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(ii. 18), and give them at the proper time help from the throne of grace (iv. 16).11

(d) Among the blessings of the New Covenant, this also is mentioned in the prophecy (Jer. xxxi. 34), that the knowledge of God shall be alike and common to all (viii. 11). The author is naturally thereby thinking of the perfect revelation of God made in the words of God by the Son (i. 1), and which ought to have already fitted even the readers in an ordinary way to be able to be teachers (v. 12). For they also have tasted the good word of God, which guarantees the fulfilment of the promise in the New Covenant (vi. 5); they have obtained the knowledge of the truth (x. 26: èπíyvwois Tŷs ảλŋleías), and are therefore enlightened (vi. 4, x. 32: pwτιolévτes; comp. § 107, a). But there are different stages in the revelation of the New Testament word of God, as there are in the knowledge wrought by it. The introductory parts, the elements of the word of God, or of the proclamation of Christ (v. 12: τὰ στοιχεῖα τῆς ἀρχῆς τῶν λογίων τοῦ Θεοῦ; comp. vi. 1: ὁ τῆς ἀρχῆς τοῦ Χριστοῦ λόγος), are designated by the author, as by Paul (§ 102, b), figuratively as milk (v. 12), as it is suitable for výπio (ver. 13), in contrast to the strong meat, which the Teleioi can bear (ver. 14; comp. τελειότης, vi. 1). This fundamental teaching consists, according to vi. 1, 2, in the preaching of repentance and faith, with which evangelical preaching began (Mark i. 15; comp. Acts xvii. 30, 31, and with that § 61, a; 19, 4), in instruction about baptism and the laying on of hands (note b), and about eschatological events. By the strong meat, on the other

11 In what way God carries on this His work of grace through Christ our Epistle gives no hint, only it is certain that the Pauline doctrine so richly developed of the living fellowship with Christ and the work of His Spirit in the Christian (§ 84, 86) remains foreign to it. But He naturally does it in this way, that He equips His servants to speak such words of exhortation as this Epistle contains; and finally, all are required in the most pressing terms to keep each other from falling away (iii. 12, 13), and to advance in good works (x. 24). In this sense it is in particular the duty of those who are over them to watch for their souls (xiii. 17), and the church assemblies is the place where such exhortations are addressed (x. 25), and they are therefore to listen to the one and not to forsake the other. Along with this, good example is particularly to be attended to, as exercising a wholesome influence (xii. 12, 13), as evil example has a tempting influence (ver. 15), and therefore the author does not weary to present the example of the heroes of the faith, who look down on Christians in their fight (xii. 1), their departed leaders (xiii. 7), and even Christ Himself (xii. 2, 3).

hand, by which the author seeks (vi. 1), with God's help (vi. 3), to lead on those readers, who at any rate have not kept behind at the stage of vnπióτηs, and have become dull of mind (v. 11-13), on the supposition of the zeal for TeλeίOTNS quickened in them afresh by his exhortations, he evidently means those deeper instructions as to the relation of the New Covenant to the Old, which our Epistle furnishes."

§ 125. The Duty of the New Testament Covenant.

The duty of the New Testament covenant is the inflexible holding fast the hope of the fulfilment of the covenant promise guaranteed in the New Covenant, and this is not possible without faith (a). This faith, which is the distinguishing mark of all the pious of the Old Covenant, is in the New Covenant a firm confidence in the fulfilment of the covenant promise, and a confident persuasion of the saving facts, by which that fulfilment is guaranteed according to the gospel proclamation (b). In this faith consists essentially that state of mind well-pleasing to God, on the firm keeping hold of which in enduring patience depends participation in the perfected salvation (c). But sin is simply unbelief, and falling away from faith is the sin which never can be forgiven, because it gives evidence of final hardening (d).

(a) If the members of the New Testament covenant are so highly privileged, that they are fit to obtain directly the Old Testament promise (§ 123, c, footnote 5), then the hope of the fulfilment of this promise is their distinguishing mark. They are designated as those who have fled to seize firmly the hope presented for their immediate grasp (vi. 18) in the promise confirmed by an oath (ver. 17). Thus this strong

12 That there is no reference here to the contrast between irris and yvwois, as Köstlin (compare 1854, pp. 403, 404), Riehm, pp. 783-785, has abundantly proved. All these deeper instructions have but the practical tendency to strengthen the hope that what was left unrealized in the Old will be perfected in the New Covenant. But that leads on to the explanation of the duty of the New Testament covenant, on the fulfilment of which participation in this perfection depends.

1 If this hope is compared to an anchor, which is firm and reliable, because it reaches into the heavenly Holiest (ver. 19), whither Christ as our podpopes has gone (ver. 20), it is implied in this that this hope rests on the heavenly highpriesthood of Christ. For this is indeed the new priesthood promised for the

emphasizing of the hope was, no doubt, occasioned by the fact that the hope of the readers was getting weaker (§ 111, a); it reminds us thus so very much of the central position of hope with Peter (§ 51), and is so closely connected with the whole fundamental view of the author, that it ought not to be reckoned among the peculiarities of his method of teaching, to see in the Messianic hope, i.e. in the hope of the fulfilment of the Old Covenant relationship guaranteed by the appearance of the Messiah, the characteristic privilege of Christians. Therefore also the uninterrupted holding fast of the glad confidence (Tappnoía; comp. x. 35), and of the high pre-eminence in it (xaúxnua), which such a hope gives, is the condition of belonging to God's New Testament family (iii. 6; comp. § 117, b); and thus the unwavering holding fast (comp. x. 23) of an assured hope (comp. vi. 11: ý πλŋροφορία τῆς ἐλπίδος) is the New Testament covenant duty. Only to those who look for the return of Messiah with such a hope can He appear as the Saviour (ix. 28). A firm confidence (Tóσтaσis), however, is required for the fulfilment of this duty, and hence the uninterrupted holding fast of that confidence, and also of the glad hope itself (iii. 6), can be reckoned (ver. 14) the condition of participation in Christ, i.e. in the blessings of the New Covenant procured by Him (§ 124, b). Such a confidence is now the TíOTIS Èπì OEÓv, which is designated (vi. 1) the fundamental article of evan

Messianic time, with which the perfect atonement, and therefore the full realization of the object of the covenant, was brought into view (vii. 19). According to x. 23, also, Christians confess the final consummation hoped for, which by the addition πιστὸς γὰρ ὁ ἐπαγγειλάμενος marked out as the fulfilment of the promise, and which, in conformity with the connection with vv. 19-21, is based on the exaltation of the Messianic High Priest.

2 The hope itself must not be regarded as this covenant duty, as neither must it be regarded, with Riehm, p. 751, as the condition for drawing near to God. For, vii. 19, it is not the subjective hope, as iii. 6, vi. 11, but, according to a well-known metonymy, as vi. 18, x. 23, the res sperata that is meant, the perfect priesthood, namely, and the perfect atonement given with it as the object of the hope directed to the setting up of the New Covenant (comp. §116, a). Just so is Christ, vi. 20, our ≈píèpoμos, and therefore by Him, and not by our hope, is the way to God prepared, although that hope is yet in that objective sense (as the fulfilment of the promise hoped for: poxuμśvn iλxis) compared to an anchor, because as the latter rests immoveably on the bottom of the ocean, so hope has its guarantee, which cannot be shaken, in the heavenly Holiest, when the work of redemption is completed (comp. footnote 1).

gelical preaching; for such preaching begins with the announcement that God, by sending Messiah, has guaranteed the fulfilment of His promise. But faith is expressly explained, xi. 1, as a firm confidence of things hoped for (ÈXTIČOμÉVWV ÚTTÓσтaσis), and, at the same time, as a persuasion of unseen things (πραγμάτων ἔλεγχος οὐ βλεπομένων), which makes the things as sure as though they were seen. (ver. 27).3

(b) Faith, as it is described, xi. 1, has been the mark of all the holy from the beginning (ver. 2). According to the various promises which these receive, the πióμeva and the où Breπóμeva were ever very various, but the nature of faith was not thereby altered. With the members of the New Covenant, the sum of the Tritóμeva, in reference to which

3 There is here therefore also implied in the idea of irris both a confident trust on the faithfulness (xi. 11; comp. x. 23) and the power (ver. 19) of God, who both will and can fulfil His promise; and, on the other hand, a confident persuasion of things not perceptible to the senses, as, e.g., the creation of the world, in which the visible was expressly called into existence by the invisible creative word of God, and not made of things perceptible to the senses, that it might remain an object of faith (ver. 3). As the former trust is connected with the appnoía of hope, so the latter thorough persuasion has to do with its λnpopopia. The close connection of faith with hope gives its peculiar colour to the idea of faith in our Epistle, and puts it very near to the Petrine idea (§ 44, a, footnote 2). Neither does is include hope (comp. Usteri, p. 256), nor does the latter take its place (comp. Baur, p. 252); but neither is it a manifestation and evidence of faith, nor its flower and crown (comp. Riehm, pp. 709, 752); for faith even presupposes hope if it is a waiting for the iμsva (xi. 1). Faith is rather the only condition under which the fast holding of hope, and therewith the fulfilment of the covenant duty, is possible.

• With Abel and Enoch, faith was the conviction of God's existence, and of His retribution (ver. 6) in general. Noah already possessed a divine word of promise (ver. 7: xpnuatiobiís), so that with him the conviction of its truth coincided with trust in its fulfilment. Sarah and Abraham relied on the promise of the posterity assured to them in the son of promise (ver. 11, xii. 17-19); Isaac and Jacob, on the fulfilment of the blessing given them by word of mouth (vv. 20, 21); all the patriarchs, on the possession of the promised land (vv. 8, 9, 22). But as Abraham, according to § 115, a, already possessed the same promise, whose fulfilment should have been brought about by the Old Covenant, but was actually brought about by the New, the faith of all the patriarchs already kept the fulfilment of this highest promise in view (vv. 13-16; comp. ver. 10), with which the conviction of the reality of the unseen heavenly fatherland was given (vv. 13, 15), and so all the other heroes of faith (ver. 39), when their faith could rest on promises in detail, for the fulfilment of which they survived (ver. 33), as the examples in vv. 28-31 show. Even in the case of Christ Himself, the joy of His heavenly exaltation set before Him as reward, was the object of that faith of His which is our example (xii. 2; comp. § 120, d).

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they had a sure confidence, is nothing else than the contents of the covenant promise, whose fulfilment had been guaranteed to them by the setting up of the New Covenant: the où Bλeπóμeva, on the other hand, are the institutions and blessings of salvation presented in this covenant, in reference to which they were thoroughly persuaded by the gospel proclamation. If the former was given with the relation in which faith stands to hope (note a), it is then confirmed by iv. 2, according to which the word of the promise, which was the same in the Old Covenant as it is in the New, did not profit the hearers, if it was not united to them, if it was not appropriated by them by faith, i.e. by trust on the promise given in it. But that the où ßλeñóμeva are not the realities of the invisible (heavenly) world (Pfleiderer, p. 352 [E. T. ii. 80]), is clear from x. 22, according to which the πληροφορία πίστεως can exist only when we have acknowledged Jesus as the perfect High Priest (ver. 21), and His blood as the means by which the way to God is opened up (vv. 19, 20). Since, now, this is even the contents of the New Testament proclamation, everything depends on the firm conviction of the truth of this proclamation, and such conviction is demanded, if the regard to the New Testament proclamation, required ii. 1, is accounted for by the greatest confidence in it possible (vv. 3, 4), and the turning away from it is characterized as a sin against Him who speaks from heaven (xii. 25; comp. § 116, b, footnote 3).

(c) This faith, as it has become the mark of all the holy, is the mind which is specifically well-pleasing to God, and therefore the principal element in dikatoσúvŋ. Without faith it is impossible to please God (xi. 6; comp. x. 38); by faith

And thus it is plain why Christ is not spoken of directly as the object of faith; but this is neither because He here furnishes the pattern of faith (Biedermann, p. 249), nor is it because He has won for faith its full contents (in the sense of Pfleiderer, p. 352 [E. T. ii. 83]). As He who is and abides unchangeably what He has become for Christians by His exaltation to be the Messianic High Priest, then, according to the connection of xiii. 8, it is He on whom the demand of an abiding trust in the fulfilment of the promise (ver. 7) is made to rest. But just because this is ever the main side of wiers in the Epistle to the Hebrews, while the other, the being thoroughly persuaded, is but the presupposition for it, the Pauline formula cannot here be impressed. But that faith is here the persistent striving after eternal blessings (Schenkel, p. 127 f.), is decidedly incorrect.