The Crucified Messiah

A key point of the  Letter to Hebrews  is the victory of the Son on behalf of his people, and consequently, his exaltation to the “ right hand ” of God as their High Priest “ after the order of Melchizedek .” He secured what none of his predecessors could. Through his self-sacrificial death, he “ achieved the purification of sins ,” then he “ sat down ” in the “ true and greater Tabernacle ” in God’s very presence where he now intercedes for his saints.

The literary unit in chapters 1 and 2 of the Gospel of Mark includes five stories that highlight the authority of Jesus as the “ Son of Man ,” and shows the growing conflicts between him and the religious authorities from Jerusalem, especially over issues of ritual purity and Sabbath regulations. There are parallels between the present story and the preceding one about the cleansing of the leper.