A Study Of The Apostle Pauls Letter To The Hebrews


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AStudyOf TheApostlePauls LetterTo The
Hebrews
How can we neglect so greata salvation
Hebrews 23
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Hebrews Christ Is Superior! Superior Person
(11413) Superior to Prophets
(11-3) Superior to Angels (14218) Superior
to Moses (31-19) Superior to Joshua
(41-13) Superior Priest (414728) Superior to
Aaron (414612) Superior to Melchizedek
(61375) Superior to Levi (76-28) but Well
only study verses 20-28 today.
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Hebrews Christ Is Superior! Superior Pact to
Moses (811018) Superior Promises
(81-13) Superior Sanctuary (91-15) Superior
Sacrifice (916-28) Superior Results
(101-18) Superior Principle (Faith) to Moses
(10191325) Superior Things (1019-39) Superio
r Actions (111-40) Superior Relationship
(121-29) Superior Way of Life (131-25)
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In 71-10 based on the premise that Jesus is our
High Priest after the order of Melchizedek
(620) Paul wrote of the greatness of Mels
priesthood even over Levis priesthood that God
Him-self set up. Yes God established both
priesthoods but one was greater than the
other. In 711-19 Paul wrote about how the
Christs priesthood replaced Levis priesthood.
Now
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In 720-28 well consider his explana-tion for
this substitution. In a nutshell well discover
that the new priesthood of which Jesus is our
High Priest is much superior to the old
priesthood be-cause Jesus accomplished for usour
redemptionwhat the Levites could never do. The
two basic arguments are that (1) unlike the
Levites Jesus was made High Priest by an oath
from God and that (2) unlike the Levites
neither Jesus nor His priesthood will ever need
to be replacedit is forever!
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And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an
oath (for they have become priests w/o without an
oath but He with an oath by Him who said to Him
The Lord has sworn and will not relent You are
a priest forever ac- cording to the order of
Melchizedek)
Hebrews 720-21
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God took oaths in or-der to indicate the
unchangeableness of things that He set in order
(cf. 617). This teaches us two things here
And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an
oath (for they have become priests w/o without an
oath but He with an oath by Him who said to Him
The Lord has sworn and will not relent You are
a priest forever ac- cording to the order of
Melchizedek)
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1. Since the Levite priests became
priests apart from any oath by God at
all then God never meant for that
priesthood to be eternal without an
oath from God it could be ( was)
changed (cf. 712 what Paul built on
from here on out). On the other hand

And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an
oath (for they have become priests w/o without an
oath but He with an oath by Him who said to Him
The Lord has sworn and will not relent You are
a priest forever ac- cording to the order of
Melchizedek)
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2. Since (as Paul said here as well as in 6
18-20 which he ob- viously still had in
mind here) God did swear an oath con-
cerning Christs priesthood then
it unlike the Levi- tical priesthood is
unending and un- changeablean oath God
wont renege on. So
And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an
oath (for they have become priests w/o without an
oath but He with an oath by Him who said to Him
The Lord has sworn and will not relent You are
a priest forever ac- cording to the order of
Melchizedek)
10
Why did God swear relative to Jesus but not
relative to Aaron or his descendants Because
they werent chosen based on their morality or
spirituality but on their lineage. However

And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an
oath (for they have become priests w/o without an
oath but He with an oath by Him who said to Him
The Lord has sworn and will not relent You are
a priest forever ac- cording to the order of
Melchizedek)
11
Jesus and His priest- hood were establish- ed by
an oath of God based on His char-acter (51-10).
And inasmuch as He was not made priest without an
oath (for they have become priests w/o without an
oath but He with an oath by Him who said to Him
The Lord has sworn and will not relent You are
a priest forever ac- cording to the order of
Melchizedek)
12
by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a
bet-ter covenant.
Hebrews 722
13
This could simply read by which i.e. by Gods
oath con-cerning Him.
by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a
bet-ter covenant.
14
This is in whats called the perfect tense
meaning that it refers to a past action that has
pre-sent effects i.e. Jesus became isa
surety.
by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a
bet-ter covenant.
15
This word refers to a guarantorone who makes
sure the covenant is carried out by both parties
involved. So
by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a
bet-ter covenant.
16
To bring this alto-gether we could read it like
this Be-cause Jesus was made High Priest by an
oath from God He is the chosen Guarantor of a
bet-ter covenant.
by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a
bet-ter covenant.
17
F. F. Bruce said Jesus guarantees the perpetual
fulfillment of the covenant which He mediates
86 on the man-ward side as well as on the
Godward side. As the Son of God he confirms Gods
eternal covenant with His people as His peoples
representative He satis- fies its terms with
perfect acceptance in Gods sight.
18
This word comes from a term which actually refers
to an arrangement made by a superior for the
benefit of an inferi-or. I.e.
by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a
bet-ter covenant.
19
Because of Jesus were under a much better
arrangement than were our Jew-ish ancestors under
Moses. Now
by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a
bet-ter covenant.
20
Speaking about Christ and His priest-hood being
established as endless and consistent by an oath
from God Paul went on in the next two verses to
ex-pand on this thought.
21
And there were many priests be-cause they were
prevented by death from con-tinuing.
Hebrews 723
22
Let me mention two significant side-notes here.
Firstly this verse is actually in the present
tense in the original indi-cating that the Aa-
ronic priesthood was still being adhered to by
the Jews until AD 70 anyway.
And there were many priests be-cause they were
prevented by death from con-tinuing.
23
Secondly since its the high priesthood of Jesus
thats un-der consideration Paul (by his use of
the word priests here) was obviously referring
specifically to the high priests. So
And there were many priests be-cause they were
prevented by death from con-tinuing.
24
His point is that whereas death kept any Aaronic
high priest from remain-ing a priest forever
Jesus who received His priesthood after His
resurrection is no longer subject to death. By
the way
And there were many priests be-cause they were
prevented by death from con-tinuing.
25
According to Milli-gan at the fall of Jerusalem
Phanni-as became the last the 81sthigh priest.
And since 81 is the sacred number 3 squared
squared again this suggests that the fullness of
Gods intention for the Levitical system was
completed in AD 70.
And there were many priests be-cause they were
prevented by death from con-tinuing.
26
Sometimes we hear about the illegal handling of a
will but because Jesus not only wrote and died
for His will but also rose from the dead to
probate it Himself He is the perfect High Priest!
And there were many priests be-cause they were
prevented by death from con-tinuing.
27
But He because He continues for-ever has an
un-changeable priest-hood.
Hebrews 724
28
In verse 8 Paul spoke of the Levitical priests as
being mor- tal (having to depend on lineage)
while in verse 16 he spoke of Jesus as being
im-mortal not having any posterity or a need for
it.
But He because He continues for-ever has an
un-changeable priest-hood.
29
This word comes from a term that was used on a
legal con-tract and meant that it was valid and
(unlike the contract with Israel through Moses)
unalterable something that shouldve provided
them a confidence like they had never experienced
before.
But He because He continues for-ever has an
un-changeable priest-hood.
30
This term also car-ries with it the idea of
something that cannot be stepped across or into
mean- ing that it cant be destroyed and wont be
transferred to another.
But He because He continues for-ever has an
un-changeable priest-hood.
31
As Paul said later Christ is the same yesterday
today and forever (138) meaning that while
under the Levitical priesthood you might have a
nice moral priest one day and a not-so-nice
immoral priest the next Jesus was is and
always will be the same.
But He because He continues for-ever has an
un-changeable priest-hood.
32
Therefore He is also able to save to the
uttermost those who come to God through Him
since He ever lives to make interces-sion for
them.
Hebrews 725
33
This word is from a term which means completely
or per-fectly i.e. He as our eternal High
Priest doesnt just roll sins forward for a year
(cf. 101-3) He for-gives them forever
remembering them against us no more (1017).
Therefore He is also able to save to the
uttermost those who come to God through Him
since He ever lives to make interces-sion for
them.
34
The drawing near to God idea in verse 19 is
defined here by Paul as coming to God through
Christ as Jesus Himself once said No one comes
to the Father except through Me (John 146).
Therefore He is also able to save to the
uttermost those who come to God through Him
since He ever lives to make interces-sion for
them.
35
This is from a term which actually refers to
everything Jesus has done and is do-ing even
today as regards our salva-tion. (Today the word
is pretty much limited to prayer but this was
not the case with the Greek word.)
Therefore He is also able to save to the
uttermost those who come to God through Him
since He ever lives to make interces-sion for
them.
36
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
Hebrews 726
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Verses 26-28 are a sketch of The Ideal Priest a
priest who isnt just better than the Levitical
priests but even better than Melchizedek whom
Paul left behind at this point to focus on the
perfection of Jesus His priest-hood and His new
covenant.
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
38
Jesus who continues forever has an
un-changeable priest-hood is the most suitable
high priest for us because only He can save to
the uttermost. Besides those things He is

For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
39
The Old Testament background for this particular
original term describes a person whose
rela-tionship to God was based on covenant
faithfulness.
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
40
It described one who genuinely ful-filled not
only the external but also the heart
expecta-tions of the cove-nant such a person was
all that God wanted him to be.
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
41
Jesus having been perfectly loyal in obedience
and hav-ing lived a life of perfect integrity
was all God wanted Him to be for us. Hes also

For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
42
While holy brings to mind Christs rela-tionship
to God harmless brings to mind the idea of
Christs relationship to His fellowman e.g.
even when He cleansed the temple and was wrongly
executed He hurt no one. Hes also

For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
43
While holy has to do with God and harm-less has
to do with people undefiled has to do with evil
i.e. Jesus wasnt conta-minated by His
asso-ciation with sinners.
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
44
These three adjec-tives describe Jesus
spiritually morally and religiously.
Furthermore He is
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
45
I.e. Jesus isnt only distinct or indepen-dant
of sinners be-cause Hes holy harmless
undefil-ed or without sin (415) but also
be-cause He
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
46
This means that un-like Aaronic high priests
Jesus sits at the very right hand of God Himself
as this context goes on to say in 81.
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
47
In 414 Paul said that Jesus had passed through
the heavens and in Eph. 410 he said that Jesus
is far above all heavens that He might fulfill
all things. So
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
48
Even though Jesus came in the like-ness of sinful
flesh (Rom. 83) received and ate with sinners
(Luke 151-2) was a friend to sinners (Mat.
1119) He re-mains separate from them because He
refused to participate in their evil deeds.
For such a High Priest was fitting for us who is
holy harmless undefil-ed separate from sinners
and has become higher than the heavens.
49
Jesus doesnt need daily as those high priests
to offer up sacrifices first for His own sins
and then for the peo-ples for this He did once
for all when He offered up Himself.
Hebrews 727
50
This word can be translated day by day and since
the word day was often used to denote any part of
time (meaning that the phrase could read from
time to time) then it should be un-derstood in
relation to Pauls other state- ments about the
high priestly sacrifices.
Jesus doesnt need daily as those high priests
to offer up sacrifices first for His own sins
and then for the peo-ples for this He did once
for all when He offered up Himself.
51
Later in Hebrews Paul spoke of how high priests
offered sacrifices once a year (97) or year by
year (101) in fact in Exo. 1310 scho-lars are
forced to see that day by day is a Jewish idiom
(cf. Mat. 1240) which should actually be
translated as year by year. So
Jesus doesnt need daily as those high priests
to offer up sacrifices first for His own sins
and then for the peo-ples for this He did once
for all when He offered up Himself.
52
We can read this to say Jesus doesnt need from
time to time (whether daily monthly or
annually) to offer up sacrifices.
Jesus doesnt need daily as those high priests
to offer up sacrifices first for His own sins
and then for the peo-ples for this He did once
for all when He offered up Himself.
53
This verse teaches us three things. 1. Unlike the
Aaronic priests (53) Jesus didnt and
doesnt need to offer a sac- rifice for
Himself but only for us the people.
Jesus doesnt need daily as those high priests
to offer up sacrifices first for His own sins
and then for the peo-ples for this He did once
for all when He offered up Himself.
54
2. Unlike the Aaronic priests Jesus does
not offer a sacri- fice annually but
once for all time (928) i.e. He does
not need to be re- sacrificed every week
at Mass.
Jesus doesnt need daily as those high priests
to offer up sacrifices first for His own sins
and then for the peo-ples for this He did once
for all when He offered up Himself.
55
Speaking of Christs sacrifice in 925-28 Paul
wrote Not that He should offer Himself often as
the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every
year with blood of anotherhe then would have had
to suffer often since the foundation of the
world but now once at the end of the ages He
has appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of
Himself. Christ was offered once to bear the
sins of many. And

56
3. Unlike the Aaronic priests Jesus of-
fered not goats calves but Him- self
for the people (914).
Jesus doesnt need daily as those high priests
to offer up sacrifices first for His own sins
and then for the peo-ples for this He did once
for all when He offered up Himself.
57
For the Law ap-points as high priests men who
have weaknesses but the word of the oath which
came after the Law appoints the Son who has been
perfected forever.
Hebrews 728
58
For the Law ap-points as high priests men who
have weaknesses but the word of the oath which
came after the Law appoints the Son who has been
perfected forever.
This verse sums up the last few verses provides
a transi-tion for Pauls dis-cussion in 811018
about the greater covenant of Jesus.
59
For the Law ap-points as high priests men who
have weaknesses but the word of the oath which
came after the Law appoints the Son who has been
perfected forever.
The Levitical high priests ( therefore that
priesthood) were just weak in gener-al while the
Law constituted morally spiritually and
(be-cause of death) physi-cally weak men as high
priests Gods oath (which came after the Law)
constituted His perfected Son as High Priest.
60
For the Law ap-points as high priests men who
have weaknesses but the word of the oath which
came after the Law appoints the Son who has been
perfected forever.
Notice Paul again connected Christs priesthood
with His deityHis Sonship to God (cf. 414
55). So
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For the Law ap-points as high priests men who
have weaknesses but the word of the oath which
came after the Law appoints the Son who has been
perfected forever.
Unlike the OT high priests Jesus is the High
Priest who suits our needs perfectly (v. 26)!