“to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the Judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect” (Hebrews 12:23).
As ordained by God, the Law given to Moses had three annual feasts–Unleavened Bread, Weeks, and Tabernacles, and all males in the nation were commanded to attend these solemn, yet festive, occasions (Deuteronomy 16:16).
It is this Old Testament background which the penman of Hebrews draws upon when he refers to “the general assembly”. Because this phrase is sandwiched between a reference to heavenly beings (“an innumerable company of angels”) and earthly beings (the “church of the firstborn”), it is impossible to know with absolute certainty whether this assembly consists of angels, humans, or both.
What can be known with certainty is the purpose of this gathering: holy, exuberant adoration of the God who purposed, predicted, and purchased humanity’s redemption.
