THIS
HOPE WE HAVE AS
AN ANCHOR OF THE SOUL: hên hos agkuran echomen (1PPAI) tes psuches:
(Col 1:5. 1Th 5:8. 1Pe 1:3, 4; Acts 27:29,40) (Soul Lk 9:24. Ps
103:1. Lk 1:46)
See Related Resources...
Hope: In depth survey of
Biblical hope
The Blessed Hope: Part 1
The Blessed Hope: Definition
The
Blessed Hope: Source of
The Blessed Hope: Part 2
The Blessed Hope: Stabilizing Effect
The Blessed Hope: Sanctifying Effect
Other
Resources on the Blessed Hope
Note the mixed metaphors -
an anchor bringing to mind a nautical
picture and the veil which pictures the Temple.
Hope
is added by NASB translators but not they did not italicize it as they
usually do when they are indicating an addition of a word which is not
present in the original Greek text!
Literally
the Greek reads "which like anchor we continually
have" with obvious subject being "Hope".
1Timothy 1:1 Christ Jesus = our hope.
Colossians 1:5
(note)
hope laid up for you in heaven
Related Resource:
Hope - See Dictionary Articles
Nave's Topic on Hope.
Psa. 9:18; Psa. 16:9; Psa. 31:24; Psa. 33:18, 22; Psa. 38:15; Psa.
39:7; Psa. 43:5; Psa. 71:5, 14; Psa. 78:5-7; Psa.
119:74,81,116,166Psa. 130:7; Psa. 146:5; Prov. 10:23; Prov. 13:12;
Prov. 14:32; Prov. 23:18; Prov. 24:14; Isaiah 38:18; Jer. 17:7; Lam.
3:21, 24, 26; Hos. 2:15; Joel 3:16; Zech. 9:12; Acts 23:6; Acts 24:14,
15; Acts 26:6, 7; Acts 28:20; Rom. 4:18; Rom. 5:2-3, 4-5; Rom. 8:24,
25; Rom. 12:12; Rom. 15:4, 13; 1Cor. 13:13; 1Cor. 15:19; 2Cor. 3:12;
Gal. 5:5; Eph. 1:18; Eph. 4:4; Phil. 1:20; Col. 1:5, 23, 27; 1Thess.
1:3; 1Thess. 5:8 Eph. 6:17. 2Thess. 2:16; 1Tim. 1:1; Titus 1:2; Titus
2:13; Titus 3:7; Heb. 3:6; Heb. 6:11, 18, 19; Heb. 11:1; 1Pet. 1:3,
13, 21; 1Pet. 3:15; 1John 3:3
Hope of the Wicked - Job 8:13; Job 11:20; Job 27:8; Job 31:24,
28; Prov. 10:28; Zech. 9:5; Eph. 2:12
Have (2192)
(echo) means to have or hold something. Note the use of the
present tense
which indicates this anchor is one we can continually possess in Christ.
Note what it stabilizes - the soul.
Anchor
(45)
(agkura,
Latin = ancora, an anchor) is a heavy weight of stone or metal attached to a
rope or chain and dropped overboard to keep a ship from moving with the
current. Ancient anchors were much like the modern ones with iron hooks to
grapple the rocks and so hold on to prevent shipwreck.
A
vessel that is not securely anchored does not have much hope of riding
out a violent storm. Figuratively, as used in Hebrews it speaks of
that which provides security, support, stay, safeguard (as hope). The anchor
refers to the hope generated by faith in gospel which enables the believer
to stand firm in face of temptations, calamities and storms.
Agkura is used 4 times in Scripture (Acts 27:29, 30, 40; Heb 6:19),
all three of the Acts uses referring to a literal anchor.
Easton's dictionary states that
it would appear that the Roman vessels carried several anchors, which were
attached to the stern as well as to the prow. The Roman anchor, like the
modern one, had two teeth or flukes. In the word is used metaphorically for
that which supports or keeps one steadfast in the time of trial or of doubt.
It is an emblem of hope. "If you fear, Put all your trust in God: that
anchor holds.
Thayer writes that...
(ancient anchors resembled modern in form: were of iron, provided with a
stock, and with two teeth-like extremities often but by no means always
without flukes;
Anchors symbolized
hope in Greek secular world. Agkura is used by the writer as vivid
picture of that which supports and keeps one steadfast in the
midst of waves of doubt or stormy trials. If you fear, if you doubt, place
all your trust in Christ: the "Anchor" Who holds forever. The
anchor was an ancient Christian symbol for safety, security, and hope.
Jon Courson adds that...
In the catacombs of Rome, where Christians hid in times of persecution, one
symbol can be seen more than any other: the anchor. No matter what
storms come our way, we are anchored in the Word of God, in the promises He
made. We have this sure hope that He will do what He says. So don’t go back
to temple worship, entreats the author. Don’t go back to heathen practices,
to partying, to wherever else you came from. Be anchored in the immutable,
unchangeable, sure, and steadfast Word of God. (Courson, J. Jon
Courson's Application Commentary. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson)
The sworn promises of God
and the faithfulness of God should serve as an
anchor to calm fears in storms of life. The anchor conveys the sense of the stabilizing influence
of a hope grounded (anchored!), one grounded not on so called "terra firma"
(which is passing away) but in the inner sanctuary of heaven in the
Forerunner Himself. Christ Jesus is fulfillment of the unchangeable divine
purpose based on two immutable facts: God’s Word of promise and His oath.
Note the use of other
nautical concepts in this book - Hebrews 2:1; 3:6, 14; 10:23, 38.
The anchor is the shadow, of which Jesus is the substance.
Vine writes that
what an anchor is to a vessel in its
tossings, so the hope is to us in our times of trial, difficulty and stress.
The anchor is outside the ship, is connected with it, and keeps it secure.
(Vine,
W. Collected writings of W. E. Vine. Nashville: Thomas Nelson
or
Logos)
Soul (5590)
(psuche from psucho = to breathe) refers to whole person
particularly inner, immortal person who lives in the mortal body
A HOPE
BOTH SURE AND STEADFAST: asphale te kai bebaian:
(Psalms 42:5,11; 43:5; 62:5,6; 146:5,6; Isaiah 12:2; 25:3,4; 28:16; Jeremiah
17:7,8; Romans 4:16; 5:5-10; 8:28-39; 1Corinthians 15:58; 2Timothy 2:19)
The idea is that what one hopes for makes him safe and sure or him to
be secure and certain.
Hope (added by the translators as appropriate to the context) is
found represented on coins by an anchor.
Sure
(804)
(asphales
from from a = w/o + sphallo
= throw down, trip up, totter, bring to the ground, make someone fall)
is an adjective which literally means that which cannot be thrown down, tripped up, tottered or
overthrown. It describes that which is secure and safe from stumbling
or falling.
Asphales thus means firm, sure, secure, safety,
unshakeable, certain, steady, immovable (as of the anchor in Heb 6:19
- see below - or in Septuagint referring to the sky above in Pr 8:28)
and then figuratively referring to a state of safety, stability and
security which can be relied on and hence free from danger and secure
from peril. Asphales describes something that cannot be made to
totter when put to the test. In Acts 2:36 the related adverb
asphalos means certainly, surely, speaking of that which is known
beyond a doubt.
Asphales is used figuratively to describe that which is stable,
firm, safe, secure and which can be relied upon or confided in.
In this
passage asphales describes a state of knowledge which is reliable and
certain. In (Acts 21:34) asphales describes the truth, the facts
which are certain and definite. Asphales was used in Greek to describe
friends and the like as unfailing. In the present context aphales
speaks of something that cannot be made to totter when put to the test.
This hope is sure in respect to believers and steadfast or firm in
itself.
Steadfast (949)
(bebaios from
baino = to go, walk, step) means sustaining one’s steps in going and describes that which is fixed, stable, sure, attested to and certified.
It is something which is unwavering and persistent and thus can be relied on or depended on. It
pertains to that which is known with certainty. It refers to
something that has validity over a period of time (e.g., the promise
made to Abraham remained valid to NT believers, see note
Romans 4:16). Figuratively bebaios refers to that upon which one may
build, rely or trust.
Bebaios is something that can be
relied on not to cause disappointment for it is reliable and unshifting.
In practice, though not originally, bebaios is close to
pistos (4103)
(trustworthy, dependable, reliable, faithful)
That
which cannot be thrown down and is secure against all attempts to break the
hold. This "anchor" will not totter, though the earth should shake all
around us.
Wuest comments that bebaios...
speaks of something which does not break down under the weight of something
that steps on it. This hope which the believing soul has in the Lord Jesus
is an anchor of the soul which cannot be made
to totter nor break down when put under stress and strain. The words “which
entereth” go back syntactically to the word “anchor.” It is the anchor that
enters into that within the veil.
(Wuest,
K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans
or
Logos)
In Hebrews, bebaios is a favorite term for that which is assured (Hebrews
2:2; 3:6, 3:14; 6:19; Romans 9:17 see
notes
Heb 2:2;
3:6,
3:14;
6:19;
Ro 9:17). The distinction between the two adjectives expresses the
relation of the same object to different tests applied from without.
TDNT says that
bebaios
means “standing firm on the feet,”
“steadfast,” “maintaining firmness or solidity,” “steadfast for…” Hence
“firm” in the sense of having inner solidity. In respect of abstract
things and persons bebaios thus comes to mean “steady,” “sure,” “reliable”
“steadfast,” or “certain. " (Kittel,
G., Friedrich, G., & Bromiley, G. W. Theological Dictionary of the New
Testament. Eerdmans)
Bebaios has a legal
sense, signifying a legal guarantee, obtained by the buyer from the seller,
to be gone back upon should a third party claim the thing. Thus in classic
Greek bebaios described a warranty deed somewhat like a guarantee one
might have today on an automobile or similar product.
Peter uses bebaios
describing the Word of God, writing that
"we have the prophetic word [made] (not
in Greek. Literally = "word more sure") more sure, to which you do well to
pay (close) attention (nautical term that meant to hold a ship in a
direction and so to sail towards!) as to a lamp shining in a dark (miry,
filthy, murky, dismal, dark) place, until the day dawns (shines through,
breaks forth) and the morning star arises in your hearts." (see note
2 Peter 1:19)
MacDonald comments
that
"In the storms and trials of life this
hope serves as an anchor of the soul. The knowledge that our glorification
is as certain as if it had already happened keeps us from drifting on the
wild waves of doubt and despair. The anchor is not cast in the shifting
sands of this world but takes hold in the heavenly sanctuary. Since our hope
is the anchor, the meaning is that our hope is secured in God’s very
Presence behind the veil. Just as sure as the anchor is there, we shall be
there also." (MacDonald,
W & Farstad, A. Believer's Bible Commentary: Thomas Nelson)
AND ONE
WHICH ENTERS WITHIN THE VEIL: to esôteron tou katapetasmatos:
(Heb 4:16; 9:3,7; 10:20,21; Leviticus 16:2,15; Matthew 27:51; Ephesians 2:6;
Colossians 3:1)
Now think for a moment to whom this letter is primarily addressed. Is it not
Hebrew Christians and those Hebrews who were seriously contemplating Christ?
It therefore behooves us (most of us being Gentile believers today) to step
back and put yourself in the mind-set of the Hebrew, for only then can you
see how radical this declaration would have been to the first century Jewish
readers. It should be no less astounding to us Gentiles who were far even
further removed from the Holy of holies for as Paul explained
Therefore remember, that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh, who are
called "Uncircumcision" by the so-called "Circumcision," which is performed
in the flesh by human hands--remember that you were at that time separate
from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth
of Israel, and strangers to the
covenants of promise, having no hope and without God in the world. But now
in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the
blood of Christ. (See notes
Ephesians 2:11;
2:12;
2:13)
Enters (1525) (eiserchomai
from eis = into + erchomai = come) means to go or come into or
to enter into.
Within the veil - If one takes the Holy of Holies as a figure of heaven where God dwells, within the veil
clearly refers to into heaven itself.
Within (2082)
(esoteros) describes a position within an area.
Veil (2665)
(katapetasma
from kata = down + petomai
= flies) literally means that which is spread out over or downward and hence a
veil, a curtain or a cloth drape. It describes that which
falls down and thus a curtain or cloth hanging over an opening.
The katapetasma was the veil of the tabernacle or temple used to
separate the Most Holy Place (Holy of holies - place of the Ark of the
Covenant) from the Holy Place. The hope, the anchor, takes hold in the
very presence of God. Christ Himself who is there and is the pledge of all
that is coming, prevents us from making shipwreck.
According to the Talmud, the veils were 60 feet long and 30 feet wide, about
the thickness of a man’s palm (four inches), and made of 72 squares that
were sown together. The veils were so heavy that it took 300 priests to hang
them, according to Jewish tradition.
Katapetasma
is used 33 times in the
Septuagint (LXX)
(Ex. 26:31, 33, 37; 27:21; 30:6; 35:12;
36:34, 37; 38:18, 27; 39:40; 40:3, 5, 21f, 26; Lev. 4:6, 17; 16:2, 12, 15;
21:23; 24:3; Num. 3:10, 26; 4:5, 32; 18:7; 1Ki. 6:36; 2Chr. 3:14).
There are 6 uses of
Katapetasma
in the NT (Matt. 27:51; Mk. 15:38; Lk.
23:45; Heb 6:19; 9:3; 10:20 - see below and notes on
Hebrews 9:3)
The synoptic gospel writers record that just before
Jesus breathed His last, the veil was rent from top to bottom...
And behold, the veil
of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom (not a natural way for it
to tear but a supernatural way indicating that God did it), and the earth
shook; and the rocks were split, (Mt 27:51)
And the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. (Mark
15:38)
the sun being obscured; and the veil of the temple was torn in two.
46 And Jesus, crying out with a loud voice, said, "Father, INTO THY HANDS I
COMMIT MY SPIRIT." And having said this, He breathed His last. (Luke
23:45-46)
The tearing of the veil symbolized the opening of the presence of God
to mankind through the sacrifice of Jesus, a truth which was elaborated upon
by the writer of Hebrews who stated that...
Since therefore, brethren, we
have confidence to enter the holy place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new
and living way which He inaugurated for us through the veil, that is,
His flesh (Hebrews 10:19-20)
Comment: Christ's body was the Temple
as He stated in Jn 2:19, 2:21and His flesh was the "veil". As long as He was
alive there was no access to God. His rent flesh opened the way, a new and
living way, and made available our "introduction by faith into this grace in
which we stand"
Romans 5:2.
Gnosticism was preoccupied with the curtain between heaven and earth and
taught that a cosmic curtain was a hindrance to the heavenly journey of the
soul from the cosmos to the pleroma (fullness). The writer of Hebrews
demolishes such foolishness.
The anchor is out of
sight, but it holds and that is what matters. Within the veil is the
unseen, eternal reality of the heavenly world. A ship’s anchor goes down to
the ocean, the Christian’s anchor goes up into the heavenly sanctuary and
"moors" us to God Himself.
The outer veil was called by a distinct Greek term, calumma the second (that
is, the inner) veil.
Jamieson
writes that...
The first-fruits of our nature are ascended, and so the rest is sanctified.
Christ’s ascension is our promotion: and whither the glory of the Head has
preceded. thither the hope of the body, too, is called. We ought to keep
festal day, since Christ has taken up and set in the heavens the first-fruit
of our lump, that is, the human flesh [Chrysostom]. As John Baptist was
Christ’s forerunner on earth, so Christ is ours in heaven. (Hebrews 6)
Unger has this note on the veil...
The veil (Hebrew = pārōket, a “separation”), particularly described in Ex.
26:31-33; 36:35-36, was the screen between the Holy Place and the Holy of
Holies. It was of the same material as the door screens but was embroidered
with cherubim. It is thought that there were two, their extended wings
touching each other. The veil, like the other hangings, was suspended upon
pillars and, probably, “bands” (curtain rods), though the latter are not
mentioned. These pillars (and bands) were covered with gold, the hooks were
of gold, and the sockets of silver. For the veil four pillars were used, and
as no one of them ran up to the peak, it did not, therefore, need to be in
the center. The upper corners of the veil were fastened to the gold hooks in
the boards. If we follow the proportions of the Holy Place and the Most Holy
Place in the Temple, we must suppose the latter in the Tabernacle to have
been square and the former to have been twice as long as broad. This will
fix the dividing line between the two rooms at two-thirds of the width of
the seventh board from the rear; the presumption is that the pillars were
wholly within the Most Holy Place. (Unger,
M. F., Harrison, R. K., Vos, H. F., Barber, C. J., & Unger, M. F. The New
Unger's Bible Dictionary. Chicago: Moody Press)
Wuest comments that...
We have some rich figures here. This present life is the sea; the soul, a
ship; the hidden bottom of the sea, the hidden reality of the heavenly word.
The soul is seen as storm-tossed on the troubled sea of life. The soul of
the believer, as a tempest-tossed ship, is held by the anchor within the
veil, fastened by faith to the blessed reality within the veil.
The anchor of the believer’s soul, his hope of eternal life in his High
Priest, the Messiah, is fastened securely to a Rock within the veil of the
Holy of Holies in heaven. That Rock is Messiah, whom the writer now speaks
of as the forerunner. (Wuest,
K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans
or
Logos)
F B Hole (Biographical
Note) writes that...
The Christian's hope is heavenly;
therefore it is said to enter into "that within the veil." Within the veil
was the holiest of all, typical of the third heaven; that is, the immediate
presence of God. That within the veil was the ark of the covenant, typical
of Christ. Now Christ is entered into the immediate presence of God, and
that on our behalf. He is entered as Forerunner and as High Priest. Our hope
being centred in Him acts as an anchor of the soul, both sure and stedfast.
Our hope has anchored itself already in the glorified Lord Jesus. We are
already anchored to the Person and the place, to whom and to which we are
going. It is as though an outgoing Atlantic liner found herself securely
attached to New York by an anchor pitched in New York harbour, before ever
she had got clear of the English Channel!
The fact that Christ has become our Forerunner guarantees that we who are
the after-runners shall reach the place where He is. And as High Priest He
ever lives to carry us through. That He should be our Forerunner is amazing
grace; for in the East where these customs prevail the forerunner is a
person of no consequence who clears the way for the important personage who
follows after. Think of the Lord Jesus taking a place like that on our
account!
(Hebrews
Commentary Notes)
><> ><> ><>
From Our
Daily Bread...
The president of
Gordon College, R. Judson Carlberg, was driving along the ocean near
his home in Massachusetts when he saw two stately 17th-century sailing
ships. They were replicas that were built for a movie being filmed
nearby.
"The breeze was stiff," Carlberg
reported, "straining the rigging and the crews. Yet each ship stayed
the course and didn't capsize." He explained the secret of their
stability. "Beneath the waterline each had a deep, heavy keel--a part
you don't see." The keel was essential for keeping the vessel steady
in rough weather. What is it that holds us steady when fierce winds
are blowing across life's sea? What keeps us from capsizing when we
are under stress and tension? What enables us to sail on, despite the
strain? It's the stabilizing keel of faith in our sovereign God. It's
our unseen relationship with Christ. As He commanded the wind and the
waves on the Sea of Galilee, He also controls the storms and squalls
of life that threaten to sink us or drive us off course. Our faith in
Christ is an "anchor of the soul" (Heb. 6:19) that can keep us from
ultimate shipwreck. Do you have that unseen keel of faith? --V C Grounds
