Now [even] the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly sanctuary. 2 For a tabernacle was constructed, the outer one, in which were the lampstand, the table, and the bread of offering; this is called the Holy Place. 3 Behind the second veil was the tabernacle called the Holy of Holies, 4 in which were the gold altar of incense and the ark of the covenant entirely covered with gold. In it were the gold jar containing the manna, the staff of Aaron that had sprouted, and the tablets of the covenant. 5 Above it were the cherubim of glory overshadowing the place of expiation. Now is not the time to speak of these in detail. 6 With these arrangements for worship, the priests, in performing their service, go into the outer tabernacle repeatedly, 7 but the high priest alone goes into the inner one once a year, not without blood that he offers for himself and for the sins of the people. 8 In this way the holy Spirit shows that the way into the sanctuary had not yet been revealed while the outer tabernacle still had its place. 9 This is a symbol of the present time, in which gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the worshiper in conscience 10 but only in matters of food and drink and various ritual washings: regulations concerning the flesh, imposed until the time of the new order.
In Hebrews Chapter 9 the author explains the meaning and importance of the sacrifice Jesus made on our behalf. He is not concerned with being exact in his description when reflecting on the holy place and worship in the tabernacle under the old (first) covenant (Ex. 25 & 26). The author mentions “the cherubim of glory overshadowing the place of expiation (v. 5) but does not mention that God is enthroned upon the cherubim (1 Sam 4:4). He is more concerned with explaining that the Old Covenant was ineffective in granting access to God.
The holy place was not a heavenly sanctuary and the author describe the tent set up by Moses in the desert. There are two divisions: the Holy Place (v. 2) or outer tabernacle (v. 6) where the priests go repeatedly to perform their cultic duties, and the Holy of Holies (v. 3) or the inner tabernacle (v. 7) where the high priest goes once a year on the Day of Atonement to offer blood sacrifice (Lev. 17:11) to expiate his sins and the sins of the people (Lev. 16). Because of the limitations of entry into the inner tabernacle, the Holy Spirit shows that under the Old Covenant the way to attain access to God had not yet been revealed. The ritual gifts and sacrifices offered to God under the Old Covenant (rites of the flesh) cannot cleanse their consciences from dead works (Heb. 6:1; 9:14). This condition sustained until the “time of the new order (v. 10)” ushered in by the sacrifice of Jesus and the power of the Gospel (1 Thess. 1:5).
Collect for the 7th Sunday of Easter:
Almighty God, graciously hear our supplications, O Lord, so that we, who believe that the Savior of the human race is with you in your glory, may experience, as he promised, until the end of the world, his abiding presence among us. Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. Amen!
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References
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
Chiu, José Enrique Aguilar, et al. The Paulist Biblical Commentary. Paulist Press, 2018.
Brown, Raymond Edward, et al. The New Jerome Biblical Commentary. Upper Saddle River, NJ, United States, Prentice Hall, 1990.
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