A Merciful and Faithful High Priest
Excerpt
Whatever their needs or trials, their Captain is adequate to help them since He ministers to Abraham’s descendants, not angels. The expression “Abraham’s descendants” (lit., “Abraham’s seed”) may point to the Jewishness of the writer’s audience, but even Gentile Christians could claim to be the “seed of Abraham” in a spiritual sense (Gal. 3:29). The help which the Captain gives to these His followers is again predicated on the fact that He was made like His brothers in every way (Heb. 2:17), that is, both in terms of becoming incarnate and by virtue of suffering. Here for the first time the writer introduced the thought of His priesthood, which he elaborated on later. For now he was content to affirm that this identification with “His brothers” had made possible a priesthood characterized both by mercy and fidelity in service to God. This involved, as its basis, atonement for the sins of the people. Of this too the author said more later, but he chose to conclude the section on the profoundly…
Hodges, Zane C. “Hebrews.” The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures. Ed. J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck. Vol. 2. Wheaton, IL: Victor Books, 1985. 785. Print.
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