Since verse 8, the writer’s main interest has no longer been in the two compartments of the “sanctuary.” What matters in verses 11-12 is the comparison between (a) the High Priest going through the curtain into the Most Holy Place on the Day of Atonement, and (b) Christ, by his sacrifice of himself, passing into heaven to take up the highest and holiest “place” beside God.
But probably completes the contrast prepared in Heb. 9.2 (see comments). There may, however, be difficulty in introducing a conjunction such as But at the beginning of verse 11, since the clause which it introduces is not in direct conflict or opposition to the immediately preceding clause. It introduces a contrast with the entire paragraph which precedes. It may therefore be necessary to use a somewhat expanded expression such as “In contrast with all of this” or “On the other hand.”
Christ has already come as the High Priest: already is implicit. This clause probably refers neither to his coming to earth nor to his arrival in heaven after his ascension, but to his “appearing” or “being shown” as High Priest (compare verse 26). If, however, one wishes to avoid indicating precisely the point to which Christ has come, it my be possible to translate Christ has already come as the High Priest as “Christ has already become the High Priest.”
Manuscript evidence is rather evenly balanced between “good things that have come” (Revised Standard Version, UBS Greek New Testament text; similarly Good News Translation, Jerusalem Bible note, New English Bible, TOB note) and “good things to come” (King James Version, RSV note; similarly Moffatt, Jerusalem Bible, TEV note, New English Bible note, Barclay, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible). “Good things to come” fits in too easily with the context and with 10.1, so the more difficult reading, “good things that have come,” is rather more likely to be the original text.
It may be difficult to relate the High Priest to the expression the good things that are already here. It may be possible to translate the High Priest of the good things that are already here as “the High Priest who provides the good things that are already here” or “the High Priest who has caused to happen the good things that are already here.” It is important when rendering the good things to avoid an expression referring only to material things. The reference is to the good experiences which people have, and therefore the good things that are already here may be expressed as “the good experiences that we already have” or “the good which we have already experienced.”
The tent in which he serves is literally “through the greater … tent.” In which he serves is implied. In Greek as in English, this may mean either “from one end to the other of the tent” or “by means of the tent.” The first meaning, referring to space, seems more natural here. It is not clear whether the writer thinks of the heavenly sanctuary, like the one on earth, as having two compartments, a Holy Place and a Most Holy Place (see comments on 9.8, question 2). The use of “through,” here and in 4.14, suggests two divisions in the heavenly sanctuary also. Alternatively, by a slight change in imagery, the earth where Jesus lived and died may be compared with the outer part of a sanctuary, of which heaven is the Most Holy Place, and Jesus’ death the curtain between them (compare Mark 15.38). In any case, since verse 8 the writer’s main interest has no longer been in the two compartments of the sanctuary. What matters now is the comparison between (a) the High Priest going through the curtain into the Most Holy Place on the Day of Atonement, and (b) Christ, by his sacrifice of himself, passing into heaven to take up the highest and holiest “place” beside God. A suggested translation would therefore be “But Christ has come as a priest of the good things that are already here. He has passed through the tent (or, a tent [since it is not clearly identified in this context]) which was not made by men; indeed it is not a part of this created world.”
When one translates The tent in which he serves, it may be necessary to indicate the person who is served. It would, however, be wrong to suggest that Christ simply “serves God,” for this would mean that Christ has become merely a servant to help God with the daily things which he might require. Therefore The tent in which he serves can perhaps best be expressed as “the tent in which he works on our behalf” or “… where he serves for our sake.”
Comparatives such as greater and more perfect may require explicit indication of the item with which something is compared. Therefore it may be necessary to say “is greater and more perfect than the one on earth.” Greater must be understood in the sense of “more important” rather than simply “larger.” And more perfect may be expressed as “more as it should be.”
Most translations, like Good News Translation and Revised Standard Version, understand not a man-made tent to mean the same as not a part of this created world. The second statement is wider than the first, hence the word “indeed” in the translation suggested above. It does not seem necessary to link the two statements by “because,” as in Jerusalem Bible.
Not a man-made tent may be expressed as “no people made such a tent” or “no person made the tent.” It is not a part of this created world may be expressed as “it is not something which exists here in the world and which has been created.”
There is no break in the Greek between verses 11 and 12, which are literally “… through the greater and more perfect tent not made with hands, that is, not of this creation, 12 neither by the blood of goats and bulls….”
Quoted with permission from Ellingworth, Paul and Nida, Eugene A. A Handbook on The Letter of the Hebrews. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1983. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .