18 So that we, who have gone in flight from danger to the hope which has been put before us, may have a strong comfort in two unchanging things, in which it is not possible for God to be false;
In the hope of eternal life, which was made certain before eternal time, by the word of God who is ever true;
God is not a man, to say what is false; or the son of man, that his purpose may be changed: what he has said, will he not do? and will he not give effect to the words of his mouth?
And further, the Glory of Israel will not say what is false, and his purpose may not be changed: for he is not a man, whose purpose may be changed.
And news of this came to Joab; for Joab had been one of Adonijah's supporters, though he had not been on Absalom's side. Then Joab went in flight to the Tent of the Lord, and put his hands on the horns of the altar.
<To the chief music-maker. Of the sons of Korah; put to Alamoth. A Song.> God is our harbour and our strength, a very present help in trouble.
The Lord has made an oath, and will not take it back. You are a priest for ever, after the order of Melchizedek.
See, a king will be ruling in righteousness, and chiefs will give right decisions. And a man will be as a safe place from the wind, and a cover from the storm; as rivers of water in a dry place, as the shade of a great rock in a waste land.
I, even I, am your comforter: are you so poor in heart as to be in fear of man who will come to an end, and of the son of man who will be like grass?
But now, O Lord, you are our father; we are the earth, and you are our maker; and we are all the work of your hand.
And they will come back to you, O daughter of Zion, as prisoners of hope: today I say to you that I will give you back twice as much;
And there was then in Jerusalem a man whose name was Simeon; and he was an upright man, fearing God and waiting for the comfort of Israel: and the Holy Spirit was on him.
In no way: but let God be true, though every man is seen to be untrue; as it is said in the Writings, That your words may be seen to be true, and you may be seen to be right when you are judged.
Paul, an Apostle of Jesus Christ, by the order of God our Saviour and Christ Jesus our hope;
Be fighting the good fight of the faith; take for yourself the life eternal, for which you were marked out, and of which you gave witness in the eyes of all.
And being angry I made an oath, saying, They may not come into my rest.
Then let certain towns be marked out as safe places to which anyone who takes the life of another in error may go in flight. In these towns you may be safe from him who has the right of punishment; so that death may not overtake the taker of life till he has been judged by the meeting of the people. Six of the towns which you give will be such safe places; Three on the other side of Jordan and three in the land of Canaan, to be safe places for flight. For the children of Israel and for the man from another country who is living among them, these six towns are to be safe places, where anyone causing the death of another through error may go in flight.
To whom God was pleased to give knowledge of the wealth of the glory of this secret among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:
Have faith in him at all times, you people; let your hearts go flowing out before him: God is our safe place. (Selah.)
Have joy with Jerusalem, and be glad with her, all you her lovers: take part in her joy, all you who are sorrowing for her: So that you may take of the comfort flowing from her breasts, and be delighted with the full measure of her glory. For the Lord says, See, I will make her peace like a river, and the glory of the nations like an overflowing stream, and she will take her children in her arms, gently caring for them on her knees. As to one who is comforted by his mother, so will I give you comfort: and you will be comforted in Jerusalem.
Heaven and earth will come to an end, but my words will not come to an end.
For as we undergo more of the pain which Christ underwent, so through Christ does our comfort become greater. But if we are troubled, it is for your comfort and salvation; or if we are comforted, it is for your comfort, which takes effect through your quiet undergoing of the same troubles which we undergo: And our hope for you is certain; in the knowledge that as you take part in the troubles, so you will take part in the comfort.
If then there is any comfort in Christ, any help given by love, any uniting of hearts in the Spirit, any loving mercies and pity,
Waiting for his Son from heaven, who came back from the dead, even Jesus, our Saviour from the wrath to come.
Now our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and God our Father who had love for us and has given us eternal comfort and good hope through grace, Give you comfort and strength in every good work and word.
By faith Noah, being moved by the fear of God, made ready an ark for the salvation of his family, because God had given him news of things which were not seen at the time; and through it the world was judged by him, and he got for his heritage the righteousness which is by faith.
For this reason, as we are circled by so great a cloud of witnesses, putting off every weight, and the sin into which we come so readily, let us keep on running in the way which is marked out for us, Having our eyes fixed on Jesus, the guide and end of our faith, who went through the pains of the cross, not caring for the shame, because of the joy which was before him, and who has now taken his place at the right hand of God's seat of power.
He who has faith in the Son of God has the witness in himself: he who has not faith in God makes him false, because he has not faith in the witness which God has given about his Son.
But all things are of God, who has made us at peace with himself through Christ, and has given to us the work of making peace; That is, that God was in Christ making peace between the world and himself, not putting their sins to their account, and having given to us the preaching of this news of peace. So we are the representatives of Christ, as if God was making a request to you through us: we make our request to you, in the name of Christ, be at peace with God. For him who had no knowledge of sin God made to be sin for us; so that we might become the righteousness of God in him.
Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Hebrews 6
Commentary on Hebrews 6 Matthew Henry Commentary
Chapter 6
In this chapter the apostle proceeds to persuade the Hebrews to make a better proficiency in religion than they had done, as the best way to prevent apostasy, the dreadful nature and consequences of which sin he sets forth in a serious manner (v. 1-8), and then expresses his good hopes concerning them, that they would persevere in faith and holiness, to which he exhorts them, and sets before them the great encouragement they had from God, both with respect to their duty and happiness (v. 9-20).
Hbr 6:1-8
We have here the apostle's advice to the Hebrews-that they would grow up from a state of childhood to the fullness of the stature of the new man in Christ. He declares his readiness to assist them all he could in their spiritual progress; and, for their greater encouragement, he puts himself with them: Let us go on. Here observe, In order to their growth, Christians must leave the principles of the doctrine of Christ. How must they leave them? They must not lose them, they must not despise them, they must not forget them. They must lay them up in their hearts, and lay them as the foundation of all their profession and expectation; but they must not rest and stay in them, they must not be always laying the foundation, they must go on, and build upon it. There must be a superstructure; for the foundation is laid on purpose to support the building. Here it may be enquired, Why did the apostle resolve to set strong meat before the Hebrews, when he knew they were but babes? Answer.
Hbr 6:9-20
The apostle, having applied himself to the fears of the Hebrews, in order to excite their diligence and prevent their apostasy, now proceeds to apply himself to their hopes, and candidly declares the good hope he had concerning them, that they would persevere; and proposes to them the great encouragements they had in the way of their duty.