Hebrews in Light of Grace (Part 3): The Historical Background of Hebrews
The Need for Context in Scripture
When we approach any specific portion of Scripture without first
understanding its historical and dispensational background, confusion follows
very quickly. Hebrews is one of the clearest examples of this. It stands as the
fifty-eighth book of the Bible, and it leans on the foundation already laid in
the fifty-seven books before it. If isolated passages from Hebrews are lifted
out of that larger line of revelation, it becomes easy to misread truths that
are plainly established elsewhere in the Word of God.
To read Scripture accurately, a believer needs to recognize
that God speaks across different time periods and to different groups of people.
Every word of God is pure, plain, and right to those who seek truth, but
spiritual clarity also requires us to respect the distinct settings in which
God revealed His plan (Ps.12:6; Prov.8:8-9). That is why a faithful study of
Hebrews must trace the movement of Scripture from creation through the calling
of Israel, observing how God’s dealings develop across time. Without that context,
someone could easily take a handful of verses from Hebrews and use them to
challenge clear doctrines given to us for the present age of grace.
Two Realms, Man's Creation, and Earthly Dominion
The story of Bible history begins at the very start of
creation. When God brought the universe into existence, He established two primary
realms: the heaven and the earth (Gen.1:1). Scripture identifies the heaven as
the location of God’s supreme throne, while the earth was fashioned to be His
footstool (Isa.66:1). These were not empty spaces without meaning. They were
filled with order, authority, government, and purpose.
Within these two realms, God established a complete system
of rule. All things in heaven and on earth—visible and invisible, whether
thrones, dominions, principalities, or powers—were created by Jesus Christ and
for Him (Col.1:16). Every authority structure was originally designed to carry
out the divine will and reflect the absolute glory of the Creator (Rev.4:11). This
is also where the repeated biblical pattern of the number twelve becomes
significant, as it appears in connection with governmental perfection: the
twelve constellations, the twelve months of the year, the twelve tribes of
Israel, and the twelve apostles who will sit on twelve thrones (Gen.49:28;
Matt.19:28; Rev.21:12-14).
So from the beginning, Scripture presents creation not merely as a physical environment, but as a governed order under God’s throne.
After establishing the heavenly and earthly domains, God
created man and placed him directly within the earthly realm. Man was formed
from the dust of the ground, filled with the breath of life, and appointed as God’s
representative ruler over the earth (Gen.2:7). Luke refers to Adam as the son
of God, which highlights Adam’s unique position as an earthly heir created
directly by the hand of God (Lk.3:38).
God then gave Adam a direct mandate: to be fruitful,
multiply, replenish, and subdue the earth (Gen.1:28). Adam was created fully
formed, placed in a perfect world, and given the responsibility to fill the
earth and maintain it under the righteous authority of God’s throne. As long as
man ruled in obedience, the earth remained aligned with the Creator’s holiness
and glory. The supreme throne governing all creation is God’s own throne in
heaven, and every lower throne on earth was designed to rule in submission to
that ultimate authority (Ps.103:19).
The Adversary's Plot and Rebellion
That harmonious order did not remain undisturbed. It was
violently interrupted by the rebellion of Lucifer. Driven by pride, the
adversary sought to usurp the supreme authority that belonged exclusively to
the Son of God. Isaiah records the fivefold declaration of Lucifer’s rebellious
heart: to ascend into heaven, to exalt his throne above the stars of God, to
sit upon the mount of the congregation in the sides of the north, to ascend
above the heights of the clouds, and to be like the Most High (Isa.14:13-14).
The title “Most High” first appears in Scripture in connection with God as the possessor of heaven and earth (Gen.14:19). This shows the scope of the adversary’s objective. He was not seeking a minor place of influence, but full possession and control over both realms. His strategy targeted locations of central spiritual importance, including the heavenly places and Mount Zion, the holy hill set apart for the throne of God’s Son (Ps.2:6; Ps.48:2). By setting up an opposing kingdom, Satan became the prince and god of this present world, operating through a corrupted system to keep humanity alienated from the Creator (Jn.12:31; 2Cor.4:4).
To overthrow God’s authority on earth, Satan sought to corrupt the hierarchy of authority established in Eden. He approached the woman directly, deliberately bypassing the line of authority God had placed on the man (Gen.2:16-17; Gen.3:1). The serpent deceived the woman into transgression through subtlety, whereas Adam chose to eat of the forbidden fruit knowingly and willingly (2Cor.11:3; 1Tim.2:14).
Through Adam’s willful transgression, sin entered into the
world, and physical and spiritual death came with it (Rom.5:12). Death stripped
fallen man of his functional ability to rule the earth in righteousness.
Subject to the law of sin, human beings lost their power to subdue creation for
God’s glory. The entire earthly creation was subjected to vanity, groaning
under bondage and awaiting a redeemer who could rescue humanity from spiritual
death and restore the lost dominion (Rom.8:20-22).
The First Promise of Repossession
Immediately after the Fall, God gave a foundational promise concerning
the future of the earth. Speaking directly to the serpent in Eden, He declared
that He would put enmity between the serpent and the woman, and between the serpent’s
seed and her seed (Gen.3:15). God announced that a male child born of the woman
would ultimately crush the head of the adversary.
That judgment made it clear that God had not surrendered His
plan or abandoned the earth to the usurper. Instead, He laid out the general
plan by which He would take re-possession of the earth through a human
representative. This ongoing conflict between the serpent and the seed of the
woman runs through the entire Bible and points forward to Jesus Christ, who
took on flesh and blood so that through death He might destroy him that had the
power of death, that is, the devil (Heb.2:9-14).
Old World Corruption, Human Government, and the Babel Rebellion
As human history moved forward from the Fall, the adversary continued
working to corrupt the seed line of the woman and prevent the coming of the
promised deliverer. By Genesis chapter 6, mankind had multiplied greatly across
the face of the earth. During that era, a grave corruption took place as the
sons of God saw the daughters of men and took wives of all whom they chose,
filling the earth with wicked violence (Gen.6:1-5).
Even in the midst of widespread corruption, God preserved a pure genealogical line from Adam down to Noah (Gen.5:1-32). Scripture notes that Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, meaning his physical lineage remained uncorrupted by the unnatural rebellion of his day (Gen.6:9). Because human evil had thoroughly ruined the world, God brought a global flood to destroy the old world—the world of the ungodly (2Pet.2:5). Through the ark, eight souls were preserved along with the clean human seed necessary to carry out God’s eternal plan.
After the global judgment, God established a fresh starting point with Noah and his sons. He commanded them to be fruitful, multiply, and replenish the earth (Gen.9:1). To restrain the rapid spread of evil that had destroyed the pre-flood world, God also instituted human government, placing the authority of capital punishment into the hands of man to punish murderers (Gen.9:6).
Yet instead of scattering to fill the earth as God
commanded, human society gathered under the leadership of Nimrod on the plain
of Shinar (Gen.10:8-10; Gen.11:1-2). In open defiance of the Creator, they
built a centralized city and a tower whose top was intended to reach unto
heaven. Their aim was to make themselves a name and prevent being scattered
abroad (Gen.11:4). This rebellion marked the origin of Babylon as a central hub
of religious pride, human unity, and idolatrous rebellion against God. God
judged the movement by confounding their single speech into many tongues,
forcing humanity to divide into distinct national units defined by family
lineage, language, and assigned geographical borders (Gen.10:32; Gen.11:7-8;
Acts 17:26).
The Calling of Abraham and the National Channel
When the nations of the world surrendered themselves to
global rebellion at Babel, God set the nations aside and began a brand-new work
through one specific individual. He called Abram out of his homeland and pagan
culture, commanding him to leave his father’s house and travel to a land that
He would show him (Gen.12:1).
God then made an unconditional covenant with Abraham,
promising to make of him a great nation, to bless him, and through his seed to
extend blessing to all the families of the earth (Gen.12:2-3). Through this
chosen nation—Israel—God established the unique channel through which He would
write His holy scriptures, manifest His holy law, and ultimately bring forth
the Messiah into the world. Understanding the election and national calling of
Israel is therefore essential for recognizing the dispensational movement that
occurs in the Book of Acts and leads into the Book of Hebrews.
From Prophecy to Mystery via the Book of Acts
The foundational history of Israel gives us the direct
context for the transition recorded in the Book of Acts. At the
opening of Acts, after Christ had risen from the dead, the resurrected Lord was
asked by His apostles whether He would at that time restore again the kingdom
to Israel (Acts 1:6). Their question was not random. It directly concerned the
earthly prophetic program that God had promised to the fathers through the
prophets.
As the Book of Acts unfolds, however, the nation of Israel repeatedly rejected the testimony of the Holy Ghost. By the end of Acts, in Rome, the Apostle Paul quoted Isaiah 6:9-10 to declare that judicial blindness had come upon Israel (Acts 28:25-27). Paul then officially announced that because of Israel’s spiritual deafness, the salvation of God was now sent directly unto the Gentiles, who would hear it (Acts 28:28). Through Israel’s temporary stumble, God opened the door of salvation to the Gentiles without requiring them to go through the national channel of Israel (Rom.11:11; Rom.11:25).
Once this dispensational transition is recognized, the difference between what was prophesied in the Old Testament and what was later revealed through the Apostle Paul becomes much clearer. In the prophetic program, the salvation of Gentiles was to take place through a redeemed and exalted nation of Israel, following a time of severe judgment upon the earth (Joel 3:9-12; Zech.8:23). The present dispensation of the grace of God, however, was not part of Old Testament prophecy at all.
Paul describes this present age as the mystery—a specific
truth kept secret since the world began, but now made manifest to the saints
(Rom.16:25; Eph.3:1-9). Instead of executing judgment on the Gentile nations
according to the prophetic timeline, God suspended Israel’s prophetic calendar
and revealed a rich, hidden purpose: the forming of a new creation called the
Body of Christ, where Jew and Gentile stand equally redeemed by grace through
faith without distinction (Eph.2:14-16; Eph.3:6).
The Son of Man and the World to Come
With this broad historical and dispensational framework in
place, the purpose of Hebrews becomes easier to follow. Hebrews addresses the
Hebrew people in light of their covenant background and the prophetic program.
In Hebrews chapter 2, Scripture reaches back to God’s original creation mandate
given to man, noting that God has not put in subjection to angels the world to
come (Heb.2:5).
Although fallen man lost his dominion and cannot subdue the
earth in his present weakened state, Jesus Christ came into the world to
accomplish what Adam lost. Made a little lower than the angels for the
suffering of death, Jesus Christ tasted death for every man and was crowned
with glory and honour (Heb.2:9). He is the ultimate Son of man who will restore
divine rule to the earth and bring many sons unto glory (Heb.2:10). In the end,
through the blood of His cross, Jesus Christ will reconcile all things back to
God—whether they be things in earth, or things in heaven (Col.1:20).
An adapted lesson from Paul Lucas here.
