The Greek alphabet, in which the New Testament was first written, starts with the letter alpha (A or α) and ends with the letter omega (Ω or ω). Sayings that use the phrase “alpha and omega,” therefore, imply the beginning and the end, and everything in between. In the Christian Bible, Jesus proclaims to be the first and the last, the beginning and the end (Revelation 1:8). In clear reference to the qualities ascribed to Yahweh in the Hebrew Bible (Isaiah 44:6; 48:12), Jesus is thus characterized as the eternal and omnipotent God. Although the phrase has entered our parlance […]
