Dr. Couch, what did Christ mean when He said the coming of the Son of God to earth to reign: "But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only" (Matt. 24:36)? Does not Christ, being very God, know every thing the Father knows?
ANSWER: This is a good question. The word know here is the Greek word oido in the Aorist Tense form and not the normal word "to know" which is ginosko. The difference between the two words can be significant. Oido has the force of "to pay attention to," "to observe," "to inspect," "to examine," and/or "to scrutinize."
While the Lord Jesus would certainly know the day and hour of His return to earth, in an informational way, the point is this is not something He dwells on. It is in the prerogative of the Father as to when He comes back to reign. The heavenly Father has the plan in mind when the Messiah comes to establish His kingdom. This is not in the purview of the Son in that the authority for the timing of that event is with the Father. While the Son has the knowledge of when He comes back, the Father focuses on the working out of that coming.
It may be an overstatement to say the Son does not pay attention to the when of His coming. He has His work cut out for Him and is being obedient unto the Father as He walks the path to the death on the cross!
I believe this is the proper answer to what is going on in this passage.
Thanks for asking.
Dr. Mal Couch
ANSWER: This is a good question. The word know here is the Greek word oido in the Aorist Tense form and not the normal word "to know" which is ginosko. The difference between the two words can be significant. Oido has the force of "to pay attention to," "to observe," "to inspect," "to examine," and/or "to scrutinize."
While the Lord Jesus would certainly know the day and hour of His return to earth, in an informational way, the point is this is not something He dwells on. It is in the prerogative of the Father as to when He comes back to reign. The heavenly Father has the plan in mind when the Messiah comes to establish His kingdom. This is not in the purview of the Son in that the authority for the timing of that event is with the Father. While the Son has the knowledge of when He comes back, the Father focuses on the working out of that coming.
It may be an overstatement to say the Son does not pay attention to the when of His coming. He has His work cut out for Him and is being obedient unto the Father as He walks the path to the death on the cross!
I believe this is the proper answer to what is going on in this passage.
Thanks for asking.
Dr. Mal Couch
