The unique authority* and identity of Jesus are expressed particularly in the Fourth Gospel through sayings which employ the Greek formula egō eimi (“I am”). In some cases a simple predicate is given (“I am the bread of life”), in others an absolute usage is playing a specialized role in John’s christology. The Synoptics frequently employ the so-called authoritative egō (“I”) for Jesus, but even here the Fourth Gospel uses it more: Matthew uses egō 29 times, Mark 17 times,
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