Hebrews Part 2 - The Back-Story

—Hebrews 6,10

Andrew Fountain – Jan 22, 2017

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My theory (this is just an example of what might have happened!)
- The church in Corinth wanted to run a conference, so they contacted Apollos, who was in Rome at the time.
  - They had been really blessed by his understanding of how the O.T. related to us today.
  - They asked him to give three messages on this theme at the conference.
- It was a great success and lots of people wanted a copy of it (no audio or video)
  - So they asked Apollos if he would write the messages out for them.
  - He agreed on condition it was anonymous, because of all the trouble with factions at Corinth.
- When he did so, he did quite a bit of work polishing it and organizing the content.
- He then sent them a copy with a note attached to the end ([13:22–24]).
So what do we know about the author?
- Amazingly talented writer (written at the level of the most polished Greek literature)
- Hangs out with Paul’s group (Timothy: [Heb 13:22,23])
- Some ideas are very similar to Paul’s but there are some new insights
- Knows the O.T. Scriptures very well

Why Apollos?

Acts 18:24 “Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures (O.T.)…”
eloquent
from Alexandria (polished Greek)
“mighty” in the Old Testament
Acts 18:28 “he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures (O.T.) that Jesus is the Christ.”
The only one in Paul’s circle of friends who fits.

When? Where? Who?

Date:
before 70AD when the temple was destroyed

Place:
13:24 Greetings to all your leaders and all the saints. Those from Italy send you greetings.

Recipients
Any church in Greek speaking world (most of the Roman Empire)

Must be Greek-speaking because of the complexity of the language (High-Greek)
- The term “Hebrews” was reserved for Jews still living in Palestine, who wouldn’t have Greek as a first language
- Some suggest it could be Jewish converts who were tempted to return to Judaism
But there is actually no reason to restrict it to Jews
- So it could have been to any church in Greek speaking world (most of the Roman Empire)
- The Gentiles were just as likely to be interested in the Scriptures
- They were even more likely to want to know how the O.T. related to themselves
- This is one of the main purposes of the book
Form
- Not an Epistle (letter)
- Most people suggest it was a sermon that was later written down
No opening section (from / to / grace / prayer of thanksgiving)
- 3 verses on the end show that it was written to be sent
Paul’s epistles are full of “I write to you...”
- Whereas this is full of expressions such as [11:32 “what more shall I say? For time will fail me...”]
- Frequent references to running out of time
- [5:11 “say... hearing”]
Most people suggest it was a sermon that was later written down
- two problems
- very long for a sermon
- very complex
- many of the intricate literary features would be lost in a sermon
Some Christians react to the idea that something can be Scripture and art at the same time
- Some of the Psalms are intricate Hebrew poetry
- Other books as well, such as Song of Solomon
- This book is Art.
- My Greek tutor once made me translate some of it... (after working through Paul)
- unfortunately I can’t show you the beauty of the Greek, since you would have to be fairly advanced Greek students to really appreciate it.
- A good reason for it to be anonymous
  - Can you imagine a songwriter “this song is so good, I’m going to make it anonymous”

Structure

History of attempts to find a structure
- Historically there were several ideas,but it is generally recognized that this fits very badly
- A second view is the “Patchwork”
  - In effect gives up on any structure
- In the last 100 years, there has been a lot of success in identifying literary features in the book which help us determine the structure.
- In 1963 a French scholar, Albert Vanhoye, made a breakthrough
- Others have done work since then
- Here is my proposal…

Structure

Message 1: 1:5–5:10
Jesus has received his glorious inheritance—
so hold on tight and follow him to your destiny
Message 2: 7:1–10:18 (Centrepiece)
The basis of hope and confidence—Christ’s new work
Message 3: 11:1–13:19
All the heroes of faith are cheering you on, so run the race!

Hebrews 10:32–34

But remember the former days when you endured a harsh conflict of suffering after you were enlightened.
At times you were publicly exposed to abuse and afflictions, and at other times you came to share with others who were treated in that way.
For in fact you shared the sufferings of those in prison, and you accepted the confiscation of your belongings with joy

Hebrews 6

For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love you have demonstrated for his name, in having served and continuing to serve the saints

What about us?

What are the equivalent pressures facing us? anything?

What’s the temptation?

Parable of the four kinds of seeds?

Matthew 13

The seed sown on rocky ground is the person who hears the word and immediately receives it with joy.
But he has no root in himself and does not endure; when trouble or persecution comes because of the word, immediately he falls away.

How about you?

Do you need encouragement not to give up?
Do you trust Jesus yet?

Two arguments in Hebrews:

negative: If you stop following Jesus, there isn’t anything else
Positive: What you have in Jesus is so much better than what you might lose

1. New Revelation through Jesus

God has spoken to us in an entirely new, and infinitely superior way, through Jesus.
Jesus is not just a spiritual being, like the angels, but God the Son
So if it was serious to ignore God speaking in the past, how much more serious is it now!

2. New Destiny in Jesus

Jesus fulfill’s God’s original destiny for man, being raised higher than the angels
As his sons and daughters we share his destiny
He is not ashamed of us, but trusts us Hebrews 2:9–18
This puts into perspective the “shamimg” of society

Two arguments in Hebrews:

negative: If you stop following Jesus, there isn’t anything else
Positive: What you have in Jesus is so much better than what you might lose