Hebrews 3 · The Lantern

Jesus Our Apostle and High Priest

Therefore, holy brothers, partakers of a heavenly calling, carefully consider the apostle and high priest of our confession, Jesus,

Now the Word of God is His Son, as we have before said. And He is called Angel and Apostle; for He declares whatever we ought to know, and is sent forth to declare whatever is revealed; as our Lord Himself says, "He that heareth Me, heareth Him that sent Me." From the writings of Moses also this will be manifest; for thus it is written in them, "And the Angel of God spake to Mo…

For if he were high priest as God, he would be so before the incarnation. As it is, that he became the apostle of our confession after the incarnation is taught us by the epistle to the Galatians: "But when the time had fully come, God sent forth his Son, born of a woman."

155. – As was said above, the Old Law derived its authority from three sources, namely, from angels, from Moses, and from Aaron, the high priest. But the Apostle preferred Christ, the Author of the New Testament, to the angels through whom the Law was given. Here he intends to prefer Him to Moses, who was the promulgator and, as it were, the lawgiver of the Old Testament.

being faithful to the one having appointed him, as also Moses was in all his house.

"just as Moses;" so that it is in vain that those who are in rebellion against me say to you that he teaches from Moses, and that he is hostile towards him. But this is introduced secretly and not according to the previous discourse, in order to persuade more. For that which is prepared for defense is more suspicious.

Intending to depict the advantages of Christ over Moses, the apostle speaks about the high priesthood and says that both the one and the other were entrusted with the people, but Christ to a greater degree. At first he does not show the superiority of Christ, so that they would not turn away; for although they were faithful, they were still devoted to Moses.

158. – Then (v. 2) he compares Christ to Moses; first, he mentions that in which they agree; secondly, that in which Christ excels Moses (v. 3). 159. – What is common to Christ and Moses is fidelity to God; hence he says, He was faithful to him who appointed him. Here it should be noted that everything said here of Moses is based on the statement found in Num.

For he has been counted worthy of greater glory than Moses, by so much as the one having built the house has greater honor than the house itself;

"For this man was counted worthy of more glory than Moses," (Again he is speaking of the Flesh), "inasmuch as he who hath builded the house hath more honor than the house"; Moses himself also (he means) was of the house. Moreover he did not say, For this one was a servant, but the Other a master, but he covertly intimated it.

"One who has been worthy of much more glory." He discussed in what ways Moses is equal to Christ, now he talks about Christ's superiority. "Of much more." Who is that? Christ, who is the Word incarnate. "More glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself." Now he talks about the highest superiority of God over human beings.

160. – Then (v. 3) he prefers Christ to Moses in two respects; first, as to power; secondly, as to condition (v. 3b). But in commending Christ, he commends Him as having honor in all His house, as Moses had: Yet Christ excels him: first, he gives the reason; secondly, he explains it (v. 4). 161.

for every house is built by someone, but the one having built everything is God.

And Moses indeed was faithful in all his house as a servant, unto a testimony of the things to be spoken,

The apostles received the gospel for us from the Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus, the Christ, was sent from God. Thus Christ is from God and the apostles from Christ. In both instances the orderly procedure depends on God's will.

"And Moses indeed was faithful in all his house." Then Paul speaks of another distinction between Christ and Moses, that Moses was faithful as a servant, while the Christ was a genuine Son and of the same essence. For since he called Christ faithful above, and also Moses faithful, he explains the distinction of the faithful.

165. – Then (v. 5) he prefers Christ to Moses in regard to their state. In regard to this he does two things: first, he states his reason; secondly, he explains it (v. 6b). 166. – His reasoning is this: It is obvious that the master is of more value in his own house than a servant in the master's house.

but Christ as the Son over his house — whose house we ourselves are, if indeed we hold the boldness and the boast of our hope.

But since he said, "as Moses," do not think that he is as Moses; "the glory of this" high priest "is greater than that of Moses inasmuch as the maker of a house has greater honor than the house." Similarly the honor of the Lord and the Son is greater than that of the servant Moses. "Every house was built by someone," but "he who created Moses" and "built all things is God.

— "But Christ as a Son." For even if he is called faithful, Paul says, it is as a genuine Son that he is faithful, fulfilling the will of the Father, rather the common will of the holy Trinity. "whose house we are."Here we are the house of Christ, the faithful, according to what is written: "I will dwell in them." (Lev. 27:12; 2 Cor.

168. – Then (v. 6), But Christ was faithful over God's house as a son, he shows what belongs to Christ, namely, that Christ is not as a servant but as a Son in His Father's house and, consequently, in His own, because He is the natural heir: 'Whom he has appointed heir of all things, by Whom also he made the world' (Heb. 1:2).

Do Not Harden Your Hearts

Therefore, even as the Holy Spirit says, “Today, if you hear his voice,

Paul, having treated of hope, and having said that "We are His house, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end"; next shows that we ought to look forward with firmness, and he proves this from the Scriptures.

Having spoken about hope and about the need to await with confidence the reward and rest there from the labors here, he next proves on the basis of the prophet's words: believers will enter into rest, but unbelievers will not enter, just as the ancients did not enter.

170. – Having proved that Christ is greater than Moses, the Apostle now concludes that Christ is more deserving of our obedience. He does this by the authority of David the prophet in Psalm 94. He does three things: first, he proposes the authority which contains an exhortation; secondly, he explains it (v. 12); thirdly, he argues from the authority and the explanation (chap.

do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of the testing in the wilderness,

where your fathers tried me by testing, and saw my works forty years.

Therefore I was angry with that generation and said, ‘They always go astray in the heart, and they themselves have not known my ways’;

so I swore in my wrath, ‘They will not enter into my rest.’”

The Peril of Unbelief

Take heed, brothers, otherwise there will be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in falling away from the living God;

Thinking, then, that they could find a better, they wander and become wretched, and enter upon pathless places. But those which fell into the fire and were burned are those who have departed for ever from the living God.

"an evil heart." There are many wicked hearts of unbelief. For there is a wicked heart of unbelief, which does not believe, but is greedy for gain, is arrogant, is drunken, and many other things. Moreover, and incomparably, a heart is a wicked heart of unbelief, which departs from the faith in God.

185. – Above, the Apostle showed on the authority of the Psalmist that Christ must be obeyed strictly. In that authority he found three things, namely, the exhortation, the guilt, and the punishment. These he now explains in that order: first, the exhortation; secondly, the guilt (v. 16); thirdly, the punishment (v. 18).

but encourage each other every day, while it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

Take also another like expression. "To this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their minds." Does "to this day" mean "up to the time that Paul wrote the words and no longer"? Does it not mean until this present day and indeed to the very end?

"But encourage one another." Build each other up, and spur one another on. "As long as it is called 'today'." Until the end, he says; for until the end, today is called. For he said, "Today, if you hear his voice," he says, until that which is spoken of as today.

187. – But if that evil should be found in anyone, should he despair? No; he should be admonished all the more. Therefore, he says, but exhort one another every day, i.e., continually, namely, by discussing your conscience and by exhorting to good, as long as it is called today, i.e., while the present time of grace lasts: 'I must work the works of him that sent me, whilst it i…

For we have become partakers of the Christ, if indeed we hold the beginning of our confidence firm unto the end,

"For we have been made partakers of Christ." What is this, "We have been made partakers of Christ"? We partake of Him (he means); we were made One, we and He - since He is the Head and we the body, "fellow-heirs and of the same body; we are one body, of His flesh and of His bones." "If we hold fast the beginning of our confidence [or, the principle of our subsistence] steadfast…

"For we have become partakers of Christ." One, he says, we have become partakers with Christ, since He has deemed it worthy to be our head and to make us His members. "if we hold the beginning of our confidence." The beginning of confidence is faith towards Christ. For by it we have endured and have become partakers of Christ.

188. – Then (v. 14) he explains their condition. As if to say: That condition is more powerful than the other, because they only hear, but we share in Christ.

as it is said, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.”

Then he adds, "When it is said, To-day if ye hear His voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation." This is a transposition, "when it is said, To-day if ye hear His voice, harden not your hearts." It must be read thus: "Let us fear lest a promise being left us of entering into His rest, any of you should seem to come short of it; for to us was the Gospel preached as we…

"As in the rebellion." Hyperbaton [ὑπερβατὸν] is: for we must understand it as "Let us fear." The surpassing thing; in what is said: Today, if you hear the voice, and the things following, let us fear, lest, a promise being left behind, and the things following.

He confirms in what sense he said "to the end," and says that this is signified by the expression "today." For "today" means: always, as he also said above: "but exhort one another every day, as long as it is called 'today'" (Heb. 3:13).

For who were those having heard and rebelled? Was it not all those having come out of Egypt through Moses?

"For some when they had heard did provoke, howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses: And with whom was He grieved forty years? Was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcasses fell in the wilderness? And to whom sware He that they should not enter into His rest, but to them that believed not?

For some, having heard the promises of God, just as we hear them, provoked God to anger through unbelief. For He desires to save them just as He saves those who have heard, and they are of no benefit from merely hearing the promise. Thus, he says, you also will not be fulfilled if you have only heard the preaching, unless you also believe.

191. – Then when he says, who were they that heard, he explains what he had said about their sin. As if to say: You are made partakers of Christ, if you do not harden your hearts, as they who have heard and yet were rebellious. Was it not all? No, not all; for two, namely, Caleb and Joshua remained and consoled the others.

And with whom was he indignant forty years? Was it not with those having sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?

"To whom did he swear that they should never enter his rest?" To those who did not want to obey Moses, Aaron, Joshua and Caleb … "So we see that they were unable to enter" the land promised to them, not because of their evil actions, even though they were wicked, but "because of unbelief" in the Word of God.

God urged them to leave for the promised land, but some spoke in opposition, citing fear and the multitude of the enemy. Hence God consumed them all individually in the desert and brought in their children in place of them.

192. – Then (v. 17) he explains what he had said about the punishment. 193. – He says, therefore: With whom was he provoked forty years? Was it not with them that sinned? From this it is clear that forty years refers to the statement, I was provoked. Hence, he says that he was offended through those forty years.

And to whom did he swear that they would not enter into his rest, except to those having disobeyed?

And we see that they were not able to enter in because of unbelief.

Hebrews3

Jesus Our Apostle and High Priest

Do Not Harden Your Hearts

The Peril of Unbelief