More Than Expected

Luke 20:41-44 (ESV) But he said to them, “How can they say that the Christ is David’s son? For David himself says in the Book of Psalms,

“ ‘The Lord said to my Lord,

“Sit at my right hand,

until I make your enemies your footstool.” ’

David thus calls him Lord, so how is he his son?”

Throughout Luke 20, the Jewish religious leaders were at war with Jesus, trying to trap him with his own words in a way that would give them grounds to have him executed. Yet, every time Jesus countered their attacks victoriously. Here at the end of the chapter, Jesus turned to take the offensive. He did so by taking a well know Psalm and using it to prove that the Jewish people’s expectation of who the Messiah would be was too small.

David was the greatest king in Israel’s history. He began to rule a split nation that had just lost a war with their primary opposition: the Philistines. Yet, he was able to reunite the nation, conquer the Philistines and nearly all other surrounding nations, and establish peace and prosperity. God promised David a descendant whose throne God would establish forever (II Samuel 7:15). So, the first century Jews expected a Messiah who would be a descendant of David and reestablish his earthly kingdom.

Jesus’ counterattack began by starting with their assumption that the Messiah would be David’s son. He then quoted David’s own words in Psalm 110, which show him, the writer, speaking to God about another who was his “lord.” Although our English translation (and even the Greek) show the same word used for Lord in both cases, the Hebrew text of Psalm 110 makes a distinction: “The Lord (YHWH – Yahweh/Jehovah – The personal name of the one true God) says to my lord (Adonai – master).” There is someone else here greater than David. This someone else is a king (Psalm 110:2) as well as an eternal priest (Psalm 110:4).

Jesus’ point is clear. They were looking for an earthly Messiah who was David’s descendant, but Jesus came as the eternal priest and king who was and is David’s master. He was more than they expected. He is likely more than we expect, too.