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Sanctuary Typology in

Hebrews

Richard M. Davidson

Andrews University

Theological Seminary

The Book of Hebrews:

Authorship • No author mentioned in the Epistle

• Critical scholars deny Pauline authorship

• Evidence for Pauline authorship:

– SDA Bible Commentary and John Lee

– Testimony of Albert VanHoye

• Perhaps Paul’s scholarly “Magnum Opus” to the Jews

– (in contrast to his occasional letters dashed off spontaneously)

Target Audience of Hebrews

Jewish Christians in the Diaspora (Greek

speaking, who had LXX [Septuagint, or

Greek translation of the OT] as their Bible)

Problem:

• They were tempted to forsake Christianity

and return to Judaism

Central Theme of Hebrews

Don’t Forsake Jesus!

• If they forsook Jesus, where could they go?

• The OT types pointing to Jesus have met

their reality in Him

• He is the Better Joshua, Moses, blood,

covenant, priest, sacrifice, sanctuary, etc.

Basic Contours of Sanctuary

Typology in Hebrews I. Christ’s Death = the Antitypical Fulfillment

of the entire OT sacrificial system – The daily (tamid): (Heb 10:1-4,11-12)

– The red heifer (Heb 9:13)

– “bulls and goats” (9:13;10:4) = summary of entire sacrificial system in OT (Psalm 50 [49 LXX]:13; Isa 1:11)

– Even the Day of Atonement sacrifices (Heb 9:25-26)

– All OT sacrifices coalesce into the One once-for-all sacrifice of Christ, BASED UPON Psalm 40:6-8

Typology in Hebrews • II. Christ’s Ascension to Heaven (31 AD)

– Traditional SDA Position: Christ Began His High Priestly Intercessory Ministry (in the Holy Place of the Heavenly Sanctuary)

– Albion Ballenger (1861-1921), evangelist in Great Britain, president of Welsh and Irish Missions

– Ballenger taught that Christ entered the Most Holy Place of the Heavenly Sanctuary in 31 AD and began the Day of Atonement ministry

– Ballenger’s key text was Heb 6:19-20

Typology in Hebrews

When Christ Ascended to Heaven in 31

--Was it to start the Day of Atonement,

as Albion Ballenger claimed (based upon

Heb 6:19-20) or as Desmond Ford claims

(based upon Heb 9:12)?

--Or is there evidence within the text for

a different typological background?

Typology in Hebrews Christ’s Ascension:

--Three main passages in Hebrews speaking of Jesus’ “entering” the sanctuary: Heb 6:19-20; 9:12; and 10:19-20

--The literary structure of the central section of Hebrews shows the relationship of these passages to each other

Chiastic Literary Structure of Heb 6:19-10:20

A. The Veil (6:19-20)

B. The Priesthood (7:1-25)

C. The Sacrifice (7:26-28)

D. The Sanctuary (8:1-5)

E. The Covenant (8:6-13

F. The Sanctuary (9:1-10)

F. The Sanctuary (9:11-14)

E. The Covenant (9:15-22)

D. The Sanctuary (9:23-28)

C. The Sacrifice (10:1-10)

B. The Priesthood (10:11-18)

A. The Veil (10:19-20)

Chiastic Literary Structure of

Hebrews 6:19 – 10:20 • This structure was adapted from an unpublished paper by

William Shea

• Note how the two entrance passages of Heb 6:19-20 and Heb 10:19-20 match each other as parallel “A” members in the chiasm.

• Heb 6:19-20 = Heb 10:19-20

• Scholars generally recognize that these two passages refer to the same event

• But scholars almost always see this event as the antitype of the OT Day of Atonement, when Jesus entered within the veil of the Most Holy Place

• Is the majority opinion of scholars correct?

Chiastic Literary Structure of

Hebrews 6:19 – 10:20

• What is the OT background event?

• Heb 6:19-20 does not tell us explicitly

• But Heb 10:19-20 is the KEY!

– This passage identifies Christ’s work as He

enters as egkaini,zw (enkainizo, v. 20) = “to

inaugurate”!

– This word group egkaini,zw [enkainizo] is used

in a technical sense in the Septuagint (LXX)

which was the version of the OT from which

the author of Hebrews consistently quoted

The Inauguration of the Sanctuary

Egkainizw • Throughout the Pentateuchal references to

sacrifices (LXX), the word group Egkaini,zw [enkainizo] is found in only ONE chapter:

• Numbers 7 (vv. 10, 11, 84, 88) –which describes the INAUGURATION of the sanctuary, as its services started up.

• The word Egkaini,zw [enkainizo] NEVER refers to the Day of Atonement in the OT!

• The immediate context of Egkainizw [enkainizo]

in Heb 10:20 verifies this identification

• Heb 9:18: Egkaini,zw [enkainizo] clearly means

“inaugurate” or “dedicate” and describes the

setting up of the sanctuary services and NOT the

Day of Atonement

• Thus Heb 10:19-20 and its chiastic parallel

passage (Heb 6:19-20) refer to INAUGURATION

and not Day of Atonement

• This is a fulfillment of Dan 9:24: “anoint the

Most Holy Place”

• It doesn’t matter which veil Heb 6:19-20 and Heb

10:20 refer to (second or first), contra Ballenger

and Ford, since at the inauguration of the

sanctuary Moses (acting in his priestly function

before the ordaining of Aaron) went into both the

Holy Place and the Most Holy Place (Exod 40:9-

10; Num 7:1)

Heb 9:12

• “The Blood of goats and calves” –what does this refer to?

• A goat and (bull) calf were indeed sacrificed at the time of Day of Atonement (Lev 16:6, 15)

• Does Heb 9:12 therefore refer to the Day of Atonement?

• NO! Not if one looks at the original Greek

Heb 9:12 – “Goat” = tra,goj [tragos]

– “Calf” = mo,scoj [moschos] In the LXX the word mo,scoj [moschos] is used for both

the inauguration and the Day of Atonement (7 times in Lev 16 and 17 times in Num 7 & 8)

In the LXX there are TWO words for “goat” used in reference to the sacrificial system: Tra,goj [tragos] and ci,maroj [chimaros]

– Which one is used for the Day of Atonement in Lev 16?

– Ci,maroj [chimaros]! Not tra,goj [tragos]

Tra,goj [tragos](The “Goat” of Heb 9:12)

– In the LXX the word appears in only ONE chapter of the Pentateuchal material describing sanctuary rituals:

• Numbers 7 (13 times)

• The setting of Num 7 = Inauguration of the sanctuary!

• Heb 9:19 verifies this interpretation of Heb 9:12, as it uses the same two words “calves” and “goats,” (mo,scoj [moschos] and tra,goj [tragos]) clearly in the context of the inauguration of the covenant (v. 18)

Heb 9:12 and the Word ta `agia (“The Holies”)

• The term ta hagia does not refer to the Most Holy Place by

itself

• In LXX usage (also Pseudepigrapha, Philo, and Josephus) ta hagia NEVER refers to the Most Holy Place by itself

• It is the regular term for the entire sanctuary as a whole • In the LXX ta hagia appears109 times referring to the sanctuary, and 106

times refers to the entire sanctuary, and 3 times refers to the Holy Place (1 Ki 8:8; 2 Chr 5:9,11)

• See Carl Cosaert, “A Study of ta `agia in the LXX, Pseudepigrapha, Philo, and Josephus, and Its Implications in Hebrews,” Nazarene Theological Seminary, 2000

Summary:

• When Christ entered the heavenly

sanctuary, He entered to inaugurate it, to

officially start up the services as Priest-

• He went into the entire sanctuary, as in the

type (Num 7:1; Exod 40)

• He “sat down at the right hand of the

Father” (Heb 1:3; 8:1; 10:12; 12:2)

• This is a description based upon Ps 110:1:

“Sit at My right hand until I make your

enemies a footstool.”

• This is clearly a FUNCTIONAL description

and not primarily locational, since in v. 5,

the Father is at the Son’s right hand!

• To “sit at the right hand” or to “sit on the throne” is the biblical way of indicating royal STATUS

• See 1 Kgs 8:14-15, 20: The king is standing (blessing the people) but says, “I sit on the throne of Israel”

• Cf. 1 Kgs 1:35,46; 2:12;1 Chr 29:23; Jer 17:25

• Christ’s “sitting at the right hand” of the Father in the heavenly sanctuary is a statement of His kingly status, and does not box Him in the Most Holy Place

• Christ was installed as both King and Priest

The Basic Contours of Sanctuary

Typology in Hebrews III. Christ’s Ongoing Priestly Work in the

Heavenly Sanctuary in the First Century ( When the Epistle to the Hebrews Was Written)

• = the antitypical equivalent of the tamid

(regular/continual) Holy Place ministry

• Heb 7:25-27 “Intercession” (=tamid)

• Heb 10:11-14 “daily” (=tamid)

• Heb 13:10-12 “daily” (=tamid)

Typology in Hebrews IV. Christ’s Future Work (from the Perspective of

the First Century A.D.)

• = the work of Day of Atonement

• Heb 9:23-27: Judgment is still future

• Heb 10:25-31 • Future

• Investigative followed by Executive judgment

• God’s professed people are judged

• Yoma = “The Day [of Atonement]” (v. 25)! Cf. the tractate of the Jewish Mishnah on the Day of Atonement entitled Yoma

Typology in Hebrews Conclusions:

• The basic contours of sanctuary typology in

Hebrews are consistent with Leviticus, with

Daniel, with Revelation, and with the SDA

doctrine of the investigative judgment based on

these passages

• The author of Hebrews does not indicate the exact

time of the future Day of Atonement judgment;

for this we need to go to Daniel 8 & 9

The Practical Message of Hebrews

Sanctuary Typology

We can NOW enter by faith into the heavenly

sanctuary!!

• Heb 4:16

• Heb 6: 19

• Heb 10:19-20

• Heb 12:22-24

Christ invites us to His house, and we may

come with boldness!

The Practical Message of Hebrews

Sanctuary Typology

• Not just sanctuary prayer

• Sanctuary Life!!!

Resources

• Richard M. Davidson, “Christ’s Entry ‘Within the

Veil’ in Hebrews 6:19-20: The Old Testament

Background, Andrews University Seminary

Studies 39 (2001): 175-190.

• See also “Inauguration or Day of Atonement?”

AUSS 40 (2002): 69-88.

• Website: www.andrews.edu/~davidson

• E-mail address: davidson@andrews.edu

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