Mark 12:35-37
Introduction
In this passage, Jesus brings to our attention something really important that King David said in the Old Testament. Bear this in mind as we examine today’s passage.
Verse 35
In the last three studies we have seen Jesus being interrogated on three successive occasions by the religious leaders. But now Jesus turns the tables on them and He becomes the interrogator.
He starts with a question. The question is, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David.” It should be noted that the Christ is just another name for the Messiah. The David that Jesus speaks about is King David that we read about in the Old Testament. And the son that Jesus speaks about is the Messiah that the Jews were waiting for.
The Jews of that time were longing for their Messiah to come and save them. The scribes knew that there were many scriptures in the Old Testament that said that the Messiah would come from the line of David. That he would be a descendant of King David. They knew that the Messiah would be born in the city of David, Bethlehem and that he would be of the seed of David.
So, why was it so important to the Jews that the Messiah would be the son of King David? It was because David was Israel’s most illustrious king. The reign of David was considered to be the golden age of Israel. After David’s reign, Israel went into decline because of corruption. And so, the Jews longed for the good old days of David’s reign. They knew that God had promised that the house of David would be restored and that the monarchy of David would last forever.
And so, the Jews pinned their hopes on the coming Messiah who would sit on David’s throne. So, what kind of person did the Jews think the son of David would be? They thought that he would simply be a man from David’s blood line.
Bear this in mind as we examine the next two verses.
Verses 36 to 37
In Verse 36, Jesus quotes something that David said in the Old Testament. He quotes Psalm 110:1. However, Jesus says something in Verse 35 of today’s passage that is not found in Verse 1 of Psalm 110. He says, “David himself said in the Holy Spirit.” Jesus is saying that those who write the scriptures do not do so in their own strength. Instead, they are supervised and influenced by the Holy Spirit. See 2 Timothy 3:16. This is where the scriptures get their authority from. They are God breathed. This is known as the doctrine of the divine inspiration of scripture.
In view of what Jesus said at the beginning of Verse 36, what does that tells us about what David said in Psalm 10:1? It tells us that it is the truth.
Before we look at what David said I just want to give you some information about Psalm 110. Psalm 110 is the most frequently quoted Old Testament text in the New Testament. The New Testament refers to Psalm 110 thirty-three times. Psalm 110 is a messianic psalm. And finally, Psalm 110 is very important for our understanding of the person and work of Jesus.
So, let’s go to Psalm 110 and see what David said in Verse 1. The first thing that David says in Verse 1 is that the LORD says to my Lord. Notice that the word Lord is used two times in this statement. But there is a difference between the first LORD and the second Lord. The first one is all in capital letters and the second one only has the first letter in capitals. This tells us that the first Lord represents God’s name which is Yahweh and the second Lord is a title. In the Old Testament God is given the title Lord or Adonai? The title Lord means the One who has absolute Sovereignty.
So, in Verse 1 we have Yahweh calling someone else Lord. We know this because of the word ’my’. Yahweh is speaking to David’s Lord – can you see this? And because we know that Lord is a title given to God, it looks like God is talking to Himself. So, what’s going on? The answer is found in the next thing that David says about his Lord. The second thing that David says in Verse 1 is, “Sit at My right hand.” Yahweh is saying that David’s Lord will sit at His right hand. To sit at Yahweh’s right hand is to be seated in the highest place of authority in the universe. Remember that Psalm 110 is a messianic psalm. So, in Verse 1 of Psalm 110 David is saying that the Messiah will be exalted to heaven where He will be enthroned at the right hand of Yahweh.
The New Testament tells us that Jesus is now sitting at the right hand of God.
We see this in Hebrews 1:3, Hebrews 1:8 and Hebrews 1:13. All of these verses are talking about Jesus. This tells us that Jesus is enthroned on the highest seat of authority, that He is enthroned as an eternal king and that He is the fulfilment of Psalm 110:1. Jesus is the Messiah, the King of kings and the Lord of Lords. Right now, Jesus is reigning as our king. Think about that.
By quoting what David said in Verse 1 of Psalm 110, Jesus saying to the scribes that the son of David (the Messiah) is not just a man; He is also Lord, a title given to God. The Son of David is the Son of God.
And now the Father has highly exalted the Son of David and given Him the name which is above every name. See Philippians 2:5-11. Jesus is the name which is above all other names because He is Lord. See Phil 2:11. One day this is what everyone will have to confess. Jesus is Lord.
The third thing that David says in Verse 1 is, “until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.” In the ancient world this meant that you had defeated your enemies. The enemies of Jesus are sin and death and both of these enemies have already been defeated on the cross. The Antichrist and Satan are also enemies of Jesus and they are yet to be defeated. Therefore, Jesus will remain on His throne until all of His enemies are defeated.
In Verse 37 Jesus asks another question leading on from the first one. This time it’s a rhetorical question because he doesn’t expect an answer. The answer to Jesus’ second question is that the Messiah is both man and God. He is both the son of David and the Son of God. This is what we call the Incarnation.