King James Version
Hebrews 1
14 verses with commentary
The Supremacy of God's Son
God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets,
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KJV Study Commentary
The Greek phrase 'polymeros kai polytropos' (in many portions and in many ways) emphasizes the fragmentary and varied nature of OT revelation through prophets, dreams, and types. This progressive revelation prepared for the final, complete revelation in Christ. The author establishes that God is the ultimate speaker in both testaments, maintaining continuity while demonstrating Christ's supremacy ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(1) **God, who at sundry times. . . .**—The fine arrangement of the words in the Authorised version fails, it must be confessed, to convey the emphasis which is designed in the original. The writer’s object is to place the former revelation over against that which has now been given; and the remarkable words with which the chapter opens (and which might not inaptly serve as the motto of the whole ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**6. If thou put ... in remembrance--**rather as Greek, "If thou suggest to (bring under the notice of) the brethren," &c.
**these things--**namely, the truths stated in 1Ti 4:4, 5, in opposition to the errors foretold, 1Ti 4:1-3.
**minister--**"servant."
**nourished up--**The Greek is present, not past: "continually being nourished in" (2Ti 1:5; 3:14, 15).
**the words of faith--**rath...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 1
Chapter Outline
The apostle's joy and praise for Philemon's steady faith in the Lord Jesus, and love to all the saints.(1-7)
He recommends Onesimus as one who would make rich amends for the misconduct of which he had been guilty; and on behalf of whom the apostle promises to make up any loss Philemon had sustained.(8-22)
Salutations and a blessing.(23-25)
**Verses 1-7**...
Read full commentary →Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds;
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KJV Study Commentary
The phrase 'in these last days' (Greek 'ep eschatou ton hemeron touton') signals the inauguration of the messianic age. Christ is identified as heir of all things and Creator, establishing both His supremacy over creation and His right to rule. The seven titles given to the Son in verses 2-3 present a comprehensive Christology surpassing any angelic being.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(2) **Hath in these last days . . .**—Better, *at the end of these days spake unto us in a Son.* The thought common to the two verses is “God hath spoken to man”; in all other respects the past and the present stand contrasted. The manifold successive partial disclosures of God’s will have given place to one revelation, complete and final; for He who spake in the prophets hath now spoken “in a Son...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**7. refuse--**reject, avoid, have nothing to do with (2Ti 2:23; Tit 3:10).
**old wives' fables--**anile myths (1Ti 1:4, 9; Tit 1:14). They are "profane," because leading away from "godliness" or "piety" (1Ti 1:4-7; 6:20; 2Ti 2:16; Tit 1:1, 2).
**exercise thyself--**literally, "exercise thyself" as one undergoing training in a gymnasium. Let thy self-discipline be not in ascetical exercises as...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 1
Chapter Outline
The apostle's joy and praise for Philemon's steady faith in the Lord Jesus, and love to all the saints.(1-7)
He recommends Onesimus as one who would make rich amends for the misconduct of which he had been guilty; and on behalf of whom the apostle promises to make up any loss Philemon had sustained.(8-22)
Salutations and a blessing.(23-25)
**Verses 1-7**...
Read full commentary →Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high;
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KJV Study Commentary
'Apaugasma' (brightness/radiance) and 'charakter' (exact representation) are technical terms indicating Christ's essential deity. He is not merely a reflection but the radiance itself, sharing the Father's divine essence. The three-fold work described—sustaining all things, purging sins, and enthronement—demonstrates Christ's cosmic authority, redemptive work, and exaltation, completing the argume...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(3) **Who being the** **brightness . . .**—*Who being the effulgence of His glory and the exact image of His substance.* The first figure is familiar to us in the words of the Nicene Creed (themselves derived from this verse and a commentary upon it), “God of God, *Light of Light, *Very God of Very God.” Again striking parallels to the language present themselves in Philo, who speaks of the spirit...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**8. profiteth little--**Greek, "profiteth to (but) a small extent." Paul does not deny that fasting and abstinence from conjugal intercourse for a time, with a view to reaching the inward man through the outward, do profit somewhat, Ac 13:3; 1Co 7:5, 7; 9:26, 27 (though in its degenerate form, asceticism, dwelling solely on what is outward, 1Ti 4:3, is not only not profitable but injurious). Timo...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
Chapter 1
Chapter Outline
The apostle's joy and praise for Philemon's steady faith in the Lord Jesus, and love to all the saints.(1-7)
He recommends Onesimus as one who would make rich amends for the misconduct of which he had been guilty; and on behalf of whom the apostle promises to make up any loss Philemon had sustained.(8-22)
Salutations and a blessing.(23-25)
**Verses 1-7**...
Read full commentary →Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they.</strong> This verse concludes the opening Christological declaration (verses 1-3) and introduces the first major section comparing Christ to angels (1:4-2:18). The phrase "being made" (<em>genomenos</em>, γενόμενος) refers not to Christ's essential deity but to His incarnation and...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(4) **Being made.**—Better, *having become.* These words must be closely joined with the last clause of Hebrews 1:3; they speak, not of the glory which was ever His, but of that which *became* His after He had “made purification of sins.”
**Better.**—That is, *greater.* We may discern a twofold reason for the comparison; having become “greater than the angels,” our Lord is exalted above the highes...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
9. (1Ti 1:15). This verse (Greek), "faithful is the saying, " &c. confirms the assertion as to the "promise" attached to "godliness," 1Ti 4:8, and forms a prefatory introduction to 1Ti 4:10, which is joined to 1Ti 4:9 by "For." So 2Ti 2:11. Godly men seem to suffer loss as to this life: Paul hereby refutes the notion [Bengel]. "God is the Saviour specially of those that believe" (1Ti 4:10), bo...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →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?
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>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?</strong> The author now provides scriptural proof of Christ's superior name and status, citing two Old Testament passages. The rhetorical question "unto which of the angels said he at any time" expects the answer "none"—God nev...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(5) **For unto which of the angels . . . . **“God has spoken of the Messiah as His Son, a title which no angel ever receives from Him.” That the appellation “sons of God” may be used in an inferior sense, and that thus angels may be so designated (Job 1:6; Job 38:7), does not affect this argument; for every reader must perceive that in these quotations “Son” is used of One, and in a sense that is ...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**10. therefore--**Greek, "with a view to this." The reason why "we both ('both' is omitted in the oldest manuscripts) labor (endure hardship) and suffer reproach (some oldest manuscripts read 'strive') is because we have rested, and do rest our hope, on the living (and therefore, life-giving, 1Ti 4:8) God."
**Saviour--**even in this life (1Ti 4:8).
**specially of those that believe--**Their "...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. again: or, when he bringeth again
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him.</strong> The third Old Testament quotation demonstrates angels' subordination to Christ by showing they are commanded to worship Him. "When he bringeth in the firstbegotten" (<em>hotan de palin eisagagē ton prōtotokon eis tēn oikoumenēn</em>, ὅταν δὲ πάλιν εἰσαγάγῃ τὸν πρωτ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(6) **And again**.—There seems little doubt that the true translation is, *And when He again leadeth* (literally, *shall have led*)* the Firstborn into the world He saith.* The position of “again” (in the Greek) shows that it does not indicate a new step in the argument, but must be joined with “leadeth.” The speaker (“He saith”) is God, speaking in the word of Scripture; in this Epistle quotation...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
11. These truths, to the exclusion of those useless and even injurious teachings (1Ti 4:1-8), while weighing well thyself, charge also upon others.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. And of: Gr. And unto
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.</strong> Having established that angels worship Christ (verse 6), the author now contrasts their nature and role with Christ's. This quotation from Psalm 104:4 describes angels as God's servants, created and assigned to specific tasks. The phrase "who maketh" (<em>ho poiōn</em>, ὁ ποιῶν) emphasize...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(7) **Spirits.**—Better, *winds.* It is very difficult to assign any clear meaning to the ordinary rendering,—unless, indeed, we were to adopt the very strange opinion of many of the earlier commentators, that the stress is laid on “maketh” in the sense of “createth.” The parallelism in these two lines of Hebrew poetry is complete, “angels” answering to “ministers,” “winds” to “a flame of fire.” T...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**12. Let no man despise thy youth--**Act so as to be respected in spite of thy youth (1Co 16:11; Tit 2:15); compare "youthful" as to Timothy (2Ti 2:22). He was but a mere youth when he joined Paul (Ac 16:1-3). Eleven years had elapsed since then to the time subsequent to Paul's first imprisonment. He was, therefore, still young; especially in comparison with Paul, whose place he was filling; also...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. righteousness: Gr. rightness, or, straightness
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.</strong> This quotation from Psalm 45:6-7 provides the most explicit affirmation of Christ's deity in this section. God the Father addresses the Son as "O God" (<em>ho theos</em>, ὁ θεός), directly calling Him deity. This is not poetic hyperbole or honorific title b...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(8) **Unto.**—Rather, *of.* The connection with Hebrews 1:7 is so close (“Whereas of the angels He saith . . . of the Son He saith”), that we must not vary the rendering of the preposition. The passage which follows is taken from Psalm 45:6-7. As the words stand in the ordinary Greek text, they agree exactly with the LXX.; but certain alterations of reading are required by the best evidence. After...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**13. Till I come--**when Timothy's commission would be superseded for the time by the presence of the apostle himself (1Ti 1:3; 3:14).
**reading--**especially in the public congregation. The practice of reading Scripture was transferred from the Jewish synagogue to the Christian Church (Lu 4:16-20; Ac 13:15; 15:21; 2Co 3:14). The New Testament Gospel and Epistles being recognized as inspired by...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.
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KJV Study Commentary
<strong>Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.</strong> Continuing the Psalm 45 quotation, this verse describes Christ's moral character and consequent exaltation. Christ has "loved righteousness" (<em>ēgapēsas dikaiosynēn</em>, ἠγάπησας δικαιοσύνην) and "hated iniquity" (<em>emisēsas anomian</e...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(9) The King by divine election has been exalted by divine reward. (Comp. Hebrews 2:9, and Philippians 2:9-10.)
**Therefore God.**—It is possible, but not probable, that the words, both here and in the Psalm, should be rendered, *Therefore, O God, Thy God hath anointed Thee.*
**Thy fellows**.—In the first application, probably, these words point to other earthly kings. (Comp. Psalm 89:27.) Hence E...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**14. Neglect not the gift--**by letting it lie unused. In 2Ti 1:6 the gift is represented as a spark of the Spirit lying within him, and sure to smoulder by neglect, the stirring up or keeping in lively exercise of which depends on the will of him on whom it is bestowed (Mt 25:18, 25, 27, 28). The charism or spiritual gift, is that of the Spirit which qualified him for "the work of an evangelist"...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands:
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KJV Study Commentary
The author quotes Psalm 102:25 to demonstrate Christ's eternal deity and creative power. The Greek 'su kat archēn' emphasizes the beginning of creation, affirming Christ as the pre-existent agent of creation. This refutes Arianism and affirms the Reformed doctrine of Christ's full deity, essential for our redemption since only God can save.
Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(10) **And.**—Hebrews 1:10-12 are by this word linked with Hebrews 1:8, as presenting the second part of the contrast between angels and the Son. As there we read of a divine sovereignty, so here of the work of creation, the power to change all created things, the divine attribute of changeless existence. This quotation from Psalm 102:25-27 agrees almost exactly with the text of the LXX. as we hav...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**15. Meditate--**Greek, "Meditate CAREFULLY upon" (Psa 1:2; 119:15; compare "Isaac," Ge 24:63).
**these things--**(1Ti 4:12-14). As food would not nourish without digestion, which assimilates the food to the substance of the body, so spiritual food, in order to benefit us, needs to be appropriated by prayerful meditation.
**give thyself wholly to--**literally, "BE in these things"; let them e...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment;
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KJV Study Commentary
Continuing the Psalm 102 quotation, this verse contrasts the permanence of Christ with the temporality of creation. The present tense 'apollountai' (they shall perish) emphasizes the certain decay of all created things. Reformed theology sees this as affirming God's sovereignty over all creation and Christ's eternality, which undergirds the doctrine of eternal security - if Christ endures forever,...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(11) **And they all . . .**—Both the earth and the heavens: see Isaiah 34:4, “The heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll;” and Isaiah 51:6, “The earth shall wax old like a garment.”
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**16. Take heed--**Give heed (Ac 3:5).
**thyself, and ... doctrine--**"and unto thy teaching." The two requisites of a good pastor: His teaching will be of no avail unless his own life accord with it; and his own purity of life is not enough unless he be diligent in teaching [Calvin]. This verse is a summary of 1Ti 4:12.
**continue in them--**(2Ti 3:14).
**in doing this--**not "by doing this...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail.
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KJV Study Commentary
The metaphor of changing garments illustrates God's sovereign control over creation - He can remake it at will, yet He Himself remains unchanged. The Greek 'helikseis' (roll up) suggests a scroll being rolled, possibly alluding to Isaiah 34:4. The doctrine of divine immutability is crucial to Reformed theology: God's promises, purposes, and covenant faithfulness cannot change, providing assurance ...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(12) **And as a vesture . . .**—Rather (see Hebrews 1:10), *And as a mantle shalt Thou roll them up; as a garment shall they also be changed.* The course of thought is easily traced: as the garment which has grown old is rolled up and changed, so the former heavens and earth shall give place to the new heavens and the new earth.
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool ?
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KJV Study Commentary
Quoting Psalm 110:1, the most cited OT text in the NT, this verse presents Christ's enthronement at God's right hand. The Greek 'dexiōn' (right hand) signifies the place of honor and power. The subjugation of enemies refers to Christ's ongoing reign until the final consummation. Reformed theology emphasizes Christ's present reign - He is not waiting to become king but reigns now, progressively sub...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(13) **But to which of the angels.**—The final appeal is made to that Psalm which more frequently than any other is quoted in reference to Christ, and which we have already seen to be the source of all the New Testament references to the Saviour’s session at the right hand of God. It is not necessary to say much here respecting Psalms 110, to which so many allusions will be made in the course of t...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
CHAPTER 5
1Ti 5:1-25. General Directions as to How Timothy Should Deal with Different Classes in the Church.
**1. an elder--**in age; probably not an elder in the ministry; these latter are not mentioned till 1Ti 5:17, "the elders that rule." Compare Ac 2:17, "your old men," literally, "elders." Contrasted with "the younger men." As Timothy was admonished so to conduct himself as to give no ma...
Read full commentary →Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?
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KJV Study Commentary
Angels are described as 'leitourgika pneumata' (ministering spirits), emphasizing their service role. The phrase 'those who will inherit salvation' uses the present participle 'mellontas,' indicating future certainty. This affirms the Reformed doctrine of preservation of the saints - those being saved will certainly inherit salvation. Angels serve the elect, not vice versa, demolishing any angel w...
Read full commentary →Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers
(14) **Are they not all ministering spirits?**—In this verse and the preceding is repeated the contrast of Hebrews 1:7-9, in reversed order. The words “ministering spirits” at once recall the “ministers” and “winds” (expressed in Greek and Hebrew by the same word as “spirits”) spoken of in Hebrews 1:7. In the LXX. this word “minister” is usually applied to those who stood before God in His earthly...
Read full commentary →Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary
**2. with all purity--**respectful treatment of the other sex will promote "purity."
Matthew Henry’s Concise Commentary
**Verses 4-14**
Many Jews had a superstitious or idolatrous respect for angels, because they had received the law and other tidings of the Divine will by their ministry. They looked upon them as mediators between God and men, and some went so far as to pay them a kind of religious homage or worship. Thus it was necessary that the apostle should insist, not only on Christ's being the Creator of...
Read full commentary →