The Epistle to the Hebrews (abbreviated Heb. for citations) is one of the most consciously "literary" books in the New Testament. The purity of its Greek was noted by Clement of Alexandria, according to Eusebius (Historia Eccl., VI, xiv), and Origen asserted that that every competent judge must recognize a great difference between this epistle and Paul's (Eusebius, VI, xxv). Although the author is unknown, Hebrews has been dated to shortly after the Pauline epistles were collected and began to circulate, circa AD 95.

The letter has carried its traditional title since Tertullian described it as Barnabae titulus ad Hebraeos in De Pudicitia chapter 20.

This letter consists of two strands:

An expositional or doctrinal strand (1:1-14, 2:5-18, 5:1-14, 6:13-9:28, 13:18-25)

A hortatory or ethical strand which punctuates the exposition parenthetically at key points as warnings to the readers (2:1-4, 3:1-4:16, 6:1-12, 10:1-13:17)

Hebrews contains many references to the Old Testament—specifically to its Septuagint text—and references to all but two of the canonical letters of Paul. It has been regarded as a treatise supplementary to the Romans and Galatians, and as a kind of commentary on the book of Leviticus and Temple worship in general. Its numerous references to Temple worship in the present tense have been used to date the epistle before the destruction

Authorship

A number of candidates for the authorship of Hebrews have been advanced from earliest times, including the Apostle Paul. However, the epistle makes no internal claim of authorship, which is inconsistent with the rest of Paul's epistles. Also, while many of the letter's ideas are Pauline, the writing style is substantially different from that of Paul's epistles. For example, the Epistle does not open with the preamble typical of Paul. In particular, Hebrews claims to have been written by a person who received the Christian message from others (see Hebrews 2.4). But Paul in his letter to the Galatians forcefully defends his claim that he received his gospel directly from Jesus.

Other candidates for the authorship of Hebrews include Paul's companion Silas; Pope Clement I, the traditional author of the First Epistle of Clement; Luke; or some unknown Alexandrian Christian. Two leading candidates are Barnabas, first suggested by Tertullian (see above); and Apollos, first suggested by Martin Luther. Modern scholarship has reached no strong consensus. The letter has, however, always been accepted as part of the New Testament canon.

This is one of the few Epistles in the Bible that have no distinct author. Yet there is good reason for this. If Paul had written it it was not becoming that he should write, "Paul an Apostle of Jesus Christ." in the introduction because Jesus Christ is seen as the Apostle in this Epistle. Hebrews 3:1, "Wherefore, holy brethren, partakers of heavenly calling, consider the Apostle and High Priest of our confession, Jesus."

Place in the New Testament canon

Hebrews is

Audience

Hebrews was written to a specific audience facing very specific circumstances. We can discern various facts about the recipients of Hebrews through a careful mirror reading of the letter:

• The readers were conversant in the Septuagint translation of the Old Testament, as the author's usage shows.
  
• The contrast in 13:14 and the types of sins listed in chapter 13 suggest they lived in a city.
  
• They had once faced persecution (10:32-34), but not to the point of shedding blood (12:4). It is possible that 12:1-3 and 13:12-13 imply that they would soon face renewed oppostion.
  
• Some had stopped attending the worship services (10:22), and those who remained struggled with apathy and indifference, and ran the risk of abandoning their Christian faith (see the warning sections).
  
• Specifically they were Jewish Christians who ran the risk of reverting to a Judaism that rejects Christ. The author warned them that if they reject the sacrifice of Christ's death on the cross, there remains no other sacrifice to which they can turn. The animal sacrifices of first-century Judaism would not be able to help them(10:26). They must follow Christ "outside the camp" (that is, outside Judaism).
  
• In 13:14 the author says that those from Italy greet the readers. This could mean that the author is writing from Italy or that the author is writing to recipients in Italy, and that Italians present with the author are greeting those back home.

However, the preceding description of the audience as Jewish Christians is not unanimously received. While this interpretation has been held from as early as the end of the second century to the present (hence its title, "The Epistle to the Hebrews"), Liberal American theologian Edgar Goodspeed was not of this view; he wrote, "But the writer's Judaism is not actual and objective, but literary and academic, manifestly gained from the reading of the Septuagint Greek version of the Jewish scriptures, and his polished Greek style would be a strange vehicle for a message to Aramaic-speaking Jews or Christians of Jewish blood.."

Purpose for writing

The author's intent was to demonstrate a new interpretation of the true end and meaning of Mosaic law and assert its symbolical and transient character. He declares that the Levitical priesthood was a foreshadowing of the mission of Jesus, and that the legal sacrifices prefigured the Crucifixion. Therefore the gospel was designed not to modify the law of Moses, but to supersede and abolish it. This was written partly to counter the Ebionites, Jewish Christians who continued Jewish practices while accepting Christ. The emphatic text of the epistle reiterates the view of Pauline Christianity that the new covenant has superseded the old.

See also

• Authorship of the Pauline epistles

Related articles:

• , 1908 at earlychristianwritings.com
• Epistle to the Hebrews
• Epistle to the Hebrews
• by Wayne McCown
• A critical examination of the destination, authorship and dating of the Epistle to the Hebrews