One sacrifice makes us holy forever because Jesus offered himself as the perfect, final payment for sin. In Hebrews 10:1-18, the author explains that the animal sacrifices of the old covenant were only a shadow. They were repeated year after year because they could never actually remove sin. Jesus came to do God’s will, offered his own body once for all, and then sat down at God’s right hand. His work is finished, and God promises to remember our sins no more.
Setting the Scene in Hebrews 10:1-18
In the previous lesson, we saw that Jesus is our perfect high priest (Hebrews 4:14-5:10). In chapters 7 through 9, the author builds on that idea, comparing the earthly tabernacle with the true one in heaven. Hebrews 10:1-18 is the conclusion of that long argument. Jesus isn’t only the priest. He is also the sacrifice.
To understand this passage, it helps to understand covenants. A contract is a transaction: you do this, and I’ll do that. Ancient religions often worked that way. Bring the gods a sacrifice, and maybe they’ll send rain. But a covenant is a relational promise, more like a marriage than a business deal. God chose covenant as the way he would relate to people, which reveals his loving nature.
The story of Scripture moves through a series of covenants, like milestones on a long road trip. God promised Noah he would never again flood the earth, and he gave the rainbow as a sign (Genesis 9:12-17). The Hebrew word for rainbow is the ordinary word for a warrior’s bow, and many scholars see a picture of God hanging up his weapon. God promised Abraham land, descendants, and blessing for all nations (Genesis 12:1-3). At Sinai, God gave Israel the Mosaic covenant, which came with blessings for obedience and consequences for rebellion. Israel failed to keep it again and again, and eventually went into exile.
During those dark days, the prophet Jeremiah announced that God would do something new. The waiting game had begun, and it would last six centuries.
Jeremiah 31:31-32 “The days are coming,” declares the Lord, “when I will make a new covenant with the people of Israel and with the people of Judah. It will not be like the covenant I made with their ancestors when I took them by the hand to lead them out of Egypt, because they broke my covenant, though I was a husband to them,” declares the Lord.
Hebrews 10 is where the author shows that the wait is over.
A Shadow of Good Things to Come
The author begins by explaining the limits of the old system.
Hebrews 10:1-4 The law is only a shadow of the good things that are coming—not the realities themselves. For this reason it can never, by the same sacrifices repeated endlessly year after year, make perfect those who draw near to worship. Otherwise, would they not have stopped being offered? For the worshipers would have been cleansed once for all, and would no longer have felt guilty for their sins. But those sacrifices are an annual reminder of sins. It is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
The law was “only a shadow of the good things that are coming.” The Greek word skia means a shadow or outline, while the word translated “realities” is eikōn, the actual image or form. A shadow tells you something real is nearby, but you can’t live in a shadow.
The author’s argument is simple. If the sacrifices had really cleansed people once and for all, they would have stopped. Instead, the Day of Atonement came around every year (Leviticus 16). Many scholars note that the author speaks as if these sacrifices were still being offered, which suggests Hebrews was written before the Romans destroyed the temple in AD 70.
The sacrifices weren’t worthless. All that blood was a vivid reminder that sin is deadly serious (Hebrews 9:22). We tend to minimize our wrongdoing, but the sacrificial system wouldn’t let Israel do that. Still, it was a diagnosis, not a cure. As the author bluntly puts it, it is impossible for the blood of animals to take away sins.
Here I Am, I Have Come to Do Your Will
Next, the author puts the words of Psalm 40 in the mouth of Jesus.
Hebrews 10:5-7 Therefore, when Christ came into the world, he said: “Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but a body you prepared for me; with burnt offerings and sin offerings you were not pleased. Then I said, ‘Here I am—it is written about me in the scroll—I have come to do your will, my God.’”
The author is quoting the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Old Testament widely used in the first century. Where the Hebrew text of Psalm 40:6 reads “my ears you have opened,” the Septuagint reads “a body you prepared for me.” The author draws out a beautiful point. God prepared a human body for his Son so that he could offer something no animal ever could: a life of complete, willing obedience. This connects to what we learned about why Jesus had to become human (Hebrews 2:14-18).
God was never mainly interested in the blood of animals. The prophets said that God desired obedience and mercy more than sacrifice (1 Samuel 15:22; Hosea 6:6). Jesus finally offered both.
Hebrews 10:8-10 First he said, “Sacrifices and offerings, burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not desire, nor were you pleased with them”—though they were offered in accordance with the law. Then he said, “Here I am, I have come to do your will.” He sets aside the first to establish the second. And by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all.
The phrase “once for all” translates ephapax, a word Hebrews uses to stress that Jesus’ sacrifice never needs to be repeated (Hebrews 7:27; 9:12). The first system of repeated sacrifices was set aside so the second could be established.
Standing Priests and a Seated King
Then the author paints a striking contrast.
Hebrews 10:11-14 Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God, and since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool. For by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever those who are being made holy.
Notice the posture. The priests stood, day after day, because their work was never done. There were no chairs in the tabernacle. Even on the Day of Atonement, the high priest went into the Most Holy Place, did his work, and got out. He’d have to return the next year.
Jesus sat down. He entered the true Most Holy Place and stayed there, because his work was complete and because he is God. It’s the difference between making the minimum payment on a credit card and paying off the whole balance.
Verse 14 holds two truths together. By one sacrifice, Jesus has made his people perfect forever, even while they are still “being made holy.” Our standing before God is already complete, while our character is still being transformed (What Is Sanctification?). Verse 13 adds that Jesus now waits for his enemies to become his footstool, an echo of Psalm 110:1. The new covenant has arrived, but the full kingdom is still to come. Theologians call this the “already and not yet.”
The New Covenant Is Here
The author closes the section by returning to Jeremiah’s promise.
Hebrews 10:15-18 The Holy Spirit also testifies to us about this. First he says: “This is the covenant I will make with them after that time, says the Lord. I will put my laws in their hearts, and I will write them on their minds.” Then he adds: “Their sins and lawless acts I will remember no more.” And where these have been forgiven, sacrifice for sin is no longer necessary.
Under the old covenant, God’s law was written on stone tablets. Under the new covenant, it is written on human hearts by the Holy Spirit. And God promises to remember our sins no more. If sins are truly forgiven, there is nothing left to sacrifice for.
In Jesus, every earlier covenant finds its fulfillment. The bow of judgment was turned away from us and absorbed by the Son. Abraham’s promised blessing is now flowing to all nations through the church. The law Moses received was perfectly kept by Jesus, and its heart is now written inside us. For a topical overview, see What Is the New Covenant?
What This Means for Us
The first readers of Hebrews were facing pressure and were tempted to go back to the old system of priests and sacrifices. The author’s message was clear: why would you return to the shadow when you have the reality? The same is true for us. Many people still live as if they have to keep paying for their sins through guilt, religious effort, or self-punishment. But Jesus has already paid in full.
So, are we there yet? From heaven’s perspective, yes. We are forgiven, made holy, and welcomed into God’s presence. On earth, we are still growing and still waiting for Jesus to return and set everything right. The real question is whether you’re in the car. If you haven’t received the forgiveness of the new covenant, you can do that today. Learn more at How can I become a Christian?
The Takeaway
How does one sacrifice make us holy forever? The old covenant sacrifices were a shadow, repeated every year because they could never take away sin. Jesus came to do God’s will, offered his own body once for all, and sat down because his work was finished. Through him, God’s new covenant is here, and he remembers our sins no more.
