3:5–6a

Now…But: In Greek, the introductory phrases for 3:5 and 3:6 are more literally:

5a and Moses, as for (him)…6a but as for Christ…

These phrases indicate a contrast between the ways that Jesus and Moses were faithful. Moses was faithful as God’s servant (3:5), but Christ was faithful as God’s Son (3:6). The word Now (literally “and”) is not used as a time word here. It implies that in 3:5–6 the author will continue to speak about what he said in 3:2–4.

Some ways to translate these connections are:

So Moses was certainly faithful…as a servant, but Christ was faithful as a son
-or-

It is true that Moses was faithful in serving…. But Christ…was rather his Child who was faithful as being in charge

Translate the connection between 3:5 and 3:6 carefully so that the contrast between Moses and Jesus is clear in your language. For another translation example, see the General Comment on 3:5–6a at the end of 3:6a.

3:5a

Moses was faithful as a servant: The words Moses was faithful as a servant implies that Moses obeyed God and did what God told him to do, just as a faithful servant should. Some ways to translate this clause are:

Moses was certainly faithful in God’s house, but only as a servant. (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
It is true that Moses served faithfully in the household of God. But he was only like a servant in that household.

faithful: The word faithful describes someone who is worthy to be trusted. He is reliable and God can depend on him to do what God wants him to do. This is the same Greek word used in 3:2a. You should translate it in the same way here.

servant: The Greek word that the Berean Standard Bible translates as servant appears only here in the NT. It refers to a worker who serves another person willingly, not as a slave. The service is honorable. Usually the word also implies a good relationship between the servant and the person whom he serves. Moses was a faithful servant of God.

Use an appropriate way in your language to refer to this type of relationship. Some other ways to translate it are:

worker
-or-
steward

in all God’s house: The phrase in all God’s house was also used in 3:2b. Translate it in the same way in both verses.

3:5b

testifying to what would be spoken later: This phrase tells how Moses was faithful (3:5a). He was faithful to tell the people of Israel that in the future God was planning to speak new things to them. The Greek expression which the Berean Standard Bible translates as testifying to means “for/as a testimony.” Moses testified to things that would happen after he died.

Some ways to translate this clause are:

and his work was only a foreshadowing of the truth that would be known later (Phillips’ New Testament in Modern English)
-or-
His work was an illustration of the truths God would reveal later (New Living Translation (2004))
-or-
And what he did was like a prophecy/picture of what God planned to make clear in the future.

See also Deuteronomy 18:15–19, where God promised to send a prophet greater than Moses. Bible scholars believe that this promise refers to the Messiah.

what would be spoken later: The clause what would be spoken later refers to what God would reveal at a future time (when he sent Jesus to the people). This is a passive clause. In some languages it is more natural to use an active verb and indicate that God is the subject. For example:

things God would say in the future (Good News Translation)

later: Here the word later refers to a time hundreds of years after Moses died. Use an appropriate word in your language to refer to such a time in the future.

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