Hebrews - Introduction

Hebrews does not tell us the Who, What, When, Where, and Why, it was written, but from the clues we can make an educated guess. Many debate who wrote it, but i lean toward someone other than Paul wrote it. The main reason is that in 2:3, it seems that the writer was not called by Christ Himself, but through an original witness, and we know that Paul was called by Jesus Himself on the road to Damascus. It seems clear that the writers were Jewish Christians, but what is unclear is were they in Jerusalem or somewhere else? I hold to the view of Jerusalem because the book is full of references to the tabernacle and the Jewish practices around the temple. Many believe that it was written before AD 70 when the Temple was destroyed.  In 13:22, the writer said, "But I urge you, brethren, bear with this word of exhortation, for I have written to you briefly." He calls it a word of exhortation.  We learn from the letter that they have suffered persecution, and historically we know that after Rome was burnt in AD 64, the Romans persecuted Christians. We also know that James, the pastor in Jerusalem and Jesus' half-brother died around AD 62, so this letter/exhortation may have been written to encourage the Jewish Christians to stay faithful during this difficult time. In just the first three verses we find that Jesus inherits all things, created all things, represents God the Father in all ways, and holds all things by the power of His word. He purified sins, and then sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. It is in Jesus that we can place our hope when the world around us is shaking sand.