We continue the discussion of the Jewish high priest, one sympathetic with our human frailties, yet divinely appointed to stand for us.
Hebrews 5:1-3, Human high priests
Hebrews 5:1-3, Human high priests
Every high priest is selected from among men and is appointed to represent them in matters related to God, to offer gifts and sacrifices for sins. He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he himself is subject to weakness. This is why he has to offer sacrifices for his own sins, as well as for the sins of the people.
The high priest is human, sympathetic to humans. Like us, he is Frail (by Jars of Clay).
Hebrews 5: 4-6, Jesus appointed high priest
No one takes this honor upon himself; he must be called by God, just as Aaron was. So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father." And he says in another place, "You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek."
The position of high priest, given to a frail human being, required a divine appointment. This, too, Jesus had.
The Bible passages are from Psalm 2, verse 7, and Psalm 110, verse 4. Both psalms are messianic passage about the coronation of David and David's line.
Hebrews 5: 7-10, Jesus' ministry a life of priesthood
During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
So Jesus is both the Son and a human high priest, both savior and sympathetic brother. The author is apparently alluding to events in Jesus's life when he prayed with "loud cries and tears". It is not clear to which events the author is thinking, but the prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane comes to mind. If so, the author provides that as evidence of Jesus's submission and process of being "made perfect."
Once again, Melchizedek is mentioned. But the discussion of Melchizedek must wait, for the writer of this letter has a serous concern.
Hebrews 5:11-14, Frustration
We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
The high priest is human, sympathetic to humans. Like us, he is Frail (by Jars of Clay).
Hebrews 5: 4-6, Jesus appointed high priest
No one takes this honor upon himself; he must be called by God, just as Aaron was. So Christ also did not take upon himself the glory of becoming a high priest. But God said to him, "You are my Son; today I have become your Father." And he says in another place, "You are a priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek."
The position of high priest, given to a frail human being, required a divine appointment. This, too, Jesus had.
The Bible passages are from Psalm 2, verse 7, and Psalm 110, verse 4. Both psalms are messianic passage about the coronation of David and David's line.
During the days of Jesus' life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him and was designated by God to be high priest in the order of Melchizedek.
So Jesus is both the Son and a human high priest, both savior and sympathetic brother. The author is apparently alluding to events in Jesus's life when he prayed with "loud cries and tears". It is not clear to which events the author is thinking, but the prayer in the Garden of Gethsemane comes to mind. If so, the author provides that as evidence of Jesus's submission and process of being "made perfect."
Once again, Melchizedek is mentioned. But the discussion of Melchizedek must wait, for the writer of this letter has a serous concern.
Hebrews 5:11-14, Frustration
We have much to say about this, but it is hard to explain because you are slow to learn. In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God's word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil.
The author of Hebrews digresses to chide his readers for their lack of maturity. They have been Christians for some time....
This passage ends with a note of frustration. The frustration builds throughout the next chapter, to become a serious scolding.
I guess you may have commented upon "today I have become your Father" somewhere else if I recall correctly. This is a phrase Arians like the Jehovah's Witnesses will seize upon to deny the Trinity. But the phrase is a quotation from the Psalms--actually a royal psalm--and draws on ancient language of the establishment of a suzerainty-vassal covenant. In this, the author of the Psalm depicts God as asserting his overlordship of the king of Israel at his coronation. It is the language of appointment to office, which is consistent with NT depictions of Jesus attaining lordship over all as a result of his resurrection (Philippians 2 comes to mind here). The language addresses office, not essence, as is evident even in Hebrews itself: "although he was a Son, yet he learned obedience by the things he suffered (not a perfect quotation)." Here, Jesus is appointed to be a priest "after the order of Melchizedek" as a consequence of his death and resurrection. He simply did not have that priestly role before because he had not yet offered the perfect sacrifice.
ReplyDeleteJesus's personhood and roles in the Bible are complex and a person has to pay a lot of attention to sort them out. Pre-incarnate roles include his role in Creation as the Word by whom all things were brought into being and the One "in whom all things consist" (Col. 1). Priesthood is clearly post-resurrection and some sense of Lordship appears to be also according to several places in the NT, including Phil. 2 and Peter's sermon in Acts 2. That deserves some further study and maybe I'll do that someday!
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