The
children of Israel, according to the writer of Hebrews, “provoked”
and “grieved” God
when they wandered in rebellion in the wilderness. Because of this,
their “carcasses fell”
there. In chapter three and verse eighteen of Hebrews we see
how this caused God to tell the children of Israel, “they
should not enter into his rest” where we read:
And to
whom swore he that they should not enter into his rest, but to them
that believed not?
The
verse begins, “And to whom swore he
that they should not enter into his rest,...” The
writer began with the words, “And to
whom swore he”
which means “to the children of Israel” God “affirmed,
promised, invoked and threatened with an oath” “that
they should not”
or “they would not” “enter into”
which means “arise, go in or come into” “his
rest” which
literally means “God's calming resting place” and metaphorically
means “the heavenly
blessedness in which God dwells, and of which he has promised to make
persevering believers in Christ partakers after the toils and trials
of life on earth are ended.”
Because they would not “believe “
God's son, they forfeited God's best for themselves.
The
verse goes on to say, “ ...but to them that believed
not?” The writer added, “but”
which is a disassociation conjunction that means what is about to be
written takes precedence over what was just stated “to
them that believed not” or “”
“those among them who refused, withheld or would not comply with
belief and obedience”. The children of Israel who “refused” to
believe the Lord's words were not allowed entrance into the promise
land.
When
we think through these words in Hebrews, we see the value of “belief
and obedience” to God. The Lord gave the children of Israel
opportunity to believe Him, and they refused to do so. This behavior
cost them God's “rest” as they were not allowed into the
promise land. Jesus Christ offers Himself as a sacrifice for
everyone's sin, and those who believe in Him, shall inherit His
“eternal rest”. Those who do not shall never know God's
“rest” of which the Hebrew writer shared.
Next
time we see
the writer share how the children of Israel “could
not enter in because of unbelief”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, and the new devotional “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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