Hebrews 10:19-39
New Catholic Bible
Perseverance in Faith[a]
The Need To Stand Firm
19 Let Us Approach with Sincerity of Heart.[b] Therefore, brethren, the blood of Jesus has given us confidence to enter the sanctuary 20 by the new and living way that he has opened for us through the veil, that is, through his flesh. 21 Since we have a great priest over the household of God, 22 let us approach with sincerity of heart and the full assurance of faith, with hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and bodies washed in pure water.
23 Let us remain firm in the confession of our hope without wavering, for the one who made the promise is trustworthy. 24 And let us consider how to spur one another to love and good works. 25 Do not neglect to attend your assemblies, as some do, but rather encourage one another, especially since you can see the Day[c] approaching.
26 Apostasy Remains Unforgiven.[d] If we deliberately persist in sin after having received the knowledge of the truth, then there no longer remains any sacrifice for sins. 27 There is only a terrifying expectation of judgment and of a fierce fire that will consume the adversaries.
28 Anyone who violates the Law of Moses is put to death without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses. 29 How much more punishment do you think is deserved by the one who has contempt for the Son of God, profanes the blood of the covenant by which he was sanctified, and insults the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know the one who said,
“Vengeance is mine; I will repay,”
and
“The Lord will judge his people.”
31 It is a dreadful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
32 Do Not Abandon Your Assurance.[e] Remember the days gone by when, after you had been enlightened,[f] you endured a difficult struggle filled with suffering. 33 Sometimes you were publicly exposed to abuse and persecution, and sometimes you were companions of those who were treated in the same way. 34 You not only had compassion upon those who were in prison but also cheerfully accepted the confiscation of your property, because you realized that you possessed something better and more lasting.
35 Therefore, do not lose your confidence now, since your reward will be so great. 36 You need to be steadfast if you want to do the will of God and receive what he has promised.
37 “For, after a little while,
he who is to come will do so,
and he will not delay.
38 My righteous one shall live by faith,
but if he shrinks back,
I will not be pleased with him.”
39 But we are not among those who draw back and are lost. Rather, we are among those who have faith and are saved.
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Hebrews 10:19 A definitive event has been realized for the world: the Death and Resurrection of Christ. The Letter to the Hebrews makes us aware of this by presenting it as the act of the authentic priesthood, the authentic sacrifice, while at the same time downgrading the status of the preceding religious regime, although that too had been established by God. So, too, faith in Christ is a decisive step forward in the life of a human being. The believer is henceforth engaged in a march toward the full encounter with the Lord. In the midst of temptations, fears, and risks, the Christian life is not a simple fidelity to a past but a thrust forward toward the future, toward God. These chapters are a pressing invitation not to let such perspectives be obscured.
- Hebrews 10:19 The path that leads to God is a person, Christ recognized under the characteristics of a high priest. Once baptized, Christians are associated with the Son of God. They must strengthen their conviction and the links of mutual love. May the signs of crises be a call for them to prepare for the return of the Lord.
- Hebrews 10:25 The Day: this refers to the Day of the Lord at the end of time.
- Hebrews 10:26 Once again the author repeats this somber warning (see Heb 6:1-8; Mt 12:31). Those who rebel against Christ exclude themselves from Christ’s forgiveness, from his life, and from his grace. Let them, therefore, meditate on the threats of God’s vengeance about which the Bible speaks, and especially the texts cited here (see Ex 24:8; Deut 17:6; 32:35f; Isa 26:11).
- Hebrews 10:32 As soon as they were baptized and enlightened, believers sacrificed everything for Christ and confronted all difficulties. Now is not the time for them to be discouraged. The Lord will come and he is the recompense for all who do not weaken. Faith is the courageous commitment to Christ.
- Hebrews 10:32 Been enlightened: an ancient phrase for “been baptized”; “enlightenment” or “illumination” was an ancient term for Baptism (see Heb 6:4; Eph 5:14).
Hebrews 10:19-39
New English Translation
Drawing Near to God in Enduring Faith
19 Therefore, brothers and sisters,[a] since we have confidence to enter the sanctuary by the blood of Jesus, 20 by the fresh and living way that he inaugurated for us[b] through the curtain, that is, through his flesh,[c] 21 and since we have a great priest[d] over the house of God, 22 let us draw near with a sincere heart in the assurance that faith brings,[e] because we have had our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience[f] and our bodies washed in pure water. 23 And let us hold unwaveringly to the hope that we confess, for the one who made the promise is trustworthy. 24 And let us take thought of how to spur one another on to love and good works,[g] 25 not abandoning our own meetings, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and even more so because you see the day[h] drawing near.[i]
26 For if we deliberately keep on sinning after receiving the knowledge of the truth, no further sacrifice for sins is left for us,[j] 27 but only a certain fearful expectation of judgment and a fury[k] of fire that will consume God’s enemies.[l] 28 Someone who rejected the law of Moses was put to death[m] without mercy on the testimony of two or three witnesses.[n] 29 How much greater punishment do you think that person deserves who has contempt for[o] the Son of God, and profanes[p] the blood of the covenant that made him holy,[q] and insults the Spirit of grace? 30 For we know the one who said, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay,”[r] and again, “The Lord will judge his people.”[s] 31 It is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
32 But remember the former days when you endured a harsh conflict of suffering after you were enlightened. 33 At times you were publicly exposed to abuse and afflictions, and at other times you came to share with others who were treated in that way. 34 For in fact you shared the sufferings of those in prison,[t] and you accepted the confiscation of your belongings with joy, because you knew that you certainly[u] had a better and lasting possession. 35 So do not throw away your confidence, because it[v] has great reward. 36 For you need endurance in order to do God’s will and so receive what is promised.[w] 37 For just a little longer[x] and he who is coming will arrive and not delay.[y] 38 But my righteous one will live by faith, and if he shrinks back, I[z] take no pleasure in him.[aa] 39 But we are not among those who shrink back and thus perish, but are among those who have faith and preserve their souls.[ab]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Hebrews 10:19 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.
- Hebrews 10:20 tn Grk “that he inaugurated for us as a fresh and living way,” referring to the entrance mentioned in v. 19.
- Hebrews 10:20 sn Through his flesh. In a bold shift the writer changes from a spatial phrase (Christ opened the way through the curtain into the inner sanctuary) to an instrumental phrase (he did this through [by means of] his flesh in his sacrifice of himself), associating the two in an allusion to the splitting of the curtain in the temple from top to bottom (Matt 27:51; Mark 15:38; Luke 23:45). Just as the curtain was split, so Christ’s body was broken for us, to give us access into God’s presence.
- Hebrews 10:21 tn Grk “and a great priest,” continuing the construction begun in v. 19.
- Hebrews 10:22 tn Grk “in assurance of faith.”
- Hebrews 10:22 sn The phrase our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience combines the OT imagery of the sprinkling with blood to give ritual purity with the emphasis on the interior cleansing provided by the new covenant: It is the heart that is cleansed and the conscience made perfect (cf. Heb 8:10; 9:9, 14; 10:2, 16).
- Hebrews 10:24 tn Grk “let us consider one another for provoking of love and good deeds.”
- Hebrews 10:25 sn The day refers to that well-known time of Christ’s coming and judgment in the future; see a similar use of “day” in 1 Cor 3:13.
- Hebrews 10:25 tn This paragraph (vv. 19-25) is actually a single, skillfully composed sentence in Greek, but it must be broken into shorter segments for English idiom. It begins with several subordinate phrases (since we have confidence and a great priest), has three parallel exhortations as its main verbs (let us draw near, hold, and take thought), and concludes with several subordinate phrases related to the final exhortation (not abandoning but encouraging).
- Hebrews 10:26 tn Grk “is left,” with “for us” implied by the first half of the verse.
- Hebrews 10:27 tn Grk “zeal,” recalling God’s jealous protection of his holiness and honor (cf. Exod 20:5).sn An allusion to Zeph 1:18.
- Hebrews 10:27 tn Grk “the enemies.”sn An allusion to Isa 26:11.
- Hebrews 10:28 tn Grk “dies.”
- Hebrews 10:28 sn An allusion to Deut 17:6.
- Hebrews 10:29 tn Grk “tramples under foot.”
- Hebrews 10:29 tn Grk “regarded as common.”
- Hebrews 10:29 tn Grk “by which he was made holy.”
- Hebrews 10:30 sn A quotation from Deut 32:35.
- Hebrews 10:30 sn A quotation from Deut 32:36.
- Hebrews 10:34 tc Most witnesses, including some significant ones (א D2 1881 M), read δεσμοῖς μου (desmois mou, “my imprisonment”) here, a reading that is probably due to the widespread belief in the early Christian centuries that Paul was the author of Hebrews (cf. Phil 1:7; Col 4:18). It may have been generated by the reading δεσμοῖς without the μου (so P46 Ψ 104), the force of which is so ambiguous (lit., “you shared the sufferings with the bonds”) as to be virtually nonsensical. Most likely, δεσμοῖς resulted when a scribe made an error in copying δεσμίοις (desmiois), a reading which makes excellent sense (“[of] those in prison”) and is strongly supported by early and significant witnesses of the Alexandrian and Western text-forms (A D* H 6 33 81 1739 lat sy co). Thus, δεσμίοις best explains the rise of the other readings on both internal and external grounds and is strongly preferred.
- Hebrews 10:34 tn Grk “you yourselves.”
- Hebrews 10:35 tn Grk “which,” but showing the reason.
- Hebrews 10:36 tn Grk “the promise,” referring to the thing God promised, not to the pledge itself.
- Hebrews 10:37 sn A quotation from Isa 26:20.
- Hebrews 10:37 sn A quotation from Hab 2:3.
- Hebrews 10:38 tn Grk “my soul.”
- Hebrews 10:38 sn A quotation from Hab 2:4.
- Hebrews 10:39 tn Grk “not…of shrinking back to perdition but of faith to the preservation of the soul.”
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