The veil of Hebrews 10:20 is evidently the second veil of Hebrews 9:3, and this is the veil of Exodus 26:31, which was made of “blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen of cunning work.” The verse that speaks of the veil in Hebrews 10 interpret for us its meaning, which is “His flesh,” and John 1:14 shows Christ’s flesh to be His humanity, for “the Word was made flesh.” So that in the veil we see in its beautiful colours the lovely traits of Christ’s Manhood, and perhaps also the varied glories of Christ.
In the tabernacle the divine glory was hidden within the veil, just as the divine glory of the Son on earth was hidden within the veil of His flesh from the eyes of men. Yet there were those who had eyes to discern the divine glory shining through the veil of the humanity of the Son of God, even as John wrote, “and we behold His glory, the glory as of an only begotten with a Father.” It was in the Word made flesh that God was revealed (John 1:18), and in Hebrews 1:2 we have a somewhat similar thought, “God…has in these last days spoken unto us by His Son.”
It is because the veil of the tabernacle is spoken of in Hebrews that there is no mention of its being rent, for the veil of the tabernacle was never rent. The unrent veil of the tabernacle speaks of the humanity of Christ but the rending of the veil of the temple speaks of the death of Christ. Matthew and Mark both write of the rending of the veil in twain from top to bottom (Matt. 27:51; Mark 15:38), which speaks of God coming forth to meet man as a Saviour God, but in Luke 23:45 the veil is spoken of as rent “in the midst,” no doubt signifying that the legal system of Judaism, in which there was no access to God, had been set aside in the death of Christ so that by that same death men might have access to God in an entirely new system.
Hebrews 10 however shows very plainly that access to God is through the death of His Son, for, says the Scripture, we have boldness “to enter into the holiest BY THE BLOOD OF JESUS.” Leviticus 16 makes it plain that the blood of the sin offering meets the claims of His throne, for it was put upon the mercy seat, but it was also sprinkled before the mercy seat seven times so that we might be able to stand in the presence of God. It is the answer to what took place on the day of atonement that gives us boldness to enter the presence of God.
The holiest is where God’s glory dwelt, and where in the veil, in the ark and its contents, and in all else there, we learn what God is as seen in the Person of His Son. We enter the holiest to commune with God (Ex. 25:22), and as worshippers, as occupied with the glory that shines unveiled in the face of Jesus.
If we have the humanity of Christ in the veil, which is His flesh, and the death of Christ in the precious blood that gives us boldness to enter the presence of God, we also have the risen and glorified Christ in “the high (or Great) Priest over the house of God,” for it is surely in His company that we find ourselves in the holiest of all.
Israel had not access into God’s presence, and even in the millennium when they shall have Christ as King and Priest, the veil will still remain for them. It is because of the incarnation and death of Christ that we know God, and have boldness to enter into His presence. The incarnation by itself would not have given us access to God, but there never could have been “the blood of Jesus” to give us access had not the Son of God come in flesh.
For Israel, under the old covenant, there was no access to God’s presence, there had to be a new way introduced for this, and the new way is by the blood of the new covenant. When Aaron entered the holiest the threat of death hung over him, even as it is written, “that he die not” (Lev. 16:2, 13), but in the new way, by the blood of Jesus, there is no threat of death, for we have boldness to enter God’s presence, and it is in company with the living Son of God, who has been made a Priest “after the power of an endless life” (Heb. 7:16), a life that He has communicated to us.
Our meetness to enter God’s presence comes from God. Of old, the sons of Aaron were consecrated with him to take up their priestly service, they were washed with water, and sprinkled, both them and their garments, with oil and blood (Lev. 8:6, 30). We have what answers to this in, “having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience, and our bodies washed with pure water ” (Heb. 10:22). It is what God has done for us through the work of Christ.
There must also be the moral condition with us if we are to be in God’s presence as worshippers, and this is found in the words, “with a true heart in full assurance of faith.” If we have a bad conscience we have not a true heart, and if our heart condemn us we do not have “confidence toward God” (1 John 3:19–21). This is one of the things that keeps saints from communion with God. If we are occupied with the things of the world, or the things of the flesh, or earthly things, we are not in suited condition to enter the presence of God to commune with Him, either individually or gathered with the saints of God.
Full assurance of faith comes through laying hold of the truth of God by faith. Where saints are under bad teaching they will not have the full assurance of faith, that is under teaching that keeps saints at a distance from God, and that does not present the true knowledge of God.
R. 9.1.71