“Therefore it was necessary that the copies of the things in the heavens should be purified with these, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these” (Hebrews 9:23).
Much as he has done throughout this epistle, the author of Hebrews will build upon a foundational thought in the passage quoted above. Our author established that foundation earlier in verses eleven and twelve…
“But Christ came as a chief priest of the good things that are now here. Christ went through a better, more perfect tent that was not made by human hands and that is not part of this created world. He used his own blood, not the blood of goats and bulls, for the sacrifice. He went into the most holy place and offered this sacrifice once and for all to free us forever” (GW).
We can turn to a section of Hebrews chapter eight to find another portion of the foundation that our author builds upon here in Hebrews 9:23. That passage is Hebrews 8:4-5. There within those verses, the author of Hebrews established that the earthbound tabernacle (along with the Temple that followed), served as a type, model, or replica of something else. That tabernacle, (and its associated furnishings), conveyed the heavenly reality of such things.
In like manner, the human priests of the Levitical era performed a real service. However, their work was just a shadow of the work that was performed by the Greater Priest who followed. Therefore, “The real High-Priest who offered the real sacrifice for sin serves in the real tabernacle. He is the complete fulfillment of the shadowy copies in the Levitical system.” (1)
So, while the people of Old Testament Israel received authentic cleansing through the animal sacrifices of the Mosaic era, those sacrifices would not suffice to enter the presence of God in heaven. Only the perfect, self-sacrificial offering of the Messiah could open the way into the Most Holy Place where God dwells.
Finally, one commentary addresses a question that may arise from this reference to the “…things in heaven [that] had to be purified with far better sacrifices” (NLT)…
“It may seem surprising that the heavenly places needed to be purified. Perhaps a clue is found in Job 15:15, ‘the heavens are not pure in His sight.’ Doubtless this is because Satan committed the first act of sin in heaven (Isa 14:12-14), and because he still has access to the presence of God as the accuser of the brethren (Rev 12:10). (2)
(1) John F. MacArthur Jr., The MacArthur Study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2006), Heb 9:23–28.
(2) William Macdonald, Believer’s Bible Commentary Edited by Arthur Farstad Thomas Nelson Publishers (Hebrews 9:23) p.2265