HolyStudy
Bible IndexRead BibleNotesChurchesMissionPrivacyTermsContact
© 2026 HolyStudy
HomeRead BibleBible NotesChurchesSign in
HolyStudy
HomeRead BibleBible NotesChurches
Sign in

Hebrews 2

1

Therefore we ought to give the more earnest heed to the things which we have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip.

2

For if the word spoken by angels was stedfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompence of reward;

3

How shall we escape, if we neglect so great salvation; which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him;

4

God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?

5

For unto the angels hath he not put in subjection the world to come, whereof we speak.

6

But one in a certain place testified, saying, What is man, that thou art mindful of him? or the son of man, that thou visitest him?

7

Thou madest him a little lower than the angels; thou crownedst him with glory and honour, and didst set him over the works of thy hands:

8

Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him.

9

But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man.

10

For it became him, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, in bringing many sons unto glory, to make the captain of their salvation perfect through sufferings.

1
11

For both he that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one: for which cause he is not ashamed to call them brethren,

12

Saying, I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the midst of the church will I sing praise unto thee.

13

And again, I will put my trust in him. And again, Behold I and the children which God hath given me.

14

Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise took part of the same; that through death he might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

15

And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

16

For verily he took not on him the nature of angels; but he took on him the seed of Abraham.

1
17

Wherefore in all things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.

1
18

For in that he himself hath suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are tempted.

1
← Previous ChapterNext Chapter →

Hebrews 2

The first warning call—do not neglect such a great salvation—establishes the stakes of theological failure and the necessity of attentive hearing, making audition to God's final word in the Son a matter of utmost consequence. Christ as the pioneer (archēgos—first, leader, founder) of salvation made perfect (teleioō—completed, matured, brought to goal) through suffering reverses expectations about leadership and perfection, making suffering the path to exaltation rather than its obstacle. The incarnation's necessity—he had to be like his siblings in every respect to become a merciful and faithful high priest able to help those who are tempted—establishes Christ's solidarity with human weakness as the prerequisite for representative intercession. The claim that Christ destroyed the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, frames redemption not merely as juridical transaction but as cosmic victory, death's power broken through incarnate participation in human mortality. The assertion that he suffered being tempted enables him to help those who are tempted establishes Christ's experience of temptation as the ground of sympathetic succor, making him able to intercede with full understanding of human struggle. The Christological claim that Christ sanctifies those who are sanctified (hoi hagiazomenoi) envisages believers in process of sanctification, Christ as the agent establishing the conditions for their transformation. The chapter thus moves from warning to theodicy, explaining why Christ had to suffer: to defeat death, establish priestly mediation, and secure believers' transformation.

Hebrews 2:1

We must pay the most careful attention, therefore, to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away — the warning "proskechein" sets the ethical tone; the reader's response to God's word is not passive reception but active, deliberate adherence. To drift is to be carried along by a current, a passive movement away from the truth.

Hebrews 2:2

For since the message declared by angels was binding, and every violation and disobedience received its just punishment — the law, given through angels, carried real force and authority; transgressions incurred measurable consequences. If the old covenant mediated by angels demanded obedience under penalty, how much more does the new covenant spoken by the Son himself demand our allegiance?

Hebrews 2:3

how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation was first announced by the Lord, and those who heard him have confirmed it to us — Warning 1 of Hebrews announces the rhetorical escalation: the Son himself announced the gospel; apostolic witnesses confirmed it. To neglect such a proclamation is to court inescapable judgment.

Hebrews 2:4

God also testified to it by signs, wonders and various miracles, and by gifts of the Holy Spirit distributed according to his will — the fourfold witness—the Lord's word, apostolic testimony, miracles, and the Spirit's gifts—establishes the credibility of the gospel with irrefutable evidence. To ignore such testimony is not ignorance but willful refusal.

Hebrews 2:5

It is not to angels that he has subjected the world to come, of which we are speaking — the author pivots from the present age to the future age, which will not be under angelic governance but under humanity's—specifically, the humanity of Jesus. This sets up the argument for Jesus' incarnation and humiliation.

Hebrews 2:6

But there is a place where someone has testified: 'What is mankind that you are mindful of them, or a son of man that you care for him?' — Psalm 8:4 establishes humanity's original dignity and God's intention for human rule. The psalm speaks of mankind's exaltation and dominion over creation, but the author sees this fulfilled eschatologically through the one perfect Man.

Hebrews 2:7

'You made them a little lower than the angels; you crowned them with glory and honor — Psalm 8:5 describes humanity's temporary diminishment below the angels and its destined crowning with glory. The author reads this as a description of Christ's incarnation and exaltation: he was made lower than the angels and crowned with glory and honor.

Hebrews 2:8

and put everything under their feet.' In putting everything under them, God left nothing that is not subject to them. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to them — the psalm's universal subjection awaits fulfillment; though Christ has been exalted and all things are destined to be under him, the present age does not yet show this fullness. The tension between the already and the not yet frames the readers' perseverance.

Hebrews 2:9

But we do see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, now crowned with glory and honor because of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone — the incarnate Jesus experienced genuine diminishment below the angels, real suffering, and actual death. His humiliation was not apparent but ontologically real; his exaltation through death reveals that suffering, not evasion, is the path to glory.

Hebrews 2:10

In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered — the word "archēgos" describes Jesus as the one who goes before us through the way of suffering. His perfection is not moral development but the completion of his redemptive work through obedience unto death.

Hebrews 2:11

Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters — the sanctifier and the sanctified share one source; Christ's identification with humanity is so complete that he claims kinship with us. Shame would attach to him if he denied this brotherhood.

Hebrews 2:12

He says, 'I will declare your name to my brothers and sisters; in the assembly I will sing your praises' — Psalm 22:22 is placed in the Son's mouth, showing him as the true worshiper of God, gathering a community of brothers around him in worship. The shift from shame to declaration, from solitude to assembly, shows Christ as the head of the eschatological congregation.

Hebrews 2:13

And again, 'I have put my trust in him.' And again he says, 'Here am I, and with me the children God has given me' — Isaiah 8:17-18 is cited in two parts: first the Son's trust in the Father, then his claim on the children given to him by the Father. The giving of children to the Son establishes that Christ's exaltation includes gathering a redeemed family around him.

Hebrews 2:14

Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil — the incarnation was necessary so that Jesus could die; only by entering the condition of mortal flesh could he defeat death and disarm the devil's tyranny.

Hebrews 2:15

and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death — the enslaved condition of humanity under death's fear is the devil's primary tool; Christ's victory over death liberates the enslaved. The slavery imagery emphasizes the totality of death's dominion before Christ's breaking of its power.

Hebrews 2:16

For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham's descendants. — the incarnation and redemption are exclusively for humanity, not for angels; specifically for Abraham's descendants, the covenant people. This establishes that Jesus' work is salvific and particular, addressed to a people in covenant history.

Hebrews 2:17

For this reason he had to be made like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people — the necessity of Jesus' complete identification with humanity is grounded in his priestly function: he must be like us to represent us before God. His mercy and faithfulness are proven through suffering and obedience.

Hebrews 2:18

Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted — Jesus experienced real temptation in his flesh; his suffering under temptation gives him sympathetic knowledge and power to aid those similarly tempted. This makes him the accessible high priest we need.