A Serious Warning Against Falling Away
9 But even if we are speaking in this way, dear friends, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and belonging to salvation. 10 For God is not unjust, so as to forget your work and the love which you demonstrated for his name by[d] having served the saints, and continuing to serve them. 11 And we desire each one of you to demonstrate the same diligence for the full assurance of your hope until the end, 12 in order that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who inherit the promises through faith and patience.
The Reliability of God’s Promise
13 For when[e] God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater to swear by, he swore by himself, 14 saying,
15 And so, by[h] persevering, he obtained the promise. 16 For people swear by what is greater than themselves, and the oath for confirmation is the end of all dispute for them. 17 In the same way God, because he[i] wanted to show even more to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of his resolve, guaranteed it with an oath, 18 in order that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge may have powerful encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us, 19 which we have like an anchor of the soul, both firm and steadfast, and entering into the inside of the curtain, 20 where Jesus, the forerunner for us, entered, because he[j] became a high priest forever[k] according to the order of Melchizedek.
Footnotes
- Hebrews 6:6 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“have crucified again”) which is understood as causal
- Hebrews 6:7 Literally “for the sake of whom”
- Hebrews 6:8 Here “if” is supplied as a component of the participle (“produces”) which is understood as conditional
- Hebrews 6:10 Here “by” is supplied as a component of the participle (“having served”) which is understood as means
- Hebrews 6:13 Here “when” is supplied as a component of the temporal participle (“made a promise”)
- Hebrews 6:14 Literally “blessing I will bless”
- Hebrews 6:14 Literally “multiplying I will multiply”
- Hebrews 6:15 Here “by” is supplied as a component of the participle (“persevering”) which is understood as means
- Hebrews 6:17 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“wanted”) which is understood as causal
- Hebrews 6:20 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“became”) which is understood as causal
- Hebrews 6:20 Literally “to the age”