Expositor's Greek Testament (Nicoll)

Hebrews 13:23

γινώσκετε τὸν ἀδελφὸν ἡμῶν.… “Know that our brother Timothy has been released” (ἀπολελυμένον, for example of this use of the participle, see Winer, sec. 45, 4 b). Evidently Timothy had been under arrest; where, when, or why is not known. The information is given because it would interest these Hebrew Christians, who were therefore friends of his, not Judaizers. μεθʼ οὗ … “with whom, if he come soon, I will see you”. He takes for granted that Timothy would at once go to them; and he speaks as one who is himself free or is immediately to be free to determine his own movements. [τάχειον, = θᾶττον, a comparative in the sense of a positive; a classical usage; and cf. John 13:27, ὃ ποιεῖς ποίησον τάχιον.] The usual greetings are added. Epistolary form required this (see the Egyptian papyri) but in view of what the writer has said regarding the rulers, and in view of the πάντας here expressed, it may be supposed that the formula was here filled with significant contents. Who was to convey the salutations? Or, in other words, who was directly to receive the letter? Probably one or two of the leading men representing the Church. This would account for the πάντας. The greetings were not on the writer's part only. οἱ ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰταλίας, “they of Italy” joined in them. The form of expression is that which is ordinarily used to denote natives of a place, as in Luke 23:50; John 1:44; John 11:1; Acts 17:13, etc. Winer says (p. 785): “a critical argument as to the place at which the Epistle was written should never have been founded on these words”. Vaughan is certainly wrong in saying that the more natural suggestion of the words would be that the writer is himself in Italy and speaks of the Italian Christians surrounding him. The more natural suggestion, on the contrary, is that the writer is absent from Italy and is writing to it and that therefore the native Italians who happen to be with him join him in the salutations he sends to their compatriots.

The Epistle closes with one of the usual formulae, “Grace be with you all”.

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Expositor's Greek Testament (Nicoll)

Hebrews 13:23

Old Testament

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