Hebrews 10

Hebrews 10:1-4

THE UTTER MORAL OF

THE

Hebrews 10:1-4

 

Hebrews 10:1 —For the law having a shadow, etc.—In this and the next fol­lowing paragraph, we have, as Alford justly observes, the leading thoughts of the whole section brought “together in one grand finale, just as in the finale of a piece of music, all the hitherto scat­tered elements are united in one effective whole.” But it is not a mere summary of the thoughts and arguments of the section, that is here presented. New thoughts are introduced, and others are set forth in a fuller and more attractive light. In the last para­graph, for instance, it is fairly implied though not categorically ex­pressed, that the blood of Christ and that alone “cleanses from all sin.” This thought the Apostle now proceeds to amplify and illus­trate still further, by showing in the first place the utter insuffi­ciency of the Levitical sacrifices. That they had no power to take away sin, he argues from the nature of the sacrifices themselves and the character of the services that were rendered under the Old Covenant. For the Law, he says, having a mere shadow of the good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never, with the same sacrifices which they offer year by year con­tinually, perfect those who draw near [to God, by means of them]. The word shadow (skia) is used here metaphorically to denote that the Law, as a religious institution, was but a faint out­line, a mere symbolical adumbration of the good things of the Kingdom of Christ.

And the word image (eikoi) means the true bodily shape which belongs to the things themselves; the essential form of the good things, in contrast with the shadowy representa­tion of them as given in the Law. In the Gospel, we have both the image (eikon) and the essence (hupostasis) : but in the Law we have nothing more than a mere unsubstantial shadow of them. And hence the Law had no power to take away sin; nor could it make any one perfect, except in a mere civil and symbolical sense.

 

Hebrews 10:2 —For then would they not have ceased to be offered?—If these bloody sacrifices had been really efficacious in taking away the sins of the people, there would of course have been no need of repeating them with reference to the same sins; because, as our au­thor says, the worshipers having been thoroughly cleansed once for all, would have no more consciousness of sins so forgiven. A debt that has been once fairly and fully cancelled, is not to be paid a second time. If a disease has been once thoroughly eradicated from the system, there is no further need of medicine. And just so, if a sin is once effectually blotted out, it is remembered no more.

 

Hebrews 10:3 —But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.—For special sins, the Law required special of­ferings. “If any soul sin through ignorance,” said God to Moses, “then he shall bring a she-goat of the first year for a sin-offering. And the Priest shall make an atonement for the soul that sinneth ignorantly, when he sinneth by ignorance before the Lord, to make an atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him.” (Numbers 15:27-28.) See also Leviticus 4:3 Leviticus 4:14 Leviticus 4:23 Leviticus 4:28. Besides these special of­ferings, others were offered daily (Exodus 29:38-46) ; weekly (Numbers 28:9-10) ; monthly (Numbers 28:11-15) ; and yearly at each of the three great festivals (Leviticus 23). But nevertheless on the tenth day of the seventh month, all the sins of the past year were again called into remembrance; and an atonement was made, first for the sins of the Priests (Leviticus 16:11-14), and then for the sins of the people (Leviticus 16:15). Nor did even these sacrifices offered on the Day of Atonement, suffice to cover the sins of the worshipers, as any one may see from the following ordinance relating to the scape goat. “And when he [Aaron] hath made an end of reconciling the Holy Place and the Tabernacle of the congregation, and the altar, he shall bring the live goat; and Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send him away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness. And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities into a land not inhab­ited ; and he shall let go the goat in the wilderness.” (Lev. 16: 20­22.) Thus it appears that what all the sacrifices of the year could not accomplish, was symbolically effected by the goat, on whose in­nocent head were laid the sins of the nation for the whole of the preceding year, to be borne away by it into a land of separation: ‘‘the Holy Spirit this signifying,” that in due time Christ would, in like manner, bear away on his own person all our sins into a state of everlasting oblivion.

 

Hebrews 10:4 —For it is not possible, etc.—Why not? Who can fully and satisfactorily answer this question? The fact is clearly and cate­gorically stated by the Spirit that “searches all things, yea even the deep things of God.” And some of the reasons are plain and obvi­ous enough. It may be alleged, for instance, that every sinner is under condemnation; and that something is necessary in order to his redemption. And, furthermore, it may be shown that the sin­ner has really nothing to offer as a ransom for his soul: “for,” says God, “every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thou­sand hills.” (Psalms 50:10.) All this, and much more, may be truthfully urged in support of the Apostle’s declaration. But until we can estimate aright the exceeding sinfulness of sin and the just claims of the Divine Government on the sinner, I am inclined to think that all our speculations on this matter must fall short of a true and full solution of the question.

It becomes us, therefore, to receive humbly and implicitly, as a matter of faith, what reaches far beyond the narrow limits of our speculative philosophy. That these sacrifices were of Divine appointment, is, of course, conceded by all who believe the Bible to be the inspired Word of God; and that they served to secure for the Israelites symbolical forgiveness, and, as a consequence of this, continued membership in the sym­bolical Church of the Old Covenant, is also equally obvious. But beyond this, they only served to direct the minds and hearts of the people to “the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world.”

Hebrews 10:5-18

THE ALL- OF THE ONE

OF CHRIST SHOWN

(1) IN ITS THE

WILL OF GOD, AND

(2) IN ITS FOR ALL

THE , FREE, FULL,

AND

Hebrews 10:5-18

 

Hebrews 10:5 —Wherefore when he cometh into the world,—That is, since it is now manifest that the Levitical sacrifices had no power to take away sin, and since, therefore, a better sacrifice was needed for this purpose, Christ on coming into the world as God’s chosen minister to redeem it, says :

 

Hebrews 10:5 —Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, etc.—This citation is from the fortieth Psalm, and has reference primarily to David as a type of Christ; and secondarily to Christ himself as the anti­type. See notes on 1:5. In the first part of this Psalm, David praises God for deliverance from his persecutors, as well as for many other tokens of Divine grace. And then with an earnest de­sire to serve God and to do his will, he says, Sacrifice and offering thou hast not desired; ears hast thou digged out for me: burnt- offering and sin-offering thou hast not asked. Then said I, Lo, I come [I bring myself as a sacrifice] (in the volume of the book it is written of me) ; to do thy will, O my God I have delighted, and thy Law is in the midst of my bowels. In this remarkable utter­ance of David, we have clearly set forth the utter insufficiency of the legal sacrifices to accomplish the will of God; and also Christ’s purpose to do this by the sacrifice of himself.

 

The general meaning of the passage then is plain enough. But how is the Greek rendering of our text, “a body hast thou pre­pared me,” to be reconciled with the Hebrew, “ears hast thou digged out for me?” It will not do to say with some that our au­thor follows the Septuagint Version, without regard to the exact meaning of the passage. He never does this. When the Septua­gint expresses correctly the meaning of the original, he then com­monly quotes from it; otherwise, he either so modifies the render­ing as to make it correct, or he gives us a new translation of the Hebrew. Even in the few lines which are here cited, there are several slight departures from the Septuagint; but in the clause which we have now under consideration, he follows the Septuagint exactly; no doubt because it expresses exactly the mind of the Spirit.

 

But how is this? To the careless and superficial reader, there may at first seem to be no connection between digging out, or thor­oughly opening the ears of any one, and providing a body for him. But the thoughtful reader will at once see that, in the case of Christ, the two expressions are nearly equivalent, and that the lat­ter differs from the former chiefly in this: that it is rather more specific and expressive. To dig out the ears of a person means simply to make him a willing and obedient servant. (Ex. 21:6.) But in order to so qualify Christ as to make him a fit servant for the redemption of mankind, a body was absolutely necessary. Without this, there could have been no adequate sacrifice for sin, and without an adequate sacrifice, there could have been no suit­able atonement, and without an atonement, the claims of Divine Justice could not have been satisfied, and without this, the will of God could never have been accomplished in the redemption of mankind. The Greek, therefore, though not an exact translation of the Hebrew, is nevertheless in perfect harmony with it, plainly indicating that both come from the same fountain of Divine inspi­ration.

The only question of doubt, then, is simply this: Whence did the translators of the Septuagint obtain the specific idea which they have here so happily expressed? Or in other words, How came they to put such a construction on the original Hebrew? To me it seems most probable that they simply followed the current interpretation of the passage, as it had been explained by the an­cient prophets. See 1 Corinthians 14:1-4, and 1 Peter 1:10-12.

 

Hebrews 10:6 —In burnt offerings, etc.—This is but an echo of the sentiment expressed in the preceding verse, making with it a sort of Hebrew parallelism, in which “burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin” are made to correspond with sacrifices and offerings in general. Together, the two verses express with great emphasis the utter insufficiency of the Levitical sacrifices to accomplish the will of God in the redemption of mankind. For the law of the burnt offerings, see Leviticus 1:1-17, and for that of the sin offerings, see Leviticus 4:1-5. The former was so called because it was wholly consumed on the altar, but the latter received its name from its having always special reference to sin and to the sin-offering of Christ. The former was instituted immediately after the fall of man, and in con­nection with the meat offering it constituted an important part of the Patriarchal worship. But the sin offering was instituted after the giving of the Law. It is first mentioned in Exodus 24:14.

 

Hebrews 10:7 —Then said I, Lo, I come—The Septuagint rendering of this verse corresponds exactly with the Hebrew, and is as follows: Then said I, Lo, I come [to do thy will] : (in the volume of the book it is written of me) ; to do thy will, O my God, I have de­lighted. Our author, by omitting the latter part of the third clause, has changed in some measure the form of the whole verse, without affecting its meaning. He simply makes the phrase, “to do thy will" in the third clause, depends directly on “I come” in the first. The second clause is thrown in parenthetically.

 

It is manifestly David that speaks in the Psalm from which the Apostle makes this citation. But, as Delitzsch says, “he speaks in typically ordered words which issue, as it were, from the very soul of the Antitype, the Anointed of the future, who will not only be the King of Israel, but also the Captain of their salvation, as well as of that of the whole world.—David speaks; but Christ, whose Spirit already dwells and works in David, and who will hereafter receive from David his human nature, now already speaks in him.” See notes on 1: 5.

 

Hebrews 10:7 —in the volume of the book it is written of me,—That is, in the roll or volume of the Law. “Anciently,” says A. Clarke, “books were written on skins and rolled up. Among the Romans they were called volumina from volvo, I roll: and the Pentateuch in the Jewish synagogues is still written in the same way. There were two wooden rollers; on one they rolled on, and from the other they rolled off, as they proceeded in the reading.” In the volume of the Pentateuch, which every king of Israel was required to transcribe and carry with him as a vade mecum (Deuteronomy 17:14-20), there is constant reference to Christ. Indeed, we may truly say of it, as John has said of the Apocalypse, “The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of the prophecy.’’ (Revelation 19:10.) This testimony is given not only directly in such passages as Genesis 3:15 Genesis 22:17 Genesis 49:10; Deuteronomy 18:18; but also indirectly in all the types and shadows of the Old Covenant.

 

Hebrews 10:8 —Above when he said,—Our author now proceeds to explain and apply the foregoing prophecy, and for this purpose he quotes it again substantially in such a form as best serves to give point and energy to his argument. But in doing so, he wholly overlooks the type, and applies the words of the Psalm directly to Christ as their true and proper author. It is no longer David, but Christ himself who appears in front of the great drama of redemption, and who comes forward to do the will of God, by giving his own life for the salvation of the world. “Above,” (that is in the former part of the quotation,) “when he [Christ] saith, Sacrifices, and offerings, and whole burnt offerings, and offerings for sin, thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; such as are offered according to the law.”

 

Hebrews 10:9 —Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will—The reader will observe that in the preceding verse the Apostle has thrown to­gether all the various kinds of Levitical offerings, no doubt for the purpose of making the contrast between them and the one offering of Christ, as strong and as pointed as possible. Numerous and various as they were, they nevertheless all failed to fulfill the will of God; but this, Christ has fully accomplished by the one offering of himself.

 

Hebrews 10:9 —he taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.—The thing taken out of the way is not merely the Levitical sacri­fices, but the whole arrangement under which they were offered, and the thing established is the more gracious and perfect arrangement according to which the offering of Christ was made once for all. This is indicated (1) by the use of the abstract neuters, “the first” (to proton) and “the second” (to deuteron) ; and (2) by what follows in the next verse.

 

Hebrews 10:10 —By the which will we are sanctified through the offering, etc.—From this clause taken in connection with what precedes, it is quite manifest that the thing taken out of the way, embracing the Old Covenant with all its rites and ceremonies, was not the will of God, but that the thing established and ratified by the sacrifice of Christ, is the will of God. “He taketh away the first,” which was not the will of God; “that he may establish the second,” which is the will of God. The term “will” as used here, denotes God’s re­deeming purpose, conceived before the foundation of the world but gradually developed in the Holy Scriptures, and finally ratified by the atoning blood of the Lord Jesus. In the accomplishing of this will, embracing as it does the whole Gospel plan of salvation, “we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.”

 

Hebrews 10:11 —And every priest standeth daily ministering, etc.—The keynote of what follows is found in the last word of the tenth verse, (ephapax) “once for all.” The Levitical sacrifices were not only numerous and various, but they were also often repeated: “Every priest standeth, day by day, ministering and offering often­times the same sacrifices which can never take away sins.” “The same wearisome circle of ineffectual efforts,” says Tholuck, “which has been shown to characterize the performances of the high priest on the Day of Atonement, is now exhibited as characteristic of the priestly institute in general.” Several manuscripts and some of the ancient versions have high priests (archiereus) instead of priest (hiereus), but the balance of authority is in favor of the reading found in our English Version.

 

Hebrews 10:12 —But this man, after he had, etc.—The main point of contrast here is, not between the one sacrifice and the many, but between the often repeated offerings of the many sacrifices of the Law, and the one offering of the sacrifice of Christ. For while every Leviti- cal priest standeth daily ministering, as one who has never finished his work; Christ, on the other hand, having offered one sacrifice for sins, sat down perpetually on the right hand of God, as one who has accomplished his work; that is, the particular work to which our author here refers: the work of making an atonement for the sins of the world. This will never have to be repeated. The contrast that is here made by the Apostle is well presented by Menken as follows: “The priest of the Old Testament stands timid and uneasy in the Holy Place, anxiously performing his awful ser­vice there, and hastening to depart when the service is done, as from a place where he has no free access, and can never feel at home, whereas Christ sits down in everlasting rest and blessedness at the right hand of the Majesty in the Holy of Holies, his work accomplished, and he himself awaiting its reward.”

 

Hebrews 10:13 —From henceforth expecting, etc.—The Apostle refers again to Psalms 110:1, where David by the Spirit says, Jehovah said to my Lord, Sit on my right hand till I make thy enemies thy foot­stool. Christ is represented in our text as calmly and patiently waiting for the fulfillment of this promise. Not that he has ceased to work for the redemption of mankind, for he must reign, and that, too, with infinite power and energy, until the last enemy, death, shall be destroyed. (1 Corinthians 15:25-26; Revelation 19:11-21, etc.) But his sacrificial work is done. The one offering which he made of himself is all-sufficient, as our author shows further in the fol­lowing verse.

 

Hebrews 10:14 —For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified.—This is assigned as the reason why Christ has not to stand and daily repeat his offering, like the Levitical priests. The one offering which he has made of himself is enough. By it he has forever perfected them that are sanctified. But who are they? Evidently the same as the sanctified in 2: 11; those who by faith and obedience have put on Christ (Galatians 3:27), and who have risen with him from the baptismal grave to walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4; Colossians 2:12 Colossians 3:1). All such have come to perfection in Christ, finding as they do in him all that pertains to life and godliness (2 Peter 1:3), so that they have only to persevere in well doing to the end of life, by abiding in Christ as the branch abides in the vine, and then with spirits as pure as the angels before the throne of God, they will join the redeemed millions “who have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.”

 

Hebrews 10:15 —Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us:—Our author now proceeds to prove and illustrate his position still fur­ther by referring to the inspired Hebrew writings. For this pur­pose he again quotes from the prophecy of Jeremiah (31: 33, 34), showing clearly that even under the Old Economy, it was God’s purpose that through the blood of the New Covenant the sanctified in Christ Jesus should enjoy absolute and eternal forgiveness. But in making use of this passage, he quotes only so much of it as has a direct bearing on his argument, and by so abbreviating it, he has left the construction of it somewhat doubtful. The main point to be determined is simply this: Where does the protasis of the sen­tence end, and the apodosis begin?

 

Hebrews 10:16-17—Most commentators, since Beza, make the division in the middle of the sixteenth verse as fol­lows : “For after having said, This is the covenant which I will make with them after those days, the Lord [then] says, Patting my laws into their hearts, I will also write them on their under­standing; and their sins and iniquities will I remember no more But some of our ablest expositors make the apodosis begin with the seventeenth verse, and render the whole passage as follows: “For after having said, This is the covenant which I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, putting my laws into their hearts, I will also write them on their understanding, [he then adds] and their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.”

 

On the whole, I think with Beza, Delitzsch, and others, that the first construction is the most natural, and also most consistent with our author’s free manner of quoting from the original text. It mat­ters but little, however, which of these renderings is adopted. In ei­ther case, the main object of the writer is evidently to prove from the Old Testament Scriptures, that the subjects of the New Cove­nant enjoy, through the one offering of Christ, free, full, and abso­lute forgiveness.

 

Hebrews 10:18 —Now where remission of these is, there is no more offer­ing for sin.—That is, where there is absolute forgiveness of sins, there is no further need of a sin-offering. Another atonement would be wholly superfluous. This, as we have seen in comment­ing on 8: 12, is one of the leading points of contrast between the Old and the New Covenant. Under the former, the offerings were numerous, and were perpetually repeated; while they served to procure for the Israelites nothing more than a mere civil and ec­clesiastical forgiveness. But under the latter, the one offering of Christ procures for all the sanctified absolute and everlasting for­giveness.

 

1. This is one of the most profoundly interesting sections in the whole Bible. Leading us back, as it does, to the original gracious purpose of God, conceived, of course, before the foundation of the world, but gradually revealed and illustrated from the fall of man until it was fully developed in the kingdom of Christ, it embraces within itself an outline of the whole remedial system. We see in it both the shadow and the substance in their true and proper rela¬tions to each other; and all looking to the one grand consumma¬tion, when the last enemy, Death, having been vanquished, the kingdom will be delivered up to God the Father. To understand this one section, therefore, in all its legitimate bearings, is, in fact, to understand the whole economy of Divine grace.

 

2. Judaism, though in itself but a shadow, differs nevertheless in many respects from all false systems of religion; but chiefly in this, that it has in Christianity a real corresponding substance. The religious systems of the ancient Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, and other heathen nations, were nothing but shadows; mere counterfeits without any corresponding realities. The Romans, for instance, had their high priest or Pontifex Maximus, as well as the Jews. But while the Jewish high priest was a type of Christ, the Roman Pontifex Maximus was a type of nothing: a mere shadow of a shadow, without any corresponding substance. And this is true also of all the heathen temples, sacrifices, etc.; so that there is really no proper parallelism between Judaism and any other system of religion outside of the Bible. The one was given by God him¬self ; but the other is wholly of human origin.

 

3. Christians should ever rejoice that the way into the holiest of all is now made manifest. (Hebrews 9:8 Hebrews 10:19-20.) Christ has made it so very plain, that all may now understand it and walk in it. Indeed he is himself the way, the truth, the resurrection and the life. The man who is in him, and who walks in him, cannot fail to enter, even as he himself did, into the holy of holies. Well, therefore, might Christ now say to us, as he once said to his disciples while on earth, “Blessed are the eyes which see the things that ye see: for I tell you that many prophets and kings have desired to see those things which ye see, and have not seen them; and to hear those things which ye hear, and have not heard them.,, Let us all then strive to walk worthy of our high and holy calling; “with all lowliness and meekness, with long-suffering, forbearing one another in love; endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.”

 

4. The great end of all religion is to purify the conscience from all that is impure and unholy; and so to qualify us for the service of God here, and for the enjoyment of his presence hereafter. (Hebrews 9:14.) Without this, all outward purifications are of no avail. The body will soon go to corruption, do as we may. “Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return,” is the irrevocable decree of God with respect to all flesh. But if by Divine grace the spirit is made like that of Christ, then also the body will in due time be made like the body of Christ. (1 John 3:2.) And if we are like Christ, we will be with him (John 14:3), and be made heirs of the universe through him (1 Corinthians 3:21-23).

 

5. There has ever been but one ground of pardon, justification, sanctification, and redemption. The conditions of enjoying the great boon of eternal life have varied somewhat in different ages and under different circumstances. Some things were required of the Jews, which are not now required of Christians; and some things are required of Christians, which were wholly unknown to the Jews. But neither Jews nor Christians ever did or ever can do anything by way of making an atonement for sin. This can be done only through the blood of the Lord Jesus Christ, which was just as necessary “for the redemption of the sins that were com¬mitted under the first covenant,” as it is for the redemption of those that are now committed under the second covenant. (9: 15; Romans 3:25-26.) This is the fountain which God by the mouth of Zechariah (13: 1) promised that he would open “to the house of David for sin and for uncleanness”; and this is the fountain to which every penitent sinner is now invited to come and be cleansed.

 

6. How infinitely glorious will be the second advent of our blessed Lord. (Hebrews 9:28.) His first coming was in weakness, poverty, and suffering, because he was then “made of a woman, made under the law, to redeem them that were under the law; that we might receive the adoption of sons.” (Galatians 4:4-5.) He had then to be “made sin for us, though he knew no sin, that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.” (2 Corinthians 5:21.) But now his sacrificial work is done. His sufferings and sorrows are all over. He has borne away all our sins in his own person; and by the one offering of himself he has brought in everlasting righteousness. And hence when he comes again, it will be to redeem his saints, “and to convict all the impious concerning all their works of im¬piety which they impiously did, and concerning all the hard things which impious sinners spoke against him.” (Jude 1:14-15.) Then “all that are in their graves will hear his voice and come forth; they that have done good, to the resurrection of life; and they that have done evil, to the resurrection of damnation.” (John 5:28-29.) The judgment will sit, and the books will be opened. And then every man will be rewarded according to his works. (Revelation 20:11-15.) Sinner, are you prepared to meet him at his coming?

If not, why not at once repent of your sins? Why not accept of the mercy which he now offers to you through the Gospel? “Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation.” (2 Corinthians 6:2.)

 

7. God is not an arbitrary, but a just and righteous Sovereign. (Hebrews 10:1-4.) Otherwise he might have accepted the blood of bulls and of goats as an atonement for sin; nay more, he might have even allowed all sin to pass with impunity. But this was impossi¬ble. God’s own nature would not allow this. Justice, absolute and eternal justice, had to be satisfied before any sinner could be par¬doned absolutely; for justice and judgment are the habitation of God’s throne. (Psalms 89:14.) But nothing it seems save the blood of Christ was sufficient to pay the ransom. And hence even this was not withheld by our ever gracious and merciful Father.

For, as \ve are told, he “so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16.) But before this can be made available to the sinner, it must be humbly and thankfully ac¬cepted by him. He must reverently bow to the authority of Jesus, and receive him as the anointed Sovereign of the universe. (Philippians 2:9-11.) To those who do so willingly, Christ has become the author of eternal salvation (Hebrews 5:9) ; but to those who reject Christ, the Gospel is but a savor of death unto death (2 Corinthians 2:16). Better for all such that they had never been born; for by an eternal moral necessity they must be banished “with an everlasting de¬struction from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his power, when he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe.” (2 Thessalonians 1:9-10.)

 

8. How infinitely consoling is the assurance given to us in this section, that the one offering of Christ has so far satisfied the will of God, by meeting the claims of Divine justice against the sinner, that he can now be just in justifying every one who believes and obeys him. (Hebrews 10:5-10; Romans 3:25-26.) This is indeed to us as an anchor of the soul, both sure and steadfast, reaching even within the Vail. For, as our author says in his letter to the Romans ( Romans 5:10), “If when we were enemies to God by wicked works, we were reconciled to him by the death of his Son; much more being now reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.” On this rock we may now rest our hopes in confidence, feeling assured that “all things work together for good to them that love God” (Romans 8:28) ; and that “neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 8:38-39). May God help us then to renounce all self-righteousness and self¬reliance, and to trust only in him “who of God has become unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption.”

Hebrews 10:19-25

AN TO GREATER

, PURITY. ,

AND IN THE WORSHIP

AND SERVICE OF GOD

Hebrews 10:19-25

 

Hebrews 10:19 —Having therefore, etc.—In the preceding section the Apos­tle has shown (1) that the way into the Holiest of all, though dark and mysterious to the ancients, has now been made manifest to us through the shed blood of Christ; (2) that Christ has himself en­tered it by means of his own blood with which he has made an atonement for the sins of the world; (3) that he ever lives there as a priest on his throne to intercede for us and to bless us; and (4) that by virtue of his atoning blood, we, too, are allowed to follow him and to be with him as joint heirs of the eternal inheritance. All this, then, serves to inspire us, not exactly with “boldness,” but rather with a joyful confidence (parresia) as regards our entrance into the Holiest of all, through the blood of Jesus. On this point there is really no longer any reason for doubting. We now “know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dissolved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” (2 Corinthians 5:1.) We are therefore no longer in bondage through the fear of death, having confidence that “it is better to depart and be with Christ.” The phrase, “by the blood of Christ,” denotes the means by and through which this joyful access to heaven has been procured for us as illustrated in the preceding sec­tion.

 

Hebrews 10:20 —By a new and living way,—The meaning of this expression will be best understood when viewed in its proper relations to other parts of the sentence, the whole of which may be literally rendered as follows: Having therefore, brethren, confidence with respect to the entrance of the Holy of holies by means of the blood of Jesus, which [entrance or entranceway] he consecrated for us [as] a way fresh and living [leading] through the vail, that is through his flesh, etc. From this, it will be seen that our English Version gives the sense of the passage pretty accurately, without, however, giving the exact grammatical relation of the words as they stand in the original. The new and living way is the same as the entrance way. It is called new, fresh, or recent way, because it had but recently been initiated and consecrated by Christ, and it is called a living way, because like Christ himself it is ever fresh and living. “The way into the Sanctuary of the Old Testament,” says Hofmann, “was simply a lifeless pavement, trodden by the high priest and by him alone. But the way that has been opened and consecrated for us by Jesus Christ, is one that really leads and car­ries all who enter it into the heavenly rest:—a living way, because one with the living person and abiding work of the Lord Jesus.” It is also a way that leads through the vail; that is, through the rent flesh of Christ. As the vail was the only medium of access to God under the Old Economy, so also is the rent flesh of Christ the only medium of access to him under the New Economy. And hence when the heart of Christ was ruptured on the cross (see notes on Hebrews 5:7), the vail of the temple was then also “rent in twain from the top to the bottom.” (Matthew 27:51.) Then, and not till then, was the way of entrance into the Holies of all made manifest to men and angels.

 

Hebrews 10:21 —And having an high priest over the house of God;—Liter­ally, And having a great priest (hierea megan) over the house of God. True, indeed, in the Septuagint, as well as in the writings of Philo, these words (hierens megas) are often used in the sense of archicrus (archiereus). But as they are not in any other instance so used by our author, it is most likely that he uses the word great in this instance, as in Hebrews 4:14, to denote Christ’s personal dignity and royal highness. Like Melchisedec, he sits as a priest upon his throne, while he presides over the house of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and ground of the truth.” (1 Timothy 3:15.) The house of God may, however, in this instance, de­note the church in heaven as well as the church on earth, for Christ is a minister of both the heavenly Sanctuary and the true Tabernacle. (Hebrews 8:2.)

 

Hebrews 10:22 —Let us draw near—Draw near to what? Evidently to God and to the throne of his grace, as we are exhorted to do in Hebrews 4:16. The priests of the Old Covenant drew near to God symbolically, whenever they approached the golden altar to ‘burn incense, for be­tween this altar and the Ark of the Covenant, on which God’s presence was manifested, there was but little space. The vail, however, still intervened between the worshiped and the worship­ers, and the whole scene was, in fact, one of mystery and terror to the priests, as well as to the people. But not so under the New Economy. “For as many as are [now] led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” For as Paul assures us (Romans 8:15), we have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but we have received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. And thus having a joyful confidence as respects the en­trance into the Holiest of all, and having a great sympathetic high priest over the house of God, we may all now draw near to God as his redeemed children, and find grace for seasonable help.

 

But this near approach into the presence of our heavenly Father should always be made with becoming reverence and with due preparation of both head and heart. “I will be sanctified,” says God, “in them that come nigh me.” (Leviticus 10:3.) And accord­ingly the children of Israel were required to wash their clothes and to purify themselves for three days, before they were allowed to approach God at Mount Sinai. (Exodus 19:10.) “God is spirit,” says Christ, “and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.” (John 4:24.) This is just as necessary now as it ever was. And hence while the Apostle would have all his Hebrew brethren approach God in prayer and praise, he would have them do so (1) with a true heart; (2) in the full assurance of faith; (3) having their hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience; and (4) having their bodies washed with pure water. Let us consider each of these in order.

 

Hebrews 10:22 —with a true heart—That is, with a heart that is free from all guile, deceit, and hypocrisy. A heart made true by the knowledge of itself and of the grace of God, through the enlightening and sanctifying influences of the Holy Spirit. “When this knowledge takes root,” says Ebrard, “it will dispel the delusive fancy that God needs no atonement; that God is only a dead idol, who knows not the anger of holy love. It will dispel, too, the confidence in false self-made atonements, including all merit of works, and it will de­stroy all self-deception about an atonement through any other sac­rifices than the sacrifice of Christ.” A true heart, then, is a heart which, while renouncing all self-righteousness and every other “refuge of lies,” receives Christ and trusts in him as the way, the truth, the resurrection, and the life.

 

Hebrews 10:22 —In full assurance of faith,—That is, with a faith that dispels all doubt with regard to God and his promises; a faith which enables us to “take God at his word,” and to do just what he commands, feeling perfectly sure that all things work together for good to them that love and serve him. That such a degree of faith is desir­able no one can doubt; and that it is also attainable through the grace of God is perhaps equally certain. And if so, then surely it should be most earnestly sought for by all; for to approach God in a doubtful state of mind is very dishonoring to him as well as inju­rious to ourselves.

 

Hebrews 10:22 —Having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience,—The word rendered conscience (suneidesis) may mean here, as in Hebrews 9:9 Hebrews 9:14, either conscience or consciousness; either the moral faculty of the soul, or the state of mind resulting from the exercise of this faculty. Every act that we perform contrary to the known will of God defiles our conscience and also our consciousness; we have them both an evil conscience and an evil self-consciousness. And this, so long as it continues, must seriously interrupt our union, communion and fellowship with God. The child that is suffering from an evil consciousness on account of its having transgressed the known will of its father cannot, so long as the feeling lasts, approach him with perfect confidence. But when it repents of the evil, confesses the wrong, and feels fully assured that the fault is forgiven, then what a change comes over it. It can then properly appreciate a father’s love, and draw near to him with filial and joy­ful confidence.

And just so it is with every child of God. So long as we feel conscious of guilt, so long we feel also that there is a strong barrier between us and our God. For if our heart con­demns us, we know that God also condemns us. (1 John 3:20.) But “if we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9.) And this he does in all cases by applying to our hearts the blood of sprinkling; for it is this, and only this, that can cleanse from sin. (1 John 1:7.) And when our hearts are thus purified, we have then “confidence toward God” (1 John 3:21) ; and we can then approach him as his redeemed children and have sweet communion and fellowship with him. “Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God.”

 

Hebrews 10:22 —And our bodies washed with pure water.—There is here a manifest reference to the bath of regeneration. (Titus 3:5.) It will not do to say with Calvin, Limborch, Owen, Bengel and oth­ers that this is a mere symbolical expression, having reference simply to the inward cleansing of the soul by the blood of Christ and the renewing influence of the Holy Spirit. The strong and pointed antithesis which the Apostle here makes between the sprin­kling of the heart and the washing of the body forbids any such interpretation of the passage. This is conceded by Delitzsch, Al­ford, Moll and others. Indeed nearly all eminent expositors are now agreed that there is here a manifest reference to the ordinance of Christian baptism. Alford says, “There can be no reasonable doubt that this clause refers directly to Christian baptism. The bath of water (loutron ton hudatos) of Ephesians 5:26, and the bath of regeneration (loutron palingenesias) of Titus 3:5, are analogous expressions; and the express mention of body (soma) here as dis­tinguished from hearts (kardias) before, stamps this interpretation with certainty.

To the same effect are the remarks of Prof. Stuart.

In commenting on our text he says, “It seems to me that there is a plain allusion to the use of water in the initiatory rite of Christian baptism. This is altogether consonant with the method of our author who is everywhere comparing Christian institutions with Jewish ones. So in the case before us he says, The Jews were sprinkled with blood in order that they might be purified so as to have access to God; Christians are internally sprinkled, that is, purified by the blood of Jesus. The Jews were washed with water in order to be ceremonially purified so as to come before God; Christians have been washed by the purifying water of bap­tism. So Ananias exhorts Saul to be baptized and wash away his sins. (Acts 22:16.) In this latter case and in that before us the phrase is borrowed from the legal rite of washing for purification.” To these very judicious remarks I need only add that the obvious design of our author in using this expression is to indicate that the whole man, both soul and body, should be sanctified and conse­crated to the service of God. See Romans 12:1.

 

Hebrews 10:23 —Let us hold fast, etc.—This would be better rendered as fol­lows: Let us hold fast the confession of the hope (homologian tcs elpidos) without wavering. See notes on 3: 1. I agree with Bloomfield that this is “a pregnant expression,” and that its full meaning might be expressed thus: “Let us hold fast the faith which we have confessed and cling to the hope which it ministers.” The idea is, that we are still but pilgrims here as all our fathers were. We have not yet reached the goal of our destiny. Eternal life is still with us an object of hope. And hence the necessity of clinging to this hope as the anchor of our souls.

 

Hebrews 10:23 —For he is faithful that promised;—This clause is added by the Apostle for the purpose of encouraging his Hebrew brethren and all who might read this Epistle to hold fast the confession of their hope without wavering even to the end of life. To persuade them to do this was, indeed, his leading object in writing the Epistle; and hence his frequent reference to the fidelity of God, as well as to the glory and dignity of Christ. See notes on Hebrews 6:18.

 

Hebrews 10:24 —And let us consider one another—That is, Let us not be selfish, caring merely for ourselves; but let us have constantly in mind each other’s wants and circumstances as members of the one family of God; and that, too, for the purpose of exciting and en­couraging one another to love and good works. The same senti­ment is earnestly inculcated by Christ in his sermon on the Mount, where he says to his disciples, “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:16.) “How beautifully,” says Delitzsch, “is the exhortation here disposed of in conformity with the Pauline triad of Christian graces. (1 Corinthians 13:13; Colossians 1:4; 1 Thessalonians 1:3 1 Thessalonians 5:8.) First, we have the injunction to approach in the full assur­ance of faith; then that to hold fast the confession of our hope; and now, third, to godly rivalry in the manifestations of Christian char­ity”

 

Hebrews 10:25 —Not forsaking the. assembling of ourselves, etc.—The Apostle refers here, not to apostasy from the Church, as some al­lege, but simply to the neglect of public and social worship. The time when this letter was written was manifestly a time of persecu­tion in Jerusalem and perhaps, throughout Palestine. (12: 4.) Many of the Hebrew brethren were no doubt greatly discouraged; and some of them had fallen into the habit of neglecting the regular meetings of the Church. This was clearly wrong for several rea­sons. (1) Because by so doing, they neglected and set at naught an ordinance of God. Nothing is more obvious in the history of the primitive Church than that the members of the several congre­gations were wont to meet together on every Lord’s Day, and no doubt also frequently during the week for public and social wor­ship. (Acts 2:42 Acts 20:7; 1 Corinthians 16:1-2, etc.) And as these meetings were held with the sanction of the Apostles, and for a time under their immediate supervision, they had, as a matter of course, all the force and obligation of a Divine ordinance. (2) Be-cause by neglecting his ordinance of God, the disciples deprived themselves of many social and religious privileges. The Church of Christ is a social institution designed for the edification and im­provement of all its members. And besides, Christ says that wher­ever even two or three are met together in his name he will be with them. (Matthew 18:20.) But when Christ meets with his people it is of course to bless them, and to strengthen them for the many trials and conflicts of life.

No one can, therefore, properly estimate his loss in willingly absenting himself from the meetings of his breth­ren. (3) The delinquent Hebrews were doing wrong, also, be­cause of the bad example which they were setting before others. Christ intends that every one of his disciples shall be a living wit­ness for the truth. No wonder, then, that the Apostle so earnestly exhorted the Hebrews, not to neglect the duty and privilege of meeting with their brethren for public and social worship.

 

Hebrews 10:25 —And so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.—To what day does our author here refer? To the day of judgment, say Delitzsch, Alford, Moll, and others; when Christ will come in person to raise the dead and reward every man according to his works. But this interpretation is manifestly erroneous. To me at least it seems perfectly obvious that the Apostle refers here to a day which both he and his brethren were looking for as a day that was then very near at hand: a day that was about to come on that generation, and try the faith of many. And hence I am con­strained to think with Macknight, Scott, Stuart, and others, that the reference is most likely to the day of Jerusalem’s overthrow. Christ had himself foretold the near approach of that event (Matthew 24:34) ; he had also spoken of the signs of its coming and of the great calamities that would accompany it (Matthew 24:4-41).

No doubt, therefore, the Christians in Palestine were all looking for­ward with much anxiety to the time when this prophecy would be fulfilled. They would naturally speak of it as “the day”; the day of trial; the day when seeing Jerusalem encompassed with armies, they would themselves have to flee to the mountains. (Luke 21:20-22.)

 

If this is not the meaning of the Apostle, I would then under­stand him as referring simply to the day when Christ comes in his providence to call on each individual to give an account of his stewardship. In this general sense the passage may be regarded, like the parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13), as an admoni­tion and warning to all Christians in all ages and in all nations. But to refer it exclusively to the day when Christ will come in per­son to judge the world is clearly inadmissible. See notes on Hebrews 10:37.

Hebrews 10:26-31

A SOLEMN WARNING AGAINST

THE DANGERS AND FEARFUL

OF

Hebrews 10:26-31

 

Hebrews 10:26 —For if we sin willfully, etc.—To sin willfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth is the same as to aposta­tize from Christ, for which there is no forgiveness. See notes on Hebrews 6:4-6. The use of the present participle (hamartanonton) shows that the sin is not one of error or inadvertence; not a sin of mo­mentary excitement; but rather that it is a sin of habit; a sin that is willingly and deliberately persisted in; a sin that is committed with a high hand and in open violation and contempt of God’s law. For the law in reference to these two classes of sins, see Numbers 15:22ff. The word rendered knowledge (epignosis) means more than a mere objective knowledge (gnosis) of the truth. It rather de­notes a full experimental knowledge, such as we gain by the active application of our minds to the study of the truth.

And hence it is of “those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heav­enly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit, and have tasted of the good word of God and the powers of the world to come,” that our author speaks. If such persons apostatize from Christ—

 

Hebrews 10:26 —There remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,—Or rather, there remaineth no longer (ouk eti) a sacrifice for sins. The idea of the Apostle is not simply that those who presumptuously reject the sacrifice of Christ can obtain salvation through no other; but fur­ther, he means to say that in the case of such high-handed trans­gressors, even the sacrifice of Christ is no longer available. The man who was once a Christian, a true child of God, and who as such was made a partaker of the Holy Spirit, and yet falls away as an apostate from Christ, can obtain no more forgiveness in any way. “His desperate condition,” as Delitzsch justly remarks, “is both the natural consequence of his willful error, and also a con­dign punishment inflicted by the Divine hand. He not only shuts out himself from grace, but the door of repentance is shut behind him; and he has before him only the prospect of a damnation from which there is no escape.”

 

Hebrews 10:27 —But a certain fearful looking for of judgment—This is the fearful condition of every apostate from Christ. Cut off from all hope of being saved, nothing remains for him but a certain fearful anticipation of coming judgment and a fervor of fire which will fi­nally consume all the enemies of God. There seems to be an allu­sion here to the fire which came out from God and consumed the two hundred and fifty Levites who participated in the rebellion of Korah (Numbers 16:35); and perhaps also to the destruction of Nadab, Abihu, and other like rebels against the Divine govern­ment. See references. So, God himself is represented as a con­suming fire (Hebrews 12:29), before whom all the wicked will finally per­ish (2 Thessalonians 1:8). This thought our author now proceeds to il­lustrate still further by a reference to the law of Moses.

Hebrews 10:28 —He that despised Moses’ law, etc.—The Apostle does not speak here of all manner of sins and transgressions committed under the Old Covenant, but only of such as were committed “with a high hand,” and in open rebellion against God and in contempt of his government: such, for example, as the sin of idolatry; the law concerning which was inexorably laid down as follows: “If there be found among you, within any of thy gates which the Lord thy God giveth thee, man or woman, that hath wrought wickedness in the sight of the Lord thy God, in transgressing his covenant, and hath gone and served other gods, and worshipped them, either the sun, or moon, or any of the host of heaven, which I have not commanded; and it be told thee, and thou hast heard of it, and inquired diligently, and behold, it be true, and the thing certain, that such abomination is wrought in Israel: then thou shalt bring forth that man or that woman, which have committed that wicked thing, unto thy gates, even that man or that woman, and shalt stone them with stones, till they die. At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses shall he that is worthy of death <be put to death; but at the mouth of one witness he shall not be put to death. The hands of the witnesses shall be first upon him to put him to death, and afterward the hands of all the people. So thou shalt put the evil away from among you.” (Deuteronomy 17:2-7.)

 

This is the best possible commentary on our text. It proves be­yond all doubt that for the apostate under the Old Covenant there was no forgiveness. And now he proceeds to show by an argu­ment, a minori ad majus, that the case of the apostate under the superior light and privileges of the New Covenant, is even more intolerable.

 

Hebrews 10:29 —Of how much sorer punishment, etc.—The lesson is taught by our Lord himself, that wherever much is given, there also is much always required. “That servant,” he says, “who knew his lord’s will, and prepared not himself, neither did according to his will, shall be beaten with many stripes. But he that knew not, and did commit things worthy of stripes, shall be beaten with few stripes. For unto whomsoever much is given, of him shall much be required; and to whom men have committed much, of him will they ask the more.” (Luke 12:47-48.) And just so our author reasons in the case before us. If the apostate under the Old Cove­nant was punished with so great severity, much more shall the apostate, who under the superior light of the New Covenant has trampled under foot the Son of God, and accounted the blood of the covenant by means of which he was sanctified an unholy thing, and insulted the Spirit of grace, suffer the extreme penalties of the divine law. The threefold specification of his guilt is given here for the purpose of more clearly defining the desperately wicked and abandoned course of the apostate. Let us notice each of these in order:

 

Hebrews 10:29 —Who hath trodden under foot the Son of God,—The in­effably glorious and perfect Being who in infinite condescension be­came flesh and died to redeem him; who sent his good Spirit to enlighten, comfort, and sanctify him; and who, in a word, did all that Heaven could do to save him from his sins, and to make him an heir of honor, glory, and immortality;—this is the Being whom the apostate, as far as he can, now tramples under foot, and treats as an object of extreme hatred and contempt! What else can such a one expect but the extreme terrors and torments of the coming judgment.

 

Hebrews 10:29 —And hath counted, etc.—The word rendered unholy (koinon) means (a) what is common; and (b) what is unholy or im­pure. Its secondary meaning is to be preferred here as being more in harmony with the context. The apostate treats this blood, by means of which he was himself once sanctified, as an unholy and impure thing. The use of the word sanctified (hegiasthe) shows very clearly that the subject of the discourse was once a Christian, a true child of God, and prospectively an heir of glory. But now he is a child of the devil and an enemy of all righteousness.

 

Hebrews 10:29 —Hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?—That is, to the Holy Spirit. It is here called the Spirit of grace, because through it God imparts all grace, comfort, and salvation to our helpless and sinful race. By it, Christ himself worked all his mira­cles (Matthew 12:28) ; and by it, he convinces the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment (John 16:8) ; and by it, he com­forts his saints and helps their infirmities (John 7:39; Romans 8:26). To insult this Spirit, then, as does the apostate, is manifestly the height of all wickedness, maliciousness, and impiety. And hence, as Christ says (Matthew 12:32), for those who do so there is no forgiveness. Nothing remains for them but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a jealousy of fire which will devour all the adversaries of God.

 

Hebrews 10:30 —For we know him that hath said,—The meaning is, we know the character of God: we know him to be a God of truth; a God of justice; and a God of infinite power and holiness. We know, therefore, that he will certainly execute all his threatenings on his enemies, while he at the same time fulfills all his promises to his children.

 

Hebrews 10:30 —Vengeance belongeth unto me, etc.—This is a quotation from Deuteronomy 32:35. It is cited in Romans 12:19, to show that vengeance does not belong to us but to God. Here, it is cited to prove that God will certainly, in due time, render a just recompense to all his enemies.

 

Hebrews 10:30 —And again, the Lord shall judge his people.—This is a cita­tion from Deuteronomy 32:36. The same expression is found also in Psalms 135:14; but it is most likely that our author quotes from the law as given by Moses. The passage is variously explained by exposi­tors. Some take it to mean that the Lord will vindicate and avenge his people, by executing just judgment on his and their enemies (Delitzsch, Alford, Moll, Stuart) ; but others think that the object of our author is rather to show that God is so very just and righ­teous, that he will not allow the sins of even his own children to pass with impunity, much less the daring impiety of apostates (Bleek, Lunemann, De Wette). “For if the righteous scarcely be saved, where will the ungodly and the sinner appear ?” (1 Peter 4:18.) Perhaps both ideas may be included in the Apostle’s argu­ment.

 

Hebrews 10:31 —It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.—This is plain enough from the scope of the passage and the explanations already given. For if God is infinitely just and infi­nitely holy, it must indeed be indescribably awful to fall into his hands to be punished forever and ever. True, indeed, David says, “Let us fall now into the hands of the Lord; for his mercies are great; and let us not fall into the hand of man.” (2 Samuel 24:14.) But David was not an apostate. It was for correction, and not for everlasting punishment, that he chose to fall into the hand of the Lord, rather than into the hands of his enemies. The cases are, therefore, not at all parallel. For it is not for the purpose of being corrected during the short space of three days, or even three centu­ries, that the apostate falls into the hands of Jehovah; but it is that he may be “punished with an everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power.” (2 Thessalonians 1:9.) “These,” says Christ, “shall go away into everlasting (aionion) punishment; but the righteous, into everlasting (aion- ion) life.” (Matthew 25:46.)

Hebrews 10:32-34

AND

TO THE HEBREW , ON THE

GROUND OF THEIR

Hebrews 10:32-34

 

Hebrews 10:32 —But call to remembrance, etc.—We are here reminded of the very happy and encouraging turn which our author gave to his argument in the sixth chapter. Having there treated of the alarm­ing state of the apostate, he reminded his readers that though sadly delinquent in some respects, they were, nevertheless, still far re­moved from the sin of apostasy. “God,” he says, “is not unrigh­teous to forget your work and labor of love, which ye have showed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.” And just so he proceeds in this instance. Having pre­sented to the Hebrew brethren the awful doom of those who reject Christ and the great salvation purchased through his blood, he next encourages them by referring to their first love, and remind­ing them how heroically they had endured their former afflictions.

 

Hebrews 10:32 —After ye were illuminated,—That is, after they had been translated from the kingdom of darkness into the Kingdom of him who is himself the light of the world (John 8:12), the Sun of righteousness that has risen upon the nations (Mai. 4:2). Those who follow him cannot walk in darkness. See notes on Hebrews 6:4.

 

Hebrews 10:32 — Ye endured a great fight of afflictions.—These afflictions were such as occurred after the martyrdom of Stephen, when there was a great persecution against the Church which was at Jerusalem. (Acts 8:1 Acts 12:1-3, etc.) All these, the Hebrew brethren of Je­rusalem and Palestine had borne patiently and even heroically, as faithful “soldiers of the cross.” And now the Apostle would have them be consistent, and persevere in like manner even to the end.

 

Hebrews 10:33 —Partly, whilst ye were made a gazingstock, etc.—The ob­ject of the Apostle in this verse, is to particularize and further il­lustrate the very severe nature and character of their former trials and afflictions; and also to remind them still further of the great readiness of mind with which they had endured them. They not only bore with patience and Christian fortitude the severe trials to which they themselves were subjected by their persecutors; but they also, it seems, voluntarily became the companions of others who were suffering in like manner. To be made a gazingstock (theatrizomenoi) is to be exposed to public abuse and insult, as criminals often were in the Greek and Roman theaters. (Acts 19:29; 1 Corinthians 4:9.) Speaking of these barbarous exhibitions, Seneca says in his seventh epistle: “In the morning men are exposed to lions and bears: at midday, to their spectators. Those that kill are opposed to one another; and the victor is detained for another slaughter. The conclusion of the fight is death.” The word re­proaches (oneidismoi) has reference to the reproachful epithets which were heaped upon the Christians by their persecutors; and the word afflictions (thlipseis) denotes the various sufferings and calamities which they endured. All these they had borne with pa­tience and Christian fortitude; and they had even voluntarily be­come the companions or partners (koinonoi) of those who were suffering from like reproaches and afflictions. This they did, no doubt, by contributing of their means for their support and com­fort ; and by doing all in their power to alleviate and remove their sufferings.

 

Hebrews 10:34 —For ye had compassion of me in my bonds,—Or rather, according to the above critical note, For ye sympathised with them who were in bonds. This reading is, on the whole, best sustained by both the internal and the external evidence; and it is therefore preferred by Grotius, Bengel, Semler, Wetstein, Michaelis, Gries- bach, Scholz, Kuinoel, Bleek, Knapp, Ebrard, Delitzsch, and Moll, as well as by the authorities cited in the above note. It is proper to add, however, that the reading of the Textus Receptus is sup­ported by the Codex Sinaiticus and several other valuable manu­scripts. It is therefore a satisfaction to know that the difference of these readings does not materially affect the sense of the passage; the obvious purpose of the writer being in either case to praise and encourage the Hebrews on account of their former sympathy for those who were in bonds and afflictions.

 

Hebrews 10:34 —And took joyfully the spoiling of your goods,—This may refer (1) to the losses which the Hebrews sustained in consequence of their becoming Christians; just as it sometimes now hap­pens even in our own day. “When a Jew,” says Ebrard, “shows himself determined to become a Christian, he is disinherited by his relatives; his share of the property is withheld from him; his credit and every source of gain, withdrawn; and he falls into a state of complete destitution.” This same kind of injustice was extensively practiced in primitive times by both Jews and Gentiles. But (2) it is probable that the Apostle refers here more particularly to the heavy losses of property which the Hebrew Christians had in­curred in times of persecution. In either case, they bore all joy­fully, just as the Apostles rejoiced that they were counted worthy to suffer shame for the name of Jesus. (Acts 5:41.)

 

Hebrews 10:34 —Knowing in yourselves, etc.—Or, according to the most ap­proved reading, Knowing that ye have for yourselves a better pos­session, and one that is enduring. Some valuable manuscripts, as D, K, L, etc., retain the phrase in heaven (en ouranois). But whether these words are spurious or genuine, the sense of the pas­sage is in either case manifestly the same, as it is, no doubt, to the heavenly inheritance that our author here refers. See 1 Peter 1:4. The Hebrews, it seems, had joyfully submitted to being robbed of their earthly possessions; because, like Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, they had constantly in view the heavenly country, and also the city which had the foundations. (Hebrews 11:10 Hebrews 11:16.) “Thus,” observes De­litzsch, “the sacred writer raises the hearts and minds of those whom his previous language might have depressed. He had led them to the brink of a terrible precipice of negligence and apostasy, down which they seemed in danger of falling; and now he leads them back from it to the contemplation of their own steadfast and favored past."

Hebrews 10:35-39

THE HEBREWS ARE FURTHER

AND ENCOUR­AGED TO THEIR

; AND TO PER­SEVERE

THROUGH FAITH EVEN TO THE END,

WHICH TO THEM WAS THEN VERY NEAR

AT HAND, WHEN THEY WOULD ALL BE

FOR THEIR

Hebrews 10:35-39

 

Hebrews 10:35 —Cast not away therefore your confidence,—There seems to be an allusion here to the conduct of weak and cowardly soldiers, who in the day of battle were wont to throw aside their shields and turn their backs on the enemy. This was regarded by the ancients as extremely dishonorable. And hence when the Lacedemonian women presented shields to their sons on going to battle, they were in the habit of saying to them, “Bring this back, or ‘be brought back upon it." The same sentiment prevailed also among the an­cient Germans. Tacitus says, that “to lose or cast away the shield in battle, was regarded by them as a matter of the greatest dis­honor ; and that those who acted so were not allowed to be present at the sacrifices, nor to attend the public assemblies of the people." (Germ. c. vi.) In allusion to this very prevalent feeling among the ancients, our author exhorts his Hebrew brethren not to act the part of cowardly soldiers by voluntarily casting away the shield of faith, or rather of that holy and joyful confidence (parresia) which faith inspires in the soul; but to quit themselves like men; “to be strong in the Lord and in the power of his might"; knowing that no one could ever deprive them of this most valuable weapon of their Christian panoply, unless they would themselves voluntar­ily cast it aside, and then turn about and act as cowards.

 

Hebrews 10:35 —Which hath great recompense of reward.—This joyful and well grounded confidence gives us peace of mind here, and secures for all who possess it, “glory, honor, and immortality” hereafter. Great indeed, therefore, is the recompense of its reward. It should be remembered, however, that this reward is not bestowed on any­one as a matter of debt, but of grace. “For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God.” (Ephesians 2:8.) This confidence is therefore but one of the legiti­mate fruits of God’s gracious plan; and it serves as a means of en­joying the salvation that has been so freely purchased for us through the precious blood of the Lord Jesus.

 

Hebrews 10:36 —For ye have need of patience,—Patience is necessary at all times, and especially in times of trial and affliction. For without it, God’s gracious chastisements are unavailing; they only serve to irritate and excite our evil passions, and to make us more discon­tented. But with patience, they always give us a joyful and ap­proving experience which fills us with an increase of hope and love. (Romans 5:3-5.) And accordingly James exhorts his brethren of the dispersion to let patience have her perfect work, that they “might be perfect and entire, wanting nothing.” The man who does this, can always with Paul “glory in tribulations,” knowing that “these light afflictions which are but momentary [serve to] work out for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory.” (2 Corinthians 4:17.)

 

Hebrews 10:36 —After ye have done the will of God,—That is, after ye have done and suffered all that God requires of you. The Apostle does not mean to say that Christians should fulfill the will of God, as Christ did by means of his atoning sacrifice (Hebrews 10:7 Hebrews 10:9) ; but only that they should do and suffer patiently, in obedience to God’s will, whatever he himself may appoint or permit for their own spiritual improvement, as well as for the welfare of others.

 

Hebrews 10:36 —Ye might receive the promise.—The whole verse may be more literally and simply rendered as follows: For ye have need of pa­tience ; that having done the will of God, ye may receive the prom­ise. By “the promise” is not meant the word of the promise; for that had been long previously given to Abrahapi and to his seed. (Galatians 3:29.) But “the promise” here means the thing promised. It is the eternal life with all its accompanying blessings, upon the enjoyment of which the soul of every true believer enters immedi­ately after death. (Luke 16:22; 2 Corinthians 5:6 2 Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23, etc.) And so we read that after Abraham had patiently endured “he ob­tained the promise.” (Hebrews 6:15.) The object of the Apostle, then, in the use of these words, is simply to persuade the Hebrew Chris­tians to walk in the footsteps of their father Abraham; so that like him, when the toils and trials of life were all over, they too might obtain the promise, and enter on the enjoyment of the eternal in­heritance.

Hebrews 10:37 —For yet a little while, etc.—More literally: For yet a little little while [that is, a very little while], he who is coming (ho erchomenos) will come, and will not tarry. The coming One here spoken of is manifestly Christ himself. But what is meant by his coming? To what coming does our author here refer ? Many say, “To his second personal coming.” But this is plainly inconsistent with the scope of the Apostle’s exhortation, as well as with the truth itself. His obvious design in the passage is to encourage the Hebrew brethren to persevere in their begun Christian course, on the ground that the coming of Christ was then very near at hand, when they would all be delivered from the snares, reproaches, and violence of their persecutors.

But how could he consistently and truthfully encourage them to do this, on the ground that the second personal advent of Christ was then very near at hand ? It will not do to say with some that the Apostles themselves so believed and so taught. They did neither, but just the reverse. For when some of the Thessalonian brethren so understood Paul’s teaching (1 Thessalonians 4:15-17), he promptly addressed to them a second letter, in which he very emphatically corrected their mistake. “Now we beseech you, brethren,” he says, “by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him, that ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ [the Lord] is at hand. Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition,” etc. (2 Thess. 2: 1-3.)

 

This, then, is a clear and satisfactory refutation of the charge, that the Apostles believed and taught that the second per­sonal coming of Christ was near at hand in their own day. And so also is the book of Revelation a refutation of it. Indeed, with this prophetic chart before us, no one can yet say understandingly that the second personal advent of Christ is even now near at hand. For after the destruction of Babylon, a long period of religious prosperity will intervene before the final judgment, which will take place immediately after Christ’s second coming. See Matthew 13:30 Matthew 13:41-46 Matthew 16:27 Matthew 25:31-46; John 5:28-29; Acts 17:31; Romans 2:5-16; 1 Thessalonians 4:15-18; 2 Thessalonians 1:6-10; 2 Timothy 4:1; 2 Peter 3:7-10; Revelation 20:11-15. The coming of Christ, as referred to in our text, must therefore mean, not his second personal coming, but his coming in providence most likely, to destroy Jerusalem, and so to deliver his elect from the violent persecutions to which they had long been subjected by the unbelieving Jews. (Matthew 24:29-41.) To this Christ himself refers encouragingly in Luke 21:28; where, speaking of the signs of Jerusalem’s approaching ruin, he says, “When these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads, for your redemption draweth nigh.” The fall of Jerusalem put an end, of course, to Jewish persecution; and in this way and to this extent, it brought deliverance to the Christians of Palestine.

And as this occurred in A.D. 70, about seven years after the writing of this Epistle, the evidence seems very clear that the Apostle has reference here to that ever memorable event. See note on the last clause of verse 25.

 

This view of the matter is also further corroborated by the fact that our author finds in the prophecy of Habakkuk, concerning the overthrow of the Chaldean monarchy, language so very appro­priate to his purpose that he here takes and applies it as his own; thereby showing that the two cases are very analogous. The words of the prophecy may be literally rendered as follows, begin­ning with 2: 2, for the sake of the connection. And Jehovah an­swered me and said, Write the vision, and engrave it on smooth tablets, so that he may run [that is, read fluently] who reads it. For yet the vision is for an appointed time, and it will hasten to the end, and will not lie: if it tarry wait for it, for it will surely come; it will not be behind [the appointed time]. Behold his soul [which] is lifted up is not upright in him; but the just by his faith shall live. From this it will be seen that our author does not quote the exact words of God’s reply to the Prophet; but as is usual in such cases of accommodation (see Rom. 10: 6-8), he so modifies the language as to adapt it to the case in hand. The main lesson is, however, the same in both Hebrews and Habakkuk; viz.: that God would certainly come and execute his purposes at the ap­pointed time: and that while the proud and self-reliant would of necessity perish under the righteous judgments of God, the just man’s faith, if it wavered not, would certainly support him under the severest trials.

 

This was all impressively illustrated in the fall of Jerusalem. The unbelieving Jews were all slain or taken captive; but not a Christian perished in the siege. Eusebius says, “When the whole congregation of the Church in Jerusalem, according to an oracle given by revelation to approved persons among them before the war, were commanded to depart from the city and inhabit a city which they call Pella, beyond the Jordan, to which when all those who believed in Christ had removed from Jerusalem, and when the saints had totally abandoned the royal city which is the metropolis of the Jews, then the Divine vengeance seized them who had dealt so wickedly with Christ and his Apostles, and utterly destroyed that wicked and abominable generation.’’ (Eccl. Hist. iii. v.) To the same effect testifies also Epiphanius. He says, “The disciples of Christ being warned by an angel, removed to Pella; and after­ward when Hadrian rebuilt Jerusalem and called it after his own family name, yElia Colonia, they returned thither.”

 

Hebrews 10:38 —Now the just shall live by faith:—The following readings are submitted for the consideration of the thoughtful: (1) but the just by his faith shall live (Hebrew) ; (2) but the just by faith shall live (Rec.) ; (3) but the just by the faith of me shall live (Sept. Codex B) ; (4) but my just one by faith shall live (Sept. Codex A). In all these readings there is an ambiguity depending

 

1. How transcendently great are the honors, birthrights and privileges of the children of God (verses 19-21). Having now free access to the Holiest of all by the blood of Jesus, and having a great high priest over the house of God, we need fear no evil so long as we walk worthy of our high and holy calling. All the events of life must and will work together for our good while here (Romans 8:28); and death itself will but serve to elevate us to a higher state of glory, honor and blessedness hereafter (Hebrews 4:10). “For we know that if our earthly house of this tabernacle were dis¬solved, we have a building of God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens.” (2 Corinthians 5:1.) Who then that has the faith and experience of Paul would not like him prefer to depart and be with Christ. (Philippians 1:23.)

 

2. But let it not be forgotten that, after all, the enjoyment of heaven depends essentially, through Divine grace, on our own exertions (Hebrews 10:23). “Work out your own salvation,” says Paul, “with fear and trembling; for it is God that worketh in you both to will and to do of his good pleasure.” (Philippians 2:12-13.) The blood of Christ is of no avail to the man who lives and dies in willful disobedience. Christ came to save men from their sins, not in them. And hence the force and propriety of the exhortation that we should draw near to God “with a true heart, in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water.” God himself is infinitely holy; and they only can enjoy his presence who purify their souls by obeying the truth, through the Spirit, unto unfeigned love of the brethren. (1 Peter 1:22.)

 

3. Obedience consists in doing from the heart the will of God, as it is revealed to us in his Holy Word (Hebrews 10:23). It is, indeed, wholly useless for us to attempt to serve God in any other way. “In vain,” says Christ, “they do worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men.” (Matthew 15:9.) So he once said to the Jews, and so he still says to thousands today. For it must be confessed that many who profess to be the followers of Christ have departed quite as far from the letter and spirit of the New Covenant, as the Jews had departed from the Old. Indeed this spirit of will-worship is a weakness and proneness of human nature, not confined to any one age or people. The mystery of iniquity was at work even in Paul’s time (2 Thessalonians 2:7); and many have since departed still further and further from the faith and simplicity of the Gospel.

How many thousands, for instance, who habitually desecrate the Lord’s Day, are not superstitiously punctilious in ob¬serving days and festivals of their own creation. And to how many thousands might it still be said, as Paul once said to the Corinthians, “When ye come together into one place, this is not to eat the Lord’s Supper.” O that God would raise up another Elijah to restore to the Church what the Man of sin has taken away; and to free her, at the same time, from the many oppressive burdens which he has arrogantly imposed on her.

 

4. Christians should never neglect the meetings appointed for public and social worship, especially on the Lord’s Day (Hebrews 10:25). Those who do so, show but a poor appreciation of their rights and privileges, and at the same time they set before others an example which often leads to the very worst of consequences. God has given to us a social nature, and he has also given to us a religion that is in all respects adapted to the wants of our nature: a religion that knows but “one body, one Spirit, one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in all.” (Ephesians 4:4-6.) And hence we are required to bear one another’s burdens (Galatians 6:1) ; to exhort and admonish one another daily, lest any be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin (Hebrews 3:13). The habit of going to meeting merely for the purpose of hearing some distinguished preacher has become entirely too common in the church of Christ. Indeed, it has become a very great evil.

Christians should meet together to worship God, and to commemorate the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ, as did the primitive church, whether they have a preacher with them or not. If there is present anyone who is in all respects well qualified to instruct and edify the congregation, let us thank God for the favor and gratefully listen to the words of his servant. But if no such one is in the meeting, we have neverthe¬less the precious promise that Christ himself is present to bless all who meet in his name, and to honor him in the ordinances of his own appointment. (Matthew 28:20.) Let the Lord’s Day, then, be wholly sanctified to the honor and glory of him who has inscribed his own name upon it, as a day that is most holy. Let it be a day of holy joy, and prayer, and praise, in the family, in the Sunday-school, in the social meeting, and in the public assembly of the saints, and very soon the happy consequences will be felt throughout all Christendom.

 

5. We have all reason to anticipate a day of trial, as well as the ancient Hebrews (Hebrews 10:25). God has not called us to go to Heaven

“On flowery beds of ease,

While others fought to win the prize,

And sailed through bloody seas.”

 

This world is preordained and arranged for our education and discipline, and it is therefore a great blessing to be allowed to suffer patiently for the sake of Christ and his church (Philippians 1:29.) But the danger is that in the hour of trial our faith may fail us. and that in consequence of our great weakness we may bring dishonor on the cause of Christ. Many have done so; some to their own shame and everlasting disgrace; and others, like Peter, to their deepest grief and mortification. We cannot, therefore, be too ear¬nest in our supplications at the throne of grace, that God would help us, and not allow us to be tempted above what we are able to bear, but that he would enable us to come off more than con¬querors through him who has so tenderly loved us. This, God will certainly do if we only trust in him and rely on him as we should. See 1 Corinthians 10:13; Isaiah 49:15.

 

6. It is well to remember our first love and to think often of the joy, comfort, and consolation which filled our hearts when we first put on Christ and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit (Hebrews 10:32-34). Then, we had no thought of ever looking back to the flesh-pots of Egypt, or to anything else pertaining to “the lusts of the flesh, the lusts of the eye, and the pride of life.” Jesus was to us “the chief among ten thousand, and the one altogether lovely.” We then felt that we would gladly bear anything for the honor and glory of his name, and that we would never murmur or com-plain in the service of him who bore the cross for us. But, alas! how many become discouraged by the way, and are almost per¬suaded to turn back and walk no more with Jesus. Such persons need to be encouraged. The spirit is often willing when the flesh is weak. And it not unfrequently revives the hearts of these dis¬couraged ones to talk with them of “the former days,” when they willingly and joyfully bore much for the sake of Christ.

 

7. It is a consolation to know that the period of our earthly trials is of but short duration (Hebrews 10:37). If we had to endure these trials and afflictions for even a few hundred years, many of us might faint by the way. But not so. Our blessed Lord says to each of us, “Behold I come quickly, and my reward is with me, to give to every man according as his works shall be” (Revelation 22:12). “He that overcometh,” he says, “shall be clothed with white rai¬ment, and I will not blot out his name out of the book of life; but I will confess his name before my Father and his angels. He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” (Revelation 3:5-6.)