Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Hebrews 8:6

"But now hath he obtained a ministry the more excellent, by so much as he is also the mediator of a better covenant, which hath been enacted upon better promises." — Hebrews 8:6 (ASV)

The ministry of priests in a sanctuary made according to the heavenly pattern is obviously one of great dignity. But the author’s point is that Jesus’ ministry in the heavenly archetype is of incomparably greater dignity and worth. He chooses to bring this out by using a comparison of the two covenants. Jesus is the mediator of a “superior” covenant. “Mediator” (GK 3542) is a legal term for one who arbitrates between two parties. Christ mediates between people and God; it is he who establishes the new covenant . This new covenant is better than the old because it is “founded on better promises”—it concentrates on spiritual things (e.g., the forgiveness of sins) and is unconditional in nature.