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Letter to the Hebrews

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International Tract and Missionary Society · Oakland, California · Oct 28, 1889

FromSigns of the Times, Vol. 15, No. 41.

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Letter to the Hebrews.

HEBREWS 3:13; 4:1-5.

(Lesson 6, November 9, 1889.)
1. WHAT warning did the apostle give to his brethren in Heb. 3:12? "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God."
2. What did he direct them to do? "But exhort one another daily, while it is called To-day; lest any of you be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin." Verse 13.
3. What did he say would befall them if they failed to do this?—Ib.
4. What is the nature of sin?—Ib.
5. How was it that the first sin on earth was committed? "And Adam was not deceived, but the woman being deceived was in the transgression." 1 Tim. 2:14.
6. On what condition are we partakers of Christ? "For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end." Heb. 3:14. Compare verse 6.
7. Did all provoke the Lord who came out of Egypt? "For some, when they had heard, did provoke; howbeit not all that came out of Egypt by Moses." Verse 16.
8. How many were so faithful as to go into the promised land? "Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I swore to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun." Num. 14:30.
9. Why could not the others enter into this rest? "So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief." Heb. 3:19.
10. How did they regard Caleb and Joshua for their faithfulness? Num. 14:6-10.
11. What fear is held before the brethren? "Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it." Heb. 4:1.
12. What rest is spoken of in this verse and in chapter 3?
13. Was the gospel preached to them that fell in the wilderness? "For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them; but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it." Verse 2.
14. Are the same gospel and the same promise preached to us?—Ib.
15. Why did not the word preached profit them?—Ib.
16. Was the same faith required of the Israelites that is required of us? See note.
17. What is said of those that believe? "For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest; although the works were finished from the foundation of the world." Verse 3.
18. Is this rest now received? or is it a matter of promise? "Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it." "There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God." Verses 1, 9.
19. When were the works of God finished? "For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest; although the works were finished from the foundation of the world." Verse 3.
20. How is this proved? "For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works." Verse 4.
21. What relation has this fact to the rest promised to us? See note.
22. What is the meaning of the expression, "If they shall enter into my rest" (verse 5, and margin of 3:11)? Ans.—It is a Hebrew method of expressing a strong negative, and in this sense is transferred to the Greek. It is correctly rendered, "They shall not," etc.

NOTES.

WHEN the house of Israel is spoken of in distinction from the household of faith, we shall greatly mistake if we suppose that faith was not required of Israel. It will be seen by the whole argument in this letter that it was. There have never been two systems of salvation. As children of the covenant of Abraham, of which their circumcision was the token (John 7:22; Gen. 17:10-14), they were under covenant obligation to have the faith of Abraham.
THE rest to which the children of Israel were journeying, was the land of Canaan. To the two tribes and a half who chose their land on the east of Jordan, Moses said: "The Lord your God hath given you this land to possess it; ye shall pass over armed before your brethren the children of Israel, . . . until the Lord have given rest unto your brethren, as well as unto you, and until they also possess the land which the Lord your God hath given them beyond Jordan." Deut. 3:18-20. Again: "For ye are not as yet come to the rest and to the inheritance, which the Lord your God giveth you." Deut. 12:9. The rest and the inheritance are the same. Joshua led them over Jordan, and to the two tribes and a half he said: "The Lord your God hath given you rest, and hath given you this land. . . . Ye shall pass before your brethren armed, all the mighty men of valor, and help them; until the Lord have given your brethren rest, as he hath given you, and they also have possessed the land which the Lord your God giveth them." Josh. 1:13-15. When all was accomplished, the record says: "And the Lord gave unto Israel all the land which he sware to give unto their fathers; and they possessed it, and dwelt therein. And the Lord gave them rest round about, according to all that he sware unto their fathers; and there stood not a man of all their enemies before them." Josh. 21:43, 44. The rest unto which the Lord was leading them, and which they who fell in the wilderness never entered into, was the peaceable possession of the land of Canaan—the land of promise.