Hebrews 7:16

Hebrews 7:16

Regulation v resurrection!

Once again, the author of this epistle draws out attention to the contrast between human values and those that are spiritual. We must be careful to not look down on the regulations that exercised the priesthood in Israel, after all, the whole system was put in place by the Lord God to ensure that the Israelites had mediators that could bridge the gap between heaven and earth. These men followed the rules and then added some! The strict regulations about ancestral and genealogical qualifications for the priesthood were meticulously upheld and are still revered today. If you are Jewish and your surname is Cohen then tradition indicates that you have patrilineal descent from Aaron, the first High Priest. Thus, this is a common surname amongst Jews today, as are its variations such as, Cohn, Kahn, Kahan, Kagan, Kogan and Cohan. There are rumours that men with this surname have already been appointed to be priests in Israel once the Temple is rebuilt by the Jews!

Our verse is telling us that this ancestral name or connection to Aaron is not the basis of God’s choice of a High Priest. The qualification bestowed by heaven is “On the basis of the power of an indestructible life!” In other words, Yeshua may not have qualified for the priesthood by virtue of His ancestry, but He proved His eligibility by something far greater, and this was His conquest over death. The moment Jesus Christ emerged from the tomb in the garden on that first day of the week, He was immediately promoted to High Priest of heaven and earth, which is why He is “a priest forever.” Psalm 110:4. 

The Old Testament priests came and went, some were godly men, others were not. They performed their religious duties as assiduously as was possible, they could use substitute sacrifices to make atonement for unintentional sins, but they did not have the power to forgive all sins or to remove the curse of death. Yeshua did both and thus qualifies above all other beings, to be God’s High Priest, forever. Hallelujah! 

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