David therefore calleth him Lord, how is he then his son?
Parallel translations
- WEB “David therefore calls him Lord, so how is he his son?”
- BSB Thus David calls Him ‘Lord.’ So how can He be David’s son?”
- NKJV Therefore David calls Him ‘Lord’ ; how is He then his Son?”
- NASB Therefore David calls Him ‘Lord,’ and so how is He his son?”
- NLT Since David called the Messiah ‘Lord,’ how can the Messiah be his son?”
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Since David calls the Messiah 'Lord,' He must be more than merely David's descendant.
Overview
Jesus draws out the implication: a son does not normally outrank his father, yet David addresses his descendant as Lord. The answer, fulfilled in Jesus, is that the Christ is both David's son in His humanity and David's Lord in His deity. This unveils the mystery of the incarnate Son of God.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Rev 22:16I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.
- Rom 9:5Whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed for ever. Amen.
- Gal 4:4But when the fulness of the time was come, God sent forth his Son, made of a woman, made under the law,
- Isa 7:14Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel.
- Luke 2:11For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.
- Matt 1:23Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us.
- Luke 1:31–35And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS.
- 1 Tim 3:16And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory.
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Christ at the center
Luke shows Jesus the Savior for all — outsiders, the poor, the nations — the one who, on the Emmaus road, opened all the Scriptures to show they were about himself.
How Luke 20:44 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.