God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds. His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, who, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high,
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God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds. His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, who, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much better than the angels as the more excellent name he has inherited is better than theirs.
Parallel Translations
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God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways,
has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds.
His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, who, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high,
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God in tyme past diversly and many wayes spake vnto the fathers by Prophetes:
but in these last dayes he hath spoken vnto vs by his sonne whom he hath made heyre of all thinges: by who also he made the worlde.
Which sonne beynge the brightnes of his glory and very ymage of his substance bearinge vp all thinges with the worde of his power hath in his awne person pourged oure synnes and is sitten on the right honde of the maiestie an hye
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At sundry times and in diuers maners God spake in the olde time to our fathers by the Prophetes: in these last dayes hee hath spoken vnto vs by his Sonne,
Whom he hath made heire of al things, by whome also he made the worldes,
Who being the brightnes of the glory, and the ingraued forme of his person, and bearing vp all things by his mightie worde, hath by himselfe purged our sinnes, and sitteth at the right hand of the Maiestie in the highest places,
Cross-references (120)
- Colossians 1:15-17 (v3) He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created in the heavens and on the earth,…
- 2 Peter 1:20-21 (v1) knowing this first, that no prophecy of Scripture is of private interpretation. For no prophecy ever came by the will of man: but holy men…
- Revelation 4:11 (v3) “Worthy are you, our Lord and God, the Holy One, to receive the glory, the honor, and the power, for you created all things, and because of…
- John 1:3 (v2) All things were made through him. Without him, nothing was made that has been made.
- 1 Corinthians 8:6 (v2) yet to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we for him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things,…
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- Colossians 1:16-18 (v2) For by him all things were created in the heavens and on the earth, visible things and invisible things, whether thrones or dominions or…
- John 1:14 (vv2–3) The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth.
- 1 Peter 1:20 (v2) who was foreknown indeed before the foundation of the world, but was revealed in this last age for your sake,
- John 14:9-10 (v3) Jesus said to him, “Have I been with you such a long time, and do you not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father. How do…
- Numbers 12:6-8 (v1) He said, “Now hear my words. If there is a prophet among you, I, Yahweh, will make myself known to him in a vision. I will speak with him…
- Joel 2:28 (v1) “It will happen afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; and your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your old men will…
- Matthew 28:18 (v2) Jesus came to them and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth.
- 2 Corinthians 4:4 (v3) in whom the god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the Good News of the glory of Christ, who is the…
- Luke 24:27 (v1) Beginning from Moses and from all the prophets, he explained to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
- John 13:3 (v2) Jesus, knowing that the Father had given all things into his hands, and that he came from God, and was going to God,
- 1 Peter 1:10-12 (v1) Concerning this salvation, the prophets sought and searched diligently. They prophesied of the grace that would come to you, searching for…
- John 1:4 (v3) In him was life, and the life was the light of men.
- Philippians 2:9-11 (v2) Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,…
- Hebrews 10:12 (v3) but he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God,
- Hebrews 12:2 (v3) looking to Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising its shame, and…
- 2 Corinthians 4:6-7 (v3) seeing it is God who said, “Light will shine out of darkness,” who has shone in our hearts to give the light of the knowledge of the glory…
- Genesis 46:2-4 (v1) God spoke to Israel in the visions of the night, and said, “Jacob, Jacob!” He said, “Here I am.” He said, “I am God, the God of your…
- Matthew 17:5 (v2) While he was still speaking, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them. Behold, a voice came out of the cloud, saying, “This is my beloved…
- Hebrews 9:26 (vv2–3) or else he must have suffered often since the foundation of the world. But now once at the end of the ages, he has been revealed to put…
- Luke 1:55 (v1) as he spoke to our fathers, to Abraham and his offspring forever.”
- Jude 1:25 (v3) to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen.
- Romans 8:17 (v2) and if children, then heirs: heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with him, that we may also be glorified with him.
- John 1:17-18 (v2) For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. No one has seen God at any time. The one and only…
- Hebrews 5:8 (v2) though he was a Son, yet learned obedience by the things which he suffered.
- Hebrews 11:3 (v2) By faith, we understand that the universe has been framed by the word of God, so that what is seen has not been made out of things which…
- 1 John 1:7 (v3) But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ, his Son, cleanses…
- Genesis 12:1-3 (v1) Now Yahweh said to Abram, “Leave your country, and your relatives, and your father’s house, and go to the land that I will show you. I will…
- Matthew 21:38 (v2) But the farmers, when they saw the son, said among themselves, ‘This is the heir. Come, let’s kill him, and seize his inheritance.’
- Acts 2:30 (v1) Therefore, being a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that of the fruit of his body, according to the flesh, he…
- Ephesians 1:10 (v2) to an administration of the fullness of the times, to sum up all things in Christ, the things in the heavens and the things on the earth,…
- Hebrews 4:14 (v3) Having then a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let’s hold tightly to our confession.
- Hebrews 8:1 (v3) Now in the things which we are saying, the main point is this. We have such a high priest, who sat down on the right hand of the throne of…
- 1 Peter 3:22 (v3) who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, angels and authorities and powers being made subject to him.
- 1 John 3:5 (v3) You know that he was revealed to take away our sins, and no sin is in him.
- Isaiah 44:24 (v2) Yahweh, your Redeemer, and he who formed you from the womb says: “I am Yahweh, who makes all things; who alone stretches out the heavens;…
- Matthew 26:63 (v2) But Jesus held his peace. The high priest answered him, “I adjure you by the living God, that you tell us whether you are the Christ, the…
- Mark 16:19 (v3) So then the Lord, after he had spoken to them, was received up into heaven, and sat down at the right hand of God.
- Luke 24:44 (v1) He said to them, “This is what I told you, while I was still with you, that all things which are written in the law of Moses, the prophets,…
- John 1:29 (v3) The next day, he saw Jesus coming to him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!
- John 3:16 (v2) For God so loved the world, that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish, but have eternal life.
- Acts 2:33 (v3) Being therefore exalted by the right hand of God, and having received from the Father the promise of the Holy Spirit, he has poured out…
- Acts 13:32 (v1) We bring you good news of the promise made to the fathers,
- Ephesians 1:20-22 (v3) which he worked in Christ, when he raised him from the dead and made him to sit at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all…
- 2 Peter 1:16 (v3) For we didn’t follow cunningly devised fables when we made known to you the power and coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, but we were…
- Revelation 3:21 (v3) He who overcomes, I will give to him to sit down with me on my throne, as I also overcame, and sat down with my Father on his throne.
- Deuteronomy 18:15 (v2) Yahweh your God will raise up to you a prophet from among you, of your brothers, like me. You shall listen to him.
- Psalms 75:3 (v3) The earth and all its inhabitants quake. I firmly hold its pillars.
- Psalms 110:1 (v3) Yahweh says to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool for your feet.”
- Acts 7:56 (v3) and said, “Behold, I see the heavens opened, and the Son of Man standing at the right hand of God!”
- Acts 28:23 (v1) When they had appointed him a day, many people came to him at his lodging. He explained to them, testifying about God’s Kingdom, and…
- Hebrews 2:2 (v1) For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just penalty,
- Hebrews 7:27 (v3) who doesn’t need, like those high priests, to offer up sacrifices daily, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. For…
- Hebrews 9:12-14 (v3) nor yet through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood, entered in once for all into the Holy Place, having obtained…
- 1 Peter 1:21 (v3) who through him are believers in God, who raised him from the dead, and gave him glory, so that your faith and hope might be in God.
- Exodus 3:1-22 (v1) Now Moses was keeping the flock of Jethro, his father-in-law, the priest of Midian, and he led the flock to the back of the wilderness, and…
- Deuteronomy 4:30 (v2) When you are in oppression, and all these things have come on you, in the latter days you shall return to Yahweh your God and listen to his…
- Isaiah 2:2 (v2) It shall happen in the latter days, that the mountain of Yahweh’s house shall be established on the top of the mountains, and shall be…
- Luke 1:72 (v1) to show mercy toward our fathers, to remember his holy covenant,
- John 7:22 (v1) Moses has given you circumcision (not that it is of Moses, but of the fathers), and on the Sabbath you circumcise a boy.
- John 15:15 (v2) No longer do I call you servants, for the servant doesn’t know what his lord does. But I have called you friends, for everything that I…
- Romans 8:34 (v3) Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, yes rather, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who also makes…
- Ephesians 3:9 (v2) and to make all men see what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God, who created all things through…
- Colossians 3:1 (v3) If then you were raised together with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated on the right hand of God.
- Hebrews 1:5 (v2) For to which of the angels did he say at any time, “You are my Son. Today I have become your father?” and again, “I will be to him a…
- Hebrews 2:3 (v2) how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation—which at the first having been spoken through the Lord, was confirmed to us by those…
- Hebrews 7:3 (v2) without father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God), remains…
- 1 Chronicles 29:11 (v3) Yours, Yahweh, is the greatness, the power, the glory, the victory, and the majesty! For all that is in the heavens and in the earth is…
- Isaiah 53:10-12 (v2) Yet it pleased Yahweh to bruise him. He has caused him to suffer. When you make his soul an offering for sin, he will see his offspring. He…
- Jeremiah 30:24 (v2) The fierce anger of Yahweh will not return until he has accomplished, and until he has performed the intentions of his heart. In the latter…
- Micah 4:1 (v2) But in the latter days, it will happen that the mountain of Yahweh’s temple will be established on the top of the mountains, and it will be…
- Luke 20:42-43 (v3) David himself says in the book of Psalms, ‘The Lord said to my Lord, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies the footstool of your…
- John 9:29 (v1) We know that God has spoken to Moses. But as for this man, we don’t know where he comes from.”
- Acts 10:36 (v2) The word which he sent to the children of Israel, preaching good news of peace by Jesus Christ—he is Lord of all—
- Galatians 4:4 (v2) But when the fullness of the time came, God sent out his Son, born to a woman, born under the law,
- Genesis 3:15 (v1) I will put hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will bruise your head, and you will bruise…
- Genesis 6:13-22 (v1) God said to Noah, “I will bring an end to all flesh, for the earth is filled with violence through them. Behold, I will destroy them and…
- Genesis 9:1-17 (v1) God blessed Noah and his sons, and said to them, “Be fruitful, multiply, and replenish the earth. The fear of you and the dread of you will…
- Genesis 26:2-5 (v1) Yahweh appeared to him, and said, “Don’t go down into Egypt. Live in the land I will tell you about. Live in this land, and I will be with…
- Genesis 28:12-15 (v1) He dreamed and saw a stairway set upon the earth, and its top reached to heaven. Behold, the angels of God were ascending and descending on…
- Job 37:22 (v3) Out of the north comes golden splendor. With God is awesome majesty.
- Proverbs 8:22-31 (v2) “Yahweh possessed me in the beginning of his work, before his deeds of old. I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, before the…
- Ecclesiastes 8:4 (v3) for the king’s word is supreme. Who can say to him, “What are you doing?”
- Isaiah 9:6-7 (v2) For a child is born to us. A son is given to us; and the government will be on his shoulders. His name will be called Wonderful Counselor,…
- Micah 5:4 (v3) He shall stand, and shall shepherd in the strength of Yahweh, in the majesty of the name of Yahweh his God: and they will live, for then he…
- Mark 1:1 (v2) The beginning of the Good News of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.
- Mark 12:6 (v2) Therefore still having one, his beloved son, he sent him last to them, saying, ‘They will respect my son.’
- John 16:15 (v2) All things that the Father has are mine; therefore I said that he takes of mine and will declare it to you.
- John 17:2 (v2) even as you gave him authority over all flesh, so he will give eternal life to all whom you have given him.
- Acts 2:17 (v2) ‘It will be in the last days, says God, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh. Your sons and your daughters will prophesy. Your young…
- Romans 1:4 (v2) who was declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead, Jesus Christ our…
- Romans 1:16 (v3) For I am not ashamed of the Good News of Christ, because it is the power of God for salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first,…
- Jude 1:18 (v2) They said to you, “In the last time there will be mockers, walking after their own ungodly lusts.”
- Genesis 6:3 (v1) Yahweh said, “My Spirit will not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; so his days will be one hundred twenty years.”
- Genesis 8:15-19 (v1) God spoke to Noah, saying, “Go out of the ship, you, your wife, your sons, and your sons’ wives with you. Bring out with you every living…
- Genesis 32:24-30 (v1) Jacob was left alone, and wrestled with a man there until the breaking of the day. When he saw that he didn’t prevail against him, the man…
100 distinct cross-references across this passage (120 total citations).
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John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv1–3 Not only various opinions were formerly entertained as to…
Not only various opinions were formerly entertained as to the author of this Epistle, but it was only at a late period that it was received by the Latin Churches. They suspected that it favored Novatus in denying pardon to the fallen; but that this was a groundless opinion will be shown by various passages. I, indeed, without hesitation, class it among apostolical writings; nor do I doubt but that it has been through the craft of Satan that any have been led to dispute its authority. There is, indeed, no book in the Holy Scriptures which speaks so clearly of the priesthood of Christ, so highly exalts the virtue and dignity of that only true sacrifice which he offered by his death, so abundantly treats of the use of ceremonies as well as of their abrogation, and, in a word, so fully explains that Christ is the end of the Law. Let us not therefore suffer the Church of God nor ourselves to be deprived of so great a benefit, but firmly defend the possession of it.
Moreover, as to its author, we need not be very solicitous. Some think the author to have been Paul, others Luke, others Barnabas, and others Clement, as Jerome relates; yet Eusebius, in his sixth book of his Church History, mentions only Luke and Clement. I well know that in the time of Chrysostom it was everywhere classed by the Greeks among the Pauline Epistles; but the Latins thought otherwise, even those who were nearest to the times of the Apostles.
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I indeed, can adduce no reason to show that Paul was its author; for they who say that he designedly suppressed his name because it was hateful to the Jews, bring nothing to the purpose; for why, then, did he mention the name of Timothy as by this he betrayed himself. But the manner it of teaching, and the style, sufficiently show that Paul was not the author; and the writer himself confesses in the second chapter that he was one of the disciples of the Apostles, which is wholly different from the way in which Paul spoke of himself. Besides, what is said of the practice of catechizing in the sixth chapter, does not well suit the time or age of Paul. There are other things which we shall notice in their proper places.
What excuse is usually made as to the style I well know that is, that no opinion can be hence formed, because the Greek is a translation made from the Hebrew by Luke or someone else. But this conjecture can be easily refuted: to pass by other places quoted from Scripture, on the supposition that the Epistle was written in Hebrew, there would have been no allusion to the word Testament, on which the writer so much dwells; what he says of a Testament, in the ninth chapter, could not have been drawn from any other fountain than from the Greek word; for διαθήκη has two meanings in Greek, while |berit| in Hebrew means only a covenant. This reason alone is enough to convince men of sound judgment that the epistle was written in the Greek languages. Now, what is objected on the other hand, that it is more probable that the Apostle wrote to the Jews in their own language, has no weight in it; for how few then understood their ancient language? Each had learned the language of the country where he dwelt. Besides, the Greek was then more widely known than all other languages. We shall proceed now to the Argument.
The object at the beginning is not to show to the Jews that Jesus, the son of Mary, was the Christ, the Redeemer promised to them, for he wrote to those who had already made a profession of Christ; that point, then, is taken as granted. But the design of the writer was to prove what the office of Christ is. And it hence appears evident, that by his coming an end was put to ceremonies. It is necessary to draw this distinction; for as it would have been a superfluous labor for the Apostle to prove to those who were already convinced that he was the Christ who had appeared, so it was necessary for him to show what he was, for they did not as yet clearly understand the end, the effect, and the advantages of his coming; but being taken up with a false view of the Law, they laid hold on the shadow instead of the substance. Our business with the Papists is similar in the present day; for they confess with us that Christ is the Son of God, the redeemer who had been promised to the world: but when we come to the reality, we find that they rob him of more than one-half of his power.
Now, the beginning is respecting the dignity of Christ; for it seemed strange to the Jews that the Gospel should be preferred to the Law. And first indeed he settles that point which was in dispute, that the doctrine brought by Christ had the preeminence, for it was the fulfillment of all the prophecies. But as the reverence in which they held Moses might have been a hindrance to them, he shows that Christ was far superior to all others. And after having briefly referred to those things in which he excelled others, he mentions by name the angels, that with them he might reduce all to their proper rank. Thus he advanced prudently in his course; for if he had begun with Moses, his comparison would have been more disliked. But when it appears from Scripture that celestial powers are subordinated to Christ, there is no reason why Moses or any mortal being should refuse to be classed with them, so that the Son of God may appear eminent above angels as well as men.
After having thus brought the angels under the power and dominion of Christ, the Apostle having, as it were, gained confidence, declares that Moses was so much inferior to him as a servant is to his master.
By thus setting Christ in the three first chapters in a supreme state of power, he intimates, that when he speaks all ought to be silent, and that nothing should prevent us from seriously attending to his doctrine. At the same time he sets him forth in the second chapter as our brother in our flesh; and thus he allures us to devote ourselves more willingly to him; and he also blends exhortations and threatening in order to lead those to obedience who are tardy or perversely resist; and he continues in this strain nearly to the end of the fourth chapter.
At the end of the fourth chapter he begins to explain the priesthood of Christ, which abolishes all the ceremonies of the Law. But after having briefly showed how welcome that priesthood ought to be to us, and how gladly we ought to acquiesce in it, he shortly turns aside to reprove the Jews, because they stopped at the first elements of religion like children; and he also terrifies them with a grievous and severe denunciation, that there was danger lest they, if slothful to make progress, should at length be rejected by the Lord. But he presently softens this asperity by saying, that he hoped better things of them, in order that he might encourage them, whom he had depressed, to make progress.
Then [in the seventh chapter] he returns to the priesthood; and first shows that it differed from the ancient priesthood under the Law; secondly, that it was more excellent, because it succeeded it, and was sanctioned by an oath, — because it is eternal, and remains for ever efficacious, — because he who performs its duties is superior in honor and dignity to Aaron and all the rest of the Levitical tribe; and he shows that the type which shadowed forth all things was found in the person of Melchisedec.
And in order to prove more fully that the ceremonies of the Law were abrogated he mentions that the ceremonies were appointed, and also the tabernacle, for a particular end, even that they might get forth the heavenly prototype. Hence it follows, that they were not to be rested in unless we wish to stop in the middle of our course, having no regard to the goal. On this subject he quotes a passage from Jeremiah, in which a new covenant is promised, which was nothing else than an improvement on the old. It hence follows, that the old was weak and fading.
Having spoken of the likeness and similitude between the shadows and the reality exhibited in Christ, he then concludes that all the rituals appointed by Moses have been abrogated by the one only true sacrifice of Christ, because the efficacy of this sacrifice is perpetual, and that not only the sanction of the New Testament is made by it complete, but that it is also a true and a spiritual accomplishment of that external priesthood which was in force under the Law.
To this doctrine he again connects exhortation like a goad, that putting aside all impediments they might receive Christ with due reverence.
As to the many examples he mentions in the eleventh chapter concerning the fathers, they seem to me to have been brought forward for this purpose, — that the Jews might understand, that if they were led from Moses to Christ, they would be so far from departing from the fathers, that they would thus be especially connected with them. For if the chief thing in them was faith, and the root of all other virtues, it follows that this is especially that by which they should be counted the children of Abraham and the Prophets; and that on the other hand all are bastards who follow not the faith of the fathers. And this is no small commendation of the Gospel, that by it we have union and fellowship with the universal Church, which has been from the beginning of the world.
The two last chapters contain various precepts as to the way in which we ought to live: they speak of hope, of bearing the cross, of perseverance, of gratitude towards God, of obedience, of mercy, of the duties of love, of chastity, and of such like things. And lastly, he concludes with prayer, and at the same time gives them a hope of his coming to see them.
God formerly, etc. This beginning is for the purpose of commending the doctrine taught by Christ; for it shows that we ought not only reverently to receive it, but also to be satisfied with it alone. That we may understand this more clearly, we must observe the contrast between each of the clauses. First, the Son of God is set in opposition to the prophets; then we to the fathers; and, thirdly, the various and manifold modes of speaking which God had adopted as to the fathers, to the last revelation brought to us by Christ. But in this diversity he still sets before us but one God, that no one might think that the Law militates against the Gospel, or that the author of one is not the author of the other. That you may, therefore, understand the full import of this passage, the following arrangement shall be given, —
God spake
Formerly by the Prophets
Now by the Son;
Then to the Fathers
But now to us;
Then at various times
Now as at the end of the times.
This foundation being laid, the agreement between the Law and the Gospel is established; for God, who is ever like himself, and whose word is the same, and whose truth is unchangeable, has spoken as to both in common.
But we must notice the difference between us and the fathers; for God formerly addressed them in a way different from that which he adopts towards us now. And first indeed as to them he employed the prophets, but he has appointed his Son to be an ambassador to us. Our condition, then, in this respect, is superior to that of the fathers. Even Moses is to be also classed among the prophets, as he is one of the number of those who are inferior to the Son. In the manner also in which revelation was made, we have an advantage over them. For the diversity as to visions and other means adopted under the Old Testament, was an indication that it was not yet a fixed state of things, as when matters are put completely in order. Hence he says, multifariously and in many ways”. God would have indeed followed the same mode perpetually to the end, had the mode been perfect and complete. It hence follows, that this variety was an evidence of imperfection.
The two words I thus understand: I refer multifariously to a diversity as to times; for the Greek word πολυμερῶς which we may render, “in many parts,” as the case usually is, when we intend to speak more fully hereafter; but πολυτροπῶς points out a diversity, as I think, in the very manner itself. And when he speaks of the last times, he intimates that there is no longer any reason to expect any new revelation; for it was not a word in part that Christ brought, but the final conclusion. It is in this sense that the Apostles take the last times and the last days. And Paul means the same when he says, “Upon whom the ends of the world are come.” (1 Corinthians 10:11.) If God then has spoken now for the last time, it is right to advance thus far; so also when you come to Christ, you ought not to go farther: and these two things it is very needful for us to know. For it was a great hindrance to the Jews that they did not consider that God had deferred a fuller revelation to another time; hence, being satisfied with their own Law, they did not hasten forward to the goal. But since Christ has appeared, an opposite evil began to prevail in the world; for men wished to advance beyond Christ. What else indeed is the whole system of Popery but the overleaping of the boundary which the Apostle has fixed? As, then, the Spirit of God in this passage invites all to come as far as Christ, so he forbids them to go beyond the last time which he mentions. In short, the limit of our wisdom is made here to be the Gospel.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv1–3 The first part of the general proposition of this…
The first part of the general proposition of this Epistle: the Son of God is indeed that Prophet or teacher, which hath actually now performed that that God after a sort and in shadows signified by his Prophets, and hath fully opened his Father’s will to the world.
So that the former declaration made by the Prophets was not full, and nothing must be added to this latter.
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Which one Son is God and man.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv1–3 1 God, who at sundry times and in divers…
1 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
Ver. 1. God who at sundry times, &c.] See my True Treasure.
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God who in times past, &c.] The Hebrews had generally a lighter esteem (though without cause) of the prophets than of the law; and of such of the hooks of Holy Scripture as had not the names of God or Lord in them (as Esther, Canticles, &c.) than of those that had. Our apostle, for more authority’ sake, begins his Epistle with that nomen maiestativum (Tertul.), that holy and reverend name of God, so precious and pleasant to Hebrew ears; and wades at first into that Profundum sine fundo that bottomless depth of divinity: prefixing Θεος, Θεος (as Pausanias testifieth that the ancients even among the heathens were wont to do, in all their sacred writings), the name of God, for a preface, captandi gratia ominis boni, in token and hope of better speed and success.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv1–3 God: the apostle designing the conviction of these Hebrews…
God: the apostle designing the conviction of these Hebrews by this discourse, enters on it solemnly, that if a God can awe them, the consideration of Him should gain credit to his doctrine. The God he speaks of is to be apprehended here personally, as well as essentially; God the Father, the one admirable sovereign, immutable Being, the Author of first and second revelation: order is kept here in the subsistence of the relations, as in their works.
Who at sundry times; polumerwv, by many parts, turns and changes of time, seasons and opportunities, and by many parcels of revelation. God's will was discovered by piecemeal, and not all at once. He vouchsafed one promise to Adam, and so gradually opened further to Enoch, Noah, Abraham, David, pointing out a Christ to come, to come of Abraham's seed in David's family: he discovered here a little, and there a little, Isa 28:13.
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And in divers manners; polutropwv, suitable to the manifold wisdom of God, in divers forms and manners, was his revelation to them; sometimes by sensible representations to them waking, as by angels, fire in the bush, the pillar of fire and cloud: terribly, as at Mount Sinai, Heb 12:18-21. Sometimes by dreams and visions, Num 12:6; by Urim and Thummim, by voice from the ark, by types and signs from heaven, by riddles, and dark speeches, and Levitical ceremonies; sometimes by immediate illapses on the soul, powerfully influencing it with a Divine light.
Spake; revealed and declared infallibly his mind and will concerning the way of man's salvation, which his wisdom contrived and his will decreed.
In time past; all that time past between Adam and Christ, about 4000 years before.
Unto the fathers; the holy ancestors of these Hebrews, from Adam, down along the Old Testament church of God: the believers of old, such as are registered, Heb 11:1-40, and all like them to the times of Christ, from Gen 3:15, to that time.
By the prophets; all those holy men to whom and by whom God revealed his will to his church throughout the successive ages of the Old Testament day; such as were but God's servants, Heb 2:4, and had his will and mind by measure; who as they preached God's will were God's mouth, as they wrote it were God's scribes; as Abel, Enoch, &c. before the flood; Noah before and after; Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, David. &c.; to these did God infallibly declare it, and they did infallibly deliver it to the church by word and writing; God was by gracious inhabitation in them, in their hearts, tongues, and hands, 2Pe 1:21
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain On vv1, 3 Our apostle intending here a comparison between the law…
Our apostle intending here a comparison between the law and the gospel, shews first wherein they both agree, and next wherein they differ.
They agree (first) in this, that God was the author of them both: Both law and gospel received their original from God himself; and God the Father, by way of eminency, was the peculiar author both of law and gospel. God, that God, who spake in times past by the prophets, hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son.
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Observe 2. The difference between the law and gospel, with respect to the manner of their revelation. The revelation of the will of God under the law was,
1. At sundry times: before the flood, by Enoch and Noah; after the flood, by Abraham, by Jacob, by Moses, and all the prophets.
2. In diverse manners; sometimes by a lively voice, sometimes by dreams and visions, sometimes by inspiration and immediate revelation, sometimes by Urim and Thummim, sometimes by signs from heaven.
3. The revelation of the law was made of old, formerly, in times past; this of the gospel was made in these last days.
4. That was made to the fathers, this to us.
5. That revelation was made by the prophets, this by the Son, Jesus Christ.
From the whole, learn, 1. That Almighty God did not leave the world only to the light of nature, and to know him barely valuable blessing of supernatural revelation, thereby to bring mankind to the clearer knowledge of their duty.
Learn, 2. That the revelation which God was pleased to make of himself, his mind, and will, was gradual, and by part, not all at one time, and in one manner, but at sundry times, and in divers manners.
Learn, 3. That the gospel dispensation is the mast perfect revelation of the will of God, which God ever did, of ever will make to the sons of men.
Learn, 4. That as it is a perfect, so likewise a final revelation of God’s mind and will to a lost world: A farther discovery of the mind of God for man’s salvation is not to be expected: The gospel is the last effort which the divine mercy and goodness will make upon mankind, in order to eternal happiness; herein God has spoken to us by his Son: and, if we will not hear him, he will speak no more, we must expect no other: he can send no greater prophet, no dearer person to us than his own Son; and as he can send no greater, so will he send no other: for if we despise him, whom will we reverence? Now, the dignity of this person, our apostle proceeds in this and the next verses to describe:
The title of heir, which is here given to Christ, setteth out his dignity and dominion, together with the right he has to both: namely, that of his sonship; for what is an heir but his father’s successor; Christ, as a Son, being heir of all things, imports, that he is lord of all, and has a sovereign empire and dominion over all persons and things, over all angels and men, whether living or dead.
Learn hence, That God the Father has given and granted unto Christ his Son, and Mediatior and Head of his church, a sovereign power and authority over all persons and things, both in heaven and in earth, to be disposed of by him at his pleasure and according to the sovereign purpose of his will; whom he hath appointed heir of all things.
By whom, not for whom, as the Socinians would suggest; the word signifies the efficient, not the final cause, according to Col 1:16-17 By him were all things created, and by him all things consist. And by him not as an instrument of created cause, for then as an instrument or created cause, for then must he be created by himself, seeing all things were made by him, and nothing made without him, Joh 1:3. But as the principal efficient cause, according to Joh 5:19.
Whatsoever the Father doeth, that doeth also the Son likewise. The Father doth all by the Son, and the Son doth all from the Father. And by making the worlds, we are to understand his forming of the old world, not his reforming of the new: for if so, the apostles might be said to make the worlds, as well as Christ, because they had a principal hand in converting and reforming the world.
But by the worlds here, understand the visible and material worlds, all things in heaven and earth, which were made by Christ, not as a subordinate instrument, but as a primary and principal agent; which sets forth the omnipotent power of Christ, and consequently proves him to be truly and really God.
Learn hence, That the Lord Jesus Christ, by making the world, and all things therein, by his own immediate power, has given a full and ample demonstration of his Divinity, or being essentially and really God.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v1 Here the apostle begins with a general declaration of…
Here the apostle begins with a general declaration of the excellency of the gospel dispensation above that of the law, which he demonstrates from the different way and manner of God's communicating himself and his mind and will to men in the one and in the other: both these dispensations were of God, and both of them very good, but there is a great difference in the way of their coming from God. Observe,
I. The way wherein God communicated himself and his will to men under the Old Testament. We have here an account, 1. Of the persons by whom God delivered his mind under the Old Testament; they were the prophets, that is, persons chosen of God, and qualified by him, for that office of revealing the will of God to men. No man takes this honour to himself, unless called; and whoever are called of God are qualified by him. 2. The persons to whom God spoke by the prophets: To the fathers, to all the Old Testament saints who were under that dispensation. God favoured and honoured them with much clearer light than that of nature, under which the rest of the world were left. 3. The order in which God spoke to men in those times that went before the gospel, those past times: he spoke to his ancient people at sundry times and in divers manners. (1.) At sundry times, or by several parts, as the word signifies, which may refer either to the several ages of the Old Testament dispensation - the patriarchal, the Mosaic, and the prophetic; or to the several gradual openings of his mind concerning the Redeemer: to Adam, that the Messiah should come of the seed of the woman, - to Abraham, that he should spring from his loins, - to Jacob, that he should be of the tribe of Judah, - to David, that he should be of his house, - to Micah, that he should be born at Bethlehem, - to Isaiah, that he should be born of a virgin. (2.) In divers manners, according to the different ways in which God though fit to communicate his mind to his prophets; sometimes by the illapses of his Spirit, sometimes by dreams, sometimes by visions, sometimes by an audible voice, sometimes by legible characters under his own hand, as when he wrote the ten commandments on tables of stone. Of some of these different ways God himself gave an account in Num 12:6-8, If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known to him in a vision, and will speak to him in a dream. Not so with my servant Moses: with him I will speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and not in dark speeches.
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II. God's method of communicating his mind and will under the New Testament dispensation, these last days as they are called, that is, either towards the end of the world, or the end of the Jewish state. The times of the gospel are the last times, the gospel revelation is the last we are to expect from God. There was first the natural revelation; then the patriarchal, by dreams, visions, and voices; then the Mosaic, in the law given forth and written down; then the prophetic, in explaining the law, and giving clearer discoveries of Christ: but now we must expect no new revelation, but only more of the Spirit of Christ to help us better to understand what is already revealed. Now the excellency of the gospel revelation above the former consists in two things: -
1. It is the final, the finishing revelation, given forth in the last days of divine revelation, to which nothing is to be added, but the canon of scripture is to be settled and sealed: so that now the minds of men are no longer kept in suspense by the expectation of new discoveries, but they rejoice in a complete revelation of the will of God, both preceptive and providential, so far as is necessary for them to know in order to their direction and comfort. For the gospel includes a discovery of the great events that shall befall the church of God to the end of the world.
2. It is a revelation which God has made by his Son, the most excellent messenger that was ever sent into the world, far superior to all the ancient patriarchs and prophets, by whom God communicated his will to his people in former times. And here we have an excellent account of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(1.) The glory of his office, and that in three respects: - [1.] God hath appointed him to be heir of all things. As God, he was equal to the Father; but, as God - man and Mediator, he was appointed by the Father to be the heir of all things, the sovereign Lord of all, the absolute disposer, director, and governor of all persons and of all things, Psa 2:6, Psa 2:7. All power in heaven and earth is given to him; all judgment is committed to him, Mat 28:18; Joh 5:22. [2.] By him God made the worlds, both visible and invisible, the heavens and the earth; not as an instrumental cause, but as his essential word and wisdom. By him he made the old creation, by him he makes the new creature, and by him he rules and governs both. [3.] He upholds all things by the word of his power: he keeps the world from dissolving. By him all things consist. The weight of the whole creation is laid upon Christ: he supports the whole and all the parts. When, upon the apostasy, the world was breaking to pieces under the wrath and curse of God, the Son of God, undertaking the work of redemption, bound it up again, and established it by his almighty power and goodness. None of the ancient prophets sustained such an office as this, none was sufficient for it.
(2.) Hence the apostle passes to the glory of the person of Christ, who was able to execute such an office: He was the brightness of his Father's glory, and the express image of his person, Heb 1:3. This is a high and lofty description of the glorious Redeemer, this is an account of his personal excellency. [1.] He is, in person, the Son of God, the only-begotten Son of God, and as such he must have the same nature. This personal distinction always supposes one and the same nature. Every son of man is man; were not the nature the same, the generation would be monstrous. [2.] The person of the Son is the glory of the Father, shining forth with a truly divine splendour. As the beams are effulgent emanations of the sun, the father and fountain of light, Jesus Christ in his person is God manifest in the flesh, he is light of light, the true Shechinah. [3.] The person of the Son is the true image and character of the person of the Father; being of the same nature, he must bear the same image and likeness. In beholding the power, wisdom, and goodness, of the Lord Jesus Christ, we behold the power, wisdom, and goodness, of the Father; for he hath the nature and perfections of God in him. He that hath seen the Son hath seen the Father; that is, he hath seen the same Being. He that hath known the Son hath known the Father, Joh 14:7-9. For the Son is in the Father, and the Father in the Son; the personal distinction is no other than will consist with essential union. This is the glory of the person of Christ; the fulness of the Godhead dwells, not typically, but really, in him.
(3.) From the glory of the person of Christ he proceeds to mention the glory of his grace; his condescension itself was truly glorious. The sufferings of Christ had this great honour in them, to be a full satisfaction for the sins of his people: By himself he purged away our sins, that is, by the proper innate merit of his death and bloodshed, by their infinite intrinsic value; as they were the sufferings of himself, he has made atonement for sin. Himself, the glory of his person and nature, gave to his sufferings such merit as was a sufficient reparation of honour to God, who had suffered an infinite injury and affront by the sins of men.
(4.) From the glory of his sufferings we are at length led to consider the glory of his exaltation: When by himself he had purged away our sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, at his Father's right hand. As Mediator and Redeemer, he is invested with the highest honour, authority, and activity, for the good of his people; the Father now does all things by him, and receives all the services of his people from him. Having assumed our nature, and suffered in it on earth, he has taken it up with him to heaven, and there it has the high honour to be next to God, and this was the reward of his humiliation.
Now it was by no less a person than this that God in these last days spoke to men; and, since the dignity of the messenger gives authority and excellency to the message, the dispensations of the gospel must therefore exceed, very far exceed, the dispensation of the law.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv1–3 God, who at sundry times and in divers manners,....…
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners,.... The apostle begins the epistle with an account of the revelation God has made of his mind and will in former times: the author of this revelation is God, not essentially, but personally considered, even God the Father, as distinguished from his Son in the next verse; for the revelation under the Old Testament is divine, as well as that under the New; in this they both agree, in whatsoever else they differ: and this revelation was made at several times, at different seasons, and to different persons; and consisted of a variety of things relating to doctrine and worship, and concerning the Messiah, his person and office; of whom, at different times, there were gradual discoveries made, both before and after the giving of the law, from the beginning of the world, or the giving forth of the first promise, and in the times of the patriarchs, of: Moses, David, Isaiah, and other prophets: and this was delivered in various manners; sometimes by angels; sometimes in a dream; at other times by a vision; and sometimes by Urim and Thummim: and this he
spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets; by Moses, and other succeeding prophets, as David, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Micah, Zechariah, Malachi, and others; who were sent to the Jewish fathers, the ancestors of the people of the Jews, to whom they prophesied and declared the will of God, as they were moved and inspired by the Holy Ghost: and the apostle suggests, by this way of speaking, that it was a long time since God spake to this people; for prophecy had ceased ever since the times of Malachi, for the space of three hundred years; and this time past includes the whole Old Testament dispensation, from the beginning to the end of it, or of prophecy in it.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv1–3 God, who at sundry times - The creation was…
God, who at sundry times - The creation was revealed in the time of Adam; the last judgment, in the time of Enoch: and so at various times, and in various degrees, more explicit knowledge was given. In divers manners - In visions, in dreams, and by Revelations of various kinds. Both these are opposed to the one entire and perfect Revelation which he has made to us by Jesus Christ. The very number of the prophets showed that they prophesied only "in part." Of old - There were no prophets for a large tract of time before Christ came, that the great Prophet might be the more earnestly expected. Spake - A part is put for the whole; implying every kind of divine communication. By the prophets - The mention of whom is a virtual declaration that the apostle received the whole Old Testament, and was not about to advance any doctrine in contradiction to it. Hath in these last times - Intimating that no other Rev. is to be expected. Spoken - All things, and in the most perfect manner. By his Son - Alone. The Son spake by the apostles. The majesty of the Son of God is proposed,
1. Absolutely, by the very name of Son, verse 1, and by three glorious predicates, - "whom he hath appointed," "by whom he made," who "sat down;" whereby he is described from the beginning to the consummation of all things, ver. 2, 3
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2. Comparatively to angels, ver. 4. The proof of this proposition immediately follows: the name of Son being proved, ver. 5; his being "heir of all things," ver. 6-9; his making the worlds, ver. 10- 12 his sitting at God's right hand, ver. 13, &c.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv1–3 Chronological Notes relative to this Epistle.
THE EPISTLE OF PAUL THE APOSTLE TO THE HEBREWS.
Chronological Notes relative to this Epistle.
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-Year of the Constantinopolitan era of the world, or that used by the Byzantine historians, and other eastern writers, 5571.
-Year of the Alexandrian era of the world, 5565.
-Year of the Antiochian era of the world, 5555.
-Year of the world, according to Archbishop Usher, 4067.
-Year of the world, according to Eusebius, in his Chronicon, 4291.
-Year of the minor Jewish era of the world, or that in common use, 3823.
-Year of the Greater Rabbinical era of the world, 4422
-Year from the Flood, according to Archbishop Usher, and the English Bible, 2411.
-Year of the Cali yuga, or Indian era of the Deluge, 3165.
-Year of the era of Iphitus, or since the first commencement of the Olympic games, 1003.
-Year of the era of Nabonassar, king of Babylon, 810.
-Year of the CCXth Olympiad, 3.
-Year from the building of Rome, according to Fabius Pictor, 810.
-Year from the building of Rome, according to Frontinus, 814.
-Year from the building of Rome, according to the Fasti Capitolini, 815.
-Year from the building of Rome, according to Varro, which was that most generally used, 816.
-Year of the era of the Seleucidae, 375.
-Year of the Caesarean era of Antioch, 111.
-Year of the Julian era, 108.
-Year of the Spanish era, 101.
-Year from the birth of Jesus Christ according to Archbishop Usher, 67.
-Year of the vulgar era of Christ's nativity, 63.
-Year of Albinus, governor of the Jews, 2.
-Year of Vologesus, king of the Parthians, 14.
-Year of Domitius Corbulo, governor of Syria, 4.
-Year of Matthias, high priest of the Jews, 1.
-Year of the Dionysian period, or Easter Cycle, 64.
-Year of the Grecian Cycle of nineteen years, or Common Golden Number, 7; or the second after the second embolismic.
-Year of the Jewish Cycle of nineteen years, 4, or the first after the first embolismic.
-Year of the Solar Cycle, 16.
-Dominical Letter, it being the third after the Bissextile, or Leap Year, B.
-Day of the Jewish Passover, according to the Roman computation of time, the IIId of the calends of April, or, in our common mode of reckoning, the thirtieth of March, which happened in this year on the fourth day after the Jewish Sabbath.
-Easter Sunday, the IIId of the nones of April, named by the Jews the 19th of Nisan or Abib; and by Europeans in general, the 3d of April.
-Epact, or age of the moon on the 22d of March, (the day of the earliest Easter Sunday possible,) 6.
-Epact, according to the present mode of computation, or the moon's age on New Year's day, or the Calends of January, 13.
-Monthly Epacts, or age of the moon on the Calends of each month respectively, (beginning with January,) 13,15,14,15,16,17,18, 19,20,20,22,22.
-Number of Direction, or the number of days from the twenty- first of March to the Jewish Passover, 9.
-Year of the reign of Caius Tiberius Claudius Nero Caesar, the fifth Roman monarch, computing from Octavianus, or Augustus Caesar, properly the first Roman emperor, 10.
-Roman Consuls, C. Memmius Regulus and L. Verginius Rufus.
CHAPTER I.
Different discoveries made of the Divine will to the ancient
Israelites by the prophets, 1.
The discovery now perfected by the revelation of Jesus Christ,
of whose excellences and glories a large description is given,
2-13.
Angels are ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation, 14.
NOTES ON CHAP. I.
Verse 1. God, who at sundry times and in divers manners] We can scarcely conceive any thing more dignified than the opening of this epistle; the sentiments are exceedingly elevated, and the language, harmony itself! The infinite God is at once produced to view, not in any of those attributes which are essential to the Divine nature, but in the manifestations of his love to the world, by giving a revelation of his will relative to the salvation of mankind, and thus preparing the way, through a long train of years, for the introduction of that most glorious Being, his own Son. This Son, in the fulness of time, was manifested in the flesh that he might complete all vision and prophecy, supply all that was wanting to perfect the great scheme of revelation for the instruction of the world, and then die to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself. The description which he gives of this glorious personage is elevated beyond all comparison. Even in his humiliation, his suffering of death excepted, he is infinitely exalted above all the angelic host, is the object of their unceasing adoration, is permanent on his eternal throne at the right hand of the Father, and from him they all receive their commands to minister to those whom he has redeemed by his blood. in short, this first chapter, which may be considered the introduction to the whole epistle is, for importance of subject, dignity of expression, harmony and energy of language, compression and yet distinctness of ideas, equal, if not superior, to any other part of the New Testament.
Sundry times] πολυμερως, from πολυς, many, and περος, a part; giving portions of revelation at different times.
Divers manners] πολυτροπως, from πολυς, many, and τροπος, a manner, turn, or form of speech; hence trope, a figure in rhetoric. Lambert Bos supposes these words to refer to that part of music which is denominated harmony, viz. that general consent or union of musical sounds which is made up of different parts; and, understood in this way, it may signify the agreement or harmony of all the Old Testament writers, who with one consent gave testimony to Jesus Christ, and the work of redemption by him. To him gave all the prophets witness, that, through his name, whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins; Ac 10:43.
But it is better to consider, with Kypke, that the words are rather intended to point out the imperfect state of Divine revelation under the Old Testament; it was not complete, nor can it without the New be considered a sufficiently ample discovery of the Divine will. Under the Old Testament, revelations were made πολυμερως και πολυτροπως, at various times, by various persons, in various laws and forms of teaching, with various degrees of clearness, under various shadows, types, and figures, and with various modes of revelation, such as by angels, visions, dreams, mental impressions, c. See Nu 12:6; Nu 12:8. But under the New Testament all is done απλως, simply, by one person, i.e. JESUS, who has fulfilled the prophets, and completed prophecy who is the way, the truth, and the life; and the founder, mediator, and governor of his own kingdom.
One great object of the apostle is, to put the simplicity of the Christian system in opposition to the complex nature of the Mosaic economy; and also to show that what the law could not do because it was weak through the flesh, Jesus has accomplished by the merit of his death, and the energy of his Spirit.
Maximus Tyrius, Diss. 1, page 7, has a passage where the very words employed by the apostle are found, and evidently used nearly in the same sense: Τῃ του ανθρωπου ψυχῃ δυο οργανων οντων προς συνεσιν, του μεν ἁπλου, ὁν καλουμεν νουν, του δε ποικιλου και πολυμερους και πολυτροπου, ἁς αισθησεις καλουμεν. "The soul of man has two organs of intelligence: one simple, which we call mind; the other diversified, and acting in various modes and various ways, which we term sense."
A similar form of expression the same writer employs in Diss. 15, page 171: "The city which is governed by the mob, πολυφωνον τε ειναι και πολυμερη και πολυπαθη, is full of noise, and is divided by various factions and various passions."
The excellence of the Gospel above the law is here set down in three points:
1. God spake unto the faithful under the Old Testament by Moses and the prophets, worthy servants, yet servants; now the Son is much better than a servant, Heb 1:4.
2. Whereas the body of the Old Testament was long in compiling, being about a thousand years from Moses to Malachi; and God spake unto the fathers by piecemeal, one while raising up one prophet, another while another, now sending them one parcel of prophecy or history, then another; but when Christ came, all was brought to perfection in one age; the apostles and evangelists were alive, some of them, when every part of the New Testament was completely finished.
3. The Old Testament was delivered by God in divers manners, both in utterance and manifestation; but the delivery of the Gospel was in a more simple manner; for, although there are various penmen, yet the subject is the same, and treated with nearly the same phraseology throughout; James, Jude, and the Apocalypse excepted. See Leigh.
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv1–3 Heb 1:1. God, &c. — After the manner of…
Heb 1:1. God, &c. — After the manner of the best writers, the apostle begins this most instructive epistle with proposing the subjects of which he is about to discourse; namely, four important facts, on which the authority of the gospel, as a revelation from God, is built; and which, if well established, should induce unbelievers, whether Jews or Gentiles, to renounce their infidelity and embrace the gospel. Of these facts, the first is, that the same God, who gave the former revelations to the fathers of the Jewish nation, hath in these last days given the gospel to all mankind. This the apostle mentions first of all, to show the agreement of the gospel with the former revelations. For if there were any real opposition between the Jewish and Christian revelations, the authority of one or of both of them would be destroyed; whereas these revelations agreeing in all things, they mutually explain and support each other. Thus in this verse; God, who at sundry times — The creation was revealed in the time of Adam; the last judgment in the time of Enoch; the coming of the Messiah in the time of Abraham, and the following patriarchs; the offices he should sustain, and the process he should go through in accomplishing man’s redemption, in the time of Moses, of David, of Isaiah, and the other prophets; and so at various times more explicit knowledge was given. But the word πολυμερως rather signifies in sundry parts, parcels, or degrees, in opposition to a complete revelation; or the gradual discovery of the mind and will of God, by communications, one after another, as the church could bear the light of them. Thus to Adam, victory over the grand enemy of mankind by the Seed of the woman, was promised: to Abraham, that all mankind should be blessed in him and his seed: to Jacob, that the promised Seed of the woman and of Abraham should be a peaceful Prince, unto whom the gathering of the people should be: by Moses, that he should be an extraordinary Prophet, the disobeying of whom would be punished with certain destruction: by David, that he should be a Priest of a higher order than that of Aaron, and a King in Zion, whose dominion should extend from sea to sea, yea, to the ends of the earth, Psa 72:1; Psa 72:8: by Isaiah, that he should be the Child born, the Son given, and yet the mighty God, of the increase of whose government and peace there should be no end; that he should go through great scenes of suffering, (chap. 53.,) but should expiate sin, and conquer death: by Jeremiah, that he should be the Lord our righteousness: by Ezekiel, the one Shepherd of God’s people, Eze 34:23: by Zechariah, that he should build the spiritual temple, bear the glory, and be a Priest upon his throne; from whence, according to Joel, he should pour out his Spirit in an extraordinary measure upon his disciples: by Haggai and Malachi, that he should come to the temple, built after the return from Babylon, and that awful judgments should follow his coming upon such as rejected him. If (says Dr. Owen) we consider the whole progress of divine revelation from the beginning of the world, we shall find that it comprehends four principal parts or degrees, with such as were subservient to them. The first, made to Adam, was the principle of faith and obedience to the antediluvian fathers, and to this were subservient all the consequent particular revelations before the flood. The second, to Noah after the flood, contained the renewal of the covenant, and establishment of the church in his family, whereunto were subservient the revelations made to Melchizedec (Gen 14:19) and others, before the calling of Abraham. The third, to Abraham, implied a peculiar restriction of the promise to his seed, and a fuller illustration of the nature of it confirmed in the revelations made to Isaac, Jacob, and others of their posterity. The fourth, to Moses, comprehended the giving of the law, and erection of the Jewish Church in the wilderness; to which was principally subservient the revelation made to David, which was peculiarly designed to perfect the Old Testament worship. To which we may add the revelations made to Solomon, and the prophets in their respective days; particularly those who, before and during the captivity, pleaded with the people about their defection by scandalous sins and false worship: and Ezra, with the prophets that assisted in the reformation of the church after its return from Babylon, who in an eminent manner excited the people to expect the Messiah. These were the principal parts and degrees of divine revelation, from the foundation of the world to the coming of Christ, at least until his forerunner, John the Baptist. And by thus reminding the Hebrews, that the will of God was not formerly revealed to his church all at once, by Moses or any other, but by several parts and degrees, by new additions of light, as in his infinite wisdom he saw meet, the apostle clearly convinces them of their mistake in obstinately adhering to the Mosaic institutions. It is as if he had said, Consider the way whereby God revealed his will to the church hitherto. Hath it not been by parts and degrees? Hath he at any time shut up the progress of revelation? Hath he not always kept the church in expectation of new discoveries of his will? Did he ever declare that he would add no more to what he had commanded; or make no alteration in what he had instituted? So far from it, that Moses, when he had finished all his work in the Lord’s house, told the people God would raise up another prophet like unto him, that is, who should reveal new laws and institutions as he had done, whom they were to hear and obey on the penalty of utter extermination, Deu 18:15, &c. But in opposition to this gradual revelation, the apostle intimates that now, by Jesus the Messiah, the Lord had begun and finished the whole revelation of his will, according to their own hopes and expectations.
And in divers manners — By dreams, visions, audible voices, the appearances of angels, of the Lord in a human form, by Urim and Thummim, and the immediate inspiration of his Spirit, 2Pe 1:21; 1Pe 1:11. Or, the expression, divers manners, may refer to the different ways in which the prophets communicated the different revelations which they received to the fathers. They did it in types and figures, significant actions, and dark sayings, as well as in plain language: whereas the gospel revelation was spoken by Christ and his apostles in one manner only, namely, in plain language; and to this one entire and perfect revelation the various, partial, imperfect revelations made before are opposed. Spake in time past — Παλαι, of old, or anciently. The word, taken absolutely, comprises the whole space of time from the giving of the first promise to the end of the Old Testament revelations. Taken as relating to the Jews, it includes the ages intervening between the giving of the law and the death of the last prophet, Malachi, namely, the space of twenty-one jubilees, or near one thousand one hundred years, after which, as the Jews confess, the Spirit of prophecy was taken from Israel. The word spake is put for every kind of divine communication: unto the fathers — The ancestors of the Jewish nation; by the prophets — The mention of whom is a virtual declaration that the apostle received the whole Old Testament as of divine authority, and was not about to advance any doctrine in contradiction to it. Indeed, as he was writing to the Hebrews, many of whom were prejudiced against him as a person who departed from Moses and the prophets, it was an instance of great wisdom in him to signify, at the very beginning of his epistle, that he believed the revelations given by them of old. Thus, by removing one great cause of prejudice from those to whom he wrote, he would open the way for their receiving the doctrines contained in his epistle, a summary of which we have in the two next verses.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv1–3 God who at sundry times - The commencement of…
God who at sundry times - The commencement of this Epistle varies from all the others which Paul wrote. In every other instance he at first announces his name, and the name of the church or of the individual to whom he wrote. In regard to the reason why he here varies from that custom, see the introduction, section 3. This commences with the full acknowledgment of his belief that God had made important revelations in past times, but that now he had communicated his will in a manner that more especially claimed their attention. This announcement was of particular importance here. He was writing to those who had been trained up in the full belief of the truths taught by the prophets. As the object of the apostle was to show the superior claims of the gospel, and to lead them from putting confidence in the rites instituted in accordance with the directions of the Old Testament, it was of essential importance that he should admit that their belief of the inspiration of the prophets was well founded.
He was not an infidel. He was not disposed to call in question the divine origin of the books which were regarded as given by inspiration. He fully admitted all that had been held by the Hebrews on that heart, and yet showed that the new revelation had more important claims to their attention. The word rendered “at sundry times” - πολυμερῶς polumerōs - means “in many parts.” It refers here to the fact that the former revelation had been given in various parts. It had not all been given at once. It had been communicated from time to time as the exigencies of the people required, and as God chose to communicate it. At one time it was by history, then by prophecy, by poetry, by proverbs, by some solemn and special message, etc. The ancient revelation was a collection of various writings, on different subjects, and given at different times; but now God had addressed us by His Son - the one great Messenger who had come to finish the divine communications, and to give a uniform and connected revelation to mankind. The contrast here is between the numerous separate parts of the revelation given by the prophets, and the oneness of that given by his Son. The word does not occur elsewhere in the New Testament.
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And in divers manners - - πολυτρόπως polutropōs. In many ways. It was not all in one mode. He had employed various methods in communicating his will. At one time it was by direct communication, at another by dreams, at another by visions, etc. In regard to the various methods which God employed to communicate his will, see Introduction to Isaiah, section 7. In contradistinction from these, God had now spoken by his Son. He had addressed us in one uniform manner. It was not by dreams, or visions; it was a direct communication from him. The word used here, also, occurs nowhere else in the New Testament.
In times past - Formerly; in ancient times. The series of revelations began, as recorded by Moses, with Adam Gen. 3, and terminated with Malachi - a period of more than three thousand five hundred years. From Malachi to the time of the Saviour there were no recorded divine communications, and the whole period of written revelation, or when the divine communications were recorded from Moses to Malachi, was about a thousand years.
Unto the fathers - To our ancestors; to the people of ancient times.
By the prophets - The word “prophet” in the Scriptures is used in a wide signification. It means not only those who predict future events, but these who communicate the divine will on any subject. See Rom 12:6 note; 1Co 14:1 note. It is used here in that large sense - as denoting all those by whom God had made communications to the Jews in former times.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv1–3 At different times,[1] and in many ways. The first…
At different times,[1] and in many ways. The first word signifies that God revealed the incarnation of his Son, as it were, by parcels, and by degrees, at different times, and to different persons, to Adam, to Abraham, to Moses, to David, &c. The latter word expresseth the different ways and manners, as by angels, by immediate inspirations, and revelations, by types, figures, and ceremonies.[2] --- Last of all, by his Son, this true, natural, eternal Son, of whom we must always take notice, that being both true God, and true man, by the union of the divine and human nature to one and the same divine person, St. Paul speaks of him sometimes as God, sometimes mentions what applies to him as man, sometimes as our Redeemer, both God and man. This must necessarily happen in speaking of Christ; but when we find things that cannot be understood of one that is a pure or mere man only, or that cannot be true but of him, who is truly God, these are undeniable proofs against the errors of the Arians and Socinians. (Witham)
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[BIBLIOGRAPHY]
Multifariam, Greek: polumeros; which signifies, that God revealed the coming of his Son as it were by parts and parcels, or by degrees, first revealing some things and then others.
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[BIBLIOGRAPHY]
Novissime, Greek: ep echatou, which reading Dr. Wells prefers before that in the ordinary Greek copies, which have Greek: ep echaton ton emeron, followed by the Protestant translation and Mr. N.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
John Nelson Darby 1862 · Public Domain On v1 Hebrews Chapter 1
Hebrews Chapter 1
We have said that in chapter 1 we find the glory of the Person of the Messiah, the Son of God, by whom God has spoken to the people. When I say “to the people”, it is evident that we understand the Epistle to be addressed to the believing remnant, partakers, it is said, of the heavenly calling, but considered as alone holding the true place of the people.
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It is a distinction given to the remnant, in view of the position which the Messiah took in connection with His people, to whom in the first instance He came. The tried and despised remnant, viewed as alone really having their place, are encouraged, and their faith is sustained by the true glory of their Messiah, hidden from their natural eyes, and the object of faith only.
“God” (says the inspired writer, placing himself among the believers of the beloved nation). “has spoken to us in the person of his Son.” Psa 2:1-12 should have led the Jews to expect the Son, and they ought to have formed a high idea of His glory from Isa 9:1-21, and other scriptures, which in fact were applied to the Messiah by their teachers, as the rabbinical writings still prove. But that He should be in heaven, and not have raised His people to the possession of earthly glory-this did not suit the carnal state of their hearts.
Now it is heavenly glory, this true position of the Messiah and His people, in connection with His divine right to their attention and to the worship of the angels themselves, which is so admirably presented here, where the Spirit of God brings out, in so infinitely precious a manner, the divine glory of Christ, for the purpose of exhorting His people to belief in a heavenly position; at the same time setting forth in what follows His perfect sympathy with us, as man in order to maintain their communion with heaven in spite of the difficulties of their path on earth.
Thus, although the assembly is not found in the Epistle to the Hebrews, save in an allusion to all comprised in the millennial glory in chapter 12, the Saviour of the assembly is there presented in His Person, His work, and His priesthood, most richly to our hearts and to our spiritual intelligence; and the heavenly calling is in itself very particularly developed.
It is also most interesting to see the way in which the work of our Saviour, accomplished for us, forms a part of the manifestation of His divine glory.
“God has spoken in the Son,” says the inspired author of our Epistle. He is then this Son. First He is declared Heir of all things. It is He who is to possess gloriously as Son everything that exists. Such are the decrees of God. Moreover it is by Him that God created the worlds. [4] All the vast system of this universe, those unknown worlds that trace their paths in the vast regions of space in divine order to manifest the glory of a Creator-God, are the work of His hand who has spoken to us, of the divine Christ.
In Him has shone forth the glory of God: He is the perfect impress of His being. We see God in Him, in all that He said, in all that He did, in His Person. Moreover by the power of His word He upholds all that exists. He is then the Creator. God is revealed in His Person. He sustains all things by His word, which has thus a divine power. But this is not all (for we are still speaking of the Christ); there is another part of His glory, divine indeed, yet manifested in human nature. He who was all this which we have just seen when He had by Himself (accomplishing His own glory [5] and for His glory) wrought purification of our sins, seated Himself at the right hand of the Majesty on high. Here is in full the personal glory of Christ. He is in fact Creator, the revelation of God, the upholder of all things by His word, He is the Redeemer. He has by Himself purged our sins; has seated Himself at the right hand of the Majesty on high. It is the Messiah who is all this. He is the Creator-God, but He is a Messiah who has taken His place in the heavens at the right hand of Majesty, having accomplished the purification of our sins. We perceive how this exhibition of the glory of Christ, the Messiah, whether personal of that of position, would being whoever believed in it out of Judaism, while linking itself with the Jewish promises and hopes. He is God, He has come down from heaven, He has gone up thither again.
Now those who attached themselves to Him found themselves, in another respect also, above the Jewish system. That system was ordained in connection with angels; but Christ has taken a position much higher than that of angels, because He has for His own proper inheritance a name (that is, a revelation of what He is) which is much more excellent than that of angels. Upon this the author of this Epistle quotes several passages from the Old Testament which speak of the Messiah, in order to shew that which He is in contrast with the nature and the relative position of angels. The significance of these passages to a converted Jew is evident, and we readily perceive the adaptation of the argument to such, for the Jewish economy was under the administration of angels, according to their own belief-a belief fully grounded on the word. [6] And, at the same time, it was their own scriptures which proved that the Messiah was to have a position much more excellent and exalted than that of angels, according to the rights that belonged to Him by virtue of His nature, and according to the counsels and revelation of God: so that they who united themselves to Him were brought into connection with that which entirely eclipsed the law and all that related to it, and to the Jewish economy which could not be separated from it, and whose glory was angelic in character. The glory of Christianity-and he speaks to those who acknowledged Jesus to be the Christ-was so much above the glory of the law, that the two could not be really united.
The quotations begin by that from Psa 2:1-12. God, it is written, has never said to any of the angels, “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee.” It is this character of Sonship, proper to the Messiah which, as a real relationship, distinguishes Him. He was from eternity the Son of the Father; but it is not precisely in this point of view that He is here considered. The name expresses the same relationship, but it is to the Messiah born on earth that this title is here applied. For Psa 2:1-12, as establishing Him as King in Zion, announces the decree which proclaims His title. “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee,” is His relationship in time, with God. It depends, I doubt not , on His glorious nature; but this position for man was acquired by the miraculous birth of Jesus here below, and demonstrated as true and determined in its true import by His resurrection. In Psa 2:1-12 the testimony borne to this relationship is in connection with His kingship in Zion, but it declares the personal glories of the king acknowledged of God. By virtue of the rights connected with this title, all kings are summoned to submit themselves to Him. This psalm then is speaking of the government of the world, when God establishes the Messiah as King in Zion, and not of the gospel. But in the passage quoted (Heb 1:5), it is the relationship of glory in which He subsists with God, the foundation of His rights, which is set forth, and not the royal rights themselves.
This is likewise the case in the next quotation: “I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son.” Here we plainly see that it is the relationship in which He is with God, in which God accepts and owns Him, and not His eternal relationship with the Father: “will be to him a Father,” & etc. Thus it is still the Messiah, the King in Zion, the Son of David; for these words are applied in the first place to Solomon, as the son of David. (2Sa 7:14 and 1Ch 17:13.) In this second passage the application of the expression to the true son of David is more distinct. A relationship so intimate (expressed, one may say, with so much affection) was not the portion of angels. The Son of God, acknowledged to be so by God Himself-this is the portion of the Messiah in connection with God. The Messiah then is the Son of God in an altogether peculiar way, which could not be applied to angels.
But still more:-when God introduces the Firstborn into the world, all the angels are called to worship Him. God presents Him to the world; but the highest of created beings must then cast themselves at His feet. The angels of God Himself-the creatures that are nearest to Him-must do homage to the Firstborn. This last expression also is remarkable. The Firstborn is the Heir, the beginning of the manifestation of the glory and power of God. It is in this sense that the word is used. It is said of the Son of David, “I will make him my firstborn, higher than the kings of the earth.” (Psa 89:27) Thus the Messiah is introduced into the world as holding this place with regard to God Himself. He is the Firstborn-the immediate expression of the rights and the glory of God. He has universal preeminence.
Such is, so to speak, the positional glory of the Messiah. Not only Head of the people on earth, as Son of David, nor even only the acknowledged Son of God on the earth, according to Psa 2:1-12, but the universal Firstborn; so that the chief and most exalted of creatures, those nearest to God, the angels of God, the instruments of His power and government, must do homage to the Son in this His position.
Yet this is far from being all; and this homage itself would be out of place if His glory were not proper to Himself and personal, if it were not connected with His nature. Nevertheless that which we have before us in this chapter is still the Messiah as owned of God. God tells us what He is. Of the angels He says, “He maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.” He does not make His Son anything: He recognises that which He is, saying, “Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever.” The Messiah may have an earthly throne (which also is not taken from Him, but which ceases by His taking possession of an eternal throne), but He has a throne which is for ever and ever.
The sceptre of His throne, as Messiah, is a sceptre of righteousness. Also, He has, when here below personally loved righteousness and hated iniquity: therefore God has anointed Him with the oil of gladness above His fellows. These companions are the believing remnant of Israel, whom He has made by grace His fellows, although (perfectly well-pleasing to God by His love of righteousness-and that, at all costs) He is exalted above them all. This is a remarkable passage, because, while on the one hand the divinity of the Lord is fully established as well as His eternal throne, on the other hand the passage comes down to His character as the faithful man on earth, where He made pious men-the little remnant of Israel who waited for redemption, His companions; at the same time it gives Him (and it could not be otherwise) a place above them.
The text then returns to the glory given Him as Man, having the preeminence here as in all things.
I have already remarked elsewhere that while, as we read in (Zec 13:7), Jehovah recognises as His fellow the humbled man, against whom His sword awakes to smite; here where the divinity of Jesus is set forth, the same Jehovah owns the poor remnant of believers as the fellows of the divine Saviour. Marvelous links between God and His people!
Already then in these remarkable testimonies He has the eternal throne and the sceptre of righteousness: He is recognised as God although a man, and glorified above all others as the regard of righteousness.
But the declaration of His divinity, the divinity of the Messiah, must be more precise. And the testimony is of the greatest beauty. The Psalm that contains it is one of the most complete expressions we find in scripture of the sense which Jesus had of His humiliation on earth, of His dependence on Jehovah, and that, having been raised up as Messiah from among men, He was cast down and His days shortened. If Zion were re-built (and the Psalm speaks prophetically of the time when it shall take place), where would He be, Messiah as He was, if, weakened and humbled, He was cut off in the midst of His days (as was the case)? In a word, it is the prophetic expression of the Saviour’s heart in the prospect of that which happened to Him as a man on the earth, the utterance of His heart to Jehovah, in those days of humiliation, in presence of the renewed affection of the remnant for the dust of Zion-and affection which the Lord had produced in their hearts, and which was therefore a token of His good-will and His purpose to re-establish it. But how could a Saviour who was cut off have part in it? (a searching question for a believing Jew, tempted on that side). The words here quoted are the answer to this question. Humbled as He might be, He was the Creator Himself. He was ever the same; [7] His years could never fail. It was He who had founded the heavens: He would fold them up as a garment, but He Himself would never change.
Such then is the testimony rendered to the Messiah by the scriptures of the Jews themselves-the glory of His position above angels who administered the dispensation of the law; His eternal throne of righteousness; His unchangeable divinity as Creator of all things.
One thing remained to complete this chain of glory-that is, the place occupied at present by Christ, in contrast still with the angels (a place that depends , on the one hand, upon the divine glory of His Person; on the other, upon the accomplishment of His work). And this place is at the right hand of God, who called Him to sit there until He had made His enemies His footstool. Not only in His Person glorious and divine, not only does He hold the first place with regard to all creatures in the universe (we have spoken of this, which will take place when He is introduced into the world), but He has His own place at the right hand of the Majesty in the heavens. To which of the angels has God ever said this? They are servants on God’s part to the heirs of salvation.
Footnotes for Hebrews Chapter 1
4: A particular interpretation has, by some, been given to the word “aion” translated “worlds;” but it is certain that the word is used by the LXX-Septuagint (that is, in Hellenistic or scriptural Greek) for the physical worlds.
5: The Greek verb has here a peculiar form, which gives it a reflective sense, causing the thing done to return into the doer, throwing back the glory of the thing done upon the one who did it.
6: See Psa 68:17, Act 7:53, Gal 3:19
7: The words translated “Thou art the same,” (‘Atta Hu’) are by many learned Hebraists taken-at least ‘Hu’-as a name of God. At any rate, as unchangeably the same, it amounts to it. The not failing years are endless duration when become a man.
John Nelson Darby — Synopsis of the Books of the Bible: the New Testament (c. 1857–1862) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On v1 The elevation of the New Testament Mediator as Son…
PART FIRST
The elevation of the New Testament Mediator as Son above all other mediators of Revelation and Redemption
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FIRST SECTION
ELEVATION OF JESUS CHRIST ABOVE THE PROPHETS AND ABOVE THE ANGELS, THE MEDIATORS OF THE OLD TESTAMENT
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I
The final Revelation of God has been made in the Son, the perfect Mediator, elevated above all, and exalted over all, whose preëminence above the Angels is indicated even in their respective names.
Heb_1:1-4
1God who at sundry times [in many parts] and in divers manners [many ways] spake in time past [of old, πάλαι] unto the fathers by [in, ἐν] the prophets, 2hath in these last days1 spoken [spake in the closing period of these days] unto us by [in] his Son, whom 3 he2 hath [om. hath] appointed heir of all things, by whom also he [he also]3 made the worlds; who, being the brightness of his glory, and the express image [impression] of his person [substance], and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself4 purged our [after making a cleansing of] sins, sat down on the4 right hand of the Majesty on high; being made [becoming] so much better than [κρείττων, mightier than, superior to] the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained [hath inherited] a more excellent name than they.
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Heb_1:1. In many parts, and in many ways.—Although the rich and full-sounding words [πολυμερῶς καὶ πολυτρόπως] which open the Epistle, form an evidently intended and favorite assonance, they are by no means to be regarded (as by Chrys. and Thol.) as a mere rhetorical expansion of one and the same thought. We must rather recognize in them the characteristic peculiarities of the Old Testament revelations. For πολυμερῶς (in many parts) points not merely to the external, manifold diversity of the revelation at different times and in different persons (Bl.), or to its quantitative succession (Del.), but to the fact that by none of the many prophets, whether appearing in succession or contemporaneously, was the counsel of God revealed perfectly and in undivided fulness, but only fragmentarily and in a manifold diversity of parts. The entire prophetic function of humanity bears the characteristic “in part” (ἐκ μέρους, 1Co_13:9). From this is to be distinguished a multiplicity of modes (τρόποι), the diversity in the forms and methods of the revelation made to the fathers. In view of this connection, we are not to refer the term to the different forms of divine communication made to the prophets themselves, as “by dreams, visions from mouth to mouth” (Num_12:6 ff.); but partly to the distinction of law and prophecy, doctrine and exhortation, warning and consolation, threatening and promise in the prophetic discourses; partly to the diversity—conditioned by personal individuality—in the modes of teaching of an Isaiah and an Ezekiel, a Moses and a David. Both adverbs awaken at once in the reader the thought that a Revelation of such character cannot be final and perfect, but needs supplementing and completion. Kluge finds also in the words, the painstaking solicitude of the Divine instructions.
In time past.—Πάλαι points to the fact that the Old Testament revelation has long since past, having come with Malachi to its canonical conclusion; so that nothing was henceforth to be expected but the coming of him who was predicted by that prophet, the “messenger of the covenant” who immediately preceded the coming of the Lord Himself. The ‘Fathers’ to whom the prophetic words were addressed, are the forefathers of the Jews. Sir. xliv.; Acts iii. 22; Rom. ix. 5.
In the Prophets.—The contrasted ἐνυἱῷ forbids our referring this to the prophetic writings (Fr. Schmidt, Stein). Further, we are neither to supply ὤν, being, nor to take ἐν instrumentally (Chrys., Luth., Calv., Grot., Thol., Ebr., Del.). This construction is commonly taken as an Hebraism: so Del. compares 1Sa_28:6, 2Sa_23:2 : דִּבֵּר בְּ. Others, as Thol., point to a similar use of ἐν in the classics (Bern hardy’s Synt. 210). But ἐν, according to Kühner, § 600, 3, admits instrumentality only in connection with things, 5 and neither our author’s style nor the sense form here a deviation from the customary import of ἐν. For He who speaks is God. The prophets are the organs of His revelation, completely controlled by Him, and in whom His own utterances are heard. This presupposes a transient indeed and indirect, but still real union of God with the prophets. But this union is not an essential, and as it were, metaphysical entrance into human nature, nor a settled, peaceful indwelling of God in the prophets wrought through the Spirit; but a divine activity in the prophets, coinciding and blending itself with the prophetic utterance. Precisely for this reason the prophets could never become to the fathers a proper manifestation of God, could never become a Theophany. They were, as shown by the λαλήσας (spoke), the tongues of God, and even the form of the prophetic utterances is the result of God’s purpose and agency, and must not be regarded as something barely human and separable from its divine subject-matter. Precisely for this reason could Paul argue (Gal_3:16,) from the form as such. Finally, the word prophet is here used in the broader sense, which extends the name to Abraham (Gen_20:7), and the patriarchs generally (Psa_105:15); as also to Moses (Deu_34:10).
At the end of these days.—The expression ἐπ ἐσχάτου τῶν ἡμερῶυ τούτων, at the end of these days is rightly to be understood only as a terminus technicus in connection with the Hebrew בְּאַחֲרִית הַיָּמִים (at the end of the days). These words, which originally pointed only to the future, became, on account of their frequent connection with Messianic prophecies, a standing designation for the Messianic time, which brings to an end the עוֹלָם הַזֶּה αἰὼν οὖτος and introduces the coming age עוֹלָם הַבָּא αἰὼν μέλλων as the period, commencing with the resurrection, of the glorious manifestation of the kingdom of God. In the Jewish conception this period coincided with the appearance of the Messiah.
Since this was looked for in the “time of the end,” Dan_8:17-19, or “at the end of time,” Dan_12:13, to the Christian conception this divides itself into two sections of which the first commences with the appearance of Jesus Christ in the flesh, the second with the reappearance of Him who has been exalted at the right hand of God. The two divisions stood in the contemplation and hope of the early church, in close proximity, and were essentially identical: for the latter contains only the complete manifestation of what was essentially and substantively commenced in the former: Col_3:3-4. The expression ‘last days’ (ἔσχαται ἡμέραι) Jam_5:3, comprehends therefore the whole time from the birth of Jesus Christ to His second coming, which takes place in the καιρὸς ἔσχατος 1Pe_1:5 after the accomplishment, ‘in the last times,’ ἐν ὑστέροις καιροῖς (1Ti_4:1), of the signs preceding His second coming. Then all promises receive their final fulfilment, Heb_11:40; Heb_12:28; and for believers their entrance into rest (κατάπαυσις Heb_4:4; Heb_4:11), and into the Sabbatism (σαββατισμός Heb_4:10) is accomplished at the same time with their emancipation into the glorious freedom of the children of God, Rom_8:21. Thus the first coming of Jesus Christ falls “at the end of the times” (ἐπ’ ἐσχάτου τῶν χρόνων), 1Pe_1:20, when the “fulness of time” (πλήρωμα τῶν χρόνων) had come, Gal_4:4. Precisely for this reason does Peter recognize in the miracle of the Pentecost (Act_2:17), the fulfilment of a prophecy in regard to that which was to happen “in the last days” (ἐν ταῖς ἐσχάταις ἡμέραις); as elsewhere the appearance of certain heretical teachers recalls prophecies in regard to the ‘end of time’ (Judges 18), or ‘of the days’ (2Pe_3:3). The οἱκουμένη μέλλουσα (coming world) which is subjected not to angels, but to the Lord, (Heb_2:5) or the new order of things, (the season of rectification, καιρὸς διορθώσεως), Heb_9:10, commences, therefore, with the founding of the Christian church; and believers have since their conversion tasted along with the word of God, the “powers of the world to come,” Heb_6:5. For Christ appeared for the doing away of sins by the sacrifice of Himself, “at the consummation of the ages” (ἐπὶ συντελείᾳ αἰώνων, Heb_9:26.) There is, thus, now nothing to be looked for but the second coming, 1Th_4:15. Already has the “last time” (ἐσχάτη ὥρα) begun, 1Jn_2:18. The expression has not a chronological, but a doctrinal and moral import. When, therefore, it is said that God has spoken in the Son, ἐπ̓ ἐσχάτου ἡμερῶν τούτων, the expression cannot, viewed with reference either to the language or to the fact, mean “at last in these days” (Vulg., Luth., Dav. Schulz). The ἡμέραι αὖται, these days, are not the days in which the readers and the author live, but they correspond to the αἰὼν οὖτος this age or time, and ἐπ̓ ἐσχάτου is to be taken as neuter, indicating the close of the ante-Messianic time. The demonstrative points not to a chronological, but to a doctrinal conception. So also ἡμῖν denotes, in contrast with the ‘fathers,’ the author with his readers as belonging to the Christian period.
In the Son.—The absence of the article before υἱῷ has its ground not in the fact that υἱός can be used of Christ after the manner of a proper name, and thus be determined in itself (Böhme, Bloomf., Del., Riehm), which none can doubt, but in the fact that it is here not the individual, whom the author would signalize, but the character, or relation. In distinction from the well-known prophets, the organ of God’s utterances at the close of the ages is one who stands to God in the relation of Son. Thus we have no longer to do with a continuance of God’s prophetic oracles; but with a form of divine revelation specifically different from all that preceded it, yet maintaining its organic connection with them by the fact of its proceeding from the same God who spoke to the Fathers.
Heb_1:2. Appointed.—It were possible (with Bengel, Bleek, Lönemann) to understand this of an appointment in the divine purpose and counsel. But the connection of the clauses is not such as to indicate an enumeration of the several stages from the ante-temporal act of destining the pre-existing Son to be the inheritor of all things, to the actual fulfilment of this purpose in the redemption wrought by the Incarnated Word. The question evidently is rather of the historical Mediator of the Divine Revelation, who stands in the relation of Son. The import of this term it is now the special purpose of the writer to unfold, and this the more, in that, on the one hand, the term ‘Son of God’ has in the Old Testament itself a different signification; and, on the other, that he has hitherto spoken of that prophetic revelation of God which expresses itself in the word. For this reason he adds two clauses by way of specially defining the term Son, each of which expresses in its own peculiar manner this Son’s uniqueness of nature and infinite elevation. He is the Ruler who being worshipped as Lord (κύριος), has been by right of inheritance, and thus legitimately and by virtue of His divine Sonship, exalted to this dignity. And this exaltation is no apotheosis: no elevation of a man (as Socinianism would have it) to a divine position and dignity; it corresponds to the relation which this personage sustained to God before the ages. The Mediator of God’s final revelation in His word, is also the Mediator of the exercise of His power in creation. Thus through the relative (ὅς, who) the discourse passes over from God, the subject of the preceding clauses, to this mediator as subject of the following. In these the term ἐκάθισεν points to the joint agency of Christ in the act of His exaltation: while the participial clauses preceding bring out the indispensable and vital points of the Son’s having taken His place at the right hand of God only after accomplishing the work of redemption, and under what essential attributes of His person and agency (what being and what doing) all this has been accomplished. The participial clause ποιησάμενος (after making, etc.) gives the work which in perfect freedom the Son has accomplished before His exaltation; the participial clause γενόμενος (becoming so much greater, etc.) describes the position and recognition awarded to Him in consequence of that work; while the two participial clauses ὤν and φέρων (being, etc., and ‘bearing’ or ‘upholding,’ etc.) indicated by the closely connecting particle τε as standing in intimate relationship, and designedly placed before the others, express the unoriginated and unchangeable, and thus eternal and identical being and agency of the Mediator of Redemption and Creation. We must not deny (with Lün.) that also these latter clauses have to do with the manifested Messiah. But from this it follows neither that, as descriptive of the personal qualities of Christ, they assign the internal ground of His exaltation (de Wette), nor that they characterize the Son in the inmost and essential ground of His absolute personality (Del.), nor that referring to Him presumably merely as the exalted one, they point to merely economical relations in the accomplishment of redemption (V. Hofmann, Schriftbeweis, 2d ed. 1. p. 140 ff.). They point us rather to the unchangeable essence, the ever uniform and invariable activity of the Mediator of the New Covenant. They contain “a characteristic of the Son, as designating that nature which belongs peculiarly to Christ in each and all of His various modes of existence.” (Riehm, I. 278). For the Pres. Part. marks not in itself any independent time but simply co-ordinates the action with that of the principal verb. But if, as here, the principal verb is past, the contemporaneous action in the subordinate clause is expressed not by the Pres. but by the Imperf. The Present characterizes by pointing to permanent features and essential attributes.
The worlds.—As no trace of controversy with Gnostic notions of Æons and Angels, held by Jews, is found elsewhere in our epistle, we must, were it even for this reason, decline to refer the αἰῶνες here to angels (as earlier expositors with Wolf). The passage Heb_11:3 proves also that αἰῶνες cannot signify secular periods (Chrys.), still less the two cardinal epochs of the world’s history, the Mosaic and the Christian (Bolten, Paulus, Stolz, Stein), but only the world as existing and moving in time. Its parallel is found in the Old Testament הָעוֹלָמִים which (from עָלַם, to veil, hide,) signifies originally only successive periods of time lying beyond the vision, but in the writings of the Rabbins, the worlds as the hidden, unfathomable, concrete product and expression of the hidden, unfathomable ages of time. The transition in signification is found Ecc_3:11. As, however, αἰών never signifies time or eternity in the abstract, but both only under the category of progress and movement in which spiritual forces are active, so with the relation of this word to the idea of the world. It denotes the world not as the mere aggregate of all things, the universe, (τὰ πάντα), not as the manifold variety of things wrought into an organic unity and harmony (κόσμος); nor again the world in its materiality, perishableness, and vanity; but as a system of spiritual relations and powers in whose phenomena we may discern the νοούμενα, Rom_1:20. These invisible, spiritual and permanent potencies of the phenomenal world are no individual Angels and Æons, no powers independently fashioning the world, and no world of Ideas after whose model God was constrained to fashion and to build the world of phenomena. Rather God has formed these through His Son, and according to Heb_11:3, arranged and reduced them to order by His creative word. It is these αἰῶνες which, amidst all phenomenal vicissitudes and fluctuations, and the ceaseless passing away of individual existences, remain permanent in the world. But Jehovah is ὁ θεὸς τῶν αἰώνων, Sir_36:19; ὁ βασιλεὺς τῶν αἰώνων (Tob_13:6; Tob_13:10; 1Ti_1:17). The emphasis in our passage lies not on the fact that God through the Son has made also (=even) the Æons, but that in connexion with the fact that He constituted or appointed the Son heir of the worlds, we are also to look at the fact that through Him He made (ἐποίησεν) the world.
Heb_1:3. Beaming image.—Ἀπαὑγασμα is by Bleek following previous interpreters (as Clarius, Schlichting, Capellus, Gerhard, Calov., Böhme), explained as effulgence, beaming or shining forth; but the form of the word would lead us to take it passively. We might hence (with Erasm., Calv., Bez., Grot., etc.) refer it to the image, the form received and reflected in a mirror. More exactly, however, it denotes the distinct, concrete result of the beaming or shining forth (Lob., Paralip. 396, Krüger, Gr. Gram. 191); so that according to Lün. it involves a threefold idea: 1. that of independent existence; 2. that of origin or descent; 3. that of likeness. Δόξα denotes the resplendent glory of God’s majesty as the means by which He makes a revelation of Himself, and claims the adoring recognition of His creatures. In Christ this glory is received and concentrated in an individual, personal image, rayed or beamed forth, as it were, from the Deity, and itself, therefore, beaming forth its brightness in turn. This beaming image is thus no mere mirrored reflection, no fleeting phenomenon produced merely for a specific and definite purpose. It has expressed in it the essential being of God, just as the figure or image is contained in the die. The numerous significations of ὑπόστασις may be reduced to four fundamental ones: 1. underplacing, underlaying, hence, foundation, basis, substruction, support, even sediment; 2. the fact of putting one’s self under a thing, taking it upon one’s self; hence, firmness, steadfastness, confidence of spirit, enterprise, determination; 3. that which lies at the basis as the proper object, or subject matter of a discourse or narrative; 4. real being in contrast with fancy and illusion; hence, essence, substance. Since now every real being has a special mode of existence corresponding to its essence, the term ὑπόστασις could become a doctrinal terminus ecclesiasticus for the trinitarian distinction in the existence of God=πρόσωπον, persona, and so many interpreters explain it here, even Calvin, Beza, Gerhard, Calov., Thom. Aquinas, Bellarmine, and Corn. a Lapide. This signification of the word, however, belongs demonstrably to a later ecclesiastical usage. We must refer the term, therefore, to the essential being of God, as Philo employs it as a synonym of οὐσία, and the Vulgate translates figura substantiæ ejus, or still better Origen de Princip. iHebrews Heb_1:2; Heb_1:8, figura expressa substantiæ. For the etymology of χαραλτήρ points at all events to a means by which a thing is made recognizable or even valid in exchange, and that by stamped or engraved marks. The word, however, never denotes the stamped figure or impression itself, but only the means for it. It may thus denote partly the features or marks which in general are the means of recognition, and partly may indicate the stamp itself; but this not merely as the external instrument, or tool for stamping, but as bearing in itself the form to be impressed, and having the destination and capacity by means of this of making the impression. In this sense Philo (ed. Mangey I. p. 332) calls the rational soul a genuine coin which has obtained its οὐσία and its τύπος from that seal of God whose χαρακτήρ is the eternal Logos.
Bearing.—The character of the discourse will not allow our transforming the idea of φέρειν, bearing, into that of maintaining and governing. And, moreover, not merely do the later Jews frequently make use of this language, that God bears the worlds with His power and with the arm of His strength, but also Paul expresses a kindred idea thus: “all things consist (συνέστηκεν) in him,” Col_1:17. On the other hand this φέρειν must not be conceived as a mere passive bearing (portare); for the Son sustains no merely external relation to the world, nor in His action upon it merely puts forth His power in a manner like that ascribed to those who bore the heavens and the structure of the universe in the old mythologies; He acts through the word of His power. The ‘Word’ is not here that of the Gospel (Socin.) although his (αὐτοῦ) refers not to God (Cyril, Grot., etc.) but to the Son. It is the word in which the power essential to the Son utters itself, with which power it is itself fraught. The utterance of the Son, by which the world is upheld in its unity, and carried forward to the accomplishment of its purposes, is parallel to the creative word of God in the account of creation. The idea of bearing thus passes over into the active conception of gerere (carrying forward), of a sustaining movement and guidance which works upon and within it by an overmastering, spiritual agency. In this sense the prophets are said (2Pe_2:4) to be φερόμενοι ὐπὸ πνεύματος ἁγίου, and the Sept. thus uses φέρειν, Num_11:14; Deu_1:9.
Purification.—The expression, “making a purification of sins,” refers not to an altered condition of the world wrought through the ministry of Christ, nor to a moral renovation of the human race effected in consequence of that ministry, but to the accomplished work of redemption in removing the hinderances created by sin to our intercourse with God. The form of expression is drawn from that Levitical worship in which only pure Israelites were permitted to take part. God, that is to say, has separated His people for His service, Lev_20:7; Num_16:5; that they may be His sanctified ones, His Saints, Psa_16:3; Pro_30:3. But the Saints are to be not merely corporeally pure, Exo_19:20; Deu_23:12-14; 1Sa_16:5, but also Levitically pure, Lev_11:44, since it is the business of those whom God has set apart from the nations as His possession, to observe the distinctions between the “clean” and the “unclean,” which He Himself has established, Lev_20:24-26. Even though in all these arrangements we may not be able specially to refer back to death and corruption, as permanent tokens and memorials of sin (as Sommer has with great acuteness attempted (Bibl. Treatises, Bonn, 1846, p. 183–367), still to the ceremonially defiled, equally as to the sinner, participation in the service was allowed only in consequence of priestly mediation on the ground of sacrifice, and thus alone access to God and appearance in His presence were rendered possible. To this our text refers, which, by the addition of τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν, of sins (gen. obj. Exo_30:10; Job_7:21; comp. Mat_8:3), points specially to the purification from all sins, Lev_16:30, which was made on the great day of atonement, and thus brings as definitely before the reader the high-priestly work of Christ as the words immediately following exhibit His kingly office. The Mid. form, ποιησάμενος, intimates a close and immediate relation of the action to the acting subject (Kühner Gr. § 250, (d), Hadley Gr. Gr., § 689). The act of purification is thus designated as the special and peculiar act of the Son. The reading δἰ ἑαυτοῦ designates, at the same time, directly the person of Jesus Christ as the means of purification, and we must refer in our minds specially to the identity of the priest and of the expiatory sacrifice (Heb_7:27; Heb_10:10), as the ideas of purification and expiation stand in so close relation that כִּפֻּרִים, Exo_29:36, is translated ἡμέρα τοῦ καθαρισμοῦ, day of purification, and 2Ma_2:16, the feast of atonement is called καθαρισμός. Moreover, Grimm (Stud. und Krit., 1839, p. 751) regards as conjectural root of the Gothic sauns (ransom, λύτρον), the word sinna, saun=to be pure. Köstlin’s assertion [Joh. Lehrbegr., p. 534) that the doctrine of our passage differs essentially from that of Paul, who makes atonement vicarious, is unfounded. The καθαρισμός wrought by the death of Christ is mentioned, Eph_5:26; Tit_2:14, while again substitution appears, Heb_9:14; Heb_10:10. Purification involves as its necessary condition, cleansing; as its consequence, sanctification, in the sense of consecration, Heb_9:14; Heb_9:22 f.; Heb_10:2.
Took his seat.—Καθίζειν, in older classical use, is ordinarily transitive, but Hellenistic usage makes it generally intransitive, as elsewhere also constantly in our Epistle (Heb_8:1; Heb_10:12; Heb_12:2); while with Paul again, except 2Th_2:4, it is uniformly transitive. Ἐνὑψηλοῖς (corresponding to בַּמָּרוֹם, Psa_93:4; as ἐν ὑψίστοις, Luk_2:14; Luk_19:38; to בַּמְּרוֹמִים Job_16:19) is grammatically to be referred to ἐκάθισεν, inasmuch as μεγαλωσύνη, majesty, (comp. Heb_8:1), like ἡ μεγαλοπρεπὴς δόξα, 2Pe_1:17, and δύναμις, Mat_26:64, is a designation of God in the respect that no greatness, power and majesty can reach to Him, compare itself with Him, or of itself attain to Him. The term “Majesty” has no need to be specialized by a defining clause like ἐν ὑψηλοῖς, a construction which (Beza, Bleek) would require the article (μεγαλωσύνης τῆς ἑν ὑψηλοῖς). But the phrase ἐνὑψηλοῖς is important as added to ἐκάθισεν, describing more definitely Christ’s exaltation after and by means of His ascension. We must not, however, with Ebrard, in the Reformed interest, maintain that ἐν ὑψ. contains a manifest local relation, while the καθίζειν ἐν δεξιᾷ is a figurative expression, embracing purely the idea of participation in the Divine dominion and majesty, and utterly void of any local import. Inasmuch as the local relations are concrete and real, but yet can neither be sensibly beheld, nor are developed in the form of distinct conceptions in the Scriptures, but are revealed only in a general way to Christian apprehension, the figurative mode of expression and the local conceptions are neither to be dispensed with nor limited to a single isolated point. Such erroneous localization and possible misconceptions are in Scripture in part expressly and formally corrected, as Joh_4:21; Joh_4:50 ff.; Jer_23:23; 1Ki_8:27; partly set aside by counter statements, as at Heb_4:14 Christ is said to have “passed through the heavens” (comp. Eph_1:21; Eph_4:10, “who ascended above all heavens”); Heb_7:14, to have become “higher than the heavens,” and finally Act_7:55, Stephen sees Jesus standing at the right hand of God. Finally the original and primary conception involved in the phrase, “sitting at the right hand of God,” is not that of participation in the fulness of the Divine power and honor, or in the exercise of universal dominion; but of being taken into protection under the sheltering presence of Jehovah from the assaults of enemies, Psa_11:1; Mat_22:44; Rev_12:5. Only as a consequence of this follows participation in Divine honor, omnipotence and sovereignty; and this, in that the language is applied not to the theocratic kings in general, but to the Messiah, and, in its application to Jesus, presupposes, as its condition, His theanthropic exaltation. This sitting of the exalted Christ at the right hand of Majesty, which is to continue without interruption until His Second Coming, must be conceived, therefore, not as a state of repose, or of mere security, as of one rescued from his enemies, but of Messianic activity in the accomplishment of redemption. This activity may assume the most varied forms (Act_2:23; Rom_8:34; Heb_8:1); among them especially that of asserting the Divine dominion over all hostile assaults, and over all ungodly persons, Eph_1:20; 1Co_15:25; Heb_2:8; Heb_10:12; 1Pe_3:22.
Heb_1:4. Becoming.—The participial clause, which at once forms the close of the period and introduces the capital thought of the immediately following discussion, gives, in contrast with what Christ, in His essential nature and under all circumstances, is and does, the change in position and dignity which He has experienced in His actual historical career. The word γενόμενος is neither to be taken separately nor unduly pressed. It stands in close connection with κρείττων (becoming mightier, superior); ideo que non ad essentiæ ortum, sed ad conditionem pertinet (Matth. Polus, Synops. Crit.). It is an error, however, to deduce from it the meaning factus=declaratus; and not less erroneous, on the other hand, is the rendering existens (Faber Stapul.), or the reference of the word, as with many older interpreters, to an eterna generatio. Nor does the term apply (as with Thom. Aquin., Cajet.) to the act of incarnation, or to Christ’s investiture with the office of Mediator, “quo pacto non uno modo factus dici potest” (H. B. Stark, Not. Sel., p. 4); but it refers to the exaltation of Him who had become incarnate (Theodoret, Œcumen.). Applied to Christ, it involves the idea of a change in the mode of His being and manifestation, but by no means in His nature, Rom_1:3; Gal_4:4; Php_2:7. It implies no apotheosis or exaltation of a man to Deity, but an actual exaltation of the Incarnate One as such into the place of Deity in the progress of a series of historical events. Κρείττων (=κρατύτερος) denotes not of itself Divinity (Cyrill), although the Greeks familiarly designated supernatural beings as οἱ κρείττονες. In its frequent use by our author it always denotes a preëminence, whose exact character is determined by the context. (See Heb_9:19; Heb_9:22; Heb_8:6; Heb_9:23; Heb_10:34; Heb_11:16; Heb_11:35; Heb_11:40; Heb_12:24). Clem. Rom. (1 Cor. 36.) in citing our passage, puts instead of it, μείζων. The formula τοσούτῳ—ὅσῳ, occurring in Philo and in our Epistle here, as also at Heb_7:20-22; Heb_8:6; Heb_10:25, is never used by Paul; nor is παρά after a comparative though frequent in our Epistle, as Heb_3:3; Heb_9:23; Heb_11:4; Heb_12:24, and occurring Luk_3:13; 3 Esdras 4:35. The comparative διαφορώτερον, found elsewhere in the New Testament only at Heb_8:6, enhances the idea of dignity which is already contained in the positive.
Name.—The term ‘name’ (ὄνομα) is referred by Bez. and Calov, etc., to the dignity and glory attained by Christ; by Akersloot to his extraordinary appellatives as high-priest, Lord; and by Del. to the aggregate heavenly name of the Exalted One, His שֵׁמ הַמְּפֹרָשׁ, nomen explicitum, which has entered no human mind on earth, and can be pronounced by no human tongue, ὄνομα ὄ οὐδεὶς οἶδεν εἰ μὴ αὐτός, Rev_19:12. The majority, however, refer the name to υἱός, Son. This view is sustained by the immediately following citations from the Old Testament, in proof that the name Son, used of an individual person, as such belongs exclusively to the Messiah; by the fact that while the name of ‘Angel’ points to the idea of servant and messenger, the name of Son, on the contrary, involves that of essential equality with the Father, of dominion and of heirship; and, finally, by the choice of the word ‘inherited’ (κεκληρονόμηκεν) which clearly refers back to the clause, “whom He constituted heir of all,” while the perf. has inherited, shows that it relates not to an act parallel to, and simultaneous with, the ἔθηκε, after the resurrection, by which Christ obtained in His humanity, what in His divine nature He already possessed from eternity (Theodoret, Œcumen., Theophyl.), but to a complete and final taking possession of that which, as His befitting allotment, corresponding with His essential character, the Messiah has received once for all in permanent possession. The term refers not then to absolute Sonship, as a relation which Jesus may be supposed to have obtained on account of His merits, as His special allotment; but rather to that name of Son, challenging universal recognition (Php_2:9), which Christ received, neither after His ascension nor at His conception (Sebast. Schmidt), Luk_1:35; but bears even in the Old Testament. Camero appropriately remarks: “He is not said to have inherited the thing which belonged to Him by nature, but the name of the thing, that, viz., by which it was known to angels and men that He Himself was the Son of God.”
Angels.—The subsequent citations show that by ἄγγελοι we are to understand not the servants of God under the old covenant (Frenzel in Augusti’s Theol. Blätter, No. 25. Haberfeld: Angeli e primo et secundo cap. ep. ad Hebr. Exulantes. Isenac. 1808), but the heavenly angels. The mention of them is not introduced casually, as if suggested by the mention of the Throne of God, and scarcely either for an independent polemical purpose, in opposition to Jewish Gnostic conceptions of the Messiah as an intermediate spirit and angel (Thol.) Ideas of this kind found, indeed, utterance among the Jews of this period, and had in part penetrated into the Christian church (Hellwag in the Theol. Jahrb. Tübingen, 1848. But no trace of an allusion to them is found in our Epistle whose purpose is to portray the infinite elevation of the new covenant, and of its perfect Founder above the old covenant, and its manifold and imperfect mediators. But to these intermediate agencies of the Old Testament belong essentially Angelophanies, which are expressly mentioned (Heb_2:2), in connection with the giving of the Law. Nor can any appeal be made to the Fourth Book of Esdras, and this, whether with Lawrence, Lücke and Hilgenfeld, we carry back the date of this book as early as the first century, B. C., or with Volkmar and Ewald (the Fourth Book of Esdras, etc., 1863), bring it down to the first century after Christ, and with Dillman regard it as the work of a Hellenistic Jew, belonging to the last quarter of the first post-Christian century, exhibiting a Judaism which, after its rejection of Christianity, and after the Roman conquest of Palestine, is now in rapid progress toward its state of Talmudic ossification. For the Angels Uriel and Jeremiel are, indeed, in a certain sense, mediators of the revelations of God; they explain to Esra the visions which he has received, and answer the questions when and by whom God will introduce the judgment and the end of things, and others of like nature. But the Messiah is designated not as an angel, but as the Son of God (4 Esdras 7:28, 29) and beheld under the figure of the Lion from Judah, who annihilates the eagle, the symbol of the Roman Empire (4 Esdras 11). In some features the apocalyptic representations assume a wild and monstrous character; while in the Book of Enoch, in the Jubilees, in the Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs, the contents taments of the Twelve Patriarchs, the contents of the revelation are at least recited from heavenly are given to Esra to be drunk in from a pitcher (4 Esdr. 14:40). Also in the Book of Enoch, (translated and explained by Dillman, Leipz., 1853) we find, indeed, an uncertain and inconsistent enumeration of angels, who are called in brief ‘the white ones’ (Enoch 87:2; 90:21, 31) or ‘those who do not sleep’ (Enoch 39:12; 61:12; 71:7), and equally with the heroes (Enoch 43:3; 46:7) are often styled ‘stars,’ (Enoch 21:3, 6; 86:3; 87:4; 88:1, 3; 90:21). There are also of these, different orders and proper names. At the head of the Satane stands Satan (Enoch 40:7) who (Enoch 54:5, 6; 55:4) is also called Azazel, alongside of whom in the section Enoch 6:16 and 79:2 appears Semjâzâ. Avenging angels are mentioned Enoch 53:3; 54:3; 56:1; 62:11; 63:1; 79:28. Among the good angels by the throne of God are found three principal and highest leaders, Cherubim, Seraphim and Ophanim; Enoch 61:10; 71:7, and four supreme angels, Michael, Raphael, Gabriel, Phanuel, Enoch 40:4, 10; 54:6; 71:8, 13. In the sections that treat of Noah, Zuriel, (צוּרִיאֵל) takes the place of Phanuel. At Enoch 21:5, Uriel, and Enoch 23:4, Raguel are named as conductors of Enoch through heaven, while elsewhere also Michael Enoch 24:6, and Raphael, Enoch 23:3, 6; 32:6, perform this service; though the proper calling of Raphael and Gabriel is healing and purifying, Enoch 10:4; 10:10; 40:9. The Messiah nowhere appears here as an angelic being, but as Son of a woman (Enoch62:5), as Son of a man (Enoch 69:29), and Son of Man who has righteousness (Enoch46:1), who will be a staff to the righteous and holy, and the light of the nations; (Enoch 48:4), whom also the angels praise (Enoch40:5), and who, with the Lord of Spirits and the head of days, as the anointed one (Enoch 48:10; 52:4), who bears in Himself the fulness of the Divine Spirit (Enoch49:2, 4), was chosen out and concealed before the world was created, Enoch 48:6. On the one hand the attributes which distinguish the members of the true church, are in the highest sense applied to the Messiah. He is hence called absolutely the Chosen One, Enoch 40:5; 45:3; 48:2; 51:3, 5; 52:6, 9; 53:6; 55:4; 51:5, 8, 10; 62:1, and the ‘root’ or the ‘branch of righteousness,’ Enoch 10:16; 93:2, and as such, or as the righteous one, Enoch 38:2; 92:2, 10, is distinguished from the Messianic people, who, in like manner, are conceived as plants of the eternal seed, Enoch 84:6, and is designated as the aggregate of the chosen, righteous and holy ones, Enoch 38:2; 40:2; 45:5; 51:5; 61:12, and hence also can collectively be called the righteous one, Enoch 91:10. On the other hand the Messiah is called absolutely the Word, Enoch 90:38; the Word of God, Enoch 14:24; 102:1, and the Son of God, Enoch 105:2, who will bear the sword of righteousness, and will appear in the eighth week of the world, Enoch 91:12. God, who is often called the “Ancient of Days,” Enoch 46:1; 47:3; 58:2; 71:10, 13, (after Dan_7:13) swears before Michael, Enoch 69:15 ff. that the salvation beheld by Enoch shall be eternal, and that the Messiah, as king of the kingdom of heaven, will establish on the earth an imperishable kingdom. Moreover, at Enoch 39:5; 49:1; 62:2, there is promised the outpouring of the Spirit of wisdom and righteousness. (Comp. Ewald: Treatise on the Origin, Import and Construction of the Æthiopic Book of Enoch, Gött., 1854, and Dillmann, who, in Herzog’s Real-Encycl. XII., places the composition of Enoch 37–71, after taking out the Noachian fragment—in the first decennium of the Hasmonean princes, that of the remaining sections in the time of the rule of John Hyrcanus, and that of the books of Noah in the first Christian century. Among these latest portions, in which, however, the Romans still do not appear as a secular power, dangerous to the Jews, he reckons Enoch 54:7–55:2; Enoch 60; 65:1–69:25; Enoch 106, and the greatest part of Enoch 6–16. The hypothesis defended by Hilgenfeld (The Jewish Apocalyptic in its Historical development, Jena, 1857) of a Christian origin of Enoch 37–71 stands connected with other opinions of this scholar, and is refuted by Dillmann. This whole subject, however, is not yet thoroughly cleared up.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. The character of the historical revelation of God, made to the fathers through the lips of prophets, and brought to perfection in the Son, is essentially different from that general manifestation of God in respect of His eternal power and Godhead (Rom_1:20), which is made by means of His works and the rational nature of man. By its element of human speech it is immeasurably exalted above that Symbolical language of nature which stands in need of a special interpretation. It avails itself indeed, in like manner, of imagery for the expression of ideas that lie beyond the sphere of sense. But this imagery belongs to human speech as such, and God avails Himself of it for the purpose of direct address to certain men, in setting home positive communications which He makes in the way of direct personal approach and appeal. This revelation in language presupposes the religious vitality of man, and aims at its development, purification and perfection. As containing the word of God, this revelation actually solves the problem of His relation to the world, of its creation, preservation and redemption: it unveils to us His counsels and procedure in respect to salvation; shows us the destination of the world, and the Divine arrangements for its recovery, government, and ultimate blessedness; and thus sheds light alike on the true nature of God, and on the history of our race.
2. The fragmentary character of this revelation produces in it no error; for God is He who speaks to us in the prophets, and all the utterances of revelation are oracles of God (λόγια τοῦ θεοῦ). The great variety of its forms best bears testimony to the goodness of God in graciously condescending to human necessities, and demonstrates at once the sincerity and earnestness with which He draws near to us, and the depth of His condescension. For God did not use the prophets as merely passive instruments, nor speak through them as through a speaking trumpet; nor did He merely “exercise His power in them, and inspire in their mind and heart what, when and how they were to speak,” 2 Peter 1 (Starke). He deposited His own thoughts in the prophetic modes and forms of thought, and clothed His own word in the peculiarities of speech which belonged to the prophet and to his time. It is precisely for this reason that in the prophetic writings of the Old Testament the discourse frequently passes from the third person to the first, and conversely, and that without indication of any change in the person of the speaker.
3. The fact that the same God has spoken to us at an earlier period in the prophets, and, at the close of the Ante-Messianic period, in the Son, assures to us the unity, amidst its manifold variety, of the historical revelation; while it teaches us that the individual utterances mutually illustrate each other, and yet derive their full light only from the actual central point of all revelation, Jesus Christ. For which reason also the Old Testament is rightly understood only from the stand-point of the New, and the entire body of Scripture is to be regarded in the light of a revelation of God for the salvation of the world, whose parts stand related to each other as preparation and fulfilment.
4. The successive stages of Revelation (Rosenm., Treatise on the successive stages of Divine Rev., 1784) point to a divine plan of salvation, which, ordained from eternity, has in its execution in time, given birth to a completely adjusted economy of salvation, and discloses a wisdom into whose mysteries Angels desire to look, 1Pe_1:12, and to whom it is made known in the church of Jesus Christ, Eph_3:10, as also to us to whom the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, has given the spirit of wisdom and revelation for the knowledge of Himself, Eph_1:17. The answer of Cyrill (adv. Julian, I 1:126) to the inquiry of the emperor Julian regarding the reason of the lateness of Christ’s appearance, viz., that “Revelation advances with advancing culture, and its perfection could be reached only in connection with a corresponding culture of the race,” is an answer at once erroneous and puerile. More to the purpose remarks Heubner: “Christianity completes the circle of Revelation; it is its perfection, and stands good for the highest reach of culture which man can attain on earth.”
5. The designation of God’s revelation in the Son as the final one, while decidedly repelling the idea that any grade of human culture can transcend, and leave behind it Christianity as a thing antiquated and effete, remands to the realm of dreams every anticipation of a new revelation in behalf of some religion of the future. And the declaration—that Christ, only after accomplishing a purification of sin, took his seat at the right hand of the Majesty on high, reminds us that there can be no degree of human need which should require another religion. “If God has finally spoken to us by Christ and His Apostles, we must not turn away to the next doctrine that may arise, be it Mohammedanism or Popery; but abide by that which we heard from the beginning from Christ and His Apostles; and so abiding we shall abide with the Father and the Son.” (Starke).
6. In the fact that through the Son, in whom God has spoken to us in the fulness of times, He originally made the worlds, is involved the possibility of a perfect harmony in natural and historical revelation. But the apostasy and its consequences have changed their original relation. The realization of this harmony must be brought about by a complete triumph over sin, and an accomplished elimination of evil from the world, and will be effected not by any heightened development on the part of nature, but by the special acts of God in a series of historical revelations.
7. While Jesus Christ is placed on a level with the prophets in that—according to the rule, Amo_3:7 : “Jehovah does nothing without revealing His counsel to His servants, the prophets,”—He is a personal organ for genuine oracles of God, He stands essentially distinguished from them not exclusively in the fact of His being the perfect Mediator of the final revelation, of whom all earlier prophets have prophesied. For in this case He might possibly have been conceived merely as the most perfect teacher and the most distinguished prophet. The specific distinction lies in the three following points: 1. Christ is become king at the right hand of the Majesty in heaven, while the prophets have been and remain simply servants of Jehovah. 2. Christ is Saviour and Redeemer of the world, which presupposes His personal purity from every sin; the prophets, on the contrary, were at all times sinful men. who stood in need of redemption. 3. The exaltation of Jesus Christ to divine Majesty after accomplishing on earth the work of redemption, corresponds to His ante-mundane condition and life, to His eternal relation as Son to the Father, and to his supra-mundane character and work; so that in His personal appearance on earth He is to be designated as God-man (θεάνθρωπος), while the prophets, as men of God, who have spoken under the impulse of the Holy Ghost, maintained and attested their created and finite character.
8. That the historical Mediator of the final revelation of God is the ante-mundane Mediator of the creation of the world, imparts to Him a special majesty and dignity beyond that of all created mediators. The comparison of Him with the Angels shows that He is not, in this relation, conceived as an unconscious intermediate cause, but has exercised this mediating agency in a personal existence. And the declaration that He is the beaming image of God’s glory and the impress of His substance, shows that the Mediator who is distinguished above all beings, and even above the Angels, by the name of “Son,” does not bear His filial name in a conventional and theocratic sense. “The Son is the mediating essence of the whole spiritual world, in whom the Deity presents Himself in that world, mirrored in all His perfections, in power, wisdom, holiness, love. Such is the external relation of the Son; for the world, for us, He is the being from whom beams forth the divine δόξα. The ground of this is that on Him is impressed and stamped the divine essence; that He is Himself participant of the divine nature. This language expresses the Son’s internal character and relation.” (Heubner). Hence, Ignatius (ad Magnes. 5) strikingly styles the renewing of the Christian into the image of God a recoining by virtue of a new stamp which God applies through Jesus Christ; and Origen, (ad Rom_4:2) remarks that in this transformation is explained the fact that the world does not know the true disciples of Jesus. The Son appears not as a revealer unequal to the Father, and hence an inadequate revealer of some part or a single side of His nature; but He is here designated as the perfect co-equal revealer of the Father (v. Gerlach), in whom the ‘form of God’ (μορφὴ θεοῦ) permanently dwells, Php_2:6, and whom Paul designates (Col_1:15) the “first-born of the whole creation (πρωτότοκος πάσης κτίσεως) and the image (εἰκών) of the invisible God;” since the essential form of God is that εἶδος θεοῦ (Joh_5:37) which the Son essentially possessed in His pre-incarnate glory, Joh_17:5. The declaration then, that He, as Son, has issued from the Father, and is dependent on Him, implies not a temporal but an eternal relation, involving no succession in time, no subordination in power or rank, no lowering of the divine attributes. As light of light He is not a mere ray of the divine Majesty, but sun from sun, because God from God, a personal subsistence of the divine substance.
9. In the ascription to the Son of the essential attribute that he bears (sustains, moves, and guides) all things with the word of His power, believers may find an ample consolation. The Lord of the Church is the Lord over the world; the mediator of revelation and salvation is also the mediator of the maintenance and government of the world; the Saviour of sinners is the controller of the history and the destinies of all men and things. The Roman Clement styles Him (1 Corinthians 16.) “the outstretched sceptre of the divine majesty,” and Paul says Col_1:17, that in Him all things are, as consisting and held together in Him. Without His mediating agency the world would fall asunder alike in its elements, and its moving forces. But as it is, neither nature nor the course of events can hinder the victory of the Church of Christ, the triumph of believers, the accomplishment of all things according to the divine plan.
10. In the word ‘heir’ lies a relation not merely to the name of Son, or to the fact that the Son has received, according to Mat_28:18, universal dominion, but at the same time, and chiefly to the Messianic fulfilment of the promises given Rom_4:13 to the seed of Abraham, on which foundation rests the promise that we are to be heirs of God, and joint heirs with Christ, Rom_8:17. The expression reminds us not so much that Jesus Christ is the second Adam (Calv.), as rather that He is ὁ ἐρχόμενος, He that cometh. “What belongs to God belongs to Christ. Only, therefore, as we have part in Christ can we claim a share in the riches of God.” (Fricke.)
11. Having descended by His incarnation into a lower position than that held by the Angels, in so far as these are spirits and dwellers in heaven, (Heb_2:7; Heb_2:9) the Messiah, after accomplishing His redemptive work, has, by an actual historical change in the circumstances of His life, passed into a position as much transcending that of Angels in majesty and power, as His characteristic name is nobler and loftier than theirs. “Non naturam sed personam Christi hic confert cum Angelis respectu dignitatis, officii, potentiæ, et gloriæ.” (Matt. Polus, Synops. crit., IHebrews 1:1125, ed. Francf.). As in Christ the personal union of the divine and human natures is in the most perfect manner accomplished, while yet the two natures are in no way confounded, the two thus remain always distinguishable, yet are never to be conceived as actually separated. We must regard, therefore, as erroneous the language of so many earlier writers who limit the exaltation exclusively to the human nature of Christ. It applies rather, as already remarked by Œcumenius (II. 320), to the person of the God-man.
12. “Although Christ with His body has ascended above all heavens, yet in relation to His ubiquity we are to distinguish the two kinds of His actual presence, according as this presence belongs merely to His bodily nature, or to His personality. Under the former relation He is, in His present condition, in a certain ποῦ (where), not indeed circumscribed within strictly local limits, but such as, while transcending time and place, still belong to a finite essence, and subject it, therefore, to like conditions with all the glorified bodies of the blessed. In the other relation, Christ, by virtue of His personal unity, and of that divine majesty and glory which He shares, is no less present every where to all creatures than the Logos itself.” (Oetinger, Idea vitæ, § 119). “The words that speak of His departure and re-appearing do not exclude His bodily presence, of which He indeed gives express assurance, Mat_28:18, but distinguish merely the dissimilar modes of His presence—bearing one form before His passion, another at the final judgment, and still another during the intervening period.” (Sim. Musæus, Sermon on the Sacrament of the body and blood of Christ, 1561.). Whatever be the special explanations, the emphasis laid by the Lutheran church on the personal presence, ministry, and self-communication of Christ, and that too of the whole and undivided Christ in His Church, is but a thoroughly authorized and justifiable practical application of the Scripture teaching regarding the sitting of the God-man at the right hand of Majesty in the highest heavens.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL.
The unity of Revelation amidst the variety of its manifestations: 1. as unity of the author, God; 2. as unity of the means, the word of God; 3. as unity of its purpose, the salvation of the world.—Whereby does the one revelation of the true God present itself so variously that only the believer can comprehend its unity? 1. By the diversity of the times of which God regards the necessities; 2. by the different character of the persons in whom God has spoken to men; 3. by the peculiar and various modes of intercourse and expression which God has made use of.—Christ the sole and single, because perfect mediator, 1. of the existence of the world in respect to a. its creation, b. its preservation, c. its government; 2. of the revelation of God to the world in respect to a. His power, b. His will, c. His essence; 3. of the saving of the world in a. its redemption, b. its sanctification, c. its final perfection as the kingdom of God.—Wherein we Christians are at once like and unlike the Israelites? 1. In our possession of the word of true Revelation 2. in our faith in the coming of the Messiah; 3. in our hope of salvation by purification from sin.—The antitheses in Jesus Christ: 1. in His person as God and man; 2. in His history, as one of humiliation and exaltation.—The threefold office of Jesus Christ: 1. as that of the perfect prophet in whom the revelation through the word has found its completion and close; 2. as that of the true high-priest who offered Himself for purification from sin; 3. as that of eternal king who, elevated above all created existence, bears and rules over all things.—The dominion of Jesus Christ: 1. in its character, a. by the word of revelation, b. by the word of His power, c. by the word of His grace; 2. in its establishment, a. by His nature, b. by His works, c. by His place at the right hand of Majesty on high; 3. in its extent, a. in time, b. in space, c. in respect to its objects.—The Lord always governs His church, 1. by virtue of His personal life with the Father in glory, 2. by virtue of the accomplishment of the work of redemption committed to Him, 3. by means of the word in which His Spirit bears sway and His power works.—The threefold relation of Jesus Christ to God: 1. as servant, 2. as Song of Solomon , 3. as joint-ruler.—The peculiar and unique relation of Jesus Christ, our Saviour, 1. to men, 2. to God, 3. to the entire universe.—The completed and perfected life of our Lord Jesus Christ Isaiah 1. the pledge of our deliverance, 2. the type of our glorification, 3. the means of our union with God.—The significance of the elevation of Jesus Christ to the right hand of Majesty on high, 1. for the personal life of the Lord, 2. for the faith of His disciples, 3. for the progress of His work, 4. for the destiny of the world, 5. for the completion of the revelation of God.—What abides to us amidst the vicissitudes of times and the change of all things? 1. The word of God which a. in manifold ways, b. by virtue of divine constitution and arrangement, c. reveals to us eternal truth; 2. the Son of God who a. as image of His substance, b. after accomplishing His mission on earth, c. sits at the right hand of the Majesty on high; 3. the salvation of God, which in Christ is a. destined for us from eternity, b. obtained for us in time, c. and for all eternity imparted to believers.—Whither do all our Sabbaths and religious services summon us? 1. Into the church whose a. Founder, b. Saviour, and c. Head is the Son of God; 2. to devotional contemplation a. of His word, b. of His ways, c. of His works; 3. to believing appropriation a. of revealed truth, b. of the proffered cleansing from sin, c. of the opened access to the Majesty of God.—The homage which we owe to Christ: 1. in its origin and procurement a. by His divine sonship, b. by His mediatorial office, c. by His position at the right hand of God; 2. in its expression a. in acknowledgment of that which we receive from Him, b. in the use of that which we have through Him, c. in the striving after that which we hope from Him.—For what shall the name which distinguishes Christ above all other beings, serve us? 1. To remind us of that image of God for which we are created; 2. to assure us of the Sonship for which we are redeemed; 3. to aid us on our way to the glory to which we are called.—Whither does the preaching of Jesus Christ, the Son of God, direct our eyes? 1. To the eternity a. from which He came, b. of which He bore witness, c. to which He is gone; 2. to the ways of God, a. in upholding, b. in enlightening, c. in purifying the world; 3. to our personal position a. in respect to the word, b. to the people, c. to the Son of God.
Berlenburger, Bible: We must not fancy, now that we have the Scripture, that we need not the teaching of Christ, and that He therefore may remain dumb. Rather must we reverse the position and say: precisely because we have the Scripture, Christ must speak and explain it to us. This is Christ’s proper office and work; this the Father has assigned to Him; this He will not allow to be taken from Him, and of so rich a blessing the believing Christian must not allow himself to be deprived.—The Holy Scripture of the Old Testament is the morning dawn and day-break, which thence advances to meridian day.—Articles of faith are not like other things, learned out, as it were, and rendered antiquated. Rather might the Hebrews now well profit by their former teachings and lessons. Among these stands conspicuous the course of God’s providential dealings, up to the time of Him who was to come.—The Jews of our time close up their door, and shove to this bolt, and say: We adhere to Moses! They are not fond of reading the prophets. But the Christian religion is no falling away from the Fathers, but a fulfilment of that which God spoke to them.—People often convert into a stumbling-block that which they should have employed as a help.—We must not narrow up the time of Christ to the years of His flesh, but regard Him as being of eternity, who is styled God of the whole world, Isa_54:5.—Redemption belongs to the kingdom of grace; but the being who was to redeem us was required of necessity to be mighty. Grace and power mutually aid and sustain each other.—Steinhofer: The Lord would fain receive honor from his inheritance, and that inheritance are we. We are the work of His hands, and are indebted to Him for life and being. We are a fruit of His painful toil, and have through Him our salvation. We are His peculiar heritage, presented to Him by the Father for an ornament and a delight. His purpose shall succeed; the work of His hand shall not be in vain; His honor shall be secured to Him by His grace in us, His own inheritance.—Ders: Jesus is able to make known and execute the whole purpose of God. For this great and glorious work, for which He was destined from Eternity, He was 1. not too mean or insignificant, since He is the splendor of God’s majesty and the image of His substance. Nor was He for this 2. too weak and impotent: for He it is who bears all things with the Word of His power. 3. He evinced himself to be the Son appointed to the inheritance, in that He left not the obstacles to be removed by a stranger; but became Himself the sacrifice, and made through Himself a purification of our sins.—The course of the Son of God from the bosom of the Father to His throne.—He has made by Himself the purification of our sins: 1. Without this mission and message all the attestations to His glory would be to us matter rather of terror than of joy; 2. but with the Word of His grace the recognition of His majesty becomes matter of at once weighty and delightful import: 3. The experience of the forgiveness of sins in His blood draws our hearts so that we delight to adore Him.
Starke: God always reserves the best unto the last. Although He may not give thee speedily what thou desirest, at last all will turn out good, Psa_37:37; Hab_2:3.—Christ obtains the inheritance for all those who adhere to Him. We are through Christ all children, and heirs of God. Are we then not sufficiently rich? I have but little in the world, and have but a small inheritance to leave behind me; yet I am not therefore sad. Though poor here I shall be abundantly rich in heaven, Rom_8:17.—Though the one only God has spoken formerly through the prophets to the fathers, and at last to us by His Son; yet, as there is only one God, has there been also but one religion, one faith, one worship, and one way to eternal bliss from the beginning of the world until now, Act_15:11.—I adhere to Christ; He has all power. He knows what is my ability; I believe that He will help me always and everywhere, Joh_4:4.—Jesus exalted into heaven, and yet, as God and man, at all times present with His church on earth by virtue of inseparable, personal union. If he is there and here, then why so troubled, my heart? If thou diest, thou comest into heaven to Jesus. So long as thou livest, Jesus is with thee. Jesus, thy magnet, will finally draw thee wholly to Himself, Joh_17:24.—To dwell on the name of Christ is a blessed work, for one learns thus to know His great glory, Joh_17:3.
Heubner: We have here a comprehensive outline of all Christology: 1. what Christ is in Himself: 2. what He is to us; Revealer of God, Ransomer of sinners; 3. into what condition He is exalted.—How important is it to have a genuine, Scriptural, adequate conception of Christ! The more value we attach to Christ, so much the more value do we attach to His Word; so much the more sacred He becomes as an example; so much the more power issues forth from Him; so much the more unlimited is the confidence which we can repose in Him.
[Owen: All the glorious perfections of the nature of God do belong unto, and dwell in, the person of the Son. Were it not so, He could not gloriously represent unto us the person of the Father; nor by the contemplation of Him could we be led to an acquaintance with the person of the Father. The whole manifestation of the nature of God unto us, and all communications of grace, are immediately by and through the person of the Son. He represents Him unto us; and through Him is everything that is communicated unto us from the fulness of the Deity conveyed.]
Footnotes:
[1]Heb_1:1.—ἐπ’ ἐσχάτου instead of ἐσχάτων after Cod. Sin. A. B. D. E. K. L. M.
[2] Heb_1:3.—Sin. omitting ἡμῶν has τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ποιησ., the order which after A. B. D. E. M. has been prevalent since Bengel. A later hand has added ἠμῶν in the Sin.
Heb_1:4.—κρείττων, mightier than, superior to.—γενόμενος, becoming, not being made, by which γιγνομαι, ἐγενοίμην should rarely be rendered when applied to persons, though they may be when applied to things.—κεκληρονόμηκεν, hath inherited.—K.]
[3] [Heb_1:1.—πολυμερῶς in many parts, or portions (μείρομαι, divide, μέρος, a part), not, at sundry times, (which may follow as a fact) but as it were fragmentarily, by piece-meal. Πολυμερῶς καὶ πολυτρόπως emphatically and sonorously open the majestic sentence—λαλήσας after speaking, or having spoken. Though the Eng. Perfect is not strictly the proper rendering of the Aor. participle, it is not unfrequently, though by no means uniformly, and, I think, not commonly, the best English equivalent for it,—ἐν, in, with Owen, Alt., de Wette, Moll, &c., is taken, in its proper signification of in. Unless perhaps sometimes by a Hebraistic use, it should so be always taken, although the Eng. idiom sometimes requires a different rendering. But not so here. Owen: “The certainty of the revelation and the presence of God with His word are intimated in the expression,”—ἐπ’ ἐσχάτου better taken as neuter=in the closing period of these days,—ἐλάλησεν, spake, (not, hath spoken) viz., historically when Christ appeared as Messiah,—ἐν υἱῷ, in one who was Son: the absence of the article turning the attention from the individual to the character.
Heb_1:2.—The position of ἐποίησεν immediately after καί, was recommended by Griesb., after A. B. D*. D***. E. M., is approved by Lachmann and Tischendorf, and confirmed by Cod. Sin. [This reading emphasizes the ἐποιήσεν.].
Heb_1:2.—ὃν ἔθηκε, whom he appointed, Aor. pointing, as ἐλάλησεν, above, to the historical act.—καὶ ἐποίησεν, he also made, implying the naturalness of making Him heir of the universe who had been the agent of His power in making it.
[4] Heb_1:3.—δἰ ἑαυτοῦ before καθαρισμόν is cancelled by Bleek, de Wette, Lachm., Tischendorf, Alford, but readmitted by Tisch. VII., and Reiche (Comm. Crit. 6) after D * * *. and nearly all the minusc.; but is wanting in Sin., as in A. B. D**. The Uffenbach Uncial fragment (Tisch. Anecdota Sacra et Profana, p. 177) reads τῷ ῥήματι τῆς δυνάμεως, δἰ ἑαυτοῦ καθαρισμὸν τῶν ἁμαρτιῶν ποιῃσάμενος.
Heb_1:3.—ἀπαύγασμα, radiant image—ὑπόστασις, not person, but substantia, substance.—φέρων, bearing, τῷ ῥήματι, by the utterance, mandate—ποιησάμενος, after making for himself, Aor. Med. implying the completion of the act in His own person.
[5][True indeed, Jelf, (Gr. Gram. 3 Ed. 1861) gives Vol. II. § 622, examples of ἐν “applied to persons viewed as instrumental agents.” Herod. ix. 48 ψευσθῆνοι ἐν ὑμῖν, to be deceived by (lit. in) you: Thucyd. vii. 8 : So Gr. Test. Mat_9:34, ἐν τῷ ἄρχοντι τῶν δαιμόνων, to cast out, etc. by the ruler of the devils: Act_17:31, ἐν ανδρὶ κρίνειν, to judge by the man, etc. Still it may be doubted if in these cases the departure from the proper force of ἐν is not more apparent than real, and here to suppose such departure is by no means necessary; and I incline with Moll to regard the author’s conception, not as that of God’s speaking by the prophets and His Son, but in them.—K.].
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv2–3 in these last days--In the oldest manuscripts the Greek…
in these last days--In the oldest manuscripts the Greek is. "At the last part of these days." The Rabbins divided the whole of time into "this age," or "world," and "the age to come" (Heb 2:5; Heb 6:5). The days of Messiah were the transition period or "last part of these days" (in contrast to "in times past"), the close of the existing dispensation, and beginning of the final dispensation of which Christ's second coming shall be the crowning consummation.
by his Son--Greek, "IN (His) Son" (Joh 14:10). The true "Prophet" of God. "His majesty is set forth: (1) Absolutely by the very name "Son," and by three glorious predicates, "whom He hath appointed," "by whom He made the worlds," "who sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;" thus His course is described from the beginning of all things till he reached the goal (Heb 1:2-3). (2) Relatively, in comparison with the angels, Heb 1:4; the confirmation of this follows, and the very name "Son" is proved at Heb 1:5; the "heirship," Heb 1:6-9; the "making the worlds," Heb 1:10-12; the "sitting at the right hand" of God, Heb 1:13-14." His being made heir follows His sonship, and preceded His making the worlds (Pro 8:22-23; Eph 3:11). As the first begotten, He is heir of the universe (Heb 1:6), which He made instrumentally, Heb 11:3, where "by the Word of God" answers to "by whom"' (the Son of God) here (Joh 1:3). Christ was "appointed" (in God's eternal counsel) to creation as an office; and the universe so created was assigned to Him as a kingdom. He is "heir of all things" by right of creation, and especially by right of redemption. The promise to Abraham that he should be heir of the world had its fulfilment, and will have it still more fully, in Christ (Rom 4:13; Gal 3:16; Gal 4:7).
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worlds--the inferior and the superior worlds (Col 1:16). Literally, "ages" with all things and persons belonging to them; the universe, including all space and ages of time, and all material and spiritual existences. The Greek implies, He not only appointed His Son heir of all things before creation, but He also (better than "also He") made by Him the worlds.
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv1–3 I. TRANSCENDENCE OF THE SON AS GLORIOUS APOSTLE AND…
PART FIRST.
THE ARGUMENT.
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I. TRANSCENDENCE OF THE SON AS GLORIOUS APOSTLE AND AS SUFFERING HIGH PRIEST OF THE NEW AGE, INTRODUCTIVELY PRESENTED, Heb_1:1 to Heb_2:18.
1. Transcendence of the Son as divine Apostle of our Age, Heb_1:1-4.
WITH a most impressive grandeur does our author open upon his readers the full affirmation of the divine origination of the Son, preparatory to unfolding the true glory of his humiliation. If his Alexandrian audience glory in asserting the Son’s divinity, he can re-assert that same on the highest key.
1. God—The divine name is not thus placed at the beginning of this epistle in the Greek. The first words are the two Greek adverbs, rendered sundry times and divers manners, πολυμερως και πολυτροπως. Each of these Greek words begins with a pol; and Delitzsch asks whether this is accidental, or whether the epistle does thus begin intentionally, with a hint of Paul’s own name.
Sundry times and in divers manners—More literally: In many parts and by many methods. The words describe the fragmentary character of the old revelations, in depreciatory comparison with the unity of revelation by the Son. There is no Greek word answering to times. In many parts, indicates that truth came by piecemeal through a succession of ages.
Divers manners—Sometimes by visions and dreams, sometimes by word of mouth, by the declaration of angels, by the impulsive inspiration of prophets, by types and symbols. These were all, however, as but lamps and candles before the coming of the sun.
In time past—Παλαι, in the olden time, anciently; including the whole period of inferior revelation before the coming of the Son.
The fathers—The Hebrew ancestry, who heard the ancient revelations.
By the prophets— Including the inspired mediums of either or all these methods of revelation, at whose head was Moses.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv1–3 1–4. Thesis of the Epistle
1–4. Thesis of the Epistle
1. God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake] It is hardly possible in a translation to preserve the majesty and balance of this remarkable opening sentence of the Epistle. It must be regarded as one of the most pregnant and noble passages of Scripture. The author does not begin, as St Paul invariably does, with a greeting which is almost invariably followed by a thanksgiving; but at once, and without preface, he strikes the key-note, by stating the thesis which he intends to prove. His object is to secure his Hebrew readers against the peril of an apostasy to which they were tempted by the delay of Christ’s personal return, by the persecutions to which they were subjected, and by the splendid memories and exalted claims of the religion in which they had been trained. He wishes therefore, not only to warn and exhort them, but also to prove that Christianity is a Covenant indefinitely superior to the Covenant of Judaism, alike in its Agents and its Results. The words “How much more,” “A better covenant,” “a more excellent name,” might be regarded as the keynotes of the Epistle (Heb_3:3, Heb_7:19-20; Heb_7:22, Heb_8:6, Heb_9:23, Heb_10:34, Heb_11:40, Heb_12:24, &c.). In many respects, it is not so much a letter as an address. Into these opening verses he has compressed a world of meaning, and has also strongly brought out the conceptions of the contrast between the Old and New Dispensations—a contrast which involves the vast superiority of the latter. Literally, the sentence may be rendered, “In many portions and in many ways, God having of old spoken to the fathers in the prophets, at the end of these days spake to us in a Son.” It was God who spoke in both dispensations; of old and in the present epoch: to the fathers and to us; to them in the Prophets, to us in a Son; to them “in many portions” and therefore “fragmentarily,” but—as the whole Epistle is meant to shew—to us with a full and complete revelation; to them “in many ways,” “multifariously,” but to us in one way—namely by revealing Himself in human nature, and becoming “a Man with men.”
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God] In this one word, which admits the divine origin of Mosaism, the writer makes an immense concession to the Jews. Such expressions as St Paul had used in the fervour of controversy—when for instance he spoke of “the Law” as consisting of “weak and beggarly elements”—tended to alienate the Jews by utterly shocking their prejudices; and in very early ages, as we see from the “Epistle of Barnabas” some Christians had developed a tendency to speak of Judaism with an extreme disparagement, which culminated in the Gnostic attribution of the Old Testament to an inferior and even malignant Deity, whom they called “the Demiurge.” The author shared no such feelings. In all his sympathies he shews himself a Hebrew of the Hebrews, and at the very outset he speaks of the Old Dispensation as coming from God.
who] There is no relative in the Greek. Instead of “who … spake … hath spoken …” the force of the original would be better conveyed by “having spoken … spake.”
at sundry times] In the Greek, one word polumerôs “in many parts.” The nearest English representative of the word is “fragmentarily,” which is not meant as a term of absolute but only of relative disparagement. It has never been God’s method to reveal all His relations to mankind at once. He revealed Himself “in many portions.” He lifted the veil fold by fold. First came the Adamic dispensation; then the Noahic; then the Abrahamic; then the Mosaic; then that widening and deepening system of truth of which the Prophets were ministers; then the yet more advanced and elaborate scheme which dates from Ezra;—the final revelation, the “fulness” of revealed truth came with the Gospel. Each of these systems was indeed fragmentary, and therefore (so far) imperfect, and yet it was the best possible system with reference to the end in view, which was the education of the human race in the love and knowledge of God. The first great truth which God prominently revealed was His Unity; then came the earliest germ of the Messianic hope; then came the Moral Law; then the development of Messianism and the belief in Immortality. Isaiah and Ezekiel, Zechariah and Malachi, the son of Sirach and John the Baptist, had each his several “portion” and element of truth to reveal. But all the sevenfold rays were united in the pure and perfect light when God had given us His Son; and when, by the inbreathing of the Spirit, He had made us partakers of Himself, the last era of revelation had arrived. To this final revelation there can be no further addition, though it may be granted to age after age more and more fully to comprehend it. Complete in itself, it yet works as the leaven, and grows as the grain of mustard seed, and brightens and broadens as the Dawn. Yet even the Christian Revelation is itself but “a part;” “we know in part and prophesy,” says St Paul, “in part.” Man, being finite, is only capable of partial knowledge.
in divers manners] The “sundry” and “divers” of our A. V. are only due to the professed fondness for variety which King James’s translators regarded as a merit. The “many manners” of the older revelation were Law and Prophecy, Type and Allegory, Promise and Threatening; the diverse individuality of many of the Prophets, Seers, Warriors, Kings, who were agents of the revelation; the method of various sacrifices; the messages which came by Urim, by dreams, by waking visions, and “face to face” (see Num_12:6; Psa_89:19; Hos_12:10; 2Pe_1:21). The mouthpiece of the revelation was now a Gentile sorcerer, now a royal sufferer, now a rough ascetic, now a polished priest, now a gatherer of sycomore fruit. Thus the separate revelations were not complete but partial; and the methods not simple but complex.
spake] This verb (lalein) is often used, especially in this Epistle, of Divine revelations (Heb_2:2-3, Heb_3:5, Heb_7:14, &c.).
in time past] Malachi the last Prophet of the Old Covenant had died more than four centuries before Christ.
unto the fathers] That is to the Jews of old. The writer, a Jew in all his sympathies, leaves unnoticed throughout this Epistle the very existence of the Gentiles. As a friend and follower of St Paul he of course recognised the call of the Gentiles to equal privileges, but the demonstration of their prerogatives had already been furnished by St Paul with a force and fulness to which nothing could be added. This writer, addressing Jews, is not in any way thinking of the Gentiles. To him “the people” means exclusively “the people of God” in the old sense, namely Israel after the flesh. It is hardly conceivable that St Paul, who was the Apostle to the Gentiles, and whose writings were mainly addressed to them, and written to secure their Gospel privileges, should, even in a single letter, have so completely left them out of sight as this author does. On the other hand he always tries to shew his “Hebrew” readers that their conversion does not involve any sudden discontinuity in the religious history of their race.
by the prophets] Rather, “in the Prophets.” It is true that the “by” may be only a Hebraism, representing the Hebrew בְּ in 1Sa_28:6; 2Sa_23:2. We find ἐν “in” used of agents in Mat_9:34, “In the Prince of the demons casteth He out demons,” and in Act_17:31. But, on the other hand, the writer may have meant the preposition to be taken in its proper sense, to imply that the Prophets were only the organs of the revelation; so that it is more emphatic than διὰ “by means of.” The same thought may be in his mind as in that of Philo when he says that “the Prophet is an interpreter, while God from within whispers what he should utter.” “The Prophets,” says St Thomas Aquinas, “did not speak of themselves, but God spoke in them.” Comp. 2Co_13:3. The word Prophets is here taken in that larger sense which includes Abraham, Moses, &c.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv1–3 (1) God, who at sundry times. . . .—The…
(1) God, who at sundry times. . . .—The fine arrangement of the words in the Authorised version fails, it must be confessed, to convey the emphasis which is designed in the original. The writer’s object is to place the former revelation over against that which has now been given; and the remarkable words with which the chapter opens (and which might not inaptly serve as the motto of the whole Epistle) strike the first note of contrast. If we may imitate the artistic arrangement of the Greek, the verse will run thus, “In many portions and in many ways God having of old spoken unto the fathers in the prophets.” To the fathers of the Jewish people (comp. Rom_9:5) God’s word was given part by part, and in divers manners. It came in the revelations of the patriarchal age, in the successive portions of Holy Writ: various truths were successively unveiled through the varying ministry of law, and of prophecy, and of promise ever growing clearer through the teaching of experience and history. At one time the word came in direct precept, at another in typical ordinance or act, at another in parable or psalm. The word thus dealt out in fragments and variously imparted was God’s word, for the revealing Spirit of God was “in the prophets” (2Co_13:3). We must not unduly limit the application of “prophet”; besides those to whom the name is directly given, there were many who were representatives of God to His people, and interpreters of His will. (Comp. Num_11:26; Num_11:29; Psa_105:15.)
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv1–3 Vers. 1-4. EXORDIUM intimating in a succession of choice…
Vers. 1-4. EXORDIUM intimating in a succession of choice and pregnant phrases, the drift of the Epistle; a condensed summary of the coming argument. It briefly anticipates the views to be set forth in the sequel, of the revelation of God in Christ excelling far, and being destined to supersede, all that had preceded it, as being the ultimate Divine manifestation in the SON, according to the full meaning of the term involved in ancient prophecy; of the eternal Divinity of him who was thus revealed in time as SON of his accomplishing, as such, the reality signified by the ancient priesthood; and of his exaltation, as such, to his predestined glory and dominion on high. We find in the introduction to some of St. Paul"s Epistles somewhat similar adumbrations of his subject, but none so finished and rhetorical as this. And if its style affords an argument, as far as it goes, against the immediate Pauline authorship of the Epistle, still more does it appear almost conclusive against the view of its being a translation. Not merely the alliteration in polumerwv kai polutropwv , but the Greek structure of the whole with its rhythmical flow, betokens an original composition. The rolling music of the language cannot, of course, be reproduced in an English translation.
Retaining the order of the words in the original, we may translate, In many portions, and in many modes of old God having spoken to the fathers in the prophets. Polumerwv kai polutropwvnot a mere alliterative redundancy, denoting variously: the writer"s usual choice use of words forbids this supposition. Nor is the merwv of the first adverb to be taken (as in the A.V) to denote portions of time: this is not the proper meaning of the compound. Nor (for the same reason) does it denote various degrees of prophetic inspiration, but (on etymological as well as logical grounds) the various portions of the preparatory revelation to the fathers." It was not one utterance, but many utterances; given, in fact, at divers times, though it is to the diversity of the utterances, and not of the times, that the expression points. Then the second adverb denotes the various modes of the several former revelations not necessarily or exclusively the rabbinical distinction between dream, vision, inspiration, voices, angels; or that between the visions and dreams of prophets and the "mouth to mouth" revelation to Moses, referred to in Num_12:6-9; but rather the various characters or forms of the various utterances in themselves. Some were in the way of primeval promises; some of glimpses into the Divine righteousness, as in the Law given from Mount Sinai; some of significant ritual, as in the same Law; some of typical history and typical persons, spoken of under inspiration as representing an unfulfilled ideal; some of the yearnings and aspirations, or distinct predictions, of psalmists and of prophets. But all these were but partial, fragmentary, anticipatory utterances, leading up to and adumbrating the "one complete, all-absorbing "speaking of God to us in the SON," which is placed in contrast with there all. If the subsequent treatment in this Epistle of the Old Testament utterances is to be taken as a key for unlocking the meaning of the exordium, such ideas were in the writer"s mind when he thus wrote. Polumerwv pertinet ad materiam, polutropwv ad formam" (Bengel). Of old; i.e. in the ages comprised in the Old Testament record. Though it is true that; God has revealed himself variously since the world was made to other than the saints of the Old Testament, and though he ceased not to speak in some way to his people between the times of Malachi and of Christ, yet both the expression, "to the fathers," and the instances of Divine utterances given subsequently in the Epistle, restrict us in our interpretation to the Old Testament canon. Addressing Hebrews, it is from this that the writer argues. Having spoken; a word used elsewhere to express all the ways in which God has made himself, his will, and his counsels, known. (cf. Mat_10:20 Luk_1:45, 70 Joh_9:29 Act_3:21 Act_7:6) To the fathers; the ancestors of the Jews in respect both of race and of faith; the saints of the Old Testament. The word had a well-understood meaning. (cf. Mat_23:30 Luk_1:55, 72 11:47; and especially Rom_9:5) For the double sense of the term "father," thus used, see Joh_8:56, "your father Abraham;" but again, Joh_8:39, "If ye were Abraham"s children, ye would do the works of Abraham;" and also Romans 4. and Gal_3:7. But this distinction between physical and spiritual ancestry does not come in here. In the prophets. The word "prophet" must be taken here in a general sense; not confined to the prophets distinctively so called, as in Luk_24:44, "Moses, the prophets, and the psalms." For both Moses and the psalms are quoted in the sequel, to illustrate the ancient utterances. Profhthv means, both in classical and Hellenistic Greek (as does the Hebrew aybin, of which profhthv is the equivalent), not a foreteller, but a forth teller of the mind of God, an inspired expounder. (of Diothv esti Loxiav patrov , Aesch., "Eum.," 19; and Exo_7:1, "See I have made thee a god to Pharaoh, and Aaron thy brother shall be thy prophet Observe also the sense of profhteia in St. Paul"s Epistles. (especially 1Co 14) In this sense Moses, David, and all through whom God in any way spoke to man, were prophets. On the exact force of the preposition en , many views have been entertained. It does not mean "in the books of the prophets, the corresponding "in the SON" precludes this; nor that God by his Spirit spoke within the prophets, this idea does not come in naturally here; nor is "the SON" presented afterwards as one in whom the Godhead dwelt, so much as being himself a manifestation of God; nor may we take en , as simply a Hellenism for dia , the writer does not use prepositions indiscriminately. En , (as Alford explains it) differs from dia as denoting the element in which this speaking takes place. This use of the preposition is found also in classical Greek; cf. shmainein en oiwnoiv , frequent in Xenophon; in the New Testament, of. En tw arconti twn daimoniwi ekballei ta daimonia". (Mat_9:34)
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Vers. 1, 2. The two revelations
In this sublime exordium, which strikes the keynote of his doctrinal teaching, the writer takes for granted:
1. The inspiration of the Scriptures. God hath spoken." How awful this truth, yet how blessed! With what a clear ringing note of certainty the author assumes it! The Scriptures put forth no theory of inspiration, but they everywhere claim to declare the mind and will of God.
2. The interdependence of the two revelations. It is the same God who has spoken" in both. The new does not ignore or contradict the old; it rests upon it, develops it, and completes it. The Old Testament, no less than the New, will bear every trial to which it may be subjected by either the lower or the higher criticism.
I THE OLD TESTAMENT REVELATION CHARACTERIZED. It is:
1. Ancient. "Of old time unto the fathers." Since the world began". (Act_3:21) For nearly four hundred years now God had ceased speaking; it was more than fifteen hundred since the first part of the Old Testament had been written; and it was over four thousand years at the very least since God had begun to speak.
2. Given. "in the prophets." A prophet is a forth-speaker a spokesman one who speaks for another. The prophetic formula was, "Thus saith Jehovah." God"s prophets were men; he conveyed his message to his people through human minds and hearts. No prophet wrote as an automaton; his own faculties wrought, and his ink-horn was dashed with his heart"s blood. It is very beautiful to see the prophets rising up, one after another, in these far-past days. Together they form a "goodly fellowship;" each was the noblest spirit of his time.
1. Fragmentary. "By divers portions." God had given the former revelation part by part. He delivered it in connection with temporary dispensations the Adamic, the Abrahamic, and the Mosaic. He gave it first by oral communication, and latterly by Scripture. The Old Testament grew slowly; it took more than a millennium to complete it, and at least twenty-seven different writers contributed to it. The revelation, though of priceless value, was always fragmentary and imperfect; it was meant to be progressive and preparatory. God gave one truth to one age, and another to a succeeding age. The promises of redemption became the longer the more definite.
2. Multiform. "In diverse manners in manifold fashion. Now God spoke by dreams, now by visions, now by voices, now by angels, now by similitudes, now by Urim, now by sacrifices and lustrations, now by putting a burning word into the prophet"s soul. How various too, is the literature of the Old Testament Scriptures! Now it is historical, now biographical, now legislative, now prophetic, now philosophic, now poetical; as varied as the fresh mind of every contributor, and yet revealing all through the one eternal Mind.
II THE NEW TESTAMENT REVELATION CONTRASTED WITH THE OLD. The writer merely suggests this contrast, leaving its details to be wrought out in the meditation of his readers. Unlike the Old, the New Testament revelation is:
1. Recent and final "At the end of these days unto us." This refers to the close of the Mosaic economy. Judaism, like the older dispensations which preceded it, had got worn out, and in its turn had passed away; but the Christian dispensation is the final one, to be consummated only at the second advent. So, the new economy shall be ever present and always new, because not to be superseded so long as the world lasts.
2. Given "in his Son." What an element of stupendous contrast! The prophets were only inspired men; this is a Divine Person. The prophets were only servants; this is the Son. The prophets were only God"s spokesmen; this is God himself speaking. The Son is the Logos the" Word," the manifested God. What a view is presented in the following clauses of his Divine dignity and his mediatorial majesty! This first grand sentence of the Epistle reminds us of the scene on the holy mount. It points us away from Moses and Elijah, as did the voice from the excellent glory, saying to our souls, "This is my beloved Son: hear ye him.
1. Complete and perfect. The New Testament presents the truth, not fragmentarily, as the Old Testament did, but in finished form and in undivided fullness. It was entirely written by eight or nine men belonging to one generation. It contains a richer revelation of more developed truth than that which is found in the Hebrew Scriptures. In the Son of God, speaking to us through his apostles and evangelists, we see revelation full-orbed at last. For eighteen centuries now the canon has been complete; and, thus, progress in theology can be made only as the result of better understanding of what God has already given us. The laureate"s "Ring in the Christ that is to be," cannot refer with propriety to any Christ that is unrevealed.
2. Simple and clear. The Old Testament revelation was multiform like a painted window, covered over with many-colored and beautiful emblems; that of the New Testament is like a window of pure clear glass, through which we gaze upon the unveiled glory of heaven. The water of life trickled through the Old Testament in a variety of tiny streamlets; it runs in the New Testament with the flow of a broad pellucid river. Christ and his apostles "use great plainness of speech." The New Testament is much shorter than the Old, but it is more inward, evangelical, and spiritual. It is a better revelation as well as a later one; for it contains the substance rather than the shadows the heavenly things rather than only their patterns. Preaching is a very simple ordinance. The two sacraments constitute the entire Christian ritual. The Old Testament "veil is done away in Christ.
In conclusion:
1. Great as were the privileges of the ancient Hebrews, (Rom_9:4, Rom_9:5) how much higher are ours! (Mat_13:16, Mat_13:17)
2. How much heavier, accordingly, are our responsibilities! (Heb_12:25) What base ingratitude in any one not to listen to the Son of God, and to refuse to shape his life in accordance with the complete and glorious circle of Christian truth!
HOMILIES BY W.J. JONES. Vers. 1, 2. God"s revelation of redemptive truth to man
"God, who at sundry times and in divers manners," etc. God has spoken to man. A very significant fact. It suggests the Divine interest in his human creatures. It teaches that man is capable of receiving communications from the infinite Mind. tie can understand, appreciate, and appropriate to his unspeakable advantage the thoughts of God concerning him. He is under obligations to do so. Man"s attitude towards the communications of God should be that of devout attention and earnest investigation. Our text teaches that God"s revelation of redemptive truth to man
I WAS MADE THROUGH MAN. "God... spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets;" Revised Version, "in the prophets." The prophets were not simply predictors of future events; the word is applied to the sacred lawgiver, historians, poets, etc. God spake in them and through them to the fathers. "It was the very condition of the prophet"s inspiration," says Robertson, "that he should be one with the people. So far from making him superhuman, it made him more man. He felt with more exquisite sensitiveness all that belongs to man, else he could not have been a prophet. His insight into things was the result of that very weakness, sensitiveness, and susceptibility so tremblingly alive. He burned with their thoughts, and expressed them. He was obliged by the very sensitiveness of his humanity to have a more entire dependence and a more perfect sympathy than other men He was me, re man, just because more Divine more a Son of man, because more a Son of God.
II WAS MADE GRADUALLY. "At sundry times;" Revised Version, "by divers portions." The revelation was given piecemeal, by fragments, in and by various persons, and in different ages. Very gradual was the revelation of redemptive truth to man. God"s first communication (Gen_3:15) was like the evening star, serene and solitary; the fuller communications of the patriarchal age were like the starry hosts of night; the revelations made to Moses were like the light of the fair and full-orbed moon, in which that of the stars is lost; and those made by succeeding prophets were like the dawn of the day, when the moon grows pale and dim; and the supreme revelation was like the radiance of the sun shining in noontide splendor. This gradualness of revelation may be seen in many things, e.g. :
1. The character of God. Very gradual was the unfolding of the nature and character of the Divine Being to man. The measure of the revelation was adapted to the measure of the human capacity. Jesus, the Son, revealed the essence and heart of the Father. "God is a Spirit." Parable of the prodigal son. "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.
2. The salvation of man and its method.
3. True human character and blessedness. (of Deu_28:1-14 Mat_5:1-12)
4. The immortality of man. We find in the Bible longings for immortality, inquiries after it, hints concerning it, anticipations of it, but not until the final revelation in Christ was it brought into clear and assured light. (2Ti_1:10) This gradualness of the Divine unfoldment should be remembered by us we study the Divine communications. Let us not expect to find in the earlier portions what the later alone can contain, or put to Moses inquiries which only the Son can reply to.
III WAS MADE VARIOUSLY. "In divers manners." This is true:
1. Of God"s communications to the prophets. He communicated with them by Urim and Thummim, by dreams, visions, ecstasies, by quickening and directing their thoughts, etc. God is not limited as to his modes of access to and influence over the minds of men. He can call them into active exercise, impress them with deep convictions, etc.
2. Of the communications of the prophets to men. They spoke in prose and poetry, in parable and proverb, in history and prediction, in forcible reasoning and glowing eloquence. Each prophet also has his own style. God"s revelations in the Bible and in nature are alike in this, that they are characterized by endless and delightful variety. In nature we have the majestic mountain and the lowly valley, the massive oak and the modest daisy, the serene stars and the storm-driven clouds, the booming ocean and the rippling rivulet. Equally great and beautiful is the variety in the sacred Scriptures.
IV IS CHARACTERIZED BY UNITY. The revelation was given "by divers portions and in divers manners;" it came through different men and in widely distant ages; yet all the portions are in substantial agreement. The voices are many and various, but they meet and combine in one sweet and sublime harmony. In the different portions of the revelation we discover unity of character every portion is spiritual, pure, sacred; unity of direction every portion points to the last great revelation, the Divine Son; unity of purpose to make man "wise unto salvation." We conclude, then, that while the speakers were many, the inspiring Mind was One only. Or, keeping more closely to the phraseology of the text, though the voices were many, the Speaker was but one. In this marvelous unity in such great diversity, we have the basis of a cogent argument for the Divine origin of the sacred Scriptures.
V IS PERFECTED IN HIS SON. "God... hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son;" Revised Version, hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in his Son." The revelations made in and by the prophets were imperfect. "They were various in nature and form, fragments of the whole truth, presented in manifold forms, in shifting lines of separated color. Christ is the full revelation of God, himself the pure Light, uniting in his one Person the whole spectrum" (Alford). It is quite appropriate that the perfect revelation should be made in and through the Divine Son. The Son will be perfectly acquainted with the Father, and therefore able to declare his will. The Son wilt resemble the Father, and therefore be able to manifest him. "No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son," etc. No one knoweth "the Father, save the Son, and he to whomsoever the Son willeth to reveal him;" "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father." The Divine revelations of redemptive truth to man culminate in him. No new or further revelations will be granted unto us; but to the devout, patient, and earnest student, new and brighter light will stream forth from the revelations already given. Many of the utterances of the Son are as yet only very partially and imperfectly understood even by his most advanced pupils. His words are of inexhaustible significance; and. that significance will become increasingly manifest to the prayerful and patient inquirer.
CONCLUSION. Let us rejoice that we have this latest and brightest revelation of God, this clearest utterance of his will concerning us and our salvation. Let us heartily accept this revelation. It is truly accepted only when it is acted upon; i.e. when we have received the Son of God as our Savior and Lord. W. J.
HOMILIES BY C. NEW Vers. 1, 2. The two Testaments a progressive revelation of God.
These verses form the keynote of the Epistle. The Hebrew Christians were being cast out from Jewish worship and fellowship. To be excluded from the temple, the center of national unity, the home of the people to whom pertained "the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the Law, and the service of God, and the promises, and the fathers," was to be reduced to the level of the uncovenanted Gentiles. The writer encourages them in their trial by exhibiting the far greater glory of him to whom they had come than that they had been called to leave. Moreover, the old dispensation was hastening to its end; Judaism was dying out; the temple-worship was about to cease. The writer foretells this in prophetic symbolism, (Heb_12:26, Heb_12:27) Thus he seems to stand on the ruins of an old world. But the Epistle is to show a new world rising from its ashes the first done away that the second may be established. The stars are fading, but only because the sun has risen; the types are cast aside, but because the reality has come. Priest and sacrifice, altar and temple, national greatness and sacred lineage, they are all going. "Let them go," says he," for in their place has appeared with unspeakable glory the great fulfillment of them all the Lord Jesus, who abideth for ever." That is the substance of the Epistle the glory of the old economy fulfilled and surpassed in Christ. The subsequent chapters are but "a prolonged echo of this opening strain." The subject of these words is The two Testaments a progressive revelation of God.
I THEY TEACH THAT IN HOLY SCRIPTURE GOD HAS SPOKEN TO MAN. "He spake... he hath spoken." We might expect God to speak because a revelation is necessary. The world needs God, perishes without him, cries out after him. The world cannot find God; to the utmost earthly wisdom he is unknown. God is a God of goodness and love; his works declare it; then God must reveal himself to man.
1. Scripture declares itself to be God"s voice. Christ and the apostles affirm this of the Old Testament. You cannot believe in Christ without accepting the Old Testament as an infallible declaration of the Divine will; for so he accepted it. They also affirm this of their own teaching in the New Testament: "We speak not in the words which man"s wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth.
2. The effects of Scripture prove that this witness it bears to itself is trite. As the apostles proved their mission by "signs, and wonders, and divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost," so does the Bible; that it is a divinely inspired utterance is proved by Divine results. It meets the complicated needs of human nature, satisfies the heart, opens blind eyes, casts out evil spirits, transforms the character, regenerates the world, turns the wilderness into paradise. It does what only God can do; then God is in it.
II THEY TEACH THAT IN THE LORD JESUS CHRIST WE HAVE GOD"S PERFECT UTTERANCE TO MAN. "God... hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son.
1. Since God is the Author of both revelations, we may expect to find the new in the old. "God spake to the fathers... God hath spoken to us." And God is One; then we must expect to find the revelation one. Scripture is not two books, but a unity. See this in its outline; it begins with, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth;" it ends with the creation of the new heavens and earth. It begins with the story of man"s expulsion from the garden paradise lost; it ends with the vision of redeemed man dwelling under the tree of life, on the banks of the river of the water of life paradise regained; and between the beginning and the end we have the steps by which that develops into this. Thus the New Testament and the Old throw mutual light on each other; we cannot sever them without hurt. He who only reads one knows neither.
2. Since Christ is the Substance of the New Testament, the new revelation will be a distinct advance on the old. The text contrasts as well as compares them. There is a sense in which Christ may be said to be the Substance of the Old Testament him give all the prophets witness;" and we do not understand it unless we read it with Christ as the key. But in a far higher sense is he the Substance of the New. "God spake to the fathers in many parts, " i.e. in fragments. One aspect of truth was seen in one type, another in another; they needed to be combined if the full truth was to be known. And in diverse ways," by types, prophecies, requirements, providences, angelic ministry, human teachers, etc.; thus the old revelation had great disadvantages. Mark the contrast: He hath spoken unto us by his Son. " No longer in fragments or by many voices, but by one living Person, the embodiment of the Father"s thoughts concerning us; "the Word" made flesh. Christ not only the Messenger, but the Message.
3. Since Christ is God the Son, there can be no revelation beyond what is given in him. As long as God spoke by human teachers a greater and better might arise; but when he spake by his Son the climax was reached. The Son knows the Father perfectly, and can make no mistake as to the mind of the Father. To know how God feels about men, learn of Christ. This is my beloved Son: hear him." To know what God is, look at Christ. "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father." To know what God would give, study Christ. He is God"s "unspeakable Gift;" "in him are hid all the treasures," etc. All that God has to say to us we hear in Jesus, and there can be nothing beyond that.
III THEY TEACH THAT, IN HAVING SPOKEN TO MAN, GOD HAS PLACED HIM UNDER SOLEMN RESPONSIBILITY. "God hath spoken!" What then?
1. If God has spoken, it leaves man"s ignorance without excuse. No one with this Book need be in ignorance on Divine things. If God has spoken it is to teach us something; then he cannot have spoken so unintelligibly that we cannot understand him. If he has spoken here, we may rely on this Book as on a rock. Distinguish between human interpretation of truth and the truth itself; but when you have discovered the truth, hold it and assert it positively. What is truth? What God hath said.
2. If God has spoken, his Word must be man"s ultimate authority. We must have infallibility or we can have no rest. Where is it? The Church in her history has proved that she is not infallible. Man"s moral consciousness proves that it is not infallible, for the "inner light" in different men points in different directions, is perverted by sin, bribed into silence, educated into error. There is no infallibility if it be not in the Bible. But it is here, for here God hath spoken. Then find your creed in it, and base your life on it, making it in all matters the final and authoritative court of appeal. It must be madness to oppose personal opinion or expediency to what the Lord says.
3. If God has spoken, irreverence and neglect of Scripture are man"s loss and shame. "God hath spoken!" Then with what solemnity should we listen to his voice; with what constancy should we draw near to this temple to hear his will; and with what awe, taking our shoes from our feet, as on holy ground! Think of God speaking, and no "Speak, Lord, for thy servant heareth," rising from our heart! Are you neglecting Scripture? Remember God has no other voice after this; Christ is his last appeal to men. "Having, therefore, one Son, his well-beloved, he sent him last unto them, saying, They will reverence my Son." "God hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son;" to be deaf to that last appeal is to have God speechless to us forever. C.N.
HOMILIES BY J.S. BRIGHT Vers. 1-3. Christ as Prophet of the Church.
This Epistle was written to those Jewish Christians who were in danger of relapsing from their profession of faith in Jesus and returning to the sacrifices and ceremonies of the Jewish Law. If we consider that they had been brought up in the acknowledgment of the Mosaic rites as being of Divine origin, with the power of early impressions; that it was a vast step from Moses to the simple and spiritual system of the gospel; that there were many forms of persecution to be endured, and that the love of many waxed cold, it will appear that such an Epistle was necessary, and admirably adapted, by its assertion of the superiority of Christ to all the prophets and priests of the past, to prevent apostasy and restore and confirm their faith.
I HERE ARE FOUND THE PROGRESSIVENESS OF DIVINE REVELATION. God conveyed portions of truth to Abraham, Moses, David, Isaiah, and the prophets; and in divers manners, as in vision to Abraham, face to face to Moses, by Urim and Thummim, by proverb and psalm, and by prediction and apocalyptic images. This was gradual revelation, and was suited to the ages of the Church before Christ came, who treated his disciples in this way and said, "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now". (Joh_16:12)
II NOTE THE PERFECTION OF CHRIST AS THE PROPHET OF THE CHURCH. This is to be seen in his superiority to all preceding teachers who were sent by the Divine Spirit to make known the will of God. He was the Son:
1. In his resemblance to his -Fail, or in creative energy. "Without him was not anything made that was made.
2. In resemblance of sustaining power, by which he upholds all law, preserves all harmony in creation, and maintains all life, from the highest seraphs to the humblest believers, and even to the lowest forms of existence.
1. Resemblance in personal glory. Jesus Christ is the Brightness of the Father"s glory, and the express Image of his person; the latter idea drawn from the monarch"s portrait stamped upon golden coin. Such words are the best human language supplies; and the treasures of these Divine ideas are put in the earthen vessels of our speech, and fall infinitely below the sublime reality. Our Lord"s condition on the holy mount best illustrates the thought of his resemblance to the glory of his Father, when the ineffable resplendence which streamed from himself appeared to add emphasis to the words, "He that hath seen me hath seen the Father.
2. Resemblance of power of enjoyment. He is to be "Heir of all things." Abraham was to be heir of the world; but here is a wider inheritance, which no finite mind can ever grasp. Jesus Christ is to be the Heir of all the results of his incarnation, ministry, and sacrifice. He is to see of the travail of his soul, and be satisfied; and through eternal ages he will receive the gratitude and adoration of a "number that no man can number." All judgment is committed to him, and on his head are many crowns.
III OBSERVE THE PERFECTION OF CHRIST AS THE PRIEST. There is here a suggested contrast to priests of the Jewish Law. It is said he purged our sins by himself; then he stands before us as the One in opposition to the many who did not continue by reason of death. Aaron, Eli, Zadok, and Joshua successively disappear. There is a contrast between other priests and our Lord, who did not offer victims, as sheep, goats, lambs, and kids; but offered himself through the eternal Spirit. There is unlikeness inasmuch as the services of the ancient priests did not purify the conscience; but the sacrifice of our Lord cleanses by faith from all sin, restores to the Divine favor, and imparts the enjoyment of Christian hope. There is a contrast between the priests of the old Law in respect of dignity. The ancient ministers of the temple had to offer for their own sins, and then for the sins of the people; our Lord was "holy, harmless, separate from sinners." The descendants of Aaron had to minister in the holy of holies when it was darkened by the smoke of sweet incense, and none dare to sit down near the mercy-seat; but the Redeemer sits down "at the right hand of the Majesty on high." Once more, the Jewish high priests ministered for their own nation, while other populations in Egypt, Arabia, and Syria had no share in their service; but our Lord is exalted, and sits a priest upon his throne, and a multitude of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues enjoy the benefit and blessing of his ministry. B.
HOMILIES BY D. YOUNG Ver. 1. God speaking to men.
I THE GENERAL TRUTH THAT GOD SPEAKS TO MEN. The possibility is assumed of such a communication from God to men. Nothing less can be meant than this that even as one man can clearly make known the thoughts and wishes that are in him to another, so God can communicate his thoughts and wishes to a being with a nature like man. It is quite allowable to say that a voice of God speaks forth from the things he has made, just as a voice speaks forth from our works and actions; but beyond all voices we thus infer there is surely a direct utterance of God. What an inspiring thought, that at any moment a voice may come to the heart of man out of the infinite depths, not heard indeed by the outward ear, but still making evident that it is not something imagined from within, or something that rises from a purely human and earthly level! Thus we may classify the words that are spoken to a man:
1. There is soliloquy. When a man listens to his own heart, to its suggestions, its apologies, its speculations, its putting of pros and cons. There are things said and listened to which dare not come out in audible speech.
2. The speech of men to each other, full of limitations and imperfections, only too often trifling, frivolous, barbed with sneering, contempt, envy, jealousy.
3. The speech of God to men, of which the first chief thing to be noticed is that it does come from above; not from the confusion within, or the confusion without and around.
II GOD SPEAKING TO CERTAIN MEN BY PROPHETS. This Epistle went forth originally within the limits of a nation. The writer is writing to Hebrews; he at once bids them look to the past, the distant past, and yet the past out of which their present had come. They had to consider their fathers, and thus the succession in which they themselves stood. As they looked hack they looked along a line illuminated by a special and heavenly light. The sacred books, the Scriptures which they have to search, are pervaded by the recorded speeches and acts of Jehovah; so that if these speeches and acts be cut out, all the rest drops into incoherent fragments. Surely this description of God here gives us one of the rules whereby we are profitably to read the Old Testament. We have in the Old Testament God speaking to the fathers to the fathers in many generations, to the fathers in different circumstances; we have words to Israel in its beginnings, words to it in its bondage, in its wilderness and tent-life, in its settlement, in its glory as a united kingdom, in its civil discord and separation, in its idolatries, in its time of desolation by foreigners, anti its final exile. Hence the opportunities for warning and threatening on the one hand, and consolation and promise on the other. It must also be considered how God spoke to each generation of the fathers by men belonging to that generation. What was true of the fathers was true of the prophets; one generation goeth and another cometh. We must not measure the prophetic work by the writings that have been preserved. There must have been many, many prophets beyond the few whose names we know, and some day all their faithfulness and usefulness may be revealed. In any case, we can estimate the class from the specimens, and while we estimate we glorify the class, seeing what God can do through the agency of brother men picked men, it is true, but still entirely men of like passions with ourselves; and thus, while we see the glory of the prophets, we see also their limitations. The prophet lives, speaks, dies, and his work is done. When he dies another living man must rise, who has a sensible contact with his fellow-man. New times bring new needs, and new needs have to be met by new voices. Prophecy is in many parts and after many fashions, it is spoken to many generations by many prophets; but note behind all the uniting force. It is one God who speaks in all and to all. There is variety, advance, light, at the beginning, ever increasing toward the perfect day, but nowhere any discord, any contradiction. In studying the Old Testament it is wisdom to feel sure that there is harmony in its utterances, if only we can find that harmony out.
III GOD SPEAKING TO US BY HIS SON. Jesus, of course, was a Prophet; One who came from God, had the Spirit of God in him, and spoke the words of God. But he was not a prophet as his predecessors were. The marks of frailty, ignorance, and sin are on them. Manward they may be faithful enough, speaking every word Jehovah has put in their mouths, whatever the peril, whatever the pain. But Godward, what a difference between the prophets of the Old Testament and Jesus! Jesus never speaks out of such ignorance and despondency as does Elijah. The words of Isaiah in Isa_6:5-7, how strangely they would sound if imagined ascending from Jesus! God has spoken to us by a Son. The one ever-living Son, as contrasted with the many-dying prophets. The prophet had his day, a glorious day if he was faithful, but brief at the longest. The day of Jesus, as God"s Speaker to men, is described in that later expression of the Epistle same yesterday, and today, and forever." Jesus ever liveth, not only to make intercession for us, but as the well-beloved Son of God, to speak to us the words of his Father. The words of Jesus, inwrought as they are with the very substance of the New Testament, are ever to be taken as the word of a being still living, still in contact with men, still making one in every company gathered together in his Name, still saying, "Lo, I am with you all the days, even to the consummation of the age. Y.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On v1 God … hath … spoken … by His Son.
Heb_1:1-3
God … hath … spoken … by His Son.
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Personal reserve
The Epistle to abruptly, like 1 John, without either greeting from the author, address to the church, or words of introduction. This omission distinguishes these two from every other epistle in the New Testament, and creates of itself a strong presumption that St. Paul was not the author. It is obviously not due to any attempt at concealment; for the tone of personal authority occasionally assumed, and the personal allusions towards the close, show that the author was well known to his readers, and affected no disguise. The character of the Epistle supplies an obvious explanation: the dignity of an oratorical address demanded Some personal reserve; and this dignity is especially conspicuous in the measured rhythm and elaborate antitheses of the opening period. (F. Rendall, M. A.)
Apostolic tact
The wisdom of the apostle is strikingly displayed in the manner of commencing this letter. He is writing to Jews for the purpose of removing their misconceptions and allaying their prejudices; and the line of argument which he intends to pursue, requires him first of all to treat of the native and essential dignity of Jesus Christ. But he so constructs the opening sentence of his letter, that on the wry fore-front of it there stands a spontaneous acknowledgment of the heavenly origin of the system which they so much admired. The Jews were apt to imagine then Christians undervalued the ancient institutions. Paul does not wait to state his views afterwards in the shape of a concession; but the very first words that flow from his pen do homage to Moses and the prophets. In dealing with an adversary, if it is your wish to persuade him, if you are not merely actuated by the empty desire of gaining a triumph over him, by all means frankly and at once acknowledge whatever you believe to be good and sound in his views. The same acknowledgment, afterwards made and viewed as a concession, will not produce the same effect. The Scriptures display a profound knowledge of human nature. (W. Lindsay, D. D.)
Christ and the prophets
This long, sonorous sentence forms the introduction to the whole Epistle if as it were, the portico of an august temple, its many weighty clauses being as rows of stately ornamental pillars supporting the roof. This temple front has a most imposing aspect! It fills the mind with awe, and disposes one to enter the sacred edifice in religious silence, rather than to indulge in critical remarks. In these opening verses the writer announces at once the theme of his discourse, and introduces the leading thoughts on which he intends to expatiate. The first point to be noticed in the proem is the contrast drawn, in anithetic terms, between the Old and the New Testament revelations. By the prophets may be meant those strictly so called, but more probably the phrase is meant to cover the whole Old Testament revelation, including the law-giving; the recognition of the angels as the agents by whom the law was given being rather a concession to Jewish opinion than the expression of the writers own view. To be noted is the use of the phrase the fathers absolutely, as the recipients of the ancient revelation. It implies that the Epistle is meant solely for Jewish readers. Very remarkable are the terms employed to describe the character of the Old Testament revelation. It is characterised as a piecemeal multiform revelation. For what purpose are these epithets employed? Hardly for the purpose of mere literary description, to suggest, for example, the picturesque nature of the Hebrew literature; still less for the purpose of pointing out its spiritual excellences. Rather, to indicate the inferiority of the earlier revelation, that the Hebrew Christians might not cling to it as something final. This end these epithets are well fitted to serve. The first of the two points to a fact with which the first readers of the Epistle were perfectly familiar. They knew that the Divine communications to Israel came bit by bit: the promise by Abraham; the law by Moses; the song of the sanctuary by David and other poets; the wisdom of life by Solomon and the other sages of Israel; and by the prophets commonly so called, to relieve the gloom of the present, successive rays of light concerning Messiah and the Messianic kingdom. And of course they understood that no one of these partial fragmentary revelations could be regarded as complete or final. Each successive piece of revelation proved the incompleteness of all that went before. But might not all the pieces taken together, when the last had been given, and the Hebrew canon was complete, amount to a full, adequate revelation, possessing the character of finality? The presumption was the other way. The likelihood was that the prophets collectively, including under that category all the men by whom the Hebrew books were written, were but luminaries of the night--street lamps set in a row to show travellers their way through the gloom; stars set in the spiritual firmament to mitigate the darkness till the sun should arise, bringing in the day. This presumption is converted into certainty by the second epithet, which greatly strengthens the argument against finality suggested by the first. It gives us to understand that the ancient revelation was communicated, not only in many parts, but in many modes. The general idea intended is plain. It is that the revelation made to each prophet was relative--relative to him temperament, circumstances, and historical position. This relativity or subjectivity of the ancient revelation makes it impossible to add together the separate pieces of revelation, and so bring out the whole final revelation. For the pieces are not homogeneous fragments of one whole. They are heterogeneous wholes, often incapable of combination. This is most clearly seen in the Messianic prophecies uttered by successive prophets, which are not separate fragments of one picture of the future capable of being combined into a harmonious whose, but independent pictures, each exhibiting the future from its own point of view. Of Him by whom the much needed new revelation was made the writer next proceeds to speak. God hath, in the end of these days, spoken unto us in (His) Son. The revelation made in the Son is not qualified by descriptive epithets, as in the case of the earlier revelation, the reason being that such epithets in this case are not needed. The finality of the revelation made through the Son is expressly taught by the phrase in the end of these days. The writer expresses himself in accordance with the Jewish mode of viewing the history of the world as divided into two great periods, the present age, and the age to come. He conceives of Christ as the divider and maker of the ages (as of the worlds), coming at the end of the old time and inangurating the new. Having made mention of the Son, the writer proceeds to invest Him with all due honours, Divine and mediatorial, to win for His word fitting attention. The elaborate encomium which follows presents a very high view of the Person of Christ. It ascribes to Him (by implication) pre-existence, an essential and therefore eternal relation to God, universal heirship, participation in the Divine functions of making and upholding the world. (A. B. Bruce, D. D.)
Gods revelation of Himself
I. The revelation of the will of God, as to all things which concern His worship and our faith and obedience, IS PECULIARLY AND IN A WAY OF EMINENCE FROM THE FATHER.
1. The whole mystery of His will antecedently to the revelation of it, is said to be hid in God, that is, the Father (Eph_3:9), it lay wrapt up from the eyes of men and angels, in His eternal wisdom and counsel Col_1:26-27).
2. The revelation of the mystery of the will of God, so hidden in the counsel of His will from eternity, was always made and given out in the pursuit, and for the accomplishment of the purpose of the Father; or of that eternal purpose of the will of God, which is by the way of eminence ascribed unto the Father (Eph_1:8-9).
3. This purpose of God being communicated with, and unto the Lord Christ, or the Son, became the counsel of peace between them both Zec_6:13). The Son, rejoicing to do the work that was incumbent on Him for the accomplishment of it (Pro_8:30-32; Psa_40:7-8), it became peculiarly the care and work of the Father to see that the inheritance promised Him upon His undertaking (Isa_53:10-12) should be given unto Him. This is done by the revelation of the will of God unto men, concerning their obedience and salvation, whereby they are made the lot, the seed, the portion and inheritance of Christ.
4. The whole revelation and dispensation of the will of God in and by the Word, is, as was said, eminently appropriated unto the Father. Eternal life (the counsel, the purpose, ways, means, and procurer of it) was with the Father, and was manifested to us by the Word of truth (1Jn_1:1-2). And it is the Father, that is, His will, mind, purpose, grace, love, that the Son declares (Joh_1:18); in which work He speaks nothing but what He heard from, and was taught by the Father (Joh_8:28). And thence He says, the doctrine is not Mine, that is, principally and originally, but His that sent Me (Joh_7:16). And the gospel is called, the gospel of the glory of the blessed God (1Ti_1:11), which is a periphrasis of the person of the Father, who is the Father of glory (Eph_1:17).
And from the appropriating of this work originally and principally to the Father, there are three things that are particularly intimated unto us.
1. The authority that is to be considered in it; the Father is the original of all power and authority; of Him the whole family in heaven and earth is Eph_3:15).
2. There is also love. It was out of infinite love, mercy, and compassion, that God would at all reveal His mind and will unto sinners. This mixture of authority ant love, which is the spring of the revelation of the will of God unto us, requires all readiness, willingness, and cheerfulness in the receipt of it, add submission unto it.
3. There is care eminently seen in it. The great care of the Church is in, and on the Father. He is the husbandman that, takes care of the vine and vineyard (Joh_15:1-2).
What directions from these considerations may be taken for the use both of them that dispense the word, and of those whose duty it is to attend unto the dispensation of it, shall only be marked in our passage. For the dispensers of the Word, let them
1. Take heed of pursuing that work negligently, which hath its spring in the authority, love, and care of God (see 1Ti_4:13-16).
2. Know to whom to look for support, help, ability, and encouragement in their work (Eph_6:19-20).
3. Not to be discouraged, whatever opposition they meet with in the discharge of their duty, considering whose work they have in hand (2Co_4:15-16).
4. Know how they ought to dispense the Word, so as to answer the spring from whence it comes; namely, with authority, love to, and care for ,he souls of men.
5. Consider to whom they are to give an account of the work they are called to the discharge of, and entrusted with (Heb_13:7).
And for them to whom the Word is preached, let them consider
1. With what reverence and godly fear they ought to attend to the dispensation of it, seeing it is a proper effect and issue of the authority of Heb_12:25).
2. How they will escape if they neglect so great salvation declared unto them from the love and care of God (Heb_2:3).
3. With what holiness and spiritual subjection of soul unto God, they ought to be conversant in and with all the ordinances of worship, that are appointed by Him (Heb_12:28-29).
II. THE AUTHORITY OF GOD SPEAKING IN AND BY THE PENMEN OF THE SCRIPTURES, IS THE SOLE BOTTOM AND FOUNDATION OF OUR ASSENTING TO THEM, and what is contained in them, with faith divine and supernatural. He spake in them: He then continues to speak by them, and therefore in their word received (2Pe_1:20-21).
III. GODS GRADUAL REVELATION OF HIMSELF, His mind and will unto the Church, was a fruit of infinite wisdom and care towards His elect.
1. He over-filled not their vessels; He gave them out light as they were able to bear.
2. He kept them in a continual dependence upon Himself, and waiting for their rule and direction from Him, which, as it tended to His glory, so it was exceedingly suited to their safety, in keeping them in an humble waiting frame.
3. He so gave out the light and knowledge of Himself, as that the great work which He had to accomplish, that lay in the stores of His infinitely wise will, as the end and issue of all revelations, namely the bringing forth of Christ into the world, in the way wherein He was to come, and for the ends which He was to bring about, might not be obviated.
4. He did this work so that the pre-eminence fully and ultimately to reveal Him, might be reserved for Him, in whom all things were to be gathered unto a head. All privileges were to be kept for, and unto Him, which was principally done by this gradual revelation of the mind of God.
5. And there was tender care conjoined with this infinite wisdom. None of His elect in any age were left without that light and instruction which were needful for them in their seasons and generations. And this so given out unto them, as that they might have fresh consolation and support as their occasions did require.
IV. We may see hence the absolute perfection of the revelation of the will of God by Christ and His apostles, as to every end and purpose whatever, for which God ever did, or ever will in this world reveal Himself, or His mind and will. For as this was the last way and means that God ever designed for the discovery of Himself, as to the worship and obedience which He requires, so the person by whom He accomplished this work, makes it indispensably necessary that it be also absolutely perfect; from which nothing can be taken, to which nothing must be added under the penalty of the extermination threatened to him that will not attend to the voice of that prophet. (John Owen, D. D.)
The method of the Divine Teacher
I. THE DIVINE METHOD AS TO TIME.
1. As the ages passed on, first one and then another truth was revealed; first one and then another aspect of a truth was made known, until, in the fulness of time, the glory of God shone in the face of Jesus Christ. There is in the East an anticipatory dawn, a sort of premature twilight, which always disappears before the true dawn commences. So in the history of the world, especially in the history of Israel, have there been many dawnings of light, to be followed perhaps by periods of obscurity, yet graciously illumining the successive ages, and heralding the coming of the Light of the world.
2. Is there not even fuller light for the individual, even fuller light for the Church, until we come to that city where the glory of God shall shine forth with unclouded splendour? God always gives light as we are able to
(1) Bear,
(2) Use it.
II. THE DIVINE METHOD AS TO MODE.
1. God presents the truth to the individual in such a form as may best secure his obedience. The Spirit of God shows the things of Christ in an intellectual, ethical, imaginative, emotional light, according to the genius of those to whom He may appeal.
2. God influences the preacher, that in the selection and presentment of his themes he may best win his congregation.
3. God knows the special truths for the times; or the particular aspect in which the truth needs to be recognised.
III. THE DIVINE METHOD AS TO ORGAN. Not any men, but certain men, of spiritual susceptibility and force were selected to be the organs in which God would speak to the fathers; and the same rule of selection obtains still, for Christ makes Himself known to the world through certain spiritual agents a d holy ministries. Lessons:
1. Let unconverted men learn the greatness of their responsibility.
2. Let the Church take encouragement touching the salvation of the word.
3. Let the Church be more faithful, that she may increase in the knowledge of Christ.
4. Let the Church be more pure, that she may the better make Christ known. (The Metropolitan Pulpit.)
Gods revelation of Himself
I. THE KNOWLEDGE WE POSSESS OF GOD WAS SUPERNATURALLY COMMUNICATED. Language--the words we use to utter our thoughts and feelings must have been a supernatural gift in the first instance. If the casket came from hearers, much more the jewel. l he mind of man was created as much to receive the thoughts of God, as the eye was to receive the light of the sun, and to behold the many beauties of creation. All the truest and best thoughts of our mind are heaven-inspired.
II. THE KNOWLEDGE WE POSSESS OF GOD WAS GRADUALLY AND VARIOUSLY REVEALED. There was, first of all, the morning star, then the soft grey dawn, which spread itself by degrees over the horizon, until, in these latter days, the whole world was overtaken by the fuller light of the meridian sun.
III. IN CHRIST WE HAVE A FULL AND FINAL REVELATION OF GODS TRUTH. We sometimes find the light in our houses small and feeble, not because there is an insufficient quantity of the means of lighting manufactured, but because a large portion of it is shut up in the meter; only a small quantity is allowed to run into our dwellings, consequently the light is faint, and only illuminates a very small space; but when it is turned on in full force, the light is abundant, lighting up every nook and corner of the apartments in which it is kindled. When men depended on the amount of light which was in the prophets, they could not see far; only a small quantity of Heavens light was allowed to flow, or could flow into them, and therefore they could only emit a faint glimmer upon those who wooed to them for illumination; they only saw through a glass darkly themselves, and so their power to impart light could not be great. But of Christ it was said, In Him was life, and the life was the light of none. Between the measure of light that came by the first prophets and that which came by Christ there is no comparison, but a perfect contrast. Just as there is no comparison between the degree of the light of a star and the sun; the star has just enough light to show the darkness, but the sun chases the night away and makes it day. It is our inestimable privilege to live in the meridian light of Him who said, I am the Light of the world. (D. Rhys Jenkins.)
The manner of revelation
I. TIME. Centuries were required to complete the scheme, Man was to be taken at a low and infantile point, and raised up to the fulness of the stature of a perfect manhood; from a living soul to a quickening spirit. By no one sudden blow could the benevolent design of giving man the true knowledge of God, and his own duty and destiny, be executed. The laws of progress, gradation, and periodicity must be observed in regard to our higher nature. One age was to witness one attainment, and another, another. It has much to establish the unity of the Deity; it was more to develop the Idea of the Father.
II. AGENTS AND EXAMPLES. Again, the manner of revelation is not abstract, but concrete. The ordinary as well as supernatural agencies are employed. If angels are sent, so are men; if the special messenger raised up, sanctified, and commissioned be the Son of God by excellence, yet a long line of the good and the great bear up the ark of God; and patriarch, king, and priest, and prophet, and apostle, are seen at different intervals along the majestic procession. In selecting men to act so distinguished a part in the designs of God towards His children, we perceive a part of the same system which we witness in business, art, science, government, and literature. For if History be philosophy teaching by example, then is revelation religion teaching by example. In this feature of the mode of communication we see the wise adaptation of means to ends, the use of causes to produce effects, such as we should anticipate from so great a Designer.
III. LANGUAGES AND BOOKS. In two principal languages, Hebrew and Greek, with a few passages in the Chaldee--in sixty-six books, written by at least thirty-nine authors--the Jewish and Christian Scriptures present that fertility of human genius, as well as of sacred truth, that fitly entitles it to be called the Bible--The Book. Here are flowers of every hue and fragrance, fruits of every taste and nut iment. The sinner cannot read far without meeting with his warning, nor the saint without hearing his beatitude nor the sad without alighting upon his consolation, nor the weak without touching the wand of spiritual strength, nor the poor without opening the mine of heavenly treasures, nor the rich without being reminded that they brought nothing into this world, and that they can carry nothing out.
IV. MIRACLES. Most of us are so earthly-minded that some extraneous means to arouse us from indifference are needed. We want a bell rung to call us to the temple of the Lord to receive His gracious message. Miracles are that tell. They prove nothing by their solitary selves. It would be hard to defend miracles in general, but not the Christian miracles; for they subserve a great and good end, worthy of the interposing finger of God. All along, too, in speaking of His signs and wonders, Jesus very remarkably and clearly points out their office. It was that men might believe on Him, and believing, have life. They added no weight to the truth as truth, but they did add weight to truth, as received by the ignorant, the degraded, and the inattentive.
V. INSTITUTIONS AND ORDINANCES. The institution of Moses, however puerile they may seem to a Christian, were yet admirably adapted to raise up a low and barbarous people, and give a race of idolators the knowledge and we, ship of the One True and Living God. But if we turn to the Christian revelation, the institutions are more simple, as becomes a more perfect faith and spirituality. Forms are not absolute, but relative; not essential, but important; they have place, but it is not the first place. They are a species of gigantic language, whose letters are facts and whose sentences are customs. They are to be observed, not for their own sake, but for the spiritual purport they imply and convey. (A. A. Livermore.)
The various classes of prophetical announcement
I. DREAMS were a frequent mode by which the future was opened up to the minds of the prophets. There is something peculiarly solemn in the thong it of these revelations of the future made to the mind, whilst the body is in a state of repose and temporary insensibility. They illustrate the capabilities and susceptibilities of the human mind, independent of the corporeal frame: the power of the Most High and His grace and condescension in thus communicating to man H s counsels and purposes. They prove the fact of Gods interest in what concerns the human race, and His constant intercourse with a family of His intelligent creatures, perhaps the most unworthy of His notice. The state of the body, too, when these revelations were made, may be regarded as a type of the respective conditions of the mind and body, when death has severed the bond that unites them. The body asleep in the grave, the mind conversant with the plans of the Almighty, and blessed with the vision of His glory. The body at rest--the cares of life, its scenes, its passions all hushed--its conflicts and struggles succeed, d by repose; the mind released from its attention to what was immediate and temporary; but in that solemn hour of release, God, its Creator, appears; the future is unveiled, and truth revealed leaves its right and unqualified impression.
II. The second class of prophetical announcements may be ranged under the head of VISIONS. Dreams and visions are not always distinguished in sacred scripture. Sometimes the same revelation is said to be made by a dream and a vision. Thus Nebuchadnezzars dream is called the visions of his head (Dan_2:28). A vision, then, may be defined as a representation of things made to the mind of the prophet while he was awake. The eyes rest on the object, the impression is not only as distinct and vivid as if the object were present to the senses in an ordinary way, but more so, from the extraordinary manner, of its appearance. The most terrible elements of nature--the most beautiful of its inanimate objects--all that is magnificent and costly in art, all that is dignified in personal form, formed scenes surpassing in splendour the conceptions of the most brilliant fancy. They were fitted and intended to produce a due measure of impression on minds like ours, necessarily more affected by what is thus clothed and presented to the eye and the imagination in vivid forms, in order to its awakening attention, and giving a just conception of the importance of the events thus represented. Our responsibility is great, and our gratitude ought to be intense.
III. Another method in which these announcements were made, and to which we must advert, is AN AUDIBLE VOICE. Moses at bush. Giving of law. Elijah in cave.
IV. But although it pleased the Lord to communicate His will to men, and the knowledge of His purposes, by such direct addresses to the senses, or to the imagination, yet a great part of the sacred Scriptures was written under A MORE DIRECT INSPIRATION OF THE HOLY GHOST, communicating immediately to the mind, the doctrines and facts to be recorded.
1. From them all we learn that the communications thus made, various as they were--sometimes judgments, and at others most signal mercies--all furnish striking illustrations of the providence and government of God.
2. The condescension of God.
3. Our responsibilities.
4. The unbroken continuity of the Divine government, and unity of Gods purposes. (J. Robinson.)
A revelation from God to man both probable and necessary
I. The infidel meets us with this PRELIMINARY OBJECTION--A REVELATION FROM GOD IS CONTRARY TO ALL THE EXPERIENCE AND ANALOGIES OF OUR COMMON HISTORY. Now I maintain, in the first place, that a revelation is not contrary even to fact. For how was Adam instructed? Where got he language? God must have taught him. And now we proceed, further, to maintain that a revelation is not contrary to our experience or to the analogies of nature. We allege that there is every probability that God would give a revelation of His will. Can we believe that the God of nature is benevolent, yet leaves millions of the family He fashioned to grippe in darkness that may be felt? I say, the surprise should not be that God has given a revelation; the matter of surprise would be if He had not. Observe that such a revelation of Gods will is not contrary to the analogies of nature. Now, observe how we are taught. You find the child is taught by its father; the scholar is taught by his tutor; the inexperienced taught by the experienced. Now what is a revelation but just the extension of this plan, just the addition of another link? If the young be taught by the aged, the stripling by the patriarch, the inexperienced by the experienced, you have only to add another link to the chain, and you come to the inference that the world may be taught by its Creator, the human family by its Almighty Father. Let me ask, in the next place, what is the nature of the instruction that we derive one from another. Is it not of an experimental and a moral kind? In other words, when you see the patriarch or the aged teaching the group that is around him, what is the nature of his teaching? He is teaching them all the dangers and the difficulties through which he had come; he is telling them how to withstand this peril, how to overcome that trial, how to meet this emergency, how to unravel that perplexity. Now what else is God doing in revelation? Just teaching us how we are to meet the difficulties, to overcome the trials, to vanquish the foes, and to inherit the glory and the happiness which lie before us.
II. I observe, in the second place, that a revelation is not only probable, but THAT IT WAS ABSOLUTELY DEMANDED BY THE EXISTING STATE OF THE WORLD. Here I might show you that there are wants in mans heart, which all the philosophy of a Plato cannot satisfy; that there are feelings and perplexities in mans moral constitution, which all the writings of all the moralist, in the world cannot meet. I might show you that there is a consciousness of sin and a dread of punishment, which cannot be stilled unless by the pages of the oracles of God. But I forbear from that, and I take facts; and I will show you, first, from the admitted state of the ancient heathen; secondly, of the modern heathen; and, lastly, of infidels themselves, that a revelation from God was a desiderarum, for which all creation groaned, and for which all mankind earnestly (though unintentionally) prayed. (J. Cumming, D. D.)
The reasonableness of a Divine revelation
The question before us is, whether the great Author of truth, the inexhaustible source of pure celestial light, can--and if He can, whether it be probable that He would--and if it be probable that He would, whether He has--rolled back the veil that hangs between Himself and us; whether it be true that He giveth wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to them that know understanding, and whether He revealeth the deep and secret things.
I. In entertaining this grave inquiry, it will be proper, in the first place, to ascertain WHETHER IT BE POSSIBLE FOR THE SUPREME MIND TO REVEAL HIMSELF TO MEN. Two things must be proved. First, that there is a Supreme Being, the Maker and Preserver of all being. And, secondly, that we are rational creatures, capable of entertaining the question at present in debate. It is then admitted that we all are the offspring of God. Such is the testimony of reason, or rather of the common sense of mankind. But surely it will not be denied that He who made us can influence and inform our under-standings--can, in one word, operate up ,n our souls, in any manner that shall be suitable to its faculties.
II. Presuming that we are agreed on the possibility, let us advance another step in the argument. Let us cart fully inquire whether there are not considerations us, THAT RENDER IT HIGHLY PROBABLE THAT THE SUPREME INTELLIGENCE WOULD FAVOUR MAN WITH A REVELATION. The question is this: whether, taking into our consideration the character of the Supreme Being, our necessary connection with Him, the peculiar capacities with which we are endowed, and the deplorable condition in which we find the human family, it be not most probable that this infinitely benevolent Being would make important communications to mankind.
1. It cannot be rationally denied, that the human spirit is capable of enjoying intercourse with the Father of our spirits. Minds correspond with fellow-minds, and hearts sympathise with kindred hearts. But who will say that that noble spirit, with which the Almighty has distinguished us, is not formed for communion with Him who is a pure spirit, and who has been sublimely defined as Light and Love. Now if it cannot reasonably be denied that man is formed for such lofty communion, then it is highly irrational to deny that God would impart such instructions to him as would lay the foundation for this communion.
2. But if it be rational to suppose that the chief end of our being is to know, and love, and obey our Maker, to glorify God, is it not equally rational to suppose that God would make such communications to His creature as should enable him at once to fulfil the end of his being? Can it be rationally, believed that God would create the first man, or the first men, capable of religion, and designed for its obligations and its exercises, and then abandon him to gather up the necessary information as best he might?
3. We must not, however, overlook the real condition of mankind. Indeed, who can deny that man is the subject of moral derangement--the child of misery? Ask yourself whether it be, or be not, an improbable thing that his compassionate Creator should mercifully make some discoveries that should enlighten and relieve him in relation to his condition, the means of his restoration to happiness, and his final destiny?
III. I would ascend another step in the argument, and endeavour to show THAT SUCH A REVELATION IS NECESSARY.
1. It has been the practice amongst a certain portion of the community, to speak of those who are believers in a Divine revelation as being, on that account, weak and irrational persons, seduced by prejudice, and overreached by designing and self-interested men. Now it may be as well to remind those who thus judge of their fellow-countrymen, that men of all ages and all creeds--Heathens, Jews, Christians, and disbelievers in Christianity--have not thought it a proof of an irrational weakness to believe that our Creator has made some revelations to us, His creatures. Nay, many in each of these classes of persons have entertained the conviction that a revelation is even necessary to teach men language. Even Hobbes gives it as his decided opinion, that God taught Adam this useful invention.
2. But I am to show that God has given to men something more than the faculty of receiving knowledge, and reasoning upon such knowledge. I contend that He has actually unveiled to our race His own character and His law. The constitution of our nature renders the knowledge of these great things absolutely necessary. But was it possible that this knowledge could have been originally acquired otherwise than by revelation?
3. But the necessity of such revelation is most fully sustained by facts. Read history, and learn what man has been; look around you, and see what man is; and turn your eyes within, and analyse yourself; and then candidly say whether such a process has not induced the conviction that revelation is necessary.
IV. In conclusion, I would DIRECT ATTENTION TO THE BIBLE. WHICH PROFESSES TO BE GIVEN BY INSPIRATION OF GOD.
1. I remark that the disclosures which the Bible makes, relating to the character of the Supreme Being, are such as commend themselves to right reason. Let not those who live in a country where the revelations of the Bible are known forget the manifold information which, whether they think so or not, they cannot but have derived from this source.
2. Again, the disclosures which the Bible makes to us, relating to the Divine Law, are such as commend themselves to right reason. That Jaw, which this book records as coming from God, will be found to accord with the characters which it ascribes to God. There is no discrepancy between the Lawgiver and His enactments. This law is well deserving the description of holy, just, and good. It has, moreover, the high advantage of being spiritual; insinuating itself into the soul--reaching the heart--and convincing the understanding. It is further possessed of the character of universal adaptation. It suits men in all conditions, ages, and circumstances. And then it ought, to be particularly remarked of it, that it possesses two points of excellence which every other code must be acknowledged to want--it exhibits a fixed standard, and adequate motives.
3. Once more; I argue, that the things which the Bible reveals, relating to the system of reconciliation, commend themselves to right reason. We are accustomed to trace out the fitness of things in the works of nature. The soil of the earth is made for its vegetable productions, and those vegetables are fitted to the soil in which they grow--the fish is made for the waters, and the waters for the fish; the eye is made for the light, and the light for the eye; and the lungs are made for the air, and the air is adapted to the lungs. Now if we are accustomed to trace these contrivances of the material avid visible world to an all-wise Contriver, can we refuse to allow that a system, which, like nature, is adapted to the end it seeks to accomplish, is likewise from God? A few instances may be sufficient to bring out this fitness of Christianity to the wants of man. Are we not ignorant? And does not this revelation impart all necessary knowledge? What is there necessary to be known about the Supreme Being--our relation to Him--our own nature and responsibilities--our immortality--our death--the final judgment and our ultimate destiny--which this book does not unfold? Jesus Christ is the light of the world; and he that believeth in Him shall not walk in darkness. Have we not broken the Divine Law? In other words, are we not guilty? Do not our consciences accuse us of guilt? And does not the doctrine of Christs substitution meet our ease? Yet again; are we not conscious of being in a state of moral pollution? Must not all agree that our minds are darkened, and our hearts depraved? Can anything, then, be more rational than the doctrine of a spiritual influence--the influence of God the Spirit renewing us in knowledge, righteousness, and holiness, after the image of Him that created us? This the scheme of redemption provides. (H. Christmas, M. A.)
Gods revelation to man
I. HE HAS ACTUALLY MADE A REVELATION OF HIMSELF TO MAN.
1. Man has a capacity to appreciate, to some extent, Gods thoughts.
2. Man stands in need of Gods thoughts.
3. Man is bound to study Gods thoughts.
II. HE HAS REVEALED HIMSELF TO MAN THROUGH MAN.
1. To increase the intelligibility of Gods thoughts.
2. To increase the attraction of Gods thoughts.
III. HE HAS REVEALED HIMSELF TO MAN IN A VARIETY OF WAYS.
1. The necessity of modesty in pronouncing concerning the methods of Divine influence.
2. The importance of keeping the soul ever in a waiting attitude.
IV. HE HAS MADE CHRIST THE FINAL REVELATION OF HIMSELF. Christ, as the final organ of Divine revelation to man, transcends all preceding organs
1. In His relation to the universe.
(1) He is the inheritor of the creation. Appointed heir of all things.
(2) He is the creator of the universe. By whom also He made the worlds.
(3) He is the sustainer of the universe. Upholding all things, &c.
(4) He is the Sovereign of the universe. On the right hand of the Majesty on high.
2. In the completeness of His Divine manifestations. Represents Him more accurately than the impression on the wax represents the seal that produced it.
3. In the moral service He has rendered to humanity.
4. In His superiority to all angelic intelligences.
(1) In His position.
(2) In His reputation. (Homilist.)
Revealed truth
I. THE SUPERNATURALISM OF THE TENTH. It is impossible for nature to reveal
1. The spiritual Deity.
2. The special truths needed for fallen man.
II. THE IMMORTALITY OF THE TRUTH. It is truth about
1. The unchangeable God.
2. The immutable law.
3. The eternal universe.
III. THE UNITY OF THE TENTH. The Divine revelation is a plant of life and healing in which the different parts are not essentially different, but variously developed according to the will of God and the differing conditions of the human race in successive generations.
IV. THE FULNESS OF THE TRUTH. In Christ we have the truth
1. Fully.
2. Finally. (W. L. Watkinson.)
The superiority of the Christian revelation over the prophetic
I. ITS SUPERIORITY IN THE EXCELLENCY AND EXTENT OF THE DISCOVERIES MADE.
1. In reference to the perfections of God. His existence, unity, holiness, goodness, love, &c.
2. In reference to the doctrine of providence.
3. In reference to a future life.
4. In reference to the method of salvation.
II. ITS SUPERIORITY IN THE MODE OF MAKING THESE DISCOVERIES.
1. The authority of the medium.
2. The finish and perfection stamped upon it.
3. The simplicity, clearness, mildness, and benignity which characterise it.
4. The superior energy and influence with which it is accompanied. (James Bromley.)
The old and new covenants one in Christ
The great object of the Epistle is to describe the contrast between the old and the new covenant. But this contrast is based upon their unity. The new covenant is contrasted with the old covenant, not in the way in which the light of the knowledge of God is contrast d with the darkness and ignorance of heathenism, for the old covenant also is of God, and is therefore possessed of Divine glory. Great is the glory of the old covenant; yet greater is the glory of the new dispensation, when in the fulness of time God sent forth His own Son and gave unto us the substance of those things of which in the old times He had shown types and prophecy. God hath spoken unto the fathers; and by that expression unto the fathers the apostle reminds us that without a church, without a union of believers, without a manifestation of God in grace, historically, among a people whom He had set apart for His service, there would have been no Scripture; and that there was a congregation of the Most High from the very beginning of the world. Unto the fathers whom He had chosen that they might have fellowship with Him, God spake in old times, even as in the last times unto the Church--unto those who are called both from among Jews and Gentiles--He has made fully known His purpose in Christ Jesus. This, then, is the great resemblance. The Father is the author of revelation in both. The Messiah is the substance and centre of the revelation in both. The glory of Gods name in a people brought nigh unto Him, to love and to worship Him, is the end of the revelation in both. The two are one. Martin Luther has quaintly compared it to the two men who brought the branch with the cluster of grapes from the promised land. They were both bearing the same fragrant fruit; but one of them saw it not, yet he knew what he was carrying. The other saw both the fruit and the man who was helping him. Thus is it that the prophets who came before Jesus testified of Him, although they did not yet behold Him; and we who ,ire in the fulness of limes see both the Christ of whom they testified and themselves who were sent by God to witness of Him. But let us consider the marvellous unity of the two covenants. Sod hath spoken. This is the first point. Oh, how little do we think of the grandeur and majesty and all-importance of this simple declaration, God hath spoken. A living God and a loving God must needs speak. The god of the philosophers is a silent god, for he hath neither life nor affection; but our God, who created the heavens and the earth, who is and who loves, must speak. Even in the creation, which is an act of the condescension of God, He utters His thoughts; and when He created man as the consummation of the world, it was for this purpose, that man should hear Him and love Him, and should rejoice in His light and in His life. When sin enters into the world silence ensues. Man dreads God, and the melody of praise and prayer ceases; but the need of a revelation remains continually the same. When man forsakes the fountain of living water he cannot get rid of the thirst, and he cannot divest himself of the nature with which God had endowed him; so that there is still within man the same absolute necessity for a revelation of God from on high. And God does speak. Often we read the words and do not realise what marvel of condescending love they reveal, what great and central mystery they unfold. Unless God speaks we do not know the thoughts of God. But notice, secondly, man having by his own sin fallen away from God, and silence reigning now, it is only the infinite compassion and love of God that induces Him to speak. If there was no redemption, there would be no revelation. The love of the Father, and the blood of Jesus Christ, and the inspiration of the Holy Ghost; behold, these are the three necessary foundations upon which the Scripture rests. God, the Triune Covenant God, hath spoken. God hath spoken: in old times unto the fathers by the prophets; fully and perfectly unto us by His Son. In both dispensations the same God, on account of the same sacrifice, impelled by the same love, and for the same sublime and gracious purpose. Both Old and New Testaments are of God; the New Testament, as the Church-father Augustine said, is enfolded in the Old, and the Old Testament is unfolded in the New. Nor can we, who live in the times of fulfilment, dispense with the record of the preceding dispensation. As an old author writes: As the brilliancy of the sun appears far greater when contrasted with the darkness of the shade, so this epistle compares the light of the gospel with the shadows and types of the Old Testament, and by this means displays the glory of the gospel in full relief; for as shadows are images of bodies, so the ancient shadows are images of Jesus Christ, of His power and of His graces, and assist us to recognise more and more the substance and the truth; but from hence we derive also this additional advantage, that although the shadows of other bodies serve only to obscure them, the shadows of the Old Testament are so many reflectors, contributing light to the gospel. But now let us consider the contrast. Jesus Christ was not born till four thousand years after the creation of the world. At sundry times and in divers manners did God speak unto the fathers by the prophets. These three things constitute a prophet: direct commission from God Himself, gift of the Holy Ghost, and being entrusted with the very thoughts and words of the Most High. It is not merely by the prophets that God spake. They were chosen not merely as the channels of separate and isolated revelation. God spake in them. They were the personal bearers of the message, the representatives and exponents of Divine truth, Their words and typical actions were inspired, and in them the word of the Lord came unto Israel. Yet let us consider what were the imperfections of these messengers. The first imperfection was this--that they were numerous; they were many. One succeeded another. They lived in different periods. Another imperfection was, that it was in divers manners, in dreams, in similitudes, in visions, in symbols. Each prophet had his peculiar gift and character. Their stature and capacity varied. They were men of different temperament and tone of mind. The manner in which the revelation of God was given to them varied; even in the case of the same prophet the One Spirit appeared in various manifestations. Another imperfection was that they were sinful men. Another imperfection was that they did not possess the Spirit constantly. Of a sudden, after a long pause, the Spirit of God came upon them. God spake unto them, and gave unto them His message. But it was not like a continuous river. The word came to them from time to time; they did not possess the word. Another imperfection was this, that of that message that was entrusted to them they did not understand the heights and the depths. They themselves had to search diligently, and to inquire what the Spirit that was in them did signify of the sufferings and glory that should come. Another imperfection was that, as they did not understand adequately that portion of the message that was given unto them, they could still less comprehend and contain the whole message. They saw only one aspect of it, only one portion of it in connection with the peculiar history and the peculiar trials of the people at the period to which they were sent. Another imperfection was, that they all testified, like John the Baptist, I am not the light. I am only sent to witness of the light. They were only finger-posts directing the pilgrim, as he was in pursuit of the heavenly city, to go on further, until he would come to the pearly gates of the new Jerusalem. We notice the imperfect and fragmentary character of the old dispensation, when we consider n,4 merely the words, but the types, which are living prophecies. There was not a single one which could stand by itself, it had always to be supplemented. Wherever we go we find it is in fragments. There is an altar; there is a sacrifice. There is a fourfold sacrifice, a sin-offering, a burnt-offering, a peace-offering, a meat-offering. There is a high priest; there is a tabernacle; there is a holy of holies; there is a candlestick; there is a shewbread; there is a veil. Everything a fragment; everything in itself showing unto us some aspect of truth, some portion of the pressure, without which we would be poor; but we must combine them all to see the fell and blessed truth. But now the time of fragmentary, imperfect, and temporary revelation is past. God speaks to us now in another and more glorious manner. Look now at the contrast. The whole contrast is in one word--in our language in one syllable--by the Son. The prophets were many: the Son is one. The prophets were servants: the Son is the Lord. The prophets were temporary: the Son abideth for ever. The prophets were imperfect: the Son is perfect, even as the Father is perfect. The prophets were guilty: the Son is not merely pure, but able to purify those that are full of sin and pollution. The prophets point to the future: the Son points to Himself, and says, Here am I. God has spoken to us by His Son. He is the true and faithful witness, whose testimony is co-xtensive, if I may so say, with the counsel and the things of God: the Prophet whose mind is adequate to understand the mind of the Father. He is not merely the true and faithful witness because He is from everlasting, He is also the beloved of God. Notice this in the word Son. The only begotten, says John, who was in the bosom of the Father, who is His treasure and delight, the infinite object of His love in whom from all eternity was His rejoicing, who shares with Him all His counsels. This beloved one of God--oh surely He is the true messenger who will reveal all the secrets of the Fathers heart, and who will tell unto us all the fulness of His counsel, and all the purposes of His grace! God hath spoken to us by His Son. Let me remind you how in the Son all the message of God is contained. You who know the Scripture, and you especially who have come through the law unto the gospel, will understand me when I say that if the sinner knew nothing else but this, God has sent a messenger, and this messenger is His own Son, he might discover in this the whole gospel; for, in order to send unto us condemnation, in order to give unto us the knowledge of our sin and of our desert, His own Son is not needed. Any angel would suffice for this work; any servant could proclaim this message. When God sends His own Son into the world, when God makes the stupendous sacrifice of allowing His only begotten to take upon Him our flesh and blood, there can be only one meaning in it--salvation. It can only have one purpose--our redemption. It can only have one motive--the overwhelming love of God. God has spoken to us by His Son, and therefore we know that He has spoken peace to us. But notice, secondly, as the Sonship is the beginning of the gospel, so it is also the end and purpose of Gods message. God, speaking to us by His Son, shows unto us that we also are to become the sons of God. In the Incarnate Son the Father has brought many sons unto glory. The only begotten of the Father has, after His death on the cross, become the firstborn among many brethren. The Holy Ghost, coming through the glorified humanity of Jesus, unites us to Him, who is the beloved Son, and in whom the eternal and it, finite love of the Father zests upon all His believing people. In the Son we know and have the Father; in the Son we also are the children of God. Lastly, remember this is the ultimate revelation. There can be nothing higher; there can be nothing further. If Christ is our life, then, when the Son of God shall appear, we also who are the sons of God--nosy in weakness, suffering, temptation--shall be made manifest with Him in glory. (A. Saphir.)
The prophetic revelation contrasted with the filial revelation made by Jesus Christ
I. First let us note and consider well, touching this doctrine which we are taught, by Christ--THE CERTAINTY OF IT, WHICH IS FIRST IN THE AUTHOR, WHO IS GOD HIMSELF, EVEN THE SAME GOD OF OUR FATHERS, which so many times and ways spake ever by His prophets; even He, in assured truth, hath also spoken by His Son. Thus giving the authority of the word of Christ to God the Father, that it might be confessed true, and to take away all vain quarrelling of contentious men, who under pretence of the name of God, would easily have disputed against our Saviour Christ, and said: We know God is true, and He spake to Moses, He spake to the prophets; but this man speaketh of Himself, and we will not hear Him.
II. Now, as our Saviour Christ is our certain teacher of undoubted truth, so HOW FAR THIS TRUTH IS TAUGHT BY HIM APPEARETH ALSO IN THE WORDS, many times, many ways, by many prophets, of old, to our forefathers. Of all these we must set the contrariety in our Saviour Christ, that God spoke by Him, not many times, revealing His will by measure, now some, then more; but once He has sent Him, filled with all treasure of wisdom and understanding. And before God spake many ways, either by angels, or by the cloud, or between the cherubims, or by Urim, or by visions, or by dreams; but now He hath spoken one way, even by Christ made our brother, with the voice of a man, in the midst of the congregation, plain and evident in all mens hearing, and all variety shall cease for evermore. Likewise before God spake by many prophets; now He doth not so, but hath sent His Son alone instead of all, that all His people should hear him. Likewise those times they are old and past; but the time of Christs teaching passeth not, but is for ever. And that was to the fathers, men of divers calling, but this is to us all of, one condition.
1. Now let us see the difference here spoken of between our Saviour Christ and all other prophets, what we may learn of them was at divers times revealed, but that which Christ teacheth is reveal d but once. And this is twice after expressly noted by the apostle (Heb_9:26; Heb_22:26.) And thus it is which St. Jude saith of the Christian faith, that once it w is given to the saints; which once doth mean the time of Christ in earth; for so he saith it was by His Son.
2. The second difference, that the doctrine of Christ is taught after one sort. For though first were miracles, and now none; first apostles, now none: these were but means to confirm the preaching, the Word only was the power of salvation, which is the same it was then. Which because it is but one, therefore it is perfect.
3. The third difference here is, that that was old, and therefore abolished; for it cannot be but that which waxeth older and older must at last vanish. But the testament of Christ, it is still new, yea, through it were from the beginning, yet it is still the same, and the day passeth not in which it was given, but it endureth with the age of man.
4. The fourth difference is in the fathers with whom the first covenant was made, who though they were all called in Jesus Christ, yet was there a difference of their honour, and every one more exalted, as God approached more near unto them. So Abraham and His posterity were a more honourable people than the others before him. So the Israelites that had received the law, and dwelt in the land of promise, had greater blessing than their fathers in Egypt. So John Baptist more than all Israel. But now they that are called of Jesus Christ by His own voice, and in Him crucified before their eyes, have attained a singular honor, and the least of them touching their calling are greater than all patriarchs and prophets. And these all in like precious faith, like spirit, like promises, like covenants, like accepted of God, every man in his own measure of grace.
5. The fifth difference is, that God then spake by His prophets, now by His Son: by prophets, meaning the continual succession of prophets in all ages. For as they were men taken away by death, so it was necessary for others to come in their places: and because no prophet was able to give his grace to other, or of his fulness make other learned in the mysteries of God, but they were all taught of the Lord; therefore they had the credit of their word every one in himself, and none judged by anothers gifts. But so it is not with the Son of God; for both He liveth to appoint us teachers still, and of His fulness He giveth all other their continual increase of grace; for which cause now the warrant of all dependeth upon Him alone; and the greatest apostle that ever was hath no other glory but only to be His servant and messenger; for He is that Redeemer whose word must be in the mouth of His seed, and in the mouth of His seeds seed after Him for evermore. (E. Deering, B. D.)
Divine revelation under the law, and under the gospel
I. THE MATTER OF THE DOCTRINE. It was given them by piecemeal, now a part, then a part. They had one part of it in Adams time, another in Noahs; one in Abrahams, another in Moses time; one in Davids time, another in Jeremiahs, Isaiahs, and the rest of the prophets. It was parcelled out to them as the capacity of the people in sundry times did require; but we bare the doctrine of salvation at one lamp propounded to us, in one whole and entire sum. Thus God hath dealt more graciously and bountifully with us. They had one flower now and another anon; we have all the flowers in Gods garden sweetly smelling all at once in our nostrils. They had now a loaf and then a loaf; now a draught and then a draught of the Lords wine; the whole magazine of God Almighty is open to us. Then Low thankful ought we to be to God above them! And how careful should we be to enrich ourselves with these heavenly wares, that may freely enter the whole storehouse of the Lord of Hosts!
II. THE MANNER. God delivered His will to them after divers manners: to Abraham by angels in the shape of men; to Moses in a bush and a cloud; to Samuel in a dream; to Ezekiel in visions; by the oracles and answers of the priests, in soft wind, etc. To us He hath delivered His will in one manner, by the sweet, comfortable, powerful voice of His own Son. This one manner far surpasses all the manners whereby God spake to them. Those were dark and obscure, this plain; many of those were terrible to the hearers, this was a rues, mild and amiable manner.
III. THE TIME. He spake to them of old time, in the first and oldest age of the world; He speaks to us in a now time, whereto all things are made green, fresh, and flourishing by our Saviour Christ.
IV. THE PERSONS by whom and in whom it was delivered. They were men; Christ, by whom God speaks to us, is God and man; thy were wise, could foretell things to come, aptly and pithily interpret the Word of God, yet all their wisdom and knowledge was berry wed; Christ was wise of Himself, clad with His own feathers; they mortal, dust and ashes; Christ never saw, corruption but abideth for ever and ever; they were servants m the House of God; Christ is the Son, yea, the Lord and owner of the house. Therefore wonderfully hath Go, honoured ,.s in the time of the gospel above them in the time of the law. If a king should speak to us by one of his privy council, it is much; but if he speak to us by his son and heir apparent to the crown, it is a greater dignity. Many (prophets and kings) have desired to see these things which we see, and have not seen them. God give us grace ,to use our happiness to His glory and the salvation of us all. (W. Jones, D. D.)
The progressiveness of revelation
In these few words are set forth the relation in which the two dispensations stand to one another, the light in which the revelation as a whole is to be regarded. No words can more strongly lay down a principle which was for long regarded with suspicion. That revelation was given by degrees. This truth is necessary in order to prove the necessity or even the allowableness of Christianity; the incompleteness of the first covenant must be admitted ere the reason for the existence of the second could be perceived. God had undoubtedly spoken, but how had He spoken? He had spoken at sundry times and in divers manners.
1. At sundry times, or rather, by divers portions. It was by degrees--fragmentarily--one truth at one time another at another. And the degree in which God was known, in which He had been manifested to successive generations, was clearly not the same in all. There might be faith, there might be obedience in all ages to Him who was invisible; but unquestionably, though the men of one generation might not be better than the men of another--though,, unfortunately, in all sin and unbelief had prevailed, yet who could not see that, as time went on, there were new truths insisted on, new discoveries made as to His holiness and His spirituality; that while it was the same eternal One whom men served or dishonoured, the way in which His will revealed itself varied from age to age; that the knowledge of David or of Jeremiah was different from the knowledge of Noah or of Abraham? This difference--this evolution, we might almost call it--lies upon the surface of the Old Testament. The history which is recorded there is, as has frequently been pointed out, like the biography of an individual life. It narrates so palpably the childhood, the youth, the manhood of a race; the education in Divine things, the development of spiritual truth. There were times when there were no Scriptures and no solemn ceremonies; there were times when men observed the complicated ritual of the law; there were times when men worshipped amid the splendours of the Temple; there were days when in exile they could not sing the Lords song in a strange land. Thus gradually, thus at different times, as they were able to bear it, they heard God speaking.
2. And varied as were the times in which He had spoken to men, equally varied were the modes which He had employed to make them listen. How diversified was that volume in which they thought they had eternal life. By what different means were its lessons conveyed: by commandments and by promises, by similitudes and by symbols, by prophecy and by visions. History, psalms, proverbs, poetry, philosophy, all were in turn employed; the heart, the mind, the imagination were in turn appealed to. How different also from one another were those to whom the Word of the Lord came. But amid all the variety there was unity, amid all the diversity of means there was oneness of end and aim. There was progress, there was order. The whole revelation pointed onward, confessed itself imperfect and shadowy, placed its completion and glory in the future, could not be realised until what it showed forth in figure and under a veil should be fully manifested. Consciously or unconsciously, as has been said by Dean Stanley. the character and writings of the rest of the Bible fall into their relative places around the gospel history, as surely as in that history itself the soldiers, priests, disciples, Jews, and Romans de, ire their interest and significance from being grouped round the central figure, and round the Cross on Calvary.
3. God hath spoken in His Son, the brightness, the effulgence, the shining-forth of His glory, the express image of His Person, the impress of His substance, the essence of the Divine Being, the revelation of the very heart of God. In Him has been seen the embodiment of the Eternal Power by which the worlds were made. In Him has been unveiled the Eternal Love by which all things are preserved and sustained. In His sacrifice has been seen that offering of Himself through the Eternal Spirit without spot, to God, which alone can purify and reconcile a guilty world. In His exaltation to the right hand of God is seen the completion of the Divine purpose, the final triumph of the kingdom of heaven, our own deliverance from sin and faultless appearance before the throne, the gathering together in one of all things in Christ, both which are in heaven and which are on earth. (P. M.Muir.)
The Old and the New Testament dispensations compared with respect to the different ways in which the will of God was revealed in each
I THE MANNER IN WHICH GOD COMMUNICATED HIS WILL IN OLD TESTAMENT TIMES. This He is said in the text to have done at sundry time., and in divers manners. The sundry times here spoken of may perhaps refer to the three great eras of the Old Testament history--the patriarchal, the Mosaic, and the prophetical ages of the Church. But as This view of the subject, however warrantable in itself, would conduce but little to the elucidation of the subject, namely, the manner in which the will of God was revealed, we shall consider the sundry times here spoken of as referring simply to the gradual and sucessive intimations of Gods will, which were given to the fathers, or Old Testament saints, from the time of Adam to the time of Christ. During the whole of that period, though the manners in which He spake were divers, yet there is one common property which belonged to the mode of all His communications, namely, that they were made by the prophets.
1. Let us, then, briefly glance at the means by which, when the prophets had ascertained the will of God for themselves, they communicated it to the people. The two great means by which the prophets communicated Gods will to the people were words and representative acts.
2. But before it could be comunicated by the prophets to the people, it required first of all to be announced to the prophets themselves. And this also God accomplished not only at sundry times, but in divers manners. Sometimes it was effected by an impulse or inspiration of the Spirit upon the mind--holy men of old spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost--and sometimes by an audible voice, as it was to Elijah when he stood upon the mount before the Lord (1Ki_19:11-13). But there was yet another mode of communication between God and His prophets more striking and wonderful. We find frequent instances in the Old Testament history of the appearance of a mysterious visitor from heaven, who talks with His servants face to face. This is to be understood of Christ our own Immanuel, the great Prophet of the Church. It was the eternal Word, though not then made flesh, whose voice was heard by the first guilty pair in Eden, in the cool of the day, who appeared to Abraham, and wrestled with Jacob. It was our identical Saviour who, having heard the groaning of His people in Egypt, came down to deliver them, and gave Moses his commission from the midst of the bush. In short, it was He by whom the scheme of salvation has been administered from its commencement, and shall continue to be administered till its close. What a glorious consistency is thus stamped upon the whole scheme of grace!
II. THE MODE IN WHICH GOD IS NOW ADDRESSING US UNDER THE NEW TESTAMENT DISPENSATION. God hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son. The use of the word spoken is here striking and peculiar. It is not said that God hath sent us a message, but that He hath spoken to us by or in His Son. It seems to contain an allusion to one of Christs titles--The Word. Just as a wore spoken or written is an audible or visible representation of invisible thought, so is Christ the visible image of the invisible God. No man hath seen God at any time, the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Farther, He hath declared Him. Now, as we have already seen that there were two ways in which the prophets addressed the people, namely, by words and by representative acts, so there are two ways in which the Son of God addresses us. He speaks to us both by His preaching and by His patience, by what He said and by what He suffered. Is there not a speaking power in the humbleness of His birth, and the stedfastness of His obedience--in His fasting, and watching, and temptation--in His tears, and His agonies, and His cries. As He hung upon the Cross, a spectacle to angels and to men, His latest words, It is finished, tell of His completed obedience, and the full purchase of eternal salvation to as many as believe. And even after tits body has ceased to breathe, and His heart has cease d to beat, what mean those outstretched arms--those bleeding hands? Do they not tell of the efficacy of His Mediatorship for reconciling sinners to the Holy One?
III. Let us no, COMPARE THESE TWO MODES IN WHICH GOD HAS REVEALED HIS WILL BY NOTICING A FEW POINTS OF RESEMBLANCE AND CONTRAST BETWEEN THEM.
1. Now it is obvious to remark that the revelation contained in t e Old Testament and that contained in the New have the same author. Both are from God. Nor is there any difference in regard to their substance. Christ is set forth as the object of saving faith in both.
2. Let us now consider wherein they differ.
(1) First, then, there is this obvious difference between them, that the way of salvation is more clearly revealed to us than it was to the fathers. The Old and the New Testament revelations thus resemble the lesser and the greater lights which were made, the one to rule the night, the other to rule the day.
(2) But, again, the will of God is now revealed more extensively than it was under the ancient economy. Under that economy the written revelation of Gods will was confined to the Jews.
(3) Once more, the revelation made to us in the gospel is final, and therefore more enduring than that contained in the Old Testament Scriptures. The revelations which those Scriptures contained, and the economy with which they were more immediately connected, were not intended to be final.
(4) But, finally, the most important distinction of all remains to be noticed. In times past, God spake to the fathers by the prophets, hut He hath in these last days spoken to us by His Son. Not that we are to suppose that m former times God spake to the prophets directly and immediately without the intervention or mediatorship of the Son. We have already seen that it has always been the office of Christ to reveal as well as to purchase salvation for His people. But the grand distinctive difference consists in this--that while formerly the Son of God, in His Divine person, revealed thewill of God to the prophets; in these last times, Jesus Christ, Incarnate, hath revealed the will of God to the Church. In conclusion, are there any who, while gratefully alive to the importance of all these distinctions, and joyfully appreciating the pre-eminent privileges now possess-d, yet feel as if all these advantages were counterbalanced by the fact that the Jewish people lived under a theocracy, and that prophets were raised up to address them from time to time, according to the ever-varying exigencies of their condition, while Christ is now gone to His Father and our Father, and we have no farther revelation to expect, however our circumstances may vary? Now it is most true that the Shekinah is no longer visible, resting upon the mercy-seat, and that He whom the Shekinah represented no longer tabernacles among men. The heavens haw received Him until the time of the restitution of all things. Yet He has not left His people comfortless. Among His latest words we find the promise recorded, Lo! I am with you alway, even to the end of the world. But the objection keeps out of view the important truth that Christ still walks among the seven golden candlesticks--that He sends forth His Spirit to enlighten His peoples eyes, and to comfort His peoples hearts. Indeed, the objection seems to be anticipated and answered by the very form of expression in the text. God hath spoken to us by His Son; as if He had said, You are not dependent merely upon a dead book for counsel and consolation; you have a living teacher, an ever-present guide! (A. Grierson, M. A.)
The heavenly voice
God has now ceased to speak in sundry times and in divers manners; there ore, if you dream, you are not to put a construction on your dream as if God inspired it. And hence, if God has ceased thus to speak, we may expect now that the Bible, beginning with Genesis and closing with the Apocalypse, is the completed volume of all Gods will and Gods ways; and that we are not to expect any additional revelation in the course of this present dispensation; for God has now, says the apostle, in this passage, spoken to us by His Son. Man left to his own fancy falls into all sorts of idolatries and delusions; and it is only when God speaks that man re ponds rationally, and justly, and purely, and worships Him who is a Spirit in spirit and in truth. We must notice here what is very remarkable; God speaks to us by His Son. You must have heard sometimes those who object to the Bible as the only rule of faith argue that they want a speaking judge; they want a living high-priest, or prelate, or pope, who will speak audibly as well as infallibly to them. We answer, though they may feel the want of it, yet if such an officer be not given, it is presumptuous evidence that it is not necessary. But the fact asserted here, that God speaks in the Bible, is evidence that we actually have a speaking tribunal. The Bible is spoken every day; there is a freshness in every chapter of the Bible that makes us feet that we are reading something higher than mans writing, and are in contact with God speaking to us in these last days by His Son. I might argue, in the next place, the great necessity of such a revelation. If this earth were as it once was before sin corrupted it, it would be a lesson-book that any one might adduce as quite sufficient to teach us all we ought to know. But if there were place,! in your hands a book with a great many precious lessons in it, but all stained and blotted with ink, and so stained and blotted that whole pages are illegible, that fragments of other passages only are legible, and those fragments broken sentences, that you cannot fully understand, some of which at times convey meaning positively opposite to that which they originally were designed to convey, you would be very anxious to have some book clearer, distincter, and more intelligible. This world of ours is that blotted book, stained by sin; and what it revealed when it was made in Paradise as the grand and the illuminated lesson-book, it has lost and is now unable to reveal. And if we appeal to the inner page of conscience for an estimate of God, there is in ,he conscience of the holiest up on earth, so much sin, that if we look at God through the m sty and broken atmosphere of our own consciences, our sins will instantly suggest the notion of an angry and an offended God. If, again, we look into the law; if we stand with the Israelites at the bottom of the burning mouser, and see the lightning and hear the thunder, and listen to Gods voice as He proclaims, Thou shalt, and thou shalt not, we like Moses, must quake; and like the children of Israel, we, too, should beg that God would be silent, and not speak any more to us. God in nature is above us, and inscrutable by our investigation to a very great extent; God in the law is against us; but God in Christ is God with us, our Father and our Guide. And, therefore, we rejoice now to hear the apostle say in this passage that God, who spake at sundry times and in divers manners in times pact, has now spoken to us by His Son. But what has He spoken? Words of truth, words of life, words of peace, and happiness, and hope, and joy. The Bible was not written to teach me anything hut religion. If the geologist come and consult it for lessons in geology, the oracle is dumb; if the astronomer come and ask for explanations about the stars, it is dumb; if the philosopher ask it for explanations about metaphysical subjects, the oracle is also dumb. But if the humblest peasant or the poorest mechanic inquire of it the way to heaven, it will tell him in a thousand places, by a thousand different similitudes, so plainly, so intelligibly, that the wayfaring man need not err therein. Now, what He has said m tills blessed book by His Son, and what He still speaks in it, is a word for all; it is an encyclical, addressed from heaven to all that God has made, from the rising of the sun to the going down of the same; so much so, that if you are not acquainted with the Bible, it is not because the Bible was not sent to you, but because you have not studied it. Let us be thankful that God has thus spoken to us; let us study this precious book; let us pray that the Spirit would lead us unto all truth; and especially plead that promise that He will take of whatsoever Christ has said, thai is, whatsoever God has spoken by His Son, and will show it unto us. (J. Gumming, D. D.)
The variety of prophetic revelation
Some men ask, If the prophets spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost, why did they not all speak in the same manner? why these varieties of style? I will answer that by a-king you another question: Why do not all the pipes of that organ give one and the same sound? What awakens all the sounds, but one and the same blast from the wind-chest? If there be a mono-blast, why is there not a mono-tone? Because the pipes are of different shapes and different sizes: the awakening breath is one, the intonation varies with the shape and size of the pipe. The inspiration was one, but the style and manner varied with the all-position and character of the individual employed. (H. MNeile.)
Progressive revelation
It is impossible rightly to comprehend Scripture if we read it as we read the Koran, as though it were in all its parts of equal authority, all composed at one time, and all are addressed to persons similarly situated. (Thos. Arnold, D. D.)
Judaism and Christianity
Canon Stubbs says in his History of England that the roots of the present lie deep in the past, and that nothing in the past is dead to the man who would learn how the present comes to be what it is. The political forces which are operating now are the result of forces which have been operating ever since English history began. What they are cannot be understood except on condition of understanding whence they come. On the same condition only can it be foreseen whither they tend. Now, as it is with politics so is it with religion. The present is the outgrowth of the past. The roots of the tree of Christianity lie deep in the soil of Judaism. The New Testament comes from the Old. (J. Fleming, D. D.)
These last days
The last days
It hath pleased God that these last days should be many, that the world might the longer enjoy the bright light of the gospel, and that all that are ordained to life might in their due time be called. Why are they called the last days (as here), the last time (1Jn_2:18), the ends of the world (1Co_10:11), and why in the beginning of this time was the coming of the Lord said to draw nigh (Jam_5:8), and the end of all things to be at hand? (1Pe_4:7).
1. By the exhibition of Christ the prophecies and promises that in former times were made of Christ were accomplished, therefore as the days wherein these promises and prophecies were first made known were counted the first days so these wherein they were accomplished the last.
2. The new covenant of grace is in these last days fully revealed by the gospel, and ratified by the death of Christ; so as no clearer revelation, nor former ratification can be expected, and in this respect also they are fitly styled the last days.
3. No alteration of the stale and order of Gods Church is to be expected after Christ exhibited, but a final end of all by Christs second coming unto judgment; therefore these days may be accounted the ends of the world, and the end of all things to be at hand.
4. As God at first made all things in six days, and rested the seventh, so He continueth to govern the world in six distinct times, which may be accounted as six days of the great week of the world, and eternity following an everlasting Sabbath. The first of these days was from Adam to Noah; in it the covenant of grace was first made to man. The second was from Noah to Abraham; in it that covenant was renewed. The third was from Abraham to David; in it that covenant was appropriated to Abraham and his seed. The fourth was from David to the captivity of Israel; in it that covenant was established in a royal line. The fifth was from their captivity to Christs coming in the flesh; in it as the brightness of that covenant was eclipsed by the captivity; so it was revived by Israels return out of the captivity and re-edifying the Temple. The sixth was and still is and shall be from Christs first coming in the flesh to His second coming in glory; even to the end of the world. In it that covenant most clearly and fully laid open, was most firmly and inviolably ratified. Now when the sixth day, which is the last day, is come, then the end of the week may well be said to be at hand; and the coming of the Lord, following thereupon, to draw nigh. (W. Gouge.)
Our condition under the gospel
1. In those that were the first days some new doctrine was daily to be expected, but in these last days God hath opened to us His whole counsel, there is no mint of any new doctrine to be looked for. If an angel from heaven preach any other doctrine than that which we have received in these last days let him be accursed.
2. In the last days there is greatest abundance of knowledge. In the last days I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh. God then was sparing Of His Spirit, He sent it down by drops, but now He pours it out upon the Church. They had the moonlight, we have the sunlight. Therefore if we be ignorant our condemnation shall be the greater. The preaching of the Word is a well of water, but we will not come with our buckets to fetch water at this well, or if we do we come with riven buckets, the water runs out by and by.
3. These last days wherein we live are the most dangerous; sin overfloweth with a full stream. In the last days perilous times shall come. Never did sin show herself with such a brazen face as it doth now. Men now stick not to set themselves against the Word of God itself, to call the authority of the Scripture in question, whether all things be true in it or not.
4. Seeing they be the last days, let us not be so much in love with them. Will any be bestowing great cost on his house the last day, when he is to go out of it? In the first days, when they entered first into the farm of the world, they might be merry; we live in the last days, when we cannot have long to tarry in it, therefore let us not be wedded to it; let us use this world as if we used it not, for the fashion of this world fadeth away in these last days; let us so live that wheresoever Christ comes to judgment we may meet Him joyfully in the air and be translated with Him into His kingdom of glory. (W. Jones, D. D.)
By His Son
Christ the Son
Two critical remarks.
1. Sundry times--more literally, sundry portions--sections, not of time, but of the matter of the revelation. God gave His revelation in parts, piecemeal, as you teach a child to spell a word--letter by letter, syllable by syllable--adding all at last together. God had a word to spell--His own Name. By degrees He did it. At last it came entire. The Word was made flesh.
2. His Son, more correctly, a Son--for this is the very argument. Not that God now spoke by Christ, but that whereas once He spoke by prophets, now He spoke by a Son. The filial dispensation was the last. I am to show, then, that the manifestation of God through a Son was implied, not realised, in the earlier dispensation. Sundry portions of this truth are instanced in the Epistle. The mediatorial dispensation of Moses--the gift of Canaan--the Sabbath, &c. At present I select these:
1. The preparatory dispensation.
2. The filial and final dispensation.
I. IT WAS IMPLIED, NOT FULFILLED, IN THE KINGLY OFFICE. Three Psalms are quoted, all referring to kingship. In Psa_2:1-12. it was plain that the true idea of a king was only fulfilled in One who was a Son of God. In the 110th Psalm a new idea is added. The true king must be a priest. Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of Melchizedek. Further still. The Epistle extends this idea to man. The psalm had ascribed (Psa_8:6) kingly qualities and rule to manhood--rule over the creation. Thus the idea of a king belonged properly to humanity; to the Jewish king as the representative of humanity. In Jesus of Nazareth alone all these fragments, these sundry portions of the revealed idea of royalty met.
II. CHRISTIANITY WAS IMPLIED IN THE RACE OF PROPHETS. The second class of quotations refer to the prophets life and history (Heb_2:11-14; Psa_22:22; Psa_18:2; Isa_12:2; Isa_8:18). Remember what the prophets were. They were not merely predictors of the future. Nothing destroys the true conception of the prophets office more than those popular books in which their mission is certified by curious coincidences. But in truth, the first office of the prophet was with the present. He read eternal principles beneath the present and the transitory, and in doing this of course he prophesied the future; for a principle true to-day is true for ever. But this was, so to speak, an accident of his office: not its essential feature. A philosopher saying in the present tense the law by which comets move, predicts all possible cometary movements. Now the prophets life almost more than his words was predictive. The writer of this Epistle lays down a great principle respecting the prophet, Both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one. It was the very condition of his inspiration that he should be one with the people. He burned with their thoughts, and expressed them. He was obliged by the very sensitiveness of his humanity to have a more entire dependence and a more perfect sympathy than other men. The sanctifying prophet was one with those whom he sanctified. Hence he uses those expressions quoted from Isaiah and the Psalms above. He was more man, just because more Divine--more a son of man, because more a son of God. He was peculiarly the suffering Israelite: His countenance marred more than the sons of men.
III. THE PRIESTHOOD CONTINUED THIS IDEA LATENT.
1. The Jewish priest represented the holiness of the nation; he went into the holy of holies, showing it. But this great idea was only implied, not fulfilled in the Jewish priest. He was only by a fiction the representative of holiness. Holy he was not. He only entered into a fictitious holy of holies. If the idea were to be ever real, it must be in One who should be actually what the Jewish priest was by a figment, and who should carry our humanity into the real holy of holies--the presence of God; thus becoming our invisible and eternal Priest.
2. Next it was implied that his call must be Divine. But in the 110th Psalm a higher call is intimated than that Divine call which was made to the Aaronic priesthood by a regular succession, or as it is called in the Epistle, the law of a carnal commandment. Melchizedeks call is spoken of. The king is called a priest after his older. Not a derived or hereditary priesthood: not one transmissible, beginning and ending in himself Heb_7:1-3), but a priesthood in other words, of character, of inward right: a call internal, hence more Divine: or, as the writer calls it, a priest after the power of an endless life. This was the idea for which the Jewish psalms themselves ought to have prepared the Jew.
3. Again the priests offered gifts and sacrifices. Only Christs all-perfect sacrifice of Himself can avail in the sight of God. He is the only High Priest of the universe. (F. W. Robertson, M. A.)
God hath spoken by His Son
I. The first truth which God has made known to us, the important conclusion resulting from His message by Christ, is the infinite VALUE OF THE SOUL, and the misery to which it is reduced by sin: that is, by a thoughtless neglect of God, or a practical disobedience to His will.
II. The second truth which is declared to us in the gospel relates to THE WAY OF SALVATION; the way in which this fearful interest of the soul may be secured.
III. The third truth which I mention at present as brought to light by the gospel, is THE NEED OF THE RENEWAL OF THE SOUL IN RIGHTEOUSNESS, through the power of the Holy Spirit. (Archbp. Sumner.)
God revealed by Christ
Imagine a painter who loved his art, and who had a son he loved so well that he would not do a bad piece of art. By and by the painter dies, and one day the son enters a gallery and stands and hears all the empty talk and idle judgment of the crowd, as they stand before his fathers great masterpiece and fail to understand it. How would that son say to himself, These do not know thee; but I know thee, and my knowledge shall vanquish their ignorance. What is here imagined has happened. When this generation was young the greatest painter of the day was unknown. Tarrier awaited an audience; but Ruskin arose, saw and interpreted him, and the world suddenly found itself enriched not simply by the works of a great painter, but also of a great writer and thinker as well. So let us mark that if we are to reach God as Christ knew Him it must be through the Christ who knew. (A. M. Fairbairn, D. D.)
The final revelation: its helpfulness
Fathers, mothers, when you set your little ones some task, and they come and ask you how it is to be done, very likely you have repeated instructions over and over again; but still they do not understand. And then you have taken it in your hands and worked it out before their eyes, and shown the principle, that you could not explain or define embodied in actual form; and they had then to study the realised product, to see bow to copy it, and work it out again in their own way. God has asked from His earthly children the task of the true life, truly lived; they have asked of Him its principles and the method of their application; and by the mouth of lawgiver, and prophet, and priest, He has explained and defined. But the mind of man could not comprehend. There remained one way, and only one. It was that God Himself should take in hand the task of life, and live it out before the world. It was that He should work out its principles, and make them actual in flesh and blood, and leave to men the will of God embodied for all time in the exemplary and redemptive work of Jesus Christ. He is the end and crown of revelation. From the study of that life it is possible to derive all guidance in all difficulty. It is the law of every nature. It is the commandment of God for us; and it is the inspiration and potency of all our effort, and the reward of all our life. For us, then, Jesus Christ and our knowledge of Him is at once our matchless inspiration, and the measure of our shortcoming and our sin. It would be possible for us to keep the Ten Commandments and yet to live lives of very low morality. The standard is raised; the standard is rising. The influence of the Spirit of God, in unfolding the holiness of Christ, is beginning to condemn many things that past generations were content to condone. God is not dumb that He should speak no more. The holiness of Christ is dawning on the world. There is the worlds hope. (C. S. Home, M. A.)
Revelation by Jesus; its certainty
It is four hundred years since the heroic Columbus sailed over the Atlantic, and unveiled to the world a new continent. The poets had sung of the lost island Atlantis. Geographers had tried to guess the secrets of the great ocean, Many theories had floated about, but there was no certainty. But when the brave Genoese landed in Spain with his trophies and his wonderful story of the new land, his words were not as other mens. He had seen a new world, and men crowded to hear his tale. There was not such another man in Europe. He had uncovered or discovered a new world, and his achievement made him a unique man. Even so our Lord discovered to us the great spiritual world--the Eldorado of the soul--the world of God, of perfect life, of freedom from sin, and sickness, and death. He came from that world, and revealed to us what was there. He was not as other men; He had unique experiences, and so was empowered to tell us what none other could. He gave us not waifs from an unknown world. He was not like Isaac Newton, a learner on the shore of an unexplored ocean of truth. He had explored that ocean, and mastered its secrets, and His story is a statement of facts. (Archibald Hadden.)
If Christianity is Divine, why was it so long in being given to the world?
A teacher dare not plunge a child all at once in medias res. He begins with the alphabet and brings him on little by little. The Hebrews, not less than the heathens, were unprepared in the primitive ages for the full blaze of gospel day. They would not have been prepared to understand either the grandeur of Christs teaching, or the grandeur of His life, or the grandeur of His death. Let the boy be taught his letters and his grammar, and then put Milton before him. And, in like manner, Gods plan seems to have been to give the world a few centuries of typical teaching and training among the bills of Judah, and then present them with the wondrous Loges, the Word by whom all things were made. Besides, it seems to have been the purpose of the Most High to let the heathen nations find out the vanity of their false systems of religion and philosophy. Then, when the mind of man was in a state of disquietude and unrest, Jesus came to whisper His heavenly Peace, be still. Paganisms lords many and gods many were being laughed at by all sensible men. Even in the hands of Plato philosophy had declared herself to be only a tiny lamp; whereas surely a Sun would be sent to illumine our darkness. At length the fulness of time arrived, the clock struck twelve on the great horologe of the world, and lo! the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us. (Evangelical Repository.)
Difficulties in the Old Testament do not warrant the rejection of Christianity
It is a logical mistake to abandon faith in the Lord Jesus because of difficulties, insoluble perhaps to us, which occur in the books of the Old Testament. Look at the block of marble which has only just begun to feel the formative hand of the sculptor, and you may be uncertain whether or no the great master has realty had anything to do with the rough hewing of the still unshapely mass; but because of this you will not hesitate when the idea of the artist is perfected, when the marble has been inspired with beauty, majesty, and strength, and seems to have caught an immortal life from the imagination of genius. And so, whatever difficulty any of you may have for a time--and I believe it will only be for a time--in discovering the presence of God in His primitive revelations to the human race, this should be no reason for regarding with diminished faith the full revelation He has made of Himself in His Son. (R. W. Dale, LL. D.)
Jesus the manifestation of God
The devout heart yearns after a personal God. It craves for something more than the works of God, however replete with proofs of His power and glory; it wants to get near Himself. Its instinctive desire is after a Father and a Friend--a loving ear into which its sorrows may be poured--a loving heart on which its weariness may rest. But Omnipresence, Omnipotence, Being without form or place, Existence without beginning or end, Eternal Rest without change or motion; these, in their very sublimity, constitute a notion which tends to repel rather than to attract, to overwhelm and crush rather than gently to raise and foster our human sympathies and desires. Our mortal feebleness shrinks from it in trembling awe. The heart cannot feed on sublimities. We cannot make a home of this cold magnificence; we cannot take Immensity by the hand. The soul lost in such contemplations, like a trembling child wandering on some mountain solitudes, longs, amidst all this vastness and grandeur, for the sound of some familiar voice to break the stillness, or the sight of some sheltered spot in which it may nestle with the sense of friendliness and security. Now that which is thus the deep-felt want of our natures is most fully and adequately met in the Person of Jesus Christ. For here is One whom, while we may reverence and adore as God, we can think of as clearly, and love as simply, trustingly, tenderly, as the best known and loved of our earthly friends. Here is a point which our shadowy conceptions may condense, a focus towards which our aimless aspirations may tend. Here we have set before us the Boundless, limited in form; the Eternal, dwelling in time; the Invisible and Spiritual God revealed in that Word of Life which human eyes have seen, and human hands have handled. (J. Caird, D. D.)
Revelation of God
When a prince, affianced to the heiress of some distant kingdom, has sent his portrait to her by the hand of his vicegerent, and the casket comes, it is so glowing with diamonds and with sapphires rare that it seems itself to be priceless; and yet, on being opened, so royal is the face within, and so does it blaze with superior diamonds, that the casket becomes forgotten. So God is revealed as a worldbuilder arid material worker, as a physical governor, as grand past human language; but when you open the casket and behold Jesus Christ, and hear His voice as revealing what God is in His interior disposition and mother soul, you forget the other. (H. W. Beecher.)
Heathen anticipations of the Messiah
From the remotest ages prophetic utterances, announcing better times and a coming deliverance, had pervaded the ancient world. Such mutilated and ancient prophecies are found amongst the most widely differing nations. It was the hope of the Persians that a time would come, a Messianic time, in which Ahriman would be annihilated, the world renewed, and delivered from all evil; in which all mankind would be converted to a state of obedience to law, and the happy condition of former times restored. The Indians expected, at the end of the present age of sin, the tenth Avatar, that is, incarnation. That of Buddha was the ninth, and this would be an incarnation of Vishnu, who would appear under the name Kalki, overthrow all evil, and restore the happy times which had prevailed at the beginning of the world. Even the Chinese were not without such Messianic hopes. The advent of a great and Holy One in the West is frequently announced in their sacred books--One who was not only to lay down the way of perfection, but also to destroy the ancient idols. Nor were similar expectations less familiar to other Oriental nations. Among the Greeks they were profoundly expressed in the legend of Prometheus. Prometheus chained to the rock, in daily torment, utters the oracle, known to himself alone, that the dominion of the false god Zeus will one day be terminated b, a Son of God, who will be mightier than Zeus, while he himself beholds Hercules as his deliverer in the distant future. But this deliverance--as Hermes announces to him--is not to take place without vicarious suffering:
And of that anguish, look not for the end
Before some god shall come to bear thy woes,
And will to pass to Hades sunless realm
And the dark, cloudy depths of Tartarus.
And this is done by Chiron, the most just and wise of the Centaurs, the son of Chronos, sacrificing himself for him, while Hercules kills the eagle at his breast, and so delivers him from his torments. AEschylus made this significant legend the subject of a dramatic trilogy, of which, indeed, only a fragment, the Prometheus Bound, remains. Enough has, however, been preserved to show us how the deep ideas of the Greek world concerning guilt, atonement, and the redemption of mankind are poetically reflected therein. This poetic legend is indeed almost a prediction of the true Redeemer. (Prof. Luthardt.)
The gospel of the Son
1. As the Son is above the servants, so is Christ above the prophets. And no reason, that the Jews should think so much of Moses, and the prophets, as for them to misregard Christs doctrine and stick to the Levitical service under pretence of estimation of the prophets.
2. The glory of the gospel is greater than the glory of the law.
3. The glory of the ministerial calling of preachers of the gospel is by so much the greater, as it hath the Son of God first man in the roll thereof; as first preacher, and prince of preachers.
4. Christs sermons are all of them directed unto us: and so much the more highly should the doctrine of the gospel be esteemed of by us. (D. Dickson, M. A.)
Christ explains past revelations
A singer will sometimes sit down to an instrument and strike a few mysterious chords, or pick out a few bars of melody, which excite only vague thoughts and vaguer emotions within us; but soon the rich sweet voice steals in, uttering articulate words, and then our vague thoughts and emotions take definite forms, and we comprehend what it was that touched and moved us in the prelude. Not till God uttered His voice in Christ could men understand the preluding notes which the prophets were constrained to sound, or put dear, definite, authentic meaning into these yearning, mysterious tones. (S. Cox, D. D.)
Whom He hath appointed heir of all things
Christ appointed heir
God is said to appoint His Son
1. By ordaining in His eternal counsel that His Son should be heir. As Christ was delivered by the determinate counsel of God to be slain Act_2:23) so was He appointed to be heir (1Pe_1:20).
2. By sending Him into the world, or by giving Him to be incarnate for that very end (Php_2:7-9).
3. By raising Him from the dead, and setting Him at His right hand in heaven. On these grounds St. Peter thus saith, God hath made Him both Lord and Christ (Act_2:36). This word appointed showeth the right that Christ hath to His supreme dignity. That which is said of Christs being Priest (Heb_5:5) may be applied to this dignity Christ glorified not
Himself to be an heir; but He that said to Him, Thou art My Son, to-day have I begotten Thee, appointed Him heir. (W. Gouge.)
Jesus heir of all things
Be married to this heir, and have all. (J. Trapp.)
The heir of all things
God has appointed Christ heir of all things. What, then, is the preparation being made for the inheritance? The history of the earth is carrying the preparation. How slowly this history unfolds itself, as if it were some long procession. And as we think of that, people following Jesus, the key to the whole situation in the worlds history is connected with their combination and their prospect. The history of the world is preparing the inheritance for Jesus Christ. Now take a glimpse of the inheritance itself. This we shall gain if we can look forward with the eye of faith to the consummation of all things. If we can pass away from the tumult, the conflict, the iniquity, the disappointment, the woe, all belonging to us, and go forward to that place where Christ shall stand when He gathers His ransomed to Himself, not one wanting, and receives the inheritance from the Father, we shall have a glimpse of that which He is providing that His Son may be glorified. And towards that distant yet glorious time we may turn with something of the feeling of those who, after they have been battling on the billows for long months, strain the eye to see the first outline of the native land to which they are returning; with something of a gladness like that we may contemplate the coming glory of our Redeemer when He shall receive the inheritance provided for Him. But it must often be with us as with a master of a ship when the clouds have shut out from him the light of the sun, and there has been no visible token by which reckoning could be made for days. What can there be in such a case but uncertainty? And yet the course is fixed. When the clouds break up and pass away, and the dear sun shines once more, reckonings will be simple, adjustments will be prompt, and the haven will be secure. So it must be with us. It is an idle expectation which we cherish in our hearts when we anticipate that all our difficulties are thus to be cleared at once from our path. There is no progress made by us, not a single step which we do not claim as an achievement for ever. So that our progress must be onward and upward until we stand on the level where Christ is. And how much we are now turning our backs upon that will tell us how steadily things are moving; how we are advancing along the way towards coming glory? For what are these things left behind? They belong to the scene of conflict, and as such they must vanish away. The time for ploughing the fields, and for reaping the harvest will come to a close; we shall see the end of conflict, and of all the weariness it brings; we shall see a close of sin, and all that terrific sorrow which has kept trailing along the path on account of our transgression. These are the things which we are leaving behind. The progress of the world means perfect righteousness. For this is the teaching of the Bible, that even worlds wear out and pass away, as a scroll which has been burnt up, and we look for a new heaven and a new earth; not a place tarnished by iniquity, not a place blurred by sorrows, not a place so often the scene of temptation, where wickedness has had dominion--we look for a new heaven and a new earth. This inheritance, then, shall include all the good as it is coming towards perfection. Christs inheritance is the consummation of all things. If this be so, then He is teaching us that man is destined for an eternal service. And this is the faith that moves in the soul of the human race; this is the faith which has taken possession of it, the faith which dominates it, for the human race will not believe that its life is mere bone and muscle. Man will not believe it, and ought not to; if he has a conscience he cannot. He will rather believe, as the Bible teaches, that he is little lower than the angels. For Jesus Christ has His inheritance in the souls of men made perfect in the fellowship of saints and angels. In drawing our meditation to a close, let me ask you to remember that as we think of progress we must also place alongside of it the lesson concerning deterioration. Progress is a thing of life; eternal progress, that which belongs to a life which can never die; yet we hear of a second death. (H. Calderwood, LL. D.)
The superiority of Christianity as shown in the glory of its supreme Head as Son of God
I. CHRIST AS THE SON OF GOD THE PROPHET OF CHRISTIANITY.
1. Notice the Divine authority of the Old Testament Scriptures.
2. Notice Gods gracious adaptations in qualifying His messengers to meet the demands of each age.
3. Notice the transcendent glory of Christianity.
II. CHRIST, AS SON OF GOD, UNIVERSAL PROPRIETOR.
1. His heirship is absolutely universal.
2. Christs universal ownership is used by Him for the highest moral and spiritual purposes.
3. This investment of Christ with all power is the all-sufficient encouragement of the Church.
III. CHRIST, AS SON OF GOD, SUPREME HEAD OF ALL DISPENSATIONS.
1. Christ has been the leader in every dispensation of the past.
2. Christ will be the leader of future dispensations (Heb_2:5; Heb_7:24; Heb_7:28).
IV. CHRIST, AS SON OF GOD, THE REVEALER OF THE ETERNAL FATHER.
1. Christ reveals the supreme excellence of the Divine character in its totality.
2. Christ reveals the infinite perfections of the Divine nature in their individuality.
V. CHRIST, AS SON OF GOD, IS THE ALMIGHTY SUSTAINER OF THE WHOLE UNIVERSE.
1. The absoluteness of His omnipotence is here set forth.
2. The ultimate triumph of Christianity is thus assured by virtue of the power of its glorious Head.
VI. CHRIST, AS SON OF GOD, THE WORLDS REDEEMER.
1. Notice the personal suffering of Christ by which redemption was wrought.
2. The perfect character of the work.
3. The glorious reward received.
VII. CHRIST, AS SON OF GOD, INFINITELY SUPERIOR TO THE ANGELS.
1. By virtue of His Sonship (Heb_1:4-7).
2. By virtue of His Kingship (Heb_1:8-9).
3. By virtue of His Creatorship (Heb_1:10-12).
4. By virtue of His ultimate Mastership over all His enemies (Heb_1:13-14).
Lessons:
1. The unspeakable glory of Christianity.
(1) As seen in its being Gods last masterpiece.
(2) As seen in the glory of its Prophet, Priest, and King.
(3) As seen in its intimate object in bringing this fallen race into practical relations with God.
2. the unspeakable obligation the world is under to Christ through Christianity.
(1) In giving us the only true conception of God.
(2) In giving us the only true conception of the value of the soul.
(3) In giving us the only true conception of true manhood in its means and nature.
3. The unspeakable deadness to all that constitutes true moral excellence, seen in indifference to Christ, to Christianity, and to the privileges it offers. (D. C. Hughes, M. A.)
The supreme glory of Christ
I. THAT CHRIST IS GOD.
1. The Lordship of Christ.
2. The Creatorship of Christ.
3. The Governorship of Christ.
II. THAT GOD IS MADE KNOWN IN CHRIST.
1. God is unknown out of Christ.
2. God is revealed in Christ.
(1) We can only know God in Christ.
(2) In Christ we know God as He is. Not indeed fully, but really, truly, blessedly.
III. THAT GOD IS MADE KNOWN IN CHRIST AS THE SAVIOUR OF THE WORLD. (The Metropolitan Pulpit.)
Of the Kingdom or Lordship of Christ
The grant of dominion in general unto the Messiah, is intimated in the first promise of Him Gen_3:15). His victory over Satan was to be attended with rule, power, and dominion (Psa_68:18; Isa_53:12; Eph_4:8-9; Col_2:15), and confirmed in the renewal of that promise to Abraham (Gen_22:17-18). For in Him it was that Abraham was to be heir of the world (Rom_4:13). His kingdom was fully revealed unto David, and is expressed by him (Psa_2:1-12; Psa_45:3-8; Psa_89:19-24, &c., Psa_72:6-9, &c., Psa_110:1-3). As also in all the following prophets: see Isa_11:1-2; Isa_9:6-7; Isa_53:12; Isa_63:1-3; Jer_23:5-6; Dan_7:13-14, &c. As this was foretold in the Old Testament, so the accomplishment of it is expressly asserted in the New. Upon His birth, He is proclaimed to be Christ the Lord (Luk_2:11). And the first inquiry after Him is, Where is He that is born King? (Mat_2:2; Mat_2:6). And this testimony doth He give concerning Himself, namely, that all judgment was His, and therefore all honour was due unto Him (Joh_5:22-23). And that all things were delivered unto Him, or given into His hand (Mat_11:25), yea, all power in heaven and earth (Mat_28:18), the thing pleaded for. Him who was crucified did God make both Lord and Christ (Act_2:35-36), exalting Him at His right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour (Act_5:31). He is highly exalted, having a name given Him above every name Php_2:9-11), being set at the right hand of God in heavenly places, far above, &c. (Eph_1:20-22), where He reigns for ever 1Co_15:25), being the King of kings, and Lord of lords Rev_5:12-14), for He is Lord of quick and dead (Rom_14:7-9). Thus is the Son made heir of all in general; we shall further consider His dominion in a distribution of the chief parts of it, and manifest His power severally in and over them all. He is Lord or Heir, παντων that is, of all persons and of all things. Persons, or rational subsistences here intended, are either angels or men; for it is evident that He is exempted, who hath subjected all things unto Him (1Co_15:27). Angels are of two sorts:
1. Such as abide doing the will of God, retaining that name by way of eminence.
2. Such as by sin have lost their first habitation, usually called evil angels, or devils.
The Lord Jesus hath dominion over all of both sorts of them. Men may be cast under one common distribution, which is comprehensive of all distinctions, either elect or reprobates. And the Lord Jesus hath rule and dominion over them all. Things that are subject unto the Lord Jesus, may be referred unto four heads: for they are either
1. Spiritual; or,
2. Ecclesiastical; or,
3. Political; or,
4. Natural. Again, Spiritual are either
(1) Temporal, as Grace, Gifts; or,
(2) Eternal, as Glory.
Ecclesiastical, or Church things, are either
1. Judaical, or Old Testament things; or,
2. Christian, or things of the New Testament.
Political and civil things may be considered as they are managed
1. By His friends;
2. His enemies.
Of natural things, we shall speak in a production of some particular instances to prove the general assertion. Those in the first place assigned as part of the inheritance of Christ are the angels, and the good angels in especial.
1. His pre-eminence above them is asserted by the apostle in verse 4. He is made better, more excellent than the angels.
2. As He is exalted above them, so by the authority of God the Father they are made subject unto Him (1Pe_3:22).
3. They adore and worship Him; the highest act of obedience, and most absolute subjection. This they have in command (Heb_1:6).
4. They always attend His throne (Isa_6:1-2). Thus His lordship over angels is universal and absolute, and their subjection unto Him answerable thereunto.
The manner of the grant of this excellence, power, and dignity unto Him, must be further cleared in the opening of these words of the apostle (verse 4), being made better than the angels; the original right and equity of this grant, with the ends of it, are now only to be intimated.
1. The radical fundamental equity of this grant lies in His Divine nature; and in His creation of angels; over whom, as Mediator, He is made Lord.
2. It is founded in that establishment in the condition in which they were created, which they received by His interposition to recover what was lost by sin, and to preserve from ruin the untainted part of the creation.
And as this act of God in appointing Christ Lord of angels hath these equitable foundations, so it hath also sundry glorious ends.
1. It was as an addition unto that glory that was set before Him, in His undertaking to redeem sinners.
2. God hereby gathers up His whole family, at first distinguished by the law of their creation into two especial kinds, and then differenced and set at variance by sin, into one body under one head, reducing them that originally were twain, into one entire family (Eph_1:10).
3. The Church of mankind militant on the earth, whose conduct unto eternal glory is committed unto Christ, stands in need of the ministry of angels.
II. There is another sort of angels, those who by sin left their primitive station, and fell off from God, of whom, and of their sin, fall, malice, business, craft in evil, and final judgment, the Scripture treateth at large. These belong not indeed to the possession of Christ, as He is the heir, but they belong unto His dominion as He is Lord. Though He be not a King and Head unto them, yet He is a Judge and Ruler over them.
1. As before, this right is founded in His Divine nature, by virtue whereof He is ἱακανος, fit for this dominion. He made these angels also, and therefore, as God, hath an absolute dominion over them.
2. The immediate and peculiar foundation of His right unto rule over fallen angels rendering the special grant of it equal and righteous, is lawful conquest. This gives a special right (Gen_48:22). Now that Christ should conquer fallen angels was promised from the foundation of the Gen_3:15). The ends of this lordship of Christ are various, as
(1) His own glory (Psa_110:1).
(2) The safety of the Church (Mat_16:18; Rev_12:7-9).
(3) Exercise for their good
(a) By temptation (1Pe_5:8-10).
(b) Persecution (Rev_2:10; Rev_12:10); both which He directs and regulates to their eternal advantage.
(4) The exercising of His vengeance on His stubborn enemies, whom these slaves to His righteous power seduce, blind, harden, provoke, ruin, and destroy (Rev_12:15; Rev_16:13-14; Psa_106:1-48.).
III. All mankind (the second sort of intellectual creatures or rational subsistences) belong to the lordship and dominion of Christ.
1. He is Lord over all flesh (Joh_17:2), both living and dead Rom_14:9; Php_2:9-10).
2. Particularly He is Lord over all the elect.
1. They were given to Him from eternity in design and by compact, that they should be His peculiar portion, … and He their Saviour (Joh_17:2)
2. His grant is strengthened by redemption, purchase, and acquisition. This was the condition of the former grant (Isa_53:10-12), and this condition was made good by Him; so that His lordship is frequently asserted on this very account (1Co_6:20; 1Pe_1:18-19; 1Ti_2:5-6; Joh_10:15; Joh_11:52; Eph_5:25-27; Rev_5:9).
3. Those thus given Him of the Father and redeemed by Him are of two sorts.
(1) Such as are actually called to faith in Him, and union with Him. These are further become His, upon many other especial accounts. They are His, in all relations of subjection, His children, servants, brethren, disciples, subjects, His house, His spouse.
(2) Some of them are always uncalled, and shall be so, until the whole number of them be completed and filled. But even before they are called they belong, on the former accounts, to His lot, care, and rule (Joh_10:6).
2. His lordship and dominion extends to the other sort of men also, namely, reprobates, and men finally impenitent. They are not exempted from that all flesh which He hath power over (Joh_17:2), nor from thosequick and dead over whom He is Lord (Rom_14:9), nor from that world which He shall judge (Act_17:31). And there are two special grounds that are peculiar to them of this grant, and power, and authority over them.
(1) His interposition upon the entrance of sin against the immediate execution of the curse due to it, as befell the angels. This fixed the world under a dispensation of
(a) Forbearance and patience (Rom_2:4-5; Act_17:30; Rom_9:22; Psa_75:3).
(b) Goodness and mercy (Act_14:16-17).
(2) He makes a conquest over them. It was promised that He should do so Gen_3:15), and though the work itself prove long and irksome, though the ways of accomplishing it be to us obscure and oftentimes invisible, yet He hath undertaken it, and will not give it over, until they are every one brought to be His footstool (Psa_110:1; 1Co_15:25). And the dominion granted Him on these grounds is
(a) Sovereign and absolute: His enemies are His footstool (Ps Mat_22:44; Mar_12:36; Luk_20:42; Act_2:34; 1Co_15:25; Heb_1:13).
(b) Judiciary (Joh_5:22-23). As He hath power over their persons, so He hath regard unto their sins (Rom_14:9; Act_17:3; Mat_25:31). And this power He variously exerciseth over them, even in this world, before He gloriously exerts it in their eternal ruin. He exerciseth rule and dominion over them in providential dispensations Isa_63:1-4; Rev_6:15-16; Rev_19:13). By all which He makes way for the glory of His final judgment of them (Act_17:3; Mat_25:31; Rev_19:20; Rev_20:10-15). And all this will He do to the ends
(i) Of His own glory.
(ii) The good exercise and safety of the church.
II. The second part of the heirship and dominion of Christ consisteth in His lordship over all things besides, which, added to the former, comprises the whole creation of God. In the distribution of these premised, the first that occur are spiritual things, which also are of two sorts
1. Temporal, or such as in this life we are made partakers of; and
2. Eternal, the things that are reserved for them that believe in the state of glory. The former may be reduced to two heads, for they are all of them either grace or gifts, and Christ is Lord of them all.
I. All that which comes under the name of grace in Scripture, which, flowing from the free and special love of God tends directly to the spiritual and eternal good of them on whom it is bestowed, may be referred to four heads. Now these are
1. Pardon of sin, and the free acceptance of the persons of sinners, in a way of mercy. This is grace (Eph_2:8; Tit_3:5; Tit_3:7). And a saving effect and fruit of the covenant (Jer_31:31-34; Heb_8:12).
2. The regenerating of the person of a dead sinner, with the purifying and sanctifying of his nature in a way of spiritual power. This also is grace, and is promised in the covenant, and there are three parts of it
(1) The infusion of a quickening principle into the soul of a dead sinner Rom_8:2; Tit_3:5; Joh_3:6; Eph_2:1-6).
(2) The habitual furnishing of a spiritually quickened soul, with abiding radical principles of light, love, and power, fitting it for spiritual obedience Gal_5:17).
(3) Actual assistance in a communication of supplies of strength for every duty and work (Php_1:13; Joh_15:3).
3. Preservation in a condition of acceptance with God, and holy obedience to Him to the end, is also of especial grace. It is the grace of perseverance, and eminently included in the covenant.
4. Adoption as a privilege, with all the privileges that flow from it, is also Eph_1:5-6). All these, with all those inexpressible mercies that they branch themselves into, giving deliverance to sinners from evil, temporal and eternal; raising them to communion with God here, and to the enjoyment of Him for ever hereafter, are called grace; and do belong to the lordship of Christ, as He is Heir, Lord, and Possessor of them all. All the stores of this grace and mercy that are in heaven for sinners, are given into His hand, and resigned up to His sovereign disposal, as we shall intimate in general and particular.
1. In general (Col_1:19). There is a fourfold fulness in Christ
(1) Of the Deity in His Divine nature (Rom_9:5).
(2) Of union in His person (Col_2:9).
(3) Of grace in His human nature (Joh_1:14; Joh_3:34; Luk_2:52; Luk_4:1).
(4) An authoritative fulness to communicate of it unto others; that is the fulness here intended.
2. In particular
(1) All pardoning grace for the acceptance of our persons, and forgiveness of our sins, is His: He is the Lord of it (Act_5:31).
(2) All regenerating, quickening, sanctifying, assisting grace is His Joh_5:21).
(3) The grace of our preservation in a state of acceptance with God, and obedience unto Him, is solely His (Joh_10:28). And so also
(4) Are all the gracious privileges whereof we are made partakers in our adoption (Joh_1:12; Heb_3:6). He is so Lord over the whole house and family of God, as to have the whole inheritance in His power, and the absolute disposal of all the good things belonging unto it.
II. All gifts that are bestowed on any of the sons of men, whereby they are differenced from others, or made useful unto others, belong also to the inheritance and kingdom of Christ. Gifts bestowed on men are either natural or spiritual, Natural gifts are special endowments of the persons or minds of men, in relation to things appertaining to this life; as wisdom, learning, skill and cunning in arts and sciences. I design only to show that even they also belong (though more remotely) to the lordship of Jesus Christ, which they do on two accounts
1. In that the very use of mens reason, and their natural faculties, as to any good end or purpose, is continued to them upon the account of His interposition, bringing the world thereby under a dispensation of patience and forbearance, as was declared (Joh_1:9).
2. He is endued with power and authority to use them in whose hand soever they lie, whether of His friends or enemies, to the special ends of His glory, in doing good to His Church.
III. Spiritual gifts, which principally come under that denomination, are of two sorts--extraordinary and ordinary. The first are immediate endowments of the minds of men with abilities exceeding the whole system of nature, in the exercise whereof they are mere instruments of Him who bestows those gifts upon them. Such of old were the gifts of miracles, tongues, healing, prediction, and infallible inspiration, given out by the Lord Christ, unto such as He was pleased to use in His gospel service in an extraordinary manner. The ordinary gifts are the furniture of the minds of men, enabling them to comprehend spiritual things, and to manage them for spiritual ends and purposes. The end also why all these gifts are given into His power and disposal is evident.
1. The propagation of His gospel, and consequently the setting up of His kingdom in the world, depends upon them.
2. By these is His Church edified; and to that end doth He continue to bestow them on men, and will do so to the end of the world (1Co_12:7-14; Eph_4:8-13; Rom_12:6-8; 1Pe_3:10-11; Col_2:19).
3. And by these means and ways is God glorified in Him and by Him, which is the great end of His lordship over all the gifts of the Spirit.
IV. To close our consideration of this part of the lordship of Christ, there remains only that we show Him to be the Lord of all spiritual and eternal things, which in one word we call glory. He is Himself the Lord of glory 2Co_2:4) and the Judge of all (Joh_5:25). In the discharge of which office He gives out glory as a reward unto His followers (Mat_25:32; Rom_14:10). Glory is the reward that is with Him, which He will give out at the last day, as a crown (2Ti_4:8; Joh_17:2). And to this end that He might be Lord of it, He hath
1. Purchased it (Heb_2:10; Heb_9:12; Eph_1:14).
2. Taken actual possession of it in His own person (Luk_24:25; Joh_17:5; Joh_17:22; Joh_17:24). And that
3. As the forerunner on whom He will bestow it (Heb_9:20). And this is a short view of the lordship of Christ as to things spiritual.
V. Ecclesiastical things, or things that concern Church institutions, rule, and power, belong also unto His rule and dominion. He is the only Head, Lord, Ruler, and Lawgiver of His Church.
1. He was the Lord of the Old Testament Church-state, and He exercised His power and lordship towards it in four ways.
(1) In, and by its institution and erection; He made, framed, set up, and appointed that Church, state, and all the worship of God therein observed.
(2) As its lawgiver, by prescribing to it when erected, a complete rule and form of worship and obedience, to which nothing might be added Deu_7:4; Deu_7:12; Deu_7:32).
(3) By way of reformation, when it was collapsed and decayed Zec_2:8; Mal_3:13).
(4) By way of amotion, or taking down what He Himself had set up, because it was so framed and ordered as to continue only for a season Heb_9:10; Deu_18:16-18; Hag_2:6-7; Isa_65:17-18; 2Pe_3:13).
2. Of the New Testament evangelical Church-state also, He is the only Lord and Ruler; yea, this is His proper kingdom, on which all other parts of His dominion do depend; for He is given to be Head over all things unto the Church (Eph_1:22).
(1) He is the foundation of this Church-state (1Co_3:11), the whole design and platform of it being laid in Him, and built upon Him.
(2) He erects this Church-state upon Himself (Mat_16:18).
(3) He gives laws and rules of worship and obedience unto it, when so built by Himself and upon Himself (Mat_28:18; Act_1:2; Heb_3:2-6).
(4) Is the everlasting, constant, abiding Head, Ruler, King, and Governor Eph_1:22; Col_2:19; Heb_3:6; Rev_2:3).
VI. He is Lord also of political things. All the governments of the world that are set up and exercised therein for the good of mankind, and the preservation of society according to rules of equity and righteousness; over all these, and those who in and by them exercise rule and authority amongst men, is He Lord and King. He alone is the absolute potentate; the highest on the earth are in a subordination unto Him. That
1. He was designed unto (Psa_89:27). And accordingly He is
2. Made Lord of lords and King of kings (Rev_17:14; Rev_19:16; 1Ti_6:15). And
3. He exerciseth dominion answerable unto His title (Rev_6:16; Rev_17:14; Rev_18:16-20; Psa_2:8-9; Isa_60:1-22.; Mic_5:7-9). And
4. Hath hence right to send His gospel into all nations in the world, attended with the worship by Him prescribed (Mat_28:18; Psa_2:9-12), which none of the rulers or governors of the world have any right to refuse or oppose, nor can so do, but upon their utmost peril. And
5. All kingdoms shall at length be brought into a professed subjection to Him and His gospel, and have all their rule disposed of unto the interest of His Church and saints (Dan_7:27; Isa_60:12; Rev_19:16-19).
VII. The last branch of this dominion of Christ consists in the residue of the creation of God; heaven and earth, sea and land, wind, trees, and fruits of the earth, and the creatures of sense, as they are all put under His feet Psa_8:7-8; Eph_1:22; 1Co_15:27), so the exercise of His power severally over them is known from the story of the gospel. (John Owen, D. D.)
Heir of all
I. THE HIGHEST POSSIBLE POSITION.
II. MADE BY THE HIGHEST POSSIBLE AUTHORITY,
III. A TREMENDOUS CONTRAST WITH CHRISTS EARTHLY CONDITION.
IV. THE POSSIBLE EXALTATION OF HUMAN NATURE.
V. THE ULTIMATE TRIUMPH OF RIGHTEOUSNESS. (Homilist.)
Of Christ the heir
The apostle here sets out the dignity of Christ under this title heir rather than Lord, as Act_2:36.
1. To give proof of that relation which he noted before that Christ was truly and properly a Son, for He was the heir.
2. To show the perpetuity thereof; for the heir ever abideth in the house Gen_21:10; Joh_8:35).
3. To manifest the right that we have to be adopted sons and heirs Joh_8:36). If the Son shall make you free ye shall be free indeed. In this respect we are styled Joint-heirs with Christ. This dignity of Christ to be heir is further amplified by the extent thereof in these words, of all things. (W. Gouge.)
Heir of all things
Christ is this moment Lord of all the laws that govern material things; and is cognizant of the most elaborate as well as the most simple movements in the world of matter. His comprehensive vision surveys the whole, from the migrations of an atom to the swift revolutions of the most magnificent celestial planets. And He is Lord of all the principles that govern men and all rational beings; therefore He is heir to all the thoughts of men and angels. He has already received a grand return, in the form of the best thoughts and imaginations of the noblest and most illustrious intellects of the past and the present; and as the influence of the fine and ennobling thoughts of past ages grows and spreads amongst men, there will be an increase in the measure of fruit which Christ, as heir of all things, will receive from that source. He is heir to the affections of all men. There is not a heart beating at this instant in any human breast but should be setting its affections on Christ as its greatest, truest, and best friend. And, undoubtedly, the day is known to Him when all rational beings will be actuated by pure gospel principles; when all the thoughts and affections of humanity will be fixed upon Himself as the true heir to them all. The spring is heir to all the wealth of foliage in park, grove, and forest, when all the trees on the hills open their thousand leaves. How charming is the product of spring; its fresh inimitable green, so soothing to the eye and refreshing to the senses generally, after the darkness and barrenness of winter. Summer is heir to all the blossoms of the valleys, hills, meadows, and gardens of the world. What riches in bewitching colours, in forms of exquisite beauty, in floating fragrance, belong to the summer; its riches are verily unsearchable, suggestive of inexhaustible wealth in the Giver of them all, and certainly of infinite wisdom. The treasures of the floral world, how extensive they are I Autumn is heir to the vast wealth of fruit that is found in every part of the earth; its splendid thankoffering for the sunshine, rain, and dew which have so unstintingly been given to it during the year; and a noble offering it is. How very poor is the richest of men if compared with a rich autumn. Peter says that when God raised Christ from the dead, He made Him both Lord and Christ; and that He is Lord of all. He is heir of all things; we understand all things to include all persons and things in the most unlimited sense (Joh_3:35; Mat_28:18). All the angels of God are subject to Him, and are come to worship Him: the saints whom tie hath redeemed are His special heritage--His peculiar people. He is the heir and the dispenser of all spiritual blessings. (D. Rhys Jenkins.)
Heir of all things
A great king once said to a favourite, Ask what thou wilt, and I will give it thee. He thought, If I ask to be made general of all the army, I shall get it; if for great riches of half the kingdom, I will gain it; but I will ask for what will give me all these. So he said to the king, Give me thy daughter to wife. This made him heir to all the wealth and honours of the kingdom. So he who chooses Christ becomes an heir to all the wealth and glory of the Fathers kingdom.
By whom also He made the worlds
The creation of the ages
Created the ages--not the worlds, which gives a false impression of the authors meaning; for this clause does not describe an original creation of the material world of space (Cosmos), but the Divine exercise of a creative energy in the successive worlds of time (AEons). The term ages includes the idea of time and of the action that takes place in time; and the power by which God through the Son has shaped the course of life and action in the successive ages of mans existence is regarded as a creation. For the Scriptural conception of creation did not consist in bringing matter into existence out of nothing, but in the infusion of life and motion by the moving of the Spirit of God on the face of the waters into matter which had previously existed as a waste void. (F. Rendall, M. A.)
The agency of the Divine Father and Son
The Father is said to do this and that by the Son for these reasons
1. To give proof of the distinction of Persons.
2. To set out the order of the Persons--the Father first, the Son second.
3. To declare their manner of working--the Father by the Son, and the Son from the Father (Gen_19:24).
4. To show the consent of the distinct Persons, Father and Son.
5. To demonstrate the identity of the essence of Father and Son; that both are one Divine nature and essence, in that the same Divine work is attributed to both. This consequence is inferred upon a like ground Joh_5:17-18). As the Father is here said to make the worlds by His Son, so of God in reference to the Son indefinitely it is said, By whom are all things (Heb_2:10). The Son therefore is here declared to be true God. (W. Gouge)
The glory of the Son
And who may be this Son, who in the last days it is declared hath brought us speech of God? Read the Scripture in immediate connection (Heb_1:1; Heb_1:3). Possession--has He anything? Achievement--has He done anything? Character--is He anything? Position--is He where He can do anything?--these are the four great and universal tests of worth and power. To this Son, by whom, in these last days, God hath spoken to us, our Scripture applies these searching and settling tests of possession, achievement.
I. Behold the glory of this Son in the light of His Possession. Whom He hath appointed heir of all things. I spent a very interesting day in rambling through the vast naval station at Portsmouth, England. There were huge ironclads floating in the harbour, of enormous force of engines, and armament of thunderous guns; there were huge skeletons of iron ships upon the stocks in process of construction; there were almost miles of streets of anchors so strong and great it looked as though the nethermost rocks must give before their mighty flukes would break; there were circling piles of iron cables, every link of which seemed massive enough to hold against the stoutest storm; there were pyramids of balls and shells, and long, high armouries bursting with weapons; there were machine shops almost innumerable, and multitudinous piles of cordage, and immensities of things of every sort needed for a naval station of a world-including empire. And on every iron plank, and ball, and tool, and gate-post even, was stamped the broad arrow; and twisted into every bit of cordage there was the red line, marking and betokening the ownership of the sovereign. Everything was hers, and the sign of the sovereigns ownership was written upon everything. It may not be so plainly seen; it may look dimmed sometimes even to the clearest vision of our faith, but, more really, deeply, indestructibly there is stamped upon the all things which go to make up this universe the sign of their possession by the Son of God. God hath appointed Him heir of all things.
1. All the moneyed wealth of the world is the Sons. In a real way Jesus Christ is possessor of the money of the world.
2. Of the mighty enterprises of the world Jesus Christ is possessor. They are all seen to hold most real relation to the advance of His kingdom--the invention of printing.
3. To the great natural forces of the world, already discovered and to be discovered, Jesus Christ has title--e.g., railroads, telegraphs, swift communications between continents all these are being laid hold of for the widening of Christs kingdom.
4. And on the thinking of the world the grasp of the Sons possession is also placed. After all, the thought which gets its inspiration from the Bible is the thought that leads.
5. Even upon the wickedness and infidelity of the world Jesus Christ has grasp. Somehow He will compel these to lend ministry to His purpose.
6. And of all the unknown forces in farthest suns, stars, planets, the Son is in possession. God hath appointed Him of all things the heir.
II. Behold the glory of this Son in the light of His ACHIEVEMENT. Three things, the Scripture here declares, this Son, by whom in these lust days God hath spoken unto us, has achieved
1. Creation.
2. Upholding. And upholding all things by the word of His power. In Him all things consist--stand together.
3. Redemption. When He had by Himself purged our sins.
III. Behold the glory of this Son in the light of His CHARACTER. Who, being the brightness of the Fathers glory and the express image of His person.
IV. Behold the glory of this Son in the light of His POSITION. Sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on High. In view of the glory of this Son, see
1. The folly of expecting a farther revelation. He is the Fathers utmost revelation.
2. The folly of the thought of any other way of salvation than this Sons way.
3. The wonder that Christians should not more appreciate the honour of confession and service of this Son.
4. The certainty of this Sons triumph. He who by faith and self-surrender allies himself with this Son is on the winning side of things.
The world moderately admired as Gods workmanship
1. The world is of Gods making, therefore it is to be highly esteemed of us. The Tabernacle was of Bezaleels making, that was furnished with all skill and wisdom, therefore the more regarded by the Israelites; the Temple was of Solomons malting, the wisest man that ever was, therefore in that respect more honoured by the Jews. A picture of Apelles making would be in great request. The world is the glorious workmanship of God Almighty, therefore to be admired of us all. If a stranger be in a boat on the Thames he cannot but wonder at the brave buildings that be situate on it. Shall we pass through this famous frame, and super-excellent building of this world set up by God Himself, and not wonder at the wisdom, power, and goodness of God that made it? We see what a goodly coat the earth hath; Solomon in all his royalty was not so clothed as it. We see the sun in the firmament, the moon, the stars--God Almightys candles--birds of the air, beasts of the field, fishes of the sea, the admirable work of our own bodies, yet they do not make us almost to think of God. The Gentiles had no book but this to look upon, yet it left them without excuse. Let us all behold God, even in the creation of the world.
2. Though the world be a worthy work, and that of Gods making, yet let us not admire it too much; as there was a time when it was set up, so there is a time when it shall be pulled down. The disciples stood gazing on the Temple, wondering at the workmanship of it; but Christ told them that one stone should not be left upon another. This world is but an inn, wherein we take up a night s lodging. If thou comest to an inn, be it never so fair, wilt thou always continue there? Nay, thou wilt leave the inn, and make haste to thy house, though it be nothing so beautiful as the inn. Remember that this world is but an inn, be it never so goodly a piece of work. Hasten to that house that is made without hands, eternal in the heavens. (W. Jones, D. D.)
The brightness of His glory.--
Deity and atonement of Christ
I. Consider what is said of the person of Christ, PREVIOUS TO HIS BECOMING OUR SAVIOUR. He is the brightness of the Fathers glory, the express image of His person, and He upholds all things by the word of His power. If this be not descriptive of His being truly God, it is not in the power of language to convey such an idea. The antecedent glory of Christ is a subject on which the Scriptures delight to dwell, as may be seen in various passages (Mic_5:2; Joh_1:1-3; 1Jn_1:1-2).
1. Christ is here called the brightness of the Fathers glory. Christ is not the Father, yet there is such an equality that He is emphatically the brightness of His glory. It is also through Him that the glory of the Divine nature is revealed and made manifest. God made the world by Him, and by Him He saved it; the Lord Jesus is therefore the shining forth of all this glory.
2. He is the express image of His person, the image of the invisible God Col_1:15). There is not an attribute or a feature in the character of the Father but what is also in the Son. Here is likewise a personal distinction consisting with a oneness of nature, and without any other subordination than that which is relative, as between a Father and a Son.
3. Christ upholdeth all things by the word of His power. Nothing can be more expressive of His Godhead, for this is claimed as the special prerogative of God alone (Psa_75:3).
II. Observe what is said of HIS WORK IN UNDERTAKING THE OFFICE OF A PRIEST. He by Himself purged our sins.
1. The efficacy of His sacrifice--He purged our sins.
The term alludes to the ceremonial cleansings under the law, which were effected by sacrificial blood (Heb_9:22). Hence David prayed Psa_51:7). Our being cleansed by the blood of Christ is the substance of all these typical purifications (1Jn_1:7; 1Jn_1:9). By His death He removed the penal effects of sin, and through the application of it by faith, the conscience is purified. The gospel therefore connects repentance and remission of sins, and proclaims forgiveness amongst all nations Luk_24:47).
2. The ground or reason of this efficacy--He by Himself purged our sins. When the Scriptures speak of Christs miracles, they usually ascribe them to the authority of the Father, rather than the divinity of the Son. So also in His sufferings He was succoured by the ministry of angels, and upheld by the power of God, seeing He had taken upon Him the form of a servant, which required that He should act in subordination to Him that sent Him (Isa_42:1; Isa_49:8). But the Scriptures as uniformly ascribe the efficacy of His sacrifice to the divinity of His person, as giving value and virtue to His sufferings (1Jn_1:7).
III. THE EXALTATION WHICH FOLLOWED UPON HIS OFFERING HIMSELF AS A SACRIFICE FOR US. He sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.
1. By right hand of God is meant the first place in His favour. In all things He is to have the preeminence, for He is before all things, and by Him all things consist (Col_1:17-18).
2. This is mentioned as an honour which became Him. Conscious that He had done the will of God, and finished the work which He had given Him to do, the Lord Jesus took the place which belonged to Him. He sat down on the right hand of God, angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto Him (1Pe_3:22). While all in heaven cry, Thou art worthy to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing (Rev_5:12).
IMPROVEMENT.
1. Seeing that God hath provided for us an all-sufficient Saviour, let us learn to trust Him, and to call upon His holy name, remembering that there is salvation in no other (Joh_3:35; Act_2:21; Act_4:12).
2. We see the way in which our sires are to be expiated and removed; not by tears or sufferings of our own, but by the precious blood of Christ, and that alone. Nevertheless sin must be confessed, or it cannot be forgiven 1Jn_1:9).
3. The exaltation of Christ, as the reward of His humiliation, is to us a source of great encouragement. He is exalted as a Prince and a Saviour, to give repentance and the remission of sins; and is able to save all that come unto God by Him.
4. The conduct of Christ in doing and suffering the will of God, and then entering into His glory, is given as an example for our imitation Heb_12:2). (Theological Sketch-Book.)
Christ the brightness of Gods glory
No resemblance taken from any other creature can more fully set out the mutual relation between the Father and the Son. For
1. The brightness issuing from the sun is of the same nature that the sun is.
2. It is of as long continuance as the sun; never was the sun without the brightness of it.
3. This brightness cannot be separated from the sun; the sun may as well be made no sun as have the brightness thereof severed from it.:4. This bright-Hess is from the sun, not the sun from it.:5. This brightness cometh naturally and necessarily from the sun, not voluntarily and at pleasure.
6. The sun and the brightness are distinct each from other, the one is not the other.
7. All the glory of the sun is in this brightness.
8. The light which the sun giveth to the world is by this brightness. How distinctly doth this metaphor set out the great mysteries of our Christian faith concerning God the Father and Son.
For they are
1. Of one and the same essence (Joh_10:30).
2. Co-eternal (Joh_1:1).
3. Inseparable (Pro_8:30).
4. The Son is from the Father; God of God, light of light, very God of very God.
5. The Son is begotten of the Father, by nature, not by will, favour, or good pleasure (Rom_8:7; Rom_8:32).
6. The person of the one is distinct from the other; for the Father is not the Son, nor the Son the Father (Joh_5:17).
7. The incomprehensible glory of the Father most brightly shineth forth in the Son (Joh_17:5).
8. All that the Father doth in relation to creatures He doth by the Son. As in these respects Christ is fitly and justly styled brightness, so in regard of His surpassing excellency He is said to be the brightness of glory. Of the Hebrew and Greek words translated glory. Glory attributed to a thing in the Hebrew dialect importeth the surpassing excellency thereof; as a crown of glory (Pro_16:31), a throne of glory (Jer_17:12), a name of glory (Isa_63:14), a most excellent and glorious crown, throne, and name. Thus to set out the surpassing excellency, and most glorious majesty of God, He is styled the God of glory (Act_7:2), the Father of glory (Eph_1:17). And His Son, the Lord of glory, the King of glory (1Co_2:8; Psa_24:7). Never was any brightness like to the brightness here mentioned; well therefore might it, in regard of the excellency of it, be styled brightness of glory. (W. Gouge.)
The glory of Christ
The apostle hath taught that our Saviour Christ, the Son of God, hath been once sent unto us, an eternal Prophet, to teach us all things which God hath done for our salvation, and through the preaching of the gospel to sanctify us all unto Him; that Him alone we should acknowledge to be our leader unto eternal life. Now the apostle beginneth to prove this singular glory to belong only to Christ, which He doth by setting out a full description of Him, in which, as I said, He proveth Him to be eternal God.
1. By His rule over all creatures (Heb_1:2).
2. By the glory of His own person.
3. By His great power.
4. By His benefit bestowed upon us.
5. By His glory purchased to Himself (Heb_1:3).
6. By comparison with angels (Heb_1:4).
The rule of Christ over all creatures He showeth in this: that He is heir of all, and created all. By heir of all, meaning how in the person of a mediator He hath restored all, as in the person of the Son He was the wisdom of God to make all. And therefore called the heir, because He restored not the world, but by redeeming it, and purchasing it unto Himself, according as God the Father had given it to be a recompense unto His work; in which respect it is said that God appointed Him heir of all things. This our Saviour taught us (Mat_23:28; Joh_16:15). The apostle addeth the second note of this authority. That by Him the world was made; by the world meaning all things in heaven, earth, and under the earth. For so St. John addeth to this testimony, And without Him nothing was made, whatsoever was made. Then if all creatures were made by Him, Himself was uncreate, and only Creator of all that is, that we might boldly give Him the glory of the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and earth.
2. The second thing wherein Christ is here exalted is the glory of His person.
(1) That He is the brightness of His Fathers glory, which title is absolutely given Him, as essential unto the Son of God, not only before us, but even before His Father; that as all the properties of the Godhead have their being in the person of the Father, so the brightness and beauty of them is in the person of the Son, and so this name was proper to Him before the world was made; noting that eternally He was of the Father. In which sense St. John calleth Him the word, not according to the time in which creatures have been, but an essential word before all creatures.
(2) The second thing here attributed to Him is, that He is the ingraven form of the person of His Father; noting hereby the unity of substance, as in whom the fulness of the Godhead dwelt bodily. Even as St. Paul doth also call Him the image of God, distinguishing Him by this name from all shadows and figures, like as this apostle useth the word in the tenth chapter. And here expressly he addeth ingraven, above all the figures in the law, the ephod, the Urim, or the ark itself, showing the excellency that is in Christ.
3. The third title of honour here given unto Christ is of the greatness of His power, and that is that He beareth up all things with His mighty word. In this also it is assured that He is very God, the stay and strength of the world, without whose hand all things would fall into confusion.
4. He extolleth the person of Christ by the greatness of His benefits bestowed upon man, in these words, By Himself having purged our sins, put in here as a parenthesis, because it showeth the way how Christ purchased that excellent dignity to sit at the right hand of His Father, whereof after he speaketh. In that he saith purged our sins expressly he warranteth His Godhead, for what creature could have done so excellent a work?
5. The thing wherein Christ is here extolled is the high dignity which He hath gotten, in these words, He sitteth on the right hand of high majesty; noting hereby that God the Father hath taken Him up into His glory, so that He sitteth in power and majesty equal with His Father; and this is plain, in that He calleth it, the right hand of highest majesty. And the Scripture showeth this end of it, till I make Thine enemies Thy footstool; showing that this is the power of God in Him, to sit at the right hand of God. Now a little further we will examine the words and apply them more particularly to our instruction. In that it is said first, God made Him heir of all, so that we see how these words of the apostle have every way their weight, to prove that Christ is the Son of God, the King of His people, God and man, mediator between God and us. We must learn of ourselves we have nothing, but being ingrafted in Him we are owners of all things. I may have from man my warrant here in earth that my house is mine, and my land is mine, and he is a thief and a robber that taketh it from me. But all the men in the world cannot give me my possession before the living God, but only His Son Christ, who is heir of all; and I am a thief and a robber if before God I claim any other right in it. Then, that our lands may be our own, our goods our own, our servants, our wives, our children ours, let us be Christs, that in Him we may have the good assurance of all our substance. And where it is further said, All things were made by Christ, we may boldly conclude that no man hath power over His creatures, but they must serve their Creator. What have I to do with another mans work? God hath appointed His creatures a use; in it they are holy. It thou wilt set them another law thou profanest thyself in them. Further, in that it is said, that Christ is the brightness of glory, and ingraven form of the substance of His Father. Let us mark well why the apostle thus magnifieth the person of Christ. For no other cause but to warrant unto us the truth of His word, that He is our prophet and we must believe Him. Again it is said, He beareth up all things with His mighty word. Where, we must mark, he attributeth to Gods mighty power the governance of all things in our sight, either great or small, that we should learn not to measure the power of God by our weak senses. It is His mighty power that upholdeth the earth, that stretcheth out the heavens, that sendeth forth the winds, that raiseth on high the great waves of the sea, and these things we confess are great and mighty; but as it is here, so everywhere the mighty power of God maketh the feather to move, and His strong arm leadeth the fly in her way, and the same force which now shaketh a leaf, if He had sent it against a mountain it would have turned it up from the foundations; and the same strength that bloweth up the dust, if it came against the earth, it would shake the bottoms of it. And this should make us fear before Him, that whatsoever He hath done, whether it seem great or little, we should confess His handiwork, and according to His greatness so we should honour Him, that whatsoever He hath commanded, whether it seem weighty or light, all our obedience should be straight unto it. It followeth, by Himself He hath purged our sins. I do not doubt but you know how Christ hath purged our sins, and the more you know it I am sure you are the more glad to hear it. And because He saith by Himself He purged our sins, in this we see a clear discharge given to the tabernacle, and all the sacrifices at the door of it, not one of them purged sin. Now where it followeth in the apostles words, That He sitteth at the right hand of high majesty, we must first mark the change of words. Where it is usually said, He sitteth on the right hand of God; here he saith on the right hand of the highest majesty, which is, as it were, an interpretation of the right hand of God, signifying nothing else but the power and glory of God, given unto the person of the Mediator, according to that saying of Paul, God hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name above all names. (E. Doering, B. D.)
The glory of Christ
It is of the incarnate Son of God that the apostle speaks; and showing unto us His glory, he leads us, in the first place, to the end of all history.
1. He is appointed the heir of all things.
2. To the beginning of all history, in Him God made the ages.
3. Before all history, He is the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His being.
4. Throughout all history He upholdeth all things by the word of His power.
1. The end of all history. The Father has appointed the Lord Jesus Christ, His Son, the heir of all things. Him, the Son of Abraham and the Son of David, the theocratic Son, the Messiah; not in His abstract Deity, but as the Son who became man; as the Word made flesh; as the Son who became the servant to fulfil all Jehovahs good pleasure. The Father loveth the Son, and hath given all things into His hands. According to His deity there is no necessity for any gift, reward, or transfer. According to His deity incarnate, the Messiah, in the everlasting covenant, is appointed heir, and all things are given into His hand. What are these all things? It is clear that there is nothing excepted that is not given unto Him. So said the risen Saviour
All power is given unto Me in heaven and on earth. In His intercessory prayer before His sufferings-He had said, Thou hast given Him power over all flesh. This is the first thing. The whole human race is given unto Him. And out of this whole human race, which belongs unto Him by eternal right, and by the right of His perfect and holy humanity, by the right of His unspeakable love, and of His death, God has chosen in Him a people, that the Son should give eternal life to as many as Thou hast given Him. And this Church Jesus Christ has obtained as the first and central part of His inheritance. As the material sun is placed in the firmament to be a source of light and heat and joy unto the rest of the creation of God, so God appoints the Church to be the first-fruits of His creatures--the body of Christ, wherewith He influences and blesses, whereby He guides and controls all things. And the material creation which God hath made in Jesus Christ He hath also given unto His Son, that Jesus, through the glorified Church, and by the angels in heavenly places, as well as through Israel and the nations dwelling on earth, should be glorified in the whole realm, which is His portion and His inheritance. How rich is our adorable Jesus!
2. All things are His. And this is so natural; because, in the second place, God has made all ages, or all worlds, by Him. It is natural that He who is the Alpha should also be the Omega. He is before all things (not merely as before and above time, but) as the idea and cause of all things. He is that eternal wisdom of which we read in the book of Proverbs, which was with God before the foundations of the world were laid. God has made all things by Christ according to Christ, and for Christ. What more natural, then, that He by whom and in whom all things were made should be also the inheritor of all things?
3. But the apostle goes still further. Before all history He is the brightness of the Fathers glory, and the express image of His being. Wherever he looks he sees Christ, the light. Without Christ there is darkness. Think of the end of history, and you are lost in amazement; think of the beginning of the world, and you are lost in ignorance; think of before the beginning, and you are altogether lost in an element transcendent and incomprehensible, because it is not for our finite minds to contemplate such wondrous heights until the heavenly, Divine light of revelation comes to our aid. And who is the light? Christ is the light. The eternal, infinite God reveals Himself in Christ. The Son is the light, which maketh manifest; God is manifest in Him. Christ is the brightness of His glory, and the express image of His being. In Jesus we behold infinite power, wisdom, goodness, holiness, compassion, truth. All things that are in the Father are in the Son. It is as the Son that the eternal life, which was with the Father, was manifested unto us. He who declares unto us God, whom none hath seen, the Word, is God (Joh_1:1-51.), He is truth, substance; and the beloved disciple testifies of Him: He is the true God and eternal life.
4. And as the Lord Jesus is the heir, the end and consummation of all things and the beginning of all things, and the eternal Word before all things, the apostle tells us that throughout the course of history, in providence, He beareth all things with the word of His power. He is the inherent energy, truth and beauty of all things. He is as it were the spirit, the symmetry, the logic and substance of all that exists. By Him princes rule and senators decree justice. In Him every truth is rooted. By Him everything that is firm stands. By Him all things are continued; for He is the Word of God--the expression of the eternal thoughts and truths of the Most High. Christ is Lord of all. The whole universe centres in Him. There shall be again wonders and signs in the heavens when the Son of man shall come in power. And both science and revelation teach us to look forward to a new earth. It is the Lord Jesus who shall make all things new. And all developments are borne up and moved by the word of His power. Now, when the apostle has given us this idea of the wonderful glory of the Lord Jesus, he continues by stating something still more marvellous. Why has this glorious being, in whom all things are summed up, and who is before all things the Fathers delight and the Fathers glory, come down to our poor earth? For what purpose? To shine? To show forth the splendour of His majesty? To teach heavenly wisdom? To rule by His just and holy might? No! He came to purge our sins. What height of glory I what depth of abasement! What a glorious Lord I And what an awful sacrifice of unspeakable love, to purge our sins by Himself! The manner and power of this purification form the subject of this whole Epistle. But in this short expression, By Himself He purged our sins, all is summed up. By Himself: the Son of God, the eternal Word in humanity. Himself: the priest who is sacrifice, yea, altar, and everything that is needed for full and real expiation and reconciliation. (A. Saphir.)
Christ the sunbeam of the Fathers glory
The sun is presented to us here as the emblem of the Father; the radiation proceeding from it, the emblem of Jesus Christ. Now this is well adapted to meet many a cavil which unbelief may call up against the absolute Godhead of Christ. It is asked, for instance, does not the relationship of Father and Son imply that the Father existed before the Son; and if so, is the Son eternal? Again: was the existence of the Son at all dependent upon the will of the Father? and if so, where is the self-existence, the I am, which is a property of Godhead? Now, St. Pauls words in the text teach us, first, that the expressions, Father and Son, are employed, in consideration of our infirmities, to give us some idea of the relationship between two persons in the Trinity, but that we are to lay aside everything that is gross or earthly in contemplating this heavenly connection, retaining only the idea of the one being identical in existence and proceeding from the other. They the, put before us an image, calculated to enlarge and purify our view of this simple truth. There is the sun m the firmament, no unfitting type of God the Father; the sun of the great system that He has called into being, the author of light and life, both physical and spiritual! But in what way does the sun communicate with the different parts and provinces of his subject system? by his rays--the ἀπαύγασμα τῆς δόξης--the brightness of his glory, the radiation proceeding from the central and substantial mass of light, that travels far and wide into the realms of space, and floods our universe with beauty and brilliance. And what are the rays? Now mark how the particular truths of Christs Godhead are all shut up in this emblem. The rays of the sun are of the very same substance with the sun; thus representing to us the perfect unity of substance between Christ and His Father. The rays are generated by the sun, and yet they are coeval with the sun: the first moment of the suns existence saw him scattering his rays into space around him. So Christ was the only-begotten of the Father, and yet co-eternal with the Father; the everlasting past, that has never been without the presence of the Father, having never likewise been without the radiated effulgence of Christ. But we have not yet exhausted our emblem. It has helped us to gather at least an idea of the pre-existent relationship of Christ to His heavenly Father. Now we shall see how it holds good in reference to, and illustration of, His present relationship to ourselves. The sun communicates, by its rays, with various other worlds besides our own; but in the case of ours alone, so far as we know, does it experience anything like difficulty or obstruction. Thus God communicates, by His Son, with the different provinces of His intellectual dominions; and everywhere He meets with a welcome worthy of the character He bears and the blessings He bestows. But when He sought to make His way to this earth of ours, there was a cloud to be penetrated, a dark and dense mass of noxious vapour exhaled from the moral corruption below. Yet not for that was the sunbeam of the Divine glory to be thwarted in its course. It had undertaken a mission to earth; it had undertaken to burst through the barrier, make the homes of men bright with a visitation from an hitherto offended and enclouded God. And those among us who have, on some doubtful day, watched the battle between sunshine and storm for the mastery, will surely grant that it affords no unapt emblem of the great spiritual conflict which decided whether our day of gloom were to deepen into everlasting night, or be followed by a morning of clear shining after rain. The hosts of darkness marshalled all their strength, and the solitary sunbeam seemed to be struggling, not for power, but for existence among them; nay, for a little season they closed over it, and it was hidden from the view of man, and, to all appearance, obliterated and extinguished. But again it bursts brightly forth; it manifests its indestructible nature; it manifests its prevailing power. And what is the consequence and the result to earth? Is there nothing more than the shedding down of light, thus revealing more clearly the barrenness of the moral landscape? Oh no! The sunbeam of the Fathers glory has a fertilising, as well as an enlightening power. The wilderness and the solitary place are glad for it; and the desert rejoices and blossoms as the rose. Yet, observe, He has not altogether chased the clouds from our sky. He might have done it; blot in our peculiar condition, He knew them to be necessary for the fulfilment of His gracious designs. Sunshine and rain, in due proportions, bring to maturity the natural productions of the soil. And some tears, ay, and some temptations, alternating, with bright intervals of spiritual joy and consolation, give sweetness and ripeness to all those fruits of righteousness, which are, by Jesus Christ, to the praise and glory of God. Again, observe how strikingly the relative condition and office of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ is represented by this emblem. The Fathers place, like that of the celestial luminary, is in the highest heavens. Nothing that takes place below affects His condition. He sits in supreme majesty, in the midst of His own uncreated brightness. But it is by Jesus Christ, the ray proceeding from the central glory, that He visits us. Once more. The rays are the only means whereby we obtain an idea of the existence, the form, or the nature of the sun. No man ever saw the sun. We see a picture of the sun, wrought by the rays upon the retina of the eye. Just in the same manner, no man hath seen God at any time; the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He hath declared Him. It is only in His light that we can see light. The infinitude of Gods power, the purity of His holiness, and inflexibility of His justice, the excellence of His wisdom, the height, and length, and breadth, and depth of His love,--what should we have known of all, or any, of these attributes, but from beholding them embodied and illustrated in the person and character of Christ? And, observe, this knowledge is not purely speculative; for as the ray throws upon the human eye the very image of the sun, so we, beholding as in a glass (i.e., through the medium of Christs humanity)
the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image, from glory to glory. (T. E.Hankinson, M. A.)
The outflashing glory of the Son of God
The original word is formed from a word which signifies to flash out. It may be interpreted accordingly as an outflashing: The glory of God is as light, and the Son is as its flash forth into view. You will get the idea if you conceive an intense light enclosed in a dark lantern; which is suddenly opened so that the rays dart out into the surrounding blackness. The flash is not something different from the light, but the light let out of limits and acting on the darkness. The Son of God is not represented as uncovering the glory of the Father. He is not the mere hand which draws the slide of the lantern so that the light breaks through. He is the light. It is not said of Him, who disclosing or showing, but who being the brightness of His glory. Expanding the idea, the ancient creed declared Him light of light, very God of very God. (J. T. Duryea, D. D.)
God as light
1. God is often called Light, because this bodily and visible light is glorious, and in several respects resembles that eternal glorious essence of God.
2. Here God is said to have light or glory, not that glory or light is an accident in God, but because He is said to have that which He is.
3. The similitude here used is taken not from accidental but substantial light, as the same s said to be a light. Purity, beauty, delectability in light teach us something of Him. (G Lawson.)
The dignity of Christ
I. THE DIGNITY OF HIS NATURE.
1. The brightness of His glory. The figure that comes to our minds immediately-the sun in firmament. Flood of light that pours down from it. All the dazzling glory of the Father pours down to us in the Son. In Him you may find all that is adorable in the Divine nature.
2. Express image of His person. Here we come to a deeper mystery. Just as I know something of light of sun, but nothing of hidden nucleus. So I may know something of the glory of God. But what do I know of God Himself?--substance, essence, being. And this is what the apostle means by the word translated person. Substance--essence--being would better convey his idea. Take the words if you will, The express image of Gods substance. The apostle teaches--You have that in Christ. Just as when you take your seal, and press it carefully on yielding wax. There on the wax you shall find the express image of your seal. No line, however deep or however faint or graceful, but see its likeness there. So in Christ you have the express image--counterpart of God. No attribute of the Father which does not belong to the Son. None that does not belong to Him in equal measure. His power not less mighty, wisdom not less keen, love not less tender.
II. DIGNITY OF HIS OFFICES.
1. The great Sustainer. Upholding all things. Son of God! Thou art the Sustainer! With Thy hand; nay, with Thy breath. Just as at the beginning Thou didst say, Let light be … and light was. Just as earth and sea, sun and moon, firmament and stars, appeared at Thy command. So at Thy command they are! Aye, and all the living things upon them. All breathing lungs and beating hearts and burning souls. Thou upholdest all things.
2. The great Sacrifice. What! The great Sustainer the great Sacrifice. The transition is so sudden! Contrast so immense! Then I feel nothing more is needed--the work is done! it is finished. By Himself He has purged our sins.
III. DIGNITY OF HIS REWARD. Sat down on right hand of Majesty on high.
1. What a place for Christ I For Him who sat down a weary traveller on wells side. Who knelt in anguish under olives of Gethsemane. Who stood a criminal at the bar of Pilate. For Him who hung in blood upon cross, and lay a corpse in sepulchre.
2. What a power for Christ! At the right hand of the King. What influence He will have on the royal counsels. How able to befriend the cause of all He loves. And to promote all holy and gracious purposes.
3. How fitting a reward like this! As a Divine Being there was glory He had with the Father before world was. How meet that as Incarnate Deity exalted to equal glory. The work He did on earth was done in obedience to His Father. How meet that the Father should thus show His entire approval. Yet more than all, His work is not yet done. He was here a sacrifice for sin, now High Priest within vail. Here He poured out His soul unto death, there pours forth heart in prayer. (F. Tucker, B. A.)
The dignity of Christ
I. IN HIS RELATION TO THE FATHER. Brightness in express image.
1. he is essentially Divine.
2. He is a revelation of the Divine.
II. IN HIS RELATION TO THE UNIVERSE. He sustains and governs all things.
III. IN HIS RELATION TO MAN.
1. He has accomplished an effectual atonement for human guilt.
2. By self-sacrifice.
IV. IN HIS RELATION TO ETERNITY. Sat down, &c.
1. The completion of His work.
2. The acceptance of His work.
3. The recompense of His work. (T. Hughes.)
The brightness of His glory
In these remarkable words there are two ideas presented to us, which we will consider in order.
1. The first is that of a luminous body. As a sample of such bodies, let us take the sun. Now the sun, a vast luminous mass, at a great distance from our earth, is made visible to us by the rays of light which stream incessantly from its surface. The rays by which the sun becomes visible are not the sun itself. The two things are distinct; they have, if we may so express it, a distinct personality; but in point of fact they cannot be separated from one another. You cannot have the sun without the rays, and you cannot have the rays without the sun; they are contemporaneous; and if one should happen to be eternal, the other, of necessity, would be eternal also. This imagery then represents, as far as such imagery can do, the relation between the first and second persons of the ever-blessed Trinity. The Father and the Son are co-existent and co-eternal. As with the luminous body, and the rays that flow from it, although the Father and the Son are not the same Being, although there is a distinctness of personality, so that they may be conceived of and spoken of apart, yet they cannot be actually sundered, they must have existed together from all eternity. And yet again
2. As it is the ray which makes the luminous body visible, so it is the Lord Jesus Christ, in His pre-incarnate state, who is the expression of the Father, and brings God within the reach of the finite mind. Scripture tells us that no one hath seen God at any time; and it is probably intended that we should understand by the statement, that God in His essence, in His innermost Being, is so withdrawn from the comprehension of a finite mind, that, apart from the Son of God, it would have been impossible for the highest archangel to have understood the character and nature of Deity. It was Jesus in His pre-existent state who enabled the great created intelligences to grasp the conception of the Divine Being; just as it is Jesus, in His incarnate state, who makes God known to us. Thus, as we understand, the Son, in His pre-existent and preincarnate condition, is the brightness of Gods glory. But He is also, we read, the express image of His substance. Now the express image seems to be the stamp or impression produced by a die. The impression thus produced is, of course, the exact counterpart of the implement that produced it. You stamp your seal upon the melted wax, and the result is a reproduction of every feature and lineament of the seal; nay, of every crack and flaw that may happen to be found in it. The two things exactly correspond. Here, then, is part of the idea. But what is the substance of God? The substance of a thing is that which lies under all appearances, and makes the thing to be what it really is. For instance: among many men, taken at random, you will find very great difference and variety. Some are tall, some short; some rich, others poor; some clever, others dull. There will be much diversity, too, of character and disposition. But underneath all these outward appearances there is to be found that which makes each of these a man; and this is their substance. Perhaps you may prefer to call it nature, or essence, or inner being. It matters little. It is that which makes the person to be what he really is. And so the substance of God is the nature or inner being of the great Jehovah. Now we are told in the passage that the Lord Jesus Christ, in His pre-incarnate state, is the express image, the exact counterpart of the substance of God; that is to say, not of the external attributes of God (if such things there be), but of His very inmost essence,--of that which makes Him to be God. What language can be imagined that would describe a closer relationship, or a more complete identity of nature? Whatever constitutes the nature of God, we must attribute to the pre-existent Son. (G. Calthrop, M. A.)
A royal Mediator
Sometimes there were more kings than one at Sparta, who governed by joint authority. A king was occasionally sent to some neighbouring state in character of a Spartan ambassador. Did he, when so sent, cease to be a king of Sparta, because he was also an ambassador? No, he did not divest himself of his royal dignity, but only added to it that of public deputation. So Christ, in becoming man, did not cease to be God; but though He ever was, and still continued to be, King of the whole creation, acted as the voluntary Servant and Messenger of the Father. (Illustrations of Truth.)
The. Saviour is God
It is sometimes idly said that our belief in our Lords divinity rests solely on the teaching of St. John. Centuries ago, Julian, the apostate emperor, exclaimed, It is John, who with his remark, And the Word became flesh, has done all the mischief. I fear that in these days some at least of the critical attempts to disprove the genuineness of St. Johns Gospel are suggested and stimulated by the desire to overthrow our belief in the divinity of Christ. But should the writings of St. John, to our infinite loss, be obliterated altogether from the canon, there is yet not a single book in the New Testament in which the revelation of God in Christ is not directly asserted, or absolutely implied. Set aside St. John altogether and still on almost every page of revelation the truth stands out that Christ was the only begotten Son of the Father, the effulgence of His glory, the express image of His substance, God of God, Light of light, very God of very God. And in whatever way we hold, or explain, or imagine that we explain the blessed mystery of the atonement, this is certain, that its entire efficacy, as revealed to us in Scripture--in the Old Testament, where alone it is foreshadowed, or by the New Testament, where alone it is fully set forth--rests upon the truth that our Lord Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God. No man can redeem his brother, or make atonement unto God for him. It cost more to redeem our souls, therefore he must let that alone for ever. (F. W. Farrar, D. D.)
Express image of His person
Express image
For the phrase express image there is a single word in the original, a word transferred and familiar in our own language, viz., character. It is formed from a word signifying to sharpen, then to scratch or furrow with a sharp instrument, to write, to engrave. Our term, therefore, means a writing or engraving, and in this sense we often use it. So, also, as a form is engraven on a seal, and then stamped upon wax, the word indicates a figure enstamped upon wax or soft metal. The figure impressed is precisely like the graving which determines it. The word accordingly signifies likeness. Then, from the notion of likeness, it extends to that of sameness, so that we say of ones combined qualities, they constitute his character, and more emphatically the character is the man. It is the man revealed and known. The Son of God is, then, the revelation of the person of God. And to this term person, in the language of the New Testament, we do not attach the later metaphysical notion. It is simply equivalent to self. We have now the whole thought in this pregnant phrase: Jesus Christ is Gods very Self revealed and known. He could say of Himself truly, as He said, He that seeth Me seeth Him that sent Me. (J. R.Duryea, D. D.)
Christ the revelation of God
To make religion possible, we must have a revelation from God. There is a science called stellar chemistry, the romance and mystery of science. We are able to estimate the ponderosity of the stars and the elements that compose them. How have we discovered these things? Not by crossing the separating spaces, but because the stars have sent their revelation to us. Abeam of light plays on the spectrum, and reveals the contents of these mysterious bodies. So with religion. We could not cross the illimitable space and find out God for ourselves, but in His Son we have the light that reveals Him. (W. Pierce.)
Definition of God
The god of M. Comte was what he defined as the continuous resolutant of all the forces capable of voluntarily concurring in the universal perfectioning of the world. That is not my God. I do not know him. I dont want to-know him. My God is Jesus Christ, who came to pardon and to save a world. (Joseph Cook.)
Charles Kingsleys view of Christ
Charles Kingsley is writing to Thomas Cooper, a man sometime Christian, in the stirring time of that agitation Chartist, then captured by the Strauss mythical theory and wandering in the dreary wastes of unbelief, then coming back--and largely through the influence of Charles Kingsley--to the most hearty and joyful acceptance of Jesus as incarnate God and Lord and only Saviour. Charles Kingsley is writing, to this Thomas Cooper, and thus he writes: But my heart, Cooper, demands the Trinity, as much as my reason. I want to be sure that God cares for us, that God is our Father, that God has interfered, stooped, sacrificed Himself for us. I do not merely want to love Christ--a Christ, some creation or emanation of Gods--whose will and character for aught I know may be different from Gods. I want to love and honour the absolute, abysmal God Himself, and none other will satisfy me--and in the doctrine of Christ being co-equal and co-eternal, sent by, sacrificed by, His Father, that He might do His Fathers will, I find it--and no puzzling texts, like those you quote, shall rob me of that rest for my heart, that Christ is the exact counterpart of Him in whom we live, and move, and have our being. I say boldly, if the doctrine be not in the Bible, it ought to be, for the whole spiritual nature of man cries not for it. There has arisen a new branch of the science of astronomy called sidereal photography. Until lately only collodion plates could be used in photography. But such plates must be used wet. They could suffer only short exposure. They must be immediately developed. And so when exposed heavenward but a momentary flash from the stars could be caught and kept on their sensitive surfaces. But recently gelatine plates have been introduced. These are capable of long exposure. These can lie beneath the stars for hours. And lying thus, the shyest traits of the most distant stars can fasten themselves in pictures accurate, and gazing into them, fresh wonders are disclosing and a new door is opened into heavens depths. Like the gelatine plates, Charles Kingsley held his soul in such steady and long openness towards the incarnate Christ that in unusual measure the Christ revealed Himself to him, was seen by him to be the pre-eminent and luminous focus of the Divine revealing, became for him the object of the most passionate personal love. (Wayland Hoyt, D. D.)
Upholding all things by the word of His power
Christ the universal Upholder
The poets write much of one Atlas that bore up the heavens with his shoulders; but out- Saviour Christ is the true Atlas that beareth up heaven and earth. As He made the world, so He bears up the world, and keepeth it up from falling. If it were not for Him, the sun, moon, stars, and all the host of heaven would fall to the ground; if it were not for Him, the birds of the air, the fishes of the sea, the beasts of the field would drop away in a moment; the earth would sink down under our feet, the sea would overflow its banks and drown us all. Our Saviour Christ bears up all; in regard of their nature He beareth up the devils themselves, and all his instruments in the world; He does not bear them out in their wickedness, but He beareth up their essence. In Him all live, breathe and have their being. But more particularly, in love and mercy He beareth up His children, and the members of Christ; as a father beareth his son and taketh him up into his arms, so doth He those whom He hath adopted in Christ. This may be a singular comfort to us all wheresoever we be, on the water or on the land, in the day or night, though we be among the thickest of our enemies, nay, among devils; yet the Lord Jesus beareth us in His hands, and none can take us out of His hands. This should cause us all to stand in awe of Him, to be afraid to displease Him. Will any be so mad as to make holes in the ship that beareth them? Will any hew down the pillars that bear up the house? Shall a child scratch out the eyes of the nurse that beareth him? Our Saviour Christ bears us up all: therefore let us not like rebels fight against Him by our sins; let us please Him all that we can, by whom we are borne up. They of Tyre and Sidon sought Herods favour because their land was nourished by him; all men throughout the wide compass of the world are nourished by our Saviour Christ. The breath would quickly be out of the nostrils of us all if it were not for Him. Kings, princes, noblemen, gentlemen, merchants, clothiers, rich and poor depend upon Him; if He take away His hand we are all gone. Therefore let us serve Him with all our might that beareth us up with His mighty word. (W. Jones, D. D.)
The worlds sustainer
The word of His power is the word that expresses and conveys His power. He upholds all things, i.e., sustains the organic body of the universe in all its applications, as one who made the world (Heb_1:2). In Col_1:17 the idea is slightly different; there the Son is the element in which the universe holds together, here He consciously sustains it. (A. B. Davidson, LL. D.)
Christ upholding the worlds
The other day, on one of the London streets, I saw a contrivance to judge a mans strength by the power of his breath. You breathe into the machine, and by the weight you lift will be accurately estimated the power of your lungs. And Jesus Christ keeps the stars floating by the power of His breath just as children keep bubbles on a summer eve; He breathes and the planets swim as feathers in a breeze. (J. C. Jones, D. D.)
The word of power
I. THE UNIVERSAL REQUIREMENT. The nature and character of all created things is their inability to sustain themselves.
1. Material things. All are governed by law, and each has its own laws, by which all its actions and purposes are governed.
2. Animal life. The eyes of all wait upon Thee, &e.
3. Human existence. Not a breath is drawn but is given by God. Not a thought passes through the mind, nor a throb animates the heart without His Divine direction and supervision.
II. THE ALMIGHTY INSTRUMENT.
1. The Divine power. It is not susceptible of failure. Consider its vastness, different developments, continuity.
2. The method of manifesting this power. No exertion. No manual labour. (Homilist.)
Purged our sins
Expiation in order to reconciliation
The purification here specified is not the sanctification of the sinners soul; for the work is said to have been realised before Christ ascended into heaven. Atonement, or propitistion--an end attributed in so many other texts to the death of Christ (Isa_53:5-6; Isa_53:10-11; Mat_20:28; Rom_3:24-26; 1Co 1Ti_2:6; 1Pe_2:24; Rev_1:5; &c.)--is certainly what is meant. The language by which the idea is here denoted probably refers to the purification by sacrifice under the Levitical economy, as set forth in Lev_14:16. The work of expiation is here associated with human sins; atonement having an essential reference to sin as what requires expiation to be made in order to reconciliation between God and man. Christ is represented as having made the expiation by Himself--a view which both indicates the greatness of His condescending mercy in the matter, and accounts for the fact that, by His one sacrifice, such a mighty multitude of sins are pardoned, and such a mighty multitude of sinners are saved. It is strange, indeed, that the brightness of Gods glory, the express image of Gods person--that One who is Himself so glorious and so pure and against whom the sins of men are acts of foul rebellion--should have stooped so low, and suffered so much, and that for the very purpose of securing pardon and salvation for His foes. But the fact that He actually did so--here, and in so many other passages declared--evolves and exhibits magnificent and animating views alike of the transcendent mercy of His heart, and of the transcendent virtue of His work. (A. S. Patterson.)
Sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high
The justly awarded remuneration
I. THE MANNER IN WHICH THE PERSON SPOKEN OF IN THE TEXT IS DESCRIBED.
1. As the brightness of the Fathers glory--the manifestation of all that is essentially excellent in the Divinity.
2. As the express image of His person. Not that we are to infer that there either is, or can be, in the universe any image of the Divinity such as there may be of an object that is material; for the Divinity, in His essential character being absolutely invisible, because absolutely spiritual, cannot be materialised; and therefore, to think of Christ the Son of God as being the image of the Divinity in the same way in which one material object may be the image of another, were to degrade Him. But though in this respect He is not the image of the Divinity, yet not more exactly does an impression correspond with the seal, or a coin with the die, than Christ the Son of God corresponds with the Divinity. Of Him He is the image, and not merely the image, but the express image;--a resemblance, a likeness in entire conformity to its archetype; a clearly expressed, a complete likeness of the person, of the substance, of the essence of the Divinity;--such a likeness, such a resemblance, as comports with personal distinction; yet such as can originate only in sameness of existence or mode of existence,--as can originate only in perfect identity of nature.
II. THE WORK WHICH HE IS REPRESENTED AS HAVING PERFORMED. Purged our sins. That to which reference is here made, evidently proceeds on the principle that the circumstances of universal man by nature, were circumstances of moral degradation; and not only of moral degradation, but of moral danger--the sad consequence of the apostasy of the great earthly progenitor of man. Nay, more: it evidently proceeds on the principle that it lay not within the sphere of human ability to make reparation for the evil, and thus to remedy the one, and rescue him from the other. No agency was adequate but the agency of One who was Divine. For what, according to Scripture, is the expression purged, but another phrase for atonement by sacrifice? And what is this but what was required, that the work of purging our sins might be performed? But whilst, in order to this, an atonement by sacrifice was required, it was not an atonement by sacrifice of any description, but an atonement by sacrifice, in point of efficiency, unassailable, unquestionable. And is not this what Christs sacrificial atonement was, being as it was,
(1) superlative in its value,
(2) vicarous in its nature, and
(3) propitiatory in its result?
III. THE STATE TO WHICH, BY WAY OF REWARD, HE HAS BEEN EXALTED. It is more than probable, from the lessons taught us in this Epistle, that the primary idea intended to be conveyed is the official greatness of Christ as a priest, when contrasted with the priests under the law. Even the high priest, the chief of those priests, when he entered within the veil with the blood of the typical sacrifice which be had offered for the sins of the people, never sat down in the Holy Place, but, having stood for some time before the mercy-seat making intercession, he retired to offer a new sacrifice, that he might return anew to make intercession; and thus never, so to speak, accomplishing or completing the design of his office, he continued to go the round of his sacred duties. And as it was with the high priest, so it was, according to their order, with the other priests who were subordinate to him. Every priest, says our apostle, standeth daily ministering, and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But this man, even Christ, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins, to intimate the completion of His work, for ever sat down on the right hand of God. Although, however, this idea may have been the primary, yet other ideas, doubtless, are conveyed by the expression.
1. It conveys the idea of honour; and if of honour, of glory and felicity. Nothing was accounted too costly, of an earthly kind, to render the Jewish temple of old in some degree a befitting audience-chamber for Him whose immensity pervades all space; and is there aught, the scope of infinite wisdom to devise, or of infinite power to effect, which we may not imagine to be brought into full operation in elevating, as the reward of His humiliation, the body of Christ--the most holy shrine of the Divinity--to the highest perfection of which that which is material is capable? But Christs having sat down at the right hand of God conveys not merely the idea of honour, and glory, and felicity, but also
2. The idea of power; and if of power, of authority and dominion. (Alex. Jack, D. D.)
The mediatorial work, glory, and claims of Christ
I. THE LORD JESUS HAS PERFORMED A MOMENTOUS MEDIATORIAL WORK. With regard to the intrinsic nature of the work, it arose, as is suggested, by the expression of our text, from the condition of the human race, as being sinners against God, rebels against His authority, and therefore condemned by His law. And this state of sinfulness must be assumed as characterising them without exception and universally. The manner in which He accomplished the office was by descending from the altitude of His primeval dignity to the assumption of human nature by miraculous incarnation, and in that nature which had sinned, though Himself unsullied, and holy, enduring agony and death as a sacrifice to the Divine justice on behalf of the guilty. The sufficiency of His expiation is frequently brought before us in Scripture contrasted with the insufficiency of the Jewish offerings, which were typical of this. No matter how aggravated and complicated sin may be, it at once becomes blotted from the records of condemnation; and the transgressors are made inheritors of full acceptance and everlasting joy. You must recognise its sufficiency also in relation to time. It is permanent and inexhaustible. But then, while we remind you of the sufficiency of the Saviours sacrifice we must also remind you of its exclusiveness. For the purpose of expiatory redemption the sacrifice of Christ remains exclusive and alone.
II. THE LORD JESUS IS EXALTED TO A SPLENDID MEDIATORIAL GLORY.
1. Observe the station which He holds--On the right hand of the Majesty on high. This expression is intended to denote the revelation of God the Father as He displays the brightest manifestations of His glorious magnificence in heaven. The right hand of the sovereign is always esteemed among men as the place of peculiar honour; and the highest honour is offered to our Lord as the incarnate Mediator.
2. You will also observe, along with the station He holds, the posture He assumes. It is said, He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high--a statement of attitude by no means insignificant.
(1) He bad a season of calm dignity after the tremendous struggles He sustained against the direct adversaries of God and man. He sits at the right band of the Father, as denoting His rest.
(2) Here also is denoted His authority. The ruler sits while those around him stand in token of inferiority and of reverence. The Saviour, we know, possesses authority and sovereignty with the Father, as being one with Him, and all power is given to Him in heaven and in earth. In the emphatic expression of the inspired writer--He sits and rules upon His throne, as the sign and token of His authority.
(3) Again, here also is denoted His discontinuance. The attitude before us is the sign of permanence. In heaven, whither the Saviour has gone, is His permanent abode, His home.
3. Observe also the operations He conducts. And here it is delightful to remember that, while in heaven the Lord is glorified and while in heaven He reposes from the toils and labours of His state of humiliation, He still is employed in avocations of incessant and earnest activity in order to secure the application of His sacrifice and to accomplish the results for which it was designed. At the right hand of the Majesty on high He intercedes--He is there still as the Priest of His people. There He presents, in some mode we cannot conjecture, the memorials of the sacrifice which once He perfected on the Cross of Calvary, and pleads that blessings may descend upon men, that they may be renewed, that they may be perfected, that through the power of the gracious Spirit which has been secured by His sacrifice they may be made meet for the inheritance of the saints. He is gone, and what a world of poetry as well as sublime truth is in the expression--He is gone to appear in the presence of God for us. He ever liveth to make intercession for us.
4. At the right hand of the Majesty on high He governs. The administration of the universe is committed to His hand. According to the expression of the earlier part of the verse, He upholds all things by the word of His power. There is not a distant star but is sustained and guided by Him; there is not an intelligent being in all its faculties and passions but is controlled by Him; there is not a material thing vast or minute but is wielded by Him. He has all power. The universe from its utmost limits is His own. In relation to the world in which we live, while the operations of Providence are at His bidding, He works in a special mode: It is His right and He will redeem it to Himself. He employs therefore His gospel, the truth which discloses and explains His attributes and functions, rendering effectual the announcements of truth by the power of the Spirit secured by His death and intercession, and thus accomplishing the recovery and conversion of individual men, overturning the vast combination of evils which have existed for so long a succession of ages and crushed millions in degradation and ruin, and finally accomplishing the triumph of His own dominion of peace, righteousness, purity, and happiness until all things shall be subdued unto Himself; for He shall have dominion and glory and the kingdom, the people of all nations and languages shall serve Him.
III. THE LORD JESUS POSSESSES IMPERATIVE MEDIATORIAL CLAIMS. The announcement in the text is for the purpose of vindicating and enforcing His claims; and men should do homage to His dignity; they should trust to His merits and devote themselves to His cause. (J. Parsons.)
The greatness and glory of the Redeemer
I. EXCELLENCY OF HIS DIVINE MAJESTY: THE OUTBEAMING OF HIS FATHERS GLORY. By Him, as a medium, it becomes visible, and is brought within the range of our comprehension.
1. He is the Creator of all things: and, therefore, the glory of God, displayed in the creation, is through Him.
2. Displayed in His character as Mediator and Redeemer.
3. In Him the Divine glory essentially resides, and has been manifested by His various appearances since the foundation of the world. It is said of man, indeed, that he was made in the image of God, but Jesus Christ only is the express image of the substance of God, the exact representation of that in which the Divine nature differs from all other being.
II. THE ENERGY OF HIS ALL-CONTROLLING POWER. He upholds all things by the word of His power. All things--whole universe--things visible and invisible, small and great. Upholds, sustains, preserves, and regulates. Word of His power, powerful word! He speaks, and it is done.
III. BY HIMSELF PURGED OUR SINS. This refers to the Jewish ceremonies. By Himself: not by offering the greatest among men or angels. Such would not have been adequate to the occasion. To purge our sins He shed His blood.
IV. SAT DOWN, &c. This expresses His exaltation.
1. To the exceeding power of God.
2. To the highest dignity and honour.
3. By means of the right hand gifts are dispensed.
Gifts are the source of happiness. Therefore, the right hand of God is the place of celestial felicity. (Thomas Galland, M. A.)
Christ sitting in heaven
1. If Christ sitteth above in the highest places, then He beholdeth all things here below. A man that is upon the top of some high tower may see far: and Christ being in the high steeple and tower of heaven, can see all things on the earth. He that is upon the top of an high tower, may see men, but he cannot discern who they be: Christ sees them, and discerns them too. If the wicked be laying of plots and snares against His children, Christ being in heaven sees them, and in due time will overthrow them: and He that sitteth in heaven laugheth them to scorn. This is a singular comfort, that our Head, King, and Defender is in heaven, and hath equal power, glory, and majesty with God. If thou hast a friend in the court that sits daily by the king, and is in favour with him, wilt thou care for any in England? We have a friend that sitteth on the right hand of God, and hath all power in heaven and earth; therefore let us fear nothing; He will keep us, none shall do us any harm, but it shall all turn to our good in the end.
2. As Christ sitteth in the heavens, so we shall one day sit there with Him. Let this comfort us against all the calamities of this life: here the children of God are oftentimes made the wickeds footstools, they sit on them, and tread on them: no reckoning is made of a godly man. A rich man that is a common drunkard and whoremaster shall be more esteemed of by many than a godly poor man. Here they sit weeping and wailing for their sins, for their children, for crosses in goods, in bodies, in good name; the wicked deriding them, jesting at them: but let this comfort us against them all; how contemptible soever we sit here, we shall sit with Christ Jesus, though not in that degree of glory, yet in the same kingdom of glory with Him for ever. (W. Jones, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain On vv1–3 1–4. God, who. Instead of the introductory greetings usual…
1–4. God, who. Instead of the introductory greetings usual in an Epistle, the apostle plunges into the midst of his subject by a grand exordium. At sundry times. Rather, “In divers portions,” as in the Revision. The Old Testament was given in “portions,” not all at once, and at wide intervals. Spoke. Though prophets might be chosen as the instruments, the message was that of God. While God spoke through them, the prophets were only men.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary 1892 · Public Domain On v1 Heb_1:1. God.—Placed abruptly, as the first and emphatic word,…
THE ESSENTIAL SUPERIORITY OF THE REVELATION IN THE SON
CRITICAL AND EXEGETICAL NOTES
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Heb_1:1. God.—Placed abruptly, as the first and emphatic word, in the English translation; and properly so placed, because the unity of God is the truth concerning which the Jews were so supremely jealous, and the message of this treatise could not have been received by the Jews if it had raised the faintest suspicion of sympathy with the Gnostic heresy, that the Old Testament dispensation was the work of another and inferior deity (demiurge). The monotheistic truth was entrusted to the care of the Abrahamic race; and at the present day the great stumbling-block in the way of the Jew’s acceptance of Christianity is the tri-theistic notion which he gets from the form of the Christian teachings concerning the Trinity. Sundry times and in divers manners.—“At many times by many persons.” The writer appears to be thinking of revelations by persons, not of revelations by things. Revelations by persons can be compared with the revelation in the person of the Son. R.V. renders, “by divers portions and in divers manners.” Alford, “in many portions and in divers manners.” Stuart, “in various parts and in various ways.” Webster and Wilkinson, “in manifold portions and manifold methods.” The fragmentary, and consequently imperfect, character of all the earlier revelations is distinctly indicated. The variety of agents and agencies indicates the constant need for precise adaptation to differing conditions. The incomplete and preparatory character of the earlier revelations is indicated at the very beginning of the treatise, and it is the foundation on which the writer’s argument is raised. He had to remove the impression which had been made so deeply on the Jewish mind, that the revelation in the Mosaic system was final and complete. As there must be relativity to imperfect creatures, who are always in some educational stage, no revelation made to them can ever be absolutely final. It should be an advance beyond anything previously given, but it always involves the possibility of an advance beyond itself. It is important to keep the word “revelation” for the Divine matter that is communicated, and the word “inspiration” for the Divine power which rests on the agents employed for communicating it to men. Spake in time past.—Or having spoken then in one way, speaks now in another way. Since the communication of thought from man to man is chiefly made through the agency of words, words must be the principal medium for communicating the thoughts of God to the mind of man. The possibility of a book-revelation was much discussed in the early part of this century; but that is only a detail when the principle—and the historical fact—of a word-revelation is accepted. It only concerns the mode of preserving the words. Revelation is God speaking, putting His thought into some form of words which will allow of our apprehending it. The term λόγος, or “word,” properly means, “that medium or agency which translates one man’s heart to another.” When this treatise was written, no fresh revelation had come from God in any prophet for more than four hundred years. The ministry of John the Baptist is not taken into consideration, because it properly belongs to the Messianic age; and what John had to say did not immediately concern this writer’s argument. It did not in any of its characteristic features belong to the series of the earlier Divine revelations. The fathers.—A Pauline form of expression. See Rom_9:5; Rom_11:28; Rom_15:8. By the prophets.—More precisely in the prophets: not διά, but ἐν; in the persons of the prophets; God in them, speaking by means of them. The word “by” separates the message from the messenger; the word “in” suggests that the messengers were essential to the message; and this prepares for the comparison with the Son, who both brought a message and was the message. Philo says, “The prophet is an interpreter, while God from within whispers what he should utter.” The term “prophets” should here be taken in a comprehensive way, as including all persons whom God has ever been pleased to use as mediums for communicating His will to men.
Heb_1:2. These last days.—R.V. “at the end of these days.” Two ideas are suggested; the second is the more suitable.
1. At the end of this present pre-Messianic age of the world.
2. In these days that are the last time. Perhaps it is better to take the words as simply meaning “nowadays,” in our times. The last times are always those in which an author writes. It is not necessary to assume that this writer had in mind the “end of the world.” By His Son.—In a Son. The article is omitted in order to make the point, that the revelation came in One who stood to God in the relation of Son, ἐν υἱῷ; and the absence of the article makes the expression emphatic, “He is Son, and nothing else.” Alford suggests reading, “In Him who was Son of God.” Appointed.—Constituted, ordained. Reference is especially to His revelational and redemptive mission. The eternal Sonship is not in thought here. Heir of all things.—The classical meaning of the Greek word κληρυνόμος is one who either acquires by lot or inherits by death. The writer would set forth that this only Son is virtual possessor with the Father of all things. Made the worlds.—The universe, as apprehended by man’s senses. The material world is the first revelation of God, and the basis of natural religion. All Divine activity in the material, sensible spheres is properly thought of as the operation of the Divine Son. He is the medium of all Divine working in man’s sphere. The exalted and unique pre-eminence of the Son of God is the writer’s topic. For the idea of the Son as Creator of the worlds, compare Eph_3:9; Col_1:15-19; Joh_1:3; Joh_1:10; 1Co_8:6; Heb_1:10. The word αἰῶνας may mean “age,” “period of time”; but that is not to the point here. Alford treats the assertion very comprehensively: “So that the universe, as well in its great primeval conditions, the reaches of space, and the ages of time, as in all material objects and all successive events, which furnish out and people space and time, God made by Christ.” Compare the following sentences from Philo: “You will discover that the Cause of it [the world] is God … and the Instrument the Word of God, by whom it was equipped.” “But the Shadow of God is His Word, whom He used as an Instrument in making the world.”
Heb_1:3. Brightness of His glory.—R.V. “effulgence of His glory.” The bright shining forth. Light flowing from a luminous body; seen, as ray, in our atmosphere, and enabling us to apprehend a glory which is wholly beyond mortal vision. “The glory of Christ is the glory of the Father, just as the sun is only revealed by the rays which stream forth from it” (Farrar). Express image.—Impression as of a seal. The word χαρακτήρ may mean a stamping instrument, or one who stamps, or the thing stamped which takes the impress; so exact image. Compare seal and die, picture and photograph, photograph and sculptured figure. Philo says of wisdom, “She is the effulgence of the everlasting Light, the unspotted mirror of the power of God, and the image of His goodness.” The word ὑπόστασις is an exceedingly difficult one to explain, because so many different ideas have been attached to it, and made bases of doctrine. In classical use ὑπόστασις means
(1) foundation,
(2) steadfastness,
(3) resolution,
(4) substance or essence. In the sense of “person” it was first used by Greek writers after the Arian Controversy began. Athanasius used it as distinct from οὐσία. The general meaning of the figures may be thus given: If God is Light, Christ is the Radiance; if God is Substance, Christ is the Manifestation. The words “by Himself” are not in the original. Purged our sins.—R.V. “made purification of sins.” Stuart says that in Hellenistic Greek the word καθαρισμός is also employed for expiation, and carries the idea of atonement. To make purification by the removal of sins may be illustrated by Joh_1:29; 1Jn_3:5; 2Pe_1:9. In the LXX, the Day of Atonement is called the Day of Purification. Sat down.—The position at the right hand of one on a throne implies commanding, ruling, administrative authority. For Jehovah’s investiture of the Son of Man with unlimited dominion, see Dan_7:14; and with supreme dignity, see Eph_1:20-21. Farrar says, “The description of Christ in these verses differed from the current Messianic conceptions of the Jews in two respects:
(1) He was Divine and Omnipotent;
(2) He was to die for our sins.”
Heb_1:4. Being made.—R.V. “having become.” Christ as Son always was superior to the angels in dignity and essence; the writer asserts that He became mediatorially superior to the angel-ministrants of the old dispensation, as the agent of the sublime scheme of spiritual redemption. By right of inheritance He has a better name. By right of commission He has gained a better name. Compare Php_2:9. παρά after the comparative degree is peculiar to this epistle. The new paragraph shows how the name and dignity of Jesus Christ can be established by the testimony of Scripture, the Scripture being treated on the then familiar Jewish method, Messianic references being much more freely recognised than we can approve from strictly logical standpoints.
MAIN HOMILETICS OF THE PARAGRAPH.—Heb_1:1-4
The Earthly Mission of the Divine Son.—This so-called epistle is remarkable as having no opening salutation or prayer. The beginning is abrupt, as arresting attention, after the manner of the rhetorician. Being addressed to Christian Jews, it opens with the conciliatory assertion of the unity of God. Compare Gen_1:1. There is one God, from whom has come all the various revelations which men have received. He is God, and only God. The writer belongs to the Alexandrian School, but he has no sympathy with those who regarded the Old Testament system as the work of a demiurge. He would not exalt Christianity by depreciating Mosaism. The stand taken by the writer is distinctly Jewish: “The Lord our God is one Lord.” The former revelations were real revelations, no matter how long a time their coming may have covered, or how various may have been their forms and agencies. Law, prophecy, type, allegory, didactic teaching, promise, threatening, oracle—all may fully be recognised as agencies used for the communication of the Divine will to men. All that need be affirmed is, that the Christ-revelation is higher than any previous revelation, because the conditions demanded a higher. It was an advance along the same line. It is not something altogether new, so there need be no antecedent prejudice against it. It is in the regular—it might even be said the necessary—line of progression. The pious Jew need have no hesitation about taking this step forward. It is but the older opened out, as the bud unfolds into the flower. It is as relative to the age of the writer, and the ages that were coming, as the older revelations had been relative to the ages that were past. It was precisely what the older had prepared for; and no one was called to speak depreciatingly of the preparatory stages of a Divine work which concerned humanity, rather than any mere section of it. The conciliatory character of the opening words of the epistle is quite evident. The writer would have obtained no unprejudiced hearing from a Jewish audience if he had begun by claiming that Christianity was an independent, original, and unconnected revelation. The Jew would have firmly replied, “Since Jehovah has revealed Himself to us, that which is true is not new, and that which is new is not true.” This conciliatory attitude towards the older dispensation enables the writer to affirm that the older and the later revelations can be compared because they lie in the same plane. The revelation in a Son can be compared with revelation in a prophet, or in an angel, because they are all revelations made through human agencies. The person chosen as the agent for the latest revelation is a Son. Christ is indeed the eternal Son, to be thought of as the agency of God when acting in the sphere of created things. But the writer has rather in mind that, for relation to our world, and to ensure our apprehension of His person, relation, and mission, He is constituted Son, because that relationship both fathers and children can so fully understand and enter into. To call Christ the Son is distinctly revelational to us. In a brief passage the writer summarises what, as Son, Jesus came to earth to do.
I. To reveal God to us.—R.V. “who being the effulgence of His glory, and the very image of His substance.” This may seem to be the work of every prophet. Take the deepest view of every man entrusted with a revelation, and we find that he is making God better and more worthily known. Knowledge of God is the eternal life. But we cannot know God save through His revelations of Himself to us. This truth men stoutly resist. In every age they have tried by searching to find out God; and in every age the quest has failed. The religions of the world represent the best success that has been attained, and there is no adequate representation of God in any one of them; and if the best conceptions of all were gathered together, the figure of the Divine would be found incomplete and unworthy. “Lo, these are parts of His ways: but the thunder of His power who can understand?” Precisely the things which cannot be found out aright by unaided man are God’s relationship to us and the character which tones that relationship. Christ came to be the ray in the earthly atmosphere which enabled men to apprehend the mysterious orb of eternal Light. He was the Son revealing the Father. Christ came to be the seal which should declare the stamp which had impressed it—to be a life-character which should make real to us the Divine character. Fatherhood and personal love Christ came to reveal. And so to know God in a way that gives life is to “know Jesus Christ whom He hath sent.” The following points may be developed:
1. God must reveal Himself to be known.
2. God must adapt His revelations, or they will reveal nothing to those who receive them.
3. God must advance His revelations, or they will not meet the needs of a progressive race.
4. God cannot be thought of as ending His revelations while the race continues to be progressive.
II. To bring God’s power for our help.—“And upholding all things by the word of His power.” This is intended to bring home to the Jews and to us the infinite ability of Christ. He is fully competent for the work entrusted to Him. He brings Divine power to the fulfilment of His mission. The writer asserts His oneness with God—the Divine in the human. The impression that God was, in Christ, with men for their help, is precisely the impression of our Lord’s miracles. What the pagans of Lystra felt about Paul and Barnabas, when the lame man was healed, is what we ought to feel about Christ, as we watch Him doing His mighty works. This should satisfy us—God Himself is intervening for us. “God was in Christ reconciling the world unto Himself.”
III. To deal with our sins.—R.V. “when He had made purification of sins”; A.V. “purged our sins.” The thought is a Jewish one. Illustration may be taken from the ceremonies of the “day of atonement.” But the idea is limited here to cleansing or purifying work. Christ came to arrange for the cleansing away of sins. In a sense Christ’s mission was a limited one; and yet it was so truly at the very heart of things as to become unlimited. Sin is man’s supreme woe. It is of no use whatever to deal with its consequences only; it must be dealt with at its root, which is the sinful—and biassed—will of man. In the recovery of the human will is found the great redemptive sphere. But what was probably in the mind of the writer when he thus alluded to sins was the distinction between sins and ceremonial offences, which appears again and again in the epistle. The earlier system dealt, illustratively, with uncleanness. Christianity deals, practically, with moral evil, and effects the purification of sins. And this is the precise Divine intervention that we want. Jesus, God with us, saving us from our sins.
IV. To gain a special power for permanently dealing with our sins.—R.V. “sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” Not as One who had completed His work, and could retire to enjoy His rest and reward; but as One who, having done a preliminary part of His work, takes up a fitting position for permanently carrying it on. The visions of Stephen, and of Paul at Damascus, indicate the activity of the glorified Christ. And this epistle argues for a continual and even eternal priesthood. The earthly experience of Jesus involves special fitness for a permanent ministry. “He ever liveth to make intercession for us.” These truths have to be duly illustrated and enforced:
1. God would have us know Him aright—in His Song of Solomon 2. God is concerned for our deepest need—and that comes out of our sin.
3. God has made both immediate and permanent provision for meeting our deepest need—in Jesus, who is our Saviour and His Son.
The Gospel in the Old Testament.—Every revelation of God to men is a gospel; it is “good news.” It is a Divine intervention for helping man. It assumes that man is in some condition that calls for the friendly hand. It may be a condition involved in his creaturely dependence, or it may be a condition involved in his wilfulness and sin. It is always in such precise adaptation, and it always has in view such a gracious purpose, that it always is a gospel.
I. It is always a gospel by reason of its relativity. Both the form of it and the substance of it are always precisely adapted to the people to whom it is sent, and to the conditions in which they are placed.
II. It is always a gospel by reason of its limitations. It were no good news for God to tell us now what we could not understand save by living the life of two thousand years hence. It could have been no gospel to tell Abraham what only Peter could understand. We ought not to read too much into the Old Testament revelations, because the grace of them lay in their wise limitations.
III. It is always a gospel because it fits into an advancing series,—each a gracious message within its limits, but nothing standing alone; each having this further gospel in it, that it prepared for something better, and made something better necessary. It created an unrest; it held out a hope: so every early revelation was a gospel which moved men on towards the great gospel of the Son.
SUGGESTIVE NOTES AND SERMON SKETCHES
Heb_1:1. God. The Theological Postulate.—The abruptness with which the writer commences his work gives it the character of a treatise rather than an epistle. No Hebrew writer would for one moment entertain the idea of proving that God is: that is the one admitted fact on which all his thinking rests. It is not possible for man to argue on any scientific subject unless he accepts certain facts which cannot be proved, and which it is mutually agreed shall be accepted without proof. Euclid must ask for the acceptance of certain axioms and postulates before he can work out a single mathematical problem. And there is one thing that must be admitted before any theological system can be constructed. It is an absolutely unprovable thing, because every proof that can be offered must rest on assumptions, not on knowledge, since man has no power to know in the sphere to which this primary truth is related. It is the being of God. A man may deny the being of a God. Then we cannot talk theology with him; nor can we give him any idea of his moral duty. Scripture makes no attempt to prove that there is a God. It helps us to apprehend what He is, but not that He is. It starts with the sublime assertion, “In the beginning God.” It proposes to deal only with men who accept that altogether incomprehensible fact as their starting-point. Back of that assertion no man’s intellect can go. The absolute Being, God, no created being ever can know. A beginning, as related to the unknown absolute Being, no man can conceivably imagine. There is nothing possible to us but to begin our thinking with this as our accepted first fact, our foundation truth—God is. God—begin there; one Being; one uncreated, independent Being, sole Source and absolute Controller of all things and beings that exist.
Heb_1:1. God First.—The first verse of Holy Scripture asserts something that God has done. “God created the heavens and the earth.” But there is something that goes before the Divine action. God Himself must exist—the uncaused, the eternal Being. “In the beginning God.” This is the place for Him, the only place, the place in which all reverent souls will ever keep Him. The first and foundation-stone of the great temple of revealed truth is a declaration which grasps all space, all being, all time, and bids us see, before them, above them, and altogether independent of them, one lonely, infinite Being, having life in Himself. When there was no heaven and no earth, in the silent, dark eternities, in the beginning, there was God. The first utterance of the Divine Word is altogether beyond the grasp of human reason; the first appeal of Divine revelation is made to faith: and as the revelation proceeds it never makes a greater demand on faith than in its opening sentence. It is well for us to observe this striking fact. No attempt is made in Holy Scripture to prove the being of God. There is the assertion that He is, but no more. The existence of God must be accepted as the beginning of human thinking. A revelation cannot be addressed to people who do not beforehand believe in God. St. Paul, when preaching at Athens, made no attempt to prove the being of God. He assumes His existence: “God that made the world and all things therein.” We are told everywhere a great deal about God’s operations of power and grace; but there is no consideration or discussion anywhere of human doubts about His existence. What may be the reason for this very remarkable fact? One certainly is, that God has set the proofs of His existence so abundantly on His other handiwork that He did not need to rewrite them in His book. He has even put them in the very constitution of our mental nature. We can never see anything without at once thinking there must have been a cause for it; and we follow the chain of causes until we find some living agent. Our minds refuse to stop at anything short of that. We see a book; we cannot help thinking of the writer and the printer. We see a machine; the orderly working of it, or its productions, will not satisfy us. We know there was an inventor and maker. And this peculiarity of our minds leads us back to a living Being, source of all created things. Precisely meeting that peculiarity, in perfect harmony with it, we are surrounded with objects which we did not make, which no man made, trees, flowers, streams, mountains, clouds, creatures; trace back their origin through what developments we may, our mind will push the series on and on until we find some living Being, and then only will it rest. We may leap at once back from the thing to the living Creator; or we may go, slowly and laboriously, under scientific guides, through the long and various processes of development and growth; but at last, when we have reached the beginning, there is God. There is also settled into our souls the conviction of our dependence; no persuasions can remove from us the feeling that we are not self-centred. Our very leaning on each other we feel is but the shadow of the sublimer reality—we all lean on God. Our bodies are dependent on nurture, food, atmosphere. The length of our lives, the measure of our health, the place of our lot, the forms of our diseases, are all things out of our own control. The universal sense of dependence has found universal expression in human worship. In every age and in every land men have felt that they leaned upon a superior and invisible Power, and with rites and offerings they have ever sought to propitiate Him. The first chapter of Genesis is the assertion of God’s eternal existence, and an account of His revelation of Himself in creation. We need not regard the chapter as literally descriptive; indeed, any approach to a scientific description would have been quite unsuited to the Hebrews of Moses’ day. What may be found in the chapter is in perfect harmony with the opening sentence, which declares the absolute unity of God. The chapter asserts the exclusive relation of this one God to everything man can see, or hear, or feel, or know.
I. The relation of God, as Cause and Creator, to the whole circle of existences.—Could any language more perfectly cover the entire fields of human observation, all time, and all things? We may conceive of no created thing, no existing thing, to which Moses has not here attached the assurance, God made it; God ordained it; God arranged it. The chapter includes all the components of the earth’s crust; all the treasures of the mighty deep; all the elements of the atmosphere; all the hosts of heaven, from the ruling sun to the faintest distant star; all the multiplied forms of vegetable life; all the higher forms of animal life; and all the yet higher forms of human life. And in affirming that all existence came from the hand of God, Moses includes all those natural forces and laws which act in creation. Every created thing has a power to act on every other created thing. The sun is holding the earth in its place; but the earth is as truly helping to hold the sun in his. The atmosphere is influenced by and influences the land and the water. Every living being is at once the subject and the source of some material influence. All these powers, laws, forces—whatever name man may give to them—are gathered up by Moses, and he boldly affirms that all these also are from God.
II. The relation of God, as Cause and Arranger, to all the changes of creation.—Changes are going on in nature continually,—changes sometimes, indeed, very silent and very gradual; but sometimes such as men call wild, sudden, wayward. Then, it may be asked, are these changes the introduction of some new power, the working of some new and rival divinity? Is it that some evil spirit has entered into God’s creation, and is conflicting with Him, overturning His plans, producing riot and disorder? That, indeed, men have always been too ready to suspect. Again and again men have taken up the idea of two supreme powers, one good, and the other evil; and the changes of creation and life are represented as being their conflict. Moses shows us one living God at the beginning of all changes, designing all change, and presiding over all change,—dealing with chaos, tohu and bohu, emptiness and confusion; calling forth light, and settling order; separating land from water, and lifting waters from waters. Changes through long periods fitted the earth for man’s abode. But all change God ordered, and over all its processes He presides. No second power can find room; no second deity is wanted. “Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord.”
III. The relation of God, as Cause and Controller, to the entire range of development in creation.—The whole field of animal and vegetable life is presented to our view. The order in which Moses arranged the creatures has not been improved in these latter days. First, the low forms of fish-life (water-life), through the egg-bearing classes upwards to the mammals, that bring forth from their own bodies, and suckle their young. All, in their growth and development, are God’s, and the objects of His care. In everything living there is the faculty of reproduction, the power to prolong the existence of its kind. Vegetation casts its seeds and bears its fruits. Animals, from insects to men, are able to preserve their existence generation after generation. We ask: Is this some strange power developed by the creatures themselves? Have they within themselves any creative energies? Are they, in any sense, Divine? No, says this chapter. All this is still only a part of the one plan and the one arrangement. It is the Divine idea of development. God gave, to plant and creature, seed after its kind. We have found then the place for God in the world. He is first, before all things; He is “in the beginning.” Then we have found the place for God in a man’s life. He must be first, always and everywhere first,—first in all a man’s doings; first in all a man’s thoughts; first in all a man’s aims; first in all a man’s interests; first in all a man’s relationships; first in all a man’s worship; and first in all a man’s hopes. And this we constantly affirm: the adequate moral culture of a man is not possible unless he will give to God His due place; and that is first everywhere, and in everything.—Partly from “Age of Great Patriarchs.”
The One God of Judaism and Christianity.—The epistle must be read in the light of the main purpose of its author—“to secure his Hebrew readers against the peril of an apostasy to which they were tempted by the delay of Christ’s personal return, by the persecutions to which they were subjected, and by the splendid memories and exalted claims of the religion in which they had been trained.” Three suggestions have been made as accounting for the absence of the writer’s name.
1. The matter dealt with was so weighty that the writer desired to merge his own personality.
2. A shorter private letter accompanied this.
3. The name is concealed because of the relations between the writer and those to whom he was writing.
The primary religious truth entrusted to the keeping of the Hebrew race is that of the unity of God. Of this truth, ever since the Babylonian Captivity, the Jew has been profoundly jealous. Whatever is taught to the Jew must be in recognised consistency with this primary truth. In the heat of controversy the apostle Paul spoke slightingly of the Mosaic system, as “weak and beggarly elements.” This writer takes care to prevent misunderstanding by his opening sentences. One and the same God is the Author of both Judaism and Christianity. And this involves the necessary relation—we may even say the interdependence—of the two systems. Gnosticism attributed the Old Testament to an inferior and even malignant deity, who was called the “demiurge.”
Divine Revelations.—Revelations come from God to men through Divinely appointed agents and agencies. They are chosen in order to secure adaptation. They are arranged in a progressive order, which we can more or less perfectly recognise. “It has never been God’s method to reveal all His relations to mankind at once. He revealed Himself ‘in many portions.’ He lifted the veil fold by fold. First came the Adamic dispensation; then the Noachic; then the Abrahamic; then the Mosaic; then the prophetic; then the Ezraic; then the Christian.” “The first great truth which God prominently revealed was His Unity; then came the earliest germ of the Messianic hope; then came the Moral Law; then the development of Messianism and the belief in Immortality”; then the mission of the Son (Farrar). Diversity, both in substance and in form, marks all first stages of Divine revelation; but the advancing tendency is towards unity. When preparatory revelations do their appointed work, they make a final and universal revelation possible. The highest revelation only removes the lower and earlier by bringing fully out their best. There is a sense in which Judaism is abrogated: there is a fuller sense in which it lives again in Christianity. There is a direct connection and relation between all revelations that are Divine. There never has been and there never can be such a thing as an isolated Divine revelation. Everything God does and everything God says fits harmoniously into a whole of gracious Divine purpose. This is true of God’s revelations in all lands and in all times.
The Essential Idea of a Prophet.—A prophet is one who becomes a voice for communicating some will of God to the minds of men. But God’s voice comes to men through, by means of, and not over, or as over-mastering, the individuality of the prophet. This is true of the teaching prophets of modern times. And herein the Jehovah prophet and the evangelical prophet are to be distinguished from the pagan receiver and transmitter of oracles, God’s messages to men are sent to men in the forms and with the mental imprint which those who convey them can put upon them. The messages of God are often parabolic, but they are seldom, if ever, enigmatical as oracles usually are.
Divine Selection for Service.—Men in every age are honoured by being Divinely selected for service. There are still such selected men for the ministry of modern days; but their work may be to expound a revelation rather than to carry and find voice for one. It must be borne in mind that the men who expound a revelation may be as truly in the endowment of the Holy Ghost, and their work may be as spiritually authoritative, as that of those who receive a revelation. The only authority in a prophet or teacher which we can recognise is that which comes through absolute committal to the Divine lead.
The Characteristics of Early Revelations.—πολυμερῶς, πολυτρόπως. The first word means in numerous parts or parcels—which, however, were no doubt given at sundry times, so that the rendering in the A.V., though imperfect, is legitimate. The idea is that God did not at once open up the fulness of His mind and unfold to view the treasures of His grace. His plan proceeded on the principle of “here a little” and “there a little.” His revelation was given “piecemeal.” It came “bit by bit,” as the fathers might be able to receive it. The revelation was not only in numerous parts or portions, it was given in divers manners (πολυτρόπως). Our translators received this rather cumbrous translation from the Geneva Version. Wycliffe’s rendering was more literal, in many manners. Tyndale’s was simpler, many wayes. The reference, as the Duke of Manchester correctly remarks, is not to the various modes in which God communicated His mind to the prophets, such as visions, voices, dreams, etc.; it is to the various forms which the subject-matter of the communications was made to assume, as it passed on through the prophets to the people at large. There were commandments. There were promises. There was history. There were exhortations, expostulations, invitations, warnings, pleadings, threatenings. There were predictions and types, parables and proverbs, psalms and songs. God spoke, as Cardinal Cajetan observes, “to the intellect, to the imagination, to the senses” (intelligibiliter, imaginabiliter, sensibiliter). He addressed at one time the principle of hope, at another the principle of gratitude, at another still the principle of competition and rivalry (compare Rom_10:19), then perhaps the principle of fear, or the nobler principle of conscience, and of the consciousness of a certain Divine imperative speaking in authoritative tones within the conscience. Thus “in manifold fashion” did God reveal His mind to the fathers.—J. Morison, D.D.
Monotheism and Purity.—The idea of monotheism and the principle of purity might seem hardly enough to be the chief results of so systematic a discipline as that of the Hebrews. But in reality they are the cardinal points in education. The idea of monotheism out-tops all other ideas in dignity and worth. The spirituality of God involves in it the supremacy of conscience, the immortality of the soul, the final judgment of the human race. For we know the other world, and can only know it, by analogy drawn from our own experience. With what then shall we compare God? With the spiritual or the fleshly part of our nature? On the answer depends the whole bent of our religion and of our morality. For that in ourselves which we choose as the nearest analogy of God will of course be looked on as the ruling and lasting part of our being. If He be one and spiritual, then the spiritual power within us, which proclaims its own unity, and independence of matter, by the universality of its decrees, must be the rightful monarch of our lives; but if there be gods many and lords many, with bodily appetites and passions, then the voice of conscience is but one of those widespread delusions which, some for a longer, some for a shorter period, have before now misled our race. Again, the same importance which we assign to monotheism as a creed we must assign to chastity as a virtue. Among all the vices which it is necessary to subdue in order to build up the human character, there is none to be compared in strength or in virulence with that of impurity. It can outlive and kill a thousand virtues; it can corrupt the most generous heart; it can madden the soberest intellect; it can debase the loftiest imagination. But besides being so poisonous in character, it is above all others most difficult to conquer. And the (Hebrew) people, whose extraordinary toughness of nature has enabled it to outlive Egyptian Pharaohs, and Assyrian Kings, and Roman Cæsars, and Mussulman Caliphs, was well matched (by its strong grip of the unity of God) against a power of evil which has battled with the human spirit ever since the Creation, and has inflicted, and may yet inflict, more deadly blows than any other power we know of.—Bishop Temple.
God in Relations.—“Having of old time spoken.” That is, God put Himself into communication with the moral beings whom He had made in His own image; set Himself in relations with them, and can be known by them only through those relations. Man has always gone astray when He has tried to know what God is essentially, absolutely. Philosophising about God has never proved satisfactory, because man’s faculties, and man’s language, the instrument of his faculties, are altogether below the range. He must be God who would know God’s absolute being and nature. This is indeed involved in the very conception man forms of God. His transcendency is an essential element in the conception. In what sense then can God be known by the moral beings He has made? In the same way as they know everything else. Man knows nothing in essence, but anything and everything in relations. Man is as truly baffled by the essence of a stone as by the essence of God. He can know the stone through its relations, and he can know God through His relations, and in no other way. All the relations to His created world and created beings in which God has been pleased to put Himself are revelations of Himself. And the limit of man’s knowledge of God is God’s revelations of Himself. They come through the speech of men, but they come in many other ways. It was the genius of the Jews to discover God in multiplied and various relations, and their dignity and their mission to the race lay in their fuller and worthier apprehension of God. This was taught in a very significant way to the founder of the Jewish dispensation. When God appeared to Moses in the symbol of the burning bush, Moses, with the natural curiosity of man, asked for the name of Him who spoke to him. It was the way in which he asked for an apprehension of the essence of God. The reply is a virtual refusal. It meant this: “I am Being—that is all you can know concerning Me. What I am to you you can know. You know through what I have been to men before you. I am the God of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob—a God ever standing in relations, which are the only possible and the altogether satisfying revelations.”
Revelations in the World’s Education.—We may rightly speak of a childhood, a youth, and a manhood of the world. The men of the earliest ages were in many respects still children as compared with ourselves, with all the blessings and all the disadvantages that belong to childhood. We reap the fruits of their toil, and bear in our characters the impress of their cultivation. Our characters have grown out of their history, as the character of the man grows out of the history of the child. There are matters in which the simplicity of childhood is wiser than the maturity of manhood, and in these they were wiser than we. There are matters in which the child is nothing and the man everything, and in these we are the gainers. And the process by which we have either lost or gained corresponds, stage by stage, with the process by which the infant is trained for youth, and the youth for manhood. This training has three stages. In childhood we are subject to positive rules which we cannot understand, but are bound implicitly to obey. In youth we are subject to the influence of example, and soon break loose from all rules unless illustrated and enforced by the higher teaching which example imparts. In manhood we are comparatively free from external restraints, and if we are to learn must be our own instructors. First come rules, then examples, then principles. First comes the Law, then the Son of Man, then the Gift of the Spirit. The world was once a child under tutors and governors until the time appointed by the Father. Then, when the fit season had arrived, the Example to which all ages should turn was sent to teach men what they ought to be. Then the human race was left to itself to be guided by the teaching of the Spirit within.—Bishop Temple.
Rabbinical Degrees of Revelation.—The Jewish doctors observed four degrees of Divine revelation. The first they called Prophecy, which included vision and any apparition whereby the will of God was made known. They had a second way of Divine revelation, which they called the Inspiration of the Holy Ghost, whereby the party was enabled without vision or apparition to prophesy, either as prophesying is taken for the foretelling of things to come, or for the resolving of things in doubt. The Rabbins give us the difference between these two, prophecy and inspiration: in prophecy (though it was from the Holy Ghost) a man was cast into a trance or brought into an ecstasy, his senses being taken away; but speaking by inspiration of the Holy Ghost was without any such change in or impressions upon the body. So David and other penmen of the Scriptures wrote by the immediate inspiration of the Holy Ghost, yet without visible apparitions to them or visible change upon them. And in a third way God revealed Himself by Urim and Thummim, which was an answer given by the ephod, or by the stones that were on the breastplate of the high priest. These three ways of Divine revelation, as they observe, ceased in the Second Temple, the Jewish writers having this tradition, that after the later prophets, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi, the Holy Ghost departed from “Israel,” meaning the Holy Ghost not in the ordinary work of sanctification, but in those extraordinary ways of prophecy, inspiration, and of the Urim and Thummim. There was yet a fourth way of Divine revelation, which they call Batheol, the daughter of a voice, or echo, declaring the will of God immediately from heaven. Such some conceive to be the voice heard from heaven (Mat_3:17), proclaiming the testimony of God concerning christ. It is manifest that these distinctions are too subtle. It is better to think that Divine revelations differ in kind, but not strictly in degree, because they are always relative to the occasion, and precise, and adapted, and therefore perfect to the occasion. Imperfection and limitation can properly be applied only to our power of recipiency. A similar line of thought may be taken in relation to inspiration.
God.—The abrupt beginning of this epistle claims attention. It reminds us of the abrupt beginning of the book of Genesis. Scripture never proves the being of God. It assumes it. It deals with men only who assume it. In this only have men and the revelation a common platform. This it assumes:
1. God is.
2. God only is.
3. Man can know Him—in part.
4. Man cannot know Him—perfectly.
5. Man’s power of apprehending God is adequate to man’s moral, but not to man’s mental necessities.
Christ the Son.—God had a Word to spell—His own Name. By degrees He did it. At last it came entire. The Word was made flesh. In this epistle the writer labours to show that Christianity was the fulfilment of the idea latent in Judaism—that from the earliest times and in every institution it was implied. This point is considered: The manifestation of God through a Son was implied, not realised, in the earlier dispensation.
I. It was implied, not fulfilled, in the kingly office.—See Psalms 2, 45, 110. David was emphatically the type of the Jewish regal idea. The true King of men is a Son of God; One who is to His fellow-men God and Lord, as the Jewish bride was to feel her royal husband to be to her; One who is a priest; One who may be poor and exiled, yet not less royal. Whence is this idea fulfilled by Judaism? Is it fulfilled in David? In Jesus of Nazareth alone all these fragments, these sundry portions of the revealed Idea of Royalty, met.
II. It was implied in the race of prophets.—They were not merely predictors of the future; the office of the prophet was with the present. He read eternal principles beneath the present and the transitory, and in doing this of course he prophesied the future; for a principle true to-day is true for ever. It was the very condition of his inspiration that he should be one with the people. So far from making him superhuman, it made him more man. He felt with more exquisite sensitiveness all that belongs to man, else he could not have been a prophet. He was more man just because more Divine—more a son of man because more a Son of God. If, then, One had come claiming to be the Prophet of the Race, and was a Sufferer; claiming to be the Son of God, and yet peculiarly man; the Son of man; the Son of man just because Son of God; more Divine because more human,—then this was only what the whole race of Jewish prophets should have prepared them for. God had now spoken by a Son in whom the idea of the true prophet was realised in its entireness.
III. The priesthood continued this idea latent.—The writer of this epistle saw three elements in the priestly idea:
1. That he should be ordained for men in things pertaining to God.
2. That he should offer gifts and sacrifices.
3. That he should be called by God, not be a mere self-assertor.… The spiritual Jew discerned that entire surrender to the Divine Will is the only perfect sacrifice, the ground of all sacrifices, and that which alone imparts to it a significance. He who can offer it in its entireness, He alone is the world’s atonement; He in whose heart the law was, and who alone of all mankind was content to do it, His sacrifice alone can be the sacrifice all-sufficient in the Father’s sight as the proper sacrifice of humanity. He who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, He alone can give the Spirit which enables us to present our bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God. He is the only High Priest of the universe.—F. W. Robertson.
Heb_1:1-2. The Perfection of the Evangelical Revelation.—“Hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in His Son.” The term “evangelical” is not used in its Scriptural sense, when it is confined to a particular setting of doctrines of sin and atonement. God’s evangel, gospel, good news, is that He has sent to us His Son, and that His Son has something to show to us, something to say to us, and something to do for us. If Divine revelations to men have come in a progressive order, the climax has been reached in the revelation of the Son and through the Son. This may be worked out along several lines. One only we suggest, as having some freshness and point. Take the progressive views of God given in the advancing revelations. Notice the terms and human relationships used for each revelation, and show how the Sonship, which reveals Fatherhood, is the crown and perfection of revelations.
The Son a Spoken Word—“Hath spoken unto us in His Son.” A word is that which conveys the thought of one mind to the mind of another. Anything—not merely speech—that puts what is in your mind into my mind is a word. The word is more than speech; it may be better than speech—a look, a movement, a sign, a vision, a person. Illustrate: Eastern kings consider it a mark of dignity not to speak, but to make their will known by dumb signs. It is said that girls in Lancashire mills, being unable to talk to one another because of the deafening machinery, get into the way of telling each other long tales by the motions of the mouth, face, and arms, without speaking a word. Jesus the Son is the Word which carries to us the most wonderful and most gracious thoughts that God has ever cherished concerning us. He is the love of God embodied. He is come to say, “God loves, and therefore saves.” It is not so much that He has a word to say to us; it is that He is the Word. The Man is the Word; the Personality is the Word; the Son is the Word.
I. A man can be a word.—
1. A prophet can be a word. Illustrate: Samuel, Isaiah, Jeremiah. They were—it is not only that they brought—messages from God.
2. An angel can be a word. The angel who spoke to the shepherds embodied the truth that God is concerned for sinful man.
3. A fellow-man can be a word. Think what impressions for God good men have made upon us. Then the “Man Christ Jesus” can be a word. The humanity of Christ is jealously affirmed. But we must keep before us that it is a whole humanity. We must accept it with its naturalness—true manhood; its uniqueness—typical manhood; its mystery—typical manhood is Divine. St. John uses three terms to vitalise for us the human personality of Christ:
1. “Made flesh”—a real bodily being. This is the impression produced on us by His coming as an infant. A certain unreality is in Adam’s humanity, if we think of him as made a full-grown man.
2. “Dwelt among us.” He made His own personal impression. He was actually put into the common every-day of life.
3. “Full of grace and truth.” The impression that He made was the impression of a character. The closer men come to Christ, the more do they feel that the most wonderful thing about Him was not what He said or what He did, but what He was. The “Man Christ Jesus” was God’s thought of man put into a human life, so that the thought might be influential in our lives. We know, in Christ, what God wants us to be.
II. A son can be a word.—When we apprehend the glory of Christ, we find that it is His Sonship. “The glory as of the Only Begotten of the Father.” The “Man Christ Jesus” is a Son. His character is Sonship. It tells us of the Father, and of the relation in which we should stand to the Father. The glory of Christ’s life on earth being sonship, we can see that this—sonship—must be the glory of our lives in Christ. This is precisely the “spoken word” that Jesus is—Saviour by recovering sons to sonship. But what does that involve for Christ? How does He accomplish that saving work?
1. By the drama of a human life, He must show sonship under human conditions.
2. The winning of the acceptance of His own Sonship.
3. The right to give His standing, as an accepted Son, to us.
4. Gaining the power to help us to be what He represents us as being. The glory of Christ is this—He is perfect Son, and is helping us into His perfect Sonship.
Sonship as a Final Revelation.—“In Christ all the fragments of previous revelation were completed, all the methods of it concentrated, and all its apparent perplexities and contradictions solved and rendered intelligible. Sonship naturally suggests heirship, and in Christ was fulfilled the immense promise to Abraham that his seed should be heir of the world.”—Farrar.
“By His Son.” Revelation by “Son.”—The pronoun, as is indicated by the italic type in our Bibles, has been supplied. There is not even the article in the original. And hence Wakefield translates “by a Son,” and Rotherham “in a Son.” Unhappily, however, for there is no indefinite article in the original. And yet we could not possibly say, in our English idiom, in Son. The area that is covered by the Greek article is by no means coextensive with the area which is covered by the English. And hence we should here either render the phrase in “the” Son, or use the pronoun in “His” Son. It is better to adopt the article. The idea is, in Him who is emphatically Son. The word was of itself so demonstratively conspicuous, that, in the Greek idiom, it could dispense with the demonstrative article. Others, it is true, besides Jesus, are sons of God. The poverty of human language could not, in the currency of common usage, afford to surrender the term to be the exclusive designation of the only begotten One. But, nevertheless, He is Son pre-eminently. He is partaker, not only in a moral point of view, but also physically or metaphysically, of the Father’s nature. He is “true God.” And thus, in relation to the universe, He is the one Prince Royal. “By” or “in” this Son God spoke “in the end of these days.” There is an intentional antithesis to the expression “in” the prophets. God’s speech was indeed “in” the prophets; but yet more emphatically “in” the Son. God’s words were in both. But as neither Son nor prophets were mere mechanical sounding-boards or echoes, but receivers, reproducers, and interpreters, the outcome of words was very different in the two cases.… The Son was Himself, in His very essence, the Word of God. All that He was, as well as all that He said and did, was representation and revelation of the mind and heart of the Father.—J. Morison, D.D.
Last Days.—Last days, or the end of the days, may be only relatively last. The absolute last of Divine revelations to men we cannot possibly know. That revelation under which we live is the last to us: and for our response to it we must be judged. Last days are the fruitage for which earlier days have prepared. The revelation in Christ is the fruitage of all the revelations. In the Divine order all “last days” are beginnings. The last days of winter are the beginning of spring; the last days of childhood are the beginning of manhood; the last days of patriarchism are the beginning of Mosaism; the last days of Christianity will be the beginning of a now unknown something. God’s last days are never abrupt; they are a quiet gliding into the new order.
The Contrast between Servant and Son.—This is brought out by our Divine Lord in His parable of the wicked husbandmen, who, though they had killed the servants, were fully expected to reverence the son, and yield themselves to the persuasion and authority that he brought. Son and servant both fulfil a mission. They differ
(1) in personal rank;
(2) in relation to the Divine mind and will;
(3) and in their direct interest in their work. The Son reveals God in being a Son, as well as by what He said and did and suffered as the Son. Christ Himself is the great revelation. The eternal generation of the Son is an idea that we owe to the Greek Church. The writer of this epistle does not deal with it, but regards Jesus as constituted (or appointed) Son for the purposes of His special redemptive mission. “Generation” is an earthly term which cannot fittingly be applied to spiritual or Divine things. As Son He takes the authoritative place that belongs exclusively to God. God is owner of all things; the Son is owner of all things, because He is heir of all things. The heir to any estate differs essentially from a servant on the estate. The Son may be thought of as God operating in the material, the sense, sphere. Distinguish between God sending a servant to execute some commission for Him, and His being present Himself, in the person of His Son, to execute His own commission. The Son is, as it were, the visibility and materiality of God. Or, as the hymn expresses the sublime truth,—
“God manifestly seen and heard,
And Heaven’s beloved One.”
Heb_1:3. The Effulgence of the Glory.—Our Lord is “the brightness of the glory of the Divine Father.” A distinction of personalities is assumed. And it is further assumed that, in the Divine arrangements in reference to creation in general, and human redemption in particular, the Father represents the Godhead, and may therefore be emphatically designated “God.” By the glory of the Father, Schöttgen would understand the Shekinah, or cloud-enveloped pillar of light—a notion too artificial and narrow. We naturally expect a broader and grander idea, such as “the sum of the Divine perfections,” and thus “the essential glory of Deity.” That is a “glory” which has “glowed” from everlasting, and which will glow on for ever, indiminishable. The radical idea would doubtless be derived from a sensuous source, light. The glory of the Lord “shines” where-ever it is revealed (Luk_2:9; Rev_18:1; Rev_21:23). At every rift or outlet there is the radiation of that light within, which is inaccessible. “God is Light.” Our Saviour is the brightness of the Divine light or glory. The light shines forth in Him, and then through Him upon creation. “The words,” says Dr. Owen, “denote the Divine nature of Christ; yet not absolutely, but as God the Father in Him doth manifest Himself to us.” The word “brightness” is given in all the old English versions, from Wycliffe downwards. It is the reproduction of the Latin splendor, the Vulgate Version. It is thus a venerable, yet rather a feeble rendering. The idea of eradiation is inherent in the original term (ἀπαύγασμα). Our Lord is the manifestive eradiation of the Divine glory. Wells’ translation of the word is “shining forth.” Jesus is the “effulgence” of the Father’s glory; “ef-fulgence” rather than re-fulgence,” though Erasmus and Calvin give the latter. Our Saviour, indeed, is the image and reflection of the Father, but that is not the representation before us. Effluence is denoted. Rilliet’s rendering is rayonnement. Effulgence is Wynne’s word, and is given by Macknight, Rodolphus, Dickinson, Penn, and many other translators. Milton happily reproduced the idea in the line “Bright effluence of bright essence, increate” (Paradise Lost, iii. 6).—J. Morison, D.D.
Christ as Purger of Sins.—“When He had made purification of sins.” This allusion to our Redeemer’s earthly mission assumes the understanding of its object and its method by the disciples. But they were mostly, if not exclusively, Jews, and would think of the Redeemer’s work with the aid of the figures of the old Mosaic ritual. “Clean” and “unclean” were the great words of the Mosaic system. Only the “clean” were allowed to take part in the Jewish worship. All sorts of things made men ceremonially “unclean.” The unclean man was out of relations. He must be “reconciled” and “restored.” He could only be by becoming clean; then the priest could make purification for him, and then he could be restored as clean. The sacrificial system of Judaism has received so much attention, that the importance of the distinction between “clean” and “unclean” in relation to our Lord’s “purification” and “propitiation” has been neglected. Relative to the eternal temple, the sanctuary of God, the Divine favour, man’s sins have involved his shutting out; he is “unclean,” he cannot pass the gates. With this condition of things Christ dealt. He took on Himself, as a work that He alone would do, He “by Himself,” the work of dealing with man’s uncleanness, and restoring man’s relations to the eternal temple, and to the favour of God. There was nothing to be done in the way of propitiating God, for He must be thought of as distressed by man’s uncleanness, and longing to have him restored. There was much to be done in order to meet the necessary conditions of entrance into the heavenlies; but that work had to be done in man, and therefore for man. Christ had to get man clean in will and purpose (not actually clean, that was not necessary; that was involved, but that might come after); when Christ had man clean in will and purpose, He could represent him as clean before God. He could go into the eternal temple in His own personal right, as a clean man, and get the right to go in for every man whom He had made clean in will and purpose. So Jesus “made purification of sins,” and restored unclean man to the spiritual and eternal temple.
Sitting at the Right Hand of God.—The end and purpose for which Christ ascended was that He might sit on the right hand of God (Luk_20:42; Luk_22:69). Some might suppose that all the prophecies and figures of the Old Testament are fulfilled by the establishment of our Lord’s kingdom upon earth, which we see on all sides; but certainly a great deal more than this is intended, when such particular mention is made in Scripture of a power on the right hand of God being given to our Lord on His ascending to heaven. Thus our Lord Himself, on the Ascension Day, said, “All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth.” But since we believe Him to be God equal to the Father, and with power equal to the Father from everlasting, how can it be said that power is then given to Him as if for the first time? All this is said of Christ, not as the Son of God, but as the Son of man. It is our poor human nature that is so highly exalted in Jesus Christ and set on the right hand of God; it is that human nature which in Christ overcame the enemy, and returned with garments dyed in blood from Edom. To speak after the manner of men, how is every nation always studious that one of themselves should be in the court of a foreign king, to represent their interests, to speak for them, and through whom they themselves might find access. And even we, says the writer, have through Him admission and approach to the throne of grace. As a ship is secure and steadfast when its anchor is firmly fixed in the land, so amid the waves and storms of this life may our confidence be, if we have our hearts with Christ in heaven (see Heb_6:19). St. Paul so often alludes to the doctrine of Christ’s resurrection to urge the necessity of our being risen with Him upon earth; so does he also to that of His being in heaven, as a reason for our being in mind and thought there with Him. As He continued forty days on earth after His resurrection, so after they are risen with Him from the death of sin in baptism have Christians to continue for their pilgrimage on earth, it may be for forty years of trial in the wilderness before they ascend to heaven; but to live as those whose treasure is in heaven, and whose hearts are therefore ever dwelling and abiding there. When our blessed Saviour says that “all power is given Him in heaven and in earth,” He means some great and new power with regard to us, some power to be exercised for our benefit, if we are His true children. And when it is said that He is sitting on the right hand of God, or when He is seen, as by St. Stephen at his death, standing at the right hand of God, this signifies, that whether He is spoken of as sitting, i.e. in a state of rest after His labours, or as standing, i.e. as ready to succour and aid those who call to Him, yet it is always, in both cases, at the right hand of power, i.e. with some wonderful power given unto Him in His Church for our sakes,—power greater than was exercised by Him here on earth before His death; greater than was ever vouchsafed to man before Christ’s ascension into heaven. In two points of view, therefore, have we, Christians, great and extraordinary privileges towards a holy life since the ascension of Christ. First, that we have in Him a Mediator and Intercessor in heaven; and, secondly, that we have on earth the great Comforter, whom He has sent down from the Father.—Isaac Williams, B.D.
The Right Hand of God.—Sitting at the right hand was regarded both among the Greeks and Orientals as entailing the greatest dignity: it was the position of the highest honour, and even involved participation in the royal dignity and power. As an illustration from classical writings we may cite Pindar, who speaks of Minerva as at the right hand of Zeus, associated with him in his sovereignty, and receiving his commands for the other gods. And Callimachus says that Apollo is able to reward the chorus, if they sing to please him, because he sits at the right hand of Zeus. As an illustration from Eastern life, a passage may be quoted from Eichhorn. Ibn Cotaiba says: “The ridafat is the dignity of sitting next to the king. But the radaf (he who holds rank after the king) sits on his right hand; and if the king drinks, the radaf drinks next before all others; and if the king goes out upon an expedition, the radaf sits on his seat and acts in his room till he returns; and if the king’s army goes forth to war, the radaf receives” a fourth part of the booty.”
God is apprehended with the Christ-help.—The glory of God—His essential being—is beyond the vision of the human eye, or the grasp of the human mind. It is said that if a man could stand on the outer edge of the earth’s atmosphere he would find unrelieved darkness, in which no sun or stars could be seen. The sun’s rays in the earth-atmosphere reveal to us the sun; but what we see are the rays, not the sun. The Shekinah glory in the Tabernacle and Temple brought the sense of God’s presence home to Jewish hearts; but what was seen was a light-filled cloud, not God. Moses, with the help of the “back parts,” realised the glory of Jehovah; but what he saw was the after-glow, not Jehovah. So Christ is the ray that reveals God, the Shekinah that declares His presence, the after-glow that suggests His glory. Philo compares man to a coin which has been stamped by the Logos with the being and type of God.
The Revelation of Moral and Spiritual Attributes.—What of God, as the supreme Moral Being, can be apprehended by man Christ came to help him to apprehend. The Christ-revelation is not of God’s natural attributes, but of His moral and spiritual. Therefore the revelation is through a person, and a life of relationships. It is essentially the revelation of the Divine Fatherliness, and not in any sense of any materiality or personality of the Divine Father. We may argue these from the revelation, but the revelation itself concerns character and characteristics.
Providence as Persistent Divine Activity.—The Son bears the same relation to Providence that He does to creation. Philo calls the Logos “the Chain-band of things: Pilot and Steersman of everything. Creator and Upholder by the word of His power.” God operating in the sphere of material things, to create them, or arrange them, or maintain them, or rearrange them, is always God the Son. God can only be thought of as always active, so He is always God the Son; and this is the “eternal Sonship.”
A Son’s Purging Work.—Purging, as applied to sin, is cleansing work, not bearing of penalty.
Heb_1:4. Essential Difference between Son and Angel.—The differences between Christ and angels, in a general way, concern their respective ranks and relationships. But the difference that is most impressive is the difference in the authority with which their work is done, and their mission carried through. Angels do God’s will, and with more or less of conflict with their own wills make God’s will their own. Christ does God’s will too, but He does it without any conflict, because God’s will is His own. “I do always the things that please Him.” There is no intention to undervalue angelic ministrations; but it is of supreme importance to set out most clearly that Christ is altogether beyond their range—a different, a higher being. Christ is spoken of as “begotten” (Heb_1:5); as “Son” (Heb_1:5); angels are said to worship Him (Heb_1:6); He is spoken of as “God” (Heb_1:8); as “Creator and Controller” (Heb_1:10; Heb_1:12); as “Throne-sharer” (Heb_1:13).
Angel-service as doing God’s Will.—Service must be rendered if it costs us the breaking of our will. Service only becomes liberty and joy when we can rise to the Christ-spirit, and God’s will becomes ours because it is so freely, so fully, and so lovingly accepted. An angel serves with a strain. He makes more or less conscious effort to get and to keep his will in harmony with God’s will. The Son serves without a strain. He never needs to make any effort to get or keep His will in harmony with His Father’s will, for He embodies His Father’s will. We only enter into the full joy of service when we rise above the constraint of the servant into the liberty of the son. Hence the exceeding value of the work the Divine Son does for us, in making His Sonship ours, and putting us into the inheritance with Him. “Heirs of God, and joint-heirs with Christ.” Sonship was for Christ, and is for us, the “more excellent name.”
ILLUSTRATIONS TO CHAPTER 1
Heb_1:1. Occasional Revelations.—There are days on which the sun makes the clouds his chariot, and travels on curtained behind them. Weary of shining before a drowsy, thankless world, he covers the glory of his face, but will not quite take away the blessing of his light; and now and then, as it were in pity, he withdraws the veil for a moment, and looks forth to assure the earth that her best friend is still watching over her in the heavens, like those occasional visitations by which the Lord, before the birth of the Saviour, assured mankind that He was still their God.—Guesses at Truth.
Heb_1:2. Christ the Son.—Plutarch tells us that when Themistocles, in the hour of his exile, wished to be reconciled with the king of the Molossians, whom he had previously offended, he took the king’s son in his arms, and kneeled down before the household gods. The plea was successful; in fact, it was the only one the Molossians looked upon as one not to be refused, and so the philosopher found a refuge among them. And do not we come in this way when we approach the Majesty on high? We take hold of the King’s Son.
Heb_1:3. Brightness or Effulgence.—The word rendered “brightness” here occurs nowhere else in the New Testament. It means, properly, a reflected splendour, or the light which emanates from a luminous body. The rays or beams of the sun are its “brightness,” that by which the sun is seen and known. The sun itself we do not see; the beams which flow from it we do see. The meaning of this passage is, that if God be represented under the image of a luminous body, as He is in the Scriptures (see Psa_84:11; Mal_4:2), then Christ is the radiance of the light, the brightness of that luminary by which only He is known.—Stuart.
The Preacher's Complete Homiletical Commentary (gen. ed. Joseph S. Exell; Funk & Wagnalls, c. 1892) — public domain (pre-1929). A full-Bible homiletical/sermon-outline anthology covering 65 of 66 books (2 John is absent from the source module). Text from a community e-Sword module.
William B. Godbey 1900 · Public Domain On vv1–3 1. This verse sweeps forever from the field all…
1. This verse sweeps forever from the field all the prophets, like Mohammed and Joe Smith, claiming inspiration, since the days of Christ.
William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Sermon Bible 1900 · Public Domain On v1 The Bible as a Revelation of God.
Heb 1:1
The Bible as a Revelation of God.
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Two things are affirmed by this writer. First, that God spake to the Jewish nation by the prophets of the Old Testament, evidently in an especial and supernatural manner; and next, that He spake to them by a gradual revelation of the teaching, communicated to them in diversified ways.
I. Let it be admitted that the Bible is a supernatural revelation from God: then it is as much an incarnation of the Divine Spirit as the Emmanuel was of the Divine Son—as the physical creation was of the Divine Father. If a theory of the inspiration of the Bible could be formulated, it would be an exception to every manifestation of God in the physical and in the moral world. It is one thing to understand the proof of a fact, it is another to recognise the fact that is proven. I can recognise the proofs that establish the facts that I am a living being, that the corn ripens, that the tides ebb and flow, that the needle points to the north, that an earthquake occurred yesterday; but I cannot understand what life, and tidal influence, and magnetism and electricity are. So I may understand the proofs that the Bible is a revelation from God, and that the Bible writers were inspired, without being able to understand the methods of revelation and inspiration.
II. In looking at the Bible, two classes of phenomena have to be accounted for. (1) First, the supernatural element has to be recognised and accounted for. The proofs of the Divine element in the Bible are almost inexhaustible. Almost every week, some unsuspected but harmonious line of proof is opened out to us, proclaiming the Divine. (2) The second great characteristic of the Bible are the marks and proofs of its human authorship. I cannot resolve the humanity of the sacred writers into passive instruments of the Divine. I cannot think all the pious passion of David, all the personal avowals of Paul unreal: I cannot reduce them to the mock personages of a sacred drama, and the inspiring spirit with the simulator of human voices and feelings. Only by fully and fearlessly recognising the human element in the authorship of Scripture can we even understand it.
H. Allon, The Indwelling Christ, p. 299.
References: Heb 1:1.—Preacher’s Lantern, vol. i., p. 144; F. W. Robertson, Sermons, 2nd series, p. 136; Church of England Pulpit, vol. xvii., p. 183; J. Bainton, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xvii., p. 219. Heb 1:1, Heb 1:2.—Expositor, 1st series, vol. i., p. 60; vol. x., p. 275; A. M. Brown, Christian World Pulpit, vol. v., p. 44; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iv., p. 58; Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., pp. 38, 39; H. J. Wilmot-Buxton, The Life of Duty, vol. i., p. 31; Homiletic Magazine, vol. ix., p. 284; D. Rhys Jenkins, Eternal Life, p. 146. Heb 1:1-3.—R. W. Dale, The Jewish Temple and the Christian Church, p. 11.
Heb 1:1-4
The Son above the Angels.
I. The Son is the end of all history. The Father hath appointed the Lord Jesus Christ, His Son, the heir of all things. There is nothing excepted that is not given unto Him. He has obtained the Church as the first and central part of His inheritance. As the material sun is placed in the firmament to be a source of light and heat and joy, with the rest of the creation of God, so God appoints the Church to be the firstfruits of His creatures—the body of Christ, wherewith He influences and blesses, whereby He guides and controls all things.
II. In Him God made "all ages" or "all worlds." It is natural that He who is the Alpha should also be the Omega. Scripture teaches us creation is the work of the triune God. God has made all things by Christ, according to Christ, and for Christ.
III. Before all history He is the brightness of the Father’s glory, and the express image of His person. Wherever He looks He sees Christ, the light. Without Christ, there is darkness. The Father is light, yet not to us without the mediation of the light, which is Christ. Without Christ He is darkness by excess of brightness.
IV. Throughout the course of history, in providence, Christ heareth all things with the word of His power. If it were not for Jesus and for the atonement, if it were not for the Lamb foreordained from the foundation of the world, the history of this world would never have been continued after the fall of man. Christ is Lord of all. The whole universe centres in Him. A star appears at the time of Messiah’s advent. The sun loses his splendour when Jesus Christ dies upon the cross. It is the Lord Jesus who shall make all things new. And all developments are borne up and moved by the word of His power.
A. Saphir, Expository Lectures on the Hebrews, vol, i., p. 44.
The Mediator of the New Covenant, the Incarnate Son, above the Angels.
Consider the marvellous unity of the two Covenants.
I. "God hath spoken." This is the first point. A living God and a loving God must needs speak. The god of the philosophers is a silent God, for he hath neither life nor affection; but our God, who created the heavens and the earth, who is and who loves, must speak. Even in the creation, which is an act of the condescension of God, He utters His thoughts; and when He created man as the consummation of the world, it was for this purpose, that man should hear Him and love Him, and should rejoice in His light and in His life. When sin enters into the world, silence ensues.
II. Man having, by his own sin, fallen away from God, and silence reigning now, it is only the infinite compassion and love of God, that induces him to speak. If there were no redemption, there would be no revelation. If there were no blood of the Lamb, there would not be a single word uttered unto man by the most High.
III. And that God hath spoken is a very awful thing, full of power and life. We have got accustomed to it, to believe that we have the thoughts of God embodied in His world, and that He who is Almighty and blessed in Himself, and against whom we have sinned, hath in His infinite love uttered unto us the thoughts of His compassion and His mercy; but God Himself is astonished at it, and commendeth His love.
IV. As the Sonship is the beginning of the Gospel, so it is also the end and purpose of God’s message. God, speaking to us by His Son, shows unto us that we also are to become the sons of God. In the Son we know and have the Father: in the Son we also are the children of God.
A. Saphir, Expository Lectures on the Hebrews, vol. i., p. 20.
References: Heb 1:1-4.—Homilist, 2nd series, vol. ii., p. 460. Heb 1:2, Heb 1:3.—G. Calthrop, Words to my Friends, p. 1. Heb 1:3.—G. E. L. Cotton, Sermons to English Congregations in India, p. 103; Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iv., p. 60. Heb 1:3, Heb 1:4.—Expositor, 1st series, vol. i., p. 119.
Heb 1:3-6
Christ above the Angels.
I. It is very wonderful how, in God’s ways, fixed necessity and liberty go hand in hand. From all eternity Jesus is appointed the Son of David; but the development of history goes through liberty, the exercise of faith, of hope, of patience, of joy, of suffering. Everything that is human is in sweetest harmony with that unfailing and unchangeable purpose of God’s love which must surely come to pass.
II. Humanity in the person of Messiah is exalted far above any creature. The consummation of all history, and the perfect manifestation of God’s glory to the rejoicing adoration of angels and men, will be in the Lord Jesus, who is not ashamed to call us brethren, who is one with us by a link which can never be severed. Holiness and goodness are worthy of adoration only in their essence and source. He, whom holy angels are called by God to worship, must be essential holiness, goodness, love—must be none other but the infinite and eternal, the ever blessed and co-equal Son of the Most High.
III. How near is Jesus unto us, although He is high above us. This is the very reason why God has exalted Him; this is the reason why He is so high above everything, above all powers and dominions; that He who has all power and love may be visible and accessible; that every one may see Him and draw near to Him; that out of the lowest depths we may behold Him, and that from the utmost corner of the land we may cry unto Him and be saved. He is high above us, that looking unto Him, the Author and Finisher of faith, unto Him who through the Cross entered unto glory, seeing Him constantly above us, the Lamb in the midst of the throne, we may run with patience the race set before us.
A. Saphir, Expository Lectures on the Hebrews, vol. i., p. 70.
References: Heb 1:4.—Preacher’s Monthly, vol. iv., p 60. Heb 1:4-14.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 42; R. W. Dale, The Jewish Temple and the Christian Church, p. 23. Heb 1:5.—Expositor, 1st series, vol. i., pp. 185, 297; Clergyman’s Magazine, vol. v., p. 31; J. Vaughan, Sermons, 14th series, p. 149.
Heb 1:5; Heb 2:4.
Why does the Apostle speak about the angels? He has shown from Psalm ii., from Psalm xcvii., from 2 Sam. vii., from Psalm cx., most clearly that the man Jesus is none other than God, and that therefore in His humanity also He is highly exalted above all angels. But what is the point of the comparison? The argument is simply this: the old dispensation, the law, was given under the mediation and administration of angels. If Jesus was above angels, then His dispensation, the new covenant, His priesthood, are high above that of the law. Scripture often speaks of the angels. Note some of the doctrines which the Bible contains concerning them.
I. Human beings know nothing about angels, except what God pleases to tell them. Hence all that human poets have imagined about them is of no importance or value, unless it agrees with the record of the Divine Scriptures. And Scripture tells us of the angels only, as it were, incidentally.
II. Notice the multitude of the angels. "We have come to an innumerable company of angels." This innumerable multitude is a polity, a state. There are gradations in it, groups, orders, legions of angels. There are the cherubim and the seraphim, thrones and dominions. This kingdom is intimately connected with the kingdom of grace. When a sinner is converted the angels rejoice, and when Jesus comes again the angels will come with Him.
III. Angels are connected with all physical phenomena. Through the angels God carries on the government of the world. Glorious as the angels are, they are in subjection to Jesus as man; for in His human nature God has enthroned Him above all things. Their relation to Jesus fixes also their relation to us. "Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister to those who shall be heirs of salvation?"
A. Saphir, Expository Lectures on the Hebrews, vol. i., p. 94.
Heb 1:6
Christ worshipped by Angels.
I. The first thing which the text teaches is that Christ is a proper object of Divine worship.
II. The text suggests another point—that the incarnation of our ever-blessed Lord affords a special call upon all in earth and heaven to ascribe unto Him the honour which is due unto His name.
J. N. Norton, Every Sunday, P.-25.
References: Heb 1:6.—Expositor, 1st series, vol. i., p. 349; Homilist, vol. i., p. 38.
Heb 1:7
Angelic Life and its Lessons.
I. There is no proof of the existence of other beings than ourselves, but there is also no proof of the contrary. Apart from revelation, we can think about the subject as we please. But it does seem incredible that we alone should represent in the universe the image of God; and if in one solitary star another race of beings dwell, if we concede the existence of a single spirit other than ourselves, we have allowed the principle; the angelic world of which the Bible speaks is possible to faith. But we have fallen upon faithless times; and worse than the mediaeval, who saw the glint of the angels’ wings in the dazzling of the noonday cloud; worse even than the Greek, who peopled his woods with deity, we see only in the cloud the storehouse of rain to ripen our corn, and in the woods a cover for our pheasants. Those who see more have small cheerfulness in the sight; neither the nymphs nor the angels haunt the hills with us. The world is too much with us, and God too little. We cannot see the world which moves around us through the dust of the death in which we live. He who dwells in the cabin of the visible cannot see the infinite world of the invisible through the clay-built walls. Our life with nature has lost its beauty, its joy, its religion.
Note:—
I. The relation of God to angelic life. The first thing we understand of the angels is, that in distant eternities God created them. Here we have the principle of the social life of God. He would not have a life which began and ended in Himself. His life consisted in giving Himself away, and finding Himself in all things. I don’t say God could not, but He would not be alone. And this is the deep principle of all being. That which is, is that which gives itself away. That which lives, is that which lives in others. God would be dead were He to live for Himself alone, and we are dead when we live only to receive, when, folding the cloak of self around us, we cease to find our being in sacrifice of self.
II. Note, next, angelic life in relation to God. It is described as a life of exalted praise. Here we have a revelation of the life of heaven. Holiness, deepening day by day; sacred love and awe, increasing as the revelation of holiness advances, and the expression of these in ceaseless worship, ceaseless praise. Then will praise be perfect, for in us love will be perfect; our voices, our unconscious aspirations, our whole life shall go forth in song to God, as the river goes forth to seek the ocean. The perfect life will be perfect joy.
S. A. Brooke, Sermons, p. 304.
References: Heb 1:7.—Expositor, 1st series, vol. viii., p. 461. Heb 1:7-9.—Ibid., vol. i., p. 447. Heb 1:8, Heb 1:9.—Ibid., vol. ii., p. 295; Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 179. Heb 1:10-12.—Ibid., vol. i., p. 181. Heb 1:11.—Homiletic Magazine, vol. vii., p. 337. Heb 1:12.—F. Armitage, Christian World Pulpit, vol. xii., p. 321; G. T. Coster, Ibid., vol. xvi., p. 203. Heb 1:13, Heb 1:14.—Homiletic Quarterly, vol. i., p. 182.
Heb 1:14
Ministry of Angels.
I. The angels are ministering, i.e. worshipping, spirits; beings engaged in the perpetual liturgy of the glorious temple above. That temple has never wanted its worshippers. The solemn anthem of praise has never been silent there. It has not been broken and marred by sin. But in the next place, as there is a worship of angels above, so there is a ministry of angels in the world. Cardinal Newman has gone so far as to suppose that the whole visible creation is carried on in its minutest details by their agency. He would have us believe that there is not a flower, nor a ray of light, but conceals some spirit form, which gives it its lustre and its beauty. Every breath of air, and ray of light and heat, every beautiful prospect is, as it were, the waving of the robes of those whose faces see God in heaven.
We need not, however, accept such a hypothesis as this. It is too fanciful, and it is not really supported by Scripture; for the representation of the Psalmist, "Who maketh His angels winds," etc., does not really amount to more than this, that God gives His angels the swiftness, and the strength, and the invisibility of the winds, that He clothes His ministers with the all-pervading subtlety of fire. He thus employs them as His agents in carrying out His purposes in the world.
II. And what are these purposes? What has Holy Scripture taught us concerning the offices of angels? (1) First of all, they are represented as deeply interested in the work of human salvation. The mystery of redeeming love fixes their entranced and ardent gaze. They stoop down, as it were, from the golden battlements of heaven, seeking, if it may be, to fathom that love, "the length and breadth, the depth and height of the love that passeth knowledge." The angels, though of spiritual and not of fleshly nature, can sympathise with our low estate, can rejoice in God’s good will towards us. And hence, no doubt, it is that He declares those who confess Him before men, He will confess before the angels of God. (2) And we see a further proof of this, their relation to us, in their attendance upon our Lord in His earthly life. They came to Him as comforters and helpers of His human nature. When He died angels guarded His tomb, and were witnesses of His resurrection. And we know that when He comes again He will come in the glory of His Father and of the holy angels, and that the trumpet of the archangel shall awake the dead. (3) As it was with His human life so it is with ours. The example of the angels teaches us (a) the blessedness of a willing obedience, (b) a lesson of sympathy for those beneath us. Do not let us plead any difference of rank, or knowledge or power, in excuse of our neglect of one of the least of our brethen made like us in the image of God.
Bishop Perowne, Sermons, p. 224.
Angelic Ministry.
The oblivion of great truths is sometimes the reaction of grievous errors. The man-worship of the Church of Rome has nearly obliterated from our calendar the name most conspicuous in New Testament female biography; and in the same way, in our protest against the angel-intercessors of angelic idols of popery, we are in danger of forgetting the existence or denying the ministry of angels altogether. Now creature-worship is bad, whether that creature be a man or an angel. But although, like all loyal subjects, angels desire to concentrate on their eternal King the worship of the universe, and although they refuse to usurp the place of the one Mediator, in their nature, their functions and their history, there is much to elevate our thoughts, and to reward our affectionate contemplation.
II. It is pleasant to think that there are beings created and intelligent, who have kept their first state amidst the decay of earthly beauty and of earthly goodness; it is a joy to remember that there is a created beauty which has never dimmed; a created love which has never known a chill; a created loyalty which has never received a shock, or been seen to falter. Amidst our slowness and stupidity it is pleasant to remember that God has servants who understand all His will, and who can execute each fiat; angels who fly swift as wind, and who, for ready apprehension and ever-burning ardour, are flames of fire. With our felt weakness and unworthiness, it is affecting to know that these angels, so swift, so strong, so holy, minister to the heirs of salvation. Nor is it without solemnity to remember that much, if not all, of our conduct is open to the observation of angels. And although it might well be restraint of the incentive sufficient to remember, "Thou God seest me," we may find an occasional restorative to our sinking spirits, and a useful proof to our faltering resolution, in remembering that we are seen of angels also.
J.Hamilton, Works, vol. vi., p. 311.
References: Heb 1:14.—Spurgeon, Morning by Morning, p. 277; R. L. Browne, Sussex Sermons, p. 255; Homilist,. vol. iv., p. 165; Christian World Pulpit, vol. xxxiv., p. 255.
The Ministry of Angels.
I. As to the existence of angels, the fact confronts us that there are such beings, above man in gradation, superior to man in mental and moral endowments, waiting upon God in the upper sanctuary, and obedient to His will. The belief in such existences can claim the highest antiquity. A few cavilling Sadducees raised a doubt about it; but as to others, the Jews believed it, Gentiles believed it, and in the sense of some tutelar genius over particular localities and provinces, the notion had a place in the creed of the whole heathen world.
II. What is our revealed knowledge concerning the angels? (1) Of the dignities and capacities of angels, Scripture gives us everywhere the most exalted ideas. (2) Their wisdom also is great. (3) They have made mighty advances in the sanctity and purity of the heavenly state. They are the elect, the everlasting chosen ones of God, confirmed in their state of blessedness in heaven, to go no more out, but ever loving and ever delighting to exalt His name.
III. What is the source of the interest which the angels take in us? (1) One reason is to be found in their general sympathy with Christ’s work, and with the success of His mission in the hearts of men, as that which was to bring an access of numbers to their own blessed society, and magnify the power and grace of Him who was at once their Lord and ours. (2) Again, this pleasure of angels in ministering to us may arise in some degree from their superior knowledge of what man’s place in the universe of God is, and how he ranks in the varied orders of created existence. (3) Know that Christ makes all things one. All diverging lines, whether of earthly condition, or diverse economies, or separated ages of the world, of this mansion or that, in the rest of paradise, and this task or that in the countless hierarchies of heaven, are all brought up into, and meet in this centre. The most exalted seraph draws the breath of his immortality from Christ, just as much as the newly departed infant whom he folds in his wing to lay in the bosom of Jesus, as privileged heir of salvation, gathered early from the toils of time.
D. Moore, Penny Pulpit, No. 3273.
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F. W. Grant 1903 · Public Domain On v1 Section 1. (Heb 1:1-4.)
Section 1. (Heb 1:1-4.)
God identified with the Son, in whom He has now spoken fully, not fragmentarily.
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God had, in fact, of old time, spoken "unto the fathers in the prophets." The new dispensation in no way contradicts that voice of God in the old, nor sets it aside even from its present use and blessing, but, on the contrary, gives it its full meaning and authority as such for His people now. God had spoken "in many parts," -in some sense a characteristic of His speaking at all times, although not in the sense in which the apostle speaks here. Scripture has, in fact, never the character of a systematized theology. The truth in it is not classified for us as the specimens of a museum might be, but is a living thing, the branches of it interlacing with one another and sometimes hidden amid leaves and fruits and flowers, for faith to trace and wonder at the more. Its beauty is a beauty such as nature itself has, only far beyond nature. The resulting exercise is not only permitted, but enjoined upon us, if we will lay hold of it and make it our own. "All Scripture is profitable" but "that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished to all good works." If we are not men of God, we must expect to find things hidden, and to make little way with it. "The diligent soul shall be made fat." "God satisfieth the longing soul, and filleth the hungry soul with goodness."
But the many fragmentary communications of the Old Testament were, of course, in those days, necessarily more or less separated from one another, and faith itself could only as yet make out dimly what was within the veil. The glory in Moses, face had thus always the character of veiled glory, but the veil is now taken away in Christ. How great, then, is the privilege which is ours; and how great the responsibility of availing ourselves fully of the privilege of those upon whom the ends of the ages are come, -who can now, therefore, look back over all the past, and gather the united wisdom of all God’s words and ways.
For "in many ways" He spoke, as "in many parts": histories, genealogies and ordinances, with more directly prophetic speech, combining, in a perfection all their own, to assure us of how God has indeed spoken in Scripture, -a thing which modern unbelief, with the wisdom of the adversary in it, would take from us, grounding itself upon the obscurity of the revelations, when now the full light has come and obscurity can no longer be pleaded.
The whole time was, in fact, as we know, a time of probation, a time of necessary testing of man to put him in his rightful place before God, and make him accept that complete setting aside of the flesh which allows, in fact, God now to be God to us in all the fulness of a divine revelation. Thus, "at the end of these days" He has "spoken to us in the Son." The probation, for those who accept the lesson of it, is at an end. There can be no claim on man’s part but that which grace permits him. There can be no attempt to substantiate the righteousness of him who has now crucified the Son of God sent to him; but in that cross itself it is that the full grace of God is manifested, salvation accomplished, enemies are reconciled to God by the death of His Son.
It is as the Son that the apostle puts Him before us here, a title unspeakably dear to us, as it is that in which He appears in such a character as to make the revelation available to us, and to put us, through grace, into the place of sons also, that we may enjoy the revelation.
He is Son of God in eternity and in deity; but this gives character, therefore, to the manhood that He assumes. Here also He is Son of God. It is the same Person, in the same relationship, but now as Man, the First-born Son, not as John shows Him to us, "the Only-begotten." Paul is not separating us from Him by the glory of His Person, but bringing us nigh. It is necessary to separate, that we may not confound things that so greatly differ, or deprive Him of the unique glory which is His own. The bringing nigh comes then in its due place, and with all the blessing which results from this divine glory shining from the human.
The Son of God is the appointed Heir of all things. Sonship and heirship are always connected together in Scripture; and it is thus as ourselves sons that we are heirs. He, the First-born Son, is the great Heir, the One through whom all others derive title. All things are worthily for Him, by whom, in fact, they were created, or, -as it is put here -by whom God made them; for all this is according to divine counsels, in which God designs to make Himself known to His creatures as far as creature can possibly know Him. He is still the Infinite, and we the finite; but in coming out of His infinitude to make Himself known within the limits of time and space, He is showing that moral character which is at the very heart of all the revelation. He is light, but He is Love, and it is love that is bringing out the light. It is not a cold radiance, but wraps us in a life-giving warmth which penetrates and holds us fast forever.
The Son of God is thus "the effulgence" of the divine glory. He is the Word, as the apostle John would tell us, and as the Word the revelation of the mind of God. "All things were made by Him; and without Him was not anything made that was made." Thus all creation has, of necessity, His stamp upon it. All forms of creation become the types and pictures of moral and spiritual truth. They are revelations, necessarily partial, which we must put together to have the full revelation; and for this, also, the Son of God, the Revealer, must take His place among His own creatures, that the display may have that measure which, if it be not (to our finite faculties) infinite, yet infers this, and, continually growing on us, has full competence for more than satisfaction, -for eternal delight.
Thus He is "the expression of His substance": He makes the invisible God. visible. We are not, by the display, diverted from Him of whom it is the display. It is God Himself we know and worship, in the Man Christ Jesus, -so near, so intimate with us, so perfect in condescending grace, yet in whose Presence the creature is necessarily abased; not put at a distance, but put in the place of entire dependence, to realize the upholding of infinite power. Thus it is said here: "Upholding all things by the word of His power." There is thus no thought in Scripture of a creation which shall be sufficient for itself, a perfect machine made to run eternally without the Hand that made it. How much would we be deprived of, if that were true! No, our dependence is just our link with the One who thus holds us up, the One whom as children we call Father, and who would make us know, in every outflow of His grace towards us, the pulsation of a Father’s heart.
Thus far it is of creation simply that the apostle speaks; but the creature is fallen, and thus needs a remedy which, in fact, only makes the glory of God more manifest, and brings out fully what love is in Himself. The Son has "made by Himself a purification of sins"; how wonderful a work, when we consider it! There, in depths where naturally there was "no standing," subject to the demands of divine holiness, which He had taken upon Himself, and which could only be met by the display of a moral perfection perfectly tested, and left to be tested, in that abyss of sorrow! Power there was not, for power of itself could be of no avail here. In Him there was the perfect surrender of Man to God, One crucified through weakness, and taking His place in a helplessness utterly foreign to Him, to conquer by the might of perfect goodness and nothing else.
There was none with Him, and could be none. "By Himself" He made "purification of sins." Act of others there was none in this, nor could be. All was between Him and the God whom He thus glorified in all His attributes, in the fulfilling of a work which should glorify Him forever. Thus must He rise, and did rise, out of those inconceivable depths, to the place where now He has "sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high." He has gone down and risen up, that He might fill all places, bringing in everywhere the grace which makes stable the unstable, and the saved sinner the very righteousness of God in Him. Thus indeed, then, is He made "so much superior to angels as he hath" even "inherited a more excellent name than they." All that He is is manifested in His work done, and His name now is the telling out of His Personal glory.
F. W. Grant, The Numerical Bible (4th ed., 1903) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
J. R. Dummelow 1909 · Public Domain On v1 The Supremacy of Christ. The OT. itself testifies to…
The Supremacy of Christ. The OT. itself testifies to His supremacy as God's Son over its own chief personages: (a) first the angels, through whom the Jews believed that creation had been effected and the Law given (Heb_1:4 to Heb_2:18).
He is also superior (b) to Moses, the founder of the national religion, yet only a servant, whereas He is a Son (Heb_3:1-6), He is superior (c) to Joshua. He has rest to give, which Christians are warned not to miss by unfaith-fukiess, as Israel missed the rest of Canaan, which was a type of the true rest of Christ's kingdom, and which they lost by provoking God in the wilderness. For there is no escape from God's judgments (Heb_3:7 to Heb_4:13).
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The Final Revelation in the Son
1-4. Introduction. God of old revealed Himself to the fathers of the race, but the revelation was not complete or final. In our own day He has given a direct revelation in the person of His own Son, the Lord and Creator of the universe, the perfect expression of the divine nature, who after His temporary humiliation upon earth, now occupies the highest place in the heavenly courts.
1. At sundry times and in divers manners] RV 'by divers portions and in divers manners.' The first clause refers to the fragmentariness of the previous revelation at any one time; it was given bit by bit; the second to the various forms in which it was conveyed, such as commandment, prophecy, ceremonial, etc. By the prophets] RV in the prophets,' a general term including the whole of the OT.
2. In these last days] RV 'At the end of these days.' The phrase that in OT. commonly indicates the Messianic age, is here varied so as to imply that the gospel times were the transition to that age. By his son] lit. 'in a Son'; i.e. in One who is by nature a Son: cp. Heb_3:6; Heb_5:8; Heb_7:28. Heir of all things] cp. Heb_2:8. The lordship of Christ over the universe was determined 'before all worlds,' and though it is not yet fully realised (Heb_2:8.), His session now at the right hand of God is the pledge of its ultimate realisation. Made the worlds] lit. 'the ages,' but not to be distinguished from 'all things': cp. Col_1:16. The expression, however, implies the idea of an historical manifestation of the creative energy.
3. Brightness] RV 'effulgence.' A favourite word in the language of philosophical schools of. Alexandria: cp. Wis_7:25. It contains the double notion of derivation and manifestation.
Express image of his person] RV 'very image of His substance.' The word rendered 'image' is the Gk. word 'character,' meaning an impression such as a seal leaves on wax, an exact reproduction of the original. The word 'substance' implies nothing material, but is nearly equivalent to 'nature' or 'essence.' Christ is the exact reproduction of the Divine Essence. He is the counterpart or facsimile of the Father. Being.. upholding] Both participles seem most properly to refer to the preincarnate life of the Son. On the right hand] the place of dignity and authority: cp. Heb_8:1; Mat_28:18. The 'sitting' indicates the completion of the earthly course of the redemptive work. The solemnity of the introductory paragraph is heightened by the use of the phrase' the Majesty on high.'
4. Being made] RV 'having become,' i.e. by His exaltation.
Better] a characteristic word of the whole Epistle, which is designed to show the superiority in all points of the new dispensation to the old. Cp. a 'better hope, ' Heb_7:19; 'better covenant,' 'better ministry,' 'better promises,' Heb_8:6; 'better tabernacle,' Heb_9:11; 'better sacrifices,' Heb_9:23; 'better possession,' Heb_10:34; 'better country,' Heb_11:16; 'better resurrection,' Heb_11:35; 'better thing,' Heb_11:40; 'better things,' Heb_12:24.
5-14. Christ is superior to the angels. They are not addressed by God as 'sons,' but are expressly commanded to worship the Son. The angels are servants doing the will of God in the lower sphere of the material world, and ministering to those who shall inherit salvation. And their power and dignity are not, as His, changeless and eternal.
5. Unto which of the angels] Angels are sometimes in the OT. called 'sons of Elohim,' e.g. in Job_1:6, i.e. belonging to the class 'Elohim: cp. 'sons of the prophets,' i.e. members of the prophetical class. 'Elohim,' at first a plural, meaning spiritual beings, was used as a singular to signify the one God, As used of the angels, the term does not imply sonship in the unique sense in which it is used of Christ. The first citation is from Psa_2:7, commonly interpreted as Messianic, and accepted as such by the writer and his readers. The second is from 2Sa_7:14 and Psa_89:26. God's promise to the line of Davidic kings is here applied to Messiah, as Son of David.
6. RV 'When he again bringeth in'; or, rather, 'shall have brought in.' The position of the adverb again indicates that it is to be connected with the verb, and is not a rhetorical particle introducing a new quotation. The reference is to a future event, evidently the Second Advent.
7. From Psa_104:4, according to LXX. The angels are not sons but servants, 'doing His pleasure' in the material world.
8. From Psa_45:6-7, here interpreted Messianically. The dominion of Christ, unlike that of the angels, is eternal. The Son is addressed as 'God,' butthere is some difficulty in regard to the exact reading of the first clause in the original. Some propose to read, 'Thy throne is God for ever and ever.' But this is harsh, and in any case the writer means to assert the unity of the Son with God.
9. Anointed] i.e. set in royal dignity. Thy fellows] The angels are meant here. As 'sons of Elohim' (see on Heb_1:5), they consort with the Son, though immeasurably inferior to Him.
10-12. From Psa_102:25. The Son is the Creator of the world (cp. Heb_1:2), and is above all change and decay. The reference to the material world here is perhaps facilitated by the close connexion of the angels with material phenomena (see Heb_1:7), and by the statement in Psa_102:2 that the worlds were created by the Son.
13, 14. The climax of the argument in Heb_1:4-12, and the scriptural corroboration of the statement in Heb_1:3. that Christ is Lord of all, and shares the dignity of the throne of God.
Ministering spirits] The angels do not rule; they only 'stand and wait.' They are the servants of God and of Christ, and that for the sake of all in OT, or NT. times who were to be heirs of salvation. The Son is the Author of the salvation to which Christians are destined; the angels are His agents and ministers.
J. R. Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (Macmillan, 1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Arno C. Gaebelein 1922 · Public Domain On v1 Analysis and Annotations
Analysis and Annotations
I. CHRIST, THE SON OF GOD AND His GLORY
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CHAPTER 1-2:4
1. The Son in whom God hath spoken (Heb 1:1-4)
2. So much better than the angels (Heb 1:5-14)
3. Admonition and warning (Heb 2:1-4)
Heb 1:1-6
Sublime is the beginning of this precious document. God who in many measures and in many ways spake of old to the fathers in the prophets, at the end of these days hath spoken to us in a Son, whom He constituted heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds; who being the effulgence of His glory and the expression of His substance, and upholding all things by the word of His power, having made (by Himself) purification of sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become so much better than the angels, as He hath by inheritance a name more excellent than they.”
it is an abrupt beginning with no words of introduction, no salutations or words of thanksgiving and prayer. Only one other Epistle begins in a similar way; the First Epistle of John. The foundation upon which all rests, the Word of God, is the first great statement we meet. It tells us that God has spoken of old to the fathers in the prophets. The prophets were not, as so often stated by the deniers of divine inspiration “Jewish patriots and visionaries,” but they were the mouthpiece of Jehovah “holy men of God who spake as they were moved by the Holy Spirit” (2Pe 1:21). The words they uttered are the words of God. And this is true of Moses, the author of the Pentateuch and of all the other instruments used in the production of the Old Testament scriptures. And He spoke in many measures (or parts) and in many ways, in histories, ordinances, divinely appointed institutions, visions, dreams and direct prophetic utterances, which have a fragmentary character; they are not in themselves complete and final. And therefore we find in this epistle the law, the prophets and the Psalms more frequently quoted than in any other portion of the New Testament.
It is a striking characteristic of Hebrews that the names of the prophets, like Moses, David, Isaiah, etc., are omitted. God is the speaker. He spoke in the prophets concerning Him, who is now fully revealed in His glory, that is His Son, the promised Messiah. Our Lord declared of the Old Testament scriptures “they are they which testify of Me.” (Joh 5:39). Before He ever came into the world He also bore witness of this fact “in the volume of the Book it is written of Me” (Heb 10:7). God’s speaking in the Old Testament culminated in the manifestation of this Person. “At the end of these days hath spoken to us in a (or the) Son.” The end of these days is the present dispensation as distinguished from the preceding Jewish dispensation. The words “to us” mean primarily in this epistle the children of the fathers to whom God spake by the prophets. (In a general way it applies, of course, to all believers during this dispensation. The opinion of some that Hebrews, the Epistle of James, the Epistles of Peter have no meaning and no message to the Church is pernicious.) “Jesus Christ was a minister of the circumcision for the truth of God to confirm the promises made unto the fathers” ( Rom 15:8). It was to the Jew first. He came to the lost sheep of the house of Israel and manifested in their midst the power of the kingdom promised to that nation. The Promised One came and God spoke in Him, who is God the Son. The original has no article in connection with the word “Son.” It is simply “in Son.” The reason for this omission is because the character of the One in whom God hath now spoken, and not so much the person, is to be emphasized. The prophets were servants, angels were servants, but He in whom God speaks now is Son; such is His relationship, one with God.
The declaration of the glory of His Sonship follows. He is eternally Son of God, the Only-Begotten, very God in eternity. He is Son of God in incarnation, taking on the form of man, making purification of sins and He is in resurrection the first begotten, declared Son of God by resurrection from among the dead. It is a marvellous revelation of Himself, corresponding to the similar statements in the beginning of the Gospel of John and the first chapter of Colossians. He is constituted the heir of all things as He created all things and is the creator. All things in heaven and on earth are His. He possesses all things which exist. This is God’s eternal purpose concerning Him. All things are by Him and for Him. By Him the worlds were made. (Literally “the ages”; Hellenists understood by it the universe. Its meaning then is equivalent to creation. It is used thus in the Greek translation of the Old Testament known as the Septuagint.) The vast universe is the work of His hands and He himself as very God is “the effulgence of His glory and the expression of His substance.” He makes the invisible God visible. He is the perfect impress of God; God is fully revealed in His person who came from glory and dwelt among men. Furthermore, He is upholding all things by the Word of His power.
And He who was all this, and is all this, became man, appeared on earth, assuming manhood, to accomplish the work which He alone could do. By Himself He made purification of sins. The Son of God alone did this and none was with Him. What a blessed, sure, eternally secure foundation of our salvation! The passage shows the personal and perfect competency of the Son of God to effect this mighty work. It was done on the cross, in the death in which He glorified God and which has glorified Him forever. And therefore He arose from the dead and “sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.” It is significant that nothing is said in the text of His resurrection, in the sense as it is spoken of in other scriptures, that God raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory (1Pe 1:21). Nor is it said that He was told to sit down, but He sat down and took Himself the exalted place at the right hand of God. It is presented in this way because His character as Son is here in view. The place He has taken at the right hand of the Majesty on high is only proper and possible for a divine person. The fact that He took this place and sat down attests the perfection, the completeness and acceptation of the work He undertook and finished on the cross. He is now on the throne of God. David’s throne and His own throne He will receive when as the First-Begotten He returns from the glory. Such is the Messiah, the Christ, promised to Israel; He is God, the creator and upholder of all things, the heir of all things, come down from heaven, in whom God spoke on earth and is still speaking from heaven, who made purification of sins and has gone back to heaven.
Constituted now heir of all things, destined according to God’s eternal decrees to be head of all things, He, as the glorified Man, has “become so much better than the angels, as He hath by inheritance a name more excellent than they.” The contrast between Him and angels is now made. The Epistle being addressed to Hebrews explains this comparison and contrast on Christ with angels. In the estimation of a Hebrew, next to Jehovah Himself, angels were looked upon as the highest and holiest beings. Then furthermore the law was given through angels (Act 7:53; Gal 3:19), and other angelic ministrations had been prominent in Israel’s history, so that these beings occupied a high place in the Jewish mind. But Christ, the man Christ Jesus, has become so much better than the angels; He is above the angels. His name is above every other name. He is on the right hand of the Majesty on high in the form and likeness of Man. As the Only-Begotten He is the creator of angels. In incarnation He was made a little lower than the angels, and now having finished the work for which He became man, He has received by inheritance that highest position and a more excellent name than angels. Into this wonderful place He takes His own people for whom He suffered and died. In Him all believers are above the angels. Angels are but servants, never said to occupy a throne, for they cannot reign. But Christ has a throne and His redeemed shall reign with Him.
Heb 1:5-14
Upon this the Spirit of God quotes seven passages from the Scriptures in which He speaks of Christ and His exaltation and glory in contrast with angels. All seven are taken from the book of Psalms. Psa 2:1-12; Psa 89:1-52; Psa 97:1-12; Psa 104:1-35; Psa 45:1-17; Psa 102:1-28; Psa 110:1-7. The destructive criticism declares that there are no Messianic predictions in the book of Psalms. That blessed portion of the Old Testament has suffered much from the hands of these destroyers of the faith. They say that the Second, the Forty-fifth, and the One hundred and tenth Psalms have nothing to say about Christ, that the King mentioned in these psalms was some other unknown King, but not the King Messiah. How significant that the Holy Spirit quotes now from these very psalms telling us that the Messiah, Christ, is predicted in them. The Hebrews had no difficulty in accepting this for they know these psalms speak of the promised Messiah. (The Lord Jesus used the One hundred tenth Psalm in confounding the Pharisees. He showed that that Psalm speaks of Himself and that it is the testimony of the Spirit. Such is “higher criticism”; it sets aside the testimony of the Son of God and the Spirit of God.)
The first quotation is from the Second Psalm. Never did God address angels in the way He is addressed of whom this psalm bears witness. “Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten Thee.” This psalm reveals the royal glory and world-wide dominion of Christ, the one whom the people ( Israel ) and the nations reject. He is to be enthroned as King upon the holy hill of Zion. As Son He will receive the nations for His inheritance and the uttermost parts of the earth for His possession. The title here refers to His incarnation, and, secondarily, to His resurrection from the dead (Act 13:33-34). It is therefore not the fact of His eternal sonship which is before us in this statement; it speaks of Him as Son of God in time. The eternal Son of God became incarnate; but this did not lower His eternal Sonship. It is therefore His birth, His entrance into the world of which this psalm bears witness. “But it is of all moment for the truth and His own personal dignity to remember that His Sonship when incarnate as well as in resurrection is based on His eternal relationship as Son, without which the other could not have been.”
Psa 89:26, 2Sa 7:14 and 1Ch 17:13 are mentioned next. It brings out the relationship in which the incarnate Son of God, the promised Messiah, is with God. God accepts and owns Him. “I will be to Him a Father and He shall be to me a Son.” And this relationship was audibly declared and confirmed at His baptism and when on the mount of transfiguration. Such a relationship could never be the portion of angels. In Psa 89:27 His future glory is made known as it is in the second psalm. “Also I will make Him, my Firstborn, higher than the Kings of the earth.” He is the Firstborn; He will have the preeminence.
The next quotation and argument is from Psa 97:7. “And again when He brings in the Firstborn into the habitable earth, He saith, let all the angels of God worship Him.” This no longer refers to His incarnation, but to His second coming. He is to be brought into the world and then He will receive the worship of the angels of God. Some have applied this to His first coming. But then He came as the “Only-Begotten” and was sent into the world. Here it is said that as the First-Begotten (from the dead) He will be brought into the world. He, who was cast out from the world and rejected by man, will reenter it in power and glory; God will bring Him back into the habitable earth. When this event takes place the angels will bow in worship before Him, for He comes with His holy angels. It is therefore not His first advent, but His second, which is here contemplated. When He was born, angels praised the sender and not the sent One, but when He comes again He will be the object of angelic worship. This shows His glorious superiority to all the angels.
Psa 104:1-35 speaks of angels as servants. “He maketh His angels spirits, and His ministers a flame of fire.” They are spirit and not flesh. They are made to do His will and can never be anything else but servants. And then the contrast is shown what the Son is by the quotation from the Forty-fifth Psalm. Angels are servants and cannot reign nor can they ever occupy a throne, “but unto the Son He saith, Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever, a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of Thy kingdom.” He is addressed as God in this psalm in which He is revealed as the coming King Messiah. He has a throne which is forever and ever, and as Messiah, and the promised King, He will have an earthly throne and rule with a sceptre of righteousness, He loved righteousness and hated iniquity when down here and therefore He is anointed with the oil of gladness above His fellows. Thus we learn from this psalm His deity. He has a throne forever and ever. His humanity: He was on earth and loved righteousness and hated iniquity. Who are the fellows mentioned? Angels are not His fellows and could not be. His fellows are all they who are made one with Him through grace and who will be ultimately conformed to His image. It includes the believing remnant of Israel and all who put their trust in Him.
“This is a remarkable passage, because, while on the one hand the divinity of the Lord is fully established as well as His eternal throne, on the other hand the passage comes down to His character as the faithful man on earth, where He made pious men--the little remnant of Israel who waited for redemption, His companions; at the same time it gives Him (and it could not be otherwise) a place above them” (Synopsis of the Bible).
Still more remarkable is the sixth quotation from Psa 102:1-28. Wonderful as His glory is in the Forty-fifth Psalm, the One hundred second Psalm surpasseth it. No human being would have ever known the real meaning of this psalm if it had not pleased the Spirit of God to give it in this chapter. The little word “and” shows that in Psa 102:25-27 the Son of God is addressed by God as the creator of all things. It is Jehovah’s answer to the prayer of His Son suffering as man and dying. “He weakened my strength in the way; He shortened my days. I said, O my God, take me not away in the midst of my days, Thy years are throughout all generations.” These words as well as Psa 102:1-11 in this psalm are the expressions of the Man of Sorrows, the suffering Messiah. And Jehovah answers Him and owns Him in His humiliation, approaching the death of the cross, as the Creator. He was ever the same; His years cannot fail. He, the Son of God, had laid the foundation of the earth and the heavens are the works of His hands. And He will do, as the Sovereign One, what God attributes to Him. “They shall perish, but Thou abidest; they shall grow old as doth a garment; and as a vesture shalt Thou roll them up, and they shall be changed, but Thou art the same, and Thy years shall not fail.” Such is He, whose glory the Spirit of God reveals in the Holy Scriptures, who became Man, suffered and died, and risen from the dead, sits at the right hand of God. He is the unchangeable One, creator and sustainer of the universe.
The final quotation is from the One hundred and tenth Psalm, which is more frequently quoted in this Epistle than elsewhere. The preceding psalm, the One hundred and ninth, predicts His rejection by His own. In the opening verse of this psalm the Messiah is seen again in His deity and humanity. He is David’s Lord and David’s Son. His work is finished on earth. He has taken His place of rest (the symbol of the work done) sitting down at His right hand and waiting for the hour when God makes His enemies the footstool of his feet by bringing in again the First-begotten into the world. To no angel did God ever say, “Sit on My right hand.”
Once more are angels spoken of as ministers. “Are they not all ministering spirits sent forth to minister to them who shall be heirs of salvation?” They minister now to those who are the heirs of salvation, who bear the title of sons in His Son and who possess His life. How little God’s people make use of this comfort. An active and simple faith is needed to perceive in what men carelessly regard as accidents of time and place, the positive workings of angels’ ministry. They minister to God’s people now in a way unknown to us. “It is a truth which brings the shadow of God’s majesty with a peculiar nearness over the believer’s soul. That we are seen of angels is an assurance to which the Spirit elsewhere practically bids us heed (1Co 11:10). A happy thought, yet one of sobering effect to be thus seen; to be the objects of near gaze, and very contact, to those holy visitants of watchful love, who, standing as the bright apparitions of heavenly majesty beside the throne on which the Son of God now rests, are sent forth to speed upon their way the pilgrim brethren of the Lord” (A. Pridham).
Heb 2:1-4
This is the first parenthetical exhortation of this epistle, well suited to the condition of those Hebrews to whom it was first addressed. They are exhorted to give more earnest heed to the things which they had heard, that is, the gospel of salvation in this Christ, whose glory is displayed in the opening chapter. This salvation was at first spoken by the Lord when He was on earth. He began its proclamation. It was continued by those who heard Him, that is by His apostles, and finally God the Holy Spirit had put His witness to it with signs and wonders and gifts. If then the word spoken through angels (the law dispensation) was steadfast and every transgression and disobedience received a just retribution, “How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?” It is a warning to Jews who were halting between two opinions and to those who had in a measure accepted outwardly the truth of Christianity without having laid hold in earnest and in faith of that salvation. If this great salvation, which God offers now not through angels, but in His Son, is rejected or neglected there can be no escape.
Arno C. Gaebelein, The Annotated Bible (1913–1922) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v1 The perfect revelation of God in Christ:
The perfect revelation of God in Christ:
v. 1. God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
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v. 2. hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son, whom He hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also He made the worlds;
v. 3. who, being the brightness of His glory and the express image of His person, and upholding all things by the word of His power, when he had by Himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high.
These introductory words set forth the fundamental thought of the entire letter, the supreme article of faith and of the divinity of Christ, as Luther writes, not only on the basis of one fact, but from a large number of facts concerning both the person and the work of Jesus. In stately grandeur the letter opens: In many parts and in many ways God long ago, having spoken to our fathers in the prophets, at the end of these days spoke also to us in His Son. In many ways God spoke of old: He did not give the revelation of the salvation to come at one time and in its entirety, but piecemeal, bit by bit, now showing one fact concerning the coming Messiah and now another, revealing first the fact that He would be born of a woman, then that He would be of the seed of Abraham, then that Judah was to be His progenitor, then that He was to be a son of David: at other times picturing His office in His deepest humiliation, then again in the highest triumph of His exaltation. In many ways God spoke of old: sometimes by the institution of a rite or sacrifice, sometimes by parable, sometimes in a psalm, sometimes in a dream or vision. Thus God spoke to the Jews of old, in the times of long ago. But that was not His final speech and revelation. The perfect revelation, the clear statement of His good and gracious will toward mankind, so far as it is possible for men to know and understand it by the Spirit of God, came at last, at the end of the days or age of prophecy, in the fullness of time. The revelation made in and by Jesus Christ represents the last time and the final manner in which God chooses to speak to us before the Day of Judgment. To us He has spoken who belong to these days, to the Christian dispensation, the subject of the great final revelation being His only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, who Himself has made known to us the Father and the Father’s counsel of love.
Of this Son, Jesus Christ, the inspired writer gives a marvelous description: Whom He has appointed Heir of all things, through whom He also made the worlds. It should be noted here, as Luther remarks, that everything that is said of Christ’s humiliation and exaltation must be ascribed to the man, for the divine nature can be neither humiliated nor exalted. The man Jesus Christ, the Son of God according to His human nature, has been appointed by God the Heir of all things. It was God’s will that Christ, also according to His humanity, should be Lord over all, and that all created things, the entire universe, should be subject to Him and be laid at His feet, Psa 2:8; Psa 8:6; 1Co 15:27; Php 2:9-11. For as the Son of God, also after His incarnation, He is the rightful Heir of the eternal God. That is one proof for the deity of Christ. But this is supplemented by the statement that God made the worlds through Him, created all the parts of the universe as we know it through His almighty power, Joh 1:3; Col 1:16. Jesus Christ, the second person of the Godhead, distinct from the Father as to person, is nevertheless one with Him in essence, Himself the Creator of the world.
But the miracles are not pet exhausted: He, being the splendor of His glory and the express image of His nature, bearing everything by the word of His power, having accomplished the purification of our sins, sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. Christ is the splendor, the effulgence of God’s glory, just as when light-rays come out from a luminous body and form a similar light-body themselves, without, however, diminishing the brightness and power of the original light. It is God’s glory, the resplendent beauty of His majesty, the wonderful essence of God Himself, which the Son reveals. But he that is familiar with the essence of God to such an extent must Himself have penetrated into the innermost mysteries of the divine essence and be true God Himself. He is also an exact impression, the express image of the divine essence and nature, His every quality and attribute identifying Him as true God with the Father. There is in the Father nothing which is not reproduced in the Son; the two persons are identical in essence. Therefore it is also said of Jesus that He bears, upholds, all things by the word of His power. Not only the creation, but also the preservation and government of the world, providence, is ascribed to Him, Col 1:17. This function was discharged by Him even during His life on earth; He never ceased to exercise the rights and privileges of King in the Kingdom of Power. More important, however, in the eyes of the believers is the fact that He has also accomplished the purification of our sins by offering Himself as the adequate sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the whole world, Col 1:14; Col 2:14; 2Co 5:19, and that His work of reconciliation has been received by the Father, in token of which the Son has been admitted, also according to His human nature, into the full and equal possession of the divine essence and the discharge of its functions, since He sat down at the right hand of the majesty of God the Father, assuming for Himself the sovereign majesty inherent in God, Psa 110:1; Eph 1:20-22. Christ now exercises the fullness of the divine power and honor, universal dominion over all created beings, also according to His human nature. We have here, then, another proof for the deity of Jesus Christ.
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On v1 General Information:
General Information:
Although this letter does not mention the recipients to whom it was sent, the author wrote particularly to Hebrews (Jews), who would have understood the many Old Testament references.
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General Information:
This prologue lays the background for the whole book: the unsurpassing greatness of the Son — the Son is greater than all. The book begins with emphasizing that the Son is better than the prophets and the angels.
in these last days
"in these final days." This phrase refers to the time when Jesus began his ministry, extending until God establishes his complete rule in his creation.
through a Son
"Son" here is an important title for Jesus, the Son of God. (See: Translating Son and Father)
to be the heir of all things
The author speaks of the Son as if he will inherit wealth and property from his Father. AT: "to possess all things" (See: Metaphor)
It is through him that God also made the universe
"It is through the Son that God also made all things"
the brightness of God's glory
"the light of his glory." God's glory is associated with a very bright light. The author is saying that the Son embodies that light and fully represents God's glory.
glory, the exact representation of his being
"glory, the image of God's being." The "the exact representation of his being" is similar in meaning to "the brightness of God's glory." The Son embodies the character and essence of God and fully represents everything that God is. AT: "glory and is just like God" or "glory, and what is true about God is true about the Son"
the word of his power
"his powerful word." Here "word" refers to a message or command. AT: "his powerful command" (See: Metonymy)
After he had made cleansing for sins
The abstract noun "cleansing" can be expressed as a verb: "making clean." AT: "After he had finished making us clean from sins" or "After he had finished purifying us from our sins" (See: Abstract Nouns)
he had made cleansing for sins
The author speaks of forgiving sins as if it were making a person clean. AT: "he had made it possible for God to forgive our sins" (See: Metaphor)
he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high
To sit at the "right hand of God" is a symbolic action of receiving great honor and authority from God. AT: "he sat down at the place of honor and authority beside the Majesty on high" (See: Symbolic Action)
the Majesty on high
Here "Majesty" refers to God. AT: "God Most High" (See: Metonymy)
translationWords
God
ancestor
prophet
Son of God
appoint
heir
Son of God
glory
word of God
power
clean
sin
right hand
majesty
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv1–3 1:1-4 Ancient sermons often began with an introduction meant…
1:1-4 Ancient sermons often began with an introduction meant to grab the hearer’s attention and introduce the sermon’s main topics. In Hebrews, the first four verses form a single, eloquent Greek sentence built around the main clause, God . . . has spoken. Most English translations present these verses as several sentences for ease of reading.
1:1-2 Long ago. . . . And now: These verses deal with two time periods in which God has spoken, addressing the differences between the two eras in parallel fashion.
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1:1 Long ago referred to the time before the Messiah’s coming. For the author of Hebrews, this primarily meant the Old Testament era. Throughout that past era, God spoke many times and in many ways—through dreams, visions, mighty acts, stories, commands, exhortations, angelic appearances, and appearances of God himself. • The prophets were all those through whom God gave his revelation (see 2 Pet 1:19-21).
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.