The term, Son of Man is used in Scripture of Jesus 83 times in the gospels. On first glance, you’d think it refers to His humanity. But we know that Jesus was not the son of a man, as He had no human father. Lu. 4:23 “…being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph…”
The original hearers would understand immediately that the title, Son of Man, was a reference to the Messiah, taken from Dan. 7:13
“I was watching in the night visions,
And behold, One like the Son of Man,
Coming with the clouds of heaven!
He came to the Ancient of Days,
And they brought Him near before Him.
Then to Him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom,
That all peoples, nations, and languages should serve Him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion,
Which shall not pass away,
And His kingdom the one
Which shall not be destroyed.”
This person is distinguished from God the Father, The Ancient of Days. He is given a worldwide, everlasting kingdom. Some think this refers to a future date when Christ returns, while others think it pictures Christ’s ascension because He is approaching the Father, not returning to earth. It was after His death and resurrection that He obtained His kingdom, which now included people from all over the earth.
By referring to Himself in this manner, His enemies would know quite clearly that He was claiming to be the Messiah. This made them angry.
Jesus as the Son of Man in the book of Luke
31 MayIn Zechariah, the Branch will remove iniquity in one day, will build the temple, and be king and priest
6 May
In Zechariah, the Branch will remove iniquity in one day, will build the temple, and be king and priest:
‘Hear, O Joshua, the high priest,
You and your companions who sit before you,
For they are a wondrous sign;
For behold, I am bringing forth My Servant the BRANCH.
For behold, the stone
That I have laid before Joshua:
Upon the stone are seven eyes.
Behold, I will engrave its inscription,’
Says the LORD of hosts,
‘And I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.” Zech. 3:4,8,9
“Take the silver and gold, make an elaborate crown, and set it on the head of Joshua the son of Jehozadak, the high priest. Then speak to him, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD of hosts, saying:
“Behold, the Man whose name is the BRANCH!
From His place He shall branch out,
And He shall build the temple of the LORD;
Yes, He shall build the temple of the LORD.
He shall bear the glory,
And shall sit and rule on His throne;
So He shall be a priest on His throne,
And the counsel of peace shall be between them both.” ’ Zech. 6:11-13
“And the LORD shall be King over all the earth. In that day it shall be—‘The LORD is one’, and His name one.” Zech. 14:9
In these verses, believed to be Messianic, He is called “My Servant,” “the Man,” and “the Branch” who will “remove the iniquity of the land in one day,” “build the temple of the LORD,” “bear the glory,” “rule on His throne,” “be a priest of His throne,” and “there will be peace between those roles.”
Jesus is called God’s servant in many other Scriptures (Isa. 42:1-4, Isa. 52:13, 53:11, Ezek. 37:24,25, Hag. 2:23, Matt. 12:18). Here He is also identified as a Man. This tells us He will be a Man, not an angel. He is also called the Branch. We know from other verses that use this designation, that He will be a descendant of David, the son of Jesse.
“There shall come forth a Rod from the stem of Jesse, and a Branch shall grow out of his roots.” Isa. 11:1
“In those days and at that time I will cause to grow up to David a Branch of righteousness; He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the earth.” Jer. 33:15
According to the genealogies, Jesus was a descendant of David legally, through Joseph, and by blood through Mary. (Matt. 1:6, Luke 3:31.32) so He fulfilled the requirement. This same Branch will remove the iniquity of that land in one day. This was accomplished when He died on the cross as a sin offering.
It also says He will build the temple. Some believe this means He will build a physical temple during the Millennium, but we know in the New Covenant the church is the temple, and individual believers are the temple of the Holy Spirit. (1 Cor. 6:19) Jesus promises to build His church. Just as the work of the temple was started by Zerubbabel and would be completed by him, so the work of building the church which was started by Jesus, will be completed by Him. “…I will build My church, and the gates of Hades shall not prevail against it.” Matt. 16:18b
This is the temple He is building. He is the glory of the temple, because He would physically be in the temple built by Zerubbabel (Hag. 2:7), and then because He indwells His people through His Spirit.
As a sign of His current favour to them, He assured them that as Zerubbabel had laid the foundation of the temple, he would also complete it, because he would be empowered by God’s Spirit, and all obstacles which seemed like mountains, would become as a plain.
“The hands of Zerubbabel Have laid the foundation of this temple; His hands shall also finish it. Then you will know That the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you.” Zech. 4:9
“So he answered and said to me: “This is the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,’ Says the Lord of hosts.” Zech. 4:6
“Who are you, O great mountain? Before Zerubbabel you shall become a plain! And he shall bring forth the capstone With shouts of ‘Grace, grace to it!’” Zech. 4:7
Further, He will rule on a throne, as well as a priest on His throne. These roles are not usually mingled, in fact, they are forbidden to be mingled, as King Uzziah learned (2 Chron. 26:16-23). But with the Messiah, He will be prophet, priest and king. There will be no disharmony among the roles. He will be a priest according to the order of Melchizedek, not Aaron. (Psalm 110:4, Heb. 5:6,10,6:20,7:1,10-21)
This is further demonstrated when Zechariah is instructed to make an elaborate (kingly) crown for Joshua the High Priest to wear. This crown was not to be worn by Joshua, but placed in the temple as a memorial, to remind them that the fulfillment was for a future date by One who was yet to come.
Joshua (the High Priest) and Zerubbabel (from the kingly line) together foreshadowed Jesus, who is both King and Priest.
His reign will be universal. He is King over all the earth.
Jesus as the Star/Scepter of Jacob
13 Nov
The narrative recorded in Numbers 22-25 sounds like a fanciful story because of the talking donkey. But it’s no more difficult for the God who created the universe out of nothing to make one of his creatures speak than it was for Him to produce a child in the womb of a virgin.
In this account, we see a king (Balak) who is terrified when he sees the children of Israel approaching. He had heard that they had come up out of Egypt (Num.22:5), were numerous, “they cover the face of the earth” and were too close for comfort; they were settling next to him. (Num. 22:5) They were camped in the plains of Moab on the side of the Jordan across from Jericho. (Num. 22:1) He had heard what Israel had already done to the Amorites, in defeating them and taking their land. (Num. 22:2, 21:21-35) This made him “sick with dread.” (Num. 22:3)
So, desperate, he calls for a famous seer named Balaam. “Therefore, please come at once, curse this people for me. Perhaps I shall be able to defeat them and drive them out of the land, for I know that he whom you bless is blessed and he whom you curse is cursed.” Num. 22:6
As a side note, in 1967 archeologists unearthed an Aramaic inscription from the 8th century B.C. that cites Balaam the prophet, thus showing that he was known broadly in his day. (What the Old Testament Authors Really Cared About Jason S. DeRouchie p. 122)
Although in this story we see that a dumb animal sees the Angel of the LORD and knows enough to bow in His presence while the ‘seer doesn’t see.’ We also understand that the money-grubbing prophet acknowledges the superiority of Israel’s God, while the children of Israel were blind to God’s plan. (Ex. 19:5, Deut. 7:6)
Hope shines brightest in the oracles of the pagan prophet. He is a prime example of how God can draw a straight line with a crooked stick. Even though he is wicked, God uses him to further bless His people.
The Angel of the LORD
Balak offers Balaam money to come and curse the children of Israel. He agrees, but God intervenes to make sure he will “not curse the people, for they are blessed.” Num. 22:12 He seems to refuse to go, but it’s probably a ploy to try to get more money to tell Balak what he wants to hear. When it appears Balaam is determined to go to Balak, God intervenes again, this time physically as the Angel of the LORD. We studied the idea of theophanies in a previous study. This seems to be the case here. It’s not merely an angel who appears but someone whose word is used interchangeably with the word of God. (Num. 22:20, 35) Also, both the donkey and eventually, Balaam bow down before him. He also has the power of life and death in His hand. He is armed with a sword, which is similar to the Commander of the army of the LORD who appears to Joshua (Josh. 5:13-15) and He tells Balaam that if the donkey hadn’t turned aside, He would have killed Balaam and let the donkey live.
There are three rounds between the donkey and Balaam and the Angel of the LORD. There are three oracles from the prophet, three location changes by Balak, thinking that the probable reason Balaam blessed Israel instead of cursing them was because he didn’t have a good enough view of them. After the first two prophecies, Balak protests.
“Then Balak said to Balaam, ‘What have you done to me? I took you to curse my enemies, and look, you have blessed them bountifully!” Num. 23:11
“Then Balak said to Balaam, ‘Neither curse them at all, nor bless them at all!’” Num. 23:25
After the third, he just walks away, defeated. (Num. 24:25)
The Bible consistently portrays Balaam as a false teacher, greedy for profit. His life provides a warning against covetousness and immorality and reminds us to seek God’s glory above all else.
“Woe to them! For they have gone in the way of Cain, have run greedily in the error of Balaam for profit, and perished in the rebellion of Korah.” Jude 1:11 This verse condemns murder,(Gen. 4)greed,(Num.20) and rebellion.(Num. 16)
“They have forsaken the right way, and gone astray, following the way of Balaam, son of Beor, who loved the wages of unrighteousness; but he was rebuked for his iniquity; a dumb donkey speaking with a man’s voice restrained the madness of the prophet.” 2 Peter2:15,16
“But I have a few things against you, because you have there those who hold the doctrine of Balaam, who taught Balak to put a stumbling block before the children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality.” Rev. 2:14
The Substance of His Prophecies/ The Star and Scepter of Israel
Some key verses:
“How shall I curse whom God has not cursed? And how shall I denounce whom the LORD has not denounced.” Num. 23:8
“God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good? Behold, I have received a command to bless; He has blessed, and I cannot reverse it.” Num. 23:19, 20
“For there is no sorcery against Jacob, nor any divination against Israel. It now must be said of Jacob, and of Israel, ‘Oh, what God has done!’” Num. 23:23 This is an interesting comment considering that for his first two prophecies, he had used sorcery. When he realized God was giving him the messages, he didn’t do it for the third. “Now when Balaam saw that it pleased the LORD to bless Israel, he did not go as at other times, to seek to use sorcery, but he set his face toward the wilderness.” Num. 24:1
“I see Him, but not now;
I behold Him, but not near;
A Star shall come out of Jacob;
A Scepter shall rise out of Israel,
And batter the brow of Moab,
And destroy all the sons of tumult.” Numbers 24:17
This is agreed to be a Messianic prophesy. We see the star in relation to the birth of Jesus in Matt. 2:1,2 “Now after Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came from Jerusalem, saying, ‘Where is He who has been born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the East, and have come to worship Him.’”
This refers both to the star as a marker pointing to the Messiah, and the Scepter, relating to his reign as King of the Jews.
The Scarlet Thread 