The Chapters – Quick Access
Basics
BOOK: Hebrews
Description: A long letter to Jewish converts who, some think, might have been thinking of returning to Judaism. A uniquely Jewish Christology.
Author: Unknown (many think it is unlikely that it was Paul, although there are a couple of indicators right at the end that suggest it could be.)
Date written: Sometime before AD70 (when the Temple was destroyed – no mention here).
Chapters: 13
Brief Synopsis
If the assumption (in the ‘Description’ above) is correct that this book is written to hold onto Jewish Christians who were wavering, that would explain the content:
- Showing Christ to be superior to angels, Moses or the Aaronic priesthood and his work on the Cross is superior to that of the sacrifices in the Law of Moses
- Encouraging the readers to hold to their faith and persevere in Christian living.
Why Read Hebrews
Hebrews is uniquely Jewish (hence the name). It is clearly to Christians, but specifically to Jewish Christians. It is filled with teaching about how Jesus is so much greater than anyone or anything known in the Old Testament era, and it has many exhortations and warnings against going back to the old ways. Remember most of the earliest Christians were Jewish. Why should Gentile Christians read it? Because it is packed with insights and understanding, that reveal Jesus so gloriously, that we must surely be moved by the wonder of it.
In the first century, while there were still many tensions in belief, especially among the Jewish Christians, constantly having to fend off pressures on them from the Jewish culture, the writer to the Hebrews goes to length to show Jesus, the Son of God, is greater that the angels (ch.1), Moses (ch.3), and Aaron and the Levitical priesthood (ch.5), introducing a new covenant that is greater than the old (v.8). He concludes by bringing challenges to faith and endurance in later chapters.]
Outline
- 1:1-4 Prologue: The Superiority of God’s New Revelation
- 1:5-7:28 The Superiority of Christ to Leaders of the Old Covenant
- 1:5-2:18 Christ Is Superior to the Angels
- 1:5-14 Scriptural proof of superiority
- 2:1-4 Exhortation not to ignore the revelation of God in his Son
- 2:5-18 Further Scriptural proof of superiority over the angels
- 3:1-4:13 Christ Is Superior to Moses
- 3:1-6 Demonstration of Christ’s superiority
- 3:7-4:13 Exhortation to enter salvation-rest
- 4:14-7:28 Christ Is Superior to the Aaronic Priests
- 4:14-16 Exhortation to hold fast
- 5:1-10 Qualifications of a priest
- 5:11-6:12 Exhortation to abandon spiritual lethargy
- 6:13-20 Certainty of God’s promise
- Ch.7 Christ’s superior priestly order
- Ch.8-10 The Superiority of the New Covenant of Jesus
- Ch.8 Introduction to a Better Covenant
- 9:1-11 A Better Sanctuary
- 9:12-10:18 A Better Sacrifice
- 10:19-39 Exhortations to work it all through
- Ch.11,12 Final Plea for Persevering Faith
- Ch.11 Examples of Past Heroes of the Faith
- 12:1-11 Encouragement for Persevering Faith
- 12:12-17 Exhortations for Persevering Faith
- 12:18-29 Motivation for Persevering Faith
- Ch. 13 Conclusion
- 13:1-17 Practical Rules for Christian Living
- 13:18-19 Request for Prayer
- 13:20-21 Benediction
- 13:22-23 Personal Remarks
- 13:24-25 Greetings and Final Benediction
Concluding Comments
The incredibly strong ‘Jewish flavor’ to this letter affirms the assumption we made at the top of this page. It presents a ‘converted-Jewish’ perspective that is unique in the New Testament. Paul had refuted the tendency of some Jewish believers to revert to relying upon things like circumcision, in his letter to the Galatians, but this letter goes much, much further and provides a ‘Jewish Christology’ that clearly shows why the old has gone and the new has come, why Christ’s work on the Cross has done away with the need for the old sacrificial system. Was this one reason why the Lord allowed the Temple in Jerusalem to be destroyed in AD70 and never to be rebuilt?