Who it was The Epistle to the Hebrews written to?
-The Greek copies had “to the Hebrews” written above the beginning, and many believe this was written for those born as physical Israelites.
In James’ Epistle, he wrote “to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad,” as brethren; and Peter wrote to the dispersion, also as brethren.
The nation of Israel was dispersed among the Gentiles. The Jews wondered if Jesus would go to them. (John 7:35)
Are all of the 12 tribes of Israel Hebrews? Abraham was a Hebrew (Genesis 14:13)
-Where did James send his letter? Was the writing from James sent to all the Synagogues? I do not think so. The brethren, both Jew and Gentile were meeting together in their homes.
They were the Israel of God… the 12 tribes by faith as believers in the Messiah.
-Many people hold fast to the opinion that the Apostle Paul is the writer of this epistle, and indeed that is what the KJV says, but who decided and wrote that? Others, because of internal evidence, say it wasn’t Paul; and opinions vary as to who it was that wrote it.
I will give my opinion too! I believe the author is revealed in the Epistle:
Hebrews 1:1 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.
-The beginning subject is GOD and how he got His messages delivered.
He is identified as “the Majesty.” There are very few places in the NT where you will find the personal name of God. The word used in the Greek is usually translated “Lord” in our English versions even when quoting the OT. The scriptures of the OT have God’s name in Hebrew as the four consonants that transliterate to YHWH; but the English Bibles substitute the word LORD in all caps. Most professing Christians today do not know about this.
-But you already knew that God was the author, didn’t you?
Who then, is the man that wrote the Epistle with ink, onto a scroll?
Who was the Epistle written to?
-At first, God spoke through the prophets, then, in what was then the last days, in His Son.
-Notice that the writer says the Son spoke to US.
It is titled “To The Hebrews. According to the title then, it was written to the Hebrew Brethren by a Hebrew.
But did the Hebrews meet separately from the Gentiles?
-The Son is identified as the one which God has appointed as heir of all things, and the one through whom he made the ages.
Remember the Parable of the Wicked Vinedressers in Mathew 21? They were killing the servants which the owner sent to them. Last of all he sent his son.
Mat 21:37 But last of all he sent unto them his son, saying, They will reverence my son.
38 But when the husbandmen saw the son, they said among themselves, This is the heir; come, let us kill him, and let us seize on his inheritance. 39 And they caught him, and cast him out of the vineyard, and slew him.
In this Epistle the heir of God is identified in detail so we will have no doubt as to his identity.
-He is he brightness or radiance of God’s GLORY,
No one else can make that claim! How bright that must be!
-He is the express image of His Person.
What is “express image? No, it is NOT a mirror image. It is more like a copy.
Stand in front of a mirror and check the image you see closely
He parts his hair on a different side.
Touch your right arm, and he will touch his left.
-Then the writer shows what the Son did and where he went and how he got His name.
The Son upholds all things by the word of the Power of the Father, which was given to Him
1 Chron 29:11 Thine, O LORD is the greatness, and the power, and the glory, and the victory, and the majesty: for all that is in the heaven and in the earth is thine; thine is the kingdom, O LORD, and thou art exalted as head above all.
Yahshua sits one the right hand as heir of Yahweh His Father, from whom He inherited His name.
Matt 28:18 And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.
His name is of Hebrew origin, meaning Yahweh’s Salvation.
He is called that because he will save his people from their sins (Maat 1:21)
After purging our sins, he went to sit at the right hand of The Majesty on high.
He was on the throne of God, His Father. Where is that?
Heaven is His throne and the earth is His footstool
Jesus passed through the heavens to arrive at God’s throne, above all the heavens:
Eph 4:10 He that descended is the same also that ascended up far above all heavens, that he might fill all things.)
Psalm 50:4 He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.
Isaiah 66:1 Thus saith the LORD, The heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: where is the house that ye build unto me? and where is the place of my rest?
-remember in Gen 1 when God made the firmament, he called it heaven. The firmament is an expanse, or a space. It divided the waters below from the waters above.
God’s throne and dwelling place is above all of that.
I get aggravated when someone (like me) indicates he will show me something, but then rambles on and on and never gets to it.
-Who then is the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews?
Well of course we all know it is God Himself.
But I know that you want to know the name of the man who wrote it down on the scroll.
Who did God assign to write the Epistle to the Hebrews?
-The author is revealed within the introduction of this Epistle, in a way it is similar to the book of Revelation:
Rev 1: 1 The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must shortly come to pass; and he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:
2 Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
-God is the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews which he gave to Jesus Christ to show his servants the things which they needed to know. He revealed it to Jesus who gave it to his servant to deliver to the Hebrews.
What was the servant’s name? …HOLD ON!
How did he receive the message to the Hebrews?
-God gave all things to His Son Jesus, the one which He spoke through in the last days. Jesus did speak to his disciples and told them all the thigs which His Father told him. (John 15:15)
He even taught them in person after his resurrection. (Acts 1:1-3)
And so, whoever wrote this Epistle was given the knowledge of the things which he wrote by Jesus, just as John did in writing the Revelation. And Jesus was speaking for God
-What John wrote was written in the book of the Revelation of Jesus Christ to be given to his body, his Disciples.
-These are those who have been grafted into Israel, and they are now children of Abraham through faith.
-They are “The Hebrews,” priests of God as God had promised Israel they would be, if they obeyed. They are the twelve tribes of the Israel of God. Jesus is their High Priest of the Melchizedek Priesthood. They are the same ones that James wrote to. (James 1:1)
In the last days, this Great God, the Majesty, who spoke through His own Son, which he appointed as heir of all things…. The one through whom He made the ages … is the one to whom He directed His Epistle to the Hebrews.
God directed this Epistle to Jesus, through whom he speaks in these last days.
This epistle to the Hebrews is also a Revelation of Jesus Christ, written as directed by his servant, an undisclosed Disciple of the Son of God.
One of these disciples who wrote to the 12 tribes as a servant of God and Jesus Christ Was James.
James 1:1 James, a servant of God and of the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes which are scattered abroad, greeting.
The 12 tribes are all Hebrews.
In verse 2 he calls them brethren!
Who are the Hebrews which God wanted to hear His words?? They are the Israel of God, the children of Abraham by faith. They are all Spiritual Hebrews.
-The true author of this epistle is God Himself! And the one He spoke through is His son who inherited his name and sits on His throne at His right hand.
-I am not saying that God dictated it word by word, but that he is responsible for its content.
And seeing as how in these last days he spoke through His Firstborn Son… his Son revealed it to the Hebrews, His Brethren.
-God speaks through his Son and His Son gives it to his servant to write and for all to read.
Who could that man be?
My Confession…
That has not been revealed to me, but I do have some insight,
and an opinion which I will give. Let’s see if you will agree.
-Chapter two may give us a clue:
Heb 2:1 Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.
2 For if the word spoken by angels [messengers] was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward…
-The messengers referred to here are the prophets. Example: the name Malachi means messenger. Notice the order of how what they spoke was delivered to them:
…3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him; 4 God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will? 5 For unto the angels [messengers] hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak.
-But who was the MAN who put the epistle to the Hebrews in order, wrote it down, and read it to Disciples? Inquiring minds want to know!
-This writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews is a part of the “us” which had heard the word of God spoken by the Lord Jesus and confirmed by those who had heard him. Those who confirmed the word of the Lord were also confirmed by God Himself with signs, wonders and miracles and gifts.
The brothers of Jesus, James and Jude, were not among those who were followers of Jesus at the beginning. But they heard what the Apostles spoke about the Gospel and became believers.
-And so, we know that the one chosen by God and His Son to write to the Hebrews was
one who heard the gospel from a Disciple of Jesus to which which God bore witness with signs and wonders.
-Some think the writer was the Apostle Paul, who was not with them at the first, but did meet Jesus in a vision later.
Still, the writer is not directly revealed in the Epistle.
WHO MIGHT HE BE?
James and Jude were brothers His brothers did not believe in him at first. (John 7:5)
Jude and Hebrews… There is a Connection.
Did Jude write Hebrews?
-Notice the similarities.
Jude 1:1 Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:
That is similar to what Hebrews starts off with. God spoke by the prophets, and then by Jesus Christ.
-Jude told of another writing of his to the same brethren:
Jude 1:3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
Remember where we read in the Epistle to the Hebrews that the Gospel was confirmed to the ones who did not hear Jesus but did hear the ones who heard Jesus speak? Jude remembered, and reminded the brethren!
Jude 1:17 But, beloved, remember ye the words which were spoken before of the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ;
-There is a similar statement in Hebrews. Both Epistles tell us to remember the apostles of Jesus Christ, how they confirmed what He said:
Heb 2:1 Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.
2 For if the word spoken by angels [messengers] was steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward;
3 How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;
A short letter AND a longer letter. Were they both written by Jude?
The writer of Hebrews tells of a short letter:
Heb 13:22 And I beseech you, brethren, suffer the word of exhortation:
for I have written a letter unto you in few words.
-the exhortation in Hebrews is a little long and hard to
grasp, but he is reminding them that he had written a shorter letter previously.
-Could the letter written in few words, which was mentioned in Hebrews, have been Jude, and could the longer letter of exhortation be Hebrews? They do mention some of the same things.
-If they filed the short letter of Jude away, and then later added the longer letter to the Hebrews, and knew that Jude had written both, there would have been no doubt as to the writer of both being Jude. But when the letters were separated, and they did not have the author’s name within the context of Hebrews and they could have assumed it was Paul’s, because of the reference to Timothy in the last chapter.
-Who did Jude write to in his short letter?
Jude 1:1 Jude, the servant of Jesus Christ, and brother of James, to them that are sanctified by God the Father, and preserved in Jesus Christ, and called:
-These are the same ones in Hebrews and are the ones he refers to as “we” and “us. They were spoken to by the prophets, and then by God’s Son Jesus Christ.
Jude explains his short letter and why he wrote the longer letter:
…3 Beloved, when I gave all diligence to write unto you of the common salvation, it was needful for me to write unto you, and exhort you that ye should earnestly contend for the faith which was once delivered unto the saints.
In the Epistle to the Hebrews, the writer (which I believe was Jude) does exactly that:
Heb 2:1 Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.
Then he gives the exhortation, which they needed, to earnestly contend for the faith once delivered to the saints, urging them to receive it, and reminds them that he has written them a more brief letter.
Heb 13:22 And I beseech you, brethren, suffer the word of exhortation: for I have written a letter unto you in few words.
-FEW WORDS? I use to read this in the KJV and wonder how he could call it a letter of few words! Now I think this was Jude, speaking of the Epistle of Jude as the letter of few words.
A brief message called Jude and then a longer message of exhortation, labeled "To The Hebrews."
Both epistles mention two messages written by the same author, one an exhortation and a shorter one:
Hebrews 13:22 HCSB Brothers, I urge you to receive this message of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly.
