HEB 6:4 Parallel Verse View

Note: This view shows ‘verses’ which are not natural language units and hence sometimes only part of a sentence will be visible—click on any Bible version abbreviation down the left-hand side to see the verse in more of its context. Normally the OET discourages the reading of individual ‘verses’, but this view is only designed as a tool for doing comparisons of different translations—the older translations are further down the page (so you can read up from the bottom to trace the English translation history). The OET segments on this page are still very early looks into the unfinished texts of the Open English Translation of the Bible—please double-check these texts in advance before using in public.

Text critical issues=small word differences Clarity of original=clear Importance to us=normal (All still tentative.)

Key: khaki:verbs, light-green:nominative/subject, orange:accusative/object, pink:genitive/possessor.
Note: Automatic aligning of the OET-RV to the LV is done by some temporary software, hence the RV alignments are incomplete (and may occasionally be wrong).

ULT For it is impossible—for the ones having been once enlightened and having tasted of the heavenly gift and having become sharers of the Holy Spirit

UST Let me tell you about something that cannot happen. Think about people who learned about the good news at one time. They experienced what God gives to his people from heaven, and they received God’s Spirit.

BLB For it is impossible for those once having been enlightened, and having tasted of the heavenly gift, and having become partakers of the Holy Spirit,

AICNT For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit,

OEB For if those who were once for all brought into the light, and learned to appreciate the gift from heaven, and came to share in the Holy Spirit,

WEBBE For concerning those who were once enlightened and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit,

WMBB (Same as above)

NET For it is impossible in the case of those who have once been enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, become partakers of the Holy Spirit,

LSV for [it is] impossible for those once enlightened, having also tasted of the heavenly gift, and having become partakers of the Holy Spirit,

FBV It's impossible for those who once understood and experienced God's heavenly gift—who shared in receiving the Holy Spirit,

TCNT For it is impossible to renew to repentance those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit,

T4T I will explain why it is important to do that. Some people have at one time fully understood the message about Christ [MET]. They have experienced a relationship with Jesus Christ that God [EUP/MTY] gave to them. They have received the Holy Spirit the same as others have.

LEB For it is impossible concerning those who have once been enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and become sharers of the Holy Spirit,

BBE As for those who at one time saw the light, tasting the good things from heaven, and having their part in the Holy Spirit,

Moff For in the case of people who have been once enlightened, who tasted the heavenly Gift, who participated in the holy Spirit,

Wymth For it is impossible, in the case of those who have once for all been enlightened, and have tasted the sweetness of the heavenly gift, and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit,

ASV For as touching those who were once enlightened and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Spirit,

DRA For it is impossible for those who were once illuminated, have tasted also the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,

YLT for [it is] impossible for those once enlightened, having tasted also of the heavenly gift, and partakers having became of the Holy Spirit,

Drby For it is impossible to renew again to repentance those once enlightened, and who have tasted of the heavenly gift, and have been made partakers of [the] Holy Spirit,

RV For as touching those who were once enlightened and tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,

SLT For impossible for them once enlightened, and having tasted of the heavenly gift, and having partaken of the Holy Spirit,

Wbstr For it is impossible for those who have been once enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and have been made partakers of the Holy Spirit.

KJB-1769 For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,

KJB-1611 For it is impossible for those who were once inlightned, and haue tasted of the heauenly gift, and were made partakers of the holy Ghost,
(Modernised spelling is same as from KJB-1769 above, apart from capitalisation)

Bshps For it can not be that they which were once lighted, and haue tasted of the heauenly gyft, and were become partakers of the holy ghost,
(For it cannot be that they which were once lighted, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were become partakers of the holy ghost,)

Gnva For it is impossible that they which were once lightened, and haue tasted of the heauenly gift, and were made partakers of the holy Ghost,
(For it is impossible that they which were once lightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the holy Ghost, )

Cvdl For it is not possible, that they which were once lighted, and haue taisted of the heauely gyfte, and are become partakers of the holy goost,
(For it is not possible, that they which were once lighted, and have taisted of the heavenly gifte, and are become partakers of the holy ghost,)

TNT For it is not possible that they which were once lyghted and have tasted of the hevenly gyft and were become partetakers of the holy goost
(For it is not possible that they which were once lighted and have tasted of the heavenly gift and were become partetakers of the holy ghost )

Wycl But it is impossible, that thei that ben onys liytned, and `han tastid also an heuenly yifte, and ben maad parceneris of the Hooli Goost,
(But it is impossible, that they that been onys lightned, and have tastid also an heavenly yifte, and been made parceneris of the Holy Ghost,)

Luth Denn es ist unmöglich, daß die, so einmal erleuchtet sind und geschmeckt haben die himmlische Gabe und teilhaftig worden sind des Heiligen Geistes
(Because it is impossible, that that, so once illuminated are and geschmeckt have the heavenly gift/present and participating been are the saints/holy_ones spirit)

ClVg Impossibile est enim eos qui semel sunt illuminati, gustaverunt etiam donum cæleste, et participes facti sunt Spiritus Sancti,[fn]
(Impossibile it_is because them who/which once/first are illuminati, gustaverunt also a_gift/present/donation cæleste, and participants made are Spirit Holy, )

6.4 Impossibile. Ne quis vero existimet secundum vel tertium baptisma post peccata posse fieri, subdit: Impossibile, non tantum difficile, ne quis in hoc confideret. Eos qui, id est, etiam eos qui hæc bona habuerunt. Nedum penitus malos.

6.4 Impossibile. Don't who/any indeed/however existimet after/second or third baptism after sins posse to_be_done, I_submit: Impossibile, not/no only difficult, not who/any in/into/on this to_trustt. Eos who, that it_is, also them who/which these_things good(s) they_had. Nedum completely I_prefers.

UGNT ἀδύνατον γὰρ τοὺς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας, γευσαμένους τε τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου, καὶ μετόχους γενηθέντας Πνεύματος Ἁγίου,
(adunaton gar tous hapax fōtisthentas, geusamenous te taʸs dōreas taʸs epouraniou, kai metoⱪous genaʸthentas Pneumatos Hagiou,)

SBL-GNT Ἀδύνατον γὰρ τοὺς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας γευσαμένους τε τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου καὶ μετόχους γενηθέντας πνεύματος ἁγίου
(Adunaton gar tous hapax fōtisthentas geusamenous te taʸs dōreas taʸs epouraniou kai metoⱪous genaʸthentas pneumatos hagiou)

RP-GNT Ἀδύνατον γὰρ τοὺς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας, γευσαμένους τε τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου, καὶ μετόχους γενηθέντας πνεύματος ἁγίου,
(Adunaton gar tous hapax fōtisthentas, geusamenous te taʸs dōreas taʸs epouraniou, kai metoⱪous genaʸthentas pneumatos hagiou,)

TC-GNT Ἀδύνατον γὰρ τοὺς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας, γευσαμένους τε τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου, καὶ μετόχους γενηθέντας Πνεύματος Ἁγίου,
(Adunaton gar tous hapax fōtisthentas, geusamenous te taʸs dōreas taʸs epouraniou, kai metoⱪous genaʸthentas Pneumatos Hagiou, )

Key for above GNTs: yellow:punctuation differs (from our SR-GNT base).

SOTN SIL Open Translator’s Notes:

Section 5:11–6:12: Grow up in your faith, and do not give up

In Section 5:11–6:12 the author interrupted his teaching about God appointing Christ as the high priest in order to tell his listeners to mature in their faith and to warn them not to stop believing in Christ. After this warning (6:4–12), he will continue to teach them in 6:13–7:28 about the priesthood of Jesus and Melchizedek.

Remember to translate the section before choosing a heading for it. Some other possible headings are:

Warning about abandoning Christ

Do not be lazy but become mature followers of Christ

Paragraph Group 6:4–8

In the second (6:4–6) and third (6:7–8) paragraphs in this chapter the author gave the third warning in Hebrews (as indicated in the Outline). In 6:4–6 he warned that if people “fall away” from their faith, they bring disgrace to God’s Son. It is impossible to make them repent again. In 6:7–8 he compared faithful and unfaithful believers to fruitful and unfruitful land. Land that produces only thorns must be burned.

6:4a

It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened,

¶ Some people cannot be caused to repent again. Such people knew God’s/his truth at one time
¶ As for people who stop believing, no one can make them repent again. At one time, they understood the truth.

The Greek begins this verse with a conjunction that is usually translated as “for” or “because.” In some versions, a conjunction introduces a warning. It is based on what the author said in 6:1–3 about becoming mature. In 6:4–6 he warned his listeners that if we do not become mature, we may “fall away” from our faith (6:6). When that happens, it is impossible to be brought back to repentance.

Notice that here a conjunction connects paragraphs (1–3 and 4–6), rather than sentences. In some languages a conjunction is not needed. It is often helpful to translate the two paragraphs before deciding how to connect them.

It is impossible for those: The phrase It is impossible for those describes an action that no one can do. No one can help certain people to repent a second time. Some other ways to translate this meaning are:

It is not possible to help certain people

as for people who deliberately retreat from their faith, they can no longer be led back to repent from their sinUma back translation on TW.

Notice that the second example supplied a phrase from 6:6 (“who deliberately retreat from their faith”).

who have once been enlightened: The verb have…been enlightened is passive, and it is used as a figure of speech here. It indicates that God caused the people to know the truth. In this context it especially implies knowing the truth of the Gospel that God revealed through his Son.

Some ways to translate the figure of speech are:

Use a figure of speech in your language that has the same meaning. For example:
their minds have already been illuminatedKankanaey back translation on TW.
Some people once had God’s light. (GW)
their minds/eyes had been opened
Translate the meaning without the figure of speech. For example:
they understood the truth

once: The Greek word that the BSB translates as once refers here to the time in the past when the people understood the gospel. Some other ways to translate it are:

at one time

at one point

6:4b

who have tasted the heavenly gift,

and experienced his gift from heaven.
They accepted God’s gift,

who have tasted the heavenly gift: The clause who have tasted the heavenly gift means “and have experienced what God gave.” The word tasted is a figure of speech that implies a full experience. It does not imply that the experience is limited. It implies that the person has not only been told about the gift—he has actually experienced it. The meaning is similar to its meaning in 2:9, where the phrase “tasted death” indicates that Jesus experienced death fully.

Some other ways to translate this clause are:

enjoyed heaven’s gift (NCV)

they have benefited from what God has givenKankanaey back translation on TW.

experienced the gift from God

the heavenly gift: The word heavenly here is an indirect way to say “from God.” The word gift probably refers here to the gift of new life through Christ. God sent Jesus to save us from sin and to bring us into fellowship with God. In some languages it is more natural to translate the noun gift with a verb phrase or clause. For example:

what God gave

the new life that God gives

6:4c

who have shared in the Holy Spirit,

They shared in the Holy Spirit.
and received his Holy Spirit.

who have shared in the Holy Spirit: The phrase have shared in the Holy SpiritThe Greek phrase is literally “who have become sharers/partners in the spirit.” The author used a word metochoi, “partners” which he has used already in 3:1a (“who share in the heavenly calling”) and 3:14a (“share in Christ”), and which he will use again in 12:8. indicates that they were among those who experienced the Holy Spirit’s presence and power. Some other ways to translate this meaning are:

have shared in experiencing the Holy SpiritKankanaey back translation on TW.

among those who were blessed with the Holy Spirit

the Holy Spirit: The Greek phrase that the BSB translates as the Holy Spirit refers to the Spirit of God. Translate the term the Holy Spirit in the same way as you did in 2:4 and 3:7.

UTN uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: grammar-connect-logic-result

γὰρ

(Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἀδύνατον Γάρ τούς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας γευσαμένους τέ τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου καί μετόχους γενηθέντας Πνεύματος Ἁγίου)

The word For introduces a reason why the audience needs to “go forward” (See: [6:1](../06/01.md)). If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a word that introduces a basis for an exhortation, or you could leave For untranslated. Alternate translation: [We need to go forward, because]

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / infostructure

ἀδύνατον γὰρ τοὺς

impossible_‹it_is› (Some words not found in SR-GNT: ἀδύνατον Γάρ τούς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας γευσαμένους τέ τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου καί μετόχους γενηθέντας Πνεύματος Ἁγίου)

The word impossible goes with the phrase “to restore them again” in [6:6](../06/06.md). If it would be helpful in your language, you could move it is impossible to verse 6. If you do this, make sure that you also follow the infostructure note on verse 6. Alternate translation: [For consider the ones]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

τοὺς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας

The author speaks of receiving and understanding the good news as if it were light shining on a person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a comparable figure of speech or express the idea plainly. Alternate translation: [for those who once understood the message about the Messiah]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive

τοὺς ἅπαξ φωτισθέντας, γευσαμένους τε

If your language does not use the passive form in this way, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. The author uses the passive form here to focus on those who were enlightened rather than on the person doing the enlightening. If you must state who did the action, the author implies that God did it. Alternate translation: [for those whom God has once enlightened, and who tasted]

Note 5 topic: figures-of-speech / metaphor

γευσαμένους & τῆς δωρεᾶς τῆς ἐπουρανίου

˓having˒_tasted & ˱of˲_the gift ¬the heavenly

The author speaks as if the heavenly gift were food that people could “taste.” He speaks in this way to show that these people experienced the heavenly gift as much as a person who eats food truly experiences that food. If it would be helpful in your language, you could state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [had experience of the heavenly gift] or [participated in the heavenly gift]

Note 6 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

μετόχους γενηθέντας Πνεύματος Ἁγίου

partakers ˓having_been˒_become ˱of˲_˓the˒_Spirit Holy

The author uses the possessive form to indicate that these people “share” the Holy Spirit. This form means that the people whom the author is speaking about were among the group of people who received the Holy Spirit. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a form that makes meaning clearer. Alternate translation: [received the Holy Spirit along with other believers] or [participated in the Holy Spirit]

Parallel HEB 6:4

Section 5:11–6:12: Grow up in your faith, and do not give up

Paragraph Group 6:4–8

6:4a

6:4b

6:4c