10. eternal salvation; named of God a high priest Isa. 45: 17 after the order of Melchizedek.

3. Complaint and Rebuke of the Readers' Backwardness coupled with Warning and Encouragement,

II.

1.

5: 11-6: 20.

"Of 1 whom we have many things to say, and hard of interpretation, seeing ye are become dull of 12. hearing. For when by reason of the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need again that some one

2

I Or, which 2 Or, that one teach you which be the rudiments

10. Named. Or, since he is saluted. Of God. The emphasis continues to rest upon the fact that Jesus was called by God to the high priestly task. After the order of Melchizedek. And hence qualified to provide enduring, eternal salvation, whereas the high priest after Aaron's order could make only a temporary atonement, which had to be oft-repeated. The Christ has been said in the psalm to be priest forever, after Melchizedek's order. He who is priest forever brings eternal salvation.

The spiritual immaturity and sluggishness of the readers, 5: 11-6:3. II. Of whom. Better, and about him, i.e., Christ, as Melchizedek priest, or Melchizedek as a type of Christ. Many things to say. More exactly, what we have to say is considerable. Interpretation; here rather expression. What the writer has to say is hard to express intelligibly to the readers. Seeing. Rather, Since. Are become. The writer speaks of them as in their second childhood, their dotage (Bruce). These are not simply the limitations of infancy and childhood. Hearing. Lit., ears. By these reproofs the writer seeks to move the readers to attend closely to his exposition of the priesthood of Christ.

12. When. Better, although. By reason of the time. The readers have long since been evangelized, and a long Christian experience already lies behind them. Teachers. In view of their opportunity and experience. This rebuke is evidently addressed to a church especially privileged and yet slow to come to a realization of its duty to teach, -a characteristic impossible to harmonize with Jerusalem as the destination of the letter. Of the first principles. Lit., of the beginning. The rudiments of the beginning

PS. IIO: 4

1

teach you the rudiments of the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have 13. need of milk, and not of solid food. For every one

that partaketh of milk is °2 without experience of the 14. word of righteousness; for he is a babe. But solid food is for 3 full-grown men, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern good and evil.

6.

"Wherefore let 05

us cease to speak of the first princi

SVm inexperienced in.

I Gr. beginning. 3 Or, perfect 4 SV leaving the doctrine of the first principles of Christ, let us 5 Gr. leave the word of the beginning of Christ.

means the beginning-rudiments, i.e., the first principles. The usual rendering is pleonastic. The oracles of God. Ordinarily equivalent to the Old Testament scriptures, but here probably to be taken in the sense of elementary Christian instruction. That the failure of the readers lies here is further shown by 6: 1. Become such as have need. Better, come to require. Of milk. The food of infants, representative of their spiritual and intellectual immaturity. Cf. 1 Cor. 3:2. The writer has spoken of them above as in their second childhood; here they appear as infants in good earnest. And. Not part of the text, and so to be omitted. Solid food. Such as the writer desires to give them. The readers are taxed with having no stomach for lofty, exacting Christian thought, having habituated themselves to the simplest, easiest notions only.

13. Without experience. The taking of milk marks one as a babe, and so of course inexperienced. The word of righteousness. A general expression, discourse on righteousness, but with especial reference to Christian teaching. Babe. Not, as in Jesus' teaching, a synonym for simplicity and receptiveness, but as in Paul, for ignorance and inexperience.

14. This picture of experienced and discriminating maturity is designed to rouse the readers to throw off their infantile habit of mind and rise into the thought and stature of Christian manhood. Exercised to discern. Cf. the reproof given the disciples by Jesus, for their unreadiness to practise discernment in the matter of ceremonial cleanness, Mk. 7: 18.

1. Wherefore. I.e., since it is high time the readers were having the solid food, for which they are old enough, and for which they must show themselves mature enough. Cease. Better, leave alone.

ples of Christ, and press on unto 1perfection; not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works, 2. and of faith toward God, 2 of the teaching of 03 baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the 3. dead, and of eternal judgment. And this will we do, 4. if God permit. For as touching those who were once

Or, full growth 3 Or, washings

Some ancient authorities read, even the teaching of.

In spite of the unfortunate immaturity of his readers, the writer declines to take up with them the mere elements of Christian faith. Christ. Better, the Christ. Press on unto perfection. Rather, move on toward maturity, i.e., such discourse as becomes the fullgrown. A foundation; the writer shows what he means by the rudiments of Christian teaching, in the three groups that follow: repentance and faith, baptism and laying on of hands, resurrection and judgment. Dead works can hardly refer to former obedience to Jewish law, but rather suggests former wrong doing, now repented of. Repentance and faith are often placed together in the New Testament as the basis of Christian life; cf. Mk. 1: 15, etc.

2. Baptisms, laying on of hands. The natural sequels of repentance and faith, since in baptism the convert made profession of his faith, and through the laying on of hands received the gift of the Spirit. Cf. Acts 2:38; 8: 12, 17, etc. Resurrection judgment. The believer's outlook, under which he was to live (Davidson). These elements constituted the subject of the evangelistic as distinct from the edifying preaching. The outline comports altogether better with Gentile than with Jewish recipients.

3. This will we do. The writer is in these three verses primarily stating his own present intention of proceeding with a difficult teaching, despite their unreadiness for it; but his underlying purpose is to stimulate his readers to attend and accept it. If God permit. Taken in connection with what follows, these words suggest the writer's apprehensiveness that possibly for some of his readers his admonition may already be too late; they may have fallen away, vs. 6, or at least grown so dull and senile as to be incapable of being roused to Christian manhood. The words give a touch of added solemnity to the warning that follows.

The fearful consequences of apostasy, 6:4-8.

4. For. In explanation of the apprehension suggested in the last words; or, as others hold, of the writer's intention to neglect mere foundation matters, since any who had given them up would

Gen. I: II, 12

°enlightened 1 and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were 5. made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come, 6. and then fell away, it is impossible to renew them again unto repentance; 03 seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame. 7. For the land which hath drunk the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them for whose 8. sake it is also tilled, receiveth blessing from God: but if

Or, having both tasted of. and being made... and having tasted etc. tasted the word of God that it is good 3 Or, the while

2 Or,

be indifferent to a new presentation of them. Enlightened. Received illumination; often used of the initial Christian experience; cf. John 1:9; Eph. 1:18; and Heb. 10:32. Justin Martyr, ca. 150 A.D., connects it with baptism, Apol. 61, which he calls illumination. Tasted of. Better, tasted. The heavenly gift. Forgiveness of sins, or, possibly, the gift of the Spirit, like the following. Were made partakers of the Holy Ghost. I.e., had received the Spirit. The emphasis is here upon the initial experiences of the Christian, the learning of the first principles of Christ.

5. The good word of God. The gospel, or perhaps the promises in general. Powers of the age to come. The mighty works everywhere represented as attending the early acceptance of the gospel are probably meant. These are viewed as a foretaste of the state of things to be enjoyed in the coming Messianic Age.

6. Fell away. A reference to persons belonging to the church addressed who have actually apostatized is very probable here. The description of these lapsed persons strongly suggests a time of persecution, such as that under Nero or Domitian. Impossible to renew them. The warning against apostasy is put in the sternest, most uncompromising form. If, after all the blessed and delightful experiences of Christian faith, men fall away, their case is hopeless, and it is vain to pursue them with the old preaching of first principles. Seeing they crucify afresh. That is, their renewal is impossible because they practically recrucify Jesus, and hold him up to ridicule and disgrace. Apostasy implies practical assent to the rejection and murder of Jesus.

7, 8. This dreadful sentence upon the lapsed is supported by an analogy from nature presented in a little parable. Well-watered land which is fruitful is blessed, but well-watered land which pro

9.

it beareth thorns and thistles, it is rejected and nigh Gen. 3:17, unto a curse; whose end is to be burned.

01

"But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that o1 accompany salvation, though 10. We thus speak: °for God is not unrighteous to forget °your work and the love which ye shewed toward his name, in that ye ministered unto the saints, and

18

Or, are near to: SVm belong to

duces only thorns and thistles is cursed and fit only to be burned over. Whose end. Better, and its end. While the parable is left uninterpreted, its application is plain.

Encouragement in view of the readers' good works and God's oathattested promises, 6: 9–20.

9. But. The tone changes to mildness and commendation, and a more hopeful view of the readers' condition is taken. The writer will not believe that any of them are near the apostasy he has so terribly depicted. Beloved. Used in this place only in the epistle, as though in reaction from the preceding rebuke and menace. Better things. Than the barrenness and apostasy just described. Accompany. Better, belong to. Though we thus speak. The writer feels that in his anxiety to warn the readers most effectively, he has gone further than he intended, and than their condition justified. He adopts therefore a conciliatory, almost apologetic tone.

10. For. He is encouraged to this belief by the recollection of their Christian helpfulness and love, still displayed as of old. Not unrighteous. A strong way of declaring God's satisfaction in such work. To forget. Their service of love is such as God delights to remember, and evidences their salvation. Your work. Spiritually immature as the readers are, they have known hard and faithful Christian service. Toward his name. I.e., toward those who bear his name. Ministered unto the saints. This recalls Paul's interest in collections for the poor saints in Jerusalem (2 Cor. 8:4, etc.), and sufficiently distinguishes the readers from any Palestinian congregation. The service here commended is probably a larger work, of Christian helpfulness to brethren in poverty, sickness, prison, or slavery, in their own district or beyond it. The readers have an enviable record in this regard. No church of the first century had greater opportunity for such service than the Roman church, or responded more nobly to it. Cf. Acts 28: 15.