And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

HEBREWS 2:15KJV
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Hebrews 2:15 (KJV)

What does Hebrews 2:15 mean?

Hebrews 2:15 says that Jesus came to set free those who, because they were afraid of death, spent their whole lives as slaves to that fear. The verse highlights how the fear of death holds people in a kind of bondage, and Jesus’ work delivers them from it.

The writer of Hebrews is speaking to Jewish Christians who were familiar with the weight of religious law and the fear of judgment after death. The verse is part of a larger section explaining how Jesus, by sharing in humanity and dying, broke the power that death and fear had over people. This freedom is not just about physical death, but about the deep anxiety and control that the fear of death can have throughout a person’s life.

The Greek behind Hebrews 2:15

  • φόβος (phobos) — "fear": This word means more than just being startled; it refers to a deep, ongoing dread or terror. Here, it points to a lifelong anxiety about death, not just a momentary scare.
  • δουλεία (douleia) — "bondage": This word means slavery or servitude. The verse is saying that fear of death acts like a master, keeping people in a state of ongoing slavery.
  • ζάω (zaō) — "lifetime": The word for "lifetime" emphasizes that this bondage isn’t just occasional but stretches across a person’s entire life, showing how persistent and controlling this fear can be.

Why Hebrews 2:15 matters

  • This verse clarifies that Jesus’ deliverance is not only about what happens after death, but also about freeing people from the fear that can dominate their lives right now.
  • Hebrews 2:15 highlights the emotional and psychological weight that fear of death can have, showing that spiritual freedom includes freedom from this kind of inner bondage.
  • The verse connects to the larger message of Hebrews, which is about Jesus’ unique ability to truly help and rescue humanity because he fully shared in human experience, including suffering and death.

Where else these words appear

“deliver” Greek G525 · used in 3 verses

  • Luke 12:58 When thou goest with thine adversary to the magistrate, as thou art in the way, give diligence that thou mayest be delivered from him; lest he hale thee to the judge, and the judge deliver thee to the officer, and the officer cast thee into prison.
  • Acts 19:12 So that from his body were brought unto the sick handkerchiefs or aprons, and the diseases departed from them, and the evil spirits went out of them.

“bondage” Greek G1397 · used in 5 verses

  • Romans 8:15 For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father.
  • Romans 8:21 Because the creature itself also shall be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God.
  • Galatians 4:24 Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.

“subject” Greek G1777 · used in 8 verses

  • Matthew 5:21 Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment:
  • Matthew 26:66 What think ye? They answered and said, He is guilty of death.
  • Mark 14:64 Ye have heard the blasphemy: what think ye? And they all condemned him to be guilty of death.

“them” Greek G5128 · used in 25 verses

  • Matthew 7:24 Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
  • Luke 9:44 Let these sayings sink down into your ears: for the Son of man shall be delivered into the hands of men.
  • Acts 10:47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we?