A majority of people today have the idea that men like Bart Ehrman who have written over 20 books about the New Testament, are the world’s best scholars. In truth, there has never been one greater and possessing more knowledge about the Hebrew and Greek scriptures than the Hebrew Scholar, Paul of Tarsus.

Before Paul wrote a majority of the text in the New Testament he was known as Saul, a member of the distinguished Sanhedrin of Israel.

Paul Received His Training In The Scriptures From Gamaliel

“I am indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of Cilicia, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according to the strictness of our fathers’ law, and was zealous toward God as you all are today.” ~Acts 22:3

The term at the feet of Gamaliel was a common phrase of that day in referring to a long tradition of those who were carefully trained in the scriptures. These students sat on chairs that were close to the ground; while the rabbis who taught them sat on higher chairs, signifying their authority in the scriptures.

Rabban Gamaliel was a Pharisee and expert in the scriptures. During this period of history these teachers of the scriptures were referred to as Doctors of the Law. Today we would say that he has a Doctorate in Scriptures. Gamaliel was referred to as the “thirty-fifth receiver of the traditions.” Gamaliel, having received the “Cabala” (Kabbalah) that came from Moses at Mount Sinai, is described as dying 18 years before Jerusalem was destroyed in 70 A.D.

It is clear from the instruction Paul received from Gamaliel that he was also an expert scholar in the Old Testament scriptures. Paul was perhaps more familiar with the Old Testament prophecies concerning the coming Messiah than any other person who was alive at that time. Paul was convinced that Jesus was the fulfillment of these many Messianic Prophecies, including Psalms 45:6. When Paul penned the words, in Hebrews Chapter 1:8—But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom,”—he was pointing to the fact that not only was Jesus the Messiah but He was and is the Living God.

Jesus, The Messiah, Verified By A Venerated Hebrew Scholar:

These facts are of particular importance concerning Paul who was one of the most highly respected Hebrew scholars of that day, trained by the esteemed Rabbi Gamaliel. It was Paul’s judgment that Jesus was the object of every Hebrew prophecy of the Messiah.

Then Paul, as his custom was, went in to them at Thessalonica, and for three Sabbaths reasoned with them from the Scriptures, explaining and demonstrating that the Christ had to suffer and rise again from the dead, and saying, “This Jesus whom I preach to you is the Messiah.” ~Acts 17:2-3

It is significant that the verses of scriptures Paul used to convince the Thessalonians that Jesus is the Messiah are the very same scriptures contained within the 4,042 page book I wrote, “Prophecies of the Messiah, and “These Things Were Written.” In these two publications I detail 400 Hebrew prophecies of the Messiah and how Jesus met every requirement of these scriptures.

How Paul Proves Jesus Is The Messiah From The Hebrew Prophets:

If we simply read through the first chapter of Hebrews we immediately see that Paul believed that Jesus is the fulfillment of all the Hebrew Prophets wrote. Notice in the text, how Paul relates what is written in the Hebrew scriptures to Jesus as he applies the specific prophecies that were written for Messiah.

Paul displays an incredible ability to know and apply scriptures from the Tanakh to Jesus, precisely, to demonstrate from the Tanakh that Jesus is the Messiah.

The Book Of Hebrews And Paul’s Commentary On Jesus

In Hebrews 1:8 Paul writes his commentary on the well known prophecy of the coming Messiah from Psalms 45:6. Paul wrote in the first chapter of Hebrews that this Messianic prophecy was written for Jesus:

Hebrews 1:8-9 “But to the Son (Jesus) He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.”

Psalms 45:6-7 Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.

It is clear that Paul believed that Psalms 45:6 was written for the Messiah, and specifically, Jesus Christ. Paul’s quotation of Psalms 45:6 in context with Hebrews 1:8 defines for us accurately who Jesus is:

1. The “Son” is Jesus Christ.
2. The Son is “God.”
3. Psalms 45:6 was a prophecy written for Jesus Christ.
4. Jesus Christ is the Messiah promised by the Old Testament.

Paul was convinced that Jesus was the fulfillment of every Messianic Prophecy of the Hebrew scriptures, including Psalms 45:6. When Paul penned the words in Hebrews Chapter 1:8—But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom”—he was pointing to the fact that not only was Jesus the Messiah but He was and is the Living God.

Not only do we learn from Psalms 45:6 that God intended from the foundation of the world, that the Messiah would be God but also that Jesus was the person to whom this prophecy was written.

Paul: Former Persecutor Of Jesus And His Followers

This view of Paul concerning Jesus is of particular interest because Paul was formerly known as Saul who vehemently denied that Jesus was the Messiah and did everything possible, by the power of the Sanhedrim, to arrest and put to death—every person who followed Jesus.

Meanwhile, Saul was uttering threats with every breath and was eager to kill the Lord’s followers. So he went to the high priest. He requested letters addressed to the synagogues in Damascus, asking for their cooperation in the arrest of any followers of the Way he found there. He wanted to bring them—both men and women—back to Jerusalem in chains. As he was approaching Damascus on this mission, a light from heaven suddenly shone down around him. He fell to the ground and heard a voice saying to him, “Saul! Saul! Why are you persecuting me?” “Who are you, lord?” Saul asked. And the voice replied, “I am Jesus, the one you are persecuting!  Now get up and go into the city, and you will be told what you must do.” ~Acts 9:1-6 (NLT)

As Paul he later commented on this period of his life when he did not understand who Jesus was, he said that he did these things in ignorance:

I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has given me strength to do his work. He considered me trustworthy and appointed me to serve him, even though I used to blaspheme the name of Christ. In my insolence, I persecuted his people. But God had mercy on me because I did it in ignorance and unbelief. Oh, how generous and gracious our Lord was! He filled me with the faith and love that come from Christ Jesus.

This is a trustworthy saying, and everyone should accept it: “Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners”—and I am the worst of them all. But God had mercy on me so that Christ Jesus could use me as a prime example of his great patience with even the worst sinners. Then others will realize that they, too, can believe in him and receive eternal life.  All honor and glory to God forever and ever! He is the eternal King, the unseen one who never dies; he alone is God. Amen. ~1 Timothy 1:12-17 (NLT)

There are many dear Jews in the world today who have taken the words of the ancient Rabbis that Jesus is not the Messiah, but have never really studied the New Testament for themselves.

A Rare Look At True Scholarship

As Paul writes the first chapter of Hebrews, he begins by laying a foundation for his thesis by showing us what the Hebrew prophets wrote about the coming Messiah that God promised.

Step by step Paul lays out several Old Testament verses of scripture and applies each of these to Jesus:

Paul Writing In Hebrews 1:1-4

1 God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, 2 has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 3 who being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when He had by Himself purged our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.

Paul begins his thesis of Jesus by telling us that his book of Hebrews is predicated upon the Hebrew scriptures of the Old Testament which describes the Messiah that God promised. Here, Paul states that God has spoken to the world of human beings many time already, by the creation of the universe (Colossians 1), and through the Hebrew scriptures which reveal God. Finally, God has spoken to every person by the presence of His Son, Jesus, who came to earth to show us precisely what God is like. Paul states that it was Jesus who made all that exists, and then He came to earth and died for our sins and has made eternal life possible for anyone who will believe what God said.

Paul Writing In Hebrews 1:5a

For to which of the angels did He ever say: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You”?

Paul Quotes Hebrews 1:5a From Psalms 2:7

“I will declare the decree: The Lord has said to Me, ‘You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.

Paul’s Writing In Hebrews 1:5b:

And again: “I will be to Him a Father, And He shall be to Me a Son”?

Paul Quotes Hebrews 1:5b From 2 Samuel 7:14

“I will be his Father, and he shall be My son.”

Paul Writing In Hebrews 1:6

“But when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says: “Let all the angels of God worship Him.”

Paul Quotes Hebrews 1:6 From Deuteronomy 32:43

“Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people; For He will avenge the blood of His servants, And render vengeance to His adversaries; He will provide atonement for His land and His people.”

Now here is where this text that Paul wrote in Hebrews becomes very interesting. What I am about to show you is something that a majority of people in the world will never know. This demonstrates the proficiency of Paul in the Hebrew and Greek scriptures.

Notice that the verse from Deuteronomy 32:43, does not have the text that Hebrews 1:6 states, “Let all the angels of God worship Him.” This is because Paul was quoting from the LXX, or Septuagint Version of the Hebrew scriptures for Deuteronomy 32:43. The Septuagint was written about 300 years before Jesus came to earth. Seventy Hebrew scholars were commissioned to translate the Hebrew scriptures into Greek. This is the version that Paul is quoting from. It is interesting that this Septuagint version of Deuteronomy 32:43 that includes the text, “Let all the angels of God worship Him,” is in the Dead Sea Scrolls that were discovered in 1946.

In the Septuagint Version (LXX), the text that Paul stated in Hebrews 1:6 says:

“Rejoice, O Gentiles, with His people; For He will avenge the blood of His servants, And render vengeance to His adversaries; He will provide atonement for His land and His people. Let all the angels of God worship Him.” ~Deuteronomy 32:43

This means that Paul was such a great scholar that he knew the text of the Septuagint and was able to quote this text for us in the New Testament book of Hebrews 1:6.

For the scholarly who read this, the following is the entire commentary regarding this Septuagint Version of Deuteronomy 32:43:

The text: “Let all the angels of God worship Him,” is the Hebrew: והשׁתחוו לו כל בני אל, and the Greek Translation: καὶ ἐνισχυσάτωσαν αὐτῷ πάντες υἱοὶ Θεοῦ. Literally translated: “and let all the sons of God strengthen themselves in him”; and cf. the use of בני אל, “sons of God.”

Now that you have seen the empirical evidence that Paul was an exemplary scholar in the Hebrew and Greek scriptures, it should give you great confidence that he knew for certain that Jesus had correctly fulfilled all of the Messianic Prophecies of the Messiah from the Old Testament. This is precisely what we see demonstrated in the text of the first chapter of book of Hebrews. This proficiency also proves that only Paul could have written Hebrews. There was no other who wrote like this in the early first century of the Christian church.

Paul Quotes The Old Testament The Rest Of The First Chapter Of Hebrews:

Paul Writing In Hebrews 1:7

And of the angels He says: “Who makes His angels spirits And His ministers a flame of fire.”

Paul Quotes Hebrews 1:7 From Psalms 104:4

Who makes His angels spirits, His ministers a flame of fire. ~Psalms 104:4

Paul uses a Messianic Psalm (104), to distinguish Jesus as the Messiah, from the angels who were sent to earth by God for the purpose of assisting in the salvation of human beings. Jesus is not one of the angels, He was, is, and will always be, the eternal Son of God who created all that exists (Colossians 1, Hebrews 1).

Paul Writing In Hebrews 1:8-9

But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions.”

Paul Quotes Hebrews 1:8-9 From Psalms 45:6-7

Your throne, O God, is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom. You love righteousness and hate wickedness; Therefore God, Your God, has anointed You With the oil of gladness more than Your companions. ~Psalms 45:6-7

Psalms 45 is a well-known and accepted Messianic chapter of the Old Testament. Here, Paul applies this text about the Messiah to Jesus and tell us that these verse were written for Jesus and He fulfilled them when He came to earth.

David also declares in Psalms 90:2 that the Messiah will be the eternal God, who made all things.

Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever You had formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, You are God. ~Psalms 90:2

The New Testament Confirms That Jesus is God

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. ~John 1:1-3

For by Jesus all things were created that are in heaven and that are on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers. All things were created through Him and for Him. ~Colossians 1:16

God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds…~Hebrews 1:1-2

The Old Testament States That God Would Become a Man

The great mystery of the universe is that God, who spoke the universe into existence, also died on a Roman cross 2,000 years ago for the sins of all people.

Beyond all question, the mystery of godliness is great: He appeared in a body, was vindicated by the Spirit, was seen by angels, was preached among the nations, was believed on in the world, was taken up in glory. ~1 Timothy 3:16 (NIV)

Why would the One who created all things make Himself subject to the creation He made? It is beyond comprehension why the eternal God would be willing to die for sinful man. When the angels disobeyed God, there was no plan of salvation offered to them. We are unique amongst all the creation of God. Only the descendants of Adam have been presented with the life of the Son of God in payment for their sins. This is a gift of unparalleled worth that every person on the earth should eagerly seek with all of their heart.

This prophecy from Psalms 90:2 and Psalms 45:6-7, also predicts that when the Messiah arrives, He will be the eternal God who “formed the earth and the world.” The term, from everlasting to everlasting, is a reference to God’s eternality. He has no beginning, and He will have no end. No other God created our God, nor did He require a first cause. He is eternal, self-existent, and has no need of anything outside of Himself.

We would not know that Psalm 90:2 and 45:6-7 were prophetic, except for Paul’s words in the New Testament in which Jesus is described as the One through whom the universe was created. Colossians 1:16-17 describes Jesus as the Creator of all things. If Jesus created all things, then He must be before all other things and could not Himself be created.

Because Psalms 45:5-6 and Psalms 90:2 describes the One who made all things as God and this verse matched with Colossians 1:16-17, John 1:1, and Hebrews 1:1-2 (above)—describing Jesus as the agent of all creation, and revealed to us as the Messiah—we understand that Psalms 90:2 is prophetic. This verse of scripture defines the Messiah who died for us as the agent of creation.

How is it that God who made all things would be willing to die for the creatures He made? This is the great mystery revealed to us by these many prophecies of the Old Testament scriptures. God’s love is so vividly displayed in the person of Jesus Christ, that we are able to see Him clearly and understand who He is by the things He has done for us.

We know and understand who God is by His Son. We live and move and have our being by Him and through Him and because of Him (Acts 17:28). All that has been, and all that will be, are determined and ordered by our great God and His Messiah, Jesus Christ.

Here, as Paul opens the book of Hebrews we see just how proficient he is as a scholar in brining out all of the Old Testament prophetic verses for Messiah and applying them to Jesus as the fulfillment of these prophecies.

Paul Writing In Hebrews 1:10-12

And: “You, Lord, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth,
And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You remain;
And they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will fold them up,
And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will not fail.”

Paul Quotes Hebrews 1:10-12 From Psalms 102:25-27

Of old You laid the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the work of Your hands. They will perish, but You will endure; Yes, they will all grow old like a garment; Like a cloak You will change them, And they will be changed. But You are the same, And Your years will have no end.

Psalms 102:25-27, are Messianic verses of scripture which tell us that when the Messiah comes to earth, He will not be merely a man who comes to save us from our sins, but the Creator/God who “laid the foundation of the earth and the heavens are the word of His hands.”

We are astonished to learn from Paul here in his commentary of Hebrews, that He tells us that Jesus is this Creator/God who made the universe, and every person who lives upon the earth. Then He left heaven, set aside some of His rights as God (Philippians 2), and took the form of a servant so that He could lay down His life in payment for our sins and give us the opportunity to obtain eternal life.

Let this mind be in you which was also in Christ Jesus, who, being in the form of God, did not consider it robbery to be equal with God, but made Himself of no reputation, taking the form of a bondservant, and coming in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself and became obedient to the point of death, even the death of the cross. ~Philippians 2:5-8

We have only begin the book of Hebrews and already we see the skill with which Paul is able to prove Jesus as the Messiah, by the Old Testament prophecies that predict His arrival and all that He will say and do.

Paul Writing In Hebrews 1:13-14

But to which of the angels has He ever said: “Sit at My right hand,
Till I make Your enemies Your footstool”? Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister for those who will inherit salvation?

Paul Quotes Hebrews 1:13-14 From Psalms 110:1

The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.”

Jesus Confounded The Leaders Of Israel

When the Pharisees gathered before Jesus to question Him, it was with the intent of publicly discrediting Him before all those who were listening. Instead, these men were themselves confounded. The text that the Pharisees used to trap Jesus was a well-known verse from Psalm 110:1a.

In this portion of scripture, The LORD God is saying to the Messiah, “Sit at my right hand till I make your enemies my footstool.” The Pharisees believed that they already knew the answer to this question when they asked Jesus: “What do you think about the Christ (Messiah) Whose Son is He?” The Pharisees believed that the Messiah was the Son of David.

The LORD said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool.” ~Psalms 110:1a

Matthew Records This Event In His Gospel

While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, saying, “What do you think about the Christ? Whose Son is He?” They said to Him, “The Son of David.” He said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord,’ saying: ‘The LORD said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand, Till I make Your enemies Your footstool” ’? If David then calls Him ‘Lord,’ how is He his Son?”~Matthew 22:41-45

Jesus asks the Pharisees, “If the Messiah is David’s son, then why did David also call Him “Lord?” In other words, how could the Messiah be both a human being (David’s son) and also Lord (God’s Son)?

These men knew and understood that this verse of scripture that Jesus referred to was about the Messiah. Only the Messiah could sit at the right hand of God. Jesus believed these verses from Psalm 110:1 were inspired by God and were true—as did these leaders of Israel. Jesus asked these teachers of the law how Messiah could be both God and a human being?

“If the Messiah is David’s son, how can He also be David’s Lord?”

This is precisely what this prophecy from Psalms 110:1a is predicting.

The Pharisees didn’t have an answer. They were bewildered, but not Jesus. The obvious answer to this question is that the Messiah will be both David’s Lord (God) and His, Son (a future human descendant), a fact that Jesus made repeatedly concerning Himself.

The reality that Jesus is both David’s son and his Lord is confirmed by Jesus’ question which He asks of the Pharisees. For those who say that Jesus never claimed to be God, this is one of many places where He clearly asserts that He is God.

When Jesus asks this question of the religious leadership of Israel, no one was able to answer Him. This is because it was generally accepted by the Jews that Psalms 110:1 was speaking of the Messiah who will also be God. If by David’s words, the Messiah is both a son and Lord, He must also be God and man.

The idea that God could be dwelling within the person of Jesus Christ was a reality that was totally unacceptable to the leaders of Israel. Yet, this is precisely what David was predicting when he penned Psalms 110:1.

Understanding this is true, how is it that a New Testament Scholar could miss this critical piece of evidence in stating that Jesus never claimed to be God? This is precisely what Bart Ehrman and the Jesus Seminar participants assert.

Here before the Pharisees, Jesus meticulously demonstrates from the Old Testament that His identity as God and Messiah is precisely what David predicted: A man who is both Messiah and God.

Background On Psalms 110

The question of whether Psalms 110 is really about the Messiah and specifically applicable to Jesus is answered.

When we examine the New Testament, we see that both Jesus and Peter state that David was the author of this Psalm.

This fact is repeated in Matthew 22:43, Mark 12:36, Luke 20:42, and Acts 2:33-35.

Understanding that David is writing Psalms 110 as a Prophet it is clear that his intent was to write about the Messiah.

David, …being a prophet…  ~Acts 2:29-30

Thus says David…The anointed of the God…“The Spirit of the Lord spoke by me…  ~2 Samuel 23:1-2

David was not writing about his own descendants because there was no Jewish king who ever became a priest. The Messiah is a Priest forever according to 2 Chronicles 26:16-23.

There was no Jewish king who ever conquered the rulers of the whole earth as Psalms 110:6 describes.

The writers of the New Testament quoted Psalms 110:1 twenty-five times and verse 4 on five occasions. In the book of Hebrews, Paul speaks ten times about Jesus as the object of Psalms 110 as the Messiah.

Correctly Translating Psalms 110

It is sometimes difficult to understand, in English, precisely what David is saying in Psalms 110:1.

The Lord (Yahweh יהוה) said to my Lord (Adonai אדני), Sit at My right hand…

Verses 1, David calls the Messiah by the name “Lord,” in Hebrew, “Yahweh-Jehovah-God,” who said to my Lord, “Adonai-Lord God Almighty.”

The terms Adonai is not a title that is less than Yahweh, but speaks of the Messiah’s might as He rules over the world.

In one of the original manuscripts, the text reads: “Jehovah said to my Jehovah.”

Because the ancient scribes so highly revered the name of Jehovah (Yahweh), it is possible that the scribes substituted “Adonai” for Jehovah in 134 Old Testament scriptures, including Psalms 110:1.

The name Jehovah should have been retained in these places because this is the correct meaning of these scriptures. Father, Son, and Spirit are all equally One God, Yahweh.

The name Adonai is Lord-Yahweh-Almighty, which carries the same definition as God. The confusion that has resulted from changing Yahweh to Adonai is that some people mistook this change as meaning that Jesus is not Jehovah, as with the Jehovah’s Witnesses Church. Even if Adonai is used, this does not diminish Jesus as less than God but supports Him as equal to God.

In the New Testament, there are several occurrences where the Greek word for God, Theos, is used. Most often, this word is used only in describing the Father. However, there are several places in the New Testament where Theos is also used to describe Jesus Christ.

In the beginning was the Word (Jesus) , and the Word was with God, and the Word was God (Theos).⁠[1]  ~John 1:1

…of whom are the fathers and from whom, according to the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, the eternally blessed God (Theos). Amen. ~Romans 9:5

But to the Son (Jesus) He says: “Your throne, O God (Theos), is forever and ever; A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your kingdom.~Hebrews 1:8

In the Old Testament, the term Lord in Hebrew is Yahweh.[⁠2]

In the New Testament, the word Lord  in Greek is Kyrios.⁠[3] When it is used in relation to Jesus, it always means Yahweh or Jehovah.

Kyrios is often used as a polite way to address a person, such as when we call a man, sir. It can also mean Master, as in one who rules over a servant or slave. The Greek translation of the Old Testament called “the Septuagint,” was widely used during the time when Jesus was here on  earth. The word Kyrios or Lord was understood by those speaking Greek, as Yahweh or Jehovah. The Greek Old Testament translates Kyrios as Lord 6,814 times.

When we arrive at the New Testament, there are also many occasions where Lord (Kyrios) is used to describe Jesus. This is for good reason. The writers of the New Testament were attributing the title of Jehovah-God to Jesus Christ unmistakably.

It was well understood at the writing of the New Testament that Jesus Christ is Yahweh or God Himself. Why the Jehovah’s Witness church has claimed that Jesus Christ is not Jehovah-God is a great mystery. They did not come to this conclusion by the evidence of the Old and New Testament scriptures.

The translators of the New Testament understood that Jehovah-God and Jesus are one and the same person. Further, it is clear that those who knew Jesus understood and believed that He is the eternal Jehovah-God or Yahweh of the Old Testament.

And Thomas answered and said to Him, “My Lord and my God!”~John 20:28

…looking for the blessed hope and glorious appearing of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ…  ~Titus 2:13

But to the Son He says: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.~Hebrews 1:8

Jesus Confounds The Pharisees

As Jesus presents their own scriptures, the Pharisees are confounded. They realize that Jesus is claiming to be the one whom David is describing. These scriptures clearly prove that the Messiah will be both a human being—as He is David’s descendant—and the Lord-God of heaven.

If anyone thinks that Jesus never claimed to be God, this is, again, one more of many places where He makes is crystal clear that He is God.

This is particularly interesting, as Dr. Ehrman has stated in his book, “How Jesus Became God: The Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee” that the only place where Jesus is clearly defined as God is in John’s Gospel.

“I had become impressed with the fact that the sayings of Jesus in which he claimed to be God were found only in the Gospel of John.”[3.5]

Bart Ehrman Is Wrong That Acts 4:13 Proves Peter Was Illiterate

Here we notice that the text of Psalms 110:1, where David writes of the Messiah, The LORD said to my Lord, clearly defining the Messiah as both God and a man, is found in all three Gospels where Ehrman said there is no evidence that Jesus is defined as God; Matthew 22:43; Mark 12:36, Luke 20:42, and Acts 2:33-35.

Apparently, Jesus has not only confounded the Pharisees but also New Testament Scholar, Bart Ehrman.

We must remember that the very reason these same Pharisees will later seek an indictment against Jesus so that they can put Him to death is because He committed blasphemy. Jesus made it obvious that He was claiming to be God, and this is the primary reason that these men went to Pontius Pilate to seek Jesus’ crucifixion.

As Jesus correctly defines exactly what David intended by Psalms 110:1, the Pharisees are perplexed. These men are uncertain what they should do with Jesus. He accurately interprets David’s true intent when He wrote this Psalm, yet the reality that Jehovah-God could be standing before them as a man, was beyond their ability to accept or comprehend.

(Jesus told the Pharisees:) You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.  ~John 5:39

The Old Testament was written for us so that once Jesus arrived in the New Testament, we would be able to see with our own eyes that God had predicted everything that Jesus has said and done. We have the entire body of scriptures that date from 3,500 years ago, to fully validate that the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ is true, accurate, and reliable.

See Also: Evidence Of New Testament Reliability: Reliance Upon The Old Testament

NOTES:

[1] Strong’s Concordance of Greek words #2316 and and Englishman’s Concordance of Greek Words.

[2] Strong’s Hebrew Concordance # 3068

[3] Strong’s Greek Concordance # 2962

[3.5] Ehrman, Bart D.. How Jesus Became God: The Exaltation of a Jewish Preacher from Galilee (p. 86). HarperCollins. Kindle Edition.

Categories: All Israel will be saved, Bart Ehrman, Claims of Interpolation, Defending the Gospel, Jewish rejection of Jesus, Jews reject Jesus, Messianic Prophecies, Messianic Prophecy Bible, New Testament Criticism, Principles of Biblical Interpretation, Reliability of the Bible, Reliability of the New Testament, Robert Clifton Robinson, Salvation through Jesus, Studying the Word of God, The Historical Jesus

Tags: 365 Messianic Prophecies, Bart Ehrman, Did Jesus claim to be God?, Fulfilled Prophecies of the Messiah, Is Jesus the Son of God and Messiah?, Messianic Prophecies, Psalms 110:1, Psalms 45:6-7