The New Testament Chapter by Chapter | Hebrews 1

By: Daniel Goepfrich

Jesus – The Final Revelation

Hebrews 1 introduces Jesus as the final and ultimate revelation from God. Most importantly, it presents Jesus as the Son. Although God had previously spoken through prophets, “IN THESE LAST DAYS HE HAS SPOKEN TO US IN A SON” (Hebrews 1:1-2). So Jesus, the eternal Son, is better than all the Old Testament prophets, dreams, visions, etc. and provides a better revelation of God than they did. This was John’s point three decades later when he wrote, “NO ONE HAS EVER SEEN GOD. THE ONLY ONE, HIMSELF GOD, WHO IS IN CLOSEST FELLOWSHIP WITH THE FATHER, HAS MADE GOD KNOWN” (John 1:18).

Roles and Characteristics of Jesus

The writer listed seven characteristics or roles that Jesus has (Hebrews 1:2-3), with emphasis on his Sonship, followed by seven Old Testament passages supporting his deity and Messianic role, including his first quote from Psalm 110 which is the most-often quoted psalm in the entire New Testament (Hebrews 1:5-13). (This gives the contextual key that the writer would rely heavily on the Old Testament to support his arguments throughout the book.)

Not only is Jesus better than the prophets, but he is also better than angels. Angels were highly respected in Judaism as God’s personal servants. But angels are only servants. Even though they are sometimes called “sons of God” (Genesis 6:1-4; Job 1-2; 38:7), Jesus is the Son, King, and Creator – even of the angels (Hebrews 1:4, 14).

Each Thursday DPH runs a Chapter-by-Chapter blog by Daniel Goepfrich, progressing readers chapter-by-chapter through the New Testament. This series is taken from New Testament Chapter-by-Chapter, published by Trust House Publishers, a division of DPH. Daniel serves as Pastor of Oak Tree Community Church in South Bend, Indiana, and blogs at www.TheologyIsForEveryone.com