Friday 30 October 2026

Psalm 10

Background
The sections of the Letter to the Hebrews which we have been reading this week form a carefully crafted piece of rhetoric. In many ways, the writer has proceeded by the use of contrasts – not (just) that, but this. There are two of those contrasts summed up in these verses, which form an oratorical flourish bringing together themes that have gone before.

The first contrast is between those who are faithful and those who are not. The writer paints a picture of life in the Church in which faithfulness is encouraged. This is a Church that will be peaceful and not spoiled by bitterness. That can only be achieved if the Christians are willing to encourage one another. The way in which the writer expresses this is close to a phrase that appears in the service of ordination of presbyters in the Methodist Church in Britain – ‘watch over one another in love’.

Those who are watching over one another and keeping the Church from self-harm are contrasted with those who give in to desires that run counter to their perseverance. Once again, the writer draws attention to a story from Genesis with which the readers would likely have been familiar: Esau gave away his inheritance in exchange for a meal just because he was hungry and later he regretted it bitterly. (Genesis 25:29-34) It is interesting that the writer does not mention Jacob who tricked his brother; the fault is Esau’s who didn’t value what he was promised until he lost it.

The second contrast is between the old covenant and the new covenant which is drawn out in the imagery of two mountains. One is Sinai, where Moses received the Torah; the reader draws on the accounts in Exodus where God’s presence was terrifying and only Moses was allowed to enter. Being faithful meant keeping a careful distance and obeying the Law. The other mountain is Zion, the hill on which Jerusalem was built, which in Christian imagination becomes a metaphor for heaven. Here, those who are faithful are welcomed into God’s presence along with multitudes of angels and saints. The difference between the two mountains is not that God’s presence is any less awesome on Zion than it was on Sinai. It is that Jesus, through his death, has enabled God’s people to enter God’s presence.

At many points in the Church’s history, the contrast between the old covenant (or Testament) and the new has been described in a way that quickly slides into antisemitism. This passage is an helpful antidote to that thinking. The writer does not suggest that those whose fidelity is to the covenant on Sinai are now excluded from God’s purposes. The powerful vision of the joyous gathering does not obscure the fact that God is still the holy one and the judge of all people.

To Ponder:

• In the 1975 Methodist Service Book Hebrews 12:18-25a was set as one of the readings for the Covenant Service. Why do you think that was?
• Jerusalem is a powerful symbol in Christian imagination. It is also a city in a conflict-riven country. Psalm 122:6 urges us to "Pray for the peace of Jerusalem." Will you do that?

Bible notes author: The Revd Dr Jonathan Hustler
Jonathan Hustler is a presbyter who currently serves as the Secretary of the Conference.