Is Jesus God because he said I am Alpha and the Omega.
Yes
A refutation of
“Answering Christianity’s Ahmed Eldin”
Quennel Gale
Here
we begin our second response to Answering Christianity’s Ahmed Eldin on issues relating
to the
divinity of Jesus Christ. As usual Mr. Eldin’s article fails to present any
evidence disproving the divinity of Christ. Instead he once again exposes his
ignorance of the Bible, which seems to be very common among the writers of this
website. It has become apparent to us that these folks have never taken the
time to seriously study and understand the Bible or, if they have, they have no
qualms with distorting its message.
He
begins by saying:
When Muslims corner Christians on the subject “Is Jesus God”?
Christians often try to prove the divinity of Jesus by quoting the passage from
the Revelation that Jesus said, “I am Alpha and the Omega”. However, this
argument is soundly refuted:
http://www.answering-christianity.com/sami_zaatri/rebuttaltosamshamoun24.htm
Response:
I’ve never seen anywhere in which
Muslims cornered Christians on the topic relating to Jesus being God. This is
the figment of Mr. Eldin’s vivid imagination. Also
his appeal to Sami Zaatari doesn’t help him either
for he only gives general statements claiming that “Jesus didn’t say those
words but only the Father” in relevance to his claims of Deity. This is hardly
a sound refutation and we are going to show you how Zaatari’s
article is going to backfire against Mr. Eldin. We
will begin to address the part of Zaatari’s paper
that deals specifically with the “Alpha and Omega” passages since this is what
Mr. Eldin is basing his statement on:
Zaatari:
Jesus said I AM THE ALPHA AND OMEGA THE
FIRST AND LAST
Did he really say that? Let us quote each alpha omega
verse and you will see for yourself and not a single one of them is Jesus
speaking:
1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto
him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he
sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John: 2 Who bare record of
the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that
he saw.
3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the
words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for
the time is at hand. 4 John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be
unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come;
and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne; 5 And from Jesus
Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and
the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us
from our sins in his own blood, 6 And hath made us
kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for
ever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, he cometh with clouds;
and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds
of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.
8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning
and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to
come, the Almighty.
9 I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the
kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of
Jesus Christ. 10 I was in the Spirit on the Lord's day, and heard behind me a
great voice, as of a trumpet, 11 Saying,
I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write
in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus,
and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and
unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea.
Both times were the I am alpha and omega is used, is not
said by Jesus but by THE God as the text clearly shows. Christians would like
to say read on which shows that it is indeed Jesus, so let us read on and see:
Response:
Zaatari is clearly wrong for saying that
God is the only One speaking in the text as “the Alpha and Omega”. If he
actually would have read Revelation as carefully as he claimed then Zaatari would have seen this:
When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead.
Then he placed his right hand on me and said: ‘Do not be afraid. I am the First
and the Last. I am the Living One; I WAS DEAD, and behold I am alive for ever and ever! And I hold the keys of
death and Hades.’" Revelation 1:17-18
To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who
is the First and the Last, WHO DIED AND CAME TO LIFE AGAIN."
Revelation 2:8
The problem for both Zaatari and Mr. Eldin is that God
the Father couldn’t be the ONE WHO DIED:
Now secondly there is a huge problem if Jesus died! If as Christians say
Jesus is God, then how can God possibly
die? God is above death. God does
not die, so the fact that Jesus did die shows he is not God. Believers in
trinity will say there are three persons in the God-head, so hence God did not really died since God is triune,
however so how does part of God die?
That is insane to say the least. I would love to know how part of God dies, and how does God die. These questions have
never been given a good answer by any living Christian. So the fact is Jesus
did not come to die for your sins, that is a lie and an invention, Jesus came
to bring you to God, to make you believe in the one who sent him. That was his
overall mission.
Zaatari is clear on the fact that God does
not die, which means that he is basically arguing that the Father can’t die.
But this puts before him a dilemma since he believes that it was the Father,
not Jesus, who claimed to be the Alpha and Omega and the First and the Last in
Revelation 1:8 and 11, and yet both 1:18 and 2:8 say that the First and the
Last did die. This essentially means that Zaatari is arguing for the death of
God the Father! But if the Father died then this means that
God can die. And if God can die then why can’t Jesus be God despite having
experienced death? After all, if God the Father can die without this being an
argument against his divinity then Jesus can also die and still be God.
Does Mr. Eldin
call this a sound refutation? This is an embarrassment and it serves to prove
that Mr. Eldin has exposed not only his ignorance of
Revelation but is more foolish to rely on Sami Zaatari,
a pseudo Muslim propagandist who has shown that he has not read the entire book
of Revelation (at least not carefully).
And lest Zaatari try to argue that
the phrase “First and Last” is not a Divine title used exclusively for God we
only need to remind him of the following texts:
Who has done this and carried it through, calling forth the
generations from the beginning? I, the
LORD -with the first of them and
with the last—I am he.” Isaiah 41:4
This is what the LORD says— Israel's King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.” Isaiah 44:6
Listen to me, O Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am
he; I am the first and I am the last.”
Isaiah 48:12
He is the First and
the Last, and the Outward and the Inward; and He is Knower of all things. S. 57:3
For a thorough explanation of how
God can experience death without ceasing to be immortal or ever-living please
go here: http://answering-islam.org/Shamoun/q_god_dying.htm
Even more damaging for the case of
both Zaatari and Eldin is what the Greek text of Revelation 1:7-8 says:
“Look, he
is coming with the clouds, and every eye will see him, even those who
pierced him; and all the peoples of the earth will mourn because of
him. So shall it be! Amen. ‘I am
the Alpha and the Omega,
the Beginning and the End,’ says the Lord God, ‘The Being/
Existing One (Greek- HO ON) who is and who was and who is to
come, THE ALMIGHTY (pantokrator)."
The One who is coming is the One that was pierced, i.e. the
Lord Jesus Christ. Christ not only identifies himself as the Almighty, a
rather explicit claim to Deity, but also as the Being/Existing One who is, who
was and who is to come, a phrase which refers to God’s eternal nature.
Furthermore, according to the Bible God the Father HAS
NEVER BEEN SEEN, nor did he become a man:
No one has ever seen God.
It is GOD THE ONLY SON, who is close to the Father's heart, who has made
him known." John 1:18 NRSV
Hence, the expression “those who pierced him” can’t refer
to the Father, but must refer to the Son who was pierced when he became man for
our salvation.
And
here is the late world-renowned Greek NT
scholar A.T. Robertson had to say about Revelation
1:7-8:
Behold, he cometh with the clouds (idou
ercetai meta twn nepelwn). Futuristic present middle indicative of
ercomai,
a reminiscence of Daniel
7:13 (Theodotion). "It becomes a common eschatological
refrain" (Beckwith) as in Mark
13:26; Mark
14:62; Matthew
24:30; Matthew
26:64; Luke
21:27. Compare the manifestation of God in the clouds at Sinai, in the
cloudy pillar, the Shekinah, at the transfiguration" (Vincent). Shall
see (opsetai). Future middle of oraw, a
reminiscence of Zechariah
12:10 according to the text of Theodotion (Aquila
and Symmachus) rather than the LXX and like that of Matthew
24:30 (similar combination of Daniel and Zechariah) and 26:64. This
picture of the victorious Christ in his return occurs also in Matthew
14:14, 18-20; Matthew
19:11-21; Matthew
20:7-10. And they which (kai oitine/B>). "And the very
ones who," Romans and Jews, all who shared in this act. Pierced (exekenthsan). First aorist active
indicative of ekkentew, late compound (Aristotle, Polybius, LXX), from
ek and kentew (to stab, to pierce), in N.T., only here and John
19:37, in both cases from Zechariah
12:10, but not the LXX text (apparently proof that John used the original
Hebrew or the translation of Theodotion and Aquila). Shall mourn (kopsontai). Future middle
(direct) of koptw, old verb, to cut, "they shall cut
themselves," as was common for mourners (Matthew
11:17; Luke
8:52; Luke
23:27). From Zechariah
12:12. See also Revelation
18:9. Tribes (pulai). Not just the Jewish tribes, but the spiritual
Israel
of Jews and Gentiles as in Revelation
7:4-8. No nation had then accepted Christ as Lord and Saviour, nor has any
yet done so. (Source)
On the basis of what the Greek of
this passage says, Robertson proved that this doesn’t refer to the Father but
only to Jesus since the Greek for pierce refers to a stab, indicating that the
One coming had been stabbed. This is precisely what happened to Jesus while he
hung on the cross! In fact the only other occurrence of this in the NT comes
from John 19:37:
The soldiers therefore came
and broke the legs of the first man who
had BEEN CRUCIFIED WITH JESUS, and then those of the other. But when they came to Jesus and found THAT HE WAS ALREADY
DEAD, they did not break his legs. Instead, one of the soldiers pierced Jesus' side with a spear,
bringing a sudden flow of blood and water. The man who saw it has given
testimony, and his testimony is true. He knows that he tells the truth, and he
testifies so that you also may believe. These things happened so that the
scripture would be fulfilled: "Not one of his bones will be broken,"
and, as another scripture says, "They
will look ON THE ONE THEY HAVE PIERCED." John 19:32-37
It is clear that Jesus claimed to be the Alpha and Omega in
Revelation, and the Greek of Revelation proves this beyond a shadow of a doubt.
One will search the Holy Bible in vain to find a statement saying that the
Father died and was pierced or stabbed. Zaatari said it himself, “God the
Father, does not die”.
Hence, Zaatari and Mr. Eldin have both been refuted since
they must agree that the God who was pierced, the God who claimed to be the
First and the Last who had died and came to life is none other than the risen
and immortal Lord Jesus! Otherwise, they will be forced to admit that God the
Father died and came to life, which would still prove that Jesus is God!
After all, the only Person who died and came to life is
Jesus, which means that if Zaatari’s logic is correct that God the Father is
speaking in Revelation 1:8, 11 then Jesus must be God the Father! This would be
the heresy known as Modalism, that Jesus is the Father, a
teaching which is contrary to Scripture (http://christiandefense.com/oneness.htm).
Zaatari:
Revelations 21: 1-8
1 And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the
first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea. 2
And I John saw the holy city, new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of
heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. 3 And I heard a great
voice out of heaven saying, Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and he
will dwell with them, and they shall be his people, and God himself shall be
with them, and be their God. 4 And God shall wipe away all tears from their
eyes; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor crying, neither
shall there be any more pain: for the former things are passed away. 5 And he
that sat upon the throne said, Behold, I make all things new. And he said unto
me, Write: for these words are true and faithful. 6 And he said unto me, It is
done. I am Alpha and Omega, the
beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain
of the water of life freely. 7 He that overcometh shall inherit all things; and
I will be his God, and he shall be my son. 8 But the fearful, and unbelieving,
and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers, and sorcerers, and
idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth with
fire and brimstone: which is the second death.
This is not Jesus speaking
but rather the Father. As it says I will be his God and he will be my son. Or
does Jesus have a son now?
Response:
Zaatari provides further proof that doesn’t
understand the book of Revelation. Note, carefully, what Revelation 21:8 says:
"And I heard a loud voice saying, ‘Now the
dwelling of God (tou theou - the God) is with men, and he will dwell
with them. They will be his people and God (ho theos - the God)
himself will dwell with them and be their God.’ He who was seated on the
throne said, ‘I am making everything new!’ Then he said, ‘I am the Alpha
and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To him who is thirsty I
will give to drink without cost from the spring of the water of life. He
who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will be HIS GOD and he will be my
son.’" Revelation 21:3-7
Pay attention to the fact that the
speaker clearly says that:
To him who is thirsty I will give to drink without
cost from the spring of the water of life.
This same speaker also said:
He who overcomes will inherit all this, and I will
be HIS GOD and he will be my son.
Now the only Person in the New
Testament who claimed to give “the spring of water of life” to anyone who
overcomes is the Lord Jesus:
For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; HE WILL LEAD
THEM TO SPRINGS OF LIVING WATER. And God will wipe away every tear from
their eyes." Revelation 7:17
Jesus the Lamb does what God in 21:7 says he will do, namely, give believers
to drink from the spring of living water. This isn’t the only place where Jesus
is said to do this:
Jesus answered her, ‘If you knew the gift of God
and who it is that asks you for a drink, you would have asked him and he
would have given you living waters’ … Jesus answered, ‘Everyone who drinks
of this water will be thirsty again, but whoever drinks THE WATER I GIVE HIM
will never thirst. Indeed, THE WATER I GIVE HIM will become in him A SPRING OF
WATER WELLING UP TO ETERNAL LIFE.’" John 4:10, 13-14
On the last day, Jesus stood and said in a loud
voice, ‘If anyone is thirsty, let him come to ME and drink. Whoever
believes in ME, as the Scripture has said, STREAMS OF LIVING WATER will
flow from within him.’" John 7:37-38
Thus,
the foregoing clearly shows that Jesus is the One who identified himself as the
God of all believers in Revelation 21:6-7. At the very least, the above texts
show that Jesus claims and ascribes to himself the very functions and titles of
God Almighty.
It
doesn’t stop there, since Revelation further says that both God and the Lamb
sit on the same throne:
To him who overcomes, I will give
the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I overcame and sat down with
my Father ON HIS THRONE. Revelation 3:21
Therefore, 'they are before THE
THRONE OF GOD and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on
the throne will spread his tent over them. Never again will they hunger; never
again will they thirst. The sun will not beat upon them, nor any scorching
heat. For the Lamb AT THE CENTER
OF THE THRONE will be
their shepherd; he will lead them to springs of living water. And God will
wipe away every tear from their eyes.'" Revelation 7:15-17
The references do not speak of the thrones of God and of the
Lamb, but rather of their throne (singular). What makes this even more
interesting is that John was given a vision where he saw all creation, not just
the angels, worshiping the Lord Jesus:
"And I saw in the right hand
of him who was seated on the throne a scroll written within and on the back,
sealed with seven seals; and I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud
voice, ‘Who is worthy to open the scroll and break its seals?’ And no
one in heaven or on earth or under the earth was able to open the scroll or to
look into it, and I wept much that no one was found worthy to open
the scroll or to look into it. Then one of the elders said to me, ‘Weep not; lo,
the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has conquered, so that he
can open the scroll and its seven seals.’ And between the throne
and the four living creatures and among the elders, I saw a Lamb standing, as
though it had been slain, with seven horns and with seven eyes, which are the
seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth; and he went and took
the scroll from the right hand of him who was seated on the throne. And when he
had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell
down BEFORE THE LAMB, each holding a harp, and with golden bowls
full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints; and they sang a new song,
saying, ‘Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were
slain and by your blood did ransom men for God from every tribe and tongue and
people and nation, and have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and
they shall reign on earth.’ Then I looked, and I heard around the
throne and the living creatures and the elders the voice of many angels,
numbering myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, saying with a loud
voice, ‘Worthy is the Lamb who was slain, to receive power and
wealth and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing!’ And I heard
EVERY CREATURE in heaven and on earth and under the earth and in the sea, and
all therein, saying, ‘To him who sits upon the throne AND TO THE
LAMB be blessing and honor and glory and might for ever and ever!’ And
the four living creatures said, ‘Amen!’ and the elders fell down and
worshiped." Revelation 5:1-14
Notice here that although God is
explicitly shown sitting on the throne, the Lamb IS ALSO WITH GOD AT THE CENTER
OF THE THRONE AND RECEIVES THE WORSHIP AND ADORATION OF ALL CREATION!
Not only does he receive the praise
of all creation but Jesus even receives the very same exact honor that God his
Father receives. Revelation 5 is simply a fulfillment of what Jesus said in
John 5:22-23:
“Moreover, the Father judges no one, but has entrusted all
judgment to the Son, that all may honor
the Son JUST AS THEY honor the Father.
He who does not honor the Son does not honor the Father, who sent him.”
Everyone must honor God’s Son in the
same way that they honor the Father, which is precisely what we see happening
in Revelation 5!
In light of the above let us look at
Revelation 21 once again:
THEN HE WHO SAT ON THE THRONE said, "Behold, I make all things new." And He
said to me, "Write, for these words are true and faithful." And He
said to me, "It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and
the End. I will give of the fountain of the water of life freely to him who
thirsts. He who overcomes shall inherit all things, AND I WILL BE HIS
GOD and he shall be My son. Rev. 21:5-8
According to Revelation the One “WHO SAT ON THE THRONE” is
- THE FATHER (Rev. 3:21)
- THE LAMB Jesus (Rev.
3:21, 5:1-14, 7:15-17)
That Jesus also sits on the throne shows just how little
merit Zaatari’s argument holds since he must be able
to prove, not simply assume, that it is the Father, not the Son, who is
speaking at this point. In fact, since both the Father and the Son are sitting
on the same throne it may even be that both Persons are identifying themselves
as the one God of all believers!
Revelations
22 : 6-18
6 And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and
true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his
servants the things which must shortly be done. 7 Behold, I come quickly:
blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. 8 And I
John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell
down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things. 9 Then
saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy
brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship
God. 10 And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this
book: for the time is at hand. 11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still:
and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let
him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. 12 And,
behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according
as his work shall be. 13 I am Alpha and
Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. 14 Blessed are
they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life,
and may enter in through the gates into the city. 15 For without are dogs, and
sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth
and maketh a lie. 16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these
things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the
bright and morning star. 17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him
that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will,
let him take the water of life freely. 18 For I testify unto every man that
heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these
things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19
And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God
shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and
from the things which are written in this book.
Christians once again will say that is Jesus. In fact it is clear that that is
not Jesus. Read the text very carefully, you will notice that it is suddenly
THE God speaking when he says I am alpha and omega. Let us Quote to make it
simple so every one can see who is talking rather than making everyone
confused:
This is John
6 And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and
true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his
servants the things which must shortly be done. 7 Behold, I come quickly:
blessed is he that keepeth the sayings of the prophecy of this book. 8 And I
John saw these things, and heard them. And when I had heard and seen, I fell
down to worship before the feet of the angel which shewed me these things
This is
angel
9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am
thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the
sayings of this book: worship God. 10 And he saith unto me, Seal not the
sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand. 11 He that is
unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy
still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is
holy, let him be holy still. 12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is
with me, to give every man according as his work shall be
Now this is
THE God
13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the
first and the last. 14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may
have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the
city. 15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers,
and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie
Now it is
Jesus
16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you
these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the
bright and morning star. 17 And the Spirit and the bride say, Come. And let him
that heareth say, Come. And let him that is athirst come. And whosoever will,
let him take the water of life freely. 18 For I testify unto every man that
heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these
things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19
And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God
shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and
from the things which are written in this book.
So it is
not good English, no one knows who is talking unless you really try to find
out. When you do, you see that Jesus is not claiming to be alpha and omega
first and last.
Response:
Zaatari
is so hung up on good English to such an extent that he forgets that the NT was
written in Greek. As any student of the Bible knows, the English text does not
take precedence over the Greek.
Moreover,
Zaatari doesn’t carefully read the passage all the way through but tries to
break up the text so as to separate 22:12-15 with what follows. Let us see what
happens when we read it entirely without any breaks:
"And behold, I am coming
quickly, and My reward is with Me, to give to every one according to his work. I
AM THE ALPHA AND THE OMEGA, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last."
Blessed are those who do His commandments, that they may have the right to the
tree of life, and may enter through the gates into the city. But outside are
dogs and sorcerers and sexually immoral and murderers and idolaters, and
whoever loves and practices a lie. "I, JESUS, have sent My angel to
testify to you these things in the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of
David, the Bright and Morning Star." Rev. 22:12-16
In his haste, Zaatari forgot to note the God who says he is the Alpha and
Omega, the Beginning and the End, the First and the Last also said that he is
coming quickly. Now let us see who the One who is coming quickly actually is:
“He who testifies to these things says, ‘Yes, I am coming soon.’ Amen. COME, LORD
JESUS.” Revelation 22:20
It is more than obvious that Jesus is the One who is coming quickly which
means that he is the One claiming to be the First and the Last, much like God
did in the Old Testament! As if this weren’t enough to prove that Jesus is
speaking, note once more what Revelation 22:12 says:
“… My reward is with me, and I will give to
everyone according to what he has done.”
The One who is coming will repay and judge everyone according to what they
have done, a function which Jesus performs at his return from heaven:
“To the angel of the church in Thyatira
write: These are the words OF THE
SON OF GOD, whose eyes are like blazing fire and whose feet are like
burnished bronze. I know your deeds,
your love and faith, your service and perseverance, and that you are now doing
more than you did at first. Nevertheless, I have this against you: You
tolerate that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess. By her teaching
she misleads my servants into sexual immorality and the eating of food
sacrificed to idols. I have given her time to repent of her immorality, but she
is unwilling. So I will cast her on a bed of suffering, and I will make those
who commit adultery with her suffer intensely, unless they repent of her ways.
I will strike her children dead. Then all the churches will know that I am he who searches hearts and minds,
and I will repay each of you according to your deeds.” Revelation 2:18-23
“For the Son of Man is going to come in his
Father's glory with his angels, and then
he will reward each person according to what he has done.” Matthew 16:27
In light of the foregoing, does it come as a surprise to read what both the
NIV Bible Dictionary and the New Bible Dictionary have to say about John’s use
of Alpha and Omega in Revelation?
Combined with alpha (omega) it
signifies completeness, as from "A to Z" in modern usage. SO GOD
IS THE ALPHA AND THE OMEGA, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End
(Rev. 1:8), AS IS ALSO CHRIST (21:6, 22:13). COMPARE ISAIAH 41:4, 44:6.
(New International Bible Dictionary, J. D. Douglas & Merril C. Tenney,
Alpha, 1987, pg. 36)
And,
This juxtaposition of the first and
last letters of the Gk. alphabet, corresponding to the Heb. aleph and taw, is
used in Rev. alone AS A SELF-DESIGNATION OF BOTH GOD (REV. 1:8, 21:6, WHERE
'THE ALPHA AND THE OMEGA' IS EXPLAINED BY THE PARALLEL' THE BEGINNING AND THE
END') AND CHRIST. THE SON'S DIVINITY IS CONFIRMED BY APPLYING TO HIM WHAT IS
SAID OF THE FATHER. In each of these dynamic and comprehensive activity
OF GOD OR CHRIST IN CREATION OR SALVATION. (New Bible Dictionary, J. D.
Douglas & F. F. Bruce, Alpha & Omega, p 26)
Here,
once more, are the comments of A.T. Robertson, this time in reference to the
Greek of Revelation 22:12-13:
My reward is with me (o misqoߠmou met emou). IT IS CHRIST SPEAKING AGAIN and he repeats his promise
of coming quickly as in verse James
7. He speaks now as the Rewarder (o misqapodoth/B>) of Hebrews
11:6. Cf. Revelation
11:18; Isaiah
40:10; Isaiah
62:11. To render (apodounai). Second
aorist active infinitive of purpose of apodidwmi,
to give back. Each will receive the reward according to his own work (Revelation
2:23; 2 Corinthians
5:10; Revelation
2:26). (Source)
I am the Alpha and the Omega (Egw to Alpa kai to O). Applied
to God in Revelation
1:8; Revelation
21:6, AND HERE ALONE TO CHRIST, crowning proof in this book of Christ's
deity. So in Revelation
21:6 God is termed, as Christ is here, h arch kai to telo/B> (the beginning and the
end), while o prwtoߠkai o escato/B> (the first and the
last) is applied only to Christ (Revelation
1:17; Revelation
2:8). Solemn assurance is thus given that Christ is qualified to be the
Judge of verse Revelation
22:12 (cf. Matthew
25:31-46). In Hebrews
12:2 Jesus is the archgoߠkai teleiwthߠthߠpistew/B> (the author and finisher of faith). Christ was the Creator
of the universe for the Father. So now he is the Consummation of redemption. (Source)
Hence,
by using both the Greek and English texts we have conclusively shown that it is
the Lord Jesus, not God the Father, who is speaking in Revelation 22:13. In
light of this, how can Zaatari dare say that “nobody knows who is talking” when
a careful examination of the original languages and context of Holy Scripture
have proven that it is the risen Christ who is speaking to John?
We
have therefore demonstrated that Jesus not only claimed to be the Alpha and
Omega, something that only God is, but we’ve shown explicitly from the Greek
and Biblical data that he literally claimed to be the very God of all
believers. He is the God who, in Revelation 21:6-7, gives “living water” to all
that overcome. Thus, this is just one of the many explicit claims to Deity made
by the Christ himself
So
now that we’ve refuted Mr. Eldin’s source we now turn to what he believes to be
his one slam dunk argument, specifically, the example of Melchiz’edek:
Now personally I want to draw the
attention of the Christians in another passage of the Bible, in the book of
Hebrews we read:
1. For this Melchisedec, king of Salem,
priest of the most high God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of
the kings, and blessed him;
2. To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of
all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also
King of Salem, which is, King of peace;
3. Without father,
without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of
life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually.
( Hebrews 7:13)
Notice this Priest Melchisedec “has
neither beginning of days, nor end of life”, in other words very logically we
can say that this statement is much more superior than the statement supposed
uttered by Jesus (that he is Alpha and the Omega). Because alpha and Omega has
a beginning and end but this Priest Melchisedec has no beginning and no end,
therefore why Christians don’t consider this Priest as God Almighty? Because
his superiority from Jesus is not only for his eternal existence but also
because he does not have a mother, Jesus had a mother, and he does not have a
descent, Jesus had descents (two genealogies according to the gospels). So when
Christians try to prove the divinity of Jesus by the statement “Iam Alpha and
Omega” I advise them to better look the statement of Melchisedec which is much
more superior than Jesus. However, Christians do not support that Melchisedec
is God. So there is no big deal when Jesus said I am Alpha and the Omega.
Response:
Only someone who hasn’t done enough
research will assume that this is superior to what Jesus or God claimed in
Revelation. If he actually bothered reading this passage closely Mr. Eldin would have found out that Mel’s “neither beginning of
days, nor end of life” was, MADE LIKE UNTO THE SON OF GOD!
Clearly the author of Hebrews is
telling us that at best Mel was made LIKE UNTO JESUS. Hence, if the title of
“neither beginning of days, nor end of life” proves that this is superior then
HOW MUCH MORE SUPERIOR IS CHRIST WHOM MEL IS NOTHING MORE THAN A MERE COPY OF?
Notice that the Son of God wasn’t made like unto Mel but it was the other way
around! Apparently Mr. Eldin didn’t see this or he is
blatantly ignoring it.
However,
this isn’t even the fun part, as A.T. Robertson explains:
Without father, without mother, without genealogy (apatwr,
amhtwr, agenealoghto/B>). Alliteration
like Romans 1:30, the first two old
words, the third coined by the author (found nowhere else) and MEAING SIMPLY
"DEVOID OF ANY GENEOLOGY." The argument is that from
silence, made much of by Philo, but not to be pressed. The record in Genesis
tells nothing of any genealogy. Melchizedek stands alone. He is not to be
understood as a miraculous being without birth or death. Melchizedek has
been made more mysterious than he is BY READING INTO THIS INTERPRETATION
WHAT IS NOT THERE. Made like (apwmoiwmeno/B>). Perfect passive
participle of apomoiow, old verb, to produce A FACSIMILE OR COPY, only
here in N.T. The likeness is in the picture drawn in Genesis, not in the man
himself. Such artificial interpretation does not amount to proof, but only
serves as a parallel or illustration. Unto the Son of God (twi uiwi
tou qeou). Associative instrumental case of uio/B>. Abideth a priest (menei
iereu/B>). According to the record in
Genesis, the only one in his line just as Jesus stands alone, but with the
difference that Jesus continues priest in fact in heaven. Continually (eiߠto dihneke/B>). Old phrase (for the
continuity) like eiߠton aiwna, in N.T. only in
Hebrews (Romans 7:3; Romans 10:1,14,21). (Source)
Based
on the Greek, Melchizedek’s “superiority in existence” IS INTENDED TO BE A
FACSMILE OR COPY OF JESUS’ ETERNAL BEING AND PRIESTHOOD! This means that Jesus
is the reality of which Mel is merely a copy of, and yet Mr. Eldin claims that
a copy is supposed to be better than the original!
This
guy needs to stop writing articles since he is killing the credibility of Osama
Abdallah and his minions! (On second thought, we want him to continue writing
since he helps us expose why Osama’s website is a colossal joke and why Islam
is a false religion!)
This verse best describes Mr. Eldin, Sami Zaatari and the
rest of the goons at the Answering Nothing website:
His letters contain some things
that are hard to understand, WHICH
IGNORANT AND UNSTABLE PEOPLE DISTORT, as they do the other Scriptures,
TO THEIR OWN DESTRUCTION.” 2 Peter
3:16
The
one consistent thing about this group of pseudo apologists is that they all
share in common their blatant distortion and misunderstanding of Holy
Scripture. May the risen Lord Jesus deliver them all from their lies and
deception!
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