SON OF MAN

This self-designation by Jesus has been assigned two completely different meanings by scholars:

1. In the Old Testament, the phrase is often used in poetic parallelism as a synonym to the word “man” itself. For example, see Psalm 8:4. If this is the background for Jesus' designation of Himself, then Jesus is using it to stress his connection with humanity in every way. (Some liberal commentators state that the Gospel writers later attributed this phrase to Jesus in order to combat a growing heresy that denied any human aspect to Jesus and refused to believe that He had died on the cross.) One possible confirmation of this interpretation is that Jesus uses it most often in connection with his coming death, as found in all four gospel accounts.

2. Among evangelical scholars, a second meaning is more usually stressed. They feel that the primary reference is to the divine being “like a Son of Man” described in the passage beginning at Daniel 7:13 to whom is given eternal dominion over all nations. Thus, this interpretation actually stresses Jesus' divine character rather than his humanity.

In actuality, there is no need to chose one option over the other since both may have been intended by Jesus at the same time, confirming the Christian doctrine that Jesus was indeed wholly God and wholly man