If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.
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John Chrysostom
AD 407
Then he adds, and have tasted of the heavenly gift. If you have tasted (he says) of the heavenly gift, that is, of forgiveness. And been made partakers of the Holy Ghost, and tasted the good word of God (he is speaking here of the doctrine) and the powers of the world to come (what powers is he speaking of? Either the working of miracles, or the earnest of the Spirit 2 Corinthians 1:22) and have fallen away, to renew them again unto repentance, seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh and put Him to an open shame. Renew them, he says, unto repentance, that is, by repentance, for unto repentance is by repentance. What then, is repentance excluded? Not repentance, far from it! But the renewing again by the laver. For he did not say, impossible to be renewed unto repentance, and stop, but added how impossible, [by] crucifying afresh.
To be renewed, that is, to be made new, for to make men new is [the work] of the laver only: for (it is said) your youth shall be renewed a...
Those then who are to repent, if they do repent, will be strong in faith, if they now repent while the tower is building. For if the building be finished, there will not be more room for any one, but he will be rejected.
Therefore the apostate withal will recover his former "garment "the robe of the Holy Spirit; and a renewal of the "ring "the sign and seal of baptism; and Christ will again be "slaughtered; "
275. – Having mentioned the priesthood of Christ according to the order of Melchizedek and scolded the slowness of those to whom he was writing, the Apostle now returns to his theme, in regard to which he does three things: first, he discloses his intention; secondly, its difficulty (v.3); thirdly, he declares his intention (v.9). In regard to the first he does two things: first, he discloses his intention; secondly, he explains what he says (v.1b).
276. – His intention is that passing over the things which pertain to the beginning of Christian doctrine, he may go on to loftier matters; hence he says: I have stated that strong meat is for the perfect: Therefore, let us leave the elementary doctrines of Christ, through which Christ begins to exist in us, which is by the doctrine of faith: ‘That Christ may dwell by faith in your hearts’ (Eph. 3:17); let us go on to maturity, i.e., to things which look toward the perfection of Christ’s doctrine: ‘When I became a man, I put away the thi...
