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NASB | Hebrews 6:6 and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame. |
AMPLIFIED 2015 | Hebrews 6:6 and then have fallen away--it is impossible to bring them back again to repentance, since they again nail the Son of God on the cross [for as far as they are concerned, they are treating the death of Christ as if they were not saved by it], and are holding Him up again to public disgrace. |
Bible Question: What is the verse in Hebrews chapter 6 verse 6 saying |
Bible Answer: Hello, It is my cardinal rule, whether it's anyone elses or not is not the case, to always look at the context while looking at a passage. Therefore, when looking at Hebrews 6:6, we must look at the surrounding verses. In Hebrews 6:1-3, the author sets up the passage. Notice his tone and choice of words. He speaks of setting the basic and elementary teachings aside and going further into what he identifies as "Maturity". In verses 2-3, he identifies the teachings that he is setting aside. The subjects he lists entail nearly all of the basic categories of Christian Doctrine. So, it is clear that the author is going to be talking about something higher in thinking. Possibly even theoretical in nature, especially concidering his prayer in verse 3, "...if God permits". In verses 4-5, he sets up his case. There are those who have "once been enlightened", "tasted the heavenly gift", "been partakers of the Holy Spirit", and "tasted the word of God and powers of the age to come". At the beginning of verse 6, he says that there are these same people who have also fallen away. As a result, he says that it is not possible for them to come to repentance again. Why? because they would be crucifying Christ a second time, and putting God to open shame. Now, many people, when studying this passage, have a bad habit of stopping half-way through verse 6, and not going any further. They only see the part that says "it is impossible to renew them again to repentance ...". They fail to read the remainder of the verse and the verses following. The people who do this are the ones who advocate that a christian can loose his/her salvation. That is not the truth, and I'll show why. Before we go further, it is important to point out a few things that should be obvious, but are often overlooked. As the saying goes, if you want to hide something, hide it in plain sight. Well, that is exactly what the author does here. The key to understanding this passage is three-fold. The first part is found in verses 1-5. The tone of this passage is that of a "what-if". "What if this is possible? What would happen?" That is the nature of this passage. His first words in this passage were "leave elementary teachings and move on to maturity". So, he is trying to get the audience to think. The second part of the key is found in verse 6. Notice that he says that such an act of renewal would "put Him to open shame ...". The question that needs to be asked is why would this shame God? Jesus tells us that those who the Father hold are His and that no one will be able to snatch them out of His hands. The author, in this passage in Hebrews, is talking about an event where that, which is held securely in the hands of God, was snatched away. Therefore, such an event would prove God to be not only inept, but a failure and a liar as well. This third part to the key is found in the following verses. In verses 7 and 8, the author brings an analogy of farming. The farming analogy is common throughout the Bible. Even Jesus used the analogy on several occasions. In these verses, there are two types of soil: rich and useful, the other brings thorns and is worthless. He continues to say that the worthless soil is done away with, while the useful soil is tilled and worked. Now, compair this with Jesus' usage of the analogy. The soils represent mankind: the Saved and Non-saved. The seeds and planting would be God's word and works in our lives. Notice that both land types are worked. One isn't chosen over the other initially. Both land types are worked at the beginning. It isn't until after the barren land proves to be worthless that it is rejected. So, here we have the third part to the key. Now, let's pull it together. 1) This is a subject beyond the basics. 2) A Christian losing salvation would prove God to be a failure and a liar. 3) All types of people are initially approached by God. So, with this in mind, the author is saying that once a person has been approached by God, found to be barren and worthless, and rejected because of, as another passage has it, his hardened heart, then that person cannot be saved. Why? well, Paul talks about this in Romans 1. Basically, that person has willfully hardened his heart, and rejected God and his teachings. So, with all this in mind, the author here isn't really talking about the saved person at all, but the non saved person who God has approached, but eventually rejected God. He describes a person who has tasted all that God has to offer, but has rejected it none the less. When this final rejection takes place, that person loses his/her chance for salvation because the heart was hardened against God. I hope this helps. Jesus Loves You! Jesusman |