Hebrews 2:17 Therefore he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people.
This is the key theological idea of the passage, marked by “therefore.” The author of Hebrews follows a pattern:
- Give Old Testament quotations, background, or logical argumentation as support.
- Give a theological summary or conclusion (sometimes marked by “therefore”).
- Apply the theology to the readers’ lives (also sometimes marked by “therefore”).
In this verse, the author has given Old Testament background and logic to reach this theological conclusion. Jesus had to become human in order to be the perfect high priest. Some knowledge of the Old Testament is necessary here. One of the roles of the high priest was to be the mediator between God and humanity. The special point where this is seen is when the high priest went into the Holy of Holies once a year to make atonement for the sins of the people. The author will later show that Jesus did this once for all to make the final atonement for sin. It was necessary for Jesus to be human for this to happen because he needed to represent humanity and serve as the substitute for the death we all should face. He is described as merciful because he has been where we are and understands our struggles. He is more than willing to offer the merits of his death to anyone who will believe. Through his sacrifice, we find eternal life. This is powerful theology. He is also described as faithful. He remained faithful to the Father even when faced with challenging temptations and eventually death. Even though tempted, he did not compromise. This shows his trust in the Father even in his weakened human condition. All of this was to resolve our sin problem. Atonement is the idea that the sin that separates us from the Holy God has been taken care of and the relationship restored. For this to happen, our sins must be removed, cleansed, and forgiven. God told Adam and Eve that when they ate of the fruit of the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil, they would die. Paul says that the wages of sin is death (Romans 6:23). Sin brings death. Life must be given for death. Instead of giving the lives of animals over and over again, God gave his Son once for all, taking care of the penalty of sin. Jesus’ resurrection showed that he overcame also the power of sin. This verse is one of the key themes of Hebrews and contains important ideas for the whole Bible.
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