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Hebrews 1:5

in Hebrews 1

For to which of the angels did God ever say: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father”? Or again: “I will be His Father, and He will be My Son”?

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

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?

KJV

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?

This verse in Hebrews 1

Commentary

15 notes on this verse
For unto which of the angels ... - The object of this is, to prove that the Son of God, who has spoken to people in these last days, is superior to the angels. As the apostle was writing to those who had been trained in the Jewish religion, and who admitted the authority of the Old Testament, of course he made his appeal to that, and undoubtedly referred for proof to those places which were generally admitted to relate to the Messiah.

This site's exposition

as far superior to the angels

on Hebrews 1:4-5

The Son became as far superior to the angels as his inherited name is above theirs, the first of the letter's better comparisons. The proof is Psalm 2 and 2 Samuel 7:14, spoken to the Son alone and first addressed to a king of David's line.

This site's exposition

today I have become Your Father

Acts 13:33 applies today I have become Your Father to the raising of Jesus, and Romans 1:4 ties his declaration to the resurrection. Verse 2 already names him Son and maker of the world, so the day shows a sonship already his.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers5 voices

A commentator

Oecumenius

The Pseudo-Oecumenian Catena on Hebrews · Written before 550.

proposed

We heard, and we who are men, are true sons through grace. The angels, however, did not hear this, lest their sublimity be thought to be from nature rather than from grace. Christ, however, is not from grace, but from nature. "I have begotten You." …

A commentator

Oecumenius

The Pseudo-Oecumenian Catena on Hebrews · Written before 550.

proposed

"I will be to Him a Father." Again, accept this as the Son's birth according to the flesh, belonging to the Father; for it is clearly said, "I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son according to the …

A commentator

Tertullian

Against Marcion Book IV · Written before 220.

proposed

" This voice the Father was going Himself to recommend. For, says he, He establishes the words of His Son, when He says, "This is my beloved Son, hear ye Him.

A commentator

Clement of Rome

1 CLEMENT 36.1-6 · Written before 99.

proposed

This is the way, dear friends, in which we found our salvation, Jesus Christ, the high priest of our offerings, the protector and helper of our weakness. Through him we fix our gaze on the heights of heaven. In him we see mirrored God's pure and transcendent face. Through him the eyes of our hearts have been opened. Through him our foolish and darkened understanding springs up to the light. Through him the Master has willed that we should taste immortal knowledge. For, since "he reflects the glory of God," "he is as much superior to the angels as the name he has obtained is more excellent than theirs." For thus it is written: "He makes his angels winds, and his servants flames of fire." But of his Son this is what the Master said: "You are my son, today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession." And again he says to him, "Sit at my right hand till I make your enemies your footstool." Who are meant by "enemies"? Those who are wicked and resist his will.

A commentator

John Chrysostom

Homily on Hebrews 2 · Written before 407.

proposed

"For to 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"? For these things indeed are spoken with reference also to the flesh: "I will be to Him a Father, and He shall be to Me a Son" - while this, "Thou art My Son, this day have I begotten Thee," expresses nothing else than "from [the time] that God is." For as He is said to be, from the time present (for this befits Him more than any other), so also the [word] "To-day" seems to me to be spoken here with reference to the flesh. For when He hath taken hold of it, thenceforth he speaks out all boldly. For indeed the flesh partakes of the high things, just as the Godhead of the lowly. For He who disdained not to become man, and did not decline the reality, how should He have declined the expressions?
7 more voices on this verse

The Medieval Church2 voices

A commentator

Theophylact of Ohrid

Commentary on Hebrews · Written before 1107.

proposed

From where, he says, is it evident that He is better than the angels? From His name: the name Son signifies true birth, that is, that He is from Him. If He is Son by grace, then He is lower than the angels. The expression …

A commentator

Thomas Aquinas

Commentary on Hebrews · Written before 1274.

proposed

48. – Then (v.5) he proves what he has said: first, he discusses the name inasmuch as it belongs to Christ according to His divinity; secondly, inasmuch as it belongs to Him according to His human nature (v. 5b). 49. – In regard to the …

The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices

A commentator

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)

Thou art my Son - God of God, Light of Light. This day have I begotten thee - I have begotten thee from eternity, which, by its unalter able permanency of duration, is one continued, unsuccessive day.
For unto which of the angels said he at any time,....

The Nineteenth Century2 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

proposed

Ps 2:2, 3, 9-12) is a type of God's ultimately subduing all enemies under His Son, whom He sets (Hebrew, "anointed," Ps 2:6) on His "holy hill of Zion," as King of the Jews and of the whole earth. the antitype to Solomon, son of David. The "I" in Greek is emphatic;

quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — unbalanced-parens

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee - These words are quoted from Psa 2:7, a psalm that seems to refer only to the Messiah; and they are quoted by St. Paul, Act 13:33, as referring to the resurrection of Christ. And this application of them is confirmed by the same apostle, Rom 1:4, as by his resurrection from the dead he was declared - manifestly proved, to be the Son of God with power; God having put forth his miraculous energy in raising that body from the grave which had truly died, and died a violent death, for Christ was put to death as a malefactor, but by his resurrection his innocence was demonstrated, as God could not work a miracle to raise a wicked man from the dead. As Adam was created by God, and because no natural generation could have any operation in this case, therefore he was called the son of God, Luk 3:38, and could never have seen corruption if he had not sinned, so the human nature of Jesus Christ, formed by the energy of the eternal Spirit in the womb of the virgin, without any human intervention, was for this very reason called the Son of God, Luk 1:35; and because it had not sinned, therefore it could not see corruption, nor was it even mortal, but through a miraculous display of God’s infinite love, for the purpose of making a sacrificial atonement for the sin of the world and God, having raised this sacrificed human nature from the dead, declared that same Jesus (who was, as above stated, the Son of God) to be his Son, the promised Messiah; and as coming by the Virgin Mary, the right heir to the throne of David, according to the uniform declaration of all the prophets. The words, This day have I begotten thee, must refer either to his incarnation, when he was miraculously conceived in the womb of the virgin by the power of the Holy Spirit; or to his resurrection from the dead, when God, by this sovereign display of his almighty e […]

Modern Voices1 voice

The writer of Hebrews builds on his assertions that the particular son of God (Jesus) who was the agent of creation, eternal wisdom, and the essence of God, by comparing him to other supernatural sons of God (angels).

The words behind it

27 Greek words

Every Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Psalms 2:7

    I will proclaim the decree spoken to Me by the LORD: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father.

    it leads to

    • Hebrews 5:5

      So also Christ did not take upon Himself the glory of becoming a high priest, but He was called by the One who said to Him: “You are My Son; today I have become…

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Acts 13:33

      He has fulfilled for us, their children, by raising up Jesus. As it is written in the second Psalm: ‘You are My Son; today I have become Your Father.’

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Hebrews 1:5–6

      For to which of the angels did God ever say: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father”? Or again: “I will be His Father, and He will be My Son”?

      Reached by 2 separate paths from here.

    • Matthew 3:17

      And a voice from heaven said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased!”

    • Matthew 17:5

      While Peter was still speaking, a bright cloud enveloped them, and a voice from the cloud said, “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. Listen to Him!”

  • Through

    Hebrews 5:5

    So also Christ did not take upon Himself the glory of becoming a high priest, but He was called by the One who said to Him: “You are My Son; today I have become…

    it leads to

    • Psalms 2:7

      I will proclaim the decree spoken to Me by the LORD: “You are My Son; today I have become Your Father.

      Reached by 3 separate paths from here.

    • John 8:54

      Jesus answered, “If I glorify Myself, My glory means nothing. The One who glorifies Me is My Father, of whom you say ‘He is our God.’

  • Through

    2 Samuel 7:14

    I will be his Father, and he will be My son. When he does wrong, I will discipline him with the rod of men and with the blows of the sons of men.

    it leads to

    • Revelation 3:19

      Those I love, I rebuke and discipline. Therefore be earnest and repent.

Where this verse is studied

About Hebrews

The Meeting of Abraham and Melchizedek, Dieric Bouts, 1464 to 1467. Public domain.
The Meeting of Abraham and Melchizedek, Dieric Bouts, 1464 to 1467. Public domain.
This page draws on 15 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Clement of Rome, 1 CLEMENT 36.1-6; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Chrysostom, Homily on Hebrews 2; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Michael S. Heiser, "Naked Bible Podcast Episode 176: Hebrews 1:5-14" show notes (drmsh.com); Oecumenius, The Pseudo-Oecumenian Catena on Hebrews; Tertullian, Against Marcion Book IV; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on Hebrews and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Hebrews.