The Pulpit Commentary — Hebrews — Section 95

Ver. 1.-Wherefore, holy brethren, par- case " constitute," not " create'' (so Ge- takers of a heavenly oaJ.lillg, consider the aenius). The preceding words, d1r&,no/\.0111eal Apostle and High Priest of our oonteasion, l.px«pfa, though it is not necessary to supply 1es118 (Xpur.-bv before '1710'01111 is ill supported, them as understood, may be taken here to rule and to be rejected from the text). Reference the meaning of ,ro,1jaa.,,.,., (cf. for a similar to whnt has gone before is perceptible use of the verb without a second accusative throughout this verse. The persons ad- following, Mark iii. 14, ,ea.I l1roC11a• B.So,,ca. dressed are •• holy," as being nmong the Thus the Arian inference from the word "Bllnctified" (eh. ii. 11); "brethren," as that Christ is represented as a creature, i; being, with the writer, in this relation to groundless. Nor need reference be sup- Christ (eh. ii. 11, 12, 13, 17); their calling posed to his human birth or conception the is a heavenly one, being from heaven (eh. temporalia generatio of the man j esus i. l) and to heaven (eh. ii. 10). Jesus is (Athnnasins, Ambrose, and other Father•). their" Apostle," as having been sent into the Certainly not to his eternal generation (11s world, as above set forth, from God ; their Bleek and Liinemann); snch reference is "High Priest," as implied, though not dis- foreign to the idea of the passage ; nor tinctly expressed, at the end of eh. ii., could the word ,ro1Ei'v with any propriety be which led up to the idea. "Jesus" is so used. added at the end in apposition, so 118 to Ver. 3.-P'or of more glory than Moses fix attention on him, as the bearer of these hath this man (so A.V., for o~Tor, sup- titles, who was known by that name in the plying "m11n," though it is to be observed flesh. On the title "Apostle," we may that the humanity of the person spoken of observe thnt, though it is nowhere else in is not expressed in the original) been the New Testament applied to Christ, yet oounted worthy (11(lo,-ra1: cf. Luke vii. 7; its idea with respect to him is frequent both l Tim. v. 17; oh. x. 2-1; 2 Thess. i. 11), by in this Epistle and elsewhere (cf. Luke so muoh as more honour than the house hath iv. 43; ix. 48; x. 16; John xvii. 3, 18, eto.). he that built (or, established) it. Here the The word 6µ0/1.0-,£11 (trnnslnted "confession;" account of Christ's superiority to Moses in the A.V., "profession") is g"nerally used begins. On the severo.l expressions used for the Christian's avowal of his faith before we remark: (1) The initiatory -yap connects men (cf. eh. iv. H; x. 23; 2 Cor. ix. 13; the sentence logicnlly with 1<11.-a.11of,o-11n iu l Tim. vi 12). The genitive here depends ver. 1, and thus retains its usuo.l sense of on both the preceding substantives, its " for." (2) The form of comparisori in the force probo.bly being that Jesus, as Apostle Greek, 71J\.,fo11or Trapa., is the same W! in eh. nnd High Priest, is the object of our con- i. 4, where the account of Christ's superiority fession of faith. On Jesus, then, being to angela began (on which see supra). (3) such, the renders o.re called to fix earnestly The "glory" (li&(a.) here assigned to Christ their mento.l gaze, o.nd in doing so take is the" glory nnd honour" spoken of above further note of his superiority to Moses, as attained by him in consequence of hi11 which is the subject of what follows. humnn obedience (cf. oh. ii. 9, "becnuse Ver. 2.-Who was faithful (or, a, being of tho suffering of denth crowned with glory (aitlifu"l) to him that appointed (literu.lly, and honour"). This, rather than" the glory ,nade) him, as also l'd:osss wns in all his he hnd with the Fnther before the worhl house. The reference is to what wns enid wns" (John xvii. 5), is suggested by the of Moses (Numb. xii. 7), "l\Iy servo.nt word i,((w.-11,, ns well as by the drift of tho Moses is not so, who is faithful iu nll mine preceding cho.pters. We may suppose nlso house," nnd serves npUy to introduce the a t-eference, in contro.st, to the tro.nsitory intended comparison of Christ with him. "glory" on the countcno.nce of Moses Ur In respeot of faithfulness to him who con- ,c11.-11p-youµl1111), whioh is contro.ste<l (2 Cor. stituted him in his office, Christ resembles iii.) with the ~.,,,pfJa.J\.J\.ovo-11 liot11 in Christ. Moses; in respect to his office itself, it is to We observe, further, thnt in the latter pnrt be shown thnt he is far above him. Observe of the verse .-,µf, is substituted for Boca, a,i ( l) that " his house " menns God's house, ns more suitnble to the mundane comparison is plain from the text cited, i.e. the house of a house o.nd its builder. (-1) K11.-a.a,c,ucl(,111 of him who appointed him; (2) that" in all mny include the idea of fitting_ u_p n~d his Louse" has reference to Moses only, furnishing o. house ns _well o.s bu1I_drng 1t. not to Christ; for the main point of what But who.t is the drift of the intended follows is thnt Christ is over God's house, argument? It is usual, with the Fo.thers not in it, as Moses was, As to the verb generu.lly, to suppose tho.t Christ (oy.-o,) ill Tro,f,o-11na. (translated in A.V. "appointed"), intended to he denoted ns tho Bu1hlcr or it mny have been suggested by l 8nm. xii. Esto.blisher of the house in which l\Ioso~ 6, where the LXX. re11ds Kvp,o< 6 710(710-a.s wo.s a servo.nt, and thnt the nrgument is .-011 Mwua;j11 ,c11l .-011 'A11pw11, the Hebrew verb thut he, ll8 such, is necessarily greater tho.u being i1~)1, whioh seems to mean in thid tho servo.nt, who wne but a pa1·t of tho 86 THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. [oH, m.1-19.