Bridget A. Thomas
Every day is a gift!
Hebrews 2
We are continuing our study on Hebrews, and today we are focusing on chapter 2. You can read in your own Bible or click here.
Taking a look at verse 1 and various translations, many of them contain the word “therefore” or the phrase “for this reason.” Words and phrases like this are clues to us as readers that help draw points together.
In Hebrews 1 we saw how Jesus was superior to the angels and how Jesus was the Son of God. Then the first verse of chapter two tells us, “Therefore, we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it.” (emphasis added)
The audience that received this letter was being pulled in different directions, due to those who opposed their belief in Jesus. The author was reminding them to stand strong in their faith and keep their focus on the Savior.
This is an essential reminder for us as well. In our culture we have an array of opinions and beliefs. Unfortunately, though, many of them are far from truth. Many are deceived, even those that call themselves Christians.
So how do we keep ourselves from drifting away, as verse one talks about? I like the New Living Translation of Joshua 23:8 with the reminder to “cling tightly to the LORD your God.” Every day we cling tightly to God and to His Holy Word. This is the truth we stand on.
“There are only two options in the Christian life: we can either sail forward in fidelity or we can drift backward in faithlessness. There is no such thing as standing still in the Christian life.” [1]
“When we focus on anything other than God, we drift away from his purpose for us and hasten our path to destruction.” (emphasis added) [2]
What a vital reminder this is to keep Jesus and our faith first place in our lives and hearts.
The next couple of verses stress how vital it is to listen to the Lord. His message is of the utmost importance. His message is the best news ever. That’s why we call it THE Good News.
Verse 3 asks, “How shall we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard.” This is a reminder of the vital importance of the message of salvation. When it’s all said and done, this is all that truly matters. We should hold tightly to this gift we have been given. And we should also share this gift with others.
Verses 6-8 are pulled from Psalm 8:4-6. These verses show us again Jesus’s superiority to angels as everything was put under His control. However, we also see that Jesus was, for a time, lower than the angels. It was essential for Jesus to be fully human, “so that by the grace of God he might taste death for everyone.” Jesus was sent to do what we couldn’t accomplish on our own. We have much to be grateful for!
In verse 10 we are told that Jesus was perfected through His suffering. Jesus was already perfect in every way. So why does this verse say He was perfected? The Amplified Bible puts verse 10 this way: “For it was fitting for God [that is, an act worthy of His divine nature] that He, for whose sake are all things, and through whom are all things, in bringing many sons to glory, should make the author and founder of their salvation perfect through suffering [bringing to maturity the human experience necessary for Him to be perfectly equipped for His office as High Priest].”
Through all that Jesus suffered on this earth, He understands our human weakness, all the emotions we feel, and the difficulties we face. And this means we can trust Him with every single thing. We can run to Him with all of our feelings and all of our problems. He understands. And since He has gone through the experiences we go through, He is also the perfect One to mold us into who God created us to be.
Next we read that Jesus is glad to call us His siblings. As followers of Christ, we have the same Father. We have been adopted into the family. What a privilege we have. We were vagabonds on the street. But Jesus cleaned us up and brought us by the hand to the throne of God. Now God calls us His beloved. Oh how blessed we are!
Verse 14 reminds us “that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil.”
“There are two things worth pointing out here: (1) The word for destroy means ‘render powerless,’ and it suggests stopping more than annihilating; and (2) God has ultimate control over life and death but allows Satan certain power when it serves His purposes—but he’s always on a leash. And because of Christ’s supremacy over it all, we’re set free from the fear of death.” [3]
On this earth, we have nothing to fear because Jesus already won and our Heavenly Father has ultimate control. As Psalm 23 reminds us, “I will fear no evil: for thou art with me” (KJV). What comfort there is in knowing that God is with us every moment.
And verse 15 points out how Jesus came to deliver those who fear death. As Christians, we don’t even have to fear death. Death from this life will be the beginning of our magnificent eternal lives! We have so much to look forward to.
Verse 17 mentions Jesus being our High Priest. And verse 18 mentions how Jesus understands when we are tempted. I am not going in depth on those verses in this post because both topics will come up again in other chapters.
Chapter 2 of Hebrews calls us to hold tightly to Jesus and remain steadfast in our faith. It reminds us to listen carefully to His voice and never drift from the truth. God has given us the greatest gift imaginable—salvation through His Son—and we are called to share that life-changing gift with others.
Hebrews 2 also reminds us that when Jesus came to earth in flesh and blood, He fully experienced the joys, sorrows, struggles, and temptations of humanity. Because of this, we can bring every burden, every fear, every heartache, and every celebration to Him, knowing He understands completely.
Most of all, Jesus conquered sin, defeated Satan, and overcame death once and for all. Because of His victory, fear no longer has the final word. In Christ, we have hope, freedom, and the promise of eternal life. What a Savior we serve!
May our hearts overflow with gratitude for Jesus and all He means to us, today and every day!
Thank you for reading. God bless!
[1] Mohler, R. Albert, Jr. Exalting Jesus in Hebrews. Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary. Nashville, TN: Holman Reference, 2017.
[2] Stanley, Charles F., gen. ed. The Charles F. Stanley Life Principles Bible. New International Version. Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2017.
[3] Cobble, Tara-Leigh. The Bible Recap. Minneapolis, MN: Bethany House Publishers, 2020.
Unless noted otherwise, Scripture quotations are from the ESV® Bible (The Holy Bible, English Standard Version®), copyright © 2001 by Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
The King James Version (KJV) is public domain in the United States.
Bridget A. Thomas 
This was very good Bridget and so relevant to where we are today. Specifically, the topics you mentioned of drifting away and suffering stood out to me. It’s so easy to drift away from the Lord, often it happens in little ways and we don’t realize right away. We have to stay intentional in seeking Him.
And suffering is part of faith in Jesus. He suffered while He was here on Earth but we are often made to believe faith in Jesus means a life full of prosperity that is free of problems. When we look at the life of Jesus that certainly wasn’t the case. It’s actually the suffering that teaches us to persevere in our faith and it builds our character (Romans 5:3-4). But the joy is that He is with us through it all, leading us, strengthening us and protecting us. He provides our needs! Thank for sharing!
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Thank you so much, Dawn. I really appreciate your thoughtful insights. I completely agree that drifting often happens so subtly, which is why we have to be intentional about staying close to the Lord through prayer and His Word. I also love what you shared about suffering. It’s not something we naturally welcome, but God uses it to strengthen our faith, shape our character, and draw us closer to Him. Romans 5:3–4 is such a powerful reminder that He has purpose even in our trials. And as you said, the greatest comfort is knowing we never walk through them alone. Thank you for encouraging me and adding to the discussion!
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So comforting.
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I’m glad this brought encouragement, Judy. 💕
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💛
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Bridget, so true about either moving forward in our faith or sliding backward. There is no standing still. I think if we are not being intentional in our pursuit of God in our everyday life then drifting can creep in without us realising it. It happens gradually and I find that I have to be set myself back on track to remain close to the Father.
It is reassuring to me to know that the Lord understands and sympathises with our suffering.
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That’s so true. Staying close to the Lord really does require intentionality, and it’s easy to become distracted by everyday life. I’m thankful that even when we lose our focus, God never stops pursuing us. Knowing He understands our weaknesses and suffering gives me so much hope. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Manu!
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I agree with Charles Stanley‘s insights on what happens when we drift our gaze from the Lord. Great study on Hebrews so far, Bridget. Keep sharing the good word!
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That line from Charles Stanley really stopped me in my tracks. I’m thankful when we get off track, Jesus is always there to lead us back. Thank you, Rainer! I have been learning a lot. And I’m so glad these posts bring encouragement to others too.
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This is such a powerful statement and reminder, Bridget.
“There are only two options in the Christian life: we can either sail forward in fidelity or we can drift backward in faithlessness. There is no such thing as standing still in the Christian life.” [1]”
You also mentioned something that recently came to mind, that Jesus learned obedience through suffering. I’m guessing that obedience was a translation thing, as you used the word perfected. Thank you for sharing and clarifying what this means. I think I was worried that if Jesus learned obedience or perfection through suffering, than this was on me too as I go thorough my struggles and challenges. But is it more like because Jesus suffered these things to understand our human weakness than we can be assured that he will be able to help us through our struggles, rather than we are going through these sufferings to perfect us. Or is it both. Do we go through the trials, but we have Jesus to understand and help us through these trials, to take compassion on our weakness and give us the strength to endure?
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I’m so sad because I wrote a long reply and then it vanished. Hopefully I can remember everything I said.
I agree about the powerful statement. It really made me think about my own Christian walk.
In another chapter of Hebrews this thought about Jesus’ perfection comes up again. I found one commentary that said, “In the Bible, perfect usually means completeness or maturity.” I found that really helpful and I will share that in a future post.
Regarding your question, I think the answer is both. I found this thought by Charles Stanley to be helpful: “As our Lord, Jesus was already perfect, and as our sinless Savior, he was completely without fault. So how could suffering possibly improve him? Because it was through his pain and sorrow that—although complete in “knowledge and wisdom—he was perfected in his understanding of how limited we are, how difficult our lives can be, how desperate we are when we lack something we need and how hopeless our separation from God truly is. He knows how best to sanctify us—or transform us into his image—and has become the ideal example for us to follow.”
This year I have been going through some trials too. And although I wouldn’t choose them, I have told God that I have learned more through them than I would have otherwise. He uses them to shape us. But what a gift that we can turn to Jesus. He understands what we are going through, and He is there to help us along the way.
Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Tina!
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As a Christian, there is no such thing as standing still! I just wrote about this and what a comfort to know GOD is always working in us. And so we sail forward in “fidelity”. Thank you for this reminder!
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That really made me think! It’s scary to think about moving backwards. But if we keep Jesus front and center in our lives, He will continue grow us. Thank you for sharing your thoughts, Maxine!
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Blessings Bridget and thanks so much for taking the time to comment!
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I am so thankful for this “On this earth, we have nothing to fear because Jesus already won and our Heavenly Father has ultimate control”
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Oh yes! I agree. It can be soooo easy to fall into fear and worry. But when we remember who our God is, it changes everything! 🙌🏻
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