Why son of man in the gospels was a unique reference to daniel 7. There came one like a son of man, and he came to the ancient of days. This is daniels famous vision of one like a son of man who comes on the clouds dan 7. Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of. Daniel s vision of the ancient of days 12 as for the rest of the beasts, their dominion was removed, but they were granted an extension of life for a season and a time. In the book of ezekiel alone, god calls the prophet son of man 93 times. In the book of revelation the author describes his vision of christ in glory. This son of man who reigns over the kingdom of god is also the climax of daniel s vision of the destruction of the beastnation. This is placed beyond a doubt by a comparison with rev.
Why do daniel and revelation give varying counts of 1,260, 1,290, and 1,335 days for the tribulation. Enoch and son of man 1 israel institute of biblical. Dec 07, 2016 i saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. Or the son of man, that you are concerned about him. I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the ancient of days and was presented before him. So, the book is named after daniel, but unlike with isaiah and ezekiel it isnt just a compendium of his prophecies and visions. Daniel a nobleman like ezekiel, had been taken as a young man captive to babylon by nebuchadnezzar. This usage is confined to ezechiel except one passage in daniel, where gabriel said. It isnt just stuff daniel said, it s also tales of things that happened to him and the people associated with him. Son of man, son of adam, or like a man, are phrases used in the hebrew bible, various. The last adam, the faithful israelite, the chief representative of the saints, the perfect image of god, the one who inherits the kingdoms of the world and subdues the creation. The son of man, or rather one like unto a son of man mentioned in daniel, is primarily the hebrew people, as is expressly noted in the prophecy itself.
Understand, o son of man, for in the time of the end the vision shall be fulfilled daniel 8. In daniel chapter seven, daniel has a vision about four coming kingdoms, each being represented by a different wild animal. Jesus used the title the son of man far more than any other title. In the case of ezekiel, who was often referred to as son of man e.
However, in the book of daniel the son of man is a very different kind of figure. When he speaks of himself and his coming again in the clouds of heaven as the son of man, he confirms daniel s vision in chapter 7. Reprinted from the bulletin of the john rylands library, v. The one like a son of man comes with the clouds of heaven, which could readily be. To him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples should serve him. Daniels dream of four beasts in the first year of belshazzar king of babylon, daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying in bed. The son of man in daniel, enoch and the gospels book. Son of man, the definition and meaning bible dictionary. Bible book number 27daniel watchtower online library. English translations are mostly he was presented, but the kjv is closest with they brought near 3rd masculine plural active. You have made him for a little while lower than the angels.
You have crowned him with glory and honor, and have appointed him over the works of your hands. Daniels superior way of life earns him great respect in the babylonian government. The phrase son of man is retained here because of its use in the new testament as a title of jesus, probably based largely on this verse. Daniels story is a story of death and survival, of desperation and hope, evil and love. Daniel s son of man coin of alexander, with rams horns. The aramaic phrase bar enos son of man is a semitic expression denoting a single member of humanity, a certain human being, hence someone. And i saw one like a son of man coming with the clouds of heaven. Later in this book we see that the expressions, son of man, elect and righteous one, are all to be identified with the same latterday figure. Interpretation of the use of the son of man in the new testament has remained challenging and after 150 years of debate no consensus on the issue. Mar 03, 2020 the son of man is given the kingdom that daniel 2 speaks of. It is evident that the being who looks like a man and is referred to as a man in enoch 46 34 482 6279. The figure of the son of man actual reference to the heavenly figure like a son of man is confined to only two verses in daniel vii, namely, and 14. If you thought christ was jesus last name or the title he gave himself, think again. At the end of the book, all of these things were clearer and more alive.
Jesus used the title son of man in reference to himself more than any other title. Mighty kings and powerful rulers possess the land of israel. Some confusion surrounds the son of man in 1 enoch, particularly in 1 enoch 71. Then daniel sees one like a son of man, a figure in the form of a. Thus, son of man indeed becomes a central image here. In my vision at night i looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. The son of man in daniel s prophecy is a divine figure who reigns forever and ever. In several verses he refers to the imagery used in daniel 7. For much of jewish and christian history, this figure was interpreted as the messiah the earliest adaptations of this vision, in the similitudes of enoch and 4 ezra, use messianic language with reference to the son of man figure. At the end of the book, all of these things were clearer and more alive in my mind and my heart than before the reading began. This heavenly figure comes unto the ancient of days and is. Daniel 7 esv daniels vision of the four beasts bible gateway. A redefinition of the jerusalem temple and the formation of a new covenant community 9781498278942 by robert s.
In daniels series of visions, he describes four beasts and four kingdoms. The book of daniel was written during the maccabaean revolt, a rebellion against the. When daniel saw one like a son of man, perhaps he meant one like ezekiel. Daniel s more of a visionary than a really prophetic prophet like, a real prophet s prophet, anyway. At that time they will see the son of man coming in the clouds with great power and glory.
This is the most common hebrew construction for the singular, appearing 93 times in the book of ezekiel alone and 14 times elsewhere. You have put all things in subjection under his feet. A redefinition of the jerusalem temple and the formation of a new covenant community kindle edition by snow, robert s download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. This article will argue in favor of the plain reading of 1 enoch 71. A prayer of daniel and the revelation of 70 weeks 1012. Jul 22, 2015 during the second and first centuries before jesus the author or authors of the book of parables in the composite apocalyptic text known as 1 enoch made elaborate use of daniels story about one like a son of man. It is jesus after all who won salvation for us and is lord of all. Book of daniel is written in exile in babylon during the 6th century b. In this context, he was referring to ezekiel as a human being. The son of man in daniel has the authority to establish an everlasting government because he is divine deity and the promised messiah, a descendant of king david. From the very beginning the son of man of daniel was identified as the messiah. Daniel with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. The son of man according to daniel, enoch and jesus. Jesus referred to himself as the son of man over 80 times in the gospels.
It is a widely used messianic title, in keeping with the grandeur of daniels vision in daniel 7. We shall therefore proceed to its interpretation upon the assumption that, as it stands, it is a unity. Someone like a son of man comes before him and is given rulership and dignity and kingdom, that the peoples, national groups and languages should all serve even him. Son of man is a title used almost entirely by jesus himself to refer to himself. The book of daniel predicted that the son of man would inherit gods everlasting kingdom. Joel richardson makes an extremely important point in a new video series. Jan 02, 2020 son of man is a rather common term in the bible, and it simply means man. Thus, daniels son of man rides the clouds like yahweh, rules over all creation forever like yahweh, and is worshiped by all the nations like yahweh. I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. The title jesus most often used for himself is the son of man. This post is an excerpt from a book on daniel 7 being published in 2019. And behold, one like the son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven.
This book will become one of the central books to the church in the coming days. Nov 20, 2015 in daniels vision, the one like a son of man arrives on clouds at the throne of the ancient of days. The gospel of daniel 7, read exactly this way when i picked it upa theological adventure of looking at daniel, jesus, and the kingdom of god. Why is ezekiel called son of man if it is a title for jesus. In thirty two cases, the phrase appears in intermediate plural form sons of men. Regarding daniels son of man, the last phrasesentence in daniel 7. Son of man, stand upon thy feet, and i will speak to thee ezekiel 2. The hero of the book, daniel, is a courtier of the babylonian ruler belshazzar, the son of king nabonidus and regent during his fathers absence. The prophet ezechiel is addressed by god as son of man more than ninety times, e. One night daniel had a terrifying dream about the future of human history. Son of man judaism the hebrew expression son of man, benadam appears 107 times in the hebrew bible, the majority 93 times in the book of ezekiel.
The son of man in the clouds part 1 theopolis institute. He approached the ancient of days and was led into his presence. They will see the son of man coming on the clouds of heaven, with power and great glory. Scholars debate over whether the son of man could be st. Daniel 7 daniels dream of four beasts in bible gateway. The saints of the most high are given rule over the nations, but there is no indication in daniel even that the son of man is included in the court that will sit on the thrones of judgment to judge the beast. Daniel, as many other authors of the antiquity and the bible, writes of himself in the third person throughout the first part of the book. He came to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. Ezekiel is addressed over ninety times as son of man in the book. A commentary on the book of daniel, hermeneia minneapolis, mn. With the coming of jesus, the fulfilment of the prophecy in himself was not at first obvious either to israel or his followers. A first meaning of the phrase son of man is as a reference to the prophecy of daniel 7.
The story is told from daniels point of view as he experiences the atrocities of the holocaust for jews in central europe. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed. A survey of the postnew testament interpretations of the son of man in daniel interpretation of the son of man prior to the modern period individual interpretations of the son of man jewish individual interpretations collective interpretations of the son of man porphyry and the son. Its a limited but perhaps suggestive parallel for the interpretation of daniel 7. Whenever in later works that son of man, this son of man or the son of man is mentioned, it is the quotation from daniel. The son of man in daniel 7 is at most an angelic figure, but more likely in my view a symbol for the persecuted righteous in israel. When jesus calls himself the son of man, he is identifying himself with this heavenly figure from the book of daniel. As leo back, a jewish theologian and scholar wrote. This son of man, above all else, is a heavenly figure. It did not pass into normal christian usage or worship. The humanity of god in christ for the reconciliation of the world. For our purposes, the primary question is what relevance daniel has to the olivet discourse and the son of man sayings.
Jesus is referred to as the son of man 88 times in the new testament. Find all the books, read about the author, and more. Son of man has the double meaning of human being and, according to daniel 7, exalted heavenly one. Jesus replied, foxes have dens, and birds of the air have nests, but the son of man has no place to lay his head. Daniel s son of man coin of alexander, with ram s horns. Jul 21, 2016 this son son of man is either israel or israels king or both. When the story opens, he is 14 years old, riding on a train and looking at pictures in his photo album. Oct 21, 2016 contrary to recent scholarship that argues mark s son of man does not make any thematic or christological contribution to the gospel andor that the ot background of the son of man phrase is irrelevant, this work demonstrates that the son of man, when examined in light of daniel 7, advances one of mark s major themes. A redefinition of the jerusalem temple and the formation of a new covenant community paperback october 21, 2016 by robert s. For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes to the west, so also will the coming of the son of man be.
The son of man isnt always used in the same way from one book to another. Who was the son of man in daniel 7 manuscript covenant. Overview of the book of daniel third millennium ministries. We know this to be the case from passages like mark. This son son of man is either israel or israels king or both. On several occasions when he alludes to the son of man, jesus plainly has daniels endtimes messianic figure in mind, because he mentions distinctive features of that vision, such as the clouds. I cannot overemphasize our need to give ourselves to it today.
For example in the book of ezekiel, the son of man does seem to stress a human being. Essays presented to professor james torrance princeton theological monograph series robert d. Sep 27, 2017 daniels son of man is one who is fulfilling the commission to adam to rule as the image of god. Jesus strongly identifies with daniel s son of man by using it as a selftitle. There can be no question that our lord at least twice more referred to the book of daniel. Son of man wasnt laden with religious or political baggage.
He focuses the viewers attention on daniel chapter. The son of man is given dominion i saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came. The early jewish and christian interpretation of daniels son of man. Its not until we get to the book of daniel that we see son of man take on greater significance. What does the bible mean when it refers to the four winds. The coming of the son of man the unfolding of biblical. It emphasizes the origin, majesty, and dignity of this ruler who will rule over all things forevermore. The hebrew expression son of man, benadam appears 107 times in the hebrew bible, the majority 93 times in the book of ezekiel.
The phrase in the old testamentpsalms, ezekiel, daniel 2. Son of man is ambiguous enough that his enemies arent able to seize on the title as blasphemy. In fact, his description of the son of man can be traced back to a crucial text from the old testament book of daniel. He comes with the clouds of heaven, as jesus repeatedly said he himself would do and this is a coming into heavenly glory and authority, not a coming down to. Son of man, drawn directly from the imagery of daniel 7. The book of daniel was written during the maccabaean revolt, a rebellion against the seleucid king antiochus iv epiphanes, who had started a persecution of orthodox jews. The one like a son of man comes with the clouds of heaven, which could readily be taken to mean that he resides in heaven. Then to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him. There can be no doubt that the similitudes of enoch allude to the son of man of daniel 7.
He is the divinehuman partner that we all need to overcome the animal inside our nature and raise humanity back to the glorious destiny that god created us. Son of man is an expression in the sayings of jesus in christian writings, including the gospels, the acts of the apostles and the book of revelation. Daniel 7 is one of the most important old testament stories for understanding what jesus is all about, and it makes perfect sense why jesus adopted the son of man title to describe himself. For in subjecting all things to him, he left nothing that is not subject to him. The book of daniel is a key source for material on eschatology, and there is apparently no end to the interpretations offered. As daniel used the term, the son of man was a great davidic king who was exalted by god and who represented god on earth.
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