renew your wonders: 9 June 2023

How do the scribes claim that the Christ is the son of David?

Jesus was inviting those who listened to broaden their concept of who the Messiah would be. Yes, he would, as they knew, be the Son of David, just as the then still blind Bartimaeus corrected identified Jesus himself (see Mark 10:46-52).

David himself, inspired by the Holy Spirit, said:

The Lord said to my lord,

'Sit at my right hand

until I place your enemies under your feet.'

This psalm to which Jesus referred was a psalm of enthronement for new kings of Israel. However, as the monarchy was only a distant memory at the time of Jesus it had come to be widely accepted as having a deeper meaning that prophetically predicted the coming on the Messiah.

David himself calls him 'lord';

so how is he his son?"

In the ancient world a father would not address his son as 'lord'. In order for this to make sense there would need to be an individual that was a son of David that was somehow greater than David, a son in a way that was unique among the ancestors of David. Natural explanations fell short. They could account for a son or a lord but not both in one. In truth, only the incarnation of Jesus answered the apparent riddle. Only the one who was both Son of God and son of David would make sense of David addressing the Messiah as his Lord. Jesus was greater than Abraham, greater than Solomon, greater even than David, the Messianic antetype. The fact that he was addressed as lord ('adoni') was a hint not only of his Messianic identity, but also of his divinity.

The great crowd heard this with delight.

Jesus did not simply drop into the scene in ancient Israel without context or preparation. And yet we can see that he defied and transcended all expectations of him. It was evident that the prophecies preparing the way for his coming were ample, but impossible to understand until he appeared. They were like a lock to which only Jesus himself was the corresponding key. But it is clear that once the fulfillment of these promises was understood it set people on fire. We can see this from the abundance of the use of Messianic psalms in the preaching of the early Church found in Acts of the Apostles.

Exalted at the right hand of God, he received the promise of the holy Spirit from the Father and poured it forth, as you (both) see and hear. For David did not go up into heaven, but he himself said: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool.”’ Therefore let the whole house of Israel know for certain that God has made him both Lord and Messiah, this Jesus whom you crucified (see Acts 2:33-36).

The crowds were delighted, probably in large part because they perceived that Jesus had confounded his interlocuters with cleverness or cunning. But there was a more genuine cause of joy to be found in the words of Jesus, as they had the potential to help people transcend limited ideas about the Messiah, and therefore about Jesus himself. And we too often mistakenly impose human limitations on our understanding of Jesus. We too sometimes see the son of David without realizing that he is also at the same time Lord of all. Let us too thrill to let go of our limited ways of thinking and allow Jesus to reveal himself to us. He is the Lord of all (see Acts 10:36), the King of Kings and Lord of Lords (see Revelation 19:16). Let us rejoice in worshipping this King.

Our merely human problems all stand to benefit because Jesus is more than merely human. He is able to bring healing and establish godly relationships just as Tobit, Anna, Sarah, and Tobiah experienced. Because Jesus is God, and not merely one competitive power among many within contingent reality, there is nothing that is beyond him. Let us join the chorus of praise.

The LORD gives sight to the blind.

The LORD raises up those who are bowed down;

the LORD loves the just.

The LORD protects strangers.