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A. D. 64.

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HEB. VII. 5.

ister unto me in the priest's office, even Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron's sons, Exod. xxviii. 1. And he hath brought thee near to him, and all thy brethren, the sons of Levi, with thee; and seek ye the priesthood also? For which cause both thou and all thy company are gathered together against the LORD and what is Aaron, that ye murmur against him? Numb. xvi. 10, 11. And thou shalt write Aaron's name upon the rod of Levi; for one rod shall be for the head of the house of their fathers. And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the congregation before the testimony, where I will meet with you. And it shall come to pass, that the man's rod, whom I shall choose, shall blossom: and I will make to cease from Israel the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you. And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, and every one of their princes gave him a rod apiece, for each prince one, according to their fathers' houses, even twelve rods and the rod of Aaron was among the rods. And Moses laid up the rods before the LORD in the tabernacle of witness. And it came to pass, that on the morrow Moses went into the tabernacle of witness; and, behold, the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi was budded, and brought forth buds, and bloomed blossoms, and yielded almonds. And Moses brought out all the rods from before the LORD unto all the children of Israel: and they looked, and took every man his rod. And the LORD said unto Moses, Bring Aaron's rod again before the testimony, to be kept for a token against the rebels; and thou shalt quite take away their murmurings from me that they die not, xvii. 3-10. Therefore thou and thy sons with thee shall keep your priest's office for every thing of the altar, and within the vail; and ye shall serve : I have given your priest's office unto you as a service of gift: and the stranger that cometh nigh shall be put to death, xviii. 7.

bAnd the tithe of the land, whether of the seed of the land, or of the fruit of the tree, is the LORD's: it is holy unto the LORD. And if a man will

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at all redeem ought of his tithes, he shall add thereto the fifth part thereof. And concerning the tithe of the herd, or of the flock, even of whatsoever passeth under the rod, the tenth shall be holy unto the LORD. He shall not search whether it be good or bad, neither shall he change it: and if he change it at all, then both it and the change thereof shall be holy; it shall not be redeemed, Lev. xxvii. 30–33. Thus speak unto the Levites, and say unto them, When ye take of the children of Israel the tithes which I have given you from them for your inheritance, then ye shall offer up an heaveoffering of it for the LORD, even a tenth part of the tithe. And this your heave-offering shall be reckoned unto you, as though it were the corn of the threshingfloor, and as the fulness of the winepress. Thus ye also shall offer an heave-offering unto the LORD of all your tithes which ye receive of the children of Israel; and ye shall give thereof the LORD's heave-offering to Aaron the priest. Out of all your gifts ye shall offer every heaveoffering of the LORD, of all the best thereof, even the hallowed part thereof out of it. Therefore thou shalt say unto them, When ye have heaved the best thereof from it, then it shall be counted unto the Levites as the increase of the threshingfloor, and as the increase of the winepress, And ye shall eat it in every place, ye and your housholds; for it is your rewards for your service in the tabernacle of the congregation. And ye shall bear no sin by reason of it, when ye have heaved from it the best of it: neither shall ye pollute the holy things of the children of Israel, lest ye die, Numb. xviii. 26-32. And, behold, I have given the children of Levi all the tenth in Israel for an inheritance, for their service which they serve, even the service of the tabernacle of the congregation, 21. And he will take the tenth of your seed, and of your vineyards, and give to his officers, and his servants, 1 Sam. viii. 15. Moreover he commanded the people that dwelt in Jerusalem to give the portion of the priests and the Levites, that they might be encouraged in the law of the LORD. And as soon as the commandment came abroad, the

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HEB. VII. 5, 6.

children of Israel brought in abundance the firstfruits of corn, wine, and oil, and honey, and of all the increase of the field; and the tithe of all things And brought they in abundantly. concerning the children of Israel and Judah, that dwelt in the cities of Judah, they also brought in the tithe of oxen and sheep, and the tithe of holy things which were consecrated unto the LORD their God, and laid them by heaps, 2 Chron. xxxi. 4-6. And I perceived that the portions of the Levites had not been given them: for the Levites and the singers, that did the work, were fled every one to his field, Neh. xiii. 10.

For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him, ver. 10. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty; be fruitful and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins, Gen. xxxv. 11. All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were threescore and six, xlvi. 26. And all the souls that came out of the loins of Jacob were seventy souls: for Joseph was in Egypt already, Exod. i. 5.

VER. 6.

Ὁ δὲ μὴ γενεαλογούμενος ἐξ αὐτῶν, δεδεκάτωκε τὸν ̓Αβραὰμ, καὶ τὸν ἔχοντα τὰς ἐπαγγελίας εὐλόγηκε.

But he a whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises.

* Or, pedigree.

a Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils, ver. 3, 4. b For when God made promise to Abraham, because he could swear by no greater, he sware by himself, Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise, Heb. vi. 13-15. These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but

A. D. 64. | having seen them afar off, and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth, xi. 13. By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 17. And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing, Gen. xii. 2. And the LORD said unto Abram, after that Lot was separated from him, Lift up now thine eyes, and look from the place where thou art northward, and southward, and eastward, and westward: For all the land which thou seest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed for ever. And I will make thy seed as the dust of the earth: so that if a man can number the dust of the earth, then shall thy seed also be numbered. Arise, walk through the land in the length of it, and in the breadth of it; for I will give it unto thee, xiii. 14-17. As for me, behold, my covenant is with thee, and thou shalt be a father of many nations, Neither shall thy name any more be called Abram, but thy name shall be Abraham; for a father of many nations have I made thee. And I will make thee exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of thee, and kings shall come out of thee. And I will establish my covenant between me and thee and thy seed after thee in their generations for an everlasting covenant, to be a God unto thee, and to thy seed after thee. will give unto thee, and to thy seed after thee, the land wherein thou art a stranger, all the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession; and I will be their God, xvii. 4-8. That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the of sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice, xxii. 17, 18. Ye are the children of the prophets, and of the covenant which God made with our fathers, saying unto Abraham, And in thy seed shall all the kindreds of the earth be blessed, Acts iii. 25. For the pro

And I

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mise, that he should be the heir of the world, was not to Abraham or to his seed, through the law, but through the righteousness of faith, Rom. iv. 13. Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ, Gal. iii. 16.

VER. 7.

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shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this? John xi. 25, 26. Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me, xiv. 6. Yet a little while, and the world seeth me no more, but ye see me : because I live, ye shall live also, 19. I am he that liveth, and was dead; and, behold, I am alive for evermore,

Χωρὶς δὲ πάσης ἀντιλογίας, τὸ ἔλαττον Amen ; and have the keys of hell and ὑπὸ τοῦ κρείττονος εὐλογεῖται. of death, Rev. i. 18.

And without all contradiction, the less is blessed of the better.

* And without controversy, great is the mystery of godliness; God was manifest in the flesh, justified in the Spirit, seen of angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed on in the world, received up into glory, 1 Tim. iii. 16.

b By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning things to come. By faith Jacob, when he was a dying, blessed both the sons of Joseph; and worshipped, leaning upon the top of his staff, Heb. xi. 20, 21.

VER. 8.

Καὶ ὧδε μὲν δεκάτας ἀποθνήσκοντες ἄνθρωποι λαμβάνουσιν· ἐκεῖ δὲ, μαρτυρού | μενος ὅτι ζῇ.

And here a men that die receive tithes ; but there he receiveth them, of whom it

is witnessed that he liveth.

a And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death, ver. 23. And as it appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment, ix. 27.

VER. 9.

Καὶ, ὡς ἔπος εἰπεῖν, διὰ ̓Αβραὰμ καὶ Λευῒ ὁ δεκάτας λαμβάνων δεδεκάτωται

receiveth tithes, a payed tithes in AbraAnd as I may so say, Levi also, who

ham.

a Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils, ver. 4. And blessed be the most high God, which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all, Gen. xiv. 20. Wherefore as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; and so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned, Rom. v. 12.

VER. 10.

ὅτε συνήντησεν αὐτῷ ὁ Μελχισεδέκ.
Ετι γὰρ ἐν τῇ ὀσφύϊ τοῦ πατρὸς ἦν,

father, when Melchisedec met him.

For he was yet in the loins of his

a And verily, they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham, ver. 5. And God said unto him, I am God Almighty; be fruitful, and multiply; a nation and a company of nations shall be of thee, and kings shall come out of thy loins, Gen. xxxv. 11. All the souls that came with Jacob into Egypt, which came out of his loins, besides Jacob's sons' wives, all the souls were threescore and six, xlvi. 26.

b Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a Priest continually, ver. 3. Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life, 16. But this man because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them, 24, 25. Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life he that believ- Εἰ μὲν οὖν τελείωσις διὰ τῆς Λευϊτικῆς eth in me, though he were dead, yet | ἱερωσύνης ἦν· ὁ λαὸς γὰρ ἐπ ̓ αὐτῇ νενο

VER. 11.

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μοθέτητο.) τίς ἔτι χρεία, κατὰ τὴν τάξιν | Μελχισεδὲκ ἕτερον ἀνίστασθαι ἱερέα, καὶ οὐ κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Ααρὼν λέγεσθαι ;

If therefore a perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another Priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of

Aaron?

a For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before, for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof. For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God, ver. 18, 19. For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second, viii. 7. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away, 10-13. 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? because that the wor

shippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. But in these sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins, x. 1-4. Even so we, when we were children, were in bondage under the elements of the world, Gal. iv. 3. But now, after that ye have known God, or rather are known of God, how turn ye again to the weak and beggarly elements, whereunto ye de

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sire again to be in bondage, 9. And ye are complete in him, which is the head of all principality and power. In whom also ye are circumcised with in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ: Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with him through the faith of the operation of God, who

the circumcision made without hands,

hath raised him from the dead. And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses; Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to the cross; And having spoiled principalities and powers, he made a shew of them openly, triumphing over them in it. Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect of an holy day, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath days: Which are a shadow of things to come; but the body is of Christ, Col. ii. 10-17.

b For such an High Priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens: Who needeth not daily, as those High Priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself. For the law maketh men High Priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore, ver. 26— 28.

c See on chap v. ver. 6.

VER. 12.

Μετατιθεμένης γὰρ τῆς ἱερωσύνης, ἐξ ἀνάγκης καὶ νόμου μετάθεσις γίνεται.

For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law.

a For if that first covenant had been faultless, then should no place have been sought for the second. For finding fault with them, he saith, Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah: Not according to the corenant that I made with their fathers

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HEB. VII. 12, 13.

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in the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued not in my covenant, and I regarded them not, saith the Lord. For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord; I will put my laws into their mind, and write them in their hearts: and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people And they shall not teach every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the Lord for all shall know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will be merciful to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities will I remember no more. In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth and waxeth old is ready to vanish away, Heb. viii. 7—13. 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? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins. Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me: In burnt-offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure. Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God. Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt-offerings, and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law; Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second, x. 1-9. And I will also take of them for priests and for Levites, saith the LORD, Isa. Ixvi. 21. But every one shall die for his own iniquity: every man that eateth the sour grape, his teeth shall be set on edge. Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I

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will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Judah: Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day that I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt; which my covenant they brake, although I was an husband unto them, saith the LORD: But this shall be the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel; After those days, saith the LORD, I will put my law in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts; and will be their God, and they shall be my people. And they shall teach no more every man his neighbour, and every man his brother, saying, Know the LORD: for they shall all know: me, from the least of them unto the greatest of them, saith the LORD: for I will forgive them their iniquity, and I will remember their sin no more, Jer. xxxi. 31-34. Then thou shalt remember thy ways, and be ashamed, when thou shalt receive thy sisters, thine elder and thy younger and I will give them unto thee for daughters, but not by thy covenant, Ezra xvi. 61. And set up false witnesses, which said, This man ceaseth not to speak blasphemous words against this holy place, and the law: For we have heard him say, that this Jesus of Nazareth shall destroy this place, and shall change the customs which Moses delivered us, Acts vi. 13, 14.

VER. 13.

Εφ ̓ ὃν γὰρ λέγεται ταῦτα, φυλῆς ἑτέ ρας μετέσχηκεν, ἀφ ̓ ἧς οὐδεὶς προσέσχηκε τῷ θυσιαστηρίῳ.

For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, a of which no man gave attendance at the altar.

a To be a memorial unto the children of Israel, that no stranger, which is not of the seed of Aaron, come near to offer incense before the LORD; that he be not as Korah, and as his company: as the LORD said to him by the hand of Moses, Numb. xvi. 40. And it shall come to pass, that the man's rod whom I shall choose, shall blossom; and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, whereby they murmur against you, vii. 5. But when he was strong, his heart was lifted up to his de

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