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while being true, is not the teaching of the verse before us so far as we understand it. The
better hope is said to have been "superinducted", epeisagoge which this Greek word
means.
In Gal. 3: 19 the law which was "superadded" was "for the sake of
transgressions" and was to operate "till the Seed should come", when it would be
abrogated as being "weak and unprofitable", failing as it did to touch the conscience.
When the fullness of time came and the Son of God entered into His office, there was
the "superinduction" of a better hope which set aside the types and shadows, and actually
did give access to God. It is called "a better hope". This better hope does not look for an
entrance into the land of promise, but looks for "a better country, an heavenly". It is
connected with a "better Covenant", in contrast with the old Covenant that was made
after the exodus and before the land of promise was reached. "Better promises" lie
behind this hope, a "better resurrection" lies ahead, and "better sacrifices", or an
infinitely better sacrifice, lie beneath.
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).
[* - While we avoid continual reminders that "we" 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. This parallel will be exhibited at the close of the present series.]
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 oath that perfects.
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".