Hebrews 1:14

Verse 14. Are they not all ministering spirits] That is, They are all ministering spirits; for the Hebrews often express the strongest affirmative by an interrogation.

All the angels, even those of the highest order, are employed by their Creator to serve those who believe in Christ Jesus. What these services are, and how performed, it would be impossible to state. Much has been written on the subject, partly founded on Scripture, and partly on conjecture. They are, no doubt, constantly employed in averting evil and procuring good. If God help man by man, we need not wonder that he helps man by angels. We know that he needs none of those helps, for he can do all things himself; yet it seems agreeable to his infinite wisdom and goodness to use them. This is part of the economy of God in the government of the world and of the Church; and a part, no doubt, essential to the harmony and perfection of the whole. The reader may see a very sensible discourse on this text in vol. ii., page 133, of the Rev. John Wesley's works, American edition. Dr. Owen treats the subject at large in his comment on this verse, vol. iii., page 141, edit. 8vo., which is just now brought to my hand, and which appears to be a very learned, judicious, and important work, but by far too diffuse. In it the words of God are drowned in the sayings of man.

THE Godhead of Christ is a subject of such great importance, both to the faith and hope of a Christian, that I feel it necessary to bring it full into view, wherever it is referred to in the sacred writings. It is a prominent article in the apostle's creed, and should be so in ours. That this doctrine cannot be established on Heb 1:8 has been the assertion of many. To what I have already said on this verse, I beg leave to subjoin the following criticisms of a learned friend, who has made this subject his particular study.

BRIEF REMARKS ON HEBREWS, chap. 1, ver. 8.

'ο θρονος σου, ο θεος, εις τουςε αιωνας.

It hath ever been the opinion of the most sound divines, that these words, which are extracted from the 45th Psalm, are addressed by God the Father unto God the Son. Our translators have accordingly rendered the passage thus: "Thy throne, O God, is for ever." Those who deny the Divinity of Christ, being eager to get rid of such a testimony against themselves, contend that ο θεος is here the nominative, and that the meaning is: "God is thy throne for ever." Now it is somewhat strange, that none of them have had critical acumen enough to discover that the words cannot possibly admit of this signification. It is a rule in the Greek language, that when a substantive noun is the subject of a sentence, and something is predicated of it, the article, if used at all, is prefixed to the subject, but omitted before the predicate. The Greek translators of the Old, and the authors of the New Testament, write agreeably to this rule. I shall first give some examples from the latter: -

θεος ην ο λογος. - "The Word was God." Joh 1:1.

'ο λογος σαρξ εγενετο. - "The Word became flesh." Joh 1:14.

πνευμα ο θεος. - "God is a Spirit." Joh 4:24.

'ο θεος αγαπη εστι. - "God is love." Heb 1:1; Heb 4:8.

'ο θεος φως εστι. - "God is light." Heb 1:1; Heb 1:5.

If we examine the Septuagint version of the Psalms, we shall find, that in such instances the author sometimes places the article before the subject, but that his usual mode is to omit it altogether. A few examples will suffice: -

'ο θεος κριτης δικαιος. - "God is a righteous judge." Ps 7:11.

'ο θεος ημων καταφυγη και δυναμις, - "God is our refuge and strength." Ps 46:1.

κυριος βοηθος μου. - "The Lord is my helper." Ps 28:7.

κυριος στερεωμα μου και καταφυγη μον. - "The Lord is my firm support and my refuge." Ps 18:2.

θεος μεγας κυριος. - "The Lord is a great God." Ps 95:3.

We see what is the established phraseology of the Septuagint, when a substantive noun has something predicated of it in the same sentence. Surely, then, we may be convinced that if in Ps 45:6, the meaning which they who deny our Lord's Divinity affix, had been intended, it would rather have been written θρονος σου, ο θεος, or θρονος σου, θεος. This our conviction will, if possible, be increased, when we examine the very next clause of this sentence, where we shall find that the article is prefixed to the subject, but omitted before the predicate.

ραβδος ευθυτηρος η ραβδος της βασιλειας σου. - "The sceptre of thy kingdom is a sceptre of rectitude."

"But it may be doubted whether θεος with the article affixed be ever used in the vocative case." Your doubt will be solved by reading the following examples, which are taken not promiscuously from the Septuagint, but all of them from the Psalms.

κρινον αυτους, ο θεος. - "Judge them, O God." Ps 5:10.

'ο θεος, ο θεος μου. - "O God, my God." Ps 22:1.

σοι ψαλω, ο θεος μον. - "Unto thee will I sing, O my God." Ps 59:17.

υψωσω σε, ο θεος μον. - "I will exalt thee, O my God." Ps 145:1.

κυριε, ο θεος μου. - "O Lord my God." Ps 104:1.

I have now removed the only objection which can, I think, be started. It remains, that the son of Mary is here addressed as the God whose throne endures for ever.

I know that a pronoun sometimes occurs with the article prefixed to its predicate; but I speak only of nouns substantive.

I must not fail to observe, that the rule about the subject and predicate, like that of the Greek prepositive article, pervades all classes of writers. It will be sufficient, if I give three or four examples. The learned reader may easily collect more.

προσκηνιον μεν ο ουρανος απας, θεατρον δ' η οικουμενη. "The whole heaven is his stage, and the world his theatre." Chrysostom. We have here two instances in one sentence. The same is the case in the following examples: -

βραχυς μεν ο ξυλλογος, μεγας δ ο ποθος. - "Small indeed is the assembly, but great is the desire." Chrysostom.

καλον γαρ το αθλον, και η ελπις μεγαλη. - "For the prize is noble, and the hope is great." Plato.

το τ' αισχρον εχθρον, και το χρηστον ευκλεες. - "That which is base is hateful; and that which is honest, glorious." Sophocles.

Having spoken of nouns substantive only, I ought to state that the rule applies equally to adjectives and to participles. Near the opening of the fifth of Matthew, we find eight consecutive examples of the rule. In five of these the subject is an adjective, and in the other three, a participle. Indeed one of them has two participles, affording an instance of the rule respecting the prepositive article, as well as of that which we are now considering. μακαριοι οι πεινωντες και διψωντες. "Blessed are they who hunger and thirst." In the Apocalypse there are four examples of the rule with participles, and in all these twelve cases the predicate is placed first. See the supplement to my Essay on the Greek Article, at the end of Dr. A. Clarke's commentary on Ephesians.

I am aware that an exception now and then occurs in the sacred writings; but I think I may assert that there are no exceptions in the Septuagint version of the book of Psalms. As the words ο θρονος σου, ο θεος, occur in the book of Psalms, the most important question is this: Does that book always support the orthodox interpretation? With regard to the deviations which are elsewhere occasionally found, I think there can be little doubt that they are owing to the ignorance or carelessness of transcribers, for the rule is unquestionably genuine. - H. S. BOYD.

The preceding remarks are original, and will be duly respected by every scholar.

I have shown my reasons in the note on "Lu 1:35", why I cannot close in with the common view of what is called the eternal Sonship of Christ. I am inclined to think that from this tenet Arianism had its origin. I shall here produce my authority for this opinion. Arius, the father of what is called Arianism, and who flourished in A. D. 300, was a presbyter of the Church of Alexandria, a man of great learning and eloquence, and of deeply mortified manners; and he continued to edify the Church by his teaching and example till the circumstance took place which produced that unhappy change in his religious sentiments, which afterwards gave rise to so much distraction and division in the Christian Church. The circumstance to which I refer is related by Socrates Scholasticus, in his supplement to the History of Eusebius, lib. i., c. 5; and is in substance as follows: Alexander, having succeeded Achillas in the bishopric of Alexandria, self-confidently philosophizing one day in the presence of his presbyters and the rest of his clergy concerning the holy Trinity, among other things asserted that there was a Monad in the Triad, φιλοτιμοτερον περι της αγιας τριαδος, ες τριαδι Μοναδα ειναι φιλοσοφων εθεολογει. What he said on the derived nature or eternal Sonship of Christ is not related. Arius, one of his presbyters, a man of considerable skill in the science of logic, ανηρ ουκ αμοιρος της διαλεκτικης λεσχης, supposing that the bishop designed to introduce the dogmas of Sabellius, the Libyan, who denied the personality of the Godhead, and consequently the Trinity, sharply opposed the bishop, arguing thus: "If the Father begot the Son, he who was thus begotten had a beginning of his existence; and from this it is manifest, that there was a time in which the Son was not. Whence it necessarily follows, that he has his subsistence from what exists not." The words which Socrates quotes are the following, of which the above is as close a translation as the different idioms will allow: ει ο πατηρ εγεννηοε τον υιον, αρχην υπαρξεως εχει ο γεννηθεις. και εκ τουτου δηλον, οτι ην οτε ουκ ην ο υιος. ακολουθει τε εξ αναγκης, εξ ουκ οντων εχειν αυτον την υποστασιν. Now, it does not appear that this had been previously the doctrine of Arius, but that it was the consequence which he logically drew from the doctrine laid down by the bishop; and, although Socrates does not tell us what the bishop stated, yet, from the conclusions drawn, we may at once see what the premises were; and these must have been some incautious assertions concerning the Sonship of the Divine nature of Christ: and I have shown elsewhere that these are fair deductions from such premises. "But is not God called Father; and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ? "Most certainly. That God graciously assumes the name of Father, and acts in that character towards mankind, the whole Scripture proves; and that the title is given to him as signifying Author, Cause, Fountain, and Creator, is also sufficiently manifest from the same Scriptures. In this sense he is said to be the Father of the rain, Job 38:28; and hence also it is said, He is the Father of spirits, Heb 12:9; and he is the Father of men because he created them; and Adam, the first man, is particularly called his son, Lu 3:38. But he is the Father of the human nature of our blessed Lord in a peculiar sense, because by his energy this was produced in the womb of the virgin. Lu 1:35, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee; THEREFORE also that HOLY THING WHICH SHALL BE BORN OF THEE shall be called THE SON OF GOD. It is in consequence of this that our blessed Lord is so frequently termed the Son of God, and that God is called his Father. But I know not any scripture, fairly interpreted, that states the Divine nature of our Lord to be begotten of God, or to be the Son of God. Nor can I see it possible that he could be begotten of the Father, in this sense, and be eternal; and if not eternal, he is not God. But numberless scriptures give him every attribute of Godhead; his own works demonstrate it; and the whole scheme of salvation requires this. I hope I may say that I have demonstrated his supreme, absolute, and unoriginated Godhead, both in my note on Heb 1:16; Heb 1:17, and in my Discourse on Salvation by Faith. And having seen that the doctrine of the eternal Sonship produced Arianism, and Arianism produced Socinianism, and Socinianism produces a kind of general infidelity, or disrespect to the sacred writings, so that several parts of them are rejected as being uncanonical, and the inspirations of a major part of the New Testament strongly suspected; I find it necessary to be doubly on my watch to avoid every thing that may, even in the remotest way, tend to so deplorable a catastrophe.

It may be said: "Is not God called the eternal Father? And if so, there can be no eternal Father if there be no eternal Son." I answer: God is not called in any part of Scripture, as far as I can recollect, either the eternal or everlasting Father in reference to our blessed Lord, nor indeed in reference to any thing else; but this very title, strange to tell, is given to Jesus Christ himself: His name shall be called the EVERLASTING FATHER, Isa 9:6; and we may on this account, with more propriety, look for an eternal filiation proceeding from him, than from any other person of the most holy Trinity.

Should it be asked: "Was there no trinity of persons in the Godhead before the incarnation!" I answer: That a trinity of persons appears to me to belong essentially to the eternal Godhead, neither of which was before, after, or produced from another; and of this the Old Testament is full: but the distinction was not fully evident till the incarnation; and particularly till the baptism in Jordan, when on him, in whom dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead, the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape, like a dove; and a voice from heaven proclaimed that baptized person God's beloved Son: in which transaction there were three persons occupying distinct places; as the person of Christ in the water, the Holy Spirit in a bodily shape, and the voice from heaven, sufficiently prove; and to each of these persons various scriptures give all the essential attributes of God.

On the doctrine of the eternal Sonship of the Divine nature of Christ I once had the privilege of conversing with the late reverend John Wesley, about three years before his death; he read from a book in which I had written it, the argument against this doctrine, which now stands in the note on "Lu 1:35". He did not attempt to reply to it; but allowed that, on the ground on which I had taken it, the argument was conclusive. I observed, that the proper, essential Divinity of Jesus Christ appeared to me to be so absolutely necessary to the whole Christian scheme, and to the faith both of penitent sinners and saints, that it was of the utmost importance to set it in the clearest and strongest point of view; and that, with my present light, I could not credit it, if I must receive the common doctrine of the Sonship of the Divine nature of our Lord. He mentioned two eminent divines who were of the same opinion; and added, that the eternal Sonship of Christ bad been a doctrine very generally received in the Christian Church; and he believed no one had ever expressed it better than his brother Samuel had done in the following lines: -

"From whom, in one eternal now,

The SON, thy offspring, flow'd;

An everlasting Father thou,

An everlasting God."

He added not one word more on the subject, nor ever after mentioned it to me, though after that we had many interviews. But it is necessary to mention his own note on the text, that has given rise to these observations; which shows that he held the doctrine as commonly received, when he wrote that note; it is as follows: -

"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 unalterable permanency of duration, is one continued unsuccessive day." Leaving the point in dispute out of the question, this is most beautifully expressed; and I know not that this great man ever altered his views on this subject, though I am certain that he never professed the opinion as many who quote his authority do; nor would he at any time have defended what he did hold in their way. I beg leave to quote a fact. In 1781, he published in the fourth volume of the Arminian Magazine, p. 384, an article, entitled "An Arian Antidote;" in this are the following words: "Greater or lesser in infinity, is not; inferior Godhead shocks our sense; Jesus was inferior to the Father as touching his manhood, Joh 14:28; he was a son given, and slain intentionally from the foundation of the world, Re 13:8, and the first-born from the dead of every creature, Heb 1:15; Heb 1:18. But, our Redeemer, from everlasting (Isa 63:16) had not the inferior name of Son; in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God from eternity, and the Word, made flesh, was God," c. This is pointedly against the eternal Sonship of the Divine nature. But why did Mr. W. insert this? and if by haste, c., why did he not correct this when he published in 1790, in the 13th vol. of the Magazine, eight tables of errata to the eight first volumes of that work? Now, although he had carefully noticed the slightest errors that might affect the sense in those preceding volumes, yet no fault is found with the reasoning in the Arian Antidote, and the sentence, "But, our Redeemer, from everlasting, had not the inferior name of Son," &c., is passed by without the slightest notice! However necessary this view of the subject may appear to me, I do not presume to say that others, in order to be saved, must view it in the same light: I leave both opinions to the judgment of the reader for on such a point it is necessary that every man should be clear in his own mind, and satisfied in his own conscience. Any opinion of mine my readers are at perfect liberty to receive or reject. I never claimed infallibility I say, with St. Augustine, Errare possum; haereticus esse nolo. Refined Arians, with some of whom I am personally acquainted, are quite willing to receive all that can be said of the dignity and glory of Christ's nature, provided we admit the doctrine of the eternal Sonship, and omit the word unoriginated, which I have used in my demonstration of the Godhead of the Saviour of men; but, as far as it respects myself, I can neither admit the one, nor omit the other. The proper essential Godhead of Christ lies deep at the foundation of my Christian creed; and I must sacrifice ten thousand forms of speech rather than sacrifice the thing. My opinion has not been formed on slight examination.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

1:14 Therefore, angels are only servants: The author restates his conclusion. God sends out the angels to care for his people, who will inherit salvation at the end of the age (see 9:28).

Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Heb 1:14. Πάντες, all) although distinguished into various orders by various names, implying even some dominion: Eph 1:21.—λειτουργικὰ—ἀποστελλόμενα, who minister—who are sent) They minister before God [are employed in praises.—V. g.]; are sent, viz. abroad, to men [in order that they may execute the commandments of GOD concerning other created things.—V. g.] Both are opposed to sitting at the right hand. Comp. Luk 1:19.—τοὺς μέλλοντας κληρονομεῖν, those who shall receive the inheritance of) i.e. the elect, and them who believe or who are about to believe. A sweet periphrasis.—σωτηρίαν, salvation) from so many and so great dangers.

—————

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Heb_1:14. Confirmation of the πρὸς τίνα δὲ τῶν ἀγγέλων εἴρηκέν ποτε, showing the inconceivableness of such a thing by a reference to the nature of the angels, and with this the termination of the present train of thought.

The emphasis rests upon πάντες and λειτουργικά: are not all (alike, whether they belong to a lower or higher class of angels) ministering spirits [spirits in waiting]? πνεύματα here in a different sense from Heb_1:7.

εἰς διακονίαν] for service, sc. which they render to God, not to the men who shall inherit the σωτηρία; otherwise, in place of διὰ τοὺς μέλλοντας, the dative τοῖς μέλλουσι κληρονομεῖν σωτηρίαν (1Co_16:15) or the genitive τῶν μελλόντων κ.τ.λ. would have been placed.

The participle present ἀποστελλόμενα brings out the permanent, habitual character of the action expressed by the verb.

διὰ τοὺς κ.τ.λ.] for the sake of those who shall inherit (everlasting) salvation (this is intended by σωτηρίαν, although without the article, see Winer, Gramm., 7 Aufl. p. 114; not: deliverance from peril, as Michaelis, Schleusner, Böhme, Kuinoel assume), i.e. in order, by means of the offices in which they are employed by God, to bring it in for the same.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

By that name by which we commonly call Princes’ messengers, he here calleth the spirits.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

ministering spirits--referring to Heb 1:7, "spirits . . . ministers." They are incorporeal spirits, as God is, but ministering to Him as inferiors.

sent forth--present participle: "being sent forth" continually, as their regular service in all ages.

to minister--Greek, "unto (that is, 'for') ministry."

for them--Greek, "on account of the." Angels are sent forth on ministrations to God and Christ, not primarily to men, though for the good of "those who are about to inherit salvation" (so the Greek): the elect, who believe, or shall believe, for whom all things, angels included, work together for good (Rom 8:28). Angels' ministrations are not properly rendered to men, since the latter have no power of commanding them, though their ministrations to God are often directed to the good of men. So the superiority of the Son of God to angels is shown. They "all," how ever various their ranks, "minister"; He is ministered to. They "stand" (Luk 1:19) before God, or are "sent forth" to execute the divine commands on behalf of them whom He pleases to save; He "sits on the right hand of the Majesty on high" (Heb 1:3, Heb 1:13). He rules; they serve.

Next: Hebrews Chapter 2

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

14. Are they not all, etc. That the comparison might appear more clearly, he now mentions what the condition of angels is. For calling them spirits, he denotes their eminence; for in this respect they are superior to corporal creatures. But the office (λειτουργία) which he immediately mentions reduces them to their own rank, as it is that which is the reverse of dominion; and this he still more distinctly states, when he says, that they are sent to minister. The first word means the same, as though he had said, that they were officials; but to minister imports what is more humble and abject. The service which God allots to angels is indeed honorable; but the very fact that they serve, shows that they are far inferior to Christ, who is the Lord of all.

If any one objects and says, that Christ is also called in many places both a servant and a minister, not only to God, but also to men, the reply may be readily given; his being a servant was not owing to his nature, but to a voluntary humility, as Paul testifies, (Philippians 2:7;) and at the same time his sovereignty remained to his nature; but angels, on the other hand, were created for this end, — that they might serve, and to minister is what belongs to their condition. The difference then is great; for what is natural to them is, as it were, adventitious or accidental to Christ, because he took our flesh; and what necessarily belongs to them, he of his own accord undertook. Besides, Christ is a minister in such a way, that though he is in our flesh nothing is diminished from the majesty of his dominion.

From this passage the faithful receive no small consolation; for they hear that celestial hosts are assigned to them as ministers, in order to secure their salvation. It is indeed no common pledge of God’s love towards us, that they are continually engaged in our behalf. Hence also proceeds a singular confirmation to our faith, that our salvation being defended by such guardians, is beyond the reach of danger. Well then has God provided for our infirmities by giving us such assistants to oppose Satan, and to put forth their power in every way to defend us!

But this benefit he grants especially to his chosen people; hence that angels may minister to us, we must be the members of Christ. Yet some testimonies of Scripture may on the other hand be adduced, to show that angels are sometimes sent forth for the sake of the reprobate; for mention is made by Daniel of the angels of the Persians and the Greeks. (Daniel 10:20.) But to this I answer, that they were in such a way assisted by angels, that the Lord might thus promote the salvation of his own people; for their success and their victories had always a reference to the benefit of the Church. This is certain, that as we have been banished by sin from God’s kingdom, we can have no communion with angels except through the reconciliation made by Christ; and this we may see by the ladder shown in a vision to the patriarch Jacob.

John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.

(14) Are they not all ministering spirits?—In this verse and the preceding is repeated the contrast of Heb_1:7-9, in reversed order. The words “ministering spirits” at once recall the “ministers” and “winds” (expressed in Greek and Hebrew by the same word as “spirits”) spoken of in Heb_1:7. In the LXX. this word “minister” is usually applied to those who stood before God in His earthly sanctuary: so here it is fitly used of the nobler offices of the unseen world. To the English reader it may seem that those who in Heb_1:7 are God’s ministers are here represented as servants of man. It is not really so, for the words properly mean, . . . sent forth (that is, continually sent forth) to do service (to God), for the sake of them who are to inherit salvation. “Inherit” is a prelude of Heb_2:10. The last word, “salvation,” expresses the divine purpose indicated by all the prophecies that have passed under review. The chapter has been occupied with promises of the Christ: the last word brings before us Jesus, the Saviour.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14. ministering spirits, sent forth to minister] Here as elsewhere the A. V. obliterates distinctions, which it so often arbitrarily creates out of mere love for variety in other places. The word “ministering” (leitourgika) implies sacred (“liturgic”) service (Heb_8:6, Heb_9:21); the word “ministry” (diakonian) implies service to God on behalf of men. It should be rendered “ministrant spirits sent forth for service.”

“How oft do they their silver bowers leave

And come to succour us who succour want,

How oft do they with golden pinions cleave

The flitting skies like flying pursuivant,

Against foul fiends to aid us militant!

They for us fight, they watch and duly ward

And their bright squadrons round about us plant,

And all for love and nothing for reward.

Oh! why should heavenly God for men have such regard.”

Spenser.

for them who shall be heirs of salvation] Literally, “for the sake of those who are about to inherit salvation.” The salvation is both the state of salvation here, and its full fruition hereafter. When we are “justified by God’s grace” we are “made heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Tit_3:7). Spenser widens the mission of the Angels when he speaks of

“Highest God, who loves His creatures so

That blessed Angels He sends to and fro

To serve to wicked men—to serve His deadliest foe.”

For Scriptural instances of the service of Angels “to them that fear God” see Psa_34:7; Psa_91:11; Gen_19:15; Dan_6:22; Act_12:7.

sent forth] Lit., “being sent forth.” The ministry of Angels is regarded as still continuing.

heirs of salvation] The writer recurs to this great word “salvation” in Heb_2:3; Heb_2:10.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Are they not all ministering spirits,.... Servants to God, to Christ, and to his people, and therefore must be inferior to the Son of God. The phrase is Rabbinical; frequent mention is made in Jewish writings (a) of , "the angels of ministry", or "the ministering angels"; this is their common appellation with the Jews; and the apostle writing to such, uses a like phrase, well known to them, and appeals to them, if the angels were not such spirits.

Sent forth to minister for them who shall be the heirs of salvation? the persons they minister to, and for, are those, who shall be the heirs of salvation; that is, of eternal glory, which will be possessed by the saints, as an inheritance: hence it belongs to children, being bequeathed to them by their Father, and comes to them through the death of Christ, of which the Spirit is the earnest; and this shows that it is not of works, and that it is of an eternal duration, and takes in all kind of happiness: and of this the saints are heirs now; and so the Ethiopic version renders it, "who are heirs of salvation"; nor should it be rendered, "who shall be heirs", but rather, "who shall inherit salvation"; for this character respects not their heirship, but their actual inheriting of salvation: and the ministry of angels to, and for them, lies in things temporal and spiritual, or what concern both their bodies and their souls; in things temporal, in which they have often been assisting, as in providing food for their bodies, in curing their diseases, in directing and preserving them in journeys, in saving and delivering them from outward calamities, in restraining things hurtful from hurting them, and in destroying their enemies; in things spiritual, as in making known the mind and will of God to them, in comforting them, and suggesting good things to them, and in helping and assisting them against Satan's temptations; and they are present with their departing souls at death, and carry them to heaven, and will gather the elect together at the last day. And they are "sent forth" to minister to them in such a way; they are sent forth by Christ, the Lord and Creator of them, who therefore must be superior to them; they do not take this office upon themselves, though, being put into they faithfully and diligently execute it, according to the will of Christ: and this shows the care of Christ over his people, and his kindness to them, and the great honour he puts upon them, to appoint such to minister to them; and since they are of so much use and service, they ought to be respected and esteemed, though not worshipped.

(a) T. Bab. Chagiga, fol. 12. 2. & 14. 1, 2. & 16. 1. Taanith, fol. 11. 1. & Megilia, fol. 15. 2. & in Zohar passim.

Next: Hebrews Chapter 2

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

14 Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?

Ver. 14. Are they not] See nly Common-place of Angels.

Sent forth to minister, &c.] The saints are the spouse, the bride, yea, the members of Christ; and so in nearer union than angels or any creature. This the devil envied, and fell from his station.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Are they not all - There is not one of them that is elevated to the high rank of the Redeemer. Even the most exalted angel is employed in the comparatively humble office of a ministering spirit appointed to aid the heirs of salvation. “Ministering spirits.” A “ministering” spirit is one that is employed to execute the will of God. The proper meaning of the word here - λειτουργικὰ leitourgika - (whence our word “liturgy”) is, “pertaining to public service,” or “the service of the people” (λαός laos}; and is applied particularly to those who were engaged in the public service of the temple. They were those who rendered aid to others; who were helpers, or servants. Such is the meaning as used here. They are employed to render “aid” or “assistance” to others - to wit, to Christians. “Sent forth.” Appointed by God for this. They are “sent;” are under his control; are in a subordinate capacity.

Thus, Gabriel was sent forth to convey an important message to Daniel; Dan 9:21-23. “To minister.” For the help or succour of such. They come to render them assistance - and, if employed in this humble office, how much inferior to the dignity of the Son of God - the Creator and Ruler of the worlds! “Who shall be heirs of salvation.” To the saints; to Christians. They are called “heirs of salvation” because they are adopted into the family of God, and are treated as his sons; see notes on Rom 8:14-17. The main point here is, that the angels are employed in a much more humble capacity than the Son of God; and, therefore, that he sustains a far more elevated rank. But while the apostle has proved that, he has incidentally stated an exceedingly interesting and important doctrine, that the angels are employed to further the salvation of the people of God, and to aid them in their journey to heaven.

In this doctrine there is nothing absurd. It is no more improbable that angels should be employed to aid man, than that one man should aid another; certainly not as improbable as that the Son of God should come down “not to be ministered unto but to minister,” Mat 20:28, and that he performed on earth the office of a servant; Joh 13:1-15. Indeed it is a great principle of the divine administration that one class of God’s creatures are to minister to others; that one is to aid another to assist him in trouble, to provide for him when poor, and to counsel him in perplexity. We are constantly deriving benefit from others, and are dependent on their counsel and help. Thus, God has appointed parents to aid their children; neighbors to aid their neighbors: the rich to aid the poor; and all over the world the principle is seen, that one is to derive benefit from the aid of others. Why may not the angels be employed in this service?

They are pure, benevolent, powerful; and as man was ruined in the fall by the temptation offered by one of an angelic, though fallen nature, why should not others of angelic, unfallen holiness come to assist in repairing the evils which their fallen, guilty brethren have inflicted on the race? To me there seems to be a beautiful propriety in bringing “aid” from another race, as “ruin” came from another race; and that as those endowed with angelic might, though with fiendish malignity, ruined man, those with angelic might, but heavenly benevolence, should aid in his recovery and salvation. Further, it is, from the necessity of the case, a great principle, that the weak shall be aided by the strong; the ignorant by the enlightened; the impure by the pure; the tempted by those who have not fallen by temptation. All over the world we see this in operation; and it constitutes the beauty of the moral arrangements on the earth; and why shall not this be extended to the inhabitants of other abodes? Why shall not angels, with their superior intelligence, benevolence, and power, come in to perfect this system, and show how much adapted it is to glorify God? In regard to the ways in which angels become ministering spirits to the heirs of salvation, the Scriptures have not fully informed us, but facts are mentioned which will furnish some light on this inquiry. What they do now may be learned from the Scripture account of what they have done - as it seems to be a fair principle of interpretation that they are engaged in substantially the same employment in which they have ever been. The following methods of angelic interposition in behalf of man are noted in the Scriptures:

(1) They feel a deep interest in man. Thus, the Saviour says, “there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner that repenteth;” Luk 15:10. Thus also he says, when speaking of the “little ones” that compose his church, “in heaven their angels do always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven;” Mat 18:10.

(2) They feel a special interest in all that relates to the redemption of man. Thus, Peter says of the things pertaining to redemption, “which things the angels desire to look into;” 1Pe 1:12. In accordance with this they are represented as praising God over the fields of Bethlehem, where the shepherds were to whom it was announced that a Saviour was born Luk 2:13; an angel announced to Mary that she would be the mother of the Messiah Luk 1:26; an angel declared to the shepherds that He was born Luk 2:10; the angels came and ministered to Him in His temptation Mat 4:11; an angel strengthened Him in the garden of Gethsemane Luk 22:43; angels were present in the sepulchre where the Lord Jesus had been laid, to announce His resurrection to His disciples Joh 20:12; and they reappeared to his disciples on Mount Olivet to assure them that he would return and receive his people to him self, Act 1:10.

(3) They appear for the defense and protection of the people of God. Thus it is said Psa 34:7, “The angel of the Lord encampeth round about them that fear him, and delivereth them.” Thus, two angels came to hasten Lot from the cities of the plain, and to rescue him from the impending destruction; Gen 19:1, Gen 19:15. Thus, an angel opened the prison doors of the apostles, and delivered them when they had been confined by the Jews; Act 5:19. Thus, the angel of the Lord delivered Peter from prison when he had been confined by Herod; Act 12:7-8.

(4) Angels are sent to give us strength to resist temptation. Aid was thus furnished to the Redeemer in the garden of Gethsemane, when there “appeared an angel from heaven strengthening him;” Luk 22:43. The great trial there seems to have been somehow connected with temptation; some influence of the power of darkness, or of the Prince of evil; Luk 22:53; compare Joh 14:30. In this aid which they rendered to the tempted Redeemer, and in the assistance which they render to us when tempted, there is a special fitness and propriety. Man was at first tempted by a fallen angel. No small part - if not all the temptations in the world - are under the direction now of fallen angels. They roam at large “seeking whom they may devour;” 1Pe 5:8. The temptations which occur in life, the numerous allurements which beset our path, all have the marks of being under the control of dark and malignant spirits. What, therefore, can be more appropriate than for the pure angels of God to interpose and aid man against the skill and wiles of their fallen and malignant fellow-spirits? Fallen angelic power and skill - power and skill far above the capability and the strength of man - are employed to ruin us, and how desirable is it for like power and skill, under the guidance of benevolence, to come in to aid us!

(5) They support us in affliction. Thus, an angel brought a cheering message to Daniel; the angels were present to give comfort to the disciples of the Saviour when he had been taken from them by death, and when he ascended to heaven. Why may it not be so now, that important consolations, in some way, are imparted to us by angelic influence? And,

(6) They attend dying saints, and conduct them to glory. Thus, the Saviour says of Lazarus that when he died he was “carried by the angels into Abraham’s bosom;” Luk 16:22. Is there any impropriety in supposing that the same thing may be done still? Assuredly, if anywhere heavenly aid is needed, it is when the spirit leaves the body. If anywhere a guide is needed, it is when the ransomed soul goes up the unknown path to God. And if angels are employed on any messages of mercy to mankind, it is proper that it should be when life is closing, and the spirit is about to ascend to heaven. Should it be said that they are invisible, and that it is difficult to conceive how we can be aided by beings whom we never see, I answer, I know that they are unseen. They no longer appear as they once did to be the visible protectors and defenders of the people of God. But no small part of the aid which we receive from others comes from sources unseen by us. We owe more to unseen benefactors than to those whom we see, and the most grateful of all aid, perhaps, is what is furnished by a hand which we do not see, and from quarters which we cannot trace. How many an orphan is benefited by some unseen and unknown benefactor! So it may be a part of the great arrangements of Divine Providence that many of the most needed and acceptable interpositions for our welfare should come to us from invisible sources, and be conveyed to us from God by unseen hands.

Remarks

1. The Christian religion has a claim on the attention of man. God has spoken to us in the Gospel by his Son; Heb 1:1-2. This fact constitutes a claim on us to attend to what is spoken in the New Testament. When God sent prophets to address people, endowing them with more than human wisdom and eloquence, and commanding them to deliver solemn messages to mankind, that was a reason why people should hear. But how much more important is the message which is brought by his own Son! How much more exalted the Messenger! How much higher his claim to our attention and regard! compare Mat 21:37. Yet it is lamentable to reflect how few attended to him when he lived on the earth, and how few comparatively regard him now. The great mass of people feel no interest in the fact that the Son of God has come and spoken to the human race. Few take the pains to read what he said, though all the records of the discourses of the Saviour could be read in a few hours.

A newspaper is read; a poem; a novel; a play; a history of battles and sieges; but the New Testament is neglected, and there are thousands even in Christian lands who have not even read through the Sermon on the Mount! Few also listen to the truths which the Redeemer taught when they are proclaimed in the sanctuary. Multitudes never go to the place where the gospel is preached; multitudes when there are engaged in thinking of other things, or are wholly inattentive to the truths which are proclaimed. Such a reception has the Son of God met with in our world! The most wonderful of all events is, that he should have come from heaven to be the teacher of mankind; next to that, the most wonderful event is that, when he has come, people feel no interest in the fact, and refuse to listen to what he says of the unseen and eternal world. What a man will say about the possibility of making a fortune by some wild speculation will be listened to with the deepest interest; but what the Redeemer says about the “certainty” of heaven and eternal riches there, excites no emotion: what one from the dead might say about the unseen world would excite the profoundest attention; what he has said who has always dwelt in the unseen world, and who knows all that has occurred there, and all that is yet to occur, awakens no interest, and excites no inquiry. Such is man. The visit, too, of an illustrious stranger - like Lafayette to America - will rouse a nation, and spread enthusiasm everywhere; the visit of the Son of God to the earth on a great errand of mercy is regarded as an event of no importance, and excites no interest in the great mass of human hearts.

2. Christ is divine. In the view of the writer of this Epistle he was undoubtedly regarded as equal with God. This is so clear that it seems wonderful that it should ever have been called in question. He who made the worlds; who is to be worshipped by the angels; who is addressed as God; who is said to have laid the foundation of the earth, and to have made the heavens, and to be unchanged when all these things shall pass away, must be divine. These are the attributes of God, and belong to him alone. These things could not be spoken of a man, an angel, an archangel. It is impossible to conceive that attributes like these could belong to a creature. If they could, then all our notions of what constitutes the distinction between God and his creatures are confounded, and we can have no intelligible idea of God.

3. It is not improbable that Christ is the medium of communicating the knowledge of the divine essence and perfections to all worlds. He is the brightness of the divine glory - the showing forth - the manifestation of God; Heb 1:3. The body of the sun is not seen - certainly not by the naked eye. We cannot look upon it. But there is a shining, a brightness, a glory, a manifestation which is seen! It is in the sun-beams, the manifestation of the glory and the existence of the sun. By his shining the sun is known. So the Son of God - incarnate or not - may be the manifestation of the divine essence. And from this illustration, may we not without irreverence derive an illustration of the doctrine of the glorious Trinity? There is the body of the sun - to us invisible - yet great and glorious, and the source of all light, and heat, and life. The vast body of the sun is the source of all this radiance, the fountain of all that warms and enlivens.

All light and heat and life depend on him, and should he be extinct all would die. Thus, may it not be with God the Father; God the eternal and unchanging essence - the fountain of all light, and life in the universe. In the sun there is also the “manifestation” - the shining - the glorious light. The brightness which we see emanates from that - emanates at once, continually, always. While the sun exists, that exists, and cannot be separated from it. By that brightness the sun is seen; by that the world is enlightened. Without these beams there would be no light, but all would be involved in darkness. What a beautiful representation of the Son of God - the brightness of the divine glory; the medium by which God is made known; the source of light to man, and for anything we know, to the universe! When he shines upon people, there is light when he does not shine, there is as certain moral darkness as there is night when the sun sinks in the west.

And for aught we can see, the manifestation which the Son of God makes may be as necessary in all worlds to a proper contemplation of the divine essence, as the beams of the sun are to understand its nature. Then there are the warmth and heat and vivifying influences of the sun - an influence which is the source of life and beauty to the material world. It is not the mere shining - it is the attendant warmth and vivifying power. All nature is dependent on it. Each seed, and bud, and leaf, and flower; each spire of grass, and each animal on earth, and each bird on the wing, is dependent on it. Without that, vegetation would decay at once, and animal life would be extinct, and universal death would reign. What a beautiful illustration of the Holy Spirit, and of his influences on the moral world! “The Lord God is a Sun” Psa 84:11; and I do not see that it is improper thus to derive from the sun an illustration of the doctrine of the Trinity. I am certain we should know nothing of the sun but for the beams that reveal him, and that enlighten the world; and I am certain that all animal and vegetable life would die if it were not for his vivifying and quickening rays. I do not see that it may not be equally probable that the nature - the essence of God would be unknown were it not manifested by the Son of God; and I am certain that all moral and spiritual life would die were it not for the quickening and vivifying influences of the Holy Spirit on the human soul.

4. Christ has made an atonement for sin; Heb 1:3. He has done it by “himself.” It was not by the blood of bulls and of goats; it was by his own blood. Let us rejoice that we have not now to come before God with a bloody offering; that we need not come leading up a lamb to be slain, but that we may come confiding in that blood which has been shed for the sins of mankind. The great sacrifice has been made. The victim is slain. The blood has been offered which expiates the sin of the world. We may now come at once to the throne of grace, and plead the merits of that blood. How different is our condition from that of the ancient Jewish worshippers! They were required to come leading the victim that was to be slain for sin, and to do this every year and every day. We may come with the feeling that the one great sacrifice has been made for us; that it is never to be repeated, and that in that sacrifice there is merit sufficient to cancel all our sins. How different our condition from that of the pagan! They too lead up sacrifices to be slain on bloody altars. They offer lambs, and goats, and bullocks, and captives taken in war, and slaves, and even their own children! But amidst these horrid offerings, while they show their deep conviction that some sacrifice is necessary, they have no promise - no evidence whatever, that the sacrifice will be accepted. They go away unpardoned. They repeat the offering with no evidence that their sins are forgiven, and at last they die in despair! We come assured that the “blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin,” and the soul rejoices in the evidence that all past sins are forgiven, and is at peace with God.

5. Let us rejoice that the Lord Jesus is thus exalted to the right hand of God; Heb 1:3-4. He has gone into heaven. He is seated on the throne of glory. He has suffered the last pang, and shed the last drop of blood that will ever be necessary to be shed for the sins of the world. No cold tomb is again to hold him; and no spear of a soldier is again to enter his side. He is now happy and glorious in heaven. The angels there render him homage Heb 1:6, and the universe is placed under his control.

6. It is right to worship the Lord Jesus. When he came into the world the angels were required to do it Heb 1:6, and it cannot be wrong for us to do it now. If the angels in heaven might properly worship him, we may. If they worshipped him, he is divine. Assuredly, God would not require them to worship a fellow-angel or a man! I feel safe in adoring where angels adore; I do not feel that I have a right to withhold my homage where they have been required to render theirs.

7. It is right to address the Lord Jesus as God; Heb 1:8. If he is so addressed in the language of inspiration, it is not improper for us so to address him. We do not err when we adhere closely to the language of the Bible; nor can we have a stronger evidence that we are right than that we express our sentiments and our devotions in the very language of the sacred Scriptures.

8. The kingdom of the Redeemer is a righteous kingdom. It is founded in equity; Heb 1:8-9. Other kingdoms have been kingdoms of cruelty, oppression, and blood. Tyrants have swayed an iron scepter over people. But not thus with the Redeemer in his kingdom. There is not a law there which is not equal and mild; not a statute which it would not promote the temporal and eternal welfare of man to obey. Happy is the man that is wholly under his scepter; happy the kingdom that yields entire obedience to his laws!

9. The heavens shall perish; the earth shall decay; Heb 1:10-11. Great changes have already taken place in the earth - as the researches of geologists show; and we have no reason to doubt that similar changes may have occurred in distant worlds. Still greater changes may be expected to occur in future times, and some of them we may be called to witness. Our souls are to exist forever; and far on in future ages - far beyond the utmost period which we can now compute - we may witness most important changes in these heavens and this earth. God may display his power in a manner which has never been seen yet; and safe near his throne his people may be permitted to behold the exhibition of power of which the mind has never yet had the remotest conception.

10. Yet amidst these changes, the Saviour will be the same; Heb 1:12. He changes not. In all past revolutions, he has been the same. In all the changes which have occurred in the physical world, he has been unchanged; in all the revolutions which have occurred among kingdoms, he has been unmoved. One change succeeds another; kingdoms rise and fall and empires waste away; one generation goes off to be succeeded by another, but he remains the same. No matter what tempests howl, or how wars rage, or how the pestilence spreads abroad, or how the earth is shaken by earthquakes, still the Redeemer is the same. And no matter what are our external changes, he is the same. We pass from childhood to youth, to manhood, to old age, but he changes not. We are in prosperity or adversity; we may pass from affluence to poverty, from honor to dishonor, from health to sickness, but he is the same.

We may go and lie down in the cold tomb, and our mortal frames may decay, but he is the same during our long sleep, and he will remain the same till he shall return and summon us to renovated life. I rejoice that in all the circumstances of life I have the same Saviour. I know what he is. I know, if the expression may be allowed, “where he may be found.” Man may change by caprice, or whim, or by some new suggestion of interest, of passion, or ambition. I go to my friend today, and find him kind and true - but I have no absolute certainty that I shall find him such tomorrow. His feelings, from some unknown cause, may have become cold toward me. Some enemy may have breathed suspicion into his ear about me, or he may have formed some stronger attachment, or he may be sick, or dead. But nothing like this can happen in regard to the Redeemer. He changes not. I am sure that he is always the same. No one can influence him by slander; no new friendship can weaken the old; no sickness or death can occur to him to change him; and though the heavens be on fire, and the earth be convulsed, he is the same. In such a Saviour I may confide; in such a friend why should not all confide? Of earthly attachments it has been too truly said:

“And what is friendship but a name,

A charm that lulls to sleep;

A shade that follows wealth or fame,

But leaves the wretch to weep?”

But this can never be said of the attachment formed between the Christian and their gracious Redeemer. That is unaffected by all external changes; that shall live in all the revolutions of material things, and when all earthly ties shall be severed; that shall survive the dissolution of all things.

11. We see the dignity of man; Heb 1:13-14. Angels are sent to be his attendants. They come to minister to him here, and to conduct him home “to glory.” Kings and princes are surrounded by armed men, or by sages called to be their counselors; but the most humble saint may be encompassed by a retinue of beings of far greater power and more elevated rank. The angels of light and glory feel a deep interest in the salvation of people. They come to attend the redeemed; they wait on their steps; they sustain them in trial; they accompany them when departing to heaven. It is a higher honor to be attended by one of those pure intelligences than by the most elevated monarch that ever swayed a scepter or wore a crown; and the humblest and obscurest Christian shall soon be himself conducted to a throne in heaven, compared with which the most splendid seat of royalty on earth loses its luster and fades away:

“And is there care in heaven? and is there love.

In heavenly spirits to these creatures base,

That may compassion of their evils move?

There is: else much more wretched were the case.

Of men than beasts; But O! th’ exceeding grace.

Of Highest God that loves his creatures so,

And all his works of mercy doth embrace,

That blessed angels he sends to and fro,

To serve to wicked man, to serve his wicked foe!

“How oft do they their silver bowers leave,

To come to succour us that succour want!

How do they with golden pinions cleave.

The yielding skies, like flying pursuivant.

Against foul fiends to aid us militant!

They for us fight, they watch and duly ward,

And their bright squadrons round about us plant;

And all for love and nothing for reward;

O why should Heavenly God to men have such regard!”

“Spenser’s Faery Queen,” B. II. Canto Heb 8:1, Heb 8:2.

12. What has God done for the salvation of man! He formed an eternal plan. He sent his prophets to communicate his will. He sent his Son to bear a message of mercy, and to die the just for the unjust. He exalted him to heaven, and placed the universe under his control that man may be saved. He sent his Holy Spirit; his ministers and messengers for this. And last, to complete the work, he sends his angels to be ministering spirits; to sustain his people; to comfort them in dying; to attend them to the realms of glory. What an interest is felt in the salvation of a single Christian! What a value he has in the universe! And how important it is that he should be holy! A man who has been redeemed by the blood of the Son of God should be pure. He who is an heir of life should be holy. He who is attended by celestial beings, and who is soon - he knows not “how” soon - to be transported to heaven, should be holy. Are angels my attendants? Then I should walk worthy of my companionship. Am I soon to go and dwell with angels? Then I should be pure. Are these feet soon to tread the courts of heaven? Is this tongue soon to unite with heavenly beings in praising God? Are these eyes soon to look on the throne of eternal glory, and on the ascended Redeemer? Then these feet, and eyes, and lips should be pure and holy, and I should be dead to the world, and should live only for heaven.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Are they not all ministering spirits? The apostle here proves, that angels are but ministers to the great gospel Minister, and to the members of his body the church, and so must be meaner than him for state, nature, and name. This negative interrogation is a vehement assertion. The nature, dignity, and office of angels were well known to these Hebrews out of the Old Testament, and which he repeats: they were for nature spirits, intellectual, active, incorporeal, and incorruptible creatures; yet though so excellent, were still creatures; whereas Christ was an uncreated Spirit, and they were but servants to him their Lord; and though there be degrees and orders among them from the archangel to the lowest angel, they are every one of them single, and all of them together, servants to Christ, and so they own themselves to be, Rev 19:10; 22:9.

Sent forth to minister for them; and so they move all at his order, and go and come at his command. Their employment directed by him; he sends them forth to deliver his errands, Act 5:19, and Act 12:7,11, to reveal his will to them, Rev 1:1; Psa 103:21, &c. All the parts of ministry to which he appointeth them, they cheerfully, swiftly, and effectually perform.

Who shall be heirs of salvation; such as God hath chosen and called to be children to himself and joint-heirs with his only Son, as have a right to, are fitting for, and shall be at last possessed of, eternal glory; these angels are to serve and help them on for to attain it, they themselves being elect, in and by Christ unto this end, 1Ti 5:21; 2Ti 2:10. All which demonstrate him to be a more excellent person, and to have a more excellent name, than they.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

14. They—The angels in contrast with the Son. He is enthroned at God’s right hand; they are perpetual servants.

All—Even to the highest rank. Even Gabriel ministered to Daniel.

Ministering—Liturgical; that is, performing a public and sacred service. For the liturgia (whence our liturgy) was originally in Athens a public service rendered by wealthy citizens to the public at their own expense; thence the term designated the sacred ministrations of the Jewish priesthood in the temple. The angels are liturgical spirits performing God’s public ministrations. The angels are not menials or secular servants; they are sacred servitors. They do not carry on the processes of mere physical nature.

Spirits—In contrast with human, corporeal, ministers.

Sent forth—Passive participle in the continuous present, being ever sent forth. Whence sent forth, may appear from our closing note on Heb_1:3.

For—Not to. Their service is rendered to God in behalf of men. And not for all men, but specially for heirs; or, rather, those who are about to be heirs; heirs not only in expectation but in possession; that is, who will in due time come into a realized inheritance of salvation. Notes on Mat_18:10, and Eph_2:2.

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Are they not all, etc.? A final expression, adduced in contrast, of the position and office of the angels, as seen above. The A.V suggests the idea, not conveyed by the Greek, of g uardian angels. The more correct translation is, Are they not all ministering (leitourgika) spirits, for service (eiv diakonian) sent forth, on account of those who are to (dia toullontav) inherit salvation? The allusion is generally to their office of subordinate ministration in furtherance of the Divine purposes of human salvation; the continuance of such office being denoted by the present participle, apostellomena .

The mission of the angels.

I THE HABITUAL POST OF THE ANGELS. They are ministering spirits, literally, liturgical spirits." The work of the priests and Levites in connection with tabernacle and temple was known as a liturgical work. Again and again in the Septuagint the work of Aaron and his subordinates is indicated by this verb, leitourgein . AS the angels are called liturgical spirits, so the priest and his subordinates might have been called liturgical men. They were the men who, on behalf of all the people, managed things pertaining to the worship of Jehovah. So in several passages the officials connected with the court of a king are known as liturgi liturgical men. And if we would see what is meant by calling the angels liturgical spirits, we cannot do better than consider, first of all, Isa_6:2, Isa_6:3. There we read of the six-winged seraphim, who cried one to another and said, "Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is full of his glory." Saying this, they were engaged in liturgical service. Then turn to Revelation 4, where we read of the four living things, each, like the seraphim, six-winged, who rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come." These four living things were also engaged in liturgical services. What priest and Levite were on earth, angels were and are in heaven. Nor angels alone. The spirits of the just made perfect are joined to seraphim, and all others of the heavenly host by whatever name they may be called, in liturgical service.

II THE SPECIAL SERVICE OF THE ANGELS. These liturgical spirits are sent forth on errands of helpfulness to God"s people on earth in their times of emergency. They are sent forth to minister to those who shall be heirs of salvation heirs of salvation, but not yet rejoicing in a deliverance from every sort of evil. We are saved by hope; we are in process of salvation, but the process involves trials and sufferings. We are not without notable instances of what is meant by angelic service to the heirs of salvation. Jesus himself was, in a certain sense, an heir of salvation. He had to be saved from this body of death, if not from this body of sin. And concerning him we read how, at the close of the temptation, angels came and ministered to him. Then, more important still, because the service is more definitely indicated, is the opening of the prison doors to liberate the apostles, (Act_4:19) and the after-opening to deliver Peter from the hands of Herod. (Act_12:7) And though comparatively few such instances of diakonia be recorded, that is not to say that only a few happened. Nor is it to be said that angelic service has ceased. Angels may render very important and comforting services to men, although they themselves may not be seen.

III THE EXAMPLE ANGELS THUS GIVE TO CHRISTIANS. Angels find their habitual employ in adoring God, in serving him in heavenly worship. But from worship they may at any moment be turned to work, and work most agreeable to the will and pleasure of their Master, doing something which will be felt as a help by some one who is dear to Christ. The leitourgia fits for the diakonia , and. the diakonia , faithfully rendered, sends back with fresh zest to the leitourgia . There is a place for both; and we, who have also to go forth to minister to the heirs of salvation, shall find our ministry all the more effectual if only it can be truly said. of us, in the best sense of the word, that we are liturgical Christians. That man whose reading of the Scriptures has in it not only quantity but quality, not only recollection of words but increasing perception of meaning, who reads that he may understand and obey such a one is a liturgical Christian. He is constantly enriching his heart, getting nearer to God, and, as a matter of course, better able to serve men. We must always be serving God, whether in those things which have the formal look of Divine service, or in those which may look nothing more than a temporal ministry to men. We may at the same time be leitourgoi towards God and diakonoi towards men; we can pray without ceasing, and also follow in the footsteps of him who came, not to be ministered to, but to minister. Y.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Are they not all - Though of various orders. Ministering spirits, sent forth - Ministering before God, sent forth to men. To attend on them - In numerous offices of protection, care, and kindness. Who - Having patiently continued in welldoing, shall inherit everlasting salvation.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

salvation

(See Scofield "Rom 1:16").

The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

This is that last testimony produced by the apostle to prove Christ’s pre-eminency above the angels. He is a Son, they are but servants to believers, to the church of Christ, to the heirs of salvation.

Observe here, 1. The nature of angels declared: they are spirits, without any thing material or corporeal belonging to them, yet having a power to assume a body, and appear in human shape, when they please. The scripture describes them as excelling in strength, purity, and holiness, to be of great activity and swiftness, and gives intimation of several ranks and orders among them, distinguishing them by the names of principalities and powers, thrones and dominions; but what the difference of these names do import, none can positively declare.

Observe, 2. Their general office declared: they are ministering spirits, they are God’s domestic servants, they attend upon his throne, they expect his commands, they execute his pleasure, and are in a constant readiness to do his will. The angels are the great instruments of Providence in the world; not that God needs them, or cannot manage with out them; for he can do whatever he pleaseth in heaven and earth. God can steer all human affairs with the least nod and beck of his will, with out any instruments at all; but his wisdom and goodness thinks fit to honour his creatures with his commands, they execute his pleasure, and are in a constant readiness to do his will.

The angels are the great instruments of Providence in the world; not that God needs them, or cannot manage without them; for he can do whatever he pleaseth in heaven and earth. God can steer all human affairs with the least nod and beck of his will, without any instruments at all; but his wisdom and goodness thinks fit to honour his creatures with his commands, that so they may be capable of his favour and rewards.

Observe, 3. The special office and employment of good angels, with reference to good men; they are sent forth, there is their designation and appointment; to minister, that is their general end and employment; for the heirs of salvation, that is their special and peculiar business; they have a charge of the bodies and souls of the saints whilst alive; a special charge of their souls at death, to conduct them to blessedness, and probably a care and charge of their bodies after death, as may be gathered from Jud 1:25

Learn hence, 1. That the highest honour of the nost glorious angels in heaven, is to minister to the saints by God’s appointment here on earth.

Learn 2. That such is the love and care of God towards his saints, that he sends the most glorious attendants upon his own throne, to minister unto them, and to take care of them. Behold then the astonishing regard which the great God has for good men, in that he appoints all his angels to minister to them, for the safe guard of their persons, for the success of their affairs, and for the security of their eternal salvation.

Lord! what is man, that thou art thus mindful of him; that when thou madest him lower than the angels, thou shouldest yet make the angels minister unto him! Behold also the impiety of the church of Rome, in worshipping of angels! Surely, if they are our fellow-servants, and minister unto us, we are by no means to worship them. Rev 19:10

William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14. This verse reveals angelic ministry. When they interviewed our Savior relative to the woman who had survived her seventh husband, as to whose wile she should be in the resurrection, He responded: “In that day there will neither be marrying nor giving in marriage, but all will be as the angels of God.” The Greek says isoi anggeloi, which means “like the angels” or “equal to the angels.” This statement of our Savior reveals the fact that glorification confers angelic perfection, while sanctification effects Christian perfection. Justification saves us from guilt; sanctification saves us from depravity, while glorification saves us from infirmity, and the resurrection saves us from mortality. The fact that at glorification we receive angelic perfection certainly recognizes in us a near kinship to the angels. Perhaps this is the reason why the angels have always taken a pre- eminent interest in the human race. They were present in the creation, and made the heavens roar with triumphant shouts of joyful approval. They brightened the firmament of Eden with the splendor of their pinions, serving Adam and Eve as guardians. When humanity collapsed under Satan’s invasion they flew up to heaven, heralding the mournful tidings which filled heaven with lugubrious wailings, while golden harps were suspended on weeping willows. Thus all heaven became a Bochim of weeping over the sad ruins of our world, till the Son of God proclaimed His heroic espousal of the lost cause, to the unutterable astonishment of all the heavenly host. Then swift angel couriers flew down to the bottomless pit, and then and there proclaimed Immanuel’s philanthropic intervention in behalf of the ruined race. Never before was hell so racked with astonishment and appalled with consternation. The angels not only proclaimed the conception of the Incarnate God, but heralded to the shepherds His birth in Bethlehem. They came down and rolled the stone from the sepulcher, proclaiming to the women their risen Lord. Myriads of angels belt this world night and day. Serving as our faithful guardians, they protect us from thousands of unseen perils. The moment we evacuate these bodies we see them, faithful to their trust, standing by us, conversing with us about heavenly glories, and serving as our faithful escorts up to the celestial city.

William B. Godbey, Commentary on the New Testament (1896–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14. Are they not all ministering spirits? The real office of the angels is indicated. It is to give service in working out the plans of God for the salvation of the elect. The passage does not teach that each heir of salvation has a guardian angel, but that the angels do service in working out the Divine plans in behalf of the saved.

The work of angels can be learned in the Scriptures from the missions in which they are engaged. It is to aid in carrying out the plans of God for the government and salvation of our race. Under the rule of Christ they are his ministers to aid in the work of redeeming man. For examples of their work, see Gen. 19:1–26; 2 Kings 19:35; Acts 12:23; Jude 6; Acts 10:1–8; Matt. 18:10; Acts 5:19, etc. Christ is Lord; they are servants.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

14. λειτουργικὰ πνεύματα εἰς διακονίαν, “ministering spirits … for service.” Here as elsewhere the A.V. obliterates distinctions, which it so often arbitrarily creates out of mere love for variety in other places. The word λειτουργικὰ implies sacred (“liturgic”) service (Heb 8:6, Heb 9:21); the word διακονίαν implies service to men.

“How oft do they their silver bowers leave

And come to succour us who succour want;

How oft do they with golden pinions cleave

The flitting skies like flying pursuivant,

Against foul fiends to aid us militant!

They for us fight, they watch and duly ward

And their bright squadrons round about us plant,

And all for love and nothing for reward.

Oh! why should heavenly God for men have such regard?”

SPENSER.

διὰ τοὺς μέλλοντας κληρονομεῖν σωτηρίαν. “For the sake of those who are about to inherit salvation.” The salvation is both the state of salvation here, and its full fruition hereafter. When we are “justified by God’s grace” we are “made heirs according to the hope of eternal life” (Tit 3:7). Spenser widens the mission of the Angels when he speaks of

“Highest God, who loves His creatures so

That blessed Angels He sends to and fro

To serve to wicked men—to serve His deadliest foe.”

For Scriptural instances of the service of Angels “to them that fear God” see Psa 34:7; Psa 91:11; Gen 19:15; Dan 6:22; Act 12:7.

ἀποστελλόμενα, “being sent forth.” The ministry of Angels is regarded as still continuing.

σωτηρίαν. The writer recurs to this great word “salvation” in Heb 2:3; Heb 2:10.

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14.] Are they not all (all the angels) ministering (in reference probably to λειτουργούς in ver. 7. The word λειτουργικός, not found in the classics, is used in the LXX (reff.) of any thing pertaining to the λειτουργοί or their service; the instruments, vessels, garments, or offerings for the ministry: here, of those devoted to or belonging to the ministry of God) spirits (unembodied beings, even as God Himself, but distinguished by the epithet λειτουργικά. The idea of “angels of service” or “of the ministry,” is familiar to the Rabbis: see quotations in Wetstein) sent forth (mark the present participle, so also in ref. Rev.: he does not mean that angels have before now, in insulated cases, been sent forth, but that they are ever thus being sent forth,—it is their normal work and regular duty through all the ages of time) for ministry (in order to the ministration which is their work. The E. V. “sent forth to minister for them,” gives a wrong idea of the meaning. The διακονία is not a waiting upon men, but a fulfilment of their office as διάκονοι of God. See Rom 13:4. Schlichting observes, “Noluit dicere, ut ministrent iis qui &c. Non enim proprie ministratur et servitur illis, qui imperandi aut jubendi jus nullum habent, licet ministerium alteri præstitum in alterius commodum sæpe suscipiatur atque vertatur. Angeli proprie ministrant Deo et Christo, sed tamen in piorum usum et commodum. Idcirco maluit dicere, propter eos” &c. It may fairly be questioned whether the same idea, that of ‘ministering to God in behalf of,’ is not to be traced in such expressions as εἰς διακονίαν τοῖς ἁγίοις ἔταξαν ἑαυτούς, 1Co 16:15: εἰς διακονίαν πέμψαι τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς, Act 11:29. Compare with this expression Col 1:7, πιστὸς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν διάκονος τοῦ χριστοῦ) on behalf of those who are about to inherit salvation (σωτηρία, in the highest sense—eternal salvation: not, as Kuin., al. “deliverance from dangers:” in so solemn a reference, that meaning would be quite beside the purpose. Those spoken of are the elect of God, they who love Him, and for whom all things work together for good, even the principalities and powers in heavenly places. And if it be said, that the ministration of angels has often been used for other immediate purposes than the behoof of the elect, we may answer, that all those things may well come under the διακονία διὰ τοὺς μέλλ. κληρον. σωτηρίαν: for all things are theirs; and for them, in and as united to Christ, all events are ordered)? Thus the Son of God is proved superior to the angels—i. e. to the highest of created beings: who, so far from being equal with Him, worship Him, and serve His purposes.

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Ministering spirits [λειτουργικα πνευματα] . Summing up the function of the angels as compared with Christ. Christ 's is the highest dignity. He is co - ruler with God. The angels are servants appointed for service to God for the sake of [δια] the heirs of redemption. Leitourgika ministering, N. T. o. See on ministers, ver. 7. ===Heb2

CHAPTER II

The opening words of this chapter illustrate the writers habit of introducing his practical exhortations into the body of his argument, unlike Paul, who defers them until the end. Comp. ch. Heb 3:7 - 19; Heb 5:11.

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

14. οὐχῆο. iii. 17. For the interrogative form ace Ὁ. 5 note.

πάντες) Whatever differences of rank and dignity there may be among them, all are alike in this.

λειτουργικὰ wv.) Vulg. admintstratorii spiritus, NWO ΝΟ (Ber. R 8). The word occurs here only in N.T. Oomp. Philo, de carit, καὶ 3 (ii. 387 M.) ἄγγελοι λειτονργοί. de gig. § 3 (i, 264 M.).

els διακ. ἀποστ. sent forth’ for ministry as each occasion arises (Old Lat. gui mitéuniur. Vulg. miesi). Contrast 1 Pet. £ 12 (ἀποσταλέντι). The difference between the general office of the angels as spirits charged with a social ministry (v. 7 λειτουργούε), and tho icular services (c. vi. 10 διακονοῦντες) in which it is fulfilled, is clearly marked.

Herveius (and so Primasius) shews how the angels, even on their missions, remain in the presence of God:

Mittuntar igitur et assistunt, quia

otai circumscriptus sit angelicus spiritus, summus tamen spiritus ipso qui Deus est circumscriptus non est, Angeli itaque et missi ante ipsum sunt quia quolibet missi veniant intra ipsum currunt.

διὰ τοὺς μ. KA. o.] The service is rendered to God for the sake of believers. The use of διά (accus.) instead of ὑπέρ indicates a widor relation. Compare o. vi. 7 and contrast vi. 20, Tho difference of idea is seon in Col. iv. 3 compared with Eph. vi. 20.

κληρον. gernp.}| Oompare ὁ. vi. 12 (Additional Note); xii. 17; (1 Pot. iii. 9). 60 aluo Matt. xix. 29 (ctornal life); Luke x. 25; xviii. 18; Matt. xxv. 34; 1 Oor. vi. ο f.; Gal. v. 21 (the kingdom); 1 Oor. xv. so (incorruption).

‘Salvation,’ like ‘eternal lifo,’ is at once present and future: o. v. 9; ix. 28.

σωτηρίανἩ Salvation is contemplated in its essential character, and not in the concrete form of the expected and promised Salvation (ἡ

Primasius refers the words to the belief (‘as the doctors say’) that to each of the faithful a angel is assigned ‘from his birth or rather from his baptism.’

Brooke Foss Westcott (1825–1901), The Epistle to the Hebrews (1889) and The Epistles of St John (1883) — public domain (pre-1929). Text recovered from Internet Archive / Google Books OCR scans. Westcott’s Gospel of John commentary is not included (its OCR lost the chapter running-heads required for reliable verse-keying). Some Greek quoted in the Hebrews volume is imperfectly rendered by the OCR.