How to Conclude a Message from Heaven (Hebrews 13:20-21)

This statement of the author of Hebrews is a combination of a benediction and a doxology. A benediction, we might say, is God’s response to his people in which he promises to provide aspects of salvation whereas a doxology is their response to God in which they praise him for what he has done for them. The words of the author contain both.

There are some general comments that can be deduced from this statement. First, we can deduce that we should conclude an exhortation or sermon by saying something comforting to God’s people because that is how the author closes his exhortation. In it he has said some strong things to them such as reminding them that they were unable to understand deeper truths of the Bible that they should have been able to do by now. Nevertheless he still closes his exhortation by encouraging the failures.

Second, we can see from his words that it is important to exalt Jesus in the minds of his people. The author does so in several ways, as we will see. He also praises the Father for raising the Saviour from the dead and for equipping his people for acts of service. Perhaps we are surprised that the Holy Spirit is not mentioned in the verse. Yet he is not mentioned in the benedictions with which the apostles Paul and Peter begin their letters, and neither is he mentioned in some of the benedictions at the close of their letters. Why this has happened cannot be known in this life, although we should recall that the real author of these words is the Holy Spirit – it was him who led this human author, as well as the apostles, to record their benedictions and doxologies.

Third, we can see from verse 22 that the author was aware of the possible confusion or distress his exhortation may have caused in the minds of his readers. He calls on them to ‘bear’ it, which I assume has the emphasis of accept with determination. Moreover he knows he could have said a lot more, which is a reminder that a sermon does not have to say everything on a topic. A preacher has to be sensitive to his listeners’ possible reactions, has to be sensible in how much he says, and say it in an entreating way.

Who is our God?

There are many names given to God in the Bible and each of them is important for a balanced worship by us and each has its own application to us. Here he is described as ‘the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus’. While it would be possible for us to separate the title from the action, I don’t think we should. The reason why he is the God of peace towards us is because Jesus paid the penalty for our sins. This does not mean that God did not want to bless us, or that there were different attitudes within the Trinity regarding us as sinners, but it does mean that he could not bless us without the atoning work of Jesus. 

Moreover, this description of the Father gives us a marvellous insight into the atmosphere, as it were, that pervaded the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea when Jesus rose from the dead. We are used to speaking about the stillness of the grave, but that is not the kind of peace that is described here. Peace here means satisfaction and delight in keeping a promise, and the Father had promised to raise him from the dead. Perhaps we can contrast this peaceful scene with the turbulence of the cross when the human nature of Jesus could not experience the peace of God while paying the penalty for our sins. The resurrection of Jesus is the evidence that his sacrifice has been accepted and that God is now at peace with those who depend upon the atoning work of his Son

We can also say that this is a permanent title for God. Some of his Old Testament names, perhaps, are no longer necessary because of the fuller revelation given in the New Testament. Whether that is the case or not, we can say that our God will always be the God of peace as far as his people are concerned. I suspect if we had been the original recipients of this letter we might not have expected this title to be used. But it is a reminder that he is at peace with his people.

Who is Jesus?

We have noticed that the author has mentioned that Jesus was dead but is now alive. And his readers would have known why Jesus had died, which was to provide salvation for them. Yet they would also see that the author chooses to focus on Jesus after his resurrection rather than on before it. The author mentions four details about Jesus.

The first one to note is the title given to Jesus – he is the Lord Jesus. Sometimes when that title is used of the Saviour it refers to his deity. At other times, it refers to his exaltation as the Mediator. We are all familiar with the words of Paul in Philippians 2:9-11: ‘Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.’ This is a reminder that Jesus possesses supremacy that is universal as far as space is concerned and unlimited as far as time is concerned. He still has the same authority today as he had when the author wrote this letter.

The author says more about this status that Jesus possesses – he is ‘our’ Lord Jesus. This is a more personal involvement in his Lordship and indicates that Jesus is both Lord over his people and Lord for his people. He became their Lord when they were converted and became his subjects. Their submission is a glad one because they know that he is Lord of everything on behalf of his church. While they cannot understand at times why some things happen, it does comfort them to know that nothing can separate them from the love of Christ.

The second detail mentioned about the Saviour is that he is ‘the great shepherd of the sheep’. He may be called ‘great’ because he is superior to all the under-shepherds of his people, and some of them were referred to earlier in the chapter. But he could also be called ‘great’ because of the amazing activities he has performed and will yet accomplish on behalf of his people. It is true that he was the Shepherd who died for them on the cross and they cannot forget what he did, and they will always ascribe greatness to him for doing so. Yet there is probably an emphasis here on what he does for his sheep through the gospel. He gathers them from the place of sin and danger, and when we think about the number that he has gathered throughout the Christian era, then we confess that he is the great Shepherd. And, once they have joined his flock, he guards them from their enemies and guides them to glory. Again we can see his greatness in that he guards all of them and guides each of them. Their experience of his grace could not be better even if each of them was the only sheep in his flock. It is not surprising that the author refers to Jesus as the great shepherd of the sheep.

Of course, we cannot avoid noticing that believers are called sheep. It is very likely that the author and his readers knew about the times Jesus referred to his people as sheep because we are told in 2:1-4 that they were instructed by those who had heard Jesus. Why are they called sheep? One reason could be that often they act in silly ways just as literal sheep do. But the other reason could be that they can exist together in large numbers. Some flocks we see in fields are not large, but at other times we do see large numbers, and they seem content together whether large or small numerically.

What is the basis of this shepherding activity of Jesus? We are told that it is ‘in the blood of an eternal covenant’. This is a reference, I would say, to the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross and its connection to the new covenant that has been inaugurated as a result. I suspect the author uses ‘eternal’ in the sense that the covenant will never end, rather that in the sense that it had no beginning, in contrast to the Mosaic covenant that did come to an end. Yet it should be noted that some commentators do interpret the word ‘eternal’ as looking back to the covenant of redemption made between the Father and the Son in eternity past.

We have already noted in previous studies the blessings of the new covenant (8:10-12). They include renewed minds and hearts (‘I will put my laws into their minds, and write them on their hearts’), a permanent relationship with God (‘I will be their God, and they shall be my people’), personal fellowship with God (‘they shall not teach, each one his neighbour and each one his brother, saying, “Know the Lord,” for they shall all know me, from the least of them to the greatest’), and complete forgiveness of all their sins (‘For I will be merciful toward their iniquities, and I will remember their sins no more’). This is a wonderful basis on which to experience the shepherd care of the Good Shepherd.

The third detail that the author mentions about Jesus is that all the good his people experience comes through him: ‘equip you with everything good… through Jesus Christ.’ I found the interpretation of Calvin helpful:  ‘This clause was added for the sake of confirmation; for he intimates that God is then only prayed to aright by us, to lead us on to perfection, when we acknowledge his power in the resurrection of Christ, and acknowledge Christ himself as our pastor. He, in short, would have us to look to Christ, in order that we may rightly trust in God for help; for Christ was raised from death for this end, that we might be renewed unto eternal life, by the same power of God; and he is the great pastor of all, in order that we may protect the sheep committed to him by the Father.’

What does Calvin mean by Christ’s pastoral role? We can see that the author has returned also to thinking about the activities of the Father – he is the one who equips his people. There are four aspects at least of this equipping that we can note, which may help us see Calvin’s description.

First, it means that God knows what each one of us can do through Christ, and what help we will need from him, and all this help is found in Jesus Christ, the pastor of his flock. All this help is summarised under the words ‘everything good’ and it all comes to us ‘through Jesus Christ’, the one who is full of grace, which he freely gives out of his fullness.

Second, the reason why God equips us through Christ is so that we will obey his commandments (‘do his will’). This is his goal in providing his grace, and as Isaiah said about obedience, ‘Oh that you had paid attention to my commandments! Then your peace would have been like a river,
and your righteousness like the waves of the sea’ (Isa. 48:18). His will here is not his secret will, because after all, since it is secret, no one can discover it.

Third, God delights to provide all that we need through Christ (it is ‘pleasing in his sight’, which is a very striking depiction of God looking on with joy as he works in the hearts of his people and provides them with what they require).

Fourth, God continues to provide all that we need through Christ – ‘he is working in us.’ This verse is teaching what Paul taught in Philippians 2:12-13: ‘Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for his good pleasure.’

Our response

It is difficult to work out whom the author is referring to when he says, ‘To whom be glory forever and ever.’ Is he referring to the God of peace or to Jesus Christ? Again, Calvin’s comment is wise: ‘This I refer to Christ. And as he here ascribes to Christ what peculiarly belongs to God alone, he thus bears a clear testimony to his divinity; but still if anyone prefers to explain this of the Father, I do not object; though I embrace the other sense, as being the most obvious.’

What does the author mean by glory? Is he referring to the status Jesus has or is he referring to the praise that he offers? Perhaps it is both. What can be said about it, whether his status or our praise, is that he has earned it by what he did on behalf of God his Father and on behalf of us, his people. Since his work was so great, it is inevitable that the status he has as Lord and the praise he receives from his people will be endless. Yet even although it will be endless, we can say of the praise he will receive that it should be enthusiastic, given from loving hearts. And because only he could have performed the roles he was given, his status and his praise is exclusive – on one else can have them.

And I suppose that is the message of the Book of Hebrews – what we have in Christ excels to an infinite degree what could have been given by following the Old Testament rituals.