Jesus Possesses A Superior Name

For to which of the angels did He ever say, “You are My Son, today I have begotten You”?
–Hebrews 1:5

In Hebrews 1:5-14, the writer explained several ways that Jesus Christ is superior to the angels. One reason Jesus is superior to the angels is because He possesses a superior name. The writer of Hebrews said in 1:5: “For to which of the angels did [God the Father] ever say, ‘You are My Son, today I have begotten You’?” No angel has ever been called the only begotten Son of God.

Hebrews 1:5 quotes from Psalm 2:7. This verse has given Bible scholars tremendous difficulty through the years. What does God mean about His Son, “Today I have begotten You?” Is this verse teaching that Jesus became the Son of God in a point in time? Was there a point in time in which Jesus was not the Son of God? I’ve been surprised in my study of Psalm 2:7 to find some very well-versed conservative biblical scholars who answer that question yes, there is a time that Jesus was not the Son of God. They say Jesus eternally existed with God as the Second Person of the Trinity, but they say Jesus only became the Son of God at the incarnation when He took on human flesh. Now I personally do not agree with that. I think Jesus has eternally existed as the Son of God. I could cite verse after verse I believe teaches that, but the question is: Then what does Psalm 2:7 mean when the Lord says, “You are My Son, today I have begotten You”?

We have to understand that Psalm 2 was a coronation song; it referred to the coronation of the king, the time when a monarch was recognized as the supreme authority. I think the psalmist is saying there was a point in time when Jesus was recognized throughout the world as the Son of God–a point in time when He was recognized as the true King of kings and Lord of lords. When was that time? Was it at His baptism? No, only a few people saw that. Was it at His transfiguration? No, only three people saw that. Was it at His crucifixion? No. It was at Jesus’ resurrection. Romans 1:4 says Jesus was “declared the Son of God with power by the resurrection from the dead.” It is not that Jesus’ resurrection made Him the Son of God, but it proved Him to be the Son of God.

By the way, the Apostle Paul used this same verse when he was talking to the unbelieving Jews at Pisidian Antioch. Referring to the resurrection of Jesus Christ, Paul quoted Psalm 2:7 and said the resurrection was the fulfillment of this sign (Acts 13:33).

Whatever you believe about the eternal Sonship of Christ, right now Jesus has a name that is superior to the name of the angels. Jesus possesses a superior title, the title of the Son of God. What does that mean to us? Romans 8:17 says we are “fellow heirs” with Christ. So we, too, have inherited a more excellent name than the angels.

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Today’s devotion is excerpted from “The Angels And You” by Dr. Robert Jeffress, 2018.

Scripture taken from the NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE®, Copyright © 1960,1962,1963,1968,1971,1972,1973,1975,1977,1995 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission.