Catholic Commentary on Hebrews 8

"I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people." (Hebrews 8:10)

The Heavenly Sanctuary

The main point of what the author is saying is this: we do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, and who serves in the sanctuary, the true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by a mere human being. Every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices; this high priest also had to have something to offer. If he were on earth, he would not be a priest, since there are already priests who offer the gifts prescribed by the Law. They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: see to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain. The earthly tabernacle is a shadow of the heavenly reality; the Levitical priesthood is a shadow of the eternal priesthood of Christ.

The New Covenant

But the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises. The author quotes Jeremiah 31:31-34 at length, the only extended Old Testament quotation in the New Testament: the days are coming when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel. Not like the covenant I made with their ancestors, which they broke. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people. No longer will a man teach his neighbour saying know the Lord, because they will all know me, from the least to the greatest. For I will forgive their wickedness and will remember their sins no more. By calling this covenant new, God has made the first one obsolete. The Catechism identifies this promise as fulfilled in the Eucharist, the sacrament of the new and eternal covenant, in which God's law is written on the heart by the Spirit (CCC 1965).

Living the Word

Brothers and sisters, I will write my laws on their hearts. Not on stone tablets where they can be read from the outside. On the heart. The new covenant is the internalisation of the law of God, the transformation of the will from within rather than the constraint of the will from without. This is what the Spirit does in the baptised person, writing the law of love where no external commandment can reach. Let the Spirit write what no tablet can carry.

Prayer

Lord God, you promised a new covenant, written not on stone but on the heart. Write your laws on our minds and hearts. Be our God and let us be your people. Forgive our wickedness and remember our sins no more. Through the blood of the eternal covenant, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

8
Christ’s Eternal Priesthood
1 The point of what we are saying is this: We do have such a high priest, who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, 2 and who ministers in the sanctuary and true tabernacle set up by the Lord, not by man. 3 And since every high priest is appointed to offer both gifts and sacrifices, it was necessary for this One also to have something to offer.
 
4 Now if He were on earth, He would not be a priest, since there are already priests who offer gifts according to the law. 5 The place where they serve is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: “See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain.”* 8:5 Exodus 25:40; see also Exodus 26:30.
The New Covenant
(Jeremiah 31:26–40)
 
6 Now, however, Jesus has received a much more excellent ministry, just as the covenant He mediates is better and is founded on better promises. 7 For if that first covenant had been without fault, no place would have been sought for a second. 8 But God found fault with the people and said:
 
“Behold, the days are coming, declares the Lord,
when I will make a new covenant
with the house of Israel
and with the house of Judah.
9 It will not be like the covenant
I made with their fathers
when I took them by the hand
to lead them out of the land of Egypt,
because they did not abide by My covenant,
and I disregarded them,
declares the Lord.
10 For this is the covenant I will make
with the house of Israel
after those days,
declares the Lord.
I will put My laws in their minds
and inscribe them on their hearts.
And I will be their God,
and they will be My people.
11 No longer will each one teach his neighbor or his brother,
saying, ‘Know the Lord,’
because they will all know Me,
from the least of them to the greatest.
12 For I will forgive their iniquities
and will remember their sins no more.”† 8:12 Jeremiah 31:31–34 (see also LXX)
 
13 By speaking of a new covenant,‡ 8:13 Literally In saying new; here and in Hebrews 9:1 and 18, covenant is included for clarity but is not contained in the Greek. A broader interpretation could also include priesthood or tabernacle. He has made the first one obsolete; and what is obsolete and aging will soon disappear.

*8:5 8:5 Exodus 25:40; see also Exodus 26:30.

†8:12 8:12 Jeremiah 31:31–34 (see also LXX)

‡8:13 8:13 Literally In saying new; here and in Hebrews 9:1 and 18, covenant is included for clarity but is not contained in the Greek. A broader interpretation could also include priesthood or tabernacle.

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