SEV Biblia, Chapter 6:6
y recayeron, sean renovados de nuevo por arrepentimiento colgando en el madero otra vez para sí mismos al Hijo de Dios, y exponindolo a vituperio.
Clarke's Bible Commentary - Hebrew 6:6
Verse 6. If they shall fall away] kai parapesontav And having fallen away. I can express my own mind on this translation nearly in the words of Dr. Macknight: "The participles fwtisqentav, who were enlightened, geusamenouv, have tasted, and genhqentav, were made partakers, being aorists, are properly rendered by our translators in the past time; wherefore, parapesontav, being an aorist, ought likewise to have been translated in the past time, HAVE fallen away. Nevertheless, our translators, following Beza, who without any authority from ancient MSS. has inserted in his version the word si, if, have rendered this clause, IF they fall away, that this text might not appear to contradict the doctrine of the perseverance of the saints. But as no translator should take upon him to add to or alter the Scriptures, for the sake of any favourite doctrine, I have translated parapesontav in the past time, have fallen away, according to the true import of the word, as standing in connection with the other aorists in the preceding verses." Dr. Macknight was a Calvinist, and he was a thorough scholar and an honest man; but, professing to give a translation of the epistle, he consulted not his creed but his candour. Had our translators, who were excellent and learned men, leaned less to their own peculiar creed in the present authorized version, the Church of Christ in this country would not have been agitated and torn as it has been with polemical divinity.
It appears from this, whatever sentiment may gain or lose by it, that there is a fearful possibility of falling away from the grace of God; and if this scripture did not say so, there are many that do say so. And were there no scripture express on this subject, the nature of the present state of man, which is a state of probation or trial, must necessarily imply it. Let him who most assuredly standeth, take heed lest he fall.
To renew them again unto repentance] As repentance is the first step that a sinner must take in order to return to God, and as sorrow for sin must be useless in itself unless there be a proper sacrificial offering, these having rejected the only available sacrifice, their repentance for sin, had they any, would be nugatory, and their salvation impossible on this simple account; and this is the very reason which the apostle immediately subjoins:- Seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God] They reject him on the ground that he was an impostor, and justly put to death. And thus they are said to crucify him to themselves - to do that in their present apostasy which the Jews did; and they show thereby that, had they been present when he was crucified, they would have joined with his murderers.
And put him to an open shame.] paradeigmatizontav? And have made him a public example; or, crucifying unto themselves and making the Son of God a public example. That is, they show openly that they judge Jesus Christ to have been worthy of the death which he suffered, and was justly made a public example by being crucified. This shows that it is final apostasy, by the total rejection of the Gospel, and blasphemy of the saviour of men, that the apostle has in view. See the note on "ver. 4.
John Gill's Bible Commentary
Ver. 6. If they shall fall away , etc..] This is not supposed of true believers, as appears from ( Hebrews 6:9) nor is it to be supposed of them that they may fall totally and finally; they may indeed fall, not only into afflictions and temptations, but into sin; and from a lively and comfortable exercise of grace, and from a degree of steadfastness in the Gospel; but not irrecoverably: for they are held and secured by a threefold cord, which can never be broken; by God the Father, who has loved them with an everlasting love, has chosen them in Christ, secured them in the covenant of grace, keeps them by his power, has given them grace, and will give them glory; and by the Son, who has undertook for them, redeemed and purchased them, prays and makes preparations in heaven for them, they are built on him, united to him, and are his jewels, whom he will preserve; and by the Holy Ghost, whose grace is incorruptible, whose personal indwelling is for ever, who himself is the earnest and seal of the heavenly inheritance, and who having begun, will finish the good work of grace: but falling away, so as to perish, may be supposed, and is true of many professors of religion; who may fall from the profession of the Gospel they have made, and from the truth of it, and into an open denial of it; yea, into an hatred and persecution of what they once received the external knowledge of; and so shall fall short of heaven, and into condemnation: for, to renew them again unto repentance , is a thing impossible: by repentance is meant, not baptism of repentance; nor admission to a solemn form of public repentance in the church; nor a legal repentance, but an evangelical one: and so to be renewed unto it is not to be baptized again, or to be restored anew to the church by repentance, and absolution; but must be understood either of renovation of the soul, in order to repentance; or of the reforming of the outward conversation, as an evidence of it; or of a renewing of the exercise of the grace of repentance and to be renewed again to repentance does not suppose that persons may have true repentance and lose it; for though truly penitent persons may lose the exercise of this grace for a time, yet the grace itself can never be lost: moreover, these apostates before described had only a show of repentance, a counterfeit one; such as Cain, Pharaoh, and Judas had; and consequently, the renewing of them again to repentance, is to that which they only seemed to have, and to make pretensions unto; now to renew them to a true repentance, which they once made a profession of, the apostle says is a thing impossible: the meaning of which is not only that it is difficult; or that it is rare and unusual; or that it is unsuitable and improper; but it is absolutely impossible: it is impossible to these men to renew themselves to repentance; renovation is the work of the Holy Ghost, and not of man; and repentance is God's gift, and not in man's power; and it is impossible for ministers to renew them, to restore and bring them back, by true repentance; yea, it is impossible to God himself, not through any impotence in him, but from the nature of the sin these men are guilty of; for by the high, though outward attainments they arrive unto, according to the description of them, their sin is the sin against the Holy Ghost, for which no sacrifice can be offered up, and of which there is no remission, and so no repentance; for these two go together, and for which prayer is not to be made; (see Matthew 12:32 Hebrews 10:26,27 1 John 4:16) and chiefly because to renew such persons to repentance, is repugnant to the determined will of God, who cannot go against his own purposes and resolutions; and so the Jews speak of repentance being withheld by God from Pharaoh, and, from the people of Israel; of which they understand ( Exodus 9:16 Isaiah 6:10 2 Chronicles 36:16) and say, that when the holy blessed God withholds repentance from a sinner, bwl lwky wnya , he cannot repent; but must die in his wickedness which he first committed of his own will; and they further observe f83 , that he that profanes the name of God has it not in his power to depend on repentance, nor can his iniquity be expiated on the day of atonement, or be removed by chastisement: seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh ; who is truly and properly God, begotten of the Father, and of the same nature with him, in whom he greatly delights; this is Christ's highest name and title; and it was for asserting himself to be the Son of God that he was crucified; and his being so puts an infinite virtue in his sufferings and death; and it heightens the sin of the Jews, and of these apostates, in crucifying him. He was once crucified, and it is both impossible and unnecessary that he should be, properly speaking, crucified afresh, or again; it is impossible, because he is risen from the dead, and will never die more; it is unnecessary, because he has finished and completed what he suffered the death of the cross for; but men may be said to crucify him again, when, by denying him to be the Son of God, they justify the crucifixion of him on that account; and when they lessen and vilify the virtue of his blood and sacrifice; and when both by errors and immoralities they cause him to be blasphemed, and evil spoken of; and when they persecute him in his members: and this may be said to be done to themselves afresh; not that Christ was crucified for them before, but that they now crucify him again, as much as in them lies; or with themselves, in their own breasts and minds, and to their own destruction. Now this being the case, it makes their renewal to repentance impossible; because, as before observed, the sin they commit is unpardonable; it is a denial of Christ, who gives repentance; and such who sin it must arrive to such hardness of heart as to admit of no repentance; and it is just with God to give up such to a final impenitence, as those, who knowingly and out of malice and envy crucified Christ, had neither pardon nor repentance; and besides, this sin of denying Christ to be the Son of God, and Saviour of men, after so much light and knowledge, precludes the way of salvation, unless Christ was to be crucified again, which is impossible; for so the Syriac version connects this clause with the word impossible, as well as a foregoing one, rendering it, it is impossible to crucify the Son of God again, and to put him to shame; and so the Arabic version. Christ was put to open shame at the time of his apprehension, prosecution, and crucifixion; and so he is by such apostates, who, was he on earth, would treat him in the same manner the Jews did; and who do traduce him as an impostor and a deceiver, and give the lie to his doctrines, and expose him by their lives, and persecute him in his saints.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-8 - Every part of the truth and will of God should be set before all wh profess the gospel, and be urged on their hearts and consciences. We should not be always speaking about outward things; these have their places and use, but often take up too much attention and time, whic might be better employed. The humbled sinner who pleads guilty, an cries for mercy, can have no ground from this passage to be discouraged, whatever his conscience may accuse him of. Nor does i prove that any one who is made a new creature in Christ, ever becomes final apostate from him. The apostle is not speaking of the fallin away of mere professors, never convinced or influenced by the gospel Such have nothing to fall away from, but an empty name, or hypocritica profession. Neither is he speaking of partial declinings of backslidings. Nor are such sins meant, as Christians fall into throug the strength of temptations, or the power of some worldly or fleshl lust. But the falling away here mentioned, is an open and avowe renouncing of Christ, from enmity of heart against him, his cause, an people, by men approving in their minds the deeds of his murderers, an all this after they have received the knowledge of the truth, an tasted some of its comforts. Of these it is said, that it is impossibl to renew them again unto repentance. Not because the blood of Christ is not sufficient to obtain pardon for this sin; but this sin, in its very nature, is opposite to repentance and every thing that leads to it. I those who through mistaken views of this passage, as well as of their own case, fear that there is no mercy for them, would attend to the account given of the nature of this sin, that it is a total and willing renouncing of Christ, and his cause, and joining with his enemies, it would relieve them from wrong fears. We should ourselve beware, and caution others, of every approach near to a gulf so awfu as apostacy; yet in doing this we should keep close to the word of God and be careful not to wound and terrify the weak, or discourage the fallen and penitent. Believers not only taste of the word of God, but they drink it in. And this fruitful field or garden receives the blessing. But the merely nominal Christian, continuing unfruitful unde the means of grace, or producing nothing but deceit and selfishness was near the awful state above described; and everlasting misery wa the end reserved for him. Let us watch with humble caution and praye as to ourselves.
Greek Textus Receptus
και 2532 παραπεσοντας 3895 5631 παλιν 3825 ανακαινιζειν 340 5721 εις 1519 μετανοιαν 3341 ανασταυρουντας 388 5723 εαυτοις 1438 τον 3588 υιον 5207 του 3588 θεου 2316 και 2532 παραδειγματιζοντας 3856 5723
Vincent's NT Word Studies
6. If they shall fall away (kai paapesontav). Lit. and having fallen away. Comp. pesh fall, ch. iv. 11. Parapiptein, N.T.o . It means to deviate, turn aside. Comp. LXX, Ezek. xiv. 13; xv. 8.
To renew them again (palin anakainizein). The verb N.T.o . Anakainoun to renew, 2 Cor. iv. 16; Col. iii. 10.
Seeing they crucify to themselves - afresh (anastaurountav eautoiv). In the Roman classical use of the word, ajna has only the meaning up: to nail up on the cross. Here in the sense of anew, an idea for which classical writers had no occasion in connection with crucifying. 195 Eautoiv for themselves. So that Christ is no more available for them. They declare that Christ's crucifixion has not the meaning or the virtue which they formerly attached to it.
The Son of God. Marking the enormity of the offense.
Put him to an open shame (paradeigmatizontav). N.T.o . Rarely in LXX. Comp. Num. xxv. 4, hang them up. From para beside, deiknunai to show or point out. To put something alongside of a thing by way of commending it to imitation or avoidance. To make an example of; thence to expose to public disgrace. Deigma example, only Jude 7. Deigmatizein to make a public show or example, Matt. i. 19; Col. ii. 15. See additional note at the end of this chapter.
