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    Hebrews 10:1-18
    Lesson 428

    Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

    In this lesson:
     
    Can the Old Testament sacrifices save us?
     
    The failings of the Mosaic Law (10:4).
     
    One sacrifice instead of many.
     
    Sin is forgiven.
     
    What does it mean to be sanctified?
     
    This lesson ends the segment on Jesus, the forever sacrifice.

    Jewish priests make a burnt offering.
    Unknown artist. 
    Study Tip:
     
    Taking notes keeps us organized, focused and helps us learn and remember.

    The Epistle of Paul The Apostle To The Hebrews

    The King James Bible    ​




    Hebrews 10:1-18
    A shadow

    ​1 For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image of the things, can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect.
     
    2 For then would they not have ceased to be offered? because that the worshippers once purged should have had no more conscience of sins.
     
    3 But in those sacrifices there is a remembrance again made of sins every year.
     
    4 For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins.
     
    5 Wherefore when he cometh into the world, he saith, Sacrifice and offering thou wouldest not, but a body hast thou prepared me:
     
    6 In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.
     
    7 Then said I, Lo, I come (in the volume of the book it is written of me,) to do thy will, O God.
     
    8 Above when he said, Sacrifice and offering and burnt offerings and offering for sin thou wouldest not, neither hadst pleasure therein; which are offered by the law;
     
    9 Then said he, Lo, I come to do thy will, O God. He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second.
     
    10 By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
     
    11 And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:
     
    12 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;
     
    13 From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool.
     
    14 For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified.
     
    15 Whereof the Holy Ghost also is a witness to us: for after that he had said before,
     
    16 This is the covenant that I will make with them after those days, saith the Lord, I will put my laws into their hearts, and in their minds will I write them;
     
    17 And their sins and iniquities will I remember no more.
     
    18 Now where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin.

    ​

    Margin notes:
     
    "The law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very image." (10:1) - The Mosaic Law gave us a peek at God's final plan.  The centuries of animal sacrifices prescribed under the Mosaic Law did not wash away sins.  They were meant to help us understand the importance of Jesus' sacrifice.
     
    "Can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually make the comers thereunto perfect." (10:1) - The Old Covenant, with its endless offerings and sacrifices, couldn't save anyone (Hebrews 7:19).
     
    "For then would they not have ceased to be offered?" (10:2) - If an animal sacrifice could wash away the stain of sin, then endless sacrifices would not have been necessary.  
     
    "Once purged should have had no more conscience of sins." (10:2) - "Once cleansed, people would feel no more guilt for their sins." 
     
    "In those sacrifices there is a remembrance." (10:3) - With each sacrifice, people were reminded of their sins.
     
    "It is not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away sins." (10:4) - We are not forgiven because we make sacrifices or regret our sins.  Only Jesus' sacrifice on the cross can take away our sins.  Forgiveness is a gift.  It cannot be earned, only accepted.
     
    "Wherefore when he cometh into the world..." (10:5-7) - This quote from Psalm 40:6-8 was written by King David.  It records Jesus' words as He came "into the world" centuries before His birth.
     
    "Thou hast had no pleasure." (10:6) - Because the animal sacrifices prescribed by the Mosaic system couldn't atone for sin.
     
    "In the volume of the book." (10:7) - "As written in the book."  Refers to Psalm 40, which Hebrews knew well.  Remember, Hebrews was written for a Jewish audience.
     
    "Above when he said." (10:8)- "First, Jesus said."
     
    "He taketh away the first, that he may establish the second." (10:9) - Jesus replaced the Old Covenant of sacrifices and burnt offerings with the New Covenant of grace.  It is now by God's grace that we are saved.  Forgiveness is a gift.  It cannot be earned, only accepted.
     
    "By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all." (10:10) - "By that we are sanctified through the sacrifice of Jesus' body once and for all."  To be sanctified is to be blessed, consecrated, cleansed of guilt, made holy, purified of sin through faith (Acts 15:9), and thus connected to the spiritual and set apart for special use by God.  Believers are sanctified, not because they are perfect, but because they have a relationship with Jesus (Hebrews 10:10; 13:12).
     
    "Every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices." (10:11) - High Priests offered up the same sacrifices over and over again.  Thanks to Jesus' sacrifice, no more are needed. 
     
    "Henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool." (10:13) - Paraphrased from Psalm 110:1.  Those who oppose God or persecute Christians are the enemies of Christ.
     
    "For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified." (10:14) - With His sacrifice on the cross, Jesus made believers clean in God's eyes ( see verse 10:17).
     
    "The Holy Ghost also is a witness to us." (10:15) - "The Holy Spirit testifies to us."  What does the Holy Spirit testify to?  See verses 10:16-17.
     
    "This is the covenant that I will make with them..." (10:16) - Verses 10:16-17 are paraphrased from Jeremiah 31:33-34.  They prophesized a New Covenant centered around Jesus, a full six hundred years before His birth.
     
    "Where remission of these is, there is no more offering for sin." (10:18) - "When sin is forgiven, there is no need for another sacrifice."
    New Living Translation
    Hebrews 10:1-18
    Christ's Sacrifice Once for All
     
    1 The old system under the law of Moses was only a shadow, a dim preview of the good things to come, not the good things themselves. The sacrifices under that system were repeated again and again, year after year, but they were never able to provide perfect cleansing for those who came to worship.

    2 If they could have provided perfect cleansing, the sacrifices would have stopped, for the worshipers would have been purified once for all time, and their feelings of guilt would have disappeared.
     
    3 But instead, those sacrifices actually reminded them of their sins year after year.

    4 For it is not possible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

    5 That is why, when Christ came into the world, he said to God,
     
    "You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings.
          But you have given me a body to offer.

    ​6 You were not pleased with burnt offerings
          or other offerings for sin.

    7 Then I said, 'Look, I have come to do your will, O God-
          as is written about me in the Scriptures.'"
     
    8 First, Christ said, "You did not want animal sacrifices or sin offerings or burnt offerings or other offerings for sin, nor were you pleased with them" (though they are required by the law of Moses).

    9 Then he said, "Look, I have come to do your will." He cancels the first covenant in order to put the second into effect.

    10 For God's will was for us to be made holy by the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ, once for all time.
     
    11 Under the old covenant, the priest stands and ministers before the altar day after day, offering the same sacrifices again and again, which can never take away sins.

    12 But our High Priest offered himself to God as a single sacrifice for sins, good for all time. Then he sat down in the place of honor at God's right hand.

    13 There he waits until his enemies are humbled and made a footstool under his feet.

    14 For by that one offering he forever made perfect those who are being made holy.
     
    15 And the Holy Spirit also testifies that this is so. For he says,
     
    16 "This is the new covenant I will make
          with my people on that day, says the Lord:
       I will put my laws in their hearts,
          and I will write them on their minds."
     
    17 Then he says,
     
    "I will never again remember
          their sins and lawless deeds."
     
    18 And when sins have been forgiven, there is no need to offer any more sacrifices.

    ​This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word-for-word translation of the Bible.  However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."
    Today's question:
     
    1. What did the New Covenant accomplish that the Old Covenant couldn't?  
     
     
      
     
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    Answer: (Do you agree?)
     
    1. Thanks to the New Covenant, our sins are forgiven once and for all (10:10;12).  Because of Jesus's sacrifice on the cross, God will forget the "sins and iniquities" of believers (10:17).  The Old Covenant, with its never-ending sacrifices, didn't promise and could never deliver total forgiveness.  The Old Covenant was simply God's interim way of addressing sin until the Messiah arrived. 
        
     
     
     
    Application thought for the day:
     
    The blood of Jesus Christ was a better sacrifice than the blood of "bulls" and "goats" because Jesus is God and has an infinitely higher status than an animal.  Also, He voluntarily offered Himself for our sins.  Animals do not volunteer to take mankind's punishment.      Only a loving God would do that! 
    Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke.  Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; the "Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies;" "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Everyday Bible" published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course, the "King James Bible."  All were critical in putting these lessons together.
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