Christ: Israel’s Divine Lord Incarnate

In this post I will be focusing on the witness of the Synoptic Gospels, particularly that of Luke, in order to show that Jesus is described as Lord in the sense of being YHWH God Almighty who humbled himself to become a human being. I will prove that when the word Lord (Gr. Kyrios) is used of Christ, it doesn’t only mean that he is the Master/Owner/Sovereign Ruler of believers and creation as well. Rather, this term is being employed to identify Jesus as the human incarnation/embodiment of YHWH Almighty, since Kyrios is the very word that the Greek versions of the Hebrew Bible use in place of, and as a synonym for, the divine name YHWH. The contexts will show that this is precisely how the inspired writers are using the expression, namely, as their way of associating Jesus with Israel’s God.      

First Example

The Gospels portray John the Baptist as the envoy whom the prophet Isaiah said would be sent ahead of YHWH God in order to prepare Israel for his visibly coming to them:

“Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, when Pontius Pilate was governor of Judea, and Herod was tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip was tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias was tetrarch of Abilene, during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of God came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. And he came into all the district around the Jordan, preaching a baptism of repentance for the forgiveness of sins; as it is written in the book of the words of Isaiah the prophet, ‘The voice of one crying in the wilderness, “Make ready the way of the Lord (Kyriou), Make His paths straight. Every ravine will be filled, And every mountain and hill will be brought low; The crooked will be straight, And the rough roads smooth. And all flesh will see the salvation of God.”’” Luke 3:1-6 – Cf. Matt. 3:1-6; Mark 1:1-6; John 1:23

Here is the prophecy in question:

“A voice is calling, ‘Prepare the way for Yahweh in the wilderness; Make smooth in the desert a highway for our God. Let every valley be lifted up, And every mountain and hill be made low; And let the rough ground become a plain, And the rugged terrain a broad valley; Then the glory of Yahweh will be revealed, And all flesh will see it together; For the mouth of Yahweh has spoken.’” Isaiah 40:3-5

What makes this interesting is that John claims to have been sent to prepare for the coming of Jesus Christ!

“Now while the people were in a state of expectation and all were reasoning in their hearts about John, as to whether he was the Christ, John answered, saying to them all, ‘As for me, I baptize you with water, but One is coming who is mightier than I, and I am not fit to untie the strap of His sandals; He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fork is in His hand to thoroughly clear His threshing floor and to gather the wheat into His barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.’” Luke 3:15-17 – Cf. Matt. 3:11-15; Mark 1:7-8; John 1:26-36; 3:22-31

“Then Paul said, ‘John baptized with the baptism of repentance, telling the people to believe in Him who was coming after him, that is, in Jesus.’” Acts 19:4

The Gospels are, therefore, describing Jesus as that very YHWH whom Isaiah announced would come to dwell among his people.

Second Example

Another way in which Jesus is described as YHWH in the flesh is by the doubling of the expression "Lord":

“Not everyone who says to Me, ‘Lord, Lord (Kyrie, Kyrie),’ will enter the kingdom of heaven, but he who does the will of My Father who is in heaven will enter. Many will say to Me on that day, ‘Lord, Lord (Kyrie, Kyrie), in Your name did we not prophesy, and in Your name cast out demons, and in Your name do many miracles?’ And then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness.’” Matthew 7:21-23

“Now why do you call Me, ‘Lord, Lord (Kyrie, Kyrie),’ and do not do what I say?” Luke 6:46

This exact phrase is used in the Septuagint to render the Hebrew terms Adonay YHWH or YHWH Adonay:

“And it happened when it had completed eating the vegetation of the land, that I said, ‘Lord Yahweh (Kyrie Kyrie), please pardon! How can Jacob rise up, For he is small?’” Amos 7:2

“But as for You, O Yahweh, O Lord, deal with me for Your name’s sake; Because Your lovingkindness is good, deliver me;” Psalm 109:21

“But thou, O Lord, Lord (Kyrie Kyrie), deal mercifully with me, for thy name’s sake: for thy mercy is good.” Psalm 108:21 LXX

“O Yahweh, O Lord, the strength of my salvation, You have covered my head in the day of battle.” Psalm 140:7

“O Lord God (Kyrie Kyrie), the strength of my salvation; thou hast screened my head in the day of battle.” Psalm 139:8 LXX

“For my eyes are toward You, O Yahweh, O Lord; In You I take refuge; do not pour out my soul to death.” Psalm 141:8  

“For mine eyes are to thee, O Lord God (Kyrie Kyrie): I have hoped in thee; take not away my life.” Psalm 140:8 LXX

Therefore, by describing himself as Kyrie, Kyrie, Jesus was claiming to be Adonay YHWH!

Third Example

In this next case, Jesus is seen doing the very miracles that the Hebrew Bible describes YHWH doing:

“And a centurion’s slave, who was highly regarded by him, was sick and about to die. Now when he heard about Jesus, he sent some Jewish elders asking Him to come and save the life of his slave. And when they came to Jesus, they were earnestly pleading with Him, saying, ‘He is worthy for You to grant this to him; for he loves our nation and it was he who built us our synagogue.’ Now Jesus was going on His way with them; and when He was not far from the house, the centurion sent friends, saying to Him, ‘Lord (Kyrie), do not trouble Yourself further, for I am not good enough for You to come under my roof. For this reason I did not even consider myself worthy to come to You, but just say the word, and my servant will be healed. For I also am a man placed under authority, with soldiers under me; and I say to this one, “Go!” and he goes, and to another, “Come!” and he comes, and to my slave, “Do this!” and he does it.’ Now when Jesus heard this, He marveled at him. And He turned to the crowd that was following Him and said, ‘I say to you, not even in Israel have I found such great faith.’ And when those who had been sent returned to the house, they found the slave in good health.

“And it happened that soon afterwards He went to a city called Nain, and His disciples were going along with Him, accompanied by a large crowd. Now as He approached the gate of the city, behold, a dead man was being carried out, the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a sizeable crowd from the city was with her. And when the Lord (ho Kyrios) saw her, He felt compassion for her and said to her, ‘Do not cry.’ And He came up and touched the coffin, and the bearers came to a halt. And He said, ‘Young man, I say to you, arise!’ And the dead man sat up and began to speak. And Jesus gave him back to his mother. And fear gripped them all, and they began glorifying God, saying, ‘A great prophet has arisen among us!” and, ‘God has visited His people!’ And this report concerning Him went out all over Judea and in all the surrounding district.

“And the disciples of John reported to him about all these things. Summoning two of his disciples, John sent them to the Lord (ton Kyrion), saying, ‘Are You the One who is to come, or should we look for someone else?’ When the men came to Him, they said, ‘John the Baptist has sent us to You, saying, “Are You the One who is to come, or should we look for someone else?”’ At that very time He cured many people of diseases and afflictions and evil spirits, and He granted sight to many who were blind. And He answered and said to them, ‘Go and report to John what you have seen and heard: the blind receive sight, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have the gospel preached to them. Blessed is he who does not take offense at Me.’” Luke 7:2-23 – Cf. Matt. 8:5-13; 11:1-6

The miracles that Jesus appealed to in order to prove to John’s disciples that he is the One who was to come are the very miraculous feats, which Isaiah announced God himself would do when he appears to his people!

“The wilderness and the desert will be delighted, And the Arabah will rejoice and flourish; Like the crocus It will flourish profusely And rejoice with rejoicing and shout of joy. The glory of Lebanon will be given to it, The majesty of Carmel and Sharon. They will see the glory of Yahweh, The majesty of our God. Strengthen limp hands, and give courage to the knees of the stumbling. Say to those with an anxious heart, ‘Be strong, fear not. Behold, your God will come with vengeance; The recompense of God will come, But He will save you.’ Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, And the ears of the deaf will be unstopped. Then the lame will leap like a deer, And the tongue of the mute will shout for joy. For waters will break forth in the wilderness And streams in the Arabah.” Isaiah 35:1-6

Hence, by doing these same signs and wonders, Jesus was essentially telling John that he is in fact that very YHWH God whom the Baptist had been sent ahead of, in order to prepare Israel for his coming.

Fourth Example

In the following example, Jesus is not only depicted as again performing the works that only YHWH does, but he even receives the same reaction that YHWH does when he reveals himself to his servants:  

“Now it happened that while the crowd was pressing around Him and listening to the word of God, He was standing at the edge of the lake of Gennesaret; and He saw two boats lying at the edge of the lake, and the fishermen, having gotten out of them, were washing their nets. And He got into one of the boats, which was Simon’s, and asked him to put out a little way from the land. And He sat down and began teaching the crowds from the boat. And when He had finished speaking, He said to Simon, ‘Put out into the deep water and let down your nets for a catch.’ Simon answered and said, ‘Master, we labored all night and caught nothing, but at Your word, I will let down the nets.’ And when they had done this, they enclosed a great quantity of fish. And their nets began to break; so they signaled to their partners in the other boat for them to come and help them. And they came and filled both of the boats, so that they began to sink. But when Simon Peter saw this, he fell down at Jesus’ knees, saying, ‘Go away from me Lord (Kyrie), for I am a sinful man!^’ For amazement had seized him and all his companions because of the catch of fish which they had taken, and James and John, sons of Zebedee, who were partners with Simon, were also likewise amazed. And Jesus said to Simon, ‘Do not fear, from now on you will be catching men.’ And when they had brought their boats to land, they left everything and followed Him.

“And it happened that while He was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man covered with leprosy; and when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged Him, saying, ‘Lord (Kyrie), if You are willing, You can make me clean.’ And He stretched out His hand and touched him, saying, ‘I am willing; be cleansed.’ And immediately the leprosy left him. And He directed him to tell no one, ‘But go and show yourself to the priest and make an offering for your cleansing, just as Moses commanded, as a testimony to them.’ But the news about Him was spreading even farther, and large crowds were gathering to hear Him and to be healed of their sicknesses. But He Himself would often slip away to the desolate regions and pray.

“And it happened that one day He was teaching; and there were some Pharisees and teachers of the law sitting there, who had come from every village of Galilee and Judea and from Jerusalem, and the power of the Lord (Kyriou) was present for Him to perform healing. And behold, some men were carrying on a stretcher a man who was paralyzed; and they were trying to bring him in and to set him down before Him. But not finding any way to bring him in because of the crowd, they went up on the roof and let him down through the tiles with his stretcher, into the middle of the crowd, in front of Jesus. And seeing their faith, He said, ‘Friend, your sins are forgiven you.’ The scribes and the Pharisees began to reason, saying, ‘Who is this who speaks blasphemies? Who can forgive sins, but God alone?’ But Jesus, knowing their reasonings, answered and said to them, “Why are you reasoning in your hearts? Which is easier, to say, ‘Your sins have been forgiven you,’ or to say, “Get up and walk”? But, so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins,’—He said to the paralytic—‘I say to you, get up, and, picking up your stretcher, go home.’ And immediately he rose up before them, and picked up what he had been lying on, and went home glorifying God. And astonishment seized them all and they began glorifying God; and they were filled with fear, saying, ‘We have seen remarkable things today.’” Luke 5:1-26

Peter’s reaction to Jesus is exactly the same as that of Isaiah when the latter saw YHWH visibly seated on his heavenly throne:

“In the year of King Uzziah’s death I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, with the train of His robe filling the temple. Seraphim stood above Him, each having six wings: with two he covered his face, and with two he covered his feet, and with two he flew. And one called out to another and said, “Holy, Holy, Holy, is Yahweh of hosts; The whole earth is full of His glory.’ And the foundations of the thresholds shook at the voice of him who called out, while the house of God was filling with smoke. Then I said, ‘Woe is me, for I am ruined! For I am a man of unclean lips, And I live among a people of unclean lips; For my eyes have seen the King, Yahweh of hosts.’

“Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a burning coal in his hand, which he had taken from the altar with tongs. And he touched my mouth with it and said, ‘Behold, this has touched your lips; and your iniquity is taken away, and your sin is atoned for.’ Then I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, ‘Whom shall I send, and who will go for Us?’ Then I said, ‘Here am I. Send me!’” Isaiah 6:1-8

Christ further does virtually everything that the Hebrew Bible ascribes to YHWH, such as forgiving sins, healing diseases and knowing the hearts of men:

“then listen in heaven Your dwelling place, and forgive and act and give to each according to all his ways, whose heart You know, for You alone know the hearts of all the sons of men,” 1 Kings 8:39

“Would not God find this out? For He knows the secrets of the heart.” Psalm 44:21

“Bless Yahweh, O my soul, And forget none of His benefits; Who pardons all your iniquities, Who heals all your diseases;” Psalm 103:2-3  

In fact, there isn’t a single recorded instance of any one healing leprosy, not even in the case of Naaman and Elisha since in that instance Elisha never came out to heal Naaman. Rather, Elisha told the Syrian general to go and dip himself seven times in the river Jordan (cf. 1 Kings 5). In the case of Christ, however, the man was personally cleansed of his leprosy by Jesus physically touching him.

Nor is this the only place where Jesus is said to forgive sins committed against God:

“Then He said to her, ‘Your sins have been forgiven.’ And those who were reclining at the table with Him began to say to themselves, ‘Who is this man who even forgives sins?’ And He said to the woman, ‘Your faith has saved you; go in peace.’” Luke 7:49-50

Just as astonishing is Jesus’ ability to enable others to perform miracles in his name, by his authority:

“Now after this the Lord (ho Kyrios) appointed seventy others, and sent them in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come. And He was saying to them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord (tou Kyriou) of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest. Go! Behold, I send you out as lambs in the midst of wolves. Carry no money belt, no bag, no sandals, and greet no one on the way. Whatever house you enter, first say, “Peace be to this house.” And if a man of peace is there, your peace will rest on him, but if not, it will return to you. Stay in that house, eating and drinking what they give you; for the laborer is worthy of his wages. Do not keep moving from house to house. And whatever city you enter and they receive you, eat what is set before you; and heal those in it who are sick, and say to them, “The kingdom of God has come near to you.”’…

“Now the seventy returned with joy, saying, ‘Lord (Kyrie), even the demons are subject to us in Your name.’ And He said to them, ‘I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning. Behold, I have given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. Nevertheless do not rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are recorded in heaven.’” Luke 10:1-9, 17-20

“And John answered and said, ‘Master, we saw someone casting out demons in Your name, and we tried to hinder him because he does not follow along with us.’ But Jesus said to him, “Do not hinder him, for he who is not against you is for you.’” Luke 9:49-50

This shows that when Luke stated that the power of the Lord was present with Christ to do miracles, he was describing Jesus as that very Lord, since the power he had was his very own that was intrinsic to him. This is the same divine power that Christ shares in common with the both the Father and the Holy Spirit.

These few examples make it abundantly clear that Luke (and by extension the other Gospels) portray Jesus as Lord in the sense of his being God who became Man, being the unique, divine Son of God who is one with the Father and Spirit in essence, power and glory.

Further Reading

JESUS: THE ONE AND ONLY ADONAY YHWH (https://www.samshmnthelogy.net/post/jesus-the-one-and-only-adonay-yhwh)

APOCRYPHA & CHRIST’S DEITY (https://www.samshmnthelogy.net/post/apocrypha-christ-s-deity)