And what more shall I say? I do not have time to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel and the prophets, who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, quenched the fury of the flames, and escaped the edge of the sword; whose weakness was turned to strength; and who became powerful in battle and routed foreign armies. Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were t

By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going. By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country … (verses 8-9) - “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness” (Romans 4:3). The Apostle Paul uses this quotation from Genesis several times over in Romans 4 as he takes the whole chapter to highlight Abraham as a mod

By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command … By faith Abel … was commended as a righteous man, when God spoke well of his offerings … By faith Enoch … was commended as one who pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him. By faith Noah … in holy fear built an ark to save his family. By his faith he condemned the world and bec

Now faith is being sure of what we hope for and certain of what we do not see. (verse 1) - These words grip me. So simple, yet so deeply stretching and challenging. “Sure of what we hope for.” It reminds me of being on the final station of a ropes course at a camp I love. I’d arrived at a circular platform, only big enough for my feet, hugging a tree trunk about 10 meters above the ground. The final action required me to leap out and grab hold of a trapeze suspended a meter a

Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water. Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who pr

… by that will, we have been made holy through the sacrifice of the body of Jesus Christ once for all. Day after day every priest stands and performs his religious duties; again and again he offers the same sacrifices which can never take away sins. But when this priest had offered for all time one sacrifice for sins, he sat down at the right hand of God. Since that time he waits for his enemies to be made his footstool, because by one sacrifice he has made perfect forever th

The blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that they are outwardly clean. How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God! (verses 13-14) - There was an awful lot of animal sacrifice that went on in Old Testament times. Animals were slaughtered, t

… only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still standing. This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of t

“The time is coming, declares the Lord, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah … This is the covenant I will make with the house of Israel after that time, declares the Lord. I will put my laws in their minds and write them on their hearts. I will be their God, and they will be my people.” (verses 8, 10) - This quotation (in its entirety, extending all the way from verse 8-12) takes up

… but because Jesus lives forever, he has a permanent priesthood. Therefore he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them … Unlike the other high priests, he does not need to offer sacrifices day after day, first for his own sins, and then for the sins of the people. He sacrificed for their sins once for all when he offered himself. (verses 24-25, 27) - If you wanted to spot a priest in Old Testament times, wher

This Melchizedek was king of Salem and priest of God Most High. He met Abraham returning from the defeat of the kings and blessed him, and Abraham gave him a tenth of everything. First, his name means “king of righteousness"; then also, “king of Salem” means “king of peace.” Without father or mother, without genealogy, without beginning of days or end of life, like the Son of God, he remains a priest forever. (verses 1-3) - What a mysterious character is Melchizedek. Yet the

Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain, where Jesus, who went before us, has entered on our be

It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God, and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. (verses 4-6) - Oh, how difficult is this passage. This is one of the places where we clearly need Script

In fact, though by this time you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you the elementary truths of God’s word all over again. You need milk, not solid food! Anyone who lives on milk, being still an infant, is not acquainted with the teaching about righteousness. But solid food is for the mature, who by constant use have trained themselves to distinguish good from evil. (5:12-14) - Our kids were so incredibly cute when they were little! I loved cuddling them, playi

During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with loud cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission. Although he was a son, he learned obedience from what he suffered and, once made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation for all who obey him … (verses 7-9) - These few verses plunge us into the depths of Christ’s passion. In Gethsemane he cried out in great agony to the

Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are – yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. - A high priest is one who has

For the word of God is living and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account. - I preach regularly. It’s a huge privilege and joy. The scripture comes alive as I study and (when I’m open) it speaks into my own life bef

“So I declared on oath in my anger,‘They shall never enter my rest’” … “Today, if you hear his voice,do not harden your hearts.” (verses 3, 7) - Today’s verses follow an extended quotation from Psalm 95 recorded for us in the last chapter (Hebrews 3:7-11). Such quotations from the Old Testament don’t show up haphazardly – when included by the biblical writers they are deliberate and intentional. How much more so when snippets of that longer citation are actually repeated – cl

So, as the Holy Spirit says:“Today, if you hear his voice,do not harden your heartsas you did in the rebellion,during the time of testing in the desert,where your fathers tested and tried meand for forty years saw what I did …” See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God. But encourage one another daily, as long as it is called Today, so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness. We have c

Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, who share in the heavenly calling, fix your thoughts on Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess. (verse 1) - “Fix your thoughts on Jesus.” What a simple, profound statement. Let your mind settle on him. Consider him attentively. Stay focused there. That’s the calling. This same concept is brought forward again later by this very same writer. Having reviewed the heroes of faith, the great cloud of witnesses, the writer rallies