> Luke 12:8: 'Also I say unto you, whosoever shall confess me before men, him shall the Son of man also confess before the angels of God...'

Some scholars argue that because Jesus used the third person, He was speaking of someone other than Himself. However, the distinction is not between two different figures, but between Jesus' present state and His future state of exaltation. Because the role of the coming Son of Man from Daniel 7 was to be fulfilled in the future, Jesus could not always properly call Himself the Son of Man in a direct, present manner. The third-person reference satisfies ancient requirements of honor by not making an overly direct, audacious claim to divine status in public, while still identifying Himself as the one who will act as judge.