Hebrews 5:1-10:18

New International Reader's Version

5 Every high priest is chosen from among the people. He is appointed to act for the people. He acts for them in whatever has to do with God. He offers gifts and sacrifices for their sins. ² Some people have gone astray without knowing it. He is able to deal gently with them. He can do that because he himself is weak. ³ That’s why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins. He must also do it for the sins of the people. ⁴ And no one can take this honor for himself. Instead, he receives it when he is appointed by God. That is just how it was for Aaron.

⁵ It was the same for Christ. He did not take for himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him,

⁶ In another place God said,

⁷ Jesus prayed while he lived on earth. He made his appeal with sincere cries and tears. He prayed to the God who could save him from death. God answered Jesus because he truly honored God. ⁸ Jesus was God’s Son. But by suffering he learned what it means to obey. ⁹ In this way he was made perfect. Eternal salvation comes from him. He saves all those who obey him. ¹⁰ God appointed him to be the high priest, just like Melchizedek.

A Warning Against Falling Away

¹¹ We have a lot to say about this. But it is hard to make it clear to you. That’s because you are no longer trying to understand. ¹² By this time you should be teachers. But in fact, you need someone to teach you all over again. You need even the simple truths of God’s word. You need milk, not solid food. ¹³ Anyone who lives on milk is still a baby. That person does not want to learn about living a godly life. ¹⁴ Solid food is for those who are grown up. They have trained themselves to tell the difference between good and evil. That shows they have grown up.

6 So let us move beyond the simple teachings about Christ. Let us grow up as believers. Let us not start all over again with the basic teachings. They taught us that we need to turn away from doing things that lead to death. They taught us that we must have faith in God. ² These basic teachings taught us about different ways of becoming “clean.” They taught us about placing hands of blessing on people. They taught us that people will rise from the dead. They taught us that God will judge everyone. And they taught us that what he decides will last forever. ³ If God permits, we will go beyond those teachings and grow up.

⁴ What if some people fall away from the faith? It won’t be possible to bring them back. It is true that they have seen the light. They have tasted the heavenly gift. They have shared in the Holy Spirit. ⁵ They have tasted the good things of God’s word. They have tasted the powers of the age to come. ⁶ But they have fallen away from the faith. So it won’t be possible to bring them back. They won’t be able to turn away from their sins. They are losing everything. That’s because they are nailing the Son of God to the cross all over again. They are bringing shame on him in front of everyone. ⁷ Some land drinks the rain that falls on it. It produces a crop that is useful to those who farm the land. That land receives God’s blessing. ⁸ But other land produces only thorns and weeds. That land isn’t worth anything. It is in danger of coming under God’s curse. In the end, it will be burned.

⁹ Dear friends, we have to say these things. But we are sure of better things in your case. We are talking about the things that have to do with being saved. ¹⁰ God is fair. He will not forget what you have done. He will remember the love you have shown him. You showed it when you helped his people. And you show it when you keep on helping them. ¹¹ We want each of you to be faithful to the very end. If you are, then what you hope for will fully happen. ¹² We don’t want you to slow down. Instead, be like those who have faith and are patient. They will receive what God promised.

God Keeps His Promise

¹³ When God made his promise to Abraham, God gave his word. There was no one greater than himself to promise by. So he promised by making an appeal to himself. ¹⁴ He said, “I will certainly bless you. I will give you many children.” (Genesis 22:17) ¹⁵ Abraham was patient while he waited. Then he received what God promised him.

¹⁶ People promise things by someone greater than themselves. Giving your word makes a promise certain. It puts an end to all arguing. ¹⁷ So God gave his word when he made his promise. He wanted to make it very clear that his purpose does not change. He wanted those who would receive what was promised to know this. ¹⁸ When God made his promise, he gave his word. He did this so we would have good reason not to give up. Instead, we have run to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope is set before us in God’s promise. So God made his promise and gave his word. These two things can’t change. He couldn’t lie about them. ¹⁹ Our hope is certain. It is something for the soul to hold on to. It is strong and secure. It goes all the way into the Most Holy Room behind the curtain. ²⁰ That is where Jesus has gone. He went there to open the way ahead of us. He has become a high priest forever, just like Melchizedek.

Melchizedek the Priest

7 Melchizedek was the king of Salem. He was the priest of God Most High. He met Abraham, who was returning from winning a battle over some kings. Melchizedek blessed him. ² Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, the name Melchizedek means “king of what is right.” Also, “king of Salem” means “king of peace.” ³ Melchizedek has no father or mother. He has no family line. His days have no beginning. His life has no end. He remains a priest forever. In this way, he is like the Son of God.

⁴ Think how great Melchizedek was! Even our father Abraham gave him a tenth of what he had captured. ⁵ Now the law lays down a rule for the sons of Levi who become priests. They must collect a tenth from the people. They must collect it from the other Israelites. They must do this, even though all of them belong to the family line of Abraham. ⁶ Melchizedek did not trace his family line from Levi. But he collected a tenth from Abraham. Melchizedek blessed the one who had received the promises. ⁷ Without a doubt, the more important person blesses the less important one. ⁸ In the one case, the tenth is collected by people who die. But in the other case, it is collected by the one who is said to be living. ⁹ Levi collects the tenth. But we might say that Levi paid the tenth through Abraham. ¹⁰ That’s because when Melchizedek met Abraham, Levi was still in Abraham’s body.

Jesus Is Like Melchizedek

¹¹ The law that was given to the people called for the priestly system. That system began with Levi. Suppose the priestly system could have made people perfect. Then why was there still a need for another priest to come? And why did he need to be like Melchizedek? Why wasn’t he from Aaron’s family line? ¹² A change of the priestly system requires a change of law. ¹³ We are talking about a priest who is from a different tribe. No one from that tribe has ever served at the altar. ¹⁴ It is clear that our Lord came from the family line of Judah. Moses said nothing about priests who were from the tribe of Judah. ¹⁵ But suppose another priest like Melchizedek appears. Then what we have said is even more clear. ¹⁶ He has not become a priest because of a rule about his family line. He has become a priest because of his powerful life. His life can never be destroyed. ¹⁷ Scripture says,

¹⁸ The old rule is set aside. It was weak and useless. ¹⁹ The law didn’t make anything perfect. Now a better hope has been given to us. That hope brings us near to God.

²⁰ The change of priestly system was made with a promise. Others became priests without any promise. ²¹ But Jesus became a priest with a promise. God said to him,

²² Because God gave his word, Jesus makes certain the promise of a better covenant.

²³ There were many priests in Levi’s family line. Death kept them from continuing in office. ²⁴ But Jesus lives forever. So he always holds the office of priest. ²⁵ People now come to God through him. And he is able to save them completely and for all time. Jesus lives forever. He prays for them.

²⁶ A high priest like that really meets our need. He is holy, pure and without blame. He isn’t like other people. He does not sin. He is lifted high above the heavens. ²⁷ He isn’t like the other high priests. They need to offer sacrifices day after day. First they bring offerings for their own sins. Then they do it for the sins of the people. But Jesus gave one sacrifice for the sins of the people. He gave it once and for all time. He did it by offering himself. ²⁸ The law appoints as high priests men who are weak. But God’s promise came after the law. By his promise the Son was appointed. The Son has been made perfect forever.

The High Priest of a New Covenant

8 Here is the main point of what we are saying. We have a high priest like that. He sat down at the right hand of the throne of the King, the Majesty in heaven. ² He serves in the sacred tent. The Lord set up the true holy tent. A mere human being did not set it up.

³ Every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices. So this priest also had to have something to offer. ⁴ What if he were on earth? Then he would not be a priest. There are already priests who offer the gifts required by the law. ⁵ They serve at a sacred tent. But it is only a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. That’s why God warned Moses when he was about to build the holy tent. God said, “Be sure to make everything just like the pattern I showed you on the mountain.” (Exodus 25:40) ⁶ But Jesus has been given a greater work to do for God. He is the go-between for the new covenant. This covenant is better than the old one. The new covenant is based on better promises.

⁷ Suppose nothing had been wrong with that first covenant. Then no one would have looked for another covenant. ⁸ But God found fault with the people. He said,

¹³ God called this covenant “new.” So he has done away with the first one. And what is out of date and has been done away with will soon disappear.

Worship in the Holy Tent on Earth

9 The first covenant had rules for worship. It also had a sacred tent on earth. ² A holy tent was set up. The lampstand was in the first room. So was the table with its holy bread. That was called the Holy Room. ³ Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Room. ⁴ It had the golden altar for incense. It also had the wooden chest called the ark of the covenant. The ark was covered with gold. It held the gold jar of manna. It held Aaron’s walking stick that had budded. It also held the stone tablets. The words of the covenant were written on them. ⁵ The cherubim were above the ark. God showed his glory there. The cherubim spread their wings over the place where sin was paid for. But we can’t say everything about these things now.

⁶ That’s how everything was arranged in the holy tent. The priests entered it at regular times. They went into the outer room to do their work for God and others. ⁷ But only the high priest went into the inner room. He went in only once a year. He never entered without taking blood with him. He offered the blood for himself. He also offered it for the sins the people had committed because they didn’t know any better. ⁸ Here is what the Holy Spirit was showing us. He was telling us that God had not yet clearly shown the way into the Most Holy Room. It would not be clearly shown as long as the first holy tent was still being used. ⁹ That’s an example for the present time. It shows us that the gifts and sacrifices people offered were not enough. They were not able to remove the worshiper’s feelings of guilt. ¹⁰ They deal only with food and drink and different kinds of special washings. They are rules people had to obey only until the new covenant came.

The Blood of Christ

¹¹ But Christ came to be the high priest of the good things already here now. When he came, he went through the greater and more perfect holy tent. This tent was not made with human hands. In other words, it is not a part of this creation. ¹² He did not enter by spilling the blood of goats and calves. He entered the Most Holy Room by spilling his own blood. He did it once and for all time. In this way, he paid the price to set us free from sin forever. ¹³ The blood of goats and bulls is sprinkled on people. So are the ashes of a young cow. They are sprinkled on people the law called “unclean.” The people are sprinkled to make them holy. That makes them “clean” on the outside. ¹⁴ But Christ offered himself to God without any flaw. He did this through the power of the eternal Holy Spirit. So how much cleaner will the blood of Christ make us! It washes away our feelings of guilt for committing sin. Sin always leads to death. But now we can serve the living God.

¹⁵ That’s why Christ is the go-between of a new covenant. Now those God calls to himself will receive the eternal gift he promised. They will receive it now that Christ has died to save them. He died to set them free from the sins they committed under the first covenant.

¹⁶ What happens when someone leaves a will? It is necessary to prove that the person who made the will has died. ¹⁷ A will is in effect only when somebody has died. It never takes effect while the one who made it is still living. ¹⁸ That’s why even the first covenant was not put into effect without the spilling of blood. ¹⁹ Moses first announced every command of the law to all the people. Then he took the blood of calves. He also took water, bright red wool and branches of a hyssop plant. He sprinkled the Book of the Covenant. He also sprinkled all the people. ²⁰ He said, “This is the blood of the covenant God has commanded you to keep.” (Exodus 24:8) ²¹ In the same way, he sprinkled the holy tent with blood. He also sprinkled everything that was used in worship there. ²² In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be made “clean” with blood. Without the spilling of blood, no one can be forgiven.

²³ So the copies of the heavenly things had to be made pure with these sacrifices. But the heavenly things themselves had to be made pure with better sacrifices. ²⁴ Christ did not enter a sacred tent made with human hands. That tent was only a copy of the true one. He entered heaven itself. He did it to stand in front of God for us. He is there right now. ²⁵ The high priest enters the Most Holy Room every year. He enters with blood that is not his own. But Christ did not enter heaven to offer himself again and again. ²⁶ If he had, he would have had to suffer many times since the world was created. But he has appeared once and for all time. He has come at the time when God’s work is being completed. He has come to do away with sin by offering himself. ²⁷ People have to die once. After that, God will judge them. ²⁸ In the same way, Christ was offered up once. He took away the sins of many people. He will also come a second time. At that time he will not suffer for sin. Instead, he will come to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

Christ’s Sacrifice Is Once and for All Time

10 The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming. It is not the real things themselves. The same sacrifices have to be offered over and over again. They must be offered year after year. That’s why the law can never make perfect those who come near to worship. ² If the law could, wouldn’t the sacrifices have stopped being offered? The worshipers would have been made “clean” once and for all time. They would not have felt guilty for their sins anymore. ³ But those offerings remind people of their sins every year. ⁴ It isn’t possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

⁵ So when Christ came into the world, he said,

⁸ First Christ said, “You didn’t want sacrifices and offerings. You didn’t want burnt offerings and sin offerings. You weren’t pleased with them.” He said this even though they were offered in keeping with the law. ⁹ Then he said, “Here I am. I have come to do what you want.” He did away with the shadow of the good things that were coming. He did it to put in place the good things themselves. ¹⁰ We have been made holy by what God wanted. We have been made holy because Jesus Christ offered his body once and for all time.

¹¹ Day after day every priest stands and does his special duties. He offers the same sacrifices again and again. But they can never take away sins. ¹² Jesus our priest offered one sacrifice for sins for all time. Then he sat down at the right hand of God. ¹³ And since that time, he waits for his enemies to be put under his control. ¹⁴ By that one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

¹⁵ The Holy Spirit also speaks to us about this. First he says,

¹⁷ Then he adds,

¹⁸ Where these sins have been forgiven, an offering for sin is no longer necessary.