Hebrews

The truth about the epistle to the Hebrews is that no one knows when it was written or who wrote it.  The most common speculation says that Paul wrote it.  However, this doesn't appear to be Paul's exact style of writing.  Others would argue that it was the John the apostle, while others would say it was Matthew, others would say it was Paul's understudy.  I personally think it was James the brother of Jesus.  Paul does not make much sense as the author because he was sent to the Gentiles and he ws bound because of the Jews in Jerusalem.  James was the bishop of the church in Jerusalem.  Eusibeus speaks of James as having been actively involved in the work of the temple.  In the epistle of James, James speaks a lot about the law.  I think this book was written by james to clear up the idea that there were contradictions between him and Paul since James said that a man is justified by both faith and works.  That work justified literally means in the Greek "rendered innocent."  This passage is often seen as a contradiciton to Paul's writings but all James is basically saying is that faith without works is dead and if you really have faith, you will perform on that faith.  The book of Hebrews deals with the fact that the law has been fulfilled through Christ.  This is another reason I think it was written by James because the language of the epistle is very consistent with the language of Matthew in terms of terms.  It doesn't matter who the author was, but rather what the author said.  The author of Hebrews begins by telling of how God has now chosen to speak to his people(Christians) through his Son, Jesus Christ.  The author gives a warning against drifting away and portrays many images of Christ.  He portrays Christ as one who lowered himself to take on the form of a man so that he may pay theb ultimate sacrifice for sin.  The author appears to know in depth details about the situation of Moses and the Israelites in Egypt.  The author speaks of how the work of God has been completed since the foundation of the world.  The author focuses strongly on the Word of God as a living and active sharp double-edged sword.  This divides the soul and spirit and judges the hearts and minds.  The author continually speaks of Jesus as the Great High Priest.  There was apparently a question among the Jews as to how Jesus could have become high priest.  Some think this question applies to his lineage from the line of Judah but the genealogy in Luke appears to give him lineage from the line of Levi also although is is not directly clear.  The author establishes Jesus as a High Priest in the order of Melchizedek from Genesis 14.  The author gives special warnings against immorality.  The author specifically speaks of falling away.  The passages on falling away are a huge issue in the debate over eternal security.  I personally think that this author is telling the believers to be faithful and to grow mature and not to  stay at one plane with the elementary teachings but to move on to higher planes so they may grow in their walks with Christ.  Whether descended from Levi or not, Jesus is not considered as one from the Levitical priesthood.  The Levitical priesthood was an elitist position based on wealth and ritualistic purity.  Now we know Christ was born into a poor family.  Christ is presented as the High Priest of the New Covenant.  This covenant is lived through Christ.  As believers in Christ we fulfill the law through Christ because we take his likeness upon ourselves by conforming to his image.  The author appears to speak a lot of worship in the building of the tabernacle and clearly states that an institution made by man is not what we must go through to pay homage and be reconciled with God. Rather, Christianity is a spiritual tabernacle made by Christ who serves as the High Priest of that tabernacle and offered himself as the Passover Lamb.  Hebrews 9:26-27 clearly lays the ground work that outlaws the belief of Christians in reincarnation.  It states that each person is appointed once to die.  The author speaks of Christ sacrifice as being a once for all sacrifice for all sin.  The author speaks of the tabernacle and temple in more symbolic terms.  The author makes clear that one who truly commits to Christ will turn away from their sin.  Chapter 11 of Hebrews is known as the Hall of Faith chapter.  This chapter speaks of many heroes of the faith who believed God and followed the promise even though they did not receive the promsies given to them in their own lifetime.  The author also speaks of Rahab the Prostitute which is another thing that makes me believe the author is James because Rahab is mentioned in James.  The author speaks of the faith of the judges and the prophets.  He then goes on to talk of how God will discipline his children which is an indirect quote from Deuteronomy 8.  The author then closes with concluding exhortations. The book of Hebrews establishes the doctrine that the Old Testament is simply a foreshadow of that which was to come that would be built by the hands of Jesus Christ.  This clearly demonstrates that the New Covenant is basically an exact replica of the old one accept for the fact that it is applied in more symbolic terms.  Thus, Christianity is very Jewish.  After all, it was acknowledged as a Jewish cult until it became its own seperate movement in 182 AD.  The fact that the epistle is written to the Hebrews means that it probably was written before the dispersion across the nations of those living in Israel at the time.  That would put it before 70 AD. If James wrote it as my hypothesis proposes, then it would have had to have been written before or in the year 62 AD.