Context at a Glance
Author:Traditional Attribution
Topic:hebrews Chapter 13 Study
This chapter provides a foundational look at the theological themes of hebrews, analyzed across multiple historic translations for maximum scholarly depth.
Hebrews 13
New Revised Standard Version
1Let mutual love continue.
2Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it.
3Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured, as though you yourselves were being tortured.
4Let marriage be held in honor by all, and let the marriage bed be kept undefiled; for God will judge fornicators and adulterers.
5Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, "I will never leave you or forsake you."
6So we can say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?"
7Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.
8Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
9Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings; for it is well for the heart to be strengthened by grace, not by regulations about food, which have not benefited those who observe them.
10We have an altar from which those who officiate in the tent have no right to eat.
11For the bodies of those animals whose blood is brought into the sanctuary by the high priest as a sacrifice for sin are burned outside the camp.
12Therefore Jesus also suffered outside the city gate in order to sanctify the people by his own blood.
13Let us then go to him outside the camp and bear the abuse he endured.
14For here we have no lasting city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.
15Through him, then, let us continually offer a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that confess his name.
16Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
17Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls and will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with sighing — for that would be harmful to you. Greetings, blessing, and postscript
18Pray for us; we are sure that we have a clear conscience, desiring to act honorably in all things.
19I urge you all the more to do this, so that I may be restored to you very soon.
20Now may the God of peace, who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant,
21make you complete in everything good so that you may do his will, working among us that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ, to whom be the glory forever and ever. Amen.
22I appeal to you, brothers and sisters, bear with my word of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly.
23I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been set free; and if he comes in time, he will be with me when I see you.
24Greet all your leaders and all the saints. Those from Italy send you greetings.
25Grace be with all of you. JAMES
493JAMES Introduction This letter takes its name from the authority and tradition associated with James, the brother of Jesus (Mt 13.55; Mk 6.3; Gal 1.19), who eventually became the leader of the church in Jerusalem (Gal 2.9, 12; Acts 12.17; 15.13; 21.18). Throughout the document, a consistent tone of moral authority (59 of
108versions are in the imperative) determines its literary character as a series of moral instructions (parenesis or exhortation) and wisdom sayings, inspired by different parts of the Bible. The advice alludes both to the Hebrew Bible and to the Jesus tradition (particularly that of Matthew and Luke); there may also be references to Paul's teaching (2.14-26). The letter thereby combines pastoral, prophetic, and teaching moods appropriate to address the community crises. Its basic message is an urgent appeal for those who call themselves Christians to adopt a courageous faith that will help them cope effectively with the trials of life, and will produce in them heightened moral integrity and loving actions. Directed by Jewish Christian congregations ("your assembly," lit. "synagogue," 2.2) toward the close of the first century, this letter was probably written in at least two stages. The original text was a sermon by James in the months prior to his martyrdom in the mid-60s. Then, someone skilled in Hellenistic rhetoric edited, expanded, and distributed the sermon in the form of a circular letter, probably in the late 80s or 90s. It went to Diaspora churches that were in disarray and needed to hear again the authoritative voice of the Jerusalem church's leader. Its aim was to instruct Jewish Christians experiencing tensions between their allegiance to the Torah and their newfound faith in Jesus. In this sense, James and Jude are the last New Testament echoes of Jewish Christianity. JAMES
494In dealing with issues of concern to Jewish Christians, the letter (particularly in 2.14-26) appears to oppose the thinking of Paul on the issue of the relation between faith and works, and the means by which the believer attains "justification" or the state of right relationship with God. Paul and James each interpret a verse from the Hebrew Bible — "And he believed the Lord; and the Lord reckoned it to him as righteousness" (Gen 15.6) — to support his own view (Paul in Gal 3.6-14, James in Jas 2.21-24). For Paul, the believer's justification comes through faith, not works (Rom 4.16-5.2); for James, "faith by itself, if it has no works, is dead" (2.17). The conflict, however, is more apparent than real. For Paul, faith is primarily trust in God (Rom 4.5), a sense of the word that James also shares (1.5); but, in his critique of faith, James means by it essentially the assent to ideas about God without any personal relationship or commitment to inform them: "Even the demons believe" (2.19). James sees works as the acts that spring from the love of the believer for God (2.14), whereas for Paul works are the external observations of ritual, like circumcision, regarded in isolation from any connection to one's relationship to God. The letter of James may strike the reader as having little in the way of unity and coherence, but rather as skipping from one topic to another without much connection. Its inherent unity, however, can bee seen if one views the letter as a response to the situation in which these early Christians found themselves. The Christian assemblies were tiny minorities existing within large populations that were indifferent or hostile to their beliefs. The writer is concerned that these early Christian groups should not adopt, or fall back into, the values or the behavior of the surrounding population (4.4). From this comes the strategic mixture in the letter of the prophetic tradition (for instance, 2.5-7) and the wisdom tradition (for instance, 1.5-8). This combination is meant to help those who are struggling to live morally: the prophetic denunciations of arrogant wealth and immorality (2.6-7); 5.1-6) are strengthened and completed through the development of wisdom (3.13). Wisdom can serve both as a guide to behavior (for instance, guarding against malicious speech 3.8-10; 4.11) and as an aid to discernment (seeing the joy that lies beyond present suffering, 3.17-18). The testing to which the faithful are subjected will help them learn and be transformed (1.12): it will show them what really matters, and it can JAMES
495be, if seen in the right way, a strengthening rather than a weakening ordeal. Thus, these communities will be built up through their sufferings (4.7-10), and their faith will be, not a substitute for acts of love (2.15-16), but rather a means to help them undertake such acts (1.22-27). Martin Luther's cavalier assessment of James as "an epistle of straw" because it seemingly denigrated the Pauline doctrine of justification by faith (2.14-26) influenced its interpretation for many years. Yet as a witness to Jewish Christianity the letter of James constitutes "the second voice of Jesus," reminding Christians that a faith that fails to bear fruit in the moral life cannot save.