Hebrews 2:17 Therefore he had to become like his brothers and sisters in every respect, so that he might be a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make a sacrifice of atonement for the sins of the people.
A superficial reading may give the idea that this idea of "a sacrifice for atonement" is identical with the levitical laws requiring blood for the forgiveness of sins. However this is not the case. The whole rest of the book of Hebrews is dedicated to the theology that Jesus was of a higher order than that blood required by the law. So that the "atonement" mentioned here is transformed and "atonement" is given a new meaning not like the use it has in the levitical law, because Jesus was not a levitical priest.
Hebrews 7:11 Now if perfection had been attainable through the levitical priesthood--for the people received the law under this priesthood--what further need would there have been to speak of another priest arising according to the order of Melchizedek, rather than one according to the order of Aaron?
If sacrificial law were best; if the levitical priesthood that kept the law were best and necessary, then why the need to call Jesus "Melchizedek" and not call him from the Levites?
Hebrews 7:12 For when there is a change in the priesthood, there is necessarily a change in the law as well.
The change in priesthood to Melchizedek necessarily brings a change in the law…for Melchizidek there was no law; there was no blood sacrifice. So to call Jesus "Melchizedek" is to make him above the system of sacrifice where blood is necessary.
The sacrifice Jesus made was not a death as required by the law but "an indestructible life":
Hebrews 7:15-16 It is even more obvious when another priest arises, resembling Melchizedek, one who has become a priest, not through a legal requirement concerning physical descent, but through the power of an indestructible life.
Here the book of Hebrews goes on to declare Jesus as a "priest" and that he is so much better than those priests under the law. His offering, the "indestructible life," was offered "once for all" (7:27) unlike the levitical priests who offer animal blood every day only for specific Israelites. Jesus' "indestructible life" was offered for "all" making it universal.
Hebrews 8:1-5 Now the main point in what we are saying is this: we have such a high priest, one who is seated at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens, a minister in the sanctuary and the true tent that the Lord, and not any mortal, has set up. For every high priest is appointed to offer gifts and sacrifices; hence it is necessary for this priest also to have something to offer. Now if he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all, since there are priests who offer gifts according to the law. They offer worship in a sanctuary that is a sketch and shadow of the heavenly one;
The temple, was not really God's way, but allowed because of the hardness of the hearts f the Israelites. "But Jesus has now obtained a more excellent ministry"; one with universal ramifications; one obtained through his life, not through a death.
Hebrews 9:22 Indeed, under the law almost everything is purified with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
"Under the law" virtually everything was "purified by blood" and "under the law" "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins." This blood requirement is a requirement of the levitical priesthood, but Jesus is of the order of Melchizidek, and not a priest according to the law. The law is changed with the change in priesthood. The Levites "purified with blood" but Jesus in the priesthood of Melchizidek offered "the sacrifice of himself" (9:26). This sacrifice has already been described as "an indestructible life" and not a death required by the law.
Hebrews 10:1-4 Since the law has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the true form of these realities, it can never, by the same sacrifices that are continually offered year after year, make perfect those who approach. Otherwise, would they not have ceased being offered, since the worshipers, cleansed once for all, would no longer have any consciousness of sin? But in these sacrifices there is a reminder of sin year after year. For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
The blood the levitical priests offered could never take away the sins from people. They merely kept reminding people of their sins (verse 3). The sacrificial system that required blood to make things right, "could never take away sins," because it had inherent within it a reminder of sin…the requirement of blood, was imperfect. The blood Jesus offered was not something that he killed, it was blood that was murdered.
Hebrews 10:5-9 Consequently, when Christ came into the world, he said, "Sacrifices and offerings you have not desired, but a body you have prepared for me; in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure. Then I said, 'See, God, I have come to do your will, O God' (in the scroll of the book it is written of me)." When he said above, "You have neither desired nor taken pleasure in sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings" (these are offered according to the law), then he added, "See, I have come to do your will."
But Jesus knew that God did not desire or take pleasure in "sacrifices and offerings" in which blood was required for "forgiveness of sins" (9:22). God takes pleasure in the obedient life, "See, I have come to do your will." Jesus offering was not his death but his obedient life. Death was not required "to take away sins" (10:4), but "an indestructible life" in which one did God's will. This obedient life of Jesus is what brings forgiveness of sins. "He abolishes the first in order to establish the second" (10:9). Jesus abolishes the requirement of blood, and establishes the obedient life as a covenant.
Hebrews 10:11-12 And every priest stands day after day at his service, offering again and again the same sacrifices that can never take away sins. But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, "he sat down at the right hand of God,"
The levitical priests offer blood in vain every day, thinking as the world does, that blood spilled can atone for sins. But Jesus' obedient life was offered "for all time" and "for all". So that in Jesus "by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are sanctified" (10:14). God has written his law on our hearts (10:16), not the old law of the levitical priesthood requiring blood to right the sins of the world, but the law of the priesthood of "Melchizidek", of Jesus who offered an obedient life. This is the law God has written on our hearts, that we know blood is not required by God and he does not want blood spilled. The law is that we love God and our neighbor.
Hebrews 10:17-18 he also adds, "I will remember their sins and their lawless deeds no more."
Where there is forgiveness of these, there is no longer any offering for sin.
God has forgiven our sins without requiring the blood of any animal or man. He has forgiven us based upon Jesus' "indestructible life" (Hebrews 7:16) and based upon Jesus doing God's will (Hebrews 10:9). And doing God's will is not fulfilling a blood requirement for God takes no pleasure in this nor does he want it (Hebrews 10:5-9). This doing of God's will is not based upon the levitical priesthood in which blood is thought to take away sins. It is based upon a priesthood of Melchizidek, in which blood was not required, for the law had not been given. What is required is love.
Hebrews 10:19 Therefore, my friends, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus,
We can now approach God through "the blood of Jesus," but this is not blood in the order of the levitical law, blood that people think will atone for their sins or give them some relief, it is the blood of a new priesthood, the blood of one who is obedient even when men kill him, thinking they are doing the will of God, thinking that by spilling this man's blood they could save the whole nation (John 11:50). This blood is murdered blood. This blood is blood offered despite the threat of men to take life. This blood is not offered as a requirement for forgiveness as though god just had to kill somebody, but it is blood offered in completion of an obedient life; it is the result of his obedient life.
Hebrews 10:19-20 Therefore, my friends, since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, by the new and living way that he opened for us through the curtain
We enter by the "new and living way" Jesus has shown us. It is called a "living way," it is not the way of spilling blood to atone for sins or to met out "justice"; it is not by the way of death, but the way of life that we can approach God.
Hebrews 10:24-25 And let us consider how to provoke one another to love and good deeds, not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
This way of life is communal. We are to be together. It is the way of love and goodness. We must be provoked by each other to love and good deeds, so therefore we must meet together. Jesus way is a living way, but it is not an individual way. It is one of "encouraging one another," it is a way of discipleship. Jesus' life established an alternative community to that of the world. The world's community requires blood; Jesus' community does not.
Hebrews 10:26-30 For if we willfully persist in sin after having received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful prospect of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries. Anyone who has violated the law of Moses dies without mercy "on the testimony of two or three witnesses." How much worse punishment do you think will be deserved by those who have spurned the Son of God, profaned the blood of the covenant by which they were sanctified, and outraged the Spirit of grace? For we know the one who said, "Vengeance is mine, I will repay." And again, "The Lord will judge his people." It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
"There no longer remains a sacrifice for sins" if we persist in sin after learning the way of Jesus. Perhaps this should be read in light of Hebrews 10:9: "He abolishes the first in order to establish the second." There is no sacrifice remaining for sins because God has abolished the levitical laws in which it is thought blood will atone for sins. Anyone who broke "the law of Moses died without mercy "on the testimony of two or three witnesses." Life for life was required. However Jesus "abolishes the first in order to establish the second." For those who persist in the killings, a question is asked, "How much worse punishment do you think will be deserved by those who have spurned the Son of God?" There is an indication that the punishment they "deserve" under the levitical law has been abolished. However in continuing in sin those people have left the community established by Jesus to witness to the new Kingdom of God that has broken into this world.
Hebrews 10:32-36 But recall those earlier days when, after you had been enlightened, you endured a hard struggle with sufferings, sometimes being publicly exposed to abuse and persecution, and sometimes being partners with those so treated. For you had compassion for those who were in prison, and you cheerfully accepted the plundering of your possessions, knowing that you yourselves possessed something better and more lasting. Do not, therefore, abandon that confidence of yours; it brings a great reward. For you need endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised.
Public persecution and abuse, prison, suffering, these are the outcomes of the obedient life to God. The will of God is not that we suffer, but that we continue to love despite that suffering. Even those who were not thrown into prison or "publicly exposed to abuse and persecution" were "partners with those so treated" so that one members suffering is the whole body's suffering. This is the outcome of being a community of God through Jesus Christ. But the author says we ought to persist despite all sufferings, these were the marks Jesus bore as a result of his "indestructible life" and so they are the marks of his followers. Just as Jesus came to do the will of God, so his disciples are to have "endurance, so that when you have done the will of God, you may receive what was promised." Our discipleship is directly tied to doing "the will of God" as Jesus did, in spite of our suffering. This suffering is an exposure of the world as the world. It is an exposure that the requirement of blood is a lie and it is not God's desire.
Hebrews 12:1-4 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us, looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you may not grow weary or lose heart. In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood.
After speaking of the great history of faithful believers the author tells us to join with them. Jesus is here said to be an example for us to follow: "looking to Jesus the pioneer and perfecter of our faith, who for the sake of the joy that was set before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame . . ." This is the mark of a disciple not belief in an angry God who killed Jesus to aquit the guilty. The mark of a disciple is one who disregards the shame of being made a scapegoat. Though many have "resisted to the point of shedding their blood" we the readers of Hebrews have obviously not resisted to the point of our deaths.
Hebrews 12:5-11 And you have forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as children-- "My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, or lose heart when you are punished by him; for the Lord disciplines those whom he loves, and chastises every child whom he accepts." Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children; for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline? If you do not have that discipline in which all children share, then you are illegitimate and not his children. Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live? For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, in order that we may share his holiness. Now, discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.
We have not resisted to the point of shedding our blood because we have forgotten the exhortation that God has addressed to us. The outcome of our life is death by crucifixion. This cleanses us of our desire to war, to retaliate and return hate for hate. The persecution we suffer as a body, (this is addressed to the body not to individuals) "yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it." Our deaths produce peace. Our deaths witness to God's kingdom.
Hebrews 12:12-15 Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, and make straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed. Pursue peace with everyone, and the holiness without which no one will see the Lord. See to it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springs up and causes trouble, and through it many become defiled.
We are to pursue peace with everyone even when they pursue war with us. Even when they think that by killing us, persecuting us, or imprisoning us they will save their nation. Without pursuing this peace we will not have holiness to know Jesus. We are not to allow the root of bitterness to spring up and cause us to hate, or to kill. This is the way of the law. And Jesus has established a covenant based not on the myth of redemptive violence, but upon the truth of loving God and neighbor in obedience to God.
Hebrews 13:1-8 Let mutual love continue. Do not neglect to show hospitality to strangers, for by doing that some have entertained angels without knowing it. Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured, as though you yourselves were being tortured. Let marriage be held in honor by all, and let the marriage bed be kept undefiled; for God will judge fornicators and adulterers. Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be content with what you have; for he has said, "I will never leave you or forsake you." So we can say with confidence, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can anyone do to me?" Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
Finally we are exhorted to let "mutual love continue" for this is the heart of discipleship. We are to love strangers, and to "Remember those who are in prison, as though you were in prison with them; those who are being tortured, as though you yourselves were being tortured" Because when one of us is persecuted we all are persecuted. We are to suffer together,and we are to die together. "Remember your leaders, those who spoke the word of God to you; consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever." The outcome of discipleship is sharing in persecution and crucifixion. But it produces our peace.
Hebrews 13:15-16 Through him, then, let us continually offer a sacrifice of praise to God, that is, the fruit of lips that confess his name. Do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, for such sacrifices are pleasing to God.
The very nature of "sacrifice" is transformed from one of killing to one of living. Jesus "atonement" was not one requiring death but one that required life. The sacrifice Jesus offered was to be obedient even unto death. Therefore God did not require Jesus' death in the sense that God killed him, but God required love even to love enemies and not to retaliate with killing in kind. Jesus unmasks the system of redemptive violence in which blood is thought to save as false. "The blood of the new covenant" is not retributive and penal, but it is the blood of the crucified lord, who loved his enemies in obedience to God
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