Matthew 22:44

Tuesday, 22 September 2026

‘The Lord said to my Lord,

“Sit at My right hand,

Till I make Your enemies Your footstool”’? Matthew 22:44

“He said, Lord, to the ‘Lord, Mine’,
‘You sit from ‘rights, Me’,
Until if I should put the ‘enemies, Yours’ – footstool, the ‘feet, Yours’.’” (CG)

In the previous verse, Jesus questioned how David, under the influence of the Spirit, called the Christ “Lord.” In other words, if the Christ is his descendant, how could he subordinate himself in such a manner? Understanding this, Jesus cites the Scripture where this is proven so. He goes to Psalm 110:1, beginning with, “He said, Lord, to the ‘Lord, Mine’.”

In the Greek, the same word, kurios, is used in both instances. The meaning of the word must be determined from the context. However, regardless of the context, Jesus calls this person “Lord.” He thus subordinates himself to this coming Person.

As for the context, it is found in the Hebrew –

“‘Oracle, Yehovah’ to my Lord.
You must sit to my right
Until I will make your hatings – footstool to your feet.” Psalm 110:1 (CG)

David identifies that Yehovah, the covenant God of Israel, spoke an oracle to his Lord. The word is adoni, my Lord. It thus indicates a person to whom he has subordinated himself. The question Jesus asks is how David could designate a person descending from him in this manner. And more, the psalm continues, saying, “‘You sit from ‘rights, Me’.’”

The right, meaning the position of the right hand, is the position of all power and authority. Yehovah has spoken through David that this Person, the Christ, would sit at the position of all power and authority of Yehovah. If this were a mere person, it would be unthinkable that he would be given all of God’s power. And yet, that is what is being stated. The words citing the psalm continue, saying, “Until if I should put the ‘enemies, Yours’ – footstool, the ‘feet, Yours’.”

The meaning is that the enemies of the Christ will be placed as a footstool for His feet. But if this Person is at the right hand of Yehovah, it means that He is the agent by which this is accomplished.

To understand this, one can go to the account of Joseph in Egypt, who was given the full authority of Pharaoh in order to effect the purposes of Pharaoh. This is true of Mordecai’s authority in Esther as well.

The Lord God, Yehovah Elohim, has stated that all authority in heaven and on earth would be granted to a descendant of David, of whom David acknowledges him as his Lord. This is what Jesus has presented to the Pharisees as a question that must be bconsidered in the light of the logical process discussed in the previous verse’s life application section.

Life application: Using the same logic as discussed in the previous verse, whether we believe in Jesus or not, and whether we accept the premise of Jesus’ full authority, we would have to conclude that the Bible clearly presents Jesus as having the full power and authority of Yehovah Elohim, the Lord God.

Scripture is given by God through man. If the New Testament is Scripture, which it is claimed to be so even within itself, then this is the obvious conclusion. Scripture says the Holy Spirit overshadowed Mary. Thus, Jesus would be the Son of the Most High, meaning the Son of God.

Despite being a Man, He is also God. Jesus fulfilled the law, as clearly portrayed in the gospels and as explained in the epistles. Jesus died in fulfillment of the law, not for His own sin, but for the sin of others. Jesus came out of the grave, prevailing over sin for us. But it says in Romans that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God. The meaning is “all men,” because all have sinned (Romans 5:12).

If this is true, and if the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23), then Jesus cannot merely be a human. If He were, He would have been born with Adam’s sin. The logical conclusion is that because His Father is God, and because God overshadowed Mary, the offspring – though being a human – is also God. Thus, He is exempted from the “all have sinned” as stated in Romans.

After Jesus’ resurrection, He said that all authority had been given to Him, just as promised by the words of David to the Christ. In Mark 16, it says that Jesus sat down at the right hand of God, just as promised in the words of David to Christ. This is confirmed in Acts and Hebrews. Paul speaks of it in his epistles.

In other words, even if you don’t believe that the Bible is the word of God, nor do you believe in Jesus or that He is God, if you fairly and properly evaluate the Bible, it is clear that this is what the Bible presents. This is where faith comes in. One must not only mentally acknowledge that this is what Scripture teaches, but he must have faith that it is so.

Lord God, we believe the Bible is Your word. We believe that Jesus is proclaimed to be the Messiah and God incarnate. We believe that faith in Him is sufficient to restore us to You. Thank You for the hope we possess. We will live in Your presence forever and ever because of what You have done in sending Jesus. Hallelujah and Amen.