4. WHEN WAS THE EPISTLE WRITTEN?
The Epistle to the Hebrews was certainly written before A. D. 95, for at about that time it was quoted by Clement of Rome. The mention of Timothy in ch. 13:23 perhaps does not carry us much farther, for Timothy, who was a grown man at about A. D. 50, Acts 16:1-3, may have lived till the end of the first century. The epistle, however, does not bear any of the marks of late origin. The question of date is closely connected with the question whether in the epistle the temple at Jerusalem is regarded as still standing. This question cannot be settled with certainty. But on the whole the continuance of the Levitical ceremonies seems to be assumed in the epistle, and at any rate there is no clear reference to their cessation. Probably therefore the Epistle to the Hebrews was written before the destruction of Jerusalem in A. D. 70.
5. HEBREWS A LITERARY WORK
The Epistle to the Hebrews is a product of conscious literary art. The rhetoric of Paul is unconscious; even such passages as the first few chapters of First Corinthians or the eighth chapter of Romans may have been composed with the utmost rapidity. The author of Hebrews probably went differently to work. Such sentences as Heb. 1:1-4, even in an inspired writer, can only be the result of diligent labor. By long practice the writer of Hebrews had acquired that feeling for rhythm and balance of phrase, that facility in the construction of smooth-flowing periods, which give to his epistle its distinctive quality among the New Testament books. Greek rhetoric of the Hellenistic age, freed from its hollow artificiality, is here laid under contribution for the Saviour's praise.
The presence of such a book in the New Testament is highly salutary. Devout Christians in their enthusiasm for the simplicity of the gospel are sometimes in danger of becoming one-sided. They are sometimes inclined to confuse simplicity with ugliness, and then to prize ugliness for its own sake. It is perfectly true that the value of the gospel is quite independent of æsthetic niceties, and that the language of the New Testament is for the most part very simple. But it is not true that the simplicity of the New Testament has anything in common with the bad taste of some modern phraseology, or that eloquence is of itself evil. The Epistle to the Hebrews shows by a noble example that there is such a thing as Christian art. The majestic sentences of this ancient masterpiece, with their exquisite clearness and liturgic rhythm and uplifting power, have contributed inestimably to the Christian conception of the Saviour. The art of Hebrews is not art for art's sake, but art for the sake of Christ. Literary perfection is here combined with profound genuineness and apostolic fervor; art is here ennobled by consecration.
In the Library.—Purves, "Christianity in the Apostolic Age," pp. 164, 165, 265-267, 286-289. Davis, "Dictionary of the Bible": Purves, article on "Hebrews, Epistle to the." M'Clymont, "The New Testament and Its Writers," pp. 116-122. Ellicott, "A New Testament Commentary for English Readers," vol. iii, pp. 275-348: Moulton, "The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews." Westcott, "The Epistle to the Hebrews." Zahn, "Introduction to the New Testament," vol. ii, pp. 293-366. The two last-named works are intended primarily for those who have some knowledge of Greek, but can also be used by others.