Hebrews – Chapter Two XVII

by Ed Urzi

“But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone” (Hebrews 2:9]

Among the many honorable aspects of Jesus’ life and ministry is the fact that he willingly gave His life in accepting the death penalty for humanity’s sin. However, it is important that we do not misinterpret the meaning of the phrase “taste death” as it appears within this passage…

“Here the Greek verb does not mean ‘sample a small amount’ (as a typical English reader might infer from the word ‘taste’), but ‘experience something cognitively or emotionally; come to know something…'” (1)

Since Jesus”…was fully obedient to God, even when that caused his death—death on a cross” (Philippians 2:5-8 NCV), we can also say that Jesus was someone who led by example. For instance, Jesus once said to His disciples, “…the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45 NIV).

Jesus also made another important statement that relates to our passage from Hebrews 2:9…

“…among you, those who are the greatest should take the lowest rank, and the leader should be like a servant. Normally the master sits at the table and is served by his servants. But not here! For I am your servant” (Luke 22:26-27 NLT).

The fact that Jesus “…was made a little lower than the angels” and voluntarily laid aside His divine rights and prerogatives did not make Him “less” God. You see, Jesus did not exchange the nature of God for the nature of humanity. Instead, He added it. The New Testament book of 1 Peter structures this idea in terms of Jesus’ righteousness: “…Christ also suffered once for our sins, the righteous on behalf of the unrighteous, that he might lead you to God” (1 Peter 3:18 Mounce).

In doing so, Jesus “…regained what Adam lost, the original calling for human beings to rule over God’s creation (Phil. 2:6–11; Rev. 5:1–14).” (2) So even though “…we do not yet see everything in subjection to him” (Hebrews 2:8 ESV), this is important to remember whenever we are tempted to view life through the lens of the problems, difficulties, and challenges we encounter each day. As the author of Hebrews will later remind us…

“Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith” (Hebrews 12:2 NIV).

(1) NET Bible notes on Hebrews 2:9 https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Hebrews+2%3A9&version=NET

(2) Radmacher, E. D., Allen, R. B., & House, H. W. (1999). Nelson’s new illustrated Bible commentary (p. 1638). Nashville: T. Nelson Publishers.