Matthew 22:45

22:45 how can the Messiah be his son? The answer is that Jesus is more than the son of David: He is the Son of God (14:33).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Mat 22:45. Εἰ οὖν Δανὶδ, if David therefore) It was the duty of the Jews to study that point with the utmost earnestness, especially at that time. It is considerably more evident of Christ that He is the Lord, than that He is the Son of David.[981]

[981] So great is the glory of the Son of God! David as well as Abraham alike, Joh 8:56, saw the day of Christ, the last great day we may suppose, when all His adversaries shall become the Lord’s footstool.—V. g.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Mat_22:45 f. Εἰ οὖν Δαυεὶδ, κ.τ.λ.] The emphasis rests on the correlative terms κύριον and υἱός: If, then, as appears from this language of the psalm, David, whose son He is, according to your express confession, still calls Him Lord, how is this to be reconciled with the fact that He is at the same time the psalmists son? Surely that styling of Him as Lord must seem incompatible with the fact of such sonship! The difficulty might have been solved in this way: according to His human descent He is Davids son; but, according to His divine origin as the Son of God, from whom He is sprung, and by whom He is sent (Mat_9:27, Mat_17:26; Joh_1:14; Joh_1:18; Joh_6:46; Joh_7:28 f.; Rom_1:3 f.),in virtue of which relation He is superior to David and all that is merely human, and, by His elevation to the heavenly δόξα (Act_2:34), destined to share in the divine administration of things in a manner in keeping with this superiority,

He is by David, speaking under the influence of the Holy Spirit, called his Lord. The Pharisees understood nothing of this twofold relation, and consequently could not discern the true majesty and destiny of the Messiah, so as to see in Him both Davids Son and Lord. Hence not one of them was found capable of answering the question as to the πῶς … ἐστι. Observe that the question does not imply a negative, as though Jesus had asked, μὴ υἱὸς αὐτοῦ ἐστι;

οὐκέτι] Nova dehinc quasi scena se pandit, Bengel.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Verse 45. How is he his son?] As the Jews did not attempt to deny the conclusion of our Lord's question, which was, the Messiah is not only the son of David according to the flesh, but he is the Lord of David according to his Divine nature, then it is evident they could not. Indeed, there was no other way of invalidating the argument, but by denying that the prophecy in question related to Christ: but it seems the prophecy was so fully and so generally understood to belong to the Messiah that they did not attempt to do this; for it is immediately added, No man was able to answer him a word - they were completely nonplussed and confounded.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

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

Ver. 45. Lord, how is he his Son?] This is that great mystery of godliness, which angels intently look into, 1Pe 1:12, as the cherubims did of old into the mercy seat. That Christ should be David’s Lord and David’s Son, God and man in one person, this is that wonder of wonders. Well might his name be Wonderful, Isa 9:6.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

If David then call him Lord, how is he his son? It was allowed of a certain truth, that the Messias was to be the son of David. Christ shews them by David’s own words, that he was the Lord as well as the son of David: and this is what they could not answer to. (Witham) --- Jesus Christ here inculcates to the Pharisees, that two natures must be admitted in the Messias; in one of which, viz. in his human nature, he is the son of David, and as such inferior to him; and in the other, viz. in his divine nature, he is the son of God, and consequently superior to David; whence this latter, by the inspiration of the Holy Ghost, justly calls him Lord. (Tirinus) --- Jesus Christ does not wish them to think that the Messias is not the son of David, but only wished to rectify their opinion concerning him. When therefore he asks how he is the son, he teaches them that he is not, after the manner they understand it, the mere Son, but what is much more, the Lord also, of David. (St. John Chrysostom, hom. lxxii.)

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George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).

45. If David then call him Lord, how is he his son? — Here was a point for them to explain. Nor can they admit it without acknowledging that while he is human as descended from David, so he is divine as the right hand assessor of the Almighty. It shows that his royalty is not on earth but in heaven. He sits at the right hand of God as King, while his enemies on earth are being subdued before him. On the Jewish view, our Lord was to be a conquering descendant of David on the Jewish throne. The relation therefore between the lordship and sonship of Christ, they are unable to explain.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

If David... Son? The argument is this: David speaks with highest reverence of Messiah, calling him his Lord: how is this attitude consistent with the fact that Messiah is David"s Son? How can Messiah be both Son and Lord of David? We, who have learned the truth concerning the two natures of Christ, can readily answer the question. He is both "the Root and the Offspring of David". (Rev_22:16) The Athanasian Creed offers the required solution of the seeming paradox: "God, of the substance of the Father, begotten before the worlds; and Man of the substance of his mother, born in the world; perfect God, and perfect Man... who although he be God and Man, yet he is not two, but one Christ." Here was an explanation (if the Pharisees took his words to heart) of much that had excited their indignation, and caused cavil and carping. He claimed to be the Messiah; and Messiah, as Scripture presented him, had a twofold nature. When, therefore, he asserted equality with the Father when he, "being man, made himself God", (Joh_10:33) he was vindicating that Divine nature which he as Messiah possessed. Jesus did not further elucidate this mystery. He had given food for reflection; he had unfolded the hidden meaning of Scripture; he had shown the shallowness of the popular exegesis; the knowledge was here; there was wanting only the.will to raise the flower of faith in the heart of these obdurate hearers.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

45. How is he his son? The answer is not given here, but plain. Christ, the Son of David, according to earthly descent, is the Son of God, God manifest in the flesh.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

Connecting Statement:

This is the end of the account of the religious leaders trying to trap Jesus with several difficult questions.

General Information:

This is the end of the part of the story that began in Matthew 19:1, that tells of Jesus ministering in Judea.

If David then calls the Christ 'Lord,' how is he David's son?

Jesus uses a question to make the religious leaders think deeply about what he is saying. AT: "David calls him 'Lord,' so the Christ has to be more than just a descendant of David." (See: Rhetorical Question)

If David then calls the Christ

David referred to Jesus as "Lord" because Jesus was not only a descendant of David, but he was also superior to him.

to answer him a word

Here "word" refers to what people say. AT: "to answer him anything" or "to answer him" (See: Metonymy)

any more questions

It is implied that no one asked him the kind of questions that were intended to make him say something wrong so the religious leaders could arrest him. (See: Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

translationWords

David

lord

son

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

45. If, therefore, David calls Him Lord, how is He His Son? Mk. has: “David himself calls Him Lord, and whence is He His Son?” Christ here raises a difficulty which He does not solve. If the Messiah is David’s Son, how is it that David, speaking by divine inspiration, ascribes to Him a divine title and divine prerogatives? The solution suggested, though not expressed, is that the Messiah is not only Son of David, but Son of God. See Dalm. Words, pp. 285 f.

(M)

International Critical Commentary — older volumes (1896–1929), various authors — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.