Last year there was very long thread (which got a bit out of hand in the
end) on this very issue. Best to check the archives before flooding the
list with postings on this. These passages are difficult to discuss
because presuppositions play a big part in interpretation.
Basically the discussion last year showed that the grammar is ambiguous.
When the grammar is ambiguous then context must decide.
Firstly, the question of whether Jesus is referring to or alluding to
Ex. 3:14 in Jn 8:58 can not be decided by comparing words in the LXX
(EGW EIMI hO WN) and the GNT (EGW EIMI), because neither is the original
language in which it was spoken. All we can really say is that is
possible (IMHO quite probable) that Jn 8:58 is at least alluding to Ex
3:14.
Secondly, looking at the immediate context of John 8:58, when Jesus
uttered those words the Jews wanted to stone Him. Why? It couldn't be
because He said He saw Abraham because He said as much in v. 52 and they
didn't stone him then...
Whether you accept the deity of Christ or not, 2 things are quite
obvious from the context of this passage:
1. Jesus claimed to be God
2. The Jews understood His works to mean exactly that - they took up
stones to stone Him.
cheers,
Andrew
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| Andrew S. Kulikovsky B.App.Sc(Hons) MACS
|
| Software Engineer (CelsiusTech Australia)
| & Theology Student (MA - Pacific College)
| Adelaide, Australia
| ph: +618 8281 0919 fax: +618 8281 6231
| email: killer@cobweb.com.au
|
| Check out my Biblical Hermeneutics web page:
| http://www.geocities.com/Athens/5948/hermeneutics.htm
|
| What's the point of gaining everything this world has
| to offer, if you lose your own life in the end?
|
| ...Look to Jesus Christ
|
| hO IESOUS KURIOS!
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