Bible Commentaries
Hebrews 5

Verses 1-14

The writer proceeded with the same argument as he instituted a contrast. The two essential qualifications of a priest are capacity for sympathy, and the vocation of God. These are perfectly fulfilled in Christ, who is appointed by God to Priesthood after the order of Melchisedek. His sympathy is demonstrated by the declarations concerning Him that through "prayers," "supplications," "strong crying," "tears," He entered into all human experiences, and learned obedience through the things which He suffered. It should be noted that this does not mean that He learned to be obedient, but that He entered into the experience of obedience. Through this process He became "the Author of eternal salvation."

Having thus introduced the great subject, the writer declared his sense of the difficulty he experienced in dealing with it, because his readers were dull of hearing, having to be taught when they should be teaching, having to be fed with milk when they should be receiving solid food.