Hebrews 12:26

12:18-29 Mount Sinai, on which the Jewish church state was formed, was a mount such as might be touched, though forbidden to be so, a place that could be felt; so the Mosaic dispensation was much in outward and earthly things. The gospel state is kind and condescending, suited to our weak frame. Under the gospel all may come with boldness to God's presence. But the most holy must despair, if judged by the holy law given from Sinai, without a Saviour. The gospel church is called Mount Zion; there believers have clearer views of heaven, and more heavenly tempers of soul. All the children of God are heirs, and every one has the privileges of the first-born. Let a soul be supposed to join that glorious assembly and church above, that is yet unacquainted with God, still carnally-minded, loving this present world and state of things, looking back to it with a lingering eye, full of pride and guile, filled with lusts; such a soul would seem to have mistaken its way, place, state, and company. It would be uneasy to itself and all about it. Christ is the Mediator of this new covenant, between God and man, to bring them together in this covenant; to keep them together; to plead with God for us, and to plead with us for God; and at length to bring God and his people together in heaven. This covenant is made firm by the blood of Christ sprinkled upon our consciences, as the blood of the sacrifice was sprinkled upon the altar and the victim.

This blood of Christ speaks in behalf of sinners; it pleads not for vengeance, but for mercy. See then that you refuse not his gracious call and offered salvation. See that you do not refuse Him who speaketh from heaven, with infinite tenderness and love; for how can those escape, who turn from God in unbelief or apostacy, while he so graciously beseeches them to be reconciled, and to receive his everlasting favour! God's dealing with men under the gospel, in a way of grace, assures us, that he will deal with the despisers of the gospel, in a way of judgment. We cannot worship God acceptably, unless we worship him with reverence and godly fear. Only the grace of God enables us to worship God aright. God is the same just and righteous God under the gospel as under the law. The inheritance of believers is secured to them; and all things pertaining to salvation are freely given in answer to prayer. Let us seek for grace, that we may serve God with reverence and godly fear.

{14} Whose voice then shook the earth: but now he hath promised, saying, {l} Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. (14) He compares the steadfast majesty of the gospel, with which the whole world was shaken, and even the very frame of heaven was astonished, with the small and vanishing sound of the governance by the law. (l) It appears evidently in this that the prophet speaks of the calling of the Gentiles, that these words must refer to the kingdom of Christ.

Whose voice (οὗ ἡ φωνὴ) Connect, after the parenthesis, with speaketh better, etc., Hebrews 12:24. Shook (ἐσάλευσεν) See on Luke 21:26, and comp. σάλος tossing or swell of the sea, Luke 21:25. See Judges 5:4; Psalm 113:7. He hath promised (ἐπήγγελται) See Haggai 2:6. The quotation is adapted from lxx, which reads: "Yet once will I shake the heaven and the earth and the sea and the dry land." The Hebrew for "yet once" reads "yet a little while." In Haggai's prophecy, he comforts the people for their sorrow that the second temple is so inferior to the first, predicting that Jehovah will move heaven and earth and sea and land, and will fill the house with his glory; and the glory of the latter house shall exceed that of the former. The discipline begun on Sinai will then have its consummation. This shaking of heaven and earth was typified by the material shaking at Sinai. The shaking predicted by the prophet is applied by our writer to the downfall of worldly powers before the kingdom of Christ, Hebrews 12:28; comp Hebrews 1:8, and see Zechariah 14.

Hebrews 12:26-27 . Whose voice — Namely, Christ’s, who appeared to Moses at the bush, gave the law, and conducted Israel through the wilderness; see on Exodus 3:2 ; Isaiah 63:9 ; 1 Corinthians 10:9 ; then shook the earth — When, at the giving of the law, he spoke from Sinai, and the whole mount quaked greatly, Exodus 19:18 ; but now — In the gospel times; he hath promised — Or declared, saying, ( Haggai 2:6 ,) Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven — Meaning, probably, the abolition of the civil and ecclesiastical constitution of the Jews, with the destruction of Jerusalem and the temple, Matthew 24:29 ; John 4:21 ; John 4:23 ; and even the overthrow of the heathen idolatry, John 16:11 , and the propagation of the gospel throughout the world: changes which, in the nature of things, could not take place without great commotions, and the shaking of governments and nations. Dreadful commotions and wars preceded the coming of Christ in the flesh, of which see on Haggai 2:6 : but the shakings here intended must be those consequent on his so coming, and productive of the events now referred to. They may, however, look forward even to Christ’s second coming, and the final consummation of all things.

For this word, Yet once more — Or once for all, not only signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken — The total subversion of the Jewish commonwealth and church, with the ordinances of Moses; as of things that are made — Namely, by human hands; or constituted or appointed only for a time; (the verb ποιειν , here used, frequently meaning to constitute or appoint, as chap. Hebrews 3:2 ; Mark 3:14 , in both which passages it is translated to appoint, as it is also in many other places;) that those things which cannot be shaken — A dispensation to be changed no more; may remain — Fixed on a perpetual basis; even that eternal kingdom of righteousness and peace which God hath established by his Son Jesus Christ. This inference the apostle rightly draws from the expression, yet once more. For, as it implies that God would make but one alteration more in the religious worship of the world, it certainly follows that the form to be substituted in the room of the things to be shaken or removed, shall be permanent. The gospel, therefore, will remain to the end of the world, as the only form of religion acceptable to God. And then, as the words also imply, the heaven and the earth shall themselves be removed, as things made and intended only to endure for a time; and those things which cannot be shaken, the new heaven and the new earth, shall remain, to be the inheritance of God’s people for ever, Revelation 21:1 , &c.

Hebrews 12:26 . Οὗ ἡ φωνὴ ) as being One whose voice . Hereby is explained what kind of speaking that was on earth, and what kind of speaking of oracles, χρηματισμὸς , this is from the heavens. Therefore the article τὸν in Hebrews 12:25 does not prevent it from being one and the same person who spoke on earth and who now speaks from heaven. There is however a Mimesis,[85] and the feelings of those are expressed who do not acknowledge Him that speaketh .— τὴν γῆν ) Γῆ ἘΣΕΊΣΘΗ , the earth was shaken , Psalm 68:9 , רָעָשָׁה , and Haggai uses this same word. The psalm mentions, that even the heavens dropped at that time, namely, those near to the mountain; but Haggai speaks of the whole created (made) heavens.— νῦν , now ) The apostle shows not only what GOD now has promised, but what He is doing (is to do).— ἐπήγγελται ) He hath promised . It is a promise intended to excite the hope of the saints, although the ungodly are terrified at it: therefore this passage contains an admonition entirely evangelical: comp. ch. Hebrews 2:3 .— ἔτι ἁπαξ ἐγὼ σείσω οὐ μόνον τὴν γῆν , ἀλλὰ καὶ τὸν οὐρανὸν , yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also heaven ) עוד אחת מעט היא ואני מרעיש ונ , LXX. ἜΤΙ ἍΠΑΞ , Κ.Τ.Λ. , and Hebrews 12:21 , ἘΓῺ ΣΕΊΩ , Κ.Τ.Λ. , yet once I will shake the heaven and the earth and the sea and the dry land , etc.; and Hebrews 12:21 , I shake the heaven and the earth and the sea and the dry land .

The apostle brings the two verses into one, by which he shows that it was one and the same shaking, of which the one verse of Haggai denotes the beginning, the other the end. For that shaking began at the first coming of the Messiah; it will be finished at the second: concerning the former, comp. Matthew 3:17 ; Matthew 27:51 ; Matthew 28:2 ; Acts 2:2 ; Acts 4:31 : concerning the latter, Matthew 24:7 ; Revelation 16:20 ; Revelation 20:11 . There is an illustrious testimony given by Sir Isaac New ton on Daniel, p. 94: “And there is scarcely any prophecy concerning Christ in the whole of the Old Testament, which does not, to some extent at least, refer to His second coming.”— ΣΕΊΣΩ , I will shake ) Others read σείω . The LXX. have both, as we have now seen; but σείω , I will shake , expresses the promise .[86] [85] See Append. [86] And that reading in the larger Ed. is not reckoned among those to be approved; on the marg. of the 2d Ed. it is equal to the reading σείω , and is decidedly preferred in the Germ. Vers.—E. B. AC Vulg. Memph. and Theb. read σείσω . But D f and Rec. Text σείω , with less authority.—ED.

26 . whose voice then shook the earth ] Exodus 19:18 ; Jdg 5:4 ; Psalm 114:7 . but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more ] Rather, “again, once for all.” The quotation is from Haggai 2:6-7 , “yet once, it is a little while” (comp. Hosea 1:4 ). but also heaven ] “For the powers of the heavens shall be shaken” ( Luke 21:26 ).

26. then shook—when He gave the law on Sinai. now—under the Gospel. promised—The announcement of His coming to break up the present order of things, is to the ungodly a terror, to the godly a promise, the fulfilment of which they look for with joyful hope. Yet once more—Compare Notes, see on [2599]Hag 2:6; [2600]Hag 2:21, 22, both of which passages are condensed into one here. The shaking began at the first coming of Messiah; it will be completed at His second coming, prodigies in the world of nature accompanying the overthrow of all kingdoms that oppose Messiah. The Hebrew is literally, "it is yet one little," that is, a single brief space till the series of movements begins ending in the advent of Messiah. Not merely the earth, as at the establishment of the Sinaitic covenant, but heaven also is to be shaken. The two advents of Messiah are regarded as one, the complete shaking belonging to the second advent, of which the presage was given in the shakings at the first advent: the convulsions connected with the overthrow of Jerusalem shadowing forth those about to be at the overthrow of all the God-opposed kingdoms by the coming Messiah.

(26) Shook the earth. — Exodus 19:18-19 ; Judges 5:4-5 . The terrors of Sinai were, moreover, a type of a more terrible revelation of judgment, when not only shall the earth tremble, but the earth and the heaven shall be moved, and all that is transitory and mutable shall pass away. The words of Haggai 2:6 are taken as a prophecy of this consummation. The reference of the prediction of which this forms part to the first coming of the Messiah is passed over; it is only as bearing upon the last days that the words are quoted here. Now he hath promised.—This whole time of waiting is included in the “now.” It is as if the words were: “now we have this promise, and are looking for its fulfilment.” I shake.—Rather (according to the better reading), I will move (or, make to tremble).

Verse 26. - Whose voice then shook the earth (see Exodus 19:18 , "The whole mount quaked greatly," though there the LXX. has λαός instead of ὄρος : but cf. Judges 5 , "The earth trembled," and Psalm 114:7 , "Tremble, thou earth," etc., with reference to the phenomena at Sinai; also Habakkuk 3:6, 10 ): but now he hath promised, saying, Yet once more I shake not the earth only, but also heaven. The prophecy referred to is Haggai 2:6, 7 , "Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens, and the earth, and the sea, and the dry land; and I will shake all nations, and the Desire of all nations shall come: and I will fill this house with glory, saith the LORD of hosts." Again, ver. 21, "I will shake the heavens and the earth" (cf. lea. 2:19, 21). The prophecy was uttered with reference to the second temple, the glory of which was to be greater than the glory of the first, in that it should be the scene of the LORD'S final revelation of himself to his people. Its first fulfillment is rightly seen in Christ's first coming (cf. Habakkuk 2:9 , "And in this place will I give peace, saith the Lord of hosts;" and Malachi 3:1 , " The Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple").