31 Before Abraham was born I am

Last updated 1/19/2015 and eleven pages long

Some say that when Jesus said before Abraham was, I am at the end of John 8:58 he was saying that he is God
just as in Exodus when God is called I am, therefore Jesus is claiming to be Jehovah God.
I will provide proof in this document that John 8:58 does not in any way show that Jesus is God.
Before analyzing the passage in question, I am going to provide some evidence that has to be taken into account
when interpreting our passages. Firstly I am going to examine the OT followed by the NT and then our passage in
John 8:58.
Index
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

OT Statements I am
Exodus 3:14 I Am
Hayah Analysis
Septuagint Ego Eimi
Septuagint Exodus 3:14

Part 6 NT Ego Eimi Passages

Part 7 The Blind Man "I Am"
Part 8 Paul Claims I Am What I Am
Part 9 Other Ego Eimi Passages From Jesus
Part 10 Why Were People Stoned In Those Times?
Part 11 Why Did They Want To Stone Him
Part 12 Other Translations
Part 13 John 8:53-59 Review
Review of Summaries and Conclusion

Part 1 OT Statements I am
The words "I am" are written together in the ESV OT 658 times and include
Gen 22:1
Gen 22:11
Gen 27:1
Gen 27:24
Gen 31:11
Deut 13:18

Abraham, and he said , "here I am" (H589)

And he said "here I am" (H589)
and he answered "here I am" (H589)
Are you really my son Esau? He answered "I am" (H589)
Jacob said "here I am" (H589)
if you obey the voice of the LORD your God, keeping all his commandments that I am
(H595) commanding you today, and doing what is right in the sight of the LORD your God
Deut 31:2
he said to them "I am (H595) 120 years old today. I am no longer able to go out and come
Judges 13:11 Are you the man who spoke to this woman? And he said "I am" (H589)
Gen 22:1+11
Gen 27:1
Gen27:24
Gen 31:11
Deut 13:18

Abraham is identifying that he is in a certain place at that certain time saying "here I am."
Esau is identifying that he is in a certain place at that certain time saying "here I am."
the question was asked of Esau and he confirmed that he was by saying "I am."
Jacob is identifying that he is in a certain place at that certain time, saying "here I am."
Moses is speaking and said that "I am commanding you today". Who do we think was
commanding, Moses or God? We know its Moses although he is a messenger for God. We don't
think Moses is God.
Deut 31:2
Moses said I am 120 years old
Judges 13:11 The angel said "I am" we do not think that the angel is God.
Part 1 Summary:

There are several passages where people say I am in the OT and no one thought they were Jehovah God. These
statements are when the person is identifying his whereabouts at a certain time. They are not statements regarding
who the person is.
The problem with these examples are that the words I am are not translated from the same words that I Am is
translated from in Exodus 3:14. If we were only studying the English language this would be a suitable argument,
but we are not and so this argument is not valid. What has to be investigated is the original Hebrew words and their
translations. This Part 1 is here to make a point, that what seems to make sense at face value is not always what it
seems to be.

Part 2 Exodus 3:14-15 I am Jehovah

Those who support the idea that Jesus is claiming to be God in John 8:58 say it is directly related to God talking
to Moses in Exodus 3:14.
Exodus 3:13-15 Then Moses said to God, If I come to the people of Israel and say to them, The God of
your fathers has sent me to you, and they ask me, What is his name? what shall I say to them?
14 God said to Moses, I AM WHO I AM. And he said, Say this to the people of Israel, I AM has sent me to
you.
15 God also said to Moses, Say this to the people of Israel, The LORD (H3068/YHWH), the God of your
fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name
forever, and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations.
Vs13 The people had already known H3068/YHWH as the name of the God of Israel for thousands of years. Moses
wanted to know how he could prove to the people that he was representing the God of Israel
Vs14 Moses is to begin with an explanation of who God is.
Jehovah God said I am who I am or Hayah Hayah has sent you.
Darby, ASV, AV, DR, ESV, GW, KJV, NET, NASB, NCV, NIRV, NIV84, NKJV, MLT, NRSV, RSV, TNIV, YLT
have all translated "hayah hayah" to either "I am who I am" or "I am that I am"
Hayah/H1961 is in Exodus 235 times and of those it is not translated but left blank 50 times. Of the rest it is
translated be 81, shall 22, become 21, was 18, were 18, became 14, have 13, you 8, been 7, it 5, keep 5, and
I am three times in 3:14 only. Other words 3 times include it, you, admit, for, joined, lie, they. Hayah/H1961 is in
the entire OT 3560 times!
Why is Hayah only translated I am three times in the book of Exodus, and why three times in the same verse?
Why I am rather than another English word?
Who decided that the entire section should be capitalized, as not such capitalization exists in Hebrew?
Vs15After God has outlined who He is, He then tells Moses His name and that His name is H3068/YHWH and that
this is his name forever. He explains that he is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. All this information would
confirm to the Israelites that Moses was on their side.
Because God has said that His name is H3068/YHWH, why has hayah hayah been capitalized to indicate that this
is Gods name or title? Moses always said he was sent by H3068/YHWH and never once by the name "I am."
H3068/YHWH is in the ESV OT 7,777 times (is this a holy number?) as the name of the God of Israel.
Why is I Am in the Bible once? Surely there must be some sort of misunderstanding here.
To me hayah hayah is not Gods name, rather it seems to be an explanation, or type of definition, of vs15 and the
name H3068/YHWH.
ESV Psalm 83:17-18 Let them be put to shame and dismayed forever; let them perish in disgrace,
18 that they may know that you alone, whose name is the LORD, are the Most High over all the earth
Vs18 says that Gods name is LORD, Hebrew 3068/YHWH

It is interesting to remember that the term I am was written in Exodus and first stated for Moses. Yet Abraham,
who Jesus is referring to in John 8:58, lived many hundreds of years before.
Part 2 Summary:
The translation I AM WHO I AM should not be capitalized it should be lower case. And because be is the usual
translation in Exodus, it should say I will be I will be or I will be who I will be, not I am who I am.
Apparently, this translation is given in the footnotes of the ASV, NIV, RSV, NEB, REB, LB, GNB, Coverdale,

Part 3 Hayah Analysis

Strong's H1961 Hayah: Word count: 3,560: be 968, was 408, become 242, were 191, shall 178, have 171, came 167,
had 166, became 135, is 102, been 101, you 86, are 74, they 62, he 58, come 36, you 33, has 33, it 32, ends 29, he
27, I 25, to 23, may 22, be 17, no 17, they16, am 15,
Strong's Definition: be or become, come to pass, altogether, be, break, cause, do, faint, happen, have, last, pertain
Of the times it is translated be, it nearly always says I will be or less often I shall be. These are the most
common translations.
It is interesting to wonder why out of 3,560 occurrences of the Hebrew word "hayah" only 25 times is it translated
"I ," and only in Exodus is it followed by "am." Why did the Hebrew translators translate it differently on this
occasion?
A list of some of the 25 times hayah is translated "I."
Gen 27:12
I shall seem to be mocking him and bring a curse upon myself
Gen 32:5
I have donkeys oxen and flocks
Ex 3:14
I am who I am. And he said say this to the people of Israel, "I am has sent me to you"
Deut 20:19
I shall be safe
Deut 29:19
although I walk in the stubbornness of my heart
Jud 17:13
I have a Levite as a priest
Jud 17:13
now I know that the LORD will prosper me
1 Kings 21:2 that I may have it for a vegetable garden
1 Kings 21:2 and I will give you a better vineyard for it
Ne 1:4 I
continued fasting
Ne 2:13
I inspected the walls
Ne 2:15
I went up in the night
Eccl 2:7
I also had great possessions
Of the 15 times hayah is translated "am" they are all preceded by "I"
Job 30:9
I am a byword to them
Hos 13:7
So I am to them like a lion
Ps 102:7
I am like a lonely sparrow
Ho 1:9
I am not your God
Ru 2:13
I am not one of your servants
Job 12:4
I am a laughing stock to my friends
Job 17:6
I am one before whom men spit
La 1:11
for I am despised
Je 23:9
I am like a drunken man
Job 30:29
I am a brother of Jackals
Ps 109:25
I am an object of scorn to my accusers
Ps 5:14
I am at the brink of utter ruin
Je 31:9
for I am a father to Israel
Job 11:4
and I am clean in God's eyes

Ps 88:4

I am a man who has no strength

Of the other times it is closely linked to Moses (161 times) mostly as be or was.
Ex 2:10
and he became (hayah) her son. She named him Moses
Ex 3:1
Now Moses was (hayah) keeping the flock
Ex 4:3
and it became (hayah) a serpent, and Moses ran from it
Ex 9:10
And Moses threw it in the air, and it became (hayah) boils
Ex 24:18
And Moses was (hayah) on the mountain forty days
Lev 8:29
It was (hayah) Moses portion of the ram of ordination
Josh 1:5
Just as I was (hayah) with Moses, so shall I be (hayah) with you.
Josh 1:17
may the LORD your God be (hayah) with you, as he was (hayah) with Moses!
Part 3 Summary:
After looking at all of the translations of hayah in the OT, there seems to be no identifiable reason to translate it I
Am in Exodus 3:14.

Part 4 Septuagint Ego Eimi:

The Greek words "ego eimi," English I am, are the Greek words Jesus spoke in John 8:58, here I look at some of
the times the Septuagint used those words together.
Sept 2 Samuel 2:20 And Abenner looked behind him, and said, Art thou Asael himself? and he said, I am
ESV 2 Samuel 2:20 Abner looked behind him and said, Is it you, Asahel? And he answered, It is I.
The Hebrew word H595/anoki is translated to Greek ego eimi and then English I am
In the Septuagint it says I am or ego eimi
This shows that ego eimi can be translated from H595/anoki.
Sept 2 Samuel 15:26 I have no pleasure in thee, behold here I am, let him do to me according etc
ESV 2 Samuel 15:26 I have no pleasure in you, behold, here I am, let him do to me what seems good
The Hebrew word H589/ani is translated to Greek "ego eimi" and then English "here I am."
In the Septuagint it says "behold I am." Or in behold "ego eimi."
This shows that "ego eimi" can be translated from H589/ani.
Sept Is 6:8 Whom shall I send, and who will go to this people? And I said, behold, I am here, send me.
ESV Is 6:8 Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?. Then I said, "here I am! Send me"
The Hebrew words H589/ani is translated to Greek "ego eimi" and then English "here I am."
In the Septuagint it says "behold I am." Or in behold "ego eimi."
This shows that "ego eimi" can be translated from H589, besides H1961/Hayah.
The Hebrew words H595/anoki and H589/ani are both separately translated from Hebrew to the Greek ego eimi
Part 4 Summary:
None of the statements in Samuel or Isaiah identified anyone as Jehovah God, but they are statements of
whereabouts or existence. It could be fairly easy to interpret, based on this information shown in the Septuagint that
Jesus meant that he existed before Abraham in John 8:58.

Part 5 Septuagint Exodus 3:14

I have underlined ego eimi which is written only once not twice.
This indicates that the Translators in 300 BC had a different perspective to the majority of current translators.

Sept: 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
This is how the Greek translators understood this passage to be written.
Not to forget that the following verse where the LORD God gives his name.
vs15 The LORD (H3068/YHWH), the God of your fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the
God of Jacob, has sent me to you. This is my name forever
Part 5 Summary:
The translators of the Hebrew Exodus 3:14 into Greek in approximately 300BC understood the passage to read
ego eimi once only. They made no implication that it was another name for Jehovah God. It was translated to
English for the first time in 1808 and again in 1851. It is difficult to imagine the Greek translators misunderstood
this to the degree implied by the current day translators.

Part 6 NT Ego Eimi

G1473 ego: word count 341: I
G1510 eimi: word count 163: am 116, is 10, were 11, am, be, been, belong, break, come, follow, generosity, have, I,
Is, lived, my, remained, sent, to, unworthy, was.
1) to be, to exist, to happen, to be present
The words "I am," from Greek Ego Eimi, are written together in the ESV NT 302 times.
Paul said I am on many occasions, identified in a later sub heading.
Others that said it, Annanias, false christs, Angel Gabriel, Samaritan Woman, Invalid at the well, the blind man,
Jesus and Paul say it the most many times each in the Gospels and the letters.
Mat 3:11
whose sandals I am not worthy to carry
(John)
Mat 3:17
my beloved son, with whom I am well pleased.
(God)
Mat 8:8
I am not worthy to have you come under my roof (Centurion)
Mathew 27:24 I am innocent of this mans blood
(Pontious Pilate)
Mat 27:43
For he said "I am the Son of God"
(Scribes and elders)
Luke 1:18
how shall I know this for I am an old man
(Zechariah)
Luk 1:34
How will this be, since I am a virgin
(Mary)
Luke 5:8
depart from me for I am a sinful man
(Simon Peter)
Luke 15:21 I am no longer worthy to be called your son
(Prodigal son)
Jesus says I am of the prodigal son. If he had any thought that this was Gods name he would not have used it.
Luke 16:3
Luke 16:24
Luke 18:11

I am not strong enough to dig

for I am in anguish in this flame
I am not like other men

(Shrewd manager)
(Rich man)
(Pharisee)

The Pharisees were extremely zealous for doing everything according to the Law and would never use Gods
personal name in a sentence applying it to themselves. If I am, ego eimi, had been considered to be Gods
personal name the other Jews would have reprimanded this Pharisee immediately for using it in this context. Ego
eimi was not considered Gods name and therefore nothing was said that was considered blasphemous.
John 8:23 I am from above. You are not of this world, I am not of this world (Jesus)
Part 6 Summary:

Why is it of the 302 times I am is written in the NT, by a large list of people, only once do we claim the words
refer to Exodus 3:14? What about all these examples? What do you think they mean? This list of comparable
statements show that I am was not a explanation of identity, nor was it in reference to God.

Part 7 The Blind Man is I Am.

The Greek is from the Nestle Aland original texts.
N/Aland John 8:58 , .
eipon autos lesous amen amen lego sy prin Abraam ginomai ego eimi
said him Jesus truly truly say you before Abraham was
I
am
N/Aland John 9:9 , , . .
eimi allos lego ouchi alla homoios autos eimi ekeinos lego hoti ego eimi
is
others said no but like
him is he
saying
I am
When looking at the original Greek text in John 9:9 it is evident that the sentence ends with the blind man saying "I
am." The additional words "the man" are not written in the Greek text.
1/ Because this is true, the blind man ended his sentence the same way as Jesus did, saying ego eimi or "I am."
The people questioning him did not think he was claiming to be God, and no modern day interpreter would be
thinking that he is saying he is God. Yet his response was ego eimi which was exactly how Jesus ended his
sentence.
2/ If the words "the man" were added into John 8:58 in the same way as John 9:9 Jesus would not be understood by
anyone that he was claiming to be God. This however wouldnt sound right to English speaking people so in this
case perhaps it should say something like before Abraham was, I existed. Or perhaps we should just understand
that it was a way of speaking 2000 years ago and when Jesus wanted to express that he existed before Abraham he
said "I am" as it expressed that thought at the time.
Part 7 Summary:
The Blind Man claimed "ego eimi," he claimed "I am." No one understood him to be making a claim to be God,
otherwise they would have stoned him for it. In the same way nothing that Jesus said was a claim to be God in John
8:58.

Part 8 Paul Claims I Am What I Am

ESV I Corinthians 15:10 But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain
Paul claimed to be I am what I am.
To me this is closer to the statement in Exodus than the statement that Jesus makes in John 8:58.
So why would Paul, a man educated in the OT, make this statement if it was Gods name?
He wouldn't and he didn't because it isn't.
Acts 26:29 And Paul said, Whether short or long, I would to God that not only you but also all who hear
me this day might become such as I amexcept for these chains.
Paul says ego eimi, or I am
Part 8 Summary:
Because we know for certain that Paul would not be claiming to be God when he said "I am what I am" and also
"such as I am", then neither of these two passages can actually fit with Exodus 3:14, therefore neither does John
8:58 when Jesus says it. This means that saying I am was not a claim to be God in the NT.

Part 9 Other Ego Eimi Passages from Jesus

Mathew 24:5 Many will come in my name saying, "I am the Christ".
Also Mark 13:6, Luke 21:8
Jesus says "ego eimi ho Christos" no one thought he said "God is Christ."
Mark 14:62 are you the Christ, the Son of the blessed? And Jesus said, "I am, and you will see the Son
Jesus admitted to the High Priest that he was the Christ. The High Priest did not think Jesus was claiming to be
God.
John 6:20 or "It is I, do not be afraid."
Jesus walked on the water and said it is I, Greek "ego eimi," yet the disciples did not think Jesus was claiming to
be God.
John 13:19 and when it does take place you may believe that I am he.
This passage ends "ego eimi" in Greek without the English word "he." The disciples did not think Jesus was
claiming to be God otherwise they would have asked him.
Nestle Aland John 18:5 . .
John 18:5 They answered him, "Jesus of Nazareth." Jesus said to them, "I am he"
Jesus answered "ego eimi," to identify that it was him they were looking for. They did not think he was claiming to
be God at this point, nor do current day bible interpreters. Why not, it is the same statement.
John 20:17 Jesus said, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.
We dont think that Jesus is saying he is I am who is ascending to God who is I am, otherwise we would have
God ascending to God making two Gods.
Part 9 Summary:
Jesus also said, I am he, I am the good shepherd, I am the door, I am the son of man, I am the light, I am glad, I am
lifted up, I am the resurrection, I am going, I am the way, I am speaking to you, I am telling you
And many more I am statements in the gospels. There was not one occasion when anyone thought he was
claiming to be God.

Part 10 Why Were People Stoned In Those Times

Luke 20:6 But if we say, 'From men,' all the people will stone us, because they are persuaded that John was
a prophet."
The Pharisees were afraid of being stoned just for answering a question wrongly.
John 8:5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?"
The people were ready to stone a woman who had broken a commandment, not a law of the land.

Acts 5:26 At that, the captain went with his officers and brought the apostles. They did not use force,
because they feared that the people would stone them.
The captain feared being stoned because of using force to arrest people.
Acts 7:57 At this they covered their ears and, yelling at the top of their voices, they all rushed at him,
58
dragged him out of the city and began to stone him.
They stoned Stephen for preaching about Jesus
Acts 14:5 here was a plot afoot among the Gentiles and Jews, together with their leaders, to mistreat them
and stone them.
They planned to stone Paul and Barnabas for preaching about Jesus
Summary:
Luke 20:6 The Pharisees were afraid of being stoned just for answering a question wrongly.
John 8:5 The people were ready to stone a woman who had broken a commandment not a law of the land.
Acts 5:26 The captain feared being stoned because of using force to arrest people.
Acts 7:57 They stoned Stephen for preaching about Jesus
Acts 14:5 They planned to stone Paul and Barnabas for preaching about Jesus
People were stoned in those days for persuading someone was a prophet, adultery, using force to arrest someone,
and preaching about Jesus.

Part 11 Why Did They Want to Stone Jesus in John 8:58

1/ They had decided to before this, at least in John chapter 7
2/ Maybe they thought he was claiming to be a prophet
3/ Maybe they thought he was claiming to be a medium or a necromancer Leviticus 20:27
4/ Because he was claiming to be the Messiah
5/ Because he was claiming to be alive before Abraham
6/ Not because he was claiming to be God
Summary:
At least as early as John 7 the Jews had already decided to kill Jesus and so whatever he said would have made no
difference. The Jews heard him say "ego eimi" in John 8:24 and John 8:28. If they had thought that "ego eimi"
meant Jesus was claiming to be God they would have tried to kill him at those points, but that was not how they
interpreted it.

Part 12 Other Translations Of John 8:58

(1) I HAVE BEEN- alternate reading in 1960 thru 1973 reference editions of NASB
(2) I HAVE BEEN - The New Testament, G. R. Noyes
(3) I HAVE BEEN - The Four Gospels According to the Sinaitic Palimpsest, A. S. Lewis
(4) I HAVE ALREADY BEEN - The Unvarnished New Testament
(5) I HAVE EXISTED - The Bible, A New Translation, Dr. James Moffatt
(6) I EXISTED - The New Testament in the Language of Today, 1964 ed., Beck
(7) I EXISTED - An American Translation, Goodspeed
(8) I EXISTED - The New Testament in the Language of the People, Williams
(9) I EXISTED - New Simplified Bible

(10) I WAS IN EXISTENCE - Living Bible

(11) I WAS ALIVE - The Simple English Bible
(12)I WAS - Holy Bible - From the Ancient Eastern Text, Lamsa
(13)I WAS - Youngs Literal Translation of the Holy Bible, 1st ed.
(14) I WAS - The Syriac New Testament, Jas. Murdock
(15) I WAS - H. T. Anderson
(16) I WAS - Twentieth Century New Testament
(17) "The absolute truth is that I was in existence before Abraham was ever born." The Living New Testament:
(18) "before Abraham existed I was." The 20th Century New Testament:
(19) Jesus answered, before Abraham existed, I existed. Parker, P.G. Clarified N.T.:
(20) To this Jesus replied, I existed before Abraham was born. Cotton Patch Version (1970):
(21) Jesus answer, I tell you the truth. I already was before Abraham was born. Good News for the World 1969
(22) "I existed before Abraham was even born." New Believers Bible, New Living Translation:
(23) "I am here-and I was before Abraham." The New Testament, Kleist & Lilly:
(24) Jesus said unto them: Verily verily I say unto you, before Abraham was born, I am He. Wakefield GNT 1795
(25) "Before Abraham came to be, I was." The Curetonian Version of the Four Gospels, Burkitt & The Old
Georgian Version of the Gospel of John, Blake & Briere:
(26) "I was before Abraham was born." The New Testament Or Rather the New Covenant, Sharpe:
(27) "Before Abraham came to be, I was." The New Testament, Stage:
(28) "Before Abraham came into being, I have existed." The Documents of the New Testament, Wade:
(29) Jesus answered them: Well, well, I tell you, I existed before Abraham was born. Noli, M.F.S. N.T. (1961)
(30) "I existed even before Abraham was born." The Concise Gospel and The Acts, Christianson:
(31) "I tell you for a positive fact, I existed before Abraham was born." The Original New Testament, Schonfield:
(32) "I existed before there was an Abraham." The Complete Gospels Annotated Scholars Version, Miller:
(33) Jesus said to them, verily, verily I say unto you, I existed before Abraham was born Swann, G. N.T. (1947)
(34) "I was alive before Abraham was born" International English Version (2001)
Summary:
This list of passage translations for John 8:58 shows that there are many ways ego eimi could have been
translated. This is before we get down to how we interpret a passage. Just because the NIV or the ESV translated it
one way certainly doesnt mean they are it is the only way to translate it.

Part 13 John 8:53-59

John 8:53-59
Are you greater than our father Abraham, who died? And the prophets died! Who do you make yourself out
to be?
54 Jesus answered, If I glorify myself, my glory is nothing. It is my Father who glorifies me, of whom you
say, He is our God.
55 But you have not known him. I know him. If I were to say that I do not know him, I would be a liar like
you, but I do know him and I keep his word.
56 Your father Abraham rejoiced that he would see my day. He saw it and was glad.
57 So the Jews said to him, You are not yet fifty years old, and have you seen Abraham?
58 Jesus said to them, Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I am.
59 So they picked up stones to throw at him, but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple.
I am: Darby, ASV, AV, ESV, GW, HCSB, ISV, KJV, LEB, NET, NASB, NCV, NIRV, NIV, NRSV, RSV, YLT
I Am: DR, NKJV, NLT,
Vs58 Why is "I am" not capitalized like Exodus 3, if the translators think it is a personal name in John 8? The bible
translators do not interpret the meanings to be the same as in Exodus 3 otherwise they would have done this. When
Jesus makes a claim about his name in other instances the translators capitalize the name to indicate this.
Summary:

Jesus said I existed before Abraham.This was enough to push the Jews over the edge and want to stone him. Jesus
and the followers of Jesus said several things that were not claiming to be God that also had the Jews wanting to
stone them.

Summaries and Final Conclusion:

Part 1 OT Statements I am:
There are several passages where people say I am in the OT and no one thought they were Jehovah God.
These statements are when the person is identifying his whereabouts at a certain time. They are not
statements regarding who the person is.
Part 2 Exodus 3:14:
The translation I AM WHO I AM should not be capitalized it should be lower case. And because be is the
usual translation in Exodus, it should say I will be I will be or I will be who I will be, not I am who I
am. This translation is given in the footnotes of the ASV, NIV, RSV, NEB, REB, LB, GNB, Coverdale,
Part 3 Hayah Analysis:
After looking at all of the translations of hayah in the OT, there seems to be no identifiable reason to
translate it I Am.
Part 4 Septuagint Ego Eimi:
None of the statements in Samuel or Isaiah identified anyone as Jehovah God, but they are statements of
whereabouts or existence. It could be fairly easy to interpret, based on this information shown in the
Septuagint that Jesus meant that he existed before Abraham in John 8:58.
Part 5 Septuagint Exodus 3:14:
The translators of the Hebrew Exodus 3:14 into Greek in approximately 300BC understood the passage to
read ego eimi once only. They made no implication that it was another name for Jehovah God. It was
translated to English for the first time in 1808 and again in 1851. It is difficult to imagine the Greek
translators misunderstood this to the degree implied by the current day translators.
Part 6 NT Ego Eimi:
Why is it of the 302 times I am is written in the NT, by a large list of people, only once do we claim the
words refer to Exodus 3:14? What about all these examples? What do you think they mean? This list of
comparable statements show that I am was not a explanation of identity, nor was it in reference to God.
Part 7 The Blind Man:
The Blind Man claimed "ego eimi," he claimed "I am." No one understood him to be making a claim to be
God, otherwise they would have stoned him for it. In the same way nothing that Jesus said was a claim to be
God in John 8:58.
Part 8 Paul Claims I Am What I Am:
Because we know for certain that Paul would not be claiming to be God when he said "I am what I am" and
also "such as I am", then neither of these two passages can actually fit with Exodus 3:14, therefore neither
does John 8:58 when Jesus says it. This means that saying I am was not a claim to be God in the NT.
Part 9 Othere Ego Eimi Passages From Jesus:
Jesus also said, I am he, I am the good shepherd, I am the door, I am the son of man, I am the light, I am
glad, I am lifted up, I am the resurrection, I am going, I am the way, I am speaking to you, I am telling you,
and many more I am statements in the gospels. There was not one occasion when anyone thought he was
claiming to be God.
Part 10 Why Were People Stoned In Those Times:

People were stoned in those days for persuading someone was a prophet, adultery, using force to arrest
someone, and preaching about Jesus.
Part 11 Why Did They Want To Stone Jesus In John 8:58:
At least as early as John 7 the Jews had already decided to kill Jesus and so whatever he said would have
made no difference. The Jews heard him say "ego eimi" in John 8:24 and John 8:28. If they had thought
that "ego eimi" meant Jesus was claiming to be God they would have tried to kill him at those points, but
that was not how they interpreted it.
Part 12 Other Translations Of John 8:58:
This list of passage translations for John 8:58 shows that there are many ways ego eimi could have been
translated. This is before we get down to how we interpret a passage. Just because the NIV or the ESV
translated it one way, certainly doesnt mean they are it is the only way to translate it.
Part 13 John 8:53-59:
Jesus said I existed before Abraham.This was enough to push the Jews over the edge and want to stone
him. This is the definition of what I understand happened. Jesus and the followers of Jesus said several
things that were not claiming to be God that also had the Jews wanting to stone them.
Final Conclusion:
Several people in the Hebrew OT said I am and no one thought they were claiming to be God. This is the same
regarding ego eimi in the Septuagint. The translation of Exodus 3:14 should be I will be, I will be in lower case
and not in all capitals. In the NT many people said I am, Paul said I am what I am and not one person at that
time or now considers any of them claims of being God. Jesus said I am on several other occasions, not one
person then or now thought he was claiming to be God. People were stoned in those times for claiming to be a
prophet and this is why they had decided earlier to stone Jesus. There are several ways to translate ego eimi, I
am is not certainly not conclusive.
The Jews at the time had asked how Jesus could have possibly known Abraham who had died nearly 2000 years
before. Jesus reply was an explanation that he had been in existence even before Abraham had been born and was
not an explanation of identity. He was saying that he had existed before, just as he did on other occasions in other
ways.
John 17:5 And now, father, glorify me in your presence with the glory I had with you before the world began
The unfortunate thing is that the translators have caused the problems identified, and when all the supporting
information is considered it is apparent that nothing in John 8:58 says that Jesus is God.