35 Jesus taught in the temple, “How is it that the scribes say that the Christ is the son of David? 36 For David himself said in the Holy Spirit,

‘The Lord said to my Lord,

“Sit at my right hand,

until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet.”’

37 Therefore David himself calls him Lord, so how can he be his son?”

Mark 12:35-37 - World English Bible

Who will the Christ be? In the time of Jesus, many people asked about the identity of the Messiah, for they had an apocalyptic expectation his appearance was immanent. The scribes replied with the standard interpretation that the Chosen One would be a Solomon figure, the son of David. He represented the height of power and wealth for the kingdom of Israel; such a empire builder would return the nation to its former glory. Of course, he would be a descendant of the David, but the emphasis would be on his image and role, not only his lineage, per se.

Jesus rejected this line of logic with a quote from Psalm 110:1, the first verse from a royal hymn that could have been part of the coronation ceremony. The song began with a divine invitation for the new regent to sit as the "second in command," as the "prime minister" over the cosmos. This high honor implied a hierarchy of creation, where the enemies of the new Davidic king would be shamed and subjugated ("make you enemies your footstool"). Jesus used 110:1 in that sense, but reminded his audience who (they assumed) wrote the song. In other words, the hymnist David addressed his praise to someone greater than himself. The Lord simply asked the question, "How can someone lesser than David, his son, be recognized as greater than David?" This rhetorical question undercut the logic of a Solomon figure and allowed the possibility for a Christ from the back country of Galilee.

What image of the Christ do you have? How has it be challenged in the past? Has the test helped your faith to grow?