The apostle here proves that Christ hath a more excellent name, and pre-eminency over angels, by Scripture texts owned by these Hebrews. He had the name of Son of God, and so had not angels; for God the Father, who hath absolute power to give and state all excellency, never said to any angel, so as to constitute him his only Son by an ordinance or word of power. Sons he may style them, as Job 2:1 Psalms 89:6; as he doth members of his church, Genesis 6:2, and princes and magistrates, Psalms 82:1,6; but always in the plural number, as he doth the angels, Job 38:7, noting out their power, place, and ministry. But Son is singular to Christ, and incommunicable to any other. Thou art my Son: this is quoted out of Psalms 2:7. Thou God-man, thou thyself, thou, and thou alone, (that this was spoken of Christ truly, and of David only as a type of him, the Spirit asserts, Acts 13:33), art my own Son, my ever-being Son, my Son by nature, Romans 8:32. Singularity sets out his eminency above all, and his propriety by nature in him. This day have I begotten thee: at the day of his incarnation, Isaiah 9:6 Luke 1:31,32,35, but eminently at the day of his resurrection, was he declared and published to be his only begotten Son with power, Romans 1:4; and at his ascension inangurated the supreme, universal King and Priest in heaven and earth, Hebrews 5:5, possessed of a better name, place, and power than angels, Ephesians 1:20,21. What men enjoy in this kind attributed to them, is with a vast disproportion to this; born, or begotten, they are said to be, in respect of God's operation on them, infusing Divine qualities into their souls, but this Son by a generation proper to a substantial person. And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son: in another Scripture, as 2 Samuel 7:14 1 Chronicles 17:13, 1 Chronicles 22:10, it is declared, I his natural Father, and he my natural Son; so as they are not related to any other as they are to each other. This in the type was spoken of Solomon, but fulfilled in Christ, who was universal King and Priest over his church for ever; so David understood it, Psalms 110:1; compare Psalms 89:19,Psalms 89:26. He was the first-born Son, born a King; the Son of the universal and supreme King, the Heir and Lord of all.

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