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The Epistle to the Hebrews |
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Chapter 7
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Where Yeshua has entered as a forerunner for us,
having become a high priest forever according to
the order of Melchizedek. (Hebrews 6:20)
The writer declares that Yeshua is a high
priest; a high priest not according to the order
of Aaron but according to the order of
Melchizedek. The writer is, of course, applying
the words of Psalm 110:4 to Yeshua, which says:
The LORD has sworn and will not change His mind,
"You are a priest forever according to the order
of Melchizedek."
Melchizedek
1For this Melchizedek, king of Salem, priest of
the Most High God, who met Abraham as he was
returning from the slaughter of the kings and
blessed him, 2to whom also Abraham apportioned a
tenth part of all the spoils, was first of all,
by the translation of his name, king of
righteousness, and then also king of Salem,
which is king of peace. 3Without father, without
mother, without genealogy, having neither
beginning of days nor end of life, but made like
the Son of God, he remains a priest perpetually.
The writer points us back to the Torah,
specifically Genesis 14:18-20, to remind us
about Melchizedek. He emphasizes that
Melchizedek was a king, as is plainly stated, a
king of Salem; "salem" being a primitive version
of the Hebrew word "shalom," which means
"peace." Not only that, the translation of his
name is "king of righteousness," with "melch"
and "zedek" being forms of the Hebrew words for
"king" and "righteous." He also reminds us of
the important point that Melchizedek was not
only a king but also a priest of the Most High
God. This is important to remember as he paints
Yeshua's priesthood, as Psalm 110 teaches, in
the pattern of Melchizedek. There are two
additional points that the writer uses to build
this point: First, Abraham showed his
subservience to Melchizedek by giving him a
tenth of the spoils he attained after his
victory over the kings and, second,
Melchizedek's priesthood is not based upon
lineage but rather on immortality.
It's tempting to simply take the writer's
description of a lack of mother and father
allegorically even though he seems to cast the
wording in a literal sense. According to the
Barnes' Notes on the Bible, to help us
understand this verse, we can look to the Syriac
translation which preserves an early
understanding of this verse. There, this verse
was translated: "whose father and mother are not
written in genealogies." In other words, it's
not that Melchizedek didn't actually have any
parents; the point is that we don't have a
record of his genealogy. That the writer is
employing midrash is strengthened when he says
"made like the Son of God." This implies that
he’s simply seeing the Messiah in the way
Melchizedek is presented in the Torah. The Torah
presents Melchizedek as a kingly priest with no
traceable lineage; specifically, and obviously,
with no traceable lineage to Levi. The writer to
the Hebrews confidently uses these facts to show
how the Messiah, the king, can be a
priest without lineage to Levi.
The Supremacy of Melchizedek
4Now observe how great this man was to whom
Abraham, the patriarch, gave a tenth of the
choicest spoils. 5And those indeed of the sons
of Levi who receive the priest's office have
commandment in the Law to collect a tenth from
the people, that is, from their brethren,
although these are descended from Abraham. 6But
the one whose genealogy is not traced from them
collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed the
one who had the promises. 7But without any
dispute the lesser is blessed by the greater.
8In this case mortal men receive tithes, but in
that case one receives them, of whom it is
witnessed that he lives on. 9And, so to speak,
through Abraham even Levi, who received tithes,
paid tithes, 10for he was still in the loins of
his father when Melchizedek met him.
Now, the writer sought to establish the
supremacy of the Melchizedekian priesthood.
While the Levites, sons of Abraham, have
commandments in the Torah to collect tithes from
the rest of Israel, Melchizedek, on the other
hand, collected a tithe from Abraham, the father
of the Levites. And, as verse 7 states, the
lesser is blessed by the greater. You'll notice
that his point is not that one priesthood
replaces another but rather that one is greater
than the other; that is, that the Melchizedekian
priesthood is greater than the Aaronic
priesthood.
Notice how he alludes to the fact that the
Aaronic priesthood has to do with mortality,
while the Melchizedekian priesthood has to do
with immortality. Additionally, the writer
presents a unique way of showing how the Aaronic
priesthood is subservient to the Melchizedekian
priesthood. Since the Levites are descendants of
Abraham, Abraham represented the Levites when he
gave the tithe to Melchizedek.
The Inadequacy of the Aaronic Priesthood
11Now if perfection was through
the Levitical priesthood (for on the basis of it
the people received the Law), what further need
was there for another priest to arise according
to the order of Melchizedek, and not be
designated according to the order of Aaron?
The implication is that the sacrifices of the
Aaronic priesthood could not secure perfection.
Let's take a look at two very important types of
animal sacrifice that will greatly inform our
study of the epistle to the Hebrews.
The first thing we should recognize is the
unapproachable nature of God's manifest
presence. It says at the end of Exodus:
Then the cloud covered the tent of meeting, and
the glory of the LORD filled the
tabernacle. Moses was not able to enter the tent
of meeting because the cloud had settled on it,
and the glory of the LORD filled the tabernacle.
(Exodus 40:34-35)
It's one thing for God to create a holy space
here on earth and fill that space with His
presence; it's a whole other thing for man to
actually be able to enter in to that holy space.
The first step for man to be able to commune
with God is for God to call him:
1Then the LORD called to Moses and spoke to him
from the tent of meeting, saying, 2"Speak to the
sons of Israel and say to them, 'When any man of
you brings an offering to the LORD, you shall
bring your offering of animals from the herd or
the flock. (Leviticus 1:1-2)
The word for "sacrifice" or "offering," in verse
2, is "korban" and more literally means "draw
near." To paraphrase this verse we could say:
"When any man among you brings something to draw
near, the item you shall use to draw near must
be of the animals of the herd or the flock." We
should note that most of the sacrifices were
brought not to appease God and atone for sin the
way we understand atonement for sin; the purpose
of the sacrifices were not to simply appease an
angry God but rather to come into His presence
and commune with Him.
This is exemplified in the Burnt Offering.
If his offering is a burnt offering from the
herd, he shall offer it, a male without defect;
he shall offer it at the doorway of the tent of
meeting, that he may be accepted before the
LORD. (Leviticus 1:3)
The word translated "burnt" is the Hebrew word "olah,"
which more literally means "that which rises."
Therefore, a burnt offering could be understood
as "something to draw near that rises." Firstly,
a kosher animal without defect was selected. As
Leviticus chapter 1 continues, we find that the
worshipper was to lay his hands on the animal's
head; this was understood to be a transference
of identity. Leviticus 17:11 says "For the life
of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given
it to you on the altar to make atonement for
your souls; for it is the blood by reason of the
life that makes atonement," therefore since the
worshipper had "transferred" his identity to the
animal and the animal's blood was sprinkled on
the altar, it is as if the worshipper's blood
was sprinkled on the altar. To put it another
way, by means of the animal's blood, the very
life-essence of the worshipper was offered up to
God. Subsequently, the animal was entirely
burned up, resulting in the smoke of the
offering rising up to the heavens, which verse
17 states becomes a "soothing aroma to the
LORD." All of the rituals of the Burnt Offering
point to the worshipper's desire to give himself
over entirely to God. The Apostle Paul uses this
symbolism in Romans 12 in reference to our
devotion to God through Yeshua: Therefore I urge
you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present
your bodies a living and holy sacrifice,
acceptable to God, which is your spiritual
service of worship. (Romans 12:1)
The other type of sacrifice we should understand
is known as the Sin Offering. While the Burnt
Offering was brought voluntarily and with joy,
the Sin Offering was brought under obligation.
The Sin Offering was brought to restore
communion with God. In what way did the Sin
Offering restore the worshipper back to God? The
best way to understand the Sin Offering is in
terms of ritual purification. The issue of
ritual purity/impurity is difficult to
understand for those of us removed from the era
of the sacrificial service of the Temple. If
God's presence was to be maintained as holy,
there would have to be specific guidelines as to
the level of purity the worshipper would have to
adhere to. The added difficulty in understanding
what it actually means to be ritually pure or
impure is that it doesn't refer to "uncleanness"
or "impurity" as we would intuitively assume.
Perhaps the best illustration we can use is that
of being "symbolically stained."
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In other words, to be ritually impure is to bear
the symbolic stain of this physical world.
Here's where this concept gets even trickier to
understand. To be ritually impure does not
necessarily imply that you have sinned, in the
sense of transgressing the Torah. For example, a
woman, after childbirth, is obligated to bring a
sin offering. In the same way, a leper after
being cleansed would have to bring a sin
offering. The same goes for those who have
recently touched a dead body or a nazarite who
has completed his vow. None of these examples
necessarily imply sinful behaviour. This is best
exemplified by Miriam, the mother of Yeshua,
complying with the laws of the Sin Offering as
recorded in Luke 2:22. Obviously, Miriam had not
sinned by giving birth to the Messiah!
On the other hand, if a person unintentionally
sins, they are obligated to bring a sin
offering. The worshipper would lay his hands on
the animal's head, again, to transfer identity,
but in addition to this, the worshipper would
confess the sin which occasioned the sin
offering in the first place. What all of this
means is that a "sin" offering is probably best
understood as a purification offering. In other
words, it's an offering that restores a person
back to a state of ritual purity. It is brought
whenever a person has become ritually impure
either through unintentional sinful activity or
things connected with the fallenness of this
physical world. Again, the sin offering does not
necessarily imply sin in the sense of a
transgression of the Torah but, in a ritual
sense, it restores the individual back to a
place of rightness before God. Additionally, the
priests would offer a sin offering on behalf of
whole communities and, yearly, the High Priest
would offer a sin offering on the Day of
Atonement, this time for the whole nation. This
was understood to bring entire communities or
the whole nation restoration and purification on
a ritual level.
These are only two of several different types of
animal sacrifices outlined in the Torah. The
animal sacrifices are symbolic enactments of
spiritual realities. Going back to verse 11 of
Hebrews 7, we can see why the writer implies
that perfection could not be obtained through
the Aaronic priesthood. His use of perfection
should be understood in the sense of the coming
perfection of resurrection, when our salvation
is fully realized in the age to come. Where in
the Torah does it promise that the animal
sacrifices will forgive all of our sins, cleanse
our conscience from sin and grant us life in the
age to come? It doesn't. The reality is that the
Aaronic sacrifices do not make us perfect nor do
they change our hearts. They are vivid
illustrations and enactments of spiritual
realities but they do not actually accomplish a
cleansing of conscience. When we come to chapter
10, we will dive deeper into this truth.
Furthermore, since the Aaronic priesthood cannot
bring perfection, wouldn't it make sense that
there would be a priesthood that could? At some
point, there must be a shift to a different
priesthood in order to accomplish what is needed
in order to bring perfection.
The Change of Law
12For when the priesthood is changed, of
necessity there takes place a change of law
also. 13For the one concerning whom these things
are spoken belongs to another tribe, from which
no one has officiated at the altar. 14For it is
evident that our Lord was descended from Judah,
a tribe with reference to which Moses spoke
nothing concerning priests. 15And this is
clearer still, if another priest arises
according to the likeness of Melchizedek, 16who
has become such not on the basis of a law of
physical requirement, but according to the power
of an indestructible life. 17For it is attested
of Him, "YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER ACCORDING TO
THE ORDER OF MELCHIZEDEK." 18For, on the one
hand, there is a setting aside of a former
commandment because of its weakness and
uselessness 19(for the Law made nothing
perfect), and on the other hand there is a
bringing in of a better hope, through which we
draw near to God.
While on the surface, verse 12 seems problematic
from a Torah-based perspective, it's actually an
easy problem to resolve. All that the writer is
saying is that when you have a different
priesthood, there must be a different
requirement for who can be the priests of that
priesthood. The priesthood of Aaron requires its
priests be sons of Aaron but obviously a
different priesthood wouldn't require their
priests be sons of Aaron. The writer makes it
clear that Yeshua does not meet the requirements
of the Aaronic priesthood. Yeshua does, however,
meet the requirement of the Melchizedekian
priesthood because to be a Melchizedekian
priest, you must be immortal!
Remember, the writer said back in chapter 2 that
it is the age to come for which we are speaking
of. Are the Aaronic priests able to secure us a
place in the age to come? No, but an immortal
priest in the order of Melchizedek can! This
does not imply that Aaronic priests are
inadequate in and of themselves, as if they were
supposed to secure our place in the age to come.
Instead, the Aaronic priesthood and the
sacrificial service of the Jerusalem Temple were
never meant to be efficacious with regard to
salvation and cleansing our consciences from
sin. We truly do have a better hope in Yeshua's
sacrifice; there should be no doubting that!
Where we err is thinking that the Messiah's
sacrifice does away with the Jerusalem Temple,
the Aaronic priesthood and the animal
sacrifices. This would not be an act of the
Messiah but rather an act of an anti-messiah!
Yes, the former commandment, referring to the
Aaronic priests, will be set aside but this
hasn't happened yet.
Unfortunately, when reading the Apostolic
Scriptures from our modern-day, dispensational
perspective, it's easy to mistake the view point
of the apostolic writers. Generally speaking,
when we place a mark of distinction between the
"old order" and the "new order," we usually
place it at the cross of Messiah when we should
be placing it at the end of the millennial
reign. While we can say that the Messiah's first
coming was "the future invading the present," we
obviously can't say that we are living in the
age to come. The Aaronic priesthood, the Temple
and its sacrifices and even the whole Torah will
one day "pass away" but not until heaven and
earth pass away (Matthew 5:18). Heaven and earth
are still alive and well, so the Torah and
everything it contains is still in force!
The Guarantee of a Better Covenant
20And inasmuch as it was not without an
oath 21(for they indeed became priests without
an oath, but He with an oath through the One who
said to Him, "THE LORD HAS SWORN AND WILL NOT
CHANGE HIS MIND, 'YOU ARE A PRIEST FOREVER'");
22so much the more also Yeshua has become the
guarantee of a better covenant.
There never was and there never will be an
Aaronic high priest who has a promise from God
that they will be a priest forever, since they
are all destined to die. Yeshua, on the other
hand, has a promise, an oath, from God that he
will be a priest forever. As we will see in
chapter 8, if the Aaronic priests are connected
with the Mosaic covenant, which is a covenant
for this age then Messiah as priest is connected
to the prophesied New Covenant, which is the
covenant for the age to come. Notice that the
writer uses the word "guarantee;" this points to
the fact that the better covenant, that is, the
New Covenant, has not been fully enacted but we
certainly do have a guarantee that it will be.
With the witness of the Apostles, and the Holy
Spirit’s regenerative work in our lives, we know
that God will be faithful and bring about the
fullness of the New Covenant.
Because He Lives
23The former priests, on the one hand, existed
in greater numbers because they were prevented
by death from continuing, 24but Yeshua, on the
other hand, because He continues forever, holds
His priesthood permanently. 25Therefore He is
able also to save forever those who draw near to
God through Him, since He always lives to make
intercession for them.
The writer continued to contrast the Aaronic and
Melchizedekian priesthoods. He further cemented
the point that the Aaronic priesthood is
inadequate to bring about perfection because the
Aaronic priests (referred as "the former
priests") are not immortal and therefore cannot
continually serve the people. Yeshua, though, is
immortal and can effect his blood, through
intercession, for his people forever. This is
quite the better hope!
Our Perfect High Priest
26For it was fitting for us to have such a high
priest, holy, innocent, undefiled, separated
from sinners and exalted above the
heavens; 27who does not need daily, like those
high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for
His own sins and then for the sins of the
people, because this He did once for all when He
offered up Himself. 28For the Law appoints men
as high priests who are weak, but the word of
the oath, which came after the Law, appoints a
Son, made perfect forever.
Just as the Aaronic high priest was subject to a
high standard of holiness, Yeshua is subject to
the highest standard of holiness: he has to be
sinless. Since he is sinless, he does not have
to offer any sacrifices for himself like the
Aaronic high priests do. Rather, by the one
sacrifice of himself, the sins of the people are
atoned for. The Torah appoints mortal men to be
Aaronic high priests but the oath made by God
appointed Yeshua to be perfect forever. His main
point in saying "which came after the Torah" is
to once again say that Yeshua is not a priest
according to Aaron but according to Melchizedek.
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