Hebrews: A New and Living Way

Hebrews
A New and Living Way
2013 Cindy Brown. All Rights Reserved.

This study was written using the ESV.
Hebrews 1
Day 1
Introduction: We do not know who the author of Hebrews is. Some have
suggested Paul, but it is not written in similar fashion to his other books.
Since Paul was the apostle to the Gentiles, and this book was written to the
Jews, it seems like it could be a different author. The author never claims
to be an apostle and said he had not heard the gospel from Jesus himself,
but from someone else who had heard it from Jesus (Hebrews 2:3-4). We
also are not sure when the book was written, but most scholars put it
sometime shortly before the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem in 70
AD, probably around the time of Nero's persecution in 64 AD. The author
mentions that the believers were under some persecution (Heb. 10:3239;
12:4) which was causing it to be difficult for some of them to stand firm in
their faith.
In Hebrews 13:22 the author says that his purpose in writing was to give
them a word of exhortation. Exhortation means to call to one's side, to
admonish or encourage. As we will see, these people needed to be
encouraged to look to Jesus. He admonishes them to turn away from the
old system of offering sacrifices and to turn to Jesus, who is better, and
who offers us a new and living way to worship Him.
Read Hebrews 1-7 today.
Day 2
Read Hebrews 8-13 today.
Day 3: Hebrews 1:1-4

Read chapter 1 today.
As you read, mark the following words in your Bible. Mark them each in a
different way or in a different color so that each word stands out from the
others.
Any references to God the Father, including pronouns
Any references to Jesus, including pronouns
Much superior, more excellent
Angels
Read carefully so you can distinguish which pronouns refer to God and
which refer to Jesus.
In verse 1, what do we learn about how God communicates?
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God wants us to know Him and has gone to great lengths to communicate
with us. He has spoken at many times and in many different ways, using
many different people. If God is so intent on speaking to us, we would do
well to listen carefully.
What is the contrast the author makes in verses 1-2?
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Read verses 1-4 again and list everything you learn about Jesus.
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4
None of these things can be said about the prophets that God used to
speak through. Let's look a little more closely at some of these things.
In verse 3 it says that Jesus is the "radiance of the glory of God." That
word radiance is only used here in the New Testament. It means "the
perfect reflection of the brightness." So Jesus perfectly reflects God's glory
to us. If we want to see God's glory, we should look at Jesus!
It also says Jesus is the exact imprint of God's nature. The word imprint
means "impression or copy." So God's nature has been exactly impressed
on Jesus and he perfectly reflects God's glory.
What does John 1:14 tell us about Jesus?
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Note what Colossians 1:19 and 2:9 tell us about Jesus.
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Read John 10:30. What does Jesus tell us about himself in this
verse?
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Read John 14:8-9. What does Jesus himself say about this?
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So to ask to see the Father when Jesus was standing right before them
was silly! Jesus doesn't just act like God, He is God! His nature and glory
are exact representations of God the Father. This is who is now speaking
to us!

Read Hebrews 1 again.
For the rest of the chapter, the author is going to explain why Jesus is
better than the angels.
In verse 5, what do we learn is not true of the angels?
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What do we learn about angels in verse 6?
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We read the account of this in Luke 2:8-14. God used the angels to
announce the birth of His Son.
What do we learn about angels in verse 7?
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Angels are described as winds. What does that tell you about them?
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They are also called ministers. A minister is "one who renders special
servicea servant."
So based on verses 5-7, what is the main difference between Jesus
and the angels?
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Verse 8 starts out with the word "but." This should clue us in to a contrast
being made.
Verse 8 alerts us that everything said in verses 8-12 is said about the Son.
What four things do we learn about Jesus in verses 8-9 that set him
apart?
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Verses 8-9 are quoted from Psalm 45:6-7. I am so glad that Jesus' throne
will last forever. No angel or enemy will ever be able to knock Jesus off the
throne. He is the absolute ruler and there is none above Him. That is a
comfort!
What else do we learn about Jesus in verses 10-12? These verses are
quoted from Psalm 102:25-27.
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These verses reveal to us that Jesus is the creator and that He is eternal.
Only God is described in this way.
According to verse 13, what is one privilege that Jesus has that the
angels don't?
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In verse 14, the angels are again called ministers. What does this
verse tell us about what they do?
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After reading chapter 1, I hope it is pretty obvious how Jesus is much better
than the angels. He has a better name and a better position. He is the
exact image of God, he is God's Son, he is the eternal Creator, and his
throne will last forever. Angels are messengers of God's Word, but Jesus is
the Word!
Because this book was written to a Jewish audience, the author references
several Old Testament quotes. They would have been familiar with these
quotes, but might not have understood they referred to Jesus. The author
wants these people to that Jesus he is God!
What do you think is the theme of chapter 1?
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Hebrews 2
Read Hebrews 2
Mark the following words as you read today:
Therefore
Angels
Jesus and all pronouns
God and all pronouns
Based on what you learned about Jesus in chapter 1, what do you
think the "Therefore" in 2:1 is referring to?
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In verse 1, we come to the first warning in this book. It is a warning
about paying close attention to what we have heard so we do not drift
away from it. Think about drifting for a minute. How quickly does it
happen? Is it always noticeable? Do you have to do anything to
drift? Relate these observations to how we drift spiritually and why
this warning is given.
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In verses 1-3, there are several reasons given for why we should pay close
attention to the message we have heard. Let's take a look at them.
What do we learn about the message declared to us by angels?
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Reliable means trustworthy or dependable. Because God's message is
true, it is worthy of our trust. We should discard things that cannot be
verified or are misleading, but because God's message to us is reliable, we
need to pay close attention.
9
What was the consequence for ignoring this message?

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A just retribution means it was a just or fair penalty. There are
consequences for ignoring God's message to us.
So what warning does the author share in verse 3?
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God has given us only one means of salvation through Christ. So if we
ignore that, there will be no escape for us from God's wrath against our sin.
God went to great lengths to communicate with us and show us his
message is true. Read verses 3-4 again and write down 4 things God
did to validate his message to us.
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God is a communicating God! Look at all the ways he has communicated
with us so we can know him! He has gone to great lengths to give us
evidence that his message is true. He sent his own Son, he used other
believers who testified about it, he showed us signs and miracles and he
gave us the gifts of the Spirit. God is speaking. The question is: are we
listening?
10

Read Hebrews 2.
What is one more thing we learn about angels from verse 5?
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Verses 6-8 are a quote from Psalm 8:4-6. Who is this section referring
to?
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What do we learn about man from these verses?
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In the second half of verse 8, it says that God "left nothing outside his
(man's) control." The whole world is at our disposal and God made man
his highest creation.
But what does it also say at the end of verse 8?
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What things can you think of that this might be referring to?
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It might seem strange that the author suddenly starts talking about man
when he has been comparing Jesus and the angels. But we will see why it
is important that Jesus became a man.
In verse 9, the first word is "but" indicating a contrast from what was
previously talked about.
Who is verse 9 talking about?
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11
What do we learn about Jesus and the angels from this verse?
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How is God's grace shown in verse 9?
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Look up John 8:52. What does Jesus say in these verses about
tasting death?
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Jesus tasted death for us so we won't have to! Remember death means
separation, and for those who believe His Word, God promises they will
never have to experience that separation from him. For those who are
saved, Paul describes death as just falling asleep, taking a nap! "O death,
where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?" (1 Corinthians 15:55)
Thank you Jesus, for taking my place and tasting death for me!
In verse 10, who does "he" refer to? Read it carefully.
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What do we learn about God in this verse?
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Verse 10 says that Jesus was made perfect through suffering. Since
Jesus never sinned, what does this mean? Look up the word
"perfect" in the Greek.
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Jesus was made perfect or complete through suffering. If he had never
experienced pain or suffering, he would not be able to understand what we
were going through. But Jesus has experienced everything we have gone
through so in that sense, he was made complete through suffering.
12
In verse 11, who is it referring to when it says "he who sanctifies"?

Look up Hebrews 13:12.
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So who is the source of Jesus and for us, who are sanctified?
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Because Jesus and the sanctified both come from God, what is the
result of that from verse 11?
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This is pretty astounding! God's own Son is not ashamed to call us his
brothers, part of His family. And it has absolutely nothing to do with our
own merit or goodness, but only because His death sanctifies us.
To sanctify means "to set apart." It also carries with it the idea of being
washed and made clean. Because of Christ's death on our behalf, we are
set apart from the rest of the world because our sins have been forgiven
and now Jesus gladly welcomes us into his own family, calling us His
brothers!
13

Read Hebrews 2.
One of the reasons that Jesus is better than the angels is that he took on
flesh and blood. There are six reasons that Jesus had to become like us.
Let's look at each one of them.
In verse 14, what is the first thing that Christ's death accomplished for
us?
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According to this verse, the devil has the power of death, but Jesus
destroyed him! Look up the definition of destroy in the Greek.
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Jesus broke Satan's power of death over us and made him ineffective. We
no longer have to fear his power over us!
What is the second thing Jesus' death accomplished for us from
verse 15?
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From verse 16, what is the third benefit?
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Does the "offspring of Abraham" refer only to the Jews? Read
Romans 4:16 to see who the offspring of Abraham are.
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What is the fourth benefit we receive from verse 17?
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14
The job of a high priest is to go before God and offer sacrifices on the
behalf of the people. Jesus is described as being merciful and faithful in
His service.
What does he do for us as a high priest from verse 17?
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Propitiation is not a word that we hear very often. It carries with it the idea
of forgiveness of sins, but the reason the sins can be forgiven is because
God is satisfied with the payment that was made. Propitiation is a
satisfactory payment for sins. People try to bring all sorts of payments for
their sins, but God is only satisfied with one payment, and that was the
death of his Son.
What is the last thing Christ's death has accomplished for us in verse
18?
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Look up Hebrews 4:15. This verse gives us confidence that Jesus can help
us because He went through the suffering of temptation but He was
victorious. He never sinned! He is the One we can run to when we need
help in saying "no" to sin.
Jesus death did not only save us from hell, the victory He won can help us
in the here and now!
Based on what you have studied this week, what do you think the
theme of chapter 2 is?
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15
Hebrews 3
Read Hebrews 3.
Therefore
God and all pronouns
Jesus and all pronouns
Worthy of more glory, much more
Hold fast
Do not harden your hearts
Rest
Based on what you just read in chapter 2, what does the "Therefore"
in 3:1 refer to?
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How does the author address them in verse 1?
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Knowing that this is written to believers will help us understand the rest of
the chapter and the book.
What are we told to do in verse 1?
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The word consider means "to give very careful consideration to some
matterto think about very carefully, to consider closely."
What specifically does the author want us to consider about Jesus?
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16
In chapter 1 and 2, we saw that Jesus is better than the angels. What
comparison is made here in verse 3?
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Why is Jesus better than Moses according to verses 5-6? Note the
different roles that Jesus and Moses had.
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If youre not steeped in the Old Testament the way the original recipients of
this letter were, some of these references wont make as much of an
impact as the author intended. For example, the author talks about Moses
being faithful, but if you dont know what might have caused Moses to want
to give up, you cant appreciate the superior faithfulness of Jesus. So lets
do some historical review about Moses. Read the following passages and
note what obstacles Moses faced and how he responded to God.
Exodus 3-4:17
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Exodus 17:1-6
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Both Moses and Jesus were "faithful in all God's house." They were both
obedient to do what God asked of them. Moses was faithful as a servant,
but Jesus was counted worthy of more glory because He is God's own
Son.
Let's take a closer look at Hebrews 3:6. We have already seen that being
faithful in God's house, is referring to service. Moses was faithful in the job
that God has given him to do. And Jesus, God's Son was faithful to obey
His Father.
In understanding this verse, we know it is not talking about salvation,
because these people were already saved. (3:1)
17
Notice the word "if" in this verse. It says we are God's house if we hold
fast. Let's see if we can figure out what he is saying.
Hold fast means "to continue to believe, with the implication of acting in
accordance with such beliefto continue to believe and practice, to
continue to follow."
What were these people told to hold fast to?
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In this verse, confidence is "a state of boldness, sometimes implying
intimidating circumstancesboldness, courage."
The author says these people are God's house if they continue to believe
God and hold fast to their courage and boldness.
Remember that these believers were suffering some persecution for
their faith. Read Hebrews 10:32-36 to see exactly what they were
facing.
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So I believe that the author is exhorting these people to faithful service in
the midst of difficult circumstances. Moses and Jesus were both faithful in
spite of difficulty and he encourages these people that they will be "God's
house" too if they persevere and hold on to the truth during this time of
persecution.
To boast means "to express an unusually high degree of confidence in
someone or something being exceptionally noteworthy.
What is our hope that we should boast about?
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The author told them about the hope they have in Christ in chapter 2 and
reminded them about all that Jesus had done for them. If they had
confidence in Christ, and remembered their hope, they too, would be
faithful in all God's house.
The author is exhorting these believers to hold fast. Moses and Jesus are
both given as examples, but of course, Jesus is held up as being better
than Moses. Jesus was faithful to do what God had asked of him, and as
we consider what he endured, this will help us to hold fast as well.
19

Read Hebrews 3.
In this section, the author gives them an example they would have been
well acquainted with - the Israelites in the wilderness.
In verse 7, we come to the second warning in this book. Write it
below.
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Read verses 7-11 again. Note how these people are described and
what they did. This is how we should not be.
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The Israelites heard God speaking to them through Moses and they saw
his works for 40 years. They saw God miraculously save them from the
Egyptian army. He provided manna and quail for them when they were
hungry and water from the rock when they were thirsty. God's presence
with them was obvious through the pillar of cloud during the day and a pillar
of fire at night. Yet they still chose to harden their hearts and rebel against
God.
What was God's response to the Israelites in verse 10?
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What was the consequence for their rebellion and testing the Lord?
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Rest in Hebrews has a few different meanings, based on context.
What do you think not being able to enter God's rest meant for the
Israelites?
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20
The warning here is profound. The Israelites heard God's word and they
saw his works, but they chose to harden their hearts against him. As a
result, that entire generation was forbidden to enter the promised land.
God has given us a better revelation through His Son in these last days, so
we will be held accountable as well, if we ignore it.
The children of Israel stand as a negative example compared to Moses and
Jesus. The warning is that we should not harden our hearts if we hear God
speaking to us. For Israel the consequences were severe, and they are
meant to be a lesson and warning to us as well.
What is your attitude towards God and His Word? Do you despise it or
take it lightly? Are you eager to hear what he has to say? We are told to
play close attention to what God has said. Ask God to give you ears to
hear and feet that are quick to obey. Otherwise, we will be held
accountable and there will be a just retribution.
21

What is the third warning we see in verse 12?
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What is the result of having an evil, unbelieving heart?
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What does v. 13 tell us to do so that people won't be hardened by the
deceitfulness of sin?
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To exhort means "to cause someone to be encouraged or consoled, either
by verbal or non-verbal meansto encourage, to console."
How often are we to exhort each other?
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When we see a believer acting like the children of Israel, we are to exhort
and warn them! An unbelieving heart leads to a hardened heart that can
easily be deceived by sin. We usually don't recognize it in ourselves.
That's why it is so important for others to come alongside us and remind us
of the consequences of sin.
To deceive means "to cause someone to have misleading or erroneous
views concerning the truthto mislead, to deceive."
God tells us that sin is deceitful. Sin tells us that it doesn't matter if we
don't listen to God. It tries us to convince us that there won't be any
consequences to our sinful actions. Sin tells us we will be happier if we
look out for ourself first instead of listening to God. Sin tries to tell us that
God is not doing what is best for us, that he is unloving and cannot be
trusted. All of these are lies!
Now we are going to take a closer look at Hebrews 3:14. It is very similar
to Hebrews 3:6. Note the word "if" in this verse as well.
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To share here means "one who shares with someone else as an associate
in an enterprise or undertakingcompanion, partner."
Ephesians 1 tells us some of the spiritual blessings we have in Christ.
Read Ephesians 1 - 2 and note what some of them are.
1:4____________________________________________________________
1:5____________________________________________________________
1:6____________________________________________________________
1:7- (two things)
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1:7-8
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1:9____________________________________________________________
1:11____________________________________________________________
1:13-14____________________________________________________________
2:5____________________________________________________________
2:6____________________________________________________________
2:13____________________________________________________________
2:14-18____________________________________________________________
2:19____________________________________________________________
What do you think it means to share in Christ? Is it talking about
salvation or something else? See Romans 8:17 to help you.
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23
This word for confidence is a different Greek word than the one we looked
at earlier. Here it means "that which provides the basis for trust and
reliancetrust, confidence, assurance."
So if we have faith and assurance about what God has said, we will share
in Christ. We will experience all the blessings we just looked at. They are
always available to us, but if we lack faith, we will not be able to partake
and enjoy them.
It was the same for Israel. They did not hold their confidence in God firm to
the end and as a result they were denied entrance into the land that God
had promised them. They were still God's children, but they missed out on
the blessings.
What warning is repeated in verse 15?
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In verse 17, what was the consequence Israel experienced for
provoking God?
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What two reasons are given for why Israel could not enter the rest of
the promised land? (v.18-19)
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Wow, this has been a challenging chapter! I think we can see how
important it is to believe God and what he says. The consequences are
pretty ugly! In chapter 2:1, we are warned to play close attention so we
don't drift away from God. We are either drifting away from God or growing
closer to him. There is no middle ground. Both processes are very slow
and we almost don't even notice that we are moving. The main thing that
decides if we are drifting or growing is if we listen to what God says and
believe his Word.
The Israelites did not believe God and that whole generation missed out on
the blessing of entering the Promised Land. The same is true for us today.
When we doubt God's Word, we miss out on God being able to use us, we
don't experience all the blessings we have in Christ, and we do not enter
24
into God's rest. Instead we strive and try to live the Christian life on our
own which always ends in frustration. We hurt ourselves and rob God of
the glory due his name when we do things our way. It didn't turn out well
for Israel, and it doesn't turn out well for us either.
Write what you think the theme is of chapter 3?
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25
Hebrews 4
Read Hebrews 4
Therefore
Rest
Do not harden your hearts
Let us
Hold fast
What warning or danger is mentioned in verse 1?
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In verse 1, it says that we should "fear" that we should fail to reach God's
rest. If God tells us to be afraid of something, we should pay close
attention to what he is saying.
Why do you think not entering God's rest is something that we should
fear or be alarmed about? You can look back over your notes on
chapter 3 to see what some of the negative consequences are.
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We are not the nation of Israel, so what does this rest have to do with us?
There are a few different types of rest mentioned in this chapter. In verses
2-3, he is referring to Israel not entering God's rest and therefore they were
prohibited from entering the Promised Land. Their lack of faith and
rebellion provoked God and He swore that that generation would not enter
the land, but would die in the wilderness. Israel is used as an example of
what not to do. In verse 4, there is a creation rest mentioned when God
rested from all his works on the 7th day. In verse 1, the author tells us that
the promise of entering God's rest still stands, or is still available. So this
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rest must be a different rest from the rest offered to Israel or the rest
referred to when God finished creating the word, but there are aspects of
Israel's rest and God's rest that tie in with our rest today. Let's dig a little
more and see if we can figure out what the rest available to us today is.
How do we enter God's rest? (4:3)
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Is it a guarantee that we as believers will enter this rest?
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What would keep us from entering God's rest? (4:2; 4:6)
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In verse 7, the author warns us against hardening our hearts for the third
time (Hebrews 3:7,15; 4:7). Anytime God repeats something, we should
take notice and listen.
What do we do when we enter this rest? (4:10)
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In verse 11, we are told to strive to enter this rest. Strive means "to be
eager to do something, with the implication of readiness to expend energy
and effortto be eager, eagerness, devotion."
It almost seems like a paradox that we should strive to enter God's rest.
But I think the author is exhorting us to be eager and quick to believe God
and what His word says. We should show interest, eagerness and initiative
to take God at His word.
What are the consequences of not entering God's rest? (4:11)
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So what is this rest available to us today? I believe the rest he is referring
to is the faith-rest life. This is the realization that we are simply to rest in
faith and trust in the promises of God, not to strain to please Him by our
own efforts or works.
27
Read these verses and note what they say about rest.
Colossians 2:6-7: How did we receive Christ? By faith! So how are
we to walk?
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2 Corinthians 5:7
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Matthew 11:28-30
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God has done the work! As we read in Hebrews 2:14-18 Jesus destroyed
the power of the devil and delivered us from our life-long slavery to sin. He
has given us victory over sin. We still have the sin nature in us, but its
power has been broken and we do not have to give in to our sinful desires
anymore. It's like an electrical cord. The cord has no electricity or power
running through it unless it is plugged in. Unless we chose to plug in the
cord to sin, it has no power over us! It is lifeless and defeated. The Holy
Spirit, God himself, has taken up residence in us and He gives us the
power to live a victorious Christian life. Do you believe that? Faith is the
key to entering this life of rest. We may not always feel like this is true, but
God's Word says it is, so we must believe it! When we claim this truth by
faith, that's when we can enter God's rest. God has done it all and He
invites us to rest in what he has accomplished for us. We can try to strive
and be really good on our own, or we can rest in what Jesus has done.
Isn't it sad to think that some people will miss out on the rest that God is
offering? Let us pay close attention to God's Word so we are not one of
those people!
28

Read Hebrews 4.
How do you think verse 12 relates to the previous verse about striving
to enter God's rest? How does God's word affect our rest?
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The word active means "pertaining to being effective in causing something
to happeneffective, able to bring about."
Knowing that God's Word is active and effective to change things,
how does this encourage you, especially after reading verse 11?
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List what we are told about God and His Word from verses 12-13.
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I find verses 12-13 very encouraging. After spending lots of time warning
us to listen to God and believe Him so that we can experience His rest, He
tells us that we have a wonderful resource, and that is the Word of God.
God's word will change me, convict me, encourage me and build my faith in
who God is. If I will listen to His word, God promises that it will be effective
to work change in my life. If I listen and believe God, I will not drift away
from him or fail to experience His rest! What an encouragement!
Why do you think the author reminds us that Jesus has passed to the
heavens in verse 14?
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29
In chapter 3, we were told to hold fast to our confidence (v. 6,14).

What are we told to hold fast to now in chapter 4?
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Our confession is the things that we believe. To confess really means to
agree with God. So we should hold fast to the things that we agree with
God about, the things He has said in His Word.
What are some things listed in verses 15-16 that might help us to hold
fast to our confession or the things that we believe?
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From verses 14-16, list how Jesus is described as our high priest.
How is he different and better than a human high priest?
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Because Jesus is a better high priest, we can approach him with
confidence! The word confidence can also mean courage. What is
the only reason we can approach God's throne with courage and
confidence?
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Instead of condemning us for our sin, how does God receive us?
____________________________________________________________
Mercy means "to show kindness or concern for someone in serious need."
Grace means "to show kindness to someone, with the implication of
graciousness on the part of the one showing such kindness; to show favor
or good will that is undeserved."
Remember that this book is written to believers. God's mercy and
grace rests on those who have believed his Son. What awaits
unbelievers? (See Romans 1:18; Romans 5:9; 1 Thess. 1:10; 5:9)
____________________________________________________________
30
After all the warnings in chapters 2-4, I find the end of chapter 4 very
encouraging. God has not left us on our own. He has given us his Word,
which is effective and powerful to change our thinking and keep us from
unbelief. He has also given us Jesus, a faithful and merciful high priest
who completely understands our weakness and struggles and is there to
help us in our time of need. The all-powerful, eternal, magnificent God has
made himself available to us!
Hebrews 4:11 tells us "Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that
no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience." So based on what
we have read today, what are some practical things we can do to
prevent us from falling or drifting away from the truth?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
31
Day 13
Read Hebrews 4
As a review, look up the following verses, and write down the warnings
given to us.
Heb. 2:1
____________________________________________________________
Heb. 3:7-8
____________________________________________________________
Heb. 3:12
____________________________________________________________
Heb. 3:13
____________________________________________________________
Heb. 3:15
____________________________________________________________
Heb. 4:1
____________________________________________________________
Heb. 4:7
____________________________________________________________
Heb. 4:11
____________________________________________________________
Are any warnings repeated more than once?
____________________________________________________________
So far, from your study of Hebrews 1-4, what has been the author's
main emphasis?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Write what you think the theme is of chapter 4.
____________________________________________________________
32
Hebrews 5

Read Hebrews 5.
Mark the following words as you read:
Priest, high priest
All references to God
All references to Jesus
This section continues the discussion about Jesus as our high priest that
we read about at the end of chapter 4.
Read the first six verses and note everything you learn about a high
priest in the Old Testament. How were they limited?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Now note what you learn about Jesus as our high priest. What makes
him better?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Because Jesus has "passed through the heavens" (4:14) he will be a priest
forever. His eternal priesthood is what sets him apart from any other priest.
He always lives to intercede for me before the Father!
Verse 7 tells us that while Jesus lived on earth, he offered up prayers
with "loud cries and tears." How does it make you feel knowing that
Jesus also cried and had sorrow while he lived on this earth?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
33
Reverence in verse 7 means "reverent regard for with the implication of

obedience." Jesus was heard because of his obedience to the Father to go
to the cross, even though it was something he didn't look forward to in his
flesh.
Jesus is shown here as an example for the recipients of this letter. They
were in danger of falling away and not listening to or obeying God.
Obedience it is not always easy, but Jesus is our example of reverently
obeying the Father even when it was difficult and painful.
From verse 8 it says Jesus learned obedience. Learned here means "to
learn from experience, often with the implication of reflectionto learn, to
come to realize." Jesus has an experiential understanding of what it
means to obey and sometimes how hard it is. He does not just have head
knowledge about it, but he went through it and he knows and understands
what it is like for us!
In verse 9, it says Jesus was made perfect. In order to understand what it
is saying, we need to know what perfect means here. It has the idea of "to
bring an activity to a successful finishto complete, to finish, to end, to
accomplish; to be completely successful in accomplishing some goal or
attaining some state."
What did Jesus complete or bring to a successful end?
____________________________________________________________
What was the result of Jesus learning obedience and being made
perfect?
____________________________________________________________
What does verse 9 say is the condition for salvation?
____________________________________________________________
In other parts of the Bible, belief is the condition for salvation, but here it
says obedience. Is the author saying we must obey to be saved? The
word "obey" in the Greek has two meanings. One means to obey because
you have paid attention to someone. The other meaning is kind of
interesting. It means to "respond to someone knocking or calling at a
34
door." Do you normally obey God and respond to him if you do not believe
His Word? No. I think that the author is just coming at it from a different
perspective. The end result if we are saved should be obedience. I think
he is emphasizing this because remember these people were in danger of
falling away from God. So he is not saying we have to obey to be saved,
but we should obey if we are saved.
The author tells us in verse 9 that Jesus became the author of eternal
salvation. Would our salvation be eternal if it was based on our
obedience? ______. So this gives us a clue that the author is not saying
we have to obey to be saved.
35

Read chapter 5 again today.
In this section, the author says he has more he wants to tell them about
Jesus' example to us, but it is hard for them to understand because they
have become dull of hearing.
From verse 11, dull means "to be slow to understand, with an implication of
laziness."
What does this say about the people the book of Hebrews was written
to?
____________________________________________________________
From verses 11-14, write down what you learned about the recipients
of the book.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Now we can see why the author has given so many warning in this book.
These people are children in their faith when they should have been mature
by now.
From verse 13, what shows us if someone is immature spiritually?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Unskilled means "pertaining to the lack of knowledge or capacity to do
somethinginexperienced in, unacquainted with."
Based on that definition, what do you think it means to be "unskilled
in the word of righteousness?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
36
Read verses 12-13 again. What do you think milk refers to?
____________________________________________________________
From verse 14, what shows us if someone is mature spiritually?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Discernment means "to have the capacity to perceive clearly and
hence to understand the real nature of somethingto be able to
perceive, to have the capacity to understand." How will we be able to
discern between good and evil?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
So an immature person is one who is unskilled in the word, one who is
inexperienced or unacquainted with what God has said. He is not able to
look at things, compare them to God's Word and discern if they are good or
bad. A mature person meditates on the meat of the Word and has been
trained to discern between good and evil, between false teaching and the
truth. These people were immature. What kind of Christian are you based
on the description given here in Hebrews?
Day 15
Read Hebrews 5 once more.
____________________________________________________________
37
Hebrews 6
Therefore
Let us
Any references to God
Any references to Jesus
Promise
Hold fast
High priest
The beginning of chapter six is a continuation of the thoughts at the end of
chapter 5.
Read Hebrews 5:11 through chapter 6.
What 5 things does the author say in verses 1-2 are "elementary
doctrines"?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
He is not saying that any of these doctrines are wrong or incorrect, but that
they should be past these things already.
What does the author mean by dead works in Hebrews 6:1? Look
up these cross-references:
Isaiah 64:6
____________________________________________________________
Galatians 3:5,10
____________________________________________________________
38
Repentance means "to change ones way of life as the result of a complete
change of thought and attitude with regard to sin and righteousnessto
repent, to change ones mind."
Dead here means "pertaining to being utterly useless, ineffective,
powerless."
So based on the verses you read and the definitions, what is he
saying about not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead
works?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
So these believers were still back at the starting blocks! They were still
teaching the foundational truth of salvation that their works are ineffective
to make them right with God and they had to turn to God in faith. We need
to know this to be saved, but it seems these believers had not moved past
that in their growth.
Read verses 4-5 and note what group of people this is referring to. Are
they believers or unbelievers? Explain why you think that.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 6, if these people fall away from God, what does the author
say about them?
____________________________________________________________
Restore means "to cause a change to a previous, preferable stateto
renew, to restore, to bring back."
Again, repentance just means to change your mind and agree with God.
39
So based on the context and what the author has been talking about,
and these definitions, what do you think it means that it is impossible
to restore these people to repentance?
____________________________________________________________
When we come to a difficult passage in Scripture that may not be clear to
us, we should refer to clear passages in Scripture to help us understand
the difficult ones. In other words, we should use Scripture to interpret
Scripture. Many people use these verses to say that you can lose your
salvation. But let's use some other verses in Hebrews to see if this is what
the author is saying. Look up the following verses to see what Hebrews
says about our salvation.
Hebrews 7:25
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 9:12
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 9:15
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 10:10
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 10:14
____________________________________________________________
So the rest of Hebrews contradicts the thought that we can lose our
salvation. And like we will see in chapter 7, the New Covenant is based on
God's oath, not our actions like the Old Covenant was. Since it is
impossible for God to lie, we can take him at his word that our salvation is
forever!
In verse 6, what two things does the author say people who fall away
from God and choose to go their own way are doing to Jesus?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Believers who harden their heart and fall away, are treating Jesus with
contempt. They are proving by their actions that Christ's crucifixion has not
impacted their lives. This is a very sad place for a believer to be.
40
The author does not say it is impossible to restore them to salvation, but it
is impossible to restore them to repentance. There is a very strong warning
here. It seems the author is saying, that a believer can become so
hardened and rebellious to God's truth, that there will come a point where
they will no longer be able to respond to God's voice. They will be so
hardened that it will become impossible for them to change their mind and
agree with God. If these people have felt the Spirit's presence in their life,
tasted God's Word for themselves, and have seen God's power and then
chosen to rebel and harden their hearts, there comes a point where they
will not be able to be brought back to repentance. Now I think we can see
why three times already the author has warned us about hardening our
heart. The danger is real!
41

In verse 7, he uses the example of rain falling and the crops
producing a harvest. What kind of people do you think this is
referring to?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 8, he uses another example of the crop bearing thorns and
thistles and being useless. Who is this referring to? (Remember who
the book is written to and the type of people he has talked about so
far).
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 9, he says that he feels sure of better things for these people,
things that belong to salvation. Since he is already writing to believers, he
must not be referring to the salvation of their souls.
Salvation here means "to rescue from danger and to restore to a former
state of safety and well beingto deliver, to rescue, to make safe,
deliverance."
What is the danger that these people might need to be rescued from?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 10, what does the author commend them for?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Verse 10 is very encouraging, because if God sees us partnering with him
and serving him, he will not overlook or neglect that and I think that means
that he will continue to work in us.
42
In verse 11, he uses the phrase "each one of you." Do you think all
the people were showing that same earnestness?
____________________________________________________________
The word "earnestness" in 6:11 is the same Greek word used for "strive" in
Hebrews 4:11. It means to do something with intense effort and motivation
to work hard, to do ones best, to endeavor. Apparently not all the
believers were showing earnestness.
Assurance means "to be completely certain of the truth of somethingto
be absolutely sure."
Hope means "to look forward with confidence to that which is good and
beneficial."
How long does he want them to have this assurance about their
hope?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
If we are assured of our hope in Christ, what does verse 12 say will be
the result in our lives?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
The word "sluggish" in the Greek is the same word used for the word
"dull" in Hebrews 5:11.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
From the context, who do you think he is referring to in verse 12 that
had faith and patience and inherited God's promises?
____________________________________________________________
He is encouraging these believers that he does see fruit in their lives. He
has seen their works and the love they have shown for Christ's name, but
he encourages them all to be earnest in their pursuit of the Lord. Those
who have faith and patience will inherit his promises and will not fall away.
43

Read Hebrews 6.
To refresh your memory, read these passages to see what God promised
Abraham.
Genesis 12:1-2
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Genesis 13:14-16
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Genesis 15:4-6,18
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Genesis 17:1-8,15-21
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Genesis 21:1-12
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Genesis 22:1-19 (this passage contains the quote in Hebrews 6:14)
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
How many times did God repeat his promise to Abraham?
____________________________________________________________
In verse 15, what does it say happened to Abraham because of his
faith in God?
____________________________________________________________
The author is using Abraham, the father of the Jewish nation, as an
example. He modeled earnestness, faith and patience in holding fast to
what God had promised. Tomorrow we will see that just as Abraham found
God to be faithful, those who hold on to the anchor of our should will find
God faithful as well. The exhortation for us is to hold fast!
44

The key to understanding the authors reference to Abrahams
steadfastness lies in Gods promise to Abraham of a seed. Through this
seed, all the other promises would be fulfilled, and yet God asked Abraham
to sacrifice his son. How could the promise be fulfilled if Isaac was to be
killed? Abraham had to hold fast to his hope.
What was his hope based on? What do you see in verses 16-18?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Abraham believed that God would keep his promise. He knew God would
not lie to him. He was convinced that even if he had to sacrifice Isaac, God
would still fulfill his promise. In Hebrews 11:19 we are told that Abraham
believed that God could even raise Isaac from the dead, so sure was he of
God's Word. Wow!
How does the writer of Hebrews describe this hope? (v. 19)
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
I think it is interesting that the author uses the analogy of an anchor.
Think about an anchor for a moment. What is it's purpose?
____________________________________________________________
An anchor keeps a boat from drifting. It keeps it in the same spot on the
ocean or on a river. Do you remember how back in Hebrews 2:1 we are
warned to pay much closer attention to the truth so that we don't drift away
from it? Now we see the answer to that - our anchor!
So how do you think remembering God's promises and our hope will
keep us from drifting away from God?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
45
In verse 19 it says, " we have this as a sure and steadfast anchor for
the soul. " From the context, what is "this" referring to?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In the OT, who was allowed behind the curtain into the Holy of Holies
in the tabernacle? See Hebrews 9:6-7.
____________________________________________________________
Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf. He had open access to the
Father and now he has opened that up for us too! He was the only high
priest who tore the veil and invited us in to God's holy presence. Now we
have open access to the Father through Jesus.
How do you think the fact that Jesus has opened up the inner place to
us can give us hope?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Day 20
Read Hebrews 6 one more time.
____________________________________________________________
This chapter focuses on pressing on to maturity and being anchored in our
hope. It is easy for immature people to lose hope. Those who still need
milk and can't handle solid food become quickly discouraged when life gets
hard. But for those whose hope is anchored in Christ, they are able to
endure difficult times because their hope is set on Jesus. Their hope rests
in God, who cannot lie and they rest in the security and certainty of God's
Word. Those who feast on the meat of God's Word understand that this life
will include suffering, but we can still live victoriously through Christ. When
our hope is sure and steadfast, and rooted in the character of God who
cannot lie, like Abraham, we will take God at His Word despite the
circumstances, and that is a mark of maturity!
46
Hebrews 7
Day 21
Read Hebrews 7.
Priest, high priest, priesthood
All references to God
All references to Jesus
Better hope, better covenant
Draw near
Once for all
Forever
As a background to this chapter, read Genesis 13-14. Make a list of
anything you learn about Melchizedek.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Now make 3 lists about what you learned about Melchizedek's priesthood,
the Levitical priesthood and Jesus' priesthood from this chapter.
Melchizedek's priesthood:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
47
Levitical priesthood:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Jesus' priesthood:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Based on your study, what do both the priesthoods of Jesus and
Melchizedek have in common that is unlike the Levitical priesthood?
____________________________________________________________
48

Read chapter 7 again.
According to verse 11, what could the Levitical priesthood not do?
____________________________________________________________
Because the Levitical priesthood could not make us perfect before God, a
new priesthood had to be introduced.
Some Jews might question how Jesus could be a priest since he didn't
have the proper lineage to be a priest. Verse 13 tells us that according to
the law of Moses, the priests were to come from the tribe of Levi, but Jesus
descended from the tribe of Judah. In verses 15-16, the author makes it
clear that both Jesus and Melchizedek are qualified to be priests for a
different reason. Their priesthood is not based on who they descended
from.
On what basis are both Jesus and Melchizedek made priests
according to verse 16?
____________________________________________________________
In verse 18, the former commandment that was set aside refers to the
Levitical law. How is the law described in verse 18?
____________________________________________________________
The law was not bad and was valuable in showing us our need for a Savior.
But is was weak and useless in terms of making us right before God. It
could not make us perfect or remove the guilt of our sin.
In verse 19, with the law being set aside, what was introduced?
____________________________________________________________
What did this hope allow us to do?
____________________________________________________________
49
In verse 20, it says the Old Testament priests were not made priests
by taking an oath because it was based on their lineage. But who
made an oath to make Jesus a priest in verse 21?
____________________________________________________________
Jesus has a better priesthood for two reasons. God swore an oath making
him a priest and we have seen that God's Word is sure. Also because
Jesus lives forever and has an indestructible life, his priesthood is eternal.
Because God made an oath and from Hebrews 6:18 we know it is
impossible for God to lie, what does verse 22 tell us?
____________________________________________________________
A guarantor is "one who guarantees the reality of something." Jesus
guarantees the reality of a better covenant for us. Tomorrow we will look at
what makes this new covenant better.
50

Read Hebrews 7.
In verses 23-24, what is one thing that makes Jesus different and
better than the Levitical priests?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 25, what is the result of Jesus living forever? What two
things does he do for us?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
I love the phrase "save to the uttermost." It means to save completely,
totally and entirely. Our salvation is secure!
Because Jesus saves us so completely, we can now draw near to God. In
the Old Testament, a veil separated the people from God's presence. Now
we have open access to draw near to God!
Because of what Christ has done, how does Hebrews 4:16 say we
should draw near?
____________________________________________________________
Based on verses 26-27, why does Jesus not have to offer sacrifices
for his own sins?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 28 there are two contrasts made between Jesus and the high
priests.
First, how were the high priests appointed and how was Jesus
appointed as a priest?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
51
Secondly, how are the priests described and how is Jesus described?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Jesus has a better priesthood! He lives forever and will never die. He is
able to save us completely, something the Old Testament priests could not
do. Jesus lives to always make intercession for us. He is a better priest
because he does not have to offer sacrifices for his own sin; he is perfect!
His sacrifice is once and for all and does not have to be repeated day after
day.
The author is trying to draw these Jews away from their traditions in the old
priesthood. In the next few chapters, he is going to show how Jesus is
superior to the system of worship in the Old Testament. They can leave
behind the old way of worship since it was just a shadow of the things to
come. Jesus is the fulfillment of those things and is so much better!
Jesus is a better high priest because he was appointed by God and his
priesthood continues on forever! The point the author has been making so
far in the book of Hebrews is that Jesus is better! Hes better than the
angels and better than Moses. His rest is better than Moses and Joshuas,
He provides a better hope, and He has become the guarantee of a better
covenant. Jesus is the fulfillment of all that the Old Testament spoke about.
Jesus is better!
What do you think the theme of chapter 7 is?
____________________________________________________________
52
Chapter 8
Read Hebrews 8.
Priest, high priest
Any references to God, pronouns included
Better
Much more excellent
Covenant
I love it when Scripture says "This is the point!" According to verse 1,
what is the point that the author has been saying?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 7:26 and 8:1 both say that we have "such a high priest."
Reread Hebrews 7:26-8:2 and describe what kind of a priest Jesus is
for us.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Verse 1 tells us that Jesus is seated at the right hand of the throne of
God. What do you think the significance is that Jesus is seated?
(Hint: remember that the Old Testament priests were always standing
to perform their duties.)
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Verse 2 tells us that Jesus is ministering in the holy places. Read
Hebrews 9:24. Where is Jesus ministering now and what is he doing?
____________________________________________________________
53
In verse 3, we read that one of the jobs of a priest is to offer

sacrifices. What was Jesus' sacrifice according to Hebrews 9:12?
____________________________________________________________
Verse 4 tells us that the Old Testament sacrifices were just a copy and a
shadow of the heavenly things. A shadow gives you an idea of the shape
of something, but it's not the real thing!
In verse 6, how is Jesus ministry compared to the Levitical priests?
____________________________________________________________
What kind of covenant does Jesus offer?
____________________________________________________________
In order to understand why this covenant was better than the Old
Testament covenant, let's go back and do some review. Read
Deuteronomy 28:1-14. What did God promise if the people obeyed
him? List the blessings below.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Now read Deuteronomy 28:15-68. What did God promise if they
disobeyed? List some of the curses below.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
54
The Old Covenant was conditional. What was it based upon?

____________________________________________________________
This better covenant is not based on how much we do or don't sin, but it is
simply based on the certainty of God's Word! That's why it is better and it
is guaranteed.
What kind of promises were given to Israel? Were they promises
relating to earthly, physical things or spiritual promises?
____________________________________________________________
So based on what you know about the Old Covenant, the Law, why do
you think the author says that the New Covenant that Jesus brings is
better and based on better promises in Hebrews 8:6?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
55

Hebrews 8:8-12 quotes Jeremiah 31:31-34. Also read Ezekiel 36:24-28.
When we read Jeremiah and Ezekiel, we see that the New Covenant
appears to be for the Jewsthe nation of Israel. Hebrews is written to Jews
who have believed in Jesus and entered into the New Covenant. But Im
not Jewish, so how does the New Covenant apply to me?
Lets look at some other New Testament passages to answer this question.
Read Acts 13:44-48, Acts 28:23-28 and Romans 1:16.
According to these three verses, who was salvation offered to first?
What was their response? Who was it offered to next?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
According to Romans 1:16, how do we enter the New Covenant?
____________________________________________________________
Read 1 Corinthians 11:23-26: What instituted the New Covenant?
____________________________________________________________
See Ephesians 2:11-22: What was the Gentiles position before and
how are they viewed now?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Read Ephesians 3:4-6: What is the mystery that was not known about
in times past?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
56
So based on these verses, who is included in the New Covenant?

____________________________________________________________
What do you think is the theme of Hebrews 8?
____________________________________________________________
Thought for the Week

I hope you are seeing how Hebrews all ties together. Remember that this is written
to Hebrew Christians, who because of the persecution, were tempted to turn back to the
old way of doing things through the Law of Moses. The author has reminded his
readers that Jesus is better than the angels, better than Moses, he offers a better rest,
and his priesthood is better than Aaron's. Jesus offers us a better hope, he gives us a
better covenant, better promises and has offered a better sacrifice. The Old Covenant
pales in comparison with all the good things that Jesus offers us in the New Covenant.
The Old Covenant was a conditional covenant. The Israelites had to perform and
obey God in order to receive the blessings that God was offering to them. They could
not come into God's presence; only the high priest could enter and they could only enter
the Holy of Holies once a year. They had to continually offer sacrifices because the
sacrifices they made did not take away their sin.
Why would you want to go back to the old way when what Jesus is offering is so
much better? The New Covenant is unconditional and is based on God's grace. We
don't have to do anything because Jesus has already done it all through his death on
the cross. God does not deal with us based on how good we are, but on how good
Christ is. The promises in the New Covenant are guaranteed because they are based
on God's Word. There has been one sacrifice, once for all, that permanently takes care
of all of our sin.
If we reject what Christ has done for us through the New Covenant, there is nowhere
else to go. Remember all the warnings in the beginning of the book? If we harden our
hearts and don't listen to the Lord, there is nowhere else to go because the Old
Covenant does not offer us the blessings available to us through Christ. Jesus is better!
Through his better sacrifice, he brings us a better covenant that is full of better
promises! We need to listen to him!
57
Hebrews 9
Read Hebrews 9.
Mark the following words in this chapter:
Covenant
Priest, high priest
Blood
Once, once for all
Eternal
Therefore
Better
58
In the drawing, youll see that the outer court had one entrance, which
always faced east. Inside that entrance was an altar of sacrifice, on which
the offerings were burned. After that was a laver full of water for washing.
Then there was a tent divided into two rooms by a veil. The first room was
called the Holy Place, and the second was called the Most Holy Place or
Holy of Holies. Three objects were in the Holy Place: the golden lampstand,
which held seven oil lamps; the table, which held 12 loaves of bread (one
for each tribe); and the altar of incense or golden altar, on which incense
was burned with fire from the altar of sacrifice.
Behind the veil, in the Holy of Holies, sat the Ark of the Covenant, which
held the Ten Commandments inscribed on stone tablets. Either in this box
or before it were also Aarons rod that budded and a golden jar containing
some manna.
The Ark of the Covenant was covered by the mercy seat and two
cherubs whose wings pointed toward each other. The Ark was a portable
box with rings on it to hold poles that rested on the shoulders of the Levites,
who were appointed to carry it.
Above the mercy seat hovered the cloud of God glory. Once a year, on
the Day of Atonement, the high priest took incense from the golden altar
and entered the Holy of Holies to sprinkle the blood of the sacrifice on the
mercy seat to propitiate God.
These things were representative of the true dwelling place of God in
heaven, and Jesus pointed to all this in His earthly ministry. Read the
following verses and identify what each part of the tabernacle stands for.
Psalm 141:2; Revelation 8:3-4 (Altar of Incense)
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 10:20 (The Veil)
____________________________________________________________
John 6:33-51 (Table of Shewbread)
____________________________________________________________
John 8:12 (The Lampstand)
____________________________________________________________
John 10:9 (The Door)
____________________________________________________________
1 Corinthians 5:7 (The Lamb)
____________________________________________________________
59
Ephesians 5:26 (Laver of Water)

____________________________________________________________
According to Hebrews 9:9, what were the Old Testament sacrifices
unable to do?
____________________________________________________________
Contrast that with Hebrews 9:14. What does Christ's blood do for us?
____________________________________________________________
As our consciences are cleansed, what is the result?
____________________________________________________________
Christ's death on our behalf was not only to save us from hell. God's
purpose for believers is to have a changed life and serve Him.
In verse 12, how many times did Christ have to offer a sacrifice?
____________________________________________________________
What did his sacrifice secure for us?
___________________________________________________________
In chapter 8 we learned that we have better promises through Christ.
According to Hebrews 9:15, what is one of those promises?
____________________________________________________________
Was the inheritance of the promised land under the Old Covenant an
eternal inheritance?
____________________________________________________________
The promises under the Old Covenant were for physical blessings and they
were temporary. The promises under the New Covenant were based upon
God's Word and they last forever. That is why they are better.
According to verse 15, what redeems us from the sins committed
under the Old Covenant?
____________________________________________________________
60
In verses 16-17, the author uses the example of a will. When

someone is alive, often times they make a will. It tells who will inherit
their belongings when they die. According to these verses, what has
to happen for a will to take effect?
____________________________________________________________
In the same way, Jesus death instituted the New Covenant, giving us an
eternal redemption and an eternal inheritance.
61

Read Hebrews 9.
According to verse 18, how was the first covenant instituted?
____________________________________________________________
In verses 19-21, what four things were cleansed by blood under the
Old Covenant?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
According to verse 22, why is blood so important?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 23, the "copies" were purified with the blood of animals. How
are the heavenly things purified?
____________________________________________________________
The priests entering into the holy places in the Old Testament were
symbolic of something to come. What is the fulfillment of that in
verse 24?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
According to verses 25-26, how many times did Christ have to offer
himself?
____________________________________________________________
What did his sacrifice accomplish from verse 26?
____________________________________________________________
What do we learn in verse 27 about man?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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Christ is better because he only had to offer one sacrifice, but it was
for the sins of many and for all time. What does verse 28 say about
the second time that Jesus will appear?
____________________________________________________________
Those who are eagerly awaiting Christ's return are already saved. So what
does it mean that he will save them? Jesus return will complete their
salvation. Jesus has saved us from the power and the penalty of sin. But
when he returns and takes us to live with him in heaven forever, we will be
saved from even the presence of sin! What a day that will be and we do
eagerly await it!
What is the theme of chapter 9?
____________________________________________________________
63
Hebrews 10
Read Hebrews 10.
Once for all, for all time
Priest, high priest
Therefore
Let us
Draw near
Hold fast
Blood
Better
In verse 1, circle the words "the law" "can never" "make perfect".
According to this verse, why can't the law make us perfect?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What evidence does verse 2 give of the law's inability to cleanse us?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 3-4, what else does it say about the OT sacrifices?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Verses 5-7, quote Psalm 40:6-8. God is not concerned about
sacrifices offered, but his will being done. According to verse 10,
what was God's will?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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In verse 9 he says God did "away with the first in order to establish
the second." What is he talking about? The first and second what?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Verse 10 tells us we have been sanctified through the sacrifice of
Jesus. Look up the word "sanctified" in the Greek.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Next the author compares Jesus' sacrifice through the New Covenant with
the animal sacrifices in the Old Covenant. Notice how much better Jesus'
sacrifice is!
Old Testament Priests
Jesus our High Priest
Stands daily (v. 11)
Is seated at the right hand of God

(v. 12)
Offers repeatedly the same

sacrifices (v. 11)
Offered for all time a single

sacrifice for sins (v. 12)
Those sacrifices can never take

away sins (v. 11)
His sacrifice perfected us for all

time (v. 14)
In verses 16-17, what are some things that God promises to do in the
New Covenant?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
After telling us repeatedly that Jesus' sacrifice was "once for all",
what do you think verse 18 is saying?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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Because Jesus death was once for all, when we claim this for ourselves by
faith, we have forgiveness of our sin and there is no longer any other
offering needed. The payment is complete!
Before giving any instructions of things we should do, the author
reminds us what Christ has done and what is available to us through
Christ. What three things does he point out in Hebrews 10:19-21?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
So these three things, should make an impact on our lives. So based
on what Jesus has done for us, what does the author tell us to do?
v. 22
____________________________________________________________
v. 23
____________________________________________________________
v. 24
____________________________________________________________
v. 25 (2 things)
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
For each of the commands you listed above, God mentions something in
those verses to help us carry it out!
What does he say in verse 22 will help us draw near to God?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What does he say in verse 23, that helps us to hold fast to our
confession of faith?
____________________________________________________________
What will help us to encourage each other and to not stop meeting
together as Christians? The author tells us in verse 25.
____________________________________________________________
66
Isn't that neat?! God is making it possible for us to live for Him. Our hearts
have been cleansed and our consciences sprinkled clean so now we have
no excuse not to draw near to God. Nothing stands between us and God
except if we choose to push him away. We can hold fast to our confession
of faith, because we know God is faithful and we can trust Him. That helps
us to hold fast. Lastly, if we live with eternity in view, and remember that
the Day is drawing near when Christ will return, that will affect how we treat
our fellow Christians. So our obedience to these commands is not just
obeying a set of rules, but it is an outflow and a result of what Christ has
done. It's all about Him!
67

Now we come to one of the more difficult passages in Hebrews in verses
26-31. First, we need to determine who this is written to. Is it written to
believers or unbelievers? Are there clues in those verses as to who it is
written to? What about the rest of the book of Hebrews? Who has been
addressed so far?
Write a brief paragraph of who you think is being addressed here and
give biblical support for your answer.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
I believe verses 26-31 give us one of the sternest warnings so far about
falling away and rejecting God. Let's work through this passage verse by
verse and see if we can understand it.
What is this person doing in verse 26?
____________________________________________________________
Look up the word "receive" in the Greek and write its definition.
____________________________________________________________
Look up the word "knowledge" in the Greek.
____________________________________________________________
Based on the definitions of receive and knowledge, do you think this
person is saved or unsaved?
____________________________________________________________
Look up the word "remains" in the Greek.
____________________________________________________________
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What do you think it means that if we go on sinning "there no longer

remains a sacrifice for sin?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Let's pause a moment and review what we have learned. In chapter 7, the
author told us that Jesus has a better priesthood because like Melchizedek,
he has an eternal priesthood and lives forever. Three times he has
mentioned that Jesus' sacrifice was "once for all." In chapter 8, he tells us
that Jesus brought a better covenant with better promises because it was
an unconditional covenant based on what Jesus has done, not our
performance (or lack of performance). In chapter 9, we are reminded that
the Old Testament was only a shadow of things to come and pointed ahead
to Jesus. We are told that the old sacrifices could not cleanse the
conscience or take away sin, but that Christ's sacrifice bought us an eternal
redemption, and an eternal inheritance and is able to purify our
consciences and cleanse our sin.
So when the author says that if we keep on deliberately sinning there is
left no other sacrifice for sin, we know from what he has said so far, that he
does not mean that there are sins we can do that Christ's blood can't
cover. We also know it doesn't mean that we can lose our salvation,
because he has said we have an eternal redemption.
I believe what he is saying is if a believer willfully chooses to continue in
a life of sin, since Christ's sacrifice is better and once for all, if a person
refuses to live in light of that, there is no other sacrifice available to them
that will help them live a life of holiness.
In verses 19-25, remember how he tied in what Christ has done for us to
how we should live? So he has just been talking about good works and
how we should behave as Christians. I believe what he is really saying is if
the sacrifice of Christ for your sin isn't enough to cause you to walk as a
Christian, there isn't any other sacrifice left that can do that. Christ's
sacrifice is the best and if we turn away and ignore that, there is nothing
else that can be offered to us.
69
What can a believer expect if he continues in willful sin from v. 27?

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Look up the word adversaries in the Greek.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What does the definition tell you about this person and how he feels
about God? (Remember he is still saved).
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
This is so sad that a believer's heart could grow so hard that he continues
in deliberate sin because he feels hostile to the God who died to save him
from his sins! No wonder God must deal with him in justice and discipline
him for his willful sin.
In verse 28, he says that even under the Old Covenant, if a person was
found guilty and had two or three witnesses against him, he was put to
death! How much more serious is it if a believer under the New Covenant
turns away from God! God will punish that person, not eternally because
Christ took that punishment for him on the cross, but there could be severe
earthly consequences and God might choose to just bring him home to
heaven because he is being such a poor representative of the grace that
God has poured out on him.
In verse 29, what three things does the author say a believer is doing
by choosing to deliberately continue in sin?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Look up the words "trample underfoot" in the Greek to get a better
understanding of what this word means.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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The word "profaned" has the idea of to rule over something, so this person
thinks he is above the blood of Christ and can do whatever he wants!
Look up the word "outrage" in the Greek.
____________________________________________________________
In verse 30, we see that vengeance belongs to the Lord. In this case,
vengeance means "to give justice to someone who has been wronged."
Who has this willful Christian wronged?
____________________________________________________________
So we see here that God will judge or bring justice. Since his own Son has
been so insulted and disregarded, he will certainly rise to judge the one
who has treated his Son so callously. Now we can see why it says it is a
fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God! You almost get the
picture of God rising up to defend Jesus who has been despised by one of
His own children!
71

In verses 32-34, we learn a little bit about the recipients of this book.
Write down what you learned about them.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What thing helped these people to endure persecution in the past? (v.
34)
____________________________________________________________
What is this referring to?
____________________________________________________________
What is the exhortation in verse 35?
____________________________________________________________
Confidence is the same word we saw back in Hebrews 3:6 and it means "a
state of boldness and confidence, sometimes implying intimidating
circumstancesboldness, courage."
What does the author say will happen if they do not throw away their
confidence?
____________________________________________________________
The fact that in verses 32-34, the author refers to all the things these
Christians used to do in the past tense, and now tells them to hold fast to
courage seems to imply that maybe they were getting tired of the
persecution. Maybe they were scared and were tempted not to hold fast.
What does the author say these people needed in verse 36?
____________________________________________________________
72
Jump ahead to Hebrews 12:1-2. What does the author say will help us
endure?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What does verse 36 say will come to those who endure?
____________________________________________________________
What kind of promises do you think he is referring to?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 38, how will the righteous person live?
____________________________________________________________
To shrink back means "to hold oneself back from doing something,
with the implication of some fearful concernto hold back from, to
shrink from, to avoid." Is this person living in faith?
____________________________________________________________
How does verse 38 say God feels about the believer who shrinks
back?
___________________________________________________________
What does Hebrews 11:6 say is the only way to please God?
___________________________________________________________
So the believer who shrinks back is obviously not living a life of faith and
confidence in God. One who shrinks back is not holding fast to his
confidence.
What does verse 39 say is the consequence for those who shrink
back?
____________________________________________________________
73
Look up the word destroyed in the Greek.

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
The destruction here is a ruined life. Remember that this person is still
saved, so the destruction referred to must be unpleasant earthly
consequences and also a loss of reward when we stand before the Lord.
When we go our own way and shrink back from what we know is true, the
end is destruction and we are not able to be used by God to our full
potential. It never ends up good for us when we don't listen to God.
What happens to those who have faith?
____________________________________________________________
Unlike the person who shrinks back and has earthly destructive
consequences, the one who has faith has a lasting reward.
What category does the author say these people are in?
____________________________________________________________
Write what you think is the theme of chapter 10.
____________________________________________________________
74
Hebrews 11
Read Hebrews 11.
Faith
God
Commend
Draw near
Promise
Chapter 11 ties in with the end of chapter 10. He has been encouraging
these people not to throw away their confidence and not to shrink back in
fear. Now he is going to remind them of some people who lived by faith,
undaunted by the obstacles, confident in God's trustworthiness.
According to verse 1, what is the definition of faith?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Faith is the conviction or "the evidence, normally based on argument or
discussion, as to the truth or reality of somethingproof, verification,
evidence for. " So even though we can't see it physically, faith is what
gives us the evidence as to the truth of something. Funny how people
always want to see some evidence that God exists, but here it says that
faith itself gives us the evidence!
What were the people of old commended for, or spoken well of for,
from verse 2?
____________________________________________________________
In verse 3, it says that by faith we understand that the universe was created
by God's Word. To understand means "to comprehend something on the
basis of careful thought and considerationto perceive, to gain insight
into, to understand, to comprehend. " Isn't it interesting that faith itself
75
helps us to understand, to gain insight into and to comprehend? It is not a

"blind faith" but it comes after careful thought and consideration about what
God has said.
Let's work through this chapter and see what faith in God was able to
accomplish. After each person, note what the Bible says they did or the
reward they received.
Abel:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Does our faith have an impact on others? Look at the end of verse 4.
____________________________________________________________
Enoch:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verses 4-5, what does it say about how God felt about both Abel
and Enoch because of their faith?
____________________________________________________________
According to verse 6, what pleases God?
____________________________________________________________
What are the two requirements for drawing near to God in verse 6?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 6, what does the Bible say God does for those who seek him?
____________________________________________________________
Continue noting how these people displayed their faith in God.
Noah:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
76
What attitude did Noah display toward God?

____________________________________________________________
What did Noah gain from believing God?
____________________________________________________________
Abraham:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 10, where does it say Abraham was looking?
____________________________________________________________
Sarah:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 11, why was Sarah able to trust God?
____________________________________________________________
Faith accomplishes the impossible! It was physically impossible for
Abraham and Sarah to have children. In verse 11, it says that Sarah was
past the age and Abraham's body was as good as dead (v. 12). Yet
because they believed in God's word, he accomplished the impossible for
them.
Make a list of what it says about these people in verses 13-16.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Where was their focus?
____________________________________________________________
77
Abraham:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 19, what does it say about why Abraham was able to offer up
his only Son, through whom all the descendants were to come?
____________________________________________________________
Wow, this is pretty incredible! God had repeated his promise to Abraham
about receiving the land and having many descendants 7 times before he
asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac. And God had told Abraham that it would
be through Isaac that he would have many offspring. So by the time God
asked Abraham to sacrifice Isaac, Abraham was fully convinced, that if he
had to kill Isaac, he knew that God would raise him from the dead, because
God had already promised him and he knew God would not lie. Abraham
had tremendous confidence in God's word. Remember that up to this
point, Abraham had never even seen a resurrection from the dead, but he
believed in God and in His power to do the impossible.
78

Read Hebrews 11.
Isaac:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
It may not seem like it took that much faith to pronounce a blessing on your
children or grandchildren, but the blessing Isaac pronounced was based on
God's covenant to Abraham and his offspring. Read Genesis 27:26-29.
Does that sound similar to the promise that God gave Abraham in Genesis
12:2-3? So Isaac was claiming that promise by faith and passing that on
to his children!
Jacob:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Again, Jacob passed on the blessing that God had promised to Abraham to
his own grandchildren. Read the account in Genesis 48:8-20. God had
promised Abraham that his descendants would be as the stars in the
heaven, and when Jacob blesses Joseph's boys, he says their
descendants will be as a multitude. He was believing God's promise.
Joseph:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Read Genesis 50:22-26. Joseph knew that Egypt was not the land that
God had promised to Abraham or his descendants so in faith, he gave
instructions that when the time came that God led them out of Egypt back
to the land he had given them, they were to take his bones along with
them. Joseph believed what God had said!
Moses' parents:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
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Moses parents had faith and because of that the Bible says they were not
afraid. In faith, they hid him in a basket in the bulrushes, knowing that God
would take care of their son.
Moses:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verses 26-27, what two things does it say Moses was looking
towards?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
The Israelites:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Rahab:
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verses 33-35 what are some other things that were accomplished
through faith?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Remember that the recipients of this letter had endured some
persecution already. How do you think reading verses 32-38 would
encourage them?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
80
The word commended (or a variation of it) is mentioned 5 times in this

chapter. God commends those who take him at his word!
In Romans 10:17 tells us that "faith comes from hearing and hearing
through the word of Christ." So if we want to grow in our faith, we must
hear God's Word. Notice how the faith of these people was tied to God's
Word:
v. 7- God warned Noah
v. 8- Abraham was called by God
v. 9, 17- Abraham went to the land that God promised him.
v. 11- Sarah believed what God had promised her.
Many times people read the "faith chapter" and marvel at how strong in
faith these people were. But this chapter really is about God! He had
proven himself trustworthy, strong, powerful and good and these people
were convinced that they could trust Him. In a sense, faith unleashed
God's power in their lives. If we wallow around in doubt and fear, God is
not going to be able to use us to our full potential. But when we trust Him,
he works in amazing, powerful ways, doing the impossible on our behalf.
So this chapter really isn't about the people's faith, but an account of God's
faithfulness to them.
Write out the theme for chapter 11.
____________________________________________________________
81
Hebrews 12
Read Hebrews 12.
Therefore
Let us
Discipline
Better
The word "therefore" in the beginning of chapter 12 ties in with the
examples of faith we read in chapter 11. Who do you think the "cloud
of witnesses" is?
____________________________________________________________
In verse 1, we are told to lay aside every weight. Weight here means
"that which serves to hinder or prevent someone from doing
something." What things in your life do you feel like are hindering
you from growing in the Lord or hindering your faith?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
We are told to put away or get rid of anything that hinders our
spiritual progress. For the things that you listed above, what can you
do to practically lay aside or get rid of those weights?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
The second exhortation for us in this verse, is to run with endurance. In
Hebrews 10:36 he had told them that they had need of endurance. They
were getting tired of the persecution and struggles.
82
According to verse 2, what will help us to run with endurance?

____________________________________________________________
Keeping our focus on Christ, will help us to endure. Where do we
often focus during difficult times?
____________________________________________________________
What things are listed about Jesus in verses 2-3 that we should
specifically focus on?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
If we focus on and consider Jesus, what does verse 3 say will be the
result?
____________________________________________________________
Now the author moves on to a discussion of discipline.
To discipline means to chastise for the purpose of improved behavior. The
motivation in the Bible is to teach or train us. Remember the root word of
discipline is disciple! A disciple is a follower. So in disciplining us, God's
goal is to teach and train us in order so that we will follow him more closely.
From verse 5, what is to be our attitude about God's discipline?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
"Regard lightly" means to regard something or someone as of little value
to look down on, to have contempt for, to make light of, to despise.
Here the word " weary" means to become discouraged, to lose heart; give
up.
I think this is a very appropriate exhortation based on everything the author
has said to his readers so far about holding fast and not turning away from
the Lord. It is a temptation for us to feel like giving up if we are
discouraged, so we are warned not to do this.
83
According to verses 6-7, who does the Lord discipline?

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
How would knowing this fact help you not to become weary?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What does verse 8 say about those who do not experience the Lord's
discipline?
____________________________________________________________
Verse 9 moves onto a concrete example for us. He says we have had
earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. So
what should our attitude be before the Lord when he disciplines us?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 9, "be subject to" means to bring under control. Perhaps one
reason the Lord has to discipline us is because we have gotten
independent of the Lord and he wants to remind us who really is in control.
Discipline really puts us in our proper place. God is the absolute, ultimate
authority, and discipline helps us to see and remember that.
According to verse 10, what is God's purpose in disciplining us?
____________________________________________________________
In verse 11, the author admits that discipline is painful at the time, but
what can it yield in our lives?
____________________________________________________________
Righteousness here means the act of doing what God requires or doing
what is right. You could also say obedience.
Why do you think the author describes it as the peaceful fruit of
righteousness? How do peace and righteousness relate?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
84
There is one caveat in 11. Who are the only people who will reap this
peaceful fruit of righteousness?
____________________________________________________________
Is there some difficulty you are facing right now? Whether it is from the
consequences of your own poor choices or through no fault of your own,
God means to use it in your life to train you in godliness. Ask God for the
grace to receive it and that you would have an understanding heart for the
lessons he wants to teach you.
85

Read Hebrews 12.
What do you think he might be referring to in verse 12 when he says
to "lift your drooping hands"?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What do you think he might be referring to when he says to
"strengthen your weak knees"?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Hands are used in service and knees are used in prayer. It seems these
people are weak in both of these areas and need to be strengthened.
In verse 13, he uses an idiom when referring to straight paths. It literally
means to make straight wheel tracks for the feet; it means "to live or
behave in strict conformance to a predetermined model for behaviorto
live, to behave, to conduct oneself correctly."
He continues the metaphor by referring to a lame person. A lame
person is one who cannot walk or is crippled. Based on the entire
book of Hebrews, what would a lame Christian look like?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Healed in verse 13 is used figuratively. It means to cause something to
change to an earlier, correct, or appropriate stateto renew, to heal.
So what is this verse saying? He starts out by exhorting the believers to
make straight paths for their feet, or to live and behave in a way that is right
and correct. The reason we want to do this is because our actions effect
other people! There were lame Christians around them, those who
because of the persecution, had become discouraged and ineffective in
their faith. The author is exhorting his readers to be good examples, to
86
stand fast and come alongside those who were limping and struggling, so
that these Christians could be healed, or be restored to a proper
relationship with God. It is not referring to salvation or loss of salvation, but
to our walk with the Lord. How we behave does affect other people and the
author is reminding them of this.
What does verse 14 tell us to strive for?
____________________________________________________________
To strive means to strive energetically for some purposeto strive toward
a goal, to press on with purpose.'
It is not a casual word. We are told to do whatever we can to be at peace
with those around us. Look up Romans 12:18, Romans 14:19, 1 Peter
3:11. So based on these verses, if there is a disagreement or problem
between us, we are to do whatever we can to be at peace. When God
uses words like seek, strive, pursue, as far as it depends on you, we get
the idea that we are to be very proactive in keeping peace with those
around us.
Is there a person you need to seek to be at peace with?
In verses 15-17, we come to another warning. In verse 15, "see to it"
means to give careful consideration to something, with the implication of
guarding againstto give careful attention to, to consider carefully, to
guard against. So here is something very important that we are to pay
close attention to.
Before we try to figure out what it means to fail to obtain the grace of God,
let's review what we already know.
Who is this book addressed to?
____________________________________________________________
In light of this, do you think failing to obtain God's grace is dealing
with salvation?
____________________________________________________________
87
So if it is written to believers, there must be a way that believers can fail to

obtain God's grace. Let's look more closely at what some of the words
mean in this verse.
The word fail is hustereo in the Greek and it means to come late or too
tardily. In Heb. 4:1, this same word is used. Go back and read Hebrews
4:1 again. In that verse, fail means to be left behind in the race and so fail
to reach the goal, to fall short of the end. In Hebrews we are told that as
Christians, we can fail to enter God's rest and his grace. That is not a
position I want to be in!
It is used here in Hebrews 12:15 with the preposition apo () which
means off, away from, and means to fall back from, implying a previous
attainment. It has the idea of turning back from, or falling away from and so
to fail to reach the goal. It can also carry the idea of depriving oneself,
which I think is interesting. We should not fall away from the truth, and in
doing so, deprive ourselves of God's grace.
The rest of verses 15-17 describe some actions of a person who has
turned back from God's grace. List them below. As we can see,
properly understanding and living in God's grace, definitely affects
our actions.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What does it say a "root of bitterness" can do?
____________________________________________________________
Remember that these believers were being persecuted and going through
a very difficult time. It might be easy for them to miss God's grace in their
everyday lives. They might forget about the goodness of God and his
promises and instead, start to become bitter because of the trials and
difficulties. We are warned that this bitterness does not only affect us, but
can spread to the rest of the Body, doing much harm and negatively
affecting other people's walk with the Lord. Remember that this is written
to believers so it is not speaking of saving grace, but the grace God freely
gives to live a victorious Christian life.
88

Read Hebrews 12.
Verses 18-21 refer back to the Old Testament when God gave Moses the
law on Mt. Sinai. Read Exodus 19 to get a better picture what the author is
talking about. Remember that the main point he is making here, is that we
have not come to this type of mountain.
Note below what you observe about how God and the people
interacted.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Verses 22-24 describes the type of mountain we have come to. List
below the characteristics of this mountain, and note who is present.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 25, who is he that is speaking?
____________________________________________________________
Reread Exodus 19:10-13. What happened to the Israelites who
refused to listen to God at the giving of the Law?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
89
So what is the warning to us?

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 28, what should we be grateful for?
____________________________________________________________
Shaken here has the idea of being immovable, unchanging and never
ending. That is something to be thankful for!
Because we have this unshakeable, enduring kingdom, what should
our response be from that verse?
____________________________________________________________
What does God say is acceptable worship?
____________________________________________________________
He ends with saying that we should fear and respect God because he
is a consuming fire. Go back and read Exodus 19:16-20. How is God
pictured in these verses?
____________________________________________________________
What do you think it means when it says that our God is a consuming
fire? How should we respond to him in light of this description?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What is the theme of chapter 12?
____________________________________________________________
90
Hebrews 13

Read Hebrews 13.
Angels
God
Jesus
Blood
Let us
Covenant
We now come to the last chapter of Hebrews! Great job at sticking with it
to the end! We have learned a lot. Now the author gives us a list of some
things we should do. I think it is interesting that he did not give us this list
in the beginning of the book. He has built his case throughout, that Jesus
is better than the angels, he offers a better rest, he is better than Moses, he
brought us a new covenant with better blood, better sacrifices, and better
promises. Because of this we should listen to Him! So now that he has
built up the supremacy of Jesus, now he encourages his readers with some
commands. May we listen to what He is saying!
All of the commands could be summarized in verse 1. Let brotherly love
continue. Each command that follows, has with it a reason or an
encouragement for us to obey. List each command and then list why we
should do it.
v. 2 Command:
____________________________________________________________
Reason to obey:
____________________________________________________________
91
v. 3 Command:
____________________________________________________________
Reason to obey:
____________________________________________________________
v. 4 Command:
____________________________________________________________
Reason to obey:
____________________________________________________________
v. 5 Command:
____________________________________________________________
Reason to obey:
____________________________________________________________
v. 7 Command:
____________________________________________________________
How do you think verse 8 ties in with verse 7?
____________________________________________________________
The author encourages them to observe the outcome of their leaders' way
of life. Outcome means result or end goal. Jesus' faithfulness should be
evident in the lives of their leaders so they are to observe and consider this.
As we see God's faithfulness in other people's lives, it serves as an
encouragement for us as well.
v. 9 Command:
____________________________________________________________
Reason to obey:
____________________________________________________________
Anytime God tells us to do something it is for our good and for our
protection. And these verses show us positive reasons why we should
obey.
92

Read Hebrews 13.
In verse 10, the author again points out how much better our New
Covenant is.
We come to an altar to approach God - sacrifice, atonement, pardon,
acceptance, forgiveness and salvationare all represented in the figure of
an altar.
So what kind of altar do we have that makes it possible for us to
approach God?
____________________________________________________________
Tent in verse 10 can also be translated, tabernacle. The tent
represents the Old Covenant and the old way of offering animal
sacrifices. So what is the author saying in this verse? Put it in your
own words.
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Verse 11 is an explanation of what happened on the Day of Atonement.
Read Leviticus 16 carefully to understand what the author is talking about.
Verse 12 is very significant. Just as the priests had to burn the sin offering
outside the camp, so Jesus suffered and died for our sins outside the city of
Jerusalem. He is the fulfillment of the Old Testament sacrifices.
Jerusalem was the center of Jewish worship, but after Christ was crucified,
many Jews continued offering animal sacrifices in defiance of Jesus'
perfect sacrifice. When a Jew trusted Christ, he necessarily had to make a
break from Judaism and the Old Covenant. If they did this, it was often
followed by persecution.
93
Let's look a little closer at what the author is referring to when he talks
about us joining Jesus outside the camp. Look up these verses and then
note your thoughts.
Leviticus 13: 45-46
____________________________________________________________
Numbers 5: 1-3
____________________________________________________________
Numbers 12: 1-16
____________________________________________________________
These Jews knew exactly what the author meant by joining Jesus outside
the camp. In the Old Testament, if you were put out of the camp, that
meant separation from your friends and family, and you could not join in
with what was going on with the congregation of Israel. It was a lonely
place. These Jews knew that if they followed Christ, there would likely be
rejection and persecution.
In verse 12 it says that Jesus sanctified us by his own blood. The word
sanctify in the Greek means to set apart for God. So Jesus, by
becoming a sacrifice under the New Covenant and as an outcast from
Israel, set apart the Jew who placed his faith in Him, and consecrated that
person to God. It was with His own blood that He did this.
Take some time to reflect on what it means for you personally to be
set apart for God. What implications might this have in your life?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
94

Read Hebrews 13.
In verses 15-16, what three things are mentioned that we can do that
God considers a sacrifice?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
How are we told to respond to our church leaders?
____________________________________________________________
What is the responsibility of our spiritual leaders?
____________________________________________________________
According to Hebrews 13:17 and James 3: 1, what does it say about
those who teach the Word and are in spiritual leadership?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
What does the author ask prayer for in verses 18-19?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 20, what does the author remind us that God has done?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
This new way of worship brings life! We have been brought back from the
dead! The old system could never offer us that!
In verse 21, what does the author say God will do in Christians?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
95
What are three results of God working in us from verse 21?

____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
In verse 22, what type of letter does the author say he has written to
them?
____________________________________________________________
"Grace be with you all." What a fitting way to close the book! Remember
in Hebrews 12:15 he warns us that we can fail to obtain God's grace?
Here he reminds us that God's grace is available to all. We just need to
take hold of it and live our lives in light of this grace.
What is the theme of Hebrews 13?
____________________________________________________________
96
Day 39
In light of Christ being far superior, let's go back and review some of the
commands mentioned in the book of Hebrews.
Look up the following verses and note what things we are told to hold fast
to.
Hebrews 3:6,14
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 4:14, 10:23
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 6:18
____________________________________________________________
The phrase "let us" appears over and over again in this book. Each time it
is an encouragement and exhortation to do something. Note what each
one is from the verses below.
Let us:
Hebrews 4:1 _________________________________________________
Hebrews 4:11 ________________________________________________
Hebrews 4:14 ________________________________________________
Hebrews 4:16 ________________________________________________
Hebrews 6:1 _________________________________________________
Hebrews 10:22 _______________________________________________
Hebrews 10:23 _______________________________________________
Hebrews 10:24 _______________________________________________
Hebrews 12:1 ________________________________________________
Hebrews 12:28 _______________________________________________
97
Finally, Jesus is lifted up in this book as being better than anything

previously offered. Let's go back and review all these things.
Hebrews 1:4
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 3:3
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 7:19
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 7:22
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 8:6
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 9:23
____________________________________________________________
Hebrews 12:24
____________________________________________________________
What do you think is the theme for the entire book of Hebrews?
____________________________________________________________
98
Day 40: Closing Thoughts

Since we are not Jewish and have never lived under the Mosaic law, it is
hard for us to understand the struggle these first century Christians must
have had. They were being told to give up the only way of worship they
had ever known. The author understands this and does an excellent job of
helping them to see that something much better awaits them if they have
the courage and confidence to step out in faith.
The author begins by magnifying Christ. He is much superior to the angels
and his name is more excellent than theirs. He is the exact representation
of God and because He is the Creator and he is eternal, we understand
that He is God!
As much as Moses was respected by the Jews, the author shows us that
Jesus is worthy of more glory. Moses was faithful as a servant, but Jesus
is faithful as a Son and offers us a rest that Moses never could.
The author spends several chapters explaining how Jesus priesthood is
better. Because he has no sin, he does not have to offer sacrifices for
himself. The Levitical priests gained their appointment through their
lineage. Jesus was appointed by an oath from God. He continues as a
priest forever because he will never die. Now he sits as a merciful and
faithful high priest that we can come to boldly and with confidence.
Jesus sacrifice is better, too because it never has to be repeated. It was
offered up once and is available to all. The animal sacrifices had to be
offered daily. Unlike the animal sacrifices that could never make us perfect,
Jesus sacrifice is able to completely wash and cleanse our evil
consciences.
Jesus offers us a better hope, a better possession, better promises and a
better covenant. His blood speaks a better word.
Through faith in Christ, we are offered an eternal salvation and an eternal
inheritance. He gives us an unshakeable kingdom. He destroyed the
power of death and freed us from lifelong slavery.
99
The author exhorts and encourages us to embrace Jesus! The

consequences are dangerous and severe if we harden our hearts. Jesus
sacrifice is the best so if we turn away from what Jesus offers to us, there is
no other sacrifice available.
Once we come to understand and appreciate all that Jesus is, it should
affect our lives. The author shares several instructions with us about how
we should live. He closes the book with another reminder of Christs
faithfulness. As we follow and listen to Christ, we are promised that God
himself will equip us with everything good so that we can do his will and live
a life pleasing in his sight. When we come to understand who Jesus is and
our lives display his faithfulness, then Jesus receives glory forever and
ever! (Hebrews 13:21). Its all about him!
What has impacted you most from your study of the book of
Hebrews?
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
100
Print out this bookmark on card stock and cut it out. Keep it in your Bible as a handy
reference when you are marking the key words.
Hebrews Bookmark
Key Words in Hebrews

Jesus (Son)
God
Angels
Priest(s); priesthood
Therefore
Faith; faithful
Better (better than)
Let us
Covenant
Blood
Hope
Promise
Hold Fast
Rest
Draw near
101

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Hebrews

A New and Living Way

2013 Cindy Brown. All Rights Reserved.

Day 3: Hebrews 1:1-4

Day 4: Hebrews 1:5-7

What was the consequence for ignoring this message?

Day 6: Hebrews 2:5-13

In verse 11, who is it referring to when it says "he who sanctifies"?

Day 7: Hebrews 2:14-18

Day 9: Hebrews 3:7-11

Day 10: Hebrews 3:12-19

Day 12: Hebrews 4:12-16

In chapter 3, we were told to hold fast to our confidence (v. 6,14).

Day 14: Hebrews 5:1-10

Reverence in verse 7 means "reverent regard for with the implication of

Day 14: Hebrews 5:11-14

Day 17: Hebrews 6:7-12

Day 18: Hebrews 6:13-15

Day 19: Hebrews 6:17-20

Day 22: Hebrews 7:11-22

Day 23: Hebrews 7:23-28

In verse 3, we read that one of the jobs of a priest is to offer

The Old Covenant was conditional. What was it based upon?

Day 25: Hebrews 8:8-13

So based on these verses, who is included in the New Covenant?

Thought for the Week

Ephesians 5:26 (Laver of Water)

In verses 16-17, the author uses the example of a will. When

Day 27: Hebrews 9:18-28

Jesus our High Priest

Stands daily (v. 11)

Is seated at the right hand of God

Offers repeatedly the same

Offered for all time a single

Those sacrifices can never take

His sacrifice perfected us for all

Day 29: Hebrews 10:26-31

What do you think it means that if we go on sinning "there no longer

What can a believer expect if he continues in willful sin from v. 27?

Day 30: Hebrews 10:32-39

Look up the word destroyed in the Greek.

helps us to understand, to gain insight into and to comprehend? It is not a

What attitude did Noah display toward God?

Day 32: Hebrews 11:20-40

The word commended (or a variation of it) is mentioned 5 times in this

According to verse 2, what will help us to run with endurance?

According to verses 6-7, who does the Lord discipline?

Day 34: Hebrews 12:12-17

So if it is written to believers, there must be a way that believers can fail to

Day 35: Hebrews 12:18-29

So what is the warning to us?

Day 36: Hebrews 13:1-9

Day 37: Hebrews 13:10-14

Day 38: Hebrews 13:15-25

What are three results of God working in us from verse 21?

Finally, Jesus is lifted up in this book as being better than anything

Day 40: Closing Thoughts

The author exhorts and encourages us to embrace Jesus! The

Key Words in Hebrews

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