Introduction to the Book of Hebrews – Commentary, Explanation & Study (Greek & Hebrew Word Meanings)
When I sit down with the Book of Hebrews, I sort of feel this strange mix of trembling awe and also a kind of longing—like standing at the foot of a mountain you know you must climb, but your legs are shaking a little because the mountain smells of ancient dust and divine thunder. There’s something unique about Hebrews. It’s not like Paul’s letters, though sometimes it sounds like him. It’s not like the Gospels, though it constantly echoes Jesus. It’s not like the Old Testament prophets, but then again the voice of the prophets is humming underneath every paragraph. And so, when we talk about Hebrews, we’re talking about a book that really lives in two worlds at once: the ancient world of Jewish temple worship, sacrifices, priests, and shadows… and the new world of Christ the μάλιστα (malista, Greek for “especially” or “above all”) who is the fulfillment of every shadow that ever flickered across those temple walls.
Honestly, sometimes I think Hebrews is a shaking voice calling across history, “Don’t go back. Don’t slip away. Don’t lose the better thing God has given you in Christ.” And other times I think it’s more like a priestly whisper saying, “Look deeper. Look again. Look until you see Him.”
And that’s why this introduction becomes more than just background. It’s an entryway. A threshold. A place where our feet touch the cold stone floor of an ancient sanctuary and our hearts start beating a little faster as the curtain moves aside.
1. The Uncertain Author – But an Unmistakable Voice
We start with something odd: Hebrews has no greeting. No name. No “Paul, an apostle of Christ Jesus…” No “Peter, servant and elder…” Nothing. Just straight into theology like a trumpet blast echoing across a rocky valley.
The Greek begins blunt and brilliant:
Πολυμερῶς καὶ πολυτρόπως (polymerōs kai polytropōs) — “In many parts and in many ways”
This phrase alone feels so poetic, like the first crack of morning light through clouds. The writer is basically saying God has been speaking in fragments, in bits and pieces, in various modes—dreams, visions, prophets, symbols, sacrifices, whispering winds, burning bushes, kings, shepherds, and songs.
Now… who wrote this?
People have argued for centuries. Paul? Apollos? Barnabas? Luke? Priscilla even? (Some scholars toss this idea around because of the anonymity, since in that culture female writings were often not taken seriously publicly, so maybe the letter concealed the author’s name.)
But really, I think Hebrews was meant to hide the author so that the spotlight sits firmly—achingly—on Jesus. The anonymity forces us to hear the message without leaning on human authority.
The style is not Paul’s. It uses different vocabulary, different rhythms, different Greek flow. Paul’s Greek sometimes runs emotional and rough, like a river pushing hard after a storm. Hebrews feels polished, almost classical, almost philosophical. Very educated Greek. Almost too educated.
The sentences climb like stairs. They turn like incense rising in the temple.
But whether the author is veiled or not, the voice is very clear: this is someone who knows the Hebrew Scriptures deeply, who breathes the Septuagint (the Greek Old Testament), who maybe walked the temple courts in Jerusalem long before Rome burned it.
2. Audience: Jewish Christians on the Edge of Letting Go
The next thing we catch, almost by smell, is the fear in the air. Not the writer’s fear, but the fear of the people reading. They are tired. They are persecuted. They are confused. Their faith is cracking around the edges like old leather scrolls.
These believers were Hebrews—Jewish followers of Yeshua the Messiah—who were tempted to turn back to the old covenant ways. Not because they hated Jesus. No. It wasn’t that simple. It was fear. It was pressure. Maybe family disowning them. Maybe Rome cracking down. Maybe the synagogue doors closing in their faces.
Everything familiar—Torah scrolls, temple songs, priests, incense, sacrifices, community rhythms—those things were comforting. And following Christ felt like walking through wilderness again.
So Hebrews is written like a warm hand gripping their shoulders, shaking them gently and saying:
“Don’t drift away. Don’t walk backward into shadows when the Light Himself stands before you.”
The author uses this Greek word:
παραρρεῖν (pararrein) — “to drift past like a boat slipping loose”
It’s the image of losing faith not by rebellion, but by slow, quiet drifting.
3. The Excellent Son – Greater Than Angels, Prophets, and Everything Else
Hebrews opens with a kind of symphony, describing Jesus with overwhelming beauty.
The writer says Jesus is:
ἀπαύγασμα τῆς δόξης
(apaugasma tēs doxēs) — “the radiance of God’s glory”
This Greek word apaugasma isn’t used often. It’s like sunlight bursting out, the shining-outness of God.
Then:
χαρακτὴρ τῆς ὑποστάσεως
(charaktēr tēs hypostaseōs) — “the exact imprint of His nature”
“Charaktēr” is where we get the English word “character,” but in Greek it meant the engraved imprint on a coin seal. Jesus = the exact image of God stamped out in human form.
In Hebrew thought, you could compare this to the idea of צֶלֶם אֱלֹהִים (tzelem Elohim, “image of God”), but here it's intensified. Jesus isn’t just made in God’s image—He is the divine imprint, the perfect revelation.
This is one of the strongest Christology passages in the entire New Testament.
The writer wants these struggling believers to see:
“You’re not following a mere teacher. You’re holding onto the One who is the very brightness of God.”
4. Comparison After Comparison – Jesus Is Better
The entire structure of Hebrews is built on comparison. The author keeps lifting up the old covenant—not disrespecting it, but honoring it—and then saying, “Christ is greater.”
The Greek word frequently used is:
κρείττων (kreittōn) — “better, superior, stronger”
It shows up over and over like drumbeats.
Jesus is better than angels.
Better than Moses.
Better than Joshua.
Better than Aaron.
Better than the Levitical priesthood.
Better than the sacrifices.
Better than the covenant.
Better hope.
Better promises.
Better resurrection.
Better everything God ever gave before.
This isn’t replacement theology. It’s fulfillment theology. It’s the idea that the old covenant was a shadow (Hebrews uses the Greek σκιά, skia, “shadow”) of a greater reality.
In Hebrew thought, a shadow is צֵל (tsel). Shadows aren’t evil; they’re just incomplete. They tell you something real is nearby.
The entire Torah system was a shadow of Christ.
5. Old Covenant Imagery Everywhere
Something I love when reading Hebrews is noticing the way the writer almost smells the old tabernacle as he writes. You can feel it. The warm metallic scent of blood. The heavy incense. The rough texture of goatskins. The sound of bells on the high priest’s robe jingling softly. The hush of the Holy of Holies.
He describes the sanctuary furniture—the lampstand, the table, the bread of presence, the altar of incense—with such clarity it feels like he’s standing right there.
He refers to ancient rituals with accuracy that suggests lived experience, maybe from a priestly family. Some scholars think Apollos could be the author because of his Alexandrian education in Scripture, but I sometimes feel like the writer actually walked the temple grounds.
There is a Hebrew term:
שְׁכִינָה (Shekhinah) — “the dwelling presence/glory of God”
The letter feels soaked in this idea. Jesus is the Shekhinah fully revealed.
6. Warnings – Not Harsh, but Heartbroken
Hebrews contains some of the strongest warning passages in the New Testament. They’re not cold or brutal. They’re painful, almost teary-eyed. The writer sounds like a mentor who fears his students might abandon everything.
There is a repeated Greek phrase:
μή ποτε (mē pote) — “lest at any time, lest somehow”
It communicates anxious concern, not anger.
Hebrews 6, for example, is one of the most debated warning passages. But the tone—if you read it emotionally—feels like a parent saying, “Please don’t walk away. You’re so close to life.”
The Hebrew underlying thought is related to שׁוּב (shuv, “to turn back, return”). But in this case, returning back to Judaism’s rituals instead of returning to God’s fulfillment in Christ would be going the wrong direction.
7. Jesus the High Priest – The Heartbeat of Hebrews
If there’s one theme that pulses like a heartbeat through Hebrews, it’s Jesus as the High Priest.
The writer uses the Greek phrase repeatedly:
ἀρχιερεύς (archiereus) — “high priest”
But Jesus is not just any priest. He is:
ἀρχιερεύς κατὰ τὴν τάξιν Μελχισέδεκ
(archiereus kata tēn taxin Melchisedek)
“High Priest according to the order of Melchizedek”
This reaches deep back into Genesis and Psalm 110. Melchizedek—מַלְכִּי־צֶדֶק (Malki-Tzedek, “king of righteousness”)—is a mysterious priest-king from Salem (peace), appearing briefly, blessing Abraham, then disappearing like a shadow.
The Book of Hebrews interprets Melchizedek as a type of Christ—eternal priesthood, not based on genealogy.
The writer almost shouts:
Jesus is not a priest because of tribal lineage.
Jesus is a priest because of eternal divine appointment.
The old priests stood daily, offering repeated sacrifices. Jesus offered Himself once. And the Greek word used for “once” is:
ἐφάπαξ (ephapax) — “once for all time, never needing repetition”
That’s powerful. You can almost hear the finality in it.
8. The New Covenant – Written on the Heart
Hebrews quotes Jeremiah 31 to explain the new covenant. The Hebrew term for covenant is:
בְּרִית (berit)
This new berit is not written on stone tablets but engraved onto human hearts.
The Greek expression:
διαθήκη καινή (diathēkē kainē) — “new covenant”
“Kainē” means new in quality, fresh, superior, not just recent.
The old covenant was good—but incomplete. It pointed forward. It longed. It groaned. It waited.
Jesus completes what the prophets began.
9. Faith – The Long Hallway of Witnesses
Hebrews 11 is one of the most beautiful chapters in Scripture. It defines faith as:
πίστις ἐστιν ἐλπιζομένων ὑπόστασις
(pistis estin elpizomenōn hypostasis)
“Faith is the substance/assurance of things hoped for”
The Greek word ὑπόστασις (hypostasis) literally means “the underlying reality, the solid ground beneath.” Faith is not blind. It stands on something real even when unseen.
The writer then calls upon a long hallway of heroes—Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, Rahab, and others. These names echo like drums in a dim corridor.
The Hebrew word for faith, אֱמוּנָה (emunah), comes from a root meaning firmness, steadiness.
Faith is not emotion. It’s a kind of soul-steadiness.
10. Jesus at the Center – The Author and Finisher
Hebrews 12 gives one of the most beautiful titles of Jesus:
ἀρχηγὸς καὶ τελειωτὴς τῆς πίστεως
(archēgos kai teleiōtēs tēs pisteōs)
“Author and Perfecter of faith”
“Archēgos” means originator, pioneer, pathfinder.
“Teleiōtēs” means the one who brings something to its intended completion.
He begins our faith and He completes it. Everything in between belongs to Him too.
11. Practical Exhortations – A Community Shaped by Christ
Toward the end, Hebrews gets practical. Live in love. Show hospitality. Remember prisoners. Honor marriage. Keep life free from greed. Look to Christ outside the camp.
There is a Hebrew undertone here of חֶסֶד (chesed, “covenant love, steadfast mercy”). The community is called to reflect God’s own mercy.
12. The Final Benediction – A Prayer That Still Echoes
Hebrews ends with a tender, shepherd-like blessing:
“The God of peace… equip you with everything good…”
The Greek word for “equip” is:
καταρτίζω (katartizō) — “to mend, to restore, to make whole again”
It’s the same word used to describe fishermen mending torn nets. It implies patience. Thread by thread.
That’s what Hebrews does for the weary soul. It stitches back together the frayed edges of faith.
Final Thoughts — Why Hebrews Still Matters So Much
Sometimes Hebrews feels like a bright fire in a cold world. It calls us to look beyond fear, beyond ritual, beyond religion-as-comfort, and into the blazing reality of Christ Himself.
It tells us:
Jesus is enough.
Jesus is greater.
Jesus is better.
Jesus is the High Priest who never steps away.
Jesus is the sacrifice that cannot fade.
Jesus is the covenant written on your heart.
Jesus is the anchor behind the veil.
Jesus is the pioneer blazing the trail through death into life.
And maybe the most comforting part of the letter is this simple truth:
You don’t have to drift.
You don’t have to go back.
You can hold on.
Because He holds you.
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