Son of Man
"Son of Man" is how Jesus frequently referred to himself, but something is lost in the translation. The most precise English rendition of the Greek ("ὁ υἱὸς τοὺ ἀνθρώπου") would be (literally) "the Son, a human being" or (including the obvious implication) "the Son of God, His human being." Other possible translations would be "God as a man," "Son of Man from God," "God became man," "God descended as man," or "Christ, Son of God." John 9:35 does not make sense as merely "Do you believe in the Son of Man?" A fuller translation would be, "Do you believe in the Son of God, His human being?"
The term highlights Jesus's humanity and how He came to serve and save mankind, but its translation should also emphasize that Jesus was God and not merely man. The term also illustrates how the best of the public comes from ordinary people rather than the elite.
Logical Basis
The logic of Christianity is that good and insights do not arise from the self-centered elite, but from the opposite. "Man" is fallen and cannot redeem himself. Instead, an unexpected "Son of Man" brings salvation in a way that liberals could never anticipate and prevent.
"Son of Adam"
Though the Greek version is clear, the Hebrew term for "Son of Man" could be a mistranslation of "Son of Adam," which emphasized how Jesus was a son (male descendant) of Adam. This meaning is suggested by Proverbs 8:31, where "sons of Adam" was translated by the KJV as "sons of men."
This possible mistranslation in English Bibles then permitted Darwin to deny, with his theory of evolution, that Adam existed as described in the Bible. Had Jesus been known in the English-speaking world as the "Son of Adam," the theory of evolution would have been a non-starter.
Fulfillment of a Prophecy
It is possible that its first use in reference to Jesus Christ is in the Book of Daniel, 7:13, in a prophecy of the Messiah:
| “ | I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven, and came to the Ancient of days, and they brought him near before him. | ” |
