Passage

Hebrews 10.12

Book: Hebrews · ASV / WEB / KJV / YLT

Immediate context (±2 verses)

ASV

10. By which will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11. And every priest indeed standeth day by day ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, the which can never take away sins:

12. but he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

henceforth expecting till his enemies be made the footstool of his feet. 14. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. (Hebrews 10:10-14, ASV)

WEB

10. by which will we have been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11. Every priest indeed stands day by day serving and often offering the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins,

12. but he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God;

from that time waiting until his enemies are made the footstool of his feet. 14. For by one offering he has perfected forever those who are being sanctified. (Hebrews 10:10-14, WEB)

KJV

10. By the which will we are sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. 11. And every priest standeth daily ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, which can never take away sins:

12. But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. 14. For by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified. (Hebrews 10:10-14, KJV)

YLT

10. in the which will we are having been sanctified through the offering of the body of Jesus Christ once, 11. and every priest, indeed, hath stood daily serving, and the same sacrifices many times offering, that are never able to take away sins.

12. And He, for sin one sacrifice having offered, to the end, did sit down on the right hand of God,

as to the rest, expecting till He may place his enemies [as] his footstool, 14. for by one offering he hath perfected to the end those sanctified; (Hebrews 10:10-14, YLT)

See this page's graph and discover linked topics

Setting

Speaker: the author of Hebrews, who does not give his name. Early tradition linked the letter to Paul, but that was disputed already in antiquity; Origen, as quoted by Eusebius, said that who wrote it, God alone knows
Audience: believers, apparently of Jewish background, who had already suffered for their faith (10:32-34) and were being tempted to drift away (2:1)
Location: not stated. "They of Italy salute you" (13:24) links the letter to Italy, either as the place of writing or as the readers' home
Time period: commonly dated before AD 70. The author argues as though the Levitical sacrifices were still being offered (10:1-2), never mentions the Temple's destruction, and speaks of Timothy as recently released (13:23)

Theological reading

"But he, when he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God." The verse is set against the one before it: "every priest indeed standeth day by day ministering and offering oftentimes the same sacrifices, the which can never take away sins" (10:11).

Standing and sitting. The priests stand because their work is never finished. Christ "sat down" (Strong's G2523) because his is. The posture comes from Psalm 110:1, "Sit thou at my right hand, Until I make thine enemies thy footstool," which the next verse quotes: "henceforth expecting till his enemies be made the footstool of his feet" (10:13). Hebrews has used the same psalm from the first chapter (1:3, 13).

One sacrifice. "One sacrifice" (G2378) answers "the same sacrifices" offered "oftentimes." Verse 14 states the result: "by one offering he hath perfected for ever them that are sanctified." The phrase "for ever" (G1336) can be read with "offered one sacrifice" or with "sat down"; the ASV and KJV attach it to the sacrifice, and either way the point is that nothing needs to be added.

The question after the Temple. Rabbinic Judaism vs the Christian God cites this verse on the problem of atonement after AD 70. Rabbinic Judaism holds that with the Temple gone, repentance, prayer and acts of lovingkindness atone, a view tied to Hosea 6:6, "For I desire goodness, and not sacrifice," in a well-known tradition about Yohanan ben Zakkai (Avot de-Rabbi Natan 4). The Christian answer is that the Torah's sacrifices pointed to a final sacrifice, and Hebrews says that sacrifice was offered and accepted before the Temple fell. The author even argues that if the old sacrifices had made the worshippers clean once for all, "would they not have ceased to be offered?" (10:2). See Atonement and Penal Substitutionary Atonement.

Key words

Theologically-loaded Greek or Hebrew words in this verse may have entries in the lexicon. Curated to roughly 100 contested terms across the corpus, not every word; see Lexicon Roadmap.

G0266 - hamartia, hamartia, Strong's G0266
G2316 - theos, theos, Strong's G2316

Quoted in

Arguments and defeaters:

Concepts:

Akedah, via Hebrews 10.10-14
Atheism, via Hebrews 10.10-14
Atonement, via Hebrews 10.10-14
Failed Messianic Prophecy Objections, via Hebrews 10.1-18
Levitical Priesthood, via Hebrews 10.11-14
Melchizedekian Priesthood, via Hebrews 10.11-14
Old Covenant, via Hebrews 10.11-14
Penal Substitutionary Atonement, via Hebrews 10.10-14

Lexicon:

Why these four translations

ris3n chose ASV, WEB, KJV, and YLT for two reasons together. They are the most literal English translations available (formal-equivalence: word-for-word renderings that preserve the Hebrew and Greek grammar rather than smoothing it into modern dynamic-equivalence idiom). And they are in the public domain in the United States, which means fair-use quotation at any length requires no publisher license. Modern licensed translations (NASB95, ESV, NIV) restrict volume of quotation under their copyright terms, so they are not used at stub-level coverage here. NASB95 appears only on hand-curated rich passage hubs under Lockman Foundation's fair-use allowance.

The four:

ASV (American Standard Version, 1901). The basis of the modern critical-text English tradition.
WEB (World English Bible, contemporary). Public-domain revision in the ASV line, in current English.
KJV (King James Version, 1611). Reformation-era, Textus Receptus base.
YLT (Young's Literal Translation, Robert Young, 1862). Hyper-literal preservation of Hebrew and Greek grammar; useful for word-study work even where English reads stiff.

See Bibles for the full per-translation history, translators, textual basis, strengths, and weaknesses.