Hebrews 1:4 - Meaning and Application

The apostle has already shown that the gospel is greater than the law because Jesus Christ is greater than the prophets. Now he goes further and shows that Christ is far above not only the prophets, but the angels themselves. This also answers an objection that Jewish zealots would have been quick to raise: the law was given through angels as well as through men (Galatians 3:19). Since angels are glorious beings, far more excellent than men, they might seem to make the law more honorable. The writer now compares Christ with the holy angels, both in who he is and in what he does, and proves that Christ is much greater than they are: “Being made so much better than the angels, as he has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.”

Notice, first, that Christ’s greater nature is proved from his greater name. Scripture does not give high titles without a real basis in who a person is. It would not speak such great things about the Lord Jesus if he were not truly as great as those words say. When it says that Christ was “made so much better than the angels,” we should not think he was a mere creature like the angels. The Greek word used here, when joined with an adjective, is not rightly translated “created,” and it can mean simply “being more excellent,” as the Syriac version puts it. In the same way, when Scripture says, “Let God be true,” it does not mean God is made true, but that he is acknowledged to be true.

Second, Christ’s superiority over the angels is shown from Scripture itself, and we must take our view from Scripture. We would know very little about Christ or the angels without it. Here the writer gathers several passages where things are said of Christ that are never said of angels. It was said of Christ, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you” (Psalm 2:7). This may point to his eternal sonship, his resurrection, or his public appointment to his glorious kingdom at his ascension and his sitting at the Father’s right hand. This was never said of any angel. Therefore, by inheritance, Christ has a more excellent nature and name than they do.

It was also said of Christ, “I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son” (2 Samuel 7:14). This was never said of angels. The words mean more than, “I am his Father and he is my Son by nature.” They also point to Christ’s wonderful coming into the world, and to the fact that his sonship is the source and foundation of every gracious relationship God has with fallen people.

Another Scripture says of Christ, “When God brings his firstborn into the world, let all the angels of God worship him.” This may refer to his birth in this lower world, when the angels attended and honored him. It may also refer to his ascension into the world above, when he entered his mediatorial kingdom, that is, his role as the one who stands between God and people. Or it may point to his return to judge the world. In every case, the highest creatures must worship him. God will not allow an angel to remain in heaven who will not submit to Christ and honor him. In the end, even fallen angels and wicked people will be forced to confess his divine power and authority and bow before him. Those who would not have him rule over them must then be brought out and judged before him. This comes from Psalm 97:7: “Worship him, all you gods,” meaning, all you who are above ordinary men must admit that you are below Christ in nature and power.

God has also said of Christ, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever” (Hebrews 1:8-12). But of the angels he has only said that he makes them spirits and his ministers a flame of fire (Hebrews 1:7). If we compare what God says about angels with what he says about Christ, the great gap between them becomes clear.

What does God say about the angels? He makes his angels spirits and his servants a flame of fire. This comes from Psalm 104:4. There it seems to speak more directly of winds and lightning, but here it is applied to angels, whose service God uses in winds, thunder, and lightning. Their work is to serve God and do his will. It is a great honor that God has such servants, though he does not need them. He also fits them for this service by making them spirits and a flame of fire. That means he gives them light and zeal, energy and ability, readiness and determination to do his will. They are only what God has made them to be, and they serve the Son as well as the Father.

But far greater things are said of Christ by the Father. One passage is from Psalm 45:6-7. There God says of Christ, first, that he is truly and fully God. He says this with pleasure and affection: “Your throne, O God.” One person calls another person God. If God the Father declares him to be God, then he truly is God. Let anyone deny his essential deity at their own peril, but we should own and honor him as God. If he were not God, he would never have been fit to do the work of the Mediator or to wear the Mediator’s crown.

Second, God declares Christ’s dignity and rule, because he has a throne, a kingdom, and a scepter. He has every right, authority, and power, both as God over nature, grace, and glory, and as Mediator. So he is fully able to carry out all the purposes of his mediatorial kingdom.

Third, God declares the lasting endurance of Christ’s rule and dignity, founded on his divine person: “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever.” That means from everlasting to everlasting, through all the ages of time, despite every effort of earth and hell to weaken or destroy it, and through all the endless ages of eternity when time itself is gone. This sets Christ’s throne apart from every earthly throne. Earthly thrones shake and finally fall, but Christ’s throne will endure as long as the heavens endure.

Fourth, God declares the perfect justice of Christ’s rule and the carrying out of his power in every part of his government: “A scepter of righteousness is the scepter of your kingdom” (Hebrews 1:8).

He came to rule in perfect righteousness, and he uses his rule in perfect righteousness. The righteousness of his kingdom flows from the righteousness of his own person, from an eternal love of righteousness and hatred of evil. It does not come from prudence or self-interest, but from a steady inward nature. “You love righteousness and hate wickedness” (Hebrews 1:9). Christ came to fulfill all righteousness and to bring in an everlasting righteousness. He was righteous in all his ways and holy in all his works. He has shown people the beauty of righteousness and restored it among them as something excellent and lovely. He came to finish rebellion and to put an end to sin, treating it as both hateful and harmful.

God also shows how Christ was fitted for the office of Mediator, that is, the one who stands between God and people, and how he was appointed and confirmed in it (Hebrews 1:9): “Therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions.” Christ has the name Messiah because he was anointed. God’s anointing of Christ means that the Holy Spirit and all his gifts equipped him for the work of Mediator, and that God formally installed him in that work, as prophets, priests, and kings were installed by anointing. The words “God, your God” point to the covenant of redemption and peace between the Father and the Son, which confirmed Christ in this office. God is the God of Christ as Christ is man and Mediator.

This anointing was with “the oil of gladness,” which means two things. It shows the joy and willingness with which Christ took up the office of Mediator, knowing he was fully able for it. It also points to the joy set before him as the reward of his service and suffering, the crown of glory and gladness he would wear forever after death. His anointing was above that of his companions: “God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your companions.” Who are Christ’s companions? He has no equals as God, except the Father and the Spirit, and they are not meant here. As man, however, he has companions, and as one anointed for office, but his anointing is greater than all theirs.

It is greater than the angels, who may be called his companions because they are sons of God by creation and messengers whom God uses in his service. It is greater than all prophets, priests, and kings who were ever anointed with oil for God’s service on earth. It is greater than all the saints, who are his brothers and children of the same Father, since he shared flesh and blood with them. It is greater than all who were related to him as man, above all the house of David, the tribe of Judah, and all his earthly relatives. All of God’s other anointed servants received the Spirit only in some measure. Christ received the Spirit without limit. So no one carries out his work as Christ did, and no one takes such delight in it as he does, for he was anointed with the oil of gladness above his companions.

The next Scripture showing Christ’s superiority over the angels comes from Psalm 102:25-27 and is quoted in Hebrews 1:10-12. It declares the power of the Lord Jesus Christ as seen both in creating the world and in changing it. First, in creating the world (Hebrews 1:10): “You, Lord, laid the foundation of the earth in the beginning, and the heavens are the work of your hands.” The Lord Christ had the original right to rule the world because he made the world in the beginning. As Mediator, his right came by commission from the Father. As God with the Father, his right was absolute, arising from his power as Creator. He had this power before the world began, and he used it to give the world its beginning and existence. Therefore, he must not be part of the world, because then he would have had to give himself a beginning. He existed before all things, and by him all things hold together (Colossians 1:17). He is not only above all things in rank, but before all things in existence, and so he must be God and self-existent. He laid the foundations of the earth. He did not merely shape pre-existing matter into new forms, but made the earth’s foundations out of nothing, the first principles of all things. He founded the earth, and the heavens are also the work of his hands, including both the dwelling place and its inhabitants, the armies of heaven, even the angels themselves. So he must be infinitely greater than they are.

Second, Christ is shown in how he changes the world he has made, and the changing world helps show that Christ does not change. This world is changeable, as all created things are. It has passed through many changes, and it will pass through more. Christ, who made it, allows and directs all these changes (Hebrews 1:11, 12): “They will perish, but you remain; they will all wear out like a garment. You will fold them up like a robe, and they will be changed.” Our visible world, both the earth and the visible heavens, is growing old. Not only people, animals, and trees grow old, but the world itself is growing old and moving toward its end. It changes like a garment and has lost much of its beauty and strength. It grew old early after the first sin, and it has kept getting older and weaker ever since. It shows the marks of a dying world.

Yet this end will not mean total destruction, but change. Christ will fold up this world like a garment, no longer to be abused, and no longer to be used as it has been. So we should not set our hearts on what is not what it seems, and will not remain what it is now. Sin has changed the world for the worse, and Christ will change it for the better. We look for new heavens and a new earth where righteousness lives (2 Peter 3:13). The thought of this should loosen our grip on the present world and make us watchful, diligent, and eager for that better world. It should also lead us to wait on Christ to change us so we are fit for that coming world, because we cannot enter it unless we are made new.

Christ is unchanging. The Father testifies of him, “You remain, and your years will never end.” Christ is the same in himself, the same yesterday, today, and forever, and he is the same to his people through all the changes of time. This can support all who belong to Christ through every change they face in the world and in themselves. Christ is unchanging and never dies, his years will not fail. This can comfort us when we see our own strength fading, or the strength of our loved ones fading, even though our body and heart fail and our days are coming to an end. Christ lives to care for us while we live, and to care for what is ours after we are gone. That should move us to make our place in him clear and sure, so our spiritual and eternal life may be hidden with Christ in God.

Christ’s superiority over the angels is shown by the fact that God never said to the angels what he said to Christ (Hebrews 1:13, 1:14). What has God said to Christ? He said, “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool” (Psalm 110:1). In other words, Christ is given glory, rule, and rest, and he remains in the work of his mediatorial kingdom, that is, his saving rule as God and man, until every enemy is either converted or fully defeated.

Christ Jesus has enemies, which is surprising to think about, even among people. They are enemies to his authority, his cause, and his people. They do not want him to rule over them. So we should not be surprised if we have enemies too. Christ has done nothing to deserve their hatred. In fact, he has done much to make them his friends and his Father’s friends, and yet he still has enemies.

All Christ’s enemies will become his footstool, either by humble surrender and full obedience, or by total destruction. He will trample those who stay stubborn and rebel. God the Father has promised this, and he will bring it about. If it is not done right away, it will certainly be done. Christ waits for it, and Christians must wait too, until God has worked all his purposes in them, for them, and through them.

Christ will keep ruling until this is finished. He will not leave any of his great plans incomplete. He goes on conquering and will keep conquering. His people should also keep doing their duty, being what he wants them to be, doing what he wants them to do, avoiding what he wants them to avoid, and bearing what he wants them to bear, until he makes them conquerors, even more than conquerors, over all their spiritual enemies.

What has God said to the angels? He never said to them, as he said to Christ, “Sit at my right hand.” Instead, he has said here that they are ministering spirits, sent out to serve those who will inherit salvation. Angels are spirits, without bodies or any natural need for bodies, though they can take bodily form when God chooses. They are unseen, intelligent, active beings who excel in wisdom and strength.

Their office, or task, is to serve. Christ, as Mediator, is God’s great servant in the work of redemption. The Holy Spirit is God’s great servant, along with Christ, in applying that redemption to people. Angels are serving spirits under the blessed Trinity, carrying out God’s will and managing his providence, his wise care over all things.

They are sent out for this purpose, to minister to those who will be heirs of salvation. The saints are described here as heirs of salvation. Right now they are still under age, heirs but not yet full possessors. They are heirs because they are God’s children. If we are children, then we are heirs. Let us make sure we are children by adoption, being received into God’s family, and by regeneration, being made new. Let us also give ourselves to God in covenant and live in a way that fits the gospel. Then we are heirs of God and joint-heirs with Christ.

This is also the dignity and privilege of the saints, the angels are sent to serve them. The angels have done this in many ways, such as at the giving of the law, in fighting for God’s people, and in destroying their enemies. They still serve them by opposing evil spirits, protecting their bodies, guarding them, teaching, stirring up, and comforting their souls under Christ and the Holy Spirit. And they will do this when they gather all the saints together at the last day.

So bless God for the ministry of angels. Stay in God’s ways, and take comfort in this promise: he will command his angels to watch over you and keep you in all your ways. They will carry you up in their hands, so that you do not strike your foot against a stone (Psalm 91:11, 12).