UTN uW Translation Notes:

Hebrews 10 General Notes

Structure and Formatting

5. The Son as high priest (5:1–10:18)* Teaching: Old and new ministries (9:1–10:18)6. Summary statement (10:19–25)7. Faith and endurance (10:26–12:29)* Exhortation: Endure in the faith! (10:26–39)Some translations set each line of poetry farther to the right than the rest of the text to make it easier to read. The ULT does this with the poetry in 10:5–7, 16–17, 37–38, which are words from the Old Testament.

Religious and Cultural Concepts in This Chapter

The sacrifices that Moses’ law required

In 10:1–11, the author points out several reasons why it is clear that the sacrifices that God required the Israelites to offer did not take away sins on their own. First, he states that these sacrifices are a “shadow” of the coming good things. It is the real thing, not the shadow, that takes away sins. Second, these sacrifices needed to be repeated. If they actually took away sin, the author reasons, they would only need to be done once. Third, he argues from the Scriptures that God replaces these sacrifices with Jesus doing God’s will. In this chapter, the author does not spend much time speaking about what those sacrifices actually did accomplish. He only says that they are a “reminder” of sins (See: 10:3). See 9:13 for more information on what the sacrifices actually could accomplish. (See: sacrifice)

“Once” versus “repeatedly”

Throughout this chapter, the author states that Christ offered himself once and that his sacrifice has eternal effects. In contrast, he states that the sacrifices that the earthly priests offered happened repeatedly and had limited effects. In your translation, be sure to use words that emphasize the contrast between a single, effective sacrifice and multiple, ineffective sacrifices.

The “former days”

In 10:32, the author refers to the “former days,” which he then goes on to describe in 10:32–34. This phrase refers to a period of time in the audience’s past, a time when they had just been “enlightened,” which means they had recently believed in Jesus. During this time, they suffered but also persevered and rejoiced in knowing God. The author wishes them to continue to show the endurance and joy they showed during these “former days.” In these verses, use verb tenses and forms that you would normally use for describing what happened in a person’s past.

“The one coming” in 10:37

In 10:37, the “one coming” refers to the Messiah, whom the author knows is Jesus. In this context, the Messiah “coming” refers to Jesus’ second coming, not his incarnation. Use words here that could be understood as a reference to Jesus’ second coming.

Translation Issues in This Chapter

“Shadow” and “image” in 10:1

In this verse, the law has a “shadow” of the coming good things, which means that the law of Moses gives an outline or vague image of those good things. A “shadow” is not bad, but it is not the thing that casts the shadow. Instead, it just gives a foretaste or a hint of what that thing is. The author uses the word “image” to refer to the thing itself. The author’s point, then, is that the law of Moses provides a hint or foretaste of the coming good things, which are what Christ offers to those who believe in him. That means that the law is good, but if people can have the “image” itself (what Christ gives), they do not need the “shadow” (the law) anymore. See the notes on this verse for translation ideas. (See: shadow)

“The curtain, that is, his flesh” in 10:20

In this verse, the phrase “that is, his flesh” can be understood in three main ways.(1) it could go with “curtain,” in which case the author is stating that Jesus’ “flesh” is somehow like this “curtain.” It could mean that he needed to live his life in the “flesh” before he could enter the heavenly sanctuary, just like a priest needed to pass through the “curtain” before he could enter the Most Holy Place. Or, it could mean that his “flesh” needed to die before he could enter the heavenly sanctuary, just like a priest needed to penetrate through the curtain to enter the Most Holy Place.(2) it could go with the whole clause “which he has inaugurated for us as a fresh and living way.” In this case, the word “through” is implied with “flesh” as well as “curtain,” and the author is saying that Jesus “inaugurated” this way “through” (or “by means of”) his “flesh.”(3) it could go with “way,” in which case the author is stating that Jesus’ “way” was his “flesh.” This would most likely mean that the path or “way” that Jesus took to get to the heavenly sanctuary was his earthly life in the “flesh.”The first option makes the most sense of the way the author wrote the words in the sentence, but some scholars argue that the idea it expresses does not match the rest of what the author says. Consider using a construction that could modify either “curtain” or “way” to preserve the ambiguity.

Translation Issues in This Chapter

What sins are those for which there is no longer a sacrifice?

In 10:26–31, the author refers to sin which no sacrifice can take away and which God will punish with “fire.” Scholars debate what sin or sins the author is speaking about and whether the people who commit the sin or sins are really Christians or not. What is clear is that this is very serious sin: it involves “trampling” Christ and insulting the Holy Spirit. No one could commit this kind of sin by accident. Further, the word for “sinning” in 10:26 indicates that the author is thinking about more than one individual act. In your translation, make sure that you refer to a pattern or repeated behavior of sinning. (See: sin)

Old Testament quotations

When the author quotes from the Old Testament, he uses a Greek translation that is sometimes different than the original Hebrew version that most modern translations use for the Old Testament. This is particularly obvious in 10:5–7, which quotes from a Greek version of Psalm 40:6–8, and in 10:37–38, which quotes from a Greek version of Habakkuk 2:3–4. Since the author chose to use these forms of the quotations, you should represent the words the author uses, not the words that may be found in an Old Testament you are familiar with. (See: writing-quotations)