Hebrews 9 7

Hebrews 9:7 kjv

But into the second went the high priest alone once every year, not without blood, which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people:

Hebrews 9:7 nkjv

But into the second part the high priest went alone once a year, not without blood, which he offered for himself and for the people's sins committed in ignorance;

Hebrews 9:7 niv

But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.

Hebrews 9:7 esv

but into the second only the high priest goes, and he but once a year, and not without taking blood, which he offers for himself and for the unintentional sins of the people.

Hebrews 9:7 nlt

But only the high priest ever entered the Most Holy Place, and only once a year. And he always offered blood for his own sins and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance.

Hebrews 9 verses

Hebrews 9 7 Meaning

Hebrews 9:7 describes the highly restricted and solemn ritual of the Old Covenant's Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). It states that only the high priest, and he alone, could enter the innermost part of the Tabernacle—the Most Holy Place—and that this was permitted only once each year. His entry was never without blood, which he offered not only for the unintentional "errors" or sins of the people but also for his own sins, emphasizing the imperfection of the Levitical priesthood and the temporary nature of these sacrifices. This served as a shadow pointing towards a future, perfect High Priest and His complete and final sacrifice.

Hebrews 9 7 Context

Hebrews chapter 9 serves to highlight the limitations and symbolic nature of the Old Covenant tabernacle and its rituals, particularly in contrast to the superior and perfected ministry of Jesus Christ. Verses 1-5 describe the arrangement and furnishings of the Tabernacle's two main compartments: the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place (also known as the Holy of Holies). Verses 6-7 then detail the prescribed entry of priests into these areas. While ordinary priests served daily in the Holy Place, verse 7 specifically focuses on the stringent requirements for entering the Most Holy Place, underscoring its profound sanctity and inaccessibility. This detailed description of the old sacrificial system lays the groundwork for the author's argument that these practices were merely "a copy and shadow" (Heb 8:5) pointing to the reality of Christ's greater sacrifice and perfected priesthood. Historically and culturally, the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur) was the pivotal event of the Israelite religious calendar, designed to temporarily cleanse the nation and sanctuary from defilement, demonstrating God's holiness and the gravity of sin. The rigid protocols associated with this day implicitly challenged the idea that mere human effort or repeated animal sacrifices could provide ultimate and lasting atonement.

Hebrews 9 7 Word analysis

• "but into the second": Greek: eis de ten deuteran (εἰς δὲ τὴν δευτέραν). This refers to the Most Holy Place (also known as the Holy of Holies), the innermost and most sacred compartment of the Tabernacle/Temple. It was separated by a thick veil from the Holy Place (Heb 9:3). Its unique nature emphasized God's presence and simultaneously humanity's inability to approach His holiness directly without mediation.
• "went": Greek: eiserchetai (εἰσέρχεται). Though a present tense verb, it conveys customary, repeated action (historic present). It highlights the regularity of the High Priest's annual entry, implying the ongoing need for atonement under the Old Covenant, contrasting with Christ's singular, final entrance.
• "the high priest": Greek: ho archiereus (ὁ ἀρχιερεὺς). Singular, denoting the unique role of the one individual divinely appointed to mediate for the nation on this most holy day. This role served as a type of the singular, ultimate mediator, Jesus Christ (Heb 4:14, 8:1).
• "alone": Greek: monos (μόνος). This detail emphasizes the unparalleled sacredness and danger of entering God's immediate presence. No one, not even other priests, could accompany the High Priest. This exclusivity contrasts sharply with the New Covenant where, through Christ, all believers have direct access to God (Heb 10:19-20).
• "once every year": Greek: hapax tou eniautou (ἅπαξ τοῦ ἐνιαutou). This underscores the absolute rarity and profound significance of the Day of Atonement. The annual repetition reveals the temporal and provisional nature of the old system; its repeated action signifies its inherent inability to bring final perfection (Heb 10:1-4). This points forward to Christ's "once for all" sacrifice (Heb 9:12, 10:10).
• "not without blood": Greek: ou chōris haimatos (οὐ χωρὶς αἵματος). A critical theological point. It affirms the principle laid out in Lev 17:11, "without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness." This foundational requirement for atonement under the Mosaic Law foreshadowed the ultimate necessity of Christ's perfect blood (Heb 9:22).
• "which he offered": Greek: prospherō (προσφέρω). Refers to the ritual presentation of the blood of the bull and goat, sprinkled before the mercy seat (Lev 16:14-15). It indicates the active intercessory role of the priest in the atonement ritual.
• "for himself": Greek: hyper heautou (ὑπὲρ ἑαυτοῦ). A key point showing the High Priest's imperfection. Unlike Christ who was without sin (Heb 4:15, 7:26), the Levitical High Priest was a human, sinful being who first needed to atone for his own sins before he could mediate for the people (Lev 16:6, 11). This highlights the need for a superior priesthood.
• "and for the errors of the people": Greek: kai ton tou laou agnoematōn (καὶ τῶν τοῦ λαοῦ ἀγνοημάτων). "Errors" (agnoematōn) refers to sins committed through ignorance, oversight, or weakness (Num 15:27-28; Lev 4). This detail suggests a limitation of the Old Covenant atonement—it primarily addressed unintentional sins. While forgiveness was available for intentional sins that carried no specific death penalty or cutting-off, the sacrifices of the Law primarily and explicitly provided rituals for sins committed unwittingly. This implicitly sets the stage for Christ, whose sacrifice would perfectly and fully atone for all types of sin (Heb 10:11-14).

Words-group by words-group analysis:

• "but into the second went the high priest alone": This grouping emphasizes the extraordinary nature of the event—only one man, divinely sanctioned, could enter this sacred space. It speaks of divine separation and human limitation in accessing God's presence.
• "once every year, not without blood": This highlights the twin characteristics of the Old Covenant's central atonement ritual: its temporal repetition, showing its incompleteness, and its absolute reliance on blood, foreshadowing the atoning blood of Christ.
• "which he offered for himself, and for the errors of the people": This crucial phrase reveals the dual function of the high priest's blood offering, addressing both his own sinfulness and the sins of the community. It also implicitly points to the imperfection of the High Priest and the specific, somewhat limited scope of atonement under the Mosaic Law.

Hebrews 9 7 Bonus section

• The veil separating the Holy Place from the Most Holy Place (Heb 9:3) served as a constant physical reminder of the barrier between a holy God and sinful humanity. Its tearing at the moment of Christ's death (Matt 27:51) signaled that the way into God's presence was now opened by His ultimate sacrifice, fulfilling the symbolic function of the Old Covenant tabernacle.
• The elaborate rituals of the Day of Atonement, as detailed in Leviticus 16, involved specific sacrificial animals (a bull for the high priest, a goat for the Lord as a sin offering, and another goat as the scapegoat to carry sins away), specific garments for the high priest, and strict procedural requirements, all of which pointed forward to different aspects of Christ's atoning work.
• The "errors" (agnoēmatōn) of the people that were atoned for typically referred to sins committed unwittingly. While there were provisions for some deliberate sins in the Law (e.g., restitution), many willful acts, especially those committed with a "high hand," carried a death penalty or being "cut off from the people" (Num 15:30-31), suggesting they fell outside the scope of typical sin offerings. This underscores how much more profound and comprehensive Christ's atonement is, covering all sin, past, present, and future, willful or unwitting.

Hebrews 9 7 Commentary

Hebrews 9:7 masterfully summarizes the pinnacle of Old Covenant worship, the Day of Atonement, to underscore its provisional nature and point towards Christ's superior ministry. The physical setting, the Most Holy Place, was veiled off, signifying the limited access to God under the old covenant. Only the high priest could enter this space, and even then, just once a year. This restricted access reinforced the idea that direct, continuous communion with God was not yet fully established. The High Priest himself was imperfect, needing to atone for his own sins first, which starkly contrasts with Jesus, our perfect High Priest who was without sin. Crucially, the verse reiterates that atonement was never achieved without the shedding and offering of blood, aligning with the core Old Testament principle. The fact that the blood primarily covered "errors" or unintentional sins subtly indicates the incompleteness of the system for fully addressing the whole scope of human sinfulness. Thus, Hebrews 9:7 functions as a theological bridge: it validates the necessity and divine origin of the Old Covenant rituals while simultaneously exposing their inherent limitations, thereby demonstrating the indispensable need for and the perfection found only in the unique, once-for-all sacrifice of Jesus Christ, which grants full and open access to God's presence.