In a recent discussion, a certain person insisted that the real issue in John 10:34 is about "a human being becoming God." That is the real context, he said. This was a belief I also held for some 23 years previously. But thanks be to God, the Lord opened my mind to the truth.
There are a few things that I saw in this person right away that was wrong in his thinking because in some ways, I was like him too previously. He believed wholeheartedly that humans will become Gods. Therefore, when he reads and interprets John 10:34 (and all other parts of Scripture), that's the bias and pre-understanding that he will see -- that humans will become Gods. That's his view -- his worldview, his frame of reference, his lens when he looks at the Bible, his perspective. No amount of explanation will convince him otherwise because he knows he is right. This is called eisegesis. But I still hope he will change his mind as God gives him understanding in the way that God has also opened my mind to the truth years ago.
Secondly, this person believes that man's reasoning and all his learning and theology books are just garbage and that he will rely only on God to guide him. Translated in practical terms, this means that he will only rely on his own Biblical understanding (meaning, his understanding is the same as God's). And when he says "Bible," he means, King James Version only. All other Bible translations and other Bible helps are suspect because it is man's handiwork (as if the KJV is not the work of human scholars too!). This will surely limit his understanding because of his bias.
Thirdly, this person focused only and limited his interpretation on those verses that seemed to bolster his belief. He only focused on John 10:30,33-34 alone without considering the verses before and after these controversial verses. Let's read it in the King James Version:
KJV John 10:33-34 33 The Jews answered him, saying, For a good work we stone thee not; but for blasphemy; and because that thou, being a man, makest thyself God. 34 Jesus answered them, Is it not written in your law, I said, Ye are gods?
By and of itself, without its other neighboring verses, someone who believes in "humans becoming Gods" will immediately jump into conclusion that the context is truly about a "human being becoming God" -- especially if you only read the King James Version of 1611 and disregarding recent studies and discoveries related to the Bible. It's easy to misunderstand it especially in the King James Version.
But that is not what will come out as the context if we include John 10:35-36 in this discussion. These two verses cannot be disregarded. In fact, we can go further and include two more verses in John 10:37-38 as well to have a fuller understanding of the context. It is all part of the immediate context. It will give us a different meaning and negate this belief about "a human being becoming God." Interestingly, this same person said that he believes in allowing the Bible to interpret itself. So let's read it in the New International Version:
NIV John 10:30-38 30 I and the Father are one." 31 Again the Jews picked up stones to stone him, 32 but Jesus said to them, "I have shown you many great miracles from the Father. For which of these do you stone me?" 33 "We are not stoning you for any of these," replied the Jews, "but for blasphemy, because you, a mere man, claim to be God." 34 Jesus answered them, "Is it not written in your Law, 'I have said you are gods'? {34 Psalm 82:6 } 35 If he called them 'gods,' to whom the word of God came-- and the Scripture cannot be broken-- 36 what about the one whom the Father set apart as his very own and sent into the world? Why then do you accuse me of blasphemy because I said, 'I am God's Son'? 37 Do not believe me unless I do what my Father does. 38 But if I do it, even though you do not believe me, believe the miracles, that you may know and understand that the Father is in me, and I in the Father."
The real context here shows that Jesus was proving himself to be God by saying that:
- he and the Father are one (verse 30)
- he did many great miracles from the Father (verse 32)
- he claimed to be God. The Jews only saw a "mere man." (verse 33).
- he was set apart as his very own by the Father himself (verse 36)
- he claimed to be the Son of God (verse 36)
- he does what the Father does (verse 37)
- he did miracles only God can do (verse 37)
- the Father is in him he is in the Father (verse 38).
Jesus was not explaining that humans will become Gods. That's not the point at all. That's totally missing the point. Rather, Jesus was clearly proving himself to be God because of the miracles that he did which only God can do!
As part of his rebuttal, Jesus quoted Psalms 82:6 word for word in John 10:34 . After which, he began explaining what he meant in the next verses that followed beginning with verse 35. Jesus began explaining what he meant when he quoted Psalms 82:6. He was not saying that humans will become Gods. That's a misunderstanding of the context.
Rather, Jesus was explaining that if those corrupt and evil judges were called "gods" in the book of Psalms, then so much the more that Jesus had the right to be called God or the Son of God as he claimed to be (John 10:35-26 )! That is the real context.
The truth is, the issue is NOT about "a human becoming God." It is the other way around. The Word, who became flesh, was already God from the very beginning (John 1:1-3,14 ). It is God the Son, the Word who became a human being! The idea that the issue is on "a human becoming God" is foreign to the text. It is forced and brought in to the text to support a theological bias.
To force Scripture to say what it doesn't really mean is called eisegesis. It's not really exegesis -- that is, allowing the Bible to speak for itself!
If you limit your exegesis and interpretation without considering the following verses beginning with verse 35, you will surely have strange interpretations. It is sad to note that in his exegesis, this person disregarded these verses that followed and limited his view based on John 10:30,33-34 alone. Lord, show him the light, Amen.
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