Χριστός. (Christos) in Matthew 1:16: Noun Nominative Singular Masculine
Χριστός. (Christos) in Matthew 1:16
Textual Witness
The witness reads 'Ἰησοῦς ὁ λεγόμενος Χριστός,' so the form appears at the close of the verse as part of a direct identification of Jesus.
How The Form Affects Interpretation
The form strengthens the verse's final identification, letting the text name Jesus as Christ in a concise and memorable way.
How To Communicate It
In teaching or translation, the form can be rendered as a title attached to Jesus, preserving the verse's identifying force.
What Not To Say
- Grammatical form should serve context, not override it.
- Do not treat masculine gender as a theological gender claim.
- Do not overread nominative case, since the clause already signals identification through context.
What Does The Label Mean?
Noun: this form names a person or title, here used as an identifying designation for Jesus.
Nominative: this form typically marks a subject or a predicate-like identification, and here it helps name Jesus as the one being identified.
Singular: this occurrence is grammatically singular, fitting one identified person rather than a group.
Masculine: this is the masculine grammatical class, which fits the title's form here and does not by itself make a theological gender claim.
What The Form Does In This Verse
Ἰησοῦς ὁ λεγόμενος
The form is linked to the preceding identification phrase and functions with the participial label, 'the one called'.
It supplies the title by which Jesus is identified in the verse, helping the clause state who he is called to be.
It does not introduce a separate new subject, and it does not by itself assert a different action or change the lemma into another word.
How Much The Form Matters Here
High: The form supplies the title by which Jesus is identified at the close of the genealogy.
Title complement after the naming participle. supplies the title attached to Jesus. Attached to the phrase identifying Jesus as the one called Christ. Governed by the participial phrase that names what Jesus is called. The title is theologically important, but the form guide should keep the claim tied to this identification phrase.
What title is attached to Jesus here? The form supplies the title Christ in the phrase saying Jesus is called Christ.
Direct: The form directly supports rendering the title attached to Jesus in the genealogy.
The title is attached through the naming phrase, so do not treat it as a separate subject or action.
Title grammar alone proves the whole Christology of Matthew: The grammar marks the local title relation; the Gospel's whole witness supplies the larger Christological claim.
How The Interpretation Is Derived
The witness reads 'Ἰησοῦς ὁ λεγόμενος Χριστός,' so the form appears at the close of the verse as part of a direct identification of Jesus.
The lemma Χριστός carries the sense 'anointed, the Messiah, the Christ,' and in this context it functions as a recognized title.
The nominative form fits the naming pattern after 'the one called,' so the grammar supports identification rather than a fresh clause action.
The verse presents Jesus as the one known and addressed as Christ, which aligns with the genealogy's movement toward his identity.
This wording fits the wider Matthean presentation of Jesus as the promised Messiah and Davidic king without requiring the grammar alone to prove that claim.
For readers, the form helps the verse speak plainly: the child named Jesus is identified as the Christ.
Do not derive from the form alone a separate doctrinal statement beyond identification, and do not press nominative case into a claim that the grammar itself establishes theology.