⁷ “You have made him for a little while lower than the angels…

Astounding that any religion would teach that the Originator of the universe from which all else derives, the Author of all creation in whom all stories are seeded, the Absolute truth out of which all true knowledge emanates, the First-mover away from which all else reacts, the Initial cause against which everything is an effect, the Maker who has molded all shapes and forms—it is astounding that any religion would even conceive of such a notion that God incarnated Himself and became lower than that which He created, namely the angels. That would render the plot line untenable, unthinkable, unimaginable. If mere humans had conceived the idea, it would be utter nonsense. Humans do not have the authority or the credibility. It puts too much of a strain on our human intellect and reasoning capacity. Yet if this idea comes from God Himself, then it begins to make sense—that is, if our notion of God is high enough. It makes sense that there would be some things about God that completely surpass our natural mental and reasoning abilities.

The incarnation, in which God became a man, is hinted at in various junctures in Scripture, and Psalm 8 is one of those, which the writer to the Hebrews here quotes. Yet, the writer moves it beyond hint to plain assertion. Once again we hold to the principle that the best interpreter of any portion of Scripture is to be found in other portions of Scripture.

It is clear, not so much from the surface reading of Psalm 8, but from the reading of Hebrew 2:7, that the Psalm projects the coming Messiah. The “him” in Psalm 8:5 refers back to the “man” and “son of man.” While the first could refer to mankind, the second is more cryptic. Daniel much later used this phrase in reference to the Messiah: “Behold, with the clouds of heaven One like a Son of Man was coming …” (Daniel 7:13). That passage is quoted or alluded to numerous times in the synoptic gospels (Matthew, Mark, Luke), the book of the Revelation, as well as our passage today. Undeniably, the second person of the Trinity is in view, the “Son” of Hebrews 1:2.

The Father sent His Son into the creation, the infinite penetrating the finite in a most personal way. Phil 2:5-11 gives poetic expansion to this humbling experience; He humbled Himself, but became exalted. For Christians, that gives us hope that though for a while our trials may bring us low, there is coming a day when we will rule over angels!