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Heb_4:15. Further justification of the demand, Heb_4:14, of stedfast adherence to the Christian confession.[70] For the High Priest of Christians is not merely a highly exalted One (Heb_4:14), He is also qualified, since as Brother He stands very closely related to believers, and has been tempted as they are, to have sympathy for their weaknesses. Comp. Heb_2:17-18. Calvin: In nomine Filii Dei, quod posuit, subest ea majestas, quae nos ad timorem et obsequium adigat. Verum si nihil in Christo aliud consideremus, nondum pacatae erunt conscientiae. Quis enim non reformidet Filii Dei conspectum, praesertim quum reputamus, qualis sit nostra conditio, nobisque in mentem veniunt peccata nostra? Deinde Judaeis aliud obstare poterat, quia Levitico sacerdotio assueverant: illic cernebant hominem mortalem unum ex aliis electum, qui sanctuarium ingrediebatur, ut sua deprecatione reconciliaret fratres suos Deo. Hoc magnum est, quum mediator, qui placare erga nos Deum potest, unus est ex nobis. Haec illecebra poterat Judaeos illaqueare, ut sacerdotio Levitico semper essent addicti, nisi occurreret apostolus, ac ostenderet Filium Dei non modo excellere gloria, sed aequa bonitate et indulgentia erga nos esse praeditum. Whereas ΔΥΝΆΜΕΝΟΝ ΣΥΜΠΑΘῆΣΑΙ and ΠΕΠΕΙΡΑΣΜΈΝΟΝ ΚΑΤᾺ ΠΆΝΤΑ ΚΑΘʼ ὉΜΟΙΌΤΗΤΑ bring out the homogeneity of the New Testament High Priest with that of the Old Testament (comp. Heb_5:2), the dissimilarity at the same time existing between the two is rendered apparent by ΧΩΡῚς ἉΜΑΡΤΊΑς .
ΣΥΜΠΑΘΕῖΝ ] to have sympathy, compassionate feeling. Comp. Heb_10:34. Preliminary condition to bestowing succour and redemption.
αἱ ἀσθένειαι ἡμῶν ] the conditions of human weakness, as well moral as physical, which have been called forth by the entrance of sin into the world.
ΠΕΠΕΙΡΑΣΜΈΝΟΝ ΔΈ ] contains in the form of a correction of ΜῊ ΔΥΝΆΜΕΝΟΝ the proof of the capacity for having sympathy.
ΚΑΤᾺ ΠΆΝΤΑ ] Comp. Heb_2:17.
ΚΑΘʼ ὉΜΟΙΌΤΗΤΑ ] sc. ἡμῶν (comp. Heb_7:15 : ΚΑΤᾺ ΤῊΝ ὉΜΟΙΌΤΗΤΑ ΜΕΛΧΙΣΕΔΈΚ ), or ἩΜῖΝ (comp. Polyb. xiii. 7. 2 : ἮΝ ΓᾺΡ ΕἼΔΩΛΟΝ ΓΥΝΑΙΚΕῖΟΝ , ΠΟΛΥΤΕΛΈΣΙΝ ἹΜΑΤΊΟΙς ἨΜΦΙΕΣΜΈΝΟΝ , ΚΑΤᾺ ΔῈ ΤῊΝ ΜΟΡΦῊΝ ΕἸς ὉΜΟΙΌΤΗΤΑ Τῇ ΤΟῦ ΝΆΒΙΔΟς ΓΥΝΑΙΚῚ ΔΙΑΦΌΡΩς ἈΠΕΙΡΓΑΣΜΈΝΟΝ ), or even ΠΡῸς ἩΜᾶς (comp. Philo, de Profugis, p. 458 A, with Mangey, I. p. 553: κατὰ τὴν πρὸς τἄλλα ὁμοιότητα ): in like (similar) manner as we.
χωρὶς ἁμαρτίας ] without sin, i.e. without sin arising out of the temptations, or more clearly: without His being led into sinning, as a result of His being tempted. Comp. Heb_7:26; 2Co_5:21; 1Jn_3:5; 1Pe_2:22. When Hofmann (Schrifthew. II. 1, 2 Aufl. p. 37) and Delitzsch will discover in these words the additional indication that in the case of Jesus temptation also found no sin present, this is indeed true as to the fact, but open to the misconception of being supposed to imply that even the possibility of sinning on the part of Jesus is denied, whereas surely this possibility in itself must be conceived of as an essential factor in the idea of being tempted; and opposed to the context, because χωρὶς ἉΜΑΡΤΊΑς is the continued note of modality of ΠΕΠΕΙΡΑΣΜΈΝΟΝ , and thus cannot possibly specify something that was already present, even before the ΠΕΙΡΆΖΕΣΘΑΙ came in. More in accordance with the context, therefore, does Alford express himself: “Throughout these temptations, in their origin, in their process, in their result,—sin had nothing in Him: He was free and separate from it.” Wrongly Jac. Cappellus, Calmet, Semler, Storr, Ernesti, Heinrichs, Kuinoel, and others: tempted in all things, sin excepted. For in that case χωρὶς τῆς ἁμαρτίας (with the article) would be written, and this be connected immediately with ΚΑΤᾺ ΠΆΝΤΑ . Mistaken, however, is also the explanation of Oecumenius, Schlichting, Dindorf: without having committed sin, as a guiltless one; an interpretation which would be admissible only if πειράζεσθαι could be referred specially to the enduring of outward sufferings, which might be seen to be a consequence of sin.
Comp., for the rest, on ΧΩΡῚς ἉΜΑΡΤΊΑς likewise the kindred statements concerning the divine Logos in Philo, de Profugis, p. 466 B (with Mangey, I. p. 562): Λέγομεν γάρ , τὸν ἀρχιερέα οὐκ ἄνθρωπον ἀλλὰ λόγον θεῖον εἶναι , πάντων οὐχ ἑκουσίων μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀκουσίων ἀδικημάτων ἀμέτοχον .
Ibid. p. 467 C (I. p. 563): ἀμέτοχος γὰρ καὶ ἀπαράδεκτος παντὸς εἶναι πέφυκεν ἁμαρτήματος .
[70] Incorrectly does Ebrard take ver. 15 as elucidation of ἔχοντες ἀρχιερέα .