A Question for the Teachers of the Law

For many reasons, this passage is tricky in English.

Off the top, notice that Jesus is playing the teachers of the law at their own game. They made the scriptures difficult for the people to understand; now Jesus is making it difficult for them.

The first thing to grasp is that in the original Hebrew of Psalm 110 that Jesus quotes in verse 36 there are two different words translated "Lord." (The King James points to this by capitalizing the first one but not the second.) The first one, "Yahweh" means God, and the second "Adonai" means "Lord." (In the Greek that Mark wrote, and also in the Aramaic, that Jesus spoke, the two words were the same, which adds to the riddle).

The point is that in the Psalm Yahweh (God) said to the Messiah (Adonai) "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet," and the question is "How can David call one of his descendants (the Messiah) his "Lord"? How can he refer to someone his junior (as his descendant would be) as his senior?

The challenge to the teachers of the law was to redefine their idea of the Messiah. They (correctly) thought of him as a descendant of David, but also as a coming King who would bring liberation to the Jews. Jesus' "riddle" was to point out that the Messiah would not only be David's descendant but also someone greater than David. He would sit at God's right hand. Who could that be?

Respond in Prayer

Lord Jesus, I worship you as my Lord, my master, and my God. Amen.

Grace Fox