Hebrews 3:5-6 - Exposition

And Moses verily was faithful in all his house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were afterwards to be spoken; but Christ, as Son over his house. We have already anticipated the explanation of this passage, which, according to the view taken above, is a setting forth of the distinction between Christ and Moses intended from the first; that of one being "Son over," the other but "servant in, " the house of God. The rendering of the A.V., "his own house," in Hebrews 3:6 , where Christ is spoken of, is not justifiable. It is true that we have no means of knowing whether αὐτοῦ or αὑτοῦ was intended, and that even αὐτοῦ might, according to the usage of Hellenistic Greek, refer to Christ; but if the writer bad so intended it, he might easily have avoided ambiguity by writing ἑαυτοῦ , etc. He has not done so; and, therefore, it is most natural to take " his house" in the same sense throughout the passage; viz. As "God's house," referred to in Numbers 12:7 , whence the expression is taken. We observe further that "the things that were afterwards to be spoken ( τῶν λαληθησομένων )" must be taken as denoting the future "speaking" of God to man "in his SON " (of. Hebrews 1:1 ); not, as some interpret, the speaking through Moses himself in the Law. Moses was inferior to Christ, not only in respect to his personal position as a servant, but also in respect to his work as such; which was only to testify beforehand, typically and prophetically, to a fuller revelation to come. Whose house we are. Here begins the transition to the warning intended when the "holy brethren" were first called on to "consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession," who has now been seen to be so much greater than Moses. We Christians constitute this completed "house of God," over which Christ reigns as Son; if only warned by the example of the Israelites under Moses, we forfeit not our higher calling. This condition is expressed by If we hold fast the confidence (or, our confidence ) and the rejoicing (rather, boast ) of the ( i.e. our) hope firm unto the end. παῤῥησιά (often rendered "boldness;" see below, Hebrews 4:16 ; Hebrews 10:19 , Hebrews 10:35 ) is the confidence felt by assured believers; καύχημα is the boast thereupon ensuing. This word (as also καυχᾶσθαι ) is often used by St. Paul (cf. Romans 4:2 ; Romans 5:2 ; 1 Corinthians 5:6 : 1 Corinthians 9:15 ; 2 Corinthians 1:14 ; 2 Corinthians 5:12 ; 2 Corinthians 9:3 ; Galatians 6:4 ; Philippians 1:26 ; Philippians 2:16 ). Its proper meaning is not (as is by many supposed) the materies gloriandi, but the uttered boast itself (see note on 1 Corinthians 5:6 , in the 'Speaker's Commentary'). The con- eluding words, μέχρι τέλους βεβαίαν , are omitted in the Codex Vatican, and, notwithstanding the preponderance of authority in their favor, may have been interpolated (as is supposed by Mill, Tischendorf, Alford, and Delitzsch) from Numbers 12:14 , especially as the reading is not βεβαίον , so as to agree with the substantive immediately preceding, but βεβαίαν , as in Numbers 12:14 .