We
continue from where we left off by picking up on Williams’ denial that
Jesus’ miracles provide supernatural, divine confirmation that he is God in the
flesh.
Yahweh Almighty Has Come!
The NT writings, especially Mark, ascribe to the Lord Jesus
certain functions and roles which the OT prophets routinely attribute to Yahweh
God alone. For instance, Mark records Jesus miraculously silencing the raging
winds and seas just by his powerful word, a power which left his followers
frightened and baffled:
“On the same day, when evening had come, He said to them,
‘Let us cross over to the other side.’ Now when they had left
the multitude, they took Him along in the boat as He was. And other little
boats were also with Him. And a great windstorm arose, and the
waves beat into the boat, so that it was already filling. But He was in the stern, asleep on a pillow. And
they awoke Him and said to Him, ‘Teacher, do You not care that we are
perishing?’ Then He arose and
rebuked the wind, and said to the sea, ‘Peace,
be still!’ And the wind ceased
and there was a great calm. But He said to them, ‘Why
are you so fearful? HOW IS IT THAT YOU HAVE NO FAITH?’ And
they feared exceedingly, and said to one another, ‘Who can this be, that
even the wind and the sea obey Him!’” Mark 4:35-41
The Gospel also reports Jesus walking on water:
“Immediately He made His disciples get into the boat and go
before Him to the other side, to Bethsaida, while He sent the multitude away. And
when He had sent them away, He departed to the mountain to pray. Now
when evening came, the boat was in the middle of the sea; and He was alone on the land. Then
He saw them straining at rowing, for the wind was against them. Now about the
fourth watch of the night He
came to them, walking on the sea, and would have passed them by. And
when they saw Him walking on the sea, they supposed it was a ghost, and
cried out; for they all saw Him and were troubled. But
immediately He talked with them and said to them, ‘Be of good cheer! It is I
(ego eimi – I AM); do not be afraid.’ Then He went up into
the boat to them, and the wind ceased. And they were greatly amazed in
themselves beyond measure, and marveled. For THEY HAD NOT
UNDERSTOOD about the loaves, because THEIR HEART WAS HARDENED.” Mark
6:45-52
These passages raise a few important issues for us to
consider.
First, we again see the disciples’ failure to comprehend
the signs which they were witnessing with their very own eyes. This provides
further confirmation of our exegesis that Jesus deliberately chose to restore
the blind man’s sight gradually as a way of illustrating the rather slow and
long process it took for the disciples to overcome their spiritual blindness
and deafness.
Second, the miracles which Jesus performed and the words he
used to reveal himself to the disciples in Mark 6:50 (cf. Matthew 14:27), i.e.
“I am; do not be afraid,” are actually ascribed to Yahweh in the Old Testament.
For instance, it is Yahweh alone who treads upon the waves
of the seas and silences the winds as a display of his sovereign power and
control over creation:
“He removes the mountains, and they do not know When He
overturns them in His anger; He shakes the earth out of its place, And its
pillars tremble; He commands the sun, and it does not rise; He seals off the
stars; He alone spreads out the heavens, And
treads on the waves of the sea; He made the Bear, Orion, and the
Pleiades, And the chambers of the south; He does great things past finding out,
Yes, wonders without number.” Job 9:1-10
“By awesome
deeds in righteousness You will answer us, O God of our salvation, You who are the confidence of all the ends of the
earth, And of the far-off seas; Who established the mountains by His strength, Being clothed with power; You who still the noise of the
seas, The noise of their waves,
And the tumult of the peoples. They also who dwell in the farthest parts are afraid of Your signs; You
make the outgoings of the morning and evening rejoice.” Psalm 65:5-8
"The waters saw You, O God; The waters saw You, they were
afraid; The depths also trembled. The clouds poured out water; The skies
sent out a sound; Your arrows flashed about. The voice of Your thunder was in
the whirlwind; The lightnings lit up the world; The earth trembled and shook. Your way was in the sea, Your path
in the great waters, and Your footsteps were not known." Psalm
77:16-19
“O Lord God of hosts, Who is mighty like You, O Lord? Your
faithfulness also surrounds You. You
rule the raging of the sea; When
its waves rise, You still them.” 89:8-9
“Those who go down to the sea in ships, Who do business on
great waters, They see the
works of the Lord, And His wonders in the deep. For He
commands and raises the stormy wind, Which lifts up the waves of the sea.
They mount up to the heavens, They go down again to the depths; Their soul
melts because of trouble. They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man,
And are at their wits’ end. Then
they cry out to theLord in their
trouble, And He brings them out
of their distresses. HE CALMS THE STORM, SO THAT ITS WAVES ARE STILL. Then they
are glad because they are quiet; So He guides them to their desired haven.
Oh, that men would give thanks to the Lord for His goodness, And for His wonderful works to the children of
men! Let them exalt Him also in the assembly of the people, And praise Him in
the company of the elders.” Psalm 107:23-32
And Yahweh is the One who reveals himself as the “I AM” as
a way of encouraging his people to not be afraid since he is with them to
deliver them from all their calamities:
“But now, thus says the Lord, who created you, O Jacob, And
He who formed you, O Israel: ‘Fear not, for I have redeemed you; I have
called you by your name; You areMine. When you pass through the waters, I
will be with you; And through the
rivers, they shall not overflow you. When you walk through the fire, you
shall not be burned, Nor shall the flame scorch you… Fear not, for I am with you; I will bring your
descendants from the east, And gather you from the west… Let all the nations be
gathered together, And let the people be assembled. Who among them can declare
this, And show us former things? Let them bring out their witnesses, that they
may be justified; Or let them hear and say, “It is truth.” You are My witnesses,’ says the Lord, ‘And My
servant whom I have chosen, That
you may know and believe Me, And
understandthat I am He (LXX – ego eimi). Before Me there was no God
formed, Nor shall there be after Me. I, even I, am the Lord, And besides Me there is no savior. I have declared and saved,
I have proclaimed, And there
was no foreign god among you; Therefore youare My witnesses,’ Says the Lord, ‘that I am God. Indeed
before the day was, I am He; And there
is no one who can deliver out
of My hand; I work, and who will reverse it?’” Isaiah 43:1-3, 5, 9-13
It is therefore clear that these signs serve the purpose of
revealing Jesus’ identity as Yahweh Incarnate, the divine Son who is
essentially coequal with the Father. As noted reformed Christian scholar and
pastor John F. MacArthur puts it:
“… Mark reports that, long with their great amazement, the
men were also ‘very much afraid’ (4:41). They were now more afraid of the one
who had stilled the storm than they had been of the storm itself. Many of them
had encountered dangerous storms, but
none had encountered such supernatural power as Jesus here displayed.
“After God had declared His great power and majesty, Job
exclaimed, ‘I have heard of Thee by the hearing of the ear; but now my eye sees
Thee; therefore I retract, and I repent in dust and ashes’ (Job 42:5-6). When
Isaiah ‘saw the Lord sitting on a throne, lofty and exalted, with the train of
His robe filling the temple,’ he declared, ‘Woe is me, for I am ruined! because
I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my
eyes have seen the King, the Lord of hosts’ (Isa. 6:1, 5). After Daniel beheld
the Lord, he testified: ‘No strength was left in me, for my natural color
turned to a deathly pallor, and I retained no strength. But I heard the sound
of his words, and as soon as I heard the sound of his words, I fell into a deep
sleep on my face, with my face to the ground’ (Dan. 10:8-9). When Peter saw
Jesus miraculously provide the great catch of fish, ‘he fell down at Jesus'
feet, saying, “Depart from me, for I am a sinful man, O Lord!”’ (Luke 5:8).
When Paul encountered the risen Christ on the Damascus road, ‘he fell to the
ground … And though his eyes were open, he could see nothing’ (Acts 9:4, 8).
“God's majesty is so overwhelming that when He displays
Himself in even a small part of His glory men cannot stand in His presence. These disciples suddenly realized
that God was standing in the very boat with them, and they were terrified by
His power and His holiness. On a similar and later occasion Peter walked on
the water. But when the wind came up, he became afraid, and Jesus not only held
up His faithless disciple but also caused the wind to stop. ‘And those who were
in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are certainly God's Son!”’ (Matt.
14:29-33)… The same Christ who stilled the Sea of Galilee is the Christ who
keeps every atom and every star in its orbit. He keeps the universe in balance
and provides for each plant and animal. One day He is coming to restore the
world that sin defiled, to make completely new the heavens and the earth. Even
now He is the God who gives eternal life to those who trust in Him, and who will
calm their every storm and give strength for their every tragedy.” (The
MacArthur New Testament Commentary Series: Matthew 8-15 [Moody Publishers, Chicago, IL 1987],
pp. 36-38; bold emphasis ours)
Since MacArthur may well be too conservative for Williams’
tastes here is what the translators of the rather liberal Catholic New
American Bible say
concerning Mark 6:50:
* [6:50] It is I, do not be afraid!: literally, “I am.” This may reflect the divine
revelatory formula of Ex 3:14; Is 41:4, 10, 14; 43:1–3, 10, 13. Mark implies
the hidden identity of Jesus as Son of God. (Bold emphasis ours)
And this is what they write in regards to Matthew’s version
of Jesus silencing the winds and sea:
*
[8:26] You of
little faith: see note on Mt 6:30. Great calm: Jesus’ calming the sea may be meant to recall the Old
Testament theme of God’s control over the chaotic waters (Ps 65:8; 89:10;
93:3–4; 107:29). (Bold emphasis ours)
Another rather highly liberal and critical source, The New Jerome Biblical Commentary,
concurs:
“… commanded
the sea: Jesus’ ability to
control the sea is an implicit statement about his divine power, for God alone
can rule the sea (see Ps 74:13-14, 89:10-12). Jesus addresses the sea, not
the disciples. be quiet, be
still!: A similar formula in
1:25 (where Jesus performs an exorcism) suggests that here Jesus is manifesting
his control over the powers of evil. great
calm: This feature indicates
the completeness and effectiveness of Jesus’ action in controlling the sea… who is this … ?: Since only God could control
the wind and sea, the disciples’ question carries an implicit confession of
Jesus’ divinity, at least to the extent that he does the works customarily
predicated of God in the OT.” (Raymond E. Brown, S.S., Joseph A. Fitzmyer,
S. J., Roland E. Murphy, O. Carm. [Prentice Hall, Inc., Englewood Cliffs, New
Jersey], p. 607; bold emphasis ours)
And:
“… The approach to this story as an epiphany/theophany is most
consistent with Mark’s presentation. The twin focus is Jesus and the
disciples: (1) The divine
identity of Jesus is suggested by his walking on the waters, his passing by
them, and his words, ‘it is I.’ (2) The disciples run a gamut of emotions,
ending in their astonishment and Mark’s comment about their failure to
understand the true identity of Jesus… Mark meant ‘on the water,’ not simply
‘by the shore’; a naturalistic explanation cannot be built on the preposition epi here (see 6:47). The OT portrays walking on water as
a divine function (see Job 9:8; 38:16). The representation of Jesus as walking
on water thus carries an implicit claim about his divinity. He wanted to pass by them: The implicit christological claim
is strengthened by the use of the vb. parelthein, which was linked with the theophany
tradition in the LXX (see Exod 33:19, 22; 34:6; 1 Kgs 19:11). Its
appearance in the LXX of Amos 7:8; 8:2 also suggests that Jesus desired to help
his disciples in their difficulty… I
am he: In the context of
self-disclosure and theophany, this
phrase must allude to the OT revelation formula (Exod 3:14; Deut 32:39; Isa
41:4; 43:10) applied to Yahweh, thus contributing to the implicit
christological message of the whole text…” (Ibid., p. 611; bold emphasis ours)
These aren’t the only wonders that Jesus did which point to
his divine identity. Other miracles include his healing the lame, the mute, the
deaf and, as we have already seen, the blind:
“When they had crossed over, they came to the land of
Gennesaret and anchored there. And when they came out of the
boat, immediately the people recognized Him, ran through that
whole surrounding region, and
began to carry about on beds those who were sick to wherever they heard He was. Wherever
He entered, into villages, cities, or the country, they laid the sick in the
marketplaces, and begged Him that they might just touch the hem of His garment.
And as many as touched Him were made well.” Mark 6:53-56
“Again, departing from the region of Tyre and Sidon, He
came through the midst of the region of Decapolis to the Sea of Galilee. Then
they brought to Him one who was deaf and had an impediment in his speech, and
they begged Him to put His hand on him. And He took him aside
from the multitude, and put His fingers in his ears, and He spat and touched
his tongue. Then, looking up to heaven, He sighed, and said to
him, ‘Ephphatha,’ that is, ‘Be opened.’ Immediately
his ears were opened, and the impediment of his tongue was loosed, and he spoke
plainly. Then He commanded them that they should tell no
one; but the more He commanded them, the more widely they proclaimed it. And they
were astonished beyond measure, saying, ‘He has done all things well. He
makes both the deaf to hear and the mute to speak.’” Mark 7:31-37
Once again, these are the very wonders which the OT says
Yahweh will do when he comes to save his people and judge the wicked!
“Happy is
he who has the God of Jacob for his help, Whose
hope is in the Lord his God, Who made heaven
and earth, The sea, and all that is in them; Who keeps truth forever, Who
executes justice for the oppressed, Who gives food to the hungry. The Lord gives
freedom to the prisoners. The Lord opens
the eyes of the blind; The Lord raises those who are bowed down; The Lord
loves the righteous. The Lord watches over the strangers; He relieves the
fatherless and widow; But the way of the wicked He turns upside down. The Lord
shall reign forever—Your God, O Zion, to all generations. Praise the Lord!”
Psalm 146:5-10
“The wilderness and the wasteland shall be glad for them,
And the desert shall rejoice and blossom as the rose; It shall blossom
abundantly and rejoice, Even with joy and singing. The glory of Lebanon shall
be given to it, The excellence of Carmel and Sharon. They shall see the glory of the Lord, The excellency of our God.
Strengthen the weak hands, And make firm the feeble knees. Say to those who are fearful-hearted, ‘Be strong, do not
fear! Behold, YOUR GOD WILL
COME with vengeance, With the
recompense of God; HE WILL COME AND SAVE YOU.’ Then the eyes of the blind shall
be opened, And the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then the lame shall
leap like a deer, And the tongue of the dumb sing. For waters shall burst
forth in the wilderness, And streams in the desert.” Isaiah 35:1-6
We are not through just yet since we have more examples in
the third part of our rebuttal.
IHS
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