It was little by little and in different ways that God spoke in old times to our forefathers through the prophets,

He is the reflection of God's glory, and the representation of his being, and bears up the universe by his mighty word. He has effected man's purification from sin, and has taken his seat on high at the right hand of God's Majesty,

showing himself to be as much greater than the angels as his title is superior to theirs.

But of the time when he is to bring his firstborn Son back to the world he says, "And let all God's angels bow before him."

For if the message delivered by angels proved to be authentic, and every violation or neglect of it led to a corresponding penalty,

how can we escape if we pay no attention to such a salvation as this? It was first proclaimed by the Lord himself, and it was guaranteed to us by those who heard him,

while God himself corroborated their testimony with signs, portents, and various wonders, and by impartations of the holy Spirit when he saw fit.

For it was not for angels that he destined the control of that world to be, that we are speaking of.

but we do see Jesus, who was "made for a little while inferior to angels, crowned with glory and honor" because he suffered death, so that by the favor of God he might taste the bitterness of death on behalf of every human being.

Therefore since these children referred to have the same mortal nature, Jesus also shared it, like them, in order that by his death he might dethrone the lord of death, the devil,

And so he had to be made like his brothers in every respect, so that he might prove a compassionate high priest as well as one faithful in his service to God, in order to forgive the people's sins.

Do not harden your hearts as your forefathers provoked me by doing, As in that time of trial in the desert,

But as I made oath in my anger, They shall never be admitted to my Rest!"

but encourage one another every day, as long as we can still speak of Today, so that no one of you may have his heart hardened by the pleasantness of sin.

So while we can still speak of Today, if you hear him speak, do not harden your hearts, as they provoked him by doing.

And who was it to whom God made oath that they should not be admitted to his Rest, if it was not to those who had disobeyed him?

We ought therefore to fear that when the promise of admission to his Rest is still open, some one of you may be found to have failed to reach it.

For we who have believed are admitted to that Rest, of which he said, "As I made oath in my anger, They shall never be admitted to my Rest!" And yet God's work was finished at the creation of the world,

while here he says again, "They shall never be admitted to my Rest!"

Since then it is still true that somebody will be admitted to it, and those who had a gospel preached to them before were not admitted because of their disobedience,

So there must still be a promised Sabbath of Rest for God's people.

Let us, therefore, make every effort to be admitted to that Rest, so that none of us may fail through such disobedience as theirs.

And no one takes the office upon himself, but men assume it only when called to it by God, as Aaron was.

So even Christ did not claim for himself the dignity of the high priesthood, but he was appointed to it by him who said to him, "You are my Son! I have today become your Father!"

For although from the length of your Christian experience you ought to be teaching others, you actually need someone to teach you over again the very elements of Christian truth, and you have come to need milk instead of solid food.

But full-grown men have a right to solid food, for their faculties are trained by practice to distinguish right and wrong.

Let us therefore leave elementary Christian teaching alone and advance toward maturity. We must not be always relaying foundations, of repentance for wrong-doing, and of faith in God,

But if it yields thorns and thistles, it is thought worthless and almost cursed, and it will finally be burned.

For when God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to make oath by, he did so by himself,

For men make oath by something greater than themselves, and they accept an oath as settling finally any disagreement they may have.

so that by these two unalterable things, which make it impossible for God to break his promise, we who have taken refuge with him may be greatly encouraged to seize upon the hope that is offered to us.

Those of the descendants of Levi who are appointed to the priesthood are directed by the Law to collect tithes from the people, that is, from their own brothers, although they are descended from Abraham like themselves.

But, beyond any doubt, it is the inferior that is blessed by the superior.

for he is appointed not for possessing any legal physical qualifications, but by virtue of a life that cannot end.

The old priests too had to be numerous, because death prevented their continuing in office.

For the Law appoints to the high priesthood men full of imperfection; but this utterance about the making of the oath, which came long after the Law, appoints a son, fully qualified to be high priest forever.

Further, if he were still on earth, he would not be a priest at all, for there are priests enough provided to offer the gifts the Law prescribes??5 though the service they engage in is only a shadow and imitation of that in heaven. For when Moses was going to make the tent of worship he was warned, "Be sure to make it all just like the pattern you were shown on the mountain."

But, as it is, the priestly service to which Christ has been appointed is as much better than the old as the agreement established by him and the promises on which it is based are superior to the former ones.

Not like the one that I made with their forefathers, On the day when I took them by the hand to lead them out from the land of Egypt, For they would not abide by their agreement with me, So I paid no attention to them,' says the Lord.

For I will be merciful to their misdeeds, And I will no longer remember their sins.' "

but only the high priest could enter the inner part, and he but once a year, and never without taking some victim's blood, to offer on his own behalf and for the sins committed through ignorance by the people.

But when Christ came, as the high priest of the better system under which we live, he went once for all, through that greater, more perfect tent of worship not made by human hands nor a part of our material creation, into the sanctuary,

For where a will is involved, the death of the one who made it must be established,

So even the old agreement could not be ratified without the use of blood.

By such means, therefore, these things that were only copied from the originals in heaven had to be purified, but the heavenly originals themselves required far better sacrifices than these.

For it was not a sanctuary made by human hands and only copied after the true one that Christ entered, but he went into heaven itself, in order to appear now on our behalf in the very presence of God.

for then he would have had to suffer death over and over, ever since the creation of the world. But, as it is, once for all at the close of the age he has appeared, to put an end to sin by his sacrifice.

And just as men are destined to die once and after that to be judged,

For while the Law foreshadowed the blessings that were to come, it did not fully express them, and so the priests by offering the same sacrifices endlessly year after year cannot wholly free those who come to worship from their sins.

from that time waiting for his enemies to be made his footstool.

For by that one sacrifice he has forever qualified those who are purified from sin to approach God.

by the new, living way which he has opened for us, through the curtain, that is, his physical nature,

Let us hold unwaveringly to the hope that we profess, for he who has given us his promise may be trusted.

By observing one another, let us arouse ourselves to rival one another's love and good deeds.

For if we choose to go on sinning after we have so fully learned the truth, there is no sacrifice left to be offered for our sins,

How much worse a punishment do you think will anyone deserve who tramples the Son of God underfoot, and treats as worthless the blood of the agreement by which he has been purified, and outrages God's spirit of mercy?

For we know who it is that has said, "Vengeance belongs to me! I will pay back!" and in another place, "The Lord will be the judge of his people!"

You must not lose your courage, for it will be richly rewarded,

For it was by it that the men of old gained God's approval.

Faith caused Enoch to be taken up from the earth without experiencing death; he could not be found, because God had taken him up. For before he was taken up there is evidence that he pleased God,

Faith led Noah, when he was warned by God of things no one then saw, in obedience to the warning to build an ark in which to save his family, and by such faith he condemned the world, and came to possess that uprightness which faith produces.

For he was looking forward to that city with the sure foundations, designed and built by God.

But, as it is, their aspirations are for a better, a heavenly country! That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city to receive them.

Faith enabled Isaac to bequeath to Jacob and Esau blessings that were still to be.

Faith made Jacob when he was dying give a blessing to each of Joseph's sons, and bow in worship even while leaning on his staff.

Faith made Moses, when he was grown up, refuse to be known as a son of Pharaoh's daughter,

who by their faith conquered kingdoms, attained uprightness, received new promises, shut the mouths of lions,

put out furious fires, escaped death by the sword, found strength in their time of weakness, proved mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight.

Women had their dead restored to them by resurrection. Others endured torture, and refused to accept release, that they might rise again to the better life.

Yet though they all gained God's approval by their faith, they none of them received what he had promised,

Discipline is never pleasant at the time; it is painful; but to those who are trained by it, it afterward yields the peace of character.

And keep your feet in straight paths, so that limbs that are lame may not be dislocated but instead be cured.

Try to be at peace with everyone, and strive for that consecration without which no one can see the Lord.

Be careful that no one fails to gain God's favor, or some poisonous root may come up to trouble and contaminate you all??16 some immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his very birthright for one single meal.

no trumpet blast and voice whose words made those who heard them beg to be told no more,

for they could not bear the order, "Even a wild animal, if it touches the mountain, must be stoned to death,"

Now the words "But once more" indicate the final removal of all that is shaken, as only created, leaving only what is unshaken to be permanent.

Let us, therefore, be thankful that the kingdom given to us cannot be shaken, and so please God by worshiping him with reverence and awe;

Do not forget to be hospitable to strangers, for by being so some, without knowing it, have had angels as their guests.

Marriage should be respected by everyone, and the marriage relation kept sacred, for vicious and immoral people God will punish.

You must not be avaricious; you must be content with what you have, for God himself has said, "I will never let go of you or desert you!"

So that we can confidently say, "The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can men do to me?"

Jesus Christ is the same today that he was yesterday, and he will be so forever.

You must not be carried away with strange varieties of teaching. The true way to steadfastness of heart is through God's mercy, not through scruples about food, which have never done their adherents any good.

For the bodies of the animals whose blood is taken into the sanctuary by the high priest are burned outside the camp.

And so Jesus too, in order to purify the people by his blood, suffered death outside the city gate.

But do not forget to be helpful and generous, for that is the kind of sacrifice that pleases God.

Obey your leaders and give way to them, for they are keeping watch in defense of your souls, as men accountable for the trust. Make their work a joy and not a grief, for that would be the worse for you.

I ask this of you more especially that I may be brought back to you the sooner.

May God, the giver of peace, who brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus who through the blood by which he ratified the everlasting agreement has become the great shepherd of the sheep,

fit you by every blessing to do his will, and through Jesus Christ carry out in us what will please him. To him be glory forever and ever. Amen.

Remember us to all your leaders and to all your fellow-Christians. The brothers from Italy wish to be remembered to you.