God’s Promises Bring Hope
Hebrews 6:13-20
- What tries your patience more: Slow elevators? Slow food service? Traffic jams? Christmas sales lines?
- God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
- We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
- How does Abraham's example help these people understand God's promise (3:12; 6:6)?
- What effect did God's promise and oath have on Abraham's descendants? How does this affect Christians now?
The Certainty of God's Promise
6:13–20 This passage focuses on the reliability of God’s faithfulness to his promises. The theme of God’s oath is developed with an illustration (6:13–15), followed by a general principle (6:16), followed by the main point: God has sworn a significant oath (6:17–18), which gives us hope because it shows that Jesus is our permanent High Priest (6:19–20).
Hebrews 6:13 NIV - When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself,
Abraham, the father of the faithful, is chosen as the example of those who had inherited the promises by faith and patience. This oath is made in Genesis 22:16. The promise was made in Genesis 22:17-19. In this paragraph the author seeks to show to the readers of Hebrews that they will receive the reward by faith and steadfastness. He seeks to show their hope rests upon the same sure foundation, as did Abraham's. They will be rewarded if they remain faithful like Abraham did. God does not need to swear because he is God; however he swears to reinforce this truth to man to assure them of his faithful word. When God swears about a promise, he will not change his mind. It will come to pass!
At several points in the OT (in addition to Gen 22:16), God swears by Himself (Exod 32:13; Isa 45:23; Jer 22:5; 49:13). According to Heb 6:17–18, God’s intention is to affirm the reliability of His promises.
6:13–14 Abraham was the premier exemplar of faith: He continued to believe that God would give him a son, then was willing to sacrifice that son in obedience to God (11:17–19; Gen 15:1–5; 22:1–14). In response to Abraham’s faith, God took an oath, assuring Abraham that he would bless him and multiply his descendants.
Hebrews 6:14 NIV - saying, "I will surely bless you and give you many descendants."
This promise was given after Abraham had obeyed God's command in offering Isaac. It is true that Abraham did not actually kill Isaac; however, because his intent was to follow God's word even to doing this, he is accounted as having killed Isaac though God stopped him at the last moment (Hebrews 11:17; Genesis 22). The saying of this verse taken from Genesis 22:17 is a Hebraism which means "I will greatly bless and greatly multiply you."
Hebrews 6:15 NIV - And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised.
The promise in this context is the promise that the seed of Abraham would be multiplied and through his seed all nations would be blessed. God made the promise to Abraham, which included the birth of Isaac. The birth of Isaac occurred twenty-five years after the original promise was made. With the birth of Isaac and with Isaac being alive after the command to sacrifice him, Abraham could see that the promises made to him by God would be fulfilled. In this sense he obtained the promises, but the complete fulfillment of these promises did not take place until hundreds of years after the death of Abraham.
Waiting patiently Abraham fathered Isaac—the fulfillment of this promise—at an old age (Gen 21:5). Isaac’s birth represents trust in God to overcome all obstacles (Gen 15:2–6; 17:16–19).
what God had promised: Through Isaac, God made Abraham into a great nation (Exod 1:7).
Hebrews 6:16 NIV - People swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument.
It was the custom of men to swear by the greater that their word was true. When this was done in a solemn occasion, it was final and taken for the truth. There is none greater than God; therefore, God can only swear by himself. When God swears with an oath, it is a double affirmation that what he said is true. Oaths are not wrong. It is the abuse of oaths, which is condemned in the Bible. Abraham, himself, swore by God (Genesis 14:22; 21:23f; 24:3).
It is a general principle in human relationships that when people take an oath, the oath is binding. If in human contexts oaths give assurance that something is true, an oath from God ought to inspire much greater confidence (6:17–19). • someone greater than themselves: Cp. 6:13.
Hebrews 6:17 NIV - 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.
Since man put such importance on oaths, God used their method to confirm to men his promise of eternal life. Therefore, God affirmed that his promise would be fulfilled and his purposes carried out.
unchanging nature of his purpose In contrast to the fickle gods of pagan religions, God’s character is depicted as unchangeable (Num 23:19; 1 Sam 15:29; Isa 40:8).
17–18 God also bound himself with an oath: See 7:20–22. God’s oath makes it clear that he would never change his mind … because it is impossible for God to lie (see Ps 110:4). • We have fled to him for refuge, like those in the OT era who killed someone accidentally (Num 35:9–34; Deut 4:41–43); Christ is like a city of refuge, where believers escape God’s wrath. Christ’s followers, therefore, have great confidence.
Hebrews 6:18 NIV - God did this so that, by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled to take hold of the hope set before us may be greatly encouraged.
Two unchangeable things are: (1) God’s promise, and (2) God’s oath. God cannot lie (II Timothy 2:13). He cannot do anything inconsistent with his nature. God’s word should be enough; however, giving his promise with an oath is a double guarantee that his promise will be a reality. Because of these two unchangeable things, Christians should be encouraged. Christians have fled for refuge from sin to Jesus, just as a sailor flees the storm to a safe harbor. This is a metaphor to describe the Christian's hope. Hope is the earnest expectation of what a Christian expects to receive one day. It is faith looking to the future. It is not based upon wishful thinking. It is based upon the word of God affirmed by God himself with an oath. In view of this a Christian can be absolutely certain concerning what God has promised.
Impossible for God to lie God’s truthfulness is certain, unlike human claims to be honest (compare Num 23:19; 1 Sam 15:29; Psa 89:35). The author of Hebrews later reiterates this theme (Heb 10:23).
we who have fled to take hold Refers to both author and audience—and by extension to all believers. The Greek verb used here, katapheugō, entails the idea of fleeing, especially from enemies (Acts 14:6; Psa 143:9; Isa 10:3). In this case, followers of Christ have fled from the powers of sin and the devil.
hope set before us The hope in Christ’s work as the forerunner on behalf of believers, allowing them access to God
Hebrews 6:19 NIV - We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure. It enters the inner sanctuary behind the curtain,
The Christian's hope is their anchor sure and steadfast. Just as a ship throws out the anchor and it holds them through the storm of the sea, the Christian's hope holds them through the storms of life. The Christian's hope is the anchor of the soul. An anchor is thrown into the water and catches on the bottom; however, one cannot see the anchor on the bottom of the sea. In like manner the Christian's anchor is within the veil. This is the figure of speech taken from the Old Testament where the high priest went past the veil into the Holy of holies once a year. The Christian's hope is Jesus Christ who has gone into heaven, the real place behind the veil (I Timothy 1:1).
19–20 Christian hope is a strong and trustworthy anchor for our souls. In the first century, an anchor was an image of stability and safety. • through the curtain: A curtain separated the outer room of the sanctuary, into which only priests could go, from the inner room, the Most Holy Place (Exod 25:10–40). Only the high priest could go into the Most Holy Place, and only once per year on the Day of Atonement (Exod 29:1–46; Lev 16:1–25). Because of Jesus’ extraordinary high priesthood, he has already gone in there for us into the presence of God as our eternal High Priest, and he leads us in with him (10:19–23). • the order of Melchizedek: This phrase introduces the discussion in 7:1–28.
Hebrews 6:20 NIV - where our forerunner, Jesus, has entered on our behalf. He has become a high priest forever, in the order of Melchizedek.
The Christian's hope is Jesus who has gone into heaven (behind the veil). Jesus did not go to heaven just for a little time. Jesus went to heaven and became high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek. In the next few chapters, the author is going to explain the full significance of Jesus being high priest after the order of Melchizedek; however, the teaching here is, Christians have the full assurance of going of heaven if they remain faithful because Jesus is their forerunner, their scout, gone ahead to prepare the way for them. Jesus is the high priest working on Christians’ behalf. This is a most encouraging passage of scripture.
- Where in your life does trusting in God come hardest? Easiest? Why?
- What promises of God are your anchor?
- I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
- You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
Intro Questions
- God is ... What do we learn about God in this passage?
- We are ... What do we learn about people in this passage?
- I will ... What has the Holy Spirit revealed to us in this passage? How can I apply it to my life this week?
- You can ... Who do you know who needs to hear this? Feel free to share with others by social media links at the bottom of this.
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