2
Do not neglect the great salvation
1 So then, we really must pay the utmost attention to the things we have heard, so that we not drift away.*Drifting is gradual, easy to do. 2 For if the word spoken through angels became binding, and every violation and disobedience received a deserved penalty,†Verse 2 is reminiscent of the closing charge in Stephen's defense: “You who received the Law as ‘ordinances of angels’ and have not kept it!” (Acts 8:53). I confess that I do not understand where the angels come in to the giving of the Law. 3 how shall we escape if we are careless about that tremendous salvation?—it received its beginning through the Lord's declaration and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him[S],‡By expressing himself in this way the author lets us know that he was not one of the Twelve. 4 God adding His[F] attestation by signs, wonders, various miracles, and distributions of the Holy Spirit according to His own will.§Verses 3 and 4 overtly refer to all three persons of the Godhead. For more on the “distributions” see 1 Corinthians 12:11.
Temporarily lower than the angels
5 Because it is not to angels that He has subjected the coming inhabited earth,*The new earth that follows this one will not be administered by angels, so who will do the administering? I agree with those who hold that this life is a classroom wherein the redeemed are being prepared for their functions in the new earth, and some of those functions will be administrative. That future is part of our “tremendous salvation”! about which we are speaking; 6 rather, there is a place where someone testified†I find this turn of phrase to be curious; the author knew his Old Testament well, and presumably knew he was citing a Psalm (8:4-6)—why such a roundabout reference? saying:
“What is man that You are mindful of him,
or son of man that you care for him?
7 You made him lower than the angels, for a little while;‡The human being is superior to the angelic being in essence; we bear God's image and they do not, and once glorified that superiority will be obvious, but only for the redeemed. Those who serve Satan subordinate themselves to him, and thus can never rise above him. If Lucifer's rebellion was provoked, as I suppose, by the creation of a being superior to him, he is doing very well at getting his ‘revenge’, by depriving the vast majority of humanity of that superiority (and so the next verse does not apply to them).
You crowned him with glory and honor,§Some 25% of the Greek manuscripts add, “and set him over the works of your hands”, as in TR, AV, NKJV.
8 You subjected all things under his feet.”
It follows that in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not so subjected. However, we do not yet see everything subjected to him, at present.
9 But we do see Jesus, who ‘was made lower than the angels, for a little while’*Instead of “lower than the angels, for a little while”, AV, NKJV and some other versions have ‘a little lower than the angels’, both here and in Psalm 8. The Greek adjective here is ambiguous, it can refer either to duration or to quantity (and so for the Hebrew adjective in Psalm 8). In this context the duration is clearly better, or so I deem. (in order to suffer death), ‘crowned with glory and honor’—this, by the grace of God, so that He[S] might taste death on behalf of everyone.†“Everyone” is not a synonym for ‘the elect’. The death of Christ is adequate, sufficient to provide salvation for all human beings, and is there for them; of course not all actually avail themselves of it (most never even heard about it)—in fact, Sovereign Jesus referred to them as ‘few’ in His day (Matthew 7:14).
“Bringing many sons into glory”
10 Because it was appropriate to Him[F], for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons into glory,‡This contrasts with the many more who will never see the glory. to complete the Author of their salvation through sufferings.§As it says in 5:8 below, “He learned obedience by the things that He suffered.” As God, what could He know about suffering and obedience, except in theory? While in human form Jesus literally learned obedience. To be a compassionate High Priest He had to feel it like we feel it. 11 For both He[S] who is sanctifying and those who are being sanctified are all from One, for which reason He is not ashamed to call them ‘brothers’, 12 saying,
“I will declare Your name to my brothers;
in the midst of the congregation I will sing praise to You.”
13 And again,
“I will put my trust in Him[F]”;
and again,
“Here am I and the children whom God has given me.”*See Psalms 22:22, 2 Samuel 22:3, Isaiah 8:17-18—the author knew his Old Testament.
14 Since, then, the children have flesh and blood as their share, He[S] Himself likewise partook of the same, in order that through His death He might abolish the one who had†“Had”, not ‘has’ (as in NIV, etc.)—in Revelation 1:18 the glorified Christ affirms that He now holds the ‘keys’. Although the participle of the verb ‘to have’ is in the present tense, that indicates that it is simultaneous with the time of the finite verb to which it is subordinate, which in this case is ‘to partake’, which is in the past tense. Here we have one of a few overt statements giving the purpose of the Incarnation—to abolish Satan. See also Romans 14:9, 2 Corinthians 5:15 and Philippians 2:8-11. the power of death—that is, the devil— 15 and set free these [the children] who during their whole lifetime were subject to slavery through fear of death.‡The fear of death is a bad master; it drives people to do incredibly stupid things. 16 (Now surely He does not assist angels,§Angels are simply God's servants, so the term ‘assist’ is not appropriate for them. but He does assist Abraham's seed.) 17 That is why He was obliged to become like those ‘brothers’ in all respects, so that He could be a merciful and faithful high priest, in what concerns God, with a view to making propitiation*‘Propitiation’ is a theological term; God's righteous character has been outraged by human sin, and something must be done to ‘satisfy’/‘pacify’ that outraged character. Christ's sacrifice propitiated God, satisfied/pacified His outraged character. The resurrection is the proof that the Father accepted the sacrifice, that He declared Himself to be satisfied. for the sins of the people. 18 For in that in which He Himself endured suffering, having been tested,†The Greek word here covers both ‘to test’ and ‘to tempt’ (to tempt is to test one's moral fiber), the choice in English being guided by the context. Jesus was not tested only in the area of morals; He was tested physically as well. We too are tested in a variety of ways. He is able to assist those who are being tested.

*2:1 Drifting is gradual, easy to do.

†2:2 Verse 2 is reminiscent of the closing charge in Stephen's defense: “You who received the Law as ‘ordinances of angels’ and have not kept it!” (Acts 8:53). I confess that I do not understand where the angels come in to the giving of the Law.

‡2:3 By expressing himself in this way the author lets us know that he was not one of the Twelve.

§2:4 Verses 3 and 4 overtly refer to all three persons of the Godhead. For more on the “distributions” see 1 Corinthians 12:11.

*2:5 The new earth that follows this one will not be administered by angels, so who will do the administering? I agree with those who hold that this life is a classroom wherein the redeemed are being prepared for their functions in the new earth, and some of those functions will be administrative. That future is part of our “tremendous salvation”!

†2:6 I find this turn of phrase to be curious; the author knew his Old Testament well, and presumably knew he was citing a Psalm (8:4-6)—why such a roundabout reference?

‡2:7 The human being is superior to the angelic being in essence; we bear God's image and they do not, and once glorified that superiority will be obvious, but only for the redeemed. Those who serve Satan subordinate themselves to him, and thus can never rise above him. If Lucifer's rebellion was provoked, as I suppose, by the creation of a being superior to him, he is doing very well at getting his ‘revenge’, by depriving the vast majority of humanity of that superiority (and so the next verse does not apply to them).

§2:7 Some 25% of the Greek manuscripts add, “and set him over the works of your hands”, as in TR, AV, NKJV.

*2:9 Instead of “lower than the angels, for a little while”, AV, NKJV and some other versions have ‘a little lower than the angels’, both here and in Psalm 8. The Greek adjective here is ambiguous, it can refer either to duration or to quantity (and so for the Hebrew adjective in Psalm 8). In this context the duration is clearly better, or so I deem.

†2:9 “Everyone” is not a synonym for ‘the elect’. The death of Christ is adequate, sufficient to provide salvation for all human beings, and is there for them; of course not all actually avail themselves of it (most never even heard about it)—in fact, Sovereign Jesus referred to them as ‘few’ in His day (Matthew 7:14).

‡2:10 This contrasts with the many more who will never see the glory.

§2:10 As it says in 5:8 below, “He learned obedience by the things that He suffered.” As God, what could He know about suffering and obedience, except in theory? While in human form Jesus literally learned obedience. To be a compassionate High Priest He had to feel it like we feel it.

*2:13 See Psalms 22:22, 2 Samuel 22:3, Isaiah 8:17-18—the author knew his Old Testament.

†2:14 “Had”, not ‘has’ (as in NIV, etc.)—in Revelation 1:18 the glorified Christ affirms that He now holds the ‘keys’. Although the participle of the verb ‘to have’ is in the present tense, that indicates that it is simultaneous with the time of the finite verb to which it is subordinate, which in this case is ‘to partake’, which is in the past tense. Here we have one of a few overt statements giving the purpose of the Incarnation—to abolish Satan. See also Romans 14:9, 2 Corinthians 5:15 and Philippians 2:8-11.

‡2:15 The fear of death is a bad master; it drives people to do incredibly stupid things.

§2:16 Angels are simply God's servants, so the term ‘assist’ is not appropriate for them.

*2:17 ‘Propitiation’ is a theological term; God's righteous character has been outraged by human sin, and something must be done to ‘satisfy’/‘pacify’ that outraged character. Christ's sacrifice propitiated God, satisfied/pacified His outraged character. The resurrection is the proof that the Father accepted the sacrifice, that He declared Himself to be satisfied.

†2:18 The Greek word here covers both ‘to test’ and ‘to tempt’ (to tempt is to test one's moral fiber), the choice in English being guided by the context. Jesus was not tested only in the area of morals; He was tested physically as well. We too are tested in a variety of ways.

© 2016 Wilbur N. Pickering, ThM, PhD