Hebrews 10:32

But call to remembrance the former days, in which, after ye were illuminated, ye endured a great fight of afflictions; As previously he warned them by the awful end of apostates, so here he stirs them up by the remembrance of their own faith, patience, and self-sacrificing love. So Revelation 2:3. CALL TO REMEMBRANCE - habitually: the present tense. ILLUMINATED - "enlightened:" come to "the (full) knowledge of the truth" (), in connection with baptism (note, ). In spiritual baptism, Christ, "the Light," is put on. 'On the one hand, we are not to sever the sign and the grace, where the sacrament truly answers its design; on tho other, the glass is not to be mistak...

32._But call to remembrance, etc. _In order to stimulate them, and to rouse their alacrity to go forward, he reminds them of the evidences of piety which they had previously manifested; for it is a shameful thing to begin well, and to faint in the middle of our course, and still more shameful to retrograde after having made great progress. The remembrance then of past warfare, if it had been carried on faithfully and diligently under the banner of Christ, is at length useful to us, not as a pretext for sloth, as though we had already served our time, but to render us more active in finishing the remaining part of our course. For Christ has not enlisted us on this condition, that we should after a few years ask for a discharge like soldiers who have served their time, but that we should pursue our warfare even to the end. He further strengthens his exhortation by saying, that they had alr...

32-39 Many and various afflictions united against the early Christians, and they had a great conflict. The Christian spirit is not a selfish spirit; it puts us upon pitying others, visiting them, helping them, and pleading for them. All things here are but shadows. The happiness of the saints in heaven will last for ever; enemies can never take it away as earthly goods. This will make rich amends for all we may lose and suffer here. The greatest part of the saints' happiness, as yet, is in promise. It is a trial of the patience of Christians, to be content to live after their work is done, and to stay for their reward till God's time to give it is come. He will soon come to them at death, to end all their sufferings, and to give them a crown of life. The Christian's present conflict may be sharp, but will be soon over. God never is pleased with the formal profession and outward duties a...

Verse 32. _BUT CALL TO REMEMBRANCE_] It appears from this, and indeed from some parts of the Gospel history, that the first believers in Judea were greatly persecuted; our Lord's crucifixion, Stephen's martyrdom, the persecution that arose after the death of Stephen, Acts 8:1, Herod's persecution, Acts 12:1, in which James was killed, and the various persecutions of St. Paul, sufficiently show that this disposition was predominant among that bad people. _A GREAT FIGHT OF AFFLICTIONS_] Πολλην αθλησιν παθηματων· _A_ _great combat_ or _contention of sufferings_. Here we have an allusion to the combats at the Grecian games, or to exhibitions of gladiators at the public spectacles; and an intimation how _honourable_ it was to contend for the faith once delivered to the s

BUT CALL TO REMEMBRANCE THE FORMER DAYS - It would seem from this, that at the time when the apostle wrote this Epistle they were suffering some severe trials, in which they were in great danger of apostatizing from their religion. It is also manifest that they had on some former occasion endured a similar trial, and had been enabled to bear it with a Christian spirit, and with resignation. The object of the apostle now is to remind them that they were sustained under those trials, and he would encourage them now to similar patience by the recollection of the grace then conferred on them. What was the nature of their former trials, or of what they were then experiencing, is not certainly known. It would seem probable, however, that the reference in both instances is to some form of persecution by their own countrymen. The meaning is, “that when we have been enabled to pass through trials...

EXPOSITION HEBREWS 10:1 CONCLUDING SUMMARY OF THE ARGUMENT WITH RESPECT TO CHRIST'S ETERNAL PRIESTHOOD. HEBREWS 10:1 FOR THE LAW, HAVING A SHADOW OF THE GOOD THINGS TO COME, AND NOT THE VERY IMAGE OF THE THINGS, CAN NEVER WITH THE SAME SACRIFICES YEAR BY YEAR, WHICH THEY OFFER CONTINUALLY, MAKE THE COMERS THEREUNTO PERFECT. The Law is said here to exhibit a _shadow _(σκιὰν)_ _of _the good things to come _(τῶν μελλόντων ἀγαθῶν), viz. of the "good things" of which Christ is come as "High Priest" ...

BUT CALL TO REMEMBRANCE THE FORMER DAYS,.... The words may be considered either as a declaration of what they had done, and be read, "but ye do call to remembrance", c. or as an exhortation to remember the days of their espousals, the times of their first conversion: and the apostle's design in this is, to mitigate the terror the preceding words might strike them with and to aggravate the disgrace of turning back, when they had behaved so bravely in former times; and to encourage their faith and trust in God: IN WHICH AFTER YE WERE ILLUMINATED, by the Spirit of God, to see their impurity, impotence, and unrighteousness, and their lost and miserable state by nature; and to behold Christ and salvation by him; and to have some light into the doctrines of the Gospel; and some glimmering of the glories of another world. The Syriac and Ethiopic versions render it "baptized"; now such as are c...

Hebrews 10:1. _For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered»_ If the sacrifice had really put away sin, surely it would never have needed to be offered again. If one sacrifice had put away the guilt of Israel, there would have been no need to bring another. Hebrews 10:2. _Because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins._ Once cleansed from sin, we are cleansed from sin; the great deed is done once for all, Hebrews 10:3. But in

CHAPTER 10 _ 1. The all-sufficiency of the one offering (Hebrews 10:1)_ 2. Exhortations (Hebrews 10:19) 3. Warning (Hebrews 10:26) 4. Encouragements (Hebrews 10:32) Hebrews 10:1 The precious truth the apostle has unfolded in the preceding Chapter s concerning Christ, His one offering He made, His own blood by which He entered once for all into the holy place the one all sufficient sacrifice, which has an eternal value and can never be repeated, is now still more practically applied. This one off

As in ch. 6, the writer turns from solemn warning to encouragement, based on the past record of his readers. He reminds them of the valour they had shown in the days immediately succeeding their conversion (Hebrews 10:32, after ye were enlightened). Like strong wrestlers they had stood up to persecution, content to be themselves the object of popular contempt and hatred, while they bravely assisted their fellow-sufferers (Hebrews 10:33). They had relieved their brethren who were thrown into prison, and had borne the confiscation of their wealth with joy, in the assurance that they had wealth of another kind which made them richer than those who robbed them (Hebrews 10:34). In our ignorance of the community to which the epis