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Hebrews 2:1-3
Hebrews 2:1-3
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 was stedfast, 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;
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1. Murray McLellan
Commentary on Hebrews 2:1-3
After exalting the Son in chapter one (the Heir and Lord of all, who alone "by Himself purged our sins," whose name is over all, worthy of all worship from angels and all creatures, God's final Word), it is as if the writer just has to break into an appeal. Have you heard? Then don't neglect. Where else shall we go? Who else has the Words of eternal life? Where else can you go for the purging of your sins? Would you go back to the word spoken by angels?
It was added because of transgressions, till the Seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator... the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. (Gal. 3:19, 24)
There is but one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus! Would you drift away to the law? How will you then be justified? "Every transgression and disobedience will receive a just reward" (i.e. judgment!) "By the works of the law no flesh shall be justified." If those who neglected the words of the Old Covenant and its temporary earthly blessing were judged severely with holy judgment, what can those expect who neglect the Word of the Lord and His great New Covenant Salvation - which is eternal? How many hear and yet neglect; consumed by that which is temporary and passing away? If Jesus, the very sinless One, should become flesh and endure the cross for wretched sinners (under no compulsion or need of His own), to share with us His life, that we might behold His glory and delight and rejoice and be satisfied fully in His beautiful perfection for all of eternity, and His creatures neglect Him... how shall they escape judgment - judgment worthy of such a crime?
"Be astonished, O heavens, at this, And be horribly afraid; Be very desolate," says the Lord. "For My people have committed two evils; They have forsaken Me, the fountain of living waters, And hewn themselves cisterns - broken cisterns that can hold no water." (Jeremiah 2:12-13)
Anyone who has rejected Moses' law dies without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. Of how much worse punishment, do you suppose, will he be thought worthy who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, counted the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified a common thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace? (Heb. 10: 28-29)
May our knowledge of the excellency of Christ also cause us to burst out with an appeal. We, as His ambassadors, being graciously privileged to be part of the triumph, carry the message of that great salvation "which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us who heard Him" (and then to us through their Word as they spoke moved by the Holy Spirit). What a salvation we have to rest in and proclaim! Let us not neglect such a glorious Savior, getting caught up with things that are seen - for the things which are seen are temporary. Let us diffuse the fragrance of His knowledge in every place.
This message of the Son demands a response. To ignore or neglect Christ is a sin of immense proportions. This so great salvation is found in Christ alone, who said,
He who finds His life will lose it, and he who loses his life for My sake will find it. (Matt. 10:39)
Murray McLellan
m.mclellan@sk.sympatico.ca
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2. Donald Blind
Commentary on Hebrews 2:1-3
The Angels are very important to the mind of the OT Jew as he thought of the giving of the law as described by Paul in Gal 3:19,
Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator.
To consider along with this is Deut. 18:15-19,
The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken; According to all that thou desiredst of the LORD thy God in Horeb in the day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice of the LORD my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I die not. And the LORD said unto me, They have well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him.
It is here that we must give the more earnest heed, as "that Prophet" has come and must be listened to. The words of our Lord Jesus in John 16:9, of sin, because they believe not on me. The admonition of the writer in Hebrews 12:25 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not who refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we escape, if we turn away from him that speaketh from heaven:
The possibility of letting them slip is enforced also in this epistle: Hebrews 10:38,
Now the just shall live by faith: but if any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.
also; Heb. 6:4-6:
For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
The message from God to the Jews, was not to restore their nation, but rather to save them. Paul has given us ample evidence of this in Acts 13:14-52. The following are excerpts:
Of this man's seed hath God according to his promise raised unto Israel a Saviour, Jesus: (Acts 13:23)
Men and brethren, children of the stock of Abraham, and whosoever among you feareth God, to you is the word of this salvation sent; (Acts 13:26)
Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins. (Acts 13:38)
In this Acts passage, to go along with the Hebrews text, we may cite Acts 13:46,
Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.
The great confirmation passage:Matt. 28:18-20,
And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Donald E.Blind
dblind@erols.com
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3. John Robertson
Commentary on Hebrews 2:1-3
Recap: GOD – the VERY SAME GOD who spoke to our fathers in the past by the prophets, has spoken in these last days to US --- by His SON.
The Son whom He appointed heir of all things;
The Son through whom He made all the worlds;
The Son who’s not only the brightness of His glory, but also the express image of His person;
This Son who upholds all things by the word of His power!!And when He had purged our sins by the HIMSELF – He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on High. (the writer gets back to this point a little later on) This Son has become so much better than the angels. By inheritance, this Son has obtained a more excellent name than they (the angels).
Let me make some comparisons:
Therefore (or for this reason), in other words - in light of what I’ve just told you ---- We MUST (this is emphatic),We MUST give more earnest heed (or pay much closer attention to) the things we have heard (about this SON ) lest we slip away. (2:1)
...lest we slip away (2:1)
Now I know you wouldn’t deliberately go out of your way to RUN into eternity unprepared or to anxiously meet God in the judgment with a careless attitude, but if we’re not careful to gather around the things concerning this ‘Son,’ that’s exactly what could happen. Although we do not desire to go to the lake of fire - we could miss the ONLY salvation FROM it.
for if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast (2:2)
(there are old and new testament indications that angels were involved in bringing the law that would destroy a man if he transgressed it.) If THIS word proved steadfast-- and if there’s any doubt about this, just look at the punishment for picking up sticks on the Sabbath and cursing outside the camp--then,
how shall we escape if we neglect so great salvation. (2:3)
In other words: How shall we (all those who have heard the gospel) escape (escape what?--the absolute certainty of judgment) if we neglect (or if we only receive the gospel intellectually, but are not obedient to it Gal.3:1) so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord (this Son that I’ve just been talking about) and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him (Luke 1:2).
PLEASE - PLEASE !!! Don’t let it be said of you that you neglected what you have heard about this Son, for God Has Spoken!!
John Robertson
JLR122359@aol.com
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4. Maurice Bergeron
Give heed (2:1a)
In other words; "BE ATTENTIVE TO THE WORDS OF THE SON." Jesus said in John 5:46,47,
For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?
lest at any time we should let them slip (2:1b)
Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting, and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man. (Luke 21:33-36)
if the word spoken by angels was steadfast (2:2a)
But the angel of the LORD said to Elijah the Tishbite, Arise, go up to meet the messengers of the king of Samaria, and say unto them, Is it not because there is not a God in Israel, that ye go to inquire of Baalzebub the god of Ekron? Now therefore thus saith the LORD, Thou shalt not come down from that bed on which thou art gone up, but shalt surely die. And Elijah departed. (2Ki.1:3,4)
every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward (2:2b )
And David spake unto the LORD when he saw the angel that smote the people, and said, Lo, I have sinned, and I have done wickedly: but these sheep, what have they done? let thine hand, I pray thee, be against me, and against my father's house. (2 Sam. 24:17)
How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation (2:2b)
Here in a nutshell we have discovered the thrust or the goal of all that has been said previously. Note well the question: "How shall WE escape?" Brethren, this question is as relevant today as it was in the day of these Hebrew professors of Christ. Consider the stony ground hearers of which Jesus spoke:
And these are they likewise which are sown on stony ground; who, when they have heard the word, immediately receive it with gladness; And have no root in themselves, and so endure but for a time: afterward, when affliction or persecution ariseth for the word's sake, immediately they are offended. (Mark 4:16-17)
This same condition, which Jesus detailed for His disciples, did begin to raise its ugly head among these Hebrew professors. The writer was fearful that many were already turning their backs to God's salvation through His Son Jesus Christ.
Consider also that IN the Son there is to be found this great salvation.
Unlike the Old Mosaic Covenant there is "great" salvation to be discovered IN Christ. A salvation which the Old Covenant could never produce. Christ is Life, the Mosaic Covenant produced only death. To return to the Old Covenant was tantamount to rejecting Christ. What does this say to modern professors who prefer to submit to the Old Covenant rather than to embrace Christ fully, and Christ only, as God's standard of holiness and righteousness?
For when we were in the flesh, the motions of sins, which were by the law, did work in our members to bring forth fruit unto death. But now we are delivered from the law, that being dead wherein we were held; that we should serve in newness of spirit, and not in the oldness of the letter. (Rom. 7:5-6)
For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death. For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit. (Rom. 8:2-4)
Could it also be said brethren, that if any in our day would embrace the Old Covenant (the oldness of the letter), even in part (all but what they assume was the ceremonial?), it would then render them as guilty as these Hebrews of neglecting so great a salvation?
How shall we escape? By being attentive to the words of the Son.
Maurice Bergeron
ic@mdc.net
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1. Mark McCulley
Hebrews 2:1-3
therefore we must pay greater attention
to what we have heard
so that we do not drift away from it
for if the message declared through angels
was valid
and every transgression
received a just penalty
how can WE escape
if we neglect
so great a salvation?I will ask some theological questions raised by the text and attempt to answer them.
Escape what?
Neglect what?I suppose the usual assumption is that we escape damnation. If we neglect x, then we will not be saved from death and guilt. And of course there are different ways of saying even this. That person once escaped death and guilt but they neglected x so they are no longer justified and will not be glorified. That person never ever did escape death and guilt and their neglect of x showed that they were never justified and will not be glorified.
What other possible ways could one say it?
The caricature (which I’m not sure anybody believes) is that everybody who ever professed to be justified is justified no matter how they neglect x.I suggest a fourth possibility: that which we escape is not the opposite of justification and glorification. OK, at this point, some of you can say to yourself 'carnal Christian theory' and stop reading. One thing we know: we are not carnal. We know that because we oppose the carnal Christian theory.
For those of you left, I am suggesting that the same degree of sanctification and present inheritance of the kingdom is not automatic or inevitable for all those who are justified and who will be glorified.
We are either justified or not.
We shall be either glorified or not.
We are “positionally” sanctified or not.But our progress in inheriting the kingdom now is not the same, and not automatic or inevitable. Back to Heb. 1:14: “those who are to inherit salvation.” Does this mean that our justification is future and conditioned on our obedience and not neglecting x? Without naming again the names I have named, this is now being taught as the proper warning against the carnal Christian theory. I have given many reasons for not agreeing, but one is right here in the Hebrews two text: we are warned not to neglect salvation. I am sure it could be read in another way, but I take this letter to be written to those have already received a great salvation. They have been justified. The warnings, of which this is the first, are not that they may not be glorified and not they may not really be justified in the first place. The warnings have to do with the present blessings of the kingdom, now that the new covenant comes into effect.
Hebrews Two: "WE..."
Is the writer simply being humble and including himself in the group? Is the writer suggesting that he himself may not really be justified, that he himself has no assurance?Or is the writer being realistic about the struggle of the Christian life and the possibility of moral failure (sin!) which misses out on the blessings which come with new covenant obedience?
We in the new covenant camp often accuse those in the old covenant camp of promoting a lower standard of righteousness (while we continue to say that the Son obeyed that lower standard for us!) But I think the greater problem of old covenant theology is ASSURANCE. I certainly am not saying that none were justified during the Mosaic covenant. I am not even totally denying their assurance of justification. I am saying that there is a tendency not to be sure, because of the legal conditionality of life in the mosaic covenant.
But of course there are warnings also associated with the new covenant, such as this one in Hebrews 2:1-3! But Hebrews is filled with invidious comparisons of the new to the old. New covenant salvation is GREAT when contrasted with the old. Sure, justified is justified, and glorified is glorified, and those in the old are justified and will be glorified. But life in the new covenant is not ONLY about being justified. If we neglect the fullness of new covenant salvation, we miss out on our inheritance.
How do we neglect our new covenant inheritance? One way is trying to be sanctified in terms of the mosaic covenant! There is no escape that way from the conditional anxieties associated with Moses. So my problem with old covenant theology is not their lower standard or lack of moral seriousness but rather the lack of assurance and joy found in old covenant churches. This is not just in our heads! I have experienced the difference in the life of churches. At some they meet you at the door and ask you what you think of the carnal Christian theory!
WE. I take Hebrews 2:1-3 to be a warning to Christians. Yes, we have a sure hope, “a steadfast anchor” (6:19), but nevertheless even WE cannot presume that we shall never “crucify again the Son and hold him up to contempt” (6:6). Yes we are justified but we can ‘drift away” from our rest. That rest is not glorification but a present reality. 4:11: “Let us therefore make EVERY EFFORT to enter that rest...” There is an inevitable link between justification and glorification (Rom. 8:30). Justification is not a result of our efforts.Nor is glorification. But present new covenant rest is! This is why new covenant theology is important. “It is well for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by regulations by food...” 13:9. What do we say about those with such regulations or those with an old covenant theology? That they will not be justified and glorified? NO. So what does it matter if we neglect our great salvation? It matters because the new covenant is now (I didn’t say kingdom because even those of you who might postpone the reign know the new covenant has come!).
Matthew 5:3, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs IS the kingdom." Are all Christians equally poor in spirit, even those who think they are more poor in spirit than other Christians? I think not. So we can be warned even by the beatitudes! Matthew 6:, “Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them, for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.” Has any among us prayed publicly in order to repeat a sermon point or rehearse our theology? If we have done this, will we miss out on justification? If we have done too much of this kind of thing, will we miss out on glorification? Or have we failed to experience the blessing and to live out the kingdom as we should have?
Matthew 7:2, “For with the judgment you make you will be judged, and the measure you give will be the measure you get.” Oh yes, justification is by grace but you will never know if you really are justified until you know well you obey this command about judging? Is this the way we “balance” the grace of the new covenant? Or can we speak of blessings and sanctions, of rewards and penalties, of consequences in the present life. I think all on this list can agree that we should not be presumptuous, that warnings are to be taken seriously. But is the only way to do so to make the warnings call into question our justification?
I wander afar from the text, I know. Romans 8: God who gave the Son will give everything so what shall separate us? We didn’t make enough effort? We neglected our great salvation and that neglect either separated us or showed that WE never had a great salvation in the first place?
I realize that the nature of apostasy in Hebrews may be different from the neglect that can happen today. At least until AD 70 the temple cult was a live option that it is not today. But we certainly can apply the warning of Hebrews 2 to those of us in the new age.
Parallel warnings not in Hebrews: “Those who are jealous and angry (too much?) will not inherit the kingdom, Galatians 5:21. “Those who are (too?) greedy do not HAVE any inheritance in the kingdom,” Ephesians 5:5. “The greedy (too much?) will not inherit the kingdom," I Cor. 6:10.
If we neglect the struggle against greed, will we show ourselves to have only made a profession? On the other hand, if we have assurance, may we then neglect our struggle against greed, since we know that those who will be glorified will be inevitably sanctified?
I think the solution of many is the language of paradox. Out of one side of our mouths, we tell people “you can be justified and know it.” Out of the other side of our mouth, we say: “but you will never know if you will sufficiently struggle.” When challenged with the contradiction, we are not humble enough to give up making either statement. In a very non-humble way we KNOW that nobody can know how to coherently relate the two statements. I am asking that we not make assurance a hostage to our obedience. But I am also saying that salvation is more than being sure of justification, and therefore we need to take these warnings seriously.
I have gone long, and I will not go to Numbers 14 or to John 15 and I John 2:28 (abide). But I do want to point to Romans 4:13-21 and the inheritance of Abraham. Abraham was justified,I think, in Genesis 12, before he was circumcised or obeyed the commands of God. Of course I am not claiming that Abraham thought in Pauline or new covenant categories. But I suggest that his approach of inheritance can be instructive for us. I do not take it for granted that justification and inheritance are identical. The faith to inherit is a daily struggle; we must abide, even though we are sure of justification, even though we are confident that nothing will separate us from the love of God. Yes, we are children of Abraham, promised the CHANGING MIRACLE of regeneration, and given this regeneration. But like Abraham, we must be patient so that we may receive in the present the fullness of salvation. Abraham made great efforts even though he had God’s promise of great salvation. “Hoping against hope, he believed.” He could have--from the human point of view-- weakened in faith. He did not. He could have distrusted God even after he had trusted God. He could have 'wavered” and been penalized. He did not and was rewarded with inheritance.
I apply this to US. Yes we can be sure that we are justified. So why do we need each other? So why bother with the ecclesia? Isn’t perseverance an individual and personal concern? NO IT IS NOT. WE need each other because even WE can ‘drift.'
That being said, let me add that I offer the above in a spirit of wanting to be taught and corrected where I may have drifted in my theology. I may sound confident of my viewpoint, but be sure that I am sure that I do not have it all right just yet!
Mark McCulley
mcculley@redrose.net
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6. Jim McClarty
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. (2:1)
A good rule of thumb when reading the Bible is--whenever you read the word "therefore," go back and see what it's there for. ;-) It lets the reader know that the conclusion the writer is about to draw is based on the preceding premises.
The author of Hebrews has just gone to great pains to demonstrate from scripture that Christ is superior in every way to the angelic host. That proof being true and irrefutable, the writer draws this conclusion: "we ought to give the more earnest heed." We ought to pay all the more attention.
To what? To the things that we have heard.
What things? The gospel of Christ; His death, burial, and resurrection; His sayings, His teaching, and His new covenant; The testimony of the witnesses and the proof of His superiority; His participation in the creation of all things, and His kingly station when all things are completed; His equality with God and His humility as a man; His mercy, His kindness, and the severity of his "rod of iron."
We need to be diligent because these things so easily slip away under the constant barrage of daily noise and ideas we all encounter. The Greek word translated "slip" in the KJV is "pararheo," which is more commonly translated "drift." The picture is of a boat tied to a mooring while the knot is slowly, imperceptibly unraveling until it's too late and the boat is carried out to sea.
That's a warning! Perhaps it's too easy for us to rest on our concepts of sovereignty and forget about our responsibility. But, this passage adjures us: "wake up, take heed, pay attention and don't let these truths slip from your mind."
For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense of reward...(2:2)
The writer refers us to the Old Covenant:
Wherefore then serveth the law? It was added because of transgressions, till the seed should come to whom the promise was made; and it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator. (Gal. 3:19)
The mediator in this instance was Moses, but the law was put into effect by angels. And, it was stedfast, unmovable, unbending. As a result, every minor infraction, every stumble, every act contrary to the rigid rule of law was justly and severely punished. "The wages of sin is death" (Rom. 6:23a).
So, the all important point is: the word which came by angels was upheld by God and He holds men answerable and accountable to it. But, there is One who came to earth who is superior to angels, and He also laid out His law. And, if we ignore THAT - - -
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? (2:3)
How indeed?!! If the inferior covenant stood upright in the courts of Heaven and men were judged for every disobedience or rebellion against it, how much greater a judgment is due the man who will ignore and disobey the SUPERIOR covenant?
It is the covenant which speaks of grace, which tells of Christ's sacrifice in our place and which reassures the sinner's guilty conscience. It's the great, eternal plan which was revealed when Christ taught it to his disciples, who confirmed every word of it to the writer, and to the church of every age. It's the marvelous deal which says,
Come now, and let us reason together, saith the Lord, though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. (Is.1:18)
What fool would walk away from such a bargain? And, if he did, how great a righteous punishment would he deserve?
CONCLUSION:
Having confirmed Christ's superiority to angels, the writer wants us to recognize the higher, better quality of the covenant He ushered in. And, if we don't keep our minds securely fastened on Him, the things we know of Him will slip away. And, if they slip too far we will eventually neglect them altogether. Then how sad is our state? What excuse will we have? What will be our escape clause?
How much better to "press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus" (Phil.3:14). How much wiser to
give diligence to make your calling and election sure; for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall. For so an entrance shall be ministered unto you abundantly into the everlasting kingdom of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth. (2Pet.1:10-12)
You know them. Remember them. Remind each other of them. Don't let them slip.
Jim McClarty
McClartyfam@juno.com
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7. Michael Cruz
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, (2:1)
I recently heard a preacher say, "Salvation is either all of grace or it is all of works. There is no middle ground on this issue." I believe that salvation in all of grace. I believe that before the foundation of the world God chose a people for no other apparent reason than it was pleasing in His sight. He put a hunger in their hearts and when the time was right, He filled that hunger with His rich salvation. But for God's elect the only choice is to live it as if it were by works. Christ's words echo this sentiment, "He who does not take up his cross and follow after me is not worthy of me." Also, when the disciples asked about the number that would be saved the Lord said, "Strive to enter in at the strait gate...." For those that have been granted new life in Christ and then later lays down his cross lives in shame. Remember the shame of Peter when he denied the Lord. In the same way a believer can drift away from the offense of the cross because the tendency of the human flesh is to lay it down. When this happens, without our own effort we will indeed drift away because of the shame associated with doing so. A major part of the cross of the believer is our duty to take heed to His word. We need a concentrated effort to pay attention and learn from God's word in order to progress in sanctification. If we do this, we will delight in the cross and never desire to drift away.
For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward; 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; (2:2,3)
We touched on this in the previous passage concerning the superiority of angels. These verses suggest the ministry of angels carries a good deal of weight in regard to the nature of the message which they brought. While I would be hesitant to draw upon the authority of angels, the writer of Hebrews is not. In previous verses he has put a great deal of emphasis on angels as ministers and messengers. He now further clarifies and expands on one ministry in particular: as messengers of judgement for sin. Although the writer isn't specific, this brings to mind the Cherubim with flaming sword that God placed at the east of the Garden of Eden after He had removed Adam and Eve. What a great message of judgment these angels brought to Adam and Eve for all the time they remained in place. These angels reminded them of their rebellion against God and the curse that they brought upon themselves and all of mankind. Each time they saw these messengers they were reminded of their sin and the paradise to which they would never return.
How much more would be the destruction for those who reject the one who came to carry the penalty for all of those transgressions and disobediences that had their beginnings in the sin of Adam. The messengers at the east of the entrance to the Garden were temporary, but the rejecters of the message of Christ will be eternally reminded of their neglect of the savior, the savior who appeared first hand to tell us of His great love, a love that marched most of the disciples off to their deaths in telling a sinful world of His love.
Michael Cruz
a_la_cruz@technologist.com
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8. Kevin Hartley
Hebrews 2:1-3
Shamefulness. It is utter and debased shamefulness to hear the import of these words and not to shed a tear. What does it say of our utter wretchedness that the Scripture should be bound by such warnings? How can a man turn a deaf ear to the ominous warning of our author-- in light of what has come before? Should a heart hear these words with lighthearted cheer and incontrovertible neglect, without his own heart being stricken in fear, just as Nabal heard of the vengeance of David and was stricken with terror as dead? How can the apostate hear these words, and in his heart not be undone? Listen well, reader, and understand the undeniable necessity of you heeding your Lord's word. For His superiority demands that He alone be heard.
The intent of the author in comparing Christ to the angels (in the previous chapter) was to exalt the law of Christ. It is his clear intention to bring to light the necessity of heeding the word spoken by our Lord Jesus Christ. Calvin says of our author,
He now declares what he had before in view, by comparing Christ with the angels, even to secure the highest authority to His doctrine.1
The subject at hand is the inferiority of the commandments of old given through the medium of angels, as Paul in Galatians says, "it was ordained by angels in the hand of a mediator." Several grammatical indicators are used by our author to strengthen this point: the prepositional phrase that begins this chapter gives cause for what precedes; the adverbial clause of verse one; the conditional sentence of verse two, and the comparative particle of verse three; each demonstrates the superiority of Christ and His message given in this, the New Covenant.
What then is the desired import of this passage? That men turn by the grace of God from all the thundering of Sinai and give the greater and utmost attention to the majestic glory of Christ and His word alone. The clear and implied directive in this passage is that Christ, rather than that which was given forth at Sinai, demands our more earnest and abject attention. Any infringement is complicity in guilt. For the text does declare that carelessness and neglect is the crime at hand. Negligence to Christ's word is negligence to salvation.
What then are we to do? Flee to Jesus. He has the words of eternal life. He has the words that shall sustain our souls in life. He alone has the authority and dominion, and His voice has silenced all other voices. Why listen to the echo of the rumbling thunder of Sinai, and the mere words of angels, when you can hear the Son say,
Rise up, my love, my fair one, and come away. For, lo, the winter is past, the rain is over and gone; The flowers appear on the earth; the time of the singing of birds is come, and the voice of the turtle is heard in our land; The fig tree putteth forth her green figs, and the vines with the tender grape give a good smell. Arise, my love, my fair one, and come away. (S. of S. 2:10-13)
Ah what tender words are in this warning of Hebrews that would draw the soul to hear Him. Chasten our souls Lord, draw us with the bonds of everlasting love. Teach us to love Him. Such sorrow strikes the heart to know that men in their unrepentant hearts turn a deaf ear to the Savior. O Lord, chase us with everlasting electing love to that blessed Shepherd.
May Sovereign Love bring forth mercy to our souls.
Footnote:
1John Owen ed., Commentaries on The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews, by John Calvin, (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House), 1993, p.51.
Kevin Hartley
kartleyk@erols.com
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