What is the meaning of Hebrews 10:5? Therefore - The word “Therefore” links Hebrews 10:5 to the preceding verses, where the writer has shown that animal sacrifices could never fully cleanse sin (Hebrews 10:1-4). - It signals a turning point: because the old sacrifices were inadequate, something better was required—namely, Christ’s own offering (Hebrews 9:26). When Christ came into the world - This phrase points to the Incarnation—God the Son taking on human flesh (John 1:14; Galatians 4:4). - It emphasizes that Jesus’ entrance into our world was purposeful: He came specifically to fulfill what the Law’s sacrifices could only foreshadow (Colossians 2:17). He said - The quotation that follows is drawn from Psalm 40:6-8, showing that the Holy Spirit had already revealed God’s plan through David (Acts 1:16). - By placing these words on Christ’s lips, the writer presents Jesus as the ultimate interpreter and fulfiller of Scripture (Luke 24:27). Sacrifice and offering You did not desire - God Himself instituted the sacrificial system (Leviticus 1–7), yet He never took pleasure in the mere ritual apart from obedience and faith (1 Samuel 15:22; Isaiah 1:11-17). - The continual need for offerings highlighted that sin’s debt remained unpaid (Hebrews 10:3). Jesus announces that such sacrifices, in themselves, could never satisfy God’s righteous requirements. But a body You prepared for Me - Unlike animals that had no choice, Christ willingly offers the body prepared for Him (John 10:17-18). - His physical body makes possible a once-for-all, fully effective sacrifice (Hebrews 10:10; 1 Peter 2:24). - This preparation underscores both divine sovereignty and human responsibility: God planned salvation, and Jesus obediently embraced it (Philippians 2:6-8). summary Hebrews 10:5 declares that animal sacrifices could never meet God’s ultimate desire; only the incarnate Son, offering the body prepared for Him, could satisfy divine justice and reconcile sinners. The verse links the insufficiency of the old covenant to the sufficiency of Christ, showing that from eternity God intended Jesus’ bodily sacrifice as the true remedy for sin. |
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