Hebrews 4:14--5:10

Jesus Our Compassionate High Priest

4:14 Therefore since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. 4:15 For we do not have a high priest incapable of sympathizing with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way just as we are, yet without sin. 4:16 Therefore let us confidently approach the throne of grace to receive mercy and find grace whenever we need help. ¹ 

5:1 For every high priest is taken from among the people ²  and appointed ³  to represent them before God, ⁴  to offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. 5:2 He is able to deal compassionately with those who are ignorant and erring, since he also is subject to weakness, 5:3 and for this reason he is obligated to make sin offerings for himself as well as for the people. 5:4 And no one assumes this honor ⁵  on his own initiative, ⁶  but only when called to it by God, ⁷  as in fact Aaron was. 5:5 So also Christ did not glorify himself in becoming high priest, but the one who glorified him was God, ⁸  who said to him, “You are my Son! Today I have fathered you,” ⁹  5:6 as also in another place God ¹⁰  says, “You are a priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.” ¹¹  5:7 During his earthly life ¹²  Christ ¹³  offered ¹⁴  both requests and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death and he was heard because of his devotion. 5:8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through the things he suffered. ¹⁵  5:9 And by being perfected in this way, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, 5:10 and he was designated ¹⁶  by God as high priest in the order of Melchizedek. ¹⁷ 

[4:16]  ¹ tn Grk “for timely help.”

[5:1]  ² tn Grk “from among men,” but since the point in context is shared humanity (rather than shared maleness), the plural Greek term ἀνθρώπων (anqrwpwn) has been translated “people.”

[5:1]  ³ tn Grk “who is taken from among people is appointed.”

[5:1]  ⁴ tn Grk “appointed on behalf of people in reference to things relating to God.”

[5:4]  ⁵ sn Honor refers here to the honor of the high priesthood.

[5:4]  ⁶ tn Grk “by himself, on his own.”

[5:4]  ⁷ tn Grk “being called by God.”

[5:5]  ⁸ tn Grk “the one”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:5]  ⁹ tn Grk “I have begotten you”; see Heb 1:5.

[5:6]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:6]  ¹¹ sn A quotation from Ps 110:4.

[5:7]  ¹² tn Grk “in the days of his flesh.”

[5:7]  ¹³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Christ) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:7]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “who…having offered,” continuing the description of Christ from Heb 5:5-6.

[5:8]  ¹⁵ sn There is a wordplay in the Greek text between the verbs “learned” (ἔμαθεν, emaqen) and “suffered” (ἔπαθεν, epaqen).

[5:10]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “having been designated,” continuing the thought of Heb 5:9.

[5:10]  ¹⁷ sn The phrase in the order of Melchizedek picks up the quotation from Ps 110:4 in Heb 5:6.