Free Bible Commentary
“Introduction to the book of Hebrews”
Categories: HebrewsWe simply do not know who wrote the letter to the Hebrew (Jewish) Christians or the location of its recipients, and there is no way to tell with any certainty on this side of eternity. It has been speculated that the Apostle Paul, the Apostle Peter, Luke, Silas, Barnabas or any one a host of others is the possible penman of this epistle. God only knows and neither the Inspirer nor the author deemed it necessary to inform us about it, so it must not be important for our salvation or spiritual welfare. Hebrews 13:24 suggests it may have been written from or to a location in Italy, but this too is inconclusive. That this letter was written immediately to Jewish Christians in a specific location and not to all Hebrew disciples at large seems evident from the author’s desire to visit with them soon after writing the epistle (13:23).
This letter was written in large part to encourage Jewish Christians, who were enduring persecution because of their faith, to remain loyal in the face of hostilities. Even though they had not “suffered to the point of shedding blood” (12:4), they had suffered significantly in their past (10:32), and were currently enduring tribulation at the hands of aggressive non-believers at the time of the writing (2:18; 4:16; 10:36, etc.). Some had endured verbal and physical abuse and even had their property confiscated, while others had been thrown into prison for their profession of faith to Christ (10:32-34; 13:3). Frequently the author encouraged these harried Christians to remain faithful to their Master to the very end regardless of the earthly consequences, and to warn them of the dire eternal consequences of abandoning their faith, and incurring the wrath of the Almighty God of heaven (2:1-3; 3:15-18; 6:7-8; 10:26-31; 12:25-29).
He encouraged them to not “fall away from the living God” (3:12-14; 4:14); to mature and “have their senses trained to discern good and evil” (5:11-14); to “hold fast the confession” of their faith (4:12); to endure and not “shrink back” (10:32-39); to “lay aside every encumbrance and sin” that entangles, and “run with endurance the race” set before them, looking to Jesus as the perfect example of eternal reward for faithful endurance (12:1-3). The main focus of the author is to demonstrate the vast superiority of Christ and His New Covenant as compared to Moses and the rudiments and shadows of that inferior law and covenant (1:1-14; 8:1-13); and to convince his readers of the foolishness of abandoning their heavenly calling and returning to a disobedient and fruitless way of life.
I know that this brief introduction in no way comes close to doing justice to this magnificent epistle, but we will dig deeper into its meaning as we delve into our daily readings. But let’s end by making application to our own lives based on what we’ve learned from this intro today. While it is true that few if any of us are Jews tempted to revert back to a defunct covenant and system of law, Hebrews teaches us that nothing in this world is worth abandoning our faith in Christ for. No amount of ridicule, slander or persecution. No amount of fame, fortune or power. No amount of pride, prejudice or pleasure. Nothing that this world can offer us or throw at us is worth falling from our faith for and forfeiting our eternal sabbath rest in heaven (4:11).
Please read Hebrews 1:1-7 for tomorrow.
Have a great day!
- Louie Taylor
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