Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (James Strong, 1890/1894), public domain; digitized by Open Scriptures (CC BY-SA). KJV word tagging: eBible.org (public domain). Original-language text, parsing and brief lexicon: STEPBible.org data from Tyndale House, Cambridge (CC BY 4.0).
Cross-references
Hebrews 10:26-29 For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
2 Peter 2:20-22 For if after they have escaped the pollutions of the world through the knowledge of the Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, they are again entang…
Matthew 5:13 Ye are the salt of the earth: but if the salt have lost his savour, wherewith shall it be salted? it is thenceforth good for nothing, but to…
John 15:6 If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burn…
Matthew 7:21-22 Not every one that saith unto me, Lord, Lord, shall enter into the kingdom of heaven; but he that doeth the will of my Father which is in he…
Hebrews 12:15-17 Looking diligently lest any man fail of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and thereby many be defiled;
Matthew 12:31-32 Wherefore I say unto you, All manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men: but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be…
Luke 11:24-26 When the unclean spirit is gone out of a man, he walketh through dry places, seeking rest; and finding none, he saith, I will return unto my…
Cross-references from OpenBible.info (CC BY), in the lineage of the Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (public domain).
Commentary
Matthew Henry on Hebrews 6:1-8
We have here the apostle's advice to the Hebrews - that they would grow up from a state of childhood to the fullness of the stature of the new man in Christ. He declares his readiness to assist them all he could in their spiritual progress; and, for their greater encouragement, he puts himself with them: Let us go on. Here observe, In order to their growth, Christians must leave the principles of the doctrine of Christ. How must they leave them? They must not lose them, they must not despise them, they must not forget them. They must lay them up in their hearts, and lay them as the foundation of all their profession and expectation; but they must not rest and stay in them, they must not be a…
We must "go on toward perfection"; for if we fall away, after having received enlightenment, it will be impossible to renew us again to repentance.
for those--"in the case of those."
once enlightened--once for all illuminated by the word of God taught in connection with "baptism" (to which, in Heb 6:2, as once for all done," once enlightened" here answers); compare Eph 5:26. This passage probably originated the application of the term "illumination" to baptism in subsequent times. Illumination, however, was not supposed to be the inseparable accompaniment of baptism: thus CHRYSOSTOM says, "Heretics have baptism, not illumination: they are baptized in body, but not enlightened in soul: as…
For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened - Before I proceed to explain the different terms in these verses, it is necessary to give my opinion of their design and meaning:
1. I do not consider them as having any reference to any person professing Christianity.
2. They do not belong, nor are they applicable, to backsliders of any kind.
3. They belong to apostates from Christianity; to such as reject the whole Christian system, and its author, the Lord Jesus.
4. And to those of them only who join with the blaspheming Jews, call Christ an impostor, and vindicate his murderers in having crucified him as a malefactor; and thus they render their salvation impossible, by wilfully an…
The Church Fathers
"For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened." He did not say that it is difficult, unprofitable, or improper, but impossible, so as to cast them into despair of hoping for a second cleansing. "Having tasted the gift." The forgiveness of sins, which is in baptism; for this is a heavenly gift. For no one can give such things except one, God. "and having become partakers of the Holy Spirit."After the forgiveness of sins, then comes the partaking of the Holy Spirit; for He does not dwell in a body burdened with sins; By the laying on of hands, as he says above (Heb. 6:2).
Then he says again: As the Saviour converses with those not yet able to receive what is perfect, condescending to their littleness, while the Holy Spirit communes with the perfected, and yet we could never say on that account that the teaching of the Spirit is superior to the teaching of the Son, but only that the Son condescends to the imperfect, while the Spirit is the seal of the perfected; even so it is not on account of the superiority of the Spirit over the Son that the blasphemy against the Spirit is a sin excluding impunity and pardon, but because for the imperfect there is pardon, while for those who have tasted the heavenly gift, and been made perfect, there remains no plea or prayer for pardon.
"It is impossible to restore again to repentance" through a second baptism "those who have once been baptized, who have tasted the heavenly gift" through the medicine which they received, "have become partakers of the Holy Spirit" through the gifts received from the Spirit, "have tasted the goodness of the Word of God" in the new gospel and were armed with the power of the age to come in the promises prepared for the pious ones, but now "have fallen away" again. Those who propose two baptisms ask for the crucifixion again of the Son of God and for his dishonor. But crucifixion was performed once and will not be performed once more, and baptism was conceded as an "absolver" and is not conceded a second time to the sinner.
The Church Fathers: public-domain translations (Ante-Nicene and Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers), verse-indexed by SermonIndex (CC BY 4.0).
Dictionary and topics
Backslide — To draw back or apostatize in matters of religion (Acts 21:21; 2 Thess. 2:3; 1 Tim. 4:1). This may be either partial (Prov. 14:14) or complete (Heb. 6:4-6; 10:38, 39). The apostasy may be both…
Apostasy · 4:1,2; — 4:1,2;
Apostates · It is impossible to restore — It is impossible to restore
Offences Against The Holy Spirit · Exhibited in: Danger of trifling with the Holy Spirit — Exhibited in: Danger of trifling with the Holy Spirit
Perseverance · Want of: Excludes from the benefits of the gospel — Want of: Excludes from the benefits of the gospel
Repentance · Denied to apostates — Denied to apostates
Reprobacy · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Unpardonable Sin · General scriptures concerning — General scriptures concerning
Dictionary: Easton's (1897) and Smith's (1863), public domain. Topics: Nave's Topical Bible (1896) and Torrey's Topical Textbook (1897), public domain. Both as parsed by NEUU (CC BY 4.0).
For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened,.... The Syriac and Ethiopic versions render it, "baptized"; and the word is thought to be so used in Hebrews 10:32. And indeed baptism was called very early "illumination" by the ancients, as by Justin Martyr (i), and Clemens Alexandrinus (k), because only enlightened persons were the proper subjects of it; and the word once here used seems to confirm this sense, since baptism, when rightly administered, was not repeated; but then this sense depends upon an use of a word, which it is not certain did as yet obtain; nor does the apostle take notice of baptism in a parallel place, Hebrews 10:26. This gave rise to, and seems to favour the…
Hebrews 6:3-6
3. And this will we do, if God permit.
3. Et hoc faciemus, siquidem permiserit Deus.
4. For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,
4. Nam impossibile est eos qui semel fuerunt illuminati, gustaveruntque donum coeleste, et participes facti fuerunt Spiritus sancti,
5. And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,
5. Et gustaverunt bonum Dei verbum, virtutesque futuri seculi,
6. If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
6. Prolapsi sunt, iterum…
This passage, one of the most difficult in the New Testament, gives a harsh warning about those who have left the Christian faith. Those who have fallen away from Christ and the church are like those who fell in the wilderness (3:15-19): The lack of faith shown in such apostasy results in devastating judgment (cp. 10:26-31).
6:4 In Greek, the word impossible begins the sentence for emphasis—it absolutely cannot happen (see also 6:18; 10:4; 11:6). • They were once enlightened when they “first learned about Christ” (see 10:32 and corresponding study note). • The good things of heaven might allude to the manna given from heaven (Exod 16:4, 15; Ps 78:24) as an image of spiritual blessings.
