"It became Him," that is to say, the scheme whereby salvation was purchased for man by a suffering Messiah-that Messiah Himself being Very GOD made Man,-was itself worthy of the ALMIGHTY; it manifested at once His justice and His love. GOD willed that His own SoN by everlasting generation should, as to His human nature, be under the same laws, and be made perfect by the same means as they who are His sons only by adoption. Worthy indeed was it of Thee, O my GOD; there mercy and truth met together, righteousness and peace kissed each other.

11 For both He That sanctifieth and they who are sanctified are all of one:

"Of One," that is, apparently, of one human nature: wherefore our blessed Redeemer spoke of the ALMIGHTY as "My FATHER and your FATHER, and My GOD and your GOD," wherefore also He is "the First-born among many brethren."

for which cause He is not ashamed to call them brethren,

12 Saying, I will declare Thy Name unto My brethren, in the midst of the Church will I sing praise unto Thee.

13 And again, I will put My trust in Him.

These words in our SAVIOUR's mouth mean, "Inasmuch as I am a sharer with men of one common human nature, I will like them put My trust in GoD."

And again, Behold I and the children which God hath given Me.

Our LORD speaks of men as His children: as children and their parents are of the same nature, so our LORD, by speaking of men as His "children," declares Himself to have their nature— the nature of men, but, in Him, sinless.

It should be observed, that the HOLY SPIRIT here gives us the true meaning of these words which are found in the Old Testament; this may help us to understand how that portion of God's holy Word is full of CHRIST.

14 Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of

flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same;

By being born of the Virgin Mary: thus did He enable Himself to die in order

that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil;

15 And deliver them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage.

He delivers His children from fear of death by giving them the sure hope of eternal life; and so, in Him, each may say as He said, "Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell."

16 For verily He took not on Him the nature of angels; but He took on Him the seed of Abraham.

17 Wherefore in all things it behoved Him to be made like unto His brethren, that He might be a merciful and faithful High Priest in things pertaining to GOD, to make reconciliation for the sins of the people.

18 For in that He Himself hath suffered being tempted, He is able to succour them that are tempted.

At all times, O most Holy One, Thou wast able to succour Thine own in their trials, and as willing as able; but now, since Thine Incarnation, since Thou hast Thyself learned by experience the sore misery of temptation, Thou art able to succour them by Thy perfect sympathy with that nature, wherein Thou wast tempted.

GOD, Who knowest us to be set in the midst of so many and great dangers, that by reason of the frailty of our nature we cannot always stand upright; Grant to us such strength and protection as may support us in all dangers, and carry us through all temptations, through JESUS CHRIST our LORD. Amen.

CHAPTER III.

1 Wherefore, holy brethren,

They to whom the Apostle was writing were his brethren by nature, for they were Jews; and by regeneration, for they were Christians.

partakers of the heavenly calling,

The call to heaven: the call which came from heaven: the call which, heard and loved, gives on earth a foretaste of heaven, the call given in Holy Baptism.

consider the Apostle and High Priest of our profession, CHRIST JESUS;

Apostle means, one sent. Our LORD JESUS was an Apostle, in that He was sent by the FATHER. By "our profession" is meant the Catholic Faith; the faith which CHRIST taught, and His holy Church throughout all the world professes.

Our LORD, it may be observed, is here described as being in His sole Person to the Church what both Moses and Aaron were to the Hebrews: here the HOLY SPIRIT shows our LORD's superiority, as One sent, to Moses, who also was sent: in chapter vi. His superiority to Aaron, the High Priest.

2 Who was faithful to Him That appointed Him, That is, appointed Him to be Apostle and High Priest.1

as also Moses was faithful in all His house.

That is, in all GOD's house; in all the administration over GOD's people committed to him. "In all Mine house" are the words in Numb. xii. 7. Yet think not, the Apostle seems to continue, that because I speak of CHRIST and Moses as both faithful, that therefore they are to be regarded as equal: very far from it. 3 For this Man

The LORD JESUS, the GOD-Man.

1 Ps. cx. 4.

was counted worthy of more glory than Moses, inasmuch as

Or, in proportion as.

he who hath builded the house hath more honour than the house.

4 For every house is builded by some man; but He That built all things is GOD.

Now CHRIST it was Who did build all things. He therefore is GOD, and, as GOD, is the Master of Moses.

5 And Moses verily was faithful in all His house, as a servant, for a testimony of those things which were to be spoken after;

Testifying beforehand to the truth of those things which were afterwards to be spoken by CHRIST.

6 But CHRIST as a son over His own house;

The HOLY SPIRIT had spoken of our LORD JESUS and Moses, and called them both "faithful." In these verses He guards against the thought that they were therefore to be regarded as equal as reasonably, He seems to say, may we consider that the house and its builder were equal (verse 3;) or man the created and GOD the Creator (verse 4;) or the servant and his master; or the steward in another's house and the son in his own house (verse 5.) Besides, the word faithful, when applied to man, means mainly" believing;" when applied to our Blessed Redeemer it means, that being the SON of GOD the True, He too is true, and to be believed in all He says and does.1

The Apostle now proceeds to show what he means by GoD's

"house."

Whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope' firm unto the end.

This does not mean that we shall be the house or temple of CHRIST only when we have finished our course, but that, being His abode now (for now He dwells in His living temples,) we

1 Deut. xviii. 15.

2 Rom. v. 2.

shall be owned by Him, as His, at the last great day, and ever, without any risk of losing Him, continue His, if now we persevere unto the end.

Blessed LORD JESU, Thou Who didst Thyself finish the work Thy FATHER had given Thee to do, give us grace to abide patiently with Thee, that we may endure unto the end in Thy love. The word "confidence" here means the open and fearless profession of faith.

7 Wherefore

That is, Since ye are now fellow-citizens of the saints and of the household of GOD, but may lose this great dignity; since your full and perfect realisation of the blessing depends on your perseverance, therefore,

(as the HOLY GHOST saith,

Observe how unhesitatingly the words of the Psalm are ascribed to the Eternal SPIRIT.

To-day if ye will hear His voice,

8 Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness:

9 When your fathers tempted Me, proved Me, and saw My works forty years.

The HOLY GHOST says that the whole period of forty years spent by the Israelites in the wilderness was, as it were, one long tempting of GOD; but He alludes especially to the tempting at Massah, mentioned in Exod. xvii., when they openly expressed their doubtings about the mercy and power of the ALMIGHTY, and that, after they had had so many visible proofs of that might and love, saying, “Is GOD among us, or not ?" Thus they tempted Him, and thus also did they prove Him; requiring to see with their eyes what He would do; refusing to walk by faith.

Or the words "proved Me" may mean, they then proved how far He would forbear them, whether there was any limit to His patience. In truth, they found there was.

Or, again, these words may mean, "They proved Me by My works. Seeing those works, they knew that I was One to be wholly trusted and obeyed; yet they would not obey Me: wherefore, I was angry."

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