seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Hebrews 8:1 Now the main point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, 2 and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by a mere human being.
3 Every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices, and so it was necessary for this one also to have something to offer. 4 If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, for there are already priests who offer the gifts prescribed by the law. 5 They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”[a] 6 But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.
7 For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. 8 But God found fault with the people and said[b]:
“The days are coming, declares the Lord,
when I will make a new covenant
with the people of Israel
and with the people of Judah.
9 It will not be like the covenant
I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt,
because they did not remain faithful to my covenant,
and I turned away from them,
declares the Lord.
10 This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel
after that time, declares the Lord.
I will put my laws in their minds
and write them on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
11 No longer will they teach their neighbor,
or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest.
12 For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more.”[c]
when I will make a new covenant
with the people of Israel
and with the people of Judah.
9 It will not be like the covenant
I made with their ancestors
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of Egypt,
because they did not remain faithful to my covenant,
and I turned away from them,
declares the Lord.
10 This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel
after that time, declares the Lord.
I will put my laws in their minds
and write them on their hearts.
I will be their God,
and they will be my people.
11 No longer will they teach their neighbor,
or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know me,
from the least of them to the greatest.
12 For I will forgive their wickedness
and will remember their sins no more.”[c]
13 By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.
a. Hebrews 8:5 Exodus 25:40
b. Hebrews 8:8 Some manuscripts may be translated fault and said to the people.
c. Hebrews 8:12 Jer. 31:31-34
This is from the easy English site.
In the time of Moses the Israelites had a special tent in the desert. They made this tent to the plan that God gave them. In it there was the holy place, which was the special place of worship. God did not allow anyone to go into this holy place except the chief priest. That special tent was a model of the true holy place in heaven which God has made. It is here that Jesus, as our chief priest, now works for our benefit. The sacrifice that Jesus offered for us was complete when he died. So he does not need to offer any other sacrifice for our sin. He can speak to God on our behalf and offer him our prayers.
The duty of the chief priest was to offer gifts and sacrifices to God on behalf of the people. God made Jesus the chief priest. So he also needs to have something to offer to God for us. The chief priests had to bring gifts and sacrifices to God all the time. Jesus did it only once and for all time, when he gave himself. The priests of the old agreement always stood, for their work was not complete. Jesus, having died once for sins, sat down to show that he had finished this part of his work.
The old agreement that God gave to Moses included the rules by which the people should live. The agreement was good, for it came from God, and all its rules were right. The fault with it was that nobody was able to do all that it said. Nobody could keep the agreement. That is why there was the need for another agreement. The new one had to provide a way for men and women to get right with God.
Most agreements are between two persons or groups. They both agree to do all that it requires of them. The new agreement is not like that. No mere human can make an agreement with God. Here it says, ‘I will make a new agreement’. This means that God himself will arrange the new agreement. He will also make a way for it to achieve its purpose. The old agreement was with the peoples of Israel and Judah, and the new agreement will be for them. It will not only be for them, but for all who trust in Jesus.
God wrote the laws of the old agreement on stones. He will write the new rules on the minds and hearts of men and women. People did not have the power to carry out the old agreement. But now God will give them power to obey the new rules. That power is the Spirit of God, who will live in the hearts of his people. Then they will not turn away from God. God will accept them as his own people.
The key to the new agreement is the fact that God will forgive sin. It is not that God will just forget our sins. He puts them right out of his mind for always. This is because Jesus has paid the cost of all our sins. As we trust in Jesus, he makes us free from our sins. As we come to God in Jesus, he accepts what Jesus has done and forgives us completely.
This is from enduringword.com.Who is seated at the right hand of the throne: Additionally, Jesus is seated in heaven, in contrast to the continual service of the priesthood under the Law of Moses.
The tabernacle and the temple of the Old Covenant had beautiful furnishings, but no place for the priests to sit down because their work was never finished. The work of Jesus is finished, therefore He is seated in heaven.
A Minister of the sanctuary and of the true tabernacle: Jesus doesn’t serve as a priest in an earthly tabernacle or temple. He serves in the true tabernacle which the Lord erected, the original made by God. The tabernacle of Moses was a copy of this original, and it was made by man (Exodus 25:8-9).
Some suppose the true tabernacle is the Church or Jesus’ earthly body. But it is best to understand it as the heavenly reality that the earthly tabernacle imitated.
I will put My laws in their mind and write them on their hearts: The New Covenant features transformation from within, not regulation through external law.
The Old Covenant came in with such awe and terror that it should have made everyone obey out of fear. But they sinned against the Old Covenant almost immediately. The New Covenant works obedience through the law written in their mind and on their hearts.
I need to set the scene for myself. Jesus has been hung on the cross. He had a sword shoved in His side and He didn't flinch.... He was "dead". They took Him off the cross and put Him in a borrowed tomb.... they couldn't embalm Him... it was almost dark and the Sabbath was about to begin... a couple days later... they went back to the tomb to finish embalming Him... but He was gone. The cloth that had been used to cover Him was still there... as if He had been laying under it... but He was gone.... they laid Him there Naked..... but now He was gone.... and He had been left there naked.... His clothes had been won by Roman soldiers back at the cross.... when they pulled Him off that Cross... He was naked... and now He was gone... naked.... . A little while later.... His disciples found Him on the shore....clothed.... cooking fish for them. Jesus told them He had to leave but He would be back. That's where the story is when this letter was written. Those men who were waiting for Jesus to return, thought He was coming back right away. They quit their jobs.... left their girlfriends.... put off wedding parties.... and they were sharpening swords, no doubt. They thought Jesus had gone to get His army. They thought they were going to defeat Rome. They were all fired up and ready to go to war.......... but Jesus didn't come right back.....
They got bored.... they got lazy.... and finally.... after waiting what they thought was an appropriate time... they gave up and went back to the Temple. They started gathering up the best lambs and fattening them up for a sacrifice.... and that's exactly where this letter comes in.
The covenant changed. The priests on the ground who were still burning incense and tossing the lambs on the altar were useless. They were unbelievers who were thumbing their nose at Jesus..... the Son of God.... and when you thumb your nose at the Son of God... you are also thumbing your nose at God.
See the Temple they were worshipping in... it was just a copy of the original in Heaven.... built by God Himself. The problem was ..... God sent Jesus to be the final sacrifice. Jesus.... the Son of God... took on a human body.... dealt with life using a human brain with human shortcomings and human temptations. Jesus knew what it was like to be human. When Jesus finished the work here on earth.... He went to Heaven.... and SAT DOWN.
I can imagine it.... Jesus finally stepped back into Heaven after His Mission to earth. The angels were there to welcome Him.... they had His Heavenly stuff for Him... they had been holding it while He was gone. God walks up to Jesus.... and gives Him a big hug. Jesus said.... "Well Dad... that's done".... while God walks over to His Throne.... and sits... Jesus continues to His Own Throne.... there to the right of God's throne.... and Jesus smiles... and flops into the throne... and says "Dad [God] I'm glad that's done".... and God smiles at His Son.... Victorious.
So the priests on earth... the ones who refused to believe that Jesus is the Messiah.... were still working their fingers to the bone. They are still tying a rope around their waste because they are afraid that they will do something wrong and God will kill them right there on the spot. They continued their ritual of slaughtering livestock and clobbering humans with unending rules, regulations, policies and procedures that no one can count or follow.
The author is saying... "you're making a big mistake..... Jesus redrew the boundaries. We can talk directly to God again. The contract has been rewritten and humans don't have to go through a human priest to talk to God. They can talk to Jesus and He'll talk to God about it for us.....we're not stuck chattering to other humans now.... we have Jesus to confide in... and Jesus will work on Solutions to our problems... not just throw an ox on the fire. "
But the people didn't really believe in Jesus the Messiah.... they believed He was just here to take on Rome. When Jesus didn't finish the job they wanted done in the manner they wanted it done.... they went back to the human priests at the copy temple....
Jesus the Messiah came to earth.... conquered death.... and started a new contract... one that didn't require livestock or a rope around the waste... a direct line to God..... and these humans couldn't wait.... couldn't believe it..... just could not comprehend.
They didn't believe it.
