Hebrews 5

Christ, a High Priest

¹For every high priest taken from among men is appointed in matters pertaining to God for the people, to offer both gifts and sacrifices for sins. ²He is able to deal gently with those who are ignorant and are going astray, since he is also clothed with weakness. ^{a 3}Because of this, he must make an offering for his own sins as well as for the people. ^{b 4}No one takes this honor on himself; instead, a person is called by God, just as Aaron was. ^{c 5}In the same way, Christ did not exalt himself to become a high priest, but God who said to him,

You are my Son;

today I have become your Father,^d,^e,^f

⁶also says in another place,

You are a priest forever

according to the order of Melchizedek.^g,^h

⁷During his earthly life, ⁱ he offered prayers and appeals ^j with loud cries and tears ^k to the one who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. ⁸Although he was the Son, he learned obedience from what he suffered. ^{l 9}After he was perfected, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him, ¹⁰and he was declared by God a high priest according to the order of Melchizedek.

The Problem of Immaturity

¹¹We have a great deal to say about this, and it is difficult to explain, since you have become too lazy to understand. ¹²Although by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the basic principles of God’s revelation again. You need milk, not solid food. ^{m 13}Now everyone who lives on milk is inexperienced with the message about righteousness, because he is an infant. ¹⁴But solid food is for the mature #— #for those whose senses have been trained to distinguish between good and evil. ⁿ