εἰμι (eimi) in Revelation 22:13: Verb First Person Singular Present Active Indicative
εἰμι (eimi) in Revelation 22:13
Textual Witness
The witness reads ἐγώ εἰμι τὸ Α καὶ τὸ Ω, ἀρχὴ καὶ τέλος, ὁ πρῶτος καὶ ὁ ἔσχατος.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form makes the line read as a direct, present self-disclosure, so the titles are heard as the speaker's own claim rather than a report about someone else.
How To Communicate It
In translation and teaching, this verb is best rendered simply and forcefully as self-identification, with the surrounding titles kept in view.
What Not To Say
- Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
- Verb morphology can clarify the speaker's self-reference, but it should not be used to overstate what the verse does not say.
- Do not turn present tense into an isolated theological argument apart from the clause and its titles.
What Does The Label Mean?
Verb: the word names an action or state, and here it is the ordinary form of the verb to be or exist.
Present: often views the action as in progress, customary, or presently in view. Context decides the exact force.
Active: presents the subject as doing or carrying the action.
Indicative: presents the verbal idea as an assertion or statement in the clause.
First person: the speaker or speakers are grammatically involved in the verbal form.
Not applicable: this verb form is not using noun case to mark its sentence role.
Singular: the form is singular and matches the first person singular speaker in this statement.
Not applicable: this verb form does not use grammatical gender to make its point.
What The Form Does In This Verse
ἐγώ εἰμι
It is governed by the explicit first person subject ἐγώ and frames the speaker's self-identification in the clause.
It states presence and identity in a direct first person claim, introducing the titles that follow.
It does not by itself identify a different subject, add a hidden tense contrast, or replace the surrounding titles.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The first-person verb introduces the speaker's major self-identification in Revelation 22:13.
First-person self-identification verb. links the speaker to the titles that follow. Attached to the I am title statement. Governed by the explicit first-person subject. The verb frames the claim, while the title sequence supplies the content of the self-identification.
What claim is the speaker making? The speaker directly identifies himself with the titles that follow the I am statement.
Direct: The verb directly belongs in the rendering "I am."
The verb introduces the self-identification, but the titles and Revelation's context carry the claim's full weight.
Present tense alone proves the full doctrine: The present verb frames the statement; the whole title sequence and canonical context govern doctrine.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The witness reads ἐγώ εἰμι τὸ Α καὶ τὸ Ω, ἀρχὴ καὶ τέλος, ὁ πρῶτος καὶ ὁ ἔσχατος.
The lemma εἰμί is the common verb of being or existence, and the lexicon notes that it can function as the substantive verb.
The present first person form fits the immediate speaker identification and supports a direct assertion of who is speaking, without requiring extra claims from the morphology alone.
In this verse the verb serves the declarative pattern, so the speaker presents himself with the linked titles that follow.
Within the verse, the form coheres with the larger pattern of solemn divine self-designation and with the repeated title sequence around it.
For readers and teachers, the form highlights direct, present self-presentation and helps the sentence sound immediate and authoritative.
Do not derive a hidden doctrinal system from tense alone, and do not make the verb's person or voice carry more than the immediate speech context allows.