The Complete Jewish Bible CJB
The Bible in Basic English BBE
1 Now the first covenant had both regulations for worship and a Holy Place here on earth.
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Now the first agreement had its rules of worship, and a holy order.
2 A tent was set up, the outer one, which was called the Holy Place; in it were the menorah, the table and the Bread of the Presence.
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For the first Tent was made ready, having in it the vessels for the lights and the table and the ordering of the bread; and this is named the holy place.
3 Behind the second parokhet was a tent called the Holiest Place,
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And inside the second veil was the place which is named the Holy of holies;
4 which had the golden altar for burning incense and the Ark of the Covenant, entirely covered with gold. In the Ark were the gold jar containing the man, Aharon's rod that sprouted and the stone Tablets of the Covenant;
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Having a vessel of gold in it for burning perfumes, and the ark of the agreement, which was covered with gold and which had in it a pot made of gold for the manna, and Aaron's rod which put out buds, and the stones with the writing of the agreement;
5 and above it were the k'ruvim representing the Sh'khinah, casting their shadow on the lid of the Ark - but now is not the time to discuss these things in detail.
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And over it were the winged ones of glory with their wings covering the mercy-seat; about which it is not possible now to say anything in detail.
6 With things so arranged, the cohanim go into the outer tent all the time to discharge their duties;
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Now while these things were in existence, the priests went into the first Tent at all times, for prayer and the making of offerings.
7 but only the cohen hagadol enters the inner one; and he goes in only once a year, and he must always bring blood, which he offers both for himself and for the sins committed in ignorance by the people.
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But only the high priest went into the second, once a year, not without making an offering of blood for himself and for the errors of the people:
8 By this arrangement, the Ruach HaKodesh showed that so long as the first Tent had standing, the way into the Holiest Place was still closed.
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The Holy Spirit witnessing by this that the way into the holy place had not at that time been made open, while the first Tent was still in being;
9 This symbolizes the present age and indicates that the conscience of the person performing the service cannot be brought to the goal by the gifts and sacrifices he offers.
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And this is an image of the present time; when the offerings which are given are not able to make the heart of the worshipper completely clean,
10 For they involve only food and drink and various ceremonial washings - regulations concerning the outward life, imposed until the time for God to reshape the whole structure.
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Because they are only rules of the flesh, of meats and drinks and washings, which have their place till the time comes when things will be put right.
11 But when the Messiah appeared as cohen gadol of the good things that are happening already, then, through the greater and more perfect Tent which is not man-made (that is, it is not of this created world),
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But now Christ has come as the high priest of the good things of the future, through this greater and better Tent, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this world,
12 he entered the Holiest Place once and for all. And he entered not by means of the blood of goats and calves, but by means of his own blood, thus setting people free forever.
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And has gone once and for ever into the holy place, having got eternal salvation, not through the blood of goats and young oxen, but through his blood.
13 For if sprinkling ceremonially unclean persons with the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer restores their outward purity;
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For if the blood of goats and oxen, and the dust from the burning of a young cow, being put on the unclean, make the flesh clean:
14 then how much more the blood of the Messiah, who, through the eternal Spirit, offered himself to God as a sacrifice without blemish, will purify our conscience from works that lead to death, so that we can serve the living God!
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How much more will the blood of Christ, who, being without sin, made an offering of himself to God through the Holy Spirit, make your hearts clean from dead works to be servants of the living God?
15 It is because of this death that he is mediator of a new covenant [or will].g Because a death has occurred which sets people free from the transgressions committed under the first covenant, those who have been called may receive the promised eternal inheritance.
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And for this cause it is through him that a new agreement has come into being, so that after the errors under the first agreement had been taken away by his death, the word of God might have effect for those who were marked out for an eternal heritage.
16 For where there is a will, there must necessarily be produced evidence of its maker's death,
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Because where there is a testament, there has to be the death of the man who made it.
17 since a will goes into effect only upon death; it never has force while its maker is still alive.
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For a testament has effect after death; for what power has it while the man who made it is living?
18 This is why the first covenant too was inaugurated with blood.
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So that even the first agreement was not made without blood.
19 After Moshe had proclaimed every command of the Torah to all the people, he took the blood of the calves with some water and used scarlet wool and hyssop to sprinkle both the scroll itself and all the people;
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For when Moses had given all the rules of the law to the people, he took the blood of goats and young oxen, with water and red wool and hyssop, and put it on the book itself and on all the people,
20 and he said, "This is the blood of the covenant which God has ordained for you."h
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Saying, This blood is the sign of the agreement which God has made with you.
21 Likewise, he sprinkled with the blood both the Tent and all the things used in its ceremonies.
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And the blood was put on the Tent and all the holy vessels in the same way.
22 In fact, according to the Torah, almost everything is purified with blood; indeed, without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins.
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And by the law almost all things are made clean with blood, and without blood there is no forgiveness.
23 Now this is how the copies of the heavenly things had to be purified, but the heavenly things themselves require better sacrifices than these.
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For this cause it was necessary to make the copies of the things in heaven clean with these offerings; but the things themselves are made clean with better offerings than these.
24 For the Messiah has entered a Holiest Place which is not man-made and merely a copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, in order to appear now on our behalf in the very presence of God.
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For Christ did not go into a holy place which had been made by men's hands as the copy of the true one; but he went into heaven itself, and now takes his place before the face of God for us.
25 Further, he did not enter heaven to offer himself over and over again, like the cohen hagadol who enters the Holiest Place year after year with blood that is not his own;
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And he did not have to make an offering of himself again and again, as the high priest goes into the holy place every year with blood which is not his;
26 for then he would have had to suffer death many times - from the founding of the universe on. But as it is, he has appeared once at the end of the ages in order to do away with sin through the sacrifice of himself.
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For then he would have undergone a number of deaths from the time of the making of the world: but now he has come to us at the end of the old order, to put away sin by the offering of himself.
27 Just as human beings have to die once, but after this comes judgment,
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And because by God's law death comes to men once, and after that they are judged;
28 so also the Messiah, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, i will appear a second time, not to deal with sin, but to deliver those who are eagerly waiting for him.
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So Christ, having at his first coming taken on himself the sins of men, will be seen a second time, without sin, by those who are waiting for him, for their salvation.
Complete Jewish Bible Copyright 1998 by David H. Stern. Published by Jewish New Testament Publications, Inc. All rights reserved. Used by permission.
The Bible in Basic English is in the public domain.