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Proving that Jesus is God from Old Testament Scripture

[This article is also available in Urdu.]

When reading the New Testament it seems so obvious at times that Jesus is God and equal with the Father,[1] but in other passages Jesus’ full divinity is more ambiguous.  I believe that by comparing certain Old Testament verses with corresponding New Testament verses, Jesus’ full divinity can be conclusively proven.  The key to this is recognising God’s Name in Scripture.

There is only one true, supreme God – the  God of the Bible; and his Name is YHWH.  YHWH is usually transliterated as LORD (all capital letters) in English translations of the Old Testament.   Most good Bible verions explain this transliteration in their preface. Check it out.

Out of reverence for the holiness of God, the Jews stopped saying God’s Name a couple of hundred years BC,[2] so the correct pronunciation of YHWH is uncertain.  The Hebrew language does not contain vowels, but we can ascertain that the first syllable of God’s Name is probably pronounced “Yah” because it is found in the word Hallelujah (or Halleluyah).  Hallelujah means “Praise the LORD” or, more correctly, ”Praise Yahweh”.[3]

Yahweh (YHWH) means: “I Am who I Am.”  God explained his Name to Moses during the burning bush encounter when God commissioned Moses to free Israel from Egyptian bondage (Exodus 3:13-15.)  God’s Name, the “I Am”, gives a sense of the enigmatic, transcendent and eternal nature of God. (Cf Revelation 1:8) [scroll down]

Three infinite and eternal persons belong to this Godhead called Yahweh: (1) the Father, (2) the Son, Jesus Christ, and (3) the Holy Spirit. These three persons are bound closely together in unity of power and purpose and are often referred to as the Trinity.  Yahweh is one God made up of three persons. [4]

The fact that Jesus Christ is Yahweh can be determined by comparing the following Old Testament verses with the corresponding New Testament verses.

Isaiah 40:3 speaks about preparing the way for the LORD (Yahweh).  When we compare this verse with Mark 1:3 we readily see that Jesus is the LORD who had the way prepared for him by John the Baptist.

In Joel 2:32a it says that whoever calls upon the Name of the LORD (Yahweh) will be saved.  This verse is quoted by Peter in Acts 2:21, and by Paul in Romans 10:13.  Both apostles are clearly referring to Jesus as the LORD.

In Isaiah 6:1-10 we read about the marvelous vision that Isaiah had revealing the glory of the LORD (Yahweh).  John tells us, in John 12:40-41, that this vision revealed the glory of Jesus.

In Isaiah 44:6, Yahweh refers to himself as “the First and the Last”.  In Revelation 1:8 and 17, Jesus similarly refers to himself as “the Alpha and the Omega” and “the First and the Last”.

In Zechariah 12:10 the LORD (Yahweh) is speaking and says that, “they will look on Me whom they have pierced.”[5] This is obviously Jesus speaking (Psalm 22:16; John 19:34).  This passage from Zechariah appears again in Revelation 1:7b and is clearly about Jesus Christ.

As Yahweh, along with the Father and the Holy Spirit, Jesus is eternal, having all the qualities and attributes of God.  Even on earth, in human form, Jesus was the image of the invisible God; the exact representation of God’s nature (Colossians 1:15; Hebrews 1:3).  Jesus is not some sort of demi-god but in him dwells the fullness of deity (“God-ness”) in bodily form (Colossians 2:9).  Jesus Christ, born of the virgin Mary, was fully man and fully God, having both a human and divine nature at the same time.

As eternal God, Jesus Christ existed before he came to earth as a human baby.  He existed before the creation of the earth.  In fact, Jesus was instrumental in its creation.  The Bible says that all things were created by Him, and that nothing was made without Him (John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:16-17; Hebrews 1:2).   Jesus is not a created being himself.

The Scriptures teach us that there is only one God and we are commanded that we should worship no other gods beside Him (Exodus 20:3).  Yet from Scripture we can see that Jesus Christ is worshipped eternally, further proving his deity and place in the Godhead (Philippians 2:10-11; Revelation 5:9-14).

As wonderful as Yahweh’s Name is,[6] there is a name which has even greater significance and importance:

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him a name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus  every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord to the glory of God the Father.  Philippians 2:9-11.

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Endnotes

[1] Jesus’ disciples, those closest to him, testified that Jesus is God: Paul calls Jesus the great God and Saviour in Titus 2:13; Peter writes our God and Saviour, Jesus Christ in 2 Peter 1:1; Thomas addresses Jesus as My Lord and my God! in John 20:28; and  John called the Word/Jesus, God in John 1:1.

[2] King David had no problem with declaring the Name of God.  In the first and ninth verse of Psalm 8 he says (sings), “O Yahweh, our Lord, how majestic is your Name in all the earth!”

[3] “Jehovah” was another way of saying God’s Name and appeared in old English translations of the Old Testament;but this pronunciation has fallen out of favour because it is now considered inaccurate.

[4] The Jehovah’s Witnesses and Seventh Day Adventists believe that only God the Father is Yaweh (or Jehovah).  The Mormon’s believe that only Jesus is Yahweh.  Most Christian theologians believe that God – Yahweh, is made up of three persons – the Trinity: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

[5] Some paraphrases, such as the Good News Bible and the Living Bible, do not translate this verse accurately.

[6] O LORD (Yahweh), our Lord (Adonai), how majestic is your Name in all the earth!  Psalm 8:1 & 9

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Tags: Christology, God's Name, Jehovah, Jesus is God, Jesus' deity, Jesus' divinity, Trinity, Yahweh, YHWH

This entry was posted on Friday, July 17th, 2009 at 6:58 pm and is filed under Christian Theology, Christology. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.