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epistle to the Hebrews in II Pet. 3: 15, 16, where Peter speaks of "our beloved brother
Paul" who had written unto the readers of I & II Peter. In verse 16 there is a word very
like the word "difficult to interpret", dusermeneutos, of Heb. 5: 11, where "some things
hard to be understood", dusnoetos, which those that are unlearned and unstable wrest to
their own destruction, are spoken of. In contrast Peter urges them to "Grow in grace, and
in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ" (II Pet. 3: 18).
There is much in Peter's two epistles that bears upon the teaching of the epistle to the
Hebrews. Such subjects as the saving of the "soul", the "fiery trial", "suffering and
glory", come to mind at once as obvious parallels.
3. The outstanding feature of the babe that the apostle mentions in Heb. 5: is that
such is "without experience". We have drawn attention in previous articles to the place
that "temptation" occupies in the epistles of the race and the crown, see Heb. 2: 18;
11: 17, 37; James 1: 2, 12; I Pet. 1: 6; Rev. 3: 10, etc. The Greek word for "tempt" is
peirazo. The Greek word for unskillful is apeiros, and carries with it the thought
"untested". Solid food belongs to the perfect. The perfect are placed in opposition to the
untested. It is one of the marks of those pressing on to perfection that they endure
"temptation". The wilderness journey, we have seen, is the great historical type of the
early part of Hebrews, and that wilderness journey was a "day of temptation" in more
than one sense.
An important note is struck in the expression "senses exercised". In Phil. 1: 9, where
the apostle prays for the saints who, like the Hebrews, were reaching forward unto
perfection (see chapter 3:) he writes:--
"And this I pray, that your love may yet abound more and more in knowledge and in
all discernment, or perception."
The word is aesthesis. Luke 9: 45 uses the verb aisthanomai, "to perceive". The
word "senses" in Heb. 5: is aistheterion. It will be seen that the senses in their capacity
of discernment, of discrimination, of right division, of trying the things that differ, are
intended. These senses are "exercised" in the perfect. The word "exercise" comes from
gumnazo, which gives us our word gymnasium, etc. In Heb. 12: 11, where the
discipline and correction of the son by the father is the subject, the word occurs again:--
"But all discipline, indeed as to the time being, does not seem to be joyous, but
grievous, nevertheless afterward it gives back the peaceable fruit of righteousness to
those who have been EXERCISED thereby."
This exercise of the perceptions enables the perfect to discriminate between good and
evil. It does not necessarily mean moral good and moral evil. Agathos is the usual word
for "good", here it is kalos. Those concerning whom the apostle entertained doubts had
"tasted the good (kalos) word of God", but had failed to realize the difference between
that which belonged to perfection and that which was "the word of the beginning". The
two words kalos and kakos differ only in one letter. The doctrines for which they stand
are often confused and said to be "all one and the same". We need "senses exercised" if
we are to discriminate, and "go on unto perfection".