Twn lalhqhsomevnwn in Hebrews 3,5 ' The words tw'n lalhqhsomevnwn in Heb 3,5 have not received the attention they merit. They occur in a verse which has echoes of Num 12,7[LXX], and this tends to direct the attention to their Old Testament antecedents (1). In addition, the word lalevw seems to resume the theme of God’s “speaking” at the beginning of the epistle, at Heb 1,1 (2). Both of these indications merit further investigation. But they need to be considered in the context of still a third line of reasoning which points to Heb 9,19-20, where lalevw is used in connection with Moses’ inauguration of the Sinai covenant. But this third line of reasoning must be carried out in the structured context of Heb 1,1–3,6 if it is to be suasive. The present study will examine first the approaches based on the relevance of Num 12,7[LXX] and the thematic use of lalevw, and will then turn to the relevance of Heb 9,19-20 before studying the results of these investigations in the structured context of the first part of the epistle. 1. The Relevance of Numbers 12,7[LXX] The presence of the words Mwu>sh'", qeravpwn, oi\ko" and pistov" in the text of Num 12,7[LXX] has led to the inference that the author of Hebrews had this verse in mind when he wrote 3,5 (3). But, as not infrequently in Hebrews, the author of Hebrews puts the words to different use. Moses is indeed “faithful”, but for the author of Hebrews he is assigned a role subordinate to the “son”, i.e., Jesus. In this subordinate role he gives a witness to that which “will be spoken” instead of being the one to whom God “speaks” (4). This subordination of Moses to Jesus is the true relevance of Num 12,7 with regard to the explanation of tw'n lalhqhsomevnwn in Heb 3,5. For just as the parallelism of Jesus with Moses dominates Heb 3,1-6, so, by implication, it dominates the allusion contained in tw'n lalhqhsomevnwn. If Moses is giving witness in 3,6 there is only one person, judging from the context of 3,1-6, he could be giving witness to — Jesus. Hence the meaning of tw'n lalhqhsomenwn is to be found in some relation invoking Moses and Jesus. v 2. The Relevance of lalevw The fact that the word lalevw occurs so prominently at the very beginning of the epistle, with regard to God in 1,1 and with regard to the son in 1,2, (1) Cf.: H.W. ATTRIDGE, The Epistle to the Hebrews (Hermeneia; Philadelphia, PA 1989) 111; W.L. LANE, Hebrews 1–8 (WBC 47A; Dallas, TX 1991) 78. For a lengthy commentary on the possibilities as regards the Old Testament cf. P. ELLINGWORTH, The Epistle to the Hebrews. A Commentary on the Greek Text (NIGCT; Grand Rapids, MI – Carlisle, England 1993) 207-208. (2) Cf. ATTRIDGE, Hebrews, 111; LANE, Hebrews. (3) Cf. F. SCHRÖGER, Der Verfasser des Hebräerbriefes als Schriftausleger (BU 4; Regensburg 1969) 95-101. (4) Cf. ATTRIDGE, Hebrews, 111.