The Greek phrase, υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου (huios tou anthrōpos) has been translated to "son of man" in some Biblical translations. However, this phrase has no valid meaning. How could the reference, "son of man" be distinguished? It is meaningless, because every male is a son of a man.
Rather, this term has spiritual significance, relating to a spiritual service being performed on behalf of the Supreme Being.
The phrase is made up of three words:
υἱός (huios): according to the lexicon, can only indicate a relationship of offspring in the context of a physical family "in a restricted sense." Otherwise it can refer to a subject or a follower - especially in this context. As stated in Strong's lexicon, "one who depends on another or is his follower." As this relates to spiritual and devotional topics, the appropriate translation would thus be "devotee" or "servant."
τοῦ means "of" or "by."
ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos): According to the Greek lexicon this can mean "a human being, whether male or female" or "generically, to include all human individuals." In other words, it can also mean "the people," "mankind," or "humanity."
Thus, within the context of the self-reference of υἱὸς τοῦ [of] ἀνθρώπου, the more appropriate translation would be:
Accordingly, Jesus is not the only person who was given this reference in the Bible. We can also see this humble self-identification in David's referral to himself:
Rather, this term has spiritual significance, relating to a spiritual service being performed on behalf of the Supreme Being.
The phrase is made up of three words:
υἱός (huios): according to the lexicon, can only indicate a relationship of offspring in the context of a physical family "in a restricted sense." Otherwise it can refer to a subject or a follower - especially in this context. As stated in Strong's lexicon, "one who depends on another or is his follower." As this relates to spiritual and devotional topics, the appropriate translation would thus be "devotee" or "servant."
τοῦ means "of" or "by."
ἄνθρωπος (anthrōpos): According to the Greek lexicon this can mean "a human being, whether male or female" or "generically, to include all human individuals." In other words, it can also mean "the people," "mankind," or "humanity."
Thus, within the context of the self-reference of υἱὸς τοῦ [of] ἀνθρώπου, the more appropriate translation would be:
"Servant of Humanity"Such deference to the service of humanity by one who is dedicated to pleasing the Supreme Being is to be providing a service to all of human-kind by enlightening people of their relationship with God. This is quite certainly Jesus' role - and he admitted such among numerous verses. Alternatively, this could also be translated to "Servant of the People."
Accordingly, Jesus is not the only person who was given this reference in the Bible. We can also see this humble self-identification in David's referral to himself:
"O Lord, what is man that you care for him, the Son of Man [Servant of Humanity] that you think of him?" (Psalm 144:3)This translation as "servant of humanity" is consistent when applied to other mistranslations of "son of man" throughout the Bible. In addition to David's admission, we also find the title given to Daniel, Job and Ezekiel:
"...how much less man, who is but a maggot— a son of man [servant of humanity], who is only a worm!" [Job, humbly referring to himself] (Job 25:5-6)
"He said to me, "son of man [servant of humanity], stand up on your feet and I will speak to you." " [Ezekiel referring to God calling upon him] (Ezekiel 2:1-3)
"He said: "son of man [servant of humanity], I am sending you to the Israelites, to a rebellious nation that has rebelled against Me; they and their fathers have been in revolt against Me to this very day."(Ezekiel 2:2-4)
"He then said to me: "Son of man [servant of humanity], go now to the house of Israel and speak My words to them."(Ezekiel 3:3-5)(God refers to Ezekiel as the "son of man" [servant of humanity] over 60 times)
"As he came near the place where I was standing, I was terrified and fell prostrate. "Son of man [servant of humanity]," he said to me, "understand that the vision concerns the time of the end." " (Daniel 8:16-18)Thus, Jesus and other prophets such as David, Daniel, Job and Ezekiel could be referred to “servants of humanity” because they were devoted to helping others perfect their spiritual relationship with the Supreme Being. And this is why God referred to Ezekiel as a "servant of humanity."
