Introductory remarks:
Chapter five continues the theme of Christ as our High Priest. "A High Priest is appointed by God to represent men and can be gentle with men who sin because he is also a sinner. But he must also offer sacrifices for his own sins. Christ was also appointed by God and not by Himself. He was obedient to God's mission for Him to its completion in His death and became the source of salvation and a priest in the manner of Melchizedek. And there is more but the recipients of this letter aren't mature enough to hear it" (A Survey of Hebrews - By Brenda). This chapter may be outlined as follows: Jesus the great High Priest continued vv. 1-10. Warning against apostasy vv. 11-14.
Jesus the Great High Priest continued
Verse 1, "For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins."
LGT "For every high priest from among men being taken for men is constituted in things to God, in order that they may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins:"
For every high priest from among men: every high priest taken from among the tribe of Levi. Being taken for men: since he is taken from among men, he is fit as the intercessor for men. Is constituted in things to God: God must appoint him. In order that they may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins: the bloody sacrifices offered for forgiveness of sins. "This verse gives us the definition of a priest. He must be taken from among men, which means he must be a man. He must be a representative, you see. He represents man, but he represents man to God. He is ordained for man in things pertaining to God. Because he goes before God, he must be acceptable to God. That is the suggestion in 'is ordained for men in things . . . to God.' In verse 4 we are told specifically that no man takes this honor unto himself, but he is called of God, as was Aaron. He must be ordained of God. Therefore a priest is: (1) taken from among men; (2) ordained for men (on behalf of men); and (3) goes to God for men" (McGee).
Verse 2, "Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity."
LGT "Being able to exercise forbearance with those being ignorant and erring, since also himself is compassed with infirmity:"
Being able to exercise forbearance: this means that the priest must be tenderhearted and moderate towards the sins of others. This is so much unlike ourselves who get very disgusted with the sins of others, even though they are identical to the ones we commit. "If the priest is cordially to plead with God for the sinner, he must bridle his natural disgust at the loathsomeness of sensuality, his impatience at the frequently recurring fall, his hopeless alienation from the hypocrite and the superficial, his indignation at any confession he hears from the penitent" (Robertson - quoting Dods) With those being ignorant and erring: this refers to the sins people commit in ignorance, that is, without knowing about them. In our confessing our sins to God these sins committed in ignorance are covered in1 John 1:9: these sins are taken care in the phrase "He cleanses us from all unrighteousness." Since also himself is compassed with infirmity: "The priests, living for the greater part of the year in their own homes, were known to have their weaknesses like other men, and even the high priests were not exempt from the common passions. Their gorgeous robes alone separated them from sinners, but like a garment, infirmity clung around them. 'How the very sanctity of his office would force on the attention of one who was not a mere puppet priest the contrast between his official and his personal character, as a subject of solemn reflection' (Bruce)" (The Expositor's Greek New Testament).
Verse 3, "And by reason hereof he ought, as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins."
LGT "And on account of this [infirmity] he ought, even as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins."
And on account of this infirmity: that which he spoke of in the last verse of being a dirty rotten sinner like all the rest of the people. He ought: the Greek word for ought opheilei, means he is morally obligated, based on the fact of his own infirmity. Even as for the people, so also for himself, to offer for sins: the high priest had to enter the Holy of holies to offer a sacrifice to God for his own sins, before he could go out and make sacrifices for the sins of the people.
Verse 4, "And no man taketh this honor unto himself, but he that is called of God, as was Aaron."
LGT "And not to himself anyone takes the honor, but being called by God, even as also Aaron."
And not to himself anyone takes honor: most would shrink back from the office of priesthood, based on the knowledge of their own infirmities. But being called by God, even as was Aaron: all the honor that is due the office of the priest should go to God, for He is the one who created the office, and it is He alone who calls a man to that office. "Moses said to Korah and his associates: - if my brother Aaron took to himself the priesthood, then ye did well to rebel against him; but in truth God gave it to him, whose is the greatness and the power and the glory. Whosoever, then, rises against Aaron, does he not rise against God?" (TEGNT). It is ridiculous how so many commentators apply this verse to the modern day pastors, as if they should be called of God. A teacher of the Word of God is someone who took the time to study it, and then passes his studies on to other brothers and sisters.
Verse 5, "So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to-day have I begotten thee."
LGT "Just as also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but the One who said to Him: Thou art My Son, to-day I have begotten Thee."
Christ was not begotten of God at His birth. He was begotten of God in His resurrection and ascension, where He began His High Priesthood for believers at the right hand of the Father, making daily intercession for all believers. Christ did not exalt Himself, but His Father did exalt Him, calling Him My Son.
Verse 6, "As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek."
LGT "Even as also in another [place] He says, Thou [art] a priest for ever according to the order of Melchizedek."
Paul is quoting Psalm 110:4. The only point Paul makes here is that the Son of God is appointed an eternal Priest independent of fleshly descent, after the order of Melchizedek, and he will later develop this type.
Verse 7, "Who in the days of his flesh, when he had offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and was heard in that he feared."
LGT "Who in the days of His flesh, having offered both supplications and entreaties to Him who [was] able to save Him from death, with crying and tears, and having been heard in that [He] feared:"
Who: Jesus Christ. In the days of His flesh: during His life on earth, when in His flesh he was subject to trials and temptations as His brethren. Having offered both supplications and entreaties: I believe with the expositors I have at my disposal that this is referring to His praying drops of blood in Gethsemane. To Him: Jesus' prayer is directed to His Father. Who was able to save Him from death, with crying and tears: I believe this agony of Jesus was His humanity crying out for what was unknown in His death on the cross; Christ could not fathom being separated from His Father. McGee, ingeniously speculates that He was crying that God would not let Him die there in Gethsemane, because He had to go to the cross; however brilliant this notion is, I cannot accept it for two reasons; (1) first, I believe Christ was agonizing over the spiritual death that awaited Him, and (2) secondly, He could not have died until He bore the sins of the world; you see, until he took our sins on His own body, He could not have died. Death was a curse from God put on all mankind because of sin. In those three hours of paying the price for your sins and mine, He became sin for us, and now at the end of those three hours He was able to commend His Spirit back to the Father. And having been heard in that He feared: the fear He felt was that He was heard, and He wanted only the will of His Father; "the prayer, Let this cup pass from me, was in the context of, Not My will, but thine."
Verse 8, "Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered."
LGT "Though being a Son, He learned, from the things which He suffered, obedience:"
Though being a Son: though He was the Son of God. He learned from the things He suffered: the full test of His humanity was that through suffering He learned to be our High Priest; He learned through temptation; He learned through His trials; He learned through His suffering. As our High Priest He is able to identify with us in our temptations and suffering, and show us mercy in our hour of need, and has given us the Holy Spirit to work out in our lives His desired end of perfecting us. Obedience: He went from the Garden of Gethsemane, where He said, "not my will but Thine Holy Father, be done," to the cross where He suffered the most insulting and ignominious death, paying the price for the sins of the world. No man suffered as this Man. What was involved in Christ's sacrificial death is a mystery that will take an eternity for us to understand. The Holy Spirit inspires all these terms Paul uses to describe this propitious act, and they all describe the instructive work that was being accomplished in Christ that made Him our perfect High Priest.
Verse 9, "And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him."
LGT "And having been perfected became to all the ones who obey Him, [the] Author of eternal salvation."
And having been perfected: the discipline required to bring Jesus to being our High Priest, also made Him the Author of our salvation. The mystery of making a perfect Son perfect is beyond me. The best I can come up with is that "perfected" means to bring God's plan of salvation to its conclusion, that is, making it a perfect salvation carrying out a perfect plan. He became to all who obey Him, the Author of eternal salvation: the term "obey" simply means to believe that Christ is who He says He is, and that every one desiring to be saved, must put their trust in Him as the Author of our salvation. Just as He was obedient unto death, we must be obedient in believing that He is our Savior. By His death on the cross, He was perfectly equipped to be our High Priest and Author of our salvation.
Verse 10, "Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchizedek."
LGT "Having been acknowledged by God [as] High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek."
Melchizedek was the king of Salem and also a priest. He came out of the pages of the Old Testament, and he went out and congratulated Abraham for his victory over Cherdorlaomer and his allies. Abraham paid tithes to Melchizedek, for he was a righteous king. History has no record of this king; he came out of nowhere and disappears the same way. All we have is the record of him in Genesis 14:18-20, and the prophecy of Melchizedek in Psalm 110 that there is one coming who is a Priest after the order of Melchizedek.
"The passage Heb 5:11-6:20 is a digression occasioned by the writer's reflection that his argument from the priesthood of Melchizedek may be too difficult for his hearers. In order to stimulate attention he chides and warns them, pointing out the danger of backwardness. He justifies, however, his delivery of difficult doctrine notwithstanding their sluggishness, and this on two grounds: (1) because to lay again the foundations after men have once known them is useless (6:1-8); and (2) because he cannot but believe that his readers are after all in scarcely so desperate a condition. They need to have their hope renewed. This hope they have every reason to cherish, seeing that their fathers have already entered into the enjoyment of it, that God who cannot lie has sworn to the fulfillment of the promises, and that Jesus has entered the heavenly world as their forerunner. (Vs. 11-14)" (TEGT).
Warning against Apostasy
Verse 11, "Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing."
LGT "Concerning which our discourse [is] much and difficult in interpretation to speak, since ye have become sluggish in hearing."
"From this point the comparison of Christ with Melchizedek would naturally be developed; but the author digresses into a complaint of the imperfect spiritual attainment of his readers, and a remonstrance [reason for opposition] and admonition extending to the end of Chp. 6" (Vincent).
Concerning which: Paul is discussing the topic of Christ being a priest after the order of Melchizedek. Our discourse is much and difficult in interpretation to speak: it was hard for Paul to discuss this topic because of the hard line concerning the priesthood taken by these Jews. Since ye have become sluggish in hearing: not only were these Jews set in their ways, but also they were sluggish in hearing, and sluggish means deliberately stupid. The ear stands for spiritual and intellectual perception of the truth. They were not always stupid, but they became so.
Verse 12, "For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat."
LGT "For truly [when ye] ought to be teachers because of the time, ye have need again of [one] to teach you what [are] the elements of the beginning of the oracles of God, and have become having need of milk, [and] not of solid food."
For truly when ye ought to be teachers because of the time: by reason of the time they have been taught grace, Paul says that they should be able to be teachers of the gospel of grace. Ye have need again of one to teach you: these Jews were in need of someone to teach them again the things they should have absorbed at the first. What are the elements of the beginning of the oracles of God: these "elements" are the ABC's of the Gospel of grace. And have become having need of milk: just like a baby with no teeth, they need milk because they cannot chew real food. And not solid food: this is proof that they could not understand the doctrine of the Melchizedek priesthood, which was but a type of Christ being our High Priest. These Jews had degenerated back to requiring milk, for they could not tolerate solid food. "We are further reminded, that it is the duty of every one to impart the knowledge he has to his brethren; so that no one is to retain what he knows to himself, but to communicate it to the edification of others" (Calvin). This statement of Calvin's is what I have been saying for the past fifteen years or so. "Instead of becoming adults, able to stand on their own two feet, select and digest their own food, they had fallen into spiritual dotage, had entered a second childhood, and could only receive the simplest nourishment. Milk represents traditional teaching, that which has been received and digested by others, and is suitable for those who have no teeth of their own and no sufficiently strong powers of digestion. This teaching is admirably adapted to the first stage of Christian life, but it cannot form mature Christians" (TEGT).
Verse 13, "For every one that useth milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe."
LGT "For everyone that partakes of milk [is] unskilled in [the] word of righteousness, for he is an infant:"
For everyone that partakes of milk: Paul is referring to those who refuse to study Bible doctrine, but are content to simply listen to others who do study, and even to those who pretend to study and shoot their mouths off as if the were experts. If we aren't taking in Bible doctrine on a daily basis, we fit into this category of being babies' dependant on milk. Is unskilled: these baby Christians are unable to take in the deep things of God. In the word of righteousness: I believe Paul is referring to the deeper doctrines of the Word of God. They are even unable to understand how to remain in fellowship with the Father. The Roman Catholic Church is guilty of not encouraging the people to study by teaching that they need priests to explain the Word to them, that the people are too ignorant to understand Scripture. The fact that the people are ignorant of the Word is true, but that is because the church hierarchy is also ignorant, and they breed ignorance. All you have to do is listen to the priests that come on Fox News and prattle on about everything they are completely in the dark about, and that is the Word of God. For he is an infant: a baby unable to chew regular food. I would like to add that this is completely voluntary on the part of the believer. Every believer has the choice of studying Bible Doctrine, or living on milk, and having to be burped every so often. By being burped I mean they need to be messaged and stroked so they don't get offended. If this verse does not offend, maybe there is still hope for some of us.
Verse 14, "But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil."
LGT "But solid food is for [the] fully grown, who on account of habit have the senses exercised for distinguishing both good and evil."
But solid food is for the fully grown: only the adults regarding the Word of God can be taken on to maturity. One good sign of Christian maturity is that we stay in fellowship the maximum amount of time. Who on account of habit: this is the habit of daily Bible study, the Christian becomes a connoisseur or specialist in grace doctrine, and is able to appreciate the finer points of Bible Doctrine. This mature believer is ready, willing, and able to tackle the most difficult passages, knowing that he or she has the grace logic to dissect the Word of God; this is the grace deduction method of study; the grace deduction says that if it fits grace it must be sound; if it does not fit grace, keep searching until it does. This is very unscientific according to the school of inductive reasoning; but science is not indwelt by the Holy Spirit as we believers are. So what could be more spiritually sound than grace deduction logic? Have the senses exercised for distinguishing good and evil: In Eph. 4:14 Paul says that the mature believer is not swept away by every wind of false doctrine. "The child must eat what is given to it; the boy is warned what to eat and what to avoid; as he grows, his senses are exercised by a various experience, so that when he reaches manhood he does not need a nurse or a priest to teach him what is nutritious and what is poisonous. The first evidence of maturity, which the writer cites is ability to teach; the second, trained discernment of what is wholesome in doctrine. The one implies the other" (TEGT). There is no chapter break here, so the next chapter continues this theme.
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