Abraham Rejoiced to See My Day
Abraham looked forward to the Messiah in faith. He didn't literally see
Jesus. Jesus existed before Abraham as Michael the Archangel, not as God.
Use as a bridge between the OT christophanies and the ego eimi claim. (1) Read together — Jesus says Abraham SAW his day. (2) Ask: when did Abraham see Jesus? Connect to where Yahweh appeared to Abraham in human form. Jesus is claiming to be the one Abraham saw — Yahweh himself. (3) The Jews understood the implication — that's why they asked about his age, and that's why Jesus responded with "I AM" (the divine name from ). (4) The Jews picked up stones for blasphemy — they understood he was claiming to be God.
Jesus doesn't just claim pre-existence — he claims to be the Yahweh who appeared to Abraham. connects the OT theophanies directly to Jesus' identity.
Abraham saw Jesus' day prophetically, by faith
Jesus says Abraham "saw it and was glad" — past tense, completed action. And the Jews' response about his age shows they understood Jesus was claiming a personal encounter, not just prophetic foresight. Jesus doesn't correct their understanding — he doubles down with "I AM."
Jesus existed as Michael before Abraham — that's what he means
If that were his point, why not say "Before Abraham was, Michael was"? Instead he used the divine name — "I AM" — from . And why would the Jews stone him for claiming to be an angel? Angels existing before humans isn't blasphemous. They picked up stones because they understood he was claiming to be the God who stood before Abraham in Genesis 18.
Don't get into a lengthy debate about Genesis 18 here — use this as a quick bridge to the ego eimi argument. If they want to discuss the Genesis 18 christophany in detail, pivot to the ot-christophany argument.
Read in one sitting until you can walk through the exchange from memory: Abraham "saw it and was glad", the question about being not yet fifty, "before Abraham was, I AM", and the stones. Then read Genesis 18 from verse 1 and , so you can connect both without notes. Look up in the NWT on jw.org and note how the Witness's Bible renders verse 58 before you meet it at the door. Practise the doorstep question aloud, slowly. Rehearse the "by faith, prophetically" reply: "saw" is past and completed, and the listeners heard a claim to a personal encounter. Keep it short and use it as a bridge; save detailed discussion of Genesis 18 for another visit.