Context of the Letter to the Hebrews

Apart from this letter, nothing is known about the author of the book Hebrews. His teaching is in agreement with Paul's main ideas, but his interests and style are quite different. O ther figures from earliest Christianity are suggested, for instance Luke, Barnabas or Apollos. One must, however, concede that he cannot really be identified. It is only possible to draw a religious profile of both the author and the readers from the text of the letter.

The first readers are described in the title: ‘To the Hebrews’. It has, however, been established that this label was added to the letter after its inception. It is clear that these people were Christians (Heb 3:lff, 6:4-9, 10:23) of the second generation (Heb 2:3). Whether they were mainly of Jewish or Gentile extraction cannot be determined with certainty. We hold that the group must have had some special connection with the temple and its sacrificial system. As regards at least some of the readers, a priestly character may be assumed, due to references to the sacrificial system and to their teaching ability (Heb 5:12). The priestly circles were, furthermore, known for their keen interest in the history of Israel and their attempts to reinterpret it according to the needs and viewpoints of their day.

In spite of the reference to ‘those from Italy’ in Hebrews 13:24, one cannot assume that Rome was either the place where the Hebrews lived, or where the author had conceived the letter. If Jerusalem is surmised as being their home city, they must have belonged to a separate class, since it is recalled that they had made contributions towards the needs of the poor believers (Heb 6:10). They would then have been better off than most of the Christians in Judaea, of whose poverty Galatians 2:10 and Romans 15:26 speak.

The fact that there is no reference to the fall of the temple in Jerusalem during the Roman conquest may indicate that the letter was written before 70 CE. However, the author deliberately refers to the original tabernacle (‘tent of worship’) in the desert and not to the temple in Jerusalem.