The Letter to the Hebrews is surely one of Scripture’s most difficult to interpret and understand books. After his study of Hebrews, the Reformer, Martin Luther, denied its Biblical authority and canonicity.1Martin Luther and the Warning Passages in Hebrews by Dr. Fred Chay, https://www.academia.edu/10416004/Martin_Luther_and_the_Warning_Passages_in_Hebrews. See also https://www.biblegateway.com/resources/encyclopedia-of-the-bible/Epistle-Hebrews. Luther relegated it to a deutero-canonical position because it contained as he thought, some “wood, hay and stubble”. He simply could not reconcile what he read with his Paulin interpretation of Scripture.2Dr. Fred Chay Hebrews does, indeed, contain some of the most difficult to understand passages in the Bible. RBP suggest that the reason that they are so difficult to us is because they are from the Old Testament. They advise that we not get “confused with the difficult details of Hebrews…” I am hopeful, that we can grabble with “the difficult details of Hebrews” without becoming overly confused. Commentator Albert Barnes adds, “It need not be said that this Epistle has given rise to much discussion among writers on the New Testament. Indeed, there is probably no part of the Bible in regard to which so many conflicting views have been entertained. The name of the author; the time and place where the Epistle was written; the character of the book; its canonical authority; the language in which it was composed; and the persons to whom it was addressed – all have given rise to great difference of opinion.”3The Epistle of Paul to the Hebrews. https://www.gracegems.org/Barnes%20NT%20Commentaries/19_hebrews.htm
After Hebrews was added to the canon by the council of Hippo in AD 393, scholars were eager to pin authorship on an apostle so that the book would meet the requirements for entry into the Canon. Since that search began, many theories have circulated, but none of them have been convincing enough to be uniformly accepted. In light of the uncertainty, most scholars have simply left the answer to original authorship unknown, while still agreeing that the book is part of the canon.4https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1044&context=kabod
Most scholars agree that Hebrews was likely written some time around the mid 60s in the first century. Those being addressed by the author of Hebrews are Jewish converts to Christianity. Jewish Christians were suffering in Jerusalem as well as in Rome in the late first century. In Jerusalem, the church was persecuted by the Jewish leadership. In 62AD James the brother of Jesus, who was pastor of the church in Jerusalem, was stoned to death by the High Priest. It is more likely that the Hebrews are suffering under the persecutions of Nero. The emperor declared that the fire which burned much of Rome to the ground had been started by the small Christian community. Without evidence of his allegations, Nero initiated the first persecutions of Christians on July 24 of 64AD. He had Christians arrested, thrown to wild beasts, and crucified. While the persecution began in Rome, it soon spread to other provinces of the Empire. Already suspect for their sacramental rites and accused by the Jews of all sorts of evil practices, the Christians’ refusal to worship Caesar as a god brought charges of treason and execution. Under such suffering, many Jewish Christians were abandoning their once bold stand for Christ and, in some case, returning to Judaism. The writer of Hebrews is urging his suffering readers to maintain their bold stand for Christ. Part of his strategy, among other things, is to point out that Jesus is superior to Judaism. Also, in support the theory that Hebrews was written in the 60s, is the fact that the author consistently uses the Greek present tense when speaking of the temple and the priestly activities connected with it (see Hebrews 5:1–3; 7:23, 7:27, 8:3–5, 9:6–9, 13,25, 10:1, 10:3–4, 10:8, 10:11, 13:10–11). So, the temple is still standing at the time that the letter to the Hebrews was being written. Meaning that Hebrews was written prior to 70AD.
Interpreters have summarized the overarching purpose of Hebrews in a variety of ways. But most would agree that the author of Hebrews wrote to exhort his audience to reject local Jewish teachings and to remain faithful to Jesus. Or as the Hungarian missionary Adolph Saphir, put it, “the exhortation to steadfastness.”
Scholars have concluded that except for the few verses which follow Hebrews 13:21, Hebrews is a carefully constructed homily [sermon] of the type given in a Diaspora synagogue. In fact, Hebrews is the only example of a completely preserved homily from this period. The proper way to listen to Hebrews is to recognize that it is an early Christian sermon and to come prepared both for encouragement and warning.
One of the great themes of the book of Hebrews is the need to persevere. You cannot read Hebrews, with its warnings and its exhortations, and not come away without realizing that the author is saying to his readers, as he really preaches to them, that they need to persevere; they need to keep going on; they need to not turn back, but they need to “press toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:14).5Lesson 2 in the series The Book of Hebrews by Thirdmill. https://thirdmill.org/seminary/lesson.asp/vid/182 Nothing has changed in the nearly 2000 years since. Perseverance in our faith is as important today as in the first century. And because Christ lives in us, we can persevere no matter the circumstances. Jesus predicted that His followers would be severely persecuted by those who hated him (Matt. 10:22). But He reminded them that in the midst of terrible persecution, they could have hope, however, knowing that salvation was theirs. Times of trial serve to sift true Christians from false or fair-weather Christians. When you are pressured to give up and turn give up on Christ, remember the benefits of standing firm and continue to live out your faith. We are not saved by patient endurance – perseverance. Rather it is evidence that we are saved and that we have trusted Christ without reservation.
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