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Scripture Reading: Heb. 4:7-16
Several matters are mentioned in Hebrews 4:7-16. The first matter is rest: “There remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God” (v. 9). The second matter is the spirit: “The word of God is living and operative and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit” (v. 12). The third matter is the High Priest: “Having therefore a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God” (v. 14). The fourth matter is the throne of grace: “Let us therefore come forward with boldness to the throne of grace” (v. 16). This portion of the Word reveals rest, the spirit, the High Priest, and the throne of grace.
These four matters are related, but if we do not understand how they are related, it will be hard to understand this portion of the Word. There are few believers in Christianity who understand this portion, most of whom divide this portion into three or four separate sections: the Sabbath rest, the dividing of the soul and the spirit, the High Priest, and the throne of grace. The believers who are more advanced connect the High Priest to the throne of grace. Strictly speaking, however, there is a relationship not only between the High Priest and the throne of grace. All four items — rest, the spirit, the High Priest, and the throne of grace — are related.
This portion of the Word reveals that the rest remaining for God’s people is in our spirit. If we do not know how to enter into our spirit, it will be hard for us to know how to enter into rest. Ever since I was saved, I began to study the Bible seriously; however, at that time I was very much under the influence of Brethren teaching. The Brethren, using the way of prophecy, interpreted the rest as the millennial kingdom. They said that the millennial kingdom is the rest that God prepared for His people and that we must be diligent to enter into it. If we read only verse 9, we will think that their exposition seems to be correct. However, if we continue on to verse 12, we will sense that this interpretation does not connect verse 9 with verse 12, which says, “The word of God is living and operative and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing even to the dividing of soul and spirit and of joints and marrow, and able to discern the thoughts and intentions of the heart.” Why does Paul speak of rest in verse 9 and in verse 12 of the living and operative word of God? What is the purpose of verse 12? If we break out of the influence of traditional Christianity, we will understand that the rest in verse 9 must be in our spirit.
Verse 9 says that there is a rest remaining for God’s people. Verse 10 says that to enter into this rest is to rest from our works. If we are still struggling, we do not have rest. Verse 11 says that we should be diligent to enter into God’s rest. Then verse 12 says that the word of God is living and that it can divide our soul from our spirit. When we read these verses sequentially, we must admit that the rest in verse 9 refers to the spirit in verse 12.
Verse 13 is difficult to understand. Verse 12 says that God’s word is living and able to divide the soul and the spirit, and verse 13 says that all things are manifest before the Lord, being naked and laid bare. How do we connect verses 12 and 13? Verse 13 indicates that God is able to see man’s inward condition. First Samuel 16:7 says, “Man looks on the outward appearance, but Jehovah looks on the heart.” In the New Testament age, God does not look merely on our heart; He looks on our spirit.
None of us is naked or laid bare before others, because they can see only our outward appearance; they cannot see the condition of our spirit. In contrast, God can see into our being. He sees our outward appearance, the thoughts and intentions of our heart, and also our spirit, which is surrounded by and hidden in our soul (Heb. 4:12). In the book of Hebrews Paul did not speak of man from the human point of view; rather, he spoke from God’s view. God’s view is sharper than any x-ray; His eyes can penetrate into our spirit. God desires to show us where we are, that is, whether we are living in the flesh or in the soul and whether we are living in the thoughts and intentions of our heart or in our spirit. He shines into us so that we may have a clear view of our condition.
We often are not clear concerning our condition. After attending a few meetings and hearing some messages, some people think that they have seen a vision and that their condition has changed. It is not until God’s light shines on them, however, that they realize that their “change” is superficial and not from their spirit. Although we are not naked and laid bare before one another, we are naked and laid bare before the Lord. Verse 12 says that the word of God is living and operative and able to pierce our being even to the deepest part, our spirit. God’s word represents God; hence, it can pierce and divide our inward parts to expose our real situation. We cannot hide before God; rather, we are naked and laid bare before Him.
Verse 14 says, “Having therefore a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God.” The beginning of this verse uses the conjunctive adverb therefore, showing that verse 14 is a continuation of the preceding verses. Verse 16 says, “Let us therefore come forward with boldness to the throne of grace.” This verse also uses the conjunctive adverb therefore, indicating that it is a continuation of the preceding verses. According to verse 14, our High Priest has passed through the heavens. How can we contact a high priest who is high above in heaven when we are still on the earth? Verse 16 says that we should come forward to the throne of grace. The throne of grace refers to God’s throne in heaven. In order to contact Christ as our High Priest, we must come forward to the throne of grace; when we come forward to the throne of grace, we will surely meet Him. However, since both our High Priest and the throne of God are in heaven, how can we go there? It seems as though verse 16 is not related to the preceding verses.
However, our spirit is not only the place that God prepared as a rest for His people; it is also connected to heaven. Our spirit and heaven are connected. Hence, when we turn to our spirit, we enter into and enjoy the rest that God has prepared for His people. At the same time, we also come to God’s throne of grace to meet our High Priest.
Our spirit is “the gate of heaven” in Genesis 28:17. Verses 17 through 19 say, “This is none other than the house of God, and this is the gate of heaven. And Jacob...called the name of that place Bethel.” Bethel, God’s house, is the gate of heaven. Ephesians 2:22 says that God’s dwelling place is in our spirit. In other words, our spirit is Bethel; it is God’s house, His habitation.
Genesis 28:12 says, “There was a ladder set up on the earth, and its top reached to heaven; and there the angels of God were ascending and descending on it.” At Bethel there was a ladder that reached to heaven. For this reason, Bethel was called the gate of heaven. In John 1:51 the Lord identified Himself as the ladder reaching to heaven: “You shall see heaven opened and the angels of God ascending and descending on the Son of Man.” On the one hand, the Lord Jesus is in heaven, but on the other hand, He is in our spirit. As a ladder, He reaches heaven at one end and our spirit at the other end. Through Him our spirit and heaven are connected. Now our spirit is the gate of heaven.
The Lord Jesus Christ, our High Priest, and the throne of grace are in heaven. At the throne of grace there is mercy and grace for timely help (Heb. 4:16). When we receive mercy from God and find grace to meet our timely need, we have rest. We experience this rest when we turn to our spirit, because our spirit is connected to heaven. Furthermore, Christ our High Priest is touched with the feeling of our weaknesses and supplies all our needs. He takes care of all our needs.
The throne of grace is the source of our supply. This throne is the throne of God and of the Lamb in Revelation 22:1. Out from this throne there proceeds a river of water of life, bright as crystal. The tree of life grows on this side and on that side of the river of water of life, supplying life as food (v. 2). We receive mercy and find grace so that we may have the supply of life. As a result, we enjoy rest.
The rest that remains for God’s people is in our spirit. Furthermore, our spirit is connected to heaven. Hence, Christ cares for us as our High Priest, and God’s throne of grace supplies us in our spirit. In our spirit we receive mercy, find grace, and enjoy the timely supply. This is our rest.
Hebrews 10:19 says, “Having therefore, brothers, boldness for entering the Holy of Holies in the blood of Jesus.” The Holy of Holies is our spirit. We can say this because this verse says that we have boldness to enter the Holy of Holies. Bible expositors agree that the Holy of Holies is the third heaven. But if the Holy of Holies is the third heaven, how can we enter it? The Holy of Holies in this verse refers to our spirit. When we are in our spirit, we are in the Holy of Holies. Our spirit is connected to heaven; hence, when we are in our spirit, we are in heaven.
Verse 20 says, “Which entrance He initiated for us as a new and living way through the veil, that is, His flesh.” In the Old Testament there was a veil that separated the Holy Place from the Holy of Holies (Exo. 26:33). According to John 1:14, the Lord Jesus as the Word became flesh. In the verses in Hebrews and John flesh refers to humanity. Hebrews 10:20 speaks of the veil of His flesh. This means that we are the veil. The Holy of Holies is our spirit, but there is a barrier, our fallen humanity, that separates us from our spirit. Our fallen humanity is the thickest veil, and it separates us from God. Hence, our flesh must be rent. This is portrayed by the veil in the temple being split from top to bottom when the Lord died on the cross (Matt. 27:51).
Hebrews 10:21 says, “Having a great Priest over the house of God.” This great Priest is in our spirit, the Holy of Holies. When we consider chapters 4 and 10, we can see that our spirit today is the Holy of Holies. Furthermore, our being is the veil that must be rent. There is rest in the Holy of Holies, in our spirit. The Lord is our High Priest bearing our case in the Holy of Holies. Furthermore, the throne of grace that supplies us and gives us rest is also in the Holy of Holies. However, in our experience it is easy for us to remain in the outer court or to enter into the Holy Place, but it is not easy to enter into the Holy of Holies. This is because there is a veil between the Holy Place and the Holy of Holies. This veil is our flesh.
Verses 18 and 19 in chapter 6 say, “We who have fled for refuge to lay hold of the hope set before us, which we have as an anchor of the soul, both secure and firm and which enters within the veil.” The phrase fled for refuge in the original language means to flee intensively. The word fled is also used in Acts 14:6, which speaks of Paul and Barnabas fleeing to the cities of Lystra and Derbe in Lycaonia. Paul and Barnabas fled because a hostile attempt was made by some in Iconium to treat them outrageously and to stone them (v. 5). When the apostles became aware of this, they fled to Lycaonia. Hebrews 6:19 speaks of the anchor of our soul. Our spirit does not need an anchor because our spirit does not drift; however, our soul needs an anchor because it is always drifting. Our soul is our person, and our person tends to drift. Hence, our soul needs an anchor. Verses 18 and 19 say that the hope set before us is a secure and firm anchor of our soul and that it enters within the veil. The Holy of Holies, which is in the third heaven, is also our spirit, which is within the veil.
Verse 20 says, “Where the Forerunner, Jesus, has entered for us, having become forever a High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek.” The Lord Jesus has entered within the veil. The Holy of Holies, the third heaven, and our spirit are related and connected. When the Lord Jesus ascended, He entered the Holy of Holies. He is now in the third heaven as well as in our spirit. Hence, the third heaven and our spirit are connected. They are also within the veil. The place “within the veil” refers to the third heaven and to our spirit. The anchor of our soul is connected to the third heaven and also to our spirit. If we do not enter into our spirit, we will be like a boat drifting on the sea without an anchor. We must connect the anchor of our soul to our spirit, the third heaven, and then we will be secure.
The three parts of man — the body, the soul, and the spirit — correspond to the three sections of the holy temple — the outer court, the Holy Place, and the Holy of Holies. We are God’s temple (1 Cor. 3:16-17). There are three sections in the temple, and we have three parts. The three sections in the temple correspond to our three parts. Our body corresponds to the outer court, our soul corresponds to the Holy Place, and our spirit corresponds to the Holy of Holies.
In order to contact God, we must pass through the outer court and enter into the Holy Place, and we must pass through the Holy Place and enter into the Holy of Holies in order to see God face to face. The altar of burnt offering and the laver are in the outer court. The table of the bread of the Presence, the lampstand, and the incense altar are in the Holy Place. Only the Ark, which typifies Christ, is in the Holy of Holies. The table of the bread of the Presence typifies Christ as our life, the golden lampstand typifies Christ as our light, and the golden incense altar typifies Christ as the sweet incense for our acceptance by God. Only the Ark in the Holy of Holies typifies Christ’s person. In the Holy of Holies we are in God’s presence, and there is only Christ.
We should ask ourselves whether our experience relates to the outer court, the Holy Place, or the Holy of Holies. Dealing with the flesh, bearing the cross, and receiving the dealing of the cross are experiences of the outer court, because the altar of burnt offering typifies the cross. The offering at the altar of burnt offering and the washing in the laver are for us to enter into the Holy Place and from there, the Holy of Holies. It is right to experience the cross in the outer court, but this experience is for entering into the Holy Place. Once we focus on the cross, however, we tend to remain there and are unwilling to leave; we are unwilling to enter into the Holy Place and then the Holy of Holies. Those who have experienced the cross must examine whether or not they have entered into the spirit. If we have not entered into our spirit, even though we have been experiencing the cross for several years, there is a problem.
The picture of the Israelites leaving Egypt and entering into Canaan signifies the three stages of God’s salvation, which also correspond to the three parts of the temple. The people of Israel left Egypt, passed through the wilderness, and entered into Canaan. Entering into Canaan was the last part of their journey. Egypt signifies the outer court, the wilderness signifies the Holy Place, and the good land of Canaan signifies the Holy of Holies. The manna that the Israelites ate in the wilderness represents the bread of the Presence in the Holy Place. In the Holy Place there was the bread of the Presence, and in the wilderness there was manna. The believers who concentrate on the dealing of the cross remain at the altar of burnt offering. This is equivalent to remaining in the outer court. Some believers concentrate on pursuing holiness. They may enjoy Christ as manna every day, but they are merely in the wilderness, that is, in their soul. These believers have not entered into the Holy of Holies, into the good land of Canaan.
The Israelites entered into Canaan only after crossing the Jordan River, where their flesh was buried. Crossing the Jordan is equivalent to passing through the veil of our flesh, that is, to burying the flesh, to having the flesh rent. Once we cross the Jordan, we enter into Canaan. In other words, once we pass through the rent veil of our flesh, we enter into our spirit. In Canaan the children of Israel had the fullest and topmost enjoyment of the land. This signifies our enjoyment of God’s salvation. Leaving Egypt was a part of God’s salvation, and passing through the wilderness was also a part of God’s salvation. However, God’s complete salvation could be experienced only after the Israelites entered Canaan.
We must be clear concerning what it means to wander in the wilderness. Wandering in the wilderness is to wander in our soul, that is, to wander in our mind, emotion, and will. Although we may enjoy Christ while we wander in our soul, we are still in our soul, not in Canaan. Hence, we have not obtained the fullest enjoyment of God’s salvation. We must be those who come forward and enter into Canaan, which signifies the Holy of Holies, that is, into our spirit.
