Hebrews 1:5 reports the following words of the Father to Jesus: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You” (NKJV). What does it mean that Jesus was “begotten,” and when did this happen? Does not this show that Jesus was somehow created by God sometime way in the past, as many believe?

Read Hebrews 1:5; 2 Samuel 7:12-14; Psalm 2:7; and Luke 1:31-32. What promise to David did Paul in Hebrews apply to Jesus?

Jesus was begotten in the sense that He was installed, or “adopted,” by God as the promised ruler, the son of David. The concept of the divine adoption of the ruler was common in the Greco-Roman world and the east. It gave the ruler legitimacy and power over the land.

God promised to David, however, that his Son would be the true legitimate ruler of the nations. He would “adopt” David’s son as His own Son.

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Through this process the Davidic King would become God’s protégé and His heir. The covenant is fulfilled in Jesus as the Son of David. God would defeat His enemies and give Him the nations as His inheritance (Psalm 89:27; Psalm 2:7-8).

As we can read in Romans 1:3-4, and Acts 13:32-33, Jesus was publicly revealed as God’s Son. Jesus’ baptism and transfiguration were moments when God identified and announced Jesus as His Son (Matthew 3:17, Matthew 17:5).

Yet, according to the New Testament, Jesus became the “Son of God with power” when He was resurrected and seated at the right hand of God. It was at that moment that God fulfilled His promise to David that his son would be adopted as God’s own Son and His throne over the nations would be established forever (2 Samuel 7:12-14).

Thus, Caesar (symbol of Rome) was not the legitimate “son of god,” ruler of the nations. Instead, Jesus Christ was. The “begetting” of Jesus refers to the beginning of Jesus’ rule over the nations, and not to the beginning of His existence, because Jesus had always existed. There was never a time when Jesus did not exist, because He is God.

In fact, Hebrews 7:3 says that Jesus does not have “beginning of days nor end of life” (cf. Hebrews 13:8) because He is eternal. Thus, the idea of Jesus as God’s “only begotten son” is not dealing with the nature of Christ as deity but with His role in the plan of salvation. Through the incarnation, Christ fulfilled all the covenant promises.

<–Wednesday Friday–>

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Hebrews affirms that God created the world “through” or “by” Jesus and that Jesus sustains the world with His powerful word.

Read Isaiah 44:24, Isaiah 45:18, and Nehemiah 9:6. Because in the Old Testament the Lord affirmed that He created the world “alone” and that He is the “only God,” how can we reconcile this affirmation with the affirmations in the New Testament that God created the universe “through” Jesus (Hebrews 1:2-3)?

Some think that Jesus was merely the instrument through whom God created. This is not possible. First, for Paul, Jesus is the Lord who created the world; He was not a helper. Hebrews 1:10 says that Jesus is the Lord who created the earth and the heavens, and Paul also applies to Him what Psalm 102:25-27 says about the Lord (Yahweh) as Creator.

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Second, Hebrews 2:10 says that the universe was created “by” or “through” the Father. (Exactly the same expressions that are applied to Jesus in Hebrews 1:2.) The Father created and Jesus created (Hebrews 1:2, Hebrews 1:10; Hebrews 2:10). There is a perfect agreement between Father and Son in purpose and activity. This is part of the mystery of the Trinity. Jesus created and God created, but there is only One Creator, God — which implies that Jesus is God.

Meanwhile Hebrews 4:13 shows that Jesus is also Judge. His authority to rule and judge derives from the fact that God created all things and sustains the universe (Isaiah 44:24-28).

Hebrews 1:3 and Colossians 1:17 affirm that Jesus also sustains the universe. This sustaining action probably includes the idea of guidance or governance. The Greek word pheron (sustaining, carrying) is used to describe the wind driving a boat (Acts 27:15, Acts 27:17) or God leading the prophets (2 Pet. 1:21). Thus, in a real sense, Jesus not only created us but sustains us, as well. Every breath, every heartbeat, every moment of our existence is found in Him, Jesus, the foundation of all created existence.

<–Tuesday Thursday–>

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Read Hebrews 1:2-4. What are some of the things that this passage teaches us about Jesus?

In this section, we will focus on the portion that says, “He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature” (Hebrews 1:3, ESV).

Read Exodus 24:16-17; Psalm 4:6; Psalm 36:9; and Psalm 89:15. How do these texts help us understand what the glory of God is?

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In the Old Testament, the glory of God refers to His visible presence among His people (Exodus 16:7; Exodus 24:16-17; Leviticus 9:23; Numbers 14:10). This presence is often associated with light or radiance.

Scripture informs us that Jesus is the light who came to this world to reveal the glory of God (Hebrews 1:3; John 1:6-9, John 1:14-18; 2 Corinthians 4:6). Think, for instance, of how Jesus appeared in the transfiguration. “And He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light” (Matthew 17:2, NKJV).

Just as the sun cannot be perceived except by the radiance of its light, God is known through Jesus. From our perspective, the two are one. Because God’s glory is light itself, there is no difference, in actual being and character, between God and Jesus, just as there is no difference between light and its radiance.

Hebrews also says that Jesus is the “exact representation” of the Father’s substance (Hebrews 1:3, NASB). The point of the metaphor is that there is a perfect correspondence in being — or essence — between the Father and the Son. Note that human beings carry God’s image but not His essence (Genesis 1:26). The Son, however, shares the same essence with the Father. No wonder that Jesus said, “He who has seen Me has seen the Father” (John 14:9, NKJV).

<–Monday Wednesday–>

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The titles of the thirteen Sabbaths of study this quarter give us two hymns to use as the themes:
Hymn 593 – In Times Like These and 
Hymn 177 – Jesus, Your Blood and Righteousness.

Sunday speaks of the last days in which we live just as we sing in 
Hymn 617 – We Are Living, We Are Dwelling. The lesson then goes on to encourage us of our father’s faith in days gone by: 
Hymn 304 – Faith of Our Fathers. The finale of this day’s study is 
Lo! He Comes – Hymn 211.

We are thankful that we have the Word of God in our Bibles today to encourage us. Thank you God that you have spoken to us through Jesus: 
Hymn 60 – Blessed Jesus, At Thy Word. God spoke through the prophets of old for the people then, and now: 
Hymn 413 – God Has Spoken By His Prophets showing that His Word is pure: 
Hymn 274 – O Word Of God Incarnate.

Hymn 41 – O Splendor of God’s Glory Bright adds to Tuesday’s study time as do 
Hymn 234 – Christ is the Worlds Light and 
Hymn 345 – Christ is the World’s True Light.

Creation is studied on Wednesday: 
Hymn 320 – Lord of Creation and 
Hymn 72 – Creator of the Stars of Night.

Just as Jesus was “installed, or adopted by God as the promised Ruler, the Son of David” so we are in 
Hymn 468 – A Child of the King.

We are bound for The Promised Land! Hallelujah!! – 
Hymn 620 – On Jordan’s Stormy Banks. Come, Lord Jesus, come – very soon.

To learn unknown hymns, you will find the accompaniment music for each one at: https://sdahymnals.com/Hymnal/

Another great resource is for when there is a hymn you wish to sing, but can’t find it in your hymnal. Go to https://www.sdahymnal.org and in the search bar type a special word in that is in the hymn. I am sure you will be amazed at the help you will be given.

2 Timothy 2:15 KJV – “Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.”

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Read Hebrews 1:1-4. What is the central idea of these verses?

In the original Greek, Hebrews 1:1-4 is only one sentence, and it has been argued that it is the most beautiful in all the New Testament from the point of view of its rhetorical artistry. Its main assertion is that God has spoken to us through His Son, Jesus.

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For the Jews in the first century A.D., the word of God had not been heard for a long time. The last revelation to be expressed in the Written Word of God had come through the prophet Malachi and the ministries of Ezra and Nehemiah four centuries before. But now, through Jesus, God was speaking to them again.

God’s revelation through Jesus, however, was superior to the revelation that God had made through the prophets because Jesus is a greater means of revelation. He is God Himself, who created the heaven and the earth and rules the universe. For Paul, the deity of Christ is never in question. It’s all but assumed.

Also, for Paul, the Old Testament was the Word of God. The same God who spoke in the past continues to speak in the present. The Old Testament communicated a true knowledge of God’s will.

However, it was possible to understand its fuller meaning only when the Son arrived on earth. In the author’s mind, the Father’s revelation in the Son provided the key to understanding the true breadth of the Old Testament, just like the picture on the box of a jigsaw puzzle provides the key to finding the correct place for every one of its pieces. Jesus brought so much of the Old Testament to light.

Meanwhile, Jesus came to be our Representative and our Savior. He would take our place in the fight and defeat the serpent. Similarly, in Hebrews, Jesus is the “pioneer” or “captain” and “forerunner” of believers (Hebrews 2:10, Hebrews 6:20). He fights for us and represents us. This also means that what God did for Jesus, our Representative, the Father also wants to do for us. He who exalted Jesus at His right hand also wants us to sit with Jesus on His throne (Revelation 3:21). God’s message to us in Jesus includes not only what Jesus said but also what the Father did through Him and to Him, all for our temporal and eternal benefit.

<–Sunday Tuesday–>

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