Commentary - Hebrews 10:1-18

Bird's-eye view

In this magnificent passage, the author of Hebrews brings his central argument to its powerful conclusion. He has been demonstrating the superiority of Christ's priesthood and the New Covenant, and now he shows us the definitive superiority of Christ's sacrifice. The entire Old Covenant sacrificial system, with its endless repetition of animal sacrifices, is revealed for what it was: a shadow, a placeholder, a constant, nagging reminder of sin. It was designed by God to be gloriously ineffective, to create a hunger for the reality that was to come. That reality is Jesus Christ. His one-time offering of Himself was not another installment payment on our sin debt; it was the single payment that abolished the debt forever. The contrast is stark: the old priests stand, because their work is never done. Our High Priest, Jesus, sat down, because His work is finished. This finished work is the foundation of the New Covenant, which promises not just external conformity but internal transformation and the complete and final forgiveness of sins. The case is closed.

This is the heart of our assurance. The author is dismantling any temptation for his readers to retreat to the old forms of Judaism. Why would you return to a black-and-white sketch when the full-color masterpiece has been unveiled? Why would you go back to a system that could only remind you of your sin when you have been invited into a covenant that promises God will remember your sin no more? The argument is definitive, the conclusion inescapable: Christ's sacrifice is final, His work is finished, and His victory is absolute.

Outline

Context In Hebrews

This section is the capstone of the entire doctrinal argument of the book of Hebrews, which has been building since chapter 7. The author has already established that Christ is a priest of a higher order (Melchizedek), ministering in a superior sanctuary (heaven itself), and mediating a better covenant (the New Covenant). Now, in chapter 10, he demonstrates that this entire superior system is founded upon a radically superior sacrifice. This chapter provides the theological bedrock for all the exhortations that follow. Because this sacrifice is perfect and final (10:1-18), we can therefore draw near with confidence (10:19-22), hold fast to our confession (10:23), and stir one another up to love and good works (10:24-25). The indicative (what Christ has done) is the necessary foundation for the imperative (what we must do).

Key Issues

The Shadow and the Son

Understanding the relationship between the Old and New Covenants is crucial for understanding the Christian faith, and this passage is ground zero. The author tells us the Law was a skia, a shadow. A shadow is not nothing; it indicates the shape and reality of the object casting it. The Old Covenant sacrifices were not a mistake or a failed experiment. They were a divinely ordained object lesson, a finger pointing to Christ. They taught Israel the gravity of sin (it costs a life), the necessity of substitution (an innocent dies for the guilty), and the holiness of God. But a shadow has no substance in itself. It cannot do the work of the reality. The problem arises when men fall in love with the shadow, when they prefer the repetitive ritual to the reality it pointed to. The author of Hebrews is laboring to show that the reality, the Son, has come. To cling to the shadows now that the substance is here is to reject the very thing the shadows were meant to reveal.

Verse by Verse Commentary

1 For the Law, since it has only a shadow of the good things to come and not the very form of things, can never, by the same sacrifices which they offer continually year by year, make perfect those who draw near.

The opening shot is decisive. The Law, meaning the entire sacrificial system of the Mosaic covenant, is a mere shadow, not the "very form" or substance of the reality. Because it is a shadow, it is inherently weak. Its core deficiency is revealed in its repetition. The fact that the sacrifices had to be offered "continually year by year" was the built-in proof of their inadequacy. They could never "make perfect" those who came to worship. To be made perfect here means to be brought into a state of full acceptance with God, with a clear conscience and unhindered access. The old system could never accomplish this. It was a treadmill, not a finish line.

2-3 Otherwise, would they not have ceased to be offered, because the worshipers, having once been cleansed, would no longer have consciousness of sins? But in those sacrifices there is a reminder of sins year by year.

The author makes a common-sense argument. If a remedy actually cures you, you stop taking it. If the sacrifices on the Day of Atonement actually cleansed the conscience, why would you need to do it all over again the next year? The fact of the repetition proves the ineffectiveness. A worshiper who was truly and finally cleansed would no longer have a "consciousness of sins," which means a nagging, guilty conscience, a sense of unresolved debt before God. Instead of removing this guilt, the sacrifices did the opposite. They were an annual "reminder of sins." The Day of Atonement was God's way of posting Israel's debt publicly once a year, showing that it had still not been paid in full.

4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.

Here is the foundational reason why the old system could not work. It is not just difficult; it is "impossible." There is a categorical mismatch. The life of an animal is not a sufficient substitute for the life of a human being made in God's image. And a human life is not a sufficient substitute for the sins of many against an infinitely holy God. The currency is all wrong. You cannot pay for capital crimes with livestock. The blood of bulls and goats could cover sin ceremonially and temporarily, but it could never "take away" sin fundamentally.

5-7 Therefore, when He comes into the world, He says, “SACRIFICE AND OFFERING YOU HAVE NOT DESIRED, BUT A BODY YOU HAVE PREPARED FOR ME; IN BURNT OFFERINGS AND sacrifices FOR SIN YOU HAVE TAKEN NO PLEASURE. THEN I SAID, ‘BEHOLD, I HAVE COME, IN THE SCROLL OF THE BOOK IT IS WRITTEN OF ME, TO DO YOUR WILL, O GOD.’ ”

The author now quotes Psalm 40, applying it as the words of Christ at His incarnation. This is the solution to the impossibility of verse 4. God's ultimate desire was never the animal sacrifices themselves. What He desired was perfect obedience. So, in the wisdom of God, the Father prepared a "body" for the Son. This body was the necessary vehicle for the ultimate sacrifice. In that body, the Son could render the perfect obedience that was required. Christ's declaration, "Behold, I have come... to do your will," is the turning point of human history. The entire Old Testament ("the scroll of the book") was about Him, and His mission was one of radical, joyful obedience to the Father's will.

8-9 After saying above, “SACRIFICES AND OFFERINGS AND BURNT OFFERINGS AND sacrifices FOR SIN YOU HAVE NOT DESIRED, NOR HAVE YOU TAKEN PLEASURE in them” (which are offered according to the Law), then He said, “BEHOLD, I HAVE COME TO DO YOUR WILL.” He takes away the first in order to establish the second.

The author now interprets the psalm he just quoted. He sets up a sharp contrast. On the one hand, you have the "sacrifices and offerings" of the Law. God did not desire these as an end in themselves. On the other hand, you have the Son's coming to do God's will. The conclusion is revolutionary: "He takes away the first in order to establish the second." Christ's obedient sacrifice did not patch up the old system; it abolished it. The entire Levitical order was rendered obsolete. The first covenant is set aside, and the second, the New Covenant, is established in its place.

10 By this will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.

This verse gives us the glorious result. "By this will," that is, by the will of God perfectly performed by Jesus, we are "sanctified." We are made holy, set apart for God. And how? "Through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ." This was the real sacrifice that the animal sacrifices only prefigured. And the final, triumphant phrase is "once for all." The Greek here is ephapax. It means one single action with ongoing, permanent results. It never needs to be repeated. It is done. It is finished.

11-12 And every priest stands daily ministering and offering time after time the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins; but He, having offered one sacrifice for sins for all time, SAT DOWN AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD,

The contrast is now personified in the posture of the priests. The Levitical priest "stands." He stands daily. His work is repetitive, laborious, and ultimately futile. He can never sit down in the sanctuary because his work is never finished. But Jesus is completely different. After His "one sacrifice for sins for all time," what did He do? He "sat down." The work of atonement was completed, perfected, and finished. His session at the right hand of God is the ultimate proof that the sacrifice was accepted and that there is nothing more to be done.

13 waiting from that time UNTIL HIS ENEMIES ARE PUT AS A FOOTSTOOL FOR HIS FEET.

His sitting is not a posture of retirement, but of reigning. He is waiting, as a triumphant king, for the historical outworking of the victory He won on the cross. Quoting Psalm 110, the author shows us Christ the King, actively ruling until all opposition to His reign is finally and visibly crushed. This is not a description of a holding pattern, but of a mop-up operation. The decisive battle has been won, and He is now subduing all remaining pockets of rebellion. The gospel is advancing, and Christ is sovereignly directing its progress from His throne.

14 For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified.

This is one of the most glorious verses in the New Testament, summarizing the believer's status. By that single offering, Christ has "perfected for all time" a certain group of people. Who are they? "Those who are being sanctified." This captures the beautiful tension of our salvation. In our legal standing before God, we are already perfected. We are complete in Christ. God sees us clothed in His righteousness. That is a finished reality. At the same time, in our lived experience, we are "being sanctified," progressively being made holy and conformed to the image of Christ. Our position is perfect; our practice is catching up.

15-17 And the Holy Spirit also testifies to us, for after saying, “THIS IS THE COVENANT THAT I WILL MAKE WITH THEM AFTER THOSE DAYS, SAYS THE LORD: I WILL PUT MY LAWS UPON THEIR HEART, AND ON THEIR MIND I WILL WRITE THEM,” He then says, “AND THEIR SINS AND THEIR LAWLESS DEEDS I WILL REMEMBER NO MORE.”

The author calls his final witness: the Holy Spirit, speaking through the prophet Jeremiah (Jer. 31). The Spirit testifies to the nature of the New Covenant that Christ's sacrifice inaugurated. This covenant has two key features. First, it is internal. God's law is no longer just on stone tablets, but written on the heart and mind. It is a covenant of regeneration and transformation. Second, it is a covenant of absolute forgiveness. God declares, "Their sins and their lawless deeds I will remember no more." This is not divine amnesia. It is a legal promise, a covenantal commitment to never again hold our sins against us.

18 Now where there is forgiveness of these things, there is no longer any offering for sin.

This is the final, logical, and inescapable conclusion. If forgiveness is this total and this final, then the sacrificial system is over. To continue offering sacrifices for sin would be to deny that Christ's sacrifice was sufficient. It would be an act of profound unbelief. The sign is taken down because the reality has arrived. The debt is paid, the mortgage is burned, the case is closed. There is no longer any offering for sin.

Application

The doctrine in this passage is the foundation of Christian assurance and the engine of Christian worship. First, because Christ's work is finished, we can have a clear conscience. We are not to be haunted by the ghosts of our forgiven sins. To constantly dredge them up is to insult the finality of Christ's work. Our acceptance before God is not a fluctuating variable based on our daily performance; it is a fixed constant based on Christ's "once for all" sacrifice. We should therefore reject any religious system, whether Roman Catholic or evangelical, that tries to put us back on a treadmill of performance to maintain our good standing with God.

Second, we should live in light of our King's session. Jesus is not wringing His hands in heaven, hoping things work out. He is seated, reigning, and putting all His enemies under His feet. This should give us tremendous confidence as we engage in the work of the Great Commission. We are on the winning side of history. Our King's victory is assured.

Finally, we must embrace the terms of the New Covenant. We should thank God that He has not left us with an external code but has given us new hearts and the indwelling Spirit to write His law within us. And we must live each day in the breathtaking freedom of knowing that our sins are remembered no more. This doesn't lead to licentiousness; it leads to overwhelming gratitude. The one who is forgiven much, loves much. And that love, born of a finished sacrifice, is the fuel for a life of joyful obedience.