1 For every chief priest -- out of men taken -- in behalf of men is set in things `pertaining' to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins,
for every chief priest to offer both gifts and sacrifices is appointed, whence `it is' necessary for this one to have also something that he may offer;
and every priest, indeed, hath stood daily serving, and the same sacrifices many times offering, that are never able to take away sins.
which `is' a simile in regard to the present time, in which both gifts and sacrifices are offered, which are not able, in regard to conscience, to make perfect him who is serving,
who hath no necessity daily, as the chief priests, first for his own sins to offer up sacrifice, then for those of the people; for this he did once, having offered up himself;
`And thou, bring thou near unto thee Aaron thy brother, and his sons with him, from the midst of the sons of Israel, for his being priest to Me, `even' Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, sons of Aaron; and thou hast made holy garments for Aaron thy brother, for honour and for beauty; and thou -- thou dost speak unto all the wise of heart, whom I have filled `with' a spirit of wisdom, and they have made the garments of Aaron to sanctify him for his being priest to Me. `And these `are' the garments which they make: a breastplate, and an ephod, and an upper robe, and an embroidered coat, a mitre, and a girdle; yea, they have made holy garments for Aaron thy brother, and for his sons, for his being priest to Me. `And they take the gold, and the blue, and the purple, and the scarlet, and the linen, and have made the ephod of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined linen, work of a designer; it hath two shoulders joining at its two ends, and it is joined. `And the girdle of his ephod which `is' on him, according to its work, is of the same, of gold, blue, and purple, and scarlet, and twined linen. `And thou hast taken the two shoham stones, and hast opened on them the names of the sons of Israel; six of their names on the one stone, and the names of the remaining six on the second stone, according to their births; the work of an engraver in stone, openings of a signet, thou dost open the two stones by the names of the sons of Israel; turned round, embroidered `with' gold, thou dost make them. `And thou hast set the two stones on the shoulders of the ephod -- stones of memorial to the sons of Israel -- and Aaron hath borne their names before Jehovah, on his two shoulders, for a memorial. `And thou hast made embroidered things of gold, and two chains of pure gold, wreathed work thou dost make them, work of thick bands, and thou hast put the thick chains on the embroidered things.
`And this `is' the thing which thou dost to them, to hallow them, for being priests to Me: Take one bullock, a son of the herd, and two rams, perfect ones, and bread unleavened, and cakes unleavened anointed with oil, of fine wheaten flour thou dost make them, and thou hast put them on one basket, and hast brought them near in the basket, also the bullock and the two rams. `And Aaron and his sons thou dost bring near unto the opening of the tent of meeting, and hast bathed them with water; and thou hast taken the garments, and hast clothed Aaron with the coat, and the upper robe of the ephod, and the ephod, and the breastplate, and hast girded him with the girdle of the ephod, and hast set the mitre on his head, and hast put the holy crown on the mitre, and hast taken the anointing oil, and hast poured `it' on his head, and hast anointed him. `And his sons thou dost bring near, and hast clothed them `with' coats, and hast girded them `with' a girdle (Aaron and his sons), and hast bound on them bonnets; and the priesthood hath been theirs by a statute age-during, and thou hast consecrated the hand of Aaron, and the hand of his sons, and hast brought near the bullock before the tent of meeting, and Aaron hath laid -- his sons also -- their hands on the head of the bullock. `And thou hast slaughtered the bullock before Jehovah, at the opening of the tent of meeting, and hast taken of the blood of the bullock, and hast put `it' on the horns of the altar with thy finger, and all the blood thou dost pour out at the foundation of the altar; and thou hast taken all the fat which is covering the inwards, and the redundance on the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat which `is' on them, and hast made perfume on the altar; and the flesh of the bullock, and his skin, and his dung, thou dost burn with fire at the outside of the camp; it `is' a sin-offering. `And the one ram thou dost take, and Aaron and his sons have laid their hands on the head of the ram, and thou hast slaughtered the ram, and hast taken its blood, and hast sprinkled `it' on the altar round about, and the ram thou dost cut into its pieces, and hast washed its inwards, and its legs, and hast put `them' on its pieces, and on its head; and thou hast made perfume with the whole ram on the altar. It `is' a burnt-offering to Jehovah, a sweet fragrance; a fire-offering it `is' to Jehovah. `And thou hast taken the second ram, and Aaron hath laid -- his sons also -- their hands on the head of the ram, and thou hast slaughtered the ram, and hast taken of its blood, and hast put on the tip of the right ear of Aaron, and on the tip of the right ear of his sons, and on the thumb of their right hand, and on the great toe of their right foot, and hast sprinkled the blood on the altar round about; and thou hast taken of the blood which `is' on the altar, and of the anointing oil, and hast sprinkled on Aaron, and on his garments, and on his sons, and on the garments of his sons with him, and he hath been hallowed, he, and his garments, and his sons, and the garments of his sons with him. `And thou hast taken from the ram the fat, and the fat tail, and the fat which is covering the inwards, and the redundance on the liver, and the two kidneys, and the fat which `is' on them, and the right leg, for it `is' a ram of consecration, and one round cake of bread, and one cake of oiled bread, and one thin cake out of the basket of the unleavened things which `is' before Jehovah. `And thou hast set the whole on the hands of Aaron, and on the hands of his sons, and hast waved them -- a wave-offering before Jehovah; and thou hast taken them out of their hand, and hast made perfume on the altar beside the burnt-offering, for sweet fragrance before Jehovah; a fire-offering it `is' to Jehovah. `And thou hast taken the breast from the ram of the consecration which `is' for Aaron, and hast waved it -- a wave-offering before Jehovah, and it hath become thy portion; and thou hast sanctified the breast of the wave-offering, and the leg of the heave-offering, which hath been waved, and which hath been lifted up from the ram of the consecration, of that which `is' for Aaron, and of that which `is' for his sons; and it hath been for Aaron and for his sons, by a statute age-during from the sons of Israel, for it `is' a heave-offering; and it is a heave offering from the sons of Israel, from the sacrifices of their peace-offerings -- their heave-offering to Jehovah. `And the holy garments which are Aaron's, are for his sons after him, to be anointed in them, and to consecrate in them their hand; seven days doth the priest in his stead (of his sons) put them on, when he goeth in unto the tent of meeting, to minister in the sanctuary. `And the ram of the consecration thou dost take, and hast boiled its flesh in the holy place; and Aaron hath eaten -- his sons also -- the flesh of the ram, and the bread which `is' in the basket, at the opening of the tent of meeting; and they have eaten those things by which there is atonement to consecrate their hand, to sanctify them; and a stranger doth not eat -- for they `are' holy; and if there be left of the flesh of the consecration or of the bread till the morning, then thou hast burned that which is left with fire; it is not eaten, for it `is' holy. `And thou hast done thus to Aaron and to his sons, according to all that I have commanded thee; seven days thou dost consecrate their hand; and a bullock, a sin-offering, thou dost prepare daily for the atonements, and thou hast atoned for the altar, in thy making atonement on it, and hast anointed it to sanctify it; seven days thou dost make atonement for the altar, and hast sanctified it, and the altar hath been most holy; all that is coming against the altar is holy.
and Moses saith unto Aaron, `Take the censer, and put on it fire from off the altar, and place perfume, and go, hasten unto the company, and make atonement for them, for the wrath hath gone out from the presence of Jehovah -- the plague hath begun.' And Aaron taketh as Moses hath spoken, and runneth unto the midst of the assembly, and lo, the plague hath begun among the people; and he giveth the perfume, and maketh atonement for the people, and standeth between the dead and the living, and the plague is restrained;
And Moses saith unto Aaron, `Draw near unto the altar, and make thy sin-offering, and thy burnt-offering, and make atonement for thyself, and for the people, and make the offering of the people, and make atonement for them, as Jehovah hath commanded.'
And he bringeth near the offering of the people, and taketh the goat of the sin-offering which `is' for the people, and slaughtered it, and maketh it a sin-offering, like the first; and he bringeth near the burnt-offering, and maketh it, according to the ordinance; and he bringeth near the present, and filleth his palm with it, and maketh perfume on the altar, apart from the burnt-offering of the morning. And he slaughtereth the bullock and the ram, a sacrifice of the peace-offerings, which `are' for the people, and sons of Aaron present the blood unto him (and he sprinkleth it on the altar round about), and the fat of the bullock, and of the ram, the fat tail, and the covering `of the inwards', and the kidneys, and the redundance above the liver, and they set the fat on the breasts, and he maketh perfume with the fat on the altar; and the breasts, and the right leg hath Aaron waved -- a wave-offering before Jehovah, as He hath commanded Moses.
And Jehovah saith unto Aaron, `Thou, and thy sons, and the house of thy father with thee, do bear the iniquity of the sanctuary; and thou, and thy sons with thee, do bear the iniquity of your priesthood; and also thy brethren, the tribe of Levi, the tribe of thy father, bring near with thee, and they are joined unto thee, and serve thee, even thou and thy sons with thee, before the tent of the testimony. `And they have kept thy charge, and the charge of all the tent; only, unto the vessels of the sanctuary and unto the altar they do not come near, and they die not, either they or you;
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible » Commentary on Hebrews 5
Commentary on Hebrews 5 Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
CHAPTER 5
Heb 5:1-14. Christ's High Priesthood; Needed Qualifications; Must Be a Man; Must Not Have Assumed the Dignity Himself, but Have Been Appointed by God; Their Low Spiritual Perceptions a Bar to Paul's Saying All He Might on Christ's Melchisedec-like Priesthood.
1. For—substantiating Heb 4:15.
every—that is, every legitimate high priest; for instance, the Levitical, as he is addressing Hebrews, among whom the Levitical priesthood was established as the legitimate one. Whatever, reasons Paul, is excellent in the Levitical priests, is also in Christ, and besides excellencies which are not in the Levitical priests.
taken from among men—not from among angels, who could not have a fellow feeling with us men. This qualification Christ has, as being, like the Levitical priest, a man (Heb 2:14, 16). Being "from men," He can be "for (that is, in behalf of, for the good of) men."
ordained—Greek, "constituted," "appointed."
both gifts—to be joined with "for sins," as "sacrifices" is (the "both … and" requires this); therefore not the Hebrew, "mincha," "unbloody offerings," but animal whole burnt offerings, spontaneously given. "Sacrifices" are the animal sacrifices due according to the legal ordinance [Estius].
2. Who can—Greek, "being able"; not pleasing himself (Ro 15:3).
have compassion—Greek, "estimate mildly," "feel leniently," or "moderately towards"; "to make allowance for"; not showing stern rigor save to the obstinate (Heb 10:28).
ignorant—sins not committed in resistance of light and knowledge, but as Paul's past sin (1Ti 1:13). No sacrifice was appointed for wilful sin committed with a high hand; for such were to be punished with death; all other sins, namely, ignorances and errors, were confessed and expiated with sacrifices by the high priest.
out of the way—not deliberately and altogether wilfully erring, but deluded through the fraud of Satan and their own carnal frailty and thoughtlessness.
infirmity—moral weakness which is sinful, and makes men capable of sin, and so requires to be expiated by sacrifices. This kind of "infirmity" Christ had not; He had the "infirmity" of body whereby He was capable of suffering and death.
3. by reason hereof—"on account of this" infirmity.
he ought … also for himself, to offer for sins—the Levitical priest ought; in this our High Priest is superior to the Levitical. The second "for" is a different Greek term from the first; "in behalf of the people … on account of sins."
4. no man—of any other family but Aaron's, according to the Mosaic law, can take to himself the office of high priest. This verse is quoted by some to prove the need of an apostolic succession of ordination in the Christian ministry; but the reference here is to the priesthood, not the Christian ministry. The analogy in our Christian dispensation would warn ministers, seeing that God has separated them from the congregation of His people to bring them near Himself, and to do the service of His house, and to minister (as He separated the Levites, Korah with his company), that content with this, they should beware of assuming the sacrificial priesthood also, which belongs to Christ alone. The sin of Korah was, not content with the ministry as a Levite, he took the sacerdotal priesthood also. No Christian minister, as such, is ever called Hiereus, that is, sacrificing priest. All Christians, without distinction, whether ministers or people, have a metaphorical, not a literal, priesthood. The sacrifices which they offer are spiritual, not literal, their bodies and the fruit of their lips, praises continually (Heb 13:15). Christ alone had a proper and true sacrifice to offer. The law sacrifices were typical, not metaphorical, as the Christian's, nor proper and true, as Christ's. In Roman times the Mosaic restriction of the priesthood to Aaron's family was violated.
5. glorified not himself—did not assume the glory of the priestly office of Himself without the call of God (Joh 8:54).
but he that said—that is, the Father glorified Him or appointed Him to the priesthood. This appointment was involved in, and was the result of, the Sonship of Christ, which qualified Him for it. None but the divine Son could have fulfilled such an office (Heb 10:5-9). The connection of Sonship and priesthood is typified in the Hebrew title for priests being given to David's sons (2Sa 8:18). Christ did not constitute Himself the Son of God, but was from everlasting the only-begotten of the Father. On His Sonship depended His glorification, and His being called of God (Heb 5:10), as Priest.
6. He is here called simply "Priest"; in Heb 5:5, "High Priest." He is a Priest absolutely, because He stands alone in that character without an equal. He is "High Priest" in respect of the Aaronic type, and also in respect to us, whom He has made priests by throwing open to us access to God [Bengel]. "The order of Melchisedec" is explained in Heb 7:15, "the similitude of Melchisedec." The priesthood is similarly combined with His kingly office in Zec 6:13. Melchisedec was at once man, priest, and king. Paul's selecting as the type of Christ one not of the stock of Abraham, on which the Jews prided themselves, is an intimation of Messianic universalism.
7. in the days of his flesh—(Heb 2:14; 10:20). Heb 5:7-10 state summarily the subject about to be handled more fully in the seventh and eighth chapters.
when he had offered—rather, "in that He offered." His crying and tears were part of the experimental lesson of obedience which He submitted to learn from the Father (when God was qualifying Him for the high priesthood). "Who" is to be construed with "learned obedience" (or rather as Greek, "His obedience"; "the obedience" which we all know about). This all shows that "Christ glorified not Himself to be made an High Priest" (Heb 5:5), but was appointed thereto by the Father.
prayers and supplications—Greek, "both prayers and supplications." In Gethsemane, where He prayed thrice, and on the cross, where He cried, My God, my God … probably repeating inwardly all the twenty-second Psalm. "Prayers" refer to the mind: "supplications" also to the body (namely, the suppliant attitude) (Mt 26:39) [Bengel].
with strong crying and tears—The "tears" are an additional fact here communicated to us by the inspired apostle, not recorded in the Gospels, though implied. Mt 26:37, "sorrowful and very heavy." Mr 14:33; Lu 22:44, "in an agony He prayed more earnestly … His sweat … great drops of blood falling down to the ground." Ps 22:1 ("roaring … cry"), Ps 22:2, 19, 21, 24; 69:3, 10, "I wept."
able to save him from death—Mr 14:36, "All things are possible unto Thee" (Joh 12:27). His cry showed His entire participation of man's infirmity: His reference of His wish to the will of God, His sinless faith and obedience.
heard in that he feared—There is no intimation in the twenty-second Psalm, or the Gospels that Christ prayed to be saved from the mere act of dying. What He feared was the hiding of the Father's countenance. His holy filial love must rightly have shrunk from this strange and bitterest of trials without the imputation of impatience. To have been passively content at the approach of such a cloud would have been, not faith, but sin. The cup of death He prayed to be freed from was, not corporal, but spiritual death, that is, the (temporary) separation of His human soul from the light of God's countenance. His prayer was "heard" in His Father's strengthening Him so as to hold fast His unwavering faith under the trial (My God, my God, was still His filial cry under it, still claiming God as His, though God hid His face), and soon removing it in answer to His cry during the darkness on the cross, "My God, my God," &c. But see below a further explanation of how He was heard. The Greek literally, is, "Was heard from His fear," that is, so as to be saved from His fear. Compare Ps 22:21, which well accords with this, "Save me from the lion's mouth (His prayer): thou hast heard me from the horns of the unicorns." Or what better accords with the strict meaning of the Greek noun, "in consequence of His REVERENTIAL FEAR," that is, in that He shrank from the horrors of separation from the bright presence of the Father, yet was reverentially cautious by no thought or word of impatience to give way to a shadow of distrust or want of perfect filial love. In the same sense Heb 12:28 uses the noun, and Heb 11:7 the verb. Alford somewhat similarly translates, "By reason of His reverent submission." I prefer "reverent fear." The word in derivation means the cautious handling of some precious, yet delicate vessel, which with ruder handling might easily be broken [Trench]. This fully agrees with Jesus' spirit, "If it be possible … nevertheless not My will, but Thy will be done"; and with the context, Heb 5:5, "Glorified not Himself to be made an High Priest," implying reverent fear: wherein it appears He had the requisite for the office specified Heb 5:4, "No man taketh this honor unto himself." Alford well says, What is true in the Christian's life, that what we ask from God, though He may not grant in the form we wish, yet He grants in His own, and that a better form, does not hold good in Christ's case; for Christ's real prayer, "not My will, but Thine be done," in consistency with His reverent fear towards the Father, was granted in the very form in which it was expressed, not in another.
8. Though He WAS (so it ought to be translated: a positive admitted fact: not a mere supposition as were would imply) God's divine Son (whence, even in His agony, He so lovingly and often cried, Father, Mt 26:39), yet He learned His (so the Greek) obedience, not from His Sonship, but from His sufferings. As the Son, He was always obedient to the Father's will; but the special obedience needed to qualify Him as our High Priest, He learned experimentally in practical suffering. Compare Php 2:6-8, "equal with God, but … took upon Him the form of a servant, and became obedient unto death," &c. He was obedient already before His passion, but He stooped to a still more humiliating and trying form of obedience then. The Greek adage is, "Pathemata mathemata," "sufferings, disciplinings." Praying and obeying, as in Christ's case, ought to go hand in hand.
9. made perfect—completed, brought to His goal of learning and suffering through death (Heb 2:10) [Alford], namely, at His glorious resurrection and ascension.
author—Greek, "cause."
eternal salvation—obtained for us in the short "days of Jesus' flesh" (Heb 5:7; compare Heb 5:6, "for ever," Isa 45:17).
unto all … that obey him—As Christ obeyed the Father, so must we obey Him by faith.
10. Greek, rather, "Addressed by God (by the appellation) High Priest." Being formally recognized by God as High Priest at the time of His being "made perfect" (Heb 5:9). He was High Priest already in the purpose of God before His passion; but after it, when perfected, He was formally addressed so.
11. Here he digresses to complain of the low spiritual attainments of the Palestinian Christians and to warn them of the danger of falling from light once enjoyed; at the same time encouraging them by God's faithfulness to persevere. At Heb 6:20 he resumes the comparison of Christ to Melchisedec.
hard to be uttered—rather as Greek, "hard of interpretation to speak." Hard for me to state intelligibly to you owing to your dulness about spiritual things. Hence, instead of saying many things, he writes in comparatively few words (Heb 13:22). In the "we," Paul, as usual, includes Timothy with himself in addressing them.
ye are—Greek, "ye have become dull" (the Greek, by derivation, means hard to move): this implies that once, when first "enlightened," they were earnest and zealous, but had become dull. That the Hebrew believers AT Jerusalem were dull in spiritual things, and legal in spirit, appears from Ac 21:20-24, where James and the elders expressly say of the "thousands of Jews which believe," that "they are all zealous of the law"; this was at Paul's last visit to Jerusalem, after which this Epistle seems to have been written (see on Heb 5:12, on "for the time").
12. for the time—considering the long time that you have been Christians. Therefore this Epistle was not one of those written early.
which be the first principles—Greek, "the rudiments of the beginning of." A Pauline phrase (see on Ga 4:3; Ga 4:9). Ye need not only to be taught the first elements, but also "which they be." They are therefore enumerated Heb 6:1, 2 [Bengel]. Alford translates, "That someone teach you the rudiments"; but the position of the Greek, "tina," inclines me to take it interrogatively, "which," as English Version, Syriac, Vulgate, &c.
of the oracles of God—namely, of the Old Testament: instead of seeing Christ as the end of the Old Testament Scripture, they were relapsing towards Judaism, so as not only not to be capable of understanding the typical reference to Christ of such an Old Testament personage as Melchisedec, but even much more elementary references.
are become—through indolence.
milk … not … strong meat—"Milk" refers to such fundamental first principles as he enumerates in Heb 6:1, 2. The solid meat, or food, is not absolutely necessary for preserving life, but is so for acquiring greater strength. Especially in the case of the Hebrews, who were much given to allegorical interpretations of their law, which they so much venerated, the application of the Old Testament types, to Christ and His High Priesthood, was calculated much to strengthen them in the Christian faith [Limborch].
13. useth—Greek, "partaketh," that is, taketh as his portion. Even strong men partake of milk, but do not make milk their chief, much less their sole, diet.
the word of righteousness—the Gospel wherein "the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith" (Ro 1:17), and which is called "the ministration of righteousness" (2Co 3:9). This includes the doctrine of justification and sanctification: the first principles, as well as the perfection, of the doctrine of Christ: the nature of the offices and person of Christ as the true Melchisedec, that is, "King of righteousness" (compare Mt 3:15).
14. strong meat—"solid food."
them … of full age—literally, "perfect": akin to "perfection" (Heb 6:1).
by reason of use—Greek, "habit."
senses—organs of sense.
exercised—similarly connected with "righteousness" in Heb 12:11.
to discern both good and evil—as a child no longer an infant (Isa 7:16): so able to distinguish between sound and unsound doctrine. The mere child puts into its mouth things hurtful and things nutritious, without discrimination: but not so the adult. Paul again alludes to their tendency not to discriminate, but to be carried about by strange doctrines, in Heb 13:9.