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The phrase son of man is a primarily Semitic idiom that originated in Ancient Mesopotamia, used to denote humanity or self. The phrase is also used in Christianity as an epithet for Jesus.
Ancient languages
In Akkadian, son of man is:
- ameluti
In Sumerian, son of man is:
- DUMU.LU.ULU.LU (?)
In Hebrew, son of man is either:
In Aramaic, son of man due to spelling variants and morphological shifts is either:
Ancient Semitic literature
The most common use is similar to that of the English word "human." For example:
1QapGen
1QapGen. XXI.13: MT שיא (Gen. 13.16)ואשגה זרעך כעפר ארשא די לא ישכח בר אנוש לממדיה
And I will multiply your seed like the dirt of the earth which no son of man (בר אנוש : 'anowsh) can count.
In the Hebrew of Genesis 13:6, the word translated as בר אנוש (son of man) was איש (man).
Book of the Laws of the Countries
This is the oldest general discussion of mankind in the Aramaic language, and we can see that ברנשא bar nasha is used in a general form for humanity:Bardaisan, The Book of the Laws of the Countries, p. 559, lines 11-14:
כינה דברנשא הנו דנתילד ונתרבא ודנקום באקמא ודנולד ודנקש כד אכל וכד שתא וכד דמך וכד מתתששעיר ודמות
This is the nature of the son of man (דברנשא : *), that he should be born and grow up and reach is peak and reproduce and grow old, while eating and drinking and sleeping and waking, and that he should die.
Story of Haninah ben Dosa
Similarly we can see in the story of how Haninah ben Dosa was bitten by a snake while praying to God:y. Ber 5. 1/26 (9a)
כד הוות נכית לבר נשא אין בר נשא קדים למיא חברברא מיית ואין חברברא קדטם למיא בר נשא מיית
When it bites the son of man (בר נשא : nasha'), if the son of man (בר נשא : nasha') reaches the water first, then snake dies; and if the snake reaches the water first, the son of man (בר נשא : nasha') dies.
Here we see that it is not only a method for referring to mankind, but as a way to piously refer to oneself.
Letters of John of Dalyatha
This is further illustrated within the letters of John of Dalyatha where the author is describing a vision:John of Dalyatha Letters 49. 13
מן בתר הנא שוחלפא אתא בתרה שוחלפא אחרנא דלבשא לה לברנשא נורא מן פסת רגלה ושמדא למוחה דמא דחאר ברנשא הו בה לא חזא לפגרא מרכבא אן להד נורא דלביש
After this transformation, there follows another transformation in which fire clothes the son of man (ברנשא : from the soles of his feet up to his brain, so that when the son of man (ברנשא : [barnasha') looks at himself he does not see his composite body, but only the fire with which he is clothed.
Hebrew Bible
Numbers
In reading the Hebrew Bible from cover to cover, the first place one comes across the phrase son of man is in Book of Numbers 23:19:- לא אישׁ אל ויכזב ובן־אדם ויתנחם ההוא אמר ולא יעשׂה ודבר ולא יקימנה
- God is not a man (איש : *), that he should lie,
- Neither the son of man (בן–אדם : *), that he should repent:
- Has he said, and will he not do it?
- Or has he spoken, and will he not make it good?
Job
In the Book of Job, a volume which most scholars believe to be a very old tradition, predating the rest of the Hebrew Bible, we see son of man used a total of three times (all of which, interestingly enough, fall within poetry):Job 16:18-21
- 18 ארץ אל־תכסי דמי ואל־יהי מקום לזעקתי׃ 19 גם־עתה הנה־בשׁמים עדי ושׂהדי במרומים׃ 20 מליצי רעי אל־אלוה דלפה עיני׃ 21 ויוכח לגבר עם־אלוה ובן־אדם לרעהו׃ 22 כי־שׁנות מספר יאתיו וארח לא־אשׁוב אהלך׃
- 18 "Earth, don’t cover my blood,
- Let my cry have no place to rest.
- 19 Even now, behold, my witness is in heaven.
- He who vouches for me is on high.
- 20 My friends scoff at me.
- My eyes pour out tears to God,
- 21 That he would maintain the right of a man (גבר : *) with God,
- Of a son of man (בן–אדם : *) with his neighbor!
- 22 For when a few years are come,
- I shall go the way from whence I shall not return."
Job 25
- 1 ויען בלדד השׁחי ויאמר׃ 2 המשׁל ופחד עמו עשׂה לום במרומיו׃ 3 הישׁ מספר לגדודיו ועל־מי לא־יקום אורהו׃ 4 ומה־יצדק אנושׁ עם־אל ומה־יזכה ילוד אשׁה׃ 5 הן עד־ירח ולא יאהיל וכוכבים לא־זכו בעיניו׃ 6 אף כי־אנושׁ רמה פ
- 1 Then Bildad the Shuhite answered,
- 2"Dominion and fear are with him;
- He makes peace in his high places.
- 3 Can his armies be counted?
- On whom does his light not arise?
- 4 How then can man be just with God?
- Or how can he who is born of a woman be clean?
- 5 Behold, even the moon has no brightness,
- And the stars are not pure in his sight;
- 6 How much less man (אנוש : *), who is a worm!
- The son of man (בן–אדם : *), who is a worm!"
Job 35:6-8
- 6 אם־חטאת מה־תפעל־בו ורבו פשׁעיך מה־תעשׂה־לו׃ 7 אם־צדקת מה־תתן־לו או מה־מידך יקח׃ 8 לאישׁ־כמוך רשׁעך ולבן־אדם צדקתך׃
- 6 If you have sinned, what effect do you have against him?
- If your transgressions are multiplied, what do you do to him?
- 7 If you are righteous, what do you give him?
- Or what does he receive from your hand?
- 8 Your wickedness may hurt a man (איש : *) as you are;
- And your righteousness may profit a son of man (בן–אדם : *).
Psalms
Within the Book of Psalms we find the same classical forms employed within Numbers and Job wherewith son of man is used in parallel with man to describe humanity as a whole.Psalms 8:4-5(5-6)
- 5 מה־אנושׁ כי־תזכרנו ובן־אדם כי תפקדנו׃ 6 ותחסרהו מעט מאלהים וכבוד והדר תעטרהו׃
- 4 What is man (אנוש : *), that you think of him?
- The son of man (בן–אדם : *), that you care for him?
- 5 For you have made him a little lower than God,
- And crowned him with glory and honor.
Psalms 80:14-18(15-19)
- 15 אלהים צבאות שׁוב־נא הבט משׁמים וראה ופקד גפן זאת׃ 16 וכנה אשׁר־נטעה ימינך ועל־בן אמצתה לך׃ 17 שׂרפה באשׁ כסוחה מגערת פניך יאבדו׃ 18 תהי־ידך על־אישׁ ימינך על־בן־אדם אמצת לך׃ 19 ולא־נסוג ממך תחינו ובשׁמך נקרא׃
- 14 Turn again, we beg you, God of hosts.
- Look down from heaven, and see, and visit this vine,
- 15 The stock which your right hand planted,
- The branch that you made strong for yourself.
- 16 It’s burned with fire.
- It’s cut down.
- They perish at your rebuke.
- 17 Let your hand be on the man (איש : *) of your right hand,
- On the son of man (בן–אדם : *) whom you made strong for yourself.
- 18 So we will not turn away from you.
- Revive us, and we will call on your name.
Psalms 144:
- 3 יהוה מה־אדם ותדעהו בן־אנושׁ ותחשׁבהו׃ 4 אדם להבל דמה ימיו כצל עובר׃
- 3 YHWH, what is man (אדם : *), that you care for him?
- Or the son of man (בן–אנוש : *), that you think of him?
- 4 Man (אדם : *) is like a breath.
- His days are like a shadow that passes away.
Psalms 146:
- 1 הללו־יה הללי נפשׁי את־יהוה׃ 2 אהללה יהוה בחיי אזמרה לאלהי בעודי׃ 3 אל־תבטחו בנדיבים בבן־אדם ׀ שׁאין לו תשׁועה׃ 4 תצא רוחו ישׁב לאדמתו ביום ההוא אבדו עשׁתנתיו׃
- 1 Praise Yah!
- Praise YHWH, my soul.
- 2 While I live, I will praise YHWH.
- I will sing praises to my God as long as I exist.
- 3 Don’t put your trust in princes,
- Each a son of man (בן–אדם : *) in whom there is no help.
- 4 His spirit departs, and he returns to the earth.
- In that very day, his thoughts perish.
Isaiah
Isaiah 15:11-13- 11 ופדויי יהוה ישׁובון ובאו ציון ברנה ושׂמחת עולם על־ראשׁם שׂשׂון ס ושׂמחה ישׂיגון נסו יגון ואנחה׃ 12 אנכי אנכי הוא מנחמכם מי־את ותיראי מאנושׁ ימות ומבן־אדם חציר ינתן׃ 13 ותשׁכח יהוה עשׂך נוטה שׁמים ויסד ארץ ותפחד תמיד כל־היום מפני חמת המציק כאשׁר כונן להשׁחית ואיה חמת המציק׃
- 11 The ransomed of YHWH shall return, and come with singing to Zion; and everlasting joy shall be on their heads: they shall obtain gladness and joy; and sorrow and sighing shall flee away. 12 I, even I, am he who comforts you: who are you, that you are afraid of man (מאנושׁ : who shall die, and of the son of man (ומבן־אדם : [umiben-'adam) who shall be made as grass; 13 and have forgotten YHWH your Maker, who stretched forth the heavens, and laid the foundations of the earth; and fear continually all the day because of the fury of the oppressor, when he makes ready to destroy? and where is the fury of the oppressor?
Isaiah 56:1-2
- ה אמר יהוה שׁמרו משׁפט ועשׂו צדקה כי־קרובה ישׁועתי לבוא וצדקתי להגלות׃ 2 אשׁרי אנושׁ יעשׂה־זאת ובן־אדם יחזיק בה שׁמר שׁבת מחללו ושׁמר ס
- 1 Thus says YHWH, Keep you justice, and do righteousness; for my salvation is near to come, and my righteousness to be revealed. 2 Blessed is the man (אנושׁ : 'enosh) who does this, and the son of man (ובן־אדם : *) who holds it fast; who keeps the Sabbath from profaning it, and keeps his hand from doing any evil.
Jeremiah
Ezekiel
The Book of Ezekiel is unique within the tradition of the Tanakh, in that as the story unfolds, the phrase son of man is used approximately 94 times by a divine being to refer to the author. For the sake of an article here, it would be pointless to quote each use, so we will instead look at a few examples:Ezekiel 2
- 1 He said to me, Son of man (בן־אדם : stand on your feet, and I will speak with you. 2 The Spirit entered into me when he spoke to me, and set me on my feet; and I heard him who spoke to me. 3 He said to me, Son of man (בן־אדם : *)," target="_blank" >don’t be afraid of them, neither be afraid of their words, though briers and thorns are with you, and you do dwell among scorpions: don’t be afraid of their words, nor be dismayed at their looks, though they are a rebellious house. 7 You shall speak my words to them, whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear; for they are most rebellious. 8 But you, son of man (בן־אדם : [ben-'adam), hear what I tell you; don’t be you rebellious like that rebellious house: open your mouth, and eat that which I give you. 9 When I looked, behold, a hand was put forth to me; and, behold, a scroll of a book was therein; 10 He spread it before me: and it was written within and without; and there were written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.
Son of man here appears to be a title referring to the humanity of the author, much how the word "human" or (as some joke) "earthling" may suffice in English. It is not a respectful appellation, but a humbling one (in some cases, an arguably abject one), and this use is a consistent pattern throughout Ezekiel.
All uses of son of man within Ezekiel can be found at:
Daniel
By far, the most famous and influential use of the phrase son of man comes from the Book of Daniel. Parts of the text originally written in Aramaic, this portion of the volume deals with a vision attributed to the author about "the times of the end":- Daniel 7:13-14 (WEB)
- 13 חזה הוית בחזוי ליליא וארו עם־ענני שׁמיא כבר אנשׁ אתה הוה ועד־עתיק יומיא מטה וקדמוהי הקרבוהי׃ 14 ולה יהיב שׁלטן ויקר ומלכו וכל עממיא אמיא ולשׁניא לה יפלחון שׁלטנה שׁלטן עלם די־לא יעדה ומלכותה פ
- 13 I saw in the night-visions, and, behold, there came with the clouds of the sky one like a son of man (כבר אנש 'anash), and he came even to the ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. 14 There was given him dominion, and glory, and a kingdom, that all the peoples, nations, and languages should serve him: his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom that which shall not be destroyed.
- Daniel 8:16-18
- 16 ואשׁמע קול־אדם בין אולי ויקרא ויאמר גבריאל הבן להלז את־המראה׃ 17 ויבא אצל עמדי ובבאו נבעתי ואפלה על־פני ויאמר אלי הבן בן־אדם כי לעת־קץ החזון׃ 18 ובדברו עמי נרדמתי על־פני ארצה ויגע־בי ויעמידני על־עמדי׃
- 16 I heard a man's voice (קול–אדם) between the banks of the Ulai, which called, and said, "Gabriel, make this man to understand the vision." 17 So he came near where I stood; and when he came, I was frightened, and fell on my face: but he said to me, "Understand, son of man (בן–אדם : *); for the vision belongs to the time of the end." 18 Now as he was speaking with me, I fell into a deep sleep with my face toward the ground; but he touched me, and set me upright. ...
We can see that, within the context of these passages, the use of son of man is more consistent with the concept of self-reflection. It is arguable that in saying "there came with the clouds of the sky one like a son of man" the author was either describing one "like a human being" or "one like *." By extension, this may have later led to the idea of "the son of man," an eschatological Messianic figure, within Judaism.
New Testament
Synoptic Gospels
Due to the nature of the Synoptic Gospels and how their sources are intertwined, son of man sayings here are broken down into pericopes, comparing parallel stories between Mark, Matthew and Luke.Foxes have holes
Matthew 8:19-20 cf. Luke 9:58- Then a scribe came and said to Him, "Teacher, I will follow You wherever You go." Jesus said to him, "The foxes have holes, and the birds of the sky have nests, but the son of man has nowhere to lay his head."
The Foxes have Holes pericope represents a poem that probably existed first in oral tradition before being recorded in the hypothetical source document Q. Various reconstructions of this short piece in Aramaic, from the proper period, show possibility of puns and wordplay associated with this particular array of comparisons.
Lost sheep
Matthew 18:11- For the Son of man is come to save that which was lost.
In this verse, "son of man" is clearly used as an epithet for Jesus, within the common use of humble self-reference (see the Story of Haninah ben Dosa above) rather than referring to generic humanity. This verse appears in the KJV in the parable of the lost sheep (cf. Luke 15.3–7); however, it does not appear in the oldest existent manuscripts of the New Testament. Due to that and other reasons, scholars believe it is a later addition to the Gospel tradition and is not included in newer, more critical translations, such as the RSV, NIV or Scholars Version.
Lord of the sabbath
Mark 2:27-28 cf. Matthew 12:8, Luke 6:5- And he said unto them [the Pharisees, "The sabbath was made for man, and not man for the sabbath: so that the Son of man is lord even of the sabbath."
Christians commonly take the phrase "son of man" in this passage to refer to Jesus himself. Alternatively, the passage makes sense if the phrase is understood to mean "a man" or "humanity." Further of note is the sequence of "man" -> "son of man" that is a common literary device in semitic writing as demonstrated earlier in this article.
Request for a sign
Matthew 12:38-42- Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered, saying, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from You.” But He answered and said to them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, and no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. The men of Nineveh will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, because they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and indeed a greater than Jonah is here. The queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and indeed a greater than Solomon is here. (NKJV, emphasis added)
Christians generally interpret "Son of Man" in this passage to be a reference to Jesus, in which he predicts his resurrection and claims to be greater than both Jonah and Solomon.
John
John 1:49-51 (NKJV)- Nathanael answered and said to Him, “Rabbi, You are the Son of God! You are the King of Israel!” Jesus answered and said to him, “Because I said to you, ‘I saw you under the fig tree,’ do you believe? You will see greater things than these.” And He said to him, “Most assuredly, I say to you, hereafter* you shall see heaven open, and the angels of God ascending and descending upon the Son of Man.” (emphasis added)
This passage may be an allusion to Jacob's Ladder. In any case, the implication is that seeing the angels ascending and descending on the "son of man" would be a great wonder.
John 5:25-27 (NKJV)
- Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in Himself, so He has granted the Son to have life in Himself, and has given Him authority to execute judgment also, because He is the Son of Man (emphasis added).
In this passage, Jesus appears to use "Son of God" and "Son of Man" interchangably, both to refer specifically to himself.
Acts
Hebrews
Revelation
Theological interpretation
Christian interpretation
The phrase son of man took on Messianic significance within the Christian movement primarily due to the Jewish eschatology during the time of its early conception. Originating in the book of Daniel, in a vision, one like a son of man is described coming upon the clouds of the sky to unite the world.As a result, some Christians believe that in the body of the New Testament, son of man is used forty-three times as a distinctive title of Jesus within this Messianic context. Other Christians interpret it as Jesus showing humility, avoiding using titles like Messiah and Son of God. Still other Christians believe the title is meant to signify Jesus upholding his identification with his humanity and fellowship with mankind. In this last context it serves as putting humans and Jesus on the same level.
Jewish interpretation
- As generally interpreted by Jews, denotes mankind generally, with special reference to their weakness and frailty (Job 25:6; Psalms 8:4; 144:3; 146:3; Book of Isaiah 51:12, etc.).
- It is a title frequently given to the prophet Ezekiel, probably to remind him of his human weakness.
Additionally, the Biblical book of Daniel mentions the prophet's vision of the coming of one 'like a son of man'; possibly implying that this is not actually a man but a divine figure.
When interpreting the Bible, one cannot exclusively rely on English translations. Son of man in Job 25 is ben adam (), and "son of man" in Psalms 144 is ben enosh (). This phrase also appears in the non-canonical Book of Enoch.
Scholarly interpretation
Geza Vermes, professor emeritus of Jewish studies at Wolfson College, Oxford, has argued that "the son of man" in the Gospels is unrelated to these Hebrew Bible usages. He begins with the observation that there is no example of "the" son of man in Hebrew sources. He suggests that the term originates in Aramaic — bar nasha. Based on his study of Aramaic sources, he concludes that in these sources and in the Christian Bible, "son of man" is simply a synonym for man, and a substitute for the indefinite pronoun ("one"). Based on context, he claims that one should translate "bar nasha" as someone, anyone or I. He further argues that "son of man" is in no way a title.
Although the Aramaic "bar nasha" can be translated generically, as somebody or anyone, the expression may have been recognized as a title if it were used within a Hebrew sentence.
Bibliography
- Randall Buth, "A More Complete Semitic Background for bar-enasha 'Son of Man'" in Craig Evans and James Sanders, eds. The Function of Scripture in Early Jewish and Christian Tradition (JSNT Suppl 154) Sheffield Academic Press, 1998: 176-189.
- Hugh J. Schonfield, The Passover Plot: A New Interpretation of the Life and Death of Jesus. Harper Collins - UK, first published October 1965 (Hutchinson & Co.): Part Two, The Sources and Growth of the Legend, Chapter 3 "The Suffering Just One and the Son of Man"
- Maurice Casey. (1998). Aramaic Sources of Mark's Gospel. Cambridge University Press.
- Robert W. Funk et al.. (1997). The Five Gospels: What Did Jesus Really Say? HarperSanFrancisco.
See also
External links
- Jewish Encyclopedia: Son of Man
- Rene Magritte Painting, 1964
"Son of man"