Hebrews 8 - EasyEnglish Bible 2024（EASY）

Chapter 8Jesus is our priest in heaven

1The most important thing that we are saying is this: In Jesus, we do have this kind of great priest. He has now sat down to rule with God in heaven. He sits at the right side of God, who rules with all authority.

2He serves as priest in heaven on our behalf. He is in God's very special place, near to God himself. It is like the special place in the tabernacle of long ago. But it is not a tent that people have made. The Lord himself has made this special place, and it is the true tabernacle.

3It is the duty of every leader of the priests to offer gifts and sacrifices to God. So Jesus, as our great priest, must also have something to offer.

4If he were now living on earth, then he would not be a priest. There are already priests on earth who offer gifts to God. They do this in the way that Moses' Law tells them.

5But the way that those Levite priests work is only like a picture of the true things in heaven. It is like a shadow of what would happen in heaven. Long ago, when Moses was ready to make the tabernacle, God warned him about it. God said to Moses, ‘Be careful to make everything just like the plan which I showed you on the mountain.’ God's new covenant is possible because of Jesus

6But now God has given Jesus a much better way to serve him as a priest. The new covenant that God makes with his people is possible because of Jesus. Because of Jesus' work on our behalf, the new covenant is better than the old one. It is much better because it started with better promises.

7If there had been nothing wrong with that first covenant, nobody would have needed a second covenant.

8But God did find something wrong with it. As a result, he said this to his people:

‘Listen to this! The Lord God says:

A time will come when I make a new covenant with my people,

with Israel's people and with Judah's people.

9It will not be like the old covenant that I made with their ancestors.

At that time, I brought my people safely out of Egypt.

I led them like a father who takes his child's hand.

But they did not continue to obey my covenant with them.

So I turned away from them.

That is what the Lord says.

10But now the Lord says this:

After the time of that old covenant

I will make a new covenant with Israel's people.

It will be like this:

I will put my laws into their thoughts.

I will write my laws deep inside them.

I will be their God and they will be my people.

11Then nobody will have to teach their friends or their family about me.

They will never need to say, “You should know the Lord.”

This is because everyone will already know me.

The most important people will know me,

as well as the least important people.

12I will be kind to them.

I will forgive them for the wicked things that they have done.

I will not continue to think about their sins.

That is what the Lord says.’

13We see that God was speaking about a new covenant. That shows that he has caused the first covenant to become old. And anything that is becoming old like that will soon disappear.