God Has Spoken in His Son

Peter T. O'Brien

"Hebrews is one of the most attractive and powerful yet challenging books of the New Testament. It begins with a magnificent presentation of Jesus as the divine Son through whom God has spoken his final word (Hebrews 1:1-4). These opening lines set the trajectory for the whole discourse. The polished literary character of Hebrews and its careful exposition of the superiority of Christ, the Son of God and great high priest, led earlier generations to conclude that it was mainly or simply a theological treatise. However, particularly in the last three decades, its purpose has been understood as hortatory; this is made clear by the exhortatory passages that flow from, and are grounded in, the expositions that appear throughout the discourse. Peter O'Brien's excellent, cohesive exposition of Hebrews examines the major interlocking themes highlighted by the author as he addresses his "word...