Hebrews 1:5-14
Angels All Around Me

“Angels all around to keep you from harm, to guide and direct you, till your safe in God’s arms.”  That’s how one song goes.  Angels today have been romanticized, crafted into beings that cater to our earth-bound needs and desires.  The Hebrew Christians being addressed by this letter likely would have had a different perspective about God’s heavenly messengers, much more aware of their direct intervention with God’s message and guidance back through the centuries of the Old Testament history of their people.  Psa. 91:11 tells us “For He will give His angels charge concerning you, To guard you in all your ways.”  Angels are given responsibility by God to watch over His followers.  Angels are a blessing to believers, they are the closest man gets to hearing from someone who has “been there” in heaven, in God’s presence.  They are after all, God’s “messengers”, as the Greek word “angelos” is translated.

We don’t want to sensationalize the existence and impact of angels in our world or past history, but we also don’t want to miss their importance.  Recall the angels announcing Jesus’ birth to the shepherds then being surrounded with a heavenly host of angels singing God’s praises.  This is a more recent example of the significant place they held in God’s program and being His messengers.  We are surrounded today by God’s provision and protectioon.  On rare occasions, that may involve direct action of an angel, but more often God ministers to us through the church and each other, as well as His own providence.  We relax in His care, and stand in awe of His marvelous ways, and we acknowledge Hebrews 1:14, which says of angels “Are they not all ministering spirits, sent out to render service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?”

The angels on that remarkable night of Jesus’ birth must have been amazed.  They sang at the top of their lungs about the great redemptive work God was accomplishing in His Son.  They were carrying on a tradition that had been happening since they had been created declaring the glories and message of God.  Interesting that the writer chooses to begin his treatise on the rich superiority of Jesus Christ as our Savior by comparing Him to the angels.  They are a special part of God’s creation, but then, so are we.  There is a great message that needs to be heard in the world around us, and we need to carry on that tradition of being God’s messengers.  Be sure the message gets heard loud and clear!

The Jews and Angels 

After the primary statement of Heb. 1:1-4, the writer goes directly into an expanded line of thinking based on the last words of the introduction.  In verse 4, the author chose to put the spotlight on the book’s primary key word, “better” – Christ is… “so much better than the angels.”  (See the study question below for the list of references.)

Recall that Hebrews is a pastoral “letter” and it would have been passed around to small home churches populated by persecuted and displaced Christians, including redeemed Jews.  The letter would likely have been received by a key church in the area and copies would be made to share with other nearby churches.  The leader of the group would read the letter to the gathered believers, and there would likely be Jewish Christians in the group.  The book’s title addressed “to the Hebrews” indicates an intent to address Christian faith with an appreciation of Jewish perspective.  Faithful to that perspective, the letter makes many mentions of Hebrew history and Jewish faith but there are no allusions to Gentile or pagan practices (Macarthur).  The author is going to settle into a key line of thinking that shows up as “Christ is better… let me explain.”  He is going to lay down several layers of evidence to support that, and the first layer deals with the Jewish belief system related to angels, covered in Heb.1:5-2:18.  Why does the writer start his development of truth on angels?  Perhaps they were related Jewish traditions which led to such a fixation, a dependency on angels to provide something tangible to hold on to for their faith.  Consider the experiences of the Jewish patriarchs interacting with God and all the times that angels were involved in the communication between man and God.  Traditions that elevate man-made things or traditions are always dangerous.

Angels are an important part of God’s creation.  They existed before Creation and were active beginning in the Garden.  Satan had been the highest of the angels until his pride caused him to be expelled from God’s presence.  Sadly he took a third of God’s angels with him into punishment.  God’s angels are a key part in God executing His plan for mankind.  Examples are the story of  Abraham and the angel visit announcing Isaac’s birth (Gen. 18:1-19), the terrible events of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen. 19), and Jacob in Gen. 32 wrestling with the angel.

Christ is Better than the Angels

Through Heb. 1-2, the writer lays out the distinctions between Christ the Son, and Angels.  Angels are a part of God’s creation, and they function as His servants – they are referred to as servants, messengers and sometimes flames of fire.  Jesus Christ on the other hand is God’s Son, His progency, the appointed heir of the universe and all of God’s creation.  The OT quotes laid out in Heb. 1:5-13 emphasize Jesus’ divine nature in order to emphasize His supremacy over the angels.  While angels are a high benchmark, Jesus is superior.  Note these distinctions:

• Angels are not Sons, 1:5
• Angels are servants, 1:6-7
• Jesus is worshipped, not angels, 1:6
• Jesus has authority over the angels, 1:7-9
• Angels are created beings, 1:10-12
• Jesus is at God’s right hand, the angels serve God’s purpose, 1:13-14
• Christ died for man, not the angels, 2:14-18

Note that the passage concerning angels continues to the end of Heb. 2, but the author interupts the theme in order to give the reader the first of seven warnings in the book.  It is important to note the significance of these warning passages, as they reveal the key purpose for the writer’s communication.  He saw the difficult circumstances these Christians were facing, displaced from their homelands and harassed for their faith in Christ.  He knew the temptation to give in to the pressures would have been a struggle and God provides these warnings to the readers, and to us, to keep us faithful to our Savior.  Click here for the outline chart which shows the warning passages – as we go through the book we need to be alert to where and how each warning fits in with the overall message of the letter.  Recall that each warning is tied into the doctrinal truth taught in the previous verses.

  Bible Study Journal

1. 1. 1. From Heb.1:5, when was the Son born?
      2. According to Exo. 34:14, how is Heb.1:6 right in saying the Son is God?
      3. Why is it right to refer to Jesus Christ as “first born” in Heb. 1:6?
      4. Heb. 1:8-9 quotes Psa. 45:6-7. In what ways is Psalm “messianic”?
      5. In Heb.1:9, why the Son set above His companions?
      6. What does Heb. 1:10-12 declare about the Son?
      7. How does Psa. 110:1 apply to the Son in Heb.1:13?
      8. What is the main contrast between angels and the Son as seen in Heb.1:5-14?
      9. What is the major transition in the book of Hebrews that occurs in Heb.10?
      10. Write down key words and a key verse for each warning passage on the chart.
      11. Look for the seven OT quotes in these verses and consider how each of the quotes relates to the Messiah and angels.
          • Heb. 1:6-7, Angels are servants
          • Heb. 1:8-12, Angels aren’t eternal (Compare Heb. 7:17-28)
          • Heb. 1:13-14, Angels aren’t the Son
      12. How does Heb. 2:10-18 serve to end this first main section of the book?
      13. How does Heb. 2:18 summarize the superiority of Christ?
      14. What does the subject shift to in Heb. 3:1?Extra Credit:  Look up each of these occurrences of “better” and meditate on the truths that are aligned with this key Hebrews theme (make notes in your journal of your thoughts).  — Heb. 1:4; 6:9;7:19, 22; 8:6; 9:23; 10:34; 11:4, 16, 35, 40; 12:24.