Ibrani 1:1

Introduction: God Has Spoken Fully and Finally in His Son

1:1 After God spoke long ago ¹  in various portions ²  and in various ways ³  to our ancestors ⁴  through the prophets,

Ibrani 8:8

8:8 But ⁵  showing its fault, ⁶  God ⁷  says to them, ⁸ 

“Look, the days are coming, says the Lord, when I will complete a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah.

Ibrani 8:11

8:11 “And there will be no need at all ⁹  for each one to teach his countryman or each one to teach his brother saying, ‘Know the Lord,’ since they will all know me, from the least to the greatest. ¹⁰ 

Ibrani 10:25

10:25 not abandoning our own meetings, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and even more so because you see the day ¹¹  drawing near. ¹² 

Ibrani 10:30

10:30 For we know the one who said, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,” ¹³  and again, “The Lord will judge his people.” ¹⁴ 

Ibrani 11:32

11:32 And what more shall I say? For time will fail me if I tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets.

Ibrani 12:15

12:15 See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God, that no one be like a bitter root springing up ¹⁵  and causing trouble, and through him many become defiled.

[1:1]  ¹ tn Or “spoke formerly.”

[1:1]  ² tn Or “parts.” The idea is that God’s previous revelation came in many parts and was therefore fragmentary or partial (L&N 63.19), in comparison with the final and complete revelation contained in God’s Son. However, some interpret πολυμερῶς (polumerw") in Heb 1:1 to mean “on many different occasions” and would thus translate “many times” (L&N 67.11). This is the option followed by the NIV: “at many times and in various ways.” Finally, this word is also understood to refer to the different manners in which something may be done, and would then be translated “in many different ways” (L&N 89.81). In this last case, the two words πολυμερῶς and πολυτρόπως (polutropw") mutually reinforce one another (“in many and various ways,” NRSV).

[1:1]  ³ tn These two phrases are emphasized in Greek by being placed at the beginning of the sentence and by alliteration.

[1:1]  ⁴ tn Grk “to the fathers.”

[8:8]  ⁵ tn Grk “for,” but providing an explanation of the God-intended limitation of the first covenant from v. 7.

[8:8]  ⁶ sn The “fault” or limitation in the first covenant was not in its inherent righteousness, but in its design from God himself. It was never intended to be his final revelation or provision for mankind; it was provisional, always pointing toward the fulfillment to come in Christ.

[8:8]  ⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:8]  ⁸ tc ‡ Several witnesses (א* A D* I K P Ψ 33 81 326 365 1505 2464 al latt co Cyr) have αὐτούς (autous) here, “[in finding fault with] them, [he says],” alluding to Israel’s failings mentioned in v. 9b. (The verb μέμφομαι [memfomai, “to find fault with”] can take an accusative or dative direct object.) The reading behind the text above (αὐτοίς, autoi"), supported by Ì⁴⁶ א² B D² 0278 1739 1881 Ï, is perhaps a harder reading theologically, and is more ambiguous in meaning. If αὐτοίς goes with μεμφόμενος (memfomeno", here translated “showing its fault”), the clause could be translated “in finding fault with them” or “in showing [its] faults to them.” If αὐτοίς goes with the following λέγει (legei, “he says”), the clause is best translated, “in finding/showing [its] faults, he says to them.” The accusative pronoun suffers no such ambiguity, for it must be the object of μεμφόμενος rather than λέγει. Although a decision is difficult, the dative form of the pronoun best explains the rise of the other reading and is thus more likely to be original.

[8:11]  ⁹ tn Grk “they will not teach, each one his fellow citizen…” The Greek makes this negation emphatic: “they will certainly not teach.”

[8:11]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “from the small to the great.”

[10:25]  ¹¹ sn The day refers to that well-known time of Christ’s coming and judgment in the future; see a similar use of “day” in 1 Cor 3:13.

[10:25]  ¹² tn This paragraph (vv. 19-25) is actually a single, skillfully composed sentence in Greek, but it must be broken into shorter segments for English idiom. It begins with several subordinate phrases (since we have confidence and a great priest), has three parallel exhortations as its main verbs (let us draw near, hold, and take thought), and concludes with several subordinate phrases related to the final exhortation (not abandoning but encouraging).

[10:30]  ¹³ sn A quotation from Deut 32:35.

[10:30]  ¹⁴ sn A quotation from Deut 32:36.

[12:15]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “that there not be any root of bitterness,” but referring figuratively to a person who causes trouble (as in Deut 29:17 [LXX] from which this is quoted).

[12:15]  sn An allusion to Deut 29:18.