This monograph develops the view that the Synoptic Gospels suggest that
Jesus expected vindication of his earthly mission after his death by
receiving a status of exaltation in the presence of God. This would
involve the exercise of the functions of judging and ruling associated
with the Jewish concept of the Son of man. A variety of alternative
explanations has been offered concerning the origin and meaning of this
title as it appears in the Gospels. The earlier part of this book
examines the most important of these against their Jewish background.
The second part examines in detail the most important Son of man sayings
attributed to Jesus in the first three Gospels. The author concludes
that some of these sayings which refer to the Son of man in his future
exaltation and glory alone contain authentic words of Jesus in which the
term has a messianic sense; and that the Son of man christology in the
gospels originated not in the creative thought of early Christians but
in the preaching of Jesus himself.