The second qualification of a high priest is that he must be chosen and appointed by God. In No one chooses, the Greek verb often means “receive,” but here the context requires “take,” as in Revised Standard Version. Bible en français courant and Traduction œcuménique de la Bible have “attribute to himself.” No one means no individual, as in 3.12-13; 4.1.

The emphasis in the first part of this verse is that no one can make himself high priest. Therefore in some languages it is important to rule out the possibility of a person making himself a high priest. This is in anticipation of the second part of the verse. Therefore No one chooses for himself the honor of being a high priest may be rendered as “No person can decide to give himself the honor of being a high priest.” In some instances this may be expressed as direct discourse; for example, “No person can declare, ‘I give myself the honor of being a high priest’ ” or “… ‘I will honor myself by becoming a high priest.’ ”

Honor is rank, position, here almost “office.” The meaning is that no one becomes a high priest simply by claiming to be one.

Call, in Greek as in English, is a common word with several meanings, including (a) to call out an order or an invitation, (b) to give someone a name, and (c) more generally, to call someone to a new way of life. Here, meaning (c) is intended. God summons someone to occupy a particular position, that of high priest. See Exodus 28.1.

It is only by God’s call that a man is made a high priest must often be restructured because of the complex relation in the phrase by God’s call to the fact of being made a high priest. This restructuring may take the form of “A man becomes a high priest only because God has called him” or “… only because God has appointed him.”

Just as is emphatic; Bible de Jérusalem translates “absolutely like Aaron.”

Just as Aaron was: in many languages it will be necessary to repeat “was called.” It is possible to translate, like Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch first edition, “he receives it [that is, this honor] only through God’s call, just as Aaron received it.” The wider context is concerned with valid appointment to the office of high priest, not so much with the call itself. Just as Aaron was must be modified, depending upon the manner in which the first part of the preceding clause is restructured. Just as Aaron was may be rendered as “this is just what happened to Aaron,” “this is the way Aaron was appointed,” or “this is what happened when God appointed Aaron.”

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 .