Hebrews 12:25-29 “Once More I Will Shake”

Translation & Sermon by Nate Wilson for Christ the Redeemer Church of Manhattan, KS, 9 Feb. 2019

Omitting greyed-out text should bring presentation time down around 45 minutes.

Intro

v.25 Keep watch so that y’all don’t defer the One who is speaking, for, if those guys did not escape on earth1 after they deferred the [Divine] Informer, much more will we be those who are turned away [by] Him from the heavens -

v.26 the voice of whom shook the earth back then, but now He has promised saying, “Once more I myself am shaking {not only} the earth {but} also heaven.” 27 Now, the ‘Once more’ shows the replacement of the things being shaken - in this case, of things which have been created - such that the things which are not being shaken may remain.

    1. The priestly order of Melchizedek, by which Christ ministers forever to us as our high priest. This relationship will never be removed: Heb. 7:3 “...He remains a priest in perpetuity."

    2. Our confidence in open access to God through the priesthood of Christ is another thing which will never be removed: Hebrews 12:34-35 "...y'all have for yourselves a posses­sion that is better and that remains. Therefore, don't throw away your open-access which has [such] a great reward…" (NAW)

    3. Then, in Hebrews 13:1, we will see that our love for one another also “remains,”

    4. and in Hebrews 13:14, we’ll see that, although the earthly city of Jerusalem was to be destroyed, the heavenly Jerusalem of God’s kingdom will remain (cf. Isa. 51:6).

v.28 Therefore, since we are receiving an unshakeable king­dom, let us continue to be grateful11, by means of which we may minister most-acceptably to God with reverence and devotion,

    1. ἔχωμεν χάριν = having gratefulness/thankfulness/lit. “Have grace”

    1. Devotion/godly fear/reverence is the Greek word εὐλαβείας – literally meaning, “receiv­ing [God] well”

    1. αἰδοῦς (or its synonym δεοῦς, depending on the manuscript), meaning “reverence, modesty, decorum, or awe.”

v.29 for indeed, our God is a consuming fire.

APPENDIX: Greek Text & English Versions of Hebrews 12:25-29A


Greek NT

NAW

KJV

25 Βλέπετε μὴ παραιτήσησθεB τὸν λαλοῦντα, εἰC γὰρ ἐκεῖνοι οὐκ ἔφυγονD τὸν ἐπὶE γῆς παραιτη­σάμενοι χρηματί­ζοντα, πολλῷF μᾶλλον ἡμεῖς οἱ τὸν ἀπ᾿G οὐρανῶν ἀποστρεφόμενοιH·

25 Keep watch so that y’all don’t de­fer the One who is speaking, for, if those guys did not escape on earth after they deferred the [Divine] Infor­mer, much more will we be those who are turned away [by] Him from the heavens -

25 See that ye refuse not him that speaketh. For if they escaped not [who] refused him that spake on earth, much more shall not we es­cape, [if] we X X turn away [from] him that speaketh from heaven:

26 ο ἡ φωνὴ τὴν γῆν ἐσάλευσε τότε, νῦν δὲ ἐπήγγελται λέγων· ἔτι ἅπαξ ἐγὼ σεί[σI]ω οὐ μόνον τὴν γῆν, ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν οὐρανόν.

26 the voice of whom shook the earth back then, but now He has promised saying, “Once more I my­self am shaking {not only} the earth {but} also heaven.”

26 Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once [more] I shake not the earth only, but also heaven.

27 τὸJ δέ ἔτι ἅπαξ δηλοῖ τῶν σαλευομένων μετάθεσινK ὡςL πεποιημένων, ἵνα μείνῃ τὰ μὴ σαλευόμενα.

27 Now, the ‘Once more’ shows the replacement of the things being shak­en (in this case, of things which have been created) such that the things which are not being shaken may remain.

27 And this word, Yet once [more], signifieth the re­moving of those things that are shaken, as of things that are made, that those things which [can]­not be shaken may remain.

28 Διὸ βασιλείαν ἀσάλευτον παραλαμβάνοντες ἔχωμενM χάριν, δι᾿ ἧςN λατρεύωμενO εὐαρέστωςP τῷ Θεῷ μετὰ αἰδοῦςQ καὶ εὐλαβείαςR·

28 Therefore, since we are re­ceiving an un­shake­able king­dom, let us con­tin­ue to be grateful, by means of which we may minister most-acceptably to God with rever­ence and devotion,

28 Wherefore we receiving a king­dom which cannot be moved, let us have grace, where­by we may serve God acceptably with reverence and godly fear:

29 καὶ γὰρS ὁ Θεὸς ἡμῶν πῦρ καταναλίσκον.

29 for indeed, our God is a consum­ing fire.

29 For our God is a consuming fire.


1Vincent arrived at the same conclusion I did: “upon earth should not be construed with refused nor warned, but with the whole clause. “If on earth they escaped not, refusing him that warned.”

2Hebrews 11:7 “With faith, Noah, after being informed concerning the things which were not yet seen, taking good heed, constructed an ark for the purpose of saving his household, through which he condemned the world and became an inheritor of the righteousness according to faith."

3Particularly the definite article before ἀποστρεφόμενοι and the passive voice of that verb

4warned/informed” is translated “spoke” in the KJV, as though it were the same as the verb lalew earlier in the verse, and Mallon (literally “rather/more”) is often re-translated “less” to fit English idiomatic expression.

5A.T. Robertson came to a similar conclusion that this was a substantive participle, but he translated it in the middle voice “we who turn ourselves away from”

6Viz. Acts 3:26; Rom. 11:26; 2 Tim. 1:15; 4:4; Tit. 1:14

7John Brown of Edinborough noted that “shaking” was “emblematical of change.” He also used the following illustration: “Just as, in building a bridge across a wide ravine or mighty river, there is a cumbrous and unsightly mass of scaffolding and enginery erected, till the work is completed and the keystone fixed; then there is a shaking among the scaffolding, till it gives way, and is entirely removed. It seems a work of entire destruction; but it is but the removal of what was never anything better than necessary preparation – what, now that the end is gained, is unsightly encumbrance. And now the work of art, which had been but obscurely seen when rising to perfection, bursts on the delighted eye, self-supported...”

8Brenton translated from the Septuagint, which renders this word in the future tense, whereas in the Hebrew Masoretic text, it is a participle, so, more like a present tense.

9P. E. Hughes also noted future results: “[T]he removal of all that is insecure and imperfect is something to be eagerly anticipated; for this final shaking of both heaven and earth is necessary for the purging and eradication from the universe of all that is hostile to God and His will... and for the inauguration of the new haven and the new earth...”

10"τῶν σαλευομένων... τὰ μὴ σαλευόμενα" not τῶν δύνατων σαλευθῆναι... τὰ μὴ δύνατα σαλευθῆναι" - another point in favor of the present rather than the future tense of "shake" in v.26.

11This was Chrysostom’s and Brown’s and Vincent’s and Hughes’ and the NASB, NIV, and ESV’s translation of εχωμεν χαριν, but Calvin and Owen, following the Vulgate and the Arabic versions (as did Henry, the KJV, and Gill), expressed a different and plausible view: “When χαριν means gratitude, it is ever followed by a dative case, which is not the case here. To have faith, echein pistin is to possess it, (Matthew 17:20;) to have eternal life is to possess it, to have hope is to enjoy or possess it, (Romans 15:4;) and so to have grace is to possess it. And this alone comports with what follows; it is the possession of that by which we may “serve God acceptably.” By “grace” we are to understand the gracious help and assistance which God promises to all who seek it. To receive a kingdom is to obtain a right or a title to it; and having the promise of this kingdom we ought to seek, attain, and possess that grace, that divine help, by which we may in the meantime serve God acceptably.” Robertson went both ways. cf. Endnote M.

123 Maccabees 1:19; 4:5

13John Brown noted that “to ‘receive a kingdom which cannot be moved,’ is permanently to be invested with royalty – to be made a king forever.” Others saw this as citizenship in heaven where Christ is the king: “a kingdom, that is to say, an ordered and harmonious society governed by him who is the Sovereign Lord of all...” (Hughes)

AThe Greek is the Majority text, edited by myself to follow the majority of the earliest-known manuscripts only when the early manuscript evidence is practically unanimous. My original document includes notes on the NKJV, NASB, NIV, & ESV English translations, but since they are all copyrighted, I cannot include them in my online document. Underlined words in English versions indicate a standalone difference from all other English translations of a certain word. Strikeout usually indicates that the English translation is, in my opinion, too far outside the range of meaning of the original Greek word. The addition of an X indicates a Greek word left untranslated – or a plural Greek word translated as an English singular. [Brackets] indicate words added in English not in the Greek. {Pointed Braces} indicate words added in Greek to the original. Key words are colored consistently across the chart to show correlations.

BRobertson's Grammar (810): Παραιτησησθε is used as an indirect middle verb, meaning “beg off from yourselves” (i.e., “reject”).
Burton's Moods & Tenses of N.T. Greek (209): Μη with the subjunctive verb παραιτησησθε may be co-ordinate with βλεπετε and consequently would be regarded as a prohibitory subjunctive.
Hanna: The negative μη with a subjunctive verb generally occurs with an imperative form of βλεπετε to denote the content of that imperative (cf. Luke 21:8; Acts 13:40; 1 Cor. 8:9; 10:12 and Gal. 5:15). Thus, in essence, it has a prohibitory sense, “See that you do not refuse.”

CThe first class conditional ei + indicative verb in the protasis (repeated by elipsis in the apodosis) indicates that the author believed the condition was, in fact, true. (cf. ATR’s Word Pictures)

DThis is the reading of the majority of Greek manuscripts (including P46, the oldest-known one), followed by the traditional editions of the Greek New Testament (GNT). Contemporary critical GNT’s follow about 8 Greek manuscripts (including 3 of the 6 known first-millennium manuscripts) adding the prefix εξ which would add emphatic-ness to the verb. It makes no significant difference, however, in meaning, as evidenced by the fact that the NASB and NIV, which typically follow the newer critical Greek text, translated this Greek word with the exact same English word that the KJV, which typically followed the traditional Greek text, did.

EThe Textus Receptus and the Patriarchal Greek Orthodox editions of the Greek New Testament include a definite article here, but, as far as I can tell, no extant manuscript actually contains it, so it appears spurious. It makes no difference in meaning, however, whether it is “earth” or “the earth,” for there is only one earth to speak of.

FThe majority of Greek manuscripts (including P46 – the oldest-known), followed by the traditional editions of the Greek New Testament, spelled this word in the dative case (πολλω), but contemporary critical editions of the GNT spell it in the accusative case (πολυ), following 5 manuscripts (all of which, curiously, are first millennium). It makes no difference in meaning, however, for all the English versions render it “much.”

G“...the ones who turn away from the one who [speaks] from (L&N #84.3 - ‘extension from’) heaven,” not “the ones turning away from (L&N #89.122 - ‘dissociation from’) the heavens.” The parallel construction with ton lalounta in the imperative introduction to the verse calls for the former interpretation rather than the latter one. The Wycliffe team that tagged the GNT with L&N semantic domains, however, chose L&N #90.15 - ‘from source’).

HFew translations seem to take into account that this is a middle/passive spelling and that this participle is a substantive with its own nominative definite article. It appears to me therefore, to be in a predicate nominative position after the nominative “we.”

IThe majority of Greek manuscripts, followed by the Textus Receptus edition of the Greek New Testament, do not spell this word with the future-tense sigma, following the Masoretic Hebrew original which employs a participle for the verb. On the other hand, the Patriarchal Greek Orthodox and contemporary critical editions, following about 10 Greek manuscripts (including the four oldest-known), spell this word with a future-tense sigma, following the Septuagint translation of the original verse in Haggai. Thus the KJV, “yet once more I shake,” as opposed to the Vulgate, NAS, NIV, & ESV, “I will shake.” Compare with the MT of Hag. 2:6 (greyed-out words are omitted in the LXX translation and in the Hebrews quote: ע֥וֹד אַחַ֖ת מְעַ֣ט הִ֑יא וַאֲנִ֗י מַרְעִישׁ֙ אֶת־הַשָּׁמַ֣יִם וְאֶת־הָאָ֔רֶץ

JTurner's Grammar (182): The article το is used to introduce the quotation in the initial part of this verse. The Wycliffe team which tagged the GNT with Louw & Nida’s semantic domain numbers labeled this a pronoun (#92.11a - “it”), followed by #91.3b (parenthetical/introduction of explanation) for the next word δε.

KIn the Greek Bible, this noun only occurs in Hebrews: here, 7:12, and 11:5.

LIn Louw & Nida’s semantic domains, this is #58.67a ("to be/belong to a class")

M"Have" as in, "accept as true" (paralambanw being the previous word) and "maintain belief in" (L&N #31.1). Alternately, the NAS, NIV, and ESV followed John Brown’s assertion that “εχω χαριν” is a unit that means “hold gratitude” (note similarity between charis “grace” and eucharistw “give thanks”) This phrase is translated "give thanks" in all the English translations in three of the passages where it occurs in the New Testament (Luke 17:9, 1 Tim. 1:12, and 2 Tim. 1:3 - the latter two of which switch the Greek word order). In the other three occurrences of the phrase in the N.T., it is translated different ways ("having favor" Acts 2:47; "receive a benefit/blessing" 2Cor. 1:15; "have joy" Philemon. 1:7. cf. Ex. 33:12 "have/find favor").

N"Which" matches “grace.” “On account of” (L&N #92.27) God showing grace to us, we worship Him reverently.

OWhile the Textus Receptus and Patriarchal and contemporary critical GNT editions agree on the subjunctive spelling (which may be translated subjunctively – as the KJV & NAS did: “we may serve,” or hortitatively – as the ESV did: “let us serve,” the latter of which was the label put on it by both A.T. Robertson and Blass & Debrunner in their GNT Grammars), Byzantine text editions of the GNT (reflecting Family 35 of the miniscule manuscripts, but apparently not a majority of the manuscripts) read without the subjunctive vowel lengthening (and so would be translated indicatively – as the NIV did: “and [so] worship”).

PHapex Legomenon. Derivative of αρεστος NAS & ESV confuse this with the adjective form (which is found in Rom. 12:1,2; 14:18; 2Cor. 5:9; Eph. 5:10; Philp. 4:18; Col. 3:20; Tit. 2:9; Heb. 13:21)

QAidous (“modesty/reverence/propriety” - also found in 1 Tim. 2:9 & 3 Mac. 1:19; 4:5) is the reading of the majority of Greek manuscripts (the oldest of which has been dated to the 9th century), followed by the traditional Greek editions of the New Testament, but Contemporary critical Greek editions of the GNT, following the five oldest-known Greek manuscripts (plus 5 more) switch it out with a synonym δεους (“fear/awe” - found nowhere else in the Greek Bible, but in 2 Mac. 3:17, 30; 12:22; 13:16; 15:23). It makes no substantial difference in the meaning.

RThis word occurs in only three other places in the Greek Bible: Josh. 22:24; Prov. 28:14; and Heb. 5:7 (plus the apocryphal Wis. 17:8)

SBlass & Debrunner's Grammar (452): Και γαρ in this verse simply means “for” (cf. 5:12). The Wycliffe team that tagged the GNT with Louw & Nida semantic domain numbers pegged this use of the copula as “ascensive” (89.93a)

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