A. INTRODUCTION
1. Who would have guessed that, in the 1990's, western civilization would become completely fascinated by angels? We are fairly inundated with them! Everywhere you look, there are angels: angel jewelry, angel posters, angel telephone "hot lines," angel "good luck" charms, angel toys and games. An astonishing number of new books have been written about angels, and several popular motion pictures have been made about them.
2. Curiously enough, there was a similar preoccupation with angels among those to whom the letter of Hebrews was addressed. A great popular mythology about the work and the place of angels in the cosmos had been developed and enlarged. Some of these beliefs were rooted in the pages of what we now call the Old Testament, but much had been added to the sacred record during the intertestamental period ( some 400 years ) between Malachi and Matthew. An expanded "angelology" can be traced through the Qumran literature of this era and can be seen in the record of some first century rabbinical teaching. An energetic belief in angels also existed in the Greek culture of that time, particularly the teachings of the Gnostics, whose dualistic belief in two entirely separate worlds -- the spiritual and the material -- assigned great importance to the "mediating" ministry of angels. Some of the Gnostic teaching about angels had been absorbed into popular Jewish beliefs, so that the writer of the letter to the Hebrews is addressing a hybrid angelology in our text passage this morning.
3. His purpose in this section is not to challenge some of the curious beliefs about angels which had been adopted by the Hebrew Christians. Remember, the primary purpose of this letter is the set forth the absolute superiority of Jesus Christ and the new covenant He has mediated. In Hebrews 1:1-3 our writer declared the revelation of God through Christ vastly superior to the revelation
made available through the p __ __ __ __ __ __ __, and in 1:4 - 2:9 he will show Christ's great superiority over a __ __ __ __ __, no matter what one should believe about them.
B. TEXT
1. Background: Some Notes on Angels in the Biblical Record
a. Chief attributes
(1) w __ __ __ __ __
ref: 2 Samuel 14:20
(2) s __ __ __ __ __ __ __
ref: Psalm 103:20
b. They are n __ __ __ __ __ __ __.
ref: Psalm 68:17
Matthew 26:47-56
Revelation 5:11-12
c. They are s __ __ __ __ __ __.
ref: Matthew 22:23-30
d. Three are called in Scripture by n __ __ __.
(1) M __ __ __ __ __ __ , sometimes known as the " a __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __"
ref: Daniel 12:1-2
1 Thessalonians 4:13-17
Jude 5-9
(2) G __ __ __ __ __ __
ref: Daniel 8:15-19
Luke 1:5-33
(3) L __ __ __ __ __ __
ref: Isaiah 14:12-15? ( In truth, Lucifer can be characterized as an angel only by implication. The name appears in the Bible only in the referenced passage, where he is not specifically
referred to as one of the angelic host. )
NOTE: Three other angels are named in the Apocrypha: Raphael, Uriel, and Jeremial.
e. Two "types" of angels are referenced in Scripture.
(1) s __ __ __ __ __ __ __
ref: Isaiah 6:1-8
(2) c __ __ __ __ __ __ __
ref: Genesis 3:22-24
Psalm 18:6-12
Ezekiel 1:4-14, 10:1-22 ( Their physical appearance is vividly described here! )
f. Angels had specific duties. Among them:
(1) m __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ ( Both the Hebrew and Greek nouns translated as "angel" mean this literally. )
ref: Matthew 2:13, 19
Judges 6:11-16 ( the "angel of the Lord" )
(2) w __ __ __ __ __ __ God
ref: Revelation7:9-12
(3) o __ __ __ __ __ __
ref: 1 Corinthians 4:9
(4) m __ __ __ __ __ __ __ to the "hurts" of servants
ref: Matthew 4:1-11
Luke 22:39-46
1 Kings 19:1-8
(5) p __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __
ref: Daniel 6:16-23
Matthew 18:1-10 ? ( This passage is probably the source of the widely-held belief that every child has a "guardian" angel. )
Acts 5:17-25
Acts 12:5-19
g. Other angel facts
(1) They were present at C __ __ __ __ __ __ __
ref: Job 38:7 ( Note the title "sons of God." )
(2) Some angels have f __ __ __ __ __.
ref: Genesis 6:1-4 ( Note, again, the use of the title, "sons of God." )
2 Peter 2:4
Jude 5-6
(3) They will be j __ __ __ __ __, in part by the saints of God!
ref: 1 Corinthians 6:1-8
(4) They will accompany Christ when He at last j __ __ __ __ __ the world.
ref: Matthew 25:31-46
2. The writer of Hebrews does not address what non-biblical ideas about angels may have been held by his readers, but historical writings of the period would seen to indicate that at least two beliefs about angels common to the culture might have presented a threat to the place Jesus Christ would have held in the early church.
a. In some places, angels had become objects of w __ __ __ __ __. In others, due to the Gnostic influence, it was understood that God, so remote in His transcendence, could be worshiped only through angelic intermediaries.
ref: Colossians 2:18-20
b. Some Jewish Christians saw Jesus Christ as the highest of God's angels. The "stumbling block" of Christ's d __ __ __ __ thus removed, they could worship Him without "threat" to their strong belief in God as "One."
ref: Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Romans 9:30 - 10:4
1 Peter 2:6-8
3. In Hebrews 1:5-13 the writer quotes from no less than seven Old Testament passages, five of them coming from the Book of Psalms. If you care to look them up, you will find substantial differences in the words used by the writer and the content of the referenced verses. This is due to the fact that he is quoting from the S __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __, the Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures.
You might also notice that the Old Testament passages which the writer identifies as clearly messianic are not, in many cases, presented that way in the original texts. In this manner the writer of Hebrews is most like Matthew, author of the first Gospel. He, too, seemed to "stretch" the contexts of several Old Testament texts in an earnest endeavor to present Jesus Christ as the rightful King of the Jews. This presents no literary dilemma for those of us who accept the Bible as God's inspired Word. The Holy Spirit, it would appear, directed both writers in the selection of their several reference texts, revealing them, at last, to be messianic in nature. In Hebrews this would be entirely in keeping with our author's initial declaration that God had revealed Himself in "bits and parts" to different prophets over the centuries, what has come to be called p __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ revelation.
a. Hebrews 1:5 quotes from Psalm 2:7, and emphasizes Christ's title as "s __ __."
b. Also in v.5 is part of 2 Samuel 7:14, words originally used of S __ __ __ __ __ __ but seen by our author as pointing the F __ __ __ __ __ - S __ __ relationship between Jesus Christ and Jehovah.
c. Hebrews 1:6 quotes from Deuteronomy 32:43, which is absent from the Hebrew texts but does appear in the Septuagint and is referenced in the Qumran Scrolls. V.6 continues the theme of the preeminence of sons, particularly those who are f __ __ __ __ - b __ __ __.
The OT reference reminds us that a __ __ of heaven's angels worship Christ.
d. In v.7 Psalm 104:4 is quoted. This passage has been used down through the centuries to support all manner of beliefs in the consistency of angelic beings, but the author's purpose here seems to be a casual reference to angelic superiority over men, part of a "set-up" for v.8.
"If the angels are immeasurably superior to men, the Son is immeasurably superior to the angels. Whereas He has Sonship, they are reducible to nothing more than the elemental forces of wind and fire. Also, the implication is probably that the angels are temporary in contrast to the Son, who is eternal." - Leon Morris: "Hebrews" in Volume 12 of The Expositor's Bible Commentary
e. In v.8-9 the author quotes Psalm 45:6-7, widely believed in that time to be clearly messianic.
f. Hebrews 1:10-12 quote from Psalm 1-2:25-27 in order to declare Christ's "eternality" and His supremacy over the created world. The original text was referring to Jehovah, connecting His eternal majesty with the hope of the ultimate deliverance of all the people of God.
g. V.13 quotes from Psalm 110:1. It is only one of several references in the Book of Hebrews to this psalm, seen by nearly all New Testament scholars as messianic. Just as he did in v.3, the author reminds us of the Son's finished work as He is s __ __ __ __ __, His messianic work having been completed. No angel is ever so honoured.
4. As powerful and wise as angels are, and as high their rank, Hebrews 1:4 - 2:14 sets forth at least five comparisons between them and Christ which declare His unquestioned superiority over them.
a. 1:4-5 - Angels are m __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ -- He is the S __ __.
b. 1:6 - Angels are w __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ -- He is the object of their worship.
c. 1:7-12 - Angels are c __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ -- He is the C __ __ __ __ __ __.
d. 1:13-14 - Angels are "ministers of salvation" -- He is the A __ __ __ __ __ of Salvation.
e. 2:5-16 - They are the s __ __ __ __ __ __ __ in the age to come -- He is the R __ __ __ __ of the age to come.
(1) This passage contains the best-known verses in this section, the writers quotation from Psalm 8:4-6:
What is man that You are mindful of him, And the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, And You have crowned him with glory and honor. You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet, All sheep and oxen -- even the beasts of the field, The birds of the air, And the fish of the sea That pass through the paths of the seas.
(2) It is introduced by the unusual Greek verb translated here as "testify," the only time in the New Testament that this occurs. It seems to indicate that the words following are to be highly regarded, understood with full gravity. He wants us to see at once the I __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ and the exalted g __ __ __ __ __ __ __ __ of man, and he wants us to consider them in light of angels and Jesus Christ.
- We must first begin with the essence of the writer's teaching about angels. Their place in God's kingdom -- though exalted -- is "fixed." They were created for His specific purpose and will function in that capacity throughout all eternity.
- Man, created "a little lower" than angels, is supreme among the beings of this created world, since God has seen fit to "put everything under his feet." But in v.8 the writer reminds us that man lives in tension between the "already" and the "not yet" in that "we do not yet see all things put under him." Our limitations, our inability to rise to the place God has intended for us, has been thwarted to this point by our s __ __. Like all the rest of Creation, man lives under the c __ __ __ __ of sin.
- V.9 is triumphant in its tone: "But we see J __ __ __ __..." In the Incarnation Christ, too, was made "a little lower" than angels, being made in all aspects completely human. And His humanity has enabled Him to regain man's lost dominion. The Gospel record sets forth His authority over the f __ __ __ of the sea ( Luke 5:1-11, Matthew 17:24-27, John 21:1-11 ), the f __ __ __ of the air ( Luke 22:34, 60 ), the wild b __ __ __ __ __ ( Mark 1:12-13 ), and even the domesticated ones ( Mark 11:1-7 ).
As the "last Adam" Christ has regained man's lost dominion, and today everything is indeed "under His feet" ( Ephesians 1:20-23 ).
This verse reminds us that, in order to accomplish this, Christ had to "taste
d __ __ __ __ for everyone."
(3) But v.10 declares that Christ, having done that, has brought "many s __ __ __ to g __ __ __ __ ," and v.11-12 explain that those who are "one" in Christ are called His b __ __ __ __ __ __ __.
ref: John 17:21-23
(4) Elsewhere in Scripture we are reminded that we have become "joint - h __ __ __ __" with Christ of the full inheritance of God.
ref: Galatians 3:26-29
Ephesians 3:1-7
5. Angels cannot do what Christ has done and is doing.
a. "What then is a realistic estimate of angels and their function? They are ministering spirits; but, as has been shown, they have a subordinate role of serving God. God's concern is not with angels, but with us, and he accordingly sends them to bring help to those who will inherit salvation. God and the Son are the source of our salvation, as the author will demonstrate so boldly in this epistle. By God's grace, his servants serve us in and toward this end." - Donald A. Hagner: Hebrews ( Volume 14, New International Biblical Commentary )
b. "Christ is the Son; angels are servants. Christ is King; angels are subjects. Christ is the Creator; angels are creatures. Christ at this moment is waiting until His enemies will be made His footstool. The Father never gave such a promise to an angel, but He says that some day His Son shall rule. This tremendous section sets before us the deity of the Lord Jesus Christ and the exaltation of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is higher than the angels." - J. Vernon McGee: Hebrews, Chapters 12-7 (Volume 51, Thru-the-Bible Commentary Series )
C. APPLICATION
1. Next week, as we study the opening verses of Hebrews 2, we will be reminded again of the great authority of Christ and warned that we must pay careful attention to His message.
2. The apostle Peter in his second epistle reminds us that God punishes those who ignore the message of the Gospel of Jesus Christ -- even those angels who ignore it! 2 Peter 2:4-6 recites the terrible litany of the historical consequences of sin when God poured out His righteous judgment on those who disobeyed Him.
3. But v.7-9 remind us that, even as He judges sin, God's mercy will save all those who are godly. Knowledge of angels cannot make one godly; neither can knowledge of Jesus -- not even strong understanding of the what the Bible says about Him. Sinful men can attain godliness only by faith in Jesus Christ, receiving Him as Saviour and Lord.
