John Kilgallen, «Jesus’ First Trial: Messiah and Son of God (Luke 22,66-71)», Vol. 80 (1999) 401-414

Luke, according to the Two-Source Theory, read Mark. At the first trial of Jesus, that before the Sanhedrin, Mark has together, "Messiah, Son of God". Luke has intentionally separated the two titles. The present essay finds the explanation for separating Son of God from Messiah in the Annunciation scene of the Gospel. It is Luke’s intention that the reader understand Son of God in a way that admittedly the Sanhedrin did not. The laws of narratology indicate that Luke 1,35, a part of the Lucan introduction, be used by the reader to interpret Son of God at Luke 22,70.

the right hand of the Power of God that gives the hint as to what the Sanhedrin understands the meaning of "Jesus, the Son of God" to be⁶. But why would reference to "the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power" lead the Sanhedrin to think about Jesus as Son of God? To understand the Sanhedrin in Luke 22,70, the statement of Jesus about the Son of Man seated at the right hand of the Power must be studied, even if briefly.

        These words of Jesus are noted in modern copies of Luke as a citation from the Old Testament. Specifically drawn from the Old Testament is Psalm 110,1, and only these few words from the first verse: (The Lord said to my lord,) "Sit at my right hand¼". What Jesus said is not only a rephrasing of the psalm’s direct address, but also an interpretation that the one to whom the Lord is speaking is the Son of Man. Since a number of Son of Man statements are recognized by most scholars as attributable to Jesus himself, it is reasonable to think that it was Jesus who knew this composite⁷ interpretation of the Psalm, namely that it would be the Son of Man who was seated at the right hand of the Power⁸. My contention would be that the Sanhedrin, intent on the title Messiah, would ignore the specifics of a Son of Man reference — ultimately because it was not interested in Jesus’ exegesis of the "my lord" of the Psalm⁹ —