Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges - Hebrews 6:17 - 6:17

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Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges - Hebrews 6:17 - 6:17


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This Chapter Verse Commentaries:

17. ἐν ᾦ. “On which principle”; “in accordance with this human custom.” The relative might indeed be made to agree with ὅρκῳ, but it seems better here to regard it as nearly equivalent to ἐφʼ ᾧ qua-propter.

περισσότερον, i.e. than if he had not sworn.

βουλόμενος. “Wishing.” θέλω is volo; βοίλομαι is malo.

τῆς ἐπαγγελίας. “Of the promise.” The heirs of the promise were primarily Abraham and his seed, and then all Christians (Gal 3:29).

τὸ ἀμετάθετον. “I am the Lord, I change not” (Mal 3:6. See too Isa 46:10-11; Psa 33:11; Jam 1:17). His changeless “decree” was that in Abraham’s seed all the nations of the world should be blessed. On the other hand the Mosaic law was mutable (Heb 7:12, Heb 12:27).

ἐμεσίτευσεν ὅρκῳ. “Intervened (interposed, or mediated) with an oath,” i.e. made His oath intermediate between Himself and Abraham. Philo, with his usual subtle refinements, observes that whereas our word is accredited because of an oath, God’s oath derives its credit because He is God. On the other hand, Rabbi Eleazer (in the second century) said “the word Not has the force of an oath,” which he deduced from a comparison of Gen 9:11 with Isa 54:9; and therefore a fortiori the word “yes” has the force of an oath (Shevuoth, f. 36.1). The word μεσιτεύω occurs here only in the N. T.