Hebrews 4:2 - Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown

Hebrews 4:2

The Promise of Rest

1 Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, ^alet us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it.

2 For indeed the gospel was preached to us as well as to them; but the word which they heard did not profit them,¹ not being mixed with faith in those who heard it.

3 For we who have believed do enter that rest, as He has said:
^a“So I swore in My wrath,
‘They shall not enter My rest,’ ” although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

4 For He has spoken in a certain place of the seventh day in this way: ^a“And God rested on the seventh day from all His works”;

5 and again in this place: ^a“They shall not enter My rest.”

6 Since therefore it remains that some must enter it, and those to whom it was first preached did not enter because of disobedience,

7 again He designates a certain day, saying in David, “Today,” after such a long time, as it has been said:
^a“Today, if you will hear His voice,
Do not harden your hearts.”

8 For if¹ Joshua had ^agiven them rest, then He would not afterward have spoken of another day.

9 There remains therefore a rest for the people of God.

10 For he who has entered His rest has himself also ceased from his works as God did from His.

The Word Discovers Our Condition

11 ^aLet us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience.

12 For the word of God is ^aliving and powerful, and ^bsharper than any ^ctwo-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is ^da discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

13 ^aAnd there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are ^bnaked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.

Commentaries:

Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown

<< Hebrews 4:1

Hebrews 4:3 >>

Hebrews 4:2

gospel preached . . . unto them—in type: the earthly Canaan, wherein they failed to realize perfect rest, suggesting to them that they should look beyond to the heavenly land of rest, to which faith is the avenue, and from which unbelief excludes, as it did from the earthly Canaan.

the word preached—literally, "the word of hearing": the word heard by them.

not being mixed with faith in them that heard—So the Syriac and the Old Latin Versions, older than any of our manuscripts, and LUCIFER, read, "As the world did not unite with the hearers in faith." The word heard being the food which, as the bread of life, must pass into flesh and blood through man's appropriating it to himself in faith. Hearing alone is of as little value as undigested food in a bad stomach [THOLUCK]. The whole of oldest extant manuscript authority supports a different reading, "unmingled as they were (Greek accusative case agreeing with 'them') in faith with its hearers," that is, with its believing, obedient hearers, as Caleb and Joshua. So "hear" is used for "obey" in the context, Hebrews 4:7, "To-day, if ye will hear His voice." The disobedient, instead of being blended in "the same body," separated themselves as Korah: a tacit reproof to like separatists from the Christian assembling together (Hebrews 10:25; Judges 1:19).

Other Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown entries containing Hebrews 4:2:

Leviticus 27:34
1 Corinthians 10:3
Galatians 3:8
Hebrews 4:3
Hebrews 4:6
Hebrews 4:12

<< Hebrews 4:1

Hebrews 4:3 >>

DISCLAIMER: Church of the Great God (CGG) provides these resources to aid the individual in studying the Bible. However, it is up to the individual to "prove all things, and hold fast to that which is good" (I Thessalonians 5:21). The content of these resources does not necessarily reflect the views of CGG. They are provided for information purposes only.

Join 137,259+ readers

A Verse and a Thought,
Every Morning

Consistent Bible study is hard to start.

The Berean gives you the starting point: one scripture and a focused commentary in your inbox each morning — read it in minutes, or go as deep as you like.

Free, daily, and spam-free. We never share your address. Unsubscribe anytime.

The Promise of Rest

The Word Discovers Our Condition

A Verse and a Thought,Every Morning

A Verse and a Thought,
Every Morning