Hebrews 6:5

The NET Bible®

tasted the good word of God and the miracles of the coming age,

Parallel Translations

Christian Standard Bible®
who tasted God’s good word and the powers of the coming age,

King James Version (1611)
And haue tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come;

King James Version
And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

English Standard Version
and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come,

New American Standard Bible
and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,

New Century Version
They found out how good God's word is, and they received the powers of his new world.

New American Standard Bible (1995)
and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,

Legacy Standard Bible
and having tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,

Berean Standard Bible
who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age-

Complete Jewish Bible
and tasted the goodness of God's Word and the powers of the ‘olam haba —

Darby Translation
and have tasted the good word of God, and [the] works of power of [the] age to come,

Geneva Bible (1587)
And haue tasted of the good word of God, and of the powers of the world to come,

George Lamsa Translation
And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

Good News Translation
they knew from experience that God's word is good, and they had felt the powers of the coming age.

Lexham English Bible
and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the coming age,

Literal Translation
and tasting the good Word of God, and the works of power of a coming age,

Amplified Bible
and have tasted and consciously experienced the good word of God and the powers of the age (world) to come,

American Standard Version
and tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,

Bible in Basic English
With knowledge of the good word of God, and of the powers of the coming time,

Hebrew Names Version
and tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,

International Standard Version
who have tasted the goodness of God's word and the powers of the coming age,Hebrews 2:5;">[xr]

Etheridge Translation
and have tasted the good word of Aloha, and the power of the world to come,

Murdock Translation
and have tasted the good word of God, and the power of the world to come,

Bishop's Bible (1568)
And haue tasted of the good worde of God, and the powers of the worlde to come:

English Revised Version
and tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,

World English Bible
and tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,

Wesley's New Testament (1755)
And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

Weymouth's New Testament
and have realized how good the word of God is and how mighty are the powers of the coming Age, and then fell away--

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
and netheles han tastid the good word of God, and the vertues of the world to comynge, and ben slidun fer awei,

Update Bible Version
and tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the age to come,

Webster's Bible Translation
And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

New King James Version
and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the age to come,

New Living Translation
who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the power of the age to come—

New Life Bible
They know how good the Word of God is. They know of the powers of the world to come.

New Revised Standard
and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come,

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And have tasted God's utterance to be, sweet, mighty works also of a coming age,

Douay-Rheims Bible
Have moreover tasted the good word of God and the powers of the world to come,

Revised Standard Version
and have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come,

Tyndale New Testament (1525)
and have tasted of the good worde of God and of the power of the worlde to come:

Young's Literal Translation
and did taste the good saying of God, the powers also of the coming age,

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
& haue taisted of ye good worde of God, and of the power of the worlde to come,

Mace New Testament (1729)
and have known by experience the truth of the divine promises, and the miracles of the age that was to come; it is impossible,

Simplified Cowboy Version
They've seen what God can do and they just don't want it.

Contextual Overview

¹ Therefore we must progress beyond the elementary instructions about Christ and move on to maturity, not laying this foundation again: repentance from dead works and faith in God, ² teaching about baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment. ³ And this is what we intend to do, if God permits. ⁴ For it is impossible in the case of those who have once been enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, become partakers of the Holy Spirit, ⁵ tasted the good word of God and the miracles of the coming age, ⁶ and then have committed apostasy, to renew them again to repentance, since they are crucifying the Son of God for themselves all over again and holding him up to contempt. ⁷ For the ground that has soaked up the rain that frequently falls on it and yields useful vegetation for those who tend it receives a blessing from God. ⁸ But if it produces thorns and thistles, it is useless and about to be cursed; its fate is to be burned.

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

tasted: Matthew 13:20, Matthew 13:21, Mark 4:16, Mark 4:17, Mark 6:20, Luke 8:13, 1 Peter 2:3, 2 Peter 2:20

the powers: Hebrews 2:5

Reciprocal: Job 6:6 - taste Psalms 34:8 - taste Galatians 1:4 - from Hebrews 9:10 - until

Cross-References

Genesis 6:1
When humankind began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them,

Genesis 6:3
So the Lord said, "My spirit will not remain in humankind indefinitely, since they are mortal. They will remain for 120 more years."

Genesis 6:4
The Nephilim were on the earth in those days (and also after this) when the sons of God were having sexual relations with the daughters of humankind, who gave birth to their children. They were the mighty heroes of old, the famous men.

Genesis 6:9
This is the account of Noah. Noah was a godly man; he was blameless among his contemporaries. He walked with God.

Genesis 6:19
You must bring into the ark two of every kind of living creature from all flesh, male and female, to keep them alive with you.

Genesis 6:20
Of the birds after their kinds, and of the cattle after their kinds, and of every creeping thing of the ground after its kind, two of every kind will come to you so you can keep them alive.

Genesis 6:21
And you must take for yourself every kind of food that is eaten, and gather it together. It will be food for you and for them."

Genesis 8:21
And the Lord smelled the soothing aroma and said to himself, "I will never again curse the ground because of humankind, even though the inclination of their minds is evil from childhood on. I will never again destroy everything that lives, as I have just done.

Genesis 13:13
(Now the people of Sodom were extremely wicked rebels against the Lord .)

Deuteronomy 29:19
When such a person hears the words of this oath he secretly blesses himself and says, "I will have peace though I continue to walk with a stubborn spirit." This will destroy the watered ground with the parched.

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And have tasted the good word of God,.... Not the Lord Jesus Christ, the essential Word of God, who seems to be intended before by the heavenly gift; but rather, either the Scriptures of truth in general, which are the word of God, endited by him, and contain his mind and will; which he makes use of for conviction, conversion, instruction, and comfort; and which are preserved by him: and these are a good word; they come from him who is good; they are a revelation of good things; they make known things true, pleasant, and profitable: or else the Gospel in particular, of which God is the author; and in which is a wonderful display of his wisdom and grace; and which he owns and blesses for his own glory, and the good of others: and this is a "good word", the same with דבר טוב, "good matter", or "word", in Psalms 45:1 פתגם טובי, "my good word", or "the word of my goodness", in the Targum on Isaiah 55:11 for it is the word of righteousness, reconciliation, peace, pardon, life, and salvation. And there is a special and spiritual taste of this good, word, which is delightful, relishing, and nourishing; and such who have it can never totally and finally fall away; because they who taste it, so as to eat and digest it, and be nourished by it, to them it becomes the ingrafted word, which is able to save them: but there is such a taste of this word as is disrelishing, as in profane sinners, and open opposers and persecutors of the word, or as in hypocrites and formal professors; which is only an assent to the Scriptures, as the revelation of God, or a superficial knowledge of the doctrines of the Gospel without the experience of them, and a temporal faith in them, and a natural affection for them, and pleasure with them for a time; as the Jews, and Herod with John's ministry, and the stony ground hearers.

And the powers of the world to come; meaning either the state of the church, and the glorious things relating to it, after the first resurrection, which they might have some notional apprehensions of; or the ultimate state of glory and happiness, the powers of which are the immortality, incorruption, and glory of the body, the perfect holiness and knowledge of the soul, entire freedom from all evils of every kind, full communion with Father, Son, and Spirit, and a complete enjoyment of all happiness for ever; which hypocrites may have a notional knowledge of, a natural desire after, and delight in the contemplation and hope of, as Balaam had; or rather the δυναμεις, miracles and mighty works in the former part of the Gospel dispensation, or times of the Messiah, the Jews' world to come, Isaiah 55:11- :, are intended; which many, as Judas and others, were able to perform, who were not sincere Christians, or true believers.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

And have tasted the good word of God - That is, either the doctrines which he teaches, and which are good, or pleasant to the soul; or the Word of God which is connected with good, that is, which promises good. The former seems to me to be the correct meaning - that the Word of God, or the truth which he taught, was itself a good. It was what the soul desired, and in which it found comfort and peace; compare Psalms 119:103; Psalms 141:6. The meaning here is, that they had experienced the excellency of the truth of God; they had seen and enjoyed its beauty. This is language which cannot be applied to an impenitent sinner. He has no relish for the truth of God; sees no beauty in it; derives no comfort from it. It is only the true Christian who has pleasure in its contemplation, and who can be said to “taste” and enjoy it. This language describes a state of mind of which every sincere Christian is conscious. It is that of pleasure in the Word of God. He loves the Bible; he loves the truth of God that is preached. He sees an exquisite beauty in that truth. It is not merely in its poetry; in its sublimity; in its argument; but he has now a “taste” or “relish” for the truth itself, which he had not before his conversion. Then he might have admired the Bible for its beauty of language or for its poetry; he might have been interested in preaching for its eloquence or power of argument; but now his love is for “the truth;” compare Psalms 19:10. There is no book that he so much delights in as the Bible; and no pleasure is so pure as what he has in contemplating the truth; compare Joshua 21:45; Joshua 23:15.

And the powers of the world to come - Or of the “coming age.” “The age to come” was a phrase in common use among the Hebrews, to denote the future dispensation, the times of the Messiah. The same idea was expressed by the phrases “the last times,” “the end of the world,” etc. which are of so frequent occurrence in the Scriptures. They all denoted an age which was to succeed the old dispensation; the time of the Messiah; or the period in which the affairs of the world would be wound up; see the notes on Isaiah 2:2. Here it evidently refers to that period, and the meaning is, that they had participated in the special blessings to be expected in that dispensation - to wit, in the clear views of the way of salvation, and the influences of the Holy Spirit on the soul. The word “powers” here implies that in that time there would be some extraordinary manifestation of the “power” of God. An unusual energy would be put forth to save people, particularly as evinced by the agency of the Holy Spirit on the heart. Of this “power” the apostle here says they of whom he spake had partaken. They had been brought under the awakening and renewing energy which God put forth under the Messiah. in saving the soul. They had experienced the promised blessings of the new and last dispensation; and the language here is such as appropriately describes Christians, and as indeed can be applicable to no other. It may be remarked respecting the various expressions used here Hebrews 6:4-5,

(1) That they are such as properly denote a renewed state. They obviously describe the condition of a Christian; and though it may be not certain that any one of them if taken by itself would prove that the person to whom it was applied was truly converted, yet taken together it is clear that they are designed to describe such a state. If they are not, it would be difficult to find any language which would be properly descriptive of the character of a sincere Christian. I regard the description here, therefore, as what is clearly designed to denote the state of those who were born again, and were the true children of God; and it seems plain to me that no other interpretation would have ever been thought of if this view had not seemed to conflict with the doctrine of the “perseverance of the saints.”

(2) There is a regular gradation here from the first elements of piety in the soul to its highest developments; and, whether the apostle so designed it or not, the language describes the successive steps by which a true Christian advances to the highest stage of Christian experience. The mind is:

(a)Enlightened; then.

(b)Tastes the gift of heaven, or has some experience of it; then.

(c)It is made to partake of the influences of the Holy Spirit; then.

(d)There is experience of the excellence and loveliness of the Word of God; and,

(e)Finally there is a participation of the full “powers” of the new dispensation; of the extraordinary energy which God puts forth in the gospel to sanctify and save the soul.

Clarke's Notes on the Bible

Verse Hebrews 6:5. And have tasted the good word of God — Have had this proof of the excellence of the promise of God in sending the Gospel, the Gospel being itself the good word of a good God, the reading and preaching of which they find sweet to the taste of their souls. Genuine believers have an appetite for the word of God; they taste it, and then their relish for it is the more abundantly increased. The more they get, the more they wish to have.

The powers of the world to come — Δυναμεις τε μελλοντος αιωνος. These words are understood two ways:

1. The powers of the world to come may refer to the stupendous miracles wrought in confirmation of the Gospel, the Gospel dispensation being the world to come in the Jewish phraseology, as we have often seen; and that δυναμις is often taken for a mighty work or miracle, is plain from various parts of the gospels. The prophets had declared that the Messiah, when he came, should work many miracles, and should be as mighty in word and deed as was Moses; see Deuteronomy 18:15-19. And they particularly specify the giving sight to the blind, hearing to the deaf, strength to the lame, and speech to the dumb; Isaiah 35:5; Isaiah 35:6. All these miracles Jesus Christ did in the sight of this very people; and thus they had the highest evidence they could have that Jesus was this promised Messiah, and could have no pretence to doubt his mission, or apostatize from the Christian faith which they had received; and hence it is no wonder that the apostle denounces the most awful judgments of God against those who had apostatized from the faith, which they had seen thus confirmed.

2. The words have been supposed to apply to those communications and foretastes of eternal blessedness, or of the joys of the world to come, which they who are justified through the blood of the covenant, and walk faithfully with their God, experience; and to this sense the word γευσαμενους have tasted, is thought more properly to apply. But γευομαι, to taste, signifies to experience or have full proof of a thing. Thus, to taste death, Matthew 16:28, is to die, to come under the power of death, fully to experience its destructive nature as far as the body is concerned. See also Luke 9:27; John 8:52. And it is used in the same sense in Hebrews 2:9 of this epistle, where Christ is said to taste death for every man; for notwithstanding the metaphor, which the reader will see explained in the note on the above place, the word necessarily means that he did actually die, that he fully experienced death; and had the fullest proof of it and of its malignity he could have, independently of the corruption of his flesh; for over this death could have no power. And to taste that the Lord is gracious, 1 Peter 2:3, is to experience God's graciousness thoroughly, in being made living stones, built up into a spiritual house, constituted holy priests to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God; see 1 Peter 2:5. And in this sense it is used by the purest Greek writers. See several examples in Schleusner.

It seems, therefore, that the first opinion is the best founded.