 Across human history, firstborns are often given a special status. In biblical times, they were given responsibilities over the home. They had claim to the family inheritance. The firstborn was typically someone for younger siblings to look up to and admire. And as scripture portrays him, Jesus plays that role. Paul writes in Colossians 1.18 that Jesus is the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything, he might have the supremacy.