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Hebrews 3:1-4:13
Common English Bible
Hebrews 3:1-4:13
Common English Bible
We are Jesus’ house
3 Therefore, brothers and sisters who are partners in the heavenly calling, think about Jesus, the apostle and high priest of our confession. 2 Jesus was faithful to the one who appointed him just like Moses was faithful in God’s house. 3 But he deserves greater glory than Moses in the same way that the builder of the house deserves more honor than the house itself. 4 Every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything. 5 Moses was faithful in all God’s house as a servant in order to affirm the things that would be spoken later. 6 But Jesus was faithful over God’s house as a Son. We are his house if we hold on to the confidence and the pride that our hope gives us.
Respond to Jesus’ voice now
7 So, as the Holy Spirit says,
Today, if you hear his voice,
8 don’t have stubborn hearts
as they did in the rebellion,
on the day when they tested me in the desert.
9 That is where your ancestors challenged and tested me,
though they had seen my work for forty years.
10 So I was angry with them.
I said, “Their hearts always go off course,
and they don’t know my ways.”
11 Because of my anger I swore:
“They will never enter my rest!”[a]
12 Watch out, brothers and sisters, so that none of you have an evil, unfaithful heart that abandons the living God. 13 Instead, encourage each other every day, as long as it’s called “today,” so that none of you become insensitive to God because of sin’s deception. 14 We are partners with Christ, but only if we hold on to the confidence we had in the beginning until the end.
15 When it says,
Today, if you hear his voice, don’t have stubborn hearts
as they did in the rebellion.[b]
16 Who was it who rebelled when they heard his voice? Wasn’t it all of those who were brought out of Egypt by Moses? 17 And with whom was God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it with the ones who sinned, whose bodies fell in the desert? 18 And against whom did he swear that they would never enter his rest, if not against the ones who were disobedient? 19 We see that they couldn’t enter because of their lack of faith.
Enter the rest
4 Therefore, since the promise that we can enter into rest is still open, let’s be careful so that none of you will appear to miss it. 2 We also had the good news preached to us, just as the Israelites did. However, the message they heard didn’t help them because they weren’t united in faith with the ones who listened to it. 3 We who have faith are entering the rest. As God said,
And because of my anger I swore:
“They will never enter into my rest!”[c]
And yet God’s works were completed at the foundation of the world. 4 Then somewhere he said this about the seventh day of creation: God rested on the seventh day from all his works.[d] 5 But again, in the passage above, God said, They will never enter my rest![e] 6 Therefore, it’s left open for some to enter it, and the ones who had the good news preached to them before didn’t enter because of disobedience. 7 Just as it says in the passage above, God designates a certain day as “today,” when he says through David much later,
Today, if you hear his voice,
don’t have stubborn hearts.[f]
8 If Joshua gave the Israelites rest, God wouldn’t have spoken about another day later on. 9 So you see that a sabbath rest is left open for God’s people. 10 The one who entered God’s rest also rested from his works, just as God rested from his own.
First summary of the message
11 Therefore, let’s make every effort to enter that rest so that no one will fall by following the same example of disobedience, 12 because God’s word is living, active, and sharper than any two-edged sword. It penetrates to the point that it separates the soul from the spirit and the joints from the marrow. It’s able to judge the heart’s thoughts and intentions. 13 No creature is hidden from it, but rather everything is naked and exposed to the eyes of the one to whom we have to give an answer.
Hebrews 3:1-4:13
New International Version
Hebrews 3:1-4:13
New International Version
Jesus Greater Than Moses
3 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters,(A) who share in the heavenly calling,(B) fix your thoughts on Jesus, whom we acknowledge(C) as our apostle and high priest.(D) 2 He was faithful to the one who appointed him, just as Moses was faithful in all God’s house.(E) 3 Jesus has been found worthy of greater honor than Moses,(F) just as the builder of a house has greater honor than the house itself. 4 For every house is built by someone, but God is the builder of everything.(G) 5 “Moses was faithful as a servant(H) in all God’s house,”[a](I) bearing witness to what would be spoken by God in the future. 6 But Christ is faithful as the Son(J) over God’s house. And we are his house,(K) if indeed we hold firmly(L) to our confidence and the hope(M) in which we glory.
Warning Against Unbelief
7 So, as the Holy Spirit says:(N)
“Today, if you hear his voice,
8 do not harden your hearts(O)
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the wilderness,
9 where your ancestors tested and tried me,
though for forty years they saw what I did.(P)
10 That is why I was angry with that generation;
I said, ‘Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.’
11 So I declared on oath in my anger,(Q)
‘They shall never enter my rest.’ (R)”[b](S)
12 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.(T) 13 But encourage one another daily,(U) as long as it is called “Today,” so that none of you may be hardened by sin’s deceitfulness.(V) 14 We have come to share in Christ, if indeed we hold(W) our original conviction firmly to the very end.(X) 15 As has just been said:
16 Who were they who heard and rebelled? Were they not all those Moses led out of Egypt?(Z) 17 And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness?(AA) 18 And to whom did God swear that they would never enter his rest(AB) if not to those who disobeyed?(AC) 19 So we see that they were not able to enter, because of their unbelief.(AD)
A Sabbath-Rest for the People of God
4 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.(AE) 2 For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who obeyed.[d](AF) 3 Now we who have believed enter that rest, just as God has said,
And yet his works have been finished since the creation of the world. 4 For somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day in these words: “On the seventh day God rested from all his works.”[f](AH) 5 And again in the passage above he says, “They shall never enter my rest.”(AI)
6 Therefore since it still remains for some to enter that rest, and since those who formerly had the good news proclaimed to them did not go in because of their disobedience,(AJ) 7 God again set a certain day, calling it “Today.” This he did when a long time later he spoke through David, as in the passage already quoted:
8 For if Joshua had given them rest,(AL) God would not have spoken(AM) later about another day. 9 There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; 10 for anyone who enters God’s rest also rests from their works,[h](AN) just as God did from his.(AO) 11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will perish by following their example of disobedience.(AP)
12 For the word of God(AQ) is alive(AR) and active.(AS) Sharper than any double-edged sword,(AT) it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart.(AU) 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight.(AV) Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
Footnotes
- Hebrews 3:5 Num. 12:7
- Hebrews 3:11 Psalm 95:7-11
- Hebrews 3:15 Psalm 95:7,8
- Hebrews 4:2 Some manuscripts because those who heard did not combine it with faith
- Hebrews 4:3 Psalm 95:11; also in verse 5
- Hebrews 4:4 Gen. 2:2
- Hebrews 4:7 Psalm 95:7,8
- Hebrews 4:10 Or labor
Common English Bible (CEB)
Copyright © 2011 by Common English Bible
New International Version (NIV) 
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