What Is Faith?

11 Faith means being sure of the things we hope for and knowing that something is real even if we do not see it. ² Faith is the reason we remember great people who lived in the past.

³ It is by faith we understand that the whole world was made by God’s command so what we see was made by something that cannot be seen.

⁴ It was by faith that Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. God said he was pleased with the gifts Abel offered and called Abel a good man because of his faith. Abel died, but through his faith he is still speaking.

⁵ It was by faith that Enoch was taken to heaven so he would not die. He could not be found, because God had taken him away. Before he was taken, the Scripture says that he was a man who truly pleased God. ⁶ Without faith no one can please God. Anyone who comes to God must believe that he is real and that he rewards those who truly want to find him.

⁷ It was by faith that Noah heard God’s warnings about things he could not yet see. He obeyed God and built a large boat to save his family. By his faith, Noah showed that the world was wrong, and he became one of those who are made right with God through faith.

⁸ It was by faith Abraham obeyed God’s call to go to another place God promised to give him. He left his own country, not knowing where he was to go. ⁹ It was by faith that he lived like a foreigner in the country God promised to give him. He lived in tents with Isaac and Jacob, who had received that same promise from God. ¹⁰ Abraham was waiting for the city^[a] that has real foundations—the city planned and built by God.

¹¹ He was too old to have children, and Sarah could not have children. It was by faith that Abraham was made able to become a father, because he trusted God to do what he had promised.^{[b] 12} This man was so old he was almost dead, but from him came as many descendants as there are stars in the sky. Like the sand on the seashore, they could not be counted.

¹³ All these great people died in faith. They did not get the things that God promised his people, but they saw them coming far in the future and were glad. They said they were like visitors and strangers on earth. ¹⁴ When people say such things, they show they are looking for a country that will be their own. ¹⁵ If they had been thinking about the country they had left, they could have gone back. ¹⁶ But they were waiting for a better country—a heavenly country. So God is not ashamed to be called their God, because he has prepared a city for them.

¹⁷ It was by faith that Abraham, when God tested him, offered his son Isaac as a sacrifice. God made the promises to Abraham, but Abraham was ready to offer his own son as a sacrifice. ¹⁸ God had said, “The descendants I promised you will be from Isaac.”^{[c] 19} Abraham believed that God could raise the dead, and really, it was as if Abraham got Isaac back from death.

²⁰ It was by faith that Isaac blessed the future of Jacob and Esau. ²¹ It was by faith that Jacob, as he was dying, blessed each one of Joseph’s sons. Then he worshiped as he leaned on the top of his walking stick.

²² It was by faith that Joseph, while he was dying, spoke about the Israelites leaving Egypt and gave instructions about what to do with his body.

²³ It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born. They saw that Moses was a beautiful baby, and they were not afraid to disobey the king’s order.

²⁴ It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of the king of Egypt’s daughter. ²⁵ He chose to suffer with God’s people instead of enjoying sin for a short time. ²⁶ He thought it was better to suffer for the Christ than to have all the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking for God’s reward. ²⁷ It was by faith that Moses left Egypt and was not afraid of the king’s anger. Moses continued strong as if he could see the God that no one can see. ²⁸ It was by faith that Moses prepared the Passover and spread the blood on the doors so the one who brings death would not kill the firstborn sons of Israel.

²⁹ It was by faith that the people crossed the Red Sea as if it were dry land. But when the Egyptians tried it, they were drowned.

³⁰ It was by faith that the walls of Jericho fell after the people had marched around them for seven days.

³¹ It was by faith that Rahab, the prostitute, welcomed the spies and was not killed with those who refused to obey God.

³² Do I need to give more examples? I do not have time to tell you about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets. ³³ Through their faith they defeated kingdoms. They did what was right, received God’s promises, and shut the mouths of lions. ³⁴ They stopped great fires and were saved from being killed with swords. They were weak, and yet were made strong. They were powerful in battle and defeated other armies. ³⁵ Women received their dead relatives raised back to life. Others were tortured and refused to accept their freedom so they could be raised from the dead to a better life. ³⁶ Some were laughed at and beaten. Others were put in chains and thrown into prison. ³⁷ They were stoned to death, they were cut in half,^[d] and they were killed with swords. Some wore the skins of sheep and goats. They were poor, abused, and treated badly. ³⁸ The world was not good enough for them! They wandered in deserts and mountains, living in caves and holes in the earth.

³⁹ All these people are known for their faith, but none of them received what God had promised. ⁴⁰ God planned to give us something better so that they would be made perfect, but only together with us.

Follow Jesus’ Example

12 We are surrounded by a great cloud of people whose lives tell us what faith means. So let us run the race that is before us and never give up. We should remove from our lives anything that would get in the way and the sin that so easily holds us back. ² Let us look only to Jesus, the One who began our faith and who makes it perfect. He suffered death on the cross. But he accepted the shame as if it were nothing because of the joy that God put before him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God’s throne. ³ Think about Jesus’ example. He held on while wicked people were doing evil things to him. So do not get tired and stop trying.

God Is like a Father

⁴ You are struggling against sin, but your struggles have not yet caused you to be killed. ⁵ You have forgotten the encouraging words that call you his children:

⁷ So hold on through your sufferings, because they are like a father’s discipline. God is treating you as children. All children are disciplined by their fathers. ⁸ If you are never disciplined (and every child must be disciplined), you are not true children. ⁹ We have all had fathers here on earth who disciplined us, and we respected them. So it is even more important that we accept discipline from the Father of our spirits so we will have life. ¹⁰ Our fathers on earth disciplined us for a short time in the way they thought was best. But God disciplines us to help us, so we can become holy as he is. ¹¹ We do not enjoy being disciplined. It is painful at the time, but later, after we have learned from it, we have peace, because we start living in the right way.

Be Careful How You Live

¹² You have become weak, so make yourselves strong again. ¹³ Keep on the right path, so the weak will not stumble but rather be strengthened.

¹⁴ Try to live in peace with all people, and try to live free from sin. Anyone whose life is not holy will never see the Lord. ¹⁵ Be careful that no one fails to receive God’s grace and begins to cause trouble among you. A person like that can ruin many of you. ¹⁶ Be careful that no one takes part in sexual sin or is like Esau and never thinks about God. As the oldest son, Esau would have received everything from his father, but he sold all that for a single meal. ¹⁷ You remember that after Esau did this, he wanted to get his father’s blessing, but his father refused. Esau could find no way to change what he had done, even though he wanted the blessing so much that he cried.

¹⁸ You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire. You have not come to darkness, sadness, and storms. ¹⁹ You have not come to the noise of a trumpet or to the sound of a voice like the one the people of Israel heard and begged not to hear another word. ²⁰ They did not want to hear the command: “If anything, even an animal, touches the mountain, it must be put to death with stones.”^{[e] 21} What they saw was so terrible that Moses said, “I am shaking with fear.”^[f]

²² But you have come to Mount Zion,^[g] to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands of angels gathered together with joy. ²³ You have come to the meeting of God’s firstborn^[h] children whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all people, and to the spirits of good people who have been made perfect. ²⁴ You have come to Jesus, the One who brought the new agreement from God to his people, and you have come to the sprinkled blood^[i] that has a better message than the blood of Abel.^[j]

²⁵ So be careful and do not refuse to listen when God speaks. Others refused to listen to him when he warned them on earth, and they did not escape. So it will be worse for us if we refuse to listen to God who warns us from heaven. ²⁶ When he spoke before, his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once again I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.”^{[k] 27} The words “once again” clearly show us that everything that was made—things that can be shaken—will be destroyed. Only the things that cannot be shaken will remain.

²⁸ So let us be thankful, because we have a kingdom that cannot be shaken. We should worship God in a way that pleases him with respect and fear, ²⁹ because our God is like a fire that burns things up.

13 Keep on loving each other as brothers and sisters. ² Remember to welcome strangers, because some who have done this have welcomed angels without knowing it. ³ Remember those who are in prison as if you were in prison with them. Remember those who are suffering as if you were suffering with them.

⁴ Marriage should be honored by everyone, and husband and wife should keep their marriage pure. God will judge as guilty those who take part in sexual sins. ⁵ Keep your lives free from the love of money, and be satisfied with what you have. God has said,

⁶ So we can be sure when we say,

⁷ Remember your leaders who taught God’s message to you. Remember how they lived and died, and copy their faith. ⁸ Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and forever.

⁹ Do not let all kinds of strange teachings lead you into the wrong way. Your hearts should be strengthened by God’s grace, not by obeying rules about foods, which do not help those who obey them.

¹⁰ We have a sacrifice, but the priests who serve in the Holy Tent cannot eat from it. ¹¹ The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place where he offers this blood for sins. But the bodies of the animals are burned outside the camp. ¹² So Jesus also suffered outside the city to make his people holy with his own blood. ¹³ So let us go to Jesus outside the camp, holding on as he did when we are abused.

¹⁴ Here on earth we do not have a city that lasts forever, but we are looking for the city that we will have in the future. ¹⁵ So through Jesus let us always offer to God our sacrifice of praise, coming from lips that speak his name. ¹⁶ Do not forget to do good to others, and share with them, because such sacrifices please God.

¹⁷ Obey your leaders and act under their authority. They are watching over you, because they are responsible for your souls. Obey them so that they will do this work with joy, not sadness. It will not help you to make their work hard.

¹⁸ Pray for us. We are sure that we have a clear conscience, because we always want to do the right thing. ¹⁹ I especially beg you to pray so that God will send me back to you soon.

^20-21 I pray that the God of peace will give you every good thing you need so you can do what he wants. God raised from the dead our Lord Jesus, the Great Shepherd of the sheep, because of the blood of his death. His blood began the eternal agreement that God made with his people. I pray that God will do in us what pleases him, through Jesus Christ, and to him be glory forever and ever. Amen.

²² My brothers and sisters, I beg you to listen patiently to this message I have written to encourage you, because it is not very long. ²³ I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been let out of prison. If he arrives soon, we will both come to see you.

²⁴ Greet all your leaders and all of God’s people. Those from Italy send greetings to you.

²⁵ Grace be with you all.