Hebrews 7 is the seventh chapter of the
Epistle to the Hebrews
The Epistle to the Hebrews ( grc, Πρὸς Ἑβραίους, Pros Hebraious, to the Hebrews) is one of the books of the New Testament.
The text does not mention the name of its author, but was traditionally attributed to Paul the Apostle. Most ...
in the
New Testament
The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...
of the
Christian Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
. The author is anonymous, although the internal reference to "our brother
Timothy" (
Hebrews 13:23) causes a traditional attribution to
Paul
Paul may refer to:
*Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name)
* Paul (surname), a list of people
People
Christianity
*Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
, but this attribution has been disputed since the second century and there is no decisive evidence for the authorship. This chapter contains the exposition about the superiority of Christ's Priesthood through
Melchizedek
In the Bible, Melchizedek (, hbo, , malkī-ṣeḏeq, "king of righteousness" or "my king is righteousness"), also transliterated Melchisedech or Malki Tzedek, was the king of Salem and priest of (often translated as "most high God"). He is f ...
to the Levitical Priesthood.
Text
The original text was written in
Koine Greek
Koine Greek (; Koine el, ἡ κοινὴ διάλεκτος, hē koinè diálektos, the common dialect; ), also known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek or New Testament Greek, was the common supra-reg ...
. This chapter is
divided
Division is one of the four basic operations of arithmetic, the ways that numbers are combined to make new numbers. The other operations are addition, subtraction, and multiplication.
At an elementary level the division of two natural numb ...
into 28 verses.
Textual witnesses
Some early manuscripts containing the text of this chapter are:
*
Papyrus 46 (175–225; complete)
*
Codex Vaticanus
The Codex Vaticanus ( The Vatican, Bibl. Vat., Vat. gr. 1209), designated by siglum B or 03 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), δ 1 ( von Soden), is a fourth-century Christian manuscript of a Greek Bible, containing the majority of the Greek Old ...
(325-350)
*
Codex Sinaiticus
The Codex Sinaiticus ( Shelfmark: London, British Library, Add MS 43725), designated by siglum [Aleph] or 01 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 2 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscript ...
(330-360)
*
Codex Alexandrinus
The Codex Alexandrinus (London, British Library, Royal MS 1. D. V-VIII), designated by the siglum A or 02 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering of New Testament manuscripts), δ 4 (in the von Soden numbering of New Testament manuscripts), is a manu ...
(400-440)
*
Codex Ephraemi Rescriptus (~450; extant verses 1-25)
*
Codex Freerianus
Codex Freerianus, designated by I or 016 (in the Gregory-Aland numbering), α 1041 ( von Soden), also called the ''Washington Manuscript of the Pauline Epistles'', is a 5th-century manuscript in an uncial hand on vellum in Greek.
It is named afte ...
(~450; extant verses 1-2, 7-11, 18-20, 27-28)
*
Codex Claromontanus (~550)
Old Testament references
* :
* :
Melchizedek the Priest-King (7:1–3)
Verse 1
:''For this
Melchizedek
In the Bible, Melchizedek (, hbo, , malkī-ṣeḏeq, "king of righteousness" or "my king is righteousness"), also transliterated Melchisedech or Malki Tzedek, was the king of Salem and priest of (often translated as "most high God"). He is f ...
, king of Salem, priest of the Most High God, who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings and blessed him,''
Verse 2
:''to whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all, first being translated "king of righteousness,” and then also king of Salem, meaning “king of peace,"''
Verse 3
: ''
or this Melchizedekwithout father, without mother, without genealogy, having neither beginning of days nor end of life, but made like the Son of God, remains a priest continually.''
The Greatness of Melchizedek (7:4–10)
Verse 4
:''Now consider how great this man was, to whom even the patriarch Abraham gave a tenth of the spoils.''
Verse 9
:''Even Levi, who receives tithes, paid tithes through
Abraham
Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Je ...
, so to speak,''
Imperfection of the Aaronic Priesthood (7:11–14)
Verse 14
:''For it is evident that our Lord arose from
Judah, of which tribe
Moses
Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...
spoke nothing concerning priesthood.''
Superior Because of the Divine Oath (7:20–22)
Verse 22
:''by so much more Jesus has become a surety of a better covenant.''
The further aspect of Jesus' priesthood is introduced here and will be explored in the next chapters, that is, Jesus' role as a "guarantor" ("surety"; Greek: , '
[Greek text analysis: Hebrews 7:22](_blank)
Biblehub.com) of ''a better covenant'',, '' ''
superior to the old covenant as much as his priesthood is superior to that of Aaron. The author emphasizes the superior dignity of Jesus by arranging the weight of argument to fall on the word "Jesus" as the last word of this verse in the original Greek text.
*"Covenant" (Greek: '): or "testament" (
KJV
The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version, is an English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by sponsorship of K ...
), for the Greek word may signify both; a testament, because it is established in the good will of God, and includes an inheritance bequeathed by God the Father to his children, confirmed and given to them by the death of Christ the testator; and a covenant, because it is a compact or agreement made by the Father with Christ, as the representative of all the elect; is called in Scripture a "covenant of life and peace", and is also commonly called the "covenant of grace", because it springs from the grace of God, and the end of it is the glory of God's grace.
[ Gill, John]
''Exposition of the Entire Bible'' - Hebrews 7:22
/ref>
Superior Because of Its Permanence (7:23–25)
Verse 24
:''But He, because He continues forever, has an unchangeable priesthood.''
Verse 25
:''Therefore He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them.''
Superior Because of the Character of Jesus (7:26–28)
Verses 26–27
:''For such a High Priest was fitting for us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and has become higher than the heavens; who does not need daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifices, first for His own sins and then for the people’s, for this He did once for all when He offered up Himself.''
There is no explicit ordinance for a high priest to offer daily sacrifices for his own sins, but 'inadvertent sinning' (such as described in ff) could be a 'daily hazard' and, in his position, if not taken care of, it could bring guilt on the people. Therefore, it becomes a custom for the high priest to first offer sacrifices on his own account, before performing his task for the people, as also attested by the first-century Jewish writer, Philo
Philo of Alexandria (; grc, Φίλων, Phílōn; he, יְדִידְיָה, Yəḏīḏyāh (Jedediah); ), also called Philo Judaeus, was a Hellenistic Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria, in the Roman province of Egypt.
Philo's de ...
.
Verse 28
:''For the law appoints as high priests men who have weakness, but the word of the oath, which came after the law, appoints the Son who has been perfected forever.''[ NKJV]
The 'new and perpetual priesthood after Melchizedek's order', given under oath by the Divine acclamation, was designed to supersede the previous priesthood under the ancient law, which was beset by frailty and required sin offerings for the high priest as well as the people. The supersession became effective once the Messiah ("the Son") 'vindicated his high-priestly title on the basis of a perfect sacrifice', so his 'high-priesthood is absolutely efficacious and eternally suited to meet the need of his people'.
See also
* Abraham
Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Je ...
* High priest
* Jesus Christ
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
* Judah (biblical person)
Judah () was, according to the Book of Genesis, the fourth of the six sons of Jacob and Leah and the founder of the Tribe of Judah of the Israelites. By extension, he is indirectly the eponym of the Kingdom of Judah, the land of Judea, and the wo ...
* Levi
Levi (; ) was, according to the Book of Genesis, the third of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's third son), and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Levi (the Levites, including the Kohanim) and the great-grandfather of Aaron, Moses and ...
* Melchizedek
In the Bible, Melchizedek (, hbo, , malkī-ṣeḏeq, "king of righteousness" or "my king is righteousness"), also transliterated Melchisedech or Malki Tzedek, was the king of Salem and priest of (often translated as "most high God"). He is f ...
* Moses
Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...
* Related Bible
The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...
parts: Genesis 14
Fourteen or 14 may refer to:
* 14 (number), the natural number following 13 and preceding 15
* one of the years 14 BC, AD 14, 1914, 2014
Music
* 14th (band), a British electronic music duo
* ''14'' (David Garrett album), 2013
*''14'', an unrel ...
, Genesis 21
Twenty-one, XXI or 21 may refer to:
*21 (number), the natural number following 20 and preceding 22
* The years 21 BC, AD 21, 1921, 2021
Films
* ''21'' (2008 film), starring Kevin Spacey, Laurence Fishburne, Jim Sturgess, and Kate Bosworth
* ''Tw ...
, Genesis 22
22 may refer to:
* 22 (number)
* 22 BC
* AD 22
* 1922
* 2022
Music
* 22 (album), ''22'' (album), a 2003 album by Parva
* 22 (Lily Allen song), "22" (Lily Allen song), 2009
* 22 (Taylor Swift song), "22" (Taylor Swift song), 2013
* 22 (Sarah McTe ...
, Leviticus 16, Numbers 23, Psalm 110
Psalm 110 is the 110th psalm of the Book of Psalms, beginning in English in the King James Version: "The said unto my Lord". In Latin, it is known as Dixit Dominus ("The Lord Said"). It is considered both a royal psalm and a messianic psalm. ...
, Isaiah 55
Isaiah 55 is the fifty-fifth chapter of the Book of Isaiah in the Hebrew Bible or the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. This book contains the prophecies attributed to the prophet Isaiah, and is one of the Books of the Prophets. Chapters 4 ...
Notes
References
Sources
*
*
*
*
External links
* King James Bible - Wikisource
English Translation with Parallel Latin Vulgate
''Online Bible'' at GospelHall.org
(ESV, KJV, Darby, American Standard Version, Bible in Basic English)
Multiple bible versions at ''Bible Gateway''
(NKJV, NIV, NRSV etc.)
{{Epistle to the Hebrews
07