Hebrews 6:20 Commentary and Bible Study

The Aaronic high priest went into the holy of holies on the tenth day of the seventh month every year on the Day of Atonement with the blood of the offerings to make atonement for himself and for the sins of the people (Leviticus 16:1-34). This was the figure of the true sacrifice which the Lord Jesus Christ would offer up on Calvary and then present his blood in the true sanctuary in heaven. The high priest went into the tabernacle made with hands and came out again and repeated the same sacrifices and same sprinkling of blood every year. But Christ offered himself up once and entered into the sanctuary made without hands in heaven itself where he remains. He is called our forerunner because we too will follow where he has gone, and this is the meaning of the picture of the anchor and its rope. He has gone ahead and remains in the place to which he will bring us. The rope that connects us to him is the hope of being with him, and this hope is based on his sure promise, confirmed by an oath. All this is written to encourage us to have assurance, and this is the kindly way that God deals with those who were not exercising the strong hope and faith that they should have exercised. But now the writer skilfully returns to the subject of Melchisedec by reminding us that when Christ entered the heavenly temple, he did so as a high priest not after the order of Aaron, but after the order of Melchisedec.