Tool Beta
The Ancient World Behind the Text
Pick a passage anywhere in the New Testament. See the customs and ideas a first reader knew without being told.
Hebrews 9:23-10:18, Once for all, and a seated priest
Christ entered heaven itself, not a copy, and offered himself once at the climax of the ages; as people die once and then face judgment, he will appear a second time to save. The yearly sacrifices only reminded people of sin, but his body offered once has made his people holy, and he has sat down, his offering finished.
Hebrews 9:23-10:18, in every translation this tool compares.
Christ, the writer says, entered heaven itself rather than a man-made copy, and offered himself once at the climax of history, where the old high priest had to return every year. He will come again, this time to bring salvation to those waiting for him. The yearly sacrifices only kept sin in memory, because animal blood could never remove it, but Christ's single offering of his body has made his people holy for good. With sins forgiven, the writer concludes, no further offering is needed.
- {"u":"https:\/\/jayms.com\/bible-study-tools-2\/ancient-world-ideas\/the-tabernacle\/","n":"The tabernacle and its heavenly pattern","s":"The tent sanctuary Israel carried through the wilderness, with an outer room for the priests and an inner room, the holy of holies, for the ark. Moses built it to a pattern shown on the mountain, and many Jews thought of the earthly sanctuary as a copy of a heavenly one.","r":""}
- {"u":"https:\/\/jayms.com\/bible-study-tools-2\/ancient-world-ideas\/day-of-atonement\/","n":"The Day of Atonement and the mercy seat","s":"Once a year the high priest went into the holy of holies with sacrificial blood, for his own sins and then the nation's. It was the one fast the law commanded, and the mercy seat on the ark was the place the blood was brought.","r":""}
- {"u":"https:\/\/jayms.com\/bible-study-tools-2\/ancient-world-ideas\/sacrifice-and-blood\/","n":"Sacrifice and the daily offering","s":"Animals were offered at the temple for sin, for thanks and for cleansing, and blood sealed covenants. Every day a lamb was offered at dawn and again in the afternoon, and Jews everywhere prayed at those hours.","r":""}
- {"u":"https:\/\/jayms.com\/bible-study-tools-2\/ancient-world-ideas\/present-age-and-age-to-come\/","n":"This age and the age to come","s":"Jews divided history into the present age, under the rule of evil nations, and the age to come, when God would rule unchallenged. The sufferings expected before the change were called birth pangs.","r":""}
When the high priest came out of the sanctuary on the Day of Atonement, the people knew the sacrifice had been accepted, and Keener and the cultural backgrounds notes compare Christ's second appearing; Wright pictures the high priest coming out to declare forgiveness, and Wright and Bird say Jesus will reappear not to sort out continuing problems but to save. Most first-century Jews expected one death, then resurrection and judgment, though Josephus and some others toyed with Plato's language of reincarnation (Keener). The yearly sacrifices may have reminded people of sin the way Passover reminded them of redemption (Keener; the cultural backgrounds notes). Carson, Moo and Morris read 10:2, which asks whether the sacrifices would not have stopped, as written while they still went on: had they ended, "given the nature of his polemic, we expect noise." Where the Hebrew of Psalm 40:6 reads you have opened my ears, most Greek copies read a body you prepared for me, and interpreters generally chose the reading that made their point (Keener; the cultural backgrounds notes). Priests stood to offer sacrifice, so a seated priest has finished (Keener; the ESV Study Bible).
- Craig S. Keener, The IVP Bible Background Commentary: New Testament, on Hebrews 9:23, 9:24-26 and 9:27-28, and on 10:1, 10:2-3, 10:4, 10:10, 10:11-14 and 10:18
- NIV Cultural Backgrounds Study Bible, notes on Hebrews 9:26, 9:28, 10:3, 10:4-5, 10:10 and 10:12
- ESV Study Bible, study notes on Hebrews 9:27-28 and 10:11-13
- N. T. Wright, Hebrews for Everyone, comment on Hebrews 9.23-28
- N. T. Wright and Michael F. Bird, The New Testament in Its World, ch. 30, The Argument of Hebrews, section 4
- D. A. Carson, Douglas J. Moo and Leon Morris, An Introduction to the New Testament, ch. 17, Hebrews, Date
