Pastors Jim and Marie Watt
(From: HEBREWS #7 - 8:1-13)
G. 8:1-13 “JESUS OUR HIGH PRIEST: HAS BROUGHT US A BETTER COVENANT
a. 8:1-2 SPHERE OF JESUS' PRIESTLY MINISTRY: THE HEAVENLIES
KePHAlai-on [2774] de ePI tois le-goMEnois:
Now in the things we are saying the chief pointis:
toiOUton Echo-men ar-chi-eREa [749], hos eKAthi-sen [2523]
We have such a high priest, who sat down
en de-xiA tou THROnou [2362] tes me-ga-loSUnes [3172] en tois ou-raNOIS,
on theright of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens,
ton haGIon [39] lei-tourGOS [3011], kai tes skeNES [4633] tes a-le-thiNES [228],
2a minister of the holies, and of the true :tabernacle,
hen Epe-xen [4078] ho KUri-os, ouk ANthro-pos.
which the Lord pitched, not man.
b. 8:3 SACRIFICES: PART OF ALL PRIESTLY SERVICES
pas gar ar-chi-eREUS eis to prosPHErein [4374] DO-RA te kai thuSIas [2378] kaTHISta-tai [2525]:
For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices:
HOthen a-nagKAIon [316] Echein ti kai TOUton ho pro-seNEGke [4374].
whence it is is necessary that this onealso have something to offer.
c. 8:4-5 THE LAW: EXCLUDED JESUS FROM EARTHLY PRIESTHOOD
ei men oun en ePI ges, oud' an en hi-eREUS,
Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all,
ONton ton pros-pheRONton [4374] kaTA NOmon ta DOra
seeing thereare those who offer the gifts according to law
(HOti-nes hu-poDEIGma-ti [5262] kai skiA [4639] laTREUou-sin [3000] ton e-pou-raNIon [2032],
5(the which serve a copy and shadow of the heavenlies,
kaTHOS ke-chreMAtis-tai [5537] Mo-uSES MELlon e-pi-teLEIN [2005] ten skeNEN:
even as Moses when about to complete the tabernacle is warned:
HOra, GAR, phe-sin, poiEseis PANta kaTA ton TUpon [5179] ton deichTHENta [1166] soi en to Orei [3735]).
for, See, says he, you make all things according to the pattern :shown you in the mount).
d. 8:6 SUPERIOR COVENANT PRODUCES A SUPERIOR MINISTRY
nun de di-a-pho-roTEras [1313] TEtu-chen [5177] lei-tourGIas [3009],
But now has he obtained a ministry the more superior,
HOso kai KREITtoNOS [2909] es-tin di-aTHEkes [1242] meSItes [3316],
by so much as he is also mediator of a better covenant,
HEtis ePI KREITto-sin e-pag-geLIais [1860] ne-no-moTHEte-tai [3549].
which has been enacted upon better promises.
e. 8:7 For if that :first had been faultless, then would no place have been sought for a second.
ei gar he PROte eKEIne en Amemp-tos [273], ouk an deuTEras e-zeTEIto [2212] TOpos [5117].
f. 8:8-9 GOD: PROMISED ISRAEL A BETTER COVENANT
memPHOme-nos [3201] gar auTOUS LEgei, I-DOU, heMErai ERchon-tai, LEgei KUri-os,
For blaming them he says, Lo, days come, says theLord,
kai sun-teLEso [4931] ePI ton OIkon Is-raEL
That I will accomplish a new covenant
kai ePI ton OIkon IOUda di-aTHEken [1242] kaiNEN [2537];
over the house of Israel and over the house of Judah;
ou kaTA ten di-aTHEken hen ePOIe-sa tois paTRAsin [3962] auTON
9 Not according to the covenant that I made for their :fathers
en heME-ra e-pi-la-boMEnou [1949] mou tes cheiROS auTON e-xa-gaGEIN [1806] auTOUS ek ges AiGUPtou:
In theday that I took them by their :hands to lead them forth out of Egypt land:
HOti auTOI ouk eNEmei-nan [1696] en te di-aTHEke mou, ka' 'GO eMEle-sa [272] auTON, LEgei KUri-os.
For they continued not in my :covenant, And I regarded them not, says theLord.
g. 8:10-12 NATURE OF NEW AND SUPERIOR COVENANT
HOte HAUte he di-aTHEke hen di-aTHEso-mai [1303] to OIko Is-raEL
For this isthe covenant that I will covenant for the house of Israel
meTA tas heMEras eKEInas, LEgei KUri-os; diDOUS NOmous [3551] mou eis ten diAnoi-an [1271] auTON,
After those :days, says theLord;I will put my laws into their :mind,
kai ePI karDIas [2588] auTON e-piGRApso [1924] auTOUS:
And on their heart also will I write them:
kai Eso-mai auTOIS eis TheON, kai auTOI EsonTAI moi eis laON:
And I will be God to them, And they shall be a people to me:
kai ou me diDAxo-sin [1321] HEka-stos ton poLIten [4139] auTOU,
11And they shall each in no wise teach his :fellow-citizen,
kai HEka-stos ton a-delPHON auTOU, LEgon, GNOthi [1097] ton KUri-on:
And each his :brother, saying, Know the Lord:
HOti PANtes eiDEsouSIN [1492] me, aPO miKROU [3398] HEos meGAlou [3173] auTON,
For all shall know me, From theleast to thegreatest of them,
HOti HIle-os [2436] Eso-mai tais a-diKIai auTON, kai ton ha-mar-tiON auTON ou me mnesTHO [3415] Eti.
12Because I will be merciful to their :iniquities,And their :sins will I remember no more.
h. 8:13a In that he says, A new, he has made old the first.
en to LEgein, KaiNEN, pe-paLAIo-ken [3822] ten PROten.
i. 8:13b But what becomes old, yes aged, is nigh vanishing away.
to de pa-laiOUme-non [3822] , kai geRAskon [1095], egGUS a-pha-nisMOU [854].
NOTE: There are certain insights from this passage that are unique, not appearing anywhere else in the NT. Because of the unusual three years of revelation that Paul received directly from the Lord following his conversion, it is difficult to find another NT writer who could unfold the clear revelation as appears in this book. His three years in the desert at this time are unique also.
This is all apart from the confirmation that Bible Numerics through Ivan Panin gives to his authorship. It is especially in the realm of the unfolding insights to the OT “mysteries” that Paul received from the Lord to make known to the church.
We learn in this passage concerning the contrast of Moses' earthly tabernacle over which Aaron initially ruled with his successors, and the heavenly one - over which Jesus alone now eternally rules.
8:5 brings out a truth that again and again is repeated in the book of Exodus to Moses from God: “See, said He, that you make all thingsconcerning the earthly tabernacle - according to the heavenly pattern shown to you on the Mount.”
Moses so carefully obeyed this admonition, that when the finished Tabernacle was presented to God for His approval, He then in approval sealed it by placing His Shekinah glory upon it! Solomon later built the Temple exactly according to the pattern God gave to his father David. After 7 ½ years of Construction, on the Feast of Tabernacles - God signified His approval by so filling the Temple with His glory - that 120 priests were unable to enter to stand and minister. Elijah on Mount Carmel, rebuilt the broken down altar of Jehovah, with the 12 stones representing the 12 tribes of Israel, and exactly at the time of the evening sacrifice, he prayed his 63-word prayer. God signified His approval by sending fire from heaven, consuming not only the sacrifice, but the stones, and licking up the water also.
Jesus said - “I will build Mychurch, and the counsels in the gates of hell shall notprevail against it!”Not one word - not one miracle Jesus performed - but allcame from the Father Himself. As Son of man - He originated nothingfrom Himself. God was so pleasedwith the work of His Beloved Son - that following Jesus earthly ministry of 3 years in founding the church, God filled 120 of the members with the Holy Spirit on the Day of Pentecost, in the upper room. They represented the corporate living Temple of God.
The Old Covenant of Moses for Israel was notfaultless. So God prepared a New Covenantin preparation when Israel at the Lord's Second Coming will be a nation born in a day. And - because of the revelation of the “mystery” of the “One New Man” - Jew and Gentile together in the church, even in those beginning days, functioned dynamically from the Day of Pentecost in the New Covenant truth.
Jesus fulfilled the Feast of Passover at Calvary. The Holy Spirit fulfilled “The Feast of Pentecost” 50 days after Christ's Resurrection and 40 days after His Ascension. Jesus will fulfill the Feast of Tabernacles (Succot) at His Second Coming, and usher in His Millennial reign from Jerusalem.
8:10-12 again outlines the great contrast between the Mosaic Covenant from Mount Sinai, and the New Covenant, inaugurated by Jesus in His Atoning Death, Resurrection, Ascension, and Sending the Holy Spirit as His own Heredity for us.
But for me, perhaps the outstanding insight from this passage is 8:6 - Jesus - as the Mediator of a bettercovenant (than that of Moses), which has been enacted - or better - “constituted as Torah” upon better promises. Dr. David Stern in both the Introduction to the “Complete Jewish Bible” as well as to his “Jewish New Testament Commentary” - points out this unusual Greek construction. The word “ne-no-moTHEte-tai” - is the key here. “NOmos” (law) in Greek is TOrah in Hebrew, meaning “teaching”. What this verse is proclaiming is that the New Testament is on the same level as the OT Torah, for both Jew and Gentile, “The One New Man”. Still we need to remember - The NT is in the Old contained: the OT is by the New explained! And when we see “both” as Torah in God's sight - then the 66 books of our Bible are indeedunique.
And the fact that Bible Numerics even established God's signaturethrough the 33 known Bible writers - then itbecomes indeed the Plumbline to establish God's thinking and insight as infallible. This established the sexual sin of Sodom and Gomorrah and all successors to it. We all one day will appear either before the Judgment Seat (BEma) of Christ as believers - to answer for what we have believed and done in the body - and all unbelievers - unrepentant sinners - will appear before the Great White Throne to hear the final verdict for rebellion, deliberate unbelief and rejection of God's Christ, the only way of salvation and justification in this life down here. - J.A.W.