musterion
Well-known member
2:3 How shall we escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard Him.
I'm pretty much with Lighthouse on this. The writer is looking back to the salvation spoken of by Christ "according to the flesh" (see red above). Paul instructed the exact opposite per his received gospel (2 Cor 5:16).
I also cannot fathom why Paul would choose not to sign this letter, if he in fact wrote it.
Hebrews is written to Jews, using wholly Jewish references, by a clearly saved Jew, but one who was familiar with previously unrevealed aspects of the cross - suggesting he had deep knowledge of Paul's revelations. But that in no way demands Paul himself wrote it.
PS
The writer's hypothetical of whether his readers "have neglected"[the literal Greek] rather than "have rejected" so great salvation is right in line with multiple warnings from the Gospels and elsewhere of the dire threat of believing but not abiding and thereby falling away from the Messianic faith of that day. This is yet another clue to the circumcision orientation of this letter. Christians under grace can shamefully neglect their salvation in Christ; many if not most do. They will be chastised by the Father and will lose rewards at the Bema lest they repent -- but they remain eternally secure in Him. That does not appear to be the case with the Hebrew readers of this letter.
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