Study Desk

Those who first heard the Good News did not receive that rest, because they did not believe. There are, then, others who are allowed to receive it.

Let us, then, do our best to receive that rest, so that no one of us will fail as they did because of their lack of faith.

And because he is himself weak, he must offer sacrifices not only for the sins of the people but also for his own sins.

In his life on earth Jesus made his prayers and requests with loud cries and tears to God, who could save him from death. Because he was humble and devoted, God heard him.

There is much we have to say about this matter, but it is hard to explain to you, because you are so slow to understand.

And then they abandoned their faith! It is impossible to bring them back to repent again, because they are again crucifying the Son of God and exposing him to public shame.

and Abraham gave him one tenth of all he had taken. (The first meaning of Melchizedek's name is "King of Righteousness"; and because he was king of Salem, his name also means "King of Peace.")

The old rule, then, is set aside, because it was weak and useless.

There is another difference: there were many of those other priests, because they died and could not continue their work.

And so he is able, now and always, to save those who come to God through him, because he lives forever to plead with God for them.

But now, Jesus has been given priestly work which is superior to theirs, just as the covenant which he arranged between God and his people is a better one, because it is based on promises of better things.

For this reason Christ is the one who arranges a new covenant, so that those who have been called by God may receive the eternal blessings that God has promised. This can be done because there has been a death which sets people free from the wrongs they did while the first covenant was in effect.

Because Jesus Christ did what God wanted him to do, we are all purified from sin by the offering that he made of his own body once and for all.

Let us hold on firmly to the hope we profess, because we can trust God to keep his promise.

You shared the sufferings of prisoners, and when all your belongings were seized, you endured your loss gladly, because you knew that you still possessed something much better, which would last forever.

Do not lose your courage, then, because it brings with it a great reward.

It was faith that made Abel offer to God a better sacrifice than Cain's. Through his faith he won God's approval as a righteous man, because God himself approved of his gifts. By means of his faith Abel still speaks, even though he is dead.

It was faith that kept Enoch from dying. Instead, he was taken up to God, and nobody could find him, because God had taken him up. The scripture says that before Enoch was taken up, he had pleased God.

Instead, it was a better country they longed for, the heavenly country. And so God is not ashamed for them to call him their God, because he has prepared a city for them.

because God had decided on an even better plan for us. His purpose was that only in company with us would they be made perfect.