“Called by God as high priest ‘according to the order of Melchizedek,’ of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing” (Hebrews 5:10-11).
Much like the road construction that often prohibits a traveler from proceeding directly to his or her destination, the author of Hebrews encountered a detour on his way to an in-depth discussion of Jesus’ priestly ministry. That discussion involved Jesus’ relationship to Melchizedek, the Old Testament priest-king mentioned earlier in this chapter. One source provides us with a brief description of that relationship…
“Our Lord could never have been a Levitical priest because He was born of the tribe of Judah (7:14) and not the tribe of Levi. Thus He must be associated with another order of priests, that of Melchizedek. Both Christ and Melchizedek were men (7:4; 1 Tim. 2:5); both were king-priests (Gen. 14:18; Zech. 6:12–13); both were appointed directly by God (7:21); both were called ‘King of righteousness’ and ‘King of peace’ (7:2; Isa. 11:5–9).” (1)
Unfortunately, there was an obstacle on the road to that discussion that caused our author to take an alternate route: “We have a lot to explain about this. But since you have become too lazy to pay attention, explaining it to you is hard” (GW). The good news is that the author of Hebrews will finally reach this destination in Hebrews chapter seven. The not-so-good news is that he will be forced to travel an alternate road of rebuke and exhortation with his readers first.
While the rebuke found here in Hebrews 5:10-11 may seem unnecessarily harsh, we can take solace in the fact that we are far removed from the original audience for this epistle. This should enable us to take a sober assessment of our lives in light of this passage without the emotional sting of a personal reprimand. Unfortunately, the threat of spiritual lethargy that underscores this passage remains an ever-present reality for every generation.
The Biblical book of James addresses this risk when it cautions us to “…be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves” (James 1:22). A person who de-prioritizes core spiritual disciplines such as prayer, church attendance, and/or reading the Scriptures is someone who sure to become “dull of hearing” in spiritual and/or practical matters.
Finally, there are several other dangers facing those who fail to move forward into spiritual maturity. Our author will examine some of those hazards as we progress towards the close of this chapter.
(1) Charles Caldwell Ryrie, Ryrie Study Bible: New American Standard Bible, 1995 Update, Expanded ed. (Chicago: Moody Press, 1995), 1950.