"God, after He spoke long ago to the fathers in the prophets in many portions and in many ways, in these last days has spoken to us in His Son..."

Here we have the fact of inspiration: God spoke in the person of the prophets---God spoke in the person of his Son: God was the real speaker; the prophets and the Son were the persons employed by God; what these uttered God uttered. Add the apostles. The Son wrote nothing, the prophets, the apostles wrote down what they spoke orally. How God inspired them is not told us, that he did this is a fact. The result lies before us today. R.C.H. Lenski, The Interpretation of the Epistle to the Hebrews and the Epistle of James, p. 32

"Whom He appointed heir of all things..."

The Greek word ... here translated heir, means (1) one who acquires anything by lot; and (2) one who inherits anything by the will and appointment of another. In this latter sense, that is, by the appointment of God. Christ as our elder brother is made Heir of the universe. And as he has made us (Christians) heirs with himself (Romans 8:17), we too may be said to inherit all things (1 Corinthians 3:21-23). Milligan, Epistle to the Hebrews, p. 52

Here belong all those great passages like Daniel 7:13,14: "There was given to him dominion, and glory and a kingdom," etc.; Matthew 11:27: "All things are delivered unto Me of my Father;" 28:18: "All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth;" Luke 1:32: "The Lord God shall give unto Him the throne of His father David, and He shall reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His kingdom there shall be no end;" see also 10:22; John 3:35; 5:22; 13:3; 17:2; Romans 14:9; 1 Corinthians 15:27; Ephesians 1:10, 21; Philippians 2:9, 10; Hebrews 2:8; 1 Peter 2:22. Given to him, delivered unto him, etc., refer to the Son's human nature. "This is the heir" (Matthew 17:38); we are joint heirs with this heir (Romans 8:17); He inherits from the Father (John 3:38); He is the seed and thus the heir (Galatians 3:16). Heir "of all things" is without restriction or limitation. Lenski, pp. 34-35

"Through whom also He made the world..."

The whole created universe of space and time is meant, and the affirmation that God brought this universe into being by the agency of His Son is in line with the statements of other New Testament writers that "all things were made through him; and without him was not anything made that had been made" (John 1: 3) and that "all things have been created through Him and unto Him" (Colossians 1:16). F.F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Hebrews, p. 4

"And He is the radiance of His glory and..."

The word apaugasma means radiance, effulgence, light beaming from a luminous body ... as the radiance of the sun is to the sun itself, so is Christ, the Son of God, to the Father. And hence we see the Father through the Son (John 14:9), just as we see the sun itself through its effulgence." Milligan, 53

"The exact representation of His nature, and..."

This, in connection with the last expression, forms a sort of Hebrew parallelism, both the members of which have reference to the Divine nature of Christ ... the word hupostasis here means the essence of the Father; and consequently that the word karakter expresses the exact likeness of the Son to the Father in all the essential elements of his being, as well as of his personality. Milligan, p. 54

"Upholds all things by the word of His power..."

The creative utterance which called the universe into being requires as its complement that sustaining utterance by which it is maintained in being. So Paul can write to the Colossians of Christ as the One in whom all things were created and also as the One in whom all things hold together (Colossians 1:17, RSV). He upholds the universe not like Atlas supporting a dead weight on his shoulders, but as One who carries all things forward on their appointed course. Bruce, p. 6

"When He had made purification of sins..."

When he was dealing with the world, the Son encountered "the sins" of the world. What did He do? This terse statement answers: "He wrought for himself cleansing from sins." ... This expression recalls the work of the Jewish high priest on the great Day of Atonement ... The expression speaks of the Son as the High Priest, and the rest of this epistle will speak of him in this function at length. Lenski, 39

"He sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high..."

"On the right hand" is a phrase indicating the place of highest honor and authority. See 1 Kings 2:19; Psalm 45:9; 80:17; Matthew 20:20-23; 26:64, etc. And "on high" denotes a sphere far above created heavens (Ephesians 4:10), where now dwells our Elder Brother filled with all the fullness of the Godhead (Colossians 2:9). Milligan, 57

Thus the greatness of the Son of God receives sevenfold confirmation, and it appears, without being expressly emphasized, that He possesses in Himself all the qualifications to be the mediator between God and men. He is the Prophet through whom God has spoken His final word to men; He is the Priest who has accomplished a perfect work of cleansing for His people's sins; He is the King who sits enthroned in the place of chief honor alongside the Majesty on high." Bruce, p. 8

Truly, this is a beautiful and powerful text. "God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds; 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 at the right hand of the Majesty on high." {Hebrews 1:1-3} Commentaries are not inspired, but at times they help us more clearly see the powerful lessons that a passage is teaching. In these passages, we have Divine truth that should not be overlooked-God has only ONE spokesperson, His Son Jesus Christ. Men have no authority to change, amend, or alter any of what He taught through His inspired word. Thanks to God for such a powerful voice! (KMG)