9. In These Last Days & in These Sacred Texts

Guidance from Hebrews on the Relationship between the Testaments

Relating the Testaments by Overhearing Hebrews

As mentioned in the previous post (“Canonical Mountain Ranges”), one of the key motivations to utilize more than one category or rubric for thinking about the relationship between the testaments is expressly exegetical. In strategic ways, the biblical authors utilize several complementary pathways as they draw upon the OT Scriptures. The theologically informed exegetical moves that the biblical authors make can teach us some of the best ways to connect the writings of the prophets and the writings of the apostles. 

After briefly examining the opening chapters of Matthew’s narrative, we can notice some of these same moves in a different kind of text like the letter to the Hebrews.

This particular biblical text brims with rhetorical sophistication and has an extended theological argument. One of the author’s chief compositional strategies is also near constant reference to the OT Scriptures. Taking a 10k foot fly-over of this remarkable text can help us discern the contours of its biblical-theological moves. 

In these Last Days: The Grand Storyline of Redemptive History

In the majestic opening of the letter, the writer establishes the theological framework that the rest of the argument will draw upon. As the writer asserts,

Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, but in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son, whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high, having become as much superior to angels as the name he has inherited is more excellent than theirs. (Heb 1:1–4) 

In these few words, the writer masterfully pulls together many of the threads that the discipline of biblical theology seeks to explicate: the textual and theological relationship between the testaments; the nature of redemptive history; the grand storyline of the Bible; the person and work of Christ as the fulfillment of Scripture and the story of the covenants; and the relationship between the past, present, and future words and actions of God.

The same God who spoke “long ago” speaks “in these last days.” The time of “our fathers” is connected to “us.” The revelation “by the prophets” is connected to the revelation “by his Son.” Of course, the Letter to the Hebrews itself addresses these themes in a powerful and unique way throughout the rest of its “word of exhortation.”

We can simply note that here the writer demonstrates that the question of the relationship between the testaments, the notion of unity and diversity, the story of the covenants, and the confession that Christ is the overarching goal of the Scriptures are all topics that are inextricably linked.

This intricate opening sentence previews what will unfold in the rest of the letter: a distinctive blend of complementary ways of relating different eras and varying aspects of redemptive history (seen especially in the multifaceted use of the OT). 

There are several prominent places where the writer draws directly upon the grand storyline of redemptive history (which follows the contours of the OT’s prophetic history). In these examples, the writer makes a point that requires the reader to think about the sequence and significance of some aspect of redemptive history.

For example, the frequent comparisons and contrasts between elements of the old covenant and the new covenant draw upon this theologically charged historical framework (e.g., Heb 2:1–4; 3:1–6). The incarnation is the centerpiece of this strategy. Jesus was made “for a little while” lower than the angels so that he could defeat death and bring “many sons to glory” after returning to his exalted position at the right hand of majesty (Heb 1:4 & 2:8–10). Israel’s wandering in the wilderness is the backdrop for the writer’s warnings against unbelief, and the hope of peace in the land of promise is the primary analogy for the writer to exhort his readers to believe and enter God’s rest (Hebrews 3–4). 

In addition to the pervasive references to the exodus sequence, the writer also goes further back (to creation) and further forward (to entry into the land & the Davidic kingdom). These OT touchpoints provide a historical and theological framework for the writer to engage his audience in his own day and also envision the future reality of the eternal kingdom in God’s presence (e.g., Hebrews 12:18–29!).¹ 

In these Sacred Texts: Overhearing a Host of Intertextual Voices 

The grand storyline of the OT’s portrayal of Israel’s history provides the set pieces and literary landscape for the letter’s drama. The quotations, allusions, and echoes of OT texts provide the soundtrack that brings to life the author’s overarching argument.

Hebrews is not a silent movie. It is a skillfully composed comprehensive musical filled with ancient melodies and familiar cadences alongside new notes and freshly revealed refrains. 

To give only a few instances of the intertextual electricity that lights up this letter, consider the way that the dense opening sentence gives way to a flowing string of OT quotations. Seven major statements about who the Son is and what the Son has done (Heb 1:1–4) are followed by seven quotations of OT Scripture that are loaded with theological freight (Heb 1:5–14).

The Son who is the radiance of the Father’s glory is also the anointed son of Ps 2 and the promised descendent of 2 Sam 7.

The Son who upholds the universe by his powerful word is also the psalmist’s Lord and God.

The one who has made purification for sins is also the one worthy of everyone’s worship.

Rhetorically, this string of OT quotations in 1:1–14 give the reader a chance to reflect on the significance of the compact statements about the person and work of the Son in 1:1–4. 

In Heb 1:1–4, the writer alludes to Ps 2 (heir of all things) and then Ps 110 (seated at the right hand). In 1:5–14, the first quotation is from Ps 2 (“You are my Son”) and then the final quotation is from Ps 110 (“Sit at my right hand”). Confirming the structural significance of these texts for the message of the letter as a whole, the opening of the second major movement in Hebrews 5 contains another quotation of these texts in this same sequence (Ps 2 in 5:5, and this time Ps 110:4 in 5:6).

In large measure, the letter as a whole hinges on these textual connections: The writer gives a theological interpretation of Ps 2 & Ps 110 as a lens through which to grasp the full significance of the mission of the Son in the incarnation. 

In Hebrews 2, the author quotes Ps 8 at length and then reflects at length on its significance. In Hebrews 3, the writer quotes Ps 95 in order to emphasize the promise of God’s wrath, and in Hebrews 4, the writer quotes the same psalm in order to emphasize the promise of God’s rest. In Hebrews 8, the author gives a long quotation of Jeremiah in order to make a point about the nature of the new covenant. By contrast to Hebrews 2, there is only a minimal follow-up exposition, as the quoted text makes the point the writer wants to emphasize directly. In Hebrews 11, the writer weaves together summaries of Israel’s history with strategic quotations of Israel’s texts. 

Hearing and Seeing More Than Once

Much more could be said about the function of redemptive history and the use of the OT in Hebrews (mountains of scholarship in fact!), but the simple point I’m making here is that the writer provides several distinctive angles on the relationship between the old and the new (OT & NT, old covenant & new covenant, eternity past & eternity future, etc!).

As readers of this remarkable and engaging text, we are invited to gaze along these sight lines as we behold the glory of God in Christ by his Spirit. It seems like the biblical authors equip and expect us to hear these words and see these sights in multiple ways and more than once.

As we continue to consider the relationship between the testaments and the implications of a canonical approach to biblical studies, the intertextual and biblical-theological moves that the biblical authors make can give us a good deal of guidance. Part of the distinctiveness of an approach that is canonical but also compositional is this careful attention to these textual features. 

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1. Much more could be said about the way Hebrews draws upon the flow of redemptive history as he makes textual connections and theological arguments. Particularly relevant in this regard are the treatments of Joshua & David in Heb 4:1–10, Abraham & Melchizedek in Heb 7:1–10, and the “hall of faith” in Hebrews 11.