Ibrani 1:1-4

Introduction: God Has Spoken Fully and Finally in His Son

1:1 After God spoke long ago ¹  in various portions ²  and in various ways ³  to our ancestors ⁴  through the prophets, 1:2 in these last days he has spoken to us in a son, ⁵  whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he created the world. ⁶  1:3 The Son is ⁷  the radiance of his glory and the representation of his essence, and he sustains all things by his powerful word, ⁸  and so when he had accomplished cleansing for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. ⁹  1:4 Thus he became ¹⁰  so far better than the angels as ¹¹  he has inherited a name superior to theirs.

Ibrani 2:5-12

Exposition of Psalm 8: Jesus and the Destiny of Humanity

2:5 For he did not put the world to come, ¹²  about which we are speaking, ¹³  under the control of angels. 2:6 Instead someone testified somewhere:

“What is man that you think of him ¹⁴  or the son of man that you care for him?

2:7 You made him lower than the angels for a little while.

You crowned him with glory and honor. ¹⁵ 

2:8 You put all things under his control.” ¹⁶ 

For when he put all things under his control, he left nothing outside of his control. At present we do not yet see all things under his control, ¹⁷  2:9 but we see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, ¹⁸  now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, ¹⁹  so that by God’s grace he would experience ²⁰  death on behalf of everyone. 2:10 For it was fitting for him, for whom and through whom all things exist, ²¹  in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer ²²  of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 2:11 For indeed he who makes holy and those being made holy all have the same origin, ²³  and so ²⁴  he is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, ²⁵  2:12 saying, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers; ²⁶  in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.” ²⁷ 

[1:1]  ¹ tn Or “spoke formerly.”

[1:1]  ² tn Or “parts.” The idea is that God’s previous revelation came in many parts and was therefore fragmentary or partial (L&N 63.19), in comparison with the final and complete revelation contained in God’s Son. However, some interpret πολυμερῶς (polumerw") in Heb 1:1 to mean “on many different occasions” and would thus translate “many times” (L&N 67.11). This is the option followed by the NIV: “at many times and in various ways.” Finally, this word is also understood to refer to the different manners in which something may be done, and would then be translated “in many different ways” (L&N 89.81). In this last case, the two words πολυμερῶς and πολυτρόπως (polutropw") mutually reinforce one another (“in many and various ways,” NRSV).

[1:1]  ³ tn These two phrases are emphasized in Greek by being placed at the beginning of the sentence and by alliteration.

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Grk “to the fathers.”

[1:2]  ⁵ tn The Greek puts an emphasis on the quality of God’s final revelation. As such, it is more than an indefinite notion (“a son”) though less than a definite one (“the son”), for this final revelation is not just through any son of God, nor is the emphasis specifically on the person himself. Rather, the focus here is on the nature of the vehicle of God’s revelation: He is no mere spokesman (or prophet) for God, nor is he merely a heavenly messenger (or angel); instead, this final revelation comes through one who is intimately acquainted with the heavenly Father in a way that only a family member could be. There is, however, no exact equivalent in English (“in son” is hardly good English style).

[1:2]  sn The phrase in a son is the fulcrum of Heb 1:1-4. It concludes the contrast of God’s old and new revelation and introduces a series of seven descriptions of the Son. These descriptions show why he is the ultimate revelation of God.

[1:2]  ⁶ tn Grk “the ages.” The temporal (ages) came to be used of the spatial (what exists in those time periods). See Heb 11:3 for the same usage.

[1:3]  ⁷ tn Grk “who being…and sustaining.” Heb 1:1-4 form one skillfully composed sentence in Greek, but it must be broken into shorter segments to correspond to contemporary English usage, which does not allow for sentences of this length and complexity.

[1:3]  ⁸ tn Grk “by the word of his power.”

[1:3]  ⁹ sn An allusion to Ps 110:1, quoted often in Hebrews.

[1:4]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “having become.” This is part of the same sentence that extends from v. 1 through v. 4 in the Greek text.

[1:4]  ¹¹ tn Most modern English translations attempt to make the comparison somewhat smoother by treating “name” as if it were the subject of the second element: “as the name he has inherited is superior to theirs” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, CEV). However, the Son is the subject of both the first and second elements: “he became so far better”; “he has inherited a name.” The present translation maintains this parallelism even though it results in a somewhat more awkward rendering.

[1:4]  sn This comparison is somewhat awkward to express in English, but it reflects an important element in the argument of Hebrews: the superiority of Jesus Christ.

[2:5]  ¹² sn The phrase the world to come means “the coming inhabited earth,” using the Greek term which describes the world of people and their civilizations.

[2:5]  ¹³ sn See the previous reference to the world in Heb 1:6.

[2:6]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “remember him.”

[2:7]  ¹⁵ tc Several witnesses, many of them early and important (א A C D* P Ψ 0243 0278 33 1739 1881 al lat co), have at the end of v 7, “You have given him dominion over the works of your hands.” Other mss, not quite as impressive in weight, lack the words (Ì⁴⁶ B D² Ï). In spite of the impressive external evidence for the longer reading, it is most likely a scribal addition to conform the text of Hebrews to Ps 8:6 (8:7 LXX). Conformity of a NT quotation of the OT to the LXX was a routine scribal activity, and can hardly be in doubt here as to the cause of the longer reading.

[2:8]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “you subjected all things under his feet.”

[2:8]  sn A quotation from Ps 8:4-6.

[2:8]  ¹⁷ sn The expression all things under his control occurs three times in 2:8. The latter two occurrences are not exactly identical to the Greek text of Ps 8:6 quoted at the beginning of the verse, but have been adapted by the writer of Hebrews to fit his argument.

[2:9]  ¹⁸ tn Or “who was made a little lower than the angels.”

[2:9]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “because of the suffering of death.”

[2:9]  ²⁰ tn Grk “would taste.” Here the Greek verb does not mean “sample a small amount” (as a typical English reader might infer from the word “taste”), but “experience something cognitively or emotionally; come to know something” (cf. BDAG 195 s.v. γεύομαι 2).

[2:10]  ²¹ tn Grk “for whom are all things and through whom are all things.”

[2:10]  ²² sn The Greek word translated pioneer is used of a “prince” or leader, the representative head of a family. It also carries nuances of “trailblazer,” one who breaks through to new ground for those who follow him. It is used some thirty-five times in the Greek OT and four times in the NT, always of Christ (Acts 3:15; 5:31; Heb 2:10; 12:2).

[2:11]  ²³ tn Grk “are all from one.”

[2:11]  ²⁴ tn Grk “for which reason.”

[2:11]  ²⁵ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited). The context here also indicates both men and women are in view; note especially the collective τὰ παιδία (ta paidia) in v. 14.

[2:12]  ²⁶ tn Here, because of its occurrence in an OT quotation, τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς (tois adelfois) has been translated simply as “brothers” rather than “brothers and sisters” (see the note on the latter phrase in the previous verse).

[2:12]  ²⁷ sn A quotation from Ps 22:22.