Hebrews 5–7:28

5For every high priest chosen from among men ^jis appointed to act on behalf of men ^kin relation to God, ^lto offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. ^2mHe can deal gently with the ignorant and wayward, since he himself ⁿis beset with weakness. ³Because of this he is obligated to offer sacrifice for his own sins ^ojust as he does for those of the people. ⁴And ^pno one takes this honor for himself, but only when called by God, ^qjust as Aaron was.

⁵So also Christ ^rdid not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him,

^s“You are my Son,

today I have begotten you”;

⁶as he says also in another place,

^t“You are a priest forever,

after the order of Melchizedek.”

⁷In the days of his flesh, ^uJesus¹ offered up prayers and supplications, ^vwith loud cries and tears, to him ^wwho was able to save him from death, and ^xhe was heard because of his reverence. ⁸Although ^yhe was a son, ^zhe learned obedience through what he suffered. ⁹And ^abeing made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, ¹⁰being designated by God a high priest ^bafter the order of Melchizedek.

Warning Against Apostasy

¹¹About this we have much to say, and it is ^chard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing. ¹²For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again ^dthe basic principles of the oracles of God. You need ^emilk, not solid food, ¹³for everyone who lives on milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, since he is ^fa child. ¹⁴But solid food is for ^gthe mature, for those who have their powers ^hof discernment trained by constant practice to distinguish good from evil.

6Therefore ⁱlet us leave ^jthe elementary doctrine of Christ and go on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance ^kfrom dead works and of faith toward God, ²and of ^linstruction about washings,^{1 m}the laying on of hands, ⁿthe resurrection of the dead, and ^oeternal judgment. ³And this we will do ^pif God permits. ⁴For it is impossible, in the case of those ^qwho have once been enlightened, who have tasted ^rthe heavenly gift, and ^shave shared in the Holy Spirit, ⁵and ^thave tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the age to come, ⁶and ^uthen have fallen away, to restore them again to repentance, since ^vthey are crucifying once again the Son of God to their own harm and holding him up to contempt. ⁷For ^wland that has drunk the rain that often falls on it, and produces a crop useful to those for whose sake it is cultivated, receives a blessing from God. ⁸But ^xif it bears thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to being cursed, ^yand its end is to be burned.

⁹Though we speak in this way, yet in your case, beloved, we feel sure of better things—things that belong to salvation. ¹⁰For ^zGod is not unjust so as to overlook ^ayour work and the love that you have shown for his name in ^bserving the saints, as you still do. ¹¹And we desire each one of you to show the same earnestness to have the full assurance ^cof hope until the end, ¹²so that you may not be sluggish, but ^dimitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.

The Certainty of God’s Promise

¹³For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, ^ehe swore by himself, ¹⁴saying, ^f“Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” ¹⁵And thus Abraham,^{2 g}having patiently waited, obtained the promise. ¹⁶For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes ^han oath is final for confirmation. ¹⁷So when God desired to show more convincingly to ⁱthe heirs of the promise ^jthe unchangeable character of his purpose, ^khe guaranteed it with an oath, ¹⁸so that by two unchangeable things, in which ^lit is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope ^mset before us. ¹⁹We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into ⁿthe inner place behind the curtain, ²⁰where Jesus has gone ^oas a forerunner on our behalf, ^phaving become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

The Priestly Order of Melchizedek

7For this ^qMelchizedek, king of ^rSalem, priest of ^sthe Most High God, met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him, ²and to him Abraham apportioned a tenth part of everything. He is first, by translation of his name, king of righteousness, and then he is also king of Salem, that is, king of peace. ³He is without father or mother ^tor genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but resembling the Son of God he continues a priest forever.

⁴See how great this man was to whom Abraham ^uthe patriarch gave a tenth of the spoils! ⁵And ^vthose descendants of Levi who receive the priestly office have a commandment in the law to take tithes from the people, that is, from their brothers,¹ though these also are descended from Abraham. ⁶But this man ^wwho does not have his descent from them received tithes from Abraham and blessed ^xhim who had the promises. ⁷It is beyond dispute that the inferior is blessed by the superior. ⁸In the one case tithes are received by mortal men, but in the other case, by one ^yof whom it is testified that ^zhe lives. ⁹One might even say that Levi himself, who receives tithes, paid tithes through Abraham, ¹⁰for he was still in the loins of his ancestor when Melchizedek met him.

Jesus Compared to Melchizedek

^11aNow if perfection had been attainable through the Levitical priesthood (for under it the people received the law), what further need would there have been for another priest to arise after the order of Melchizedek, rather than one named after the order of Aaron? ¹²For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well. ¹³For the one of whom these things are spoken belonged to another tribe, from which no one has ever served at the altar. ¹⁴For it is evident that our Lord was descended ^bfrom Judah, and in connection with that tribe Moses said nothing about priests.

¹⁵This becomes even more evident when another priest arises in the likeness of Melchizedek, ¹⁶who has become a priest, not on the basis of a legal requirement concerning bodily descent, but by the power of an indestructible life. ¹⁷For it is witnessed of him,

^c“You are a priest forever,

after the order of Melchizedek.”

¹⁸For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside ^dbecause of its weakness and uselessness ¹⁹(for ^ethe law made nothing perfect); but on the other hand, ^fa better hope is introduced, through which ^gwe draw near to God.

²⁰And it was not without an oath. For those who formerly became priests were made such without an oath, ²¹but this one was made a priest with an oath by the one who said to him:

^h“The Lord has sworn

and will not change his mind,

‘You are a priest forever.’ ”

²²This makes Jesus the guarantor of ⁱa better covenant.

²³The former priests were many in number, because they were prevented by death from continuing in office, ²⁴but he holds his priesthood permanently, because he continues ^jforever. ²⁵Consequently, he is able to save to the uttermost^{2 k}those who draw near to God ^lthrough him, since he always lives ^mto make intercession for them.

²⁶For it was indeed fitting that we should have such a high priest, ⁿholy, innocent, unstained, ^oseparated from sinners, and ^pexalted above the heavens. ²⁷He has no need, like those high priests, to offer sacrifices daily, ^qfirst for his own sins and then for those of the people, since he did this ^ronce for all when he offered up himself. ²⁸For the law appoints men ^sin their weakness as high priests, but the word of the oath, which came later than the law, appoints a Son who has been made ^tperfect forever.