Lectionary Bible Studies and Sermons


Hebrews

Christ's single offering 10:11-18

[Seed logo] Introduction
      The expository sermon in Hebrews 8:1-10:18 winds up with a climactic conclusion in 10:11-18. The sermon makes the point that Christ's once and for all, complete and effective sacrifice as our great high priest, assures our right of approach to God and thus guarantees our perseverance in the faith. The conclusion describes Christ enthroned in power and glory, having guaranteed our sonship through his atoning sacrifice.

The passage
      v11-12. Our writer again makes the point that the sacrificial offerings of the Aaronic Priesthood were not completely effective. Those priests had to repeatedly offer sacrifices for themselves and the people, and that repetition showed that the effectiveness of the sacrifices was limited. Yet, on the other hand, Christ offered one sacrifice, once-and-for-all, and having done this sat down in the sanctuary. The Aaronic priests could not sit down after completing their sacrifice, for it would have to be repeated again. Yet, Christ could sit down, for his sacrifice need never be repeated again; it was permanent in effect.
      v13. The idea of kingly authority alluded to in Psalm 110:1, is further expanded. Here, the writer refers to the kingly role of Christ, who is the priestly king after the order of Melchizedek. The writer does not develop the idea of Melchizedek's kingship, as it is outside his thesis. He is interested in outlining the priestly role of this final Melchizedek. Paul certainly develops the idea further in 1Cor.15:24-28.
      v14. The writer goes on to detail the effective results of Christ's once-and-for-all sacrifice. The sacrifice of Christ has purified his people from the moral defilement of sin, and has assured them of an enduring right-relationship with God.
      v15-17. Our writer quotes Jeremiah 31:33-34, in support of his contention that Christ's sacrifice is final and effective. The first quotation supports the contention that the covenantal promise (that Israel will be made an acceptable people through their obedience) has been fulfilled in the obedience of Christ. The obedience of God's law, together with a desire to carry it out, is ours through our identification with Christ. The second quotation outlines the consequence of such obedience, namely that the guilt of God's people has been completely blotted out.
      v18. Since Christ has achieved a once-and-for-all perfect sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins, there remains no useful function for the old Jewish cultic system. Because of Christ's obedience, we are forgiven forever.

The complete offering of Christ
      The writer of Hebrews first quoted Jeremiah 31:31-34 to make the point that the old covenant (God's agreement with the people of Israel), with its ineffective sacrificial system, is superseded by the new covenant in Christ. Now he again quotes Jeremiah, this time to make the point that the new covenant is both effective in the removal of sin and produces an inward spiritual renewal which transcends the need for written laws. This new agreement between God and mankind rests on the perfect priestly sacrifice of Christ, and because Christ is now seated in glory at the right hand of God, it is a permanent agreement.
      We live within the age of grace. Our Lord has inaugurated a process that will unify the entirety of God's creation. He has broken the power of evil and made it possible for rebels to be restored into fellowship with God the creator. Christ has achieved this on the cross. For the present, he now reigns in glory managing the process of restoration - a process which begins here on this earth and finally extends into the heavenly realms.
      We who have experienced grace and are caught up in this process of restoration, can be sure that the management of the process is on line and will have its desired outcome. We will ultimately stand before the living God as a holy people. Our state of rebellion has been dealt with, we stand now as God's friends, and day-by-day we are shaped toward the coming glory.
      The shaping process we face in our day-to-day existence is primarily managed through the indwelling Spirit of Christ. Initially, the Spirit takes the Word of God, as revealed in the scriptures, and drives it into our hearts. Then, having that "law" in our hearts, we are empowered for the living and the doing of it. In this way life shapes us as we seek to do God's will in the face of physical, psychological and spiritual opposition. By this process we are sanctified - "made holy".

Discussion
      1. What point is the writer making when he stresses the repeated offerings of the Aaronic priesthood? v11.
      2. What point is being made by noting that after Christ's sacrifice he sat down?
      3. "He sat down at the right hand of God". What does this infer about the status of Christ?
      4. Read Psalm.110. This prophetic psalm, concerning the coming priest/king after the order of Melchizedek, speaks of his work in v1, which verse is taken up in Heb.10:13. What role is it referring to?
      5. In what sense have we been "made perfect"? v14
      6. In what sense are we "being made holy"? v14
      7. In what sense is the law "in" our hearts and "on" our minds and how is this different from the experience of an Old Testament saint? v16.


Notes

Textual notes   Abbreviations,   Bibliography
 
v11
      kaq hJmeran "day after day" - daily. Again, our writer uses the idea of "day by day" with regard to the Aaronic sacrifices. In 10:1 he spoke of them as "year by year", obviously referring to the necessity of repeating the Day of Atonement sacrifice. Here, as in 7:27, he is probably thinking of the necessary daily repetition of sacrifices for the inadvertent sins of the priesthood in general, including the high priest and the people. The point he is making is that repetition implies ineffectiveness.
      paV "every" - all, every. It is now "every priest", not just the high priest, thus the writer sets out to underline the ineffectiveness of the Levitical priesthood as a whole. A variant "high priest" does exist. "Every Jewish priest", TEV.
      eJsthken (iJsthmi) perf. "stands" - has stood. The posture of the priest probably serves to further the image of a constant working at their religious duties, as compared to Christ's once only work and his present posture of sitting, having completed his work.
      leitourgwn (leitourgew) pres. part. "performs his religious duties" - serving, ministering. Participle of manner. The word primarily means "service", and definitely not "worship", although when used of the cult, as here, it would be reasonable to say, "carrying out the ritual of worship", Barclay.
      pollakiV adv. "again and again" - often, frequently, time after time. "They keep on offering sacrifices that can never take away sin", CEV.
      prosferwn (prosferw) pres. part. "he offers" - offering. The present tense further underlines ongoing action.
      oudepote dunantai "can never" - Strong negation, cf. 10:1.
      perielein (periairew) aor. inf. "take away" - to take away. The aorist tense indicating a singular action, here the inability of the sacrificial system to utterly remove sin.

v12
      de "but" - Adversative. "However", TEV.
      prosenegkaV (prosferw) aor. part. "when ..... had offered" - having offered. The participle probably forms a temporal clause, as NIV.
      ouJtoV "this priest" - this one. "But Christ offered himself as a sacrifice", CEV.
      mian "one [sacrifice]" - one. Identifying the one unique sacrifice, namely that of Christ himself. "After offering for sins a single sacrifice of perpetual efficacy", Weymouth.
      eiV to dihnekeV "for all time" - to the continuation, forever, in perpetuity. Adverbial phrase, cf. 7:3, 10:1. Either referring back to Christ's offering, and thus the ongoing effects of that offering, or referring forward to the reign of Christ, and thus it's eternal nature, v13ff. Most English translations follow the first option, so NIV, but the second option is possible, "He, on the other hand, has offered one single sacrifice for sins, and then taken his seat for ever, at the right hand of God", NJB.
      en dexia/ "at the right hand [of God]" - in/at right. The writer's use of the image of Christ sitting in the sanctuary comes from Psalm 110. In this Psalm we see Melchizedek, the priestly king, being invited to sit at the right hand of God. Christ is of the order of Melchizedek and brings to fulfillment this prophetic invitation. Sitting at the right hand of God, of course, implies more than just completion. It implies the bestowal of great dignity and authority; Christ sits in the highest glory. Therefore, we may be sure of his ability to deal with our needs.

v13
      to loipon "since that time" - from this time forward, henceforth. Adverbial phrase, often without the article.
      ekdecomenoV (ekdecomai) "he waits" - waiting, waiting for. The participle is probably temporal. The prefix ek "from", gives a perfective sense to the verb, ie. the action of waiting begins at the point of Christ's sacrifice and is completed in the final defeat of his enemies. Christ need only "wait" since the perfect sacrifice, of itself, progresses the defeat of the enemy under God.
      teqwsin (tiqhmi) aor. pas. subj. "to be made" - [the enemies of him] are put, placed. The unstated agent of the action is obviously God. The subjunctive possibly forms a purpose clause, "in order to make", although an indefinite temporal clause introduced by hews, "until", is more likely. "Until his enemies are put under his power", CEV.

v14
      mia/ prosfora/ "by one sacrifice" - Instrumental dative. Again, the decisive nature of Christ's sacrifice is underlined. "By virtue of that one offering", Phillips.
      teteleiwken (teleiow) perf. "he has made perfect" - he has perfected. The perfect tense expresses a past completed action with ongoing effects. Perfection is that state whereby a person is regarded by God as being without sin and therefore a faithful child. Christ's sacrifice achieves this end, an end which the law and its sacrificial system was unable to achieve. The perfection here is obviously one of status rather than state. Christ's cleansing of sin is effective in washing away the stain of sin rather than creating a state of sinless perfection. "He has achieved the eternal perfection of all who are sanctified", NJB.
      to dihnekeV "forever" - with perpetual effect. "Valid for ever", Barclay.
      touV aJgiazomenouV pres. pas. part. "those who are being made holy" - the ones being sanctified. In 10:10 a perfect tense is used, but here a present tense is used. Rather than expressing continuous action, the present tense may be a timeless present, so Bruce. "He made the sanctified perfect", Moffatt. This phrase details one of the practical results of Christ's perfect sacrifice. His sacrifice achieves three immediate results:
        1. We are freed from guilt. Christ takes our judgement upon himself and thus, we are no longer guilty in the sight of God.
        2. We have access into the presence of God. We now stand before him accounted righteous in his sight and therefore in an enduring relationship with him.
        3. We are now treated as an obedient son. We experience an outpouring of his Spirit such that we are led toward a righteous life. We experience the process of sanctification.

v15
      marturei (marturew) pres. "testifies" - bears witness. Here, the Holy Spirit is identified as the author of scripture speaking through Jeremiah.
      meta to eirhkenai (eipon) perf. inf. "first he says" - after he has said. A citation formula, "the Holy Spirit, bearing witness through the prophet Jeremiah, said."

v16
      hJ diaqhkh (h) "the covenant" - the agreement. Probably the "first covenant", cf. 10:1ff, but possibly the agreement to write the law upon our hearts for the forgiveness of sins. "When the time comes I will make an agreement with them", CEV.
      proV autouV "with them" - Replaces "with the house of Israel" found in the original text. The writer is again editorializing the text to make his point. Here, the new covenant applies not just to Israel.
      meta taV hJmeraV ekeinaV "after that time" - after those days. "In the days to come", TEV.
      didouV (didwmi) pres. part. "I will put [my laws]" - putting. The participle possibly expresses either manner or means. "I will set my laws upon their hearts", Moffatt.
      nomouV (oV) "laws" - The law written on the heart is most likely the obedience of Christ, which obedience enables "their sins and lawless acts" to be "remembered no more." It could be argued that Christ's obedience is but a model, the model of love, and that it serves, in the power of the indwelling Spirit, to shape obedience in the believer. Yet, it is more likely, certainly for Hebrews, that the blessing of v17 is achieved by means of Christ's fulfilment of the law, which fulfilment Christ writes within our being to cover sin.

v17
      "Then he adds" - Added for meaning, although not necessary, cf. NJB. "And then he goes on to say", Barclay.
      twn anomiwn (a) "lawless acts" - iniquities. Emphasizing what God will remember no more.
      mnhsqhsomai (mimnhskomai) fut. pas. "I will remember" - The LXX uses a subj., but Hebrews opts for the future tense to underline the sense of "will never ever remember."
      ou mh "no more' - Double negative emphasizing the "never".

v18
      afesiV toutwn "[and where] these have been forgiven" - forgiveness, remission of these. Explains the extent of "remember no more." The sins are actually forgiven, and this through Christ's perfect sacrifice. "Where sins have been remitted."
      ouketi adv. "there is no longer" - no longer. Emphasizing the point that Christ's sacrifice has displaced the old cultic system. "Where God grants remission of sin there can be no question of making further atonement", Phillips.


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