Hebrews in Light of Grace (Part 4): Divine Government and the Two Created Realms
The Stated Reality: God's Communication in Time Past
To understand any passage of Scripture, the student of the Word must first establish who is speaking, to whom the words are directed, and the specific historical context governing the statement. The opening lines of the Epistle to the Hebrews present a clear, stated reality regarding how the Creator chose to communicate with mankind. God spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, and hath in these last days spoken unto us by His Son (Heb.1:1-2).
This distinction between "the fathers" and "us" forms the foundational line of division. The fathers mentioned here are not the universal ancestors of all humanity, nor do they represent the Gentile nations. They are the patriarchs and ancestral leaders of the nation of Israel. When the text speaks of God addressing "us," it refers directly to the immediate descendants of those same fathers—the children of Israel. A quick look back at the historical record reveals why this focus exists. In Genesis chapter eleven, mankind collectively rejected the knowledge of God at the Tower of Babel. In response, God gave the Gentile nations up (Rom.1:24-28), scattering them across the face of the earth and suffering them to walk in their own self-chosen ways (Acts14:16).
From that point forward, divine revelation was narrowed to a single channel. God called Abraham out of heathendom to build a distinct nation, establishing a prophetic line that would communicate His direct words. This order was formally established under Moses, through whom the Law was given, and continued through the period of the judges for four hundred and fifty years until Samuel the prophet. Samuel marked a definitive turning point in Israel's history. Before his ministry, the word of God was rare and precious, with no open vision (1Sam.3:1). From Samuel onward, God maintained an active prophetic voice in Israel. All the law and the prophets prophesied until John the Baptist (Matt.11:13), who marked the absolute end of that Old Testament prophetic era.
When Jesus Christ walked the earth during His earthly ministry, He operated entirely within this national framework. His own testimony declared that He was not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel (Matt.15:24). When a Canaanite woman approached Him pleading for mercy on behalf of her daughter, Christ initially answered her not a word (Matt.15:23). When He did speak, He stated that it was not meet to take the children’s bread and cast it to dogs (Matt.15:26). In the divine economy, Gentiles were categorized as dogs—outsiders who had no legal claim to the covenant promises made to the fathers. The prophetic order mandated that Israel had to be blessed first, filled with the bread of God's kingdom, so that His blessings could subsequently overflow through them to the rest of the world.
