Do not be afraid

When people hear that I've been studying New Testament Greek this year, often they ask me, "So, what difference does it make?"

Someone once told me that it's like "seeing in 3D".  You could also say it's like going from black and white to colour TV; or from mono to stereo. At the time I did not really understand what that meant; but now I think I'm beginning to have a taste of the sweetness of understanding the Biblical text as it's originally written.

This week at Small Group, we came across the story in Mark 6:45-52 where Jesus was walking on top of the water on a lake in the middle of the storm. He had sent the disciples ahead earlier, but they were struggling in the middle of the storm. When they saw Him, they were terrified because they thought He was a ghost!

'Immediately he spoke to them: "Have courage! It is I. Do not be afraid."' (Mark 6:50 HCSB)

When you look at it in the English, it doesn't really stand out too much. But when you look at the Greek, it gets a little interesting: 

"καὶ λέγει αὐτοῖς· θαρσεῖτε, ἐγώ εἰμι· μὴ φοβεῖσθε"

(Literally: "And he is saying to them, "Have courage, I I am. Do not be afraid.")

 I I am? What's that about? Why the two I's?

So a little background to know is that in Koine Greek (the Greek of the time of the Bible), the personal pronoun is actually embeded within the verb. So instead of needing two words to express "I am", it can actually just be encompassed with the single word "εἰμι" (pronounced "ey-mee"). To change who it refers to, what you do is you change the word: so for example, the second person form "you are" is represented by "εἶ".

What this means is that the word for "I" (ἐγώ; pronounced "eh-goe") is actually redundant in this context! To say ἐγώ εἰμι is the equivalent of saying "I I am" in English.

What's going on there?

Well, it's kind of the Greek equivalent of emphasising "I am". Or something like "I AM". It highlights it, makes you take notice of it.

Now why would the author do that?

The attentive reader who remembers their Old Testament would instantly recognise echoes of Exodus 3:14, where God gives His personal Name to Moses: "I AM WHO I AM"

And that was where it hit me. Jesus wasn't just telling His disciples not to worry just because He was there. He was telling them, "You don't need to be afraid because I AM GOD." He's in control. Even when everything seemed like everything was going crazy, He was in complete control of the situation, because of who He is.

Now, at this point, I need to point out that we need to be careful not to overstate the ἐγώ εἰμι thing. There are actually instances where other characters use the same wording, and I'm pretty sure they're not saying they were God too! And I'm sure there are probably reasons why many translators go for "It is I" rather than "I am". It's a dangerous thing to know a little bit of Greek! Can make you think you know things that you don't really know… haha…

However, the context of the passage actually makes it a very safe interpretation. Those who've been studying Mark with me will know that up to this point the Big Question that keeps getting asked is "who the heck is this guy?!" Is He just a teacher? Is He a prophet? Or might He be…God?

At this point, Mark is starting to really push the buttons to point at Jesus as God. In the section just before, He feeds bread to the multitude in the wilderness just as God fed bread (manna) to Israel in the wilderness. His mastery over the storm and the sea is reminiscent of passages from Psalms and Isaiah where it describes God as the only one who can control the elements. Even the way that he was "passing by" is written in a way that is reminiscent of how God "passed by" in front of Moses in Exodus!

So whether or not "ἐγώ εἰμι" really is about Jesus proclaiming His Godhood, everything else in the passage is screaming that out!

Which brings us to an interesting observation: I could have probably come to a similar conclusion even without understanding much about "ἐγώ εἰμι"! If I was paying attention to everything else that was happening in the scene, I would probably draw the same conclusion that Jesus' Godhood was on display here.

But the message I "heard" because of "ἐγώ εἰμι" was quite profoundly… sharper? Colourful? Beautiful? "Have courage, I am. Do not be afraid" When I heard that, I was hit in the pit of my stomach. Life is a bit of a storm for me at the moment, and I am very much afraid. But Jesus comes along and says, "Don't be afraid. Hold on to courage, because I am God." Don't be afraid, because I am in control. Don't be afraid, because I love you more than you can imagine. Don't be afraid, because I am.

So yeah, it's not like you're necessarily missing out on HEAPS if you don't know Koine Greek, thanks to the hard work of many faithful translators and preachers. But… you really are missing out on something beautiful if you can't read the original text for yourself ;) Why hear about ice cream when you can taste it for yourself?

Come to Bible College! ;)

Disclaimer: Everything said above is the opinion of a mere first year part-time Bible College student XD