Hebrews

!"# !%#&' (&)

Pebrews sLarLs, unllke mosL of Lhe books we
descrlbe as leuers, wlLhouL any lndlcauon as Lo
who wroLe lL or who Lhe lnLended rsL reclplenLs
were - and, llke naLure, blbllcal sLudles abhors a
vacuum! Much ume has been spenL on
auempung Lo dlscover who Lhese people may
have been. Suggesuons for wrlLers range from
aul Lo Luke Lo rlscllla and Aqulla. CerLalnLy ls
lmposslble ln Lhls, buL we do know some Lhlngs
abouL Lhe wrlLer from Lhe book lLself.
-
known Lo Lhe people he ls wrlung Lo - Peb
13:19,
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arL of Lhe paullne clrcle - he knows
1lmoLhy - Peb 13:23
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2nd generauon bellever (l.e. noL one of Lhe
aposLles) - Peb 2:34,
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1hls also suggesLs lL ls noL aul (cf Cal
1:11-17),
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A PellenlsL (Creek speaklng, !ewlsh
Chrlsuan) - cf AcLs 6-8,
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Plgh sLandard of Creek,
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lnLeresL ln Lhe !ewlsh falLh buL no reference
Lo pagan rellglons,
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A creauve Lheologlan,"
1
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Skllled rheLorlclan,
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Well-educaLed,
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Male - Peb 11:32 (tqyocvov ls a
mascullne, slngular word LranslaLed 'for me Lo Lell abouL' or slmllar),
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8uL noLe Lhe lnLerchange of 'we' (6:9) and 'l' (11:32) whlch has glven rlse Lo Lhe rlscllla
and Aqulla suggesuon.
We are on Lhe safesL ground when we accepL LhaL we remaln lgnoranL of Lhe wrlLer's name, buL
accepL LhaL from Lhe earllesL umes Lhe book has been recognlsed as havlng auLhorlLy and LhaL our
new 1esLamenL would be very much Lhe poorer wlLhouL Lhls book.
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Cnce agaln, Lhls ls noL made expllclL ln Lhe book. 1here are a number of clues and any good
commenLary wlll deal wlLh Lhese ln deLall. 1he besL suggesuon seems Lo be LhaL Lhls was a
PellenlsL congregauon ln a clLy (mosL llkely Lo be 8ome) where Lhere are oLher house churches
whlch would malnly be of Cenule Chrlsuans, who Lhey are separaung Lhemselves from. 1hey have
suered persecuuon and have sLagnaLed ln Lhelr splrlLual growLh and are ln danger of falllng back
lnLo !udalsm.
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Lane W. L.., 1991, !"#$"%& ()*, Word 8lbllcal CommenLary, xllx
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AL Lhls polnL, lL ls easy Lo begln Lo sound llke a broken record! Cnce agaln, we don'L know when
lL was wrluen buL we can make some educaLed guesses. As a leuer wrluen by someone who ls noL
of Lhe rsL generauon of Chrlsuans, we are Lalklng abouL someLhlng probably composed aer 60
a.d. Powever, Lhe wrlLer commenLs upon Lhe !ewlsh pracuces of sacrlce as Lhough Lhey are sull
conunulng (Peb 8:13, 10:1), whlch sLrongly suggesLs LhaL Lhe leuer was wrluen before Lhe
desLrucuon of !erusalem and lLs 1emple ln 70 a.d.
!"*& /01' #2 3,&'%*&4%' (+ (&)
1he book ls usually referred Lo as a leuer and ls placed aL Lhe sLarL of Lhe Ceneral Leuers of Lhe
n1, lmmedlaLely followlng Lhose by aul. lL does noL conLaln many of Lhe elemenLs usually
assoclaLed wlLh a leuer. lor example, Lhere ls no openlng where Lhe name of Lhe wrlLer and Lhe
reclplenLs are menuoned, Lhere ls no secuon on Lhanksglvlng followlng Lhls. lL does lnclude a
secuon of nal greeungs aL Lhe concluslon, buL wlLhouL namlng lndlvlduals as ls oen (buL noL
always) Lhe case, Lhls desplLe lLs belng clear LhaL Lhe wrlLer ls known Lo Lhe readers.
1he wrlLer hlmself descrlbes lL as a word of exhorLauon" (Peb 13:22). 1hls same phrase ls used
ln AcLs 13:13 where aul ls lnvlLed Lo speak ln Lhe synagogue ln lsldlan Anuoch. ln many ways lL
has Lhe sLrucLure of a sermon or homlly (or perhaps even a collecuon of shorL homllles) and l
suggesL LhaL Lhls ls Lhe besL way Lo undersLand lL.
!"*& (+ (& 56#4&)
1he archeLyplcal Sunday School answer Lo any
quesuon, !esus" ls clearly Lhe rlghL answer Lo Lhls
quesuon here. 1he leuer ls all abouL who !esus ls
and how he ls superlor Lo every aspecL of Lhe
!ewlsh falLh. lL ls dlmculL Lo overemphaslse Lhls
aspecL of Lhe book. 1he rsL few verses of Pebrews
sLarL wlLh laylng Lhe foundauon of Lhls Lheme,
whlch are Laken up and expanded upon ln Lhe resL
of Lhe book, and Lhe lmporLance of lL Lo an
undersLandlng of Lhe book wlll be clear from Lhe sLrucLure below.
Whlle !esus ls cenLral Lo Lhe book, Lhere are oLher concerns whlch are relaLed Lo hls cenLrallLy Lo
Lhe falLh. 1hese lnclude Lhe lmporLanL quesuon of wheLher we are Lrue bellevers. ln Lhe conLexL of
Lhls leuer (and lndeed Lhe resL of Lhe new 1esLamenL) Lhls quesuon lnvolves noL [usL bellevlng LhaL
!esus ls Lhe Son of Cod buL by showlng Lhe reallLy of LhaL bellef ln our everyday llves. 1he leuer
brlngs greaL encouragemenL ln Lhls, remlndlng us LhaL Cod's word and Cod's oaLh glve [us] a hope
llke and anchor for Lhe soul, undrllng and rm. Lvery bellever ls secure (Peb 6:17-20)."
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Lach of Lhe ma[or Lhemes works Lowards emphaslslng Lhe superlorlLy of !esus ln all Lhlngs. So
wheLher we conslder angels, or Lhe message or Lhe prlesLhood (all lmporLanL aspecLs of Lhe book)
each of Lhese ls compared wlLh !esus ln such a way Lo remlnd us of [usL how glorlous our savlour
acLually ls.
ln amongsL all of Lhls dlscusslon, Lhe wrlLer places a number of so-called ' warnlng passages'.
1hese are shorL secuons where hls readers are warned of Lhe dangers of re[ecung Lhe message and
salvauon broughL by !esus. 1hese are all solemn passages: re[ecung ChrlsL ls Lhe mosL serlous Lhlng
we can do, made all Lhe more serlous lf we have had some undersLandlng of who !esus Lruly ls.
lnLerpreLauons dler on Lhe exacL meanlng of Lhe warnlngs - such as Lhose ln Peb 6:4-6 - buL Lhe
2
Coodlng u., 2013, +, -,&./0"/#1" 23,4567, 13
2
1he leuer Lo Lhe Pebrews ls ablaze wlLh
Lhe glory of our Lord !esus ChrlsL, Lhe glory
of hls delLy, hls manhood, hls prlesLhood
and sacrlce, hls LrlumphanL llfe of falLh,
hls resurrecuon and ascenslon, and Lhe
cerLalnLy of hls comlng agaln.
+, -,&./0"/#1" 23,4567, 1
wrlLer seems aL palns Lo polnL ouL Lhe lmporLance of remalnlng falLhful Lo Lhe gospel and LhaL he ls
condenL LhaL hls readers wlll do [usL LhaL.
!"*& (+ 7&%,8,.9)
1he mosL sLrlklng aspecL of Lhe book ls Lhe wealLh of Cld 1esLamenL alluslons and quoLauons.
1hls ls clearly because of Lhe naLure of Lhe Chrlsuans he ls wrlung Lo, buL also helps us learn a llule
abouL early ChrlsuanlLy.
Cne of Lhe ma[or Cld 1esLamenL passages whlch Lhe wrlLer uses ls salm 110. 1hls ls a psalm
whlch was Laken up by Chrlsuans aL a very early sLage Lo help undersLand who !esus ls. lndeed,
!esus uses lL (e.g. Mau 22:44) Lo apply Lo hlmself, eLer Lakes lL up ln AcLs 2:34 and ln hls rsL leuer
(1 eL 3:21-22), and aul uses lL on a leasL Lhree occaslons (e.g. 8om 8:34). 1hls messlanlc
appllcauon of salm 110 ls Lhe earllesL expresslon. Lo whlch we have access" of !esus belng
lncluded ln Lhe unlque ldenuLy of Cod. lL ls, Lherefore, perhaps Lhe mosL lmporLanL passage Lhe
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early Chrlsuans used Lo help undersLand how !esus could be Cod wlLhln Lhe conLexL of !ewlsh
monoLhelsm.
1he psalm ls used Lo demonsLraLe Lwo lmporLanL aspecLs of who !esus ls: klng and rlesL.
l. !esus as klng - 110:1
A. 1:3, 1:13, 2:3, 2:8, 8:1, 10:12-13, 12:2.
ll. !esus as rlesL - 110:4
A. 3:3, 3:6, 3:10, 7:1-10, 7:17, 7:20, 7:28-8:2, 10:12.
lll. Comblned klng and rlesL
A. 8:1, 10:12-13
1he purpose behlnd dolng Lhls ln Lhe book seems Lo be LhaL whlle Lhe Chrlsuans had no
dlmculues ln accepung LhaL !esus was klng, Lhey were ln danger of falllng back lnLo !udalsm
because Lhey had falled Lo undersLand !esus' role as prlesL. 1he wrlLer uses salm 110 Lo show LhaL
Lhe Lwo roles are boLh fullled ln !esus.
1he promlnence of salm 110 ln Lhe book has led some commenLaLors Lo descrlbe Lhe book as a
sermon on Lhe psalm, where Lhe rsL secuon (Peb 1:3-7:28) ls all abouL showlng how !esus fulls
Lhe klngly and prlesLly roles of salm 110:1 and 4, Lhe second secuon (Peb 8:1-10:39) show Lhe
Lheologlcal lmpllcauons of Lhls fullmenL, and Lhen Lhe Lhlrd secuon (Peb 11:1-13:23) porLray Lhe
pracucal lmpllcauons of Lhls fullmenL.
:4%&"'% ;'*<,.9
1here are a number of very good commenLarles ln Pebrews. Cne of Lhe mosL accesslble ls:
Coodlng u, +, -,&./0"/#1" 23,4567, MyrLleeld Lxposluons, lS8n: 9781874384360
Some lnLroducLory level commenLarles are:
8rown 8., 8." 9"&&/4" 6: !"#$"%&, lv, lS8n: 9780831113403
Pagner u. A., !"#$"%&, aLernosLer, lS8n: 0833646686
WrlghL 1., !"#$"%& :6$ ;<"$=6,", SCk, lS8n: 9780281033070
More ln-depLh sLudles lnclude:
C'8rlen . 1. 8." >"?"$ @6 @." !"#$"%&, Apollos, lS8n: 9781844744220
Lane W. L. !"#$"%& ()* Word 8lbllcal CommenLary, lS8n: 0849902460
Lane W. L. !"#$"%& A)(B Word 8lbllcal CommenLary, lS8n:084990933x
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8auckham 8, C"&D& /,5 @." E65 6: F&$/"1, p 234
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7&%4=&4%'
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?#<@+ :,.*A ;'B'A*C#. ,. D,+ 7#. E FGFE>
/"' 7#. *+ 741'%,#% H'<,*&#% E FGIEJGKL
A. Superlor Lo Lhe Angels (1:3-2:18)
1. Superlor because of hls ulvlnlLy (1:3-14)
2. 1he Superlor uemand of hls Message (2:1-4)
3. Superlor because of hls PumanlLy (2:3-18)
8. Superlor Lo Lhe Lxodus Leaders (3:1-3:10)
1. Superlor Lo Moses and !oshua ln lalLhfulness-Lhe 8eaders' need for lalLh (3:1-4:13)
2. Superlor Lo Aaron ln Mercy-Lhe 8eaders' need for Condence (4:14-3:10)
C. (1he uanger of SplrlLual lmmaLurlLy-3:11-6:20)
u. Superlor Lo Lhe Levlucal rlesLs (7:1-28)
1. 1he SuperlorlLy of Melchlzedek Lo Lhe LevlLes (7:1-11)
2. 1he AppolnLmenL of !esus ln Lhe order of Melchlzedek (7:12-17)
3. 1he SuperlorlLy of !esus Lo Lhe LevlLes (7:18-28)
/"' 741'%,#% H,.,+&%0 #2 &"' M'N O#B'.*.& H'<,*&#% E LGFEFPGQR
A. lnLroducuon Lo ChrlsL's new CovenanL prlesLly mlnlsLry (8:1-13)
8. An Lxplanauon of ChrlsL's new CovenanL prlesLly mlnlsLry (9:1-10:18)
1. 1he Cld and new SancLuarles compared (9:1-14)
2. 1he Cld and new CovenanLs compared (9:13-22)
3. 1he Cld and new Sacrlces compared (9:23-10:18)
C. araenesls based on ChrlsL's new CovenanL prlesLly mlnlsLry (10:19-39)
1. Condence Lo enLer Lhe sancLuary (10:19-23)
2. !udgemenL for re[ecung Cod's covenanL (10:26-31)
3. 8eward for endurlng sacrlce (10:32-39)
M'N O#B'.*.& ;'S4,%'T'.&+ 2#% &"' U'#1A' #2 ?#< EFFGFEFQGFJ
A. lalLh ln splLe of delayed promlses (11:1-12:3)
8. Lndurance for Lhe sake of Cod's dlsclpllne (12:4-29)
C. Cbedlence ln a conLexL of sacrlce (13:1-17)
O#.=A4+,#. E FQGFLEKI
A. 8equesL for prayer - 13:18-19
8. 8lesslng - 13:20-21
C. Creeungs - 13:22-23

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1he sLrucLure here ls adapLed from SLanley S, 1994 1he SLrucLure of Pebrews from 1hree erspecuves" ln 8=,5/1" GD11"H, 43:2, p 243-71
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