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Jesus Christ Is God’s Son

Long ago God spoke many times and in many ways to our ancestors through the prophets. And now in these final days, he has spoken to us through his Son. God promised everything to the Son as an inheritance, and through the Son he created the universe. The Son radiates God’s own glory and expresses the very character of God, and he sustains everything by the mighty power of his command. When he had cleansed us from our sins, he sat down in the place of honor at the right hand of the majestic God in heaven. This shows that the Son is far greater than the angels, just as the name God gave him is greater than their names.

The Son Is Greater Than the Angels

For God never said to any angel what he said to Jesus:

“You are my Son.
    Today I have become your Father.[a]

God also said,

“I will be his Father,
    and he will be my Son.”[b]

And when he brought his supreme[c] Son into the world, God said,[d]

“Let all of God’s angels worship him.”[e]

Regarding the angels, he says,

“He sends his angels like the winds,
    his servants like flames of fire.”[f]

But to the Son he says,

“Your throne, O God, endures forever and ever.
    You rule with a scepter of justice.
You love justice and hate evil.
    Therefore, O God, your God has anointed you,
    pouring out the oil of joy on you more than on anyone else.”[g]

10 He also says to the Son,

“In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundation of the earth
    and made the heavens with your hands.
11 They will perish, but you remain forever.
    They will wear out like old clothing.
12 You will fold them up like a cloak
    and discard them like old clothing.
But you are always the same;
    you will live forever.”[h]

13 And God never said to any of the angels,

“Sit in the place of honor at my right hand
    until I humble your enemies,
    making them a footstool under your feet.”[i]

14 Therefore, angels are only servants—spirits sent to care for people who will inherit salvation.

Footnotes

  1. 1:5a Or Today I reveal you as my Son. Ps 2:7.
  2. 1:5b 2 Sam 7:14.
  3. 1:6a Or firstborn.
  4. 1:6b Or when he again brings his supreme Son [or firstborn Son] into the world, God will say.
  5. 1:6c Deut 32:43.
  6. 1:7 Ps 104:4 (Greek version).
  7. 1:8-9 Ps 45:6-7.
  8. 1:10-12 Ps 102:25-27.
  9. 1:13 Ps 110:1.

God Has Spoken to Us

God, having spoken in former times in fragmentary and varied fashion to our forefathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by a Son whom he appointed to be the heir of everything and through whom he also made the universe. He is the reflection[a] of God’s glory and the exact likeness of his being, and he holds everything together by his powerful word. After he had provided a cleansing from sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Highest Majesty and became as much superior to the angels as the name he has inherited is better than theirs.

God’s Son is Superior to the Angels

For to which of the angels did God[b] ever say, “You are my Son. Today I have become your Father”?[c] Or again, “I will be his Father, and he will be my Son”?[d] And again, when he brings[e] his firstborn into the world, he says, “Let all God’s angels worship him.”[f] Now about the angels he says,

“He makes his angels winds,

and his servants flames of fire.”[g]

But about the Son he says,

“Your throne, O God,
    is forever and ever,
and the scepter of your kingdom
    is a righteous scepter.
You have loved righteousness
    and hated wickedness.
That is why God, your God,
    anointed you rather than your companions
        with the oil of gladness.”[h]

10 And,

“In the beginning, Lord,[i]
    you laid the foundation of the earth,
        and the heavens are the work of your hands.
11 They will come to an end,
    but you will remain forever.
        They will all wear out like clothes.
12 You will roll them up like a robe,
    and they will be changed like clothes.
But you remain the same,
    and your life[j] will never end.”[k]

13 But to which of the angels did he ever say,

“Sit at my right hand
    until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet”?[l]

14 All of them are spirits on a divine mission, sent to serve those who are about to inherit salvation, aren’t they?

Footnotes

  1. Hebrews 1:3 Or radiance
  2. Hebrews 1:5 Lit. he
  3. Hebrews 1:5 Cf. Ps 2:7
  4. Hebrews 1:5 Cf. 2 Sam 7:14
  5. Hebrews 1:6 Or And when he again brings
  6. Hebrews 1:6 Deut 32:43 (LXX); Ps 97:7
  7. Hebrews 1:7 Cf. Ps 104:4
  8. Hebrews 1:9 Cf. Ps 45:6-7
  9. Hebrews 1:10 MT source citation reads Lord
  10. Hebrews 1:12 Lit. years
  11. Hebrews 1:12 Cf. Ps 102:25-27
  12. Hebrews 1:13 Cf. Ps 110:1