View Hebrews 3 in the note window.
1: The heavenly calling - God calls from heaven, and to
heaven, by the gospel. Consider the Apostle - The messenger
of God, who pleads the cause of God with us. And High
Priest - Who pleads our cause with God. Both are contained
in the one word Mediator. He compares Christ, as an
Apostle, with Moses; as a Priest, with Aaron. Both these
offices, which Moses and Aaron severally bore, he bears
together, and far more eminently. Of our profession - The
religion we profess.
2: His house - The church of Israel, then the peculiar
family of God.(Nu 12:7).
3: He that hath builded it hath more glory than the
house - Than the family itself, or any member of it.
4: Now Christ, he that built not only this house, but
all things, is God - And so infinitely greater than Moses or any
creature.
5: And Moses verily - Another proof of the pre - eminence
of Christ above Moses. Was faithful in all his house, as a
servant, for a testimony of the things which were afterwards to
be spoken - That is, which was a full confirmation of the things
which he afterward spake concerning Christ.
6: But Christ was faithful as a Son; whose house we are,
while we hold fast, and shall be unto the end, if we hold fast our
confidence in God, and glorying in his promises; our faith and hope.
7: Wherefore - Seeing he is faithful, be not ye unfaithful.(Ps 95:7), &c.
8: As in the provocation - When Israel provoked me by their strife
and murmurings. In the day of temptation - When at the same time
they tempted me, by distrusting my power and goodness.(Ex 17:7).
9: Where your fathers - That hard - hearted and stiff - necked
generation. So little cause had their descendants to glory in
them. Tempted me - Whether I could and would help them.
Proved me - Put my patience to the proof, even while they saw my
glorious works both of judgment and mercy, and that for forty years.
10: Wherefore - To speak after the manner of men. I
was grieved - Displeased, offended with that generation, and
said, They always err in their hearts - They are led astray by
their stubborn will and vile affections. And - For this reason,
because wickedness has blinded their understanding. They have
not known my ways - By which I would have led them like a flock.
Into my rest - In the promised land.
12: Take heed, lest there be in any of you - As there
was in them. An evil heart of unbelief - Unbelief is the parent
of all evil, and the very essence of unbelief lies in departing
from God, as the living God - The fountain of all our life,
holiness, happiness.
13: But, to prevent it, exhort one another, while it is
called To - day - This to - day will not last for ever. The day of
life will end soon, and perhaps the day of grace yet sooner.
14: For we are made partakers of Christ - And we shall
still partake of him and all his benefits, if we hold fast our
faith unto the end. If - But not else; and a supposition made by
the Holy Ghost is equal to the, strongest assertion. Both the
sentiment and the manner of expression are the same as (Heb 3:6).
16: Were they not all that came out of Egypt - An awful
consideration! The whole elect people of God (a very few
excepted) provoked God presently after their great
deliverance, continued to grieve his Spirit for forty years,
and perished in their sin!
19: So we see they could not enter in - Though
afterward they desired it.
