Seeing that the apostle's argument in this section finds its strength in the fact that Christ offered one Sacrifice for

sin, as contrasted with the repeated sacrifices of the law, why does he speak of Christ's Offering in the plural, `better

sacrifices'? There is a recognized figure of speech in the Hebrew Old Testament called Heterosis or `Exchange'. It

has a wide range into which we will not enter here, the section which includes our difficulty being the Heterosis of

number. A few examples will suffice:

Genesis 4:10.

= life's blood.

Genesis 19:11.

`Blindnesses' = intense blindness.

Psalm 51:17.

`Sacrifices'  = the great sacrifice.

This last reference is practically identical with Hebrews 9:23. The apostle, using a recognized figure of speech,

must be understood to mean `the infinitely better sacrifice'. While we are dealing with this figure we might observe

that in verse 24 `holy places' means `the most holy place', as it is translated in 9:8.

In contrasting the offerings made under the law with the Offering of Christ, the writer makes much of the fact

that the law offered sacrifices continually, but that Christ offered but one Sacrifice, and one only. Otherwise it

would be necessary that Christ should suffer often since the foundation of the world. We know from Hebrews 9:15

that the Sacrifice of Christ was retrospective, and was `for the redemption of the transgressions that were under the

first covenant', and also from Romans 3:25 we learn that the Offering of Christ declared God's righteousness in

remitting the sins of the past. The apostle makes a statement in Hebrews 9:26, `But now once in the end of the

world hath He appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself' (epi sunteleia ton aionon), `upon an ending

together of the ages'. This needs some careful study. The LXX uses the word sunteleia in Exodus 23:1-16 in a way

which may help us. `Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto Me in the year':

(1) The feast of unleavened bread.

(2) The feast of the harvest.

(3) The feast of the ingathering (sunteleia) which is in the end of the year.

Once again may we be permitted to say that those to whom the apostle wrote knew the law and much of its

significance? The instructed Hebrew saw in the feasts of Israel, as set out in Leviticus 23, the plan of the ages. He

saw that Christ was the true Passover and the true Firstfruits. The feast of the seventh month, the sunteleia, would

vividly bring to mind the sunteleia of the ages. It has been objected that the `consummation of the ages' has not

arrived, and therefore this passage as it stands in the A.V. is not true. The same objection can be lodged again in

Hebrews 1:1, for the period called `these last days' was over 1,900 years ago.

When Christ was born, Galatians 4:4 declares that it was the fulness of time. We must avoid the error of

introducing truth that belongs to another dispensation to confuse the teaching of earlier revelations. Paul's prison

ministry is, so far as time is concerned, a parenthesis. During the Acts period the coming of the Lord was expected

to take place during the lifetime of the believer then living. Peter had no difficulty when he joined together the

`blood and fire and pillars of smoke' that have not yet come with the Pentecostal gifts that are long past. Moreover,

the objection to the application of the sunteleia of the ages to the time of the Offering of Christ robs the passage of

another vital connection, viz., the Day of Atonement.

The Day of Atonement, like the feast of sunteleia, took place in the seventh month, after the interval that

provides a typical anticipation of the parenthesis that has actually come. Yet at the time of writing the apostle finds

no difficulty in speaking of Christ's Sacrifice in the terms of the Day of Atonement. The condition of things during

the Acts is likened to the time when the high priest had entered into the holiest of all, during which time the people

waited for his second appearing, when they were assured of forgiveness and acceptance. The fact that this second

appearing did not take place, that Israel's forgiveness and acceptance is deferred, that it was all anticipated,

deferment as well, in the plan of the feasts of Leviticus 23, does not alter the teaching of Hebrews chapter 9. A

somewhat similar expression occurs in 1 Corinthians 10:11, `They are written for our admonition, unto whom the

ends of the ages have reached' (ta tele ton aionon).