The book of Hebrews – Chapter 1 (Part 1) – Greater than the prophets
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Part 1 - Greater than the prophets.
RELATED MINISTRY
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Gavin Paynter |
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Ken Paynter |
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CENTRAL THOUGHT
The 2 NT books
which best make the transition from the OT are Matthew and Hebrews. Scholars
generally regard the book of Hebrews to be second in importance only to Paul’s
letter to the Romans in the New Testament. No other book so eloquently defines
Christ as high priest of Christianity, superior to the Aaronic priesthood, and
the fulfillment of the Law and the Prophets. This book presents Christ as the
Author and Perfecter of our faith (Heb 12:2). [1]
The central thought of the entire Epistle is the doctrine of the Person of
Christ and his role as mediator between God and humanity. [2]
AUTHORSHIP
The author
of Hebrews is anonymous. Since the earliest days of the Church, the authorship
has been debated and still remains unknown. Authorship by Paul is the oldest
and widest held view. Besides Paul some common candidates are Barnabas, Silas
or Apollos. Other suggestions for the authorship of Hebrews include Luke,
James, Epaphras, Clement of Rome and even Priscilla (wife of
Barnabas
Tertullian
was the first to suggest Barnabas as the author. Barnabas, Paul’s first
missionary companion, was a Levite (Acts 4:36) and as such would have been very
familiar with the priestly Levitical rituals mentioned in the book.
Apollos
Martin
Luther first suggested Apollos as the author. Luke describes Apollos as a
Jewish native of
Silas
Some have
suggested Paul’s missionary companion Silas as the author. Silas assisted Peter
in writing his first epistle. [3]
The Greek language of both 1 Peter and Hebrews are of the same high quality.
Silas was a friend of Timothy (1 Thess 1:1) who is mentioned at the end of the
epistle (Heb 13:23). As a Jew, Silas would have been familiar with the many
Jewish customs referred to in Hebrews.
Paul
As
mentioned, authorship by Paul is the oldest view. In the 2nd century Clement of
Alexandria and Origen held to this view. The inscription “The Epistle of Paul
the Apostle to the Hebrews” is found on nearly all existing Greek manuscripts,
including the Peshito (Aramaic translation). Eusebius (c. 263-340) spoke of the
“fourteen epistles” of the apostle Paul. Jerome (c. 347-420) considered Paul to
be the author, as did Augustine (354-430). [4]
In several
of the early Greek manuscripts Hebrews is located, not after Philemon as in our
Bibles, but grouped among the other Pauline epistles, indicating that those who
arranged the manuscripts considered Hebrews to be of Pauline origin. W.H. Goold
listed a number of other scholars of antiquity that held to Pauline authorship:
Hilary, Ambrose, Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa, Chrysostom, Justin Martyr,
and Athanasius. Then too, Pauline authorship was the adopted view of the synod
of
Paul ends
all his epistles using the phrase “grace be with you” or something similar.
This is his “distinguishing mark.” In 2 Thess 3:17-18 he tells us, “I, Paul,
write this greeting in my own hand, which is the distinguishing mark in all my
letters. This is how I write. The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you
all.”
The grace of our Lord Jesus be with you. (Rom 16:20)
The grace of the Lord Jesus be with you. (1 Cor 16:23)
May the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ… be with you all. (2 Cor 13:14)
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit, brothers. Amen.
(Gal 6:18)
Grace to all who love our Lord Jesus Christ with an undying love. (Eph
6:24)
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ be with your spirit. (Philippians
4:23 & Philemon 25)
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you. (1 Thess 5:28)
Grace be with you. (
Grace be with you all. (Titus 3:15)
This ending
of Hebrews is consistent with the other letters of Paul (This use of the phrase
“grace be with you” is not used in any other NT books endings).
Grace be with you all. (Heb 13:25)
Peter’s ministry was to the Jews
(i.e. Hebrews). [6] When
writing to the Jews, Peter in effect confirms that Paul did indeed also write a
letter to the Hebrews: “Bear in mind that our Lord’s patience means salvation,
just as our dear brother Paul also wrote you with the wisdom that God gave
him.” (2 Pet 3:15) Peter continues to say that Paul writes with wisdom and that
“his letters contain some things that are hard to understand” (2 Pet 3:16),
which would be an apt description of the book of Hebrews.
The author of Hebrews writes, “Those from
Paul
regarded Timothy [7] as his
“true son in the faith” (1 Tim 1:2) and they were frequent travel companions:
“I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released. If he arrives
soon, I will come with him to see you.” (Heb 13:23)
Some of the language is similar to Paul’s and the differences with the other 13
Pauline epistles can be accounted for by the fact that it had a different
audience (Jews not Gentiles). [8]
The author
to the epistle to the Hebrews has always been a matter of speculation… In the
end one is driven to confess with Eusebius, “But who it was that really wrote
the epistle, God only knows.” While the authorship is not certain the ancient
church has universally accepted the canonicity of Hebrews in both the East and
the West. [9]
RECIPIENTS & DATING
The term,
“Those from
The subject
matter and traditional name (i.e. Hebrews) indicate that it was addressed to a
Jewish audience. The recipients had faced persecution (10:32–34) but not yet to
the point of shedding their blood (12:4) so it is most likely written just
before Nero’s persecution of 64-68 AD. Hebrews may well have been written near
the very end of Paul’s first imprisonment in
BETTER THAN THE PROPHETS
The keyword
in the book of Hebrews is BETTER.
Heb 1:1-2
reads, “In the past God spoke to our forefathers through the prophets at many
times and in various ways, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his
Son…” Now we are told in Isaiah 55:9 that “As the heavens are higher than the
earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your
thoughts.” Because God’s ways are higher than ours, we would know nothing about
God if it were not for divine revelation. In the dispensation of Law, God spoke
and revealed himself through His prophets. In our dispensation of Grace, God
has used an even better channel of communication for His divine revelation i.e.
His Son.
In Islam, they teach that Jesus was
a prophet amongst many prophets. But they deny that God has a Son. Hebrews 1
shows us that God has a Son and that He has used him as his final revelation:
“God… has spoken to us by his Son” (Heb 1:1-2).
Not only does
God have a Son, but His Son is greater than all the prophets (not just a
prophet amongst many as Islam teaches). We’re given 7 facts about the person
and work of Jesus to show His superiority to the prophets.
1)
God appointed Him heir of all things.
2)
God made the universe through Him.
3)
He is the radiance of God’s glory.
4)
He is the exact representation of God’s being.
5)
He sustains all things by his powerful word.
6)
He provided purification for sins.
7)
He sat down at the right hand of God.
(1) Heir of all things
Whom he appointed heir of all things
This is a logical condition of the
fact that Christ is the ‘Son’ of God. A son is heir to everything his father
owns. Gal 4:7 says, “Therefore you are no longer a slave, but a son; and if a
son, then an heir through God.” The illustration is that all believers, because
we are sons of God, are also heirs of God. Of course, Jesus is a Son in a very
unique way because of His eternal relationship with the Father. Christ is
promised to be “heir of all things.” However, He has not inherited everything
at this present time. He has not yet inherited all nations and His earthly
kingdom. This will be fulfilled in the future Millennium, when Jesus sets up
His 1000 year earthly kingdom (Rev 20). [11]
Dan 7:13-14 “In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one
like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient
of Days and was led into his presence. He was given authority, glory and
sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him.
His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his
kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”
Again, we see that in the future Christ will inherit
everything. This is the point of the writer in Hebrews 1. He is demonstrating
the superiority of Christ by the fact that He is heir to everything. [12]
(2) Creator
Through whom he made
the universe.
The second point that demonstrates Jesus’ superiority
over the prophets is that He is the Creator.
The Bible teaches that all 3 persons of the Godhead
were involved in creation:
The Father initiated the process: “In the
beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” (Gen 1:1)
The Holy Spirit was present: “… and the Spirit
of God was hovering over the waters.” (Gen 1:2)
But the Son was the channel: “Through him all
things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made.” (John 1:3)
Not only were all things made by Him – they were made
for Him. Paul says of Jesus, “For by him all things were created: things in
heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers
or authorities; all things were created by him and for him.” (
(3) The radiance of God’s glory
The Son is the radiance of God’s glory.
Jesus is superior to the prophets because He radiates
God’s glory. In the OT during the exodus from
When Moses went up on the mountain, the cloud
covered it, and the glory of the LORD settled on
The Israelites saw a similar physical manifestation of
God’s glory with the tabernacle.
Then the cloud covered the Tent of Meeting, and
the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle. Moses could not enter the Tent of
Meeting because the cloud had settled upon it, and the glory of the LORD filled
the tabernacle… So the cloud of the LORD was over the tabernacle by day, and
fire was in the cloud by night, in the sight of all the house of
When Solomon dedicated the temple, God’s glory was
also revealed physically through a cloud.
When the priests withdrew from the
When Jesus came to earth the glory of God was again
revealed to man, but not in the temple or tabernacle as before. Now God’s glory
was manifested through the tabernacle of human flesh.
John 1:14 The Word became flesh and made his
dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the One and Only, who
came from the Father, full of grace and truth.
Although Jesus shares the glory of God equally with
the rest of the Godhead, when He came to earth that glory housed within a human
body was veiled to some extent. However there were some cases when Jesus’ glory
was revealed. On the road to
When John sees the glorified Jesus on
“someone ‘like a son of man,’ dressed in a robe
reaching down to his feet and with a golden sash around his chest. His head and
hair were white like wool, as white as snow, and his eyes were like blazing fire.
His feet were like bronze glowing in a furnace, and his voice was like the
sound of rushing waters. In his right hand he held seven stars, and out of his
mouth came a sharp double-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining in all
its brilliance. When I saw him, I fell at his feet as though dead… (Rev
1:13-17)
When Jesus
was on the mount of Transfiguration “the appearance of his face changed, and
his clothes became as bright as a flash of lightning… Peter and his companions
… saw his glory…” (Lk 9:29-32). Speaking of this occasion Peter writes “we were
eyewitnesses of his majesty” (2 Pet 1:16).
This revealing of Jesus’ glory is most significant in
the light of our current study that Jesus is greater than the prophets. Moses
and Elijah were representative of the Old Covenant. Moses represented the Law
and Elijah the Prophets. Yet in the presence of these 2 great men of the Old
Covenant, God affirms that Jesus is His Son and that He is the one that should
be listened to:
Luke 9:35 A voice came from the cloud, saying,
“This is my Son, whom I have chosen; listen to him.”
What were Jesus, Moses and Elijah discussing? They
spoke about his departure, which he was about to bring to fulfillment at
Note, however, that these men were not antagonistic
toward this event, but freely discussed it with Jesus. This shows that Jesus’
work was not a contradiction or a violation of what they had done, but rather a
fulfillment of it, completely in harmony with God’s plan as revealed through the
Old Testament prophets. [15]
Although Jesus’ glory was veiled on earth, when He
returned to the Father, He resumed the full display of glory that He shared
with the Father for all eternity. Jesus says in John 17:
“Father, the time has come. Glorify your Son,
that your Son may glorify you … And now, Father, glorify me in your presence
with the glory I had with you before the world began” (vss 4-5)
“Father, I want those you have given me to be
with me where I am, and to see my glory, the glory you have given me because
you loved me before the creation of the world” (vs 24).
Jesus told the 2 disciples on the Road to Emmaus:
“Did not the Christ have to suffer these things
and then enter his glory?” (Luke 24:26)
When Jesus returns, His glory will not be veiled:
Matt 24:30 “At that time the sign of the Son of
Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They
will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great
glory.”
Matt 25:31 “When the Son of Man comes in his
glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his throne in heavenly
glory.
(4) Exact representation of God
The exact
representation of his being
Here we have a very clear statement concerning the Deity
of Christ. Anyone who doubts that Jesus Christ is God need only read this
verse. First, we are told that Christ is the “radiance of His glory,” and now
we see that He is the “exact representation” of the character of God.
Incidentally, this is the only time in the New Testament that this phrase is
used. It means “the impression made by a dye or seal.” It is an impression, or
an exact replica. [16]
John 14:8-10 Philip said, “Lord, show us the
Father and that will be enough for us.”
Jesus answered: “Don’t you know me, Philip, even after I have been among you
such a long time? Anyone who has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say,
‘Show us the Father’? Don’t you believe that I am in the Father, and that the
Father is in me?”
As believers, we reflect the character of God in our
lives, but we cannot stand up and say, “He who has seen me has seen the
Father.” That would be blasphemy. The only person who has ever lived on earth
that can truthfully proclaim this statement is Jesus Christ. He is an exact
reflection of God’s being, God’s character, and God’s essence. [17]
If one wants to see God the Father, one must look at Jesus Christ. This truth
is illustrated again in Col 1:15 which says, “And He is the image of the
invisible God…” God the Father is invisible. If you or I want to see the
Father, the only way it is possible for us to do that is look at Jesus Christ. [18]
This is another example of the superiority of Christ. The prophets could reveal
what God is because He told them. Christ could reveal what God is because He is
God. [19]
(5) 
Sustains
all things
Sustaining all things
by his powerful word
As the creator who gives being and existence to his
creatures which he created from nothing, God continues to provide the same
being and existence to his creatures which do not have being in themselves.
Thus creatures are totally dependent on God and would vanish without his
conserving action. [20]
Jesus said, “My Father works until now and I work” (John 5:17). Augustine
commented on John 5:17, “Let us therefore believe that God works constantly, so
that all created things would perish, if his working were withdrawn.” [21]
There is no creature that is not dependent upon God.
Matt 6:26-30 Look at the birds of the air; they
do not sow or reap or store away in barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds
them… If that is how God clothes the grass of the field… will he not much more
clothe you…
In this
passage in Hebrews we are told that Jesus is “sustaining all things by his
powerful word”. So Jesus not only made the universe – he sustains it.
This is telling us that Christ is the mystery behind
the physical forces: the gravitational force, the electro-magnetic forces, the
strong and weak nuclear forces. It is Christ who sustains all things and holds
all things together: holding each atom together, keeping us anchored to the
earth, sustaining the revolutions of the planets around the sun. [22]
With the microcosm, laminin is the cell adhesion molecule
that holds the proteins of our bodies together. Interestingly the very shape of
this ‘glue’ which holds us together is in the form of the cross.
(6) Provided purification for sin
After he had provided
purification for sins
The next fact concerning the superiority of Christ in
verse 3 begins, “He made purification of sins.” There is an important change of
tenses concerning this fact. The previous examples, (e.g. sustaining all
things) which we examined, were written in the present tense, meaning that it
is forever continuing. Now, suddenly, the author switches to the aorist tense,
referring to a completed action. [23]
Once again, Jesus is shown to be superior. No prophet
or any other man for that matter was capable or qualified to provide
purification for sin. Not anyone or anything could be the sacrifice for sin.
There were 2 requirements for the sacrifice:
1) They had to be of the same family as man (i.e. a kinsman-redeemer).
Heb 2:9-11 … Jesus … suffered death, so that by
the grace of God he might taste death for everyone … Both the one who makes men
holy and those who are made holy are of the same family.
2) The sacrifice must be without blemish (sin).
Rom 5:21 God made him who had no sin to be sin
for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
An angel could not pay for our sin because they are
not of the same family. Likewise the animal sacrifices of the OT were
inadequate to atone for mankind.
Heb 10:3-4 But those sacrifices are an annual
reminder of sins, because it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to
take away sins.
The prophets were still men who were sinful, but Jesus
alone was sinless and thus uniquely qualified to pay for our sin (and for the
sins of the prophets themselves).
1 Pet 1:18-19 For you know that it was not with
perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty
way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious
blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.
All men, including
the prophets, are sinners:
Rom 3:23 for all have sinned and fall short of
the glory of God…
Only Jesus is sinless:
Heb 4:15 For we do not have a high priest who
is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been
tempted in every way, just as we are—yet was without sin.
1 Pet 2:21-22 … Christ suffered for you… “He
committed no sin, and no deceit was found in his mouth.”
1 John 3:5 But you know that he appeared so
that he might take away our sins. And in him is no sin.
Jesus was the only person who could make purification
for our sin. He conquered the power and the penalty of sin and death for all
those who put their trust in Him. Jesus is greater than the prophets because He
is their redeemer. The prophets too were sinners and needed a Saviour. So this
is not just a side-issue. If Jesus were not greater than the prophets, he could
not have paid for sin.
(7) Sat down at God’s right hand
He sat down at the
right hand of the Majesty in heaven
You find that of all the furniture mentioned in the
tabernacle or temple, there were no chairs for the priests to sit on.
Heb 9:2-4 A tabernacle was set up. In its first
room were the lampstand, the table and the consecrated bread; this was called
the
The reason
that there were no chairs for the priests to sit on was due to the fact that
their work was never complete. Offering sacrifices was an ongoing occurrence.
But Jesus changed all that. He offered a sacrifice for sin once and for all
time. What did He do after He ascended to Heaven? He sat down because His work
was finished. The term ‘sat down’ indicates finality.
Just before He died Jesus said, “It is finished”
showing that the work of salvation was completed on the cross.
John 17:28-30 Later, knowing that all was now
completed, and so that the Scripture would be fulfilled, Jesus said, “I am
thirsty.” … When he had received the drink, Jesus said, “It is finished.” With
that, he bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
Nothing further had to be done (like suffering in hell
– as some falsely teach). The NT makes it clear that salvation was fully
accomplished on the cross.
Jesus
completed the work of giving eternal life. He prays to Father, “For you granted
him authority over all people that he might give eternal life to all those you
have given him. Now this is eternal life: that they may know you, the only true
God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent. I have brought you glory on earth by
completing the work you gave me to do.” (John 17:2-4)
So there is nothing we can do on our own - to be saved
and forgiven from our sins. Jesus finished that work when He died on the cross.
Can we be forgiven by doing good works? No! Can we be saved by keeping
religious ceremonies? No! Jesus provided “purification for sin”
when He died on the cross for us, and then sat down because the job was
completed.
Jesus tells the churches in Revelation, “… I overcame
and sat down with my Father on his throne” (Rev 3:21). Because Jesus overcame
and accomplished a finished work of salvation on the cross, God exalted him.
Phil 2:8-11 And being found in appearance as a
man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death— even death on a cross!
Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is
above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven
and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is
Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Jesus has been exalted and given “the name that is
above every name” including the prophet’s names.
Jesus is better than the
prophets
How important is the revelation of God through Jesus
contrasted with the prophets? What qualifies Him to give us God’s word?
Well in the light of what we have seen in these first
3 verses of Hebrews ask yourself, “Who is greater, the prophets or Jesus?” The
answer is obvious. The prophets never created. They don’t hold the world
together. They aren’t the special heir (Son) of God who mirror His glory. The
prophets never died for our sins or sat at the Father’s right hand. They were
simply instruments of God who pointed to His future ordained plan of salvation.
The 7
facts we looked at show that Jesus is superior to any prophet ever. He brought
us the final and greatest revelation of God. Once we see the superior
revelation of Jesus Christ, we can never go back to the old way of worship that
was a part of the Old Covenant. There are some today who want to go back to
Sabbaths, feast-keeping, priest-craft, dietary laws, sacrifice and the things
pertaining to the Old Covenant. These were simply shadows of the real thing –
we have a much better covenant of Grace – mediated by God’s own Son who is
GREATER THAN THE PROPHETS.
John 1:16-17 From the fullness of his grace we
have all received one blessing after another. For the law was given through
Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ.
Jesus Christ is the only way of salvation:
Peter told the Sanhedrin, “Salvation is found
in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which
we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)
Paul wrote that Christ’s death and not
law-keeping was the way of salvation, “I do not set aside the grace of God, for
if righteousness could be gained through the law, Christ died for nothing!”
(Gal 2:21)
Jesus told his disciples, “I am the way and the
truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” (John 14:6)