Sermon Tone Analysis

the master’s college

 

 

 

In These Last Days:

The Son as the Final Communicative Act of God

 

 

 

 

a paper submitted to

the faculty of the bible department

in partial fulfillment of

BL 422: Greek Exegesis

dr.

william varner

Spring 2007

 

 

 

by

clifford b. kvidahl

Introduction

            In his magisterial commentary on Hebrews, Harold Attridge gives the following description:

                The Document known as the Epistle to the Hebrews is the most elegant and sophisticated, and       perhaps the most enigmatic, text of first-century Christianity.

Its author is unknown and the               circumstances of its composition remain mysterious.

Its argumentation is subtle; its language              refined; its imagery rich and evocative.[1]

Because issues such as authorship, destination, and audience are left shrouded in mystery, it is difficult to determine with full confidence to reason for the composition of this marvelous sermon.

Nevertheless, though these questions have yet to be answered, the message of Hebrews is clear and powerful.

The author is writing to a group of people who are in danger of falling away from the Messiah and returning to the cultus practices.

They had experienced severe persecution and began to question their commitment to the Messiah.

It is the author’s (Auctor) desire to exhort and encourage the readers of this sermon to carry on and “lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and… run with endurance the race that is set before [them]” (Heb.

12.1).[2]

Historical Context

            As mentioned above, there are a number of issues that pose a problem for the interpreter of Hebrews; in order for him to be able to have a full understanding of this sermon he must consider these interpretative issues.

“To know the author of an epistle, when it was written, its geographical destination, and something about its readership helps modern day readers to relate the teaching of that epistle more clearly and more consistently to their own concerns.”[3]

a.

Authorship

            There have been a number of candidates proposed as potential authors of Hebrews.

Some of them have survived the test of time, while others no longer are seriously considered.[4]

The more serious potential candidates as of late would include Paul[5], Luke,[6] Barnabas, Apollos[7], and Priscilla (Aquila).[8]

Although the authorship of Hebrews cannot be determined with absolute certainty, there are some textual clues that can be helpful in pointing us in the right direction.

i.

Paul

            Although the early church held to a Pauline authorship of Hebrews, they were not without their doubts.[9]

One of the strongest evidences for a non-Pauline authorship, apart from style and theological content, is found in Heb 2.3b: h[tij avrch.n

labou~/sa lalei~/sqai dia.

tou~/ kuri,ou u`po.

tw~/n avkousa,ntwn eivj h`ma~/j evbebaiw,qh [It was declared at first by the Lord, and it was attested to us by those who heard].

This would seem to conflict with the account Paul recorded in Gal 1.11-12: Gnwri,zw ga.r u`mi~/n( avdelfoi,( to.

euvagge,lion to.

euvaggelisqe.n

u`pV evmou~/ o[ti ouvk e;stin kata.

a;nqrwpon\ ouvde.

ga.r evgw.

para.

avnqrw,pou pare,labon auvto.

ou;te evdida,cqhn avlla.

diV avpokalu,yewj VIhsou~/ Cristou~/ [For I would have you know, brothers, that the gospel that was preached by me is not man's gospel.

For I did not receive it from any man, nor was I taught it, but I received it through a revelation of Jesus Christ], cf. 1 Cor 15.8.

Paul’s testimony that he received the gospel directly from the Lord Jesus stands in direct contrast with the author of Hebrews testimony of receiving it from those who heard it from the Lord.

ii.

Luke

            In his two-volume work /The Ecclesiastical History/,/ /Eusebius records Clement’s belief that Hebrews was Paul’s writing, originally in Hebrew, but later translated into Greek by Luke.

This accounts for the similarity of style between Hebrews and Luke-Acts (/HE/ 6.14.2).

Noticing the importance of similarity in style between Hebrews and Luke-Acts, David L. Allen notes that the similarity in style cannot be overlooked as mere coincidence.

Of the 1,038 total vocabulary words in Hebrews, Allen notes that only 337 words do not occur in the writings of Luke.[10]

One example of similarity in vocabulary is the use of Avrchgoj.

Nowhere in the New Testament does Avrchgo,j occur outside of Hebrews and Acts (Acts 3.15, 5.31; Heb 2.10, 12.2), and all four times it occurs as a Christological title.

One of the major objections to Lukan authorship (if he translated Paul’s Hebrew into Greek) is the use of the Old Testament.

If Paul originally wrote this sermon in Hebrew, Luke departs from this in the Old Testament citations; Auctor uses exclusively for his Old Testament citations the LXX.

Not only does he depart from the Hebrew in content, but also in meaning.

For example, the MT at Ps 40.7 has the reading !z<ao (ear), where as the LXX 39.7 has sw~/ma (body).[11]

iii.

Barnabas

            The earliest recorded testimony to Barnabas as the author of Hebrews is from Tertullian.

In his work /On Modesty/, Tertullian records his belief that Barnabas, a fellow comrade of Paul, was the author of Hebrews.[12]

Also, the detailed Levitical cultic practices contained in Hebrews show a familiarity with the Old Testament sacrificial system.

This would be common knowledge for someone from the tribe of Levi, in which case Barnabas was (Acts 4.36).

Furthermore, the name Barnabas (Barnaba~/j) means “son of encouragement” (ui`o.j

paraklh,sewj), and is similar to the “word of exhortation” (tou~/ lo,gou th~/j paraklh,sewj) found at the end of Heb 13.

But in spite of these similarities, they should not be taken as an identification of authorship.

Although Barnabas was from the tribe of Levi, there is no record that he participated in the Levitical priesthood.

Although there is a similarity in the phrases of Acts 4.36 and Heb 13.22, this should not to be taken as a possible coded reference of authorship.

iv.

Apollos

            Since the time of Martin Luther, Apollos has received much attention as possible author of Hebrews.

What we do know of Auctor is that he was a man that was well trained in the use of rhetoric.

He was a skilled craftsman of the Greek language, and he used this to get the attention of the people to whom he writes.

In Acts, Luke describes Apollos as an “eloquent man” (avnh.r

lo,gioj), most likely referring to his rhetorical abilities.[13]

The lack of any ancient writing attributed to Apollos works against his authorship.

Because we do not have a written document penned by Apollos available to us, we cannot say with any certainty that he is the author of Hebrews.

The textual evidence which we have passed down to us, points to a man who is highly trained and skilled in the art of rhetoric.

v.

Priscilla (Aquila)

            The view that Priscilla (possibly with Aquila) wrote Hebrews was possibly first suggested by Adolf von Harnack.[14]

He believed that the reason for their being no author named was because Priscilla was a woman, and because women were looked at as second class citizens this would have given Hebrews a lack of authority.

There are two things against Harnack’s view.

First, the intimacy in which Auctor shows towards the readers of Hebrews is not characteristic of one who wishes to hide their identity.

It is evident to see that the author knows their audience well, and is acquainted with their circumstances.

Second, the use of masculine participle dihgou,menon (Heb 11.32) cannot be read as an attempt to cover up Priscilla’s authorship.

The evidence for the potential author of Hebrews is inconclusive and does not give any clear proof of who the writer is.

Therefore, because we are left out any clear evidence to point us to an author we must concede to the words of Origen on this matter: ti,j de.

o` gra,yaj th.n evpistolh.n,

to.

me.n avlhqe.j

qeo.j oi=den (Eusebius /HE/ 6.25.14).

Structure and Genre of Hebrews

            Like the making of books, theories on the structure of Hebrews seem to have no end in sight.

A number of monographs and journal articles have been written (not to mentions the endless array of commentaries) seeking to find the meaning that the author conveyed by dissecting the text to find its structure.