Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place,
Parallel translations
- WEB After the second veil was the tabernacle which is called the Holy of Holies,
- KJV And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all;
- NKJV and behind the second veil, the part of the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of All,
- NASB Behind the second veil there was a tabernacle which is called the Most Holy Place,
- NLT Then there was a curtain, and behind the curtain was the second room called the Most Holy Place.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
Behind the second curtain lay the inner room, the Holy of Holies. It was the most sacred space, where God's presence was specially manifested.
Overview
The author notes the second veil separating the Most Holy Place from the Holy Place. This innermost room held the ark and symbolized God's dwelling among his people. Its restricted access foreshadows the great theme that Christ has opened the way into God's presence, tearing down the barrier the veil represented.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 11
- Exod 26:31–33Make a veil of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen, with cherubim skillfully worked into it.
- Exod 40:21Then he brought the ark into the tabernacle, put up the veil for the screen, and shielded off the ark of the Testimony, just as the LORD had commanded him.
- Matt 27:51At that moment the veil of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth quaked and the rocks were split.
- Exod 40:3Put the ark of the Testimony in it and screen off the ark with the veil.
- 1 Kgs 8:6Then the priests brought the ark of the covenant of the LORD to its place in the inner sanctuary of the temple, the Most Holy Place, beneath the wings of the cherubim.
- Heb 9:8By this arrangement the Holy Spirit was showing that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still standing.
- 2 Chr 3:14He made the veil of blue, purple, and crimson yarn and fine linen, with cherubim woven into it.
- Heb 10:19–20Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus,
- Isa 25:7On this mountain He will swallow up the shroud that enfolds all peoples, the sheet that covers all nations;
- Heb 6:19We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain,
- Exod 36:35–38Next, he made the veil of blue, purple, and scarlet yarn, and finely spun linen, with cherubim skillfully worked into it.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Hebrews is sustained worship of Christ: better than angels, Moses, and the priests; the great High Priest after Melchizedek who by one sacrifice perfects forever those he saves.
How Hebrews 9:3 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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