Bible Strands
Matthew 22:43
Jesus said to them, “How then does David in the Spirit call Him ‘Lord’? For he says:
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Jesus speaks to the Pharisees immediately after they answer that the Messiah is David’s son in Matthew 22:42. He interrupts their lineage assumption with a rhetorical question before quoting Psalm 110 in Matthew 22:44.
The words — The phrase ἐν πνεύματι (en pneumati) literally means “in spirit,” denoting the divine source of David’s utterance. The verb καλεῖ (kalei) translates as “does call,” stressing the active, authoritative naming of the Messiah.
The thread — Spirit-driven prophecy appears in 2 Samuel 23:2, where David attributes his words to the Spirit of the Lord. The identical quotation and Spirit-inspired declaration are preserved in Mark 12:36, while the phrase ἐν πνεύματι parallels the visionary state described in Revelation 4:2.
Why it lands — The text establishes that the Messiah, though biologically David’s descendant, holds a title that demands David’s submission. It requires readers to hold both David’s sonship and David’s Lordship as simultaneous, non-contradictory facts.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Greek words
King James Version
He saith unto them, How then doth David in spirit call him Lord, saying,
Cross-references
- 2 Samuel 23:2 The Spirit of the LORD spoke through me; His word was on my tongue.
- Revelation 4:2 At once I was in the Spirit, and I saw a throne standing in heaven, with someone seated on it.
- Mark 12:36 Speaking by the Holy Spirit, David himself declared: ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at My right hand until I put Your enemies under Your feet.”’
- Hebrews 3:7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says: “Today, if you hear His voice,
- Luke 2:26 The Holy Spirit had revealed to him that he would not see death before he had seen the Lord’s Christ.
- Acts 1:16 “Brothers, the Scripture had to be fulfilled that the Holy Spirit foretold through the mouth of David concerning Judas, who became a guide for those who arrested Jesus.
- Acts 2:30 But he was a prophet and knew that God had promised him on oath that He would place one of his descendants on his throne.
- 2 Peter 1:21 For no such prophecy was ever brought forth by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
- Revelation 1:10 On the Lord’s day I was in the Spirit, and I heard behind me a loud voice like a trumpet,