Charles Ellicott Commentary Hebrews 10:38

"But my righteous one shall live by faith: And if he shrink back, my soul hath no pleasure in him." — Hebrews 10:38 (ASV)

Now the just shall live by faith.—The Greek text of this clause is not entirely certain, but it is probable that the word "my" should be added, so that the translation of the verse will be as follows: But my righteous one shall live by faith.

In the Hebrew, the first part of the verse is entirely different: Behold his soul is lifted up, it is not upright in him; but the righteous shall live in (or, by) his faithfulness (or, faith). The first words seem to refer to the haughty Chaldean invader; the rendering of the last words is considered below.

The Greek translation varies a little in different manuscripts: If one draws back, my soul has no pleasure in him; but the righteous one shall live by my faithfulness (or possibly—not probably—by faith in me). In the Alexandrian manuscripts, the last words read: But my righteous one shall live by faith (or faithfulness).

It is clear, then, that in the passage before us the writer has taken the words as they stood in his text of the LXX, only changing the order of the clauses. Though the Hebrew word usually rendered 'faith' in this passage occurs more than forty times in the Old Testament, in no other instance does it have this meaning, but almost always means faithfulness or truth.

Here also, the primary meaning seems to be "by his faithfulness"; but the thought of faithful constancy to God is inseparably connected with trustful clinging to Him. Therefore, the accepted Jewish interpretation of the passage seems to have taken the word in the sense of "faith."

"My righteous one" will naturally mean "my righteous servant"—the man who will not be seduced into wickedness. He will live by his faithful trust, for salvation and life will be given to him by God Himself. In this context, the word "righteous" recalls verse 36: having done the will of God.

The transposition of the two clauses makes it almost certain that "the righteous one" is the subject of both: not if any man, but, if he (the righteous one) shrinks back. The Genevan and the Authorized Version stand alone among English versions in the former translation.