My Christian brothers is literally “holy brothers” (see Revised Standard Version). The Greek word for “holy” describes either God himself or any person or thing that belongs to him in a special way (compare discussion of pure, purifies in 2.11). In English and in some other languages, “holy” and “saint” belong so much to church language that many modern translations avoid them. Bijbel in Gewone Taal has “Brothers, you are called by God and belong to him,” Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch “My brothers, you belong to God, for he has called you into his heavenly world,” and Translator’s New Testament “my brothers, whom God has set apart for himself and called to share the life of heaven.” Good News Translation gives essentially the same sense, but My is not explicit (nothing until 13.19 shows whether the letter comes from an individual or a group).
The Greek expression of direct address, literally “holy brothers,” is rather unusual. But as in so many contexts of the New Testament, the Greek term traditionally translated as “saints” is frequently better rendered as “people of God.” In this type of context Good News Translation has understandably used Christian. In a number of languages, however, it may be difficult, if not impossible, to use a word meaning “brothers.” Therefore the Good News Bible phrase My Christian brothers may be rendered as “My fellow believers in Jesus” or “My fellow Christians.” In some languages the closest equivalent is simply “You who also believe in Christ.”
Also is not in the text. It is implied by “share” (Revised Standard Version) and means “as well as me.”
Revised Standard Version‘s “share in a heavenly call” is a very compact expression which can be understood in several slightly different ways:
(a) “Share” and “call” almost certainly go together, but it is not clear whether the writer means that they share their call with one another, or with God who called them, or with Christ (as in 1.9, where the same Greek word was translated companions). In view of the term “brothers,” it is likely that “to share” refers to what is shared among fellow believers. “You who share the heavenly calling” may therefore be rendered as “you who are also called by God” or “you whom God has also called.”
(b) “Heavenly call” may mean “call from God” or “call to heaven.” The first possibility may suit verses 7-10 and 5.4 rather better, but Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch follows the second, which is taken up in chapter 4 and in 12.1-2. If one assumes that the Greek phrase “heavenly calling” refers to “a call from God to go to heaven,” it will be necessary to make the relation rather explicit; for example, “God’s call to you to be those who will go to heaven.” But this interpretation seems to be rather unlikely.
Think is less strong than keep our eyes fixed on Jesus in 12.2; compare Think in 12.3, where a different Greek word is used. King James Version‘s “Christ” before “Jesus” is probably not part of the original text. The admonition to “keep Jesus in mind” is not simply a matter of “thinking about Jesus” or “meditating upon him.” An equivalent in some languages is “consider how Jesus was the Apostle and High Priest of our faith.” It might also be possible to translate the Greek term as “reckon with the fact that.”
Whom God sent is literally “apostle.” Both “apostle” and “angel” mean “someone who is sent.” In secular language an “apostle” is an ambassador. In the New Testament it is usually someone sent by Jesus. Nowhere else in the New Testament is Jesus himself called an apostle. Perhaps the comparison with angels, last mentioned in 2.16, is still in the writer’s mind; a translation such as whom God sent allows for this without emphasizing it. Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates “apostle” in the secular meaning as “plenipotentiary,” an ambassador with full powers, which makes good sense, though “plenipotentiary” would not be common language in English. Some of the meaning of the Greek term traditionally rendered “apostle” may be expressed as “God’s messenger” or “God’s ambassador.” In some languages this is expressed literally as “one who speaks God’s words” or “one who announces what God has said.”
High Priest: see 2.17.
The faith we profess: Good News Translation makes it clear that the word which Revised Standard Version translates “confession” is confession of faith, not confession of sin. What is meant is not the act of confessing but what is confessed; Biblia Dios Habla Hoy says “our religion.” The faith we profess may be rendered as “what we believe” or perhaps better “what we say we believe.”
In some languages there may be a problem involved in relating High Priest to the faith we profess. Sometimes this may be expressed as “High Priest in relation to what we say we believe” or “High Priest to assist us in everything relating to what we say we believe.” It is often obscure and even misleading to say only “High Priest of the faith we profess” or even “High Priest of our religion.”
Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Letter of the Hebrews. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .