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The Epistle to the Hebrews |
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Chapter 9
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The Protos Tabernacle and the Deutero Veil
1Now even the first [protos] covenant had
regulations of divine worship and the earthly sanctuary. 2For there
was a tabernacle prepared, the outer one [protos],
in which were the lampstand and the table and the sacred bread; this
is called the holy place. 3Behind the second [deutero] veil
there was a tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies, 4having a
golden altar of incense and the ark of the covenant covered on all
sides with gold, in which was a golden jar holding the manna, and
Aaron's rod which budded, and the tables of the covenant; 5and above
it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the mercy seat; but of
these things we cannot now speak in detail.
Once again, the word "covenant" is not in the original Greek text
because he is not only referring to the Mosaic covenant but to the
whole protos, that is, This World. His point is that This
World has regulations of divine worship and an earthly sanctuary.
When reading verses 2-5 as a whole, we can see how he's making a
distinction between to the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. In
verse 2, the NASB translates "protos" as "outer one." This is
a good attempt at conveying the writer's intention. The writer is
intending to show how the Holy Place, the outer part of the earthly
tabernacle, is a symbol for the protos. Behind the second
veil, that is, the deutero veil, there is the Most Holy
Place.
A
Comparison
6Now when these things have been so prepared, the priests are
continually entering the outer [protos] tabernacle
performing the divine worship, 7but into the second [deutero],
only the high priest enters once a year, not without taking blood,
which he offers for himself and for the sins of the people committed
in ignorance.
Again, the NASB uses the word "outer" when in the Greek it actually
says "protos." By applying the words "protos" and "deutero"
to the Holy Place and Most Holy Place, respectively, the writer
wants us to see how each section of the earthly tabernacle are
symbolic of the protos and the deutero. The service in
the Holy Place requires continual sacrifices but there is only one
sacrifice a year performed in the Most Holy Place. The writer will
now try to show how this relates to the protos and the deutero and
why the protos requires continual sacrifices while the detuero only
requires one sacrifice.
A
Symbol for the Present Time
8The Holy Spirit is signifying this, that the way into the holy
place has not yet been disclosed [manifested,] while the outer [protos]
tabernacle is still [has] standing, 9which is a symbol for
the present time, accordingly both gifts and sacrifices are offered
which cannot make the worshiper perfect in conscience, 10since they
relate only to food and drink and various washings, regulations for
the body imposed until a time of reformation [restoration].
By
looking at the Greek text, we see that the NASB has taken some
liberties in the way they have translated these verses. In verse 8,
while "disclosed" is not entirely inaccurate, the word "manifested"
is a possible translation of the Greek word "phaneroo" and
better fits the context. Since the Most Holy Place symbolizes the
World to Come, the writer's point is that the World to Come has not
been realized; it has not been made manifest.
Building upon his previous comparison that the Holy Place represents
the protos and the Most Holy Place represents the deutero,
the writer further explains that the protos tabernacle, that
is, the Holy Place still has standing. In which way does it have
standing? It still symbolically represents This World with its gifts
and sacrifices which do not make the worshipper perfect in
conscience. The protos sacrifices are only regulations for
our fleshly state and point us to the full restoration of the World
to Come.
Perhaps the best we can understand this reality in our own lives is
the fact that even though God has revealed the Messiah to us and we
have the desire to be perfect, we still fall short everyday. As is
stated later in 10:3, the animal sacrifices are a reminder of sins,
and while they are efficacious in terms of ritual purity, they don't
have, nor were they intended to have, the power to cleanse our
consciences.
A paraphrase of these verses could be: The
Holy Spirit is signifying that the World to Come has not arrived,
while at the same time the Aaronic service, representing the protos,
has allegorical standing, being a symbol for the present time
because both gifts and sacrifices are offered which cannot make the
worshipper perfect in conscience. (paraphrase of Hebrews 9:8-9)
The Efficacy of the Deutero Sacrifice
11But when Messiah appeared as a high priest of the good things to
come, He entered through the greater and more perfect tabernacle,
not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation; 12and not
through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He
entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal
redemption.
On
the other hand, Messiah has entered into the deutero tabernacle,
the tabernacle in the heavens, of which the Most Holy Place and the
yearly Day of Atonement sacrifice are a symbol of. Unlike the high
priests of the earthly tabernacle, He did not offer the blood of
goats and calves but instead offered His own blood. By this
offering, He has obtained eternal redemption.
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The Light to the Heavy
13For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer
sprinkling those who have been defiled sanctify for the cleansing of
the flesh, 14how much more will the blood of Messiah, who through
the eternal Spirit offered Himself without blemish to God, cleanse
your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?
In
Jewish thought, there is the concept of proving a greater truth on
the basis of a lesser truth. It is called, in English, "the Light to
the Heavy." Here, the lesser truth is that the blood of goats and
bulls and the ashes of a heifer actually do cleanse those who have
been ritually defiled. The greater truth is that the blood of
Messiah cleanses our consciences from sin. His point is that if the
blood of animals can make us ritually clean how much more can the
sinless Messiah make us eternally clean?
Necessity of Death
15For this reason He is the mediator of a new covenant, so that,
since a death has taken place for the redemption of the
transgressions that were committed under the first covenant, those
who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal
inheritance. 16For where a covenant is, there must of necessity be
the death of the one who made it. 17For a covenant is valid only
when men are dead, for it is never in force while the one who made
it lives.
Here, the word "covenant" is in the Greek because he's referring to
the deutero covenant, the New Covenant, and the protos covenant,
the Mosaic covenant. Under the Mosaic covenant, we are condemned
because all have fallen short and have sinned but, through the death
of the Messiah, God's elect will enter into the New Covenant.
In
verses 16 and 17, the writer is making a play off the fact that the
Greek word "diatheke" can mean both "covenant" and "last will and
testament." He's simply making a comparison that a will is never in
place when someone is alive, so with the Messiah, through His death,
we can gain the inheritance that God's covenants promise.
Cleansed with Blood
18Therefore even the first covenant was not inaugurated
without blood. 19For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses
to all the people according to the Law, he took the blood of the
calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and
sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, 20saying, "THIS
IS THE BLOOD OF THE COVENANT WHICH GOD COMMANDED YOU." 21And in the
same way he sprinkled both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the
ministry with the blood. 22And according to the Law, one may almost
say, all things are cleansed with blood, and without shedding of
blood there is no forgiveness.
Once again, the word "covenant" is not in the Greek text because
he's not only referring to the Mosaic covenant but to several
elements of the protos system. In chapter 8, the writer made
the case that the earthly tabernacle is a reflection of the heavenly
tabernacle. So, his point is that if the earthly reflections require
blood, then so too do the heavenly realities.
Since the Foundation of the World
23Therefore it was necessary for the copies of the things in the
heavens to be cleansed with these, but the heavenly things
themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24For Messiah did not
enter a holy place made with hands, a mere copy of the
true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of
God for us; 25nor was it that He would offer Himself often, as the
high priest enters the holy place year by year with blood that is
not his own. 26Otherwise, He would have needed to suffer often since
the foundation of the world; but now once at the consummation of the
ages He has been manifested to put away sin by the sacrifice of
Himself.
It
is not the blood of animals of which the heavenly things are
cleansed. No, the heavenly things require better sacrifices. The
Messiah entered the true Holy Place and offered His own blood. The
writer additionally clarifies that even though the earthly Most Holy
Place is a reflection of the heavenly tabernacle, it's not as if
Messiah had to offer Himself year after year. No, the Messiah does
not need to suffer since the foundation of the world. His sacrifice
is efficacious for all who have faith. Messiah's sacrifice is
eternal in both directions because it put away sin altogether.
Offered Once, Will Appear a Second Time
27And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this
comes judgment, 28so Messiah also, having been offered once to bear
the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without
reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him.
Continuing with his point that the Messiah did not have to be
offered more than once, he now directs us to the fact that since sin
has been dealt with, what is left is judgment. For those who eagerly
await Him, because we believe He has already come to bear the sins
of many, we have the hope of His coming kingly reign. The writer
says that Messiah will appear a second time; how fitting that His
second appearance will be what will usher in the deutero! |
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