming to be “the son of God” not God himself. Huge difference! This is outright dishonesty, sir.
Nathaniel, thanks for catching the chapter reference in my original post. Maybe I was thinking I needed to go to 7-11! Hey, what’s your background in the biblical languages and 1st century Judaism? Are you suggesting the Christian church has misinterpreted Jesus’ teaching? Still interested in knowing if you have a blog and what you believe.
Nathaniel, if you’d argue against the biblical representation of Christ’s deity (against 2,000 years of scrutiny), you’re straining at gnats above. The case is quite extensive. If you have time, take a look at Putting Jesus in His Place by Bowman and Komoszeski.
If I read you correctly, Nathaniel, you think John has Jesus making this statement twice.
First, Jesus clearly said that Abraham was looking forward to Jesus’ coming in verse 56: “Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.” That’s pretty straight forward.
But in order to avoid Jesus claiming pre-existence or anything that might imply divinity, you have Jesus saying this same thing again in a very different and quite cryptic way in verse 58, after the Jews challenged him as to whether he had seen Abraham: “Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.”
It’s bizarre to see this as a reiteration of the same claim twice. On the contrary – as you say, context is key here. Jesus’ statement in verse 58 is clearly meant as an answer to the Jews’ challenge: “You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?” Once we realise that this – in context – is what Jesus is responding to, it becomes clear. They doubt that he could have seen Abraham because he’s not even 50, but Jesus says that actually, he has been around since even before Abraham’s time.
So if we look at the context, this is not merely a claim that he is the one Abraham was looking forward to (although that is stated in verse 56, as noted earlier). Here John has Jesus using the declaration that God gave Moses, and applying it to himself to point out that he has been since even before Abraham’s time.
There may be a legitimate question as to whether there’s a clear link here to God’s declaration to be the I AM (although I think the link is very plausible), but it is not legitimate to brush this all off as a mere reference to Abraham’s Messianic hope.
Nathaniel,
First of all, saying Mikel is dishonest won’t get us anywhere. As I point out some problems with your points here, I am not going to say you are dishonest. I am going to say I just think you are mistaken about some issues.
There are some good reasons as to why Jesus would never say “I am God.” The Hebrew Bible forbids worshiping anyone other than the God of Israel (Ex. 20:1–5; Deut. 5:6–9). And for Jesus to ever say something so explicit would insinuate that he was calling upon his audience to believe in two “Gods”- the God of Israel and Jesus. Also, for Gentiles, such a claim would allow for Jesus to fit nicely into their polytheism (the belief in many gods).
First, the Psalm 82 quote in John 10: Jesus is using a case of “qal vaomer”- a method of reasoning that appears throughout the Tannaitic literature, the Tosefta, the Mekilta,etc. It is a “how- much- more” argument that says if Scripture as God’s word is called Israel (or other humans or others besides the true God), gods on their interpretation, how could they protest if Jesus called himself God’s son, a lesser claim? Jewish tradition applied “sons of God” language in a variety of manners. But Jesus is more than a “son” simply in a sense of being an Israelite or even a “messiah” (notice the little “m”)- see Craig Kenner, The Gospel of John, A Commentary, pgs 828-830.
@Mikel
Well, I’m still a little too young to have any credentials myself, but my parents are both reverends. My father is a Hebrew scholar and my uncle is a Greek scholar if any of that counts, which I know it doesn’t. And no, I don’t have a blog either.
@Peter Grice
The topic at hand is whether Jesus claimed to be God, not whether the Bible claimed Jesus to be God. All I have to do is read John 1 to see that. I’d like it if we could have a discussion rather than just dropping the names of books at people.
@Glenn
I’m not saying that Jesus is making the same statement twice. I’m saying he’s taking the implications of his original statement to a greater degree. First he says “I am the one Abraham was looking forward to”.Then he says “even before Abraham was born, I was God’s plan for the salvation of Israel”. If he was saying “I existed before Abraham was even born” the verb used would have been “ego en”.
@Eric
I wasn’t calling Mikel dishonest.I was calling the idea that the high priest was accusing Jesus of claiming to be God dishonest because it is. That’s not stated nor implied in the text at hand.
“There are some good reasons as to why Jesus would never say “I am God.”
The real question is, are there good reasons why a man who is, in fact, God would claim to be subservient to God?
Nathaniel, you said: “The topic at hand is whether Jesus claimed to be God, not whether the Bible claimed Jesus to be God. All I have to do is read John 1 to see that.”
Actually you are quite mistaken about that. If you think you simply need to read a particular ancient text in order to understand it, you’re violating sound hermeneutics and historiography. You need to understand the parameters for what constitutes equating oneself with God in a millieu where implying that would be to sign your death warrant. And for that you need to do the hard work of scholarship, which includes being intimate with all the relevant portions of the Hebrew “Bible.” If you’re unwilling to acknowledge (much less investigate) a proper book-length treatment, let’s not pretend it can be funneled into blog comments…
@Peter
“Actually you are quite mistaken about that”
John 1 doesn’t equate Jesus with God? That’s news to me.
Peter, this isn’t a complicated issue, certainly not a book-length topic. Do the Gospels ever record Jesus claiming to be God or not? Hoop-jumping shouldn’t be necessary. Just accusing me of ignorance and lack of interpretation skills isn’t an argument, let alone a discussion. If you have any actual content to post, please grace us with your wisdom oh mighty scholar.
Nathaniel, please watch your tone. No need to be snarky or sarcastic. Disagreement is fine, but let us be respectful of people that we disagree with.
Nathaniel, it’s not an overly complicated issue, however if you seek to understand the range of implications for any statement or act of any person in a similar ancient context, you are going to need nuance and background knowledge. Instead, it seems you would prefer to read Jesus’ words for what you imagine him to have meant, which is your prerogative, but hardly the high standard your dad and uncle are calling you to. Scholarship is to be commended, not mocked.
You might take time to reconsider how I framed my initial comment. I simply said, if you would argue against the biblical representation of Christ’s deity, then I would offer what I offered. Are you sure you are a careful interpreter?
Mikel, what’s going on with the “Good Without God” comments? I still can’t post there.
Not sure, Eric. Thanks for letting me know. I just disabled the CAPTCHA plugin and reinstalled it. Seems to have helped with all the other posts. Let me look into it.
@Peter
Did Jesus claim to be God?
Nathaniel, of course he did. As Mikel pointed out, one does not need to provide a direct, explicit verbal statement in order to make a claim. Picking up his metaphor, I could claim to be married merely by wearing my wedding ring. The fact that there may be other explanations (such as being widowed) does not undermine this general rule of interpretation. As it happens, it would be accurate in my case even though I have not stated it.
Not only was a more indirect approach conducive to Jesus delaying the charge of blasphemy, it was also standard rabbinic methodology. Oftentimes Jesus intentionally spoke in veiled terms (see Matt 13:10-15), and disclosed some things only to some people, at a time of his choosing. In fact he endorsed Peter’s confession about his unique identity as “Son of God,” with my sole point being that this was at this point a special disclosure, not something Jesus went around routinely stating. It’s abundantly clear that Jesus was sometimes circumspect and strategic about what he said. Pronouncing on the issue is simply not credible without having first entered into that dynamic, and the background of Jewish scripture, which is my main point above about hermeneutics and history.
I’m content to let that observation rest, and don’t intend to be drawn into protracted discussion here when I am both short on time, and have already suggested that the sincere, more rigorous and higher-level question is whether Jesus is in fact divine. His statements do not exclude that in the least, as you suggest. I will simply note in closing how your analysis of “Son of Man” leaves much to be desired. To suggest that “bar enash” would be better translated “human being” and not not “son of man” in Daniel 7 is hubristic, in light of established scholarship. This is an exceptional term for “man,” where “adam” would have been expected if it were generic as in Ezekiel. The text portrays this figure as being in heavenly company. Son of Man certainly indicates a human form, as Messiah was understood to be, but it does not reduce to human being in every sense. The text does not say that he is human, only that in the vision, this being was “like” a “bar enash.” This appellation, moreover, as distinct from “bar adam,” has the connotation in ANE literature of being heir to a royal throne. What is shared with this figure in Daniel 7 is peculiar and unprecedented in the Jewish consciousness, in light of all the entailments of its strident monotheism regarding worship and glory (which God does not share with any other). At the very least, this heavenly man is located in closest proximity to God (within His “presence”), beyond the realm of mere angelic servants: something echoed by his claim to be seated at God’s right hand. Even at face value that is stratospheric, but the thing that pushes it into divinity, into claiming “to be God,” is both the polarization of the question (John 10:33), and how Jesus interpreted it (accurately, in light of monotheism, where there can be no literal separate divine offspring, which would be duo-theism). To be “God’s Son,” to be “the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world,” (John 10:36) entails exactly that “I and the Father are one” (v30) and “the Father is in me, and I in the Father.” (v38). You cannot diffuse the full force of this by appealing to v34-36, because it is clear there is a paralellism there, and two different senses of the concept of being called god/God. He is not saying, “You misunderstand, I’m only god in quotation marks, just like some other mere mortals,” he’s saying, “Here’s why you can’t argue from Scripture that I should be executed.” This may have been a technical loophole regarding blasphemy, but since Jesus then boldly reiterated that he was actually unique and “the Father is in me, and I in the Father,” it didn’t get them off his case. Being threatened with immediate, painful death hastens one to clarify any misunderstanding. Did Jesus take that opportunity? Did he say he didn’t mean to imply that he was literally “one” with God and that he and God were “in” each other? Not just the Father in him, but he *in* God?!! On the contrary, he rubbed it in.
@Peter Thanks for taking the time to compose this response. Any honest seeker of truth would do well to investigate the points you mentioned.
@Nathaniel Here’s a further resource for you, suggested by Eric via e-mail. This list includes references to both implicit and explicit claims Jesus made about Himself. If you’re really interested in getting to the bottom of this, consider studying the relevant passages as a collective whole before reaching a conclusion (your father and uncle may have access to scholarly commentaries as well). http://www.rim.org/muslim/JesusisGod.htm
In the end, I’m pretty confident that Jesus claimed to be God. I’m open to hearing why you hold your view, but as I consider the reasons presented, I usually ask myself, “Why should I believe a thing like that?”
Test. Seeing if the system is preventing me from making multiple comments.
Mikel/Eric, I have fround that the first CAPTCHA didn’t work, and I had to (first save my entered text and then) reload the page for a new CAPTCHA. I suspect this is because there is a timeout that occurs while I compose my text. I only just noticed the icon to refresh the CAPTCHA – haven’t tried that.
@Peter: That doesn’t help in my case. To be specific, I will type my comment, type the CAPTCHA code, then submit. The page will refresh, but my comment will not be there. If I try and paste the same comment I just typed and submit that again, the system will give me an error, saying that I already typed that! So it’s as if the comment system remembers that I typed it, but won’t display it.
@Peter
I’ll concede your Daniel interpretation because I don’t think it’s significant. But if you interpret “I am in my Father and my Father is in me” as Jesus’ claim of being God, how do you interpret John 14 where Jesus says the same for his disciples?