The Pulpit Commentary — Hebrews — Section 218

eymboliz<'d by the enrt.hl)• tabcrnnclo. And p:rcntness of the predicted priest wne lnndo th<'n, in ,·or.5, th!lt tlwrc is !l henvonlv rcnlitv 0 t.ho 11101\surc of the superior cxccllcnco of of which the eRrthly t!lbernRc!o is hut-~ 1hc coveiuwt of which ho hns become ■hadow, is shown by wh1<t. was sRi,1 of the S11rct.y; hero the superior exce!lcnco of the )Rttcr when it W!lS rondo. (WhRt Christ offers new covenant, which is now to be shown from m the heavenly sphere is surely his own prophecy, fa mado the mcnsuro of thnt of at-011i11g S!lcrifice. Some commentators h:t-rn Christ's priestly minidlry, whioh hns jnst found " difficulty in this co11oeption on the b~cn proved to bo of ncco,,,,ily in tho sphoro ground th!lt this his Sflcrifico hnd been com- of hPavcnly rcnlitics of which the Mosnio pleted once for 1111 before his ascension. ritual wns but o. copy o.nd shadow. Tho word True; but he is regrmlcd as carrying its here used is not t'ryuos (" sure Iv"), ns in eh. efficacy with him to the rnercy-soat abo\·,,, vii. 22, but µ,O'lT11< ('' mediator 1'); on which nnd sri for ever offering it; even us it is it is to bo observed that the mediator of tho cnntinnnlly comrncmornted ancl pleaded in old covenant was not Aaron, but Moses (se& the Eucharist by the Church below. And Gal. iii. 19): it wo.s he that intervened thus, be it observed. the symbolism of the between God and the congregation in the Dny of Atonement is accurntely fulfilled. estnblislnnent of the coveno.nt; and thus, For the high priest did not sacrifice within in this respect also, the priesthood of the the tabernacle; he only carried to the holy new covenant transconds the old one, in tbnt of holies the blood, representing the atoning (as wns shown also in the earlier po.rt of the effioocy of the sacrifice made outside before Epistle) tho type of l\loses, as well as of his entrance.) Aaron, is fu Ifilled in it. The word v,110µ0• Yer. 5.-Who (i.e. being snch as do so; 0fr71Ta1 (" cstriblished" in A.V.; "enacted" o'lnvn) serve a oopy and shadow of the in the recent R.V.) expresses the promul- heavenly things (v1rcio,ryµ,,; here, as in eh. gation of o. law-appositely in the first ix. 23, means" representntion," in the wny of place to the Lo.w of Moses, which con- copy, not of pattern. "Shadow " ( O'Kt(I.) is stituted the conditions of the old covenant ; opposed in eh. x. 1 to •lt<rlw, which denotea but also to the description of the new cove- the reality, and in Col. ii. 17 to O'wµa), even no.n t, which follows from Jeremiah, according as Moses is admonished of God when about to to which the law remains, bnt to be written make the tabernacle (literally, to complete ; on the heart. The gospel is elsew hore re- but not in the sense of finishing a thing garded under the idea. of law, _though not a begun, but of carrying out a design to entire law of bondage, but of liberty-a lo.w, not completion); for, See, saith he, thnt thou of the letter, but of the Spirit (see Rom. iii. make all things according to the pattern that 27; viii. 2; ix. 31; J as. i. 25). The "better was showed thee in the moDllt. l<'or the promises" o.re such as the passage from sense of 1<•xp11µ&-r10'.-a,, according to Hel- Jeremiah, quoted below, notably represents. lenistic usage,cf. lllatt. ii. 22, "Being wo.rned Other passages might be referred to (such as of God in a dream (xp77µa.rn10•ls lie ,ca-r" Ezek. xxxvi. 25, etc. ; xxxvii. 24, eto.), of livap)." The reference here is to Exod. xxv. similar significance, though not with the 40; the words which" the Lono spake unto same marked mention of u. new covenant to Moses." Rabbinical writers, holding the supersede the old one. This memore.blo view of an actual heavenly tabernacle, the passage (Jer. xxxi. 31-35) occurs in e. prototype of the earthly one, have concluded distinct section of J eremia.h's prophecies from the p"ssagc in Exodus that Moses had (xxx., xx.x.i.), delivered after the commence- e. vision of it, or that e. vi.Bible representation ment of the Captivity, and directed to be of it was exhibited to him on the mount. written in e. book. Tho subject of the All that is necessarily implied is that he whole section is the rcstoro.tion of Isrnel, wa.s divinely admonished to make the taber- its ultimate Messiauie reference being nacle o.iter the fashion conveyed, in what- patent to all who nclmowledge e.ny snch at ever way, to his o.pprehension when on the all in prophecy. In evidence of this there mount, so that it might be a true representa- is not only the passage before us, pointing tion ofsome heavenly reality (cf. Acts vii. 44). to an entirely new covenant with Israel, Ver. 6.-But now (vuvl in its usual logical, and the ideal tone of the whole prophecy, not temporal, sense; cf. eh. xi. 16; also ii. 8; but also, in particular, the view of all the ix. 26; xii 26) ho.th he obtained e. more scattered tribes, not Judah only-the whola excellent ministry, by how much also he is ideal Israel-being gathered together from the Mediator of a better covenant, which nil countries to Zion, o.nd of David himself (;j-r,s, equivalent to quippequte, as usual) to rulo over them us king. The national ho.th been established upon better promises. and local framework, which tho picture has Here the idea of the new 61a8-fi,c71, introduced in common with c,ther prophetic visione of first in the way of anticipation at eh. vii. the coming dnys, id of course no ditlloulty 22, is bronght to the front, to be carried out to those familiar with the style of the iiro• in what follows. There the proved superior phctic bookH, en. nu. 1-13.J THE EPISTLE TO THE llEBP.EWS. 211