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He also says, “In the beginning, Lord, you laid the foundations of the earth, and the heavens are the work of your hands.
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how shall we escape if we ignore so great a salvation? This salvation, which was first announced by the Lord, was confirmed to us by those who heard him.
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For it is clear that our Lord descended from Judah, and in regard to that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.
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but he became a priest with an oath when God said to him: “The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind: ‘You are a priest forever.’”
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and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by a mere human being.
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But God found fault with the people and said: “The days are coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah.
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It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they did not remain faithful to my covenant, and I turned away from them, declares the Lord.
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This is the covenant I will establish with the people of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.
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No longer will they teach their neighbor, or say to one another, ‘Know the Lord,’ because they will all know me, from the least of them to the greatest.
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“This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.”
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For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,” and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”
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And have you completely forgotten this word of encouragement that addresses you as a father addresses his son? It says, “My son, do not make light of the Lord’s discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you,
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because the Lord disciplines the one he loves, and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”
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Warning and Encouragement
Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord.
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So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”
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Benediction and Final Greetings
Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep,
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Greet all your leaders and all the Lord’s people. Those from Italy send you their greetings.
