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his qualifications in regard to man and God. He must have sympathy with man (Heb. 5:2, 3) and receive his appointment from God (5:4).

2. The capacity for calm and gentle judgment fits him for the fulfilment of his office in behalf of his fellow men. He offers sacrifices as one ‘able to bear gently’ with the ignorant and erring.
metriopaqei'n ] to feel gently towards, to bear gently with. Vulg. condolere. Ambr. affici pro ... Syr. to make himself humble and suffer with. The proper idea of metriopaqei'n ( metriopaqhv", metriopavqeia ) is that of a temperate feeling (of sorrow and pain and anger) as contrasted with the impassibility ( ajpavqeia ) of the Stoics (Diog. Laert. § 31 Aristoteles : e[fh de; to;n sofo;n mh; ei\nai me;n ajpaqh' metriopaqh' dev ). The word is frequently used by Philo: de Abrah. § 44 (2:37 M.) mhvte pleivw tou' metrivou sfadavzein ... mhvte ajpaqeiva/ ... crh'sqai, to; de; mevson pro; tw'n a[krwn eJlovmenon metriopaqei'n peira'sqai . de Jos. § 5 (ii. p. 45 M.) muriva aujto;" e[paqon tw'n ajnhkevstwn ejfj oi|", paideuqei;" metriopaqei'n, oujk ejgnavmfqhn . de spec. legg. § 17 (2.315 M., joined with ejpieikhv" ). id. de nobil. § 2 (ii. p. 439 M., opposed to hJ ajmetriva tw'n paqw'n ).

Comp. Jos. Antt. 12.3, 2, Plut. de frat. am. p. 489 C hJ fuvsi" e[dwken hJmi'n praovthta kai; metriopaqeiva" e[kgonon ajnexikakivan . Clem. Alex. Strom.
2.8, § 39 (p. 450 P.); 4:17, § 100 (p. 611 P.). In the Law no special moral qualifications are prescribed for the priests. Here the essential qualification which lies in their humanity is brought out. Their work was not and could not be purely external and mechanical even if it seemed to be so superficially. Within certain limits they had to decide upon the character of the facts in regard to which offerings were made.
toi'" ajgnoou'si kai; planwmevnoi" ] Vulg. iis qui ignorant et errant. The compound description may either indicate the source ( ignorance ) and the issue ( going astray ) of sin; or it may describe sinners, so far as they come into consideration here, under two main aspects. Wilful, deliberate sin does not fall within the writer's scope, nor indeed within the scope of the Levitical Law. Such sin required in the first instance the manifestation of a sterner judgment. Comp. Num. 15:22-31 (sins of ignorance and sins of presumption).

For the use of ajgnoei'n in LXX. ( hg:v; , H8704, gg"v; , H8706) see 1 Sam.

26:21; Ezek. 45:20 (Alex.); Lev. 4:13; 5:18; Lev. 4:2 ( hg:g:v]bi af;j; , LXX.

aJmavrth/ ajkousivw" , Aqu., Symm. ajgnoiva/ ). Ecclus. 5:15. Compare a[gnoia , Gen. 26:10; Ecclus. 28:7; 30:11; 23:3; ajgnovhma Heb. 9:7 note. True knowledge implies corresponding action. Comp. 1 John 2:3 note.

For plana'sqai , which is comparatively rare in the general sense of ‘going astray’ (sinning), see Heb. 3:10; Tit. 3:3; (James 5:19; 2 Tim. 3:13; Apoc. 18:23). The full image is given Matt. 18:12; 1 Pet. 2:25 (Is. 53:6). In Heb. 4:15 our High-priest is described as one dunavmeno" sumpaqh'sai tai'" ajsqeneivai" , while here he generally is required metriopaqei'n toi'" ajgnoou'sin kai; planwmevnoi" . The one phrase describes his relation to the source of transgression, the other his relation to the transgressor. It is necessary that the true High-priest should be able to sympathise with the manifold forms of weakness from which sins spring, as himself conscious of the nature of sin, but it is not necessary that he should actually share the feelings of sinners, as having himself sinned. Towards


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