7 Times Jesus Claimed to Be Godනියැදිය

If you saw someone riding a cloud like a chariot, you’d probably think there was something special about them. But would you think they were the Creator of heaven and earth, or just someone powerful, like an angel, or the Silver Surfer?

While there are stories from the ancient Near East of gods like Baal riding on clouds, in the Bible, God is the only one spoken about in such a way. In Deuteronomy, it says there is no one like God, who rides on the clouds in His majesty.

Yet in Daniel 7, we see something strange. The Ancient of Days, one of Daniel’s names for God, is sitting on His heavenly throne, when someone who looks like a human approaches Him. It says ‘one like a son of man’ – ‘son of man’ meaning a human. But this figure is riding on the clouds, so is He a man, or is He God? He’s both somehow! He is made King of the world and is worshipped, and later in the chapter is identified as the ‘Most High’, another one of God’s titles.

What are we to make of this? God appears in human form and approaches God? Daniel was understandably confused by his vision, but Jesus brings clarity for us. Jesus is fully God and fully man, God in the flesh, praying to God the Father and being exalted by Him. Jesus viewed Himself as the one like a son of man in the vision of Daniel 7. That is why His most common title for Himself was ‘The Son of Man.’ Note that He isn’t calling Himself ‘a son of man’, which would just mean a human, but ‘The Son of Man', a specific figure from the scriptures that rides on clouds and rules the world.

Jesus even pairs the title with a reference to ‘coming on the clouds’ at multiple points. He did it in front of the High Priest, who called it ‘blasphemy’ – he understood that Jesus was equating Himself with God.

Jesus is the King of creation, and we can choose to serve Him or to rebel against His rule. How does this make you feel? In what ways can you see your life as an example of obedience or rebellion?