Hebrews 6


Hebrews 6 is the sixth chapter of the Epistle to the Hebrews in the New Testament of the Christian Bible. The author is anonymous, although the internal reference to "our brother Timothy" causes a traditional attribution to Paul, but this attribution has been disputed since the second century and there is no decisive evidence for the authorship. This chapter contains the admonition to progress and persist in faithfulness.

Text

The original text was written in Koine Greek. This chapter is divided into 20 verses.

Textual witnesses

Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter are:

Verses 4–6

According to this epistle, there are four things to be 'impossible' ; the first one is about the impossibility to restore apostates, resembling other early Christian expressions 'the unforgivable sin' or the 'mortal sin' of 1 John 5:16. In rejecting the one whose death brings salvation, the apostates join those who disgracefully executed Jesus, whose solemn designation as 'Son of God' reinforces 'the heinousness of apostasy'.

Encouragement to Persevere (6:9–12)

Verse 10

"God is not unjust to forget" is not to focus on the reward for services, but God knows the real situation of people's spiritual lives and he can motivate the expressions of 'genuine Christianity' anytime, just like in the past, also again in the future. The "work" and the "love" are those done literally 'for his name', involving the ministering of God's people, for example in.

The Steadfastness of God's Promise (6:13–20)

Verse 13

Christian hope is based not on wishful thinking but on the 'solemn promise of God', that the 'foundation of God's saving activity in the world was the particular promise made to Abraham in and repeated at different times and forms to the forefathers of Israel.

Verse 18

This verse contains one of the four things to be 'impossible' in this epistle.
This verse and the next should be read in the light of, that because Jesus is the promised high priest in the order of Melchizedek, he has become 'the guarantee' of the blessings of the new covenant, so those who rely on Jesus 'can actually enter the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where 'he has gone before them and has entered on their behalf'.