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Mystery:Did Jesus Write the Epistle to the Hebrews? (view source)
Revision as of 14:03, December 27, 2016
, 14:03, December 27, 2016added section "Historical considerations: Critical analysis"
*The idea of the authorship Jesu doesn't fit the first verses of the letter, where the author takes the position of one to whom God spoke in his Son:
*The idea of the authorship Jesu doesn't fit the first verses of the letter, where the author takes the position of one to whom God spoke in his Son:
{{cquote|But in these the Last Days He has spoken to us through His Son, whom He determined to be the inheritor of everthing, the Son, by whom He made the worlds, |||[[Epistle_to_the_Hebrews_(Translated)#Chapter 1|Hebrews 1:2]]}}
{{cquote|But in these the Last Days He has spoken to us through His Son, whom He determined to be the inheritor of everthing, the Son, by whom He made the worlds, [[Epistle_to_the_Hebrews_(Translated)#Chapter 1|Hebrews 1:2]]}}
*The idea that this letter was written before the [[Ascension]] is ridiculous and stems from ignorance: the last verses include greetings from "those in Italy"...
*The idea that this letter was written before the [[Ascension]] is ridiculous and stems from ignorance: the last verses include greetings from "those in Italy"...
*''...the work quotes Jesus' thought process, which only Jesus would know.''
*''...the work quotes Jesus' thought process, which only Jesus would know.''
:'''Contra:''' If this logic were to hold true, it would mean that God was the author of Genesis. Along with every other event that is described in the Bible that no mortal man could have been witness to.
:'''Contra:''' If this logic were to hold true, it would mean that God was the author of Genesis. Along with every other event that is described in the Bible that no mortal man could have been witness to.
== Historical considerations: Critical analysis ==
''See [[Historical-critical method (Higher criticism)]]
'''The <small>LETTER TO THE HEBREWS</small>'''. The Book of Hebrews is a perfect supporting conclusion to the list of texts of OLD TESTAMENT Bible proofs that the long-expected Christ is Jesus.
:This outstanding exposition of scripture, ''which also stands as one of the finest pieces of world literature'', is best read within the context of the interpretation of everything written about Jesus in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms, as presented in Luke 24:44-48, and as [[Christian apologetics|apologetical literature]] written during the time setting between Acts 18 and 19, and as an encouragement to remain faithful in the context of the discouraging persecution being inflicted on the believers by the Jews [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/john/15-20.htm John 15:20].
::[[Andy Schlafly]] is persuaded that Jesus himself wrote this work during the 40 days he appeared to the apostles he had chosen, while he was with them and spoke of the kingdom of God, and that he left it with them—just as Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel also entrusted their writings to their disciples, copies to be kept in earthen jars. See Isaiah 8:16; Jeremiah 36 and 51:59-60; Daniel 12:4, 9. This is fully in accord with the practical and material secondary meaning of 2 Corinthians 4:5-7, "''We have this treasure in earthen vessels''". See [[Dead Sea scrolls]]. <br> Hebrews is written to the whole church as an encouragement to every follower of Christ to remain faithful during the persecutions they were already facing from the Jews and in the coming persecutions from the pagan nations which were certain to occur in centuries to come (Matthew 5:11-12; John 15:18-20). The same message of encouragement to persevere and remain faithful in the face of terrible persecution of Christianity is presented in the [[Revelation, Book of (historical exegesis)|Book of Revelation]].<br>The claim that Hebrews is from Jesus himself who is ''the perfection of God'' (Hebrews 1:3; 6:26; Colossians 1:19), is a highly controversial claim never advanced before the 21st century, based on the critically attested grammatically '''''perfect''''' Greek of the text. This claim was met with universal rejection by biblical scholars and theologians the moment it was publicly proposed. No mention of Jesus composing or dictating any writing is found in any early Christian writings or commentaries on scripture from the second century onward, other than the apocryphal ''[http://gods-kingdom-ministries.net/teachings/articles-and-poetry/jesus-letter-to-abgar-the-toparch/ Letters of Christ and Abgarus]''.
:Everything in the Book of Hebrews and the Gospels that could only have been known to Jesus he disclosed to his disciples during the forty days after his resurrection when he appeared to them, and spoke of the kingdom of God. They in turn shared this knowledge with their disciples in word and in writing. Matthew 10:27; Mark 4:22; Luke 12:2-3; John 16:12.
:Among the various authors of ''Hebrews'' historically proposed since the second century are '''Paul, Priscilla, Barnabas, Apollos, Timothy, Epaphras, Silas, Philip, Clement of Rome''' ([http://biblehub.com/commentaries/philippians/4-3.htm Philippians 4:3]), and others. <br>See [http://biblehub.com/commentaries/hebrews/1-1.htm ''multiple commentaries on'' Hebrews (biblehub.com)].<br>See the following five articles:
:*[http://www.ligonier.org/learn/devotionals/writer-hebrews/ '''The Writer of Hebrews''' by R. C. Sproul. Reformed Bible Studies (ligonier.org)]
:*[http://biblehub.com/library/pullan/the_books_of_the_new_testament/chapter_xviii_the_epistle_to.htm '''The Epistle to the Hebrews''' The Books of the Bible - Leighton Pullam (biblehub.com)]
:*[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Authorship_of_the_Epistle_to_the_Hebrews '''Authorship of the Epistle to the Hebrews''' (en.wikipedia.org)]
:*[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07181a.htm Catholic Encyclopedia '''Epistle to the Hebrews''' (newadvent.org)] ''scroll down to'' '''Author'''.
:*[http://biblescripture.net/Hebrews.html '''The Letter to the Hebrews''' (biblescripture.net)] ''also includes entire Douay-Rheims text of Hebrews''.
"'''but in these days he has spoken to us by a Son'''" Hebrews 1:2. Third person reference to Jesus.
:This verse poses a difficulty for those who claim that this epistle was written by Jesus Christ Himself: He (God) has spoken to us (men, including the writer) through His Son (Jesus Christ) - which implies that His Son and the writer are different entities. <br>But upon closer investigation one realizes that many early Apostles, in imitation of Jesus, spoke about themselves in this modest style of using the third person, as when John referenced himself as the "One of his disciples, whom Jesus loved" (John 13:23, ESV) and Mark referenced himself as "but he left the linen cloth and ran away naked." (Mark 14:52, ESV) Jesus himself, of course, frequently referred to himself in the third person as in the phrase Son of Man.
:On the other hand, there is no other example where Jesus or an Apostle spoke about himself using both the first and the third person in the same sentence!
:The strongest internal textual evidence against Jesus being the author of the ''Letter to the Hebrews'' during the forty days he appeared to the disciples and spoke of the kingdom of God is in Hebrews 1:3, which says (past tense), "''When he had made purification for sins, '''he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high'''...''". (RSV) Conservative Bible scholars carefully consider the following facts in assessing the claim that Jesus is the author of ''Hebrews''. On the day Jesus ascended into heaven and the disciples stood gazing into heaven as he went, "''two men stood by them in white robes, and said, 'This Jesus, who was taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you saw him go into heaven.' ''" (Acts 1:11 RSV). Peter later testified to the Jews that Jesus is "''...the Christ appointed for you, '''whom heaven must receive until the time for establishing all that God spoke''' by the mouth of his holy prophets...''". (Acts 3:20-21 RSV). There is no evidence in scripture that Jesus after having ascended into heaven "''and sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high''" descended to earth in a second coming to write this document. The writer explicitly refers to the fact that Jesus "''sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high''" as being an already accomplished fact '''before''' ''Hebrews'' was written. Compare Acts 1:11 (already cited) and the following supportive texts:
:*"''But he, full of the Holy Spirit, gazed into heaven and saw the glory of God, and Jesus standing at the right hand of God''". Acts 7:55.
:*"''...their Master and yours is in heaven...''" Ephesians 6:9.
:*"''...our commonwealth is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ...''" Philippians 3:20.
:*"''When Christ who is our life appears, then you also will appear with him in glory.''" Colossians 3:4.
:*"''Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven.''" Colossians 4:1.
:*"''...wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come.''" 1 Thessalonians 1:10.
:*"''For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a cry of command, with the archangel's call, and with the sound of the trumpet of God.''" 1 Thessalonians 4:16.
:*"''...when the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with his mighty angels in flaming fire''" 2 Thessalonians 1:7.
:*"''But when Christ appeared as a high priest...he entered once for all into the Holy Place...thus securing an eternal redemption.'''" Hebrews 9:11a, 12.
:*"''For Christ has entered, not into a sanctuary made with hands, a copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God on our behalf...so Christ, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to save those who are eagerly waiting for him.''" Hebrews 9:24 and 28.
:*"''But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, '''then to wait''' until his enemies should be made a footstool for his feet.''" Hebrews 10:12-13.
:*"''For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.''" 1 Corinthians 15:25-26.
:*"''...Jesus Christ, who has gone into heaven and is at the right hand of God, with angels, authorities, and powers subject to him.''" 1 Peter 3:21b-22.
:*"''...whom '''heaven must receive until the time for establishing all that God spoke''' by the mouth of his holy prophets from of old''" Acts 3:21.
:*"''he commands all men everywhere to repent, because '''he has fixed a day on which he will judge the world in righteousness by a man whom he has appointed''', and of this he has given assurance to all men by raising him from the dead.''" Acts 17:31.
:In answer to the objection that the ascension of Christ into heaven is presented in ''Hebrews'' as a past event, supporters of the claim that Jesus is author of Hebrews can point to the Bible pattern of prophetic writing which includes the Semitic manner of referring to a divinely guaranteed future fulfillment as having already been accomplished, because it is an absolute certainty. The divine guarantee of the future is written in the past tense. Thus, Jesus as author of Hebrews is argued as having written in the past tense of his own future ascension to the glorious throne of God the Father as an already accomplished reality. See the following article:
:*[http://www.plainerwords.com/artman2/publish/2007/Prophecy_Past_Or_Present_Tense.shtml '''Prophecy: Past or Present Tense?''' (plainerwords.com)]
:Against the authorship of Jesus there are also those passages all through the Letter to the Hebrews, emphasized in boldface here in the text of this ''Harmony of the Gospel'', that Jesus cannot be saying of himself, even in referring to himself in the second and third person. The words "we, us, our" include the speaker and would need to be changed to "you" and "your":
:*"''spoken to '''us''' by his Son''" Hebrews 1:2 <br> (spoken to you by his Son)
:*"''purified '''us''' of '''our sins'''''" Hebrews 1:3 <br> (purified you of your sins)
:*"'''''we''' ought to pay greater attention to the things that were heard, lest perhaps '''we''' drift away''" Hebrews 2:1 <br> (you ought to pay greater attention to the things that were heard, lest perhaps you drift away)
:*"''how will '''we''' escape if '''we''' neglect so great a salvation...confirmed to '''us''' by those who heard''" Hebrews 2:3 <br> (how will you escape if you neglect so great a salvation...confirmed to you by those who heard0
:*"''whose house '''we''' are, if '''we''' hold fast''" Hebrews 3:6 <br> (whose house you are if you hold fast)
:*"''Let '''us''' therefore draw near with boldness to the throne of grace, that '''we''' may receive mercy''" Hebrews 4:16 <br> (Let us together therefore draw near with boldness to the throne of grace, that you may receive mercy)
:*"''where as a forerunner Jesus entered for '''us'''''" Hebrews 6:20 <br> (where as a forerunner Jesus entered for you)
:*"''For Christ has not entered into holy places made with hands, which are representations of the true, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for '''us'''''" Hebrews 9:24 <br> (...now to appear in the presence of God for you)
:*"''Having therefore, brothers, boldness to enter into the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by the way which he dedicated for '''us'''...let '''us''' draw near with a true heart in fullness of faith, having '''our''' hearts sprinkled from an '''evil conscience'''''" Hebrews 10:19-22 <br> (Having therefore, brothers, boldness to enter into the holy place by the blood of Jesus, by the way which he dedicated for you...let us together draw near with a true heart in fullness of faith, having your hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience)
:*"''let '''us''' also, seeing '''we''' are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight and '''the sin which so easily entangles us''', and let '''us''' run with patience the race that is set before '''us''', looking to Jesus''" Hebrews 12:1-2a <br> (let us together also, seeing you are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight and the sin which so easily entangles you, and let us together run with patience the race that is set before you, looking to Jesus)
:*"''Through him, then, let '''us''' offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually''" Hebrews 13:15 <br> (Through him, then, offer up a sacrifice of praise to God continually)
:*"'''''Pray for us'''''" Hebrews 13:18 <br> (Pray for the brothers)
:Probably the best scriptural response to the above objection is found in the words of Jesus in the [[Lord's Prayer]] and his word to Saul on the road to Damascus:
:*"'''''Our''' Father...give '''us''' this day...forgive '''us''' our debts...lead '''us''' not into temptation, but deliver '''us''' from evil''" Matthew 6:9-13, also Luke 11:3-4.
:*"''Saul, Saul, why do you persecute '''me'''''" Acts 9:4.
:In support of the argument that Jesus is the author of ''Hebrews'' by dictation to his chosen ''amanuensis'' (just as Tertius wrote Paul's letter to the Romans, 16:22), is the fact that Jesus after having ascended into heaven appeared to chosen individuals on earth, including John, who at Jesus' command '''wrote''' the ''Book of Revelation''. See the following texts:
:*"''...he fell to the ground and '''heard a voice saying''' to him, ...''" Acts 9:4.
:*"''Now there was a disciple at Damascus named Ananias. '''The Lord said to him''' in a vision...''" Acts 9:10-17.
:*"''...I have appeared to you for this purpose, to appoint you to serve and '''bear witness to the things in which you have seen me''' and to those in which I will appear to you...''". Acts 26:16.
:*"''Now '''write''' what you see, what is and what is to take place hereafter.''" Revelation 1:19.
:*"''And he who sat on the throne said, 'Behold, I make all things new.' Also he said, ''''Write''' this...' ''" Revelation 21:5.
:A reasonable counter-argument to this response is the fact that every extant manuscript witness of the text of ''Hebrews'', unlike the witness of the text of ''Revelation'' and the accounts of Jesus' appearances in ''Acts'', lacks witness to any appearance of the Lord Jesus for the purpose of commanding the writing of this sacred text. <br>This leaves the Holy Spirit as the author of ''Hebrews'', testifying to Jesus, and revealing things no man could have known, in accordance with the promises Jesus made on the night he was betrayed:
:*''when the Counselor comes, whom I shall send to you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father, '''he will bear witness to me'''''" John 15:26.
:*''I have yet many things to say to you, but you cannot bear them now. When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth; for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come. '''He will glorify me''', for he will take what is mine and declare it to you.''" John 16:12-14.
:This might account for the lack of an opening greeting with an identification of the author. However, the Book of Revelation does include an opening greeting "''from him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven '''spirits''' who are before his throne''". The appended comments at the end (Hebrews 13) would thus be the personal words of the writer of the message, which of themselves can stand alone as "''my word of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly''."
:"''Briefly''"! The body of the ''Letter to the Hebrews'' is not "''brief''", even by the ancient standards of public oratory or any public address at any time in history. It is about the same length as 1 Corinthians and longer than 2 Corinthians. Only Romans and Revelation are longer than Hebrews. Its length is more than double any one of the lengthy speeches in the works of Josephus, ''Antiquities'' and ''Wars''. The whole Book of Hebrews, thirteen chapters, takes about a half hour to read aloud. In contrast, the ''First Letter of Peter'', which is "''written briefly to you''" (5:12), is only five chapters, fewer than 2,340 words (the RSV text of 1 Peter is exactly 2,338 words). And ''Hebrews'' is more than two and a half times the length of 1 Peter "''written briefly to you''". This internal textual evidence gives substance to the suggestion that the end of ''Hebrews'', possibly all of chapter 13, is a brief addition to the work by another writer. The style of writing in chapter 13 is similar to Paul's admonitions to believers in other letters. The suggestion that Paul took Hebrews and forwarded it to another assembly with his apostolic approbation and approval, and that he added comments of his own by attachment, is purely speculative, lacking any textual support. This might, however, explain why Hebrews was traditionally attributed to Paul, apart from the fact that it was usually included with collections of his writings.
:'''The most substantive argument''' against the claim that Jesus wrote Hebrews is the historical evidence from silence. This is not, however, an example of the logical fallacy of an "''[[Logical fallacy#Argument_from_silence|argument from silence]]''". A writing by Jesus himself would surely rank among the most important pieces of literature in the history of writing, and would certainly have been highly revered and preserved by the Apostles and their successors as one of the greatest treasures of Christianity. ''Hebrews'' would have been the primary Handbook of the Apostles. They would have given it first place, even before the Gospels themselves, as being authored by the Lord Himself, just as the Bible is treasured and revered by Christians today as the word of God. None of the writings of the New Testament refers directly to Hebrews as the writing of Jesus; yet Peter refers by name to the letters of Paul, and Jude refers in general to the faith which was once for all delivered to the saints and by name he quotes [[Enoch]]. Moreover, Hebrews was not one of the [[protocanonicals|protocanonical]] books of the New Testament, but was long disputed as one of the [[deuterocanonicals]]. In all of the centuries of Christianity prior to the 21st century, no discussion of the possibility of the authorship of Jesus is mentioned, discussed, debated, denounced, supported or insisted upon, by any writer, Bible commentator, apologist or controversialist, Christian, Orthodox, Catholic, Protestant, Independent, heretic, non-Christian, pagan, agnostic, or atheist, at any time from the First Century through the Twentieth Century. In matters of dispute over Christian doctrine, when analytical appeal to the whole of the scriptures of the Bible is inconclusive on the basis of ''sola scriptura'', evidence of the constant and consistent tradition of Christian thought and teaching has usually been determinative. But there is no suggestion in Christian tradition that Jesus wrote Hebrews. The total lack of any discursive historical evidence that anyone has ever suggested that Jesus is the real author of Hebrews, appears as a compelling argument against the proposition that Jesus wrote Hebrews.<br>However, an intuitive perception that Jesus himself is speaking and admonishing us to remain faithful to our calling as Christians throughout the book of Hebrews is just as equally compelling to the believer.
:'''In conclusion''', we have the following undeniable facts:
:*The author of ''Hebrews'' is historically unknown to us.
:*The '''message''' of ''Hebrews'' is not changed. Jesus is the Son of God, greater than angels, and whoever refuses to hear him and departs from him will be condemned to terrible punishment for having crucified him again by rejecting his sacrifice. Faithfulness to him in persecution even to death will have abundant compensation. Obedience to the leaders of his church is both a duty and an assurance of salvation.
== Links ==
== Links ==