Ⅲ
In Revelation 22:16 the Lord Jesus said, "I am the Root and the Offspring of David":
A
In His divinity, Christ is the Root, the source, of David; in His humanity, Christ is the Offspring, the issue, of David.
B
Christ is the Lord as the Root of David, and He is also the son, the shoot, of David as the Offspring of David; just as the Offspring of David denotes that the Lord is man and that He came out of David, so also the Root of David denotes that He is God and that David came out of Him.
C
In Revelation 22:16 Christ Himself acknowledged that He is man as well as God, that He has both the human nature and the divine nature.
Ⅳ
In Acts 13 Paul said that from David's seed "God, according to promise, brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus" (v. 23), and that "God has fully fulfilled this promise…in raising up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, 'You are My Son; this day have I begotten You'" (v. 33):
A
In verses 32 and 33 we see that Christ as the Firstborn of God was promised to the fathers, and God fulfilled this promise by raising up Jesus.
B
Resurrection was a birth to the man Jesus:
１
He was begotten by God in His resurrection to be the firstborn Son of God among many brothers—Rom. 8:29.
２
He was the only begotten Son of God from eternity—John 1:18; 3:16.
３
After His incarnation, through resurrection He was begotten by God in His humanity to be God's firstborn Son—Heb. 1:6.
C
Paul was able to see the Lord's resurrection in Psalm 2:7: "You are My Son; / Today I have begotten You":
１
Paul applied the word today to the day of the Lord's resurrection.
２
This means that Christ's resurrection was His birth as the firstborn Son of God.
３
Jesus, the Son of Man, was born to be the Son of God through being raised up from the dead; therefore, God's raising up Jesus from the dead was His begetting of Him to be His firstborn Son—Acts 13:33.
Morning Nourishment
Rev. 22:16 I Jesus…am the Root and the Offspring of David, the bright morning star.Acts 13:23 From [David’s] seed, God, according to promise, brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus.
33 …God has fully fulfilled this promise to us their children in raising up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, “You are My Son; this day have I begotten You.”
In His divinity, Christ is the Root, the source, of David; in His humanity, Christ is the Offspring, the issue, of David. Hence, He is the Lord as the Root of David, and He is also the son, the shoot, of David as the Offspring of David (Matt. 22:42-45; Rom. 1:3; Jer. 23:5). Just as the Offspring of David denotes that the Lord is man and that He came out of David, so also the Root of David denotes that He is God and that David came out of Him. This reveals the two natures of the Lord Jesus. Therefore, in Revelation 22:16 Christ Himself acknowledged that He is man as well as God. (The Conclusion of the New Testament, p. 4447)
Today’s Reading
[In Acts 13 after] pointing out that the resurrected Christ was seen “by those who had come up with Him from Galilee to Jerusalem, who are now His witnesses to the people” (v. 31), Paul went on to say, “We announce to you the gospel of the promise made to the fathers, that God has fully fulfilled this promise to us their children in raising up Jesus, as it is also written in the second Psalm, ’‘You are My Son; this day have I begotten You.’” Resurrection was a birth to the man Jesus. He was begotten by God in His resurrection to be the firstborn Son of God among many brothers (Rom. 8:29). He was the only begotten Son of God from eternity (John 1:18; 3:16). After incarnation, through resurrection, He was begotten by God in His humanity to be God’s firstborn Son…. Paul was able to see the Lord’s resurrection in [Psalm 2:7b]:…”Today I have begotten You.”Paul applied the word today to the day of the Lord’s resurrection. This means that Christ’s resurrection was His birth as the firstborn Son of God. Jesus, the Son of Man, was born to be the Son of God through being raised up from the dead. Therefore, God’s raising up of Jesus from the dead was His begetting of Him to be His firstborn Son. We need to realize that the Lord’s resurrection was His birth. This is a crucial matter.
The Lord Jesus has had two births. First, He was born of Mary to be the Son of Man. Then thirty-three and a half years later He was crucified, buried, and raised from among the dead. Through resurrection He had a second birth, for as a man He was born in His resurrection to be the Son of God. Therefore, in His first birth He was born of Mary to be the Son of Man, and in His second birth He was born in resurrection to be the Son of God.
When some hear that Christ was born to be the Son of God in resurrection, they may have a problem and say, “Was not our Lord the Son of God from eternity?” Yes, from eternity He was the Son of God…. The Gospel of John emphasizes the fact that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and He is the Son of God eternally. Since He was already the Son of God before His incarnation, why was it necessary for Him to be born the Son of God in His resurrection?
According to the New Testament, He is the Son of God in two aspects. First, He was God’s only begotten Son; second, He is now God’s firstborn Son. The words only begotten indicate that God has only one Son…. Eternally speaking, Christ was the only begotten Son of God [John 1:18, 3:16]. This was His eternal status. But through resurrection He, as a man, was born to be the firstborn Son of God. The word firstborn [cf. Heb. 1:6] indicates that God now has many sons (2:10). We who believe in Christ are the many sons of God and the many brothers of the Lord, the many brothers of the firstborn Son of God (Rom. 8:29). (Life-study of Acts, pp. 318-320)
Further Reading: Life-study of Acts, msgs. 37-38