Jesus as the Empathetic High Priest

All of us know the ache of being misunderstood. Maybe you’ve shared your struggles with a friend or family member, only to realize they don’t quite get it. Perhaps you’ve carried pain so deep that no one around you can fully enter into it. Human empathy, though precious, is often limited. We long for someone who not only hears our words but truly feels our burdens and knows us inside and out. Scripture tells us that this longing finds its perfect answer in Jesus Christ, our High Priest, who not only saves us but also shares fully in our humanity.

The Message of Salvation

Hebrew Chapter 2 begins with the reminder that the readers have received the message of salvation—the message proclaimed first by the Lord, confirmed by those who personally heard him, and testified to by God through signs and wonders. The writer insists that this message is not to be neglected, for it reveals the very purpose of Christ’s incarnation: why the Son of God came in the flesh and what that means for us. Unlike the law given through angels, this word of salvation came through the Lord himself. Therefore, we must pay the closest attention to it.

The author then explains that God, who created human beings “a little lower than the angels,” chose not angels but his own Son to be the mediator of salvation. This reveals God’s astonishing care for humanity. The Son of God, in love, volunteered to take on flesh in order to serve as our representative. Just as we often bear burdens for our loved ones, Jesus Christ bore the greatest burden of all—our sin and death—so that we might live.

Jesus the Pioneer of Salvation

For this reason, the Son had to share fully in our humanity. Since human beings are flesh and spirit, destined to die once and face judgment, Jesus also entered into death so that he might become the “pioneer of salvation.” A pioneer is one who goes ahead, cutting through danger and hardship to make a path for others. Christ, in becoming our pioneer, endured the whole human condition—temptation, weakness, suffering, and even death—so that he could open the way to the Father. Where all others failed to reach God because of sin’s penalty, Jesus alone paid the price. He became both the toll and the toll-gate, the only one who could grant us entrance into eternal life.

Yet the purpose of Christ’s suffering was not merely to rescue us from death but also to sanctify us for holy living. His obedience, even unto death, blazes the trail for our obedience as children of God.

Jesus’ Perfect Empathy

And here lies the deep comfort of this passage: Jesus is not a distant savior but one who fully identifies with us through perfect empathy. He knows the depths of human experience—not only in knowledge but in reality. Though his earthly life lasted just over thirty years, he entered into the full spectrum of human suffering: shame, abandonment, humiliation, temptation, and grief. Because he suffered, he is able to help us in our suffering (Heb. 2:18).

Unlike family or friends who may try but cannot always understand us, Jesus perfectly understands. Human empathy, though valuable, is limited and often falls short, leaving us disappointed. But Christ’s empathy is perfect. He is not only aware of our trials but has walked through them. Therefore, we can come to him with confidence, knowing he shares our pain, carries our burdens, and gives true comfort. His empathy is what enables him to fulfill the roles of the High Priest perfectly.

The following is crucial to understand why Jesus became a man:

“Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil—and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted” (Heb. 2:14–18).

This passage shows that empathy was at the very heart of the incarnation. God made human beings wonderfully lower than angels, and it was precisely because Jesus came to help human beings—not angels—that he had to be made like us in every way. Jesus was customized to humanity: made with flesh and blood, born of a woman, because that is how all human beings begin their journey. He had to die because all human beings die. He had to experience every stage of human life—infancy, growth, work, fatigue, joy, sorrow, betrayal, and death—because he had to be like us exactly. Only then could he truly represent us before God. 

The High Priest and His Roles

In the Old Testament, the High Priest had many responsibilities:

·        Mediator between God and Israel – The High Priest entered God’s presence in the Holy of Holies once a year to mediate on behalf of the people (Lev. 16:15–16). Christ now fulfills this perfectly: “For there is one God and one mediator between God and mankind, the man Christ Jesus” (1 Tim. 2:5).

·        Sacrificial Representative who made atonement – He offered blood sacrifices for his own sins and for the sins of the people (Lev. 16:6, 15). But Jesus offered himself: “He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself” (Heb. 7:27).

·        Teacher of the law – Priests were charged to instruct Israel in God’s Word: “They shall teach Jacob your rules and Israel your law” (Deut. 33:10; cf. Lev. 10:10–11). Jesus, the living Word, fulfills this role: “The crowds were amazed at his teaching, because he taught as one who had authority” (Matt. 7:28–29).

·        Intercessor in prayer – Priests tended the altar of incense daily (Exod. 30:7–8), symbolizing prayer rising to God. Christ now intercedes continually: “He always lives to intercede for them” (Heb. 7:25; cf. Rom. 8:34).

·        Counselor and guide through the Urim and Thummim – The High Priest sought God’s will on behalf of Israel (Num. 27:21). Christ surpasses this role by guiding us through the Spirit: “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth” (John 16:13).

·        Bearer of Israel’s names before God – He wore the breastpiece with twelve stones, symbolically carrying the tribes into God’s presence (Exod. 28:29). Christ now bears our names: “Behold, I have engraved you on the palms of my hands” (Isa. 49:16; cf. John 10:27–28).

·        Custodian of holiness who embodied God’s presence – He wore “Holy to the LORD” on his forehead, bearing Israel’s guilt in worship (Exod. 28:36–38). But Jesus is the true Holy One: “It was fitting that we should have such a high priest, holy, innocent, unstained, separated from sinners” (Heb. 7:26).

Yet these roles in the Old Testament were carried out by weak and sinful men who could never fully bridge the gap between God and humanity.

Jesus, however, fulfills every one of these offices perfectly because of his complete empathy. He mediates because he has lived our life in flesh and blood (Heb. 4:15). He offers himself as the sacrifice because he knows death firsthand (Heb. 9:26). He teaches with authority born of lived experience (John 7:16). He intercedes with prayers that rise from the depths of shared suffering (Heb. 7:25). He counsels with wisdom shaped by walking the human path (John 14:26). He carries us on his heart because he carried our humanity in his own body (1 Pet. 2:24). He sanctifies us because he knows what it means to live holy in weakness (Heb. 2:11).

Conclusion

Empathy, then, is not a secondary trait but the very heart of Christ’s priesthood. His life, death, and resurrection show us that the Son of God did not merely look upon humanity with compassion from afar but entered into our condition fully. This is why he is able to serve faithfully, mercifully, and effectively as our High Priest, bringing us salvation and sustaining us in our journey of faith.

So what does this mean for us? It means you are never alone in your pain. It means your Savior not only knows your struggles—he feels them. It means you can come to him in prayer with absolute honesty, confident that he understands.

Come to Jesus therefore. He knows us. He gets us. He loves us. He is the perfect one.