Day Seventy – Matthew 22:41-46

Until now, Jesus had been answering questions put to him in the temple, but in this passage he asked the Pharisees a question. Reading this episode, we sense that Jesus enjoyed presenting a riddle they could not solve. His question seems to take them by surprise, as though they had never considered the logical problem entailed in David referring to the Messiah as his son (Ps. 110:1).

The way Jesus stated the problem, it sounds as if either they were wrong or David was wrong. In their culture, where the ancestor was always considered to be greater than the descendant and honor moved only one direction generationally, it was impossible for the Messiah to be both David’s son and David’s Lord.

The book of Matthew opens with an introduction to “Jesus the Messiah, the son of David” (1:1). But once we get through Jesus’ genealogy “according to the flesh” (Ro. 1:3), we discover he was conceived of the Holy Spirit (Mt. 1:20). Therefore, he is also “the Son of God” (Ro. 1:4). Jesus’ riddle brings to the surface a secret regarding the Messiah. Jesus led them into this quagmire because there was only one road  out–a new understanding of the Messiah.

We cannot answer all of Your questions, Lord Jesus, but still we enjoy the opportunity to learn more about You. For the same reason we are not afraid to ask You questions. We consider it unfortunate that the Pharisees used questions like weapons rather than \a means of receiving the best theological education in the history of humankind. Lord, we respect You, admire You, revere You, and love You.