20
votes
Accepted
Jesus was tempted, but God cannot be tempted. How, then, do we reconcile James 1:13 and Heb. 4:15?
Human nature can be tempted.
Divine nature cannot be tempted.
These two passages indicate the duality of nature possessed (uniquely) by Jesus of Nazareth.
These two natures cannot 'merge' or 'mingle'. ...
- 29.6k
19
votes
Hebrews 11:23 “By faith Moses, when he was born”?
Hebrews 11:23 simply says that,
"By faith Moses, when he was born, was hidden..."
It doesn't say,
"By Moses's faith, when he was born, was hidden..."
It simply asserts that ...
- 3,725
17
votes
Accepted
Hebrews 8:12 - Does God actually forget?
There are occasions in the Bible when "God remembered" seems to mean "he paid attention to something and decided to do something about it".
"God remembered Noah", Genesis ...
- 5,669
11
votes
Accepted
Leviticus says animal sacrifice will cleanse you from your sins. Hebrews says it's impossible. What does "clean" mean?
'Clean' (טָהֵר) in Leviticus 16
The Hebrew verb טָהֵר / taher is used consistently throughout the Hebrew Bible in terms of cleansing or purifying, and so in the context of Leviticus 16 the stated ...
- 5,606
11
votes
Accepted
Did Abraham meet Jacob as alluded in Hebrews 11:9?
It could be contested that Heb 11:9 actually reads "as did Isaac and Jacob", as per the NIV, but that's not your question! In summary:
Abraham was 100 years old when Isaac was born (Genesis 21:5)
...
- 5,606
11
votes
Accepted
John 17:19, what is the meaning of "I sanctify myself"?
In John 17:19, the Greek word (correctly) translated "sanctify" is ἁγιάζω (hagiazó). BDAG defines this word as primarily to, "set aside something, or make it suitable for ritual purpose, consecrate, ...
- 96k
10
votes
Accepted
How can we understand the contradiction in Hebrews 11:5 and 13?
Well, hardly a "contradiction" as that term is normally understood. But there is a potential misunderstanding, as OP notes, which can be addressed in two ways:
(1) To assume that ἀπέθανον "[these] ...
- 24.7k
10
votes
Accepted
Hebrews 11:20, Did Isaac bless Esau?
According to Genesis 27:39-40, Isaac did extend to Esau the following blessing.
Behold, your dwelling shall be of the fatness of the earth, and of the
dew of heaven from above. By your sword you ...
- 3,316
10
votes
Hebrews 1:8 – should it be ‘god’ or ‘God’?
Greek is NOT like Hebrew - the word god/theos is never applied to anything or anyone but the true God of heaven with the following exceptions -
In a derogatory sense when discussing a false god such ...
- 96k
9
votes
Accepted
Why is διὰ παντὸς translated as "continually" in Hebrews 13:15?
The expression διὰ παντός means
always, continually, constantly (BDAG, "διὰ", A.2.a)
This is a formulaic adverbial phrase, but it isn't really so hard to arrive at from the literal meaning of the ...
- 26.2k
9
votes
Accepted
Hebrews 5:7, Did Jesus suffer death or not?
Georg Lünemann answers your question:1
In the context of humans alone, if we heard the expression “he saved him from death,” then normally we would understand that person A prevented person B from ...
- 11.5k
9
votes
According to Hebrews 6:13-16 God swears by Himself an oath to Abraham, but at Genesis 22:15-16 why does it say the angel of the Lord swore the oath?
Malachi makes clear that there is a malak (messenger/angel) that is 'the Lord himself'.
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall ...
- 29.6k
9
votes
Hebrews 11:23 “By faith Moses, when he was born”?
The passage makes a little more sense in Greek:
Πίστει Μωϋσῆς γεννηθεις ἐκρύβη τρίμηνον υπο τῶν πατέρων αὐτοῦ
The passive γεννηθεις could be rendered "having been born" (e.g. here); it isn't ...
- 16k
9
votes
Accepted
Hebrews 13:5 quotes God saying he would never leave nor forsake us. Where is the original quote?
Heb 13:5 is a partial quote from Deut 31:8.
"And the LORD, He is the One who goes before you. He will be with you, He will not leave you nor forsake you; do not fear nor be dismayed.”
- 3,316
8
votes
What does "made perfect" mean in Heb 5:9?
Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. And being made perfect (τελειωθεὶς), he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, being designated by God a high ...
- 15.5k
8
votes
Accepted
Faulty "covenant" or "ministry" in Hebrews 8:7?
The Broader Context Answers "Covenant"
Grammatically, the singular feminine ἡ πρώτη ἐκείνη ("that first") could match to either the singular feminine λειτουργία ("ministry) or ...
- 20k
8
votes
What are the 'diverse manners' by which God spoke to the prophets?
I am a simple soul that sees this in a much less complicated manner. As best I can tell, most modern versions have Heb 1:1 translated quite accurately, namely, "God, after He spoke long ago to ...
- 96k
8
votes
Was Melchisedeck eternal in Hebrews 7:3?
While I am sure that Melchisedek is eternal in the sense that he is in heaven with Christ, Heb. 7:3 was not saying Melchisidek never had a mother or father. The understanding comes from knowing ...
- 9,793
8
votes
Hebrews 1:8 – should it be ‘god’ or ‘God’?
Hebrews 1:8-should it be "god" or "God" ?
Simply put, it should be "God".
Not sure why I, an unabashed non-trinitarian, am even bothering to get in again on this heavily ...
- 2,331
8
votes
Why does Hebrews 3:1 call Jesus an apostle?
Why does Hebrews 3:1 call Jesus an apostle?
The original Greek word in this verse is apostolos (Ἀπόστολον Strong's G652). Strong's Concordance defines it as follows:
Definition: a messenger, one sent ...
- 4,249
8
votes
Accepted
Is there a contradiction between Hebrews 1:1-3 and Acts 21:8-11?
It appears to me that the OP's question is predicated on the assumption that divine revelation was complete with Jesus and there was nothing more to know about Him. This idea is explicitly refuted by ...
- 96k
8
votes
How does Jesus mediate?
The operative word here is μεσίτης (mesites) which occurs only six times in the NT (as listed below) and has the BDAG meaning:
one who mediates between two parties to remove a disagreement or reach a ...
- 96k
7
votes
Accepted
According to Hebrews 11:5, did Enoch actually die? (Compare Hebrews 11:13)
Is it not the case that the writer, having clearly stated that Enoch did not see death, then excludes Enoch from the statement, "These all died," ?
It is unnecessary for the writer to break into the ...
- 29.6k
7
votes
Hebrews 5:7, Did Jesus suffer death or not?
That is one of the great mysteries of Jesus' death - The Father could save Jesus, and Jesus specifically asked to be excused but was not, Matt 26:39, 42.
as to whether Jesus actually died or not, ...
- 96k
7
votes
Israelite covenant: everlasting or obsolete?
Olam
The word translated as "forever" can be interpreted "long time, period, duration, farthest reaches of time, age".
There does not exist a word in Hebrew that unambiguously ...
- 8,234
7
votes
Hebrews 1:8 – should it be ‘god’ or ‘God’?
Since the same subject, the υἱός and θεός is said to have created the world (Hebrews 1:2; 1:10), then it is clear that this Son and God is not part of the world, and thus, uncreated, just like the ...
- 10.2k
7
votes
Accepted
Why does Hebrews 3:1 call Jesus an apostle?
The word, apostle" simply means one who is sent (on a mission or errand of some kind).
Jesus was sent by the Father:
John 17:18 - As You [the Father] sent Me into the world, I have also sent ...
- 96k
6
votes
In Hebrews 13:2 what does "entertained angels unawares" mean?
Just because the text identifies the angels doesn't mean that the human characters had that knowledge, or at least not initially.
The Biblical instances which would be commonly understood to be times ...
- 2,973
6
votes
In Hebrews 1:1-2, what point is the author making in his comparison of NT and OT revelation?
I think the question arises out of a dubious translation, and I'm not sure what accounts for the ISV's almost unique offering of "fragmentary" here.1 Even so, there is something here worth probing, ...
- 24.7k
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