1Are we beginning again to commend ourselves? Or do we need, as do some, letters of commendation to you or from you? 2You are our letter, written in our hearts, known and read by all men, 3being revealed that you are a letter of Christ, served by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tablets of stone, but in tablets that are hearts of flesh.
4Such confidence we have through Christ toward God, 5not that we are sufficient of ourselves to account anything as from ourselves; but our sufficiency is from God, 6who also made us sufficient as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.
7But if the service of death, written engraved on stones, came with glory, so that the children of Israel could not look steadfastly on the face of Moses for the glory of his face, which was passing away, 8won’t service of the Spirit be with much more glory? 9For if the service of condemnation has glory, the service of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. 10For most certainly that which has been made glorious has not been made glorious in this respect, by reason of the glory that surpasses. 11For if that which passes away was with glory, much more that which remains is in glory.
12Having therefore such a hope, we use great boldness of speech, 13and not as Moses, who put a veil on his face so that the children of Israel wouldn’t look steadfastly on the end of that which was passing away. 14But their minds were hardened, for until this very day at the reading of the old covenant the same veil remains, because in Christ it passes away. 15But to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart. 16But whenever someone turns to the Lord, the veil is taken away. 17Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty. 18But we all, with unveiled face seeing the glory of the Lord as in a mirror, are transformed into the same image from glory to glory, even as from the Lord, the Spirit.
This passage marks a significant shift in divine revelation: whereas God previously spoke through prophets in various ways, He now speaks definitively through His Son (Hebrews 1:1-2).
The phrase “last days” refers to the Messianic era, signifying the transformation of the Jewish covenant into its fulfillment in Christ (2 Timothy 3:1). The New Testament does not suggest that the Gentile Church replaced Israel as God’s chosen people. Rather, as Romans 11 demonstrates, God brought together believing Jews and Gentiles into a fulfilled Chosen People, not a replaced one.
Thus, unbelieving Jews like Annas and Caiaphas and unbelieving Gentiles like Nero were outside the Ekklesia—the called-out community of the New Covenant or “Church.” Membership in this covenant was open to all, requiring only that they confess Jesus as Lord and believe in His resurrection (Romans 10:9-10).
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus declared, “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I tell you, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single jot, not a stroke of a pen, will disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished” (Matt 5:17-18, emphasis added).
Jesus did not say the Law would never pass away—He set two conditions for its fulfillment, each marked by the word “until”:
The end of the world (heaven and earth pass away).
The completion of His mission (everything is accomplished).
The second “until” came before the first. Jesus signaled this fulfillment on the Cross when He proclaimed, “It is finished” (John 19:30). Later, at the dawn of the New Heaven and New Earth, He reaffirmed, “It is finished. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.” (Revelation 21:6).
Thus, Mosaic Law ceased to be in force after Christ’s mission was completed—even during the apostolic age (Acts 10:9-16, 28; 15:28-29; Romans 6:14; 10:4; 2 Corinthians 3:7-11; Galatians 3:10, 13, 24-25; 5:18; Colossians 2:14-17; Hebrews 8:13).
“By His Son”—Unlike prophets and angels, Christ is the ultimate revelation of God’s will, speaking directly and fully as the One eternally in the Father’s presence (John 1:18).
A Greater Revelation—The gospel surpasses all prior revelations, offering a clearer understanding of:
“Heir of all things”—Christ’s divine authority extends over all creation, fulfilling Psalms 2:8.
“Through whom He made the worlds”—As the eternal Word, Christ was instrumental in creation (John 1:3; Col 1:16; Heb 1:10), proving His preexistence and divinity.
Since Christ is both Creator and ultimate Judge, believers find complete assurance in His authority. The apostle’s argument in Hebrews hinges on Christ’s supremacy, demonstrating that the New Covenant is greater, final, and complete.