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1-2: God communicated to man progressively, starting with the prophets and ending with Jesus. He used the Apostles to record Jesus' teaching in what is now known as the New Testament. The Bible is the only direct message we have from God.
3: This verse is clear that Jesus is God and the universe is sustained through him. Since he is the exact imprint of God's nature, we can look to him to see the characteristics of the Father and the Holy Spirit. The old testament priests could never sit down because their work was never done. Day after day they would sacrifice sheep in the temple to cover for sins, looking forward to the perfect sacrifice to come. Jesus was the high priest as well as the perfect sacrifice. Since He purified the sins of men once and for all, He was able to sit down because his work was finished.
4-14: Jesus is superior to the angels because he is God. All things were created through him, including the angels.
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1-4: We have the responsibility not to neglect the great salvation offered in Jesus. God confirmed his message through Angels, signs, prophecy, and miracles.
3-4: God himself declared that Jesus is His son with a voice from heaven. He then provided signs,wonders, miracles, gifts of the Holy Spirit, and eyewitnesses to validate his plan of salvation.
11: Since Jesus is the source of our salvation and is perfectly sinless, he is not ashamed to call us his brothers.
12-13: The author sites passages from psalms and Isaiah to demonstrate that we are considered brothers to our savior. The verse from Isaiah makes it clear that Jesus only refers to believers as his brothers. The reason being that Christ himself has purified them through his redemptive work on the cross. The unrepentant have rejected Christ and lack purification for their sins.
14-18: To become a merciful high priest and make atonement for our sins, it was necessary for Jesus to become a human with flesh and blood. The shedding of blood is required for the forgiveness of sins and a high priest must be human in order to represent humans. That is why Jesus' sacrifice doesn't apply to angels. It only applies to Abraham's spiritual offspring: those who put their trust in Jesus for salvation (Romans 9:7-8). And since Jesus faced the same trials and temptations we face, he can sympathize with us and help us in time of need.
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1-4: Like Moses, Jesus was faithful in carrying out the Fathers will. But Jesus is greater than Moses because He created him. Mentioning this was important to convince the Jews of Jesus' divinity and superiority over Moses. The author uses Jesus' name in verse 4 synonymously with God and the 'builder of all things'.
5-6: Moses is likened to a servant while Jesus has the much higher authority as son in God's house. We can enter this house by faith in Jesus.
7-11: If the Holy Spirit convicts us of sin we should not harden our hearts in rebellion as Israel did in the wilderness. Their rebellion caused God to cast judgment on them, forbidding their entrance into the promised land. If an unbeliever is hardened to the Holy Spirit's conviction they cannot repent, and without the acknowledgment of sin they are unable see a need for a Savior.
12-15: We should examine ourselves and advise one another to make sure we are in the faith. We know that we have come to share in Christ if we endure in our faith till the end. A falling away from God reveals that a person was a false convert.
16-19: Unbelief is ultimately what cost the Israelites their entrance into the promised land as it does today. Without faith in Christ no one will enter Heaven.
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1: The phrase "entering God's rest" means that we rely on Christ's righteousness and rest from the attempt to enter heaven by works. The thought of anyone not entering God's rest should invoke fear since the only alternative is facing His wrath.
2: Since the Israelites didn't have faith, the good news didn't benefit them.
3-10: Just as God rested on the seventh day, we rest from trying to work our way to heaven. By repenting and putting our trust in Jesus, we enter into God's rest. By doing so we are honoring the sabbath principle.
11: The way we "strive" to enter this rest is through faith. We know this because the verse warns us not to fall the way the Israelites did through disobedience, and this disobedience was unbelief. Though we can't do anything to save ourselves we can strive to trust God.
12-13: God knows our thoughts and intentions, and one day will all give an account for the things done while on earth. No sin will be hidden from Him and He will judge perfectly. For those who are under the law they will receive justice, but those in Christ will receive grace.
14-16: Since Jesus became a man he can sympathize with us in our weakness and temptations and provide grace when we need it. Wether we've sinned and need forgiveness or are facing temptation and need strength. Jesus has been there and can help us.
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1-4: The role of a high priest is to mediate between God and man through the offering of sacrifices. Since he too is a weak sinner, he is able to deal gently with those who have sinned. But he must offer sacrifices for his own sin just like everyone else. People don't chose to be high priests but are chosen by god.
5-6: Like an earthly high priest, Jesus did not exalt himself but was made a high priest by the Father.
7-10: During Jesus' earthly visit he learned obedience and suffering which was required for him to be the perfect source of salvation to all those who obey him by putting their trust in him.
11-14: The author wants to further discuss this deep theological topic of Melchizedek but his unsaved readers wouldn't understand it. They needed to be taught again the basic truths of scripture first. He uses the metaphor of milk and solid food. The immature cannot have the solid food of deep theology until they grow in their knowledge through salvation and the constant practice of discernment. He rebukes them since they should be much further along than they are.
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1-3: Some people interpret this section of scripture to say we must leave basic new covenant doctrines to pursue more complex teachings. However, it seems to be addressing the false converts in their midst who have reverted back to old covenant rituals and are in danger of apostasy. The author wants them to leave the milk of the Old testament for the meat of the new testament.
The elementary doctrines of Christ to be laid aside are the old covenant types and shadows that found their fulfillment in Christ. He urges them not to return to the inferior old system (which is the foundation of Christianity that shouldn't be laid again) but to move on to full revelation in Christ. The author gives several specific examples of these elementary doctrines. 1. Repentance from dead works and faith toward God: This old testament principle is the general turning from sin and faith God. In the new covenant economy, we must turn from sin to Christ and put our faith in him for salvation. A general belief in God can cannot save us. 2.Instructions about washings. This refers to the mosaic rituals of purification. Jesus fulfills the entire law and we are purified in him. Some translations wrongly interpret the greek word baptismos as baptisms, but the Greek means washings. When the New Testament refers to baptism it uses the word baptidzo. 3. Laying on of hands: this refers to the sinner laying his hand on the sacrificed animal to transfer his sin (Leviticus 1:4) Jesus was the perfect sacrifice that we are are to believe by faith.
3: God is sovereignly in control and we cannot attain salvation unless he reveals himself to us.
4-6: The author is still addressing unbelievers, warning them against apostasy. This is not speaking about believers, but those who understand the Gospel and willingly reject it. These verses describe many false converts.
7-8: The rain in this metaphor is probably speaking of the Gospel. Those who produce fruit are the true converts. But those who continually reject the gospel are in danger of apostasy and will eventually find themselves in the lake of fire, separated from God.
9-12: The author switches back to talking to believers. He assures them that God does not overlook the work we do for Him, and we should endure to the end, imitating the believers before them who inherited eternal life.
13-20: When two people make a covenant they swear by something greater than themselves. When God made a covenant he simply swore by himself because there's nothing greater to swear by. Believers can rest confidently in God's promise of salvation since he is unchangeable and our salvation doesn't depend on his faithfulness rather than our own. Verse 20 segways to the next chapter which explains how Melchizedek was a type in the Old Testament that pointed to Jesus' eternal priesthood.
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1-2: Melchizedek was divinely placed in Israel's history as a "type" pointing to the coming Christ. The author's commentary in Hebrews reveals that he was both king and priest like Jesus. Jesus is king and ruler of all; the great high priest who atones for the sins of the world. Salem was another name for Jerusalem and comes from the Hebrew word שָׁלֵם {shaw-lame'} which means peace. Jesus is both the king of the new Jerusalem and king of peace.
3: Melchizedek's genealogy was missing from Jewish records. Though he didn't literally lack a genealogy, It served as an illustration of Jesus' eternal priesthood, unlike that of the Levitical priests who died and were replaced by another. Jesus is a priest forever, bridging the gap between a righteous God and sinful man. Melchizedek's life was an illustration "resembling the Son of God".
4-10: Abraham was highly revered by the Jews, so to demonstrate the greatness of Melchizedek the author pointed to the fact that Abraham tithed to him. This fact demonstrates the greatness of Melchizedek and the legitimacy of his priesthood even thought he wasn't a Levite.
11-25: The Levitical priesthood was a temporary, imperfect solution to the problem of sin which pointed to Christ's ultimate sacrifice. It was a way for Old Testament saints to be saved on credit as they put their faith in God until the coming of Christ. The Levitical priests were born into the priesthood and would eventually be replaced by another once they died. But Jesus, not being a descendant of Levi, became a priest on the basis of his holy and indestructible life. Unlike the earthly priesthood, he lives forever and is always able to intercede for those who draw near to God through faith in Him. Verses 12 and 18 do away with the Levitical and ceremonial laws and verse 19 is referring to Jesus, the better hope.
26-28: The third argument of Jesus' superiority is that he was perfect and holy. He didn't need to make blood sacrifices for his own sins as did earthly priests. Instead he offered himself up as a pleasing sacrifice once for all. The Levitical priesthood was based on laws and regulations but the priesthood of Jesus was based on an oath.
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1-2: The author summarizes his argument that Jesus is a superior priest by stating that He ministers in the true tent in heaven, rather than the earthly copy built by Moses.
3: Since the purpose of a priest is to mediate through gifts and sacrifices between sinners and a Holy God, it was necessary that Jesus also have something to offer. Chapter 9 tells us what Jesus offered.
4-5: Jesus wouldn't be able to serve as a priest in the earthly Jewish temple since he didn't descend from the tribe of Levi, nor does he offer animal sacrifices. Verse five demonstrates that typology is a biblical concept.
6-12: The old covenant is inferior to the new because it's promises of blessing were temporal and conditional. It was a temporary solution to bridge the gap between God and sinful man until Jesus came to validate it. However, the problem wasn't with God's covenant, it was with His people who failed to keep their end of the covenant. In verse 12 we see that through the new covenant God shows mercy. This is only possible through Jesus' perfect sacrifice in the true tent in heaven.
13: Since there is a new covenant, the first one is obsolete. That is why we no longer sacrifice animals, observe purity laws, or have a temple.
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1-10: These verses are written in the context of 8:13 which explains that the first covenant is obsolete in light of the new covenant. The first 7 verses explain the tent of worship and verse 9 tells us that these things are a symbol or literally parable (παραβολή {par-ab-ol-ay'}) for the present day. The parable is this: As long as the first section of the tent (sacrifice and purification rituals) is still being practiced, the way into the Holy place is not yet open. If we try to get purification through these earthly rituals, we cannot enter the most holy place because the blood of bulls and goats cannot purify us. But if rely on Jesus' blood sacrifice, the way into the holy places is opened and we are perfect in the sight of God.
11-14: Jesus entered the holy places in the perfect tent in heaven by His own blood rather than with the earthly tent or imperfect animal sacrifices. With Jesus' perfect sacrifice we now approach God as if we lived his pure life, rather than constantly going through the Levitical purity laws that only offered limited access through a temporary covering.
15: Those who believed in God under the old covenant were retroactively saved on 'credit' through Jesus' death on the cross. The Day of Atonement was a shadow of this because the high priest would annually atone for the sins that the people committed the previous year.
16-22: In God's economy death is a requirement for sin (Leviticus 17:11). Everything in the mosaic covenant was purified with blood, not because it had some mystical power, but because it symbolized the payment for sin through death.
23-24: The earthly tabernacle and purification rituals were necessary at that time because they pointed to what Jesus would eventually do in the real sanctuary in heaven. It gave Old Testament saints a way to put their faith in Christ for salvation.
25-26: Since Jesus' sacrifice was perfect, there is no need for him to offer himself up repeatedly the way Levitical priests had to offer the blood of bulls and goats.
27-28: The general rule of mankind is that first we die, then we are judged when we are in our resurrected bodies. But when Christ appears a second time, He will save those who have received him.
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1-4: These verses confirm that the old covenant laws are mere types and shadows of the true reality in Jesus. The continual animal sacrifices could never take away sins, but were a reminder of man's wickedness and inability to keep the law, while foreshadowing Jesus' sacrifice for us. They looked forward to the new covenant that God promised where he'd "remember their sins no more" (Jeremiah 31:34) by the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
5-7: Temple sacrifices and offerings only provided a 'covering' for sin and could never fulfill God's ultimate will of atonement for His people. That's why Jesus says ”you did not desire” them. God created Jesus a physical body through Mary's womb so he could represent the human race and be sacrificed for the sins of believers.
8-10: By sacrificing himself, Jesus stablished the New covenant in place of the old. It's not as if the first covenant was a failed attempt. Both serve a purpose and was God's will from the beginning. This sacrifice was "once for all" meaning it even covers those in the old covenant.
11-14: Levitical priests had to offer sacrifices repeatedly because the sacrifices in themselves could never take away sins. But when Jesus sacrificed himself, he sat down at the right hand of God signifying that His single sacrifice was effective for all time.
15-18: While under the old covenant, Jeremiah prophesied that there would be a new covenant where the law would be on our hearts (probably meaning the conviction of the Holy Spirit) and our sins would no longer be remembered by God. In Christ there is true, final, forgiveness.
19-25: As Christians we should be confident that we have full access to God through Jesus because we have been completely washed of our sins. This confidence should motivate our actions in Going to church, evangelism, encouraging other believers, and standing firm in our faith as we see the Day of the Lord drawing near.
26-27: If we don't put our confidence in Christ after hearing the knowledge of the truth (the Gospel) there is no longer a sacrifice for our sins because we would have rejected the only sacrifice that can save us. All we are left with then, is a "fearful expectation of judgement" for our sins.
28-30: In the old covenant, there was an immediate punishment of death for breaking certain laws based on the evidence of two or three witnesses. The author contrasts how much greater the judgement deserves for willingly rejecting the gospel message. It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God because he has a just wrath toward sinners.
31-36: The author encouraged his readers by reminding them of their endurance through persecution in the past, and the promised kingdom that awaits them.
37-39: Those who live by faith (trust in Jesus for the forgiveness of their sins) are preserved from judgement, but those who "shrink back" (lack trust in the savior) are not cleansed of their sins and are destroyed because they didn't trust in the only one who could save them.
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1: Verse 1 gives us the clear, biblical definition of Faith. Faith simply means to have ”assurance of what we hope for and confidence in what we do not see". Some come to this assurance through logic and historical evidence while others believe through less verifiable means such as personal conviction or experience. The Bible isn't concerned with how we come to faith, just that we do. There is no biblical reason to think it's a virtue to have "blind faith". In fact, the more evidence you have for a view, the stronger your faith (trust) can be in something. The Greek word for faith literally means to trust ἐλπίζω {el-pid'-zo}. Only the informal modern version of the word implies belief contrary to evidence.
2: People of the Old Testament were used by God and received praise for their faith which resulted in works.
3: Because no one was there to witness the origins of the universe, we must put our faith in a cause. Atheists trust that the universe simply "came from nothing" without cause while the Christian trusts that God spoke it into existence. The author rejects the circular idea that "what is seen" (physical matter) can create itself.
4-34: He then goes through the stories of many Old testament saints that accomplished great things because they trusted in God.
35: The phrase we "women who received back their dead" is probably referring to the mothers of the people Jesus and the apostles resurrected.
36-38: He continues by mentioning the less know martyrs who died horrible deaths.
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1-2: We should be inspired by the witnesses mentioned in chapter 11 so that we abandon sin and finish living the Christian life with endurance. We should lay aside everything that weighs us down spiritually and focus on Jesus, who saved us.
3-4: When facing the struggles of fighting sin, we can consider all that Jesus endured at the crucifixion. While our struggles to resist sin can be painful, they are very minor by comparison.
5-11: God allows a certain amount of pain and temptation to discipline us for sanctification. Just as Jesus was led into the wilderness by the Spirit to be tempted, we too are faced with temptations that make us stronger through endurance. We are being trained for holiness.
12-13: The metaphor of physical rehabilitation illustrates the spiritual discipline of fighting against temptation. If we choose to painfully resist our evil desires, we will be stronger when temptation comes.
13-14: We are to strive for peace with others and perfect holiness (the holiness required to see God). While no one can become become holy enough for salvation, it should be the target that we "strive" for as the passage says. We receive perfect holiness from Jesus, and strive for holiness in response.
15-17: This could mean that we should do what we can to make sure the church isn't producing apostates. Esau is an example of an unrepentant person. He felt sorrow for what he had done but it was only because of the consequences, not because it was a sin against God.
18-21: Mount Sinai is used here to illustrate the separation of a perfect God and sinful man. We are completely unable to approach God through the Law because we are guilty. Just as the Israelite couldn't even touch the mountain because Gods glory was there, neither can we approach Him in our own merit.
22-24: Mount Zoin is a picture of the new covenant, where Jesus mediates for us. His sacrifice "speaks a better word than Abel's" because it has atoning power. Though God was pleased with Abel's sacrifice, it could not remove sins. Without Jesus' perfect sacrifice, all Old Covenant sacrifices would have been rejected
25-29: At the end of the age God will destroy the physical world. Since we are part of an immaterial kingdom through Christ, we will not be destroyed. Instead we will live in eternity with him when he "makes all things new." In light of this, we ought to worship him with reverence and awe.
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1-6: The author switches from theological teaching to practical Christian ethics. Brotherly love is a general practice that encompasses a broad range of behavior towards others. These behaviors include showing hospitality, visiting persecuted Christians in prison, keeping the marriage bed undefiled, refraining from infidelity, keeping from the love of money.
7: We should look to the mature Christian teachers in their congregation as an example of how Christians live.
8: It should be a huge comfort to us that Jesus never changes because our salvation is grounded in him.
9-10: We need to stick to the teachings of the Bible with a focus on grace rather than the strange, new, manmade teachings. Religious practices such as dietary laws have no spiritual benefit. Old Covenant Israelites observed certain dietary laws prescribed by God to differentiate them from the surrounding pagan nations.
10-16: It is Jesus' sacrifice that ultimately fulfilled the sacrificial system, giving it validity. Those who continue in Levitical practices are sinning by disregarding Jesus' atonement for sins by trusting in types and shadows instead.
11-13: Those who left the Levitical system by associating themselves with Christ would bear the reproach that Jesus himself faced. We too face this reproach when we leave the accepted worldly system and follow Christ. Christians today are seen as hateful bigots and enemies of reason.
14-16: The worldly system is only temporary, therefore we should look forward to the eternal city (New Jerusalem) and offer sacrifices of good works in Jesus' name as a response rather than go through the motions of a religious ritual.
17: We are to joyfully obey the spiritual leaders in our church who are trying to protect us. We will not benefit from reluctantly following them.
20-21: The author gives a benediction, that we may do God's will with the end goal of Jesus' glory. It is only through Jesus' atonement that our works are pleasing to him
22-24: Closing of the letter and personal notes.