'But God, Who is rich in mercy ... made us alive' (4,5).

'But Now in Christ Jesus ... made nigh' (13).

When the apostle had clearly shown both the weakness and

unprofitableness of the dispensation of type and shadow, he swings the door

of the new dispensation upon the same small hinges, 'But Christ':

'But Christ being come an High Priest of good things to come' (Heb.

The good things to come must not be interpreted only of the new life

and the glory yet to be, they include, and perhaps principally refer to, the

dispensational change which set aside the types and shadows and provided the

antitype, Christ.  This may be seen by consulting Hebrews 10:1:

'For the law having a shadow of good things to come, and not the very

image of the things'.

We remember the opening words of chapter 8 and that the 'principal

thing' is a seated Priest in a heavenly sanctuary.  This important fact is

again prominent.  We have such an High Priest of good things to come, in

contrast with those priests whose ministry was confined to shadows.  At 9:11

we have the subject of 9:1 -5 resumed in the words, 'by a greater and more

perfect Tabernacle'.  Not only is this Tabernacle 'greater and more perfect',

it is 'not of this creation', for so the word rendered 'building' should be

translated.  The use of this word 'creation' is noteworthy, for in 2

Corinthians 3 to 5 the New Covenant is linked with the new creation, and both

with the reconciliation.  Israel are a typical people, and in this they

foreshadow the purpose of the ages.

The Blood of Christ.  We noted, in Hebrews 9:6 and 7, that the high

priest entered into the holiest of all once every year, 'not without blood'.

This, therefore, is the next item to be developed in the argument.  Verse 12

'Neither by the blood of goats and calves, but by His own  blood He

entered in once into the holy place, having obtained aionian redemption

for us'.

Negatively, Christ entered 'Not with the blood of goats and calves'.

Positively, Christ entered 'by His own blood'.  As to time Christ entered

'once' in contrast with the type of verse 7, 'once every year'.

It now becomes necessary to the argument of the apostle that he should

establish the superiority of the Offering of Christ, and this he does by a

series of comparisons.  The first comparison is drawn between the offerings

that were provided by the law to sanctify those who had become unclean, and

the cleansing power of the blood of Christ.

A

13 -.

For if.

The fact assumed.

B

-13 -.

The blood, and ashes of heifer.