Commentary on Hebrews 4:14-16; 5:7-9

The book of Hebrews is a homily with one main point: Christ is the high priest who has offered his very self as the perfect, sufficient sacrifice on behalf of sin, a sacrifice that never needs to be repeated. This theme is evident from the very first sentence of the book, which describes the Son as making purification for sins before demonstrating the completeness of that work by sitting down in the place of honor at the right hand of God, the Majesty on High (1:3). It continues with the declaration that the exalted Son is Jesus, who tastes death for everyone (2:9). 

But what kind of priest is Jesus? He is a priest who shares in the real human experiences of life, including suffering. This enables him to be “a merciful and faithful high priest” who can “help those who are being tested” (2:18). 

This high priest has “passed through the heavens” (4:14). The author of Hebrews envisions heaven as the true reality where Christ enters the very presence of God. These verses point again to a high priest who is able to sympathize with weakness and who experiences trials and temptations. He shares in every aspect of being human, except for sin (4:15). 

In 5:7, the reader sees more of his human suffering. Jesus prayed with “loud cries and tears.” Scholars debate about whether this refers to the scene in the garden of Gethsemane or to another, unrecorded time in the life of Jesus, but Jesus, like other humans, cries out in agony to the One who has the power to save him from death. And it is also clear that even though God heard his pleas, Jesus did not receive the answer he wanted. Instead, Jesus learned obedience to God. 

Learning involves growth and change. Humans come to understand things they did not know or understand before. They gain the capacity to do things they could not do before. Like other humans, Jesus grew. He grew in wisdom (see Luke 2:52), and here we see that he learns (or grows) in obedience. Jesus had never known or faced death before: death—the great judgment of God against sin, beginning in the garden. Now, he pleads to be saved from death, but the God who hears him does not spare him from dying. Instead, through his death, he becomes “the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him” (5:9). 

Throughout the book of Hebrews, the priesthood of Jesus will have implications for those who place their faith in him. It is not just a theological concept rooted in both the Jewish Scriptures and the broader culture of the ancient Near East and the Greco-Roman world. Instead, the perfect offering by the perfect high priest is the condition that makes a new relationship with God possible. 

The preacher gives the audience two instructions: “Let us hold fast to our confession,” and “let us approach the throne of grace with confidence.”

Let us hold fast: In Hebrews 2–3, the preacher has already made clear that those he is speaking with are tempted to drift away from the faith (2:1) and to rebel against the God who has rescued them (3:7–4:11). In the remainder of the book, it becomes clear that these believers face persecution that tempts them to return to a former way of life that feels safer and more comfortable (10:32–36). But here, the preacher instructs them to hold fast to their confession. They are to be willing to speak out loud in public and private the good-news message that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the one who shares in the weaknesses of humanity, has become the great high priest whose sacrifice of himself makes salvation possible for everyone who believes. 

Let us approach with boldness: In the Jewish Scriptures, God instructs Moses to have a tabernacle built where God will dwell with the people of Israel (Exodus 25–40). At the heart of the tabernacle is the Holy of Holies, and inside it is the ark of the covenant with the mercy seat, God’s throne, on top of the ark. The Holy of Holies was separated from the Holy Place and from the rest of the tabernacle by a curtain, and only once a year was the high priest allowed to enter that space. There, he would sprinkle blood on the mercy seat to make atonement and bring the people into right relationship with God. No one else was able to enter without being destroyed. Even the high priest wore a rope around his leg so that if he died, he could be pulled out and no one else would enter. 

The throne room was a place where sins were forgiven and mercy dispensed, but it was also a fearsome place to enter, a place where the power of God could burst forth and bring death. But now … now, through a new high priest, who has offered a permanent sacrifice that never needs to be repeated, believers can come boldly into the very presence of God. Any believer can approach God in prayer with openness, speaking frankly and truthfully the things on their hearts. And what believers find coming from the throne of God is mercy (God’s compassion toward those in need) and grace (God’s gift of favor to those who are unworthy) to help in a well-timed and suitable way (note: the word “need” found in many translations is not in the Greek text).

This Good Friday, we remember the perfect sacrifice offered by the perfect high priest, Jesus Christ, which makes possible our ability to hold onto our confession of faith and enables us to enter the very throne room of heaven to seek there the help God is so willing to give.