Ver. 16.-Tlie constitution· of our great High Priest. "Who is made, not after the law of a. carnal commandment," etc. In this verse there is a triple antithesis; Jaw is antithetical to power, commandment to life, and carnal to indissoluble. This suggests the following observations concerning the priesthood of Jesus Christ, He became Priest- I. NoT BY THE OPERATION OF LITERAL "LAW,'' BUT BECAUSE OF HIS SPIBITUAL "POWER." Law in the text ia the Levitical Law, with the fulfilment of which the Jewish priests had so much to do. It was a thing of the letter-a written thing; it possessed no inherent power ; it could impart no spiritual power. By this law the priests of the Judaic economy were constituted. But our Lord was constituted a priest, not by this law, but because of his own spiritual energy. He was in himself perfectly fitted for the high functions of this holy office. Because he was a Divine Being, be had power to represent God to man; because he was a human being, he had power to represent man to God. Inexhaustible spiritual strength is in him for the renewal of the lost moral power of those whose High Priest he is. Because he has power to redeem, sympathize with, succour, and save men, he was made the great High Priest for men. If. KOT BY AN EXTERNAL "COMMANDMENT," BUT BY HIS lNilERENT "LIFE.'" The "commandment" is that part of the Levitical law which ordered the institution and succession of the priesthood. By this statute the descendants of At>.ron were HEBREWS, O' lP4 THE EPISTLE TO THE HEBREWS. [011, Vil, 1-28,
appointed priests, irrespecLive or their personal chamcter and qm11lftcations for the otfi~. But Jesus was mado a priest, not by that commandment, but contrary to it, seeing that he was not of the tribe of Levi, but of Judah. It was because of bis inner life that he was constituted the High PriCl!t of humanity. Being what ho was and is, he could do. no o~her than. tako up ou~ cause, s~ffer fo~ us, die for us, and app~ar as our Representative with the Father. Thie truth 1s forcibly expressed by D1·. Bushnell: "Yicarious sacrifice belong-s to no office or undertaking outside of holy character, but to holy choracter itself. Such is love that it must insert itself into the conditions, lmrden itself with the wants, and woes, and losses, and even wrongs, of others. It waite for no atoning office, or any other kind of office. It undertakes because it is love, not because a project is raised or an offico appointed. It goes into sulforing and labour and painful 11ympathy, because its own evNlasting instinct runs that woy.•.• 'l'he true and simple account of Christ's suffering is, that ho had such a heart as would not ~nffer him to be turned away from us, and that he suffered for us even as love must willingly suffer for its enemy. The beauty and power of his sacrifice is, that ho suffers morally and because of his simple excellence, and not to fill a contrived place in a 1,cheme of legal justification. lie scarcely minds how much he suffers or how, if only he can do love's work." 1 Dec~nse of his perfect purity, and infinite love and unspeak- able compassion, he necessarily became the grcn.t High l'riest of the human race, lll. NoT AS A TEMPORARY FUNCTION, BUT AS A PERMANENT RELATION. The} who were made priests "after the law of a carnnl commandment " were priests ouly for a time. One generation performed the duties of the office for a number of years, and then was succeeded in those duties by another generation, which in its turu wo.uld also pass away. "But after the power of an indissoluble life" our Saviour was mado a priest. He is "a Priest for ever after the order of Melchizodek." Dy its nature his li!e is perpetual; and he continues for ever as our Representative with God (cf. vers, 23-25). Because of the perfection of this priesthood, human salvation in glorious fulness is attainable. Laws and ceremonies alone could not work out for us any real deliverance from sin, or work in us any true and pro17essive spiritual life. We need vitality and power in any system or person who would render to us effective help. And in this aspect " the priesthood of Christ," a.s Bushnell says, " is graduated by the wants and measures of the human soul; tho endless life in which he comes matches and mea.11urea the endless life in mankind whose fall he is to restore; providing a salvation as strong as their sin, and as long or lasting as the run of their immortality. He is able thus to sa,e unto the uttermost." His life ls reproductive. His power is com- muuicabJe. He imparts spiritual energy to those who by faith arc one with him. Apart from him we can do nothing. We can do all things in him that strengtheneth us.-W.J. Ver. 19.-77.e inabiUty and capability of Ike Law. ., For the Law made nothing perfect," etc. The Law spoken of is the ceremonial Law, as we see from the preceding verse. The moral Law is not clisannulled in Christianity. Its authority is maintained, its sanctionB are corroborated by our Lord. But the ceremonial Law was abrogated by Christ. It found its fulfilmeilt, 11.11d so was done away in Christianity. Notice- L THE Th'AilILITY oF TliE LAW. It wll8 weak and unprofitable; it made nothing perfect. L It awakened the consciousness of guilt, but it had no power to remove that consciousness. Its sacrifices proclaimed man a sinner and needing atonement with God; but they would not ease the conscience of its sad sense of sin, or inspire the peace ot forgiveness in the troubled breast. 2. It slwwed the necessity of mediation between God and man, but it made no wtisfaccory provision for that necessity. '!'he people had to approach the :Most High through the priests; the priests alone mu~t offer their sacrifices; the priests alone had access to the holy place of the tabernacle and the temple. 'l'he office of the priestlwotl exhibited the need of mediation, but it WaB not an adequate answer to that need. 'l'he Judaic priests were tbemselvcs siuucrs; thoy needed to oiler sacrifices for themselves; they were mortal antl pabsed away by death, even as oLlwr meu. 3. It preseni,ad a true ideal of life and conduct, but it a_fforded no help /01· the attainment of that ideal. 'l'he Law condemnij sin; it comruanJs righteowmesa. Ilu.t how shall we oLcy its commands? "'l'o will i, present with me, • • The "iiCf:rious S:wrificc,' pt. i. eh. y. oa. vu. 1-28.J THE EPISTLE TO 'l'lIE llEBREWS. HJ5