Hebrews 4
International Standard Version
We Must Enter the Rest
4 Therefore, as long as the promise of entering his rest remains valid, let us be afraid! Otherwise, some of you will fail[a] to reach it, 2 because we have had the good news told to us as well as to them. But the message they heard did not help them, because they were not united by faith with those who listened to it. 3 We who have believed are entering that rest, just as he has said,
“So in my anger I swore a solemn oath
that they would never enter my rest,”[b]
even though his actions had been finished since the creation[c] of the world. 4 Somewhere he has spoken about the seventh day as follows: “On the seventh day God rested from all his actions,”[d] 5 and again in this passage,[e] “They will never enter my rest.”[f] 6 Therefore, since it is still true that some will enter it, and since those who once heard the good news failed to enter it because of their disobedience, 7 he again fixes a definite day—“Today”—saying long afterward through David, as already quoted,
“Today, if you hear his voice,
do not harden your hearts.”[g]
8 For if Joshua[h] had given them rest, he would not have spoken later about another day.
9 There remains, therefore, a Sabbath rest for the people of God to keep, 10 because the one who enters God’s[i] rest has himself rested from his own actions, just as God did[j] from his. 11 Let us, therefore, make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one may fail by following their example of disobedience. 12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any double-edged sword, piercing until it divides soul and spirit, joints and marrow, as it judges the thoughts and purposes of the heart. 13 No creature can hide from him, but everyone is exposed and helpless before the eyes of the one to whom we must give a word of explanation.
Our Compassionate High Priest
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone to heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us live our lives consistent with[k] our confession of faith.[l] 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. Instead, we have one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet he never sinned. 16 So let us keep on coming boldly to the throne of grace, so that we may obtain mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.
Footnotes
- Hebrews 4:1 Lit. afraid lest someone among you fails
- Hebrews 4:3 Cf. Ps 95:11
- Hebrews 4:3 Lit. foundation; or beginning
- Hebrews 4:4 Cf. Gen 2:2
- Hebrews 4:5 The Gk. lacks passage
- Hebrews 4:5 Cf. Ps 95:11
- Hebrews 4:7 Ps 95:7-8
- Hebrews 4:8 The Gk. name Jesus appears to be a word play on the Heb. name Joshua.
- Hebrews 4:10 Lit. his
- Hebrews 4:10 The Gk. lacks did
- Hebrews 4:14 Lit. us hold tightly to
- Hebrews 4:14 The Heb. lacks of faith
Hebrews 4
Worldwide English (New Testament)
4 We still have God's promise that people will go into his resting place. So let us take care that not one of you will be kept out.
2 The good news has been told to us just as it was told to the people in the desert. But the message which they heard did not do them any good. Even though they heard it, they did not believe it.
3 But we who believe, will go into that resting place of God. It is as God said, `When I was angry, I said, "They will never go into my resting place." ' He said this even though his work had been finished ever since he had made the world.
4 Here is what he said, somewhere in the holy writings, about the seventh day: `And God rested on the seventh day after doing all his work.'
5 And now here he says again, `They will never go into my resting place.'
6 So that means some people will go in. But the people who first heard the good news about it did not go in. They did not believe it.
7 So he chose another day called `Today.' He spoke through David many years later, who said, `Today, when you hear his voice, do not make your hearts hard.'
8 If Joshua had led those people to rest, God would not have talked later about another day.
9 So there is still a rest for God's people, like a Sabbath day.
10 The person who goes into God's resting place will rest after doing his work, just as God rested after doing his work.
11 So let us do our best to go into that resting place. Those people died in the wilderness because they did not believe. So let us take care that the same thing does not happen to one of us.
12 God's word is living and full of power. It is more sharp than any sword that cuts on both sides. What God says cuts through and divides the mind and spirit. It cuts through and divides the place where the bones are joined, and the part inside the bone. What God says is able to judge the things people think and plan in their hearts.
13 God is the one we must meet. Nothing can be hidden from him. Everything is open and he can see it.
14 We have a great high priest who has gone into heaven. He is Jesus, the Son of God. Because we have such a great high priest, let us hold on to the things we believe.
15 We have a high priest who can feel with us when we are weak. He has been tested in every way, just as we are. But he did not do anything wrong.
16 So let us trust him when we come to worship God. He is so good. He will be kind to us and help us when we need it.
Ebrei 4
La Nuova Diodati
4 Perciò, poiché rimane ancora una promessa di entrare nel suo riposo, abbiamo timore perché qualcuno di voi non ne resti escluso.
2 Infatti a noi come pure a loro è stata annunziata la buona novella, ma la parola della predicazione non giovò loro nulla, non essendo stata congiunta alla fede in coloro che l'avevano udita.
3 Noi infatti, che abbiamo creduto, entriamo nel riposo come egli disse: «Cosí giurai nella mia ira: Non entreranno nel mio riposo». E cosí disse, sebbene le sue opere fossero terminate fin dalla fondazione del mondo.
4 In qualche luogo infatti, a proposito del settimo giorno, egli disse cosí: «E Dio si riposò nel settimo giorno da tutte le sue opere»;
5 e ancora in questo passo: «Non entreranno nel mio riposo».
6 Poiché dunque rimane per alcuni di entrarvi, mentre quelli a cui prima fu annunziata la buona novella non vi entrarono a motivo della loro incredulità,
7 egli determina di nuovo un giorno: Oggi dicendo dopo tanto tempo, come è stato detto prima per mezzo di Davide: «Oggi, se udite la sua voce, non indurite i vostri cuori».
8 Perché, se Giosué avesse dato loro riposo, Dio non avrebbe in seguito parlato di un altro giorno.
9 Resta dunque un riposo di sabato per il popolo di Dio.
10 Chi infatti è entrato nel suo riposo, si è riposato anch'egli dalle proprie opere, come Dio dalle sue.
11 Diamoci da fare dunque per entrare in quel riposo, affinché nessuno cada seguendo lo stesso esempio di disubbidienza,
12 La parola di Dio infatti è vivente ed efficace, piú affilata di qualunque spada a due tagli e penetra fino alla divisione dell'anima e dello spirito, delle giunture e delle midolla, ed è in grado di giudicare i pensieri e le intenzioni del cuore.
13 E non vi è alcuna creatura nascosta davanti a lui, ma tutte le cose sono nude e scoperte agli occhi di colui al quale dobbiamo rendere conto.
14 Avendo dunque un gran sommo sacerdote che è passato attraverso i cieli, Gesú, il Figlio di Dio, riteniamo fermamente la nostra confessione di fede.
15 Infatti, noi non abbiamo un sommo sacerdote che non possa simpatizzare con le nostre infermità, ma uno che è stato tentato in ogni cosa come noi, senza però commettere peccato.
16 Accostiamoci dunque con piena fiducia al trono della grazia, affinché otteniamo misericordia e troviamo grazia per ricevere aiuto al tempo opportuno.
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