1 Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
The book of Hebrews was written to the Jews, but this section is clearly directed to Christians. There were many thousands of Jewish Christians in the churches of Christ and the church at Jerusalem was the center of Christianity (see Acts 15) until the Romans destroyed the city in A.D. 70. These Jews had been taught the truths of God from childhood and were well-acquainted with the Law and Prophets which had well-prophesied of Christ (Luke 24:44-45). They were perfectly positioned for spiritual growth, but many had not progressed very far along the path of truth.
In this chapter, the Apostle encourages the Jews who had chosen Christ to strengthen themselves in the Word and move upward to attain that measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ (Eph 4:13). Having laid the foundation of their spiritual edifice, it was time to take up the tools and build the house. “Leaving behind the beginning doctrines of Christ, let us go on unto perfection.” Then he lists some key first doctrines: Repentance, Faith, Baptisms, Laying on of hands, the Resurrection and the Judgment. These only begin the process of perfection; true Christian maturity lies beyond them.
So while intellectual study and assent to the facts of the Gospel lay the essential foundation of Christ, the object and goal is the building – the visible, living witness of joy, peace and freedom which only the Saved can possess (1Pet 2:5). Spiritual maturity is evidenced by good fruit. It is the constant, careful exercise of the spiritual senses (Heb 5:14), of comparing one’s life to the Word (James 1:22-25) and of consistently living according to the commandments of Christ in every area of life. Let the Redeemed of the Lord say so (Ps 107:2), but let them show it too (James 3:13).
Many Christian churches never advance beyond these first principles (see Heb 5:12). Their Christianity is getting people saved; almost nothing about living according to the law of Love; about submission and obedience to the Word. Repentance, faith and baptism is the essential message of salvation (Acts 2:38) and the warning is clear: those who have repented from dead works and confessed faith toward God (v4-6) but do not go on to produce fruit are in danger of being thrown into the fire (v7-8). We must leave the first principles behind and mature into adults (Heb 5:12-14). Perfect maturity will only be reached when this mortal body is transformed into a new and glorious one (Php 3:21; 1Cor 15:54).
There seems to be a double meaning in the phrase, dead works (also Heb 9:14). First, it refers to the works of the flesh, or, the works of darkness of the heathen and rebellious (Gal 5:19-21; Rom 13:12; Eph 5:11). They are called dead because they lead to spiritual death (Rom 6:21; James 1:15; Rom 8:6; Rev 3:1). Second, it refers to doing the works of the Law, for the Judaizers erroneously believed that doing the Law would justify them before God (Rom 9:32; Gal 2:16). Jesus said that the Pharisees, deep down, kept the Law only to be seen and praised of men (Mat 23:5; John 12:43). Faith with no corresponding works is dead; unless both are active there is no spiritual worth in either (James 2:26).
The opposite of dead works is good works. Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven (Mat 5:16; Col 1:10; Eph 2:10; Heb 13:21; 1Pet 2:12; Tit 3:8; ). Every man will be judged by his works (Rev 20:12). So repent from dead works and be rich in good works (1Tim 6:18). How awful that those false prophets, the Calvinists, teach their followers to repent from good works too.
2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. 3 And this will we do, if God permit.
Passages like these strongly indicate that one of the Apostles wrote the book of Hebrews. This writer is an experienced church leader with great knowledge of the Faith. Throughout his epistles, Paul is known for using the pronoun “we” when referring to himself (see Rom 3:8; Col 1:3-4; 1Cor 9:3-5; 2Thes 3:4-10; Phlm 1:7). The book of Hebrews contains several examples of this literary technique (Heb 6:3; 6:9; 8:1; 9:5; 13:18).
Clarke, ignoring that these verses apparently list the basic principles of the doctrine of Christ (v1), takes them to refer to aspects of the levitical Law. It is a very forced interpretation. Repentance, faith and baptism are the unique elements of the Gospel.
The Apostle specifies the doctrine of baptisms (plural), but the Scriptures do not mention re-baptism events. There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism (Eph 4:5). The multiple baptisms craze that has overpowered various groups is without Bible precedent. Christians once-baptized will get baptized again to commemorate a new job, a new ministry, or moving to a new home. They might travel to the land of Israel to be baptized in the waters of the Jordan, or by an important church figure. These extra-Scriptural practices taint the sacred meanings and intentions of Baptism. See my note for Mat 3:6.
On the other hand, the New Testament does mention several other kinds of baptisms outside of the unique Christian ordinance of baptism upon confession of Faith. The baptism of John (Mark 11:30; Acts 18:25) for example, and the baptism of Moses (1Cor 10:2). Also, the Jews had their numerous washings (Mark 7:4, same word as baptisms), and Jesus foretold that His followers would be baptized with the Holy Ghost (Acts 11:16). This latter is synonymous to Christian baptism, for these are the ones that the Holy Spirit indwells.
Laying on of hands. Perhaps we are expected to pair this with the foregoing topic: “Of baptisms and laying on of hands.” This would make an accompanying duplet for the other paired topics: “Of repentance and faith”, and “of the resurrection and eternal judgment.” See the special section at the end of this note.
Resurrection of the dead. While many Jews did believe in a final-day resurrection (John 11:24), the Sadducees did not (Mat 22:23). The Old Testament says very little about life after death. Like the doctrine of the Trinity, it is contained therein, but left unexplained until Christ (see Job 19:26; Is 26:19; Ps 17:15; Dan 12:2; 1Sam 2:6). The Christian hope is fundamentally based upon the fact of the resurrection – Christ the firstfuits and then our own bodies at the last trump. We are therefore surprised to read that the church in Corinth was not entirely convinced of the bodily resurrection of the dead (see notes in chapter 15).
Eternal judgment. While the Apostles were required to refute erroneous beliefs concerning the resurrection of the dead, there is little evidence that they encountered resistance to the doctrine of everlasting punishment. Today however, the situation is reversed. All believers are disposed to accept the resurrection unto life, but it is increasingly popular to deny the doctrine of eternal judgment. Interestingly, the Greek word for eternal (aioniou) appears over 70 times in the New Testament almost exclusively in describing heaven or hell. Jesus said,These shall go away into everlasting (aionion) punishment: but the righteous into life eternal (aionion). The adjective is identical (see notes for Mat 25:46 and John 3:16). It is similarly called an everlasting (aioniou) fire prepared for the Devil and his angels (Mat 25:41), where their worm dieth not, and the fire is not quenched (Mark 9:44). Jesus and the Apostles unequivocally taught that there shall be a resurrection of the dead, both of the just and the unjust (Acts 24:15), for we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ (2Cor 5:10). At that moment, the eternal destiny of every soul will be set (Rev 20:11-15). Many will be thrown into the Lake of Fire with the Devil and his angels, to be tormented day and night for ever and ever (Rev 20:10). Those who deny these verses by specious arguments and private interpretations are only deceiving themselves. It cannot end well for them.
THE DOCTRINE OF LAYING ON OF HANDS
Some believe that the phrase laying on of hands in Hebrews 6:2 is a euphemism for receiving the Holy Spirit, because on two or three occasions in the book of Acts we read of a new convert receiving the Spirit after prayer accompanied by the laying on of hands. Coming to Corinth, for instance, the Apostle Paul met a group that had not heard of Jesus, but were acquainted with the baptism of John. So he taught and baptized them in Jesus’ name, and when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came upon them (Acts 19:1-8). Another example is Simon the sorcerer, who saw that through the laying on of the Apostle’s hands the Holy Ghost was given (Acts 8:14-19). Of course, the coming of the Holy Spirit upon a man is not predicated upon the laying on of hands, but it is possible to infer from these two instances that the writer to the Hebrews is referencing the indwelling presence of the Holy Spirit in the heart of the believer.
While it was a known practice in the time of the Apostles, the laying on of hands is not a doctrine that is formally taught in the New Testament. Beyond the association with receiving the Holy Spirit, it was also common to place the hands upon an individual for prayers of healing, blessing and other petitions. Jesus laid His hands on the children and prayed for them (Mat 19:13); He healed the sick by placing His hands on them (Mark 6:5; Luke 4:40; Mat 9:18); and He foretold that the Apostles would lay hands on the sick and they shall recover (Mark 16:18). One famous fulfillment of that prophecy was Ananias putting his hands on Paul to heal his blindness (Acts 9:12). Later, Paul healed by the same sign (Acts 28:8). The Apostles also laid their hands upon new leaders to invoke God’s blessing (Acts 6:6; 13:3; 1Tim 4:14; 2Tim 1:6). And Paul warned against laying hands upon a man without careful consideration (1Tim 5:22).
As for the Old Testament, many of the Law’s sacrifices required the offerer to lay his hand upon the head of his offering (Lev 3:2). See also the ceremony of the famous scapegoat ritual (Lev 16:21). God told Moses to lay his hand upon Joshua in giving him charge of the congregation (Num 27:15-23; Deut 34:9). Also, the person who cursed God was to be stoned by the congregation after the ones that heard him lay their hands upon his head (Lev 24:14). Israel blessed Joseph’s sons by laying his hand upon their heads (Gen 48:14-17).
Thus, laying one’s hands upon another is a sign of connection between the two parties. Some make it to be a necessary component of receiving the Holy Spirit, but clearly the laying on of hands was incidental rather than fundamental. Likewise, Ananias was commanded to lay his hands on Paul for the purpose of healing (Acts 9:12), but at that moment Paul also received the Holy Spirit (Acts 9:17). The common custom of laying on of hands at times of healing, blessing and prayer show that its signification is to invoke God’s grace, not to pass one’s own power to another.
While the custom was used by the Apostles and others, the New Testament nowhere calls for the laying on (epithesis) of hands, not even in language of suggestion. The Greek noun is found only three other times in the New Testament (Acts 8:18; 1Tim 4:14; 2Tim 1:6). The best affirmation for its practice in the churches of God is to find it included here in this short-list of first doctrines of the Christian faith. The Anabaptist groups of my acquaintance have always used laying on of hands when administrating the ordinances, especially within the ceremonies of baptism, communion, marriage, anointing with oil and ministerial ordinations. These seem to be appropriate practices in accordance with its Scriptural signification.
Unfortunately, the rite of laying on of hands has inadvertently contributed to the “apostolic succession” fallacy – that authority must be conferred, generation-to-generation, by the senior bishop laying his hands upon newly ordained ministers. While it is good that the aging generation bless the younger, there is no biblical support for the idea that church authority must flow from one leader to another, much less by the laying on of hands.
The laying on of hands in the ordination ceremony does not automatically elevate a lay person to receive special insights and messages from God, but it does add a visible sign of blessing to the newly ordained. Church leaders are called to be servants and shepherds, not authority figures that exercise lordship over the flock (Mat 20:25-26; Luke 22:24-27).
This was the basic error of Catholicism, which came to view the church as an institution separate from the laity. To this day, the Catholic hierarchical authority is imposed upon the church body – cardinals, archbishops, priests, deacons, patriarchs, bishops and popes. The Scriptures are against that idea and a quick look at the history of the Catholic church proves the Bible’s wisdom. The clerical class of the Catholics is rampant in arrogance and pride, filled with abuses of power, sin and hypocrisy. It has done much damage to the pure testimony of Christ’s body.
Some Mennonite denominations practically repeat this structure (except for the Pope). And the result is two separate spiritual bodies on different planes – the ministry and the congregation. The ministers believe they are called to decide and control the movements of the flock according to their superior insight and the congregation is called to submit to their decisions and dictates. This is a sure recipe for leadership/laity conflicts and that debilitating “us-versus-them” mentality.
On the other hand, to self-proclaim oneself an elder, an apostle, or teacher is an equally false idea that is shown to be erroneous by the same precepts. The church body is ordered and meshed into one. The Scriptures say, All ye are brethren (Mat 23:8-12) and, Let each esteem other better than themselves (Php 2:3; Rom 12:3). The local church is called the body of Christ (1Cor 12; Eph 4) in which there are many members, such as apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors and teachers. However, the head of the body is not the bishop, but Christ. The church body moves together as one, working and acting according to the direction of Christ the head.
Authentic leadership in the church is a balance of shepherding the flock of God according to His will and being attentive to the voice of the church as a whole. Leaders perform important roles in the churches (Titus 1:5) and we are commanded to hold them in high esteem (1Tim 5:17; 1Thes 5:12-13), but their calling is to be servants of all (Mark 10:42-44), not rulers of all. Servant (doulos) is a strong word that does not fit in any definition of a earthly ruler. A servant does not act on his own merits or according to his own interests – he works for the benefit and good of the congregation. Elders are shepherds watching carefully over the flock; neither as being lords over God’s heritage, but being ensamples (1Pet 5:2-3). Nevertheless, Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves: for they watch for your souls as they that must give account (Heb 13:17). For more on church leadership, see my notes on John 13:16 and Heb 13:17.
4 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost, 5 And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come, 6 If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
An honest reader cannot fail to conclude that the writer of this passage believed it is possible for a once enlightened Christian to fall away and lose his own soul. We might wrestle with hows and whens, but surely our time is better spent recognizing that the danger exists rather than denying it. He that looks back after putting hand to the plow is not fit for heaven (Luke 9:62), but he that continues in Christ unto the end shall be saved (Mat 24:13; Rev 2:10). Of course, the widely-popular thesis of Reformed Theology (Calvinism) ignores this Scriptural fact and claims that the “chosen” of Christ are “eternally secure” and “cannot fall from grace.” They are forced to construct truth-defying, hypothetical arguments in order to circumvent the plain intent of these verses.
The basis of Calvinism is that God has pre-determined (or chosen) who will be saved and who will be lost. Man has no choice nor action at all in the matter; he is “eternally secure” regardless of his actions. A derelict sinner may in fact be chosen for salvation, while a pious, devout church member may have been predestinated for hell. According to Calvinism, a man’s decisions and moral character in seeking to follow the Bible have no bearing whatsoever on his destiny.
Partial Calvinists, uncomfortable with the idea of sinners entering heaven yet unwilling to relinquish the thought of being “eternally secure,” take a more moderate stance. Yes, they say, a saved person cannot lose his salvation, but if he does not live a holy life then he was never saved in the first place. This mostly benign branch of Calvinism simply shifts the focus to the initial point of salvation. I attended a church-sponsored high school of this kind and saw many of these people go back to the altar again and again, trying to “pray through.” Typically, these “holy Calvinists” add a second work of grace in their salvation scheme. There is no satisfaction at all in being “eternally secure” if your initial salvation is constantly subject to such doubts.
True eternal security comes by self-evaluation. Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith: prove your own selves (2Cor 13:5). Jesus said, My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me (John 10:27). We are eternally His sheep as long as we follow His voice, keep His commandments and do His will. This is the ever-present hope of our salvation, as Jesus said in the very next verse: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any pluck them out of My hand (John 10:28). No power nor creature can separate a soul from God (Rom 8:39), but if a person voluntarily removes himself from His hand, Christ will not force him to remain.
By five evidences we are convinced that the Apostle is speaking about people who started out with Christ but then turned back (2Pet 2:22; 1Cor 9:27; John 15:6). They were once enlightened, had tasted of the heavenly gift and received the Holy Spirit. They had experienced the good Word and tasted the powers of the world to come. The Greek verb “taste” is often used in this figurative sense and means “to experience in full” (see Mat 16:28; Luke 9:27; John 8:52; Heb 2:9; 1Pet 2:3). The word “if” is not in the original; it is literally translated, “having fallen away.”
These apostatized are living in the open shame of sin (v6) and are producing thorns and briers instead of good fruit (v8). These verses do not describe an occasional sin or failure, but an ongoing condition of willfully deciding to disregard the Way of Truth. As the same Apostle says later on, For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful looking for of judgment and fiery indignation (Heb 10:26-27). This is the unpardonable sin against the Holy Ghost that Jesus warned about (see my notes for Mat 12:32), which is basically the sin of open rebellion – knowingly acting contrary to Scripture and continuing to revel in that sin anyway. Christ’s blood will not atone for this ongoing blasphemy. Yes, there is forgiveness for those who ask Him in repentance (1John 1:9), but these will not do that. They refuse to admit to their sin unto repentance.
The Apostle says that the reason they cannot be renewed again to repentance is because they are crucifying and shaming Christ all over again. By the context of the next verses, we infer that this means they have returned to a life of evil works. Jesus died and rose again for the express purpose of renewing Man to be the creature that God created for good works (Eph 2:10). To return to a life of sin is to deny that power and it mocks the death of Christ, for refusing to repent is refusing His sacrifice (Heb 10:26). They are not rejected and burned on account of God giving up on them, but because they themselves will not allow the Spirit of grace to renew them again unto repentance (Heb 10:29). Their continual life of disobedience blasphemes the name of Christ who died for them. There is no hope of eternal life for those who die in such condition (Heb 10:27).
The Jews who read these verses might have remembered the same concept in the Law’s purification rituals for uncleanness. The one who refused to purify himself, that soul shall be cut off from among the congregation, because he hath defiled the sanctuary of the Lord (Num 19:20). The Scriptures are clear that God’s Spirit will not always strive with man (Gen 6:3). He expects good fruit; He has commanded that we bear good fruit; He will have good fruit. The one who constantly brings forth thorns and thistles is in danger of being rejected and burned at the end (v6). The shocking deaths of Ananias and Sapphira, who lied to the Holy Ghost, is sure evidence of the seriousness of this sin (Acts 5:1-11). In the Kingdom of Christ, the deaths are spiritual and just as severe.
Many Christians worry that they have committed the unpardonable sin. One of the most famous Christian writers of all history, John Bunyan, suffered tremendously from this dart of Satan. Read his despairing struggle in his painfully honest autobiography, “Grace Abounding”. Yet, these verses provide a quick test. Do you have the desire and ability to call upon Christ in sincere repentance? Then there is hope for you. In fact, if you are concerned that you have committed the unpardonable sin, then rest assured, you have not. For according to verse six, the one who cannot be forgiven is the one who will not repent, does not want to repent. He is refusing the very Spirit who wishes to renew him again unto repentance.
God is looking for hearts that love Him and show it by obeying His commandments, but He does not demand sinless perfection. He will not cast off for ever (Ps 77:7). Nor will He break the bruised reed or quench the smoking flax (Is 42:3). He is full of compassion, and gracious, longsuffering, and plenteous in mercy (Ps 86:15). He knoweth our frame; He remembereth that we are dust (Ps 103:11-14). He loves the tender conscience; the poor and contrite spirit He will never turn away. Christ asks us to forgive our fellowman up to 490 times (Mat 18:22), will He not exceed us in mercy? The answer is to ever cultivate a humble heart that empties self and falls upon Christ alone (Mat 21:44).
7 For the earth which drinketh in the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them by whom it is dressed, receiveth blessing from God: 8 But that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is nigh unto cursing; whose end is to be burned. 9 But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that accompany salvation, though we thus speak.
Planting seed might be the most commonly used analogy in the New Testament. The parables of Jesus (see Mat 13) are prime examples, but the other writers also employed this imagery. To produce good fruit for God is the ultimate purpose of the Christian (Rom 7:4; John 15:16). Jesus said, Every good tree bringeth forth good fruit; but a corrupt tree bringeth forth evil fruit…every tree that bringeth not forth good fruit is hewn down, and cast into the fire (Mat 7:17-20).
In Jesus’ parable of the Sower, the good seed of Truth sprouts in different heart-soils unto varying fruitfulness. Some plants were scorched by the sun and died, some were choked out by briers and thorns, but some yielded increase of good fruit up to one-hundred fold (Mat 13:1-23). The Apostle’s prayer for the church in Colosse was that they might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God (Col 1:10). This is the proof of sonship, that we bear the fruit of righteousness (2Cor 9:10; James 3:17-18), also called the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22; Eph 5:9).
As in Jesus’ parable of the Sower, the earth (or ground) seems to represent a man’s heart and the rain falling from heaven is the grace of God working to bring about maturity and fruitfulness. Many evangelical commentators form flimsy arguments that protect their people from feeling the strength of these verses. Jesus however, was no less emphatic in the parable of the Vine: If a man abide not in Me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned (John 15:1-10). God cut off the natural Jewish branches because they did not bear fruit (Rom 11:19-22). The honest seeker cannot miss the many warning passages that warn about falling away from Christ on account of following the desires of your own heart. Let him that thinketh he standeth take heed lest he fall (1Cor 10:12). Clarke says: “It appears…that there is a fearful possibility of falling away from the grace of God, and if this Scripture did not say so, there are many that do.”
Jesus closed the parable of the Talents (Mat 25:14-30) with this sobering principle: For unto every one that hath shall be given and he shall have abundance: but from him that hath not shall be taken away even that which he hath (Mat 25:29). The one who produces a little good fruit is given more grace so that he might produce even more fruit (John 15:2). He receives grace in return for giving grace (John 1:16); he grows in grace (2Pet 3:18). On the other hand, the one who begins to beat the servants and be drunken (Luke 12:45) will fall deeper and deeper into a life of cursing.
We are impressed with how exceedingly difficult it is to revive the backslidden in this present age. How very rare to see one repent from his errors and return to one true fold of Christ. In severest language, Paul warned those who hold the truth in unrighteousness and so become vain in their imaginations; professing themselves to be wise, they became fools (Rom 1:18-32; 2Thes 2:8-13). Jesus said that if the Light within a person become darkness, how great is that darkness (Mat 6:23). Their state is even worse than the one who has never heard the Gospel (2Pet 2:20-21). These are spots in the church, trees without fruit and twice dead (Jude 12). Here, the Apostle says it is impossible to renew them unto repentance (v4-6).
As I attempted to show in the previous note, this affirmation corresponds to the unpardonable sin against the Holy Spirit. It does not teach a new doctrine, as some have thought, that a person who once falls away from Christ is barred forever from returning unto Him. With God, all things are possible, even the “impossible” salvation of a rich man (Mat 19:23-26). The Scriptures do not condemn irremediably the backslidden, but implore them to return to Christ. If they humble their hearts to the uttermost, God will give them repentance…that they might recover themselves out of the snare of the devil (2Tim 2:24-26).
God is able to graft even broken-off branches back into His tree (Rom 11:23). Five of the seven churches in the Revelation were about to have their candlesticks removed on account of apostasy, yet the Spirit held out hope even for the sin-ridden church of Laodicea. Yes, there comes a time when the voice of the Spirit in a man’s conscience is silenced to the point that there is no longer the slightest desire to repent, but until that time, there is always hope for the one who calls upon the name of the Lord to be saved from his wickedness (Rom 10:9-13).
10 For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister. 11 And we desire that every one of you do shew the same diligence to the full assurance of hope unto the end: 12 That ye be not slothful, but followers of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
Followers of Christ must be diligent bearers of good fruit according to the pattern of faith and patience that the forefathers have demonstrated. Slothful bearers of thorns and briers (v8) will not inherit the promises. The Apostle reminds us that the labor of love for the Kingdom of Christ evidences our salvation. For God will not forget your work…toward His name. In this we have full assurance of (our) hope unto the end (v11).
The parable of the Sheep and Goats illustrates this truth in compelling detail (see Mat 25:31-46). The Apostle desires that every one of you is diligent unto the end. Hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end (Heb 3:6).
These verses seem patterned upon 1Thes 1:3, Remembering without ceasing your work of faith, and labor of love, and patience of hope in our Lord Jesus Christ, in the sight of God and our Father. These two passages forms a beautiful parallel to the triad of faith, hope and love that is briefly given at the conclusion of the “love chapter” (1Cor 13:13).
13 For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, 14 Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. 15 And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
The referenced promise came after Abraham had demonstrated his great faith in God by offering up his own son in quick, full obedience to God’s command (see Gen 22:1-18). He passed the test. What does it mean then, that after Abraham had patiently endured he obtained the promise? I believe it speaks of Abraham “waiting patiently” after death for the promises to be fulfilled, for it is certain that he did not receive them in his own lifetime (see Gen 22:15-18). This is supported by verse 12, which reads in the present tense, “are inheriting the promises” (YLT). The souls of the martyrs were told to wait until all should be fulfilled (Rev 6:9-11).
16 For men verily swear by the greater: and an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all strife. 17 Wherein God, willing more abundantly to shew unto the heirs of promise the immutability of his counsel, confirmed it by an oath: 18 That by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we might have a strong consolation, who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us:
The Apostle links the promise of God to Abraham with the heirs of the promise, in other words, we…who have fled for refuge to lay hold upon the hope set before us. This accords with the other epistles of Paul, who showed that the blessing of Abraham (came) on the Gentiles (Gal 3:14; Rom 4:13-16; Gal 3:29). The promise was given directly to Abraham, but the universal Church of Jesus Christ is the heir of those promises, that is, those who through faith and patience inherit the promises (Heb 6:12).
The promises of God to the seed of Abraham…of faith (Rom 4:13; 9:6-8) rest upon two immutable things – God’s oath and the fact that He cannot lie. His counsel (boule) is unchangeable. Boule is found more than 100 times in the Greek Scriptures and signifies “a decision, counsel, or act of the will” (see Is 46:10; Rom 11:29; Heb 13:8).
Some Protestant commentators, eager to accommodate civil authorities, claim this verse over-rides Jesus’ teaching in Mat 5:33-37 that a Christian should not use oaths (see Clarke). The unbiased reader however, understands the Apostle to recognize that oaths are regularly used in the world of men, not in the world of Christianity. The grammar is in third person, them, not “us.”
19 Which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast, and which entereth into that within the veil;
The imagery is of a ship, fleeing for refuge before the tempestuous sea, that finds a safe place to throw out its anchor and wait out the storm. The anchor represents the hope of glory everlasting that will sustain the Christian through the darkest, most dangerous tempests of life. For life is like the sea, sometimes calm, sunny and beautiful, but sometimes cold, cruel and dangerous.
The Apostle Paul often used the word hope (elpis) as a euphemism for salvation (Rom 5:2; Eph 1:18; Tit 3:7; Heb 3:6; 1Thes 5:8), for we do not see salvation in life (Rom 8:24-25); we must patiently wait for redemption (Rom 8:23). The verb form is elpizo, which is typically translated “trust”. In the Biblical sense, hope and trust usually relate to believing the Word of God (written or spoken) even when the facts are absent or against it. It is a confident expectation that the promises of God will be fulfilled. While Faith has some visible evidences to back up the invisible (Heb 11:1), Hope has little to none. Abraham believed God’s word against hope (Rom 4:18).
Perhaps the symbolism draws also upon the cities of refuge in ancient Israel, for the Greek word katapheugo (fled for refuge) is found in those passages (Num 35:25; Deut 4:42; Josh 20:9). This anchor of the soul has found its place of refuge within the veil – a reference to the Holy of Holies, where the Shekinah presence of God dwelt between the wings of the Cherubim. The writer to the Hebrews will elaborate on these typological features in chapters 9-10. Here however, the Jewish reader could not fail to understand that the Apostle is saying that under the Old Covenant, man’s access to the Holy of Holies was unattainable, but under the New Covenant, our anchor of the soul is within the veil.
20 Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even Jesus, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec.
The way into the Holy of Holies was made possible only because the death of Jesus Christ tore down the veil (Mat 27:51). Without the forerunner (prodromos) going in first, no man would be able to enter (Rev 5:3-12). In the Septuagint, prodromos occurs twice in reference to the very first-ripe fruits of the year, that fruit which seems to ripen even before season (Num 13:20; Is 28:4). Another word is used for the first gathering of the harvest (aparche), which is called the firstfruits (see my note for 1Cor 15:20).
This verse introduces the next chapter, which shows that an obscure Davidic reference to the ancient priest Melchisedec was a messianic prophecy fulfilled in Jesus Christ (Ps 110:4).