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2 may offer gifts and sacrifices for sins; being one who can be mildly affected toward the ignorant, and those that wander out of the way; since he himself also is compassed with 3 infirmity. And because of this infirmity he ought, as for the people, so for himself also, to offer sacrifices for sins *. And no man taketh this honour to himself, but he that is 5 called of God, as was Aaron. So Christ also glorified not himself to be made a high-priest; but God who said unto him, 6" Thou art my Son, to-day I have adopted' thee:" as God saith also in another psalm, "Thou art a priest for ever, 7 according to the order of Melchisedec." And Christ, when, in the days of his flesh, he had offered up prayers and sup plications with a strong cry, and with tears, to him that was able to save him from death, and was heard for his godly 8 reverence, though he was a Son, yet learned obedience by 9 the things which he suffered; and, having been made perfect, became the author of eternal salvation to all that obey 10 him; having been called by God a High-priest according 11 to the order of Melchisedec: of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be explained, since ye are dull of hearing. For whereas, by this time, ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which are the first elements of the oracles of God; and are become such as have 13 need of milk, and not of strong food. For every one who partaketh of milk is unskilled in the doctrine of justification: 14 for he is a babe: but strong food belongeth to perfect men*, even to those who, by use, have their senses exercised to the discernment both of good and evil.

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CH. VI. Wherefore let us leave discoursing on the principles of the doctrine of Christ, and go on to perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and Begotten thee, N. and Gr. 2 Or, and was delivered from fear. 3 called of God, N. 4 Or, full-grown men, 5 by reason of use, N.

* In what sense Christ is said to offer a sacrifice for sin for himself is ex plained in the note upon chap, vii, 27,

2 of faith toward God, of the doctrine of baptisms*, and of putting on of hands, and of the resurrection of the dead, and 3 of the everlasting judgement: and this will we do, if God permit.

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For it is impossible † to renew those unto repentance who have been once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly 5 gift, and have been made partakers of the holy spirit, and have tasted the good word of God, and the mighty works of 6 the succeeding age ‡, and yet have fallen away; since they again crucify to themselves the son of God, and expose him 7 to public shame. For the land which drinketh' in the rain that often cometh upon it, and produceth herbage2 useful to those for whom it is tilled, receiveth blessing from God: 8 but that which beareth thorns and briers is rejected, and is near being cursed; whose end is to be burned.

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But, beloved, we are persuaded better things of you, and things which belong to salvation, though we thus speak. 10 For God is not unjust, so as to forget your work and the loves which ye have shown toward his name, in that ye have 11 ministered to the wants of the saints, and still minister. But

we desire that every one of you show the same earnestness, 12 to the full assurance of your hope unto the end: that ye be not slothful, but imitators of those who through faith and 13 patience inherit the promises. For when God made his pro

mise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, 14 he sware by himself, saying, "Assuredly I will greatly bless 15 thee, and I will greatly multiply thee 4." And accordingly,

hath drunk, N. 2 bringeth forth herbs, N. 3 and labour of love, R. T. 4 Gr. blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. $afterward, N.

* i. e. of christian baptism: the plural for the singular superlative. Comp. Eph. iv. 5. Sn.

"It is highly difficult. Compare Mark x. 23. 27. It is impossible, because whatever could be said or done to that end had been said and done already." Le Clerc on Hammond. Newcome.

Or, of the age that was to come. “The miraculous powers of the Chris tian dispensation," Ch. ii. b. Newcome.

when Abraham had waited patiently, he obtained the pro16 mise. For men indeed swear by one that is greater: and

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an oath for confirmation is to them an end of all gain-say17 ing. In which matter God, being more abundantly willing to show unto the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness 18 of his counsel, interposed by an oath: that by two unchangeable things, in which it was impossible for God to speak falsely, we may have strong comfort, who have fled for re19 fuge to lay hold on the hope set before us; which hope we have as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, and as en20 tering into the part within the veil: whither our forerunner hath entered for us, even Jesus, made a high-priest for ever, according to the order of Melchisedec.

CH. VII. For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the 2 slaughter of the kings, and blessed him, to whom even Abraham gave a tenth part of all the spoils, first being by interpretation king of righteousness, and then king of Salem also, 3 which is, king of peace, without recorded father, without recorded mother, without pedigree, having neither beginning of days nor end of life *, but resembling the Son of 4 God, continueth a priest perpetually. Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham 5 gave a tenth part of the spoils. And indeed those that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes from the people accord

might have, N. 2 N. m. genealogy, N.

Of whose father, mother, pedigree, birth, and death we have no account.— Wakefield, who prefers this intelligible though free translation of the original to what must appear a strange paradoxical account to common readers. See his note. The short account of Melchisedec is contained in Genesis xiv. The writer runs a parallel between Melchisedec and Christ. Melchisedec was a priest, though not of a priestly family: of the termination of his priesthood we have no account: he was a king as well as a priest; and of an order superior to Aaron, who virtually paid tithes to Melchisedec in his ancestor Abraham. In all these respects Melchisedec is a type of Christ, who is a priest after the order of Melchisedec, and not after the order of Aaron.

ing to the law, that is, from their own brethren, though these 6 are descendants of Abraham': but he whose pedigree is not from the same stock with them, received tithes from Abra7 ham, and blessed him that had the promises. Now, with8 out all contradiction, the less is blessed by the greater. And here men who die receive tithes ; but there he received them, . 9 of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. And, if I may so speak, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes by Abra10 ham. For he was yet unborn, when Melchisedec met him. If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law3,) what further need was there that another priest should rise according to the order of Melchisedec, and that he should not be called 12 according to the order of Aaron? For, the priesthood being changed, there is+ of necessity a change of the law also. 13 Now he of whom these things are spoken belongeth to

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another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar. 14 For it is manifest that our Lord sprang out of Judah'; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning the priesthood. 15 And it is still far more evident; because another priest

ariseth according to the likeness of Melchisedec, who be16 came such, not according to the law of a carnal command17 ment, but according to the power of an endless life: for the scripture witnesseth, "Thou art a priest for ever, ac18 cording to the order of Melchisedec." For indeed there is

a disannulling of the former commandment, because of its 19 weakness and unprofitableness, (for the law made nothing

perfect) 10 but the bringing in of a better hope, by which we 20 draw near to God. And inasmuch as he became a priest not 21 without an oath: (for those were made priests without an 'their brethren, though these come out of the loins of Abraham, N. Sa Wakefield. He was then in the loins of his father, Gr. and N. 3. Or, for concerning it, the people received a law. See Peirce. there is made, N. 5 For, Gr. N. See Wakefield. For it was plain of old that our Lord was to spring, &c. Wakefield. 7 Or, if after the likeness of Melchisedec there arise another priest who has become such, &c. Gr. indissoluble. 9 Ged, N. 10 N. omits the parenthesis, and places a period at the end of ver. 18.

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oath; but this with an oath, by him who said to him, "The Lord sware, and will not repent, Thou art a priest for 22 ever, according to the order of Melchisedec;'") by so 23 much was Jesus made the surety of a better covenant. And they indeed were many priests, because they were not suf 24 fered to continue, by reason of death: but this person, because he continueth for ever, hath a priesthood which pass25 eth not from one to another. Wherefore he is able to save

also in the fullest degree those who come to God by him, 26 since he ever liveth to interpose for them*. For such a high-priest even became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and made higher than the 27 heavens; who needeth not, as the high-priests, daily to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for those of the people for this he did once for all, when he offered up 28 himselft. For the law appointeth men high-priests that

such a high-priest became us, R. T. and N.

"to make intercession for them." N. See Sykes. "To officiate, to discharge the office of a high-priest in their behalf," Comm. and Essays, vol. ii. p. 265. The word rvyxava is of very general import. It signifies interposing in any way, either for or against another. It is applied to Christ only twice in the New Testament, bere and Rom. viii. 34. There is no reason to limit the sense to intercession, or praying for or against another. The perpetual intercession of Christ here noted," says Mr. Lindsey, (Seq. p. 88, note) “may, perhaps, be the continual operation and effect of his miracles and doctrine in the world, by which men are brought to believe in God by him, and to be saved." Perhaps it may mean that Christ in his exalted state is exerting his powers in some unknown way for the benefit of his church. This text gives no countenance to the custom of offering prayers to God through the intercession of Christ. The only remaining places in which the word royxa occurs in the New Testament are Acts xxvii. 24. Rom. viii. 27; xi. 2.

+ This he did, i. e. offer up sacrifice, first, for his own sins. But Christ in a moral sense was sinless. See ver. 26, and ch. iv. 15. His sins therefore were merely ceremonial; that is, being a descendant of the house of Judah, ver. 14, he was, as to the priesthood, in an unconsecrated state. And as Aaron was consecrated to his priestly office by the blood of animal sacrifices, so Christ was consecrated to his nobler office by the sacrifice of himself. This way of representing the death of Christ was adapted to conciliate the prejudices of the Hebrew Christians. Moreover, as the posterity of Aaron were successively removed by death, ver. 23, successive priests were consecrated by successive sacrifices; but Christ lives for ever, and has no successor. Also, priests under the law were subject to infirmity, and might desecrate themselves by ceremonial