Matthew 22:45 - Printer Friendly

ESV: If then David calls him Lord, how is he his son?”

NIV: If then David calls him 'Lord,' how can he be his son?'

NASB: Therefore, if David calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his son?'

CSB: "If David calls him 'Lord,' how then can he be his son? "

NLT: Since David called the Messiah ‘my Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?'

KJV: If David then call him Lord, how is he his son?

NKJV: If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son?”

The Pharisees who have been challenging Jesus have seen the tables turned. He has asked them to identify whose son the Christ is. They answer as all good Jewish people would: that the Christ, the Messiah, is the son of David. It is clear from the Old Testament Scriptures that the Messiah would be a descendant of King David, the great king from Israel's golden age (Matthew 22:41–44).

Jesus, though, has pushed back with a hard question. If the Christ is David's descendant, why in Psalm 110:1 does David call the Christ "my Lord"? Why would anyone describe their "son" as "my Lord"?

The answer, of course, was that the Messiah would not only be a descendant of David but would also be the Son of God, making Him both David's son and Lord. The fact that Jesus is Messiah as well as the Son of God, making Him divine, is a truth the Pharisees and other religious leaders will willfully miss. It is a cornerstone in their commitment to condemn Him for blasphemy.

Matthew 22:41–46 records Jesus reversing the dialogue with the Pharisees, who have been asking Him trick questions. He rhetorically asks them whose son the Messiah is—knowing they will rightly answer that Messiah is the Son of David. Jesus then quotes from the Psalms and asks why King David calls the Christ "my Lord" if the Christ is his son. This raises the issue of Christ's divinity and totally stumps the Pharisees. This incident is also mentioned in Mark 12:35–37 and Luke 20:41–44. In fact, religious leaders completely stop asking Him questions from this moment on.

Continuing a dialogue with hostile religious leaders, Jesus tells a parable comparing the kingdom of heaven to a wedding feast which ends up being attended by those not initially invited. He answers trick questions about taxes, marriage, resurrection, and the Law of Moses. These responses are the source of common English idioms such as "render to Caesar…" and "many are called but few are chosen." Finally, Jesus asks how the Messiah can be both the son of David and the Lord of David. None can answer Him, so they stop challenging Him in public.

This chapter extends an exchange between Jesus and several groups of religious leaders in the temple. The previous chapter concluded with two parables about the failures of the religious leaders. This chapter begins with a third parable, about chosen guests who refuse to attend a wedding feast. Jesus then fields questions from several religious groups, who fail in their attempts to trip Him up. His wise and profound answers silence all of them. At this point, Jesus launches into a full-throated condemnation of the Pharisees in chapter 23.

The Gospel of Matthew clearly shows the influence of its writer's background, and his effort to reach a specific audience. Matthew was one of Jesus' twelve disciples, a Jewish man, and a former tax collector. This profession would have required literacy, and Matthew may have transcribed some of Jesus' words as they were spoken. This book is filled with references to the Old Testament, demonstrating to Israel that Jesus is the Promised One. Matthew also includes many references to coins, likely due to his former profession. Matthew records extensive accounts of Jesus' teaching, more than the other three Gospels.

Accessed 5/7/2024 1:21:07 PM