The ascription of an intercessory ministry to the ascended Christ may be based on Isaiah 53:12, where the humiliated and vindicated Servant of the Lord is said to have “made intercession for the transgressors”; it is not peculiar to Paul among the New Testament theologians, for in 1 John 2:1 “Jesus Christ the righteous” is presented as his people’s “advocate with the Father”, while the theme is elaborated by the writer to the Hebrews in his portrayal of Jesus as the enthroned high priest, who “is able for all time to save those who draw near to God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them” (Hebrews 7:25).