In these verses, then, the apostle makes a transition unto, and an entrance upon his great design. But whereas his direct scope and aim was to prevail with the Hebrews, and all others in the like con- dition with them,—that is, all professors of the gospel,—unto per- manency and stability in faith and obedience, he doth here, as elsewhere, fill up his transition with insinuations of duties, attended with exhortations and encouragements unto the performance of them. And this is the only useful way of teaching in all practical sciences. The principles of them are to be accompanied with instances, ex- amples, and exhortations unto practice, wherein their end consisteth. And in so doing, the apostle plainly declares what we ought to be intent upon in our learning and consideration of the truths of the
VER. 14.] EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. 893
gospel. The end of them all is to teach us to live unto God, and to bring us to the enjoyment of him; therefore to the further- ance of our faith and obedience are they continually to be ap- plied.
VERSE 14.
"Exovres obv apysepia wiyay dsednrudéra rods ovpavods, “Inoody rdv Tidy ToU Osov, xpurawev r75 omoroyias.
Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into [through] the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.
There being no difficulty in the words in the original, nor much diversity in translations, we shall cast what is worth observation on their account into the exposition of the words itself.
"Exovres ody, “ habentes igitur,’ “having therefore;” or, as ours, “seeing then that we have.” And so the Syriac, ‘whereas, therefore, we have.” The illative of» declares the relation of what is under assertion unto that which went before. That which the apostle is now instructing us in, directing us unto, is educed from what he had before laid down. It is not a conse- quence in way of argument that is here inferred, but the consequent in way of duty: “Seeing we have.”
"Apysepea weyay, “pontificem magnum.” Some translations, as the Arabic and Syriac, in this place transpose the words, and place the person of Christ as the immediate object Roig ad of our “having,” or that which the word ¢yovres doth firstly and formally respect: “Having Jesus the Son of God to be a high priest.” And in this way the person of Jesus Christ should be proposed unto us firstly, and that described by the ad- junct of his office, and his acting therein, “ he passed into heaven.” But in the original it is a “high priest,” as formally considered, which is the object proposed unto us. And he is described,—1. By his quality and condition; he is “passed through the heavens,” 2. By the particular nomination of his person; he is “Jesus the Son of God.” Inthe condition wherein we are, we stand in need of the help and assistance of a high priest. Such a one we have. We have a high priest, as they had of old; and this such a one as “is passed through the heavens, even Jesus the Son of God.” This is the order of the words.
"Apxiepia wéyav. Arab., “the chief prince of the priests;” rightly as to sense, because of the twofold use of the word dpysepeds, for it is applied to denote two sorts of persons. First, it signifies him who was eminently and signally so called, the high priest,—that 1s Aaron, and the chief of his family, who succeeded him in the office of the
"Excovres ovy.
394 AN EXPOSITION OF THE [CHAP. Iv.
high priesthood. In the Old Testament he is called PHI IDM, 6 depeds 6 péyas, “the great priest.” This is frequently expressed by ap- xuepebs, as the Latins do it by “ pontifex,” and “pontifex maximus.” Again, the word is often used to denote them who were the princi- pal heads, rulers, or leaders of any one of the twenty-four orders which the priests were east into for the service of the temple, 1 Chron. xxiv. These are those which are intended in those places where some are expressed by name, and it is added, “ They and their brethren ;” that is, those who being of the same order with them, were yet in dignity not so conspicuous as themselves. And these in the gospel are frequently called dpysepets, as Matt. i. 4, xvi 21, xx. 18, xxi. 15, and in the other evangelists frequently. And when the word is so applied we render it by “ chief priests,” to distinguish them intended from the “high priest” properly so called, who was one set over them all, the peculiar successor of Aaron.
If the word dpyserebg be here taken in the latter sense, as it may denote a “ pontifex minorum gentium,” a high priest of the second rank and order, one of the chief priests, then the adjunct of wéyas, “ reat,” is discriminative; showing that it is not they who were merely so, but he only who was 21733 {33, “the great priest,” “pon- tifex maximus,” that is alluded unto. But if d&pysepsig do of itself denote the single high priest, Aaron, or his successor, as most fre- quently it doth, then wéyas, “ great,” is added xas” eEaiperov, by way of eminency, and is accumulative with respect unto Aaron, He isa great high priest in comparison of him, exalted above him, more excellent, glorious, powerful, and able than he. And this is that which is intended in the words; for the especial design of the apostle is to compare him with Aaron, and not with any inferior priests, as we shall see in his ensuing discourses. Therefore “a great high priest,” is one eminently, excellently, gloriously so, and that on the accounts mentioned in his subjoined description.