This better hope brings us nigh unto God. This is what the law could not do, and therefore this access to God

must be intimately connected with `perfection'. That this is literally so will be found in the case of Christ:

*

`We have such an High Priest, Who is set on the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in the heavens' (8:1).

As the Perfecter of faith He is:

`set down at the right hand of the throne of God' (12:2).

In the Spirit, we, through Him, draw nigh now, but this only pledges actual access when the day arrives for the

redemption of the purchased possession. The superiority of this better hope lies in the superiority of its Mediator.

That superiority has been shown in various ways. The particular thought before us in verses 20-22 lies in the fact

that the Lord Jesus was made a Priest by oath.

The argument is found in the words:

`Inasmuch ... by so much ...' (Heb. 7:20-22).

The intervening passages give the fact of the oath, and the result, the better Covenant. The hope and the

Covenant were `better' in the same proportion that the pre-eminence of the Melchisedec priesthood was above that

of Aaron. That preeminence is discovered in the `oath'.

The force of the oath and its bearing upon the subject is found in the added words `and will not repent'. The

Priesthood of Christ was immutably secure. Not only was there this attribute of immutability connected with this

Priesthood arising out of the nature of the oath sworn by God, but further, it arises out of the fact that He ever liveth:

`And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death: but this Man, because

He continues (as a priest) for ever (the age), hath an unchangeable (intransferable) Priesthood' (verses 23 and

Note the argument in the word `continue' or `abide' in verse 3 which speaks of the character of the Priesthood

and not of life itself. Aparabatos (verse 24) means something more than `unchangeable'; it means incapable of

transmission or of transference. Christ as the Melchisedec Priest has no need to secure a successor. His Priesthood

is never terminated by death.

`By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament (covenant)' (verse 22).

The word `surety' is egguos, and is allied to eggizo, `to draw nigh' of verse 19. As we have before noted, the

Old Covenant failed to `bring us to God', the New Covenant gloriously succeeds. The `us' and the `we' referring to

those Hebrews and not to Gentiles as described in Ephesians 2:11,12. The surety of that New Covenant is not the

blood of bulls or goats, but the blood of Christ. Of such a Priest and such a Surety the apostle says:

`Wherefore He is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by Him, seeing He ever liveth to make

intercession for them' (verse 25).

We need to ponder these words, or else we may miss the sense.

`He is able to save'. That is a blessed fact.

`He is able also to save' suggests something in addition.

`He is able also to save to the UTTERMOST' reveals what that addition is.

*

While we avoid continual reminders that îweØ were never under the old covenant, and that our blessings do not

flow from the New Covenant, we nevertheless stress the value to us of the teaching of Hebrews, as parallel but not

identical with the place occupied by Philippians in the dispensation of the Mystery.