Hebrews 1–8

The Nature of the Son

1Long ago God spoke ^ato the fathers by the prophets ^bat different times and in different ways. ^c2In these last days, ^dHe has spoken to us by His Son. God has appointed Him heir of all things ^eand made the universe ^fgthrough Him. ³The Son is the radiance ^hof God’s glory and the exact expression ⁱof His nature, ^jsustaining all things by His powerful word. ^kAfter making purification for sins, ^lHe sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. ^mn4So He became higher in rank than the angels, just as the name He inherited is superior to theirs. ^o

The Son Superior to Angels

⁵For to which of the angels did He ever say, You are My Son; today I have become Your Father, ^pqor again, I will be His Father, and He will be My Son? ^rs6When He again ^tbrings His firstborn into the world, ^uHe says, And all God’s angels must worship Him. ^vw7And about the angels He says:

He makes His angels winds, ^x

and His servants ^ya fiery flame, ^za

⁸but to ^bthe Son:

Your throne, God,

is forever and ever,

and the scepter of Your kingdom

is a scepter of justice. ^c

⁹You have loved righteousness

and hated lawlessness;

this is why God, Your God,

has anointed You

with the oil of joy ^d

rather than Your companions. ^ef

¹⁰And:

In the beginning, Lord,

You established the earth,

and the heavens are the works of Your hands; ^g

¹¹they will perish, but You remain.

They will all wear out like clothing; ^h

¹²You will roll them up like a cloak, ⁱ

and they will be changed like a robe.

But You are the same,

and Your years will never end. ^jk

¹³Now to which of the angels has He ever said:

Sit at My right hand

until I make Your enemies Your footstool? ^lmn

¹⁴Are they not all ministering spirits sent out to serve those who are going to inherit salvation? ^o

Warning against Neglect

2We must, therefore, pay even more attention to what we have heard, so that we will not drift away. ^p2For if the message spoken through angels was legally binding ^qrand every transgression and disobedience received a just punishment, ^s3how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? ^tIt was first spoken by the Lord and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him. ^u4At the same time, God also testified by signs and wonders, various miracles, and distributions of gifts from the Holy Spirit according to His will. ^v

Jesus and Humanity

⁵For He has not subjected to angels the world to come that we are talking about. ⁶But one has somewhere testified:

What is man that You remember him,

or the son of man that You care for him?

⁷You made him lower than the angels

for a short time;

You crowned him with glory and honor ^w

⁸and subjected everything under his feet. ^x

For in subjecting everything to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. As it is, we do not yet see everything subjected to him. ^y9But we do see Jesus—made lower than the angels for a short time so that by God’s grace He might taste death ^zfor everyone—crowned with glory and honor ^abecause of His suffering in death. ^b

¹⁰For in bringing many sons to glory, it was entirely appropriate that God—all things exist for Him and through Him—should make the source ^cof their salvation perfect through sufferings. ^d11For the One who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father. ^eThat is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers, ^f12saying:

I will proclaim Your name to My brothers;

I will sing hymns to You in the congregation. ^gh

¹³Again, I will trust in Him. ⁱAnd again, Here I am with the children God gave Me. ^jk

¹⁴Now since the children have flesh and blood in common, Jesus also shared in these, so that through His death He might destroy the one holding the power of death—that is, the Devil ^l— ¹⁵and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death. ^m16For it is clear that He does not reach out to help angels, but to help Abraham’s offspring. ⁿ¹⁷Therefore, He had to be like His brothers in every way, so that He could become a merciful and faithful high priest in service ^oto God, to make propitiation ^pfor the sins of the people. ^q18For since He Himself was tested and has suffered, He is able to help those who are tested.

Our Apostle and High Priest

3Therefore, holy brothers and companions in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession; ^r2He was faithful to the One who appointed Him, just as Moses was in all God’s household. ³For Jesus is considered worthy of more glory than Moses, just as the builder has more honor than the house. ⁴Now every house is built by someone, but the One who built everything is God. ^s5Moses was faithful as a servant ^tin all God’s household, as a testimony to what would be said in the future. ⁶But Christ was faithful as a Son over His household. And we are that household if we hold on to the courage and the confidence of our hope. ^uv

Warning against Unbelief

⁷Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:

Today, if you hear His voice,

⁸do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,

on the day of testing in the wilderness,

⁹where your fathers tested Me, tried Me,

and saw My works ¹⁰for 40 years.

Therefore I was provoked with that generation

and said, “They always go astray in their hearts,

and they have not known My ways.”

¹¹So I swore in My anger,

“They will not enter My rest.” ^wx

¹²Watch out, brothers, so that there won’t be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that departs ^yfrom the living God. ¹³But encourage each other daily, ^zwhile it is still called today, so that none of you is hardened ^aby sin’s deception. ^b14For we have become companions of the Messiah if we hold firmly until the end the reality ^cthat we had at the start. ^d15As it is said:

Today, if you hear His voice,

do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion. ^ef

¹⁶For who heard and rebelled? Wasn’t it really all who came out of Egypt under Moses? ^g17And who was He provoked with for 40 years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness? ^h18And who did He swear to that they would not enter His rest, if not those who disobeyed? ¹⁹So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.

The Promised Rest

4Therefore, while the promise to enter His rest remains, let us fear that none of you should miss it. ⁱ²For we also have received the good news just as they did; but the message they heard did not benefit them, since they were not united with those who heard it in faith ^jk3(for we who have believed enter the rest), in keeping with what ^lHe has said:

So I swore in My anger,

they will not enter My rest. ^mn

And yet His works have been finished since the foundation of the world, ⁴for somewhere He has spoken about the seventh day in this way:

And on the seventh day

God rested from all His works. ^op

⁵Again, in that passage He says, They will never enter My rest. ^q6Since it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly received the good news did not enter because of disobedience, ^r7again, He specifies a certain day—today—speaking through David after such a long time, as previously stated:

Today, if you hear His voice,

do not harden your hearts. ^st

⁸For if Joshua ^uhad given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day. ⁹Therefore, a Sabbath rest remains for God’s people. ¹⁰For the person who has entered His rest has rested from his own works, just as God did from His. ^v11Let us then make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience.

¹²For the word of God is living and effective ^wand sharper than any double-edged sword, ^xpenetrating as far as the separation of soul and spirit, joints and marrow. It is able to judge the ideas and thoughts of the heart. ^y13No creature is hidden from Him, but all things are naked and exposed to the eyes of Him to whom ^zwe must give an account.

Our Great High Priest

¹⁴Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens—Jesus the Son of God—let us hold fast to the confession. ^a15For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been tested in every way as we are, ^byet without sin. ^c16Therefore let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us at the proper time.

The Messiah, a High Priest

5For every high priest taken from men is appointed in service ^dto God for the people, to offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. ²He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he is also subject to weakness. ^e3Because of this, he must make a sin offering for himself as well as for the people. ^f4No one takes this honor on himself; instead, a person is called by God, just as Aaron was. ^g5In the same way, the Messiah did not exalt Himself to become a high priest, but the One who said to Him, You are My Son; today I have become Your Father, ^hi6also said in another passage, You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek. ^jk

⁷During His earthly life, ^lHe offered prayers and appeals ^mwith loud cries and tears ⁿto the One who was able to save Him from death, and He was heard because of His reverence. ⁸Though He was God’s Son, He learned obedience through what He suffered. ^o9After He was perfected, He became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey Him, ¹⁰and He was declared by God a high priest in the order of Melchizedek.

The Problem of Immaturity

¹¹We have a great deal to say about this, and it’s difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand. ¹²Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the basic principles of God’s revelation again. You need milk, not solid food. ^p13Now everyone who lives on milk is inexperienced with the message about righteousness, because he is an infant. ¹⁴But solid food is for the mature—for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil. ^q

Warning against Regression

6Therefore, leaving the elementary message about the Messiah,…