God’s Unchangeable Promise

13 [When] God made His promise to Abraham, since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself, 14 saying, “{I will} surely bless you and multiply your [descendants].”[fn] 15 And so [Abraham], after waiting patiently, obtained the promise.

16 Men indeed[fn] swear by [someone] greater [than themselves], and [their] oath serves as a confirmation to end all argument. 17 So when God wanted to make the unchanging nature of His purpose very clear to the heirs of the promise, He guaranteed [it] with an oath. 18 Thus by two unchangeable things in which [it is] impossible [for] God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before [us] may be strongly encouraged.

19 We have [this hope] as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner [sanctuary] [behind] the curtain, 20 where Jesus [our] forerunner has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever in the order of Melchizedek.