Grafted-In Ministries

By:Skip Moen 

The Lord says to my Lord:
 “Sit at My right hand
 until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet.” Psalm 110:1 NASB

Lord/Lord – Sometimes reading a verse in English translation does nothing but confuse the real meaning.  Such is the case here.  Furthermore, since Yeshua quotes this verse in Psalm 110 in a discussion of the true status of the Messiah (cf. Matthew 22:44), we must be very careful to read it as it is written in the original, not as it ends up in translation.

Let’s start by getting the proper Hebrew words. The first occurrence of our translation “Lord” is Elohim’s proper name, Yehovah. The Hebrew text is neum Yehovah (“announces Yehovah”). This is followed by la-‘doni, unfortunately also translated “to my Lord.” Trinitarian exponents conclude that since adonai and Yehovah are both designations of Elohim, this conversation must mean that there are at least two divine beings in the Godhead. Patrick Navas quotes William Varner: “The psalmist David, in verse one, records a conversation between two members of the Godhead . . . A literal translation of the first phrase is: ‘Yehovah said to my Adonai . . .’ Yehovah . . . and Adonai are two names for Elohim in the Old Testament. The only adequate explanation for this conversation between two persons with Divine names is that there must be a plurality of personalities within the Godhead.”[1]

In a careful analysis of the Masoretic pointing of this text, Navas demonstrates that there is a distinction between adoni and adonai. The difference is how the same consonants are pointed (indicating vowels and syllabication), but this tiny difference makes a huge difference in the meanings of the words. Adonai is used as a title (not a name) of Elohim the Father (Yehovah). Adoni (the same consonants but different pointing) is used to describe someone in a superior position like a king or a master. For example, in Genesis 24:12 Abraham’s servant uses the term adoni to describe Abraham as his lord. In this psalm, the second occurrence of the translated word “lord” is not adonai.  It is adoni. The meaning is not, therefore, a second reference to a divine name. It is a statement made by David the king that there is someone of greater authority over him. In other words, the verse should be understood as follows: Yehovah announces to my (David’s) master: “Sit at my right hand . . .” There is no indication in the text itself that this conversation occurs between two divine persons.

Anthony Buzzard comments: “It is amazing that a number of commentaries wrongly assert that the second lord is adonai. . . . Unfortunately, this [mistranslation] suggests that the Messiah is Elohim Himself. In fact the Hebrew for ‘my lord’ is not adonai but adoni, which is never used of Elohim but often of the king of Israel and other human superiors.”[2]

The Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament confirms Buzzard’s comment: “No doubt exists about the meaning of this word. The Ugaritic ʾadn means ‘lord’ or ‘father’ and the Akkadian adannu carries a similar meaning, ‘mighty.’ In the simple unsuffixed form or when pointed ʾădōnî or ʾădōna(y), for the first common singular suffix or with other pronominal suffixes. ʾādôn refers to men.”[3]

The distinction from adonai is also quite clear. “When ʾādôn appears in the special plural form, with a first common singular pronominal suffix ( o;ădōnā[y]), it always refers to Elohim. It appears in this form more than three hundred times,. . .”[4]

Time to reconsider. It makes perfect sense that David recognizes the Messiah as his lord without designating the Messiah as Elohim Himself. It makes even more sense that Yeshua uses this passage to declare the superiority of the Messiah over David as king. But there is nothing in the text itself that requires a Trinity in order to understand what is written. In fact, mistaking adoni for adonai only demonstrates how powerful the Trinitarian dogma really is. You may need to check the marginal notes in your Bible. See how your translators explain this passage. Then ask yourself what Yeshua’s comments would mean to orthodox Jews in the first century.

[1]William Varner, The Messiah, Revealed, Rejected, Received, p. 68 as cited in Patrick Navas, Divine Truth or Human Tradition, pp. 137-138.

[2]Buzzard and Hunting, The Doctrine of the Trinity: Christianity’s Self-Inflicted Wound, cited in Navas, pp. 141-142.

[3] Alden, R. (1999). 27 אדן. In R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer, Jr. & B. K. Waltke (Eds.), Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament (R. L. Harris, G. L. Archer, Jr. & B. K. Waltke, Ed.) (electronic ed.) (12). Chicago: Moody Press.

[4] Ibid.