“Hebrews 1–6,” Scripture Helps: New Testament (2024)
Scripture Helps
Hebrews 1–6
Jesus Christ is God’s Son, the “heir of all things.” He is the Creator and is seated at the right hand of God. Jesus Christ is greater than angels and all the prophets, including Moses. Ancient Israel failed to enter the Lord’s rest because they hardened their hearts against Jesus Christ. As the great High Priest, Jesus is superior to all the Mosaic high priests. He is the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him. The Saints are encouraged to endure in faith like Abraham by having hope in promised blessings.
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Background and Context
To whom was the book of Hebrews written and why?
Experiencing various afflictions, many Jewish Christians were withdrawing from the Church and returning to their former Jewish worship at the synagogue. The book of Hebrews encourages Jewish converts to remain faithful to Jesus Christ and not revert to their former way of life.
The book of Hebrews is like an extended sermon that points to Jesus Christ by repeated appeals to Old Testament teachings. The book has three main sections to encourage Jewish converts to endure with faith in Jesus Christ:
This letter affirms that Jesus Christ and His gospel supersede the law of Moses. It also explains that the law of Moses was fulfilled by Jesus Christ.
Some scholars have questioned if Paul wrote Hebrews, because no author is named in the book and the writing style is different from Paul’s other letters. “However, because the ideas expressed in Hebrews are consistent with Paul’s other teachings, Latter-day Saints, in keeping with Christian tradition, have generally accepted that Paul was at least involved in writing this [letter].”
It is unclear when the book of Hebrews was written. Since the book always refers to the temple in the present tense, it is assumed it was written before AD 70, when the temple was destroyed by the Romans. The location where Hebrews was written is unknown.
What does it mean that Jesus Christ is the express image of His Father?
The term “express image” comes from the translation of a Greek word that means something that is an “exact representation or expression.” President Dallin H. Oaks taught, “The Bible contains an apostolic witness that Jesus was ‘the express image’ of His Father’s person (Hebrews 1:3), which merely elaborates Jesus’s own teaching that ‘he that hath seen me hath seen the Father’ (John 14:9).”
Why was Jesus Christ compared to angels?
Most Jews believed that “angels were exalted beings.” Some Jewish leaders even viewed angels with more reverence than the Messiah. One Bible scholar noted, “With their faith in Jehovah and his angels, [Jewish converts] had apparently assimilated Christ into their religious system as a part but not the center.” To correct this misunderstanding, Paul quoted from the Old Testament to show that Jesus Christ is superior to all angels.
Who is considered the seed of Abraham?
“The seed of Abraham” refers not only to Abraham’s literal descendants but also to all those who accept the gospel covenant, regardless of ancestry. When a person is converted to the gospel of Jesus Christ and baptized, they become a member of the covenant family.
How is Jesus Christ able to succor us when we are tempted?
The word boētheō is translated as succour in the King James Version of the Bible and means to “help; rescue; come to the aid of.” President Dallin H Oaks taught: “Our Savior feels and knows our temptations, our struggles, our heartaches, and our sufferings, for He willingly experienced them all as part of His Atonement. … All who suffer any kind of mortal infirmities should remember that our Savior experienced that kind of pain also, and that through His Atonement, He offers each of us the strength to bear it.”
What does it mean to enter into the rest of the Lord?
Drawing on Psalm 95:7–11, Paul addressed the disobedience and unbelief of ancient Israel. As a result of their rebellion, Israel did not enter into the promised land of Canaan, or the symbolic rest of the Lord, which was symbolized by the land of Canaan. Paul encouraged the Jewish Saints to avoid the unbelief and hardheartedness of ancient Israel so they could enter the Lord’s rest.
President Joseph F. Smith taught: “The ancient prophets speak of ‘entering into God’s rest’ [see Alma 12:34; Doctrine and Covenants 84:23–24]; what does it mean? To my mind, it means entering into the knowledge and love of God, having faith in his purpose and in his plan, to such an extent that we know we are right, and that we are not hunting for something else, we are not disturbed by every wind of doctrine, or by the cunning and craftiness of men who lie in wait to deceive. … The man who has reached that degree of faith in God that all doubt and fear have been cast from him, he has entered into ‘God’s rest.’”
Thus, through Jesus Christ we can experience rest both in this life and the next.
Why are we invited to come boldly to the throne of grace?
In biblical times, the high priest passed through the veil of the temple and entered the Holy of Holies on the Day of Atonement. This high priest was a similitude of Jesus Christ, our great High Priest. Like the high priest entering the Holy of Holies, Jesus Christ has entered heaven and now sits “on the right hand” of God.
As our great High Priest, Jesus Christ has compassion for our weaknesses because He was “tempted like as we are, yet without sin.” The Greek translation of the word tempted also means to be tested or tried. Elder Ulisses Soares taught: “I can assure you that Christ is ever aware of the adversities we experience in mortality. He understands all of the bitterness, agony, and physical pain as well as the emotional and spiritual challenges we face. The Savior’s bowels are filled with mercy, and He is always ready to succor us. This is possible because He personally experienced and took upon Himself in the flesh the pain of our weakness and infirmities.”
Filled with compassion for us, Jesus Christ invites us to “come boldly unto the throne of grace.” The Greek word translated as “come to” in the King James Bible can also be translated as “approach” or “draw near.” Knowing what Jesus Christ has done for us, we can accept His invitation and come to Him with confidence. Elder Dale G. Renlund taught, “In mortality, we can ‘come boldly’ to the Savior and receive compassion, healing, and help … in simple, ordinary, and significant ways.”
How was Aaron called of God?
In Hebrews 5:4–6, 10, Paul noted that Jesus Christ received His authority from God the Father, just as Aaron and other ancient high priests were called of God. They received their priesthood by proper authority.
The Prophet Joseph Smith taught: “We believe that no man can administer salvation through the gospel, to the souls of men, in the name of Jesus Christ, except he is authorized from God, by revelation, or by being ordained by someone whom God hath sent by revelation. … And I would ask, how was Aaron called, but by revelation?”
Aaron’s calling came from God through a revelation to Moses: “And take thou unto thee Aaron thy brother … that he may minister unto me in the priest’s office.” This same pattern is found in both the Old and New Testaments. Of priesthood ordination Elder David A. Bednar taught: “We believe that a man must be called of God, by prophecy, and by the laying on of hands by those who are in authority, to preach the Gospel and administer in the ordinances thereof’ [Articles of Faith 1:5]. Thus, a boy or a man receives the authority of the priesthood and is ordained to a specific office by one who already holds the priesthood and has been authorized by a leader with the necessary priesthood keys.”
What do we learn about Jesus Christ from Melchizedek?
Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained that verses 6–8 in Hebrews 5 “apply to both Melchizedek and to Christ, because Melchizedek was a prototype of Christ and that prophet’s ministry typified and foreshadowed that of our Lord in the same sense that the ministry of Moses did (Deuteronomy 18:15–19; Acts 3:22–23; 3 Nephi 20:23; [Joseph Smith—History] 1:40). Thus, though the words of these verses, and particularly those in verse 7, had original application to Melchizedek, they apply with equal and perhaps even greater force to the life and ministry of him through whom all the promises made to Melchizedek were fulfilled.”
What principles should we hold onto so we can achieve perfection?
The Joseph Smith Translation of Hebrews 6:1 clarifies the verse as follows: “Therefore not leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection.” The Saints addressed in the book of Hebrews had already received the first principles, ordinances, and doctrines of the gospel (including faith in Jesus Christ, repentance, baptism, and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost). They were not to abandon those principles but were to continue growing toward spiritual maturity.
What does it mean to “crucify … the Son of God afresh”?
Elder Bruce R. McConkie explained: “Commission of the unpardonable sin consists in crucifying unto oneself the Son of God afresh and putting him to open shame (Hebrews 6:4–8; Doctrine and Covenants 76:34–35). To commit this unpardonable crime a man must receive the gospel, gain from the Holy Ghost by revelation the absolute knowledge of the divinity of Christ, and then deny ‘the new and everlasting covenant by which he was sanctified, calling it an unholy thing, and doing despite to the Spirit of grace’ [History of the Church, 3:232]. He thereby commits murder by assenting unto the Lord’s death, that is, having a perfect knowledge of the truth he comes out in open rebellion and places himself in a position wherein he would have crucified Christ knowing perfectly the while that he was the Son of God. Christ is thus crucified afresh and put to open shame (Doctrine and Covenants 132:27).”
What do we know about God’s promises?
Paul declared that when God made promises to Abraham, He “sware by himself.” In ancient times, swearing with an oath was a formal part of religious life. Because it is impossible for God to lie, we can have confidence in His promises. They bring hope and serve as “an anchor of the soul.”
Learn More
The Word of God
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“A Two-Edged Sword,” Ensign, Feb. 2017, 72–73
Rest of the Lord
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Russell M. Nelson, “Overcome the World and Find Rest,” Liahona, Nov. 2022, 95–98
Seed of Abraham
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Russell M. Nelson, “The Everlasting Covenant,” Liahona, Oct. 2022, 4–11
Throne of Grace
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Jeffrey R. Holland, “Motions of a Hidden Fire,” Liahona, May 2024, 7–9
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Jörg Klebingat, “Approaching the Throne of God with Confidence,” Ensign or Liahona, Nov. 2014, 34–27
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The Garden of Gethsemane, by William Henry Margetson