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Hebrews 6:4-6:
Heb 6:4 For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,
Heb 6:5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,
Heb 6:6 and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.
In the entire epistle the author is admonishing the reader to accept the Gospel in faith and not fall into the sin of unbelief that will lead to judgment (see Hebrews 2:1-3; Hebrews 3:12-14; Hebrews 4:1, 6; 11; Hebrews 10:25, 27, 31; Hebrews 12:16-17, 25, 29).
Yet, in Hebrews 6:4-6 the recipients of the Epistle are not addressed. Rather a truth is stated emerging from an earlier reference to the Israelites falling in the desert because of unbelief. This truth applies also to the Isarelites, despite the author’s omitting personal reference in Hebrews 6:4-6.
Three points divide the text:
1. Who are the people mentioned? The people mentioned are characterized by four Greek participles displaying poetic rhythm—enlightened, tasted, partakers, tasted.
“those who have once been enlightened”
Here, and in Hebrews 10:32, “enlightened” means “knowledge of the truth” as in Hebrews 10:26. The verb is not related to baptism, but has a broader meaning as indicated by other usages in Luke 11:36; John 1:9; 1 Cor. 4:5; Ephesians 1:28, 39; 2 Timothy 1:10; Rev. 18:1; Rev. 21:23; Rev. 22:5. Yet nothing here means persons that have once been saved.
“{who} have tasted of the heavenly gift”
Attempts to limit this to mean those new converts that have attended worship, made professions of faith, celebrated the Lord’s Supper, etc., are viewing the passage too narrowly, for we find the broader explanation in the New Testament:
- Jesus calls Himself, “the gift of God” (John 4:10)
- Peter names the Spirit the gift of God (Acts 2:38; Acts 8:20; Acts 10:45; Acts 11:17)
- Paul mentions “the gift of grace”, “the gift of righteousness”, associating them with Christ (Romans 5:15; Romans 5:17, 2 Cor. 9:15; Ephesians 3:7; Ephesians 4:7).
“{who} partakers of the Holy Spirit”
The connection between the preceding clause above and this one is clear from the Greek. We may even see the link between the “laying on of hands” (Hebrews 6:2) and the sharing in the Holy Spirit, especially, from the above, if we understand the heavenly gift to be the Spirit. Sharing in the Spirit implies this is done in fellowship with other believers, with the Spirit manifested in various gifts given to the church members (1 Cor. 12:7-11). Many partake of the Spirit without being indwelt by the Spirit.
“{who} have tasted the good word of God”
No extent of the Word is specified, only that it is good. Men receive a good gift each time God speaks. Again the writer uses “tasted” to indicate enjoyment of receiving this gift. The enjoyment is the hearing of the proclamation of the Scriptures and in getting some sense of sustenance from that Word.
“the powers of the age to come”
Experiencing “the powers of the age to come” is from the continuation of tasting the Word of God. Note the use of the plural, "powers" does not explain what these powers are, for the author does not say, but we know they belong to the coming age, but they are also in evidence in this age (the apostles demonstrated some), and are intended to advance the church across the world.
The phrase, “the age to come” (or small variants) appears only six times in the NT, so we need to use some due care in interpreting it (see, Matthew 12:32; Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30; Ephesians 1:21; 2:7l Hebrews 6:5). In principle we are able to experience in this age the powers that belong to the future age (see TDNT, vol. 1, page 206). We will fully realize the supernatural powers we can now observe at the dawn of the coming age.
What we have so far is that a number of experiences some persons have had are described by the author. These experiences are not exclusive to the regenerated (saved) person. The author just lists these experiences, never clarifying who actually experiences them. But, he continues…
2. What happens to the people mentioned?
“and then have fallen away”
Hardened hearts spring from non-belief, and their disobedience caused the Israelites to fall in the desert. They fell from non-belief despite having even put blood on doorposts, saw the pillar of fire by night, eaten the Passover lamb, consecrated first born males, heard the voice of God, and tasted manna daily. They had tasted, been enlightened, shared in gifts of the Spirit, witnessed wonders, miracles and by their non-belief “then have fallen away”, these unbelievers have crossed beyond the point of return, “it is impossible to renew them again to repentance”
3. Why is this so?
“since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.”
It is significant that in the enumeration of the divine gifts received by those who are conceived as afterwards falling away there is no one gift which passes out of the individual. All are gifts of power, of personal endowment. There is no gift of love one would expect to find if Hebrews 6:4-6 was addressing the believer. Under this aspect light falls upon the passage from Matt. 7:22 f.; 1 Cor. 13:1. In this connection it will be noticed that it was the presence of love among the Hebrews which inspired the Apostle with confidence (Heb. 6:10).
If the “losing one’s salvation” interpretation were true, however, the passage would also teach that, once lost, salvation could never be regained. But Christians are not being addressed, and it is the opportunity for receiving salvation, not salvation itself, that can be lost. The previous topics— intellectual enlightenment about God’s word, tasting God’s gifts and His Spirit, and so forth—accompany revelation, not salvation. They are meant, of course, to help lead to salvation, but they do not do so apart from faith in Jesus Christ.
In summary, nothing in this passage makes it apply explicitly to the believer. The passage is directly applicable to those with "temporary faith"- not true faith in Christ.
Temporary faith...
1. is enlightened, tasted the goodness of the word, from hearing the gospel message and knew the way to be saved, but rejects it as in (Matthew 13:20-21)
2. tasted the heavenly gift of Christ, but never received Him. Just as Christ tasted but did not eat or drink the wine mixed with gall (Matthew 27:34), we must eat and drink of Christ (John 6:53)
3. partakes of the Spirit, such as convicting (John 16:8), and being placed in positions of external privilege (1 Cor. 7:14)
4. tasted the powers of the age to come such as witnessing to miracles that foreshadowed the wonders of the coming kingdom of Christ
Having participated and experienced all of these things, yet still rejecting Christ, means no redemption is possible. One example, Judas, clearly fit each of the items described above.
Heb 6:4 For in the case of those who have once been enlightened and have tasted of the heavenly gift and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,
Heb 6:5 and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,
Heb 6:6 and then have fallen away, it is impossible to renew them again to repentance, since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.
In the entire epistle the author is admonishing the reader to accept the Gospel in faith and not fall into the sin of unbelief that will lead to judgment (see Hebrews 2:1-3; Hebrews 3:12-14; Hebrews 4:1, 6; 11; Hebrews 10:25, 27, 31; Hebrews 12:16-17, 25, 29).
Yet, in Hebrews 6:4-6 the recipients of the Epistle are not addressed. Rather a truth is stated emerging from an earlier reference to the Israelites falling in the desert because of unbelief. This truth applies also to the Isarelites, despite the author’s omitting personal reference in Hebrews 6:4-6.
Three points divide the text:
1. Who are the people mentioned? The people mentioned are characterized by four Greek participles displaying poetic rhythm—enlightened, tasted, partakers, tasted.
“those who have once been enlightened”
Here, and in Hebrews 10:32, “enlightened” means “knowledge of the truth” as in Hebrews 10:26. The verb is not related to baptism, but has a broader meaning as indicated by other usages in Luke 11:36; John 1:9; 1 Cor. 4:5; Ephesians 1:28, 39; 2 Timothy 1:10; Rev. 18:1; Rev. 21:23; Rev. 22:5. Yet nothing here means persons that have once been saved.
“{who} have tasted of the heavenly gift”
Attempts to limit this to mean those new converts that have attended worship, made professions of faith, celebrated the Lord’s Supper, etc., are viewing the passage too narrowly, for we find the broader explanation in the New Testament:
- Jesus calls Himself, “the gift of God” (John 4:10)
- Peter names the Spirit the gift of God (Acts 2:38; Acts 8:20; Acts 10:45; Acts 11:17)
- Paul mentions “the gift of grace”, “the gift of righteousness”, associating them with Christ (Romans 5:15; Romans 5:17, 2 Cor. 9:15; Ephesians 3:7; Ephesians 4:7).
“{who} partakers of the Holy Spirit”
The connection between the preceding clause above and this one is clear from the Greek. We may even see the link between the “laying on of hands” (Hebrews 6:2) and the sharing in the Holy Spirit, especially, from the above, if we understand the heavenly gift to be the Spirit. Sharing in the Spirit implies this is done in fellowship with other believers, with the Spirit manifested in various gifts given to the church members (1 Cor. 12:7-11). Many partake of the Spirit without being indwelt by the Spirit.
“{who} have tasted the good word of God”
No extent of the Word is specified, only that it is good. Men receive a good gift each time God speaks. Again the writer uses “tasted” to indicate enjoyment of receiving this gift. The enjoyment is the hearing of the proclamation of the Scriptures and in getting some sense of sustenance from that Word.
“the powers of the age to come”
Experiencing “the powers of the age to come” is from the continuation of tasting the Word of God. Note the use of the plural, "powers" does not explain what these powers are, for the author does not say, but we know they belong to the coming age, but they are also in evidence in this age (the apostles demonstrated some), and are intended to advance the church across the world.
The phrase, “the age to come” (or small variants) appears only six times in the NT, so we need to use some due care in interpreting it (see, Matthew 12:32; Mark 10:30; Luke 18:30; Ephesians 1:21; 2:7l Hebrews 6:5). In principle we are able to experience in this age the powers that belong to the future age (see TDNT, vol. 1, page 206). We will fully realize the supernatural powers we can now observe at the dawn of the coming age.
What we have so far is that a number of experiences some persons have had are described by the author. These experiences are not exclusive to the regenerated (saved) person. The author just lists these experiences, never clarifying who actually experiences them. But, he continues…
2. What happens to the people mentioned?
“and then have fallen away”
Hardened hearts spring from non-belief, and their disobedience caused the Israelites to fall in the desert. They fell from non-belief despite having even put blood on doorposts, saw the pillar of fire by night, eaten the Passover lamb, consecrated first born males, heard the voice of God, and tasted manna daily. They had tasted, been enlightened, shared in gifts of the Spirit, witnessed wonders, miracles and by their non-belief “then have fallen away”, these unbelievers have crossed beyond the point of return, “it is impossible to renew them again to repentance”
3. Why is this so?
“since they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.”
It is significant that in the enumeration of the divine gifts received by those who are conceived as afterwards falling away there is no one gift which passes out of the individual. All are gifts of power, of personal endowment. There is no gift of love one would expect to find if Hebrews 6:4-6 was addressing the believer. Under this aspect light falls upon the passage from Matt. 7:22 f.; 1 Cor. 13:1. In this connection it will be noticed that it was the presence of love among the Hebrews which inspired the Apostle with confidence (Heb. 6:10).
If the “losing one’s salvation” interpretation were true, however, the passage would also teach that, once lost, salvation could never be regained. But Christians are not being addressed, and it is the opportunity for receiving salvation, not salvation itself, that can be lost. The previous topics— intellectual enlightenment about God’s word, tasting God’s gifts and His Spirit, and so forth—accompany revelation, not salvation. They are meant, of course, to help lead to salvation, but they do not do so apart from faith in Jesus Christ.
In summary, nothing in this passage makes it apply explicitly to the believer. The passage is directly applicable to those with "temporary faith"- not true faith in Christ.
Temporary faith...
1. is enlightened, tasted the goodness of the word, from hearing the gospel message and knew the way to be saved, but rejects it as in (Matthew 13:20-21)
2. tasted the heavenly gift of Christ, but never received Him. Just as Christ tasted but did not eat or drink the wine mixed with gall (Matthew 27:34), we must eat and drink of Christ (John 6:53)
3. partakes of the Spirit, such as convicting (John 16:8), and being placed in positions of external privilege (1 Cor. 7:14)
4. tasted the powers of the age to come such as witnessing to miracles that foreshadowed the wonders of the coming kingdom of Christ
Having participated and experienced all of these things, yet still rejecting Christ, means no redemption is possible. One example, Judas, clearly fit each of the items described above.