Chapter 5
Requirements for the High Priest
For every high priest taken from among men is appointed for men in things pertaining to God, that he may offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. 2 He can have compassion on those who are ignorant and going astray, since he himself is also subject to weakness. 3 Because of this he is required as for the people, so also for himself, to offer sacrifices for sins. 4 And no man takes this honor to himself, but he who is called by God, just as Aaron was.
The high priest was a man who was the spiritual leader and representative of the Jewish people before God. One of the ways he did that was to offer gifts and sacrifices from the people to God. He had compassion on the people for he too was a sinner and weak. He had to offer sacrifices for not only for their sins but also for his own. The high priest was chosen by God.
Christ’s Priesthood is Everlasting
5 So also Christ did not glorify Himself to become High Priest, but it was He who said to Him: “You are My Son, Today I have begotten You.” 6 As He also says in another place: “You are a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek”;
Jesus did not glorify Himself to become the High Priest over mankind. It was His Father who appointed Jesus to that exalted position. The Father called Jesus His Son and said today I have begotten You.
Elsewhere in scripture it explains that Jesus was a priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek. More will be said about Melchizedek in chapter 7. For now, let us understand that it is said that Melchizedek was both the king and priest of Salem during the time of Abraham, who is the father of the Jewish people. Salem became Jerusalem, the city of David, where he and his son Solomon reigned and where Jesus Christ, the King, will reign.
7 who, in the days of His flesh, when He had offered up prayers and supplications, with vehement cries and tears to Him who was able to save Him from death, and was heard because of His godly fear, 8 though He was a Son, yet He learned obedience by the things which He suffered. 9 And having been perfected, He became the author of eternal salvation to all who obey Him, 10 called by God as High Priest “according to the order of Melchizedek,” 11 of whom we have much to say, and hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.
This is referring to our Lord Jesus Christ. Though Jesus often prayed to His Father, this appears to have reference to our Lord’s prayers and agony in the Garden of Gethsemane while awaiting His betrayal by Judas and His arrest by the Jewish authorities. During that night and in the early morning Jesus had been praying to His Father knowing what was going to happen to Him. The Scripture records that Jesus was distressed and sorrowful to the point of death. His sweat became like great drops of blood falling on the ground. Jesus asked His Father to remove the cup that He was about to go through, but not according to His will but only according to His Father’s will. This is how we should honor the Lord with our prayers, ending them by saying, “…but not our will but your will be done.”
When the author says that Jesus “learned obedience” and was “perfected” I believe he is saying that the experience of his agony at Gethsemane demonstrated His obedience and perfection to the Father. Jesus always was obedient to His Father and was the perfect spotless Lamb of God. He didn’t do His own will but always the will of His Father. Jesus was all-knowing so He didn’t learn things as you and I do. He knew full well what He would be facing when He received the wrath of God to remove the sins of all Christians as He paid the penalty for their sins. Therefore, He did endure the terrible experience of the cross. Jesus loved us so much He was willing to face the pain and agony of a flogging, a crown of thorns, being spit on, mocked, humiliated, and finally crucified on our behalf.
Jesus became the author of eternal salvation to everyone who obeys Him. For no one can obtain eternal life unless they believe, worship, love, and follow Him. Jesus said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me (John 14:6).” As the title of this book confirms, Jesus was called by God as our High Priest after the order of Melchizedek. The author of Hebrews will have much more to say about Melchizedek in chapter 7 that is hard to explain to his readers as he says they have become dull of hearing. Let us be careful to be good listeners with understanding especially about the things of God. We need to listen carefully to our ministers and pastors and listen to the Word of God and then be obedient doers of the Word.
Lack of Spiritual Knowledge
12 For though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the first principles of the oracles of God; and you have come to need milk and not solid food. 13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is unskilled in the word of righteousness, for he is a babe. 14 But solid food belongs to those who are of full age, that is, those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.
Here the author is critical of the lack of spiritual maturity in those to whom He is writing. At this point these people should have progressed to being teachers of the Word of God. Yet they were still in spiritual infancy, not having a thorough knowledge of the fundamental doctrines of their faith and needed to be taught by others. Are we growing in our knowledge of the things of God and His doctrines or are we content to just have a surface knowledge of the Bible? Let us delve into the deeper doctrines of the scriptures and mature as Christians.