AN abstract consideration of a passage of Scripture, irrespective of its context, generally leads to error,-a. remark particularly applicable to the one now to be considered; and which may account, in a great measure, for the variety of inconsistent and unsatisfactory explanations which commentators have offered of it. Confessedly difficult as it is, it is hoped the following exposition will commend itself to the spiritual judgment of the saints; and, by the divine blessing, remove a stumbling-block from the way of many.
(* This tract is simply an abridgment of the pamphlet of the same title. It is not designed at all to take the place of the latter, which is very valuable; but to render the substance of the truth it contains more accessible to those of limited means and leisure.)
The character stamped upon the whole epistle to the Hebrews, especially marks this portion of it; it is briefly this: Warning to Hebrews professing Christianity, exposed to persecution without,-and having to contend with their natural unbelief, and habitual attachment to the laws and institutions of Moses within-against a willful and deliberate return to Judaism. Much of the difficulty of the passage may be removed by a closer translation, which is 'here given.
"Therefore, leaving the word of the beginning of Christ (see margin), let us go on unto perfection, not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God; of the doctrine of washings, and of laying on of hands; and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. And this will we do, if indeed God permit. For it is impossible to renew unto repentance those who have been once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and been made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come, and have fallen away again seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put Him to an open shame. For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them for whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God. But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing, whose end is to be burned."
The several clauses of this passage will now be considered in succession.
1. " Leaving the word of the beginning of Christ." This does not mean leaving the first principles or foundation-truths of Christianity, but those doctrines, the belief of which constituted a man a Jew. This is clearly gathered from what follows, which does"- not give the gospel at length (compare it for example with Acts 16:31; Rom. 4:23-25). The " word of the beginning of Christ," means generally all teaching concerning Christ previous to the perfect and full revelation of Him. Its special meaning depends upon the times and persons spoken of in connection with it. Thus to Adam this " word," &c., was prophetic, the single promise. (Gen. 3:15.) To Abel it was, in addition to what went before-typical-the lamb slain. To Abraham it was all this, and promises and figures given, specially to him besides; and so on, until the Jewish dispensation, into which they were all drawn up and embodied; and then, to the Jews, " the word of the beginning of Christ," was the laws and institutions of Moses; and the Prophets and the Psalms added, as it were, but so many more letters to the alphabet, by which they spelled out Christ: for it was, after all, but an alphabet; it was but "the word of the beginning of Christ.'' This explanation appears the more confirmed, by referring to the previous chapter (v.), which, indeed, ought not to have been separated from the present one, and to which we are expressly directed by the word with which this one begins, " therefore," &c. The apostle had told the Hebrews that when on account of the time they ought to be teachers, they had need that one should teach them again, " what were the elements of the beginning of the oracles of God" (Gr.); it was needful, that is, to teach them again the true and spiritual import of " the elements of the beginning of the oracles of God," by which expression the most elementary of the Jewish elements are signified, under which the simpler truths of Christianity were set forth; they were unprepared for an explanation of those higher elements, in which were wrapped up the deeper mysteries of the Christian faith; he calls them "babes," without experience (margin) in the word of righteousness, in contradistinction to those who were of "full age," or perfect (margin). This same comparison occurs in 1 Cor. 3:1, which compared with 2: 6, gives us the meaning of the word babes in both places, as well as what the apostle means by the " perfect or those "of full age." The former denote such believers, who from their carnal walk and instability, were unfit for aught but elementary instruction; the latter such as were steadfast in elementary truths, and prepared for further attainment in the knowledge of mysteries. It was the Hebrews being in the condition of the former, that made the apostle break off, whilst unfolding (as he had been doing from the beginning of the epistle) the apostolic and priestly offices of Christ, and when about to speak of Melchisedec, in order to rebuke them for their slowness, and warn them of their danger: their danger as Hebrews being not simply unpreparedness to receive higher teaching, but the cause of this unpreparedness in them, the tendency, that is, of their hearts to rest in those things as substance, which he had been treating of as shadows, and thus deliberately to apostatize, and become involved in hopeless ruin.
2. "Let us go on unto perfection." We have seen, that babes means here, not persons who have need always to feed upon the milk, that is, the simple truths of Christianity (this is most needful for all)
but such as actually required to be taught over again what these elementary truths were. To them are opposed those " of full age"-perfect, not because of their advanced knowledge, but because being habituated to the milk, that is, having received and fed upon the elementary truths, they were prepared for strong meat. So far, then, from desiring the first to leave (to dismiss or put away, Gr.) the first principles of Christianity behind, it is to those very principles he presses them to go forward, leaving the Jewish elements behind. Now this is called perfection in the dispensational sense in which the word is used throughout this epistle. (See 7: 11, 18, 19; 9: 9; 10: 1, 2; 11: 40.) As a living body is more perfect than a lifeless shadow, so is the covenant under which we stand entitled to be called perfect-perfect as to apostleship-as to priesthood-as to sacrifice. It is true there is a perfection to which even the established believer is often urged to pres 3 on, though not in this passage. But it is a moral perfection: his perfectness and completeness in Christ being the goal from which he starts; likeness to Christ being the point towards which he reaches (2 Cor. 7:1; 1 Thess. 5:23; Col. 2: 10; compare 4: 12, &c.; Phil. 3:12, comp. ver. 16). In this sense we are exhorted to be " perfect, as our Father which is in heaven is perfect."
3. " Not laying again the foundation." This is readily understood to be the same as the "word of the beginning of Christ." The special foundation of the present dispensation is spoken of in 1 Cor. 3:10. The foundation of the last dispensation is comprised in the particulars which follow,-repentance from dead works, &c. The new foundation is similar to the old foundation in its scope and end, but quite distinct from it in character: so much so, that now -to build upon the old is to reject the new; and this is to reject Christ (Gal. 5:2), &c. This was Paul's fear for the Hebrews, and therefore he exhorts them not to lay again the old foundation. If his words applied to the new foundation, he would rather, in case they had renounced it, have urged them strongly to lay it again. Other Scriptures besides throw light on this expression, "laying again." (See Rom. 8:15; Gal. 2:18; 4: 9.) This last is indeed a case quite parallel with the one before us. That the above is, however, the true interpretation of this clause, is most evident further from the examination of the particulars comprised in this foundation-particulars in which we find no mention of the name or the work of Christ, or anything to bear out the common idea, that the passage is an enumeration of the principles of what is distinctively Christian doctrine. Who, indeed, would give it as a statement of the gospel (although the gospel is contained in it, as it is in many of the shadowy Jewish ordinances and other Scriptures) to a poor sinner, who inquired, " What shall I do to be saved l" it is the full creed of a spiritual Jew. True, there are doctrines enumerated in it which are essential to Christianity, but not less essential at the same time to all true religion at all times. If, then, it be shown that these doctrines were all known to the Jews, whilst some of them are exclusively Jewish, then, of course, to preach them alone would be to " lay again " the old foundation-to preach Judaism-to reject Christ.
4. " Repentance from dead works." The character of true repentance is the same under all dispensations. It is hardly necessary to adduce proofs that it was a thing understood by the Jews. Take, for example, the confessions and repentance of Job, Daniel, Josiah, Ezra, Nehemiah, &c.; the national confessions of sin, and declared resolutions of amendment (Judg. 10:15,16; Neh. 9:1-3), &c.; the exhortations of the prophets (for example, Jer. 4:4-14; Joel 2:12), &c.; and, lastly, the national promises (Deut. 30:1), &c. The doctrine of repentance was also taught in various ceremonial ordinances. To us now it is intimately connected with the name and work of Jesus (Acts 5:31;17: 30,31; 20: 21), &c. Apart from the cross, or the grace of Christ, we cannot fully know it as we ought. In this passage, however, it stands unconnected with either-with anything that is peculiar to the present dispensation.
" Faith toward God." This is not simply believing in God, but believing. God, his word, his promises, &c. In the eleventh chapter we have examples of this faith, not only under the Jewish dispensation, but from the world's infancy: its definition is given in verse 1 and 6 (comp. verse 26 and 27). But even giving this, its highest sense, to the doctrine of " faith toward God," necessarily common to all dispensations, it is presented to us in a new and blessed connection (John 14:1; Rom. 4:24, &d.; 1 John 3:1). In our mind, the doctrines of faith and repentance are linked with associations which never entered the mind of a Hebrew. It is necessary to remember this, to put ourselves in their place, in order to understand the meaning of such words in their present connection.
" The doctrine of baptisms." The word here translated baptisms, and generally understood to mean in this place Christian baptism, is different in the original to the word used for that ordinance. It is to be remarked, too, that it is in the plural, whereas in the present dispensation we have but one baptism (Eph. 4:5), &c. There are but three other places in the New Testament, besides this passage, where the Greek word occurs in the plural; and. in each of these places it is applied-not to Christian baptism, but to the Jewish washings. (See Mark 7:4,8, which illustrates the use of the word, notwithstanding that the washings there' alluded to were a superstitious abuse of similar divine ordinances. Lev. 11:32.) Heb. 9:10 exhibits a completely parallel use of the word, which is there employed in the same sense, and with the same object, as in the passage before us., For the most important of these washings under the Jewish dispensation, see Ex. 29:4; Lev. 14:8,9;15:13. They represented the washing of regeneration, and renewing of the Holy Ghost, and were also typical of that mighty agent the Spirit of Life. A master in Israel should have known the truth they conveyed (John 3:5,9,12); for it was taught both by type and prophecy (see Jer. 4:4,14; Ezek. 36:25,26), &c. This plural word, baptisms, or washings, is never in the New Testament applied to Christian baptism. This latter ordinance, whilst symbolizing all the truth taught by the Jewish baptisms, does far more; for it represents the death and resurrection of the believer, by virtue of union with Jesus (Rom. 6:3-13; 1 Peter 3:21); things hidden, and not known under the earthly dispensation (Eph. 2:4,6; 3: 4-10).
7. "The laying on of hands." A variety of unsatisfactory interpretations have been given of this, as also of the preceding clause, arising from an erroneous view of the whole passage; but all difficulty disappears, if we regard this article as a Jewish element (see the various ordinances connected with laying on of hands in Ex. 29:10; Lev. 1:4; 3: 2; 4: 4; and 16: 21). All these were declarative of the great truth, that "without shedding of blood there is no remission." He who laid his hand on the victim's head, acknowledged that he deserved to die the death of the victim, but looked for mercy and forgiveness through the shedding of blood. Truths of such magnitude as were set forth by this, and the baptismal ordinances, may well account for the mention of both here; and the order in which they stand is precisely the same as in Ex. 29 and -Lev. 8
8. "Resurrection from the dead and eternal judgment." That both these doctrines (intimately connected as they are) were known to the Jews is abundantly manifest, Acts 24:15; 26: 6, 7; John 11:24; Heb. 11:35; Luke 20:37; Job 19:26; Psa. 17:15; Dan. 12:2; Psa. 1:5; &c., &c., however dark and imperfect their knowledge of them compared with ours (see John 11:25; 6: 40, 44, 54; 1 Cor. 15; Col. 3:3,4).
From what has been said, it is probably manifest that the "foundation" which the Hebrews are desired, not to lay again is the Jewish and not the Christian foundation; that all the particulars thereof were known to the Jews: known, for example, as well to Saul the blasphemer, as to Paul the Christian, whiles some of them were peculiar to Judaism; and that they j are now known in a new connection and aspect. If it be remembered, too, that the "perfection." to which they are urged is not the knowledge of higher mysteries, but simple Christian truth, and intelligent establishment in it, we can fully account for the awful warning which follows, from the danger of a wavering and unsettled mind on such foundation truth:—one perilous backward step, and they were again plunged into Judaism, which would now be a: deliberate rejection of that "only name under heaven, given among men whereby we must be saved" (Acts' iv. 12). The word "for," with which the warning' begins, shows that it flows out of the preceding:? statement, although in the commonly received view of the passage it seems quite out of place and connection. Many a one has been disturbed by this terrible warning, to whom it neither was nor could be applicable. Its several clauses, as. before, will now be considered in order.
9. "For it is impossible to renew unto repentance The apostle here distinctly speaks of a sin which placed the person guilty of it beyond the possibility of repentance and the reach of mercy. It will probably appear, on examination, that this sin is that of - deliberate apostasy; not apostasy in the abstract; for apostasy is capable of various degrees and modifications; nor yet apostasy simply from Christianity to., Judaism; but this latter, under the very circumstances here detailed-that these circumstances did not necessarily denote true conversion to God, being such as were common both to the regenerate and to the mere professors in that day,—and that those only who stood in these actual circumstances could incur the irremediable guilt of this apostasy.
"Those who have been once enlightened" (or illuminated, see ch. 10: 32, Gr.). We may easily conceive what a blaze of light was thrown upon all the Jewish types, institutions, and doctrines, by preaching from them, and in connection with them, the doctrine of the Cross (a doctrine understood by none; with one or two exceptions, until after the resurrection), and how applicable the expression "illuminated" was then to those who might have only intellectually received it. Light, and light only, is intended here. Daily experience teaches how much of it may exist in a person without its being accompanied by grace; and this is what is implied too in 1 Cor. 13:2. It is possible that all whom Paul here addressed were the children of God; and, indeed, the apostle speaks of his persuasion that they were so, although (and this is to be observed) he does not ground this persuasion upon the experience or privileges here enumerated, but upon the fruits he had seen in them (ver. 10, and ch. 10: 33). But though Paul might hope, he could not know that they were all saints; and, besides, he is not describing their state, but a state into which it was possible for those who were not rooted and established in the truth to fall.
10. " And have tasted of the heavenly gift." Most probably the gift here spoken of is "God's dear Son " (see John 3 and vi.); in these chapters we read much of this "heavenly gift," but even if the outpouring of the Spirit, as some think, be intended, the main argument of this exposition remains untouched; for ungodly men, as will be shown, received these gifts. There is no necessity for understanding the expression tasting of the heavenly gift, to imply true Christian experience; the import of the word tasting must be fixed by the subject and context where it occurs; and it does sometimes mean full experience of the things to which it is applied, as Heb. 2:9. It is probable that it means here something more than mere illumination. No word, perhaps, would be more expressive of the way in which he who received the seed into stony places (see the parable of the sower, Matt. received it, than this very one, tasting of it (comp. Mark 4:16,17; Luke 8:13); Such, probably, was the short-lived, evanescent experience of the persons here described; an experience of some joy and satisfaction at having been en: lightened so as to see in Christ the end, accomplishment, and fullness of the law and the prophets; but not being quickened of God, not being sensible of the deep corruption of their nature, they had "no root in themselves;" they were by and by offended, and they exhibit plainly what it is to have merely "tasted,", without having an abiding desire or appetite for the heavenly food.
11. " And have been made partakers of the Holy Ghost." This is the baptism of the Holy Ghost, peculiar to the present dispensation (John 1:33; Acts 1:5; 2: 1, 4). It does not mean the quickening of the Spirit, which existed under every dispensation; but the descent of the Holy Spirit, by imposition of the apostles' hands, and conferred by the apostles alone (Acts 8:17, &c.; 19: 6). It seems quite clear that mere confession was the ground upon which they were conferred, irrespective of the sincerity or true conversion of the individual who made it. The case of Ananias and Sapphire might, perhaps, prove this; but that of Simon Magus plainly does, who, there is no reason to doubt, was partaker of these gifts (see Acts 8:12,13,17), yet he had neither part nor lot in the matter. (That he had received the gifts seems plain also from this, that his proposal was to purchase the power of conferring them upon others, not for himself, for whom he would otherwise doubtless have sought them in the first place.) But there is independent proof of this, from the fact that the apostles had not necessarily, or at all times, the power of discerning, as in the case of Ananias and Sapphire, the hearts of others. It was after manifested evil, and not till then, that Peter rebuked Simon, "I perceive," &e. So, also, it was after manifested evil that Paul and John wrote such passages as Philip. 3: 18; 1 John 2:19. (see, too, 1 Cor. 13:1; comp. 12: 28, &c.) It seems, then, clear that these gifts were intended as a seal, not to the sincerity of the confessor, but to the truth of the confession (see also Matt. 7:22).
12. " And have tasted the good word of God." This clause seems to be exegetical or the second; viz., "and have tasted of the heavenly gift " in another form: yet, if either one or the other means a more decided or prolonged profession of the gospel, and enjoyment of the Scriptures generally, the frequency of such a profession, apart from any real grace, is abundantly proved both by experience and Scripture (Ezek. 28: 31, 32; Matt. 13:22). Many have been, perhaps, convinced of their sins, who have not learned to judge-their nature. Such may have "tasted the good word of God," yea, and have found its flavor pleasant, though they have never fed upon it or grown by it.
13. " And (tasted) the powers of the age to come." The word here translated "powers" is the same as in many places is rendered "mighty works" (see Matt. 13:54,58; 11: 20, 21, 23; Mark 6: 2; Acts 2: 22, &c.), and this is most likely-its import here. As to the meaning of the word translated, in the common version, "world," it depends upon the context in which it occurs. In Eph. 2:7, it is correctly translated "ayes." In Matt. 13 it should be "the harvest is in the end of the age;" so also ver. 40 and 49, the same should be the rendering in Matt. 24:3; 28: 20; and in this sense it may be de- fined to be " a periodical dispensation of Divine Providence," which is probably its meaning here. It is true, the apostle speaks of it as of a thing yet future, "the age to come;" but this difficulty is removed by considering that he has been speaking of a previous dispensation, to which this was future. Thus, in chap. 10: 1, we read, " The law having a shadow of good things to come;" whilst that those things were already come is the very thing that Paul is proving (see, too, Col. 2:17); the words ‘to come," then, imply futurity in reference to the Jewish dispensation; and so the meaning of the clause is not the age that is to come, but the age that was to come. Though the Lord, in his wisdom, saw fit to bestow these gifts of working mighty works upon ungodly professors and self-deceivers (Matt. 7:22, 23; 1 Cor. 13:1), yet it appears that here they are spoken of, not in reference to the few (comparatively) who possessed, but to the many who witnessed them, not as the special privilege of some, but as the evidence to all; and in this sense all "tasted" them (See Gal. 3:5).
To sum up, then, the circumstances detailed. There is, 1. Light; " once enlightened." 2. Experience; -" tasted of the heavenly gift"-" tasted the good word of God." 3. Evidence; " partakers of the Holy Ghost "-" tasted the powers of the age to come:" evidence overpowering and convincing, though, if unaccompanied by the renewing power of the Spirit of God, not converting. Now, it was this evidence, and the conviction which it produced, that gave its special character to the apostasy of which the apostle proceeds to speak: and in the absence of these, though in the mind of God, there may under more ordinary circumstances, be a point at which He will cease to strive with man; yet we have no scriptural authority for pronouncing any degree of apostasy irretrievable, or strictly applying these tremendous words to any class of persons, and saying, You have sinned beyond the possibility of repentance, therefore it is in vain for you to seek it.
14.—" And have fallen away again." This clause contains the apostasy itself. It is most important to correct the inaccurate rendering of this in our version. The verb, like all the others in the two previous verses, expresses past time, and should not be rendered hypothetically, "if they shall fall away." The Scriptures are, indeed, full of most searching warnings to the Lord's people; but can one be found which supposes a child of God to have already actually apostatized, or fallen away? The characters, however, here supposed and described, are represented as having done so-" And have fallen away again." We must, therefore, distinguish here between this description, and the exhortation at large, of which it forms a part. The former is declared of those only who had never truly known the Lord. The latter is addressed to all. The former is spoken of actual apostates (whether there had been such, which is probable, or the apostle only supposes the case, it matters not); the latter is addressed to all the Hebrew professors, whether sound in the faith or not; and is one of the means used by the Lord for keeping and confirming those who were (see 1 Cor. 11:19). Moreover, the word, "again," belongs, as is most probable, to this clause, and not to the other, "to renew unto repentance." It is placed in the same position after the verb, in Gal. 4:9, "Why turn ye again," &c.; or "back," as in the margin, which is the true force of the word both there and in this place; and not-a second time; for according to the tenor and terms of this passage, a second apostasy was impossible.
This also removes the difficulty created by the supposition, that a previous renewal unto repentance is here supposed.
15. " Seeing they crucify unto themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame." This clause gives us, in distinct terms, the actual amount of guilt involved in this apostasy, and the reason of its being impossible to renew unto repentance those who were guilty of it under the above circumstances. -The terms of this clause, often unskillfully and erroneously applied, express a willful malignant opposition to the name and Gospel of Christ. They surely imply more than mere sin, however aggravated: even the temporary denial of the Lord could never be said to bear the application of these terrible words. Peter was restored after thus falling, and the very crucifiers of the " Lord of Glory " did not irremediably sin (Luke 23:34; Acts 3:17,18); " they knew not what they did." But how different were the circumstances in which the Hebrew professors, to whom Paul is writing now stood! They had been convinced of sin in the act-of rejecting Jesus (John 16:8-11).' They had witnessed and believed the testimony of the apostles backed by miracles (Acts 2:37,38,43). They had confessed the name of Jesus, had been' baptized, and had received the seal of God on their confession, by the descent of the Spirit upon themselves (Acts 5:30,32). To renounce, therefore, this their„ profession, to return again to Judaism, and thus: "deny the Lord that bought them," after all the grace-. extended, and all the light and evidence afforded them, was to vindicate the deed of darkness they had done; to declare that they had acted righteously in slaying "the Holy One and the Just," and thus virtually and in spirit to "crucify unto themselves the Son of God afresh." The expression, "put him to an open shame," is the same in the original as that which is rendered in Matt. 1:19, "to make a public example;" it is, equivalent to the other in chap. 10: 29, "treading under foot the Son of God;" whilst it could not now be said that " they knew not what they did." The awful act of crucifying the " Lord of Glory," the very climax of Jewish apostasy and guilt, was yet met by God's mercy, which rose above it; for in the terrible deed itself was contained the remedy for all. But where was the remedy for this second deed of darkness, wrought in the midst of noonday light-this second crucifixion of the Lord of Glory? Surely there was none; for the deed itself was the proud and despiteful rejection of what they had themselves seen to be thee, only remedy. For such an apostasy there remained',1 "no more sacrifice for sin" (chap. 10: 26, 29).
[To be concluded in our next.]