Hebrews 7:24 : Si JesuCristo Lang Ba Ang Tanging Holder Ng Melchizedek Priesthood?

 

By Bro. Nathan

“Jesus, on the other hand, because He continues forever, holds His priesthood permanently.” (Heb. 7:24) NASB 2020

ὁ δὲ διὰ τὸ μένειν αὐτὸν εἰς τὸν αἰῶνα ἀπαράβατον ἔχει τὴν ἱερωσύνην· (NA28)

Ang verse is understood ng mga Non-latter Day Saints na according dito, hindi na puwedeng ma-transffer ang Melchizedek Priesthood ni Jesus Christ at tanging Siya lang daw ang makakahawak ng Priesthood at wala nang iba. tayo bilang mga Latter Day Saints, ay naniniwala na ang Melchizedek Priesthood is also given to worthy men, and as usual, Non-Latter Day Saints attempt to dismantle this doctrine by using Hebrews 7:24. So ano nga ba ang meaning ng Hebrews 7:24 kung babasahin natin in light of its context? 

In Hebrews 7, while talking about the Melchizedek Priesthood and Jesus Christ, ay pinagcocompare dito ni Paul ang human priesthood holders kay Jesus Christ, which is unlike human Priesthood holders, si Jesus Christ holds His priesthood forever—with no corruption. Ang human priesthood holders ay namamatay since hindi naman sila immortal at perfected yet (v. 23; cf 1 Cor. 15:51-58; Phil. 3:20-21). Jesus, being perfected and Immortal (Rom. 6:9; Phil. 2:5-11; Heb. 5:8-9; Rev. 1:18; cf Mt. 16:19), He has the capability to hold His priesthood with no worries sa death and corruption. with this in mind, ginamit ni Apostle Paul ang Greek word na απαράβατος (aparabatos) in an accusative form απαραβατον (aparabaton) to show the unchangability ng priesthood ni Jesus Christ. ang Greek word na ito ay namimisdefine ng mga Anti-mormons kagaya ni James White—na ang term daw na ito ay nangangahulugang "untransferable", na kung saan ito ay hindi nadedefine correctly ang Greek word. A Protestant scholar himself, David L. Allen commented :

[Heb 7:24] is straightforward in its meaning, asserting Jesus has a permanent, perpetual, unchanging priesthood because he “lives for ever.” When the adjective aparabaton, “permanent,” is translated attributively, as in the NIV, KJV, and a few other translations, it is a violation of Greek grammar. The adverbial rendering as in the NASB is also problematic. It is better to take the adjective in a predicate relationship to the noun, as “Jesus has the priesthood (and it is) permanent,” or as a relative clause, “a priesthood which is permanent.” (David L. Allen, Hebrews [vol. 35 The New American Commentary; Nashville: B&H Publishing Group, 2010], 428)

According to Moulton and Miligan, sa kanilang Book na Moulton-Milligan’s Vocabulary of the Greek New Testament sa Page 53 ay dinedefine ang Greek word as follows :

 In P Ryl II. 6518 (B.C. 67?—in any case Ptol.) a judgement ends with καὶ τἄλλα τὰ δι᾽ αὐτῆ[ς δι]ωρισμένα μένειν κύρια καὶ ἀπαράβατα, “valid and inviolate” (Edd.). The legal formula, thus established for an early period, survives six centuries later in P Grenf I. 607 (A.D. 581) ἀπαραβάτῳ πράσει: “inviolable” must be the sense, though the words follow a hiatus. Another example, also vi/A.D., is in P Lond 101512 (= III. p. 257) ἄτρωτα καὶ ἀσάλευτα καὶ ἀπαράβατας …, a contract for the surrender of property. See also P Catt rectov. 19 (ii/A.D.) (= Chrest. II. p. 422) ἔνια ἀπαράβατά ἐστιν, “es gibt Dinge, an denen sich nichts ändern lässt” (Ed.). It is clear that the technical use, compared with the late literary (ap. Lobeck Phryn. p. 313), constitutes a very strong case against the rendering “not transferable”. Phrynichus himself prescribed ἀπαραίτητος: what sense that would have made in Heb 724 passes comprehension. Vettius Valens has the adverb five times (see index), always as “validly” or “inevitably.” It occurs in P Strass I. 4023 (A.D. 569), rendered “unverbrüchlich” (Ed.). 

Sa iba pang scholarly lexicons, it defines as follows :

απαραβατος

This is a rare word found only in later Gk. Only very infrequently does it have the sense of "inviolable." Epict. Enoch .. 51:2 νομος απαραβατος also P. Ryl., II. 65 18: P. Grenf., I. 60, 7. its usual sense is "unchangeable," "immutable." In this sense fate is said to be unconditionally fixed and subject to no change or alteration. Plut. De Fato 1 (II.568d): η ειμαρμενη λογοσ θειος απαρβατος δι' αιτιαν ανεμποδιστον; De Plactis Philosophorum. I. 28,4 (II, 885b): οι Στωικοι ειρμον αιτιων, τουτεστι ταξιν και επιουνδεσιν απαραβατον; M. Ant., XII, 14, 1: αναγκη ειμαρμενης και απαραβατος ταξις . . . In the sense "unchangeable" the word is a tt. in law. A judgment from the 1st cent. A.D. (P. Ryl., II, 65, 18) ends with the words: και ταλλα τα δι' αυτη[ς δι]ωρισμενα μενειν και απαραβατα ("valid and unalterable") . . . Hb. 7:24 says of Christ that because He remains to eternity He has an unchangeable and imperishable priesthood. Instead of the pass. "unchangeable" many expositors suggest the act. sense "which cannot be transferred to another": "Christ has a priesthood which cannot be transferred to anyone else." This is a natural interpretation and yields a good sense, but it does not really fit the context. We should keep to the rendering "unchangeable," the more so as the act. sense is not attested elsewhere. (Gerhard Kittell and Gerhard Friedrich, eds. Theological Dictionary of the New Testament [10 vols.: trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley: Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1967], 5:742-43)

804  ἀπαράβατος

• ἀπαράβατος, ον (s. παραβαίνω; belonging to later Gk. [Phryn. 313 Lob.]; not LXX) Hb 7:24 usu. interpr. ‘without a successor’. But this mng. is found nowhere else. ἀ. rather has the sense permanent, unchangeable (Stoic. II 266, 1; 293, 31 [Chrysipp.]; Plut., Mor. 410f; 745d; Epict. 2, 15, 1, Ench. 51, 2; Herm. Wr. fgm. XXIII, 48 [494, 26 Sc.], fgm. XXIV, 1; Philo, Aet. M. 112; Jos., Ant. 18, 266, C. Ap. 2, 293; Just., A I, 43, 7; as legal t.t. over a long period of time in pap: PRyl 65, 18 [I BC]; PLond III, 1015, 12 p. 257 [VI AD] ἄτρωτα καὶ ἀσάλευτα καὶ ἀπαράβατα; Mitt-Wilck. II /2, 372 V, 19; PEllingworth, JSNT 23 ’85, 125f).—M-M. TW. Spicq.—DELG s.v. βαίνω. (BDAG A Greek English Lexicon Of The New Testament And Other Early Christian Literature)

In conclusion, it does not refute the Latter Day Saint theology of the Priesthood of the Melchizedek Priesthood being also held and allowed to hold by others.