City Life Starter

Written by Megan Meier

The Word

“8 But of the Son he says,

‘Your throne, O God, is forever and ever,
    the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.
9 You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you
    with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.’

10 And,

‘You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning,
    and the heavens are the work of your hands;
11 they will perish, but you remain;
    they will all wear out like a garment,
12 like a robe you will roll them up,
    like a garment they will be changed.
But you are the same,
    and your years will have no end.’

13 And to which of the angels has he ever said,

‘Sit at my right hand
    until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet’?

14 Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?”

Hebrews 1:8-14 ESV

Reflection

I’ll be honest, when I first read Hebrews 1, I was skimming through and thinking, “why all the quotes”? Then I went back to the dishes (darn Martha mindset) and YouTube (darn 21st century habit). When I dug a little deeper, just like the song from The Princess and the Frog, and asked questions like, “why would the author of the letter to the Hebrews choose these quotes from those chapters.” I found…well, you’ll see what I found. Let’s dig!

The author is very familiar with the book of Psalms and in this passage they quote Psalms three times (45:6-7, 102:25-27, and 110:1) when presenting their case for Christ. As Efe analyzed yesterday, Jesus Christ is superior to the angels. The author of Hebrews continues to present evidence of Jesus, the Son of God, as superior to the angels in these verses above.

The first quote is from Psalm 45:6-7. The Son of God is on the eternal throne as Righteous King. A scepter is a symbol of authority and power, and the scepter of righteousness indicates that Jesus holds His power and authority in righteousness. Lastly, He is anointed with oil as sign of blessing in front of His companions (including the angels). The whole of Psalm 45 is about a king’s wedding, namely Jesus and the bride of Christ.

Psalm 102:25-27 is a reference to Genesis 1:1. In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. All material things, even our earthly bodies, will perish, but God will remain the same. In this Psalm, the author is in ruin, loneliness, and despair, because he knows his time on earth is numbered. But the Lord will reign forever and the author’s life on earth is not the true end. In fact, God will make all material things new, including a new earth, new heaven, and new bodies (Philippians 4:20-21, 2 Corinthians 5:1-2, Revelation 21:1).

In the last quote, Psalm 110:1, the angels do not sit at the right hand of God as that is Jesus’ place (Mark 14:62, Acts 2:33, Revelation 3:21). To sit at the right hand of God is to have special honor, even equal status. The angels do not have equal status with God, it is only Jesus Christ. Who are Jesus’ enemies? Satan and the angels that followed him. This whole chapter declares victory in battle, it declares as Jesus a priest in the order of Melchizedek, who preceded the Levite priests (Genesis 14:18-20). Psalm 110 declares Jesus as King, Priest, and Judge.

The author says in verse 14 the angels serve those who receive Christ’s salvation. Angels are guardians (Genesis 3:24, Psalm 91:11-12), messengers (Luke 1:11-20, 26-38, 2:9-14), and warriors (2 Kings 6:16-17, Revelation 12:7-9), but they are not on equal standing with God; only Jesus Christ is.

The author of Hebrews quotes from three Psalms: the wedding of the Lamb of God, the author’s despair but later hope at entrance into eternity, and a spiritual war with Jesus Christ coming out victorious. The author uses quotes that refer to Jesus as Righteous King, Eternal Creator, and Messiah.

Application

 I knew Jesus > Angels, but I just didn’t ask why. Asking why isn’t offensive or sacrilegious, it is part of loving the Lord with all of your mind (Mark 12:30). Why did the author use these quotes and why those chapters? To emphasize Jesus’ superiority to the angels, not one angel is defined as Righteous King, Eternal Creator, or Messiah, Jesus fits all three of these categories.

If you’d like to dig further (and I hope you do) for more biblical treasures, I recommend the book How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Gordon D. Fee and Douglass Stuart. It encourages you to look at the exegesis (what did the passage mean for the audience back then) and hermeneutics (what does the passage mean for us now) of the Bible. It’s not light reading, so I recommend finding a place where you will not be disturbed or distracted.

Prayer

Dear Jesus, thank You so much for Your Word, thank You for being my Righteous King, Eternal Creator, and Messiah. Please teach me to love You with all of my mind and show me the treasures in Your Word. In Your Name I pray, amen.