Or else wouldn’t they have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having been once cleansed, would have had no more consciousness of sins? But in those sacrifices there is a yearly reminder of sins. For it is impossible that the blood of bulls and goats should take away sins.
Therefore when he comes into the world, he says, “You didn’t desire sacrifice and offering, but you prepared a body for me.
You had no pleasure in whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin.
Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come (in the scroll of the book it is written of me) to do your will, O God.’ ”
Previously saying, “Sacrifices and offerings and whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin you didn’t desire, neither had pleasure in them” (those which are offered according to the law), then he has said, “Behold, I have come to do your will.” He takes away the first, that he may establish the second, by which will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
John Calvin 1540 · Public Domain On vv3, 4, 5, 7, 9, 10 3. A remembrance again, etc. Though the Gospel is…
3. A remembrance again, etc. Though the Gospel is a message of reconciliation with God, yet it is necessary that we should daily remember our sins; but what the Apostle means is, that sins were brought to remembrance that guilt might be removed by the means of the sacrifice then offered. It is not, then, any kind of remembrance that is here meant, but that which might lead to such a confession of guilt before God, as rendered a sacrifice necessary for its removal.
Such is the sacrifice of the mass with the Papists; for they pretend that by it the grace of God is applied to us in order that sins may be blotted out. But since the Apostle concludes that the sacrifices of the Law were weak, because they were every year repeated in order to obtain pardon, for the very same reason it may be concluded that the sacrifice of Christ was weak, if it must be daily offered, in order that its virtue may be applied to us. With whatever masks, then, they may cover their mass, they can never escape the charge of an atrocious blasphemy against Christ.
John Calvin's Commentaries (1540-1563) — public domain. Text from the Calvin Translation Society English edition (1840s-50s) via the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (ccel.org). Calvin's coverage is partial (roughly two-thirds of the Bible); uncommented books and verses are honest gaps, never fabricated. The 19th-century editor's footnotes and remarks are omitted so the notes are faithfully Calvin's own voice.
Geneva Bible translators 1599 · Public Domain On vv5, 9 A conclusion following of those things that went before,…
A conclusion following of those things that went before, and comprehending also the other sacrifices. Seeing that the sacrifices of the Law could not do it, therefore Christ speaking of himself as of our high Priest manifested in the flesh, witnesseseth evidently that God resteth not in the sacrifices, but in the obedience of his Son our high Priest, in which obedience he offered up himself once to his Father for us.
The Son of God is said to come into the world, when he was made man.
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It is word for word in the Hebrew text, Thou hast pierced mine ears through, that is, thou hast made me obedient, and willing to hear.
Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain.
John Trapp 1656 · Public Domain On vv2–10 2 For then would they not have ceased to…
2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.
Ver. 2. No more conscience of sin] Christ, though he took not away death, yet he did the sting of death; so though he took not away sin, yet he did the guilt of sin.
John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Poole 1685 · Public Domain On vv2–10 For then would they not have ceased to be…
For then would they not have ceased to be offered? for proves the weakness of that shadowy service under the law, because it never ceased, which it would if it had perfected its users; and having reached its end, and done that work, have ceased; for these sacrifices would not of right have been repeated, neither needed they, if they could have justified and sanctified souls for ever.
Because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins: for then this effect would have followed, the worshippers who were to be atoned for or expiated by these sacrifices, if they had perfected them, i.e. pardoned, justified, and acquitted them from guilt of sin and punishment, there would have nothing remained to have troubled, vexed, or tormented their souls, they being no further accused or condemned by their conscience about sin, God having justified and sanctified them, Heb 9:14,26,28; compare Rom 5:1,2,11.
Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
William Burkitt 1703 · Public Domain On vv4–5 The intendment of our apostle in these words, is…
The intendment of our apostle in these words, is to prove that the sacrifices of the law could not expiate sin, nor make reconciliation with God, wich the sacrifice of Christ alone was ordained and appointed to.
Here observe, 1. The subject-matter spoken of, The blood of bulls and goats: They were accompanied with great solemnity and pomp of ceremony in their celebration; and the people had a great esteem and veneration of them in their minds; but when all was done, that which was offered was no more than the blood was done, that which was offered was no more than the blood of bulls and goats.
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Observe, 2. That which is denied of these sacrifices, namely, the taking away of sins: To take away sin, is to make atonement for sin, to expiate the guilt of it before God, by a satisfaction given, or price paid, that it shall never bind over the penitent sinner unto punishment.
Observe, 3. The manner of the negation; It was impossible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Impossible from divine institution; they were never designed for that end therefore could never effect it; for the virtue of every institution depends upon its designation to its end.
Now the blood of bulls was only designed to represent the taking away of sin, but never by itself to effect it. And it was also impossible from the nature of the thing; for how could the blood of a beast expiate the sin of a man? Satisfaction must be made for sin in and by the same nature that had sinned.
Learn hence, That it was utterly impossible that sin should be taken away before God, and from the conscience of a sinner by any other blood than the blood of Christ: It is this alone that cleanseth us from all sin, for he alone was the propitiation for them.
William Burkitt's Expository Notes on the New Testament (1700–1703) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Matthew Henry 1710 · Public Domain On v7 Here the apostle raises up and exalts the Lord…
Here the apostle raises up and exalts the Lord Jesus Christ, as high as he had laid the Levitical priesthood low. He recommends Christ to them as the true high priest, the true atoning sacrifice, the antitype of all the rest: and this he illustrates,
I. From the purpose and promise of God concerning Christ, which are frequently recorded in the volume of the book of God, Heb 10:7. God had not only decreed, but declared by Moses and the prophets, that Christ should come and be the great high priest of the church, and should offer up a perfect and a perfecting sacrifice. It was written of Christ, in the beginning of the book of God, that the seed of the woman should break the serpent's head; and the Old Testament abounds with prophecies concerning Christ. Now since he is the person so often promised, so much spoken of, so long expected by the people of God, he ought to be received with great honour and gratitude.
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II. From what God had done in preparing a body for Christ (that is, a human nature), that he might be qualified to be our Redeemer and Advocate; uniting the two natures in his own person, he was a fit Mediator to go between God and man; a days-man to lay his hand upon both, a peace-maker, to reconcile them, and an everlasting band of union between God and the creature - "My ears hast thou opened; thou has fully instructed me, furnished and fitted me for the work, and engaged me in it," Psa 40:6. Now a Saviour thus provided, and prepared by God himself in so extraordinary a manner, ought to be received with great affection and gladness.
III. From the readiness and willingness that Christ discovered to engage in this work, when no other sacrifice would be accepted, Heb 10:7-9. When no less sacrifice would be a proper satisfaction to the justice of God than that of Christ himself, then Christ voluntarily came into it: "Lo, I come! I delight to do thy will, O God! Let thy curse fall upon me, but let these go their way. Father, I delight to fulfil thy counsels, and my covenant with thee for them; I delight to perform all thy promises, to fulfil all the prophecies." This should endear Christ and our Bibles to us, that in Christ we have the fulfilling of the scriptures.
IV. From the errand and design upon which Christ came; and this was to do the will of God, not only as a prophet to reveal the will of God, not only as a king to give forth divine laws, but as a priest to satisfy the demands of justice, and to fulfil all righteousness. Christ came to do the will of God in two instances. 1. In taking away the first priesthood, which God had no pleasure in; not only taking away the curse of the covenant of works, and canceling the sentence denounced against us as sinners, but taking away the insufficient typical priesthood, and blotting out the hand-writing of ceremonial ordinances and nailing it to his cross. 2. In establishing the second, that is, his own priesthood and the everlasting gospel, the most pure and perfect dispensation of the covenant of grace; this is the great design upon which the heart of God was set from all eternity. The will of God centers and terminates in it; and it is not more agreeable to the will of God than it is advantageous to the souls of men; for it is by this will that we are sanctified, through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all, Heb 10:10. Observe, (1.) What is the fountain of all that Christ has done for his people - the sovereign will and grace of God. (2.) How we come to partake of what Christ has done for us - by being sanctified, converted, effectually called, wherein we are united to Christ, and so partake of the benefits of his redemption; and this sanctification is owing to the oblation he made of himself to God.
V. From the perfect efficacy of the priesthood of Christ (Heb 10:14): By one offering he hath for ever perfected those that are sanctified; he has delivered and will perfectly deliver those that are brought over to him, from all the guilt, power, and punishment of sin, and will put them into the sure possession of perfect holiness and felicity. This is what the Levitical priesthood could never do; and, if we indeed are aiming at a perfect state, we must receive the Lord Jesus as the only high priest that can bring us to that state.
VI. From the place to which our Lord Jesus is now exalted, the honour he has there, and the further honour he shall have: This man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins, for ever sat down at the right hand of God, henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool, Heb 10:12, Heb 10:13. Here observe, 1. To what honour Christ, as man and Mediator, is exalted - to the right hand of God, the seat of power, interest, and activity: the giving hand; all the favours that God bestows on his people are handed to them by Christ: the receiving hand; all the duties that God accepts from men are presented by Christ: the working hand; all that pertains to the kingdoms of providence and grace is administered by Christ; and therefore this is the highest post of honour. 2. How Christ came to this honour - not merely by the purpose or donation of the Father, but by his own merit and purchase, as a reward due to his sufferings; and, as he can never be deprived of an honour so much his due, so he will never quit it, nor cease to employ it for his people's good. 3. How he enjoys this honour - with the greatest satisfaction and rest; he is for ever sitting down there. The Father acquiesces and is satisfied in him; he is satisfied in his Father's will and presence; this is his rest for ever; here he will dwell, for he has both desired and deserved it. 4. He has further expectations, which shall not be disappointed; for they are grounded upon the promise of the Father, who hath said unto him, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool, Psa 110:1. One would think such a person as Christ could have no enemies except in hell; but it is certain that he has enemies on earth, very many, and very inveterate ones. Let not Christians then wonder that they have enemies, though they desire to live peaceably with all men. But Christ's enemies shall be made his footstool; some by conversion, others by confusion; and, which way soever it be, Christ will be honoured. Of this Christ is assured, this he is expecting, and his people should rejoice in the expectation of it; for, when his enemies shall be subdued, their enemies, that are so for his sake, shall be subdued also.
VII. The apostle recommends Christ from the witness the Holy Ghost has given in the scriptures concerning him; this relates chiefly to what should be the happy fruit and consequence of his humiliation and sufferings, which in general is that new and gracious covenant that is founded upon his satisfaction, and sealed by his blood (Heb 10:15): Whereof the Holy Ghost is a witness. The passage is cited from Jer 31:31, in which covenant God promises, 1. That he will pour out his Spirit upon his people, so as to give them wisdom, will, and power, to obey his word; he will put his laws in their hearts, and write them in their minds, Heb 10:16. This will make their duty plain, easy, and pleasant. 2. Their sins and iniquities he will remember no more (Heb 10:17), which will alone show the riches of divine grace, and the sufficiency of Christ's satisfaction, that it needs not be repeated, Heb 10:18. For there shall be no more remembrance of sin against true believers, either to shame them now or to condemn them hereafter. This was much more than the Levitical priesthood and sacrifices could effect.
And now we have gone through the doctrinal part of the epistle, in which we have met with many things dark and difficult to be understood, which we must impute to the weakness and dulness of our own minds. The apostle now proceeds to apply this great doctrine, so as to influence their affections, and direct their practice, setting before them the dignities and duties of the gospel state.
Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible (1708–1710) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Gill 1763 · Public Domain On vv2–10 For then would they not have ceased to be…
For then would they not have ceased to be offered,.... The Complutensian edition, and the Syriac and Vulgate Latin versions, leave out the word "not"; and the sense requires it should be omitted, for the meaning is, that if perfection had been by the legal sacrifices, they would have ceased to have been offered; for if the former ones had made perfect, there would have been no need of others, or of the repetition of the same; but because they did not make perfect, therefore they were yearly renewed; unless the words are read with an interrogation, as they are in the Arabic version, "for then would they not have ceased to be offered?" yes, they would; they are indeed ceased now, but this is owing to Christ and his sacrifice, and not to the efficacy of these sacrifices; for yearly sacrifices were offered for former sins, as well as for fresh ones, as appears from the following verse.
Because the worshippers, once purged, would have had no more conscience of sins; there are external and internal worshippers; the latter are such who worship God in Spirit and in truth: but here ceremonial worshippers are meant, who, if they had been really purged from sin by legal sacrifices, and purifications, would have had no more conscience of sins, and so have had no need to have repeated them; as such spiritual worshippers, who are once purged from sin by the blood and sacrifice of Christ; not that they have no sin, or no sense of sin, or that their consciences are seared, or that they never accuse for sin, or that they are to make no confession and acknowledgment of sin; but that they are discharged from the guilt of sin, and are not liable to condemnation for it; and through the application of the blood of Christ to them, have peace with God, and joy in the Holy Ghost.
John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
John Wesley 1765 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10 They who had been once perfectly purged, would have…
They who had been once perfectly purged, would have been no longer conscious either of the guilt or power of their sins.
John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.
Adam Clarke 1810 · Public Domain On vv2, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10 Verse 2. Would they not have ceased to be…
Verse 2. Would they not have ceased to be offered?] Had they made an effectual reconciliation for the sins of the world, and contained in their once offering a plenitude of permanent merit, they would have ceased to be offered, at least in reference to any individual who had once offered them; because, in such a case, his conscience would be satisfied that its guilt had been taken away. But no Jew pretended to believe that even the annual atonement cancelled his sin before God; yet he continued to make his offerings, the law of God having so enjoined, because these sacrifices pointed out that which was to come. They were offered, therefore, not in consideration of their own efficacy, but as referring to Christ; See on "Heb 9:9".
Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Joseph Benson 1811 · Public Domain On vv2, 4, 5 Heb 10:2-3. For then would they not have ceased,…
Heb 10:2-3. For then would they not have ceased, &c. — There would not have been need to have offered them more than once: that is, if these sacrifices had made the worshippers perfect, in respect of pardon, they would have ceased to be offered; because the worshippers once purged — Or fully discharged from the guilt of their transgressions; should have had no more conscience of sin — There would have remained no more sense of guilt upon their consciences to have troubled them, and no more fear of future punishment in consequence thereof. But it was not so with them, as appears by the yearly repetition of these sacrifices, wherein there was a continual remembrance made of sin — A consciousness of their sins, as unpardoned, still remained even after those sacrifices were offered, as is evident from this, that in the annual repetition of their sacrifices, the people’s sins, for which atonement had formerly been made, were remembered; that is, confessed as needing a yet further expiation. And, though it is true we are daily to remember and confess our sins, yet that respects only the application of the virtue and efficacy of the atonement already made to our consciences, without the least desire or expectation of a new propitiation.
Joseph Benson's Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1811–1818) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Albert Barnes 1834 · Public Domain On vv2–10 For then would they not have ceased to be…
For then would they not have ceased to be offered? - Margin, “Or they would have.” The sense is the same. The idea is, that the very fact that they were repeated showed that there was some deficiency in them as to the matter of cleansing the soul from sin. If they had answered all the purposes of a sacrifice in putting away guilt, there would have been no need of repeating them in this manner. They were in this respect like medicine. If what is given to a patient heals him, there is no need of repeating it; but if it is repeated often it shows that there was some deficiency in it, and if taken periodically through a man’s life, and the disease should still remain, it would show that it was not sufficient to effect his cure. So it was with the offerings made by the Jews. They were offered every year, and indeed every day, and still the disease of sin remained. The conscience was not satisfied; and the guilty felt that it was necessary that the sacrifice should be repeated again and again.
Because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sin - That is, if their sacrifices had so availed as to remove their past sins, and to procure forgiveness, they would have had no more trouble of conscience on account of them. They would not have felt that it was necessary to make these sacrifices over and over again in order to find peace. When a man has full evidence that an atonement has been made which will meet all the demands of the Law, and which secures the remission of sin, he feels that it is enough. It is all that the case demands, and his conscience may have peace. But when he does “not” feel this, or has not evidence that his sins are all forgiven, those sins will rise to remembrance, and he will be alarmed. He may be punished for them after all. Thence it follows that if a man wants peace he should have good evidence that his sins are forgiven through the blood of the atonement.
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No temporary expedient; no attempt to cover them up; no effort to forget them will answer the purpose. They “must be blotted out” if he will have peace - and that can be only through a perfect sacrifice. By the use of the word rendered “conscience” here, it is not meant that he who was pardoned would have no “consciousness” that he was a sinner, or that he would forget it, but that he would have no trouble of conscience; he would have no apprehension of future wrath. The pardon of sin does not cause it to cease to be remembered. He who is forgiven may have a deeper conviction of its evil than he had ever had before. But he will not be troubled or distressed by it as if it were to expose him to the wrath of God. The remembrance of it will humble him; it will serve to exalt his conceptions of the mercy of God and the glory of the atonement, but it will no longer overwhelm the mind with the dread of hell. This effect, the apostle says, was not produced on the minds of those who offered sacrifices every year. The very fact that they did it, showed that the conscience was not at peace.
Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.
Haydock's Catholic Bible Commentary 1859 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 5, 7, 10 Then they would have [2] ceased to be offered.…
Then they would have [2] ceased to be offered. That is, if they could have made the worshippers perfect; to wit, in such a manner as the one sacrifice of Christ, who was the Lamb of God that took away the sins of the world, by making a full reparation to the divine justice for the sin of Adam, and of all his offspring. For we must take notice that he compares the sacrifice of Christ, which wrought a general redemption, with the sacrifices of the former law, which could never make any sufficient atonement to the majesty of God offended by sin, and which, by the decree of heaven, were to cease as soon as Christ’s sacrifice of a general redemption was made: for then the worshippers would be so cleansed from sin, that they would stand in need of no more, but that the merits and satisfactions of Christ, their Redeemer, should be applied to them according to the order of God’s providence; that is, by faith in Christ, by his sacraments, by a true repentance, and the practice of virtue and good works. (Witham) --- If they had been of themselves perfect to all the intents of redemption and remission, as Christ’s death is, there would have been no occasion of so often repeating them; as there is no occasion for Christ’s dying any more for our sins. (Challoner)
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[BIBLIOGRAPHY]
Alioquin cessassent offerri. In the ordinary Greek copies, Greek: epei an ouk epausanto prospheromenai; but in other manuscripts Greek: ouk is left out.
George Leo Haydock (1774–1849), Haydock's Catholic Family Bible and Commentary, 1859 edition — public domain. Excludes Psalms (Douay-Rheims chapter numbering differs from Protestant) and Deuterocanonical books (Catholic canon only).
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures 1864 · Public Domain On v5 Scriptural proof of the complete efficacy of the sanctification…
VI
Scriptural proof of the complete efficacy of the sanctification obtained on the basis of the obedience of Jesus Christ
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Heb_10:5-18
5Wherefore, when he cometh [while coming, εἰσερχόμενος] into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared [didst thou form for, χατηρτίσω] me: 6In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no 7[hadst not] pleasure5 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me) to do thy will, O God. 8Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering [sacrifices and offerings]6 and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by [according to] the7 law; 9Then said he [he said], Lo, I come to do thy will, O God [om. O God].8 He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second. 10By the which [In which] will we are [have been] sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11And every priest9 [indeed, μέν] standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins: 12But this man [one]10 after he had offered one sacrificefor sins, for ever sat down on the right hand of God; 13From henceforth expecting. 14[awaiting] till his enemies be made his footstool. For by one offering he hath perfected 15for ever them that are sanctified. Whereof [And, δέ] the Holy Ghost also Isaiah 16 a witness to us: for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days; saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, 17and in [upon] their minds [understanding]11 will I write [inscribe, ἐπιγράψω] them; And 18their sins and their iniquities will I remember12 no more. Now [But] where remission of these is, there is no more [an] offering for sin.
[Heb_10:5.—εἰσερχόμενος, while coming into, i. e., historically, not specially at his birth; but not εἰσελθών, on entering, or, after entering.—κατηρτίσω, didst thou frame, fit out, perfect.
Heb_10:6.—περὶ ἁμαρτίας, offerings for sin.
Heb_10:7.—τοῦ ποιῆσαι, denoting purpose, i.e., in order to do.
Heb_10:8.—ἀνώτερον λέγων, above, further back, while saying.—αἵτινες, characteristic; such as are.—προσφέρονται, are offered, not, “were offered.”
Heb_10:9.—εἴρηκεν, he hath said (Heb_1:13; Heb_4:3).
Heb_10:10.—ἐν ᾧ θελήματι, in which will, not by which will. ἡγιασμένοι ἐσμέν, we have been sanctified; a completed act. We are sanctified might be that which habitually takes place, which would require ἁγιαζόμεθα.
Heb_10:11.—πᾶς μὲν ἱερεύς, every priest indeed=while every priest.
Heb_10:12.—οὗτος δέ, but this one, but he. Tisch. reads αὐτὸς δέ, but he himself, but against preponderating authority, including that of Sin.—προσενέγκας, after offering.
Heb_10:13.—τὸ λοιπόν, as to the rest, in future=τοῦ λοιποῦ scil. χρόνον, for the remaining time.—ἕως, with subj. τεθῶσιν., for the more classical ἕως ἂν τεθῶσιν—τοὺς ἁγιαζομένους, those who are being sanctified, or who are sanctified from time to time, τοὺς ἥι ιασμένους, would be those who have been sanctified.
Heb_10:15.—μαρτυρεῖ δὲ ἡμῖν καί, and testifies for us also.
Heb_10:16.—ἐπιγράψω, I will inscribe.
Heb_10:17.—καὶ-μνησθήσομαι, Alf., dissenting from nearly all the recent comm., makes the apodosis of the citation commence here instead of with λέγει κύριος, Heb_10:16; but although there are objections to the latter, the difficulties of his construction, I think, are still greater; and the examples of the use of καί which he cites as justifying this construction (Heb_1:6; Heb_2:13; Heb_4:5) present really no analogy to it.—K.].
EXEGETICAL AND CRITICAL
Heb_10:5. Therefore while entering into the world, etc.—The διό refers to the impossibility spoken of in Heb_10:4. The author is not adducing a proof of a doctrine perfectly evident and unquestioned; nor is he here—not until a little after—showing that even in the Old Covenant itself is expressed the consciousness of this state of things. He adduces, it is true, the words of Psa_40:7-9, in which David, after his anointing, but before ascending the throne, recognizes a relative fulfilment of the prophecy, that “the Prince is to spring forth from Judah,” and declares that he, in contrast with Saul, is ready, under the guidance of Samuel (1Sa_15:22), to accomplish the will of Jehovah, which lays stress, not on ritual sacrifices, but upon the offering of obedience, and the sacrifice of the will. But the form of the application is not that of citation; for the subject of λέγει is not David but Christ. And besides, since the present ἐρχόμενος is not=venturus (Erasm.), but is coincident in time with λέγει, the author clearly treats the words of the Psalm, not as a direct prophecy of Christ regarding himself. He rather puts into the mouth of Christ, on the basis of the typical relation of the Old and New Covenant, the words of David as his own, since they are fulfilled by him; and his special purpose is to render prominent the self-moved and voluntary act of the antitypal David in his entrance into the world for the sake of offering himself as an all-sufficient expiatory offering. As the part, is not εἰσελθών, we can refer it neither to the later entrance of Jesus on His public ministry (Bl., De W.), nor to the age of conscious choice and volition in man, indicated Isa_7:16 (Del.).
But a body didst thou form for me.—The Heb. text has: “Ears didst thou bore for me.” This is referred by Hengst., von Gerl., and others, with the ancient intpp. (who also translate erroneously “bore through, perforate”) to the custom mentioned Exo_21:6; Deu_15:17, of boring through the ear-lap of a servant who might become free, but preferred to remain in the voluntary and permanent service of his master. But we should rather refer the expression to our capacity of understanding by means of the ear, the expressed will of God, and thus of learning the way and means of acceptable sacrifice. Any arbitrary change of the text may not be charged upon our author. He found the reading σῶμα in the MSS. of the Sept., of which but few and inconsiderable ones have ὠτία or ὦτα, Bl., Lün., and others, assume that σῶμα is an old corruption in the text, sprung from ἠθέλησα ΣΩΤΙΑ. But neither is כָּרִיתָ literally rendered by ὤρυξας. We must, therefore, suppose a generalizing of the thought as early as the Greek translation, and the more so as the further rendering ἐν κεφαλίδι βιβλίου γέγραπται περὶ ἐμοῦ, favored the supposition that the one who is speaking here is He of whom Moses and the prophets testified, and for whose divinely decreed coming the Old Testament had prepared the way (Del.). Κεφαλίς=little head is originally the name of the knobs at the end of the staves about which the scroll or volume was wound, and then the volume itself, with or without the addition of βιβλίον, Eze_2:9; Eze_3:1-3; Ezr_6:2. Luther renders the word by chiefly, pre-eminently, inasmuch as some took it as=chief part or portion. Others translate “in the beginning,” as if having reference to a definite passage. In the Hebr. text the language is: “I come with the volume of the book which is written of me,” referring to the Prince’s code, Deu_17:14 ff., which the sovereign was always to keep at hand for his guidance. In the Heb. and in the Sept., the words “to do Thy will, O God,” are followed by, it was my pleasure, ἠβουλήθην. In dropping this word, our author throws the clause ἐν κεφαλίδι—ἐμοῦ into parenthesis, and makes τοῦ ποιῆσαι dependent on ἥκω, which Thol. takes in its classical use as Perf., I am come, I am present Εὐδοκεῖν takes in the classics the Dat., but in Hellenistic Gr. ἐν (Heb_10:38) or frequently, as here, Heb_10:6, the Acc. Also Lev_7:37; Num_8:8, the Sept. designates the sin offering by the bare περὶ ἁμαρτίας, the idea of sacrifice being supplied from the connection (Œc., Lün.).
Heb_10:10. In which will, etc—θέλημα is not the will and obedience of Christ (Calv., Justinian, Carpz., and others), but the purpose and counsel of God, which is to be regarded as a purpose of love conceived in eternity, carried out in time by means of the freewill offering of Christ, and in the Holy Scripture is to be recognized as an openly revealed plan. Ἐφάπαξ belongs not to προσφοράς (Œc., Schlicht., Stein, etc.), which construction would have required a repetition of the art., but to ἡγιασμένοι ἐσμέν, which expresses not one subjective sanctification, but one objective reception into true relationship to God, and into the actual fellowship of the members of the people of God as the ἅγιοι, Heb_6:10; Heb_13:24. The mediator of this relation is Christ, ὁ ἁγιάζων, Heb_2:11.
Heb_10:11. And while every priest, indeed, standeth, etc.—The καί introduces a new antithesis—to wit: that between the never-ceasing, yet ever-ineffectual and unavailing service of the Jewish priests, and the regal repose of the Messiah, who, after accomplishing an expiation of never-failing efficacy, exalted above the need of further sacrifice, sits enthroned at the right hand of God. In the inner forecourt none was permitted to sit; it was only to those who held watch without that this privilege was accorded, while the designation of the Levitical service by the words, “and he stood before the face of Jehovah,” is to be taken in its literal sense. A like contrast is expressed Heb_1:13 ff. in relation to the angels. Περιελεῖν, to take away round about, from every side, refers to the sin which begirts and encompasses man, Heb_5:2; Heb_12:1. Τὸ λοιπόν is the time still remaining until the Parousia. The parallelism of the clauses, and the progress of the thought, require our taking εἰς τὸ διηνεκές, Heb_10:12, not with the participial clause (Theophyl., Luth., Beng., Böhme, Lachm., etc.), but with ἐκάθισεν. The ἐφάπαξ of Christ’s offering is the burden and crown of the thought, Heb_10:1-10; in Heb_10:11-14 the ever-during throne after a once forever completed sacrifice, occupies the foreground (Del.). The Perf. τετελείωκν in connection with the Pres. Part. ἀγιαζομένους, shows that here the reference is not to the subjective perfection of Christians reaching the end of life, and kept after the example of Jesus, by obedience in suffering (Heb_5:9; Heb_12:2); but to the translation of those who have become subjects of the high-priestly work of Christ, into that condition of perfection objectively and eternally valid in the sight of God, which the law, with its numerous and perpetually recurring rites and offerings, was unable to secure (Heb_7:19; Heb_9:9; Heb_10:1). The Scripture proof consists in a selection from the passage, Jer_31:31-34, already cited Heb_8:8-12.
DOCTRINAL AND ETHICAL
1. The fact that the words of David, which, within the Old Testament itself, express not the legal, but the evangelical idea of sacrifice, are put into the mouth of Christ, as spoken on His entrance into the world, shows Christ in self-conscious pre-existence, destining Himself to be a free-will offering in perfect obedience to the will of the Father, whose will thus becomes identical with that of the Son.
2. The fact, still further, that even in the Old Testament obedience is put in place of animal sacrifices, and thus this also is declared to be a sacrifice, and, indeed, the true sacrifice, furnishes the Scripture proof of the doctrine, that Christ’s voluntary offering of Himself in perfect and loving obedience, is the genuine sacrifice, well pleasing to God, to which prophecies and types point.
3. In the fact, finally, that Christ’s offering of Himself has fulfilled the saving and loving will of God, not merely as expressed in Scripture, but as existing in His determinate counsel, the idea of sacrifice is realized; the purpose of God to institute an economy of salvation, based upon the expiation of sins by an efficacious sacrifice, is attained; and hence there is no further offering for sin, either, in the same, or any different form, as evinced also by the express testimony of the Holy Spirit in Jeremiah.
4. When God places His will—to wit: the performance, by His servants, of that which He wills, positively as a second requisition, it appears in contrast with the first, viz., the offering of external and symbolical sacrifices. But the offering of such sacrifices was itself a matter of express divine ordination; and thus a contradiction seems to emerge and an antagonism within the sphere of the divine counsels and purposes themselves. In truth, however, there is no contradiction between the two, but simply a taking away of the earlier system of the divine appointment first, and its replacement by the second. The transitory nature of the first is not merely prefigured by the symbolical character of the legal sacrifices themselves, but expressly declared within the very limits of the Old Testament revelation, partly by statements regarding the essential will of God, partly by the prediction of a new and perfect covenant. But in a merely outward offering God has never had pleasure. The fact of its being brought from the property of the worshipper, always had a reference to his personality and will. But even the voluntary offering of things stands in no equal or parallel relation to the entire person’s voluntary sacrifice of himself. Thus the Old Testament utterances are, as to the matter of fact, in no way self-contradictory.
5. Our transference into a true saving and peace-imparting fellowship with God, or our objective sanctification is brought about by the personal offering of Jesus Christ upon the cross (Eph_5:2); which offering is the fulfilment of the essential will and eternal saving purpose of God, and has once for all accomplished what was only shadowed forth by those typical sacrifices which year by year were offered by the priests who ministered before God, always the same, and of such quality that their impotence completely to take away sin was everywhere conspicuous.
6. The waiting of the Royal Priest, who is enthroned at the right hand of God, for the complete subjection of all His enemies, does not involve the idea of His personal inactivity until the time of His second coming, but expresses, in contrast with that activity of the earthly priests which never attains to its end, the exalted repose of the Mediator, who, in every relation, has reached the goal of perfection; who, after bringing to actual realization the ideal of propitiation which was typically announced in the Aaronic high-priesthood, now receives forever the position typically predicted in the royal priesthood of Melchisedek, a position exempted from future sacrifices, and fraught with unlimited homage, honor, and capacity for the bestowment of blessings.
HOMILETICAL AND PRACTICAL
The efficient cause of our salvation is the eternal gracious will of God; the meritorious cause is Jesus Christ with His personal sacrifice.—No creature had power to reconcile the world with God; but the atoning sacrifice of Jesus Christ has rendered possible a perfect taking away of sin, and a perfection of the sanctified.—We have nothing to fear from any hidden purpose of God; we should rather regulate ourselves and all things according to His revealed will.—In Jesus Christ’s offering of Himself for our redemption is evinced the perfect harmony of the righteous and the gracious will of God.—The cross is the altar on which Christ has offered, once for all, His blood for atonement, and His body for sanctification.—Obedience to the will of God not merely gives value to the sacrifice we bring, but is itself the best sacrifice.—How can the offering of sacrifices work the forgiveness of sin?
Starke:—Sin must be, in the eyes of God, an evil overwhelmingly great, since by no other means, whether work, obedience, or sacrifice, can it be atoned for and done away, but only by the all-holy sacrifice of Christ, 1Pe_1:19; 1 John 1:18.—Jesus Christ is the only object revealed in the entire Scriptures to whom they can be pointed who would obtain forgiveness of sins and eternal blessedness, Act_10:43.—The myriad sacrifices of the Old Testament could not have been, in the slightest degree, acceptable to God, except so far as they prefigured the perfect propitiatory offering of the Messiah, an offering of which He had long before smelled the sweet odor, Eph_5:2.—See how willingly thy Jesus suffered for thee; shouldest thou then not again somewhat willingly suffer for Him? Joh_18:4; 1Pe_2:21.—No worship of God can be acceptable to God otherwise than in Christ.—The Divine service of the Old Testament was burdensome and oppressive; we cannot sufficiently thank God, that in Christ we are free from it. He who now will not serve God shall have all the less excuse, and heavier condemnation, Gal_5:1.—We are under obligation to serve God every day, and can never serve Him sufficiently, Luk_17:10; Rev_7:15.—He who suffers with Christ, and conquers in Christ, will, with Christ, be gloriously exalted, 2Ti_2:11-12; Rev_3:21.—We may bid defiance to our enemies; in Christ shall we triumph; but they shall be overthrown and lie prostrate, Rom_8:34 ff.—Thou puttest faith in a trustworthy man; it were a shame not to believe the true God Himself, who has testified that the sacrifice of Christ alone suffices for our sins, 1Jn_5:9.—To have the law of the Lord in our mouth merely, and make our boast of it, is nothing; but whoever has it written on his heart, and retains it, he is pleasing to God.
Rieger.—What gave to the sacrifice of Jesus its everlasting value, is that in it all was executed according to the direction and will of God.—Sanctification comprehends all the different elements in the restoration of man, calling, justifying, glorifying.—The Holy Spirit also gladly interests and occupies himself with the gracious covenant of God on behalf of us poor sinners. He recognises with joy every forward step that we take therein.—The grace of Christ, the blessing of His single sacrifice, gives wide scope for the love of God, for His pleasure in us, the objects of His grace; and with the love of God comes a larger communion of the Holy Spirit.—The language of the Son has been, under the impulses of the Spirit of Christ, recorded in writing by holy men, and thus gradually grew up the whole Old Testament Scripture, together with the pledge and obligation therein recorded, of Him who was to come, and upon which, even on the cross, His attention was fixed, until He saw all had been accomplished.
Schleiermacher (Festival Discourses):—The death of the Redeemer, the end of all sacrifices: first, because there is needed no other remembrance of sin, which otherwise must have been renewed from day to day, and from year to year; but, secondly, because sin is now really taken away, and such insufficient provisional aids are no longer needed.
Heubner:—The value of our body, and of the whole sensible world, consists in their being means and instruments of the Holy Spirit.—God has had no pleasure in offerings which were made without repentance and faith; they could at best continue only till Christ; and finally, God regarded them merely as types.—The continued dominion of Christ amidst all the uprisings of His enemies, amidst all the endeavors against Him, His doctrine and His Church, is a pledge of our reconciliation, and of our ultimate completed blessedness.—Forgiveness of sins is the condition of our receiving the Holy Spirit.—Christ, with His holy suffering, love and perfect obedience is the one only thing wherein God can have infinite pleasure, and for the sake of which He can look graciously on the race of men.
Menken:—The divine majesty and universal dominion to which our perfected Mediator and High-Priest attained immediately on His entrance into the heavenly all-holy, stands in glorious contrast with the momentary and fearful waiting of the Levitical high-priest before the shadowy semblance of the divine throne; but it assures us, also, that we have in our eternal High-Priest in heaven all that we need for our salvation, and most complete perfection. He is all, and possesses all.
Footnotes:
[5]Heb_10:6.—ηὐδόκησας the form adopted (after A. C. D*.,) by Lachm. and Tisch., is to be preferred to εὐδόκησας.
[6]Heb_10:8.—The plur. θυσίας καὶ προσφοράς, is, according to Sin. A. C. D*., 17, 23, 57, to be read instead of the sing., which repeats the words, Heb_10:5, and in Sin. is substituted by the corrector.
[7]Heb_10:8.—The Art. before νόμον is wanting in Sin. A. C., 37, 46, 71, 73.
[8]Heb_10:8.—The reading ὁ θεός after τοῦ ποιῆσαι is interpolated from Heb_10:7, and, with Sin. A. C. D. E. K., 17, 39, 46, is to be expunged.
[9]Heb_10:11.—The authorities vary between ἰερεύς and ἀρχιερεύς. The sense demands the former word, which is also found in Sin.
[10]Heb_10:12.—The authority of Sin. A. C. D*. E., 67**, 80, 116, requires ον̓͂τος δέ instead of αὐτὸς δέ.
[11]Heb_10:16.—Instead of ἐπὶ τῶν διανοιῶν, as read by D***. E. J. K., and most minusc., ἐπὶ τὴν διάν., is to be preferred with Sin. A. C. D*., 17, 31, 47.
[12]Heb_10:17.—Instead of μνησθῶ, read with Sin. A. C. D*. E., 17, μνησθήσομαι. Sin. has the former reading as a correction.
Lange's Commentary on the Holy Scriptures (Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical), ed. John Peter Lange, English translation edited by Philip Schaff (1864–1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset & David Brown 1871 · Public Domain On vv2–10 For--if the law could, by its sacrifices, have perfected…
For--if the law could, by its sacrifices, have perfected the worshippers.
they--the sacrifices.
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once purged--IF they were once for all cleansed (Heb 7:27).
conscience--"consciousness of sin" (Heb 9:9).
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.
Daniel D. Whedon 1874 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10 2. Ceased to be offered—Had the law been able…
2. Ceased to be offered—Had the law been able by a finished act, once for all, as Christ has performed, to finish men for glory, the continuity of the sacrifices would have been unnecessary. Their very continuous repetition, therefore, is the very demonstration of their inferiority.
Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges 1878 · Public Domain On vv2–10 2. once purged] having been cleansed, by these sacrifices,…
2. once purged] having been cleansed, by these sacrifices, once for all.
conscience] Rather, “consciousness.”
The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers 1878 · Public Domain On vv2–10 (2) For then.—Better, otherwise. The very repetition of the…
(2) For then.—Better, otherwise. The very repetition of the annual ceremonial was a testimony to its imperfection. The idea of repetition has been very strikingly brought out in Heb_10:1.
Once purged.—Better, because the worshippers, having been once cleansed, would have no more consciousness of sins. “Worshippers,” not the same word as in Heb_10:1, but similarly used in Heb_9:9; Heb_9:14; Heb_12:28 (Php_3:3, et al.): in Heb_8:5; Heb_13:10, it is applied to priestly service.
A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Pulpit Commentary 1880 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 4, 5, 8 Vers. 2, 3. For then (i.e. had it been…
Vers. 2, 3. For then (i.e. had it been so able) would they (the sacrifices) not have ceased to be offered, because that the worshippers, having been once purged, should have had no more conscience of sins? But (on the contrary) in those sacrifices there is a remembrance made of sins year by year. The very annual repetition of the same expiatory rites on the Day of Atonement expressed in itself the idea, not of the putting away (ayethsiv , Heb_9:26) or oblivion, (Heb_10:17) of sin, but a recalling to mind of its continual presence. In the following verse the reason of this is found in the nature of the sacrifices themselves; it being impossible for the blood of irrational animals to cleanse moral guilt: it could only avail for the "passing over" (paresin , Rom_3:25) of sins, as symbolizing an effectual atonement to come in the spiritual sphere of things.
The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
The Biblical Illustrator 1887 · Public Domain On vv3, 4, 5, 10 Remembrance again made of sins
Heb_10:3
Remembrance again made of sins
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Sin remembered no more:
Memory is the source both of sorrow and of joy: like the wind, which is laden both with frankincense and with unpleasant odours, which brings both pestilence and health, which both distributes genial warmth and circulates cold.
The effect of memory depends on the subject of a particular recollection. This faculty is directed to past events, and if those which memory embraces have been joyous, the effect is joyous; if they have been grievous, the effect, unless there be some counteracting influence, is grievous. Among the multitude of sorrows, which, memory awakens, none is so bitter as that which arises from the recollection of sin. The recollection of sin is in this world variously originated. Sometimes pride leads a man to dwell on his past errors. He has a very high estimate of himself, and his complacency has been disturbed by some act of transgression, upon which be is constantly looking back. Vanity moves men to remember their errors. The vain man is anxious that others should have a good opinion of him, and his mortified vanity occasions him to look back upon his past faults and failures. Or he has a selfish desire for his own happiness: he sees in the past actions which have interfered with his enjoyment, and he cherishes the remembrance of sin because sin has been drying up the fountain of his pleasures. But turning from the evil powers which originate such recollections, we may look at a broken and contrite heart. Contrition of spirit cherishes the memory of transgression. The recollection of sin is occasioned by various influences, and the effect of these remembrances is various. Sometimes the recollection of sin hardens a man; sometimes it produces strong rebellion. On other occasions it induces deep depression. The spirit of a man may sustain his infirmities, but a wounded spirit, who can bear? There is a provision for forgetting our sins. But there was no such provision under the Law, nor in any of the ceremonies that Moses ordained. On the contrary, in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. That Jew would not be a true disciple to Moses and true child of Abraham who did not on the Day of Atonement call to mind his trespasses, although he had presented a trespass-offering, and all the sins he had committed, although he had presented his sin-offerings. If you look at the chapter, you will find that this passage is introduced for the sake of forming a contrast between the dispensation under Moses and the dispensation introduced by Christ. Now there is no remembrance again made of sins. We have had our day of atonement--the day upon which Christ hung on the Cross. We have had our sacrifice offered: it has been both offered and accepted. We have only to feel that it has been offered, and that it is accepted, and then the atonement which removes the outward guilt takes away also from the conscience the sense of guilt. In these sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. But by this one offering He hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. Here the writer penned these words for the sake of expressing something else which these words suggest to every Christian; such as these thoughts: First, God has made provision for the practical forgetting of sin in His own conduct towards a believing transgressor; and, secondly, the state of the penitents heart should respond to this provision. This provision is revealed to him on purpose that he may take advantage of it--that he may get all the peace and joy it is calculated to minister. Thou shalt not remember the reproach of thy widowhood any more. For a small moment have I forsaken thee, but with great mercies will I gather thee. For the sake of cherishing the spirit of humility, it is right to remember sin; for the sake of learning patience and forbearance and a kind and forgiving spirit towards each other; for the sake of increasing our sense of obligation to the atonement of Christ, and stimulating our gratitude for the everlasting mercy of God, it is right to remember sin; but sin should be forgotten when the remembrance of it would operate as a barrier to intercourse with God. Ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear, but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. Let us, therefore, come boldly unto the throne of grace; not with the sullenness of Cain--my punishment is greater than I can bear--but with all the loving reliance of Abel--come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need.
1. As an obstacle to hope, there is to be no remembrance of sins. The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is the strength of my life; of whom shall I be afraid? Jehovah is the strength of my heart, and my portion for ever.
2. As a check to filial reliance, there is to be no remembrance of sin. Though He slay me, yet will I trust in Him.
3. As marring our complacency in God, there is to be no remembrance of sin. He hath reconciled us to Himself by Jesus Christ, and annihilated the distance. You who were far off are brought nigh by the blood of Christ.
4. As hindering our enjoyment in God, there is to be no remembrance of sin. You are not to ask, Whither shall I go from Thy Spirit, or whither shall I flee from Thy presence? as though you would go if you could, or as though it would be a relief to take your eye from Gods eye and your lip from Gods ear; but your resolve must be, I will go to the altar of my God, to God my exceeding joy.
5. As darkening our prospects, there is to be no remembrance of sin. He has blotted out as a thick cloud thy transgressions, and as a cloud thy sins. Why is it that some Christians do not realise all this? Why is it that sometimes fear gets the mastery over them? The answer is at hand. Many persons think that they are Christians when they are not. Their repentance has been a thoroughly selfish state of soul, and not a godly sorrow. (S. Martin.)
Reminders of sins:
As they in the time of the Law had many sacrifices to put them in remembrance of sin, so we in the time of the Gospel have many remembrancers of sin--sundry monitors to admonish us that we are sinners. The rainbow may be a remembrance of sin to us, that the world was once drowned for sin, and that it might be so still but for the goodness and mercy of God. Baptism daily ministered in the Church putteth us in mind of sin; for if we were not sinners we needed not to be baptized. The Lords Supper puts us in mind of sin: Do this in remembrance of Me, that My body was broken for you and My blood shed for you on the Cross. The immoderate showers that come oft in harvest and deprive us of the fruits of the earth may put us in mind of sin; for they be our sins that keep good things from us. Our moiling and toiling for the sustentation of ourselves with much care and wearisome labour; for if we had not sinned it should not have been so. The sicknesses and, diseases that be among us, the plague and pestilence that hath raged among us, the death of so many of our brethren and sisters continually before our eyes, &c., may put us in mind of sin; for if we had not sinned we should not have died. There be a number of things to put us in mind of sin; but there is nothing that can take away sin but Jesus Christ the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the world. Therefore let us all fly to this heavenly Physician for the curing of us. (W. Joules, D. D.)
The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
B. W. Johnson 1891 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 10 2. For then would they not, etc. If the…
2. For then would they not, etc. If the legal sacrifices secured complete forgiveness, they would not have been offered over and over. The fact that it was done showed that there was still a consciousness of sin.
B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.
C. I. Scofield 1917 · Public Domain On vv2, 3, 5 Sin. (See Scofield "Rom 3:23").
sins
Sin. (See Scofield "Rom 3:23").
The Scofield Reference Bible (1917 edition), notes by C. I. Scofield — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
Paul E. Kretzmann 1924 · Public Domain On v5 The willing sacrifice of Christ:
The willing sacrifice of Christ:
v. 5. Wherefore, when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering Thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared Me;
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v. 6. in burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin Thou hast had no pleasure.
v. 7. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the Book it is written of Me) to do Thy will, O God.
v. 8. Above, when He said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin Thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure there in, which are offered by the Law,
v. 9. then said He, Lo, I come to do Thy will, O God. He taketh away the first that He may establish the second.
v. 10. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
The inadequacy of the Law, of the Old Testament worship with its sacrifices, having been demonstrated, the author immediately proceeds to point out that Christ’s offering was willing and fully adequate: Wherefore, on entering the world, He says, Sacrifice and offering Thou didst not want, but a body didst Thou prepare for Me; in burnt offerings and sin-offerings Thou hast no pleasure;—then I said, Behold, I come, in the roll of the Book it is written concerning Me, I come to do Thy mill, O God. The author quotes Psa 40:6-8, thus indicating that this is a Messianic psalm, and that the Messiah Himself expressed the scope of His work. Christ’s entrance into this world, His incarnation, suffering, and death, was made in full agreement with the gracious counsel of the Triune God concerning the salvation of mankind. It was the willingness of His vicarious work that gave it its wonderful value. Christ knew that with His entrance into the world the new and better covenant had begun, that the sacrifices and offerings, the whole burnt offerings and the sin-offerings of the Old Testament, had lost all their significance. God no longer wanted them, He no longer had any pleasure in them; the substance having appeared, there was no longer need of a shadow, of a type. See also Psa 50:7-15; Psa 51:18-19; Isa 1:11; Jer 6:20; Jer 7:21-23; Hos 6:6; Amo 5:21-23. Instead of that, the Lord had formed or prepared a body for the Messiah. The Hebrew text has, literally, Ears didst Thou bore for Me, which may refer to Exo 21:6; Deu 15:17, as indicating that Christ was the willing servant of His heavenly Father in the matter of His Passion and death. Or, if we adhere more strictly to the Greek text, it is evident that the Messiah states His willingness to have the will of God accomplished in His human body. This is brought out still more strongly in His cry: I come to do Thy will, O God, as it is written in the roll of the Book concerning Me. Christ’s entire ministry, during all of which time He fulfilled the Law of God for us, and especially His suffering and death, was not inevitable in the sense of His having submitted to it by force of necessity, but only in this sense, that He, of His own free will and in accordance with the gracious, eternal counsel of God, laid down His life for all mankind, Joh 10:17-18. Mark that He says "in the roll of the Book," thus referring to an accepted canon of Scripture, even in the Old Testament. The word "roll" originally designated the end of the rod on which the parchment making up a book was rolled, and finally the roll itself.
The sacred writer now explains the significance of the quotation: He says above (in the first part of the quotation), Sacrifices and gifts and burnt offerings and sin-offerings Thou didst not want, nor didst Thou take pleasure therein (yet these are offered according to the Law), then He added, Behold, I come to do Thy will, O God! He abolishes the first in order to establish the second. —It was true, indeed, that the Ceremonial Law of the Jews prescribed the offering of the various sacrifices, those for every day and for the Sabbath, as well as those for the great festivals and for the Day of Atonement. But these sacrifices had served their purpose in the old covenant. They have been done away with, abolished, repealed, by the coming of Christ, who willingly offered His body as the adequate offering to gain a perfect redemption for the sins of the whole world. Thus the old way of sacrifices and offerings was replaced by the one adequate, eternal sacrifice of Jesus Christ, all this in accordance with the gracious will of God. Of this will the author says: in which will we are sanctified through the offering of Christ once for all. In or by the gracious will of God, as expressed in the sacrifice of His only-begotten Son on the altar of the cross, as realized in the perfect atonement made by Christ, we are now sanctified, made holy and just in the sight of God, for the perfect righteousness of Christ, as established through His active and passive obedience, is imputed to us by faith. Thus we have now been brought into the one true fellowship with God through the offering of the body of Christ in accordance with the Father’s eternal will, a sacrifice so perfect that its adequacy lasts throughout eternity. The one perfect offering:
Paul E. Kretzmann, Popular Commentary of the Bible (1921–1924) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.
unfoldingWord translationNotes 2017 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv5, 8 General Information:
General Information:
Christ's words when he was on earth were foretold in this quotation from a psalm of David.
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you did not desire
Here "you" is singular and refers to God. (See: Forms of You)
a body you have prepared
"you have made a body ready"
Then I said
Here "I" refers to Christ.
as it is written about me in the scroll
This can be stated in active form. AT: "as the prophets wrote about me in the scroll" (See: Active or Passive)
the scroll
This means the scriptures or the holy writings.
translationWords
Christ
world
sacrifice
body
burnt offering
sin
written
scroll
will of God
unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.
Tyndale Open Study Notes 2022 · CC BY-SA 4.0 On vv2, 3, 4, 5, 8 10:2 The perpetual nature of the sacrifices demonstrates their…
10:2 The perpetual nature of the sacrifices demonstrates their inadequacy. If the sacrifices of the old covenant had offered true, lasting purity, they would have stopped. • their feelings of guilt would have disappeared: Cp. 9:9, 14; 10:22; 13:18.
Tyndale Open Study Notes — © Tyndale Open Resources, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Text via the HelloAO Bible API.