Hebrews 9:23

23. Therefore Inference from the testamentary character of the ritual.

Patterns Rather, copies; for the heavenly is the pattern, and the earthly is its copy.

These Blood, sheddings.

Heavenly things Literally, the heavenlies; same word as in Ephesians 1:3, where see note. The phrase here is unequivocally local, signifying things and places in the highest heavens, as is absolutely shown by in the presence of God, Hebrews 9:24. See notes on 2 Corinthians 12:2; Eph 2:2 ; 1 Thessalonians 4:17.

But it is a question among commentators how the heavenlies could be said to be purified by Christ’s sacrificial death. Alford, following Delitzsch, understands that the highest heavens, though intrinsically perfectly pure, are purified from the divine wrath towards sin, and so rendered approachable by man. But the idea of sanctifying, not from sin but from wrath, seems rather inadmissible.

We may note that Christ says, (John 14:2,) “I go to prepare a place for you.” So that some preparation of “a place,” either in fact or in effect, was to be made subsequently to his ascension. Now, to sanctify a thing, is to set it apart. Note on 1 Thessalonians 5:23. So, ritually, inanimate things and places were sanctified or set apart for special divine uses. And this was, ritually, done by blood. Intrinsically, the place or thing could not be any holier after the rite than before it. It was only relatively, and by a relative setting apart or consecrating, that the thing or place could be holy holy for a certain occupancy or use. Now space or place, even in the superstellar regions, can have only this relative holiness. A locality can be holy only by holy uses and the holy things it may contain. By the sacrificial death and ascension of Christ he does prepare a place for us, making it relatively holy relatively a fit place for beings rendered holy by his sacrifice. Conceptually, the heaven of the redeemed, as well as the redeemed themselves, are rendered holy by the efficacy of the atonement. As the high priest was better, and the sanctuary better, so the sacrifices were better.

We have now, in Hebrews 9:24-28, three contrastive parallelisms.

1. Between the sanctuary entered by Christ and that of the human high priest, Hebrews 9:24.

2. Between the singleness of Christ’s sacrifice and the repetition of the Jewish sacrifices, Hebrews 9:25 and Hebrews 9:26.

3. Between Christ’s death and its results, and man’s death and its results. The summary of the whole is this. Christ enters not an earthly sanctuary, but the highest heavens, where is the real presence of God; he does this, not by repetition, but once for all; and as men once die and go to the judgment bar to be judged, so Christ once dies and goes to the judgment throne to judge.