Hebrews 9:11-14

11 But Christ came as High Priest of the good things to come, with the greater and more perfect tabernacle not made with hands, that is, not of this creation.

12 Not with the blood of goats and calves, but with His own blood He entered the Most Holy Place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

13 For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh,

14 how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

came (v.11 — first use) = arrived on the scene

to come (v.11 — second use) = realized — including not only future blessings but those already realized in Christ

not of this creation (v.11) — not created

Messiah arrives upon the scene of human sin and sorrow as a High Priest whose work of providing a salvation for the lost is “by a greater and more perfect tabernacle.” The word “by” is the translation of dia, the preposition of intermediate agency. That is, the kind of tabernacle the priest officiates in, determines the quality of his work. If he ministers in a tabernacle that is a mere type, his work is not efficacious so far as actual salvation is concerned, but only typical. If he on the other hand, serves in the actual tabernacle of which the other tabernacle is only a type, his work of salvation is actual and meritorious. — Wuest, page 157.

Most Holy Place (v.12) — the Holy of Holies — direct access to God

once (v.12) — once and only once

obtained (v.12) — not simply getting, but searching for something, finding it and appropriating it.

Christ’s blood was that of Deity and sinless humanity.

But not only were the tabernacles different. The blood offered was different. In the case of the Aaronic priests, it was the blood of goats and calves. In the case of Messiah, it was His own blood. The words “His own” are the translation of idios. Had the personal pronoun autos been used, the reference would be merely to the fact that it was by means of His blood that He entered the Holy of Holies. But the word idios speaks not merely of ownership, but of a personal, private, unique ownership. For instance John in his Gospel (5:18) states that fact that the Jews tried to kill our Lord because He had said that God was His personal, unique Father. Had John used autos, there would have been no justification of their accusation, for each one of these Jews claimed God as His Father. John used idios, reporting the Lord Jesus as saying that God was His private, unique Father. God was His Father in a different sense from that in which He might be the Father of others. Our Lord claimed unique Sonship, and, therefore, Deity. And these Jews recognized that fact. — Wuest, page 158.

the blood of bulls and goats (v.13) — sprinkled in the Holy of Holies by the high priest on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:5-)

heifer (v.13) — (Numbers 19). A red heifer would be taken outside the camp, killed, and then burned. As it was burning, the priest would throw cedar, hyssop, and scarlet wool upon it. Afterwards, the ashes would be gathered and stored outside the city. Whenever anyone became ceremonially unclean because of contact with a dead body, these ashes would be mixed with water to constitute a “water of separation” or “water for impurity” and sprinkled upon this one to the purifying of the flesh. — KJV Commentary, page 1695

These Old Testament sacrifices did effect cleansing, but how much better is the purging by Christ’s own blood? The blessings of the Old Testament tabernacle were temporary. The blessings by Christ are eternal.

The writer in this verse [v.13] speaks of the unclean Israelite, the person who was rendered ceremonially unclean by contact with a dead body, or by entering a house where a corpse was lying, or by touching a bone or a tomb. If he should enter the tabernacle while thus defiled, he was cut off from Israel. Ceremonial defilement was not in itself a sin, but a type of sin. Hence the blood of animals could cleanse away this defilement. It was only the flesh of the person which was defiled by contact with the dead. It was likewise only the flesh that was cleansed. Thus, defilement and cleansing were both symbolic.

The word “unclean” in the Greek text is koinoo which means “to make common, to render unhallowed, profane.” The word “sanctify is hagiazo which means “to set apart for God.” Thus, the word “unclean” means here “that which is common, profane, unhallowed, not related to or connected with God.” The unclean Israelite was, therefore, “out of bounds,” so to speak, so far as participation in the tabernacle service of Israel was concerned, and also his service to God. — Wuest, page 160.

serve (v.14) — worship

The effect of the death of Christ is to do away with all works on our part as a means of obtaining acceptance with God. They bring no pardon, no peace, no life, no communion. They leave the conscience still under a burden of defilement and alienation. But if the blood of Christ cleanses our conscience from such a condition, it brings us into a life of service to the living God, not a mere outward service as under the old covenant, but a service springing from the inward experience of communion with, and devotion to, the Lord, and therefore devoid of all self-merit. — Vine, page 295.

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