Hebrews 1:7 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

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Hebrews 1:7

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What are the angels? They are created spirits; they possess no body. They are quite distinct from human beings in that respect. Of course, when in the Old Testament an angel sent as a messenger of God to a patriarch or prophet, then they were somehow miraculously by God clothed upon with an apparent body for that purpose, but ordinarily they are without bodies. The word ‘angel’ means messenger; in Old Testament times they actually conveyed a message, but not, since the completion of Scripture. They are described also as ministers, a Greek term which means a special servant. It's the term for a public servant: somebody who is a servant of the government to serve the people in some way. Christ describes them as having the speed of lightning. And you read in Matthew 28 the angel that rolled away the stone: radiant, so radiant, like lightning, holy and light. They have vast knowledge. There is no passage that explicitly says this, but this is implied when Christ says of the time he will return, that no man knows the day, not even the angels: though their knowledge is vast, even they do not know this. They know the plan of salvation; they know the Old Testament very well. They know about the Old Testament sacrifices and the prophecies that Messiah will come, but exactly how it will be worked out they desire to look into, says Peter. And they rejoice to see it taking place, each step. There is no salvation in heaven for the angels, so they study the church with great attentiveness. There are vast numbers of these magnificent and glorious beings. They worship Christ; that’s mentioned in verse 6 of this chapter. The angels attested every stage of the ministry of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ: they foretold his coming; at his birth they announced him; at the temptation and the crucifixion they strengthened his human frame (Matthew 4:11; Luke 22:43).In Ezekiel there are the cherubim of justice, also referred to as the beasts in Revelation, the living creatures. At root the word simply means a symbolic being with wings. Another term used is seraph – seraphim is the plural – which comes from a word which means burn, and it indicates the zeal of a seraph. In the book of Daniel the angels are described as watchers. They look out for and keep their protective eye on the people of God. They are unsleeping and untiring because they have no bodies. Psalm 34:6 says: ‘the angel of the Lord encampeth roundabout them that fear him and delivereth them.’ The hosts of darkness are against us, tempting us, seeking to bring us down. How can we resist these things? It is speculation but perhaps it is not only the Holy Spirit alone who aids us, but created angels sent to surround us and to hold back so much of the antagonism of the hosts of darkness from us. You cannot see them, you cannot sense them, you cannot address them, you cannot pray to them; that’s an utterly un-biblical thing to attempt to do. But they are there. They are greatly privileged beings created by God, who are rightly called holy angels and who, Christ tells us, always behold the face of God his Father in heaven. They are admitted into the very throne room of God. The holy angels are described as elect angels. Satan fell, a glorious angel, and many, many angels fell with him. They rebelled against God and became the demons of darkness. What about those who didn't fall? Why didn't they fall? Could they perhaps fall in the future? Could there be another rebellion? They didn't fall because they were elect. God determine that a vast number of angels would never rebel. It is as though they are sealed, so there will never be another fall of angels. They are called flames of fire, signifying their great power and holiness. The words quoted are from Psalm 104:4, where the creation of the angels is one of the works of God in a list of wonderful creative acts, but the one who did all these things and who created the angels as ministering spirits is the Son of God himself. The writer does not falsely downgrade them for the sake of his argument; he gives them their due. They are messengers sent by God to do his bidding, and who immediately obey his every command. But in spite of this, they do not occupy the pre-eminent and familiar place given to the incarnate Son. The terms used to describe them are in strong contrast with the familiar terms used in the previous verse of the Son. How foolish to confuse the Creator with his creation, even one of the most impressive parts of it. Christ was never created. As the eternal Son of God, he always was God. Angels are so different; they are created. They are sustained constantly and everlastingly, truly, by the power of God. ‘Who maketh his angels spirits’ – the Hebrew of the psalm says ‘winds’; our translation here goes for ‘spirits’, which is perfectly correct, but the root is also informative. A wind isn't something substantial and eternal. It's something given rise to by other forces, and it has a mission and a purpose, and when that is completed then it is given another mission and purpose. So spirits are not like the Son of God, uncreated, eternal by virtue of their own divinity; they are created beings, sent on specific missions. How different from Christ! He is God with the Father and the Son. Though a distinct person in the Godhead, he is entirely self-sufficient and self-sustaining.

Application

In some of the oldest hymns and some of the Puritan poetry which serves as hymns by Baxter and others, angels figure. They think of angels when they lie down to rest, unseen angels protecting your sleeping as well as your waking hours. And they derived great comfort from that. No communication; no nonsense or fables with angels. But the fact that they are there, such a vast force, so many of them.

Questions

Why did God create the angelic host, the holy angels? First, because he is creating God; he is by nature a Creator. He has created men and women, and set them in a physical universe, and he has created a vast host of spirit beings. Secondly, because he is a benevolent God, and it is his delight to share his work with millions, possibly, of spirit beings. He doesn't strictly speaking need them, but he creates them so that they can have the pleasure of sharing his work and his purposes with him. There are some people who don't like the concept of a working church, where as many people as possible who the Lord enables are engaged in some form of Christian service. But just look at the angels. Look at how God loves to share his labours with others. But there is another reason for angels. God must be believed in, and obeyed, and served, by great hosts of people all the time. He is not waiting until Christ returns, until there is no more rebellion or opposition to him, until there are only the saved people of God to adore him and worship him in heaven eternally. During the era of the fall, through redemption to the return of Christ, there is a vast host of angels who love him, worship him, serve him. God cannot be left understaffed, as it were, with worshippers and servants at any time. Finally, the angels show us that those who are closest to God are always learning. Learning is a great feature of godliness, the constant ongoing discovery of more and more of the wonders of God and his plans and his grace. The Christian who stops learning is in trouble. The angels are learning, and we shall be learning for all eternity.

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Introduction

Hebrews 1:7 Commentary and Bible Study