Hebrews 4:12-16

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• Reading the Text:
  • NRSV (with link to Anglicized NRSV) at Oremus Bible Browser.
  • The Bible Gateway: NIV, NASB, CEV, The Message, KJV, etc.
  • The Blue Letter Bible -  KJV, alternate versions, Greek text with concordance, commentaries.
  • The World Wide Study Bible includes commentary, exposition and sermons.
• Historical References, Commentary and Comparative Texts:
  • Chapter IX, Adversus Judaeos, Tertullian (c. 198)
  • Chapter III, The Prescription of Heretics, Tertullian (c. 200)
  • II.VI.4, First Principles (De Principiis), Origen. (c.225)
  • I.3, I.23, I.36, Commentary on the Gospel of John, Origen. (c.228)
  • VIII.XXXIV, Against Celsus, Origen (c. 246)
  • Statement of Faith, Athanasius of Alexandria, c. 330.
  • Part 31, On the Incarnation of the Word, Athanasius of Alexandria, c. 318.
  • From the Geneva Notes.
    • "Lest he appear by the great glory of our High Priest, to prevent us from going to him, he adds after, that he is nonetheless our brother indeed, (as he proved before) and that he counts all our miseries as his own, to call us boldly to him."
  • From Matthew Henry's Commentary.
    • "In the sight of Infinite Wisdom, it was needful that the Saviour of men should be one who has the fellow-feeling which no being but a fellow-creature could possibly have; and therefore it was necessary he should actual experience of all the effects of sin that could be separated from its actual guilt."
  • From Wesley's Notes.
    • "It is God whose word is thus "powerful:" it is God in whose sight every creature is manifest; and of this his word, working on the conscience, gives the fullest conviction."
  • From the Commentary on the Whole Bible (Jamieson, Fausset and Brown, 1871).
    • "PHILO similarly speaks of "God passing between the parts of Abraham's sacrifices (Ge 15:17, where, however, it is a 'burning lamp' that passed between the pieces) with His word, which is the cutter of all things: which sword, being sharpened to the utmost keenness, never ceases to divide all sensible things, and even things not perceptible to sense or physically divisible, but perceptible and divisible by the word.""
  • From The People's New Testament, B.W. Johnson, 1891.
    • "A high priest must be in sympathy with those for whom he ministers."
• Contemporary Commentary, Studies, and Exegesis:
  • "First Thoughts on Year B Epistle Passages in the Lectionary: Pentecost 19," William Loader, Murdoch University, Uniting Church in Australia.
    • "Compassion and kindness, grace and mercy, are there when we face our times of need. This is not so much about when we fail, as it is when we face hard times and are confronted with  temptations which threaten to overwhelm us."
  • Comments (commentary) and Clippings (technical notes for in-depth study), Chris Haslam, Anglican Diocese of Montreal.
  • Hebrews 4:9-16, Wandering But Not Lost, Stanley N. Olson, Word & World Texts in Context, Luther Northwestern Theological Seminary, 1985.
  • "Confirming Erik," Stephen Paul Bouman, The Christian Century, 2003.
  • "The Word of God," "Jesus the Great High Priest," Rev. Bryan Findlayson, Lectionary Bible Studies and Sermons, Pumpkin Cottage Ministry Resources. Includes detailed textual notes.
    • "So then, in the face of our frail humanity, constantly undermining our reliance on Jesus, hold firm to the thread of faith. It is enough."
  • "Christ, Our High Priest in Heaven," Richard B. Gaffin, Jr., in Kerux: The Online Journal of Biblical Theology (Reformed).
    • "It doesn't matter how complicated, how desperate, perhaps even hopeless your life has become. No matter how overwhelmed you may feel by your problems, if your trust is in Jesus Christ, you can be sure that he is praying for you now and through that prayer he will provide for you the resources to bring you relief or enable you to carry on."
• Articles & Background:
  • "Exploring a Life of Prayer," Jane E. Vennard, Iliff School of Theology. At Religion OnLine.
    • "When we recognize the unity of body and spirit, the body can become a path to prayer."
  • "Learning to Pray," an interview with Roberta C. Biondi. By John C. Purdy at Religion OnLine.
    • "I ask everybody to include three elements in their prayer. One is some portion of scripture every day... The other part of their prayer is conversation with God in which they really speak their minds... The third part of their prayer is silence: just sitting in God's presence without saying anything or having any expectations of God or of themselves. I call it kitchen table prayer. Just spending time with God as we spend time with a friend without tallking."
  • "On Providence and Prayer," Jack A. Keller. At Religion OnLine.
    • "Is there any way to understand prayer that can (1) salvage the essential insight in the evangelical view of providence that God cares for persons and peoples and actively seeks our well-being, and (2) escape the ruin that the fact of widespread genuine evil has brought upon traditional formulations of providence?"
  • "We Would See Jesus," Douglas John Hall at The Living Pulpit.
    • "Some of our images of Christ do not benefit God's beloved world."
  • "Empathy and the New Testament," L. Ann Jervis, McMaster Journal of Theology and Ministry, 2000.
    • "Empathy connotes not just listening to another’s story but also participating in the other’s story, so that the listener not only hears and believes the facts of another’s experience, but actually feels the experience at some level.  To have empathy with another is not simply to believe what that person says but to feel along with that person, to participate in that person’s experience. "
  • "On Being Known," Charles M. Wood, Perkins School of Theology. Theology Today, 1987.
    • "As portrayed by this text-and here this text is rightly representative of the tenor of scripture as a whole-the word of God does not define reality, heteronomously, imposing a view of self and world which the hearer is directed to accept. Nor is the word of God something that simply confirms the hearer's prior attitudes and beliefs. Rather, the word provides a context within which the truth of things becomes manifest."
  • "A Preliminary Exegesis of Hebrews 4:15 with a View Toward Solving the Peccability/Impeccability Issue," Daniel B. Wallace, Dallas Theological Seminary.
    • "It is my conviction, based on several strands of evidence seen throughout the New Testament, that Jesus Christ was incapable of sinning (thus, he was impeccable). But Heb 4:15 must be dealt with if this view is to be maintained."
• Articles in ATLAS Journals. (Direct link when you are subscribed and logged in to ATLASerials online collection of Religion and Theology Journals.):
  • Bamberger, Henry, "New Light on the High Priest," Journal of Ecumenical Studies, 1981.
  • Bouman, Stephen Paul, "Confirming Erik," The Christian Century, 2003.
  • Cowdery, Ann Hoch, "Hebrews 4:1-13," Interpretation, 1994.
  • Forney, David, "Quieting the Echoes of Sin," Journal for Preachers, 2002.
  • Olson, Stanley N., "Wandering But Not Lost," Word & World, 1985. (Section on this text begins on page 429.)
  • Rowell, J.B., "Our Great High Priest," Bibliotheca Sacra, 1961.
  • Smillie, Gene R., "'HO LOGOS TOU THEOU' in Hebrews 4:12-13," Novum Testamentum, 2004.
  • Smillie, Gene R., "'The Other LOGOS' at the End of Heb. 4:13," Novum Testamentum, 2005.
  • Smothers, Thomas G., "A Superior Model: Hebrews 1:1-4:13," Review and Expositor, 1985. See also, Borchert, Gerald L., "A Superior Book: Hebrews," Review and Expositor, 1985.
  • Songer, Harold S., "A Superior Priesthood: Hebrews 4:14-7:28," Review and Expositor, 1985.
  • Wood, Charles M., "On Being Known," Theology Today, 1987.
• Reviews:
• Sermons:
  • "A Time for Sacrifice: The Sacrifice of Pride," 15 October 2006, Samuel Zumwalt, Göttinger Predigten im Internet: Every Sunday Sermons based on the RCL by a team of Lutheran theologians/ pastors.
  • "For Us," John Jewell, 2000.
• With Children:
  • "Temptation Island," Jim Kerlin, childrensermons.com.
• Drama:
• Graphics & Bulletin Materials:
  • Clip Art, Hebrews 4:15, Fr. Richard Lonsdale, Resources for Catholic Educators.
  • Commercial Sites: "Approach with Boldness," (Hebrews 4) The Work of the People, Films/Visual Liturgy based on RCL texts.
• Hymns and Music:
  • Hymns with Scripture Allusions: Hebrews 4:12, 14, 15, 16. The Cyber Hymnal.
  • Hymn selections (United Methodist) and more from Hymnsite.com.
  • Hymnal Scripture References, The Lutheran Hymnal, Lutheran Worship.
  • At Digital Hymnal (midi files, guitar chords, karaoke files, projection text):
    • And Can It Be?
    • As We Come to You in Prayer
    • Blest Be the Tie That Binds
    • I Will Follow Thee
    • Sweet Hour of Prayer
• Fine Arts Images Linked at The Text This Week's Art Index:
• Movies Linked at The Text This Week's Movie Concordance, with the following themes:
  • Temptation
  • Repentance
  • Judgment
  • Prayer
  • See especially "The Full Monty" reviewed by Glen Powell)
• Study Links and Resources for the Book of Hebrews