Numbers 35:28

35:28 because the slayer ¹  should have stayed in his town of refuge until the death of the high priest. But after the death of the high priest, the slayer may return to the land of his possessions.

Joshua 20:6

20:6 He must remain ²  in that city until his case is decided by the assembly ³  and the high priest dies. ⁴  Then the one who committed manslaughter may return home to the city from which he escaped.” ⁵ 

Romans 3:24-26

3:24 But they are justified ⁶  freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. 3:25 God publicly displayed ⁷  him ⁸  at his death ⁹  as the mercy seat ¹⁰  accessible through faith. ¹¹  This was to demonstrate ¹²  his righteousness, because God in his forbearance had passed over the sins previously committed. ¹³  3:26 This was ¹⁴  also to demonstrate ¹⁵  his righteousness in the present time, so that he would be just ¹⁶  and the justifier of the one who lives because of Jesus’ faithfulness. ¹⁷ 

Ephesians 2:16-18

2:16 and to reconcile them both in one body to God through the cross, by which the hostility has been killed. ¹⁸  2:17 And he came and preached peace to you who were far off and peace to those who were near, 2:18 so that ¹⁹  through him we both have access in one Spirit to the Father.

Hebrews 4:14-16

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. ²⁰ 

Hebrews 7:25-28

7:25 So he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them. 7:26 For it is indeed fitting for us to have such a high priest: holy, innocent, undefiled, separate from sinners, and exalted above the heavens. 7:27 He has no need to do every day what those priests do, to offer sacrifices first for their own sins and then for the sins of the people, since he did this in offering himself once for all. 7:28 For the law appoints as high priests men subject to weakness, ²¹  but the word of solemn affirmation that came after the law appoints a son made perfect forever.

Hebrews 9:12-15

9:12 and he entered once for all into the most holy place not by the blood of goats and calves but by his own blood, and so he himself secured ²²  eternal redemption. 9:13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a young cow sprinkled on those who are defiled consecrated them and provided ritual purity, ²³  9:14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our ²⁴  consciences from dead works to worship the living God.

9:15 And so he is the mediator ²⁵  of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the eternal inheritance he has promised, ²⁶  since he died ²⁷  to set them free from the violations committed under the first covenant.

Hebrews 10:19-22

Drawing Near to God in Enduring Faith

10:19 Therefore, brothers and sisters, ²⁸  since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, 10:20 by the fresh and living way that he inaugurated for us ²⁹  through the curtain, that is, through his flesh, ³⁰  10:21 and since we have a great priest ³¹  over the house of God, 10:22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in the assurance that faith brings, ³²  because we have had our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience ³³  and our bodies washed in pure water.

[35:28]  ¹ tn Heb “he.”

[20:6]  ² tn Or “live.”

[20:6]  ³ tn Heb “until he stands before the assembly for judgment.”

[20:6]  ⁴ tn Heb “until the death of the high priest who is in those days.”

[20:6]  ⁵ tn Heb “may return and enter his city and his house, the city from which he escaped.”

[3:24]  ⁶ tn Or “declared righteous.” Grk “being justified,” as a continuation of the preceding clause. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:25]  ⁷ tn Or “purposed, intended.”

[3:25]  ⁸ tn Grk “whom God publicly displayed.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:25]  ⁹ tn Grk “in his blood.” The prepositional phrase ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι (ejn tw aujtou {aimati) is difficult to interpret. It is traditionally understood to refer to the atoning sacrifice Jesus made when he shed his blood on the cross, and as a modifier of ἱλαστήριον (Jilasthrion). This interpretation fits if ἱλαστήριον is taken to refer to a sacrifice. But if ἱλαστήριον is taken to refer to the place where atonement is made as this translation has done (see note on the phrase “mercy seat”), this interpretation of ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι creates a violent mixed metaphor. Within a few words Paul would switch from referring to Jesus as the place where atonement was made to referring to Jesus as the atoning sacrifice itself. A viable option which resolves this problem is to see ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι as modifying the verb προέθετο (proeqeto). If it modifies the verb, it would explain the time or place in which God publicly displayed Jesus as the mercy seat; the reference to blood would be a metaphorical way of speaking of Jesus’ death. This is supported by the placement of ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι in the Greek text (it follows the noun, separated from it by another prepositional phrase) and by stylistic parallels with Rom 1:4. This is the interpretation the translation has followed, although it is recognized that many interpreters favor different options and translations. The prepositional phrase has been moved forward in the sentence to emphasize its connection with the verb, and the referent of the metaphorical language has been specified in the translation. For a detailed discussion of this interpretation, see D. P. Bailey, “Jesus As the Mercy Seat: The Semantics and Theology of Paul’s Use of Hilasterion in Romans 3:25” (Ph.D. diss., University of Cambridge, 1999).

[3:25]  ¹⁰ tn The word ἱλαστήριον (Jilasthrion) may carry the general sense “place of satisfaction,” referring to the place where God’s wrath toward sin is satisfied. More likely, though, it refers specifically to the “mercy seat,” i.e., the covering of the ark where the blood was sprinkled in the OT ritual on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). This term is used only one other time in the NT: Heb 9:5, where it is rendered “mercy seat.” There it describes the altar in the most holy place (holy of holies). Thus Paul is saying that God displayed Jesus as the “mercy seat,” the place where propitiation was accomplished. See N. S. L. Fryer, “The Meaning and Translation of Hilasterion in Romans 3:25,” EvQ 59 (1987): 99-116, who concludes the term is a neuter accusative substantive best translated “mercy seat” or “propitiatory covering,” and D. P. Bailey, “Jesus As the Mercy Seat: The Semantics and Theology of Paul’s Use of Hilasterion in Romans 3:25” (Ph.D. diss., University of Cambridge, 1999), who argues that this is a direct reference to the mercy seat which covered the ark of the covenant.

[3:25]  ¹¹ tn The prepositional phrase διὰ πίστεως (dia pistew") here modifies the noun ἱλαστήριον (Jilasthrion). As such it forms a complete noun phrase and could be written as “mercy-seat-accessible-through-faith” to emphasize the singular idea. See Rom 1:4 for a similar construction. The word “accessible” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied to clarify the idea expressed by the prepositional phrase (cf. NRSV: “effective through faith”).

[3:25]  ¹² tn Grk “for a demonstration,” giving the purpose of God’s action in v. 25a. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:25]  ¹³ tn Grk “because of the passing over of sins previously committed in the forbearance of God.”

[3:26]  ¹⁴ tn The words “This was” have been repeated from the previous verse to clarify that this is a continuation of that thought. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:26]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “toward a demonstration,” repeating and expanding the purpose of God’s action in v. 25a.

[3:26]  ¹⁶ tn Or “righteous.”

[3:26]  ¹⁷ tn Or “of the one who has faith in Jesus.” See note on “faithfulness of Jesus Christ” in v. 22 for the rationale behind the translation “Jesus’ faithfulness.”

[2:16]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “by killing the hostility in himself.”

[2:18]  ¹⁹ tn Or “for.” BDAG gives the consecutive ὅτι (Joti) as a possible category of NT usage (BDAG 732 s.v. 5.c).

[4:16]  ²⁰ tn Grk “for timely help.”

[7:28]  ²¹ sn See Heb 5:2 where this concept was introduced.

[9:12]  ²² tn This verb occurs in the Greek middle voice, which here intensifies the role of the subject, Christ, in accomplishing the action: “he alone secured”; “he and no other secured.”

[9:13]  ²³ tn Grk “for the purifying of the flesh.” The “flesh” here is symbolic of outward or ritual purity in contrast to inner purity, that of the conscience (cf. Heb 9:9).

[9:14]  ²⁴ tc The reading adopted by the translation is attested by many authorities (A D* K P 365 1739* al). But many others (א D² 0278 33 1739^c 1881 Ï lat sa) read “your” instead of “our.” The diversity of evidence makes this a difficult case to decide from external evidence alone. The first and second person pronouns differ by only one letter in Greek, as in English, also making this problem difficult to decide based on internal evidence and transcriptional probability. In the context, the author’s description of sacrificial activities seems to invite the reader to compare his own possible participation in OT liturgy as over against the completed work of Christ, so the second person pronoun “your” might make more sense. On the other hand, TCGNT 599 argues that “our” is preferable because the author of Hebrews uses direct address (i.e., the second person) only in the hortatory sections. What is more, the author seems to prefer the first person in explanatory remarks or when giving the logical grounds for an assertion (cf. Heb 4:15; 7:14). It is hard to reach a definitive conclusion in this case, but the data lean slightly in favor of the first person pronoun.

[9:15]  ²⁵ tn The Greek word μεσίτης (mesith", “mediator”) in this context does not imply that Jesus was a mediator in the contemporary sense of the word, i.e., he worked for compromise between opposing parties. Here the term describes his function as the one who was used by God to enact a new covenant which established a new relationship between God and his people, but entirely on God’s terms.

[9:15]  ²⁶ tn Grk “the promise of the eternal inheritance.”

[9:15]  ²⁷ tn Grk “a death having occurred.”

[10:19]  ²⁸ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.

[10:20]  ²⁹ tn Grk “that he inaugurated for us as a fresh and living way,” referring to the entrance mentioned in v. 19.

[10:20]  ³⁰ sn Through his flesh. In a bold shift the writer changes from a spatial phrase (Christ opened the way through the curtain into the inner sanctuary) to an instrumental phrase (he did this through [by means of] his flesh in his sacrifice of himself), associating the two in an allusion to the splitting of the curtain in the temple from top to bottom (Matt 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45). Just as the curtain was split, so Christ’s body was broken for us, to give us access into God’s presence.

[10:21]  ³¹ tn Grk “and a great priest,” continuing the construction begun in v. 19.

[10:22]  ³² tn Grk “in assurance of faith.”

[10:22]  ³³ sn The phrase our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience combines the OT imagery of the sprinkling with blood to give ritual purity with the emphasis on the interior cleansing provided by the new covenant: It is the heart that is cleansed and the conscience made perfect (cf. Heb 8:10; 9:9, 14; 10:2, 16).