Jesus - the Son of God ? : The Meaning of " Son of God"

Saturday, January 25, 2014
An examination of the notion 
that Jesus is the Son of God 
from Christian sources  
The meaning of the phrase:
"Son of God " 
in the Old and New Testaments

"One of the most striking differences between 
a cat and a lie is the cat has nine lives . "
                       
 - Mark Twain, Pudd'nhead Wilson 's Calendar

Son of God, Son of David , or the son of man ? Jesus identifies himself as "son of David" fourteen times in the New Testament , beginning with the first verse (Matthew 1:01 ) . The Gospel of Luke documents forty-one generations between Jesus and David , while Matthew lists twenty . Jesus, a distant descendant , can not carry the "son of David " title metaphorically. But how should we understand the title " son of God? "
 

The " trilemma " , a joint proposal by the Christian missionaries , says that "Jesus was a lunatic , a liar , or the Son of God, as he claimed to be. " For the sake of argument , let us agree that Jesus was not or a fool or a liar. Suppose also that was exactly what it says . But what , exactly , what it was? Jesus called himself "Son of Man " often , always , perhaps even emphatically, but where is he himself called "Son of God? "
 

Let's go back . What does " Son of God " means, in the first place? No legitimate Christian sect suggests that God took a wife and had a child , and certainly none conceive that God had a son of a human mother outside marriage. Moreover, to suggest that God physically coupled with an element of creation is going beyond the boundaries of religion to fall off the cliff of blasphemy tolerance , chasing the mythology of the Greeks.
 

No rational explanation available on the principles of Christian doctrine , the only way to close the claim remains a mystery doctrinal . This is where the Muslim remembers the question in the Qur'an:
" ... How are you going to have a son when He has no consort ? ... " (Quran 6:101 )
... While others shouted : " God can do anything! " Islamic position , however , is that God does not do inappropriate things , only divine things. In Islamic perspective, the nature of God is responsible for their welfare and consistent with His Majesty.
 

Again, what does " Son of God" mean? And if Jesus Christ has exclusive rights to the word , why the registration of the Bible: " ... for I ( God) am a father to Israel, and Ephraim (ie Israel) is my first born" (Jeremiah 31 9) , and " ... Israel is my son, my firstborn" (Exodus 4:22) ? Taken in the context of Romans 8:14 , which says, "For all who are led by the Spirit of God are sons of God" , many researchers conclude that " Son of God" is metaphorical and, christos not imply exclusivity. After all, the Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion confirms that in Jewish idiom "Son of God " is clearly metaphorical. Quoting : "Son of God , a term sometimes found in Jewish literature , biblical and post- biblical , but nowhere implying physical descent of divinity. " [Werblowsky, R. J. Zwi and Geoffrey Wigoder. p. 653] Comments Hasting Bible Dictionary:
 

In Semitic usage " sonship " is a rather vague term used to refer to the moral relationship physical or metaphysical. Therefore, the "son of Belial " (Jg 19:22 etc. ) are bad, not descendants of Belial , and in the NT the "sons of the bridal chamber " are invited to a wedding. Thus, a "son of God " is a man or even a people who reflect God's character . is little evidence that the title was used in Jewish circles of the Messiah, and a pedigree that involves more than one legal relationship would be contrary to Jewish monotheism . [Hastings, James. Dictionary of The Bible. p. 143]
 

And in any case, the list of candidates for the "son of God " begins with Adam, Luke 3:38 : . " ... Adam, which was the son of God"
Those who refutes citing Matthew 3:17 ( " And a voice from heaven said," This is my beloved Son , in whom I have pleased ") have overlooked the fact that the Bible describes many people , including Israel and Adam , as "son of God . " As II Samuel 7:13-14 and I Chronicles 10:10 pm read : " He ( Solomon ) shall build an house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom forever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son . "
 

Entire nations are called child or children of God. Examples:
Genesis 6:2, " That son of God saw the daughters of men ... "
Genesis 6:04 " There were giants in the earth in those days , and also afterward, when the son of God with the daughters of men arrived ... "
Deuteronomy 14:01: " Ye are the children of the Lord your God. "
Job 1:6 , " There was a day when the Son of God came to present themselves before the Lord ..."
Job 2:01 : "Again there was one day when the Son of God came to present themselves before the Lord ..."
Job 38:7 , "When all the stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? "
 

Philippians 2:15, " That ye may be blameless and innocent, children of God without fault in a crooked and perverse generation ... "
1 John 3:1-2 : "See what love the Father has given us, that we should be called children of God ... Beloved, now we are children of God ..."
In Matthew 5:09 , Jesus says: "Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God. " Later , in Matthew 5:45 , Jesus asks his disciples to realize the noble attributes , " you are the son your father in heaven. "
Not exclusively his Father, but their Father ...

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