Hebrews 2:5-9
For He has not put the world to come, of which we speak, in subjection to angels. (6) But one testified in a certain place, saying:
"WHAT IS MAN THAT YOU ARE MINDFUL OF HIM, OR THE SON OF MAN THAT YOU TAKE CARE OF HIM? (7) YOU HAVE MADE HIM A LITTLE LOWER THAN THE ANGELS; YOU HAVE CROWNED HIM WITH GLORY AND HONOR, AND SET HIM OVER THE WORKS OF YOUR HANDS. (8) YOU HAVE PUT ALL THINGS IN SUBJECTION UNDER HIS FEET."
For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him. (9) But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone, (NKJV).
We See Jesus
Because we are living in the New Covenant we can see Jesus. This is one of the wonderful blessings of the New Covenant. God has made known to us His Son, Christ Jesus. Jeremiah 31:31-34; Hebrews 8:7-13; 10:15-18 are the passages that speak of the New Covenant. In the New Covenant God puts His laws in our minds and writes them on our hearts. He is our God and we are His people. We know Him and His Son, Christ. We can fellowship with them. God is merciful to our unrighteousness. Our lawless deeds He remembers no more. We live in a blessed time during this age of God’s grace.
In our passage we see the dominion God has given to mankind, but not the fullness of it because of our sinfulness. And, we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels so He could taste death for everyone and be crowned with glory and honor. So let us work our way through this passage considering those two thoughts.
The dominion God has given to mankind, verses 5-8. As we consider this thought it is important to remember the theme of Hebrews: God has in these last days spoken to us by His Son (Hebrews 1:2). So Christ is superior to the prophets, angels, the creation, and mankind. This will help us to understand why God has given mankind dominion over the works of His hands. If we do not see Christ as superior then we will worship and serve the creature rather than the Creator (Romans 1:25). This dominion over the works of His hands is fulfilled in the Man, Christ Jesus, who is the Resurrection.
Let us look at Psalm 8:1-9 which is where the quote comes from in Hebrews 2:6-8. This is a Psalm of David and was played on some type of stringed or wind instrument. It is a Psalm of Praise to God. “O LORD, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens!” (Psalm 8:1, 9, NKJV). His name is excellent and He has set His glory above the heavens in His throne room. We praise You with our whole heart!
Psalm 8:2 and Matthew 21:15-16 are a testimony of fulfilled prophecy. Children praise the Lord. “Out of the mouths of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise.” Let us not be indignant like the chief priests and scribes.
Psalm 8:3-8 expands our passage from Hebrews 2:6-8. The Holy Spirit is linking these two passages together so we can see the wisdom of God. The Father is exalting His Son and the Son is exalting the Father. The benefit of this is our salvation in Christ. The Word became flesh and dwelt among us (John 1:14). He became the Man, Christ Jesus.
This question is asked by David as he considers God’s creation: What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit/care for him? The Holy Spirit through David and the Apostle Paul answers this question.
Psalm 8:5a “For You have made him a little lower than the angels” (NKJV) and “Yet You have made him a little lower than God” (NASB). The Hebrew word used at the end of this phrase is “elohiym (el-o-heem)” which means God, but in Hebrews 2:7a “You have made him a little lower than the angels” uses the greek word “aggelos (ang’-el-os)” meaning angels. So which one is right? They both are because we have been made a little lower than God and His angels.
Psalm 8:5b “And You have crowned him with glory and honor” (NKJV); Hebrews 2:7b “You have crowned him with glory and honor” (NKJV). God has put glory and honor on mankind. In Psalm 21:1-13 king David testifies that the LORD has crowned him with the blessings of goodness (verse 3), honor and majesty (verse 5), and His presence (verse 6). This made him exceedingly glad (verse 6). This crowning with glory and honor is also done to Jesus in Hebrews 2:9. Mankind cannot receive the fullness of glory and honor without the resurrected Man Christ as his Lord and Savior.
Psalm 8:6 “You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands; You have put all things under his feet” (NKJV); Hebrews 2:7c-8a “And set him over the works of Your hands. You have put all things in subjection under his feet” (NKJV). Psalm 8:7-8 tells us that God gave mankind dominion over all sheep and oxen -- even the beasts of the field, the birds of the air, and the fish of the sea that pass through the paths of the seas. And when we go back to Genesis 1:26-31 we see the same dominion given to mankind who is created in the image of God. In Genesis 2:20 we are told that Adam named the cattle, birds, and beasts. Also, Genesis 2:15 tells us that God put Adam in the garden of Eden to tend it and keep it. So man has a great stewardship given to him by God. How did Adam and Eve do with this responsibility God had given to them? How are we doing with this dominion today?
This brings us to our second and most important thought from this passage in Hebrews 2:5-9: We see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels so He could taste death for everyone and be crowned with glory and honor, verse 9. What a blessing from God! We are so thankful for Jesus! This is the grace of God! This is the love of God that has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Romans 5:5). Praise ye the Lord!
Hebrews 2:9a “But we see Jesus” (NKJV). We understand who He is! We have put on our Jesus and see Him as the Holy Scriptures portray Him. We see Him as God’s Son. We see Him as the brightness of God’s glory. We see Him as the express image of God’s person. We see Him as God the Son. We see Him as the LORD who created all things. We see Him as the One who is eternal and does not change. See Hebrews 1:1-14 for the above statements.
Hebrews 2:9b “Jesus was made a little lower than the angels” (NKJV). The Word who was God became flesh and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory (John 1:1, 14). He who was everlasting became temporal. Hebrews 2:14 says, “He Himself likewise shared in the same” (flesh and blood). In the following passage we see that Christ emptied Himself by taking the form of a servant. Christ is fully divine and fully human. He is the resurrected Man, Christ Jesus.
Philippians 2:5-11 (ESV)
Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, (6) who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, (7) but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. (8) And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. (9) Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, (10) so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, (11) and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
This passage parallels with Hebrews 2:9 and helps us to see Jesus.
In Hebrews 2:9c we see that Jesus became fully human, “for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone” (NKJV). There was no one else who could taste death for everyone. It was by the grace of God that Christ was able to die on the cross. It was by the grace of God that Christ arose from the tomb. It is by the grace of the God that Christ is our Great High Priest in the throne room of God as the Man, Christ Jesus. God put His divine favor on His Son through the anointing of Holy Spirit.
Hebrews 2:14-15 says, “Inasmuch then as the children have partaken of flesh and blood, He Himself likewise shared in the same, that through death He might destroy him who had the power of death, that is, the devil, (15) and release those who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage,” (NKJV). The resurrection of Christ took the power of death away from the devil. The devil did not think that Christ would arise from the grave, but now he knows the truth of the resurrection. That is why he tries to blind people with darkness. The Gospel removes the blindness as we proclaim it to the unbelievers and it strengthens the believers to keep their eyes on Christ.
There is a day coming when we will see the Lord returning on the clouds in all His glory and honor. We love His appearing and wait expectantly for it with thanksgiving in our hearts. Praise the LORD!
For further study about the Man, Christ Jesus, see the following passages:
1 Corinthians 15:21 (NKJV) For since by man came death, by Man also came the resurrection of the dead.
1 Corinthians 15:47-49 (NKJV) The first man was of the earth, made of dust; the second Man is the Lord from heaven. (48) As was the man of dust, so also are those who are made of dust; and as is the heavenly Man, so also are those who are heavenly. (49) And as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the heavenly Man.
1 Timothy 2:5-6 (NKJV) For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus, (6) who gave Himself a ransom for all, to be testified in due time.
Hebrews 10:12-13 (NKJV) But this Man, after He had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down at the right hand of God, (13) from that time waiting till His enemies are made His footstool.
Also, the title "Son of Man" is used of Christ much more than "Son of God" in referring to His humanity.
(NKJV) "Son of Man" Daniel 7:13; Matthew 8:20; 9:6; 10:23; 11:19; 12:8,32,40; 13:37,41; 16:13,27,28; 17:9,12,22; 18:11; 19:28; 20:18,28; 24:27,30,37,39,44; 25:13,31; 26:2,24,45,64; Mark 2:10,28; 8:31,38; 9:9,12,31; 10:33,45; 13:26; 14:21,41,62; Luke 5:24; 6:5,22; 7:34; 9:22,26,44,56,58; 11:30; 12:8,10,40; 17:22,24,26,30; 18:8,31; 19:10; 21:27,36; 22:22,48,69; 24:7; John 1:51; 3:13,14; 5:27; 6:27,53,62; 8:28; 12:23,34; 13:31; Acts 7:56; Revelation 1:13; 14:14.
(NKJV) "Son of God" Daniel 3:25; Matthew 4:3,6; 8:29; 14:33; 26:63; 27:40,43,54; Mark 1:1; 3:11; 15:39; Luke 1:35; 4:3,9,41; 22:70; John 1:34,49; 3:18; 5:25; 9:35; 10:36; 11:4,27; 19:7; 20:31; Acts 8:37; 9:20; Romans 1:4; 2 Corinthians 1:19; Galatians 2:20; Ephesians 4:13; Hebrews 4:14; 6:6; 7:3; 10:29; 1 John 3:8; 4:15; 5:5,10,12,13,20; Revelation 2:18.
Praise ye the Lord! We See Jesus!
