The contrast between the heavenly and earthly priesthood is complete. As already stated in 7.14, Jesus is not qualified to be a member of the earthly, Old Testament priesthood. The emphatic negative not … at all (similarly Bijbel in Gewone Taal, Jerusalem Bible, Phillips, Barclay, Translator’s New Testament) is the probable meaning. Another possible meaning is “not even” (Bible en français courant, New English Bible, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible), which implies “not a high priest, and not even a priest.” The first meaning is more likely, since the writer seldom contrasts “priest” and “high priest.”

In some languages it is difficult, if not impossible, to imply a condition contrary to fact, such as If he were on earth, he would not be a priest at all. The closest equivalent may be a contrast between the earthly and the heavenly conditions: “He is a priest in heaven, but if he is on earth he is not a priest.” Or it may combine causal relations and the matter of location: “Because he is in heaven he is a priest, but on earth he is not a priest.”

The verb required may be expressed as a type of necessity. For example, the gifts required by the Jewish Law may be rendered as “the gifts which the priests must offer because of the laws which the Jews must follow.”

Jewish is implied; compare Law of Moses in 7.19, 28. Strictly speaking, “Jewish” should not be used for the period before the end of the Babylonian Exile (586 B.C.), and the phrase “the Jewish Law” is not found in the New Testament (Rom 2.17 is not a real exception). The Jewish Law may be rendered as “the laws which the Jews follow” or “the laws which the Jews must obey.”

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 .