Heb. 8, The New Covenant

The High Priest who can bring us into fellowship with God is Jesus, the High Priest we have.  Two things make Jesus an effective High Priest.  First, He is a forever priest.  Second, He has ascended above the heavens. 

In Heaven was the true tabernacle, after which the one Moses built was patterned (8:4-5).  As 8:3 says, a priest must “offer both gifts and sacrifices.”  The Aaronic priest entered the Holy of Holies once a year on the Day of Atonement and sprinkled sacrificial blood to make atonement for himself and the people.  Jesus entered the true Holy of Holies and sprinkled His blood once and for all, to make atonement.  Aaron performed his ministry in order to satisfy the old covenant.  But now He (Jesus) has obtained a more excellent ministry, inasmuch as He is also Mediator of a better covenant, which was established on better promises (8:6).

What is this “better covenant”?  First, note that the word “testament” is another word for “covenant.”  When we talk about the Old and New Testaments we are talking about the Old and New Covenants that dominate those sections of the Bible.

There were many prophecies of a “new covenant” given in the OT.  The most complete, from Jeremiah 31:31-34, is quoted by the writer of Hebrews in 8:8-12.  Let us consider this passage verse-by-verse.

v8: Jeremiah prophesied during the time leading up to and including the destruction of Jerusalem by the Babylonians.  Israel had failed to keep the old covenant.  God promised a future new covenant with Israel and Judah.

v9: The old covenant was established at Mt. Sinai in the time of the Exodus.  It was based on law: “obey Me and I will bless you; disobey Me and I will curse you.”  The tablets of the 10 Commandments are emblematic of that covenant.

v10: In the new covenant God promised to write His law in their minds and on their hearts.  Under the old covenant it was incumbent on the worshiper to learn God’s law.  As v9 said, they did not continue in My covenant.  In addition, under the new covenant the people and God would have a personal relationship. 

v11: By “personal relationship” we mean that the person under the new covenant will know God deeply.  He will not have to be taught this.  “All shall know Me.”  Heb. 8:10-11 speak of the ministry of the Holy Spirit who is fundamental to the New Covenant (cf. Ezek. 36:25-27; 39:29).

v12: Here is the rock upon which this new covenant is established.  God says, “their lawless deeds I will remember no more.”  The issue of sin that separated men from God will be truly resolved in the new covenant.

The new covenant would make the old covenant obsolete.  The writer reminds these Hebrew believers, who are about to see the temple destroyed, that the old covenant is ready to vanish away.