Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Philippians 3:5
Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, [of] the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;
5. Circumcised &c.] Quite lit., “ as to circumcision, eight days old.” See Gen 17:12; Luk 2:21. He was neither a proselyte, circumcised as an adult, nor an Ishmaelite, circumcised (as Josephus tells us, Antiquities, xii. i. 2; see Gen 17:25) at thirteen, but a member of the covenant from infancy.
Israel ] The name may refer here either to the original and individual Israel, Jacob (Gen 32:28 &c.), or to the collective Israel, the chosen nation. The former is more likely, in view of the next clause, and would besides be the more vivid and emphatic reference; “one of the race descended from God’s Prince.”
The words Israel, Israelite, indicate specially the sacred privileges and dignity of the Covenant People as such; see Trench, N.T. Synonyms, xxxix., and Lightfoot, on Gal 6:16. Cp. Rom 9:4; Rom 11:1 ; 2Co 11:22; Eph 2:12; and see Joh 1:47; Joh 1:49.
Benjamin ] So he had previously said, Rom 11:1. See Act 13:21 for another mention by St Paul of his tribe, though in another connexion. He names his tribe, not only to emphasize his nationality, but no doubt because the Benjamites, descendants of the last and much loved son of Jacob, had given the nation its first lawful king (whose name the Apostle bore), and had with Judah remained “faithful among the faithless” at the great Disruption (1Ki 12:21). Ehud early in O.T. history (Judges 3), and Mordecai late (Est 2:5), were Benjamites. It is interesting to trace in St Paul’s character some of the characteristics of this small but remarkable tribe; stern courage and persistent fidelity. But certainly it was something better than Benjamite “obstinacy and persistency” (Smith’s Bible Dict., s.v. Benjamin) which made him resist the entreaties of the disciples and avow himself ready to die for the Lord (Act 21:12-13). See further, Conybeare and Howson, Life &c. of St Paul, ch. 2.
a Hebrew of the Hebrews ] With R.V., omit “ the.” Cp. again 2Co 11:22. The words mean that he was a Hebrew and of Hebrew lineage. What is a “Hebrew” in N.T. phraseology? In O.T. the word is the distinctive national term, as against other national terms, as Egyptian, Philistine &c.; and is thus the term by which a heathen would designate an Israelite. By the N.T. era its bearing had changed, and in the N.T. (not in later Christian writers, or in Jewish and pagan writers,) it designates the Jew who retained, more or less fully, his national language and manners, as against the “Hellenist” who habitually spoke Greek and largely conformed to Gentile customs. See Act 6:1. The “Hebrew” would thus naturally regard himself as one of the lite of his race, from the historical and traditional point of view. See further, Trench, as quoted just above on “ Israel,” and Conybeare and Howson, ch. 2.
the law ] Lit., “ law ”; but here, as often, the article is omitted because not needed before a word defined by use or context. Obviously the Mosaic ordinances are mainly intended.
a Pharisee ] So he declares himself Act 23:6; Act 26:5. And see Act 22:3; Gal 1:14. “The Pharisees were the enthusiasts of the later Judaism” (Conybeare and Howson, as above); the zealous and rigid votaries of religious legal precision, elaborate devotion, vigorous proselytism, and exclusive privilege. St Paul was “the son of Pharisees” (Act 23:6; though Lightfoot suggests that this means “disciple of Pharisees”; improbably, as it seems to us), and the student-follower of the Pharisee (Act 5:34) Gamaliel, probably “Rabban” Gamaliel, grandson of Hillel. Cp. Act 22:3.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
Circumcised the eighth day – That is, he was circumcised in exact compliance with the law. If there was any ground confidence from such compliance with the law, he had it. The law required that circumcision should be performed on the eighth day Gen 17:12; Lev 12:3; Luk 1:59; but it is probable that, in some cases, this was delayed on account of sickness, or from some other cause; and, in the case of proselytes, it was not performed until adult age; see Act 16:3. But Paul says that, in his case, the law had been literally complied with; and, consequently, all the advantage which could be derived from such a compliance, was his.
Of the stock of Israel – Descended from the patriarch Israel, or Jacob; and, therefore, able to trace his genealogy back as far as any Jew could. He was not a proselyte himself from among the pagan, nor were any of his ancestors proselytes. He had all the advantages which could be derived from a regular descent from the venerable founders of the Jewish nation. He was thus distinguished from the Edomites and others who practiced circumcision; from the Samaritans, who were made up of a mixture of people; and from many, even among the Jews, whose ancestors had been once pagan, and who had become proselytes.
Of the tribe of Benjamin – Benjamin was one of the two tribes which remained when the ten tribes revolted under Jeroboam, and, with the tribe of Judah, it ever afterward maintained its allegiance to God. The idea of Paul is, that he was not one of the revolted tribes, but that he had as high a claim to the honor of being a Jew as anyone could boast. The tribe of Benjamin, also, was located near the temple, and indeed it has been said that the temple was on the dividing line between that tribe and the tribe of Judah; and it might have been supposed that there was some advantage in securing salvation from having been born and reared so near where the holy rites of religion were celebrated. If there were any such derived from the proximity of the tribe to the temple, he could claim it; for, though his birth was in another place, yet he was a member of the tribe.
An Hebrew of the Hebrews – This is the Hebrew mode of expressing the superlative degree; and the idea is, that Paul enjoyed every advantage which could possibly be derived from the fact of being a Hebrew. He had a lineal descent from the very ancestor of the nation; he belonged to a tribe that was as honorable as any other, and that had its location near the very center of religious influence; and he was an Hebrew by both his parents, with no admixture of Gentile blood. On this fact – that no one of his ancestors had been a proselyte, or of Gentile extraction – a Jew would pride himself much; and Paul says that he was entitled to all the advantage which could be derived from it.
As touching the law, a Pharisee – In my views of the law, and in my manner of observing it, I was of the straitest sect – a Pharisee; see the notes at Act 26:5. The Pharisees were distinguished among the Jewish sects for their rigid adherence to the letter of the law, and had endeavored to guard it from the possibility of violation by throwing around it a vast body of traditions, which they considered to be equally binding with the written law; see the notes at Mat 3:7. The Sadducees were much less strict; and Paul here says that whatever advantage could be derived from the most rigid adherence to the letter of the law, was his.
Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
Verse 5. Circumcised the eighth day] This was the time that the law required the males to be circumcised; and we find, from Ge 17:14, both in the Samaritan Pentateuch and in the Septuagint, though the clause is now lost out of the common Hebrew text, that the male child, which is not circumcised the eighth day, shall be cut off from among his people: this precept was literally observed in the case of St. Paul.
Of the stock of Israel] Regularly descended from the patriarch Jacob.
Of the tribe of Benjamin] The most favourite son of that patriarch and a tribe that did not revolt with Jeroboam, 1Kgs 12:21, nor pollute the worship of God by idolatry.
A Hebrew of the Hebrews] Though born in a heathen country, Tarsus, yet both my parents were Hebrews; nor has there ever been any strange blood mixed with that of our family.
Touching the law, a Pharisee] One that not only received the law and the prophets as coming from God; but belonged to that sect which, of all others, was most scrupulously attached to it.
Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible
Circumcised the eighth day; or, there was, or I had, the eighth day circumcision; so it may by a usual supply of the verb be read, (as also what follows), without a metonymy. He begins with his birth privilege, intimating that he was not proselyted, but born within the pale of the church, and dedicated to God under the seal of the covenant at the day of Gods appointment, Gen 17:12.
Of the stock of Israel; not sprung from ethnic parents, not an Ishmaelite, or Edomite, but a genuine Israelite, Rom 11:1; 2Co 11:22.
Of the tribe of Benjamin; of that more honest division where the temple stood, Jos 18:28, of the tribe of Benjamin, the son of beloved Rachel, and his fathers darling, Gen 44:20; under Gods special protection, Deu 33:12, forward in the reformation, Ezr 1:5.
An Hebrew of the Hebrews; a true descendant by Jacob from Abraham the father of the faithful, called an Hebrew, (Eber joined not in building Babel), Gen 10:21,25; 14:13; 1Sa 4:6; signifying that he was of the truly ancient lineage which retained the Hebrew tongue, Joh 8:33,39; Ac 22:2; Rom 4:12; 2Co 11:22.
As touching the law, a Pharisee; by religion and stricter observation of the law, according to the prescript most in vogue, of that sect which for learning, knowledge of the Scripture, and reputation for holiness, was the most eminent, Act 26:5; yea, and his father was of this order before him, Act 23:6.
Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole
5. In three particulars he showshow he “might have confidence in the flesh” (Php3:4): (1) His pure Jewish blood. (2) His legal preciseness andhigh status as such. (3) His zeal for the law. The Greek isliterally, “Being in circumcision an eighth day person,”that is, not one circumcised in later life as a proselyte, but on theeighth day after birth, as the law directed in the case of Jew-borninfants.
of the tribeof Benjaminson of Rachel, not of the maid-servant [BENGEL].
Hebrew of the Hebrewsneitherone or other parent being Gentile. The “Hebrew,” whereverhe dwelt, retained the language of his fathers. Thus Paul,though settled in Tarsus, a Greek city, calls himself a Hebrew. A”Grecian” or Hellenist, on the other hand, in the NewTestament, is the term used for a “Greek-speaking“Jew [TRENCH].
touching the lawthatis, as to legal status and strictness.
a Pharisee“of thestraitest sect” (Ac 26:5).
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
Circumcised the eighth day,…. Circumcision was an appointment of God to Abraham, and his male issue; to him and them God gave the covenant of circumcision: this to Abraham personally was a sign and seal, that the righteousness of faith, which he had while he was an uncircumcised person, should come upon the uncircumcised Gentiles in the times or the Messiah, when the Gospel should come among them; and it was a distinguishing character of the Jews from the Gentiles, until the coming of Christ; it was typical of the effusion of his blood to cleanse from all the impurity of original and actual sin, and represented the circumcision of the heart. The Jews valued themselves much upon it, and treated the Gentiles with contempt for the want of it; and would neither converse with them in a civil or religious way, because they were uncircumcised: but the apostle was no Gentile, or an uncircumcised person; he had this mark in his flesh to glory in as well as others, if it had been lawful to trust in it; he was the subject of this ordinance while it was a standing one, and before it was abolished by Christ; and it was performed on him at the precise time fixed in the original institution of it, which was not always observed; for not to take notice of Jewish proselytes; who were circumcised at any age, when they became such, whether in youth, manhood, or old age; and which by the way shows, that the apostle was no proselyte, but a natural Jew; Gershom, the son of Moses, was not circumcised till some years after his birth; and all the while the children of Israel were in the wilderness this ordinance was neglected, till Joshua had led them into Canaan’s land, and then he circumcised all that generation that was born in the wilderness, some of whom must be near forty years of age; and in after times it was usual with the Jews, for one reason or another, to put off circumcision to a longer time. Take the following story as an illustration of this q:
“it is a tradition of R. Nathan; once, says he, I went to the cities of the sea, and a woman came to me who had circumcised her first son, and he died; the second, and he died; the third she brought to me; I saw him that he was red, I said unto her, my daughter, “wait a while” for him till his blood is swallowed up in him; she waited for him a while, and circumcised him, and he lived; and they called him Nathan the Babylonian, after my name. And again another time I went to the province of Cappadocia (the Jerusalem Talmud r has it Caesarea of Cappadocia), a certain woman came to me, who had circumcised her first son, and he died; the second, and he died; the third, (the above Talmud adds, and he died, the fourth,) she brought to me, I saw that he was green, I inspected him, and the blood of the covenant was not in him, I said unto her, my daughter, , “tarry a while” for him; (the Jerusalem Talmud has it, , “let him alone to another time”;) till his blood fall in him, she waited for him, and circumcised him, and he lived; and they called him Nathan the Babylonian, after my name.”
The Jewish canon, with regard to the time of circumcision, runs thus s:
“an infant may be circumcised at eight days, or at nine, or at ten, or at eleven, or at twelve, neither less nor more (not less than eight, nor more than twelve), how? according to its course at eight. If it is born between the two evenings, it is circumcised on the ninth day; if between the two evenings of the sabbath eve, it is circumcised on the tenth day; if on a feast day after the sabbath, it is circumcised on the eleventh; if on the two days of the beginning of the year, it is circumcised on the twelfth. An infant that is sick, they do not circumcise him until he is recovered.”
And in the last case, they reckon seven days from the time of the recovery of the child, as Maimonides t observes; with whom may be read other cases, in which circumcision was not always performed on the eighth day, but sometimes was deferred, and sometimes it was done the same day the child was born. But circumcision on the eighth day was reckoned most valid and authentic, and according to rule; and therefore it is not without reason, that the apostle mentions the time of his circumcision, and puts an emphasis upon it.
Of the stock of Israel; this is said to distinguish him from an Ishmaelite, or an Edomite, who were circumcised, and from the son of a proselyte, who might be circumcised on the eighth day; but he was a natural Israelite, to whom the various privileges belonged, mentioned in Ro 9:4; and therefore had as much reason to trust in the flesh as any Israelite whatever.
[Of] the tribe of Benjamin; who was a genuine and legitimate son of Jacob, whom he had by his lawful and beloved wife Rachel. Of which tribe was the first king of Israel, whose name was Saul, 1Sa 9:1, and which was the apostle’s first and Jewish name, and which perhaps was common in that tribe on that account. In this tribe stood the city of Jerusalem, and the temple of the Lord; this tribe retained the true worship of God with Judah, when the ten tribes revolted and worshipped the calves at Dan and Bethel, and returned with Judah from captivity, when the others did not. And the apostle was not only able to make himself appear to be of the stock Israel, but could name the tribe to which he belonged, which many of the Jews, that were of one, or rather of the ten tribes, were not able to do, and may be his chief reason for mentioning this circumstance.
An Hebrew of the Hebrews; not so called only because he could trace his pedigree from Abraham the Hebrew, or understood, and could speak the Hebrew language, which the Hellenistic Jews could not, or was an illustrious one among them, but because both his parents were Hebrews; he was an Hebrew by the father and mother’s side both; he was a genuine Hebrew. The Arabians have the same way of speaking; and with them a genuine Arab is called an Arab of the Arabs u as here. Some there were whose mothers were Hebrews, and their fathers Gentiles; such an one was Timothy, Ac 16:1; and there were others whose fathers were Hebrews, and their mothers Gentiles; and these are thought by some to be the same the Talmudists w call, , “profane”: they not being reckoned so holy as such whose fathers and mothers were both Hebrews; of which the latter gloried over the other.
As touching the law, a Pharisee: with respect to the interpretation and observance of the law, which was according to the traditions of the elders, and not the literal and genuine sense of it, he followed; and was of the sect of the Pharisees, which was strictest sect among the Jews, and in the greatest esteem among the people: and though they had put many false glosses on the Scripture, and held many erroneous principles, and were very tenacious of human traditions, yet they were preferable to the Sadducees, who denied the resurrection of the dead, and other things; and were more zealous in their devotion and religion, and more strict in their morals, and external holiness of life and conversation. They separated and distinguished themselves hereby from other people, and hence they had their name; [See comments on Mt 3:7]. Now the apostle was not only a Pharisee, but the son of one; he was always brought up in that strict sect and severe way, Ac 23:6.
q T. Bab. Cholin, fol. 47. 2. r T. Hieros. Yebamot, fol. 7. 4. s Misn. Sabbat, c. 19. sect. 5. Vid. Maimon. & Bartenora in ib. & Misn. Eracin, c. 2. sect. 2. & Bartenora in ib. t Hilch. Mila, c. 1. 16. u Pocock. Specim. A. ab. Hist. p. 3, 9. w T. Bab. Kiddushin, fol. 69. 1.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Thinketh to have confidence ( ). Second perfect active infinitive. Old idiom, “seems to himself to have confidence.” Later idiom like Mt 3:9 “think not to say” and 1Co 11:16, “thinks that he has ground of confidence in himself.”
I yet more ( ). “I have more ground for boasting than he” and Paul proceeds to prove it in the rest of verses Phil 3:5; Phil 3:6.
Circumcised the eighth day ( ). “In circumcision (locative case) an eighth day man.” Use of the ordinal with persons like (Joh 11:39). Ishmaelites were circumcised in the thirteenth year, proselytes from Gentiles in mature age, Jews on the eighth day (Lu 2:21).
Of the stock of Israel ( ). Of the original stock, not a proselyte.
Benjamin (). Son of the right hand (that is, left-handed), son of Rachel. The first King, Saul (Paul’s own Hebrew name) was from this little tribe. The battle cry of Israel was “After thee, O Benjamin” (Jud 5:14).
A Hebrew of the Hebrews ( ). Of Hebrew parents who retained the characteristic qualities in language and custom as distinct from the Hellenistic Jews (Ac 6:1). Paul was from Tarsus and knew Greek as well as Aramaic (Acts 21:40; Acts 22:2) and Hebrew, but he had not become Hellenized.
A Pharisee (). In distinction from the Sadducees (Ga 1:14) and he continued a Pharisee in many essential matters like the doctrine of the resurrection (Ac 23:6). Cf. 2Co 11:22.
Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament
Circumcised the eighth day [ ] . Lit., eight days old in circumcision; or passing the eighth day. For the idiom, see on Joh 11:39, and compare Act 28:13. Converts to Judaism were circumcised in maturity : Ishmaelites in their thirteenth year. He was thus shown to be neither a heathen nor an Ishmaelite.
Of the stock of Israel. Not a proselyte, but of the original stock [] ; not grafted into the covenant race. A descendant of Jacob, not an Idumaean nor an Ishmaelite. For Israel, see on Act 3:12, and compare Rom 9:4; Rom 11:1; Joh 1:47. Descended not from Jacob, the supplanter, but from Israel, the prince of God. See Gen 32:28.
Of the tribe of Benjamin. Not from one of the lost tribes, but from that which gave to Israel its first king; which alone was faithful to Judah at the separation under Rehoboam, and which had always held the post of honor in the army. See Jud 5:14; Hos 5:8. Benjamin only of the twelve patriarchs was born in the land of promise. Mordecai, the deliverer of the Jews from Haman was a Benjamite. Paul ‘s own original name, Saul, was probably derived from Saul the son of Kish, the Benjamite.
A Hebrew of the Hebrews [ ] . The (Hebrews) of the A. V. gives a wrong coloring to the phrase, as if Paul were claiming to be preeminently a Hebrew among other Hebrews He means a Hebrew from [] Hebrew parents. Rev., a Hebrew of Hebrews, which is no special improvement. The expression implies characteristics of language and manners. He might be an Israelite and yet a child of Greek – speaking Jews : but his parents had retained their native tongue and customs, and he himself, while understanding and speaking Greek, also spoke in Hebrew on occasion. See Act 21:40; Act 22:2.
The law. The Mosaic law. See on Rom 2:12. The validity of that law was the principle upheld by the Judaizers.
A Pharisee. See Act 23:6; Gal 1:14. Compare on the whole verse, 2Co 11:22.
Fuente: Vincent’s Word Studies in the New Testament
1) “Circumcised the eighth day” (peristome Okatemeros) “In circumcision (the) eighth day,” a fleshly seal of the seed of Abraham, Gen 17:12-14; Rom 2:25-29.
2) “Of the stock of Israel” (ek genous Israel) “out of (the) stock or race of Israel, offspring of Jacob whose name was (changed to Israel) Gen 32:28.
3) “Of the tribe of Benjamin” (phules Beniamin) out of (the) tribe of Benjamin” one of the two most famous tribes of Israel, along with Judah. This tribe descended from Rachel, Jacob’s best loved wife and remained true to the house of David.
4) “An Hebrew of the Hebrews” (Ebraios eks Ebraion) An Hebrew out of Hebrew (parents),” a phrase meaning of unmixed blood with other races or tribes, 2Co 11:22.
5) “As touching the law, a Pharisee;” (kata namon pharisaios)- “according to (the) law, a Pharisee;” one of the most scrupulous of the orthodox sects of the Jews. Act 22:1-3; Act 26:4-5.
Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary
5. Circumcised on the eighth day It is literally— “The circumcision of the eighth day.” There is no difference, however, in the sense, for the meaning is, that he was circumcised in the proper manner, and according to the appointment of the law (173). Now this customary circumcision was reckoned of superior value; and, besides, it was a token of the race to which he belonged; on which he touches immediately afterwards. For the case was not the same as to foreigners, for after they had become proselytes they were circumcised in youth, or when grown up to manhood, and sometimes even in old age. He says, accordingly, that he is of the race of Israel He names the tribe (174), — not, in my opinion, on the ground that the tribe of Benjamin had a superiorityof excellence above others, but for shewing more fully that he belonged to the race of Israel, as it was the custom that every one was numbered according to his particular tribe. With the same view he adds still farther, that he is an Hebrew of the Hebrews For this name was the most ancient, as being that by which Abraham himself is designated by Moses. (Gen 14:13.) (175) The sum, therefore, is this — that Paul was descended from the seed of Jacob from the most ancient date, so that he could reckon up grandfathers and great-grandfathers, and could even go still farther back.
According to the law, a Pharisee Having spoken of the nobility of his descent, he now proceeds to speak of special endowments of persons, as they are called. It is very generally known, that the sect of the Pharisees was celebrated above the others for the renown in which it was held for sanctity and for doctrine. He states, that he belonged to that sect. The common opinion is, that the Pharisees were so called from a term signifying separation (176) ; but I approve rather of what I learned at one time from Capito, a man of sacred memory (177), that it was because they boasted that they were endowed with the gift of interpreting Scripture, for פרש (parash,) among the Hebrews, conveys the idea of interpretation. (178) While others declared themselves to be literals (179) , they preferred to be regarded as Pharisees (180) , as being in possession of the interpretations of the ancients. And assuredly it is manifest that, under the pretext of antiquity, they corrupted the whole of Scripture by their inventions; but as they, at the same time, retained some sound interpretations, handed down by the ancients, they were held in the highest esteem.
But what is meant by the clause, according to the law? For unquestionably nothing is more opposed to the law of God than sects, for in it is communicated the truth of God, which is the bond of unity. Besides this, Josephus tells us in the 13th book of his Antiquities, that all the sects took their rise during the high priesthood of Jonathan. Paul employs the term law, not in its strict sense, to denote the doctrine of religion, however much corrupted it was at that time, as Christianity is at this day in the Papacy. As, however, there were many that were in the rank of teachers, who were less skillful, and exercised (181) he makes mention also of his zeal. It was, indeed, a very heinous sin on the part of Paul to persecute the Church, but as he had to dispute with unprincipled persons, who, by mixing up Christ with Moses, pretended zeal for the law, he mentions, on the other hand, that he was so keen a zealot of the law, that on that ground he persecuted the Church
(173) “ Circoncis deuement et selon l’ordonnance et les obseruations de la loy;” — “Circumcised duly and according to the appointment and the observances of the law.”
(174) “ Il note la tribu et le chef de la lignee de laquelle il estoit descendu;” — “He names the tribe and the head of the line from which he was descended.”
(175) See Calvin on the Corinthians, vol. 2, p. 357, 358.
(176) “ Que les Pharisiens ont este ainsi nommez, pource qu’ils estoyent separez d’auec les autres, comme estans saincts;” — “That the Pharisees were so called, because they were separated from others, as being holy.”
(177) See Calvin On the Corinthians, vol. 2, p. 82.
(178) The reader will find the etymology of the term Pharisees, discussed at considerable length in the Harmony, vol. 1, p. 281, n. 4. — Ed.
(179) The meaning is, that in interpreting Scripture, they did not go beyond the bare letter.— Ed.
(180) See Harmony, vol. 1, pp. 281, 282, and vol. 3, p. 74.
(181) “ Exercez en l’Ecriture;” — “Exercised in Scripture.”
Fuente: Calvin’s Complete Commentary
(5) Circumcised the eighth dayi.e., a Jew born, not a proselyte.
Of the stock of Israeli.e., emphatically, a true scion of the covenanted stock, the royal race of the Prince of God.
Of the tribe of Benjamini.e., the tribe of the first king, whose name the Apostle bore; the tribe to whom belonged the holy city; the one tribe faithful to the house of Judah in the apostasy of the rest.
An Hebrew of the Hebrews.Properly, a Hebrew descended from Hebrews. The Hebrew Jew, who retained, wherever born, the old tongue, education, and customs of his fathers, held himself superior to the Grecian or Hellenist, who had to assimilate himself, as to the language, so to the thoughts and habits, of the heathen around him. St. Paul united the advantages both of the true Hebrew, brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, and of the Hellenist of Tarsus, familiar with Greek language, literature, and thought. Compare his own words to his countrymen from the steps of the Temple as illustrating the whole passage: I verily am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers, and was zealous before God . . . and I persecuted this way unto the death (Act. 22:3-4).
As touching the law, a Pharisee.Comp. Act. 23:6, I am a Pharisee, and the son of Pharisees; and Act. 26:5, according to the straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee. In these words St. Paul passes from his inherited Judaic privileges, to the intense Judaism of his own personal life.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
(5, 6) The comparison with the celebrated passage in 2Co. 11:18-23 is striking, in respect not only of similarity of substance, but of the change of tone from the indignant and impassioned abruptness of the earlier Epistle to the calm impressiveness of this. The first belongs to the crisis of the struggle, the other to its close. We have also a parallel, though less complete, in Rom. 11:1, I also am an Israelite, of the stock of Abraham, of the tribe of Benjamin.
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
5. Circumcised the eighth day So a born Jew, and not a proselyte circumcised in adult years, or, like Ishmael, after the age of thirteen.
Stock of Israel Of the true theocratic race, and no son of proselytes. Tribe of Benjamin, which never revolted, and, united with Judah, perpetuated the nationality.
Hebrew of the Hebrews Of pure Hebrew ancestry on both sides, with no admixture of foreign blood for near two thousand years. The genealogical tables would show this. As to purity of lineage, no Jew could claim more, and few so much. A proselyte, a descendant of a proselyte, a Jew in whose ancestry, however remote, was a Gentile, like Ruth the Moabitess, or one who had lost his tribal record, or could not prove his descent, would fail here; and here is where the apostle’s zealous opponents failed. In blood and birth he was their superior, as he also was in fidelity to his religion. Touching the law of Moses, that is, as to the regard paid to it, he was a Pharisee, whose distinction was, the closest observance of its minutest precepts.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
‘Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, a Hebrew of Hebrews,’
Paul now lists the things that had marked him off as ‘perfect’ in the eyes of the Jews. He had been properly circumcised at the right time, he could trace his descent backwards to prove that he was a genuine true-born Israelite (which, in spite of their best efforts, comparatively few Jews could do), he was a recognised member of the tribe of Benjamin, one of the tribes which had preserved its wholeness and identity and had remained faithful to Jerusalem all the way through, and he was brought up strictly as a Hebrew and Aramaic speaking Jew, being born of Hebrew parents. He had all the right credentials.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Furthermore as a Pharisee he had meticulously sought to follow the Law (as interpreted by them), while his zealousness as a Jew had been proved by the way in which he had persecuted those Jews who were considered to have gone astray, the new-born church. And as regards the righteousness of the Law he had been able to tick off every box demonstrating that he had fulfilled all that was required of him by the Rabbis. No finger (apart from God’s) could have been pointed at him, because he had been found blameless (by men; compare the rich young ruler’s view of himself in Mat 19:20, and yet he too was still dissatisfied and aware of something missing). We may see this blamelessness in the eyes of men as in contrast with his requirement of the Philippians in Php 2:15. They were to seek to be blameless in the eyes of God.
His persecuting of the new-born church would have been seen by his fellow-Pharisees as especially revealing his righteousness. Here was a man who was zealous for the Lord of Hosts. When Phinehas had slain the offending Israelite in Num 25:6-13 it had been ‘accounted to him for righteousness to all generations for evermore’ (Psalm 106 30-31). In Jewish eyes it had established him among ‘the righteous ones’. The same was true of Mattathias, the father of the Maccabees, for he too had slain an apostate Jew in the act of offering a false sacrifice, and his action had been described as being ‘Zealous for the Law’ ( 1Ma 2:24-28 ). Thus Paul, in persecuting the church, had seen himself as aligning himself with the zeal of his fathers.
Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett
Php 3:5. Circumcised the eighth day, Under circumcision when eight days old. Piscator and Homberg. It evidently appears, that the Jews did not only lay a great stress on the rite of circumcision, but on the time of performingit; that is, exactly on the eighth day. This consideration, and the particulars enumerated by St. Paul, must be understood as plain evidences, that the Apostle had more reason to trust in the flesh, than the person upon whom he reflects; and therefore it seems highly probable, that this person was only a proselyte, and not a Jew by birth. We may collect the same from the phrase, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; by which he seems to mean, that he was not a Hellenist Jew, as probably the person who endeavoured to seduce them was. Comp. Act 6:1, where the Hellenists are contra-distinguished from the Hebrews. See also Rom 11:1. 2Co 11:22. Act 23:6.
Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke
Phi 3:5-6 . Predicates of the , by which that is justified.
If those Judaizers were, as may be inferred from our passage, partly proselytes (to these the . . stands in contrast), partly persons whose Jewish descent was not so noble and pure as that implied in . , and if they could not boast of any such law-strictness, zealous activity, and righteousness , as is described in ; and if, on the other hand, there were found conjoined in the case of Paul the elements here adduced of ancient theocratic legitimacy and perfection; the in Phi 3:4 was completely made good.
.] in respect to circumcision an eighth-day-one , not older, as were the proselytes who were only circumcised at a later period of life. The eighth-day character in the’ relation specified by is conceived as a quality of the persons concerned, which distinguishes them from those circumcised later. [156] The reading as nominative (some min. and Fathers, Erasmus, Vatablus, Cornelius a Lapide, Mill, Bengel, Matthies, Heinrichs, and others, also Elz. 1624, 1633, not 1641), so that it would stand in the concrete sense ( circumcisus ), is erroneous, because this usage occurs only collectively.
.] that is, a descendant of Jacob , not, therefore, possibly of Idumaean blood. The theocratic name . corresponds entirely with the design of the passage. Comp. on Eph 2:12 . On what follows, comp. 2Co 11:22 ; Rom 11:1 .
. ] therefore not, possibly, an Ephraimite (Ezr 4:1 ); a climactic more precise definition of the ; Soph. Phil . 862 (874). For its fuller exhibition Paul finally specifies the last feature of his lineage: ., that is, a Hebrew born of Hebrew parents , so that his mother also was a Hebrew woman. His lineage is not carried further back in respect to both parents, because it was not the custom to trace back the genealogy of the wives. Inappropriate to the context is the rendering of Michaelis, following Chrysostom, Oecumenius, and Theophylact: “one speaking Hebrew, born of Hebrew- speaking parents.” It is also erroneous, following the Greek Fathers, to take . of the tota majorum series (Beza, Grotius, Storr, Matthies, Baumgarten-Crusius, and others), because this was after the two previously specified points self-evident. If, among his ancestors, Paul had had one who was a non-Hebrew, he would not have been descended from Jacob and Benjamin, but from the non-Hebrew and his forefathers. For instances of expressions quite similar to . ., used to denote the identity, as conditioned by birth, of a man’s position with that of his parents, see Wetstein and Kypke; they occur very frequently in classic authors.
. . . ] After his Jewish there now follows his distinguished personal position in Judaism, set forth in a threefold climactic gradation: (1) In respect of the law (of Moses) a Pharisee . Comp. Act 26:5 ; Act 22:6 . The Pharisees stood in the closest and strictest relation to the law, as they with their traditions were regarded as the most orthodox expositors, defenders, and observers of it. The interpretation of , not in its habitual historic sense, but generally as regular rule (Beza) or disciplina ( ) (Castalio, Wolf, Grotius, Storr, Heinrichs, Rheinwald, Hoelemann, and others), is all the more erroneous, since the validity of the Mosaic law in Christianity was the very principle upheld by those Judaizers; see also below, . . . (2) In respect of zeal (zealous maintenance and championship of the law-religion, 1Ma 2:58 ; Act 21:20 ; Gal 1:14 ), a persecutor of the church . Comp. Gal 1:13 f. The present participle is used as a substantive , comp. on Gal 1:23 . What Paul, to his deep grief, had been (1Co 15:8 f.; 1Ti 1:13 ), he, with a bitter recalling of his former distinction in Judaism, throws, by way of confronting the Jewish zealots, into the scale, as a characteristic predicate not yet extinct. And precisely thus, unaccompanied by any as in Gal 1:23 , it carries from the standpoint to which he has now attained very strong weight (in opposition to Hofmann, who holds the present sense to be impossible here). (3) In respect to righteousness, which is grounded on the law, having become blameless (Phi 2:15 ), having carried it so far (not: having borne myself so , as Hofmann renders it; comp. on Phi 2:15 ), that human judgment finds nothing in me to blame in this respect! That which is here denoted by . is not substantially different from . in Phi 3:9 ; comp. Rom 10:5 . It has its basis in the law , so far as it consists in the accordance of its nature with the character and the rules of that institute (Gal 3:11 ; Gal 5:4 ), and proceeds from the law , so far as it is produced by the precepts of the latter which man follows. In opposition to the correlation with Phi 3:9 de Wette interprets: “the righteousness valid in the state of law (comp. Rom 2:12 ).” Calvin appropriately observes that Paul means “ totam justitiam legis,” but “ communi hominum existimatione; ” that it is not, therefore, the real moral fulfilment of the law, but its justitia externa literalis . Comp. J. Mller, v. d. Snde , I. p. 59, Exo 5 .
[156] For instances of the personal use of such nomina dialia, see especially Wetstein on Joh 11:39 ; comp. generally Khner, II. 1, p. 234 f.
Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary
5 Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee;
Ver. 5. A Hebrew of the Hebrews ] That is, by both father’s and mother’s side. Some think that hereby he argueth the ancientness of his stock and lineage, as being continued from Abraham, called the Hebrew; or from Eber. (Dr Airay.) Sed genus et proavos, &c. Of some ancient families it may be said as of some books, that they are adorandae rubiginis, of more antiquity than authority or respect.
Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)
5 .] “predicates of the , justifying the ,” Meyer. He compares himself with them in three particulars: 1. pure Jewish extraction: 2. legal exactitude and position: 3. legal zeal. In circumcision (i.e. ‘as regards circumcision:’ reff. Many (Erasm., Beng., all.) have taken . as nominative, and understood it concrete, ‘ circumcisus ,’ but wrongly, for the usage applies only collectively, see Winer, edn. 3 (not in edn. 6), 31. 3), of eight days (Gen 17:12 ; as distinguished from those who, as proselytes, were circumcised in after life. For usage, see reff.), of the race, of Israel (cf. Rom 11:1 ; 2Co 11:22 , , . Thdrt.), of the tribe of Benjamin ( , Chrys.: or perhaps as Calv., merely ‘ut moris erat, singulos ex sua tribu censeri’), an Hebrew, of Hebrews (i.e. from Hebrew parents and ancestry (which the word parents was of course meant to imply in my earlier editions: not, as Ellic., to limit the assertion to St. Paul’s father and mother) on both sides: , . , . , , . Chrys.: see also Trench, Synonyms, xxxix. p. 153 ff. So Demosth. adv. Androt. p. 614, . : see other examples in Kypke and Wetst.), as regards the law (with reference to relative legal position and observance), a Pharisee (cf. Act 23:6 ; Act 26:5 ), as regards zeal (for the law), a persecutor of the church (of Christ: on the participle, see ref.: Ellic. holds the pres. part. to have an adjectival force, being predicate to a suppressed verb subst.), as regards righteousness which is in (as its element: consists in the keeping of) the law, become blameless (i.e. having carried this righteousness so far as to have become perfect in it, in the sight of men. Calvin well distinguishes between the real and apparent righteousness in the law the former before God, never possessed by any man: the latter before men, here spoken of by Paul: ‘erat ergo hominum judicio sanctus, et immunis ab omni reprehensione. Rara sane laus, et prope singularis: videamus tamen quanti eam fecerit’).
Fuente: Henry Alford’s Greek Testament
Phi 3:5 . The Apostle seems to feel a certain natural pride in recounting his hereditary privileges. . The dative of . must be read, expressing the sphere to which . belongs. Literally: “Eight-days-old as regards my circumcision”. A.V. satisfies the requirements. He was born in Judaism, and lost none of its advantages from the outset. Proselytes were circumcised as adults. For the usage in this sense see the elaborate list of parallels in Wetstein on Joh 11:39 . . often denotes the class or country of a man, e.g. , Joh 3:1 . Paul shared in the glories of the covenant-people. Israel was the theocratic name. . B. This tribe stood high in Jewish estimation, not only as descending from Rachel, Jacob’s best-loved wife, but as remaining loyal to the house of David, and, after the exile, forming with Judah the foundation of the future nation. . . For the phrase cf. Herodt., 2, 143, ; Plat., Phaedr. , 246 [32] A , . The force of these words has been variously estimated. Lft [33] . and others draw a contrast between and , the former being a Jew who retained the Hebrew language and customs (see Act 6:1 ). But Euseb., H.E. , 2, 4, 2, applies the designation to Philo, and in Praep. Evang. , xiii., 11, 2, to Aristobulus, both of them Greek-speaking Jews with little if any knowledge of Hebrew. Cf. 2Co 11:22 . The Greek Comm [34] . , Th. Mps [35] . and Thdrt [36] . , believe that, in using the ancient name, Paul wishes to emphasise the purity of his lineage. Probably they are right. . Are we to distinguish between and in Paul? Attempts have been made (notably that of Gifford, Romans in Speaker’s Comm [37] . , pp. 41 48) to show that when Paul omits the article he is thinking mainly of the principle of law as a method of justification in opposition to faith, etc. In our judgment it has been made abundantly clear by Grafe ( Die paulinische Lehre vom Gesetz , pp. 1 11) that, for the Apostle, with or without the article means the O.T. revelation of the will of God. He makes no distinction between a general conception of Divine law and the special one of the Mosaic law. The Mosaic law is for him the Divine law pure and simple, and therefore has a universal bearing. There are, of course, modifications of this central idea, but they can all be satisfactorily accounted for. Often the insertion or omission of the article with is entirely a question of formal grammar. Here is plainly the law of Moses. . Cf. Act 23:6 . For an interesting discussion of the influence of the school of Hillel upon Paul see Wabnitz, Revue Thol. , xiii., p. 287 ff. The survivals of Rabbinic doctrines and methods in Paul’s thought, however, must neither be exaggerated, nor, because they are Rabbinic, be contemptuously dismissed. “If God was not moving in the Rabbinic thought of Christ’s day, what reason have we to say He moves in the thought of to-day?” (P. T. Forsyth). Almost certainly Paul’s family must have been in thorough sympathy with strict Judaism. No doubt he would be disowned by them, and this, as Ramsay notes ( St. Paul , p. 36), would give special force to his words in Phi 3:8 infr.
[32] Codex Alexandrinus (sc. v.), at the British Museum, published in photographic facsimile by Sir E. M. Thompson (1879).
[33] Lightfoot.
[34] Commentators.
[35] . Mps. Theodore of Mopsuestia.
[36] drt. Theodoret.
[37] Commentators.
Fuente: The Expositors Greek Testament by Robertson
Circumcised = In circumcision, as in Php 3:3.
of. App-104.
stock. Greek. genos. 1Co 12:10 (kind). Gal 1:1, Gal 1:14 (nation).
the Hebrews. Omit “the”. He refers to his parents, both Hebrews.
as touching = according to. App-104.
Pharisee. App-120.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
5.] predicates of the , justifying the , Meyer. He compares himself with them in three particulars: 1. pure Jewish extraction: 2. legal exactitude and position: 3. legal zeal. In circumcision (i.e. as regards circumcision: reff. Many (Erasm., Beng., all.) have taken . as nominative, and understood it concrete, circumcisus, but wrongly, for the usage applies only collectively, see Winer, edn. 3 (not in edn. 6), 31. 3), of eight days (Gen 17:12; as distinguished from those who, as proselytes, were circumcised in after life. For usage, see reff.), of the race, of Israel (cf. Rom 11:1; 2Co 11:22, , . Thdrt.), of the tribe of Benjamin ( , Chrys.: or perhaps as Calv., merely ut moris erat, singulos ex sua tribu censeri), an Hebrew, of Hebrews (i.e. from Hebrew parents and ancestry (which the word parents was of course meant to imply in my earlier editions: not, as Ellic., to limit the assertion to St. Pauls father and mother) on both sides: , . , . , , . Chrys.: see also Trench, Synonyms, xxxix. p. 153 ff. So Demosth. adv. Androt. p. 614, . : see other examples in Kypke and Wetst.), as regards the law (with reference to relative legal position and observance), a Pharisee (cf. Act 23:6; Act 26:5), as regards zeal (for the law), a persecutor of the church (of Christ: on the participle, see ref.: Ellic. holds the pres. part. to have an adjectival force, being predicate to a suppressed verb subst.), as regards righteousness which is in (as its element: consists in the keeping of) the law, become blameless (i.e. having carried this righteousness so far as to have become perfect in it, in the sight of men. Calvin well distinguishes between the real and apparent righteousness in the law-the former before God, never possessed by any man: the latter before men, here spoken of by Paul:-erat ergo hominum judicio sanctus, et immunis ab omni reprehensione. Rara sane laus, et prope singularis: videamus tamen quanti eam fecerit).
Fuente: The Greek Testament
Php 3:5. ,[36] circumcision on the eighth day) These heads [of carnal glorying], counted very briefly as it were on the fingers, render the discourse very plain. Moreover, for the sake of brevity, he puts together the abstract and concrete-circumcision, a Hebrew: as in Col 3:11.-, on the eighth day) not putting it off until full age.-, Benjamin) son of Rachel, not of the maid-servant.- , of the Hebrews) not a proselyte, and neither the one parent nor the other being of the Gentiles.-, a Pharisee) of the most rigid description [of the straitest sect, Act 26:5].
[36] The oldest authorities have , i.e. Being an eighth day person in respect to my circumcision. So fg Lucif. circumcisione: Vulg. circumcisus octavo die.-ED.
Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament
Php 3:5
Php 3:5
circumcised the eighth day,-He was neither an Ishmaelite, who had been circumcised at the age of thirteen, nor a proselyte, who would have received circumcision in mature life. In his case the sacred rite, of which the Jews were always so proud, had been received in its perfection. [The parents of such a child must have been zealous for the law, and careful that their son should be made fully a partaker of the Abrahamic covenant.]
of the stock of Israel,-Born of Rachel, a legitimate wife, not of a handmaid, and therefore of good Israelitish stock. [He mentions this that it may be clear that not only he but his parents were Israelites. He was not of a father or mother who had come into the privileges of the chosen race as proselytes.]
of the tribe of Benjamin,-He was born of the tribe of great renown in the national history, a tribe which gave Israel its first king; which remained loyal to the royal line of David, and to the worship of Jehovah, and preserved its own strain with remarkable purity. The Holy City and temple stood on its soil.
a Hebrew of Hebrews;-He was a son of Hebrew parents and stock. By this he would mark the purity of his descent. All his ancestors were Hebrews. He was born in Tarsus away from the Holy Land, but there was no intermixture of other blood in his veins. [We can judge that this was likely to be so when we find that the son was sent to study in Jerusalem at the feet of Gamaliel. Only those who were proud and careful for the strict Jewish character of all belonging to them would have sought to have their son placed under such a teacher away from their own home. We can see also how learned Paul was in all that concerned his own people.]
as touching the law, a Pharisee;-He observed the law with the minuteness of a Pharisee, the most scrupulous of all in the observance of every minutia of the law. [He explains this as brought up in Jerusalem at the feet of Gamaliel, instructed according to the strict manner of the law of our fathers (Act 22:3), and again he tells us that after the straitest sect of our religion I lived a Pharisee (Act 26:5). And thus far he has spoken only of those distinctions as a Jew, which depended on others. His birth, family, and education were not in his own hands, but yet he could point to them as each one marking him for a privileged member of the chosen people. He now proceeds to tell that his former zeal for Judaism did not disgrace such parentage and training.]
Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary
Circumcised: Gen 17:12, Luk 2:21, Joh 7:21-24
of the stock: Act 22:3, 2Co 11:22
of the tribe: Rom 11:1
an: Gen 14:13, Gen 40:15, Gen 41:12, 1Sa 4:6, Jon 1:9, Act 6:1, 2Co 11:22
Pharisee: Act 23:6, Act 26:4, Act 26:5
Reciprocal: Gen 49:27 – a wolf Lev 12:3 – General 2Ch 11:3 – to all Israel Jer 34:9 – Hebrew Luk 1:59 – General Luk 5:38 – General Luk 18:10 – a Pharisee Joh 1:24 – were of Act 15:5 – certain Rom 7:9 – For I 2Co 9:1 – touching
Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
(Php 3:5.) -As to circumcision, an eighth-day one, literally,-circumcised on the eighth day. The reading of the first noun in the nominative by Erasmus, Bengel, and others, is inadmissible. It is the dative of reference. Winer, 31, 6. The adjective is used, like similar nouns of number, as , Joh 11:39 -, Greg. Naz. Orat. 25; Marc. Anton. 3,-, Theoc. 2.157. Circumcision on the eighth day was according to divine enactment. Gen 17:12; Lev 12:3. The apostle was a born Jew, and on the appointed day had received the seal of the Abrahamic covenant. The rite was for no reason deferred, and if any merit accrued from strict compliance with the law, he had it. The apostle makes good his declaration not only of , but of . The proselytes and Idumeans could not say so, for only in riper years could they be circumcised. Paul, therefore, left all such boasters behind him-
-of the race of Israel. See under Eph 2:12. He had been circumcised on the eighth day; and not only was he not a proselyte, but he was not the son of proselytes, who might want for their child what they had not in childhood received themselves. No: he was a member of the chosen race, and not of Ishmael or Esau, or any other Abrahamic clan than that of Jacob. The term , too, expresses spiritual nobility, and carries a higher honour than either the epithet Hebrew or Jew. Rom 9:4; 2Co 11:22 –
-of the tribe of Benjamin. The apostle means to derive some honour from his tribal lineage. It could scarcely be from this, that the first king of Israel belonged to this tribe, or that the apostle bore the royal name. Benjamin was a favourite son by a favourite wife, and the tribe is styled by Moses the beloved of the Lord. Deu 33:12. That tribe also had the capital and temple in its canton, was long identified with the great tribe of Judah, and had returned with it to Palestine, while the more northern tribes had almost ceased to exist as distinct branches of the house of Israel. He could give his genealogy. Rom 11:1 –
-a Hebrew of the Hebrews. The phrase is often used in reference to speech, and in contrast with Hellenist. Act 6:1. It does not seem to be employed in such a sense here, though OEcumenius affirms it, and he is followed by Witsius, Crellius, and Michaelis. Nor can it refer to place of birth, for Paul was born at Tarsus in Cilicia, Act 22:3 -a statement in opposition to the tradition mentioned by Jerome that he was born at Gischala in Galilee, and that on the capture of the place by the Romans, his parents and he emigrated to Tarsus. Nor has it, as Carpzov and Noesselt think, any religious reference, for it was the political name of the nation-that by which they were known among foreigners. The phrase denotes purity of lineal extraction-not simply that he was sprung of an old Hebrew family, as Jaspis and Rheinwald suppose-but that none of his ancestors had been other than a Jew. Meyer’s view is, that both his parents were Hebrews, especially his mother. But the force of the phrase goes beyond immediate parentage. He was aware of no hybrid Gentile admixture, though his ancestors may have lived in Gentile countries. He was sprung of pure Hebrew blood, there having been no cross marriage to taint the descent. Thus does the apostle characterize his lineage:- circumcised on the eighth day, and therefore no foreign convert admitted in mature life, but having parents who coveted and transmitted the Abrahamic rite for their family;-of the stock of Israel, and having a hereditary right to the seal of the national covenant with all its blessings;-of the tribe of Benjamin, able to ascertain and prove his descent, and not of one of any of the tribes geographically lost or individually absorbed by the rest;-a Hebrew of the Hebrews, descended from a long line of pure ancestry, without any accidental infusion on either side of foreign blood. There is a species of climax. A proselyte might circumcise his child on the eighth day; another might be of the stock of Israel and yet his mother might not be a Jewess, as was the case with Obed and Timothy; for such a one might be of the tribe of Benjamin and yet not a Hebrew of the Hebrews. Extraction of undoubted purity distinguished him, while some of his opponents, with all their Judaizing zeal, could make no such assertion- . 2Co 11:22.
Having enumerated his privileges as a member of Abraham’s race, the apostle proceeds to show how he improved them. What he had enjoyed as a child was not lost upon him as a man. He was not contented with being one of the Jewish mass, but he sought in riper years to realize the advantages of his birth. Not satisfied with a passive possession of blood and birth, he laboured to appropriate all its blessings. He was a religious man-sincerely and intelligently attached to the law and all the venerated traditions of the fathers, and not simply a born Jew, proud of his ancestry, but indifferent to their faith-venerating the name of Moses, but careless of his law, save in so far as national customs had habituated him to its observance. Could the same be said of all his adversaries who now made such an outcry about the Abrahamic rite?
-touching the law a Pharisee. It is wrong to give the meaning of , as do Heinrichs, Am Ende, and Rheinwald, nor can it be rendered by secta or disciplina. Nor need it be understood, with van Hengel, as meaning-with regard to the interpretation of the law- quod legis attinet interpretationem. In his relation to the law he was a Pharisee. Act 26:5. The Pharisee was noted for his strong attachment to the law-for his observance of all its ceremonial minutiae-and his determination, at all hazards, to uphold its validity. Winer; Real-Wrterbuch, sub voce. Nay, Paul was not only a Pharisee, but the son of a Pharisee -brought up at the feet of Gamaliel, a famous teacher of the sect. His mind had never been tainted by Sadducean unbelief, nor had he been fascinated by the ascetic theosophy of the Essene. If the apostle would not bind the law on the Gentile churches, it was not because he had not studied it or had not understood it, nor yet because he had either lived in indifference to its claims or been trained in prejudice against its venerable authority.
Fuente: Commentary on the Greek Text of Galatians, Ephesians, Colossians and Phillipians
Php 3:5. Circumcised the eighth day (Lev 12:3). The parents of Paul had attended to this rite according to the detail as to the exact age when it should be done. Even Moses was not that faithful (Exo 4:24-26). Stock of Israel or Jacob. He was the descendant of Abraham who was selected even before he was born to be in the blood line for the Messiah. (See Rom 9:7-12.) Tribe of Benjamin. He (Benjamin) was the son of Rachel, of tender memory, and his tribe gave the nation its first king (Act 13:21). Hebrew of the Hebrews. Both parents of Paul were of that race, whereas some members of the nation were not full blooded (Act 16:1). Touching the law, a Pharisee. Among the various sects of the Jews, the Pharisees were regarded as the most exacting in their demands of religious duty. (See Act 26:5.) There is a lengthy comment on this sect at Mat 16:12, in the first volume of the New Testament Commentary, which also includes information concerning the Sadducees.
Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary
Php 3:5. circumcised the eighth day, thus observing the outward ordinance at the very earliest moment that the law prescribes it. The parents of such a child must have been zealous for the law, and careful that their son should be made fully a partaker of the Abrahamic covenant,
of the stock of Israel. He mentions this that it may be clear that not only he but his parents were Jews. He was not of a father or mother who had come into the privileges of the chosen race as proselytes.
of the tribe of Benjamin. One of the two tribes which remained faithful to Davids house, and therefore worthy of high estimation among the nation who looked back to David with so much pride.
a Hebrew of the Hebrews. By this he would mark the purity of his descent. All his race were Hebrews. He was born in Tarsus, away from the Holy Land, but there was no intermixture of other blood in his veins. We can judge that this was likely to be so when we find the son sent to study in Jerusalem at the feet of Gamaliel. Only those persons who were very proud of and careful for the strict Jewish character of all belonging to them, would have sought to have their son placed under such a teacher away from their own home. We can see also how learned the apostle was in all that concerned his own people,
as touching the law, a Pharisee. He explains this (Act 22:3) as taught according to the strictness of the law of the fathers, and again (Act 26:5) tells us that his was the most straitest sect of the Jewish religion. And thus far he has spoken only of those distinctions as a Jew, which depended on others. His birth, family, and education were not in his own hands, but yet he could point to them as each one marking him for a privileged member of the chosen people. He now goes on to tell that his former zeal for Judaism did not disgrace such parentage and training.
Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament
Verse 5
The eighth day; the regular time appointed by the law. (Genesis 17:12.)
Fuente: Abbott’s Illustrated New Testament
Circumcision of the flesh was one thing that the Judaizers trusted in for acceptance by God. Paul had been circumcised on the eighth day after his birth, as the Law of Moses prescribed (Lev 12:3; cf. Gen 17:12). He had not received circumcision in his thirteenth year, as Ishmaelites did, nor later in life, as many Gentiles did who converted to Judaism (e.g., Act 16:3). [Note: Robertson, 4:452.]
Second, Paul was an Israelite by birth, not a Gentile proselyte to Judaism. He was a pure Jew by race and descent. When the Jews wanted to stress their special relationship to God in its most unique sense, they used the word "Israelite" to describe themselves. [Note: Barclay, p. 72.]
Furthermore, third, he was a member of the tribe of Benjamin. Benjamin was the younger of the two sons born to Jacob’s favorite wife, Rachel. Benjamin was the only son of Jacob who was born in the Promised Land. The tribe of Benjamin provided many noble warriors throughout Israel’s history (cf. Hos 5:8). Israel’s first lawful king came from the tribe of Benjamin. Jerusalem and the temple stood within Benjamin’s territory. This tribe alone, beside Judah, remained loyal to David’s house when the monarchy divided in 931 B.C. The feast of Purim celebrated the salvation of the Jews by a Benjamite, Mordecai. After the Exile, Benjamin and Judah formed the core of the restoration community. Of course, this tribe’s history was not without its shame as well (e.g., Saul’s failures, the Gibeans’ atrocity that led to the civil war that almost wiped this tribe out, etc.). Nevertheless Paul could legitimately take pride in his Benjamite heritage.
Fourth, a "Hebrew of Hebrews" means that Paul’s parents brought him up as a strict Jew observing Jewish customs, unlike many Hellenistic Jews (cf. Act 6:1). Specifically he learned the Hebrew language and studied the Old Testament in the original tongue, not like so many other Jews of the Diaspora who could only speak and read Aramaic (cf. Act 22:2).
Fifth, Paul had chosen to join the party of the Pharisees, the most orthodox of the sects within Judaism in his day. The Pharisees were punctilious in their observance of the Mosaic Law. This, by the way, is the only occurrence of the word "Pharisee" outside the Gospels and Acts.
"Not content merely to obey the Law of Moses, the Pharisees bound themselves also to observe every one of the myriad of commandments contained in the oral Law, the interpretive traditions of the Scribes. The most ardent of the Pharisees scrupulously avoided even accidental violations of the Law and did more than they were commanded to do . . . . Paul, a son of Pharisees (Act 23:6), and a disciple of the great Pharisee, Gamaliel (Act 5:34; Act 22:3), chose to be a Pharisee himself and set himself to be the most earnest of the earnest observers of the Jewish Law (Gal 1:14). ’Pharisee’ for Paul was not a term of reproach, but a title of honor, a claim to ’the highest degree of faithfulness and sincerity in the fulfilment [sic] of duty to God as prescribed by the divine Torah’ (Beare)." [Note: Hawthorne, pp. 133-34.]