Wherefore leaving {Greek: the word of the beginning of Christ.}the doctrine of the first principles of Christ, let us press on unto {Or, full growth}perfection; not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
{Some ancient authorities read, even the teaching of.}of the teaching of {Or, washings}baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
And this will we do, if God permit.
For as touching those who were once enlightened {Or, having both tasted of…and being made…and having tasted &c.}and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit,
and {Or, tasted the word of God that it is good}tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,
and then fell away, it is impossible to renew them again unto repentance; {Or, the while}seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
For the land which hath drunk the rain that cometh oft upon it, and bringeth forth herbs meet for them for whose sake it is also tilled, receiveth blessing from God:
but if it beareth thorns and thistles, it is rejected and nigh unto a curse; whose end is to be burned.
But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things that {Or, belong to}accompany salvation, though we thus speak:
for God is not unrighteous to forget your work and the love which ye showed toward his name, in that ye ministered unto the saints, and still do minister.
And we desire that each one of you may show the same diligence unto the {Or, full assurance}fulness of hope even to the end:
that ye be not sluggish, but imitators of them who through faith and patience inherit the promises.
For when God made promise to Abraham, since he could swear by none greater, he sware by himself,
saying, {Genesis 22:16 f.}Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.
And thus, having patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
For men swear by the greater: and in every dispute of theirs the oath is final for confirmation.
Wherein God, being minded to show more abundantly unto the heirs of the promise the immutability of his counsel, {Greek: mediated.}interposed with an oath;
that by two immutable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we may have a strong encouragement, who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us:
which we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and stedfast and entering into that which is within the veil;
whither as a forerunner Jesus entered for us, having become a high priest for ever after the order of Melchizedek.
Querverweise zu Hebräer 6,4 Heb 6,4
For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins,
but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a {Or, jealously}fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries.
A man that hath set at nought Moses' law dieth without compassion on the word of two or three witnesses:
of how much sorer punishment, think ye, shall he be judged worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified {Greek: a common thing.}an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace?
But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were enlightened, ye endured a great conflict of sufferings;
Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father who is in heaven.
God also bearing witness with them, both by signs and wonders, and by manifold powers, and by {Greek: distributions.}gifts of the Holy Spirit, according to his own will.
looking carefully {Or, whether}lest there be any man that {Or, falleth back from}falleth short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby the many be defiled;
{Or, whether}lest there be any fornication, or profane person, as Esau, who for one mess of meat sold his own birthright.
For ye know that even when he afterward desired to inherit the blessing, he was {Or, rejected (for he found no place of repentance), &c. Or, rejected; for…of repentance &c. Compare chapter 6:6; 2 Esdr. 9.11; Wisd. 12.10.}rejected; for he found no place for a change of mind in his father, though he sought it diligently with tears.
And he took up his parable, and said,Balaam the son of Beor saith,And the man whose eye {Or, is opened}was closed saith;
Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, did we not prophesy by thy name, and by thy name cast out demons, and by thy name do many {Greek: powers.}mighty works?
And God, who knoweth the heart, bare them witness, giving them the Holy Spirit, even as he did unto us;
Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost its savor, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to be cast out and trodden under foot of men.
And he took up his parable, and said,Balaam the son of Beor saith,And the man whose eye {Or, is opened}was closed saith;
Behold, I have given you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy: and nothing shall in any wise hurt you.
This only would I learn from you, Received ye the Spirit by the works of the law, or by the {Or, message}hearing of faith?
Therefore I say unto you, Every sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy against the Spirit shall not be forgiven.
He saith, who heareth the words of God,And knoweth the knowledge of the Most High,Who seeth the vision of the Almighty,Falling down, and having his eyes open:
Nevertheless in this rejoice not, that the spirits are subject unto you; but rejoice that your names are written in heaven.
He therefore that supplieth to you the Spirit, and worketh {Greek: powers}miracles {Or, in}among you, doeth he it by the works of the law, or by the hearing of faith?
And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him; but whosoever shall speak against the Holy Spirit, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this {Or, age}world, nor in that which is to come.
John answered and said, A man can receive nothing, except it have been given him from heaven.
Then goeth {Or, it}he, and taketh with {Or, itself}himself seven other spirits more evil than {Or, itself}himself, and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man becometh worse than the first. Even so shall it be also unto this evil generation.
Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water.
The unclean spirit when {Or, it}he is gone out of the man, passeth through waterless places, seeking rest, and finding none, {Or, it}he saith, I will turn back unto my house whence I came out.
And when {Or, it}he is come, {Or, it}he findeth it swept and garnished.
Then goeth {Or, it}he, and taketh to him seven other spirits more evil than {Or, itself}himself; and they enter in and dwell there: and the last state of that man becometh worse than the first.
Jesus therefore said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, It was not Moses that gave you the bread out of heaven; but my Father giveth you the true bread out of heaven.
If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and they gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
But Peter said unto him, Thy silver perish with thee, because thou hast thought to obtain the gift of God with money.
in meekness {Or, instructing}correcting them that oppose themselves; if peradventure God may give them repentance unto the knowledge of the truth,
And they of the circumcision that believed were amazed, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Alexander the coppersmith {Greek: showed.}did me much evil: the Lord will render to him according to his works:
If then God gave unto them the like gift as he did also unto us, when we believed on the Lord Jesus Christ, who was I, that I could withstand God?
For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of {Many ancient authorities read our.}the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entangled therein and overcome, the last state is become worse with them than the first.
For it were better for them not to have known the way of righteousness, than, after knowing it, to turn back from the holy commandment delivered unto them.
It has happened unto them according to the true proverb, {Proverbs 26:11.}The dog turning to his own vomit again, and the sow that had washed to wallowing in the mire.
For I long to see you, that I may impart unto you some spiritual gift, to the end ye may be established;
If any man see his brother sinning a sin not unto death, {Or, he shall ask and shall give him life, even to them &c.}he shall ask, and God will give him life for them that sin not unto death. There is {Or, sin}a sin unto death: not concerning this do I say that he should make request.
If I speak with the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am become sounding brass, or a clanging cymbal.
And if I have the gift of prophecy, and know all mysteries and all knowledge; and if I have all faith, so as to remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing.
for by grace have ye been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;
whereof I was made a minister, according to the gift of that grace of God which was given me according to the working of his power.
But unto each one of us was the grace given according to the measure of the gift of Christ.
Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given thee by prophecy, with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery.
Every good {Or, giving}gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights, with whom can be no variation, neither shadow that is cast by turning.
Of his own will he brought us forth by the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures.