Hebrews 2:3

3. How shall we Both Christians and all who hear the word spoken.

Escape Namely, the recompense suited in severity to the new conditions.

So great salvation Its greatness being here measured by the greatness of the Mediator who brings it, the clearness by which it is attested, the price (Hebrews 2:9) which it cost, and the glory to which it brings.

At the first At the commencement of the new revelation.

Confirmed unto us… heard him That Paul never heard the living Christ at the first, we have recognised in our note to Acts 9:1. So that this statement perfectly accords with Paul’s authorship of the epistle. Lunemann and others, indeed, argue that Paul always claims that he derived his Gospel not from men, but from Christ, and so could not have written these words or this epistle. But, certainly, Paul does not ever claim that he was a personal hearer of the teachings of Jesus, or an eye-witness of his miracles. How he acquired his knowledge of the facts of Christ’s history we have discussed in our note, Acts 9:23. It is the doctrinal interpretation of those facts which he claimed to have obtained by revelation. We have shown in our notes on Acts 8:1-4, that the Pentecostal Church was dispersed, and succeeded by a later body of believers. The Hebrews, to whom this epistle was written, assuming them to be Jerusalemite and Palestinian Jews, received their knowledge of Christ’s history from living testimony, as did Paul. Compare our notes on Luke 1:1-3. Nevertheless the we and us here do not literally or necessarily include the apostle; but may be simply used from delicacy, as a modest identification of himself with his hearers. The first person plural is used six times in 1-3, where it is clear that Paul does not mean himself. Stuart has abundantly shown this self-identification with his readers to be Paul’s custom, both in this epistle and elsewhere, adducing a mass of instances, as follows: “See Hebrews 2:1; Hebrews 2:3; Hebrews 3:6; Hebrews 4:1-2; Hebrews 4:11; Hebrews 4:13; Hebrews 4:16; Hebrews 6:1-3; Hebrews 6:18-19; Hebrews 10:22-26; Hebrews 10:39; Hebrews 11:40; Hebrews 12:1; Hebrews 12:9-10; Hebrews 12:28; Hebrews 13:10; Hebrews 13:13; Hebrews 13:15. He also uses we or ye indifferently for the persons whom he addresses; for example: Hebrews 4:1, let us fear… lest any of you, etc.; we, in Hebrews 12:1-2; ye, in Hebrews 12:3-8; we, in Hebrews 12:9-10; ye, in Hebrews 12:17-18; Hebrews 12:22; Hebrews 12:25; we, in Hebrews 13:14; Hebrews 13:18, and often in the same way elsewhere, the address being still most manifestly made to the very same persons. He often employs, also, the first person plural to designate merely himself; as for example, in Hebrews 2:5; Hebrews 6:9; Hebrews 6:11; Hebrews 13:18. This, in like manner, he interchanges with the first person singular; for example, Hebrews 13:18; compare Hebrews 13:19; Hebrews 13:22-23. The same use of the first person plural runs through all the Pauline epistles; for example, we and I for the writer himself, Galatians 1:8: comp. Hebrews 1:9-14, Galatians 2:5; comp. Hebrews 2:1-4; Hebrews 2:6-7, and so very often elsewhere. So we and you for the persons addressed, Galatians 3:1-29; Galatians 4:3-20; Galatians 4:26-31, and elsewhere.” The passage, with the entire class of facts, is, therefore, not a disproof, but rather a proof, of the Pauline origin of this epistle; as it shows a full conformity with the apostle’s habit of using the pronouns. See our note on 1 Corinthians 15:51.