ris3n's Apologetics Codex

Passage

Hebrews 1

Book: Hebrews · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

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ASV (ASV)

"1. God, having of old time spoken unto the fathers in the prophets by divers portions and in divers manners, 2. hath at the end of these days spoken unto us in his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds; 3. who being the effulgence of his glory, and the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had made purification of sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; 4. having become by so much better than the angels, as he hath inherited a more excellent name than they. 5. For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, This day have I begotten thee? and again, I will be to him a Father, And he shall be to me a Son? 6. And when he again bringeth in the firstborn into the world he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. 7. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels winds, And his ministers a flame of fire: 8. but of the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever; And the sceptre of uprightness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. 9. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; Therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee With the oil of gladness above thy fellows. 10. And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning didst lay the foundation of the earth, And the heavens are the works of thy hands: 11. They shall perish; but thou continuest: And they all shall wax old as doth a garment; 12. And as a mantle shalt thou roll them up, As a garment, and they shall be changed: But thou art the same, And thy years shall not fail. 13. But of which of the angels hath he said at any time, Sit thou on my right hand, Till I make thine enemies the footstool of thy feet? 14. Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to do service for the sake of them that shall inherit salvation?" (Hebrews 1:1-14, ASV)

WEB (WEB)

"1. God, having in the past spoken to the fathers through the prophets at many times and in various ways, 2. has at the end of these days spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed heir of all things, through whom also he made the worlds. 3. His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purified us of our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; 4. having become so much better than the angels, as he has inherited a more excellent name than they have. 5. For to which of the angels did he say at any time, “You are my Son. Today I have become your father?” and again, “I will be to him a Father, and he will be to me a Son?” 6. When he again brings in the firstborn into the world he says, “Let all the angels of God worship him.” 7. Of the angels he says, “Who makes his angels winds, and his servants a flame of fire.” 8. But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever. The scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your Kingdom. 9. You have loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness above your fellows.” 10. And, “You, Lord, in the beginning, laid the foundation of the earth. The heavens are the works of your hands. 11. They will perish, but you continue. They all will grow old like a garment does. 12. You will roll them up like a mantle, and they will be changed; but you are the same. Your years will not fail.” 13. But which of the angels has he told at any time, “Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet?” 14. Aren’t they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation?" (Hebrews 1:1-14, WEB)

KJV (KJV)

"1. God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, 2. Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds; 3. Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; 4. Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. 5. For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son? 6. And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. again: or, when he bringeth again 7. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. And of: Gr. And unto 8. But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. righteousness: Gr. rightness, or, straightness 9. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows. 10. And, Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of the earth; and the heavens are the works of thine hands: 11. They shall perish; but thou remainest; and they all shall wax old as doth a garment; 12. And as a vesture shalt thou fold them up, and they shall be changed: but thou art the same, and thy years shall not fail. 13. But to which of the angels said he at any time, Sit on my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool? 14. Are they not all ministering spirits, sent forth to minister for them who shall be heirs of salvation?" (Hebrews 1:1-14, KJV)

YLT (YLT)

"1. In many parts, and many ways, God of old having spoken to the fathers in the prophets, 2. in these last days did speak to us in a Son, whom He appointed heir of all things, through whom also He did make the ages; 3. who being the brightness of the glory, and the impress of His subsistence, bearing up also the all things by the saying of his might, through himself having made a cleansing of our sins, sat down at the right hand of the greatness in the highest, 4. having become so much better than the messengers, as he did inherit a more excellent name than they. 5. For to which of the messengers said He ever, 'My Son thou art, I to-day have begotten thee?' and again, 'I will be to him for a father, and he shall be to Me for a son?' 6. and when again He may bring in the first-born to the world, He saith, 'And let them bow before him, all messengers of God;' 7. and unto the messengers, indeed, He saith, 'Who is making His messengers spirits, and His ministers a flame of fire;' 8. and unto the Son: 'Thy throne, O God, [is] to the age of the age; a sceptre of righteousness [is] the sceptre of thy reign; 9. thou didst love righteousness, and didst hate lawlessness; because of this did He anoint thee, God, thy God, with oil of gladness above thy partners;' 10. and, 'Thou, at the beginning, Lord, the earth didst found, and a work of thy hands are the heavens; 11. these shall perish, and Thou dost remain, and all, as a garment, shall become old, 12. and as a mantle Thou shall roll them together, and they shall be changed, and Thou art the same, and Thy years shall not fail.' 13. And unto which of the messengers said He ever, 'Sit at My right hand, till I may make thine enemies thy footstool?' 14. are they not all spirits of service, for ministration being sent forth because of those about to inherit salvation?" (Hebrews 1:1-14, YLT)

Setting

  • Speaker: unknown author (traditionally Paul; modern scholarship: possibly Apollos, Barnabas, Priscilla, or unknown)
  • Audience: Jewish-Christian community tempted to revert to Judaism
  • Location: composition unknown
  • Time period: composed c. AD 60-69 (before the AD 70 temple destruction, given the present-tense temple-language)

Theological reading

Key words

Quoted in

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

  • ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
  • WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
  • KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
  • YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.