“has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds” (Hebrews 1:2).
Unlike the prophets, psalmists, or other Old Testament authors, Jesus is no mere spokesperson for God; He is the eternal Word of God. For instance, the New Testament gospel of John identifies Jesus in the following manner…
“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men” (John 1:1-4).
So Jesus, the Son of God, is the final, conclusive Word of God to humanity. In other words, “It isn’t so much that Jesus brought a message from the Father; He is a message from the Father. The idea is that Jesus is far more than the latest or best prophet. He has revealed something no other prophet could.” (1)
This portion of Scripture then goes on to tell us God has appointed His Son as the heir of all things. As with other portions of the Biblical book of Hebrews, this passage references an aspect of ancient Jewish culture. You see, the eldest son in a Jewish home of the Old Testament era traditionally held a position of authority within the family. This son received a double portion of the family’s inheritance and held oversight responsibility in respect to the family estate.
This imagery communicated something important to ancient readers of this epistle and modern-day readers by extension: everything belonging to the Father also belongs to the Son. This includes every material thing that exists within the universe of God’s creation. It also means that immaterial things like power and authority also belong to Him as well.
Although it may not seem obvious from Hebrews 1:2, this has important implications for those who have accepted Christ based on the following passage from the Biblical book of Romans…
“The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together” (Romans 8:16-17).
So, if Jesus has been appointed heir of all things (as we see here in Hebrews 1:2) and those who have accepted Christ are joint heirs with Him (as we read in the passage from Romans quoted above), it means that God’s people inherit all that Christ inherits- and that includes everything.
(1) Guzik, Dave, Hebrews 1 – A Superior Savior. https://enduringword.com/bible-commentary/hebrews-1/