3. Christ. — This name (Xpiaros, 'anointed,' the exact equivalent in Greek of the word ' Messiah ' r;*?=) holds a very important place among the titles of our Lord.
The word is variously applied in the OT. It is used of the high priest, who is called ' the anointed priest ' {i, hfi\,; o xp'^'^o; [""P^C ["2"]), or more fully, i hpi^; i xhcto; o TiTihuauAwK , ' the anointed priest who has been consecrated,' the participle TiTO.uuuAiK, ' consecrated,' being added to the translation apparently in order to call attention to the meaning of the anointing (Lv 43, cf. 622). Its use as a designation of kings is familiar, as in the title ' the Lord's anointed ' (o x:/"^'^« ToZ Ki^<«i- rm\ IjVC]) applied to Saul (2 S 1" etc.), to David (2 S 1921, Ps 89:S3. 51 13-210. 17), to CjTus, in connexion with his mission as the deliverer of Gods people (Is 45i). It is applied even to the people of Israel as a nation consecrated to God (Ps 10515 1 ch 1622, Hab 313). it occurs as a title of the expected Messiah in Ps 22 and Dn 9^5. in the latter book it occurs with special reference to royal authority, as a result of which it came to be regularly used as the recognized title of Israel's promised deliverer ; cf. its use in the Book of Enoch (48i'5 52^), an apocalj-ptic work which strongly influenced the theologj- of the Hebrews.
The word is used in the Gospels, but very rarely, as a proper name, in the first chapters of St. Matthew and St. Mark, where the subject of the narrative is mentioned in such expressions as ' Jesus Christ, son of David, son of Abraham ' (Mt F), 'Jesus Christ' (Mk F, where woO tov deoO is omitted by the best authorities), or where Jesus of Xazareth is distinguished from others who bore the same name, as in the phrase ' Jesus who is called Christ ' (Mt 27i'- ~ cf. Mt F«). It appears as a projjer name in the passage in which St. Matthew, commenting upon the genealogy of the famUy of Abraham, notes that ' from the carrying away to Babylon unto the Christ ' there were fourteen generations (Mt F") ; and prob- ably also in the one passage in which the word occurs without the article (Mk 9^^), where Jesus uses the words 'because ye belong to Christ.' With these exceptions the name has in the Gospels some special reference to our Lord's offices and claims, or to the Messianic expectations of the Jews. Thus it is said of Simeon (Lk 2-'*) that it was revealed to him that he should not see death till he had seen ' the Lord's Christ ' (t6v xpi-<^'^°^ Kvpiov — the familiar LXX translation of .lii: -'s-p ' the Lords anointed,' the title of all Hebrew kings), and the angel announced to the shepherds the birth of a Saviour ' who is Christ the Lord ' (Lk 2"). We learn from St. Matthew (2-) that the Magi inquired in Jerusalem, 'Where is he
220 NAMES AXD TITLES OF CHKIST
NAMES AND TITLES OF CHRIST
that is born King of the Jews? ' Herod, who took this as referring to the current form of the Mes- sianic Iiope, and regarded the ^lessiah concerning Avhoni the inquiry was made as a possible rival to himself, called the chief priests and scribes, and put tlie question of the Magi in another form, demanding ' whei'e the Christ should be born.' Herod and the Jewish rulers evidently considered the title ' Christ ' as sj'nonymous witli that of ' King of the Je^\■s,' in accordance with the general expectation current at the time. To them the Messiah was a king who should derive his royal authority from his Davidic descent and reign as a temporal prince. The Jews, in fact, influenced lai'gely by their apocalyptic literature, had so narrowed their conceptions of the meaning of the title '^Messiah' as to make it signif; little more than a king by Divine right, and, leaving out of account all other elements of the Messianic promise, to associate it with thoughts of a kingdom which was of this world. Our Lord, probably for this reason, refrained from claiming the title for Himself, and discouraged its use by otliers. He forbade the demons whom He cast out of those possessed to confess that He Avas Christ (Lk 4'*\ cf. Mk r-5- s-* etc.). ^A'hen Peter, in reply to the direct question, ' Who saj- ye that 1 am ? confessed His Messiahship, Jesus strictlj' commanded the disciples to tell no man that He was the Christ (Mt 16-"). On the other hand. He revealed Him- self as the Christ to the woman of Samaria (Jn 425. 2Cj jjg answered the doubting message of John, ' Art tliou he that should come, or do we look for anotlier ? ' by pointing in proof of His Messianic claims to His teaching and His works of benehcence (Mt IP-s li Lk T^^--^*). Even at the beginning of His ministry He accepted the con- fession of the lirst disciples when tiiey acknow- ledged Him to be the Messiah (Jn 1""-), as He afterwards accepted the confession of Peter (Mt IG'") ; and when the high priest adjured Him to declare whetiier He was the Christ, He answered in the affirmative (Mt 26''3 1| Mk 14" :i Lk 22''') ; and before His final rejection, when the Jews challenged Him, ' How long dost tliou make us to doubt ? H thou be the Clirist, tell us plainly,' He replied that He had already told them, and that His claim was confirmed by the works which He did in the Father's name (Jn lO-'^- -''). The murmuring of the people when He spoke of the lifting up of the Son of Man, showed that by that time the impres- sion produced by His ministry was that He did claim to be the Christ. Jesus had just said, ' I, if I be lifted up from tlie earth, will draw all men unto me,' to which the people replied, ' We have heard out of the law that Christ abideth for ever : and how sayest thou, The Son of Man shall be lifted up?' (Jn YB-«-); and again St. John tells us, in connexion with the incident of the cure of the man who had been born blind, that the Jews had agreed that if any man should confess that Jesus was the Christ, he should be put out of the synajfogue (Jn 922). .y o =