Christos as Pistos: The Faith(fulness) of Jesus in the Epistle to the Hebrews

TODD D. STILL
Truett Seminary, Baylor University Waco, TX 76798

NO SMALL NUMBER of contemporary Pauline interpreters are now inclined to render (and similar expressions in Pauls letters) as the faith(fulness) of Christ (the so-called subjective genitive reading).1 Although such a construal of is not a new development in Pauline studies, it continues to incite learned and animated responses from scholars who remain convinced that the phrase is best understood as faith in Christ (known as the objective genitive reading).2 Indeed, those who are engaged in this complex, lively debate have expended a tremendous amount of energy and have generated a staggering number of publications.
In addition to those who raised questions and offered suggestions when I presented an earlier form of this essay at the Hebrews and Theology Conference in St. Andrews, Scotland, in July 2006, I would like to thank Craig Koester of Luther Seminary, Christopher Richardson of Aberdeen University, and Jason Whitlark of Baylor University for reading and critiquing this work in progress. The remaining shortcomings, of course, must be placed at my feet. 1 Seven such phrases appear in Paul; see Gal 2:16 (twice), 20; 3:22; Rom 3:22, 26; Phil 3:9. For a study of Jesus faith(fulness) both within and beyond the NT, see Ian G. Wallis, The Faith of Jesus Christ in Early Christian Traditions (SNTSMS 84; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995). 2 For a relatively recent update on the state and the stakes of this debate, see Richard B. Hays, The Faith of Jesus Christ: The Narrative Substructure of Galatians 3:14:11 (2nd ed.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2002) 272-97. Cf. R. Barry Matlock, Even the Demons Believe: Paul and , CBQ 64 (2002) 300-318. See now also Douglas A. Campbell, The Quest for Pauls Gospel: A Suggested Strategy (JSNTSup 274; London/New York: Clark, 2005) 90-93; and David G. Horrell, An Introduction to the Study of Paul (2nd ed.; Continuum Biblical Studies; London/New York: Clark, 2006) 78-80.

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For those who might wonder why the translation of has led to a hullabaloo among Paulinists, David G. Horrell offers this explanation. It may be going too far to see this [i.e., an increased tendency among Pauline interpreters to read subjectively as opposed to objectively] as a major change in our whole understanding of Pauls gospel, but it certainly shifts the focus [as well as how one reads certain verses in Pauls letters] . . . ; now the stress is not on the believers response but on the action of Christ, or, more precisely, on what God has done in Christ.3 Given the ongoing discussion and important repercussions of this scholarly sea change, not to mention the demonstrable literary, theological, and historical connections between Paul and the Epistle to the Hebrews,4 one is surprised by the paucity of academic work devoted to the subject of Jesus faith(fulness) in a letter that for many Christian centuries was commonly thought to have been written by Paul.5 My purpose in this essay is to examine the recurring comments regarding Jesus fidelity in Hebrews in order to discover both the substance and significance of this christological belief for the author and auditors of this first-century C.E. (word of exhortation [Heb 13:22]). Furthermore, I seek to make possible a fuller understanding of, and appreciation for, Hebrews signal contribution to the NT canon along lines of christology in general and Jesus faith(fulness) in particular.

Although words with the root (meaning to bind) recur in Hebrews, particularly in chap. 11, where occurs no fewer than twenty-four times,6 terms built on this root first feature in chap. 2 of the letter. Having pictured and portrayed Jesus as the originator or pioneer ( ) of salvation who suffers, sanctifies, and stands with believers (2:10-11), in 2:12-13 the author places Scripture on the lips of the . Stringing together three biblical citations, wherein Jesus is now speaking, Hebrews has the lowered Lord declare that he will proclaim and praise
Horrell, Paul, 79. On the various links between Paul and Hebrews, in addition to the works cited in n. 24 below, see, e.g., Raymond E. Brown, An Introduction to the New Testament (ABRL; New York: Doubleday, 1997) 693-94. 5 Regarding faith in Hebrews in general, see Erich Grsser, Der Glaube im Hebrerbrief (Marburger Theologische Studien 2; Marburg: Elwert, 1965); and Victor (Sung-Yul) Rhee, Faith in Hebrews: Analysis within the Context of Christology, Eschatology, and Ethics (Studies in Biblical Literature 19; New York: Peter Lang, 2001). With respect to Jesus faith(fulness) in particular, see Dennis Hamm, Faith in the Epistle to the Hebrews: The Jesus Factor, CBQ 52 (1990) 270-91; and Wallis, Faith of Jesus Christ, 145-61. 6 Specifically, in 11:1, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 (twice), 8, 9, 11, 13, 17, 20, 21, 22, 23, 24, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 39. Additionally, appears in 11:11, and occurs in 11:6.
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I. Jesus Faith(fulness) as High Priest and Son

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Gods name among the congregation, the children whom God has given him (2:12, 13b; cf. Ps 21:23; Isa 8:18 LXX). Additionally, in 2:13a the writer, seemingly drawing on Isa 8:17 (cf. 2 Sam 22:3; Ps 17:3), has Jesus confess, I will trust in him ( ). Here it appears that Jesus is acknowledging his belief and declaring his confidence in God.7 This confession serves at least two functions: in its immediate literary context, it underscores the shared faith of Jesus with his brothers and sisters in God; in a broader epistolary frame, it introduces the important leitmotif of faith or fidelity.8 In communicating the concept of (Jesus) faith(fulness) to the letters addressees, the author of Hebrews does not feel constrained to employ only those words with the root . This is illustrated by 5:7-10. Beginning in 5:7, the letter writer conveys the idea of Jesus fidelity by referring to the prayers and supplications that Jesus offered up to God with loud cries and tears. Moreover, the author maintains in v. 7 that Jesus was heard by God because of his reverent submission or piety ( ) to God. Furthermore, v. 8 contends, although he was a Son, he learned obedience [to God] through what he suffered (cf. Phil 2:8). The Sons obedient suffering, v. 9 holds, was integral to his being perfected and enabled him to become the source of eternal salvation ( ) to all those who obey him. It is also worth noting in passing that Heb 10:5-10, drawing on Ps 39:7-9 LXX, has Christ assert that he has come to do Gods will (cf. Heb 10:9a with Ps 39:9 LXX).9 Returning to terms in Hebrews with the root , one first encounters the adjective near the end of chap. 2. In 2:14-17 the author maintains that it was Jesus concern for the sinful, enslaved seed of Abraham, under the power and fear of death, which caused him to become blood and flesh and to be made like the brothers in all things. Moreover, Jesus incarnation, which was marked by suffering and temptation, enabled him to become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God and to make expiation for the sins of the people. The term rendered high priest ( ) appears seventeen times in Hebrews, frequently with special reference to Jesus (e.g., 3:1; 4:14, 15; 6:20).10 It is only in
So also Craig R. Koester (Hebrews: A new translation with introduction and commentary [AB 36; New York: Doubleday, 2001] 237), who suggests, The trust that Christ exhibits is related to the faith that is fitting for every child of God (Heb 11). See also Paul Ellingworth, The Epistle to the Hebrews (NIGTC; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1993) 169. I am not persuaded by David A. deSilvas suggestion that Jesus is placing his trust in individual believers. See his Perseverance in Gratitude: A Socio-Rhetorical Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews (Grand Rapids/Cambridge: Eerdmans, 2000) 116-17. 8 See Harold W. Attridge, The Epistle to the Hebrews: A Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews (Hermeneia; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1989) 91. 9 Hamm (Faith in the Epistle to the Hebrews, 283-86) also notes the texts referred to in this paragraph and elaborates on them more fully. 10 On (Jesus) priesthood in this epistle, see, e.g., John M. Scholer, Proleptic Priests: Priesthood in the Epistle to the Hebrews (JSNTSup 49; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1991).
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2:17, however, that Jesus is depicted as a . This title resembles 1 gdms 2:35, where the Lord declares that he will raise up for himself a faithful priest ( ). Like , is a polyvalent word that can carry both a passive (trustworthy, firm) and an active (trusting, faithful) meaning.11 In 2:17, it appears that is utilized to describe Christ both as a trustworthy or reliable high priest and as one who is faithful to God, even if in this instance the latter valance is stronger than the former.12 At the outset of chap. 3, the author compares Jesus to Moses.13 In the course of this comparison, appears twice more (3:2, 5). Having depicted Jesus as the apostle and high priest of [their] confession in 3:1, the writer proceeds to state in v. 2 that Jesus was faithful ( ) to the one who appointed him (i.e., God) even as Moses was faithful in Gods house. Then in v. 5, drawing on Num 12:7, the biblical author describes Moses as a servant () who was faithful [ ] in [ ] all of [Gods] house. In 3:6, however, Hebrews holds that Christ was a son over [ ] [Gods] house (cf. 10:21). Although does not actually appear in v. 6 in the Greek text (cf. 3:2), the idea is implied by the coordinating (contrastive) conjunction and is rightly supplied by most modern translations (e.g., [N]RSV, [T]NIV, NASB, NEB). Following Albert Vanhoye, Dennis Hamm maintains that in 3:2 (cf. 3:6) denotes Jesus trustworthiness as Gods high priest, not his fidelity toward God.14 It seems to me, however, that in light of the lexical flexibility of as well as the multifaceted nature and character of Jesus high priesthood set forth in the lines of the letter (see esp. 7:26-28), that such a monodimensional understanding of the term in 3:2 (and 3:6) is overly precise and unnecessarily restrictive.15 Even if 3:2 emphasizes Jesus fidelity to God as a son in his divinely ordained role as apostle and high priest (3:1), this in no way precludes from connoting that he exercised and exhibited faith in fulfilling his appointed functions as the incarnate, anointed Son of God (cf. 1:9; 2:14; 5:7-10). This suggestion becomes all the more probable in view of the authors conjoining of with in 2:17, not to mention the contention in 2:13 that Jesus trusted in God (in the throes of suffering and temptation [2:12, 18; cf. 4:15; 5:7-8]).16
See Hamm, Faith in the Epistle to the Hebrews, 281. So Wallis, Faith of Jesus Christ, 148; cf. Hamm, Faith in the Epistle to the Hebrews, 281; and F. F. Bruce, The Epistle to the Hebrews (NICNT; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1964) 52. 13 See further Mary Rose DAngelo, Moses in the Letter to the Hebrews (SBLDS 42; Missoula, MT: Scholars Press, 1979). 14 See Albert Vanhoye, Jesus fidelis ei qui fecit eum, Hebr. 3,2, VD 45 (1967) 291-305; and Hamm, Faith in the Epistle to the Hebrews, 281-82. 15 Hamm (Faith in the Epistle to the Hebrews, 282) reasons similarly with respect to 2:17. Note also Bruce, Hebrews, 52. 16 Attridge (Hebrews, 95), Koester (Hebrews, 250), and William L. Lane (Hebrews 18 [WBC 47A; Dallas: Word, 1991] 76) rightly link 2:17 and 3:2 with respect to Jesus role as a faithful (i.e.,
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The author of Hebrews reasons, then, that although Gods faithful servant Moses was great, Gods faithful Son Jesus is worthy of much more glory (3:3). Hebrews grounds this belief in Christs fidelity and authority as Gods Son (cf. 2:5-9). In fact, it is in light of Jesus merciful dependability before his Father as well as his steadfast trust in his Father that the letters author and recipients can picture themselves as the house of God over which Jesus serves as high priest (3:6b). Additionally, because Jesus is a tested, yet trustworthy, high priest, not only can they boldly approach the Sons heavenly throne of grace expecting mercy, but they can also approach God through him and anticipate acceptance (see 4:14-16; 7:19, 25; 10:19-22). Hebrews presents Jesus as more akin to Melchizedek than to his Aaronic priestly predecessors (5:6; 6:20; 7:11) and praises him as a high priest who is holy, blameless, undefiled, separated from sinners, and exalted above the heavens (7:26). Correlatively, the author understands Christ to be the mediator of a new and better covenant (8:6; 9:15; 12:24) and the source of salvation for those who obey him (5:9). In Hebrews, Jesus is none other than the pioneer and perfecter of the faith (12:2), for, like God, his character and conduct are constant (10:23; cf. 1:12). As the writer construes and confesses, Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever (13:8). Hebrews portrayal of Jesus as dependable, even as God is dependable, is predicated on and supported by the Sons fidelity to the Father. Jesus is regarded and presented in this epistle as a trustworthy Lord who lived an exemplary life. He was not only faithful over Gods house as a son (3:5), but he was also faithful to God who appointed and sent him (3:1-2; cf. 5:8; 10:7, 9). The author of Hebrews views Jesus as one who trusts in God fully (2:13a; cf. 5:7) as well as one who faithfully reflects God to humanity and ably represents and intercedes for sinful people before God (1:3; 7:25; 9:24). In the course of the letter, the pastor also challenges the letters recipients to conceive of their heavenly calling and to contemplate their common confession in light of Jesus faithful endurance and obedience (5:8; 12:1-3).

The Epistle to the Hebrews regards faith as foundational; it belongs to believers theological ABCs, if you will (6:1). Faith, which is described in 11:1 as a hopeful, committed mind-set regarding the reality of those things not yet seen, is said
trusting and trustworthy) high priest (contrast Hamm, Faith in the Epistle to the Hebrews, 28182). Ellingworth (Hebrews, 182) also correlates these verses, but along with Vanhoye (Jesus fidelis ei qui fecit eum) understands to refer exclusively to Jesus faithful discharge of his high priestly office.

II. Jesus, the Sine Qua Non of Faith(fulness)

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to enable people to apprehend Gods generative, creative power (11:3) and to please God (11:6a). Furthermore, Hebrews maintains that trusting in Gods existence and divine benevolence is essential for drawing near to God (11:6b). In the midst of a passage that speaks concretely of the addressees former struggles, including public abuse, affliction, and the plundering of personal property, the author of Hebrews iterates their need for confidence and assurance in doing the will of God with a view to receiving that which is promised by God (10:32-36). Earlier in chap. 10, the recipients, who have confidence before and access to God through the blood of Jesus, are admonished to draw near to this faithful God with a true heart in full assurance of faith and to hold fast the confession of [their] hope without wavering (vv. 19-23). The writer concludes chap. 10 by calling the auditors to faithful endurance: But my righteous one will live by faith, and if he shrinks back, my soul takes no pleasure in him (v. 38; cf. 13:4, 7).17 This truncated citation of Hab 2:4 (cf. Rom 1:17) leads to an affirmation of the steadfast commitment the pastor shares with the people. They are not those who shrink back and are destroyed; rather, they are those who have faith and preserve their souls (10:39). The anonymous author, who exhibits rhetorical skill, biblical knowledge, theological sophistication, and pastoral sensitivity throughout the letter,18 transitions in chap. 11 to offer the believing, if beleaguered and wavering, addressees a veritable laundry list of Jewish luminaries who were marked by fidelity. Commencing with Abel (v. 4), this Jewish Christian letter writer, who is steeped in the stories of Scripture, continues by offering Enoch (v. 5) and Noah (v. 7) as examples. Going forward, the author lingers longer over Abraham and includes Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph in the patriarchs faith picture (vv. 13-22). Special commendation is given to Abraham and his ilk for being strangers and exiles with their attention fixed on another land, a heavenly city prepared for them by God, the builder and maker of the better country (vv. 13-16). After Father Abraham is featured, selected episodes from the life of the lawgiver Moses are set forth in an effort to reinforce further the necessity of faith (vv. 23-28). Returning to a more cursory cataloging of events and characters, the writer offers the crossing of the Red Sea, the fall of the walls of Jericho, and Rahabs welcoming of the Israelite spies as yet additional examples of fidelity. Last, Hebrews notes seven other Hebraic heroes (Gideon,
See now Radu Gheorghita, The Role of the Septuagint in Hebrews: An Investigation of ts Influence with Special Consideration to the Use of Hab 2:3-4 in Heb 10:37-38 (WUNT 2/160; Tbingen: Mohr Siebeck, 2003). 18 Ruth Hoppin (Priscillas Letter: Finding the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews [San Francisco: Christian Universities Press, 1997]) revives and expands on Adolf von Harnacks thesis that Priscilla (Prisca) authored Hebrews. Although the author of Hebrews defies identification, a masculine participle is employed in 11:32.
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Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets) and alludes to a slew of other faithful people in Jewish history (vv. 32-38)people of whom, 11:38 asserts, the world was not worthy.19 Faithful though they were and helpful though they are, for the writer of Hebrews all of these people serve as penultimate examples in the unfolding plan of God, which has at last reached its climax and consummation in Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of the faith ( ), and by way of extension, in the body of believers as they embrace, exalt, and exhibit him as Lord (1:2; 9:26; 12:2; 13:3). Although faithful witnesses in the past and in the present are valuable, necessary, and worthy of imitation (see 6:12; 13:7), all human manifestations of fidelity pale in comparison to the martyr and mediator par excellence (see 8:6; 9:15; 12:1, 24). Jesus provides the perfect example of faith-inpractice; he has not only completed the worldly race, but also inherited the eternal prize.20 Furthermore, Jesus is the climax of the examples of faith, because it is he who alone inaugurated the fulfilment of Gods eschatological plan of salvation and also carried it through in his own person.21

Because Jesus suffered fully and faithfully, was raised and exalted to the right hand of the Majesty on high, and has given believers hope by the new and living way (see 1:3; 2:18; 5:8; 10:20; 13:12, 20), the author admonishes the addressees to fidelity, maturity, and purity (e.g., 3:1; 5:14; 6:1; 12:2) and calls them to consider how to stir up one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as [was] the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as [they saw] the Day drawing near (10:23-25). Similarly, the pastor enjoins them to encourage one another every day, while it is still called today, that none of [them] may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sinfor [the writer reasons they] are partakers of Christ if [they] hold to [their] first confidence [lit., frame of mind] (3:13-14). To facilitate and motivate a faithful, as opposed to a fateful,
19 Recent treatments of Hebrews 11 include Michael R. Crosby, The Rhetorical Composition and Function of Hebrews 11, in Light of Example Lists in Antiquity (Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1988); and Pamela Michelle Eisenbaum, The Jewish Heroes of Christian History: Hebrews 11 in a Literary Context (SBLDS 156; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1997). 20 Wallis, Faith of Jesus Christ, 159. On Jesus as paradigm, see further N. Clayton Croy, Endurance in Suffering: Hebrews 12:1-13 in Its Rhetorical, Religious, and Philosophical Context (SNTSMS 98; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998) esp. 74-76. Contrast Ernst Ksemann, Jesus Means Freedom (trans. Frank Clarke; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1969) 105: The New Testament in general does not go to Jesus for the essence of faith. He is not a model for faith, but the Lord of the believers. 21 So Barnabas Lindars, The Theology of the Letter to the Hebrews (NTT; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1991) 112. See similarly Attridge, Hebrews, 356-57.

III. The Necessity of Ongoing Fidelity to God

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end for the letters auditors, the writer both dangles an eschatological carrot and brandishes a pastoral stick. The audience is warned not to drift away from the received message (2:1), turn away from the living God (3:12), fall by means of disobedience (4:11), or fall away from what they had perceived and tasted spiritually (6:4-6). Furthermore, they are reminded of the divine judgment of sin (10:2631) and of the spiritual perils of pulling up short of the finish line (12:1, 15). Hebrews does not regard perseverance in the good news as optional for the people of God (4:2; 6:11-12; 10:36; 12:1). Even as the author of Hebrews employs positive models and enjoins believers to be imitators of those who through faith and patience are inheriting the promises (6:12), the writer also places before the brothers and sisters (3:1, 12; 10:19; 13:22) examples that they should not emulate lest they fall prey to spiritual apathy, if not outright apostasy. Cain (11:4; cf. 12:24), the Egyptians who drowned in the Red Sea (11:29), and those Canaanites who failed to welcome Israelite spies (11:31) serve as antitypes in Hebrews, as does the short-sighted glutton Esau, whom the epistle depicts as an immoral and totally worldly individual (12:16). It is the Israelite people whom Moses led out of Egyptian captivity, however, that the author fashions into a faithless foil (cf. 1 Cor 10:1-13; Jude 5). Drawing on texts from the Pentateuch (save Leviticus) as well as Ps 95:7-11, this ancient reader of Scripture underscores the wilderness generations infidelity to God. Although the good news of rest had come to them (4:2, 6), the Hebrew people did not enter the pastures of promise because of their hardened, wayward, evil, unbelieving hearts (3:8, 10, 12, 15; 4:7). Their recalcitrance and disobedience precluded them from entering Gods Sabbath rest (4:6). Gods promise of rest became vacuous because it was not met with faith by those who heard (4:2). Both the biblical, theological logic in and the pastoral, rhetorical purpose behind 3:74:11 are clear.22 Although Moses was faithful as a servant, the Israelite people whom he led were faithless. Analogously, the recipients of the epistle, who view Jesus as a faithful son as well as their apostle and high priest (3:1), must continue to hold fast to their confidence and hope lest they also stop short and fall away (3:6; cf. 6:11, 18; 10:23). The pastors succinct sermon on fidelity begun in 3:7 concludes with this exhortation: Let us strive, therefore, to enter that rest, that no one fall by the same sort of disobedience (4:11). Although the author is confident that the addressees will receive salvific rest when Christ appears a second time (6:9; 9:28; cf. 1:14), an intimate knowledge of the biblical plot precludes the
22 On this passage, see further Ernst Ksemann, The Wandering People of God: An Investigation into the Letter to the Hebrews (trans. Roy A. Harrisville and Irving L. Sandberg; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1984). See also Jon Laansma, I Will Give You Rest: The Rest Motif in the New Testament with Special Reference to Mt 11 and Heb 34 (WUNT 2/98; Tbingen: Mohr Siebeck, 1997); and Judith Hoch Wray, Rest as a Theological Metaphor in the Epistle to the Hebrews and the Gospel of Truth: Early Christian Homiletics of Rest (SBLDS 166; Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1998).

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letter writer from counting proverbial chickens before they hatch. Believers cannot rest on their spiritual laurels; they, like their Lord, must remain faithful until the end (3:6, 14; 6:11).

In concluding this article I would like to direct our attention to the christological contribution that Hebrews makes to the NT canon by virtue of its presentation of Christs faith(fulness). Although appears with some regularity in the Greek NT (sixty-seven times, to be precise), it is seldom used with reference to Christ. In addition to Heb 2:17 and 3:2 (cf. 3:6), the only other NT texts where the term occurs in conjunction with Jesus are 2 Tim 2:13; Rev 1:5; 19:11; and perhaps 2 Thess 3:3. Lexicographical similarities notwithstanding, the author of Hebrews is the only NT writer who explicitly explores and expounds upon the faith(fulness) of Christ in any degree of detail (cf. also 1 Pet 2:18-25).23 This statement holds true, I think, even if the oblique Pauline phrase is best construed as Christs faith(fulness) and even when similar concepts in Pauls letters, such as Christs obedience to God, are taken into account (see, e.g., Rom 5:19; Phil 2:8).24 Therefore, with respect to the idea of Christ as faithful, in both a passive and an active sense, Hebrews makes a unique contribution to the NT canon.25 In this anonymous word of exhortation, Christ is lauded as one who trusts in God and is trustworthy before God. What is more, Christ is set forth in the letter as the
23 If a scholar were to identify a narrative substructure in Paul and wish to see it as more than less explicit, then the foregoing statement might need to be tempered somewhat. I am disinclined, however, to retract this remark entirely. For an important collection of essays written by leading Pauline scholars working in Great Britain on various narratival features ostensibly present in Pauls thinking and writing, see Narrative Dynamics in Paul: A Critical Assessment (ed. Bruce W. Longenecker; Louisville/ London: Westminster John Knox, 2002). 24 For a comparison between Hebrews and Paul regarding faith and Christs obedience, see, among others, L. D. Hurst, The Epistle to the Hebrews: Its Background of Thought (SNTSMS 65; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1990) 113-24. For connections between Galatians and Hebrews, see Ben Witherington, The Influence of Galatians on Hebrews, NTS 37 (1991) 146-52, esp. 151-52, where Witherington considers the link between the two letters with respect to the faith(fulness) of Christ. See now also James C. Miller, Paul and Hebrews: A Comparison of Narrative Worlds, in Hebrews: Contemporary Methods, New Insights (ed. Gabriella Gelardini; BIS 75; Leiden/Boston: Brill, 2005) 245-64, esp. 261-62. For accessible surveys of the scholarly study of Hebrews, see esp. Daniel J. Harrington, What Are They Saying About the Letter to the Hebrews? (New York/Mahwah, NJ: Paulist, 2005); and Andrew T. Lincoln, Hebrews: A Guide (London/New York: Clark, 2006). 25 See Wallis, Faith of Jesus Christ, 145: The Letter to the Hebrews furnishes us with the most explicit references to Jesus faith in the New Testament.

IV. Conclusion

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example of one who lived a faithful life and died a faithful death.26 More than simply a model for believers, however, Jesus is presented in Hebrews as the mediator between God and humanity, as the pure high priest who makes expiation for peoples sins and has compassion on their earthly plight (2:18; 4:15; 12:2).27 Additionally, the author and audience of the Epistle to the Hebrews regard Jesus as the Lord who not only enables people to come to God but also sanctifies them, intercedes for them, and leads them as the great shepherd of the sheep (2:11; 7:25; 13:12, 20).28 Getting the sheep to follow the faithful shepherd faithfully, however, is no small matter. It is to this end that our learned pastor-theologian is devoted in this letter,29 which, in the estimation of one interpreter, is almost certainly the most mysterious text to have been preserved in the NT canon.30 Another exegete regards Hebrews as an early Christian masterpiece.31 If Hebrews is a mysterious masterpiece, then Jesus is clearly the centerpiece. With bold, even brilliant brushstrokes, a now unknown Jewish Christian writer of the first century C.E. artistically and compellingly portrays Jesus as firm and faithful, trusting and trustworthy. Indeed, it is he whom the original and subsequent recipients of the letter are called to consider as they travel outside the camp in search of the city that is to come (13:13-14).
26 Bruce (Hebrews, 352) remarks: The whole life of Jesus was characterized by unbroken and unquestioning faith in His heavenly Father. . . . It was sheer faith in God, unsupported by any visible or tangible evidence, that carried Him through the taunting, the scourging, the crucifying, and the more bitter agony of rejection, desertion and dereliction. 27 So also Croy, Endurance in Suffering, 74: [I]t is clear throughout Hebrews that Jesus was more than just the perfect example of faith to our author. See similarly Graham Hughes, Hebrews and Hermeneutics: The Epistle to the Hebrews as a New Testament Example of Biblical Interpretation (SNTSMS 36; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1979) 78-86; and David Peterson, Hebrews and Perfection: An Examination of the Concept of Perfection in the Epistle to the Hebrews (SNTSMS 47; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1982) 172. 28 Marcus Dods (The Epistle to the Hebrews, in The Expositors Greek Testament [ed. W. Robertson Nicoll; 5 vols.; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1988] 4. 366) remarks: In Him alone do we see absolute dependence on God, implicit trust, what it is, what it costs, and what it results in. On Him therefore must the gaze be fixed if the runner is to endure, for in Him the reasonableness, the beauty, and the reward of a life of faith are seen. 29 William L. Lane (Hebrews, in Dictionary of the Later New Testament and Its Developments [ed. Ralph P. Martin and Peter H. Davids; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1997] 443-58, here 453) remarks, Hebrews was composed to arouse, urge, encourage and exhort the audience to maintain their Christian confession and to dissuade them from a course of action the writer regarded as catastrophic. 30 So Pamela M. Eisenbaum, Locating Hebrews within the Literary Landscape of Christian Origins, in Hebrews (ed. Gelardini), 213-37, here 213. 31 James Moffatt, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistle to the Hebrews (ICC; Edinburgh: Clark, 1924) x.