Lesson 8 - Christ, Our High Priest

Lesson #8

Section #1 -- CHRIST, OUR HIGH PRIEST

p 34 --Hebrews 3:1 -- Consider the ... High Priest of our profession, Christ Jesus.

Note - Other translations of the Bible use for "consider," the phrase, "Fix your thoughts on." When we fix our thoughts on the work of Christ as our High Priest, we enter into some of the deep things of God.

Hebrews 8:1-2 -- This is the sum: We have such an high priest, who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens; a minister ... of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched.

Note - Jesus Christ as our High Priest is ministering in the sanctuary of heaven, the true tabernacle. To understand this phase of the ministry of Christ, we need to study carefully certain aspects of the earthly tabernacle pitched by Moses.

Hebrews 8:4-5 -- On earth ... there are priests that offer gifts according to the law: who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things.

Note - The work of the priests in the earthly tabernacle was both a shadow and an example. The Greek word for shadow - skia - means "a faint outline." We are told that the sacrifices offered were "a shadow-of good things to come." (Heb. 10:1) Only faintly could the blood of lambs, bulls, and goats represent the blood of Jesus Christ. But an example is a different thing. While not identical to the real problem it does indicate the exact procedure in solving the problem. So the earthly sanctuary while not identical - only a model in miniature - serves to help us understand the nature and procedure of the work of Christ, our High Priest.

Section #2 -- THE EARTHLY MODEL

Exodus 25:8 -- Let them make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them.

Note - In the diagram following the lesson, you will observe that the sanctuary was divided into two apartments, or rooms. These are designated in different ways in different parts of the Bible. For example in the book of Hebrews, each apartment is called a "tabernacle." See Hebrews 9:2-3. In Leviticus 16, the second apartment, or Most Holy Place, is simply referred to as "the holy." The first apartment is called, "the tabernacle," while the court is covered by the phrase, "the altar that is before the Lord." (Lev. 16:2, 20) In each of the rooms of the sanctuary were articles of furniture, which were symbolic representations of originals in the heavenly counterpart. (On the diagram, they are lettered with the same letter as in the lesson description of each article of furniture.]

A. The Ark of the Covenant

Exodus 25:10, 11 -- And they shall make an ark ... of wood ... and shall overlay it with pure gold, within and without.

Exodus 25:17,21 -- And thou shalt make a mercy seat of pure gold ... and thou shalt put the mercy seat above upon the ark; and in the ark thou shalt put the testimony that I shall give thee.

p 35 -- Exodus 25, 18, 20 -- Thou shalt make two cherubims of gold ... in the two ends of the mercy seat ... and their faces shall look one to another.

Exodus 25:22 -- I will commune with thee from above the mercy seat, from between the two cherubims.

B. The Altar of Incense

Exodus 30:1 -- Thou shalt make an altar to burn incense upon.

Exodus 30:6-8 -- And thou shalt put it before the vail that is by the ark of the testimony ... and Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning ... [and] ... at even, he shall burn incense upon it.

Revelation 8:3-4 -- And another angel came and stood at the altar ... and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar.

Ephesians 5:2 -- Christ ... hath loved us, and hath given Himself for us an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweetsmelling savour.

C. The Table of Shewbread

Exodus 25:23, 30 -- Thou shalt make a table of shittim wood ... and thou shalt set upon the table shewbread before me always.

John 6:51 -- I am the living bread which came down from heaven ... and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I give for the life of the world.

Note - In the New Testament references to the Heavenly Sanctuary, there is no specific counterpart for the Table of Shewbread. However, since the Table was set on the north side of the first apartment, it could well serve as the representation of the Throne of God. This for two reasons: The description of the Throne of God in Ezekiel 1, and Revelation 4 have many similarities. In Ezekiel, the vision is introduced by "a whirlwind which came out of the north." (1:4) In Revelation, the seven lampstands are portrayed as "before the throne" which would be the position of the golden candlesticks before the table of shewbread in the earthly typical representation. (4:5)

D. The Candlestick

Exodus 25:31-32 -- And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold and six branches shall come out of the sides of it.

Exodus 27:20 -- And thou shalt command the children of Israel, that they bring thee pure olive oil ... to cause the lamps to burn always.

John 8:12 -- I am the light of the world.

Matthew 5:14,16 -- Ye are the light of the world let your light so shine

before men.

Hebrews 9:6-9a -- Now when these things were thus ordained, the priests went always [daily] in the first tabernacle, accomplishing the service of God. But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, ... the Holy Spirit this signifying a figure for the time then present.

p 36 -- Note - The earthly sanctuary was divided into two apartments. The book of Hebrews refers to these apartments as "tabernacles." The common priests went daily into the first apartment, but into the second apartment, called the Most Holy, the high priest went alone, and then only once a year. This being an example, it indicates the dual work of the ministry of Jesus Christ, our High Priest, in the Heavenly Sanctuary.

Hebrews 9:11-12, 24 -- Christ being come an high priest by His own blood He entered in once into the holy place, [thus securing an eternal redemption - RSV] for us ... for Christ is not entered into holy places made with hands ... but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us.

Note - Jesus Christ is both Victim and Priest. Having provided for us by His blood, the means of redemption, He entered into the Sanctuary of heaven to obtain through His mediation the fulness of that redemption. Since Christ is called to be the High Priest. His work will assume major proportions in the work of the second apartment of the Heavenly Sanctuary inasmuch as the earthly type emphasized the work of the high priest in that apartment.

Section #3 --DIFFERENT RESULT OF DAILY AND YEARLY SERVICE IN TYPE

Leviticus 4:13-14, 20b, 26b, 31c ; Leviticus 5:10b, 13a, 18b -- If the whole congregation of Israel sin through ignorance ... then the congregation shall offer a young bullock for the sin ... and the priest shall make an atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them.

Note - Whether for the whole congregation, or the ruler (Lev. 4:22). or the common person (Lev. 4:27) the atonement always resulted in forgiveness. This was the daily service.

Leviticus 16:29-33 -- In the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month ... the priest shall make an atonement for you, to cleanse you, that ye may be clean from all your sins before the Lord ... . The priest ... shall make an atonement for the holy sanctuary ... the tabernacle ... the altar ... the priests, and for all the people of the congregation.

Note - The tenth day of the seventh month marked the time of the yearly service when the high priest went into the most holy place. The results of the mediation on that day were in distinct contrast to the results of the daily service. In both an atonement was obtained, but the results of the yearly service were of a higher nature - "that ye may be clean from all your sins before the Lord." The atonement also involved the sanctuary; it, too, had to be cleansed.

Section #4 -- JESUS IN HEAVEN

Revelation 4:2, 5 -- A throne was set in heaven ... and there were seven lamps, of fire burning before the throne.

Note - In the last book of the Bible, activities in heaven were opened before John, and he beheld the Throne of God in relationship to the golden lampstands. From the type, we know that this was the first apartment of the heavenly sanctuary. Now the question - Who is before the throne?

Revelation 5:6 -- And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne ... stood a Lamb as it had been slain.

p 37 -- Note - The first portrayal of Jesus in the book of Revelation is in His calling as Priest (Rev. 1:12-16) In Rev. 5:6. John sees Him before the Throne in the first apartment ministering as a Lamb as it had been slain. The blood of Calvary is not forgotten, nor the marks of the crucifixion erased. The great High Priest bears them forever in His body, and presents before His Father the nail - scarred hands calling into remembrance the blood of His all-sufficient sacrifice. But the book of Revelation presents a continuing work of Christ.

Revelation 11:15 -- The seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices ... saying, The kingdom's of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever.

Note - When the seventh angel sounds, there is a change in the ministry of our Lord. From the work of a priest, He becomes a King. The priestly ministry is ended. But where did that work end?

Revelation 11:19 -- And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in His temple, the ark of His covenant.

Note - The ark of the testament was in the Most Holy place of the earthly type. Thus it is indicated that Christ's last work before taking His kingdom is to be done in the Most Holy place of the Heavenly Temple, where in the earthly type, the high priest ministered once a year. The question then remains - when did Jesus change from the first apartment to the second in the heavenly Temple? This answer is to be found in the book of Daniel. This will be studied in the next lesson.

38 -- CONCEPTS FOR FURTHER STUDY

I. Possible Physical Layout of the Sanctuary - Its Message

Two foci come to view the Altar of Burnt Offering representing the Cross, Christ the Sacrifice; and the Most Holy Place where Christ ministers as the great High Priest after the Order of Melchisedec.

"The intercession of Christ in man's behalf in the sanctuary above is as essential to the plan of salvation as was His death upon the cross. By His death He began that work which after His resurrection He ascended to complete in heaven. We must by faith enter within the veil, "whither the Forerunner is for us entered." There the light from the cross of Calvary is reflected. There we may gain a clearer insight into the mysteries of redemption." (Great Controversy, p. 489)

II. The Sanctuary in the Book of Hebrews

1. -- The book of Hebrews clearly teaches a direct vertical link between the heavenly sanctuary and its earthly counterpart:

Heb. 8: 5 (example) 9:23 (patterns) - upodeigma (hupodeigma) = imitation, copy, or pattern.

Heb. 8:5 (pattern) - tupoV (tupos) type

Heb. 9:6-9 (figure) - parabolh (parabole) = figure, or symbol.

2. -- Ta Hagia - Hagia is a neuter plural, and occurs in this form nine times in the book - Chapters 8-13. (8:2; 9:2-3, 8, 12, 24, 25; 10:19; 13:11) In Heb. 9:1 it occurs as to hagion , a neuter singular. In Heb. 9:3 it is combined with the neuter plural genitive - hagia hagion - and clearly refers to the second apartment, or Most Holy Place. Literally, it means "holy places," or "holy things."

p 39 --

3. -- How is TA Hagia used in Hebrews? This is a key question, and the answer has a bearing on our understanding of the sanctuary doctrine. Certain unique features mark the book of Hebrews. These need to be noted.

a. -- When a text is quoted in the book of Hebrews from the Old Testament, it is always from the LXX (the Septuagint Version), and some of these differ from what has now become the accepted Hebrew text - the Masoretic. (Example - Hebrews 1:6 - "Let all the angels of God worship Him." This is quoted from Deut. 32:43 LXX, but is not found in the Hebrew text. See KJV on Deut. 32:43.)

b. -- The term, TA hagia, functions in Hebrews as a noun, and is derived from the adjective, hagios (masculine), hagion (neuter). This word as used in the LXX in reference to the sanctuary, and its two apartments, varies. The singular form is used to denote the holy place (Ex. 26:33), and the Most Holy Place (Lev. 16:2), as well as the sanctuary as a whole (Lev. 4:17 LXX). But the plural form is also used to designate the sanctuary as a whole (Lev. 10:4). When the two are separately distinguished in relationship to each other, the singular (ton hagion) is used for the first apartment, and the singular plus the genitive plural (ton hagion ton hagion) is used for the second apartment (Ex. 26:33).

c. -- In the construction of the sanctuary as outlined in the Old Testament, the two apartments were spoken of as a unit, and called the tabernacle or tent. (Ex. 26:15-18) But in the book of Hebrews, each apartment is noted as a separate tabernacle. (Heb. 9:2-3)

d. -- At the beginning of the 9th Chapter of Hebrews, specific definitions for the use of TA hagia are given. By itself it is used for the first apartment, tabernacle (Heb. 9:2). With the addition of the plural genitive - hagion - the phrase is used to denote the Most Holy Place, or the second tabernacle. Honest ,and accurate interpretation would demand that these designations apply to all uses of these terms following Hebrews 9:2-3 inasmuch as the LXX varies in the use of the words. Another factor is important. After the definitive verses, the term applied to the Most Holy Place never occurs again in the book, which leaves only one conclusion that all uses of TA hagia in Hebrews following Heb. 9:2-3 refer to the first apartment of the sanctuary whether the earthly or the heavenly.e. -- What about the one use prior to Heb 9:2-3, and the use of the singular form in Heb. 9:1? In Heb. 9:1, the use of the singular can be understood as used in the LXX to refer to the sanctuary as a whole. Prior to this point, there had been no separation of the sanctuary into two tabernacles. In Heb. 8:2, the literal meaning of the plural form - "holy things" - fits the context. Christ became "minister of holy things and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man."

4. The Function of the High Priest in the Sanctuary Ritual.

It is suggested that the imagery of the book of Hebrews refers to the ministry of the High Priest on the Day of Atonement. Thus the expression - TA hagia must refer in some of the verses to the second apartment, or Holy of Holies. See Hebrews 9:12-14; 13:11. What was the role of the High Priest in the earthly sanctuary?

a. -- The High Priest officiated in the offering of the sin offerings wherein corporate guilt was involved. (Lev. 4:3-6, 13-17.) The blood was brought into the tabernacle, and the carcass of the animal was burned without the camp. (Lev. 4-11-12; 21; compare with Heb. 13:11) The offering in each incident was a bull.

b. -- At the close of each one of the monthly and/or annual feast days and/or weeks, a kid of the goats was offered as a sin offering. Note the following summary

p 40 -- and references:

1. -- The Feast of the New Moon - Numbers 28:11-15

2. -- Feast of Unleavened Bread - Numbers 28:16-22

3. -- Day of the First Fruits (Pentecost) - Numbers 28:26-30 See also Leviticus 23:19.

4. -- Blowing of the Trumpets - Numbers 29:1-5

5. -- Feast of Tabernacles - Numbers 29:12-16

6. -- Octave of the Feast of Tabernacles - Numbers 29:35-38

7. -- Day of Atonement - Numbers 29:7-11

This kid of the goat was a sin offering for the congregation (Lev. 9:3, 5; compare with Numbers 28:1-2). Since the High Priest alone officiated at sin offerings for the whole congregation, the High Priest was the active and final officiant at all the annual and monthly feasts.c. -- "Once every year" (Heb. 9:7); "Every year" (Heb. 9:25); "Year by year," "Every year" (Heb. 10:1,3). Are these expressions identical and do they refer to the ministry of the High Priest on the Day of Atonement? It is obvious from the context that Hebrews 9:7 is talking about that Day only. The language used in the Greek is hapax tou eniautou - once of the year. In the other references, the phraseology is different - kat' eniauton - during the year. This word for year (eniautoV) is not the word used in Hebrews to denote the chronological year. Rather etoV is used. (Heb. 1:12, 3:9, 17) The word - eniautos - refers to the cycle of feasts during the year. Once in that cycle, the High Priest went into the Most Holy Place. (Heb. 9:7) During the cycle the High Priest went frequently into the Holy Place, or first apartment with the blood of bulls and goats.