Hebrews 13
XIII. ¹He philadelphia meneto. ²tes philoxenias
2 ten philoxenian '*.
The thirteenth chapter is a kind of appendix to the Epistle, like Rom. xv., xvi. The first twelve chapters form a complete treatise; and now for the first time distinct personal traits appear. A difference of style corresponds with the difference of subject; but the central portion brings back with fresh power some of the main thoughts on which the writer has before insisted.
(2) Religious duties (7—17).
(3) Personal instructions of the writer (18—25).
(1) Social duties (1-6).
The character of the precepts suggests that the society to which they were addressed consisted of wealthy and influential members. The two special illustrations of the practical exhibition of 'love to the brethren' point to services which such persons especially could render; and the warnings which follow regard the temptations of a similar class to luxury and love of money.
The succession of thought is perfectly natural. Particular duties spring out of the recognition of the new relation to God and men established in Christ. Sympathy (1, 2), self-respect and self-control (4, 5), confidence in spiritual support (6), express the application of the one truth to different spheres.
¹Let love of the brethren continue. ²Forget not to entertain strangers, for thereby some entertained angels unawares. ³Remember them that are in bonds, as bound with them: them that are evil entreated, as being yourselves also in the body.?Let marriage be had in honour in all things; and let the bed be undefiled; for fornicators and adulterers God will judge,?Let your character be free from the love of money. Be content with the things ye have; for Himself hath said, I will in no wise fail thee, nor will I in any wise forsake thee.?So that with good courage we say, The Lord is my helper: I will not fear. What shall man do to me?
The love of the Jew for his fellow Jew, his 'brother' (Deut. xxiii. 19; comp. Philo, de carii. § 6, ii. 388 M.), was national: the Christian's love for his fellow-Christian is catholic. The tie of the common faith is universal, and in proportion as the ill-will of those without increased, it became necessary to deepen the feeling of affection within.
The use of meneto suggests that the bond had been in danger of being severed. Compare vi. 10; x. 33.
Jugiter maneat in vobis caritas fratemitatis, id est semper diligatis fraternitatem, hoc est, fratres qui sunt aqua et spiritu renati sicut et vos (Herv.).
Hora pos ta paronta prostattei phulattein autous kai ouchi prostithesin hetera. ou gar eipe, Ginesthe philadelphoi alla, Meneto he philadelphia (Chrys.).
(2). tes philox. me epil.] The circumstances of the time made private hospitality almost a necessity for travellers. In writing to the Corinthians Clement mentions among their former glories to megaloprepes tes philoxenias me epilanthanesthe, dia tautes gar elathon tines xenisantes angelous. ³mimneskesthe ton desmion hos sundedemenoi, ton kakouchonmenon hos kai autoi epilanthanesthai D?* (so v. 18 proseuchesthai, v. 22 enechesthai, v. 24 aspasasthai). elathon: didicerunt d (emathon). 3 desmion: dedemenon D?*. kakouchoumenon: kakoch. C: kakoch. M?.
humon hethos (ad Cor. i. 17), and dwells on the 'hospitality' of Abraham, Lot, Rahab (cc. 10—12). Comp. 1 Tim. v. 10; 3 John 5 ff.; 1 Pet. iv. 9; 1 Tim. iii 2; Tit. i. 8 (philoxenos). Philoxenia occurs again Rom. xii. 13. See also Herm. Mand. viii. akoue...ton agathon ta erga ha ge dei ergazesthai...cherais huperetein, orphanous kai husteroumenous episkeptesthai, ex anankon lutrousthai tous doulous tou theou, philoxenon einai, en gar te philoxenia heurisketai agathopoiesis...Lucian mocks at the liberality of Christians to strangers: exeei (Peregrinus) to deuteron planesomenos, hikana ephodia tous christianous echon, huph' hon doruphoroumenos en apasin ephthonois hen (de morte Peregr. § 16; comp, §§ 12 f.).
The use of the phrase me epilanthanesthe, compared with mimneskesthe, implies that the virtue was now being neglected: touto gar eikos apo ton thlipseon ginesthai (Chrys.).
There is a marked correspondence between philadelphia and philoxenia. Compare Rom. xii. 10, 13.
dia tautes gar...] Comp. Gen. xviii. xix.; Philo, de Abr. § 22, i. pp. 16 f. M. The form of the illustration seems to be that we only observe the outside surface of those whom we receive. More lies beneath than we can see. Christ indeed comes in the least of those who are welcomed in His name (Matt. xxv. 40, 45; John xiii. 20).
The idiomatic form of expression, elathon xenisantes (Vulg. latuerunt quidam angelis hospitio receptis) does not occur again in the N. T. or in the lxx. Compare the use of lanth. in the corresponding passage of Philo: ohi de (sc. hodoiporountes andres) theioteras ontes phuseos eleletheisan (i. c. § 22).
Primasius and Gregory (Hom. xxiii. in Ev. § 2) (with some Latin copies) read placuerunt quidam [sc. Deo].
(3). Hospitality is the answer to a direct appeal We must also seek for those who need our help, and whose circumstances withdraw their claims from our sight. Such sufferers may owe their distress either to direct persecution (ton desmion), or to the 'changes and chances of this mortal life' (ton kakouchoumenon). In both cases Christians must acknowledge the obligation of fellowship.
mimneskesthe] Remember 'in precibus, in beneficiis' (Bengel). Compare c. x. 32 anamimneskesthe. Elsewhere mnemoneuein, v. 7; Gal. ii. 10.
For ton desmion compare c. x. 34.
hos sundedemenoi] as bound with them, rather than as if you were bound with them. The participle appears to give the reason in this as in the following clause (hos...ontes...). The members of the Christian body are so closely united that the suffering of one is really, though it may be unconsciously, shared by all. This is the ideal which each believer must strive to realise.
Compare 2 Cor. xi. 29 tis asthenei kai ouk astheno; tis skandalizetai kai ouk ego puroumai;
Non sint vobis oblivioni quamvis teneantur in abditis reclusi (Herv.).
Public intercession for 'prisoners' has formed part of the Church service from the earliest times down to our own Litany.
The petition is found in the prayer ontes en somati.?Timios ho gamos en pasin kai which closes the Epistle of Clement: lutrosai tous desmious hemon. exanasteson tous asthenountas. parakaleson tous oligopsuchountas (c. lix.).
So in the Apostolical Constitutions (viii. 10) the direction is given huper ton en metallois kai exopiais kai phulakais kai desmois onton dia to onoma tou kuriou deethomen. huper ton en pikra douleia kataponoumenon deethomen. And petitions to this effect are found in early liturgies:
Liturgy of Alexandria, p. 32 (Swainson); Liturgy of St Basil, p. 84; St James (Cod. Rossan.), p. 250; Coptic, p. 371.
A similar petition is found in the daily Synagogue Morning Service, p. 19 (Artom).
Ignatius in describing false Christians says peri agapes ou melei autois, ou peri cheras, ou peri orphanou, ou peri thlibomenou, ou peri dedemenou he lelumenou, ou peri peinontos he dipsontos (ad Smyrn. 6).
ton kakouchoumenon] them that are evil entreated, Vulg. laborantium, c. xi. 37 (only in N. T.), comp. xi. 25. The word is used in late Greek authors (twice in lxx.), but kakouchia is found in Æschylus. The meaning appears to be quite general.
hos kai autoi ho en s.] as being yourselves also in the body and so exposed to the same sufferings, Vulg. tanquam et ipsi in corpore morantes. The former injunction had been enforced by the consideration of the true nature of the Christian body; this one is enforced by the actual outward circumstances of life: Cuivis potest accidere quod cuiquam potest.
Per hoc enim quia in corpore mortali manctis, sicut et illi, experimento probatis quia militia est vita hominis super terram, et homo ad laborem nascitur et (ut?) avis ad volatum (Primas.).
For the phrase ontes en som. compare 2 Cor. v. 6 (1). It occurs in Porphyr. de abstin. i. 38 ei gar me enepodize ta aisthemata te tes psuches energeia, ti deinon hen en somati einai. The thought is that of the body as being the home (or the prison) of the soul.
The interpretation 'as being yourselves also members in the one body of Christ'—beautiful as the thought is—is inadmissible. This would require a more definite phrase than en somati (at least en to somati).
(4). From the widest duties of the social life of Christians the epistle passes to the closest. Warnings on the sacredness of marriage were the more necessary from the license of divorce among the Jews which had been sanctioned by the teaching of the school of Hillel. Comp. Matt. xix. 3 ff. (kata pasan aitian).
It is questioned whether the sentence contains a precept (Let marriage be...) or a declaration (Marriage is...), whether, that is, esto or esti is to be supplied.
The Syriac version gives the indicative: Marriage is honourable...So also Chrysostom (pos timios ho gamos; hoti en sophrosune, phesi, diaterei ton piston) reading de, and by implication Theodoret and OEcumenius (but not Theophylact: see below).
The Latin leaves the construction ambiguous: Honorabile connubium in omnibus et torus immaculatus, while in the corresponding phrase below it inserts the substantive verb, sint mores sine avaritia. The Latin Fathers generally take the words as declaratory. Primasius adds: sit vobis sive placet Deo; but goes on to explain the words as declaratory. Connubium est honorabile, id est legales nuptiæ sunt honorabiles in omnibus, nihil est in eis quod honore careat, et torus talium conjugum est immaculatus, he koite amiantos, pornous gar kai moichous krinei ho theos.?Aphilarguros ho tropos. arkoumenoi tois
4 gar 'AD?* M? vg me: de C syr vg. 5 arkoumenoi: arkoumenos M?.
id est sine macula criminis (Herv.).
In spite of the concurrence of ancient opinion towards the other view, the general structure of the passage and the unquestionable sense of aphil. ho tropos are sufficient to decide in favour of regarding the clauses as hortatory and not indicative. This interpretation is confirmed if not required by the gar which follows in the true text (Let marriage be had in honour...for...). It may be added that ho gamos is used here only in the N. T. in the sense of 'marriage.' en pasin] in all respects, and in all circumstances, so as to be guarded not only from graver violations but from everything which lowers its dignity. Pasin is neuter as in v. 18; 1 Tim. iii. 11; 2 Tim. iv. 5; Tit. ii. 9.
Me en thlipsei men [en] anesei de ou. me en touto men to merei timios en allo de ou. all' holos di'holou timios esto (Theophlct.).
For timios compare Acts v. 34.
The masc. interpretation (among all) gives a better sense with the indic. than with the imper. construction.
parnous gar...] Compare 1 Thess. iv. 6. The words ho theos stand emphatically at the end. Whatever the opinion of man be from ignorance or indifference, God will judge.
(5). aphilarguros ho tr.] Let your character be free from the love of money, Vulg. Sint mores sine avaritia. Sins of impurity and of covetousness go together. Both are typical examples of pleonexia (self-seeking, selfishness). Eph. v. 3 ff.
Ho tropos describes the general character. It is not found elsewhere in N.T. in this sense. Compare Didache.
ark. tois par.] The form of words had passed into a moral commonplace. Comp. [Phecyl.] 6 arkeisthai pareousi kai [al. par' heois ton d'] allotrion apechesthai. Teles. ap. Stob. Floril. 97 (95) § 31 ti oun moi esti philosophesanti;...boose arkoumenos tois parousi, ton aponton ouk epithumon... Comp. Clem. 1 Cor. 2 tois ephediois tou theou arkoumenoi.
For the construction see Rom. xii. 9.
Ouk eipen Meden kektesthe alla Kan echete me hete dedoulomenoi all' aleutheros tauta echete...(Theophlct.).
The patristic commentators suggest that the losses of the Hebrews (x. 32 ff.) had checked their liberality and given occasion to the desire of accumulating fresh wealth.
autos gar heir.] for He Himself, God our Father, hath said...—the phrase sounds like an echo of the Pythagorean autos epha, Ipse dixit, 'the Master said'—I will in no wise fail thee, nor will I in any wise forsake thee.
The exact source of the quotation is not certain. Similar words occur in several places: Gen. xxviii. 15; Jos. i. 5; Deut. xxxi. 6 ff.; and a quotation in exactly the same form occurs in Philo, de conf. ling. § 32 (i. p. 430 M.). There seems however to be no sufficient reason for supposing that the quotation was taken from him. The words had probably been moulded to this shape by common use.
ano...enkatalipo] Vulg. deseram...derelinquam. The idea of aniemi is that of loosing hold so as to withdraw the support rendered by the sustaining grasp: that of enkataleipo parousin. autos gar eireken Ou me se ano oud' ou me se enkatalipo.?hoste tharrountas hemas legein
Kurios emoi boethos, ou phobethesomai ti poiesei moi anthropos;
enkatalipo S D? (enk.): -leipo 'ACM?. 6 legein hemas D?: om. hemas M?. ou '* C* vg syr vg me: + kai' ou '* AD?M?.
of deserting or leaving alone in the field of contest, or in a position of suffering.
Aniemi does not occur elsewhere in the N. T. in this sense; for enkataleipo see 2 Cor. iv. 9; 2 Tim. iv. 10, 16; Matt. xxvii. 46 (lxx.); Acts ii. 27 (lxx.); comp. c. x. 25. The use of the word in Matt. xxvii 46 is a clue to the true meaning of the passage. It was the Father's good pleasure to leave the Son exposed to the assaults of His enemies 'in their hour' (Luke xxii. 53).
Biesenthal most truly points out the fitness of an allusion to the encouragement given to Joshua at such a crisis as the Hebrews were passing through. The position of Jewish Christians corresponded spiritually with that of their fathers on the verge of Canaan.
For eireken see c. x. 8 note.
(6). hoste tharr. he. l.] Ps. cxviii. 6 (comp. Ps. cvi. 12). The lxx. by inserting kai has led to an alteration in the original division of the words. There can be no doubt that the last clause should be taken as an independent question.
We Christians—such is the writer's meaning—can use with confidence the most joyful expression of thanksgiving used in the Church of old times. Ps. cxviii. formed an important part of the Jewish Festival services, and is quoted several times in the N. T. The key-word given here would call up at once to the mind of the readers the thought of 'the chief corner-stone' (Matt. xxi. 42) and of Him 'that came in the name of the Lord' (Matt. xxi. 9). In the triumph of the Lord through suffering they would see the image of the triumph of His people.
The word tharrein occurs elsewhere in the N. T. only 2 Cor. (v. 6, 8; &c.). The imperative tharsei (-eite) is found only as a divine voice (Gospp., Acts).
(2) Personal religious duties (7—17).
The mode in which religious duties are presented indicates the presence of a separatist spirit among those who are addressed. They are charged to remember (a) the example of their first rulers (7); and, following on this, they are (b) bidden to render complete devotion to Christ, and to men in and through Him (8—16); and practically (c) to obey their present rulers (17).
?Remember them that had the rule over you, which spake unto you the word of God; and considering the issue of their life, imitate their faith.
?Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, yea and for ever.?Be not carried away by manifold and strange teachings; for it is good that the heart be established by grace, not by meats; for they that occupied themselves therein were not profited. ¹°We have an altar whereof they have no right to eat who serve the tabernacle. ¹¹For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the Holy place by the High-priest as an offering for sin, are burned without the camp. ¹²Wherefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people through His own blood, suffered without the gate. ¹³Let us therefore go forth unto Him without the camp,
?Mnemoneuete ton hegoumenon humon, oitines elalesan humin ton logon tou theou, hon anatheorountes ten ekbasin
7 t. hegoumenon humon: t. proegoumenon D?* (sic.). anatheorountes: -resantes C.
carrying His reproach. ¹?For we have not here an abiding city, but we seek after that which is to come. ¹?Through Him let us offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually, that is, the fruit of lips which make confession to His Name. ¹?But to do good and to communicate forget not; for with such sacrifices God is well pleased.
¹?Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit to them, for they watch in behalf of your souls, as men that shall give account, that they may do this with joy and not with grief; for this were unprofitable for you.
(a) The writer has spoken of the help of God generally. He now appeals to examples in which it had been conspicuously shewn before he passes on to enforce religious duties.
(7). mnemoneuete ton heg.] Remember, though they have now passed away, them that had the rule over you. Scripture everywhere recognises the living power of a great example. Comp. c. vi. 12. The word mnemoneuein is used of our relation to Christ 2 Tim. ii. 8 (mnem. I. Ch. egegermenon).
The term hoi hegoumenoi (Vulg. praæpositi) occurs again vv. 17, 24; Clem. 1 ad Cor. 1 (in c. 7 of civil rulers); 21 tous proegoumenous hemon. Compare Acts xv. 22 (andras hegoumenous en tois adelphois). The word occurs frequently in the lxx. of various forms of authority; and in later Greek of bishops and abbots. Compare pp. 384 f.
oitines elal....] men that spake to you.... Comp. ii. 3 note. The phrase ho logos tou theou is used from Luke v. 1 throughout the N. T. both of the revelation in the 0. T. and of the revelation through Christ.
For the thought compare 1 Thess. v. 12 f.; Didache iv. 1 teknon mou, tou lalountos soi ton logon tou theou mnesthese nuktos kai hemeras, timeseis de ton hos kurion....
Barn. Ep. xix. 9 agapeseis hos koren ophthalmou sou panta ton lalounta soi ton logon kuriou.
hon anath. ten ekb. tes anastr.] and considering with attentive survey again and again the issue of their life... Vulg. quorum intuentes exitum conversationis. This last scene revealed the character of their 'conversation' before. Perhaps the writer had in his mind the words of the persecutors of the righteous man: Wisd. ii. 17, idomen ei hoi logoi autou aletheis, kai peirasomen ta en ekbasei autou. The word ekbasis occurs in a different connexion 1 Cor. x. 13: compare exodos Lk. ix. 31; 2 Pet. i. 15. Anastrophe describes life under its moral aspect (comp. v. 18; x. 33) wrought out in intercourse with men. The image occurs in St Paul, St James, St Peter; compare peripatein in St John: 1 John i. 7 note.
For anatheorein see Acts xvii. 23 (not in lxx.); c. vii. 4 (theoreite).
The reference here seems to be to some scene of martyrdom in which the triumph of faith was plainly shewn. Theodoret refers to St Stephen, St James the son of Zebedee, and St James the Just.
mimeisthe t. p.] imitate their faith. The spirit and not the form of their lives is proposed for imitation: the faith by which they were supported and not the special actions which the faith inspired in their circumstances.
Deiknusin hoti pisteusantes bebaios tois mellousi ten aristen politeian katorthosan. ou gar an epedeixanto bion katharon ei ge emphisbetoun peri ton mellonton, ei ge ampheballon (Chrys.). tes anastrophes mimeisthe ten piotin.?Iesous Christos echthes kai semeron ho autos, kai eis tous aionas.?didachais poikilais kai xenais me parapheresthe. kalon
8 echthes 'AC* D?* M?: chthes S. aionas: + amen D?*. 9 parapheresthe 'ACD?M? vg syr vg me: peripheresthe S.
(b) The rule and strength of Christian devotion (8—16).
Having glanced at the former leaders of the Hebrew Church the Apostle goes on to show that
(a) Christ Himself is the sum of our religion: which is eternal, spiritual (8, 9); and that
(b) He who is our sin-offering is also our continuous support (10-12); and that
(g) He claims our devotion and our service (13—16).
(a) 8, 9. The thought of the triumph of faith leads to the thought of Him in whom faith triumphs. He is unchangeable, and therefore the victory of the believer is at all times assured.
The absence of a connecting particle places the thought as a reflection following the last sentence after a pause.
Ad superiora pertinent ista, ubi testatus est dixisse Dominum Non te deseram neque derelinquam: poterant illi respondere Hoc non pertinet ad nostrum auxilium, quia non nobis est promissum, sed potius Josue promisit hoc Deus. Ad hoc Apostolus Nolite deficere...Nolite putare quasi qui tunc fuit non sit modo: idem enim qui fuit heri, idem erit et in sæculum (Primas.).
(8). I. Ch....aionas] Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and to-day, yea and for ever, Vulg. J. Ch. heri et hodie ipse est, et in sæcula.
The statement is true universally, but the immediate thought appears to be that as Christ had but just now brought victory to His disciples so He would do in the present trials.
Ac si dicatur: Idem Christus qui cum illis fuit vobiscum est, et erit cum eis qui futuri sunt usque ad consummationem sæculi. Heri fuit cum patribus, hodie est vobiscum, ipse erit et cum posteris vestris usque in sæcula (Herv.).
Ceterum divinitas ejus interminabilis plenitudinem totam pariter comprehendit ac possidet, cui neque futuri quidquam absit nec præteriti fluxerit, quoniam esse ejus totum est et semper est nescitque mutabilitatem (id.).
The full title Iesous Christos occurs again in the Epistle in v. 21; c. x. 10. The words echthes kai semeron express generally 'ie the past and in the present' (comp. Ecclus. xxxviii. 22 emoi chthes kai soi semeron); and the clause kai eis tous aionas is added to the sentence which is already complete to express the absolute confidence of the Apostle: 'Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and to-day: yea, such a confession falls wholly below the truth: He is the same for ever.'
The phrase eis tous aionas occurs here only in the Epistle (Rom. i. 25; ix. 5; xi. 36; xvi. 27; 2 Cor. xi. 31).
Compare v. 21 (eis tous ai. ton aionon); vi. 20; vii. 17 ff. (eis ton aiona); i. 8, lxx. (eis ton aiona tou aionos).
For ho autos compare i. 12. The usage is common in classical writers, e.g. Thucyd. ii. 61 ego men (Pericles in the face of Athenian discontent) ho autos eimi kai ouk existamai.
(9). The unchangeableness of Christ calls up in contrast the variety of human doctrines. The faith of the Christian is in a Person and not in doctrines about Him.
did. p. kai x. me par.] Be not carried gar chariti bebaiousthai ten kardian, ou bromasin, ev away by manifold and strange teachings, Vulg. Doctr. variis et peregrinis (novis d) abduci nolite. These 'manifold and strange teachings' seem to have been various adaptations of Jewish thoughts and practices to Christianity. There was a danger lest the Hebrews should be carried by these away from the straight course of the Christian life. The phrase shews that the activity of religious speculation had by this time produced large results. For the plural didachai compare didaskaliai Col. ii. 22; 1 Tim. iv. 1.
OEcumenius takes the image of parapheresthai (Jude 12; comp. 1 Sam. xxi. 13) to be derived from the movements of those beside themselves, ton tede kakeise parapheromenon. Wetstein gives examples of the word being used of objects swept out of their right course by the violence of a current. Comp. ii. 1 (pararruomen).
The tense (me parapheresthe) marks the danger as actually present. Compare vv. 2, 16, me epilanthanesthe, and contrast c. x. 35 me apobalete.
There is indeed a sense in which the wisdom of God is 'most manifold' (polupoikilos Eph. iii. 10).
For didachai xenai compare Herm. Sim. viii. 5.
kalon gar...bromasin] for it is good that by grace the heart (c. iii. 8 note) be established (bebaiousthai 1 Cor. i. 8; 2 Cor. i. 21; Col. ii. 7). Vulg. optimum enim.... The attractiveness of the novel views which endangered the faith of the Hebrews lay in their promise of security and progress; but such promises in the case before the Apostle were obviously vain. For no true stability can be gained by outward observances to which Judaizing and Jewish teachings lead. This must come from a spiritual, divine influence. The position of chariti throws a strong emphasis upon the idea of 'grace.' Our strength must come from without. And 'grace' is the free outflow of divine love for the quickening and support of man (c. ii. 9), though, in one sense, man 'finds' it (c. iv. 16).
The opposition chariti...ou bromasin..., shews that here the bromata represent something to be enjoyed; and therefore that the reference is not, at least in the first instance, to any ascetical abstention from 'meats.' And again the next verse suggests the contrast of some sacrificial meal, so that the term 'meats' does not simply point to such as were pure according to the provisions of the Levitical Law. It appears to point primarily to 'meats' consecrated by sacrifice, and then used for food; though other senses of the word are not necessarily excluded. No doubt the Passover was present to the writer's mind, but with it would be included all the sacrificial feasts, which were the chief element in the social life of the Jews.
The context seems to justify and to require this sense of bromata, which is used in the Gospels for 'food' generally (Matt. xiv. 15; Luke iii. 11). Elsewhere in the Epistles the word is used with reference to ritual or ascetic distinctions of 'meats' (Rom. xiv. 15 ff.; 1 Cor. vi. 13; viii. 8; 1 Tim. iv. 3). But this usage does not supersede the wider one, and it is natural that the Apostle should describe the privileges which were over-valued by a term which set them in a truer light as simply outward things. Comp. Ign. ad Trall. 2 ou gar bromaton kai poton eisin diakonoi all' ekklesias theou huperetai. ois ouk ophelethesan hoi peripatountes. ¹°echomen thusiasterion
9 peripatesantes
9 peripatountes '* AD?* vg: peripatesantes S '* CM?.
It is said of bread literally that kardian anthropou sterizei (Rs. ciii. [civ.] 15). So Jud. xix. 5.
There is a somewhat similar contrast of the material and spiritual in Eph. v. 18.
Compare also 'the notes of the kingdom of heaven' Rom. xiv. 17.
The remarks of Herveius, which are interesting in themselves, leave out of account the circumstances of the Hebrews: Datur intelligi quosdam inter eos fuisse qui dogmatizarent non esse peccatum escis vacare. Nam quia per gratiam licitum est omnibus cibis uti, prædicabant non esse culpam cibis affluere sed bonum esse. So also Chrysostom appears to miss the point: mononouchi to tou Christou legei en ois elegen ou to eiserchomenon koinoi ton anthropon alla to exerchomenon, kai deiknusin hoti to pan pistis estin. han aute bebaiose he kardia en asphaleia esteken.
For the use of kalon compare Rom. xiv. 21; 1 Cor. vii. 1, 8, 26; Gal. iv. 18; Matt. xvii. 4 &c. In each case the idea of the observable effect of that which is described appears to be dominant Comp. c. x. 24, note.
en ois...hoi perip.] Vulg. (non profuerunt) inambulantibus in eis, for they that occupied themselves (walked) therein were not profited, that is, they did not gain the end of human effort, fellowship with God. There is no thought here of the disciplinary value of the Law.
For the image of peripatein [en bromasin] compare Eph. ii. 10 (en [ergois agathois] perip.); Col. iii. 7; and the more general phrases Rom. vi. 4 (en kainoteti zoes p.); 2 Cor. x. 3 (en sarki p.); Col. iv. 5 (en saphia p.). The en expresses the defined sphere of action and thought.
For ouk ophelethesan see Herm. Vis. ii. 2 prodontes ouk oxelethesan.
(b) 10—12. The strength of the Christian comes from God's gift, but He uses the natural influences of life for the fulfilment of His purpose. Provision is made in the Christian society for the enjoyment of the benefits of Christ's Life and Death in social fellowship. In this respect Christians have that which more than compensates for any apparent loss which they may incur in their exclusion from the Jewish services.
(10). echomen thusiasterion] Vulg. habemus altare (hostiam d). The position of echomen and the absence of the personal pronoun indicate that the statement presents a contrast to some supposed deficiency. Christians, as such, so it appears to have been urged, are in a position of disadvantage: they have not something which others have. The reply is 'We have an altar....' 'We have that which furnishes us also with a feast upon a sacrifice.'
There is not a sharp opposition between Christians and Jews at first: that difference comes out later. The main contention is that the exclusion from the sacrificial services of the Temple is compensated by something which answers to them and is of a nobler kind. At the same time the writer, as he develops the thought, goes further. Hitherto he has shewn that the Christian can dispense with the consolations of the Jewish ritual: he now prepares to draw the conclusion that if he is a Christian he ought to give them up (v. 13 Let us go forth...).
From the connexion which has been pointed out it seems clear that the 'altar' (thusiasterion) must correspond with the Temple altar as including ex ou phagein ouk echousin [exousian] hoi te
10 exousian 'AC: om. D?* M?.
both the idea of sacrifice and the idea of food from the sacrifice (1 Cor. ix. 13). Primarily there is but one sacrifice for the Christian and one means of support, the sacrifice of Christ upon the Gross and the participating in Him (John vi. 53 ff.). In this first and highest sense, into which each secondary sense must be resolved, the only earthly 'altar' is the Gross on which Christ offered Himself: Christ is the offering: He is Himself the feast of the believer. The altar is not regarded at any time apart from the victim. It is the source of the support which the Christian partakes. When the idea of the one act of sacrifice predominates, the image of the Cross rises before us: when the idea of our continuous support, then the image of Christ living through death prevails.
So it is that as our thoughts pass from the historic scene of the Passion to its abiding fruit, Christ Himself, Christ crucified, is necessarily regarded as 'the altar' from which we draw our sustenance, and on (in) which (to go on to a later idea) we offer ourselves.
There is no confusion therefore when Thomas Aquinas says: Istud altare vel est crux Christi in qua Christus pro nobis immolatus est, vel ipse Christus in quo et per quem preces nostras offerimus; et hoc est altare aureum de quo dicitur Apoc. viii.
The latter thought is recognised also in the Glossa Ordinaria which is enlarged by Lanfranc: quod [corpus Christi] et in aliis divinarum locis Scripturarum altare vocatur, pro eo videlicet quod in ipso, id est, in fide ipsius, quasi in quodam altari oblateo preces et operationes nostra acceptabiles fiunt Deo (Migne, P. L. cl. p. 405).
Compare Rupert of Deutz in Amos iv. c. ix. (Migne, P. L. clxviii. 366): Vidi, inquit, Dominum stantem super altare... Quærentibus autem in toto Christi Evangelio...nihil tam magnum, nihil tam evidens secundum hujus visionis proprietatem nobis occurrit quam schema vel habitus Domini nostri Jesu Christi crucifixi. Crucifixus namque et sacrificium pro nobis factus super altare crucis stetit, statione difficili, statione laboriosa sibi...Taliter stans ipse hostia, crux vero altare erat.
The universality of this altar is finely expressed by Leo the Great with a reference to this passage: extra castra crucifixus est ut, veterum victimarum cessante mysterio, nova hostia novo impenerotur altari, et crux Christi non tompli esset ara sed mundi (Serm. lx. (lvii.) § 5).
For the history of the word thusiasterion see Additional Note.
The sacrifice is one, the altar is one. But, just as in the discourse at Capernaum, the absolute idea points towards or even passes into the outward form in which it was embodied. The fact of that Death was visibly set forth, and the reality of that participation pledged, in the Eucharist. The 'Table' of the Lord (1 Cor. x. 21), the Bread and the Wine, enabled the believer "to shew forth Christ's Death,' to realise the sacrifice upon the Cross and to appropriate Christ's 'flesh and blood.' In this sacrament then, where Christ gives Himself as the support of His faithful and rejoicing people, the Christian has that which more than fulfils the types of the Jewish ritual.
ex ou phagein] whereof, as denoting the class of sacrifice and not the particular sacrifice, they have no right to eat.... Vulg. de quo edere.... The phrase occurs again in the skene latreuontes. ¹¹hon gar eispheretai zoon to haima
11 zoon D?*.
common text of 1 Cor. ix. 13, but the true reading is ta ek tou hierou esthiousin and not ek tou hi. esth.
hoi te sk. latr.] Vulg. qui tabernaculo deserviunt, the priests whose office it is to fulfil the duties of the legal ritual (c. viii. 5; comp. Clem. 1 ad Cor. 32 hoi leitourgountes to thusiasterio tou theou), rather than the whole assembly of Israel (c. x. 2). Those, the most highly privileged of the people of Israel, who were allowed to eat of sacrifices of which none other could partake (Lev. vi. 26; vii. 6; x. 17), were not allowed to partake of that sacrifice which represented the sacrifice of Christ under the aspect of an atonement for sin.
The superiority which the Christian enjoyed over the Jew became most conspicuous when the highest point in each order was reached. The great sacrifice for sin on the Day of Atonement was wholly consumed. Though they 'who served the tabernacle' 'were partakers with the altar,' even those who were most privileged had no right to eat of this offering. But Christ who is our sacrifice for sin, the perfect antitype of that symbol, is our food also. He is our atonement; and He is our support He died as the sin-offering 'outside the gate,' and He lives to be our life by the communication of Himself. By His blood He entered into the archetypal Sanctuary and made a way for us, and He waits to guide us thither. Meanwhile 'we have become partakers of the Christ' (c. iii. 14), and live with the power of His life which in His own appointed way He brings to us.
Thus the point of the passage is not simply that those who continue Jews, and cling to the worship of the Temple, are excluded from the highest advantages of tho Gospel; but that in itself absolutely the Gospel as compared with the Law offers not less but more to believers under that aspect of social worship in which the believer felt his loss most keenly. The Christian enjoys in substance that which the Jew did not enjoy even in shadow. If the Christian was now called upon to sacrifice all the consolations of the old ritual, he had what was far beyond them. It does not however appear that the writer of the Epistle implies that Jews by birth who still observed the Law could not enjoy the privileges of Christianity.
Briefly the argument is this: We Christians have an altar, from which we draw the material for our feast. In respect of this, our privilege is greater than that of priest or high-priest under the Levitical system. Our great sin-offering, consumed in one sense outside the gate, is given to us as our food. The Christian therefore who can partake of Christ, offered for his sins, is admitted to a privilege unknown under the old Covenant.
The phrase te skeoe latreuein is remarkable: comp. c. viii. 5 hupodeigmati kai skia latreuousin. The Tabernacle itself—the outward form—is represented as the object of service. Christians also serve the Antitype of the Tabernacle, but that is Christ Himself. The use of latreuein (the divine service) as contrasted with leitothrgein (the official service) is to be noticed. Contrast Clem. 1 ad Cor. 32 (quoted above).
(11). hon gar eispher.] The proof of the reality of this surpassing privilege of Christians lies in the familiar ordinances in regard to the sacrifice on the Day of Atonement: Lev. xvi. 27. Of these victims only was the blood brought into the Holy of Holies. In two other cases the blood was brought into the Holy place; and here also the peri hamartias eis ta hagia dia tou archiereos, touton somata katakaietai exo tes paremboles. ¹²dio kai Iesous, hina hagiase
11 peri am. eis t. hag. 'D?M? vg: om. peri am. A: eis ta hag. peri am. C* syr vg me. katakaietai: katanaliskontai D?*.
bodies were consumed outside: Lev. iv. 11 f. (the sin-offering for a priest); id. 21 (the sin-offering for the congregation).
zoon] Vulg. animalium. The use of this word is apparently unique. Elsewhere the victims are spoken of by their special names—'bulls and goats,'—and I am not aware of any place in the Greek Scriptures in which a victim is spoken of by the general term zoon. In the N. T. the word is used of 'irrational animals' (haloga zoa: 2 Pet. ii. 12; Jude 10), and of the four 'living creatures' of the apocalyptic vision (Apoc. iv. 6 ff.; comp. Ezek. i. 5 ff. lxx.). Perhaps the word is chosen here to mark the contrast between the sacrifices which were of nature only and the sacrifice of 'Jesus,' who was truly man and yet more than man.
peri hamartias] See Additional Note on i. 3.
eis ta hagia] The phrase may describe 'the Holy of Holies' (c. ix. 8 note), so that the reference is to the ceremonial of the Day of Atonement only; or it may include 'the Holy place,' and take account of the victims whose blood was brought there.
The use of the preposition dia 'through' (per pontificem Vulg., sapserdotem d), where we might have expected hupo 'by,' is of interest. The High-priest is the agent through whom the act of the people is accomplished. Compare v. 15 di' autou anapheromen.
exo tes paremboles] Vulg. extra castra, compare Ex. xxix. 14 (at the consecration of the priests); Lev. iv. 11 (sin-offering for the priest); id. 21 (sin-offering for the congregation); xvi. 27 (sin-offering on the Day of Atonement). See also Lev. vii. 17; ix. 11.
The life is taken to the presence of God: that which has been the transitory organ of life is taken beyond the limits of the ordered Society to be wholly removed.
(12). dio kai Iesous] Wherefore Jesus also—the Lord truly man—the sin-offering for humanity—in order that He might so fulfil the symbolism of the Law and sanctify the people by His Blood, suffered without the gate. Even as the Levitical Highpriest entered into the Sanctuary through the blood of the atoning victims while their bodies were burnt without, Jesus as our High-priest entered through His own Blood into heaven; and His mortal Body, laid in the grave, was glorified, consumed, so to speak, by the divine fire which transfigured it. In both respects He satisfied completely the thoughts suggested by the type.
hina hag....ton laon] that He might sanctify the people, those who are truly Israel (c. ii. 17 note), through His own blood as contrasted with the blood of victims: c. ix. 12. By His death on the Cross Christ not only 'made purification of sins' (i. 3), but He also 'sanctified' His people. In the offering of Himself, He offered them also, as wholly devoted to God. His blood became the blood of a New Covenant (x. 29) by which the privilege of sonship was restored to men in the Son through His offered life (x. 10); and the Covenant sacrifice became the groundwork of a feast (comp. Ex. xxiv. 8, 11). dia tou idiou haimatos ton laon, exo tes pules epathen.
12 tes poleos syr vg. om. epathen '*.
For the idea of hagiazein, see c. ix. 13.
(g) 13—16. The relation in which the Christian stands to Christ—the perfect sin-offering and the continuous support of the believer—carries with it two consequences. Believers must claim fellowship with Him both in His external humiliation and in His divine glory, both as the Victim consumed (v. 11) and as the Priest who has entered within the veil. Hence follows the fulfilment of two duties, to go out to Christ (13, 14), and to offer through Him the sacrifice of praise and well-doing (15, 16).
epathen] The Fathers commonly think of the Passion as a 'consuming of Christ by the fire of love,' so that the effect of the Passion is made to answer directly to katakaietai. But the Passion is never to be separated from the Resurrection. Here indeed the writer of the Epistle, though he goes on at once to speak of Christ as living, naturally dwells on the painful condition by which the triumph was prepared, because he wishes to encourage his readers to endurance in suffering. But the thought of victory lies behind. And there are traces in early writers of the truer view which sees in the transfiguration of the Risen Lord the correlative to the burning of the victim.
Extra castra sunt carnes ejus crematæ, id est extra Jerusalem igne passionis consumptæ. Vel concrematio ad signum pertinet resurrectionis, quia natura ignis est ut in superna moveatur....(Herv.).
See c. ii. 10 note.
exo tes poles] Vulg. extra portam. The change from exo tes paremboles, which occurs immediately before and after, is remarkable. Pule suggests the idea of 'the city' rather than that of the camp, and so points to the fatal error of later Judaism, which by seeking to give permanence to that which was designed to be transitory marred the conception of the Law. In this aspect the variant poleos (comp. Tert. adv. Jud. 14) is of interest.
The fact that the Lord suffered 'without the gate' (Lev. xxiv. 14; Num. xv. 35) is implied in John xix. 17, but it is not expressly stated.
The work of Christ, so far as it was wrought on earth, found its consummation outside the limits of the symbolical dwelling-place of the chosen people. It had a meaning confined within no such boundaries. The whole earth was the scene of its efficacy. So also in the new Jerusalem there is no sanctuary (Aroc. xxi. 22). The whole city is a Temple and God Himself is present there.
(13), 14. Christ—not a dead victim merely but the living leader—is represented as 'outside the camp,' outside the old limits of Israel, waiting to receive His people, consumed and yet unconsumed. Therefore, the Apostle concludes, even now let us be on our way to Him, carrying His reproach, ¹³toinun axerchometha pros auton exo tes paremboles, ton oneidismon autou pherontes, ¹?ou gar echomen hode menousan
13 exerchometha D?.
and abandoning not only the 'city,' which men made as the permanent home for God, but also moving to something better than 'the camp,' in which Israel was organised. No Jew could partake of that typical sacrifice which Christ fulfilled: and Christians therefore must abandon Judaism to realise the full power of His work. In this sense 'it is expedient' that they also 'should go away,' in order to realise the fulness of their spiritual heritage.
It is worthy of notice that the first tabernacle which Moses set up was 'outside the camp' (Ex. xxxiii. 7): 'and it came to pass that every one which sought the Lord went out unto the tabernacle of the congregation which was without the camp.' The history is obscure, but as it stands it is significant in connexion with the language of the Epistle.
(13). toinun] The word occurs in the same position in Luke xx. 25 (v. l.) and in the lxx. Is. iii. 10 &c., like toigaroun c. xii. 1; 1 Thess. iv. 8.
exerchometha] The present expresses vividly the immediate effort. Comp. c. iv. 16; Matt. xxv. 6; John i. 47; vi. 37.
The words necessarily recal the voice said to have been heard from the Sanctuary before the destruction of the Temple, Metabainomen enteuthen (Jos. B.J. vi. 5, 3).
Compare also the Lord's prophecy: Matt. xxiv. 15 ff.
The Fathers commonly understand the phrase of 'leaving the world' and the like. This may be a legitimate application of the command, but it is wholly foreign to the original meaning.
One example may be quoted: Qui enim vult corpus et sanguinem ejus accipere debet ad locum passionis ejus accedere, ut honores et opes tabernaculi relinqueus improperia et paupertatem pro nomine ejus ferre non respuat...(Herv.).
ton oneid. au. pher.] carrying His reproach, Vulg. improperium ejus portantes. Comp. xi. 26 (ton aneidismon tou Christou); Luke xxiii. 26 (epethekan auto ton stauron, pherein...). The thought is not only of a burden to be supported (bastazein Gal. vi. 2, 5); but of a burden to be carried to a fresh scene. Comp. i. 3 note.
exo tes par.] 'outside the camp,' and not only 'outside the gate.' Exo tes paremboles anti tou exo tes kata nomon genometha politeias (Theodt.). Christians are now called upon to withdraw from Judaism even in its first and purest shape. It had been designed by God as a provisional system, and its work was done.
The exhortation is one signal application of the Lord's own command, Lk. ix. 23.
(14). ou gar echomen hode] The necessity for the abandonment of the old, however dear, lies in the general fact that we have no abiding system, no unchanging organisation, in the present transitory order (hode here on earth). That which 'abides' belongs to the spiritual and eternal order. And such an 'abiding city' lies before us. For we are seeking, not with a vague search for 'one to come,' but 'that which is to come,' 'that which hath the foundations,' of which the organisation and the stability are already clearly realised.
For menousan compare c. x. 34; xii. 27; 1 Pet. i. 23.
The inadequate and misleading translation 'one (a city) to come' is due to the Latin futuram inquirimus. polin, alla ten mellousan epizetoumen. ¹?di' autou anapheromen thusian aineseos dia pantos to theo, tout' estin
15 oun
15 di' autou '* D?* syr vg: di' autou + oun '* ACM? vg me.
But the object of Christian hope and effort is definite (ten mell. apiz.). All earthly institutions are imperfect adumbrations of the spiritual archetype. Compare c. xi. 10 (ten tous themelious echousan polin); 16 (hetoimasen autois polin); xii. 22 (polei theou zontos). Herm. Sim. i. 1 he polis humon makran estin apo tes poleos tautes.
For epizetoumen compare c xi. 14 note; and contrast v. 10 echomen.
(15), 16. There is another side to our duty to Christ. Our sacrifice, our participation in Him, involves more than suffering for His sake: it is also an expression of thanksgiving, of praise to God (15), and of service to man (16), for Christ has made possible for us this side also of sacrificial service.
(15). di' autou...] Through Him—and through no other—let us offer up a sacrifice of praise. The emphatic position of di' autou brings out the peculiar privilege of the believer. He has One through Whom he can fulfil the twofold duty of grateful worship: through Whom (c. vii. 25) as High-priest every sacrifice for God and for man must be brought and placed upon the altar of God. Compare 1 Pet. ii. 5 (anenenkai...dia I. Ch.); iv. 11 (hina...doxazetai ho theos dia I. Ch.); Rom. i. 8 (eucharisto...dia I. Ch.); xvi. 27 (theo dia I. Ch....he doxa); Col iii. 17; Clem. 1 ad Cor. 36, 44 and Bp Lightfoot's note. Thus we gain the significance of petitions made 'through Jesus Christ.' The passage is illustrated by the adaptation made of it to Melchizedek by the sect which regarded him as the divine 'priest for ever': eis honoma toutou tou Melchisedek he proeiremene airesis kai tas prosphoras anapherei kai auton einai eisagogea pros ton theon, kai di' autou, phesi, dei to theo prospherein, hoti archon esti dikaiosunes...kai dei hemos auto prospherpherein, phasin, hina de' autou prosenechthe huper hemon kai heuromen di' autou zoen (Epiph. Hær. iv. § 8, p. 474). Compare also Iren. Hær. iv. 17, 5.
For the full meaning of anapherein comp. c. vii. 27 note. Men in the fulfilment of their priestly work still act through their great High-priest.
thusian aines.] Vulg. hostiam laudis. The phrase occurs in Lev. vii. 12 (zvch htvdh: comp. xxii. 29; Ps. cvii. 22; cxvi. 17; [l. 14, 23]), of the highest form of peace-offering. The thank offering was made not in fulfilment of a vow (ndd), nor in general acknowledgment of God's goodness (ndvh), but for a favour graciously bestowed. Comp. Oehler O. T. Theology ii 2 f.
In this connexion dia pantos continually has a peculiar force. That which was an exceptional service under the Old Dispensation is the normal service under the New.
The Jewish teachers gave expression to the thought: R. Pinchas, R. Levi, and R. Jochanan said in the name of R. Menachem of Galilee: One day all offerings will cease, only the Thank-offering will not cease: all prayers will cease, only the Thanksgiving prayer will not cease (Jer. xxxiii. 11; Ps. lvi. 13). Vajikra R. ix. (Lev. vii. 12); and xxvii. (Lev. xxii. 29) (Wünsche, pp. 58, 193). Comp. Philo, de vit. offer. § 3 (ii. 253 M.), on the offering of the true worshipper.
The word thusia in Mal. i. 11 (thusia kathara) appears to have been understood in the early Church of the prayers and thanksgivings connected with the Eucharist. Thus Doctr. Apost. xiv. 2 hina me koinothe he thusia karpon cheileon homologounton to onomati autou. ¹?tes de eupoiias kai koinonias me epilanthanesthe, toiautais gar thusiais euaresteitai ho theos. ¹?Peithesthe tois hegoumenois humon kai hupeikete, autoi gar
16 + tes' koin. D?. toiautai...thusiai M?. euaresteitai: euergeteitai M?.
humon is represented in the Latin by 'ne inquinetur et impediatur oratio vestra.' Comp. Apoc. v. 8.
At the same time the 'first-fruits of God's creation' were offered (Iren. iv. 17, 5 f.), and this outward expression of gratitude was also called thusia. Comp. Just. M. Dial. 117. Immediately below acts of benevolence are included under the term 'sacrifices.' karpon cheileon] The phrase is borrowed from the lxx. (paraphrase?) of Hos. xiv. 3 (HebrewW0# D Tr, 'as bullocks, our lips'). Another example of the image occurs in Is. lvii. 19 (HebrewD?p#3). Comp. 2 Macc. x. 7 humnous anepheron.
homol. to on. au.] The revelation of God in Christ (His Name) is the source of all thanksgiving (1 Pet. i. 13). This illuminates, and is illuminated by, every object of joy.
The phrase homologein to onomati does not occur again in the N. T. nor in the lxx. (not Jer. xliv. (li.) 26).
exomologeisthai (to theo) (Hebrewft P^P) 'to make confession to, in honour,' 'to celebrate, praise,' is common in the lxx. Comp. Matt. xi. 25; Rom. xiv. 11.
(16). At the same time spiritual sacrifice must find an outward expression. Praise to God is service to men.
tes eup. kai koin.] Vulg. beneficentiæ et communionis, Syr. vg. compassion and communication to the poor. The general word for kindly service (eupoiia) is followed by that which expresses specially the help of alms. The two nouns form a compound idea (not tes eup. kai tes koin.). The word eupoiia is not found elsewhere in N. T. nor in lxx. For koinonia compare 2 Cor. ix. 13 (aploteti tes koinonias eis autous); Rom. xv. 26 (koinonian tina poiesasthai heis tous ptochous); Did. iv. 8 sunkoinoneseis panta to adelpho sou.
me epil.] See n. 2 note.
toiautais gar th.] The direct reference appears to be to eupoiia kai koinonia, but 'praise' has been already spoken of as a 'sacrifice' and is naturally included in the thought.
The construction euaresteitai ho theos, Vulg. promeretur (placetur) Deus (placetur Deo Aug.), is found in late Greek, but not again in N. T. or lxx.
(c) The obligation to loyal obedience.
The section began with a reference to leaders of the Church, and so it closes. The Hebrews have been charged to remember and imitate those who have passed away (v. 7); now they are charged to obey and yield themselves to those who are still over them. This duty rests upon the most solemn nature of the relation in which they stand to them.
(17). peithesthe...kai hupeikete] Vulg. obedite...et subjacete. Obedience to express injunctions is crowned by submission to a wish. The word hupeikein is not found elsewhere in N. T. or lxx. For tois heg. see v. 7 note.
autoi gar...] Vulg. ipsi enim pervigilant... The emphatic pronoun serves to bring out the personal obligation of the rulers with which the loyal obedience of the ruled corresponded; for they, and no other... Comp. James ii. 6 f.; 1 Thess. i. 9; Matt. v. 3 ff. The image in agrupnousin hu. t. ps. is that of the 'watchmen' in the 0. T.: Is. lxii. 6; Ezek. iii. 17.
For the word agrupnein compare Eph. vi. 18; Ps. cxxvii. (cxxvi.) 1 ean me ho kurios phulaxe polin, eis maten hegrupnesen ho phulasson. Wisd. vi. 15. agrupnousin huper ton psuchon humon hos logon apodosontes, hina meta charas touto poiosin kai me stenazontes, alusiteles gar humin touto.
17 hupeikete: + autois '*. huper t. ps. hum. hos l. apod. 'CM? syr vg me: huper t. ps. hum. hos l. apodosontai peri humon D?*: hos l. apod. huper t. ps. hum. A vg.
huper ton psuchon] The writer chooses this fuller phrase in place of the simple huper humon to suggest the manifold sum of vital powers which the Christian has to make his own: Lk. xxi. 19. Comp. 1 Pet. i. 9; ii. 25; c. x. 39.
The Vulg. joins the clause with log. apod. quasi rationem pro animabus vestris reddituri.
hina meta charas...] that they may do this (i.e. watch) with joy.... The clause depends on p. kai hup., the intervening words being parenthetical: xii. 17 note.
Tunc vigilant præpositi cum gaudio quando vident subjectos suos proficere in Dei verbo, quia et agricola tunc cum gaudio laborat quando attendit arborem et fructum videt, quando attendit segetem et fructificare prospicit ubertatem (Herv.). Compare Herm. Vis. iii. 9, 10.
For stenazontes see James v. 9; (Rom. viii. 23; 2 Cor. v. 2, 4). Alusiteles does not occur again in N. T. or in lxx. Lusitelei is found Lk. xvii. 2.
The Greek Fathers gave a stern meaning to the words:
Horas hose he philosophia. stenazein dei ton kataphronoumenon, ton katapatoumenon ton diapruomenon, me tharreses hoti se ouk amunetai. ho gar stenagmos pases amunes cheiron. hotan gar autos meden onese stenazon kalei ton despoten (Chrys.).
Hoste me epeide stenagmos esti kataphroneses ho to hegoumeno apeithon, alla pleon phobetheti, hoti to theo se paradidosi (Theophlct.).
Herveius says with a wider view: expedit illis ipsa tristitia et prodest illis, sed non expedit vobis.
(3) Personal instructions of the writer (18—25).
The Epistle closes with wide-reaching words of personal solicitude and tenderness. The writer asks for the prayers of his readers (18, 19) and offers a prayer for them (20, 21). He then adds one or two details which shew the closeness of the connexion by which they were bound to him, (22, 23) and completes his salutations (24) with a final blessing (25).
¹?Pray for us; for we are persuaded that we have an honest conscience, desiring to live honestly in all things, ¹?And the more exceedingly do I exhort you to do this, that I may be restored to you the sooner.
²°Now the God of peace, who brought up from the dead the Shepherd of His sheep, the great Shepherd, in the blood of an eternal covenant, even our Lord Jesus, ²¹make you perfect in every good thing, to the end that you do His will, doing in us that which is well-pleasing in His sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be the glory for ever and ever. Amen.
²²But I exhort you, brethren, bear with the word of exhortation; for I have written unto you in few words.
²³Know ye that our brother Timothy hath been discharged, with whom, if he come shortly, I will see you.
²?Salute all them that have the rule over you, and all the saints. They of Italy salute you.
²?Grace be with you all. Amen.
(18), 19. The thought of the duty which the Hebrews owed to their own leaders leads the writer naturally to think of their wider duties, of what they owed to him and his fellow-workers. The same spirit which led to wilful self-assertion at home was likely to cherish distrust towards
¹?Proseuchesthe peri hemon, peithometha gar hoti kalen suneidesin echomen, en pasin kalos thelontes anastrephesthai
18 + kai'peri D?*. peithometha AC* D?* M? syr vg: pepoithamen S '*. hemon hoti kalen|tha gar hoti kalen '* (i.e. hoti kalen written for peithome).
teachers at a distance who sought to restrain its evil tendencies. The Apostle therefore asks for the prayers of those to whom he writes. He awakens their deepest sympathy by thus assuring them that he himself desires what they would beg for him.
Hic superbiam elationemque mentis quorundam pontificum destruit qui typo (typho) superbiæ inflati dedignantur deprecari suos subjectos quatenus pro eis orationes fundant (Primas.).
(18). proseuch. p. hemon...parakalo...] Pray for us...I exhort you....The passage from the plural to the singular is like Col. iv. 3 proseuchomenoi...pepi hemon...di' ho kai dedemai...Gal. i. 8 f. ean hemeis...hos proeirekamen kai arti palin lego...Rom. i. 1 Paulos doulos...di' ou elabomen charin... In all these cases the plural appears to denote the Apostle and those who were immediately connected with him. The force of a true plural is evident in 1 Thess. iii. 1; v. 25; 2 Thess. iii. 1. The separate expression of personal feeling in connexion with the general statement is easily intelligible.
peithometha gar] for we are persuaded... Vulg. confidimus (suademur d) enim. The ground of the Apostle's request lies in the consciousness of the perfect uprightness of those with whom he identifies himself. However they might be represented so as to be in danger of losing the affection of some, he could say upon a candid review that their endeavours were pure. Such a conviction must underlie the request for efficacious intercession. The prayers of others will not avail for our neglect of duty. They help, when we have done our utmost, to supply what we have failed to do, and to correct what we have done amiss.
peithometha] Acts xxvi. 26 lanthanein auton touton ou peithomai outhen. The perfect is more common: pepeismai c. vi. 9; Rom. viii. 38 xv. 14, &c. The present seems to express a conclusion drawn from the immediate survey of the facts.
For suneidesis see ix. 9 Additional Note; and p. 116.
The adj. kalos seems to retain its characteristic sense of that which commands the respect and admiration of others. So far the word appeals to the judgment of the readers.
en pasin k. th. anastr.] This clause may go either with peithometha or with echomen, expressing the ground of the conviction: 'since we wish to live honestly'; or describing the character of that to which the conscience testified: 'as wishing to live honestly.' The latter connexion appears to be the more natural and simpler.
en pasin] in all respects, in all things, in the points which cause misgivings, as in others. The word is neuter and not masculine. Comp. v. 4 note.
Hoc est, non ex parte sed ex toto studemus bene vivere (Herv.). The Greek Fathers take it as masculine: hara ouk en athnikois monon alla kai en humin (Chrys., OEcum., Theophlct.).
kalen...kalos...] an honest ¹?perissoteros de parakalo touto poiesai hina tacheion apokatastatho humin. ²°Ho de theos tes conscience...to live honestly..., in the old sense of the word. Comp. v. 22 (parakalo...paraKeseos); Matt. xxi. 41.
thelontes] desiring and not merely being willing: c. xii. 17. Whatever the issue might be this was the Apostle's earnest wish. Compare 1 Thess. ii. 18; 2 Tim. iii. 12.
anastrephesthai] Vulg. conversari, to enter into the vicissitudes and activities of social life. See v. 7 note.
(19). periss. de...] Amplius autem deprecor vos hoc facere (hoc peto faciatis d). The writer enforces the common request by a personal consideration, And the more exceedingly do I exhort you to do this... The transition from the plural to the singular, no less than the order, points to the connexion of periss. with parakalo and not with poiesai.
hina tach. apokat. hu.] that I may be restored to you the sooner, Vulg. quo (ut quo am.) celerius restituar vobis. The expression does not necessarily imply a state of imprisonment, which is in fact excluded by the language of v. 23, since the purpose thus declared presupposes, so far, freedom of action. All that the word requires is that the writer should have been kept from the Hebrews (in one sense) against his will. It may have been by illness.
By the use of it the writer suggests the idea of service which he had rendered and could render to his readers. He was in some sense required for their completeness; and by hie presence he could remove the causes of present anxiety. Deikeusin hoti tharrei to suneidoti kai dia touto prostrechei autois (Theophlct.).
Quo celerius restituar vobis, hoc est, amplius pro vestra quam pro mea salute deprecor nos ut oretis pro me...ut...restituar non mihi sed vobis (Herv.).
(20), 21. The Apostle has first asked for the prayers of his readers, and then he anticipates their answer by the outpouring of his own petitions in their behalf.
Notandum quod primo postulat ab eis orationis suffragium ac deinde non simpliciter sed tota intentione et omni prorsus studio suam orationem pro eis ad Dominum fundit (Primas.).
(20). The aspects under which God is described as 'the God of peace' and the author of the exaltation of Christ, correspond with the trials of the Hebrews. They were in a crisis of conflict within and without. They were tempted to separate themselves from those who were their true leaders under the presence of unexpected afflictions (comp. xii. 11); and they were tempted also to question the power of Christ and the efficacy of the Covenant made through Him.
The title 'the God of peace' is not uncommon in St Paul's Epistles: Rom. xv. 33; xvi. 20; 2 Cor. xiii. 11 (ho theos tes agapes kai eir.); 1 Thess. v. 23. Comp. 1 Cor. xiv. 33.
It is through God, as the author and giver of peace, that man is able to find the harmony which he seeks in the conflicting elements of his own nature, in his relations with the world, in his relations to God Himself. Touto eipe dia to stasiazein autous (Chrys.).
Epeide theos eirenes esti ou dei humas diastasiazein pros eme kai tauta apo akoes psiles (Theophlct.).
The thoughts which spring from the contemplation of the general character of God are deepened by the contemplation of His work for 'our Lord Jesus.' In the Resurrection of Christ we have the decisive revelation of eirenes, ho anagagon ek nekron ton poimena ton probaton ton megan en haimati diathekes aioniou, ton kurion hemon Iesoun,
20 Iesoun 'ACM?: + Xriston D?* syr vg me.
victory over all evil, in the victory over death. Christ's Resurrection is the perfect assurance of the support of those who in any degree fulfil in part that pastoral office which He fulfilled perfectly.
This is the only direct reference to the Resurrection in the Epistle, just as c. xii. 2 is the only direct reference to the Cross. The writer regards the work of Christ in its eternal aspects. Compare Additional Note.
ho anag. ek n.] Vulg. qui eduxit de mortuis (suscitat ex mortuis d). The phrase occurs again in Rom. x. 7. Compare Wisd. xvi. 13 katageis eis pulas hodou kai anageis. The usage of the verb anagein generally in the N. T., as well as the contrast in which it stands in these two passages to katagein, shews that anagagon must be taken in the sense of 'brought up' and not of 'brought again.' The thought of restoration is made more emphatic by the addition of the thought of the depth of apparent defeat out of which Christ was raised.
ton poimena...] the Shepherd of the sheep, the great Shepherd. Pastor est quia totum gregem conservat et pascit. Pascit autem non solum verbo doctrinæ sed corpore et sanguine suo (Herv.).
The image is common from Homer downwards. Philo in commenting on the application of the title of Shepherd to God in Ps. xxiii. says that as Shepherd and King He leads injustice and law the harmonious courses of the heavenly bodies 'having placed His right Word, His first-born Son, as their leader, to succeed to the care of this sacred flock, as a viceroy of a great king' (de Agric. § 12; i. 308 M.); and elsewhere he speaks of 'the divine Word' as a 'Shepherd-king' (de mut. nom. § 20; i. p. 596 M.). Comp. John x. 11 note; and for the addition ton megan c. iv. 14; x. 21. Polloi prophetai didaskaloi all' eis kathegetes ho christos (Theophlct.).
The old commentators saw rightly in the words here a reference to Is. lxiii. 11 (lxx.) pou ho anabibasas ek tes thalasses ton poimena ton probaton; The work of Moses was a shadow of that of Christ: the leading up of him with his people out of the sea was a shadow of Christ's ascent from the grave: the covenant with Israel a shadow of the eternal covenant.
en huim. diath. ai.] This clause, based on Zech. ix. 11, goes with all that precedes, ho anag....en hai. d. ai. The raising of Christ was indissolubly united with the establishment of the Covenant made by His blood and effective in virtue of it. His 'blood' is the vital energy by which He fulfils His work. So, when He was brought up from the dead, the power of His life offered for the world was, as it were, the atmosphere which surrounded Him as He entered on His triumphant work. Comp. x. 19 note. Ei me egegepto, ouk an hen hemin to haima autou eis diatheken (Theophlct.). For haim. diath. compare Test. xii. Patr. Benj. 3 huper asebon apothaneitai [ho amnos tou theou] en haimati diathekes.
The covenant is described in its character (en hai. d. ai.). The new covenant is 'an eternal covenant': Jerem. xxxii.; Is. lv., lxi. Comp. c. viii. 8 ff. Aionian ten kainen kekleke diatheken hos heteras meta tauten ouk esumenes (Theodt.).
ton kur. he. I.] The phrase expresses the sum of the earliest Creed: Rom. x. 9; 1 Cor. xii. 3.
The title 'the Lord Jesus' is common in the book of the Acts (i. 21; iv. ²¹katartisai humas ev panti agatho eis to poiesai to thelema autou, t poion en hemin to euareston enopion autou dia Iesou Christou, o he doxa eis tous aionas ton
21 auto.? autos
21 humas: hemas D?*. en panti 'D?* vg: + ergo CM?: + ergo kai logo A (2 Thess. ii. 17). poiesai: + hemas D?*. poion '* D?M? vg syr vg me: + auto' poion '* (A)C*. en humin C vg me: en hemin 'AD?M? syr vg. om. ton ai. D?.
Here it is natural that the writer of the Epistle should desire to emphasise the simple thoughts of the Lord's sovereignty and humanity as 'the Great Shepherd.' For the contrast of Moses and 'Jesus' see c. iii. 1 note.
(21). katartisai hu. en p. ag.] make you perfect in every good thing. Vulg. aptet ros in omni bono.
Comp. 1 Pet. v. 10. The word katartizein, to make perfect, includes the thoughts of the harmonious combination of different powers (comp. Eph. iv. 12 katartismos 2 Cor. xiii. 9 katartisis), of the supply of that which is defective (1 Thess. iii. 10), and of the amendment of that which is faulty (Gal. vi. 1; comp. Mk. i. 19). Comp. Ign. Eph. 2; Phil. 8; Smyrn. 1; Mart. Ign. 4.
Chrysostom remarks wisely on the choice of the word, palin marturei autois megala. to gar katartizomenon esti to archen echon eita pleroumenon.
The general phrase en panti agatho conveys the thoughts expressed by the explanatory glosses ergo and ergo kai logo.
eis to poiesai...] to the end that you do....Action is the true object of the harmonious perfection of our powers. And each deed is at once the deed of man and the deed of God (poiesai, poion). The work of God makes man's work possible. He Himself does (autos poion), as the one source of all good, that which in another sense man does as freely accepting His grace. And all is wrought in man 'through Jesus Christ.' Comp. Acts iii. 16.
dia Iesou Christou] Ei mesites genesthai theou kai hemon ethelesen eikotos di'autou ho pater to euareston auto eis hemas epitelesei (OEcum.).
o he doxa...] The doxology may be addressed to Christ as in 2 Tim. iv. 18; 2 Pet. iii. 18; Apoc. i. 6. The Greek, however, admits the reference of the relative to the main subject of the sentence, ho theos (cf. c. v. 7; 2 Thess. ii. 9), and this is the most likely interpretation. Primasius combines both persons: Cui est gloria, id est, Deo Patri et Jesu Christo. Compare Additional Note.
eis tous ai. ton ai.] Comp. v. 8 note. The phrase occurs here only in the Epistle. It is common in the Apocalypse (twelve times, with the varied phrase eis aionas aionon in xiv. 11), and is found also in Phil. iv. 20; 1 Tim. i. 17; 2 Tim. iv. 18; 1 Pet. iv. 11 (all doxologies).
The language of the Apostle's prayer has given occasion to an instructive expression of the characteristic differences of Greek and Latin aionon. amen. ²?Parakalo de humas, adelphoi, anechesthe tou logou tes parakleseos, kai gar dia
22 anechesthai
22 anechesthe '(A)CM? me: anechesthai D?* vg. om. gar '*.
theology in regard to man's share in good works. The Greek Commentators find in the word katartizein the recognition of the free activity of man: the Latin Commentators see in the prayer itself a testimony to man's complete dependence upon God.
Thus Chrysostom writes: horas pos deiknusi ten areten oute ek tou theou to holon oute ex hemon monon katorthoumenen. to gar eipein katartisai....hosei elegen Echete men areten deisthe de pleroseos. Theophylact goes farther: hora hoti dei hemas proteron archesthai kai tote aiteisthai to telos para tou theou. And so OEcumenius hemas dei enarxasthai ton de plerounta hiketeuein.
On the other hand Primasius writes: A vobis nihil boni habere potestis nisi illo proveniente et subsequente....Per illum facti et redempti sumus, et per illum quidquid boni habemus nobis subministratur. And this thought is forcibly expressed by Herveius in a note on v. 25: Hæc est gratia quæ mentem prævenit et adjuvat ut homo suæ voluntatis et operationis obsequium subjungat; et dictum ex hoc ne de liberi arbitrii sui viribus præsumerent et quasi ex seipsis hæc posse bene agere putarent (Herv.).
It is obvious that the two views are capable of being reconciled in that larger view of man's constitution and destiny which acknowledges that the Fall has not destroyed the image of God in which he was created. Every act of man, so far as it is good, is wrought in fellowship with God.
(22). parakalo de...] But I exhort you, brethren, bear with the word of exhortation....The words come as a postscript after the close of the letter, when the writer has reviewed what he has said. As he looks back he feels that the very brevity of his argument on such themes as he has touched upon pleads for consideration.
parakalo...parakleseos] Comp. v. 19; iii. 13; x. 25; vi. 18 note; xii. 5.
anechesthe] bear with that which makes demands on your self-control and your endurance. 2 Tim. iv. 3 hugiainouses didaskalias ouk anexovtai.
The word is frequently used in regard to persons: Matt. xvii. 17; 2 Cor. xi. 1; &c.
t. log. t. parakl.] the word of exhortation (Vulg. verbum solacii) with which the writer had encouraged them to face their trials. Acts xiii. 15 ei estin logos en humin parakleseos, legete.
Ou legei parakalo humas anechesthe tou logou tes paraineseos, alla tou logou tes parakleseos. toutesti, tes paramuthias, tes protropes (Chrys.).
kai gar...] c. iv. 2 note. 'I ask for patient attention, for in fact (Vulg. etenim...) I have written little when I might have extended my arguments to far greater length if I had not feared to weary you.' This appears to be the natural sense of the words. It is less likely that the writer wishes to apologise for any obscurity or harshness in what he has written on the ground of his brevity.
epesteila] I have written, Vulg. scripsi. The word epistellein is used in a similar connexion in Clem. 1 ad Cor. 62 peri ton anekonton te threskeia hemon...hikanos epesteilamen humin, andres adelphoi. Compare also cc. 7; 47; Ign. Mart. c. 4. Iren. iii. 3, 3 epesteilen he en Rhome ekklesia hikanotaten graphen tois Korinthiois. bracheon episteila humin. ²³Ginoskete ton adelphon hemon Timotheon apolelumenon, meth' ou aav tacheion archetai opsomai humas. ²?Aspasasthb pantas tous hegoumenous humon kai pantas tous hagious. Aspazontai humas hoi apo tes Italias.
epesteila: apesteila D?. 23 ad. hemon '* (A)CD?* M? vg syr vg me: om. hemon S '*. erchetai: erchete D?*: erchesthe '*.
The verb occurs again Acts xv. 20 (and v. i. in xxi. 25) where the sense is somewhat uncertain (write or enjoin). For the aor. comp. 1 John ii. 12 ff. (grapho, /egrapsa) note.
dia bracheon] in few words (Vulg. perpaucis), that is, relatively to the vastness of the subject. Compare 1 Pet. v. 12 di' oligon egrapsa.
(23). ginoskete] The order, no less than the general scope of the verse, seems to shew that the verb is imperative: Know ye, that our brother Timothy hath been discharged (apolelumenon, Vulg. dimissum), that is discharged from confinement (Acts xvi. 35 f.), or more generally set free from the charge laid against him (Acts iii. 13; xxvi. 32). It can cause no surprise that the details of this fact are wholly unknown.
ean tacheion...] Vulg. si celerius.... The comparative suggests the occurrence of hindrances which the Apostle could not distinctly foresee. Compare v. 19.
(24). aspasasthe...] A general salutation of this kind is found in most of the Epistles of the N. T. (Rom., 1, 2 Cor., Phil, Col., 1 Thess., Tit., 1 Pet., 3 Joh.); but the form of this is unique; and there appears to be an emphasis in the repetition pantas...pantas...all...all... which probably points to the peculiar circumstances of the Church. Comp. Phil. iv. 21 asp. panta hagion en Christo. The special salutation of 'all that have the rule' implies that the letter was not addressed officially to the Church, but to some section of it. The patristic commentators notice the significance of the clause:
Ainittetai ho logos hos hoi proastateuontes auton toiautes didaskalias ouk echrezon. ou de charin ouk ekeinois epesteilen alla tois mathetais (Theodt).
Hora pos autous tima eige di'autous hegoumenous prosagoreuei (Theophlct).
asp. hu. hoi apo tes It.] They of Italy salute you, Vulg. Salutant vos de Italia. The phrase may mean either (1) 'those who are in Italy send greeting from Italy,' or (2) 'those of Italy,' that is Italian Christians who were with the writer at the time, 'send greeting.' The former rendering is adequately illustrated by Matt. xxiv. 17; Luke xi. 13; Col. iv. 16; and it is adopted by the Fathers: hoi apo tes Italias. edeixe pothen gegraphe ten epistolen (Theodt); apertissime his verbis nobis innuit quod Romæ hanc epistolam scripserit quæ in regione Italiæ sita est (Primas.).
The choice between tho two renderings will be determined by the view ²?E charis mbta panton nmon.
25 amen.
25 humon: ton hagion D?*. hamen: om. '* which is taken of the place from which the Letter was written. The words themselves contribute nothing to the solution of the question.
(25). The same greeting is found Tit. iii. 15. Every Epistle of St Paul includes in its final greeting the wish for 'grace' to those who receive it.
E charis is used absolutely in Eph. vi. 24 e charis meta panton ton agaponton.... Col. iv. 18; 1 Tim. vi. 21; 2 Tim. iv. 22 he charis meth'humon.
Generally 'the grace' is defined as 'the grace of our Lord [Jesus Christ]' (Rom., 1, 2 Cor., Gal., Phil., 1, 2 Thess., Phm.).
In 1 Cor. xvi. 23 and 2 Cor. xiii. 13 significant additions are made to the prayer for grace ('my love, 'the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit'). In 1 Pet., 3 John the prayer is for 'love, not for 'grace.' There is no corresponding greeting in James, 2 Pet', 1, 2 John, Jude.
The simplicity of the final greeting when compared with the ordinary forms of salutation in the Epistles is remarkable.
meta p. hum.] 2 Thess. iii. 18; 1 Cor. xvi. 24; 2 Cor. xiii. 13; Rom. xv. 33.
On the sense of charis Theophylact writes: tis de estin he charis; he aphesi ton hamartion, he katharsis, he tou pneumatos metalepsis. And Primasius, more in detail; Gratise nomine debemus hic accipere fidem perfectam cum exsecutione bonorum operum, remissionem quoque peccatorum quam percipiunt fideles tempore baptismatis, donum etiam Spiritus Sancti quod datur in baptismato per impositionem manus episcoporum, quæ omnia gratis a Deo dantur. The changes in the revised texts of Haymo and Atto are worth notice.
*Additional Note on* xiii. 10. *On the history of the word thusiasterion.*