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and placed everything under his feet.” When God subjected all things to him, He left nothing outside of his control. Yet at present we do not see everything subject to him.
Hebrews 2:8 · Berean Standard Bible
Parallel translations
  • WEB You have put all things in subjection under his feet.” For in that he subjected all things to him, he left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we don’t see all things subjected to him, yet.
  • KJV Thou hast put all things in subjection under his feet. For in that he put all in subjection under him, he left nothing that is not put under him. But now we see not yet all things put under him.
  • NKJV You have put all things in subjection under his feet.” For in that He put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him.
  • NASB You have put everything in subjection under his feet.” For in subjecting all things to him, He left nothing that is not subject to him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to him.
  • NLT You gave them authority over all things.” Now when it says “all things,” it means nothing is left out. But we have not yet seen all things put under their authority.

Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.

Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org

Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.

Quick answer

God subjected all things to humanity, leaving nothing outside that rule, yet we do not yet see this dominion realized. There is a gap between God's purpose and present experience.

Overview

The author presses Psalm 8's claim that 'all things' are placed under human authority, then candidly admits we do not yet observe this universal dominion. This tension between the 'already' of God's decree and the 'not yet' of its fulfillment sets up the next verse. The resolution will be found not in humanity at large but in Jesus, in whom the promise is being realized.

Cross-references & the web

Cross-references · 18

  • John 13:3Jesus knew that the Father had delivered all things into His hands, and that He had come from God and was returning to God.
  • 1 Cor 15:27For “God has put everything under His feet.” Now when it says that everything has been put under Him, this clearly does not include the One who put everything under Him.
  • Ps 8:6You made him ruler of the works of Your hands; You have placed everything under his feet:
  • 1 Pet 3:22who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to Him.
  • Dan 7:14And He was given dominion, glory, and kingship, that the people of every nation and language should serve Him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and His kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
  • Eph 1:21–22far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in the present age but also in the one to come.
  • 1 Cor 15:24–25Then the end will come, when He hands over the kingdom to God the Father after He has destroyed all dominion, authority, and power.
  • Phil 2:9–11Therefore God exalted Him to the highest place and gave Him the name above all names,
  • Rev 1:18the Living One. I was dead, and behold, now I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of Death and of Hades.
  • Rev 5:11–13Then I looked, and I heard the voices of many angels and living creatures and elders encircling the throne, and their number was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands.
  • John 3:35The Father loves the Son and has placed all things in His hands.
  • Heb 1:13Yet to which of the angels did God ever say: “Sit at My right hand until I make Your enemies a footstool for Your feet”?
  • Heb 2:5For it is not to angels that He has subjected the world to come, about which we are speaking.
  • Ps 2:6“I have installed My King on Zion, upon My holy mountain.”
  • Matt 28:18Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me.
  • Rev 1:5and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and has released us from our sins by His blood,
  • Job 30:1–12“But now they mock me, men younger than I am, whose fathers I would have refused to entrust with my sheep dogs.
  • Job 41:1–34“Can you pull in Leviathan with a hook or tie down his tongue with a rope?

Themes, concepts, people & topics

Topics (2)

Resources, by level

Commentaries & study tools

  • VideoBibleProject — Hebrews videosBibleProject · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.

  • VideoWatch teaching on Hebrews 2:8YouTube · Lay · Free

    Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.

  • CommentaryEnduring Word — verse-by-verseDavid Guzik · Lay · Free · evangelical

    Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.

  • CommentaryClassic commentaries for this verseBibleHub (20+ works) · Pastoral · Free

    Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.

  • CommentaryMatthew Henry on HebrewsMatthew Henry · Pastoral · Free · evangelical

    The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).

  • ReferenceInterlinear, lexicon & Strong'sBlue Letter Bible · Seminary · Free

    Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.

Christ at the center

Hebrews is sustained worship of Christ: better than angels, Moses, and the priests; the great High Priest after Melchizedek who by one sacrifice perfects forever those he saves.

How Hebrews 2:8 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.

Original language

Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.