Hebrews 3:6

Heb. 3:6. But Christ was a son over his own house; whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end.

Hebrews chap. 3:6 to chap. 4:11. See No. 339:

[339] Hebrews 3:6-8 to chap. Hebrews 4:11. "Whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence, and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end. Wherefore, as the Holy Ghost says, To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation," etc. The apostle here supposes that when the psalmist here says, " To-day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts;" it is as much as if he had said, "Although that was a long time ago, and though their day was long since past, yet hear his voice, and do not harden your hearts now in this your day, and see that you never harden your hearts while your day lasts; for if ye do not harden your hearts, there is a rest of God, that you may enter into as well as they; but if you continue to harden your hearts, your day in a little time will be past as well as theirs." The former part of this sense, viz. that by the expression, " To-day," the psalmist means, In this day that you now have so long after their day is past, is evident by Hebrews 4:7, and the latter part of it, viz. that he means, Take heed that your heart be at no time hardened during your day, is evident, because in that 8th verse the words are brought in as a motive to perseverance. It is still more evident by the manner of the apostle's bringing in the words in the 11th and 12th, as also in the 14th and 15th verses, and by the apostle's paraphrase of the words, or gloss he puts upon them there, while it is called To-day, verse 13, and while it is said To-day, verse 15, which is the same thing as during the continuance of the day.

From the psalmist exhorting us to hear God's voice to-day, so long a time after the carcasses of the children of Israel fell in the wilderness, and so they failed of entering into God's rest, and so long a time after others that believed entered into the temporal rest that Joshua brought them into; the apostle would argue that there remains still another rest for the people of God, to be entered into, as God spake concerning the children of Israel in the wilderness, as if there was a rest of God still to be entered into, though there had been a rest of God many ages before that, viz. that rest, or sabbatism of God, which God enjoyed on the seventh day of the creation, resting from the works of creation, which had been distinguished as God's rest, or his sabbatism; but yet there then remained another rest of God to those that believed, viz. Christ's rest in Canaan after the Egyptian bondage, and his redemption of his people out of Egypt, as is implied in his swearing in his wrath that those that did not believe should not enter into rest. So there still remains another rest also besides God's rest from that redemption, as is implied in the psalmist, when speaking so long after of the unbelievers in the wilderness failing of entering into that rest, he still exhorts and says, "To-day if you will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as they did;" implying that it will not be in vain for us even now to hearken, but we shall enter into God's rest still if we hearken, even that rest that Christ entered into in heaven, after his great bondage here on earth, and his finishing the work of redemption. By which may be understood the force of the apostle's reasoning in verses 3-11 of the next chapter.

This verse was cited in the Justification series with which the first awakening in Northampton was associated.

And that perseverance in faith is thus necessary to salvation, not merely as sine qua non, or as a universal concomitant of it, but by reason of such an influence and dependence, seems manifest by many Scriptures; I would mention two or three: Hebrews 3:6, "Whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence, and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the end." Verse 14: "For we are made partakers of Christ, if we hold the beginning of our confidence steadfast unto the end." Chap. Hebrews 6:12, "Be ye followers of them, who through faith and patience inherit the promises." Romans 11:20, "Well, because of unbelief they were broken off; but thou standest by faith. Be not high-minded, but fear."

And as the congruity to a final justification depends on perseverance in faith, as well as the first act, so oftentimes the manifestation of justification in the conscience, arises a great deal more from after acts, than the first act. And all the difference whereby the first act of faith has a concern in this affair that is peculiar, seems to be, as it were, only an accidental difference, arising from the circumstance of time or it being first in order of time, and not from any peculiar respect that God has to it, or any influence it has of a peculiar nature, in the affair of our salvation.

One the marks of true Religious Affections is conviction of the truth of the gospel and Edwards sees Hebrews 3:6 as so indicating:

That all true Christians have such a kind of conviction of the truth of the things of the gospel, is abundantly manifest from the Holy Scriptures. I will mention a few places of many…. "Whose house are we, if we hold fast the confidence, and the rejoicing of the hope firm unto the the end" (Hebrews 3:6). "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, and the evidence of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1): together with that whole chapter.

Hebrews 3:6 is also referred to in Religious Affections as teaching "universal obedience."

3. Every true Christian perseveres in this way of universal obedience, and diligent and earnest service of God, through all the various kinds of trials that he meets with, to the end of life. That all true saints, all those that do obtain eternal life, do thus persevere in the practice of religion, and the service of God, is a doctrine so abundantly taught in the Scripture, that particularly to rehearse all the texts which imply it would be endless. I shall content myself with referring to some in the margin.

Heb. 3:7