Hebrews 1:8 – Thy throne, O God

How Jesus Became Superior To The Angels

(Hebrews 1:8-9) is a quotation of the Septuagint translation of Psalms 45:6-7. Trinitarians claim God (the Father) is calling Jesus "God" (O God). That is simply not the case. With that being said, let's review.

Psalms 45 is referring to a human (a Davidic King) who was marrying the princess of Tyre, a thousand years before Jesus was ever born. God would not be referring to this human King as "God."

Notice verse 11 (Psalms 45:11 NASB), "Then the King will desire your beauty. Because He is your Lord, bow down to Him." One bows down to the Davidic King because he is Lord. This was common in the Old Testament. 

Example:

1 Chronicles 29:20, 23 (WEB) which says, ²⁰ Then David said to all the assembly, “Now bless Yahweh your God!” All the assembly blessed Yahweh, the God of their fathers, and bowed down their heads and prostrated themselves before Yahweh and the king......... 

²³ Then Solomon sat on the throne of Yahweh as king instead of David his father, and prospered; and all Israel obeyed him."

Note:

This is certainly NOT speaking of Solomon sitting on the literal Throne of God, but the "divinely established throne" that God established through his covenant with David, "I will be a father to him and he will be a son to me... Your house and your kingdom shall endure before Me forever; your throne shall be established forever" 2 Samuel 7:14-16 (NASB). Similarly stated in (Heb 1:5) "I will be a father to him and he will be a son to me," which is in reference to the risen Jesus.

We find this same covenant promise in (Acts 2:34-36) and in Luke, "He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David" (Luke 1:32).

The Grammar of the Original Greek

Let us first look at the original Greek text as it was originally written:

While we use a capitalized form of the word "god" to refer to the one Supreme God, the Greeks referred to the Creator as "the god." There is absolutely no reason whatsoever to translate the Greek words ho theos as "O God" at Hebrews 1:8 when this term is used throughout the New Testament to refer to "the God." However, there is a very good reason NOT to translate ho theos as "O God" - it results in the absurdity of God's God anointing God to be above His peers in the next verse. The passage simply says, "the throne of you the God to the age of the age."

The passage is intended to mean the Son has ascended above the angels to the throne of God his Father. The idea expressed here is that Jesus has ascended to the right hand of God and sits in authority and power at the throne on God's right hand in a very similar manner to Joseph sitting at the right hand of Pharaoh in Egypt and was given authority of the whole estate. 

The intent of this entire chapter is to demonstrate that Jesus has greater authority than angels because they are only ministering servants (Heb 1:14) but Jesus, being made a man lower than the angels (Heb 2:6-7), has now ascended to the right hand of the throne of God and is therefore now superior to the angels with all the angels now subject to him (Heb 2:7-8; 1 Peter 3:22). Nowhere do we find the writer of Hebrews trying to advocate the concept that Jesus is to be identified as "God." 

The Greek term ho theos (the God) occurs three times in Hebrews 1:8-9.

Your throne ho theos to the age of the age

A scepter of righteousness the scepter of your Kingdom.

You have loved righteousness and hated lawlessness

Therefore ho theos, ho theos of you, has anointed You With the oil of gladness above your fellows.(Therefore the God, the God of you, has .....)

In the book of Hebrews, the concept of Jesus sitting down at the right hand of the throne of God occurs numerous times. The one consistent theme found in Hebrews is that Jesus is our great High Priest because he has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God in the heavens (Hebrews 1:3, 13, 4:14-16, 8:1, 10:12, 12:2).

Becoming superior to the angels (1 Peter 3:22) does not result in Jesus being God or becoming God, for we are told that God will judge the world through a man who He has ordained (Acts 17:30-31).

The only reasonable interpretation of Hebrews 1:8 is to understand the words "Your throne ho theos to mean that Jesus has inherited the authority of God's throne, he has been anointed to be above his fellows, he was crowned with glory and honor; he sat down on his Father's throne.

The following passages (taken in part from the Book of Yahweh) are probably the clearest translation (I have found) on this topic and the easiest to understand.

8 But to the Son He says: The throne of Your Father is forever and ever; a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Your Kingdom.

Psa 45:6 Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre.

9 You have loved righteousness and hated iniquity; therefore Yahweh Your Father has anointed You with the oil of gladness more than Your companions; fellow heirs.

Psa 45:7 Thou lovest righteousness, and hatest wickedness: therefore God, thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows.

10 And You, Yahweh, in the beginning laid the foundation of the earth, and the heavens are the work of Your hands.

Psa 102:25-27 Of old hast thou laid the foundation of the earth: and the heavens are the work of thy hands. 26 They shall perish, but thou shalt endure: yea, all of them shall wax old like a garment; as a vesture shalt thou change them, and they shall be changed: 27 But thou art the same, and thy years shall have no end.

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