New Living Translation

1 Here is the main point: We have a High Priest who sat down in the place of honor beside the throne of the majestic God (Elohim) in heaven. 2 There he ministers in the heavenly Tabernacle, the true place of worship that was built by the Lord and not by human hands. 3 And since every high priest is required to offer gifts and sacrifices, our High Priest must make an offering, too. 4 If he were here on earth, he would not even be a priest, since there already are priests who offer the gifts required by the law. 5 They serve in a system of worship that is only a copy, a shadow of the real one in heaven. For when Moses was getting ready to build the Tabernacle, God (Elohim) gave him this warning: “Be sure that you make everything according to the pattern I have shown you here on the mountain.” 6 But now Yashua (Jesus), our High Priest, has been given a ministry that is far superior to the old priesthood, for he is the one who mediates for us a far better covenant with God (Elohim), based on better promises. 7 If the first covenant had been faultless, there would have been no need for a second covenant to replace it. 8 But when God (Elohim) found fault with the people, he said: “The day is coming, says the LORD,<br>when I will make a new covenant<br>with the people of Israel and Judah.<br> 9 This covenant will not be like the one<br>I made with their ancestors<br>when I took them by the hand<br>and led them out of the land of Egypt.<br>They did not remain faithful to my covenant,<br>so I turned my back on them, says the LORD.<br> 10 But this is the new covenant I will make<br>with the people of Israel on that day, says the LORD:<br>I will put my laws in their minds,<br>and I will write them on their hearts.<br>I will be their God (Elohim),<br>and they will be my people.<br> 11 And they will not need to teach their neighbors,<br>nor will they need to teach their relatives,<br>saying, ‘You should know the LORD.’<br>For everyone, from the least to the greatest,<br>will know me already.<br> 12 And I will forgive their wickedness,<br>and I will never again remember their sins.”<br> 13 When God (Elohim) speaks of a “new” covenant, it means he has made the first one obsolete. It is now out of date and will soon disappear.