Hebrews 6
Summary for Heb 6:1-3: 6:1-3 a In light of the hearers’ immaturity (5:11-14 b), the author urges them to move beyond basic teachings. The six basic teachings here were all foundational elements of Jewish instruction. The author might be challenging them to move beyond these basic teachings to further understanding about the person of Christ, which he elaborates in 7:1–10:25 c. 6:1 d Let us go on: Or Let us be carried on, suggesting that God initiates growth to maturity (Phil 2:12-13 e) and that it is an ongoing process.• Repenting and faith are the basic commitments that initiate a person to the new covenant and constitute the basic posture of a Christian’s life (see Acts 20:21 f).
6:2 g The term baptisms (or washings) is plural, so it must mean more than just Christian baptism. Instruction about various washings was prevalent in first-century Judaism (see Matt 15:2 h; Mark 7:3 i). The author might also have in mind the cleansing rituals of the Old Testament (cp. Heb 9:13 j; 10:22 k).
• The laying on of hands was associated with healing (Mark 5:22-23 l; Luke 13:13 m), ritual blessing (Matt 19:13 n, 15 o), reception of the Holy Spirit (Acts 8:17 p; 9:17 q; 19:6 r), and acknowledgement of a person’s ministry (Acts 6:6 s; 13:3 t).
• resurrection of the dead: See thematic note for The Resurrection of the Dead at end of chapter.
• eternal judgment: See Rev 20:11-15 u.
6:3 v The author is implicitly exhorting his readers to maturity, not only in their understanding but in everything (cp. 4:11 w; 5:14 x; 10:23-39 y; 12:1-13 z).
Summary for Heb 6:4-8: 6:4-8 aa This passage, one of the most difficult in the New Testament, gives a harsh warning about those who have left the Christian faith. Those who have fallen away from Christ and the church are like those who fell in the wilderness (3:15-19 ab): The lack of faith shown in such apostasy results in devastating judgment (cp. 10:26-31 ac). 6:4 ad In Greek, the word impossible begins the sentence for emphasis—it absolutely cannot happen (see also 6:18 ae; 10:4 af; 11:6 ag).
• They were once enlightened when they “first learned about Christ” (see 10:32 ah and corresponding study note).
• The good things of heaven might allude to the manna given from heaven (Exod 16:4 ai, 15 aj; Ps 78:24 ak) as an image of spiritual blessings.
6:5 al tasted the goodness of the word of God: These people had heard the word of God preached (2:3-4 am; 4:1-2 an) and had seen its effects.
• the power of the age to come: They had witnessed signs and wonders when they heard the Good News (2:4 ao; cp. Exod 7:3-4 ap; Deut 7:19 aq; Pss 66:3 ar; 77:15-20 as; 78:9-16 at; 1 Cor 10:1-13 au).
6:6 av then turn (or fall) away: The image is reminiscent of the wilderness wanderers who turned away from obeying God and fell in the desert (3:17 aw; 4:11 ax; Num 14:1-4 ay, 29-30 az).
• to bring such people back to repentance: They had repented before, but had no fruit from their repentance (Heb 6:7-8 ba). When people turn their back on Christ and his superior sacrifice, it is impossible for them to find any other means of repentance.
• Rejecting the Son of God constitutes nailing him to the cross once again. Crucifixion was the ultimate instrument of rejection and humiliation in the Greco-Roman world and brought public shame. Those who turned away from Christ had in effect joined those who stood before the cross shouting insults, insisting that Jesus was not really the Messiah and Son of God but was instead worthy of shame (see Matt 27:39-44 bb).
Summary for Heb 6:7-8: 6:7-8 bc ground: Good, productive land is an image of blessing, contrasted with the curse of unproductive land that bears thorns and thistles. To burn such a field is an image of judgment (2 Sam 23:4-7 bd; Isa 10:17 be; 33:12 bf; Ezek 19:12-13 bg; Matt 3:10 bh).
Summary for Heb 6:9-12: 6:9-12 bi Having confronted his readers with a stern warning (6:4-8 bj), the author now softens that warning by greeting them as dear friends, expressing confidence in them, and giving them further encouragement. 6:9 bk We are confident: Skilled speakers and writers express confidence in those they address to motivate them (cp. Rom 15:14 bl).
• The author is confident that his hearers’ lives give evidence of a true relationship with God, including salvation. In the New Testament, salvation primarily refers to Christ’s work on the cross (Heb 5:9-10 bm; see also study note on 2:3); Hebrews places emphasis on the consummation of salvation at the end of the age (9:28 bn).
6:10 bo He will not forget how hard you have worked: In showing that they love God and his people, their works bear witness to their true relationship with God (Rom 2:6-7 bp; 1 Cor 3:13-15 bq; Jas 2:14-20 br). God remembers (Exod 2:24 bs; 1 Chr 16:15 bt; Ps 106:45 bu) and acknowledges those who are truly his.
6:11 bv keep on loving others (literally show the same eager commitment): Love of other believers is a hallmark of genuine Christian faith (Jas 2:15-16 bw; 1 Jn 3:16-20 bx). Through diligence and focused commitment, they can make their hope in Christ absolutely certain. Assurance of salvation comes through perseverance.
6:12 by A focused commitment (6:10-11 bz) is the antidote to being spiritually dull (5:11-12 ca). By loving God and others, we follow the example of great people of the faith. The author puts a great deal of emphasis on both faith and endurance as normal requirements for God’s people (see 11:4-38 cb).
Summary for Heb 6:13-20: 6:13-20 cc This passage focuses on the reliability of God’s faithfulness to his promises. The theme of God’s oath is developed with an illustration (6:13-15 cd), followed by a general principle (6:16 ce), followed by the main point: God has sworn a significant oath (6:17-18 cf), which gives us hope because it shows that Jesus is our permanent High Priest (6:19-20 cg).
Summary for Heb 6:13-14: 6:13-14 ch Abraham was the premier exemplar of faith: He continued to believe that God would give him a son, then was willing to sacrifice that son in obedience to God (11:17-19 ci; Gen 15:1-5 cj; 22:1-14 ck). In response to Abraham’s faith, God took an oath, assuring Abraham that he would bless him and multiply his descendants.
6:15 cl what God had promised: Through Isaac, God made Abraham into a great nation (Exod 1:7 cm).
6:16 cn It is a general principle in human relationships that when people take an oath, the oath is binding. If in human contexts oaths give assurance that something is true, an oath from God ought to inspire much greater confidence (6:17-19 co).
• someone greater than themselves: Cp. 6:13 cp.
Summary for Heb 6:17-18: 6:17-18 cq God also bound himself with an oath: See 7:20-22 cr. God’s oath makes it clear that he would never change his mind . . . because it is impossible for God to lie (see Ps 110:4 cs).
• We have fled to him for refuge, like those in the Old Testament era who killed someone accidentally (Num 35:9-34 ct; Deut 4:41-43 cu); Christ is like a city of refuge, where believers escape God’s wrath. Christ’s followers, therefore, have great confidence.
Summary for Heb 6:19-20: 6:19-20 cv Christian hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. In the first century, an anchor was an image of stability and safety.
• through the curtain: A curtain separated the outer room of the sanctuary, into which only priests could go, from the inner room, the Most Holy Place (Exod 25:10-40 cw). Only the high priest could go into the Most Holy Place, and only once per year on the Day of Atonement (Exod 29 cx; Lev 16:1-25 cy). Because of Jesus’ extraordinary high priesthood, he has already gone in there for us into the presence of God as our eternal High Priest, and he leads us in with him (Heb 10:19-23 cz).
• the order of Melchizedek: This phrase introduces the discussion in 7:1-28 da.
Thematic note: The Resurrection of the Dead
Jesus spoke of a future resurrection of all people—either to eternal life or to judgment (Mark 12:26-27 db; John 5:28-29 dc; 6:39-40 dd, 44 de, 54 df; 11:25-26 dg; cp. Luke 20:34-36 dh). When Christ returns, all his people will be resurrected to be with him forever (1 Thes 4:13-18 di; cp. 2 Cor 5:1-10 dj).
This strong hope characterized the outlook of the early Christians. They were able to endure their suffering because their eyes were fixed on what lay beyond this life (2 Cor 4:16-18 dk; cp. Heb 12:2 dl). They expected Jesus to return and resurrect their bodies, and they looked forward to living with him forever (1 Pet 1:3-6 dm, 23 dn). Their faith was based on the foundation of Jesus’ own bodily resurrection (1 Cor 15:12-20 do; Acts 4:33 dp; see also 2 Cor 4:14 dq).
Resurrection bodies will be fundamentally different from the bodies we experience in this life, with all of their limitations and failings. These renewed bodies will be glorious, strong, immortal, and spiritual, like Christ’s own resurrection body (1 Cor 15:35-58 dr).
Because they are already joined to Christ, believers actually begin to experience resurrection existence here and now. They have already been “raised” with Christ; they have already been given “resurrection life” (Rom 6:4-11 ds; 8:10-11 dt; Col 2:12 du). As a result, their lives are now centered in the spiritual realities of heaven rather than in worldly things (Col 3:1-4 dv). Believers can experience the transforming power of that new life here and now, the new life of the Spirit that frees them from the power of sin and death (Rom 8:1-4 dw). In all the difficulties they face, their trust is not in themselves but in the resurrection power of God (2 Cor 1:9 dx).
Passages for Further Study
Job 19:25-27 dy; Pss 16:10 dz; 49:15 ea; Dan 12:2-3 eb; Matt 16:21 ec; 28:1-10 ed; Mark 12:18-27 ee; John 3:13-16 ef; 5:25-30 eg; 6:39-40 eh; 11:21-27 ei; Acts 2:23-24 ej; 3:14-15 ek; 4:33 el; 10:39-41 em; 17:2-3 en; 24:15 eo; 26:22-23 ep; Rom 1:4 eq; 4:25 er; 6:4-11 es; 8:10-11 et; 1 Cor 15:12-58 eu; 2 Cor 1:8-9 ev; 4:13-18 ew; 5:1-10 ex; Eph 1:19-20 ey; Col 2:12 ez; 3:1-4 fa; 1 Thes 4:13-18 fb; 1 Pet 1:3-6 fc, 23 fd; Rev 20:11-15 fe; 21:1-7 ff; 22:1-6 fg
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