John 8:58 - Coke's Commentary on the Holy Bible

Before Abraham was, I am.— "Before Abraham was born, I had a glorious existence with the Father; and I am still invariably the same, and one with him." Our Lord here, in the strongest terms, asserts his proper Divinity, declaring himself to be what St. John more largely expresses, Revelation 1:8 the alpha and omega, the beginning and the ending, who is, and who was, and who is to come; the Almighty. See also Exodus 3:14.Hebrews 1:12. Erasmus and Raphelius would have this clause translated, Before Abraham was born, I was, εγω ειμι : but, notwithstanding the nicest critical distinctions, it must be acknowledged, that this is a very unusual sense of the words εγω ειμι, and the less necessary, as the proper and common translation affords us a just and important sense, and one to which none but the bitter enemies of our Lord's Divinity can object. It is indeed striking to observe the unnatural sense to which they have recourse, who stumble at this text. The Socinians, with the most perverse impropriety, render the passage thus: "Before Abraham was made Abraham, that is to say, the father of many nations, in the spiritual sense of the promise, I amthe Messiah." That our Lord did truly exist at the time mentioned in the text, is plain likewise from Ch. John 17:5 and many other passages in the divine oracles. Nor is it to be imagined, that if our Lord had been a mere creature, he would have ventured to express himself in a manner so nearly bordering on blasphemy, refine upon this text as they please; or have permitted his beloved disciple so dangerously to disguise his meaning; a meaningindisputably clear to every plain and unprejudiced reader; a full proof whereof is the manner in which his hearers now received it: for, filledwithrageupontheblasphemy,astheythought,ofhisclaimingDivinitytohimself, they immediately prepare to inflict the punishment of a blasphemer upon him, by stoning him.