For this reason probably points forward: “The reason why Christ arranges a new covenant is so that those who have been called … may receive the eternal blessings….” Good News Translation seems to suggest that For this reason may sum up the thought of the previous verses, but Christ is the one is not emphasized in the Greek. If For this reason refers backward, it may have the weakened meaning “so, in this way” (as in Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, which begins a new section here). Christ is understood.
If For this reason points forward, then the first part of verse 15 may be rendered as “The purpose of Christ’s arranging a new covenant is so that those who have been called by God may receive the eternal blessings.” If, on the other hand, For this reason points back to the previous paragraph, one may translate “Because of what Christ has done, Christ is the one who arranges a new covenant so that those who have been called by God may receive the eternal blessings.”
On the one who arranges a new covenant, see 8.6. One who arranges a new covenant may be expressed as “one who causes a new covenant to exist.”
Those who have been called by God may be expressed as “those whom God has called.” It is important, however, to avoid an expression for called which would mean “to shout at” or “to call to.” In some languages the most appropriate equivalent is “those whom God has invited to become his own” or “… to become his people.”
The eternal blessings that God has promised is literally “the promise of the eternal inheritance,” as in 11.8; compare 9.11. “The promise” is clearly God’s promise, and Good News Translation rightly makes this explicit. Blessings is a rather general word in English; the Greek refers more specifically to what God promised to give his people and has now given them in Christ. In Old Testament times he gave his people the Promised Land; now, in Christ, he has given them forgiveness of sins.
May receive the eternal blessings may require some restructuring, since blessings involves an event of blessing and may receive can be regarded as a kind of substitute passive. Accordingly, may receive the eternal blessings that God has promised may be rendered as “may be forever blessed by God in the way that he promised.”
This can be done is added in order to divide the sentence. This can be done may be expressed as “This can happen” or “This happens.”
A death: this phrase is quite general. It is used to prepare the way for the discussion of will in verses 16-17. Good News Translation shows this more clearly than “his death” in Jerusalem Bible and Traduction œcuménique de la Bible. Sets people free renders a noun meaning “liberation,” which is related to the word translated salvation in verse 12 (see comment). It may be essential in some languages to specify whose death is meant by the term translated a death. One might attempt some such rendering as “someone has died and this set people free.” But this would probably refer to almost anyone’s death. The second part of verse 15 may rather be rendered as “this can happen because Christ died, and this causes people to be set free from the wrongs they did” or “… from the sins that they committed.”
On wrongs, see comments on 2.2 and 8.12.
While the first covenant was in effect suggests “sins which were connected with the first covenant,” that is, the sins which hurt the conscience and therefore prevent people from really “drawing near” to God in worship. The first covenant could not deal with these (compare 10.4). While the first covenant was in effect may be rendered as “while the first covenant still existed” or “while there still was the first covenant.”
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 .