Hebrews

1.1-14

In the first of the General Epistles, the writer of Hebrews delivers one of Scripture's most unapologetic testimonies of Jesus Christ as the Son of God. This book conveys a sense not of the Son speaking of Himself but of the Father speaking concerning the Son. Opening by confirming His deity as the second person of the Holy Trinity, God's Son is testified to as the heir of all things, creator of the worlds, the radiance of God's glory, the exact representation of God's nature, Him who upholds all things by the word of God's power, and the One who has accomplished (the most significant of all things regarding man's relationship with God) "cleansing for sins," and Who then sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. For the Jewish reader who might have been confused, thinking of Jesus as an angel like Michael or Gabriel, the writer of Hebrews declares Jesus is not just something other than an angel as the Son of God; he places Christ clearly above the angels in vv.5-14, concluding the thought by assigning angels to the role of those who render service for the sake of those who will inherit (what Christ accomplished) - salvation. Among this great evidence of Christ, also look at the reconciling element of the Old and New Testaments in our Bible. If Christ is the "exact representation" of the nature of God who spoke long ago in the prophets, then not only are they One and the same, but once again, we witness testimony of God's unchanging nature, from the beginning of creation, through all eternity.

CHAPTER 1

God’s Final Word in His Son

1 God, having spoken long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways,
2 in these last days spoke to us in His Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds,
3 who is the radiance of His glory and the exact representation of His nature, and upholds all things by the word of His power; who, having accomplished cleansing for sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high,
4 having become so much better than the angels, as He has inherited a more excellent name than they.
5 For to which of the angels did He ever say,
“YOU ARE MY SON,
TODAY I HAVE BEGOTTEN YOU”?
And again,
“I WILL BE A FATHER TO HIM
AND HE SHALL BE A SON TO ME”?
6 And when He again brings the firstborn into the world, He says,
“AND LET ALL THE ANGELS OF GOD WORSHIP HIM.”
7 And of the angels He says,
“WHO MAKES HIS ANGELS WINDS,
AND HIS MINISTERS FLAMING FIRE.”
8 But of the Son He says,
“YOUR THRONE, O GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER,
AND THE SCEPTER OF UPRIGHTNESS IS THE SCEPTER OF YOUR KINGDOM.
9 “YOU HAVE LOVED RIGHTEOUSNESS AND HATED LAWLESSNESS;
THEREFORE GOD, YOUR GOD, HAS ANOINTED YOU
WITH THE OIL OF GLADNESS ABOVE YOUR COMPANIONS.”
10 And,
“YOU, LORD, IN THE BEGINNING FOUNDED THE EARTH,
AND THE HEAVENS ARE THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS;
11 THEY WILL PERISH, BUT YOU REMAIN;
AND THEY ALL WILL WEAR OUT LIKE A GARMENT,
12 AND LIKE A MANTLE YOU WILL ROLL THEM UP;
LIKE A GARMENT THEY WILL ALSO BE CHANGED.
BUT YOU ARE THE SAME,
AND YOUR YEARS WILL NOT COME TO AN END.”
13 But to which of the angels has He ever said,
“SIT AT MY RIGHT HAND,
UNTIL I PUT YOUR ENEMIES
AS A FOOTSTOOL FOR YOUR FEET”?
14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?