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2
We will not escape God’s punishment if we ignore such a great message of salvation.
Hebrews 2:1-4
1 So, since that is true, we must pay very careful attention to what we have heard about God’s Son, in order that we do not drift away from it, as a boat drifts off its course when people do not guide it [MET]. 2 God’s laws that were given by angels were valid, and God justly punished all who rejected them and all who disobeyed [DOU] them. 3 So, we will certainly not escape God punishing us if we ignore such a great message about how God [MTY] saves us! [RHQ] This new message was first spoken by the Lord Jesus {The Lord Jesus first spoke this message}. Then it was confirmed to us by those who heard what the Lord told them {those who heard what the Lord told them confirmed it to us}. 4 God also confirmed to us that this message was true by enabling believers to do many things that showed God’s power, to do other miraculous things [DOU], and to do other things by the gifts that the Holy Spirit distributed to them according to what God desired.
God has determined that Christ, not angels or people, will rule everything.
Hebrews 2:5-9a
5 God has determined that the angels will not rule over everything. Instead, he has determined that Christ will rule in the new world that God will create. That is the new world about which I am writing. 6 Someone spoke to God about this somewhere in the Scriptures, saying,
◄No one is worthy enough for you to think about him!/Who is worthy enough for you to think about him?► [RHQ]
◄No human is worthy enough for you to care for him!/Is any human worthy enough for you to care for him?► [RHQ]
7 So it is surprising that you have caused people to be for a little while inferior in rank to angels.
You have greatly honored [DOU] them [MET], as kings are honored with a crown.
8 You have put everything under people’s control [MET].
God has determined that people will rule over absolutely everything [LIT]. But now, at this present time, we perceive that people do not yet have authority over everything. 9 But we do know about Jesus, who truly has authority over everything!
Jesus, the creator of everything, is the one who died for us, makes us holy, and proclaims us to be his brothers and sisters.
Hebrews 2:9b-13
Jesus, for a little while, became inferior in rank to angels in order to die on behalf of [MET] everyone. He became inferior when he suffered and died, as God kindly planned. But now he has been greatly honored [DOU] by being crowned as kings are. 10 It was fitting that God make Jesus ◄perfect/all that God intended him to be►. God was enabling many people who would belong to him [MET] to share his glory. God is the one who created all things, and he is the one for whom all things exist. He perfected Jesus by causing him to suffer and die. Jesus is the one whom God uses to save people. 11 Jesus is the one who ◄makes people holy/sets people apart for God►, and they all belong to God’s family. As a result, Christ gladly [LIT] proclaims them to be like his own brothers and sisters. 12 The Psalmist wrote what Christ said to God about us becoming his brothers, in these words:
I will proclaim to my brothers how awesome you are (OR, what you ◄are like/have done►) [MTY].
I will sing praise to you in the presence of the congregation!
13 And a prophet wrote in another Scripture passage what Christ said about God,
I will trust him.
And in another Scripture passage, Christ said about those who are like his children,
I and the ones that God has given me are here.
It is Jesus, not angels, who became a human to help us as our Supreme Priest.
Hebrews 2:14-18
14 So, since those whom God calls his children are all human beings [MTY], Jesus also became a human being just like them. The devil has the power to cause people to be afraid to die, but Christ became human in order that by his dying he might make the devil powerless. 15 Jesus did that to free all of us who are like slaves [MET] all the time we live, because we are forced to be afraid to die. 16 Because Jesus became a human being, it is not angels whom he wants to help. No, it is we who trust God as Abraham did whom he wants to help. 17 So, since he came to help humans, not angels, he had to be made exactly like us whom he calls his own brothers and sisters. He wants to be a Supreme Priest who acts mercifully to all people and who faithfully does what God wants, so that people who had sinned would be declared no longer guilty. 18 Specifically, he is able to help those/us who are tempted to sin. He can do that because he suffered, and he was also tempted to sin like we are tempted to sin.

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© 2008-2017 Ellis W. Deibler, Jr.