Hebrews 12
1 Seeing, therefore, that there is on every side of us such a throng of witnesses, let us also lay aside everything that hinders us, and the sin that clings about us, and run with patient endurance the race that lies before us,
Therefore let us also, being surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth easily beset us, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us;
2 our eyes fixed on Jesus, the leader and perfect example of our faith, who, for the joy that lay before him, endured the cross, heedless of its shame, and now ‘has taken his seat at the right hand’ of the throne of God.
looking to the author and perfecter of the faith, Jesus, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and hath sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.
3 Weigh well the example of him who had to endure such opposition from ‘people who were sinning against themselves,’ so that you should not grow weary or faint-hearted.
For consider him that endured such contradiction by sinners against him, lest ye faint in your souls, and become weary.
4 You have not yet, in your struggle with sin, resisted to the death;
Not yet have ye resisted unto blood, in your contest against sin;
5 and you have forgotten the encouraging words which are addressed to you as God’s children – ‘My child, think not lightly of the Lord’s discipline, do not despond when he rebukes you;
and ye have forgotten the exhortation, which reasoneth with you as with sons: “My son, despise not the chastening of the Lord, nor faint when reproved by him;
6 For it is him whom he loves that he disciplines, and he chastises every child whom he acknowledges.’
for whom the Lord loveth, he chasteneth; and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth.”
7 It is for your discipline that you have to endure all this. God is dealing with you as his children. For where is there a child whom his father does not discipline?
It is for chastening that ye endure; God dealeth with you as with sons; for what son is he, whom the father chasteneth not?
8 If you are left without that discipline, in which all children share, it shows that you are bastards, and not true children.
But if ye are without chastening, of which all have been made partakers, then are ye bastards and not sons.
9 Further, when our earthly fathers disciplined us, we respected them. Should we not, then, much rather yield submission to the Father of souls, and live?
Furthermore, we were chastened by the fathers of our flesh, and we gave them reverence; shall we not much rather be in subjection to the Father of spirits, and live?
10 Our fathers disciplined us for only a short time and as seemed best to them; but God disciplines us for our true good, to enable us to share his holiness.
For they indeed for a few days chastened us, according as it seemed good to them; but he for our profit, that we might be partakers of his holiness.
11 No discipline is pleasant at the time; on the contrary, it is painful. But afterward its fruit is seen in the peacefulness of a righteous life which is the lot of those who have been trained under it.
Now all chastening for the present indeed seemeth to be not joyous, but grievous; but afterward it yieldeth the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been exercised thereby.
12 Therefore ‘lift again the down-dropped hands and straighten the weakened knees;
Wherefore lift up the hands which hang down, and the feeble knees;
13 make straight paths for your feet,’ so that the lame limb may not be put out of joint, but rather be cured.
and make straight paths for your feet, that the lame may not be turned out of the way, but may rather be healed.
14 Try earnestly to live at peace with everyone, and to attain to that purity without which no one will see the Lord.
Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no one will see the Lord;
15 Take care that no one fails to use the loving help of God, ‘that no bitterness is allowed to take root and spring up, and cause trouble,’ and so poison the whole community.
looking diligently, lest any one come short of the grace of God; lest any root of bitterness springing up trouble you, and the many be thereby defiled;
16 Take care that no one becomes immoral, or irreligious like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal.
lest there be any fornicator, or profane person as Esau, who for one meal sold even his birthright.
17 For you know that even afterward, when he wished to claim his father’s blessing, he was rejected – for he never found an opportunity to repair his error – though he begged for the blessing with tears.
For ye know that when he afterward wished to inherit the blessing, he was rejected; for he found no place for repentance, though he sought it earnestly with tears.
18 It is not to tangible ‘flaming fire’ that you have drawn near, nor to ‘gloom, and darkness, and storm,
For ye have not come to a mount that can be touched, and burning with fire, and to blackness, and darkness, and tempest,
19 and the blast of a trumpet, and an audible voice.’ Those who heard that voice entreated that they might hear no more,
and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words, which voice they who heard, entreated that no more should be spoken to them;
20 for they could not bear to think of the command – ‘If even an animal touches the mountain, it is to be stoned to death;’
for they could not bear that which was commanded, “If even a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned;” and,
21 and so fearful was the sight that Moses said – ‘I tremble with fear.’
so terrible was the sight, Moses said: “I exceedingly fear and tremble;”
22 No, but it is to Mount Zion that you have drawn near, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to countless hosts of angels,
but ye have come to Mount Zion, and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem; and to myriads, the general assembly of angels;
23 to the festal gathering and assemblage of God’s firstborn whose names are enrolled in heaven, to God the judge of all people, to the spirits of the righteous who have attained perfection,
and to the church of the first-born, who are enrolled in heaven; and to God the Judge of all, and to the spirits of righteous men made perfect;
24 to Jesus, the intermediary of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that tells of better things than the blood of Abel.
and to Jesus the mediator of a new covenant; and to a sprinkling with that blood which speaketh something better than Abel.
25 Beware how you refuse to hear him who is speaking. For, if the Israelites did not escape punishment, when they refused to listen to him who taught them on earth the divine will, far worse will it be for us, if we turn away from him who is teaching us from heaven.
See that ye refuse not him who speaketh. For if they did not escape, who refused him who spoke his will on earth, much more shall not we, if we turn away from him who speaketh from heaven;
26 Then his voice shook the earth, but now his declaration is – ‘Still once more I will cause not only the earth to tremble, but also the heavens.’
whose voice then shook the earth; but now he hath promised, saying, “Yet once more will I shake, not the earth only, but also the heaven.”
27 And those words ‘still once more’ indicate the passing away of all that is shaken – that is, of all created things – in order that only what is unshaken may remain.
And this expression, “Yet once more,” signifieth the removing of those things that are shaken, as of things that have been made, in order that those things which are not shaken may abide.
28 Therefore, let us, who have received a kingdom that cannot be shaken, be thankful, and so offer acceptable worship to God, with awe and the deepest respect.
Wherefore receiving a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us have grace, whereby we may serve God acceptably, with reverence and godly fear.
29 For our God is ‘a consuming fire.’
For our God is a consuming fire.
