Hebrews 9

9 ¹Now even the first covenant had regulations for worship and an earthly sanctuary. ²A tent was set up—the first one—holding the lampstand, the table, and the bread of the Presence; it is called the Holy Place. ³Behind the second curtain was a tent called the Holy of Holies. ⁴It had the gold incense altar and the ark of the covenant covered all over with gold, holding a gold jar of manna, Aaron's staff that sprouted, and the covenant tablets. ⁵Above it, the cherubim of glory overshadowed the mercy seat—details we can't cover now.

⁶With things arranged this way, priests enter the first tent continually, performing their sacred duties. ⁷Only the high priest enters the second tent, once a year, always with blood, offered for himself and the people's unintentional sins. ^a a v7 The high priest entered the innermost chamber only one day each year — the Day of Atonement — to make things right between the people and God. ⁸By this the Holy Spirit was showing that the way into the holy places was not yet revealed while the first tent still stood. ⁹This is a symbol for the present time. According to this arrangement, gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot make the worshiper's conscience perfect, ¹⁰but only about food, drink, and various washings—bodily regulations imposed until the time of reform.

Christ, the Greater High Priest

¹¹But Christ came as high priest of the good things that have come, through the greater and more perfect tent not made by hands, that is, not of this creation. ¹²He entered the sanctuary once for all, not with the blood of goats and calves but with his own blood, securing eternal redemption. ¹³For if the blood of goats and bulls, and a heifer's ashes sprinkled on the unclean, make holy for cleansing of the flesh, ¹⁴how much more will the blood of Christ, he who offered himself through the eternal Spirit, flawless, to our Father, cleanse our conscience from dead works to serve the living Father? ^b b v14 Christ's atonement is the work of all three Persons — Jesus offers himself, our Father receives the offering, and the eternal Spirit makes the offering effective. The cross is not the Father against the Son but our Father, Son, and Holy Spirit acting together for our rescue. ¹⁵For this reason he mediates a new covenant: a death redeemed people from wrongdoings under the first covenant, so the called receive the promised eternal inheritance. ¹⁶For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established. ^c c v16 The same word covers both 'covenant' and 'will/testament'; in verses 16–17 the author draws on the will meaning — a will only takes effect when the person dies. ¹⁷For a will is valid only over the dead, since it has no force while its maker lives. ¹⁸Therefore not even the first covenant was inaugurated without blood. ¹⁹After Moses gave every command of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the scroll itself and all the people, ²⁰saying, "This is the blood of the covenant that our Father commanded for you."

²¹Likewise he sprinkled the tent and all worship vessels with blood. ²²In fact, the law purifies almost everything with blood; and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.

²³So the copies of heavenly things had to be purified by these rites, but the heavenly things themselves by better sacrifices than these. ²⁴For Christ did not enter man-made holy places, copies of the true ones, but heaven itself, to appear now before our Father for us. ²⁵Not to offer himself repeatedly, like the high priest entering the holy places yearly with blood not his own. ²⁶Otherwise Christ would have had to suffer many times since the world's founding. Instead he has appeared once, at the climax of the ages, to abolish sin by sacrificing himself. ²⁷And just as it is appointed for people to die once, and after that comes judgment, ²⁸so Christ, offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time—not for sin, but to bring salvation to those eagerly waiting for him.