Week 49 Hebrews 2
Right from the beginning Hebrews makes a big point about Jesus’ superiority. It starts in chapter one: Jesus is superior to the angels. And by chapter ten it’s clear he’s superior to everything and everyone else in the entire scheme of OT religion – prophets & great OT characters & tabernacle & temple & sacrifices & priesthood & covenant.
The writer is emphatic about Jesus’ superiority: in subjecting everything to him (Jesus), he (God) left nothing that is not subject to him (Jesus). Everything is subject to the Lord. Nothing isn’t subject to him.
But even though that’s the main point I notice the writer’s little add-on in the same verse. It’s almost an afterthought: as it is, we do not yet see everything subjected to him. There’s no debating the fact that everything is subjected to Jesus. But as it is there’s lots of times it doesn’t look like everything is subjected to him. I like that the writer added that comment. It’s a nice reminder that there are two things going on.
First there’s the Reality: everything actually is subject to the Lord. And then secondly there’s the Appearances: it doesn’t look like everything is subject to the Lord.
Reality: how things are. Appearance: how things look.
I like having that extra sentence. Glad the writer admits that Reality is competing with Appearances. Glad for the acknowledgement that lots of times illusion is pretty potent. So it’s a nice reminder.
Note: quote from Hebrews 2:8 (CSB)