The Nature of the Son
1 Long ago God spoke a to the fathers by the prophets b at different times and in different ways. c 2 In these last days, d he has spoken to us by his Son. God has appointed him heir of all things e and made the universe ,f through him. 3 The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact expression of his nature, g sustaining all things by his powerful word. h After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. ,i 4 So he became superior to the angels, just as the name he inherited is more excellent than theirs. j
The Son Superior to Angels
5 For to which of the angels did he ever say,
You are my Son;
today I have become your Father, ,
or again,
I will be his Father,
and he will be my Son? ,k
6 Again, when he brings his firstborn into the world, l he says,
And let all God’s angels worship him. ,m
7 And about the angels he says:
He makes his angels winds,
and his servants a fiery flame, ,n
8 but to the Son:
Your throne, O God,
is forever and ever,
and the scepter of your kingdom
is a scepter of justice. o
9 You have loved righteousness
and hated lawlessness;
this is why God, your God,
has anointed you
with the oil of joy p
beyond your companions. ,
10 And:
In the beginning, Lord,
you established the earth,
and the heavens are the works of your hands; q
11 they will perish, but you remain.
They will all wear out like clothing; r
12 you will roll them up like a cloak,
and they will be changed like clothing.
But you are the same,
and your years will never end. ,s
13 Now to which of the angels has he ever said:
Sit at my right hand
until I make your enemies your footstool? ,t
14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve those who are going to inherit salvation? u
1:1–2. No distinction is made between the message spoken formerly (1:1) and “in these last days” (1:2). It is not the message but the dignity of the messengers and the times and circumstances of their revelation that differ. God spoke then and now, and indeed continues to speak, through the ancient prophets as through his Son (e.g., 3:7; 10:37–38). One needs to remember that the living and active word of God (4:12) was for this author largely what is now called the OT.
1:3–4. “Radiance” (1:3a) indicates the Son’s sharing of the divine attributes (cf. Jn 1:14; 2 Co 4:6), and “exact expression” indicates the correspondence of his nature with the Father’s (cf. Col 1:15). “Sustaining all things” refers to his government by which he brings the course of history to its appointed end. “Sat down” (1:3b) signifies the completion of the atonement (10:12–14) and suggests Christ’s present activity as priest (4:14–16) and king (12:2). If the Son’s person and work are as described, any religion that does not place them at its center, in which he is not the hope and joy of sinners and the chief object of faith and worship, stands self-condemned. [The Deity and Humanity of Christ]
1:5. The fact that the author has the incarnate Son of God in view helps in understanding Ps 2:7, the first of the seven citations from Scripture (1:5a), which figures prominently in the NT as a prophecy of the incarnation, the messianic ministry, and especially the resurrection (Mk 1:11; Lk 1:32; Ac 13:33; Heb 5:5; cf. Rm 1:4). The eternal Son could be said to become or to be begotten as the Son of God only with reference to the exaltation of the human nature he took to himself when he came into the world.
1:6. The third citation (Dt 32:43, from the longer text of the Septuagint and Dead Sea Scrolls; cf. Ps 97:7) verifies that when the Son of God came into the world as a man, he was worshiped as divine. Perhaps the specific allusion is to Lk 2:13. “Firstborn” is another messianic title (Ps 89:27). It suggests his consecration to God (Ex 13:2) and his precedence as an heir. The application of this text to Christ is an instance of the attribution of the divine name Yahweh to Jesus.
1:7–9. The contrasting fourth (1:7; see Ps 104:4) and fifth (1:8–9; see Ps 45:6–7) citations establish that the superiority of the Son to the angels is as clear and great as that of a king to those who do his bidding, indeed, as that of God to his creatures. Psalm 45, a wedding song for an Israelite king, is properly applied to the one who establishes the reign of which the OT kingship was but a foreshadowing. The ascription of this text to Christ results in one of the few places in the NT where Christ is directly referred to as God (cf. Jn 1:1; 20:28; Rm 9:5).
1:10–14. The sixth citation (1:10–12; see Ps 102:25–27) serves to recapitulate the divine dignity of the incarnate Son of God as the Creator (1:2) and his majesty as the eternal Lord.