Psalms 45:6-7

45:6 Your throne, ¹  O God, is permanent. ² 

The scepter ³  of your kingdom is a scepter of justice.

45:7 You love ⁴  justice and hate evil. ⁵ 

For this reason God, your God ⁶  has anointed you ⁷ 

with the oil of joy, ⁸  elevating you above your companions. ⁹ 

Romans 8:29

8:29 because those whom he foreknew he also predestined to be conformed to the image of his Son, that his Son ¹⁰  would be the firstborn among many brothers and sisters. ¹¹ 

Titus 2:14

2:14 He ¹²  gave himself for us to set us free from every kind of lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are truly his, ¹³  who are eager to do good. ¹⁴ 

Hebrews 1:8

1:8 but of ¹⁵  the Son he says, ¹⁶ 

“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, ¹⁷ 

and a righteous scepter ¹⁸  is the scepter of your kingdom.

Hebrews 12:14

Do Not Reject God’s Warning

12:14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, ¹⁹  for without it no one will see the Lord.

Hebrews 12:1

The Lord’s Discipline

12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, ²⁰  we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us,

Hebrews 3:3

3:3 For he has come to deserve greater glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house deserves greater honor than the house itself!

[45:6]  ¹ sn The king’s throne here symbolizes his rule.

[45:6]  ² tn Or “forever and ever.”

[45:6]  ³ sn The king’s scepter symbolizes his royal authority.

[45:7]  ⁴ sn To love justice means to actively promote it.

[45:7]  ⁵ sn To hate evil means to actively oppose it.

[45:7]  ⁶ tn For other examples of the repetition of Elohim, “God,” see Pss 43:4; 48:8, 14; 50:7; 51:14; 67:7. Because the name Yahweh (“Lord”) is relatively rare in Pss 42-83, where the name Elohim (“God”) predominates, this compounding of Elohim may be an alternative form of the compound name “the Lord my/your/our God.”

[45:7]  ⁷ sn Anointed you. When read in the light of the preceding context, the anointing is most naturally taken as referring to the king’s coronation. However, the following context (vv. 8-9) focuses on the wedding ceremony, so some prefer to see this anointing as part of the king’s preparations for the wedding celebration. Perhaps the reference to his anointing at his coronation facilitates the transition to the description of the wedding, for the king was also anointed on this occasion.

[45:7]  ⁸ sn The phrase oil of joy alludes to the fact that the coronation of the king, which was ritually accomplished by anointing his head with olive oil, was a time of great celebration and renewed hope. (If one understands the anointing in conjunction with the wedding ceremony, the “joy” would be that associated with the marriage.) The phrase “oil of joy” also appears in Isa 61:3, where mourners are granted “oil of joy” in conjunction with their deliverance from oppression.

[45:7]  ⁹ tn Heb “from your companions.” The “companions” are most naturally understood as others in the royal family or, more generally, as the king’s countrymen.

[8:29]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (God’s Son) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:29]  ¹¹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.

[2:14]  ¹² tn Grk “who” (as a continuation of the previous clause).

[2:14]  ¹³ tn Or “a people who are his very own.”

[2:14]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “for good works.”

[1:8]  ¹⁵ tn Or “to.”

[1:8]  ¹⁶ tn The verb “he says” (λέγει, legei) is implied from the λέγει of v. 7.

[1:8]  ¹⁷ tn Or possibly, “Your throne is God forever and ever.” This translation is quite doubtful, however, since (1) in the context the Son is being contrasted to the angels and is presented as far better than they. The imagery of God being the Son’s throne would seem to be of God being his authority. If so, in what sense could this not be said of the angels? In what sense is the Son thus contrasted with the angels? (2) The μέν…δέ (men…de) construction that connects v. 7 with v. 8 clearly lays out this contrast: “On the one hand, he says of the angels…on the other hand, he says of the Son.” Thus, although it is grammatically possible that θεός (qeos) in v. 8 should be taken as a predicate nominative, the context and the correlative conjunctions are decidedly against it. Hebrews 1:8 is thus a strong affirmation of the deity of Christ.

[1:8]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “the righteous scepter,” but used generically.

[12:14]  ¹⁹ sn The references to peace and holiness show the close connection between this paragraph and the previous one. The pathway toward “holiness” and the need for it is cited in Heb 12:10 and 14. More importantly Prov 4:26-27 sets up the transition from one paragraph to the next: It urges people to stay on godly paths (Prov 4:26, quoted here in v. 13) and promises that God will lead them in peace if they do so (Prov 4:27 [LXX], quoted in v. 14).

[12:1]  ²⁰ tn Grk “having such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us.”