Christ and the Ignorant

Infant baptism is based upon the idea that God gives grace to the ignorant. This would mean the totally ignorant. Yet, the verses dealing with Christ as High Priest of the Christian faith do not refer to infants, but to the sinner.

Heb 5:1  For every high priest taken from among men is ordained for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins:

Heb 5:2  Who can have compassion on the ignorant, and on them that are out of the way; for that he himself also is compassed with infirmity.

Gifts and sacrifices include his death for sin committed, but also the gifts leading to the church coming to greater maturity. The gifts would certainly help infants become taught, but there is nothing mentioning infant baptism before sin is consummated in the person and faith realized in the sinner.

Here ignorance speaks of people who are weak in knowledge and are therefore out of the way. Compassion can be for the church and for those not in the church yet. In these verses the context is those in the church who are weak.

The context of the ignorant isn't infants, but those converted but weak and uneducated. As you read into chapter 6 many forget the basic principles of Christ, which are outlined in Heb 6:1-2.

These follow a specific order.

repentance from dead works

faith toward God   (Not initial faith, but living faith leading to obedience)

Instruction in baptisms (John's baptism and Christian baptism)

Laying on of hands

Resurrection

Judgment

Salvation here is not looking at the infant, but looking at the obedient.

Heb 5:9  And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;

Some people get so far out of the way that they are lost, and once that far out of the way, there is no other doctrine that can save them.

Heb 6:4  For it is impossible for those who were once enlightened, and have tasted of the heavenly gift, and were made partakers of the Holy Ghost,

Heb 6:5  And have tasted the good word of God, and the powers of the world to come,

Heb 6:6  If they shall fall away, to renew them again unto repentance; seeing they crucify to themselves the Son of God afresh, and put him to an open shame.

There comes a point where repentance is impossible because real faith is no longer present to empower their return.

There is nothing in Christ's compassion for the ignorant that speaks about infant baptism, or of those where baptism proceeds faith.