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#15.
Crowned with Glory and Honour (Heb. 2: 5-9).
pp. 148 155
We now commence section B 2: 5-18. "The Son, Man, Seed of Abraham, Lower
than angels." Here suffering and death are prominent, and the position of the Lord is "for
a little lower than angels". The structure is so manifestly complete, that it will be as well
to set it out before considering any further details.
B | 2: 5-18.
A1 | 5-8-. Not angels.
| a | A little lower than angels.
b | Crowned with glory and honour.
B1 | -8. But now we see not yet.
B1 | 9-. But we see Jesus.
A1 | -9-. Jesus.
| a | A little lower than angels.
b | Crowned with glory and honour.
C | -9, 10. The archēgon (captain).
| c | It became Him.
d | Perfected through sufferings.
A2 | 11-13. All of one, the sanctified, brethren.
B2 | 14. Flesh and blood, took part, destroy death.
B2 | 15, 16. Seed of Abraham, took not angels, deliver fear of death.
A2 | 17-. Made like to brethren.
C | -17, 18. The arhiereus (high priest).
| c | It behoved Him.
d | Suffered being tempted.
"For unto the angels hath He not put in subjection the world to come, concerning
which we speak". We have already drawn the reader's attention to the fact that the
miracles of the early church were called "the powers of the coming age", and it will be
seen that the statement quoted above, following immediately upon the reference to the
signs and wonders, emphasizes this the more.
A more remote connection which it is important not to miss is that the "so great
salvation" is in fact "the world to come", concerning which, said the apostle, he was
speaking. "The world to come" is literally "the habitable (world) about to be". In the
original the word "habitable world" is oikumenē. This word has occurred already in
Hebrews, being used in 1: 6. It is used of the Roman Empire (Luke 2: 1; Acts 24: 5).
This is in line with secular usage, Polybius and Plutarch using it in this connection. The
LXX in a similar manner uses the expression he oikumenē holē ("the whole inhabitable")
for the Babylonian Empire (Isa. 14: 17). Alexander's Empire is called he oikumenē
(Ælitan, V.H. 3: 29). This combined testimony makes it appear very probable that the
term must not be applied to the whole "world" as we know it, but to that portion which
will become the final sphere of Nebuchadnezzar's sovereignty as pictured in the great