If we want to understand the true answer to this article’s title question or any other claims Jesus may have made such as, “Did Jesus claim to be equal with God?” or “Did Jesus claim to be the Messiah?” we must get to know the first-century Judean culture and society in which Jesus lived. We need to do this in order to fully understand not only what Jesus says in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, but how His audience heard and understood the things He says to them. Without doing this, we take everything Jesus says out of the context in which He lived, and interpret His statements from our own modern cultures and language. After all, within the example of the modern English-speaking the cultures in the world, there are many different idioms that have developed over a long period that would not be understood from one society or culture to the next; that’s without having a vast distance of twenty centuries of time gone by and all within the same language.

So, how do we get to know that first century Judean culture? The most reliable way we can get to know they way this culture spoke and understood one another is to take a look at the Scriptures they would have possessed and known as they were taught from an early age and memorized from their teachers. It is crucial to gain this perspective before reading the things Jesus said and did in the Gospels ino rder to answer these questions. We can get more detail about how that looked to them from the Talmud.

Now, I have heard one person say that the Gospel writers wrote the accounts to fulfill prophecy, but the truth of the matter is that the disciples having known the Scriptures as they did, met with the occasion of watching the prophecies being fulfilled before their very eyes and ears.

The Talmud

The Talmud is commonly known as a compilation of ancient teachings regarded as sacred and normative by the Jews from the time it was first collected in the times of the prophet Ezra to modern times, and is still esteemed by traditional devout Jews. It consists of the Mishna, which includes repeated study, a collection of originally spoken laws that supplement the scriptural laws), the Gemara (completion; a collection of commentaries on and explanations of the Mishna). Therefore, the Talmud contains Scripture (including the Hebrew Bible, aka. Old Testament) and commentaries about those Scriptures.

From the Talmud the Jewish people would have gained an understanding of the expected characteristics of the Messiah as they would have learned these lessons from an early childhood age. So let’s dig into how the people of the first century Jewish culture would expect the Messiah to look like and what He would say about Himself.

Moshiach – the Hebrew word for “messiah” – in English refers to a savior or a “hoped-for deliverer.” However, in Hebrew, moshiach actually means “anointed.” As such the meaning of Christ in Greek is also “anointed.” In Biblical Hebrew, the title of moshiach is given to someone of nobility and immense importance. For example, the reference to the high priest would be kohen ha-moshiach as in Numbers 35:25. Jesus is viewed and known by the author of the book of Hebrews as God the Father’s High Priest. (Hebrews 5:10)

The Talmud also reserves the title of Moshiach, or Melech HaMoshiach – the King Messiah – for the Jewish leader who will redeem Israel in the End of Days which refers to the time when the Messiah would come. (https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/108400/jewish/The-End-of-Days.htm)

Jesus the Messiah and Anointed King

The following prophecies are just a handful of the many that the Jewish people would have learned from an early age as I’ve mentioned before. Knowing these and many if not all the others, they would have been able to identify the Messiah easily.

Genesis 49:10 says that the scepter will not depart from Judah or the staff between His feet until He whose right it is arrives and the obedience of the peoples belongs to Him. Of course, a scepter is a symbol of kingship and we might say that the verse also tells of a time when the people would be disobedient and in need of repentance in the time of the exile to Babylon. The man speaking the prophecy is Jacob as he was blessing his sons near the end of his life. The Gospels of Matthew and Luke contain genealogies that indicate that Jesus comes from the line of Judah.

In Psalm 2:7-9, God appears to be talking to Jesus as He says, “You are my Son; today I have become your Father. I will make the nations Your inheritance and the ends of the earth your possession. You will break them like pottery with an iron scepter.

Balaam was a prophet who was hired by Balak king of Moab to curse the Israelites who were on the way to the Promised Land. He found it impossible to curse the Israelites as God had told him he could only bless them. In Numbers 24:17-19, this prophet says that he sees Him, yet not now, that he perceives Him, but not near. A star will appear from Jacob and a scepter will rise from Israel. He will bash Moab’s forehead and strike the Shethites down. Edom (another nation) will become owned of its enemies, but Israel will triumph. The one who comes from Jacob will rule and destroy the city’s survivors.

These prophecy verses from the Hebrew Scriptures are just a handful of many, but I’m sure you get the idea, and I discuss more later. I need to reiterate that devout Jewish people learn these and the many others from an early age so that they would know who the Messiah is when they meet Him.

So, let’s take a look at a few of the passages that show Jesus claiming to be the Messiah and King.

In Matthew 16:13-18, Jesus goes to Caesarea Philippi where He asks His disciples how the people identify the Son of Man. Peter tells Him, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And Jesus blessed him. We know that Peter knew his scriptures well, because in Acts 10:10-16, he sees a vision in which a sheet appears to descend from heaven loaded with all kinds of animals including some that were considered unclean in the Torah (the Pentateuch). A voice tells him to kill and eat, but he replies, “No. I’ve never eaten anything unclean.” So it’s not a mere guess on Peter’s part that he identifies Jesus as the Messiah/Christ.

In John 3, Nicodemus a pharisee has a secret meeting with Jesus and asks several questions, but before he asks, he declares that he knows that Jesus is a teacher who came from God, because no one could perform the signs He does unless God is with Him. (John 3:2) Of course, a pharisee would know the law, because that was his job, but he more than any non-pharisee would know the Scriptures too. When this pharisee says that Jesus is a teacher from God, he recognizes Him as the Messiah, as he sees the characteristics Scripture describes and prophesies.

In John 4, Jesus travels to Galilee through Samaria, which is what became of the northern kingdom of Israel. So the woman Jesus meets there is really a Gentile, but would have known most of the Scriptures. After a short conversation, she says that she knows the Messiah is coming. Jesus tells her that He is the Messiah she speaks of. (John 4:26)

When two disciples were on their way to Emmaus after Jesus’ death and resurrection, they encounter Jesus but don’t recognize Him, and on the way He says that they are foolish and slow to believe what the prophets spoke. Then He asks if it wasn’t necessary for the Messiah to suffer through the passion and enter His glory. Then He interprets all the things about Himself in the Scriptures. (Luke 24:25-27) These two men were already followers and recognized Him as the Messiah, but after this event, they knew Jesus is God.

In Matthew, Mark and Luke, Pilate calls Jesus the King of the Jews, which Jesus does not deny as any Jewish person would. (Matthew 27:11; Mark 15:1-2; Luke 23:3, John 19:19) As Jesus had already claimed to be king despite the synoptic Gospels not including that in the texts, He would have denied it before Pilate if it were not true, but He doesn’t, which leads Pilate write the sign on Jesus’ cross, saying, “King of the Jews,” in three languages.

As Jesus says that His kingdom is not of this world (John 18:36), He also claims to be God as there can be no other place for His non-earthly kingdom but heaven. So if Jesus rules as king from heaven, then He is also God, because God told Samuel that the people rejected Him as king. (1 Samuel 8:7) Jesus’ heavenly kingship is confirmed throughout Revelation as Jesus reigns from His throne in heaven.

The passages above show Jesus fulfilling the Messianic prophecies I’ve cited at the beginning of this section. Below are some prophecies that are more specific and juxtaposed with the passages or verses that fulfill them.

When Jesus makes His triumphal entry to Jerusalem fulfilling Zechariah’s prophecy that the King would enter Jerusalem on a donkey/colt (Zechariah 9:9), He sends two disciples to get a donkey and its colt in order to make a ride into the city as King, which was prophesied (Matthew 21:1–3; Mark 11:1–3 10; Luke 19:29–31), and John tells us that Jesus finds a donkey to ride. (John 12:14) By these actions As Jesus fulfills Zechariah’s prophecy, He also claims to be King.

In Psalm 93:4, God is revered as majestic over the roar of a storm and of the mighty breakers. In Matthew 8:24, Mark 4:37 and Luke 8:23, Jesus and the disciples are crossing the Sea of Galilee in a fishing boat when a storm rises up. Jesus shows them that He is God by calming the storm with a rebuke. (Matthew 8:26, Mark 4:39, Luke 8:25) When the disciples become amazed or fearful, they express the thought that God is before them. This happens again as the disciples are on a return trip across the sea. They see Jesus walking on the stormy sea and they cry out in fear. Jesus speaks to them, saying, “Be brave. It is I. No need to be afraid.” In Matthew’s account, Peter asks Jesus to tell him to walk out to Him, to which He replies, “Come.” Peter sinks and cries out to Jesus for help, which He does. When they get into the boat, the wind stops. Then the disciples worship Him, saying, “You truly are the Son of God.” (Matthew 14:25–33 ; Mark 6:45–52; John 6:15–21) I should remind readers that worshiping anything else but God is a sin and Jesus would have stopped them if He is not God, as no Jew would allow another human being to worship him or her, knowing God would consider it a sin punishable by death. By not denying that He is God, He confirms the disciples’ declarations that He is God.

Psalm 109:3 says, “They surround me with hateful words and attack me without cause.” This is a Psalm of David and a prayer against an enemy. Jesus says, “They hated Me for no reason.” (John 15:25) He says this after explaining to His disciples that if the world hates them/Jesus-followers, they hate Jesus and the Father, because Jesus chooses us out of the world, the world hates us; if they persecute Him, they will also persecute us. (John 15:18-19) He goes on to say, “The one who hates Him hates my Father also, adding that if He had not done the works among them that no one else has done, they wouldn’t be guilty of sin. Now they’ve seen and hated me and My Father. But this happened so that the statement from the law might be fulfilled: They hated me for no reason. (John 15:23-25)

Many of the prophet Isaiah’s prophecies are written in present tense even though they are about future events; they are written as though he sees these prophecies in visions. He writes that the Spirit of God is upon Him, because the Lord has anointed Him to bring good news to the poor, to bandage the brokenhearted and proclaim freedom to the captives and release the imprisoned (Isaiah 61:1) Jesus reads from this scroll of Isaiah in Luke 4:18-19 up to the first part of Isaiah 61:2. After sitting down, He says, “This scripture has been fulfilled in your hearing.” (Luke 4:21) the people in the Synagogue of Nazareth react with wonder at His gracious words, until someone asks, “Is this not Joseph’s Son?” In short, Jesus says that a prophet is not acceptable in His hometown. (Luke 4:24) Then they are filled with anger and drive him out of town to throw Him off the cliff, but Jesus escapes. (Luke 4:28-30) Then they want to throw Him off the cliff because they perceive that He has blasphemed God with His actions and speech. This passage from Isaiah is also fulfilled in Jesus’ baptism (Matthew 3:16; Luke 4:18,19; John 1:32-33), and John 3:34 also fulfills that the Spirit of God being upon Him.

After the crucifixion, Jesus meets for the second time with the disciples in the upper room, asking to Thomas to touch His wounds and telling him to believe. Thomas responds, saying, “My Lord and my God.” (John 20:28) Again, no Jew would allow another to worship him. Again therefore, not denying that He is God, instead receiving it as worship, Jesus confirms again that He is God. Thomas also joins the many others in Scripture who proclaim and exalt God. (Psalm 18:2, 30:12, 31:14, 44:4, 63:1, 84:3)

On the shores of the Galilee, after the resurrection of Jesus, Peter tells the other disciples that he’s going fishing and others say they are joining him. In the morning, Jesus is on the shore, asking if they have caught anything. When they say, “No,” He tells them to cast the net on the right side of the boat and they had a huge catch. After that John realizes it is Jesus and says, “It is the Lord!” (John 21:3-7) It’s likely that Jesus could hear John’s exclamation, because of the earlier conversation, and again, Jesus doesn’t deny someone referring to Him as deity, as much making the claim by allowing someone else to claim it for Him.

Jesus says He is God

Prophecies about the Messiah Being God

Psalm 110 has God telling the Messiah to sit at His right hand. In the tradition of kings at the time, sitting at the right hand of the king means being equal with him, just as Joseph is made equal by Pharaoh in Egypt as he gave Joseph his signet ring. So, this psalm indicates that the Messiah would be equal with God and God Himself. (Psalm 110)

Proverbs 30:4 which was written by a Gentile king, asks things about God; “Who has ascended to heaven and returned? Who has captured the wind in his hands? Who has bound the waters in a cloak? Who has established the ends of the earth? What is his name, and what is the name of his son — if you know?” (Proverbs 30:4) This tells of the power of God, but it also tells us that God has a son.

The Psalm 45 author speaks of God’s scepter as one of justice. The psalmist also talks to God declaring that He loves righteousness and hates wickedness. Then he says to “God, Your God, anointed you with the oil of joy more than your companions. (Psalm 45:6-7) This tells us that the anointed Messiah will be God.

Isaiah says god will give a sign. The virgin will conceive, have a son and name Him Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14) This verse speaks about the Messiah being born of a virgin, but also that He will be God, because Immanuel means God with us.

Isaiah also says, a child will be born to us; a son will be given, and the government will be on his shoulders. He will be called Wonderful Couselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace. (Isaiah 9:6) So it adds to the virgin prophecy in that the Messiah would be king and God.

Isaiah tells also that the Messiah (which He calls His servant) will be successful and be raised and lifted up and greatly exalted. (Isaiah 52:13) So Jesus as God’s Servant and Messiah is equal with God, because in all Scripture the words “greatly exalted” and “worthy of praise” apply only to God.

The Foretold King and Messiah

One of the principles of Jewish faith is that one day a direct descendant of King David will rise as a high-powered king to gather the Jewish peoples from all over the world to reunite them in Israel and rebuild the Temple, which have their root in many prophecies from God’s promise to David that his descendants will retain his throne forever. This was enumerated by Maimonides in the Middle Ages; however, this was also what the people of first-century Judea believed. They also knew that the Messiah would be a world leader and would accept His dominion, when there would be world peace with no famine or war. The peoples of most nations around Judea, would have known their leaders as either a king or an emperor, and both terms were known to be supreme head of state, sometimes even to be worshiped like a god. Of course, the trouble for those Jewish people who so avidly read and memorized Scripture is that they took this to mean that the Messiah would be a literal head of state rather than the King of the whole earth ruling from heaven.

The Jews also believed – as they do to this day – that the Messiah would complete God’s purpose in creation and that God would live on the earth, revealing spirit in the material world. They believed that all mankind would worship one God and live a moral life in the spirit. That’s a now-and-not-yet prophecy that has been partially fulfilled, as Jesus has come for the first time to save. At His second coming, it will be for judgment as Revelation indicates.

The Synoptic Gospels

Jesus tells of the great tribulation and quoting Daniel 7:13 to say that the Son of Man will appear on the clouds of heaven. (Matthew 24:31, Mark 13:26, Luke 21:27) The Jewish people knowing Daniel’s prophecy would understand Jesus’ message to mean that He is this Son of Man. Daniel 7 is the main reason Jesus refers to Himself as “Son of Man” in the Gospels, and because of that, we should understand that any time we see Jesus referring to Himself as the Son of Man, He claims that He is God.

During Jesus’ trial before Caiaphas the high priest who asks if He is the Son of God, He responds by quoting the same verse, saying, “You will see the Son of Man at the right hand of Power (God), coming on the clouds of heaven.” (Matthew 26:64, Mark 14:62, Luke 22:69-70) Their response is to say they need no more testimony as Jesus has blasphemed and deserves to die. This is because their claim is that Jesus claims to be God.

When Jesus is in Capernaum so many people gather together that there is no room for anyone else in the house, even the doorway is blocked with people as he teaches. Some men carried a paralytic on his mat and removed the roof to lower him to the floor of the house. Jesus sees their faith and says, “Your sins are forgiven.” But there are scribes present questioning in their hearts, He is blaspheming, because no one can forgive sins but God alone. Knowing their thoughts in His spirit, Jesus asks, “Why are you thinking these things?” and follows it up with “but so you might know that the Son of Man has authority to forgive sins,” He tells the paralytic, “Get up, take your mat and go home.” (Matthew 9:2-8, Mark 2:1-11, Luke 5:17)

After Mary Magdalene and the other Mary return from the tomb which they found empty and were told by the angel of the Lord that Jesus had risen, they return to where the disciples were, Jesus met them there, saying, “Greetings!” They took hold of His feet and worshipped Him. (Matthew 28:6-9)

Gospel of John

The passage below is quite similar to the one from above about the lame man in Capernaum who was lowered through the roof. I say this because if these people believed that Jesus claims to be God and equal with the Father are true as they are, they wouldn’t be thinking these things, but because they doubt, they are quick to judge and in their zeal to put Him to death for blasphemy.

In John 10:30-38, Jesus says that He and the Father are One, making Himself equal with God, and the Jewish leaders pickup stones to kill him. He reminds the people about Psalm 82:6, which says, “I said, ‘You are gods,’” and goes on to ask if they say He is blaspheming, just as He is set apart and sent into the world? Then He adds, that if He is not doing His Father’s works, don’t believe Him, but that if He is doing them and they don’t believe Him, believe the works.

There are many other passages that show the signs and miracles of Jesus during His three-year ministry show Him to be Messiah, King and God.

The strongest evidence of Jesus claiming to be God is in John when He says, “I am.” It refers back to when Moses asks God at the burning bush who he should say sent him to the Israelites. God answered him to tell them, God says, “I am who I am. Tell them, ‘I am has sent me to you.’” (Exodus 3:14) I have heard many people say that I am is not God’s name and I agree; however, on comparing audio recordings of the pronunciation of the Hebrew name Yhwh (Yahweh) in Hebrew to the Hebrew word translated as “I am,” it is almost identical. If we concede and accept this similarity then we should accept that Jesus uses this similarity Yhwh when He says “I am.” and is therefore saying that He is God. Some websites say that there are seven metaphorical I am statements that Jesus makes in John’s Gospel, but He uses “I am” several more times in the narrative. So here are some of those passages from John’s Gospel where Jesus makes these claims.

I’ve discussed this passage earlier that describes Jesus meets a Samarian woman at Jacob’s well.  Jesus has a conversation with her saying, “God is spirit, and must be worshiped in the Spirit and truth.” The woman responds, “I know that Messiah is coming. When he comes, he will explain all to us.” Jesus responds, “I am He.” (John 4:24-26)

When Jesus heals the man at the pool of Bethesda, he tells people that he didn’t know who healed him and told him to pick up his mat. After he did remember, the text says that the “Jews” wanted to kill Jesus because He healed the man on the Sabbath. These Jews were likely religious leaders, Pharisees or Sadducees or both. So, when they found Jesus and confronted Him, He replies, “My Father is still working, so I am working too.” This statement made them want to kill Him even more, because the text says He made Himself equal with God. (John 5:18) Their conclusion about Him being equal with God would have come from ignoring the Scriptures that foretell of the Messiah’s characteristics.

The day after feeding the five thousand men and their families – which re-enacts the time in when the Israelites wandered in the wilderness complaining that they were hungry (Exodus 16:2-4) – Jesus returns from the other side of the Sea of Galilee, some of that same crowd of people see Jesus on the other side of the sea and have a discussion with Jesus which leads to Him saying, “I am the bread of life.” (John 6:35); the Lord’s prayer also makes reference to the manna when He says, “Give us today our daily bread.” (Matthew 6:14) Later in John 6, Jesus adds, “I am the living bread that came down from heaven,” and that whoever eats this bread will live forever. (John 6:51) In addition to using I am He also makes a promise no one but God can keep, thus claiming to be God.

Jesus teaches in the Temple and some people question where He is from so He takes the opportunity to say that He was sent by God and that they don’t know Him. Then He adds, “I am from Him and He sent Me.” (John 7:28-29)

This passage is the most convincing claim Jesus makes that He is God, because of His response to  the people’s assertion that He could not possibly have seen Abraham while he was alive. Jesus’ response is, “Before Abraham was, I am.” (John 8:56-58) Here Jesus is not merely saying that He is God, He also says that He is eternal as God is, because anyone who has lived from Abraham’s time – which was approximately 2,000 BC – through to the first century has lived longer than any other human, so He must be eternal. It’s also likely that by saying “before Abraham was” He means before the creation in Genesis 1, which would truly make Him eternal. However, as Abraham is considered to be the father of all Israel – and yes, many other nations as well – at the very least Jesus says here that He was present with the Father at the time when He called Abram to leave Ur of the Chaldeans.

Jesus speaks in a parable about Himself being the way to God for those who believe and follow Him, referring to the followers as sheep. He says, “Truly, I tell you, I am the gate for the sheep. The fake messiahs who have come before Him are thieves and robbers, but the sheep did not listen to them. I am the gate; those who enter through me will be saved.” They come and go and find pasture. The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. I have come so that they have life and in abundance. (John 10:7-10)

I discuss John 10:30-38 earlier in this section, and in verse 36, Jesus makes another one of these I am statements as He says, “Why do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, ‘I am God’s Son?’” (John 10:36).

Just before Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead, Jesus tells Lazarus’s sister Martha, “I am the resurrection and the life. All who believe in me live, even though they die. (John 11:25) Can anyone but God raise people from the dead? I think not.

During the Last Supper, Jesus washes the disciples feet and explains why. As He explains, He says, “You call me ‘Rabbi’ and ‘Lord,’ and you are correct, because that is who I am.” (John 13:13) Again, Jesus not only says I am, He also says His disciples are correct in saying He is Lord. In the Bible no one else is called Lord with a capital L, except God.

Thomas asks Jesus, “Lord, how can we know the way, when we don’t know where You are going?” Jesus answers, “I am the way, the truth and the life. The way to the Father is through Me.” (John 14:5-6)

Later that night, as the time nears for the crucifixion of Jesus, He tells them that they will soon not see Him, but that because Jesus lives, they will live, referring to His gift of eternal life. Then He goes on to say that they will realize that “I am in the Father, you are in Me, and I am in you.” (John 14:20)

Then Jesus provides one of the best explanations of how God’s relationship with Jesus works in His followers. He says, “I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinedresser. He prunes each branch from me that bears no fruit, while the branches that do bear fruit he prunes so that they become even more fruitful. You have been cleansed by the word I have spoken to you. Remain in me, as I remain in you also. For each branch to bear fruit, it must remain in the vine. Just the same, you cannot bear fruit unless you remain in Me.” (John 15:1-4) There’s lots to unpack here regarding Jesus’ claim to be God. He makes an I am statement. By saying, “You are cleansed by the word I have spoken,” Jesus does what only God can do, which is to command something to happen. He also commands the disciples and followers to bear fruit and declares that only with Him and the Father can that happen.

Judas brings a hoard of soldiers and officials of the chief priests and Pharisees, carrying torches and weapons to the garden of Gethsemane. Jesus knows everything that is about to happen, so He steps forward, saying, “Who do you want?” They reply, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus says, “I am He.” They stepped back and fell down. Jesus asks again, “Whom are you seeking?” They repeat, “Jesus of Nazareth.” Jesus answers, “I told you that I am He. As you seek Me, let these men go.” (John 18:3-8)

Did Jesus Claim to Be Deity?

Before I studied the Gospels through the lens of the Jewish mind-set of the first century, I didn’t believe that He make a clear claim to be God, because the language does not quote Jesus saying that He is God. However, in the light of the evidence I’ve shown here, I can say that Jesus did many works and made direct claims to be God that could clearly be understood by the Jewish culture. Jesus is the anointed Messiah, King, Lord and God.

By Stephen D. Edwards