Hebrews 4 - Introduction

The rest of Christians is attained by faith. The power of God's word. By our High-priest Jesus, the Son of God, who on earth was subject to infirmities, but not to sin, we must and may go boldly to the throne of grace.

Anno Domini 63.

THE apostle in this chapter enforces his exhortation to the Hebrews, chap. Hebrews 3:12 to beware of an evil heart of unbelief, by entering into the deep meaning of those passages of the Jewish scriptures, which describe the sin and punishment of the rebellious Israelites in the wilderness, who flatly refused to go into Canaan. For with a sagacity worthy of the inspiration by which he was guided, he proves from the oath by which the Israelites were excluded from Canaan, that the promise to give to Abraham and to his seed the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession, was really a promise to give persevering believers of all nations, the everlasting possession of the heavenly country, of which Canaan was the emblem: and that the oath which excluded the rebellious Israelites in the wilderness from Canaan, likewise excluded all from the heavenly country who continue in their sins. So that in this ancient oracle, a future state with its rewards and punishments, was actually made known to the Jews.

But, to understand the reasoningby which the apostle has established this important fact, the reader ought to know, what all the Hebrews who understood their own scriptures well knew, and what the apostle expressly declared, Romans 4:16 namely, That in the covenant with Abraham, God promised him two kinds of seed, the one by natural descent, and the other by faith; and that the promise to give to him and to his seed the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession, being made to both the kinds of his seed, it was to be fulfilled, not only to his natural progeny, by giving them the possession of the earthly Canaan, but also to his seed by faith, all persevering believers, by giving them the possession of the heavenly country, of which Canaan was the emblem and pledge.

Upon these principles the apostle affirms, that notwithstanding Abraham's natural seed have obtained the possession of Canaan, there is still left to his seed by faith, consisting of all God's faithful people, in all ages, whether they be Jews or Gentiles, a promise of entering into God's rest; for which reason he exhorted the Hebrews in his own time, to be afraid lest any of them should fall short of that rest, as their fathers in the wilderness fell short of the rest in Canaan, Hebrews 4:1.—His affirmation that, in the covenant, there is still left to Abraham's seed byfaith, a promise of entering into God's rest, the apostle establishes by observing, that the promise of the everlasting possession of Canaan being made to Abraham's seed by faith, as well as to his natural seed, his seed by faith have received the good tidings of a rest in the heavenly country typified by Canaan, as really as his natural seed have received the good tidings of a rest in Canaan. Only these good tidings did not profit the natural seed in the wilderness, because they did not believe them.

Next, the apostle observes, that God's oath concerning the rebellious generation in the wilderness, was again mentioned by the Holy Ghost to the Israelites at the time they were in possession of Canaan, when he said to them by David, Psalms 95:11. They shall not enter into my rest, Hebrews 4:5. Now though the apostle has not declared the purpose for which he mentioned this repetition of the oath by the Holy Ghost, the strainofhis reasoning shews that his design therein was to prove, that notwithstanding the people were then in possession of Canaan, they had not entered into God's rest, according to the full meaning of his promise to give to Abraham's seed the land of Canaan for an everlasting possession; but that there still remained a rest of God to be entered into, of which Canaan was only the emblem and pledge.

This fact the apostle takes it for granted that he has proved to the conviction of his readers; for in the next verse he says, since, after the Israelites were in possession of the rest in Canaan, it still remained for some in David's days to enter into God's rest; also since they who first received the good news of a rest in Canaan, namely, the Israelites in the wilderness, did not enter into that rest through unbelief, Hebrews 4:6.—it follows, that if the seed, who in the promise have received the good tidings of a rest in the heavenly country, do not believe these tidings, they are excluded from that rest bythe oath which excluded the unbelieving generation in thewilderness from the rest in Canaan.

Next, the apostle observes, that in the xcvth psalm the holy Ghost, by the mouth of David, mentioned a particular time, namely, the time then present, for the entering of the Israelites into God's rest, Saying, To-day, so long a time after they were in possession of the rest in Canaan, when ye shall hear his voice commanding you to enter into his rest, harden not your hearts, Hebrews 4:7.—His design in mentioning the exhortation of the Holy Ghost to the Israelites in David's days, not to harden their hearts when they should hear God'svoice commanding them to enter into his rest, the apostle has not declared. But the strain of his reasoning leads us to believe he mentioned that exhortation to teach us, 1. That the command to the Israelites in the wilderness to enter into God's rest, was not confined to them, but is a command to men in every age to enter into the rest which was typified by the rest in Canaan.—2. That neither the Israelites, nor any of mankind in this life, enter into that rest of God which is principally intended in the covenant.—Wherefore, having only insinuated these things hitherto in his premises, he now expresses them more directly, by observing, that if Joshua, by introducing the Israelites into Canaan, had caused them to rest according to the full meaning of God's promise, the Holy Ghost would not, after that, have spoken of another day for their entering into God's rest, Hebrews 4:8.

The reader may observe, that in the foregoing reasoningthe apostle has not drawn the conclusions which followed from his premises, but has left them to be supplied by the reader, either because they were obvious, or because the general conclusion, which he was about to draw from the whole of his reasoning, comprehends them all: namely, Therefore there remaineth a sabbatism to the people of God: in other words; seeing it appears from the oath, that the rest promised to Abraham and to his seed, according to its principal meaning, was not the rest in Canaan, there certainly remains to God's faithful people of all nations, the true seed of Abraham and people of God, a better rest, of which the rest in Canaan was only the emblem, Hebrews 4:9.—Withal, to shew that the remaining rest is not to be enjoyed by the people of God in this life, but in the life to come, and to give us some idea of its nature, the apostle adds, He who hath entered into God's rest, hath himself also rested from his own works of trial, even as God rested from his works of creation: consequently, he enjoys a happiness like to God's, Hebrews 4:10.—Then, as the improvement of his discourse concerning the rest of God, he took occasion, from the sin and punishment of the Israelites in the wilderness, to exhort all who read this epistle, to strive to enter into the rest which remaineth to the people of God, lest they fall or die eternally through unbelief, as the unbelieving Israelites died in the wilderness, Hebrews 4:11.—Withal, to enforce his exhortation, he described first the perfection of the gospel, by which men are to be judged before they enter into God's rest, Hebrews 4:12.—and next, the omniscience of Christ the Judge, who will render to all men according to their deeds, Hebrews 4:13.

Such is the account which the apostle has given of the great Author of the gospel, as the Creator of the world, as the Lawgiver in the true church, as the conductor of thespiritual seed of Abraham,—all persevering believers, into the heavenly country, the rest of God; and as the Judge of the whole human race.—He next proceeds to speak of him as the High-priest of our religion, and to shew, that as a High-priest, he has atoned for our sins by the sacrifice of himself.—This, as was formerly observed, is the fourth fact whereby the authority of the gospel, as a revelation from God, is supported.

And to give both Jews and Gentiles just views of the gospel, the apostle affirms, that although no sacrifices are offered in the Christian temples, we have a great High-priest, even Jesus the Son of God, who, at his ascension, passed through the visible heavens into the true habitation of God, after the sacrifice of himself; and from these considerations he exhorted the believing Hebrews in particular, to hold fast their profession, Hebrews 4:14.—Then to shew that Jesus is perfectly qualified to be a High-priest, he observes, that, though he be the eternal Son of God, he is likewise a man, so cannot but be touched with a feeling of our infirmities, since he was in all points tempted as we are, yet without sin, Hebrews 4:15.—On which account, we may come boldly to the throne of grace, well assured that, through the intercession of our great High-priest, we shall obtain the pardon of our sins, and grace to help us in time of need, Hebrews 4:16.—These being the doctrines which the apostle is to prove in the remaining part of his epistle, Hebrews 4:14 may be considered as the proposition of the subjects that he is going to handle in Hebrews 5-10. And as his reasonings on these, as well as on the subjects discussed in the foregoing partof the epistle, are all founded on the writings of Moses and the prophets, it is reasonable to suppose, that his inspired interpretations of the passages which he has quoted from these writings, are no other than the interpretations which were given of them by the Jewish doctors and scribes, and which were received by the people, at the time he wrote.