Hebrews 9:15-28 study

my translation:

Translation: Hebrews 9:15-28

15 Καὶ διὰ τοῦτο διαθήκης καινῆς μεσίτης ἐστίν, ὅπως θανάτου γενομένου εἰς ἀπολύτρωσιν τῶν ἐπὶ τῇ πρώτῃ διαθήκῃ παραβάσεων τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν λάβωσιν οἱ κεκλημένοι τῆς αἰωνίου κληρονομίας.

15 And because of this, He is mediator of a new covenant, in order that those who have been called may receive the promise of the eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred to deliver them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.

Because of Christ’s perfect offering in the perfect tabernacle which accomplished a perfect redemption, He is worthy to mediate the new covenant.

Christ mediates the new covenant for two purposes: to deliver His people from their sins and to guarantee their acquisition of the eternal inheritance. He not only secures our forgiveness but also our perseverance to the end, so that we obtain the promises. By His death for us as well as by His ongoing intercession He secures eternal blessing for us.

16 ὅπου γὰρ διαθήκη, θάνατον ἀνάγκη φέρεσθαι τοῦ διαθεμένου· 17 διαθήκη γὰρ ἐπὶ νεκροῖς βεβαία, ἐπεὶ μήποτε ἰσχύει ὅτε ζῇ ὁ διαθέμενος.

16 For where a last will and testament[1] exists, there is a need to establish the death of the one who made the will. 17 For a last will and testament is valid when people are dead, since it is never in force when the one who made the will is living.

[1] διαθήκη (usually translated covenant) clearly refers here to the legal document, which I translate as last will and testament. Elsewhere in the passage I translate the same word covenant, and clearly the author is making a point by connecting the two meanings of this word.

The inheritance guaranteed by a will only comes when the person dies. Without a death, no inheritance comes. So those whom God has called cannot receive their inheritance without a death.

18 ὅθεν οὐδὲ ἡ πρώτη χωρὶς αἵματος ἐγκεκαίνισται· 19 λαληθείσης γὰρ πάσης ἐντολῆς κατὰ τὸν νόμον ὑπὸ Μωϋσέως παντὶ τῷ λαῷ, λαβὼν τὸ αἷμα τῶν μόσχων μετὰ ὕδατος καὶ ἐρίου κοκκίνου καὶ ὑσσώπου αὐτό τε τὸ βιβλίον καὶ πάντα τὸν λαὸν ἐράντισεν, 20 λέγων· Τοῦτο τὸ αἷμα τῆς διαθήκης ἧς ἐνετείλατο πρὸς ὑμᾶς ὁ θεός·

18 Therefore, even the first covenant did not go into effect without blood; 19 For when Moses had spoken every commandment in the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves[2] with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and he sprinkled both the book itself and all the people. 20 And he said, “This is the blood of the covenant which God commanded for you.”

[2] Some manuscripts include and goats.

Now he makes the connection to the old covenant. The covenant promises could only be received in the context of the death of sacrifices.

The old covenant was established by a death, so the new covenant will also be established by a death.

21 καὶ τὴν σκηνὴν δὲ καὶ πάντα τὰ σκεύη τῆς λειτουργίας τῷ αἵματι ὁμοίως ἐράντισεν. 22 καὶ σχεδὸν ἐν αἵματι πάντα καθαρίζεται κατὰ τὸν νόμον, καὶ χωρὶς αἱματεκχυσίας οὐ γίνεται ἄφεσις.

21 And likewise, he sprinkled the tabernacle and also all the vessels used in priestly service with blood. 22 And according to the Law, nearly everything is cleansed with blood, and no forgiveness exists without blood being poured out.

The excessive amount of blood points to the seriousness of sin.

23 Ἀνάγκη οὖν τὰ μὲν ὑποδείγματα τῶν ἐν τοῖς οὐρανοῖς τούτοις καθαρίζεσθαι, αὐτὰ δὲ τὰ ἐπουράνια κρείττοσι θυσίαις παρὰ ταύτας.

23 Therefore, on the one hand, it was necessary for the outlines of the things in the heavens to be cleansed with these sacrifices, but on the other hand, the heavenly things themselves needed to be cleansed with sacrifices superior to these.

It was necessary, both in a legal (OT Law) sense and a typological sense for these OT sacrifices to occur, but they could not ultimately atone for sins. A better sacrifice was needed for the true sanctuary in heaven.

24 οὐ γὰρ εἰς χειροποίητα εἰσῆλθεν ἅγια Χριστός, ἀντίτυπα τῶν ἀληθινῶν, ἀλλʼ εἰς αὐτὸν τὸν οὐρανόν, νῦν ἐμφανισθῆναι τῷ προσώπῳ τοῦ θεοῦ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν· 25 οὐδʼ ἵνα πολλάκις προσφέρῃ ἑαυτόν, ὥσπερ ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς εἰσέρχεται εἰς τὰ ἅγια κατʼ ἐνιαυτὸν ἐν αἵματι ἀλλοτρίῳ, 26 ἐπεὶ ἔδει αὐτὸν πολλάκις παθεῖν ἀπὸ καταβολῆς κόσμου· νυνὶ δὲ ἅπαξ ἐπὶ συντελείᾳ τῶν αἰώνων εἰς ἀθέτησιν ἁμαρτίας διὰ τῆς θυσίας αὐτοῦ πεφανέρωται.

24 For Christ entered, not into hand-made holy places, which are antitypes of the true holy places, but into heaven itself, now to appear before the face of God on our behalf; 25 And not in order to offer Himself repeatedly, as the high priests entered the holy places every year with blood belonging to another, 26 Because then He would have had to suffer repeatedly since the foundation of the world; but now, once for all time, at the completion of the ages, He has been revealed for the removal of sins through the sacrifice of Himself.

His sacrifice was so perfect and complete and infinitely valuable that it only had to be made once.

He removed sin [singular, not plural] by sacrificing Himself.

Completion of the ages - coming together of the ages? Overlap of the ages? Meeting together of the ages (this age and the age to come)?

27 καὶ καθʼ ὅσον ἀπόκειται τοῖς ἀνθρώποις ἅπαξ ἀποθανεῖν, μετὰ δὲ τοῦτο κρίσις, 28 οὕτως καὶ ὁ Χριστός, ἅπαξ προσενεχθεὶς εἰς τὸ πολλῶν ἀνενεγκεῖν ἁμαρτίας, ἐκ δευτέρου χωρὶς ἁμαρτίας ὀφθήσεται τοῖς αὐτὸν ἀπεκδεχομένοις εἰς σωτηρίαν.

27 And inasmuch as it is unavoidable for people to die once, and after this to face judgment, 28 So Christ also, having been offered once to take upon Himself the sins of many, will appear a second time, without regard to sin, in order to save the ones who are eagerly waiting for Him.

If death and subsequent judgment are unavoidable for mankind, were they also for Jesus?

v. 28 is a clear reference to Isaiah 53:12. καὶ αὐτὸς ἁμαρτίας πολλῶν ἀνήνεγκεν καὶ διὰ τὰς ἁμαρτίας αὐτῶν παρεδόθη.

Salvation here is clearly referring to final salvation - entering into the inheritance of the promises.

Judgment is not a terror to believers, because Jesus is coming to bring them salvation.

Hebrews Exegesis

Since death is a once-for-all event, so too Christ’s death cannot be repeated. His singular death definitively removed sins forever. Hence he will not come again to die (since death is a one-time event). Instead he will come to establish final and complete salvation.

Hebrews Exegesis

Jesus is coming again, but he is not coming to offer his life as a sacrifice again. His sacrificial work has been completed forever. Hence he will not be coming the second time “to bear sin” since the penalty for sin has been fully atoned for.