Hebrews 4:6-11: Labour Therefore to Enter into That Rest
2022-10-08
Here, we see the difference between the rest of the promised land in the days of Joshua’s conquest and the superiority of the rest found in Jesus Christ.
Hebrews 4:6
There is an open door for the people of God. To the original audience, there was a cut off coming. Many had not accepted the Lord as Savior. Paul had extensively warned the audience that they did not have forever to believe on the Lord. The Lord gave ample opportunity. “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). This refers to the second coming, but the principle applies to those ancient Jews as well as us. We do not know the hour of our death, or the day of the demise of our country. We do not know what tomorrow holds.
Recall the story: “And Elijah came unto all the people, and said, How long halt ye between two opinions? if the LORD be God, follow him: but if Baal, then follow him. And the people answered him not a word” (1 Kings 18:21). The people of Elijah’s day also could not decide between the LORD or the false god, Baal. The prophets of Baal did their gruesome rituals to summon their vanity to action and failed. But what happened in Elijah’s case? Consider 1 Kings 18:36-40. After pouring gallons upon gallons of water on the sacrifice, we read the conclusion. God sent fire to consume that drenched sacrifice and all the water. The people knew that the Lord was God at that juncture. There was a great repentance that day. But then someone greater than Elijah came, and not much repentance happened, despite Christ’s rising from the dead. They did not have a converted heart of belief.
There remains many that have not been born again. So many have not entered into his rest.
Hebrews 4:7
Here, it says the Psalm 95 quotation is “in David.” The Psalms were mostly written by David. This one may have been written by him, though it does not explicitly say it in the first verse as it does in many other psalms. However, it is important to see that this psalm was written long after the events of the exodus and conquest by around 400 years. The “rest” of the conquest had long been over, so this truly is talking about another rest.
The limitation of a certain day that is mentioned here continues to emphasize the window of opportunity to accept the Lord Jesus before they become hardened.
Notice the refrain “To day” is repeated, but with the commentary, “after so long a time.” After a very long time of hearing the message of Jesus Christ, the Jewish people were still reluctant on the things of Christ. Like the failure in the wilderness that cost the lives of the exodus generation, there were 40 years. Their corpses fell in the wilderness for 40 years because of unbelief. From the ascension of Jesus until the destruction of Jerusalem, there were about 40 years. This may have been on the minds of the Jews professing Christ since this letter was written on the eve of that destruction. Because of the compassion of God, He gave them all that long time. However, who knew the hour of His visitation? They had to decide “today.”
God always gave people a chance to turn to Him. In Noah’s day, amid increasing violence and weird interaction with demonic powers, what did the Lord say? “And the LORD said, My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh: yet his days shall be an hundred and twenty years” (Genesis 6:3). Noah preached the coming judgment; we know this from here: “And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly” (2 Peter 2:5). The building of a giant ark to protect the inhabitants from a flood would have captured the attention of the world who had never seen rain before. But there came a day when it was too late for anyone to go into the ark: “And they that went in, went in male and female of all flesh, as God had commanded him: and the LORD shut him in” (Genesis 7:16). Noah and family could not close the door. The LORD Himself closed the door, for “he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth” (Revelation 3:7).
Again, in Abraham’s day, the Lord did not give him the land of the Amorites. Consider Genesis 15:12-16. There were still 400 years before the Amorites would be overthrown. The conquest of the land could not happen until then. The Amorites were given a chance to turn to the Lord during that time.
And for the generation of Jews living in the promised land in the first century A.D., consider John 12:36-43. We see again that the people were warned by the Lord Himself to believe while there was still a chance to do so. However, even so many miracles were performed, they did not believe. This was predicted in a few places by the prophet Isaiah. Because they did not believe, they were hardened. They were warned even in the Scriptures, but they still refused to believe. Of those rulers who actually believed on the Lord, they hid it because they esteemed their positions in the synagogue as more important than pleasing God.
God gives plenty of time for people to hear and understand the Gospel. Eventually He must close the door because more time will not help hardened, unrepentant people.
Hebrews 4:8-9
Recall that Psalm 95 was referred to as being “in David.” The psalm would have been written about 400 years after the conquest. So the “rest” spoken of would have been after Joshua’s day.
“Jesus” in Hebrews 4:8 is Joshua the son of Nun. We know this by the context. “Jesus” is the rendering of the Old Testament name “Joshua.” The two names are the same. The context will determine which “Jesus” it speaks of. There is a contrast with this “Jesus” and the one in Hebrews 4:14, where we see explicitly “Jesus the Son of God.”
Joshua the son of Nun is mentioned (at least) twice in the New Testament. The only other time I can remember is in Acts:
Our fathers had the tabernacle of witness in the wilderness, as he had appointed, speaking unto Moses, that he should make it according to the fashion that he had seen. Which also our fathers that came after brought in with Jesus into the possession of the Gentiles, whom God drave out before the face of our fathers, unto the days of David (Acts 7:44-45)
Joshua the son of Nun is connected to the conquest and the driving out of the Lord’s enemies. Our “Joshua” has done that with our sin and will do that to His enemies in the future. We see again here in Hebrews 4:8 that Joshua is tied to that conquest, which we discussed previously as a rest. It was a rest, but not the rest.
The former rest of Joshua son of Nun was imperfect. Consider Judges 2:1-5. This is the faithful generation, the children of the faithless exodus generation. Yet, they still did not do as the Lord commanded. By implication, they made treaties with the Canaanites marked for destruction, and did not destroy their altars, leaving a vestige of their satanic religion in their land. Because of this, the Lord allowed the Canaanites to remain and did not drive them out.
But what of this (Joshua 21:43-45)? The Lord delivered all the Canaanites into the Israelites’ hands. This is not a contradictory account. God drove them out. The people clearly went out of their way to spare them and allowed them to live. Maybe there were other situations like the Gibeonites. Whatever it was, the Lord did His work, but the people could have destroyed the enemies and their religion, but at the last minute, spared them or stopped because of fear.
This does not seem like a permanent rest for the people of God. The Canaanites remained as thorns in their side until the exile. Therefore, we know that the rest from God speaks of something afterward, and something far superior.
Hebrews 4:10
As we consider the word “rest” in the context of God’s rest in Genesis 2:1-3, He stopped working because there was nothing else to do. He was not tired that He needed rest, like any of us. There was nothing else left to do.
It is true for us when entering into His rest. Our works do not accomplish the favor of God. “But we are all as an unclean thing, and all our righteousnesses are as filthy rags; and we all do fade as a leaf; and our iniquities, like the wind, have taken us away” (Isaiah 64:6). “There is none righteous, no, not one” (Romans 3:10). “Sin” is our nature, “sins” are the fruit of our nature.
Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election of grace. And if by grace, then is it no more of works: otherwise grace is no more grace. But if it be of works, then is it no more grace: otherwise work is no more work. (Romans 11:5-6)
We cease from our works and trust wholly on the Lord, that He has accomplished all that is needed for salvation and the Christian life in Jesus Christ.
For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast. For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them. (Ephesians 2:8-10)
From our position in Christ in heaven, we rely on the Christ-life to work in us. We have ceased from our works, and through us the life of Christ performs His works. It is not our works to perform for salvation. It is rather He saves us to perform His works in us.
Hebrews 4:11
The author tells us to labor to enter into His rest. This sounds contradictory. But we must come to the end of ourselves, realizing that we must cease striving to please Him. We cannot do it. Rather, we must rest in the finished work of Christ.
If we do not believe that Christ secured our salvation, then we are relying on our resources to save ourselves. Since we are bankrupt of righteousness, we fail. However, Christ accomplished our salvation. We must place trust only on what He has done. Otherwise, we are an example of unbelief.
We must examine ourselves, lest we find ourselves an example of unbelief, leading to reprobation.
This does not mean that our faith will never fail, and that there will never be a time when we rely on our own strength to do things. Ultimately, though, because we are born again, we will persevere in faith... Or rather, He will persevere in us. “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; for his seed remaineth in him: and he cannot sin, because he is born of God” (1 John 3:9).