Hebrews 1
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God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
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;
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:
4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
5 For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?
6 And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.
7 And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.
8 But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.
9 Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
10 And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
11 They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
12 And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.
13 But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool?
14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?
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Commentary
Hebrews reminds me of when I dated the beautiful girl who would later be my wife. For two years we lived far away from each other. Phone calls, though expensive, were very precious to us. (Internet and email were still not available.) Thus whenever I received the news that Alma was calling, I would run down the stairs from the third floor where I lived to be sure that I did not lose that call!
God’s message is important for two reasons: the messenger and the message. Vs. 3–4 focus on the Son, the messenger. There are seven assertions about him. Some refer to his impressive accomplishments (creation, sustainment of the world, etc.) but others refer to the astonishing fact that the Son is one with God. This oneness is necessary, because only one who is God could explain the things that are deep in the heart of God.
It is deeply moving to think that God would use his own Son to speak to us and invite us to return to him. If he did not spare any effort and cost to get his message to us, we should run to him to be sure that we don’t lose that message.
Felix H. Cortez
Andrews University
United States
