Why did Jesus use the name 'Son of man?'

This title 'the Son of man' may not be very relevant in our days. In the first-century Jewish world, however, it carried enormous weight, because the question of the Messiah's nature was very much alive. Would the Liberator be a heavenly being, a human being, or both at once? Jesus Himself questioned the teachers of the day with the same.

Going back to Israel's history, God told Moses to inform the people that a Prophet was coming. 'I will raise up for them a prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites, and I will put my words in his mouth. He will tell them everything I command him. I myself will call to account anyone who does not listen to my words that the prophet speaks in my name.' (Deuteronomy 18:18-19). When John the Baptist came, the religious leaders asked directly whether he was that Prophet (John 1:21). A Leader, then, was expected to be very much human. Carrying divine authority, and yet being a Prophet.

Some time later, the image came to reflect more than this. Consider the majestic figure who appeared to Joshua as he prepared to lead Israel into the promised land (Joshua 5:13-15). 'Now when Joshua was near Jericho, he looked up and saw a man standing in front of him with a drawn sword in his hand. Joshua went up to him and asked, “Are you for us or for our enemies?” “Neither,” he replied, “but as commander of the army of the Lord I have now come.” Then Joshua fell facedown to the ground in reverence, and asked him, “What message does my Lord have for his servant?” The commander of the Lord’s army replied, “Take off your sandals, for the place where you are standing is holy.” And Joshua did so.' Joshua, the leader of the people of God, was himself to be led by the Commander of the army of the Lord — and he worshipped Him. A Leader could very well be a divine being.

The most common name for the Liberator was "the Son of David" — evidently a human being, born of a woman, descendant of King David. Yet according to Psalm 2:7, this same figure would also be the Son of God. This dual identity — human and divine — is precisely the tension Jesus exploited when He put a question to the Pharisees (Matthew 22:41-46), drawing on Psalm 110:1:

While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, "What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?" "The son of David," they replied. He said to them, "How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him 'Lord'? For he says, 'The Lord said to my Lord: "Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet."' If then David calls him 'Lord,' how can he be his son?" No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.

Jesus accepted the titles 'Son of God' and 'Son of David.' But the title He chose for Himself was 'the Son of man.' The key is found in Daniel 7, where the prophet is given a vision of heavenly judgment that would have been unmistakable to any Jewish listener:

In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all nations and peoples of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.

By this single designation, Son of man, Jesus conveyed all three titles at once: Son of God — the only One who could approach the Father on our behalf; Son of David — the King of God's people; and Son of man — fully representing the human race at the throne of mercy. By choosing this title, Jesus was not avoiding the question of His identity. He was answering it. Completely.

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