COMMENTARY. CHAP. I. 1 The same God, who in sundry parts and in divers manners, anciently revealed his will to the fathers of the Jewish nation by the prophets, Enoch, (Jude, ver. 14.) Moses, Samuel, David, Isaiah, &c. 2 Hath in these last days of the Mosaic dispensation spoken the gospel to mankind, all at once, and after one manner, by his Son made flesh, whom he constituted heir of all things; through whom also he made the worlds. 3 This great personage, even in his incarnate state, being an effulgence of his Father's glory, and an exact image of his substance, and upholding all things, namely the worlds, (ver. 2.) by his powerful command, when he had made atonement for our sins by the sacrifice of himself, and not of beasts, sat down at the right hand of the manifestation of the divine presence in the highest heavens, by invitation from God, who thereby declared his ministrations as a priest, both acceptable and ef fectual. the antenicene fathers, that the law was spoken to the Jews by the Son. See chap. ii. 2. note 2. xii. 26. note 1. 3. Heir of all things; that is Lord or proprietor of all things: For according to Paul, Gal. iv. 1. The heir, is Lord of all.-This title, as implying universal dominion, Peter also gave to Christ, Acts x. 36. He is Lord of all: And even Crellius acknowledgeth that the phrase, Heir of all things, denotes supreme dominion over angels and men. Sce Whitby on this verse. 4. Through whom also be made the worlds. Av. Grotius translates this, for whom; but improperly; because A, with the genitive, signifies the efficient, and not the final cause.-That the words Tous asaras, are rightly translated, the worlds, and not, the ages, as the Socinians contend, appears from chap. xi. 3. where they denote the material fabrick of the uni 4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance ob 4 Τοσουτῳ κρειττων γενομενος των αγγελων, ὅσῳ δια tained a more excellent φορώτερον παρ' αυτους κεκλη ρονόμηκεν όνομα. name than they. verse, called the things that are seen; and which are said to be formed by the word of God. See ver. 10. of this chap. where the creation of all things visible, is ascribed to the Son of God.—See also Whitby's note 2. on this verse, where he hath shewed that the primitive fathers believed the worlds were made by Christ. Ver. 3.-1. Who being an effulgence of his glory. Ov awavgaoua tus δοξης. I have followed Hesychius, who explains απαυγασμα by ήλις φέγγος, the splendor of the Sun. In like manner Suidas, explains it by araugu, n Exhaufis, emitted splendor, or effulgence. The article is not prefixed either to απαύγασμα or to χαρακτης, for which reason I have not in the translation ventured to add it. But I have added, as our translators have done, the word his, from the subsequent clause, because, according to the idiom of the Greek language, aurs belongs to both clauses.-In scripture the glory of God, signifies, the perfections of God, for the reason mentioned, Rom. i. 23. note i. Wherefore, when the Son is called an irradiation or effulgence of his glory, the meaning I think is, that the divine perfections shone brightly in the Son, even after he was made flesh. Hence John saith in his gospel, chap. i. 14. The word was made flesh and dwelled among us, and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father. 2. And an exact image of his substance. Christ is called, Col. i. 15. Exc To aigars Ow, The image of the invisible God: Here the Son is called xρακτης της ὑποτάσεως αυτό, An exact image of his substance. The word Xapanτng, properly signifies an image made by engraving, such as that on a seal also the image which the seal makes on wax by impression.-Peirce observes that the author's design being to distinguish the Son from all other beings, "He represents him as immediately derived from God, that is, the "Father. Thus, in the first expression, he is a ray or splendor from the "Father's glory immediately, no one intervening as the minister or means "of that derivation; which is not true concerning any other being whatever, "they being all derived from him by the Son. The glory of the divine per"fections shines forth in other beings, and particularly in the noblest of "them, the angels; but not as it does in the Son; since they are not imme"diately created by the Father, but mediately, the Son being the agent em"ployed by, and ministring to the Father in making them. Now this must "of necessity make a vast difference between him and them, and bespeak "his being vastly superior to them."-Concerning the word insasias, rendered in our bibles, Person, it hath been observed by commentators, that it did not obtain that signification till after the Council of Nice.-Our translators have rendered saris, Heb. xi. 1. by the word Substance.-If there be any difference between, an effulgence of the Father's glory, and, an exact image of his substance, the former may denote that manifestation of his Fa 4 HE is by so much better than the angels, by how much he hath inherited a more excellent name* than they. 4 The Son, by whom God hath spoken the gospel, is by so much greater than the angels, by how much he hath inherited by descent, a more excellent name than they. ther's perfections, which the Son makes to angels and men, and the latter what the Son is in himslf. See John v. 26. 3. And upholding all things by the word of his power. Φέρων τε τα παντα τῷ ῥήματι της δυναμεως αυτό. This is parallel to Col. i. 17. Ta πava autœ ousevnxe, By him all things consist. According to Peirce, the meaning of both passages is, That as the Son gave being to all things, so he maintains them in being.—The same author contends, that the phrase, his power, means the power of God the Father. See his note on Colos. i. 17. 4. Sat down at the right hand. Among the Hebrews from the earliest times, the right hand was the place of honour, Gen. xlviii. 13. 17. Hence they who were next in dignity and authority to the Prince, were placed at his right and left hands, Matth. xx. 21. 5. Of the majesty w ù↓nxcus in high places; or among high beings, namely angels. The divine spirituality and immensity, not permitting us to think of any right or left hand of God, The right band of the Majesty in high places, is to be understood of the glorious manifestation of the presence of God in beaven among the angels. Accordingly what is here called the Majesty in high places, is named chap. viii. 1. The throne of the Majesty in the heavens.Stript of the metaphor, the apostle's meaning is, that our Lord, after his ascension, having offered the sacrifice of himself in heaven, was invested in the human nature with that visible glory and power which he enjoyed with God before the world was, mentioned by himself, John xvii. 5. Our Lord's sitting down at the right hand of God, is affirmed in this epistle no less than five different times, (chap. i. 3. 13. viii. 1. x. 12. xii. 2.) because it presupposes his resurrection from the dead, and implies his being put in possession of the highest authority in heaven under the Father; consequently it is a clear proof that he is really the Son of God. Ver. 4.-1. He is by so much better than the angels. Here I have supplied the pronoun duros, he, because this sentence doth not stand in connexion with what immediately goes before, but is the beginning of a new subject: And, because there must be some noun or pronoun understood, with which the participle gropavos agrecs.—As the Jews gloried exceedingly in the law of Moses, on account of its having been given by the ministry of angels, Deut. xxxiii. 2. Acts. vii. 53. Gal. iii. 19. the apostle proves by passages from the Jewish scriptures, that the Son is superior in nature and dignity to all the angelical hosts. 2. He hath inherited a more excellent name The official name of the all, thor of the gospel is not here spoken of, but the name which God gave him on account of his descent. His official names are many. Such as Messiah; of which Christ is the Creek translation : Messiab the Prince ; Jesus, 5. For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? and again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? 5 Τινι γαρ είπε ποτε των Υιος μου ει συ, αγγελων εγω σήμερον γεγεννηκα σε ; Και παλιν Εγω εσομαι αυτῷ εις πατερα, και αυτος εξαι μοι εις υιον ; or Saviour: The Word of God. But on account of his descent, he hath only one name given him, that of Son.-The apostle's argument taken from the name Son of God, is this; he hath that name by inheritance, or on account of his descent from God: and Jesus, by calling himself the only begotten of the Father, hath excluded from that honourable relation angels, and every other being whatever. They may be sons by creation or adoption, but they do not inherit the name of sons. Ver. 5.-1. My Son thou art: To day I have begotten thee. The emphasis of this speech lieth in the word begotten, importing that the person addressed is God's Son, not by creation, but by generation. It was on account of this speech that the Jews universally believed the person, called Psal, ii. 2. The Lord's Messiah, or Christ, to be really the Son of God. And in allusion to this speech, our Lord took to himself the appellation of God's only begotten Son, John iii. 16. It is true, because the angel said to his mother, Luke i. 35. The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee.-Therefore also that Holy thing which shall be born of thee, shall be called the Son of God; some contend that the words, My Son thou art, &c. are a prediction of our Lord's miraculous conception. But on that supposition, the argument, taken from the name, falls: for instead of proving Jesus superior to angels, his miraculous conception does not make him superior to Adam, who was as much the immediate work of God, as Christ's human nature was the immediate work of the Holy Ghost. The common and true interpretation of this passage Paul gave in the synagogue of Antioch: Acts xiii. 33. He hath raised up Jesus again, as it is also written in the second Psalm, My Son thou art, &c. from which it appears that Psal. ii. 7. is a prophecy of Messiah's resurrection: not, however, as importing, that by raising Messiah from the dead, God begat him into the relation of a Son; for in that case, every person whom God raised from the dead, would be his begotten Son: But that by raising him, God declared Messiah his Son, whom the kings of the earth, and the rulers, had put to death as a blasphemer for taking to himself that august name. Accordingly we are told, Rom. i. 4. that he was declared the Son of God with power, by his resurrection from the dead. Besides, he was declared God's Son before his resurrection, by voices from heaven, particularly at his baptism. Nay, he is said to have been the Son of God, before he was sent into the world, John iii. 17. If so, the angel's words abovementioned may mean, that as the resurrection of Jesus from the dead, so his miraculous conception, would lead men to acknowledge and call him the Son 5 For to which of the angels did he at any time say, My son thou art: To day I have begotten thee?, And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? 2 5 For, although in your scriptures angels have been called the sons of God, to which of the angels did God ever say, by way of distinguishing him from all other beings, My Son thou art, to day I have begotten thee? See chap. v. 5. And again, I will declare myself his Father, and him my Son? of God.-See Pierce on this verse, who affirms that the second Psalm belongs wholly to Messiah; and proves by passages from the writings of the ancient Jewish doctors, that they applied it to Messiah: and that some of the later doctors have acknowledged it adviseable to apply that Psalm to David, in order to the better answering the heretics; meaning the Christians.— Peirce's opinion concerning the second Psalm, is confirmed by the apostle Peter, who applied the first three verses of it to Christ, Acts iv. 25.-The expression to day, according to Peirce, refers to the 6th verse of the Psalm, Yet have I set my King on my holy bill of Zion; and means the day on which all power was given to Christ in heaven and in earth, Matth. xxviii. 18. If so, the begetting of God's Son mentioned in the Psalm, includes two things; the raising him from the dead, and the bestowing on him all power in heaven and on earth. 2. And again, I will be to him a Father, and be shall be to me a Son. Because these words in the order in which they stand here, are found in the revelation made to Nathan, which is recorded, 2 Sam. vii. 4.-17. and 1 Chron. xvii. 4.-15. I think with Whiston and Peirce, they are taken from that revelation, and not from the revelation made to David, 1 Chron. xxii. 8. 10. xxviii. 6, 7. in both which places they stand in this order, He shall be my Son, and I will be his Father. I likewise agree with Peirce in thinking the revelation to Nathan relates to Messiah alone; whereas the revelation to David, relates to Solomon; and that for the following reasons. First, because in the revelation to Nathan, 2 Sam. vii. it is said, ver. 12. When thy days be fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, which shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. 13. He shall build an house for my Name, and I wili establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. 14. And I will be his Father, and he shall be my Son. Or, as it is more fully expressed, 1 Chron. xvii. 11. And it shall come to pass, when thy days be expired that thou must go, to be with thy fathers, that I will raise up thy seed after thee, which shall be of thy sons, and I will establish his kingdom. 12. He shall build me an house, and I will establish his throne for ever. 13. I will be his Father, and he shall be my Son, and I will not take my mercy away from him, as I took it from him that was before thee. 14. But I will settle him in mine house, and in my kingdom for ever, and his throne shall be established for evermore. Now as it is evident that Solomon was placed on the throne in David's lifetime, 1 Kings i. 34. and not after his |