Hebrews 2:4
God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will? God also bearing them witness, both with signs and wonders, and with divers miracles, and gifts of the Holy Ghost, according to his own will?
God confirmed the salvation first spoken by the Lord and passed on by those who heard Him, bearing them witness with signs and wonders and different miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit given according to His own will. That salvation centers on Jesus, made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death and crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He should taste death for every man. Because it was so confirmed, those who heard must give more earnest heed to it lest they slip, for if the word spoken by angels was steadfast and every transgression received just recompense, there is no escape for neglecting so great salvation. The warning is urgent still for those living in the last days, not to neglect that salvation for speculation over what is not clearly revealed. It is therefore vital to hold steadfastly to every principle of truth that has been given, while God still bears witness by His Holy Spirit speaking continually in warning and instruction to confirm faith.
God's Witness to Salvation
God added His own testimony to the salvation first announced by the Lord Himself and then handed on by those who personally heard Him, confirming their word with signs and wonders and varied miracles and distributions of the Holy Spirit given according to His own will. That divine attestation established the message as no mere human report but a heaven-vouched proclamation carried from Christ to eyewitnesses to all who would hear. The salvation so confirmed is a wonderful privilege and a great fundamental truth worthy of careful study, and because it comes thus sealed by God it creates direct accountability to Him.
At its center stands Jesus, made for a little time lower than the angels for the suffering of death and then crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He should taste death for every person. This reveals a God bound to humanity by the strongest ties through spontaneous, unforced love that calls for deep, earnest, and entire love in return. For the sake of human beings He became poor, that the disloyal who consent to return to loyalty might through His poverty be made rich, gathering all the riches of heaven and laying all the resources of His infinite nature upon them in giving all heaven to the world. No love measures with that love of God, comprehending a life that measures with the life of God and an eternal weight of glory, with a work to be done in this world and with love to be expressed by obedience to His commandments. Christ took not the nature of angels but the seed of Abraham, and in all things was made like His brethren to be a merciful and faithful high priest to make reconciliation for the sins of the people, and having Himself suffered being tempted He is able to succor those who are tempted.
That the signs, miracles, and gifts are given according to His own will shows that God knows what is best in how and when He witnesses. Continual spiritual elevation could foster self-sufficiency and the confidence that no further teaching is needed, so He may withhold it and allow a person to enter a humbling valley instead. In that lowliness those humbled draw near to God, and He draws near to them.
Warning to Heed and Hold
Hebrews 2 was directed to the convictions of people who were deciding whether to obey the truth. Because God confirmed the salvation first spoken by the Lord and passed on by those who heard Him, bearing them witness with signs and wonders and divers miracles and gifts of the Holy Ghost according to His own will, believers are to give more earnest heed to the things heard lest they slip. If the word spoken by angels was steadfast and every transgression and disobedience received a just recompense, there is no escape for neglecting so great salvation. That confirmed salvation is a wonderful privilege and a great fundamental truth worthy of study that creates accountability to God.
The verse warns not to neglect that salvation for speculation over what is not clearly revealed, lest just recompense for transgression and disobedience fall and there be no escape. The warning remains urgent for those living in the last days.
The verse means it is vital to hold steadfastly to every principle of truth that has been given, since time and trial do not make it void. The instruction given in the early days of the message is to be held as safe instruction to follow in its closing days. God bears witness by His Holy Spirit speaking continually in warning and instruction, bringing moral influence to confirm faith in the Spirit of Prophecy and in the position taken. Those indifferent to this light will not escape snares but will stumble and fall and be snared and taken as plainly foretold for rejectors of light.