Hebrews 2:5-18 - Why God Became Man

Outcomes

Be transformed by beholding the Glory of Christ

2 Corinthians 3:18 ESV

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.

Do this by understanding why God became man

Contemplate how the New Testament uses the Old Testament

Hebrews 2:5–18 ESV

5 For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking. 6 It has been testified somewhere, “What is man, that you are mindful of him, or the son of man, that you care for him? 7 You made him for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor, 8 putting everything in subjection under his feet.” Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him. 9 But we see him who for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone. 10 For it was fitting that he, for whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the founder of their salvation perfect through suffering. 11 For he who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one source. That is why he is not ashamed to call them brothers, 12 saying, “I will tell of your name to my brothers; in the midst of the congregation I will sing your praise.” 13 And again, “I will put my trust in him.” And again, “Behold, I and the children God has given me.” 14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered when tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Hebrews 2 Overview

Hebrews, as we know, is a book that elaborates on the supremacy of Jesus Christ essentially over every OT figure and office; and especially details how Jesus is the priest that we need

Hebrews Chapter 1 details how this Jesus is not an angel, but instead the very God of the universe; the radiance of the glory of God, the exact imprint of his nature, upholding the universe by the word of his power.

But Chapter 2 tells us that this Jesus Christ is man, and also tackles an age old question—why did God become man? As Hebrews 2:5-18 puts it, he became man to

Hebrews is about the supremacy of Christ

Hebrews 1 teaches that the Christ was not an angel, but God Himself

Hebrews 2 teaches Christ became man in order to

Undo Adam’s work and make a new Man 5-9

Bring Sons to Glory 10-13

Defeat the Devil 14-15

Become a merciful & faithful high priest

Undoing Adam’s Work - Quoting the Psalms

The author of Hebrews is Quoting Psalm 8

Psalm 8:1–9 ESV

1 O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth! You have set your glory above the heavens. 2 Out of the mouth of babies and infants, you have established strength because of your foes, to still the enemy and the avenger. 3 When I look at your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have set in place, 4 what is man that you are mindful of him, and the son of man that you care for him? 5 Yet you have made him a little lower than the heavenly beings and crowned him with glory and honor. 6 You have given him dominion over the works of your hands; you have put all things under his feet, 7 all sheep and oxen, and also the beasts of the field, 8 the birds of the heavens, and the fish of the sea, whatever passes along the paths of the seas. 9 O Lord, our Lord, how majestic is your name in all the earth!

Psalm 8 is a reflection on the Creation Story, especially man in Genesis 1:26-28

Genesis 1:26–28 ESV

26 Then God said, “Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” 27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. 28 And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”

Genesis 1

Man is the pinnacle of God’s creation

More words are spent developing the creation of man than on any other part of creation on any other day

By finishing his creative work on the day he created Man, man is shown as the climax of creation

Man is created to have dominion over fish, birds, livestock, the earth, and everything else

Man is commanded to fill & subdue the earth

The terms subdue & to exercise dominion are used almost exclusively for kings

Back to the Psalm

There is no mention of the fall, but David is not naïve

Consider what time period David lives & his experiences; he is aware of the fall

1 Samuel 17:44 - Birds & Beasts of the field

Thorns and thistles have subverted his rule and our rule

David is looking at the past but also looking ahead to a future

Because he knows in Genesis 3 that even in the midst of God’s curse and death sentence the hope of a savior is introduced

God has put all things under man’s feet, but ultimately the earth puts us under its feet.

The Psalms as a whole book are prophetic because they were collected and sung after the exile

Acts 2:25–31 ESV

25 For David says concerning him, “ ‘I saw the Lord always before me, for he is at my right hand that I may not be shaken; 26 therefore my heart was glad, and my tongue rejoiced; my flesh also will dwell in hope. 27 For you will not abandon my soul to Hades, or let your Holy One see corruption. 28 You have made known to me the paths of life; you will make me full of gladness with your presence.’ 29 “Brothers, I may say to you with confidence about the patriarch David that he both died and was buried, and his tomb is with us to this day. 30 Being therefore a prophet, and knowing that God had sworn with an oath to him that he would set one of his descendants on his throne, 31 he foresaw and spoke about the resurrection of the Christ, that he was not abandoned to Hades, nor did his flesh see corruption.

David, in Psalm 8, is not just looking back at God’s creation (specifically, humanity’s role) and remembering the good old days and how things were supposed to be. David is ultimately looking towards a new creation—a new humanity which will be put into place by one of his offspring

Hebrews 2:5 shows that this understanding of how the psalms work is correct when it says “For it was not to angels that God subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking.”

The phrase “World to come” refers to the state of the world in the “last days” spoken of by the prophets

Back to Hebrews 2

Hebrews 2:7–8 ESV

You made him for a little while lower than the angels; you have crowned him with glory and honor, putting everything in subjection under his feet.” Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, we do not yet see everything in subjection to him.

Who are those “Hims?”

Adam, David, ultimately us…and this is why we needed a new Adam

Consider Jesus’ relation to creation in the gospels

He is pictured as a man exercising rule over the world

sure some of this is because Jesus is God

He was also the beginning of a new humanity, he was truly human

Matthew 8 verse 27 after Jesus calms the storm

the fish both when he provides the great catch but also when he tells Peter the first fish he hooks will have a shekel in its mouth to pay the temple tax

As Man, Jesus Could:

Create A New Humanity & Thereby

Bring Sons to Glory 10-13

Defeat the Devil 14-15

Become a merciful & faithful high priest

Jesus could only do this by being one of us, becoming like us, and identifying with us

Hebrews 5:1 ESV

For every high priest chosen from among men is appointed to act on behalf of men in relation to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins.