Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets but now in these final days, he has spoken to us through A SON.
Hebrews 1:1-2
The author of Hebrews could have stopped the introduction as this point in the letter and then proceeded on with verse 4.
This [shows that the] Son is far greater than the angels, just as the name God gave him is greater than their names.
Hebrews 1:4
Grammatically, logically, rhetorically in order to make his point related to the superiority of this son, the author could have proceeded straight to his first point of the superiority of the Son over the angels. But he didn’t. Instead, we have a very complicated Greek sentence which falls out in layers connected by a series of relative pronouns. In Gem 2027 I pointed out how the author tells us more about This Son whom God chose to speak through.
- He promised everything to THIS Son as an inheritance.
- Through THIS Son he created the universe.
- THIS Son radiates God’s own glory.
- THIS Son expresses the very character of God.
- THIS Son sustains everything (the universe) by the mighty power of his command.
- THIS Son sat down in the place of honour at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven.
- This shows that THIS Son is far greater than the angels.
Here are two literal versions of what the author wrote, laid out in propositional analysis:
. . .
God has spoken unto us in his Son,
whom he appointed heir of all things,
through whom also he made the worlds;
who being the effulgence of his glory,
and [who being] the very image of his substance,
and [who] upholds all things by the word of his power,
[who having] made purification of sins,
[He] sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
having become by so much better than the angels,
as He hath inherited a more excellent name than they.
Modelled on the ASV
. . .
He spoke to us in the Son,
whom He appointed heir of all;
through whom He indeed made the ages;
who being the shining splendour of His glory,
and [who being] the express image of His essence,
and [who] upholding all things by the Word of His power,
[who] having made purification of our sins through Himself,
He sat down on the right of the Majesty on high,
having become so much better than the angels,
He has inherited a name more excellent than they.
Modelled on the LITV
I think it is now abundantly clear to you that when God spoke in these last days in a son, the author of Hebrews has used the anarthrous form of the noun to highlight the fact that this son is not at all indefinite or unspecified. To the contrary, THIS SON is none other than Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Son of Man, the One before Whom every knee will bow and every tongue will confess that He alone is LORD.
Yes I know I have mixed my authors and not just mixed my metaphors. The writer of Hebrews is doing exactly the same as what John and Paul did in order to leave us in no doubt as to WHO he is writing about. So he spells out the attributes of THIS SON with SEVEN statements which express the true nature of the One he is highlighting.
- He has been appointed Heir of all things.
- He is the pre-existent Creator of the universe, time and space.
- He is the radiance and embodiment of the Glory of God.
- He is in fact the exact image or expression of the Presence of God.
- He is the Sustainer of the Universe, upholding it by the power of His Word.
- He is the Saviour, Redeemer and Restorer of mankind to God.
- He is the One now seated on the right hand (the place of Power) of God.
Why introduce the idea of Christ’s superiority to the angels at this point?
The angels are none other than messengers. Oh heavenly messengers, yes indeed, but messengers none the less. The Greek term [angelos / angeloi] is the term for “messenger” / “messengers”. We are aware that they are heavenly messengers or ministering spirits. But stop and consider the fact that the angels were involved as the messengers taking the message to the prophets as God’s revelation of His plan unfolded. I can’t emphasise enough this is the content of the letter sent to Jewish Christians who are being encouraged not to give up on Christ for expediency to avoid the persecution. The writer has already mentioned the role of the prophets in bringing them God’s message. There were a group of other messengers involved in the revelation of God coming to them – namely the angels, the heavenly messengers. Angelic messengers played a huge part in the word of God coming through the prophets to the people. So the writer goes back to beginning of the chain of witness to the angels by reminding these Jewish Christians of the primary role of the angels in delivering the messages of God to the prophets. I will let Peter remind you of this connection.
This salvation was something even the prophets wanted to know more about when they prophesied about this gracious salvation prepared for you. They wondered what time or situation the Spirit of Christ within them was talking about when he told them in advance about Christ’s suffering and his great glory afterward. They were told that their messages were not for themselves, but for you. And now this Good News has been announced to you by those who preached in the power of the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. It is all so wonderful that even the angels are eagerly watching these things happen.
1 Peter 1:10-12
There is method and order in the way the writer of Hebrews has introduced THIS SON God chose to speak through in order to make it clear just Who He is. But more than that, there is method and structure to the comparisons he draws in to make clear the magnitude of God speaking through a Son. As I have already suggested to you, the writer of Hebrews deals methodically with a series of comparisons to show us just how much more superior is Christ than all of these classic Old Testament Jewish traditions and practices. All for the sake of those Jewish Christians in Rome who may be considering to turn aside from being Christ followers. It is entirely conceivable that there were those at the time of the writing of this letter who confused the Christ (Messiah) with angels at the start of these last days. There are certainly those at the end of these last days (nowadays) who confuse Christ with angels, supposing THIS SON to be someone in the form of an angel – as the JWs and Mormons do (e.g. the Archangel Michael). So I hope you can see the relevance of the writer’s argument to the Roman Jewish Christians at the beginning of these last days and the relevance to us at the end of these last days.
This will be an ongoing theme of the letter as the purpose is made clearer with each chapter.
Our next step is to analyse carefully the writer’s argument as to why Jesus is much more superior than the angels.
Who is Jesus?
Jesus is THE SON whom God chose to speak to us in these last days.
Hebrews 1:1-2
But these are written so that you may continue to believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing in him you will have life by the power of his name.
John 20:31
Then he asked them, “But who do you say I am?”
Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.”
Matthew 16:15-16
God elevated him to the place of highest honour and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Phil 2:9-11
Trust wholly in Christ; rely altogether on His sufferings; beware of seeking to be justified in any other way than by His righteousness. Faith in our Lord Jesus Christ is sufficient for salvation. There must be atonement made for sin according to the righteousness of God. The person to make this atonement must be God and man.
John Wycliffe
All that I am I owe to Jesus Christ, revealed to me in His divine Book.
David Livingstone
One encounter with Jesus Christ is enough to change you, instantly, forever.
Luis Palau