A Better Ministry

8 Now the main point of what we have to say is this: we have such a High Priest, [the Christ] who is seated [in the place of honor] at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty (God) in heaven,^{(A) 2} a Minister (Officiating Priest) in the holy places and in the true tabernacle, which is erected not by man, but by the Lord. ³ For every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices; so it is essential for this One also to have something to offer. ⁴ Now if He were [still living] on earth, He would not be a priest at all, for there are priests who offer the gifts [to God] in accordance with the Law. ⁵ They serve as a pattern and foreshadowing of [what has its true existence and reality in] the heavenly things (sanctuary). For when Moses was about to erect the tabernacle, he was warned by God, saying, “See that you make it all [exactly] according to the pattern which was shown to you on the mountain.”^(B)