Having accomplished the purification of sin, the Son “sat down” at the right hand of God and has interceded for his people ever since – Hebrews 1:1-4.
A key point
in the opening paragraph is the accomplishment of the Son and his subsequent
exaltation. Unlike his predecessors, Jesus “achieved the purification of
sins and sat down on the right hand” of God, “having become so much better than the angels, as he has inherited a
more excellent name than they” - (Hebrews
1:1-3).
The
logic of the statement is clear. The “Son” now holds his supreme
position and honor BECAUSE he accomplished the “purification
of sins.” That he “become” better than the angels and “inherited”
a superior name demonstrates that his exaltation resulted from what he did, not
because of anything intrinsic to his nature or even his position as God’s Son.
He was appointed sovereign over all things because he dealt definitively with
sin.
This
declaration anticipates the later discussions about his priesthood and superior
sacrifice, and especially their permanent results. It is no accident that the
Author refers to the “purification of sins” rather than to the
forgiveness of sin. The language reflects the Levitical system with its sacrifices
that were intended to deal with ritual impurity. The fact that the Son “sat down”
at God’s right hand invokes the image of the ancient Day of Atonement but with
a very distinct difference.
Under the Levitical system, the high priest entered the sanctuary only on the Day of Atonement, and he never “sat down,” nor did he remain long within the Holy of Holies.
In
contrast, Jesus entered the true sanctuary “once for all” and then
“sat down,” and there he now intercedes for his people. This emphasizes
the completeness of his priestly act. And he will remain at his Father’s “right
hand” until He again “introduces
the first-begotten into the habitable earth.”
The
term “sat down” also points to his sovereignty, his overlordship over
all things. It is derived from the Psalms when, prophetically, God summoned the
Messiah to do this very thing. The same words are used several times later in
the letter to link his exalted position to his priestly achievement and to locate
his present “seat” in the “real tabernacle”:
- “Yahweh said to my Lord: Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies your footstool” - (Psalm 110:1. Compare Hebrews 12:1-2).
- “We have such a high priest who sat down on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched not man” - (Hebrews 8:1-2).
- “And every priest indeed stands day by day ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, the which can never remove sins. but he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins once-for-all, sat down on the right hand of God” - (Hebrews 10:11-12).
The
last passage explicitly contrasts the positions of the Levitical priests with that
of the Son. They “stood” in the sanctuary while performing their
duties but Jesus “sat down” in the greater Tabernacle “not
made with hands” in the highest of the heavens.
Moreover,
the multiple sacrifices offered by the Levitical priests were incapable of “removing”
the stain of sin, but the one-time sacrifice of the Son did exactly that and “once
for all.” And again, Jesus then “sat down” at the “right hand of God”
after he had achieved the “purification of sin.”
In
later chapters, Hebrews will demonstrate the vastly superior sacrifice
and the priesthood of the Son that not only removed the stain of sin but also
purged the conscience of sinners and reconciled them to God. It is especially for
this reason that the “word of the Son” is supreme above all others and final.
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