The Letter to the Hebrews

by Peter T. O'Brien

The Edition

Series editor: D. A. Carson

Publication

Publisher: Apollos
Co-publisher: Inter-Varsity Press
Series: The Pillar New Testament Commentary (PNTC)
Date published: 2010
Print status: Out of print

The Physical Book

Binding: Hardcover
Dust jacket: Yes
Total pages: 596 pages
ISBN-13: 9780802837295
ISBN-10: 0802837298
LCCN: 2009045123

Reference

Plagiarism check: Flagged
Notes: Withdrawn from sale by Eerdmans in 2016. This was the volume that began the affair: allegations were raised in July 2016, and Eerdmans' own editors, with outside consultants, concluded that its use and documentation of secondary sources fell short of accepted standards. Editor-in-chief James Ernest announced that sales would cease, along with two further O'Brien titles — his Pillar Ephesians and his Philippians in the New International Greek Testament Commentary. O'Brien apologised without reservation, saying the plagiarism was clear-cut but unintentional and traceable to his working methods. Paginated xxxiii + 596. Copies already sold remain in circulation, which is why the volume is catalogued rather than deleted.

Editor's Preface
Author's Preface
Abbreviations
Select Bibliography
Introduction
- I. Authorship and Canonicity
  - A. Paul
  - B. An Associate of Paul
    1. Barnabas
    2. Apollos
    3. An Unknown Author
- II. The Situation of the Recipients
- III. Destination
- IV. Date
  - A. Hostile Actions against the Community
  - B. The Destruction of the Temple
  - C. The Development of Early Christianity
- V. Genre
- VI. Structure
  - A. Conceptual (or Thematic) Analysis
  - B. Rhetorical Analysis
  - C. Literary Analysis
  - D. Discourse Analysis
    1. George H. Guthrie
    2. Cynthia Long Westfall
    3. Our Structure
- VII. Exposition, Exhortation, and Purpose
- VIII. Hebrews in Its First-Century World
  - A. Philo, Alexandria, and Platonism
  - B. Gnosticism
  - C. Palestinian Jewish Writings
- IX. Christian Origins
  - A. Pauline Christianity
  - B. Jewish Christianity
Commentary on Hebrews
- I. Introduction: God's Final Word to Us in His Son, 1:1-4
- II. The Position of the Son in Relation to That of Angels, 1:5–2:18
  - A. The Son Superior to Angels, 1:5-14
  - B. Warning: Do Not Reject the Word Spoken through God's Son, 2:1-4
  - C. The Son for a Time Lower than the Angels, 2:5-9
  - D. The Son Became Lower in order to Suffer for the Sons, 2:10-18
- III. Fix Your Attention on Jesus — A Warning against Unbelief — A Promise of Entering God's Rest, 3:1–4:13
  - A. Jesus, the Supreme Example of the Faithful Son, 3:1-6
  - B. Warning: Avoid Israel's Example of Unbelief, 3:7-19
  - C. The Promise of Rest for Those Who Persevere in Faith, 4:1-13
    1. Let Us Make Every Effort to Enter God's Rest, 4:1-11
    2. Consider the Power of God's Word, 4:12-13
- IV. Since We Have a Great High Priest, Let Us Hold Fast and Draw Near, 4:14-16
- V. The Son's Appointment as Unique High Priest, 5:1–7:28
  - A. Introduction: The Son, Taken from among Men and Appointed in the Order of Melchizedek, 5:1-10
    1. Qualifications for High Priesthood, 5:1-4
    2. Christ's Qualifications for High Priesthood, 5:5-10
  - B. Warning and Encouragement: The Peril of Apostasy, 5:11–6:12
    1. The Problem with the Community—Spiritual Immaturity, 5:11-14
    2. Let Us Move On to Maturity, 6:1-3
    3. A Stern Warning about the Dangers of Apostasy, 6:4-8
    4. An Encouragement to Persevere, 6:9-12
  - C. God's Promise Our Basis of Hope, 6:13-20
  - D. The Superiority of Melchizedek, 7:1-10
  - E. The Superiority of Jesus, the High Priest in the Order of Melchizedek, 7:11-28
    1. The Order of Melchizedek Replaces the Order of Aaron, 7:11-19
    2. The Superiority of the New Priesthood: The Divine Oath, Its Permanence, and the Character of Jesus, 7:20-28
- VI. The Superior Offering of the Appointed High Priest, 8:1–10:18
  - A. The More Excellent Ministry of the Heavenly High Priest, 8:1-6
  - B. The Superiority of the New Covenant, 8:7-13
  - C. The Superiority of the New Covenant Offering, 9:1–10:18
    1. The Sanctuary under the Old Covenant, 9:1-10
    2. Decisive Cleansing through the Blood of Christ, 9:11-28
    a. Christ's atoning death has secured an eternal redemption, 9:11-14
    b. Christ the mediator of the new covenant, 9:15-22
    c. Christ's perfect sacrifice, 9:23-28
    3. The Consummate Sacrifice, 10:1-18
    a. Shadow and reality, 10:1-4
    b. Sacrifice versus obedience, 10:5-10
    c. The finality of Christ's priesthood, 10:11-14
    d. The finality of Christ's sacrifice, 10:15-18
- VII. Since We Have Access to God through Christ's Sacrifice, Let Us Draw Near and Hold Fast, 10:19-25
  - A. Let Us Draw Near to God, 10:19-22
  - B. Let Us Hold Unswervingly to the Hope We Possess, 10:23
  - C. Let Us Encourage One Another, 10:24-25
- VIII. A Call to Perseverance and Faith, 10:26–12:29
  - A. A Warning against Apostasy and a Summons to Perseverance, 10:26-39
    1. A Stern Warning: The Danger of Rejecting God's Son, 10:26-31
    2. Remember the Past and Persevere, 10:32-39
  - B. Positive Old Testament Examples of Faithful Endurance, 11:1-40
    1. Faith in the Unseen, 11:1-7
    2. The Faith of Abraham and His Descendants, 11:8-22
    3. The Faith of Moses, 11:23-31
    4. Further Examples—Those Who Endured through Faith, 11:32-40
  - C. Let Us Run the Race with Endurance, Fixing Our Eyes on Jesus, 12:1-2
  - D. Endure Discipline as Children, 12:3-17
  - E. You Have Come to the Heavenly Zion, 12:18-24
  - F. A Final Warning: Do Not Reject the One Who Speaks from Heaven, 12:25-29
- IX. Concluding Exhortations, Final Prayers, and Greetings, 13:1-25
  - A. True Service to God Involves Serving His People, 13:1-6
  - B. Instructions for the Congregation, 13:7-19
  - C. Prayer and Doxology, 13:20-21
  - D. Personal Notes, Greetings, and Benediction, 13:22-25
Indexes
- I. Subjects
- II. Authors
- III. Scripture References
- IV. Extrabiblical Literature

The Letter to the Hebrews

The Edition

Publication

The Physical Book

Reference

Contents

Sources