the blood of Jesus...

artwork by Tamara Peterson

Tamara Peterson’s captivating artwork inspired me as I listened to The Blood of Jesus by Wayne Watson, and I felt led to do a word study of Hebrews 9:12…

NASB:  and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, He entered the holy place once for all, having obtained eternal redemption.

Amplified: He went once for all into the [Holy of] Holies [of heaven], not by virtue of the blood of goats and calves [by which to make reconciliation between God and man], but His own blood, having found and secured a complete redemption (an everlasting release for us).

Barclay: and not by the blood of goats and bullocks but by his own blood, he entered once and for all into the Holy Place because he had secured for us an eternal redemption.

KJV: Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood he entered in once into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption for us.

NLT: Once for all time he took blood into that Most Holy Place, but not the blood of goats and calves. He took his own blood, and with it he secured our salvation forever.

Phillips: It was not with goats' or calves' blood but with his own blood that he entered once and for all into the holy of holies, having won for us men eternal reconciliation with God.

Wuest: nor even through the intermediate instrumentality of the blood of goats and calves, but through that blood of His own, He entered once for all into the Holy of Holies, having found and procured eternal redemption.

Young's Literal: neither through blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood, did enter in once into the holy places, age-during redemption having obtained;

Pastor J. B. Phillips writes: “As a candle fades into total insignificance before the full blaze of the noonday sun, so the Old Testament priesthood fades into nothing before that of Christ. Who needs a candle when standing in the full blaze of day? As the majesty of the sun obliterates whatever majesty a candle might have had in the darkness of the night, so Christ's majesty obliterates that of the Levitical priesthood.”

Greek Scholar Kenneth S. Wuest states, “The blood offered was different. In the case of the Aaronic priests, it was the blood of goats and calves. In the case of Messiah, it was His own blood. The words His own are the translation of idios. Had the personal pronoun autos been used, the reference would be merely to the fact that it was by means of His blood that He entered the Holy of Holies. But the word idios speaks not merely of ownership, but of a personal, private, unique ownership. For instance, John in his Gospel (5:18) states the fact that the Jews tried to kill our Lord because He had said that God was His personal unique Father. Had John used autos, there would have been no justification for their accusation, for each one of these Jews claimed God as his Father. John used idios, reporting the Lord Jesus as saying that God was His private, unique Father. God was His Father in a different sense from that in which He might be the Father of others. Our Lord claimed unique Sonship, and, therefore, Deity. And these Jews recognized that fact. Now, the efficacy of our Lord's blood rested, not in the fact that it was human blood, but that it was human blood of a unique kind. It flowed in the veins of One who was as to His humanity, sinless, and as to His Person, Deity. And the combination of these two, sinless humanity, and Deity, made it unique, efficacious. It was the only sacrificial blood that could be sprinkled on the Mercy Seat in the heavenly Holy of Holies, the only blood which the High Court of Heaven would accept as atonement for human sin. It was this blood poured out on Calvary's Cross that gave Messiah access as High Priest into the Holy of Holies of heaven."

Through (dia)...speaks of the instrument by which something is affected. Notice that the Greek word is not sun or meta which would be "with." The Greek word states that He entered Heaven not with His own blood, but through (or by) His own blood. The preposition dia may be translated through, by reason of, or by virtue of. This would lead one to understand that Christ is now seated in Heaven as the High Priest by virtue of His sacrificial death and precious blood. On the Cross Jesus stated, "It is finished," ("paid in full") indicating that His blood was efficacious the moment it was shed, an interpretation that is also supported by the fact that veil in the temple was torn in two from top to bottom.

Wuest concludes: "We are not to understand that our Lord took His blood into heaven. That precious blood was poured out on the Cross and dripped into the earth. But it was by virtue of that fact that He entered heaven, having accomplished salvation by the sacrifice of Himself. It was in that bloodless, glorified human body which is an eternal testimony that sin is paid for, that our blessed Lord entered heaven."

Pastor Steven Cole concludes: "The author is showing the complete supremacy and finality of the blood of Christ over the old system. Through His death, our guilt is atoned for once and for all, for all eternity! The penalty has been paid. There is nothing that we can add to what Christ did. Through Him we have direct access to God!”

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle writes, “A small detachment of British troops, surprised by an overwhelm­ing enemy force, fell back under heavy fire. Their wounded lay in a perilous position, facing certain death. They all realized they had to come immediately under the protection of a Red Cross flag if they wanted to survive. All they had was a piece of white cloth, but no red paint. So they used the blood from their wounds to make a large cross on that white cloth. Their attackers respected that grim flag as it was held aloft, and the British wounded were brought to safety. In the same way, our enemy not only must respect the blood of Christ shed on Calvary's cross, he also is helpless against it. Christ's blood represents the sacrifice of One whose death removed the guilt and condemnation of our sin and broke its hold over us. It is absolute protection against the accusation of Satan and the defeating remembrances of past sins. No wonder we glory in the cross.”

He entered the Holy Place...Jesus entered the "better" Holy Place. In the Old Covenant the Holy Place was on earth, while the believer's Holy Place is now in heaven. The Old Covenant Holy Place was made with human hands, but the believer's is a "more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation.”

Once for all...unlike the sacrifice of the high priest, who repeatedly entered the Most Holy Place with blood once a year, Jesus' sacrifice was complete and did not need to be repeated. The work of atonement is done and therefore, praise the Lord, it cannot be undone!

Having obtained...(heurisko gives us our English eureka from the exclamation attributed to Archimedes on discovering a method for determining the purity of gold) means that they attained a state previously not known. Heurisko or eureka expresses triumph on a discovery and what a "discovery"...eternal redemption!

Eternal...(aionios from aion) means perpetual eternal, everlasting, without beginning or end (as of God), that which is always, not mere duration is contemplated, but quality; a redemption answering in its quality to that age when all the conditions of time shall be no more...a redemption—not ritual, but profoundly ethical and spiritual.

Redemption...(lutrosis from lutroo = to release on receipt of a ransom; lutroo is derived from the root verb luo = to loosen that which is bound, freeing those in prison, release from prison, opening of what is closed, destroying of foundations, putting off of fetters) describes a ransoming, a liberation, or a deliverance.

Pastor Charles Spurgeon writes, “The Jewish high priests went once a year into the holy of holies. Each year as it came round demanded that they should go again. Their work was never done; but “Christ entered once,” and only once, “into the most holy place, obtaining eternal redemption.” I love that expression, “eternal redemption”—a redemption that really does redeem, and redeems forever and ever. If you are redeemed by it, you cannot be lost. If this redemption is yours, it is not for a time, or for a season, but it is “eternal redemption.” Oh, how you ought to rejoice in the one entrance within the veil by our great High Priest who has obtained eternal redemption for us! What if I say that the inner shrine has expanded itself and taken in the holy place, and now all places are holy where true hearts seek their God? Had our High Priest merely lifted the veil and passed in, we might have supposed that the veil fell back again. But since the veil of the temple was rent in two from the top to the bottom, there can be no need for a new entrance, for that which hinders is taken away. No veil now hangs between God and His chosen people; we may come boldly to the throne of grace. Blessed be the name of our Lord who has entered in “once!” Christ has entered into the true holy place—not into that which was curtained with a veil, which was but a type, and which was put away when the veil was rent from the top to the bottom as Jesus died. He has entered into the immediate presence of God, and He has entered there once for all, “obtaining eternal redemption. Do you "wrestle" with your eternal security experiencing fiery missiles like, "Am I saved forever? Can I lose my salvation?" If you are attacked by such thoughts, you would do well to meditate on the eternality of the Messiah's redemption. May your mind be continually renewed by the Spirit "as you learn more and more about Christ, Who created this new nature within you."

When Jesus was crucified, He entered the Most Holy Place once and for all by shedding His own blood as the perfect sacrifice for our sins. When He died, the thick veil separating the people from the Most Holy Place was torn. Think of it! Because of Jesus, we have unlimited access to the Lord. We don’t have to wait for a once-a-year meeting with God. We don’t have to ask someone else to go to the Lord on our behalf. We can enter His throne room anytime night or day. Since Christ died on the cross, we no longer need to offer animal sacrifices because Jesus, the spotless Lamb of God, was the ultimate sacrifice for our sins! We forget that God offered His perfect Son, whom He loved and prized. Have you thanked Him for the sacrifice He gave for you? God the Father beckons us also to come to Him and to entrust our hopes and dreams, our possessions, our families, and our careers to His control. He calls us to commit every worry or burden to His care, and He graciously summons us, through the shed blood of His Son, to leave even our lives in His powerful hands. And He has provided prayer as our means of doing this. When we “let go and let God,” we will begin to experience His power transforming our lives more and more into the image of His Son, Jesus. He frees us from striving to fulfill the letter of the law and draws us into intimate communion with Him. This new covenant through our rebirth in Christ Jesus provides a brand new relationship so that everyone might know Him. When we realize that God takes the initiative to work within us by His Spirit what is pleasing to Him, we can rest from our futile attempt to live the Christian life in our own strength. This is such great news—it doesn’t depend on me! God has forgiven us, cleansed us through the blood of Jesus, and given us His Spirit, and He will complete His work in us as we trust in Him.

Lord Jesus, thank You for giving Yourself as an offering so that I could be free! As I receive the Father’s forgiveness through Your offering of Yourself, I will praise You and thank You for the freedom that forgiveness gives! I entrust my spirit, my very life, into Your hands this day. You are mighty beyond my ability to imagine, and You have made the way for me to do so…through the blood of Jesus. How I praise You for prayer, for through it I can let go and give over control of my life to You! With all my heart I thank you, Jesus, for being the perfect sacrifice for my sins and the sins of the whole world. When Your blood was presented on the heavenly mercy seat and You offered up Your Spirit, the veil of the temple was forever rent, providing me access into the very presence of the Father. How I thank You. Lord, I come, I come...in Your precious name I pray, amen.

Look up – Meditate on Hebrews 9:12. Pray to see what it reveals about the character of God.

Look in – Meditate on Hebrews 9:12. Pray to see how you might apply it to your life. Be propelled to ask galvanizing questions about your discoveries: “Because God is ______________, I will ______________.”

Look out – Meditate on Hebrews 9:12. Pray to see how you might apply it to your relationships with others. Let the nature of God impact on every relationship, for your good, and for His glory.  

* If you liked this post you’ll love this book – Name Above All Names Devotional: Focusing on 26 Alphabetical Names of Christ

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