John Gill's Bible Commentary Ver. 3. How shall we escape , etc..] The righteous judgment of God, and eternal punishment: if we neglect so great salvation ? as the Gospel is, which is called salvation; in opposition to the law, which is the ministration of condemnation; and because it is a declaration of salvation by Christ; and is the means of bringing it near, and of the application of it in conversion, and so is the power of God unto it: and it is a great salvation; the Gospel which reveals it is great, for the author of it is Christ; it has been confirmed by miracles, and attended with great success; and has in it great things, great mysteries, and exceeding great and precious promises: and the salvation which it declares is great; it is the produce of great wisdom; it is wrought by a great person, by a Saviour, and a great one, and who is the great God, and our Saviour; it has been procured at great charge and expense, even at the expense of the blood and life of the Son of God; and has been obtained through great difficulties; and is the salvation of the soul, the more noble part of man; and it is a complete and everlasting one: to neglect this, is to be careless of it; to condemn it, and to despise the ministers of it; and to make anything else but Christ the way of salvation: and the danger such are in is very great; it is not possible that they should escape divine vengeance, since their sin is so great, and attended with such aggravating circumstances; for it is a contempt of the grace and wisdom of God in providing such a Saviour, and a trampling under foot the Son of God, and a counting his blood as a common thing; and besides, there is no more sacrifice for sin, they can have nothing to atone for it; and that God, whom they offend hereby, is both omniscient and omnipotent, and there will be no escaping out of his hands: to which must be added, that this Gospel of salvation is that which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord ; by the Lord Jesus Christ himself; the Gospel was preached by him, and he was extraordinarily qualified for it; and he spake it as never man did: it was preached by John indeed, and by all the prophets before him, and to the Israelites in the wilderness, and to Abraham before them, and even to Adam in Eden's garden, which was the first time it was spoken; but then it was spoken to him by the Lord; by the Word of the Lord, the essential Word, the Son of God, as the ancient Chaldee paraphrases, which express the sense of the old Jewish church, show f27 : besides, it began most fully and clearly to be preached by him in the days of his flesh, so as it never was preached before, nor since; grace and truth, the doctrines of grace and truth came by him, in all their fulness and glory: and was confirmed unto us by them that heard him ; the Gospel is in itself firm and stable; nor did the words of Christ need any confirmation, who is truth itself, the Amen, and faithful witness; but in condescension to human weakness, and by reason that Christ, as man, was not everywhere, and that by the mouth of more witnesses it should be established, he sent forth his apostles to preach it; who heard it from him, and they published it to the Jews first, as these were to whom the apostle writes, and then to the Gentiles. And though the apostle had it first by revelation from Christ himself, ( Galatians 1:11,12) it was confirmed to him by Ananias.
Matthew Henry Commentary
Verses 1-4 - Christ being proved to be superior to the angels, this doctrine i applied. Our minds and memories are like a leaky vessel, they do not without much care, retain what is poured into them. This proceeds from the corruption of our nature, temptations, worldly cares, an pleasures. Sinning against the gospel is neglect of this grea salvation; it is a contempt of the saving grace of God in Christ making light of it, not caring for it, not regarding either the worth of gospel grace, or the want of it, and our undone state without it The Lord's judgments under the gospel dispensation are chiefl spiritual, but are on that account the more to be dreaded. Here is a appeal to the consciences of sinners. Even partial neglects will no escape rebukes; they often bring darkness on the souls they do no finally ruin. The setting forth the gospel was continued and confirme by those who heard Christ, by the evangelists and apostles, who wer witnesses of what Jesus Christ began both to do and to teach; and by the gifts of the Holy Ghost, qualified for the work to which they wer called. And all this according to God's own will. It was the will of God that we should have sure ground for our faith, and a stron foundation for our hope in receiving the gospel. Let us mind this on thing needful, and attend to the Holy Scriptures, written by those wh heard the words of our gracious Lord, and were inspired by his Spirit then we shall be blessed with the good part that cannot be taken away.
Greek Textus Receptus
πως 4459 ADV-I ημεις 2249 P-1NP εκφευξομεθα 1628 5695 V-FDI-1P τηλικαυτης 5082 D-GSF αμελησαντες 272 5660 V-AAP-NPM σωτηριας 4991 N-GSF ητις 3748 R-NSF αρχην 746 N-ASF λαβουσα 2983 5631 V-2AAP-NSF λαλεισθαι 2980 5745 V-PPN δια 1223 PREP του 3588 T-GSM κυριου 2962 N-GSM υπο 5259 PREP των 3588 T-GPM ακουσαντων 191 5660 V-AAP-GPM εις 1519 PREP ημας 2248 P-1AP εβεβαιωθη 950 5681 V-API-3S
Vincent's NT Word Studies
3. How shall we escape (pwv hmeiv ekfeuxomeqa). The rhetorical question expressing denial. We is emphatic. We, to whom God has spoken by his Son, and who, therefore, have so much the more reason for giving heed. jEkfeuxomeqa lit. flee out from. The English escape conveys the same idea, but. contains a picture which is not in the Greek word, namely, to slip out of one's cape, ex cappa, and so get away. Comp. French chapper. In Italian we have scappare "to escape," and also incappare "to fall into a snare," and incappuciare "to wrap up in a hood or cape; to mask."If we neglect (amelhsantev). Lit. having neglected. Rare in N.T., o P. Comp. Matt. xxii. 5; 1 Tim. iv. 14. The thought falls in with drift past, ver. 1.
Salvation (swthrian). Characterizing the new dispensation, as the word (ver. 2) characterizes the old. Not the teaching or word of salvation, but the salvation itself which is the gift of the gospel, to be obtained by purification from sin through the agency of the Son (ch. i. 3). Which (htiv) Explanatory. A salvation which may be described as one which was first spoken by the Lord, etc.
At the first began to be spoken (archn labousa). Lit. having taken beginning to be spoken. Rend. which, having at the first been spoken. The phrase N.T.o .
By the Lord (dia tou kuriou). Const. withajrchn labousa, not with laleisqai. It is the beginning, not the speaking which is emphasized. Was confirmed (ebebaiwqh). It was sure (bebaiov) even as was the word spoken by angels (ver. 2), and it was confirmed, proved to be real, by the testimony of ear-witnesses.
By them that heard (upo twn akousantwn). We heard it (ver. 1) from those who heard, the immediate followers of the Lord. The writer thus puts himself in the second generation of Christians. They are not said to have heard the gospel directly from the Lord. Paul, on the other hand, claims that he received the gospel directly from Christ (Gal. i. 11).
