Hebrews

1. Hebrews

2. “I beg you, my friends, to listen patiently to this message of encouragement; for this letter I have written you is not very long.” (Hebrews 13:22 – GN)

3. “In the past God spoke to our ancestors at many different times and in many different ways through the prophets. In these last days he has spoken to us through his Son. God made his Son responsible for everything. His Son is the one through whom God made the universe. His Son is the reflection of God's glory and the exact likeness of God's being. He holds everything together through his powerful words. After he had cleansed people from their sins, he received the highest position, the one next to the Father in heaven.” (Hebrews 1:1-3 – GODS WORD)

4. “The Son was made greater than the angels, just as the name that God gave him is greater than theirs. For God never said to any of his angels, ‘You are my Son; today I have become your Father.’ Nor did God say about any angel, ‘I will be his Father, and he will be my Son.’ But when God was about to send his first-born Son into the world, he said, ‘All of God's angels must worship him.’ But about the angels God said, ‘God makes his angels winds, and his servants flames of fire.’” (Hebrews 1:4-7 – GN)

5. “About the Son, however, God said: ‘Your kingdom, O God, will last forever and ever! You rule over your people with justice. You love what is right and hate what is wrong. That is why God, your God, has chosen you and has given you the joy of an honor far greater than he gave to your companions.’ He also said, ‘You, Lord, in the beginning created the earth, and with your own hands you made the heavens. They will disappear, but you will remain; they will all wear out like clothes. You will fold them up like a coat, and they will be changed like clothes. But you are always the same, and your life never ends.’” (Hebrews 1:8-12 – GN)

6. “But we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, so that through God’s grace he should die for everyone. We see him now crowned with glory and honor because of the death he suffered. It was only right that God, who creates and preserves all things, should make Jesus perfect through suffering, in order to bring many children to share his glory. For Jesus is the one who leads them to salvation. He purifies people from their sins, and both he and those who are made pure all have the same Father.” (Hebrews 2:9-11 – GN)

10. “But we do see Jesus, who for a little while was made lower than the angels, so that through God's grace he should die for everyone. We see him now crowned with glory and honor because of the death he suffered. It was only right that God, who creates and preserves all things, should make Jesus perfect through suffering, in order to bring many children to share his glory. For Jesus is the one who leads them to salvation. He purifies people from their sins, and both he and those who are made pure all have the same Father.” (Hebrews 2:9-11 – GN)

11. “Christ has also introduced us to God's undeserved kindness on which we take our stand. So we are happy, as we look forward to sharing in the glory of God. But that's not all! We gladly suffer, because we know that suffering helps us to endure. And endurance builds character, which gives us a hope.” (Romans 5:2-4 – CEV)

12. “Do not conform yourselves to the standards of this world, but let God transform you inwardly by a complete change of your mind.” (Romans 12:2 – GN)

13. “Since all of these sons and daughters have flesh and blood, Jesus took on flesh and blood to be like them. He did this so that by dying he would destroy the one who had power over death (that is, the devil). In this way he would free those who were slaves all their lives because they were afraid of dying.” (Hebrews 2:14-15 – GN)

14. “Therefore, it was necessary for Jesus to be in every respect like us, his brothers and sisters, so that he could be our merciful and faithful High Priest before God. He then could offer a sacrifice that would take away the sins of the people. Since he himself has gone through suffering and temptation, he is able to help us when we are being tempted.” (Hebrews 2:17-18 – NLT)

15. “My Christian friends, who also have been called by God! Think of Jesus, whom God sent to be the High Priest of the faith we profess. He was faithful to God, who chose him to do this work, just as Moses was faithful in his work in God's house. A man who builds a house receives more honor than the house itself. In the same way Jesus is worthy of much greater honor than Moses. Every house, of course, is built by someone---and God is the one who has built all things. Moses was faithful in God's house as a servant, and he spoke of the things that God would say in the future. But Christ is faithful as the Son in charge of God's house. We are his house if we keep up our courage and our confidence in what we hope for.” (Hebrews 3:1-6 – GN)

16. What is the function of the priest? • “It is the duty of priests to teach the true knowledge of God. People should go to them to learn my will, because they are the messengers of the LORD Almighty. But now you priests have turned away from the right path. Your teaching has led many to do wrong. You have broken the covenant I made with you.” (Malachi 2:7-8 – GN) • “The people of Judah have broken their promise to God and done a horrible thing in Jerusalem and all over the country. They have defiled the Temple which the LORD loves.” (Malachi 2:11 – GN)

17. Trust • “When God made his solemn promise, ‘They will never enter the land where I would have given them rest’---of whom was he speaking? Of those who rebelled. We see, then, that they were not able to enter the land, because they did not believe.” (Hebrews 3:18,19 – GN) • “The LORD said to Moses, ‘How much longer will these people reject me? How much longer will they refuse to trust in me, even though I have performed so many miracles among them?’” (Numbers 14:11 – GN)

18. “Now, God has offered us the promise that we may receive that rest he spoke about. Let us take care, then, that none of you will be found to have failed to receive that promised rest. For we have heard the Good News, just as they did. They heard the message, but it did them no good, because when they heard it, they did not accept it with faith. We who believe, then, do receive that rest which God promised. It is just as he said, ‘I was angry and made a solemn promise: They will never enter the land where I would have given them rest!’ He said this even though his work had been finished from the time he created the world.” (Hebrews 4:1-3 – GN)

19. “For somewhere in the Scriptures this is said about the seventh day: ‘God rested on the seventh day from all his work.’ This same matter is spoken of again: ‘They will never enter that land where I would have given them rest.’ Those who first heard the Good News did not receive that rest, because they did not believe. There are, then, others who are allowed to receive it.” (Hebrews 4:4-6 – GN)

20. “Let us, then, hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we have a great High Priest who has gone into the very presence of God---Jesus, the Son of God. Our High Priest is not one who cannot feel sympathy for our weaknesses. On the contrary, we have a High Priest who was tempted in every way that we are, but did not sin. Let us have confidence, then, and approach God's throne, where there is grace. There we will receive mercy and find grace to help us just when we need it.” (Hebrews 4:14-16 – GN)

21. Melchizedek • “We have this hope as an anchor for our lives. It is safe and sure, and goes through the curtain of the heavenly temple into the inner sanctuary. On our behalf Jesus has gone in there before us and has become a high priest forever, in the priestly order of Melchizedek.” (Hebrews 6:19-20 – GN)

22. “Now, if the work of the levitical priests had been perfect, there would have been no need for a different kind of priest to appear, one who is in the priestly order of Melchizedek, not of Aaron. For when the priesthood is changed, there also has to be a change in the law. And our Lord, of whom these things are said, belonged to a different tribe, and no member of his tribe ever served as a priest. It is well known that he was born a member of the tribe of Judah; and Moses did not mention this tribe when he spoke of priests. The matter becomes even plainer; a different priest has appeared, who is like Melchizedek. He was made a priest, not by human rules and regulations, but through the power of a life which has no end. For the scripture says, ‘You will be a priest forever, in the priestly order of Melchizedek.’” (Hebrews 7:11-17 – GN)

23. “The old rule, then, is set aside, because it was weak and useless. For the Law of Moses could not make anything perfect. And now a better hope has been provided through which we come near to God…But Jesus became a priest by means of a vow when God said to him, ‘The Lord has made a solemn promise and will not take it back: 'You will be a priest forever.' This difference, then, also makes Jesus the guarantee of a better covenant.” (Hebrews 7:18-22 – GN)

24. “There was a long succession of priests because when a priest died he could no longer serve. But Jesus lives forever, so he serves as a priest forever. That is why he is always able to save those who come to God through him. He can do this because he always lives and intercedes for them.” (Hebrews 7:23-25 – GODS WORD) • “So let us come boldly to the throne of our gracious God. There we will receive his mercy, and we will find grace to help us when we need it.” (Hebrews 4:16 – NLT)

25. “I have been speaking to you in parables - but the time is coming to give up parables and tell you plainly about the Father. When that time comes, you will make your requests to him in my own name, for I need make no promise to plead to the Father for you, for the Father himself loves you.” (John 16:25,26 – JB Phillips) • “…and I do not promise to intercede with the Father for you, for the Father loves you himself…” (Goodspeed)

26. “If there had been nothing wrong with the first covenant, there would have been no need for a second one. But God finds fault with his people when he says, ‘The days are coming, says the Lord, when I will draw up a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not be like the covenant that I made with their ancestors on the day I took them by the hand and led them out of Egypt. They were not faithful to the covenant I made with them, and so I paid no attention to them. Now, this is the covenant that I will make with the people of Israel in the days to come, says 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. None of them will have to teach their friends or tell their neighbors, 'Know the Lord.' For they will all know me, from the least to the greatest.’” (Hebrews 8:7-12 – GN)

28. “Seeing that that first tabernacle was a parable (a visible symbol or type or picture of the present age). In it gifts and sacrifices are offered, and yet are incapable of perfecting the conscience or of cleansing and renewing the inner man of the worshiper.” (Hebrews 9:9 - Amplified) • “…how much more is accomplished by the blood of Christ! Through the eternal Spirit he offered himself as a perfect sacrifice to God. His blood will purify our consciences from useless rituals, so that we may serve the living God. For this reason Christ is the one who arranges a new covenent…” (Hebrews 9:14 – GN)

29. “That is why even the first covenant went into effect only with the use of blood. First, Moses proclaimed to the people all the commandments as set forth in the Law. Then he took the blood of bulls and goats, mixed it with water, and sprinkled it on the book of the Law and all the people, using a sprig of hyssop and some red wool. He said, ‘This is the blood which seals the covenant that God has commanded you to obey.’ In the same way Moses also sprinkled the blood on the Sacred Tent and over all the things used in worship. Indeed, according to the Law almost everything is purified by blood, and sins are forgiven only if blood is poured out.” (Hebrews 9:18-22 – GN) • “And according to the law, I may almost say, all things are cleansed with blood, and apart from shedding of blood there is no remission.” (Hebrews 9:22 – ASV)

30. “On that day the ritual is to be performed to purify them from all their sins, so that they will be ritually clean.” (Leviticus 16:30 – GN) • “The High Priest, properly ordained and consecrated to succeed his father, is to perform the ritual of purification. He shall put on the priestly garments and perform the ritual to purify the Most Holy Place, the rest of the Tent of the LORD's presence, the altar, the priests, and all the people of the community. These regulations are to be observed for all time to come. This ritual must be performed once a year to purify the people of Israel from all their sins. So Moses did as the LORD had commanded.” (Leviticus 16:32-34 – GN)

31. “The Jewish Law is not a full and faithful model of the real things; it is only a faint outline of the good things to come. The same sacrifices are offered forever, year after year. How can the Law, then, by means of these sacrifices make perfect the people who come to God? If the people worshiping God had really been purified from their sins, they would not feel guilty of sin any more, and all sacrifices would stop. As it is, however, the sacrifices serve year after year to remind people of their sins. For the blood of bulls and goats can never take away sins.” (Hebrews 10:1-4 – GN)

32. “Christ, however, offered one sacrifice for sins, an offering that is effective forever, and then he sat down at the right side of God. There he now waits until God puts his enemies as a footstool under his feet. With one sacrifice, then, he has made perfect forever those who are purified from sin. And the Holy Spirit also gives us his witness. First he says, ‘This is the covenant that I will make with them in the days to come, says the Lord: I will put my laws in their hearts and write them on their minds.’” (Hebrews 10:12-16 – GN)

33. “We have, then, my friends, complete freedom to go into the Most Holy Place by means of the death of Jesus. He opened for us a new way, a living way, through the curtain---that is, through his own body. We have a great priest in charge of the house of God. So let us come near to God with a sincere heart and a sure faith, with hearts that have been purified from a guilty conscience and with bodies washed with clean water. Let us hold on firmly to the hope we profess, because we can trust God to keep his promise.” (Hebrews 10:19-23 – GN)

35. “For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries.” (Hebrews 10:26-27 – ASV)

36. “But what about people who turn away after they have already seen the light and have received the gift from heaven and have shared in the Holy Spirit? What about those who turn away after they have received the good message of God and the powers of the future world? There is no way to bring them back. What they are doing is the same as nailing the Son of God to a cross and insulting him in public!” (Hebrews 6:4-6 – CEV)

37. “For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and a fierceness of fire which shall devour the adversaries.” (Hebrews 10:26-27 – ASV) • “For if we go on deliberately and willingly sinning after once acquiring the knowledge of the Truth, there is no longer any sacrifice left to atone for [our] sins.” (Hebrews 10:26 – Amplified)

38. “But what about people who turn away after they have already seen the light and have received the gift from heaven and have shared in the Holy Spirit? What about those who turn away after they have received the good message of God and the powers of the future world? There is no way to bring them back. What they are doing is the same as nailing the Son of God to a cross and insulting him in public!” (Hebrews 6:4-6 – CEV) • “For when people have once been enlightened, tasted the heavenly gift, become sharers in the [Holy Spirit], and tasted the goodness of God’s Word and the powers of the [future world] — and then have fallen away — it is impossible to renew them so that they turn from their sin, as long as for themselves they keep executing the Son of God on the stake all over again and keep holding him up to public contempt.” (Hebrews 6:4-6 – JNT)

39. “We are not people who turn back and are lost. Instead, we have faith and are saved.” (Hebrews 10:39 – GN) • Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, “the prostitute Rahab” • “Should I go on? There isn't enough time for me to speak of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets.” (Hebrews 11:32 – GN) • “Then Samson prayed, ‘Sovereign LORD, please remember me; please, God, give me my strength just this one time more, so that with this one blow I can get even with the Philistines for putting out my two eyes.’” (Judges 16:28 – GN) • “What a record all of these have won by their faith! Yet they did not receive what God had promised, because God had decided on an even better plan for us. His purpose was that only in company with us would they be made perfect.” (Hebrews 11:39-40 – GN)