The Pulpit Commentary — Hebrews — Section 61

though not existing;" the word is frequent lie~ers from their state of " boncl11ge " ( as to with St. Pe.ul) him the.t had (or, has) the which, see below). On particular expressions power of death, that is, the devil ; and deliver in this pe.ssage we may remark: (1) That, (i.e. from bondage) all those who through "having the power of death " which has fear of death were all their lifetime subjeot been variously interpreted, m~y be to.ken in to bondage. Here the purpose of the Incar- the usual sense of lx«v 1<pa.-ros -rwos, viz. nation is set forth as requiring the com- "having power, or dominion, O'ller." Satan plete e.ssocie.tion of the SON with human ho.a had the dominion over death allowed brethren to which propheoy had pointed. him because of human sin. And it may be But more is now declared than the pro- observed that elsewhere, not only death but phecies so far quoted have implied; and other woes that flesh is heir to-its' pre- thus is introduced (by way of e.nticipe.tion, cursors and harbingers-are attributed to e.s is usuo.l in the Epistle) the doctrine of Satanic agency (cf. John i. 12; ii. 6; Luke atonement, which is to be dwelt on after- xiii. 16 ; 1 Car. v. 5). (2) Christ is not wards. For the object of Christ's becoming here so.id to have as yet abolished death one of us is now further so.id to be that by . itself; only to have rendered impotent him dying he might effect redemption. The that had the power of it; for natural death " children" in ver. H: a.re the ,ra,6/a. of the still "reigns," though to believers it has no type in Ise.i.e.h, fulfilled in the "many sons" "sting." In the end (according to 1 Cor. to be "sanctified" and brought to glory. xv. 26; Rev. =· 14: =i. 4) death itself (We me.y observe, by the wo.y, the differ- will be destroyed. In one passage, indeed, ence between tho words used of their it is spoken of by St. Paul as already participation in human nature and of abolished (t<a.'f'apyl,o-a.vros µ~v TOv 6dva'f'ov, Christ"s-,mcol~"'"' and µE'f'EO-X•: the aorist 2 Tim. i. 10): but this is in the way of in the latter case expresses his she.ring anticipation: death is already vanquished whe.t was not his before, and so distinctly and disarmed to believers. (3) The bondage implies his pre-existence.) For understand- (liouA,la.) spoken of is the condition of un- ing the account here given of the purpose of redeemed man, often so designated by St. the Incarnation, we must remember the.t Paul. See Hom. vii. and viii., where man's death, originally announced (Gen. ii. 17) as bondage (felt when conscience is awake) to the peno.lty of transgression, is rege.rdeu in "the law of sin in the members," o.nd his the New Testament (notably by St. Paul) em11ncipe.tion from it through fo.ith, o.re de- as the sign of the continual dominion of sin scribed; and especially viii. 15, 16, 17 over the human race. Thus in Rom. v. 12, (" For ye have not received the spirit of 15 the mere fe.ot that all men " from Adam bondage again to fear," etc.), as elucido.tino- to Moses" had died is adduced as sufficient this passage. (4) The word lvoxos, followed proof that all were under condemnation as by the genitive (6ou.\da.,), expresses here sinners. Whatever further idea is implied in more than" liability to:" it implies present the word "death "-such as alienation from implication, equivo.lent to "in hold to." God in whom is life eternal, or any "black- The A.V., "aubject to," 0%Jlresse1 the idco. ness of darkness" thereupon ensuing in the adequately. world beyond the gmvo-of man's subjection Vere. 16, 17.-For verily, eto. The A.V. or liability to o.ll this his naturo.l death is (following the ancient interpreters) takes regarded as the sign. It is to be remem this verse as referring to the Incamo.tion. bered, too, tho.t "the devil," through whom it Dut (1) lw,Aa.µ./3dveu8,u a-1rlpµa.'f'os, nnd, still was th11,t sin first entered, and death through more, ,w,Aaµ/3dv•a-6a, "rY""'""• seems o.n sin, is revealed to us genero.lly as the repre- o.wkward way of expressing "to assume sento.tive of evil (cl wo...,p&s), o.nd, as such, the nature of." The usuo.l sense of the the primeval manslayer (liv6pc.nro1t'f'O~os ll,r' verb, followed by a genitive, is "to to.ke Apxiis), with power given him over death, hold of," as lw1Aa.µ./3dv•a-6a.1 :XflpOs (Acts the penalty of sin, a.a long as man remains niii. 19: Mark viii. 23); and eapeoio.lly in in his dominion, unredeemed. Till redemp- the sense of "sucoouring" (of. Matt. xiv. tion cast a new light upon the gloom of death, 31 ; eh. viii. 9; lea. uxi. 32, 'Ev 71µ.lp'!- man was o.11 his life long in fear of it; its l1r,Aa.µ/3oµlvou µ.ou 'f'ijs 'X"POf au-roiv; o.nd sho.dow was upon him from his birth; it Ecclue. iv. 11, 'H 0-04>!11 iw,Aa.µ./3dv,n, "'"'" loomed ever before him as a passing into (11,,.ouv,,.o,v a.v,,.f,v. (2) The present tense of darkness, unrelieved by hope. We know the verb is inapproprio.te to the po.et act of the well how the hopeless dismo.lness of death Incarnation, which ho.a, moreover, been suffi- wo.s a commonplace with the classical ciently declared in ver. 14. (3) The sequence poets, o.nd how, even now, the natural man of thoughtin the following verse is not easily eh.rinks from it as the le.at great evil. But intelligible if the Incarnation be the subject Christ, human, yet sinless, died for Bll man- of this: " Whence it behoved him to be mo.ue kind, nnd, so dying, wrested from the devil like unto his brethren; "-this does not follow his power over deo.th, and emancipo.ted be. from his having become incarnate; we should 52 'l'HE EPISTLE TO 'l'HE HEBREWS, [on. IL 1-18.