THE NATURE OF THE SON

1 Long ago God spokea to our ancestors by the prophetsb at different times and in different ways.c 2 In these last days,d he has spoken to us by his Son. God has appointed him heir of all thingse and made the universeA,f through him. 3 The Son is the radianceB of God’s glory and the exact expressionC of his nature,g sustaining all things by his powerful word.h After making purification for sins,D he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high.E,i 4 So he became superior to the angels, just as the name he inherited is more excellent than theirs.j

THE SON SUPERIOR TO ANGELS

5 For to which of the angels did he ever say,

You are my Son;

today I have become your Father,F,G

or again,

I will be his Father,

and he will be my Son?H,k

6 Again, when heI brings his firstborn into the world,l he says,

And let all God’s angels worship him.J,m

7 And about the angels he says:

He makes his angels winds,K

and his servantsL a fiery flame,M,n

8 but toN the Son:

Your throne, God,

is forever and ever,

and the scepter of your kingdom

is a scepter of justice.o

9 You have loved righteousness

and hated lawlessness;

this is why God, your God,

has anointed you

with the oil of joyp

beyond your companions.O,P

10 And:

In the beginning, Lord,

you established the earth,

and the heavens are the works of your hands;q

11 they will perish, but you remain.

They will all wear out like clothing;r

12 you will roll them up like a cloak,Q

and they will be changed like clothing.

But you are the same,

and your years will never end.R,s

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

Sit at my right hand

until I make your enemies your footstool?S,t

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

WARNING AGAINST NEGLECT

2 For this reason, we must pay attention all the more to what we have heard, so that we will not drift away.v 2 For if the message spoken through angels was legally bindingA,w and every transgression and disobedience received a just punishment,x 3 how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation?y This salvation had its beginning when it was spoken of by the Lord, and it was confirmed to us by those who heard him.z 4 At the same time, God also testified by signs and wonders, various miracles, and distributions of gifts from the Holy Spirit according to his will.aa

JESUS AND HUMANITY

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

What is man that you remember him,

or the son of man that you care for him?

7 You made him lower than the angels

for a short time;

you crowned him with glory and honorB

8 and subjected everything under his feet.C

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.a 9 But we do see Jesus—made lower than the angels for a short time so that by God’s grace he might taste deathb for everyone—crowned with glory and honorc because he suffered death.d

10 For in bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was entirely appropriate that God—for whom and through whom all things exist—should make the pioneerD of their salvation perfect through sufferings.e 11 For the one who sanctifies and those who are sanctified all have one Father.E That is why Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters,f 12 saying:

I will proclaim your name to my brothers and sisters;

I will sing hymns to you in the congregation.F,g

13 Again, I will trust in him.G And again, Here I am with the children God gave me.H,h

14 Now 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 devili—15 and free those who were held in slavery all their lives by the fear of death.j 16 For it is clear that he does not reach out to help angels, but to help Abraham’s offspring.k 17 Therefore, he had to be like his brothers and sisters in every way, so that he could become a merciful and faithful high priest in mattersI pertaining to God, to make atonementJ,l for the sins of the people.m 18 For since he himself has suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.

OUR APOSTLE AND HIGH PRIEST

3 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in a heavenly calling, consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession.n 2 He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was in all God’s household. 3 For Jesus is considered worthy of more glory than Moses, just as the builder has more honor than the house. 4 Now every house is built by someone, but the one who built everything is God.o 5 Moses was faithful as a servantp in all God’s household, as a testimony to what would be said in the future. 6 But Christ was faithful as a Son over his household. And we are that household if we hold on to our confidence and the hope in which we boast.A,q

WARNING AGAINST UNBELIEF

7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says:

Today, if you hear his voice,

8 do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion,

on the day of testing in the wilderness,

9 where your ancestors tested me, tried me,

and saw my works 10 for forty years.

Therefore I was provoked to anger with that generation

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

and they have not known my ways.”

11 So I swore in my anger,

“They will not enter my rest.”B,r

12 Watch out, brothers and sisters, so that there won’t be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart that turns aways from the living God. 13 But encourage each other daily,t while it is still called today, so that none of you is hardenedu by sin’s deception.v 14 For we have become participants in Christ if we hold firmly until the end the realityC that we had at the start.w 15 As it is said:

Today, if you hear his voice,

do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.D,x

16 For who heard and rebelled? Wasn’t it all who came out of Egypt under Moses?y 17 With whom was God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?z 18 And to whom did he swear that they would not enter his rest, if not to those who disobeyed? 19 So we see that they were unable to enter because of unbelief.