Hebrews 5:9 Commentary and Bible Study

He refers back to Hebrews 2:10, where it was said that the Father made the author of our salvation perfect through suffering. This has now been explained in the second half of chapter 2, in chapter 4:15, and again in this chapter in verses 6 and 7, and indeed it is an essential element of Christ being our high priest. So, having developed this theme as he intended, the writer picks up this thread in this closely reasoned and skilfully woven letter to the Hebrews, and he indicates he is doing so by using the same words again. This perfecting of Christ is his reaching his goal. He always was perfect in that he was sinless, but the Greek word translated perfect means complete, and it means perfect in that sense. He reached it by all the experiences that he had in his humiliation on earth which prepared him for the task given him by the Father. In order to be our perfect high priest he had to sympathize deeply with his people. In his divine nature he understands all human emotions and experiences, but as a man he had to learn to sympathize with his elect people in all their sufferings, both before and after their conversion, both those sufferings which come on them as a result of their sins, and those which come from being in a cursed world. The ability to be deeply touched with sympathy is an essential qualification for every high priest. This is why the Old Testament priests wore an ephod with two onyx stones on the shoulder pieces, on which were engraved the names of the twelve tribes of Israel who they were to represent before God. This is why, in addition, they were to have a breastplate with twelve different stones attached to it with the names of one of the tribes on each stone. The high priest as it were carried the twelve tribes on his shoulders in all his service to God, and he bore them close to his heart before the Lord. All this taught the great patience that he must have, a patience that came from sympathy and longing that God would forgive them and bless them. He wore these garments as he went about all his work of offering up sacrifices, and the Lord Jesus Christ likewise had his people and their redemption uppermost in his mind in all he did. But as a man it was his own experiences of suffering that taught him to sympathise with his people, because they were subject to the same infirmities, for he learned obedience. His Father had given him an elect people, and his commitment to them was total. At no point could he say, ‘This is too much; this rebellion, this disobedience, this wickedness is unnecessary. I will give up representing this one.’ He had to bear with all our sin and complete the work of redemption so that each one arrives in heaven. And his sympathy must not fail however great the suffering that they cause him. On the cross while he was making atonement for our sins Christ was intensely aware of our sin for he had to bear the consequences of every transgression. He saw our unreasonableness in sinning so lightly, so provocatively, so repeatedly. None of this must be allowed to make him say, ‘Enough! I have suffered enough for such an unworthy people.’