John 8:58 - "I am"

by Matt Slick

Email: You make an excellent case for the rendering of "I am" at John 8:58 at your webpage,1 but I believe you have overlooked another interpretation. There was an instance in which Jesus told the Pharisees that he was "God's Son" (see John 10:29-36) and that made them very mad, even though he didn't say "I am God". This shows that merely claiming to be God's Son (rather than God himself) is enough to anger the Pharisees.

Response: Does the term "son of man" mean that Jesus Christ is a man? If so, what does the term "son of God" mean? If the term "son of God" does not mean that Jesus is God, then should we say that the term "son of man" does not mean that Jesus is a man?

Culturally speaking, to claim to be the son of God was to claim divinity. This is why the Pharisees were angry. They knew what Jesus was claiming.

Please see John 5:18 regarding the term "Son of God".