Hebrews 6:19

Anchor. A change in metaphor. An anchor holds a ship in a storm and keeps it from drifting on the rocks. There are times when anchors slip. But not so with the anchor of “hope.” The metaphor of an anchor occurs only here in Scripture.

Which entereth. That is, the hope entereth.

Within. Gr. esoteros, “inner,” “behind.” The word occurs in the NT only here and in Acts 16:24, where it describes the inner prison into which Paul and Silas were cast. Esoteros is more frequent in the LXX (see Ex. 26:33; Lev. 16:2, 12, 15; etc.).

Veil. Gr. katapetasma, “curtain,” “veil.” The word occurs six times in the NT. Three times it is used of the veil of the Temple that was rent at the time of the crucifixion (Matt. 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45). The other occurrences are in Hebrews (eh. 6:19; 9:3; 10:20). In the references to the sanctuary in the LXX katapetasma is used to describe (1) the curtain that separated the holy and most holy places (Ex. 26:31, 33), (2) the curtain at the door of the tabernacle (Ex. 26:37; 36:37; Num. 3:26), (3) the curtain for the gate of the court (Ex. 38:18). The fact that the curtain at the door of the tabernacle and the inner curtain separating the holy from the most holy place were both called katapetasma provides a simple explanation for the use of the term “second veil [katapetasma]” in Heb. 9:3 to describe the inner curtain. The question is: To which curtain does the author refer in eh. 6:19, as the one within which our hope enters?

Some non-Adventist Bible students who teach that Christ, immediately upon His ascension, entered on His work in the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary hold that katapetasma here refers to the curtain separating the most holy place from the holy place. They note that “within the veil” is a translation of the Greek phrase esoteron tou katapetasmatos, which, in its four occurrences in the LXX (Ex. 26:33; Lev. 16:2, 12, 15), always describes the most holy place. However, it does not necessarily follow that if “the veil” here refers to the veil dividing the holy from the most holy place, Christ therefore began, at His ascension, to carry on His mediatorial work in the most holy place (see under “1” below).

Following are three possible explanations of the expression “within the veil,” all of which are consonant with the Seventh-day Adventist view of the sanctuary.

1. “The veil” means the dividing curtain between the two apartments. But Paul is speaking of Christ’s entrance into the most holy place of the heavenly sanctuary in order to dedicate it, along with the rest of the sanctuary, upon His assumption of His high-priestly office. This dedication is mentioned in Dan. 9:24 (see comment there) and typified in the anointing of the earthly sanctuary following its erection (Ex. 40; cf. ch. 30:26-29).

2. In Heb. 6:19 Paul leaves the word “veil” undefined. He wishes to call attention, not to the veil, but to that which is “within [or “behind”] the veil,” namely, the place where Christ our High Priest ministers. In other words, Paul is using the word “veil” (katapetasma), not in terms of a technical discussion of the structure of the heavenly sanctuary, but as a figure of speech to describe that which divides the seen from the unseen, the earthly from the heavenly. Hence, “within the veil” means simply to be in the presence of God. According to this view, hope is represented as entering the very presence of God, where Christ Himself has gone (v. 20; cf. ch. 9:24).

3. Paul, elsewhere in Hebrews, specifically describes the veil separating the holy from the most holy place, as “the second veil” (ch. 9:3). Hence, when he speaks simply of “the veil” (ch. 6:19) he must refer to the veil at the door of the tabernacle. Further, inasmuch as the heavenly sanctuary, and the sequence of its services, was prefigured by the earthly, when Christ ascended to heaven He “entered” the holy place — the first apartment — to begin the first phase of His heavenly ministry (see GC 420).