Heb 1:5 | KingComments | STEP | It will be a good thing to reflect for a moment on how the Lord Jesus is presented in this letter. It is not simple to distinguish His various glories. He is, after all, God and Man in one Person. I will try to explain something about it. From the previous verses you have understood that He is now seated as Man in heaven. He has taken His seat there as Man, after He had accomplished the purification of sins through His work on the cross. Before that time He indeed was in heaven, but not as Man. He was not eternally Man. He became that through His birth on the earth. John speaks about “Jesus Christ [as] coming in the flesh” ( ) and about “the Word became flesh” ( ). Thus the Lord Jesus existed, for He is the eternal Son of the eternal Father, but He became Man, or, as John says, ‘came in the flesh’ or ‘became flesh’. That can only be said of a person who has been there already, but now comes in a different way. And how did that happen? God the Holy Spirit conceived Him in Mary ( ). Therefore the Lord Jesus is the Son of God in two ways. First, He is God the Son from all eternity. Second, He became Son in a new way through His birth on the earth. Also as Man He could call God His Father. His eternal Sonship is present throughout this letter. Sometimes this also comes forward, as in the previous verses in His glory as Creator and as Bearer of all things. But in this letter the emphasis is mainly on the fact that He is the Son of God as Man . In His Person countless glories are present. As limited people we cannot see the extent of all those glories as a whole. We can see them ‘in part’ ( ), which means that we are able to see and admire just a part of that glory at a time. This is how the writer approaches this issue here. . We go back to our study of chapter 1. We have come to , where the writer connects to the foregoing by now comparing the glory of the Son to the angels. Angels used to have an exceptional place in the Judaic system. The earthly people of God received the law through angels ( ; ). And when the Lord (Yahweh) appeared in the Old Testament He did that normally also in the form of an angel, as the Angel of the Lord. To a Jew the angels were the highest beings next to God. They deeply respected them. John for example wanted to worship an angel ( ). To a Jew a human being was much lower than an angel. Now the Lord Jesus became Man. So He is in heaven. That presents a problem for the mind of the Jew. Christ became Man and yet is He more than the angels? As the eternal Son and also as Creator He has always been exalted above the angels. The Jews, however, still had to develop a sense for the fact that He is still above the angels as Man and this because He is the Son of God as Man. To the angels that was not an issue. They saw in Him, also when He was as Man on earth, their Lord and Master. Angels honored Him at His birth ( ). And during His life they served Him and were ready to do that ( ; ). Now as Man He has returned to heaven, ‘on high’ ( ), where He had always been as the eternal Son. There God granted Him a glory He did not have before that time. By taking this place as Man, a dimension has been added to the distance in glory which was there between Him and the angels. That is indicated by the words “so much better”. Here is also mention of ‘become’ something, which indicates that it was not present before. The distance between Him and the angels has always been immeasurably great and cannot grow greater. But His excellence above the angels can indeed get more emphasis. That happens by the new name He has inherited. That name is given to Him by God after He had died – an inheritance is indeed connected to death –, was risen and had returned to heaven. It is the Name above every name ( ). Then the moment has come for the writer to prove His excellence above the angels. For that purpose he quotes many portions from the Old Testament that speak of the Messiah. The believers to whom he wrote were familiar with that. The verses quoted should persuade them. They give a unanimous testimony. In seven quotations from the Old Testament – specifically the Greek translation of that (the Septuagint) – the excellence, which is beyond all things, of the Son is shown. To make yourself aware of the power of these quotations you ought to step into the shoes of the believing Jew. This also is not a simple section, but your effort to conceive something of it will be rewarded abundantly. It took me quite a while before I succeeded to comprehend a bit about how impressive this testimony from the Old Testament is. First of all I will give you the quotations in a row: 1. He is higher than the angels and is worshiped by them ( , with quotations from (1) ; (2) ; (3) ); 2. His throne is forever and ever and therefore exalted above all thrones ( , with quotations from (4) ; (5) ); 3. He is exalted above His companions ( , with a quotation from (5) ); 4. He is exalted above His creation, for there comes an end to that ( , with a quotation from (6) ); 5. He is exalted above the time ( , with a quotation from (6) ); 6. He is exalted above His enemies ( , with a quotation from (7) ); and once again: 7. He is exalted above the angels ( , with a quotation from (7) ). In these quotations you also see a chronological order. They are about 1. His birth ( ), 2. His presence on earth in fellowship with the Father ( ), 3. His return into the world ( ), 4. His kingdom in the millennium ( ) and 5. the eternal situation after the millennium ( ). . The first proof text ( ) shows the superiority of the Son above the angels by pointing at His position as Son. God has never said to a certain angel personally: “You are My Son.” Angels were indeed called sons of God ( ; ), but then it is about sons as creatures, like Adam, who is also called son of God ( ). Here the name ‘Son’ is given to the Messiah, born on earth. It is therefore about His relation in time. He has been through eternity the eternal Son of the eternal Father and now His relation as Son born on earth is added to that since His birth. There are people who are teaching that He only became Son when He was born, while His eternal Sonship is denied. However, if He first and only became Son by His birth, then the order in Psalm 2 ( ) should have been: ‘I have begotten You, You are My Son.’ However, first it is written: “You are My Son.” Then it is determined that that Son was “begotten”, which means, He became Man. In this way the eternal relation is determined first and thereafter the new relation. . The second quotation ( ; ) is written in the future tense: “I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son.” That cannot possibly refer to His relation to His Father in eternity, for that has no beginning. It refers to His relation in time, from His birth. God makes clear here how the Messiah will be related to Him. These words relate primarily to Solomon, the son of David. Solomon is an example of the Lord Jesus as the Prince of Peace. Therefore the Holy Spirit can quote and apply these verses to the Son of David, the Lord Jesus (cf. ). An application to angels is impossible. Do you know to whom this quotation is also applied? To you and me! Just read what is written in 2 Corinthians 6 ( ). In the context of that section, it is about behaving in such a way that God really can call Himself your Father and that He can acknowledge you as His son or daughter. Then you look like the Lord Jesus, Who He also calls Son. Now read Hebrews 1:4-5 again. Reflection: What have you learnt about the difference between the Lord Jesus and the angels?

‏ Hebrews 1:5

The Son Far Above the Angels (I)

It will be a good thing to reflect for a moment on how the Lord Jesus is presented in this letter. It is not simple to distinguish His various glories. He is, after all, God and Man in one Person. I will try to explain something about it. From the previous verses you have understood that He is now seated as Man in heaven. He has taken His seat there as Man, after He had accomplished the purification of sins through His work on the cross.

Before that time He indeed was in heaven, but not as Man. He was not eternally Man. He became that through His birth on the earth. John speaks about “Jesus Christ [as] coming in the flesh” (2Jn 1:7) and about “the Word became flesh” (Jn 1:14). Thus the Lord Jesus existed, for He is the eternal Son of the eternal Father, but He became Man, or, as John says, ‘came in the flesh’ or ‘became flesh’. That can only be said of a person who has been there already, but now comes in a different way.

And how did that happen? God the Holy Spirit conceived Him in Mary (Lk 1:35). Therefore the Lord Jesus is the Son of God in two ways. First, He is God the Son from all eternity. Second, He became Son in a new way through His birth on the earth. Also as Man He could call God His Father.

His eternal Sonship is present throughout this letter. Sometimes this also comes forward, as in the previous verses in His glory as Creator and as Bearer of all things. But in this letter the emphasis is mainly on the fact that He is the Son of God as Man. In His Person countless glories are present. As limited people we cannot see the extent of all those glories as a whole. We can see them ‘in part’ (1Cor 13:9), which means that we are able to see and admire just a part of that glory at a time. This is how the writer approaches this issue here.

Heb 1:4. We go back to our study of chapter 1. We have come to Heb 1:4, where the writer connects to the foregoing by now comparing the glory of the Son to the angels. Angels used to have an exceptional place in the Judaic system. The earthly people of God received the law through angels (Acts 7:53; Gal 3:19). And when the Lord (Yahweh) appeared in the Old Testament He did that normally also in the form of an angel, as the Angel of the Lord.

To a Jew the angels were the highest beings next to God. They deeply respected them. John for example wanted to worship an angel (Rev 19:10 ; Rev 22:8-9). To a Jew a human being was much lower than an angel. Now the Lord Jesus became Man. So He is in heaven. That presents a problem for the mind of the Jew. Christ became Man and yet is He more than the angels?

As the eternal Son and also as Creator He has always been exalted above the angels. The Jews, however, still had to develop a sense for the fact that He is still above the angels as Man and this because He is the Son of God as Man. To the angels that was not an issue. They saw in Him, also when He was as Man on earth, their Lord and Master. Angels honored Him at His birth (Lk 2:10 ; 13-14). And during His life they served Him and were ready to do that (Mt 4:11 ; Mt 26:53; 1Tim 3:16).

Now as Man He has returned to heaven, ‘on high’ (Heb 1:3), where He had always been as the eternal Son. There God granted Him a glory He did not have before that time. By taking this place as Man, a dimension has been added to the distance in glory which was there between Him and the angels. That is indicated by the words “so much better”.

Here is also mention of ‘become’ something, which indicates that it was not present before. The distance between Him and the angels has always been immeasurably great and cannot grow greater. But His excellence above the angels can indeed get more emphasis. That happens by the new name He has inherited. That name is given to Him by God after He had died – an inheritance is indeed connected to death –, was risen and had returned to heaven. It is the Name above every name (Phil 2:9).

Then the moment has come for the writer to prove His excellence above the angels. For that purpose he quotes many portions from the Old Testament that speak of the Messiah. The believers to whom he wrote were familiar with that. The verses quoted should persuade them. They give a unanimous testimony. In seven quotations from the Old Testament – specifically the Greek translation of that (the Septuagint) – the excellence, which is beyond all things, of the Son is shown.

To make yourself aware of the power of these quotations you ought to step into the shoes of the believing Jew. This also is not a simple section, but your effort to conceive something of it will be rewarded abundantly. It took me quite a while before I succeeded to comprehend a bit about how impressive this testimony from the Old Testament is. First of all I will give you the quotations in a row:

1. He is higher than the angels and is worshiped by them (Heb 1:4-6, with quotations from (1) Psa 2:7; (2) 1Chr 17:13; (3) Psa 97:7);

2. His throne is forever and ever and therefore exalted above all thrones (Heb 1:7-8, with quotations from (4) Psa 104:4; (5) Psa 45:7);

3. He is exalted above His companions (Heb 1:9, with a quotation from (5) Psa 45:8);

4. He is exalted above His creation, for there comes an end to that (Heb 1:10-12, with a quotation from (6) Psa 102:26);

5. He is exalted above the time (Heb 1:12, with a quotation from (6) Psa 102:27-28);

6. He is exalted above His enemies (Heb 1:13, with a quotation from (7) Psa 110:1); and once again:

7. He is exalted above the angels (Heb 1:13-14, with a quotation from (7) Psa 110:1).

In these quotations you also see a chronological order. They are about

1. His birth (Heb 1:5a),

2. His presence on earth in fellowship with the Father (Heb 1:5b),

3. His return into the world (Heb 1:6),

4. His kingdom in the millennium (Heb 1:8) and

5. the eternal situation after the millennium (Heb 1:11).

Heb 1:5a. The first proof text (Psa 2:7) shows the superiority of the Son above the angels by pointing at His position as Son. God has never said to a certain angel personally: “You are My Son.” Angels were indeed called sons of God (Gen 6:2; Job 1:6), but then it is about sons as creatures, like Adam, who is also called son of God (Lk 3:38). Here the name ‘Son’ is given to the Messiah, born on earth. It is therefore about His relation in time. He has been through eternity the eternal Son of the eternal Father and now His relation as Son born on earth is added to that since His birth.

There are people who are teaching that He only became Son when He was born, while His eternal Sonship is denied. However, if He first and only became Son by His birth, then the order in Psalm 2 (Psa 2:7) should have been: ‘I have begotten You, You are My Son.’ However, first it is written: “You are My Son.” Then it is determined that that Son was “begotten”, which means, He became Man. In this way the eternal relation is determined first and thereafter the new relation.

Heb 1:5b. The second quotation (2Sam 7:14; 1Chr 17:13) is written in the future tense: “I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son.” That cannot possibly refer to His relation to His Father in eternity, for that has no beginning. It refers to His relation in time, from His birth. God makes clear here how the Messiah will be related to Him.

These words relate primarily to Solomon, the son of David. Solomon is an example of the Lord Jesus as the Prince of Peace. Therefore the Holy Spirit can quote and apply these verses to the Son of David, the Lord Jesus (cf. Mt 1:1). An application to angels is impossible.

Do you know to whom this quotation is also applied? To you and me! Just read what is written in 2 Corinthians 6 (2Cor 6:18). In the context of that section, it is about behaving in such a way that God really can call Himself your Father and that He can acknowledge you as His son or daughter. Then you look like the Lord Jesus, Who He also calls Son.

Now read Hebrews 1:4-5 again.

Reflection: What have you learnt about the difference between the Lord Jesus and the angels?