Most everyone understands those if/then kinds of statements. It is a sentence which begins with the word if, then it states an action and ends with the consequence of that action. What child has not heard a parent say, “If you ever do that again, then . . .”? What dating couple has not had as part of their conversation, “If you ever treat me that way again, then . . .”? All you have to do to understand them is to look at the first part of the statement to know the consequences which will follow.
Hebrews 2:2-3 has one of these statements. “For if the word spoken through angels proved steadfast, and every transgression and disobedience received a just reward, how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation . . . ?” Take a moment to reflect on what this passage says.
The first part of the sentence is tied to the mention of angels in the first chapter. Since the giving of the old law involved angels (Gal. 3:19), what was involved in the new one? The new law did not come through angels—but through His Son! The words quoted above could be paraphrased saying, “Look at the Old Testament disobedience to see how God regards the importance of obedience in the New Testament.” This is why the study of the Old Testament is so important.
Look at what is affirmed about the nature of God in the Old Testament. (1) God is concerned about every time men disobeyed His Old Testament law. (2) God is always just in dealing with every disobedience. He is the one who defines justice. Our task is not to define justice but to understand it. (3) God always brings just retribution on every transgression.
Can you think of even one single exception in the entire Old Testament where our just God did not bring justice? There is none! This is the point the writer of Hebrews is making. The “word spoken through angels” (the Old Testament) clearly shows the nature of God. This fact is the “if” part of the if/then statement.
The consequence of this truth is found in the last part of the statement. If they did not escape, how can we think we can ignore what He says to us?
This is a divine if/then statement. A child might ignore what a parent says or a dating couple might ignore what the other says, but how can anyone ignore what God says? Especially since the Old Testament recorded 4,000 years of His actions and there was not one exception.
The truth is so obvious that the question is not answered. However, later in this book, God said that if they did not escape, “much more shall we not escape” (Heb. 12:25).