HEBREWS: STUDY LESSON OUTLINE

Below is the lesson plan we used in our Sunday school class some years ago. I was responsible for the divisions into each lesson, but one of my co-teachers came up with the often catchy titles:

“Listen up, folks” (an introduction to the book) 1:1-2a

Until We Get It Right 1:2b-2:18

The Spiritual Ear: Don't Leave Home Without It 3:1-19

Hear & Obey, For There's No Other Way 4:1-13

Nearer My God To Thee 4:14-5:10

Beyond the Basics 5:11-6:20

The Perfect Permanent Personal Priest 7:1-28

Obsolescence 8:1-13

The Greater, More Perfect Tabernacle 9:1-28

The Perfecter of Saints 10:1-18

The Soul Preserver 10:19-39

Face That Pleases 11:1-16

Full of Faith 11:17-31

Running the Race 11:32-12:11

Responsibility and Gratitude 12:12-29

Consistent Living 13:1-14

Spiritual Service 13:15-25

Notice that the lessons do not always cover a complete chapter, as many teachers are used to doing. That is because we must remember that the chapter divisions did not come about until the Middle Ages, and so chapter breaks are not always located at the proper spots.

And if that doesn't confuse you or your students enough, there is another more adventurous way in which to divide the lessons up. And it is based on what I believe to be the divisions actually intended by the author. My proposal is summarized in the post “Hebrews: Introduction to the Literary Structure.” The organization I arrived at is shown below, and it takes the familiar mirror-image form found throughout the OT and NT:

I. Introduction: God's Old Revelation (1:1-3b)

    II. Angels and their Message (1:3c-2:18)

        III. Israel Tested in the Wilderness (3:1-4:13)

            IV. Apostasy and Confidence (4:14-6:20)

                V. Old and New Priesthood (7:1-28)

                V'. Old and New Sacrifice (8:1-10:18)

            IV'. Apostasy and Confidence (10:19-12:2)

        III'. Perseverance and Testing of Believers (12:3-29)

    II'. Exhortations (13:1-21)

I'. Conclusion: God's New Revelation (13:22-25)

So if you would like a shorter 7-week study of the book, each of the paired sections could be taken in conjunction with one another:

1. God's New and Old Teachings Compared (1:1-2:18; 13:1-25) (Sections I-II, II'-I')

2. Israel Tested in the Wilderness (3:1-4:13) (Section III)

3. Believers Tested Today (12:3-29) (Section III')

4. Apostasy and Confidence: Part I (4:14-6:20) (Section IV)

5. Apostasy and Confidence: Part II (10:19-12:2) (Section IV')

6. Old and New Priesthood (7:1-28) (Section V)

7. Old and New Sacrifice (8:1-10:18) (Section V')

Of course, some of these chunks of Scripture may be too large to treat in a single lesson and could be broken up into two separate sessions.