Hebrews 2

Therefore we must pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away from it. ²For if the message declared through angels was valid, and every transgression or disobedience received a just penalty, ³how can we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? It was declared at first through the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard him, ⁴while God added his testimony by signs and wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit, distributed according to his will.

“Therefore” indicates a conclusion.  The conclusion is that we should pay attention and stay focused. This would follow from his argument that Jesus is indeed more significant than angels. What he was actually arguing for was that Jesus is the culminating point in history of God’s revelation (as stated in the first few verses of the book). Therefore, listen to the teachings of Jesus.

In verses 2 and 3, he raise a very important question: How can we avoid punishment if it’s true that the guilty has been (and therefore, will be) punished fairly? To put it in postmodern terms, “If we don’t listen to this, we’re kind of screwed, aren’t we?” If, on the other hand, we do listen, we have “a great salvation”.

This great salvation was expressed through Jesus (himself) and those who had witnessed his ministry. These spectators had seen some amazing things as well which the author takes to mean that God himself was contributing to the message, “adding his testimony” as in the old days, in the times of the prophets. The author is basically promoting the gospel accounts.

5 Now God^* did not subject the coming world, about which we are speaking, to angels. ⁶But someone has testified somewhere,
‘What are human beings that you are mindful of them,^*
   or mortals, that you care for them?^*
7You have made them for a little while lower^* than the angels;
   you have crowned them with glory and honour,^*
8   subjecting all things under their feet.’
Now in subjecting all things to them, God^* left nothing outside their control. As it is, we do not yet see everything in subjection to them, ⁹but we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower^* than the angels, now crowned with glory and honour because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God^* he might taste death for everyone.

I personally find it difficult to follow the author’s line of thoughts here. Perhaps I just disagree on his interpretation of Psalm 8 which he’s referring to in verses 6 to 8. But perhaps it’s the kind of eisegesis that Paul is famous for (and perhaps Paul is the man behind this text). The point of this reference is not necessarily what the Psalm originally meant to say, but what kind of meaning we can put into it in order to portray reality correctly. This seems to be done quite often by the New Testament authors.

It seems he wants to make the point that Jesus, the “Son of Man” (which might be what he’s aiming at in verse 6), was made inferior to angels, yet he is now crowned with glory and honour. This does seem to continue his argument in chapter 1. Jesus is superior to angels, yes, but only after having been inferior and suffering death.

The salvation perspective is maintained. The reason for Jesus’ glorification is that he “tasted death for everyone”. In this manner, he demonstrated the grace of God.

10 It was fitting that God,^* for whom and through whom all things exist, in bringing many children to glory, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through sufferings. ¹¹For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father.^* For this reason Jesus^* is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters,^{* 12}saying,
‘I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters,^*
   in the midst of the congregation I will praise you.’
¹³And again,
‘I will put my trust in him.’
And again,
‘Here am I and the children whom God has given me.’

“It was fitting that God” did it this way, the author says. Quite a funny statement once you think about it. Is anything that God does ever “unfitting”? But perhaps the author simply means to say that what God did fits perfectly into the truths already revealed through the prophets in the past. What is it that is fitting, though? Is it the simple fact that he became perfect? Or is it specifically the fact that he became perfect through sufferings? In any case, Jesus sanctified people (made them holy) through that suffering, and therefore they may be considered children of God in the same manner that Jesus is the Son of God. God is our family, not just our father.

14 Since, therefore, the children share flesh and blood, he himself likewise shared the same things, so that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, ¹⁵and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by the fear of death. ¹⁶For it is clear that he did not come to help angels, but the descendants of Abraham. ¹⁷Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters^* in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people. ¹⁸Because he himself was tested by what he suffered, he is able to help those who are being tested.

While I’ve had plenty of doubts concerning the passages prior to this one, it all seems to come nicely together in the end. I think.

Jesus destroyed the devil through death. That’s an interesting statement. As far as I know, the devil is still around, even though he will eventually be thrown into the lake of fire. Perhaps what is meant here is “defeated”? Perhaps the blow he suffered during the death of Jesus is the one that will eventually mean his death. In addition to that, Jesus gave hope to the ones he came to save. Hope of a life beyond death.

Again, the author relates this to angels. Jesus did not come to save these. Still, knowing what kind of teachings had been dominating among the Jews at the time might have benefitted our understanding. Why are angels so significant to this whole discussion? This remains a mystery. Jesus came to save the descendants of Abraham. In other words, “he came to save you” (if we acknowledge that the Hebrews are the recipients of this message). He might  have put it differently if he had been talking to gentiles. But in saying it this way, the author acknowledges the significance of being part of God’s chosen people. It’s not an excluding sort of significance meaning that gentiles cannot be saved, but it’s still significant because they have an amazing history and have a great heritage.

Verse 17 explains the gospel as we know it. Jesus became like—not just similar to, because the text says “in every respect”—his brothers and sisters in order that he might be a “merciful” (gracious) and “faithful” (reliable, loyal) high priest who would make atonement for the sins of the people. These are obvious allusions to the cultic practices established in Leviticus that all the Hebrews would be closely familiar with. It is significant to the Hebrew mindset that Jesus serves that particular role of ridding the people of their sins.

It is not obvious whether Jesus is done serving that role. The past tense applies to his becoming like his brothers and sisters, not necessarily to his becoming a high priest. Verse 18 may even suggest that being the high priest now is his way of helping those who are now being tested and who are now suffering as he was tested through suffering himself. He helps by faithfully and mercifully bringing atonement for our sins.

Hebrews 1

Like every other epistle, Hebrews should be interpreted with regards to author and recipients and a number of other contextual issues. I don’t know all of these in depth, but I may read the text and speculate on the content.

1Long ago God spoke to our ancestors in many and various ways by the prophets, ²but in these last days he has spoken to us by a Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom he also created the worlds. ³He is the reflection of God’s glory and the exact imprint of God’s very being, and he sustains all things by his powerful word. When he had made purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, ⁴having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

This is not a typical letter. It doesn’t say who’s the author, and it doesn’t say clearly whom its recipients are, either. That’s kind of unusual. Perhaps it’s a transcript of a sermon or something like that.

It’s definitely to the Hebrews, though. At least, it’s probable, since the author relates the testimony of Jesus to the revelations of the Old Testament (the prophets). That’s not how you’d speak to Greeks and former Hellenists, for instance. In addition to that, there are allusions to Genesis (Creation), the tabernacle and the cultic system of Israel, kingship (Messiah-ship), and angelic beings. These are very Hebrew concepts, indeed. The author seems to be saying, “Jesus belongs within this worldview and can rightfully be described with this kind of Old Testament terminology.”

More than that, the status and authority of Jesus is emphasised. He took part  in Creation, he sits at His right hand, his name is awesome, etc.. Jesus is a truly significant character we need pay attention to.

5 For to which of the angels did God ever say,
‘You are my Son;
   today I have begotten you’?
Or again,
‘I will be his Father,
   and he will be my Son’?
⁶And again, when he brings the firstborn into the world, he says,
‘Let all God’s angels worship him.’
⁷Of the angels he says,
‘He makes his angels winds,
   and his servants flames of fire.’
⁸But of the Son he says,
‘Your throne, O God, is^* for ever and ever,
   and the righteous sceptre is the sceptre of your^* kingdom.
⁹You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness;
therefore God, your God, has anointed you
   with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.’
¹⁰And,
‘In the beginning, Lord, you founded the earth,
   and the heavens are the work of your hands;
¹¹they will perish, but you remain;
   they will all wear out like clothing;
¹²like a cloak you will roll them up,
   and like clothing^* they will be changed.
But you are the same,
   and your years will never end.’
¹³But to which of the angels has he ever said,
‘Sit at my right hand
   until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet’?
¹⁴Are not all angels^* spirits in the divine service, sent to serve for the sake of those who are to inherit salvation?

There seems to be a lot of quotes here. These quotes are probably from the Old Testament. Once again, it’s clear that this letter—or transcipt or whatever—must have been to Hebrews. They consider Scripture as a great authority already, and therefore his argument carries much greater impact than if he’d been writing to Greeks who are less familiar with these past revelations.

The author obviously wants to make the point that Jesus is indeed more significant than angels in numerous aspects. The question is, Why would he make that point? I guess, it suggests the Hebrews he was talking to had been exposed to some kind of heresy; perhaps, they actually considered Jesus to be (somewhat) like the angels? And perhaps the author is now disciplining them, telling them how dead wrong they are? It’s possible.

Whatever the reason, the author uses this opportunity to spell out just how awesome Jesus is: First, he notes that Jesus has a special father-son relationship with God. Jesus is worshipped by angels. Jesus has been made a ruler, anointed with the “oil of gladness”. Everything in the Creation is temporal, but Jesus is eternal and unchanging. Finally, Jesus has been made a ruler while the angels are just serving spirits. All of this is true according to what the prophets stated in the past. In other words, Jesus is much greater than angels.

John 1:19-34

See the Gospel of John chapter 1, I’ll be reading from the NRSV.

19 This is the testimony given by John when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, ‘Who are you?’ ²⁰He confessed and did not deny it, but confessed, ‘I am not the Messiah.’^{* 21}And they asked him, ‘What then? Are you Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the prophet?’ He answered, ‘No.’ ²²Then they said to him, ‘Who are you? Let us have an answer for those who sent us. What do you say about yourself?’ ²³He said,
‘I am the voice of one crying out in the wilderness,
“Make straight the way of the Lord” ’,
as the prophet Isaiah said.

The baptism must have been known to the Jews. They didn’t ask John what he was doing, but by what authority. The question of who he is really goes in the sense of ‘Who the hell do you think you are that you can just stand here and baptise people?’ John’s authority is the question behind the question as will be revealed in the following verses. While he’s neither Messiah, some reincarnation of Elijah or “the prophet” – he’s the fulfillment of a prophecy from Isaiah 40:3.

What is meant by wilderness? What is its significance? Perhaps he’s literally in the wilderness proclaiming this message of repentance. Perhaps Israel is in a state of spiritual wilderness at the time he’s preaching. Perhaps he’s in the literal wilderness to underline this spiritual wilderness.

24 Now they had been sent from the Pharisees. ²⁵They asked him, ‘Why then are you baptizing if you are neither the Messiah, nor Elijah, nor the prophet?’ ²⁶John answered them, ‘I baptize with water. Among you stands one whom you do not know, ²⁷the one who is coming after me; I am not worthy to untie the thong of his sandal.’ ²⁸This took place in Bethany across the Jordan where John was baptizing.

Comparing with the other gospel accounts, John doesn’t answer them quite as one might expect. What does baptism with water has to do with witnessing about Jesus (or “the one who is coming after” him)? In the other gospels, he goes on to say that Jesus will baptise with fire and the Holy Spirit which seems to be omitted here, though it would have made much more sense to his actual response.

29 The next day he saw Jesus coming towards him and declared, ‘Here is the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! ³⁰This is he of whom I said, “After me comes a man who ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” ³¹I myself did not know him; but I came baptizing with water for this reason, that he might be revealed to Israel.’ ³²And John testified, ‘I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it remained on him. ³³I myself did not know him, but the one who sent me to baptize with water said to me, “He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain is the one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.” ³⁴And I myself have seen and have testified that this is the Son of God.’

I notice that the reference to the sacrificial practices of Israel. Jesus is referred to as the Lamb of God, some sort of ultimate sacrifice that will not only take away the sin of an individual, nor of an individual nation like Israel (the chosen nation), but of the world! That makes Jesus really something and that’s a rather bold testimony from John.

He also witness to his pre-existence by claiming that Jesus was before him. This hints back to what the narrator of the gospel told us in the first few verses. John the Baptist clearly states that these things are not his own theories og speculations. He’s simply repeating what has been revealed to him.

In addition to that is the question of Jesus’ baptism. It does not appear as though John baptizes Jesus, at least not directly. Jesus, however, is proclaimed to be the one who would (or perhaps already was) the “one who baptizes with the Holy Spirit.” There’s some kind of distinction between the baptism of John and the baptism of Jesus. The difference is the Holy Spirit.

John 1;1-18

See the Gospel of John chapter 1, I’ll be reading from the NRSV.

1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ²He was in the beginning with God. ³All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being ⁴in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. ⁵The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.

The Gospel of John starts in much the same way as the entire Bible. It’s pretty much like the Creation story. “In the beginning”. The content is not much different. God spoke, and it happened. This passage talks about everything coming into existence through the Word. And it talks about the Word as if it’s a person.

6 There was a man sent from God, whose name was John. ⁷He came as a witness to testify to the light, so that all might believe through him. ⁸He himself was not the light, but he came to testify to the light. ⁹The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world.

The second keyword is definitely light. As we’ve been told, the Word that created everything is the light. ‘Let there be light,’ God said. The narrator is still drawing upon the creation story. Now, he introduces a man named John who were telling people about this person, the Word/light.

10 He was in the world, and the world came into being through him; yet the world did not know him. ¹¹He came to what was his own, and his own people did not accept him. ¹²But to all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God, ¹³who were born, not of blood or of the will of the flesh or of the will of man, but of God.

How very strange, some would say ironic, that he (Word/light) was not recognised nor welcomed by his own people. And sad. Why is that? The narrator doesn’t really tell.

“power to become children of God”? How much power does it take to be a child? But reading on we see that it has to do with being born of God rather than of man. It might have to do with obedience. If true, obedience has one sole source: Whatever person he’s talking about. Only this Word / light can equip us with the power needed to be children of God (whatever that means).

14 And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth. ¹⁵(John testified to him and cried out, ‘This was he of whom I said, “He who comes after me ranks ahead of me because he was before me.” ’)

It is revealed that the Word is Jesus Christ. Logically, this means that Jesus Christ was in the beginning, taking part in Creation. Then it makes sense that this man named John says that he came before him, even if John is older than him according to birth on Earth. Jesus must have had a pre-existence to be able to participate in creating the world. Naturally, this would make him God as claimed by the first few verses, both with God and being God himself. And then it is only through the power of Christ we may become children of God.

¹⁶From his fullness we have all received, grace upon grace. ¹⁷The law indeed was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. ¹⁸No one has ever seen God. It is God the only Son, who is close to the Father’s heart, who has made him known.

A third keyword seems to present itself: Grace. Whatever we know about God the Father, we know through Jesus Christ who is his Son.

Psalm 103

See Psalm 103 in the Book of Psalms. I’ll be reading from the NIV.

Of David.

Somehow this psalm may be attributed to King David who was a man of God, perhaps the man of God when looking to the Old Testament.

1 Praise the LORD, O my soul;
       all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the LORD, O my soul,
       and forget not all his benefits-
3 who forgives all your sins
       and heals all your diseases,
4 who redeems your life from the pit
       and crowns you with love and compassion,
5 who satisfies your desires with good things
       so that your youth is renewed like the eagle’s.

David (or whoever wrote it) is speaking to himself. Twice. Or rather, he is speaking to his own soul, pleading it to praise God. Obvious from verse 1, “soul” does not refer to one particular department of his mind or body, but to “all my inmost being”. (Jews didn’t compartmentalise like 21st century Evangelicals tend to.)

He goes on to praising God by mentioning a number of great qualities. God is a forgiver, a healer and a redeemer. All these roles have to do with God working to save us. Other psalms tend to focus on Creation or God’s omnipotence or omniscience, but this one seems concerned with God’s plan of salvation in particular.

God gives us love and compassion – he crowns us, so actually he’s making us heirs of his kingdom – and he satisfies our needs and renews our youth.

6 The LORD works righteousness
       and justice for all the oppressed.
7 He made known his ways to Moses,
       his deeds to the people of Israel:
8 The LORD is compassionate and gracious,
       slow to anger, abounding in love.
9 He will not always accuse,
       nor will he harbor his anger forever;
10 he does not treat us as our sins deserve
       or repay us according to our iniquities.

God is seen as a righteous judge working on behalf of the oppressed. “The oppressed” may refer to Israel, who he mentions in verse 7, or it may refer to all people feeling oppressed. I find the latter more liable.

One of the characteristics struck me in particular. God is “slow to anger”. He’s not waiting for you to mess up. If you sin, he doesn’t get upset straightaway. He’s patient with you. He’s working with you on a calm and constructive level in order to help you grow, not in a mad, demanding way that will only stress you. This is very much related to God being “abounding in love”.

Accordingly, he will not always accuse. This doesn’t mean that he overlooks things in the process or ignores them when they happen. The “always” is future-related as we also see in second part of verse 9, ‘nor will he harbor his anger forever’. Someday God will let go off the past. (Until then he will work with us.)

Verse 10 explains the very concept of grace. We won’t get the punishment that we deserve. The following verses elaborates this:

11 For as high as the heavens are above the earth,
       so great is his love for those who fear him;
12 as far as the east is from the west,
       so far has he removed our transgressions from us.
13 As a father has compassion on his children,
       so the LORD has compassion on those who fear him;

I love this. Just how high are the heavens above the earth? How long is the way to the top? Endless. Unceasing. Everlasting. And this is how much God loves those who fears him. Vertically.

How far is east from the west, then? Well, David knew no end. He never encountered a great wall of stone saying, ‘This is as far west as you can go’. God has removed our transgressions as far away as possible. Horizontally.

It may seem odd that it is already done (written in past tense). Because sins are still present and if God only throws away past transgressions, most of us are pretty lost anyway. The past tense may be to assure us that the promises of God are as sure as if they had already been fulfilled entirely. We always question the future, but rarely the past which is apparant. Thus, David writes this in past tense to prevent us from questioning God’s power to remove our sins from us. “Don’t ask if he will really do it, just consider it done already!”

Verse 13 echoes verse 11. God’s love is compared to that of a father.

14 for he knows how we are formed,
       he remembers that we are dust.
15 As for man, his days are like grass,
       he flourishes like a flower of the field;
16 the wind blows over it and it is gone,
       and its place remembers it no more.
17 But from everlasting to everlasting
       the LORD’s love is with those who fear him,
       and his righteousness with their children’s children-
18 with those who keep his covenant
       and remember to obey his precepts.

Having described God in verses 3-13, David now turns his attention to humans. Verses 14-16 reminds us just how fragile we are as created beings. Dust, grass, a flower. It only takes wind, then we’re gone.

But God’s love remains for – yet again – those who fear him. So does his righteousness. Who are these people? According to verse 18, these are the people keeping his covenant and obeying his precepts. Some versions have “commandments” instead of “precepts”. A friend of mine might have read this and argued that she would not be included in this group seeing that she fails to obey God’s precepts.

Nor would David, I suppose. Or anyone else for that matter. But as this psalm has already demonstrated to us, grace is not for the sinless. If there are any sinless people, they don’t need grace logically speaking. While verses 14-16 remind us not to think too highly of ourselves, verses 3-5 reminded us of our miserable condition and God’s ways of saving us. The psalm’s main emphasis is God’s decision and power to save.

If we concluded from this psalm that God cannot or will not save us, we would’ve missed the whole point of the psalm. Because God’s power and willingness to save us in multiple ways because of his love and compassion, that is what made David encourage his soul and everyone else to praise the LORD.

19 The LORD has established his throne in heaven,
       and his kingdom rules over all.
20 Praise the LORD, you his angels,
       you mighty ones who do his bidding,
       who obey his word.
21 Praise the LORD, all his heavenly hosts,
       you his servants who do his will.
22 Praise the LORD, all his works
       everywhere in his dominion.
       Praise the LORD, O my soul.

Amen.

Simply Reading it …

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