Sunday, September 29, 2019

Teaching Notes Background of Letter to GALATIANS

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Teaching Notes Background of Letter to GALATIANS

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Paul's Letter to the Galatians
Illuminated Manuscript
Approx. 1250AD Vellum


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BACKGROUND OF GALATIANS

Background of Letter to Galatians
By Grace, Not by Law 
Finality of the Gospel 
Maybe 57AD

Galalia: In Central Asia Minor, see map. Region of Paul's 
First Missionary Journey. Its borders at times varied. It included 
Derbe, the cities of Iconium, Lystra, and probably 
Pisidian Antioch. Read Acts 13 and 14.                                



Galatians were a branch of Gauls, originally from north of 
the Black Sea, split off from the main migration westward to 
France, and settled in Asia Minor, 3rd century BCE.

Occasion of This Letter

Paul’s work in Galatia had been extremely successful.  Great 
multitudes, mostly Gentiles, had enthusiastically accepted Christ. 
Sometime after Paul had left Galatia, certain Jewish teachers 
came along insisting that Gentiles could not be Christians without 
keeping the Law of Moses.  The Galatians gave heed to their 
teaching with the same whole—heartedness with-which they had 
at first received Paul’s message; and there was a general epidemic 
of Circumcision among these Gentile Christians. Circumcision is 
the name of the Initiatory Rite into Judaism. Paul heard of the 
movement. 

And then it was that Paul wrote this Letter to explain to them 
that Circumcision, while it had been a necessary part of Jewish. 
National Life, was not a part of the Gospel of Christ and had. 
nothing whatever to do with Salvation. 

Date of the Letter to Galatians

Paul had founded these Galatian Churches about 45-48 AD. 
He had. re-Visited them, as he was setting out on his Second 
Journey about 50 A D, Acts 16:1—6; and again, as he was starting 
on his Third Journey, about 54 AD, Acts 18:23. 


https://www.ccel.org/bible/phillips/CPn09Galatians.htm


The commonly accepted traditional date of the writing of this 
Letter is about 57 AD, at the close of Paul’s Third Missionary 
Journey, while he-was in Ephesus, or Macedonia",  Corinth, 
shortly before he wrote the Letter to the Romans.

Some think it more probably was written about 49 AD, from 
Antioch, soon after Paul’s first return from Galatia, before the 
Jerusalem Council of. 50 AD, whose Letter stating that Circumcis- 
ion was Not Necessary was carried without delay to the Galatian 
Churches, Acts 15:1-16-4; for, if written after that, it seems like 
Paul would have referred to the Jerusalem Letter. But “first”, 
4:13, favors the later date.

The Judaizers 




Judaizers were a sect of Jewish Christians who, not, willing to 
accept the teaching of the Apostles on the question, Acts 15, 
continued to insist that Christians must come to God through 
Judaism, that a Gentile, in order to be a Christian, must become 
a Jewish Proselyte, and keep the Jewish Law.

They made it their business to visit and unsettle and trouble 
Gentile Churches. They were simply determined to stamp Christ 
with the Jewish Trademark.

Against this Paul stood like adamant. “Had the observance of. 
the Law been imposed on Gentile converts Paul’s whole lifework 
Would have been wrecked.”

“The expansion of Christianity from a Jewish sect into a World 
Religion was Paul’s consuming passion, in pursuit of which he 
broke every hindering tie, and strained every faculty of mind-and 
body for upwards of thirty years.” 

The effort to Judaize the Gentile Churches was brought to an 
end by the Fall of Jerusalem, 70 AD, which “Severed all rela- 
tion between Judaism and Christianity. Up to this time Christian- 
ity was regarded as a Sect or Branch of Judaism. But from 
then on Jews and Christians were apart. A small sect of Jewish 
Christians, the Ebionites, remained, in decreasing numbers, for 
two centuries, hardly recognized by the general Church, and re- 
garded as Apostates by their own race.” 

Circumcision was the name of the initiatory physical rite of 
Judaism, if a male, not born a Jew, wished to become a Jewish 
Proselyte, he could do so by being Circumcised, and observing 
the ceremonial law of the Jews; in some respects, as a foreigner 
may become a citizen of our country. 

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Papyri 46  (also at Chester Beatty) 








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New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

This content adapted from Halley, Henry H., Bible Handbook, Grayson Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  © 1927 - 1959, 1964.

& & &

Hugh C. Wood, Atlanta, Georgia

END

Saturday, September 28, 2019

Teaching Notes HEBREWS Chapter 12 and 13

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Teaching Notes HEBREWS Chapter 12 and 13

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HEBREWS

CHAPTER 12

Chapter 12. Keep Your Eyes Upon Jesus

Surrounded by a vast crowd of those who, in former ages, had
run their race for God Victoriously, and who were now gazing
with breathless interest at the initial struggle of the New-Born
Church, the runners are urged to Keep their Eyes on the Goal,
and Strain Every Nerve and Muscle to Win, 1.2.

And Be Not Discouraged by their Sufferings, for Chastening
is one of the means by which God’s Saints are Perfected, 3-13.
And be Very Careful to Guard against Deming themselves in
any way, lest they Sell their Birthright, 14-17.

Sinai and Mount Zion, 18-29. 




















The terrifying demonstration of the 
inauguration of the Old Covenant are contrasted with the Heav-
enly Fellowships of the Church: One Vast Brotherhood, in which
Saints on Earth, and Spirits of the Redeemed, and Infinite Hosts
oì—Angels, are in Sweet and Mystic Communion around the
Throne of God, Forever and Ever and Ever, 22-24.

CHAPTER 13

Chapter 13. Gracious Exhortations

This Epistle, though argumentative in nature. closes with tender
appeals to its readers to be Loyal to Christ, and to Follow Him
in all the Ways of Life, especially in Brotherly Love and Kind-
ness and Purity and Goodness, and with Unceasing Prayer and
Unwavering Faith in God.

As Malachi was the Old Testament’s final message to the Nation
founded to bring the Messiah into the world, so the Epistle to
the Hebrews is the New Testament’s final message to the Nation
after the Messiah had come. written shortly before the Jewish
State was swept away by the Fall of Jerusalem, “One of the most
appalling events in all history."



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Hebrews 12 

New International Version (NIV)

12 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart.

God Disciplines His Children

4 In your struggle against sin, you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5 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,
6 because the Lord disciplines the one he loves,
    and he chastens everyone he accepts as his son.”[a]

7 Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as his children. For what children are not disciplined by their father? 8 If you are not disciplined—and everyone undergoes discipline—then you are not legitimate, not true sons and daughters at all. 9 Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of spirits and live! 10 They disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share in his holiness. 11 No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it.

12 Therefore, strengthen your feeble arms and weak knees. 13 “Make level paths for your feet,”[b] so that the lame may not be disabled, but rather healed.

Warning and Encouragement

14 Make every effort to live in peace with everyone and to be holy; without holiness no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one falls short of the grace of God and that no bitter root grows up to cause trouble and defile many. 16 See that no one is sexually immoral, or is godless like Esau, who for a single meal sold his inheritance rights as the oldest son. 17 Afterward, as you know, when he wanted to inherit this blessing, he was rejected. Even though he sought the blessing with tears, he could not change what he had done.

The Mountain of Fear and the Mountain of Joy

18 You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire; to darkness, gloom and storm; 19 to a trumpet blast or to such a voice speaking words that those who heard it begged that no further word be spoken to them, 20 because they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned to death.”[c] 21 The sight was so terrifying that Moses said, “I am trembling with fear.”[d]

22 But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands upon thousands of angels in joyful assembly, 23 to the church of the firstborn, whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the Judge of all, to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

25 See to it that you do not refuse him who speaks. If they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, how much less will we, if we turn away from him who warns us from heaven? 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.”[e] 27 The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain.

28 Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe, 29 for our “God is a consuming fire.”[f]

Footnotes:
Hebrews 12:6 Prov. 3:11,12 (see Septuagint)
Hebrews 12:13 Prov. 4:26
Hebrews 12:20 Exodus 19:12,13
Hebrews 12:21 See Deut. 9:19.
Hebrews 12:26 Haggai 2:6
Hebrews 12:29 Deut. 4:24

Hebrews 13 New International Version (NIV)

Concluding Exhortations

13 Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. 2 Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it. 3 Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.

4 Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral. 5 Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said,

“Never will I leave you;
    never will I forsake you.”[a]

6 So we say with confidence,

“The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid.
    What can mere mortals do to me?”[b]

7 Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith. 8 Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.

9 Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings. It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by eating ceremonial foods, which is of no benefit to those who do so. 10 We have an altar from which those who minister at the tabernacle have no right to eat.

11 The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies are burned outside the camp. 12 And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood. 13 Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore. 14 For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.

15 Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. 16 And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrifices God is pleased.

17 Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.

18 Pray for us. We are sure that we have a clear conscience and desire to live honorably in every way. 19 I particularly urge you to pray so that I may be restored to you soon.

Benediction and Final Greetings

20 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, 21 equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.

22 Brothers and sisters, I urge you to bear with my word of exhortation, for in fact I have written to you quite briefly.

23 I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released. If he arrives soon, I will come with him to see you.

24 Greet all your leaders and all the Lord’s people. Those from Italy send you their greetings.

25 Grace be with you all.

Footnotes:
Hebrews 13:5 Deut. 31:6
Hebrews 13:6 Psalm 118:6,7

& & & 

New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Some content adapted from Halley, Henry H., Bible Handbook, Grayson Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  © 1927 - 1959.

& & &

Hugh C. Wood, Atlanta, Georgia

END

Teaching Notes HEBREWS Chapter 11

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Teaching Notes HEBREWS Chapter 11

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HEBREWS

CHAPTER 11

Chapter 11 FAITH: SURE OF WHAT WE HOPE FOR

Abel's Faith: First Sacrifice for Sin, 4: Gen 4:1-15.

Enoch's Faith: Walked with God; Translated, 5,6; Gen 5:22.24.




Noah's Faith: Kept on building the Ark when nobody thought
there would be any use for it, 7; Gen 6:14-22.

Abraham’s Faith: Started, he knew not where, to find the City
of God: was willing to offer his son. in Confidence that God would
bring him back to Life: 8:10; 17-19; Gen 12:1-7; 22.

Sarah's Faith: Came to Believe what she at first had laughed at
as impossible: 11.12; Gen 17:19; 18:11-14.

Isaac's Faith: Foretold the Future, 20; Gen 27:27-29.

Jacob’s Faith: God would fulfill His Promises, 21; Gen 49.

”Joseph’s Faith: Bones to rest in Canaan, 22; Gen 50:25.

Moses' Faith: Chose to suffer with Israel: Forsook Egypt: Kept
the Passover: Crossed the Red Sea: Saw Him who is Invisible:
23-29; Ex 2:2-11; 12:21.50; 14:22-29.



Joshua’s Faith: Walls of Jericho Fell, 30; Josh 6:20.
Rahab’s Faith: Cast her lot with Israel, 31; Josh 2:9; 6:23.
Gideon's Faith: Waxed Mighty in War, 32; Judg 7:21.
Barak’s Faith: Subdued Kingdoms, 32; Judg 4.
Samson's Faith; From Weakness Made Strong, 32,34; Judg 16:23.
Jepthah's Faith: Defeated Armies, 32,34; Judg 11.
David’s Faith: Obtained Promises, 32,33; II Sam 7:11-13.
Daniel’s Faith: Stopped Mouths of Lions, 32,33: Dan 6:22.
Jeremiah’s Faith: Was Tortured, 32,35; Jer 20:2.
Elijah’s Faith: Raised the Dead, 32,35; I Kin 17:17-24.
Elisha’s Faith: Raised the Dead, 32,35; II Kin 4:8-37.
Zechariah's Faith: Was Stoned, 32,37; II Chron 24:20,21.
Isaiah’s Faith: Sawn asunder, 32,37; Tradition.

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Hebrews 11 New International Version (NIV)

Faith in Action

11 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see. 2 This is what the ancients were commended for.

3 By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible.

4 By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous, when God spoke well of his offerings. And by faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.

5 By faith Enoch was taken from this life, so that he did not experience death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.”[a] For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. 6 And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him.

7 By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that is in keeping with faith.

8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. 9 By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. 10 For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. 11 And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she[b] considered him faithful who had made the promise. 12 And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.

13 All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth. 14 People who say such things show that they are looking for a country of their own. 15 If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. 16 Instead, they were longing for a better country—a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them.

17 By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son, 18 even though God had said to him, “It is through Isaac that your offspring will be reckoned.”[c] 19 Abraham reasoned that God could even raise the dead, and so in a manner of speaking he did receive Isaac back from death.

20 By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau in regard to their future.

21 By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons, and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff.

22 By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt and gave instructions concerning the burial of his bones.

23 By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.

24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and the application of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.

29 By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.

30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the army had marched around them for seven days.

31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.[d]

32 And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson and Jephthah, about David and Samuel and the prophets, 33 who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, 34 quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. 35 Women received back their dead, raised to life again. There were others who were tortured, refusing to be released so that they might gain an even better resurrection. 36 Some faced jeers and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. 37 They were put to death by stoning;[e] they were sawed in two; they were killed by the sword. They went about in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, persecuted and mistreated— 38 the world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and in holes in the ground.

39 These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised, 40 since God had planned something better for us so that only together with us would they be made perfect.

Footnotes:
Hebrews 11:5 Gen. 5:24
Hebrews 11:11 Or By faith Abraham, even though he was too old to have children—and Sarah herself was not able to conceive—was enabled to become a father because he
Hebrews 11:18 Gen. 21:12
Hebrews 11:31 Or unbelieving
Hebrews 11:37 Some early manuscripts stoning; they were put to the test;

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New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Some content adapted from Halley, Henry H., Bible Handbook, Grayson Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  © 1927 - 1959.

& & &

Hugh C. Wood, Atlanta, Georgia


END

Friday, September 27, 2019

Teaching Notes HEBREWS Chapters 8, 9 and 10

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Teaching Notes HEBREWS Chapters 8, 9 and 10



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CHAPTER 8


Chapter 8. The New Covenant 


Christ brought to mankind a New Covenant. The First Covenant, 

centered around the Tabernacle Services and the Ten Command- 
ments, had served its purpose, 9:1-5. Its Laws were written on 
tables of" stone, 





9:4. Christ's Laws would be written on our" 

Hearts. 8:10. The First, Covenant was Temporal. Christ’s Covenant 
would be Everlasting, 13:20. The First Covenant was sealed with 
the blood of Animals. Christ’s Covenant was sealed. With His 
Own Blood, 10:29. It was a Better Covenant, With Better Promises, 
based on the Immutability of God’s Word, 6:18.
“Better" is one of this Epistle's favorite words. Better Cove- 
nant, 8:6. Better Promises, 8:6. Better Hope, 7:19. Better Possession 
in Heaven, 10:34. Blood that Speaks Better than _Abel, 12:24. 
Better Country, Heaven, not Canaan. 11:16; Better Resurrection. 
Never to Die again, 11:35.

CHAPTER 9


Chapter 9:1-14. Christ and the Tabernacle


The Tabernacle was a Sanctuary of This World: The True Tabernacle, 

not made with hands, is Heaven, 9:1,11.24. The High 
Priest entered Once a Year; Christ entered Once for All, verse 7,12. 

The High Priest obtained Annual Redemption; Christ obtained 

Eternal Redemption, 10:3; 9:12. The High Priest offered the Blood 
of Animals; Christ offered His Own Blood, 9:12. 



 The High Priest’s 

sacrifices cleansed the Flesh; Christ’s sacrifice cleanses the Con- 
science. 9:13,14. 

Chapter 9:15-28. The New Testament 


The New Covenant is here called “The New Testament". A 

Testament is а Will, a bequeath to heirs, effective only after 
the Death of the maker.  The New Covenant is the Will which
Christ made for His Heirs, which could not become effective till, 
by His Death, He had Atoned for their Sins.

This is where we get the Names of the Two Divisions of the 

Bible: Old Testament and New Testament. The Old Testament is 
the story of the Covenant of the Law. The New Testament is the 
story of the Covenant of Christ.





 The abundant use of Blood in 

the rites of the Old Covenant prefigured the urgent necessity of 
some Great Sacrifice for Human Sin, 19-22.

Once for All, 26-28. Christ Offered Himself Once for All, 7:27. 

Once for All He Entered the Holy Place, 9:12; Once for A11 put 
away Sin at the end of the ages, 9:26. Men appointed Once to 
Die, 9:27. Christians Sanctified Once for All by the Offering of 
Christ, 10:10. Christ Once Offered shall Appear a Second Time for 
His Waiting Heirs, 9:28. Here the Lord’s Coming Again is called 
His Second Coming. 

CHAPTER 10

Chapter 10:1-25. Sin Removed Forever

No need for further Sacrifice. Christ's Death is entirely suffi
cient to take care of all previous Sins, and those that in weakness
we may in daily life commit. God can now Forgive, and will
Forgive, those Who place their Trust in Christ.
Let us therefore Hold Fast -to Christ, 23. He, and He alone, is
our Hope and our Saviour.




Chapter 10:26-39. Rejection of Christ

Another Fearful Warning against Falling Away from Christ,
like that in 6:1—8. Addressed to Christians who had once
been a gazing stock in their Sufferings for the Name of
Christ, and who had given their all in their compassion for their
Fellow sufferers, 32-34; some of whom were now losing interest
in the things of Christ, 25.

The point is that there has been ONE SACRIFICE for Sin.
There will Never be another. Whoever will not avail himself of
what Christ has done for him on the Cross may as well make up
his mind to say Goodbye to God Forever, and go his own way,
and suffer for his own sin, 27-31.


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Hebrews 8 New International Version (NIV)
The High Priest of a New Covenant
8 Now the main point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, 2 and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by a mere human being.

3 Every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices, and so it was necessary for this one also to have something to offer. 4 If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, for there are already priests who offer the gifts prescribed by the law. 5 They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”[a] 6 But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.

7 For if there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, no place would have been sought for another. 8 But God found fault with the people and said[b]:

“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.
9 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.
10 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.
11 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.
12 For I will forgive their wickedness
    and will remember their sins no more.”[c]

13 By calling this covenant “new,” he has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and outdated will soon disappear.

Footnotes:
Hebrews 8:5 Exodus 25:40
Hebrews 8:8 Some manuscripts may be translated fault and said to the people.
Hebrews 8:12 Jer. 31:31-34

Hebrews 9 New International Version (NIV)
Worship in the Earthly Tabernacle
9 Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. 2 A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand and the table with its consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place. 3 Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, 4 which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. 5 Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now.

6 When everything had been arranged like this, the priests entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry. 7 But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. 8 The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still functioning. 9 This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. 10 They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings—external regulations applying until the time of the new order.

The Blood of Christ
11 But when Christ came as high priest of the good things that are now already here,[a] he went through the greater and more perfect tabernacle that is not made with human hands, that is to say, is not a part of this creation. 12 He did not enter by means of the blood of goats and calves; but he entered the Most Holy Place once for all by his own blood, thus obtaining[b] eternal redemption. 13 The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. 14 How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death,[c] so that we may serve the living God!

15 For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.

16 In the case of a will,[d] it is necessary to prove the death of the one who made it, 17 because a will is in force only when somebody has died; it never takes effect while the one who made it is living. 18 This is why even the first covenant was not put into effect without blood. 19 When Moses had proclaimed every command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves, together with water, scarlet wool and branches of hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and all the people. 20 He said, “This is the blood of the covenant, which God has commanded you to keep.”[e] 21 In the same way, he sprinkled with the blood both the tabernacle and everything used in its ceremonies. 22 In fact, the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

23 It was necessary, then, for the copies of the heavenly things to be purified with these sacrifices, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with human hands that was only a copy of the true one; he entered heaven itself, now to appear for us in God’s presence. 25 Nor did he enter heaven to offer himself again and again, the way the high priest enters the Most Holy Place every year with blood that is not his own. 26 Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the creation of the world. But he has appeared once for all at the culmination of the ages to do away with sin by the sacrifice of himself. 27 Just as people are destined to die once, and after that to face judgment, 28 so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.

Footnotes:
Hebrews 9:11 Some early manuscripts are to come
Hebrews 9:12 Or blood, having obtained
Hebrews 9:14 Or from useless rituals
Hebrews 9:16 Same Greek word as covenant; also in verse 17
Hebrews 9:20 Exodus 24:8

Hebrews 10 New International Version (NIV)
Christ’s Sacrifice Once for All
10 The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. 2 Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. 3 But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. 4 It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

5 Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said:

“Sacrifice and offering you did not desire,
    but a body you prepared for me;
6 with burnt offerings and sin offerings
    you were not pleased.
7 Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—
    I have come to do your will, my God.’”[a]

8 First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. 9 Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. 10 And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

11 Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. 12 But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, 13 and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. 14 For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.

15 The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says:

16 “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.”[b]

17 Then he adds:

“Their sins and lawless acts
    I will remember no more.”[c]

18 And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.

A Call to Persevere in Faith
19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, 20 by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, 21 and since we have a great priest over the house of God, 22 let us draw near to God with a sincere heart and with the full assurance that faith brings, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. 23 Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. 24 And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, 25 not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.

26 If we deliberately keep on sinning after we have received the knowledge of the truth, no sacrifice for sins is left, 27 but only a fearful expectation of judgment and of raging fire that will consume the enemies of God. 28 Anyone who rejected the law of Moses died without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 How much more severely do you think someone deserves to be punished who has trampled the Son of God underfoot, who has treated as an unholy thing the blood of the covenant that sanctified them, and who has insulted the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know him who said, “It is mine to avenge; I will repay,”[d] and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”[e] 31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.

32 Remember those earlier days after you had received the light, when you endured in a great conflict full of suffering. 33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to insult and persecution; at other times you stood side by side with those who were so treated. 34 You suffered along with those in prison and joyfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you knew that you yourselves had better and lasting possessions. 35 So do not throw away your confidence; it will be richly rewarded.

36 You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised. 37 For,

“In just a little while,
    he who is coming will come
    and will not delay.”[f]

38 And,

“But my righteous[g] one will live by faith.
    And I take no pleasure
    in the one who shrinks back.”[h]

39 But we do not belong to those who shrink back and are destroyed, but to those who have faith and are saved.

Footnotes:
Hebrews 10:7 Psalm 40:6-8 (see Septuagint)
Hebrews 10:16 Jer. 31:33
Hebrews 10:17 Jer. 31:34
Hebrews 10:30 Deut. 32:35
Hebrews 10:30 Deut. 32:36; Psalm 135:14
Hebrews 10:37 Isaiah 26:20; Hab. 2:3
Hebrews 10:38 Some early manuscripts But the righteous
Hebrews 10:38 Hab. 2:4 (see Septuagint)

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New International Version (NIV)

Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.

Some content adapted from Halley, Henry H., Bible Handbook, Grayson Publishing, Minneapolis, MN.  © 1927 - 1959.

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Hugh C. Wood, Atlanta, Georgia


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