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μεθα- μὴ πάλιν θεμέλιον καταβαλλόμενοι μετανοίας ἀπὸ νεκρῶν
5 A , A A ἔργων, Kal πίστεως ἐπὶ Θεὸν, 2. βαπτισμῶν διδαχῆς, ἐπιθέσεώς τε
1T.R. in SACDEKL, vg.; διδαχην in Β.
of repentance and faith.” But Dr. Bruce returns to the idea that six articles are mentioned as forming the foundation, and Westcott, although adopting the reading διδαχήν, makes no use of it. Balfour (Central Truths) in an elaborate paper on the passage suggests that only four articles are mentioned, the words, βαπτισμῶν .. . χειρῶν being introduced parenthetically, because the writer can- not refrain from pointing out that repent- ance and faith were respectively taught by two legal rites, baptism and laying on of hands. The probability, however, is, as we Shall see, that six fundamentals are intended, and that they are not so non-Christian as is sometimes supposed. These six fundamentals are arranged in three pairs, the first of which is μετανοίας . . « Θεόν “repentance from dead works and faith toward God”. Repentance and faith are conjoined in Mark i. 15; Actsixx 21: ο. τ Thess. i. Ὁ. παν are found together in Scripture because they are conjoined in life, and are indeed but different aspects of one spiritual act. A man repents because a new belief has found entrance into his mind. Repent- ance is here characterised as ἀπὸ νεκρῶν ἔργων. Many explanations are given. [‘‘Hanc vero phrasin apud scriptores Judaicos mihi nondum occurrisse lubens fateor” (Schoettgen).] The only other place where works are thus designated is ix. 14, where the blood of Christ is said to cleanse the conscience from dead works and thus to fit for the worship of the living God; on which Chrysostom remarks εἴ Tis ἥψατο τότε νεκροῦ ἐμιαί- νετο " καὶ ἐνταῦθα εἴ τις ἅψαιτο νεκροῦ ἔργου, μολύνεται διὰ τῆς συνειδήσεως, as if sins were called ‘‘ dead” simply be- cause they defile and unfit for God’s worship. [On this view Weiss τε- marks, “ wenigstens etwas Richtiges zu Grunde ”.] Others think that ‘“‘dead” here means ‘‘deadly” or ‘‘death-bring- ing”; so Peirce; or that it is meant that sins have no strength, are ‘‘ devoid of life and power”; so Tholuck, Alford ; or are “‘ vain and fruitless ” (Liinemann). Hofmann says that every work is dead in which there is not inherent any life from God. Similarly Westcott, who says: ‘‘ There is but one spring of life and all which does not flow from it is
‘dead’. All acts of a man in himself, separated from God, are ‘ dead works ’.” Davidson thinks that this is ‘ hardly enough,” and adds ‘‘ they seem so called because being sinful they belong to the sphere of that which is separate from the living God, the sphere of death (ii. 14, etc.)”. Rather it may be said that dead works are such as have no living connec- tion with the character but are done in mere compliance with the law and there- fore accomplish nothing. They are like a dead fleece laid on a wolf, not a part of his life and growing out of him. Cf. Bleek and Weiss. Such repentance was especially necessary in Jewish Christians. καὶ πίστεως ἐπὶ θεόν, the counterpart of the preceding. The abandonment of formal, external righteousness results from confidence in God as faithful to His promises and furnishing an open way to Himself. What is meant is not only faith in God’s existence, which of course had not to be taught to a Jew, but trust in God. Faith is either eis, πρός, ἐν, Or ἐπί as union, relation, rest, or direction is meant (Vaughan).
Ver. 2. The next pair, βαπτισμῶν διδαχῆς ἐπιθέσεώς τε χειρῶν ““ instruc tion regarding washings and laying on of hands”. ‘‘ The historical sequence is followed in the enumeration”. Some interpreters make all three conditions directly dependent on θεμέλιον, “ founda- tion of baptisms, teaching, and laying on of hands”. Bengel makes διδαχῆς de- pendent on Barr. He says: '"βαπτι- σμοὶ διδαχῆς erant baptismi, quos qui suscipiebant, doctrinae sacrae Judacorum sese addicebant. Itaque adjecto διδαχῆς