Alpha and Omega
The phrase “Alpha and Omega” appears three times in the New Testament, used by God to express His nature. The first letter of the Greek alphabet, Alpha (A, a), and its 24th and final letter, Omega (Ω, ω), symbolize the beginning and the end. The phrase “I am the Alpha and the Omega” (Greek: Ἐγώ εἰμι τὸ Ἄλφα καὶ τὸ Ὦ) translates to “I am the beginning (first) and the end (last).”
The Meaning of Alpha and Omega
The Greek alphabet consists of 24 letters, combining both consonants and vowels. In the New Testament, God’s declaration of Himself as the Alpha and Omega signifies “the first and the last.” This expression emphasizes that God initiates the work of redemption and brings it to completion. It also signifies that God, as the Almighty, governs the beginning and the end of all creation in heaven and on earth.
Usage of Alpha and Omega in the Bible
God Jehovah
God Jehovah refers to Himself in the Old Testament as “the first and the last.”
“This is what the LORD says—Israel’s King and Redeemer, the LORD Almighty: I am the first and I am the last; apart from me there is no God.”
“Listen to me, Jacob, Israel, whom I have called: I am he; I am the first and I am the last.”
In the last book of the Bible, the book of Revelation, specifically in chapters 1 and 21, God Jehovah reaffirms His identity as “the Alpha and the Omega.”
“I am the Alpha and the Omega,” says the Lord God, “who is, and who was, and who is to come, the Almighty.”
He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life.”
The titles “Lord God” and “the Almighty” both refer to God Jehovah.
Jesus Christ
Jesus Christ, in order to reveal His oneness with God the Father, referred to Himself as the Alpha and the Omega.
“I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End. . . . I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches.”
When Jesus first revealed Himself to Apostle John, He stated, “I am the Alpha and the Omega.”[1] Apostle John echoed this by introducing Jesus Christ in his letter to the church in Smyrna as “the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.”[2]
If the Father and the Son were distinct entities, then the Son would exist after the Father, which would mean that Jesus Christ, as the Son, could not be the Alpha and the Omega. However, both Jehovah and Jesus Christ proclaim, “I am the Alpha and the Omega,” without contradiction because They are not separate beings but one entity. God uses the symbolic expression “Alpha and Omega” to clearly reveal that God the Father, Jehovah, and God the Son, Jesus, are one and the same as God the Father.