Jesus claimed to be the truth (John 14:6). What in the world did he
mean? He meant more than you might think.Jesus placed himself in the center of everything that mattered most to a
1st century Jew: he said he was lord of the Sabbath (Matt. 12:8),
the forgiver of sins (Mark 2:5-6), and the calmer of storms (Mark 4:35-41). He
identified himself as “the Son of Man,” a divine messiah who would judge
humanity (Mark 14:62-64). On a single night, he broke 1400 years of sacred tradition
when he instituted a new covenant in his name on the Passover (Luke 22:17-20).
On a single cross, he took on himself the curse of the Old Testament law. And
with a single resurrection he proved salvation to be a divine accomplishment
for both Jews and Gentiles. In this, he unites the greatest of enemies and separates
the closest of friends. It’s what he wanted. It’s what he came for (Luke
12:51).
Jesus also called himself the truth (John 14:6). What did he mean?
Truth was supremely important to Jesus. Before Pontius Pilate, he
related his kingship to his reason for being born, which was a mission to testify to the truth (John 18:37-38).
“What is truth?” Pilate responded. As Jesus was crucified, Pilate ordered
to the words “Jesus of Nazareth, the King of the Jews” to be hung on the cross
with Jesus in Latin, Hebrew, and Greek (John 19:20-21).
Remarkably, these three words correspond to three ways of thinking about
truth in the Western world.[i]
One is the Latin, or Roman:
Veritas. This term carries the
connotation of rightness.[ii] It reflects the practical
nature of the Roman perspective. They built roads; they established order. Truth
is reflected in right action. In Roman mythology, Veritas is the goddess of
truth and is a virgin dressed in white.
The Greek word for truth is Alethia.
In Greek mythology, Alethia is usually depicted naked, with a hand-mirror. The word
is said to derive from “letho,” or “lanthano:” Greek terms meaning “I remember.”
The alpha privative is added to the word, which is literally rendered “not-forgetting.”[iii] For Greeks, truth
existed in the mind. It was a something to be discovered within us. It emphasized
a proper way of thinking.[iv]
The Hebrew word for truth is Emeth.
The English often renders it as “truth,” but sometimes also as “faithfulness.”
For the Hebrew mind, truth was a matter of confidence or trustworthiness. The
word carries the idea of stability and reliability.[v] Perhaps you’ve heard the
expression,
“that theory won’t hold water.”
It alludes to an image of water
containers not leaking under pressure. In the Hebrew worldview, truth was a
matter of stability amidst the pressures of a changing world. Interestingly,
the word “emeth” cannot be found in the book of Job. Some scholars have argued
this is because Job found nothing to rely on, though others contest this.[vi]
In John 14:6, Jesus famously states, “I am the way, the truth, and the
life.” These three terms don’t stand in subordination to one another, but they
stand united.[vii]
Yet which concept of truth could Jesus be referring to when he speaks of
himself? Right action? Right thinking? Right being?
The answer is, “yes.”
We don’t know how relevant these philosophical concepts were to
individuals during this time. Who knew of the goddess Veritas, and who cared?
Yet Jesus certainly pointed to a right way of living; his “way” was the narrow
way (Matt. 7), right? Surely his truth was a matter of true doctrine – a way of
thinking? Is he not the “logos,” the Word of God? Of course.
Yet, I think he likely meant that he was truth “in his being” in John
14:6, in the particularly Hebrew sense. What supports this?
First, the idea of truth is an
abstract concept, and not a concrete thing. My little toe is no more or less “truth”
than my house, my wife, or Jesus. They all exist, of course – they correspond
to reality – but we wouldn’t normally assign the abstract quality of truth to
them. But if Jesus is saying, “I am trustworthy and reliable in the core of my
being,” that makes sense. Perhaps he is saying even more than this, much more.
Maybe he is saying, “everything you rely upon, both abstractly – your convictions
– and concretely – the world in which you walk – finds its foundation in me.”
That brings me to my second reason for taking Jesus’ claim in the Hebrew
sense: he’s speaking as a shepherd. He just finished saying, “Don’t let your
hearts be troubled.” He’d said, “trust me” about the future (John 14:1,2).
He’s preparing them for his death as he’d promised to prepare a place
for them in his father’s house. He’s telling them, in short, “my death will
pave a way for us to be together forever.” In that respect, Jesus is the only
way and the only life, because he is the only one that sinners can rely on to
save them before a holy God.
Not only did Jesus put himself in the center of the Sabbath, the
Passover, the eternal destiny of every person, but he puts himself in the
center of our journey. He offers himself to lost, confused, rebellious, angry
sinners and says, “follow me.”
That holds water in a world where nothing else seems
to last.
[i] For
more on this, see Peter Kreeft’s lecture on “Lord, Liar, Lunatic” at
https://www.amazon.com/Lord-Liar-or-Lunatic/dp/B0072A3YQS.
[ii] Anselm
reflected on this in his work, “De Veritate.”
https://www.ontology.co/veritas.htm.
[iii]
Brown, Colin (Gen. Ed.), (1986). New International Dictionary of New Testament
Theology, Volume 3. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan. 875.
[iv] Elwell,
W. A., & Beitzel, B. J. (1988). Baker encyclopedia of the Bible (2108).
Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Book House.
[v]
Brown, Colin. 877.
[vi]
Ibid. 878.
[vii] Borchert,
G. L. (2002). Vol. 25B: John 12–21. The New American Commentary (108–109).
Nashville: Broadman & Holman Publishers.
