Scripture Reference: Hebrews 1:1-14
Jesus – Superior to the Angels (Hebrews 1:3-14)
It is worth noting the way in which Hebrews is saturated in the teaching of the Hebrew Bible. This is most likely due to the intended readership. The opening chapter is already full of references and allusions, and we note in particular the value given to the Psalms as a treasure house for revelation about the Son of God. The Scriptures of the Jewish people are simply assumed to be centered upon and pointing towards Jesus. Jesus himself gave the lead in this interpretation on the way to Emmaus (Luke 24:27).
It was important to Hebrews to establish at the outset that the angels, though a wonderful creation of God’s, were far below Jesus in authority and glory. By Jesus’ time the Jewish people had a sophisticated theology of angels who served as the mediators between the transcendent God in heaven and his people on earth below. There was even the belief in some quarters that angels carried Israel’s prayers to God. Perhaps the believers to whom Hebrews was written came from a background which highlighted the significance of angels, and therefore needed to be given particular help.
There is in fact only one mediator, the Son of God himself (see 1 Timothy 2:5–6).
The Son’s name is superior to that of the angels, and this refers to his status and authority. In Philippians 2:9–11 we learn that God gave Jesus “the name that is above every name,” the very name/title of “Lord.” This was the title reserved by Jewish people for God himself!
We must remember that the angels are part of God’s creation, and therefore cannot be compared with the eternal Son. This contrast is alluded to in Hebrews 1:7–9. The Son’s throne is everlasting, but the angels come and go like winds or flames of fire. Two famous Jewish texts relate angels to wind and fire in this way (4 Ezra; and the other, Yalkut Shim’oni).
The Hebrew term for angel is simply a word which means a “messenger,” and at the end of the day that is what angels are. They are ministering spirits sent to serve. But note the grace of God in that he also sends his angels to serve those who belong to Jesus. The early believers knew about the reality of angels in their lives as we see in the book of Acts (5:19, 8:26, 10:3, 12:23, 27:23–24).
The angels actually live to worship and serve the Son. The reference here in Hebrews 1:6 is to the Greek version of the Hebrew Bible (the Jewish Septuagint), and could be from Deuteronomy 32:43 or Psalm 97:7. The Hebrew text doesn’t use the term for angels, but speaks of “gods.” We are taught here that Jesus is worthy of the same worship as God the Father.
Jesus is worthy because he is the radiance of God’s glory. The word for radiance can mean a bright reflection, or as is more likely here, a shining forth. In Israel’s history the glory of God was an almost visible manifestation of the overpowering presence of God. It guided them and assured them of God’s blessing (see Exodus 24:15–17; 33:18–23; Leviticus 9:5–6, 23). This glory is now seen overwhelmingly in the person of Jesus.
Jesus is also worthy because he is the exact representation of God’s being. In 2 Corinthians 4:4 and Colossians 1:15 Jesus is described as the “image” of God, using a word which gives us the English term, “icon.” However Hebrews uses a word which occurs nowhere else in the New Testament, and which gives us the English word, “character” It is a word which means the exact detail and expression of the original. If we want to know what our Father is like then we pay attention to Jesus.
After . . . he sat down shows us that, worthy and glorious though the Son is, there is a sense in which the Father honored and glorified him even more when he proved his love for us by dying for our sins on the cross. It was after he purified us that he sat in the place of honor at the right hand of the Father. This staggering truth is developed throughout Hebrews, as elsewhere (see Philippians 2:9).
Right at the opening of the letter the readers are encouraged to remember that Jesus will never change, and that he will be with them in every situation (Hebrews 1:12). This was a word of comfort which Jesus himself gave to his disciples (Matthew 28:20), and it also helps to close Hebrews (13:8). We need to hold on to that same promise.
There is a blessed assurance and extreme confidence and security in knowing that Jesus will always remain the same!
FOR THE LOVE OF GOD 
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