1. HEBREWS 3 COMME TARY Edited by Glenn Pease PREFACE I have compiled the teachings of older and newer commentators and preachers. Sometimes I quote entire sermons that deal with the whole contexts of the verses. They do not all agree in their interpretation, and so the reader has to discern the value of different perspectives. I think that each perspective has value, and if we recognize the value of paradox, we can accept opposite views as being a part of the whole. If any I quote do not want their wisdom and insights shared in this way, they can let me know, and I will remove their quotes. My e-mail is glenn_p86@yahoo.com I TRODUCTIO 1. Review: Remember that the epistle of Hebrews was written to Hebrew Christians that were in danger of falling back into trusting Judaism to save them. Some of them were trusting in the prophets, but Jesus is greater than the prophets. Some were looking to angels, but Jesus is higher than the angels. Some were looking to Moses, and as chapter three will unfold, the author will compare Jesus with Moses. 2. It is one of the great themes of American history that all men are created equal. We have seen that all words are not equal, even if they are Gods words. All creatures are not equal for Christ is superior to angels. And now we see that not all leaders are equal. If I say Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, which is most famous and the greatest hero of Israels history? It is Abraham who is first, and then Jacob, and Isaac is third. If I say Moses and Aaron, which is greatest? If I list all the kings from Saul to Solomon, we see David as among the greatest. The point is, there are clear categories of superiority even on the level of men. When we add the Son of God it is obvious that He will take the place of supremacy. A back to the Bible movement among the Jews meant back to Moses. He wrote their Bible. You cant get any more important than that. He was the one man by whom God revealed himself, and he was the greatest lawgiver in history. Moses was the only leader of Israel who did what he did. He led them out of Egypt and saved them many times, he saw more miracles than anyone. He had face to face conversations with God so that his face shined with brilliance. He carried a heavier burden than any leader we know of in Israels history. It is no wonder Jewish Christians were tempted to return to Moses and his law. In the Old Testament the number one problem was that Gods people did not believe God. He sent His prophets and they told them to get lost, and they rejected Gods Word to them. What is your reaction to somebody who will not believe you? Gods reaction to unbelief was anger. Why do we as parents get angry at our kids? It is because they will not listen and do what is best for them and all concerned. Disobedient children are the biggest pain in the world, and if you dont believe it, ask God. It is a day of much child abuse, and also a day of neglect of discipline. The Christian is caught in a bind. If you spank your kids you can hurt them and get reported by a

2. teacher or some other authority. But if you let them go undisciplined they become rebels and not submissive to authority. We need to experience pain without scars, so that there is suffering without injury. God said to Israel, you dont get to go where you want to go-the Promised Land. He deprived them of a desire, and this is a good idea for that can hurt longer and be more painful than a physical hurt. The question is, are these true Christians who are in danger of unbelief? Look at the names he calls them. In verse 1 they are called holy brothers. I looked up every use of this word hagios in the ew Testament, and it is always used of positive holy people, angels, places, saints, Holy Spirit, and things. If these people are not true saints, this is the only use of the word in 161 places that is not positive. They also share in the heavenly calling, and this is not true of non-believers. All of the terms point clearly to these being believers. ew Testament saints are able to be just as hardened as Old Testament saints. Calvinist and Arminians go round and round on this issue, but I believe both are right. How can Christians be once saved always saved, and still be a rebel out of Gods will and under His wrath? The Old Testament people were condemned to die in the desert, and they lost their chance to enter the Promised Land, but there is no basis for believing they will not be a part of the eternal kingdom. Moses did not get in either but he will be heaven. Christians who apostasize are Christians who are lost in the sense that they perish in judgment and lose abundant life, rewards and gifts, but still will be a part of the eternal kingdom. Judgment and hell are not the same. They lose time but not eternity. In I Cor. 5:5 we see one who is turned over the Satan for judgment, and yet they are still saved. 3. Author unknown, The Context and Superiority of Christ. Chapter 3 opens with a comparison of Christ and Moses as leaders. Moses is praised for his role as a servant (Heb. 5:5), but Christ is praised because He is the Son (Heb. 5:6). Chapters 4 and 5 discuss the future inheritance rest that Christ will bring to those who persevere. The Sin and Possible Problem. The author warns the Hebrews of the hardness of heart that comes from the deceitfulness of sin (Heb. 3:12-13) and of not listening the Christ (Heb. 3:7-8), their leader. The Warning and Consequences. The consequences of hardness is being denied the opportunity to be a partaker of Christ (Heb. 2:14) and of not entering the inheritance rest (Heb. 4:6, 11). The Exhortation and Encouragement. The Hebrews are encouraged to "hold fast" (Heb. 2:14) and to "be diligent" (Heb. 4:11) so that they will not fall and forfeit their inheritance. Old Testament Examples. In umbers 13-14, the Israelites did not trust that God would allow them to enter Canaan ( um. 13:31). Because of their hardness of heart and unbelief, God did not allow them to enter their inheritance, the land of Israel ( um. 14:22-23. Only Caleb and Joshua, because of their belief were allowed in ( um. 14:24). ew Testament Cross References. In I Cor. 9:24-27, Paul likens the Christian life to race that he trains for so he would not be "disqualified" for the prize. In II Tim. 2:11-13, Paul tells Timothy that Christ will deny rewards (which Paul discusses in 2:1-10) to anyone that denies Christ in this life. They are justified and "God will remain faithful," but they will lose reward because of their life. The term "fall away" in Gal. 5:4 is translated from a different Greek verb (Hebrews: aposteenia, Galatians: exepesate) and represents a different concept. In Galations, Paul is 3. warning against turning to legalism, which results in a believer placing himself under the law. This causes him to fall from a state of grace to living under the Law. 4. The Original Audience. The book has been labelled "Hebrews" because the audience was composed of Jewish Christians. That the audience is Jewish is obvious from the extensive Old Testament quotations (from Genesis, the Psalms, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Habakkuk) and the discussion of topics such as sacrifices, the tabernacle, the Old and ew Covenants and the faith of the Old Testament heros. That the readers are genuine believers is indicated by the use of the word "brethren" (Heb. 2:11; 3:1, 12; 10:19; 13:22) and the word "we" in several of the warnings (Heb. 2:1; 3:6, 14; 6:3; 10:26; 12:25) and of justified people (Heb. 4:15; 8:1; 10:10; 11:3; 12:20; 12:28; 13:6, 14). author unknown Jesus Greater Than Moses 1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge as our apostle and high priest. 1. Barnes, Wherefore - That is, since Christ sustains such a character as has been stated in the previous chapter; since he is so able to succour those who need assistance; since he assumed our nature that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest, his character ought to be attentively considered, and we ought to endeavor fully to understand it. Holy brethren - The name brethren is often given to Christians to denote that they are of one family. It is possible, also, that the apostle may have used the word here in a double sense - denoting that they were his brethren as Christians, and as Jews. The word holy is applied to them to denote that they were set apart to God, or that they were sanctified. The Jews were often called a holy people, as being consecrated to God; and Christians are holy, not only as consecrated to God, but as sanctified. Partakers of the heavenly calling - On the meaning of the word calling, see the notes at Eph_4:1. The heavenly calling denotes the calling which was given to them from heaven, or which was of a heavenly nature. It pertained to heaven, not to earth; it came from heaven, not from earth; it was a calling to the reward and happiness of heaven, and not to the pleasures and honors of the world. Consider - Attentively ponder all that is said of the Messiah. Think of his rank; his dignity; his holiness; his sufferings; his death; his resurrection, ascension, intercession. Think of him that you may see the claims to a holy life; that you may learn to bear trials; that you may be kept from apostasy. The character and work of the Son of God are worthy of the profound and prayerful consideration of every man; and especially every Christian should reflect much on him. Of the friend that we love we think much; but what friend have we like the Lord Jesus? 4. The apostle - The word apostle is nowhere else applied to the Lord Jesus. The word means one who is sent - and in this sense it might be applied to the Redeemer as one sent by God, or as by way of eminence the one sent by him. But the connection seems to demand that; there should be some allusion here to one who sustained a similar rank among the Jews; and it is probable that the allusion is to Moses, as having been the great apostle of God to the Jewish people, and that Paul here means to say, that the Lord Jesus, under the new dispensation, filled the place of Moses and of the high priest under the old, and that the office of apostle and high priest, instead of being now separated, as it was between Moses and Aaron under the old dispensation, was now blended in the Messiah. The name apostle is not indeed given to Moses directly in the Old Testament, but the verb from which the Hebrew word for apostle is derived is frequently given him. Thus, in Exo_3:10, it is said, Come now, therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh. And in Heb_3:13, The God of your fathers hath sent me unto you. So also in Heb_3:14-15, of the same chapter. From the word there used - shaalach - to send. The word denoting apostle - shaliyach - is derived; and it is not improbable that Moses would be regarded as being by way of eminence the one sent by God. Further, the Jews applied the word - shaliyach - apostle, to the minister of the synagogue; to him who presided over its affairs, and who had the general charge of the services there; and in this sense it might be applied by way of eminence to Moses as being the general director and controller of the religious affairs of the nation, and as sent for that purpose. The object of Paul is to show that the Lord Jesus in the Christian system - as the great apostle sent from God - sustained a rank and office similar to this, but superior in dignity and authority. And High Priest - One great object of this Epistle is to compare the Lord Jesus with the high priest of the Jews, and to show that he was in all respects superior. This was important, because the office of high priest was what eminently distinguished the Jewish religion, and because the Christian religion proposed to abolish that. It became necessary, therefore, to show that all that was dignified and valuable in that office was to be found in the Christian system. This was done by showing that in the Lord Jesus was found all the characteristics of a high priest, and that all the functions which had been performed in the Jewish ritual were performed by him, and that all which had been prefigured by the Jewish high priest was fulfilled in him. The apostle here merely alludes to him, or names him as the high priest, and then postpones the consideration of his character in that respect until after he had compared him with Moses. Of our profession - Of our religion; of that religion which we profess. The apostle and high priest whom we confessed as ours when we embraced the Christian religion. 2. Clarke, Holy brethren - Persons consecrated to God, as the word literally implies, and called, in consequence, to be holy in heart, holy in life, and useful in the world. The Israelites are often called a holy people, saints, etc., because consecrated to God, and because they were bound by their profession to be holy; and yet these appellations are given to them in numberless instances where they were very unholy. The not attending to this circumstance, and the not discerning between actual positive holiness, and the call to it, as the consecration of the persons, has led many commentators and preachers into destructive mistakes. Antinomianism has had its origin here: and as it was found that many persons were called saints, who, in many respects, were miserable sinners, hence it has been inferred that they were called saints in reference to a holiness which they had in another; and hence the Antinomian imputation of Christs righteousness to unholy believers, whose hearts were abominable before God, and whose lives were a scandal to the Gospel. Let, therefore, a due distinction be made between persons by their profession holy, i.e. consecrated to God; and persons who are faithful to that profession, and are both inwardly and 5. outwardly holy. They are not all Israel who are of Israel: a man, by a literal circumcision, may be a Jew outwardly; but the circumcision of the heart by the Spirit makes a man a Jew inwardly. A man may be a Christian in profession, and not such in heart; and those who pretend that, although they are unholy in themselves, they are reputed holy in Christ, because his righteousness is imputed to them, most awfully deceive their own souls. Dr. Owen has spoken well on the necessity of personal holiness against the Antinomians of his day. If a man be not made holy he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. It is this that makes them meet for the inheritance of the saints in light; as without it they are not meet for their duty, so are they not capable of their reward. Yea, heaven itself, in the true light and notion of it, is undesirable to an unsanctified person. Such a one neither can nor would enjoy God if he might. In a word, there is no one thing required of the sons of God that an unsanctified person can do, and no one thing promised unto them that he can enjoy. There is surely then a woful mistake in the world. If Christ sanctify all whom he saves, many will appear to have been mistaken in their expectations at another day. It is grown amongst us almost an abhorrency to all flesh to say, the Church of God is to be holy. What! though God has promised that it should be so; that Christ has undertaken to make it so? What! if it be required to be so? What! if all the duties of it be rejected of God, if it be not so? It is all one, if men be baptized, whether they will or not, and outwardly profess the name of Christ, though not one of them be truly sanctified, yet they are, it is said, the Church of Christ. Why then let them be so; but what are they the better for it? Are their persons or their services therefore accepted with God? Are they related or united to Christ? Are they under his conduct unto glory? Are they meet for the inheritance of the saints in light? ot at all: not all nor any of these things do they obtain thereby. What is it then that they get by the furious contest which they make for the reputation of this privilege? Only this: that, satisfying their minds by it, resting if not priding themselves in it, they obtain many advantages to stifle all convictions of their condition, and so perish unavoidably. A sad success, and for ever to be bewailed! Yet is there nothing at all at this day more contended for in this world than that Christ might be thought to be a captain of salvation to them, unto whom he is not a sanctifier; that he may have an unholy Church, a dead body. These things tend neither to the glory of Christ, nor to the good of the souls of men. Let none then deceive themselves; sanctification is a qualification indispensably necessary to them who will be under the conduct of the Lord Christ unto salvation; he leads none to heaven but whom he sanctifies on earth. The holy God will not receive unholy persons. This living head will not admit of dead members, nor bring men into possession of a glory which they neither love nor like. Heavenly calling - The Israelites had an earthly calling; they were called out of Egypt to go into the promised land: Christians have a heavenly calling; they are invited to leave the bondage of sin, and go to the kingdom of God. These were made partakers of this calling; they had already embraced the Gospel, and were brought into a state of salvation. Apostle and High Priest of our profession - Among the Jews the high priest was considered to be also the apostle of God; and it is in conformity to this notion that the apostle speaks. And he exhorts the Hebrews to consider Jesus Christ to be both their High Priest and Apostle; and to expect these offices to be henceforth fulfilled by him, and by him alone. This was the fullest intimation that the Mosaic economy was at an end, and the priesthood changed. By , our profession, or that confession of ours, the apostle undoubtedly means the Christian religion. Jesus was the Apostle of the Father, and has given to mankind the new covenant; and we are to consider the whole system of Christianity as coming immediately from him. Every system of religion must have a priest and a prophet; the one to declare the will of God, the other to minister in holy things. Moses was the apostle under the old testament, and Aaron the priest. When Moses was removed, the prophets succeeded him; and the sons of Aaron 6. were the priests after the death of their father. This system is now annulled; and Jesus is the Prophet who declares the Fathers will, and he is the Priest who ministers in the things pertaining to God, see Heb_2:17; as he makes atonement for the sins of the people, and is the Mediator between God and man. 3. Gill, Wherefore, holy brethren,.... The apostle calls the Hebrews "brethren", not because they were of the same natural stock and lineage, but because they were in the same spiritual relation; they all had the same Father, belonged to the same family, were the adopted sons of God, the brethren of Christ, of one another, and of the apostle; and they were "holy", not by birth, nor by their external separation from other nations, but through sanctification of the Spirit; and they were so by profession, and in the opinion of the apostle: partakers of the heavenly calling; by which is meant not any business, or employment of life; nor a call to any office in church or state; nor a mere external call by the ministry of the word; but an internal special call of grace, to the enjoyment of the blessings of grace here, and to glory hereafter; and which is not according, to works, but according to the grace of God, and is by powerful, efficacious, and irresistible grace: and this is said to be "heavenly", because the grace by which the saints are called is from heaven, and it is to heaven they are called; and the means of their calling, the Gospel, is from heaven; and this epistle epithet is used to show the excellency of their calling, and to distinguish it from all others: and this the Hebrews are said to be "partakers of"; which shows, that God had not utterly cast off that people, and yet that they were not the only persons that enjoyed the grace of the effectual calling, they were but partners with others; and that the saints are alike sharers in this blessing, they are called in one hope of their calling; and it denotes the truth and reality of it: the duty they are exhorted to is, to consider the apostle and high priest of our profession, Christ Jesus; the Alexandrian copy, the Vulgate Latin and Ethiopic versions, read, only "Jesus"; who is called "the apostle", because he was sent of God to preach the Gospel, work miracles, and do the will of God, particularly to obtain redemption and salvation for his people, which mission does not suppose any inequality of persons, or change of place, or any compulsion or disrespect to Christ, but love to men; and is to be understood of him as in office as Mediator, and shows his authority, and that he was no impostor. The high priest among the Jews was, on the day of atonement, considered as , "an apostle", or "messenger" (s); for so the elders of the sanhedrim address him on that day, saying, "Lord high priest, we are the messengers of the sanhedrim, and thou art , "our apostle", or "messenger", and the messenger of the sanhedrim.'' And it follows here, and "the high priest of our profession"; which may be understood either objectively, whom they professed, both by words or deeds; for a profession of him should be public, visible, and sincere; or efficiently, he being the author, sum, and substance of the religion, faith, and Gospel which was professed by them: and he is to be "considered" in the greatness and dignity of his person, as the Son of God; and in his wondrous grace and love in assuming human nature, and dying for his people; and in the relations he stands in to them as a Father, husband, brother, friend; and in his several offices, as Mediator, and particularly as sent of God, to be the Saviour of sinners; and as the high priest, who has offered himself a sacrifice, and ever lives to make intercession; and all this to encourage the saints to hold fast their profession of him. 7. 4. Henry, In these verses we have the application of the doctrine laid down in the close of the last chapter concerning the priesthood of our Lord Jesus Christ. And observe, I. In how fervent and affectionate a manner the apostle exhorts Christians to have this high priest much in their thoughts, and to make him the object of their close and serious consideration; and surely no one in earth or heaven deserves our consideration more than he. That this exhortation might be made the more effectual, observe, 1. The honourable compellation used towards those to whom he wrote: Holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling. (1.) Brethren, not only my brethren, but the brethren of Christ, and in him brethren to all the saints. All the people of God are brethren, and should love and live like brethren. (2.) Holy brethren; holy not only in profession and title, but in principle and practice, in heart and life. This has been turned by some into scorn: These, say they, are the holy brethren; but it is dangerous jesting with such edge-tools; be not mockers, lest your bands be made strong. Let those that are thus despised and scorned labour to be holy brethren indeed, and approve themselves so to God; and they need not be ashamed of the title nor dread the scoffs of the profane. The day is coming when those that make this a term of reproach would count it their greatest honour and happiness to be taken into this sacred brotherhood. (3.) Partakers of the heavenly calling - partakers of the means of grace, and of the Spirit of grace, that came from heaven, and by which Christians are effectually called out of darkness into marvelous light, that calling which brings down heaven into the souls of men, raises them up to a heavenly temper and conversation, and prepares them to live for ever with God in heaven. 2. The titles he gives to Christ, whom he would have them consider, (1.) As the apostle of our profession, the prime-minister of the gospel church, a messenger and a principal messenger sent of God to men, upon the most important errand, the great revealer of that faith which we profess to hold and of that hope which we profess to have. (2.) ot only the apostle, but the high priest too, of our profession, the chief officer of the Old Testament as well as the ew, the head of the church in every state, and under each dispensation, upon whose satisfaction and intercession we profess to depend for pardon of sin, and acceptance with God. (3.) As Christ, the Messiah, anointed and every way qualified for the office both of apostle and high priest. (4.) As Jesus, our Saviour, our healer, the great physician of souls, typified by the brazen serpent that Moses lifted up in the wilderness, that those who were stung by the fiery serpents might look to him, and be saved. II. We have the duty we owe to him who bears all these high and honourable titles, and that is to consider him as thus characterized. Consider what he is in himself, what he is to us, and what he will be to us hereafter and for ever; consider him, fix your thoughts upon him with the greatest attention, and act towards him accordingly; look unto Jesus, the author and finisher of your faith. Here observe, 1. Many that profess faith in Christ have not a due consideration for him; he is not so much thought of as he deserves to be, and desires to be, by those that expect salvation from him. 2. Close and serious consideration of Christ would be of great advantage to us to increase our acquaintance with him, and to engage our love and our obedience to him, and reliance on him. 3. Even those that are holy brethren, and partakers of the heavenly calling, have need to stir up one another to think more of Christ than they do, to have him more in their minds; the best of his people think too seldom and too slightly of him. 4. We must consider Christ as he is described to us in the scriptures, and form our apprehensions of him thence, not from any vain conceptions and fancies of our own. 5. Jamison, Heb_3:1-19. The Son of God greater than Moses, wherefore unbelief towards Him will incur a heavier punishment than befell unbelieving Israel in the wilderness. As Moses especially was the prophet by whom God in times past spake to the fathers, being 8. the mediator of the law, Paul deems it necessary now to show that, great as was Moses, the Son of God is greater. Ebrard in Alford remarks, The angel of the covenant came in the name of God before Israel; Moses in the name of Israel before God; whereas the high priest came both in the name of God (bearing the name Jehovah on his forehead) before Israel, and in the name of Israel (bearing the names of the twelve tribes on his breast) before God (Exo_28:9-29, Exo_28:36, Exo_28:38). ow Christ is above the angels, according to the first and second chapters because (1) as Son of God He is higher; and (2) because manhood, though originally lower than angels, is in Him exalted above them to the lordship of the world to come, inasmuch as He is at once Messenger of God to men, and also atoning Priest-Representative of men before God (Heb_2:17, Heb_2:18). Parallel with this line of argument as to His superiority to angels (Heb_1:4) runs that which here follows as to His superiority to Moses (Heb_3:3): (1) because as Son over the house; He is above the servant in the house (Heb_3:5, Heb_3:6), just as the angels were shown to be but ministering (serving) spirits (Heb_1:14), whereas He is the Son (Heb_3:7, Heb_3:8); (2) because the bringing of Israel into the promised rest, which was not finished by Moses, is accomplished by Him (Heb_4:1-11), through His being not merely a leader and lawgiver as Moses, but also a propitiatory High Priest (Heb_4:14; Heb_5:10). Wherefore Greek, Whence, that is, seeing we have such a sympathizing Helper you ought to consider attentively, contemplate; fix your eyes and mind on Him with a view to profiting by the contemplation (Heb_12:2). The Greek word is often used by Luke, Pauls companion (Luk_12:24, Luk_12:27). brethren in Christ, the common bond of union. partakers of the Holy Ghost. heavenly calling coming to us from heaven, and leading us to heaven whence it comes. Phi_3:14, the high calling; Greek the calling above, that is, heavenly. the Apostle and High Priest of our profession There is but one Greek article to both nouns, Him who is at once Apostle and High Priest - Apostle, as Ambassador (a higher designation than angel-messenger) sent by the Father (Joh_20:21), pleading the cause of God with us; High Priest, as pleading our cause with God. Both His Apostleship and High Priesthood are comprehended in the one title, Mediator [Bengel]. Though the title Apostle is nowhere else applied to Christ, it is appropriate here in addressing Hebrews, who used the term of the delegates sent by the high priest to collect the temple tribute from Jews resident in foreign countries, even as Christ was Delegate of the Father to this world far off from Him (Mat_21:37). Hence as what applies to Him, applies also to His people, the Twelve are designated His apostles, even as He is the Fathers (Joh_20:21). It was desirable to avoid designating Him here angel, in order to distinguish His nature from that of angels mentioned before, though he is the Angel of the Covenant. The legate of the Church (Sheliach Tsibbur) offered up the prayers in the synagogue in the name of all, and for all. So Jesus, the Apostle of our profession, is delegated to intercede for the Church before the Father. The words of our profession, mark that it is not of the legal ritual, but of our Christian faith, that He is the High Priest. Paul compares Him as an Apostle to Moses; as High Priest to Aaron. He alone holds both offices combined, and in a more eminent degree than either, which those two brothers held apart. profession confession, corresponds to God having spoken to us by His Son, sent as Apostle and High Priest. What God proclaims we confess. 6. William Barclay 1-6, Brothers who are dedicated to God, you who are sharers in heaven's calling, because of all this you must fix your attention on him whom our creed holds to be the apostle and the high priest of God, I mean Jesus, for he was faithful to him who appointed him, 9. just as Moses was in all his house, For he was deemed worthy of more honour than Moses, in so far as the man who builds and equips the house has more honour than the house itself For every house is built and equipped by someone; but it is God who builds and equips all things. Moses was faithful in all his house, but his role was the role of a servant, and his purpose was to bear witness to the things which some day would be spoken. But Christ is over his house because he is a Son. We are his house if only we keep strong the confidence and pride of our hope to the end. Let us remember the conviction with which the writer to the Hebrews starts. The basis of his thought is that the supreme revelation of God comes through Jesus Christ and that only through him has a man real access to God. He began by proving that Jesus was superior to the prophets; he went on to prove that Jesus was superior to the angels; and now he proceeds to prove that Jesus is superior to Moses. It might at first sight seem that this is an anticlimax. But it was not so for a Jew. For him Moses held a place which was utterly unique. He was the man with whom God had spoken face to face as a man speaks with his friend. He was the direct recipient of the Ten Commandments, the very Law of God. The greatest thing in all the world for the Jew was the Law, and Moses and the Law were one and the same thing. In the second century a Jewish teacher called Rabbi Jose ben Chalafta, commenting on this very passage which declared that Moses was faithful in all his house, said: "God calls Moses faithful in all his house, and thereby he ranked him higher than the ministering angels themselves." For a Jew the step that the writer to the Hebrews takes is the logical and inevitable step in the argument. He has proved that Jesus is greater than the angels; now he must prove that he is greater than Moses who was greater than the angels. In fact this quotation which is used to tell of the greatness of Moses is proof of the unique position which the Jews assigned to him. "Moses was faithful in all his house." The quotation is from um.12:6-7. ow the point of the argument in umbers is that Moses differs from all the prophets. To them God makes himself known in a vision; to Moses he speaks "mouth to mouth." To the Jew it would have been impossible to conceive that anyone ever stood closer to God than Moses did, and yet that is precisely what the writer of the Hebrews sets out to prove. He bids his hearers fix their attention on Jesus. The word he uses (katanoein, GS 2657) is suggestive. It does not mean simply to look at or to notice a thing. Anyone can look at a thing or even notice it without really seeing it. The word means to fix the attention on something in such a way that its inner meaning, the lesson that it is designed to teach, may be learned. In Lk.12:24 Jesus uses the same word when he says: "Consider the ravens." He does not merely mean, "Look at the ravens." He means, "Look at the ravens and understand and learn the lesson that God is seeking to teach you through them." If we are ever to learn Christian truth, a detached glance is never enough; there must be a concentrated gaze in which we gird up the loins of the mind in a determined effort to see its meaning for us. In a sense the reason for that is implicit when the writer addresses his friends as sharers in heaven's calling. The call that comes to a Christian has a double direction. It is a calling from heaven and it is a calling to heaven. It is a voice which comes.from God and calls us to God. It is a call which demands concentrated attention because of both its origin and its destination. A man cannot afford to give a disinterested glance to an invitation to God from God. When we do fix our attention on Jesus what do we see? We see two things. (i) We see the great apostle. o one else in the ew Testament ever calls Jesus an apostle. That the writer to the Hebrews does so deliberately is quite clear, because apostle is a title he never gives to any man. He keeps it for Christ. What does he mean when he so uses it? The word apostolos (GS 0652) literally means one who is 10. sent,forth. In Jewish terminology it was used to describe the envoys of the Sanhedrin, the supreme court of the Jews. The Sanhedrin sent out apostoloi (GS 0652) who were clothed with its authority and the bearers of its commands. In the Greek world it frequently meant ambassador. So then Jesus is the supreme ambassador of God and an ambassador has two supremely important and relevant characteristics. (a) The ambassador is clothed with all the authority of the king who sends him. On one occasion the king of Syria, Antiochus Epiphanes, invaded Egypt. Rome desired to stop him and sent an envoy called Popillius to tell him to abandon his projected invasion. Popillius caught up with Antiochus on the borders of Egypt and they talked of this and that for they had known each other in Rome. Popillius had not the vestige of an army with him, not even a guard. Finally Antiochus asked him why he had come. Quietly Popillius told him that he had come to tell him that Rome wished him to abandon the invasion and go home. "I will consider it," said Antiochus. Popillius smiled a little grimly; he took his stall and drew a circle in the earth round Antiochus. "Consider it," he said, "and come to your decision before you leave that circle." Antiochus thought for a few seconds and then said: "Very well. I will go home." Popillius himself had not the slightest force available--but behind him was all the power of Rome. So Jesus came from God and all God's grace and mercy and love and power were in his apostolos (GS 0652). (b) The voice of the ambassador is the voice of the king or country who sent him. In a foreign land the British ambassador's voice is the voice of Britain. So Jesus came with the voice of God; in him God speaks. (ii) Jesus is the great High Priest. What does that mean? This is an idea to which the writer to the Hebrews returns again and again. Just now we only set down the fundamental basis of what he means. The Latin for a priest is pontifex, which means a bridge-builder. The priest is the person who builds a bridge between man and God. To do that he must know both man and God. He must be able to speak to God for men and to speak to men for God. Jesus is the perfect High Priest because he is perfectly man and perfectly God; He can represent man to God and God to man. He is the one person through whom man comes to God and God comes to man. Wherein then lies the superiority of Jesus over Moses? The picture in the mind of the writer to the Hebrews is this. He thinks of the world as God's house and God's family. We use the word house in a double sense. We use it in the sense of a building and also in the sense of a family. The Greeks used oikos (GS 3624) in the same double sense. The world, then, is God's house and men are God's family. But he has already shown us the picture of Jesus as the creator of God's universe. ow Moses was only part of God's universe, part of the house. But Jesus is the creator of the house and the creator is bound to stand above the house itself. Moses did not create the law; he only mediated it. Moses did not create the house; he only served in it. Moses did not speak of himself; all that he ever said was only a pointer to the greater things that Jesus Christ would some day say. Moses, in short, was the servant; but Jesus was the Son. Moses knew a little about God; Jesus was God. Therein lies the secret of his superiority. ow the writer to the Hebrews uses another picture. True, the whole world is God's house; but in a special sense the Church is God's House, for in a special sense God brought it into being. That is a picture the ew Testament loves (compare 1Pet.4:17; 1Tim.3:15, and especially 1Pet.2:5). That building of the Church will stand indestructible only when every stone is firm; that is to say, when its every member is strong in the proud and confident hope he has in Jesus Christ. Each one of us is like a stone in the Church; if one stone is weak the whole edifice is endangered. The Church stands firm only when each living stone in it is rooted and grounded in faith in Jesus Christ. 11. 7. In the eleventh century, King Henry III of Bavaria grew tired of court life and the pressures of being a monarch. He made application to Prior Richard at a local monastery, asking to be accepted as a contemplative and spend the rest of his life in the monastery. "Your Majesty," said Prior Richard, "do you understand that the pledge here is one of obedience? That will be hard because you have been a king." "I understand," said Henry. "The rest of my life I will be obedient to you, as Christ leads you." "Then I will tell you what to do," said Prior Richard. "Go back to your throne and serve faithfully in the place where God has put you." When King Henry died, a statement was written: "The King learned to rule by being obedient." When we tire of our roles and responsibilities, it helps to remember God has planted us in a certain place and told us to be a good accountant or teacher or mother or father. Christ expects us to be faithful where he puts us, and when he returns, we'll rule together with him. - Steve Brown, Key Biscayne, Florida 8. What we are called from and called to: I. Called from labor to rest (Matt. 11:28) II. Called from death to life (1 John 3:14) III. Called from bondage to liberty (Gal 5:13) IV. Called out of darkness into light (1 Pet. 2:9) V. Called from bondage to peace (1 Cor. 7:15 VI. Called to the fellowship of His Son (1 Cor. 1:9) What we are made by obeying the call: I. We are made sons of God (John 1:12) II. We are made the children of God (Gal. 3:26) III. We are made the servants of God (Matt. 25:21) IV. We are made God's saints (Col. 1:1) V. We are made God's witnesses (I Thess. 2:10) VI. We are made workers together with God (2 Cor. 6:1) VII. We are called to a high calling (Phil. 3:14) VIII. We are called to a holy calling (2 Tim. 1:9) IX. We are called to a heavenly calling (Heb. 3:1) Pulpit Helps, August, 1992, Page 11 9. Calvin, Wherefore, holy brethren, etc. He concludes the preceding doctrine with a necessary exhortation, that the Jews should attentively consider what sort of being and how great Christ is. As he had before, by naming him a teacher and a priest, briefly compared him with Moses and Aaron, so he now includes both clauses; for he adorns him with two titles, as he sustains a twofold character in the Church of God. Moses was a prophet and a teacher, and Aaron was a priest; but the two offices belong to Christ. If then we seek rightly to know him, we must inquire what sort of being he is; yea, he must be clothed with his own power, lest we lay hold on an empty shadow and not on him. [53] First, the word consider, is important, for it intimates that singular attention is required, as he cannot be disregarded with impunity, and that at the same time the true knowledge of Christ is sufficient to dissipate the darkness of all errors. And to encourage them the more to pursue this study, he reminds them of their calling; as though he had 12. said, "God favored you with no common grace when He called you into his kingdom; [54] it now remains that you have your eyes fixed on Christ as your leader in the way." [55] For the calling of the godly cannot be otherwise confirmed than by a thorough surrender of themselves to Christ. We ought not therefore to regard this as said only to the Jews, but that it is a general truth addressed to all who desire to come into the kingdom of God; they ought sedulously to attend to Christ, for he is the sole instructor of our faith, and has confirmed it by the sacrifice of himself; for confession, or profession, is to be taken here for faith, as thought he had said, that the faith we profess is vain and of no avail, unless Christ be its object. 10. Calvin's editor adds, This is the only place in which Christ is called an Apostle, the design no doubt was to institute a comparison between him and Moses, who is often said to have been sent by God, as Christ is said to have been sent by the Father: they might both therefore be rightly called Apostles, i.e., messengers sent by God. And then he adds, high priest, that he might afterwards make a comparison between him and Aaron. He had before exalted Christ as a teacher above all the prophets, including no doubt Moses among the rest; but here refers to Moses as the leader of the people, as one sent especially by God to conduct them from Egypt through the wilderness to the land of Canaan. But as our call is from heaven and to heaven, Christ is sent as a messenger to lead us to the heavenly country. We hence see that in this connection the "heavenly calling" is to be taken most suitably as a call to heaven. 11. They are also "partakers of a heavenly calling." All Christians are spiritually united (cf. I Cor. 6:17) with the living Lord Jesus, and are "partakers of Christ" (Heb. 3:14), "partakers of the Holy Spirit" (Heb. 6:4), and "partakers of the divine nature" (II Pet. 1:4). To be "partakers of a heavenly calling" does not mean that Christians are just "anticipators of a future calling to go to heaven," but implies that Christians participate presently in the heavenly realities that are "in Christ Jesus." Christians are "seated with Christ in the heavenlies" (Eph. 2;6), participating in the "heavenly things" (9:23), the "heavenly gift" (6:4) of Christ Himself in the realized "heavenly Jerusalem" (12:22) of the better "heavenly country" (11:16) of which they are "citizens" (Phil. 3:20). This "heavenly calling" gives Christians the privileged access (10:19) to enjoy God's presence, peace and rest presently, despite the turmoil of their surroundings. The Christians in Jerusalem were being pressured to align themselves with an "earthly calling," a cause celebre to join the Palestinian revolt against Rome, which was not destined to bring peace and rest, but destruction and death. unknown author 12. S. L. Johnson, ow before we consider this matter, I want you to notice what he calls us: "Wherefore, holy brethren." ow he called us "brethren" in the second chapter because, when Jesus Christ came into this human race and took to Himself humanity,-from that time on, Jesus Christ has liberated believing sinners from the guilt of sin. Jesus took a little bit of Adam to Himself and that is why he is called "The son of man." And 13. so I am rightly called " His brother". He is not ashamed to call us his brother-amazing is it not? Fallible deceitful, wicked sinners, it is true this is what we are. Just read the list of 22 sins at the end of Romans 1 and you will agree. But the author says, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, "Holy brethren". It is not enough to call us "brethren", he calls us, "holy brethren". ow I want to stop for just a moment and point out that this word means, "a set apart one". In fact, in the Biblical language we could translate this, "saintly brethren". ow remember, the Biblical term for saint or holy does not mean ultimate holiness. It means that we are "set apart" for the worship of God. In the Epistle to the Hebrews, holiness is required, for no one, who is not a partaker of holiness, shall enter into His presence. You cannot come into the presence of God if you are not qualified worshipers! A Related Story by Dr. Ironside Dr. Ironside tells a story of when he was on a train and found some Germans who liked to sing songs while another man played his violin. They were Roman Catholics who had just come from Europe. Dr. Ironside told them that some of the American Indians sang the same songs since they came to know the Lord Jesus Christ. The German woman said, "Since you speak of missionary work among the Indians, I sure hope that you are a member of our Catholic church. Dr. Ironside said, "I want to assure you that I am a member of The Holy Catholic Church which has been washed in the blood of The Lamb-our Lord Jesus Christ." He went on to say that he was a believer, and soon the subject of "the Saints" came up. Ironside quoted one of the Roman Catholic saints who said, Holy Jesus, Thy wounds are my merit". The German woman replied, "Oh you know something about the saints?" Ironside said, "Yes, I do, and I want to say one other thing to you, Madam I am a saint." Then Ironside went on to explain to this woman that one does not have to be canonized by the Church to be a saint. So when we read in the Bible that we are "Holy Brethren", that does not mean that we are sinless. The saints are not sinless, but they certainly should sin less. We have been set apart by God for worship of Him. THE WORD "CO SIDER" ow we are asked to consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus. The English word, "consider," comes from a Latin word which means "to look at the stars" MEDITATI G A D REFLECTI G O OUR LORD JESUS So it comes out of the study of astronomy. Think of those ancient shepherds as they spent nights under the stars studying their movements. To the Greeks it means "to fasten the mind upon". Jesus used this word when He said, "Consider the ravens how God supplies their needs". And so here we are told to consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession. I dare say that one of the reasons we are so weak in the Christian life is because we never consider our Lord Jesus Christ. We never really sit down and reflect upon Him. We never really look at Him as He wishes us to-as an Apostle, The One sent from God and as The High Priest, The One who has closed the gap between God and man! Then also, consider Him as faithful. The text lays a great stress on this point. He was faithful to Him who appointed Him, as Moses was faithful in his appointment. God spoke to men in the Old Testament in visions and dreams, but to Moses face to face because he is faithful in all 14. His house. Moses as a Type of Christ Moses stands a "type" of our Lord Jesus Christ-even when he was rejected by his brethren. When he took to himself a Gentile wife he reflected in his own experience, the fact that in this present day, both Jews and Gentiles are united to the Lord Jesus. The fact that Aaron and Miriam spoke against Moses speaks of the fact that today there is a great deal of opposition in the selection of the Church and its uniting to the Lord Jesus Christ. There is tremendous "typical significance" in all this and our author says, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession who has been faithful over His house. He is greater than Moses. I want to say to you that this is one of the most solemn things in the Bible. Every careless word a man says against Jesus Christ is remembered by God. And the LORD heard them! Moses had a temporal glory, for remember that He who builds the house is better than the house. Two questions then arise: What is the house that he is talking about? And, How is Christ superior? The house is the company of the Redeemed-both Old and ew Covenant. The house represents the believers. Some are under the Old Covenant, and as time passes the house grows until finally, the house encloses the believers of both Old and ew Testaments. There is a great deal of similarity between them. They are both the company of the Redeemed of the LORD and both belong in then same company. So the House of God is the house of the Redeemed. Christ is a High Priest over the House of God (Heb. 10:21). Who is responsible for this house? It is the Father who has created all things. It is He who is responsible for this house. Who has built the house of the Father? It is our Lord Jesus who has come from heaven as the Apostle of God and gone to the Cross and cried out "My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken me? And then "It is finished". This was the last stone, the last nail into the house of God! It is Christ who has built the house as God's builder, and Moses is one member of that house and a servant at that. Who is the greater? The one who built the house, or a person who serves within the house as a servant? Why it is obvious that Jesus Christ is greater than Moses-greater than the man whom the Jews thought was greater than angels. Then the author says in Heb. 3:5: And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after but Christ as a Son over His house. The Glory of Moses and the Greater Glory of Christ. The glory of Christ and the honor of Moses are simply reflective of their places in and over the house. The honor of Moses was great for he spoke with God mouth to mouth and Divine Glory was reflected upon his face, and beheld by the people. He ministered to Israel in the ten commandments given to him on the mount. Moses drew an outline of all that the house of God should be and sketched in forms of this world which would typify Christ. The ways of suffering that broke upon Christ fell upon him, for Moses bore the reproach of 15. Christ. At last he stood on the mount of transfiguration and gave over his work as servant into the hands of the Son less he should claim some of Christ's glory. But all this honor was but the refection of the glory of another. His approach to God was but a "temporary manner", while Christ's was an "eternal propitiation" to the full satisfaction of God's infinite holiness and righteousness! The glory on Moses was but a passing radiance, fading away both from men and from the whole old Testament ministry. But the glory of Christ is an abiding light and the face of the Son is over the house of God. Moses was a servant in the house. Christ was a Son over the house. Therefore, Christ is greater than Moses. 13. HARRY HEI Z, In chapter 3:1 he is called "the apostle and high priest of our confession." Those are religious words, pointing us to the reality that Jesus fulfills what religion was promising. In Hebrews 12:2 he is called "the pioneer and perfecter of our faith." In the King James Version he is the "author and finisher." In the Phillips paraphrase he is "the source and the goal of our faith." My own paraphrase is, "he is the starting line and the finishing line." That is who he is: the one with us when the race starts and the one welcoming us when the race ends. Those are not religious words, as such, but words from everyday life. The two sets complement each other. He fulfills the highest aspirations of religion-to give us a relationship with God-and he leads us in the day-to-day journey of staying on course, keeping focus, and finishing well. 14. HARRY HEI TZ, The second therefore has a similar tone. Hebrews 11 reminds us of the faithful saints who have gone before us. That is followed by this admonition: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God." Both admonitions are to focus on Jesus that we may stay on course, keep focus, and finish well. The key is looking to Jesus, who was faithful, stayed on course, kept focus, and finished well. Our hope of doing the same is wrapped up in getting a grip on him. Two truths follow from these two admonitions. First, the ew Testament consistently presents Jesus as the unique Son of the Father, the only Lord and Savior. Last summer we saw this same theme presented from seemingly every angle imaginable in Galatians, and now we see it being presented in yet new ways in Hebrews. A careful listener might be tempted to say, "we get it- enough already." God foresaw that the challenges to this understanding would be many and would always be with us, so Gods written word leaves no doubt whatsoever about the unique glory of Jesus. There is no other like him. ot Moses, or Mohammed, or the Buddha; not King David, or the Virgin Mary, or the Apostle Paul; not Mother Theresa, or the Dalai Lama, or Billy Graham; not any of the gods and goddesses of the ancient world or the modern world; not any of the heroes of the faith. C. S. Lewis served us well in "Mere Christianity" by setting before us the consistent and insistent claims of Jesus and then pushing us to the conclusion that either he is God incarnate, as he claimed to be, or he was a well-meaning fool, or he was an intentional liar and therefore evil in attempting to delude us. What he cannot be is just another good religious leader. He didnt leave that option open to us. His claims were too bold, his miracles too miraculous. Jesus alone is in the central place of Gods redemptive drama. Im with songwriter Fanny Crosby: "This is my story, this is my song, praising my Savior all the day long." I shall never tire of this truth; I will sing it to my dying breath, then throughout eternity. 16. 15. PI K, It remains now for us to notice the people to whom this exhortation is addressed: they are denominated "holy brethren, partakers of the heavenly calling." These Hebrews were addressed as "brethren" because they belonged spiritually to the family of God. "He evidently refers to the blessed truth just announced, that Jesus, the Son of God, is not ashamed to call us brethren" (Heb. 2:11). He means therefore those who by the Spirit of God have been born again, and who can call God their Father. He addresses those of God who are in Christ Jesus, who were quickened together with Him; for when He rose from the dead He was the first-born among many brethren. He calls them holy brethren, because upon this fact of brotherhood is based their sanctification: He that sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one" (Saphir). o doubt the "holy brethren" was also designed to distinguish them from their brethren according to the flesh, the unbelieving Jews. By his use of this appellation the apostle to the Gentiles evidenced his interest in and love for the Hebrews: he acknowledged and esteemed them as "brethren." "What an interesting and delightful view is thus presented to our minds of genuine Christians scattered all over the earth-belonging to every kindred, and people, and tongue, and nation- distinguished from one another in an almost infinite variety of ways, as to talent, temper, education, rank, circumstances, yet bound together by an invisible band, even the faith of the truth, to the one great object of their confidence, and love, and obedience, Christ Jesus-forming one great brotherhood, devoted to the honor and service of His Father and their Father, His God and their God! Do you belong to this holy brotherhood? The question is an important one. For answer, note Christs words in Matthew 12:50" (Dr. J. Brown). "Partakers of the heavenly calling." This at once serves to emphasize the superiority of Christianity over Judaism, which knew only an earthly calling, with an earthly inheritance. The word "partakers" signifies "sharers of." The calling wherewith the Christian is called (Eph. 4:1) is heavenly, because of its origin-it proceeds from Heaven; because of the means used-the Spirit and the Word, which have come from Heaven; because of the sphere of our citizenship (Phil. 3:20); because of the end to which we are called-an eternal Heaven. Thus would the Holy Spirit press upon the sorely-tried Hebrews the inestimable value of their privileges. Finally, the whole of this appellation should be viewed in the light of the relation between those addressed and Christ. How is it possible for sinful worms of the earth to be thus denominated? Because of their union with the incarnate Son, whose excellency is imputed to them, and whose position they share. We are partakers of the heavenly calling because He, in wondrous condescension, partook of our earthly lot. What He has, we have; where He is, we are. He is the Holy One of God, therefore are we holy. He has been "made higher than the heavens," therefore are we "partakers of the heavenly calling!" Just so far as our hearts really lay hold of this, shall we walk as "strangers and pilgrims" here. Where our "Treasure" (Christ) is, there will our hearts be also. That is why we are here bidden to "consider" Him. "The Apostle" (ho apostolos). In chapter 3:1 we are told to " . . consider Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession." This section of Hebrews involves a comparison and contrast between Jesus and Moses designed to demonstrate Jesus' superiority. This is the only place in the ew Testament that Jesus is called "apostle." Here apostolos carries associations of authority. It refers to more than a mere envoy, and suggests an ambassador or representative sent with powers, authorized to speak in the name of the one who dispatched him or her. 17. When we see Jesus, we see him who was sent as Heaven's representative, whose voice carries the authority of God. He comes with the call of God from heaven, to heaven; the Apostle of our faith. "The Author" (ho archegos). Twice in Hebrews Jesus is called "the Author" or "the Captain" (2:10; 12:2). The title is archegos, which can mean either "source" or "leader." In the Greek Old Testament, it is commonly used in the sense of "chief," or "head," of a tribe or family. In Greek literature it is used of heroes venerated as founders of cities. Closely related to archegos are two other titles in Hebrews. Jesus is called "Source" (aitios): He is the "author (aitios) of external salvation" (5:9). The other related title is "Forerunner" (prodromos): Jesus, as our prodromos, has gone on ahead into heaven on our behalf (6:20). Taken together, these titles demonstrate that Jesus is both source and leader. When we see Jesus we see One who himself first takes part in that which he establishes. Because he has gone on ahead, we know our own ultimate arrival is assured. PI K, The exhortation given here is, "Wherefore . . . consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession." Three questions call for answers: what is meant by "considering" Him; why we should do so; the special characters in which He is to be considered. There are no less than eleven Greek words in the ew Testament all rendered "consider," four of them being simple ones; seven, compounds. The one employed by the Holy Spirit in Hebrews 3:1 signifies to thoroughly think of the matter, so as to arrive at a fuller knowledge of it. It was the word used by our Lord in His "consider the ravens, consider the lilies" (Luke 12:24, 27). It is the word which describes Peters response to the vision of the sheet let down from heaven: "I considered and saw fourfooted beasts" (Acts 11:6). It is found again in Matthew 7:3, Romans 4:19, Hebrews 10:24. In Acts 7:31 "katanoeo" is rendered "to behold." In Luke 20:23 it is translated "perceived." In all, the Greek word is found fourteen times in the ew Testament. To "consider" Christ as here enjoined, means to thoroughly ponder who and what He is; to attentively weigh His dignity, His excellency, His authority; to think of what is due to Him. It is failure to thoroughly weigh important considerations which causes us to let them "slip" (Heb. 2:1). On the other hand, it is by diligently pondering things of moment and value that the understanding is enabled to better apprehend them, the memory to retain them, the heart to be impressed, and the individual to make a better use of them. To "consider" Christ means to behold Him, not simply by a passing glance or giving to Him an occasional thought, but by the heart being fully occupied with Him. "Set Me as a seal upon thine heart" (Song 8:6), is His call to us. And it is our failure at this point which explains why we know so little about Him, why we love Him so feebly, why we trust Him so imperfectly. The motive presented by the Spirit here as to why we should so "consider" Christ is intimated in the opening "Wherefore." It draws a conclusion from all that precedes. Because Christ is the One through whom Deity is now fully and finally manifested, because He is the Brightness of Gods glory and the very Impress of His substance; because, therefore, He has by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than the angels; because He, in infinite grace, became "all of one" with those that He came to redeem, having made propitiation for the sins of His people; because He is now seated at the right hand of the Majesty on High, and while there is "a merciful 18. and faithful High Priest;" because He has Himself suffered being tempted and is able to succor them who are tempted;-therefore, He is infinitely worthy of our constant contemplation and adoration. The opening "Wherefore" is also an anticipatory inference from what follows: because Christ is worthy of more honor than Moses, therefore, "consider" Him. There are two special characters in which the Holy Spirit here bids us contemplate Christ. First, as "the Apostle." This has reference to the prophetical office of Christ, the title being employed because an "apostle" was the highest minister appointed in ew Testament times. An apostleship had more honors conferred upon it than any other position in the church (Eph. 4:11): thus the excellency of Christs prophetic office is magnified. The term apostle means one "sent forth" of God, endowed with authority as His ambassador. In Johns Gospel Christ is frequently seen as the "Sent One," 3:34, 5:36, etc. The general function of Christ as a prophet, an apostle, a minister of the Word, was to make known the will of His Father unto His people. This He did, see John 8:26, etc. His special call to that function was immediate: "as My Father hath sent Me, so send I you" (John 20:21). Christ is more than an apostle, He is "the Apostle," that is why none others, not even Paul, are mentioned in this Epistle. He eclipses all others. He was the first apostle, the twelve being appointed by Him. His apostolic jurisdiction was more extensive than others; Peter was an apostle of the circumcision. Paul of the Gentiles; but Christ preached both to them that were nigh and to them that were far off (Eph. 2:17). He received the Spirit more abundantly than any other (John 3:34). With Him the Messenger was the message: He was Himself "the Truth." The miracles He wrought (the "signs of an apostle" 2 Corinthians 12:12) were mightier and more numerous than those of others. Verily, Christ is "the Apostle," for in all things He has the pre- eminence. The special duty for us arising therefrom is, "Hear ye Him" (Matt. 17:5)-cf. Deuteronomy 18:15, 18. The second character in which we are here bidden to "consider" Christ Jesus, is as the "High Priest of our profession." As the priesthood of Christ will come before us, D.V., in detail in the later chapters, only a few remarks thereon will now be offered. As we have already been told, the Lord Jesus is "a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to God" (Heb. 2:17). This at once gives us the principal feature which differentiates His priestly from His prophetic office. As Prophet, Christ is Gods representative to His people; as "Priest," He is their representative before God. As the Apostle He speaks to us from God, as our High Priest He speaks for us to God. The two offices are conjoined in John 13:3, "He was from God, and went to God." Thus He fills the whole space between God and us: as Apostle He is close to me; as Priest, He is close to God. "Of our profession." The Greek word here is a compound and properly signifies "a consent." In the ew Testament, it is used for the confession of a thing (1 Tim. 6:12, 13), and to set forth the faith which Christians profess (Heb. 4:14). Here it may be taken either for an act on our part-the confessing Christ to be "the Apostle and High Priest," or, the subject matter of the faith we profess. Christians are not ashamed to own Him, for He is not ashamed to own them. The apostleship and priesthood of Christ are the distinguishing subjects of our faith, for Christianity centers entirely around the person of Christ. The confession is that which faith makes, see Hebrews 10:23. The cognate of this word is found in Hebrews 11:13 and Hebrews 13:15, "giving thanks:" these two references emphasizing the "stranger and pilgrim" character of this profession, of which Christ Jesus is the Apostle and High Priest. 16. "Holy brethren" does not refer to our virtue but to the righteousness God imputes to us 19. because of our faith in Jesus Christ. As "partakers of the heavenly calling" we look not unto our earthly situation for fulfillment but to our final home with Christ (1 Corinthians 15:19). Consider means to "study carefully" in the Greek. It is the same word Jesus used in Matthew 6:28 when he said, "Consider the lilies of the field..." Apostle means "One who has been sent, ambassador". This is the only place Jesus is called an apostle. An ambassador represents all the power and authority of his country (Matthew 28:18). An ambassador speaks for his nation. Jesus spoke God's thoughts (John 14:10). Jesus is the high priest of our profession (confession). Job asked for a daysman to bridge the gap between God and man (Job 9:33). Priest means "bridge builder". God has built the bridge to man. author unknown 17. MCI TOSH, There are two main thoughts in this verse, the object of contemplation and the subject of application. The obvious point and purpose of this verse is to present to us Christ, and so we would say: Behold the Redeemer. John said, Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world. Here the apostle would say, Behold Christ in all His redemptive fulness. Two thoughts are here: first, the saints' consideration and secondly, the Saviour considered. "Wherefore" - that word is most significant. It has a fund of direction in it. Here is the connection. That is what I have stated", says the apostle, "in these first two chapters." What is the application that we are to make of Christ set before us in chapters 1 and 2? When he calls upon us to consider the Apostle and High Priest, he has referred us to the Apostle in chapter 1 and the High Priest in chapter 2. Take the truth and connect it and see how the Spirit of God would direct our minds to an intelligent understanding of the truth as set forth. There is a solidity and conviction about such consideration of the word. Go back afresh, after reading what he has said, and reconsider it. "Wherefore consider what I have stated." Indeed we will find as we go back into it, we have more than we can take in. Those two chapters might well occupy a great deal of time and meditation on the part of God's people. That is how the Spirit directs us to search the truth, to meditate upon the word and to give consideration to what is revealed. As believers we have our understandings opened; we see Christ. Once we saw no beauty in Him that we should desire Him; He was a root out of dry ground, with no form nor comeliness. But now we see to some extent the beauty of holiness, and He is the chiefest among ten thousand. He is the apple tree among the trees of the wood; He is as the lily of the valley; as the rose of Sharon. He is God manifest, and we who see God, must love Him. The next thought expressed in ch. 3:1 is, "partakers of the heavenly calling." "Partakers" - that too is an interesting word. It is suggested by the relationship to Christ in ch. 2:14. "Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood..." ow, that is a very close participation. The flesh and blood of which we partake make up the nature in which we are created. This partaking is sharing in possession our essential being, so close is it. Apply that conception to the partaking of the heavenly calling. We are possessors now of this heavenly calling - it is not simply that we are going to inherit something in the dim distant future. Yes, when we enter glory, heaven in its fulness will be partaken of, but we are here and now partakers of the heavenly calling. Is it part and parcel of our spirituality? The saints are able to consider Him who is their inheritance. "He that spared not His own Son but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not WITH HIM freely give us all things?" Do we see how these things are wrapped up with Christ, so that, having Him, we have all the possession of the heavenly inheritance? othing comes to us but by Him; nothing is bestowed upon us but from His hand. And so we are partakers as we have possessed Him and all that is His. All that He died to purchase and lives to 20. bestow, we have as the brethren of the Lord Jesus Christ, the children whom God has given to Him. What is His, is ours. We have it now - not in fulness, but in measure. Then the apostle goes on to show that the brethren are partakers of this HEAVE LY CALLI G. Every word is packed with significance to the spiritually discerning soul. What is this heavenly calling? A calling FROM heaven which comes to us from the mouth of God, by whom that calling is made effectual. It is a heavenly calling also in that it is TO heaven. He calls us unto His kingdom and glory. So the heavenly calling calls us to heavenly possessions, the inheritance of the saints in light, "an inheritance incorruptible, undefiled and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for you who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation." That is our objective in life. We are not living an aimless existence, tossed hither and thither by every wind and wave of opposition. We have an objective before us: this heavenly calling to which we are called. For us, to live is to live in the hope of the redemption which is given to us in Christ, and everything else is channelled into that stream, for there are a number of tributaries combining to fill the stream of the full purpose of life here. We are living not for anything temporal or perishing, but we are living for that which endures for evermore. Paul said, "I have suffered the loss of all things and do count them but dung that I may win Christ, and be found in Him, not having my own righteousness which is by the law, but the righteousness which is of God by faith in Jesus Christ." We are called also to the heavenly substance of the faith, which is true godliness. This calling is heavenly in its nature. It is not earthly. "My kingdom", said Christ, "is not of this world." It is not meat and drink, but righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Ghost. It is far beyond, far greater than all earthly things, but it includes them. It is spiritual but it is also material; it is eternal, but it is also temporal. Godliness hath the promise of the life that now is as well as that which is to come. There is all this and heaven too. That is the fulness of that heavenly calling. Is that yours? Those of you who have neglected and despised it - will you let it go for the sake of this perishing, fleeting time which is compared to the vapour, the rising mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes away? Would you sell eternity for a few passing pleasures? Be like Moses who chose to suffer affliction with the people of God rather than enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season. These things are pressed upon our minds, almost weekly. God's providence brings back memories of the uncertainties of life and the certainties of death; the frailty of the flesh; the awful extent of eternity. OW is the accepted time. Those who have gone into the possession of their inheritance, surely call to us to follow them as they followed Christ. They would say as Moses said to Hobab, (only they have entered into it), "We are journeying to the place of which the Lord hath said, I will give it you. Come thou with us and we will do thee good, for the Lord hath spoken good concerning Israel." ( umbers 10:29) So the apostle says, "Consider the Apostle and High Priest." One thing which seems to mark the present day church is lack of consideration, lack of study of the truth of God, lack of meditative searching into the word which conveys the fulness of Christ. The meaning of that word "consider" helps us to feel the weight of obligation. The apostle says, "Contemplate with a constant beholding, gaze at." It is the word that James uses when he describes one who hears the word as being like a man beholding himself in a mirror. He is looking into it with constant fixed attention. Our English word "consider" includes the Latin word that means "a star". The astronomer is marked by his fixed gaze, looking up into the heavens, with an attention which is rivetted upon the stars. That is the kind of exercise the apostle is commending to us. Let us set our fixed attention, our meditative, continuous consideration on Christ as He is set forth in His word, dependent upon the Spirit to open up to us the person of Christ in His own 21. truth. Let the Bible then be a living book, speaking so that we cannot but hear, and hearing we cannot but heed. That is what Hugh Martin commends in his volume "The Abiding Presence". He writes: Thus the presence of Christ gives reality, present reality and life to the biography: the biography supplies to the otherwise indefinite presence distinct manifestation, action and utterance. The biography is enlivened by the presence: the presence is defined by the biography. The biography is very lifelike; but without the presence it is not living. The presence, on the other hand, is living; but without the biography it is far from lifelike. Yet what Christ by His promise hath joined, let not unbelief put asunder. Let the biography and the presence be conjoined and coalesce. The biography, then, is not dead; the Living One lives in it. The presence is not mysterious and vague; for He is present as in the mirror of the biography, and according to the well-defined, reflected glory there. The biography is more than a biography now. It is - THE LIFE OF JESUS.(p26) In another place Martin writes of the Spirit's unfolding this truth to us in the word. I believe there is not enough spiritual power in our religion, because the Bible is not gripping us as the word of the living God through the Spirit, transforming us into the image of Christ. Take, then, into your hands the biography of Christ; and suppose its closing promise, "Lo, I am with you always", is fulfilled by the Holy Spirit, the Comforter, being given to you. The Spirit of life and truth shines in your heart while you read the biography. God who commended the light to shine out of darkness shines in your heart to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. He cleanses and purifies your mental and spiritual eyeballs. He sanctifies and warms your affections, enables you to see in His own light the character and doings, the utterances and affections, the mind and heart of Jesus. That eternal Spirit with whom Jesus, as God, is one in the undivided substance of the Godhead - with whom Jesus, as Messiah, was anointed without measure above His fellows, is with you inwardly, dwelling in you, searching in you, shining in you. And outwardly, spread out before you, is the biography of Him of whom the Spirit has come to testify. And He testifies of Jesus by that written word, quickened by His own Almighty power, shone upon with His own marvellous light. He invests the record of Christ's life and character with heavenly radiance, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth. He leaves no veil on the face of Jesus. The glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ He discloses to your view; even the glory of the Lord as in a glass - the glass of the word - with open face. or does He leave any veil on your face or your mind. "Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." With eyes anointed of the Lord, and opened to perceive wondrous things, you are free, without fear, to look stedfastly on what the Spirit, in His own light, is unfolding to your view.(p.35) So there is Christ the Apostle and High Priest of our profession. Those are the people and that is the exercise to which the apostle calls us. When the saints begin to consider Him who is set before them, they shall be more and more transformed to the likeness of the Lord Jesus Christ. There is nothing visionary, vague, unrealistic, but God has revealed Himself in the person of His Son, truly God and truly man, and we shall see Him as the Spirit enlightens our minds. This is sanctification, that we should grow in grace and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Here is the simple method: search the Scriptures. "Behold the Lamb of 22. God who taketh away the sin of the world." May God enable us to consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus. Look unto Him who is set forth so fully in His truth, and pray God that you see Him - not that you simply believe doctrines and tenets, but that you see the Person as your Saviour, and are enabled to say, "I know whom I have believed, and am persuaded that He is able to keep that which I have committed unto Him against that day." 18. DAVID PHILLIPS, The "holy brothers," were addressed here indicating that those hearing and reading the letter were of the faith. They were set apart, "consecrated to the service of God by Jesus in his priestly role as consecrator of the people of God (2:11)(Lane)." The writer then adds an additional phrase to indicate just how connected to Christ they were. He calls them "sharers in a heavenly calling." This phrase is not used anywhere else in the ew Testament, with the possibility of Philippians 3:14 giving us a parallel expression(Lane, 74). The term, "metochoi", is a "technical term for those who have responded to God's call to salvation. In 3:1 the writer describes the community as those called into the presence of God where they enjoy the privileged access to him(Lane, 74)." This corresponds to the church in 2:10. The privileged status that they enjoy is a result not of Moses nor Aaron, but of Jesus, and it is for this reason that they are commanded to "consider Jesus." This is the only place where Jesus is called apostle. He is the greatest of all apostles, for he was sent directly from God to the world. Apostle is derived from the word, "apostello", "to send forth." The noun form used here means, "one who is sent(Hughes, 127)" Louis Evans, in the Communicator's Commentary references the Theological Dictionary of the ew Testament to further expound on the meaning. It states, K.H. Rengstorf, in his article on this word in Kittel's, Theological Dictionary of the ew Testament, says its meaning lies in the authority given to a person to speak for the one who sent him... But there is another approach to this word that has helped me understand the meaning of apostle. If we break away the prefix (apo) of the Greek word, we are left with stolon. Biologists use this word to describe a type of root that shoots forth from a plant having the capability of putting down a new set of roots.... Jesus was sent out by the father to establish a new "colony of heaven" called the kingdom of God. Christ in turn has given us that same authority to establish new colonies or churches all over the world. (81-82) Therefore Christ is the one sent to establish this new way of living and to establish the new kingdom of God. Also, Jesus is the "archierea," or high priest of the confession. "Jesus as the one sent by God," Donald Hagner states, "represents God to humanity. Jesus as high priest represents humanity to God. Jesus is therefore God's revelation and makes possible human response.(59)" John Macarthur says that ...the priests of ancient Israel were appointed by God to be mediators between Himself and his people. Only the high priest could offer the highest sacrifice under the Old Covenant, and that he did only once a year on the Day of Atonement. All the sins of the people were brought symbolically to the Holy of Holies, where the blood was sprinkled on the mercy seat as a sacrifice to atone for them. As no other human instrument could, he represented God before the people and the people before God. (109) 23. Verse 1 In chapters 1 and 2 we saw how Jesus is greater than the *prophets and the *angels. This is because of his own greatness and because of what he has done for us. So now we are to think about him both as the *apostle and as our chief priest. To the Hebrews, Moses was the first *apostle and Aaron was the first chief priest. The word *apostle means someone whom God sends. An *apostle comes to people as the agent of God. So God sent Moses to the Hebrews when they were slaves in the land of *Egypt. He came to set them free and to lead them out of that country. To do this he had to go to the king of *Egypt and persuade him to let them go. At first, the king refused. But after God had done many powerful works, he sent them out. God sent Jesus to lead people out from the rule of the devil and to bring them to God. Jesus came to us to show us what God is like. He overcame the devil and set us free from his power. The chief priest was a man who went to God as the agent of the people. He had to make sacrifices for all their *sins. Then he asked God to forgive them. Aaron was the man whom God made the first chief priest. He had to make the sacrifices for his own *sins as well as for the *sins of the Hebrews. Once every year he took the blood of an animal into the most holy place, and then God forgave the people their *sins. Jesus is the one who is our chief priest. He made a *sacrifice of himself for all our *sins. He did not need a *sacrifice for himself, because he was without *sin. Because Jesus took his own blood to God, God forgives us our *sins. (The word blood here is instead of the word *sacrifice). 19. Philip Mauro, The word Apostle signifies one sent forth on a special mission. Hence, the work of the Son of God as the Apostle embraces all that He did in the days of His Flesh as the Sent One of God. His work as the Apostle of our confession is finished. He, being eternal Deity, came forth from God, assumed the form and nature of man, and thus brought to man all that man required of God. Having finished that work, He, as true Man, returned to God, bringing to God all that God required of man. That is His present office and work as High Priest within the true sanctuary. It is not His character of High Priest after the order of Melchizedek that is spoken of here. He will not appear in that character until He comes forth again to assume the office of King in addition to that of Priest. His present ministry is rather the fulfillment of what is typified by the ministry of the Aaronic high priest on the Day of Atonement, when he entered into the Holy of Holies with the blood of the sin-offering. This clearly appears from chapters 8- 10, in which Christ is revealed as a Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle, but is not spoken of as High Priest of the order of Melchizedek. evertheless, He has been already saluted of God as High Priest after the order of Melchizedek (verse 10), though yet waiting to be revealed as such. What He is awaiting is, amongst other things, the perfecting of the many sons who are to be associated with Him in that Royal Priesthood. The work of the Son of God as the Apostle of our confession is not specially described in Hebrews. For that we must refer to other Scriptures. It embraces all His words-the words which the Father gave Him to speak-and all His works, especially His work on the Cross, where He bore the sins of many, and put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself . This redemption-aspect of the work of the Cross is mentioned in Hebrews, though not specially described there (Heb. 9:12). The following passages, among others, refer to features of His work as the One sent forth from God. 20. STEDMA , As in many chapter divisions in the ew Testament, the opening words could as 24. well have been the closing words of the previous chapter. The therefore ties them together and introduces a fifth title for Jesus thus far in Hebrews: Son, Firstborn, Lord, High Priest and now Apostle. We are encouraged to fix [our] thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess. The recipients of this encouragement are called holy brothers and those who share in the heavenly calling. These phrases represent a delicate shift from a well-known Jewish-Christian description ("brothers") to that which is distinctively Christian, and not Jewish ("heavenly calling"---Eph 1:3; 2:6). This explains his plea to look beyond Moses and Jewish things to Jesus, who combines, in his divine-human person, both functions which Moses exercised (apostle and high priest). However, Jesus fulfilled these to a loftier and far greater level. 21. Call, Calling - Invitation, summons, commission, or naming. The ew Testament refers to the Christian life as a calling (Eph. 1:18; 4:1; II Tim. 1:9; Heb. 3:1; II Pet. 1:10). The basic call is to Christ as Lord and Savior; thus, all Christians are "called ones." The noun "calling" takes on great significance in the ew Testament. First, there is the goal of calling. We are called to salvation, holiness, and faith (II Thess. 2:13-15), to the kingdom and glory of God (I Thess 2:12), to an eternal inheritance (Heb. 9:15), to fellowship (I Cor. 1:9), and to service (Gal 1). The means of calling is clearly stated as being through grace (Gal. 1:6) and through the hearing of the gospel (II Thess. 2:14). The nature of God's calling is described as an upward (Phil. 3:14), heavenly (Heb. 3:1), holy (II Tim. 1:9) calling. It is filled with hope (Eph. 1:18, 4:4). Finally, the "called, chosen and faithful" are with the Lamb (Rev. 17:14) indicating that those whom God called (saved) He glorified (Rom. 8:30). The stress is on the initiative of God. author unknown 22. CALVI , First, the word "consider", is important, for it intimates that singular attention is required, as he cannot be disregarded with impunity, and that at the same time the true knowledge of Christ is sufficient to dissipate the darkness of all errors. And to encourage them the more to pursue this study, he reminds them of their calling; as though he had said, "God favoured you with no common grace when He called you into his kingdom; it now remains that you have your eyes fixed on Christ as your leader in the way." For the calling of the godly cannot be otherwise confirmed than by a thorough surrender of themselves to Christ. We ought not therefore to regard this as said only to the Jews, but that it is a general truth addressed to all who desire to come into the kingdom of God; they ought sedulously to attend to Christ, for he is the sole instructor of our faith, and has confirmed it by the sacrifice of himself; for "confession", or profession, is to be taken here for faith, as thought he had said, that the faith we profess is vain and of no avail, unless Christ be its object. 23. J PRESTO EBY, As our APOSTLE Jesus Christ proclaims and opens up the way before us, and as our HIGH PRIEST He reconciles us fully to God that we may walk in the calling ordained for us. And what is that calling? TO BE PARTAKERS WITH HIM I HIS OW HEAVE LY CALLI G! Here are indeed great words! "Calling" here, as always in the epistles, has reference not to an invitation to go to some far-off heaven somewhere, but to a PRESE T heavenly state of being. For ew Creation men, according to Col.1:12, have already been made "meet to be partakers