Hebrews 1:13

but to which of the angels has he at one time said, Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.

Psalm 110 (quoted here) is one of the most quoted/referred to Messianic prophecies in the OT and it plays a central role in the book of Hebrews. So first before much else, let's go look at Psalm 110 (in its entirety). (By the way, when something is quoted in the NT it is a really good idea to look at the full passage and its context in the OT, so we need to do that here).

Psalm 110 has some very interesting and weird things to say (we will look at it a lot later in Hebrews). Some big ideas found in Psalm 110: God keeps his anointed close to his side until he crushes all his enemies. The Lord comes from Jerusalem (Zion) and crushes the rulers of the earth. There are two sides and some line up against God. Needless to say they do not win. This Psalm also mentions that the anointed one (Messiah, Christ) will be a priest forever in the line of Melchizedek (which is similar to the idea that the Messiah will rule forever in the line of David). But again there is a lot here and I am just trying to point out some general ideas presented.

Back in Hebrews, the Son is again contrasted against angels. The Son sits at God's right hand until God defeats all their enemies. There is no OT passage that mentions angels sitting at God right hand (the privileged position). Rather angels in God's presence are a lot like us: bowing down, covering their face, understanding how holy he is compared to us his creation (check out Isaiah 6, Ezekiel 1, and Exodus 33-34 and compare the posture of the angels and Moses, both covering their face). But the Son is invited to sit next to him.

This is the final OT quote that Paul uses to show how much more privileged (v. 5-7) and powerful (v. 8-12) the Son is compared to the angels (or anything else for that matter). Let us always remember that. Jesus is above any spiritual power out there. If you feel tempted, turn to him. If you are praying to someone else, or through someone else, turn to him. If you are worshiping at any others' feet than Jesus', turn to him. If you are worried about the end times and nuclear proliferation, turn to him (v. 10-12). He is above all, know that there a great foundation in that (and that foundation will never change).

(Note the final verse of the chapter continues some of these ideas, but also leads into the next section, so I am putting it off until next blog.)