Revised Common Lectionary (Semicontinuous)

Therefore Do Not Harden Your Hearts As Israel Once Did

⁷ Therefore, just as the Holy Spirit says^[a] [in Ps 95:7-11]: “Today, if you hear His voice, ⁸ do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion during the day of testing in the wilderness, ⁹ where your fathers tested Me with a trial and saw My works ¹⁰ for forty years. Therefore I was-angry with this generation and said, ‘They are always going-astray in the heart, and they did not know My ways’. ¹¹ As I swore in My wrath, they will never^[b] enter into My rest”.

Watch Out For an Evil Heart of Unbelief As Long As It Is Called “Today”

¹² Be watching-out, brothers, so that there will not-ever be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief in departing^[c] from the living God. ¹³ But be exhorting yourselves each day, as long as it is called “Today”, in order that none of you may be hardened by the deceitfulness of sin.

For We Are Partakers of Christ If We Hold On Until The End

¹⁴ For we have become^[d] partakers^[e] of Christ if-indeed we hold-on-to the beginning of our assurance^[f] firm until the end— ¹⁵ in that it is^[g] said [in Ps 95:7-8]: “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion”.

For Israel Did Not Enter God’s Rest Because of Unbelief

¹⁶ For who having heard rebelled? But was it not all the ones having come out of Egypt through Moses? ¹⁷ And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with the ones having sinned, whose corpses fell in the wilderness? ¹⁸ And to whom did He swear that they will not enter into His rest, except to the ones having disobeyed? ¹⁹ And we see that they were not able to enter because of unbelief.

Fear Falling Short of Entering God’s Promised Rest

4 Therefore, let us fear that at any time while a promise to enter into His rest is left-remaining [open], any of you should seem to have come-short^[h]— ² for indeed, we have had-good-news-announced^[i], just as those^[j] also.

In Moses’ Day Only Those Who Believed Entered The Promised Physical Rest

But the word^[k] of hearing did not profit those ones, they^[l] not having been united in faith with the ones^[m] having heard. ³ For we, the ones having believed^[n], enter into the rest, just as He has said: “As I swore in My wrath, they shall never enter into My rest” [Ps 95:11].

And Yet God’s Rest Began On The Seventh Day, Not In Moses’ Day

And-yet, His works have been done since the foundation of the world. ⁴ For He has spoken somewhere about the seventh day as follows: “And God rested on the seventh day from all His works” [Gen 2:2], ⁵ and in this [Ps 95:11] again: “They shall never enter into My rest”.

And David Still Calls Us To Enter God’s Rest “Today”

⁶ Since then it remains that some may enter into it, and the ones formerly having had-good-news-announced to them did not enter because of disobedience, ⁷ He again designates a certain day— “Today”— saying by^[o] David after so much time just as it has been said-before: “Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts” [Ps 95:7-8]. ⁸ For if Joshua had given them rest, He would not be speaking after these things about another day^[p].

So God’s Spiritual Rest Remains Open For Us To Enter

⁹ Therefore a Sabbath-rest remains for the people of God. ¹⁰ For the one having entered into His rest also himself rested from his works, just as God did from His own.

Be Diligent To Enter His Rest, For God Knows Your Heart

¹¹ Therefore, let us be diligent to enter into that^[q] rest, in order that no one may fall in the same example of disobedience.