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A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God
Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it.
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We do not want you to become lazy, but to imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.
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The Certainty of God’s Promise
When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself,
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And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.
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Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath.
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This man, however, did not trace his descent from Levi, yet he collected a tenth from Abraham and blessed him who had the promises.
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But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.
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For this reason Christ is the mediator of a new covenant, that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance—now that he has died as a ransom to set them free from the sins committed under the first covenant.
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Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful.
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You need to persevere so that when you have done the will of God, you will receive what he has promised.
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By faith he made his home in the promised land like a stranger in a foreign country; he lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise.
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And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise.
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All these people were still living by faith when they died. They did not receive the things promised; they only saw them and welcomed them from a distance, admitting that they were foreigners and strangers on earth.
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By faith Abraham, when God tested him, offered Isaac as a sacrifice. He who had embraced the promises was about to sacrifice his one and only son,
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who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions,
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These were all commended for their faith, yet none of them received what had been promised,
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At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.”
