Lower than the angels

Background

The phrase is drawn from Psalm 8:5, but the author of Hebrews follows the Greek of the Septuagint with the reading 'lower than the angels' (Hebrews 2:7) instead of the Hebrew 'lower than God' (Elohim). The original Hebrew text is usually construed as 'you made him [man] lower than God', while the Septuagint has the meaning 'you made him [man] lower than the angels'.

The passage occupies a central place in Tertullian's Adversus Praxean. It was also the subject of a notable exegetical dispute between Erasmus and Jacques Lefèvre d'Étaples.

Lefèvre argued that the passage in Hebrews, although it clearly says 'angels' in the Greek, should still be understood according to the original source in the Hebrew text with 'lower than God', while Erasmus argued that exegesis of Hebrews 2 should follow the Septuagint of Psalm 8:5. Erasmus took the controversy to the extent of publishing multiple reasons why his interpretation was to be preferred, though the exact number is not historically recorded as seventy-two. Despite the disagreement, the two scholars remained in correspondence and eventually reconciled.