1 Now of the things which we have spoken this is the sum (chief or main point): We have such an high priest, who is seated on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty (greatness) in the heavens, 2 A minister of the sanctuary (holy places), and of the true (genuine) tabernacle (tent; habitation), which the Lord pitched (set up; assembled), and not man. 3 For every high priest is appointed (ordained) to offer (bring) gifts (offerings) and sacrifices (something offered on an altar); wherefore, it is of necessity (needful) that this man have somewhat also to offer. 4 For if he were on earth, he should not be a priest, seeing that there are priests that offer gifts according to the law, 5 Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses was admonished of God when he was about to make the tabernacle; for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the pattern (example) shown to thee in the mount.
6 But now hath he obtained a more excellent (different) ministry, by how much also he is the mediator (arbitrator; intermediary) of a better (higher; more excellent; stronger) covenant, which was established upon better promises (assurances). 7 For if that first covenant had been faultless (free from defect), then should no place have been sought (desired) for the second. 8 For finding fault (blame) with them, he saith, Behold, the days (of the New Testament or New Covenant) come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new (fresh; Thayer, unworn) covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah; 9 Not according to the covenant that I made with their fathers in the day when I took (seized) them by the hand to lead (bring out or fetch) them out of the land of Egypt; because they continued (dwelt or abode) not in my covenant, and I regarded (Israel neglected God or made light of Him, so He neglected them) them not, saith the Lord (Yahweh). 10 For this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after those days, saith the Lord: I will put (place; deliver) my laws into their mind (understanding; imagination), and write (inscribe) them in their hearts; and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. 11 And they shall not teach every man his neighbor (fellow citizens), and every man his brother, saying, Know (Meet; Behold; See) the Lord; for all shall know me, from the least (smallest) to the greatest (mightiest). 12 For I will be merciful (propitious) to their unrighteousness, and their sins and their iniquities (wrongs; injustices) will I remember (be mindful of) no more. 13 In that he saith, A new covenant, he hath made the first old. Now that which decayeth (made old) and groweth old (waxs old) is ready to vanish away (disappear).
1, 2 The writer now comes to the summing up or giving the sum (kephasaion meaning chief or main point) of his discussion. Moffatt aptly refers to Coverdale's translation of the first phrase in verse one: Of the things which we have spoken, this the pyth (pith) meaning chief point. The central theme of this section (8:1 - 10:18) is that of Christ offering in the heavenly tabernacle His own efficacious blood as a counterpart to the earthly high priest offering in the earthly tabernacle of the blood of goats and heifers, which can never take away sin. Our High Priest, who is much greater that an Aaronic priest, the Lord Jesus Christ is set down or assumed a seated position on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty (megalosunes meaning the quality of being great) in the heavens:...Our High Priest has entered the heavens rather than an earthly tabernacle. Furthermore, He is seated at the right hand of Jehovah God. Why is He in a seated position? It is interesting to note that in all of the earthly tabernacle there were no chairs or seats - not in the Holy Place, not in the Holy of Holies nor yet in the outer court. The earthly priests were always busy, never seating themselves in all of their ministering for the people of Israel. The work of our High Priest, however, has been completed; He can be seated because all of His work was accomplished once and for all on the Cross of Calvary.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is the minister (leitourgos meaning administrator; public worker; servant) of holy places (agion from agios meaning sanctuary; holies) the true (alethines meaning genuine) tabernacle (skenes from skene meaning tent), which the Lord pitched (epexen from pegnumi meaning assemble; set up) and not man. "The word epexen originally meant to fasten as the pegs of a tent" (Robertson, p. 389). The tabernacle in which Christ ministers is the true tabernacle in contrast to the earthly type which man built. The tabernacle which man pitched is the visible, material tabernacle of Moses. That which the Lord pitched is the invisible, heavenly tabernacle. Yeager says, "The precision of the writer is delightful. Note the plural of agion, thus including both 'the holy place' - (to agion) and 'the Holy of Holies' (to agia agion Hebrews 9:3), and distinguishing them from e skene...The entire structure was called skene, while to agion (Hebrews 9:3) were two connected but separate parts of the skene. Hebrews 8:2 says that Christ is the minister (attendant, heavenly priest) of both the Holy Places as well as of the entire skene" (p. 266). The writer has already shown how the Melchizedek priesthood is superior to the Levitical priesthood, now he proceeded to show how the heavenly temple, where our Melchizedek serves, is superior to the earthly tabernacle.
3 All priests were ordained (kathistatai from kathistemi meaning appointed) to offer (prospherein from prosphero meaning to offer; bring) gifts (dora from doron meaning offerings) and sacrifices (thusias meaning something offered on an altar) and it was necessary (anagkaion meaning needful) that this man have somewhat also to offer. The Levitical priests had their prescribed gifts and offerings required by the Mosaic law. What did the Melchizedek priest have to offer? Obviously He could not offer the blood of bulls, goats, and sheep in heaven. These earthly sacrifices, the animals, were types of Christ, Who is the true Lamb of God that takes away the sins of the world. So the Lamb of God offered Himself not in the earthly tabernacle or temple but in the heavens. Furthermore, He was the heavenly Scapegoat Who bore away our sins - those sins never to be seen again. Our Lord typified both the Lamb for the offering and the scapegoat who was to bear away the sins of many. Leviticus 16:20 - 28 tells us about the scapegoat of Israel. Verse 1 states specifically, "And Aaron shall lay both his hands upon the head of the live goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, putting them upon the head of the goat, and shall send it away by the hand of a fit man into the wilderness." The scapegoat was sent away out of the camp, so was our Scapegoat sent out of Jerusalem, and our Lamb could not be offered on the Altar of the Temple so He was taken outside of Jerusalem there to die for our sins.
4, 5 Since our Lord was not of the Levitical priesthood (He was a layman, excluded by the law from all priestly functions), He could not offer a sacrifice in the Temple at Jerusalem as did the Levitical priests. So the conclusion is - He was not an earthly priest and could not offer a sacrifice according to the law which required a blood sacrifice. Christ Jesus could not offer a blood sacrifice consistent with the oath of Jehovah God Who had made Him a Priest after the order of Melchizedek. Of course the blood of bulls, goats and lambs could not take away sin, but the blood of our Savior shed on Calvary did cover the sins of the whole world; it is efficacious.
The temple at Jerusalem had priests who served according to the law, but their sacrifices and the tabernacle in the wilderness served as examples (hupodeigmati from hupodeigma meaning similitude; copy; imitation) and a shadow of heavenly things as Moses was admonished of God. "If the earthly sanctuary is a 'shadow' of the heavenly, it is because the whole Levitical order foreshadowed the spiritual order of the new age" (Bruce, p. 166). Even the measurements of the tabernacle in the wilderness were according to instructions given on the mountain. For Jehovah God after He had given instructions to Moses in Exodus 25:40 (LXX) said, "And see that thou make them after their pattern, which was shown thee in the mount." The antecedent of "them" in this passage was the furniture of the tabernacle - the ark, the table of shewbread and the golden lampstand (Exodus 25:10 - 39). The instructions concerning the other furniture - the mercy seat, altar of incense were given later. It must be kept in mind that the tabernacle that Moses build was simply a man-made replica of the heavenly pattern. So God showed Moses a bit of heaven at Mount Sinai.
6 Our Lord obtained a more excellent (diaphoroteras from diaphoros meaning diverse; different) ministry, by how much also he is the Mediator (mesites meaning Arbitrator; Intermediary; Go-between; Atonemaker) of a better (kreittonos from kreitton meaning higher; superior; stronger) covenant (testament meaning an agreement between two parties), which was established upon better promises (epaggeliais from epagelia meaning promise; assurance that something will be done). "A more excellent ministry means a service of higher order, or of a more exalted nature" (Barnes Notes, p. 172). The author continues his reference to "better" things. In this verse he writes of a "better" covenant and "better" promises. In 1:4 he wrote of a "better" Person than angels, in 7:7 he wrote of Abraham being blessed by a "better" priest, in 7:19 he wrote of a "better" hope and a "better" testament. Now he is ready to introduce his readers to a "better" covenant and "better" promises. In 9:23 he writes of "better" sacrifices than sacrifices offered under the Mosaic law; in 10:34 he writes of a "better" and an enduring substance, and in 11:35 a "better" resurrection.
Now our attention is turned toward a better covenant. The Word of God makes covenants very important; namely, the Abrahamic covenant, the Mosaic covenant, the Davidic covenant, the New Covenant, the everlasting covenant and the better covenant. Some of these covenants are conditional and some are unconditional; that is, some are introduced with an "if clause." If the one party of the second part will do certain things then the party of the first part will do some things. Some are covenants in which nothing is said of the party of the second part doing anything thus making the covenant unconditional. The Abrahamic Covenant as well as the new covenant (grace covenant) were unconditional making them far superior to the Mosaic covenant because it is promulgated on the basis of an unconditional promise and the promise was supported by God's oath (Genesis 22:17). There is no "if clause" in God's promise to Abraham. Its execution depends wholly upon God's integrity. It is in no sense contingent upon man's merit. The law covenant is certain to result in damnation for the unsaved. The grace covenant is better, since Jesus is its Mediator (I Timothy 2:5). He obviously has a far more effective ministry in heaven than He could have had on earth (Yeager, p. 27). Salter writes concerning the "Stability of the Divine Promises," thus: "Every promise is built upon four pillars: God's justice and holiness, which will not suffer Him to deceive; His grace or goodness, which will not suffer Him to forget; His truth, which will not suffer Him to change; His power, which makes Him able to accomplish" (B. I. Volume LI, p. 633).
7 If the first (prote from protos meaning point in time) covenant had been faultless (amemptos from a privative plus memphomai meaning free from a defect or fault) a place for a second (covenant) would never have been sought (ezeteito meaning desired). Here is the "if
clause" contrary to fact. If the Mosaic covenant had been without fault (defect), which it was not, there would have been no search (desire) for a second covenant, which there was. How was the Mosaic Covenant faulty? Nothing that God had done made it faulty; the fact that Israel misunderstood God's purpose made the covenant faulty. Israel misunderstood or misinterpreted the Mosaic Covenant; they thought they could reach heaven by the keeping of the law. The Mosaic Covenant only pointed out sin and Israel's ability to reach heaven by good works or the keeping of the law. In his letter to the Galatians (2:16, 21), Paul stated "Knowing that a man is not justified by the works of the law, but by faith in Christ, even we have believed in Jesus Christ, that we might be justified by the faith of Christ, and not by the works of the law; for by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified...I do not make void (frustrate; reject; spurn) the grace of God; for if righteousness come by the law then Christ is dead in vain." Yeager writes, "The argument therefore boils down to this: Is the Mosaic Covenant faultless? Can it guide man to heaven? Can man live on the ethical level which Moses demands? If so then Moses's law is faultless; if not, it is not and there is great need for a better covenant. Thus the sin of which the Holy Spirit convicts sinners is the sin of rejecting Jesus, the Mediator of the only covenant that is faultless" (pp. 274, 275).
8 Because Jehovah God found fault in the old covenant, He instituted a new covenant, and the writer of Hebrews quotes from Jeremiah 31: 31 - 34 (New King James Version), but Jeremiah 38:31 - 34 gives the same text in the Septuagint Version. An explanation is needed here to clear up the above reference. The text of Jeremiah was translated into at least two versions - the Septuagint (LXX) and the Masoretic text. The LXX is much shorter and about one-eighth the size of the Masoretic text, some texts are missing such as 33:14 - 26; 39:4 - 13 and others. The King James editors used the Masoretic text rather than the Septuagint text. We can conscientiously follow the Masoretic text, and no damage is done to the fact that the LXX was not used by the King James editors. Some of the oracles of Jeremiah i. e., chapters 46 - 51 are placed in the King James Version in chapter 25 and others. The K. J. V. is the same as the LXX with by few insignificant exceptions, now cardinal doctrines are affected by the use of the LXX or the Masoretic texts. (For some of this information the writer is indebted to his dear friend and Old Testament scholar, Doctor Gregory Parsons). The writer of Hebrews may have quoted from Jeremiah by memory.
Jeremiah 38:31 in the LXX reads, "Behold, the days come, saith the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel, and with the house of Juda;..." Because Jehovah God found fault in the old covenant, He instituted a new covenant according to verse 8. Note the word memphomenos from memphomai meaning to blame or find fault. The same word is used first in the New Testament in Romans 9:19, "Why doth he find fault (blame)?..." where he speaks of man finding fault with God's will in granting mercy to whom He desires. Yeager says if this passage in Romans, "Paul offers no answer to this problem (God's will) except to cite God's prerogative as Creator, and to say that God in perfect justice could have condemned the entire race" (Volume XII, p. 24). The writer of Hebrews uses the word sunteleso (from suntello meaning to fulfill; finish or ratify) and new (kainen from kainos meaning new covenant) or testament (one that is recently made; unworn according to Thayer, p. 317) . Jehovah God finished a new covenant or testament. Technically there was nothing amiss with the law covenant, rather the fault lay in the fact that Israel took it for granted that by keeping the law it would insure Israel's salvation. The coming days were the New Testament dispensation when God will take the initiative and write His will in men's hearts. The word diathesomai means "to make a covenant" or "to enter into a covenant." The new covenant was in reality the covenant that Jehovah God had made with Abraham, so it was simply renewed. Why did the writer of Hebrews referred to both "...the house of Israel and with the house of Judah;... probably designating the whole people of God or the whole Hebrew nation; by this time the twelve tribes had parted with the ten northern tribes called "Israel" and the two southern tribes, Benjamin and Judah called "Judah."
9 - 12 Before looking at the prophesy of Jeremiah referred to in Hebrews, it might be well to look at circumstances and conditions of Jeremiah's time. It was "A day of disruption and disaster, and this in itself was recognized as a condign judgment on the people because of their wilful disobedience and contempt for the covenant which they had engaged themselves to observe; for to spurn the blessing which the covenant promises is to invite the cursing which it threatens...Jeremiah's prophecy, therefore, was like a shaft of light penetrating the darkness of desperate apostasy and focusing on a glorious future time when God would be truly loved and obeyed" (Hughes, pp. 299, 300). Pink says of this time, "...all the golden Messianic future was predicted in the last days of Jerusalem, when the magnificent fabric of its temple was about to sink into the dust, and its walls and palaces were about to be thrown prostrate on the ground" (Volume, I, p. 444).
Jeremiah 31: 32 - 34 (LXX) reads, "Not according to the covenant which I made with their fathers in the day when I took hold of their hand (seized by the hand) to bring (lead) them out of the land of Egypt; for they abode (because they continued not) in my covenant, and I disregarded them (I regarded them not), saith the Lord. For this is my covenant which I will make with the house of Israel; after those days, saith the Lord, I will surely put my laws into their mind, and write them on their hearts; and I will be to them a God, and they shall be to me a people. And they shall not at all teach every one his fellow citizen (neighbor), and every one (man) his brother, Saying, Know the Lord: for all shall know me, from the least of them to the greatest of them: for I will be merciful to their iniquities (unrighteousness), and their sins I will remember no more." (The bold print is the LXX and the fine print is from the New King James Version). One can observe that the writer of Hebrews quoted the LXX almost verbatim. The new covenant is not according to the Mosaic Covenant in which Jehovah God took (epilabomenou from epilambano meaning to take or seize Israel by the hand and led (exagagein from exago meaning to bring out; fetch) them out of Egypt; because Israel did not continue (enemeinan from meno to dwell or abide) or measure up the His standard and disregarded (emelesa from ameleo meaning to make light of or neglect) it.
In verse 10 Jehovah God put (didous from didomi meaning to place; deliver) His laws in their minds (dianoian from dianoia meaning understanding; imagination) and wrote (epigrapso from epigrapho meaning to inscribe) them in their hearts (regeneration affects the heart). Jehovah will be for them a God, and they will be for Him a people. Yeager says, "Because God had committed Himself in a covenant which was bound by His oath to Israel and because Abraham and his posterity were able to discern God's moral laws intellectually but unable to desire to obey them, God found it necessary to regenerate their hearts as well as illuminate their minds...Thus a new relationship between God and His people was to exist. He was God before, but not in any personal way. They were his nation before, but now they are to be His 'people'" (p. 281). What could Israel expect from Jehovah God? He was to be their Lawgiver, Counselor, Protector, Redeemer, and Guide. To be the people of God both Israel and Judah were not merely stated as a fact, but as a privilege. It is an inestimable blessing to be regarded as one of the people of God, and to feel that we belong to him -- that we are associated with those whom He loves, and whom He treats as His friends (Barnes Notes, p. 176). Parker calls the New Covenant "A Miracle of Miracles," "The miracle of miracles is this - 'A new heart will I give you, and a new spirit will I put within you.' To put the law in the inward parts, and to write it on the heart, is more than to fill the firmament with stars" (B. I., Volume LI, p. 644).
Now in verse 11 Jehovah says it will not be necessary that Israel teach his fellow neighbor (politen from polites meaning neighbors or fellow citizens) and every brother, "Know (Gnothi from ginosko meaning perceive; understand) the Lord: for all shall know me (Him), for from the least (mikrou from mikros meaning little ones; insignificant) to the greatest (magalou from magas meaning highest; mightiest); they all will know Him. Yeager treats Gnothi as ingressive aorist imperative (an entreaty) - "Come to know" the Lord or "Meet the Lord" (p. 282). Eidesousin from horao is future perfect active indicative - "Behold," "See" to Lord. Possibly this is prophesied in Isaiah 11:9, 10 where he writes, "...For the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the Lord, as the waters cover the sea. And in that day there shall be a root of Jesse, who shall stand for an ensign of the peoples; to him shall the nations seek, and his rest shall be glorious." It will be a glorious time when the Davidic kingdom will be restored by Messiah! "This verse contains a second of the better promises of the New Covenant. Its import is that the people shall not need to teach one another because; 'they shall be taught of God.' God will write His law upon the heart, and instill it into the mind, and thus not leave them to the doubtful and unsatisfactory processes of human instruction. The Divine Spirit will impart to all His direct illuminations" (Kellar Notes, p. 29). Doubtless Isaiah had this in mind when he wrote in chapter 54, specifically he wrote in verse 13, "And all thy children shall be taught of the Lord, and great shall be the peace of thy children." Furthermore, John 6:45 quotes the words of Jesus, "It is written in the prophets, And they shall all be taught of God. Every man, therefore, that hath heard, and hath learned of the Father, cometh unto me."
In verse 12 Jehovah God will be merciful (ileos meaning to be propitious) to Israel's people, and the redeemed from every nation under the sun in their unrighteousnesses (adikiais from adikia meaning iniquities; injustices; wrongs) and their sins (amartion from amartia meaning offences; faults) He will remember (mnestho from mimnesko meaning mindful of) no more. "By way of summary there are three promises given: the inward constraining power of God's love; a universal opening of the heart to those teachings of God which will supersede the laborious teachings of men; and make divine knowledge universal; and a full and free remission of sins" (Kellar Notes, p. 29).
13 Thus ends the writers quotation from Jeremiah 31:31 - 34. He now goes into detail explaining the "new covenant" further. In explanation of the "new covenant" (Jehovah God) "has made the first covenant old (pepalaioken from palaioo meaning render obsolete) by introduction of something new which supersedes the old" (Yeager, Volume VI, p. 474). Now that which decayeth (same root word as above) and waxeth old (geraskon from gerasko meaning to be old) is ready to vanish away (aphanismou from a privative plus phanizo meaning to disappear)." Fudge quotes Lensky as writing picturesquely of the old covenant as "'Tottering with senility and 'like an old, old man who is sinking into his grave'" (p. 88).
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Yeager makes an interesting observation in verse 12 and in verse 4 when he states, "Note that the genitive absolute is in the present tense, thus indicating that at the time of writing, the temple and its services were still in existence, which dates Hebrews prior to A. D. 70 when the temple was destroyed...The Mosaic covenant is - - - - -* - going, going, gone. Then, in reference to the Levitical order, and with an eye on the advancing Roman armies who would besiege Jerusalem he adds the passe (obsolete, extinct, phased out) and the aged (elderly, outworn) are about to disappear. Here is a hint that the Epistle to the Hebrews was written before, but only shortly before A. D. 70, when the Jews were scattered and the Solomonic Temple with its Levitical priesthood was destroyed" (pp. 270, 284).
| Heb. Intro. | Heb 1 | Heb 2 | Heb 3 | Heb 4 | Heb 5 |
| Heb 6 | Heb 7 | Heb 8 | Heb 9 | Heb 10 | Heb 11 |
| Heb 12 | Heb 13 | Heb Bib |