The Unseen Realm: Recovering the Supernatural Worldview of the Bible

by Michael S. Heiser

Second, Mark 1:11 has God’s voice from heaven pronouncing, “You are my beloved Son; with you I am well pleased.”15 We tend to think of this declaration as a sentimental one, or perhaps some verbal token of affection. It is far more than that. When God refers to Jesus as his “beloved” he is affirming the kingship of Jesus—his legitimate status as the heir to David’s throne. The key term is “beloved.” Scholars have noticed that the term was used of Solomon, the original heir to David’s throne. It’s difficult to discern that in English translation, though, since the Hebrew term gets translated as a proper name: Jedidiah. Solomon is referred to as “Jedidiah” in 2 Samuel 12:24–25: 24 David consoled Bathsheba his wife, and he went to her and slept with her. She bore a son, and he called him Solomon, and Yahweh loved him. 25 He sent word by the hand of Nathan the prophet, so he called him Jedidiah because of Yahweh. Notice the wording. “Jedidiah” is a name or term that Nathan told David the Lord wanted assigned to Solomon. The name in Hebrew is yediydyahu and is related to dawid/dawiyd, the proper name “David,” which also means “beloved.”16 Used of Solomon, the term amounts to a title that marked Solomon as the legitimate heir to the Davidic covenantal throne.17 The same message is telegraphed with respect to Jesus. God’s own voice announces, This is the king, the legitimate heir to David’s throne.