From: Bill Ross (wross@farmerstel.com)
Date: Thu Dec 23 1999 - 17:29:21 EST
* John's Gospel begins with the following affirmation:
John 1 1 EN ARCH HN O LOGOS KAI O LOGOS HN PROS TON QEON KAI QEOS HN O LOGOS
John 1 2 OUTOS HN EN ARCH PROS TON QEON
These should show us:
* John was writing about a person that "was in the beginning"
* John believed this person was with God (and was God)
* John used the logical, expected, easy to translate word HN to declare His
contemporary being in the past;
John's Gospel has this a few verses later:
John 1 15 IWANNHS MARTUREI PERI AUTOU KAI KEKRAGEN LEGWN OUTOS HN ON EIPON O
OPISW MOU ERCOMENOS EMPROSQEN MOU GEGONEN OTI PRWTOS MOU HN
Here again, John uses "HN" but this time to show that Jesus already was
before John.
But in John 8:58 he breaks from this. Why? I think some are asking us to
accept that this was just a common, natural idiomatic way of saying "I
already was" or "I was appointed" but I think it is because:
* it gives a dramatic, eternal "nowness" that, even in English, has
tremendous beauty and power;
* it alludes to the way YHWH revealed Himself, as the I AM;
* it was true
* it would lead John's readers to believe on Him, which I daresay this verse
does.
Bill Ross
PS. If anyone doubts that John's Logos was also John's Jesus:
43N John 1 4 EN AUTW ZWH HN KAI H ZWH HN TO FWS TWN ANQRWPWN
43N John 1 5 KAI TO FWS EN TH SKOTIA FAINEI KAI H SKOTIA AUTO OU KATELABEN
43N John 1 6 EGENETO ANQRWPOS APESTALMENOS PARA QEOU ONOMA AUTW IWANNHS
43N John 1 7 OUTOS HLQEN EIS MARTURIAN INA MARTURHSH PERI TOU FWTOS INA
PANTES PISTEUSWSIN DI AUTOU
43N John 1 8 OUK HN EKEINOS TO FWS ALL INA MARTURHSH PERI TOU FWTOS
43N John 1 9 HN TO FWS TO ALHQINON O FWTIZEI PANTA ANQRWPON ERCOMENON EIS
TON KOSMON
43N John 1 10 EN TW KOSMW HN KAI O KOSMOS DI AUTOU EGENETO KAI O KOSMOS
AUTON OUK EGNW
43N John 1 11 EIS TA IDIA HLQEN KAI OI IDIOI AUTON OU PARELABON
43N John 1 12 OSOI DE ELABON AUTON EDWKEN AUTOIS EXOUSIAN TEKNA QEOU
GENESQAI TOIS PISTEUOUSIN EIS TO ONOMA AUTOU
43N John 1 13 OI OUK EX AIMATWN OUDE EK QELHMATOS SARKOS OUDE EK QELHMATOS
ANDROS ALL EK QEOU EGENNHQHSAN
43N John 1 14 KAI O LOGOS SARX EGENETO KAI ESKHNWSEN EN HMIN KAI EQEASAMEQA
THN DOXAN AUTOU DOXAN WS MONOGENOUS PARA PATROS PLHRHS CARITOS KAI ALHQEIAS
43N John 1 15 IWANNHS MARTUREI PERI AUTOU KAI KEKRAGEN LEGWN OUTOS HN ON
EIPON O OPISW MOU ERCOMENOS EMPROSQEN MOU GEGONEN OTI PRWTOS MOU HN
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