From This Day Forward: New Covenant Inauguration in Hebrews

Abstract

It is often assumed that Hebrews presents Jesus as having inaugurated the new covenant at the cross. Building on the work of David Moffitt and R. B. Jamieson, I explore this topic, asking when and where the new covenant was inaugurated in Hebrews.

I examine the covenant inauguration narrative in Exodus 24, the timing of Jesus’s appointment to priesthood in Hebrews 7–8, the logic of covenant inauguration and sacrifice in Hebrews 9, and the bestowal of new covenant blessings in Hebrews 10. I also analyze Hebrews 2:9 as a case study for my schema’s explanatory power and compare the inauguration of the new covenant in Hebrews with the discussions of Jesus’s final Passover meal in the Synoptic Gospels and 1 Corinthians. I conclude that Hebrews presents Jesus as having inaugurated the new covenant in a process that includes the cross, but has its culminating, effective moment in the heavenly sanctuary after his bodily resurrection and ascension.