• iLJiBif&&JEir •

DIVINITY SCHOOL
TROWBRIDGE LIBRARY

THE
EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS,
IN A
PARAPHRASTIC COMMENTARY, WITH ILLUSTRATIONS
FROM
PHILO, THE TARGUMS,
THE MISHNA AND GEMARA, THE LATER RABBINICAL "WRITERS,
AND CHRISTIAN ANNOTATORS, ETC.. ETC.

¦fa N-rip v^l i?»V
' That he may ran that readeth it." — Hab. ii. 2.

BY
THE REV. JOSEPH B. M'CATTL,
HONOEABT CANON OF ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL ; RECTOR OF ST. MICHAEL
BASSISHAW, LONDON ; CHAPLAIN TO THE LATE LORD BISHOP OF ROCHESTER ;
AND SOMETIME DIVINITY LECTURER AND CENSOR
IN EIN&'S COLLEGE, LONDON ;
Author of "Bishop Colenso's Criticism Criticised;" "The AbU Miane ayd the

BiUiothique Universelle du Clerge' ; " " The Ten CommamdnlentiK 1 r-,
the Christian's Spiritual Instructor.'' / "^\ •* ~ ' C

'i^w^WeiW11

LONDON : ^--1* ' ' ' 3^
LONGMANS, GEEEN, AND CO., PATERNOSTEE-EOW.
1871.

OF THB
$ist*r Cfrmfp of €ttglsm0 anb Inland
SEVERED, BUT STILL UNITED IN FAITH, HOPE, AND LOVE,
THESE EEW PAGES
ARE RESPECTFULLY DEDICATED BY
THEIR HUMBLE SERVANT,
THE AT7THOE.

Saint Michael Bassishaw, London, E.O.,
June, 1871.

Ov yap el/cij ol ap%aloi avSpes a>9 IlavXov avrrjv
•jrapahehwKaai. — Origen.

PREFACE.

The present work is the result of many happy hours devoted
to the instruction of Candidates for Holy Orders. My in
variable practice was to commence our Greek Testament
reading by the study of the Epistle to the Hebrews.
Whereas the other epistles are addressed to separate
Churches or individuals, and are devoted to special or
locally interesting topics, the Epistle to the Hebrews pre
sents us with no meagre epitome of those arguments and
facts, drawn from the Old Testament Scriptures, upon which
the superstructure of Christianity was laid. The first Chris
tian Church at Jerusalem was built up of Jewish materials.
In Acts vi. 7 we read, 7ro\v<; re o^Xo? twv lepeav virrjicovov
ttj Trio-ret, " And a great company of the priests were obedi-
" ent to the faith." In the Epistle to the Hebrews we listen
again to the arguments which, by the converting power of
God's Holy Spirit, were so potent to convince the very same
men who rejected Jesus of Nazareth, and condemned Him to
death, that they had been guilty of a grievous injustice, and
that that same Jesus, whom the house of Israel crucified,
God the Eather " hath made both Lord and Christ." (Acts
ii. 36.) We understand how St. Paul and his companions
" reasoned " (SieXeyeTo) with the Jews, and how it is written
concerning Apollos, ei/rova? toZ? 'IovSaiot,*; BtaKaTrjXiry^eTo
hr)p.oo-ia, hvihe.iK.vv<; Sta toov ypacpoov, elvat ibv Xpicnbv
'Irjcrovv. " For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that
" publicly, showing by the Scriptures that Jesus was the
" Christ (i.e., n^t&BHj the Messiah)." The expression Christ,
or Messiah, is a phrase strictly Jewish, and the attempt to
convince Jews that Jesus of Nazareth was the Messiah whom

VI PREFACE.

they expected, implies that the reasoners, and the reasoned
with, had much in common. In other words, that the
Professors of Christianity claimed to expound the well-
grounded hopes of the Jewish people (as held out in the
Old Testament Scriptures), according to their only legiti
mate interpretation and fulfilment. It was the custom with
Voltaire and his imitators, English and foreign, to endea
vour to bring Christianity into contemptuous disrepute by
representing it to be the illegitimate offspring of Judaism.
The Jews are caricatured by the " Philosopher of Verney "
and his copyists, as being a nation utterly revolting and dis
gusting in their ethical antecedents, and their sacred books
are scoffed at, as being a tissue of misstatements, of credulous
inhumanity, of supernatural impossibilities, and of indecent
puerilities. (See Voltaire's Dictionnaike Philosophique,
Tom. V., Article Juifs, pp. 349 — 357, "Assassinats Juifs. Les
" Juifs out Us ete anthropophages ? . . . Les peres et meres
" ont-ils immoU leurs enfans ? Et de quelqucs aittres belles
" actions du peuple de Dieit." Aansterdam Edition, 1789,
12mo.) Modern propriety recoils, with conventional deli
cacy, from any glaring outrage upon the "religious per
suasion " of any denomination or sect whatever. All history
teaches that it has been an amiable and excusable foible of
the human mind to believe in some system or other of
religious belief. So definitely marked and universally preva
lent (although utterly mistaken) a propensity is to be honoured
with a kind of contemptuous respect. Erom the Moloch
worship of the Canaanites up to the latest developments
of Anglican ritualistic symbolism, all religions are viewed
alike, viz., as the outcomings of an ineradicable tendency of
the human mind towards superstition. This belief in super-
naturalism is the idol to be overthrown. But the incredulity
of to-day is well aware that to be listened to, she must be
cautiously decent; yet she is as hostile, as ever were the
Encyclopedists, to all definite creeds. She, therefore, spares
no opportunity of sneering at credulity in general, and at

PREFACE. Vll
the authenticity of the sacred writings in detail. Her
patronising toleration is far more insidiously dangerous to
ill-informed but well-disposed minds, than was the open and
vulgar hostility of the professed Atheist and Deist of the
last century. She has endeavoured to persuade men that
belief and reverence for God's Word is synonymous with
vulgarity and ignorance. Hence has arisen the modern
figment of a "Higher Criticism." The professors of this
boastful system of destructive theology have unfortunately
succeeded in producing a vague but very widespread per
suasion of the historical untrustworthiness of the Bible. The
calumny has been reiterated with such loud and consistent
pertinacity that a general sense of insecurity has been at
last produced upon the minds of teachers and students
alike. We see an unhappy tendency to a timid handling
of the Word of God manifesting itself in the English theo
logical literature of the present day. Men are afraid to
speak with decision, lest they should be decried as unscholarly.
The real cause of this unnecessary hesitation, I regret to
believe, is to be found in the superficial standard of theo
logical attainments, not only expected of candidates for the
ministry of our Church, but accepted with complaisance by
the reading public from those who profess to be teachers.
Nearly all, if not all, the modern objections against, and
supposed discrepancies in, the Holy Scriptures have been
repeatedly and amply disposed of by the early Jewish
writers, and also by Christian Divines of the last three
centuries. To any one fairly acquainted with sacred lite
rature, these pretended new discoveries present no novelty
whatever. The bustling self-importance with which they
are nowadays propounded, as the results of a new and
" Higher Criticism," would provoke a smile, were not the
results, already produced, so disastrous in unsettling the
. faith of many earnest and simpleminded inquirers after
God's truth. Utterly inexcusable are such words of vague
and indefinite mistrust as we find Dean Alford presenting

Vlll PREFACE.
to the mind of the young student (although he gives no
illustrations of his real meaning) in his Prolegomena (sect, i,
191) to the Epistle to the Hebrews. They read very like a
preliminary apology for any orthodox sentiments which may
unavoidably or unintentionally be found in his treatment of
the Epistle : " And he (the student) will bear in mind, that
" the day is happily passing away with Biblical writers and
" students, when the strong language of those, who were
" safe in the shelter of a long-prescribed and approved
" opinion, could deter any from humble and faithful re-
" search into the various phenomena of God's Word itself :
" when the confession of having found insoluble difficulties
" was supposed (!) to indicate unsoundness of faith, and the
" recognition of discrepancies (!) was regarded as affecting
" the belief of Divine inspiration. We have at last in this
" country began to learn that Holy Scripture shrinks not
" from any tests, however severe, and requires not any
"artificial defences, however apparently expedient." First
of all, it is contrary to fact that " the confession of having
"found insoluble difficulties " in God's Word, was ever
" supposed " by theologians, whose opinion was worth
having, " to indicate unsoundness of faith." In a volume of
such venerable antiquity as the Bible such difficulties must
be expected to occur. The self-confident assumption that such
difficulties are necessarily mistakes, is what all reverent minds
have regarded with pain and indignation, as indicative of
presumption, and not of scholarship, far less of faith.
Secondly, wherever Dean Alford exemplifies what he is
pleased to proclaim as a " discrepancy," the fault lies with
the would-be expounder, and not with the sacred writer.
Dean Alford has attempted in his exegesis, something far
beyond his powers of discrimination, and, I might add. far
beyond his reading. He (and his collaborateurs) deserve
all praise for their industrious compilation and laborious
collations, but in other respects this Greek Testament pro
duces a feeling of profound disappointment. Dean Alford

PREFACE. IX
is, apparently, very partially acquainted with the Hebrew
text of the Old Testament Scriptures. He is equally un
familiar with Jewish habit of thought and expression, and
the opinions of the Rabbinical authorities. And yet he
professes to expound the writings of Jewish Apostles and
Evangelists, not to mention our Blessed Lord Himself, who
was also a Jew, and ministered exclusively to Jews, in a
satisfactory manner for Christian readers ! Can it be any
matter for surprise if a Commentator on the Epistle to the
Hebrews, furnished with such credentials of his preliminary
fitness for his work, should perchance find " insoluble diffi
culties " and " discrepancies " in the course of his labours ?
The acceptance, by any number of the clergy of our
Church, of such works as Dean Alford's Greek Testa
ment, Dean Stanley's Lectures on the Jewish Church,
of Bishop Colenso's inconceivably silly book on the Pen
tateuch, and of many (not all) of the articles in Smith's
Dictionary of the Bible, as being representative specimens
of the Anglican theological attainments of the present day,
must have produced but a sorry impression on the Continent
respecting the present state of Scriptural learning in that
branch of Christ's Church, which in former days produced its
TJsshers, Waltons, Warburtons, Bidders, Lightfoots, Louths,
Kennicotts, Blayneys, Hodys, &c, &c, not to mention
a layman like Selden, the wonderful erudition of whose
writings is unsurpassed by the writers of any country or
any age. Verily, the advocates of the ancient and orthodox
systems of interpretation have only to wait with patience,
and Time, that most impartial trier of the value of all things,
will avenge them of their adversaries. Meanwhile, I would
earnestly exhort all students of Holy Writ not to be ashamed
of being considered over-orthodox. It is not too "much
learning " that has inspired the recent attacks upon God's
Word. The accusations of ignorance come with an ill grace
from the professors of the modern and diffident school of
theology, whose special qualification, as a rule, is a contented
b

X PREFACE.
unacquaintance with the Old Testament Scriptures, even in
the English and Greek, not to speak of the Hebrew ver
nacular. The following trenchant words of the illustrious Heinrich
Ewald * of Gottingen are too important in their appreciation
of the modern style of German theological criticism, which
has unfortunately come recently so much into vogue in
England, not to be given in their integrity : — " Ich habe
" schon lange die Erfahrung gemacht dass, wie heute das
" Christenthum von den Gelehrten und Geistlichen unter
" uns meist verstanden und angewandt wird, die Bucher
" des N. T.'s vorherrschend noch weit oberflachlicher und
" gewissenloser behandelt werden als die des A. T.'s ; was
" sonderbar, und auf den ersten Blick, nicht wohl moglich
" scheint, und doch nur zu wahr ist. Denn das A. T. wird
" zwar auf der einen Seite von den Liebhabern alter Irrthiimer,
" auf der andern von den iibeln Neuerern ebenfals noch
" immer so oft in genug eiteler Weise gelesen erklart und
" augewandt : allein zum Theil entschuldigt sich das, wegen
" der grosseren Schwierigkeiten seines geniigenden Verstand-
" nisses leichter, zum Theil kann dies nicht so offen und so
" schadlich betrieben werden. . . . Die seit 1866 neu auf-
" geblasene . . . Berlinische Zerstorung aller wahren Religion
" erkuhnt sich zwar in neuer Weise auch iiber das A. T.
" ihren Selbstdunkel, und ihre Finsterniss zu ergiessen :
" allein das hat bis jezt wenig zu sagen, und ist nur eine
" einzelne der vielen Windblasen dieser an sich sebst vollko-
"menen hohlen neuester Nationalliberalen Windhose. Die
" Bucher des N. T.'s aber scheinen zu naheliegend, zu leicht
" verstandlich, und zugleich zu unmittelbar nothwendig, und
" zu unbeweisbar von wichtigster und entscheidenster Bedeu-
" tung zu seyn, als das nicht jeder Windbeutel unserer Tao-e
* Das Sendschreiben a.d. Ilebrdar und Jakoboi Rundaclirciben
iibersetzt und erklart von II. Ewald. (Vorwort, p. iv., &c.) Gottingen,
1870, 8vo. Dr. Ewald's book only came into my hands after a con
siderable portion of the present work was in type.

PREFACE. XI
" mit ihnen alles zu versuchen, und alles in ihnen zu finden,
"sich ganz aufgelegt und Wohlgemuth, vor allem auch nach
" den heutigen Staatsgesezen, ganz straflos fuhlen sollte.
" Diese Spielereien mogen nun auch wol ertraglich scheinen
" so lange sie bloss auf dem fliichtig verganglichen Papiere
" bleiben, und sich am liebsten nur in den herumschwirren-
"den Tagesblattern jedem anbieten der an ihnen seinen
" Vergniigen findet : allein hat man nun wenigstens seit
" 1866 erkannt welches entsezliche Verderben hinter ihnen
" lauert ? Ist es nicht endlich Zeit dass gerade de N. Tlichen
" Bucher iiberall am scharfsten und zugleich am richtigsten
" erkannt, und in dem Sinne angewandt werden der ihr
" eigener ist. Denn dieser braucht von uns nur so wie er
" ursprunglich und ewig derselbe ist sicher wiedererkannt
" zu werden, um uns jenem gesunden kraftigen Heilmittel
" zu dienen, welches wir nicht entbehren konnen, wenn nicht
" die allgemeine Zerstorung in Deutschland welche schon
" begonnen, ihr Werk vollenden soil. Zu diesem Zwecke
" bedarf es einer zwar vollig erschopfenden, aber in sich
" ganz klaren und sich mit sich selbst begniigenden zuver-
" lassigen keuschen, vor allem auch leicht iibersichtlichen
" Erklarung jedes einzelnen Buehes. Bei dem Trosse der
" Erklarer unserer Zeit herrscht, soweit sie nicht etwa bloss
" erbaulich erklaren, und diesen ganz einseitigen, aber fiir die
" meisten dennoch zu hohen Zweck verfolgen wollen, nur die
" Sucht vor andern Erklarern moglichst viele, sei es philolo-
" gische oder dogmatische Fehler vorzuwerfen, und damit
" entweder dicke Bande zu fiillen, oder bei allem engern
" Raum den man etwa buchhandlerische Vortheile wegen
" einhalten will, dennoch nach alien Seiten hin mit dem
" Hacken auszuschlagen. Man hat diese Dinge allmalig
" immer mehr zu einer Art moglichst beliebter Kunst
" gemacht, und so herrschen sie jezt, haben aber deutlich
" nicht wenig zu dem hochst geringen Nuzen beigetragen wel-
" chen die Erklarung des N. T.'s bis jezt in der Kirche undim
" Volke gestiftet hat. Wie mir nun diese Art zu erklaren

XU PREFACE.
" von jeher widerstanden hat, so habe ich mich auch hier urn
" sie nicht bekiimmert, und nicht ein dickes, oder ein diistres
" Buch schreiben woUen. Aber ich hoffe dass auch die hier
" behandelten zwei Bucher des N. T.'s durch diese ihre Erkla-
" rung so wenig irgend etwas verloren haben dass ihre einge-
" borne Herrlichkeit aus ihr nur desto heller und unverkenn-
" barer hervorleuchtet. Kein einzelnes Biblisches Buch auch
" des N. T.'s soil uns zwar fur sich allein geniigen ; es will
" dieses auch gar nicht, und weist uns immer auf etwas
" zuriick was noch weit fiber ihm steht. . . . Die genauere
" Erklarung lasst uns dazu auf vieles einzelne scheinbar
" kleinere, und doch zulezt hochst bedeutsame richtig mer-
" ken, was, ausser ihr immer rathselhafter und unsicherer
" bleibt, als nothig ist. Hinter alien N. Tlichen Buchern
" sehen wir alsdann zwar eine Menge Schriften stehen
" welche die Schriftsteller auch noch ausser den jezt im
" A. T. erhaltenen benuzten : was sich nirgends so im
" Grossen und Ganzen entdecken lasst, als bei dem Hebraer-
" briefe, wenn man diesen richtig zu verstehen weiss. Aber
" unsere beiden Bucher geben uns alsdann auch die sicher-
" sten Zeugnisse dass als sie geschrieben wurden, schon
" langst ein hochst thatiges neues Christliches Schriftthum
" von Evangelien und von Briefen gegrfindet war. Die zu
" Leipzig, bei Fues, in diesem Jahre herausgekommenen
" Evangelien des Zfirischer Theologen Volkmar fallen schon
" dadurch zu Boden ; und mfissen in Deutschland zu Boden
" fallen, wenn man fiberhaupt unter uns noch ernstlich das
" Christenthum will. Was wollen nun dagegen alle die
" neueren und neuesten Faseleien welche noch immer den
" TJrsprung der Evangelien weit spater herabzusezen sich
"bemuhen! Mochte man doch, auch dieser entfernteren
" Folgerungen wegen, in unseren Zeiten endlich sorgsamer
" werden, um nicht die Beute solcher faselnden Theologer
" und roher Philologen zu werden " !
So much, then, for the modern figment of a "Higher
Criticism," according to the opinion of one of the pro-

PREFACE. XU1
foundest thinkers, and most learned scholars of Germany,
at the present moment. But in addition to the empirical
pratings and crude guesses of a hybrid Anglo-German
neology, we are threatened with an influx of unbelief from
a very different quarter. According to the latest phase of
the Anglo-French school of Antichristianism, Christianity,
as we see it, is a somewhat recent outgrowth from the
teaching of an illiterate Jewish peasant, half impostor, half
enthusiast, who propounded a scheme of universal and
philanthropic benevolence, but which, apart from its intrinsic
excellence, has no substantial basis of authority whatever to
rest upon. According to these newest lights, Christianity
gradually came into vogue on account of the- agreeable and
comprehensive principles of humanitarianism which it incul
cated. All its sharply defined dogmas, all its pretensions to
be God's one way of salvation, all its appeals to genuineness,
on account of its being the fulfilment of prophecy, are later
interpolations, foisted by theologians upon the simple scheme
of universal brotherhood which Jesus preached with a fervid
simplicity, approaching to fanaticism.
The propounders of such a theory must either be very
uncandid or very illiterate. To notice it would seem super
fluous, were it not for the persistent endeavours made at the
present moment to inculcate it, in a diluted, and less alarming
form, . from the pulpit and the press, by members of our own
Communion. Any one who has read even a few pages of
Philo, or Josephus, or of the Targums, or of the earlier
Rabbinical writers, must be well aware that an elaborated
system of theology, very nearly akin to Christianity, in
some respects identical with it, even to its very phraseology,
and absolutely depending for its existence upon the historical
and prophetical genuineness of the Old Testament writings,
was in existence at the very time that Jesus and his Apostles
first promulgated his claims to be the Messiah of God. Let
any one read, for example, the following passage of Philo,
and, remembering the language professedly held by Christ

XIV PREFACE.

and his Apostles, as recorded in the Gospels and Epistles,
pronounce judgment upon the validity of the theory that
Christianity is a new religion — let him say whether they spoke
a new and unintelligible jargon, or whether they adopted
and sanctioned a manner of expression accepted and perfectly
understood by that larger portion of the Jewish Church and
nation which rejected the claims of Jesus to be the Son of
God : — Ovtcos ovv r) tyv^r) yavcodeiaa, iroXKaKis ehrelv ov/c
e%ei, ri to yavwaav aiirrjv iarf BiBdaxerai Be inrb tov
lepocjjdvrov Kal TrpofyrjTov Mtoucreo)?, o? epei, ovto? earuv o
apro*;, r) rpo(f>rj r\v eBcoKev 6 ©eo? rfj yjrvxfj irpocreveyKaaBai,
to eavrov p?ipa, Kal tov eavrov Xoyov ovros yap 6 apTOS ov
BeBwKev rjp.iv (fiayelv, tovto to prjpa Aeyei Be kcu ev Aevrepo-
vopi(p, Kal etca/caiae ere, Kal ekipayyvv^ae ere, Kal e^cofiiae
ere to pdvva, b ovk jjBeio-av ol Trarepe<; crov, iva dvayyeiXr)
croi, OTi ovk iiri aprai p,6vq> ^>jaerai dvOpanros, dXX eVt rravrl
pr)pan eKiropevopeva Bid arop,aro^ &eov .... Hepiiroiel
B' fjpuv Kal Xipbv, ovk dperr)<i, dXXd tov £k irddovs Kal Kaicia<;
crvvio-rdpevov reKpr\piov Be" Btarpecpei yap rjfias tw yeviK(o-
TaTU) avrov Xoyq>. To yap pdvva epp.rjveverai ri, tovto iari
to yeviKcorarov rwv ovtwv Kal 6 Xoyo<} Be tov 6eov vrrepdvco
7to.vto? eari tov Kocrpov, Kal •jrpea^vraTO'; Kal yeviKcoraros
twv ocra yeyove. Tovtov tov Xoyov ovk yBeio-av ol Trarepe<;.
 AvayyeXXerai ovv 6 ©eo? ry "^v^fj, on ovk eir dpra
povm ty)o~eTab 6 avOpanro'; Kar eiKova, dXX' ejrl iravrl pr/pari
rm eKiropevopevcp Bid aroparos Qeov' rovTeari Kal Bid iravTo^
tov Xoyov Tpa<pr}o-eTai, Kal Bid p.epov<; avrov. To ptev ydp
aropa avpiftoXov tov Xoyov, to Be pfjpa pepos avrov. Tpi<f>erai
Be rwv pev TeXeioreponv r) "^rv-)(rj oXa) t&J Xoya' dyairrjaaipiev
B' dv r/peit, el Kal p,e'pei Tpa<pelr;pev avrov. " So also the soul,
" when it rejoices, is oftentimes unable to describe the cause
" of its joy. But it is explained by Moses, the priest and
" prophet, who says : This is the bread, the food which God
" has given to the soul to appropriate to itself, viz., his own
" utterances and his own Word. For this is the bread which
" He has given to us to eat, viz., his utterances. For he

PREFACE. XV
" says in Deuteronomy, He afflicted thee, and suffered thee
" to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thy fathers
" knew not, in order that He might inform thee that man
" does not live by bread only, but by every word that pro-
" ceedeth out of the mouth of God  He brings
" hunger upon us, not of virtue, but that which arises from
" our passions and evil dispositions. The proof of this is,
" that He nourishes us with his most general Word. For the
" manna is interpreted What is it ? That is, the most general
" of all things that exist. And the Word of God is above
" the whole universe, and the eldest and most general of all
" things created whatsoever. This Word our fathers did not
" know  Let God therefore inform the soul, that
" man, who was created in his image, does not live by bread
" only, but by every word (or utterance) that proceedeth out
" of the mouth of God. That is to say, he shall be nourished
" by the whole Word, and by his parts also. For the expres-
" sion ' mouth ' is symbolical of the Word, but the utterance
" (pr)pa) is a part of it. The soul, then, of the more perfect
" sort of men is nourished by the whole Word, but we should
" be desirous to be fed even with a part thereof." (Philo, SS.
Leg. Alleg., lib. iii., Works, Mangey's Edit., torn, i, pp.
121, 122.) What a train of reflections does the perusal of
a passage like the above awaken ! On first reading it, we
might suppose that it proceeded from a Christian source, and
that it contained repeated allusions to the very words of our
Saviour himself. But it is not so. These are the words of an
Alexandrian Jew, who, about a.d. 40, was sent on an embassy
from his nation to Caligula at Rome, and who probably never
heard the name of his Judsean compatriot and contemporary
Jesus mentioned. How comes it, then, that the phraseology
and teaching of Philo the Alexandrian, the accomplished
and Greek-speaking Jew, and of Jesus the lowly-born
prophet of Nazareth, are so striking in their resemblance to
each other ? But one answer can be given to the question.
Their systems of Theology were in the main identical. Jesus

XVI preface.

taught no new religion. He taught the old one with Divine
authority. He enforced it, He illustrated it, He adorned it
with the authority and sanction of his spotless example and
lifegiving doctrine. This, then, has been one main object
which I have kept steadily before me in writing the present
commentary, viz., to show that our Faith, as we profess it, is
as ancient as the patriarchs; that it is the " one faith" of
which the Apostle speaks ; that our Lord Jesus Christ pro
pounded no new religion, as is so often foolishly asserted ;
but that He and his followers claimed to rest upon the old
foundation, and put no novel interpretations upon either the
prophetical, or historical, or doctrinal writings of the Old
Testament. Our Lord came not to innovate, but to restore.
He came not to destroy, but to fulfil.
I have, therefore, endeavoured in this little work to point
the student to the now sadly neglected and forgotten sources
of the earliest Christian interpretations. I hope that I have
succeeded in getting together a tolerable number of curious
and conclusive proofs that, upon many, if not most religious
topics, the Hebrew-speaking and the Greek-speaking branches
of the early Jewish Church were at one with ourselves, in the
first ages of Christianity. If this can be satisfactorily
established, as I feel persuaded it can be, then all the
mischievous and illiterate insinuations of the present day,
respecting the gradual development of Christianity and her
creeds, from such a source as I have described on p. vi.,
collapse at once. — Meanwhile we occupy this vantage-ground
in reference to our controversy with our unbaptized and
unbelieving Jewish brethren — we can say to them, " It is ice
" who hold the doctrines entertained by the Pharisees and
" their disciples respecting the nature and Divinity of the
" Messiah. It is you who, in order to neutralize the pre-
" tensions of Jesus of Nazareth, have departed from the
" ancient Jewish Canon of Interpretation held by such
" Doctors of the Law as Gamaliel and his contemporaries,
" and which are preserved to us in the Targums, in the book

PREFACE. XVU
" Sohar, in the Mishna, in the Talmuds, and in a vast
" number of other ancient Hebrew writings'."
One word in conclusion. I have, in various portions of
this work, stated my conviction that the Epistle to the
Hebrews is the work of St. Paul. The alleged discrepancies
of style in this Epistle, and the style of the acknowledged
writings of the great Apostle, present no insuperable diffi
culty to my mind. The difference of subject, the difference
of handling, above all, the nature of the treatise itself, are
quite sufficient to account for any dissimilarity of style. The
composition of such an Epistle as the present would be to
St. Paul indeed a labour of love. Upon it he would expend
all the resources of his mighty and versatile genius. He
who could write (Rom. ix. 1 — 5), " I say the truth in Christ,
" I lie not, my conscience also bearing me witness in the
" Holy Ghost, that I have great heaviness and continual
" sorrow in my heart. For I could wish myself accursed
" (avd&ep,a) from Christ, for my brethren, my kinsmen
" according to the flesh, who are Israelites, to whom per-
" taineth the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and
" the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the
" promises ; ' whose are the fathers, and of whom, as con-
" cerning the flesh, Christ came, who is over all, God,
" blessed for ever. Amen." — He, I say, who could thus
write, would spare no pains to lay before his kinsmen a
treatise as persuasively attractive in style, as well as con
vincing in argument, as he was capable of producing. If he
thus mourned over his brethren, who were yet strangers to
Christ, doubly near to his heart would it be to reconvince
the wavering, and, if possible, to reclaim the apostates. I
cannot help believing that the Epistle was originally written
in Greek, although Dean Alford5 s assertion that the author's
citations are from the LXX. version, " even where no corre-
" sponding terms are found in the Hebrew text," conveys an
erroneous impression. First of all, the Writer does not
slavishly copy from the LXX. ; secondly, the " corresponding

XVm PREFACE.
" terms," although not the exact words, are always found in
the Hebrew text.
I cannot believe, with Dean Alford, that the Writer was
" not a pure Jew, speaking and quoting Hebrew, but a
" Hellenist ; a Jew brought up in Greek habits of thought,
" and in the constant use of the LXX. version." A one
sided and partial, if not a second-hand acquaintance with
the writings of Philo, without even a corresponding know
ledge of the theological writings of the earlier Rabbinical
authorities, has led to the elaboration of a baseless theory
that the Hellenistic Jews differed widely from their Hebrew-
speaking brethren in their religious opinions and modes of
expression. Not only.the Epistle to the Hebrews, but the
other writings of the New Testament, exhibit a marked
correspondence with (not, as I take it) the sentiments of
Philo, but with the universal Jewish habit of thought which
is to be found exemplified in Philo's writings. The Jews of
Palestine, in our Lord's day, were not ignorant of the fact
that the LXX. version proceeded from an unimpeachably
Jewish source. The familiar use that is made of it by the
New Testament writers would be unaccountable, if it were
then held in such disrepute amongst the Hebrew-speaking
Jews, as some would have us to believe. May it not have
occupied, by toleration, if not by acceptance, in Palestine,
the position of a Greek Targum of the original Scriptures ?
When, however, the Messianic controversy between Jews
and Christians brought out into prominent relief a limited
number of interpretations, which were authoritatively adopted
from the LXX. by the Apostles, as giving the true mind of
the Holy Ghost, i.e., the inspired signification of the Hebrew
text, then the LXX. version would be gradually disowned
by the Rabbinical Jews. On p. 141 I have given an illustra
tion from the Chizzuk Emunah, in which R. Isaac ignorantly
accuses St. Paul of altering the text of Ps. xl., in Hebrews
x. 8, to suit his own views, whereas he only accepted the inter
pretation of the Greek-speaking branch of the Jewish Church.

PREFACE. XIX
That the Jews of Jerusalem were not unaccustomed to the
familiar and conversational use of the Greek language is
plain from Acts xxii. 2. The populace of the Holy City
expected that St. Paul was about to address them in Greek,
but " when they heard that he spake in the Hebrew tongue
" to them, they kept the more silence." As to the Writer
to the Hebrews having imported the doctrine of the Logos
into his Epistle from Philo, I have disposed of so unfounded
an assertion in note 2, on pp. 174, 175. Furthermore, this
doctrine of the Logos (rnrP I3l) was not borrowed from the
Greek Philosophy by the Jews, but was derived, doubtless,
from the Jewish Scriptures and the Jewish Theology by
the heathen searchers after truth. When we consider that
the seed of Abraham were, in turn, brought into contact
with all the civilized and imperial nations of the old world,
and that God, by supernatural interposition (I am one of
the old-fashioned that believe in miracles), repeatedly stamped
their religion with his authoritative sanction, it is not difficult
to perceive that their theological tenets and sacred books
must have awakened a respectful curiosity in the philosophers
of all times. (See Prideaux's Connexion, vol. ii., pp. 28, 29.
Tegg's edition, 1845, 8vo.) Aristobulus, an Alexandrian
Jew, and a Peripatetic philosopher (b.c 125), asserts that
the Scriptures had been, for the most part, translated into
Greek before the times of Alexander and the Persian monarchy.
He also states, what is indubitably true, " that Pythagoras,
" Plato, and other Grecians, had taken most of their philo-
" sophy from the Hebrew Scriptures." Be it also observed
that Josephus, who was a priest, and originally a Pharisee
(Antiq. xii. 2, 6), casts no slur on the LXX. version of the
Scriptures, but relates as authentic the story that it was
made by men, selected by Eleazar the high priest at Jerusalem,
who were sent by him, with a copy of the law, to Egypt,
for the purpose of translating it into Greek. On p. 201
(and. passim) I have also called attention to the correspond
ence between the opinions of Philo (quoted on p. 179 and

XX . PREFACE.

elsewhere) and those of the earlier Talmudical and Rabbinical
writers.— The Writer, then, of this Epistle, was a Hebrew
of the Hebrews, writing to his Hebrew compatriots in
Palestine. He was well versed in all the Pharisaic glosses
upon the Sacred Text, as well as in the Alexandrian refine
ments upon the sentiments of their, perhaps, less polished and
more downright Hebrew kinsmen. There is, moreover,
apparent, in every line of the Epistle, that distinctive gravity
and authoritative weight which distinguishes the Apostolic
writings from all mere human compositions. Place it side
by side with any portion of Holy Writ, either of the Old
Testament or the New, and it will amply support its just
claim to be considered a portion of the inspired Word of
God. It speaks in no hesitating tones. It appeals not for
corroboration to any human tribunal of opinion. In the
master-tones of Divine authority, it claims reverential obedi
ence, and whenever the distinctively human element comes
out into prominent notice, the characteristic attributes of St.
Paul are evermore apparent. But, whilst giving to the
natural phenomena of any Scriptural composition their due
weight, I would urge upon my readers, in this unbelieving
age of cavils, and "philosophy falsely so called," not to forget
that it is the teaching of the Church of England (whose
Articles I have subscribed), that all Holy Scripture is written
by inspiration of God. Holy men wrote, of old time, as
they were moved by the Holy Ghost. Here, then, to
believers, is a sufficient explanation of the exceptional
phenomena of any separate portion of God's Word. Such
an assertion will, doubtless, excite a derisive smile in those
who are prudent in their own eyes, and learned in their own
sight. But I am not ashamed of any ridicule which such an
unphilosophic proposition may awaken. I look upon the Word
of God as differing from all merely human compositions.
Other books have been written, according to the caprice or
limited information of their authors. With the Bible if it
be the Word of the Gon of truth, it is not so. To assert

PREFACE. XXI
that there are " discrepancies " in the words dictated by the
Spirit of Truth, is nothing short of blasphemy. It is either
a hypocritical assumption of reverential respect for writings
which we believe to be erroneous, thus to speak of them as
" the Word of God," or else it indicates a miserable concep
tion of God's mfallible knowledge. Would to God that the
clergy of the Church of England would at last awake to a
perception of the " heavenly treasure " committed to their
custody ! We are not expounders of a book (however vener
able) replete with the peculiarities of human infirmity. We
have in our hands the " Oracles of God," which have stood
the test, and survived the hostile ingenuity of centuries of
pretended " criticism." That " criticism," upon being
brought to the test of real scholarship, resolves itself into
the individual opinion of experimenters, more or less qualified
for the task which they have undertaken. Nothing has ever
been adduced in modern times, of sufficient authority to
reverse the testimony of nearly nineteen centuries of fiery
trial and patient investigation. The charge of ignorance
against the old school of interpretation is singularly unsuit
able in the mouths of pretended professors of a " higher
" criticism," especially in England. They are ignorant not
only of the elementary features of the Sacred Text of the
Original Scriptures, but they demonstrate their unacquaint-
ance with the fact that there exists a vast and profoundly
learned literature in Hebrew, Latin, and English, in which
all the real and supposed difficulties, which they complacently
proclaim as recent discoveries, are treated of, and calmly
discussed, with the dignified propriety of a real erudition,
that is evermore distinguished by its modesty.

POSTSCRIPT TO THE PREFACE.

As it is important that it should be understood, how far the
charge of Platonism, alleged against Philo, affects his belief
in the Divine authority and inspiration of the Scriptures, I
have thought it desirable to allow him to speak for himself,
upon a matter of such paramount interest. The reader will
see that he delivers his opinion in no faltering tones, as to
the supernatural guidance, and prompting influences, under
which the prophets of old discharged their embassage from
God. He writes as follows (Quis Eentm Diiinarum Hceres,
Works, Mangey, torn, i., pp. 510, 511) : —
" The fourth form (of prophetic ecstasy) is exemplified in the passage
"which we are now examining (Gen.xv. 12), And when the sun was going
" down, a deep sleep (exoracrts) fell upon Abraham, i.e., the condition of
" one who is in a prophetic trance and under the Divine influence
" {iv8ov<nu>vTOS Kal deo(j)oprjTov to irddos). It is not, however, this cir-
" cumstance alone that proves him to have been a prophet, but it is so
" written concerning him, in express terms, in the sacred books. For
" when one attempted to separate his natural virtue (i.e., Sarah) from
" him (as if it were not the natural possession of a wise man alone, and
" could belong to every pretender to prudence), it is said (Gen. xx. 7),
" Restore the man his wife, for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee,
" and thou shalt live. Moreover, the Sacred "Word ascribes prophecy
"to every good (ao-rda) man.* For a prophet enunciates nothing of
" his own (lliiov ph oiSev aTroc/jfit'yyeTat), but entirely the things of
'' another, who suggests them to him. But it is not in accordance with
" the eternal fitness of things that a wicked man should be one of God's
" interpreters ; wherefore no bad man can be said to be Divinely
" inspired. Such an expression is applicable to none but a wise man.

* Philo's meaning, from the context, appears to be that Scripture
restricts the gift of prophecy to good men.

postscript to the preface. xxiii
" For he is only an instrument that emits the voice of God (opyavov
" Beov io-Tiv wow), being invisibly touched and played upon by Him.
"All, therefore, whom He has enrolled amongst the 'just' (6tt6o-ovs
" aveypaijfe 8i<movs) are instanced as inspired and prophesying (kotcxo-
" pevovs Kal 7rpo(prjTevovTas elo-rjyaye), Noah was a 'just' man, and was
" he not also a prophet ? Or did he pronounce the blessings and the
" curses which he uttered respecting future generations, and which
" were verified by the events, without inspiration ? What of Isaac and
" of Jacob ? They are admitted to have prophesied, for many reasons,
" but especially on account of their predictions concerning their pos-
"terity. For those words (Gen. xlix. 2), Gather yourselves together,
" that I may tell you that whieh shall befall you in the last days,
" were the words of one that was inspired (ivdovo-iavros rjv), for the
" perception of futurity is no natural attribute of a man. What again
" of Moses ? Is he not celebrated everywhere as a prophet ? For it is
" said (Keyei yap — Numb. xii. 5), If there be a prophet of the Lord among
" you, I will make myself known unto him in a vision : but to Moses I
" will speak, apparently, and not in dark speeches (iv ei'Sei Kal ov St'
" alvLypArav). And again (Deut. xxxiv. 10), There arose not a prophet
" like Hoses, whom the Lord knew face to face. Excellently well, there-
" fore, He signifies that (Abraham) was under the prophetic afflatus,
" when he says (Gen. xv. 12), When the sun was going down a deep sleep
" (cKo-rao-is) fell upon him. Under the figure of the sun, he symbolises
" the human mind (tov rjpirepov vow). For our reasoning powers answer
" to the sun in the universe, inasmuch as they both are luminaries ; the
" one emitting perceptible light to every one, the other giving us that
" illumination which is mentally discerned. As long, therefore, as our
" mind (vovs) shines forth, and sheds abroad a light like the noonday sun
" through our whole soul, we remain master of our faculties, and are
" not inspired (iv iavrols ovres, oi Kar^opiBa). But when sunset
" approaches, as might be expected, the Divine ecstasy and the pro-
" phetical furor ensue. For when the Divine light shines in its bright-
" ness, the human light sets ; but when the former wanes, the latter
" revives and rises again. But this is what is wont to happen to the
"race of the prophets. For our own reasoning faculty (vovs) departs
" from us when the Divine Spirit comes in, and when the latter takes
" its leave, the former resumes its indwelling. For it would be contrary
" to eternal fitness, that that which is mortal should dwell together with
" the immortal. Therefore the sunset of the reasoning faculty (to€
" \oyio-pov) and the accompanying darkness produced (in Abraham) the
" condition of ecstaey and Divine furor (6eo<p6pr)Tov pavlav). But the
" consequence is intimated in the Scripture, inasmuch as it states, It

XXIV postscript to the preface.
" was said to Abraham. For assuredly the prophet, when he apparently
" speaks, in reality keeps silence ; for another (i.e., God's Spirit)
" appropriates to his own use his vocal organs, his mouth and tongue,
" to signify whatsoever it pleases Him. He strikes them, as it were,
" with invisible and musical skill, and produces results replete with a
" tuneful and harmonious symphony."
Consult also p. 483, and De Migr. Abrahami, ibid.,
p. 442, and also torn, ii., pp. 124, 222, 343, 417.

SUPPLEMENTARY NOTE TO CHAP. II. 6—9.
In John v. 26, 27, our Lord says, " For as the Father
" hath life in himself, so hath he given to the Son to have
"life in himself; and hath given him authority to execute
"judgment also, because he is the Son of man." It appears
to me, that the Writer's application of the words of Ps. viii.
4 — 6, to the Lord Jesus Christ, gives the real clue to this
difficult expression, " What is man that thou art mindful of
" him, and the Son of man that thou visitest him 
" Thou hast put all things under his feet," &c. Our Lord's
words would then indicate, " Because he is the representative
" Son of man " spoken of by David in the 8th Psalm.
Compare also, Dan. vii. 13.

THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBEEWS.

The Epistle to the Hebrews, or more correctly
according to the title, " the Epistle to Hebrews " or
Jews, partakes of a twofold character. It is an
epistola consolatoria and also an epistola commoni-
toria. It is addressed to Jewish converts. They
were evidently suffering from the persecution of
their unbelieving brethren, who also twitted them
with having abandoned the religion of their ances
tors, and, by so doing, voluntarily excluded them
selves from participation in the consolations of the
prophetic writings, in the glorious temple worship,
the sacrifices, the Aaronic priesthood, and the
covenanted privileges secured for ever to the chil-
.dren of Abraham. Erom the construction of the
Epistle, it is plain that the Jewish polity had not
yet come to an end. The writer speaks of the
temple as still standing, of the priests as still per
forming their sacrificial functions, of the Mosaic
law as being iyyvs d<pavio-pov, i.e., near to disappear
ance, or " ready to vanish away." Had the case
been otherwise, the arguments adduced would have

been drawn from the fact of the ancient regime
having been abolished. There would have been no
occasion for the elaborate deductions drawn from
the Scriptures to indicate the impending changes.
But then, also, in all probability, the Christian
controversialist would have been deprived of one of
the most conclusive and subtle pieces of argumenta
tion against Jewish cavils that ever was penned.
The Epistle to the Hebrews is at the present
moment a handbook, based upon ancient Rabbinic
interpretation, of the points at issue between the
believers in the claims of Jesus of Nazareth and
those who suppose that the Mosaic dispensation is
only temporarily suspended on account of the sins
of the Jewish nation, and will yet be restored to its
primitive splendour, with its august apparatus of
sacrifice and temple- worship. The object of the
writer is to show that the Christian Israelites had
made no mistake ; that they had gained everything,
instead of losing by their acceptance of Jesus ; that
the Mosaic dispensation was only the type and
prelude to the Christian. That it had had its day,
and is now superseded by the " thing signified "
with its " far more exceeding weight of glory."
Erom the allusions to apostacy in the course of the
Epistle, it is plain that the faith of some of the
converts had not been proof against the arguments
and entreaties and persecutions of their unbelieving
kinsmen. To any one acquainted with the intensity
of bitterness exhibited by the adherents of Judaism
towards those who have embraced Christianity, this
will awaken but little surprise. No sacrifices are

deemed too costly to induce the " destroyed ones,"
for so the converts are termed, to abjure their new
faith. If they continue steadfast, they are regarded
by their relatives as socially dead. The mention of
their names is forbidden in the family circle ; per
sonal violence is not unfrequently resorted to.
Their very lives are in jeopardy from the bigoted
and fanatical abhorrence wherewith they are re
garded by their nearest kinsmen.1
Against such fiery trial the faith of certain of
those mentioned in this Epistle had proved too
weak. Many of those that remained unpersuaded,
but not unmoved, were in a wavering and despond
ing frame of mind. The odium and obloquy which
they daily endured had produced a most depressing
1 The implacable persecutions which the celebrated Uriel Dacbsta
met with, and the disgraceful treatment which he experienced on the
occasion of h;s public abjuration of Christianity in the synagogue at
Amsterdam, so preyed upon his mind that he committed suicide by
blowing out his brains with a pistol. The narrative of his sufferings
and recantation is related in G. B. de Rossi's Dizionario storico degli
autori Ebrei e delle loro opere (Vol. 1, p. 37. Parma, 1802. 8vo.)
After undergoing a thousand indescribable insults and cruel injuries,
and enduring two several excommunications, the second of which lasted
for a period of seven years, he was finally persuaded to read a recanta
tion in the synagogue. On the day appointed he presented himself,
attired in mourning, with a lighted taper in his hand, and ascended the
pulpit to read his renunciation of Christianity. This done, he was
taken in a corner and stripped of his garments, all -but his girdle, and
tied to a pillar, when he was savagely scourged. He was then com
pelled to lie down in the doorway whilst the entire congregation passed
over his body, trampling him under foot and spitting upon him. Stung
to the quick by such unexpectedly barbarous and outrageous treatment,
and the public infamy to which he had been subjected, he shortly after
terminated his career by his own hand, as above described, in the
month of April, 1647.

effect. The entreaties of parents and relatives, the
scornful demeanour of their former acquaintances,
the exclusions from the family circle, the perpetual
annoyances and spiteful persecutions by which they
were surrounded, rendered a letter such as the
present Epistle particularly seasonable.
Exception has been taken against its Pauline
authorship, from the omission of St. Paul's habitual
statement of his apostleship. This circumstance,
to my own mind, is a conclusive demonstration that
the writer, whoever he may have been, knew per
fectly how to adapt himself to the frame of mind
and the peculiar position of those to whom he wrote.
The question at issue was not whether the writer
was an Apostle of Jesus Christ, but whether Jesus
Christ had any claim to be heard as the Messiah of
God. The very statement of such a commission,
unless preliminarily enforced by the most valid and
irrefragable proofs, drawn from accepted Hebrew
expositions of the Old Testament writings, would
be a fatal objection to the Jewish mind. The dis
ciple of Rabbinism would take his stand upon the
express injunctions of Moses contained in Deut. xiii.
1 — 5 :— "If there arise among you a prophet, or a
" dreamer of dreams, and giveth thee a sign or a
" wonder, and the sign or the wonder come to pass,
" whereof he spake unto thee, saying, Let us go
" after other gods, which thou hast not known, and
" let us serve them ; thou shalt not hearken unto
" the words of that prophet, or that dreamer of
" dreams : for the Lord your God proveth you, to
" know whether ye love the Lord your God with all

' your heart and with all your soul. Ye shall walk
' after the Lord your God, and fear him, and keep
' his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye
' shall serve him, and cleave unto him. And that
' prophet, or that dreamer of dreams, shall be put
' to death ; because he hath spoken to turn you
' away from the Lord your God, which brought
' you out of the land of Egypt, and redeemed you
' out of the house of bondage, to thrust thee out of
' the way which the Lord thy God commanded thee
' to walk in. So shalt thou put the evil away from
the midst of thee."
Now this was no mere ideal obstacle in the way
of the Gospel of Christ. It exists to this very day,
in all its original force and intensity, amongst the
unbelieving Israelites. And this was what our Lord
Himself referred to when He assured the disciples
that the" time should come in which those that killed
them should think that they were doing God a ser
vice. St. Paul himself (Pom. x. 2) bears his Jewish
kinsmen record that they " have a zeal for God, but
not according to knowledge."1 Such deep-seated
and apparently well-founded prejudices could
1 Viewed from a Eabbinic point of view (by the light of Deut. xiii.)
the judicial murder of Stephen and of Christ and St. Paul's persecuting
zeal against his converted brethren and sisters, were not only justifiable
but meritorious ; and on the authority of the above chapter of Deut.
the Nizzachon Vetus, an ancient Jewish handbook of the points at issue
between Jews and Christians, glories in the Saviour's crucifixion.
ris -.on p toi vrro ironi rrts ioss> m»» ta« no: wrr '3 pT w ion px nroi
ysa vrhm rt ws pi lwinn avin <d vte sn»n nVi i!> mwi n"> mibq
" Now not only did Jesus say that he was a prophet, but he also
" made himself God, and seduced his brethren. Therefore Moses spake

only be met and removed by arguments drawn
from the Scriptures themselves to which the Jews
appealed in vindication of their unbelief. To in
quire into the religion of Jesus was considered a
violation of the commandments of Moses. To hint
that any portion of the ceremonial law would ever
cease to be obligatory was not only high treason
against God, but a grave insult to the national
institution, upon the minute observance of which
their political existence depended. The statement
of his apostleship by the writer would, therefore,
have been to place a preliminary obstacle in the
way of obtaining a hearing. It would have been,
so to speak, a petitio principii. To commence with a
statement of the personal claims of Jesus of Naza
reth would have been scarcely less objectionable.
The controversy at issue rested upon a far broader
basis, viz., the testimony of the Scriptures to the
fact that the old dispensation would run its course,
be superseded by a new and a better one, and thus
altogether fall into abeyance. Before obtaining a
hearing at all, therefore, the writer knew that he
must distinctly establish Scriptural and prophetic
declarations, and these according to accepted Rab
binic interpretations, of the coming transition from
the covenant of Moses to the better covenant of
Christ. The question was not, are the claims of
Jesus to be the Messiah plausible? but, are they
" concerning him (Deut. xiii. 8), Thou shalt not consent unto him, nor
"hearken unto him, but shalt surely kill him. And this also they did,
" hangiug him upon a tree."— A'iz;achon Vctus, p. 50, Wagenseil, Tela
Ignea Satanae.

contained in, and proved by, the Old Testament
Scriptures, whose inspired authority is, to Chris
tians as well as Jews, an end of all controversy?
In the first verse, therefore, in his opening words*
he strikes the key-note of the strain that runs
throughout the entire Epistle. He disposes of the
question of authority.*

* The tone and mode of our Lord's teaching was totally different
from that of the Scribes. He taught as one il-ovo-iav ?xavi having
authority; e.g., "Verily, verily, I say unto you," and not "Eabbi
'So and So' says," or "our elders have taught." This decisive and
infallible authority our Lord imparted to his Apostles. With us
Christians their dicta ought to be the end of all controversy, as express
ing the mind of the Holy Ghost ; but with the unbelieving Jews, the
case is altogether different. They must first be convinced that we are
" not following cunningly devised fables," and that Jesus of Nazareth
was neither an enthusiast, nor an impostor, but the Christ of God, the
Divine Messiah, spoken of " by the mouth of all the holy Prophets,
since the world began."

CHAPTER I.

Verses 1, 2. — In manifold apportionments, and in a variety
of ways,1 in the olden time (irdXai), God having spoken
to the fathers by (eV)8 the prophets, in these last days3
hath spoken to us by (iv vim) his Son, whom He hath
appointed heir of all things (Ps. ii. 7, 8) ; by whom, also,
he made the worlds.4
1 Tidkvpepas nai froXurpdircos, Mwltipliciter et Myitis Modis. J. C.
Wolfius. Curce Phil et Crit. Tom. iv. p. 596. The Writer contrasts
the delegated authority with which the prophets spoke, as (and at what
time) they were moved by the Holy Ghost, with the completeness and
integrity of Christ's power to speak in his Father's name. They
delivered their message as ambassadors when the Divine afflatus came
upon them, and when the message was put into their mouths. In
Christ, however, dwelt all the fulness of the Godhead bodily. He
spoke as one having authority, and to whom all power in heaven and
earth was committed. J. C. Wolfius observes, ibid., p. 597, " to
" 7roXi;rpd7raij vero, varios revelationis divinse modos infert. Horum
" quinque nonulli appellant, nempe nma: in visione, crhm in somnis,
" rnTta in osnigmate, cum aliud apparet, aliud innuitur, n;iDro infigura,
" cum rerum imagines apparent, ac denique nsa sive allocutione dicina."
Schoettgen divides the rponovs of prophecy as follows. The first the
Patriarchal, supplemented later, by the Covenant of Circumcision.
Secondly, that commencing at the Exodus, in which God spake by
the additional medium of symbols and rites, e.g., the Paschal
Lamb, &c, to which, in the time of the Judges, a " pepos quoddam "
was added, viz., in the Schools of the Prophets. This rponos, he says
lasted, with intervals, up to the time of the Babylonish Captivity ; but
certain plpm were withdrawn, e.g., the Shechinah, the Urim and Thuni-
mim, aa well as the gift of prophecy. Then followed the completed
volume of the Old Testament Scriptures, after the gift of prophecy had
ceased, to which, when needful, was added the Bath Kol flip ra daughter

CHAP. I., 1, 2. 9
of a voice), i.e., a voice from heaven, and which was sent, not to pro
pound new doctrines, but to admonish the Jews as to what to do upon
occasions of urgent emergency.
2 iv rols npocprjrais, Q's'M, including the ministration of angels. Those
were days of prediction, these are days of fulfilment.
^^ 3 inio-xarav twv fjpepav tovtwv. Some MSS.~ read, inio-xdrov, k.tX.
These words are equivalent to the Hebrew expression, cwn nnnra, i.e.,
" the latter days,'' or, the closing days of this earthly dispensation. As
Nachmanides observes on Genesis xlix. 1, mo' d'oti mnm ton nn-ft '3
on iraon— "For by universal consent, in the last days, are the days of
" Messiah." So, also, Kimchi and Abarbanel. (See further in J. Rhen-
ferdij Dissertat. 1, de Seculo Futuro. Meuschen, N. Test, ex Talmude
illustr., p. 1122, &c.) The Targumof Onkelos translates Gen. xlix. 10,
" until Shiloh come," by " until Messiah come " So also the Targum
of Jonathan, " until the king Messiah come," adding, " How beauteous
" is the king, the Messiah, who will arise from the house of Judah ! "
4 At' off Kal tovs alavas iirolrjo-ev, and so the Jewish writers speak of
God as cfra N"vo, and D'aVw ntu. See Schoettgen, Horce Hebraicce, torn, i.,
p. 911 ; Wolfius, torn, iv., p. 601, 602. Philo again and again asserts
that the world was made by the Word of God, e.g., Adyor 8i io-nv
zikwv Qeov 6V ov o-vpiras 6 Koapos ib'rjpiovpyz'iTo — •" But the Word is the
" image of God, by whom the whole world was framed." — De Monorchia,
Works, Mangey's edit., vol. ii., p. 225.
Again, in reference to Gen. ii. 4, he observes (S. S. Legum Allegor.,
lib. i. ; Works, vol. i., p. 47), ra> yap ncpapaveo-TdTa) Kal Trp\avyeo-Ta.Tta
iavrov X6ya>, prjpari 6 Beos dpcporepa ffotei — " For by his most illustrious
and splendid Word, by a. word, God created both," (sc. ideam intel-
lectus, which he compares to heaven, and ideam sensus, which he likens
to earth). Again, ibid., p. 106, o-km GeoJ 8e 6 Xdyos avrov io-riv, a>
KaQdnep opydva irpoo'X^O'dpevos, iKoo~poiroiei — " But the shadow of God
" is his Word, by which, having used it as an instrument, He made the
''world." Again (De Cherubim, ibid., p. 162), eiprjo-eis  lipyavov 
Xoyov &eov, 6V ov KarearKevdo-Br)' rrjs Se /carao-Keuijj alriav, rrjv dyaddrnra tov
Srjpwvpyov — "But thou wilt find  the instrument by which it was
" planned to be the Word of God, but the cause of its plan, the benevo-
" lence. of the Founder." So also (de Migrations Abrahami, ibid., p. 437),
Ti's av ovv e'lrj, ifKrjv 6 Xdyos 6 7rpeo-/3urepos twv yiveaiv elXrjcpoTav, ov KaBdirep
o'iaKos iveiknppivos 6 tS>v okcuv KvfiepvrjTws 7r))8aXiov^ei to o-vpnavra. Kai
ore iKoo~pon\do~T€i, xpr}°'^iiJL€vos opydva rovra irpos ttjv avvTvairiov twv a7roreX-
ovpevwv avarao-iv — "What else can it therefore be except the Word,
" which is the eldest of things that received a being, of which He who
" steers all things, having taken hold of, pilots all the universes, as with

10 CHAP. I., 3, 4.
" a helm ? And when He framed the worlds, He made use of this
" instrument to put top-ether and complete his faultless work."
Again, the Jerusalem Targum reads in Gen. i. 27, " And the Word
" of the Lord created man in his likeness, in the likeness of the
" presence of the Lord He created him." So, also, in Gen. iii. 8, the
Targumof Jonathan or Palestine has, "And' they heard the voice of
" the Word of the Lord walking," &c. Whilst the Jerusalem Targum
has, inverse 7, " And the Word of the Lord God called," &c. Again,
in Gen. iii. 22, the J erusalem Targum paraphrases, " And the Word of
" the Lord God said, Behold, Adam whom I have created," &c.
Verses 3, 4. — "Who being the brightness of his glory1 and
the express image2 of his person, and upholding3 all things
by the Word (toj pr/pari) of his power, having by himself
made purification of our sins, sat down (Ps. ex. 1) on the
right hand of the majesty on high.4 Being made so much
better than the angels, in proportion as he has obtained,
by inheritance, a more excellent name than they.
1 dwavyao-pa rijs 8d^ijr. Schoettgen rightly refers this expression to
the glory of the Shechinah, whereby the Second person of the ever
Blessed Trinity manifested Himself on the mercy seat. (See Heb. ix. 5.)
He says that the Hebrews have three modes of expression, which exactly
answer to the above, viz., wy vi splendor gloria?, used in the Targum of
Onkelos (Fxod. xxxiv. 29, and Deut. xxxiv. 7) of the glorv of Moses'
face. Secondly, pip'N ri splendor imaginis sive faciei, quod convenitcum
voce airdvyavpa. It occurs in Bereshith Ilabba in reference to Gen. xxi. 2.
V? nun ite py n vi rvnic into, Tie learn that he (Isaac) was the splendor of
his (Abraham's) face, and that lie was like him. Thirdly, c:e ttc'v
written also •vnrhp, similitudo cum sphndore conjuncta, ex uniiis facie in
alterius faciem derwata, e.g., nn« te D':a voV, diravyao-pa Schcchincc.
(Midrasch Echa in Sohar Chadash, fol. 71, 4, &c.) Schoettgen observes
that dwavyao-pa means, " splendorem ex alia quadam luce derivatum,
" qui tamen ejusdem cum ilia est esscntias," aud shows how pregnant in
meaning these four words of the writer to the Hebiews are respecting
the divinity of Christ. First, as asserting that He emanated from the
essence of the Father. 2. That Christ having been begotten of the
essence of the Father, is of the same essence. 3. That He is a person
distinct from the Father. 4. That He is coetemal with the Father.
(Hone hebraica; torn, iii., pp. 911—911).) See also J. C. Wolfius,
Curte Phil., torn, iv., pp. C03, 004.

CHAP. I., 3, 4. 11
2 ynpaxTijp rijs virotTTdo-ea>s avrov' Philo uses very similar language in
reference to the Eternal Word, e.g., 'O 8' vnepdva tovtchv Xdyos Biios els
oparr/v ovk rj\Bev Ifteav, are prjb'evl tg>v Kar o.'Io-8t)o~lv ipfaprjs lov, aXX' avros
ukwv virapxtov Oeov, tS>v votjtS>v &ira£andvTcov o 7rpetr/3uT-aros, d iyyvrdra,
prjdevos ovtos plBoplov diao-TTjparos, tov povov o io-Ttv d\j/evbu)S, dcptftpvpivos .
" But he who is above these, viz., the Divine Word, never comes into
" visible shape ; since he is comparable to nothing perceptible with the
" senses. But he is the image of God, the eldest of all things soever
" which can be mentally discerned. The closest copy, of Him who
" alone truly is, since there is no separating interval between him." —
De Profugis, Mang. Works, torn, i., p. 561. See also De Mundi opificio,
ibid., pp. 6, 7. Deterius potiori insidiatur, ibid., p. 207.
cO Se drj peyas Mcai/o^s ovftevl ra>v yeyovormv rrjs XoyiK/js y$fvx*js to eioos
opolats wvdpao-ev, aXX' einev avrnv tov Belov Kal dopdrov Qeov iKelvov eiKova,
hoKipov eivai vopio-as r\s e'iaiBe Kal TvircoBev o-<ppay\8.a Beov, r/s 6 xaPaKTVP
io-Tiv 6 dtSios Xdyos. "Moses the Great has not, in like manner,
" noticed the likeness of the reasonable soul to any one of created things.
" On the contrary, he said that it was the image of the Divine and
" Invisible God, accounting it a proof and impression struck by the
" customary seal of God, the engraving whereof is the Eternal Word." —
De Mundo, Works, vol. ii., pp. 605, 606.
See also in the Fragments from Eusebius, ibid., p. 625, where a
passage from Philo is quoted in which he says that man was not, and
could not, be " made in the image " of the Father of all things, but
that this expression means that he was made like "to the Second God,
" which is his Word " (aXka. npos r6v fevrepov Qebv, os 'eo-nv eVciVou Adyos).
3 cpipwv tc, k.t.X. Schoettgen gives the following illustrations from
the Eabbinical writers. In Bereshith Rabba, sect. 22, fol. 23, 2, Cain
is represented as addressing God thus— taiD nnx D-:innn';i n'rrtrt " Thou
" upholdest things above and beneath."
Scliemoth Rabba, sect. 19, fol. 118, 3, vnv-a taiD airo "This is He
" who upholds his creatures."
Ibid., sect. 36, fol. 133, 4, inVw )io ra'ipn " The Holy One, Blessed be
" He, upholds his world."
Ao-ain in the Dton otto, in the Sohar Chadash, fol. 9, 1, "The Holy
" One Blessed be He, vtim mo'jwn to bvo upholds all the worlds by his
" strength."' — Schoettgen, ibid., p. 919.
The doctrine that the universes are upheld and governed by the
Word of God is asserted again and again by Philo, e.g., 6 TrrfbaXwvxos
Kal KvPcpvijTns tov iravrbs Xdyos Bc'tos. " The helmsman and pilot of all
"things, viz., the Divine Word."— Philo de Cherubim, Works, vol. i.,
p. 145.

12 CHAP. I., 3, 4.
Again, when speaking of the rise and fall of nations, he attributes
the administration of the world to God's Word. x°P™t<- yap iv kukXm
Xdyos d Belos, bv ol ttoWoI tcov dvBpdiir<av ovopd^ovwi rvxnv. " The Divine
" Word makes circuits (of the universes), whom the majority of men
" designate Fortune." — Quod Deus sit immutabilis, ibid., p. 298.
Further, on Gen. xxxi. 13, "I am the God of Bethel, where thou
"anointedst the pillar," &c. Philo writes, rd o" eniypappa ipnvevev, oti
povos eo-rrjKa iya, Kal ttjv navrcov (pvo-iv ibpvcrdpnv, ttjv draglav Kal axoo-piav
els to£iv Kal Koo-pov dyayibv, Kal rb nav vnepelo'as iva crrnpixBy fiefiaias reS
Kparaia Kal virapxa pov Xdyra. The inscription signified, " / stand alone,
" and have founded the entire course of nature, reducing confusion and
" disorder into order and harmony, and have supported the whole, in order
" that it may be firmly secure, upon my powerful and representative Word."
— Quod a Deo Mittantur Somnia, ibid., p. 656.
The Divine Word is also described as God's vwapxos or representative
Lieutenant (De Agricultura, ibid., p. 308), by whom the universes are
administered. In commenting upon the words of Ps. xxiii. 1, Philo
says, irpoo-rno-dpevos t6j» opBbv avrov \6yov, upaToyovov vtov, os ttjv impekeiav
ttjs lepas ravrrjs dyeXrjs, ola rts peydXov /3ao"tXf'a>s vnapxos diaSe^erai. "He
" has set over it his upright Word, his first begotten Son, who under-
" takes the oversight of this sacred flock, as the lieutenant of some
" great king." — De Agricultura, ibid., p. 308.
Again, vopos 8e 6 dittos Oeov tov alavlov, to oxvpi>Tarov Kal fiefiawraTOV
epeto-pa twv oXatv earlv. Outos dnb tt&v pecraiv eirl ra irepara, Kal dirb r&v
aKpav inl ra pica raBels, 8o\ixeiiei tov ttjs (pvcrews 8popov arjTrnTov, o~vvdya>y
ra pipy] irdvra Kal adjiyycoV decpov yap dvrbv appr/Krov tov navrbs 6 yevr)o-as
inolei naTr)p. " But the eternal law (Word) of the everlasting God is the
" most irrefragable and sure prop (stay) of all things. He pervades
" from the centre to the extremest limits, and from the highest point to
" the centre. He permeates the untiring course of nature, and thus
" unites and draws together its several component parts, inasmuch as
" the Father who begat Him has constituted Him the indissoluble bond
" of all things." — De Plantatione Koe, ibid., pp. 330, 331. The very
same words are to be found. — De Mundo, ibid., vol. ii., p. 604.
Further, Xavva yap ra re a\Xa e'£ eavrav, el 8i jrou Kai irvKvaBev ein,
Xdya> o-nityyerai Beta. Ko'XXa yap eori Kal 8eo~pbs oJtos, ra irdvra tt)s
6vo-las eWeTrXijpwKais. For all things are constitutionally liable to go
to pieces, but if they have any solidity they are held together by
his Divine Word. For He is the principle of cohesion and the-
band, which supplements all things that subsist.— Quis rerum Divin-
arum Ilceres, ibid., torn, i., p 499. (Compare Eph. i. 23, iii. 19, iv. 10.)
""O, te yap tov"Ovtos Xdyoc, Searpas &>v tS>v Andvrav, £>s etptjTai, Kal

CHAP. I., 3, 4. 13
" avvixei ra peprj iravra, Kal o-<plyyei, Kal KtaXvet avra 8iaXieo-8ai Kal
" 8MpTao-8ai. For the Word of the Self-existent, as we have already
" asserted, upholdeth each several part, and knits them together, and
'"prevents them from going to pieces and being disintegrated." — De
Profugis, ibid., p. 562.
4 Ps. lxviii 18 (Heb. 19) Drab rrts, "Thou hast ascended on high,"
&c. For the interpretation of this Psalm see The Messiahship of Jesus,
by Alex M'Caul, D.D., p. 164, and also The Psalms in Hebrew, with
Commentary by G. Phillips, D.D., vol. ii., pp. 79 — 108. Schoettgen,
Horos Hebr., torn, i , pp. 772—775. Surenhus. Bi/3X. KaraXX, p. 584, &c.
. Here, then, at one rapid and masterly stroke, in
the short compass of four verses, the writer sketches
out the Divine superiority of the Messianic dispen
sation over the Patriarchal as well as the Mosaic. He
reminds his readers that when Christ speaks of the
things of God, He speaks of his own ; for that He is
God's eternal Son — that the Father has designated
Him heir of all things. (Ps. ii. 7, 8.) That He has
omnipotent authority to demand our obedience, as
well as power to enforce it. That in Him the pro
phecies which predicted his vicarious sufferings have
been accomplished ; and that now, inasmuch as his
expiatory sacrifice is completed and his redeeming
career of humiliation accomplished, He has ascended
on high in fulfilment also of the prophetic declara
tion of Ps. ex. 1, and lxviii. 18, when he sits at the
right hand of God expecting until his enemies be
made his footstool. No prominent feature of the Mes
siah's character, as expected by the ancient Jewish
Church, is left unnoticed. He is God because He
is the Creator of the worlds, and upholds the uni
verses. He is the legitimate exponent of the Divine
will because He is of the same substance and essence
with the Father. He has, by his sacrifice of him-

14 CHAP. L, 3, 4.
self once offered, abrogated the necessity for the
Mosaic sacrifices, having by himself purged away
our sins (as foretold by Isaiah liii.),1 and now, at
the right hand of God, He waits for the further
and final accomplishment of the predicted reward,
when his enemies shall have been made his foot
stool. Thus all the leading objections against the
Messiahship and religion of Jesus are met and dis
posed of at the outset. The comparison of Christ's
dignity with that. of the angels, seems to be designed
to meet the objection that in former ages the will
of God was, from time to time, made known to
the fathers by the ministry and embassage of the
heavenly host. If Jesus were a mere human teacher,
He would be inferior to them and without authority
to repeal that which was by them delivered. But
if He be " the Christ of God," i.e., his Divine and
Eternal Son,2 then He is of necessity superior to
them by the inheritance of his glorious name, as
1 The most celebrated ancient Jewish interpreters, with one consent,
have applied Isaiah liii. to the Messiah, e.g , the Sohar, Targum of
Jonathan, Babylonian Talmud, Yalkut Shimoni, R Alshech, &c.
See the late Dr. M'Caul's Doctrine and Interpretation of Iiaiah Im'.,
pp. 16—21, who observes that, " Aben Ezra and Abarbauel both begiu
" their commentaries by mentioning the Christian exposition, and with
" a confession that they depart from the ancient Jewish exposition."
See also the learned Dr. Margoliouth's Penitential Hymn of Judah
and Israel after the Spirit. An Exposition of Isaiah liii. Second
Edition. 1856. 8vo.
2 Schoettgen (Horce Hebraic^, torn, i., p. 905) supposes that St. Paul
(whom he, in common with many of the other giants of theological
erudition of former days, holds to be the author of the Epistle to the
Hebrews) had in mind the ancient Jewish tradition, whieh declared
that Messiah should be greater than Abraham and Moses, and the
Patriarchs, aud the Ministering Angels.
"Nullam vel Spiritui Saucto, hanc epistolam inspiranti, vel etiam

CHAP. I., 3, 4. 15
well as being their Creator, which idea is included
in the assertion, " By whom He also made the
worlds," for it is written in Gen. i. 1, "In (the)
beginning God created the heavens and the earth."
The creation of the heavens in remote ages, before
our world was prepared for man's habitation, in
cluded the creation of the angels or heavenly host.
The citation from Psalm ex. 1, " Jehovah said unto
" my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand," &c, in
verse 3, is especially noteworthy. It is the identical
passage wherewith Jesus put the Pharisees (Mark
xii. 35) to silence. The Scribes apparently inter
preted the text, of Messiah the Son of David, even
in our Lord's day, " And Jesus answered and said . . .
" How say the Scribes that Christ (i.e., Messiah) is
" the Son of David, for David himself said by the
" Holy Ghost, The Lord said unto my Lord
" (^isb mrp DS3> Jehovah said unto my Lord), Sit
" thou on my right hand till I make thine enemies
" Apostolo injuriam facio, si dicam, Apostolum in mente habuisse
" priscam hanc traditionem, qute exstat in Tanchuma, citante Julkut
" Simeoni, part 2, fol. 53, 3, ad verba Jes. Iii. 13. Ecce sapienter aget
" servus meus : rruran -fm m. lntelligitur Meoc Messius. Extolletur et
" elavabitur valde. Extolletur ultra Abrahamum, et • elevabitur ultra
" Mosen, et sublimis erit mwn o«boa pro? Angelis Ministerialibus. Aliter
" exprimitur in Julkut Chadash, fol. 144, 2. neo pi nuwi p bra mira
" mi2>n OS70 pi Messias major est Patriarchis, Alose, et Angelis minis-
" terialibus." R. Simeon ben Laki-Ii in the Babylonian Gemara (Sanhed?'in,
col. 974, Ugolin. Thes , vol. xxv.) expresses the subordination and
inferiority of the ministering angels as follows. When commenting
on Isaiah Ixiii. 4, The day of vengeance is in my heart, he says,
wto xb men 'DNbob vra 'aW, "I have revealed it to my own heart, to
" the ministering angels I have not revealed it." This Rabbinical
interpretation has a remarkable correspondence with the words of our
Lord (Matt. xxiv. 36), " But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no,
" not the angels of heaven, but my Father only."

16 CHAP. I., 5.
" thy footstool. David therefore calleth him Lord,
" and whence is he his Son ? " So also a little later
the Targum renders the same passage, " Jehovah said
" in," or, " unto his Word." The writer moves, there
fore, in an atmosphere of ancient Jewish 1 interpre
tation in his application of the Old Testament
prophecies to the Messiah. And now he follows
up his advantage, and shows conclusively that the
words of Ps. ii. 7, 8, " I will declare the decree :
" the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son ;
" this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I
" shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance,
" and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy pos-
" session," cannot apply to any angelic being. Nor
yet the words of 2 Sam. vii. 14.
Verse 5. — Por to which of the angels did He ever say,
Thou art my Son ; this day have I begotten thee ?
(Ps. ii. 7.) And again (2 Sam. vii. 14), I will be to him
(for) a Father (et? irarepa), and he shall be to me (for)
a Son (ek vlbv, pb ^b rrrv Sim 3Kb lb nTTN •<»!) ?
True, that in Job i. 6, ii. 1, xxxvii. 7, the angels
are called " sons of God " (Lrnbs "oa, as also in Dan. iii.
25), the angelic being who appeared to Nebuchad
nezzar in the furnace, was said by him to be " like
a son of God " (rnbs nab, via, Qeov. LXX.) But these
are only sons by creation and obedience. The pas
sage does not exist in which Jehovah condescends
to address any angelic servant of his, as His Son by
generation, and thus to designate him as a partaker
1 For an excellent account of the Rnbbinic interpretations of Ps ex.,
see J. Jacobi Schudt Comment. Philol. in Psalmum ex. Frankfort,
1718. 8vo.

CHAP. I., 6, 7. 17
of his Divine essence and nature ; to proclaim his
kinsmanship, and to invite him to share his throne
and Eternal Sovereignty. This honour is reserved
for the Messiah, whom Jehovah distinguishes as
"the man who is my fellow." (\tvbb naa, dvBpa
itoXlrrtv ium, LXX.) The Christian interpretation of
these words of Zech. xiii. 7 was well known to the
Babbies.1
See R. David Kimchi's Commentary on Zechariah, translated with
Notes and Observations on the Passages relating to the Messiah, by
the late Dr. M'Caul, pp. 167— 177.
Verses 6, 7.— But, when He bringeth in again the First-
begotten' into the world, he saith, "Let all the angels of
God worship Him." 2 (Ps. xcvii. 7.) And yet, in reference
to the angels (koX 7rpo? p,ev rov<; dyyeXovs), he saith (Xeyet,
sc, r) ypadji), Ps. civ. 4), " Who maketh his angels spirits,
and his ministers (vmtna, Xeirovpyovs) a flame of fire."
tbv irpa>TOTOKov. Schoettgen quotes from R. Bechai to show that this
appellation is in no way derogatory to Christ's divinity, inasmuch as the
Jews were accustomed to call God the Father " the Firstborn of all the
" whole world," tins bu vvoa Mirt «imc. Also, from the Shemoth Rabba,
sect. 19, fol. 118, 4. " R. Nathan said, The Holy One, blessed be He,
said to Moses, As I have made Jacob my firstborn (Exod. iv. 22), so also
will I make King Messiah my firstborn (Ps. lxxxix. 28)." — Horm Hebr.,
torn, i., p. 992.
Philo repeatedly calls the divine Word of God the firstbegotten
(Trpcordyovos) and eldest son (Trpeo-fivTaros vlos) of God. For a very re
markable example of this, see De Confusione Lingunrum (Works, vol.
i., p. 414), where, in reference to the LXX. version of Zech. vi. 12,
'l8oi> dvrjp, 'AvaroXrj ovopa atrai (ich) rras tr» rr:n Behold a man whose
name is the Branch), Philo observes that 'AvaToXr), Oriens, sunrising,
was a very unusual designation for a mortal man ; but, if applied to
the incorporeal image of God, it would be most suitable in every
respect. Tovtov pev yap npeo-fivraTov vibv 6 t&v ovtcov dvireiXe Trarr/p, ov
erepcoBi wpaiToyovov wvopao-e, Kal 6 yevvrjBels pevrot pipovpevos ras tov
narpbs 68oiis, irpbs TrapaSelypara apxervira eKeivov fiXenaiv, epopcpov ii8rj.
" Him the Father of all things caused to arise as his eldest Son, whom

18 CHAP. I., 6j 7.
" he also called his Firstbegotten : and after he was begotten, he
" presently imitated his Father's ways, and after the archetypal patterns
" which he saw of His, he also formed other species.'' See also De
Confusione Linguarum, ibid., p. 427 ; De Profugis, ibid , 563. So also
De Agricultura, where Philo describes God the Father as regulating the
universes as a Shepherd and King, according to justice and equity, over
which He has set his upright Word, his firstbegotten Son, rbv opBbv
avrov Xoyov, irpardyovov v'tbv, who takes the oversight of the sacred flock
as the lieutenant of a great king. Again, Quod a Deo mittantur Somnia,
ibid., p. 653. Auo yap, i>s eoiKev, tepa Beov, ev pev obe 6 Koapos, iv a Kal
apxiepevs, 6 ¦nparoyovos avrov Beios Xdyos. " There are, methinks, two
" temples of God. The one is this world, whose High priest is his
" Firstbegotten Divine Word." See also J. Wesselius' three very
learned and elaborate dissertations, De Ckristo Primogenito, De Secunda
Primogeniti in Mundum Inductione, De Primogeniti Adorations Angelis
Imperata (Dissertationes Academicse, Lugd. Bat., 1734, 4to., pp. 501-
567). Wesselius handles the phrase orav 8e irdXiv elo-ay in a masterly style.
Schoettgen says, without, however, adducing any Old Testament
examples, in reference to orav elo-aydyv k.t.X., " Phrasis est hebraica
" cVisa «a venit in mundum, i.e., natus est  In Hiphil cbiya a'an
" est, facere ut quis nascatur. Et sic verba heee sensum satis com-
" modum habebant : eo vero tempore quo Deus Pater filium suum
" Messiam ex virgine natum in hune mundum produxit, eumque inter
" homines quasi introduxit, hsec verba Psalmistse de eo impleta sunt :
" Adorent ipsum omnes Angeli Dei." He sees the accomplishment in
the Angels' Hymn at the Nativity. — Horas Hebr., torn, i., p. 921.
2 Kal npoo-K. k.t.X. This quotation seems to be taken from Ps.
xcvii. 7, and not from Deut. xxxii. 43, in which latter passage the
words Trpoo-Kvv7)o-dT<naav aiira ndvres ayyeXoi Ocov are found in the LXX.,
but not in the Hebrew, although St. Paul (Romans xv. 10) declares the
words immediately following, " Rejoice, O ye nations, with his people,"
to be a prophetic invitation, addressed by Moses to the Gentiles, to
come in and participate in the spiritual blessings of Israel. The real
clue to the quotation is found in the words orav 8e irdXiv elo-aydyv tov
rrpardroKov els rrjv olKovpevrjv. The subject in hand is the superiority of
Christ's dispensation over the Mosaic. By his eternal Son God made
the world. When He bringeth Him in the second time (orav 8e izaXiv)
into the world, to set up his kingdom on earth, He calls upon his
angels to worship Him. Psalm xcvii. is descriptive of Christ's king
dom, and commences, "Jehovah reigneth ; let the earth rejoice, let the
" multitude of the isles be glad thereof." The " isles" denote the remote
Gentile nations. This thankful exultation of the nations is in exact
accordance with the promise to Abraham (Gen. xxii. 18 ; xxvi. 4),

CHAP. I., 8—14. 19
where the Hebrew signifies " shall account themselves blessed." The
Hithpael, or reflective conjugation of the verb pa is -here used, instead
of the Niphal, or passive, as in Gen. xii. 3 ; xviii. 18 ; xxviii. 14.
Prof. Moses Stuart observes that, in Deut. xxxii. 43, " The Codex Alex.
" reads, viol Qeov, instead of ityyeXoi eeov, and one Codex at Oxford
" omits the whole clause." The Hebrew in Ps. xcvii. 7 (Heb. 6) has
D'rA-) ta -\b nnnon (worship Him all ye gods ; Ps. viii. 5, cxxxviii. 1,
LXX., angels). The writer to the Hebrews adduces the passage as
showing that the angels, although sometimes, honoris causa, as were
the Judges of Israel (Exod. xxi. 6—13 ; xxii. 8, 9, 28 ; Ps. lxxxii.
1 — 6 ; 1 Sam. ii. 25), called " gods " and " sons of God," are yet required
to render to the " only begotten Son," the Messiah, the worship that is
alone due to Jehovah the Lord of Hosts. The LXX. read ayyeXoi
avrov, instead of Oeov, in Ps. xcvii. 7. (xcvi. 7 in the Greek.)
Verses 8— 14.— But to the Son he saith (Ps. xlv. 6, 7), " Thy
throne, 0 God (aTtbs o ©eo?, vocative), is for ever and ever ;
a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom.1
Thou hast loved righteousness and hated iniquity ; there
fore God, even thy God, hath anointed2 thee with the oil
of gladness above thy fellows." 3
And again, in Ps. cii. 25, 27, when the perpetuity
of Messiah's kingdom is celebrated in consoling
contrast to the brevity of human life : —
Thou, Lord, in the beginning hast laid the foundation of
the earth, and the heavens are the work of thine hands.4
They shall perish, but thou remainest, and they all shall
wax old, as doth a garment ; 5 and as a vesture shalt thou
fold them 6 up, and they shall be changed ; but thou art
the same, and thy years shall not fail. But to which of
the angels said He. at any time (as in Ps. ex. 1) Sit on my
right hand until I make thine enemies thy footstool ?
Are they not all ministering spirits,7 sent forth to minister
(et's BiaKOviav on an errand of service) for (Bid on behalf of)
them who shall be heirs of salvation ?
The writer appeals to his readers' acquaintance
with Old Testament history, which relates number-

20 CHAP. I., 8—14.
less instances of the mission of angels on behalf of
God's people. They always appear in the subordi
nate capacity of messengers, as, indeed, the word
*jHba dyyeXoi; signifies. To be an assessor of the Lord
Jehovah upon his throne is a dignity reserved for
Messiah alone. He has by inheritance obtained a
more excellent name than they.
1 This Psalm cii. looks forward to the time when the " heathen shall
" fear the name of Jehovah, and all the kings of the earth" his glory
(verse 15). And also, "When the peoples (p"Ctt plur.) are gathered
" together, and the kingdoms, to serve the Lord " (verse 22). In other
words, it is Messianic in its consolatory exhortations. The application
of verses 25 — 27 to the Divine Messiah is no forced interpretation.
Jacob had foretold that to Him should " the gathering of the nations
" be." The Targums of Onkelos, Jonathan, and Jerusalem, with one con
sent, interpret Jacob's prophecy concerning Shilo, of the Messiah ; as
also the Babylonian Gemara, Sanhedrim, col. 970 (Ugolin. Thes., vol.
25), where a variety of opinions are given as to Messiah's name,
t/txq »y 'a -a hdn:h> idtb n^id '-ion kVw 'm 'an " The disciples of R. Sila
" said, Shiloh is his name, for it is said, ' until Shiloh come.' " See also
The Messiaship of Jesus, by Alexander M'Caul, D.D., pp. 142 — 145.
2"Exp<-o-e. The word rnrio, Messiah, means anointed one. The allu
sion to the Messiah is self-evident. The Targum applies this Psalm
xlv. to the Messiah, as in verse 2, wim sobo -pEC thy beauty, 0 king
Messiah, is more than that of the sons of men. The Spirit of Prophecy
is given to thy lips. And to the Messiah, Aben Ezra says, it is most
fitly applicable. R. Joseph Ben Moshe also, in min "ina, fol. 36, 4,
it\dd -pa i:: dtiid rfw qviddh " These verses speak of King Messiah."
See Schoettgen ; Horce Hebr., p. 924 ; also, J. Wesselius' Six Disserta
tions on Ps. xlv., contained in his Diss. Acad., published at Leyden
1734, pp. 177—319.
* Uapa tovs perdxovs o-ov. Schoettgen well observes that, if Christ
were God only, He would have no fellows or associates. Since, there
fore, his fellows are spoken of, He must be either man or angel. But
He is not an angel, because He took the seed of Abraham ; and He is
the son of David, and therefore human as well as divine. The super
abundant unction of the Messiah is in reference to the special manner
in which the High-priest was anointed with the holy oil. It was poured
upon his head (Exod. xxix. 7 ; Levit. viii. 12 ; comp. Ps. exxxiii. 2\
and ran down upon his beard, even to the skirts of his garments,

CHAP. I., 8—14. 21
whilst the ordinary priests were only anointed by sprinkling. Thomas
Goodwin says, " Secundani Sacerdotes tantum adspergebantur oleo isto
" unctionis admixto sanguine qui erat super altari (Levit. viii. 30).
" Hinc Sacerdos Summits in fonte legitur Sacerdos unctus (Levit. iv. 5).
" Jonathan habet ; Sacerdos magnus vel summus. Disserte Aben-Ezra ;
" Sacerdos magnus ipse est Sacerdos unctus. Lyranus adhuc clarius ;
" Sacerdos unctus est Sacerdos magnus, quia inferiores Sacerdotes non
" ungebantur. Per hoc denotata f uit unetio nostri Salvatoris, uncti oleo
" alacritatis supra consortes suos Ps. xlv. 8. Unctus fuit supra con-
" sortes suos extensive et intensive. Extensive, nam etsi Aaron fuerit
" Sacerdos unctus, Saul Rex unctus, Elisa propheta unctus, Melchizedek
" et Rex et Sacerdos, Moses Sacerdos et propheta, David Rex et
" Propheta ; nemo tamen nisi solus Christus Xpurros, n'lao simul et Rex,
" et Sacerdos et Propheta fuit. Intensive ; Ipse est unctus, nos ad-
" spersi ; ipse plenus gratia et veritate, nos ex ipsius plenitudine
" accipimus gratiam pro gratia, x°-Pw uvtI xapiros ; Joh. i. 14 — 16. Et
" omnes Christiani, prseprimis ministri, sunt Xpio-rov eva>8la t<3 6e<3
"fragrantia Christi Deo; 2 Cor. ii. 15. (Moses et Aaron, pp. 77, 78.
" Francofurti ad Moenum, 1710, 8vo.) " See also Reland's Antiq. Sacr.
vet. Hebr. (Traject. Bat., 1712), 8vo., pp. 140, 141 ; Cunseus de Rep.
Hebr. (Lugd. Bat., 1632, 12mo.), lib. ii., cap. 7, pp. 206— 209 ;* also,
J. Selden, De Successionibus ad leges Ebrceorum (De Success, in Ponti
ficate lib. ii., cap. 9), pp. 508 — 522. Lugd. Bat-, 1638, 12mo. ; and
J. Wesselius' Diss, dejustitia Messiah vicaria, causa unctionis ejus supra
consortes suos. (Dissertationes Academical. Lugd. Bat., 1734, 4to., pp.
226—253 )
4 Kai 2u Kar dpxds, k.t.X. A citation by the Psalmist from Gen. i. 1.
The creation of the heavens included the heavenly hosts, i.e., the angels.
" In this summing up of creation (Gen. ii 1) ' all the host of them ' is
" mentioned to include angels .... to teach that they were not inde-
" pendent beings, but creatures of God." — Dr. M'Caul's Essay, Mosaic
Record of Creation, § 9 ; Aids to Faith, p 206. See also Philo, De
Mundi Opificio, Works, Mangey's edit., vol. i., col. 6.
The Divine pre-eminence of Jesus over prophets and angels has now
been established. If He be the Messiah, then his authority to speak
in^ his own and in his Father's name is unquestionable. It is no
departure from the ancient creed, nor infringement of the strictest
letter of the Law of Moses, to give heed to his teaching. The converts
to whom the Epistle is addressed had already convinced themselves that
in Him the predictions of the prophets were minutely fulfilled. Un
hesitating obedience, unswerving faith is therefore justly his due. To
no purpose do the unbelieving Jews rest the immutability of the old

22 CHAP. I., 8—14.
dispensation upon " the disposition of angels." Messiah is Lord of the
angels. It is his prerogative to limit and define the things already
spoken, and also give such additional revelation as He pleases. God in
these latter times speaks to us by bis Son. He can revoke his own
institutions when they have accomplished the ends for which He gave
them. 5 'Ev8verat $' 6 pev TrpesflvraTos tov 'dvras Xdyos as ecrBrJTa tov Koo-pov.
" The eldest Word of the Self-Existent is clothed with the universe as
" with a garment." (Philo, De Profugis, Works, Mangey's edition,
vol. i., p. 562.) The passage will repay examination.
6 Kai i>o-el irept-^oXaiov eXLgets avrovs. Ludovicus Cappellus writes on
these words, " In Hebrseo est DD'Vin, immutabis eos, sed videntur LXX.
" scripsisse dXXdt-eis, nam sequitur aXXayrjo-ovrai, sed a sciolo aliquo
" mutatum est dXXdtjeis in eXl^eis " (Crit. Sacr., p. 62). And again
(ibid., p. 66), '' Et in ipsa t&v LXX. translatione videtur aliquando
" esse lapsus etiam librarii, ut Heb. i. 16, mo-el irepifioXaiov eXl£eis
" avrbvs, ubi jam supra notavimus lapsu librarii eXi£eis scriptum videri
" pro dXXdgeis, nam in Hebrseo est Dtrtnn h.e. dXXd£ets avroiis, immutabis
" eos ; deinde sequitur immediate Kal dXXayrjo-ovrai, et immvtabuntur, ut
" omnind videantur LXX. sic ex Hebraeo reddidisse verbatim mo-e\
" TrepifidXatov dXXd^eis avrovs, Kal aXXayrjo-ovrat." Gesenius, however,
seems to give the real clue to the adoption of iXl£eis by the LXX., and
by the writer to the Hebrews, " mrtrra, plur. f., a rad. f)Vi, Pi. et Hiph.
" mutavit, hincque plexuit, capillorum plexus, Haarflechten, Zopfe.
" Jud. xvi. 13—19." (Lex. Man., Lips., 1847, p. 514.)
Be it further observed that the LXX. (in Is. xxxiv. 4) render the
Hebrew D'Oicn ->edd i^n, " And the heavens shall be rolled together as
" a scroll," by Kai eXiyrjceTai 6 oipavbs as fStPXiov. Surenhusius (Bi/3X.
KaraXX.), p. 602, writes* on Hebr. i. 12, " Sed observanda hie est varia
" lectio in textu Graeco, etenim qusedam exemplaria legunt dXXafeis
" commutabis, qusedam vero eXi^eis convolves, sed utraque bona est, et
" ita quidem ut Judseorum oculi hac lectione offendi nequeant, cum
" utraque sit biblica ; quae legunt dXXdgeis, ea expressa sunt secundum
" illud DD^nn, quod in Psalmo extat ; quce vero exemplaria legunt
" eXii-eis convolves, complicabis, ea expressa sunt secundum illud Jes
" xxxiv. 4, D'oicn ied3 tai et complicate instar libri coeli isti, jam vero
" veteribus Hebraeorum doctoribus in more positum est textui allegato
" interdum verba quredam ex alio loco adjungere, in quo de eodem
" subjecto agitur, quemadmodum constat ex thesi nostra V. de Modis
" interpretandi Scripturas sacras. Pnvterea Raschi ad cc^nn wiata notat,
" se rem habere veluti cum eo toicb1; licia^ "jEwri qui convertit indumentum
" suum ad exuendum illud."

CHAP. I., 8—14. 23
A very curious example of the lapsus librarii occurs in the LXX. of
J er. XXUl. 6 : — Kal toCto to ovopa avrov, 6 KaXio-et avrov Kvpws, laaebeK
" iv toXs npodjijTais." This verse in the Hebrew ends with npis mrr ;
but the 9th verse of the Hebrew commences, ^b nam awb, " My heart
"is broken because of the prophets"; whilst, in the LXX., the 9th
verse begins, o-vvirpifiv % KapSla pov iv ipol, and the 7th and 8th verses
of the Hebrew are left out.
AeiTovpyiKa imevpara. The following quotations from Philo
will serve to show the opinion of the Hellenistic portion of the
ancient Jewish Church respecting the nature and ministrations of
angels : —
AyyeXoi yap o-rparos elai OeoO, do-aparot. Kal eiSaipoves i^vxai — "For
" the angels are the host of God, incorporeal and happy souls." Again,
de Sacrifinis Abelis et Caini, Works, Mangey's Edit , vol. i., p. 164.
So also ibid., p. 296, Quod Deus sit immutabilis. Ov8e tiv ovv ix XaKKov
ttloi, a 8ioao-tv 6 Qebs ras aKpdrov peBio-paros irdo-ets, Tore pev htdrivos
virvpeTOvvTOs Tav dyyiXav, ov olvoxoeiv rj^iaae, Tore 8e Kal 81 eavrov, pvbiva
tov StSdvros Kal tov Xapftdvovros peragv riBeis. '' That man will never
" drink from a cistern, to whom God supplies draughts of unmixed
" wine, at one time by the hand of some ministering angel, whom He
" hath appointed to pour it <jut, and at another time doing it Himself,
" interposing no one between the giver and the receiver." Again,
ibid., p. 463, De migratione Abrahami, 6 8e enopevos 6e<», koto. dvayKalov
o-vvo8oiirnpois xprJTai rols aKoXoiBou avrov Xoyois, oils ovopd^eiv eBos dyyeXovs.
" He who follows God is necessarily accompanied by his words that
" follow Him, which it is customary to call angels." Ibid , p. 577.
De Profugis, AyyeXoi 8' oiKeTai Qeov. "Angels are the servants (famuli)
" of God." Ibid., p. 642. Quod a Deo mittantur somnia. AXXai 8"
eiaiv KaBapararai Kal apio-rai, pei^dvav (ppovnpdrav Kal Beiorepav CTriXa-
Xovo-ai, pv8evbs pev Tav irepiyeiav nore dpexBeio-ai ronapdivav, vrrapxoi he
rov iravvyepdvos, aairep peydXov fiacnXecos dtpBaXpol Kal ara, dcpopaaai
irdvra Kal aKOvovcrai. Tavras baipovas pev ol aXXoi CpiXoo-oCpoc, 6 8e lepbs
Xdyos dyyeXovs ecaBe KaXeiv, 7rpoo-(pveo-Tepa xpapevos dvdpari. Kal yap ras
tov narpbs imKeXeio-ets rois iyydvois, Kal ras Tav e'Kyovav ^pei'as ra narpl
8iayyeXXovo-L. " There are besides other most pure and excellent beings,
" who partake of higher and diviner intelligences, and never in the
" smallest degree are swayed by earthborn instincts. But they are
" lieutenants of Him who is ruler of all things, and, as it were, the eyes
" and ears of a mighty King, seeing and hearing all things. Philo-
" sophers are wont to call them genii, but the Sacred Word usually
" styles them angels, employing a designation more agreeable to their
" nature. They announce the behests of their Father to his children,

24 CHAP. I., 8—14.

" and also the necessities of his children to their Father." Again, p.
643, 0-vyKO.Ta^alvovTes bta qjiXavBpaTriav Kal 'iXeov tov yevovs vpav,
eiriKovpias eveka Kal avppaxlas, iva Kal ttjv 'in aairep iv norapa, ra o-apart,
djopovpevrjv yj/vxifv, ra o-aTrjpia dvajiveovres, avaaao-aai. " Descending out
" of kindness and pity for our race, in order that they may render us
" succour and assistance, they rescue the soul when it is borne along in
" the body, as by a river, breathing into it things that accompany salva-
" tion." On p. 642, Philo speaks of the angels as " mediators and inter
cessors." (See Coloss. ii. 18.) Schoettgen, Horce Hebraicee, torn. L, p. 906,
cites the opinion of Joseph Ben Albo, that a qualified adoration of angels,
in their capacity of ambassadors of God, was permissible, and redounded
to the honour of their King, but for their own sakes, and in considera
tion of their inherent dignity as celestial beings, they might not be
adored. Philo, de Gigantibus (ibid., p. 263), declares that the angels
spoken of by Moses are called by the philosophers genii (baipovas). He
adds that they are " souls flying in the air," \j/vxal 8' elal Kara tov aepa
¦nerdpevai. The passage is well worth perusal from its striking resem
blance, in many respects, to the intimations of St. Paul in his Epistles,
and of the other New Testament writers. On p. 264, ibid., Philo says,
virrjpeTeo-L Kal biaKovots 6 bvpiovpybs etaBe xPV°~^al npos ttjv Tav Bvrjrav
iirlo-Tacriv. " The Creator is wont to employ them as ministers and
" servants in superintending the affairs of mortals." And again, ibid.,
he draws the distinction between these holy and happy ministering
angels, and others who are undeserving of the name of good, confirming
his opinion by the words of Psalm lxxviii. 49. Further, pp. 122,
409, he says that the angels are called Xo-yoi, i.e., Words of God.
Again, de Abrahmo, vol. ii. 17, vwobiaKovoi Kal vnapxoi. tov irparov Qeov,
" ministers and lieutenants of the supreme God." De Humanitate, p.
387, he speaks of men and ministering angels (avdpairoi Te Kal ayyeXoi
XeiTovpyoi) listening to Moses' Hymn. De Muudo, p. 604, he describes
them as npeo-/3evopevas Km biayytXXoiio-as ra re irapa tov rryepovos tols
vtivkoois dyaBd, Kal ra ftacrtXei, av elo-iv virqKOoi xPeLOl> " acting as God's
" ambassadors, and announcing good tidings to his subjects, and also
" bringing word to their King what things his subjects have need of."
On p. 605, he again speaks of the evil angels mentioned in Ps. lxxviii.
49. In the fragment De ftesurreclione Tenibili, tom. ii., p. 656, Philo says
that the nature of angels is spiritual, but that they often assume human
shape. De Cherubim, vol. i., p. 139, he asserts that Hagar was brought
back by vnavrrjo-avTos dyyeXov, os io-n Bews Xdyos, " an angel that met
" her, which is the Divine Word." So also, De Cherubim, ibid., pp. 144,
145, he sa3rs that the sword of the cherubim, and also the angel that
met Balaam, was the Word of God. Again, De Confusione Linguarum,

CHAP. II., 1—4. 25
ibid., p. 427, Kai» pnbena pevroi rvyxavn ris d£idxpeas av iibs OcoO irpoo-a-
yopeveaaaL, o~nov8a£eTco Koo-pelaBai Kara tov irpardyovov avrov Xoyov, tov
ayyeXov irpea^vTarov, as dpxdyyeXov woXvavvpov imdpxovTa, Kal yap apxij,
Kai ovopa 6eo0, Kal Xdyos, Kal 6 KaT elkdva avSpanos, Kal opwv 'lapar/X
npoo-ayopeveTai. " But if any one be not yet worthy to be designated
" (see Heb. v. 10) a son of God, let him give diligence to be adorned
" like his Firstbegotten Word, who is the oldest angel, being, so to
" speak, an archangel of many names, for he is designated ' Beginning,'
" and the ' Name of God,' and ' the Word,' and ' He who is Man in his
" ' likeness ' (Cujus homo f actus est ad imaginem, Mangey), and ' He who
" ' sees Israel.' " This very striking declaration of Philo (so con
sistent with what is related in the Old Testament concerning the Angel
of Jehovah, who is the Second Person in the Ever Blessed Trinity) he
follows up with an explanation equally important in its significance : —
Kal yap el prpra tKavol Qeov nalbes vopi^eo-Bai yeyovdpev, dXXd toi xijs
d'iblov elKovos avrov, Xoyov tov leparaTOV Qeov yap elKav Xdyos 6 npeo-fiv-
totos. " For if we be not, as yet, fit to be accounted sons of God, we
" may be nevertheless of his eternal likeness (or image), viz., his Most
" Sacred Word, for the image of God is the Eldest Word."
See J. Wesselii De Rubo Mosis Diss. (Dissertationes Acad. Lugd.
Bat., 1734, p. 1, &c.) ; J. Wesselii De Angela Jehovce ab Hagara viso
Diss. (Dissertationes Sacrse Leidenses. Lugd. Bat., 1721, pp. 1 — 54),
and De Angelo faciei Jehovce, ibid., pp. 289 — 335 ; J. G. Surenhusii
Bi/3Xos KaraAXayijy, pp. 591 — 595.

CHAPTER II.

Verses 1—4. — On this account (Aia tovto) we ought,
says the writer, to give the more earnest heed to
(irpoo-e'xeiv, tenaciously adhere to) the things which we
have heard, lest at any time we should let them slip,1
(or, perhaps, lapse ourselves, after the example of those
who have already apostatized). For if the word spoken
by angels2 was steadfast (iyevero fiefiaios, was absolutely
confirmed in every particular), and every transgression
and disobedience received a just recompense of reward,
how shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation?
Which was, in the first instance, spoken by the Lord (Jesus
Christ), and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him,2
E

26 CHAP. II., 5—9.
God himself accompanying it (the preaching of the Gospel)
by the ratifying testimony of signs, and portents, and
various miraculous exhibitions of his power, and distri
butions of the Holy Spirit, according to his own will.
1 irappapvapev. " Metaphora a navibus petita, quze per fluxuni et
" refluxum maris, vel ventos etiam prohibeantur quominus adpellant
" ad portuni," &c. See J. C. Wolfius, in loc.
2 Prof. Stuart understands 6 81 dyyeXav XdXvBels Xdyos of the giving
of the law on Mount Sinai, as he also does the words of Stephen (Acts
vii. 53), and of St. Paul (Gal. iii. 19), and cites Josephus and Philo in
confirmation of his opinion. To my mind, the transition to the law
exclusively is, in the present instance, somewhat abrupt. Does it not
rather, also, refer to the ministrations of angels vouchsafed from time
to time during the whole of the earlier dispensation, and to which
allusion is made in the concluding verse of the first chapter ?
s This admission, that the Gospel had been in part received from
secondhand, seems to militate in some degree against St. Paul's invari
able claim to a direct and special revelation from Christ himself. In
Gal. i. 11, 12, ii. 6, he expressly disclaims any human sources of infor
mation. In 1 Cor. xi. 23 he asserts that Clirist himself communicated
to him the sacramental formula. The first person, which the writer
employs on the present occasion, must not be too closely pressed. He
probably speaks in the name of his readers.
Verses 5 — 9. — For God hath not put in subjection unto
angels the world to come1 of which we speak (chap, i.,
verse 6) ,' but one, in a certain place (Ps. viii. 4 — 6), has
explicitly asserted as follows (Biepaprvparo Xeytov) : —
" What is man that thou art mindful of him, and the son
of man that thou visitest him ? 2 Thou madest him a
little lower (fipaxy n might, perhaps, be fairly rendered
" for a little season," i.e., until, in our resurrection glory,
we shall reign with Christ) than the angels (nTlbsa
rrap dyyeXovs). Thou crownedst (or wilt crown) him with
glory and honour, and didst set (or wilt set) him over
the works of thy hands. Thou hast (or wilt) put all
things in subjection under his feet." But, by that phrase
of " subjecting all things to him," He hath left nothing
unsubjccted (i.e., nothing in the universe can claim exemp-

CHAP. II., 5—9. 27
tion from his authority). But now we do not yet see all
things put under Him; but we do see Jesus, that was
made a little (or, for a little while, fipayy ti, to^io) lower
than the angels 3 by the suffering of death, crowned with
glory and honour ; so that, by the grace of God, he might
taste death for every man.*
1 Tr)v biKovpevnv ttjv piXXovo-av may fairly be understood of the super
natural world, viz., the signs and the wonders just spoken of, i.e., the
Svvdpeis peXXovTos alavos (chap. vi. 5). It refers more probably, how
ever, to the Christian dispensation hereafter, in its final consummation,
during the reign of Christ over a ransomed Church and a regenerated
nature. No such promise has been left to the angels, but to man (the
second Adam — Christ) there has been, in the prophetic assertion, " Thou
" hast put all things under his feet," and to us also who are joint heirs
with him.
Stuart says that ttjv oik. tt\v peXX. " is equivalent to 6 alav 6 peXXav,
" i e., the Christian dispensation, the world as it will be in future —
" 6 peXXav, i.e., the world under the reign of Christ." Now this interpre
tation of both phrases is contrary to the almost invariable Jewish inter
pretation of the phrase nan crtisn, i.e., the world to come, and of which the
two Greek expressions are the exact equivalent. The Rabbins placed the
days of Messiah in this world (mn dVw this present age), expecting a reign
upon earth, after which the general resurrection and judgment will take
place. D'Q'n nnn« "the latter days," were understood to be the closing
days of Messiah's reign, and of the world's existence. Rhenferdius, in
his first dissertation De Seculo Futuro, p. 1123, quotes as follows from
the Gemara — " Cod. Schabbat., fol. 63 (et alibi scepius), na rrn 't ion
crrtN nntn »^ p? nan ris'* bin Troon nio'i n^h wa:n: ab dVq Dwain ba na»
"lai 7rtn
" R. Chija Bar Abba has said, 'All the prophets, without exception,
" have prophesied nothing except concerning the days of Messiah ; but
" concerning the " world to come " (nan d'w'') it is written (Is. lxiv. 1),
" Eye hath not seen except Thee, O God, &c.' " (Meuschen, JV. Test.
ex Vet. illustr.) For a multitude of other early Jewish authorities, see
Rhenferdius' very learned and elaborate tract, as cited above.
The same passage occurs in the treatise Sanhedrin, Gem. Babyl.,
col. 974 (Ugol. Thes., vol. xxv.), with some additions and slight
variations. toiwoa -irasiw two d'b'jh rwaw torrart ircon mo* ina« 'avr nna 'bun <:n
dvm moon mo' taioo 'on rrm> ai idn ynbx >n jbs ww p nto bv jnn

28 CHAP. II., 5-9.
'ou ibn pns' ia pan: ai pNn bs o'axan 'do -idniw v«a» tjm rtwri Niast)
to jjnv i"n mn na «"n i"n 'nsa®: iitn 'b nNi ro 'du ibn:» risos -u> n:
' "ui -inVii trrrtN nnN-i xb p> Nan d'jisS 'jaw rrcnn niD'i lNain: n1) pn o'N'ajn
" R. Abimai, son of R. Abau, teaches :— The days of the' Messiah of
" Israel are seven thousand years. For it is said (Is. lxii. 5), And as a
" bridegroom rejoiceth over a bride, so will the Lord thy God rejoice over
" thee. R. Judah says ; Samuel says : — The days of Messiah are as the
" days in which the world was created, up to the present time. For it
" is said, As the days of the heaven upon the earth. (Deut. xi. 21.) R.
" Nachman bar Isaac says : — As the days of Noah up to the present
" time. For it is said, For this is as the waters [days] of Noah unto me,
" as I have sworn. (Is. liv. 9.) R. Chijah bar Aba says ; R. Jochanan
" says : — All the prophets did not prophesy concerning the days of
" Messiah, but concerning the world to come ; [as it is written] Eye
" hath not seen, besides Thee, O God, what He hath prepared for him
" that waiteth for Him. (Is. lxiv. 4.) "
2 Professor Stuart would read " yet " or " but " lrnDnni .
3 Professor Stuart suggests somewhat gratuitously, I would submit,
that the unbelieving Jews urged " Two objections against the superiority
" of Christ over angels. 1. Christ was a man. 2. He suffered an igno-
" minious death." Now Christ's superiority over the angels is naturally
introduced, not as a Jewish cavil, but in the course of the argument.
The real point at issue was this, Had Christ any authority to set aside
the civil and ceremonial laws given by the disposition of angels, or were
his claims disposed of by his sufferings and death 1 The author of the
Epistle has shown that Christ the Messiah is the Lord and Creator of
the angels. (See note 2, on p. 14.) That it was He who sent them, and
that his temporary inferiority to the angels, i.e, his manhood, had been
predicted in Psalm viii., whilst an honour belonged to Him, by heredit
ary right and Divine generation, to which no angel could advance the
slightest claim, viz., that of being designated by God as his " first
begotten Son," i.e., his only son, and being saluted by the Father as his
assessor on his throne. If, then, the revelations from time to time
vouchsafed by the mediation of angels were deserving of reverent
obedience, much more the revelations imparted in these latter times by
the Divine Son of God.
4 This exaltation of Christ, as a reward of his voluntary sufferings,
had been distinctly foretold by Isaiah Iii. and liii., and was so under
stood by the ancient Rabbinical commentators. The following passage
from the Ycdlcut Shimoni (quoted on p. 20 of the late Dr. M 'Caul's
Doctrine and Interpretation of Isaiah liii.) abundantly establishes the
above assertion : — " Behold my servant shall deal prudently. This is
" the King Messiah. He shall be exalted and extolled, and be very

CHAP. II., 5-9. 29
"high. He shall be more exalted than Abraham  He shall be
"extolled more than Moses  and he shall be higher than the
"ministering angels  'But he was wounded for our transgressions,
" ' he was bruised for our iniquities : the chastisement of our peace was
" ' upon him, and with his stripes we are healed.' R. Huna, in the
" name of R. Acha (says), ' The chastisements or afflictions were divided
" ' into three parts — one to David and the fathers, one to the rebellious
" ' generation, and one to King Messiah.' " Upon which Dr. M'Caul
remarks, " This passage, the first part of which is a quotation from a
" much more ancient book (see note 2, pp. 14, 15), plainly shows
" that the Jews interpreted this prophecy of Messiah : it also con-
" tains an important illustration of the character of the Messiah,
" describing him as superior in dignity to the three patriarchs,
" to Moses and the ministering angels, and yet a man of sorrows
" and acquainted with grief. We would entreat our Jewish brethren
"to compare this Rabbinical passage with the first two chapters of
"the Hebrews. The next testimony is that of R. Moses Alshech,
" who flourished about the middle of the sixteenth century, ' Behold,
" ' our Rabbies with one mouth have confirmed, and received
" ' by tradition, that King Messiah is here spoken of.' " Doubtless
(in Phil. ii. 6—11) St. Paul had the prophecy of Isaiah's chapter liii.
in his mind when he writes, " Who being in the form of God, thought
" it not robbery to be equal with God, but made himself of no reputa-
" tion (iKevao-e), and took upon him the form of a servant, and was
" made in the likeness of men, and being found in fashion as a man, he
" humbled (iraTveivao-ev) himself, and became obedient unto death, even
" the death of the cross. Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him
" (inepvifrao-e), and given him a name which is above every name, that at
"the name of Jesus every knee shall bow, of things in heaven and
"things in earth and things under the earth (inovpaviav Kal imyeiav
" xal KaxaxBoviav), and that every tongue should confess that Jesus
" Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." As a parallel to the
above citation from Isaiah, I would adduce the last verse of the cxth
Messianic Psalm, " He (Messiah) shall drink of the brook in the way,
" therefore He (God the Father) shall lift up his head, i.e., exalt him."
(van ct p bv raw 711a tan) To " lift up the head " signifies to pro
mote to honour and triumph, and so it is used in Ps. xxvii. 6 : " And
now shall my head be lifted up above mine enemies " 0»nt dit). The
exaltation is consequent upon, and antithetic to, the act of stooping to
drink of the wayside stream of humiliation and death, The word ta
brook, stream, river, flood, is used to denote persecution and affliction, in
2 Sam. xxii. 5, " the floods of ungodly men," and its cognate T\bm occurs
in a similar sense in Ps. cxxiv. 4 (3), " the stream had gone over our

30 CHAP. II., 10—14.
soul." The author of Nizzachon Vetus, p. 184, gives the following sneering
reply to the Christian application of this 7th verse of Ps. ex. to Jesus,
but which singularly enough confirms the view I have taken of it.
ninsA fsffl uw 'ism toN 'm iicnt wt n^i spyb v:d miaa'i my p bs maiN
NBsa nw p
" To this I will reply, He will be on the contrary ashamed, and com-
" pelled to bow down with his face to the earth, so far from lifting it
" up. He will rather have lamentation, and hang down his head,
" because it is necessary for him to drink, lest he die of thirst." (See
Wagenseil, Tela ignea Satanm, where the above treatise is printed at
length.)
Verses 10 — 13.— For it became Him (hrpeire yap avrw),
for whom arc all things, and by whom are all things
(i.e., God the Author and Creator of all things), to
make the Captain of their salvation, when bringing
many sons to glory (dyayovra, k.t.X.), perfect,1 on
account of (his) sufferings. For both (Christ) who
sanctifieth and they who are sanctified2 (by Him) are
all of one (s.c, human nature, ef evbs yevovs, Stuart),
for which cause (Bl r)v alriav, which being the case) he
is not ashamed to call them brethren, saying (Ps. xxii.
22), " I will declare thy name unto my brethren, in the
" midst of the Church (bnp, eKKXrjcria) will I sing praise
"unto thee."3 And again (Isaiah viii. 17), "I will put
"my trust in him"4 (ib Wlp I have firmly confided in him,
LXX, iTeTToi6d><; eaopiai ev avroj) and (Isaiah viii. 18),
" Behold I and the children which God hath given me."
Having thus established from current Rabbinic
interpretations of the above passages, that the
Divine Messiah would claim kinsmanship with
flesh and blood, the writer continues : —
Verse 14. — Forasmuch then as the children were partakers
of flesh and blood, he also himself likewise (TrapaTrXrjo-iojs
is equivalent to opoiax;, in the same manner, as well as,
Stuart) took part of (pereo-^e, 'participated in) the same ;

CHAP. II., 14. 31
that through death he might destroy him that had the
power of death, that is, the devil.5
1 Professor Stuart understands with Theophylact that " reXeiacris here
means bd£av fjv ibogdo-Bv." He translates the verse thus, " It became
" him, also, for whom are all things, and by whom are all things, to
" bestow, on account of sufferings, the highest honours upon him who
" is the Captain of their salvation leading many sons to glory." Dean
Alford's objection to this arrangement seems faulty both in its
premises and deductions. The Dean says, " It would be contrary to all
" Scripture analogy to represent us as sons, in relation to Christ." How
does the Dean propose to explain 'ibov iya> Kal ra iraibia (c-frn) a pot
'ibaKev 6 Beds, which words of Is. viii. 18 are applied by the writer to
Jesus in verse 13 ? Apart from this quotation, there is no need what
ever to understand vloiis out of its ordinary interpretation, viz., " Sons
" of God." Other commentators understand 8id naBvpaTav reXeiao-ai
" by the medium of sufferings to complete " the mediatorial qualifica
tions of Christ, as without these a, perfect sympathy could not have
existed between himself and his people. The authorised English version
apparently refers dyayovra to God the Father.
2 " Both he who maketh expiation and they for whom expiation is
made," so Professor Stuart translates o re yap &yid£av, k.t.X. He shows
how dyid^a in the LXX (Levit. xxii. 2, 3 ; Exod. xiii. 2, &c.) corre
sponds to the Hebrew ffiip and wipn to make holy, consecrate, as an
offering ; also, as in Job i. 5, to expiate or make atonement, LXX
iKaddplfcv avrovs. It also corresponds (Exod. xxix. 33) to ica to make
atonement, to expiate. Probably the writer to the Hebrews had in his
mind the words of Isaiah liii. 11, 12, "By his knowledge- shall my
"righteous servant justify (p'-is' make righteous) many, for he (Nin
" emphat.) shall bear their iniquities. Therefore will I divide him," &c.
3 'AirayyeXS> to ovopa, k.t.X. The LXX translate mEDN by bivyijo-opai.
Schoettgen, in his treatise de Messia (Horm Hebr., tom. ii., pp. 232, 233),
gives the following ancient Jewish interpretations of Psalm xxii. : —
" De cefva aurora. Midrasch Tehillim : De eo qui salit sicut cervus, et
" illustrat mundum tempore tenebrarum. Hierosol. Berachoth in Jalkut
" Simeoni ad h.l. et Schir haschirim rabba, fol. 28, 3. P. Chija fit.
" Abba et R. Simeon fill. Chalpatha iverunt simul tempore diluculi in convalle
" ad urbem Arbela, et viderunt cervam aurora, qua (sic vocatur quia
" quasi) lucem ejus discindit. Dixit ipsi R. Chija : Dicito sic ; hcec est
" redemptio Israelitarum, quae sensini sensimque advenit. Respondit alter,
" Hoc ipsum est, quod Scriptura dicit Miehse vii. 8. Quando sedebo in
" tenebris, Dominus mihi lux est. In Sohar Exod., fol. 49, col. 295,

32 CHAP. II., 15—18.
" Cerva aurorse dicitur Schechina, quse propter filios suos gemit, ex
" qua vero fit Leo matutinus, Messias filius David. (Locus integer
" exstat inferius, libro iii.) — v. 8. Omnes videntes me subsannarunt me.
" Pesikta rabbathi in Jalkut Simeoni ii., fol. 56, 4. Eo tempore, quo
" Messias in carcere conclusus fuit, singulis diebus dentibus frenduerunt,
" ooulis nictarunt, capitibus nutarunt et labia distenderunt, q.d. Omnes
" videntes me. — v. 9. Convolvat in Dominum. Midrasch Tehillim :
" Omnes species convolutionum ego porto. Peccata ipsorum devolve in me
" et ego portabo. — v. 16. Lingua mea adhsesit faucibus. Ibidem, col. 3.
" Dixit Deus S.B. O Messia, peccata illorum, qui reconditi sunt apud te,
" intrudent te in jugum ferreum, et redolent te similem vitulo, cujus oculi
" caligant, comprimentque spirilum tuumjugo, et propter illorum peccata
" adhcerebit lingua tua palato tuo."
4 Much discussion has arisen amongst critics as to whether the words
iya eaopat irenoiBas, k.t.X., are a citation from Isaiah viii. 17 or from
some other passages of the Old Testament. Illustrious names are to be
found on both sides of the question. Grammius, however, has to my
mind, conclusively settled the question in favour of Isaiah viii. 17.
See J. C. Wolfius on Hebr. ii. 13 ; and, on the other side, Surenhusius,
Bi/3X. KaraXX., pp. 607—609.
* Apparently a citation from Hosea xiii. 14. "The power of the
grave," in the Hebrew, is Vine t, from the hand of Hades, ix x«pos
ciSov, LXX. See also Isaiah xxv. 8. The following curious legend
is quoted by Schoettgen in his treatise De Messia (Hor. Hebr., tom. ii.,
p. 376), " Jesa. xxv. 8. Pesikta in Jalkut Simeoni ii., fol. 56, 3. Dixit
" Satanas ad Deum Sanctum Benedictum : Domine totius mundi, Lux ilia,
" quam sub throno gloria tuce recondisti, ad quemnam spectat ? Respondit
" Deus, ad eum c:d nffliaa ¦p'tonVi ¦p'lnn') -pro win® , qui te repressurus et
" ignominia adfecturus est. Regessit Satanas : Domine, ostende mihi ilium.
" Deus respondit : Veni et vide ilium. Quam vero Satanas i'lum con-
" spiceret, TIB bs bBTi Sisiu, exterritus est, et in faciem suam cecidit, dicens,
" ^b Veh1) Tftsv n'»n m im 'Niia, sane hinc est Messias, qui me et omnes
" gentiles in infernum prcecipitaturus est, q.d. Jesa, xxv. 8. Deglutiet
" mortem in seternum." For Rabbinic explanations of Hos. xiii. 14,
in reference to the Messiah, see Schoettgen, ibid., pp. 209 and 564.

Verses 15 — 18. — And set free those who, through fear of
death, were during their lifetime subject (evo^oi held by,
bound by) to bondage. For verily (as you know) he
did not (oi ydp Brjtrov, nimirum, certe, idique, profecto.
Schrevel.) take upon him the nature of angels, but he

CHAP. II., 15—18. 38
took upon him the seed of Abraham1 (as it had been
foretold he should do (Gen. xxii. 18), otherwise Christ could
not have so perfectly sympathised with mortal nature,
man being at present a little lower than the angels. This
16th verse seems to be parenthetic, and the subject is
resumed in verse 17). Wherefore (odev, whence) in all
things it behoved him to (coqbeiXe, it was essential that
he should) be made like unto his brethren, in order that
he might be a merciful (eXerjp,wv, compassionate) and
reliable (7rto-To?, trustworthy) 2 . High Priest 3 in things
pertaining to God, to make reconciliation ( Ut misericors
Jieret, et fidelis pontifex ad Deum ut repropitiaret. Vulg.
— et9 to IXdcricecrdai) for the sins of the people. For in
that (in eo enim, in quo passus est. Vulg.) he himself hath
suffered being tempted, he is able to succour them that are
tempted.4
1 Stuart translates oi yap 8t)ttov dyy. k.t.X., " Besides he doth not at
all help the angels, but he helpeth the seed of Abraham" ; a rendering
whieh appears quite inconsistent with the context, however it may be
warranted by the occasional use of the verb imXapfidveTai. The writer
is alleging an all-sufficient reason why Christ took human nature, and
did not, and could not, take upon him the nature of angels. First, it
would have been in direct violation of the prophetic Scriptures.
Secondly, he could not then, from actual experience, have sympathised
with the infirmities of flesh and blood as he does now. He would not
have been a mo-roy dpxiepevs, an high priest in whom we could confide,
as we can now, seeing that he disdains not to call us brethren.
2 Wolfius (in loco) writes : — "Theodoras Dassovius in Diss, de Pontif.
" Hebr. Summi ingress, in Sanct. Sanctor., sec. 14, existimat, alludi hie
" ad fidelitatem, quam, interposito jurejurando, olim polliceri debebat
" Sacerdotibus aliis, facturum se, ne Sanctum Sanctorum ingressurus
" thus prunis injiceret, SadducKorum more, sed faceret illud post
" ingressum. Vide Joma, cap. i., sec. 5, et Siphra passim. Confer
" CI. Schlichteri Decimas Sacras, p. 516, sqq., cui Apostolus respicere
" potius videtur Mosen, servnm Dei, qui intercessione sua Deum populo
" rebelli benevolum reddiderit ac propitium, cuj usque fidelitas capite iii.
" integro summis laudibus extollatur, quemadmodum Philo Mosen
" VOCet a'pUTTOv fiacnXea, Kal vopoBernv, Kal 'Apx^epea Kal irpo<^>r)TVV 8oki-
" paraTov. Confer Hebr. iii. 1, 2." F

34 CHAP. III., 1—4.
8 In verse 11 the writer has called attention to the fact that an
earthly priest, who performs sanctificatory rites for the people, is of the
same human nature. The like sympathetic tie exists between Christ
and the believers, so that implicit confidence can subsist between our
High Priest and his flock.
4 An allusion to Ps. lxxxix. 19 (20), " Then spakest thou in vision
to thy holy one, and saidst, I have laid help upon one that is mighty
(Tiaa bv ii» vvie) ; I have exalted one chosen out of the people." Is. lxhi. 1,
" Who is this that cometh from Edom  ? I that speak in righte
ousness, mighty to save " (9'fflirrt ai). A number of ancient Jewish
interpretations of Is. Ixiii. 1 will be found in Schoettgen. Consult the
Scripture index in both volumes.

CHAPTER III.
The writer has now, whilst admitting the authority
and inspiration of the prophets, established from
their writings, the transcendent dignity of the Son of
God. He has reminded his readers how He first
purged our sins by his death and sufferings, and
then, in fulfilment of the predictions of David and
Isaiah, sat down at the right hand of the majesty
on high. He is, by his eternal generation and
by his Creatorship, Lord over the angels, who are
required to render him Divine honours. If, then,
the revelation given by prophets and angels de
manded implicit and reverential obedience, much
more the additional revelation imparted in these
latter days by God's Son. God has "set to his
seal " to the mission of Jesus, by a stupendous
manifestation of miraculous credentials. These
miraculous powers of the "world to come" had
never been promised to angels, nor yet the ultimate
sovereign Lordship over all things. They were pro
mised to the Son of man, the Messiah, who for the

CHAP. III., 1—4. 35
time being, was to be made a little lower than the
angels, on aecount of his manhood. Man at present
is confessedly " a little lower than the angels." The
object of the taking of the manhood, instead of
the nature of angels, into God, is explained. It is,
that the Messiah might be capable of death, as a
propitiatory sacrifice, and so the declarations of all
the prophets respecting a suffering Messiah might
be fulfilled, and also, that he might be able to call
us "brethren," and sympathise with the tempta
tions and frailties incident to human nature. So
it had been expressly declared by David and Isaiah.
By his death and resurrection he has overcome
death, and redeemed the souls of the believers from
the slavish fear of death as well as from the power of
the devil. The conditions of Christ's redemption are
thus presented in miniature, so to speak. The
irresistible inference to be drawn from all these
minute fulfilments of the character of Christ the
Messiah, as stipulated by the prophets from the
beginning, is that Jesus is a faithful and reliable
High Priest in things pertainipg to God. His man
hood, sufferings, and death, instead of awakening
misgivings, are the irrefragable testimonies to
the validity of his claims. Having thus par
ticularly examined into the preliminary question,
What sort of a Christ or Messiah do the prophets
lead us to expect? the writer affectionately in
vites a more careful consideration of the personal
apostleship {i.e., mission) and High Priesthood of
Jesus Christ, the profession of faith (opoXoyia) in
whose name his readers have adopted. The point

36 CHAP. III., 1—4.
insisted on is his exact conformity to the Divine
intentions of God who appointed him (-n-io-rbv 6vra rm
iroif)o-avri avrbv), precisely as Moses was scrupulously
exact in all his house, to carry out his instructions
to the very letter.
Verses 1 — 4. — Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of the
heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest
of our profession, Jesus Christ, that he was faithful to him
who created him (a High Priest, Qui ipsum constituit, J. C.
Wolfius), as Moses was in all his household (or economy).
But the former (ovros, Christ) has been accounted worthy
of (r)%ia>Tai, i.e., can claim as his due) a greater glory than
Moses ; inasmuch as he who plans it has a greater honour
than the house itself. For every house is planned by some
person or other, but he who planned all things (ra irdvra,
the universes, and the scheme of mans redemption) is God.
Now the writer has already shown (i. 10 — 12)
that to Messiah is ascribed in Ps. cii. 25, &c, the
glory of being the Eternal : Creator of all things,
therefore Christ being God, is as immeasurably
above Moses as the infinite over the finite, the
Creator over the creature.
1 2v kot dpxds, k.t.X., i.e., in primal ages. In like manner Dr.
M'Caul (Mosaic Record of Creation, Aids to Faith, sec. 7) observes how
Onkelos in his Targum (Gen. i. 1) interprets n'»Nia by pmpa, in antiqui
ties, or former times, and also how the Hebrew ought properly (standing
as it does without an article) to be translated " in beginning " in
Reshith, and then adds, " The sum of all that has been said is, that
" the words ' in the beginning ' refer to ' time or duration,' not to order,
" and thus, therefore, the first verse does not mean ' at first God created
" 'the heaven and the earth,' nor 'in the beginning of (our) creation he
" 'created the heavens and the earth,' but 'of old, in former duration,
" ' God created the heavens and the earth.' How long ago is not said.
" The Hebrew word is indefinite, and can include millions or milliards
" of years just as easily as thousands."

CHAP. III., 5—11. 37
Verses 5 — 11. — Moses, moreover, was faithful over all his
house,1 as a servant (he was only a steward of the things com
mitted to him ; his authority was a delegated one), to bear
testimony to the things yet to be spoken (efc papriptov
tcov XaXrj6rjaopeva>v) .2 But Christ as a Son over his own
house (and therefore with supreme authority), whose house
(or household) we are, if at least (idvirep, provided that)
we hold fast the public profession and cheerful, frank
avowal (ttjv Trapprjcrlav /cal to /cav^r/pia) of our hope, un
waveringly (fieftaiav) unto the end.3 Wherefore (as the
Holy Ghost saith, Ps. xcv. 7), To-day if ye will hear his
voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation
(irapairiKpaapa), embitter ment), as in the day of temptation
in the wilderness.4 (-Q1J33 nDX2 DV3 ru'naD «s o,t Meri-
bah, as in the day of Massah in the wilderness, where, by
a rebellious want of faith in God's appointments, they pro
voked Him to wrath.) When (or where, ov, -ib?h) your
fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works
(¦^BE my work, sing.) forty years.5 Wherefore I was
grieved (Aib rrpoo-dr^Qtaa, was indignant) with that gene
ration, and said,6 They do always err in their heart, but
they have not known my ways. So I sware in my wrath
(Num. xiv. 28 — 30), They shall not enter into my rest.
OniTOO my rest, this expression is not found in Numbers
xiv., where the historical event is related, but is taken
from the Inspired Commentary upon it, spoken by the
Holy Ghost in Psalm xcv. 7 — 11.)

' O'kos here means household, domestic economy, in reference to the
entire Mosaic dispensation. The Hebrew rva house, is repeatedly
employed thus, e.g., Gen. xviii. 19, " his household after him " (lira ,
ra o'Ua avrov, LXX.) Compare Num. xii. 6 — 8, which is here cited.
2 That Moses did bear this testimony appears from Deut. xviii.
15—19 : — " The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from
" the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me ; unto him ye shall
" hearken ; according to all that thou desiredst of the Lord thy God
" in Horeb in the day of the assembly (i.e., a mediator to stand between

38 CHAP. III., 12—15.
" God and man, and to speak in God's name), saying, Let me not hear
" again the voice of the Lord my God, neither let me see this great fire
" any more, that I die not. And the Lord said unto me, They have
" well spoken that which they have spoken. I will raise them up a
" Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and I will put
" my words in his mouth ; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall
" command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not
" hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will
" require it of him." (iosa um» '3:«, eya eK8iKrjo-a i£ avrov, LXX.) The
personal pronoun is emphatic in this concluding clause, which in
Acts iii. 23 is paraphrased, i^oXoBpevBrjo-erai iK tov Xaov. The verb urn
he required, sought after, in Gen. ix. 5, xiii. 22, Deut. xxiii. 21 (22), Ps. ix.
12(13), Ezek. xxxiii. 6, has the signification of exacting the extreme penalty,
punishing to the uttermost, enforcing a claim with rigorous severity.
3 Any wavering, or false shame in the profession of Christianity
would be next door to a denial of Christ, and but a step removed from
apostasy, inasmuch as it would indicate a hesitating and halting faith.
It was a time for decision, and not for compromise, even as Christ
declared, " He that is not with me is against me ; and he that gathereth
not with me scattereth abroad." (Matt. xii. 30.)
* " And he called the name of the place Massah, and Meribah,
"because of the chiding of the children of Israel, and because they
" tempted the Lord, saying, Is the Lord among us, or not ? " (Exod.
xvii. 7.) See also Num. xx. 10 ; Deut. vi. 16, 17. The refusal to
hearken to Jesus, and the questioning his Divine authority, would be
a sin and provocation of a similar kind.
5 The Hebrew reads, "Forty years long was I grieved," ei?n, or
lothed ; and so also the LXX, " reo-o-apaKovra err) irpoo-d>x8io-a instead
" of Ai6 TTpoo-a>x6io-a."
" 'Ael irXavavrai, k.t.X. The above quotation differs from the Hebrew,
which reads Dn aa1; wi ds "a people erring in heart are they" ; it
also varies slightly from the LXX, besides the important variation
already noticed.
Verses 12 — 15. — Wherefore (see Aib of verse 7) take heed,
((SXeirere) brethren,
(continues the writer, with such a terrible example
of neglected privilege and unbelief before your eyes
in the rejection of your forefathers)
lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in
apostatising (ev ra> dTroaTrjvat,, sc., as some of your number

CHAP. III., 16—19. 39
have already done) from the living God. (Their fathers
had asked, " Is the Lord among us, or not ? " Exod.
xvii. 7.) But exhort one another daily (irapa/caXeiTe, so
in Mai. iii. 16, " They that feared the Lord spake often,
11213, one to another "), while it is called " To day " (as
in Ps. xcv. 7) ; lest any of you be hardened by the deceit-
fulness of sin (i.e., the specious sophisms and plausible
reasonings of the unbelieving Jews). — For we have been
made partakers of- Christ (pero^oi yap yeybvaptev tov
XptcrTov, i.e., of his rest), if we only hold fast the com
mencement of our profession (ttjv dpyf)v tt)<; vTroo-rdo-ea<j,
i.q., rrp) Trpmrrp) Tricrnv, Stuart) stedfast to the end — (I
say, exhort one another), in respect to what has been
said,1 " To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your
hearts, as in the provocation."
1 iv ra Xeyeo-Bai. Eormulam allegationis, iv r<5 Xeyeo-Bai, quod attinet, ea
convenit cumHebrsea nosa, in eo quod ille dicit, nempe Scriptura, sive
Scripturse auctor, qua formula veteres Hebrseorum doctores uti solent,
quando sensus loci prima fronte non satis clarus est, sed majori elucida-
tione indiget. Surenhus. Bt/3X. KaraXX., p. 616.
The writer quotes the first words of the passage
again, to make the subject of the mutual exhorta
tions which he enjoins upon them, more clearly
understood. Verses 16 — 19. — For some,1 although they did hear, pro
voked (God). Howbeit not all (ev rol<i irXeiocriv, the majority,
1 Cor, x. 5) who came out of Egypt by Moses. But with
whom was he grieved forty years ? 2 Was it not with those
who sinned (trespassed on various occasions and were de
stroyed), whose carcases fell in the wilderness ? 3 And
to whom sware he, in his wrath, that they should not
enter into his rest, but to those who disbelieved (and, in
consequence, refused to obey, direiOriaao-i). We see,
then, that they could not enter in because of unbelief
(§»' «7Tt(7TlW) . *

40 CHAP. III., 16—19.
1 Professor Stuart, followed by Alford, proposes (with doubtful advan
tage, I would submit) to translate verse 16, rives (not rives) yap aKovo-avres,
k.t.X., with Griesbach, Dindorff, Tittmann, and others, interrogatively,
e.g., "Who now were they, that when they heard, did provoke ? Nay, did
" not all (dXX'oi ndvres, k.t.X.) who came out of Egypt unto Moses 1" and
then he says, " He means to intimate by this, that the number who
" embrace error cannot sanction it ; nor can unanimity in unbelief
" render it any more excusable. Consequently, that the great body of
" the Jews rejected the Messiah at the time then present, and urged
" the Christian converts to do the same, would be no excuse for apostasy.
" Xldvres is not to be taken in the strict metaphysical or mathematical
"sense here any more than in multitudes of other places  Of the
" adults, only Caleb and Joshua among the Israelites are excepted, as
" not having taken part in the murmurings against the Lord (Num.
" xiv. 30). Of course there could be no scruples in the Apostle's mind
" about applying the word iravres in this case, just as it is applied in a
" multitude of others, viz., to designate great multitudes, or the great
" majority." The learned Professor, in his above quoted remarks upon
iravres, seems to supply the best reason for rejecting his own inter
pretation of the passage. Besides, although the sin of Israel in the
wilderness, was so widespread as to call for a signal and national
punishment, by which all the adults were excluded from Canaan, we
have no reason to suppose that all, who shared in their kinsmen's
punishment, were guilty of the same offence. The majority were, and
with " tois TvXeioo-iv," St. Paul tells us, " God was not well pleased,"
and yet the whole nation suffered. Again, " the rest " alluded to, and
to which the disobedient did not attain, was God's spiritual rest. They
were cut off in their sins ; but it is altogether incredible that all the
adults, or even a majority of them, were doomed to forfeiture of salva
tion, upon the occasion of their exclusion from Canaan. The passage
of the Epistle to the Hebrews in question, ought to be read by the light
of 1 Cor. x. 1 — 12, where St. Paul specifies some of the occasions upon
which prompt excision fell upon the guilty, and tells how they were
" overthrown in the wilderness " (KaTeo-Tpa8no-av yap ex rj ipr/pa). The
point upon which the writer to the Hebrews here insists is the same
as that insisted, on by Paul to the Corinthians, viz., that it is possible
to commence by enjoying the highest privileges, and yet to fall short.
Such privileges were vouchsafed to all who came out of Egypt. Some
profited by them, yet others fell deservedly short, because of their
faithlessness and perverse rebellion.
2 Teo-o-apdKovra ern. Sureuhusius, with a fanciful elegance, ob
serves that the Apostle specifies the forty years of provocation in

CHAP. IV., 1—3. .41
the wilderness, because a like period had nearly elapsed since the rejec
tion and crucifixion of Christ, and did actually elapse before the
destruction of Jerusalem. Ibid., p. 617.
Q.v ra KaXa, k.t.X. Compare Num. xiv. 29, DyuB i^B' run laioa ,
ev rrj iprjpd) Tav-rv neoeiTai ra KaXa lipav. LXX. See also verse 32.
Eespicit locum Nuraer. xiv. 11. 'a vdn' vf> n« is, Quo usque non
credetis mihi. — Schoettg. in loc.

CHAPTER IV.
Attention has now been drawn to the exact fulfil
ment by Jesus Christ of his Messianic functions,
and of the requirements of the prophetic writings.
Like Moses he was faithful to the letter of his
Commission. He was greater than Moses, because
Moses had only a delegated and ministerial autho
rity. The R-abbies taught with one voice that
Messiah would be greater than Moses. (See Note
4, p. 28.) As the Church in the wilderness was
Moses's household, so true believers are Christ's.
But, as many of the adults who came out of Egypt*
perished in their sins, and were not permitted to
* The Talmudical writers interpreted this 11th verse of Ps. xcv.,
of the fruition of heaven, as appears from the following extract from the
Treatise, Sanhedrin, col. 274. (Ugolini Thes., vol. xxv.) : —
ion' nin ->aina fatw . vxb -rrab p*n ji'ni san abisb pbrt jrrt j'M laion in
'TOaw: iron now win pi .ma1? ivisb imo' d»i .run dV»3 lDrv .imo' am
. 'nm:o hi )wa' dm 'bm
" The generation of the wilderness have no part in the world to come.
" For it is said (Num. xiv. 35), In this wilderness they shall be consumed,
" and there shall they die. They shall be consumed, in this world : and
" there shall they die, in the world to come. And this also is meant by
" what is said (Ps. xcv. 11), To whom I sware in my wrath, if they should
" enter into my rest."
Eabbi Akiba, nevertheless, following Eabbi Eliezer, qualifies this
sentence of excision in favour of those saints who had made a covenant
with God by sacrifice. (See Psalm 1. 5.) Others, again (ibid., col. 275),
argue from Is. xxxv. 10, that God will repent of his oath.
G

42 CHAP. IV., 1—3.
enter God's spiritual rest (i.e., the future blessed
ness of the Redeemed), besides being excluded from
Canaan, so also there is a danger now, that through
unbelief, and a rebellious rejection of the " words
of life " as spoken by Jesus, those who are nominally
of his household should apostatize, and fall back
into condemnation. The patient ' forbearance of
God is not for ever. Those who do not like to
retain Him in their knowledge, but hold the truth
in unrighteousness, He gives over to a reprobate
mind. The Hebrews are therefore urged to ad
monish one another, and to remember that all
God's offers to the sinner are for " To day." To
him who will continue in sin, that grace may
abound, there are no promises held out of ultimate
amendment. Such as these do provoke the Lord
to cut them off. To the believers God will give
" his rest," but the persistent cavillers and the
unbelieving shall be shut out. We see, therefore,
that unbelief was the capital sin, which revoked the
offer of " rest " in the case of the disobedient and
disbelieving Israelites.
Verse 1. — Let us, therefore, fear (iv. 1) lest, although the
same offer has been extended to our times, viz., of entering
into his rest (eicreXOeiv et? ttjv KaTairavcriv avrov), any of
you should seem to fail in attaining to it.
The writer shows how a restless and dissatisfied
temper, a halting conviction arising out of an
undisciplined and disobedient frame of mind, is
the natural prelude and parent to apostasy.
Verses 2, 3.— For we have received the glad tidings (of

CHAP. IV., 4—10. 43
spiritual rest, icrpev evrjyyeXtcr pivot, i.e., the offer of sal
vation) as well as they, but the word of hearing (6 X070S
tj}? aKor)<s? the matter of hearing, i.e., the fact that they
heard) was of no avail, not being conjoined with faith, in
the hearers." But we (i.e., all of us, ol irio-TevcravTe^) who
have believed do enter into the rest (tt)v KaraTravo-tv)
aforesaid of God (as He has told us, "As I sware in my
wrath, that they should not enter into my best"), although
(Kairai) a the works (of creation) were finished (so long
ago as) at the foundation of the world. (Gen. ii. 1 — 3.)
1 Philipp. iv. 15, " els Xoyov 860-eas Kal Xrjijreas."
2 Prof. Stuart renders, in his Translation, p. 251, Kalroi, namely,
" As He says, ' So I sware in my wrath [unbelievers] shall not enter
" ' into my rest,' namely, [rest from] the works which had been
" performed after the foundation of the world was laid ;" but in his
Commentary, p. 339, " The works that were done after the world was
" founded." The Vulgate has, " Et quidem operibus ab institutione
" mundi perfectis." The object, however, of the writer is plainly as
follows : — God's rest commenced after the works of creation were
finished, and yet, by the mouth of David, God intimates that it was
still possible to enter into that primal rest. It was not the rest which
Joshua gave, for, when David wrote, the people were in Canaan ; and
yet David specifies a day, to day, plainly intimating that the rest was
neither past or present, but future, and heavenly.
In support of his assertion that the rest offered to
the believers is that o-afiPaTto-pbs which God instituted
for all succeeding time, after the works of creation
were finished, the writer quotes two passages. The
first (Gen. ii. 2) relates the historical fact of its
institution, the second (Ps. xcv. 11) declares that
this was the rest, viz., God's rest, from which the
rebels in the wilderness were excluded, e.g.
Verses 4 — 10. — For He hath spoken in a certain place,
concerning the seventh day, thus : — And God bested on
THE SEVENTH DAY FROM ALL HIS WOBKS. And in this
place again : — If they shall enteb into my best.
Since, therefore, it remains that some may enter into it,

44 CHAP. IV., 11—13.
and those to whom the glad offer was formerly (ol irporepov
evayyeXiadevre<;) made did not enter in by reason of
unbelief — (again He specifies (bpi&i) a particular day;
that is, To day; saying, by David, after so great an
interval of time (nearly 500 years), " To day, if ye will
" hear his voice, harden not your hearts" : for if Joshua
had given them rest, He (i.e., God) would not have spoken
of another day afterwards) — it is plain, then, that a Sab
batic rest (cra/3ySaT(.cryu.o?) remaineth for the people of God.
For the man who enters into His (God's) rest, has rested
also from his labours, just as God did from his.1
1 The Talmudical treatise Berachoih, fol. 17, col. 1, illustrates in a
remarkable manner the nature of the 2af5{iaTio-pbs expected by the
ancient Jewish Church : —
Nb n"nw nVi rfrax nb la j'» Kan oVwn mn dVim ab 'an rrnisa wrta-m
Dn'minsi caw D'p'isn nte nnnn vtn ns:pi rnnti n1; ]noi woo h1* rra-n mns
. ni'aon no pnji DrroN-o
" A frequent apothegm (Margarita — a pearl, a choice saying) was in
" the mouth of a certain Eabbi : — ' The world to come is not like this
" ' world, for in the latter there is neither eating nor drinking, nor
" ' marriage (lit. procreation of children ; see Luke xx. 34, 1 Cor. xi. 13),
" ' nor increasing, nor trafficking, nor hate, nor envy, nor heartburnings,
" ' but the just shall sit with their crowns on their heads, and enjoy
" ' the splendour of the Shechinah.' " See J. Ehenferd, Diss, i., de
Seculo Futuro, p. 1120 (Meuschen).
Verses 11 — 13. — Let us, therefore, give all diligence (o-7rou-
Bdo-copev) to enter into that rest, lest any one fall away
after the same example of unbelief; for the "Word of God
is quick (£a>v),* and mighty in operation (ivepyi)?) (see
Isaiah xlix. 2, " He hath made my mouth like a sharp
" sword," lv. 10, 11 ; and also Ps. xxix. 4, &c), and more
trenchant2 than any two-edged sword, and penetrates
even to dividing of soul and spirit, and of the joints and
marrow, and is a trier (Kpiri/cbs) of the thoughts and
intents of the heart, and there is no creature invisible
to his regards. But all things are naked (yvpivd), and
exposed to the searching scrutiny3 (TeTpaxnXio~p,eva to«
ocpdaXpoi';) of Him with whom we have to do (or, to
account, Trpbs hv r)plv 6 Xoyos).

CHAP. IV., 11—13. 45
1 vl8e tov dvBeo-rara i^avavrlas Beov Xoyov ivanXiapevov, Trap ov rd, re eft
Kal rb prj, o-vpfieflriKe reXeiovo-Bai. " Behold him that resists the armed
" Word of God, by whom what is good, or the contrary, is brought to
" pass." — Philo, De Cherubim, ibid., Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. i., 145.
2 Toparepos. Philo uses very similar language ( Quis rerum Divinarum
Hcsres, Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. i., p. 491) on Gen. xv. 10 : — Eir
ivCXeyei, AieTXev avra peo-a, to tis ov TTpoo-Bels, iva tov d8l8aKTOV ivvojjs Bebv
repvovra, ras re tgjv o-apdrav Kal npaypdrav e^rjs dndaas ijppdo-Bai Kal vvaaBai
8oKovo-as (picreis, ra ropei Tav avpTtavrav avrov Xdya. os els ttjv o^vrdrvv
aKOvrjBels aKprjv, 8iaipav ov8e7rore Xrjyei ra alo-BvTa iravra, inei8dv 8e pexpi
rav drdpav Kal Xeyopevav dpepav 8ie£eXBv, TrdXiv airb rovrav, ra Xbya
Beapvrd els apvBrjrovs Kal a7fepiypd<povs polpas &pxerai 8iaipeiv oiros 6
ropevs, k.t.X. " He says, moreover, And he divided them through
" the midst. He does not add who did it, in order that you may under-
" stand that it is the undemonstrable God, who cuts asunder the con-
" stituent parts of all bodies and objects that appear to be coherent and
" united, by his Word, that penetrates all things. Which, being whetted
" to the keenest possible edge, never ceases to pierce all things that can
" be appreciated by the senses. But because it reaches even to the
" minutest particles, even to those that are termed indivisible, the
" above mentioned penetrating Word suffices to divide things which
" can be appreciated by reason alone, into untold and indescribable
" portions, &c. And again, ibid., p. 506, 'O, re yap Belos Xdyos, ra iv rij
" (pio-ei SieTXe, Kal Steveipe Ttdvra. "O, re rjperepos vovs, &tt av TrapaXdfiy
" vorjras npaypard re Kal aapara, els direipaKis arreipa Siaipet pepv, Kal
" repvav ov8e7TOTe Xrjyei. ToOro fie avpfiaivei, 8ia ttjv npbs tov iroivrrjv Kal
" irarepa t5>v SXav ipdjipeiav. For the Divine Word has pierced and divided
" all things in nature. Even our own mind never ceases to divide what
" objects or bodies it may have apprehended, into an infinite and un-
" appreciable number of particles. But this happens on account of the
" resemblance to the Father and Maker of all things.''
So, also, Philo declares, in very kindred sentiment to that
of the writer to the Hebrews, 6 Beios Xdyos 6£v8e'pKear6s iariv, as navra
i<j>opav ehai Uavbs. " The Divine Word is so sharpsighted, as to be
" able to inspect all things." — SS. Legum Alley., lib. iii., ibid., p. 121.
8 Kal rerpax- k.t.X. ; lit., with head drawn back and face upturned.
J. C. Wolfius writes, in loco (Curce Phil, et Crit., tom. iv., p. 647),
" Et supine exposita oculis ejus. Ita optime E. Schmidius, vel quod
" idem est, resupinata, ut J. Perizonius ad Aeliani "Var. Hist., xii. 58,
" et cum eo Elsnerus, p. 342, reddunt. Atque hie quidem hoc loquendi
" genus ab iis ait petitum, quorum capita reclinantur, ne intuentium
' oculos effugiant et lateant. Ita Plinius, Panegyr., cap. 37, de iis qui
" hoc habitu ad supplicium ducebantur. Nihil tamen gratius, nihil
" seculo diynius, quam quod contingit, desuper intueri delatorum supina

46 CHAP. IV., 14—16.
'¦ ora retortasque cervices. Hinc Hesychius :—TerpaxvXio-peva, 7recpa-
" vepapiva, et Plutarchus, de Curiositate, p. 521. TpaxvXi&pevovs
" Kal irepiayopevovs curiosos appellat, qui oculos elatos hue illuc con-
" vertunt et res circumspiciunt. Eandem sententiam adstruit J. Alberti,
" p. 422."
Here, then, the writer terminates his commoni-
tory digression, which extends from chap. iii. 6 to
iv. 13. We must bear in mind that it is based upon
the proof of the superiority of Christ's authority to
that of Moses, and is, in substance, to the following
effect : — " If your fathers perished for disobeying
" Moses, much greater is your danger, if you refuse
" obedience to Christ."
Verses 14^-16. — Having, therefore, a great High Priest,
who has passed into the heavens (in accordance with Ps.
ex. 1), Jesus the Son of God (he continues), let us hold
fast the profession of our faith (tcparcopiev ttjs SpoXoyias,
i.e., of Christianity). For we have not an high priest who
cannot be touched with the feeling of (sympathise with)
our infirmities,1 but was tempted, in all things, similarly
to ourselves, without sin.2 Let us therefore draw near
with boldness (wappr]o-ias, confident assurance) to the
throne of his grace (where He sits on the right hand of
the Father, Ps. ex. 1), in order that we may receive
compassionate pity, and find grace to help in time of need
(eh evKaipov f3or)0eiav, for a timely succour or assistance).
See Schoettg., tom. i., pp. 645, 646.
1 Danzius (De Xvrpa Redemptionis Humance ad 1 Pet. i. 18, 19,
p. 843) observes, " Sic etiam vocatur Messias Servus Dei, Jes.
"xiii. 1, ubi iterum Chaldseus, wren 'ia» sn ecce servus metis Messias,
" et E. Dav. Kimchi inquit, n'ttjon ~fm mi hie est Rex Messias." —
Meuschen, 2f. Test, ex Talmude illustr. This passage of Isaiah (verses
1 — 4) are referred to our Lord Jesus Christ, in reference to his Divine
sympathy with human infirmity, by St. Matthew xii. 15 — 21.
2 Xapls apaprlas. As being sinless, our High Priest has perpetual
access to God. He need not wait for the Day of Atonement to come
round, before he can draw near to seek relief for his people. He can

CHAP V., 1—9. 47
always obtain timely succour for us, and by Him, we can always
approach the throne of grace ; so superior is the Messianic dispensa
tion of substance and reality, over the Levitical one of type and shadow.
" Neque Messias Sacerdos solum est, sed et ipsum quoque sacrificium.
" Tikkune Sohar, c. 18, fol. 28, 1. Propheta reliqui non potuerunt
" ascendere ad videndum Regem, nisi horis et diebus notis, quemadmodum
" de Aarone constat, qui tarnen pracipuus omnium fuit, de quo Levit.
"xvi. 2. Non omni tempore veniat ad sanctum; verum v. 3. n«ia,
" cum hoc veniat Aharon ad sanctum : quanlo igitur minus reliqui.
" Tu vero, O Pastor fidelis, singulis horis et diebus, quibus voluisti, ad Regem
" videndum ascendisti. Ibidem, c. 20, fol. 47, 2. Schechina inferior est
" suffilus Dei S.B., sacrificium ejus, altare ejus : in ilia enim Israelites cibos
" sacrificiorum, he. preces ad Deum S.B. instruunt, quippe quce sunt instar
" sacrificiorum matutinorum et vespertinorum, et sicut frusta sacrificiorum,
" qum per totam noctem consumuntur. Ille qui Justus est, est fpio •pip
" sacrificium intra tempus matutinum, et meridianum, est sacrificium
" Sabbathorum et dierum Festorum, aio nvi natta ra"pb Nimp vtcab ianp rrti,
" : na trtu Non enim accessus est populo sancto ad Deum S.S. nisi per illud.
"nNia. Per hoc veniet Aaron ad sancta. Ft, nemo glorietur, nisi
" nsia. Sohar Numer., fol. 103, col. 412. Quomodo sanatio hominum
" comparata est? Eesp. Ad modum vituli. (Interpretatio additur,
"nescio a quo profecta : Intelliguntur passiones, quas Messias pro nobis
" sustinet.) Sic enim legitur Jesa. xxvii. 18. Ibi pascet vitulus, et ibi
" cubabit. Priori commate intelligitur Messias filius Josephi, de quo
" legitur, Deuter. xxxiii. 17. Primogenitus bovis ejus gloria est ipsi.
" Posteriori autem Messias filius Davidis." Schoettg. Hor. Hebr.,
tom. ii., pp. 645, 646. This fiction of the two Messiahs is found in the
Targum on Song of Sol. iv. 5.

CHAPTER V.
Christ's Messiahship has now been proved to be a
valid one. He is, agreeably to the prophetic decla
rations, human as well as Divine. He has a right
to be heard as a teacher, and to abrogate the cere
monial appointments of Moses, because he comes in
his own hereditary right as a Son to speak of his
own things. In Psalm ex., which proclaims his
Divinity, his high priesthood is put forward as an
equally prominent attribute. Here, then, one of
the most formidable Jewish objections against

48 CHAP. V., 1—9.
Christianity is disposed of, viz., You abrogate the
Levitic priesthood, you do away with the ancient
sacrifices, and give us nothing in their place;
— whereas, Moses has expressly declared (Levit.
xvii. 11), "It is the blood that maketh an atone-
" ment for the soul," and has also enjoined upon
us for an " everlasting statute " that the high priest
shall bring the blood of the sin-offering within the
veil, "to make an atonement for the children of Israel,
" for all their sins, once a year." (Levit. xvi. 15, 34.)
The answer is plain and conclusive. If Jesus can
properly claim to be the Divine Son of David spoken
of in Ps. ex., He is also " a priest for ever, after the
" order of Melchisedek ; " for so, also, it is written
in the same Psalm, " Jehovah hath sworn, and will
" not repent, Thou art a priest for ever, after the
" order of Melchisedek." dna-aVa Trim bv, Kara
rr)v ra^iv. k.t.X. LXX.) *
* The Eev. G. Phillipps, D.D., in his introductory remarks on Ps.
ex., writes as follows : — " By far the greater part of the elder Rabbis
" have determined that it (Ps. ex.) treats of the Messiah. Thus the
" Midrash Tehillim in Ps. ii., on the words, / will declare the decree,
" &c, saith, 'iai n'won bw ':'» en d'ibidd, The affairs of the Messiah are
" set forth in the Scriptures of the Law, of the Prophets, and of the
" Hagiographa. In the Law, Ex. iv. 22; in the Prophets, Is. Iii. 13,
" and xiii. 1 ; and in the Hagiographa Ps. ex., ' The Lord said unto my
" Lord.' The Editor of the Venice edition, it must be stated, has,
" with a true Jewish spirit, erased the words, n'raon ">» 'i'». Again,
" on Ps. xviii. 35, ' Thy right hand shall uphold me,' the Midrash has
" the following note : — 'in aa1; ~msh Non >a-i D»a pv 'ai, Rabbi Joden, in
" the name of R. Kama, said, that in the time to come, i.e., in the age of
" Messiah, the Holy One (blessed be He !) will make King Messiah to
" sit at his right hand, as it is said, ' The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit
" on my right hand.' R. Gaon, on Dan. vii. 13, ' He came with the
" clouds of heaven,' saith, and this is rrrcn upis, Messiah, our Righteous-
" nest, as it is said, ' The Lord said to my Lord,' &c." The Psalms
in Hebrew, with a Commentary, vol. ii., pp. 417, 418.

CHAP. V., 1—9. 49
It being granted, then, that Messiah was to be a
High Priest, the next question to be answered is,
what had Jesus to offer % To this difiiculty the
writer adverts in the opening verse of this fifth
chapter. The Talmud speaks as follows of the
High Priesthood of Messiah (Tr. Avoth., cap. 34) :
— " Aaron and Messiah are to be understood by
" These are the two anointed ones (nrraTi '¦aa, sons of
" oil) that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.
" (Zech. iv. 14.) But no one knew which of them
" was the dearest. Since, however, it is said (Ps.
" ex. 4), The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent,
" Thou art a priest for ever, thou mayest know
" that king Messiah is dearer than the priest of
" justice." The Rabbinic writers assert that
Michael, who is the same as the Angel op the
Lord and the Angel op the Covenant, is the High
Priest above. In the Schemoth Rabba, sect. 2, fol.
104, 3, it is said, " Wherever Michael appeared,
" na^attf niaa «in it was the glory of the Schechma."
He is also called " Metatron." Schoettgen, com
menting on the Divine appellation Nin -p-ia tsinpn,
The Holt One, blessed be He, remarks that the
Jewish writers apply this designation to the Messiah,
e.g., Sohar Genes., fol. 63, col. 249, wrrtsa tobn1!
rry^'i sat^a N-ipnsi " And king Messiah, who is called
" by the name of the Holy One, blessed be He." In
the same work, fol. 76, col. 301, and 77, col. 305,
the words of Genesis iii. 15, " Re shall bruise thy
" head," which are elsewhere interpreted of the
Messiah, are there applied to The Holt One,
h

50 CHAP. V., 1—9.
blessed be He. Again, it is written in Bereshith
Rabba, sect. 5, fol. 63, " The voice which came to
" Moses at that time, and said to him (Deut. xxxii.
" 48), Come up to Mount Abarim, was that of the
" Holy One, blessed be He, the Metatron, nap"n bso
p-iaaa." And again, " The voice of the Holy One,
" blessed be He, the Metatron, came to the waters!'
As it is said, Ps. xxix. 3, " The voice of the Lord is
" upon the waters." See Schoettg. Horce Hebr.,
tom. ii., p. 8 ; also, pp. 110, 247, 298, 354, 642 ;
also, tom. 1, p. 1218—1220. The Jalkut Rubeni,
fol. 112, 2, asserts that the High Priest Michael
" stands and offers the souls of the just, a'npai
" n^pi-rs bto irrmrcsa, that is the sacrifices, which are
" offered m the earthly temple, and they are the souls
" of the beasts that are offered, and are called the
" souls of the just, because they have taken away their
" sins." Por further information on this curious
and interesting subject, the reader would do well to
consult J. A. Danzius' remarkable treatise, Schechina
cum piis habitans. It is printed at length on pp. 701
— 739 of Meuschen, Nov. Test, ex Talmude illustr.
See also the Brmterita prceteritorum of B. Scheidius,
ibid., p. 13.
Verses 1—9. — For every High Priest taken from amongst
men ' is appointed on behalf of men, in reference to their
relations to God,2 for the express purpose (iva) that he
may offer gifts (S&pa, sc, freewill offerings *) and sacrifices,
* Professor Stuart, I think erroneously, suggests " thankofferings."
Expiatory sacrifices are here the topic under consideration. Dr. Gill
has, " Ereewill-offerings, peace-offerings, burnt-offerings, sin and
" trespass-offerings, all kind of sacrifices."

CHAP. V., 1—9. 51
(6v<ria<;), being in a position to treat with gentle modera
tion and sympathy (pterpioiradeiv Bvvdpevos) those who
are ignorant and out of the way3 (i.e., those who have
erred unwittingly), inasmuch as he himself is compassed
with infirmity. And on account of this (infirmity of his
nature, Bid Tavrrpf), he must needs offer expiatory sacrifices
for himself, as well as for the people. Moreover, no one
assumes to himself this honour (intrudes himself into the
priesthood), except he be called thereto by God, as was
Aaron. (See the case of Nadab and Abihu, Levit. x. 1, of
Korah and his sons, Numb, xvi., of King Uzziah, 2 Chron.
xxvi. 16 — 21.) So, also, Christ glorified not himself by
assuming the Highpriestly functions, but He who said
unto him (Ps. ii. 7), " Thou art my Son : this day have I
" begotten thee." As He also says in another place (Ps.
ex. 4), "Thou art a priest for ever, after the order of
" Melchisedek." 4 Who, in the days of his flesh, after that
He had offered up prayers and intercessions, with strong
cryings and tears (e.g., at Gethsemane) to Him that was able
to save him from death,5 and was heard on account of his
pious submission (dirb ttj? euXa/3eia<; 6 — or perhaps better,
with Stuart, from that which he feared), although He was
Son, learned obedience from the things that He suffered,
and, having been made complete' (Stuart, when exalted to
glory, but I think this does violence to the context),
became the author (a'lrios, originator) of eternal salvation
to all those that obey Him.
1 Schoettgen asserts that there is an allusion to Levit. xxi. 10,
vrnm Vn:n jnai, "and the High Priest from amongst his brethren ;" a
distinction which appears in the LXX., dnb rav dSeXtpav. the Vulgate,
however, reads, " inter f ratres suos " — " der aus den Menschen genoni-
" men wird." — Luth. ,
2 imep dvBpwiTav KaBio-rarai to npbs tov Oebv. Wolfius says, i e.,
" Pro hominibus constituitur in iis, qum apud Deum sunt agenda, ut
" Beza et Schmidius : h.e., ut rem divinam faciat, sacra procuret, et
"populi loco ad Deum accedat. Ita phrasin recte expouit Elsnerus, et

52 CHAP. V., 1—9.
"hue commode advocat verba Jethronis ad Mosen Exod. xviii. 19,
" yivov o-v tq) Xa<5 ra wpbs tov &ebv, Kal avolcreis tovs Xdyovs avrav wpos
" tov Qeov. Sic vero etiam externos scriptores loqui idem aliquot locis
" ostendit. Inter hos est Juliani ille in Pragmento pag. 296. Sacerdotes
" honorandi sunt, as SiaKovovvres rjpiv ra irpbs robs Beois, utpote qui rem
" divinam administrant."
3 MerpioTvaBeiv Swdpevos, " Qui possit, quantum satis est, miserari vicem.
" Ita Schmidius et Beza. Verbi vim ita exposuit Camerarius, ut idem
" esse dicat, atque virb eitieiKelas ran o-vprrdo-xeiv, alterius mails afjici, eo
" quod non rigide et severe, sed humaniter et placide de aliisjudices, tanquam
" si tua ipsius res ageretur, ut qui te putes eadem conditione. Atque ita
" Hesychius, qui perpioiraBrj reddit piKpa irdo-xovra, et o-vyyivao-Kovra
" iirieiKas. Photius in Lexico M.S. perpionaBeiv, iK pepovs ra irdBv
" Kara8exeo-8ai, crvyytvacrKeiv. Stephano in Thesauro non aliud esse
" videtur, quam antecedens iv. 15, o-vpna8rjo-ai, vel o-vpira8r]o-ai pera
" perptonaBelas. Conf. J. C. Dieterici Antiq. Bibl., vol. ii., p. 20, et Jac.
" Cappelli Observationes, qui vertit : moderate ferre. Portasse per vocem
" pirpios in verbo hoe composite respicitur eo, ut inferatur, to avptraBeiv
" decere sacerdotem. Merpia enim Grsecis passim dicuntur to npenovra,
" et perplas Xiyew, apud Platonem et Thucydidem est, commode et pro
" rei dignitate dicere. Vide Greevii notas ad Hesiodi Epy. v. 306, p. 33.
" Cappellus I.e. Svvdpevos idem esse putat quod 6<peiXav, ut 2 Cor. xiii. 8.
" Prsestat autem in consueto verbi significatu persistere, cum statim
" addatur causa, unde ilia facultus ad eum proficiscatur, nempe ex eo
" quod ipse infirmitatem habeat, eamque adeo sentiat." J. C. Wolfius,
in loc. Luther translates the 15th verse, " Denn wir haben nicht einen
" Hohenpriester, der nicht konnte Mitleiden haben mit unserer
" Schwachheit, sondern der versucht ist allenthalben, gleichwie wir,
" doch olme Stinde."
4 Schoettgen, on Matt. xxii. 44, acutely observes that nothing more
clearly demonstrates that Ps. ex. treats of the Messiah than the silence
of the Jews with whom our Lord was disputing, for they might have
replied, " Thou sayest what is false, and seekest to deceive us by thy
" quotation, or the Psalm does not treat of the Messiah, and none of
" our Doctors ever so explained it." Schoettgen might have put his
case more forcibly still, for, from Mark xii. 35, it is plain that our Lord
alleged a known Eabbinic interpretation, " How say the Scribes that
" Christ is the Son of David ? For David himself said, The Lord said
"to my Lord," &c. Dr. Gill, on Ps. ex. 1, remarks : — "The Targum
" is, The Lord said in his Word. Galatinus says the true Targum of
" Jonathan has it, The Lord said to his Word, and produces an autho-
" rity for it." The ancient Eabbinical doctors agreed with the Chris-

CHAP. V., 1—9. 53
tian interpretation, although the Vetus Nizzachon (p. 183) absurdly
argues that the Psalm relates to David's persecution by Saul. Saul is
the enemy to be put under David's feet, and the invitation addressed
by Jehovah to David to sit on his throne is to be read by the light of
Ps. cix. 31, " He shall stand at the right hand of the poor ! " A lamer
evasion and perversion of the palpable signification of this Scripture
can scarcely be imagined. Schoettgen supplies the following examples
of early Jewish interpretations in accordance with the Christian render
ing of the Psalm ; Midrasch Tehillim on Ps. ex. 1 : — " Dixit E. Judan
" nomine E. Channa fil. Chanina ~a"a>b rrrann -fob rai'pn yma tab Tn»^
" Temporibus N. T. Deus S. B. Messiam (regem) sedere jubebit ad
" dextram, et Abrahamum ad sinistram suam. Bereschith Rabba, sect.
" 85, fol. 83, 4, ad Genes, xxxviii. 18 "|BO baculum tuum ; Intelligitur
" Rex Messias, quemadmodum de eo dicitur, Ps. ex. 3. Virgam virtutis
" tuse emittet Dominus ex Sion. In Sohar Nunier., fol. 99, col. 394,
" paullo aliter explicant : Dixit Dominus Domino meo, i.e., rvbypb p'12 ki
" f]Dv p mwo Ille Justus (Jacobus, de quo ibi sermo est) dixit ad Messiam
"filium Joseph: Sede a dextris meis." Hor. Hebr., tom. i., p. 192.
Schoettgen (ibid., p. 949), modestly asserts (on Heb. v. 6) that he has
been unable to meet with any passage in Jewish writers that alleges
Melchizedek to be a type of the Messiah : — " Quantum nos Judseorum
" scripta pervolvimus, nemo eorum unquam cogitavit Melchisedecum
" typum Messise fuisse  Chaldeus qui alias Psalmum ex. de
" Davide explicat, hie tamen eleganter sic irapa(ppd£ei, wto ':Dno n:«i
" T*n trabsb . Nam tu constitutus es Princeps seculifuturi (i.e., temporum
" N. T.) idque propter meritum tuum, quia es '31 Mto Rex Justus. Quae
" explicatio, quamvis ad textum originalem not sit satis accurata, in
" Messiam tamen nostrum bene quadrat." And yet, on p. 645 of the
second volume, Schoettgen writes, " Messise Sacerdotis typus fuit Mel-
" chisedech," and fortifies his assertion by the following examples : —
" Bereschith Rabba, sect. 43, fol. 42, 1, ad verba Genes, xiv. 18. Et
" ipse erat sacerdos Dei supremi. . R. Samuel filius Nachman et Rabbini
" nostri de hoc loco controverterunt. Prior dicit, innui, quod Melchisedecus
" Abrahamo statuta Sacerdotii summi exposuerit ; namperpanem intelligitur
" panes propositionis, per vinum vero libamina. Sed Rabbini nostri dixerunt,
"innui, quod legem Abrahamo revelaverit, q.d. Proverb, ix. 5. Venite,
" comedite panem meum, et bibite vinum quod vobis miscui. — Hue
" usque Eabboth typis edita. Sed Hadrianus Finus in Plagello Judse-
" orum viii. 20. post recitatam sententiam E. Samuelis hasc addit ; ut
" hdbetur in Psal. cix. (Hebr. ex.) 4. Juravit Dominus, et non
" poenitebit eum, tu es Sacerdos in seternuni, secundum ordinem
" Melchisedech. Quis est iste f Iste est Rex Messias, de quo scriptum

54 CHAP. V., 1—9.
" est Zachar. ix. 9. Ecce Eex tuus venit tibi mansuetus, Justus et
" Salvator. Ft sequitur ipse Rabbi dicens : In hoc autem quod dicit :
" Proferet (fortasse, Profert) panem et vinum ; corresponds ei quod
" habetur in Psalmo lxxii. 16. Erit placentula frunienti sive panis in
" terra in summis montium." It is a matter of notoriety that the
Talmudical writers applied Psalm lxxii. to the Messiah, e.g., " Seven
" things were created before the world — 1. The law ; 2. Eepentance
" 3. The Garden of Eden ; 4. Gehenna ; 5. The throne of Glory
" 6. The House of the Sanctuary ; and, 7. The name of Messiah
" because it is written in Ps. lxxii. 17, His name shall endure for ever,
" before the sun p:' Jinnun was his name.'' (Pesachim, f. 45, 1
Nedarim, f . 39, 2 ; and elsewhere.)
The Talmudists render the verb ]W as a proper name of Messiah.
For some excellent remarks on this verse of Ps. lxxii. 17, the reader
may consult The Psalms in Hebrew, with a Commentary (vol. ii.,
pp. 145, 146), by the Eev. G. Phillips, D.D. Dr. Phillips observes
(in he.), " The Chaldee translation does not exactly correspond with the
" present Hebrew text. It is as follows :— rrnsj rnn pra ntdoid 'irra Dip
" and before the sun was his name was prepared. The explanation of
" Eosenmiiller is, without doubt, the correct one. He observes that
" the Chald. verb pi is not unfrequently the rendering of the Hebrew
" jw (see Exod. xix. 15, xxxiv. 2) ; and, consequently, it is by no means
" an improbable conjecture that the interpreter read }13' in his MSS.
"  " It is proper to mention that De Eossi discovered this
" reading in the MSS. marked by him 879." For the convenience of
readers who desire to inform themselves as to the opinion of the
Talmudists on the subject of the names of the Messiah, e g., Jinnun,
Shiloh, &c, &c, I would refer them to p. 30, &c, of B. Scheidii
Praterita prmteritorum, printed at length in Meuschen, Nov. Test, ex
Talmude illustr., and also to Sanhedrin, col. 969, &c, Ugol. Thes., vol. xxv.
5 It is well known that the Eabbies, perplexed by Messianic passages,
in which the sufferings of the Messiah are blended together with the
descriptions of his triumph and glory, invented the figment of two
Messiahs — Messiah ben David, a triumphant Messiah, and Messiah
ben Joseph, a suffering one. The Talmud (Succah, f. 52, 1) says,
" Our Eabbies have asserted that Messiah ben David is speedily to be
" revealed in our days, because it is said (Ps. ii. 7), I will declare the
" decree, &c. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, Ask of me,
" and I will give thee somewhat, because it is said, in the fifth verse,
" Ask of me, and I will give, &c. But when Messiah the son of Joseph
" saw that he was to be put to death, he said, lord of the world, I ask
" nothing of thee but life. The Lord answered him, Yea, verily, life ;

CHAP. V., 1—9. 55
"for before thou spakest thy father David foretold concerning thee. (Ps.
" xxi. 5.) " He asked life of thee, and thou gavest it to him." From
this quotation it will be apparent that the early Jewish Doctors applied
Psalms ii. and xxi. to the Messiah, and that the New Testament writers
introduced no novelty, by their interpreting the former similarly.
The reader may consult, with advantage, Dr. Alexander M'Caul's
Observations (p. 156 — 163) on Kimchi's Commentary on Zech. (chap.
xii. 19), and also the appendix of interpretation subjoined to Dr.
M'Caul's volume of Warburtonian Lectures, The Messiahship of Jesus.
The following passages are commented on in the appendix :— Gen. iii.
14, 15, Gen. xlix. 10 ; Deut. xviii. 15—19 ; Psalm ii., xvi., xviii., xxii.
16 (17), xl. 7, 8 (6, 7), lxviii. 19 (18), lxix., lxxii., lxxxix., Ps. xciii.— c,
cix., ex. ; Is. vii. 14, viii. 1, ix. 6, Iii. 13 — liii. See also Scheidius,
Prmterita pi ceteritorwm, pp. 11 — 13, and Schoettg., Hor. Hebr., tom. ii.,
pp. 267, 360, 505, &c. The strong crying and tears of Messiah are
prophetically spoken of in Ps. xxii., and his deliverance especially in
verse 21 (22), w» Q'tn >y\pDi nn» 'en. 'Wicin . (See note 4 on p. 28, and
also Schoettgen, tom. i., pp. 949 — 950.) In further elucidation of
Ps. xxii. 22 (23), tin1? -po mDDN , " I will declare thy name unto my
" brethren," I would adduce the Targumic interpretation of Cantic.
viii. 1, " And in that time shall the king Messiah be revealed to the
" congregation of Israel. Then shall the children of Israel say, Come,
" be thou with us for a brother."
6 'An-o rrjs eiXa/ieias, "Duplex potissimum vocis eiXd/3eia notio est,
" nempe vel metus, vel reverentice  Priorem tamen a plerisque video
" prsef erri, quamvis posterior veteribus imprimis se probarit  Qui
" per metum vertunt, illis idem hsec phrasis est, ac si diceretur, exauditus
" atque adeo liberatus a metu, sc. mortis ; qui per reverentiam, illi a
" Patre aiunt exauditum Christum propter reverentiam et pietatem
" in Patrem prsestitam. Prsetulerim ego metus significatum. Hunc
"apud tovs LXX. frequentem esse patet ex locis ubi Hebr. to«i, i.e.,
" timvrem anxium, vertunt eiXdfietav, v. c. Prov. xii. 25, Jos. xxii. 24
" Ezech. iv. 16, &c, quemadmodum verbum JN1 exponunt per evXa-
" fleio-Bai, nominatim Jes. lvii. 11, et Jerem. xxxviii. 19. Nee profanis
"hsec significatio insueta est. Herodianus, lib. v., p. 112, lutentes ait,
" et evXafieiq fjavxaCovras metu quiescentes. Plutarchus de defectu oracu-
" lorum perd elXafielas, i.e., timide, Turnebo interprete, dixit. Philo de
" vita Mosis, Mosen t^v 0uo-ii/ ivXafirj, natura timidiorem, vocat  Illis
" addidero, quod Casaubonus ad Aristoph. Equites, vers. 253, observat,
" etXaPeio-Bai eos proprie dici, qui vasa vitrea aut fragilia alia cum
" magna circumspectione tangant. Verbum eiXa/3eio-6ai, Actor, xxiii.
" 10, idem est quod timere, vereri, qui significatus etiam commode
" admittitur Hebr. xi. 7, ubi Noa ivXafaBels, h.e. timens ab imminente
" Dei judicio, arcam struxisse dicitur." — J. C. Wolfius, in loc.

56 CHAP. V., 10—14.
7 TeXeiaBels. " Eectius agere eos puto, qui de perfecto redemptionis
" opere interpretantur, quod ipse servator pronuntiat Joh. xix. 30,
" TeriXeorai."— J. C. Wolfius, in loc.
Verses 10 — 14. — Being saluted1 by God "a high priest2
" after the order 3 of Melchisedek." Concerning whom 4
(adds the writer) we have much to say (rroXvs r)plv 6 A0709),
and difficult to be explained, since ye have become dull in
comprehension (rat? aicoals). For though ye might well be
teachers, on the account of the length of time (since your
conversion), ye have need again that one should teach you
what are the primary elements of the Oracles of God,
and have gone back so as to require milk (i.e., rudimentary
instruction of the simplest kind), and not solid food (i.e.,
the more abstruse articles of faith). For whoever partakes
of milk is untried5 (aireipo<; unskilled) in the word of
righteousness, for he is an infant. But solid food belongs
to fullgrown men, who, by practice, have their perceptive
faculties trained so as to discern between good and evil (i.e.,
what to accept as salubrious, what to reject as unwhole
some) .
1 Upoo-ayopevBels. This verb occurs here only, in the New Testa
ment. For an example of its use by Philo, see p. 25, line 1.
2 Alio yap, as eoiKev, iepa Geov, ev pev o8e 6 Kocrpos, iv a Kal dpxiepebs,
6 npardyovos avroii dews Xoyos, erepov 8e XoyiKt) yjrvxVt Vs lepeis 6 npbs
dXrjBeiav avBpairos. There are two temples, methinks, of God— the one,
this universe, in which his firstbegotten and Divine Word is the High
Priest ; the other the rational soul, of which the truthful man is the
priest. Philo, Works, vol. i., p. 653, Mangey's Edition.
3 Kara ttjv rd^iv. This translation of 'mit b$ agrees with the LXX.
Dr. Gill renders the phrase " according to what is said of " ; and J. D.
Michaelis, who is infatuated with his theory that the Greek Epistle to
the Hebrews is only a translation from the Hebrew or Chaldee original,
proposes to translate win bs by, over the sanctuary, assuming as he does,
that the Greek translator made the original square with the LXX.
The quotations, however, from the Old Testament contained in the
Epistle to the Hebrews, as in the other books of the New
Testament, are by no means servile reproductions of the LXX. text.
Aben Ezra paraphrases to bs by anata , according to the manner or
custom of. So also Surenhusius (/3i/3X. KaraXX., p. 623), " Cseterum
" phrasin illam 'mn to etiam venire pro, ad modum, vel, ad rationem,

CHAP. VI., 1—3. 57
" sive ad usum, vel ipsis Judseorum doctoribus fatentibus constabit, ita
" ut litera (1) sit paragogica euphonise gratia adjecta, et sic vran to idem
"sit quod trai bs id est "|Ti3, vel an:o3 vel mipD3, id est secundum
" modum,, vel ritum, sive prafecturam et institutionem."
* Tlepl oS. Schoettgen (in loc.) applies " concerning whom " to Mel
chisedek. "Nimirum perstringit h. 1. Apostolus Hebrseorum negligen-
" tiam in excutiendis typis Messias, inter quos non exiguo loco est
" Melchisedecus. Sed negligentia et inscitia Judseorum ut olim, sic
" hodie quoque summa est." I cannot, however, think that the refer
ence is exclusively to Melchisedek, but to the greater and primary
subject in hand, viz., Christ, and his eternal priesthood.
5 The Jews used to call the disciples of the Eabbies mpia'n , sucklings,
from the verb pa', "he sucked." So Philo (De Agricultura, Works,
Mangey's Edition, tom. i., p. 301). 'En-el Se vvniois pev io-ri ydXa rpo<prf,
reXeiois 8e to. iK nvpav ireppara, Kal i/ro^i)? yaXaKra8eis pev av eiev rpacpai
Kara ttjv Trai8iKT)v rjXiKiav, ra rrjs eyKVKXiov povo-tKrjs TrpoTraiSevpara. " But
" since the food of infants is milk, and that of adults that which is
" compounded of corn, the soul also requires its milk diet, in its tender
" age," &c. See also De Congressu queer, erudit. gratia, ibid., pp. 521,
522. For a multitude of Eabbinical quotations in point, see Schoettgen
on 1 Pet. ii. 2, in Hor. Hebr., tom. i, pp. 1036—1038.

CHAPTER VI.
In the preceding chapter the primary essentials of
the High Priesthood have been specified, and it has
been shown that these are to be fonnd, in conso
latory fulness, in onr Lord Jesus Christ. He is
exactly such a High Priest as the sinner may with
confidence resort to. He has a Divine call. He
has perpetual access to God. He is able to sympa
thize with mortal infirmity. Concerning the abstract
topic of the mystical correspondence existing be
tween his High Priesthood and that of Melchisedek,
the writer reminds his hearers, with an evidently
displeasurable tinge in his phraseology, that he
might well hesitate to enlarge. To such topics

58 CHAP. VI., 1—3.
they might once have listened with pleasurable
attention; but they had waxed dull of hearing,
vwdpol rals dtcoah ; the mysteries of the kingdom of
God had lost their savour. They lagged behind and
halted in their belief. The unsettled frame of mind
in which they at present are, indicates a necessity
for a recapitulation of the groundwork of their faith.
Some of them had already apostatized ; others, per
chance, were hesitating, in uncertainty whether to
go back to the synagogue and the Mosaic ritual, or
not. Homely truths, and not the o-reped rpo^r),
seemed to be most adapted to their condition. They
seemed uncertain what to believe, and what to
reject as worthless. The writer decides, however,
upon contenting himself with the somewhat caustic
reproof contained in the concluding verses. He
will hope for the best, and not debar them from the
more difficult instruction which he has to impart.
And so he commences this sixth chapter with the
reassuring invitation, —
Verses 1 — 3. — Wherefore leaving undiscussed (Aio dtpevre's)
the elementary topics of the Christian faith, let us proceed
to consider the advanced subjects (ttju reXeioTrjTa, sc,
suited to full-grown men in Christ) .
"What the rudimentary topics are, he now reminds
his readers : —
Not laying over again the foundation of repentance from
dead works, and faith towards God, nor of the doctrine of
baptisms (sc, of John, of Christian, and Jewish1), and
of laying on of hands,2 and of resurrection from the dead,
and of eternal judgment.3 And this course we will pursue,
if God permit. ( Und thun wir dieses, so Gott es zugibt .' —
Ewald.)

CHAP. VI., 1—3. 59
1 Banno-pav 8i8axijs. Prof. Stuart asks, " What has the apostle here
" to do with Jewish rites 1 " The answer is plain. Everything, when
speaking to Jewish converts. We know that the unbelieving Jews took
great offence because the disciples neglected the ceremonial ablutions
prescribed by the Pharisees. For two very curious treatises on the
subject, see J. A. Danzii Baptismus proselytorum Judaicus ad illus-
trandum Baptismum Johannis, and Antiquitas Baptismi initiationis Israeli-
tarum vindicata, by the same author. (Meuschen, N. Test, ex Talmudi
illustr., p. 233, &c, and p. 287, &e.) Schoettgen understands /3anr. biiax-
to include the idea of the Levitic lustrations. Grotius renders it, of the
doctrines delivered to newly baptized persons.
2 'Ewi8eo-ed>s re x(tPwv- Bp. Bancroft, at the Hampton Court Con
ference, alleged that Calvin understood this to mean confirmation.
Berens, Hist, of the Prayer-book, p. 87. J. C. Wolfius exercises a
sound discretion when he writes, " Non crediderim cum Eev. Zeltnero
" in notis ad Versionem Lutheri Biblicam, respici hie ad impositionem
" manuum, quse victimis afferendis adhiberi solebat."
3 'Avao-rdo-eas re k.t.X. The Sadducees denied both ; but not only the
fact, but the time of these two fundamental truths, were much debated
amongst the ancient Jews. For a variety of Talmudical opinions, see
Scheidii Loca Talmudica, and J. Ehenferdii Dissertationes II., de
Seculo Futuro. (Meuschen, N. Test, ex Talmudi illustr., p. 107, &c
and p. 1116, &c) " Intelligitur articulus de vita seterna, quam Judsei
" vocant D'nnn rvnn , cui apponitur Kpipa alaviov, damnatio celerna. Vide
"ad Joann., iii. 17." Schoettg., Hor. Hebr., tom. i., p. 953.
And now the writer (verses 4 — 9) gives his reasons
for deeming it superfluous to recapitulate the pri
mary elements of the Christian faith. His readers
had .thoroughly sifted them, prior to embracing
Christianity. They knew them by rote, if not by
heart. The mere argumentative repetition of these
initial doctrines would be of no avail, either -to
confirm the wavering, or to reclaim the apostates.
If the former, in order to escape persecution and
obloquy, were no longer willing to bear the re
proach of Christ, if his love no longer constrained
them to walk worthy of the Gospel, what occasion
for further argumentation? In respect to the

60 CHAP. VI., 1—3.
latter, it could only increase their condemnation.
They had made up their minds to choose this
present world, sinning against their own convictions,
against light and knowledge; and until they re
nounced their errors, and bewailed their ungrateful
apostasy, to talk to them about what they had a
" more perfect knowledge " of, would be to " give
" that which is holy to the dogs, and to cast pearls
" before swine." I feel more and more convinced
that no dogmatic assertion, nor theological axiom,
is here intended to be laid down, viz., that the
restoration of apostates is impossible. St. Peter, by
his denial of Christ, at the moment of his Divine
Master's sorest, trial, placed himself in a position
precisely analogous to that spoken of in the passage
under consideration. He had tasted of the heavenly
gift ; he had been made partaker of the Holy Ghost ;
he had confessed that Christ had " the words of
" eternal life," declaring, " We believe and are sure
" that thou art that Christ, the Son of the living
" God " (John vi., 68, 69) ; he had wielded in his
Master's name the supernatural powers tov p,e\Xovros
alcbvo?; the very devils had been subject to him;
and yet, as soon as the clouds of persecution began
seriously to collect themselves, he fell away, and
denied that he ever "knew the man." "What is
apostacy, if Peter's denial of Jesus was not ? And
yet he was restored, and made one of the twelve
pillars of the Church. The grammatical construc
tion of the Greek fully bears out this most reason
able view of the passage. That the apostates were
in a position of extremest peril, by their own free

CHAP. VI., 4—6. 61
act, who will deny ? But that they could never
repent who will venture to assert? Every one of
us shall give account for himself to God (eWo-Tos fjpcov
7repl eavrov Xoyov Boocrei ra> QeS. MrjKeTi ovv dXXrjXovs
Kpivojp,ev. Rom. xiv. 12, 13). Let us, then, proceed
to examine what the writer does actually say.
Verses 4 — 6. — For it is impossible ' that those who were "
once enlightened3 (<pa)TicrdivTa<;. See chap. x. 32 — 34),
and have tasted of the heavenly gift (probably the persua
sion of eternal life, the ^dpicrpa tov 0eov, Rom. vi. 23),
and have been made partakers of the Holy Ghost (sc.
extraordinary gifts), and have tasted the good word of God
(koXov pr/pa aits -Ql , i.e., the fulfilment of his promises of
blessing through Abraham's seed in the Messiah. , See Ps. cv.
42, " He remembered his holy promise lEnp 121 , and
" Abraham his servant "), and the powers of the world to
come (Svvdpei? re peXXovros alcovos, the miraculous gifts
of the supernatural world4), and have [yet] fallen away
(rrapaireaovTa^, aorist), to renew them again unto repent
ance (rrdXiv dvaKaivi^eiv et? perdvoiav).
1 'ASivarov yap. J. C. Wolfius observes that various, writers,
following the ancient Latin version, have rendered the above difficile.
2 "Arra£. Vox enrol hie est plene, perfecte, ut Juda? v. 3, 5, et Hebr.
ix. 7. Confer M. Christ. Wolle dissert, de vera fictaque particularum
emphasi, quse Ecclesise ejus Pharisaicse et Christianse subjuneta est
p. 306. Ita scholia Thucydidis, lib. i., p. 78. to awag per rvavreXas
exponunt. J. C. Wolfius, in he. The ordinary signification " once "
is the best.
' *<»t. i.e., brought to a saving knowledge of Christ as the Messiah.
Jesus, in virtue of his office, claimed to fulfil the requirements of Is.
xlix. 6, saying (John viii. 12), 'Eyaelpi to (pas tov Koo-pov, 6 dmXov&av
ipol ov pi) TrepiTTarqo-ei iv rfj arKOTia ; dXX' e£ei to <pas ttjs £arjs ; and this
witness the '• beloved disciple " bears to him (John i. 9), r/v rb (pas to
dXvBivbv b (pari^ei irdvra avBpamov ipxdpevov els tov Kocrpov. E. D. Kimchi
admits that the person spoken of by Isaiah, in his forty-ninth chapter,
is the Messiah. Compare 2 Cor., iv. 6, "eXap-fyev iv rdis KapSlais rjpa>v,
irpbs (pario-pbv ttjs yvaaeas ttjs 8b£vs tov Qeov iv irpoo-dma lrjo-ov Xpio-rov."
In support of my yiew I would adduce the following very apposite

62 CHAP. VI., 6.
remarks of J. C. Wolfius :— " Tovs (pano-Bivras, Patres Grseci et Latini
" permulti de baptisatis accipiunt. Locos eorum babes apud Suicerum,
" voce dvajldnTio-is, Num. ii. 1 et verbo dvao-ravpda, Num. ii. item in
" Observatt. Sacris., p. 75, quos et Fesselius noster, in Adversariis
" Sacris, tom. ii., p. 108, sq. attulit. Uterque tamen eorum rectius censet
" doctrinam veritatis coelestis edoctos, significari. Hanc Pauli mentem
" esse patet, ex loco parallelo Hebr. x. 26, ubi (parl£eo-8ai illud dicitur,
" Xafieiv rr)v emyvaaiv Tr)s dXvBeias, quemadmodum 1 Cor. iv. 4, (pano-pbs
" tov evayyeXiov tt)s 8dt-ns tov Xpio-rov, appellatur. Sic oi LXX. verbum
" Hebraicum mm , i e., docuit, Jud. xiii. 8, et 2 Eeg. xii. 2, (pariCeiv
" reddunt. Qui de baptismo acceperunt Patres, ilia setate vixerunt, qua
" sacrum hoc lavacrum (pario-pbs, speciatim appellari coeperat." — Curas
Phihlog. et Crit., tom. iv., p. 662.
4 In further proof that 6 alwv 6 peXXav (sin dVkti) was not understood
to denote the present order of things, but of the life te come, and the
spiritual, supernatural world, Ehenferd, in the tract before cited, De
SecuhFuturo, p. 1124, cites E. Chasdai's reconciliation (in Cod. Schabbat.)
of the two apparently contradictory passages in Isaiah, viz., xxiv. 23
and xxx. 26, in the former of which passages it is said, the sun shall be
ashamed and the moon shall be confounded, and in the latter, the light of
the moon shall be like the light of the sun.
The first passage, he says, relates to the days of Messiah, but the
second to the world to come (nw dVis). The passage is as follows : —
rrann -hot Tmbrt -\i« rrm rroi nnnn new rmbn mam a'na 'tn tncn n
: san dYisY ]to nionn niD^ -pa tcap vb
So also Eabbi Eliezer (ibid., p. 1123): —
ton abwb ]n )'Voa ta» pVoa ]m rrcon niD'1; fjs -iw^s 'i urfi ion in« jvtft nosi
" They say that E. Eliezer gave a different opinion, and said that they
" (arms) shall not cease in the days of Messiah, but in the world to
" come."
Verse 6. — Crucifying, as they do, the Son of God over
again, and putting Him to (exposing Him to) a public
reproach1 (dvacrravpovvTa<;, "7rapa8eiypaTi%ovTa<;, i.e., whilst
they continue to do so, and persevere in so scandalous a
course of blaspheming opposition. With rend sic, fiir sich
selbst, den Sohn Gottes neu krenzigen und verhoncn. — Ewald).
The key to the writer's meaning is contained in the
change from the aorist to the present participle.*
* Ewald, whose work, Das Sendschreiben an die Hebraer, Gottingen,
1870, 8vo., has only come into my hands after the above was in type,
takes a similar view of the passage, pp. 80, 81.

CHAP. VI., 7, 8. 63
1 A primary condition of return to the synagogue was the public and
contumelious abjuration of the name of Jesus ; and it is to this that
St. Paul alludes when he says, Acts xxvi. 11, "And I punished them
" oft in every synagogue, and compelled them to blaspheme ; and being
" exceedingly mad against them, I persecuted them even unto strange
" cities." Of the rancorous hatred and spiteful contempt in which the
name of Jesus is held amongst Eabbinic Jews, the ordinary Chris
tian reader can form no conception. If the student desires to follow
this subject further, he can consult the scurrilous tractate entitled,
w nvrtin -ed The book of the Generations of Jesus, and the other
treatises contained in Wagenseil's Tela ignea Satance.
Verses 7, 8. — For the earth which drinketh in the rain that
cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs (fioTavnv)
meet for those by whom it is dressed (yewpyelrai), partakes
of God's (primal) blessing (peTaXapbfidvei eiXoyia<; afro tov
@eov, shares in the implied promise of fertility given Gen.
i. 11, " Let the earth bring forth grass," &c. BXacmqaaTO)
r) yr) fiordvnv, k.t.X. LXX.). But that which beareth
thorns and thistles, is good for nothing, and nigh to the
condition of cursing (as spoken, Gen. iii. 17, 18, "Cursed
"is the ground for thy sake. . . Thorns and thistles it
" shall bring forth to thee." 'EiriKardparo'; r] yr) ev roil
epyois crov . . . aKavQas Kai rptfioXovs dvareXei o~oi. LXX.),
whose end is for burning (r)? to reXo<; ets Kavcriv, i.e., which
is only available to make fuel from. See 0. Strauss,
Nahumi de Nino vaticinium, pp. 31, 32. Berolini, 1853,
8vo.) Having thus illustrated the futility of rehearsing
the elements of the Gospel in such unworthy and
listless hearing, the writer now, with delicate tact,
changes the severity of his tone, and assures those
for whom the Epistle is designed, that he is per
suaded better things of them, even things that
accompany salvation, "although we thus speak."
They have already proved themselves like the fertile
soil ; they have not drunk in the gracious rain for

64 CHAP. VI., 9—14.
naught, but have brought forth the fruits of righte
ousness.
Verses 9 — 14. — But we are persuaded better things (the
better alternative, ra Kpelrrova) concerning you, Beloved,
even things that accompany salvation, although we thus
speak. For God is not unjust to have forgotten your work
and the labour (kottov) of love which ye have exhibited to
wards his name (el<; to ovopa avrov), seeing that ye have
ministered, and yet minister, to the saints. But we are
anxious that every one of you should exhibit the same un
flagging zeal (airovSrjv) with respect to the full realisation
(irXripoijiopiav) of your (heavenly) hope unto the end. So that
you may not lag behind (vcodpol, remiss, see Stuart, v. 12),
but be imitators of those who through faith and long-
suffering (paKpoOvpias, nil "pN slow of spirit, patient,
Eccl. vii. 8) inherited (KXrjpovopovvroov, realised) the
promises. For when God gave Abraham the promise,
since he had no greater to swear by, he sware by Himself '
(Gen. xxii. 16, triMtM "o)> saying (Gen. xxii. 17),
" Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I
will multiply thee.2
1 apoo-e KaB' eavrov. The Talmudical treatise Berachoth, fol. 32, 1,
has the following on Exod. xxxii. 13, " Remember Abraham, Isaac, and
" Israel, thy servants, to whom thou sicarest ('a) by thine oirn self."
" What does 'a denote ? E. Eliezer answered : Moses spake thus to the
" Holy One, Blessed be He ; Lord of the World, if thou hadst sworn by
" the very heavens and the earth, then I should have said : As the heavens
" and the earth shall perish, so also thy oath. But now Thou hast
" sworn to them by thy great name, which lives and endures for ever,
" so also shall thy oath endure for ever and ever more."
2 *H pr)v euXoySv eiXoyrjcra erf, xal TrXrjBvvav irXvBvva ere, a nearly literal
and Hebraistic translation of the original, "jr-ii n» na-ia naini -iaia« to '3.
Professor Stuart, by a singular oversight, says that " in this passage
" (Gen. xxii. 17) the Hebrew runs naim -jrn n» na-w, I will greatly
" multiply thy seed, but in Gen. xvii. 2 it is ind irnaa -rnw nai» , I will
" multiply thee. The Apostle appeal's to unite both expressions in the

CHAP. VI., 15—20. 65
" quotation before us." The real translation of the latter verse, which
reads ind isoa ^n« naisi, is, And I will multiply thee very exceedingly,
whilst Gen. xxii. 17 concludes with the words, " As the stars of heaven
" and as the sand which is on the sea shore, and thy seed shall possess
" the gate of his enemies."
Verses 15 — 20. — And so having patiently waited, he
obtained the promise.1 Now men are in the habit of appeal
ing by oath to Him that is greater (Kara rov p,ei£ovo<;, or
to a thing that is greater, e.g., the temple, the altar), and
the oath (adduced) in confirmation (et? fiefiaiuiaiv) is to
them an end of all gainsaying (dvnXoyias, i.e., what is
affirmed is thenceforicard taken for granted as true 2) . On
which account (eV &j) God, being desirous to demonstrate
more abundantly to those that should inherit the promise,
the immutability of his purpose, interposed by an oath a
(epeairevaev opKa>, i.e., put an oath between Himself and the
believers). In order that by two immutable things (God's
word 4 and God's oath 6) in which it was impossible for
God to prove false (¦tyevaacrdai), we, who have fled 6 to lay
hold upon the hope set before us, might have a strong
(J,aj(vpav) consolation, which (hope) we have as an anchor7
of the soul, sure (da(f>aXr), which slips not its hold) and
stedfast, and which enters into that which is within the
veil (i.e., the very presence of God), whither, as a forerunner,
on our behalf, Jesus has gone in, being made a high
priest for ever after the order of Melchisedek.
1 Again, oddly enough, Professor Stuart says, " In our text the Apostle
" refers to the promised blessing of a Son, which after long waiting
"Abraham obtained." I have shown (note 1, p. 64) that the above
is a literal quotation from Gen. xxii. 17. The mention of the oath
(verse 16) sets the matter at rest, because this circumstance is not found
in Gen. xvii., although the renewal of the covenant and the institution of
circumcision are therein contained. As, therefore, the writer to the
Hebrews plainly cites from Gen. xxii., the iirayyeXia received cannot
mean the birth of Isaac. It was in consequence of Abraham's readi
ness to obey the Divine command, and to offer up Isaac his only son,
that God renewed the promise of blessing, and multiplication of his
K

66 CHAP. VI., 15^20.
seed, together with the crowning blessing, " in thy seed shall all the
" nations of the earth account themselves blessed (laianm), because thou
" hast obeyed my voice." What, then, was the blessing which Abra
ham paKpo8vpr)o-as inervxel Undoubtedly the blessing to himself and
all his seed by faith, viz., redemption through the Messiah, even Christ.
That this is the true meaning of the writer we see from verses 17, 18. God
gave the double assurance of his word and his oath, " to demonstrate
" (toT? KXvpovdpois rrjs inayyeXias to dperdBerov rr)s fiovXrjs avrov) to those
" who should inherit the promise, the unchangeableness of his purpose, in
" order that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible that
" God should lie, we who have fled to lay hold upon the hope set before
"us, might have a strong consolation." It was a hope, then, which
was to be handed on, still in suspense at the death of Abraham, a
hope of blessedness and salvation which he then himself personally
realised, and also in his lifetime, by the eye of faith. In respect to the
personal and individual fulfilment of the promise to ourselves, we still
" walk by faith not by sight." To the persecuted Hebrews this allusion
to Abraham's hope and reward was full of consolatory meaning. He
had forsaken all for this hope, and lived as a stranger and pilgrim upon
earth. But he had gained the best of all rewards. The Jewish expres
sion, "Abraham's bosom," denoted the rest of the righteous in the
better world (Luke xvi. 22), in which they wait for the " Eesurrection
of the Just."
2 Philo says, " Doubtful things are decided by an oath, things uncon-
" firmed are, by it, made sure, and incredible things receive credibility.''
To iv8oia£6peva Tav irpaypdrav BpKa 8iaKpiverai, Kal ra dfieftaia ftefiaiov-
rai, Kal ra airio-ra Xapjldvei ¦n'umv. Quod a Deo mittantur Somnia,
Works. Mangey's Edit., vol. i., p. 622.
3 'Epeo-tTevo-ev. A similar use of the word is found in Josephus
(Antiq. xvi. 4, 3, near the end of the section) : fiioVep iwl ra ndvrav
8eo-ndrv Kaio-api peo-irevovri tov irapbvra Kaipbv o-vvriBepeBa Tavrvv tt)v
o-vvBrjKvv. " Wherefore we will make this agreement, before Caesar the
" Lord of all, who is now a mediator between us."
1 The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan both translate wara 'a,
by " By my Word have I sworn."
6 Philo (S. S. Legum Allegoriarum, lib. iii.) observes (on Gen. xxii.
16) that God alone can swear by Himself, because no created being can
apeak definitely or certainly concerning his nature and essence, or of
his works. They are, therefore, to be accounted impious who declare
that they swear by God. To do this is His prerogative alone. " Suffi-
" cient is it for us if we are able to know somewhat respecting the
" nature of his Name ; that is to say, of his interpreting Word. (Tou

CHAP. VII., 1, 2. 67
" ippnveas Xoyov.) For he is the God of us imperfect mortals, being the
" first of all wise and perfect things. Moreover, Moses admiring the
" excellency of the Unbegotten (rr)v virepjZoXrjv Bavpdcras tov dyevvr)Tov),
" says (Deut. vi. 13), Ye shall also swear by his Name, not, by (God)
" Himself. For it is sufficient to pledge ourselves by his Son, and to
" obtain the testimony of the Divine Word. (iKavbv yap ra yevvnra
" mo-TovaBai, Kal paprvpeio-Bai Xdya 6eia.)" — Works, Mangey's Edit.,
vol. i., p. 128.
And again, &no-l yap, fear' epavrov apoo-a, irap' a 6 Xdyos SpKos icrri,
eveKa tov rr)v Sidvoiav aKXivas Kal traylas en paXXov 17 rtpdrepov ipvpeio-dai.
" He whose word is equivalent to an oath, declares, by myself have I
" sworn, to the intent that his mind might be even more immoveably
" and firmly fixed in its persuasion than before." — Ibid., De Abrahamo,
vol. ii., p. 39.
6 They had made shipwreck of all their earthly prospects. The hope
of redemption, the " rest of God," is the harbour of refuge into which
they had fled for shelter, until life's storms should be overpast. Their
aggravated and harassing persecutions are again alluded to, with
touching tenderness and sympathy, in chap. x. 32 — 34.
7 'Qs SyKvpav. Dassovius understands ayicvpav to mean the- hook to
which the veil was suspended ; but it is the hope, not the anchor, which
enters within the veil. An anchor " sure and stedfast " is an apt
illustration of the Christian's hope.

CHAPTER VII.

With admirable dexterity, the writer has now
worked round to the topic originally in hand,
viz., the difficult parallelism between the High
Priesthood of Christ and the high priesthood of
Melchisedek, and he presents it to his readers in
the most endearing and engaging aspect. Their
sympathies cannot fail to go with their under
standings. The tender chord of personal experience
has been touched by the delicate allusion to the
real hardships which at that moment pressed upon

68 CHAP. VII., 1, 2.
the Hebrew converts on every side. Jesus, in his
most beautiful aspect, a " comforter of those that
are cast down," a refuge : for the afflicted, has been
held up to their view. He is not a high priest who
cannot be touched with the feeling of their infirmi
ties. His own stedfastness was sorely tried, He is
therefore able to succour those that are tempted.
Thus having attuned their minds to give heed to
the things spoken, the writer proceeds to draw out
the correspondence between Christ and Melchisedek,
and to show how the greater High Priesthood was
evermore designed, ultimately to supersede the
Aaronic.
Verses 1, 2.— Now this Melchisedek, King of Salem,2 a
priest of the Most High God, he, namely, who met
Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings
(Gen. xiv. 18), and blessed him ; to whom also Abraham
divided a tenth of all (the spoils).3
1 Thus had the King Messiah been described in Isaiah xxxii. 1, 2,
" Behold, a king shall reign in righteousness, and princes shall rule in
" judgment. And a man shall be as an hiding place from the wind, and
" a covert from the tempest ; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the
" shadow of a great rock in a weary land." So also in Isaiah xiii. 1 — 4,
which the Targum thus paraphrases, " Behold my servant the Mes
siah," vttwo naj> sn &c.
2 Bao-iXevs 2aXrjp. The LXX. version of Gen. xiv. 18 agrees exactly
with the Hebrew, Kal MeXxiceSeK fiao-iXevs SaX^/i i£r)veyKev aprovs Kal
oivov, fjv 8e lepeis tov GeoO toO v^io-rov. " And Melchizedek, King of
" Salem, brought forth bread and wine, but he was priest of the Most
" High God." The Hebrew reads, Mini p crib x'sin dru -[to yis owi
]vbs bvh jna . From this it will be seen that the LXX. translators, in
common with their Hebrew-speaking brethren, regarded Salem as the
name of a locality. Prom Psalm lxxvi. 2 (3) it is evident that Salem was
a designation of Jerusalem, p'sa irowoi 13D otoa vn , unless perchance
the Psalmist refers back to the Salem of which Melchizedek was king,

CHAP. VII., 1, 2. 69
and supposing that Salem was not identical with the holy city. The
LXX. here render 1DD Dtoa <im by iyevr)8v iv elprjvv 6 tottos alrov, and
the Vulgate, " Et factus est in pace locus ejus." Luther translates,
" Zu Salem ist sein Gezelt." The Targum and the Syriac version under
stand Jerusalem to be designated. In Genesis xxxiii. 18 another Salem,
or Shalem, is mentioned, oara to Dto aips>' «a-i , ko.1 rjXBev Iukw/3 els 2aXr)p,
irdXiv SvKipav, and the Samaritans lay claim to the meeting of Abraham
with Melchizedek, for Mount Gerizim. The Targum of Onkelos thus
paraphrases Gen. xiv. 8, "And Malki-zedek, King of Yerushelem,
" brought forth bread and wine (chemar), and he was minister (mesha-
" mesh) before El Illaah (and he was Kohen of the Most Mighty,
" Sam. Vers.) ; and he blessed him, and said,
" ' Blessed be Abram before El Illaah,
Whose possession is heaven and earth ;
And blessed be El Illaah,
Who hath delivered thine enemies into thine hand.'
" And he gave him one in ten of the whole. And the King of Sedom
" said," &c.
The Targum of Palestine has, " And Malka Zadika, who was Shem
" bar Noah, the King of Yerushalem, came forth to meet Abram, and
" brought forth to him bread and wine ; and in that time he ministered
" before Eloha Ilaha (Jerusalem Targ., ' And Malki Zedek, King of
" ' Yerushalem, who was Shem, who was the great priest of the Most
" ' High '). And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of the
" Lord God Most High, who for the righteous possesseth the heavens
" and the earth. And blessed be Eloha Ilaha, who hath made thine
" enemies as a shield which receiveth a blow. And he gave him one of
" ten, of all which he brought back. And the King of Sedom said,"
&c. — Etheridge's Targums, in loc. From the above it is plain that the
Targums give no sanction to Mr. Grove's assertion in his article Salem,
in Smith's Dictionary of the Bible : — ¦" Indeed, it is not certain that
" there is any connexion of time or place between Abram's encounter
" with the King of Sodom and the appearance of Melchizedek" ! Surely
Mr. Grove did not wilfully set aside, as valueless, the words of the
canonical writer to the Hebrews, 6 o-vvavri)o-as 'Ajipadp viroarri(povTi airb
rr)s kotttjs Tav [lao-iXeav. In Gen. xiv. 17 precisely similar language is
held respecting the King of Sodom, who was certainly present at the
meeting. With this latter opinion Dr. Delitzsch (see p. 71) coincides,
e.g., "Der Konig Sodoms der dabei gegenwartig zu denken ist." — Die
Genesis, p. 267. In verse 17 it is said,
cmton n«i ins^-na to niano lauo 'inn ito-0 did -jta >en . 'E£^X0e. 8e
j3ao-iXevs 2o8dpav els o-vvdvrr)0-iv avrw, pera. to viroo-rpexjrai avrbv drib ttjs

70 CHAP. VII., 1, 2.
Koirrjs tov Xo*o\Xoyopbp, Kal rav ftacriXeav k.t.X. Then follows, in verses
18—20, the incident of Melchizedek's meeting with, and blessing
Abraham ; and then verse 21 resumes, did ~\bn -\D«'i , Eore 8e ftao-iXevs
2o8(5pw k.t.X. The inference from the above is plain. Melchizedek
did meet Abraham on his return from the slaughter of the kings. The
King of Sodom, who had previously arrived, was present at the
meeting. The blessing of Melchizedek is in special reference to the
victory which Abraham had just gained (19, 20) ; and, lastly, the
neighbourhood of Sodom makes it very probable indeed that Salem was
Jerusalem, if, indeed, the epithet is not to be understood, as the
?inn erra does, of the "Jerusalem above." Josephus, Antiq., i. 10,
2, arranges the events in a similar order : — 'Anr)vrno-e 8e avra 6 rav
SoSopirav fiao-iXebs els tottov riva ov KaXovci TIeSlov fiao-iXiKOV evBa 6 Ttjs
26Xvpa 7rdXeas vrro8exerai ftacrtXevs avrbv MeXxio-e8eKvs- o-npaivei 8e tovto
fiao-iXeiis 8iKaios' Kal r\v 8e toiovtos opoXoyovpevas, as 8ta Tavrvv avrbv
rr)v alriav Kal lepea yeveo-Bai toO Beov' rr)v pivroi SdXvpa verrepov eKaXeaav
'lepoo-oXvpa' exopiyyvae 8e oZros 6 MeXxio~e8eKVS ra 'Afipdpov arpara £evia
Kal woXXr/v d(p0oviav rav iwirnSeiav Trapeze, Kal rrapa ttjv evaxiav airdv
re eiraiveiv rjpi-aTO Kal tov Bebv eiXoyeiv vnoxeipiovs avra noirjo-avra tovs
exBpois. 'Aftpdpov 8e 8t8dvros Kal ttjv 8eKarqv ttjs Xeias avra, npooSexeTai
tt)v Sdo-iV 6 8e rav 2o8opirav /Hao-iXevs rr)v pev Xeiav exeiv "Afipapov
napeKaXei, k.t.X. " Now the King of Sodom met him at a certain place
" which they called the King's Dale, where Melchisedek, King of the
" city Salem, received him. That name signifies the Righteous King ;
" and such he was without dispute, insomuch that, on this account,
" he was made the priest of God : however, they afterwards called Salem
"Jerusalem. Now this Melchisedek supplied Abram's army in an
" hospitable manner, and gave them provisions in abundance ; and as
" they were feasting he began to praise him, and to bless God for
" subduing his enemies under him. And when Abram gave him a
" tenth of his prey, he accepted of the gift ; but the King of Sodom
" desired Abram to take the prey."
Josephus (De Bell. Judaico, vi. 10) again refers to Melchizedek as
follows : — 'O 8e nparos (cruras r/v Xavavaiav 8vvdo-rns, 6 rjj warpia yXao-o-g
KXvBels flao-iXevs SUaws' f)v yap 8r) toiovtos. 8id tovto iepdo-ard re ra Bed
TTparos, Kal to lepbv irparos 8eipdpevos lepoadXvpa ttjv 7rdXiv irpoo-vydpevo-e,
'S.dXvpa KaXovpevnv npdrepov. ' ' But he who first built it (Jerusalem)
" was a potent man among the Canaanites, and is in our tongue called
" the Bighteous King, for such he really was ; on which account he
" was (there) the first priest of God, and first built a temple (there), and
" called the city Jerusalem, which was formerly called Salem." On
this passage Whiston, whose translation I have followed, observes : —

CHAP. VII., 1, 2. 71
" Why the great Bochart. should say (De Phoenic. Colon,, b. ii., c. iv.)
" that there are in this clause of Josephus ' as many mistakes as words,'
" I do by no means understand. Josephus thought Melchizedek first
" built, or rather rebuilt and adorned this city, and that it was then
" called Salem, as Psal. lxxvi. 2 ; that it afterwards came to be called
" Jerusalem ; and that Melchizedek, being a priest as well as king,
"built to the true God therein a temple, or place for public divine
" worship and sacrifice ; all which things may be very true for aught
" we know to the contrary ; and for the word lepov, or Temple, as if it
" must needs belong to the great temple built by Solomon long after-
" ward, Josephus himself uses vaos, for the small tabernacle of Moses,
" Antiq. iii., 6, 4. See also Antiq. iii., 6, 1, as he here presently uses
" iepov for a large and splendid synagogue of the Jews at Antioch only,
" vii., 3, 3." (Note on Wars of the Jews, vi. 10.)
Dr. Gill (on Heb. vii. 1) says, " Aben Ezra says his name signifies
" what he was, the king of a righteous place. Salem, of which he was
" king, was not Shalem, a city of Shechem, in the land of Canaan,
" Gen. xxxiii. 18, afterwards called Salmi, near to which John was bap-
" tizing, John iii. 23, where is shown the palace of Melchizedek in its
" ruins, which cannot be, since that city was laid to the ground and
" sowed with salt by Abimelech, Judges ix. 15, but Jerusalem is the
" place ; which is the constant opinion of the Jews (Targ. Onk., Jon.,
" and Jerus., Levi ben Gersom, Aben Ezra, and Ben Melee in Gen.
'' xiv. 18, Tosaphot T. Bab. Taanith, fol. 16, 1), and is called Salem in
" Ps. lxxvi. 2. The interpretation of this word is given in the next
" verse ; some of the Jewish writers referred to, say that it was usual
" for the kings of Jerusalem to be called Melchisedec and Adoni-
" zedek, as in Josh. x. 3, just as the kings of Egypt were called
" Pharaoh." Dr. Delitzsch (Die Genesis, pp. 266, 267) writes as follows : — "Der
" Konig Sodoms zog dem rtickkehrenden Sieger entgegen nach niffl pos
" d.i. dem spater sogenannten Konigsthal; auch Malchizedek, der
" Konig Salems fand sich da ein. Da wir liber das Konigsthal sonst
" weiter nichts wissen, als dass Absalom sich dort ein Denkmal
" errichtete, 2 Sam. xviii. 18, und aus 2 Sam. xiii. 23, nicht mit
" Sicherheit geschlossen werden kann, das es in oder bei Efraim zu
" suchen sei, so ist es zweifelhaft, ob Malkizedek, wie prs '3i» Jos. x. 1,
" Konig Jerusalems ist, welches auch Ps. lxxvi. 3, abm heisst, oder ob
" Salem, seine Konigsstadt, das Salem der Jordansaue, Joh. iii. 23,
" Judith iv. 4, ist, das 8 romische Meilen siidlich von Scythopolis
"gelegene Salumias, wo man zu Hieronymus' Zeit, Kuinen des
" angeblichen Palastes Malkizedeks zeigte. Im ersteren Falle ist

72 CHAP. VII., 2—5.
" Abram, wie schon Eupolemus bei Eusebius, Prmp. 9, 17, annimmt,
* durch Samarien auf dem Heimwege nach Hebron begriffen, indem
" er gelegenen Orts die Gefangenen mit der Beute nach ihrer
" siidostlichen Heimath zu entlassen gedenkt, im letzteren Palle folgt er
" dem Jordanthale nach Sodom um Gefangene und Beute selber
'¦' zuruck zu bringen." Those who desire to pursue the subject further
may consult Wolfius, Cur. Phil., tom. iv., p. 670, &c. ; Dr. Gills Com
mentary on Gen. xiv. 18, and Hebr. vii., Bp. Wordsworth ; and the
articles Salem and Melchizedek, in Smith's Diet, of the Bible.
3 AeKarvv drrb rrdvrav. Dr. Gill remarks (in he.), "Philo the Jew
" (De Congressu, p. 438) renders the Hebrew phrase too -ro»o (Gen. xiv.
" 20) just as the Apostle does SeKarvv airb iravrav, a tenth part of all, or
" out of all ; not of all that he brought back, as Lot's goods, or the
"King of Sodom's, or any others ; only of the spoils of the enemy."
See verse 4j Sexdrijv Afipabp e8aKev iK twv aKpoBiviav.
Verses 2 — 5. — First being interpreted ' King of Eighte-
ousness, and then also King of Salem, wliich is King of
Peace ; 2 twithout father, without mother, without pedigree,*
having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but
exactly resembling the Son of God,4 remaineth a priest
in perpetuity (els to SirjveKes) .5 But observe how great 6
this personage7 must have been, to whom Abraham,
the patriarch, gave a tenth of the spoils. But those
from amongst the sons of Levi who receive the priestly
office are expressly directed,8 according to the law, to
exact tithes from the people, their own brethren, although
they came forth from the loins of Abraham.9
1 Bao-tXevs 8iKaioo-vvvs. Schoettgen (in he.) observes, " Sic in Bre-
" schith Babba, sect. 43, fol. 42, 1, pis ota exponitur, vawv to pnso,
" Justlficans habitatores suos. Addunt tamen aliam interpretationem
" sed more suo satis detortam. Quia enim Malki Zedek et Adoni Zedek
" reges Hierosolymse fuerunt, concludunt exinde, nomen urbis Hieroso-
"lymitanae fuisse pis, justitia, et hue trahunt verba Jesa. i. 21,
" na jty pis , Justitia habitabit in ea" For Josephus' interpretation,
which I have given at length, see note on p. 70. Philo (S. S. Legum
Alleg., lib. iii., Works, Mang., torn, i., p. 103) writes, KaXeirai yap
" Pao-iXei/s SiKaws, k.t.X., " He is called a Righteous King" &c.

CHAP. VII., 2—5. , 73
Bao-. 2aX. o eo"rt j3ao\ elpi)vvs.
Prom note 2, p. 68, it will have been apparent that the writer to the
Hebrews assigns a definite locality, whether terrestrial or celestial,
to Melchizedek as the seat of his regal jurisdiction, viz., Salem. It is
in the first instance the proper name of a city. Now, however, the
writer proceeds to explain the symbolical meaning of d1;® ~fm, as he
has already done with the proper name of its king, pis 'ato . As his
interpretation of the latter agrees with that given by Josephus
(Ant. i. 10, 2, De Bell. Jud. vi. 10), so does his interpretation of King
of Salem agree with that of Philo (SS. Leg. Alleg., lib. iii., Works,
tom. i., pp. 102, 103), who calls Melchizedek fiao-CXea rr)s elpr)vns,
and rjyepdva elpi]vvs. Respecting the Messiah, Isaiah, ix. 6 (5), declared
that one of his names should be called dV>w iw, Prince of Peace, and to
the Messiah the Targum applies the prophecy ; " Said the prophet to
" the house of David : For to us a Son is born, to us a Son is given ;
" and He shall receive the Law upon Him to keep it ; and His name is
" called from of old, Wonderful, Counsellor, Eloha the Mighty, Abiding
" to Eternity, the Messiah, because peace shall be multiplied upon us
" in his days." See also Ewald, Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 89.
Schoettgen (tom. ii., p. 18) cites from the Prologue to the Midrasch
Echa, a passage quoted by Raymond Martin, in his Pugio Fidei, ii. 9,
21, and also by Hadrian Finus, in his Flayellum Judceorum, ii. 7, iii. 18,
which also applies Is. ix 6 (5) to the Messiah : — " R. Joshua the Galilean
" said, The name of Messiah is Peace, as it is written in Is. ix. 5, Father
" of the World to come (Eternity), Prince of Peace." Schoettgen,
however, declares that he could not find the passage in the printed
copies to which he had access. He further (tom. i., p. 958) gives the
Bereschith Rabba as the authority for the ridiculous Jewish conceit
that Melchizedek was called rtrc ~fm, Perfect King, because he was
born circumcised, Vino iVow, Circumcised people the Rabbinists call
"perfect," and justify their doing so from Gen. xvii. 1, where it is said,
owi rrm, "and be thou perfect," which means (say they) "be cir
cumcised." 3 'Airdrap, dprjrap, k.t.X. This passage plainly indicates Melchizedek's
Divine origin. A solution has been sought in the assertion, that the
Jewish High Priests were obliged to be descended from the stock of
Aaron both on the father's and the mother's side. To such a genealogy
neither Christ nor Melchisedek laid any claim ; and could it be shown
that the Jews made use of similar phraseology to designate a priest, whose
genealogical title to the High Priesthood was defective on the side of
either parent, the explanation might have some weight. The words would
contain a very intelligible reply to the cavils of the unbelieving Jews

74 CHAP! VII., 2—5.
against the High Priesthood of Christ, who objected to Jesus, that he was
not in any way descended from Aaron, and therefore was no priest at all.
The answer would be as follows : — " Melchizedek was, as you say,
" 'Andrap, dprjTap, dyeveaXdyrjTOS, but it is written in Ps. CX. 4 of
" Messiah, The Lord hath sworn, and will not repent, thou art a priest
"for ever after the order of Melchizedek. — Therefore, Messiah is a true
" priest, ' after the order of Melchisedek,' and a greater High Priest
" than Aaron, for Abraham your father gave Melchizedek tithes."
I have already shown (pp. 53, 54) that the most ancient Jews regarded
Melchizedek as a type of the Messiah, if not identical with him. The
D^Mn vma asserts on Gen. xiv. 18, Melchisedek the King of Salem,
rf»n it d^oti' u, This is the Jerusalem above. Schoett., tom. i., p. 1 210. But
unfortunately the information is missing which would enable us to
interpret 'Andrap, k t.X., certainly, according to Jewish tradition.
Schoettgen, indeed, following Suidas, believes that Melchizedek was of
the cursed race of Canaan, and endeavours to show that being a Gentile
he would be termed in Jewish phraseology dirdrap. But I would ven
ture to submit that the premises upon which this theory is built are, to
say the least, doubtful and hazardous, and the example which he adduces
from the Bereschith Rabba, sect. 18, fol. 18, 2, is not strictly in point.
The passage relates to the words, " Wherefore a man shall leave his
" father and his mother," and is as follows : — " A proselyte, who has
" passed over to the Jewish religion, and has married his sister, whether
" she be of the same father, or the same mother, he must put her away :
" so says R. Meir. But our wise men say, If she be of the same mother,
" he must put her away ; but if she be of the same father, he may keep
" her ; itf an j'Nffl, for a Gentile has no father ; " that is, his father is
of no account in the genealogies of the Jews. Even granting that
aTTaTap is explained by the above, the difficulty concerning dpi)Tap is,
if anything, increased. Indeed, Schoettgen seems to feel the weakness
of his own theory, for he adds :— " Quod in gentilibus usu venit, idem
" de reliquis statuendum, quamvis exempla de singulis adferre non
" possumus. Canon enim philosophicus est ; Qui in uno tertio con-
"veniunt, de illis eadem prasdicari solent." Now, granting for the
sake of Schoettgen's proposition, that Melchizedek was a Canaanite,
our Lord Jesus Christ was of Jewish parents, and two genealogies of
his parentage exist. How, then, can He be said to be d-ndrap in this
technical sense ? Much more, how can He be said to be dpTJTap and
dyeveaXdyrjTOS ? In Ezra ii. 61, 62, Neh. vii. 63, 64, we find an example
of priests who were disqualified from following the priestly office, in
consequence of a defect in the genealogical proofs of the purity of their
descent. But the real question at issue, in respect to the word dpi]Tap,

CHAP. VII., 2-5. 75
is this, Did the Mosaic law prohibit the High Priest from marrying
any virgin except one of his own immediate family connexions ; or, was
he permitted to marry any Israelitish maiden under the restrictions
mentioned in Levit. xxi. 7, 13, 14 ? The entire dispute turns upon the
meaning of the expression, nirn np' vosn rrtiro, he shall take a virgin of
his own people to wife. And again, vora isn bbrv n^i, Neither shall he
profane his seed among his people. The Vulgate renders " puellam de
populo suo " and " Ne commisceat stirpem generis sui vulgo gentis sui "
as Selden observes (De Success, in Pontif. Ebrceor., p. 407, Lugd. Bat.,
1638, 12mo.), " Subindicans proculdubio non solum Virginem pontifici
" ducendam sed etiam ex genere seligendam sacerdotali, quod perpopu-
" lum suum, autor Versionis innui existimavit. Neque ille solus.
" Nam sic etiam disserte Philo, Judseus Alexandrinus, lib. ii., de
" Monorchia." — The words of Philo are, dXXd ko.1 iepeiav e'| lepiav, Iva
eK pias oiKias Kal rpdnov rivd roi> avrov aiparos ao-iv vvp(pids re Kal vvptprj.
" But also a priestess from amongst the priests, ir> order that the bride-
" groom and bride may be of one and the same house, and in a manner
" of one and the same blood." Selden, however, declares that he cannot
find the least trace of such an interpretation, either in the Talmud or
in Josephus. They both understand vdsd, of his own people, of the
people of Israel in general. "Et Aben Ezra ad dictum locum, Ratio est,
" inquit, in adjectione verborum illorum, de populis suis, n'laion nVinan 'a ,
" >b miDrt mn"noni quoniam virgo capta (e1 gentilibus) et Judcea facta, seu
" proselyta, ei inter dicitur. Quam etiam nomine Zona, seu Scorti, ut
"mox patebit, comprehendunt. (See note on vdBoi, Heb. xii. 8.)
" Ex singulari vero vocabuli Uxoris in sacra de Pontificis nuptiis lege
"receptior est sententia polygamiam ei negatam esse." (Ibid., p. 408.)
Cunseus (De Rep. Hebr., lib. iii., Lugd. Bat, 1632, 12mo.) devotes an
entire chapter to the subject of Melchizedek, which is well argued out.
He believes (p. 371), as Ewald does, and I do, that Melchizedek was the
second person in the Ever Blessed Trinity, the Divine angel of the Lord,
who continually appeared to the fathers under the Old Testament dis
pensation. "Ego sic existimo, Melchisedecum, non hominem utique ex
" hominibus genitum, sed divinioris natura; f uisse, majoremque homine
"  qui tanto benedixit patriarchse." And again on p. 379, " Neque
" alio pertinere mihi videtur, quod scriptum a Joanne est, Abram gestiit
" videre- diem meum, et vidit et gavisus est. Id enim uni Abramo contigit,
" et singulare quiddam fuit : cum de casteris illud dicatur, Multi pro-
" pheto3 etjusti cupiverunt videre quaz videtis, et non viderunt. Sed neque
" hoc sentential nostrse repugnat, quod Justitiai ille Pacisque Rex
" aTrdrap mi aprjrap, sine patre ac sine matre fuisse dicitur. Non enim
" profecto Divus Paulus mysterium illud duplicis naturae spectavit,

76 CHAP. VII., 2—5.
" quod ejusmodi est, uti Messise quidem divinitas Patrem, mortalitas
" vero matrem, ac seorsim neutra utrumque parentem agnoscat. Per-
" tinere illud ad ea tempora non potuit, cum nondum hominem induisset
" humani generis Servator. Sed hoc utique sensit potius Apostolus,
" non esse eum communi lege ex patre atque matre, neque ex libidine
" aut conjunctione viri feminseque satum, sed aeternum eum esse, et
" (quod Esaias vates in cap. liii. 8, ait) nihil posse did de generatione ejus
" (tt)v yeveav avrov tis 8ivyr)o-eTai)." For further opinions as to the person
and dignity of Melchizedek the reader should consult the indexes to
Schoettgen's Hor. Hebr., J. C. Wolfii Curre Phil., tom. iv. (in he),
and the erudite article, Melchizedek, by the Rev. W. T. Bullock, in
Smith's Dictionary of the Bible : although, in spite of the dicta of
Suidas and Schoettgen and others, I beg emphatically to dissent
from Mr. Bullock's altogether unwarrantable assertion, that the
opinion " is now generally received " (!) that " Melchizedek was of
" one blood with the children of Ham, among whom he lived, chief
" (hke the King of Sodom) of a, settled Canaanitish tribe." How
it was possible for one of that accursed race to be endowed with an
inherent dignity greater than that of Abraham and of Aaron, and to
be, as the canonical writer to the Hebrews describes it, dq^apdiapevos
ra via tov Qeov, I must leave to a " higher criticism " than my own to
decide. Ewald's opinion will be given, at length, on a succeeding page.
4 'Aipapoiapevos 8e ra via tov Qeov. After the exact pattern, made
exactly like to : dcpopoiapa signifies a copy or facsimile. This is doubt
less an allusion to the before cited Psalm ii. 7 : " I will declare the
" decree, the Lord hath said unto me, Thou art my Son, this day have
'' I begotten thee ;" and also to Ps. xlv. 6, 7, " Thy throne, O God,
" is for ever and ever ; the sceptre of thy kingdom is a right sceptre.
" Thou Invest righteousness, and hatest wickedness : therefore God,
" thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy
" fellows." Of the inherent and hereditary Divine glory of the eternal
Son the writer has already spoken (chaps, i. and ii.). The great
importance of the subject may render a little more detailed examination
of these passages acceptable. The authorship of Psalm ii. has been
with one consent ascribed to David himself. Dr. M'Caul remarks
(The Messiahship of Jesus, pp. 150, 151), "It is certainly a Psalm of
" David. Acts iv. 25 (' who by the mouth of thy servant David hast
" ' said, Why did the heathen rage,' &c.) will satisfy on this point any
" one who believes the New Testament. Rashi and Kimchi ascribe it
" to David himself ; Aben Ezra to the time of David. Even modern
" criticism does not make it later than Solomon. Ewald says, ' This
" ' beautiful Psalm must necessarily have proceeded from the most

CHAP. VII., 2—5. 77
" 'glorious period of the monarchy  confined to the time of David,
" ' and the beginning of Solomon's reign.' Venema gives three reasons
"for ascribing it to David  This Psalm proclaims, therefore, the
" hope of the devout Israelite a thousand years before the coming of
" Christ." It is worthy of further notice that St. Paul (Acts. xiii. 33)
describes the Psalm as being "the second Psalm," e.g., " as it is also
" written in the second Psalm, Thou art my Son, this day have I
" begotten thee." The numerical order of the Psalm was, therefore,
the same in the apostolic days that it is in our own. The Rev. G.
Phillips, D.D., in his very useful commentary on the Psalms, observes
(vol. i., p. 9), "We may remark that the high priest seems to make
" allusion to the Psalm when in Matt. xxvi. 63 he asks Jesus whether
" he were the Christ, the Son of God ; and Nathanael also apparently
" does the same when in John i. 49 he addresses this ejaculation to
" Christ, ' Thou art the Son of God ; thou art the Kingof Israel.' Again
" there is ample evidence to prove that the ancient Jews regarded this
" Psalm as predicting the Messiah ; for it is quoted and so interpreted
" in nearly all their writings which bear in any degree the stamp of
" antiquity. The Jew in Justin Martyr thus understood the Psalm :
" The Talmud, in the treatise Succah, contains a passage in which it is
" stated to be a tradition of the Rabbis, that the 8th verse speaks of
" Messiah, the Son of David. In the Zohar there is found an observa-
" tion of the same import on the expression, Kiss the Son. In the middle
" ages we find Kimchi admitting that the ancient doctors of his nation
" assigned a Messianic sense to the 2d Psalm. Rashi makes the same
" statement, but he adds to it a remark which, however candid it may
" be thought, shows the sad state of the author's mind. His words are —
" was -m bs Tims'; pai D'^an naiiDrti wd«d 'bVi n'\»Dn ~fia b$ psn n» i«-n vmai
" Our Rabbis have explained this Psalm with respect to King Messiah ;
" but for the sake of a literal sense, and for an answer to the Christians
" (Heretics), it is expedient to interpret it with respect to David himself.
" It is true that the words D-ran nawrt are not found in many editions ;
" but Pococke, who searched some MSS. for the purpose of investigating
"the question, has come to the conclusion that the passage as above
" quoted is genuine. Aben Ezra also confesses that the application of
" it to the Messiah is preferable to any other. He says waon bs oni ,
" ina inv lain but if it be interpreted of the Messiah the matter is clearer.
" The Jews of modern times do not acknowledge that Christ was
" intended to be represented in this Psalm, and agree in applying it
" entirely to David ; but in so doing they oppose themselves to the
" universal voice of antiquity, and have no better reason to offer than
" that which is assigned by Rashi." J. A. Danzius, in his treatise

78 CHAP. VII., 2—5.
Inauguratio Christi (p. 386, note e), printed at length in Meuschen,
agrees with Luther's explanation of Dvn, to-day, in this Psalm. Luther
writes : — "Si ut res est loqui velimus, hodie, quotidie, et semper nascitur
" et natus est Filius Dei. Nam in aaterno nee prat, nee fut. est, sed
" perpetuum hodie. Et hodie hie accipiendum pro tempore Dei non
" nostro. Non enim nobiscurn loquitur Deus ; sed cum illo qui est extra
" tempus apud Deum." Danzius, in the passage above mentioned,
writes " -rrnV Dvn ':*», notantercum articulo ; qui in infinitis Scripturse
" locis distributive sumitur, ad universalitatem inferendam, juxta Inter-
" pret. sect. 49, vi., cujus intuitu verteres, ego Quolibet die te genui, ut
" Ps. xcv. 7, Dvn Quolibet die, i.e., quotiescunque audiveritis vocem ejus,
" neobduretis cor vestrum. Jud. xi. 27. Dominus judicans Dvn quolibet
" die, i.e., quotidie : quo sensu et dot sumi Jes. xxi. 8, non tantum "ran
"adjectum indicat ; sed et oppositum mWn, quod vocem ta additam
"habet. Ut enim hoc nodes quascunque denotat ; ita illud vi opposi-
" torum, dies quoscunque. Conf. etiam Gen. xxii. 14, xxxi. 48, non
" tamen neglecto Jes. xliii. 13. Isto eerte modo expetita omnibus
" aaternitatis significatio, quam multi magno molimine non potuerunt
" eruere, sua sponte se aperit. Ex eadem voce nvn Deut. iv. 4, extante,
" aliter seternitatem eruit Philo de Profugis, p.m. 458 (Mangey's Edit.,
" torn, i., p. 554) in fine inquiens, o-r)pepov io-rlv direparos Kal d8ie§lTVTos
" alav. pvvav yap Kal eviavrav Kal avvoXas xpovav 7replo8oi, 8dypara
" avBparrav io-rlv dpiBpbv iKreTipvKOTav' to 8' dyj/ev8es ovopa alavos, r)
" o-r]pepov, i.e., Hodie est infinitum et impervium eevuni. Mensium enim,
" annorum, et in universum temporum circuitus ; dogmata sunt homi-
" num magni facientium numeros : verum autem nomen aevi est Home."
Phillips, however (ibid,, p. 24), considers that deriving the important "
doctrine of the eternal generation of the Son, from Dvn in this verse,
is rather forced criticism. The Talmud, treatise Succah, fol. 52, applies
this verse of the 2d Psalm to the Messiah.
jnm tit 'an*a bxvci na"pn yj idin ira'a rnnca ni^rt Trow -rn p rrwo i"n
s -jn^m en: fnm ':dd Vfra ytr/r- cvn ':« idw pn ^« niEDN ':w -\b
" Our Rabbies have taught that Messiah ben David, who is to be
" revealed speedily in our days, the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to
" him, Ask something of me, and I will give to thee. Als it is said,
" I will declare as to the decree, &c. I this day have begotten thee.
" Ask of me, and I will give the heathen as thine inheritance." As to
the interpretation of the words ia lpwi Kiss the Son, Dr. M'Caul (The
Messiahship of Jesus, p. 151) observes that they "are rendered by the
" LXX. 8pdtjao-8e iraiSeias ; by the Chaldee, in the same sense, lVap
'( kjdSim, and by the Vulgate, ' Apprehendite disciplinam.' Ewald gives
"a similar version, ' Nehmt Rath an' (Receive advice). Of this it is

CHAP. VII., 2—5. 79
" sufficient to say that it is a commentary, but not a translation ; and
" that learned men are not even agreed as to how this explanation could
" have arisen from the words. The verb pw: to kiss, is not employed
" metaphorically in the sense of embracing, laying hold of. ia does not
"ever signify learning. The rendering is, therefore, false. Some
" modern Jews, anxious to get rid of this command to do homage to
" the Son of God, render the words ' Arm yourselves with purity,' but
" the incorrectness of this is easily proved— 1st, the verb pw:, in Piel,
" as it is here, means only to kiss. (See Gen. xxix. 13, xxxi. 28, xxxii. 1,
" xlv. 15.) Gesenius, in his Thesaurus, shows that even in Kal it does
" not mean to ' arm.' 2dly, ia does not mean ' purity.' If it be an
" adjective, then it is ' kiss the pure one.' 3dly, The overwhelming
" weight of authority, Jewish and Gentile, is in favour of our English
" version, ' Kiss the Son.' Of ancients, the Syriac version, and the
" Midrash (which interprets ' Kiss the Son ' of appeasing the Son.
" p 1D"B — Jalkut Shimoni, in he.) Aben Ezra (who refers to Prov.
" xxxi. 2), Mendelssohn, Zunz, Dr. Solomon of Hamburg, Gesenius,
" De Wette, all interpret it of doing homage to the Son. The Son,
" the Anointed, is mentioned before as the Being against whom the
"king and nations rebel. Here they are warned against the conse-
"quences. The word ia is used instead of p, because of jo immedi
ately following," i.e., for euphony's sake, and to prevent two words
of nearly the same sound coming together. The reader will find a
number of early Jewish authorities, in favour of the Messianic and
Christian interpretation, quoted by Schoettgen, Hor. Hebr., tom. ii.,
pp. 227, 230. And now with respect to the Messianic application of
Ps. xlv. Dr. Gill observes that " the Targum in the King of Spain's
" Bible begins the 7th verse thus, ' But thou, O King Messiah, because
" ' thou lovest.' " Schoettgen, tom. ii., pp. 234, 235, adduces nearly
twenty passages from the Targum — the Sohar Chadash, the Bereshith
Rabba, the Jalkut Shimoni, R. Joseph Ben Moshe, Aben Ezra, all of
which apply the Psalm to the Messiah. Dr. Phillips has collected a
goodly number of similar testimonies on p. 340, vol. i., of his Commen
tary. " The Chaldee Interpreter has given the following paraphrase of
" verses 3, 7, 8. Thy beauty, 0 King Messiah, is more excellent than
" that of the sons of men ; the spirit of prophecy is given into Thy lips ;
" therefore Jehovah hath blessed thee for ever. 7, The throne of Thy
" glory, O Jehovah, standeth for ever and ever, a righteous sceptre is
" the sceptre of Thy kingdom. 8, Because that Thou hast loved righte-
" ousness, and hated wickedness : therefore Jehovah, Thy God, hath
"anointed Thee with the oil of gladness more abundantly than thy
" fellows. In win inn (Sohar Chadash), fol. 12, 2, on the words sceptre

80 CHAP. VII., 2—5.
" of righteousness, it is remarked that this is spoken of King Messiah,
" nttoo taba n-i. Joseph ben Moses, in rmn ina fol. 36, 4, observes on
" the 7th and 8th verses, that they speak concerning the King Messiah,
" n-»nn nbo tu d'wd rfw cpiDDn. So, also, the later Jewish commen-
" tators have understood the Psalm. Thus Kimchi, at the commence-
" ment of his Commentary, states that 'this Psalm is said of the King
" Messiah.' Again, Aben Ezra, on verse 2, remarks that ' this Psalm
" treats of David, or rather of his Son Messiah.' Even Mendelssohn
" heads his edition of it with this observation, — ' This Psalm speaks of
" the exaltation and greatness of the King Messiah.' " It ought to
be remembered that several of the above cited Jewish opinions represent
the mind of the Hebrew Church, in the age immediately succeeding
that of the Apostles. It will be then apparent that the New Testament
writers, in their application of the Old Testament Scriptures, employed
a canon of interpretation which was current amongst their unbaptized
brethren. They brought in no forced and strained adaptation of the
prophetical writings, but spoke the words of " truth and soberness."
How grotesque, also, do considerations such as the foregoing make the
impudent figment of a modern " Higher Criticism " appear, viz., that
the Apostles and their followers learned their reverence for any of the
Old Testament writings from the Apocryphal Book of Enoch ! Before
quitting the subject it may not be out of place to call attention to the
LXX. version of the words of Daniel iii. 25. They render 'i mil,
rrflH ~£h nni N'S'll by Kal opao-is tov Terdprov opola via Qeov.
5 MijTe dpx- r)pep., pr)re £afjs riXos exav. This is a reference back to
Psalm cii. 25 — 27, which the writer has already adduced (chap. i. 10 — 12)
to prove the eternity of the Son of God, one of whose names is given in
Is. ix. 6 as ~w 'as , Father, i.e., Possessor, of Eternity. See Dr. M'Caul,
The Messiaship of Jesus, pp. 183 — 185. Schoettgen (Hor. Hebr., torn.
ii., p. 240), commenting on Ps. lxxii. 17, His name shall ensure for ever,
&c, writes :—" Pirke R. Eliezer, c. 3, et Bereschith Rabba, sect. 1,
" fol. 3, 3. Sex res (in Pesachim, fol. 54, 1 ; Nedarim, fol. 39, 2 ;
" Midrasch Tehillim, fol. 35, 4 ; et Midrasch Mischle, fol. 53, 3,
" numerantur septem) fuerunt ante mundum conditum ; et inter eas notnen
" Messice, q.d. Antesolem Jinnonest nomen ejus." (See note 4, pp. 52 — 54.)
Now if Melchizedek was " without beginning of days or end of life,"
but " abideth a priest continually," how can it be believed of him that
he was a mere mortal 1 Tivi apoiao-are Kvpiov ; Kal t'ivi opoiapan
apoiao-are avrdv ; Is. xl. 18 ; see also li. 12. Wolfius" assertion seems
to me utterly unsatisfactory : — " Melchisedecus perpetuus hie dicitur
" Sacerdos, eo quod nee mortis, nee successoris ejus in sacris literis
" mentio est." Melchisedek, as the Divine Logos, existed from eternity.

CHAP. VII., 2—5. 81
" Beapelre 8e irrjXiKos ovros. Spencer (De Legibus Hebr. Rit., tom. ii.,
p. 100 ; Hag. Com., 1686, 4to.) asserts that the heathen nations before
the time of Moses were in the habit of paying tithes to their kings in
virtue of a regal right or claim, and he cites the example of Abraham
in support of his statement : — " Moris autem hujusce fidem haud
"obseuram facit exemplum Abrahami, qui Melchisedechum Salemi
" regem decima donavit, in subjectionis, inferioris certe conditionis et
" dignitatis argumentum : hoc e verbis Apostoli luculenter intelligen-
" dum (Heb. vii. 4). Spectate vero quantus hie fuerit, a Kal SeKarrjv
"'Afipaap e8aKev, cui vel decimam spoliorum dedit Abrahamus ille patri-
" archa. Sic textum reddo, qudd Apostolus, non hie tantum, sed et versu
" secundo, hunc ipsum ordinem loquendi servet, et a Kal SeKdrrjv'Afipaap,
"non a Kal 'Afipaap 8eKarrjv, habeat : ut scilicet innueret, ipsam doni
" qualitatem, non minus quam donantis conditionem, Melchisedechum
"loci regii virum et Abrahamo superiorem indicasse. Interpretes
" itaque, qui sic locum reddere solent, cui Abrahamus etiam patriarcha
" decimam dedit (prout et Anglieani nostri, qui sic vertunt, unto whom
" the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth) ; vim et aculeum argumenti
" Apostolici non satis percepisse videantur. Huic argumento simul et
"assertioni meae momenti nonnihil accedat £ modo citatis prophetse
" verbis, 1 Sam. viii. 15 — 17. Nam ibi de rege loquens Israeli prsefici-
" endo ; Segetes (inquit) vestras, et vinearum reditus addecimabit, ut det
" eunuchis et servis ejus. Greges quoque addecimabit."
7 The following eloquent passage from Prof. Delitzsch (Die Genesis,
p. 267, 268) will prove no unwelcome addition to what has been already
adduced upon the subject of Melchizedek's meeting with Abraham : —
" Abram hat mit nur 318 Mann vier Konige besiegt und fiinf Konige
" gerettet — darin ist er ein Vorbild der in der Kraft des Glaubens die
" Welt iiberwindenden alttestamentlichen Volks und neutestamentlichen
" Geistesgemeinde. Er weist jeden Antheil an der Beute zuriick, denn
" er bedarf der Welt nicht, der er in aufopfernder Liebe dient ; reich
" durch Jehova braucht und mag er sich nicht auf Kosten Anderer
" bereichern von denen nicht zu nehmen, sondern. denen zu geben er
" berufen ist. Da tritt die wunderbare Gestalt Malkizedeks so unver-
" mittelt aus verborgenem Hintergrunde hervor wie sie wieder in den-
" selben verschwindet — ein Konig der nicht bios als Konig, wie der
" Hausvater als Hausvater den priesterlichen Dienst verrichtet (in
" welchem Sinne auch Abram Fiirst, N'Wi , und Priester zugleich ist),
" sondern der in Einer Person mit der Wiirde des Konigs das Amt
" eines Priesters vereinigt und deshalb (wie Abram niej ausdrticklich
" Jn3 genannt wird. Von diesem Priesterkbnig, der ausserhalb der
" Linie und des Kreises der Verheissung steht, lasst Abram sich segnen,
M

82 CHAP. VII., 2—5.
" der Gesegnete Jehova's, der zum Segensmittler aller Volker der Erde
" gesetzt ist. Von diesem Priesterkonig, der keine Berechtigung durch
" Abstammung und Gesetz aufzuweisen hat, lasst sich segnen der
" Ahnherr Israels, der Ahnherr Levi's und Ahrons, der Stammvater
" des Volkes wie des Priesterthums des Gesetzes. Und nicht allein
" das : Abram, in welchem das Priestergeschlecht, welches den Zehnten
" zu empfangen hat, beschlossen ist, giebt diesem Priesterkonig den
" Zehnten der ganzen Beute. Es giebt ein aussergesetzliches kbnigliehes
" Priesterthum und priesterliches Konigthum — das weissagt diese
" typische Geschichte — dem auch Abram und sein Same sich beugen,
" dem auch das levitische Priesterthum huldigen muss, denn gerade da,
" wo Abram in unvergleichlich erhabener Vorbildlichkeit dasteht, tritt
" Malkisedek neben ihn und ragt iiber ihn hinaus. Malkizedek ist wie
" die untergehende Sonne der Uroffenbarung die mit ihren letzten
" Strahlen den Patriarchen anscheint, von dem aus das wahre Licht der
" Welt im Kommen begriffen ist. Diese Sonne geht unter um wenn
" die vorbereitende Zeit Israels voriiber sein wird, in Jesu Christo
" gegenbildlich wieder aufzugehen."
8 Kai oi pev eK Tav vlav Aevl lepar. Xapfi. (Numb, xviii. 22, 23.) " I have
" given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance,
"for their service  of the tabernacle of the congregation. Neither
" must the children of Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the
" congregation, lest they bear sin and die. (mob man nww1; bear mortal
" sin, Xafleiv apapnav Bavarrj(pdpov. LXX.) But the Levites shall do
" the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, and they shall bear
" their iniquity : it shall be a statute for ever throughout your genera-
" tions," &C. (oaVrvft oVi» npn D:i» 1N1B» Dm, Kal avrol Xr)\jrovrai ra dpap-
Trjpara avrav, Kal vdpipov alaviov els rets yeveas airav. LXX.) J. A.
Danzius acutely observes upon this passage, that Jewish tradition alone
might have taught the Jews that the Levitic ritual was not intended to
be enduring, e.g., ':« inin d<e^n >:w ante >in n:w d'e^n nww ln^a <ai wn
n'lBian mo' d'e^n «j« mm D'rtu .
Tradition of the school of Elijah -.—The world is to stand six thousand
years. Two thousand, confusion; two thousand, the law; two thousand,
the days of Messiah. (Talmud, Sanhedr., fol. 97, col. 1. See also Dr.
M'Caul's essay, The Birth of Messiah, in " The Old Paths.")
9 " But here," observes Dr. Gill, " a difiiculty arises how the Levites
" that were priests, can be said to receive tithes from the people, when
"they received the tenth part of the tithes, or the tithe of tithes, from
" the Levites (Numb, xviii. 26 ; Neh. x. 38) ; but it should be observed
" that it was not necessary that the Levites should give these tithes to
" the priests themselves ; an Israelite might do it, and so give the

CHAP. VII., 6—14. 83
" Levites the less ; on which account the priests may be said to receive
" from the people ; besides, Ezra in his time ordered that the first tithe
" should not be given to the Levites, but to the priests, because they
" would not go up with him to Jerusalem. T. Bab. Yebamot., fol. 86,
" 2, and Becorot, fol. 4, 1." Reland writes (Antiq. Hebr., p. 380, 381),
" Quwri hoc loco potest de sensu verborum Panli, Hebr. vii. 5, oi e'« rav
" vlav Aeui rr)v lepareiav Xapfidvovres, mandatum habent accipiendarum
" decimarum a populo. Ubi non Levitis sed sacerdotibus decima?
" videntur tribui. Dici posset respici hic ad decimas, quas Levitse
" dabant Sacerdotibus, ita ut populus Sacerdotibus per Levitas decimas
" solveret, quemadmodum Deus ipse primitias accipere dicitur, quae
" Sacerdotibus dabantur, in Gem. Sanhedrin, 39, 1. At videtur potius
" hic agi de Levitis ipsis, sic ut illi qui Jerem. xxxiii. 21, appellantur
" D'inan cibn , hic nuncupentur illi qui ex fdiis Levi sunt, id est Levitse,
" quorum tribui jura Sacerdotii concessa sunt, sive rr)v iepar. Xapfi. illi jus
" habent ad decimas. Nam commate 14, tribui Leviticse Sacerdotium a
" Mose tributum memorat, et commate 9, Levi, scribit, decimas acci-
"pere. Ita in Targ. Hieros., Gen. xxv. 31, legitur Pontificatum
" Maximum datum tribui Levi, *\b vtftyvb «nai «n:ina navrrw , et Jos.
" viii. 7, Sacerdotium esse hasreditatem Levitarum. Nee dubium esse
"potest, quin Levitse illi fuerint, quibus Deus mandaverit decimas a
" populo accipere, non sacerdotes : etiamsi, ut Judaai tradunt in Gem.
" Ketuvoth. 26, 1, stante templo ii., decimas Levitis aliquando non
" dederint, vetante hoc Ezra, sed Sacerdotibus. Hic autem agit Paulus
" non de consuetudine, sed de mandato Dei, quo certe Levitee ad deci-
" mas jus acceperunt."
Verses 6 — 14. — But he (Melchisedek), who was not of
their genealogy, took tithes of Abraham, and blessed
him who had received (tov 'i^ovra, was holder of) the
promises.1 But, beyond all dispute, the less is blessed of
the greater 2 (i.e., Abraham, the founder of the race, and
the holder of the promises, was greater than Levi, but
Abraham was blessed of Melchisedek ; therefore; d fortiori,
Melchisedek was greater than Levi, or any of the Aaronic
priesthood). — Furthermore (there is one self-evident attri
bute of the inherent superiority in the inheritor of Melchi-
sedek's office and dignity, which requires only to be stated
to receive assent, viz.,) here on earth dying men receive
tithes (i.e., the sons of Aaron are mortal), but there (eKei,

84 CHAP. VII., 6—14.
Gen. xiv.), a person, who is testified of, that he is alive.3
Levi also (so to speak), who is the recipient of tithes, was
tithed (vicariously) by the act (Bid) of Abraham, for he was
yet in his ancestral father's loins when Melchisedek met him.
Besides, if perfection * (reXeia>cn<s, either perfect expiation,
or the completion of the Divine purposes and plan) had been
brought in by the Levitical priesthood (for the people [of
Israel] received their constitution as based upon it — eV
avry vevopoderrjro), what further need that any other
priest should arise, and be distinctively specified (Xeyeo-0ai)
as "after the order of Melchisedek," and not after the
order of Aaron ? Por if the priesthood be set aside, the
law is, of necessity, set aside also. But He (Jesus), in
reference to whom these things are spoken, belonged to
(pereaxqKev) a different tribe, of which no man gave
attendance at the altar ; " because it is a matter of notoriety
that the Lord sprung from the tribe of Judah,6 to which
tribe Moses spake 7 nothing concerning the priesthood.
1 Tov exovra ras eVayyeXiar, i.e., he who held the promises of blessing
and blessedness, received additional blessing from Melchizedek. It is
worthy of note that, in Gen. xxii. 18, and xxvi. 4, the Hithpael conju
gation is used, signifying " to account oneself blessed," and not the
Niphal, or passive, as in Gen. xii. 3, xviii. 18, xxviii. 14. The Hithpael
also occurs in Ps. lxxii. 17, " And men shall be blessed (or account
themsehes blessed) in Him." See also Is. lxv. 16, and Jer. iv. 2. In
Gen. xii. 2 it was promised that Abraham should " be a blessing," naia ,
as well as (verse 3) that all families of the earth should be blessed in
Him. This was the first form of the promise, which accompanied the
call, " Get thee out of thy country," &c.
2 To eXarrov vwb tov Kpeirr. euXoy. The less thing is blessed by the
greater. Josephus Says that, during the feast, Melchizedek began " to
"praise Abraham, and to bless God," avrov re iiraiveiv Kal tov Bebv
elXoyeiv. 3 Kai J)Sc pev 8eKar. dno8vr)o-K, avBp. Xa/j/3. eVcei 8e, paprvpovpevos 6Vt £r/,
i.e., "Melchizedek received tithes, who is testified of (Ps. ex.), that
" he is yet alive." Very lame, again, is the explanation offered by
Wolfius, in common with others, viz., that we know that the Levitical
high priests died off in the natural course of events, but that the

CHAP. VII., 6—14. 85
Scripture says nothing of Melchizedek's death, but speaks only of his
life. Wolfius is prudently silent upon the interpretation of the latter
clause of verse 16, °Os oi Kara vdpov evToXi)s aapKiKrjs yeyoi'H', dXXa. Kara
Sivapiv fuijs aKaTaXuTou. It is a moot point whether os refers primarily
to Melchizedek or to Christ. In either case the difficulty remains the
same, unless we take the words in their literal signification, as I, with
Cunssus and Ewald, feel compelled to do. (See note, p. 75, and note 7,
P-93.) ' Ei pev ovv reXelao-is. Schoettgen pithily remarks (in loc), " Si aliud
"quoddam sacerdotium ab Aaronitico diversum promittitur, sequitur,
" posterius non f uisse sufficiens. Atqui vero Deus sacerdotium seternum
" secundum ord. Melch. promittit, quod clarissimum est. Sequitur
"ergo, Sacerdotium Christi see. ord. Melch. longe praastantius esse
" Aaronitico. Nemo enim vestem novam abjicit, ut veterem induat,
" sed potius vice versa."
5 OvSels irpoo-eo-xr)Ke ra Bvo-iao-rqpla. " De qua nullus altari prasto
" fuit." — Vuly. " Aus welchem nie Keiner des Altars gepfleget hat." —
Luth. " None of whom served at the altar." — Stuart. "Ex qua nemo
" altari operam dedit." — Wolfius. ILpoaexa is translated to give heed to
in the Auth. Vers., Acts viii. 6, 10. See also 11, and xvi. 14 ; 1 Tim.
i. 4 ; iv. 1. See also verse 13 ; Tit. i. 14; Heb. ii. 1 ; 2 Pet. i. 19.
8 "Oti e'| 'Ioufia dvareraXKev 6 Kiipios r)pa>v. The late Dr. M'Caul (Old
Paths. London, 1846. 8vo., pp. 542, 543) says, " The ancient Babbies
" do not leave us to reason upon their words ; on the contrary, they
" tell us expressly that Messiah was born about the time that the temple
" was destroyed. In the Jerusalem Talmud, R. Judan tells us a story
" of a Jew who actually went and saw Him : —
•rfjp sowi "a-w in -w >imp rrmin ran >-n D'Np mm ww im nin aiais
¦ nw:n pi rax • 'wipin n>a ann sni -ppip nwi -pin to <hiv ia wv ia V's
?tod n-ow no V'« • wrwo wato t> «m -p:p:p -mflpi *pin -mop wv 'niv ->a V'«
n'ai «aVa mi jd b"» -Nin ]n jd n^ 'on 'n'pin V'« 'laxi dw rroi V"»
: mirr onb
" It happened once to a certain Jew, who was standing ploughing, that
" his cow lowed before him. A certain Arab was passing, and heard its
" voice. He said, 0 Jew, 0 Jew ! unyoke thine ox, and loose thy plow-
" share, for the temple has been laid waste. It lowed a second time, and
" he said, 0 Jew, 0 Jew ! yoke thine oxen, and bind on thy plowshares,
"for King Messiah is born. The Jew said, What is'his name ? Mena-
" chem. He asked further, What is the name of his father ? The other
" replied, Hezekiah. He asked again, Whence is he ? The other said,
"from the Royal residence of Bethlehem of Judah. (Berachoth, fol. 5,
" col. 1.) — The story then goes on to tell us how he went and saw the
" child ; but when he called the second time, the mother told him that

86 CHAP. VII., 6—14.
" the winds had carried the child away. We are quite willing to grant
" that this story is a fable. We quote it  to show that the more
" ancient Jews were so fully persuaded that the right time of Messiah's
" advent was past, that they readily believed also that He was actually
"born. The Babylonian Talmud, also, evidently takes for granted
" that Messiah is born, as appears from the following legend : —
V'h w p jwdw '3-n Nn-»in snn'Bs '0"p 'im irr^ rrnaws i^ p »wirr> h
'3 ^ipi wsi cnv ^b p swin' 'i ins mn pns ns-i' dm V'm >nm trabsb wra
'moi nam snn^EN w Ma*m rwrb n^"w Vi V'm n'WD vis no'M b"n »toow
in tdni in nw in\s nidi ina 'tdni tto piai d'sVi '"niD "is ':a aw n'mia
dVhb n'^ idm moi 'a-i jto di'jw n*^ ion rriib bw aasv abt ni'md md'tt ids
: cvn n'^ ids -id 'ns nryab b"a wb ~a -]'bs
" R. Joshua, the son of Levi, found Elijah standing at the door of the
" cave of R. Simeon ben Jochai, and said to him, Shall I arrive at the
" world to come ? He replied, If this Lord will. R. Joshua, the son of
" Levi, said, I see two, but I hear the voice of three. He also asked,
" When will Messiah come ? Elijah replied, Go, and ask himself. R.
" Joshua then said, Where does he sit ? At the gate of Rome. And how
" is he to be known ? He is sitting 'amongst the poor and sick; and they
" open their wounds and bind them up again all at once; but he opens
" only one, and then he opens another ; for he thinks, perhaps I may be
" wanted, and then I must not be delayed. R. Joshua went to him, and
" said, Peace be upon thee, my master and my Lord. He replied, Peace
" be upon thee, son of Levi. The Rabbi then asked him, When will my
" Lord come ? He replied, to-day (alluding to the words of the Psalm,
" To-day, if he will hear his voice)." Dr. M'Caul goes on to observe,
" This is evidently a fiction, and a proof how little those doctors re-
" garded the truth ; but it shows that he who invented it, and those
" who received it, all equally believed that Messiah was born, and
" ready waiting to come forth for the redemption of Israel." (Sanhe
drim, fol. 98, col. 1.) See also Matt. ii. 1 — 6. So, also, the Rabinnic
libellous legend, entitled Toldoth Jeschu, The Generations of Jesus (p. 3),
bears similar testimony as to the Saviour's birthplace. Having stated
that Joseph was of the tribe of Judah, it proceeds to give the following
particulars as to his place of residence, and that of Mary, his espoused
wife : —
M'm Din nDWi na nh nns mobM niaiw nn'n wab anpi Mim* erf; n>aa piw
T10V13 maun m'ib: rtuo ona
" He resided at Bethlehem-Judah. And a certain widow lived near
" his house, and she had a daughter named Mary, and this Mary was an
" adorner of female hair ; of whom mention is made in the Talmud."
The tract is printed at length in Wagenseil's Tela Ignea Satance.

CHAP. VII., 15—19. 87
J. C. Wolfius (in loci) writes, "Alludi hic ad nos, Jes. xi. 1, post
"alios monuit Vitringa in Commentar, ad h.L, p. 308, ubi etiam con-
" tendit, Mariam ex tribu Levitica nonnullis ortam falsd videri, cum
" alioquin Apostolus h. 1. forte non neglexisset, ortum Christi ex utraque
" tribu, Judas respectu patris, et Levi ratione matris, in usus suos vertere,
" quando e contra Christum totum tribui Judse vindicat." The present
Bishop of Bath and Wells, Lord A. C. Hervey, has treated on the
genealogy of our Lord in a separate work, and also in his Lordship's
excellent article, Genealogy of Jesus Christ, in Smith's Dictionary of
the Bible.
' Eis r)v (f>vXr)v ov8ev Trepl lepao-ivvs M.ao-rjs eXdXrjo-e. " In qua tribu
"nihil de sacerdotibus Moyses locutus est." — Vulg. "Zu welchem
" Geschlecht Moses nichts geredet hat vom Priesterthum." — Luther.
Verses 15 — 19. — And the matter becomes much more clearly
apparent still, if another priest arises in the likeness (Kard
ttjv bpoioTryra, resembling in every particular) of Melchise
dek, who was constituted not according to the law of a
carnal prescription, but in virtue of (Kara hvvapiv) a life of
undying perpetuity C£<or)<; aKaraXiirov)} For this is the
testimony2 (concerning Messiah), "Thou art a priest
" for ever after the order of Melchisedek." Thus (we
see that) there is a setting aside of the foregoing prescrip
tive commandment (rrpoayova-rj's ivToXi)<;, viz., that limited
the priesthood to the family of Levi) ; inasmuch as it was
devoid of real virtue, and inefficacious (dcrdeves Kal
dvayepeXes).3 Because the law made nothing perfect, but
it was the introduction (or initiation, iireio-ayojyrf) of a
better hope,4 by which we draw nigh to God. (See note 8,
p. 82, on Num. xviii. 22, " Neither must the children of
" Israel henceforth come nigh the tabernacle of the con-
" gregation," &c.)
1 Stuart renders the above passage (verse 16) thus, " Who was not
" made (a priest) by an ordinance of temporary obligation, but by an
" authority of endless duration." He seems to me, by such an interpre
tation, to miss somewhat of the real purport intended, viz., that the
mortal frailty of the Levitic priesthood was a preliminary source of
dissatisfaction, and that therefore Christ's Divine priesthood, as ever-

88 CHAP. VII., 20—25.
more abiding, was substituted in its place. Philo remarks as follows
upon the uncertain duration of the lives of the Jewish high priests : —
MaKpoftiararoi yap, ol 8e oXiyoxpoviaraToi rav apxiepeav eiai' Kai ol
pev viol, ol 8e npeafivrai KaBlo-Tavrai.
" Por some of the high priests are very long lived, whilst others, on
" the contrary, are very short lived. Some of them are appointed
" when young, and others advanced in life." (De Profugis, Works,
Mangey's Edit., tom. i., p. 562.)
2 Maprvpei yap, " Soil, ana, ypacpr), Scriptura," Wolfius in he.
3 Spencer, De Legibus Hebr. Rit., tom. ii., p. 13, has some very good
remarks upon the subject. See also ibid., tom. i., p. 6.
' Stuart understands the writer to say that " the introduction of a
" better hope did make men perfect." The sentiment is true, viz., that
the fathers obtained salvation by faith in a promised and coming
Redeemer, but I question whether this is the writer's meaning on the
present occasion. See Gal. iii. 23, '"' But before faith (i.e., the Gospel
"dispensation) came, we were kept under the law, shut up unto the
" faith, which should afterwards be revealed. Wherefore the law
" became our schoolmaster (irai8ayaybs r)pav y/yopcy els Xpio-rbv) with
" reference to Christ, i.e., to direct us to Christ."
Verses 20 — 25. — And from the fact (naff oaov) that (in
the case of Christ) an oath is not wanting, by this very
circumstance (Kara roaovrov) Jesus has been made the
surety ' of a better covenant. For the other priests had
no oath in confirmation of their commission, but Jesus
had an oath, received from Him who said unto him (Sid
rov Xeyovro<; irpo<; avrbv), " Jehovah hath sworn, and will
" not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of
Melchisedek" (i.e., the Levitic commission was not irre
vocably permanent and enduring, but Christ's is. The
for ever of eternal perpetuity is the distinguishing
feature of Melchizedek's priesthood, and this is the
"order" of priesthood which Christ can claim as his
own). Besides, the Aaronic priests have been numerous,
because death prevented their remaining. But Jesus,
from the fact that he continues for ever, holds (e^et) the
(not a) priesthood which does not pass to another (dirapd-
fiarov exet tt]v lepojavvvv). On which account (odev) He

CHAP. VII., 20—25. 89
is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to
God through him, as He evermore liveth to make inter
cession 2 for them.
1 'Eyyvos, a surety or bail ; a word only occurring once in the New
Testament and three times in the Apocr. See Sirach xxix. 15,
Xapiras eyyvov pv eniXdBv, e8aKe yap rr)v yjrvxr)v avrov virep o-ov. 16,
'AyaBa iyyiov dvarpe^ei dpapTaXbs. 2 Mace. X. 28, where it has the
sense of a token or pledge, ol pev eyyvov exovres evrjpeplas Kal vikijs. The
rainbow was the token of the covenant of Noah. (Gen. ix. 12 — 17.)
Circumcision (Gen. xvii. 11 — 14) of the covenant with Abraham; the
blood of sprinkling (Exod. xxiv. 8) was the token of the covenant of
Moses. Jesus the Messiah, by his atoning death, is the token of the
New Covenant of Grace, and so it is promised that he should be
(Is. xiii. 6, xlix. 8), in both of which passages it is said that he should
be given " for a covenant of the people " (ds nna1? ^inNi).
2 The character of intercessor was one of the distinguishing attributes
of Messiah. And the prophecy of Is. lix. 16, " He wondered that there
" was no intercessor," s'Jdd J'm 'a DDinim, is referred to Messiah by
R. Jochanan in the Talmud (Schabbath, fol. 139), whilst very many
Rabbinical writings, including the book of Zohar (concerning which the
late Dr. M'Caul writes, "If not a testimony from the first century of
" Christianity, it is, to say the least, an authority of great weight amongst
" the Rabbinical Jews, both in the East and in the West "), distinctly
applies Isaiah liii. to Messiah, and there it is written concerning him,
&xi> uvaefn, "And he made intercession for the transgressors." The
following most remarkable passage from Philo demonstrates the belief
of the ancient Grasco-Jewish Church upon the subject of a Divine
Mediator and Intercessor between God and man : — " But to the
" Archangel and eldest Word (rrpea^vraTa Xoyo>), the Father who begat
" all things, has given the especial gift (Sapeav igaiperov) that standing
" in the midst (peBdpios) he might judge the act of the doer of it. He
" evermore intercedes (iKervs pev io-n) with the Immortal on behalf of the
" mortal who is in a state of anxious suspense (roO Bvryrov K-npalvovros) ;
" and is the ambassador (npeo-fievTr)s) of the king to his subjects. He
" rejoices, moreover, in his office, and magnifies its dignity, saying
" (Numb. xvi. 48), ' I also stood between you and the Lord.' He is
"not unbegotten like God, nor begotten like ourselves, but midway
" between each extreme, acting as a hostage or go-between (dXXa. peo-os
" rav axpav dp(porepois oprjpeiav) to both." — Philo, Quis Rerum Div.
Hares (Works, vol. i., Edit. Mangey, pp. 501, 502).

90 CHAP. VII., 26—28.
Verses 26 — 28.— For such an high priest became us
(eirpeirev, was suitable, or eminently adapted to our con
dition), viz., holy, harmless, undefiled,1 separated from
sinners,2 and exalted above the heavens ; 3 and who has
no daily4 necessity (os ovk e^ei Kaff r)pepav dvdyKrjv),
first for his own sins,5 and then for the people's, to offer
up sacrifices ; for this he did once for all (eabaTra^), when
he offered himself. For the law constitutes men high
priests who have infirmity, but the word of the oath,
which was subsequent to the law (Ps. ex. 4) (constitutes
as high priest), the Son perfected6 for evermore (ek
tov ala)va TereXeiwpivov, consecrated, Authorized Vers.).7

1 "Oo-ioy, aKaKos, aplavros. The Messiah is described as God's Holy
One, "|TDn, thy Holy One, in Ps. xvi. 10, tov oo-idv o-ov, LXX., and
applied by St. Peter, Acts ii. 27, to our Lord Jesus Christ. For a
very satisfactory vindication of the reading "P'Dn, instead of TTcn>
see Phillips on the Psalms, vol. i., p. 98. In Deut. xxxiii. 8 the term
Ton is applied to Aaron in his pontifical capacity, and in immediate
connexion with the Urim and Thummim, "]TDn ot\ t<» dvSpl ra oaia,
LXX., and so it is explained in the Targums of Onkelos, Palestine, and
Jerusalem. In Ps. xvi., the Messiah speaks (verses 4, 5) in his capacity
as a priest. (See J. D. Michaelis and Gill.) Dr. M'Caul, on p. 154 —
156 of his Messiahship of Jesus, gives a brief exposition of the Psalm,
and writes on verse 10, — " "jTDn, singular, Thy Holy One, as the great
" majority of Jews and Christians, ancient and modern, testify. De Rossi
" says, ' Lectio ipsa communis puncta habet singularis numeri, multique
" 'codd. et edd., cum Hooghtiana, notant ad marg. redundat jod; alii
" ' vero complures, sive MSS., sive edd. habent Keri "]TDn, lege sanctum
" ' tuum ; paucissimi codices sistunt puncta lectionis pluralis.' See
" Roger's beautiful and most instructive edition of the Psalms." In
elucidation of the meaning of Skokos, the reader may, with advantage,
consult Selden, de Success, in Pont. Ebrosor. In chap. vi. of part 2 he
treats at length de vitiis animi, qua tarn functions sacerdotali quam success.
in Pontificat. obstarent. Schoettgen, erroneously I think, explains the
expression aplavros, as if it were the equivalent of apapos of Heb. ix.
14 ; comp. 1 Pet. i. 19. 'Aplavros means here unsullied in soul, of which
mental purity the legal precautions against ceremonial defilement were
the type, whilst apapos signifies without " blemish " (did , papos, LXX.,

CHAP. VII., 26-28. 91
Lev. xxi. 17, et passim in V. T.), which disqualified sacrifice as well as
priest, from the service of God. See Selden, ibid., pp. 449 —470.
2 Kexapio-pivos dnb toov dpapraXav. The tract Joma says (c. 1), Seven
days before the day of Atonement they used to shut up or separate the
High Priest from his own house (pirno nawV; wao Vna pa jwibd) in
the chamber Parhedrin). Mishna Surenh., tom. ii., p. 206. Reland
(p. 100) adds, " Ipsique adsederint membra qusedam Synedrii p n'a >:pi ,
" ut eum ritus festi secuturi docerent, hinc apfce nomen Paredrin ei
" datum fuit." Another separation of the High Priest took place when
the Elders (p n'a <ipj) brought the High Priest into the temple, and
took an oath of him before leaving that he would make no alteration in
the things which they had taught him. naiai wid Mini, " Then he sepa-
" rates himself and weeps," piai pmo pi " And they separate them-
" selves and weep." (Joma, p. 209.) The whole tribe of Levi was
separated unto the Lord, "instead of all the firstborn among the
" children of Israel," in commemoration of the Passover. So also it is
written concerning Aaron, that he " was separated Oia'i) that he should
' ' sanctify the most holy things, he and his sons for ever, to burn incense
" before the Lord, to minister unto him, and to bless in his name for
" ever." (1 Chron. xxiii. 13.) Whilst in Lev. xxii. 2 it is said, "Speak
" unto Aaron and to his sons, that they separate themselves (mri) from
" the holy things of the children of Israel, and that they profane not
" my holy name in those things which they hallow unto me." The pre
eminent sanctity attaching to the high priestly office, in contradistinc
tion to the priestly, is apparent from the minute instructions given,
Lev. xxi. 10, &c. Aaron is there callel vnttn Vrwr pa, 6 lepevs 6 piyas
dnb rav d8eX(pav avrov, LXX. He was forbidden to incur ceremonial
pollution from contact with a dead body, " or defile himself for his
" father or his mother." Josephus says that Moses " did not think it
" proper for the high priest to marry even a widow of one that was
" dead, though he allowed that to the priests ; but he permitted him
" only to marry a virgin, and to retain her. Whence it is, that the
" high priest is not to come near to one that is dead, although the rest
" are not prohibited from coming near to their brethren, or parents, or
" children, when they are dead ; but they are to be unblemished in all
"respects." — Antiq. iii. 12, 2. But not only were the high priests to
be " separated from sinners," but it was also their especial function (Lev.
x. 10) to " put difference between holy and unholy, and between clean and
" unclean," iinon pi Moan p brrn pi wipn p Pan1?, Aiao-reiXai dvapio-ov
Tav dy'iav Kal rav fiefirpXav, Kal avapeo-ov rav aKaddprav Kal rav KaBapav,
LXX. " Auf das ihr konnet unterscheiden, was heilig und unheilig,
" was unrein und rein ist." — Luther.

92 CHAP. VII., 26—28.
3 See Isaiah liii. 12 (and note 4 on p. 28).
4 I suspect that the meaning here is, no necessity for expiatory sacrifice,
which was daily experienced, but was only alleviated, once a year, on the
great Day of Atonement. Prof. Stuart (in loco) writes, " Who has not,
" like the high priests, any daily necessity of offering sacrifices, first for
" his own sins, and then for those of the people." Many doubts have
been raised by critics about the meaning of Kaff r)pepav here because
they have supposed that the high priest officiated in person only on
the great day of atonement. But that these doubts are without any
ground may be seen by consulting Lev. vi. 19 — 22, Num. xxviii 3, 4.
Philo, who was contemporary with the Apostles, says, " dp\iepeis, Kara
" robs vdpovs, evxas 8e Kal Bvo~las reXav KaB1 tKatrrvv r)pepav,the high priest,
" agreeably to the laws, makes daily supplications and sacrifices." On
the other hand, Josephus (Wars, v. 5, 7) says, " The high priest did
" also go up with them (the priests), not always, indeed, but on the
" seventh days and new moons, and if any festival belonging to our
" nation, which we celebrate every year, happened." From Lev. vi. 22
it would appear that the high priest on ordinary occasions was repre
sented by one of his sons. I confess that I have failed to discover
how Num. xxviii. 3, 4, applies to the high priest at all. It is true that
a daily meat offering of flour, &c, "of Aaron and his sons" (Lev.
vi. 20) was offered, morning and evening, by the high priest, or in his
name. (See Reland Antiq. Sacr. Vet. Hebr., p. 152, Traject. Bat., 1712,
8vo.) But the priest who was to slay the lamb for the daily sacrifice
was selected by lot (see Reland, ibid., -p. 193) from amongst his brethren.
The writer to the Hebrews is evidently speaking of the high priest
par excellence, and not of his family.
5 Philo, in allegorising the death' of the high priest, after which it
should' be lawful for the manslayer to return, writes, — Xeyopev yap,
tov apxiepia ovk avBpairov, dXXa Xoyov Beiov eivai, irdvrav ouy exovo-lav
pdvov, dXXa Kal aKovo-'iav dSiKvparav dpiroxov, k.t.X. " My opinion is,
" that the high priest is no (mere) man, but the Divine Word, who
" partakes not of sins, either voluntary or involuntary." — De Profugis,
Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. i., p. 562.
And again, Alio yap, as eoiKev, lepa 6fo£i, ev pev S8e 6 Koo-pos, iv a Kal
dpxiepevs, 6 Trpardyovos avrov Belos Xdyos, k.t.X. " There are, methinks,
" two temples of God. The one is this universe, whose high priest is
" his firstbegotten Divine Word," &c— Quod a Deo Mittantur Somnia,
ibid., vol. i., p. 653.
0 Stuart translates reTeXeiapevov " exalted to glory," whilst the
authorized English version, following the LXX. of Lev. xxi. 10,
translates " consecrated," e.g., " and he that is consecrated to put on

CHAP. VII., 26—28. 93
" the garments," rereXeiapevov ev8vo-ao-8ai ra Ipdria. And so also the
Vulgate, cujus manus in sacerdotio consecrates sunt ; whereas Luther
translates it nM m^di (lit., and his hand filled) as if connected with the
preceding words, sc, " filled with the consecrating oil." Gesenius,
however, says (in Lex. m^d) " implevit Manum alic, i.e., sacerdotium
" ei in manus tradidit. Exod. xxviii. 41, xxix. 9, Lev. xxi. 10." The
Septuagint has again in Exod. xxix. 9, reXeiao-eisr whilst in Exod.
xxviii. 41 it reads Kal ipirXr)o-eis avrav ras yelpar. Luther, " ihre Hande
fallen " and "' die Handefullen." I cannot but think that if Prof. Stuart
had observed the above coincidence he would have modified his opinion,
as regards the present passage at least. There seems to be, again, an
allusion to Ps. ex., and also to the words of Psalm xlv., already
quoted in Heb. i. 8, 9 ; a Psalm which the Chaldee Paraphrast, Joseph
Ben Moses, Kimchi, Aben Ezra, and Mendelssohn all refer to " King
Messiah." See " The Psalms in Hebrew, with a Commentary," by the
Rev. G. Phillips, D.D., vol. i., 340, 341, and also my note on p.' 20.
7 Dr. Ewald 's remarks upon the person and identity of Melchisedek
are so weighty, and of such paramount importance, as proceeding from
one of the most colossal geniuses and illustrious scholars that Theolo
gical Germany ever produced, that I have taken the liberty of extracting
them here, in their integrity, from pp. 86 — 90, of Das Sendschr. a. die
Hebr. (Gottingen, 1870, 8vo.) : — " Und nun erst, nachdem die Rede
" durch ihre hochst geschickte Leitung unter dem Steuerruder des
" Redners zu Malkhissedeq zuriicbgekehrt ist, kann sich durch eine
" nahere Vergleichung der drei Personlichkeiten auf welche es hier
" ankommt, 1) des Malkhissedeq, 2) Abraham's, seines Nachkommens
" Levi, und des Levitischen Hohepriesterthumes, und 3), Christus' in
" aller Buhe und Bestimmtheit beweisen wer Christus als Hohepriester
" naher betrachtet wirklich sei. So beweist sie denn dass wenn schon
" Malkhissedeq verglichen mit Abraham, Levi und dem Levitischen
" Priesterthume, ein ganz anderer Hohepriester war als alle die Leviti-
• " schen, unvergleichlich ewiger, erhabener, geheimnissvoller, und auch
" dadurch gottlicher, dann sein mit ihm auch nach anderen hier wich-
" tigen Seiten zu vergleichendes Urbild Christus als Hohepriester noch
" unaussprechlich hoher stehen musse. Diese ganze Beweisfiihrung
" geht von vorne an nur von den hohen und so goheimnissvoll klingen-
" den Psalmenworten fiber Malkhissedeq, aus welche der Redner zuerst
" v. 6, erwahnt hatte, und welche er eben vi. 20, die Rede so absichtlich
" zuriickleitete, und die, nachdem alles aus ihnen zu schopfende hier
" erlaiitert ist zum guten Schlusse davon vii. 17, mit derselben Gewand-
" theit als die Worte wiederholt werden welche hier den weiter zu
" erlaiiternden h. Text bilden. Allein wohl fiihlt der Redner dass er

94 CHAP. VII., 26—28.
" um seinen Zweck leichter zu erreichen in das Gewebe der Wortfligung
" jener Psalmenstelle auch noch alles das verflechten miisse was Gen. xiv.
" 18—20, von Malkhissedeq erzahlt wird : diese kurze Erzahlung iiber
" den unter Abraham lebenden, und mit ihm in eine engere Beriihrung
" kommenden Priesterkonig klingt nun schon wie sie dort gegeben wird
" nach ihrem einfachen Wortsinne vielfach ungewbhnlich und seltsam.
" [Note 1, p. 87, Woher dies komme, kann mannrein geschichtlich nach
" alle dem richtig schazen was in der Gesch. d. v. Isr. Bd. 1, iiber den
" Ursprung des ganzen Stiickes Gen. c. 14, erlautert ist.] Aber schon
" lange vor unserm Bedner hatte der seltzam klingende Inhalt dieser
" so iiberaus abgerissenen kurzen Erzahlung auch schon die Aufmerk-
" samkeit, den Scharfsinn und die Dichtungssucht vieler Schrif tgelehrten
" beschaftigt. [Note 2, p. 87, Est ist fiir diese Sache sehr zu beklagen
" dass gerade die Stelle des B. der Jubilaen, welche uns hier alter
" Wahrscheinlichkeit nach, die wichtigsten Aufschliisse geben konnte,
" in der Aethiopischen Ubersezung verloren ist ; nach Dillmann's
" Ausgabe, s. 54, 19, fehlt sie jezt in alien Handschriften, und fehlte
" wol schon als das Buch in's Aethiopische iibersetzt ward ; aber sie
" erscheint hier auch nicht etwa absichtlich und fiir sich allein ausge-
" stossen, da schon von dem ihr voraufgehenden einiges fehlt. Auch
" in den Bruchstiicken der Genesis Parva, welche Ceriani im ersten
" Hefte der Monumenta sacra et profana veroffentlichte, findet sich
" diese Stelle mit ihrer weiteren Umgebung nicht.] Wie es damals
" viele gab welche mit der aussersten Neugierde und Sorgfalt alle die
" so einzeln, und an sich etwas unverstandlich dastehenden Namen
" der Manner und Weiber der Genesis untersuchten, deren Ankunft
" und Verwandschaft erforschten und was dort zu fehlen sehien durch
" allerlei Mittel erganzten [Note 3, p. 87, Wie wir am deutlichsten
" aus dem B. Henokh und dem Buche der Jubilaen ersehen], so war es
" vielen aufgefallen dass dieser Priesterkonig dort so ganz vereinzelt
" und unvermittelt erscheint, ohne dass man auch nur erfahrt wessen
" Sohn, oder wessen Stammes und Geschlechtes, oder Volkes er war ;
" und eine Menge, oft sehr ausschweifender und hochst willkiihrlicher
" Vermuthungen waren dariiber ausgesprochen, und sezten sich auch
" in Schriften fest. [Note 4, pp. 87, 88, Wie dass Malkhissedeq einerlei
" mit Sem Noah's Sohne, oder gar mit Henokh sei, was man auch
" dadurch beweisen wollte das ja nach den Zahlen Gen. xi. und v.
" jener, oder gar dieser noch gelebt haben kbnne. Und doch sind die
" Bestrebungen jener Mittelalterigen Gelehrten noch sehr unschuldig
"gegen die sovieler neuesten, mitten in unserer heutigen Deutsehen
" Wissenschaft, welche die ebenso bodenlosesten, als abscheulichsten
" Dinge in Gen. c. 14, hineinlegen, und dabei absichtlich das schon

CHAP. VII., 26—28. 95
" sicher genug erlauterte gewisseste und beste ubersehen. — And yet,
" the efforts of those medicsval scholars are guiltless indeed, in comparison
" with those of the multitude of the latest (scholars) of our modern German
" science, who foist the most groundless and revolting matters into the
" 14th chapter of Genesis, and at the same time wilfully overlook all that
" has been already sufficiently cleared up, and all that is most palpably cer-
" tain and excellent.^ Unser Verfasser weist alle solche ganz willkuhrlich
" erfundene und festgehaltene Vermuthungen iiber ihn ab (our author
" rejects all such gratuitous guesses), halt sich streng nur an eine Verglei-
" chung und in einander Verarbeitung der Worte Ps. ex. 4 und Gen.
" xiv. 18, 20, halt aber aus den Worten jener Psalmenstelle desto
" strenger fest dass jener uralte, selfsame, und so geheimnissvoll
" abgerissen dort stehende Priesterkonig in der engsten Beziehung
" mit Christus stehen miisse, und leitet ubrigens nach der gelehrt-
" en Sitte vieler seiner Zeitgenossen aus einer engen Zusammen-
" stellung jener beiden Bibelstellen und Ausbeutung des moglicben
" Sinnes ihrer einzelnen Worte solche Folgerungen ab, welche ihm
" hieher zu gehoren scheinen, um den hoehwichtigen Beweis welchen
" er geben wollte, auch auf diesem Wege zu vollenden. Wie Paulus
" nun die hohere Nothwendigkeit und Wahrheit des Christenthumes zu
" beweisen bis iiber Mose hinaus in das Zeitalter Abraham's und die
" Erzahlungen der Bibel iiber jene Urzeiten zuriickgehen musste,
" ebenso kommt unserm Redner beim neugescharften Blicke in jene
" Zeiten gerade von der seite Malkhissedeq' s aus vieles entgegen was fur
" diesen dienen konnte ; und vorziiglich auf drei Einzelheiten lenkt er
" hier auf die Aufmerksamkeit. Zuerst vii. 1 — 4, darauf wie man doch den
" gesammten Inhalt jener Erzahlung mit der Psalmenstelle zusammen-
" haltend, jenen Priesterkonig nicht fiir einen der gewbhnlichen Manner
" der alten Geschichte halten konne, sondern ihm unwillkiirlich eine
" ewige Dauer und ahnliche Erhabenheiten geheimnissvollen gottlichen
" Sinnes zuschreiben miisse, wie man schon friiher wenigstens in einem
" entfernter ahnlichen Sinne dem Hen6kh eine geheimnissvolle Unster-
" blichkeit zugeschrieben hatte. Und hier besonders zeigt sich die
" Sitte der damaligen Schriftgelehrten aus dem engen zusammenhalten,
" und in einander verarbeiten zweier an sich weit von einander liegender
" Schriftstellen den Beweis fiir etwas neues, bis dahin nicht beachtetes,
" und oft sehr iiberraschendes zu ziehen. Den der Redner beginnt
" zwar einfach mit den Worten Denn dieser M., wie er Gen. xiv. 18,
" kurz bezeichnet wird Konig Salem's, Priester des hochsten Gottes, der
" dem nach der ganzen Erzahlung von Gen. xiv. von der Niederlage der
" Konige zuruckkehrenden Abraham, freundlich und theilnehmend entye-
" genging und ihn segnete, dem gegen alle damalige menschliche Erwart-

96 CHAP. VII., 26-28.
" ung, sogar einen Zehnten von allem was er in diesem Kriege erbeutet
" hatte zutheilte, kein geringerer als Abraham, weiter der wenn man
" auf die Bedeutung seiner beiden Namen in der altheiligen geheinmiss-
" vollen Hebraischen Sprache, und auf deren Folge unter einander
" sieht zuerst zwar (wenn dieser Name Malkhissedeq verdollmetscht wird)
" Gerechtigkeitskonig, dann aber auch Konig Salem's, das ist Friedens-
" konig, ist als ware jeder dieser beiden Konigsnamen eben im Konig-
" lichen d.i. Messianischen Sinne so denkwiirdig, so offenbar anspielend
" auf den Messias welcher zuerst Gerechtigkeit in der ganzen Welt,
" dann aber eben dadurch Frieden herstellen muss, [Note 1, p. 89.
" Diese Hinweisung soil hier offenbar in den Worten liegen. Aber
" ahnlich sucht auch Philon in der Ubersetzung und Ausdeutung von
" Eigennamen des Pentateuches Geheimnisse, vgl. die Geschichte des
" V. Isr. vi., s. 272], welcher sieht man sich, wie er in der Bibel erscheint
" noch weiter um, vaterhs, mutterlos, versteht sich ohne menschliche
" Aeltern, stammbaumhs, ohne dass er auch nur auf ein bestimmtes ?
" menschiches Geschlecht oder Volk zuriickgefiihrt wird, weder einen
" zeitlichen Anfang noch ein Lebensende habend, ist weil weder von
" diesem noch von jenem in der Bibel etwas erzahlt wird, der aber
" vernioge jener Psalmenstelle unverkennbar dem Sohne Gottes verahn-
" licht wird, sodass man vor allem hieraus jedoch in Ubereinstimmung
" mit den vorigen Merkmalen sehr wohl schliessen kann wer er denn
" wirklich seyn musste, bleibt Priester ohne Unlerlass wiederum Kraft
" jener Psalmenstelle und der iibrigen Merkmale, als ware er Christus
" oder vielmehr der Logos selbst, der sich nur damals in dieser Gestalt
" den Menschen sichtbar machte (as if he were Christ, or rather the Logos
" himself, who for that time only, manifested himself to men in this likeness),
" aber auch fiir jenen Augenblick schon eimmahl als Priester wie zur
" Vorbedeutung dessenwas er jetzt noch in ganz anderer Weise alsewiger
" Hohepriester fiir die Seinigen ist. [Note 2, p. 89. Das ist namlich
" deutlich genug der lezte Sinn aller dieser Worte, der freilich bloss
" angedeutet wird . A ber inderthat konnte ihm unser Redner weder mit
" einem Engel noch mit einem einstigen Menschen wie Henokh wirklich
" zusammenstellen, so dass nichts weiter iibrigbleibt, als ihn fiir eine
" schon in jenes friihe Alterthum hineingefallene augenblickliche
" geheimnissvoll leibliche Offenbarung des Logos zu halten. — This,
" indeed, is plainly enough the real signification of all these words, a
" signification, however, which is only hinted at. But truly the speaker
" could not compare him with an angel, nor with any mortal man that ever
" lived like Enoch. Hence we have no alternative but to regard him as a
" momentary and mysterious revelation of the Logos in bodily shape, that
"was thus vouchsafed in those earliest ages of antiquity.']" — Schoettgen

CHAP. VIII., 1—5. 97
(Hor. Hebr., tom. ii., p. 104) has the following, which is a curious illustra
tion of airdTap of Hebr. vii. 3 : — "Breschith Rabba ad Genes, xxxvii.
" 22, cit. Raymundo, part iii., distinct, iii., 8, 5, etHieron, a S. Fide I. 5,
" R. Berachias dixit, Deum S.B. dixisse ad Israelitas : Vos dicitis ad me.
" Thren. v. 3, a« ]>» wn own' . Etiam Goel (Redeemer), quern ex vobis
" excitabo, 3N "h f'N non habebit patrem, q.d. Zachar. vi. 12. Ecce vir,
" Zemach nomen ejus, nos' vnnnDi , et de sub se germinabit. Sic quoque
" Jesa. liii. 3, Et ascendit ut virgultum coram eo. De eodem Davides
" Ps. ex. 3. Ex utero aurorse tibi ros juventutis fuse. Et alibi Ps. ii. 7,
" Dominus dixit ad me : Filius meus es tu."

CHAPTER VIII.

Verses 1 — 5. — Now the sum (KedjdXaiov, the result, the
gist) of the things spoken is as follows. We have such
(rotovrov, i.e., not a whit inferior to the prophetic portraiture)
an High Priest, who has sat down on the right hand of
the Majesty in the heavens, (Ps. ex. I),1 a minister of the
most holy things z (twv dyieov Xeirovpyo?.3 The article is
emphatic. See note 2 on p. 91 ; 1 Chron. xxiii. 13 ; and
Levit. xxii. 2. The exact correspondence between Jesus
and the Aaronic high priests who were " separated to
" bless the most holy things," &c, is here drawn out) and
of the true tabernacle,4 which the Lord pitched, and not
man. Every high priest, moreover, is appointed for the
express purpose of offering gifts and sacrifices. Jesus,
therefore, must needs have somewhat to offer. For if He
were upon earth 5 (a mere mortal, or denizen of earth) He
could not be a priest, because there are priests who offer
gifts in conformity to the law ; who discharge their
ministry (Xarpevovcn, perform their sacrificial and minis
terial functions) in a copy and shadow of the heavenly
things. Even as Moses was oracularly admonished, when
he was about to make the tabernacle (eiriTeXeiv, to complete
in detail), for "See," saith He (Exod. xxv. 40), "that
o

98 CHAP. VIII., 1—5.
" thou make all things according to the pattern (rvirov,
" fvasn , an architectural projection) shewed to thee
" (Exod. xxv. 9) in the mount." 6
1 Schoettgen (Hor. Hebr., tom. ii., p. 566) adduces the following
curious Rabbinical legend, respecting the exaltation of Messiah, from
the Pesikta Rabbathi in Jalkut Simeoni : — " Rabbini nostri tradunt :
"p'n iiDin own niaN pw, Patriarchae futuro tempore stabunt mense
" Nisan, et dicent : O Messia, Justitia nostra, quamvis nos patres tui
" sumus, tu tamen melior es nobis, quia peccata filiorum nostrorum
" portasti, et decreta satis dura et mala in te transierunt, qualia neque
" ante, neque post te quisquam sustinuit. Fuisti gentilibus derisui, et
" subsannationi propter Israel, sedisti in tenebris et caligine, oculi tui
" non viderunt lucem, et lux tua tibi soli ahsesit (i.e., others were not
" able to see thy Divine Majesty). Corpus tuus exaruit sicut lignum,
" oculi tui Tjrse jejunio obscurati sunt, robur tuum exaruit sicut testa,
" et hasc omnia propter peccata filiorum nostrorum. An igitur voluntas
" tua est, ut filii nostri fruantur illo bono, quod Deus S. B. Israelitis
" splendide exhibuit ? — Respondit ipsis Messias : O Patriarchs, quae-
" cunque feci, non nisi vestri et filiorum vestrorum caussa feci, ut illo
" bono fruantur, quo Deus S. B. illos illustravit. Dixerunt Patriarchae :
" O Messia, Justitia nostra, Placatus esto nobis, lins-n -pip rat nronrro,
" quia Conditorem tuum et nos reconciliasti. R. Simeon fihus Passi
" dixit : Eo ipso tempore Deus S. B. Messiam super coelos coeloruni
" exaltavit, et splendorem gloriae suae super ipsum expandit, ne gentiles
"et Persas ipsi nocere queant. Dixerunt ipsi Patriarchae : O Messia,
" Justitia nostra, judex esto in eos, et fac ipsis quodcunque voles."
So also the Sohar Chadash, fol. 41, 3, on Ps. cxxxiii. 2, " It is like the
"precious Ointment upon the head, that ran dozen upon the beard, even
"Aaron's beard," explains, vtrsb Nai Nina hi, "it is the High Priest
" above," Natoi wr?, " at the right hand of the King," dbisb pa , " a priest
" for ever ;" again, ibid., fol. 42, 1, on Ps. xlv. 2 (3), t/rab, for ever, by
?bis is here understood " the right hand on high," N'rcrt wa\ as it is
written (Ps. ex. 4), "Thou art a priest for ever," ibid., fol. 63, 3, on
Ps. Ixiii. 1 (2). By nn« is understood hVwVi «:na' , He who is at the
right hand above, as (in Ps. ex.) " Thou art a priest for ever."
2 Stuart renders, in accordance with the Authorized Version, "a
" minister of the sanctuary."
8 Aenovpybs, a public functionary, one who discharged some special,
and usually obligatory service, in the Athenian State. Demosthenes
divides the Xeirovpylai into domestic and political. Eio-i yap Sijirou nap
r)plv al re t£i' peroUav Xeirovpylai, Kal ol TroXniKai. (Dem. in Leptinem,

CHAP. VIII., 1—5. 99
curavit J. H. Bremius, § 15, pp. 104-6. Turici, 1831. 8vo.) The most
important of the regular iyKVKXioi Xeirovpylai were the choregia, viz., the
furnishing the requisites for dramatic representations, &c. ; the gymnasi-
archia, or making suitable provision for the celebration of the public
games ; and the hestiasis, or catering for the public entertainment of
the tribes. This species of service occurred but seldom. Amongst the
extraordinary ones were the trierarchia, i.e., furnishing ships of war to
the State ; the eisphora, a property tax in time of war ; &c. From
signifying the sacred and patriotic service of the State, the word passed
over to signify religious worship and the public services of God.
* Probably an allusion to the words of Amos ix. 11, " In that day I
" will raise up the tabernacle of David that is fallen " (rtain m no,
called in Is. xvi. 5 in bna). As a rule, the Mosaic tabernacle is exclusively
designated by the word bns. Respecting the various changes of abode
which the Ark underwent, see Reland, Ant. Sacr. Hebr. Traject. Bat.,
1712, 8vo., pp. 18 — 21. God's true tabernacle is the Church of Christ ;
although the o-k. dXvd. may also denote the celestial pattern and original
which God showed Moses in the mount.
The above prophecy of Amos ix. 11 is applied by Jewish commenta
tors to Messiah. " R. Nachman said to R. Isaac, What do you under-
" stand by the phrase, ' When «fcn "a Bar Nephele, that is, the son of
" ' lapses ' (falls, or the abortion) 1 Who is this Bar Nephele f The
" other answered, Messias. R. Nachman. — That can't be so : surely
" you don't call Messiah the son of lapses ? R. Isaac. — Yes, assuredly,
" because it is written (Amos ix. 11), In that day, I will raise up the
" tabernacle of David (rtDlin) that is fallen." — Sanhedr., f. 96, 2, in
Ugol. Thes., tom. xxv., col. 953.
5 Ei pev yap rjv cVi yrjs, oiS' av rjv lepevs ; if He had asserted to himself
a priesthood on earth, He could not have established his claim, being
genealogically disqualified by his descent from Judah, instead of from
Levi ; but now his priesthood as well as his kingdom are not of this
world ; both are heavenly and spiritual, and more excellent than the
earthly and transitory. " For the things which are seen are temporal,
" but the things which are not seen are eternal."
6 The Babbies, as will be seen from the following quotation from the
Talmudical treatise Menachoth, held that there exist in heaven the
exact counterparts of the tabernacle in the temple, with all its sacred
furniture : —
D'Dwn p itv w ">» muni ids bvi jnVsn wn bv jiim idis mm* 'aia <dv \n
nn»D sbs -ina nNio nns i»s mvnna nn»i nsii idnib imoa nu»i moo nsii
ana Dnn ibbwd3 ana san 'a: 'an ina nwn iids noDWDa piaon ns nDpm
nsim n»n s'p'DD ]'oa -run Viai pnv 'a-i -nas sas ia s"n ^ai -\d« .Dn'iana
: n-uon niaso nn anan mim nroo noob lb

100 CHAP. VIII., 6—13.
" Rabbi Jose, son of Rabbi Judah, said : A fiery ark, and a fiery
" table, and a fiery candlestick descended from heaven. And Moses
" saw them, and made according to their similitude. According as it is
" said, See now that thou makest them according to the pattern which thou
" sawest in the mount. And also, Thou shalt erect the tabernacle, according
" to the pattern which thou sawest in the mount. In this latter passage it
" is written according to its pattern, whilst in the former, according to
" the similitude.'' Rabbi Chijan bar Aba says : Babbi Jochanan says,
" Gabriel, girt, as it were, with breeches, it was who showed to Moses
" the workmanship of the candlestick ; for it is written, And this is the
" workmanship of the candlestick." — Menachoth, col. 862, 863. (Ugol.
Thes., vol. 19.)
Schoettgen, in his Dissertation de Hierosolyma Coelesti, writes: —
" Hoc vero ante omnia tenendum est, Judaeos Hierosolymam, et quaa in
" eadem erant, tanto honore et amore coluisse, ut eadem in coelo exstare
" sibi persuaderunt. Sohar, Genes., fol. 91, col. 362, on svisa n rra to
" s'wa 'd: . Quodcunque in terra est, id etiam in cceh est, et nulla res tarn
" exigua est in mundo, qua non ab alia simili, qua in coeh est, dependeat.
" Id quod quidem non turn crasse semper accipiendum est, quasi cre-
" diderint, necesse esse, ut ex in coelo exstarent." Hor. Heb., tom. i.,
p. 1206.
Bishop Wordsworth (on Exod. xxv. 9) observes, " Whether Moses
" saw a real heavenly temple, of which the tabernacle was to be a copy,
" or whether God showed him a plan, a design, a sketch which he was
" to follow and embody in the structure of the tabernacle, is not stated.
" The former is maintained by the Babbis and Delitzsch on Heb. viii. 5,
" the latter by Keil, and this seems to be confirmed by the use of the
" pattern of the temple in 1 Chron. xxviii. 19." The words of 1 Chron.
xxviii. 19 are, according to the Hebrew, to Varan '*» mn' ina anaa ton
n'lann mawte , " everything in writing, from the hand of the Lord upon me,
" He caused me to understand, all the works of this pattern." But the
LXX. reads, Hdvra ev ypacpjj xeipbs Kvplov t8aKe Aavl8 2aXapav, Kara tt)v
TrepiyevvBelo-av avrif avveaiv rrjs Karepyao-las rov napaSeiypaTos. On the
whole, the only certainty at which we can arrive is, that God showed
a pattern, or plan to Moses and to Solomon. The other interpretation
is conjectural and hazardous, and to my mind ill in accordance with the
dignity and spirituality of the subject. To this latter view Stuart
inclines, Excursus, xv.
Verses 6 — 13. — But now He (Jesus) has obtained a more
excellent ministry, just as (oo-a>) He is also a mediator of
a better covenant, which has been constituted (vevopoOerr)-
rai) upon better promises. For if that first one had been

CHAP. VIII., 6—13. 101
faultless, no place for a second would have been sought.
But finding fault (p,epuf>6p,evo<;, i.e., in disparagement of
it), He speaks1 thus (Jer. xxxi. 31 — 34. Comp. xvi. 14,
15, xxiii. 5 — 8) to them (the children of Israel) : — Behold
the days come,2 saith the Lord, and I will conclude
(avvreXecr<o) 3 a new covenant with the house of Israel and
with the house of Judah. Not according to the covenant
that I made with their fathers in the day when I took
them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt,
because they (avrol) continued not in my covenant, and I
disregarded * (r)peXr)cra) them, saith the Lord ("Tlbva "03N1
mrp DS3 D2). For this is the covenant that I will make
with the house of Israel, after those days, saith the Lord.
I will put my laws into their minds (Bidvoiav, under
standing) and write them upon their hearts, and I will be
to them a Cod, and they shall be to me a people : and
they shall not teach every one his neighbour, and every
one his brother, saying, Know the Lord ; for all shall know
me, from the least to the greatest.5 For I will be merciful
to their unrighteousness (iXetw? ecropai Tats dSUiais, nbDS ,
/ will condone, be lenient to), and their sins and their
iniquities will I remember no more. By saying the word
" new " 6 (iv tu> Xeyeiv Kaivrjv), He has antiquated (-ire-
•KaXaiwKe) the first (covenant, because what is new is anti
thetic to what preceded it. The moment one can speak of
a successor, whatever went before it is, so to speak, and
by comparison, made old). But that which is antiquated,
and growing out of date, must shortly disappear (to Be
iraXaiovpevov Kai yrjpacrKov, iyyvs ddtavicrpbov).
1 The Talmudical writers assign the period here mentioned, to the
days of Messiah, the Lord our Righteousness, spoken of in the
parallel passage of the same prophet, Jer. xxiii. 6, in reference to
which R. Alshech says, lipis 'n n'CDi Messiah is called the Lord our
Righteousness. Compare Kimchi's Commentary on Zech., translated by
the late Dr. M'Caul, p. 175—177.
2 'Hpepai epxovrai. Schoettgen (tom i., p. 968) observes that Grotius

102 CHAP. VIII., 6—13.
remarks rightly "isa, sono est prcesens, sensu sapefuturum." Singularly
enough, the word is not isa , but D'sa , in Jer. xxxi. 31. He quotes the
following from the Jalkut Simeoni, pt. 1, fol. 78, 3, to prove that the
ancient Jews interpreted this passage of Jeremiah, of the days of
Messiah : — " Ad verba Exod. xix. 1, mn ova , illo die venerunt in de-
" sertum Sinai ; Non dicitur sinn ova (in that day), sed mn Dva (in this
"day), /i.e., mn nVwa, in hoc mundo (tempore scilicet veteris Testamenti)
" dedi vobis legem et singuli in ilia studebitis. Verum, sa1; Trob , tempore
"futuro (Novi Testamenti) ego i/lam docebo omnes Israelitas, ipsique earn
" addiscent et nunquam oblivioni tradent, q.d., Jerem. xxxi. 33. Hoc
" erit foedus," &e. Schoettgen is right in his intimation that some of
the Jews applied the prophecy to the " world to come ; " but surely he
has forgotten the quotation which he gives (tom. ii., p. 619) from the
Midrasch in Jalkut Simeoni, ii., fol. 46, 1 : — " Deus S. B. sedebit in
" paradiso et docebit : et omnes justi sedebunt coram ipso, omnis autem
" familia coelestis in pedibus suis stabunt : Sol et Planetae ad dextram,
" Luna autem cum stellis ad sinistram ejus. Ipse autem Deus S. B.
"n'iDD 'T to frvb Tro© nam min wim aav
" sedebit, et proponet legem novem, quam daturas est per manus
" Messiae." The scene of the giving of the new law by the hands of
Messiah, is here laid in the spiritual region of the Garden of Eden, and
not, as Schoettgen would render, sa1; Tns^ , tempore futuro (Novi Testa
menti). Jac. Rhenferdius has, as I have before noticed, conclusively
proved, in his Dissertation De Secuh Futuro, that the days of Messiah
are included in nin D'jwn this world : — " Ilia autem pars extrema erit
" D'D'n nnns , finis dierum, vel ultima dies hujus mundi, quemadmodum
" quidem ipsi Judaei phrasin illam explicant niD' c'D'n nnnsa ton 'Tai1; 'a
" : on n'iDon , Nam extremum dierum consensu omnium Doctorum sunt
" Dies Messia" (p. 1122). The Talmudic writers held that in the world
to come (Mb Trob) there would be no death, and wars would cease, but
that in the days of Messiah both would still exist. Rhenferd's disserta
tion will repay perusal, and is to be found at length in Meuschen. He
most satisfactorily demonstrates that, in its stricter usage, ton D'rirn
does not mean Messiah's days, but the supernatural, and spiritual toorld
to come. (See also J. Rhenf., Diss. II., ibid., p. 1138.)
3 LXX. 8ia8r)o-opai, TrQ\ " I will cut." The Hebrew expression,
n'"o nia , i.e., to cut a covenant (a mactatione et dissectione hostiarum in
f oederibus pangendis consueta), is more literally rendered by o-vvreXio-a
than by 8ia6r)o-opai. The inolvo-a of verse 9 is again 'ma in the Hebrew,
and 8ie8epvv in the LXX. Ae'yti Kipios of verse 8, 9, is (pr/o-l Kvpws in
the LXX. Ai8ovs vdpovs is 8t8ovs 8aaa in the LXX., the former agreeing
with the reading of the Hebrew 'nni. Again, the LXX. has xai rav

CHAP. VIII., 6—13. 163
dpapnav avrav ov pr) pvnoSa en, in place of Kai rav dpaprtav avrav Kal rav
dvopiav k.t.X., which latter corresponds with the Hebrew DnNEnVi oiiirt .
It is a great mistake to suppose that the New Testament writers are
servile followers of the LXX. version in their quotations.
4 'HpiXrio-a, ea 'ntoa 'a:s . Lud. Cappellus (Crit Sacr., p. 61 and 266)
asserts, without reserve, that the LXX. translators read 'ntoa, fastidivi,
instead of 'ntoa, dominatus sum. Such an alteration of the text, however,
is unnecessary. Pococke has' shown that toa has the signification of
disdaining, derived from the Arabic ; and Kimchi asserts that whenever
it is used in construction with a , it is to be taken in an ill part, and is
here equivalent to 'ntoa, I have lothed. Compare Zech. xi. 8, dotu an
'a ntora . The original signification of the verb toa is, to be lord over, to
possess, to own, and, hence, to marry, be a husband to, and in the first
sense it is used in Isaiah xxvi. 13, into) D'ns wtoa, " Other Lords have
" had dominion over us besides Thee." Another meaning, as has just
been shown, is to disdain, to treat with scorn, to reject. The sense is
fixed, in this particular case, for the Christian student, by the above
authoritative rendering of the writer to the Hebrews. '~ApeXr)o-a is the
inspired interpretation, of what might otherwise be regarded as an
open question. We do not adopt it on the authority of the LXX.
version, but as the explanation of the Holy Ghost concerning his own
declaration contained in Jer. xxxi. 32. In Jer. iii. 14, coa 'ntoa 'ais 'a ,
according to the authorized Engl, vers., " for I am married to you," is
Sioti eya Karaicvpievo-a vpav in the LXX. Gesenius renders this passage,
" nam ego vos rejeci," as he does xxxi. 32, " egoque eos rejicerem."
Whereas, in Is. lxii. 4, nV»a , married, and toan , shall be married, the
LXX. vers, has olKovpivn and o-vvoiKr/6-qo-eTai ; and in verse 5, iina toa' 'a
¦pa -jitoa' rtbira , " as a young man marrieth a virgin shall thy sons marry
" thee," is translated, Kai as avvoiKav veavlo~Kos rrapBeva, ovra KaroiKrjo-ovo-iv
K.T.X. s rjtorj l»i axpab, "from the youngest to the oldest," probably of age,
and not of station.
0 " En parlant d'une alliance nouvelle, il declare vielle la premiere ;
" or ce qui est devenu ancien et vieux, est pres d'etre aboli." — French
Translat. The Rabbies themselves looked forward to the law ultimately falling
into abeyance. R. Bechai says, " This passage of Scripture (Deut.
" xxxi. 21) appears to me, by this passage, to denote that a time will
" come in which the law will be forgotten (nninn naniDn® pi sa'o),
" which is the time of abolishing the ' evil imagination ' (mn IS' . See
" Gen. vi. 5, viii 21). That is the time of the resurrection, because the
" Law will be abolished at that time, except the feast of Purim. And

104 CHAP. IX., 1—5.
" this is what is said (Deut. xxxi. 21) : — ' For the Law 'shall not le
" 'forgotten out of the mouth of his seed, for ('a) I know their imagination}
"i.e., 'as hng as I know their imagination.' From this it follows, by
" inference, that when the evil imagination shall be taken away, the
" law also shall be forgotten (or consigned to oblivion). And so, of old
" time, our Babbies of blessed memory have spoken. The Law shall
" be forgotten by Israel ; that is, in the time of the Resurrection, but
" not in the days of Messiah, &c. Por our Rabbies have said that there
" is no difference between this present world (mn Diisn) and the days of
" Messiah, excepting the servitude of the nations. But the Law will
" continue as a possession to us and to our posterity, for ever, all the
" time of this present world, in which this present corporeal order of
" things shall continue. But at the resurrection of the dead there shall
"be a change for the better, and things will proceed in a different
" manner, and then, say they (our Rabbies), the law will be forgotten
" by Israel." (Rhenferdius, De Secuh Futuro, p. 1158, Meuschen.)
Maimonides, however (see Dr. M'Caul's " Old Paths," Peast of Purim),
says, "All the books of the prophets, and all the Hagiographa, except
"the roll of Esther, will cease in the days of Messiah. But it is
" perpetual as the five books of the written law, and the constitutions
" of the oral law, which shall never cease." (Hilchoth Megillah.)

CHAPTER IX.

The writer now has conclusively shown that Jesus
is an Eternal High Priest, a Minister of the Most
Holy things, and of the True Tabernacle. He has,
moreover (viii. 3), asserted the self-evident fact
that if He be a priest at all, he must have some
what to offer. The engrossing, cardinal idea of the
priestly office is the offering of sacrifices. Had our
Lord Jesus Christ belonged to the tribe of Levi,
He would have offered according to the Mosaic
ritual. But his priesthood is no earthly one, not

CHAP. IX., 1—5. 105
eir\ 77}?, He is not of the tribe of Levi but of Judah,
and therefore no Aaronic priest. What, then, did
Jesus offer ? The writer has not yet told us, nor
does he until chap. ix. 11. But he has said that
the entire apparatus of the Levitic ceremonial was
the copy and shadow of the heavenly (viii. 5).
Such being the case, Jesus has obtained a more
excellent ministry. Why? Because his priest
hood passes not away. It is not one of parabolic
promise, but one of abiding and substantial efficacy.
He is a priest for ever, after the order of Melchi
sedek. With such a priesthood as .this no fault
could be found. It is not open to the objection of
typicality (if I may coin the word) and transitori-
ness. It is the substance, of which the Mosaic was
the shadow. Moreover, Jeremiah (xxxi. 31, &c.)
had distinctly foretold the abrogation of the first
covenant, with its attendant rites and ceremonies
and priesthood. The first covenant was so wrapped up
and interwoven with the religious worship of the
tabernacle and the temple, that to invalidate a part
was to abrogate the whole. Jeremiah speaks of a
"new" covenant, and by mention of the word new
he has decisively antiquated the former. Having
now concluded the necessary digression (viii. 4 — 15),
wherein the writer has shown that it is possible for
a new and extra Levitic priesthood to arise, and one
based upon and in connexion with a new covenant,
he proceeds to enumerate the leading features of
the worship and ritual of the tabernacle, which were
temporal and symbolical, or parabolic, and to con
trast them with the " good things to come," of

106 CHAP. IX., 1—5.
which Christ is the high priest. The antithesis to
chap. ix. 1 is verse 11, " but Christ being come," &c. ;
the intermediate verses contain only parenthetic
details and elucidations. In verse 11, et seq., the
writer shows what it is that Christ does offer in his
capacity of high priest, viz., his own blood, and
dilates upon its supereminent expiatory efficacy.
So excellent is it, that having once been offered,
the repetition of the offering is for ever superfluous,
supererogatory, and impossible.
The writer thus resumes, ix. 1, Etye p,ev ovv Kal
r) rrpoiTr) aKr)vr), to which the antithetic Xpiarb'; he . . .
hid TrJ9 pei^ovo*} Kal reXeiOTepa<; aKrpirp;, ov •^eipo'iroirjTOV,
rovreariv, ov TavTr/s tjj? KTio-eoo<;, is found in the
eleventh verse.
Verses 1 — 5. — The first tabernacle,1 therefore, that is to say,
the terrestrial sanctuary,2 had also ordinances 3 of worship.
For the tabernacle was arranged (KareaKevdcrdri) as fol
lows. The first (or outer apartment), in which were the
candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread (f) Trp69ecri<;
rmv dpraiv), which is called Holy (the Holy Place). But
(secondly) behind the second veil,4 the apartment called
the Holy of Holies, which contained the golden censer,5
and the ark of the covenant (ttjv Kificorhv t?}? &iadr]Kv<;)
entirely overlaid with gold. In which were 6 the golden
vase containing the manna, and the rod of Aaron that
budded (Num. xvii. 8, Heb. 23), and the tables of the
covenant. And above it (virepdvm Se avrr)<;) the Cherubim
of glory,' overshadowing the Mercy-seat 8 (to iXao-Trjpiov,
mB3} propitiatorium, Vulg.) ; concerning which it is not
now my purpose to speak in detail.
1 Ei^e pev oSv Kal r) nparv o-Krjvr). Prof. Stuart, Dindorff, and others,
including the Authorized English Version, adopt the reading 8ia8r)Kr\,

CHAP. IX., 1—5. 107
instead of o-Kvvr), but by it the strong comparison and contrast is spoiled.
The introduction of the covenant, viii. 6 — 13, is only parenthetical and
explanatory. The real subject is the first old tabernacle as contrasted
with the new. Uparrj is here, doubtless, first in point of time, and not
of arrangement as in verse 2. Wolfius, in loco, writes, — " o-Kipirpi Codices
" varii et Versiones quoque omittunt : nee habet Chrysostomus : qui
" potius post r) jrparr], in commentario subintelligi vult 8iaBr)Kn. Hinc
' Millius non dubitat o-kvvt)v ex sequentibus irrepsisse turn ad loc. turn
'¦ in prolegomenis sec. 886, qu;e et Braunii ad h.l. est sententia. Becte
" vero illi contriaratur Whitbius in Examine, p. 35, observans, exstare
" o-Krjvr)v etiam apud Chrysostomum, de Die Natali Domini, tom. v.,
" edit. Morellian. p. 472, nee minus apud Theodoretum et Oecumenium.
" Idem quoque in Annotationibus ad h.l. Anglice editis rem amplius
" urget  B. Gothofredus Olearius in Analysi ita : Bene se habet
" o-Kr/vr) : nimirum Xeirovpyiav prioris o-Krjvr)s excellentissimam fuisse in
'¦ prascedente capite fuit monstratum ; jam igitur cum ea specialius com-
"parat rr)v Xeirovpyiav, vel, ut hic vocat, Xarpelav o-Kr)vr)s Koo-piKrjs. Quid
" quod ut mox videbimus, in sequentibus per partes o-Kt]vr)v dilineet.
" Sanctum primum, et deinde Sanctum Sanctorum ob oculos ponens :
'' totam itaque antea nominaripar erat. Addidero his, quod infra vers. 8,
" itidem o-K-nvr) r) rrparn diserte commemoretur, quemadmodum h.l.
" r) nparq ideo dicitur, ut opponatur rrj o-Krp% rr) dXrjBivrj, de qua cap.
" viii 2, quseque ita imposterum exhibenda erat vere, quemadmodum
" prior ilia tempore, instar typi antecessit. Tenenda igitur hsec lectio
" est, quse subintelligenda ex vers. 2 fuerat, etiamsi non diserte ex-
" pressa fuisset. Sic non desunt editiones vetustae, in quibus 17 irparn
" simpliciter legitur. Inter eas sunt Erasmi tres et Basileensis. Eas
" vel potius Vulg. qui itidem non habet, secutus est Lutherus in ver-
" sione. Omisit etiam Beza, et ex nostratibus Erasmus Schmidius,''
&c. 2 To Te Sywv KoapiKov. Olearius rightly suggests that these words
should be taken in apposition to 17 vparv o-Knvr). The entire passage
would then read thus :— " But the first tabernacle, that is to say, the
" terrestrial sanctuary, had ordinances of worship." This affords an
intelligible translation of what is otherwise, to my mind, one of the
most difficult passages in the whole Epistle. J. A. Danzius (Functio
Pontif. M. in Adyto Anniversaria, p. 942, Meuschen) remarks that the
court of the Gentiles was never called " holy," and that St. Paul (whom
he believes to be the writer of the Epistle to the Hebrews) is speaking
exclusively of the Mosaic Tabernacle. Danzius understands to re ayiov
Koo-piKdv in the same sense as Olearius, e.g., " Apostolus de tabernaculo
" stricte sumto loquitur, quod in duas tantummodo partes erat divisum :

108 CHAP. IX., 1—5.
" et sic quoque duo modo vela habuit. Atrii nullam facit mentionem,
" ut hinc ejus posses connumerare Velum. Atrium gentium nullibi
" voeatur ayiov, sed, eo ipso quod gentibus patuit, Vin dicabatur, sive
" profanum. Ex voce Koo-piKov nihil aliud inferri potest, quam quod
" illud ayiov sit terrenum et caducum, utpote ex materia terrena con-
" structum ; in oppositione coelestis et aeterni." The translators of the
London Jews' Society's edition of the Hebrew New Testament render
rb re ayiov Koo-piKov by 'mN wipo Nin. They also rightly supply jawo
(o-Krjvr)) instead of nna (SiaBr/Krf) in the first clause of the verse. Wolfius
writes, in he. : — " Hombergius ay. Koo-p. interpretatur Sanctum ornatum,
" vel quod in ornatu consistebat, instrumentis scilicet ad tabernaculi
" cultum spectantibus. Recte autem monuit Lamb. Bos., p. 246,
" Koo-piKbs significare mundanum, a Koo-pos mundus, et Koo-pios elegantem
" a Kocrpos ornatus, quemadmodum XoyiKos est rationalis a Xdyos, ratio,
" Xdyios autem disertus a Xdyos, oratio. Idem vero mundanum ait vocari,
" tanquam oppositum ti) enovpavla, coelesti, quae et plerorumque est
" sententia. Patres fere eo referunt, quod omnibus in aditum in illud
" patuerit." 3 AiKaiapara Xarpelas. The following is extracted from Wolfius, in
he. : — " Constitutos ritus cultuum, ut Erasmus Schmidius, vel, constitutes
" religionis ritus, ut Beza ; vel, constitutiones ad cultum pertinentes, ut
" Jae. Capellus. Sic et B. Lutherus, Rechte des Gottes-Dienstes.
" Respondet vox 8iKaiapara Hebraicis mpin, nilSD, vel dtdbwo, quas
" scilicet ol LXX., per SiKaii/iara reddere consueverunt. Olearii judicio
" in Analysi, p. 27, ita accipi potest phrasis, ac si diceretur Xarpela
" 8iKala, quomodo papla Knpvyparos, itepio-o-ela rr)s xdptros explicari
" soleat, ita ut Xarpela SiKala sit cultus, cui sua sit integritas et perfectio,
" qua se probare hominibus possit, tanquam divinitus constitutus, et
" gloria sua conspicuus." Wolfius sagaciously observes, " Non dubito
" ego, praestare priorem expositionem. Hoc enim sensu vox Smaiapa
" tov 6fou, ii. 26, et. viii. 4, to SiKaiapara tov vdpov, nee non infra v. 10,
" 8iKatapao-i crapKds. In harum phrasium nulla SiKaiapa pro adjectivo
" haberi potest. Non probem etiam, qui SiKaiapara et Xarpelas tanquam
" duas voces distinctas, et in accusandi casu positas considerari cupiunt.
" Nusquam video vocem illam sine genitivo positam, et ipsa phrasis
" 8iKaiapao-i o-apKos, ix. 20, exponit, quae ilia SiKaiapara X"aTpeias fuerint,
" nempe o-apKiKa." It is worthy of remark, as affording a curious
example of the technical use of the word, that the LXX. translate
D'tOEfflo of Ezek. xx. 25 by 8iKaiapara, e.g., irpoardypara oi KaXa, Kal
8iKaiapara iv ois ov £r)o-ovrui iv avrols.
4 Mera 8e to 8evr. KaTaweTao-pa. It must be borne in mind that the
writer is speaking strictly in reference to the Tabernacle, and not,

CHAP. IX.; 1-5. 109
except by implication, of the first or second temple. In the Tosaphta
to Joma (Gemar. Hierosol, chap. ii. 10, col. 174) the following is found : —
" The High Priest walked on through the temple until he arrived
" between the two veils, which separated between the Holy Place and
" the Holy of Holies ; and there was a cubit space between them. Here
" was the place of the Oracle which Solomon made."
jn'yai D'snpn snip pi unpn p niViaon maxn >nra \ib »'inw rs ta'na ~pna
: noto mi»ra -vmn Dipn m nn«
The same passage occurs, with the exception of the last clause, in the
Mishna, Joma, cap. v. 1. (Mishn. Surenh., tom. ii., p. 231.) The Tosaphta
and the tract Joma are printed at length in vol. xviii. of Ugolini
Thes. Professor Stuart writes, in he. : — " As the inner veil is here
" called 8evrepov, the necessary implication is that there was a trparov
" also, and accordingly we find it described in Exod. xxvi. 36, 37,
" xxxvi. 37, 38." The learned Professor proceeds to say that the
" outer veil served as a door for the Tabernacle." If the Talmudical
statement given above be a correct one as regards the Tabernacle (but
this is doubtful), then the " Second Veil " was the inner one of the
two, which enclosed a space of a cubit's breadth, as a sort of lobby
between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. Reland, Antiq. Sacr.
Vet. Habr., p. 119, writes of the second temple, " Hoc (se. Sacrum) nee
" murus nee ostium a Sancto Sanctorum dividebat, sed duo vela, cubiti
" intermedii spatio sejuncta, inter quee Pontifex M. Sanctum Sanctorum
" intraturus ab Austro versus Septentrionem incedebat, quae putamus
" fuisse illud KaraTrerao-pa quod, moriente Christo, ruptum tradit Mat-
"thaeus xxvii. 51, nulli quippe usui futurum, postquam Christi mors
" peccata vere expiasset." This space of a cubit's breadth is called
I'Dp-iE , Tarkesin, the meaning of which is held by some to be equivalent
to Tapanis, because the builders of the temple were in " confusion "
or uncertainty whether the space belonged to the Holy Place or the
Holy of. Holies. Reland prefers to give it a Persian derivation, "ia
Porta and )'Dp electa. He says, in conclusion : — " Quod autem R. Jona
" Bostrensis in Gem. Hier. Kilaim. 31, 3, et in Gem. Hier. Joma 42, 2,
" tradit hanc vocem significare yinao D':B3n , intus ^t extra, verum est de
"vocepriore Tar vel "io, aptissima ad hujus historise memoriam con-
" servandum. Quod si quis Graecam vocis originem mavult, videat an
" non a Qplyxao-is vel BpiyKos, quod est irepieppaypa, piKpbv relxeiov
" Hesychio duci debeat." — Ibid., p. 120. Wolfius, in he, unhesitatingly
adopts the idea that, as in the temple so in the tabernacle, there was a
twofold veil at the entrance to each apartment ; " utrumque aulasum
" tabernaculi duobus velis munitum." He gives, however, no authority
for his assertion. J. A. Danzius (Functio Pontif. M. in adyto anni-

110 CHAP. IX, 1—5.
versaria, ad Hebr. ix. 4, pp. 935, 936, Meuschen) rejects the notion that
there were two veils at the entrance to the Holy of Holies, either in
the tabernacle or in the first temple. He says : — " KarajTeTao-pa, quod
" h.l. adhibetur, in N. T., Syriacide, ac Maccabaeorum libris, tantum de
" velo Sanctissimi usurpatur : quod nee in tabernaculo, nee templo a
" Salomone asdificato, erat geminum ; sed in solo templo secundo post
' exilium exstructo. Ita de hoc Maimonides (Hilc. Beth habbechira,
" cap. iv. sec. 2) e Cod. Joma : —
n'an uara piai no« vas cunpn imp pi snpn p Vnaa torn rrn pu»n n'aa
i«» ¦p'D1' D'ttipn vnp moo in unpn piod n'n brron 'aw dn anb ptmaa ':«)
noN in-ini on'on nns D'Min wipn w»i ,iD'nn nos diisjs vas D'wipn trip
isd in« mais 'nw i»» n'w >:w n'aa bnia i:a nVi D'«npn tenp pi vnprt p mrr
unpoa ^a» ]iib«-i3 n'no tovorr 'ai» ia:a non jm-ai rcipn iso inm D'snpn «ip
'lai arr> nViam -oow na'ja nn« na-fi n^n do nn'n srt juen-i
" 7m, templo primo paries erat intergerinus inter Sanctum ac Sanctissi-
' mum, cujus densitas erat unius cubiti. Cum vero templum secundum
' exstruentibus dubium foret, utrum crassities istius parietis ad Sanctum
' ¦ pertineat, an vero ad mensuram Sanctissimi : ideo confecerunt Sanctum
' Sanctorum viginti cubitorum completorum ; Sanctum quoque cubitorum
"quadraginta integrorum, cubito uno inter Sanctum et Sanctissimum
" vacuo relicto. Non enim exstruxerunt in templo secundo parietem
" intergerinum : sed confecerunt duo Vela, quorum alteram a parte
" Sanctissimi, alterum vero d parte Sancti : inter qua cubitus erat vacuus
" correspondent crassitiei parietis istius, qui fuit in templo primo. Quippe
" in Sanctuario primo non fuit nisi unum tantummodo velum, quia
" dicitur (Exod. xxvi. 33), Et separet velum illud vobis inter Sanc-
" turn et Sanctissimum. — Cum itaque talis Sanctissimi h.l. recordetur
" Apostolus, quod perd to 8eirepov KaTaneTao-pa, v. 3, plurimi vel hac
" sola ratione ducti sunt, ut statuerent de templo secundo h.l. sermonem
" fore ; non de ullo alio. Quod si vero KaTaTrirao-pa de aliis quoque
" Velis usurpari dieas, quam quaa Sanctissimum dirimunt a Sancto,
" prouti in V. T. apud LXX. interpretes adhiberi certurn est (vid. Exod.
" xxvi. 37, xxxv. 11, xxxviii. 18, xl. 5, 8, 20) ; dicendum tunc potius
" Apostolo fuisset : post tertium velum, quam post secundum. Cum et
" atrium tabernaculi Mosaici velo aliquo in introitu fuerit instructum.
" Exod. xxvii. 16." Philo, De Sacrijicantibus, uses the expression iv d8ira
€io-o) toO TTporepov Karairerdo-paTos, as designating the position of the
golden altar within the Holy Place, in opposition to the altar of stones
in the court of the temple, clearly referring, in this instance, to the first
veil that hung at the entrance of the Holy Place. — Works, Mangey,
tom. ii , pp. 253, 254. — In Exod. xxvi. 36, 37, xxxvi. 37, the veil is
called "]DD. The LXX. give eiriWao-rpov in Exod. xxvi. 36, and

CHAP. IX., 1—5. Ill
KaTaTrerao-pa in verse 37, whilst in chap, xxxvii. 3, 5 (the Hebrew and
Greek texts do not correspond) KaraTrirao-pa occurs in both verses. The
veil of the Holy of Holies in Exod. xxvi. 31, 33, and elsewhere,
is ra-\t> from "po separavit.
5 Xpvo-ovv exovo-a Bvpiarqpiov ; certainly not the altar of incense which
was in the holy place, but a golden censer, which was exclusively de
voted to the use of the Holy of Holies, on the day of Atonement.
Ewald renders the words " einen goldenen Rauchaltar," but the trans
lators of the London Society's Hebrew New Testament have more
correctly adopted amn nnnn l^ -ton in their version. I cannot help
thinking that there was a permanent golden censer before the mercy-
seat, in which the high priest deposited the smaller censer full of burning
coals, which he brought in with him in his hand on the Day of Atone
ment. •' And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off
" the altar before the Lord, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten
" small, and bring it within the veil. And he shall put the incense upon
" the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy
" seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not." Levit. xvi. 12, 13.
This latter censer, then, must be placed, with its burning contents, in
some safe receptacle, in front of the mercy seat, whilst the priest
returned for the blood of sprinkling, or else sprinkled it from another
vessel, brought in at the same time. The object of placing burning
incense before the mercy seat was to screen the Divine Glory or
Schechinah from the priest's gaze. The Mishna, Joma, cap. 5, 2, says
that, in the second temple, the censer was placed upon a stone called the
Stone of Foundation.
)o nmai ntfip: nn'n n"n«3i D'htdnt O'N'ai nua'ia ov nn'n p« pi«n bwma
: jnia n-tei nisasN »te y-wn
" Ex quo abducta est area, lapis ibi erat a diebus priorum prophet-
" arum, et lapis fundationis fuit vocatus, altus e terra tribus digitis, et
" super ipsum thuribulum collocabat." Mishna Sv/renhus., tom. ii., p.
233. In the same treatise, cap. 4, 4, the censer is particularly described
which the high priest specially employed to carry the coals into the
Holy of Holies on the day of atonement : —
n>n nai am tea nnin Dvm am te *pna msm tpa tea nnm n'n dv toa
mate te3 nnm 'vm pp 'rate te -pna rnsoi vip »ai« tea nnin ov tos D'lao
]>ip note te -pro n-»Di n»»D tea nnin ov ^i -imK <Dv '-\ D':ao n'n nai pp
nn'n ov toa n"7p Dvm maa n'n dv toa D':ao n'n nai pp note tea nmn ovni
"in dvih Dvm prr nam n'n ov to3 nans cvm msp nr
" In omni die deprompsit thuribulo argenteo, et in aureum infunde-
"bat; hodie deprompsit. aureo, et intrabat cum eo. In omni die
" deprompsit thuribulo quod quatuor cabos continebat, et in alteram

112 CHAP. IX., 1—5.
"infundebat quod tres cabos capiebat  R. Jose ait : In omni
" die deprompsit thuribulo, quod Saturn continebat, et in alterum
" infundebat, quod tres cabos continebat ; hodie deprompsit thuribulo,
" quod tres cabos continebat, et intrabat cum eo. In omni die grave,
"hodie leve ;  in omni die aurum ejus viride erat, hodie rufum."
(Ibid., p. 229.) — In respect to this particular censer, which was employed
only once a year on the day of atonement, Reland writes (Antiq.
Sacr. Vet. Hebr., p. 54; Traject. Batav., 1712, 8vo.), " Ovpiarr)piov
" quoque aureum in Sancto Sanctorum fuisse legitur, Hebr. ix. 4, quo
" nomine non altare aureum suffitus, sed acerra thuris, quae quotannis
" in S. Sanctorum solemni die expiationis inf errebatur, et respectu usus
" vas huic loco proprium dici potest, videtur debere intellegi, quum et
" Josephus, lib. 1, 5, de Bell. Bvpiarr)pia SXdxpvo-a istius modi memoret,
" et Pollux, 1. 1, 28, et 10, 28. Hesychius aliique acerras vocent Bvpia-
" ri)pia." So also T. Goodwin (Moses et Aaron, Franc, ad Moen, 1710,
8vo., p. 326), " Die expiationis solenni Pontifex Thuribulum aureum
" huic actui appropriatum loco sacerrimo inferebat, atque per aliquot
" horas in illo relinquebat tr. wav , c. iii. 4, v. 1, vii. 4. Hoc est Pauli
" Bvpiarrjpiov, Hebr. ix. 4." So also J. A. Danzius (Functh Pontif. M.
in adyto anniversaria, p. 952 ; Meuschen), " Sic quidem Talmudici (Joma,
" cap. 7, 4 ; Babyl., fol. 70, &c.) docent, postquam circa initium functi-
" onum, in primordio diei, in Sanctissimum semel Pontifex introduxerat
" hoc Thuribulum, suffitu accenso, id ibi relinquebat, ac alios interea
" perficiebat cultus omnes, non tantum huic diei proprios, sed ipsum
" etiam sacrificium vespertinum juge ; et sic circa vesperam demuni,
" Sanctissimum denuo ingrediens, id ex illo efferebat."
i»« ra^i mapb Vo'sn Dten d-to nnnoni rpn oran «'Si'» 'iki pm 'eVi
fpn pbDb ^non1) -pm' n:n nrn m ioaa ote'ra nDsn' ate non m mm nnmaa
D'nDn miap yopnb ysm tow bx tab -pas'© n»a m mmra 'i«-ii a-en ¦» nnrrom
rnopn jj» mm «te na nnin nN nto'i croon n-rap TBp'ra Diip ni-un n» roteiVi
nn« rivrr> nanp nioyo 'ion itaa 13 rronn 'a -in< cid1) 'ie^i irio "kind D'xi
^la'sn pED 'to Dte' ]h n:n bfan ninipon 'iraa n'nnra >in-i ]«» mVi -*aiw ina
c«' ste na ni ote'ra i1; -ratvw n™ xb dn pan Dra dhmd >i*n ]'ni mop1?! »rt
'in d'did H'a nn'D a"nn'i jvcsb «te ov
" Quandoquidem, ut R. Levi f. Gerson (Comm. ad Lex. xvi., fol. 165,
" col. 3, 1. 1, sqq.) loquitur, inconveniens erat, ut efferat exinde acerram
" atque thuribulum, antequam suffitus ac ignis in thuribuh totaliter fuerint
" consumti; et vero certum tempus intra quod consumerentur, stabiliri non
"poterat, ideo necesse habuit, ut, ad acerram ac thuribulum auferendum,
" ad vesperam expectaret usque. Atque optime conveniebat, ut fieret id eo
" tempore, quo opus habebat ingredi in tentorium conventus, ad adohndum
" suffdum aromatum, ac accendcndas Lucernas, antequam hac duo ejjtciat ;

CHAP. IX., 1—5. 113
" ut ne nubes sit suffimenti in tentorio pariter conventus, atque ejus intimo
" simul. Nam qua ex hoc doctrina elicitur, de duobus istis locis tarn vicina
" sibi invicem, est, ut haberi queat pro unica, sicut interpretabimur. Atque
" ideo minime erat conveniens, utfiat in locis istis duobus. Et quanquam
" valde probabih sit, quod tunc absque dubio ignis ac suffimentum sit
" eonsumtum : non tamen Ucitum est, ut ingrediatur illuc Pontifex, nisi
" postquam clari ipsi constiterit, omnia ista esse consummata. Ne extra
" urgentem causam illuc se ingerens, reus flat mortis per Deum inferenda.
" Quae si vera sunt, prouti communi ore Ebraei statuunt : quamdiu esse
" hujus Thuribuli operativum, sive usus ipsius durat, ad quern unice erat
" destinatum, nulla alia templi pars id habuit, quam ipsum Sanctum
" Sanctorum. Atque sic neque in hoc aliquid continet hasc epistola,
" quod auctoritatem ejus canonicam infringeret." From the above it
will be evident that, if there were no more massive and stationary
censer in the Holy of Holies, as I believe there was, devoted to receive
the incense which the priest brought in with him on the Day of Atone
ment, there was at least a censer exclusively reserved for the service of
the Most Holy Place, on this great annual solemnity, and that the
Writer to the Hebrews well knew what he was writing about, when he
draws the attention of his coreligionists to the ypvo-oOv Bvpiarrjpiov.
8 'Ev f;. It is expressly stated in 1 Kings viii. 9, rmb 'ira pi )n«a j«n
aina nwn ov mn -ton o':3N , lit., " There was not in the ark, only the
" two tables of stone, which Moses deposited there in Horeb." The
same statement is repeated, with a few verbal differences, in 2 Chron.
v. 10. Danzius (like many others) proposes to get over the difficulty by
translating iv §, una cum, together with, and refers to iv dipari dXXo-
rpta in verse 25 in support of his suggestion, as well as to Luke xiv. 31,
" 'Ev 8eKa xiXido-iv," and a variety of other passages. Now I think that
the statement of 1 Kings viii. 9, and 2 Chron. v. 10,' may fairly be
limited to the particular occasion of which they speak, viz., to the
moment when the ark was carried into the temple. The word o-rdpvos
implies a tall standing jar or vase, which would be liable to be shaken
down by the act of removal. The venerable rod of Aaron might also
suffer damage from the tables of stone. Why may we not suppose the
pot of manna and the rod to have been laid up in the ark, but taken
out on this occasion ? Indeed Dr. Gill writes (in he.) that "What Levi
" ben Gerson (so also others, in Laniado, Celi Yekar) writes on 1 Kings
" viii. 9 is so express, as if it was designed to vindicate our Apostle.
" His remark is this : — The intention is not to deny that there were not
" the things mentioned in the law, for these were ia dttoo , left in it, as
" Aaron's rod, and the pot of manna ; only to deny, hereby, that there
" was not anything of the Law, save the Decalogue." Had an express
Q

114 CHAP. IX., 1-5.
command been at first given upon the subject, which there was not,
that nothing but the tables should be deposited in the ark, even then
there would be no insurmountable difficulty in the statement of the
writer to the Hebrews. The usual course of the sacrifices was inter
rupted in the wilderness, as also the rite of circumcision (Amos v. 25 ;
Josh. v. 1 — 9. See my tract, Bishop Colenso's Criticism Criticised,
3d edit., pp. 27 — 34) ; the Sabbatic laws were also relaxed upon cases
of pressing need ; and, furthermore, we know (1 Sam. xxi. 1 — 6 ; Matt.
xii. 4) that Ahimelech the priest felt himself at liberty to feed David
and his hungry followers with the shewbread. The high priest, more
over, in all occasions of difficulty, could have recourse to the oracle of
the Urim and Thumim, and so obtain a Divine sanction for any needful
alterations in the ceremonial precepts. The material of which the pot
for containing the manna was made is not mentioned in the Hebrew of
Exod. xvi. 33. It is there simply called rasis , a word that only occurs once
in the Oid Testament. Gesenius derives it from ps , acutus fuit, from
whence is derived nis, a thorn. May it not have resembled one of those
tapering or pointed antique alabaster and earthen vessels or jars for
containing wine or ointment, of which there are many specimens in the
British Museum ? The LXX. of Exodus xvi. 33 calls it ordpvov
Xpvo-ovv. The Palestine Targum calls it an " earthen vase."
J. D. Michaelis, in pursuit of his pet theory that the Epistle was
originally written in Hebrew, and that the " inaccuracies " which he
professes to discover in some of its statements are due to the incompe
tency of the Greek translator, indulges in the following extraordinary
piece of criticism : — " With respect to the last instance in particular
" (ix. 4), the passage, as worded in the Greek, implies that the golden
" pot of manna, and Aaron's rod, were kept in the ark of the covenant,
" which directly contradicts what is related in the books of Moses and
" of the Kings (!) Now a mistake of this kind could hardly have been
" committed by the author of so excellent an Epistle as that to the
" Hebrews ; but it might have been made by a translator who was less
" acquainted with Jewish customs, and it took its rise, perhaps, in the
" following manner. In the place where iv 17 is used in the Greek,
" ia -ton was probably used in the Hebrew Original, whieh may be
" construed either with Holy of Holies (in Hebrew, D'unpn ranp), verse
"3, or with ark of the covenant (in Hebrew piN), verse 4. The author
" of the Epistle to the Hebrews intended to refer to the former (!), for
" the golden pot of incense, and the rod of Aaron, were really kept in
" the Holy of Holies, but not in the ark of the covenant. The trans-
" lator, therefore, should have rendered the Hebrew relative by iv ols,
" in reference to dyia ayiav ; instead of which he falsely referred it to

CHAP. IX., 1—5. 115
" the ark of the covenant, which being in Greek ki/3<btos, he translated
" it by iv ¦[)." (Introd. to New Testament, translated by Marsh, vol iv.,
" pp. 224, 225.) Now, as I have already shown, 1 Kings viii. 9 and
2 Chronicles v. 10 do not assert that nothing " was ever kept " in the
ark, except the tables of stone, but that nothing was in the ark besides
the tables of stone, at the time of its removal. These are two very
different matters. Secondly, the subject nominative of verse 3 is not
ayia dylav, but, o-Knvr) r) Xeyopevq ayia dylav. The difficulty of dealing
with eVij of verse 3, in connexion with imepdva 8e avrrjs Xepovfilp kt.X.
of verse 5, remains untouched by the proposed " original " reading of
Michaelis. If we dared to refer iv § to crKrjvr) of verse 3, then all
difficulty in the passage would be at an end ; but even so venturesome
a critic as Michaelis might well hesitate upon so hazardous a proposal.
The eminent confraternity of Christian and Hebrew-Christian scholars,
who translated the New Testament into Hebrew for the London Society
for Promoting Christianity amongst the Jews, have thus rendered the
entire passage : —
ps'nn prao nraw 'a i'si« raipn not miasn '•pn vn prawin prao1; m taViN
v\p tr\pzn pran na-\sn nn«m : vip «ip:n D'lcn oiibi jnViram muan ia -ton
ia ten 3m nisas 131 *. 3'3D 3m noso n'-ian jnm amn nnnn v) -ton i ta'raipn
'iai msan !» caaiD iiaan 'ana ntontei : man nmVi mD -iibm pro* mcoi pn
Michaelis' suggestion that iv § should be iv ols, would necessitate the
omission of the words o-Krjvr) i) Xeyopevn, and the insertion of to, in
verse 3 of the Greek. Such a wholesale mutilation of a passage is not
often to be met with, even in practised " emendators." Nor can I
perceive, with a competent Hebrew translation of the passage as the
above before me, how it could be possible, by any known rules of con
struction, to refer back the relative words ia -i»n (ivrj of verse 4, 131,
vid. suprf), as proposed by Michaelis, to D'enpn vtp , instead of con
struing them in reference to pi«, the nearest, and only natural
antecedent. Ewald (Das Sendschreiben an die Hebrder, Gottingen,
1870. 8vo., p. 40) translates as follows: — "Nach dem zweiten
" Vorhange aber, das Zeit genannt, ' Allerheiligster,' enthaltend einen
" goldenen Bauchaltar, und die Bundeslade rings mit Gold bedeckt,
" worin ein goldener Krug das Manna enthaltend, und Ahron's Stab
" welcher sprosste, und die Bundesplatten ; iiber ihr aber, die Cherubim
"von Herrlichkeit den Suhnedeckel beschattend."
The Jerusalem Gemara (Shekalim, col. 117 ; Ugol. Tlies., vol. 18),
after computing the space which the tables of stone would occupy in
the ark, asserts that there were two hand-breadths left, min icrt , "for
" the Boik of the Law." The same treatise (col. 113) says :—

116 CHAP. IX., 1-5.
vmsi pn« te ltotai nmraian pra rvrrtsi pn ,n:sis ia» iaaa p-wrr uiiirn
.nu ot'ien' .nu 'a .bvnw vtwb ovx D'nratoi la'ranra inm .l'Tprai
" After the ark was hidden, they hid with it the pot of manna, and
" the vase of the oil of unction, and the rod of Aaron, with its blos-
" soms and almonds, and the chest which the Philistines sent as a
" trespass offering to the God of Israel. Who hid it (the ark)? Josiah
" hid it." The Rabbies, therefore, connected the disappearance of the
pot of manna, and Aaron's rod that budded, with the disappearance of
the ark. The " Book of the Covenant " (Exod. xxiv. 7) which Moses
wrote (verse 4), containing, as it did, only chapters xx. to xxiii. of the
book of Exodus, would not have been of too great bulk to be contained
in the ark, but it is somewhat doubtful whether so large a roll as that
of the Pentateuch, when completed, could have found room in a chest
of such moderate dimensions. Nevertheless the compilers of the
Jerusalem Talmud, as cited above, and who were doubtless not alto
gether simpletons, held a different opinion. To assert offhand that the
Epistle to the Hebrews (as we have it, and which is, at least, the
oldest form, in which it has come down to us,) contains mistakes in its
statements, is very near akin to presumption of a somewhat offensive
description. Dr. Prideaux (The Old and New Testament Connected, London, 1845.
8vo. Vol. i., p. 138, &c.) says : — " The ark of the covenant was a
" small chest (Exod. xxv. 10 — 27) or coffer, three feet nine inches in
" length, and two feet three inches in breadth, and two feet three inches
" in height, in which were put the two tables of the law, as well the
" broken ones (say the Rabbins) as the whole. For proof of this they
" bring the second verse of the tenth chap, of Deut., which they read
" thus : — ' And I will write on the tables the words that were in the
" ' first tables, which thou brakedest, and hast put into the ark ' ;
" and it is true the word is Dnnrai , i.e., ' thou hast put,' in the
" prefer tense ; but it being with a vau (i) before it, that turns the
' ' prefer tense into a future, and therefore it must be read, ' thou shalt
" ' put them,' as in our translation, and not ' thou hast put them,' as
" the fautors of this opinion would have it. And that there was nothing
" else in it, when it was brought into Solomon's temple, is said in two
" places' of Scriptures (1 Kings viii. 9 ; 2 Chron. v. 10) ; but the
" Rabbins raise a controversy concerning Aaron's rod (Numb. xvii. 10 j
" in the Heb. xvii. 25) and the pot of manna (Exod. xvi. 33), and the
" original volume of the law written by Moses' own hand, whether they
" were not also in the ark. It is said of Aaron's rod and the pot of
" manna that they were laid up before the testimony ; and it being
" agreed on all hands that by ' the testimony ' is meant the two tables,

CHAP. IX., 1—5. 117
" those who interpret these words before the testimony (nnsn 'iDb) in the
" strictest sense, will have the said rod and pot of manna to have been
" laid up immediately before the tables, within the ark ; but others
" who do not understand the words in so strict a sense, say that they
" were laid up in the Holy of Holies without the ark, in a place just
" before it, thinking that in this position, without the ark, they may
" be well said to be laid up before the testimony or tables of the law,
" as if they had been placed immediately before them within the ark.
" But the IioJy Apostle St. Paul decides this controversy, for he posi-
" tively tells us ' that within the ark were the golden pot that had
" ' manna,' &c. (Heb. ix. 4) ; and hereto agree' Abarbanel on 1 Kings,
" viii. 9, and R. Levi Ben Gersom, &c."
Danzius, however (Functio Pontif. M., &c), cites from R. Levi Ben
Gersom the following opposite, or at least indecisive opinion : —
D'unpn vrpi aim nnsn ¦'¦sh , " before the testimony, which was in the
" Holy of Holies " ; whilst from Abarbanel he adduces the following : —
•unpon oipD3 trac-1) 'id1? nnna nisisn nr.'m mm nna pN Ninra nnsn 'iDb
" The expression ' before the testimony ' means the ark of the covenant
" of the Lord, and the pot of manna was deposited in the most sacred
"place of all."
Prideaux, who speaks so decisively in favour of the literal reading of
Heb. ix. 4, observes, further, " The ark was not of capacity enough to
" hold the volume of the whole law of Moses, with the other things
" placed therein." (Ibid., p. 139.)
7 Xep. Sbgris, erroneously translated by Prof. Stuart "splendid
" cherubim." The Targum of Jonathan renders Levit. xvi. 2, " The
" cloud of the glory of my Shechina is revealed over the place of the
" mercyseat " ; and so here A6tjr)s might, with advantage, be rendered
" of the Shechina." (See J. A. Danzii, Shechina, Meuschen, N. Test.
ex Talm. illustr., p. 701.) The writer to the Hebrews is here making
a skilful appeal to the consciousness of his readers, that all these
majestic, and once essential, accompaniments of the tabernacle and
temple worship had long since passed away. It contained an unanswer
able demonstration that the Mosaic ceremonial comprised, in itself, no
inherent and sempiternal perpetuity. If these things were not indis
pensable, why should not the entire structure, based originally upon
Divine appointments, be ultimately dissolved, and give place to a new
and better order of things ? Nearly all of the things above specified
in this chapter were absent in the second temple, and yet the prophet
Haggai was bidden to tell the elders, who wept over these departed
excellencies, " I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of Hosts
"  The glory of this latter house shall be greater than that of the

118 CHAP. IX., 1—5.
"former, saith the Lord of Hosts." (Hag. ii. 7—9.) R. Akiba ex
pressly refers this passage to the days of Messiah. (See Balth. Scheidii,
Praterita prateritorum, p. 20, Meuschen.) The Rabbinical writers
made no secret of these palpable deficiencies. R. Samuel bar Inja (in
Joma) says : —
CN D'31-Ol nTIEDl ]Y1N )n 17N '!» Vtpob p«N1 tHpO p VTIV Dn3T 7TVOTI VJN
: cairn d'iini ra-npn nm moral
" The following five particulars constituted the difference between
" the first sanctuary and the second, to wit, the ark, the mercyseat, and
" the cherubim, the [holy] fire, and the Shechinah, and the Holy Spirit
" [of prophecy], and the Urim and Thummim." The same passage is
found in the Jerus. Gemara, Taanith, cap. 2, 1, col. 711 (Ugol. Thes.,
vol. 18), on which Abarbanel remarks (Comment, ad Hag. 1, foL 278,
col. 1) :—
'to to! intern rrman m 'a nara ncn D'lain rfw 12b «te rwrb ini max >in
pn« te ltoai pn rosisi 13103 nrao nrasra D'Tnn tnidi vanpi itwti praon
•. 'ira n'33 1310 N'n nia oVo nnraan prai
" But it is certainly proper to notice that these were not the only
" things wanting there. For besides these, the candlesticks, and the
" table, and all the vessels of the tabernacles, and its curtains, and
" boards, and the rest of the things which Moses made in the wilder-
" ness, and the pot of manna, and Aaron's rod, and the oil of anointing,
" were all of them hidden, and did not return, during the second
" temple." (See Danzii Functio Pont. M., p. 941.)
8 'lXao-rr)piov, mea , from "iDa , to make expiation ; in its primary signifi
cation, to cover. It is first mentioned in Exod. xxv. 17, and is there
called, in the LXX., iXao-Tr)pwv iirlBepa. It was directed to be made of
pure gold, and was placed upon the ark, the top of which it exactly
equalled in size, viz., 2£ cubits in length, and a cubit and a half in
breadth. The Targum of Jonathan (or Palestine) adds that " its depth
" shall be a handbreadth " (pusheka). It was surrounded by the cheru
bims, and Jehovah promised (Exod. xxv. 22), " There I will meet with
" thee, and I will commune with thee from above the mercyseat, from
" between the two cherubims, which are upon the ark of the testimony,
" of all things which I will give thee in commandment unto the children
" of Israel" ; which passage Onkelos thus paraphrases : — "And I will
" appoint my Word (Memra) with thee there," &c. " Here it was,"
says Prideaux, " where the Shechinah, or Divine presence, rested, both
" in the tabernacle and temple, and was visibly seen in the appearance
" of a cloud over it ; and from hence the Divine oracles were given out
" by an audible voice (Exod. xxv. 22, and Num. vii. 89) as often as God
" was consulted in the behalf of his people. And hence it is that God

CHAP. IX., 6—7. 119
" is so often said to dwell between the cherubims, that is, between the
" cherubims on the mercyseat, because there was the seat or throne of
" the visible appearance of his glory among them; and for this reason
" the high priest appeared before the mercyseat once every year, on the
" great day of expiation, when he was to make his nearest approach to
"the Divine presence to mediate and make atonement for the whole
"people of Israel. And all else of that nation who served God
" according to the Levitical law, made it the centre of their worship ;
" and not only in the temple when they came up thither to worship, but
" everywhere else in their dispersion through the whole world, when-
" ever they prayed, they turned their faces towards the place where the
" ark stood, and directed all their devotions that way. And, therefore,
" the author of the book Cozri (part 2, s. 28) justly saith, that the ark,
" with the mercyseat and cherubims, were the foundation, root, heart,
" and marrow, of the whole temple, and all the Levitical worship therein
" performed." (Connexion of the Old and New Testament, vol. 1, p. 140.)
Verse 6. — Such being the arrangement of the objects above
specified (Tovtwv Se ovtco Kareo-Kevacrp,evo3v), the priests
go in and out of the first tabernacle (or apartment) con
tinually in the performance of their ministerial functions.1
1 Abarbanel, defining the particular functions of the ordinary priests,
as contradistinguished from those of the Levites, says, in reference to
the words rayd) n'aa^i mian -at to1; , in every matter concerning the altar
and within the veil. ('Numb, xviii. 7.) Dm nYisn naia to nimpn 13'V En
miiop3i nnm nptons inw , " They ought to offer sacrifices upon the altar
" of whole burnt-offering, and minister in lighting the lamps, and in
" the offering of incense." J. A. Danzius (in Fund. Pontif. Max. in
Adyt. anniversaria, Meuschen, p. 915) observes that none of the priests
with the exception of the Sagan (deputy high priest), and that only in
case of urgent necessity, could discharge the duties of the high priest
(Vm pa) on the day of atonement, ia n^n mraa ni'N omDan ov mias to ,
'' No ministration of the day of atonement is in order, or lawful, except it
"be performed by him." (Gemar. Babyl. Horajoth, cap. 3, fol. 12.)
Maimonides says that the high priest might offer whenever and what
ever he pleased, like an ordinary priest. On the word Sagan, see
Reland, Ant. Sacr., p. 170.
Verse 7. — But into the second (once in the year, arra^ tou
iviavrov, viz., the Day of Atonement) ' the high priest [goes
in] alone (povo<s), not without blood,2 which he offered on

120 CHAP. IX., 7.
his own behalf (vtrep eavrov),3 as well as for the sins
(dyvor/paTccv) ' of the people.
1 "An-af tov iviavrov, n:ra3 nnN , Levit. xvi. 24, i.e., on one stated day
in the year, viz., tenth day of Tisri, the first month of the civil year
(Sept., Oct.). Maimonides (Moreh Nevochim,, pt. iii., c. 45, fol. 164,
edit. Sabionet.), after observing that the high priest alone might enter
the Holy of Holies, and only on the day of atonement, whilst the
ordinary priests might enter the holy place daily, provided always that it
was at the appointed hour of service, goes on to ask how many times the
high priest might enter the Holy of Holies (but only at service time) on
the Day of Atonement ? He answers, " Pom- times ; but if he enters
" a fifth time, he incurs the penalty of death at the hands of God.''
Wbat these four times are, we learn from the same writer (Hilch. jom
liakkippurim, c. 4, § 1) : — 1, with the incense ; 2, with the blood of the
bullock ; 3, with the blood of the goat ; 4, when he goes in to fetch
out the spoon and the censer (see note, p. 112) ; and yet, in exact accord
ance with the form of speech used by the writer to the Hebrews,
Maimonides elsewhere says, niiro nnN rare ow N3 , " He goes in there
"but once in the year."
The following extract from the Gemara (Tract. Rosh. Hashshanah,
chap. 1) will serve to show the legendary sanctity attaching to the
month Tizri : —
•fro nDE3 ni3N ina 'irans ni3N nVo mens dVism Ni3i nem toin iip'w »i
vxra DiiDsn n'3D rpv nsv mran ewia n:m bm rnw mpe: mran -CN13 pns'
: ^Nrt pro nrami ltooa ]D':3 D'-«a3 n'maNa mis ntaa mran
" R. Eliezer says, the world was created in Tizri, in Tizri the
" Patriarchs were born, and in Tizri they also died. On the Passover
" Isaac was born ; on the first month of the year Sarah, Rachel, and
" Hannah were visited. In the first month of the year Joseph went
" forth from the prison house ; in the first month of the year the
" servitude of our fathers ceased in Egypt, although in Nisan they were
" released." According to the same Rabbi, in Tisri the Jews are also
to be delivered by the Messiah. R. Joshua, however, places the con
summation of Messiah's redemption, like the release from Egyptian
bondage, in the month Nisan. (See J. A. Danzius, ibid., pp. 956, 959,
961, where the whole subject is discussed at length.)
The above traditional coincidences serve to illustrate the Messianic
and typical characteristics attributed by the ancient Jewish teachers to
the Day of Atonement.
2 Prom the following extract from Maimonides (Hih. avod. jom
hakkip., cap. iv., sec. 1) it will be seen that it is not improbable that

CHAP. IX., 7. 121
the High l'riest did not bring in the blood on the first occasion of his
entering the Holy of Holies.
to'n te 'ya-in inin to ury Nte nnia not» 'b^> nnm ib te iai nN topa
rpian toa ':ra nsob -paDn p n3ian too «n n3 nn'nra nnnan nN tem yin3a
p npT miep Nte 'toi fpn nN ib )'N'S'ai 'misara nam to nmiai -nvi '' 'iste
]pm l^-na 'Bb tern niEiBo n'in niraru nVi nipina n1; visn Nte maa pini pin
I'jNawa toiD^ Via' i:'n nan Ninra ti»i nnnan naia ':eo f]an mrt pin way 'B^
»'ia Ninra is to'na "pnai l'waraa miapn nai li'a'a nnnan ten "ja'D1? jviNn is
piN1* yan /piN1; S'aa Ninra is D'raipn imp1? wa: nDnB nanBn NSa ,D'impn vipb
m'nran pN to nnua n'n jnN mn Nte 'ira n>aai cnan 'ira p -nnnan jnu
" Sanguinem Juvenci recipit [in cratere aureo] ac tradit cuidam, qui
" extus in quarto Templi scamno agitet, ne coaguletur. Ipse vero
" accipit Thuribulum [allatum sibi ab aliis], ac depromit eo ignem ab
'¦ Altari [exteriori] ea parte, quae occidenti erat vicinior ; quia dicitur :
" ' desuper Altari coram Domino' Descendens autem, collocat illud
" super scamnum, quod in atrio. Praeterea producunt quoque ad ipsum
" Acerram aliquam, et vas plenum suffimenti semel utrumque contusi :
" e quo plenos caput pugillos suos, non rasos, nee accumulates, sed
" pianos, quilibet pro capacitate staturae suae, eosque acerras isti indit.
" Ub gravitatem Thuribuli, ejusque calorem, non potest id portare in
" sinistra sua ad Arcam usque : ideo accipit Thuribulum dextera sua,
" et Acerram suffimenti sinistra, atque progreditur per templum, donee
" pervenerit ad Sanctum Sanctorum. In quod, Velo allevato, ingreditur
" ad Arcam usque, quo si accesserit, ponit Thuribulum inter duos ejus
" vectes ; in templo secundo vero, ubi non extitit Area, id posuit super
" Lapidem istum Fundationis." (J. A. Danzii Fund. Pontif, pp. 993,
994, Meuschen.)
3 From Lev. xvi. 6, 11, compared with verse 24, we see that imep
eavrov (ln'3 rsy\ n»3) included his family, and so the Targums of Pales
tine and Onkelos render for himself and the men of his house. Maimoni
des (Hilc. Jom Hakkip., chap, ii., sec. 6, &c.) gives the formula of
confession employed by the High Priest on his own account as
follows : —
D'JWBbi rruiisVi Q'Niart ni 1B3 '" niN yxib wbdi tto 'nNrnn Dran niN
vmxtvn 'n'israi 'nNanra
"And now, 0 Lord, I have sinned, and done iniquity, and trespassed
" before Thee. I pray therefore, O Lord, cover (or expiate) my sins,
" and iniquities, and trespasses, which I have sinned, done wrongly, and
" trespassed against Thee." The confession to be used for the sins of the
people was couched in words exactly similar. (See Danzius, ibid. pp.
1000 and 1010 ) The same writer explains the meaning of this threefold
enumeration of faults. He understands them not as being accumulative
but particularising and specificatory. His words are —
R

122 CHAP. IX., 7.
':'B Dn D'sraEi sairaa O'rawn Dn D'Niom ines nraw dinid nnwn on nuw 'a
'iai D«n3 nam mrean
" By iniquities are understood those things which a man does de-
" signedly wrong. Sins signify things which a man is betrayed into
" unawares, and transgressions come under the head of dissimulation
" and rebellion against God." — Danzius, ibid., p. 1010.
4 Dr. Alford, as will be apparent from the above note as well as from
the following, erroneously renders ayvorjpara by sins of ignorance.
Danzius (ibid., pp. 1008, 1009) sagaciously remarks: — "Peccata quae
" expianda sunt, vocantur hic ayvorjpara, quae Socinianis haud alia sunt,
" quam qua vel ex ignorantia sive oblivione juris alicujus divini, vel ex
" ignorantia facti et circumstantiarum, vel etiam ex humand quadam
" imbecillitate prqficiscuntur. Equidem concedendum omnino est, dyvor)-
" para hinc inde in scriptis sacris ac profanis pro hujus generis exstare
" peccatis. Quod autem et volunturia ac graviora haud raro denotet,
" satis superque docent dicta Psal. xxv. 7, ubi 3?raB (quod quam magnum
" designet peccatum, mox dicturi sumus) LXX. rediderunt per dyvolav.
" Hoseae iv. 15, spiritualis Israelitarum scortatio per verbum dyvoia, pro
" Hebraico mi positum, exprimitur. Quae sane leve, ac ex ignorantia
" commissum peccatum non fuit ; prouti ex toto hoc capite clare apparet.
" Etiam Jud. v. 19, 20, pro quibusvis delictis idem vocabulum ponitur.
" Hinc et Syrus interpres h 1. pro dyvor)pao-i Apostoli posuit atZaN^gi
" qua voce quaevis designantur peccata, etiam illud ab Adamo perpe-
" tratam, quod certe nee leve fuit, nee ex ignorantia commissum. Imo
" ex collatione loci Lev. xvi., sole lucidius patet, hic sub voce tS>v
" dyvor/pdrav, omnis generis contineri peccata. Siquidem ibi a satis
" perspicuis docetur, omnia peccata, in anniversario isto Sacrificio
" expiari. Et quidem omnia ilia, quae supra vocibus yits, rcB ac nN~n
" erunt expressa atque sub se continent quiquid omnino venit sub
"peccati nomine. Vox enim ps (quae formatur ab my curvus, pravus,
" perversus fuit, iniquus fuit, inique ac perverse egit, cum contra Deum,
" turn proximum), denotat vitiositatem non modo naturae, seu peccatum
" innatum, iniquitatem, perversitatem, sed graviora peccata, quae inde
" oriuntur, ut abnegationem Dei, Idololatriam, adulterium ac quaevis alia.
" Et quidem non ex errore, sed ex malitia, seu destinato proposito
" commissa, cum sc. mens quidem quid rectum quid oequum sit videt
" et agnoscit : deteriora tamen sequuntur. see (cujus origo est verbum
" sraa transgressus est, voluntatem scil. ad mandatum ejus cui quis ad
" obediendum est obstrictus, defecit, scditiosus, rebellis fuit), designat
" transgressionem defectionem ac rebellionem malitiosam : ut ex citatis
" perspicuum evadit. won (a verbo mon errarit, aberravit a via, vel
" scopo, metaphorice peccavit, siquidem peccando a lege divina aberra-

CHAP. IX., 8, 9. 123
" mus), significat peccatum, prouti aberratio seu digressio a recta via
" est. At vox haec tarn late patet ut non tantum notet peccatum
" originale, ac actualia ilia quae per errorem sunt commissa, sed et
" quaevis alia graviora," &c. The same writer goes on to remark how
in Exod! xxxiv. 7 and other passages, all these words are found in
juxtaposition, as including every kind of sin that can be possibly com
mitted, e.g., TWbm scbi ]i» Nrai D'b'jn'; iot\ i3i, " Keeping mercy for
" thousands, forgiving iniquity, and transgression, and sin" Sec.
Verses 8, 9. — The Holy Ghost making it clearly under
stood (hoc significante Spiritu Sancto, Vulg.) that the way
(rr)v rav dyiwv 68bv, i.e., the right of entering) into the
holy places had not, yet been indicated (pr)ira> rrecpavepcoaOai,
i.e., was straitly forbidden) , whilst the first tabernacle was
still in existence. (These words must be limited to the
actual restrictions which excluded any but the High Priest
from going into, and allowed him only once a year to
enter, the Holy of Holies.) Which (tabernacle, r/Vt?) is
a parabolic "representation referring to the present time
(rrapafioXr) et? tov Kaipbv tov iveo-TijKOTa) .
In other words, the condition of those who obsti
nately hold by the Temple as it now is, with its ¦
figurative and ceremonial observances and ritual
(based upon the ancient model of the Tabernacle),
is not a whit nearer the reality, the things signified
and hoped for, than that of the Israelites under
Moses. What was then indicated by the Holy Ghost
holds good for all time, as long as the Mosaic ritual
is kept up. The worshippers are yet in the region
of shadow and type. They cannot and dare not
penetrate within the veil. And what is worse,
they are content with their condition. They will
not understand the lesson inculcated by the Holy
Spirit Himself. The parable or figurative lesson

124 CHAP. IX., 9, 10.
is a sealed book to them. They look at the out
side, and are content to remain excluded and " afar
off," even at the present time.
Verses 9, 10. — In which (sc. Kaipbv) gifts and sacrifices are
offered, which cannot make the worshipper perfect in
respect to his conscience, being imposed (emKeipteva,
Stuart, enjoined) until the time of reformation (8iopdcbo-ea><;,
rectification, placing things on a better footing), simply in
respect to meats and drinks, and various washings, and
carnal ordinances (SiKaicapacn crap/cos). 1
1 Alford, with Scholz, Lachmann, and Griesbach, read 8iKaiapara.
(See note 3, p. 108.) Spencer (De Legibus. Heb. Rit., tom. ii., p. 161,
Hag. Com., 4to.) writes : — " Vix ulla tot baptismorum Judaeorum ratio
" assignari potest, nisi eorum originem a seculi moribus, non facile cito-
" que dediscendis, arcessamus. Haud ex nihilo est, quod asserit Apos-
" tolus, Judaeorum cultum stetisse (Heb. ix. 10) pdvov inl $papao-i, Kal
" Trdpao-i, Kal 8ia<pipois ftanricrpdis ; alia enim erat Pontificis et sacer-
" dotum lotio, Exod. xxix. 4, alia Levitarum, Num. viii. 7, Israelitarum
" alia : eaque, vel ob officii alicujus sacri reverentiam et solennitatem,
"Exod. xix. 10, 11, vel immunditiem contractam, e tactu seminiflui,
"Lev. xv. 8, reptilis, Levit. xxii. 5, cadaveris, cap. xvii. 5, aliis que
" causis. Quid autem Deus (qui cordis non cutis, munditiem spectare
" solet) tot frigidos et omni virtute cassos corporis baptismos in cultum
" suum recipere dignaretur, nisi ut Illius instituta ad ruditatem
" Hebrseorum, jam diu (Gal. iv. 3) visb to o-Toixela tov Koo-pov 8eoovXa-
" pevav, aliquatenus accomodaret."
The writer having now enumerated the leading
characteristics of the first Tabernacle and the Mosaic
ritual as yet carried out in his own days, as far as
its departed glories and essential ornaments would
permit, in the Temple, and having also pointed out
some leading defects, now proceeds in the 11th and
following verses to bring out the superior excel
lences and superlative completeness of the High
Priesthood of Jesus.

CHAP. IX., 11.-14. 125
Verses 11 — 14. — But Christ (Messiah) being come, a High
Priest of the good things to come (tojv peXXovrcov dyaOoov,
i.e., the spiritual and heavenly; — see note 2 on p. 37) through
(per amplius et perfectius. — Vulg.) the (not a) greater
and more perfect tabernacle, which is not made with hands,
that is, not of this creation (Tat/Tr;? T9j? /CTt'crea)?, visible,
material creation, Stuart) ; not in virtue (Sid, with) of
the blood of goats and calves (iq a bullock), but in virtue
(Sid Se) of his own blood (see verse 7, ov %«/3t? a'iparos b
irpocrepepei, k.t.X.), he entered once for all (icpdira!;) into
the Holy places (to dyta, i.e., the heavenly), having found
an eternal redemption for us (i.e., a redemption whose
efficacy evermore abides, and is ever fresh and enduring).
For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of
a heifer sprinkling l the unclean (K€Koivojpevov<; ceremonially
defiled), sanctifleth to the purifying of the flesh, how much
rather shall the blood of Christ, who through the Eternal
Spirit2 offered himself (Ps. xl. 6, 7) without spot (dptwpov)
to God, cleanse your consciences from dead works,3 so
that you may serve the living4 God? (et? to Xarpeveiv
K.T.X.)

1 27ro86s 8apdXeas pavrl£ovo-a k.t.X. (Num. xix. 11 — 19.) The ashes
of the heifer were employed in the composition of the water of separa
tion (mm 'a) wherewith any person or vessel which had contracted
ceremonial defilement in connexion with a dead body or a bone of a
dead person, &c, &c, were to be purified. Hence the allusion to " dead
" works," from which Christ, by the Spirit of Sanctification, shall
much more cleanse the conscience.
2 Am nvevparos alavlov (compare Ps. CX. 4, 2i> lepevs els tov alava).
This very peculiar expression is nowhere else found in the New Testa
ment. Stuart renders it " by an eternal Spirit," and " in an eternal
"spiritual nature." I cannot help thinking that there is a Messianic
allusion to the anointing of the Holy Ghost, viz., to that " oil of glad-
" ness," typified by the Aaronic holy oil, wherewith Christ was anointed
above his fellows, and which accompanied his designation to the High-
priesthood. (Ps. xlv. 7.) Concerning this Psalm, the late Dr. M'Caul

126 CHAP. IX., 11—14.
•writes, (Lectures on the Prophecies. London, 1846. 8vo., p. 59), "The
" Targum, David Kimchi, and even E. Isaac in the Chizzuk Emunah,
" interpret it positively of the Messiah." The latter says also of Is.
Ixi., "The whole chapter refers to the future, and speaks of the
" gathering of the captivities of Israel, and the coming of the true
" Messiah, which we expect in the last days." Whilst Eabbi David
Kimchi says plainly, that " it is the Messiah whose name is mentioned
" in all generations, and whom the Gentiles shall praise." Christians
are apt to forget that the word Christ means Anointed one, and that the
priestly unction of Christ is the Holy Ghost. (See Is. xi. 2 ; xlviii. 16 ;
lxi. 1. Comp. Luke iv. 18.) So also the Targum of Jonathan on Is.
xiii. 1 :— "Behold my servant the Messiah  I will put the Spirit
" of Holiness upon Him." (Nn'tta na» Nn.)
Now it is expressly foretold by Isaiah, iv. 4, that in the days of the
" Branch," an epithet universally applied by the Eabbies and by the
Targums to the Messiah, " Jehovah will have washed away the filth of
" the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem
" by the Spirit of Judgment and by the Spirit of burning" (nrai cesto rrru
isi), and this is in exact accordance with the declaration of John
Baptist (Matt. iii. 11), "He shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost
" and with fire." J. A. Danzius, in his very able Programma de Spiritu
Ardente, Meuschen, p. 790, observes how "E. Samuel Laniado rm
" EBffian Spiritum judicii, exposuit quidem, plD' p judicium castigati-
" onum ; im nn Spiritum ardentem vero explicavit omnino ccn n«a vip nn
" lain is ftin "Winn Spiritum sanctificationis ex Deo, qui toilet stercus, donee
" defecerit," and then proceeds, " Paraphrastes Chald. nn per Nna'a
" Verbum transtulit, quae vox aeque ac Nn-ma , de dirina persona ab ipso
" sumi putatur, eaque ut plurimum secunda, quam Joannes Xoyoi» cog-
" nominavit." Here, then, we see that the Spirit of Messiah, or the
" Spirit of burning," is THE Spirit OF sanctification, rrvevpa dyiao-vvns,
Eom. i. 4 ; and although Danzius does not allude to this fourteenth
verse of Heb. ix. in the passage quoted, I feel that very considerable
help is, by his remarks, afforded to its proper understanding.
It is quite true that, in Matt. xii. 28, " If I cast out devils by the
" Spirit of God," the Divine power and energy of Christ is intended,
as will be seen by comparing the parallel passage in Luke xi. 20 : —
" But if I by the finger of God cast out devils, no doubt the kingdom
"of God is come unto you." The expressions "Spirit of God" and
" finger of God " are here convertible terms. The " sin against the
" Holy Ghost " of which the Pharisees were guilty was a malicious and
wilful denial of the proper Deity of Jesus. They blasphemously com
pared his real miracles to the charms and exorcisms of which the

CHAP. IX., 15. 127
Eabbinical writings are full, and by which their children pretended to
cast out devils. The form of speech "the finger of God" is taken
from Exod. viii. 19 (Heb. 15), where the magicians say to Pharaoh, in
reference to the plague of lice, " This is the finger of God" («in DTfa* msn),
and in this sense, Dean Alford seems to understand Sid m. alav. k.t.X.,
" It is not the Spirit of the Father dwelling in Christ, nor is it the Holy
" Spirit given without measure to Christ, but it is the Divine Spirit of
" the Godhead which Christ himself had, and was his inner personality."
This indeed is an explanation, but it is not a solution of the present
difficulty. In a case like the present it is always safer, if possible, to
seek the key to the difficulty in the immediate context and the subject
in hand, and not to run away from them to discover a palliative, so to
speak, in the statement of some general and unquestionable truism,
which has only an adapted bearing upon the point at issue. We may
be quite sure that the writer to the Hebrews knew, and enunciated
precisely, what he intended to convey ; and, also, it cannot be questioned
that the subject of which he is treating, and so closely handling, is a
minute comparison and contrast between the temporal highpriesthood
of Aaron, and the eternal highpriesthood of Christ.
3 It had been distinctly foretold by the prophet Zechariah (xiii. 1)
that in Messiah's days such a spiritual fountain should be provided : —
" In that day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David
" and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem for sin and for uncleanness."
(miVi — " mi , abominatio, impuritas, a Tn removit, abjecit, min 'a aqua im-
puritatish..e. aqua, qua impuri purgantur , aqua lustratoria." Gesen.) In
reference to this passage of Zech., E. Alshech on Jer. xxiii. 6, as quoted
in Dr. M'Caul's Kimchi on Zech., pp. 175, 176, says, " Messiah is called
" The Lord our Eighteousness ; that is to say, through the super-
" abundance of his righteousness and purity, righteousness will be
" communicated to Israel from heaven. Messiah will be like a reservoir
" into which it is poured, and from whence it is spread among the
" people ; and this is the meaning of The Lord our Righteousness. That
" is to say, that as the Lord sends forth righteousness to him that comes
" to be cleansed, and still more to the clean, so also the Messiah
" shall be like the blessed God, and his name shall be called The Lord
" our Righteousness, for from Thee our righteousness shall be derived as
" from the Lord."
4 6e<5 Cavri, i.e., the true and living God [rj"n D'rfiN Deut. v. 23 (25)1
whose voice our Fathers heard, and from whom we are falsely accused
of departing.
Verse 15. — And in consequence of this (Sid tovto) He is a

128 CHAP. IX., 15.
Mediator of ' a new covenant (or Testament), so that his
death having really taken place (nachdem ein Tod ....
vollendet wax— Ewald) for the redemption of the trans
gressions under the first covenant, those who have been
called might receive the promise of the eternal inheritance.
1 AiaBrjKvs Kaivr)s peo-'irqs, i e., " the Messenger of the Covenant,"
n'lin ~\fha, of Mai. iii. 1, o ayyeXos rrjs 8ia8rjKr)s ov vpeis BeXere LXX.,
"Angelus testamenti quern vos vultis," Vulg. This Divine person
is elsewhere called mm -prta (correctly translated " The Angel of
the Lord," in the authorized version), and in the Targums, "t Nia-a
" The word of the Lord," " commonly used," as Etheridge says,
" in the Targums to denote the Divine Being in self -manifestation,
" and identified with the Shechinah ;" e.g., Onkelos paraphrases Gen.
xvi. 13, 14, thus, — " And she prayed in the name of the Lord who had
" spoken with her, and she said, Thou art Eloha, seeing all, for she
" said, I also have begun to see after that He hath been revealed to me.
" Therefore she called the name of the well, The well at which appeared
" the Angel of the Covenant." Whilst the Targum of Jonathan has,
" And she gave thanks before the Lord whose Word spake to her, and
" thus said, Thou art He who livest and art eternal ; who seest, but art
" not seen. For she said, for behold here is revealed the glory of the
" Shechinah of the Lord after a vision. Wherefore she called the well,
" The well at which the Living and Eternal One was revealed" The Jeru
salem Targum reads, "And Hagar gave thanks, and prayed in the
" name of the Word of the Lord, who had been manifested to her,
" saying, Blessed be Thou, Eloha, the Living One of all ages, who hast
" looked upon my affliction." So also the Targum of Jonathan in
Mai. iii. 1 identifies the n'-on -\nbn the angel of the covenant, with the
"l Nia'a or Word of the Lord. The Eabbies, as also the Targum of
Jonathan, make the l'lB ~\>*ba, the angel of his presence, which redeemed
them, of Is. Ixiii. 9 (town naton " the redeeming angel" of Gen. xlviii 16)
to be one and the same with God, Jehovah, the Shechinah, and the
Word of the Lord, or Memra. He is also called Michael (toons i.e., who
is as God), as will appear from the following Talmudical passages : —
" When three men walk along a road together, the principal personage
" walks in the middle, the most honourable of the two remaining ones
" on the right hand, and the other on the left. And this we find to be
" the case in respect to the three ministering angels who came to
" Abraham. Michael walked in the middle, Gabriel on his right, and
'' Eaphael on his left." Joma, 37. a, line 28, &c. Edit. Amst. And
again, " Who, then, were those three men who tarried with Abraham ?

CHAP. IX., 15. 129
" Michael, Gabriel, and Eaphael. Michael came to bring the good news
" to Sarah, Eaphael to heal Abraham, who was not yet recovered of his
" circumcision, Gabriel went away to overthrow Sodom." Bava Melzia,
fol. 86 b, line 41, &c. And further, " The three angels who came to our
"father Abraham were Gabriel, Michael, and Eaphael  Whilst
" Abraham was looking upon these angels, and the Schechina (Michael)
" came over to him and stood opposite to him, Abraham said to the
" others, My Lords, wait ye here while I go with the Shechina, for He
" is greater than you," &c. Derech Erez, chap, iii., fol. 19, col. 2. '
Again, in the treatise Shabbath, Bab., fol. 127 a, line 37, &c , " It is
" written concerning the Holy One, Blessed be He, and Abraham said,
" O Lord ('11N Adonai) .' if now L have found grace, wait until I have
" brought in those travellers, to wit, Gabriel and Eaphael." On which
J. A. Danzius remarks in his most erudite treatise Schechina cum
piis cohabitans (Meuschen, N. T. ex Talmude illustr., p. 719), " A quibus
" suam mutuatus est Glossam Raschi, qua contendit quod Angelum
" istum medium vocarit Adonai, sc. Dominum, Abrahamus : ' cum hoc
" ordine ante ipsum venerint, ut Michael in medio procederet, Gabriel
" ab ejus dextera, et Eaphael a sinistra. Et quod Sanctum Bendicen-
" duni allocutus sit : quia in prsecedentibus scriptum, quod appa-
" ruerit ipsi (sc. Abrahamo) Jehova ; et . deinceps ecce tres viri.
" Dixerit itaque Sancto isti Benedicendo ne quaso ! transeas a vicinitate
" servi tui ; expecta me hic donee introducerim viatores istos.' " And again,
p. 721, " Quern ipsum eundem dicunt cum Angela isto, in cujus medio
" esse dicitur nomen Dei, h.e. Deus ipse, juxta communem linguae Ebreas
" indolem : cui usitatissime nomen piioiD'e seu Metatoris (quo sensu
" castrorum metator et urbis, apud Ciceronem occurrit), tribuunt : qui,
" ut et nominibus proxime praecedentibus memoratus, idem sit ac
" Schechina. In quo acquieverit Moses verbis (Exod. xxxiv. 9) :
" si nunc inveni gratiam in oculis tuis, 0 Adonai, incedat quceso !
" Adonai in medio nostra. Quam vocem Schechina aequipollentem
" jam supra monuimus," &c. The Targum of Jonathan on Exod.
xxiv. 1, instead of "And He (God) said unto Moses, come up unto the
" Lord," has, " And Michael, the Prince of Wisdom, said," &c. The
late Dr. M'Caul, in his Observations on mm ybo The Angel or Mes
senger of the Lord (R. D. Kimchi's Comment, on Zech. translated, p. 25),
says, " E. Bechai testifies unreservedly to the fact that the angel here
" (Exod. iii. 6) calls himself the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.
" ' Ask not,' he says, ' how Moses could hide his face before the angel,
" ' for the angel mentioned here is the angel, the Eedeemer of whom it
" ' is written, / am the God of Bethel, and in like manner it is said here,
"'lam the God of thy father, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac,

130 CHAP. IX., 15.

" ' and the God of Jacob, and He it is of whom it is said, My name is in
" ' him.' (Comment, in loco.) E. Moses ben Nachmann goes a step
" further ; he not only confirms the fact, but rejects the explanation
" that the angel was speaking in the name of him that sent him. His
" words are, ' The explanation, that in the words, I am the God of thy
"father, the messenger spoke in the language of Him that sent him, is
" not correct, for Moses's degree in prophecy was too high for him to
" hide his face before the angel. Our Eabbies have said in Bereshith
" Eabba, This angel is Michael. As in the case of R. Jose the Patient,
"wherever he was seen, they said, there is our holy Rabbi, so wherever
" Michael is seen, there is the glory of the Shechinah. They meant to say
" that at first Michael appeared to him, and that the glory of the
" Shechinah was there, but he did not see the glory, for he did not
" apply his mind to the prophetic vision ; but when he applied his mind
" and turned aside to see, then the appearance of the Shechina was
" revealed unto him, and God called unto him out of the midst of the
" bush. And in the way of truth, this angel was the Angel the
" Eedeemer, for it is said, My Name is in him. He it is who said to
" Jacob, I am the God of Bethel, and of him it is said, and God called to
" him. But he is called "jn'jb angel, with reference to the government
" of the world ; and thus it is written (in one place), And the Lord
" brought us out of Egypt (Deut. vi. 21), and (in another) it is written,
" And he sent an angel, and hath brought us forth out of Egypt (Num. xx.
" 16). Again it is said, the Angel of his Presence saved them, that is to
" say, the Angel who is his Presence. (Is. Ixiii. 9.) For it is written, My
" Presence shall go, and I will give thee rest (Exod. xxxiii. 14) ; and this
" is what is said, The Lord whom ye seek shall suddenly come to his temple,
" even the Messenger of the Covenant whom ye delight in, behold He
"shall come' (Mai. iii. 1)." Those who desire to pursue this subject
further may with advantage consult Dr. M'Caul's Kimchi's Zech., pp.
9 — 27, Danzius's very learned treatise Schechina above mentioned, and
the introduction to Etheridge's Targums. On SiaBrjKrj, see note on p. 131.
The writer does not mean to say, that the mediator,
or introducer of a Testament must himself die, but
that, unless the death of the testator can be proved,
the testament is a dead letter and of no legal value.
But Christ entered into the Heavenly Sanctuary,
after his resurrection, bearing his own blood in
token that He had truly died; that He had given

CHAP. IX., 16—19. 131
his life a ransom for many ; for " the blood is the
" life ; " and thus the terms of the testament of our
redemption immediately came into force, and took
formal effect. "We have now a right to speak of the
Testament as an instrument of recognized validity.
Verses 16 — 19. — Por (says the writer) where a testament (is
produced) it is absolutely needful (before it can be acted upon,
or properly be called a " Testament ") that the death of the
testator shall be established ((pepecrOai)} Por a testament
is valid (eirl veKpois fieftala) in reference to the dead (in
the case of the dead, Alford. Auf Todte gultig, Ewald ; i.e.,
no one can claim the discharge of any bequest or stipula
tion of a will, until after the testator's death), since it is of
no validity at all during the testator's lifetime. "Wherefore
it came to pass, that the former was not inaugurated
(eyKeKaiviarai initiated) without blood. (It was a type of
the better covenant, and had its typical representation of
the testator's death in the blood of the sacrifices.) Por
after every Commandment according to the Law (Kara
vopov) had been rehearsed by Moses to all the people, he
took the blood of the calves and goats, with water, and
scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself/
1 "Oirov yap 8ia8rjKr), Bdvarov avdyKt) qbepeo-8ai tov SiaBepevov. The word
8ia8i]Kn is adopted both in the Mishna and the Talmud, e.g., yn"i , and
signifies both a covenant, and also the last will and testament of a dying
man, e.g., Mishna, Moed Katon, cap. 3, 3, j'Q'il Q'Wi 'Ujn'p isvoi pnis itoo
'HI yn"i psiffll , Et hac scribunt in diebus festi intermediis, sponsalia
mulierum, divortia, apocham, contractum, &c. Mishn'a, Surenh., tom. ii.,
p. 409. Again, Bava Metzia, cap. i., 7, 'm yn"i eras nnnw ?'»: 'B'l «sa,
Si quis invenerit libelhs repudii mulierum, et servorum manumissoruw ,
SiaBrjKrjs, &c. Ibid., tom. iv., p. 110. Again, Bava Bathra, cap. viii. 3,
'in is'T to miiup ytvi nsaan na» 'a , Si quis mortuus fuerit et testa-
mentum ipsius foemori alligatum fuerit, &c. Ibid., pp. 192, 193. J. D.
Michaelis (Introd. to the New Testament, tr. by Marsh, vol. iv , pp. 227,
228) writes : — " The word SiaBijKq was adopted both by the Syrians and
" the Eabbins. In Syriac it was  used both in the sense of Covenant

132 CHAP. IX., 16—19.
"and that of Testament, as Castell and Schaaf have clearly shown,
" from many passages of the Syriac version." The Talmudic writers
could not have adopted the word from the New Testament writers. It
is therefore evident that the writer to the Hebrews was employing a
well-known Eabbinical formula when he uses SiaBrjKrj in the sense of a
Testament. Buxtorf gives the following article on yTfi , in his Chaldee
and Eabbinical Lexicon, col. 534 : — " ym , SiaBrjKrj, Testamentum,
" Tabula extrema voluntatis de hareditate. Glossa Talmudica explicat,
" l'ia s'3« r«i2 iioib . Literae praeceptionis sive mandati, scil. ultimi,
" quibus homo praecipit. quid post mortem suam de bonis relictis fieri
" velit, ex locutione, "jn'sS is, Pracipe domui tua, 2 Eeg. xx. 1, vide et
" 2 Sam. xvii. 23. Apud Talmudicos, nine yn'H , Testamentum donati-
" onis, Moed Katon, fol. 18, 2, in Mischna, Metzia, fol. 13, 1, et 18, 1.
" 'p'mn lnva , Quare dicitur yn"i ? Quasi D"p 'nn *n . Hoc (quod sciL
" hic scriptum est) erit ratum et firmum ab hoc tempore, et post mortem
" meam, Metzia, fol. 19, 1. Bathra, fol. 135, 2, yn"n ns» nrca , Moses
" fecit testamentum : 'p'n'H rttosa 'p'n""i, Testamentum (posterius) irritum
" reddit Testamentum (prius), Bathra, fol. 152, 2, et 135. 2. Plural.
" ni«pn"T 'tni 'tn , Utrumque est testamentum, Metzia, fol. 19, 2."
E. Obad. de Bartenora says the word means " The testament, or last
" wish of a sick person," and is compounded of the words Dprft ann nt ,
hoc esto ad confirmandum. Maimonides gives the same derivation (!), and
includes the meaning of a contract in its signification. See Mishna
Surenhusii (Bava Metzia), tom. iv., p. 110, note on sect. 7. The LXX.
translate n'ls, by SiaBrjKrj throughout the Old Testament, hence the two
fold use of the Hebraised word SiaBrjKrj, in the Epistle to the Hebrews,
would be readily understood by those to whom the latter was addressed.
If St. Paul was the author, we must remember that he was a Eabbinical
Jew, a Pharisee of the Pharisees, writing in their own phraseology, to
those who, from their infancy, lived in the atmosphere of " the Tradition
" of the Elders."
* Avrd re t6 pifiXlov. The Writer here supplies details, as in the case
of the golden censer, and of the material of the vase which contained the
manna, which are not contained in the narrative of Moses. (Exod.
xxiv. 5 — 8.) It is there simply related that he sent " young men of
" the children of Israel which offered burnt offerings and sacrificed
" peace offerings of oxen unto the Lord ; " ite'i 'wiur 'ia '-»i ns nto'i
d'-id mm1; O'abv dtoi lnsri r\bs. Under the term rts, holocausts, the
goats are doubtless included. The Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan
inform us that the " young men " above mentioned were firstborn sons,
whilst the latter adds, "for until that hour had the firstborn had the
" worship, the tabernacle of ordinance not being made, nor the priest-

CHAP. IX., 19—21. 133
" hood given unto Aaron." Again Moses mentions neither the water,
nor the scarlet wool and hyssop, nor yet the sprinkling of the book.
But these were, doubtless, ordinarily employed in purificatory asper
sions, and Professor Stuart judiciously observes : — " That water was
" used as well as blood, in order to sprinkle various things, is clearly
" implied in Lev. xiv. 4—7, compared with Lev. xiv. 49—52, Num. xix.
" 18, Ps. li. 17, Ezek. xxxvi. 25." The scarlet wool (rnrtin 'iw) probably
tied the bunch of hyssop to a cedar wood handle (see Lev. xiv. 4, 6, 49,
51, 52, Num. xix. 6), and being the ordinary mode of applying the water
and the blood, did not call for special mention in Exod. xxiv. Nor yet
is it related by Moses that he sprinkled the book of the covenant
(n'-on ibd). Dr. Gill has erroneously remarked, " the book of the law
" was sprinkled, not because of any impurity in it, but to show the
" imperfection of it and its insufficiency to justify men." According to
the writer to the Hebrews the object of the sprinkling the book of the
covenant with, blood, was to give it the validity of a Testamentary
document. Its contents are comprised in Exodus xx., xxiii. The
" Angel of the Covenant " (referred to in Mai. iii. 1) is here promised
(xxiii. 20 — 23), and is probably so called, because he is mentioned in
this " Book of the Covenant." (See note 1 on pp. 128—130.)
Verses 19 — 21. — And all the people,1 saying, " This is the
"blood of the covenant, which God enjoined2 upon you."
He sprinkled (at a later period, Exod. xl.) the tabernacle*
and all the vessels of the service also, with blood in like
manner. Almost all things, moreover, are purified with
blood,4 according to the law, and without shedding of
blood remission is not effected (ov yiverai dj>ecnsi).
1 ndvra rbv Xabv. This expression must not be pressed too closely.
Moses probably sprinkled those who stood immediately around him.
In the Hebrew of Exod. xxiv. 8, dot bs pin Din n« nroa np'i "And
" Moses took the blood, and sprinkled upon the people." Half the blood
was sprinkled upon the altar (v. 6), whilst the other half was reserved
in basons for the sprinkling of the people and the book, &c. Eespect-
ing the true signification of the word all, as used by the Sacred Hebrew
writers, see my tract, Bishop Colenso's Criticism Criticised. Third Edition,
pp. 21—27, and pp. 55—59.
2 ToOro to aipa rr)s SiaBrjKvs fjs ivereiXaro k.t X. These words are a
paraphrase of the Hebrew — i rfwn nnnn to bs DSas mm rro -tom nnin dt n:n
(The LXX. has, ISov to alpa rr)s SiaBrjKrjs, fjs StiBero Kvpios k.t.X.) Behold

134 CHAP. IX., 19—21.
the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath made (cut) with you con
cerning all these words (or things). Surenhusius (in his Bi'/3A. kotoXX ,
p. 635) observes on this passage : — " Hebraicum mn, et Chaldaicum Nn
" promiscue veniunt pro Graeco tovto, et ISov. Denique notandum est,
" quod Apostolus mo "TON quod scidit, dixerit elliptice, r\s ivereiXaro quod
" pracepit, nempe, mn', perinde ac si scriptum esset, mii ni» ¦roa, quod
" prwcepit adferiendum sive pangendum, vel diei etiam potest, quod m3
" et evreXXopai sint synonima, eundem sensum varie exprimentia, ut
" doceret Apostolus illud foederis pactum ex mandate divino factum,
" quandoquidem enim ipse ritus pangendi jam notus erat Hebraeis non
" opus erat, ut Apostolus formali verbo ms uteretur, verum eo quod rem
" notam leviter attingeret  Deinde pro mm, Kvpios, recte dicit D'rfw*,
" 8e6r, quandoquidem hicce Domini stylus passim est apud Prophetas ut
" foedera sua observantibus pro mittat. Dirt '°> vnn enm o'rf»rt 02b n'nsi.
" Et ero vobis in Deum, vos autem mihi erilis in popidum.''
3 In Exod. xl. we are only told that " the tabernacle and all that was
therein," as well as Aaron and his son, were anointed with the holy
oil, yet Philo assures us (De Mose, lib. 3, Works, Mangey's Edition,
vol. ii., p 157) that not only were the High Priest and his garments
and the altar and all the sacred vessels anointed with the holy oil, but
the priests were anointed with the blood of a ram on the head, the
hands, and the feet. Again on p. 158, IlaXat pev ovv lepeiov ivbs, 0
TrpoarjyopeveTO reXeiaaeas, aKpdra dlpari ra XexBivra rpla piprj Karixpie
rav lepiav. avBis 8'iK tov -napa ra @apa Xaftav onep i£ imavrav r)v, rav re
Bvopivav Kal tov XexBivros ^ptV/xaroff, 6 pvpeyj/ol Kareo-Kevaaav, dvapi£as
to eXaiov ra aipan tov Kpdparos, rdis lepevo-i Kal rais io-Br}o~eo-iv avrav
ineppaive. " On the former occasion he anointed the three specified
" parts of the priests with the unmixed blood of the one sacrifice, which
" was called that of perfection. But afterwards he took of the
" blood of all the victims that had been offered, from off the altar. He
'• then took some of the chosen chrism, or anointing oil, compounded
" by the apothecaries, and mingled the said oil with the mixed blood,
" and with it sprinkled the priests and their garments." Josephus also,
Antiq. iii 8, 6, — "And when Moses had sprinkled Aaron's vestments,
" himself and his sons, with the blood of the beasts that were slain, and
" had purified them with spring water and ointment, they became God's
" priests  The same he did to the tabernacle and the vessels thereto
" belonging, both with oil first incensed, as I said, and with the blood
" of bulls and of rams," &c.
4 The writer alludes to Lev. xvii. 11, — " For the life of the flesh is in
" the blood : and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an
" atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that maketh an atone-

CHAP. IX., 23-26. 135
" ment for the soul." The antithesis here is between purification and
remission. In certain cases simple washing (e.g., of clothes, Lev. xvi.
26, 28) or the passing of metal vessels through the fire (Num. xxxi. 23;
were permitted to remove the ceremonial taint. But expiation, and
atonement for sin could only be obtained by the shedding of blood (for
" the blood is the life"), which was offered in vicarious symbolism, repre
senting at once the life of the sinner forfeited by disobedience, and the
life of the Perfect Sacrifice once for all offered, when the fulness of the
time came, for the sins of the whole world. The familiar proverbial
saying of the Eabbies ma n^n niED j'n, There is no expiation, except by
blood alone, is illustrated by the following Talmudical comment on
Lev. i. 4 (" And he shall put his hand upon the head of the burnt-
" offering, and it shall be accepted for him to make atonement for him."
vbs lab tb ns-oi nton «>n to it -|odi) " What then ! Does the laying
" on of the hands make expiation 1 Certainly not. Expiation is made
" by nothing else than blood, because it is said, Lev. xvii. 11, ' Por it is
" ' the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.' " Zevachim, col. 105.
vsii mn Din o ibniizj Din rfm niDs p* «bm mnn ns'aD '31 nsin -pm
IBS'. (Ugolini, Thes., vol. xix.) A very similar passage is found in tract
Menachoth, ibid., col. 1179. See also Zevachim, in Mischna Surenhus.,
tom. v., p. 43, sec. 2. The Mishna (tract Joma) says : —
to nissa nnion nrronn at pssa D'liosn dti nma posa 'nii d«ni n«an
D'Tiasn dv ni'ip is nVin N'n nmann toi niurn nb toi nsw to mbp nrnv IBS'!
" A sin-offering and a victim make expiation for certain sins and
"faults. Death and the Day of Atonement make expiation with
" repentance. Eepentance makes expiation for lighter sins, both
" against affirmative as well as negative precepts. It also suspends the
" graver ones until the Day of Atonement arrives and expiates them."
Mischna Sur., tom. ii., p. 257.
Verses 23 — 26. — It was needful, therefore, that the copies
(viroSeiypara) of the celestial things should be purified
with the things above enumerated. But the heavenly
things themselves (see note 6, p. 99) with more excellent
sacrifices than these. Por Christ (the Messiah) has not
entered into Holy places made with hands, which latter
were made in imitation ' (avrirvtra, copies) of the true, but
[he has gone] into heaven itself, now to appear before the
face of God (i.e., God's unveiled presence1) on our behalf.
Not, indeed, that he may frequently (iroXXdKi<;) offer

136 CHAP. IX., 23—26.
himself, in like manner as the high priest enters yearly
into the Holy places, with blood that is not his own (ev
afipari dXXorpiq)). For if such were the case, He must
needs have frequently suffered since the foundation of the
world (eirel eSei avrbv iroXXaKi<i iraffeiv diro KaTaf3oXr)<;
Koapov).
That is, Christ's death is retrospective2 in its
expiatory virtue. Otherwise he must have re
peated the sacrifice of himself, in every year, since
the Pall. The blood vicariously shed, and which
the High Priest brought in, and, in fact, in virtue
of which he was permitted to enter the Holy of
Holies, spoke of his own imperfection. He dared
not to enter in his own right. He must bring the
blood of his own atonement in his hand. But Jesus
has entered into the Heavenly Sanctuary for us,
with, and in virtue of, his own blood. It testifies
to the sinless perfection of his offering, and as such
it requires not to be repeated. It was the sub
stance, of which all the others were the shadow
and prophetical types. He is the Lamb of God
that taketh away the sins of the world.
' N0i> ipqbavioBrjvai ra npocraTra tov Qeov irnep r)pav. The phrase
" before the face of God " is a translation of the Hebrew D'rfjN 'xb .
Christ appears before the Father, as the High Priest appeared on the
typical day of Atonement, before the Shechinah.
2 The Targum of Jonathan (on Gen. iii. 15) implies the consolatory
doctrine expressed above : — " And I will put enmity between thee and
" the woman, and between the seed of thy son and the seed of her sons,
" and it shall be when the sons of the woman keep the commandments
" of the law, they will be prepared to smite thee upon thy head, but
" when they forsake the commandments of the law, thou wilt be ready
' ' to wound them in their heel. Nevertheless, for them there shall be a
" medicine, but for thee there will be no medicine ; and they shall make
" a remedy for (or make a bruise with) the heel in the days of the King
" Meshiha." Etheridge's Targums, vol. i., p. 166.

CHAP. IX., 26. 137
Verse 26. — But now, once (continues the writer), at the
consummation of the ages' (i.e., at the appointed close of
the Jewish dispensation, the time specified by Daniel, and
predicted by all the Holy Prophets since the world began,)
he has been manifested (ireqbavepwrai, revealed), for the
putting away of sin by means of the sacrifice of himself.2
1 'Eiri avvreXelq rav alavav. " Et revera Christus venit, et se ipsum
" immolavit eVi o-vvreXeiq tS>v alavav, circa consummationem seculorum.
" Heb. ix. 26, h.e. fine temporis prioris. Eestare enim debebant alaves
" iirepxdpevoi, supervenientia secula, quibus ostenderet Deus row iirep-
" ftdXXovra nXovrov rr)s x^PlT0S avrov, Eph. ii. 7. Potuisset ita in fine ¦
" dierum Christum mittere, ut statim sequeretur resurrectio mortuorum.
" Sed voluit annum gratiae, a Christi missione coeptum, Jes. lxi. 2, per
" multa secula producere, ut amplitudinem divitiarum beneficientise
" suae tarn longi temporis duratione illustrius mundo patefaceret."
(H Wit'sii Diss, de secula hoc et futuro, p. 1 181, Meuschen.) Schoettgen
(in he.) explains ' the passage in a manner which, to my mind", is
altogether inadmissible : — " Particula enl cum Dativo denotat, cujus
" rei caussa, qua conditione Christus venerit, nimirum, ut mundus
" expiaretur. 'ZvvriXeia est a tcX/oj, purgo, initio, lustro, quod hac
" notione aliquoties hac epistola occurrit." Ewald translates, " Nun
" aber ist er einmahl, am Schlussende der Weltzeiten, zur Siinden-
" vernichtung durch sein Selbstopfer, erschienen." The word o-vvreXeia
occurs in Matt. xiii. 39, 40, 49, xxiv. 3, xxviii. 20, but always
in reference to the " end of the world," and never in the signification
which Schoettgen would assign to it. Wolfius observes that, in this
26th verse of Heb. ix., inl o-vvreXiia riv alavav, is antithetic to anb
KarafioXris Koapov. He utterly rejects the explanation which Schoettgen
gives, as being contrary to the usage, not only of the New Testament,
but also of the LXX. writers. The translators of the London Society's
Hebrew New Testament have D'aViyn mma.
2 I cannot help believing that a direct citation from Dan. ix. 24 25,
is here intended. The prophet there describes the righteousness which
shall be brought in, in the days of " Messiah the Prince," as D'ato pis ,
lit., the righteousness of ages, or as the LXX. has it, SiKaiooivvv alaviov.
And in exact accordance with Is liii , Daniel also declares that " Messiah
" shall be cut off, but not for himself," l1; J'Nl man n-o», i£oXo8pev8rjo-erai
Xplvpa, Kal Kplpa ovk eernv iv avra, LXX. The object of his appearing
is "to finish transgression (swsn NtoV) and to make an end of sins
" (nwan Dnrti, lit., to seal up sins), and to make reconciliation for iniquity
T

138 CHAP. IX., 27, 28.
(ps ibsVi lit., to expiate iniquity. — See Schoettgen, tom. ii., pp. 98, 246, 655.)
Tov o-WTeXeo-Brjvai ipaprlav, Kal tov a(ppaylaai dpapTias, Kal dirdkev^rai
ras dSiKlas, Kal tov e£iXdo-aa8ai dSiKias, LXX. It must be ever borne in
mind that the Epistle is written to Jews and by a Jew. His phrase
ology is, so to speak, saturated with the spirit and language of the Old
Testament writings, which his readers knew by heart, regarding these
Scriptures, not only as the repository of their spiritual hopes, but as the
charter and digest of their national expectations and political history.
A passing allusion, which would fall unnoticed upon a Gentile ear,
would strike with living and intelligent significance upon the attuned
chords of the Jewish patriot's soul. The Scriptural element was the
very atmosphere in which he lived. It comprised the entire sum of
his most cherished hopes for this world as well as for the world to
come. (N.B. The above quotations from the LXX. are taken from the
Edition of Amsterdam, 1683. 8vo.)
Verses 27, 28. — And just as it is appointed (Kaff oaov
aTTOKetrai) to men once to die, and after this the judgment,
so also Christ having been once offered for the special
object of bearing (els to dveveyKelv) the sins of many (Is.
liii. 11), shall appear (dabOrjcreTai) the second time to those
who wait for Him (rot? avrbv drreKSe^op,evoi<;, expect him
back again), without sin (^ccph dpbaprias), to announce to
them their salvation (et? aoorr/piav).1
1 The writer here alludes to the anxious expectation of the people
for the safe return of the high priest from the Holy of Hohes on the
Day of Atonement. It was an awful moment of suspense, and the
congregation looked eagerly for the high priest's reappearance. And
so the Mishna informs us, that after he had deposited the incense
before the ark, and the Holy of Holies was filled with the fumes, he
came back into the outer house, aud offered up a short prayer, making
it very short, in order that the congregation might not be unduly
apprehensive on his account.
¦psn n'n nVi jis-nn n'M msp nVcn tocnai inD'» ma ynn ^ «ai ns'
i^iiB' to msrfy abv lrfrcna
Joma, cap. iv. 7, Mishna Surenh., vol. ii., p. 231. It will be remembered
that it was strictly forbidden (Levit. xvi. 17) for any one to be in the
tabernacle at the time. " And there shall be no man in the tabernacle
" of the congregation, when he goeth in to make an atonement in the
" holy place, until he come out, and have made an atonement for him-
" self, and for his household, and for all the congregation of Israel."

CHAP. IX., 27, 28. 139
Then he would appear to them, xmPls dpaprlas, having left their sins
behind and cancelled by the blood of expiation, and assure them that
the atonement had been accepted. Maimonides (Ibid., p. 232, note)
observes on the above quoted passage of the Mishna, " Por if he (the
" high priest) tarried long, the Israelites feared that he might have been
" overtaken by death, for many high priests died in the Holy of Holies,
" in consequence of their want of skill, or of making alterations in the
" mode of offering incense ; for so the Holy One, blessed be He, inti-
" mated to Aaron, Levit. xvi. 2, 13."
So, also, we learn on the authority of the Mishna (ibid., p. 248), that
after the whole of the solemnities had been completed, the high priest
divested himself of his pontifical robes, and put on his ordinary attire,
which his attendants brought him. They then accompanied him home,
and he gave a banquet to his friends in honour of his having come forth
in safety from the sanctuary.
vrrpn jb Diton nsmd rwwa vyn^b runs mn aiio dvi irra is win j'Vjdi
Sheringham remarks on the words " Diton ns'ib Tana , i.e., safe and
" sound. Por at that season of the year, in which the cold began to be
" somewhat felt, he might easily be taken ill." "Id est salvus et in-
" columis, ea enim tempestate qua frigus aliquantulum rigere incepisset,
" facile poterat aegrotare," &e. (Ibid., note 3.)
Christ has in like manner gone into the Most Holy Place. His
people anxiously expect his return. When He comes forth again, it
will be xmPls dpaprlas, without a sin-offering. They will have ocular
demonstration that the atonement has been accepted, in the completion
of their salvation. And so it is predicted in Isaiah xxv. 7 — 9 :— " And
" he will destroy in this mountain the face of the covering (loitoi >ic) cast
" over all people, and the veil (n^Dan) that is spread over all nations. .
" He will swallow up death in victory, and the Lord God will wipe
" away tears from off all faces, and the rebuke' of his people shall He
" take away from off all the earth. Por the Lord hath spoken it. And
" it shall be said in that day, Lo, this is our God ; we have waited
" (ii'ip) for Him, and He will save us : this is the Lord, we have
¦' waited (ii'ip) for him, we will be glad and rejoice in his salvation."
The translators of the London Society's Hebrew New Testament
render the entire passage thus : —
ass nton mean di p ; rawon p nnwi nn» d»b rmb Dtan <n to -in: imy\
(without a sin-offering) nxon 'to me'nwv V? DtyTOVi ¦ D'n trmsn nnvb nn«
: T[tw>b (For this use of ntwn, see Exod. xxix. 14, 36, and passim, in
the Old Testament.)

140 CHAP. X., 1—4.

CHAPTER X.
The writer now proceeds to illustrate and apply his
beautiful and delicately- worded figure of the shadow
and the substance.
Verses 1—4. — Por the law, as having (e%uw- comprising)
the shadow of the good things to come, and not the exact
resemblance ' of the things as they really are (ovk avTr)v
rrjv elKova twv rrpaypdrcov), never can make those who
come to it perfect, with the same sacrifices which they offer
perpetually (et? to Swyz/e/ee?) from year to year. Por then
would they not have ceased being offered (i.e., on behalf of
each individual sinner, because in the expiation of every
several Day of Atonement, every soul of the congregation,
as well as the high priest, was included in the expiatory
offering, no matter how many times previously they had
participated in its purifying solemnities), because the
worshippers (tov? Xarpevovra^), when once cleansed,
would no longer retain any consciousness of sins. But,
on the contrary, in the aforesaid (sacrifices, dXX' ev
axnals) there is a repeated calling into remembrance of
sins (dvdpvvcri<; dpapriaiv) from year to year. Por it is
impossible that the blood of bulls and of goats should
take away sins.2
1 The shadow of anything is never the exact resemblance, although
it is a certain proof that the substance which casts the shadow has a
real and substantial existence. It is exaggerated and distorted. Some
times it is larger in unsubstantial bulk, sometimes it is dwarfed and
smaller than the reality. So, also, the Mosaic ritual, with its cumbrous
paraphernalia, although it was the very shadow cast before it by God's
own plan of atonement, could only afford a conjectural criterion of the
tangible benefits which the Lord's Messiah should introduce. In this
respect the ancient Patriarchal and Mosaic Church were in a position,
in regard to Christ's first coming, precisely analogous to that of the

CHAP. X., 1—4. 141
Christian Church in reference to his second appearing. We now see, as in
a metal mirror, enigmatically (BXiiropev yap apn 81 io-dnrpov iv aiviyp'ari,
rdre 8e irpdo-airov irpds npdo-anov), but then, face to face (1 Cor. xiii. 12).
We now know partially, but then shall we know even as we are known
(apri yiyvacrKa ck pepovs, rdre Se imyvaaopai KaBas Kal irreyvao-Brjv).
This partial knowledge did not hinder the ancient Church from enter
taining a very positive assurance that the Saviour should come, nor yet
does it, at present, interfere with the certainty of our belief as to the
consummation of our redemption. God will have his children in all
ages to "walk by faith and not by sight." There has been always a
unity of Hope, as well as of Faith, in this particular. Ehav means the
likeness, similitude, resemblance of anything ; and, in this, the law is
the ineio-ayayr) Kpeirrovos eXnlSos (Heb. vii. 19). The realization of this
hope will find place in our completed redemption, at Christ's second
appearing. 2 The writer here states no unknown doctrine to the Hebrews. He
is simply applying one, of which the more intelligent were already
deeply conscious. It therefore comes home with the irresistible force of
conviction. This statement is abundantly confirmed by the following
remarkable statement of Philo : — 'lepovpylai yeprjv Kal r) rrepl ras dvo-las
maris, fthda-rnpa koXXixttov, dXXa 7rapavaire(pvKev aira kokov, Seio-iSaipovla'
fjv irplv xXowai, Xvo-ireXes iKrepeiv. "~Evioi yap arjBrjcrav to fiovdvTeiv
ebo-efteiav eivai, Kal e£ av av KXfyaaiv, r) dpvr\o-avrai, r) xp*aKonr)o-ao-iv, r)
apnao-ao-iv, rj XerjXaTrjO-ao-i, polpas drrovepovo-i rdls [Sapdis, oi Svo-KaBaproi,
to pr) Sovvai S'lKrjv i(p' ols i£r)papTov, aviov elval voplgovres. 'AXXa yap
efrroip' av airols, dSeKao-rdv iariv, a ovtoi, to 8eov SiKao-rrjpiov, as rovs pev
yvapv Kexprjpivovs virairla, Kqv airao-av r)pipav eKarbv /3das dvdyao-iv, dno-
o-Tpe(peo-6ai- robs 8' dmmaiTlovs, Kav prjSev Bvaai to rxapdnav, dmoSexeo-Bai.
Bapols yap diripois, nepl ovs dperal xopevovai, yiyrjBev o Bebs, dXX' ov noXXm
¦nvpl (pXeyovaiv, orrep al Tav dviipav advroi Bvciai o-vvavidfXe^av, vwopipvrjo--
Kovo-ai ras eKaarav dyvotas re Kal Siapaprlas. Kal yap eine nov Mavaqs
Bvo-lov avapipvrjO-Kovo-av dpaprlav.
" Assuredly religious rites, and the belief in sacrifices, are a most
" admirable growth, but a noxious one has sprung up alongside of it •
" to wit, superstition. This ought to be rooted out before it vegetate
" further. Por some have supposed that to sacrifice oxen is piety, who
" lay upon the altars a portion of their thefts, of that which they have
" fraudulently withholden, of that which they have cheated, or taken
" by violence, or purloined ; e.g., men who will hardly find any atone-
" ment, and who suppose that they can thus purchase immunity from
" paying the penalty due to their deeds. To such as these I would say,
" The Tribunal of God is not to be thus bribed, but revolts from all those

142 CHAP. X., 1—5.
" who have an evil conscience, although they should daily offer a
" hundred oxen. But He accepts the guiltless, although they never
" bring a single sacrifice. For God delights in fireless shrines, which
" the virtues encircle, not in those that blaze with extensive fires, which
" the profane unaccepted sacrifices of impious offerings hght up, and
" which only call to mind their transgressions (dyvolas. See note 4, page
" 122) and sins. For Moses himself has somewhere (Numb. v. 15) said,
" ' that sacrifice calls sin to remembrance.' " (De Plantations Noe,
Works, Mangey's edit., vol. 1, p. 345.)
See also ibid., vol. ii., p. 151, De Mose, and p. 254, De Sacrificantibus.
The same doctrine is also unequivocally propounded in the Mishna,
Joma, cap. viii. sec. 9 : —
oncan ovi notn nyron rtwsb vra rp'coa vn ainjNi ntoin aifflNi suns yoMtn
din j'aw nivas -eaa nniDan dv oipzsb din vvd nn'35 "iedd DmEDn cv ;'n tbdb
?3'nNicn toa nnw p -rn^N 'n vii 11 n« mn nsr» is -wo Dmoan dv j'N mrf?
pN iTart din raw nn'is -two D'-iran dv mpa1) din riv nvra» nrnan 'n ':d!j
DnN pno'a 'a 'itib btnv dd'-ton wp» 'n ton wan nN mn'm -» iddb a»n'"
mpa nai«i Dmniai Dmma D'a DD-to 'npin lomv D'airaiD D3'3« Dan« imca 'a
i "in-iid' nN iniaa Nin -pia wnpn F]n D'Naicn nN -irrca mpa na "n btnxp
" He who says, I will sin and repent, I will sin and repent ; the means
" of repentance are not ready to his hand. (If he says) I will sin, and
" the Day of Atonement shall make expiation ; the Day of Atonement
" does not make expiation. Transgressions which are between man
" and God the Day of Atonement expiates. Transgressions which are
" between man and his neighbour, the Day of Atonement does not
" expiate, until he has reconciled his neighbour. Eabbi Eleazar, the
" son of Azariah, thus explains the words, Ye shall be clean from all
" your sins before the Lord. The transgressions which a man commits
" against God the Day of Atonement expiates. The transgressions
" which a man commits against his neighbour the Day of Atonement
" does not expiate, unless he has first given his neighbour satisfaction.
" Eabbi Akiba says, Blessed are ye, O Israel, before Him, before whom
" ye purify yourselves ! Who is He that purgeth you 1 It is your Father
" in heaven, because it is said, I will sprinkle upon you clean water, and
" ye shall be clean. The Lord also says, the fountain of Lsrael. What
" fountain is it that purines the defiled 1 Even the Holy One, Blessed
" be He, it is that purifies Israel." Mishna Surenh., vol. ii. 2, pp. 257,
258.Verse 5. — Wherefore He (the Messiah) on his entering
(elcrepxopevo<;) into the world says (Ps. xl. 6 — 10), Sacri
fice and offering ' thou wouldest not,2 a body hast thou
prepared for me.

CHAP. X., 5. 143
1 Ovcrlav Kal npoo-(popav ovk rjBeXqcras, nSBn vb nniai nai , i.e , slain
beast, and bloodless oblation thou hadst no pleasure in. — Gesen.
2 2apa 8e KaTnprlo-a pot. The Greek of the New Testament and the
LXX. differ in sound, but not in reality, from the Hebrew. Where
they have o-apa Se Karvprlo-a pot, the Hebrew has nna d'iin mine ears
hast thou pierced. The verb ma (see also Ps. xxii. 16 [17]) is here used
for SSi of Exod. xxi. 6, And his master shall bore (»2ti) his ear through
with an awl (Sinaa), and he shall serve him for ever. This was to be
done in the case of a Hebrew servant, who refused, out of devotion to
his master, to go out free at the end of the sixth year of servitude.
The clue to the Greek paraphrase, I cannot help feeling justly certain,
is to be found in Eev. xviii. 13, Kal o-apdrav, " and slaves," et mancipio-
rum, Yulg. The Greek, I take it, is a paraphrase of the Hebrew, and
is equivalent to " Thou hast made me thy servant" (remembering
always that the piercing of the ears indicated a spontaneously chosen
servitude), although, with a subtle play upon the word o-S>pa, the writer
includes the idea of Christ's humanity. This is in strict accordance
with the Jewish habit of thought. St. Paul in his Epistles not unfre-
quently indulges in this assimilation of sound with sense. The above
rendering of this most difficult passage obviates entirely any tampering
with the Hebrew text. The verb mo barah is never used in the
Hebrew Bible in the sense of he prepared, although Surenhusius (Bi/3Xor
KaraXX., p. 636) apparently confounds it with Nia bara, he created,
e.g., he speaks of the Apostle as " pro nna effodisti legens nna
" parasti." And again, ibid.: — "Verbum Nia (not ma) notare dis-
'¦ ponere, aptare, parare, docet Paraphrastes Chaldseus, quando id
" vertit per ]pn, Jos. xvii. 15. Conferantur Ezek. xxi. 19, et cap.
" xxiii. 47, ubi eadem verbi significatio occurrit." As the question is
not concerning r\vra, but nna, the learned critic's remarks, I would
submit, are somewhat beside the mark. But n'-o is not the only
difiiculty which the emendator of the Hebrew text has to deal with.
To torture the reading d':in ears into mia or non, body, or nu, as
Surenhusius has it, is a miracle of emendation, commendable more for
its ingenuity than for its soundness or probability. Wettstein, on Eev.
xviii. 13 (although he makes very little indeed of the Passage of the
Hebrews under consideration), adduces a variety of authorities in
which o-S>pa is made to stand for SovXos, a slaoe, e.g., " Pollux iii. 71,
' o-apara dnXas ovk av einois, aXXd crapara SovXa. — Phrynichus, p. 166,
' Sapara errl rav avlav dvSpa7id8av e'iade KaXeiv. — Aristoteles in narrat.
' mirand., dvrl evbs o-aparos BnXiKov SiSdvai rois epirdpois reo-o-apa q nivre
aapara appeva. — Libanius D. xvii., p. 472, C. roiir ovv Xoyt£ea8ai,
ttov niTrpdo-KeTai ; rls 6 avovpevos, rbv epnopov tov tjaparos. — Eustathius

144 CHAP. X., 5.
" in Od. a., pp. 34, 51, dvSpairoSoKdTTvXos, 6 Kal o-aparipTropos Kal pera-
" ftoXevs avSparrdbav. — Strabo xiv., p. 985, B. aapar ipvope'iv. — Tob.
" x. 11. — Anthol i. 12, 10, o-apararvoXXa rpi(peiv. — Demosthenes, Phil, iii.,
" Kal capdrav nXrjBos, fj xpij/idrwv irpoo-oooi. — Aristoteles Ehet. 1,
" evo-Beveia KrnpaTav Kal crapdrav. — nXrjBos xP1P<*Ta>v Kc" '0"X"S aapdrav."
Prof. Stuart (in loco) somewhat hastily, I think, asserts " that ssi
" and ma indicate very distinct actions is sufficiently plain, for to
" bore through anything, and to dig or hollow out a pit, grave, or well,
" are surely very different actions, indicated in Hebrew by verbs as
" different as the English dig and bore through." The learned Professor
is surely strangely forgetful of the twofold signification of fodio and
opvo-o-a, and also of the LXX. rendering of that vexed passage of
Ps. xxii. 16, apvtjav yeipds fiou Kal TtdSas, which the Vulgate also (in
accordance with the reading nN3 or i"0 from "1N3 or to) translates
"foderunt manus meas," &c. The verb SSi occurs in Exod. xxi. 6 only.
The parallel passage of Deut. xv. 17 reads niNa nnnn ssiart nn nnp'n.
Even Pr. Stuart would admit that ]ni has a very different signification
from ssi , and yet here it does duty for it, and the meaning is perfectly
intelligible. The Syriac also adopts the same reading, " they pierced."
Schoettgen (Hor. Heb., tom. i., p. 978) says, — " In Hebrseo est :
" 'S n'ia D'llN, aures perforasti mihi : h.e. servum me tibi perpetuum
" fecisti ; ex more Hebrceorum, qui Exod. xxi. 6, describitur." There
is, therefore, at least respectable authority, I would submit, for under
standing ma as a synonyme of ssi of Exod. xxi. 6. The reason for the
latter verb being employed in this last-cited passage is obvious enough.
Moses specifies the instrument with whieh the ear is to be pierced,
viz., ssrm an awl. It is unquestionably more convenient, as well as
more elegant, to employ the very verb sm from which the name of the
instrument is derived, than to substitute a synonyme in its stead. And
in this sense of piercing, E. Isaac (in the Chizzuk Emunah, p. 369) takes
the verb nn3 in Ps. xl., and observes how grossly the writer to the
Hebrews (x. 8) had corrupted the passage, — an accusation as utterly
unfounded as unfair, — as a glance at the LXX. version of the Psalm
would have demonstrated. The writer to the Hebrews does no more
than ratify the interpretation of the ancient Greek-speaking Jewish
Church. The writer of the Nizzachon Vetus (pp. 162, 163), referring to
Ps. xxii. 7, combats the interpretation "they pierced" (biittib, foderunt)
on the ground that the Jews had no custom of piercing the hands or
feet of those that were condemned to be stoned or hanged ; a silly
quibble, of which, in another form, Hengstenberg has demonstrated
the futility. But it is downright dishonesty in this Jewish Contro
versialist to insinuate that the Christians altered the passage to suit their

CHAP. X., 5. 145
views. (See Gill, in loc.) J. C. Wolfius writes (tom iv., p. 723, in heo),
" Altera (sententia) est eorum qui verbum mo perforandi sensu acci-
" piunt, et ad ritum in servis, perpetuse servituti addicendis, illisque
" perfossione auris ab hero initiandis, receptum (de quo Deuteronom.
" xv. 17, et Exod. xxi. 6), a tois LXX. respectum, corpus vero, tanquam
" totum, pro auribus, instar partis, positum esse, existimant. Ita cum
" Coccejo et Altingio plerique, et novissime CI. Elsnerus, cujus ex
" pag. 362, hsec habe verba : Sensus Hebraici textus est : Servum me
" perpetuum, per omnem vitam constituisti. Igitur verissime etfeliciter
" sensum expresserunt LXX., o-apa Karrfprlo-a poi, corpus mihi formasti.
" Corporis enim indutio Christum reddebat servum, hoc opolmpa et
" o-xrjpa dvBpinrav, est pop(pr) SoiAou, Philipp. ii. 7, 8, filius hominis venit,
" scilicet in mundum assumto corpore, ut serviret, Matt. xx. 28, et Jes.
" xlix. 5, TInde hic notanter dicitur ; elo-epxdpevos els tov Koapov, cum in
" mundum veniret, scilicet per incarnationem ; tunc dixit, erapa KarnpTio-a
" poi, corpus, atque adeo servi personam imposuisti mihi. Idem porro
" monet, aapara diei mancipia, turn apud LXX. Genes, xxxiv. 29,
" turn apud Scriptores," &c. Lud. Cappellus (Critica Sacra, Paris,
1650, fol., p. 67) remarks on Heb. x. a, — "Sapa Se KaTrjprlo-a poi, in
" Hebrseo autem est, aures perforasti mihi, hoe est, mancipasti me tibi
" in perpetuum, nempe juxta legem quae est Exod. xxi. 6. Videntur
" autem LXX. scripsisse, o-apa Se pe Karrjprlo-a o-oi, h.e. mancipasti me
" tibi ; nam erapa Grsecis interdum mancipium significat, unde illud
" o-apara jroXXd rpi(peiv Kal Sapara iroXXa iyeipeiv." It is a matter of
surprise that Cappellus, when suggesting an emendation in the text,
did not propose to read o-apa 8e KarijpTio-a croi, instead of poi, which
would have involved the alteration of one letter only, and would have
rendered the passage perfectly clear of all difficulties. Dr. Samuel
Davidson (Introd. to the New Testament, vol. iii., p. 281) writes as
follows : — " Here we must proceed on the assumption, that the Hebrew
" text ( Ps. xl. 7) was as it now stands when the Greek translator
" rendered it into another tongue. The Hebrew signifies, mine ears
" hast thou opened; the Greek, a body hast thou prepared for me. The
" meaning of the former is, thou hast made me attentive or obedient to
" thy will ; that of the latter, thou hast provided me a body in which
" that obedience may be exemplified. The argument turns on the sen-
" tence, thou desiredst not sacrifices but the fulfilment of thy will. The
" ancient sacrifices are declared to be of no avail, and doing the will of
" God is substituted for them. In the clause o-apa Se Karnprio-a poi, the
" manner of doing the will of God perfectly is incidentally noticed,
" though not essential to the argument, since it is the thing itself which
" is contrasted with the Jewish sacrifices, viz., willing obedience to God,

146 CHAP. X., 5.
" or the doing of his will. Here no essential part of the argument is
" built on the clause under consideration, and the futility of Hug's
" assertion appears : ' If the Epistle had been written in Hebrew,
" ' the deduction from the quotation as to the offering of a body, and
" ' all which is further said of the single offering that made every
" 'other superfluous, could have had no foundation.' The Septuagint
" rendering of the clause gives the sense of the Hebrew, and the
" quotation is taken from the Septuagint as more palpably apposite
" to the writer's purpose in the context." The late Dr. M'Caul (The
Messiaship of Jesus, London, 1852. 8vo., pp. 161 — 163) gives the
following interpretation of Ps. xl. 7, 8 : — " In these verses there is an
" apparent difficulty arising from the citation of certain words in the
" Epistle to the Hebrews. The original text has "h nna D'iin , which
" our translators have rendered ' mine ears hast thou opened.' The
" LXX. and Epistle to the Hebrews, o-apa Se Karvprio-a poi, ' A body
" ' hast thou prepared for me,' a rendering which sounds very different.
" The only fair way to compare them is to ascertain first the sense of
" each. 1. Then, with regard to the Hebrew, the literal sense of the
" words is, ' Ears hast thou digged or perforated for me.' Now, what
" would a Hebrew understand by digging, or perforating the ears ? To
" answer this question we have, first, similar expressions in the Bible.
" In Isaiah 1. 5, ' The Lord hath opened the ear for me,' p» ^ nnB ,
" ' and I was not rebellious,' from which it appears that to open the ears
" is to make obedient; and, again, another passage of the same prophet,
" xlviii. 8, where the ear not being opened is connected with disobedience.
" ' Yea, thou heardest not ; yea, thou knewest not ; yea, of old thy ear
" ' was not opened : truly I knew thou didst deal very treacherously :
" ' even transgressor wast thou called, from the womb.' 2. We have
" the interpretation of the Jews. The Chaldee says, ' My ears, in order
" ' to listen to thy salvation, thou hast perforated for me.' Eashi says,
" ' Mine ears hast thou perforated, saying, Hear ye my voice. Perforated
" ' means, ye have made holes that ye might hear.' Kimchi says,
" ' Ears hast thou opened for me, that I might hear thy voice ' ; and so
"E. Isaac explains, by reference to Exod. xix. 5, Jer. vii. 22, and
" 1 Sam. xv. 22, that the opening of the ears signifies obedience.
"According, then, to Bible usage, and the interpretation of learned
" Jews speaking and writing Hebrew, the meaning of the words, ' Mine
" ' ears hast thou digged, or opened,' is, ' Thou hast rendered me
" ' obedient.' 3. To confirm this interpretation, we have the parallel-
" isms —
" ' Sacrifice and offering thou didst not desire.'
" ' Mine ears hast thou opened.'

CHAP. X., 6, 7. 147
" ' Burnt-offering and sin-offering thou didst not require.'
" 'Then I said, Lo I come  to do thy will, O my God, I did
" ' desire.'
" The antithesis to burnt-offering and sin-offering, in the latter
" clause, is obedience. The antiparallel to sacrifice and offering must be
"synonymous — i.e., perforating the ears must mean obedience. II. Now,
" then, let us examine what the Greek translators intended by o-apa
" Karriprlo-a poi, ' A body hast thou prepared me,' or ' My body hast
" 'thou prepared.' It is clear that they did not mean it as a literal
" translation of the Hebrew words. The idiomatic meaning of ' digging
" ' or perforating the ears ' was peculiarly Hebrew. They therefore
" gave what they considered as an equivalent, ' The preparation of the
" ' body,' as more pleasing to God than sacrifice and offering. That by
" the preparation of the body they meant obedience is to be gathered
" from the context, and from the fact that they understood the Hebrew
" phrase (to dig ov perforate), as appears from the parallel passage, Is. 1. 5,
" where they have r) waiSela Kvplov Kvplov dvoiyei pov ra ara, iya Se ovk
" aneida. That the words conveyed this meaning to a person accustomed
" to speak and write Greek is seen from the commentary of Theodorit,
" who says, on the place, ' To these words agrees the apostolic admoni-
" ' tion, I beseech you, therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye
" 'present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which
" ' is your reasonable service ; for instead of the sacrifices of the Law,
" ' God has commanded us to consecrate our bodies.' He understood
" the words to signify obedience. The sense, therefore, of the Hebrew
" and of the Greek words is substantially the same. They both signify
" to render obedient."
Verses 6, 7. — Holocaust and sin-offering thou hadst no
pleasure in (ovk evSoK-gaas, nbNttf Nb , thou didst not
demand). Then I said, Lo, I am come (rjKco, TIN2) to do
thy will, 0 God, in the volume ' of the book (ev KecpaXiSi
fitfiXiov, -isd fib^aa , in der JBuchrolle, Ewald) it is written
concerning me (irepl ep,ov, ibs) to do thy will, 0 God.2
1 Let it be observed that the words iv Ke(paXl8i agree with the Jewish
interpretation of the LXX., where they are employed as the equivalent
to ibc ntoaa . They are no mere Christian adaptation of the Hebrew,
although, inasmuch as they are found in a canonical book of the New
Testament, the Christian student has no alternative but to accept them
as expressing the correct sense of the original Scriptures. The only
question to be solved is, are these words a paraphrase, or are they a

148 CHAP. X., 6, 7.
literal translation of the Hebrew '? i.e., is KedpaXls ever used as a
synonyme for a roll, rfjia 1 Stuart asserts that as "the Hebrew ted,
" fitfiXiov, was a manuscript rolled upon a cylinder of light wood, at
" the extremity of which were heads or knobs," therefore, " the knob or
" head, Ke(paXls, is here taken as apart, which is descriptive or emblem-
" atic of the whole. KeqbaXls /3ij3Xlov means, therefore, a fiifiXiov, or
" "ied , with a KedjaXls, i.e., a manuscript roll  It coincides, then,
"with regard to signification, very exactly with the Hebrew ibd ntoa,
" of which it is a translation." For my own part, although not pre
pared to contradict Prof. Stuart, as the writer to the Hebrews gives a
paraphrastic citation, and not a verbal quotation, I see no necessity to
find a literal conformity. The next question to be solved is this : — If
David wrote Psalm xl., what are we to understand by " the roll of the
" Book " 1 In other words, to what portion of the Scriptures had he
access ? Does he refer to the Book of Jasher, or to some other of the
now extinct writings of the time ? or does he allude to God's book,
mentioned in Ps. cxxxix. 16, which the Targum renders " in the book of
" thy memory " 1 or does the Psalmist allude to the Messianic passages
of the Pentateuch, to the book of Job, or to any of his own previously
written Psalms ? If I may hazard a conjecture, I would suggest that'
the citation is referable to 1 Sam. xv. 22 : — " And Samuel said, Hath
"the Lord as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in
" obeying the voice of the Lord 1 Behold, to obey is better than
" sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams." The expression 'to;
wepl ipov, does not necessarily imply that the passage cited was a
Messianic one, but that it was Messianic in its doctrinal application.
Much, however, may be said, especially on the perusal of the Targumic
explanations of the Messianic passages, as to the probable reference
made to the Pentateuch.
Surenhusius (fiiftX. KaraXX., pp. 637, 638) writes: — "Jam vero
" Christum aliquando venturum esse, ut Patris sui voluntatem faceret,
" jam praedictum fuisse ied ntoaa in volumine libri, tradit Psaltes, quam
" phrasin ellypticam esse scribit ille Hebrseorum Doctor Easchi, pro
" n«a mm itv ntoaa in volumine libri legis Mosis, sive Pentateuchi,
" quoniam libri Vet. Test, in membrana conscripti, ad columnam
" ligneam in forma cylindri convolvi solent, et cum liber Geneseos sit
" primus inter quinque libros Mosis, hinc nos non multum errasse puta-
" mus, si dixerimus Apostolum vel ad primam promissionem de Semine
" mulieris serpentis caput contrituro respexisse (see note 2. p. 136), etsi
" passim in Pentateucho et aliis libris sacris prajdictus sit Messite adven-
" tus, et illius Sacrificii efficacia. Legisque Mosaics? imbecillitas, et abro-
" gatio ; hanc enim seuteutiam Apostolus juvare videtur, quando vertit,

CHAP. X., 8—10. 149
" iv Ke<j>aXl8i j3i(SXlov in fronstispicio libri, etenim per vocem ied, sim-
" pliciter positam, indigitari libros sacros, abunde patet, ex cod. Misnico
" Megilla, cap. 3. (The passage of the Mishna here referred to is found
" vol. ii., p. 394, of Surenhusius' edition, at the foot of the page.)
" Quare omnino explodendi sunt isti auctores, qui statuunt, epistolam
'' Pauli inter libros eanonicos non esse referendam, eo quod in ilia male
" allegationes fiant ; quod falsissimum est, quoniam inter ied ntoaa et
" iv Ke(paXl8i fiifiXlov nullum est discrimen." 'Avarepov k.t.X. Ewald trans
lates, " Weiter oben sagend, Opfer und Darbringungen und Sundopfer
" wolltest du nicht, noch hattest sie gerne, die doch nach Gesetz dargebracht
" werden, hat er dann gesagt, Siehe ich komme zu than deinen Willen ?
" Er hebt das erste auf um das zweite zu bejahren."
2 The Hebrew words are, '»a -|ina -[mini , 'nsEn 'rfw -pirn mvsb , To do
thy will (or good pleasure), 0 my God, I have delighted, and thy law is
in the midst of my inward parts. And viewed in reference to this pro
phetic declaration of Ps. xl. 8, what a depth of meaning attaches to the
testimony vouchsafed to Jesus at his baptism : — " And lo a voice from
" heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased"
(Matt. iii. 17), compared with Is. xiii. 1, "Behold my servant, whom
" I uphold, mine elect in whom my soul delighteth ; I have put my
" spirit upon him," &c. The Targum here reads ntt'ibo na» Nn , behold
my servant Messiah; and E. David Kimchi says explicitly mrcan ^jSa vn ,
This is King Messiah. Thus approved, Christ the second Adam was
sent forth into the wilderness, to reconquer, on the battle-field of tempta
tion, that which the first Adam in Paradise, through temptation, had
lost.

Verses 8 — 10. — Having first said (dvmrepov Xeycov) " Sacri-
" fice and offering and holocaust and sin-offering thou
" wouldest not, nor tookest pleasure in them " which are
offered (i.e., albeit they are offered) in accordance with the
law ; then he said (rare eipr/Kev, he said immediately after),
Behold I am come to do thy will, 0 God.1 He taketh
away the former order of things (to rrpeorov, viz., the
ceremonial law with its sacrifices) in order that he may
establish (o-rrprrf) the latter (to Sevrepov, viz., God's will).
(And now the writer explains what is the will of God,
which Christ has wrought, concerning us (1 Thess. iv. 3),
even our sanctification.) By the which will we have been

150 CHAP. X, 11—18.
sanctified, through the offering of the body of Jesus
Christ once for all.
1 There is no real difficulty in the Messiah's thus speaking in the
present (future) tense. Isaiah (vii. 14) describes his prophetic vision as
he saw it, so to speak, accomplished. " Behold a virgin with child,
" and bearing a son ! " (p mtoi mn nato n:n). The author of the
Nizzachon Vetus (p. 185), with a true Eabbinic contempt for women,
remarks, that " the first Adam was possessed of a far higher dignity
" than Jesus, because God made him come forth from pure and holy
" earth, and that he had neither father nor mother, nor did he incur
" the taint and soil of a mother's womb." ua'n Vm mn jurNin aim
¦mi)N ]ioaa pitd nVi oni a« v) mn nVi mcnpi mnniD naiNa na"pn lN'sinc
Our controversialist forgets that the promise of redemption was
through the seed of the woman, and not of Adam ('in Nin, mm pi Tyn p
" I will put enmity between thy seed and her seed, he shall bruise,"
&c). And to this vantage ground of the woman St. Paul appears to
allude (1 Tim. ii. 15) where he says, 2a6r)o-erai 8e 8ia rrjs reKvoyovlas,
i.e., by giving birth to the Messiah, who should repair the consequences
.of her fall. Por the interpretation of Is. vii. 14, see Dr. M'Caul's
Messiaship of Jesus, pp. 175 — 182.
Dr. Gill writes, on Ps. xl. 7, "In the volume of the book it is written of
" me; either in the book of divine predestination, in the purposes and
" decrees of God, Ps. cxxxix. 16, or in the book of the Scriptures ;
" either in general, John v. 39, Luke xxiv. 27 — 44, or particularly in
" the Book of the Psalms, Ps. i. 1, 2, and ii. 2, 6, 7, or rather in the
" book of the law, the five books of Moses, since these were the only
" books or volumes that were composed at the writing of this Psalm ;
" and it has respect not to Deut. xviii. 15, nor ch. xvii. 18, nor Exod.
" xxi. 6, but rather Gen. iii. 15." Ewald (Das Sendschreiben an die
Hebraer, pp. 114, 115) thus concludes his remarks upon chap. x. 7: —
" Wenn aber unser Eedner, in seiner Erklarung und Aoiwendung der
" Psalmenworte, das mittlere Glied, in der BuchroUe ist iiber mich
" geschrieben, v. 7, als ein dort bloss eingeschaltetes, nicht weiter
" beriicksichtigt, so folgt doch daraus nicht dass es fiir ihn keine weitere
" Bedeutung hatte : vielmehr fand er auch, in diesen Worten, ein
" Merkmal dass der Logos so geredet haben kbnne, sofern er es ist, auf
" welchen, schon in der Buchrolle, d. i. im Pentateuche, hingewiesen
" werde."
Verses 11 — 18. — Moreover every priest stands daily minis
tering, and offers tho same sacrifices repeatedly, which

CHAP. X., 11—18. 151
can never remove (the guilt of) sins (wepieXeiv dpapTias).
But He (Jesus), when He had offered one sacrifice on
behalf of sins, sat down for ever on the right hand of
God. (Ps. ex. 1.) Thenceforward waiting until his enemies
be made the footstool under his feet. (Why ?) Because
by one offering He has perfected fob, ever those who have
been sanctified (tov? dyia^opivov;, those who have been
made holy, by his expiatory blood). Moreover the Holy
Ghost is our witness on this point. Por after having first
(Jer. xxxi. 33) said, This is the covenant which I will make
with them : — The Lord saith (Jer. xxxi. 33, 34), after those
days ' (d^DTi 'nns) I will put my laws into their hearts, and
upon their understandings will I write them, and their sins
and their iniquities I will remember no more (ov p,r) p,vrjcr65>
en, Tiy "OTN sb). Now where remission (dcpecTK) of these
is, sacrifice (irpoacpopd) for sin is no longer (requisite.)
1 On the meaning of D'B'n 'tin , see note 3, p. 9.
Because, as Daniel had foretold (ix. 24), the time
has arrived " to finish the transgression, and to make
an end of sins, and to make reconciliation for
iniquity, and to bring in everlasting righteousness."
The day of type and shadow is now over ; the high
priest needs no more to go, as the people's repre
sentative, once a year to make symbolical atonement
for them in the Holy of Holies. They require no
longer a fallible representative. The sentence of
exclusion is revoked. The whole congregation is
holy, and can go in boldly, in their own imparted
right. The day of the Mosaic priesthood is past.
Their occupation is gone. Nothing remains for
them to do. Christ has done perfectly, and once for
all, what they were evermore setting forth in

152 CHAP. X., 19—21.
prophetic parable. The vail is rent, and the mercy
seat lies poe evee open, to those who draw near in
reliance upon the all-atoning blood of Jesus.
Verses 19 — 21. — As we have (exovres ovv) therefore (con
tinues the writer, in the triumphant application of his
unanswerable logic), as we have therefore unrestrained
access1 to the Holiest, by (eV, in virtue of) the blood of
Jesus, to wit, that new (irpoacpaTov) z and living way
which He has consecrated (iveKaivicrev) for us, leading
through (Sid) the veil ; that is to say, his flesh ; as well
as a High Priest3 (to preside) over the house of God (irrl
tov oIkov tov @eov).
1 Xlapprjo-lav els rr)v e'laoSov Tajv dylav iv ra dlpari 'iqo-ov. The following
extract from the Mishna (Joma, cap. 8, sect. 8) excellently illustrates
the unsatisfactory position of the Jewish penitent, who felt himself
without any ready or certain access at all times to the forgiving presence
of a reconciled God : —
to moan naimn naiwnn d» peaa onican dti nma j'-eaa 'nii dwni ro-n
-E3'i D'-iioan dv Na'» is rfnn N'n nmann toi nu»n n^ toi rra» to niV nn'as
" Victima pro peccatis, et victima pro delictis certis expiant :
" Mors et Dies Expiationis expiant cum poenitentia ; et poeni-
" tentia expiat peccata levia, tarn contra prsecepta aflirmativa quam
" negativa ; et gravia suspendit, donee veniat Dies Expiationis et
" expiet." Mishn. Surenh., tom. ii., 257. How different is the invita
tion of the writer to the Hebrews (iv. 16) : — Upoo-epxapeBa ovv perd
irapprjaias ra Bpova ttjs xaPlTosi 1va Xdftapev eXeov, Kal x°^Plv evpapev els
eilKaipov fior)8eiav. Ewald renders verses 19 — 23 as follows : — "Dawir
" also, ihr Briider, Preimuth zum Eintritte des Heiligen mit Jesu's
" Blute (welchen er uns als einen frischen und lebendigen Weg durch
" den Vorhang einweihete das ist durch seinen Leib), und einen grossen
" Priester iiber das Haus Gottes haben : so lasset uns mit wahrhaftem
" Herzen herantreten im Vollstrome von Glauben, gelautert die Herzen
" vom bosen Bewusstseyn, und gewaschen den Leib mit reinem Wasser,
" lasset uns das Bekenntniss der Hoffnung ungebeugt festhalten, den
" treu ist der verhiess."
- ILpdafparov, literally, newly slain ; then, fresh, recent, new. It
probably here signifies ever fresh. Wettstein, with a strange misappre
hension of the easy transition from the sublime to the irreverent, heads

CHAP. X., 22. 153
(in loco) a very elaborate collection of authorities upon the meaning of
this word with the following quotation from Plorus, 1, 15, 3 : — " Alter
" [Decius Mus] quasi monitu deorum, capite velato primam ante aciem
" diis manibus se devoverit, ut in confertissima se hostium tela jacu-
" latus, novum ad victoriam iter sanguinis sui semita aperiret."
3 I think that Prof. Stuart rightly understands lepia piyav as equiva
lent to Vra jna , which is the ordinary Hebrew for high priest. The
writer has proved how groundless were the cavils and objections of the
unbelieving Jews, who asserted that the converts had surrendered all
their national and covenanted privileges at their baptism. He has step
by step, turned the tables upon the objectors, and demonstrated that
they are clinging to the discarded, worn-out types and shadows, whilst
the believers in Jesus have chosen the good part, which cannot be taken
from them. He here uses lepia piyav, in preference to apxiepia, as
having a more technical and Jewish sound. He selects, so to speak,
weapons of their own armoury, and beats them out of the field.
Verse 22. — Let us draw near with a sincere heart (dXn9ivr}<;
KapSla<;, frank sincerity of purpose), having our hearts
sprinkled from an evil conscience (a7ro o-vveiSrjcrecos
irovTipds, from a guilty reserve ?), and our bodies washed
with pure water.1
1 A parallelism may be here intended between the water of baptism
and the injunction given to Aaron (Levit. xvi. 4) that before he put on
the highpriestly garments, which were symbolical of the beautiful
attire of Christ's imputed righteousness, he should " wash his flesh in
" water, and so shall he put them on." But I think rather that there
is allusion made to the fulfilment of such prophecies as Ezek. xxxvi. 25.
The Mishna closes its treatise Joma ( (- n the Day of Atonement) with
the following explanation of the mystical efficacy of this annual
expiatory ceremonial : —
D'aica® D3'3« DanN imaa 'a DnN pno'a 'a wb bvrw DanwN wps 'ai ibn
.-in imaa mpD na "n btrtv mpa idini omnai D'-nnm D'a Da-to 'npin tonio
s'wra)' nN imaa Nin mna ujnpn f]N D'Naian
" Eabbi Akiba said, Blessed are ye, O Israel, before Him in whose
"presence ye purify yourselves! Who cleanses you? Your Father
" which is in heaven, even as it is said, I will sprinkle clean water upon
" yon (Ezek. xxxvi. 25), and ye shall be clean. The Lord speaks also of
" the Fountain of Israel (Jer. xiv. 8 ; xvii. 13). What is the fountain
" that cleanses the impure ? The Holy One, blessed be He, cleanses
" Israel." (Mishna Surenh., tom. ii., p. 258.)
x

154 CHAP. X., 22.
Schoettgen gives (Hor. Hebr., tom ii., pp. 206, 207) the following
early Eabbinical and Talmudical interpretations of Ezek. xxxvi. 25 : —
" Et spargeim in vos aquas mundas, et mundi eritis. Targum : Et remitiam
"peccata vestra, tanquam si mundati essetis aquis puris et cinere vaccce,
" quce sacrificium est pro peccato. — Sohar Exod., fol. 107, col. 435.
" Beata est portio Israelitarum, quos Deus S.B. purificat aquis mundis
" supernis q.d. Et Spargam. —Sohar Levit., fol. 20, col. 80, ad verba
" Numer. viii. 7, Et sic facies ad mundandum eos. Quid sibi volunt hmc
"verba: nai, et sic? Eesp. vtrsbl wr\A, Ad modum supernum (h.e.
" spiritualem). Insperge ipsis aquas sacrificii pro peccato, quce sunt
" reliquiae roris bdellii ex Paradiso 'nNi Niav; , ad tempus futurum, q.d.
"Et Spargam. — Sohar Levit., fol. 29, col. 113. R. Jehuda dixit:
" Beati sunt Israelite in quibus Deus S.B. beneplacitum habet, Mosque
" mundare cupit, ne peccatum in illis inveniatur, ut in pahtio illius
" habitent. Et de 'nNi Niai, tempore futuro scriptum est: Et spargam
" vos. — Sohar Numer., fol. 75, col. 299. Beata est portio Israelitarum,
" quibus Deus SB. consilium dedit omnis sanationis, ut digni habeantur
"vita mundi futuri, et inveniantur mundi in hoc seculo. Sancti vero
" 'nNi Nato1) . De his scriptum est : Et spargam in vos. — Pesikta, foL
" 25, 4, et in Jalkut Simeoni 1, fol. 235, 1. In hoc mundo Israelites
" mundi et immundi pronunciati sunt per ministerium Sacerdolis : verum
" wa1; Tns1), Deus S.B. ipse purificabit eos q.d. et spargam. — Tanchuma,
" fol. 44, 2. Deus immisit mala per ministerium Angeli: verum xb Trsb ,
" Deus bona exhibebit per semet ipsum, q.d. Et spargam. Ibidem, fol.
"51, 1. Dixit Deus S.B. ad Israelem : In hoc mundo vos equidem
" mundastis, sed rursum vos polluistis : verum Na1) Tnsi ego purificabo vos,
" rcabts mma , purificatione osterna, ut non poltui debeatis, q.d. Et
"spargam. — Schir haschirim rabba, fol. 5, 1. Dixerunt Israelites ad
" Mosen : Utinam Deus se adhuc semel nobis revelaret, utinam oscularetur
" nos osculo oris sui. Respondit ipsis Moses : Hoc nunc fieri non potest:
" verum tab Tnirt , fiet, q.d. Et auferam cor lapideum ex came vestra.
" — KMduschin, fol. 72, 2. Tradunt Rabbini nostri: Spurii et Nethin&i
" mundi erunt mb "ensb; ita statuit R. Jose. R. Meir vero dixit, non esse
" mundos. Sed R. Jose objecit: Annon jamdudum scriptum est; Et
" Spargam." The Mishna (Joma, cap. iii. 3) says, in reference to the washing of
the priests, —
taio j'onp m»»i niVao »an Vias'ii) is -nmo "dn miart m\sb oxn 'in )'n
na'ja na yin 'n-En ma to unpa ito Dva ia unpai 'hi jna
" No one entered into the hall [of the priests] to perform any minis-
" tration, however clean he might be, until he had washed. The high
" priest made use of five washings, and ten sanctificatory washings on

CHAP. X., 23—29. 155
" the day of atonement, and all of them were performed in the House
" of Happarveh, in the holy place, the first washing alone excepted," i.e.,
the one before he came into the hall, which took place in the common
place above the water-gate. Mishna Surenh., vol. ii., p. 218.
" Domus Happarvse locus erat in atrio, quo pelles victimarum
" saliebant  In tecto ejus erat domus lotionis pro Sacerdote magno
" in die expiationis." — Sheringham (ibid.). The authority for this
statement is to be found in the Mishna (Middoth, cap. 5, 2) : — ¦
Dva bra \rob rfraon ma n'n n:i toi D'snp nm» pnbia vn av nncn ravb D'ncan
" In the Chamber Happarveh they used to salt the hides of the
" sacrifices, and upon the roof thereof there was a lavatory for the
" high priest on the day of atonement." Mishndh, Surenh., tom. v.,
p. 376.
Verses 23 — 29. — Let us hold fast the confession of our
hope without wavering (i.e., let us be outspoken and un
hesitating in our profession of hope in Christ, unmoved by
the sophistries and jeers and persecutions of the unbelieving
Jews), and let us consider one another (Karavo£>p,ev, study
one another) for the purpose of -inciting one another to love
and to good works. Not forsaking (eyKaraXeiirovTe<;,
intermitting, leaving off) the assembling of ourselves to
gether (doubtless for the purpose of worship and Chris
tian fellowship), as is the custom of some ' (probably " for
" fear of the Jews/' who would set spies2 to watch, and to
report against them), but rather comforting (irapaKaX-
ovvres, and exhorting. — See Mai. iii. 16) one another, and
so much the more, as ye see the day (foretold by Christ in
reference to the destruction of Jerusalem, and also previously
by Daniel ix. 26, 27, as to follow closely upon the times of
Messiah's earthly ministrations and death — ) approaching.
Por when we sin (dpapravovrcov, i.e., apostatize) delibe
rately (eKovaiojs, of free choice, voluntarily) after we have
received the knowledge of (perd to Xafielv tt)v eiriyvaio-iv,
after having accepted and acknowledged) the truth, there is
no further sacrifice for sin in reserve, but (on the contrary)
a certain terrible anticipation of judgment (Kpiaecos, con-

156 CHAP. X., 23—29.
demnation) and fiery indignation (771730? £9X0?),* which shall
presently consume (ecrdieiv peXXovros) the adversaries.
(Mai. iv. 1 — 3.) ' Whosoever set at naught (d6eTr)cra$,
infringed, violated ; i.e., the presumptuous rebel) the law of
Moses, is doomed to death (drroOvrjaKei,), without mercy,
upon the testimony of two or three witnesses. (Numb. xv.
30, 31, xxxv. 30 j Deut. xvii. 6.) Of how much sorer
punishment, think ye, shall he be thought worthy, who
has trodden under foot 5 (Matt. vii. 6) the Son of God, and
accounted the blood of the covenant, wherewith He was
sanctified, a common (koivov, profane, unclean) thing, and
has outraged (evvj3plo-as) the Spirit of Grace ? (See note 2,
pp. 125—127.)
1 Mj) iyKaraXeiTTOVTes ttjv itzio-vvayayrjv eavrav, Ewald (Das S&ndschreib-
en an die Hebr., p. 118) writes on these words: — " Insbesondere nicht
' unterlassend das, den Heiden gegeniiber, eigne Zusammentreten mit
' einander in den sontaglichen Fristen und ubrigen christliche Feierta-
' gen, wie einige pflegen (was nun ganz nahe auf die in jener besondern
' Gemeinde gemachten Erfahrungen anspielt) sondern dieses christliche
' mit einander Zusammentreten aufmunternd mit alien guten Mitteln
' der Eede und Ermahnung fordernd. Damit wird deutlich genug auf
' die Lassigkeit in allem christlichen Eifer angespielt, welcher gerade
' zu Anfange dieses ganzen Abschnittes, v. 11, schon sehr enipfindlich
' kurz bezeichnet war, und unten weiter zu bezeichnen seyn wird ; das
' lassige besuchen der gemeinsamen Erbauung war der schlimmste
' Anfang davon." Schoettgen (Hor. Hebr., tom. i., pp. 982, 983) gives
amongst others, the following illustrations from the Jewish writers : —
' Sohar Exod., fol. 14, col. 56, " Non necesse habet homo nV»d nwiBiIn,
' J'N'IDT ut se separet a congregatione multorum, quia solus non observatur,
' et Satanas talem facile in coelo accusat." — Berachoth, fol. 8, 1, R. Levi
' dixit : Quicunque habet Synagogam in urbe sua, et illam non ingreditur
' ad orandum, ille vocatur incola malus q.d. Jerem. xii. 14. Sic dicit
' Dominus ad omnes incolas malos, tangentes hfereditatem, quam dedi
' populo meo Israel : ecce ego evellam illos ex terra sua. Neque hoc
' tantum. sed etiam caussa exilii est sibi et filiis suis — Pirke Aboth,
c. ii., 4, Hillel dixit : iia'sn ]a "psy lcnon *>n, Ne separes te a congre-
' gatione. — Taanith, fol. 11, 1, Tradiderunt Rabbini nostri: quando-
' cunque Israelites in afflictione versantur, jna inN ictbi, et unus eorum
' se abstrahit, duo Angeli ad ipsum veniunt, manusque capiti ipsius

CHAP. X., 30, 31. 157
" imponunt, dicentes : Hic homo, iia'sn )a visv, qui se separat a coetu
" non videbit consolationem, quse Ecelesise tanget."
2 When my father, the late Dr. M'Caul, was Eector of St. James's,
Duke's Place, which is in the heart of the Jewish quarter in London,
we heard that Jewish watchers were placed at the avenues leading to
the church, to exercise oversight over any Jew that might be tempted
to enter the place, and to report on his conduct.
8 This is a Hebraism equivalent to nNip »n, fire of Jealousy, Ps. lxxix.
5, Ezek. xxxvi. 5 (comp. xxxviii. 19), Zeph. i. 18, iii. 8, comp. Deut.
xxix. 19 (20).
* There is no doubt that the Writer refers to the predicted and
awful woes that were coming upon Jerusalem and Judaea at the hands
of the Eomans. Even then the Judge was before the doors.
s An allusion to the blasphemous abjuration of an apostate to
Judaism. (See note 1, p. 63 )
Verses 30, 31. — For we know who it is that hath said,
"Vengeance is mine, I will repay" (Deut. xxxii. 35), '
saith the Lord, and again, " The Lord will judge his
people." (Deut. xxxii. 36.) "It is a fearful thing2 to
fall into the hands of the living God " (i.e., such a fate,
so terrible a doom is impending over the impenitent, God
is ready to judge them. Will you forsake your own
mercies, whereby you have clean escaped the judgment
of the wicked and the adversaries ? God himself will
presently interpose on behalf of his people — See note
below — Why should you participate in the condemnation
of the wicked?).
1 OlSapev yap rbv e'nrdvra' r/xol eKSUrjo-is k.t.X. DbttJl Dpi "b to me
belongeth avenging and recompensing. LXX., iv r)pipq iK8iKr)o-eas
avraTToSao-a. The Targum of Onkelos thus paraphrases these words
in the preceding and following verses : — " Are not all their works
"manifest before Me, laid up in my treasures against the day of
" Judgment ? Their punishment is before me, and I will repay in the
" time of their dispersion from their land ; for the day of their ruin
" draweth near, and that which is prepared for them maketh haste."
The Targum of Jonathan reads, " Vengeance lies before me, and I will
" recompense them at the time when their foot shall move to the cap-
" tivity, for the day of their destruction is coming near, and the evil

158 CHAP. X., 30, 31.
" which is prepared for them maketh haste." Now if these Targums
correctly represent the current traditional interpretation of the ancient
Jewish Church, as there is no reason to doubt they do, it will be seen
that the above quotation from Deut. xxxii. 35 was, by it, regarded as a
prophetic indication of national punishments coming upon the Jewish
people. The verse quoted follows upon a terrible catalogue of woes
denounced by Moses upon the Jews, as yet to come upon them for their,
yet future, departure from God. The reason why the Writer to the
Hebrews employed it upon the present occasion, becomes very apparent.
He warns the converts from again, by apostacy, casting in their lot with
that evil generation of men upon whom God's wrath was speedily about
to come to the uttermost. Whereas, the words quoted from Deut.
xxxii. 36, " The Lord will judge his people," are words of reassurance
to the same converts under their persecutions. The entire verse (the
first two clauses of which are repeated verbatim in Ps. cxxxv. 14)
reads, — " For the Lord shall judge his people, and repent himself for
" his servants, when he seeth that their power (Heb., hand) is gone,
" and that there is none shut up and left (aiwi msr, i e., ' bond or free,'
" clausus et manumissus, i.e., mancipium et liber, sc. omnes homines,
" Gesen ) " The Targum of Onkelos has on this latter verse, " For the
" Lord shall decide the judgment of his people, and the avengement of
" his righteous servants shall be avenged, for it is seen before Him,
" that in the time when the stroke of their enemies would prevail
" against them they will be wavering, (as those who) are fori-aken."
The Targums of Jonathan and Jerusalem, in like maimer, both under
stand the words, " He shall judge his people," in a consolatory sense,
and as equivalent to "He shall judge the cause of his people." (See
Etheridge's Targums, in loc.) Ewald (in loc, p. 119) remarks upon this
30th verse : — " Und um alles zu schliessen wird v. 30 f. noch hinzuge-
" fiigt : Denn wir wissen, aus den bekannten Worten welche in dem
" Messianischen Liede Deut. 32, 34 f. nahe genug bei einander stehen,
" was diese Gericht zu bedeuten habe, und wie furchtbar es sei in die
" Hande, nicht etwa menschlicher Eichter, welche hochstens den Leib
" vernichten konnen, sondern des lebendigen Gottes selbst hineinzufallen,
" sin Saz welcher fiir einen Christen aus Christus' worten selbst Matt.
" 10, 18, deutlich genug ist, und hier schon nach dem ganzen Zusam-
" menhange der Eede, auch nach der grossen Veranderung der Zeiten,
" eine ganz andere Bedeutung hat, als dort 2 Sam. 24. 1 4, vgl. Jer. 22, 25,
" 1 Chr. 21, 13." Michaelis (Introd. to Neio Testament, vol. iv., tr. by
Marsh, p. 256), basing his statement, doubtless, upon the fact that the
words Xeyei Kvpios are not found in the Hebrew text, but which are
palpably supplied by the writer in explanation of dlSapev k.t.X, asserts

CHAP. X., 32—34. 159
that the passage " differs both from the Hebrew text and the Septua-
" gint, and this passage is again quoted in the very same words in
" Eom. xii. 19." With regard to the LXX. Michaelis is right, but
with regard to the Hebrew, obvn Dpi 'i, he is guilty, to say the least, of
a misrepresentation. The fact is, the Writer here, as also in Eomans
xii. 19, translates literally from the Hebrew, quite independently of the
LXX. This coincidence, in translation, in both passages seems to
point to a common authorship of both epistles, and not, as Michaelis
continues, " This agreement in a reading, which has hitherto been dis-
" covered in no other place (!), might form a presumptive argument
" that both quotations were made by the same person, and consequently
" that the Epistle to the Hebrews was written by St. Paul. But the
" argument is not decisive ; for it is very possible that in the first
" century there were manuscripts of the LXX. with this reading in
" Deut. xxxii. 35, from which St. Paul might have copied (!) in Eom.
" xii. 19, and the translator of this Epistle in Heb x. 30." Such were
the commencements of that miserable style of forced criticism to bolster
up some favourite theory, with which Scriptural philology has been
afflicted ever since.
2 (pofapov to ipneo-eiv k.t.X. " Sohar Exod., fol. 23, col. 92,
" Naip in"to •atv NWip Naiai ]wxb 'n Vae illis, quibus Eex Sanctus
" bellum indicit, q.d. Exod. xiv. 3. Deus est vir belli." (Schoettg.
Hor. Heb., tom. i., p. 983.)
And now the "Writer appeals to the early experi
ence of his readers. When first they embraced
Christianity they had made up their minds to suffer
for the Gospel's sake. They did, moreover, suffer
loss of all things. He appeals to them, and asks,
What reason do you now see for altering your mind,
and repining at persecutions and distresses, which
you then bore with unflinching fortitude and
equanimity ? And so lie continues : —
Verses 32 — 34. — But remember the former days, viz.,
those in which after ye were first enlightened (see note 3,
p. 61), ye endured (inrepieivaTe, ye bore up stedfastly
and patiently) against a great fight (iroXXr/v dOXrjcriv, a

160 CHAP. X., 32-34.
mighty struggle, see pp. 2, 3) of sufferings. Being on the
one hand, made a public spectacle ' by insulting outrages
(oveiSiapiol';) and afflictions (OXtyecu, vexatious and harass
ing troubles), and on the other, having become the com
panions (koivwvoX, the associates) of those who were thus
treated.2 Te also sympathised with my own bonds,3
i.e., in those days you had compassion to spare
for me also. A beautiful and touching allusion,
adroitly introduced, and which could not fail to
make them ashamed of repining, when they remem
bered the Writer's heroic constancy, and the ad
mirable manner in which he supported his heavy
chain. This, to my mind, stamps the Epistle as
St. Paul's. The master-hand betrays itself.
1 Qearpi^dpevoi. So St. Paul writes of himself and the other Apostles.
1 Cor. iv. 9, dearpov e'yevrjdrpiev tim Koo-pto, Kal dyyeXois Kal dvBpairois.
There is no need to take 6earpi£dpevoi in a literal sense as Alford does,
much less can any argument be founded upon the expression as to the
Greek style of the writer. The word dearpov, fnwn , was early adopted
into the Eabbinical phraseology, and is found in the Targum of Jonathan,
Deut. xxviii. 19, e.g., "Accursed shall you be in your going into the
" houses of your theatres (pa'miaN'n 'na1; patoaa pnN pQ'V), and the places
" of your public shows, to make void the words of the Law." For
further examples see Buxtof. Lex. Chald. Art. CNn, col. 2549 and 2550.
Ewald, in puisuance of his theory that the community to which the
epistle was addressed was not resident in Palestine, says : — " Aus
" diesen geschichtlichen Anspielungen erhellet dass hier nur eine jener
" aus der A G. bekannten stadtischen Unruhen gemeint ist, welche bei,
" oder nicht lange nach, der Griindung dieser Gemeinde ausgebrochen
" war, wobei einzelne hervorragende Mitglieder derselben, von einer
" wiithenden Gassenmenge aufs frechste verhbnt, ausgepliindert und
" misshandelt, auch durch die hinzutretende Obrigkeit, ins Gefangniss
" geworfen wurden, aber von alien iibrigen Mitchristen die thatigste
" Theilnahme und Hiilfe fanden. Das war gewiss ein furchtbarer
" Aufruhr gewesen : aber dass dabei doch kein Blut geflossen war,
" f olgt nicht bloss aus unseren Worten, sondern auch aus der Andeutung
" unten xii. 4."

CHAP. X., 32—34. 161
2 A generous spirit will revolt at cruelty or injustice perpetrated upon
others, which he will bear himself in silence. No small portion of the
fiery trial which came upon the early martyrs and confessors to endure
must have been the witnessing the indignities and brutal treatment of
their unresisting and defenceless friends and relatives.
3 Toiy Secrpdis piov o-vvewadficraTe. Compare chap. xiii. 3, pipvr)o-Keo-8e
r<uv 8eo-plav, as o-vv8e8epivoi ; and Col. iv. 18, pvvpovevere pov rav Seo-pav.
Dr. S. Davidson (Introd. to the New Testament, vol. iii., p. 203) writes : —
" An argument that Paul was the author has also been founded on
" Heb. x. 34, in the received reading of the passage. Euthalius argued
" long ago from Kal yap rdls Seo-pdls pov o-vvenaBrjo-are in this manner.
" But the received reading has been abandoned by the best critics.
" Griesbach, Knapp, Lachmann, Tischendorf, and even Scholz, have
" adopted rdls 8eo-plois, ye sympathised with the prisoners. The evidence
" in favour of this latter reading is decided." (!) Dean Alford, though he
adopts in his text rdls 8eo-plois, does not speak, in his note, with the
same emphatic assurance as Dr. Davidson. Michaelis is not prepared
to determine absolutely in favour of either reading, until the question
of the Pauline authorship has been decided. The Coptic, Syriac, and
Vulgate versions read in accordance with rots 8eo-plois. Origen reads
8eo-pdis without pov, whilst Chrysostom and Theophylact, Estius,
Grotius, Mill, Wall, Ewald, &c, adopt the later reading. Luther,
Carpzov, Wolfius, Matthsei, Eink, and others adhere to the received
reading. Ewald (Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 169) makes the following
admission : — " 10, 34, hat zwar auch (Cod.) Sin. Seo-pols pov : allein
" wieviele schwere Fehler sich auch in solch alte Urkunden schon
" einschleichen konnten, zeigt derselbe Sin. sogleich hier in aller Nahe
" wieder, indem er v. 32, dpaprlas ipav fiir r)pipas gibt. Dagegen hat er
" eben hier v. 34 richtig eavrovs fiir iavrdls." Believing that toXs Seo-pols
/iou was originally rejected as being a forcible testimony to the Pauline
Authorship of the Epistle, I would commend to my readers the following
excellent remarks of J. C. Wolfius (in loc. Cur. Phil, et Crit., tom. iv.,
p. 734) : — " Eecte tenetur lectio communior. Apostolus enim v. 33,
" jam laudaverat Hebrseos in universum, quod in societatem eorum,
" qui varia, atque adeo etiam vincula perpessi essent, venerint, nempe
" vices eorum miserantes, et opem, qualem poterant, ferentes. Atque
" hoc ipsum vers. 34, suo comprobat exemplo. Ita omnino accipienda
" sunt verba, nisi idem repetita vice dixisse videri debeat. Ex adhor-
" tatione Paulina, cap. xiii. 3, pipvr)o-Keo-6e rav Seo-plav non magis confici
" potest, legendum h.l. esse Seo-plav, quam dissentientes admiserint, legi
" debere Secrpav quia Coloss. iv. 18, legitur pvvpovevere rav Seo-pav pov.
" Quod porro nostra lectio Secrpav /xou ab illis derivator qui Pauli hanc
Y

162 CHAP. X., 32—34.
" epistolam esse crediderint, id eadem veri specie torqueri in contrarise
" sentential patronos potest. Quis enim praestiterit, eos, qui negabant,
" esse Pauli, atque haec verba sibi efScaciter opponi posse sentiebant,
" non libentissime vel lectionem alteram, casu forte expressam, admis-
" isse, vel destinata opera invexisse ? Taceo, fraude ejusmodi recte
" sentientibus opus non fuisse, cum validiora sententiae suae argumenta
" in promptu haberent, quibus inniti possent. Et si talia non exsta-
" rent, sola vinculorum Apostoli mentio rem non erat confectura, cum
" plures ex Apostolis vincti fuerint, ut ab alio vel sic exarata credi
" potuisset. Obsignabo hsee Jacobi Cappelli verbis : — Et hcec certe
" lectio, inquit, probabilior est, ut quce melius conveniat turn Hellenismo,
" turn Pauli stilo, sua vincula passim in epistolis suit commemorantis, non
" inani jactantia, sed ut catenis ac stigmatis suis, quasi totidem sigillis,
" uteretur ad veritalis Evangelicee confirmationem. Quod ad Hellenis-
" mum attinet, Cappellus procul dubio id voluit, quod Paulus alias
" cap. iv. 15, o-vprraBrjo-ai rdls daBeveiais dicit, quemadmodum o~vyKoivavr)-
" o-avres rfj BXtyei, Philipp. iv. 14, appellat." Wolfius's remark that in
chap. xiii. 3 the writer enjoins upon his readers the duty of remember
ing " them that are in bonds," seems to me to be of great force in
deciding the real reading of the passage in favour of the textus receptus.
To praise them in the verse before us for their consideration to prisoners,
and then to admonish them in xiii. 3 of their duty in this very par
ticular, seems altogether contrary to common sense. Some very excel
lent illustrations of the general value of Alford's Greek Testament as a
critical authority are to be found in The Lord's Prayer, with various
readings and critical notes, showing the entire genuineness of the received
Text of the Prayer, both in St. Matthew and in St. Luke ; by the Eev.
J. Forshall, M.A., F.E.S., formerly Keeper of the MSS. in the British
Museum, Oxford, 4to., and also in the Preface to the Gospel of St. Mark,
London, 1862, 8vo., by the same very learned and much to be lamented
scholar. It is greatly to be regretted that Mr. Forshall was removed
by death before he had completed his proposed work, " The Holy
Gospels in the received Text of the original Greek, with various readings 
and maintaining the general integrity of Scripture as read in the Church of
England." In conclusion, it is worthy of remark that St. Paul, in his
acknowledged Epistles, speaks of himself as a prisoner, Siapios, five
times, viz., Eph. iii. 1, iv. 1, 2 Tim. i. 8, Philemon 1, 9, and alludes to
his bonds no fewer than eight times, viz., Philipp. i. 7, 13, 14, 16, Col.
iv. 18, 2 Tim. ii. 9, Philem. 10, 13. The translators of the London
Jews' Society's Hebrew New Testament have, na^ is vrnbo toa '3, in
Heb. x. 34.

CHAP. X., 34—39. 163
Verses 34 — 39. — And ye also acquiesced with joy in the
despoiling ' of your goods (as a Jewish convert to Christi
anity is, at the present time, immediately disinherited;
and, if it be possible, if he be a married man, his wife is
persuaded to demand a divorce from him), knowing that
you have in yourselves (eV iavrots) a more excellent in
heritance above (iv ovpavoi<;, i.e., the inward assurance of
salvation2), and that an enduring one. Cast not away,
therefore, your frank and bold avowal of your faith (in
Christ, Tr)v irapprjo-iav vp&v), wliich has a great recompense
of reward (piaOairoSocriav).3 For ye have need of patience
(vTropiovr)<;, long-suffering endurance and capacity for waiting)
in order that, after having done God's will, ye may receive
the promise.- For yet a very Utile* while (en yap piiKpbv
ocrov ocrov), and He who cometh will come,5 and will not
put you off (xpoviei, tarry, disappoint by unseasonable delays).
But, [as you know it is written, Hab. ii. 3] " The just shall
" live by faith ; " 6 and " if any man hold back 7 (iiro-
o-TeiXrjTai, shrink back. See Luke ix. 62. Yulg., incredulus
est), my soul has no pleasure (ovk ivSoKei) in him." But
we are not of those who shrink back to perdition (vtto-
(rToXfj'i ets dirwXeiav), but "of faith," so as to save (el<t
•nepiiroi-ntTiv) the soul (zur Seelengewinnung. — Ewald).
1 Kal rr)v dprrayqv k.t.X. " Polybius, p. 397, similiter dprrayds vrrap-
" \dvrav, direptiones facultatum appellat. Epictetus ad Deum ita fatur ;
" trevns eyevdpqv o-ov BeXovros, dXXd x°-lpav. De re ipsa lege apud Gata-
"kerum ad M. Antoninum, p. 205." J. C. Wolfius, Cur. Phil., tom.
iv., p. 735.
2 OSrds io-nv 6 jroXvv &Kparov o-rrdcras rrjs evepyiriSos tov Beoii Svvdpeas,
Kal Xdyav lepav Kal Soypdrav etrriaBels. OZros, a (prjo-iv o irpoqjrjrrjs rbv
Qebv epTTepnrare'iv, oia fiao-iXela, Kal ydp ecrri ra ovti fiao-iXeiov Kal oikos
Qeoii, o-o(pov Sidvoia. " Such an one as this has drunk deep of the wine
" of God's benevolent power, and feasted upon sacred words and doc-
" trines. Of such sort is he, concerning whom the prophet declares
" that God walks in them, as in a palace ; for in very truth the mind of
" a wise man is a palace and house of God." (Philo, De Prcemiis et
Peenis, Works, Mangey's Edition, tom. i., p. 428.)

164 CHAP. X., 34-39.
s Ols pev yap dXrjdivbs itXovtos iv ovpava KaraKeirai. Ibid., p. 425.
" But those for whom the true riches in heaven are reserved," &c. See
Matth. v. 10—12, x. 32, 33 ; Luke xii. 8—9.
4 "En yap piKpbv k.t.X. The same expression is found in the LXX.
version of Is. xxvi. 20. Bd5i£e Xads pov, e'to-eXBe els ra rapeld o-ov,
diroKXeio-ov rr)v Bvpav o-ov, aTTOKpvj3rjBi piKpbv oo-ov do-ov, eas av TrapeX&g r)
opyr) Kvplov. It is here equivalent to the Hebrew rn E»aa, which
Gesenius translates by, per exiguum momentum, as he does wi by nutus
sc. oculi, Augenhlick, i.e., the twinkling of an eye, an instant, or
moment. J. C. Wolfius (Curoe Phil, et Crit., tom. iv., p. 736, in loco)
observes : — " Ita Aristophanes in Vespis : ri ovx dneKoiprjBrjpev oo-ov ocrov
' ' o-TiXrjv. Quidni minutum quantum quantum obdormiscamus. Ibi
" Scholiastes observat oo-ov oo-ok o-riKqv significare to eXax'io-rov." Ewald
translates en yap k.t.X., " Est ist doch noch eine kleine, kleine Weile."
5 " Wie sicher diese Verheissung aber in Erfiillung gehen, und der
" Kommende d.i. Christus in seiner Herrlichkeit dessen Kommen zum
" Gerichte auch alle die alten Prophetem stets verhiessen, wirklich
" Kommen werde, wird v. 37, f. zwar absichtlich mit solchen Bibel-
" stellen erhartet, welche von Glauben reden, und welche hier in einer
" freieren Zusammenstellung der Worte Jes. 10, 25, 29, 17 auch 26, 20,
" mit Hab. 2, 3, f. gegeben werden : aber sie werden doch nur angefuhrt
" um die Anwendung, welche hierher gehorkurz und schlagend zu
" ziehen : wir aber, als Christen, sind nicht, wie ich hoffe Leute von
" dem in jenem Propheten worte als moglich vorausgesetzten Klein-
" muthe was nur zum Verderben fiihren Konnte, sondern von Glauben
" zur Gewinnung von Seele, und ewigem Leben." Ewald, Das Sendshr.
an d. Hebr., p. 122. The deletion of the Jewish polity is the leading idea
6 'O Se SUaios iK nlo-reas £rjaerai. This passage of Hab. ii. 4, p'isi
rrm iniiaNa, is quoted by St. Paul in Eom. i. 17, KaBas yeypartrai- 6 Se
8Uaios eK rvlo-reas fro-erai ; and also in Gal. iii. 11, on 6 SUaios iK Trurreas
(rjo-erai. The LXX. of Hab. ii. 4 is, 'Eav {moareiXr/Tai, ovk eiSoKe'i r)
i\rvxrj pov iv avra' 6 Se SUaios iK mo-Teas pov t^jo-erai. The LXX. trans
lators apparently, read 'nnaNa , instead of iniiaNa . See further on the
passage, in Lud. Cappelli Crit. Sacr., p. 62 and p. 537.
7 Kal eav vTroo-TeiXr/Tai k.t.X. The real difficulty in this passage is that
it agrees in the main with the LXX. of Hab. ii. 4. The correctness
of the LXX. rendering of the sense of the Hebrew words is therefore,
in this particular instance, guaranteed by the canonical author of the
Epistle to the Hebrews. The Christian student has, in consequence, no
alternative but to accept iav vnoo-relXrjTai, ovk evSoKei r) faxr) pov ev avra
as accurately representing the sense, if not the exact translation, of
13 iwbj rrw N1) rf>D» nin, "Behold [if] lifted up, his (i.e., that man's)

CHAP. X., 34—39. 165
" soul is not upright in him." The only legitimate clue to this riddle
of exposition is to be found by a comparison of the circumstances under
which both passages were originally written. That they have some
striking similarity of adaptation, is apparent from the New Testament
quotation on the present occasion. Let us then inquire what object the
writer to the Hebrews proposes to himself in his present exhortation.
It is to dissuade the converts from apostacy, on account of the severity
of the persecutions to which they were subjected at the hands of their
unbelieving brethren. They were subjected to hardships and outrages
as unjust as they were cruel. Some of them had actually gone back to
Judaism ; others were wavering. From chap. xii. 5 we find that they
were inclined to repine against the justice of their being thus dealt with.
They had forgotten the exhortation which was addressed to them (Prov.
iii. 11, 12) by Solomon, My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord,
neither be weary of his correction (innaina). They chafed under their
miseries, and were inclined to question the goodness of God, forgetting
that chastening was a proof of love, and not an exercise of His arbitrary
power and severity. They began to sit in judgment upon the Almighty,
and to impugn the equity of His dispensations. Their "souls were
" lifted up ; " they were ready to apostatize, in offended pride, from the
living God. Now let us examine the occasion upon which the words of
the original prophecy were vouchsafed to Habakkuk. The occasion was
one exactly and marvellously similar. In Habak. i. 2 — 4 the prophet
complains of the inequality of the sentence that dooms Israel to punish
ment by the more wicked Chaldeans : — " O Lord, how long shall I cry,
" and thou wilt not hear ! even cry out unto thee of violence, and
" thou wilt not save ! Why dost thou show me iniquity, and cause me
" to behold grievance ? for spoiling and violence are before me, and
" there are that raise up contention. Wherefore the law is slacked,
" and judgment shall never go forth, for the wicked doth compass about
" the righteous ; therefore wrong judgment proceedeth." And again,
in verses 12, 13 : — " O Lord, thou hast ordained them (the Chaldeans)
" for judgment ! And O mighty God, thou hast established them for
" correction ! Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst
" not look on iniquity. Wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal
" treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth
" the man that is more righteous than he ? and makest men as the fishes
" of the sea, as the creeping things that have no ruler over them ? "
Here, then, we see that Habakkuk was ready to fall into the very same
mistake as that which the writer to the Hebrews indicates that hi
readers had actually fallen into. But how were Habakkuk's eyes
opened to behold his sinful presumption ? He resolved to look within,

166 CHAP. X., 34—39.
and to seek a solution of his difficulty, by a recollection of God's personal
dealings with his own soul. " I will watch to see what He will say unto
" me ('a in me, in my own personal case), and what I shall answer when
" I am corrected " ('nnain bs concerning my correction, the very word
used in Prov. iii. 11). And then he received as an answer, first that
God would certainly bring his judgments to pass as threatened, and
secondly, that this rebellious questioning of God's goodness was a
grievous sin. It indicated no meritorious frame of mind. God views
all alike, as guilty sinners deserving of punishment. The prophet's
comparative estimate of guilt is a false standard of measurement,
" Behold (if it be) lifted up, his (i.e., that man's) soul is not upright in him,
" but the just shall live by his faith " (n'n' inncNa P'isi). The reassuring,
consolatory effect of this declaration is vividly depicted in chap. iii. 1, 2,
17—19. We see, moreover, that the idea of revolting and rebellious
apostacy is contained in both icdi nics , and eav \moo-TeiXrjTai, and that
the Hebrew readers of the Epistle (to whom the words of the prophet
Habakkuk were perfectly familiar, as relating to a well-known episode
in their national history,) must at once have caught the coincidence
between their own position and that of Habakkuk. The words of the
LXX. are therefore a paraphrase, but such an one as embodies, with
marvellous fidelity, the entire scope of the Divine instruction which
the Hebrew oracle was intended to teach. It seizes at once upon the
pith and kernel of the lesson, and reproduces in it a form beautifully
concise, and universally applicable to all similar occasions of faithless
mistrust of God's providential albeit afflictive appointments. Professor
Stuart writes : — " The LXX., who have rendered the Hebrew text in
" exact accordance with the words of our Epistle, must have read ibei
" my soul here, as they did 'nutans , in my faith, in the clause preceding.
" This is the more probable reading, but it cannot now be critically
" defended." For the best of all possible reasons. — This proposed emen
dation would entirely alter the construction of both rfiDS and nw, which
are both feminine in connexion with iibdi, which is a feminine substantive
in the present instance, although of the common gender. Such a whole
sale arid audacious alteration of the Hebrew text would be as unscientific,
as it is unsupported by MS. authority. Some MSS. insert pov after
SUaios, a reading which Alford adopts ; and so also the Vulgate reads,
" Justus autem meus " in this 38th verse of Heb. x. " Eecte renitente,"
as J. C. Wolfius remarks, " Wliitbio in Examine, pag. 76, his verbis : Sed,
" cum Apostolus citet hac ipsa verba absque pov, Eom. i. 17, Galat. iii. 11,
" cur sententiam suam hic variarit, causa nulla est,preeserlim cum lectionem
" in textu firment omnia Grmca scholia." The Vulgate of Hab. ii. 4
reads, " Justus autem in fide sua vivet." See Dr. S. Davidson (in he.)

CHAP. X., 34-39. 167
on p. 283 of vol. iii. of his Introduction to the New Testament. Ewald
says (Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 169), "Will man nicht annehmen der
" Eedner fiihre die Worte x. 37, f. s6 an, wie er sie aus der erwahnten
" Bibelstellen (see ibid., p. 122) ganz frei zusammengesezt in einer
" anderen spateren Schrift vorfand, so muss man annehmen dass er
" sie selbst hier bloss nach dem Gedachtnisse so frei wiedergebe. Die
" LXX. liegt hier zwar liberal! zum Grunde : allein sogleich der erste
" kleine Saz kann, so wie er hier erscheint, nur aus verschiedenen
" Stellen des B. Jesaia zusammengesezt seyn ; im dritten Saze ist
" 6 SUaios pov, fiir das einfache 6 SUaios, aus der Lesart LXX., e«
" wlo-Teas fiou, versezt : und das dieser ganze Saz 6 SUaios pov, dem
"folgenden voraus gesezt ist, erklart sich freilich desto leichter, je
" mehr dieser nach der ublen Griechischen ITbersezung des ersten
" Gliedes von Hab. ii. 4, keinen Sinn gibt, wahrend er nach dieser
" Umsezung einen ganz passenden darreichen Kann."
Since writing the above I have read with regretful surprise the report
in the "Guardian" newspaper of this day (Feb. 22, 1871, p. 221) of the
speech of a Eight Eeverend Prelate in Convocation on Thursday, Feb. 16.
The Bishop is reported to have spoken as follows : — " I said, my Lords,
" that even in our comparatively faultless Authorised Version instances
" have been found, and instances are to be found, of the three deviations
" that I have- adverted to. I am sure that at this moment when I allude
" to the first, — that of violating the grammatical construction for a
"doctrine, — when I name that first class of perverting the sound
" principle of translation, your Lordships will at this moment be
" remembering the words which are, I think, to be found at the end of
" the 10th chapter of the Hebrews, within a verse or two of the end —
" 6 Se SUaids pov iK rrlo-reas ^rjaerai' Kal idv VTroo-relXrjTat, ovk eiSoKei rj
" yjrvyr) pov iv avra. And you may remember very well how we read in
" our authorised translation, ' Now the just shall live by faith, but if
" ' any man draw back, my soul shall have no pleasure in him.' But
" whence, my Lords, come the words, 'any man' ? Is there any particle
" in the Greek corresponding to our translation 1 Is there any of us
" who would not adopt the view of good honest old William Tyndale,
" that the words can have no other meaning than ' But should he, the
" 'righteous man, fail in his righteousness' ? I believe that the per-
" verted translation first found its place in what is called the first edition
" of the Geneva Bible, but there it is, an instance plain and patent."
The above specimen of sacro-forensic criticism affords a signal example
that the knowledge of a great deal of Greek in a Biblical revisionist
(which his Lordship undoubtedly possesses), without a corresponding
decent familiarity with Hebrew, is a dangerous thing. The translators

168 CHAP. X., 34-39.
of the Authorised Angl. Version in Heb. x. 38 were doubtless guided
in their rendering by the Hebrew of Hab. ii. 4. iwei mo' xb nte? mri
n'n' innaNa pnsi ia. — The first clause of the Hebrew requires such "a
particle " as that of which the Bishop speaks in order to render it
intelligible and translateable. Moreover the Bishop, as reported in the
" Guardian," did not fairly state the case. The translators have put
the words " any man " into italics, to indicate that they are not to be
found in the original text ! If the necessity for a new translation of the
English Bible be based upon grounds possessing no greater cogency
than the above, old-fashioned folks, to whom the present version is
dear, may well tremble for what is before them in the way of
" improvements." Luther, doubtless misled by his Hebrew scholar
ship, commits the same enormity in Heb. x. 38 which our translators
were guilty of, only without the extenuating circumstance of italics : —
" Wer aber weichend wird, an dem wird meine Seele keinen Gefallen
" haben." The Vulgate, although it has in Heb. x. 38, Justus autem
meus ex fide vivit, quod si subtraxerit se, &c, yet inserts qui in Hab. ii. 4,
Ecce qui incredulus est, &c. Greatly to be lamented it is, that whilst
the Eevisionists have called in the aid of Socinians, &c, &c, to help
them in the work of correction so called, they have neglected to avail
themselves of the services, as far as I know, of any of the numerous
converted Jewish clergymen in the Holy Orders of our own Church, to
whom the Hebrew text and the Eabbinical idiom are as familiar as
the alphabet. The attempt to elucidate the writings of Jewish Apostles,
without a competent knowledge of the Jewish habit of thought and the
Eabbinical formulas of interpretation, is a proceeding about as hopeful
as would be the efforts of a converted Jew to annotate Euripides, which
lay before him only in a modern translation. His familiarity with
the opinions of the Eabbis and the most accurate laws of Hebrew syntax
would, I trow, stand him in very little stead in such a case. The painful
feebleness of Alford' s Greek Testament, in all points requiring real
Biblical (i.e., Hebrew and Eabbinical) erudition, is a lamentable case in
point. In this respect Dean Alford's work is almost entirely worthless,
and affords a sorry specimen of the present state of theological learning
in the Church of England. The notion that the Jewish writings
of the New Testament are to be explained rigorously in accordance
with the requirements of a starched modern Greek philology, is simply
childish.

CHAP. XL, 1—2. 169
CHAPTER, XI.
In the closing verse of the tenth chapter, the
writer, with that delicate facility of adaptation to
the temper and circumstances of his readers, which
is so pre-eminently a characteristic of the speeches
and writings of St. Paul, strikes a twofold chord.
He appeals to their conscientious convictions. He
does not threaten, but, by a passing allusion to the
awful consequences of a presumptuous apostacy, he
awakens a train of the most heart-searching reflec
tions. A rejection of Christ, a wilful departure
from the truth, out of pique, or to avoid persecu
tion, or from any other motive of worldly advantage,
must end in perdition. This must be the self-chosen
fate, the deliberate choice of the apostates — vp>el<; Se
ovk ecrptev viroa-roXr)'; eh dircoXeiav. To deny Christ will
be, to be denied by Him before God the Father and
his holy angels, when He comes in his kingdom.
The second chord vibrates with a thrilling melodi
ousness, which cannot fail to arouse a glow of holy
and patriotic emulation in their susceptible Jewish
bosoms. He appeals to the mighty past. He calls
to his aid the consecrated reminiscences of the
former years. He leads them back, by a glance at
the glowing pages of Israel's history, to a hoarier
and a more illustrious antiquity. In those words
dXXa irio-reas els irepiirolr)o-iv •^u%'5?, he reminds them
what spirit they are of, and of the glorious muster-
roll of worthies from which they are lineally de
scended. The Church of God did not date only

170 CHAP. XL, 1—2.
from Abraham. It included every saved soul, from
the death of Abel, to the moment of their reading
the epistle. Mankind have evermore been divided
into two great subdivisions. Decide, then, to which
you will belong ! Are you irlo~Te<o<; ek irepnroirjcriv
¦f-vxrjs, i.e., are you worthy children of the elders
who, through faith, obtained a good report ? Or do
you belong to, and will you choose your portion
amongst, the unbelieving, the unthankful, the
unholy, who are fitly designated as being viroo-roXfjis
els drrcoXeiav ? Upon the painful side of the picture
he lingers but for a moment. He casts but a passing
regard at a subject so fraught with anguished and
apprehensive reminiscences. From the very midst
of his readers certain of their companions had fallen
away. They had gone back to the enemies of the
Cross. They had " blasphemed that Holy Name."
It was a topic too agonising and terrible to dilate
upon. With loving discrimination, and a masterly
appreciation of the Divine superiority of an appeal
to the nobler affections, as a persuasive, over the
mo$t graphic delineations of judgment to come, he
passes on to the brighter, more enduring subject of
the triumphs of faith. He points, therefore, to the
great cloud of witnesses. This, he would say, is
the ancestry from which you are descended ! Behold
your lineage ! Let us speak together of the noble
acts that your forefathers did; of the temptations
and the trials which they sustained ; of the difficul
ties they overcame ; of the tribulations through
which they passed; of the hope they set before
them, and of the crown that they won. Pirst of

CHAP. XL, 1, 2. 171
all the Hebrews are reminded what it is, to be
of faith, ; in other words, what faith is.
Verses 1; 2.— But faith (he commences) is a substantial
persuasion (viroo-racTis) l of things hoped for ; an evidence
(eXeyj(o<;, a proof that convinces, carries a satisfying convic
tion home to the mind) of things not seen. For by such a
faith as this (eV ravrrj yap) the elders 2 obtained a good
report (iptapTvprjdvo-av, i.e., were approved, and obtained
the testimony of commendation from God in the Scrip
tures ; or else, were made witnesses).3
1 'Yndo-rao-is occurs five times in the New Testament. 2 Cor. ix. 4,
iv rfj vnoo-Tao-ei raiirv rrjs Kavxrjcreas, "in this same confident boasting."
2 Cor. xi. 17, where the same Greek words are rendered in the authorised
version, "in this confidence of boasting." Heb. i. 3, xaPaKThp ™?s
imoo-Tao-eas avrov, " the express image of his person;" iii. 14, rr)v dpxqv
rr)s vrroo-Tao-eas, "the beginning of our confidence;" and, fifthly, as
above, xi. 1, eXiri&pivav virdo-Tacris, "the substance of things hoped
"for." In Ps. lxviii. 2 (Heb. lxix. 3) the LXX. translate "rai'a , standing
(sc. footing), by vir. So, also, in Euth i. 12, mpn , hope, or expectation.
Again, the same word is found in Ezek. xix. 5 ; whilst, in Lament, iii.
18, rtmn , hope, is rendered by iXnls ; and, in Ps. xxxviii. 7 (Heb. xxxix.
8), by virdo-rao-is. Philo (De Abrahamo, Works, Mangey's Edit., tom. ii.,
pp. 38, 39) thus describes the efficacy and excellencies of faith : — Mdvov
ovv dtyevSes Kal fieflaiov dyaBbv, rvlans, r) rrpbs tov Bebv ttIo-tis, napayoprjpa
fiiov, irXrjpapa xf]0-rav iXnl8av, d(popia pev KaKav, dya&av Se (popa, kuko-
Saipovlas drrdyvao-is, evaefielas yvao-is, evSaipovias KXrjpos, -^rvxV5 *v aivao-i
jieXrlao-is eTrepqpeio-pevrjS tS irdvrav alrla, Kal Svvapeva pev iravra, fiovXo-
peva 8e to apio-ra. " The sole good thing that disappoints not, and is
" firm, is faith ; that is to say, faith in God. It is the consolation of
" life, the fulness of beneficial hopes, the dispeller of evils, the bringer
" of good things, the renunciation of unhappiness, a confession of
" piety, the inheritance of felicity, the advancement, in all things, of
"the soul, which leans upon the Author of all things, even upon Him
" who has power to do all things, but who wills the things that are
" best." 2 Ol wpeo-fivTepoi, D'ipl , ancients. See Is. xxiv. 23, where it is foretold
of Messiah that " He shall reign before his ancients gloriously."
3 'EpaprvprjBqo-av k.t.X. Ewald translates the first and second verses

172 CHAP. XL, 3.
thus : — "Es ist aber Glaube, Bestand in dem was man hofft, Beweis
" fiir Dinge welche man nicht schauet ; denn in diesem wurden die
" Aelteren zu Zeugen " (for in this the Elders became, or, were made
Witnesses). On which he remarks (pp. 122, 123), " Wurden doch in
" diesem, und in nichts anderem, indem sie ihn hatten, die Aelteren,
" die allverehrten Vorfahren aller Art, zu zeugen fur die gottliche Wahr-
" heit." The London Jews' Society's translators have U'mn D'ipin nNia 'a
nvw. And now, first of all, before entering upon the
enumeration of the splendid muster-roll of worthies
who " obtained a good report through faith," in
terse and telling phraseology the writer gives a
practical illustration of what faith is, and will be,
unto the end of time.
Verse 3. — By faith we grasp the idea (voovpev)* that the
worlds (universes) were framed by the word of God,2 so
that the things which we see, sprung from things that do
not appear (et? to prj eK qbaivopiivccv ra j3\eiropeva yeyovevai,
ut ex invisibilibus visibilia fierent. — Vulg. In other words,
the conception of God pre-existent to matter, and by his
fiat calling it into being, is beyond the domain of reason or
demonstration. It is simply acquiesced in by an act of
faith).
1 Hlo-rei voovpev Karnprio-Bai tovs alavas k.t.X. The more literal trans
lation of the Greek is, " by faith we grasp the idea that the worlds
" (universes) were made by the word of God, so that the things which
" we see, did not spring from things which have been indicated to us."
And this agrees exactly with the assertion of Genesis i. 1, which tells
us that in beginning (n'»N-ia) God created the heavens and the earth.
How long ago this event took place we are not told. We are not
informed, in any other respect, concerning the primal materials of
which the present creation (far less of previous creations) was elabo
rated. All that we know is, that immediately before the first day of our
creation, the globe which we inhabit was in a state of chaos (inai inn),
and '' darkness was upon the face of the deep, and the Spirit of God
*' moved upon the face of the waters." Here, then, the solid and fluid
materials of our earth are mentioned, but how these were originally

CHAP. XL, 3. 173
called into existence we are not told. It is a matter of faith. We take
the whole account upon the authority of God's Word. No written or
traditional records survive the wreck of former worlds. The Hebrew
word dVi» , alav, is derived from abs , he concealed, which derivation
excellently illustrates the assertion of the writer to the Hebrews. God
has entered into no prse- Adamite details. But this He has revealed,
that creation had been for countless ages in a state of progression. And
this is the answer which St. Peter gives to the ignorant and silly dictum
of those who assert that, " since the fathers fell asleep, all things
" continue exactly the same from the beginning of (not the) creation "
(dri dpxr)s Krlo-eas) ; " for," says he, " this intentionally escapes their
" observation, that ages ago (r)o-av eKnaXai) the heavens existed, and
"the earth, by the word of God (ra rov Geov Xoya), formed out of
" water, and by means [Alford] of water."
J. C. Wolfius observes (Curm Phil, et Crit., p. 740, in loco), "Lucianus
" in Philopatr., p. 138, edit Genev., ad h.l. merito existimatur allusisse,
" quando ait ; ex pr) Svrav els to elvai rvaprjyaye." Again, Wolfius (ibid.,
p. 741), " E. Elias, in Adderet Elijahu, distinguit inter ereationem
" "Ot ]a iat ninn'ir qua res existit ex re alia, et inter ereationem, ninn'ffl
" "at Nto iai , qua res ex alia [non ?] producitur, h.e. quod addit, ex
" beneplacito Dei ad robur potentice sum significandum." Compare 2 Mace.
vii. 28, 'A£ia ere, reKvov, dvafiXtyavra els tov ovpavbv Kal rr)v yrjv, Kal to.
iv avrois irdvra ISdvra, yvavai on i£ ovk ovrav irrolrjo-ev avra. 6 Qeos. Kal to
rav dvBparrav yevos ovras yeyevvrai. So also Philo (SS. Legum Alley.,
lib. i., Works, Mangey's Edit., tom. i., p. 47), writing on the words of
Gen. ii. 4, " This is the book of the generations of the heavens and the
" earth, when they were created," says : —
"iva Se pr) KatT apio-pevas xpovav nepibSovs v7roXd(3vs to Beidv n Troielv dXX'
deiSrj, adrjXa, dreKpapra Kal aKardXrjTTTa ra Bvrjra yevel ra Srjpiovpyovpeva,
iTTiCpepei to ore iyevero, to ndre Kara 7repiypa(pr)v ov Siopl^av. 'Airepiypd(pas
yap ylverai rd ylvopeva vtto tov alrlov dvrjprjrai rolvvv to iv e£ r)pepais
yeyevr)o-8ai to irdv. " In order to prevent you from supposing that the
" Divinity does anything in specified periods of time, but that his
".creative works are wrought after an unknown manner, unspecified,
" undefined, and incomprehensible to the human race, he adds the
" phrase ore iyivero, to show that he does not limit the exact period.
" For whatever is done by the First Cause is illimitable. And thus it
" is denied that everything was made in six days." (See note 4, p. 9.)
Ewald (Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 123) writes, in terms of forcible
eloquence, upon this third verse of chap, xi., " Aber kaum hat der
" Eedner so den ersten Abschnitt geschlossen, und steht in Begriffe die
" lange Eeihe der Glaubenszeugen aus der vorchristlichen Zeit vorzu-

174 CHAP. XL, 3.
"fiihren, als er fiihlt das die Wunderkraft unseres Glaubens, blickt
" man einmal in die Urzeiten, und dringfc mit dem suchenden Geiste
" hier soweit als nur mbglieh im Andenken zuriick, sogar noch iiber
" die bekannten Beispiele geschichtlicher Glaubenshelden hinausreicht.
" Fangt man nun xi. 3, bei der Ubersicht aller alten Geschichte iiberall
" gerne mit der Schopfung an, so Konnen zwar die ersten Menschen
" nicht gerade als Muster des Glaubens dienen, da dieser erst in den
" hohen Verwicklungen der menschlichen Geschichte seine rechte Stelle
" findet : aber achtet man auch nur auf die Wunder der Schopfung
" selbst wie schon bevor ein Mensch lebte die Welten, die himmlischen
" soweit sie geschaffen und verganglich, sind die irdischen und die unter-
" irdischen, nach Gen. c. 1, in der wunderbarsten Weise verganglich,
" und doch so wohl eingerichtet geschaffen wurden sodass nicht aus
" erscheinendem sinnlichem durch das Wort Gottes das zu sehende sinnlich
" geworden ist, so miissen wir sagen : auch dass jene allerersten iiber
" alles was man gewbhnlich Geschchite nennt herausgehenden, und in
" vielerlei Hinsicht wunderbarsten Dinge, wirklich einst so wurden,
" haben wir ja nicht sinnlich gesehen, wir werden dessen aber durch
" Glauben inne, weil wir es Gen. c. 1, lesen, und alle weitere Unter-
" suchung uns das dort von einer noch nicht menschlichen, sondern
" rein gottlichen Geschichte gesagte bestatigt. Und gewiss est ist die
" Wunderkraft des Glaubens welche nicht nur die Weissagung und
" Ahnung jeglicher Art, sondern auch alle achte Wissenschaft tragt.
" Der Eedner aber erinnert hier beilaufig umso lieber an das Wort
" Gottes je naher ihm, nach i. 3, iv. 12, Iiberall auch der Wort Gottes
" vor dem Geiste steht."
2 'Pr)pan Geov. Are these words a citation from Ps. xxxiii. 6 (LXX.
xxxii. 6) ? And, if so, is it not a little remarkable that the writer has
translated mn' nana (ra Xdya tov Kvplov of the LXX.) by pr)pan ? Ewald
(Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 10, and elsewhere) seems to imply that
Philo's doctrine of the Logos largely leavens the Epistle to the Hebrews :
— " Nicht als hatte sich diese damals nicht schon seit vielen Jahrhun-
" derten innerhalb des Volkes der alten wahren Beligion ausgebildet."
Now, although Philo and the Writer to the Hebrews frequently exhibit
a surprising coincidence of thought and even of phraseology, it is not a
little remarkable that our writer, apparently studiously, avoids the
term Logos, as applied to the Son of God. A glance at the Greek con
cordance will show that, in Hebr. iv. 12 alone, can the term Xdyos (and
not necessarily even then) be applied to the Son of God. Such an
omission is not a little significant. Philo and the New Testament
writers held a great deal of religious truth in common, and especially
the doctrine of the Logos, but that the Epistle to the Hebrews is

CHAP. XL, 4. 175
coloured by Philo's phraseology is contrary to fact. — Teyivrjrat yap 6
Koo-pos, Kal trdvras vtt alrlov rivos yiyovev. cO fie tov ttoiovvtos Xdyos
avros eo~Tiv r) o-qbpayls, rj tcbi/ ovrav eKaorrov pepopcparai' Trap' bv Kal
reXeiov rot? yevopevois i£ apxrjs TrapaKoXovBei to elSos, are iKpayeiov Kal
eiKav reXeiov Xoyov. To yap yevdpevov £5>ov, dreXes pev ion rip iroo-a,
paprvpes 8' al KaB' rjkiKlav eKao-rnv irapav£r)o-eis, reXeiov 8e ra iroia, pivel
yap r) avrrj TroiOTns, are dirb pivovros iKpaxBeica Kal prjSapr) rpeiropevov
BelovXdyoy. "The world came into being, and it must assuredly have
" had some author. But the very Word of the Creator is the seal,
" according to which everything in existence was framed. Therefore
" the perfect and ancient similitude accompanies every creature ; that
" is to say, the impress and likeness of the perfect Word. For a living
" being, when called into existence, is imperfect, perchance, in quantity,
" as its gradual growth testifies ; but in quality it is perfect. For the
" same workmanship it remains, having been modelled by the abiding
" and immutable Divine Word." — Philo, de Prqfugis, Works, Mangey's
Edit, vol. i., pp. 547, 548. See Coloss. i. 15, and J. Wesselius'
Dissertat. Sacr., p. 497, Lugd. Bat. 1721. 4to. (See also note 4, p. 9.)
Verse 4. — By faith Abel offered to God a more ample
(rrXelova, more excellent)1 sacrifice than Cain, by which
he obtained witness that he was righteous, God himself
giving approving testimony to his gifts, and by it (i.e.,
his faith, that led to his martyrdom) he being dead, yet
speaketh.
1 HXelova Bvalav. See Heb. iii. 3, 7rXelovos Sd£ns, wXelovu npr)v.
Matt. v. 20, vi. 25, xii. 41, 42 — Mark xii. 33, irXeiov ion irdvrav rav
oXoKavTvparav Kal rav Bvcriav — Luke xi. 31, 32, xii. 23. Ewald (Das
Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 44) translates: — "In Glauben brachte Abel
" mehr Opfer als Kain Gotte dar, ihn durch den er das Zeugniss empfing
" ein Gerechter zu seyn indem Gott iiber seinen Gaben dies bezeugte ;
" und durch ihn redet er gestorben noch." See also ibid., pp. 124, 125.
The translators of the London Jews' Society's Hebrew New Testament
have 'ni ]'pa -ip' nai o'Ttb^b ton anpn n:iBN3. Abel is called SUaios, Matt, xxiii.
35. Comp. 1 John iii. 12. In both of these places he is spoken of in the
light of a martyr, whilst in the former passage our Lord himself declares
that his righteous blood, together with the righteous blood of all the
other martyrs, even to that of Zacharias the son of Barachias, should
be exacted of that guilty generation, i.e., at the destruction of Jerusalem
by the Eomans. Thus Christ places Abel at the head of the noble
army of witnesses to God's truth, and denounces a terrible retribution

176 CHAP. XL, 4.
upon the Scribes and Pharisees, who should fill up the measure of their
fathers' iniquity, by the persecutions and martyrdom of his disciples
and followers. Here, I think, we obtain the clue to Abel's being placed
by the Writer to the Hebrews at the head of the list. The Gospel of
St. Matthew was early accepted, in the original Syro-Chaldaic, amongst
the Hebrews. They were acquainted with the passage above cited.
According to the familiar usus loquendi of the Hebrew idiom, he is
spoken of there as Abel the Just. I cannot but think, then, that the
Writer to the Hebrews alludes not only to typical atonement of the
blood of the sacrifice of Abel, but also to the blood of Abel's own
martyrdom which he simultaneously offered, and by which he also yet
spake. It is quite worthy of remark that in Gen. iv. 10 the Hebrew
expression is, D'pss ynN 'at Yip, " a voice of bloods of thy brother crying"
(plur.), &c. (although the same expression is used in 2 Sam. iii. 28,
¦MN 'bib, "from the bloods of Abner "). The same phrase, jnN 'Bi, is
repeated in verse 11. Of this peculiarity the Mishna (Sanhedr., cap.
iv. 5) takes especial notice. Speaking of the charge delivered to
witnesses in case of life and death, viz., that they should be scrupulously
conscientious in their statements, it says : — " Know that causes con-
" cerning money are of a totally different character from capital causes.
"Mistakes in the former may be compromised for a sum of money, but
" in the latter the blood of the accused and the blood of his posterity
" will be imputed unto the end of the world. We therefore read con-
" cerning Cain when he slew his brother (Gen. iv. 10) D'pss -p™ 'ai Yip
" a voice of bloods of thy brother crying. He says not dt, bhod, but
" -['nN 'ai, thy brother's bloods, that is, his blood, and the bhod of his pos-
" terities, vnwil (his seeds). Another interpretation is, that nat bloods,
" are spoken of because his blood was sprinkled abroad on the trees and
" stones." — Mishna Surenh., tom. iv., p. 229. Cocceius remarks on the
above (ibid., p. 230), "His Dl est iddi (i.e., by blood they understand
" soul). Hi sic philosophantur : Animani Abelis non potuisse coelo
" recipi, quia nulla adhuc anima in ccelum intrasset : neque etiam
" inferno, quia corpus sepultum nondum fuerit. Nam priusquam
" corpus sepeliatur, animae quietem non contingere.
Nee ripas datur horrendas nee raucafiuenta
Transportare prius, quam sedibus ossa quierunt.
" Ideo anima Abelis in sanguine super ligna, lapidesque dissipata est.
" Miserum ! Prseclaram hanc expositionem habes in Bereschith Rabba,
" cap. 22."
I have called attention to the above Eabbinic gloss, not as indorsing
its interpretation, but as showing that the Talmudical writers regarded
the expression jn« 'Bt as peculiar, and deserving of a special explana-

CHAP. XL, 4. 177
tion, an explanation which is in exact accordance with the Targum of
Onkelos, who writes, " The voice of the blood of generations which
" were to come from thy brother, complaineth before Me from the
" earth." The Targum of Jonathan, on the other hand, has, " The
" voice of the bloods of the murder of thy brother which are swallowed
" up in the sod, crieth before me from the earth. And now because
" thou hast killed him, thou art cursed from the earth, which hath
" opened the mouth, and received the bloods of thy brother from thy
" hand." The Jerusalem Targum has, " The voice of the blood of the
" multitude of the righteous who were to arise from Habel thy brother,"
&c. The voice, then, that went forth from the innocent blood of Abel,
was a cry for vengeance, even as St. John describes the souls of the
martyrs beneath the altar as crying, " How long, 0 Lord, holy and true,
" dost thou not judge, and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the
" earth ? " And this is probably one portion, and no small portion, of
the signification which the Writer to the Hebrews intends to impart to
the words of chap. xii. 24, Kal dlpan pavno-pov, Kpelrrova XaXovvTt rrapd
rbv'AfieX. J. C. Wolfius observes that two Codices have irapa to "AfieX.
But in either case the signification would not be materially different,
when read by the light of Gen. iv. 10, 11. The blood of Abel cried for
retribution ; the blood of Jesus, the first martyr's great antitype, speaks
of Peace and Atonement. But how can it be affirmed that Abel died
as a witness to the truth ? In Gen. iv. 8 it is abruptly said, \'p ibn'i
rnN ban bx and Cain said (not iaTi spake to his brother Abel). And then,
without mentioning the topic of Cain's address, the verse continues,
" And it came to pass when they were in the field that Cain rose up
" against Abel his brother and slew him." J. Selden (de Jure Nat. et
Gent., col. 1338, 1340, printed in Ugolini Thes., vol. xxvii.) on the word
pi n'a, observes : — " Quo spectat etiam vetustissima ilia Caini et Abelis
" altercatio de Judicio coelesti et seculo futoro,
nusniB n'Yi xymb ap -un n'bi pnN abns yi n'^i p rvb 'mnN Van1) ]>p ibni
n>Ni tepnsb aia -un n'N rnnN obis n'Ni yn n'Ni pi n'N 'ninN ypb ibni twttrt
i n'Yepi 'ninN Van bs yp Dpi xpbm pinaa mm NS'iBib mis-iio
(" And Cain said to Abel his brother, There is neither Judgment nor a
" Judge, nor a world to come, nor any good reward for the just, nor punish-
" ment for the wicked. But Abel answered Cain his brother, There is indeed
" a Judgment, and a Judge, and a world to come. There is, moreover, a
" good reward for the Just and a punishment for the wicked. And it came
" to pass that whilst they were together in the field, Cain rose up against
" Abel his brother and killed him.") Selden goes on to say that the
above altercation is found in certain editions of the Hebrew Pantateuch,
amongst the " additiones sive complementa, quibus, ex veterum tra-
A A

178 CHAP. XL, 4.
" ditione loca nonnulla insigniora Hebraici codicis Chaldaice expli-
" cantur," and specifies one printed at Constantinople, about 90 years
before, as containing it, where it is expressly J'P ibn'1 pidd bv Nnsmn
vnN ban bN " additio seu complementum versus, seu commatis. Et dixit
" Cain Abeli fratri suo." He adds that in certain editions, which have
been more correctly printed according to the Hebrew MSS., e.g.,
Bomberg's, Buxtorf's, &c, the 8th verse of Gen. iv. is given as follows,
so as to show the hiatus, sic, —
* * * * vnN ban bN pp naN'i
innn'i vnN ban bs pp op'i m«a Dnvna >rri
And Cain said to his brother Abel 
And it came to pass whilst they were in the field that Cain rose
up against Abel his brother and slew him.
The Targum of Jonathan gives the conversation between Cain and
Abel almost exactly as above, prefacing it thus, "And Cain said to
" Abel his brother, Come and let us two go forth into the field. And it
" was that when they two had gone forth into the field, Cain answered
" and said to Abel, I perceive that the world was created in goodness,
" but it is not governed (or conducted) according to the fruit of good
" works, for there is respect- to persons in judgment, therefore it is that
" thy offering was accepted, and mine not accepted with goodwill 
" And because of these words they had contention upon the face of the
" field ; and Cain arose against Abel his brother, and drave a stone into
" his forehead and killed him." The Jerusalem Targum is nearly identical
in its paraphrase. It will be seen, therefore, that the ancient Jewish Church
regarded Abel as a martyr to the truth. That the sacrifice which he
brought "of the firstlings of his flocks and of the fat thereof " was offered
in faith, and accepted as atypical atonement made by blood, who will deny I
Meanwhile, it will appear from the above-mentioned reasons that the
Writer to the Hebrews, with a felicitous discrimination, selected Abel's
name to stand foremost upon the muster-roll of worthies who obtained
a good report through faith, as the radiant crown of the bright cloud of
witnesses for the truth of God, as being the first who paid the forfeit
of his life for his faith. Philo (De Sacrif. Abelis et Caini) having noticed
(p. 176) how Cain was rejected because he brought his offering, neither
promptly (but "after certain days," " in process of time") nor with a
willing mind, says : — "Aj3eX Se rjveyKev ov to avra, oifit rbv avrbv rparrov,
dXXa dvrl dijfvxav ep\j/vxa, dvrl vearipav- Kal Sevrepelav rcpeo-fivTepa (cai
irpara, dvrl 8e rjo-BevvKorav ippapiva Kal mdrepa. 'Anb yap rav TTporo-
rd<av to)!/ irpofiaTav avrov Kal drrb rcov oreaTav avrav (prjai ttjv Bvalav
troieio-Bai Kara rb lepararov Sidraypa k.t.X. " But Abel brought not the
" same things nor in the same fashion, but he brought, instead of

CHAP. XL, 4. 179
" lifeless, living things ; instead of younger and secondary things, the
" eldest and first ; instead of weaker, strong and fat things. For he is
" said to have made his sacrifice of the firstborn of his sheep, and of
" their fat, in accordance with the most holy commandment." Exod.
xiii. 11. (Works, Mang., tom. i, p. 180.) So also on Gen. iv. 8, 10
(deterius potiori insidiatur, ibid., pp. 200, 201), he observes : — "Qa8' 6
A(3eX, rb napaSot-OTarov, dvrjprjral re Kal £rj. 'Avrjpnrai pev eK tov aqbpovos
Siavolas, £rj Se rr)v iv Bea £ar)v evSalpova. Maprvprjo-ei Se to xP^Biv
Xdyiov, iv a qbavfj xpapevos, Kal /3o£y a ireirovBev vrrb kokov avvBirov
rrjXavyas evpiOKerai. Has yap 6 prjKer' av SiaXeyecrBai Swards ; 'O pev Se
(ro(pbs reBvr/Kevai 8ok5>v tov (pdaprbv ftlov, £rj rbv dtpdaprov, 6 Se qbavXos
£av rbv iv KaKiq, riBvrjKe tov ivSalpova.
" So that Abel, most strange to tell, was killed and yet lives. He
" was killed, as the simple may suppose ; but he lives in God a life
" of felicity. The Sacred Oracle will prove this. Where he is found
" speaking, and expressly crying of the things which he suffered from
" an evil person. But how is he able to discourse when he is no longer
" alive ? The Wise Man verily, whom men suppose to have died to this
" mortal life, lives the immortal one, but the wicked, even whilst he
" lives an evil life, has died to the life of felicity." (See 1 Tim. v. 6.)
See also ibid., p. 206 and p. 209. — See also Spencer, De Legibus Hebrosorum
Ritualibus, Lib. iii., pp. 146 — 152, Hagce Comitum, 1696, 4to. — Eeland,
Antiq. Sacrce Vet. Hebrmor., p. 315, Ultraject., 1712, 8vo., — also D. Asellius,
Veteris Testamenti Sacrificia, pp. 18, 19 (Duisburgi ad Rhen. 1712, 8vo.),
where he writes, " Ex loco Genes, iv. 4, et respexit Jehovah ad Habelem et
" ad Munus ejus, vide vim vocis Num. xvi. 15, Amos v. 22, Ps. cxix. 117,
" Ezech. xvi. 4, quod beneplacitum Deus, sine dubio et ex communi
" Eruditorum consensu, ipwvpio-pa, ccelestique Sacrificii inflammatione
" comprobavit, hinc illud swi a Theodotione translatum per ivenvpnae,
" infiammavit, ut et Jarehi cum E. Salmone ad h.l. scite notat, »n trrv
" anb'i , descendit ignis et infiammavit ejus vietimam; idem sentit Aben-
" ezra  Verisimile est, inquit, ignem deseendisse et Abelis quidam
" oblationem ninn in einerem redigisse, Caini vero oblationem non item.
" Ex quo Apostolus, Ebr. xi. 4, Abelis in peracta oblatione fidem
" concludit, per quam testimonium nactus est, quod Justus esset, testi-
" monium perhibente super donis illius Deo, et per quam mortuus adhuc
" loquitur, sine fide enim est Deo evapearvo-ai, placere," &c.

Michaelis [Introd. to New Testament, transl. by
Marsh, pp. 225, 226) says, " If the Epistle to the
" Hebrews was written in Greek, and consequently

180 CHAP. XL, 4.
" the words quoted from the LXX. were quoted by
" the author himself, it is very extraordinary that,
" in the eleventh chapter, when he quotes from the
" Old Testament so many examples of faith, he
" should have omitted to mention, in vers. 4, 5, the
" name of Enosh, of whom it is said, in the LXX.,
" Gen. iv. 26, ovro<; rjXiriaev eiriKaXelcrOai to ovopua Kvplov
" tov Qeov) words which are so obviously to his
" purpose. Philo {He Abr., "Works, Mang., tom. ii.,
" p. 2, and De JPoenis, ibid., p. 410) has twice made
" use of this passage, in describing the hope which
" we ought to place in the Supreme Being," &c.
First of all, even as the passage is given in the
LXX., the instance is by no means one in point.
Enosh, according to it, affords the example of a
man who ventured upon the public worship of
Jehovah, but nothing is recorded of his career, that
would justify the Writer to the Hebrews in enrolling
his name amongst the noble army of martyrs, who
suffered for their faith, or overcame through it.
Secondly, no one was better aware than Michaelis
himself that the Writer to the Hebrews, and the
other New Testament writers, never copied slavishly
from the LXX. Lastly, the LXX. text is at vari
ance with the Hebrew. In this instance, I do not
believe that the Septuagint translators had a "various
reading" before them, as Lud. Cappellus suggests
they had, in his Crit. Sacr., p. 231. They gave a
paraphrase of what they thought was the intention
of the Sacred Writer, and they gave a wrong one.
The Hebrew of Gen. iv. 26 is, mrr> nt&a snpb bnin tn ,
literally, then it teas begun to call upon the name of

CHAP. XL, 4. 181
Jehovah. The Targum of Onkelos paraphrases
these words with an exactly opposite meaning : —
" Then in bis days the sons of men desisted (or
" forbore) from praying in the name of the Lord ; "
and the Targum of Palestine or Jonathan, " That
" was the generation in whose days they began to
" err, and to make themselves idols, and surnamed
" their idols by the name of the Word of the Lord."
Doubtless these latter interpretations arose from
the well-known signification of the verb bbn , to
profane. J. A. Danzius [Schechina, ad Joh. xiv. 23,
p. 738e) quotes from Bamidbar Rabba, " Cum
" generatione Enosi succedente, idololatrse fierent,
" juxta (Gen. iv. 26) Tunc prof anatio introductafuit,
" nomine Jehovce aliis tributo : ideo subduxit Sche-
" chinam vel cohabitationem (sc. Deus) in Expansum
" tertium." Nevertheless, although bbn occurs
only in Gen. iv. 26, in the Uophal conjugation,
the Englishman's Hebrew Concordance gives more
than fifty examples in which it signifies to begin,
in the Hiphil. J. G. Meuschen, in his Oratio
de Directoribus Scholarum Hebrceorum, p. 1200
(printed in his Nov. Test, ex Talmude illustr.),
quaintly asserts, " Hoc certum est, piissimi Sethi
" optimum filium Henosum scholam, docente scrip-
" tura (Gen. iv. 26), erexisse publicam ; et in ilia
" expossuisse divina oracula." Luther translates,
" Zu derselbigen Zeit fing man an zu predigen von
" des Herrn Namen" ; whilst the authorized Dutch
version agrees with our English translation — " Toen
" begon men den naam des Heeren aan te roepen."
And so Delitzsch (Die Genesis, p. 163), "Damals,

182 CHAP. XL, 5, 6.
" in der Zeit des Enos, wurde begonnen 'n cttn sipb
" d.i. den Namen Jehova's auzurufen  Verg-
" leich man xii. 8, xiii. 4, xxi. 33, xxvi. 35, so
" kann man iiber den Sinn dieser Worte nicht
" zweifelhaft sein : mit Enos begann die formliche
" und feierliche Verehrung Jehova's." The Vulgate,
on the other hand, has " Iste coepit invocare nomen
" Domini." It is but justice to Michaelis to add
that he says, " It may be said, however, in answer
" to this argument, that the author of the epistle
" consulted the Hebrew text, and, finding that the
" Greek differed from it, omitted the quotation."
Evidently our Gottingen Professor entertained a
very poor notion of the accurate acquaintance of
the canonical Jewish writers of the New Testament
with their own national records, as contained in the
Hebrew Scriptures. As to the notion of inspired
guidance in their writings, it is not worthy to be
taken into consideration !
Verses 5, 6. — By faith Enoch ' was translated, so as not to
see death, and he was not found, for God translated him.
Por, before his translation, it was testified of him that he
pleased God. But without faith it is impossible to please
Him. For he who cometh to God must beheve that He is
(i.e., in his personal and direct agency), and that He
becomes a rewarder of those who seek Him out carefully 2
(ko\ rot? eK^rjTovcriv ainbv piadaTroBoTT]? yiverat).
1 Tllo-Tei 'Ei/ojy perereBrj k.t.X. Having now spoken of Abel the first
martyr, the writer proceeds to mention Enoch, who was, to the Ante
diluvian World, what Elijah was to the Mosaic, and Christ to our own,
viz., a guarantee of the reasonableness of the hope of a glorious immor
tality, even of that true life wliich is hid' with Christ in God. Enoch
and Elijah doubtless form no exception to the laws of our nature which

CHAP. XL, 5, 6. 183
make it impossible for flesh and blood to see the kingdom of God.
They underwent the change which St. Paul assures the Corinthians
(1 Cor. xv. 51, 52) shall overtake those who are on earth at Christ's
appearing. We shall not all sleep (KoiprjBrjo-dpeBa), but we shall be
changed (iv drdpa, iv pnrfj b(pdaXpov). "The dead shall be raised, and
" we who remain shall be changed." This putting off corruption was
instantaneously effected by the power of God in the two cases above-
mentioned. Of Christ, the apostle emphatically writes (1 Cor. xv. 20),
Nwt 8e Xpiorbs iyrjyeprai iK veKpav, dnapxr) rav KeKOiprjpevav iyevero.
It was needful, in order to show forth the exceeding greatness of his
power, and the reality of his victory over death and the grave, that He
should sleep among the dead. It was by his power, that these his
servants, Enoch and Elijah, were translated. Although Philo (De
Abrahamo, Works, Mangey's edition, vol. ii., pp. 3, 4, and De Prcsmiis
et Pcenis, ibid., p. 411, and also De Nominum Mutatione, ibid., vol. i.,
p. 584) allegorises the translation of Enoch, and the fact that he "was
" not found," and explains it of " conversion from a worldly life and
" carnal pursuits " ; yet, in the last mentioned passage, he says, 'TZweiSr)
Kal peTaredrjvai Xeyerai, to 8' ion, perao-rrjvai Kal peroiKiav oreikao-Bai rr)v
dnb Bvtjtov /Si'ou irpbs rbv dBdvarov, " But when he is said to have been
"translated, this signifies that he migrated, and proceeded from this
" mortal life to the immortal." In like manner Philo speaks of Abraham
(De Sacr. Abelis et Caini), Kal yap A/Hpaap iKXnrav ra Bvqrd irpoo-riBeTai
ra Beov Xaa, Kapirovpevos dqbBapalav, 'loos dyyiXois yeyovas' ayyeXoi yap
errpards elai Beov, doaparoi Kal evSaipoves i\rvxal. "Abraham also having
" quitted this mortal state, is united to the people of God, being a
" partaker of incorruption, and having become equal to the angels ; for
" the angels are the host of God, incorporeal and happy souls."
(Works, Mang., vol. i., p. 164.) Josephus (Antiq. i., 3, 4) mentions
the translation of Enoch in the following terms : — Ovros fijo-as Trivre Kal
i^rjKOvra irpbs rols rpiaKOolois, dvexaprjcre Ttpbs to Belov' bBev ovSe reXevrrjV
avrov dvayeypdqbao-i. " This man having lived 365 years, departed to
" the divine estate ; and this is why they have not recorded his end."
The Eabbies, and especially the Cabbalists, have indulged in a variety
of wild theories respecting Enoch, e.g., that he was identical with
piotBB , Metatron, a name given to the Angel of the Covenant, or
Michael, and which statement is found in the Targum of Jonathan.
See Surenhusius, Bi/3X. KaraXX., pp. 708—712, and J. Ehenferdii,
Observatio ad Judce epist., v. 14, p. 1044 (Meuschen). But what is more
important, is the fact that the doctors of the early Jewish Church were
not ignorant of the prophetic declaration of Enoch cited by St. Jude
(who calls him, after the Jewish fashion, eS8opos awb 'ASdp, aura Taw),

184 CHAP. XL, 5, 6.
and which declares that Christ shall come with ten thousands of his
saints, to execute judgment upon all." Here, then, we have in minia
ture, the sum of Enoch's faith, by which he pleased God, and also the
explanation of the statement that " he that cometh to God. must believe
" that He is, and He is a pio-BanoSoTqs of all those who diligently seek
" Him." Observe, that St. Jude by no means guarantees the authen
ticity of the apocryphal book of Enoch. He simply endorses as genuine,
a single saying of the prophet's. Enoch's faith, then, consisted in a
persuasion that Christ would come ; that He would come to judgment ;
that He would bring his saints with Him. It was a very definite one
(see Ewald, Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 128), being, in fact, a
Praemessianic Christianity. Surenhusius observes (p. 712), in reference
to Jude 14, " Eadem Phraseologia occurrit apud Mosem Deut. xxxiii. 2,
" vip niaaio nnw et veniet (Dominus) cum myriadibus sanctitatis, ubi
" D. Easchi notat per simplicem vocem vip intelligendos esse trip '3Nbo
" angehs sanctos. Hanc phrasin Apostolus Paulus etiam imitatus est in
" 1 Thess. iii. 13, pera rravrav rav dylav avroii." It is plain, however,
from 1 Thess. iv. 14, that not only the angels are intended, for there it
is written, " Them also which sleep in Jesus will God bring with him."
In conclusion, I would observe that Enoch is cited by the writer to the
Hebrews, as an example and witness to the consoling truth, that a
careful walk with God, in the midst of a crooked and blaspheming
generation, cannot fail to meet with the promised recompense of reward
in eternal life.
2 Uio-revo-ai yap Set k.t.X. Philo writes as follows (Quis rerum divin.
hares.) in commendation of the excellency of an unhesitating faith in
God : — Eu Se to (pdvai, XoyioBrjvai ttjv 7rlo-nv els SiKaioo-vvrjv avra. AUaiov
yap ovras ovSev, as aKpdra Kal dpiyei rrj irpbs Beov pdvov nlo-rei Kexpr)o-$ai.
To Se SUaiov Kal aKoXovBov tovto tjj opvoei, napaSo^ov ivoplaBv Sta rr)v Tav
TToXXav dtrlo-nav rjpav, ovs iXiyxav 6 lepbs Xdyos (prjo-lv, on to inl pdva ra
ovn fie[3alas Kal okXivcos oppeiv, Bavpaarbv pev Trap' dvBpanois, ols dyaBav
dSdXav kttjo-is ovk eanv, ov Bavpao-rbv Se irap' dXrjBelq fipafievovo-y, SiKaiocrvvvs
5' avrb pdvov epyov. " It is well spoken, that faith was reckoned to him
" for righteousness ; since there is nothing so just as to have a, sincere
" and unmixed faith in God alone. But this, although just and agree-
" able to nature, has been accounted paradoxical, on account of the
" unbelief of many amongst us. In reproof of whom, the Holy Scrip-
" ture declares, that to lean fixedly and firmly upon Him Who alone
" Is (Jehovah), although surprising to men who do not possess unalloyed
" good things, is nevertheless not so in Truth's award, for it is the very
" work of righteousness itself." (Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. i.,
p. 486.)

CHAP. XL, 5—6. 185
And again, ibid., pp. 485, 486 : —
AvayKaias ovv emXeyeTai, irrlo-Tevcrev A(3paap ra 0ea, rrpbs erraivov too
Tremo-revKoros. Kairoi rdxa av ns eiiroi, rovr a^iov iwalvov Kpivere ; tis Se
ovk av ri Xiyovn Kal vmo-xvovpeva Qea irpoo-exoi rbv voiiv, Kqv el rravrav
aSiKararos Kal do-efieo-raros av rvyxavoi ; 7rpbs ov ipovpev, pr) a yevvdle,
ave^erdaras, r) rbv o-o<pbv dcpeXrj ra irpenovTa iyKapia, rj rdls ava£lois rrjv
TeXeiaTarrjv aperav rrlo-nv ptipTvprjo-rjs, rj rr)v rjperepav 7repl rovrav yvaaiv
airiao-v. BaBvrepav yap el fiovXrjBelrjs ipevvav Kal pr) o-(pdSpa iirmoXaiov
iroirjo-ao-Bai, o~a(pas yvao-y dn pova Qea xapls ir'epov ir pomrapaXij^eas ov
paSiov TTio-revo-ai, Sid rrjv irpbs to Bvrjrbv a avve^evypeBa, avyyiveiav' direp
qpds Kal xprjpaoi, Kal Sdgrj, Kal dpxjj Kal (piXois, vyeia re Kal paprj o-aparos,
Kai aXXois noXXols dvarreiBei TreTrio-revKevai. To Se iKvfyacrBai rovrav
eKao-rov, Kal arTio-rrjo-ai yevecei Trj irdvra e£ iavrys dirlo-ra, pova Se mo-revo-ai
Qea' t<5 Kal irpbs dXrjBeiav pova rno-ra, peydXrjs Kal oXvpnlov Siavolas epyov
eari, irpbs ovSevbs ovKen SeXea^opevrjs rav nap' rjplv.
" Of necessity therefore it is added, Abraham believed God, in praise
" of him who believed. Perchance some one will say, Do you, then,
" think this worthy of praise ? What man is there, however depraved
" and irreligious he might be, who'would not render credence to God,
" should He speak to him and promise him anything 1 To such an
" objector we would reply, Beware, good Sir, that you defraud not the
" wise man of the encomiums which he has so well deserved ; nor impute
" to unworthy persons faith, that most perfect of virtues ; nor impugn
" the opinion which we have expressed above. If you will only be at
" the pains to investigate a little deeper, and not to act in so entirely
" superficial a manner, you will clearly discover that to believe in God
" only, without the aid of any other support, is no easy matter, on
" account of our close affinity with the mortal nature to which we are
" so nearly yoked together. Por the latter persuades us to believe in
" money, and glory, and power, and friends, and bodily health and
" strength, and many other objects. But to purge away all these, and
" to renounce entirely any confidence in the creature which is most
" unworthy of credit, and to believe only in God, who is, in very truth,
" alone worthy of belief, this is the achievement of a great and celestial
" mind, uncaptivated by anything such as this world affords us."
Erom Enoch, the writer passes on to the example
of Noah, who believed in God's predictions of
coming doom at a time when all things seemed
to speak of the permanency of the world that then
B B

186 CHAP. XL, 7.
was, instead of its overthrow. He acted upon the
admonition that he had received, and made all
needful preparations, and so when the time came
for God's vengeance to awake, and to destroy an
unbelieving and apostate earth, Noah realised that
he had made a wise choice. He entered into the
ark with his family, and was saved from the over
throw of the wicked.
Verse 7. — By faith ' Noah, having been oracularly adver
tised concerning things of which there was not the
smallest visible indication (rrepl t&v pirjhen-aj /3\eTrop,eva>v),
took the warning reverently to heart (evXa/3T]det<;) and
constructed an ark for the preservation of his household,
by which he condemned the world (KareKpive rbv Koapov),
(i.e., he demonstrated its fatuous incredulity in refusing
to listen to his protracted preaching — the world derided,
but he was saved), and (also) became an heir of the
righteousness which is by faith (Kal ttjs Kara irio-riv
SiKaioo-vvrj<; eyevero KXr)povopo<}, i.e., he became an heir
expectant).2
1 Uio-rei xprjparl0~8els Ntoe K.r.X. Ewald translates the passage thus : —
" In Glauben bereitete Noah, gottgewarnt iiber das noch nicht zu
" schauende, in achter scheu einen Kasten zum Heile seines Hauses,
" ihm durch den er die Welt verurtheilte," &c.
1 We must not, in interpreting these signal victories of faith over
temptation and the world, suffer ourselves to wander into vague gene
ralities and diffuse platitudes, but keep closely to the design which the
Writer to the Hebrews has in view, in holding them up to the perse
cuted and wavering converts for imitation. Many true and excellent
remarks may be made in respect to the above, but such digressions can
only serve to divert our attention from the primary warning and con
solation which they are intended to convey. The real point at issue is,
how did these historical events bear upon the subject which occupied the
writer's thoughts ? How are the episodes related, in consolatory parallelism
with the condition of those to whom, for a very definite purpose, they

CHAP. XL, 7. 187
were recited ? The writer is contrasting the advantages nla-re as, with
the perilous drawbacks v7roo-roXfjs. He is illustrating and exemplifying the
declaration in Habak. ii. 4, " His soul which is lifted up is not upright
" in him, but the just shall live by his faith." (See note 7, pp. 164 — 168.)
To this idea we must keep close if we would elicit the true meaning of
the writer to the Hebrews. The words of Habakkuk are, so to speak,
the text upon which the discourse contained in the 11th and 12th
chapters of the Hebrews is based. To understand the real drift of the
sermon, we must not allow the text to pass out of our recollections. To
my mind, then, the resemblance between the position of Noah and the
Hebrew Christians consists in the condition of isolation in which, as
believers, they found themselves. Noah must have made great sacri
fices to accomplish what the world considered a mad scheme. The
construction of the ark must have given occasion to many a sneer and
witticism. The result proved that he was right and they were wrong.
The flood came and destroyed all the infidels. So it was with the
converts from Judaism. They had sacrificed their all. They had
become the filth and offscouring of the world. Was, then, the loss
commensurate with the expected reward ? Yes verily ! It was but
en piKpbv oo-ov oo-ov, and then the deluge of fire and blood broke loose
upon devoted Judsea. The Hebrew Church and nation, the temple,
and. all else that seemed so fair and substantial (Matt. xxiv. 1, 2, —
Mark xiii. 1, 2, — Luke xxi. 5, 6), were swept away. But at Pella the
believers had taken refuge ; they had fled from the city, as Christ bid
them to do when they should see Jerusalem encompassed with armies,
and not one of them perished in the overthrow of the unbelievers.
Thus they also " condemned " the world, and afterwards became in
heritors of the righteousness which is by faith. I cannot help thinking
the expression rrjs Kara irlo-riv biKaioo-ivrjs cyeVero KXrjpovopos means far
more than merely that Noah was put in possession of justification by
faith. It seems to me to indicate that he became a progenitor of the
promised Messiah. (Luke iii. 36.) Philo (De migratione Abrahami)
in commenting on the promise given to Abraham, " In thee shall all
" the families of the earth be blessed," adduces Noah as an illustration
of the fact that the blessings of good men are transmitted to latest
posterity, inasmuch as he became one of the ancestors of Israel :
ivapyearardv Se irapdSeiypa Nae 6 SUaios, os r<5 peydXa KaraKkvo-pa
rav roo-ovrav pepav ttjs ^i>yj)ff iyKarairoBivrav, eppapevas iwiKvparl^av
Kal i7Tivrjxo'P'evosi vrrepdva pev eo-rrj twv Seti/coi* drravrav, Siao~aBels Se
peydXas Kal KaXds d<p' avrov pl£as ifBdXXero, e£ av oia (pvrbv to aocplas
dveftXdo-rrjo-e yevos, onep rjpeporoKrjo-av, rovs tov opavros 'lo-par)X, TpiTrovs
rjveyKe Kaprrobs, alavos pirpa, rbv 'Afipaap, rbv 'lo-aaK, rbv 'laKafi. "We

188 CHAP. XL, 7.
" have a bright example in Noah the Just, who at the great flood,
" when so large a portion of human life was drowned, bravely rode out
" the waves and swam aloft, and so escaped all the horrors of the dread
" scene. But after his escape he put forth fair and widespread roots,
"from which, like a plant, the race of Wisdom buddeth forth. This
" plant with genial fecundity bore the three fruits of Israel who yet
" sees it, coasval with eternity, to wit, Abraham, Isaac, aud Jacob."
(Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. i., p. 455.) So also the same authorwrites
again (De Abrahamo), — Mdvos Se els oikos, 6 roii XexBevros avSpbs SiKalov
Kal BeorpiXovs, Siaaa^erai, Svo XajibvTOS ras dvardra Sapeas, plav pev, tfv
eirrov, rb pr) irao-i tovtois ovvarToXeo-Bai, iripav Se to irdXiv avrbv apxrjyeTrjv
vrrdp^ai vius dvBparrav o-jropas' rj£lao~e yap avrbv 6 &ebs Kal reXos rjpav
tov yivovs Kal dpxqv yeveadai, reXos pev rav rrpb tov KaraKkvo-pov, Tav
Se pera rbv KaraKkvo-pbv, dpxrjv. " But only one household, to wit, that
" of this aforesaid just and God-beloved man, was saved ; and he
" received the two above-mentioned gifts : first, that he should not
" perish with the rest of mankind ; the second, that he should be the
" head and founder of a new generation of men. Por God honoured
" him to be, so to speak, the end and the beginning of our race. The
" last of those before the flood, and the first of those that came after
" it." (Works, Mangey's Edit., vol ii., p. 8.)— In Ezek. xiv. 14—20, Noah
is spoken of as being one of the cardinal saints of the Old Testament
dispensation, and Philo (De Congress, queer, erudit. gratia, ibid. p. 533)
notices that Noah is the first to be called " just " in the Holy Scriptures,
Trparos 8' outos SUaios iv rais lepais dvepprjBrj ypaqiais. He allndes to
Gen. vi. 9, vii. 1, where it is said, D'nbsn ns vnm n-n con pns »•«
m ibnnn, and, mn ina ':Bb pns 'n'Ni -[ns 'a. Here, then, we see that
Noah received the same testimony that " he walked with God," as
Enoch did. What Enoch's faith was we have already seen. The
hopes and belief cherished by Noah are apparent from Gen ix. 26, 27,
which the Targum of Onkelos paraphrases thus, — "Blessed be the
" Lord God of Shem, and Canaan shall be servant to them. The Lord
" shall enlarge Japheth, and he shall make his Shekinah to dwell in the
" tabernacles of Shem." The Targum of Jonathan renders the con
cluding words thus, — " The Lord shall beautify the borders of Japheth,
" and his sons shall be proselyted and dwell in the schools of Shem,"
&c. Prom this it will be evident that the early Jewish doctors regarded
the prophecy of Noah as predictive of the kingdom of Messiah and the
conversion of the Gentiles. Great importance attaches to these Tar-
gumic interpretations of Scripture, inasmuch as there is good ground
for believing that they afford a fair index of current Jewish opinion in
apostolic times. Some even assign to them an earlier date. The

CHAP. XL, 7. 189
assent of our judgment may not always go with them, but in very many
instances they are palpably right. Consolatory it is to see that in all
ages of the Church there has been but " one faith,"— that God from
the very first appointed one and the same method of salvation, viz.,
faith in the atoning blood of his Blessed Son. The patriarchs and the
" Seed of Wisdom " looked for a coming Saviour, whilst we who live
in the "latter days" can take up the exulting words of the Beloved
Disciple (1 John iv. 14) and say, " We have seen and do testify, that
" the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the World." Por an
excellent sketch of the times of Noah, and of the condition of mankind
immediately before the flood, the reader may, with profit, consult
Dr. Delitzsch's work Die Genesis, pp. 172 — 179.
The examples have now been adduced of Abel
the first martyr ; of Enoch the Witness to the hope
of Immortality and Glory ; of Noah the Just, whose
faithful walk, and the unshakeable credit which he
ascribed to the promises of God, not only carried
him safely through the wreck of an apostate world,
but also made him the progenitor and heir-expectant
of the Messiah. The writer now proceeds to dilate
upon the self-abnegation and sacrifices which Abra
ham made by faith. He was the founder and father
of the Hebrew race ; the depositary of all the pro
mises, whether to the Jewish people or to the world
at large. And yet, illustrious as he was, his career
was one of self-denial, of agonising suspense, of
renunciation of all family ties and worldly endear
ments. He was honourable at home, and very rich
in cattle, in silver, and in gold (Gen. xiii. 2), yet all
these advantages were to be foregone. Had he been
so minded, he might have lived in affluence and
respect amongst his kindred in his father's house.
But instead of this, a life of perpetual pilgrimage
and vagrancy was imposed upon him. His rich

190 CHAP. XL, 8, 9.
possessions were to be dependent upon the pre
carious tenure of the goodwill and forbearance of
the lawless inhabitants of Canaan. Living in the
world, he lived above it. The one object which he
placed before him, as the solace of his renunciation
of all that was dear and desirable in this life, was
the certain fulfilment of the Promise, that in his
seed all the families of the earth should be blessed.
This was the next example set before the repining
and persecuted Hebrew converts to take pattern by.
Verses 8, 9. — By faith Abraham when called ' (Gen. xii.
1 — 3) obeyed, even to going forth to the place which he
was to receive as an heritage (et? KXrjpovopiiav), and he did
go forth, having no definite knowledge whither he was
bound.2 (Gen. xii. 5 — 7.) By faith he migrated to the
land of promise, although it was not yet his own (cos
dXXorpiav ichile it belonged to strangers. — Stuart), taking
up his abode in tents with Isaac and Jacob, and the
other joint heirs-expectant (avvKXwpovopiwv) of the same
promise.
1 Tllo-rei KaXoipevos 'Afipaap. Ewald renders "he who is to be
called Abraham," remarking, " Nicht umsonst wird Abraham sogleich
" von vorne v. 8, als der Abraham zu nennende vorgefuhrt, theils weil
" er nach Gen. xii. damals erst Abram, noch nicht Abraham hiess,
" theils und noch mehr weil dieser Name nach Gen. xvii. 4, f. mit der
" Verheissung der zahlreichsten Nachkommenschaft zusammenhangt."
(Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 127.) And again (ibid., p. 170), " Das
" Wortchen o, vor KaXoipevos, findet sich zwar in Sin. nicht, ist aber
" gewiss urspriinglich. Sollte das Wort bedeuten berufen, so miisste
" es KXvBels heissen und hinter 'Afipadp stehen." The translators of the
London Jews' Society's New Testament have iNipna Dmaw sw miD«a.
2 M^ enio-Tapevos rrov epxerai. This was the first practical demonstra
tion of Abraham's faith. He forsook all that was most dear and
desirable, and followed the hope of the promised Messiah. He com
mitted his lifelong prospects to the custody of the promise. It was no

CHAP. XL, 8, 9. 191
rash and ill-weighed enterprise. He was at the time of his call of the
mature age of 75 years, " when he departed out of Haran " (Gen. xii. 4).
He had counted the cost, and come to the conclusion that " the suffer-
" ings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the
" glory that shall be revealed." He obeyed, therefore, unhesitatingly
when God said unto him, " Get thee out of thy country, and from thy
" kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew
" thee : and I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee,
" and make thy name great ; and thou shalt be a blessing : and I will
" bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee ; and in
" thee ("ja laian) shall all families of the earth be blessed." (Gen. xii.
1 — 3 ) This last clause the Jerusalem Targum renders, " and in thy
" righteousness shall all the generations of the earth be blessed." The
promise was a very wide one ; but Abraham was contented to act upon
it, and to leave the accomplishment to God. His faith was therefore
in the strictest sense eXmfcopevav imao-rao-is, npaypdrav eXeyxos ov /3Xe-
7ropevav. By it he exchanged immediate advantage for future blessed
ness, good things present for good things to come. " Glauben war es
" hier und dort welcher ihn trieb, Glauben an Gott und seinen hoheren
" Segen welcher zur rechten Zeit schon kommen werde, wie es v. 6,
" hiess : sowie hier v. 10 hinzugefiigt wird dass es doch inderthat nicht
" dieses unruhige Zeltleben seyn konnte in welchem er die Erfiillung
" aller Verheissungen zu sehen hatte, dass vielmehr schon Abraham
" die nach Ps. Ixxxvii. 1, wohlgegrundete Stadt erwartete deren Kunstler
" und Werhmeister kein geringerer als Gott ist, das himmlische oder
" Messianische Jerusalem, in dessen Bilde sich zur Zeit unseres Eedners
" alle Messianische Hoffnung leicht zusammen drangte, und das er hier
" umso triffender beilaufig erwahnt, da es ja auch dem oben soviel
" besprochenen irdische Heiligthum engegensteht." (Ewald, Das
Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., pp. 126, 127.) And so Philo writes, — apa ra
KeXev8r)vai peTavlaraTO, Kal rrj ^rvxfl rrpb toO oaparos rrjv dnoiKiav
io-reXXero, rbv irrl rois Bvrjrols ipepov TrapevrjpepovvTOs eparos ovpavlov.
OvSevbs ovv (ppovrlo-as, ov (pvXerav, ov Srjporav, ov (rvpqboiTrjTav, oix
kralpav, ov Tav d(p aiparos oaoi irpbs Trarpbs rj prjrpbs rjo-av, ov rrarplSos
ovk dpxalav iBav, oil ovvTpoeplas, ov o-vvStatrrjaeas, av eKaorov dyaydv re
Kai Svo-airdo-Ttao-rov, oXkov exov Svvapiv, iXevBipois Kal d(peT0is oppdis y
rdxio-ra peravio-rarai, to pev wparov dnb ttjs HaXSalav yrjs, ivSalpovos
Xapas, Kal Kar eKelvov aKpaifivo-rjs tov XP°V0V> f'S rrjv Xappalav yrjv'
erreira ov paxpav vo-repov, Kal djrb ravrvs els erepov tottov k.t.X.
" As soon as ever he (Abraham) received the command, he moved
" out ; but he began his removal from home in spirit before he did so
" in person, and subordinated his affection for mortal things to the love

192 CHAP. XL, 10.
" of heavenly things. He set on one side, therefore, the ties of
" nationality, of people, of associations, of friends, of paternal and
" maternal relationships, of country, of time-honoured habits, inti-
" macies, and daily intercourse, each of which has a potent and attractive
" influence, which cannot lightly be burst asunder or neutralized ; and,
" of his pure and simple free will, he set out as quickly as he could, at
" first from the land of the Chaldaaans, which was at that period a
" well-to-do and flourishing region, to the land of Charran. And no
" long period afterwards, he migrated into another place," &c. (De
Abrahamo, Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. ii., p. 11.)
And again (De Migratione Abrahami, ibid., vol. i., p. 442, 443),
TlapaTeTvpvpevas Se ov tov ivearara, dXXa rbv peXXovra rrj vnoo-xeo-ei
Xpdvov TTpoSiapio-rai, elrrav, oiv rjv SeUvvpi, dXX' rjv aoi 8ei£a, els paprvplav
TTio-reas rjv errio-Tevo-ev rj ^vxv &ea, ovk iK rwi/ airoTeXeo-pdrav eiriSeiKwpevrj
to ivxapiffrov, dXX' iK npooSoKlas rav peXXdvrav. ' ApTrj8eio-a yap Kal
€KKXepaoBeio-a iXnlSos xPT]0'Tr)s> Kal dvevdolao-ra voplaao-a rjSrj napeivai ra pr)
napovra, Sta rrjv rod VTTOtrxopevov fiefiaioTdrrjv rrlo-nv dyaBbv reXeiov, aBXov
evpvrai. "Very guardedly, he defines, in the promise, not the present, but
" the future time ; for he says, not [a land] which I do tell thee of, but,
" which I will tell thereof, in testimony of the faith wherewith his soul
" believed in God, and gave thanks, not for completed favours, but
" from an expectation of things yet to come. Por as it hung and was
" suspended from a good hope, and unhesitatingly esteemed things
" which were not as yet present to be present, on account of the most
" assured fidelity of Him who promised, it received a perfect good
" thing as its reward."
The same writer (De Abrahamo, ibid., vol. ii., p. 38) refers to Abra
ham's faith in the following terms : — "'Ean Se Kal dvdypawros erratvos
avrov, xpnopols paprvprjBels, ovs Mavorjs iBeo-rrloBv, SI ov pvvverai oti
irrlo-revo-e ra Qea. "Onep XexBrjvai pev ftpaxvTardv ionv, epya Se /9e/9aico-
Brjvai piyicrrov. " But his eulogy exists in writing, witnessed to by the
" sacred oracles which Moses, by Divine inspiration, indited. By him
" (Moses) it is intimated that he believed God. This is a thing very
" easily said, but very difficult to be carried into practice."
Verse 10. — Por he expected (e'feSe^eTo, i.e., waited, kept
his hopes and desires in reserve for) the city which hath the
foundations, whose architect and founder is God.1
1 It had been distinctly revealed to Abraham (Gen. xv. 7, 13 — 21)
that the promise and grant of Canaan was for a remote period, and

CHAP. XL, 10. 193
would not be ratified until after his death. " And He said, I am the
" Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees to give thee this
" land to inherit it. And he said, Lord God, whereby shall I know
" that I shall inherit it  And He said unto Abraham, Know of a
" surety that thy seed shall be a stranger in a land that is not theirs,
" and shall serve them, and they shall afflict them four hundred years.
" And also that nation whom they shall serve, will I judge ; and after-
" ward shall they come out with great substance. And thou shalt go to
" thy fathers in peace ; thou shalt be buried in a good old age. But in
" the fourth generation they shall come hither again : for the iniquity
" of the Amorites is not yet full  In the- same day the Lord made
" a covenant with Abraham, saying, Unto thy seed have I given this
" land, from the Eiver of Egypt, unto the Great Eiver, the river
" Euphrates." This promise for Abraham's seed, and not for himself,
was given to him immediately after the assurance that God himself
would be his " shield and exceeding great reward." The Patriarch,
upon receiving this personal promise, had complained, " Behold to me
" thou hast given no seed, and lo one born in my house is my heir."
"And behold the word of the Lord came unto him, saying, This shall
"not be thine heir (viz., Eliezer of Damascus), but he that shall come
" forth out of thine own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought
" him forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the
" stars, if thou be able to number them ; and He said, So shall thy seed
" be. And he believed in the Lord ; and He counted it to him for
" righteousness." Here, then, Abraham was left in no doubt whatever,
that he should not participate in the possession of Canaan, at the same
time that he was told, that his own reward should be a Divine one. He
was contented to dwell in tents, to fulfil the appointed days of his
sojourning, because he expected the city above that hath foundations,
whose builder and maker is God. — Ewald (Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr. p.
128) observes, in loc, "Und jedenfalls erhellt  das die Eeligion
"der Erzvater schon eine verhaltnissmassig sehr geistige von ewig
" nachwirkender Bedeutung war." Abundant mention is made of the
heavenly city of God, in the Old Testament Scriptures. It signified the
eternal rest and peace, which God has provided in heaven, for all his
believing servants. It is truly "the mother of us all." (Gal. iv. 26.)
And thus the Eabbies have referred, Is. xxvi. 1 — 2, to the world to
come. (See Balth. Scheidii, Loca Talmudica, in Matt. xix. 14, Meuschen,
Nov. Test, ex Talmudi illustr., p. 99.) J. Wesselius writes in his
Fasciculus Dissertationum (Groningee, 1756, 4to., p. 465), "Eabbini
" frequenter loquuntur de Tibsa bv o^ffilv , Hierosolyma superiori, seu
" coelesti  Videntur per Jerusalem Coelestem intelligere omne illud
C C

194 CHAP. XL, 10.
"gloriosum delectabile et sanctum, quod in Coelo est." The very
learned dissertations of this author on Heb. xii. 18 — 24 may be con
sulted with great advantage, and will be found on pp. 409 — 519 of the
above-mentioned volume. This is that " strong city " which the
d'hoh, faithful, shall inhabit (Ps. xxxi. 23. — See Wesselius, ibid., p.
464), and into which Isaiah xxvi. 3 declares wxm -raw pns >u, (the
righteous nation that keepeth truth,) shall enter. Of this heavenly city
Philo in several places makes allegorical mention. Speaking of the
" cities of refuge," he says, T<3 pev yap eavrov Xdyeo 6 Oebs TrarplSa oUeiv
rrjv irno-Trjprjv eavrov, as av avrdxBovi SeSaprjTai, t&> 8' iv aKovo-lois yevopiva
aCfidXpao'i, KaraCpvyrjv, as oBvela £ivrjv, ovx as narplSa do-ra. " God has
" given to His own Word the knowledge of Himself to inhabit as his
" native fatherland, but to him who sins unwittingly, as a refuge offering
" hospitality to a stranger, not as a fatherland to a citizen." (De Profugis,
Works, Mangey's Editn., vol. i., p. 557.) And again, ibid., 'AXX' ov far) pev
icnv alavios r) irpbs to ov Karaepvyr), Bdvaros 8' 6 drrb toiitov Spao-pbs ; " But
" is not eternal life an escaping to the Selfexistent, and death fleeing
" from Him 'I " And again, MjJttot-' ovv r) pev TTpeo-QvTdrrj Kal oxvpardrrj
Kal aplarq prjTpdrroXis, ovk avrb pdvov ndXis, 6 Beids eon Xdyos, i(j> ov irparov
Karaqbevyeiv axpeXipararov ; " Is not, then, the Divine Word the oldest
" and strongest and best metropolis, (for it is not a city only) and to
" flee to it, the most profitable of all ? " (Ibid., p. 560.) — nayxaXoi Se
Kal evepKeo-rarai irdXeis, d£lav aa^eo-Bai yjrvxav rbv alava apio-ral ye Kara-
epvyal, xPVa"r^l $e Kal (piXdvBparros rj 8idra£is, dXetyai Kal paaai irpbs
eveXmo-Tiav. " There are, then, passing fair and most secure cities,
" excellent places of refuge to boot, for souls that are worthy of eternal
" salvation. It is verily a kind and humane institution, and well
" calculated to brace a man up and strengthen him to entertain a good
" hope." (Jbid.) — Tlporpiirei Se ovv rbv pev aKvSpopetv Uavbv o-vvrelveiv
d7rXevo-ri rrpbs rbv avardra Xoyov Beiov, os o-ooSi'as earl rrvyr), Iva dpvadpevos
tov vdparos, dvrl Bavdrov £ar)v dtSiov aBXov evpvrai. " He intimates, there-
" fore, that he who is able to run fast, should betake himself with
" straight course to the Divine Word above, who is the fountain of
" wisdom, in order that, having drawn from that river, he may find
" eternal life instead of death, as his reward." (Ibid.) — The same
writer (Quod a Deo mittantur Somnia, lib. ii., ibid., p. 691) declares that
the " Eiver of God " (Ps. lxv. 9) is the Divine Word, who is replete
with a fountain of wisdom ; and again (ibid.) j in reference to Ps. xlvi. 5,
" There is a river whose streams make glad the eity of God," he
observes that this cannot be the literal Jerusalem, because it stands
remote from the sea and rivers ; it must therefore signify the " influence
" of the Divine Word, which is shed everywhere abroad, and cheers all

CHAP. XL, 11—13. 195
" things. The city spoken of, is either the universe, or the sanctified soul
" which drinks of the Divine Word." It will be almost superfluous to
remark, how wonderfully the above-cited sentiments of Philo correspond
with the teaching of St. Paul, and of St. John in the Apocalypse, as
well as with the statements of the Writer to the Hebrews respecting
the hopes of the Fathers, and their expectation of an eternal and
abiding city above.
Verses 11 — 13. — By faith,1 Sarah herself received power
to conceive 2 (o~vvap.iv els Karaj3oXr]v arreppaTO^ eXafie,
virtutem in conception-em seminis accepit. Yulg. — Empfing
auch Sara Kraft, das sie schwanger ward. — Luth.), and
gave birth after the ordinary time of life, because she
believed 3 Him who had promised to be faithful (tticttov,
as good as his word. Treu. — Luth.). Wherefore there
sprung from one, and him as good as dead (zwar einen
abgelebten. Ewald.), like the stars of heaven in multi
tude, and as the sand which is along the seashore and
cannot be numbered (r) irapd to %etXo? tt)<; ffaXdaarj^ —
DTT HtiW by , upon the lip of the sea — r) dvaplOprpros.
See Gen. xxii. 17). All these died4 in faith (Kara irio-riv),
not having received' possession (pr) XajSovTes) of the
promises ; but having seen them from a distance (iroppa)-
6ev), and having been persuaded of them, and having
embraced (do-iracrdpievoi) them (joyfully), and confessed
(Gen. xxiii. 4) that they were strangers and sojourners
(on i;ivoi Kal irapeirihrjp,oi elcriv) upon the earth.6
1 In Gen. xvii. 17 we learn that the promise of a son by Sarah had
been given to Abraham a whole year before Isaac was born, and also
some months before the promise was repeated in Sarah's hearing.
[Comp. Gen. xvii. 15 — 19 with Gen. xviii. 10 and xxi. 5.] On this first
occasion Abraham laughed, as Sarah did upon the second. He had
apparently considered that the promise, " He that shall come forth out
" of thine own bowels, shall be thine heir," (Gen. xv. 4) should be
fulfilled in Ishmael ; and, therefore, when his name was changed from
Abram to Abraham, in token that he should be a father of many
nations (Gen. xvii. 5—18), and also when he was assured that Sarah
herself should have a son, we find him saying unto God, " O that

196 CHAP. XL, 11—13.
" Ishmael might live before thee ! " For he " said in his heart, Shall a
" child be born unto him that is an hundred years old 1 and shall Sarah
" that is ninety years old bear ? " The real fact of the case seems to be
explained by St. Paul, Eom. iv. 19, when he writes pr) ao-8evr)o-as ttj
Ttlo-Tei [Gen. xv. 6], ou Karevdvo-e to eavrov o-apa rjSrj veveKpapevov eKarov-
rairrjs nov vrrdpxav, Kal rrjv veKpaenv ttjs pvrpas kappas. Ely Se rrjv
irrayyeXlav tov Qeoii ov SieKplBrj rrj dmo-Tiq, dXX' eveSvvapadv rrj Tzlerrei, Sobs
So^av ra Qea. It was a momentary shock that both Abraham and
Sarah experienced at an announcement so unexpected, and so contrary
to the ordinary course of nature. But as soon as ever they realised the
fact that such was God's promise, doubt and hesitation were for ever
dismissed. They were made strong in their faith. Not only did they
assent to the possibility of the thing, but they firmly believed that God
would keep his word. The Bible never represents flesh and blood as
endowed with transcendental virtues, such as we know by experience
we do not by nature inherit. God's grace is evermore magnified, in its
triumph over mortal frailty and infirmity. Instead of depicting these
" elders who obtained a good report through faith " as paragons of
virtue, they are represented with truthful fidelity, as subject to like
weaknesses with ourselves. Thus, through patience, and comfort of the
Scriptures, we have hope. We learn what we are by nature, and what
we may become by grace. We look to the great cloud of witnesses,
and are encouraged to trust in the same Captain of our Salvation by
whom they prevailed.
2 Although the above translation is in accordance with a commonly
accepted rendering of Sivapiv els kot. k.t.X., I cannot help feeling it to
be of great weight that this is the only instance out of the eleven in
which KaTafioXrj occurs in the New Testament, where it seems to be
used out of the ordinary signification of foundation. (See Matt. xiii. 35,
xxvr34, Luke xi. 50, John xvii. 24, Eph. i. 4, Heb. iv. 3, ix. 26, Eev.
xiii. 8, xvii. 8.) A translation more consonaut to these latter passages
would be, " Eg faith, Sarah had strength imparted to her, in order that a
"posterity might be founded." And this rendering is in harmony with
the repeated use of the word si\, o-wippa, in the Old Testament in
reference to the posterity of Abraham, not only as regards the Hebrew
nation, but as applied to the true Seed, even Christ. I cordially
agree with what Professor Stuart says respecting the physiological
torturing of these words, " to the disgust of every delicate reader, by
some of the critics." J. C. Wolfius (in loco), although he indulges
pretty freely in comments of the nature so properly reprehended by
Professor Stuart, yet candidly mentions the other opinion, saying, " In
" alia abit Gussetius in Oommentariis L. Hebr., p. 234, rod. sn, lit. B,

CHAP. XL, 11—13. 197
" qui phrasin hanc cum ilia KarafioXr) Koo-pov, comparat et perfundati-
" onem sobolis interpretatur, sicut p. 846, rad. nitt), lit. C, o-rrippa h.l. de
" posteritate, non autem humore genitali accipit."
3 Ov pdvov avrbs, dXXd Kal rj yvvr) yeXq. Aiyerai yap aiBis, iyeXaae Se
Sdppa iv eavrfj, Xiyovo-a, ovrra pev poi yiyovev coos toO vvv avev peXerrjs
diravroparl£ov dyaBdv 6 8' imoo-xopevos Kvpids pov Kal Trpeo-fivTejjos nao-ns
yeviaeas io-nv, 9 mareveiv dvayKaiov. " Not only he (Abraham) laughed,
" but his wife laughed also. Por it is said presently, And Sarah laughed
" within herself, saying, There never yet up to the present time happened
" to me any spontaneous good thing without care on my part. But He
" who promises is my Lord, and more ancient than the whole creation.
" I must needs therefore believe Him." — Philo, De nominum Mutatione,
Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. i., p. 603. See also De migratione Abrahami,
ibid., p. 455 : — ' AKovo-aoav yow ,iv dpxfj rrjv yvvaUa (paal yeXdo-ai, Kal
pera raiir ehrovrav, Mr) dSwarei rrapa ra Qea prjpa, KaraiSeodeio-av
dpvrjoao-Bai rbv yeXara' irdvra yap rjSei Qeq Svvarci, axeSbv i£en a-irapyavav
tovtI to Sdypa irpopaBovo-a. Tore poi SoKel rrparov ovk iB' opolav rav opa-
pivav Xafieiv (pavracrlav, dXXd oepvorepav, rj 7rpo<prjTav nvav r) dyyiXav
perafiaXXovrav dnb 7rvevpartKrjs Kal i^u^oftSoOs ovalas els dvBpairdpopcpov
ISeav. " They relate that his wife also laughed, and yet after they had
" said, Is anything too hard for God ? she was ashamed, and denied
" that she laughed. For she knew that with God all things are possible,
" for she had learned this doctrine almost from her swaddling clothes.
" From that moment she seems to me to have formed quite a new idea
" of the men she saw before her, viz., a much more respectful one, i.e.,
" that they were prophets or angels, who had exchanged their spiritual
" and incorporeal natures into the form and fashion of men." (De
Abrahamo, ibid., vol. ii, p. 17.)
4 In Gen. xv. 15 it had been promised to Abraham that he should " go
" to his fathers in peace, and be buried in a good old age." In Gen. xxv. 8
we are told that he was " gathered to his people." The same is said
respecting Isaac, Gen. xxxv. 29, and Jacob, Gen. xlix. 33, on which Philo
remarks (de Sacr. Abelis et Caini, ibid., vol. i., p. 164), 'Afipaap eKXnrav
rd Bvrjra, TTpooriBerai ra -Beov Xaa, Kapnovpevos d(j}8apo-lav, 10-os dyyeXois
¦ycyoj/ias, ayyeXot yap orpards elai Beov, do-aparoi Kal evSalpoves ^rv^at.
" Abraham, leaving mortality behind, was added to the people of God,
" entering upon the fruition of immortality, and was made equal to the
" angels. Now the angels are God's host, being incorporeal and happy
" souls." He elsewhere remarks that "to go to his fathers " could not
signify a return to his relatives in Chaldsea. (Quis rerum Div. Hceres.,
ibid., p. 513.) The expression, doubtless, signifies to be gathered to his
ancestors, who had preceded him to their eternal rest above. With

198 CHAP. XL, 11—13.
such repeated declarations respecting the immortality of the soul, how
can we possibly deny that the doctrine was familiar to the Hebrews
under Moses 1 Philo writes as follows respecting the death and burial
of Sarah : — Maprvpiai Se rovrav iv rdls lepa'is fiifiXois KaraKeivrai, as ov
Bipis yjrevSopaprvpiav dXavai' at prjirvovaiv on (3paxea ra (rapari iiriSaKpv-
o-as, Bdrrov drraviarq tov veKpov' to TTevBelv errl rrXeov, as eoiKev, dXXdrpiov
rjyrjo-dpevos cro(plas, vq>' rjs dveSiSdxBrj, tov Bdvarov vopl£eiv pr) crfieaiv \frvxrjs,
dXXd x^pLO'pbv Kc" 8id£evijiv drrb oaparos, SBev rjXBev diriovo-rjs, rjXBe Se,
as iv rrj Koo-porroiia SeSrjXarai, napa Qeov. " The evidences of these things
" are contained in the sacred books, which it were impiety to accuse of
" false witness ; and they inform us, that having wept for a short time
" over the corpse, he quickly rose up from the dead, accounting it to be
" alien from wisdom to mourn too much, for by it he was taught to
" esteem death, not as extinction of the soul, but a separation and dis-
" junction from the body, and that it went to the place whence it had
" come forth. But it came, as we learn in the history of the creation,
" from God." (De Abrahamo, ibid., p. 137.)
5 In Gen. xxiii. 3, 4 we read, " And Abraham stood up from before
" his dead and spake unto the sons of Heth, saying, I am a stranger
" and a sojourner with you," &c. Philo remarks that by Moses all the
wise men are called sojourners, TrapoiKovvres, and adds, al yap rovrav
yj/vxal o-reXXovrai pev ajroiKlav Srj wore rrjv i£ ovpavov . . . 'E-ireiSav ovv
evSiarptyao-ai o~apao-i rd alaBrjrd Kal Bvrjra 8t' avrav irdvra KarlSao-iv,
erravepxavrai eKeio-e rraXiv, dBev apprjBrjo-av rb irparov, TrarplSa pev rbv
ovpdvtov X"'P0V *v V TroXirevovrai, £ivov Se tov nepiyeiov iv a Trapaicno-av,
vopl^ovo-ai' rois pev ydp diroiKlav o-reikapivois dvr'i rrjs prjrpoTrdXeas r)
vrroSe^apevrj Srj irov irarpls, rj 8' iKrreptyao-a pevei rdls drToSeSrjprjKdo-iv, els
rjv Kal ttoBovo-iv irravepxeo&ai. Toiyapovv eUdras 'Aftpaap ipel rots
veKpo(piXa£i Kal raplais rav Bvrjrav, dvaards dwb tov veKpov jSt'ou Kal
rd(pov, TIdpoiKos Kal irapewlSrjpds elpi iya peff vpav. " For their souls
" are sent down from heaven to sojourn for a while. But after they
" have tarried awhile in their bodies, and inspected all things perceptible
" to the senses and mortal, they ascend again to the same place whence
" they originally came, esteeming the heavenly place, where their
" citizenship is as their country, but the terrestrial one, wherein they
" sojourn, as a foreign land. Colonists usually esteem the land of their
" adoption as taking the place of their native country. But with the
"above-mentioned, the country that sent them forth always remains
" the same, and to it they long to return. Abraham, therefore, properly
" said to the custodians of the dead and the stewards of mortality,
" having himself risen from the dead life and the tomb, As for me I
" am a sojourner and a stranyer amongst you." (De Confusione Linguarum,

CHAP. XL, 14—18. 199
Works, Mangey's Edit, vol. i., pp. 416, 417.) See also De Cherubim,
ibid., pp. 161, 162.
Verses 14, 15. — For they who speak after this fashion
(rotavra Xeyovres) show .plainly (epcpavi&vaiv) that they
are (yet) seeking a country (on irarpiBa eirityjTovcn, das sie
ein Vaterland suchen, Luth.)1; and if indeed they had
been mindful of that one from which they came out,
they would have had opportunity (Kaipbv) to return back
again.2
1 UapoiKeiv, ov KaroiKeiv rfXBopev. la yap b'vri irao-a pev tyvxr) o~ocpov
warplSa pev ovpavov, £evrjv Se yr)v eXaxe k.t.X. " We come hither to sojourn
" and not to make our home. For in reality every wise man's soul has
" obtained heaven as his fatherland, but earth is a foreign place to
" him." (Philo, De Agricultura, Works, vol. i., p. 310.) And so David
confesses, Ps. xxxix. 12 (13), " Por I am » stranger with thee, and a
" sojourner, as all my fathers were" ('nia« to acin -ps 'aiN ii '3) ; and
again, 1 Chron. xxix. 15, "For we are strangers before Thee, and
" sojourners, as were all our fathers." (to D'aiuini yxA unw Dm 'a
(. wniaa
2 Philo often refers to the hardships and inconveniences which Abra
ham underwent during the days of his earthly pilgrimage, — Kairoi tIs
erepos ovk av rjxBio-Brj, ov pbvov ttjs oUelas dwavio-rdpevos, dXXa Kal i£
aTrdo-rjs ndXeas iXavvdpevos els Svcrftdrovs Kal 8vo-7ropevras dvoSlas ; rls 8*
ovk av perarpeirdpevos ivaXivSpoprjo-ev o'UaSe, /Sparta pev (ppovrlaas Tav
peXXoverav eXirlSav, rr)v Se rrapovo'av dnoplav 0"rrevSav iK(pvyeiv, eirjBeiav
VTToXafiav aSrjXav X°-Plv oyaBav opoXoyoipeva alpeioBai KaKa ; Mo'vos S'oStos
rovvavrlov neirovBivai tfialverai k.t.X. "But who else would not have
"repined at being separated not only from his own native city but
" from every other city alike, and driven forth into rugged and in-
" accessible bye paths 1 Who else would not have turned round and
" hastened home again, making little account of future hopes, and
" eager to escape from present pressure of necessities, esteeming it the
" part of a simpleton to choose palpable inconveniences for the sake of
" uncertain good ? But this man (Abraham) alone seems to have enter-
" tained a contrary opinion," &c. (De Abrahamo, Works, vol. ii., p. 14.)
Verses 16 — 18. — But now their aim is (bpeyovrai) a better
one, that is to say a heavenly. "Wherefore God is not
ashamed of them, to be called their God,1 for he hath

200 CHAP. XL, 16—18.
prepared a city for them. (See note 1 on pp. 192 — 195. Con
sult also Schoettgen, De Hierosolyma ceelesti, in his Horse
Hebr. et Talm. tom. i., p. 1205.) By faith2 Abraham
offered up Isaac, when he was tried (ireipatpptevos, tempted,
put to the test), even he who had waited for the promises
(6 rd<s irrayyeXias dva8e%dp,evo<;), and did offer up his
only begotten son, with respect to whom it had been
said (Gen. xxi. 12), For in Isaac shall thy seed be called.
(on iv laaaK KXri6r)o-eTai croi airepp,a, -jV Sip'' pTO'O s2
mt — ISoll der eine Same genannt werden. — Ewald.)3
1 Aib ovk inaio-xiverai avrovs 6 ©eos k.t.X. We must here again bear
in mind that the writer is addressing Jews. He refers to the distinctive
and perpetual designation by which it had pleased God to reveal himself
as the God of their nation, as we read in Exod. iii. 13 — 16 : — "And
" Moses said unto God, Behold, when I come unto the children of
" Israel, and shall say unto them, The God of your fathers hath sent
" me unto you, and they shall say unto me, What is his name ? What
" shall I say unto them ? And God said unto Moses, I am that I am
" (n>n« tom rrrw, eya elpi 6 "Qv, LXX.) ; and he said, Thus shalt thou
" say unto the children of Israel, I am (nviN, 6"Q.v) hath sent me unto
" you. And God said moreover unto Moses, Thus shalt thou say unto
" the children of Israel, Jehovah, God of your fathers (Da\-ON 'niN mn')
" the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob,
" hath sent me unto you : this is my name for ever, and this is my
" memorial unto all generations, (n nb nai nn oto1; <o« m, touto pov
'* iarlv ovopa alaviov, Kal pvrjpdavvov yez/ecor yeveals, LXX.)." Here, then,
we have an incidental application of the argument employed by our
Saviour against the Sadducees to prove the resurrection of the dead
(Matt. xxii. 31, 32), " But as touching the resurrection of the dead,
" have ye not read that which was spoken unto you by God, saying, I
" am the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob ?
" God is not the God of the dead, but of the living ;" or as Mark xii.
26, 27 has it, " And as touching the dead, that they rise, have ye not
" read in the book of Moses, how in the bush God spake unto him,
" saying," &c, and Luke xx. 37, " Now that the dead are raised Moses
" shewed at the bush, when he called the Lord the God of Abraham,"
&c. B. Ugolinus (Trihceresium, sive Diss, de tribui scctis Judaeorum,
Thes., vol. xxii. col. 72) gives the following Eabbinical illustrations of
the above interesting subject : — " Tanchum, fol. 13, 3. Dicit E. Simeon
" ben Jochai ; Deus Sanctus Benedictus nomen suum justis non adjungit,

CHAP. XL, 16—18. 201
" sicut dicitur, Sanctis qui in terra sunt, Psal. xvi. 3. Quandonam sunt
" sancti ? Cum in terra reponuntur ; nam dum vivunt nomen suum
" Deus non adjungit ; eo quod de iis non certuni habeat, malum affectum
" eos non abducturuni ; at cum mortui sunt, nomen suum adjungit.
" Ast invenimus Deum nomen suum adjunxisse Isaaco dum viveret :
" Genes xxviii. 13, Ego sum Deus Abraham et Deus Isaac. Eespondent
" sapientes, Pulverem ejus respexit ac si collectum super altare. E.
" Berachiah dixit. Ex quo csecus factus est, fuit sicut mortuus. Vide
" etiam E. Menahem in legem, fol. 621. — Gemara Hierosolymitana
" Berachot., fol. 5, 4. Justi etiam in morte dicuntur vivere, atque
" impii etiam in vita dicuntur mortui. (See similar words of Philo,
" note, p. 179.) Ex eo quod dicitur, non nina yionn ab, Non delectatus
" sum morte mortui. Num. ille qui dicitur no jam est mortuus ? Atque
" unde probatur, quod justi etiam in morte sua dicantur vivi ? Ex eo
" quod scribitur. Hose est terra de qua juravi Abraha.mo, Isaaco, et
" Jacobo, -mN1?. Quid sibi vult vox imb P Dicit ei . AM et die patribus
" quodcunque promisi vobis praestiti filiis vestris."
2 TLiarei npoo-evr)voxev'Ai3p. k.tX. Here, then, as in James ii. 21 — 23,
we have the inspired answer to the modern resuscitators of a very
ancient blasphemy, who dare to ascribe this heroic act of Abraham's
faith to an incontrollable impulse of Moloch worship ! This crude
calumny is on a par with the revolting profanities which have recently
been propounded as specimens of Christian interpretation, viz., that
Isaac was the adulterous offspring of Eleazar and Sarah, palmed off
upon unsuspecting Abraham as his own child (see Balth. Scheidij
Prceterita prceteritorum, pp. 61, 62. Meuschen, Nov. Test, ex Talmude
illustr., where a similar insinuation, viz., that Isaac was an adopted
foundling, is illustrated in a quotation from the Bava Metzia, f. 87, 1) ;
and that St. Peter assassinated Ananias and Sapphira in order to strike
terror into the multitude ! The very learned Spencer in his treatise,
De lege cultum Molechi prohibente (De legibus Hebrseor. ritualibus,
lib. ii., p. 290, Hagce-Comitum, 1686, 4to.), writes: — "Probe" novi,
" quamplurimos alia omnia de ritus hujus nefarij fonte sentire, quasi
" ex Abrahami, filium suum offerentis, historia, corrupts, et depravata,
" profluxisset. Huic autem sentential fidem adhibere nescio, cum historia
" ilia, nisi plane mutilata, magna prsebeat contra morem ilium inhu-
" manum argumenta ; et verisimile sit murtas gentes, liberos suos
" immolare solitas, de Abrahami exemplo ne vel fando quicquam
"audivisse." Eabbi D. Kimchi, on Jer. xvi. 31, represents God as
saying, " ' I have not commanded them to offer their sons as holocausts,
" ' nor did I ever say any such thing to any of my prophets ; and when
" ' I spake to Abraham concerning the sacrifice of his son, it never
D D

202 CHAP. XL, 16—18.
"'came into my heart that he should actually sacrifice him, but that
" ' his righteousness might be manifested.' " Porphyry suggested that
Abraham was Saturn, and that he put to death the son which he had
by Anobret. See Goodwin, Moses et Aaron (Ugolini. Thes., vol. ii ,
col. 310), Danielis Dietzsehii Dissertatio de Cultu Molochi (ibid., vol. xxiii.,
col. 874), and C. S. Ziegra, Dissert, prima, on the same subject (ibid.,
vol. xxiii., col. 891). The latter writer, whilst utterly repudiating the
idea that Abraham was in any way influenced by any motive but the
express command of God, is not unwilling to admit that heathen nations
perverted his example to Moloch worship. He also imagines that
Jephtha actually put his daughter to death in fulfilment of his vow.
(See my note on ver. 32.) See also ibid., vol. i., col. 780, where it is shown
that others, before Abraham, offered their sons as holocausts. The
same is very conclusively proved by Whiston in his learned Disser
tation, Concerning God's Command to Abraham to offer up Isaac, where
he asserts that the human sacrifices which had existed long before
Abraham's time at Heliopolis in Egypt, were abolished by Amosis
about the time of Abraham's sacrifice. The above Essay is printed at
the end of Whiston's Josephus, pp. 673 — 678 (Halifax, 1859, 8vo.), and
will repay perusal. The accusation above alluded to is older than
Philo. Well worthy of study is the indignant defence which he makes
(De Abrahamo) against the assailants of the sacred narrative and the
traducers of the founder of the Hebrew race. The passage is too long
for transcription here, but will be found on pp. 26 — 29 of vol. ii. of
Mangey's Edition of his works. Josephus also alludes, by implication,
to the audacious calumny in the first book of his Antiquities, chap.
xiii. 4, — "The deed had been done if God had not opposed it, for he
" called loudly to Abraham by his name, and forbade him to slay his
" son, and said, It was not out of a desire of human blood that he was
"commanded to slay his son,  but to try the temper of his mind,
" whether he would be obedient to such a command." That so gross
an outrage upon God's Word should be offered to it by a Sadducee, or
by a Pagan antagonist of Judaism, might perhaps be capable of expla
nation, if not of palliation ; but for a so-called Christian Theologian,
with the consciousness upon his mind that the sacrifice of Isaac is the
cardinal type of the voluntary sacrifice of Christ's death, thus to suffer
himself to descend to the exploded scurrilities of the heathen atheist,
is indeed a phenomenon of advanced and shameless impiety, from which,
the warning words addressed by the Saviour to his Pharisaic blas
phemers (Matt. xii. 31), might well induce the thoughtful mind to recoil
with no superstitious dread. Voltaire (Dictionnaire Philosophique, Art.
Abraham, and Jephte) makes similar insinuations.

CHAP. XL, 16—18. 203
I cannot forbear extracting at length the following from the late
Dr. M'Caul's " Canon Stanley's Lectures on the History of the Jewish
Church Reviewed" &c, pp. 16 — 24 (London, 1863, 8vo.) : — " The most
" flagrant exhibition of contempt for Scripture is found in the Pro-
" fessor's new version of Gen. xxii. Dr. Eowland Williams excited a
" thrill of horror in all English Christendom by those memorable words,
" ' When the fierce ritual of Syria, with the awe of a Divine voice, bade
" ' Abraham slay his son, he did not reflect that he had no theory of the
" ' absolute to justify him in departing from traditional revelation, but
" ' trusted that the Father, whose voice from heaven he heard at heart,
" ' was better pleased with mercy than with sacrifice ; and this trust was
" ' his righteousness.' And yet this is the view now put forward by
" the Professor of Ecclesiastical History in Oxford ; it would almost
" seem as a sort of compensation to I)r. Williams for the wounds in-
" flicted by the Edinburgh Eeviewer, on account of ' his direct breach
"of that 'compact,' which is now, in theology, as famous as the
" Lichfield-house compact in politics. Dr. Stanley's statement is long,
" and guarded, and tedious, and, that no injustice may be done, must
" be quoted at length. In the Second Lecture he says, ' Lastly, the
" ' history of the world and of the Church requires us to notice the act
" ' of faith whi«h takes us back into the innermost life of Abraham
" ' himself, and marks at least one critical stage in the progress of the
" ' true religion. There have been in almost all ancient forms of religion,
" ' in most modern also, strong tendencies, each in itself springing from
" ' the best and purest feelings of humanity, yet each, if carried into
" ' the extremes suggested by passion or by logic, incompatible with the
" ' other, and with its own highest purpose. One is the craving to
" 'please, or to propitiate, or to communicate with the powers above,
" ' by surrendering some object near and dear to ourselves. This is the
" ' source of all sacrifice. The other is the profound moral instinct
" ' that the Creator of the world cannot be pleased, or propitiated, or
" ' approached by other means than a pure life and good deeds. On
'"the exaggeration, on the contact, on the collision, of these two ten-
" ' dencies, have turned some of the chief corruptions, and some of the
" ' chief difficulties, of Ecclesiastical history. The earliest of these we
" ' are about to witness in the life of Abraham. There came, we are
"'told, the Divine intimation, "Take now thy son, thine only son
'"Isaac, whom thou lovest  and offer him for a burnt-offering on
" ' one of the mountains which I will tell thee of." It was in its spirit
" ' the exact expression of the feeling of self-devotion, without which
" ' religion cannot exist, and of which the whole life of the Patriarch
'"had been the great example. Bat the form taken by this Divine

tt I
ff i

204 CHAP. XL, 16—18.
" ' trial or temptation was that which a stern logical consequence of
" ' the ancient view of sacrifice did actually assume, if not then, yet
" ' certainly in after ages, among the surrounding tribes, and which
" ' cannot, therefore, be left out of sight in considering the whole
" ' historical aspect of the narrative. Deep in the heart of the
" ' Canaanitish nations was laid the practice of human sacrifice ; the
" ' very offering here described of " children passing through the fire,"
" ' " of their sons and daughters," " of the first-born for their trans-
" 'gressions, the fruit of their body for the sin of their soul." On the
" ' altars of Moab, and of Phoenicia, and of the distant Canaanite
" ' settlements in Carthage and in Spain, — nay even, at times, in the
" ' confines of the chosen people itself, in the wild vow of Jephtha,
" ' in the sacrifice of Saul's sons at Gibeah, in the dark sacrifices of the
" ' valley of Hinnom, under the very walls of Jerusalem — this almost
irrepressible tendency of the burning zeal of a primitive race found its
terrible expression. Such was the trial which presented itself to
Abraham. From the tents of Beersheba he set forth at the rising
" ' of the sun, and went unto the place of which God had told him. It
" ' was not the place which Jewish tradition has selected on Mount
" ' Moriah at Jerusalem, still less that which Christian tradition shows,
"'even to the thicket in which the ram was caught, hard by the
" ' Church of the Holy Sepulchre ; still less that which Mussulman
"'tradition indicates on Mount Arafat at Mecca. Eather we must
" ' look to that ancient sanctuary of whieh I have already spoken, the
" ' natural altar on the summit of Mount Gerizim. On that spot, at
" ' that time the holiest in Palestine, the crisis was to take place. One,
" 'two, three days' journey from Beersheba — in the distance the high
" ' crest of the mountain appears. And " Abraham lifted up his eyes,
" ' and saw the place afar off." The sacrifice, the resignation of the
" 'will in the father and son, was accepted ; the literal sacrifice of the
" ' act was repelled. On the one hand, the great principle was pro-
" ' claimed that mercy is better than sacrifice — that the sacrifice of self
" ' is the highest and holiest offering that God can receive. On the
" ' other hand, the inhuman superstitions towards which the ancient
" 'ceremonial of sacrifice was perpetually tending, were condemned and
cast out of the true worship of the Church for ever. There are,
doubtless, many difficulties which may be raised on the offering of
" 'Isaac ; but there are few, if any, which will not vauish away before
" ' the simple pathos and lofty spirit of the narrative itself, provided we
take it, as in fairness it must be taken, as a whole ; its close not
parted from its commencement, nor its commencement from its
close — the subordinate parts of the transaction not raised above its

a i

a t

CHAP. XL, 16—18. 205
" ' essential primary intention. And there is no difficulty which will
" ' not be amply compensated by reflecting on the near approach, and
" ' yet the complete repulse, of the danger which might have threatened
" ' the early Church. Nothing is so remarkable a proof of a Divine and
" ' watchful interposition as the deliverance from the infirmity, the
" ' exaggeration, the excess, whatever it is, to which the noblest minds
" 'and the noblest forms of religion are subject.' (Pp. 47 — 50.) In
" this long and prosy disquisition, the bold, nervous language of Dr.
" Williams is diluted by the outpourings of a mawkish sentimentalism,
" which represents the cruel and unnatural sacrifices of the Phoenicians
" ' as springing from the best and purest feelings of humanity,' ' the
" ' infirmity, the exaggeration, the excess, whatever it is, to which the
" ' noblest minds and the noblest forms of religion are subject.' But
" the offence against the Scripture and the Christian faith is essentially
" the same. However that want of moral courage, which is charac-
" teristic of the whole school to which he (Professor Stanley) belongs,
" may prevent him from saying so distinctly, he does in fact reject
" the whole Bible history of this transaction, from beginning to end,
" and construct a new narrative of what he, following the Baron von
" Bunsen, thinks was the true history. The Bible says distinctly, ' God
" ' did tempt Abraham, and said unto him, Abraham ; and he said,
" ' Behold, here I am. And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son
" ' Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah ; and
" ' offer him there for a burnt-offering upon one of the mountains which
" ' I shall tell thee of.' In every particular Professor Stanley contradicts
" these words of Scripture. First, he says plainly that not Moriah, but
" Gerizim was the place where the sacrifice was to be offered ; and
" therefore, in his citation of these verses, leaves out the words, ' Get
" ' thee into the land of Moriah.' In the next place, he says, that the
" journey to offer up Isaac was not in obedience to a Divine command,
" but that 'craving to please, or to propitiate, or to communicate with,
" ' the power above us, by surrendering some object near and dear to
" ' ourselves,' which led the Canaanites to offer their children to
" Moloch ; ' the infirmity, the exaggeration, the excess, whatever it is,
" ' to which the noblest minds and the noblest forms of religion are
" ' subject.' Professor Stanley tries to justify his new narrative by
" saying, in a note, — ' That this temptation or trial, through whatever
" ' means it was suggested, should in the sacred narrative be ascribed to
" ' the overruling voice of God, is in exact accordance with the general
" ' tenour of the Hebrew Scriptures.' This is one of those big general
"assertions regarding the Hebrew Scriptures to which men have
" recourse when they are in extreme difficulty, and have no particular

206 CHAP. XL, 16—18.
" proofs to give for what they assert, which, therefore, the reader may
" always reject, as being without foundation. There is not one passage
" in the Old Testament where the sins or errors of men are fathered
" upon God.' He is said to harden the hearts or blind the eyes of the
" obstinate sinner, but that is as a punishment of their own previous
" wickedness, and rejection of His chastisements as well as His mercies.
" But their own voluntary wickedness or mistakes are never ascribed to
" God. It is a libel upon the Hebrew Scriptures and their Divine
" Author. The Professor himself has only one apparent example to
" offer in order to justify the sweeping assertion about the general
" tenour of the Hebrew Scriptures. • A still more striking instance,'
" he says, ' is contained in the history of David, where the same
" ' temptation, which in one book is ascribed to God, is in another
" ' ascribed to Satan.' ' The Lord moved David to say, Go, number
"'Israel.' (2 Sam. xxiv. 1.) 'Satan provoked David to number
" ' Israel.' (1 Chron. xxi. 1.) Very good. But does any other book
" of the Bible ascribe to Abraham's infirmity that which Gen. xxii.
" ascribes to God's trial of his faith ? If so, then we are ready to
" submit to the decision of Scripture. But if not, then we think it
" something not far removed from presumption, for any man to ascribe
" to man's infirmity and superstition that which Scripture especially
" ascribes to God's wisdom and love, to reject the plain narrative of
" Scripture and substitute another of his own. Besides, the two asser-
" tions that God moved David, and that Satan moved David, may both
" be true. Satan may have been the unconscious or the permitted
" instrument. The cause was one — the anger of the Lord. But the
" narrative in the Bible and Professor Stanley's narrative of the sacrifice
" of Isaac cannot both be true. Gen. xxii. describes the sacrifice of
" Isaac, Abraham's willingness to kill him, as a good deed, deserving
" the highest commendation. ' By myself have I sworn, saith the
" ' Lord, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld
" ' thy son, thine only son, that in blessing I will bless thee, and in
" 'multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of heaven.' Pro-
" fessor Stanley, on the contrary, describes the idea of killing Isaac as
" a bad deed, the offspring of superstition, and his final unwillingness
" to execute his intention, as that which is good. The two narratives
" are therefore hopelessly irreconcileable, and the learned Professor has
" no warrant whatever in Hebrew usage for his rejection of the plain
" meaning of the words of Gen. xxii. and substituting a story of his
" own, or of Baron Bunsen's composition. Indeed, the Professor's
" criticisms are the weakest part of these Lectures. There is an osten-
" tatious display of Hebrew lore, but it is not of a kind to increase the

CHAP. XL, 16—18. 207
"reputation of Oxford, or of the English Church among foreign
" scholars. The explanation of Sarai, as ' = my princess' and Eleph
" (Fpx) in Judges xv. 16, as 'an ox-load of men,' will cause a sensation
" on the continent by no means desirable.
" But to return to the matter in hand. The Scripture represents the
" whole as a trial sent immediately from God to Abraham, and, on his
" obedience, an equally immediate interposition to prevent the sacrifice ;
" a transaction between God and Abraham, which could never result in
" any injury to the true religion of the Church of God. Professor
" Stanley describes it as a temptation arising from the infirmity of a
" noble mind, which, if followed to its intended end, would have left
" in the Church the abomination of human sacrifice. He therefore
" repudiates the whole of the sacred narrative, and presents to the
" candidates for holy orders a new history, teaching them by his example
" to treat the Bible with scorn, and leading them either to avoid holy
" orders, because they cannot say that they unfeignedly believe what
" he has taught them to regard as a fiction, or what is far more
" appalling, to tell a deliberate falsehood on the most solemn occasion
" of their lives. But in thus rejecting the narrative in Genesis, Pro-
" fessor Stanley also shakes the authority of the New Testament. The
" Epistle to the Hebrews says, ' By faith Abraham, when he was tried,
" ' offered up his only begotten son.' Professor Stanley says, It was not
" by faith, — on the contrary, that Abraham's attempt to offer his son
" was the mistaken suggestion of his own mind, similar to the abominable
" superstition of the Phoenicians in burning their children. St. James
" says, ' Abraham was justified by works, having offered Isaac upon
" ' the altar.' Professor Stanley, on the contrary, teaches that Abraham
" was to be condemned for having laid him on the altar, and that so far
" from being a proof of his obedience, it was a proof of his infirmity,
" and erroneous ideas of sacrifice. But apostles are as little regarded
" by the Professor's school as prophets. Their inspiration does not
" protect them from error, and whenever their interpretation of the
" Old Testament differs from that of the ' free ' and easy ' handlers ' of
" Scripture it must give way. Such is the principle acted upon in this
" explanation of the offering of Isaac. But who can expect apostles
" and prophets to be treated with respect, when their Lord and Master
" is by Professor Jowett convicted of error and ignorance in his prophecy
" concerning his second coming ?
" Here we conclude our remarks upon Professor Stanley's picture of
" Abraham. It suggests many reflections. It throws a blaze of light
" on the question now agitated with so much anxiety, 'Why is it that
" ' there are not so many and so well qualified candidates for holy

208 CHAP. XL, 16—18.
" ' orders ? ' These Lectures suggest one answer. The Church of
" England requires unfeigned belief in all the canonical Scriptures.
"But their University training teaches them to disbelieve all canonical
" Scripture, and the youthful mind cannot receive the casuistry of
" the day, nor receive the judgment of Dr. Lushington in opposition
" to the judgment of their own consciences. They therefore stay
" away." Excellently does Professor Franz Delitzsch (Die Genesis, Leipzig,
1852, 8vo., pp. 300 — 303) expose the gnostic and dualistic fallacies of
Schelling, who asserts that the command to sacrifice Isaac was given by
OTrtN God, and that the prohibition to complete the sacrificial tragedy
came from mn> T^o the Angel of Jehovah. The learned Professor closes
his remarks upon the subject in the following admirable sentences
(p. 303) : — " Was Gott von Abraham verlangt, das ist ja, wie sich zeigt,
" nur zu dem Zwecke der Glaubenspriifung verlangt, es stellt sich
" heraus, dass Gott nicht das Opfer Isaaks in seinem ausserlichen
" Vollzuge, sondern nur in seinem innerlichen geistlichen wollte, nicht
" die Opferung Isaaks mit dem Schlachtmesser, sondern die heiligende
" Hingabe desselben an Jehovah. Zugleich aber wird das ausserliche
" Menschenopfer durch Gott selbst gerichtet. ' Die hochste Glaubens-
" prtifung ist mit dem Gewinne einer neuen erhabenen Wahrheit
" verbunden, namlich der dass Jehovah das Menschenopfer nicht wolle.'
" Ein Widder tritt an die Stelle Isaaks, das Thieropfer ist so sanctionirt
" und zwar auf demselben Berge, wo durch die ganze altestamentliche
" Zeit das vorbildliche Thieropferblut fliessen sollte, und Isaak, der
" nur iv napafioXrj geopfert wird, ist nur die bleibende Parabel des
" Menschensohns, der sein Kreutzholz tragt und auf dem BLreuzesholze
" in Wirklichkeit geopfert wird. Die That Abrahams is nur ein Bild
" der unendlich grossern Liebesthat Gottes, die sich vollzieht durch eine
" Verlaugnung seiner ewigen Liebe die alles menschliche Bewusstsein
" unendlich ubersteigt. Was Abraham thut, that im Gegenbilde der
" Vater Jesu Christi Eom. viii. 32 ; was Isaak erleidet, erlitt im
" Gegenbilde der Sohn Gottes, 1 Pet. ii. 24, der Vorgang auf Morija
" ist das Vorspiel des welterlbsenden Vorgangs in Jerusalem."
Dr. Ewald translates verse 19, " Bedenkend dass auch aus Todten
" Gott zu erwecken vermag, von wo er ihn auch vergleichsweise
" davontrug." His remarks on the sacrifice of Isaac (Das Sendschr.
a.d. Ilebr., p. 129) are replete with forcible and devout elo
quence. 3 The writer quotes the words exactly as they stand in Gen. xxi. 12.
They are there assigned as the reason why Abraham should not
hesitate to send away Ishmael at the demand of Sarah. Doubtless he

CHAP. XL, 19. 209
intends to call attention to the previous trial of Abraham's faith and
obedience which he had already undergone. Ishmael had been sent
away, and now Isaac was required as a sacrifice !
Verse 19. — Accounting that God was able to raise even
from the dead (koX e« veKptov iyelpeiv), from whence also
He received him back figuratively (iv 7rapaj3oXr} iKopi-
craTo, in a figure)?
1 Aoyio-dpevos k.t.X. Luther translates the above verse, which the
perverse ingenuity of critics has rendered difficult, " Und dachte, Gott
" kann auch wohl von den Todten erwecken, daher er auch ihn zum
" Vorbilde wieder nahm," i.e., And thought, God can'assuredly raise
from the chad also, wherefore He received him back as a type, sc, of the
Resurrection. — This rendering of Luther's is consonant with the Vulgate :
— " Arbitrans quia et a mortuis suscitare potens est Deus : unde eum et
" in parabolam accepit." These two renderings are paraphrastic,
rather than grammatically literal. I cannot help feeling that Philo
has unconsciously expressed the true meaning of the Writer to the
Hebrews when he says, T<5 8' rj npa^is el Kal pr) to i-e'Xos irrrjKoXovBrjo-ev,
dXoKXrjpos Kal TravreXrJs, ov pdvov ev rdls lepais (3lj3Xois, dXXa Kal iv
Tais rav dvayivao-Kovrav Siavolais dvaypanros io-rnXlrevTai. " But as far
" as he was concerned, the deed, although it was not carried into
" actual effect, is inscribed legibly not only in the Sacred Books,
" but also in the minds of the readers, as complete and accomplished."
(De Abrahamo, Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. ii., p. 26.) — Abraham had
braced himself up to the ordeal. He had prepared to slay his son,
feeling convinced that death itself could not interfere with the ratifica
tion of the promise, " In Isaac shall thy seed be called." God would
raise Isaac from the dead ; and so, he had so completely made up his
mind to do the deed, that unless the Angel of the Lord had interposed,
when the knife was outstretched, Isaac would have died. Similar in
sentiment is the Vulgate translation of Job xiii. 15 : Etiam si occiderit
me, in ipso sperabo, brr-n (fi) tf> ^bTap> ]n . And such is the confidence
expressed by St. Paul to the Eomans, viii. 38 — 39 : — " For I am per-
" suaded that neither death, nor life,  nor any other creature
" shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ
" Jesus our Lord." And to this faith of Abraham, viz., that God
would raise Isaac from the dead, St. Paul alludes, Eom. iv. 16 — 17,
where Abraham is said to be " the father of us all, in the sight of
" that God (Karivavn ov into-revae Oeov k.t.X.) whom he believed, who
" raises the dead, and accounts things that are not, as if they were."
E E

210 CHAP. XL, 19.
And thus it was that Abraham figuratively received his son from the dead.
He was dead as far as Abraham was concerned, until his hand was stayed
from heaven. By the same God who imposed the trial, was Abraham
released from his obedience to the command. But to no inferior sum
mons would he have rendered like obedience. Dr. Alford, in discussing
the meaning of eKoplo-aro, observes well that " Josephus (Antiq. i.
" 13, 4) uses the word of Abraham and Isaac on the very occasion in
" question — oi Se nap' eXirlSas eavrovs KeKopio-pivoi." I cannot, however,
congratulate the Very Eeverend Dean upon the lucidity of the argument
by which he proves, to his own satisfaction, that the " true identification
" of the Trapa^oXr) is to be found in the figure under which Isaac was
" sacrificed, viz., the ram, as already hinted by St. Chrysostom."
The ram was the instrument of no figurative recovery of Isaac, but of a
real one from impending death. The restoration of Isaac to his father
was symbolical of the resurrection. Abraham figuratively received him
eK veKpav, when he dismounted from the altar and returned to his
father's arms. The ram could not have been at once the symbol of
Isaac's deliverance, and his actual and vicarious substitute in death.
Besides, what was the object of, and instruction to be conveyed in, the
parable of the ram, when a far more obvious and intelligible parable
had been enacted by Isaac himself 1 As far as Isaac was concerned, the
parable was over as soon as he was safely restored to his father's bosom.
He was delivered from death actually, but was raised from the dead
iv TrapaPoXfj. Equally untenable is Prof. Stuart's proposed rendering of
the entire verse, " AbrahamDelieved that God could raise Isaac from
" the dead, because he had as it were obtained him from the dead, i.e.,
"he was born of those who (Kara ravra veKpol rjo-av)  Abraham
" believed God could raise his son from the dead. Why ? He had
"good reason to conclude so, for God had already done what was
" equivalent to this, or like this ; He had done this ev irapafloXri, in a
" comparative manner, i.e., in a manner that would compare with rising
" from the dead, when he brought about his birth from those who were
" dead as to the power of procreation. HapafHoXr) means comparison,
" similitude ; ev napaf3oXrj, comparatively, in like manner, with similitude,
" as it were." Equally objectionable is Hombergius' proposal to render
iv TrapaBoXfj in praisentissimo periculo, i.e., in the most extreme peril of
his life. The reader will find these latter suggestions ably and amply
discussed in J. C. Wolfii, Curm Philohgicce it Criticce, tom. iv., pp.
760—762. The author of the Nizzachon Vetus, whose remarks upon the subject
are singularly like Philo's, observes, " It may be asked, JFas it then so
"great a matter that Abraham was willing to slay his son at the command

CHAP. XL, 19—21. 211
" of God ? Verily there does not exist a man so wicked in the world, who
" if God, in his glory and personally (nassai maaa) said to him, Slay thy
" son, would not have done it. Answ. — Nevertheless it was a great
" matter, because he was his only son, and was bom in the time of
" their old age (onupi nsVi Nin i>n' pw), and yet he did not shrink, nor
"make objections. It may be asked further, Could not Abraham
"perceive that it was for the sake of trying him that he was tempted,
" seeing that God had made him trust that ' in Isaac shall thy seed be
"'called'; and how could He annul the former promises? Quite true;
" but learn from this that Abraham did not hesitate in the smallest
" degree. And also, it may fairly be said, that he thought in himself,
" The Holy One, blessed be He, will bring him to life again, for He
" quickens the dead " (n"nn Nin '3 , in"n> n"apn ia^[a] aran notsj V'> il»i
dtid). — Nizz. Vet., p. 22 ; printed at length in Wagenseil's Tela Ignea
Sutunce. (For Philo's words, see p. 185.)
Wettstein (in loco) quotes from the Pirke Eliezer, 31, " E. J. dixit :
" cum appropinquaret gladius collo ejus, fugit et exiit anima Isaaci :
" cum autem audiret vocem inter duos Cherubinos : noli immitere manum
" tuam puero, rediit anima in corpus suum. Et solvit eum, stetit que
" super pedes suos, et novit Isaacus resurrectionem mortuorum ex Lege,
" quia omnes mortui resurgent : ea hora dixit, Benedictus tu, Domine,
" qui vivificas mortuos." In illustration of the above, Wettstein refers
to Eom. iv. 19. See also his note on Eom. iv. 17.
Verses 20, 21. — By faith Isaac l blessed Jacob and Esau
concerning things to come (irepl peXXovTwv, see verse 1).
By faith Jacob when dying (diroQwrjo-Kcov, moriturus)
blessed each2 of the sons of Joseph separately (eKaarov
r&v vlS)v 'IcocrTjcp) and worshipped [leaning'] upon the top
of his staff (Kal irpoGeKvygcrev irrl to aKpov tov pdfiBov
avrov, und neigte sich gegen seines Scepters Spitze. —
Luth)?
1 Isaac's blessing is a bright illustration of the definition of faith in
the first verse of this chapter. Abraham had been gathered to his
fathers, and rested as a stranger in a strange land. Isaac was expecting
to lay his ashes far from his ancestral home in Chaldaea, and without
the remotest human probability that his descendants would ever possess
the land of Canaan, and yet he leaves them a legacy of prophetic bless
ing. His partiality for his eldest son is defeated by Jacob's stratagem.
But yet the promise to Abraham is the one engrossing idea that occu-

212 CHAP. XL, 20, 21.
pies his thoughts. It is the blessing promised to Abraham (Gen. xii. 3)
which he proposes to transmit. As soon, however, as his eyes are
opened by Esau's return, he acquiesces in God's overruling appointment.
He gives his secondary benediction to Esau. How literally fulfilled it
was is apparent from 2 Sam. viii. 14 and 2 Kings viii. 20. (See Smith's
Diet. Articles, Esau, Edom.)
2 Commentators have been so eager to display their ingenuity upon
the closing words of this verse, that they have reserved but little space
to discuss the illustration of faith which Jacob's particular blessing of
Ephraim and Manasseh affords. Why does the writer to the Hebrews
select this example of Jacob's faith, in preference to that afforded by
his wondrous prediction respecting the destinies of his own children 1
The true explanation lies in the word emo-rov (i.e., individually). Jacob
did not content himself with a general blessing upon Joseph. He did
not bestow a collective blessing upon Joseph and his sons, but he
wittingly crossed his hands, as Manasseh and Ephraim knelt before
him, and laid his right hand on Ephraim the youngest. What more
improbable that the posterity of young Egyptian princes, for such they
were, and also, by the mother's side, of the priestly family (Gen. xli. 45),
would ever forsake Egypt their native land, and migrate into Canaan ?
What more improbable that they should become each of them a separate
clan or tribe, much more that the elder should be subordinated in
importance to the younger, and that Ephraim's seed should become
" a fulness of the nations " (OTin Nbn) ? Gen. xlviii. 19. Jacob's reca
pitulation of the original promise renewed to himself of the grant of
Canaan, his formal adoption of Ephraim and Manasseh, separating
them from any children that should hereafter be born to Joseph in
Egypt (Gen. xlviii. 3 — 6), the terms, moreover, of Jacob's blessing as
recorded in the 15th and ICth verses, all show that his object was to
transmit the promise made to Abraham and Isaac to Joseph's posterity
through Ephraim, the representative of the kingdom of Israel : " And
" he blessed Joseph, and said, God before whom my fathers Abraham
" and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this
" day. The Angel which redeemed me ('ns tei -pston, see J. Wesselii
"Dissert. Sacr. Leidens, pp. 311—313, Lugd. Bat., 1721, 4to., and
" Schoettgen, Horce Hebr., tom. ii., pp. 15, 125, 144, 333, 375, 450) from
" all evil, bless the lads ; and let my name (observe it is said in verse 14,
" ' And Israel stretched out his hands,' &c.) be named on them, and
" the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac ; and let them grow into
" a multitude in the midst of the earth." The closing words of the
blessing (Gen. xlviii. 21, 22) abundantly exhibit the firmness of Jacob's
faith in the promise of Canaan, so that he even assigns one particular

CHAP. XL, 20, 21. 213
locality (viz., Shechem, Josh. xxiv. 32) to the family of Joseph ; and
Jacob said unto Joseph, " Behold, I die ; but God shall be with you,
'' and bring you again unto the land of your fathers. Moreover, I have
" given to thee one portion above thy brethren, which I took out of the
" hand of the Amorite with my sword and my bow." Here, then, is a
signal specimen of that faith which is the eXm£opivav virdorao-is,
¦trpaypdrav eXeyxos ob fiXeiropivav. And all these superlative tokens of
Jacob's implicit confidence in the promises of God amply justify the
Writer to the Hebrews in holding them up to the persecuted and
wavering converts for imitation.
" Kai Trpoo-eKvvrjo-ev iirl to aKpov k.t.X. The occasion here referred to
was not the one recorded in Gen. xlvii. 31, where it is said, according
to the Masoretic punctuation, " And Israel bowed himself upon the
"bed's head" (nraan »«n bs bmvr inn*n), but "upon the top of his staff,"
according to the LXX , but the Vulgate has adoravit Israel Deum,
conversus ad lectuli caput. (For an account of the Masorites and the
Masorah see Prideaux's connexion of the Old and New Testament,
vol. i. pp., 334 — 348. London, 1845, 8vo.) There is no such passage
in Gen. xlviii., where the blessing of the sons of Joseph is related.
Had the words there occurred, we should have the true reading of the
word nmo decided for us, upon inspired authority. As it is, we have no
certain data to go upon, but can conjecture with every degree of proba
bility that the punctuation of nBan hammittah, the bed, in Gen. xlvii.
31, should have been niaan; hammatteh, staff. One fact, however, is
decided for us upon the authority of Heb. xi. 21, i.e., when Jacob
blessed the sons of Joseph, he leaned upon the top of his staff, and
worshipped. Jacob, when his end was approaching, was told, Gen.
xlviii. 2, " Behold, thy son Joseph cometh unto thee ; and Israel
"strengthened himself, and sat upon the bed." (rrearr to. — For the
figure of an Egyptian bedstead see Smith's Diet., Article Bed.) That
the patriarch's feet rested upon the ground when he sat up to make
this final effort, we may gather from the fact that Manasseh and
Ephraim stood " between his knees " to receive his embrace (verse 12).
Most probably, then, Jacob leant upon his staff, as he conversed with
Joseph, and gave his benediction to him and his children, and also to
his own sons, whom he sent for (Gen. xlix. 1) to receive his parting
charge ; and then, spent with the effort, we read, Gen. xlix. 33, " When
" Jacob had made an end of commanding his sons, he gathered up his
" feet into the bed (moon b* rtn rptr\) and yielded up the ghost, and
" was gathered unto his people." It is plain, therefore, that the
inspired Epistle to the Hebrews furnishes an incidental detail, which
is wanting in Gen. xlviii. and xlix. Surenhusius observes that the

214 CHAP. XL, 20, 21.
New Testament writers not unfrequently supply omissions in the sacred
narrative of the Old, and remarks that David in Ps. cv. mentions
the iron fetters which Joseph wore in his prison-house, but which are
not alluded to in the book of Genesis. (Bt/3Xos KaraXX., p. 645.) The
learned writer gives other specimens of similar omissions in his 27th
Thesis on pp. 106, 107 of the same work. By a curious oversight
Surenhusius writes, ibid., p. 647 : — " Denique notandum est quod
" Apostolus pro verbo rfm mgrotans, quod Gen. xlviii. 1, occurrit
" dixerit dno6vr)o-Kav, moriturus, quia eventus docuit, Jacobum in ilia
" segritudine mortuum fuisse." Such a supposition is rendered entirely
unnecessary by Jacob's own words as recorded in verse 21 of this same
chapter, nn 'ai« 'in, behold, I am dying. Surenhusius rightly regards
Gen. xlviii. and xlix. as describing one continuous event, which makes
his assertion above quoted the more untenable. — Why, then, is mention
made of Jacob's leaning upon his staff 1 Probably the writer intended
to contrast, as strikingly as possible, the Patriarch's indomitable faith
with his bodily prostration. His life was fast ebbing away. His earthly
tabernacle was about to be taken down, his frame was bent, and his
eyes dim with the gathering mists of dissolution, but his faith was
erect and invincible, the eyes of his soul penetrated into the far-off
ages of futurity, and saw the promise realized, and the covenanted
blessings vouchsafed. Be ye, the writer would say to his discouraged
readers, in like manner faithful unto death, and He will give you the
crown of life ! The act of leaning, indicating the dying Saint's extreme
infirmity, and not the staff itself, is the point to which attention is
directed. The word used in Gen. xxxii. 10 (1 1), of Jacob's staff, is bpv and
not man. I cannot think that any allusion is here intended to this
staff of Jacob's, far less to the Eabbinical fables respecting the Eod of
Moses, which it is affirmed was created of a sapphire stone on the
evening of the Sabbath day, and delivered to Adam in Paradise, and
passed on through Enoch, Noah, Shem, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, to
Joseph in Egypt, where it ultimately came into the possession of Moses.
Dr. Alford (in loco) well observes, — "An incalculable quantity of
" idolatrous nonsense has been written on these words by Bonian
" Catholic Commentators, taking as their starting-point the rendering
" of the Vulgate, et adoravit fastigium virgce ejus, and thence deriving
" an argument for the worship of images, assuming that there was an
" image or symbol of power upon Joseph's staff, to which they apply
" the words. But first it must be Jacob's, and not Joseph's staff which
" is intended, ' virgin suos' not ejus," &c. Por a further and very copious
discussion of the subject the reader may with advantage consult J. C.
Wolfius, in loco, Cura: Philol. et Crit., tom. iv., pp. 762 — 766, as well as
Surenhusius, as above indicated.

CHAP. XL, 22. 215
Verse 22. — By faith Joseph ] when dying made mention of
the exodus of the children of Israel, and gave injunctions
(evereiXaTo) concerning his own bones.
1 The writer passes over all Joseph's early self-denials and sufferings,
and brings out into strongest relief the object and end of his whole
life, viz., his unwavering devotion to the hope of the Patriarchs. He
and his fathers considered themselves only as instruments to accom
plish the one great end, viz., the ratification of the blessings promised
to and in Abraham. By faith they lived, and in the faith they died,
passing away with the certain assurance that the Divine plan had been
one step advanced to its accomplishment, that another link had been
added to the golden chain which should at last bind together into one
all the children of God that are scattered abroad. He had been very
great in Egypt, but he asked no memorial of colossal proportions, such
as the Egyptians were wont to raise, to be erected to his memory. He
rather charged his posterity to carry forth his bones to the land of
Promise, to which by anticipation they already belonged. There he
would have them to rest in hope. In Egypt he was but a stranger and
a pilgrim. He knew that at the end of the 400 years God would be as
good as his word, and SO, TeXeurcij/, irepl tov 'EgdSov rav vlav 'lo-par)X
ipvrjpovevae, Kal rrepl twj/ do-reav avrov ivereiXaro. The circumstance
above alluded to is narrated in Gen. 1. 24, 25, — " And Joseph said unto
" his brethren, I die : and God will surely visit you, and bring you out
" of this land unto the land which he sware to Abraham, to Isaac, and
" to Jacob. And Joseph took an oath of the children of Israel, saying,
" God will surely visit you, and ye shall carry up my bones from hence.
" So Joseph died, being an hundred and ten years old, and they em-
" balmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt." In Exod. xiii. 19
we read that " Moses took the bones of Joseph with him," &c. In
Josh. xxiv. 32 it is written, " And the bones of Joseph, which the
" children of Israel brought up out of Egypt, buried they in Shechem...
" and it became the inheritance of the children of Joseph." Compare
Jacob's bequest to Joseph, Gen. xlviii. 22. Philo, when speaking of
Joseph's dying injunction to his brethren, writes : — Ta 8' d£iopvrjpdvevra
ravra rjv. To irio-revcrai on eTriaKeyjreTai 6 Sebs to opariKov yivos, Kal ov
7TapaSao~ei pexpi Travrbs avrb dpaBlq, rvqjiXrj Seo-Trolvrj' rb SiaKpivai rd re
Bvrjra ttjs ¦tyvxrjs Kal to aepBapra' Kal ra pev 6Va rrepl ras (raparos rjSovas
Kal ras aXXas rraBav dperpias, Bvrjra ovra, Alyimra KaTakmeiv. ILepl Se
Tav d(p6dprav o-TrovSr)v rroirjo-ao-Bai, divas pera Tav dvaftaivbvrav els ras
dperrjs rrdXeis StaKopio-Bfj, Kal opKa rrjv o-ttovStjv iprreSao-ao-Bai. " The things
" worthy to be noted are as follows : that he believed that God would

216 CHAP. XL, 23—25.
" visit the Israelitish race, and would not give them over perpetually to
" ignorance as to a blind mistress. Also that he distinguished between
" the mortal parts of the soul and those that are immortal. And
" that he left in Egypt those that were mortal, viz., bodily enjoyments
" and immoderate affections. That he also made a covenant concerning
" the imperishable things that they should take along with them (the
" Israelites) when they went up to the cities of virtue, and made this
" covenant obligatory by an oath." (De Migrations Abrahami, Works,
Mangey's Edit., vol. i., p. 439.)
Verses 23 — 25. — By faith Moses, when he was born, was
hid for three months by his parents (rav irarepoiv avrov)
because they saw that the child was goodly ' (dcneiov, y,to,
Exod. ii. 2), and they did not fear (ovk e<poj3r)6r)o-av, paid
no respect to) the king's injunction.2 By faith Moses
when he had grown up 3 (peyas yevopevo<;, grandis f actus,
Yulg. Da er gross ward, Luth.) declined (r/pvrjaaro,
objected, refused) to be called the son of Pharaoh's
daughter. Electing rather to endure hardship with
the people of God, than to have a temporary enjoy
ment 4 (rrpocTKaipov dirokavcriv, i.e., shortlived, evanescent,
transitory) of sin.
1 TewrjBels ovv 6 nals evBvs oifnv iviqbrjvev do-reiorepav rj kot ISiarrjv, <us
Kal Tav rov rvpdvvov Krjpvypdrav, i(p' oo-ov oldv re rjv, roiis yovels dXoyjjo-ai.
"At his birth the child immediately displayed an appearance fairer
" than an ordinary person's, so that his parents disregarded, as far as
" they could, the edicts of the king." — Philo de Mose, Works, Mangey's
Edit., vol. ii., p. 82.
2 nio-rei Macrrjs yevvrjBels eKpvBrj k.t.X. How is this an example of
faith, and to what object was this faith directed ? The writer points
to two actions, in illustration of his meaning. First, Moses' conceal
ment for three months by his parents. Secondly, his parents' courageous
disregard of the king's edict. How, then, do these two examples of
faith bear directly upon the circumstances of the Hebrews for whose
consolation and encouragement they are called to remembrance ? The
time of Moses' birth was one of bitter persecution. The life of Israel's
greatest lawgiver hung in suspense for the first three months of his
existence. His parents, undismayed by the risk they ran in disobeying
the tyrant's orders, hid him away (affectionately yearning over their

CHAP. XL, 23—25. 217
beautiful babe, respecting whom St. Stephen, by a well-known Hebra
ism [see Gen. x. 9, respecting Nimrod^], says, Acts vii. 20, rjv do-relos ra
Geo), and firmly believing that God, who had promised to Abraham
that his posterity should be as the stars and the sea-shore sand innumer
able, would never acquiesce in Pharaoh's scheme for their extirpation.
Upon this promise Jacob, when dying, took his stand (Gen. xlviii. 4) ;
and so (ibid., 16) he prays that Joseph's sons may " grow into a multi-
" tude (yh uti, i.e., multiply like fishes) in the midst of the earth."
Now, it was in consequence of the visible and growing fulfilment of
this prophecy that Pharaoh and his people had taken alarm, and
resolved to frustrate its further accomplishment. In Exod. i. 7 we
read, " And the children of Israel were fruitful, and increased abund-
" antly (is-ran , swarmed, as Gesenius observes, ' Passim locus [terra vel
" ' mare] dicitur reptare reptilibus, i.e., iis scatere [von etwas wimmeln],
"'sq. ace, velut mare bestiis aquatilibus. Gen. i. 20, 21 ; Aegyptus
" ' ranis, Ex. vii. 28 ; Ps. cv. 30 '), and multiplied, and waxed exceeding
" mighty, and the land was filled with them." No secret was made of
the object of the inhumanities inflicted upon the Hebrews. The
avowed purpose was the extinction of the people. The King directed
the Hebrew midwives (nnasn rrvmb d'iso -po idn'i) to destroy all the
male infants. (Exod. i. 15 ) It has been attempted to be shown, upon
very inadequate grounds, that Shiphra and Puah were Egyptians, and
not Jewesses, but the Hebrew text (if the construction of Exod. i. 20
be followed), the Targums, and the Jewish writers lend no sanction
whatever to such a theory. The Targum of Palestine or Jonathan,
and the Targum of Jerusalem, both declare that Shiphra was Jochebed,
and Puah was Miriam. The Targum of Jonathan, moreover, relates
that it was in consequence of a dream of Pharaoh's, in which the birth of
Moses was announced, and which was interpreted by Jannes and
Jambres, that the order to kill the children was issued to the midwives.
This is not unlike the narrative of Josephus. Was it probable that
Egyptians, to whom it was an abomination to eat with the Hebrews
(Gen. xliii. 32), and to whom shepherds were also an abomination
(Gen. xlvi. 34), would have undertaken the office of midwives to the
Hebrews ? Or how can we explain the religious scruples of Shiphra
and Puah, if they were mere heathens 1 We read, Exod. i. 17, "But
" the midwives feared God, and did not as the King of Egypt eom-
" manded them, but saved the men children alive." It was no mere
excuse that the midwives alleged in explanation of their disobedience.
The miraculous multiplication of the Israelites was of God ; and in
consequence of their humane conduct, God himself rewarded the mid-
wives. (Ibid., 20, 21.) We see, therefore, that the period of Moses'
F F

218 CHAP. XL, 23—25.
birth was a period of palpable conflict between the powers of darkness
and the power of God. The parents of Moses (and doubtless some few
others, like the midwives) held fast to the promises made to the fathers.
They had implicit faith in their ultimate accomplishment, and s,o they
concealed their infant until further secresy became impossible, and
then, in the ark of bulrushes, they committed him, not to the safe
keeping of chance or fortune, but to the plighted love of a covenanted
God. By their example, the afflicted Hebrews of the apostolic ages,
whose lives were also made bitter to them, might take comfort. The
Church of God was again passing through a crisis of persecution, and the
furnace of affliction, but faith should ultimately triumph, and the
promised redemption should be accomplished.
3 Miyas yevdpevos, Alford rightly translates " when grown up " ; but
he is mistaken when he asserts, in reference to Schulz's and Bret-
schneider's proposed rendering " become great," viz., in dignity as a
" citizen," that the usage is the other way. The Hebrew expression
Viti, in Exod. ii. 10, 11, doubtless signifies an increase iu stature and
years, but the verb ru is very frequently employed to denote accession
of dignity and importance ; e.g., Gen. xxvi. 13, 2 Sam. vii. 22, Ps.
civ. 1, Eccl. ii. 9, Jer. v. 27, Esth. iii. 1, v. 11, x. 2, and passim in the
Old Testament. The words, as used by the Writer to the Hebrews,
are equivalent to the expression employed by St Stephen, Acts, vii 23,
as Se irrXqpovTO avra Tefjo-apaKovraeTrjs xpovos.
4 'Hpvrjo-aro XeyeoBai k.t.X. Philo suggests (De Mose, Works, Mangey's
Edit., vol. ii., p. 86) that Moses was the heir apparent (by adoption) to
the crown of Egypt, and adds, in the very sentiment of the Writer to
the Hebrews, Tr)v avyyeviKrjv Kal rrpoyoviKrjv i^r/Xaoe rraiSelav, ra pev Tav
elo-TTOirjcrapevav dyaBd, Kal el Xaprrpdrepa Kaipols, vdBa eivai vrroXafiuv, ra
Se rav (pvaei yoz/etuy, el Kal rrpbs bXlyov d(paveo-Tepa, oUela yovv Kal yvrjo-ia.
" He emulated the training of his kindred and ancestors, esteeming the
" good things of those who had adopted him, although more splendid
"for a season, to be in reality spurious, but those of his natural
" parents, although they might be for a while less appreciable, to be
" true and genuine." Why should this latter statement of Philo's, so
exactly in harmony with the inspired statements of the New Testament,
be sneered at as " inflated " ? That Moses was in a position to be well
acquainted with the hope of the patriarchs is shown by Eawlinson
(Bampton Lectures. Second Edition, 1860. 8vo., p. 39), when he
observes, " Adam, according to the Hebrew original, was for 243 years
" contemporary with Methusaleh, who conversed for 100 years with
" Shem. Shem was for 50 years contemporary with Jacob, who
" probably saw Jochebed, Moses' mother. Thus Moses might, by mere

CHAP. XL, 26—28. 219
" oral tradition, have obtained the history of Abraham, and even of the
" Deluge, at third hand, and that of the temptation and the fall at
" fifth hand." The mere fact of the degraded condition of the great
bulk of the Israelites in their Egyptian servitude, does not militate
against the probability of the preservation of the true faith amongst a
select few, any more than the well-known circumstance that there are
hundreds of thousands of so-called Christians in England at this
moment who never heard of Christ, would supply a safe argument to
some antichristian writer centuries hence for asserting that, in 1871,
the religion of Jesus was extinct in Great Britain. Elijah supposed
(1 Kings xix.) that he was the last worshipper of the true God left in
Israel, and yet, undiscernible to the eye of sense, God had reserved to
Himself seven thousand devoted followers. Schoettgen, in loco, re
marks, " Nam Moses tanquam filius filise Pharaonis educatus erat.
" Exod. ii. 10 ; Actor, vii. 20 ; Tanchuma, fol. 48, 4. Moses educatus
" est in domo Pharaonis, ln'a p n'nio iiaD n'n , et existimibatur, quasi in
" domo ipsius natus esset.''
Verses 26 — 28. — Esteeming the reproach of Christ (tov
ovetSicrpbv tov Xpicrrov, i.e., the obloquy, and derisive ill-
will, on account of his faith in the Messiah) l greater riches
than the treasures of Egypt, for he looked away to the
recompense of reward (direjSXe'n-e ydp eh rrjv piaOairo-
hoaiav). By faith, he relinquished (KareXiirev, abandoned,
quitted) Egypt, after having braved (pr) <po/3?j#et? rbv dvpbv)
the exasperation of the King.2 For he persevered as if he
saw the Invisible. By faith he celebrated or prepared
(ireirolriKe, the sacrificial rite) the passover, and the sprink
ling of the blood, in order that He who destroyed the
firstborn might not touch them.3
1 These words are very explicit, and must on no account be explained
away, but ought to be read by the light of 1 Cor. x. 3, 4, Kal rravres to
dvrb fipapa rrvevpariKov e(payov. Kal navres to avrb ndpa wvevpanKov
erriov, enivov yap iK TrvevpariKrjs aKoXovBovo-rjs Trerpas, rj Se rrerpa rjv 6
Xpio-rds. The faith of Moses was that of the Patriarchs. Abraham
rejoiced to see Christ's day. Enoch prophesied concerning the consum
mation of all things in and by Him. The Gentile self-esteem that
would limit all true perception of " good things to come " to the so-
called Christian dispensation, would be grotesquely ridiculous, were it

220 CHAP. XL, 26-28.
not too pernicious in its consequences to be smiled at. God's revelation
in every age was sufficient to save sinners. The Divinely appointed
medium of salvation to the Patriarchal and Mosaic dispensations was
faith in a coming Messiah. Of Himself our Lord Jesus testified that
Moses spake. His mediatorial office is clearly set forth in Deut. xviii.
15 — 19. The spiritual nature of the believer's life is described in Deut.
viii. 3. The ingathering of the Gentiles is hailed with holy rapture
(according to St. Paul's interpretation, Eom. xv. 10) in Deut. xxxii. 43.
The Eesurrection is established, by the very same argument that St.
Peter (2 iii. 8) employs to demonstrate the certainty of Christ's return, in
Ps. xc. 3, 4 ; and in this latter Psalm (put into the mouth of a genera
tion, all the adults of which were to perish within the forty years'
wandering in the wilderness) the Israelites are taught to pray, "So
" teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto
" wisdom." Bishop Warburton's theory, copied by Davidson (Dis
courses on Prophecy, p. 121, &c. 3d Edit., 1834, 8vo.) and others, that
the Israelites under Moses knew nothing of the life after death, is
palpably contrary to fact. If Moses was the writer of the Book of
Genesis, the history of "The tree of life," the translation of Enoch,
the gathering of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to their fathers, &c, &c,
were familiar topics to his people. Even Balaam, the heathen prophet,
desired " to die the death of the righteous," and that his " last end
" might be like his." The pertinacious devotion of the Israelites to
necromancy and witchcraft is decisive as to the popular belief enter
tained by them respecting the life after death. See Deut. xviii. 11,
where the expression ta'non fo idti , a seeker of, or enquirer after, the
dead, is rendered by the Authorized Version " necromancer." More
over, had not the immortality of the soul been a dogma (as with Job)
of their ancestral faith amongst the Israelites, they might have learned
it in Egypt, where it was an article of the popular creed, and upon
whose very walls the judgment-scene is depicted. (See Sharpe's Egypt,
vol. i., p. 56 — 59 and 66 ; see also Gesenius, Lexicon Manuale, p. 20,
article aiN.) The recompense of reward, moreover, which Moses
looked to, was doubtless that promised to Abraham (Gen. xv. 1), viz.,
the fruition of eternal life with God, although he was to die (15) in a
good old age, without having received the temporal promise. The
" reproach of Christ," therefore, which Moses elected in preference to
the treasures of Egypt, was assuredly the obloquy to which he exposed
himself in setting aside the religious tenets of his protectors, and his
preferring to commit his fortunes to the custody of the Divine promises,
rather than to settle down in the arms of dignity and affluence which
lay open before him. In this respect, his self-denial and unhesitating

CHAP. XL, 26—28. 221
faith afforded a bright and a consolatory example to the persecuted
readers of the Epistle to the Hebrews to copy from. The ever-
increasing results of Moses' self-denial God's judgment-day alone will
reveal. Incalculably and immeasurably great is the pio-BanoSoo-la which
he shall daily receive as long as the world shall last. In Moses, as in
Abraham, all the families of the earth can yet account themselves
blessed. With Elias he appeared to the apostles in the " Holy Mount,"
as a partaker of Christ's transfiguration glory. Ewald (Das Sendschr.
a.d. Hebr., pp. 130, 131) speaks decisively as to the faith which Moses
entertained in Christ, and to whieh he gave expression, in the Messianic
prophecies contained in the Pentateuch, of which latter he was the
author. Eemarking on the words rbv dveiSiopbv tov Xpio-rov, die Schmach
Christus, he says, " Und hier drangt sich mit diesem kleinen Worte,
" dem Eedner plbzlich wieder ein Gedanke und eine Eedensart ein,
" welche die Leser mitten in ihre eigene nachste Gegenwart versezt, die
" aber vor allem aus seiner eigensten tiefsten Empfindung floss, und
" die er trozdem dass sie beinahe 2000 Jahre iiberspringt, dennoch
" wagen Konnte, weil ihm nach 1, 1 — 4, und den anderen oben
" bemerkten Zeichen der Gedanke an den Logos, und daher an den
" unzerreissbaren festen Zusammenhang aller Bestrebungen und aller
" Leiden der Kinder Gottes, aufs lebendigste vorschwebte ; wozu
" kommt dass auch schon der Pentateuch Messianische Weissagungen
" enthalt, und dieses mit Eecht, gerade bei Mose als dessen Verfasser,
" so geheimnissvoll denkwiirdig sehien."
2 niWei KareXnrev A'lyvTTTOV pr) (pofirjBels k.t.X. This, doubtless, partly
refers to the indignation which Moses' avowed sympathy with his
suffering kinsmen excited at the court of Egypt. He was regarded as
an ingrate and a traitor thwarting the scheme for ridding Egypt of a
troublesome incubus, if not as a renegade. We have no reason to decide
that the occasion upon which he slew the Egyptian was the first time on
which he had endeavoured to mitigate the rigours of their condition.
Moreover, his steady adherence to the true faith must have brought
him into collision with the idolatrous court. This is probably one
aspect in which we may legitimately understand the dveiSio-pbv tov
Xpio-rov. He incurred ill-will, hostility, dislike, and ridicule by his
steadfastness, and yet he persevered, as if he saw the Invisible.
Willing to live godly, he had to suffer persecution. He had been
trained in all the wisdom and learning of the Egyptians, and yet all
this pagan lore went for nothing. Like Daniel, he stood upright and
immoveable, though surrounded by every inducement to forego his
ancient faith. I would then propose to understand the passage thus.
By faith, Moses at last took the final step that necessitated his

222 CHAP. XL, 26-28.
abandoning Egypt with all his prospects, having first braved the dis
pleasure of the King. He remained steadfast (iKaprepqae), proof alike
against blandishments and threats, as if he saw the Invisible God.
Some would desire to explain these words, of Moses' heroic and in
flexible firmness in his demands upon Pharaoh to let the people go.
This, however, would take the subject out of its chronological order.
It seems more in harmony with the lesson of suffering faith and self-
denial for the kingdom of heaven's sake, which the writer is inculcating
upon his readers, to refer the passage to Moses' early life and renuncia
tion of all that is usually desirable in the eyes of men. His decision
was justified ultimately by a reward more than commensurate with the
sacrifice required of him. He stood not only amongst earthly princes,
but he spake face to face with Jehovah himself, as file Mediator of his
Covenant, and the type of Christ. The above notice of the persecu
tions which Moses endured accords with the traditions preserved by
Josephus and Philo. Before dismissing the subject of Moses' abandon
ment of Egypt, I would make one remark upon Dean Stanley's un-
scholarly and unwarranted insinuation that Moses, when he smote the
Egyptian, was guilty of nothing less than a deliberate and cowardly
murder. The Dean writes, " All that remains of these traditions is
" the simple and natural incident that, seeing an Israelite suffering the
" bastinado (!) from an Egyptian, and thinking that they were alone,
" he slew the Egyptian (the later tradition, preserved by Clement of
" Alexandria, said ' with a word of his mouth '), and buried the corpse
"in the sand," &c. (Smith's Diet.; Article, Moses.) Now, the Hebrew
word which Dr. Stanley ventures to paraphrase "suffering the bastinado,"
he ought to have known is nap. A cursory reference to a Hebrew
Concordance would have shown him that the verb nai , the Hiphil
participle of which is used in Exod. ii. 11, is ordinarily employed in
the sense of smiting so as to inflict mortal injury, i.e., to kill, to smite
and extirpate in battle ; and, even of inanimate things, to destroy, as of
the standing crops, Exod. ix. 31, 32. The Englishman's Hebrew aud
Chaldee Concordance gives more than six columns of references under
na: , and, in the great majority of instances, the word includes the
signification of killing. It is quite true that, in Exod. v. 14 — 16, »\!
and trap must be understood of corporal punishment. But a reference
to the LXX. and Vulgate versions would have shown the Dean that a
distinction was to be made between Exod. ii. 11 and Exod. v. 14, 16.
The LXX. has TvrrTovra in Exod. ii. 11, and the Vulgate percutientem,
whilst in Exod. v. 14—16 the LXX. version has ipaoriyaBrjcrav and
pepaorlyavrai, and the Vulgate Jlagellaii sur.f, and flagellis asdimur,
respectively. St. Stephen, indeed, speaks of the outraged Hebrew,

CHAP. XL, 26—28. 223
Acts vii. 24, simply as dSiKovpevov, but to this it may be answered that
irard^as does not necessarily or primarily mean to wound mortally, and yet
we know by the sequel that Moses did kill (ji) the Egyptian. Again,
the Hebrew words wn pa '3 nti nai na ]D'i , " and he looked this way
" and that way, and saw that there was no man," express nothing
whatever as to the motive of his looking. In Isaiah lix. 16 the same
expression, probably in symbolical allusion to this very passage, is
used, but in the signification of "looking for help or assistance," before
going forth to judgment and vengeance : —
innaoD ^n lnjns i»ii t swim »\eo ]<» 'a atainwi »'» ps 'a wvi
" And he saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no
" intercessor ; therefore his- arm brought salvation unto him, and his
" righteousness it sustained him." Why, then, should we put the most
atrocious construction upon what was really an. action humane in itself,
and undoubtedly necessitated by the dire exigency of the occasion 1
Moses' subsequent alarm at what had occurred, considering the ill-savour
in which he already was, and the barbarous resolution of the Egyptians
to extirpate their bondmen, and the utter impossibility of obtaining a
fair hearing, is natural enough ; but it leaves the morality, as well as
the necessity of putting the Egyptian to death exactly where it was.
A reverent mind would adopt any alternative, before deliberately im
puting connivance at, and approval of assassination, to the inspired
writers of the Old and New Testament, in both of which Moses' deed
is spoken of in terms of tacit approval, if not of commendation.
Adroit insinuations like the above, against the morality of God's Word,
are marvellously in the style of Voltaire, but when they come to be
subjected to closer examination, they are not a whit more trustworthy
than the sneering falsities of that pitiful " inventor of evil things."
One thing is quite certain, viz., that the Writer to the Hebrews dis
tinctly affirms that Moses' abandonment of Egypt was an act of faith,
compulsory, doubtless, at the last, in consequence of the exemplary
vengeance inflicted upon the would-be murderer of his poor kinsman,
whose life Moses saved at the peril of his own. Nor was it only an act,
but the crowning act of his steadfast self-denials in Egypt, the treasures
of which he had relinquished, in resolution, long before he escaped for
his life from the vengeance of the King.
3 The preparation of the Passover was, of its kind, an act of faith,
similar to that of Noah's preparation of the ark. Pharaoh and the
Egyptians remained as obdurate as ever; in fact, the tyrant had
threatened Moses with death, if he again molested him with the demand
for the liberation of the Israelites. (Exod. x. 28, 29.) It was therefore
a crisis in which even God's judgments had apparently failed to bring

224 CHAP. XL, 29—31.
about the desired effect. The successive plagues had left the Hebrews
only in more evil case. For Moses, with the consciousness of his ill-
success, to go to the Israelites and bid them to choose a lamb on the
tenth day of the month, to be slain on the fourteenth, as the next step
in the drama of deliverance, must have carried with it a consciousness
of inadequacy, if not of absurdity, that required a strong faith indeed
to propound it to his exasperated countrymen. Hitherto his efforts
had only availed to set oppressor and bondman more completely by the
ears. The rigour of the oppressors had been increased instead of
diminished, and now Pharaoh had refused ever to see Moses again. To
convince his people, therefore, of the peremptory necessity of complying
with the command to be in readiness to celebrate the Passover, was
doubtless a very difficult task, but faith overcame, and the Passover
was got ready, and the Exodus was accomplished. (For much interesting
matter upon this subject, see the late Dr. M'Caul's Examination of
Bishop Cohnso's Difficulties, 1863. 8vo., pp. 56 — 65.) So, also, with
regard to the sprinkling of the blood. Doubtless many of the Hebrews
were inclined to laugh at the proposal as a silly superstition. No
ordinary pertinacity would be required to see the order carried out, and
yet Moses' belief in what he enjoined was so transparent and con
vincing, that the thing was done, and " he that destroyed the firstborn
" did not touch them." — Here, then, was an argument for making a
bold avowal of Christ, in spite of all risks entailed by the public pro
fession of Christianity. It was a plain command, and God would take
care of the results. The duty was plain ; the consequences in the
hands of God himself.
The timorous convert might ask, Cannot I be saved f Cannot I serve
Christ equally well without incurring the odium of baptism, and the
reproach of the Cross ? The allusion to the blood of sprinkling supplied
the answer. It was the badge of distinction between the saved and the
lost ; the token of salvation, the mark of God's covenanted favour and
acceptance. Surenhusius writes (Bi/3Xoy mraXX., p. 654), " Per mlr/a-iv
" tov irdo-xaros, Hebraice noon rrvs, intelliguntur omnia ilia praecepta quse
" asservationem agni a decinio die mensis ad decimum quartum, et
" deinde mactationem et sanguinis exceptionem spectant ; per rrpdo-xyoiv
" tov alparos, intelligitur sanguinis aspersio ad postes et superliminaria ;
" per oXoBpevBrjv, sive AXoBpeiav, intelligitur nTroo destructor, de quo
" Exod. xii. 13 et 23," &e.
Verses 29—31. — By faith,1 they (the Israelites) passed
through the Red Sea (rpD ?"> sea of weeds, Exod. xv. 4 ;

CHAP. XL, 29—31. 225
iv epvdpa BaXdaarj, LXX. ibid), which the Egyptians
assayed to do, and were drowned. By faith, the walls of
Jericho fell, after they had been compassed (KVKXaBevra,
encircled) about for seven days.2 By faith, Pahab the
harlot did not perish with the unbelievers (rots direid'rjcraai,
the contumacious), having received the spies (Josh, ii.) with
peace (pier eiprjvrji, in a friendly manner. Stuart.)3
1 The Israelites proved their faith by doing as they were bidden. At
first a panic seized them, shut in by precipices as they were on either
hand, with the armies of Egypt behind them, , and with the swelling
billows of the Eed Sea before them. Moses' heroic belief infused
confidence into their despondiug souls. At his word they went forward
and accomplished the miraculous passage. To the persecuted and
wavering Hebrews of apostolic times this allusion would be full of
consolatory significance. They carried their lives in their hands. They
seemed hedged in unto destruction, and, like their forefathers, were
ready to exclaim, " Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou
" taken us away to die in the wilderness ? Wherefore hast thou dealt
" thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt 1 Is not this the word
" that we did tell thee in Egypt, saying, Let us alone, that we may
" serve the Egyptians 1 For it had been better for us to serve the
" Egyptians than that we should die in the wilderness." Exod. xiv.
11, 12. Here, then, we see that the Israelites expected that they would
be slaughtered by the Egyptians. The last thing thought of was to look
to the sea as a means of escape. Similar was the case of their descendants ;
but God himself, with the temptation, would make the way of escape,
in order that they might be able to bear it. As St. Paul writes, 1 Cor.
X. 13, AXXa noirjoei o~vv rd\ neipao-pa Kal rrjv eK^aaiv, roii SvvaaBai vpds
VTreveyKeiv. The Egyptians showed foolhardiness, and not faith. They
were not in the path of duty, but flying in the face of God's palpable
resistance, and they perished in the waters.
2 Josh. vi. Upon the above 30th verse Dean Alford somewhat
pointlessly observes, "A second example of the strength of faith in
" Israel generally." The real point at issue is, how did the Writer to
the Hebrews intend the converts to apply it to their present critical
position? I cannot but think it is designed as an encouragement to
perseverance in personal steadfastness in the use of the appointed
means of grace, and also in fervent entreaty to God that He would
soften the hearts of their unbelieving brethren and persecutors. The
G G

226 CHAP. XL, 29—31.
ark of God was carried seven times round the walls of Jericho, and at
last they fell at the blast of the trumpets. Why, then, should not the
strong prejudices of the gainsayers be overcome by a gospel acted in the
life, as well as preached by word of mouth 1 The writer, out of a
multitude of examples ready to hand, contents himself with a few
appropriately selected instances of faith, such as he would have his
readers to follow. He does not deal in vague generalities, but in well-
chosen and pertinent illustrations.
3 Eahab exhibited her faith by her reception of the spies. It was a
practical faith. She showed that she believed her own statements by
the way she treated her guests. Betrayal would have been an easy
matter, but she acted as if she believed that the Israelites would take
possession of the land, and stipulated for the safety of herself and her
relatives. Josh. ii. 12, 13. And this is what is meant in Josh. vi. 25,
" And Joshua saved Eahab the harlot alive, and her father's household,
" and all that she had ; and she dwelleth in Israel even unto this day ;
" because she hid the messengers, which Joshua sent to spy out Jericho."
St. James (ii. 25) adduces her as an instance of practical faith. Her
deeds answered to her professions, when she said to the spies, " I know
" that the Lord hath given you the land  For the Lord your God, he
" is God in heaven above and in the earth beneath." Josh. ii. 9 — 11.
But why is the example of Eahab adduced on the present occasion 1
I think the reason lies in the fact that to harbour inquirers and con
verts was a charity not unattended with "danger and obloquy. The
writer has already skilfully touched upon the subject (x. 33) when he
reminds his readers that formerly they were associates of those who
were similarly treated with themselves. The position of a Jewish
inquirer into Christianity was in those days one of peculiar difficulty
and distress. By his own relatives he was abhorred, and treated as a
criminal who was worthy of a hundred deaths. His heathen neigh
bours despised and looked down upon him because he was a Jew, an
outcast, and in disgrace with his own people. If, then, his converted
brethren were too timid to offer him an asylum, and shut the doors in
his face, whither was he to look for countenance and support ? Such
is the position of the Hebrew convert at the present day ; much more
in the former times when Christians were few, and Christian sym
pathy was circumscribed. And this, I take it, is why the writer
admonishes the Hebrews (xiii. 1, 2), r) qbiXaSeXrpla pevera- rrjs (piXogevlas
pr) iiriXavBdveoBe, Sid Tavrrjs yap eXaBov nves ^evloavres dyyiXovs. The
example of Eahab was therefore pregnant with instruction. She a
poor heathen had acted like a true believer. What a scandal, then, if
believers in Jesus should be outdone and put to shame by her faith and

CHAP. XL, 29-31. 227
ready hospitality ! In reference to Eahab's former conversation the
writer, as also does St. James, calls her r) rrdpvrj. Here we have the
inspired interpretation of the Hebrew words, nni nw«, a woman a
harlot, Josh. ii. 1. (yvvaiKos rrdpvrjs. LXX.) Josephus (Antiq. v. 1, 2, 7)
suppresses the fact of Eahab's vocation, and merely speaks of her as
keeping an inn, and Whiston in his note (in loco) writes : — " Observe,
" that I still call this woman Eahab, an innkeeper, not a harlot ; the
" whole history, both in our copies and especially in Josephus, implying
" no more. It was indeed so frequent a thing, that women who were
" innkeepers were also harlots, or maintainers of harlots, that the word
" commonly used for real harlots was usually given them." The
probable reason of this euphemistic designation of Eahab by Josephus
lies in the fact that she married Salmon, a prince of the house of Judah,
as related in Matt. i. 5. The Targum calls her sn'piiiB, Pun'dakitha,
¦navSoKevrpla, which Buxtorf, in his Lexicon Chaldaicum, thus explains :
" Caupona, Hospita, esculenta vendens, et quoslibet hospitio excipiens
" : Nn'pniB wins n'a1; ltoi Et ingressi sunt in domum mulleris cujusdam
"caupona. Hebr. mil nan n'a, Jos. ii. 1. Nn'pinc «nn« )on mm Etvidit
" illic mulierem cauponam, apud quam scilicet Schimschon divertit,
" hospitandi et pernoetandi causa, cujus amore captus, et ab ea admissus
"fuit, Jud. xvi. 1, Ni-rpinD wins ia Mini. Et ipse (Jephtha) erat filius
" mulieris caupona, Jud. ii. 1. Hanc concubinam, non cauponam
" publicam, aut scortum fuisse Hebragi tradunt ; unde E. Davidis in
" Comment, ad hunc locum, tale monitum. Ista olim in Israel con-
" suetudo fuit ne devolveretur hcereditas ab una tribu ad aliam, ideo non
" licebat cuiquam ducere uxor em, qua non esset ex sua tribu. Unde si
"forte quis amasset quondam ex tribu alia, exibat ilia absque hareditate,
'• et vulgo appellata fuit MVpinc (ein Wirtin, ein Kbchinne, non Uxor)
" Hospita, curatrix, aut cibatrix, et talis fuit mater Jephta. Hac ille —
" Plurale, jptiid ]'w: j'nin nsnN pa . Tunc venerunt dua mulieres caupona,
" Hebraic^, mn D'wi, 1 Eeg. iii. 16. Eabbi David ad locum Josuae
" scribit mentem Jonathanis esse, quod honesta appellatione mulieris
" cauponaria? intelligat etiam meretricem, . quod meretrix sit instar
" cauponse, se cuilibet prostituens, ut caupona omnibus cibum minis-
" trans." The following extract from the Babyl. Gemara (treatise
Zevachim, printed at length in Ugolini's Thes., vol. xix.) is decisive as
to the Talmudical opinion respecting Eahab's early career. The passage
is found in col. 605 : —
.hid d' 'd ns nin' wain ton n« nsraw <a swin' vfrvb mn» nnin am nsi
nn lis nnp nV\ ¦raspi son n:w 'ndi nn lis n'n nVi n^ iiaN-i onn vav 'no
«a Hbv. Tin iv to -p ]x to icni nyr nidi iwpo n1; >e» "iwp« iVdni WNa
vnw mm D'»ai« nnm Dnson bvrw ws'wa n'n rj'iw ivs na iidn .nnin am to
: rj'nwDi \\bn ton -owa 'b brra «n' hidn n-i"ini mw o'«on ins -iaioa btrw>

228 CHAP. XL, 32.
" Similiter Eachab meretrix dixit legatis Josuse • Audivimus, quod
" siccaverit Dominus aquas maris Suph. Quid ibi repetit dicendo : et
" non fuit in nobis spiritus f Et cur hic repetit dicendo : Et non fuit in
" iis amplius spiritus f Licet induresceret, tamen non indurescebat. Et
" Unde cognovit 1 Dicit Mor : Nullus est tibi princeps, et dux, qui non
" sit congressus cum Eachab meretrice. Dixerunt : Decimum et secun-
" dum annum agebat, quando egressi sunt Israelite de Aegypto, et
" scortata est quadraginta annos, in quibus fuerunt Israelitae in deserto,
" post quinquaginta annos facta est proselyta. Dicit : Ignoscatur mihi
" propter mercedem funiculi lini in fenestra." B. Scheidius, in his
Praterita prateritorum, gives a considerably broader translation of
the above passage, and adds, " Glossa : Tradit ur ita earn dixisse :
" Domine mundi, per tria peccavi, per tria fit condonatio. Per funem
" et linum et fenestram. Nam adulteri ascendebant ad earn f unibus,
" via fenestra, et descendebant, et quoque abscondebat eos in linis ligni,
" et per ea ipsa tria, merita est, liberando legatos." (Meuschen, Nov.
Test, ex Talmude illustr., p. 40.) Scheidius quotes at length also a
somewhat celebrated passage from the treatise Meg ilia, f. 14, 2, where
it is asserted that Joshua married Eahab, by whom he had daughters
but no sons, and in which also the following ridiculous statement
occurs : — " Tradiderunt Rabbini, Eachab, nomine suo audito, ad forni-
" cationem irritavit. Glossa : Siquis commemoret nomen ejus, trahitur
" libidine scortationis ; Jael voce sua ; Abigail, memoria sui ; Michael
" aspectu sui," &c. (Ibid., pp. 40, 41.) See also Smith's Diet., Article
Eahab, and Surenhusius' Conciliationes de Genealogia Jesu Christi.
(Bi/3Xos KaraXX., pp. 121—123.)
Verse 32. — And what shall I say more ? (koi ti en Xeyta ;
or perhaps, Why should I yet run on ?) Por the time
would fail me (when) discoursing, in detail, concerning
Gideon,1 and Barak, and Samson, and Jephtha.2
1 The writer, kindling to his subject with a glow of holy enthusiasm,
surveys the mighty cloud of witnesses grouped around, as it were, in
illustrious conclave. He loses himself in the contemplation of their
achievements, and as his eye flashes from one end to the other of the
glorious assemblage, he forgets the orderly sequence of their acts. He
sees them, not singly as they severally fought and conquered upon life's
laborious arena, but with the triumphant glance of patriotic rapture he
penetrates into the shining courts above, where in radiant fellowship they
stand clustered, so to speak, suspensefully watching the issue of the conflict
yet carried forward, by their brethren in arms who yet remain behind. In
this sublime and vehement outburst of pathetic and fiery eloquence we

CHAP. XL, 32. 229
must not limit the writer's allusions to any particular age or crisis in the
Church's history. He culls at random a posy of historic examples of well-
known and familiar deeds, and presents it to his readers in the exulting
consciousness that each name that he utters, and every incident that
he lightly touches, will awaken responsive echoes in their faltering
hearts. As a Jew he speaks to Jews. He reminds them of what their
forefathers have done, and by the acts of sacred prowess that endear
the memories of the mighty dead to the Hebrew soul, he exhorts them
to lay aside all puling fears, to be strong, and play the man. To show
themselves worthy descendants of such distinguished ancestry and such
heroic sires, to endure unto the end, and so, faithful unto death, to win
the fadeless palm and the crown of life. Now in imagination he re
awakens the battle cry of The Sword of the Lord and Gideon ! He
conjures back the fierce onset of the. forlorn hope of Israel's three
hundred men, the wild dismay and rout of Midian's outlandish
chivalry, the shrill clangour of the trumpets and the fiery tongues of
the lamps illumining the midnight sky with their vengeful glare ;
anon he passes on to Barak, nerved into heroic resolution by the
inspired appeals of Deborah, going forth to the overthrow of Jabin's
hosts with their nine hundred chariots of iron, and afterwards cele
brating the subjugation of Sisera in Deborah's immortal Te Deum.
(Jud. v.) Now Jephthah's impetuous valour rises to his lips, and his
sublime self-abnegation in devoting his only child, his darling daughter,
to the service of the sanctuary and a perpetual virginity, as a thank-
offering to God for his country's deliverance. Then again he sees
blind Samson in Dagon's house feeling for the pillars, pouring forth
his mighty soul in prayer to the God of Israel, and then bowing himself
with recovered strength until the roof collapses, burying idol and
revellers, his country's tormentors and himself, in the ruins of the
temple. And now Samuel, the restorer of his country's ruined estate,
the repairer of the breaches of many generations, the inflexible judge,
the blameless prophet ; and now David, the friendless shepherd lad —
the vanquisher of the Giant of Gath, the founder of Judah's sovereign
house, the royal ancestor of Messiah, the sweet singer of Israel ; and,
lastly, the goodly fellowship of the prophets claim to themselves their
several meed of honourable mention and reverential respect. To these
foremost paladins in the noble army of martyrs he points with tri
umphant exultation, contenting himself with the bare mention of the
deeds and sufferings of others, equally great, whose memories are
embalmed in their fellow-citizens' love — whose epitaphs are engraved
upon the hearts of their admiring children. Let it not be forgotten
that every allusion recalled some sainted name, some act of super-

230 CHAP. XL, 32.
human endurance, some successful resistance to the oppressors of
Israel, some victory over sin and idolatrous might for the sake of
Israel's good or the hope of the Fathers, and then we shall, at
least partially, realise the nature of the writer's appeal to the
passionately devoted patriotism of his Hebrew brethren. Those
who know by experience and personal intercourse with devout
Jews, their unbounded devotion to their country and its consecrated
memories, will feel no difficulty in assenting to the masterly appro
priateness of this closing address, directed as it is to the holiest senti
ments of an enthusiastic race. The despairing pertinacity displayed in
the defence of Jerusalem, as related by Josephus, will serve to illustrate
the patriotic self-devotion of the Jewish people, a sentiment which still
survives in many a Hebrew breast. No other nation under heaven has
such glorious reminiscences, hoary with the most venerable antiquity,
and luminous with the splendours of Divine interpositions on its behalf,
to cherish and to hug to their desolate bosoms, as the children of the
Patriarchs and the Prophets. They still in the lands of their dispersion
style themselves Q'aVn 'ia, sons of kings.
2 The Eev. W. T. Bullock, in Smith's Dictionary (Article Jephtha),
writes " that the daughter of Jephtha was really offered up to God in
" sacrifice, slain by the hand of her father, and then burned, is a
" horrible conclusion, but one which it seems impossible to avoid.
" This was understood to be the meaning of the text by Jonathan the
" Paraphrast and Eashi, by Josephus, Ant. v. 7, 10, and by perhaps
"all the early Christian fathers  For the first eleven centuries of
" the Christian era this was the current, perhaps the universal, opinion
" of Jews and Christians." The Eev. Author of the article mentions a
considerable list of distinguished writers who are of the contrary opinion.
To that list ought to be added the illustrious names of Eeland, Selden,
and Whiston. I would venture to suggest that Mr. Bullock arrives at
his conclusions from faulty premises and a misinterpretation of Judg.
xi. 29, which he finds it necessary to explain away in order to establish
his theory. There it is written nin' nn nrs' to 'nm, " And the Spirit
" of Jehovah came upon Jephtha." On this passage he writes : — " Then
" the Spirit of the Lord (i.e., force of mind, for great undertakings, and
" bodily strength, Tanchum : comp. Judg. iii. 10, vi. 34, ix. 29, xiv. 6,
" xv. 14) came upon Jephtha. He collected warriors throughout Gilead
" and Manasseh," &c. As a preparation for this Eabbinical gloss Mr.
Bullock refers the words of verse 11, (nasna mn' 'isi vm to n« nns' wi,
" And Jephtha uttered all his words before Jehovah in Mispeh,") simply
to the occasion of his accompanying the elders of Gilead, when he con
sented to be elected as their chief. Luther, indeed, renders—" Und

CHAP. XL, 32. 231
" Jephtha redete solches Alles vor dem Herrn zu Mizpa," but this is
not the strict meaning of the Hebrew words, which the Vulgate cor
rectly translates Locutusque est Jephte omnes sermones suos coram Domino
in Maspha. The idea of Jephtha's acting under the Divine influences
of God's Holy Spirit militates no doubt against Mr. Bullock's sugges
tions, that he was at the time of his call at the head of a "company of
freebooters," and that " a Gileadite born in a lawless age, living as a
" freebooter (!) in the midst of rude and idolatrous people who prac-
" tised such sacrifices, was not likely to be unusually acquainted with,
" or to pay unusual respect to, the pure and humane laws of Israel."
Now the assertion that Jephtha "lived as a freebooter" is a pure
invention of the fancy. The Hebrew text simply informs us that
Jephtha fled from the persecutions of his brethren, " and dwelt in the
" land of Tob, and vain persons gathered themselves to Jephtha, and
"they went out with him." The picturesque allusion to the habits of
a " Scottish border chieftain in the middle ages," in other words, that
Jephtha lived by murder and plunder, is equally unsupported by the
Word of God. The allusion to David's manner of life at Ziklag is
equally unhappy, as far as tending to show that Jephtha was a godless
bandit. Surely Mr. Bullock forgets that at this period some of David's
most affecting Psalms were written. The real vocation of David at this
period is evident from 1 Sam. xxv. 14 — 16, where it appears that he
and his men acted as protectors to their countrymen against the incur
sions of foreign marauders. But the actual question at issue is, whether
the gloss of Tanchum is admissible or not. Does the phrase in Jud. xi. 1 1
invariably signify " force of mind for great undertakings and bodily
" strength " ? On the contrary, it invariably signifies an extraordinary
and particular Divine afflatus, frequently accompanied with the gift of
Prophecy, and discontinued as soon as the particular emergency had
passed away, e.g., in the case of Eldad and Medad, Num. xi. 25 ; of
Balaam, Num. xxiv. 2 ; of Saul, 1 Sam. x. 6 — 11 ; of David at his
anointing, 1 Sam. xvi. 13, where it is also said (verse 14) niD mm nni
mn' nan nsi mi innsai rwm two and the Spirit of Jehovah departed from
with Saul, and an evil spirit from Jehovah troubled (or tempted) him,
2 Chron. xv. 1 ; of Azariah, — 2 Chron. xxiv. 20, where it is said, "The
" Spirit of God clothed (nwa1; as in Judg. vi. 34) Zechariah the son of
" Jehoiadah the priest, who stood above the people, and said unto them,
" Thus saith God," &c. See also Ezek. ii. 2, iii. 12, 14, 24, viii. 3,
xi. 1, 5, 24, in all of which passages Tanchum's interpretation is utterly
inadmissible. In the next place Mr. Bullock admits that he does not
exactly know where to fix the precise locality of Jephtha's settlement.
He calls it " a debateable land, probably belonging to Ammon, 2 Sam.

232 CHAP. XL, 32.
" x. 6." Possibly his conjecture may be correct, but until the point is
decisively settled it is rather premature, I would submit, to assert that
the inhabitants of this terra incognita (see Wells' Geography, vol. i.,
360, ii., 49) were addicted to the practice of human sacrifices. Such
slipshod conjecture is not critical certainty. In 2 Kings iii. 27 we are
told, indeed, that the King of Moab, when beleaguered in Kirhareseth,
offered his eldest son as a burnt offering upon the city wall. But the
terms of Jephtha's twofold message to the King of Ammon (Judges xi.
14 — 27) affords the best index, not only to his character for humanity
and justice, but also to his religious belief. He was certainly not the
ignorant and reckless desperado that he is represented in Smith's Dic
tionary. On the contrary, any one who will carefully read Judges x.
will perceive that it was God's providential guidance which directed
the men of Gilead in the choice of a leader. The expression of a per
sistent sentiment of reverential affiance in the revelation of the ways of
God to man in times of old, will doubtless awaken a derisive smile in
these days of haphazard experimentalising upon God's Word. It is,
however, assuredly a more consolatory basis of trust to rest one's faith
upon the inspired assertions of the Old and New Testaments, than to
drift wittingly away from the ancient landmarks, and to commit oneself
as " a waif and a stray " upon the sea of conjecture, to the safe keeping
of admitted guesses against the veracity, the common sense, nay, the
ordinary sagacity of the sacred penman. According to the modern
school of interpretation the holy men of old were either dupes, or fools,
or knaves, or all three together. Jephtha's rash vow, spoken in the
enthusiasm of his indignation against the Ammonites who had twice
rejected his offers for an amicable settlement of the disputed territory,
affords a memorable illustration of weakness, even in the most heroic
characters. But in the Bible, God's saints are never represented aa
perfect. An ideal portrait of perfection would bear upon the face of it
the justification for rejecting it as untrue. Here it is told of Jephtha,
like Moses, that he spake "unadvisedly with his lips " ; and yet he is
held up by the Writer to the Hebrews as an example of the faith that
overcame. His vow was made according to zeal, but not according to
knowledge. But that he was a true servant of, and believer in, Jehovah,
is certain from the 11th and 12th chapters of the book of Judges. He
acted under strong religious impressions and with a holy ardour for
the vindication of Jehovah's honour. That he would offer, and God
would accept, or rather would not reprobate by one word of indignant
disapproval, Jephtha's immolation of his child, is a theory altogether
incredible. The literal translation of the Hebrew words in Judges xi.
39 40 by no means necessitates the inference which the surreptitious

CHAP. XL, 32. 233
introduction of the words according to, apparently sanctions in the
English version. It is there said vn iw» vru n« nb ws'i, the exact
sense of which is given by the LXX., Kal irroirjo-ev iv dvrrj ttjv evxr)v
airoC fjv qv^aro. And then it is added by way of explanation vh «'m
»'n tist and she knew no husband, i.e., she remained for ever single.
This explanation would be meaningless and unnecessary if her father
had sacrificed her "Immediately on her return, after her two months'
sojourn in the mountains. She had left him a virgin, probably already
betrothed to a husband, and being the only child of Jephtha, all hope of
posterity was abandoned, and she was devoted by her own consent to
perpetual maidenhood. Surely the advocates of the immolation theory
would not insinuate that it was needful to intimate that Jephtha's
daughter suffered no violence at the executioner's hands before she
suffered death for her father's sins. Jephtha, moreover, who " uttered
" all his words before Jehovah in Mizpeh," would have ample oppor
tunity for ascertaining the will of the Lord during the two months
of his daughter's absence. The assertion contained in Mr. Grove's
article Mizpah, in Smith's Dictionary, that " we can hardly doubt that
"on the altar of that Sanctuary" (previously described in the same
article as a Sanctuary of Jehovah) " the father's terrible vow was con-
" summated," is simply revolting to every pious mind. For further
discussion of this topic see Whiston's Essay on the Sacrifice of Isaac
before alluded to, on page 202 ; Selden's treatise, De Success, in
Pontif. Heb., lib. i., col. 234, and in the 12mo. edition of Leyden, 1638,
pp. 228—230. The treatise is printed at length in vol. xii. of Ugolin.
Thes., see also Selden, De jure Natur. et Gent, (of which chapter ix.,
book iv., is devoted to the discussion of Jephtha's vow. The treatise is
found in vol. xxvii. of Ugol. Thes.). — Car. Sigonius, De Rep. Hebraor.,
ibid., vol. iv., col. 490, note 5, and Eeland, Antiquitates sacra? veterum
Hebr., pp. 387—390. (Trajecti Bat., 1712, 8vo.) The latter writer
proposes to translate the words of Jephtha's vow tMi wri'toni nvrt mm,
erit illud Deo sacrum, aut in holocaustum id offeram, i.e., it shall be for
the Lord, or I will offer it as a burnt-offering. He cites Exod. xxi. 15
in support of his theory, although Gesenius, Lexicon Manuale, p. 262,
hh., stoutly denies that i ever has the signification of aut, or, and refers
to Exod. xxi. 15 — 17 in support of his assertion. Nevertheless, E.
David Kimchi supplies" the very same interpretation, based upon
Exod. xxi. 15, and tells us that it was his father's, E. Joseph Kimchi's,
view of the subject, and accords his unqualified approval to this view
of the subject. E. Levi Ben Gerson is strongly in favsur of the same
opinion. See Selden, De Jure Nat. et Gent, (ibid., col. 1048, 1049).
That virgins were sometimes offered, i.e., set apart, to the Lord for the
H H

234 CHAP. XL, 32, 33.
service of the Tabernacle, Belaud implies from Num. xxxi. 35. He
alludes to God's utter detestation of human sacrifices as expressed in
Is. Ixvi. 3 ; and, lastly, he shrewdly remarks that the daughters of
Israel are not related to have bewailed the maiden's death, but her
condition of virginity. The reader may also with great advantage con
sult the famous Abbe Guenee's inimitable rejoinder to M. de Voltaire's
assertions that the Jewish law authorised and commanded human
sacrifices in reference to the sacrifice of Isaac, Jephtha's vow, and
the dedication of the Midianitish women, &c, &c. Lettres de quelques
Juifs Portugais, Attemands et Polonais d M. de Voltaire, par M. VAbbe
Guenee. Tom. ii., Lettre iii. (Si les Juifs immolaient des hommes a la
Divinite, et si leur hi autorisait ces sacrifices), pp. 39 — 61. (Paris, 3 Tom.
8vo.) From the last-mentioned writer it will be seen that the attempt
to foist the sacrifice of a human being upon the altar of Jehovah, is only
an insipid warming up of the ill-savoured impieties of the so-called
"Philosopher" of Verney. The audacity of pretending originality
for these exploded impieties will be obvious to every moderately well-
read student. Most of the objections of the modern school of " Higher
Biblical Criticism " are to be found, in some shape or other, in the writings
of the French and English Atheists and Deists of the last century. Many
of these silly impieties are admirably disposed of in Bishop Watson's
Apology.
Verses 32, 33. — And David and Samuel and the prophets.
Who, through faith, subdued kingdoms ' (KaTvycovio-avro,
entered into successful conflict with the resources of kings and
kingdoms ?), wrought righteousness 2 (eipyacravro SiKaio-
(jvvrjv), obtained (iirervypv, realised) promises,3 stopped the
mouths of lions.*
1 Dr. Gill refers the subduing of kingdoms to the conquests especially
of David, who subjugated Syria, Moab, Amnion, Amalek, Edom, and
the Philistines, 2 Sam. viii. 12, 14 ; but I cannot help thinking that
reference is here made to the heroic stand" and protest which the
prophets, from Samuel and Elijah onwards, made against Eoyal and
national apostacy, and departure from God. They strove and wrestled
mightily against the encroachments of Eoyal libertinism upon the altar
and the constitution, fearlessly pleading the cause of a Naboth against
an Ahab and a Jezebel ; of the forlorn and oppressed people, as
Micaiah did against Ahab, and Jeremiah did against Jehoiakim; and
this in spite of the persecution and neglect and despiteful treatment

CHAP. XL, 34. 235
which they suffered at the hands of their ungrateful countrymen. For.
an excellent treatise on the subject of Elijah, see J. Wesselii, Disser-
tatio de Epistola Elia Propheta, ad 2 Chron. xxi. 12 (Dissertationes
Sacrse Leidenses, Lugd. Bat., 1721. 4to.). Ewald translates the passage
thus : — " Welche unter Glauben Konigreiche niederkampften, Gerech-
" tigkeit vollfiihrten, Verheissungen erlangten, Lbwenrachen vers-
topften," &c.
2 Dr. Gill paraphrases the expression " wrought righteousness " by
" exercised vindictive justice, in taking vengeance on the enemies of
" God," &c. It probably signifies " asserted the right," " foretold
" God's retributive justice," and were instruments in its accomplish
ment. So Elijah destroyed the Baal prophets and priests, and denounced
vengeance on Ahab and his posterity. So the man of God that came
from Judah prophesied against the altar, and gave a sign which, many
long years after, was fulfilled by Josiah. So, also, " the Lord spake by
" his servants the prophets " (2 Kings xxi. 10 — 16) against Manasseh,
because of the " very much innocent blood that he shed." Such was
the commission which Jeremiah received : — " See, I have set thee over
" the nations and over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and
" to destroy, and to throw down, to build and to plant." (Jer. i. 10.)
3 Such were Joshua and Caleb, Gideon (Judges vi. 13), Manoah
(ibid., xiii. 24); such was David, who waited God's time until the
kingdom was given to him, without raising his finger to hasten on the
crisis. Such was Hezekiah, who obtained the promised deliverance
from the Assyrian invaders ; and Ezra and Nehemiah, whose faith was
rewarded in beholding the return from captivity. Ewald considers the
Writer to refer to the Messianic promises successively received by the
prophets, and which were confirmatory of and supplementary to the
Promise made to Abraham. He writes : — "Erlangten Verheissungen,
" wie David 2 Sam. vii., und soviele Propheten, neue Verheissungen,
" und doch nur zu den noch im Anfange des vorigen Abschnittes, v. 17,
" erwahnten alten Messianischen hinzukommende, und ihre Gewissheit
" mehrende, aber deswegen auch hier nicht vergessene."
4 Samson (Judges xiv. 5), David (1 Sam. xvii. 34), Daniel (vi. 22, 23),
e(ppaf;av, shut up. The LXX. has, in Dan. vi. 22, dvetypai-e ra arrdpaTa
k.t.X. ; and, in verse 18, eKXeioev 6 Beds ra crTopara Tav Xedvrav, Kal ov
TraprjvaxXvo-av ra AaviijX, which passage is not in the Chaldee.
Verse 34. — Quenched the violence (Bvvapiv) of fire,1
escaped the edge of the sword 2 (e<f>uyov tnopara pa%aipas,
mn *%), out of weakness3 were made strong (iveSvvapco-
drjcrav dirb dcr0r]veia<;) , were made valiant in war, put to

236 CHAP. XL, 35.
flight the armies of the aliens (irapep,j3oXd$ i-KXivav
aXXorptaiv).*
1 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego in the burning fiery furnace.
A direct allusion to Dan. iii. 27. pnowia nto late n1;, ovk eKvplevae to
rrvp tov oaparos avrav. LXX.
2 Eahab, David, Elijah (1 Kings xvii. 3, xix. 3, 2 Kings i. 9 — 16) ;
Elisha (2 Kings xiv. 13—20) ; the prophets hidden away by Obadiah
(1 Kings xviii. 4) ; Jeremiah ( Jer. xxxvi. 26) ; Baruch (ibid.) ; Ebed-
melech (Jer. xxxix. 16 — 18).
3 David, as may be seen from many of his Psalms ; Hezekiah (2
Kings xx. ; Isaiah xxxviii.) after his sickness. But I think that the
writer has chiefly in his mind spiritual feebleness and depression such
as Moses exhibited at his call (Exod. iv. 1 — 13) ; also at the ill-success
of his mission (Exod. v. 22, 23) ; the men of Israel for fear before the
Philistines, when Jonathan smote the garrison (1 Sam. xiii. 6 ; comp.
with xiv. 1 — 23); again, before David slew Goliath (1 Sam. xvii.);
Obadiah (1 Kings xviii. 9 — 16) ; Elijah himself (1 Kings xix. 3, 4, 8) ;
Hezekiah, for fear of Sennacherib (2 Kings xix. 6 — 21 ; Isaiah xxxvii
1) ; Isaiah at the vision of Jehovah (vi. 5 — 8); Jeremiah at his call.
" Then said I, Ah, Lord God ! behold, I cannot speak ; for I am a
" child," &c. (Jer. i. 6 — 10) ; Ezekiel at the vision preceding his com
mission (Ezek. i. 28, ii. 1, 2, iii. 14, 23, 24) ; Nehemiah (iv. 4, 5, 9, 14) ;
Mordecai (Esther iv. 1, viii. 15, &c). For the use of the word
ivSwapda (always in a spiritual sense), see Acts ix. 22, Eom. iv. 20,
Eph. vi. 10. Philipp. iv. 13, 1 Tim. i. 12, 2 Tim. ii. 1, iv. 17.
4 See Joshua and Judges, as well as the other historical books,
passim. The exploits of Abraham (Gen. xiv. 15), of Shamgar (Jud. iii.
31), of Samson (xv. 15), of Jonathan with his armourbearer (1 Sam.
xiv.), and David singlehanded against Goliath, are prominent instances
of the discomfiture of the armies of the aliens. HapepfioXr) occurs ten
times in the New Testament. In Acts xxi. 34, 37, xxii. 24, xxiii. 10,
16, 32, it is translated, in the Authorized Version, " castle." In Heb.
xiii. 11, 13, and Eev. xx. 9, it is rendered by " camp." Possibly allu
sion is here made to the Maccabcean exploits, but I confess that I
doubt it.

Verse 35. — Women received their dead to life again1 (e'f
avdo-Tao-ea>$, von der Auferstehung. — Luth.), but others
were cudgeled2 to death (iTvpiravio-drjo-av, zerschlagen. —
Luth.), not accepting the proffered release (i.e., on the

CHAP. XL, 36—40. 237
condition of apostatizing), in order that they might attain
to (tv^coo-iv) a resurrection that was preferable (KpeirTovo<;,
i.e., to be chosen before a release from torment purchased by
a denial of the faith). 3
1 Eesuscitation is, in this case, a rendering more consonant with the
sense than resurrection. Two of the examples recorded in the Old Testa
ment of restoration to life are found 1 Kings xvii. 17, of the son of the
widow of Sarephath, and of the Shunammite (2 Kings iv. 17). The first
was restored to life by the prayer of Elijah, the other by the interces
sion of Elisha. The third instance is recorded 2 Kings xiii. 21, where
the occurrence seems to have been entirely unforeseen and unexpected.
The effective cause, at least in the case of the widow of Sarephath, was
the faith, not of the mother, but of the prophet. See 1 Kings xvii. 18.
2 'ErvpTravlo-Brjo-av. Probably under the persecutions of Jezebel and
Manasseh. The rvpiravov seems to have been an instrument in the
shape of a drum or wheel, and is mentioned 2 Mace. vi. 19 — 28 ;
although, as the verb not unusually signifies to beat to death, there is no
absolute necessity for deciding that the above-mentioned instrument of
torture is here alluded to. For a vast number of authorities upon the
subject, see Wettstein, in loco, and also J. C. Wolfii, Cura Philologica,
&c, tom. iv., p. 768. The last-mentioned writer (ibid., p. 769) speaks
with a very qualified certainty, as to the allusion having any reference
to the case of the Maccabees. Kpe'nrovos should be referred to dnoXv-
rpao-iv, and not to the resurrection mentioned in the commencement of
the verse,, nor yet to the resurrection of the just, as opposed to that of
the ungodly (Dan. xii. 2). The proposal to refer it to Daniel's prophecy
is far-fetched.3 Josephus writes : — " Every good man hath his own conscience
" bearing witness to himself ; and, by virtue of our, legislators' pro-
'' phetic spirit, and of the firm security which God affords to such an
" one, he believes that God hath made this grant to those that observe
" these laws, even though they be obliged readily to die for them, that
" they shall come into being again, and, at a certain revolution of
" things, receive a better life than they enjoyed before." (Jos. against
Apion, ii. 31. Whiston.)
Verses 36 — 40. — And others were put to the test of
(irelpav eXaj3ov ; or else, experienced) mockings ! and
scourgings,2 as well as of bonds and imprisonment.3 They
were stoned,4 they were sawn asunder,5 they were tempted

238 CHAP. XL, 36—40.
(iireipdaOrjcrav),6 they were butchered by the sword7
(iv (povip pa^alpas diredavov, they were beheaded?), they
went about in sheepskins and goatskins,8 destitute,9
afflicted (6X,i/36pevoi, chafed, cruelly harassed), evil entreated
(KaKov)(pvpevoi), of whom the world was not worthy,'0
wandering up and down (irXavd>pevot) in desert places and
mountains, and caves, and dens (oirais, holes, cavernous
retreats) of the earth.11 And all these aforesaid, although
they obtained a good report through the faith (koX ovroi
TrdvTe<; pbapTVprjOevres Bid rr)<; iricneais;), did not receive
(ovk eKopicravTo) the promise ; God having predestined
(irpofiXe-tyapievov, looked foncard to) some far more excel
lent thing concerning us (i.e., his whole Church and
people) : so that without us (that remain, and shall
remain unto the coming of Christ, 'iva pr) %«/H9 r)pfbv) they
might not attain to their final perfection (TeXeiadacrt)."'
1 Samson (Judges xvi. 25) ; David by Shimei (2 Sam. xvi. 5 — 13.
See also passim in the Psalms) ; Micaiah (1 Kings xxii. 24) ; Jeremiah
smitten and put into the stocks by Pashur (Jer. xx. 1, 2) ; Jeremiah
complains, " I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me " (ibid., 7) ;
the Jews when rebuilding Jerusalem by Sanballat and Tobiah (Neh. iv.
1 — 4) ; the Prophets of God by the Jews (2 Chron. xxxvi. 16), where it is
said, " They mocked the messengere of God, and despised his words, and
" misused his prophets," &C. Kal rjo-av pvKrrjpl^ovTes tovs dyyiXovs avrov,
Kal i£ov8evovvres tovs Xdyovs avrov, Kal iprrai^ovres iv rois Trpo(prjrais
avrov. — LXX. The Hebrew D'snsnoi is probably better rendered by
iprral^ovres than by " misused." See the parable of the vineyard,
Matt. xxi. 33, &c, Mark xii. 1, &c, Luke xx. 9, and also the Saviour's
lament over Jerusalem, Matt, xxiii. 34 — 37.
2 This is in exact accordance with the account given by Josephus,
Antiq. xii. 5, 4, of the outrages and cruelties practised by Antiochus : —
" And when the King had built an idol-altar upon God's altar, he slew
" swine upon it, and so offered a sacrifice neither according to the law, nor
" the Jewish religious worship in that country. He also compelled them
" to forsake the worship wliich they paid their own God, and to adore
" those whom he took to be gods, and made them build temples, and
" raise idol-altars, in every city and village, and offer swine upon them
" every day. He also commanded them not to circumcise their sons,

CHAP. XL, 36—40. 239
" and threatened to punish any that should be found to have trans-
" gressed his injunction. He also appointed overseers, who should
•"' compel them to do what he commanded. And, indeed, many Jews
" there were who complied with the King's commands, either volun-
" tarily, or out of fear of the penalty that was denounced ; but the
" best men, and those of the noblest souls, did not regard him, but did
" pay a greater respect to the customs of their country than concern as
" to the punishment which he threatened to the disobedient ; on which
" account they every day underwent great miseries and bitter torments,
"for they were whipped with rods, and their bodies were torn to
" pieces, and were crucified while they were still alive and breathed :
" they also strangled those jwomen, and their sons whom they had
" circumcised, as the King had appointed, hanging their sons about
" their necks as they were upon the crosses. And if there were any
" sacred book of the Law found, it was destroyed, and those with
" whom they were found miserably perished also." ( Whiston's Josephus.)
That the establishment of idolatry in the kingdoms of Israel and Judah
was accomplished without persecution is very improbable. Under
Jezebel's bloody tyranny the outward worship of Jehovah was, for a
time at least, extinct. We know from 2 Chron. xi. 14 — 16 that Jero
boam stripped the Levites of their possessions and property, and pro
hibited them from executing their functions. They emigrated in a body
to Judah, "and after them out of all the tribes of Israel, such as
" set their hearts to seek the Lord God of Israel, came to Jerusalem,
" to sacrifice unto the Lord God of their fathers." A further and
numerous exodus " out of Ephraim, and Manasseh, and of Simeon "
is mentioned 2 Chron. xv. 9, in the reign of Asa ; whilst in 2 Chron.
xxx. 10 we learn how the messengers of Hezekiah were received with
scorn and mocking when they invited the Israelites to participate in the
Passover at Jerusalem, although " divers of Asher and Manasseh and
" of Zebulum humbled themselves, and came to Jerusalem." Under
Ahaz and Manasseh, as well as under Jehoiakim, idolatrous intolerance
and persecuting malevolence made themselves severely felt. The writer
of the article Manasseh, in Smith's Dictionary, justly observes (although
there are some of his other suggestions which are open, to say the least,
to grave objections), " The struggle of opposing worships must have
" been as fierce under Manasseh, as it was under Antiochus, or Decius,
" or Diocletian, or Mary. Men must have suffered and died in that
" struggle, of whom the world was not worthy."
3 Joseph (Psalm cv. 18) ; Micaiah (1 Kings xxii. 26) ; Hannanf the
Seer, by Asa (2 Chron. xvi. 10) ; Jeremiah (Jer. xxxii. 2, xxxvi. 5,
xxxviii. 6).

240 CHAP. XL, 36-40.
4 Naboth the Jezreelite was truly a martyr to his allegiance to the law
of his God (1 Kings xxi). By Leviticus xxv. 23, 24, he was expressly
forbidden to alienate his inheritance for ever. " The land shall not be
" sold (nnns1; -onn »rt yum , lit. to extinction), for the land is mine, for
" ye are strangers and sojourners with me. And in all the land of your
" possession ye shall grant a redemption (unn nbw) for the land." And
therefore he declined the King's offer with the words, " Jehovah forbid
" it me, that I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee."
Let it be observed it was a total alienation that Ahab aimed at ; for he
offered to give him " a better vineyard than it," or the " worth of it in
"money" (Tib "Win Fpa). Dean Stanley (Smith's Dictionary; Article,
Naboth), with his usual temptation to say something striking and
flippant, writes, " Naboth, in the independent spirit of a Jewish
" landholder, refused. Perhaps the turn of his expression implies that
" his objection was mingled with a religious scruple at forwarding the
" acquisitions of a half-heathen king (!). ' Jehovah forbid it to me that
" ' I should give the inheritance of my fathers unto thee.' " The truth
is that Dean Stanley feels not unwilling to explain away Naboth's reply,
inasmuch as it affords incontrovertible testimony to the fact that the
Mosaic system of jurisprudence was in full force in the days of Ahab,
and that the theocratic settlement of landed estates was so rigidly and
sacredly adhered to, that even Ahab did not feel himself strong enough
to encroach upon a right so ancient, and so universally acknowledged
as the basis of the social system. The Dean proceeds to say, " Naboth
" was set on high in the public place of Samaria." These words, " in
" the public place of Samaria" are an ornamental addition not found
in the text, but calculated to divert the attention from the fact that
Jezebel herself felt compelled to observe the Mosaic constitution, at
least outwardly, in her scheme to destroy Naboth, and therefore
directed that he should be tried, according to the law, for blasphemy.
The charge of high treason was added, according to all the best Eab
binical and philological authorities, in order that the goods of Naboth
might legally revert to the crown. (See Selden, De Successionibus ad
leges Hebraorum in Bona defunctorum [cap. 25, De successione Fisci, seu
haredibus morte damnatorum], pp. 173 — 187.) A striking example of
this law is afforded in the generous restitution by David of Saul's
property, which had been forfeited by the treason of Ishbosheth, to
Mephibosheth, 2 Sam. ix. 7. Dean Stanley mentions that Naboth's
sons suffered with their father, correctly enough, for it is implied in
Jehu's speech (2 Kings ix. 26). He forgets, however, to remark that
this extirpation of Naboth's family was according to the precedent of
Achan (Josh. vii. 25), who suffered for high treason against God when

CHAP. XL, 36—40. 241
he appropriated the idolatrous spoils. The " public place," then, was
the gate of the city, where the court was held. According to the
Mosaic Law, Jezebel commits the case of Naboth to the " elders " and
nobles of the city ; in other words, to the lesser Council or Sanhedrin
(p ma) of twenty-three members, who had power of life and death.
(See Selden, ibid. ; Cunseus, de Rep. Hebr., p. 106, Lugd. Bat., 1632,
12mo. ; Gemara Jerus., tract Sanhedrin, col. 3, &c. ; Ugolin. Thes.,
vol. xxv. ; Mishna, Surenhusius' edition, tom. iv., p. 212, § 4 —
T\vbw\ D'-rawa micsi 'in, " Causes of life and death [are tried] by the
" three-and-twenty," &c. ; also, p. 207, § 1, p. '214, § 6, and p. 232,
§ 5 ; A. Pfeiffer, Antiquitates Sehctce, cap. ii., De Poenis Judaorum
forensibus, in Ugolin. Thes., vol. iv., col. 1083.) The punishment of
stoning, itself, was constitutionally according to the law of Moses, and
one which a king had no power to inflict. Execution by the sword was
the only form of death which he could legally impose, as Maimonides
asserts, Hilc. Sinhedr., chap. xiv. (See Cocceius' note, Mishna,,
Sanhedr., ibid., p. 237, § 7.) The chattels of a criminal who was con
victed of blasphemy or idolatry, or any graver offence against the
majesty of Jehovah, did not revert to his heirs. The city was
destroyed, and was not to be rebuilt (Deut. xiii. 16, 17) ; and so
Maimonides writes, p ma 'inn -rasa DmoTrt ii'ni nmiaa dudd, Their
goods are to be burnt, and are not to belong to their heirs, as they do belong
in the case of those who suffer death by a decree of the Council. On the
other hand, the Babyl. Gemara (Sanhedrin, col. 637 ; Ugolin. Thes., vol.
xxv.) asserts as follows : — prvrt p'Dai p ma 'inn -pa1? jmcai noto 'nn ,
When any one suffers capital punishment on account of the kingdom, his
goods belong to the King ; if by the decree of the Council, they belong to
his heirs. E. Levi Ben Gerson observes, jn'Dai mate 'nnm ma inn';
niato'; . " We learn from this passage that those condemned to death for
" high treason forfeited their goods to the King." Selden justly concludes
that Naboth having been arraigned under the twofold indictment,
¦rtoi D'mw naia, thou hast blasphemed God and the king, was visited by
confiscation of his vineyard for his high treason, although he underwent
the formality of trial by the local magistracy or p ma. The Jerusalem
Gemara, Sanhedrin, fol. 20, col. 2, asserts that anyone who cursed the
Eoyal family of David, nn ma mate, was capitally punished. The
reviling of the magistracy was, however, an offence against the Mosaic
Statute-book (Exod. xxii. 27) "i«n n1; -psa N'fflii V>pn »¦;. See Ugolini
Thes., vol. xxv. (Gemara Sanhedr., col. 173, &c.) The letter of Jezebel
itself was as consonant with the exact letter of the Mosaic law as the
indictment against Naboth, and the punishment to be inflicted for his
pretended offences was in accordance with its enactments. She wrote
I I

242 CHAP. XL, 36—40.
that after the sentence had been estabfished upon the testimony of
" two witnesses " (Num. xxxv. 30, Deut. xvii. 6, 7, xix. 15) he was to
be carried out of the city to the place of execution. This was in
accordance with Levit. xxiv. 14, and therefore the Mishna says : —
" When the trial is over, they lead forth the condemned to be stoned.
" The place of stoning was outside the place of trial, for it is "said
" bbpai nN »2in, carry forth the blasphemer (lit. cause to go forth). An
" official stands at the door of the court holding a handkerchief, another
" on horseback places himself some distance off, so that he can keep
" the other in view. Then, if any witness presents himself who can
" testify to the innocence of the criminal, he waves the handkerchief,
" and the mounted man gallops off and fetches the culprit back. Even
" if he himself alleges proof of his own innocence he may be brought
" back four or five times, provided that what he says appears to have
" some solid foundation," &c. (Sanhedrin, p. 233, Mishna Surenh.,
vol. iv.) It is also related (p. 234, ibid) how, when arrived within
10 cubits of the fatal spot, the criminal was urged to confess with a
view to expiate his crime. We see, therefore, that there was a humane
principle involved, at least in the minds of the Talmudical writers, in
the fact of the place of execution being remote from the place of trial.
It afforded opportunity of reprieve and confession. See also the
Jerusalem Gemara, Sanhedrin Ugolini Thes., vol. xxv., col. 129 — 131.
Eespecting the law of Blasphemy, see ibid., col. 174 — 182 ; also Gemara
Babyl., ibid., col. 596, &c. The Eabbies held that every one who was
stoned was afterwards hung upon a cross until the evening (ibid., col.
698, &c). This was the opinion of E. Eliezer, but others asserted that
none but blasphemers and idolaters were thus treated. (Mishna
Surenhus., Sanhedrin, tom. iv., 235.) With all the above quoted
helps to the right understanding of the passage, the following note
appended by Dean Stanley to his article Naboth, above cited, becomes
all the more extraordinary ; either the Very Eeverend writer does
himself great injustice, or it was a piece of inconceivable rashness for
him to undertake to write an article upon a subject, of which the
execution of his task appears to justify his confession of entire ignorance.
The Dean writes : — '¦ The Hebrew word which is rendered here only
" ' on high,' is more accurately ' at the head of,' ' or in the chiefest place
" among,' (1 Sam. ix. 22.) The passage is obscured by our ignorance (!)
" of the nature of the ceremonial in which Naboth was made to take
" part ; but in default of this knowledge we may accept the explanation
" of Josephus, that an assembly (iKKXvo-ia) was convened, at the head of
" which Naboth, in virtue of his position, was placed, in order that the
" charge of blasphemy might be more telling," The translation of the

CHAP. XL, 36—40. 243
words Dsn »Nia "on high amongst the people" is, after all, no such
abstruse mystery. A glance at the Englishman's Hebrew Concordance,
article wi, head, will afford almost numberless examples, which will
justify the rendering — times without number it is applied to the top
of a mountain, &c, &c, and would there signify an exalted position —
i.e., that Naboth was set up in a conspicuous place in the midst of the
Council. Or else if the Dean prefers to stand by Josephus' version, viz.,
that when the Council of Elders was called together, Naboth was
treacherously placed in the chief seat in order to make him a readier
mark for his traducers' false accusations, I would venture to submit for
his approval the following extract from S. F. Bucheri Synedrium
Magnum (printed at length, Ugol. Thes., vol. xxiii., col. 1167),
" Summus hujus Curiae prseses proprio nomine appellator Nasi n'\di ,
" princeps, ad dignitatem summum evectus aut elevatus, qu& notione radix
"Hebrsea nidi sumitur. Supremus Dux kot et-oxrjv naiE'n vtn, Caput,
" seu primarius Consessus, &c." The exact words of 1 Kings xxi. 9 are,
Dsn iDNia ma: n« li'wni , and cause Naboth to sit in the head of the people.
The common-sense view of the passage is that given by our version,
and also by Luther, und setzet Nnbot oben an im Volk. Probably the
position in which he was placed was on the top of the gate itself, where
he would be conspicuous to all. and would be above the heads of the
people. The proclamation of the fast seems to be explained by the
statement of the Mishna and Gemara that criminals guilty of heresy
were executed on days of solemnity (tail), in order " that all the people
" might hear and fear." Deut. xvii. 13 ; Mishna Surenh. (Sanhedrin),
vol. iv., p. 258; Gemara (Sanhedrin), Ugol. Thes., vol. 25, cols. 285,
286. Be this as it may, it is quite plain from the multitude of
incidental allusions to the enactments of the Mosaic Statute-book con
tained in this 21st chapter of 1 Kings, that Dr. Stanley's conjecture as
given above, respecting Naboth's refusal to sell his vineyard, is gra
tuitous and untenable. Naboth died a martyr to his constancy to God's
written law, and not owing to some confused notion that it was improper
to sell a piece of land to a " half-heathen king ! " This view of the
subject is at least as trustworthy as the information which Dr. Stanley
unhesitatingly imports into his article from the Septuagint, that Naboth
and his sons were eaten by swine as well as dogs, and that the pool or
tank into which their blood ran " was the common bathing-place of
the prostitutes of the city." It is also far more trustworthy than the
Dean's attempt to show that the LXX. account of the scene of the
transaction is at variance with that of the Hebrew. He writes : — " He
" (Naboth) was a Jezreelite and the owner of a small portion of ground,
" 2 Kings ix. 25, 26, that lay on the eastern slope of the hill of Jezreel.

244 CHAP. XL, 36—40.
" He had also a vineyard, of which the situation is not quite certain.
" According to the Hebrew text, 1 Kings xxi. 1 , it was in Jezreel, but
" the LXX. render the whole clause differently, omitting the words
" which were in Jezreel, and reading instead of the palace, the threshing-
" floor of Ahab king of Samaria. This points to the view, certainly
" most consistent with the subsequent narrative, that Naboth's vine-
" yard was on the hill of Samaria, close to the threshing-floor (the
" word translated in the Authorized Version, ' void place '), which
" undoubtedly existed there, hard by the gate of the city, 1 Kings xxiv. (?)
" The Eoyal palace of Ahab was close upon the city wall at Jezreel."
The assumption that Ahab's palace was on the city wall, may be taken
for what it is worth. Josephus, Antiq. ix. 6, 4, in referring to 2 Kings
ix. 30 — 33, speaks of " a tower," and not " the palace." But the large
assertion that " the LXX. render the whole clause differently," is simply
contrary to historic truthfulness, as a comparison of the three texts
will show : —

1 Kings xxi. 1.
rhxn ona-in -in» 'mi
tom '"ftunrn n«A n'n ma
*\bo ana to-n te« bnsin : pirn)

Authorized Version.
And it came to pass
after these things, that
Naboth the Jezreelite
had a vineyard, which
was in Jezreel, hard by
the palace of Ahab king
of Samaria.

LXX.
1 Kings xx. 1.
Kal dpireXav eis rjv
r£> rlafiovBal ra 'Iefpa-
Xittj rrapd rrj aXa 'A^aajS
fiaaiXeas Sapapelas.

Now I fearlessly appeal to the candour of critics of any shade what
ever to say whether there is any contradiction whatever expressed or
implied in these three statements.
To argue from mere coincidence that the LXX. speaks of Ahab's
" threshing-floor," and the word pi is used in 1 Kings xxii. 10 of the
" void place " where the two kings sat in state, that Samaria must be
intended in xx. 1 instead of Jezreel, is inconceivably childish. To
answer Dr. Stanley in the spirit of his own reasoning, I might reply,
that in xxii. 10 it is not said in Ahab's threshing-floor, but a threshing-
floor ; therefore the King's threshing-floor camiot be intended ! The
statement of the Hebrew text is quite reconcilable with that of the
LXX. Both are probably according to fact. The tlu-eshing-floor was
doubtless on the Eoyal premises, and adjoined the vineyard of Naboth.
Further, the only colour for asserting that Naboth had two pieces of
ground, which are mentioned in the narrative, is contained in the
Anfh. Version of verse 18, where it is said, "Arise, go down to meet
" Ahab, King of Israel, which is in Samaria. Behold he is in the
" vineyard of Naboth, whither he is gone down to possess it." The

CHAP. XL, 36—40. 245
marginal references to 1 Kings xiii. 32, 2 Chron. xxii. 9, might have
saved the Dean from this blunder, and would have shown him that
" which is in Samaria " refers to Ahab's territorial title, and not to
Naboth's vineyard. (See also verse 1 of this chapter.) But the LXX.
version speaks decisively in the notes, 'A^aa/3 fiao-ikias 'lcrpar)X tou iv
Sapapelq. The Vulgate is stronger still : — " Achab regis Israel qui est
" in Samaria; ecce ad Vineam Naboth descendit ut possideat earn." Of
course, if once this discrepancy can be established, the fulfilment of
Elijah's prophecy respecting Jezebel, recorded by Jehu (2 Kings ix.
36, 37, with minuter particulars, not contained in 1 Kings xxi. 23) as
spoken in his hearing, would seem to have failed in its literal and
minute accomplishment. But the assertion that Naboth's vineyard was
close to the city of Samaria is based upon a careless and inexcusable
blunder, as shown above, whilst any description of its shape or extent,
such as the Dean propounds, is purely an imaginary one. Naboth was
a Jezreelite. He was tried according to the Law of Moses by the elders
and nobles of his own city. After his condemnation, again according
to the strict letter of the law, he was led forth from the city to the
place of execution. This place of execution for state criminals, for he
was tried on the double charge of blasphemy and high treason, may
have been outside the city of Samaria, for we read of Ahab, 1 Kings
xxii. 38, "And one washed the chariot in the pool of Samaria; and the
" dogs licked up his blood. And they washed his armour, according
" unto the word of the Lord which he spake." Or else a tank or piece
of standing water, near Jezreel, went by the name of the Pool of
Samaria, for Josephus distinctly asserts, " They took the dead body to
" Samaria, and buried it there ; but when they had washed his chariot
" in the fountain of Jezreel, which was bloody with the dead body of
" the King, they acknowledged that the prophecy of Elijah was true."
There is, however, no reason for pressing this suggestion respecting the
nomenclature of the Pool of Jezreel, as there is nothing in the Hebrew
to show that the chariot was not twice washed, or that the armour was
not washed at Jezreel and the chariot at Samaria. Indeed, 1 Kings
xxii. 38 seems to imply that they were washed at different times.
Dr. Stanley's note on the word " cursed," whereby he renders
" blasphemed" of the Authorised Version of 1 Kings xxi. 10, 13, affords
so novel and startling a specimen of criticism, that when I first read it
I almost thought it was intended as a joke. The learned Dean writes,
" By the LXX. this is given ivXdyrjo-e, blessed ; possibly merely for the
" sake of euphemism." Surely Dr. Stanley cannot be ignorant that it
is a literal rendering of the Hebrew "pa , he blessed; or, in the sense of
blasphemy against God, he cursed. Job i. 5, 11, ii. 5 — 9 ; Ps. x. 3

246 CHAP. XL, 36—40.
( Gesen). See Selden, De Jure Nat. et Gent. ; Ugolini Thes., vol." xxvii.,
col. 740—748; Buxtorf, Lexicon Chald., Article Maia. The LXX.
translators here, as in Job i. 11, ii. 5, have retained the equivalent to
•pa , as being most reverently appropriate. On the subject of what
constituted blasphemy, see Mishna Surenhus., Sanhedrin, vol. iv., p. 242 ;
and on the subject of the mode of legal procedure amongst the Hebrews,
see ibid., p. 205 — 268 passim.
Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the priest, was stoned in the court of
the house of the Lord (2 Chron. xxiv. 20 — 22), at the command of
Joash, because he remonstrated with King and people on account of
their departure from God. This is he to whom, some have asserted,
our Lord referred as " Zacharias" in Luke xi. 51, and "Zacharias the
" son of Barachias," Matt, xxiii. 35. It has been suggested that the
words Son of Barachias may have crept into the text of St. Matthew
from a marginal gloss, inasmuch as in the Gospel which the Nazarenes
used " the son of Jehoiada " was substituted in place of the above.
Whiston, however, understands our Lord to allude to Zechariah the
prophet's death, viz., the writer of the prophetical book, whose name
it bears : — " Since Zechariah was really the son of Barachiah, and
"grandson of Iddo (Zech. i. 1), and how he died, we have no other
" account than that before us in St. Matthew." (See Whiston's Josephus,
Wars of the Jews, iv. 5, 4, note.) Dean Alford (Hebrews xi. 37) says
positively, "Zechariah, son of Jehoiada" (2 Chron xxiv. 20 — 22), is
" referred to by our Lord " (Luke xi. 51 ; Matt, xxiii. 35) ; and in his
note on the last passage writes : — " YloO Bapaxiov does not occur in
" Luke xi. 51, and perhaps was not uttered by the Lord himself, but
" may have been inserted by mistake, as Zacharias was the son of
" Barachiah (see Zech. i. 1) ; a circumstance suppressed by Dr. Words-
" worth in his elaborate account of the mystical reason of the patro-
" nymic being used here." Dr. Alford's accusation of "suppression"
might perchance have come with a better grace if he had in any way
referred to Whiston's opinion as above cited, that there is really no
mistake at all in the text of St. Matthew, but that our Lord has there
informed us of the manner of that distinguished prophet's martyrdom.
The Gemara, Sanhedrin, cols. 951, 952, relates, respecting Zechariah
the son of Jehoiada, that, when Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the temple,
Nebuzaradan beheld with astonishment the martyr's blood trickling
from the ground. Having ascertained the cause of the phenomenon,
he resolved to pacify his manes. When he had slaughtered 940,000 (!)
of the chief men of the Jews, he addressed the spirit thus : —
lnVo^ inrtiopw ~\b 'mi hum jnaic D'aiio nnai nnai, Zechariah, Zechariah,
I have destroyed the goodliest of them ! Is it your pleasure that 1 should

CHAP. XL, 36—40. 247
slay them all ? Upon this, the Gemara says, the blood ceased to flow,
and Nebuzaradan was struck with remorse, and became a proselyte.
(Ugol. Thes., tom. xxv.) — The supposition that our Lord prophetically
referred to the Zacharias the son of Baruch, who was put to the sword
by the zealots in the temple, about thirty-four years after Christ's
death, is justly rejected by Whiston. Nor is the obscure tradition,
that the father of John the Baptist is pointed to, worthy of serious
attention. Tradition makes Jeremiah to have been stoned in Egypt.
Dr. Gill well observes, " The character of Jerusalem is, that she stoned
" the prophets that were sent unto her." Matt, xxiii. 37.
s 'Ewplo-8rio-av, Dr. Gill writes, " to which there seems to be allusion
" in Matt. xxiv. 51 (' and shall cut him asunder,' ko.1 Sixoroprjo-ei avrbv).
" There is no instance of any good men being so used in Scripture :
" perhaps reference is had to some that suffered thus in the time of
" Antiochus. The Jews have a tradition that the prophet Isaiah was
" sawn asunder in the times of Manasseh, and by his order," &c. The
tradition thus alluded to by Dr. Gill is found in the Jerusalem Gemara,
Sanhedrin (the tract is printed at length in Ugol. Thes., vol. 25), where
it is said that Isaiah fled from the pursuit of Manasseh, and took refuge
in a cedar tree, whereupon the cedar swallowed him up. The fringes
of his garment, however, were visible. Whereupon they went and
told Manasseh, and he commanded the cedar tree to be sawn asunder.
Upon obeying the King's orders, the prophet's blood gushed forth.
The passage is as follows : —
«r»rt pns "tnp \a pis mm mnbiap'ta 'sa 'w mn no mn nwio cpi ia
ni-ik piDii pbw \\b Ta« ,ntaip ptiNi pn« mnVm nms's -on .«n» ms^ai
mto1; "' nas nVi . in not 'cnn'Ni nto1; tidii . " Quando concitatus est
" Manasse, cucurrit post Isaiam, quserens eum occidere, et aufugit ab
" ejus conspectu, aufugit in cedrum, et eum absorpsit cedrus ; vide-
" bantur fimbriae pallii sui ; abeuntes dixerunt coram eo ; et ille iis
" dixit. Ite dissecate cedrum, et visus est ejus sanguis ex adverso.
" Et ob hanc rem noluit Dominus propitiari. 2 Eeg. xxiv. 4." (Ibid.,
col. 255—256.)
Schoettgen writes on the same subject, as follows : — " Communis
" Judseorum, et post hos patrum Christianorum traditio est, Jesaiam
" Prophetam jussu Manassis Eegis Israelitici serra disseetum esse.
" Quse si non probabilis ex hoc loco redditur, certe constat, hoc supplicii
"genere quosdam olim Hebrseorum adfectos fuisse. Jevamoth, fol.
"49, 2. Manasses interemit Jesaiam  Pracepit quippe, ut liyno
" cedrino interflceretur, lmiDil w*rt nvn« , quo facto adduxerunt cedrum,
" ut ipsum dissecarent. Quum ad os ejus pervenirent, animam efftavit.
" Ex patribus unum tantum proferimus Gregentium Tephrensem,

248 CHAP. XL, 36—40.
" disput. cum Herbano Judseo, p. 19, qui Judseis, inter alia, hoc
" objicit, rbv 'Ho-aiav irrplcraTe" &c. Schoettg., Horce Hebr., tom. i.,
p. 987. J. C. Wolfius, Cura Philog. et Crit., tom. iv., writes : —
" Eeceptum hoc supplicii genus olim fuisse, ostendit Gatakerus (Advers.,
" cap. xlv.) quern Elsnerus hic affert, Cassaubonus ad Sueton. Calig.,
" cap. 27, et ad Aristoph., Equites v. 767. Confer P. C. Kragelund,
" Disp. de serra martyrii instrumento, Hafnia, 1700." He remarks
further, that Whiston suspects that the fact and circumstances of
Isaiah's and Jeremiah's martyrdom were wilfully suppressed by the
Jews. 6 'Eneipdo-Bvo-av. A multitude of readings have been suggested in
place of this word. It is wanting in the Syriac and Ethiopic versions,
and is omitted, according to J. C. Wolfius, in two codices, as well as by
some of the Fathers. Luther translates it " zerstochen " (iTrdpBrjrrav),
thrust through, whilst Alford inclines to inprjaBrjo-av, were burned. I
cannot help feeling that Prof. Stuart is right when he says it must
mean " temptations presented by persecutors to the victims of their
" torture, in order to induce them to forsake their religion, and worship
" the gods of idolaters. Such was a common practice among the
" heathen persecutors of Christians. Not only life, but wealth and
" honour, were frequently proffered in the midst of torture the most
" agonising to the human frame, in order to tempt the martyrs to
" forsake their religion." Thus did Pashur seek to silence Jeremiah,
when he put him in the stocks, and of which Jeremiah bitterly com
plains (Jer. xx. 1, 2, 7; 14, &c), cursing the very day of his birth.
Similar was his condition when he was thrust into the dungeon, and
sank " into the mire " (Jer. xxxviii. 6). What cruelties were practised
by Jezebel, and Ahaz, and Manasseh, God's judgment-day alone will
reveal. In the apostolic times, we read how Saul "compelled" the
believers " to blaspheme." The unbelieving Jews indulged a ferocious
and rancorous hatred against the converts, and left no means untried to
reclaim them to Judaism. The inquisitorial phrase, " to put to the
•• question," i.e., to examine by torture, affords a parallel to this signifi
cation of Treipd£a. The seeming "mildness of the word" probably
conveyed a deep and sinister significance to the persecuted Hebrews.
What more terrible trial to constancy than to witness the agonies of
beloved relatives, or to withstand the entreaties of wife, husband,
parents, and children ? This was indeed to " take up the cross and
" follow Christ."
7 The Talmudical tradition, that execution by the sword was the only
punishment which the Hebrew Sovereigns could constitutionally inflict,
has been already noticed. From the Jerusalem Gemara, Sanhedr.

CHAP. XL, 36—40. 249
(Ugol. Thes., vol. 25, cols. 156 — 158), it will be seen that the Eabbies
understood the expression " to slay with the sword " as equivalent to
beheading. See also ibid., cols. 147 — 148, § 3. From the Mishna,
Sanhedrin (Suren. Edit., vol. iv., p. 238), we learn that beheading with
an axe was included in the form of execution : —
"idik rmrr 'i mow matonra -pia f)"ca iid&o n« prno vn ;pnnin man
yoipa ysipi pDn bs imn ns pmia n^n ni Nin ^ivi
" The prescription respecting those slain with the sword ; they cut
" off his head with a sword, according to the manner of the kingdom
" (i.e., as in executions by the king's orders). E. Judah said that this was
" a disgraceful manner, but that they rested the criminal's head on a
" block, and struck it off with an axe." This explanation throws light
upon Eev. xx. 4, " The souls of them that were beheaded (rav 7rerreXeKio--
. " pivav) for the testimony of Jesus and for the word of God." It
includes all the martyrs who had been unjustly sentenced to die by the
sword, in mockery of justice and humanity, by the Jewish tribunals,
from Ahab's time to the days of the Apocalypse. The Writer to the
Hebrews probably takes a broader view of the subject, although he seems
to give the equivalent of the technical Hebrew term nn , by iv (pova
paxalpas. (See Mishna Suren. Sanhedr., p. 237, sec. 7.) The word nn ,
however, as Cocceius (ibid.) observes, has a wider signification, and is
applied even to stoning, as it is to the manner of Abel's death. Of
Jezebel it is said (1 Kings xviii. 4) that she " cut off" the prophets of
the Lord (nnana, in causing to cut off). The manner of their death is
stated in verse 13, nna, and also xix. 10, 14, aina inn, they lutve slain
with the sword. Thus perished also Abimelech and his brethren
(1 Sam. xxii.) at the command of Saul, by the hand of Doeg the
Edomite. In verse 18 it is said nn'i, and he put to death, but in
verse 21 nn. So died also, doubtless, many in the -persecution of
Manasseh. See also Neh. ix. 26 ; Ps. xli v. 22 (23). Somewhat
hazardous is Dr. Alford's decisive assertion (in loco), " One prophet
" only perished by the sword in the kingdom of Judah, viz., Urijah,
" Jer. xxvi. 2,3." Of him it is said, " and they smote him with the
" sword " (ama ina'i). So also John the Baptist by Herod Antipas,
Matt. xiv. 10, Mark vi. 16, 27 (28), Luke ix. 9, where the verb
dnoKecpdXifa is employed ; and James the brother of John, by Herod
Agrippa, Acts xii. 2 (dveiXe paxaipq).
8 'Ev prjXardis, iv alyelois Sippao-iv. L. Kusterus suggests that prjX.
signifies the skin of any quadruped, and that therefore the words that
follow are a gloss to designate that goat skins are meant. J. Hasaius
justly repudiates this very unnecessary proposition, calling attention to
the fact that Elijah's mantle is called prjXarrj by the LXX., 1 Kings
K K

250 CHAP. XL, 36—40.
xix. 13, 19. The Hebrew word mns means a capacious mantle or
cloak, and must not be confounded with the lis ihn the girdle of
leather, or hide, either with the fur on or without, which was girt
about his loins. Probably the mw is alluded to under the word isw,
Saabs, hairy, for we find isv mrtN, i.e., a hairy, or rough garment, or
mantle, in both (LXX. acre I Sopa, 8ao-vs) Gen. xxv. 25, and Zech. xiii. 4
(LXX. Seppiv rpixlvrjv), " Neither shall they wear a garment of hair to
" deceive," on which Kimchi, in loco, says, " This was the custom of
" the false prophets to wear sackcloth, or a garment of hair ; " in
imitation, doubtless, of the self-denial of Elijah and Elisha and the
other prophets of God. John the Baptist wore a garment (ev8vpd) of
camel's hair and a leathern girdle (Cavnv Sepparivrjv) about his loins.
And to this rugged austerity our Lord alluded when he asked, " What
" went ye out for to see ? A man clothed in soft raiment ? Behold,
" they that wear soft clothing are in kings' houses." Matt. xi. 8,
Luke vii. 25. F. A. Lampius suggests that prjXarbs signify garments
made of skin, whilst Sipp. aly. designate raw hides, "pelles crudas,"
leaving a great part of the body uncovered. See J. C. Wolfius, Curm
Philol., tom. iv., pp. 770 and 771.
9 varepovpevoi, David, Elijah, &C.
10 TQv ovk rjv agios 6 Koapos. Professor Stuart writes: — "This is a
" proverbial expression, and plainly to be included in a parenthesis, as
" it is an ejaculation of the writer, interrupting the regular series of
" the discourse." The passage upon which the Professor's assertion,
doubtless, is based is found in the Babyl. Gemara, Sanhedrin, col. 385,
386, Ugol. Tlies., vol. xxv. It is here given, for what it is worth, as
follows : —
p d"s F|ni bvnvo vip nn npVici 'a*»ta nnai 'in cn-nan D'N'ai mnwa "in
na orvbs n;nn wra nnn ma rt-bs'i paino vn ina crD Vip naa pcDniro vn
.'Nai nn pno xb>* li'ai mcna rmv vbs Tnvrw 'isoa> ins jsa s' n'nen ;o bip
bv lTia'in vis 'n Ten 'n vte nan nouni .pin y>'na cmrs n« moan i:m p^
jN3 v .D'Dirn jo "jlp na arrbs n:nn .ma'a rrtsa paico vn nns ess aiw .niw
inTOwa on'i'S nt coan nni -p1; .'«ai nn pw? n^n nrara vbs mime inn
lnmo nswa ion mn na . Vrn bv itdVi vis 'n -ron vi r5» iion ntaeai jiepn
.Note bs Tfob p'ns jn'id psi Nrab nds tnidi Hbvpb 'nnam wirt tosD»i jisdb
;t\sv no-iBiw n'in ia noil? wpa Naa p rrrsv toi
" Our Eabbies say that after the later prophets died, viz., Haggai,
" Zechariah, and Malachi, the Holy Spirit was withdrawn from Israel.
" Nevertheless, they made use of the ' daughter of a voice ' (i.e., an
" oracular utterance from heaven, see Buxtorf. Lex. Chald. in loco,
•' col. 320, 321, and John xii.- 27 — 30). Once upon a time a company
" were gathered together in the guest chamber of the house of Goriah

CHAP. XL, 36—40. 251
" in Jericho, and the ' daughter of a voice ' was sent to them from
" heaven. ' Is there not one here worthy that the Shechinah should
" ' rest upon him, as upon Moses our Lord ? But this generation
" ' is not worthy of him.' Then the wise men cast their eyes
" upon Hillel the Elder. But when he died they said of him, ' He was
" ' pious, he was humble as a disciple of Ezra.' It came to pass again
" that there was an assemblage in a guest chamber at Javneh, and
" there was sent to them ' a daughter of a voice ' from heaven. ' Is
" ' there not one here worthy that the Shechinah should rest upon
" ' him 1 But this generation is not worthy of him.' Then the wise
" men cast their eyes on Samuel the less, and when he died they
" said, ' He was pious, and humble as a disciple of Hillel.' He also
" himself said, ' When Simeon and Samuel shall have died by the
" ' sword, and his companions shall have been slain, and the remnant
" ' of the people given over for a prey to the -spoiler, great calamities
" ' are destined to come upon the world.' They sought to speak in like
" manner concerning Judah ben Bava, but the time was gone by."
11 David, Elijah ; the prophets hidden by Obadiah, John the Baptist.
See also 2 Mace. X. 6. Kal per ebcppoo-vvrjs rjyov rjpepas oKra 0-Kvvapdrav
rpdrrov, pvvpovevovres as irpb piKpov xpovov rrjv rav VKrjvav ioprrjv iv rots
opeo-i Kal iv rdls erirqXalois Brjplav rpdrrov rjo-av vepdpevoi. Josephus, Antiq.
xii. 6, 2, gives a terrible account how nearly 1,000 men, with their wives
and children, were smothered by fire, in the caves to which they betook
themselves, rather than fight on the Sabbath-day, in the revolt of
Mattathias. 12 These concluding words must be read by the light of chapter x. 36,
vrropovrjs ydp exere xP*'iav ^va T0 BeXrjpa rov Beov Troirjo-avres Koplarjo-Be rrjv
eirayyeXlav. The writer has. now shown how the Elders, who obtained
a good report through faith, were one and all in a position precisely
similar to that of the persecuted Hebrew converts, as regards the
attainment of their ultimate and final reward. They were one after
another gathered to their rest in the hope of a better resurrection.
They looked beyond this vale of tears for their recompense. Their life
below was one of harass and conflict, of persecution and perpetual self-
denial. It was the faith which is iXrn^opevav imdarao-is, irpaypdrav eXeyyos
ov fiXenopivav, which supported them through life and deserted them
not at the place of execution, at the scaffold and at the stake. The
treatment which they met with, the hardships which they underwent,
awakened no surprise and no repining dissatisfaction. They looked
heavenward for their recompense, and felt no disappointment at their
hard lot, as if they had lived in vain. They knew that as yet all
things were not put under Christ's feet, his enemies had not been made

252 CHAP. XL, 36—40.
his footstool, Death was not swallowed up in victory. This could only
occur at his second appearing, els o-arrjplav, when sin and suffering shall
be abolished, when Satan's head shall be finally bruised, and death
swallowed up in victory. As long as the grave retains one single
trophy of the devil's victory, the consummation of the believer's hopes
cannot be completed. On the resurrection morning, when Christ shall
come " to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that
" believe," 2 Thes. i. 10, then shall that Kpelrrdv n which God has pro
vided for us all be manifested. For '' since the beginning of the world
" men have not heard, nor perceived by the ear, neither hath the eye seen,
" O God, beside thee, what He hath prepared for him that waiteth for
" Him." Is. lxiv. 4. Sufficient for the Hebrews to whom the Epistle
was addressed, if with the Elders (who renouncing the world " died in
" the faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them
" afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and con-
" fessed that they were strangers and pilgrims upon earth ") they could
only have faith and patience also ' ' to wait for his Son from heaven,
" whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which defivered us from
" the wrath to come." 1 Thess. i. 10. On the one hand, God has
determined that they without us shall not be made perfect, and on the
other, " if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so them also
" which sleep in Jesus will God bring with Him. For this (says St. Paul)
" we say unto you by the Word of the Lord, that we which are alive, and
" remain unto the coming of the Lord, shall not prevent them which
" are asleep. For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a
" shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God,
" and the dead in Christ shall rise first. Then we which are alive and
" remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet
" the Lord in the air, and so shall we ever be with the Lord." This
restoration to God's presence must have been the hope of Adam and
his children, consoling them for the loss of Eden by the certainty of its
recovery. Enoch prophesied concerning it. The Elders in every age
have longed for it. — The Church of God is even now redeemed, but it
is not yet triumphant. God's suffering saints on earth, together with
the souls beneath the altar above, yet cry out, " How long, O Lord,
" holy and true 1 " — " White robes," indeed, says St. John, Eev. vi.
10, 11, " were given to every one of them ; and it was said unto them,
" that they should rest for a little season, until their fellow-servants
" also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be
" fulfilled (irXvpaBao-i)." But when this season of rest and expectation
is completed, there shall " be heard a great voice out of heaven saying,
" Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with

CHAP. XII., 1. 253
" them, and they shall be his people, and God Himself shall be with
" them, and be their God. And God shall wipe away all tears from
" their eyes ; and there shall be no more death, neither sorrow, nor
" crying (Kpavyr)), neither shall there be any more pain : for the former
" things are passed away." (Eev. xxi. 3, 4.) How consonant with the
best aspirations of the pious Jew such sentiments as these were, is
evident from the following remarkable declaration of Philo : — 'O pev ovv
rjyepav ttjs Beo(piXovs 80^7;?, 0 wparos iK rv(fiov peBappoodpevos irpbs
dXrjBeiav, SiSaKTtKjj xpnadpevos dperrj rrpbs reXelao-iv, dBXov alpelrai rrjv
TTpbs rbv Qebv irlanv. T<3 Se kut evpoiplav (pvaeas ovttjkoov Kal avropa&rj
Kal avTodiSaKTOV Krqo-apeva rrjv dperr)v Ppafieiov dvaSlSorai xaP"- ToO
8' ao-KrjTOV Kal irdvois drpvTOis Kal aKapneoi TvepiTTOirjo-apivov to KaXbv,
6 o-re(pavds icrnv opaais Qeov. Tov Se irio-reveiv Qea Kal Sid iravrbs rov
filov %alpeiv Kal opqv ro bv, rl dv a(peXiparepov rj aepvorepov imvorjcreii tis ',
" But (Abraham) the author of the sentiment so well pleasing to God,
" who was the first to devote himself heart and soul, from vanity to
" truth, having employed the virtue which had been taught to him with
" a view to perfection, receives as his prize faith in God. To the man,
" indeed, who puts to the best use the virtue which good fortune has
" placed in his reach, enabling him to acquire it spontaneously, self-
" taught and self-acquired, the satisfaction which accompanies it is
" given as his reward. But the vision of God is the crown of the man,
" who attains to excellence by self-discipline and unflagging and un-
" wearied toils. For what more desirable and more worthy conception
" could a man entertain, than to believe in God, and all his life long
" continually to rejoice, and to see the Self -existent 1 " — De Prosmiis et
Foenis, Works, Mangey's Edition, vol. ii., p. 412.

CHAPTER XII.

The writer has now illustrated his exhortation to
patient endurance (viropovrj), by the stirring rehearsal
of the deeds of the Elders who obtained a good
report through faith. These are they whom the
Church has accounted Saints, even as St. James

254 CHAP. XII., 1.
writes (v. 11) to Hebrew Christians also, 'IBoii
paKapl^opev tovs viropevovTa<; (" Siehe, wir preisen
" selig, die erduldet haben," Luther), after having
encouraged them in the preceding verse, virbBeoypa
Xdfiere tij? KaKotradeia^, dBeX(poi p>ov, Kal Tr)<; paKpo0vpia<;,
tov? TTpocprjTa<; o'i e\dXrjcrav tS ovoptari Kvpiov. The great
ness of the Prophets, the Apostles and martyrs,
consisted not in the earthly honours which they
received, but in the patient fortitude, the unflinch
ing perseverance, the unfaltering faith with which
they held on to the last, looking to God as their
exceeding great reward, to heaven as their rest and
home, and to the resurrection of the just as the
consummation of the promise of redemption, which
was the one master idea of their lives. An affec
tionate reproof, a rebuke to impatience and faith
less repining at their hard lot, is intended by the
writer to accompany the encouragement conveyed
by the examples of the Elders. Had these Saints
of olden time refused to endure, and had they
relinquished their steadfastness, when the fires of
persecution waxed hot, they could never have been
cited as witnesses to the reasonableness of the hope
set before us, and the power of God's grace made
perfect in human infirmities. But now they afford
a testimony which nothing can gainsay or contro
vert, that the promise hereafter to be realised, is
worth living for, and worth dying for. Men " of
" whom the world was not worthy," from the very
beginning, have set to their seal that God is true,
that for God's promise they were willing to sacrifice
everything that renders existence desirable, yea,

CHAP. XII., 1. 255
even life itself. And all for what? For that
which the unbelievers and the worldling would
deride as the vague and indefinite day-dreams of
a morbid enthusiasm ! The Elders, therefore, are
witnesses to the certainty of our expectations; to
the truth of the promises made to the fathers ; to
the nothingness of worldly advantages and temporal
sufferings in comparison with the glory that shall
be revealed in us. They prove to us that no self-
abnegation, no self-denial, is too costly when God
in the way of his afflictive providence, in seasons of
persecution and fiery trial, calls upon us to forsake
all and to follow Christ. It is true of the disciple
as of the Master, " No Cross, no Crown."
In these days when the form of godliness carries
with it respectability, and when an outward com
pliance with the ordinances of public worship and
the Churches' formularies is needful even to pass
muster in the world, we can scarcely realise to our
selves the forlorn and abject condition of the Jewish
believer of those days. His nationality was against
him. His foes were those of his own household.
The wife of his bosom, his children, were among
the first to rise up and betray bim. The love of
parents was estranged. His dearest friends and
acquaintances assailed him with reproaches, and
shut their doors in his face. Well might he at
times, in the extremity of his anguished regrets
at seeing every familiar countenance averted, and
the commonest offices of humanity denied to him,
ask himself, " Is the object set before me com-
" mensurate with the cost ? May I not by a little

256 CHAP. XII., 1.
" dissimulation contrive to keep my friends and
" my convictions at once? Can a merciful God
" take pleasure in the wretchedness and daily
" torture which I suffer? " But when the mate
rial arguments of stripes and imprisonments, of
cruel mockings and scourgings, of the stake and
the gibbet, of the execrations of the howling mob
that thirsted for his blood, were superadded to
the moral dissuasives from stedfastness, then indeed
it required no ordinary share of constancy and pious
fortitude to resist unto blood, striving against sin.
The days in which the Epistle to the Hebrews were
written were pre-eminently days of perplexity and
distress. They were critical times of panic and
alarm. Satan and unbelief were girding them
selves for that decisive conflict with the religion
of Jesus, in which truth was to prevail, but only
after innumerable lives had been sacrificed, and the
foundations of the Church cemented with the blood
of the martyrs. Well might St. Paul declare to
the Corinthians in unanswerable testimony to the
certainty of the resurrection, " If in this life only
" we have hope in Christ, then are we of all men
" most miserable, et iv rfj goof) ravry rp\iriKOTe<; icrpev iv
" Xpiard) povov, iXeeivorepoi iravTcov dvQpdnrow icrpev."
(1 Cor. xv. 19.) These considerations seem to limit.
in a great measure, the meaning of the veqbos pap-
Tvpmv of Heb. xii. 1 to its primary signification of
attesting witnesses. The Elders are not represented
simply as a concourse of spectators, as Alford, in
approval of Schlichting, would have it, surveying
the conflict from the abodes of rest and peace with

CHAP. XII., 1. 257
wrapt attention and liveliest sympathy. This pic
turesque and encouraging aspect is doubtless to be
included in the writer's meaning. But we must
not forget that they were circumstances of fearful
earnestness and urgency which occasioned the
Epistle to be written. Apostacy was rife. The
love of many had grown cold. Many were hesi
tating as to which course to pursue. Whether to
dissemble and relinquish ttjv opoXoyiav tjj? ikiriSos,
i.e., the bold avowal of their hope in Christ as the
Messiah, or to go back to the Synagogue from the
love of this present world and the hope of material
gain. A tone of depression and despondency seems
to have pervaded the entire community. The Writer
has for his object, to recall the waverers to their
allegiance, to alarm the deserters as to the danger,
as well as the treachery, of their defection, to
encourage the weak, to build up the strong in
their most holy faith. It is, therefore, no
mere dulcet strain of poetic fancy in which he
indulges. There is a nervous earnestness, a mas
culine sobriety, as well as a sympathetic sweetness
in the arguments he adduces. He blows a trumpet-
call suited to the prevailing frequency of war's
alarms. He points to what the Elders have done
by patience and faith. Patience and faith ! This
is his rallying war-cry. He shows that in the
example of their fervid stedfastness, of their invin
cible faith in the soundness of their cause, of their
patient endurance to the end, his readers have the
best warranty for holding fast their profession with
unshakeable tenacity and perseverance. And there-
L L

258 CHAP. XII., 1, 2.
fore, in terse and telling phraseology, he thus sums
up the lesson to be derived from the examples of
victorious faith which he has just detailed.
Verse 1. — Inasmucli, therefore, as we have so great a cloud
of witnesses ' (veobos paprvpav) encompassing us (irepiKei-
pevov Tjpiv), let us lay aside every weight 2 (oyKov diroOe-
pevoi iravra) and the sin that so easily besets us, and run
by dint of patience (Bi viropovrjs) 3 the race that is set
before us (tov irpoKelpevov r)piv dyoova).
1 This expression is perchance borrowed from Is. Ix. 8, asa rt« 'a
ni'Disn. Tlves oiSe, we ve<piXai ¦niTavrai, LXX. See also Joel ii. 2.
Somewhat forced and objectionable is the suggestion of Lampius, that
by the cloud of witnesses an allusion is intended to the statues of the
victors, wherewith the course and the arena were adorned.
2 Although there is ample authority for understanding oyKov as
superfluous encumbrance, by which the combatant might be impeded
in his contest for the mastery, I cannot help feeling that the signi
fication of haughtiness, self-conceit, offended self-respect, also under
lies its meaning in this passage. (See note 7, pp. 164 — 168, on vnoaroXr).)
The transition to " the sin that so easily besets us " is otherwise
abrupt and forced, unless we take the latter to be the explana
tion of the former, as Luther does, " Lasset uns ablegen die Siinde,
"so uns immer anklebt nnd trage macht," i.e., ht us hy aside the
sin that evermore cleaves to us, and makes us shthful. It is very
improbable that any general allusion to "original sin," as some in
genious critics assert, is intended. Eisner suggests that evneplarorov
dpaprlav is here equivalent to q^pdvrjpa rrjs o-apKos. The Writer probably
intends nothing more than to intimate that a proneness to sinful indul
gences is the real cause of the.apostacies, the unsanctified murmuring,
and lukewarmness of which he has spoken. On the word evrre plararov,
see J. C. Wolfius, Cura Philol, tom. iv., pp. 776—778, and Wettstein,
in loco.
3 In chap. x. 36, the writer reminds his readers that they lacked
patient endurance imopovrjs ydp exere xpeiW. In chap. xi. he shows
them how by it the Elders conquered. Here he urges his readers to
follow in their footsteps.
Verse 2. — Looking unto Jesus1 (dipop&vTes, fixing your
regards upon) the author and finisher of the faith (t^<?

CHAP. XII., 2. 259
iricTTecus dpyrjybv Kal TeXeia>Tr)v),2 who for the joy 3 set
before Him (dz>Tt rrjs irpoKetpevrj'; avrm %apd<;) stedfastly
endured (virepeive) 4 the cross,5 despising the shame
(aiaxvvrjs KaTaqbpavrjaa'i), and is set down (KeKadiKev,
Alford, rec. iKaOio-ev) at the right hand of God.6
1 'Aapav  BvrjtrKei rov nXrjBovs els avrbv ddiopavros, Jos. Ant. iv. 4, 7,
els rbv Beov d(popavras iv rravrl piKpa Kal peydXa Arrian. Epict. ii. 19.
Luther translates d(pop. k.t.X., " Und aufsehen auf Jesum, den Anfanger
" und Vollender des Glaubens," i.e., looking attentively to Jesus, &c.
Aspicientes in Jesum, Vulg. The Hebrews are invited to look to
Jesus, and see whether He has not exhibited exactly the same cha
racteristics of stedfast constancy and endurance as did all the pro
phets and elders. The inference is, that they must not give way
to impatience, nor repine, if they are not greater than their Lord.
2 The signification of dpxqy. k.t.X. is determined by rrjs trio-Teas, i.e.,
the faith in which all the fathers trusted from the very beginning. The
promise of the " Seed of the woman " was the first and original basis
upon which the eye of faith has rested. It is the golden thread of
prophetic redemption, which shall run through all time until the con
summation of the Church's object of existence, viz., the completed
salvation of sinners. The "bruising of the serpent's head" denotes
Christ's final victory over the Devil, and the annihilation of his power.
If, then, Jesus be the true Messiah, he is fitly designated as "the
" Author and the Pinisher of the faith." The writer keeps closely to the
subject of which he has been all along speaking, and does not extrava-
gate into generalities. Christ's salvation is the " All in all " of our
hopes. In Him they commence, and with Him they shall attain their
final consummation. In this sense of the original author or source
Philo speaks of Abraham, as rjyepav rrjs BeocpiXovs Sbi-rjs, the author of
the sentiment so well pleasing to God. (De pram, etpcenis, Works, vol. ii.,
p. 412.) 'Apxvybv might here with advantage be translated the originator,
or inaugurator, den Anfanger, Luth., and TeXiarrjv, consummator. This
is apparently the view that Wettstein takes of dpxqybv, but Alford, in
disregard of the context and of the subject in hand, translates it the
Leader. 8 The joy set before Christ was the certain assurance that He should
accomplish man's redemption, and so it was promised, Isaiah liii. 11,
" He shall see of the travail of his soul and be satisfied." So also Is.
xiii. 4, " He shall not fail nor be discouraged (yrv be broken, Bpavo-Brjoe-
" rat, LXX.) till he have set judgment in the earth ; and the isles shall

260 CHAP. XII., 2.
" wait for his law." Gen. xlix. 10 ; Ps. ii. 8. Alford justly rejects
the reading of the Syr., Nazianz. in Oec, Beza, and others, " instead
" of the joy which he had before his incarnation." Luther has, " da er
" wohl hatte mogen Freude haben, erduldete er das Kreuz und achtete
"der Schande nicht," i.e., although he might assuredly have had joy,
&c, viz., he might have lived a life of pleasure upon earth. The word
wpoKeipivrjs seems, however, fatal to this latter theory.
4 vnepeive is emphatic. It points out the particular aspect under
which the writer would have his readers to contemplate Christ's
earthly career of redeeming self-abnegation. This appears more fully
from the 3d verse.
5 The Eev. Dr. Margoliouth, in the second edition of his able and
ingenious work, The Penitential Hymn of Judah and Israel after the
Spirit : an Exposition of Isaiah liii., Lecture iv., pp. 72, 73, writes : —
" There are, indeed, few passages in the ancient writings of the Hebrews
" which show plainly that their writers had an idea of an eternal com-
" pact between the Father and the Son respecting our redemption.
' ' Those passages are certainly now mixed up with fables, still they
" evidence that the Scriptural doctrine of the economy of redemption
" is not altogether obliterated from the pages of Jewish books. The
" following remarkable passage occurs as a quotation from one of the
" most ancient writers in the Yalkut Shimoni  It is part of an Exposi-
" tion on Isaiah lx. After stating that the Light is the Messiah, and
" that Satan trembled at his very sight (see James ii. 19), and that God
" announced to Satan his final overthrow by the Messiah, the passage
" continues to run thus : The Holy One, Blessed be He, began to stipulate
" with Him (the Messiah). He said to Him, The sins of those who are
" treasured up beside thee, will bring thee under a yoke of iron, and
" make thee like this calf, whose eyes are dim, and will torment thy
" spirit with unrighteousness, and because of transgression thy tongue
" will cleave to the roof of thy mouth. (Ps. cxxxvii. 6.) Dost thou
" accede to this 1 Messiah rejoined before the Holy One, Blessed be He,
" ' Lord of the universe, perhaps this trouble is for many years.' The
" Holy One, Blessed be He, said, ' By thy life and the life of thy head,
" ' a week have I decreed upon thee. (Dan. ix. 27.) If it grieve thy
" ' soul, I will expel, or afflict thee now.' He replied before Him, ' Lord
" ' of the universe, with heartfelt gladness and with heartfelt joy, I
" ' take this upon myself, on condition that not one of Israel shall
" ' perish : and that not only those that are alive shall be saved in my
"'days, but also those that are hid in the dust.' And not only the
" dead shall be saved in my days, but also those dead, who died from
" the time of the first man until now, and not these only  but also

CHAP. XII., 2. 261
" all that is in thy mind to create, and have not been yet created ; thus
" I consent, and on these terms I take this office upon myself."
ina Visa "p'lani d'-its Drrnins -|isN d'hhid liin Vn ids rana m"pn i'nnr?
-pioi rn» lis bv Drrnmsai iisa -jnn ™ ppiooi vi'S trav run tea -jni« "«wi
nnw "iss win ndid Din' ic 1:12-1 na"pn 'isi rrwo idn "pa "pirn -jam paini
rrma ':n nass "jwEia dn -pis mn siaw -pr«-i '"m q"ri na"pn V'n dpi nia-i
ira iaN' Niw d"s 'is iapo 'in 'ai nnottai 'ai ni'ia oiis bv inai viDi -idn lcasa
'srav iaia dtid Nil iDSa warto cms pjn Ni« 'D'l is»v iaia D"n Nil Vwd
t]s Nix] iaia ii« Nil iraas is p«N-in din niD'o ino® dtpd nniN ^n NiN 'D'a
lp lNia: Nil nwiani -psi is nnis 'ni f]N «i« [iaia D'ici Nil 'D'a wot cic:
. iapo ':n -pa nsn ':n
The words between brackets, which the learned Doctor has left
untranslated, refer to those untimely born (ra eKTpapan, 1 Cor. xv. 8).
The passage is also given at further length, with an English translation,
in the late Dr. M'Caul's Doctrine and Interpretation of Is. liii., pp.
37—39.
6 The writer refers back to the prophetic invitation of Psalm ex. 1 :
— " Jehovah saith unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand until I
" make thine enemies thy footstool." Christ has fulfilled the conditions
of humiliation imposed in the last verse of the Psalm. He has drunk
of the wayside stream of affliction and distress. And so God the
Father has ratified His share in the compact also. He has exalted Him
to be head over all principality and power. See note 4, pp. 28— 30 ; also,
J. Jac. Schudt's " Commentarius Philologico-Theologicus in Psal. ex.,"
Frankfort-on-the-Maine, 1718. 8vo. Schudt was Eector of the Uni
versity in Frankfort, and his work is a masterpiece of Rabbinical as
well as Biblical erudition. He summarises as follows the contents of
the 7th verse of the Psalm under consideration : — " I. Emphatica
" passionis descriptio. II. Triumphans capitis exaltatio.'' The fifth
dissertation, pp. 179 — 217, De gloriosa Regis Messiae ex Passione emer-
sione, is devoted entirely to the discussion of this subject, in which he
adduces a multitude of Jewish and Christian authorities in support of
the interpretation above given. See also J. Wesselii Dissert, decima-
tertia de Messia ex torrente in via bibituro. (Dissertationes Academics
ad selecta quasdam loca Vet. et Nov. Test. Lugd. Bat., 1734, 4to., pp.
352 — 379.) The Babylonian Gemara applies the parallel prediction of
Isaiah liii. to the Messiah. In Sanhedrin (Ugol. Thes., vol. xxv., col.
969) a variety of Rabbinical opinions are brought together respecting
the name of the Messiah. Some say that it is Shiloh, citing Gen. xlix.
10, as their authority ; others, Yinon (Ps. lxxii. 17); others, Chaninah
(Jer. xvi. 13) ; others, Menachem (Lam. i. 16) ; whilst others, again,
say that He shall be called A leper of the house of Rabbi (" Leprosus de
" domo Rabbi." Buxt. Lex. Chald. ; Art. irn , col. 724), because it is

262 CHAP. XII., 3—6.
written, " Surely He hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows, yet
" did we esteem him stricken, smitten of God, and afflicted" : —
uniNi , QiaD ii'aiiODi nib: nipi i:"in piN ':» . too 'an 'at Niivn '-\dn pail
. niisoi , D'niN ro-w , su: imiaen
A variety of other important Rabbinical interpretations respecting
the Messiah are to be found in the immediate vicinity of the above
cited passage of the Gemara.
Verses 3 — 6. — Por consider (dvaXoyiaaaOe,1 recogitate,
Vulg.) Him who patiently endured (viropepevrjKora) such
contradiction (Widersprechen, Lidh.) of sinners against
himself (inrb twv dpapraXwv et? avrbv dvrtXoyiav ; Alford,
eavrov) ; lest ye grow weary ('iva pi) Kdprjre, or, that ye
be not discouraged), waxing fainthearted in your souls
(iKXvopevoi, disheartened). Ye have not yet resisted unto
(pe^pis) blood, striving against2 (dvraywvitypevoi) sin;
and have forgotten (iKXeXrjaOe, completely forgotten,
Alford) the exhortation (ttjs ¦7rapaKXrjo-ea><;, consolationis,
Vulg.) which reasons with (BiaXeyerai, discourses with,
Alford) you as with sons (Prov. iii. 11, 12) ; My son,
undervalue not (prj oXiycopei) the chastening of the Lord,
neither faint when reproved by Him. Por whom the
Lord loveth,3 He chasteneth (iraiBevei; LXX., eKey^et),
and scourgeth every son whom He receiveth.4
1 The idea of contrast and comparison is here intended. The Hebrews
are invited to draw an analogy between their own fancied unexampled
troubles and persecutions and the contradictions and unutterable insults
which Christ endured at the hands of sinners. I think the writer here
intends specially to emphasise the dvnXoyla ; because it is plain, from
verse 4, that hitherto the persecutions, at which the Hebrews were at
present so sorely discouraged, had not yet taken the shape of the
forfeiture of their lives. To be counted the " filth of the earth, the
" offscouring of all things " (irepiKaBappara tov Koo-pov, irdvrav irepfyrjpa,
1 Cor. iv. 13) was hard enough. It was unjust as it was cruel ; but
what was it all in comparison of the ignominy, the brutal affronts, the
misconstruction of his every word and motive to which Christ was
subjected ! When He condescended to eat with publicans and sinners,
He was pointed at as a winebibber and a glutton. When He cast out
devils, it was by Beelzebub that He cast them out. When He sat at

CHAP. XII., 3—6. 263
meat with the Pharisees, they treated Him with studied neglect and
indecent rudeness. (Luke vii. 44—46 ; xi. 53.) Before Herod, the
chief priests and scribes "vehemently accused Him" (Luke xxiii. 10);
before the Council, many false witnesses laid things to his charge that
He had never known, and yet no burning retort, no words of indignant
self-justification burst from his lips. Even under the charge of blas
phemy against his Divine Father, He entered upon no personal vindi
cation. Upon the cross, the revilings and unmanly scoffs of his
murderers called forth nothing but a prayer for their forgiveness. For
thus it had been written by the Evangelic Prophet concerning Him : —
"He was led as a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before her
" shearers is dumb, so He opened not his mouth." (Is. liii. 7.) See
Dr. M'Caul's Doctrine and Interpretation of Is. liii., passim; and Dr.
Margoliouth's volume, The Penitential Hymn of Israel and Judah : an
ExposUion of Is. liii. Second Edition, pp. 74 — 87; and also the
Appendix, ibid., p. 161, &c. — The following remarkable account of the
insults and outrages to which our Lord Jesus Christ was subjected
before his crucifixion is given in the Sepher Toldoth Jesu, and is all the
more noteworthy, as it is contained in a book which is one of the most
indecent libels upon our blessed Redeemer's origin and parentage that
was ever published. After relating the treacherous plan of Judas for
the Saviour's betrayal, and how the elders of the Jews danced for joy
at the prospect of his capture, it goes on to tell how an armed multitude
came upon Jesus and his company unawares, took Him captive, and
bound Him, with many of his followers ; the rest either being slain or
compelled to flee for their lives to the mountains. It then proceeds : —
vtd'i Tsa -ton ww bv itasi lm-rop'i m'sn TnN'a'i lie nN D'iwrv ';pi inp'i
icwi ina cno iws'i D'sip inp'i rrcs -ton -pniNiD: ia n'N ii vton'1 D'ciwa
pss nnw -\ien2i pin yoin ii nn'i d'd iosd 'i i:n oni idn'i iinon nds'i iwni is
en ii 1-idn'i yam ';ipw 'NDuii mo 'nnaa urn 'i'?i "in Na'i 'is iDNi ivu iipa
lois nnN nnsi ii ncN'i yoin Ninw nn'nww D-iip mm Ni noi nnN D'niN
nni 'iN 'iN -idni . -p'l liip ™ w nwi naiwna inn nnN po -pap nnc is
'di im' idn'i . i:'td -]ws: nN nisn Ni noi nnN D'ni« p dn ii iidn'i . 'inais
,i:i nb-ii in-iianai m'sw Na': pw oiis 'Na is ity
" But the elders of Jerusalem took Jesus, and brought him into the
" city, and bound him to a marble column which was in the city, and
" they chastened him with whips, and said to him, Where are now all
" thy miracles which thou hast wrought ? [the miracles of Jesus are
" admitted, but ascribed to magical arts.] Then they took sharp thorns,
" and made a crown of them, and placed it on his head. And the
" illegitimate one [a term of derision] waxed thirsty, and said, Give me
" a little water to drink. And they gave him strong vinegar. But

264 CHAP. XII., 3—6.
" when he had drunk, he cried with a loud voice, Concerning me my
" ancestor David prophesied, ' They gave me also gall for my meat, and
" ' in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink.' (Ps. lxix. 21 ; Heb. 22.)
" And they said to him, If thou art God, why didst thou not tell us,
" before drinking it, that it was vinegar ? And now thou standest in
" the door of thy grave, and yet thou turnest not to repentance. And
" Jesus lifted up his voice and wept, and said, My God ! my God ! why
" hast thou forsaken me ? And the elders said to him, If thou art the
" Son of God, why hast thou not delivered thy soul from our hands ?
" And Jesus said, My blood shall make expiation on behalf of those who
" come into the world, for so Isaiah prophesied. And by his stripes we
" are healed," &c. (Sepher Toldoth Jesu, pp. 16, 17, printed at length
in Wagenseil's Teh Ignea Satana Altdorfli Noricorum, 1681. 4to. It is
the sixth tract in the volume.)
2 Ovira pixpt-s dlparos k.t.X. Alford, with Bengel, and other far older
critics, is inclined to adopt the idea that this phrase is borrowed from
the pugilistic prize-ring. The meaning of the words is very obvious,
without any such forced adaptation. — J. C. Wolfius, Curas Phihg. et
Crit., tom. iv. p. 780, writes, in he, "Ita M. Antoninus i. 16, cms
" ISparos. Vide ibi Gatakerum, p. 41, et p. 195 Adversariorum.
" Josephum Philo, p. 414, ait pixp1 Bavdrov Siaxdrjvai. CI. Roman.
" Epist., § 4, &xpt v'iKrjs av pexpi Bavdrov. Sext. Empiricus xi, § 99,
" Siayavl£erai pexpi Bavdrov, de gallis dimicantibus, iterumque § 102,
"sicut 101, pexpi rrjs vo-Tdrrjs dvarrvorjs 8iayavi(e aBa ; and, § 107, pexpi
" TeXevrrjs dpio-revovres. Vide Pabricii notas, p. 709. Pugiles et pan-
" cratiastas ad sanguinem et mortem usque decertasse ostendit C. Adami
" in Obs., p. 454. Ex Athleticis quoque Olearius in Analysi, p. 38
" explicat, ut sensus sit, eos quasi ad rubi.rcm tantum pugnasse, sudor-
" emque ad summum, non vero ad sanguinem ; quemadmodum de
" Diogene Cynico I.aertius Diogenes dicat, exercuisse eum Xeniadas,
" domini sui, liberos ovk dBXrjriKas, dXX' ipvBrjparos Kal ive£ias X°Plv"
With far greater probability and propriety, allusion is here made to
Messiah's dread conflict, as described by Isaiah ix. 5 : — " For every
" battle of the warrior is with confused noise, and garments rolled in
" blood, but this shall be with burning and fuel of fire." (This transla
tion agrees in the main with the Vulgate, but the LXX. rendering is
altogether different, and is perchance based upon a different reading of
the Hebrew.) Or else it is not improbable that the reference is to
Isaiah Ixiii. 1 — 3, where Messiah is depicted as " coming from Edom,
" with dyed garments from Bozrah," and where he declares, " I have
" trodden the winepress alone, and of the people there was none with
" me," as in declaration of the unapproachable severity and magnitude

CHAP. XII., 3—6. 265
of his sufferings. To Messiah the passage is applied in the Pirke Rabbi
Eliezer. See Schoettgen, Hora. Hebr. et Talm., tom. ii., pp. 503, 504.
So also in the Sohar (see ibid., pp. 555, 556).
3 For a variety of Rabbinical apopthegms in consonance with the
above consolatory assurance, see Balth. Scheidii Prceterita prceteritorum,
Loca Talmudica, printed in Meuschen, Nov. Test, ex Talmude illustr.,
pp. 217, 218, and Schoettgen's Horce Hebraicce, tom. i., pp. 988, 989.
Philo, writing on this same passage, declares: —
'EvBiv Si poi SoKel ns rav (poirrjTav Maaias ovopa elprjviKos, os rraTpia
yXao-o-rj "2aXopav KaXeirai, qbdvat, IlaiSelas Beov Vie pi) oXiyapei, Kal pr)
e/cXuou vtt' avrov iXeyxdpevos. *Ov ydp dyanq Kvpios iXeyxei. Macrnyoi Se
Trdvra vibv bv TrapaSixerai. Outgjs dpa rj iirl'nXrj^is Kal vovBeola KaXbv
vevdpiQ-rai, acre Si avrrjs rj npbs Beov opoXoyla \_Kal] ovyyeveia ylverai. Tt
yap olKeidrepov via rrarpbs, rj vlov Trarpl ',
" For this reason, methinks, one of the disciples of Moses, Pacific
" by name, who is called in his native language Solomon, said, ' Son,
" ' despise not the chastening of God, neither faint when reproved by
" ' Him, for whom the Lord loveth, He reproveth ; and scourgeth every
" ' son whom He receiveth.' So excellent a thing, therefore, is chastise-
" ment and admonition esteemed, that confidence and relationship
" spring therefrom. For what can be more familiarly intimate than a
"father with his son, or a son with a father?" — De Congr. Guar.
Erudit. Gratia, Works, Mangey's Edit., vol. i., pp. 544, 545.
Also, in commenting upon Deut viii. 3, he observes : —
CH Kaxao-is avrv iXaapds ian  oVav yap ra ^Se'a rrepio-vXarai, SoKovpev
KaKova&ai. Td 8' cart npbs dXrjBeiav tXea rbv Beov exeiv.
" Affliction is of itself a propitiation. For when we are despoiled of
" enjoyments, we seem to suffer affliction, whilst it is, in truth, to have
" God reconciled [or propitiated] to us."— Philo, SS. Leg. Alleg., lib. iii.,
Works, vol. i., p. 121.
4 It will be observed that the above quotation differs slightly from
the LXX., and considerably from the Masoretic reading of Prov. iii.
11, 12.

M M

266

CHAP. XII., 3—6.

Prov. iii.
11, 12.
Hebrew, Maso-
retic Heading.
'ia mn' idid
iNl DNDn iN
: innaina ypn
anN' -iwn nN 'a
aNai n'ai> mn'
:nsi' p nN

Auth. Version.
My son, de
spise not the
chastening of
the Lord, nei
ther be weary
of his eorrec-
tion : For
whom the
Lord loveth
he correct-
eth : even as
A FATHER
(imi) the son
in whom he
delighteth.

Vulgate.
Disciplinam
Domini, fili
mi, ne abji-
cias, nee defi-
cias cum ab
eo corriperis.
Quern enim
diligit Domi
nus corripit :
ET QUASI PA
TER in filio
eomplacet si
bi.

LXX Boaster's
Text.
tie, pr) bXiya-
pei TraiSelas
Kvplov, prj8e
eKXvov vrf av-
Toii eXeyxdpe-
vos. "Ov yap
dyarrq Kvp'.os,
iXeyx*i, pc-
o-nyo'i (3N31)
Se itdvra vibv
bv rrapaSexe-
rai.

Heb. xii. 5, 6.
Yiipov,pr)6Xi-'yapei naiSelas
Kvplov, prjSe
iKXiov vtt' av
rov iXeyxdpe-
vos. "Ov ydp
dyarrq Kvpios
iraiSeiei, p a o- r i y oi
8e (astal) itdv
ra vibv bv ira-
paSexerai.

From the above it will be seen that the variation hinges simply upon
the correct punctuation of axai. The right rendering is settled for
Christian readers by the canonical decision of the Writer to the
Hebrews. The question is not whether the LXX. translators have
given a preferable interpretation, but, Which interpretation is adopted,
aud thereby authoritatively sanctioned, as the true meaning of the Word
of God ? Surenhusius, whose punctuation (aNai Partie. Kal) has been
adopted above, observes how the sense and antithesis gains by the
reading of aNai , as a verb with conjunction, rather than as a substantive
with conjunction and adverb. "Etenim textus Hebraeus obscurus et
" hiulcus est, si ei nihil addatur, vel is alio modo non legator, nam
" verbo tenus ita dicitur hst p nN asoi et sicut pater filio bene volet, si
"verbum nsv divellatur a prseeedentibus, vel si hoc cum illis con-
" jungatur, hoc sensu erit vertendum, et sicut pater bene vult sive
" benevolus est filio, quibus verbis necessario aliquid addendum est ex
" praicedentibus, ut oratio melius fluat." (BlpXos KaraXXayrjs, pp. 656,
657.) Surenhusius, however, is' so in love with his theory, de modis
allegandi Scripturas Sacras, that he seems to imply that the Writer to
the Hebrews has adopted aNai rather as a matter of convenience aud
elegance, and to avoid tautological repetition, than as expressing the
mind of the Holy Spirit of Truth. Be it observed that the dictum of
an inspired writer of the New Testament respecting a difficult passage
is a very different matter from the presumptuous and farfetched experi
ments at emendation which modern criticism proposes, often in direct
opposition to conclusive and final decisions, similar to the one instanced
above Scarcely less offensive to a sense of piety and reverent feeling
is the patronising and qualified approval which it, now and then, con
descends to bestow upon Apostles and Evangelists, should they happen

CHAP. XII., 7—10'. 267
to countenance in any measure a favourite theory, or, in other words,
" to fall in with its views ! " Surely concerning such speakers of .
" great swelling words of vanity " it is written beforehand, '' He that
" sitteth in the heavens shall laugh, the Lord shall have them in
" derision." For the various passages in the Hebrew Bible in which
the verb a>a occurs, see Job xiv. 22, "shall have pain ;" Prov. xiv. 13,
"is sorrowful;" Gen. xxxiv. 25, "sore;" Ps. lxix. 29 (Heb. 30),
"sorrowful ; " Ezek. xiii. 22, " made sad ; " 2 Kings iii. 19, "mar,"
Marg. "grieve;" Job v. 18, "maketh sore;" Ezek. xxviii. 24,
- " grieving " thorn. The substantive ainag is translated pdo-nyes by
the LXX., Ps. xxxii. 10, and in Ps. xxxviii. 17 (Heb 18), aXyrjSav in
connexion with pdo-rtyas of the preceding clause. See also in Ps. lxix.
26 (Heb. 27), a\yos, of the pain inflicted by striking. In Isaiah liii. 3,
the Messiah is described as " a man of sorrows," maNao wn, avBparros
iv TrXrjyij av, LXX., see also verse 4 in LXX. See Fuerst's Hebrew
and Chaldee Cone, article aNa. Lud. Cappellus, Critica Sacra, p. 61,
writes : — " Heb. xii. 6, Quern Deus diligit, corripit, pao-nyoi 8e vdvra
vibv bv rrapaSexeTai, ex Proverb iii. 12, ubi in Hebrseo est nsr ;a nN aNai,
" et sicut pater, castigat scilicet, filium quern diligit. At LXX. pro aso,
" legerunt a«a , hoc est, dolore ajjicit, flagris nempe csedendo, a radice
" a«a , dolor. Apoc. ii. 27, xii. 5, xix. 15, de Christo dicitur, et de quovis
" fideli, troipavei avrobs ev pdjiSa o-i8rjpq, pascet eos in virga ferrea, ex
" Psal. ii. 9, ubi in Hebrreo est dsifi, hoc est, confringes eos, at LXX.
" legerunt asin , hoc est, pasces eos, sed prior lectio magis quadrat seqlien-
" tibus, instar vasisfiguli comminues eos."
Verses 7 — 10. — If, therefore, ye endure (iraiBeiav vtto-
pevere)1 the discipline of chastening, God dealeth with you
(rrpoacpepeTai) as with sons.2 Por what son is there whom
a father chastens not ? But if ye be without the discipline
of chastening (iraiBeia'i) of which all 3 have been made
partakers (/zero^ot yeybvacri), then are ye bastards (vodoi),1
and not sons. Moreover (elra, besides, furthermore), we
used to have the fathers of our flesh (t»J? crap/ebs i)pa>v, i.e.,
of the same nature as ourselves, earthly parents) as cor-
, rectors (rraiBevrdf, chasteners, i.e., who were accustomed to
punish us), and we reverenced them (iverpeiropeOa). Shall
we not, then, much rather be in subjection (viroTayrjcr6p.e0a,
i.e., reverently submit ourselves) to the Pather of the Spirits,
and live ? 5 Besides, the former used to chasten (i-rraiBevov,

268 CHAP. XII., 7—10.
i.e., in the way of disciplinary training) with a view to a
few days (irpof oXiyas rjpepas, i.e., to fit us for the short
span of our earthly career) according as they pleased
(Kara to Bokovv ai)Toi<;, i.e., according to the plan and
method which seemed best to their finite and fallible judg
ments. They could only act for the best and by the uncer
tain criterion of their own experience), but the latter, [God
corrects us] with a view to that which is really profitable
(eirl to cvpfyepov, i.e., without any possibility of mistake,
either in the object or the severity of the discipline), in order
that we might be partakers of his holiness. (Els to -pera-
Xafteiv Try? dyioTrjro'; avrov.)
The writer has already intimated (verse 1), by
his allusion to " the sin that so easily besets," that
amendment of life was necessary. Castigation is
. designed to correct a fault. He would have his
converts consider their ways and alter them. Afflic
tion is sent in mercy, but yet it has a very definite
object. They were evidently inclined to refuse cor
rection, and to rebel, instead of humbly setting
themselves to cure what was amiss. Impurity of life
seems to be one especial sin against which they are
warned. (See verses 15, 16, and xiii. 4.) In a
similar strain St. Paul writes to the Corinthians,
1 Cor. xi. 30 — 32. diet tovto iv vp.lv iroXXol dcr8evei<;
Kai dppaicrToi Kal Koipwvrat iKavoi. El ydp eavrov<; BieKpi-
vopev, ovk av iKpivopeOa. Kpivopevoi Be inrb tov Kvplov
iraiBevopeOa, Iva pr] avv rep Koaptp KaraKpidi>p.ev. There
was evidently a departure from holiness, to which
the present troubles were designed to recall them.
And therefore he dwells upon the painful nature
of all real punishment, which has a corrective object
in view, adding,

CHAP. XII., 7—11. 269
Verse 11.- — And* every correction whilst it lasts (irpb<} p.ev
to irapbv) seems not to be a matter of joy but of grief,
but afterwards it yields the peaceable fruit of righteous
ness to those who have been exercised thereby (toZs Bi
airr)*; yeyvpvacrpievois, i.e., to those who have accepted it
in the spirit in which it was designed, supporting it with
resignation and fortitude, admitting its justice and
necessity, but not to those who draw back in offended
pride (x. 30 — 39), and refuse to kiss the rod, and acknow
ledge Him who has appointed it. See Micah vi. 9,
Jer. v. 3.)

1 "'XnopiveTe has the use here of enduring, undergoing, suffering ;
" and not that of supporting, bearing up under, persevering." — Stuart.
In other words, it refers to the condition and process of discipline, not
to the effort by whieh it is cheerfully undergone. Alford, upon ample
MS. authority, adopts els itaiSelav imopevere, i.e., the sufferings that you
endure have a disciplinary object in view, instead of el naiS. vrrop.
J. C. Wolfius, however, strongly objects to this emendation, " Codices
" aliquot habent els naiSelaV, prave omnino, cum sequens dnd8oo-is
" ostendat, rrpoTaaiv hic per el afferri. Confer Millium."
1 Philo, commenting upon Deut. viii. 2, " Remember all the way
"which the Lord God led thee in the wilderness, how He afflicted
" thee," &c, says : —
lis ovv ovras dvdo-ids ionv, o)ff vrroXafieiv KaKarrjv rbv Beov, Kal Xipbv
aiKTiprov SXeBpov iirayovra rois avev rpodyrjs £rjv pr) Svvapivois ; 'AyaBbs
ydp Kal dyaBav ainos, evepyerns, (rarrjp, rpofpevs, nXovrotpbpos, peyaXdSapos,
KaKiav opav lepav djreXrjXaKas. Ovra ydp ra rrjs yrjs axBq, tov re 'ASdp Kal
Kaiv efpvydSevaev iK tov napaSeicrov. Mr) TrapayapeBa ovv rdls (pavais,
aXXa rd Si vnovoiav o-rjpaivdpeva (TKewapev, Kal Xeyapev, on to pev, iKOKaae,
laov earl ra iiralSevae Kal ivovBerrjo-e Kal io-atppdvicre, k.t.X.
" Who is there, therefore, so impious as to insinuate that God inflicts
" wrong, and brings famine, most miserable of deaths, upon men who
" cannot live without food 1 For he is good, and the Author of good (see
" James i. 17), a Benefactor, a Saviour, a Pastor, a Dispenser of wealth,
" a liberal Giver, and has driven malignity far away from the sacred
" boundaries. So did He banish Adam and Cain, those two troublers
" of the earth, from Paradise. We mu^t not, therefore, allow ourselves

270 CHAP. XII., 7—11.
" to be misled by mere words, but pay attention to the hidden meaning
" that underlies them, and so explain He afflicted, as equivalent to He
" corrected, He admonished, He brought to a better mind." Philo, De Congr.
Queer. Erudit. Gratia., Works, vol. i., p. 544. The entire passage is
singularly worth reading, viz., pp. 542 — 545.
3 Even Christ Himself has been made a partaker of chastisement,
Heb. iv. 15, Is. liii. 4 — 10. The word wdvres is doubtless inclusive and
emphatic. It appeals to the murmurers and desponding, upon the
very highest and most persuasive grounds. They are reminded how
they are made partakers of the sufferings of their Lord.
4 "Apa vdBoi icrre Kal oiy viol. There are many difficulties surrounding
this passage arising from the variety of significations in which the
Hebrew word "linn Mamzer, a bastard, is used. Dean Alford contents
himself with quoting from Phavorinus, " vdBos, 6 pr) yvrjo-ws vlds, aXX' e'<c
" TraXXaKiSos,'' and setting over against it a quotation from Philo, which
would imply a totally different meaning. " So Philo de confus. Ling 28,
" vol. i.. p. 426, speaking of the viol rav dvBpumav who built Babel, says
" that they were rav iK irdpvrjs diroKvrjBevrav ovSev Sialpipovres, ovs 6 vopos
" iKKXrjo-las dneXrjXajce Belas," and then Dr. Alford winds up with a some
what diffuse explanation from Chrysostom, which leaves the real per
plexity unsolved. — There is a very wide distinction between the son of a
concubine (who might be a Hebrew woman, or a purchased slave, or a free
Gentile, although such connexions with heathen women were forbidden,
or at least strongly discouraged by the law) and one sprung <?k Trdpvrjs.
J. Selden (De successionibus ad leges Ebrceorum) in the 3d chapter (p. 17),
which is headed, " De Liberis Naturalibus e Concubina, Ancilla, Extranea
" genitis. De Mamzeribus ac liberis ex incestu susceptis, et de Jephthe e
" patrimonio a fratribus ejecto," shows how the natural offspring of a
Hebrew concubine, and even those born " ex Incestu damnato, nns , sea
'• turpitudinis nomine," were eligible to succeed to the inheritance as if
they were legitimate sons, and he quotes in support of his opinion the
saying of Maimonides, Halach Nechahth, cap. i. : —
rtN 'in iido nN in -iiod p -ft n'n© pia is-a D'-roaa yxcrfc masa panpn to
: n';n:'> jttn -iiBNai o':a -ma
" Every next of kin, although born of transgression, succeeds, as if
" he were legitimate. How 1 If any man has a son or a brother a
" bastard (imo), they will succeed to the inheritance, just like other
" sons, and brothers." Such as these would of course be born of Hebrew
parents. If, then, we are to understand that Jephtha's mother was a
Hebrew woman, although she were nni n«N (meretrix), his brethren
unjustly defrauded him of his share in the inheritance ; but if the
words nnN mnN nw p 'a, quia filius es ex foemina alia (Jud. xi 2), are

CHAP. XII., 7—11. 271
to be understood that his mother was a Gentile foreigner, then he had
no legal claim upon the property. (See ibid., pp. 29, 30.) Selden
sagaciously observes that there is nothing in the Hebrew text answering
to the nonpoteris (" thou canst not be heir," &c.) of the Vulgate. The
words are simply friin Nb , thou shalt not inherit. He, therefore, is
inclined to believe that Jephtha was unfairly deprived of his rights.
Here, then, we see that there was nothing to preclude (in the ordinary
way) a base-born son from participating in the home, institutions, and
discipline of a Hebrew household, provided that his mother was a
Jewess. The son of a foreign concubine, however, were she a bond
servant or a free harlot, could not be heir with the sons of the Hebrew
woman, were she wife or concubine (Gal. iv. 30), as is illustrated by the
Eabbinic aphorism, r) vv 'no yin, iai bir Nin laa, aipo ton p r) v*v 'n
n'-oin ;ni nnnirn )n , He who has a son from any source, he is a son in
every respect, excepting only he be born from a bondmaid or a foreign
woman. Bondservants and bondmaids had no right to use the endearing
epithets of Father (Abba) and Mother to the heads of the family, as is
asserted in the Bab. Gemara (tract Berachoth), c. ii., fol. 16 :— D'-iasn
n'nte no'n Nil 'n^s NaN in1; DniN pmp 'n ninacm, Bondmen and bond
women do not make use of the expression Father (Abba) so and so, or
Mother so and so. Here, then, I think we have the clue to the meaning
of the word vddoi, as used by the Writer to the Hebrews. He refers to
children born of foreign mothers, who could lay no claim to the
" Adoption of Sons," and were not regarded as members of the inner
family circle. They would not receive the same discipline with the
other children. They would be exempted, as inferiors, from the training
and educational advantages of the more happily born. To refuse God's
corrective chastening would be voluntarily to assume the position of
bastards. The Eabbinical writers derive the word "iinn from ii Din ,
macula extranea, i.e.. one who wears the stigma of foreign extraction.
And the Targum of Jonathan paraphrases the words of Deut. xxiii. 2,
" A bastard (iino ; Kein Hurenkind, Luther ; Geen Bastaard, authorized
" Dutch transl.) shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord : even
" to his tenth generation shall he not enter into the congregation of the
" Lord," by " He who is born of fornication, or who hath upon him
" the evil mark which is set upon the unclean Gentiles, is not fit to take
" an upright wife from the congregation of the people of the Lord, nor
" unto the tenth generation shall it be fit for him to enter into the
" congregation of the Lord." (Etheridge's Targums, vol. ii., p. 625.)
The LXX. have here translated "irao by ex wdpvrjs, and it is from this
source that the expression in Philo, cited by Dr. Alford, is borrowed
(see in loco). But in Zech. ix. 6, "iron is rendered by dXXoyeveis. The

272 CHAP. XIL, 7—11.
word occurs only in these two passages in the Hebrew text. In its
stricter Rabbinical application, the word -man is confined to those who
were born of incestuous commerce, or of adultery, whose parents, if
discovered and convicted, were by the Mosaic Law punishable with
death, after trial before the Council of twenty-three elders, and at the
express command of God. And so the Mishna defines a bastard : —
•idin 'in-nn jworc Na'py 'ai nai Na' Nto Ninra ita -we to -wan ini'N
nn-n vto ]'a"no to -raw svw 'ai r-uia nabm d'did ,_ra ma vto j'a"niD to
pi n'a
" Who is a bastard 1 Every one who is begotten in contravention of
" the command, Na' nS , ' He shall not come,' according to R. Akiva.
" Simeon the Temanite says : ' Every one on account of whom [his
" ' parents] are guilty of death at the hands of Heaven.' And his
" opinion is the received one. R. Joshua says : ' Every one on account
" ' of whom [his parents] are guilty of death at the hands of the
" ' Council." (Surenhusius' Mishna, Yevamoth, tom. iii., p. 17. See
also Selden de Success., p. 24.) R. O. Bartenora excludes from this
definition of bastardy one begotten " exfamind meretrice." For further
curious exemplification of the prohibition of a Jewess to marry a
bastard, see the Mishna, Tract, Jevamoth, Surenhus. Edit., tom. iii.
See also Selden, De Jure Nat. et Gent., lib. v., chap. xii. (De Matri-
monio et Coitu, qua sive vetitus, sive permissus inter Judwos et Servos
ac Ancillas exterce originis, &c.) ; ibid., chap. xvi. ; De Originariorwm,
aliquot conjugiis, Prosetytis, Justis, et Libertinis, etiam et Ancillis,
permissis, quce interim Originariis ceteris vetita sunt, scilicet Mamzerum,
et Eunuchorum. (Selden's entire treatise is reprinted in Ugolini. Thes.,
vol. 27.) See also Buxtorf, Lex' con Chald. (Art nan), col. 1184; and
Gesen., Lex Manuale (Art. Tinn). Be it observed, in conclusion, that
the prohibition of Deut. xxiii. 2 for a Manner to enter into the congre
gation of the Lord, is interpreted by the Targum and the Rabbies to
mean intermarriage with people of pure Hebrew descent. Intermarriage
with proselytes was not forbidden. See Selden, ut supr., and also
Table Talk, art. Bastard. Respecting the heathen captive taken in war,
whom a Jew might make his wife, see Selden, De Jure Nut. et Gent.,
lib. v., chap. 13.
5 T<5 irarpl rav irvevpdrav. There is considerable difficulty in this
expression, which the Rev. J. C. Reichardt and his fellow-translators of
the Hebrew New Testament have rendered nimn 'aN . It is intended
to be in strong contrast and antithesis to the roi/s rrjs o-apKos rjpav
Trarepas of the preceding clause. The Father of the Spirits, when He
corrects us, does so positively and certainly for our good. His chastening
is as salutary as it is infallibly just. He can make no mistakes. Con-

CHAP. XII., 7—11. 273
tented and cheerful resignation, therefore, and a submissive acquiescence
in his disciplinary decrees, are our bounden duty and privilege. The
context furnishes the key to the signification of the designation. He
who has created the soul ; to whose penetrating discrimination its subtle
constitution and inmost requirements are transparently familiar ; ever
more adapts his dispensations to its highest and everlasting benefit. He
who endures God's chastening can comfort himself with the conscious
ness that he is in the master-hand of his Creator. Man's discipline is,
to a great extent, at haphazard; it is guesswork. Probably it may
turn out well, but the very opposite effect may be produced. It is often
prompted by mere impatient caprice. Often it is mistaken in its judg
ment : but from the wisdom and the love of God there can be no appeal.
It is in this sense, as the allseeing and impartial Searcher of the hearts,
as well as the Divine Father and Upholder of all the souls that He has
created, that Moses and Aaron intercede with Jehovah on behalf of
the congregation (Numb. xvi. 22) : — " O God, the God of the spirits of
" all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt thou be wroth with all the
" congregation 1 " (i«a to1; nnnn 'niN bn , &c.) So, also, Moses appeals
(Num. xxvii. 16, 17) to the Lord as the supreme Shepherd and Guardian
of his people : — " Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all flesh, set
" a man over the congregation, which may go out before them, and
" which may go in before them, and which may lead them out, and
" which may bring them in ; that the congregation of the Lord be not
" as sheep which have no shepherd." (-roa tob ninnn 'rfjN nin' ipc , &c.)
The Targum of Jonathan renders Num. xvi. 22 by " El Elhoa, who hast
" put the spirit of life in the bodies of the children of men, and from
" whom is given the spirit of all flesh ; '' and the Jerusalem Targum by
" 0 God, who rulest over the spirit of all flesh " (Etheridge's Targ.,
vol. ii., pp. 393, 394) ; whilst in Numb, xxvii. 16, the Targum of Jon.
reads, " The Word of the Lord, who ruleth over the souls of men, and
" by whom hath been given the inspiration of all flesh ; " and the Jerus.
Targ., " The Word of the Lord, the God who ruleth over the spirit of
" all flesh " (ibid., p. 441). There is a slight variation from the Hebrew
in the reading of the LXX. in both the above cited passages of the book
of Numbers, viz., Taw rrvevpdrav, Kal Tsdo-rjs o-apKos, of the spirits, and
of all flesh, which makes a considerable difference in the signification,
and, if adopted, would obviously greatly increase the difficulty of the
interpretation of the rav rrvevpdrav of Hebrews xii. 9, inasmuch as
any allusion to God's paternity in respect to the angelic host is
apparently foreign to the writer's purpose, whilst an allusion to the
guardian angels, or ministering spirits (Heb. i. 7 — 14), seems forced,
and too indefinitely expressed to be accepted. Philo, although he
N N

274 CHAP. XII., 7—11.
describes Moses as invoking the auditory of men and ministering
angels, at the commencement of his closing hymn (De Humanitate,
Works, vol. ii., p. 387), yet seems to restrict the sense of ray nvevpdrav,
in Numb, xxvii. 16, to the spirits and nature of men. (Ibid., pp. 384,
385.) Speaking of Moses' intimate and personal acquaintance with the
qualifications of Joshua to be his successor, he writes : — 'AXXa Kairoi
fidoavov aKpifirj Xafiav iK paxpav xP0Va>v' Tr)s i" re Xdyois avrov Kal epyois
KaXoKqyaBlas, Kal to dvayKaidrarov, evvoias rrjs rrpbs to eBvos, oi8e tovtov
arjBrj xprjvai KaTaXmelv SidSoxov. AeSias pr) ^evSoSo^rj, vopl£av dyaBbv rbv
ovk ovra wpbs dXrjBeiav, ijreiSr) ra Kpirrjpia rrjs uvBpaTTivrjs yvaprjs dpvSpd Kal
a/3e/3ata rras eivai Tri(pvKev. "OBev ov irporrio-revav eavra} TTOTVidrai Kal
KaBiKereiiei rbv abpdrov yjrvxrjs e(popov Beov pdvov, bs Sidvoiav aKpifias Beapel,
dpKTTivSrjv (XioBai tov irriTrjSeioTaTOv els rjyepovlav, os oia •narrjp imjieXijo-eTat
rav vrrrjKoav. Kal ras KaBapas, Kal, as dv elrroi ns rpoTTiKarepov napBevovs,
Xelpas els ovpavbv dvarelvas. ''E.TTio-Ke^do-Ba Srj, (prjal, Kitpios 6 Qebs rav
•nvevpdrav Kal irdaqs oapKos, aiBpawov irrl tjjs riXrjBvos k.t.X. "Although
" he (Moses) had tested him (Joshua) accurately, during a long course
" of years, as to his excellent qualifications both of word and deed, and
" also in what was most important of all, viz., his devotion to the
" people, he did not even so venture to leave him as his successor,
" fearing lest he might after all be mistaken in his judgment, and
" suppose him to be a good man when he was not so in reality, inasmuch
" as the criterions employed by human opinion frequently prove short-
" sighted and unreliable. He placed, therefore, no reliance in himself,
" but invoked and implored God, who alone regards the invisible soul,
" and who accurately discerns the intents of the heart, that He would
" select the person fittest from his intrinsic worth for the chieftainship,
" who, as a father, should take charge of his subjects. And so,
" stretching forth pure, or as I might more figuratively express myself,
" virgin hands, to heaven, Let the Lord, says he, the God of the spirits,
" and of all flesh, look out a man over this multitude," &c. See also
Philo, De Posteritate Caini, ibid., vol. i., 238, and De Agricultura, p.
307. — R. Jochanan, in reference to Isaiah xxi. 11, "The Burden of
"Dumah. He calleth to me out of Seir, Watchman, what of the
" night 1 Watchman, what of the night ? " asserts that the angel who
has charge of the spirits of the departed is called Dumah, and that it is
they who ask, " when the day of redemption will dawn," saying,
" Watchman/ what of the night? )Vatch?nan ! what of the night?"
See Gemara Babyl. Sanhedr., f. 94, 1. The passage is quoted in Latin,
with the glosses, by B. Scheidius, Prceterita Prateritorum (Meuschen,
p. 36), and is found on col. 927 of Ugolino's reprint of the Treatise
Sanhedrin (in Thes., vol. 25). It runs as follows : —

CHAP. XII., 12, 13. 275
^sn ninnn to isapni . law nnn ninnn to nnnon -[Nte iniN pnv 'ai -ton
&c. ipa NnN , lov -ton . Wn nn too , rfrtn nn inic , r> nnw . nnn
See also Buxtorf, Lex. Chcdd., art. Non , col. 510. — Schoettgen, Horce
Hebr., tom. i., p. 989, and Wettstein (in loco), adduce various passages
from the Rabbinical writers, in which God is spoken of as " the God of
" the spirits of all flesh," i.e., as Creator of the soul, and Supreme
Discerner of the thoughts, &c.
The encouragements to perseverance and patient
submission have thus been set before the desponding
Hebrews. The Writer now proceeds to give them
homely advice as to the impediments which they
themselves may have originated and perpetuated in
" running the race that is set before " them. He
has already glanced at this subject in the first verse
of this twelfth chapter. The object of God's
fatherly correction is to lead them to amend what
is amiss. It must eventuate in good, provided that
they do not provoke Him to extremities, by rebel-
liously refusing his chastisement, or by continuing
in the wilful indulgence of sin. Instead, therefore,
of giving way to despondency, and bemoaning them
selves as if they were hardly used, they are bidden
to bestir themselves to a radical reformation. When
the necessity of the infliction is over, then, in God's
good time, it will be removed. Meanwhile it
behoves them to look well to their ways, and see
how far, by their sinful conduct, by their resentful
impatience, or by any other hurtful cause, they are
giving the adversaries a handle, or calling for
severer punishment than has, as yet, eome upon
them.
Verses 12, 13. — "Wherefore (Jib) lift up (dvopddocraTe,
erigite, Vulg. ; richtet wieder auf, Luth. ; strengthen.

276 CHAP. XII., 12, 13.
Stuart) the hands that hang down (nrapeipiva^) and the
enfeebled knees ' (trapaXeXvpeva, faltering ?), and make
straight paths for your feet, in order that that which
halts (to ^wXbvf may not to be turned aside, but rather
may be healed.
1 We have here, probably, another example of St. Paul's custom of
quoting the first four words of a passage of the Old Testament, and
trusting to his readers' memory to supply the remainder. The quota
tion is from Is. xxxv. 3, &c. The entire passage, according to the
Authorized Version, runs thus : — " Strengthen ye the weak hands, and
" confirm the feeble knees. Say to them that are of a fearful heart, Be
" strong, fear not : behold, your God will come with vengeance, even
" God with a recompence ; he will come and save you. Then the eyes
" of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be un-
" stopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue
" of the dumb shall sing : for in the wilderness shall waters break out,
" aud streams in the desert. And the parched ground shall become a
" pool, and the thirsty land springs of water : in the habitation of
" dragons, where each lay, shall be grass with reeds and rushes. And
" an highway shall be there, and a way, and it shall be called The way
" of holiness ; the unclean shall not pass over it ; but it shall be for
" those (lnb mm) : the wayfaring men, though fools, shall not err therein.
"No lion shall be there ;  but the redeemed shall walk there: and the
" ransomed of the Lord shall return, and come to Zion (see Heb. xii. 22)
" with songs and everlasting joy upon their heads : they shall obtain
" joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing shall flee away." The third
verse, which is in the Hebrew isnN rrfan do-oi min d't lpin, is in the
LXX, 'lo-yvcare xelPes dveipivai, Kal ydvara irapaXeXvpeva. Most probably
an allusion is also intended to the words of Is. xl. 1 — 4. Surenhusius
(BiftXos KaraXXayijs, pp. 656, 657) writes : — " Verba Apostoli sine ulla
" allegationis formula, adducta', ut a veteribus Hebrseoruin Doctoribus
" interdum fieri solebat (times without number in the Gemara and
" Mishna), sicuti docet thesis nostra 36 De formulis allegandi Scripturas
" Sacras, petita sunt ex Jesaiae xxxv. 3, ubi in textu Hebraso,
ison rnbvi caiai niDi ct ipin
" Conflrmaie manus remissas, et genua labantia corroborate, ad quse verba
" cum Apostoli verbis concilianda, notandum est quod propheta, com-
" mutatis verbis et seutentiis, more oratorio loquens, singulis subjectis
" aliquod verbum jungat, et sic rem exomet, Apostolus brevitatem
" amans, et lectorem Hebrseum, cui locus erat notus, ex duobus unum

CHAP. XII., 12, 13. 277
" conficit, et duas speeiales significationes ad unum generalem revocat,
" quae basis est utriusque, quando dicit dvopBao-are, emendate, corrigite,
" cum enim verba yoN et ns-i fere synonyma sint, ille commode ad unam
" generalem significationem revocari possunt, videsis thesin nostram
" 19 et 20, De Modis interpretandi Scripturas Sacras, cui 4, De Modis
" allegandi, est jungenda, ubi dicitur quod cum sensus brevior sit
" verbis, verba sint contrahenda. Tandem Apostolus textui allegato
" quredam verba adjungit, et sic sensum amplificat ad majorem exhor-
" tationem, quando dixit, Kal rpoxias dp&as troirjo-are rdls no(rlv iipav,
" atque orbitas rectos facite pedibus vestris, quse verba, non in textu
" allegato, sed aliis in locis occurrunt, ut Prov. ii. 15, iv. 11, item v. 6,
" 21, 22, 23, vel etiam Jes. xl. 3, ubi eadem fere phrasis occurrit."
The omission of the second verb, however, may be accounted for by
presuming that the writer had quoted quite sufficient of the passage to
recall it, in its integrity, to the miuds of his readers, and deemed 'it,
therefore, unnecessary to draw out a familiar theme of which the key
note had been distinctly struck. Very similar to the words of the
Writer to the Hebrews are the expressions used by Philo when speak
ing of the trials and hardships which the Israelites underwent in the
wilderness. Commenting on Exod. xv. 23, in reference to the bitter
waters of Marah, he says : — Ol pev ydp rrpoKapdvres dve'weo-ov, fiapvv
avrliraXov rjyrjadpevoi rbv rrdvov, Kal ras x^-Pas V7r' atrBeveias, ao-rrep dneiprj-
Kores d^X^Tal, KaBrJKav, TrdXivSpopeiv els A'tyvrrrov eirl rrjv dirdXayo-iv tov
irdBovs iyvaKores. Ol Se ra (pojijepa Kal Sco/a rrjs iprjplas irdw rXrjTiKas
Kal ippapevas dvaSexdpevoi, rbv dyava tov |3iov SirjBXrjo-av dSidqjBopov Kal
arjTrrjTOV (pvXd^avres, Kal Tav rrjs (pio-eas dvayKalav Kare^avuordvres, as
jrelvav, Sl^j/os, piyos, Kpvos, BdXrros, oaa tovs aXXovs e'laBe SovXovaBai, Kara
iroXXr)v lo'xvos rrepiovo-lav imdyeoBai.
"Not a few, indeed, early succumbed, accounting the toil to be a
" conflict too grievous to bear up against, and hung down their hands
" in helpless feebleness like discouraged athletes, and made up their
" minds to return back again to Egypt, in order to enjoy their sensual
" appetites. But others bearing up manfully and courageously against
" terrors and hardships of the desert, maintained the battle of life with
" invincible and unflagging constancy, and held out against the pressing
" necessities of nature, viz., hunger, thirst, cold, exposure to the incle-
" mency of the weather, heat, by which men usually are overcome, but
" may be surmounted by a superabundance of resolution." Philo, De
Cong, queer, erudit. gratia, Works, vol. i., p. 543.
2 The exhortation to make " straight paths," &c, doubtless signifies
to remove every stone of stumbling, and rock of offence out of the way,
which by incaution, or negligence, or wilful departure from God's law,

278 CHAP. XII., 14, 15.
they may have placed, either before themselves, or before others. The
to xaXbv evidently refers to the waverers who are halting, in a state of
discouragement and indecision, whether to go back to the synagogue or
not. Such as these would naturally be greatly swayed by the pervading
tone, and aspect of their stronger, and elder brethren in the faith. To
these latter the writer appeals, on behalf of the irresolute, and the weak.
They should try to heal, instead of to aggravate their distress, and to
increase their timorousness and fears.

Verses 14, 15.— Pursue (BuoKere) peace with all men,1 and
the sanctification (tov dyiaapbv) without which no man
shall see the Lord.2 Giving diligent oversight (iiricrKo-
irovvre<:), lest any one falling short of the grace of God,
lest any root of bitterness3 springing up, trouble you
(ivo^y), and by it the many be polluted (p.iav65>cnv ol
iroXXoi).*
1 This partakes strongly of the nature of Christ's exhortation to his
disciples (Luke xxi. 12—19) when after setting before them the aggra
vated severity of the persecutions which, for his sake, they should
endure, He concludes, " In your patience possess ye your souls," iv
rfj irropovfj bpav Krrjo-ao-Be ras yjrvxas vpav. Forbearance and gentleness,
with a manifest desire for peace, were to be the weapons wherewith
they should counteract, and if possible disarm, the bitterness of their
enemies. 2 " The sanctification without which no man shall see the Lord," is
in evident allusion to the sanctification of the children of Israel pre
liminary to their going forth out of the camp " to meet with God " at
Sinai when the law was given. Exod. xix. 6 — 15. (Compare Ps. xxiv.
3, 4, " Who shall ascend to the Mount of Jehovah," &c.) The correct
ness of this view is established by the ou yap rrpoo-eXvXvBaTe k.t.X. of
verse 18, &c. The Israelites were commanded to sanctify themselves,
when they were about to go up to the material Mount of God, which
was indeed an occasion of solemnity sufficiently terrible in its every
sight and sound. We, however, are called upon to prepare ourselves
for an ordeal more heart-searching and awe-inspiring still. We are
bidden to draw nigh to the spiritual realities, of which the Mount that
might be touched was but the passing symbol and typical foreshadow-
rnent. According to Talmudical tradition the entire congregation of
Israel was delivered from the taint of "original sin" when they stood

CHAP. XII., 14, 15. 279
upon Mount Sinai. The late Dr. M'Caul (Old Paths, 1846, 8vo., p. 216)
quotes from the tract Shabbath, fol. 145, col. 2, as follows : —
na Vian mn to ©nin Naw rrsviv 'I'D in to "nns xbv pnnira D'ii nn 'ien
npDD Nb 'I'D in to nos vibv D'ii ]nnmi npDD 'I'D in to iibsw tow Nnnn
nn Nb mi'Ni j"»n n-b -ton 'Nn Dm 'ibn a-ft Na-n nna NnN ai rrt inN pinnn
:'ui no ni'N -ton nNi vpto 'n orn mis uns no to -iibn ,-in a-nai nin lrrtro
" Why are the Gentiles defiled ? Because they did not stand upon
" Mount Sinai, for in the hour that the serpent came to Eve, he com-
" municated a defilement, which was taken away from Israel when they
"stood on Mount Sinai  Eav Acha, the son of Eabba, said to Eav
" Ashai, How then does it fare with the proselytes ? He replied,
" Although they went not there, their good fortune (or star) was there
" as it is written, With him that standeth here with us this day, before
" the Lord our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day "
(Deut. xxix. 15). Dr. M'Caul continues, " The Commentary on this
" passage quotes still further particulars from Shipri, and says : —
vn-o dttdsi d'iw t^Ni Din ton lNDinn nnioii iiinpni 'i-d in to nnsw to
i 'iD'Da N'ima toiwa
" All that stood on Mount Sinai were sanctified and purified, and were
" healed from every blemish, even the blind and the lame that then
"happened to be in Israel, as is taught in Shipri." It is evident,
therefore, that the idea of sanctification and purification occupied a
very prominent position in the Jewish mind, in connexion with the
giving of the law on Mount Sinai. The allusion of the Writer to the
Hebrews would be easily intelligible to the Hebrew reader. And this,
perhaps, gives us the clue to the meaning of the word irdpvos, fornicator,
of verse 16, and furnishes us with the explanation of verse 4 in
chapter xiii. In Exod. xix. 15, Moses enjoins upon the people
Tim ^ yew ^ D'n' rtvMj D'lai vn. According to Authorized English
Version, " Be ready against the third day ; come not at your wives."
The LXX , however, renders literally pr) irpoo-eXBrjre yvvaiKi, come not
near a woman. So also the Targum of Onkelos. Luther does not
follow uxoribus vestris of the Vulgate, but has " zum Weibe," and the
Authorized Dutch translation has " tot de vrouw." The Mishna (Shabbat.
Surenh., tom. ii., p. 36), commenting on Exod. xix. 15 by the light of
verses 10, 11, understands this prohibition to refer to the Marriage-bed.
So also Bartenora and Maimonides, the Targums of Palestine and
Jerusalem, and also Josephus. It must be remembered, however
that the ceremonial law had not yet been promulgated. Whilst the
words TON to lffim to might well be paraphrased by the pi) ns irdpvos
of the Writer to the Hebrews as prohibiting all illicit connexion and
impurity. Lest, however, he should appear to give colour of authority

280 CHAP. XII., 14, 15.
to any Essene figment respecting the unlawfulness of marriage, or to
any Eabbinic commandment respecting ceremonial defilements, he
writes, xiii. 4, " Marriage is honourable in all, and the bed undefiled,
" but whoremongers (irdpvovs) and adulterers God will judge." What he
would say is this : " Moses forbid the Israelites to present themselves
" with any sexual impurity upon them, when the Lord came down in the
" sight of all the people upon Mount Sinai." (Exod. xix. 11.) You are called
to stand before the true Mount Zion. " Cleanse yourselves, therefore,
" from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, and put on that true sanctification
" without which no man shall see the Lord." The word irdpvos does not
primarily, if at all, refer to Esau, whose character, as estimated by the
Jewish writers, is expressed exactly by the word fiiftrjXos. Let it be
observed that verses 15 — 17 are a parenthetic, and explanatory illustra
tion of the dyiao-pbv of verse 14. As Moses forbid the impure, and the
profane, or unsanctified, from coming near to the mount of God, to
witness the descent of Jehovah in the presence of his people, on the
day when the Law was given upon Sinai, much more are professing
Christians prohibited from drawing near to the spiritual mount of God,
where the God of the spirits of all flesh reveals Himself to the eye of
faith, and speaks to us by Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, in
the midst of the congregation of his saints.
3 The writer is warning his readers against the sin and infectious
example of apostasy, and he illustrates his meaning from a similar
warning of Moses, Deut. xxix. 18 : — " Lest there should be among you
" man, or woman, or family, or tribe, whose heart turneth away this
" day from the Lord our God, to go and serve the gods of these nations ;
" lest there should be among you » root that beareth gall and worm-
" wood." It is plain, from verses 22 — 28, that Moses intimates that
the guilt, as well as the punishment of such a departure from God,
would be contagious, and that by it " the many " would be polluted ;
for he intimates that the entire land would be visited by the direst
curses. It is very noteworthy that the quotations, made by the New
Testament writers from the Old, are not pressed into their service on
account of a mere similarity of sound, but will, if examined, in the
context, be generally found to refer to circumstances exactly in point,
and immediately bearing upon and illustrative of the subject under
consideration. Such a root of bitterness and troubles of Israel we have
in Achan. Josh. vii. 25. Comp. with Josh. vi. 18, where the verb ias
is the exact equivalent of ivoxXea, although the LXX. have ect-dixWe
in Josh. vi. 18, and ak66pevo-as, igoXoBpevaai in Josh. vii. 25. The
Hebrew text according to the Masoretic reading of Deut. xxix. 18
(Heb. 17) is nisbi tfH-i rns via Daa & ]B , pr) ns io-rlv iv ip'iv piCa &va

CHAP. XII., 16. 281
djvovaa ev xoXfj Kal iriKpla, LXX. ; whilst the words of the Writer to the
Hebrews are a citation, and not a verbatim quotation of the words of
Moses, e.g., pr) tis pi£a iriKplas ava (fivovoa ivoxXfj k.t.X. He includes the
idea of both Tnsb and ibnt in the pl£a iriKplas. Both these Hebrew words
are understood to designate bitter and poisonous herbs. Tnsb is rendered
hemlock in Amos vi. 12 by the English translators, whilst in Amos v. 7,
and the other six passages in which it occurs, it is wormwood, iuni on
the other hand, is hemlock in Hos. x. 4; venom, Deut. xxxii. 33; poison,
Job xx. 16 ; and gall in the other eight passages in which it occurs. A
comparison of the Hebrew with the LXX., as above, will obviate any
excuse for adopting the fanciful suggestion of Surenhusius, " Cum
" itaque wi et Tnsb ambo sint synonyma amarorem significantia, suffici-
" ebat Apostolo msb meminisse sub voce iriKplas, et ibni , quod tarn
" caput, et summitatem rei, quam fel significat, vertere maluit per
" Tibsab ava, ut illud ava (pvovo-a sit Hebrseum «Ni ms sursum germinans."
(Bi/3Xor KaraXXayrjs, p. 660.) Equally untenable is Spencer's explanation
(De Legibus Hebr. Ritualibus, lib. ii., cap. 3, sec. 1), who, with a strange
misapprehension of the Writer's meaning, understands pl£a iriKplas, as
well here, as in the LXX. of Deut. xxix. 18 (where, by the way, the
expression does not occur) to signify some heathenish festival orgie.
The only shadow for such an interpretation would be a supposed allusion
to the lascivious excesses that celebrated the erection of the golden calf
(Exod. xxxii. 6 — 17, 19—25 ; 1 Cor. x. 7), whilst Moses was absent in
the Mount, and whereby " many were defiled." The passage of Spencer
, is found on pp. 449, 450 of the Hague Edition of 1686, and on p. 714
of the Leipsic Edition. For a variety of other proposed emendations
of the Hebrew text, see J. C. Wolfii, Cura Philohgica, Sec, vol. iv.,
pp. 784 — 787, which Wolfius himself, however, rejects as untenable,
believing that St. Paul cited in general terms from Deut., but did not
quote from it. Dr. Alford exercises a prudent discretion in declining to
adopt the alteration, advocated by Delitzsch, of eVo^Xi) into iv xdXjj
(Alford, in loco). See also Wettstein, in loco.
1 The article ol is omitted from the received text, but is inserted by
Alford, on the authority of the Codex Alexandr. and Codex Sinaiticus.
Verse 16. — Lest there be any fornicator (iropvo<;),i or pro
fane person (fiefiTfXos), as Esau,2 who, in exchange for
one morsel of meat (dvrl j3pd>creois pids, one meal, Alford ;
unam escam, Vulg. ; um einer Speise, Luth.), surrendered
(direBoTO, sold) his own birthright (ra irpanoTOKia avrov).
1 See note 2, on pp. 278—281. o o

282 CHAP. XII., 16.
2 The profanity of Esau's act consisted in parting with his privilege
as the head of Abraham's posterity (and, as a matter of consequence,
the distinguished honour of being the direct ancestor of the Messiah),
and, not only so, but with the priesthood also, which in those days,
and until the institution of the Levitic hierarchy, belonged to the
eldest son. And so J. Saubert, in his Commentary De Sacerdotibus et
Sucris Ebrceorum personis (printed at length in Ugolin. Thes., vol. xii.),
writes, "Esau, qui propter unicam escam vendidit sacrum illud prinio-
"geniti jus, vocatur fiifirjXos profanus h.e. ad Sacerdotium ineptus."
Ibid., col. 2. See also J. Selden, De Success, in Pontif. Ebr., cap. 1.
I cannot help feeling, however, that the writer includes, more especially,
the signification of an unhallowed and unsanctified person, in the word
/HeffrjXos, in allusion to the sanctification, before alluded to, enjoined
upon the Israelites by Moses, Exod. xix., before presenting themselves
at the holy Mount. The unholy liver, as well as the profane despiser
of sacred privileges, shall " not see God." The Hebrew converts have
been first warned against the contamination of lustful indulgences;
secondly, they are admonished not to sell their Christian birthright,
under any apparent necessity or pressure of bodily necessity, as profane
Esau did, who, to appease his appetite when he was hungry, said,
n-iaa 'b ni nn'n ninb -jVin oun mn, "Behold, I am going to die, and what
" use now to me is a birthright ? " If, in consequence of the poverty
and distress from which they were then suffering, and to escape from
the persecutions and privations attendant upon their profession of
Christ, or from a base desire to better their position, they should
renounce their baptismal privileges, this would be to act like Esau, who
for a mess of pottage sold his birthright, and forfeited the blessing.
His profanity consisted in setting a passing and temporal necessity over
against the enduring promises, and eternal blessings of God. He chose
the good things of this life, as possessing an immediate and definite
value, before the future, distant, deferred promises of God, for the
sake of which Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were content to forsake all,
and to live as strangers and pilgrims upon earth, looking to heaven as
their home, and to the life to come as their reward. Spencer strongly
asserts, that the Writer to the Hebrews does not so much apply the term
BifirjXos to Esau, as to the Christian who, in consideration of any
worldly advantage, should lapse to heathenism : — " Addi potest, quod
" in verbis illis Apostoli, profani nota non tarn Esavo, quani Christiano,
" voluptatis alicujus mundanse causa ad Gentilismum deficienti, inuri
" videatur." De legibus Hebr. Ritualibus, lib. i., cap. 6, sect. 2 (Hagos
Com., 1686. 4to.), p. 116. Had the learned, but eccentric writer sub
stituted the words Jewish Convert for Christian, and Judaism for

CHAP. XII., 16. 283
heathenism, his remark would have been far nearer the truth of the
case. J. A. Danzius, in his remarkable essay, Antiquitas Baptismi
initiaionis Israelitarum vindicata, p. 302 (printed at length in J. G.
Meuschen's Nov. Test, ex Talmude illustr.), cites the Rabbinic figment
that Esau, in the fury of his vexation at being deprived of the birth
right, obliterated the traces of his circumcision : — " Esavum ob jus
" priniogenitura? sibi subductum, in tantum efferbuisse dicunt, ut
" notam circumcisionis in se deleverit, prseputio arte maligna reducto."
I have referred to this Eabbinical tradition, as illustrative of the
estimation in which Esau is held by the earlier Jewish Commentators,
viz., as one who had "denied the faith." The following. extract, how
ever, from the Targum of Palestine on Gen. xxv. speaks more explicitly
still, although it introduces an abundance of legendary details which
are unknown to the sacred text : — " Esau was a man of idleness to
" catch birds and beasts, a man going forth into the field to kill lives, as
" Nimrod had killed, and Hanok his son. But Jakob was a man peace-
" ful in his works, a minister of the instruction-house of Eber, seeking
" instruction before the Lord. And Izhak loved Esau, for words of
" deceit were in his mouth ; but Rivekah loved Jakob. On the day
" that Abraham died, Jakob dressed pottage of lentiles, and was going
" to comfort bis father. And Esau came from the wilderness, exhausted ;
" for in that day he had committed five transgressions : he had wor
shipped with strange worship, he had shed innocent blood, he had
" gone in unto a betrothed damsel, he had denied the life of the world
" to come, and had despised the birthright. And Esau said to Jakob,
" Let me now taste the red pottage, for I am faint ; therefore he called
" his name Edom (Red). And Jakob said, Sell to-day, as (on this very)
" day, what thou wouldst hereafter appropriate, thy birthright, unto
" me. And Esau said, Behold, I am going to die, and in another
" world I shall have no life ; and what then to me is the birthright, or
" the portion in the world of which thou speakest ? And Jakob said,
" Swear to me to-day that so it shall be. And he sware to him, and
" sold his birthright to Jakob. And Jakob gave to Esau bread and
" pottage of lentiles. And he ate and drank and arose and went, and
"Esau scorned the birthright, and the portion of the world that
" cometh." Elheridge's Targums, vol. i., p. 241. So also the Jerusalem
Targum : — " And he arose and went. And Esau despised the birthright,
" and vilified the portion in the world that cometh, and denied the
" resurrection of the dead." Ibid., p. 242. Again, the Targum of Palestine
on Gen. xxvii. absurdly represents Esau as killing a dog, and en
deavouring to palm it off upon his father instead of venison (p. 248).
And again, p. 250 :— " And Esau kept hatred in his heart against Jakob

284 CHAP. XII., 17.
" his brother, on account of the order of blessing with which his father
" had blessed him. And Esau said in his heart, I will not do as Kain
" did, who slew Habel in the life (time) of his father, for which his
" father begat Sheth, but will wait for the death of my father to come,
" and then will I kill Jakob my brother, and will be found the killer and
" the heir." The Rabbinical writers apply the term Edom, Edomites
to Christians generally, and more particularly to the Church of Rome.
See Caroli Sigonii, lib. vii. de Rep. Hebrceor. (lib. L, cap. i., note.),
printed at length in Ugol. Thes., vol. iv. (col. 158 — 160). See also
Buxtorf. Lexicon Chald., &c, col. 29—32, article dun. The Cabbalists
blasphemously assert that the soul of Edom migrated into Jesus, which
calumny is repeated by Abarbanel in his Commentary on Isaiah xxxiv.
— Dr. Gill observes, in loco, " The Jewish writers speak of this bargain
" and sale much in the same language as the apostle here does. They
" say (Tzeror Hammor, fol. 26, 4, and 27, 1) of him (Esau), this is the
" man that sold his birthright Dn1) "03 isa, for a morsel of bread; and
" apply to him the passage in Prov. xxviii. 21, For a piece of bread tliat
" man will transgress."
The example, then, of Esau's flippant irrevereney in disposing of his
birthright for a meal, is adduced as the example of that profanity
against which the Hebrew converts are warned. They are not left in
doubt as to the precise and definite meaning of the admonition which
the writer intends to impress upon them. There was a great danger
lest they should follow his example, and so exclude themselves from the
blessings of their Christian birthright.
Verse 17. — For ye know that afterwards, when he even
(/tat)1 wished to inherit the blessing, he was rejected
[aTreBoKipdaOr]), for he found no opportunity to change
his mind (p,eTavoia<s yap toitov oi>x evpe), although he
sought it carefully with tears.
1 Dr. Alford unnecessarily proposes to translate Kai, on his part.
Isaac had promised to bless Esau, and unwittingly bestowed the bless
ing intended for the firstborn, upon the younger son. Esau had made
up his mind that the forfeited primogeniture would, by his father's
voluntary act, be restored to him. And, as far as his father's intentions
went, it was actually given to him. Isaac believed that he was blessing
Esau, when he blessed Jacob. It was not until Isaac discovered the
stratagem by which he had been duped, that he refused to rescind his
solemn benediction. Vainly did Esau seek to move him, even by tears,

CHAP. XII., 18. 285
to alter his decision. The birthright and the blessing had irrevocably
been conveyed to Jacob. The peravoia here spoken of does not refer to
repentance for sin. So far from feeling contrition for his wicked act,
by which he had bartered away his privileges, we know that Esau
harboured intentions of fratricidal vengeance against Jacob, perhaps
intending thus, by putting his brother out of the way, to regain what
he had lost. Had Esau truly sought repentance, he would have
assuredly found it. Schoettgen apparently understands peravolas yap
k.t.X. to refer to Esau's inability to alter Isaac's determination to adhere
to what he had done ; " The change of mind " being Isaac's, not Esau's.
" Verte : non potuit efflcere, quamvis multas lacrymas effunderet, ut
" patrem consilii et benedictionis suce poeniteret." It is not, however,
of Isaac, but of Esau, of whom the writer speaks, and Dr. Alford wisely
rejects so farfetched and unsatisfactory an interpretation, albeit it is
supported by many distinguished commentators both ancient and
modern. As to Esau's ultimate repentance, respecting which the
Scriptures are silent, the Rabbinical writers are divided. Dr. Gill
reminds us that the Targum on Job asserts, " All the days of Esau
" the ungodly, they expected that he would have repented, but he
" repented not," whereas the Yalhut Chadash (see Car. Sigonius de
Rep. Hebrceor., col. 158, 159, Ugol. Thes., vol. iv.) seems to imply that
upon his shedding tears he obtained mercy.
Verse 18. — For1 ye are not come near to the palpable Mount
(yjrriXarpajpevqi opei, or better, " that was groped after "),2
and which burned with fire,3 and to blackness and dark
ness, and tempest.4
1 Here, then, the parenthesis of verses 15 — 17 ends. The writer now
assigns the reason why holiness was even more indispensably necessary,
under the Christian dispensation, than under the Mosaic. - The sense
would run on from verse 14, " and the holiness (sanctification, ko.1 rbv
" dyiao-pbv, und die Heiligung, Ewald. See Ps. xxiv. 3, 4, Matt. v. 8)
" without which no man shall see the Lord  For ye are not come to the
" Mount that might be touched," i.e., to Sinai. — The Israelites were com
manded to purge themselves from allfleshly impurities, before presenting
themselves, in solemn conclave, before the material Mount of God, to
hear the Mosaic covenant promulgated. The Hebrews, to whom the
Epistle is addressed, were privileged to be summoned to the spiritual
Mount of God — God's Holy hill of Zion. How needful was it, there
fore, that they should present themselves with consciences purged from
dead works to serve the living God !

286 CHAP. XII., 18.
2 VrjXarpapevq opei, " the Mount that might be touched," Angl. Vers. —
" Ad tractabilem montem," Vulg. — "Den man anriihren konnte," Luth.
— " Contrectabili monti," Beza. — ".Zu einem betastbaren Berge," Ewald.
The verb \yrjXa<pda occurs four times in the New Testament, viz., Luke
xxiv. 39, " handle me and see ; " Acts xvii. 27, " might feel after Him ; "
1 John i. 1, " our hands have handled," and in the above passage of this
Epistle. Wesselius considers it as here describing the earthquake
which accompanied the descent of Jehovah, Exod. xix. 18, " the whole
" mountain quaked greatly." But this is not in accordance with the
proper meaning of the word yjnjXaqbda, which signifies " to feel for" to
" grope, as a blind man, or in the dark." It may suitably be referred to
the smoke, " the blackness and the darkness," which obscured the
mountain, as it is written, " And Mount Sinai was altogether on a
"smoke (lto ]vs), because the Lord descended upon it in fire, and the
" smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace." (Ibid.) VrjXarpa-
piva opei may therefore be fitly rendered, " the mountain that had to
" be groped after." We are distinctly informed in Exod. xix. 16 that
there was " a thick cloud upon the mount." (Heb. laa ;:?, "a heavy
cloud.") Doubtless this obscured the view, so as to make access difficult
even to Moses. To apply -^/rjXa(papeva to the contact of the Deity, in
reference to Ps. civ. 32 and cxliv. 5, is altogether unsuitable. Professor
Stuart wisely observes, — " The idea of de coelo tactus, thunder-struck,
"is here assigned by some respectable expositors  but without any
" good philological support." We are told (Exod. xxiv. 16) that later,
the cloud covered the mount during six days, and on the seventh day
God called to Moses " from the midst of the cloud " (prn -pnn) ; and
again, verse 18, " And Moses went up into the midst of the cloud."
(p»n -pna niwa Na'i.) It is worthy of remark that the words of the
Authorized Version in Exod. x. 21, "darkness which may be felt"
("|Wi wo'i), are rendered in the LXX. by yjnjXarprjTbv o-kotos. The passage
runs thus, — Kal yevrjBrjra (Tkotos iirl yrjs Alyvrrrov, yj/rjXa(pqTbv o-kotos.
'F^ereive Se Mavorjs rrjv x^Pa €*s T0V ovpavbv, Kal iyevero okotos yvo(pos,
BieXXa iirl irdaav yrjv k.t.X. So also in Gen. xxvii. 21, 22, " And Isaac
" said unto Jacob, Come near  that I may feel thee (ko.1 yjrrjXarprjo-a
" o-e)  and he felt him " (ko.1 iyj/r/Xaqbrjo-ev avrbv). Schoettgen writes
(in he, Hor. Hebr. tom. i., p. 991) : — " Vulgo vertunt \jrnXarprjTa, qui
" tangi potest, h.e. materiali : sed non observaverunt Hebraismum,
" qua Deus montes tangere dicitur, ut f amuni emittant. Ps. civ. 32,
" liwi D'Tin w, Attinget montes, et fumabunt. Ps. cxliv. 5, onnn si
" nwi , Aitinge montes, et fumabunt. Antecedens ergo, nempe tactus
" Dei, h.l. ponitur pro consequent^ h.e. fumo : ut opos yjrrjXaipapevov
" sit mons fumans."

CHAP. XII., 19. 287
s KeKavpeva rrvpl. The construction of these words seems to be decided,
in accordance with the Angl. Version, by the LXX. Vers, of Deut.
iv. 11, v. 23, ix. 15, Kal to opos iKalero irvpl, WNa ira, and not as Stuart,
Wesselius, and others have suggested, that it may be taken to signify
"flaming fire," "ad ardentem ignem." In Exod. xxiv. 17 it is said,
" And the sight of the glory of the Lord was like devouring fire
" (ntoN «N3, rrvp epXeyov, LXX.) on the top of the mount, in the eyes
" of the children of Israel. And Moses went into the midst of the
" cloud (els to peo-ov rrjs veqbeXrjs)." So also in Deut. v. 22 — 25 the
terrors of the darkness, and of the fire are especially enlarged upon : —
" And it came to pass, when ye heard the voice out of the midst of the
" darkness (for the mountain did burn with fire), that ye came near
" unto me, even all the heads of your tribes, and your elders : and ye
" said, Behold, the Lord our God hath shewed us his glory and his
" greatness, and we have heard his voice out of the midst of the fire :
" we have seen this day that God doth talk with man, and he liveth.
" Now, therefore, why should we die ? for this great fire will consume
" us : if we hear the voice of the Lord our God any more, then we
" shall die. For who is there of all flesh that hath heard the voice of
" the living God, speaking out of the midst of the fire, as we have, and
" lived ? " For a variety of Jewish legends on the subject of the giving
of the law, see Dr. M'Caul's Old Paths, pp. 199—230. London, 1846.
8vo. 4 Kai yvd(peo, Kal o-kotio, Kal BviXXrj. The first of these words corre
sponds, in the LXX. of Exod. xx. 21, to tois of the Hebrew. In
Deut. iv. 11, to"Wl p» ~\vn are rendered by ckotos, yvodjds, BieXXa.
The same words occur again in the LXX. of Deut. v. 22, where, in the
Hebrew (verse 19), they are represented by the two words to-wi ]^STt ,
" cloud and thick darkness." Gesenius translates tow caligo nubium,
nubes densce, and says, Conflatum esse videtur ex trilitteris t]is nubes, et
toN caliginosus fuit. Congruit gr. opcpvds obscurus, caliginosus, dptpvq
caligo, max. noctis. With respect to the tempest that occurred at the
giving of the law, it is described in Exod. xix. 16, D'piai nbp , thunders
(lit. voices, (paval, LXX.) and lightnings. See also in Exod. xx. 18 : —
"And all the people saw the thunderings (rtipn) and the lightnings.
(OTEtol nNl) ; " Kal iras 6 Xabs eapa Tijv <pavr)v, Kal ras XapirdSas, LXX.
See Rev. iv. 5, viii. 5, x. 3, 4, xi. 15—19, xvi. 18.
Verse 19.— And to the sound of a trumpet,1 and to a voice
of words,2 which (voice) they that heard, entreated 3 that
a word should not be added to them.4

288 CHAP. XII., 19.
1 Knl o-aXn-tyyos ijxa. In Exod. xix. 16, 19, xx. 18, the word neve is
used; whilst in xix. 13, tov is employed; the latter word signifies
rather the clangour of the trumpet than the instrument itself. Here
the LXX. has al o-dXiriyyes ; whilst in the other passages o-dXmy£ is in
the singular. For references to the last trumpet of doom, see Matt.
xxiv. 31 ; 1 Cor. xv. 52 ; 1 Thess. iv. 16.
2 Kal cpavjj prjpdrav. " Alteram sonus inarticulatus, nempe tubas
" sonitus  alterumerat sonus articuhtus, Kal (pavrj prjparav, &c. Et ad
vocem verborum : intelligit Paulus vocem illam Dei qua prsecepta Decalogi
pronuneiavit coram Populo, per tubas sonitum convocato." Wesselii
Fasc. Diss., p. 420. Prof. Stuart misses this antithesis altogether, and
says, " Kal o-aXn-tyyos qxa, and to the sound of the trumpet. See Exod.
" xix. 16 — 19. Probably the meaning is, a voice like that of a trumpet,
" i.e., very loud. In Deut. v. 22 it is called a great voice ; in ch. iv. 12
" it is called the voice of words, i.e., articulate sounds; and, in verse 33,
" the voice of God. Prom comparing all these passages together it
" seems evident that the meaning is, ' an articulate voice, loud, like
" ' that of a trumpet.' " The learned Professor seems to have overlooked
Exod. xix. 19, where it is said, "And when the voice of the trumpet
" sounded long, and waxed louder and louder, Moses spake, and God
" answered him by a voice." This distinction is observed in the LXX.
'HylvovTO Se al (paval ttjs (raXirlyyos irpofiulvovo-ai laxyporepai o-(pd8pa.
Mavo-rjs eXaXqcrev, 6 Se Qebs direKplvaro abra djavrj. Curiously enough,
Moses does not specify the trumpet at all in Deut., but only speaks of
the " voice " (Deut. iv. 33, 36). There were then, two sounds of awe to
which the people listened — the first, the inarticulate sound of the
trumpet which was to summon them "to come up unto the mount"
(Exod. xix. 13) ; the other, the articulate "voice of God speaking out
" of the midst of the fire " (Deut. iv. 33). Professor Stuart seems to
have had Rev. i. 10, iv. 1, before his mind when he wrote the above
passage. Be it observed that in Exod. xx. 18, where the Authorized
Version has " the noise of the trumpet," the Hebrew word is Vip , which
is elsewhere rightly translated voice, e.g., Exod. xix. 16 — 19. The
exact passage from which the Writer to the Hebrews appears to quote
is Deut. iv. 12. D'lai Vip, (pavrjv prjpdrav, LXX. The whole passage
runs thus : — Kal irpoo-rjXBere Kal eo-rrjTe virb to opos, Kal to opos iKalero
irvpl eas tov ovpavov' o-kotos, yvo(pos, BveXXa. Kal iXdXrjo-e Kvpios irpbs
vpds iK peaov tov irvpds (j>avr)v prjpdrav, rjv vpeis rjKovaare, Kal opolapa ovk
e'iSere, dXX' r) (pavrjv. The Ten Commandments are described as the
" Ten Words."
What, then, was the "voice of words" to which the children of
Israel listened ? coin rvw» , robs 8«a Xdyovs, LXX. ; Exod. xxxiv.

CHAP. XII., 19. 289
28 ; Deut. x. 4 ; and not rd SeVa prjpara, as Professor Plumptre asserts in
his article Ten Commandments in Smith's Diet. This latter translation
of D'-iain rows occurs in the LXX. of Deut. iv. 13. It seems plain,
from Exod. xix. 19, that God spake with Moses in their hearing, before
He commanded him to come up into the mount. This voice came to
Moses from heaven, apparently before God " came down on Mount
" Sinai, on the top of the mount" ; and this is also why it is said, in
Deut. iv. 36, " Out of heaven He made thee to hear his voice  and
" upon earth He shewed thee his great fire : and thou heardest his
" words out of the midst of the fire." This is a striking instance of the
extreme accuracy of the Deuteronomist. .After this, the Lord called
Moses up to the top of the mount ; and then, because the priests and
people were evidently giving way to an unhallowed curiosity (Exod.
xix. 21 — 25), Moses was sent down to warn them of their danger in so
doing. Then, doubtless, before Moses returned into the mount, the
Ten Commandments were uttered in the hearing of the people. (Exod.
xx. 1.) After this they entreated Moses to be the medium of communi
cation between God and themselves : — " Speak thou with us, and we
" will hear; but let not God speak with us, lest we die  And the
" people stood afar off, and Moses drew near unto the thick darkness
"where God was" (19, 20). The book of Deut. (v. 22) expressly
limits the words spoken in the ears of the people to the above occasion :
— " These words the Lord spake unto all your assembly  And He
" added no more," fid' niVi . (Heb., verse 19.) See following note. —
Some writers have asserted that the first and second commandments
only were spoken by God himself, and the remainder were " given by
" the disposition of angels." They observe that the speaker employs
the third, not the first person, in the third and succeeding command
ments. And so Wesselius remarks, " Deum queedam saltern verba
" Decalogi, voce immediate a se formata pronunciasse, certum est ; turn
" ex phrasi ilia, facie ad fuciem loculus est Jehova vobiscum ; turn ex
" ipsis verbis in prima persona prolatis, in exordio decalogi, et in primo
" atque secundo prsecepto. Nulla enim creatura id sibi sumeret, ut
" sine ulla praefatione prsemissa, sic dicit Jehova, diceret, Ego sum
"Jehova Deus tuus, Sj-c  Quod tamen reliqua prsecepta decalogi,
" inde a tertio, ubi est mutatio personae primse in tertiam, mediate per
" Angelos pronunciata sint, haud improbabiliter asseritur a nonnullis
" ob loca Act vii. 53, Gal. iii. 19, et potissimum ob Heb. ii. 2. Etenim
" si per Angelos dictus sermo fuit firmus," &c. (Fasc. Diss., pp. 420,
421.) The reader may also consult with advantage the first disserta
tion by the same author, entitled, " De Angelo Jehova ab Hagara viso,"
§ 11 — 17, in his Diss. sacr. Leidenses, Lugd. Bat., 1721, 4to. It was the
P P

290 CHAP. XII., 19.
opinion of the Talmudists that angels did assist at the solemnities of
Sinai, e.g.,
inNi inN to1! mwi '3nVo Vo man D'®» in3 sovh nosi toio' ln'ipnw ttsvi
ni' to-rar lNiDn© p'ai sav: ina inNi nwi ina inN onna ':w rt wop toiffl'D
: aim inn nns nN toi»' 'ia ltoin'i ':w 'lp-rai nton '2nVo Nian onosi nNn
(Shabbath, fol. 88, 1.)
" In the hour when Israel caused ' We will do ' to precede ' We will
" hearken,' there came six hundred thousand ministering angels, one to
" each Israelite, and invested him with two crowns, one answering to
" ' We will do,' and the second answering to ' We will hearken.' But
" when Israel sinned, there descended twelve hundred thousand evil
" angels, and took them away : as it is said, ' The children of Israel
" ' stripped themselves (or were stripped) of their ornaments by Mount
" ' Horeb.' " Again in Shabbath, fol. 88, 2,—
'3NVa rm Vn a"' pmnsi to-iw mn n'apn 'do ns'sj -nam -nan to Van -inN
! prr Nto jitit npn to jitit pm' niNas '3nVo 'tov jniN pin mor?
" Rabbi Joshua, the son of Levi, says as each commandment pro-
" ceeded from the mouth of the Holy One, Blessed be He, Israel went
" back twelve miles, and the ministering angels led them back, as it is
" said the angels of the host did flee apace," &c. (For Dr. M'Caul's
remarks upon the above, &c, see Old Paths, pp. 202 — 205.) J. A. Danzius,
in his marvellously learned treatise, Inauguratio Christi ad docendum haud
obscurior Mesaica, p. 335, observes : — " Quod adeo certum credebatur
" autiquis Ebrseorum, ut verba Cantiei I. 2, Oscuhlur me osculo oris sui,
" haud illepide ad promulgationem applicent Decalogi in Medrasch
" Rabba, f. 4, col. 4. Quasi singula Prseceptorum verba a Deo pronun-
" ciata, vel immediate, vel ope angeli cujusdam unicuique Israelitarum
"fuerint instillata : sensu ac valore-cujusque expresso, cum blandissi-
" mis his illicebris, an me recipis in te f num quid nieam agnoscis
" divinitatem 9 Quo affirmante, ilico osculum infixerunt ori cujusque
" recipientis." Whilst on the pages immediately preceding, Danzius
adduces the testimony of R. Moses Alschech and others to show that a
fundamental article of the faith is, that each individual Israelite received
the commandments directly from the mouth of Jehovah Himself. R.
Tanchuma, f . 26, c. 3, 1. 35, repeats the same legendary traditions respect
ing the intervention of angels. Whilst R. Joseph Albo, Hikarim, lib. iii.,
c. 11, p. 73, b. 1. 1 , &c, asserts that the highest grade of the prophetical
status was the speaking with God face to face. To this grade Moses
attained, and not only Moses, but the entire congregation of Israel at
Mount Sinai.

CHAP. XII., 19. 291
inina Tivp nmara D'tonn Dnuon ins'mj 'toi nto niNn vv '3 iNian Nim
inN n"sin nissnNa n'to win p d"sni 'in nVna rann) d"ini vn Nb D'latoi
Nia1? nsn 'in inito "jo» 'iaia D»n sow nasa prn asa -pto Na '3in nin >v"rt
i d'id D':d rain N'n» nVm ranai -ft mtonVi -j'to
" But this is manifest, that the six hundred thousand footmen which
" went out of Egypt who had been downtrodden with hard service in the
" bricks and the mortar, did not deserve (had no expectations of ?) a
" degree so great as this. Notwithstanding, they did attain to it by the
" mediation of Moses our Master. Por God said (Exod. xix. 9), Behold,
" I am coming to thee in the darkness of the cloud, in order that the
" people may hear when I speak with thee ; that is to say, I am pleased
" to come to thee and to be revealed to thee in this great degree, namely,
" face to face," &c. The above, in reference to the dignity of Moses'
prophetical grade, is in strict accordance with the opinion of Maimo
nides, who writes, Moreh Nevochim, Pt. II., ch. xlv., f. 122, Edit.
Sabionet : —
ns to no ia inNi icn n"sin Nto -]Nia nissnNa nam sow N'ai tow hud'
: ia iaiN
" Our proposition is, that every prophet heard the speech (or com-
" munication) by the mediation of an angel, excepting Moses, concern-
" ing whom it was said (Num. xii. 8), I will speak with him face to face."
Maimonides, however, strenuously combats the notion that the people
shared the honour with Moses of hearing an articulate voice ; and he
bases his opinion upon the fact that in the Decalogue the Almighty
addresses the Ten Commandments to Moses in the second person
singular, and not to the people in the plural. He says that the Israel
ites heard the " voice of words," but not the "words" themselves, and
draws attention to the fact that the words of Deut. iv. 12 give colour to
this distinction, e.g.,
(D'sniB cnN onai ion nVi D-»me onN Dnai Vip inNi
" He (Moses) says, ye heard the voice of words, but he does not say,
" ye heard wards." Nachmanides is emphatically of the same opinion.
Maimonides further asserts that many authorities believed -that the
sound even, of the eight concluding Commandments, was not heard by
the people at all, but by Moses only. Others, e.g., Raschi, Tanchuma,
R. Bechai, &c, supposed that God uttered the whole of the Ten Com
mandments, with one voice or single utterance. Nachmanides, Tan
chuma, and others assert that " the voice " was divided into seven
voices (the Gemara says five), and then multiplied into seventy lan
guages. R. Joseph Albo (Serm. ii. c. 28, p. 54), in common with others,
from the words of Exod. xxiv. 1, "And he said, come up unto the
"Lord" (comp. vers. 12), deduces the fact that a mediator spoke on

292 CHAP. XII., 19.
this later occasion to Moses. This mediator, however, he declares to
have been none other than the Metntron, and not such an angel as
mediatised between the other prophets, lai avi yaw piiaion n-n Ninn
D'iDn iv mm "This was the Metatron, whose name was the same as
" that of his Lord, and he is the Prince of faces." Danzius observes
that this discourse (Exod. xxiv. 1), addressed to Moses, is ascribed in
the Sohar to the Shechina : " Unde sequitur, Schechinam et Mediatorem
" unum fore. Quod ingenue fatetur Jalkut Rubeni, f. 24, c. 3, 1. 30."
Danz., p. 383. See also his Essay, " Schechina cum piis cohabitans," in
the same volume, p. 701, &c. The Targum of Onkelos (Exod. xix., xx.)
reads, " And Mosheh went down to the people and spake with them.
" And the Lord spake all these words, saying," &c. And again, "And
" all the people saw the thunders, and the flames, and the voice of the
" trumpet, and the mountain smoking ; and the people saw, and
" trembled, and stood afar off. And they said to Mosheh, Speak thou
" with us, and we will hearken ; but let it not be spoken to us from
" the Lord, lest we die  And the Lord said to Mosheh, thus shalt
" thou speak to the children of Israel ; you have seen that I have spoken
" to you from the heavens," &c. And again the Targum of Onkelos on
Deut. v., "Word with word hath the Lord spoken with you, at the
" mountain, from the midst of the fire (I stood between the Word of the
" Lord and you, to announce to you at that time the Word of the Lord). . .
'• These words spake the Lord with all your congregation at the mount
" from the midst of the fire  with a great voice, and hath not ceased
" (Pesch Syriac, ' a great voice which hath no limit,' Hebr. fp niVi, and
" he added not). And he wrote them upon two tables of stone, and gave
" them to me. But it was when you heard the voice from the midst of
" the fire  you said, Behold  we have heard the voice of his
" Word out of the midst of the fire; this day have we seen that the
" Lord speaketh with a man, and he liveth." (Etheridge's Targums, in
loco.) From the above extracts it will be seen (though R. Bechai claims
the Targum of Onkelos as favouring the idea that the Israelites only
heard the " voice of words," and not the words themselves. ;toi» tow
D'-ain »w tTODi Din Vip , " Israel heard the voice of words, but Moses
" heard the words ") that the Targum leaves the matter very doubtful.
The Targum of Palestine or Jonathan, on Exod. xix., xx., contains a
variety of legendary amplifications : — " And Mosheh went down from
" the mountain to the people, and said unto them, Draw nigh and
" receive the Ten Words. And the Lord spake all these Words, saying :
" The first word, as it came forth from the mouth of the Holy One,
" whose Name be blessed, was like storms and lightnings and flames of
"lire, with a burning light on his right hand and on his left. It

CHAP. XII., 19. 293
"winged its way through the air of the heavens, and was made
" manifest unto the camp of Israel, and returned, and was engraven on
" the tables of the covenant that were given by the hand of Mosheh,
" and were turned in them from side to side : and then called He, and
" said, Sons of Israel, my people, I am the Lord your God," &c. This
Targum here makes each of the commandments to be addressed to the
Israelites collectively, as it does also in Deut. v. : — " Word to word did
" the Lord speak with you at the mountain, from the midst of the fire.
" I stood between the Word of the Lord and you at that time, to
" declare to you the Word of the Lord, because you were afraid before
" the voice of the Word of the Lord, which you heard from the midst of
" the fire ; neither did you go up to the mountain whilst He said, Sons
"of Israel, my people," &c. And again (ibid) : — "These words spake
" the Lord with all your congregation at the mount, from the midst of
" the fiery cloud and tempest, with a great voice which was not limited :
" and the voice of the Word was written upon two tables of marble,
" and He gave them unto me. But when you had heard the voice of
" the Word  your sages drew nigh unto me, and said, Behold the
" Word of the Lord our God hath showed us his glorious Shekinah and
"the greatness of his excellency (tushbachteih, his magnificence), and
" the voice of his Word have we heard out of the midst of the fire.
" This day have we seen that the Lord speaketh with a man in whom is
" the Holy Spirit, and he remaineth alive," &c. (Etheridge's Targums,
in loco.)— Josephus (Antiq. iii. 4, Whiston's transl.) emphatically asserts
the opinion that the congregation heard every word of the Ten Com
mandments : —
" When he (Moses) had said this, he brought the people, with their
" wives and children, so near to the mountain, that tbey might hear
" God himself speaking to them about the precepts which they were to
" practise, that the energy of what should be spoken might not be
" hurt by its utterance by that tongue of a man which could but
" imperfectly deliver it to their understanding. And they all heard a
" voice that came to all of them from above, insomuch that no one of
"these words escaped them, which Moses wrote on two tables ; which
" it is not lawful for us to set down directly, but their import we will
" declare." Though elsewhere he says, 'Hpav to KaXXio-ra tcw Soypdrav,
Kal ra oo-uorara Ta>v iv rois vdfiois Si dyyeXav rrapd toC 6eo0 paBdvrav
" As we have learned the most excellent and holiest of our dogmas
" which are in the laws, from God, by angels." Ant. xv. 5, 3. Philo
(De decern Oraculis) thinks that God miraculously created a voice, which
was visible in the air, and turned to flaming fire, with a sound similar
to that of a trumpet. (Works, Mangey's Edit., tom. ii., p. 185.) On

294 CHAP. XII., 19.
the whole, it is decidedly preferable to refer (pavrj prjpdrav to the words
of the Decalogue, as intelligibly pronounced by God himself.
* naprjTTjo-avro. Though I have retained the authorized English
version, I cannot help thinking, looking at verse 25, that there is an
idea of petulance and impatience underlying the expression. The
awful restraints imposed upon the people, both before and during the
enacting of this terrible legislative drama, were doubtless irksome to
them. From Exod. xix. 20 — 25 we see that, though Moses believed
that he had sufficiently interdicted all access to the Mount, yet God
sent him down again to add further and more imperative warnings,
over and above those already given : — " And the Lord came down upon
" Mount Sinai, on the top of the Mount, and the Lord called Moses up
" to the top of the M ount : and Moses went up. And the Lord said
"unto Moses, Go down, charge (isn, protest) the people, lest they
" break through (lDin' , iyylo-ao-i, LXX.) unto the Lord to gaze, and
" many of them perish. And let the priests also, which come near to
" the Lord, sanctify themselves, lest the Lord break forth upon them.
" And Moses said unto the Lord, The people cannot come up to Mount
" Sinai ; for thou chargedest us, saying, Set bounds about the Mount,
" and sanctify it. And the Lord said, Away, get thee down (n ~f),
" and thou shalt come up, thou and Aaron with thee, but let not the
" priests and the people break through, (idiit , fiiafjio-Bao-av, LXX.), to
" come up unto the Lord, lest He break forth upon them. So Moses
" went down unto the people and spake unto them." And, moreover,
though God was pleased to accede to the people's request that He should
thenceforward address himself to Moses instead of to themselves, and
also to say, " They have well spoken all that they have spoken,"
nai ion to ia'10'n (Deut. v. 25), yet He adds, with Omniscient intuition
of the deceitfulness of their hearts, and instability of their professions,
" Oh that there were such an heart in them (anb ni Daa1; nvn j.-v 'n), that
" they would fear me, and keep my commandments always," &c. (See
note 1 opposite.)
4 Mr) irpoo-reBrjvai avrdls Xoyov. Professor Stuart proposes to under
stand avrols as referring to prjpao-i. This, however, is not in accordance
with thfi Vulgate, " excusaverunt se, ne eis fieret verbum," nor with
Luther's translation, " Welcher sich weigerten, die sie hoi-ten, dass
" ihnen das Wort ja nicht gesagt wiirde" It seems far preferable to
apply the auToir to the Israelites. It was not only the voice, but the
terrible fire, and the other dread accompaniments of the occasion, that
actuated the Israelites to prefer their request. (Comp. Exod. xx. 18 —
21 with Deut. v. 25 — 27.) The phraseology seems to be borrowed from
the LXX. of Deut. v. 22, Kai ov irpoaeBrjKe, "and He added no more" ;

CHAP. XII., 20. 295
Heb., f]D> NlVi ; and also of verse 25, 'Eav irpoo-BapeBa rjpels aKovcrai rr)v
fpavrjv Kvplov tou Beov rjpav en. The Hebrew words of Deut. v. 22,
fp NlVi , and He added not, have given rise to a multitude of conjectural
interpretations on the part of the Rabbinical writers, although it is
sufficiently plain that, in this verse, Moses states the historical fact, of
which he gives the reason, viz., the entreaty of the Israelites, in the
23rd and following verses. The writers of the Shemoth Rabba (sect.
xxviii. and xxix) gravely assert that nb' niVi means that there was
no echo, or reverberation (Bath. Kol.) to the voice, Vip n l^ n'n nVo. The
Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan have respectively " and hath not
" ceased," and " which was not limited." Rashi suggests as an improve
ment upon the Chaldee paraphrase, 'aniD lnlNa niNin^ fpin n^, " He did
" not appear any more in the same pomp." R. Sol. Ben Meir suggests,
" No voice as great as this will ever be repeated whilst the world lasts."
Aben Ezra reads tp as the future tense, and says, nnN asu n'n ni '3 Pp' n1?,
"He will not add (or repeat), for this was the only occasion." The
Arabic version has " with a voice never to be repeated." Abarbanel is
very much of the opinion of S. Ben Meir. The context, however,
naturally suggests that the LXX. version, with which the English
agrees, is the right one. The Vulgate reads, in like manner, "nihil
" addens amplius." (See also Danzius, Inaug. Christi, p. 336, &c,
and 381.)
Verse 20.— Por they could not endure (or, rather, took
impatiently, submitted with impatience to) ' that which
was enjoined ; 2 " And if even a beast touch the mountain,3
it shall be stoned, or shot down with a dart."
1 Ovk 'iqjepov yap. The verb qbepa is, in one other passage only of the
New Testament, translated "to endure," in our Authorized Version,
viz., Rom. ix. 22, " endured with much longsuffering." As the passage
here is ordinarily understood, I confess that it seems to me one of the
most obscure in the entire Epistle to the Hebrews. But the sense
becomes at once apparent, if we explain it as expressive of impatience
and fretful murmuring at the extreme severity and irksomeness of the
restraint which kept the people in a state of terror, vigilant alarm, and
supernatural dread, for so many days, and which extended even to the
very beasts. " And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about,
" saying, Take heed to yourselves that ye go not up into the mount, or
" touch (Blyeiv, LXX.) the border of it : whosoever toucheth (dtydpevos)
" the mount shall be surely put to death. There shall not a hand touch
" (tfyerai) the mount, but he shall be surely stoned, or shot through

296 CHAP. XIL, 21.
" (ni" m< IN ^0' VipD , X16W XiBofioXrjBrjO-eTai, f) $0X181 Kararo^evBijtrerai) ;
" whether it be beast or man, it shall not live." Exod. xix. 12, 13.
(Compare 20— 25, and note 3 on p. 294.) In chap, xxxiv. 1—3 we read
that when Moses was commanded to hew and bring up the second
tables of stone, instead of the two which God himself had at first pro
vided, it was forbidden for " any man to be seen throughout all the
" mount, neither let the flocks nor herds feed before that mount."
2 T6 8iao-TeXXd/u.ei/oi>. Doubtless all the prohibitions and restraints
already alluded to, whose rigid severity culminated in the example here
adduced, "And if even a beast," &c. On these words Wesselius
observes, " Id est ; quod hinc inde emittebatur a monte, ut erant
" fulgura, tonitrua, sonus tubse, et imprimis, Vox ilia magna Dei
" legem promulgantis ; vel, uti Beza, quod interdicebatur ; vel ut alii,
" quod dicebatur, ut Vulg. Vel denique, quod tarn graviter edicebatur
" et mandabatur." Fasc. Diss., p. 424, &c.
s Kqv Brjplov Blyrj tov opovs XiBo^oXrjBrjaerai, rj j3oXi'Si Kararo^evBrjo-eTai.
The LXX. of Exod. xix. 12, 13, reads, Upoo-ixere eavTois tov dvafUjvai
els to opor, Kal Blyeiv n avrov' irds 6 d^rdpevos roii opovs, Bavdra reXevrrjo-ei.
Ovx aifrerai avrov xe'P' &> yaP XlBois XlBofioXrjBrjo-erai, rj fZoX'181 Kararo^ev-
Brjaerai idv re kttjvos idv re avdpairos, ov ^rjoerai. Professor Stuart writes :
— " The Vulgate edition of the New Testament adds to this clause,
" r) /SoXi'St Kararo^evBrjo-erai ; but no MS. of any authority exhibits this
" phrase, nor any ancient version, nor any of the ecclesiastical Greek
" writers, GScumenius excepted. It is, beyond all doubt, an addition
" of later time, taken from the LXX. of Exod. xix. 13." Dr. Gill,
however, would retain it r — " The last clause, ' or thrust through with
" ' a dart,' is wanting in the Alexandrian and Beza's Claromontare
" copies, in the Vulgate Latin, and all the Oriental versions ; and yet
" it is necessary to be retained, being in the original text, in Exod.
" xix. 12, 13."
Verse 21. — And so terrible was the spectacle enacted1
[that] Moses said, I am terrified, and quake.2
1 To (pavra£dpevov. This word occurs in this passage of the New
Testament only, ^avrao-la is translated " pomp " in Acts xxv. 23, where
it also alone is found. Luther has, " Und also erschrechlich war das
" Gesicht ; " and Ewald, " So furchtbar war das sich hell offenbarende."
2 This passage (see Matt. ii. 23, "On-tar irXrjpaBjj to pvBev 8id ™» irpoipv-
rav, on rla£apdios KXrjBrjo-erai ; and Acts xx. 35, Mvrjpoveiieiv re rav
Xoyav tov Kvplov 'lrjo-ov, 6Vi dvrbs eiire, MaKapidv eo-n SiSovai pdXXov rj
Xap&dveiv) occurs nowhere in the narrative of the publication of the

CHAP. XII., 21. 297
Decalogue in Exodus, nor yet in Deut. J. A. Fabricius supposes that
St. Paul took it from Deut. ix. 19, Kal eKipofios elpi Sid rbv Bvpbv Kal rrjv
dpyrjv, k.t.X. The probability of this latter conjecture appears to me
more than doubtful. " These words," writes Dr. Gill, " are nowhere
" recorded in Scripture ; wherefore the Apostle had them either by
" Divine revelation, or from tradition confirmed by the former ; for the
" Jews have a notion that Moses did quake and tremble when upon the
" mount, and that he expressed his fear and dread. Moses said before
" Him, ' Lord of the world (-in Ni"nn), I am afraid lest they (the angels)
" should burn (or consume) me with the breath of their mouths.' "
" ( T. Bab. Sabbat, fol. 88, 2.) Compare this last clause with 2 Thess.
"ii. 8, and elsewhere (T. Bab. Yoma, fol. 4, 2), those words being
"cited, 'He called unto Moses' (Exod. xxiv. 16), it is observed, 'The
" ' Scripture comes not but (vto D"«V) to terrify him, that so the law
" ' might -be given with fear, fervour, and trembling ; as it is said,
" 'Ps. ii. 11.' Once more (Zohar in Exod., fol. 24, 4), 'At the time the
" ' Holy Blessed God said to Moses, Go, get thee down, for thy people
" ' have corrupted themselves (Exod. xxxii. 7, n»n swiin), Moses trembled,
" ' and he could not speak.' And again it is said (Midrash Kohelet, fol.
" 69, 4) that when Moses was on Mount Sinai, supplicating for the
" people of Israel, five destroying angels appeared, and immediately
" (nan NT'ni), Moses was afraid." J. C. Wolfius pertinently remarks on
Deut. ix. 19, in connexion with the present passage, " Nihil vero
" sensui, sed tantum ad emphasin vocis 'mi' magis declarandam, voca-
"bulum synonymum evrpopos Paulus addidit." — Wesselius (Fasc. Diss.,
p. 427) observes, " Habuit hoe Paulus non ex libro aliquo canonico
" deperdito, sed vel ex Traditione antiqua Judseorum, de qua aliquid
" adnotavit Lud. Cappellus in locum, vel ex sola Revelatione Dei
" immediata, vel potius ex traditione simul et revelatione, confirmante
" traditionem. Ex quo utroque fonte quoque haussisse videtur nomina
" Magorum .^Egypti Jannes et Jambres (2 Tim. iii. 8), et dictum Domini in
" vita terrestri sua prolatum Act. xx. 35, et qusedam forte ex illis quae
" commemoravit in hac epistola, cap. ix. 19, coll. Exod. xxiv. 6, 7, 8," &c.
It ought not to be overlooked, however, that in Exod. xix. 16 it is said
that "all the people" in the camp "trembled." This expression,
doubtless, included Moses himself.
The writer having thus recapitulated some of the
leading, but transient, circumstances of awe under
which the forefathers of his readers drew near to
listen to the giving of the Law on Mount Sinai,
Q Q

298 CHAP. XIL, 22.
now proceeds to set over against them the not less
real, and more majestic and abiding accompaniments
of the Believer's approach to God, under the Gospel
Dispensation. If the most scrupulous ceremonial
sanctification was required of the Israelites at Sinai,
how much greater need has the Christian, of that
" holiness without which no man shall see the Lord."
Verse 22. — Put ye have come unto Mount Zion, and to the
city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem.1
1 Dr. Gill remarks, " The Alexandrian copy reads, as in verse 18,
"for ye are not come, which may seem to favour that interpretation of
" this passage which refers it to the heavenly state, to which saints, in
" this present life, are not as yet come ; but by Mount Sion, and the
" other names here given, is meant the Church of God under the Gospel
" dispensation, to which the believing Hebrews were come, in distinc-
" tion from the legal dispensation, signified by Mount Sinai, from wliich
" they were delivered : and this is called Mount Sion, because, like that,
" it is beloved of God ; chosen by Him ; and it is the place of his
" habitation. Here his worship is, and his word and ordinances are
" administered ; here He communes with his people, and distributes
" his blessings ; and this, as Mount Sion, is a perfection of beauty,
" the joy of the whole earth ; is strongly fortified by Divine power, and
" is immovable, and is comparable to that mountain for its height and
" holiness : and to come to Sion is, to become a member of a Gospel-
" Church, and partake of the ordinances, enjoy the privileges, and
" perform the duties belonging to it." See a curious passage in the
Jerusalem Gemara, Megillah, col. 911 — 913 (Ugol. Thes., tom. 18) : —
. dVdit li nnnn 'in "in n'N . dVeit ii ntoii . nV© n nnnn "in 'in n'N
ntou .nnunn to nn» i» onNa n1) '3 nV\» n rmuo ioni jnd .nVc n nini
nnN3 'nVni '^ nn'n nVw n nVni ihni ;Nn . yb 'nVni inas -csti . dVcit n
.mm is 'is 'nnnn nm .dVpit ii nm;n .i»'a
" Est qui docet : Quies : Haec est Siloh : Possessio est Hierusalem :
" Est qui docet : Quies est Hierusalem ; Possessio est Siloh : qui dicit :
" Quies est Siloh : Quia non venistis hactcnus ad quietem : Possessio est
"Hierusalem: Numquid avis discolor hcsreditas mea mihi ? Qui dicit:
" Possessio est Siloh : Facta est mihi hcsreditas mea quasi ko in Silva.
" Quies est Hierusalem : Haic est requies mea in sccculum seeidi," &c.

CHAP. XII., 22. 299
How, then, did the first Hebrew readers of this epistle understand
the expressions, Slav Kpei, Kal irdXei Qeov £avros, 'lepovo-aXrjp iirovpavla 1
They, doubtless, understood them as referring to those celestial
abodes where the King Messiah dwells (Ps. ii. 6, in p'S Vj? 'Vjn 'n3Di 'ini
'dp), and which are at present accessible to the Church below, by the
wings of faith, and the privilege of the "communion of Saints," even
that " Jerusalem which is above" and " is free," and " which is the
" mother of us all." Gal. iv. 26. This is that " holy hill " concerning
which David writes, Ps. iii. 4, " I cried unto the Lord with my voice,
" and He heard me out of his holy hill." And again, Ps. xv., " Lord,
" who shall abide (ni' 'n , or, sojourn) in thy tabernacle ? who shall
" dwell in thy holy hill ? He that walketh uprightly," &c. And
again, Ps. xxiv., " Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord 1 or who
" shall stand in his holy place 1 He that hath clean hands and a pure
" heart," (aa1? lai D'D3 'pi), &c. See also Ps. xliii. 3, xlviii. 1, 2 (2, 3),
lxviii. 15, 16 (16, 17), xci. 2—9; Is. ii. 2, 3, viii. 18, xi. 9, xiv. 13.
" For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will
" exalt my throne above the stars of God, I will sit also upon the
"mount of the congregation (i»in ina), in the side of the north."
(Compare Ps. xlviii. 2 (3). " I will ascend above the heights of the
" clouds, I will be like the Most High (ffbsb), jet shalt thou be brought
" down to hell " (Vinw to , els SSrjv, LXX.), Is. xxiv. 23, xxv. 6,
xxvi. 1, xxvii. 13, xxix. 8, lvi. 7, lvii. 13, lxii. 1, &c, lxv. 25, Ixvi. 20;
Joel ii. 32 (iii. 5) ; Joel iii. 17 (iv. 17) ; Micah iv. 1, 2, 7 ; Zech. viii. 3.
Here, then, we have abundant examples of the spiritual signification
of the words of Hebrews xii. 22. In Isaiah ii. 3, and Micah iv. 2, it
is foretold that, in Messiah's days, " the law shall go forth out of Zion,"
not from Sinai. The following extract from the Talkut Shimoni on
Isaiah, § 296, c. 1, 1. 34, &c, illustrates the belief of the Rabbinic
Jews that Messiah would promulgate a new law.
Tibso bv n'Vod toi nsb d>3\bv D'pns toi ism ps pa aw nvn!> na"pn -rrw
aov na"pm ltonioo D'aaiai niaVi na"pn bv wd mVtni nnm , Dn'Vn bs D'inly
. n'»n t to ]rfb tt\sv nnnn mm wini
" The Holy One, blessed be He, will sit in the garden of Eden and
" expound. And all the righteous (or saints) shall sit before Him, and
" all the families of the upper regions will stand on their feet, and the
" sun and the constellations shall be on his right hand, viz., of the
" Holy One, blessed be He, and the moon and the stars on his left
"hand. And the Holy One, blessed be He, shall sit and expound a
'- new law, and will give it by the hand of Messiah."
So also Rabbi Hezekiah, in the Midrash Koheleth, chap. ii. : —
; Nan dV» bv nnnn 'lEft N-n ton nin dVim lav) nNio mm to

300 CHAP. XII., 22.
" Every law which one learns in this life, is vanity, in comparison of
" the law of the world to come." The gloss upon which is, minn 'IB1?
moa bv in comparison of the law of the Messiah. See Herm. Witsii,
Dissert, de seculo hoc et futuro, printed at length in Meuschen's
Nov. Test, ex Talmude illustr., p. 1178. The Hebrews are thus
reminded, that their lot is fallen in Messiah's days, in which the
new law and the better covenant is promulgated, and the former
law and covenant, having waxed old, are ready to vanish away. In the
Baba Bathra, f. 75, 2, the following occurs, — " What means Is. iv. 5,
"'And upon her assemblies' rrNipn. Raba answered, R. Jochanan
" said, Not as the Jerusalem of this world, is the Jerusalem of the world
" to come. Anyone that it pleases to go up, goes up to the Jerusalem of
" this world. But into the Jerusalem of the world to come, none go up,
" except D'iniinn, who are prepared (or invited) to it," &c. Schoettgen
observes, " In like manner as they (the Rabbis) believed that there was
" a tabernacle in heaven, they asserted that there was a heavenly
" Jerusalem, which is called in Hebrew n»n Vo D'Voit, in Chaldee
" nVbVi D'Voit, in Greek r) ava 'lepovo-dXrjp, Galat. iv. 26, and 'lepov-
" o-aXrjp iirovpdvios, Hebr. xii. 22." He proceeds to give the following
illustrations of his assertion : — " The OTOin ffliin in the Sohar Chadash,
" fol. 1 9, 3, Rabbi Judah said, The Holy One, Blessed be He, made a
" Jerusalem above according to the pattern of the Jerusalem below,
" and swore that He would not enter it, until the Israelites should have
" entered the Jerusalem below, as He saith in Hos. xi. 9, The Holy One
" in the midst of thee, and I will not enter into the city. And seven bands
" of ministering angels guard it round about, and at each gate there is
" a band of such angels ; but those gates are called the gates of Righte-
" ousness (or justice), which are so prepared that through them the
" souls of the just may enter. — Tanchuma, fol. 39, 2, makes a similar
" statement. Kimchi, also, on the passage above cited of Hosea, says
" the same, but at the same time produces an objection from Ps. cxxii. 3,
" which, however, he does not answer. — I will adduce the following
" additional specimens. The Dtoan wno , fol. 22, 3, on the words,
" Melchisedeck King of Salem, says, nton Vo D'Vdit ii, 'This is the
" ' Jerusalem which is above,' ibid., fol. 23, 1, and which is also
" repeated in the Yalkut Rubeni, fol. 72, 3, ' When David died the
" ' upper angels (angeli superni) refused to give him admission through
" ' the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem, and so he had to abide outside.
" ' But on the day on which the temple was completed, The Holy One,
" ' Blessed be He, called Michael, one of the chief est Holy ones, and
" ' appointed him and two others with him, to be eirlrpoiroi, i.e, guardians
" ' of those Israelites who had prepared a fixed habitation for the throne

CHAP. XII., 22. 301
" ' of his glory. And He commanded Michael to admit David his
" ' anointed through the gates of the heavenly Jerusalem, and to
" ' associate him with the other patriarchs.' Ibid., fol. 25, 2, ' The
" ' same guardians which guard the heavenly Jerusalem, also guard
" ' the one below.' Rashi, on Ezek. xlviii. 35, says, nVi'n bv D'Ven'a
" ' topin' F]iDa Nip 'snisn , The ' Scripture speaks concerning the heavenly
" 'Jerusalem, at the end of Ezekiel.' The Jews assign the locality of
" this heavenly Jerusalem, to that heaven which is called Viai. Chagiga,
" fol. 12, 2, Viai ' in which Jerusalem, the temple and altar are built,
" ' and Michael the great Prince stands, and offers sacrifice in it.' "
Schoettgen, Horce Hebr., tom i., pp. 1210, 1211. — The word Viai signifies
" habitation," and occurs in 1 Kings viii. 13, " an house to dwell in,"
lit. "house of habitation," 2 Chron. vi. 2, "an house of habitation" and
also Is. Ixiii. 15, "Look down from heaven, and behold from the
" habitation of thy holiness and of thy glory." — The words of the
passage under consideration would, therefore, suggest to the minds of
the Hebrew readers, the " heavenly " or " high places," to iirovpdvia
(Eph. i. 3, 20, ii. 6, iii 10, vi. 12), where Christ sits at the right hand
of God, the dwelling-place of the angels, and the holy and happy abodes
of departed saints, where they rest from their labours and enjoy the
fruition of God's presence, whilst waiting for the morning of the resur
rection. This Jerusalem, doubtless, it was that our Saviour described
(Matt, v.) as being "the City of the Great King," and which St. John
beheld in Apocalyptic vision, in all its beautiful and endearing pro
portions. Rev. iii. 12, xxi. 2, 10. And to this Mount Sion (Rev. xiv. 1)
and City of the living God, the Heavenly Jerusalem, believers can and
do come by the anticipation of faith, for their " citizenship iroXtrevpa
" (Phil. iii. 20) is in heaven" ; they are " fellow-citizens with the saints,
" and of the household of God." SvpiroXirai rav dylav, Kal o'lKeioi tov
Oeov. Ephes. ii. 19. And this agrees also with what St. Paul asserts,
Ephes. ii. 6, Kal crvvrjyeipe, Kal ovveKaBioev iv tois iirovpavlois iv XpiOTQ
'Irjcrov. — The following remarkable illustration is quoted by Schoettgen
(tom. ii., p. 620) from the Sohar on Deut., fol. 110, col. 438 : —
: Ntoa D'V» 'lnn^ wabsi nin Nnii'w nvo wi
"Apud omnes in confesso est, Mosen initium fuisse in mundo, ut
" homines essent perfecti in omnibus  Propterea Moses fuit initium fuit
" in mundo. Quod si vero dicas : Gulsnam est consummatio ? Respon-
" deo : Rex Messias. Per hunc enim talis perfectio in mundo inventa est,
" qualis omnibus generationibus nondum fuit. Illo tempore perfectio
" invenietur in supernis et inferioribus, et omnes )'DTO (universes), mundi
" erunt in consociatione una : propterea Scriptura dicit, Zachar. xiv. 9.
" Illo tempore Dominus erit.unus, et nomen ejus unum." — The Christian

302 CHAP. XII., 22.
reader cannot fail to observe an almost startling parallelism between
the above cited passage from the Sohar, and the words of Ephes. i. 10,
els o'lKovoplav roil irXrjpaparos Tav Kaipav, dvaKeCpaXaiao-aoBai ra irdvra
iv r<5 Xpiara, ra re iv rois ovpavois, Kal to iirl rrjs yrjs, iv avra. Again,
ibid., p. 621, "Tanchuma in Jalkut Simeoni II., fol. 57, 2, ad verba
" Jesa. Ixvi. 23, Et fiet singulis mensibus et Sabbathis, &c. Quomodo
" autem fieri potest, ut omnis Israel singulis Sabbathis et noviluniis
" Hierosolymam veniat 1 Respondit R. Levi : Hierosolyma tanto erit
" spatio, quantum terra Israel implet, et terra Israel, quantum totus
" terrarum orbis." The following extract from the Jerusalem Gemara
(Megillah, cap. i., col. 911, 913, Ugol. Thes., vol. 18) singularly illustrates
the subject in hand : —
nVni .dVcit n mm 'in "in nN .oVeiy ii nVii .nV» n nrnin 'in "in nN
.dVoit n nVnn .nnnn to nns is DnNa nb '3 nVm n nmin inNi ]Nn .nVm n
n nnnn .iva n'iN3 'rtni '^ nn'n rfrv li nbni idni ]Nn .¦'b 'nVni sias a'sn
: ioiii is ns mmm nNi .dVoit
" Est qui docet : Quies : hsec est Siloh : Possessio est Hierusalem :
" Est qui docet : Quies est Hierusalem : possessio est Siloh : Qui dicit :
" Quies est Siloh : Quia non venistis hactenus ad quietem : Possessio est
" Hierusalem : Numquid avis discolor hcsreditas mea mihi ? Qui dicit :
" Possessio est Siloh : Facta est mihi hcsreditas mea quasi leo in silva.
" Quies est Hierusalem : Hcsc est requies mea in seeulum seculi."
Verse 22. — And to ten thousands (an innumerable company)
of angels,1 and to the general (or joyful) assembly and
Church of the firstborn,2 whose names are written (or
enrolled) in (the) heavens.
1 Kal pvpidoiv dyyiXav, iravrjyvpei. This is the pointing adopted by
J. C. Wolfius, who, nevertheless, writes: — "Ita libri editi plerique;
" Boeclerus tamen, sublata o-nypfj post dyyiXav, legit, Kal pvpido-iv
" dyyiXav iravrjyvpei. Hoc modo accepit Athanasius, tom. i., p. 986, et Ori-
" genes contra Celsum, ita allegans, Kal pvpidSav dyyiXav iravrjyvpei. Pro
" hac interpunctione  pugnat Rev. Raphelius in Herodoteis, pag. 639,
" propterea, quod ceteris orationis hujus partibus singulis particula ko.1
" pramgitur. Quemadmodum vero paulo ante 7roXet GeoO £avros et
" 'lepovo-aXrjp irrovpavla per appositionem junguntur, ita hic quoque
" usu venire idem censet, ut sensus sit : Accessistis ad myriadas Ange-
" lorum conventum. Recte hsec diei existimo. Interim Beza et Erasmus
" Schmidius vocem iravrjyvpei proxime cum vocibus koi iKKXrjo-ia con-
" jungunt ; quod et fieri vult CI. Polemanus in Exercitat. vi. Program-
" matica de Pleonasmis, pag. 18." Professor Stuart does not propose

CHAP. XII., 22. 303
to read pvpiaSav with Origen, but yet he adopts Dr. Knapp's pointing,
e.g., " Kal pvpidoiv, dyyiXav iravrjyvpei, and to myriads, the joyful company
" of angels. So, beyond all reasonable doubt, this clause is to be pointed ;
" for iravrjyvpis is not to be joined (as some later critics have joined it)
" with iKKXrjo-lq k.t.X. The structure of the whole paragraph demon-
" strates this ; for each separate clause of it (in vers. 18, 19, 22 — 24) is
" commenced by *eal, and continued (where any addition is made to it)
"by nouns in apposition, without any conjunctive particle before
" them," &c. The Vulgate, however, reads, " et multorum millium
" Angelorum frequentiam, et ecclesiam primitivorum," whilst Luther
has "und zu der Menge vieler tausend Engel, und zu der Gemeine
" der Erstgebornen." The rendering of the Authorized English Version,
after all, appears to be the most natural and preferable, " and to an
" innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and Church
" of the firstborn ; " and so Wesselius reads, " ad panegyrin et ecclesiam
" primogenitorum." (Ease. Diss., p. 443.)— Dean Alford adopts the
punctuation Kal pvpido-iv, ayyeXav iravrjyvpei Kal iKKXrjo-'iq irpar. k.t.X.
He contents himself with " following Delitzsch's note in the main,"
and has very little original to say upon the subject. His remark,
however, that the probable key to the insertion of the words Kpirfj
Qea irdvrav, is the Kipios Kpivel rbv Xaov avrov of chap. x. 30, is a very
just one. (See note 1, on p. 157.) — Dr. Ewald translates, " zehntausen-
" den von Engeln, in Festversammlung." Doubtless the Writer to the
Hebrews had before his mind the words of Deut. xxxiii. 1, 3, " The
" Lord came from Sinai, and rose up from Seir unto them ; he shined
" forth from mount Paran, and he came with ten thousands of saints
" (vip main, ovv pvpido-i KdSvs, LXX., cum eo sanctorum millia,
" Vvlg.) : from his right hand went a fiery law for them (iK Segiav
" avrov ayyeXoi per avrov, LXX.). Yea, he loved the people ; all thy
" saints (vsnp to , wdvres ol rjyiao-pevoi) are in thy hand ; and they sat
" down at thy feet (~fnib I3n am , procubuerunt ad pedes tuos, Gesenius) ;
" every one shall receive of thy words ("j'main hw, iSi^aro dirb rav
" Xdyav avrov vdpov, LXX.)." In this passage we have the clue to the
majestic grouping together of the " ten thousands of angels, and the
" joyful assembly and Church of the firstborn." Compare also Ps. 1.,
which commences; " The mighty God (D'nto to, Qebs Beav, LXX.), even
" the Lord, hath spoken, and called the earth from the rising of the
" sun unto the going down thereof. Out of Zion, the perfection of
" beauty, God hath shined. Our God shall come, and shall not keep
" silence : a fire shall devour before him (toan viri wn), and it shall be
" very tempestuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens
" from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people. Gather

304 CHAP. XII., 22.
" my saints (n'Dn , tovs ocriovs avrov) together unto me ; those that have
" made a covenant with me by sacrifice." Dr. Gill observes : — " The
" Targum, Kimchi, and R. O. Gaon interpret this Psalm of the day of
" Judgment, and Jarchi takes it to be a prophecy of the future redemp-
" tion by their expected Messiah  ver. 1 (The mighty God, dec). In
" the Hebrew text it is El Elohim, which Jarchi renders the God of
"gods ; that is, of angels who are so called, Ps. viii. 5, and xcviii. 7,"
&c. — The Targum of Onkelos renders Deut. xxxiii. 2, 3, as follows : —
" The Lord was revealed from Sinai, and the brightness of his glory
" appeared to us from Seir. He was .revealed in his power upon the
" mountain of Pharan, and with him were ten thousand saints," &e.
The Targum of Palestine adds a variety of amplifications not contained
in the Hebrew text. " The Lord was revealed at Sinai, to give the law
" unto his people of Beth Israel, and the splendour of the glory of his
" Shekinah arose from Gebal to give itself to the sons of Esau ; but they
" received it not. It shined forth in majesty and glory from mount
" Pharan to give itself to the sons of Ishmael, but they received it not.
" It returned and revealed itself in holiness unto his people of Beth
" Israel, and with him ten thousand times ten thousand holy angels.
" He wrote with his own right hand, and gave them his law and his
" commandments, out of the flaming fire. And whatever hath befallen
" to the nations (hath been done), because He loved his people of Beth
" Israel, and all of them He hath called to be saints." So also the Jeru
salem Targum : — " The Lord was revealed from Sinai to give the law unto
" his people of Beth Israel. He arose in his glory upon the moun-
" tain of Seir to give the law to the sons of Esau ; but after they found
" that it was written therein. Thou shalt do no murder, they would not
" receive it. He revealed himself in his glory on the mountain of
" Gebala, to give the law to the sons of Ishmael, but when they found
" that it was written therein, Ve shall not be thieves, they would not
" receive it. Again did he reveal himself upon mount Sinai, and with
" Him ten thousands of holy angels ; and the children of Israel said,
" All that the Word of the Lord hath spoken we will perform and
" obey. And He stretched forth his hand from the midst of the flaming
" fire, and gave the law to his people." (Etheridge's Targums, in loco.)
Very noteworthy is it, that both these Targums allude to the rejection
of the law by the descendants of the two first born sons (Heb. xii. 23),
Ishmael and Esau, as though the Targumists moved in the same atmos
phere of thought as the Writer to the Hebrews, who distinguishes
between the firstborn by natural descent, and the " firstborn that are
" written or enrolled in heaven." But to return to the subject of the
Hebrews' approach to the " innumerable company of angels." R. David

CHAP. XII., 22. 305
Kimchi in his Commentary on Zechariah (iii. 7) :— " Thus saith the
" Lord of hosts ; If thou wilt walk in my ways, and if thou wilt keep
" my charges, then thou shalt also judge my house, and shalt also keep
" my courts, and I will give thee places to walk amongst those that
"stand by.(nton D'insn j'a D'aVnn -f mnil)," thus explains the con
cluding clause of the verse, " They were the angels, who stand and
" endure for ever ; and this means, thou shalt walk amongst them, i.e.,
" his soul, when it should be separated from his body. The Targum
" of Jonathan says, ' In the resurrection of the dead I will receive thee,
" ' and give thee feet to walk amongst these seraphs.' " — The English
translators have fairly rendered the words under consideration by
" an innumerable company." The naai of Deut. xxxiii. 2, like the
pvpidSes of the LXX., are often used to signify a number infinitely
great. B. Scheidius, in his Loca Talmudica, p. 228 (Meuschen), quotes
the following from the Talmudical Tract Chagiga, f. 13, 2, in reference
to Dan. vii. 10 : — " Singulis diebus creantur angeli ministerii ex fluvio
" Dinur, et dicunt Canticum et cessant, quia dicitur Thren. III., 23.
" Nova, singulis matutinis, magna est fides tua." — Gesenius makes the
equivalent of iravrjyvpis, mss, or oftener mss, concio populi ad dies
festos agendos. But although the two Hebrew words occur ten times
in the Old Testament, in Amos v. 21 alone is DS'nissa translated
iv rdis irairnyvpeo-iv i/iSw in the LXX. Ewald observes on the words,
"und zu zehntausenden von Engeln in Festversammlung, wie sie
" zwischen jenem hbchsten Himmel wo das himmlische Jerusalem ist
" und der Erde in der Mitte wie eine niedere rein himmlische Gemeinde
"jenen Berg umringen, nach Ps. lxviii. 18 (17), f., Deut. xxxiii. 3,
" Dan. vii. 10." For Philo's opinion on this subject see note 2, p. 311,
chap. xii. 24, on the words Kal irveipao-i SiKalav rereXeiapivav.
2 'EkkXijo-io uparoroKav iv ovpavdls diroyeypapevav. These " firstborn "
are those who did not, like Esau (verse 16), sell to irpaTordKia, for any
worldly advantage. They are enrolled in heaven as citizens of the
New Jerusalem, even as it is written in Ps. lxxxvii. 3, " Glorious things
" are spoken of thee, O city of God  5. And of Zion it shall be said,
" This and that man was born in her : and the Highest himself shall
" establish her (jl'Vs nina' Nim na iV wni m inN'). 6. The Lord shall
" count, when he writeth up the peoples (compare Dan. xii. 1), that
" this man was born there (d« iV ni D'ns ainaa idd* nin' — Kvpios Siqyr)o-e-
" rai iv ypadyr) Xaav, Kal dpxdvrav Toirav t£i/ yeyevrjpevav iv avrfj.)" Dr.
Phillips (in loc.) observes on D'ns ainsa, that the Syriac has translated
the two words by " in the book of the people. The Chaldee has expressed
"the signification more largely: N'nns to jaisin n'a panan n nied, The
" book in which are written the numberings of all the people." The above
R K

306 CHAP. XII., 22.
passage of Ps. lxxxvii. casts a flood of light upon these words of the
Writer to the Hebrews, and removes all difficulty from the interpreta
tion of iv ovpavols arroyeypapevav. It was a phrase with which the
persecuted Hebrews were perfectly familiar. A parallel passage is
found in Isaiah iv. 2, 3 : " In that day shall the branch of the Lord be
" beautiful and glorious, and the fruit of the earth shall be excellent
" and comely for them that are escaped of Israel (tow nwbdi). And
" it shall come to pass, that he that is left in Zion, and he that remaineth
" in Jerusalem, shall be called holy, even every one that is written to
" life in Jerusalem " (oVfflii'a D"rf> ainan to , irdvres ol ypa(pivres els £ar)v
iv 'lepovo-aXrjp, LXX.). The Targum renders the first clause of verse 2,
ip'Vi nnn'i "i Nn'eo >n' Ninn Niisa, " In that time shall the Messiah of
" the Lord be for a joy and for a glory." Kimchi says that this shall
be " a day of salvation when the Redeemer shall come," Naa nsiwnn dv
tonn, and explains the " branch of the Lord " of the Messiah, in accord
ance with Jer. xxiii. 5, whilst the Babylonian Gemara (Sanhedrin,
col. 911, Ugol. Thes., vol. xxv.) interprets verse 3 of the Resurrection —
iNiBin rrm lamv ptisb 'nnn p'N jnvnrfi n'apn Tnsm D'pns in>to 'ai Nin
n,N D"p aW) v\ip nn D'Vcii'a D"rt ainan to lb inN' «np D'Voii'a mum p'sa
:pn"p D'nVisi Dn
" A disciple of Elias taught, It shall come to pass that the just whom
" the Holy One, Blessed be He, shall quicken, shall not return to dust.
" For it is said (in Isaiah iv. 3), And it shall come to pass that he that is
" left in Zion, and remaineth in Jerusalem, shall be every one called holy,
" every one that is written to life. As the Holy One lives for ever, so
" likewise they shall also live for ever." Another mention of God's
book is found in Exod. xxxii. 32, 33 in immediate connexion with the
giving of the Decalogue : " Yet now, if Thou wilt forgive their sin —
" and if not, blot me, I pray thee, out of thy book which Thou hast
" -written (nana iidn -|iBDO , e\ rrjs [llfiXov o-ov, r)s eypacpas, LXX.). And
" the Lord said unto Moses, Whosoever hath sinned against me, him
" will I blot out of my book ('IDdo)." The Targum of Jonathan or
Palestine paraphrases the above as follows : — " But now if thou wilt
" forgive their sin, forgive ; but if not, blot me, I pray, from the book
" of the just, in the midst of which Thou hast written my name," &c.
A similar allusion is made in Ezek. xiii. 9, " And mine hand shall be
" upon the prophets that see vanity and that divine lies. They shall
" not be in the assembly of my people, neither shall they be written in
" the writing of the house of Israel" (ian3< n1? torn)' n'3 aroai vn' n^ 'ns nDa).
In St. Luke x. 20 we read how our Lord bid his disciples to rejoice
because their names were " written in heaven " (Sri ra ovdpara Ipav
iypdrfirj ev tois ovpavols). In Philipp. iv. 3, St. Paul makes use of similar

CHAP. XII., 22. 307
language, av ra ovdpara iv Bi/HXa {arjs. Some excellent remarks on the
above subject are to be found in J. A. Danzii, Programma de spiritu
ardente in Esaice iv. 4, coll. Act. ii. 2, printed at length on pp. 787 — 794
of Meuschen's Nov. Test, ex Talmude illustr. See also J. Wesselii, Fuse.
Dissertationum, pp.491, 493 (Groningce, 1756, 4to.). See also the Dis
sertation (sect. 11, p. 244) by the same author, De silentio Scriptures
mystico in historia Malchisedeki ad Ps. ex. 4, contained in his Diss. Sacr.
Leidens. Lugd. Bat., 1721, 4to. — And now with respect to irparoTOKav.
I cannot help feeling that there is a reference back to the irparordKia
of verse 16. The birthright that Esau renounced was twofold. He
rejected the honour of being the head of the chosen Family and the
ancestor of the Messiah ; secondly, as being the eldest son, the priest
hood belonged to him. This honour he also parted with for a mess of
pottage. He renounced this religious privilege and distinction, and
cast scorn upon the promises of blessing which would have been trans
mitted, through himself, to the whole world. The Targum of Jonathan
or Palestine (see note 2 on p. 282) describes Esau as saying to Jacob,
" Behold, I am going to die, and in another world I shall have no life,
" and what then to me is the birthright, or the portion in the world to
" come of which thou speakest." And again, " And Esau scorned the
" birthright, and the portion of the world that cometh ; " whilst the Jeru
salem Targum says that " Esau despised the birthright and vilified the
" portion in the world that cometh, and denied the Resurrection of the
"dead." The Targum of Onkelos paraphrases the words of Exodus
xxiv. 5, " And he (Moses) sent young men of the children of Israel
" (tow <ia nsi nN nVo'i), which offered burnt-offerings," &c, as follows :
" And he sent the firstborn sons of Israel," &c, whilst the Targum of
Palestine explains the reason why Moses did so : "And he sent the
" firstborn of the sons of Israel, for until that hour had the firstborn
" had the (office of performing) worship, the Tabernacle of Ordinance
" not (as yet) being made, nor the priesthood given unto Aharon," &c.
(See Etheridge's Targums, in he.) Now what was the promise to the
people of Israel immediately before the giving of the law on Mount
Sinai ? It was, that they should be a Kingdom op Priests and an
holt nation. See Exod. xix. 1 — 6. Had, then, the converts to
Christianity forfeited their title to this glorious birthright, as their
unbelieving brethren asserted they had 1 Just the reverse. They
did stand in the "congregation of the righteous," D'p'is msa, spoken
of in Ps. i. 5 ; they were acknowledged members of the " Church of
" the Firstborn, whose names are written in heaven ! " To the
superiority of the believer's priesthood over Aaron's, the Writer of
this Epistle alludes in chap. xiii. 10 : " We have an altar, whereof

308 CHAP. XII., 22.
" they have no right to eat which serve the tabernacle." To the exer
cise of their priestly functions he refers, in verse 15, " By him, there-
" fore, let us offer the sacrifice of praise to God continually," &c. The
kingdom he speaks of as already given to them in chap. xii. 28,
" Wherefore we, receiving a kingdom which cannot be moved, let us
" have grace, whereby we may serve God with reverence and godly
" fear ; for our God is a consuming fire." The very words of this con
cluding exhortation call to mind the conditions upon which the priestly
kingdom was to be held by the children of Israel, and the fiery manifes
tation of Jehovah upon the Mount of God, which immediately followed.
" Now, therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my cove-
" nant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people,
" for all the earth is mine. And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of
" priests," &c. These words of Exod. xix. 6 are cited by St. Peter
(1, ii. 9) : — " But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy
" nation, a peculiar people ; that ye should show forth," &c. So also
St. John, Rev. i. 5 : "And from Jesus Christ  the first-begotten
" from the dead (SirpardroKos iK rav veKpav)  and hath made us kings
" and priests unto God." This also is the burden of the song of the
elders, Rev. v. 10. We see, therefore, that the Writer to the Hebrews
yet moves, so to speak, in a Sinaitic atmosphere. He still clothes his
ideas in the phraseology of Old Testament Scripture, at once so familiar
and so sacred to his readers. He shows them that they have obtained
the spiritual birthright, of which their unconverted brethren have fallen
short. It is a birthright for which they may well be content to suffer the
loss of all things. As the Jewish father could not disinherit the son of
his less-favoured spouse, and convey the right of primogeniture to the
son of his favourite wife, so the whole Jewish hierarchy was powerless
to alienate from the believers that spiritual birthright which was God's
peculiar gift. (Compare Exod. iv. 22, 23.)
It is His alone to give the birthright, as well as the kingdom ; as He
of old preferred Jacob before Esau, and transferred from Reuben the
kingdom to Judah, and the birthright to Joseph ; even as it is written,
1 Chron. v. 1, 2, "Now the sons of Reuben, the firstborn of Israel
" (toiw H33), for he was the firstborn (liaan), but  his birthright
" (mi3a) was given unto the sons of Joseph, the son of Israel, and the
" genealogy is not to be reckoned after the birthright (maa1; ttmnn1; nVi).
" For Judah prevailed above his brethren, and of him came the chief
" ruler (una tiiVi), but the birthright was Joseph's (rp\b maani)." And
so also it is said, in Jer. xxxi. 9, " I am a father to Israel, and Ephraim
" is my firstborn." Wesselius observes (Fawic. Dissertat., p. 496.
Groningos, 1756, 4to.), " Plures natura Primogeniti fuerunt rejecti, ut

CHAP. XII., 23. 309
" Cain, Ismael, Esavus, Ruben, qui typi fuere et exempla rejectionis
" legalium Judseorum, omniumque qui ex operibus justificari volunt
" coram Deo. Verum per liberrimam Dei gratiam, quidam fratres natu
"minores primogenitis prselati sunt, v.g. Isaacus, Jacobus, &c, qui
" non natura, sed electione divina facti Primogeniti, fuere typi vestri,
" 0 Hebraii, omniumque credentium, et hasredum seternse salutis."
The translators of the London Jews' Society's Hebrew New Testament
have translated, D'nwa D'ainan D'naan nVnpVi msb. Wolfius (Cur. Phil.,
tom. iv., p. 791, in loc.) writes: — " nparoTOKav iv ovpavois diroyeyp.
" Phrasis hsec apud Judseos etiam exstat. Sic in Jalkut Rubeni, fol.
" 49, 2, ad Genes, xxvii. 18, D'o®a naa n'n aps' nnwi '3 , Nam anima
" Jacobifuit primogenita in Cadis. Ita R. Joseph Albo, lib. D'ips, fol.
" 147, col. 1, Justos perfectos dicit Nan dVis nnb O'nnnn D'anai , scriptos
"esse et obsignates inter vivos soeculi futuri. Videtur ea respici ad
" morem, quo primogenitorum nomina in tabulis genealogicis describi
" solebant." See also Num. iii. 12, 13 : — " And I, behold I have taken
" the Levites from among the children of Israel, instead of all the first-
" born that openeth the matrix among the children of Israel : therefore
" the Levites shall be mine. Because all the firstborn are mine ; for on
" the day that I smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I hallowed
" (*> 'nwipn) unto me all the firstborn in Israel. Both man and beast,
" mine shall they be. I am the Lord." For information on the subject
of the primogeniture, and of the law of firstlings, the reader may
consult Selden, De Successionibus ad leges Ebrceorum, lib. i., cap. v. ;
Reland's Antiq. Sacr. (Utrajecti, 1721, 8vo.), p. 342 ; T. Goodwin's
Moses et Aaron (Francofurti ad Moenum, 1710, 8vo.), pp. 39, 40, 74,
848 — 864 ; Philo, De Proemiis Sacerdotwm (Works, Mangey's Edition,
tom. ii., pp. 233, 234) ; and De Humanitate, ibid., p. 391 ; as also the
Treatise Bechoroth, Mishna Surenh., vol. 5, pp. 155 — 191.
Verse 23. — And to Cod the Judge of all,1 and to the spirits
of just men made perfect.2 '
1 Kal Kpirfj Qea irdvrav. Alford has exercised a wise discretion in
retaining the translation of our Authorized Version, although he does
not seem to be aware of the reason why it should be so retained. The
words are designed to convey two ideas to the Hebrews. First, they
are in antithesis to what has been already adduced in verses 18  21
respecting the restrictions that were placed upon the approach to Sinai,
at the giving of the Decalogue. Let the unbelieving Jews taunt these
despised converts with having surrendered their part in the covenant of
legality. Their fathers, who received the Law, and heard the voice of

310 CHAP. XII., 23.
God speaking out of the fire, were compelled to stand afar off, and
quaked. The believers in Jesus need no more stand afar off. They are
brought nigh by the blood of Christ. They are " come to God, the
"Judge of all." It is "God that justifieth; who is he that con-
" demneth 1 " Thus is the position of the Christian Israelite contrasted
with that of those who were yet under the beggarly elements of the
law, and who could only approach once a-year, by the vicarious embas
sage of the High Priest, into the presence of the Shechinah.
But, secondly, the afflicted Hebrews are reminded that the God to whom
they have perpetual access, is the Judge of Axl. He heard the groaning
of their fathers in Egypt ; and the Writer has already consoled them
(x. 30) with the prophetic consolation spoken by Moses (Deut. xxxii.
36. See note 1 on p. 157), " The Lord shall judge his people '' — and,
" shall not the Judge of all the earth do judgment ? " (yiNn to ccrai
Boon n«»' xb. Gen. xviii. 25.) Ewald, usually so happy in his trans
lation, seems to miss some of the force of ko.1 Kpirfj 0e<5 irdvrav in his
rendering, und dem Richter-Gotte Aller. Preferable is Luther's version,
Und zu Gott dem Richter iiber Atte, the circumstances of whose times
bore no faint resemblance to those of the hunted-down Hebrew converts
to Christianity in the Apostolic age.
Wesselius (Fasc. Dissertat., p. 500) would read, And to the Judge,
the God of all; and says, " Justificationis beneficium exprimit Apostolus
" his verbis, Kal Kpirfj Bea irdvrav, Et ad Judicem Deum Omnium,
" scilicet accessistis. Vulgatus habet et Judicem omnium Deum : Beza,
" et Judicem universorum Deum. Belgae ; Ende tot Godt den Rechter
" over atte, quasi heic esset qusedam Hypallage, seu verborum trajectio,
" et vox rravrav ad vocem Kpirfj, non ad vocem 6ew referri deberet. Sed
" ejusmodi vocum transpositio absque ulla necessitate heic statuitur.
" Sensus enim emerget satis aptus et emphaticus, si vocum ordinem in
" Graeco textu servemus. Figuram quandam Grammaticam heic esse
" haud diffiteor, sed ilia non est Hypallage, verum Ellipsis articuli
" prsepositivi rip, ut plene legator, Kal Kpirfj tb Bea irdvrav. Queb
" ellipsis articuli prsepositivi, qui pronominis demonstrativi vel relativi,
" tov iffiN apud Hebrceos, vim ssepe habet, Graicis auctoribus, etiam
" Sacris, perquam familiaris est. Vide Noldium, p. 109, 110, et
" Glassium in Grammat. S. Lib., Tract ii., Cap. 2 et 22. Atque adeo
" Verba hsec Graaca ita verti possunt, et ad Judicem, qui est Deus
" Omnium." Professor Stuart entirely misses the Writer's meaning in
applying the words to the judgment of a " future world." He trans
lates, and to the Judge, the God of all, and says, " Kpirfj designates Him
" before whose tribunal all must appear that enter » future world."
The Writer is addressing present consolation to the Hebrews. He does

CHAP. XII., 23. 311
not say, ye shall come, but ye have come, irpoo-eXrjXiBaTe, " to God the
" Judge of all." He encourages them with the assurance that very
presently their avengement shall proceed from God himself.
2 Kal irvevpao-i SiKalav rereXeiapevav. Ewald excellently renders these
words, Und zu den Geistern volhndeter Gerechten (which I would venture
to translate, and to the spirits of just men whose course is run), and adds,
" Derer die der irdischen Gemeinde jezt entnommen, dennoch stets mit
" ihrem unsterblichen Geiste an ihr den lebendigsten Theil haben, uni
" sie seufzen und klagen, und ran sie sich freuen und frohlocken, wie das
" Apoc. vi. 9—11, vii. 9 — 17, so malerisch beschrieben wird," i.e., " of
" those who have been removed from the earthly Community, but who
" yet, with their immortal spirit, take the liveliest part in her, and who
" sigh and complain on her behalf, and rejoice and exult over her, as is
" so graphically depicted in Rev. vi. 9 — 11, vii. 9 — 17." (Das Sendschr.
a.d. Hebr., p. 144.) It is observable that both these passages of the
Apocalypse depict the condition of those who have attained to the
martyr's palm. These are they who have attained to the Rest that
Remaineth, but are not yet fully glorified, ton 6co0 irepl rjpav Kpe'nrdv
ri irpofiXeib-apevov, iva pr) ^copls rjpav reXeiaBaai (Chap. xi. 40). Stuart,
again, makes but a sorry hand at the interpretation of the passage,
e.g., "and to the spirits of the just men made perfect, i.e., exalted to a
" state of final reward." How this could take place, before the resur
rection of the body, the learned Professor does not proceed to explain.
Philo (De Confusions Linguarum, p. 431, Works, Mangey, tom. i.)
beautifully illustrates his belief upon the subject of the disembodied
souls of the just in the following words : — " God being One himself,
" has around Him innumerable auxiliary powers (Swdpeis dpayovs). By
" these powers, that world which is incorporeal, and mentally dis-
" cernible (vorjrbs), is compacted together, the archetype of the one that
" we see (toO qbaivopevov), which is made up of invisible forms, as this
" world is of visible bodies." Philo proceeds to say that, in admiration
of their endowments, some have not hesitated to call such spiritual
existences gods : — " Moses, entering into the intention of these latter,
" exclaims, O Lord, O Lord, thou King of the gods (Deut. x. 17), in order
" to intimate the superiority of the Ruler over his subjects. For there
" exists in the air a most holy choir (eo-n Se Kara rbv a'epa i|a>Ywy do-apdrav
" lepararos x°P^s) °f disembodied souls, associated with the celestial
" (SiraSbs rav obpavtav) ; for the Divine oracles are wont to call these
" latter souls angels. This entire host, ordered throughout in its several
" ranks, does suit and service to the Captain that so ordered it."
The writer of the Wisdom of Sol. (iv. 13) uses the word reXeiaBels,
in reference to Enoch, in the same signification as the writer to the

312 CHAP. XII., 23.
Hebrews — reXeiaBels, ev oXlya iirXrjpao-e XP0V0VS paKpovs' — I have failed
to discover any allusion to the technical Rabbinical expression O'p'is
Dmna , Justi perfecti, in these words of the writer to the Hebrews,
although Schoettgen prefaces a long disquisition (Hor. Hebr., tom. i.,
pp. 993 — 1003) upon the subject with the following words : — " Judseis
" quam ssepissime in ore sunt D'nm D'p'is, Justi perfecti. Quum ergo
"Apostolus eosdem hic memoret, opera? pretium erit illis parumper
" immorari." It is true that Schoettgen remarks that the Sohar Exod.,
fol. 71, col. 283, speaks of the spirits of the just, nvisi pnn, Spiritus
justorum in paradiso, " cum quibus Deus se oblectat." But the Jewish
idea of a nni pns is that of a perfectly righteous man. And so Buxtorf
defines the term in his Chaldee and Rabbinical Lexicon, col. 451 : —
" Justus absolutus, id est, vn' to rrraso pirn Tvnv, qui hnge remotus fuit
" a transgressione omnibus diebus suis, ut scribit R. Salom. in Sanhed.,
" cap. Chelek, fol. 99, 1." The Yalkut Rubeni, fol. 30, 4 (See Schoettg.,
tom. 1, p. 996) says, " Messias portat peccata Israelitarum D'p'is Dn
" D'HD' D'toiD D'nm, nam et justi perfecti aliquas passionespro Israelitis
" sustinent." It is certain that the Writer to the Hebrews would give
no countenance to the Jewish figment that it was possible for any man
to live altogether without sin, far less to make atonement for another.
In Ps. cxxxviii. 8, David writes, 'isa mi' mm , " The Lord will perfect
" that which concerneth me " ; and, in Philipp. iii. 3, St. Paul disclaims the
notion that he was already perfect, ovx Sri rjSrj eXa/Sov, i) rjSrj rereXelapai.
The word rereXeiapevav, perfected, if used in a theological sense, would
refer to the operation of God's justifying grace, and not to any human
works, merits, or deservings. It would signify "justified," "made
" perfect." Alford lays stress on the word irveipao-iv, as if the Writer
would have written, to just men made perfect, had they not been waiting
in a disembodied state, for the final consummation of the Resurrection.
But then, surely, the Writer would have said, irvevpao-iv SiKalav
rereXeiapivois. The Dean adds, with a strange forgetfulness of the
article of the Creed, I believe in the communion of saints, Koivavla dyiav :
" They are not sleeping, they are not unconscious, they are not absent
" from us : they are perfected, lacking nothing except — and that is our
" defect, because we are as yet imprisoned in an unspiritual body—
" communion with us." — Bishop Pearson on the Creed (Art., Comm.
of Saints) writes, " The saints of God are in communion with all the
" saints departed out of this life and admitted to the presence of God.
" Jerusalem sometimes is taken for the Church on earth, sometimes for
" that part of the Church which is in heaven, to show that, as both are
" represented by one, so both are but one City of God. Wherefore thus
" doth the Apostle speak to such as are called to the Christian faith,

CHAP. XII., 23. 313
" Ye are come unto Mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God,
" the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels,
" and to the general assembly and Church of the firstborn, which are
" written in heaven, and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of
"just men made perfect, and to Jesus the Mediator of the New
" Covenant (Heb. xii. 22 — 24). — Indeed, the communion of saints, in
" the Church of Christ, with those that are departed, is demonstrated by
" their communion with the saints alive. For if I have communion
" with a saint of God, as such, while he liveth here, I must still have
" communion with him when he is departed hence, because the founda-
" tion of communion cannot be removed by death. The mystical union
" between Christ and his Church, the spiritual conjunction with the
" members to the Head, is the true foundation of that communion
" which one member hath with another, all the members living and
" increasing by the same influence which they receive from Him. But
" death, which is nothing else but the separation of the soul from the
" body, maketh no separation in the mystical union, no breach of the
" spiritual conjunction ; and, consequently, there must be the same
" communion, because there remaineth the same foundation."- — The
translators of the London Jews' Society's Hebrew New Testament,
avoiding the word Dmni, have D'nVein O'p'isn ninn toi.
Wesselius (Fasc. Diss., pp. 511, 512), who strongly opposes the
opinion of Schoettgen and Lightfoot, viz., that the Writer to the
Hebrews uses the phrase tsv. Sik. tcteX. as the equivalent to the Rab
binical formula Dmni D'pns , says : — " Verum hoe probari deberet, quod
" Rabbini Justos in hac vita, etiam vocaverint Spieitus Justoeum.
" Vel Spieitus Justos Consummates ; si nempe probare volunt Paulum
" imitatum fuisse phrasin Rabbinorum. Sed hoc non probarunt viri
" docti. Unde, si ex illorum hypothesi, hoc dictum Paulinum, ex
" antiquorum Rabbinorum phrasi, explicandum sit, certe non aliis
" hominibus in hac terra existentes Justiores, qui nunquam Spiritus
" Justorum a Rabbinis dicuntur j sed pios, vita hac jam functos, et quoad
" animas in Paradiso viventes ante resurrectionem corporum eorum,
" intelligere heic debemus. Veteres enim Judsei Animas Piorum a
" corporibus separatas, Spiritus Justorum appellarunt. In libro
" Sapientise cap. iii., 1. AiKa'iav Se yfrvxal Justoeum vero Anim^e sunt
" in manu Dei, ut minime eos attingant cruciatus. Et in Cantico Grseco
" Trium Juvenum, vers. 36, aut in Adjectionibus ad Danielem, cap. xii.
" 86. Benedicile Domino irvevpara Kal tjtvxal SiKaiav. Spiritus et animcs
'•justorum. Similiter Tahnudicos, aliosque Judseos animas piorum
" separatas vocare Spiritus aut Animas Justorum, uno atque altero
" exemplo comprobarunt Doct. Hasseus, 1. c. § 12, et D'Outrein in cap.
S 8

314 CHAP. XII., 23, 24.
" xii. 24 ad Hebr., p. 238. Nee pluribus testimoniis opus erit, postquam
" adscripsero verba R. Meir in libro Avodath Hakkodesch, a Clar.
" Dassooio in Diatriba de Resurrectione mortuorum, p. 64 ; atque a Doct.
" Hasseo, 1. c. § 11, p. 110, laudata. Rabbini nostri, si mentionem faciant
" animarum corporibus carentium, non memorant Justos, sed Spiritus
" Justorum, vel Animas Justorum. Quando autem loquuntur de seculo
" futuro post resurrectionem, ubi corpus et corporeitas est, Memorant
" Justos."
Verse 24. — And to Jesus, Mediator of a new covenant,'
and to a blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things
than that of Abel.2
1 Kal SiaBrjKns veas peo-'irrj 'Iqaov. If the Levitic priesthood be abolished,
if it be superseded by a high priesthood belonging to one of the tribe of
Judah, then of necessity the Mosaic covenant is abrogated also. The
Levitic priesthood was an indispensable feature of the Mosaic covenant —
el pev ovv reXelaois Sid ttjs AeviriKrjS lepafrvvrjs rjv, (6 Xabs yap iir' avrrj
vevojxoBerrjTo) rls en xP€^aj Kara rrjv rd^iv^ MeX^tcreSeK erepov dvlo-rao-Bai
lepia, Kal ov Kara rrjv rd£iv 'Aapav Xeyeo-Bai ; chap. vii. 11 — the new
covenant must therefore have commenced to run from the date of the
abrogation of the Levitic priesthood. But why is the Mediator of the
New Covenant mentioned here in connexion with the blood of sprink
ling ? Are the words merely a redundant amplification of what has
gone before ? Or do they follow, in orderly sequence, upon what has
been previously spoken ? A glance at Exod. xxiv. 1, will show that
they are the legitimate complement of all that has been already adduced.
In Exod. xx. 19, it is related how the children of Israel besought Moses to
undertake the office of mediator : " And they said unto Moses, Speak thou
" with us, and we will hear ; but let not God speak with us lest we die."
Moses accepted the task, and received on their behalf all the injunctions
which are contained in Exod. xx. 22, &c. — Exod. xxiii. These words,
with the Ten Commandments, were written by Moses in a book (Exod.
xxiv. 7) which was, doubtless, the "Book of the Covenant." After
Moses had completed the above-mentioned signal discharge of his
mediatorship, and had committed the words to writing and rehearsed
them to the people, we read, Exod. xxiv. 1 : " And he (Jehovah) said
" unto Moses, Come up unto the Lord, thou, and Aaron, Nadab, and
" Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel ; and worship ye afar off."
(pmn Dn'innMim, — Kal Mavcrfj elnev, dvdfirjBiirpbs w Kvplov av Kai 'Aapav,
Kal Na8a/3 Kal 'A/3ioi8, Kal ifiSoprjKovra rav irpeo-j3vTepav 'loparjX' koi

CHAP. XII., 24. 315
upooKvvrjaovoi paKpoBev ra Kvplco., LXX.) And in verse 2 it is added,
" And Moses alone shall come near the Lord ; but they shall not come
" nigh, neither shall the people go up with him." Here, then, we see
that not only the people of Israel, but also Aaron and his sons, and
also the seventy elders, were forbidden to accompany the mediator
Moses into the presence of God. The latter, indeed, were favoured
with the Vision of the Most High (verse 10) ; but it is plain from
what follows, that Moses went alone to receive the Two Tables into
the Mount of God. Before Moses went up " he took the book of the
" covenant, and read in the audience of the people," and then he took
the blood of the sacrifices (verses 5 — 8) and " sprinkled it on the people,
" and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which the Lord hath
" made with you concerning all these words." We see, then, that the
congregation, though actually sprinkled with the blood of the covenant,
were not permitted to accompany their mediator into the presence of
God. Far different is the position of the believing Hebrews to whom
the Epistle is addressed. They have come to Jesus the Mediator of the
New Covenant, and to " a blood of sprinkling " that gives immediate
and perpetual access to God. The command is no longer, as in Exod.
xix. 12, "And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about"
(a'3D Dsn n« ntoim ; Kal drpopieis rbv Xaov kvkXco., LXX.). But it is with
them, even as St. Paul writes to the Ephesians' (ii. 13, 14) : — Nwl Se iv
Xpiara 'Irjaov, vpeis ol irore ovres paKpdv, iyyvs iyevrjBrjre, iv ra aipan tov
Xpiarov. 'Autos ydp ianv r) elpjjvrj rjpiav, 6 iroirjaas ra apcporepa ev, Kal
to peo-droixov tov (ppaypov Xvcras. Well might the Writer to the Hebrews
declare (viii. 6) Nwl Se Siaepoparepas TeYuye Xeirovpylas, daw Kal Kpelrrovos
ion SiaBrjKrjs pealrns, rjns iirl Kpelrroaiv iirayyeXlais vevopoBerrjTai. These
" better promises " were promises of forgiveness and acceptance, as we
see from verses 10—12, commencing with the words on avrrj r) SiaBrjKrj,
k.t.X., and closing with the declaration on TXeas eaopai rais dSiKiais
avTav, k r.X. And now, as Moses (Deut. xviii. 15 — 19) expressly refers
to Christ (see Ewald, Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p, 131) in his Mediatorial
capacity and resemblance to himself, and does so in immediate con
nexion with the request of the Israelites (Exod. xx. 19), " Speak thou
" with us, and we will hear ; but let not God speak with us lest we die,"
let us briefly inquire what it was that Moses led the Israelites, to expect
from the Messiah, in his capacity as a Mediator. We have it on the
authority of St. Peter (Acts iii. 22), not only that Moses was the author
of this prophecy, but, also, that he wrote therein expressly of our Lord
Jesus Christ. And again (Acts vii. 37) St, Stephen asserts, " This is
" that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall
"the Lord your God raise up," &c. In Exod. xxxiii. 11 it is said,

316 CHAP. XII., 24.
" And the Lord spake unto Moses, face to face, as a man speaketh unto
" his friend." In Numbers xii. 6—8 it is written, " Hear now my words :
" If there be a prophet among you, I the Lord will make myself known
" unto him in a vision, and will speak unto him in a dream. My servant
" Moses is not so, who is faithful (;nNi, see Hebr. iii. 5) in all mine
" house. With him will I speak mouth to mouth, even apparently, and
" not in dark speeches ; and the similitude of the Lord shall he behold."
(E'a' mn' ninm m-na «Vi n«ini ia iaiN no to no.) Whilst the author of
the closing verses of the book of Deuteronomy assures us that up to his
days " There arose not a prophet since in Israel like unto Moses, whom
" the Lord knew face to face," &c. But Moses intimates to his people
that the Prophet shall arise at a similar juncture to that which
occurred at the giving of the law at Horeb. He implies, therefore,
that a new law will be published by this his Successor in the Media-
torship, and that to refuse obedience will be a sin, for which the Lord
will exact the extreme penalty of excision from amongst his people.
(See note 2 on pp. 37, 38.) In Deut, xviii. 1 — 8, Moses reminds the people
how God had provided for their religious instruction by the perpetual
ministrations of the house of Levi, and had endowed them with dues
for the proper maintenance of their ministry. He then prohibits them
from imitating the heathen, in having recourse to the arts of divination,
to witchcraft, and necromancy. The law that Moses had given them
would not require to be supplemented by any such aids, the offspring
of an unhallowed curiosity. The revelation already imparted would be
all-sufficient, until the first covenant should have waxen old and be
ready to vanish away. And then he adds, " For these nations which
" thou shalt possess, hearkened unto observers of times, and unto
" diviners, but as for thee the Lord thy God hath not suffered thee so
" to do. The Lord thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the
" midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me ; unto him shall ye hearken.
" According to all that thou desiredst of the Lord thy God in Horeb in
" the day of the assembly, saying, Let me not hear again the voice of
" the Lord my God, neither let me see this great fire any more, that I
" die not. And the Lord said unto me, They have well spoken that
" which they have spoken. I will raise them up a Prophet from among
" their brethren like unto thee, and I will put my words in his mouth,
" and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it
" shall come to pass that whosoever will not hearken unto my words
" which he shall speak in my name ('n\ra), I will require it of him
" (insn ibiin '33N)." We see, then, that the office of the New Mediator
was to stand between God and the people as Moses did, seeing God
face to face (Num. xii. 6 — 8), and to supplement the revelation already

CHAP. XII., 24. 317
given by such fresh discoveries of God's will as the Lord Jehovah should
" put into his mouth." Now, to whom can these words be applied
except to the Messiah of God, concerning whom the Almighty speaks
by the mouth of his prophet ? (Zech. xiii. 7.) 'n'ns lai, "the man that
" is my fellow." . For the interpretation of this latter passage see
Kimchi's Commentary on Zechariah, translated by the late Dr. M'Caul,
pp. 169 — 177 — Philo (Deterius potiori insdiatur) seems to allude to the
promise of the Messiah in his Mediatorial capacity of interpreter of the
Divine will as predicted by Moses : — 'EKelvois S' aarrep larpdis to vyid£ov
ras ^vxrjs voaovs Te Kal Krjpas dvaSiSaxBelai pepos, iirexeiv dvayKatov,
pexpis b\v o Qebs Kal rbv ipprjvea apiarov KaraaKevdarj, ras tov Xeyeiv irrjyds
dvopfiprjaas, Kal dva8el£as avTa. " It is a duty of necessity to give heed
" to those who, like physicians, are instructed in healing the maladies
" and misfortunes of the mind until God shall also have prepared the
" best Interpreter, having swelled high the fountains of utterance, and
"showed them to him." (Works, Mangey, tom. i., p. 200. See also .
De Monarchia, lib. i., ibid., tom. ii., pp. 221, 222, where Philo cites
Deut. xviii., and explains it in connexion with the prohibition to use
the occult sciences.)
2 Kal dipan pavnapov Kpeirrova XaXovvn irapd rbv, or better, to "AfteX. —
Wolfius observes on the reading irapd rbv "AfieX, " Ita plerique codices.
" Alii habent irapd to "A/3cX, sed duo tantum, quos recitat Millius. Et
" sic quoque editiones Aldi, Frobenii, Colin, et Er. Schmidii. Earn
" lectionem, tanquam Grsecis veteribus et Syro quoque receptam, prse-
" fert Grotius, ut scilicet eo rectius ad alpa referatur, quod B. Lutherus
"-quoque in versione disserte expressit. Rectius vero communior lectio
" tenetur, quam etiam vindicat Jos. Hallett in Paraphrasi et Notis ad
" h.l. Ita supra xi. 4. Abel adhuc dicitur loqui." Now it is quite true that
in chap. xi. 4 Abel is said to speak, but he is said to do so figuratively
(see note 1 on pp. 175 — 179), Si avrrjs diroBavav enXaXelrai, i.e., through
his faith which led to his martyrdom. And so Ewald explains xi. 4,
" und durch ihn den Glauben, wie noch einmal nachdrucklich hervorge-
" hoben wird, redet er gestorben noch." So also Ewald renders the words
of xii. 24 in accordance with the reading to ; " und dem Besprengungs-
" blute das besseres redet als das Abel's." (See also note 1, p. 175, &c.)
Luther has " und zu dem Blut des Besprengung, das da besser redet, denn
" Abel's." The translators of the London Jews' Society's New Testa
ment originally pointedly adopted the same reading ; lainn nNin di toi
ton Din aim. Por my own part, I cannot help regarding to as the correct
reading. Abel being dead, can only speak figuratively. He does so by
his faith, manifested by his bringing a vicarious sacrifice according to
the Divine will. He therefore speaks, not only by the blood of his
martyrdom, but also by the blood of his sacrifice, which latter obtained

318 CHAP. XII., 24, 25.
testimony from God that it was acceptable and accepted. It was then,
that God openly expressed his Divine selection of blood, to the exclu
sion of all other means of ransom, for the redemption of the soul. In
the term " the blood of Abel," therefore, may be included the blood of
all vicarious victims afterwards offered, in accordance with God's
appointment, until the sacrifice of the death of Christ superseded
them. The blood which Moses sprinkled (Exod. xxiv. 8) would be
included under the same general designation, which would thus signify
" blood vicariously shed, and presented as a sin-offeringto God." It need
scarcely be observed, that the blood of Jesus, the Mediator of the New
Covenant, which testifies of forgiveness, speaks of better things than the
blood of Abel's sacrifice, which declares that without shedding of blood
there is no remission. But Abel himself is spoken oi as a martyr by
our Lord Himself (Matt, xxiii. 34, 35) : — " Wherefore, behold, I seud
" unto you prophets, and wise men, and scribes : and some of them ye
" shall kill and crucify ; and some of them shall ye scourge in your
" synagogues, and persecute them from city to city : that upon you may
" come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of
" righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye
" slew between the temple and the altar." Here, then, the- blood of
Abel, as the protomartyr, is represented as crying for vengeance. (See
note 1, p. 175.) As the Gospel according to St. Matthew was early in
circulation amongst the converts from Judaism, they would be familiar
with this prophetic declaration of Christ Himself, viz , that retribution
for all their persecutions was at hand. The allusion, then, to the blood
of Abel would form no unfitting complement to the Kpirf) Oea irdvrav of
verse 23. (See note 1, p. 309.) The blood of Abel spoke of martyrdom
and of retribution ; the blood of Jesus of forgiveness, of patient endu
rance, and of triumph. And this is the burden of the new song in
heaven, Rev. v. 9, 10 : — "Agios €* Xafietv to fiifiXiov, Kal dvolgai ras
arppayiSas avrov, 6Vt ia(pdyrjs, Kal rjydpaaas r<5 ©ea> fjpas iv ra aipan aov,
c'k irdarjs (pvXrjs, Kal yXaaarjs, Kal Xaoii, Kal eBvovs. Kal eiroirjaas rjpds ra
Oea rjpav fiaaiXeis Kal lepeis' Kal ftaoiXevoopev iirl rrjs yrjs.
Verse 25. — See that ye refuse not (/3\eireTe pr) irapairrj-
o-rjcde. See note 3, p. 294) Him that speaketh ' (Videte
ne recusetis loquentem. Vulg.) '¦ for if they did not escape
(erpvyov) who refused him that spake the Oracles of God
on earth (rbv iirl tjj? yr)<; irapaiTTjcrdpevoi 'XpripaTi&vra) ,z
much less shall we that turn away from Him that speaks
to us from heaven (ttoXXw pdXXov r)pei<; oi tov air ovpav&v
aTroarpecpopevoi).3

CHAP. XII., 25. 319
1 Tov XaXovvra. Look to it that ye refuse not Him that is pleading
with us by his blood, viz., Christ. By it He speaks to our gratitude.
He sets before the eyes of our faith the better things (Kpelrrova) assured
to us in the New Testament. As though, by this voice of gentle inter
cession, He would say to the wavering Hebrew converts, " Will ye also
" go away 1 " (John vi. 67.) To this " Blood of the Covenant " the
Writer has already alluded in chap. x. 29. ndo-&> (SoKeire) ^tipoyoy
dgiaBfjaerai ripaplas 6 rbv vibv tov 0eo£) KaTanarrjaas, Kal rb aipa rrjs
SiaBr}Krjs koivov rjyrjadpevos iv a rjyidaBrj, Kal rb irvevpa ttjs xaPlTOS
ivvftploas ; Ewald defends the reading, irapd to "AjSeX, in verse 24, in
these words : — " V. 24, ist fiir rbv umso richtiger to zu lesen (obgleich
" auch Sin. jenes hat) , da der Leser dann desto weniger in Gefahr
" kommt das folgende rbv XaXovvra v. 25 misszuverstehen." The London
Jews' Society's New Testament renders the words thus : — lDNnn toV ini
lama , in the earlier edition.
Ei yap iKeivoi ovk e(pvyov rbv eirl rrjs yrjs irapairrjadpevoi xpnpari^ovra.
The Vulgate rendering of these words coincides with that of the
authorized Angl. Version, Si enim illi non effugerunt, recusantes eum qui
super terram loquebatur : " For if they escaped not who refused Him
" that spake on earth." Luther has, " Denn so Jene nicht entflohen
" sind, die sich weigerten, da er auf Erden redete." The London
Jews' Society's Hebrew New Testament has, D'DNnn nto iidVoi ab dn '3
yiNa lama . Alford, though he translates, " For if they did not escape,
" declining as they did Him who spake on earth," yet adopts the
reading, ovk i£i(pvyov iirl yrjs irapairrjadpevoi rbv xPrIP-aTlii0VTai and
excuses his translation by saying, " The construction is a trajection not
"unusual with our Writer: cf. ch. ix. 15, 16, and ver. 11." Ewald
(Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., pp. 47, 48) adopts this reading ; but, with a
keener perception of what it implies, translates, " Den wenn Jene auf
" Erden nicht entrannen nachdem sie den Gottesworte Redenden sich
" verbaten." And again (ibid., p. 145), " Denn wenn Jene auf Erden,
" noch mitten im Erdenleben, nicht entflohen." And again, pp. 173,
174, " xii. 25, haben die besten Handschriften das rbv, ganz richtig,
" vor xPVpoTiCovra : allein desto mehr, muss man iirl yijs, von der
"irdischen Strafe verstehen welche jene Ungehorsamen, nach Num.
" c. xvi. f., erreichte, und unter tov air ovpavav, nur den vom Himmel
"kommenden jiingsten Richter verstehen." To my mind, the old
reading, rbv iirl rrjs yrjs irapair. k.t.X., is the preferable one, although
there cannot be two opinions as to whether Ewald or Alford renders
ovk i£i(pvyov iirl rrjs yrjs irapairrjadpevoi in the more scholarly manner.
And now, let us inquire who is the speaker designated by rbv xpnparl-
£ovra. The answer is supplied by verse 19. It was the voice of Jehovah

320 CHAP. XII., 25.
which the Israelites declined to hear ; rjs ol aKovaavres iraprjTrjaavro pr)
irpoareBrjvai airols Xoyov. The suggestion of Chrysostom, followed by
Carpzov, that it was Moses, is contrary to the context, and inadmissible.
Under rbv xpnpari£ovra, the same personage is spoken of as the rbv air'
ovpavav of the next clause. Ewald rightly identifies the latter with Him
who shall be Judge of all things, i.e., our Lord Jesus Christ ; although the
context demonstrates that no immediate allusion is here intended to
" Judgment to come." The jSXeirere pr) irapairrjarjaBe tov XaXovvra points
to a present, and not to a future speaker. Jesus at present speaks in
tones of mercy, by his blood. The quotation from Haggai ii. 6, con
tained in verses 26, 27, primarily refers to the first coming of Christ,
as the seventh verse, which immediately follows the quotation, proves :
" For thus saith the Lord of Hosts, Vet once, it is a little while, and I will
" shake the heaven3, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry hnd. And
" I will shake all nations, and the Desire of all nations shall come, and
" I will fill this house with glory, saith the Lord of Hosts." He then
(o aV ovpavav) that speaks at present, is Jesus in his Mediatorial
capacity, SiaBrjKrjs veas peairrjs, to whom the Writer reminds his readers
they have come. The Second Person in the Ever Blessed Trinity also
it was who spake at Sinai ; the Shechinah ; the vid -jnVo , the Angel of
his Presence of Is. lxiii.-9 ; nnan -jnVo of Mai. iii. 1, and Exod. xxiii. 20
— 23 ; " The angel " of Eccles. v. 6 (5) ; the archangel Michael (to3'n
Who is as God), concerning whom the Targum of Palestine (Exod.
xxiv. 1) says, "And Michael, the Prince of Wisdom, said unto Moses
"  Come up before the Lord." — The Shemoth Rabba, the Sohar,
R. Moses bar Nachman, Rabbi Bechai, all assert that wherever Michael
is mentioned there the Shechinah is intended to be expressed. (See
J. A. Danzii, Schechina cum piis cohabitans, pp. 733, 734. Meuschen.)
This is that Angel whom St. Stephen speaks of in reference to
Moses (Acts vii. 38), " This is he (Moses) that was in the Church in the
" wilderness with the Anoel which spake unto him in the Mount Sina."
Most astounding, therefore, is the explanation of rbv xpiparl^ovra
offered by Dean Alford in loco : — " It must be laid down as certain that
" 6 iirl yrjs xprIPaTKa>v is God. Then if so, who is 6 air ovpavav ; or, in
" other words, who is o XaXav, for these are manifestly the same 1
'' Clearly not Jesus (!), for by oB r) (pavrj, which follows, the voice of this
" same speaker shook the earth at the giving of the law : and it can by
" no ingenuity be pretended that the terrors of the law proceeded from
" the Son of God ; especially in the face of the contrast drawn here,
" and in ch. ii. 2 ff." Surely the Dean overlooks the consequence of his
own application of Hagg. ii. 6, as here quoted, to the last dread Judg
ment scene. I do not admit the suitability of the interpretation ; but,

CHAP. XII., 25. 321
on the Dean's own showing, the far greater " terrors " of the Day of
Judgment must " proceed from the Son of God." Even Dean Alford
would hardly be expected to deny that it is Jesus Christ who shall
" come again to judge the quick and the dead " ; and yet, wonderful to
relate, the Dean does, by implication, deny this cardinal doctrine of
Christianity : — " And it would be against all accuracy and decorum in
" Divine things, to pass from the speaking of the God of Israel to that
" of our Lord Jesus Christ, in the way of climax, as is here done, with
" iroXv pdXXov, ' much more shall not we escape.' ' Add to which, that if
" Christ is to be understood as the subject of verses 26 ff., we shall
" have Him uttering the prophetic words, en arra£ k.t.X., whereas, both
"from our Writer's habit (!) of quoting prophecy [cf. ch. i. 1, iv. 7,
"vi. 13, viii. 8, xi. 11], and from the context of the prophecy itself,
" they must be attributed to the Father. How, then, are these diffi-
" culties to be got over ? Simply by taking, as above, the speaker, in
" both cases, to be God. In the first, as appealing from Mount Sinai
" by his angels (!) ; in the second, as speaking from his heavenly throne,
" through his exalted Son." A more miserable jumble of criticism than
the above can hardly be imagined. Dr. Alford first says 6 XaXmv (tov
XaXovvra), who must be Jesus (comp. verse 24), is the same as o em
yrjs xpwaT^a>vr and yet he immediately sets to work to disprove that
which, by the declaration of Scripture, and the traditional consent of
both Jews and Christians, is an undoubted fact. And yet, on Acts vii.
38, ovros ionv 6 yevdpevos iv rrj eKKXqalq iv rfj iprjpa, perd tov dyyeXov
rov XaXovvros avra iv t<5 opei Siva, Kal rav irarepav rjpav, bs ide£aro Xoyia
CavTa, Soiivai rjplv, the Dean says : — " That Moses conversed with both
" the Angel of the Covenant and our fathers, implies that he was the
"mediator between then.; as, indeed, bs iSegar. Xoy. f. more plainly
" declares." Either the Dean, writing on the Acts, was of a different
mind to the Dean writing on the Hebrews, or else he ignored, or was
unacquainted with the fact that the Ansel op the Covenant is the
same as the Shechinah, the Second Person in the Ever Blessed Trinity.
The above miserable blundering prepares us for the following statement,
if possible, more unhappy than the foregoing : — " Thus it is true we lie
" open to one objection, viz., that the giving of the Law is ever regarded
" in the Old Testament as a speaking from heaven. So Exod. xx. 22,
" ipeis eapaKare, otI e'k toC ovpavov XeXdXijKa vpiv : cf. Deut. iv. 36 ; Neh.
" ix. 13. But this objection, though at first sight weighty, is by no
" means decisive. The ovpavds spoken of is surely nothing but the
" material heaven, as apparent to the Israelites in the clouds and dark-
" ness which rested on Sinai, and totally distinct from the ovpavds here,
" the site of our Lord's glorification, who is spoken of, ch. iv. 14, as
T T

322 CHAP. XIL, 25.
" SieXrjXvBas tovs ovpavols." It is to be regretted that the author of the
" Queen's English" has omitted to explain how "the material heaven"
could be " apparent to the Israelites in the clouds and darkness which
" rested on Sinai" J But if the Dean had adopted the advice which he
gives to his readers, viz., to refer to Deut. iv. 36, he might have spared
himself the trouble of writing such childish nonsense as he has done.
There it is written, " Out of heaven he made thee to hear his voice
" {Exod. xix. 16 — 18), that He might instruct thee : and upon earth He
" shewed thee his great fire (ibid., 18) : and thou heardest his words
" (Exod. xx. 2) out of the midst of the fire." (Deut. iv. 12. — See also
my note on (pavfj pqpdrav, verse 19 of this 12th chapter.) Here we see
that " the voice " like » trumpet, which the Israelites heard from
heaven, was different from, and preceded the "voice of words," or
articulate enunciation, which they heard out of the fire. For some
further patent instances of the Dean's habitual carelessness in dealing
with the facts of the Holy Scriptures, see the Rev. Josiah Forshali's
preface to his edition of the Gospel according to St. Mark, Longmans,
London, 1862, 8vo. Respecting the personality of the Angel of the
Covenant, see note 1, pp. 128 — 130, of this Commentary.
8 'Hpeis ol rbv air' ovpavav diroarperfidpevoi. These words, taken apart
from the context, might rightly be translated, We who turn ourselves
away from Him who is from the heavens. — In this case Dean Alford is
right in his rendering : — " We who are turning away from Him (who
" XPIP"7^1) from (the) heavens." There is no antithesis intended here
between Moses who was a mortal man, and Jesus who is Divine ; nor
yet between Moses speaking on earth, and the voice of God the Son,
which, at the last day, shall be heard from heaven. The antithesis is
between the blood of Abel, which now speaks of martyrdom, and cries for
vengeance, and the blood of Jesus, which now speaks of reconciliation and
of triumph. This, Jesus at present does air ovpavav, where, in accord
ance with the prophetic invitation of Ps. ex. 1, He sits at God's right
hand expecting, until his enemies be made his footstool. Moses' com
mission, as coming to him directly from God, who spake to him face to
face, was unequivocally aw ovpavav. He spake no words of his own,
but the very words of Jehovah himself. The Writer sets the legal enact
ments of the Divine law, delivered on Sinai (iirl yrjs) in terrible pomp, and
with uncompromising rigour, over against the gentle pleadings of Christ
from heaven. The blood of vicarious sacrifice, similar to that of Abel
(see note 1, pp. 175 — 179), offered only a parabolic expiation for trans
gressions against the Mosaic Code. The blood of Jesus offers a sovereign,
and perfect, and ever fresh atonement for all sin. If he was accounted
guilty who sinned against the Dispensation of threatening, much more

CHAP. XII., 26—29. 323
is he deserving of punishment who, knowing the efficacy of Christ's
blood, and at how dear a price our redemption was purchased, yet
refuses to listen to the Diviner persuasives of Almighty love. Stuart
rightly says, " that xPVP-aT^0VTa is implied after rbv, results from com-
" mon grammatical usage." He would have said what was more to the
purpose if he had said that it was demanded by the context. — The silly
habit of taking it for granted that, because two texts have something
common in sound (e.g., the passage under consideration compared with
John iii. 13, 31 ; vi. 38, &c), they are therefore identical in application,
has led to many grievous misinterpretations of the Word of God. The
safest key to the unlocking of any Scriptural enigma is to be found in
the where, the when, and the to whom ; in other words, in the immediate
context. Until these preliminary and indispensable helps have been
used, we have no right to run up and down in search of what are
popularly supposed to be " parallel passages." In this passage I venture
to differ respectfully from so great an authority as Ewald, where he
writes (p. 145) : — " Wieviel mehr werden wir der gerechten Strafe nicht
" entfliehen, wir Christen die wir also wenn wir ihm zu folgen uns
" weigern den vom Himmel zum allgemeinen Weltgerichte kommenden
" meiden (O welche Thorheit von dem sich abkehren zu wollen .'), ihn
" dessen Stimme damals bei der Stiftung des A. B.'s die Erde erschut-
" terte, der aber jetzt verheissen hat, durch den viel spateren Propheten
" Hagg. ii. 6, noch Einmahl werde ich nicht nur die Erde erschultern
" sondern auch den Himmel." The passage of Haggai, just quoted,
refers unquestionably to the first coming of Christ ; and the spiritual
shaking spoken of by the prophet was to be preliminary to, and
synchronous with, the second temple, and the establishment of the
Gospel dispensation. The Vulgate translates rightly, qui de coelis
hquentem avertimus. So also Luther has " der vom Himmel redet."
Wolfius, usually so sagaciously accurate in his renderings, writes in
loco : — " Tov air' ovpavav, scilicet hquentem, quod B. Lutherus in ver-
" sione expressit, et Jo. Buxtorfius, nepos, in Dissertationibus varii
"argumenti p. 101, subintelligi vult. Aeque bene vero subintellexeris
" rbv ipxdpevov, quem se appellat Dominus ipse John iii. 31, d eV toO
" ovpavov ipxdpevos, iirdva irdvrav iari. Sic 1 Cor. xv. 47, 6 Kvpios ii;
" ovpavov vocatur." The alternative reading, so readily offered here by
Wolfius, affords an apt illustration of the danger of taking for granted the
coincidence of passages of Scripture, because they happen to have a corre
spondence, more or less remote, in sound or in doctrinal application.
Verses 26 — 29. — Whose voice shook1 the earth then
(rore, at that lime, i.e., at the giving of the law on

324 CHAP. XII., 26—29.
Sinai). — But now (vvv Be, i.e., at the present crisis of
transition, when the Ceremonial Law and the Jewish
Polity are passing away, and there is a mighty shaking
of the Gentile nations and their systems of religious
belief, — ) He has promised (Hagg. ii. 6), saying,2 Yet
once (en airai;, nnN 119, adhuc semel, Vulg., i.e., strictly
once, and no more) I will shake (iyca emphat, "ONI, i-e.,
Jehovah Himself, the b XaXHov of verse 25) not only the
earth, but the heavens also. But the expression yet
once (to Se, eri dira^) indicates the setting aside (ttjv
perdOeaiv) of the things shaken (i.e., the Levitic covenant
and ritual, with its paraphernalia of symbolism, and its
material pomp) as being made (w? ireiroinpevoov ; com
pare ix. 11. Xpicrrb'; Be irapayevopevo'; dp^iepevs twv
pieXXovToov dyaOrav, Bid tj}? peitpvos Kal reXeiorepas GKrprryi
ov yeipoiroirjrov, rovreariv, ov ravrrj^ rr)<; KTiaecos ; and
again, verse 24, ov ydp e« ^eipoiroirjTa ayia elcrfjXOev o
Xpiarb'i, avTirvira r&v dXrjBivcov) in order that the things
which are not shaken may remain. Wherefore, (inasmuch
as He has said yet once) inasmuch as we are put in pos
session of (irapaXapfidvovTes) a kingdom (See Exod.
xix. 6, "Ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests"),
which is unshakeable (immobile, Yulg., i.e., the Gospel
kingdom which we receive, shall endure until Christ's
final Advent to Judgment. The present order of things
shall not be disturbed until the end of the world), let us
hold fast (the) grace (e^copev %dpw, Gnadc festhalten,
Ewald) by which we may serve God acceptably, with
reverence and pious submission (perd alBovs Kal evXa-
fielas). Por our God is a consuming fire. (Deut. iv. 24.)
1 Trjvyrjv iadXevae. • Exod. xix. 18 ; 1ND inn Vj Tim, " and the whole
"mount quaked greatly." — Ps. lxviii. 8; lxxvii. 18; cxiv. 7.
2 "Eti a?ra^ iya aeia (WSm 'INI) oi pdvov rrjv yrjv, dXXa Kal rbv ovpavov.
We have here another example of the Writer's custom of quoting
the leading words of a passage of Scripture and trusting to the memory
of his readers to carry on the quotation. Any one acquainted with the

CHAP. XII., 26—29. 325
Talmudical writings will know how strictly this is in accordance with
Jewish usage. The entire passage (Hagg. ii. 6, 7) reads thus in the
Hebrew : — jini D'nwn hn wsio 'ini nti bjd nn« iib minis mn> ion to >3
rrcin nN yinVoi D'lin Vj rnon inii triin Vj nN >nwmm ! rmnn nNi cm fini y-iNn
niN32 mn' "HDN 1133 mn — Aidn rdSe Xeyei Kipios iravroKparap, en aira£ iya
aelaa rbv ovpavov Kal rrjv yrjv Kal rrjv BdXaaaav Kal rrjv £rjpav. Kal
avaaetaa irdvra ra eBvrj, Kal rj£ei ra iKXeKrd irdvrav rav iBvav' Kal
irXijaa rbv oikov tovtov Sbfjrjs, Xeyel Kvpios iravroKparap. LXX. — " Quia
" hsec dicit Dominus exercituum : Adhuc unum modicum est, et com-
" movebo coelum, et terram, et mare, et aridam. Et movebo omnes
" Gentes : et veniet Desideratus cunctis Gentibus : et implebo domuni
" istam gloria, dicit Dominus," Vulg. — " Denn so spricht der Herr
" Zebaoth : Es ist noch ein Kleines dahin, das ich Himmel und Erde,
" und das Meer und Trockene bewegen werde. Ja alle Heiden will
" ich bewegen. Da soil dann Kommen aller Heiden Trost : und ich
" will dies Haus voll Herrlichkeit machen, spricht der Herr Zebaoth,"
Luther. — "For thus saith the Lord of hosts, Yet once, it is a little
" while, and I will shake the heavens and the earth, and the sea, and
" the dry land. And I will shake all nations, and the Desire of all
" nations shall come : and I will fill this house with glory, saith the
" Lord of hosts," Authorised Vers. — From the above it will be plain
that the prophecy was spoken, not in reference to the coming of Christ
to judgment, but in reference to his first advent, also predicted by
Malachi iii. 1. This is made more evident still, by the verses that follow :
" The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts. The
" glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the former, saith
" the Lord of hosts, and in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord
" of hosts." The verb vsi in the Kal, signifies to quake, or to tremble,
and in the Hiphil, to make to shake. In the above passage of Haggai
is denoted, therefore, not only the abrogation of the Mosaic covenant
and the Jewish polity, but also the shaking down of the long-
cherished systems of Gentile idolatry and philosophy at the coming
of Christ and by the preaching of Christianity. And in this sense only
can it be used by the Writer to the Hebrews. He reminds his readers
that they have seen the prophecy fulfilled, that the figurative declara
tion that God would shake the heavens, as well as the earth, has come
. to pass in the decay of the Mosaic system, which is iyyvs dcpaviapov,
i.e., "ready to vanish away." He reminds them, further, that no
similar "shaking" is to occur again. God promised that He would
again, once only, shake " the heavens," but by implication the religious
system introduced at that shaking, would endure for ever, Iva petvv ra
pi) adXevdpeva. To them, therefore, had been fulfilled the promise made

326 CHAP. XII., 26—29.
to the fathers in Exod. xix. 6. They had been put in possession of the
" kingdom that cannot be shaken." How ungrateful, therefore, and
how foolish would it be to follow the example of those who had already
apostatised, ol rbv dn ovpavav diroarpecpdpevoi. We see, therefore, that
the words of verses 25 — 29 still move, so to speak, in the Sinaitic
atmosphere. They are words of reassurance. They are also words of
warning. Fitly, therefore, does the Writer conclude his exhortation
with the admonition to hold fast the grace — the promised gift of God —
by which alone they can serve Him acceptably, perd alSovs ko.1 ebXafteias.
Even the closing words of the chapter, Kal yap 6 &ebs rjpav irvp Karava-
XtaKav, contains an allusion to Exod. xxiv. 17, "And the sight of the
" glory of the Lord was like devouring fire (rtoN iens) on the top of the
" mount, in the eyes of the children of Israel." Compare also Heb.
x. 27 with Mai. iv. 1 — 3, where it is predicted that the fires of the Day
of Doom shall devour the adversaries, or wicked. " But unto you that
"fear my name, shall the Sun of Righteousness arise  And ye shall
" tread down the wicked ; for they shall be ashes under the soles of
" your feet in the day that I shall do this, saith the Lord of hosts."
See also Zech. ii. 4, 5 (in the Heb. iii. 8, 9), " Jerusalem shall be
" inhabited as towns without walls, for the multitude of men and cattle
" therein. For I, saith the Lord, will be unto her a wall of fire round
" about, and will be the glory in the midst of her " (H33^ aiao ©n rwin
roira ir™). The rendering which I have given of 'in aira%, nnN -iw, is
confirmed by the testimony of the venerable book of Sohar (Sohar
Genes., fol. 34, col. 133), where it is said, " Wherefore the temple which
" is built in this mountain by the hands of the Holt One, Blessed be
" He, shall be established throughout all generations, as it is said in
" Hagg. ii. 9, The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of the
"former." (Schoettg., tom. ii., p. 389. See also ibid., pp. 75, 90, 113,
217, 494, 500, 964.) On p. 217 Schoettgen writes :—" Hagg. ii. 6,
" Adhuc parum est et commovebo caelum et terrain. Debarim Rabba,
" sect. 1, folio 250, 1, Loquitur de redemptione quce ventura est Israelitis.
" Quando ? Resp. Eo tempore, quo Propheta dicit : Adhuc parum est —
" Raschi ad Sanhedrin, fol. 97, 2. R. Akiba (qui heec verba, sed sine
" expositione, adduxerat), ea intelligit de Messia." And again, ibid., 113,
" Tikkune Sohar., c. 8, Eo vero tempore, quo Deus S.B. iemplum cedificat,
" sicut antea, q.d. Psalm, cxlvii. 2 : Aedificans Jerusalem Dominus :
" illo, inquam tempore (Esa. xxiv. 23) pudore suffundetur Sol, et pudefiet
"Luna. Quando vero id fiet ? Resp. Quando Rex erit Dominus Zebaoth
" (I.e. Jesaite) Aedificium enim prius factum est per manus hominnm,
"propterea homines in illo potentiam suam exercere potuerunt: Nisi
'' Dominus sedificaverit domum, frustra laborant, qui sedificant earn.

CHAP. XII., 26—29. 327
" Porro quia cedificium posterius per manum Dei S.B. erectum est, D"pn' ,
"firmum erit ; et propterea Scriptura dicit, Hagg. ii. 9, Major erit gloria
" templi hujus posterius, quam prioris. In illo vero tempore, quo csdifi-
" cium per manus Dei S.B. ceclificabitur, superius et inferius, de Shechina
" sitperiore et inferiore illud implebitur, quod scriptum est Esa. xxx. 26.
" Et erit splendor Lunse sicut splendor Solis ; item c. xxiv. 23. Et
"pudore suffundetur Sol, et pudefiet Luna." It will be seen, on
reference to pp. 6, 7 of Schoettgen (ibid.), and also to Danzius' treatise
Schechina cum piis cohabitans, printed at length in Meuschen, that the
name Shechinah was regarded by the most ancient Jewish authorities
as an attribute of the Messiah. Schoettgen also observes, p. 964, ibid.,
that Raschi explains " yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake
" the heavens and the earth," by " Messiah shall come." This is the
interpretation also given by Rabbi Akiba, who flourished, as Dr. Hen
derson (The book of the twelve Minor Prophets, p. 355) remarks, before
the time of Jerome. R. Akiba's exposition is found in the chapter entitled
pin of the treatise Sanhedrin of the Babyl. Gemara. oni piN ni3Vo too
two Ni'i yiNi eav wsio 'iin nisVo iniN -uinVi pin -imb bmwb. "For a
" little I will give the kingdom to Israel, after our desolation ; and after
" the kingdom, behold, I will shake heaven and earth, and Messiah shall
"come." — See also Carminis R. Lipmanni Confutatio, p. 619, in Wagen-
seil's Teh ignea Satance. R. Isaac, in the Chizzuk Emunah, pp. 289 —
291, unhesitatingly applies the words of Haggai to the Messiah, although
he asserts that they do not refer to the second temple but to a later
period, " after the destruction of the fourth chariot." He adds, " these
" things are spoken, without doubt, of the expected Messiah, tpvot\ Vj)
" mpan, who will be of the seed of Zerubbabel." It is easy, therefore,
to discover whence the interpretation of the words trun Vj man inii ,
and the Desire oe all nations shall come, proceeded. In spite of the
Bishop of St. David's recent insinuation that it is a Christian gloss
which misinterprets the passage, we see that it was the rendering of
the ancient Jewish Doctors.
This same interpretation is given by the Vulgate : — " Et veniet
"Desideratus cunctis gentibus." By Leo Juda:— "Et veniet qui
" desideratur ab omnibus gentibus." By Dathe : — " Et deinde veniet
"gentibus omnibus expetendus." And by Luther: — "Da soil dann
" kommen aller Heiden Trost." — The LXX. has Kal rjgei ra eKXeKrd
irdvrav rav iBvav; but Augustine (De Civit. Dei, 18, 48) rightly observes
that the LXX. gives the sense of the Hebrew : — " Tunc enim veniet
"Desideratus cunctis gentibus, sicut legitur in Hebrceo  Tunc etiam,
" secundum Septuaginta interpretes (quia et ipse propheticus sensus est),
" venient qu* electa sunt Domini de cunctis gentibus." Jerome, in his

328 CHAP. XIII., 1, 2.
letter to Paulinus about the various books of the Old and New Testa
ments, uses the same words : — " Et veniet Desideratus cunctis gentibus '' ;
and, in his Commentary on Haggai, " Hsec adhuc semel movebo : quod
" factum cernimus in adventu Domini Salvatoris." To my own mind,
the LXX. translates the Hebrew noun of multitude mnn as closely as
the difficulty of finding an exact equivalent would permit. Ta eVXeKTa
might be fairly rendered, having reference to the Hebrew word which
it represents, the dearest aspirations. It is plain that the LXX. trans
lators regarded men as a noun of multitude, and rendered it accord
ingly, by the nearest Greek equivalent. The question is not one of
grammatical construction, but of interpretation. The ancient Jewish
and Christian Doctors understood the words to apply to the Messiah.
There is no reason whatever, therefore, why (upon the dictum of even
a more accomplished theologian than the Bishop of St. David's) we
should, in order to conciliate Jewish or Gentile objectors to the Christ-
ology of our Anglican Version, alter so reasonable and venerable a
rendering as the Desire op all Nations. Surenhusius (j3i/3X. kotoXX.,
pp. 660 — 663) has some erudite observations on the subject of the
quotation from Hagg. ii. 6, contained in Heb. xii. 26, 27.

CHAPTER XIII.

The Writer having now concluded his commonitory
and consolatory dissuasive from apostacy, which is
contained in chaps, x. 19 — 39, xi., xii., proceeds to
address some exhortations of a more personal nature
to the Hebrew converts. He displays not only an
acquaintance with their requirements from a contro
versial point of view, but a more familiar knowledge
of the special circumstances of the particular com
munity to which he is writing. He speaks as a
friend to friends. He solicits their intercessions on
his own behalf (verse 18). He hopes soon to see

CHAP. XIII., 1, 2. 329
them again (verse 19). He prays that God would
make them perfect in every good work (verses 20,
21). With all the delicate courtliness and urbanity
that were such distinguishing attributes of St. Paul's
letters, he craves their indulgence for having ad
dressed this word of exhortation to them, but which,
considering the magnitude and importance of the
subject, he had condensed into as brief a space as
possible (verse 22). He speaks of Timothy in the
familiar and endearing character of a mutual friend
and brother (verse 23). He sends greetings to all
their spiritual rulers, and to all the saints, adding a
kindly message of friendly good wishes from their
Italian fellow-believers (verse 24). And then, with
the eloquent conciseness of a tried and venerated
friend, who was sure of his ground, and felt per
suaded that his Epistle would meet with no halting
welcome, he adds, by way of postscript, 'H %a/in
perd iravrav vpwv. 'Aprjv. — How completely is the
futile nonsense dissipated, by a perusal of this 13th
chapter, of those who assert that the Writer pur
posely concealed his name from those whom he
addressed, lest perchance it should give offence, or
awaken a preliminary prejudice in the minds of the
readers ! The readers and the Writer perfectly un
derstood each other. There could be no concealment
in the matter. Circumstances are alluded to which
were fresh in their mutual recollections. Doubtless,
the original draft of the Epistle was endorsed with
the name of the author, (who, I cannot doubt,
was St. Paul,) or else the bearer was commissioned
to announce its authorship immediately upon its
TJ U

330 CHAP. XIII., 1, 2.
delivery. I have already explained (p. 4) why it
was that the Writer omitted the usual statement of
his Apostleship at the commencement of his Epistle.
To a Gentile Church it was everything to be assured
that any letter addressed to it was the genuine
production of an Apostle of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Not so in the present case. The personal claims of
Jesus of Nazareth to be the Divine Messiah, i.e.,
the Christ of God, had to be re-asserted and re
established. Until this had been done, the state
ment of his Apostleship by the Writer would have
been worse than valueless. The question at issue
was not, Is Paul to be considered as a genuine
Apostle of Christ? but simply this, Sad Jesus,
who claimed to be the Christ or Messiah, any right
to commission Apostles at all? But that the Writer
and his readers were well known to, and perfectly
understood each other, does not admit of the shadow
of a doubt. No man, unless he were an imbecile,
would flatter himself that he could write a letter
containing allusions and messages, such as those
contained in this 13th chapter of the Epistle to the
Hebrews, and yet that his readers would be con
tented to remain in the dark as to who wrote it.
But this chapter sets the pretended intentional
concealment of the author's name entirely at rest.
The marvel is that any one, even in pursuit of some
favourite theory, should have ever ventured to
propound a statement so inconceivably silly.
Verses 1, 2. — Let brotherly love continue.1 Be not for
getful of hospitality, for by it some have entertained
angels unawares.2

CHAP. XIII., 1, 2. 331
1 'H qpiXaSeX(pla pivera. Ewald translates, with forcible felicity,
" Die Bruderliebe bleibe, der Gastfreundschaft vergesset nicht ! Hatten
" doch Einige durch diese, ohne es zu ahnen, Engel zu Gasten." Luther
has, " Bleibet fest in der briiderlichen Liebe. Gastfrei zu sein vergesset
" nicht ; denn durch dasselbe haben Etliche, ohne ihr Wissen, Engel
" beherberget." The Vulgate has, " Charitas fraternitatis maneat in
" vobis. Et hospitalitatem nolite oblivisci, per hanc enim latuerunt
" quidam, Angelis hospitio receptis." The London Jews' Society's
New Testament has, Vjj '3 lnsujn bn D'mNn nDisn nN tiiDsn D'nNn n3nN
D'SnVo iddn nnn D»n3 D'lnN nm 'T . A distinguishing attribute of the
Jewish nation has always been brotherly love, as manifested in a sub
stantial shape towards their poorer brethren. The Rabbinical term for
almsgiving is Righteousness. Buxtorf writes in his Chald. and Babb.
Lex., col. 1891, 1892, " npis , Eleemosyna, Bab. rtpis r\oo nVo, Sal
" divitiarum est eleemosyna. Hac si divitioe salitse sint, constantes
" permanent, ut caro sale conservator a eorruptione : m-'pnm npis nVra
"nViM, Tarn magna est eleemoiyna, ut appropinquet redemptionem. Hoc
" si verum est, sequitur paucas eleemosynas jam mille sexcentis annis
" Judseos dedisse : li'ii niron inv -moa npis n»i»n Vn: , Major est dans
" eleemosymam in occulto, Mose doctore nostro. Vide de necessitate,
" utilitate, et prsstantia Eleemosynse, B. Bechai in Cad Hakkemach,
" in litera Tzade, et Majemon. in lib. Jad, par. 3, in ?"» mino niaVn ,
" Sepher Musar, cap. 1. In Chagiga, fol. 5, 2, legitur de R. Jannceo,
" quod cum vidisset quendam eleemosynam dantem pauperi ypdttbi puplici,
" dixerit ei, Ti^b ran> nVi jwd , Satius fuisset tibi, ut nihil dedidises ei.
" Convenit id aliquo modo cum doctrina Christi, Matt. vi. In Targum
" Nnjns pnm T3S' n1; ]'N Nisi fecerit ex illis eleemosynam, Eccl. v. 9, 18,
" et vii. 1 3, et ix. 10 ; Esth. ix. 22." — &iXa8eX(pla in the present
instance, I take it, signifies the loving offices of charity and brotherly
kindness, as exhibited towards those of the same household of faith,
and extending also to the indigent even of the unbelieving Jewish
community, who might stand in need of relief. In those hard times,
benevolence was apt to grow chill, and the fountains of compassion to
be dried up. A real Christian Hebrew convert would never forget his
nationality, but ought to be ready to assist even an unbelieving kinsman,
did he stand in need of help. QiXaSeXepla would, therefore, somewhat
differ from that djiXavdporrria of which the Old Testament is so full, and
concerning which Philo writes (De Humanitate, rrepl (piXavBpairias) in
so admirable a strain, tom. ii., pp. 383—405. Consult also Josephus
against Apion, lib. ii. 30. Ewald (Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 146)
thus explains the expression (piKaSeXqbla : — " Die thatige Bruderliebe,
" auch in Beziehung auf die Premden, und das allgemeine Mitleid mit
" alien Leidenden ; und so heist est die Bruderliebe, die urchristliche

332 CHAP. XIII., 3, 4.
"Regung des Geistes gegen die Mitchristen,'' &c. Dr.- Gill, in loc.,
quotes the following from the Jerusalem Gemara, Berachoth, fol. 3, 3 :
— " He that dwells in this house, let him plant among you nanNi mnN ,
" brotherhood, and love (or brotherly love), peace and friendship."
2 Tijs (piko^evlas pr) iiriXavBdveoBe. From brotherly love the Writer
passes on to hospitality, or the entertaining of strangers. This latter
manifestation of Christian courtesy and benevolence would not be
unattended with danger, in those troublous days. To entertain a
stranger might be equivalent to entertaining a spy. With graceful tact,
therefore, the Writer reminds his readers that, in olden time, "thereby
" some have entertained angels unawares," Sid ravrrjs yap iXaBdv nves
i-evlaavres dyyiXovs. Gen. xviii., xix. ; Judges xiii. 1 5. Dr. Gill writes,
in loco, " It is an observation of a Jewish writer (R. Abraham Seba, in
" Tzeror Hammor, fol. 18, 4), 'Prom hence we learn how great is the
" ' strength (or virtue) of the reception of travellers (or hospitality).
" ' As the Babbins of blessed memory say, Greater is (dtton nDisn)
" ' hospitality than the reception of the face of the Shekinah.' And this is
" said (T. Bab. Sabbat., fol. 127, 1) to be one of the six things which a
" man enjoys the fruit of in this world, and for which there remains a
" reward in the world to come." Philo's remarks, which are too long
for transcription, but will well repay perusal, are to be found in his
treatise De Abrahamo, Works, Mangey's Edit., tom. ii., pp. 16 — 18. I
will content myself with the following extract, ibid., pp. 17, 18 : —
'Eycu Se ovk olSa rlva virepfioXrjv evSaipovias Kal paKapibrrjTos eivai (pa irepl
rrjv oIkIov, iv rj KaraxBrjvai Kal £evlav Xaxelv viripeivav ayyeXot irpbs avBpa-
irovs, lepal Kal Belai (pvaeis, viroSiaKovoi Kal virapxoi tov irparcv Qeoit, St'
av, oia irpeafieVTav, daa dv BeXrjov ra yivei rjpav irpoBeairUrai, otayyeXXet.
" I am quite unable to say what could be wanting in felicity and
" blessedness to a house in which angels suffered themselves to be intro-
" duced amongst men, and to partake of hospitality, holy and godlike
" natures that they are, the ministers and lieutenants of the Most High
" God, by whom, as it were, sending an embassage, He announces
" whatsoever things He wishes to acquaint our race with, before they
" come to pass."
Verses 3, 4. — Remember those that are in bonds,1 as being
bound with them. [Remember] those who are evil
entreated (t&v KaKovxpvpevav, der an Ungemach leidenden.
Ewald), as being yourselves also in the body. Marriage
is honourable in all men,2 and the bed undefiled, but
whoremongers and adulterers God will judge.

CHAP. XIII., 3, 4. 333
1 MipvrjaKeaBe w Seo-plav k.t.X. (See note 3, pp. 161, 162.) Ewald
translates Gedenket der Gefesselten als Mitgefesselte, and rightly explains
o>£ Kal avrol ovres iv aapan, " als solche die auch selbst im Leibe sind, und
"schon daher wissen Elonnen, dass jeder Mensch, so lange er in dem
" hinfalligen sterblichen Leibe wallet, unzahligen Ubeln ausgesetzt ist,"
i.e., " and are therefore able to know that every man, as long as he goes
" about in this frail and mortal body, is exposed to innumerable ills."
Wolfius writes, in he, " Captivorum curam solicite habuisse Christianos
" veteres, testis est Lucianus, de morte Peregrini, p. 762, observante
" Elsnero." 2 Tipios 6 ydpos iv rraai, Kal rj ko'ittj aplavros k.t.X. Ewald understands
these words as conveying a peremptory command : — " Ehrenwerth die
" Heirath in allem (vgl. xiii. 18) ! Ist jemand verheirathet so sei seine
" Heirath und Ehe durch und durch so wie es die Ehre fordert, und das
" Ehebett unbefieckt ! so dass er sich hiitet irgend etwas der keusehen
" Ehe widerstreitendes zu thun : Hurer aber und Ehebrecher wird Gott
" richten, &c. Let marriage be honourable in everything (comp. xiii.
" 18). Is anybody married, then let his marriage and married life be
" thoroughly such as honour demands, and the marriage bed unstained !
" Let him guard himself against doing anything repugnant to a chaste
" married life ; but whoremongers and adulterers God will judge."
Alford has, " Let your marriage (ydpos, elsewhere in New Testament
" in the sense of a wedding, here has its ordinary Greek meaning) be
" (held) in honour in all things, and your marriage bed be undefiled,
" for fornicators and adulterers God shall judge." The Arabic trans
lates iv irdai, says Dr. Gill, " every way" and the Ethiopic version
" every where." But the Vulgate has, '' Honorabile connubium in
" omnibus, et thorus immaculatus " ; whilst Luther translates, " Die
" Ehe soil ehrlich gehalten werden bei Allen (i.e., in all men), und das
"Ehebett unbefieckt." J. C. Wolfius, in loc, writes: — "Tdpos de
" conjugio dicit Arrianus Indie, viii. 6 ; Herod., lib. ix., p. 630 ; et
" clarius Plutarchus, cujus sententia cum Paulina nostra egregie con-
" spirat, in Amatorio, p. 750, ydpov Kal aivoSov dvSpbs Kal yvvaiKos, rjs ov
" yeyovev, oifi' ianv leparepa Kardfcvgis. Vide Raphelium et Bosium.
" Subintelligendum in hac sententia esse non iarl, quod Beza praeter
" alios voluit ; sed potius eara, plures monuerunt. Id poscunt impera-
" tivi, qui in hoc capite hinc antecedunt, hinc sequuntur ; turn vera res
" ipsa. Quis enim dixerit, conjugium apud omnes eo loco haberi, quo
" hie haberi vult Paulus ? Lege plura in hanc sententiam apud Erasm.
" Schmidium, et Hombergium. Colomesius, p. 148. Observat. Sacra-
" rum similiter verti volebat Gallice : que le mariage soit honorable entre
" tons. Et sic versio Montensis : que le mariage soit traite de tous avec
" honneteti. Hanc interpretationem a Malleti exceptionibus tuetur

334 CHAP. XIII., 5, 6.
" Arnaldus in Nova illius Versionis defensione, p. 311 seq. adductis ex
" ipsis Pontificiis Estio et Em. a Saa dpo-^qbois. In versionem N. T.
" Greeco-Anglicani, quae itidem rb iarl exprimit, dplavrov prave con-
" vertit, recte animadvertit L. Twells in Examine illius Critico, Pt. i.,
" p. 150." The London Jews' Society's translators have, V33 D'NUDin onp'.
The compilers of our Marriage Service, in the address to persons who
are about to enter into the estate of matrimony, have swerved slightly
from the translation of the Authorized Version, whilst they also vouch
for the Pauline authorship of the Epistle to the Hebrews ; e.g., " And
" is commended of St. Paul to be honourable among all men," not, as
in Hebr. xiii. 4, " in all." Schoettgen, on 1 Tim. iv. 3, Forbidding to
marry, &c, remarks : — " De Pharisais non constat, eos tale quid prohi-
" buisse, bene tamen de Essenis. B. Abraham Zacut in Sepher
" Juchasin, fol. 139, 2. Secta qucsdam ex ipsis non ducvnt uxores liberorum
" causa, putant enim, nullam mulierem virofidem integrum servare." Jose
phus, De Bell. Jud., lib. ii., 8, 2, writes, "There are three philosophical
" sects among the Jews. The followers of the first are the Pharisees ;
" of the second, the Sadducees ; and the third sect, who pretend to a
" severer discipline, are called Essenes. These last are Jews by birth,
" and seem to have a greater affection for one another than the other
" sects have. These Essenes reject pleasures as an evil, but esteem
" continence, and the conquest over our passions to be virtue. They
" neglect wedlock, but choose out other persons' children, while they
' are pliable and fit for learning, and esteem them to be of their
"'kindred, and form them according to their own manners. They do
" not absolutely deny the fitness of marriage, and the succession of
" mankind thereby continued," &c. (Tbv pev ydpov Kal rrjv il- avrov
SiaSoxrjv ovx dvaipovvres, ras Se rav yvvaiKav daeXyelas q^vXaaadpevoi, Kal
prjSeplav Tqpeiv irerreiapevoi rr)v irpbs eva irlanv.) — Philo's account of the
Essenes is to be found amongst the Fragments, Works, Mangey's Edit.,
tom. ii., p. 632, &c, and also Liber quisquis virtuti sludet (Ibid., p. 457),
where he computes their number at about 4,000. Porphyry gives a
fairly-drawn description of their peculiar tenets in his treatise against
the use of animal food.
What particular occasion gave rise to the Writer's speaking as he
does, in these third and fourth verses, must ever lack complete explana-
nation (see pp. 279, 280) ; but the warning contained in chap. xii. 16,
pi) ns irdpvos k.t.X., taken in connexion with the verses under considera
tion, seems to point to a laxity of moral conduct in some of the converts
that called for decisive animadversion.
Verses 5, 6. — Let your conversation be without the greed
of money ' (dipiXapyvpo? 6 Tpoiroi, Nicht geldgierig die

CHAP. XIII., 5, 6. 335
Lebensart, Ewald) ; and be satisfied 8 with such things as
you have (dpKovpievoi tois irapovaiv, sich begniigend mit
dem Vorhandenen, Ewald; i.e., contenting yourselves
with such things as are present to hand). For He himself
has said, I will nevek, leave thee, nor forsake thee.3
So that we do boldly say (wcne Oappovvras rjpas Xeyeiv),
The Lord is my helper, and I will not be afraid of what
man will do unto me.*
1 'ArpiXdpyvpos. This word occurs only twice in the New Testament,
viz., here, and in 1 Tim. iii. 3, " No striker, not greedy of filthy lucre."
" 'ApKovpevoi k.t.X. Compare 1 Tim. vi. 8. "Exovres Se Siarpoopas, Kal
o-Keirdapara, roirois apKeaBrjadpeBa. J. C. Wolfius says, in loc., " Tlapov
" Grseeis est, quod adest bonum, quodque prsesens est, quamvis parvum
" et vile sit ; et distinguitur ab alieno, itemque sumptooso et magnifico.
" Ita vim vocis explicat, et locis Xenophontis ac Herodoti munit Baphe-
"lius, p. 325 et 644. Xenophon., Memorab., lib. 1., p. 577, 'S.TparevoiTo
" Se irdrepos civ paov, 6 pr) Svvdpevos dvev iroXvreXovs Sialrrjs £fjv, rj a to
" irapbv dpKoirj; et Conviv., p. 70, Ois ^idXio-Ta ra irapovra dpKet." — The
expression, ' ApKovpevoi tois irapovaiv, seems to have been in common use
amongst the Greeks. Bleek, as cited by Alford, gives the exact words,
as used by Stobaeus. — Surenhusius writes, in loc. (Bi/3X. KotoXX., pp.
663, 664), " Ii inter Hebraeos qui fidei suae in Messiam confessionem
" ediderant, ab infidelibus suis consanguineis odio habebantur, et cum
" amissione bonorum, atque auxilii inopes exularent, alii de bonis suis
" aliis quicquam largiri detrectarent, alii amissas opes deplorarent,
" paupertatem ut onus miserum et grave in se suscipere renuerunt,
" monet hosce omnes Apostolus, ut prsesentibus suis bonis contenti
" essent, et fiduciam suam in Deo collocarent, qui neminem derelinquit,
" sed ex rebus adversis liberat, et rem ita se habere ex aliquot Scripturse
" locis confirmat, quando dicit, avrbs yap (nempe 6 Kvplos) eiprjKev, ipse
" enim (nempe Dominus) dixit, Hebraice idn Nini ille enim dixit, sub-
" audito nomine mn', quod Hebrsei propter maximam illius sanctitatem
" exprimere solent per Ninm vel "pon1 ," &c.
3 A^tos yap e'lprjKev, ov prj ae ava, oiS' ov pr) ae iyKaraXlira. Philo,
De Confusione Linguarum (Works, Mangey's Edit., tom. i., p. 430),
writes : — nay^aXen-oi' yap dxaXlvarov iaBrjvai ibvxrjv, drlBaaaov ovaav i£
eavrrjs, rjv pdXis .rjvlais pier iiravdraaeas paartyav earl Karaaxdvra irpavvat.
Aidirep Xdyiov tov l\ea Oeou pearbv rjpepdrrjros, eXirlSas xpqo-Tas vrroypdqpov
rdls iraiSelais ipaarais, dvrjpqrai TOidvSe, Ol pr) ae ava, ouS' ov pr) ae
iyKaraXirra. " It is a very pernicious thing to let the soul be unbridled,

336 CHAP. XIII., 5, 6.
" being of itself impatient of restraints, and with difiiculty kept in
" bounds by bridles and whips. Wherefore the oracle of the merciful
" God, being full of gentleness, holds out hopes serviceable to the lovers
" of discipline, and declares, I will never leave thee, nor forsake
" thee." The difficulty attaching to this quotation lies in the fact that
in the LXX. there is no passage possessing a verbatim correspondence
with it. Mangey regards it, I think rightly, as taken from Josh. i. 5 :
— -[3wn nVi -pN xb yss n>nN n®n as vrn ixoto , " As I was with Moses,
" I will be with thee, I will not fail (nor desert. See Gesen., Lex.
"Man., art. nn, Hiph.), nor forsake thee." The LXX. has, Ovk
iyKaraXefya ae, o£8' virepo\jropal ae. It is not improbable that there
existed in common use, amongst the Greek-speaking Jews, a popularized
rendering of these words of promissory encouragement to Joshua, and
which is used by the Writer to the Hebrews and by Philo. Their
translation gives far more of the genuine ring of the Hebrew original
than that of the LXX. The supposition of Bleek and Lunemann, that
the author of the Epistle to the Hebrews made the quotation direct
from Philo, is more than improbable ; it is contrary to good taste and
the reverence due to the sacred writings of the Bible. It is also utterly
inconsistent with the prefatory words, avrbs ydp elprjKev. If the quota
tion is intended from Joshua, it is easy to understand how appropriately
the Writer introduces it on the present occasion. The promise was
given to Joshua, just after the death of Moses, and was designed to
nerve him to face the novel dangers and difficulties of leading the
children of Israel into the promised land. The converts to whom this
Epistle was addressed stood then in an analogous position to their fore
fathers. The Mosaic dispensation had just expired. They were entering
upon a new and untried Land of Promise. How consolatory, then, to
be reminded that the God of their fathers was still with them ; that the
promise made to Joshua still held good as regarded themselves — " I will
"never leave thee, nor forsake thee"! Delitzsch believes that the
expression was taken from the Alexandrian rendering of Deut. xxxi. 6,
ov pr) ae dv;j obS' ov pr) ae iyKaTaXelirrj, and had become interwoven into
some liturgical or homiletic portion of the services in the Hellenistic
synagogue. But this latter is a mere conjecture, unsupported by any
evidence. Bagster's (Vatican) rendering of Deut. xxxi. 6 is, 'AvSpifyv
Kal 'taxve, pr) <£o/3ou, pvSe SrjXidarjs, pvSe irTorjBfjs dirb irpoaairov avrav, on
Kipios o Beds aov 6 irpoiropevdpevos peff ipav iv vplv, ovre pr) ae dvfj, aire
pr) ae iyKardxlirv ("pis' nVi -[Dt v(b). Compare also the words of David to
Solomon, 1 Chron. xxviii. 20, and Ps. xxvii. 9. Consult also Suren
husius, Bt/3X. KaTaXX., pp. 664, 665. The London Jews' Society's
New Testament (Edit. 1867) has the exact words of Josh. i. 5, viz.,

CHAP. XIII., 5, 6. 337
-piSN nV. -]S1n Hb . Ewald (Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 174) writes :— "Bei
" dem A. T. lichen Worte, v. 5, ist die Schwierigkeit dass sie Deut. xxxi.
"6, 8, in der dritten Person von Gott ausgesagt werden : allein Jos.
" i. 5, stehen sie in der ersten, und obwohl die LXX. hier jezt eine
" andere Ubersezung haben, so kann man doch nicht bezweifeln dass
" unser Sendschreiber, ebenso wie Philon, sie von hier entlehnte, hier
" also einst dieselbe Ubersezung sich gefunden haben muss."
1 Kvpios ipol fiorjBbs, Kal ov (pofirjBrjaopai rl iroirjaei poi avBparros. This
verbatim quotation of the LXX. version of Ps. cxviii. 6 (in the Greek,
cxvii. 6) furnishes us with another authoritative reading of the Hebrew
text. Dean Alford decides in favour of the Masoretic reading, against
the punctuation of the received Greek Text of the New Testament, and
also of the LXX., which point the verse thus : — nn ntn xb s 'b nin'
din ^ na»' . The Dean says, " The Lord (nin' in the Psalm, and
"probably used of the Pather, as in other citations (!) in this Epistle,
"e.g., ch. vii. 21, viii. 8—11, x. 16, 30, xii. 5; and, without a cita-
"tion, ch. viii. 2) is my helper (in the Heb. only "h mn') [and (not in
" Heb.)], I will not be afraid : what shall man do unto me f (such is the
" connexion both in Heb. and here) : not, ' I will not be afraid .what
" ' shall man do unto me,' as in the English Prayer-book after the
"Vulgate, non timebo quid faciat mihi homo." Now, what shall we
say to pointing the Greek as follows ? — Kvpios ipol fionBbs, Kal ov
(pojUrjBrjaopai : rl iroirjaei poi avBpairos ; — As the earliest MSS., both
Hebrew and Greek, are without accents or punctuation, the sense of
any given passage may entirely turn upon the opinion of the critic,
provided, of course, that such opinion does not contravene any doctrinal
statement of God's Word, or the obvious intention of the quotation.
The truth is, that Dean Alford is feebly competent to decide upon any
matter of the real " Higher Criticism" ; and, finding that the Masoretic
reading did not coincide with the New Testament punctuation, for fear
that he might be considered by German experimenters upon the Word
of God as unscholarly, he at once pronounces against the received
reading of the Epistle to the Hebrews. In these days of superficial
acquirements, to pass a slight upon any portion of the received text of
the Greek Testament seems to entitle the propounder to be esteemed an
advanced scholar ! Dr. Alford knew, or ought to have known, that the
older Hebrew MSS. are entirely without punctuation, and that very
many of the discrepancies between the LXX. and the Hebrew text,
turn entirely upon the difference of the points (see note 3, p. 213)
and accents. In the present ease, the only question for the student to
decide is, Which is the best pointing of the Hebrew and Greek Texts f
That adopted by the Textus Receptus is perfectly admissible. So also is
X X

338 CHAP. XIII., 7.
the Masoretic reading of the Hebrew text in Ps. cxviii. 6. Both
readings, after all, come to very much the same thing. The texts
differ only in the insertion of Kal. There is not, therefore, the shadow
of a valid objection against the reading of Ps. cxviii. 6 as given in the
Epistle to the Hebrews and also in the LXX. The Hebrew Masoretic
version points the words thus, " The Lord is my helper (or, Jehovah is
"for me >V mn'), I will not fear — What can man do unto me?" The
New Testament and the LXX. punctuate the very same words (trans
lated from an unpointed and unaccented Hebrew MS.), The Lord is
my helper, and / will not fear what man can do unto me. The Hebrew
words din ¦/} rrc»< no nvn n1; *> nw, apart from the accents, which do
not belong to the original text, are capable, with perfect grammatical
propriety, of either construction. The Textus Reccptus of the Greek
Testament and the LXX. have decided in favour of The Lord is my
helper ; and / will not fear what man can do unto me. Compare Ps.
Ivi. 4, 11, 12, — See also Surenhusius, Bi'/3X. kotoXX., pp. 665, 666, and
Ewald, Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr.,_r>. 148. On p. 48 he translates, "so
" dass wir getrost reden, der Herr ist mein Heifer : was wird Mensch
" mir thun 1 "
Verse 7. — Remember1 your leaders, who spake to you the
word of God, whose faith imitate, considering (attentively
pondering, or reviewing) the end of their conversation.
1 The verse reads in the received text, Mvrjpovevere Tav r)yovpevav
vpav, oinves iXdXrjaav vpiv tov Xoyov tov Qeoii av dvaBeapovvres rrjv
eKJiaoiv rrjs dvaarpocprjs, pipeloBe tt)v irlanv. The Vulgate has " Memen-
" tote praepositorum vestrorum qui vobis locuti sunt verbum Dei : quorum
" intuentes exitum conversationis, imitamini fidem." — The translators
of the London Jews' Society's New Testament have tcn DS'inm ™ roi
i dpiion rroarn 13V1 DniDVnnn nsio nN worn "ken cn'iNn 131 ,-in c3^n t-qi
Luther translates, " Gedenket an eure Lehrer, die euch das Wort
" Gottes gesagt haben, welcher Ende schauet an, und folget ihrem
" Glauben nach." Ewald renders, " Haltet in Andenken eure Vorsteher
" als welche euch das Wort Gottes redeten, und ahmet zu deren Lebens-
" ausgange, hinaufblickend ihre Treue nach.'- Now, although Ewald
and many others take rrjv eKJiaaiv rrjs dvaarpoqbrjs to mean " the termina-
" tion of their earthly career," (Alford asserts off-hand, " it is plain
" from what follows here, eg., iXdXvaav and eKJUaaiv, that the course of
" these rjyoipevoi is past, aud it is remembering, with a view to imitation,
" that is enjoined "), I cannot help thinking that there is an immediate
reference to what has just gone before, dqjiXdpyvpos 6 rpdiros k.t.X.
The converts are exhorted to remember the temporal wants of their

CHAP. XIII., 8. 339
pastors, who have devoted themselves to the ministry of the Word.
(Compare Gal. ii. 10, povov rav irraxav Iva pvopovevapev.) In those
troublous days of halting faith, of doubt, perplexity, and persecution,
who so likely to be neglected and straitened in their temporal concerns
as the pastors of the flock 1 And as Elijah (1 Kings xvii. 13, 14)
directed the widow, " Pear not, go and do as thou hast said ; but make
" me thereof a little cake first, and bring it unto me, and after make
"for thee and thy son. For thus saith the Lord God of Israel, The
" barrel of meal shall not waste, neither shall the cruse of oil fail ; "
so the Hebrew converts are invited to bear in mind that the spiritual
workman is worthy of his hire ; that God has promised never to leave
nor to forsake them, whatever they may spend in his service, and
furthermore, that the end and object, the proposed result of all the
labours (rav rjyovpevav) of these rulers is, the salvation of the souls of
their flock. Ewald's translation of ttjv irlanv, ihre Treue, " their fidelity,"
appears scarcely in harmony with what has gone before, or with the
immediate context. Again, S>v dvaBeapovvres rrjv eKJ3aoiv rrjs dvaarpocprjs,
pipeioBe rr)v irlanv, is an invitation to ponder attentively the " manner of
life," the self-sacrificing disinterestedness of these spiritual guides, and
to imitate their faith. They set before themselves no earthly reward.
They were marked out as the first victims, should any popular tumult
or persecution arise. The eKfiaais rrjs dvaarpotprjs, the issue of their
conversation, the end of their daily walk and calling, the termination
of their earthly career (rjKovaare yap rrjv ipr)v dvaorpoifirjv irore iv tw
'lovSaiapa, Gal. i. 13), would be, in all human likelihood, a martyr's
crown. With such a prospect before their leaders, with such examples
of holy self-abnegation before their eyes, how ignoble and unworthy
must the undue caring for filthy lucre appear ! I cannot, then, accept
the assertion as a decisive one, that the Writer refers to those teachers
who had already' sealed their testimony with their blood, or that he has
already referred to them in chap. ii. 3. The word eK&aois occurs only
twice in the New Testament, viz., here and in 1 Cor. x. 13, " a way to
" escape."
Verse 8. — Jesus Christ (is) the same ' yesterday and to-day,
and (also) for ever. (Jesu Christus gestern und heute
ist derselbe, auch in die Ewigkeiten, Ewald.)
1 '\rjaoiis Xpiarbs xOes Kal ar)pepov 6 avrbs, Kal els robs alavas. Here,
again, we must not forget that the Writer is speaking, as a Jew, to
Jews. The phrase '\rjaavs Xpiarbs would strike a very different chord
in the minds of the Hebrews, to what it does in the minds of modern
Christian readers. The word "Christ" they would understand as a
designation of Deity, as a proper attribute of the Divine Messiah, con-

340 CHAP. XIII., 9.
cerning whom it is written in Ps. cii., " I said, O my God, take me not
" away in the midst of my days : thy years are throughout all genera-
"tions. Of old (see Heb. i. 11, 12) hast thou laid the foundations of
" the earth : and the heavens are the works of thy hands. They shall
" perish, but thou shalt endure (-io»n nn«i) : yea, all of them shall wax
" old as a garment ; as a vesture shalt thou change them (see note 6,
" p. 22), and they shall be changed. But thou art the same (Nin n~Ni,
" 6 avrbs el), and thy years shall have no end." The above, then, is a
citation from the already quoted (chap. i. 10 — 12) words of Ps. cii.
The Hebrews are reminded that they stand under the protection of
Almighty Omniscience, and unchanging Power and Goodness. The
words contain an all-sufficient dissuasive against a niggardly small-
heartedness, as well as against a faithless questioning how their daily
necessities were to be supplied. They furnish an ample incentive to
trustful and devout exultation in the thought that the Divine 6 Avrbs
is their Protector and their God, even He concerning whom Isaiah
(ix. 6) wrote that his name should be called is '3N, Father of Eternity
(see the late Dr. M'Caul's Messiaship of Jesus, pp. 183 — 185), and con
cerning whom Moses the man of God spake in Ps. xc. 1, 2, " Lord, thou
" hast been our dwelling-place in all generations. Before the mountains
" were brought forth, or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the
" world, even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God." etvj o-rea
°JN nr.N dV» IS DViSnl Vim yiN Winni nV — Tlpb tov opv yevrjBrjvai Kal
TtXaoBrjvai rrjv yr)v Kal rrjv o'lKovpevrjv, Kal dirb tov alavos eas tov alavos ail
el, LXX. And again, verse 4, " For a thousand years in thy sight
" are but as yesterday when it is past, and as a watch in the night." —
nVVj mio»Ni -ns' '3 "Vicpn di>3 -p«sn d'iw rpx <3— "OnxlXiaerij ivocpBaXpois
aov, as rj rjpepa i) ixBes fjns SirjXBe, Kal (pvXaKr) iv vvktI, LXX. It may be
as well to remark that the tradition of the early Jewish Church, as
represented by the LXX. and by the Targum, coincides in ascribing
the 90th Psalm to the pen of Moses.— Compare also Mai. iii. 6, " I am
" the Lord, I change not ; therefore ye sons of Jacob are not consumed,"
and James i. 1 7, Trap a ovk evi irapaXXayr), r) Tponrjs dirooKtao-pa.
Verse 9. — Be not carried about with divers and strange
doctrines.1 For it is a good thing that the heart be
established with grace, not with meats, in which they
who walked were not profited (iv oh ovk axpeXrjOrio-av ol
irepiiraTrjaavTes:) .
1 AiSaxdls irotKiXais Kal gevais pi) TrepapipeaBe, k.t.X.— Compare Eph.
iv. 14, KXvSavi&pevot Kal irepiqbepdpevoi iravrl dve'pa ttjs SiSaaKaXias.—
Jude 12, Irrb dvipav irepKpepdpevai.— If Jesus Christ be the same o avrbs,
in benevolent Omniscience and oversight of his people, his Gospel is

CHAP. XIII., 9. 341
equally immutable in its teaching as to what we must do to be saved.
We may neither add thereto nor diminish therefrom. It is a good and
perfect gift, complete from the first, and we shall make no new dis
coveries, as to what is the will of God concerning us, in t!) aVraf
irapaSoBelarj tois ayiois irlarei, " the faith once delivered to the saints,"
Jude 3. The Writer, therefore, skilfully adapts his declaration that
" Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever," and makes
it the text, so to speak, of a brief exhortation against the mischievous
teaching of those who would persuade his readers to return to a mis
taken compliance with the graceless precepts of the ceremonial law. To
go back to these ordinances as touching meats and drinks, &c, after
having once broken loose from them, and to attach any real virtue to
them from a justificatory point of view, or as procuring acceptance
from God, would be to offer a direct affront to the freedom of the
Gospel. Of these the Writer has already asserted (ix. 9, 10), that they
could not give the conscience of the worshipper any real satisfaction,
but were only enjoined pexpi Kaipoii SiopBaaeas, until the time of
Reformation. In Acts xxi. 20 we learn that there were "many
"thousands" of Jews that believed, and yet were zealous of the law.
It was one thing to adhere from the very beginning, as Jewish patriots
and citizens, to the civil and religious customs and constitution of their
forefathers, and quite another, after having accepted the Gospel in its
simplicity, to go back to the discarded and beggarly elements of the
law, either as a means of justification, or to curry favour with their
unbelieving brethren. In times of persecution there existed a very
strong temptation to the baptised Hebrews to dissemble in this manner,
and so St. Paul writes to the Galatians vi. 12, 13, " As many as desire
" to make a fair show in the flesh (evirpoaairrjaai iv aapKi), they con-
" strain you to be circumcised, only lest they should suffer persecution
" for the cross of Christ. Por neither they themselves who are cir-
" cumcised keep the law, but desire to have you circumcised, that they
"may glory in your flesh." Ewald (Dus Sendschr. a.d. Hebrarr.,
pp. 148, 149) writes : — " Allein weil der Sendschreiber wohl
" weiss dass die neuerdings aufgestandenen Irrlehrer auch diese
" Gemeinde leicht storen, und ihr erstes einfachstes Bekenntniss
" auf Christus triiben konnten, so kniipft er daran eine neue dem
" gesammten Inhalte des Sendschreibens vollig entsprechende Ermah-
" nung, sich durch sie nicht storen zu lassen, und leitet diese mit dem
" Wahlspruche, v. 8, ein : Jesu Christus gestern und heute derselbe und
" in die Ewigkeiten ! so dass weder die wechselnden Zeiten noch die
" wechselnden Lehren ihn in seiner urspriinglichen reinen Wahrheit
" verandern konnen. Doch nun folgt sogleich die Warnung : Durch
"bunte und fremde Lehren lasset euch nicht vcrlelten ! Weil aber die

342 CHAP. XIII., 9.
" gerade jezt zu fiirehtenden Irrlehrer von dem einfachen Christenthume
" wieder zum Buchstabendienste des A. T.'s zuriicklenken wolten, so wird
" zur Begriindung der Warnung gesagt, ist es doch schon dass durch
" Gnade die durch Christus nach dem oben iv. 16, x. 29, xii. 15,
" gesagten den gebesserten Menschen jezt umsonst dargebotene gottliche
" Gnade das Herzfest werde, voll gottlicher Zuversicht und Heiterkeit
" werde, nicht durch Speisen die schon ix. 10, erwahnten wie sie im
" A. T. gesezlich vorgeschrieben sind und damals auch von zu angst-
" lichen Christen gefordert wurden (vgl. die Gesch. des V. Isr., vi., s.
" 505, f.), mit welchen man sich nuzhs hernmtrieb, bis das Christenthum
" mit seiner unvergleichlich erspriesslicheren Versohnung und Starkung
" des Menschen erschien." The meaning of the Writer to the Hebrews
is. therefore, as follows : — " When the Gospel was first delivered to you,
" no commandments respecting abstinence from meats, as a religious
" duty, or distinctions in them, accompanied it. Any fresh doctrines
" that may be at present obtruded upon you by would-be improvers
" upon the faith, are worse than valueless. Christ's Gospel establishes
" and fortifies the heart with grace, and not with meats. Those who
" have all their lifelong devoted themselves to the observance of such
" ordinances, have not been one whit profited by them." We must not
forget that the vanity, the self-love, the national exclusiveness of the
Pharisaic Jew were sorely wounded by being put on an equality, even
in respect to meat and drink, with the Gentiles. The latter were
looked down upon as an inferior caste ; and we know how long it took
to wean even the Apostles (Acts x. 28, xi. 1 — 3) from such preconceived
notions. It was actually considered, in the Hebrew Christian com
munity at Jerusalem, to be an extraordinary exhibition of God's mercy
that He should grant unto the Gentiles "repentance unto life " ! (Acts
xi. 18.) When, therefore, these false teachers appealed to the ancient
prejudice and national pride of the Hebrew converts, the temptation
to return to their old habits was not without strong fascinations. When
their unbaptized kinsmen twitted them with placing themselves on a par
with the Gentiles, even in the matter of meat and drink, the taunt fell
with burning acerbity upon their lacerated souls. It reminded them
that they were renegades and outcasts, ceremonially unclean, outside
the pale of all former friendships and intimacies, and (as the unbelieving
Jews would urge) cut off from the proud privilege of partaking of the
holy things which were offered in sacrifice to the God of their fathers.
With his usual subtlety of perception, however, the Writer contrives,
in the tenth and following verses, to turn these taunts and sneers to
good account, and to remind the perplexed Hebrew converts that, in
this very particular, they stood on far higher ground than those who
reviled them and persecuted them.

CHAP. XIII., 10—12. 343
Verses 10—12. — We have an altar ' whereof they have no
right to eat who serve the tabernacle. Por the beasts2
whose blood is brought in for sin (irepl dpaprias) to the
Holy Places (ra ayia, i.e., the Holy of Holies. See ch.
ix. 8, 12, 24, 25 ; x. 19) by the Highpriest, the bodies of
the same are burned outside the camp 3 (rovrav ra crmpara
KaraKaierat e^co Tr)<; irapepj3oXr)<;). Wherefore Jesus also,
in order that He might sanctify the people by his own
blood, suffered outside the gate.
1 "~Ex°P€v Bvaiaarrjpiov ii; ov cpayelv ovk e'xovaiv i£ovciav ol rrj aKvvrj
Xarpevovres. As observed in the preceding note, the Writer retorts
upon those who insinuated that the Hebrew converts had relinquished
their privileges of partaking of the sacrifices, that Christians possessed
a privilege from which the Jewish hierarchy itself was debarred. They
dared not to eat of the bodies of the beasts which were offered for sin
on the Day of Atonement by the highpriest. These were confessedly
the cardinal sacrifices of the entire year. The believer in Jesus, how
ever, can draw near and partake by faith of the true Sacrifice of the
body and blood of Christ, of which even the sacrifices of the Day of
Atonement were only the type and prophetic representation. The
rejoinder is a triumphant one, and unanswerably telling. Little need
it matter to the desponding Hebrews that they were shut out from
participation in the consecrated meats to which their unbaptized brethren
attached so paramount an importance. Those who prided themselves
on the Levitic ceremonial law were still deluding themselves with what
had been under the first covenant o-Kid rav peXXovrav ayaBav. They
were hugging mere empty shadows to their bosoms, being willingly
ignorant of the fact that, the Substance being come, the typical fore-
shadowings of his One, perfect, and all-sufficient sacrifice, had lost even
their symbolical value and sanctity. What then does the Writer intend
by the expression, " an altar" ? That he cannot intend to contradict his
own assertion, ix. 25 — 28, is superfluous to state. He has there asserted,
in the most unqualified terms, that Christ does not " offer Himself often,
" as the highpriest entereth into the holy place every year, with blood
" that is not his own. Por then must he often have suffered, since the
" foundation of the world ; but now once, at the consummation of the
" ages, He has been manifested for the putting away of sin by the
" sacrifice of Himself. And, just as it is appointed to men once to die,
" and after this the judgment (things which cannot be repeated), so,
" also, Christ having been once offered for the special object of bearing

344 CHAP. XIII., 10—12.
" the sins of many, shall appear the second time to those that wait for
" Him, without sin (or sin-offering. See note 1, p. 138, &c), to announce
" to them their salvation." So also, again, in chap. x. 10 — 15, " By
" the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of
" Jesus Christ once for all (i(pdira£) . And every priest standeth daily
" ministering, and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices (ras avrbs
" iroXXdus irpoo-(pipav Bvalas), which can never take away sins. But
" He, having offered one sacrifice for sins, for ever hath sat down at the
"right hand of God  Por by one offering He hath perfected for
" ever, those that are sanctified." With such a series of explicit state
ments before his eyes, he would be a bold man indeed who would
venture to prove from the Epistle to the Hebrews, and from the fact
that the author applies the term Bvaiaarrjpiov to the Lord's-table, that
he thereby intimated that the sacrifice of the Lord's death is actually
and continually repeated, by the Christian Presbyter, whenever he conse
crates the memorial elements of his Saviour's passion. Such an assump
tion is directly in the teeth of the leading argument of the Epistle.
That the Christian altar is primarily the Cross upon which the Great
Sacrifice was once offered, and, secondarily, the table upon which the
sacramental symbols are placed, who will deny? But "the Body of
" Christ is given, taken, and eaten, in the Supper, only after an
" heavenly and spiritual manner. And the mean whereby the Body of
" Christ is received and eaten in the Supper, is faith." Were not this
the case, what need was there for the Writer of the Epistle to the
Hebrews to remind his readers of the privilege which they enjoyed
above their unbelieving brethren ? The " partaking of the Altar," of
which he speaks, must needs be done after a spiritual fashion, and by a
living faith. A nd as the faith of many amongst them had waxed cold,
it was necessary to admonish and put them in mind how that they
could, by faith, realise a far higher privilege than the most exalted
member of the Jewish priesthood could ever aspire to. The highpriest
dared not to eat of the flesh of the bullock or the goat offered by himself
on the Day of Atonement. We can, by faith (but by faith alone), eat of
the flesh and drink of the blood of their great antitype — even of Him
whose " flesh is meat indeed," and whose " blood is drink indeed."
Schoettgen (Hor. Hebr., tom. ii., p. 644) has the following : — " Midrasch
" Tehillim ad Ps. cxxxiv. 2, fol. 74, 2, ad verba 2, Paral. ii. 3, dViso
" Vn-ud' bs nNi . In seternum hoc erit inter Israel. R. Giddel dixit ex
" sententia Raf: Intelligitur altare extructum, et Michael Princeps Magnus
" (See p. 320) stat, et sacrificium in eodem offert." For a very curious
extract from the Schemoth Rabba, respecting the table of the shew-
bread, see Schoettgen, ibid., p. 612.

346 CHAP. XIII., 10—12.
" the camp of Israel in the wilderness, without which the bodies of
" beasts were burnt on the Day of Atonement. For so say the Jews
" (T. Bab. Zevachim, fol. 116, 2; Bamidbar Rabba, § 7, fol. 188, 3, 4 ;
" Maimon. Beth Habbeehira, e. 7, §11) — ' As was the camp in the
" ' wilderness, so was the camp in Jerusalem ; from Jerusalem to the
" ' mountain of the house was the camp of Israel ; from the mountain
" ' of the House, to the gate of Nicanor, was the camp of the Levites ;
" ' and from thenceforward the camp of the Sheehinah, or the Divine
" ' Majesty.' And so Josephus (Antiq., iii. 10, 3) renders the phrase
" without the camp, in Lev. xvi. 27, by iv rdls irpoaarelois, in the suburbs,
" that is of Jerusalem, where Christ suffered." The words of Josephus
are irpoadyovai Se Svo rrpbs tovtois ipl(povs, av o pev £av els ttjv vwepdpiov
iprjpiav ireprrerai, dirorpomiaapos Kal irpoaalrrjais tov irXr)Bovs iravrbs virep
dpapTrjpdrav iadpevos, rbv 8' ev rois irpoaarelois els KaBapararov dyovres
Xapiov avraBi avv avrfj Kaiovai rrj Sopq, prjSev oXas KaBdpavres. ^vyKaraKalerai
Se ravpos ovx virb tov Srjpov irpoaaxBels, dXX' iK rav ISlav dvaXapdrav rod
dpxiepeas irapaaxdvros k.t.X. — J. Rhenferdius (Expiatio Anniversaria
Pont. Max. V. et iV. Test., p. 1037, Meuschen) writes : — "Interea vero,
" dum Emissarius deportabatur, Pontifex ad juvencum suum et hircum
" populi redibat, et intestina exemta rite imponebat altari, corpora item
" disseeta aliis sacerdotibus tradebat efferenda et comburenda extra
" castra, Lev. xvi. 25, 27 ; Misn., cap. vi. 7  Corporis elati mysterium
" Apostolus explicat : ' Nam quorum animalium sanguis,' etc., Heb. xiii.
"11, 12  Comburebatur autem corpus hirci extra castra loco mundo,
" in quo reliquoruiu sacrificiorum cineres deponebantor. Ita igitur et
" Christi passi, mortuique corpus sepulchro novo conditum est, in quo
" nemo unquam jacuerat." Joh. xix. 41. — J. C. Wolfius writes, in loc,
" Pro irvXrjs codex unus, Barberin, legit iroXeas, quam vocem Tertul-
" lianus etiam adversus Judaaos cap. ultimo exprimit, et recte quidem,
" quod ad sensum, judice Grotio  Absit vero, ut auctoritate unius
" Codicis adducti, quicquam mutemus, cum sensus idem ex recepta
" lectione nascatur, quern Tertullianus non tarn, quod alitor legerit,
" quam, quod aliud significari non possit, expressit" See also Suren
husius, BlfSXos KaraXX., pp. 666 — 668.
The Writer, with that controversial sagacity
which is so distinguishing an attribute of St. Paul,
whilst fortifying his readers against the arguments
and the taunts of those who would reimpose upon
them the observance of peculiarities in meats and

CHAP. XIII., 10—12. 345
Qv yap eladjeperat £aav rb aipa irepl dpaprlas els ra ayia Sia tov
dpxl^pias k.t.X. Dr. Gill writes, in loc, " Not the red heifer, Numb.
" xix., nor the sin-offerings in general, Lev. vi. 30, nor those for the
"priest and people, Lev. iv. 11, 12, and chap. xxi. 6, 7, 18, but the
"bullock and goat on the Day of Atonement, Lev. xvi. 11—18, 27,
" which were typical of Christ, in the bringing of their Mood into the
" Most Holy Place by the high priest for sin ; and in the burning of
" them without the camp : these beasts were slain, their blood was
" shed, and was brought into the most holy place by the high priest,
" and was sprinkled on the mercy-seat, and the horns of the altar of
" incense ; and by it atonement was made for the priest, his house, and
" all Israel : which was a type of the death of Christ," &c. Compare
Reland's Antiq. Sacr. Vet. Hebr., Pt. iii., cap. ii. ; De Hohcaustis,
cap. iii. ; De Sacrificiis piacularibus. On pp. 328, 329, under the head
" Quce comburebantur," he writes : — " Quae ex posteriori genere erant,
" non in altari ut holocausta, sed extra castra, in loco cineris, vel stante
" Templo, extra urbem, iv irpoaarelois, uti Josephus scribit, dissecta in
" partes comburebantur. Hsec erant omnia ilia, quorum sanguis infere-
" batur in Aedem Sacram, ubi spargebatur coram velo et ad cornua-
" altaris interioris, at reliquum effundebatur ad basin altaris exterioris
" Levit. iv. 3, 12, Hebr. xiii. 11, ita tamen ut d'tio'n eorum ex corpore
" extracta in altari exteriori adolerentur. Pellis ipsa non detrahebatur
"his victimis Lev. i. 17, et quum altare carnem non nancisceretur,
" etiam Sacerdotes jus in pellem non habebant. Zevach. xii. 2.
" Confer Levit. x. 16, ubi Moses indignabatur hircum piacularem pro
" peccato populi combustum fuisse, quum comedendus fuisset," &c.
3 *E|tB rrjs irapepfioXrjs. Reland, in his chapter, de Tabernaculo
ejusque situ, writes : — " Atque ita tria se quasi produnt castra. I. Dei,
" sc. Tabernaculum cum atrio ; II. Levitarum ; III. Populi Israelitici.
" Quibuscum convenerunt, respectu sanctitatis. rerumque et personarum
" quaa ad ilia admittebantur discrimine, stante Templo tria hsec spatia.
" I. Atrium magnum, quod complectebatur atrium Israelitarum et
" Sacerdotum. II. Atrium mulierum, spatium antemurale et mons
"Templi. III. Urbs Hierosolyma, Gem. Zevachim, 116, 2, quam
"traditionem confirmat scriptor Ep. ad Hebr., xiii. 11, 12, qui extra
" castra populi idem censet ac extra Hierosolyman." Ant. Sacr. Vet.
Hebr., Traject. Bat., 1712. 8vo., p. 17. Some curious matter on the
subject is to be found in the Babylonian Gemara, Sanhedrin, chap. 6,
col. 596 — 600 ; Ugol. Thes., tom. 25. — For the New Testament use of
the word irapep^oXr). See note 4, p. 236. Dr. Gill writes, in loc,
." Suffered without the gate," i.e., of Jerusalem. The Syriac version
" reads " without the city," meaning Jerusalem, which answered to
Y Y

CHAP. XIII., 10—12. 347
drinks, seizes the opportunity to demonstrate a
further and striking correspondence between the
typical sacrifices of the Day of Atonement and
Jesus the Great Antitype. They were taunted
with having cut themselves off from participa
tion in the sacrifices, and polluting themselves
amongst the Gentiles, by eating meats that were
ceremonially unclean. The answer is ready. We
have an altar of which the High Priest himself
has no power to eat. He dared not to partake of
the flesh of the bullock and the goat whose blood
he offered on the Day of Atonement. We can par
take of His body and blood who was prefigured by
these sacrifices. The Christian believer, therefore,
stands immeasurably above the proudest Pharisee
that makes his boast in the law. The bodies of
these beasts above mentioned were not eaten, but
were burned without the camp. Jesus, therefore,
that he. might complete the correspondence between
himself and these typical representations suffered
" without the gate." It was no accidental coinci
dence. It was a prophetic fulfilment of the
Scriptures. The law of Moses prescribed that
malefactors should thus suffer outside the city.
(See p. 242.) Jesus was the true victim, and by
the legal necessity of the Mosaic criminal law, He
suffered outside the gate. Thus He proved Himself,
in this minute resemblance, to be Him " of whom
" Moses in the law, and all the prophets, did write."
The Jews thought Him a malefactor, and He was
content, whilst " fulfilling all righteousness," to bear
" the reproach." Those who burned the bullock

348 CHAP. XIII., 13.
and the goat were accounted ceremonially unclean.
The converts must also be content to bear the
revilings of their adversaries, and to go forth to
Jesus without the camp bearing his reproach ;
and therefore the Writer continues : —
Verse 13. — Let us therefore come forth to him without
(e£&) Tr)<; irapepfioXf)?) bearing his reproach (rbv ovetSicr-
pbv avrov (pepovTe<s) .
It must not be forgotten that our Lord, having
been crucified, or " hanged on a tree," was regarded
by the unbelieving Jews as being " accursed of
" God " ; Deut. xxi. 22, 23, " And if a man have
" committed a sin worthy of death, and he be put
" to death, and thou hang him on a tree, his body
" shall not remain all night upon the tree, but
" thou shalt in any wise bury him that day. Por
" he that is hanged is accursed of God ( rh'bp ^
" iibM DTibH), that thy land be not defiled," &c.
This was, doubtless, the reason why the Jews were
so urgent upon Pilate, that after the Saviour's
crucifixion, the bodies might be removed and
buried before nightfall. Such, then, was the
" reproach " which Jesus bore for us. Well might
the Writer appeal to the gratitude of his readers,
and exhort them to bear with contented resigna
tion the reproach of their Master. But again, with
his skilful and characteristic tenderness and tact,
he reminds them that the reproach will not be for
ever, and the trial will be brief. What if they do
place themselves outside the camp? What if they
are cut off from former associations, and their very

CHAP. XIII., 14. 349
names are cast out as unclean by their brethren?
Have they not the words of Jesus himself (Matt.
v. 10 — 12) to cheer them, " Blessed are they which
" are persecuted for righteousness' sake : for their's
" is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye, when
" men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall
" say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my
" sake. Bejoice, and be exceeding glad : for great
" is your reward in heaven : for so persecuted they
" the prophets which were before you." And again
(Luke vi. 20 — 23), " Blessed be ye poor : for yours
" is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are ye that
" hunger now : for ye shall be filled. Blessed are
" ye that weep now : for ye shall laugh. Blessed
" are ye, when men shall hate you, and when they
" shall separate you (dcbopio-wo-iv vpd<s) from their
" company, and shall reproach you, and cast out
" your name as evil, for the Son of man's sake.
" Bejoice ye in that day, and leap for joy : for,
"behold, your reward is great in heaven: for in
" the like manner did their fathers unto the
" prophets." The self-sacrifice thus required would
be greatly mitigated and their regrets rendered
less poignantly keen, if the converts would bethink
themselves of the primary condition of their pil
grimage (see verses 10 — 16), and so the Writer
continues : —
Verse 14. — Por we have not here a continuing city,1 but
we seek the one to come (rrjv peXXovo-av eirifyjTOvpev, Die
zuktinftige suchen wir, Luther).
1 Oi yap exopev S>8e pevovaav irdXiv k.t.X. The meaning of these words
is doubtless, " Jerusalem, whose gate has just been mentioned, verse 12

350 CHAP. XIII., 15.
" (albeit it is the seat of the temple worship and the Levitic sacrifices,
" albeit it is the Holy City, and the ' joy of the whole earth ' in the
" Jewish patriot's estimation), is not the cherished home of the Chris-
" tian pilgrim's desires. It is, at best, transitory, and only a resting-
" place for wayfaring men who lodge in it, for a little season, on their
" way home to their city out of sight, even that Jerusalem whichis above,
" which is the Mother of us all." (See note 1, pp. 298 — 302.) The suggestion
of Schoettgen and Michaelis, that this verse contains a prophetic inti
mation of the approaching destruction of Jerusalem, seems to me entirely
foreign to the argument. The antithesis lies between the terrestrial
distinction and advantages comprised in the citizenship of the material
Jerusalem, and the abiding consolations of the Jerusalem above. The
words are intended, 1st, as a dissuasive against undue regret on the
part of the converts at being thrust out from all that they once held
most honourable, sacred, and dear ; 2dly, as a. consolatory admonition
as to the better hopes which they professed to entertain for eternity,
as their final rest and consolation, after the toils of their pilgrimage
should be ended. Turning away their eyes from the fading scenes of
earthly endearments, the Writer bids them to solace themselves by the
contemplation of their heavenly metropolis and home. Wolfius (in loc.)
wisely remarks : — "Mihi quidem irdXis piXXovaa de oeconomia Novi
" Testamenti accipi non posse videtur, quae tunc non amplius erat
" piXXovaa, sed vere existebat, ita, ut qui earn instar civitatis ingressi
" essent, non jam £ivoi et irdpoiKoi, sed avpiroXirai rav dylav Kal olKeloi
" rov Qeov appellari possent." — Stuart also (in loc.) well observes : —
" The design of our verse is to show the Hebrews, that it cannot be of
" any great importance should they be exiled from their dwelling-places,
" and the habitations of their Jewish kindred ; for in this world no
" habitation, no place of abode, can be pivovaa, permanent, lasting. By
" profession the Christians, like the patriarchs, were seeking rrarplSa
" iirovpdviov, and consequently 7rdXiy peXXovaav," &c.
Verse 15. — Through him (Jesus) therefore ' (see verse 10,
e^opev 6vo-iao-Tr)piov k.t.X.), let us offer up a sacrifice of
praise continually (Siairavrbs) to God, that is the fruit of
lips 2 confessing to His Name s (%etXeW opoXoyovvrcov tco
ovopari avrov).
1 Ai' avrov ovv dvacpipapev Bvalav alveaeas K.T.X. One of the main
arguments running through the entire Epistle is this. Christ the
Messiah having offered himself to God, without spot, a perfect and
sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the whole world, the Levitic sacrifices

CHAP. XIII., 15. 351
are superseded and must entirely cease. Daniel had intimated as much,
chap. ix. 27. Schoettgen (Hor. Hebr., tom. ii, p. 612) gives.the follow
ing decisive proofs that the ancient Rabbinical Jews expected the
sacrifices to eease in the days of Messiah : — " Sohar Exod., fol. 85,
' ' col. 346. Cum Israelites essent in terra sancta, per ilhs cultus et sacri-
"ficia, quce fecerunt, omnes morbos et pcenas ex mundo sustulerunt :
" sobs mn \rb ptoo Truro Nninrr , nunc autem Messias tollit eas a filiis
" hominum, usque dum ex hoc mundo egrediuntur : irffiiis bapm, et reatum
"ejus (mundi scilicet) in se suscipit, sicut jam diximus : — Vajikra rabba,
"sect. 9, fol. 153, 1, Tanchuma, fol. 55, 2. Pesikta sotarta, fol. 11, 1,
" et Midrasch Tehillim. ad Psalm, c. 2, fol. 36, 4. R. Pinchas nomine
" R. Levi, et R. Jochanan ex ore 11. Menachem Galikei dixerunt ;
" b'tn vm mm pipi ]^aa rvuripn to tab -prert. Temporibus Messise omnes
" sacrificia cessabunt, sed sacrificium laudis non cessabit : (In Midrasch
" Tehillim vox Nl^ abest,) q.d. Jerem. xvii. 26. Et adducentes laudem
" in domum Domini. — Tanchuma, fol. 48, 1, Dixit Deus S.B. . In hoc
" mundo peccata hominum expiata sunt per sacrificia : verum mn tmbsb ,
" Ego peccata tua expio sine sacrificio (ex animantibus facto), q.d. Jesa.
" xliii. 25. Ego, ego deleo peccata tua propter me. — De vacca rufa
" (see Hebr. ix. 13, airoSbs SapdXeas.) in specie locus pulcherrimus exstat
" in Baal hatturim ad Numer. xix. 9, tub "Cn1? 1311DS' tf), Non amplius
" habebunt opus cinere vaccce rufes, nam deglutiet Dominus mortem in
" setemum." — Schoettgen adds, — " Hsec autem verba Prophetae de
" Messia loqui, jam aliquoties adfuit. — De panibus propositionum.
" Schemoth rabba, sect. 50, fol. 142, 3. Dixit Deus S.B. ad Israelitas :
" Vos fecistis mihi mensam, rovwn jo D3n« Van "IK, Ego absolvam vos,
" ut non amplius illam instruere debeatis (panibus et reliquis eo perti-
" nentibus), et ipse instruam vobis mensam tab i>nsb , temporibus Messise."
In Levit. vii. 12 we read : — " If he offer it for a thanksgiving, then he
" shall offer with the sacrifice of thanksgiving (minn mi, LXX. vii. 2,
" iirl rrjs Bvalas ttjs alveaeas) unleavened cakes," &c. In 2 Chron. xxix.
31 nnm D'TOJ is translated Bvalas alveaeas, and Bvalas Kal alveaeis.
So also in 2 Chron. xxxiii. 16, mini D'oto 'nil is rendered Bvalav
aarrjplov Kal alveaeas. The Rev. Dr. Phillips (The Psalms in Hebrew
with Commentary, voL ii., pp. 453, 454) writes on Ps. cxvi. 13 ni»w did
nto, I will take the cup of Salvation. " This verse and the following
" contain an answer to the question in the preceding one on yvt* nn .
" The cup of salvation is thought to allude to the Eucharistic offering ;
" so Mendelsohn observes that it is the cup of blessing, full of wine, used
" in the Eucharistic sacrifice. Some persons, however, deny that there
"is any allusion to those sacrifices, as Hengstenberg, who observes,
" ' Dieser Kelch ist eine blosse Fiction ; ' this communion cup is a mere

352 CHAP. XIII., 15.
"fiction. It is true, in the institution of the festival-offerings, there is
" nothing said of the cup ; yet in the feast of the Passover, for instance,
" we know from Matt. xxvi. 29, 30 that the cup of wine to drink, and
" the singing of a hymn were parts of the celebration. See Lightfoot's
" Horoe Hebr-aicas on Matt, xxvi." Dr. Phillips might have made his
case much stronger had he observed, that under the term used by
St. Matthew, viz., vpvrjaavres, was probably included the singing of this
very Psalm cxvi. It was included in the " Great Hallelujah " which
comprised Ps. cxiii. — cxviii. These Psalms were sung at the Jewish
festivals, particularly at the Feast of Tabernacles and the Passover.
From all these considerations we are able to gather certainly, that it
was the belief of the ancient Rabbis that in Messiah's days all vicarious
sacrifices should cease, but that the Sacrifice of Praise should never
cease. What they understood by the figurative Sacrifice of Praise
agrees excellently well with the definition given by the Writer to the
Hebrews, Tovrean Kapirbv x^iXiav opoXoyovvrav ra dvdjian avrov, as will
be apparent from the following quotation given by Schoettgen, in he.
(Hor. Hebr., tom. i., p. 1005) :— " Vajikra Rabba, sect. 9, fol. 153, 1, et
" Tanchuma, fol. 55, 2. R. Pinchas, R. Levi, et R. Jochanan ex ore
" R. Menachem Galilcei dixerunt ; toil ir» mm pipi yboi nmipn to tab Tns^.
" Tempore Messice omnia sacrificia cessabunt, sed sacrificium laudis non
" cessabit. Omnes preces cessabunt, sed laudes non cessabunt, q.d. Jerem.
" xxxiii. 1. Vox lsetitise et gaudii, vox sponsi et sponsse, vox dicen-
" tium : Laudate Deum Zebaoth, &c. Hcec est confessio : et adferentium
" laudem in domum Domini : Hoc est Sacrificium laudis. Et sic David
"dicit, Ps. Ivi. 13. In me sunt, Domine, vota tua, solvam laudationes
"tibi. Quia scribitur in plurali nnin, laudationes, intelligitur confessio
" et sacrificium laudis. — Jalkut Rubeni, fol. 92, 2, ad verba Exod. xix.
"12. Ederunt panem cum Jethro coram facie Domini : Observanda
"sunt verba D'n'is KSb. Exinde discimus, quod quicunque sacrificium
" offert mto smim, in mente, coram ipso Deus est."
2 Kapirbv ^fiXe'div k.t.X. In the Hebrew text of Is. lvii. 19 we read,
otbv ti ntq , Creavi fructum labiorum. Vulg. These words are not in
the LXX. But in Hosea xiv. 3 the LXX. translate htcid d'id , the
calves of our lips, by Kapirbv x«Xetw. There is no necessity for supposing
that the LXX. interpreters must necessarily have had the reading 'IB,
fruit, before them in the MSS. of Hosea from which they translated.
They gave a very intelligible paraphrase of an equally intelligible
Hebrew expression. Dr. Gill writes, in he, " The Sacrifice of Praise
" is so called, in allusion to the offering of the first-fruits under the
" Law, and to distinguish it from legal sacrifices ; and to show in what
" manner we are to praise God, namely, with our lips. In Hosea xiv. 3,

CHAP. XIII., 15. 353
" which is thought to be referred to here, it is the calves of our lips :
" sacrifices of praise being instead of calves : and the Apostle interprets
" it in great agreement with the Jewish writers. The Chaldee para-
" phrase explains it by siniDD 'to , the words of our lips ; and so Jarchi,
" li'now 'in , The words of our lips ; and Kimchi, iitidid 'iti , the confession
" of our lips."
3 'OpoXoyoivrav r<5 ovdpan avrov. Through Jesus (Si avrov), the
converts are exhorted to offer the Sacrifice of Praise to God the Father
continually. With his usual subtlety of adaptation, the Writer con
trives to blend exhortation with his words of encouragement. The
desponding Hebrews were out of conceit with the simplicity of the
Gospel. They could no longer partake, with their unbaptized brethren,
of the sacrifices of the temple. They looked back with regret upon the
festive splendours of the Mosaic ritual, from which they had for ever
cut themselves off. Some of them were ashamed of the obloquy
attaching to the profession of Christ, and gave no unwilling ear to
those who would teach them to avoid the reproach of the Cross, by a
renewed conformity with the Levitic ceremonial Law. The Writer has
reminded them (verse 10) that " we have an altar," of which the high
priest himself has no power to eat. We can offer the Sacrifice of
Praise continually to God ; but the most acceptable form in which this
Sacrifice can be offered is, " the fruit of lips confessing to his (Jesus')
" name." A bold, cheerful, grateful, and trustful avowal of the name
of Jesus, by word and deed, is the Sacrifice of Praise that is demanded
of the Christian believers, especially in time of persecution. A hesitating,
halting profession of Jesus and his Cross, is dishonouring to God the
Father ; but when the name of the Son is glorified, the Father accepts
the tribute of devotion as an oblation acceptable to Himself. There is
much in this passage of the Epistle to the Hebrews to bring to remem
brance the tone and style of St. Paul's exhortations to the Philippian
converts, especially when he writes (Phil. ii. 5 — 11), "Let this mind be
" in you, whieh was also in Christ Jesus. Who being in the form of
" God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God. But made Him-
" self of no reputation, and took upon Himself the form of a servant,
" and was made in the likeness of men. And being found in fashion as
" a man, He humbled Himself, and became obedient unto death, even
"the death of the Cross. (Comp. Hebr. xiii. 11 — 13.) Wherefore God
" also hath highly exalted Him, and given Him a name which is above
"every name. That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of
" things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth ;
" and that every tongue should confess (kcu irdaa yXaaaa i£opoXoyfjarjTai)
" that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."
Z Z

354 CHAP. XIII., 16, 17.
Verse 16. — But to do good, and to communicate forget not,1
for with sacrifices such as these Cod is well pleased
(ivapeo-Te?Tai 6 Qeos).
1 Trjs Se evTroiias Kal Koivavlas pr) emXavBdveaBe kt.X. The Sacrifice of
Praise, without works of benevolence, and a consecrated charity accom
panying it, would be a mere lip-service. This was the fault of the
forefathers of these Jewish converts in the days of Isaiah (Is. xxix.
13 — 21), and also in the days of Ezekiel, who wrote concerning them
(xxxiii. 31), " With their mouth they shew much love, but their heart
" goeth after their covetousness." Our Lord himself reproved the evil
generation of his day in the very words of Isaiah (Matt. xv. 1 — 9 ;
Mark vii. 1 — 15). So the Writer to the Hebrews puts the converts in
mind that the self-seeking sacrifices of formalism are but dead works in
the sight of God. Compare Isaiah Iviii. 1, &c. The word evrroda is
found nowhere else in the New Testament. The phrase Kowavla is used
by St. Paul in the sense of a charitable collection, or contribution, in
Rom. xv. 26 ; 2 Cor. viii. 4, ix. 13. Schoettgen (Hor. Hebr., tom. i.,
pp. 1006 — 1008) gives many illustrations from the early Rabbinic writers
respecting the value of good works, from which I select the following :
¦ — "R. Samuel ben David in (his book) bmov icn, fol. 41, 1, says: —
" The man who commits sin nowadays, since we have no longer either a
" temple or sacrifice, nteni piDS< , ought to be diligent in prayer, nvto
" pip Dipna nTD» , for such service as this takes the place of sacrifice
" (Corban). And since sacrifice cannot be performed without a sanctuary,
" Q"is as D'-ron niton piD»< pb , let such an one be diligent in works of
" mercy to the needy, pip a"pm pvo rrois ibm aim , and he is as if he
" built a sanctuary and brought a sacrifice." Consult also J. C. Wolfius,
in loc, Curos Phil, et Crit., tom. iv., pp. 802, 803.
Verse 17. — Obey your rulers,1 and submit yourselves, for
they watch for your souls, as they that must give account
(&>? Xoyov diroSwaovTe1;), so that they may do this with joy
(perd %apa<;), and not bemoaning (your unruly demeanour,
Kal pr) o-Tevd'^ovres:) ', for this is unprofitable (aXvaireXlf)
for you.
1 Tiel8ea8e rdls rjyovpe'vois vpav, Kal inrelKere, k.t X. The Writer now
urges upon the Hebrews the necessity of a ready obedience and whole
some discipline. In troublous times, like those in which they were

CHAP. XIII., 17. 355
living, a schismatical spirit could not but produce disastrous results. If
the leaders grew disheartened by the unruly and contentious demeanour
of those committed to their charge, the enemies could not fail to be
encouraged to fresh and more vigorous assaults. Union, in such .evil
days, was strength. The struggle that was before the Church would
require the collective and united efforts of every several member of the
community. The Writer points out under the words dXvoireXes yap
iplv tovto, that the evil results would fall with double weight upon the
flock. If its leaders were discouraged by divisions within, how could
they, with a good heart, frame their energies to face the perils from
without. They were placed in the forefront of the battle. They were
marked out as the first victims for the cruel hand of Rabbinic intoler
ance and persecuting zeal to strike down. Scandalous would it be, then,
if, by the factious conduct of those committed to their charge, their
ministry should be rendered more arduous, and their anxieties embittered
by the disobedient conduct of those for whose souls they watched, with
a single eye to the Great Account ! Josephus (Ant. xx. 9, 1) has left us
a short, but graphic description of the persecution which the Church
at Judasa endured at the hands of the Sadducean High-Priest Ananus :
— " And now Csesar, upon hearing the death of Pestus, sent Albinus
" into Judsea, as procurator; but the King deprived Joseph of the high-
" priesthood, and bestowed the succession to that dignity on the son of
" Ananus, who was also himself called Ananus. Now the report goes,
" that this elder Ananus proved a most fortunate man ; for he had five
"sons, who had all performed the office of a highpriest to God, and he
" had himself enjoyed that dignity a long time formerly, which had
" never happened to any other of our highpriests ; but this younger
" Ananus, who, as we have told you already, took the highpriesthood,
" was a bold man in his temper, and very insolent ; he was also of the
" sect of the Sadducees, who were very rigid in judging offenders, above
" all the rest of the Jews, as we have already observed. When, there-
" fore, Ananus was of this disposition, he thought he had now a proper
" opportunity [to exercise his authority]. Festos was now dead, and
" Albinus was but upon the road ; so he assembled the Sanhedrim
" of the Judges, and brought before them the brother of Jesus, who
"was called Christ, whose name was James, and some others; and
" when he had formed an accusation against them as breakers of the
" law, he delivered them to be stoned (Ka8l£ei avviSpiov Kpirav, Kal
" irapayayav els avrb rbv dSeXcpbv 'Irjaov tou Xeyopevov Xpiarov ('laKaftos
" dvopa avra). Kal nvas erepovs, as rrapavopvaavrav Karrjyoplav iroirjadpevos,
" irapeSaKe XevaBrjaopevovs) ; but as for those who seemed the most
" equitable of the citizens,  they disliked what was done : they sent also

356 CHAP. XIII., 18, 19.
" to the King [Agrippa], desiring him to send to Ananus that he should
" act so no more, for that what he had already done was not to be
" justified : nay, some of them went also to meet Albinus, as he was
" upon his journey, and informed him that it was not lawful for Ananus
" to assemble a Sanhedrim without his consent : whereupon Albinus
" complied with what they had said, and wrote in anger to Ananus,
" and threatened that he would bring him to punishment for what he
" had done ; on which King Agrippa took the highpriesthood from him,
" when he had ruled but three months." — Whiston! s Josephus.
Whiston, in his note on this passage, observes that the Sadducees
were much more severe, and inexorable as judges, than the Pharisees.
Professed free-thinkers are usually more implacable adversaries to truth
than even religious bigots. Besides Christianity, with its doctrines of
supernaturalism, and the resurrection of the dead, was in immediate
conflict with the tenets of those who denied the existence of angel, or
spirit, or a future life. Sadduceeism had, so to speak, a direct and
personal quarrel with, and antipathy to, the religion of Jesus. Ma
terialism and Christianity must evermore remain in irreconcileable
antagonism. The most impracticable adversary that the modern
missionary has to cope with is the Jew, who, having turned his back
upon the Hope of the Fathers, professes a nondescript philanthropy,
which is usually accompanied by an active antagonism and hostility to
every description of definite belief.
Verses 18, 19. — Pray for us ; ' for we are persuaded that
we have a good conscience, in all things wishing to walk
honestly.2 But more especially (irepicro-orepcos) do I
entreat you to do this in order that I may be the more
quickly restored to you.3
1 UpooevxeoBe irepl r)pav. St. Paul makes the same request, Col. iv. 3,
irpoaevxdpevoi apa Kal irepl rjpav ; 1 Thes. v. 25, dSeXcpol, irpoaeixeaBe irepl
rjpav; 2 Thes. iii. 1, to Xoiirbv ifpooevxeoBe, dSeXrpol, irepl rjpav. Alford,
as usual, following Delitzsch, would include others as well as the Writer
in the plural expression, " pray for us." He says, " Here, as elsewhere,
" it is probably a mistake to suppose that the first person plural indi-
" cates the Writer alone." Probably even Dean Alford would not have
ventured to make the same assertion in reference to chap. vi. 9,
ireirelapeBa Se irepl vpav dyairrjTol, ra Kpelrrova Kal ixdpeva aarrjplas, el Kal
ovra XaXovpev. And again, verse 11, irriBvpoiipev Se eKaarov k.t.X. Such
an evasion of a testimony in favour of the Pauline authorship of this
Epistle is more ingenious, than candid or scholarly.

CHAP. XIII., 18, 19. 357
TleirotBapev yap ot( KaXrjv ovvelSrjaiv exopev, iv irdai KaXas BeXovres
dvaarpicpeaBai. Ewald (Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 151), after noticing
that the Writer follows the example of St. Paul in asking for the
prayers of his readers, says, — " Aber er kann hinzufiigen was Paulus
" in solchen Fallen fiir unnbthig hielt : halten wir uns doch uberzeugt
" dass wir ein gutes Gewissen haben, da wir in allem wohl zu handeln
" streben." Now it is singularly noteworthy that the words of St.
Paul before the Jewish Sanhedrin (Acts xxiii. 1) bear, to say the least,
a very strong resemblance to these words of the Epistle to the Hebrews.
"AvSpes dSeXqbol, iya irdarj avveiSrjaei dyaBrj ireiroXiTe vpai «-ffl 6ec» &XP1
ravTrjs rrjs rjpipas. Not a few of the readers of the Epistle may per
chance have heard St. Paul's emphatic apologia for his manner of life
pronounced, and have stood by when the high priest called aloud for
somebody to smite him on the mouth. So again (Acts xxiv. 16), in his
defence before Felix against the accusations of Tertullus and the elders
of the Jews, St. Paul uses almost identical language ; iv toutm Se avrbs
aaKa, dirpdaKoirov avveiSrjaiv exeiv irpbs tov Qebv Kal robs dvBpairovs
SiairavTos. So far, then, from there being anything un-Pauline in the
above declaration of the Writer to the Hebrews, it contains a re-echo
of the great Apostle's twice-repeated assertion before the rulers of his
own nation. To the Hebrews it would recall recollections of two of
the most stirring episodes in the career of St. Paul. It would remind
them how, for the " Hope of the Fathers," he had been, once and again,
tried for his life. It would assure them that in spite of his bonds
(chap. x. 34) he still persisted unhesitatingly in the course he had
adopted. That he saw nothing to regret in his choice. His inmost
convictions were still serenely undisturbed. " Faith and a good
" conscience " (1 Tim i. 19) he yet held to with undaunted, unfalter
ing resolution. Compare 1 Cor. iv. 4, ovSev yap ipavra avvoiSa, " for
" I have nothing on my conscience," erroneously rendered in the
Authorised Version, " For I know nothing by myself." So also the
expression dvaarpirpeaBai is strictly Pauline in its application. I say
in its application, because I consider that the recent style of arguing, for
or against the authorship, or genuineness, of portions of the Bible from
the use, or rather the occurrence of a word more or less frequently, is
pitiful and contemptible. In Gal. i. 13 we read, rjKovaare ydp rrjv
iprjv dvaaTpotprjv irore k.t.X. Any scholar who has written much, and
upon a variety of -subjects, must be perfectly conscious that his claim
to the authorship of any particular writing of his own might, upon cer
tain fixed data, be disproved from his other acknowledged productions.
I am fully persuaded that the modern " criticism," based upon isolated
words and expressions, is the weakest of all criterions for judging of the

358 CHAP. XIII., 20, 21. *
authenticity of any writing. Far different is the inference reasonably
to be drawn, from a correspondence of statement, upon a peculiar topic
such as the one under discussion, between an author's acknowledged
sayings and writings, and his reputed compositions. That the Epistle
to the Hebrews is the work of St. Paul must, as the evidence at present
stands, remain a matter of opinion, but it may yet be an opinion
amounting to a fairly grounded certainty. The advocates of the Pauline
origin of the Epistle are just as much entitled to entertain, and advance
with a modest firmness, their convictions upon the subject, as the
holders of an opposite theory. The sensitive impatience of contra
diction, and the sweeping insinuations of credulity against all who
may dare to differ from modern experiments upon the Word of God,
betray to my mind a limited acquaintance with the literature of the
subject, and a fear lest, after all, the pretended new discoveries may be
found, upon examination, to rest^upon a basis far less secure than their
propounders would have us to believe, viz., upon the ill-supported
authority of their own personal predilections.
3 "Iva rdxiov diroKaraoTaBa vpiv. Stuart writes : — " This seems
" plainly to imply that the writer was detained from paying those a,
" visit whom he addressed, by some adverse circumstances, viz., either
" by imprisonment, sickness, or some like cause. It also implies that
" he is known to them, and they to him ; for it indicates that he had
" formerly been among them." See St. Paul's words to Philemon,
verse 22, iXiri£a yap 6Vt Sid rav irpoaevxav vpav xapiaBrjaopai vpiv.
Verses 20, 21. — But the God of peace,1 who brought back
again from the dead the great Shepherd of the sheep,2 by
the blood of the eternal covenant,3 our Lord Jesus, make
you perfect in every good work, so that you may do his
will (see chap. x. 36), working in you that which is well-
pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ ; to whom be
the glory for ever and ever. Ameu.
1 'O Se Oebs rrjs elprjvrjs k.t.X. Ewald rightly sees a reference back to
chap. xii. 14, elprjvrjv SiaKere pera irdvrav. But there is also, doubtless,
a reference to the already quoted passage of Isaiah Ivii. 19, n niu
mm tom ai-ip1)! pirn1? Ditoi a^bv dyidw, "I create the fruit of the lips.
" Peace, peace to him that is near, and to him that is afar off, saith
" the Lord." See note 2, p. 352. Compare St. Paul's words in
1 Thess. v. 23, avrbs Se 6 Qebs rrjs elprjvrjs k.t.X. 2 Thess. iii. 16, avrbs
Se 6 Kvpios rrjs elprjvrjs k.t.X. Romans XV. 33, 6 Se Bebs rrjs elprjvrjs k.t.X. ;

CHAP. XIII., 20, 21. 359
xvi. 20, o Se 6fos ttjs elprjvrjs k.t.X. 2 Cor. xiii. 11, 6 ©ras ttjs dydirrjs
Kal elprjvrjs k.t.X. Philipp. iv. 9, o ©e6s rrjs elprjvrjs k.t.X. We have, then,
ample authority for regarding the above as a Pauline formula. Com
pare also 1 Cor. vii. 15 — 17, iv Se eiprjvrj KeKXrjKev rjpds o Beds. Here
the Apostle asserts that " God hath called us in peace," and uses his
assertion as a persuasive for Christians who may be married to heathens,
if possible to continue to live with them, as offering to the unbeliever
the one opportunity of becoming savingly acquainted with the power
of Christianity. I would propose to punctuate verses 16, 17 as follows,
ri yap oifias, yivai, el rbv avSpa aaaeis ; rj rl olSas, avep, el rrjv yvva'iKa
aaaeis, el pr) eKaara is epipiaev 6 Beds ; " For how knowest thou, O
" wife, if thou shalt save thy husband ? or how knowest thou, O husband,
" if thou shalt save thy wife, except in the way that God has provi-
" dentially cast your lot 1 " i.e., in originally permitting your union as
man and wife.
2 '0 dvayayav iK veKpav rbv iroipeva toi/ irpofidrav tov piyav. Alford
asserts, " the passage before the Writer's mind has been that in the pro-
" phetic 63d chapter of Isaiah, where speaking of Moses it is said, 7ro0 6
" dvaj3il3daas eK ttjs BaXdaarjs tov iroipeva rav rrpo^drav, where some
"MSS. read U ttjs yijs." The Hebrew of Isaiah Ixiii. 11, reads,
HK2 Ttsi n« era obsoT\ n'N. Dean Alford, however, does not seem to
be mindful that in Eomans x. 7 we have the inspired authority of
St. Paul for translating the D<n -as, "beyond the sea," of Deut. xxx.
13, of the resurrection of the dead. The Apostle thus paraphrases the
words of Moses ; pr) e'lrrvs iv rrj KapSlq aov, tis dvafirjoeTat eis tov ovpavov ;
rovr earl Xpiarbv Karayayeiv rj, rls KaTaftrjaerai els rrjv afivaaov ; ("iHS' "O
D'TI 12S b& Mb — Tis Siairepdaei rjp'iv els to irepav rrjs BaXdaavs ; LXX.) to€t
eari, Xpiarbv iK veKpav dvayayeiv. Schoettgen (Hor. Hebr., torn, ii., p. 665)
quotes as follows from the Tikkune Sohar, c. 18, fol. 28, 1, in reference
to the Messiah : — "Arise, O Faithful Shepherd, and open the house of
" prophecy, which is in the House above, the most secret of all secret
" things, where the mysteries of the Heavenly King are found : for
" thou art as the Son of the house, the Son of that House," &c. The
real clue to the words rbv iroipeva rav irpofSdrav tov piyav is to be found
in Zech. xiii. 7, " Awake, O sword, against my Shepherd, and against
"the man that is my fellow (wds -oi toi 'm bs), saith the Lord of
"hosts. Smite the Shepherd," &c. Dr. Henderson (The Book of the
Twelve Minor Prophets, p. 434) well observes, in loc. : — "Not only is
" the Messiah designated the Shepherd of Jehovah to indicate the
" relation in which he stood to the Father in the economy of redemp-
"tion, but he is described as i:ro» im, the man of his union; conjointly
" or closely united to Him. The term translated man is not that usually

360 CHAP. XIII., 20, 21.
" employed in Hebrew, which in such construction would be merely
" idiomatic, but -01 , a strong, or mighty man, one who is such by way
" of eminence." For Christian readers the Messianic interpretation
of Zech. xiii. 7 is authoritatively fixed by Matt, xxvir 31, Mark xiv. 27,
but it is important to notice that R. Abarbanel, after giving two other
interpretations, says, — " The third interpretation is, that the words my
" shepherd, the man my fellow, are spoken of Messiah the son of Joseph."
The subject is discussed at length in R. D. Ximchi's Commentary on
Zechariah, transl. with notes by the late Dr. M'Caul, pp. 169 — 177.
Dr. Phillips, in his Commentary on the Psalms, vol. i., p. 26, writes, —
" In the ancient book Zohar there is a passage which shows in what
" sense the author understood the intention of this Psalm, and of this
" verse in particular (Ps. ii. 12). It is as follows : —
pi wtb ii btcwn pi Nin niNi ia ipwi inn« -jto niotid *si -a not tin
: nrrroi n"api *ra nVs1; -12 nivn ONtoi
" Thou art the Son, the Faithful Shepherd ; of Thee it is said, Kiss the
" Son, and Thou art the Lord of Israel, Master behw, the Lord of the
" ministering angels, Son above, Son of the Holy One, Blessed be He,
" and the Shechinah. Lubbi edition, fol. 87." — Philo (De Agricultura,
Works, Mangey's Edit., tom. i., p. 308) writes on Ps. xxiii. 1 : — •
Kaddrrep ydp nva irolpvrjv, yrjv Kal vSap Kal aepa Kal irvp, Kal daa iv tovtois
(pvrd re av Kal £aa, ra pev Bvrjra, ra re Bela' en Se ovpavov (pvaiv, Kal rjXlov
Kal aeXrjvrjs irepidSovs, Kal rav dXXav darepav rpoirds re av Kal ^opetas
ivappovlovs, as iroiprjv Kal fiaaiXevs b Bebs dyei Kara SlKrjv Kal vdpov,
irpoarrjadpevos tov opBbv avrov Xoyov, irpardyovov vibv, bs rrjv impiXeiav
rrjs lepds Tavrrjs dyiXrjs, oia Tts peydXov (3aotXeas virapxos SiaSe£erai. Kal
yap e'lprjrai irov, 'lSov e'yco elpi, airoareXa dyyeXdv pov els irpdaairdv aov,
(pvXd^ai ae iv rrj 6Sa. Aeyira rolvvv Kal 6 Koapos diras, rj peylarrj Kal
TeXeiardrrj tov ovtos Beov irolpvrj, Kvpios iroipaivel pe, Kal ovSiv pe
varepijoei. " For as a flock, God rules (according to right and law) as
" a Shepherd and King, the earth, the water, the air, and fire, aud
" whatever species are therein contained, whether animal, human, or
" celestial. Besides these, He rules the natural course of the heavens,
" the circuits of the sun and moon, and the harmonious motions and
" revolutions of the other planets : but over them all He has placed his
" Upright Word, his Firstbegotten Son, who undertakes the over-
" sight of this sacred flock, as if He were the lieutenant of some great
" king. It was therefore said (Exod. xxiii. 20), Behold, I am, I will
" send my Angel before thy face, to keep thee in the way. Let, therefore,
" the whole universe (that vastest and most perfect flock of the Self-
" existent God) affirm, The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want."

CHAP. XIII., 22, 23. 361
s 'Ev alpan SiaBrjierjs alavlov. Stuart translates, " Now, may the God
" of peace that raised from the dead our Lord Jesus, who by the blood
" of an everlasting covenant, has become the Great Shepherd of the
" Sheep." Ewald writes, " Um des Neuen Bundes Blut, um den Preis
" das er zur Stiftung des Neuen Bundes sein Blut hingab, auferstehen
" Hess." Ewald therefore considers iv to be equivalent to in considera
tion of. Alford also rightly asserts, " The expression itself can hardly
"but be a reminiscence of Zech. ix. 11, Kal av iv alpan SiaBrjiajs aov
" i^aireareiXas Seaplovs aov iK Xokkov ovk exovros vSap : and, if SO, the
" import of the preposition here will be at least indicated by its import
" there. And there it is by virtue of, in the power of, the blood of thy
"covenant, i.e., of that blood which was the seal of the covenant
" entered into with thee." See Kimchi's Commentary on Zechariah,
transl. by the late Dr. M'Caul, in loc.
Verse 22. — But I entreat you, brethren, bear with the
word of exhortation, for I have written to you in a brief
form (Sid fSpaxecov eireerretXa,1 i.e., concisely, considering
the importance and gravity of the subjects treated of).
1 Ata jipaxeav k.t.X. " Ita Polybius, p. 71, Aid jipaxeav Kal Ke(paXai-
"aSas." Wolfius, in loc. — Ewald (Das Sendschr. a.d. Hebr., p. 152)
says : — " Er bittet die Leser das hier ihnen vorgelegte Wort der Ermahn-
" ung zu ertragen, es nur nicht tibel zu nehmen, und sogleich wieder
" von sich zu weisen ; habe er ihnen doch hier nur in der Kiirze ge-
"sbhrieben, den ungemein reichen und schweren Inhalt so kurz als
" moglich zusammengedrangt ; und kb'nne demnach umsomehr hoffen
" das sie das Sendschreiben nicht sofort von sich weisen." There is
much in this graceful entreaty to remind one of the admirable tact
and delicate courtesy exhibited in St. Paul's Epistle to Philemon, on
behalf of Onesimus the runaway slave, whom he sends back to his
master, with a plea for forbearance and Christian indulgence. See
especially verses 8 — 10 : — Aid iroXXrjv iv Xpiara irapprjalav exav iirirdaaeiv
aoi rb dvrjKov' Sid ttjv dydirrjv paXXov irapaKaXa, toiovtos av as IlaDXos
irpeaf3vTrjs, vvvl Se Kal Seapios 'Iqaov Xpiarov. IlapaKaXa ae irepl tov ipov
reKvov, bv iyivvrjaa iv rdls Seapdis poi, 'Ovrjaipov. Comp. also Rom. xii. 1,
1 Cor. xvi. 15, 2 Cor. ii. 8, x. 1. Autos Se iya IlavXos TrapaKaXS vpas
8ta ttjs irpadrnTos ko.1 imeiKelas rov Xpiarov. Eph. iv. 1 ; Phil. iv. 2.
Verse 23. — Know ye that our brother Timothy ' has been
set at liberty, with whom, if he come quickly, I will see
you. 3 A

362 CHAP. XIII., 23—25.
1 TivaaKere rbv aSeXrpbv TipdBeov diroXeXvpevov K.T.X. J. C. Wolfius
writes, " i.e., a vinculis liberatum. Millius quidem in Prolegom., § 69,
" Timotheum potius ad certa quasdam negotia dimissum dicit, unde sit
"rediturus. Id vero putem contrariari receptee verbi signifieationi,
" quse in Actis Apostolicis frequens est. Vide Act. iii. 13, iv. 21, 23, &c."
Ewald (Das Sendschr a.d. Hebr., p. 49) takes the same view as Wolfius,
and translates, " Seiet benachrichtigt dass unser Bruder Timotheus frei
" ist, mit welchem ich, wann er bald genug kommt, euch sehen werde."
On p. 152, ibid., he says, " Wo er gefangen gesezt war, wussten die
" Leser." Ewald's theory (ibid., p. 6) is, that the Epistle was written
to the Hebrew community at Bavenna (!), that Timothy had been
imprisoned at Jerusalem, and that the Writer was waitingfor Timothy,
to join him at Csesarea, where he would take ship, and proceed on his
proposed visit to Ravenna. Ewald's suggestion has at least the recom
mendation of novelty. He pitches upon Ravenna on account of ita
easy access to Palestine : — " Wir konnen also etwa an'Ravenna denken,
" von wo damals der haufigste und schnellste Verkehr mit Palastina
" stattfand." Ibid., p. 6. Stuart, on the other hand, translates, " Know
" ye that our brother Timothy is sent away." Alford renders diroXeXv-
pivov by dismissed, and observes that " diroXveiv does not occur in St.
" Paul, but is frequent in St. Luke." Perhaps the more correct form
of putting the case would be, " St. Paul has no occasion to use the word
diroXveiv in his acknowledged epistles." If such occasion had arisen, he
doubtless would have used it. Where Timothy was really imprisoned,
there are absolutely no data for determining. Much that has been
written upon the subject is mere futile conjecture. That he was nearer
to the Writer of the Epistle than to those to whom it was addressed is
exceedingly probable ; but to attempt to fix upon any particular locality,
and to argue from such premises, is simply guesswork.
Verses 24, 25. — Salute all your rulers, and all the saints.
They of Italy salute you.1 Grace be with you all.2 Amen.
1 Ol dirb tj}s 'IraXlas. A vast amount of scientific nonsense has been
written about these words. J. C. Wolfius, with sagacious brevity,
observes, "i.e., Itali. Ita Herodotus : ol dirb neXoirowijaov pro ol
" rieXon-oi/jojo-ioi.. Conf. Raphelii Herodoteas ad h.l. et Polybianas ad
" Matt. xv. 1." A glance at the concordance will show that dwb is
constantly used, with the substantive, in the Greek Testament, instead
of an appellative adjective derived from the name of a place, e.g.,
Matt, xxvii. 57, "A rich man of (dirb) Arimathea," Mark xv. 43,
" Joseph of (dirb) Arimathea," John i. 44 (45), " Philip was of (dirb)

CHAP. XIII., 24, 25. 363
" Bethsaida," ibid., 45 (46), " Jesus of (dirb) Nazareth," John xi. 1,
" Lazarus of (dirb) Bethany," xix. 38, " Joseph of (dirb) Arimathea,"
xxi. 2, " Nathanael of (dirb) Cana," Acts vi. 9, Kvprjvalav ko.1 'AXegav-
Speav, ko.1 r£v dirb KiXiKias Kal Aaias, x.38, "God anointed Jesus of
" (dirb) Nazareth." But a very decisive example is found in Acts
xvii. 13, " But when the Jews of Thessalonica (a>s Se eyvaaav ol drrb ttjs
" ©eo-o-aXoviKjis Iou8aioi) had knowledge that the word of God was
" preached of Paul at Berea, they came thither also (i.e., from Thessa-
" lonica to Berea), and stirred up the people." I take it, however, that
under the term ol dirb rrjs 'IraXlas were included the brethren who did
not reside at Borne (see Acts xxviii. 13, 14, Sevrepaioi rjXBopev els
HotioXous. 05 evpdvres dSeXepovs irapeKXrjBijpev iir' abrois iiripelvat rjpepas
eirrd k.t.X.), but, yet being on terms of friendly intercourse with St.
Paul, were for brevity's sake designated, with the resident believers
at Rome, under the general term ol dirb rrjs 'IraXlas, i.e., as Wolfius
says, the Italians.
2 'H x°Pls ^e™ irdvrav vpav. There is nothing un-Pauline in this
formula. It is expressed with even greater brevity in Coloss. iv. 18,
r) x&Pts P-e& vpav, and also in 2 Tim. iv. 22. The identical words of
Heb. xiii. 25 are found in Titus iii. 15.

The Subscription. — "Written to the Hebrews from Italy
by Timothy.1
1 Upbs 'E/3pa/ojjs iypdqbv dirb rrjs' IraXlas SiaTipo&eov. Professor Stuart
says, — " Like most of the other subscriptions to the Epistles, it is of no
" authority. It is demonstrably erroneous here ; for how could Timothy
" write this Epistle when the author says, at its very close, that Timothy
" was then absent ? The author of this subscription, one is tempted
"to think, had either read the Epistle with very little care or with
" very little understanding of its contents." Without presuming to
defend the authenticity of the subscription, I would venture to suggest
that Timothy may have been the amanuensis of the greater portion of
the Epistle, and yet have been prevented from finishing his task. The
book of Deuteronomy contains in its last chapter an account of the
death of Moses, and yet, in common with other credulous folks, I
cannot divest myself of the antiquated notion (be it remembered, on
the authority of the New Testament, Acts iii. 22, vii. 37) that Moses
was the author of the book. It is not absolutely necessary to restrict the

364 CHAP. XIII., 24, 25.
meaning of iypdcprj to the actual manual labour of writing. It may
signify was dispatched. If the Epistle was written by St. Paul at
Rome, it is within the bounds of possibility, that after all, Timothy
may have been the bearer of the missive after his release. To my
mind, it is always dangerous to speak, with certain assurance, either
for or against any statement whatever, where there are absolutely no
positive data to argue from. J. C. Wolfius writes with a more judicious
cautiousness than Stuart : — " Subscriptionem hanc ab Apostolo non
" esse profectam, multa sunt, quae persuadeant. Primo enim a multis
" Codd. abest ; deinde in aliis varie effertur," &c.

Having thus been permitted to see the completion
of my task, the accomplishment of which has be
guiled many an hour, in sickness and in health,
I desire to express my great obligations to the
numerous subscribers who have encouraged me to
persevere in my efforts to accomplish it. May the
Great Master of the Church condescend to look
favourably upon my endeavour to elucidate this
portion of his Holy "Word, accepting the sincerity
of the attempt, pardoning its infirmity, and over
ruling its errors. Amen !

C. A. Macintosh, Printer, Great New-street, London.

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