Hebrews 10:6 kjv
In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin thou hast had no pleasure.
Hebrews 10:6 nkjv
In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure.
Hebrews 10:6 niv
with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased.
Hebrews 10:6 esv
in burnt offerings and sin offerings you have taken no pleasure.
Hebrews 10:6 nlt
You were not pleased with burnt offerings
or other offerings for sin.
Hebrews 10 6 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Ps 40:6 | "Sacrifice and offering you did not desire; burnt offering and sin offering you did not require." | Source for Hebrews' statement on God's desire. |
| 1 Sam 15:22 | "Has the LORD as great delight in burnt offerings... as in obeying the voice of the LORD? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice." | God prefers obedience over ritual sacrifice. |
| Hos 6:6 | "For I desire steadfast love and not sacrifice, the knowledge of God rather than burnt offerings." | Emphasizes internal heart condition over external ritual. |
| Isa 1:11-17 | "I have had enough of burnt offerings of rams... I do not delight in the blood of bulls, or of lambs, or of goats." | God rejects sacrifices from disobedient hearts. |
| Jer 7:22-23 | "For when I brought your fathers out of the land of Egypt, I did not speak to them... concerning burnt offerings and sacrifices. But this command I gave them: ‘Obey my voice’." | God's primary command was obedience, not just sacrifice. |
| Mic 6:6-8 | "With what shall I come before the LORD...? Will the LORD be pleased with thousands of rams...? He has told you, O man, what is good: and what does the LORD require of you but to do justice, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with your God?" | Ethical conduct surpasses mere animal sacrifice. |
| Prov 21:3 | "To do righteousness and justice is more acceptable to the LORD than sacrifice." | Highlights God's preference for ethical living. |
| Mk 12:33 | "to love Him with all the heart... and to love one's neighbor as oneself is much more than all whole burnt offerings and sacrifices." | Jesus affirms the spiritual truth of love above ritual. |
| Heb 9:9-10 | "It was symbolic for the present age, during which gifts and sacrifices are offered that cannot perfect the conscience." | Old sacrifices unable to provide spiritual perfection. |
| Heb 9:13-14 | "For if the blood of bulls and goats... sanctify for the purification of the flesh, how much more will the blood of Christ... purify our conscience from dead works." | Contrast Old Testament animal blood with Christ's perfect blood. |
| Heb 10:1-4 | "For since the law has but a shadow... it can never, by the same sacrifices... make perfect those who draw near." | Old Law sacrifices were shadows and ineffective for perfection. |
| Heb 10:8-9 | "When He said, 'Sacrifices and offerings and burnt offerings and sin offerings You have had no pleasure in or delight'... He does away with the first in order to establish the second." | Direct interpretation: Christ's obedience abolishes the old. |
| Heb 10:12 | "But when Christ had offered for all time a single sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God." | Christ's singular sacrifice is eternally effective. |
| Heb 10:14 | "For by a single offering he has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified." | Christ's one sacrifice perfectly cleanses believers. |
| Eph 5:2 | "Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God." | Christ's self-sacrifice as the true acceptable offering. |
| Rom 3:25 | "God presented him as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith." | Christ's blood as the ultimate atonement. |
| 1 Pet 1:18-19 | "You were ransomed... not with perishable things... but with the precious blood of Christ, like that of a lamb without blemish or spot." | Redemption by Christ's perfect, unblemished sacrifice. |
| Jn 1:29 | "Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!" | Identifies Jesus as the ultimate sacrificial Lamb. |
| Col 2:16-17 | "Therefore let no one pass judgment on you... regarding a festival or a new moon or a Sabbath. These are a shadow of the things to come, but the substance belongs to Christ." | Old Covenant rituals are shadows fulfilled by Christ. |
| Phil 2:8 | "He humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross." | Christ's ultimate obedience is tied to His redemptive death. |
| Rom 5:19 | "For as by the one man's disobedience the many were made sinners, so by the one man's obedience the many will be made righteous." | Highlights Christ's obedience as the basis for righteousness. |
| Heb 7:18-19 | "For on the one hand, a former commandment is set aside because of its weakness and uselessness (for the law made nothing perfect)." | The Law and its sacrifices could not perfect. |
Hebrews 10 verses
Hebrews 10 6 Meaning
Hebrews 10:6 declares God's lack of "pleasure" in the sacrificial system of burnt offerings and sin offerings as a means of ultimate atonement or achieving spiritual perfection. This verse, quoting Psalm 40:6, is foundational to the author of Hebrews' argument: that the Old Covenant rituals, while divinely ordained, were temporary and preparatory. They could not finally take away sin or perfectly cleanse the conscience, thus failing to fully satisfy God's deepest desire for reconciliation achieved through true and ultimate sacrifice, which is realized only in Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 10 6 Context
Hebrews chapter 10 is part of a larger theological argument presented by the author, comparing and contrasting the Old Covenant's Levitical priesthood and sacrificial system with the New Covenant established by Jesus Christ. Chapters 7-9 thoroughly expounded upon Christ's superior priesthood (like Melchizedek, eternal) and His superior sacrifice (once for all, in a heavenly sanctuary). Chapter 10 opens by reiterating the inadequacy of the Old Covenant law and its animal sacrifices (Heb 10:1-4) because they could only remind people of sin year after year, never fully taking it away or perfecting the conscience.
Verse 6, along with verses 5 and 7, directly quotes or alludes to Psalm 40:6-8 (from the Septuagint, the Greek Old Testament). This quote is crucial because it prophesies God's ultimate desire not for mere animal sacrifice, but for a true and complete fulfillment of His will through obedience. This sets the stage for introducing Jesus Christ's decisive act of obedience in coming to earth and offering His own body as the perfect, once-for-all sacrifice (Heb 10:10), effectively replacing and rendering obsolete the former sacrificial system. The historical context for the original audience, likely Jewish Christians facing temptation to return to Judaism, meant they relied heavily on understanding the fulfillment of Old Covenant types in Christ.
Hebrews 10 6 Word analysis
In burnt offerings: Greek: Holokautoma (ὁλοκαύτωμα). This term specifically refers to a "whole burnt offering" or "holocaust" where the entire animal was consumed by fire, symbolizing complete devotion, propitiation, and expiation for sin. This was one of the major offerings under the Mosaic Law (Leviticus 1). Its inclusion highlights the scope of the inadequacy of all types of animal sacrifice.
and sacrifices for sin: Greek: kai peri hamartias (καὶ περὶ ἁμαρτίας). This refers specifically to "sin offerings" (Leviticus 4-5) which were prescribed for unintentional sins or ceremonial uncleanness, intended to make atonement. The pairing with "burnt offerings" covers the major categories of atonement-focused sacrifices under the Old Covenant.
You have had no pleasure: Greek: ouk eudokēsas (οὐκ εὐδόκησας). This is a strong negation: "you were not well pleased," "you did not delight in," "you had no good will towards." It doesn't mean God never commanded or accepted any Old Covenant sacrifices (He did, as a shadow system), but rather that these sacrifices were insufficient in themselves to achieve the ultimate spiritual cleansing and perfection that God truly desired for humanity. Their repetitive nature underscored their inability to provide a final solution to the problem of sin and alienation from God. This divine dissatisfaction foreshadows and necessitates the perfect, final sacrifice of Christ.
Words-group analysis:
- "In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin": This phrase encompasses the entire range of atoning sacrifices prescribed under the Mosaic Law. By grouping them, the author generalizes the limitations of the whole system. The point is not about what kind of animal, but the very nature of animal sacrifices, repeatedly offered, that ultimately could not bring perfection. They pointed to the future perfect sacrifice, but could not be it.
Hebrews 10 6 Bonus section
The divine eudokia (pleasure/good will) denied to animal sacrifices in this verse is found supremely in Christ's offering of Himself. For instance, at Jesus' baptism and transfiguration, God audibly declares, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Matt 3:17; Matt 17:5). This divine approval is fundamentally linked to Christ's full obedience to the Father's will, especially His willingness to perfectly fulfill the will for a final sacrifice (Heb 10:7-9). Thus, what the animal sacrifices lacked in achieving God's deepest pleasure, Christ's singular, obedient offering profoundly achieved. The purpose of the old sacrifices was to point forward to this ultimate, God-pleasing act.
Hebrews 10 6 Commentary
Hebrews 10:6 is a critical pivot in the epistle's argument, serving as part of the Scriptural proof from Psalm 40 that God's ultimate intention for humanity's reconciliation was never meant to be fulfilled by the continual shedding of animal blood. The verse does not imply God regretted instituting the Levitical sacrificial system. Rather, it speaks to His foresight that these were insufficient and provisional, mere shadows (Heb 10:1) pointing to a greater reality. God's "no pleasure" indicates that the deepest desires of His will—perfect righteousness and a cleansed conscience—could not be achieved through these rituals. They highlighted humanity's sinfulness and the need for atonement but could not provide the ultimate purification or permanent access to God. This sets the stage for the definitive and joy-pleasing act of Jesus Christ: His perfect obedience (Heb 10:7, 9) and His singular, all-sufficient sacrifice (Heb 10:10-14), which truly fulfills God's will and brings about true communion. This transition signifies the New Covenant's superiority and Christ's final work as the perfect High Priest and perfect Lamb.