Hebrews 6:14

Heb_6:14

Blessing I will bless thee

Gods abundant blessing

The blessing is amplified by doubling the phrase, thus, blessing I will bless.

1. The certainty of a thing (Exo_3:7).

2. Diligence and pains in a thing.

3. Celerity and speed in doing a thing: as where David saith, It is better that escaping I should escape (1Sa_27:1).

4. Abundance in giving a thing.

5. Success in doing a thing, or a thorough doing of it, or doing it to purpose: as where Saul saith to David, Doing thou shalt do, and prevailing thou shalt prevail (1Sa_26:25).

6. Finishing and perfecting a thing: as where Solomon saith to God, Building I have built Thee an house (1Ki_8:13). His meaning is, that he had perfectly finished it.

7. A wonderful increase of a thing, as in this phrase, Multiplying I will multiply.

8. Long continuance as, Waiting, I have waited (Psa_40:1), that is, I have long waited. This phrase, Blessing I will bless. gives us to understand that blessings appertaining to Abraham and to his seed are abundant blessings. God is no way scanty to the faithful. God proprtioneth His blessings according to His own greatness. He setteth forth His magnificence in blessing children of men. Who would not depend upon such a Lord for blessing? How ought we to enlarge our hearts, and open our mouths in blessing God for so blessing us! (W. Gouge.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Heb 6:14. Ἦ μὴν) כי, Gen 22:17, LXX., κατʼ ἐμαυτοῦ ὤμοσα, λέγει Κύριος, ἦ μὴν εὐλογῶν εὐλογήσω σὲ, κ.τ.λ., “I have sworn by Myself, saith the Lord, that blessing I will bless thee,” etc. So ἦ μὴν, Gen 42:16. Devarius, when he had collected examples of the particle ἦ μὴν, infers that this word is used merely by the way of ornament, when it is applied to a promise or an oath: it is quite different in simple affirmations, in which it is necessarily (not merely ornamentally) used. But it may be resolved thus: ᾖ, let there be, whatever shall happen, i.e. occur what may, μὴν, yet this shall be done.

Bengel's Gnomon of the New Testament — English translation (T&T Clark, Edinburgh, 1860) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Heb_6:14. Εἰ μὴν κ.τ.λ.] Adducing of the declaration, Gen_22:17, with the difference, that in the case of the LXX. πληθυνῶ τὸ σπέρμα σου is in harmony with the original put in place of πληθυνῶ σε. This deviation is not to be explained by the supposition that the author chose σε instead of τὸ σπέρμα σου merely for brevitys sake (Jac. Cappellus), or in order to present the promise in a form as concentrated as possible (Delitzsch), or that he cited from memory (Abresch), or that he wished to place in the background all thought of the merely physical descendants of Abraham, and direct the glance of the reader exclusively to the spiritual or heavenly posterity of Abraham, which was appointed to him through Christ (Böhme, Bisping, and others). It has its ground simply in the fact that the author was here occupied exclusively with the person of Abraham himself (Bleek, de Wette, Maier).

εἰ μήν] in place of the Greek ἦ μήν, or of the εἰ μή, formed after the Hebrew אִם־לֹא, is met with elsewhere in the LXX. (Eze_33:27; Eze_34:8; Eze_35:6; Eze_36:5, al.), not, indeed, so far as concerns our passage in the Cod. Alex. and Cod. Vatic., but yet in other ancient MSS.; and in any case, our author found it in the copy of the LXX. used by him.

The combination of the participle with the tempus finitum of the same verb (εὐλογῶν εὐλογήσω κ.τ.λ.) is a well-known Grecising of the Hebrew infin. absol., occurring exceedingly often in the LXX., and serving generallyas herefor the augmented and solemn emphasizing of the idea contained in the verb. See Winer, Gramm., 7 Aufl. p. 332.

Meyer — Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament — English translation by Peter Christie, edited by Frederick Crombie (T&T Clark, 1880) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Heb 6:14 . The oath runs εἰ μὴν εὐλογῶν εὐλογήσω σε .… “Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.” “Sentences which denote assurance … are in classical Greek introduced by ἦ μήν , which in the Hellenistic and Roman period is sometimes written in the form of εἶ (accent?) μήν ; so in the LXX and in a quotation from it in Heb 6:14 ” (Blass, Gram. , p. 260); and cf. Jannaris, Hist. Greek Gram. , 2055. μήν is used to strengthen asseveration, suitably therefore in oaths. On the emphatic participle in imitation of the Hebrew absolute infinitive, see Winer, sec. 45, 8, p. 445. The oath here cited was a promise to bless mankind, a promise that through all history God’s gracious purpose should run; that, let happen what might, God would redeem and bless the world.

The Expositor's Greek Testament, edited by W. Robertson Nicoll (1897–1910) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

I will heap up benefits most plentifully upon thee.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

multiplying . . . multiply--Hebraism for superabundantly multiply.

thee--The increase of Abraham's seed is virtually an increase of himself. The argument here refers to Abraham himself as an example; therefore Paul quotes Gen 22:17, "thee," instead of "thy seed."

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Verse 14. Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee] I will continue to bless thee.

Multiplying I will multiply thee.] I will continue to increase thy posterity. In the most literal manner God continues to fulfil this promise; genuine Christians are Abraham's seed, and God is increasing their number daily. See the notes on Ge 22:12-18; and Ge 23:1.

Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible (1810–1826) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

(14) Saying.—The words of the oath itself, “By myself have I sworn, saith the Lord” (Gen_22:16), are not repeated, because they are almost identical with the writer’s own words introducing the citation (Heb_6:13). It will be observed that one change is made—in the last word; for in Genesis we read, “I will multiply thy seed.” The alteration may be made for brevity, as the quotation is abridged; but it will be seen that the effect of it is to direct greater attention to the first words, and to fix the thought on the blessing promised to Abraham himself.

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14. blessing I will bless thee] The repetition represents the emphasis of the Hebrew, which expresses a superlative by repeating the word twice.

I will multiply thee] In the Heb. and LXX. we have “I will multiply thy seed.”

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And so, after he had patiently endured,.... He waited long for a son, from whom the Messiah was to spring, after he had had the promise of one; and he endured many afflictions with patience, in his journeys from place to place, throughout his life to the end:

he obtained the promise; he was greatly blessed in temporal things; he lived to see the son of the promise, and his sons; he saw the day of Christ by faith, and now inherits the heavenly glory, which is the thing chiefly designed.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

14 Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee.

Ver. 14. Bleasing I will bless thee] Now he whom God blesseth shall be blessed, as Isaac said of Jacob, Gen 27:33.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee - That is, I will certainly bless thee. The phrase is a Hebrew mode of expression, to denote emphasis or certainty - indicated by the repetition of a word; compare Gen 14:23; Exo 8:10; Joe 3:14; Jdg 5:30; Jdg 15:16.

Multiplying I will multiply thee - I will greatly increase thee - I will grant thee an exceedingly numerous posterity.

Albert Barnes' Notes on the Bible (1834–1885) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

Here is laid down the form and matter of God’s oath: the form, in Gen 22:16, is implied in the particle כי in this text well rendered surely, Heb 3:11. The other defective expressions are forms of swearing, as if, except, unless; but here it is positive, surely, or verily, which Christ frequently useth; it is a vehement assertion of what he saith. The whole matter of God’s oath is not repeated, but the substance and comprehensive part of it, which made for the apostle’s purpose here. By blessing, in the Hebrew manner of expressing, is carried the abundance and certainty of all that temporal and spiritual good, which he would convey unto him in and through the blessed and promised Seed, our Lord Jesus Christ, with the multiplicity, abundance, and certainty of the seed natural, and believing, to whom he should be related as a Father through Christ, as is evident, Gen 22:16-18; and all this so uttered, as if God could not express how much he loved him.

Matthew Poole's English Annotations on the Holy Bible (1683–1685) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

14. Multiplying I will multiply thee—By this promise Abraham is to be father of the Messianic race, including the Messiah, with all the blessing in the Messiah included, temporal and eternal. Says Stuart, “When Abraham was called by God out of Haran, and a promise of a numerous posterity made to him, he was seventy-five years old, Gen_12:1-4.

Twenty-four years elapsed after this, while he was a sojourner in a strange land without any fixed place of abode, before the manner in which this promise would be fulfilled was revealed to him. Gen_17:1-16. It was only when he was a hundred years old that the promised blessing of a son, from whom should spring a great nation, was obtained, Gen_21:1-5. The preternatural birth of such a son was deemed by Abraham a sufficient pledge, on the part of God, that all which he had promised respecting him would be fulfilled. Gen_22:15-18; Heb_11:8-12; Heb_11:17-19; Rom_4:17-22.”

Daniel D. Whedon (gen. ed.), Commentary on the Old and New Testaments (1874–1909) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Gen. xxii, 17.

John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the Whole Bible (1754–1765) — public domain. Text via the GEBible commentary corpus.

14. Saying, Surely blessing. The promise so confirmed to Abraham is given in these words.

B. W. Johnson's The People's New Testament with Notes (1889–1891) — public domain. Electronic text from the Christian Classics Ethereal Library (CCEL) ThML edition.

14. Εἰ μήν אABDE. MSS. vary between ἧ μὴν (the classical affirmation), and εἰ μή. This formula jurandi is used in the LXX. (Eze 33:27, &c.), and perhaps comes from the Hebraic εἰ μή.

14. Εἰ μήν. “In very truth.” A mixed and Hebraic form, used here alone (if the reading be correct) in the N.T. Comp. LXX., 2Sa 19:35; Job 27:3.

εὐλογῶν εὐλογήσω. The repetition represents the emphasis of the Hebrew, which gives the effect of a superlative by repeating the word twice. The construction is not known in classical Greek, though Lucian (who knew something of Christian writings) once uses ἰδὼν εἶδον. It is very common in the LXX., where it is used to represent the Hebrew absolute. Winer, p. 465.

πληθυνῶ σε. In the Heb. and LXX. we have “I will multiply thy seed.”

Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge University Press, 1896; 21 vols, various authors incl. Carr, Maclear, Plummer, Farrar, Lumby, Moule, M. R. James, Simcox) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

14.] saying, Surely (in reff., the editions vary between εἰ μήν and ἦ μήν, but the greater mss. have εἰ μήν: in fact, ει and η are constantly interchanged by the copyists. The expression occurs in formulæ jurandi in several places in the LXX (as e. g. Eze 33:27, ζῶ ἐγώ, εἰ μὴν οἱ ἐν ταῖς ἠρημωμέναις μαχαίραις πεσοῦνται: see also ib. 34:8; 35:6; 36:5; 38:19), so that it could not be an unmeaning expression to the Hellenistic ear. Bleek thinks it came from the Hebraistic formula εἰ μή, which has sometimes been written and edited for it) blessing I will bless (thus frequently the LXX, for the Heb. idiomatic conjuction of the absolute infinitive with the finite verb: but sometimes they have it where the Heb. has no such conjunction, as in 1Ki 2:25: and something like it is found even in Greek writers, as e. g. Herod. v. 95, φεύγων ἐκφεύγει: Xen. Cyr. viii. 4. 9, ὑπακούων σχολῇ ὑπήκουσα: Lucian, Parasit. 43, φεύγων … κατέφυγε (none of which however are quite analogous, the second verb in all being coupled with some additional predicate, as in φεύγων ἐκφεύγει—‘flying, he escapes, gets clear off’). See Winer, § 45.8, edn. 6. At first the participle seems to have had a certain emphasis: but afterwards this was lost, and the expression became a mere formula) thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee (the LXX has for σε, τὸ σπέρμα σου. This the Writer alters, not from a wish to abbreviate (Jac. Cappell.) nor because he quoted from memory (Abresch), nor because he was unwilling to introduce Abraham’s bodily descendants, but wished to direct his readers’ thoughts to his spiritual seed (Böhme, Bisping, al.), but, as Bleek, De W., Lünem., al., because his concern here was with Abraham alone, and his spiritual example: or perhaps, as Delitzsch, seeing that πληθ. σε could only be understood of posterity, because he wished to concentrate the promise as much as possible):

Henry Alford, The Greek Testament (1849–1861) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Surely blessing I will bless thee [ει μην ευλογων ευλογησω σε] . Ei mhn as a formula of swearing N. T. o. In LXX, see Num 14:23, 28, 35; Isa 45:23; Eze 33:27; Eze 34:8. Blessing I will bless is a Hebraism, emphasizing the idea contained in the verb. Comp. LXX, Gen 22:17; Num 25:10; Deu 14:4. 1 97

Marvin R. Vincent, Word Studies in the New Testament (1887–1900) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword/MySword module.

14. εἰ μὴν εὐλογών... Gen. xxii. 17. The writer of the Epistle substitutes of for τὸ σπέρμα cov in tho last clause. Fe concentrates his attention on Abraham alonc. Comp. Gen. xii. 3 with Gen. xxii. 18.

The promise which is quotod is simply that of outward prosperity, of which in part Abraham lived to see the fulfilment. But tho Messianic promise, with which the readers were familiar, was given under the same circumstances.

εὐλογῶν εὐλογήσω] Old Lat. benedicendo benedizero. Vulg. benedicens benedicam. This construction in imitation of Hebr. inf abe. with the finite verb is found in the N. T. only in quotations from the uxx. in which it is extremely frequent. Comp. John ili. 29 χαρᾷ χαίρει note.

The form el μήν both here and in the text of the uxx. is attested by overwhelming authority against the common form ἦ μήν. The form εἰ is recognised in Etymol. Magn. as an

alternative form for ἢ as ἐπίρρημα ὁρκικόν With a reference to this passage. It may be a dialectic peculiarity.

1S. καὶ οὕτως... and thus, confident in a promise solemnly ratified, having patiently endured...The οὕτως is to be taken separately and not in close connoxion with paxp. (‘having thus patiently endured’). Comp. Acts vii. 8; xxviii. 14; 1 Cor. xiv. 25.

According to the history twentyfive years clapsod from tho call of Abraham to the birth of Isaac (Gen. xii, 4; xxi. 5).

For μακροθυμήσας seo v. 12 note.

ἐπέτυχεν τῆς ἐπαγγ.] obtained the promise, Vulg. adeptus est repromisstonem. The phrase following after ἐπαγγειλάμενος and separated from it by μακροθυμήσας cannot mean simply ‘obtained from God the assurance of a future blessing.’ It affirms that in some sense Abraham gained that for which he looked. And in fact Abraham obtained the fulfilment of the promise in its beginning in Isaac, born past hope and given to him, as it were a second time, and also afterwards in Isaac’s sons. In part however the promise necessarily remained to be fulfilled in after timo (πληθύνων πληθυνώ...καὶ ἐν col...) 80 that through Christ Christians inherit it. Compare ὁ. xi. 33; Rom. xi. 7; James iv. 2; and c. x. 36; xi. 15, 39 (κομίσασθαι).

In c. xi. 39 it is said of the faithful fathers οὐκ ἐκομίσαντο τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν (comp. xi 15). Chrysostom calls attention to the apparent contradiction and solves it: ov wept τῶν αὐτῶν ἐνταῦθά φησι κἀκεῖ, ἀλλὰ καὶ διπλῆν ποιεῖται τὴν παράκλησιν. ἐπηγγείλατο τῷ ᾿Αβραάμ, καὶ τὰ μὲν ἐνταῦθα μετὰ μακρὸν χρόνον ἔδωκε, τὰ δὲ ἐκεῖ οὐδέπω.

(6) The fulfilment of the promise is doubly assured to us (16—18).

16—18. The promise which Abraham received still awaits its complete accomplishment, and it is our inheritance, doubly confirmed to us as to him, being a promise, and a promise confirmed by an oath.

In this respect tho character and purpose of a human oath illustrate the divine oath. An oath is a decisive appeal to the highest power to close all controversy. Therefore in condesconsion God interposed an oath to give to His promise this additional pledge of immutability for our encouragenient.

The argument assumos tho religious propriety of oaths.’

Brooke Foss Westcott (1825–1901), The Epistle to the Hebrews (1889) and The Epistles of St John (1883) — public domain (pre-1929). Text recovered from Internet Archive / Google Books OCR scans. Westcott’s Gospel of John commentary is not included (its OCR lost the chapter running-heads required for reliable verse-keying). Some Greek quoted in the Hebrews volume is imperfectly rendered by the OCR.