VII. THE PLACE OF WRITING.
Tradition is silent as to the place from which the Epistle was written. No independent authority can be given to the subscription which is found in A egraphe apo Rhomes. This, as in the case of similar subscriptions to the other Epistles, appears to have been a deduction from words in the Epistle itself (xiii. 23 f.). And so it is given in the words of the text and enlarged in later MSS.: e.g. P2, egraphe apo Italias. K2, egraphe apo Italias dia Timotheou. E,, Paulou apostolou epistole pros Hebraious egraphe apo Italias dia Timotheou. Nor again is there anything in the Epistle itself which leads to a definite conclusion. No argument can be drawn from the mention of the release of Timothy (xiii. 23), for nothing is known of the event to which reference is made; and the phrase aspazontai humas hoi apo tes Italias (xiii. 34), which seems at first sight to promise more, gives no certain result. For the words admit grammatically of two opposite renderings. They may describe Italian Christians in their own country, or Italian Christians in a foreign land. The first sense is given by the translation (which is certainly possible), 'those in Italy send salutations from Italy,' where the preposition is conformed to the idea of the verb (comp. Luke xi. 13 o pater ho ex ouranou dosei. Math. xxiv. 17 arai ta ek tes oikias. Col. iv. 16 ten ex Laodikeias [epistolen] with Bp Lightfoot's note); and more simply by the translation 'those who belong to Italy,' the Italian Christians (comp. Acts x. 23 ton apo tes Ioppes. xii. 1 tom apo tpes ekklesias. xvii. 13 ohi apo tes Thessalonikes Ioudaioi); and in this sense a close parallel has been pointed out in Pseud.-Ign. ad Her. 8 aspazontai se ohi apo episkopoi...kai pantes Philippon en Christ hothen kai epesteila soi. But it is difficult to understand how any one could give the salutations of the Italian Christians generally (as distinguished from ohi apo Rhomes, or the like); so that it appears on the whole to be more natural to adopt the second rendering ('the Christians from Italy'), and to suppose that the writer is speaking of a small group of friends from Italy, who were with him at the time. So far the words seem to favour a place of writing in Asia, Syria, or Egypt. In any case, however, it is impossible to lay stress upon a clause which evidently had a particular and special sense for those to whom the message was sent.
The place of writing must then be left in complete uncertainty. Plausible conjectures unsupported by evidence cannot remove our ignorance even if they satisfy our curiosity.
VIII. STYLE AND LANGUAGE.
The language of the Epistle is both in vocabulary and style purer and more vigorous than that of any other book of the N.T.
i. The vocabulary is singularly copious. It includes a large number of words which are not found elsewhere in the apostolic writings, very many which occur in this book only among the Greek Scriptures, and some which are not quoted from any other independent source. Even when allowance is made for the requirements of the peculiar topics with which the. writer deals, the number of peculiar words is still remarkable. In the Pastoral Epistles however the proportion is still greater.
Dr Thayer reckons the same number of peculiar words (168) in the Pastoral Epistles and the Epistle to the Hebrews, but the latter is the longer in about the proportion of 21 to 15.
The following words are not quoted from any source independent of the Epistle: agenealogetos (vii. 3); aimatekchusia (ix. 22); ektromos (xii. 21 marg.); euperistatos (xii. 1); theatrizein (x. 33; ektheatrizein in Polyb.); misthapodotes (xi. 6) and misthapodosia (ii. 2; x. 35; xi. 26) for the Classical misthodotes and misthodosia; proschusis (xi. 28); sunkakouchein (xi. 25); teleiotes (xii. 2).
The list of classical words which are found in the Epistle and in no other part of the Greek Scriptures is large: aklies (x. 23); akrothinion (vii. 4); alusiteles (xiii. 17); ametor, apator (vii. 3); analogizesthai (xii. 3); anastauroun (vi. 6); antagonizesthai (xii. 4); diorthosis (ix. 10); ekdoche (x. 27); eklanthanein (xii. 5); enubrizein (x. 29); epeisagoge (vii. 19); euarlestos (xii. 28); katadelos (vii. 15); kataskiazein (ix. 5); onkos (xii. 1); paraplesios (ii. 14); sumpathein (iv. 15; ch. 34); sunepimarturein (ii. 4); tomoteros (iv. 12); hupeikein (xiii. 17).
Other words peculiar to the Epistle among Biblical writings belong to the later stage of Greek Literature:
athetesis (vii. 18; ix. 26); athlesis (x. 32); akatalutos (vii. 16); ametathetos (vi. 17 f.); aparabatos (vii. 24); aphoran (xii. 2); dusermeneutos (v. 11); eupoiia (xiii. 16); katagonizesthai (xi. 33); Aeuitikos (vii. 11); mesiteuein (vi. 17); metriopabein (v. 2); polumeros, polutropos (i. 1); sabbatismos (iv. 9); trachelizein (iv. 13); tumpanizein (xi. 35); hupostole (x. 39).
A very large number of words used by good Greek authors and found also in the lxx. are found in this Epistle only in the New Testament: aigeos (-eios,) aistheterion, aitios, anakainizein, anarithmetos, antikatastenai, apeiros, apoblepein, harmos (Apocr.), aphanes, aphanismos, aphomoioun (Apocr.), botane, genealogein, georgein (Apocr.), gnophos, damalis, dekate, deos (Apocr.), derma, demiourgos (Apocr.), diatagma (Apocr.), deenekes, deikneisthai, dokimasia, enguos (Apocr.), ekbainein, elenchos, exis (Apocr.), epileipein, episkopein, epos, euarestein, eulabeia, eulabeisthai, therapon, thuella, thumiaterion, hierosune, hiketeros, kakouchein, karterein, katanaliskein, kataskopos, kausis, merismos, metathesis, metepeita (Apocr.), muelos, nephos, nothos (Apocr.), nomothetein, nothros (Apocr.), omoiotes, paneguris, paradeigmatizein, parapiptein, pararrein, peira, pegnunai, prizein (priein), problepein, prodromos (Apocr.), prosagoreuein (Apocr.), prisphatos, stamnos, sunapollunai, sundein, timoria, tragos, trimenos, phantazein, phoberos, charakter (Apocr.)
The non-classical words found in the lxx. which are found only in this Epistle in the N. T. are comparatively few:
agnoema, ainesis, apaugasma (Apocr.), dekatoun, enkainizein, empaigmos, thilesis, leitourgikos, melote, olethreuein, horkomosia, parapikrainein, prototokia
A study of the lists of words in these three different classes will illustrate the freedom and power with which the author of the Epistle dealt with the resources of the Greek language. His love for compound words is characteristic of the period at which he wrote, but their number is largely in excess of the average of their occurrence in the N. T.
Seyffarth has calculated that there are in the Epistle to the Romans 478 'vocabula composita et decomposita' and in the Epistle to the Hebrews 534 (De ep. ad Hebr. indole, § 40, 1821. This Essay contains good materials, but they require careful sifting).
The number of words found in the Epistle which have a peculiar Biblical sense is comparatively small. Some are derived from the Greek translation of the books of the Hebrew Canon (e.g. agape, angelos, adelphos, aion, anapherein, ho diabolos, hilasterion, katharizein, kleronomein &c., leitourgeiv &c., makrothumia, omologein, paideia, peirazein, pistis, prototokos, sarkinos, photizein, charis), some from the Apocrypha (e.g. ekbasis, koinos, kosmos, ktisis), some owe their characteristic force to Christian influences (apostolos, kosmikos).
The absence of some words (e.g. pleroun, euangelion, oikodomein, musterion, sun) is remarkable.
ii. The style is even more characteristic of a practised scholar than the vocabulary. It would be difficult to find anywhere passages more exact and pregnant in expression than i. 1 — 4; ii. 14 — 18; vii. 26 — 28; xii. 18 — 24. The language, the order, the rhythm, the parenthetical involutions, all contribute to the total effect. The writing shews everywhere traces of effort and care. In many respects it is not unlike that of the Book of Wisdom, but it is nowhere marred by the restless striving after effect which not unfrequently injures the beauty of that masterpiece of Alexandrine Greek. The calculated force of the periods is sharply distinguished from the impetuous eloquence of St Paul. The author is never carried away by his thoughts. He has seen and measured all that he desires to convey to his readers before he begins to write. In writing he has, like an artist, simply to give life to the model which he has already completely fashioned. This is true even of the noblest rhetorical passages, such as c. xi. Each element, which seems at first sight to offer itself spontaneously, will be found to have been carefully adjusted to its place, and to offer in subtle details results of deep thought, so expressed as to leave the simplicity and freshness of the whole perfectly unimpaired. For this reason there is perhaps no Book of Scripture in which the student may hope more confidently to enter into the mind of the author if he yields himself with absolute trust to his words. No Book represents with equal clearness the mature conclusions of human reflection.
The contrast of the Style of the Epistle to that of St Paul may be noticed in the passages which are quoted as echoes of St Paul's language:
ii. 10. Comp. Rom. xi. 36.
iii. 6. ___ v. 2.
xi. 12. ___ iv. 10.
The richer fulness of expression is seen in corresponding phrases: e.g. Col. iii. 1, compared with c. xii. 2 (note).
The writer does not use St Paul's rhetorical forms ti oun; ti gar; all' erei tis..., me genoito, hara oun, ouk oidate (Credner Einl. s. 547). On the other hand we notice the peculiar phrases, hos eros eipein, eis to deenekes, and the particle othen.
Seyffarth has rightly called attention to the relative frequency of the use of participial constructions in the Epistle: Octogies atque quater in... epistola habes participia activa, centies et septies participia passiva et media, atque septies genitivos absolutos... In epistola...ad Romanos multum prolixiori nonagies ropori constructionem quam dicunt participialem activum, duodoquadragesies tantum constructionem participialem passivam atque modiam, noc tainon ullibi genitivos absolutos. Decies tantum Paulus apostolus, quantum vidi, in omnibus epistolis suis utitur genitivis absolutis plerumque contra regulas a grammaticis scriptas...(de ep. ad Hebr. indole § 36).
Some correspondences with the Epistles of St Paul to the Romans (in addition to those given above) and Corinthians (1) which have been collected (Holtsmann Einl. 315 f.) deserve to be quoted, if only to shew the difference of style in the Epistle to the Hebrews: vi. 12 f. (Rom. iv. 13, 20); x. 38 (Rom. i. 17); xii. 14 (Rom. xii. 18; xiv. 19); xiii. 1 (Rom. xii. 10); id. 2 (Rom. xii. 13); id. 9 (Rom. xiv. 3 f.); ii. 4 (1 Cor. xii. 4, 7—11); id. 8 (1 Cor. xv. 27); id. 10 (1 Cor. viii. 6); id. 14 (1 Cor. xv. 26); iii. 7—19; xii. 18 - 26 (1 Cor. x. 1 - 11); v. 12 (1 Cor. iii. 2); v. 14 (1 Cor. ii. 6); vi. 3 (1 Cor. xvi. 7); ix. 26 (1 Cor. x. 11); x. 33 (1 Cor. iv. 9); xiii. 10 (1 Cor. x. 14—21); id. 20 (1 Cor. vii. 15; xiv. 33).
The close resemblance of the language of the Epistle to that of St Luke was noticed by Clement of Alexandria (ap. Euseb. H. E. vi. 14); Loukan [phesin]...methermeneusonta ekdounai tois Hellesin hothen ton auton chrota euriskesthai kata ten hermeneion tautes te tes epistoles kai ton praxeon — the form of expression is remarkable), and his criticism was repeated by later writers. The significance of the coincidences may have been overrated, but no impartial student can fail to be struck by the frequent use of words characteristic of St Luke among the writers of the N.T. e.g. diamarturesthai (ii. 6), archeos (ii. 10), hothen (ii. 17), ilaskesthai (ii. 17), metochos (iii. 1), perikeisthai accus. (v. 2), heuthetos (vi. 7), katapheugein (vi. 18), patriarches (vii. 4), eis to panteles (vii. 25), schedon (ix. 22), anoteron (x. 8), paroxusmos (x. 24), huparxis (x. 34), anastaseos tunchanein (xi. 35), entromos (xii. 21), asaleutos (xii. 28), hoi hegoumenoi (xiii. 7), anatheorein (xiii. 7).
The imagery of the Epistle is drawn from many sources. Some of the figures which are touched more or less in detail are singularly vivid and expressive: iv. 12 (the word a sword); vi. 7 f. (the land fruitful for good or evil); vi. 19 (hope the anchor); xi. 13 (the vision of the distant shore); xii. 1 (the amphitheatre); 8 ff. (the discipline of life). A whole picture often lies in single words: ii. 1 (parapuomen); iv. 2 (sunkekerasmenos -ous); 9 (sabbatismos); 13 (tetrachelismena); v. 2 (perikeitai astheneian, comp. x. 11 perielein); vi. 1 pherometha); 6 (anastaurountes); viii. 5 (skia, comp. ix. 23 f.; x. 1, 11); 13 (geraskon); x. 20 (hodos zosa); 33 (theatrizomenoi); xii. 23 (paneguris). Compare also i. 3; ii. 9, 15; iii. 2; v. 12 f.; x. 22, 27; xii. 13.