Journal 2018

It’s a little disturbing to me to see how the author of Hebrews glibly quotes the Old Testament out of context.

• If 1:5 refers to II Samuel 7:14, the author is misquoting, I will be his father, and he will be my son. (NIV)

In the Samuel context, the next statement says, “when he commits iniquity, I will correct him.” This obviously refers to Solomon, not to the Messiah. So how can the author of Hebrews apply it to Christ?

• The statement He makes his angels spirits, and his servants flames of fire (1:7) seems to be quoting Psalm 104:4. But in that context, there is no reference to angels. In fact, in that Psalm every reference is to things in nature, and Hebrews seems to do violence to the text to make it refer to angels.

Now, I admit I’m no Hebrew scholar, but this is how it appears to me. Is there an overlay of truth, a phrase with hidden meaning in the text? I’m confused. Either the scriptures are inspired or they are not. Either the author of Hebrews stretches and misquotes scripture, or he doesn’t.

After reading numerous commentaries, I see I’m not the only one who has questioned these passages. But if we believe the Scriptures are accurate and inspired, there must be a logical explanation. Since the author uses these quotes without further argument or commentary, it is assumed that the readers understood and agreed with his application of the phrases referring to the Messiah and to the angels. The overall conclusion of Hebrews is that Christ is superior to men and angels no matter what arguments or quotations the author uses, and that is the important matter here.

On September 20, I listened to Michael Rydelnik on “Chris Fabry Live,” Rydelnik believes the entire Psalter is a messianic book arranged deliberately in a certain order. For example, Psalms 22 and 24 are clearly Messianic. My God, My God . . . they pierced my hands and feet . . . Who can stand in his holy place? He who has clean hands … the King of glory.

Sandwiched in between the two is the oft-quoted Psalm 23, which Rydelnik says is another messianic Psalm regarding the death and resurrection of Christ. We can certainly gain comfort from this Psalm while “in the valley of the shadow of death” and can certainly find application to our personal lives, but it primarily gives us a glimpse into the Messiah’s experience. Rydelnik says the ancients understood the messianic nature and subject of the Psalms. So perhaps the author of Hebrews draws from that matrix and viewpoint.