¹⁸ He has given us both his promise and his oath, two things we can completely count on, for it is impossible for God to tell a lie. Now all those who flee to him to save them can take new courage when they hear such assurances from God; now they can know without doubt that he will give them the salvation he has promised them.

¹⁹ This certain hope of being saved is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls, connecting us with God himself behind the sacred curtains of heaven, ²⁰ where Christ has gone ahead to plead for us from his position as our High Priest,^[a] with the honor and rank of Melchizedek.