Christ humbled Himself lower than angels by becoming a man and living the life of a man. Christ suffered death, out of obedience to God, and was rewarded with the glory and honor first bestowed to Adam, meaning that Christ has inherited the earth to rule over it. He experienced death so we wouldn’t have to, in accordance with God’s merciful plan.
After establishing that God made the earth for man to rule over, and man failed to do so, Paul points out that Jesus came down from Heaven and became a man, made for a little while lower than the angels. By suffering death, He was then given rulership over the earth by God. By the grace of God He died for everyone and was rewarded with the inheritance of ruling the earth. The Son of God had to be born a man, and live with a human body, to complete His Father’s will by dying on the cross, so that the subjection of the earth would be given to Him, making Him king of the entire world. By this suffering, as a man, He was crowned with glory and honor. This phrase refers back to Psalm 8, previously quoted in verses 5-8, where humanity is said to have been crowned with glory and honor because God appointed humanity to rule over the earth. Christ has now been appointed to the proper place for humanity.
Christ did all of this, dying for all humans, out of obedience to God. What Adam squandered, Jesus restored; He proved that He was willing to walk in faithful obedience, and the honor of being called “Son” was awarded to Him.
9 But we do see Him who was made for a little while lower than the angels, namely, Jesus, because of the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death for everyone.
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