I expect opposition as that is the normal response prior to acceptance of truth. I'm hopeful the opposition will be done Scripturally and not turn into personal attacks on me.
No, He did not. Hebrews 1:8 is a quote of Psalm 45:6 in which YHWH calls him "elohim", a word that is used of men and angels. I do not deny that Yeshua is an elohim. I deny he is "God". The word "God" with a capital "G" only applies to the one true God. Since Yeshua's God is YHWH, the only true God (John 17:3), then the word "elohim" should not be translated "God", but either "god" or "mighty one" or something else other than "God". The same holds true for the word "theos" used in Hebrews 1:8.
"Immanu
el" means "El with us". That name is to be understood in the light of Acts 10:38; "How God anointed Yeshua of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power: who went about doing good, and healing all that were oppressed of the devil;
for God/El was with him." Not that Yeshua was El, but that El was with and in Yeshua. Since El was with and in Yeshua and Yeshua was with us, then El/God was with us. If you choose to use that logic, then consider the name Jehu. In Hebrew, this name means "He is Yah" or "Yah is He." Does that mean the man Jehu is, in reality, YHWH?
The Hebrew for "Mighty God" is "el gibbor" which can also be translated "mighty warrior". However, "el" is also used of men just as "elohim" is. Therefore, when applied to the Son it should not be translated "God" for the same reason I gave above for "elohim".
Exodus 3:14-15 reads, "And Elohim said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and He said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you. And Elohim said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, YHWH, Elohim of your fathers, the Elohim of Abraham, the Elohim of Isaac, and the Elohim of Jacob, hath sent me unto you: this is my name for ever, and this is my memorial unto all generations." Therefore, the "I AM" is identified as "YHWH" and "Elohim (God) of your fathers, the Elohim of Abraham, the Elohim of Isaac, and the Elohim of Jacob".
And what does YHWH say in
Psalm 2:7? "I will declare the decree: YHWH hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee." YHWH is the Father of Yeshua. Yeshua is the Son of YHWH. Yeshua is not YHWH and the Son is not the Father. Therefore, Yeshua (the Son of YHWH) cannot be the I AM (YHWH).
Also, Acts 3:13 says, "The God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob, the God of our fathers,
has glorified his Son Yeshua; whom you delivered up, and denied him in the presence of Pilate, when he was determined to let him go." Therefore, the Son is NOT the Elohim of Israel (YHWH).
Those verses alone should be sufficient to discredit the belief that Yeshua was claiming to be the "I AM." But let's look into the matter a little farther.
In the Greek Septuagint (LXX),
Exodus 3:14 reads,
In Septuagint English it reads, "And God spoke to Moses, saying, I am THE BEING; and he said, Thus shall ye say to the children of Israel, THE BEING has sent me to you."
In KJV English it reads, "And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you."
In
John 8:58, "I am" is "
" in Greek. As you can see, "
" in
Ex 3:14 is just the prelude to what the Almighty really wanted the Israelites to know, that is, that He was the "
" or "the Being" or "the Existing One".
If Yeshua truly wanted to tell the Jews he was the great "I am" of
Ex 3:14, he would have said, "Before Abraham was I am the Being" or "I am the Existing One".
It is believed that
John 8:59 further supports the position that Yeshua is the "I AM." Why else would the Jews try to stone him? He obviously blasphemed in the eyes of the Jews, a stoneable offense. Or did he? Is the mere utterance of "ego eimi" a blasphemy? Does the use of "ego eimi" automatically identify the speaker as YHWH, the I AM?
Several individuals aside from Yeshua used "ego eimi" as well. In Luke 1:19, the angel Gabriel said, "Ego eimi Gabriel." In
John 9:9, the blind man whose sight was restored by Yeshua said, "Ego eimi." In
Acts 10:21, Peter said, "Behold, ego eimi (I am) he whom ye seek." Obviously, the mere use of "ego eimi" does not equate one to the "I Am" of
Exodus 3:14.
If they understood Yeshua correctly, then why did Yeshua have to correct them in verses 34-36? Yeshua NEVER claimed to be God. He claimed to be the "Son of God". That is a really big difference. BTW, in verse 34 Yeshua quoted Psalm 82:6 in which "elohim" is used of the mighty men of Israel.
