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Jesus Christ THE FIRST and THE LAST
This is the strongest evidence from the words of Jesus Christ Himself, that He is YHWH.
In the Book of Revelation, there are at least three references where Jesus says of Himself, that He is “THE FIRST AND THE LAST”:
Revelation 1:17-18
“When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid. I am the First and the Last, and the Living One. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and Hades”
Revelation 2:8
“Write to the angel of the church in Smyrna: “The First and the Last, the One who was dead and came to life, says”
Revelation 22:13
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End”
The words, “egō eimi ho prōtos kai ho eschatos”, mean that Jesus Christ is The Eternal God. The Greek scholar, Dr Joseph Thayer, who was a Unitarian, and denied that Jesus Christ is God, says this of this phrase in his Greek Lexicon
“absolutely (i. e. without a noun) and substantively; α. with the article: ὁ πρῶτος καί ὁ ἔσχατος, i. e. the eternal One, Rev. 1:17; Rev. 2:8; Rev. 22:13”
THE ETERNAL ONE, which can only be used for YHWH.
Even more stronger is what Jesus goes on to say, in Revelation 1:18, “zōn eimi”, which is Periphrastic present active indicative, literally, “I am the Ever-Living One,”, or, “I am the Eternal One”.
In the Greek Old Testament, known as the Septuagint (LXX), translated by Jewish scholars over 100 years before the Birth of Jesus Christ, Exodus 3:14, reads:
“egō eimi ho ōn”, literally, “I am The Eternal One”. The Greek verb “ōn”, meaning, “timeless, continuance present”. This best describes what the Hebrew is saying. The Jewish Greek versions in the 2nd century AD (Aquila and Theodotion), knew the force of what the LXX wrote, and translated the Hebrew as, “εσομαι (ὃς) εσομαι”, which is the future tense of “εἰμί”, which is, “I will be that I will be”.
This is what Jesus says to the Jews in John 8:58, “prin Abraam genesthai egō eimi”, which is literally, “Before Abraham came into existence, I AM”. The Jews clearly understood what Jesus meant here, as referring to Exodus 3:14, as they wanted to stone Him to death for what He said (verse 59), which they thought was blasphemy.
In Acts 3:15, the Apostle Peter says of Jesus Christ;
“and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses” (NKJV)
“Prince” is in the Greek, “archēgon”, which is defined by Dr Thayer:
“the author: τῆς ζωῆς, Act. 3:15”
That is, The One Who Give Life, as John says in his Gospel, “In Him was Life; and the Life was the light of men” (1:4). That is, in the Person of Jesus Christ is The SOURCE of all life”. Instead of “τῆς ζωῆς” (was Life), there is very strong and old evidence for the reading, “ζωὴ ἐστιν” (IS Life), which dates from the 2nd century AD.
The Jewish Encyclopaedia, has some very interesting comments on the Name YHWH:
“The meaning would, therefore, be "He who is self-existing, self-sufficient," or, more concretely, "He who lives," the abstract conception of pure existence being foreign to Hebrew thought. There is no doubt that the idea of life was intimately connected with the name Yhwh from early times. He is the living God, as contrasted with the lifeless gods of the heathen, and He is the source and author of life (comp. I Kings xviii.; Isa. xli. 26-29, xliv. 6-20; Jer. x. 10, 14; Gen. ii. 7; etc.)”
In the Hebrew and English Lexicon, by F Brown, S R Driver and C A Briggs, we read of "Yahweh, the proper name of the God of Israel...the one bringing into being, life-giver, giver of existence, creator, he who brings to pass...he who causes...the one who is: i.e. the absolute and unchangeable one, the existing, ever-living" (pages 217-218)
What Jesus Christ says of Himself in the Book of Revelation, is also said of YHWH in the Prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah 41:4
“Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, Yahweh, am the first, and with the last—I am He.”
Isaiah 44:6
“This is what Yahweh, the King of Israel and its Redeemer, Yahweh of Hosts, says: I am the first and I am the last. There is no God but Me”
Isaiah 48:12
“Listen to Me, Jacob, and Israel, the one called by Me: I am He; I am the first, I am also the last”
From verse 16, the last reference is Spoken by Jesus Christ, Who says that Another Person, Who is distinct from Himself, “Yah·weh ’ă·ḏō·nāy”, has Sent Himself and His Spirit. This Person can only be God the Father.
We read of Jesus’ own words in Revelation 22:13, which are also used in 21:5-7:
“And He who sits on the Throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true." Then He said to me, "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. "He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My child”
It is very clear from the passages in Revelation and Isaiah, that there are TWO distinct Persons Who are EQUALLY YHWH, The Father and Jesus Christ. Anyone who still says that Jesus Christ is “inferior” to the Father, is clearly contradicting what is very clearly taught in the Inspired, Infallible, Word of God!
This is the strongest evidence from the words of Jesus Christ Himself, that He is YHWH.
In the Book of Revelation, there are at least three references where Jesus says of Himself, that He is “THE FIRST AND THE LAST”:
Revelation 1:17-18
“When I saw him, I fell at his feet like a dead man. He laid his right hand on me and said, “Don’t be afraid. I am the First and the Last, and the Living One. I was dead, but look—I am alive forever and ever, and I hold the keys of death and Hades”
Revelation 2:8
“Write to the angel of the church in Smyrna: “The First and the Last, the One who was dead and came to life, says”
Revelation 22:13
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End”
The words, “egō eimi ho prōtos kai ho eschatos”, mean that Jesus Christ is The Eternal God. The Greek scholar, Dr Joseph Thayer, who was a Unitarian, and denied that Jesus Christ is God, says this of this phrase in his Greek Lexicon
“absolutely (i. e. without a noun) and substantively; α. with the article: ὁ πρῶτος καί ὁ ἔσχατος, i. e. the eternal One, Rev. 1:17; Rev. 2:8; Rev. 22:13”
THE ETERNAL ONE, which can only be used for YHWH.
Even more stronger is what Jesus goes on to say, in Revelation 1:18, “zōn eimi”, which is Periphrastic present active indicative, literally, “I am the Ever-Living One,”, or, “I am the Eternal One”.
In the Greek Old Testament, known as the Septuagint (LXX), translated by Jewish scholars over 100 years before the Birth of Jesus Christ, Exodus 3:14, reads:
“egō eimi ho ōn”, literally, “I am The Eternal One”. The Greek verb “ōn”, meaning, “timeless, continuance present”. This best describes what the Hebrew is saying. The Jewish Greek versions in the 2nd century AD (Aquila and Theodotion), knew the force of what the LXX wrote, and translated the Hebrew as, “εσομαι (ὃς) εσομαι”, which is the future tense of “εἰμί”, which is, “I will be that I will be”.
This is what Jesus says to the Jews in John 8:58, “prin Abraam genesthai egō eimi”, which is literally, “Before Abraham came into existence, I AM”. The Jews clearly understood what Jesus meant here, as referring to Exodus 3:14, as they wanted to stone Him to death for what He said (verse 59), which they thought was blasphemy.
In Acts 3:15, the Apostle Peter says of Jesus Christ;
“and killed the Prince of life, whom God raised from the dead, of which we are witnesses” (NKJV)
“Prince” is in the Greek, “archēgon”, which is defined by Dr Thayer:
“the author: τῆς ζωῆς, Act. 3:15”
That is, The One Who Give Life, as John says in his Gospel, “In Him was Life; and the Life was the light of men” (1:4). That is, in the Person of Jesus Christ is The SOURCE of all life”. Instead of “τῆς ζωῆς” (was Life), there is very strong and old evidence for the reading, “ζωὴ ἐστιν” (IS Life), which dates from the 2nd century AD.
The Jewish Encyclopaedia, has some very interesting comments on the Name YHWH:
“The meaning would, therefore, be "He who is self-existing, self-sufficient," or, more concretely, "He who lives," the abstract conception of pure existence being foreign to Hebrew thought. There is no doubt that the idea of life was intimately connected with the name Yhwh from early times. He is the living God, as contrasted with the lifeless gods of the heathen, and He is the source and author of life (comp. I Kings xviii.; Isa. xli. 26-29, xliv. 6-20; Jer. x. 10, 14; Gen. ii. 7; etc.)”
In the Hebrew and English Lexicon, by F Brown, S R Driver and C A Briggs, we read of "Yahweh, the proper name of the God of Israel...the one bringing into being, life-giver, giver of existence, creator, he who brings to pass...he who causes...the one who is: i.e. the absolute and unchangeable one, the existing, ever-living" (pages 217-218)
What Jesus Christ says of Himself in the Book of Revelation, is also said of YHWH in the Prophet Isaiah.
Isaiah 41:4
“Who has performed and done this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, Yahweh, am the first, and with the last—I am He.”
Isaiah 44:6
“This is what Yahweh, the King of Israel and its Redeemer, Yahweh of Hosts, says: I am the first and I am the last. There is no God but Me”
Isaiah 48:12
“Listen to Me, Jacob, and Israel, the one called by Me: I am He; I am the first, I am also the last”
From verse 16, the last reference is Spoken by Jesus Christ, Who says that Another Person, Who is distinct from Himself, “Yah·weh ’ă·ḏō·nāy”, has Sent Himself and His Spirit. This Person can only be God the Father.
We read of Jesus’ own words in Revelation 22:13, which are also used in 21:5-7:
“And He who sits on the Throne said, "Behold, I am making all things new." And He said, "Write, for these words are faithful and true." Then He said to me, "It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give to the one who thirsts from the spring of the water of life without cost. "He who overcomes will inherit these things, and I will be his God and he will be My child”
It is very clear from the passages in Revelation and Isaiah, that there are TWO distinct Persons Who are EQUALLY YHWH, The Father and Jesus Christ. Anyone who still says that Jesus Christ is “inferior” to the Father, is clearly contradicting what is very clearly taught in the Inspired, Infallible, Word of God!
