Hebrews / Question
Hebrews says Jesus is a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, and he can sympathize with weaknesses. Because he was tempted yet without sin, Hebrews invites drawing near “with confidence” to receive mercy and grace for help (Hebrews 4:14–16). The access is grounded in his priesthood and sympathy.
Hebrews 4:14–16 urges the audience to keep publicly committed to what they have confessed about Jesus because they have a “great high priest” who has gone into the heavens. The writer stresses that this high priest is not distant or unfeeling: he truly understands human weakness because he has faced testing like others, yet without falling into wrongdoing. This paragraph closes a warning-and-invitation unit about listening to God “today” and entering God’s rest (Hebrews 4:1). Just before it, the writer highlights that God’s word exposes and judges, leaving no creature hidden (Hebrews 4:12).
Hebrews 4:14–16 presents Jesus as a uniquely qualified “great high priest” whose access to God (“passed through the heavens”) supports the community’s continued public allegiance (“hold tightly to our confession”). This is a priestly-intercession picture: Jesus represents people before God and, because of who he is, they have genuine access to God.
A careful answer keeps the immediate passage, the book's argument, and the whole-Bible storyline together, so the question is answered in context instead of as a detached idea.
Start with Hebrews 4:14-16, then read the surrounding section so the answer stays connected to the passage's flow.
14Having then a great high priest, who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold tightly to our confession.
15For we don`t have a high priest who can`t be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin.
16Let us therefore draw near with boldness to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy, and may find grace for timely help.