Sermon Tone Analysis
Overall tone of the sermon
This automated analysis scores the text on the likely presence of emotional, language, and social tones. There are no right or wrong scores; this is just an indication of tones readers or listeners may pick up from the text.
A score of 0.5 or higher indicates the tone is likely present.
Emotion Tone
Anger
0.08UNLIKELY
Disgust
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Fear
0.08UNLIKELY
Joy
0.7LIKELY
Sadness
0.21UNLIKELY
Language Tone
Analytical
0.32UNLIKELY
Confident
0.43UNLIKELY
Tentative
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Social Tone
Openness
0.96LIKELY
Conscientiousness
0.6LIKELY
Extraversion
0.49UNLIKELY
Agreeableness
0.64LIKELY
Emotional Range
0.78LIKELY
Tone of specific sentences
Tones
Emotion
Language
Social Tendencies
Anger
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Authorship
The author of Hebrews is unknown, but there are several “candidates” from church history
The most popular candidate is Paul
This is consistent with Paul’s intense burden to see his countrymen come to faith in Christ
Other candidates include: Barnabas, Apollos, Clement of Rome (however Clement makes no mention of it in his own letters), Luke, Silas, Phillip, John Mark, Aristion, and Priscilla (although the author uses a masculine participle to identify himself.
What DO we know about the author?
A Jewish follower of Jesus with an incredible command of the Old Testament
A second-generation believer (not an eyewitness).
The author was known by the recipients
Audience, Location, and Timing
Second generation Jewish believers in Christ
Location is probably NOT Jerusalem
The recipients had not heard Jesus speak (2:3-4)
The recipients’ church was known for it’s generosity (6:10, 10:34), but the Jerusalem church was known for its poverty
The recipients had not yet experienced martyrdom for their faith.
By the writing of Hebrews the Jerusalem church had already lost Stephen, James the apostle, and James the brother of Jesus
Most likely location are believers in Judea and Samaria
It has to have been written after 50 AD (when Paul led Timothy to Christ, since Timothy is mentioned in this letter).
It has to have been written before 70 AD when the temple was destroyed by the 10th Roman legion
Occassion
Danger of Jewish believers in Jesus returning to the sacrificial system of Judaism (perhaps to escape persecution)
Strengthen their faith in the intrinsic “Jewishness” of Jesus and his superiority to all elements of Judaism.
Calling of these believers to greater spiritual maturity.
The author laments their immaturity, since by now they should be teachers but he’s forced to feed them spiritual “milk”
Main Themes
The superiority of Jesus to Judaism
Qualities of Jesus
Jesus is:
God’s Son
The ultimate verbal revelation of God (superior to the prophets)
Heir of all things
Creator and sustainer of the cosmos (by the word of His power)
The brightness of God’s glory
The express image of God’s person
The One who has purged our sins
He has completely finished his work of purging our sins
The One has has sat down at the right hand of God
Superior to Angels
Jesus is Superior to Angels
The writer quotes extensively from Psalm 2, 2 Samuel 7:14, Deut 32:43 (from the LXX), Psalm 104:4, Psalm 45:6-7, Psalm 102:25-27, Psalm 110:1
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