01.08. One Sacrifice for Sins Forever
“One Sacrifice for Sins Forever”
CHAPTER EIGHT In Heb 9:1-28; Heb 10:1-18 the Holy Spirit concludes the doctrinal portion of the epistle with the irrefutable proof that Christ’s “one sacrifice for sins for ever” is not only superior to all the Levitical sacrifices offered on Jewish altars, but that it is the only perfect sacrifice, by which eternal redemption is given to all who will accept it.
Thus the very heart of the epistle is unfolded: our Lord’s one, sufficient sacrifice is the final and complete fulfillment of all the types set forth in the animal sacrifices under the Law of Moses. Not only so, but having offered Himself once for all on the cross, He is ministering still in the heavenly sanctuary, of which the Jewish Tabernacle was but a shadow of good things to come (Heb 10:1). He is the Mediator of a better covenant, sealed with His own blood. His service in the more perfect tabernacle is efficacious because it is the ministry of the spotless Lamb of Calvary and all-powerful King-Priest.
In this weighty argument the epistle reaches its climax; for without controversy Christianity is better than Judaism because the redemptive work of the sinless Christ is superior by far to the best that Judaism could offer.
Surely the honest seeker after truth in apostolic times must have been convinced, from this profound argument, that Jesus of Nazareth is Israel’s promised Messiah, as well as the only Saviour of the world. And to every generation the Epistle to the Hebrews speaks, saying that “Jesus Christ [is] the same yesterday, and to-day, and for ever” (Heb 13:8).
The succeeding lessons will show that, in the closing chapters of the epistle, from Heb 10:19-39, Heb 11:1-40, Heb 12:1-29, Heb 13:1-25, the Holy Spirit deals with the practical application of the doctrine set forth in Heb 1:1-14, Heb 2:1-18, Heb 3:1-19, Heb 4:1-16, Heb 5:1-14, Heb 6:1-20, Heb 7:1-28, Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18. This He does by adding yet further warning to the enlightened but unregenerated concerning the danger of apostasy; and by continuing to exhort and encourage the Hebrew Christians to press on with Christ, even though faithfulness to Him would involve bitter persecution.
Now read prayerfully all of Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18 several times without pausing to analyze its parts.
This will give you the message as a whole. After one or two readings, you will doubtless observe that this section of the epistle falls logically into four subdivisions-all related to the sacrifice of Christ. You may prefer your own outline; but for our purpose here, let us call these topics:
1. The Jewish Tabernacle-a type of the heavenly sanctuary (Heb 9:1-10) 2. The superiority of the sacrifice of Christ (Heb 9:11-23) 3. The threefold appearing of Christ (Heb 9:24-28) 4. The perfection of the sacrifice of Christ (Heb 10:1-18)
(Do not attempt to complete this lesson in too short a time. The Scripture it covers is worthy of a veritable lifetime of study-yea, all eternity! Get it in your heart, and its blessing will abide with you forever). The Jewish Tabernacle-A Type of the Heavenly Sanctuary
Turn to Lesson 3 of this course, and review the section entitled “The Jewish Tabernacle-a Type of Christ and His Church”; and be sure you remember the contrast, emphasized in Lesson 7, between the earthly sanctuary and the true tabernacle.
The importance of the Jewish Tabernacle as a type of the heavenly sanctuary is seen, not only in the emphasis given to this truth in the Epistle to the Hebrews, especially in Heb 8:1-13, Heb 9:1-28, Heb 10:1-18, but also in the fact that about half of the Book of Exodus is devoted to a detailed description of that earthly sanctuary-not once, but twice.
Under the guidance of the Holy Spirit, Moses wrote the minute details concerning the pattern of the Tabernacle, which God showed him in the mount (Exo 25:1-40, Exo 26:1-37, Exo 27:1-21; Exo 30:1-38). Then he described at length the finished “tent of the congregation,” filled with the glory of God and overshadowed with the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night (Exo 35:1-35, Exo 36:1-38, Exo 37:1-29, Exo 38:1-31, Exo 39:1-43, Exo 40:1-38). The Holy Spirit’s most complete interpretation of the type recorded in the passage before us, written here in order to explain the meaning of Calvary’s cross. This is fundamental. In other words, the Spirit of God is emphasizing a few of the details concerning the Jewish Tabernacle and its ritual, not for the sake of the historical record, interesting as that is, but to show forth in type the sufficiency and perfection of the one sacrifice for sins forever of the spotless Lamb of God. Therefore, through the ancient Tabernacle, the Holy Spirit is speaking to New Testament saints in sign-language, showing that “the way into the holiest” was not opened under the old covenant of the law (Heb 9:8), because of the inferiority of the sacrifices then offered. But because of His redemptive work on the accursed tree, our Lord forever opened) the way into heaven itself for all who will receive the gift of His salvation (Heb 10:19-22).
The Tabernacle in the wilderness was a divine provision for a pilgrim people, whereas the Temple in the land prefigured millennial conditions. Because the Christian in this Church Age is journeying from Egypt to Canaan, as it were, from the Christ-rejecting world to that “city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God” (Heb 11:10), the Holy Spirit uses the Tabernacle, not the Temple, to illustrate the message of the Epistle to the Hebrews.
1. The typical significance of the articles in the earthly sanctuary (Heb 9:1-5)
“Then verily the first covenant had also ordinances of divine service, and a worldly sanctuary. For there was a tabernacle made; the first, wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the shewbread; which is called the sanctuary. And after the second vail, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all” (Heb 9:1-3).
The different articles of furniture in the Jewish Tabernacle foreshadowed the manifold glories of Christ, which we have seen unfolded from the very beginning of this epistle:
- His personal glory as Son of God, in the Godhead;
- His moral glory in His lowly humanity, in which He learned obedience by the things which He suffered-from Bethlehem’s manger to Calvary’s cross;
- His official glory as Prophet, Priest and King.
Remember that the personal glory of the Lord Jesus underlies all His other glories-what He did, what He became and what God has conferred upon Him, exalting Him who emptied Himself of His eternal glory and humbled Himself to become the Saviour of men.
a. “The candlestick” typifies Christ, the Light of His redeemed, of the heavenly city, and of the world. It was the only light in the Holy Place, even as the Shekinah Glory was the only light in the Holy of Holies. The Lord Jesus is the only true Light for the pilgrim pathway, and “the Lamb is the light” of heaven (Rev 21:23).
b. “The table and the shewbread” represent the One in whom God and His priests find food, even Jesus, the Bread of Life.
c. “A golden censer [or ‘altar of incense’]” speaks to us of Christ, our Intercessor, within the vail. It is to the altar-not the censer-that the Holy Spirit refers here; indeed, the Greek word is different from the one used for “censer” in Rev 8:3; Rev 8:5. And, including this reference to the golden altar, mention is made in Heb 9:2-5 of all the pieces of furniture in the Tabernacle (Of course, in the outer court were the brazen altar and laver).
Critics of God’s Word who have, not carefully examined the text, or even the English translation, have called this a discrepancy-that the Holy of Holies is referred to as “having a golden altar of incense” (Heb 9:3-4, R. V.), whereas the altar stood before the vail in the Holy Place, the vail separating the two rooms of the sanctuary. Such critics have failed to observe that the inspired record does not say that the golden altar was “in” the Holy of Holies, whereas verse 4 does speak of the Holy Place, “wherein was the candlestick, and the table, and the showbread.” Neither do such careless readers seem to know that the golden altar “by the oracle” of Solomon’s Temple (1Ki 6:22); and the oracle of the Temple was the equivalent of the Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle. Because the golden altar belonged to the very presence of God-and the Shekinah Glory dwelt above the mercy seat in the Holiest of all-the verses before us (Heb 9:3-4) refer to that room, which was the symbol of heaven itself, as “having the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant.”
Now the Lord God had told Moses to place the altar without the vail, in order that it might be accessible for the daily offering of incense which ascended unto God with the prayers of the priests. (Cf. Luk 1:9-10).
Then on the Day of Atonement the high priest took into the Holy of Holies the golden “censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small . . . that the cloud of incense may cover the mercy seat . . . that he die not” (Lev 16:12-13). But that was the privilege and responsibility of the high priest only, just once a year.
God knew the need for prayer on behalf of His wayward people every day in the year; and “the way into the holiest” was closed! The vail separated Aaron’s sons from the Shekinah Glory as they ministered in the Holy Place. And the other Israelites could not even enter the Holy Place! Sin separated man from God’s presence. Not until a full atonement for sin was made on Calvary was “the vail of the temple rent in twain from the top to the bottom” (Mat 27:51). Meanwhile, the God of all grace made provision for His believing children to show their faith in the promised Redeemer by offering their animal sacrifices. To quote another, they were saved “on a credit basis,” as it were.
Although God told Moses to place the altar without the vail, He commanded it to be put near unto it-near to His very presence. It “belonged” in the throne-room! Then when the vail was rent, the fragrance of the sweet incense entered into the Most Holy Place, even as, in the fulfillment of the type, the priceless value of the blood of Christ and the fragrance from His finished obedience were fully appreciated in heaven the moment He had completed His appointed course of vicarious suffering on earth.
Our Intercessor is in the true Holy of Holies. The sweet incense of His prayers to the Father on behalf of His blood-bought children is being offered day and night-without ceasing. The golden altar and the throne of God are inseparably linked together. Why are we so slow to draw near? Our Great High Priest is there, inviting us to come boldly unto the throne of grace.
d. “The ark of the covenant” overlaid with gold within and without represents Christ, the one Mediator between God and men, the One who will be the center of a universe of bliss.
e. “The manna” in the golden pot was a memorial of Christ in the lowly grace of His earthly ministry, as portrayed by the four evangelists. As the Bread of Life which came down from heaven, He satisfies the souls of men (See Exo 16:1-36; Num 11:7-9; John 6:26-63). f. “Aaron’s rod that budded” symbolizes Christ’s priesthood in the power of resurrection life. (Remember the story of Num 16:1-50, Num 17:1-13 and what was said concerning it in Lesson 4 of this course, under the topic, “God’s requirements of a priest fulfilled in Christ”).
g. “The tables of the covenant”-unbroken-tell us of Christ as the One in whom both God, represented by the first table, and man, of whom the second table speaks, find the satisfying answer to every longing of the heart.
Sinful man has broken the law of the Lord, but God sees the repentant sinner identified with Christ, who fulfilled the law in man’s stead. Therefore, between the tables of the covenant and the Shekinah Glory was the blood-sprinkled mercy seat. For the child of God, His judgment throne has become a throne of grace!
h. “Cherubim of glory shadowing the mercy seat [Greek, ‘the propitiatory’]” and the mercy seat itself were fashioned from one piece of pure gold, and formed the covering for the Ark of the Covenant. Between the cherubim, resting upon the mercy seat was the pillar of cloud and fire. Thus, in type, Christ Jesus was foreshadowed as “the propitiation for our sins” (1Jn 2:2; cf. Rom 3:25), the throne of the Shekinah, the ground on which the glory of God and the blessing of the universe are eternally established. And, as Heb 3:1-19 and Heb 4:1-16 have made clear, in the Son of God the Father finds rest which shall never again be disturbed-rest freely offered as a gift to men.
The cherubim at the Garden of Eden (Gen 3:24), the cherubim of gold upon the mercy seat, and the “living creatures” of Rev 4:6-11, believed to be identical with the cherubim, “seem to have to do with the vindication of the holiness of God as outraged by sin” (Scofield Reference Bible, footnote on Eze 1:5).
Accordingly, because they were looking down upon the blood-sprinkled mercy seat (Exo 25:20), Aaron, the sinner, could stand before the Shekinah Glory in the Most Holy Place-and not die. That sprinkled blood manifested Aaron’s faith in the Saviour to come as the propitiation for his sins and the sins of his people, whom he represented before the holy God. And by faith in the shed blood of that promised Saviour, who came to earth nearly two thousand years ago, every repentant sinner of all the ages shall stand before Him in glory-and not die!
“He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life” (John 3:36).
Concerning all these articles that belonged to the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies of the Jewish Tabernacle, the inspired writer adds, “. . . of which [things] we cannot now speak particularly [or, ‘in detail’]” (Heb 9:5).
And thus we are brought back to the fundamental truth with which we started: These material things had perished long before this epistle was written, and the Holy Spirit is concerned with them here only as they speak of the glories of the Lord Jesus Christ.
2. “The way into the holiest” closed! (Heb 9:6-10)
Amplifying the fact, well known to every devout Hebrew, that the vail of the Tabernacle closed the way into the Holy of Holies, the inspired writer explains further: “Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always into the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God” (Heb 9:6).
That is, the priests kept the seven lamps of the golden candlesticks burning “from the evening unto the morning before the Lord continually” (Lev 24:3).
Each Sabbath Day they placed twelve loaves on frankincense-covered shewbread upon the gold-covered table which, after seven days, became food for the priests, to be eaten in the Holy Place. And they made intercession for the people before the golden altar, their prayers, mingled with the sweet incense, ascending unto God. Briefly, these were the continual services of the priests in the Holy Place.
“But into the second [or, the Holy of Holies] went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offereth for himself, and for the errors [Greek, ‘ignorances,’ that is, ‘sins of ignorance’] of the people: the Holy Spirit this signifying, that the way into the [most] holiest of all was not yet been made manifest, while the first tabernacle was yet standing” (Heb 9:7-8).
“Once every year,” of course, refers to the great Day of Atonement. Thus the Holy Spirit interprets the significance of the vail of the Tabernacle. It was as though the Lord were saying to His sinning people:
“Stand back! Do not draw near to the Lord of Glory! ‘Your iniquities have separated between you and your God’ (Isa 59:2). Wait until the blood of the Lamb of Calvary is shed. Then the vail will be rent, and there will be nothing between you and your Saviour.” But until Christ died, the way into the holiest was closed. On penalty of death no one dared enter there, except the high priest, on the Day of Atonement, as the representative of his people. And he entered “not without blood.”
Explaining yet further the typical significance of the Jewish Tabernacle, the Holy Spirit continues:
“. . . which was a figure for the time then present; in which were offered both gifts and sacrifices, that could not make him that did the service perfect, as pertaining to the conscience; which stood only in meats and drinks, and divers washings, and carnal ordinances, imposed until the time of reformation [or, ‘setting things right’]” (Heb 9:9-10).
The contrast between the purifying of the flesh through the Levitical ceremonies and the cleansing of the conscience by the blood of Christ is developed further in the verses which follow.
Do you see why the Epistle to the Hebrews must have spoken eloquently to the Jewish Christian who had just come out from Judaism? For fifteen centuries his fathers had observed the Levitical law. He himself was steeped in it. To see how the Lord Jesus fulfilled the types and shadows, must have caused him to experience the joy of the two believers who, having walked with the risen Lord to Emmaus, “Said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures” (Luk 24:32).
3. The Day of Atonement-“a shadow of good things to come”
You will miss the real significance of Heb 9:1-28; Heb 10:1-18 unless you study this heart of the epistle in connection with Lev 16:1-34 and Lev 23:1-44. Turn to Lev 16:1-34 for a detailed account of God’s express command concerning the ritual of the Day of Atonement; then compare Lev 16:29 with Lev 23:27 for the time of the annual observance of that day; and read all of Lev 23:1-44 to find the place which the Day of Atonement held among the other Feasts of the Lord. You will note that it was the sixth of these seven feasts, observed on the tenth day of the seventh month (Lev 16:29; Lev 23:27). God had told Moses that the month “Abib” (April) should be “the beginning of months” to Israel (Exo 12:2; Exo 13:4; Lev 23:5). Therefore, the Day of Atonement was observed in the month which we call October, the seventh from “Abib.” a. “A remembrance . . . of sins every year” (Heb 10:3)
That the inspired writer has in mind the Day of Atonement in Heb 9:1-28; Heb 10:1-18 is evident, for that was the only day in the year when Aaron could enter the Holy of Holies (cf. Lev 16:2; Lev 16:34); and that act of Aaron typified the very heart of the message of this epistle-our Lord’s entrance into heaven itself to minister there, after He had “obtained eternal redemption for us” (Heb 9:12). Moreover, four times in this portion of the epistle the inspired writer speaks of the “year by year” remembrance of sins by the observance of this special day (Heb 9:7; Heb 9:25; Heb 10:1; Heb 10:3).
And why does the Holy Spirit prompt the writer to single out the Day of Atonement for the contrast between the Levitical sacrifices and our Lord’s death on Calvary? The answer is significant: the very best ministry which Aaron could render for Israel was accomplished on the Day of Atonement; and yet it could not compare with the finished work of Christ! Since our Lord’s one sufficient sacrifice is far superior to that offered by Israel’s first high priest on the greatest day in the year, the logical conclusion is that it is eternally better than anything Aaron or, succeeding high priests of the Levitical order could do on every other day of lesser importance.
b. “Atonement”-a covering for sins
The word “atonement” is not a literal translation of the Hebrew term, which means “covering”; but in “atonement” we have the expression of “a purely theological concept.” The actual meaning of the term is that the Lord “covered” or “passed over” the sins of the Old Testament saints because their faith rested in the vicarious offering of the promised Redeemer. This truth is clearly expressed in Rom 3:24-26 :
“. . . being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus: Whom God hath set forth to be a propitiation through faith in his blood, to declare his righteousness for the remission of sins that are past, through the forbearance of God . . . that he might be just, and the justifier of him which believeth in Jesus.”
Then “when the fullness of the time came, God sent forth his Son . . . to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Gal 4:4; Heb 9:26). Note particularly the force of the two contrasting expressions: “the passing over of sins done aforetime,” that is, before Christ died, and “to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.”
In other words, a full atonement for sin could not be made until the spotless Lamb of God paid the penalty for the guilty sinner; but because of “the forbearance of God,” he honored the faith of those who believed His promise concerning the Saviour to come.
Day after day, year after year, century after century, for fifteen hundred years, the daily sacrifice was offered; but on the Day of Atonement all the sins of Israel, including sins of ignorance, as well as known sins hitherto unconfessed throughout the year, were “covered” by the ministry of the high priest. That is the reason it was a day of mourning for sin, a day of affliction of soul (Lev 16:29; Lev 16:31; Lev 23:27; Lev 23:29; Lev 23:32). But it was also a day of rest, typical of the believer’s rest in a finished redemption (Lev 16:29; Lev 23:28; Lev 23:30; Lev 23:32).
Dare anyone question the superiority of Christ’s sacrifice once for all over the annual sacrifice of an ever changing priesthood? How much better to have “eternal redemption” (Heb 9:11-12) than “a remembrance . . . of sins every year” for fifteen centuries!
c. The ritual of the Day of Atonement
Volumes have been written on the typical teaching of the God-given ceremonies of the Day of Atonement; but to summarize these lessons briefly, read once more Lev 16:1-34, jotting down the chief fact, or facts, of each verse. Do not attempt a formal outline; but, verse by verse, fix in your mind what God told Moses about this sacred ritual. After you have done this, compare your notes with the following summary:
(1) “Not at all times,” but “once a year” Aaron could enter the Holy of Holies (Heb 9:2; Heb 9:3-4).
(2) For himself and for his own household Aaron brought “his bullock of the sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering” (Heb 9:3; Heb 9:6; Heb 9:11).
(3) For “the congregation of the children of Israel” he brought “two kids of the goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering” (Heb 9:5).
(4) Aaron took off his garments “for glory and for beauty” (Exo 28:2), bathed his flesh in water, and put on the holy garments of white linen (Heb 9:4).
(5) He presented the two goats before the Lord at the door of the Tabernacle, casting lots to see which should be slain as a sin offering, and which should be led away into the wilderness “unto a solitary land” (Heb 9:7-10; Heb 9:20-22).
(6) Aaron took the golden “censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the LORD, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small . . . within the vail . . . that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat . . . that he die not” (Heb 9:12-13).
(7) He made atonement for himself and his household first, sprinkling the blood of the bullock with his finger on and before the mercy seven times (Heb 9:11; Heb 9:14).
(8) Then he made atonement for the congregation, sprinkling the blood of the slain goat with his finger on and before the mercy seat “as he did with the blood of the bullock” (Heb 9:15).
(9) Atonement was made for all the Tabernacle, “to hallow it from the uncleanness of the children of Israel” (Heb 9:16; Heb 9:18-19).
(10) No man, that is, no other priest, could be in the Tabernacle when Aaron rendered all this service (Heb 9:17).
(11) Then he presented to the Lord the live goat, called the scapegoat; placed both his hands upon the animal’s head; confessed all the sins of all Israel, figuratively putting them upon the head of the goat and sent him away into a land not inhabited (Heb 9:20-22).
(12) After this he laid aside his holy garments, put on his beautiful garments again, and went out from the Tabernacle unto the people (Heb 9:23-24).
(13) He offered the two burnt offerings as “a sweet savor unto the Lord” (Heb 9:24; cf. Lev 1:2-17).
(14) He burned the fat of the sin offering upon the altar (Heb 9:25); but the remainder of “the bodies of those beasts,” which were slain as thy sin offering, he “burned without the camp” (Heb 9:27; cf. Heb 13:11-12).
(15) He who led the scapegoat away into the wilderness washed his flesh in water, and “afterward” returned into the camp (Heb 9:26).
(16) Upon the death of Aaron, this ritual was to be observed by his oldest, living son, who was to become the next high priest; then by his son’s son, throughout succeeding generations (v.32-34).
4. The typical significance of this ritual
Even if you have never before studied the meaning of the Day of Atonement, doubtless you have already let the Holy Spirit interpret its message-in the light of the teaching of the Epistle to the Hebrews. If so, for you the following conclusions, in which we shall refer to the foregoing paragraphs by their corresponding numerals, will be merely a summary for emphasis and review:
(1) “Once every year” Aaron entered the Holy of Holies to make an atonement for his own sins and for the sins of his people; “once for all” the sinless Christ entered into heaven itself, “having obtained eternal redemption for us.”
(2) (3) (13) (14) For the wonderful, typical lessons connected with the offerings, read Lev 1:1-17, Lev 2:1-16, Lev 3:1-17, Lev 4:1-35, Lev 5:1-19, Lev 6:1-30, Lev 7:1-38; and see the Bibliography at the back of this text. The subject is too lengthy to present here, except to say that Christ is our Burnt offering, “a sweet savor unto the Lord”; and He is our Sin offering, bearing our iniquities “in his own body on the tree” (1Pe 2:24); “without the camp” of Israel as a nation, outside the gate of Jerusalem (Heb 13:11-12).
(4) Before Aaron ministered on behalf of Israel on the Day of Atonement, he took off his beautiful garments-the golden crown; the breastplate; the ephod; and the robe of blue, embroidered at the hem with pomegranates between little bells of gold (see Exo 28:1-43). These garments “for glory and for beauty” he laid aside; and put on, instead, the pure white linen clothes.
When our Lord left “the ivory palaces” (Psa 45:8) to become our Great High Priest, He laid aside His garments “for glory and for beauty”-His robes of glory, not His deity-and took “the form of a servant, being made in the likeness of men” (Php 2:7). During His earthly ministry He wore the white linen garments of His personal purity. Even His own people, Israel, saw in Him no beauty that they should desire Him (cf. Isa 53:2), because He was the lowly Man of Galilee.
(5) (11) (15) The slain goat speaks to us of Christ’s vicarious death; the scapegoat, of His substitutionary work in taking our sins far away, “unto a land not inhabited.” That land is the grave. “The Lord hath laid on him [Jesus] the iniquity of us all” (Isa 53:6). The Lord Jesus bore our sins away, and will remember them no more forever (Heb 8:12)!
(6) Earlier in this lesson we saw that Aaron’s taking the golden censer and the sweet incense into the Holy of Holies was a picture of Christ’s intercessory work for His redeemed at the throne of grace.
(7) Aaron had to make atonement first for his own sins; Christ had no sin for which to atone (cf. Heb 7:26-27).
(1) (8) Aaron went into the Holy of Holies once a year with the blood of the animal sacrifices; whereas “Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption” (Heb 9:12-14; Heb 9:19-25; Heb 10:4; Heb 10:11-12; Heb 10:14; Heb 10:19; Heb 12:24).
(9) “It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these” (Heb 9:23).
(10) No man, that is, no other priest, could be in the Tabernacle when Aaron ministered for his people on the Day of Atonement. Even so the risen Lord Jesus is our only Representative in the true Holy of Holies. None other is worthy or able to be our Great High Priest. Thus a ground for the Roman Catholic priesthood is swept away. It is both man-made and unscriptural. Indeed, it is an attempted mixture of Judaism and paganism.
(12) Before Aaron returned unto the people, he laid aside his white linen clothes, and once more put on his garments “for glory and for beauty.” When our Lord returns in power and great glory (Mat 25:31) Israel and all the world shall “see the king in his beauty” (Isa 33:17) clothed with all majesty and honor and power and glory which He had with the Father “before the world was” (John 17:5; cf. Isa 28:5).
In that coming day His ancient people shall look upon Him “whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son” (Zec 12:10; cf. Rev 1:7). It will be a day of national mourning for the sin of rejecting their Messiah and Lord, but their mourning will be turned into joy as their “Deliverer . . . shall turn away all ungodliness from Jacob” (Rom 11:26).
(16) The Levitical priesthood was ever changing because of the death of the priests; our Great High Priest ever liveth. His is an eternal unchanging priesthood (cf. Heb 7:23-25).
As you remember that the Day of Atonement was the sixth of the seven Feasts of the Lord, observed every year by Israel (Lev 23:1-44), the typical significance seems all the more remarkable. The Feast of the Passover was prophetic of “Christ our passover . . . sacrificed for us” (Exo 12:1-51; 1Co 5:7).
- The Feast of Unleavened Bread speaks of the believer’s fellowship with Christ, the Bread of Life.
-The Feast of the Firstfruits, observed three days after the Passover, found its fulfillment in the resurrection of Christ on the third day after His death. He is “the firstfruits of them that slept” (1Co 15:20; 1Co 15:23).
- The Feast of Pentecost was prophetic of the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1-47), when the Holy Spirit came in power. “Pentecost” means “fiftieth”; and it was not by chance that the descent of the Holy Spirit came fifty days after our Lord’s resurrection.
The fulfillment of the types set forth in these first four Feasts of the Lord is now history; and students of the prophetic Scriptures believe the remaining three will be literally fulfilled when, at the Feast of Trumpets, as it were, Israel is regathered to her own land of Palestine; when her Great High Priest comes out of the true tabernacle, even the Holiest of all, on that yet future Day of Atonement, wearing His garments “for glory and for beauty”; then to establish His millennial kingdom, of which the Feast of Tabernacles was a type (For a careful study of the Feasts of the Lord, see the Bibliography of this text). The Superiority of the Sacrifice of Christ
Heb 9:11-23. r 1. The blood of Christ is superior to the blood of goats and calves (Heb 9:11-12).
On the Day of Atonement, as on every other day of the year, the physically perfect, animal sacrifice was the very best which the Levitical priests could offer at the brazen altar of the Jewish Tabernacle.
“But Christ being come an high priest of good things to come, by a greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this building; Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.” (Heb 9:11-12).
What a contrast! The blood of the sinless Son of God is so far superior to that of goats and calves that there is no need to argue the point!
Thus the cross of Jesus continues to hold the central place in the heart of the Epistle to the Hebrews, even as it does in all the Word of God. Twelve times in Heb 9:1-28 and three times in Heb 10:1-39 the “blood” of the sacrifice is mentioned, to say nothing of numerous other references to the finished work of Christ. In this continued contrast between the shed blood of the animals slain on Jewish altars and the one, sufficient sacrifice of the Lord Jesus, the Holy Spirit is proving that His vicarious atonement on Calvary fulfilled all of these Old Testament types, which foreshadowed His unspeakable gift (2Co 9:15). Lev 17:11 illustrate this truth:
“For the life of the flesh is in the blood: and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls: for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.”
In other words, not even the sinless life of the Lord Jesus, not the perfect example, could save fallen humanity. The Lamb of God had die to make atonement for the guilty sinner.
2. The cleansing of the conscience is better than the cleansing of the flesh (Heb 9:13-14).
Heb 9:12-14 refer not only to the annual Day of Atonement, but also to the daily cleansing from the defilement of sin, as commanded by God in the ordinance of the red heifer. Turn to Num 19:1-22, and read what the Holy Spirit records there concerning this ceremony, in which “the ashes of the heifer” were “kept for the congregation of the children of Israel for a water of separation . . . a purification for sin” (Num 19:9).
According to this God-given ritual, three things were needed for cleansing-the blood, the ashes and the water.
- The blood was presented to God.
- The ashes speak of the sacrifice as having been “finished.”
- The water represents the application of the truth of the atonement, in the power of the Spirit, to the defiled conscience, just as elsewhere in the Scriptures water is used as a symbol of the Word of God and of the Spirit of God (See John 3:5; John 4:13-14; John 7:37-39; John 13:3-10; Eph 5:26, Rev 22:17).
In the ordinance of the red heifer the water of purifying, mingled with the ashes of the sacrifice, bringing it into remembrance, was sprinkled on the Israelite defiled in the wilderness. And though the sacrificial system under the first covenant could not produce any other than an external “purifying of the flesh” (Heb 9:13), it pointed to the cleansing o the conscience through the perfect offering of Christ. Therefore, God, on the ground of that, not on the basis of the insufficient shadows of it, was justified in forgiving His people under the old covenant. (Cf. Rom 3:24-26).
“For if the blood of bulls and of goats, and the ashes of an heifer sprinkling the unclean, sanctifieth to the purifying of the flesh: How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?” (Heb 9:13-14).
And what is the Lord’s purpose for us now in all of this? That we may manifest our new life in Christ Jesus by serving the living God. Let us never forget that we are to bear witness by our lives to the love and power of our crucified and risen Lord.
3. The animal sacrifices pointed on to Christ’s sacrifice (Heb 9:15-17).
In Heb 9:15-17 we find yet further emphasis upon the truth already presented in this ninth chapter-that the value of the work of Christ was appreciated and applied by divine grace in anticipation of its accomplishment in the fullness of time; but that, until it was wrought out on the cross, the way into the Holiest remained barred.
The vail remained unrent. The worshipers, though forgiven, could not go beyond the outer court of the Jewish Tabernacle; they did not have immediate, continuous access to the throne of grace.
The Greek word used here for “testament” signifies both “covenant” and “testament.” Christ is “the mediator of the new covenant,” as Heb 8:1-13 clearly proves; and His “testament” became “of force” (Heb 9:17) at the time of His death. Meanwhile, He honored the faith of the Old Testament saints who believed in His promised redemption.
Heb 9:16-17 remind us that, even in civil life, a man’s will cannot be probated until after his death. Likewise, when our Lord gave His life a ransom for many, His shed blood availed for the guilt of repentant sinners of all ages-both before and after Calvary. The price was paid in full for our eternal inheritance (Heb 9:15), not with “silver and gold . . . but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1Pe 1:18-19; 1Co 6:20). “Jesus paid it all!”
Have you noted the three eternal verities in these verses? They are “eternal redemption” (Heb 9:12), “the eternal Spirit” (Heb 9:14), and our “eternal inheritance” (Heb 9:15).
4. The threefold application of the blood was set forth in type (Heb 9:18-23).
“Wherefore neither the first covenant was dedicated without blood” (Heb 9:18).
The sprinkling of the blood under the old covenant was a witness the fact that disobedience of God’s law demanded death. The cross of the Lord Jesus is central still!
a. The blood applied is the ground of the covenant between God and man. By “covenant,” here translated “testament,” is meant God’s disposition. The new covenant reveals God’s disposition of pure mercy and grace to us.
b. The blood applied removes defilement. It was sprinkled on the Book of the Law-God’s Word; on all the people of Israel; on the Tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry (Heb 9:19-21).
“Almost all things are by the law purged with blood . . . It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these” (Heb 9:22-23).
In this ritual performed by Moses, guilt, properly speaking, may not have been in question, though there may have been defilement.
You will remember that hyssop (Heb 9:19) was the plant with which God told His people to apply the blood on the door posts and lintel of their houses in Egypt on the night of the first Passover-another shadow of the cross. (See Exo 12:22).
But why should “the heavenly things” need to be “purified [cleansed]” (Heb 9:23)? Evidently because Lucifer’s sin began in heaven. The Lord Jesus said to the seventy disciples,
“I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven” (Luk 10:18; cf. Isa 14:12-17; Eze 28:12-19).
The fall of the angels and of the human race has defiled both heaven and earth. And if God is to take pleasure in His world again and fill it with His glory, it must be purified. That is why we read in the Scriptures of “a new heaven and a new earth” (Cf. Heb 12:26-27; 2Pe 3:10-12; Rev 21:1). c. The blood applied gives remission of sin.
“And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission” (Heb 9:22).
In these words, which look back to the old covenant and forward to the new, we have the positive removal of the sense of guilt from the conscience.
“Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ . . . And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement” (Rom 5:1; Rom 5:11). The Threefold Appearing of Christ
Heb 9:24-28 In the light of the unsearchable riches already presented in chapter 9, read verses Heb 9:24-28 prayerfully-with praise and thanksgiving for such a Saviour. He hath appeared “to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself” (Heb 9:26); and now “unto them that look for him shall he appear the second time without sin unto salvation” (Heb 9:28).
1. Christ hath appeared “to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.”
“Once in the end [or, ‘consummation’] of the world” (Heb 9:26), God was manifested in the flesh to become the Saviour of men. It was not necessary for Him to “offer himself often,” as Israel’s earthly high priest entered “into the holy place every year with blood of others” (Heb 9:25). Because of the perfection of the sacrifice, once for all was enough for the Son of God to die. Else “then must he often have suffered since the foundation of the world” (Heb 9:26), Moreover, Israel’s earthly priest took into the Holy of Holies “blood of others”; whereas our Great High Priest presented “his own blood” (Heb 9:12) before the throne of God. He always had the right, on His own account, to enter heaven; but as our Representative, He entered that true Holy of Holies “not without blood.” The Lord God had waited thousands of years for the incarnation of the Son of God. The ages, each in succession, had demonstrated the utter failure and ruin of fallen man. Last of all, when God came to earth in the person of His Son, He was hated without a cause. Man spat upon Him, and at the point of a spear cast Him out of the world which He had made.
Then grace triumphantly rose above the shame and wickedness of it all and the work was accomplished which will finally put sin out of that part of God’s universe which Satan has defiled. Sin is still here, active in the world; yea, in our own flesh, even though we have been redeemed; But faith rejoices that the sin question was forever settled at the cross, to the glory of God, and when the work of the sinless Saviour, who was “made . . . sin for us” (2Co 5:21)-when that word has been fully applied, God will have a sinless world at last. Then He will be “all in all” forever and ever (1Co 15:28). Amen, hallelujah!
2. Christ now appears “in the presence of God for us.”
Our Lord “is not entered into a holy place made with hands, which are figures of the true; but into heaven itself” (Heb 9:24), On the Day of Atonement the high priest took the incense and the blood of the bullock into the Holiest for the priestly house, which foreshadowed the heavenly people of God, in distinction from the congregation, which represented the earthly people. Of the heavenly people the “us” speaks.
Even as He was on the cross vicariously, enduring the wrath which we deserved, so also He is now in heaven representatively. We are still on earth, but we are represented in heaven. (Cf. John 17:9; Heb 7:25.) With Satan, “the accuser of our brethren,” walking about, “seeking whom he may devour” (Rev 12:10; 1Pe 5:8; cf. Job 1:7; Job 2:2), how dependent we are upon our “advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous”! (1Jn 2:1).
3. Christ “shall appear the second time . . . unto them that look [wait] for him.”
Since the present intercession of the Lord Jesus is being made on behalf of His redeemed, as the Scripture passages listed above and parallel references indicate, what about the nation of Israel, God’s earthly people?
The third appearing evidently refers to them. “Christ was once offered to bear the sins of many”-as the true scapegoat. And “to them that look for him” He shall appear “the second time without sin unto salvation.”
The congregation on the Day of Atonement had to wait for the return of the high priest before they knew of the removal of their transgressions, sin and iniquity. So while we know that our Representative is in heaven, Israel is still waiting for “salvation.” Notice the change from “us” in Heb 9:24 to “them” in Heb 9:28.
The present heavenly people, the priestly company, need not wait until the second advent for the assurance of salvation. They know it by the witness of the Spirit to them now. But Israel must wait for the day when, as they look in penitence and faith on the One whom they have pierced, the healing and cleansing fountain will be opened to them at last (See Zec 12:10; Zec 13:1).
He came to them the first time, and they received Him not (John 1:11). He will come to them the second time, and they will exclaim, “Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord” (Psa 118:26; Mat 23:39; cf. Isa 25:9; Isa 33:2).
It is also true that, when the Lord calls His Church home to heaven at the rapture, we shall experience “salvation” in the fullest measure, which includes “the redemption of our body” (Rom 8:23; cf. 1Th 4:13-18; 1Co 15:51-58; Php 3:20-21; 1Pe 1:7; 1Jn 3:2). That is the “blessed hope” of the child of God, which makes all “the suffering of this present time . . . not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us” (Tit 2:13; Rom 8:18; cf. 2Co 4:17-18).
Now comparing the glorious promise of Heb 9:28 with the certainty of impending judgment upon the ungodly, as stated in Heb 9:27, we thank our Great High Priest anew that, because of His one sufficient sacrifice, we shall not come “into condemnation [judgment]” (John 5:24), Our sins have been judged at the cross! Therefore, “And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgment” for all who reject the Lord Jesus, “so Christ also” died for the sinner’s guilt and bore the judgment “in his own body on the tree” (Heb 9:27-28; 1Pe 2:24). The Perfection of the Sacrifice of Christ
Heb 10:1-18 In Heb 10:1-18 the doctrine of the epistle reaches its climax. It deserves the closest scrutiny.
1. The Levitical sacrifices-“a shadow of good things to come” in Christ (Heb 10:1-4).
“For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect. For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins. But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year. For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.”
2. The will of God-the source of all blessing (Heb 10:5-9)
“Wherefore when he [Christ] cometh into the world, he saith [to the Father], Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, But a body hast thou prepared for me; In whole burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hadst no pleasure: Then said I, Lo, I come (In the volume of the book it is written of me,) To do thy will, O God” (Heb 10:5-7, R. V.; cf. Psa 40:6-8).
The verses which follow this quotation from Psa 40:6-8 explain and amplify the words of the psalmist, who in this case was David. They show how, in Christ, the types of the old covenant are not only fulfilled but are transcended. Therefore,
“He taketh away the first [sacrifices under the old covenant], that he may establish the second [that is, Calvary’s cross]” (Heb 10:9).
Now there were four kinds of offerings under the Law of Moses, each of which represented some special view of Christ’s person and work, and each of which is included in Psa 40:6-8, quoted in the passage before us.
These four were: the burnt offering; the meal offering; the peace, or prosperity, offering; and the offerings in which sin and trespasses were dealt with (See Lev 1:1-17, Lev 2:1-16, Lev 3:1-17, Lev 4:1-35, Lev 5:1-19, Lev 6:1-30, Lev 7:1-38). Every sacrifice under the law was like a, promissory note-as another expresses it-“countersigned by the pre-incarnate Christ.” And “when the fullness of the time” arrived (Gal 4:4), He came and settled all in full.
God had no pleasure in the blood of bulls and goats; but they pointed to Him, in whom His glory has been secured-to Him who is the Man of His pleasure and the resting place of His heart’s satisfaction.
We see in Christ the One who was here in the form of a servant, to do the will of God in a world where fallen man asserts his own will-yet to be completely expressed in “the man of sin . . . the lawless one,” fallen Adam fully developed (See 2Th 2:8-10).
“But a body hast thou prepared for me.” Because God cannot die, such a body had to be prepared, that He might lay down His life on Calvary, and at the same time be eternal God! That is why He was born of the virgin. And that holy body, prepared for His suffering and death, was offered on the altar of absolute surrender to the will of the Father (Cf. Mat 26:39 and parallel passages).
Another lesson of deep significance from Psa 40:5-6 has been drawn from the words, “mine ears hast thou opened [or, ‘pierced’].”
According to the Law of Moses, the servant in Israel who loved his master so much that he refused to accept his freedom in the sabbatic, or seventh, year had his ears pierced to indicate that he wanted to be the willing bondslave of his master as long as he lived (See Exo 21:5-6.)
As applied to the Lord Jesus, this suggests the blessed truth that He voluntarily chose to become the faithful Servant of the Lord, even unto the death of the cross (Php 2:5-8). As such, He is portrayed in the four Gospels, and especially in Mark, the key verse of which is, “For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).
Yet another interpretation of the “opened” ear is that it speaks to us of our Lord’s hearing and obeying the will of His Father.
In any case, the “body” of the Man, Christ Jesus, was necessary for the obedience which the text mentions.
Moreover, these words of the Son of God, spoken to the Father long before Christ was born in Bethlehem, give us a glimpse of the eternal counsels of the Godhead. They remind us of similar conversations between the Father and the Son, quoted from the Jewish Old Testament in the first two chapters of this epistle. And they prove the deity of Christ, as well as the verbal inspiration of the Holy Scriptures.
3. The work of Christ-the means of securing the will of God (Heb 10:10-14)
It is by the will of God, which our Lord obeyed completely in His earthly ministry, that “we are sanctified,” that is, constituted a priestly people, set apart for priestly service, “through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all . . . For by one offering he hath perfected forever them that are sanctified” (Heb 10:10; Heb 10:14). And what does the word “perfected” mean? It signifies that the set apart ones have been made “perfect, as pertaining to the conscience” (Heb 9:9)-not in personal perfection, but with a perfectly satisfied conscience knowing that sin has been completely put away.
Instead of beholding our sins, God sees the preciousness of the sacrifice which has blotteth them out. “There is no more offering for sin” needed now (Heb 10:18). The One who has offered “one sacrifice for sins for ever” has in perpetuity “sat down on the right hand of God” (Heb 10:12). Well has it been expressed, “A glorified Christ in heaven and a purged conscience on earth are moral correlatives in the economy of grace.”
As justification by blood in Romans is our title to stand before the throne of God in peace, knowing that no charge can be brought against us, so sanctification by blood in Hebrews is our title to enter into the heavenly sanctuary as worshiping priests.
- The first is a court term;
- The second refers to the sanctuary.
Remember that Heb 10:11 specifically states that the Temple had not been destroyed when this epistle was written; and that, therefore, the Hebrew Christian needed the courage born of faith in the Lord Jesus to withdraw from the ancient ritual of Judaism. The Levitical priests were; still offering the daily sacrifices “which can never take away sins.”
“But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God; from henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool” (Heb 10:12-13).
The work of the sons of Aaron was never done. There was not even a chair in the Jewish Tabernacle, in which they might rest. And in their spiritual blindness, they were still standing, offering the Levitical sacrifices, even after our Lord had made atonement for sin and cried out on the cross, “It is finished!” After He arose from the dead, ascended into heaven, and sat down, they were standing still, turning their backs upon “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2Co 4:6).
Day after day, year after year, century after century, for fifteen centuries, they offered the lambs and calves and goats and turtledoves and young pigeons.
Once for all our Lord offered Himself, the only perfect sacrifice for sin, the one, sufficient sacrifice-in accordance with the will of God. As you turn the pages of this epistle, you will find that at least seven times words meaning “once for all” are used by the Spirit of God to emphasize the finality of Calvary (See Heb 7:27; Heb 9:12; Heb 9:26; Heb 9:28; Heb 10:10; Heb 10:12; Heb 10:14).
And here we see the seventh of ten quotations from, or direct references to, Psa 110:1-7, which reveals our Great High Priest seated in the place of all power, at the right hand of God, waiting for the day when every knee shall bow before Him, and every tongue confess that “Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father” (Php 2:9-11; Heb 1:13; Heb 5:6; Heb 5:10; Heb 6:20; Heb 7:17; Heb 7:21; Heb 10:12-13; Heb 1:3; Heb 8:1; Heb 12:2).
This Messianic Psalm, written by David a thousand years before Christ was born, portrays our King-Priest, who will yet be acknowledged by all His creatures as King of kings, and Lord of lords-the “priest upon his throne” (cf. 1Ti 6:15; Rev 19:16; Zec 6:13).
4. The witness of the Holy Spirit-the secret of our assurance (Heb 10:15-17) “Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before, This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them; And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.”
Already, in Heb 8:1-13, the inspired writer quoted at length from this prophecy of Jeremiah (Jer 31:31-34), in order to show that the new covenant sealed with the blood of Christ had replaced the old.
And here, in Heb 10:16-17, he quotes again enough of this same prophecy to reassure us that our Great High Priest will remember our sins and iniquities no more forever!
This gives assurance of salvation in words spoken by the Holy Spirit Himself (Heb 10:15). And He is, therefore, the final, irrefutable witness that “Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth” (Rom 10:4).
“There is no more offering for sin” (Heb 10:18).
The verses which follow this marvelous climax of the epistle tell us that the way into the Holiest is forever open-“by the blood of Jesus”; that the rent vail of the Temple was a type of “his flesh,” broken for us on the cross; that the repentant sinner no longer need be afraid to enter into the throne room of His glory; for He is there, inviting His redeemed to draw near!
But that is our next lesson. Not Judaism-But Christ! The old hymn expresses the truth of this, the heart of the Epistle to the Hebrews, in these familiar words:
“Not all the blood of beasts On Jewish altars slain Could give the guilty conscience peace, Or wash away the stain; But Christ, the heavenly Lamb, Takes all our sins away- A sacrifice of nobler name And richer blood than they.”
Thus the blessed work of our Lord has opened the way into the innermost of the divine sanctuary for every purged worshiper. The twilight of Judaism has vanished in the splendor of the unveiled glory of the glorified Messiah, whom the opened heavens reveal at the right hand of God in all the perfection of His sacrifice. Oh, that the apprehension of the work of Christ may lead us to the appreciation and adoration of the person of Christ-what He is, not only to us as ruined sinners, but to the Father!
Then we shall know something of priestly exercise Godward; we shall enter into His thoughts concerning the One who is the Son of His bosom, the Man of His counsels, and the resting place of His pleasure. In the Gospel, Christ is presented to us in worship, we present Christ to God. Thus God gives us the atoning blood upon the altar (Lev 17:11), but “the priest shall present the blood, and sprinkle the blood round about the altar” (Lev 1:5). That was for God’s eye; He estimates the value of that holy life sacrificially laid down.
In our approaches to God, do we talk to Him only about our failures and defeats, our shortcomings and unfulfilled desires? Let us not fail, as priests, to speak to God of Him who has glorified the Father on earth, has finished the work given Him to do, and is now in the glory, in order that in His glorified humanity He may apply the power of His redemption, and stand at last at the head of an emancipated universe, the foundation for which He laid in His humiliation on the cross.
Assignment for Exam 8 1. Review your previous lessons.
2. Again you are urged to take enough time in the preparation of this lesson for the truth it presents to flood your soul with adoration for the Christ of Calvary. And take much time to praise Him for opening the “way into the holiest of all.”
CHAPTER EIGHT
NOTE: PLEASE DO NOT CONTACT THE MOODY CORRESPONDENCE SCHOOL FOR GRADING OF YOUR EXAMS - IF YOU WISH TO COMPLETE THEM, CONSIDER THEM AS AN OPEN BOOK EXAM
1. In the right-hand margin write “True” or “False” after each of the following statements. (10 points)
a. On the Day of Atonement there was in Israel a remembrance of sins__________ year by year. b. The veil of the Temple was not rent until a full atonement had been__________made for sin. c. The high priest entered the Holy of Holies every day to sprinkle blood on the mercy seat. __________ d. Christ “sat down on the right hand of God” (Heb 10:12) because Hisredemptive work was finished. __________ e. The children of Israel showed their faith in the promised Redeemer by offering animal sacrifices.__________ 2. In the blank space write the letter of the correct answer. (24 points)
(1) The blood sprinkled on the mercy seat by the high priest represented
(a) Our sacrificial gifts to God (b) God’s future punishment for disobedience (c) Christ’s blood that was to be shed at Calvary
(d) The future repentance of Israel __________ (2) The Holy of Holies in the Tabernacle was a type of
(a) The Temple sanctuary at Jerusalem (b) The believer’s place of prayer (c) The Christian’s “mountain-top” experience
(d) The dwelling place of God in glory__________ (3) The Ark of the Covenant typified (a) The ark of Noah (b) The ark of Moses (c) Christ, the one Mediator between God and men
(d) The cross of Christ __________ (4) The blood-sprinkled mercy seat covering the law speaks of the truth that
(a) The believer in Christ can obey God’s law perfectly (b) God’s judgment throne has become for the believer a throne of grace (c) God does not expect the believer to try to keep the Ten Commandments (d) it is possible for the believer not to break the law of God if he is careful _______ (5) Aaron’s rod that budded typified
(a) The fragrance of Christ’s life (b) a fruitful Christian life (c) Aaron’s obedient life
(d) Christ’s priesthood in resurrection power __________ (6) The cherubim overshadowing the mercy seat seem to speak of
(a) The sheltering wings of God (b) ministering spirits for the believer in Christ (c) The dangers of idolatry
(d) The vindication of the holiness of God __________
Match each reference in column 1 with the statement in column 2 by placing the correct letter from column 1 in the proper blank in column 2. (15 points) Column 1Column 2 a. Heb 9:13-14(1) The death of Christ was necessary to make His testament [or, covenant] effective __________ b. Heb 9:19-22 a(2) Christ’s blood is superior to that of bulls and goats __________ c. Heb 9:15-17(3) Application of the blood cleanses from defilement__________ d. Heb 9:11-12(4) The blood is essential for the remission of sins__________ e. Heb 9:24(5) The cleansing of the conscience is better than the cleansing of the flesh__________ f. Heb 9:22 b
4. With your Bible open at Heb 9:11-28; Heb 10:1-14 locate the chapter and verse containing each of the truths expressed below. Write the correct Scripture reference in the blank space. (15 points)
a. Christ has appeared once to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself. __________ b. Christ was once offered to bear our sins. __________ c. Christ, by His own blood, entered once into the Holy Place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.__________ d. Christians are sanctified [set apart for priestly service] once for all because Christ offered Himself in sacrifice for sin__________
5. On the Day of Atonement there was an elaborate ritual to be fulfilled in Christ. State briefly what the following parts of that ritual typified. (15 points)
a. The slain goat ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
b. Aaron’s glorious garments removed ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
c. Bodies of the sin-offering burned outside the camp ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
d. The scapegoat ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________
e. The golden censer and the sweet incense ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ 6. Name the topics of the four divisions into which this portion of Hebrews logically falls. (8 points)
a. ______________________________________________________________ Heb 9:1-10 b. _____________________________________________________________ Heb 9:11-23 c. _____________________________________________________________ Heb 9:24-28 d. _____________________________________________________________ Heb 10:1-18 r 7. What are the three appearings of Christ mentioned in this portion of the epistle? (9 points)
a. ___________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ b. ___________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ c. ___________________________________________________________________________ _____________________________________________________________________________ 8. State briefly one truth in this lesson which has been a blessing to you. (4 points) ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________ ______________________________________________________________________________