Albert Barnes Commentary Hebrews 10:1

"For the law having a shadow of the good [things] to come, not the very image of the things, can never with the same sacrifices year by year, which they offer continually, make perfect them that draw nigh." — Hebrews 10:1 (ASV)

CHAPTER X

ANALYSIS OF THE CHAPTER

The general subject of this chapter is the sacrifice Christ has made for sin and the consequences that flow from the fact that He has made a sufficient atonement. In chapter 9, the apostle had shown that the Jewish rites were designed to be temporary and typical, and that the offerings made under that dispensation could never remove sin.

In this chapter, he shows that the true sacrifice has been made by which sin can be pardoned, and that certain very important consequences followed from that fact. The subject of sacrifice was the most important part of the Jewish economy and also the essential thing in the Christian dispensation; therefore, the apostle dwells upon it at such great length. The chapter embraces the following topics:

1. The apostle repeats what he had said before about the inefficacy of the sacrifices made under the law (Hebrews 10:1–4). The law was a mere shadow of good things to come, and the sacrifices made under it could never make those who offered them perfect. This was conclusively proven by the fact that they continued constantly to be offered.

2. Since this was the fact regarding those sacrifices, a better offering has been provided in the gospel by the Redeemer (Hebrews 10:5–10). A body had been prepared for him for this work; and when God had said that he had no pleasure in the offerings under the law, Christ came and offered his body once for all so that an effectual atonement might be made for sin.

3. The apostle further illustrates this sentiment by showing how this one great Offering was connected with the forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 10:11–18). Under the Jewish dispensation, sacrifices were repeated every day; but under the Christian economy, when the sacrifice was once made, he who had offered it sat down forever on the right hand of God—for his great work was done. Having done this, he looked forward to the time when his work would have its full effect, and when his enemies would be made his footstool.

   The apostle then shows from the Scriptures themselves that this was to be the effect of the offering made by the Messiah, where it is said (Jeremiah 31:33–34) that under the gospel the laws of God would be written on the heart, and sin would be remembered no more. The apostle inferred that there must then be some way by which this was to be secured, and this was by the great Sacrifice on the cross, which had the effect of perfecting forever those who were sanctified.

4. Since it was a fact that such an atonement had been made—that one great offering for sin had been presented to God, which was never to be repeated—certain consequences followed from that, which the apostle proceeds to state (Hebrews 10:19–25). They were these:

   • The privilege of drawing near to God with full assurance of faith (Hebrews 10:22);

   • The duty of holding fast the profession of faith without wavering (Hebrews 10:23);

   • The duty of exhorting one another to fidelity and good works (Hebrews 10:24);

   • The duty of assembling for public worship, since they had a High Priest in heaven and could now draw near to God (Hebrews 10:25).

5. As a reason for fidelity in the divine life and for embracing the offer of mercy now made through the one Sacrifice on the cross, the apostle urges the consequence that must follow from rejecting that atonement, especially after having been made acquainted with the truth (Hebrews 10:26–31). The result, he says, must be certain destruction. If that was rejected, nothing could remain but a fearful looking for of judgment, for there was no other way of salvation. In support of this, the apostle refers to the effect of disobedience under the law of Moses and says that under the greater light of the gospel, much more fearful results must follow.

6. The chapter closes (Hebrews 10:32–39) with an exhortation to fidelity and perseverance. The apostle reminds those to whom he wrote of what they had already endured, encourages them by commending what they had already done, and especially the kindness they had shown to him. He says that they needed only patience and that the time of their deliverance from all trial was not far off, for he who was to come would come. He says that it was their duty to live by faith, but that if anyone drew back, God could have no pleasure in him.

Having thus alluded to the subject of faith in the close of the chapter, he proceeds in the following chapter to illustrate its value in detail. The object of the whole is to encourage Christians to make strenuous efforts for salvation, to guard them against the danger of apostasy, and to exhort them to bear their trials with patience and submission to the will of God.

For the law, having a shadow. This means that the whole of the Mosaic economy was a shadow, for the word law is often used this way. The word shadow here refers to a rough outline of anything, a mere sketch, such as a carpenter draws with chalk, or an artist delineates when about to make a picture.

He sketches an outline of the object he intends to draw, which has some resemblance to it but is not the very image, for it is not yet complete. The words rendered the very image refer to a finished painting or statue, where every part is an exact copy of the original.

The good things to come here refer to the future blessings that would be conferred on humanity by the gospel. The idea is that under the ancient sacrifices, there was an imperfect representation, a dim outline of the blessings the gospel would impart to people. They were a typical representation; they were not such that it could be pretended they would fulfill the purpose of the things themselves which they were to represent, and would make those who offered them perfect.

Such a rude outline—such a mere sketch or imperfect delineation—could no more fulfill the purpose of saving the soul than the rough sketch an architect makes would fulfill the purpose of a house, or than the first outline a painter draws would fulfill the purpose of a perfect and finished portrait. All that could be done by either would be to convey some distant and obscure idea of what the house or the picture might be, and this was all that was done by the law of Moses.

Can never with those sacrifices which they offered year by year continually. The sacrifices particularly referred to here were those offered on the great day of atonement. These were regarded as the most sacred and efficacious of all; yet the apostle says that the very fact they were offered every year showed there must be some deficiency in them, or they would have ceased to be offered.

Make the comers thereunto perfect. They could not free them from the stains of guilt; they could not give ease to a troubled conscience; there was no efficacy in them by which sin could be put away. (Hebrews 9:9).