Hebrews 10:28,29

HEBREWS—NOTE ON Hebrews 10:28 These verses argue from the lesser to the greater (compare Hebrews 2:1; Hebrews 9:14). In the Mosaic law, the death penalty was given to those who blasphemed God or who worshiped other deities (e.g., Leviticus 24:13; Deuteronomy 17:2); in the superior new covenant the expectation of judgment should be even stronger. How much worse punishment... will be deserved by the one who...? The description that follows is of a person who has consciously and persistently deserted “the living God” (compare Hebrews 3:12; Hebrews 10:31; Hebrews 12:22), renouncing Christ and the community of faith (Hebrews 6:4). Such a person has done three specific things: trampled underfoot the Son of God, profaned the blood of the covenant, and outraged the Spirit of grace. Some have argued that the statement by which he was sanctified indicates that the person in view here was a true believer. Given the context, it seems most likely that “he was sanctified” means someone who had been “set apart” or identified as an active participant in the Christian community, but who has subsequently committed apostasy by renouncing his identification with other believers, by denying the “knowledge of the truth” that he had heard. Such a person’s apostasy is thus evidence that he was not a genuine believer. Another view is that the author is confident that the grave warning in these verses will be the means by which those who are truly elect will be emboldened to persevere in faith and obedience, and thus will be saved (see note on 6:4–8).