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Genesis 1:28 tells us that after God created man, He blessed him and told him to be “fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion” over all things. On the one hand, God wants to deal with death by life through man’s multiplication, and on the other hand, God gave Adam the authority to have dominion. This position and authority once belonged to Satan, but now God has replaced him with man.
Genesis 2:15 says, “And the Lord God took the man, and put him into the garden of Eden to dress it and to keep it.” This shows that there was decay and corruption. Hence, there is the need for man to recover the situation. From these two passages we see that God has a fourfold intention in creating man: (1) multiplying — dealing with death; (2) having dominion — dealing with insubordination; (3) keeping — dealing with attacks; and (4) dressing — dealing with corruption.
Moreover, Genesis 2 shows us two trees, the tree of life and the tree of the knowledge of good and evil (vv. 9, 16-17). The principle of the tree of life is dependence on God, and the principle of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil is independence and alienation from God. These are the acts of Satan. God’s will is done in heaven, while Satan’s will is carried out in the air. Man’s independent right is exercised on earth. Now the question is which side man will stand on. Eating of the tree of life means to join oneself to God, whereas eating of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil means to join oneself to Satan.
When we come to Psalm 8, we can once again see that God’s desire is related to man; He wants man to reign for Him on earth. Hebrews 2:5-10 tells us the way the Lord fulfills Psalm 8, whereas 1 Corinthians 15:24-28 tells us the time the Lord fulfills it. Psalm 8 places special emphasis on the earth (vv. 1, 9). It also emphasizes the name and the kingdom. Three things in Psalm 8 match Matthew 6:9-10: (1) God’s name being sanctified, (2) God’s kingdom coming, and (3) God’s will being done on earth. Psalm 8 does not concern the new heaven and new earth, because there will be no sea in the new heaven and new earth. Psalm 8 concerns the kingdom.
Verse 1 says, “O Jehovah our Lord, / How excellent is Your name / In all the earth, / You who have set Your splendor above the heavens!” This tells us that God’s glory is set above the heavens.
Verse 2 says, “Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings / You have established strength / Because of Your adversaries, / To stop the enemy and the avenger.” Babes are the youngest ones. As far as the duration of the universe is concerned, man is a babe and a suckling. God’s intention is to deal with His enemy Satan through man. In Matthew 21:16, the Lord quotes this verse, saying, “You have perfected praise.” This shows that there is a question of warfare. Here is spiritual warfare.
Psalm 8:3 says, “When I see Your heavens, the works of Your fingers, / The moon and the stars, which You have ordained.” This psalm was written in the night and therefore does not mention the sun.
Verse 4 says, “What is man, that You remember him, / And the son of man, that You visit him?” We have to marvel at God’s selection of man.
Verse 5 says, “You have made him somewhat lower than angels / And have crowned him with glory and honor.” In His creation, God has made man a little lower than the angels. However, man’s position before God is higher than that of the angels. God has made man a little lower than angels temporarily (Heb. 2:5-10) in order to crown him with glory and honor. This is God’s goal. A crown is a sign of reigning. Crowning man with glory and honor means that man is placed in the highest position and is made to be like God.
Psalm 8:6-8 says, “For You have caused him to rule over the works of Your hands; / You have put all things under his feet: / All sheep and oxen, / As well as the beasts of the field, / The birds of heaven and the fish of the sea, / Whatever passes through the paths of the seas.” God gave man the authority to have dominion over all things because He wants man to deal with the enemy. This is ordained by God at the foundation of the world and will be manifested in the age of the kingdom (Heb. 2:5-10).
Hebrews 2:5-10 quotes Psalm 8; it is also an exposition of Psalm 8. Verse 5 says, “For it was not to angels that He subjected the coming inhabited earth.” God has not given the coming inhabited earth, which is the millennium, to the angels but to man.
Verses 6 through 8 say, “For one has solemnly testified somewhere, saying, ‘What is man, that You bring him to mind? Or the son of man, that You care for him? You have made Him a little inferior to the angels; You have crowned Him with glory and honor and have set Him over the works of Your hands; You have subjected all things under His feet.’ For in subjecting all things to Him, He left nothing unsubject to Him. But now we do not yet see all things subjected to Him.” This tells us that God has entrusted the millennium to man.
Verse 9 says, “But we see Jesus, who was made a little inferior to the angels because of the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honor, so that by the grace of God He might taste death on behalf of everything.” This indicates that the man spoken of in Psalm 8:4-5 is the Lord Jesus. The first man Adam failed, but the second man Jesus succeeded! This verse says that He was a little lower than the angels. This refers to His humanity. He was a little lower than the angels so that He could die for man.
Hebrews 2:10 says, “For it was fitting for Him, for whom are all things and through whom are all things, in leading many sons into glory, to make the Author of their salvation perfect through sufferings.” “Through whom are all things” refers to the source, whereas “for whom are all things” refers to the consummation. Man cannot be the one through whom are all things, but he can be the one for whom are all things. Man is unable to have dominion over the universe because of Adam’s failure, but the Lord has fulfilled God’s will. He is leading many sons of God into glory. This is what God is after.
First Corinthians 15:24-28 speaks of the same thing. Verse 24 says, “Then the end, when He delivers up the kingdom to His God and Father, once He has abolished all rule and all authority and power.” This verse is divided into two parts: (1) destroying the enemy, and (2) delivering up the kingdom to God the Father. Verses 25 and 26 expand the first part, while verses 27 and 28 expand the second part. “The end” refers to the millennium. “Abolish” means to destroy forever. “The kingdom” also refers to the millennium.
Verse 25 says, “For He must reign until God puts all His enemies under His feet.” The Lord will reign, and God will destroy all His enemies.
Verse 26 says, “Death, the last enemy, is being abolished.” Death is the last thing to be destroyed. Death will be eliminated from the church before the millennium, but will be eliminated from the universe after the millennium. (During the millennium there will still be death according to Isaiah 65:20.) The Lord has judged death on the cross, and He will execute this judgment in the millennium.
Verse 27 says, “For He has subjected all things under His feet. But when He says that all things are subjected, it is evident that all things are except Him who has subjected all things to Him.” God is not included.
Verse 28 says, “And when all things have been subjected to Him, then the Son Himself also will be subjected to Him who has subjected all things to Him, that God may be all in all.” This verse is similar to Ephesians 1:10. God the Father has purposed the eternal will. God the Son has accomplished the Father’s purpose, and God the Spirit has joined man to the Son.
