The Christian life is a race. All the saved Christians must run the race to win the prize (1 Cor. 9:24), not salvation in the common sense (Eph. 2:8; 1 Cor. 3:15) but a reward in a special sense (Heb. 10:35; 1 Cor. 3:14). The apostle Paul ran the race and won the prize (1 Cor. 9:26-27; Phil. 3:13-14; 2 Tim. 4:7-8).

Sin here refers mainly to the thing that entangles us and prevents us from running the race, just as the willful sin mentioned in Heb. 10:26 would have kept the Hebrew believers away from the new covenant way in God's economy. (See note Heb. 10:26¹) Both the encumbering weight and the entangling sin would have frustrated the Hebrew believers and restrained them from running the heavenly race in the new covenant way of following Jesus, who was rejected by Judaism.

Or, weight, burden, impediment. The runners of the race strip off every unnecessary weight, every encumbering burden, that nothing may impede them from winning the race.

In Greek witnesses implies the sense of martyrs.

The cloud is for leading people to follow the Lord (Num. 9:15-22), and the Lord is in the cloud to be with the people (Exo. 13:21-22).

Or, Finisher, Completer. Jesus is also the Finisher, the Completer, of faith. He will finish what He originated. He will complete what He inaugurated. If we look to Him continually, He will finish and complete the faith that we need for the running of the heavenly race.

Or, Originator, Inaugurator, Leader, Pioneer, Forerunner. The same Greek word as in Heb. 2:10. All the overcoming saints in the Old Testament are only witnesses of faith, whereas Jesus is the Author of faith. He is the Originator, the Inaugurator, the source, and the cause of faith. In our natural man we have no believing ability. We do not have faith by ourselves. The faith by which we are saved is the precious faith that we have received from the Lord (2 Pet. 1:1). When we look unto Jesus, He as the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45) transfuses us with Himself, with His believing element. Then, spontaneously, a kind of believing arises in our being, and we have the faith to believe in Him. This faith is not of ourselves but of Him who imparts Himself as the believing element into us that He may believe for us. Hence, He Himself is our faith. We live by Him as our faith; i.e., we live by His faith (Gal. 2:20), not by our own.

As the Author and the source of faith, Jesus is also the Leader, the Pioneer, and the Forerunner of faith. He cut the way of faith and, as the Forerunner, took the lead to pioneer it. Hence, He can carry us in His footsteps through the pathway of faith. As we look to Him as the Originator of faith in His life and in His path on earth, and as the Perfecter of faith in His glory and on His throne in heaven, He transfuses and even infuses us with the faith that He originated and perfected.

The wonderful Jesus, who is enthroned in heaven and crowned with glory and honor (Heb. 2:9), is the greatest attraction in the universe. He is like an immense magnet, drawing all His seekers to Him. It is by being attracted by His charming beauty that we look away from all things other than Him. Without such a charming object, how could we look away from so many distracting things on this earth?

The Greek word translated looking away unto denotes looking with undivided attention by turning away from every other object. The Hebrew believers had to look away from all the things in their environment, away from their old religion, Judaism, and its persecution, and away from all earthly things, that they might look unto Jesus, who is now seated on the right hand of the throne of God in the heavens.

With God, holiness is His holy nature; with us, holiness is our sanctification, our being separated unto God. (See note Rom. 1:2³.) The implication here is that while we are pursuing peace with all men, we must pay attention to the matter of sanctification before God. Our pursuing of peace with all men must be balanced by our sanctification before God, our being separated unto God, without which no one will see the Lord and have fellowship with Him.

From the viewpoint of God, the persecution from Judaism that the Hebrew believers suffered was a discipline, a chastening.

Or, chastens. So in vv. 7, 10.

Or, chastening. So in vv. 7, 8, 11.

Sin here must refer to something evil in the sight of God that frustrates the believers and holds them back from the new covenant way, for it needs to be resisted, even unto blood.

Lit., becoming loosened.

From 1:3 this book points us continually to the Christ seated in heaven. In all his other Epistles Paul presents to us mainly the Christ who dwells in our spirit (Rom. 8:10; 2 Tim. 4:22) as the life-giving Spirit (1 Cor. 15:45) to be our life and our everything. But in this book he points us particularly to the Christ who has sat down in heaven and who is of so many aspects, that He may care for us in every way. In Paul's other Epistles the indwelling Christ is versus our flesh, self, and natural man. In this book the heavenly Christ is contrasted to the earthly religion and all earthly things. To experience the indwelling Christ, we need to turn to our spirit and contact Him. To enjoy the heavenly Christ, we need to look away from all things on earth unto Him, who has sat down on the right hand of the throne of God. By His death and resurrection He accomplished everything that is needed by both God and man. Now in His ascension He is sitting in the heavens, in the person of the Son of God (Heb. 1:5) and the Son of Man (Heb. 2:6), in the person of God (Heb. 1:8) and man (Heb. 2:6), as the appointed Heir of all things (Heb. 1:2), the anointed One of God (Heb. 1:9), the Author of our salvation (Heb. 2:10), the Sanctifier (Heb. 2:11), the constant Succor (Heb. 2:16), the instant Helper (Heb. 4:16), the Apostle from God (Heb. 3:1), the High Priest (Heb. 2:17; 4:14; 7:26), the Minister of the true tabernacle (Heb. 8:2) with a more excellent ministry (Heb. 8:6), the surety and the Mediator of a better covenant (Heb. 7:22; 8:6; 12:24), the Executor of the new testament (Heb. 9:16-17), the Forerunner (Heb. 6:20), the Author and Perfecter of faith (v. 2), and the great Shepherd of the sheep (Heb. 13:20). If we look to Him as such a wonderful and all-inclusive One, He will minister heaven, life, and strength to us, transfusing and infusing us with all that He is, that we may be able to run the heavenly race and live the heavenly life on earth. In this way He will carry us through all the lifelong pathway and lead and bring us into glory (Heb. 2:10).

The things mentioned in vv. 22-24 are heavenly and spiritual, in contrast to the earthly and physical things listed in vv. 18-19. These things signify the side of grace, where both the firstborn and the spirits of righteous men are saved by grace. The people under the old covenant came to the side of the law, whereas we Christians, who are under the new covenant, come to the side of grace. Hence, we are not under the law but under grace (Rom. 6:14). This portion of the word (vv. 18-24), like Gal. 4:21-31, shows us that we are not under the bondage of the law but under the freedom of grace to be the heirs of the inheritance. This is our birthright! We should not give this up by falling away from grace (v. 15), but should have grace (v. 28). The things on the side of grace are heavenly, but not all are in heaven yet. A great number of the firstborn of the church are still on earth, while the spirits of righteous men, who are the Old Testament saints, are in Paradise, where Abraham is (Luke 16:22-23, 25-26) and where the Lord Jesus and the saved robber went after they died on the cross (Luke 23:43).

None of the six items listed on the side of the law is pleasant. First, there is a mountain set on fire. Who would approach such a place? Then there are the darkness, the gloom, and the stormy whirlwind. Last, there are the terrifying sound of a trumpet and the solemn, warning voice of words. All these present a fearsome sight. On the side of grace, however, everything is pleasant. The eight items here can be considered four pairs. The elevated Mount Zion and the beautiful heavenly Jerusalem are the first pair, denoting God's habitation and the center of His universal administration. What a lovely place! The celebrating, jubilant angels, so closely related to the heirs of salvation to whom they minister (Heb. 1:14), and the blessed firstborn of the church form the second pair in the scene. What a joyful demonstration of an angelic gathering! They celebrate the participation by the human heirs of salvation, the church of the firstborn, in the blessings of the new covenant. God, the Judge of all, and the spirits of righteous men, the Old Testament saints (their bodies, not resurrected, were not worthy to be listed in this portion) are linked as the third pair, showing that God, being righteous, justifies the righteous saints of old because of their faith. The dear Lord Jesus, the Mediator of the new covenant, which is a better covenant, and His precious sprinkled blood, which speaks something better, compose the last pair, indicating that a better covenant was enacted with Jesus' better blood, that Jesus died and bequeathed this new covenant as a new testament to His believers, and that He is now the Mediator, the Executor, of this new testament, bringing about the full realization of all the blessed facts contained within it. What a pleasant scene! What a contrast to the scene on the side of the law, where no God, no Savior, and even no angels are mentioned! It is no wonder that not one saved person is seen there. In the scene of grace there is the justifying God, the Savior, who is the Mediator of His new testament, with His speaking blood, the ministering angels with the assembly (the church) of the saved ones, and the spirits of the justified saints. On the side of the law the scene ends with the terrifying sound of a trumpet and the warning words. On the side of grace the scene ends with a sympathizing Mediator and a vindicating speaking. After seeing such a contrast, who would be so foolish as to leave the side of grace and turn to the side of the law? All eight items on the side of grace are not only heavenly and spiritual but also eternal. Hence, even when heaven is shaken (v. 26), these eight items that are eternal will still remain (v. 27).

See note Heb. 11:10^1a.

Or, festal gathering. The Greek word means universal gathering, whole or full assembly, and is used to denote a group of people gathered to celebrate a public festival, such as the Olympic games. The entire new covenant age is a festival, and the myriads of angels, who are the ministering spirits rendering service to the heirs of salvation (Heb. 1:14) under the new covenant, are a universal gathering celebrating the marvelous festival of "so great a salvation" (Heb. 2:3), the greatest and most exciting "game" in the universe! The Lord's word in Luke 15:7, 10, and 1 Pet. 1:12 may indicate this.

See note Heb. 12:16¹, par. 2.

Lit., set upright.

The Christian life is not a matter of theoretical doctrines for the mind to think about. It must consist of practical paths for our feet to walk on. All the sound, healthy doctrines in the Bible are paths that can be walked on. This is especially true with the book of Hebrews. First, this book ministers to us the highest and healthiest doctrines concerning Christ and His new covenant. Then, based on the proper doctrines that it shows us, it charges us to run the race and make straight paths for our feet. The first section of this book (1:1—10:18) deals with doctrines, and the second (10:19—13:25) deals with the race and the paths.

Or, dislocated, wrenched. An alternate meaning, turned aside, as in 1 Tim. 1:6; 5:15 and 2 Tim. 4:4, does not match the antithesis that follows, "but rather may be healed," nor does it fit the context like the first meaning. The implication of the context is that the staggering Hebrew believers should abandon all appearance of the practices of Judaism (i.e., make straight paths) that they, the lame members (limbs) of the Body, might not fall into apostasy (i.e., not be put out of joint) but rather be brought fully into the new covenant way (i.e., be healed).

Or, chasteners.

Father of spirits is contrasted with fathers of our flesh. In regeneration we are born of God (John 1:13) in our spirit (John 3:6). Hence, God is the Father of (our) spirits.

Holiness is God's nature. To partake of God's holiness is to partake of His holy nature. It was common, unholy, for the Hebrew believers to remain in Judaism. They needed to be sanctified unto God's new covenant so that they could partake of God's holy nature. For that purpose, persecution was aroused to discipline them that they might be sanctified from the common.

Peace is the fruit of righteousness (Isa. 32:17). Holiness is the inward nature, whereas righteousness is the outward behavior. God's discipline helps the believers not only to partake of His holiness but also to be right with both God and man, that in such a situation of righteousness they may enjoy peace as a sweet fruit, a peaceable fruit of righteousness.

The gospel that the New Testament has preached to us is the gospel of the kingdom (Matt. 3:1-2; 4:17, 23; 10:7; 24:14). We were regenerated into the kingdom (John 3:5) and were transferred into the kingdom (Col. 1:13). Now we are in the kingdom (Rev. 1:9), which today is the proper church life (Rom. 14:17). However, what we are in now and what is in the church today is the kingdom in its reality, whereas what will come with Christ's return in the future will be the kingdom in its manifestation.

The kingdom in its reality, or the reality of the kingdom, is an exercise and a discipline to us (Matt. 5:3, 10, 20; 7:21) in the church today whereas the kingdom in its manifestation, or the manifestation of the kingdom, will be a reward and an enjoyment to us (Matt. 16:27; 25:21, 23) in the millennial kingdom in the coming age. If we take the Spirit's exercise and God's discipline in the reality of the kingdom today, we will receive the Lord's reward and enter into the enjoyment of the coming Sabbath rest (Heb. 4:9) in the manifestation of the kingdom in the coming age; otherwise, we will miss the coming kingdom, we will not be rewarded with the manifestation of the kingdom at the Lord's coming back, we will have no right to enter into the glory of the kingdom to participate in Christ's reign in the millennial kingdom, and we will lose our birthright and therefore will be unable to inherit the earth in the coming age, to be the royal priests serving God and Christ in His manifested glory, and to be Christ's co-kings ruling all the nations with His divine authority (Rev. 20:4, 6). To miss the coming kingdom and to forfeit our birthright does not mean that we will perish. It means that we will lose the reward but not our salvation. (See note Heb. 10:35^1b.) We will suffer loss but still will be saved, yet so as through fire (1 Cor. 3:14-15). This is the basic concept on which all five warnings in this book are given and with which they are all pervaded. All the negative points of these warnings are related to the suffering of the loss of the reward in the coming kingdom, whereas all the positive points are related to the reward and enjoyment of the kingdom. All seven epistles in Rev. 2 and Rev. 3 conclude with this same concept — the reward of the kingdom or the loss of it. Only in light of this concept can we rightly understand and properly apply the word in Matt. 5:20; 7:21-23; 16:24-27; 19:23-30; 24:46-51; 25:11-13, 21, 23, 26-30; Luke 12:42-48; 19:17, 19, 22-27; Rom. 14:10, 12; 1 Cor. 3:8, 13-15; 4:5; 9:24-27; 2 Cor. 5:10; 2 Tim. 4:7-8; Heb. 2:3; 4:1, 9, 11; 6:4-8; 10:26-31, 35-39; 12:16-17, 28-29 and Rev. 2:7, 10-11, 17, 26-27; 3:4-5, 11-12, 20; 22:12. If we do not have this concept, the interpretation of these verses falls into either the extreme objectiveness of the Calvinist school or the extreme subjectiveness of the Arminian school. Neither of these schools recognizes the reward of the kingdom; even more, they do not see the suffering of the loss of the kingdom reward. Hence, both consider all the negative points in these verses as referring to perdition. The Calvinist school, believing in eternal salvation (i.e., that once a person is saved, he will never perish), regards all these negative points as applying to the perdition of false believers; while the Arminian school, believing that a saved person will perish if he falls, regards these points as applying to the perdition of believers who have fallen. But the complete revelation of the Bible shows that these negative points refer to the suffering of the loss of the kingdom reward. God's salvation is eternal; once we obtain it, we will never lose it (John 10:28-29). But we may suffer the loss of the kingdom reward, even though we still will be saved (1 Cor. 3:8, 14-15). The warnings in Hebrews do not refer to the loss of eternal salvation but to the loss of the kingdom reward. The Hebrew believers had received the kingdom, but they risked losing the reward in the manifestation of the kingdom if they shrank back from the grace of God, from God's new covenant way. This was the writer's main concern in warning the staggering Hebrew believers.

Or, take. To have grace, especially for the Hebrew believers, was to remain in the new covenant to enjoy Christ.

According to the implication of the context, the root of bitterness must be a Judaizer who would have caused the Hebrew believers to be turned aside from the grace of God to the rituals of Judaism and thus to defile themselves in the sight of God, neglecting the holiness of God.

Esau's birthright as the firstborn son of Isaac was the double portion of land, the priesthood, and the kingship. Because of Esau's profaneness in giving up his birthright, the double portion of land was given to Joseph (1 Chron. 5:1-2), the priesthood was passed to Levi (Deut. 33:8-10), and the kingship was assigned to Judah (Gen. 49:10; 1 Chron. 5:2).

We Christians, born of God, are the firstfruits of His creatures (James 1:18) that He has reaped in His creation. In that sense we are the firstborn sons of God. Hence, the church, composed of us, is called the church of the firstborn (v. 23). As the firstborn sons of God, we have the birthright. This includes the inheritance of the earth (Heb. 2:5-6), the priesthood (Rev. 20:6), and the kingship (Rev. 20:4), which will be the main blessings in the coming kingdom and which the profane, world-loving-and-seeking Christians will lose at the Lord's coming back. Eventually, this birthright will be a reward given to the overcoming Christians in the millennial kingdom. Any worldly enjoyment, even one meal, could cause us to forfeit this birthright of ours. After such a serious warning, if the Hebrew believers had still preferred to indulge in "one meal" of their old religion, they would have missed the full enjoyment of Christ and would have lost the kingdom rest with all its blessings.

Esau was not the only one who lost his birthright (Gen. 25:29-34); Reuben was another who lost the blessing of the birthright (Gen. 49:3-4; 1 Chron. 5:1). Esau lost it because of his lust in eating. Reuben lost it because of the defilement of his lust. Both cases should be warnings to us. The word lest there be any fornicator in this verse might have been written with Reuben as the background.

Actually, what we are privileged to enjoy in Christ is the foretaste of the blessings in the coming kingdom. The proper enjoyment of this foretaste will usher us into the full taste of the kingdom blessings. If we do not enjoy Christ today as our good land, as defined in note Heb. 4:9¹, how can we enter into His rest in the kingdom and inherit the earth with Him? If we do not exercise our priesthood today to contact Him and prayerfully minister to Him, how can we fulfill our priestly duty in the kingdom? If we do not exercise our spirit with the God-given authority to rule our self, our flesh, our entire being, and the enemy with all his power of darkness today, how can we be Christ's co-kings and rule the nations with Him in His kingdom (Rev. 2:26-27)? Our enjoyment of Christ and the practice of the priesthood and kingship today are the preparation and qualification for our participating in Christ's kingdom tomorrow!

No place for repentance does not mean that Esau had no ground to repent; it means that he had no ground, no way, to reverse by repentance the result of what he had done.

The things mentioned in vv. 18-19 are earthly and physical, signifying the side of the law, where everyone, including Moses, was in fear and trembling (vv. 19-21).

Though the firstborn of the church are not yet in heaven, they are enrolled in the heavens.

The Greek word for new here means fresh, youthful, with respect to age, while the word for new in Heb. 8:8, 13, and Heb. 9:15 means new, fresh, with respect to quality.

In this book the blood of Christ is particularly prominent and crucial. It is the blood of the eternal covenant (Heb. 13:20), with which the new and better covenant was enacted (Heb. 10:29). Through this blood Christ entered once for all into the Holy of Holies and obtained an eternal redemption for us (Heb. 9:12). By this blood Christ cleansed the heavens and all things in the heavens (Heb. 9:22-24). This blood sanctifies us (Heb. 13:12; 10:29), purifies our conscience to serve the living God (Heb. 9:14), and speaks something better for us than the blood of Abel (v. 24). It is in this blood that we have boldness for entering the Holy of Holies (Heb. 10:19). We should not regard this blood common, like animal blood; if we do, we will suffer God's punishment (Heb. 10:29).

The blood of Christ not only redeems, sanctifies, and purifies; it also speaks. It is the speaking blood, speaking something better than the blood of Abel. Abel's blood speaks to God for accusation and vengeance (Gen. 4:10-15), whereas Christ's blood speaks to God for forgiveness, justification, reconciliation, and redemption. Moreover, this precious blood speaks to God on our behalf, saying that by the blood (as unveiled in this book) the new covenant, which is eternal, has been enacted, and that in this new covenant God must give Himself and all His blessings to the believers in Christ who receive this covenant out of faith.

The grace of God came to us through Christ (John 1:14, 17). Hence, it is also the grace of Christ (2 Cor. 13:14; 12:9). In our experience this grace is just Christ Himself (Gal. 6:18, cf. 2 Tim. 4:22). When we fall from grace we are brought to nought, separated from Christ (Gal. 5:4). Regarding this matter, Paul warned the churches of Galatia, which were in the same danger as the Hebrew believers, not to be separated from Christ by being turned aside to the law of the Jewish religion, lest they fall away from the grace of God, which is Christ Himself. We should not fall away from grace but should have grace (v. 28), be confirmed by grace (Heb. 13:9), and stand in grace (Rom. 5:2). Both Galatians and Hebrews close with the blessing of grace (Gal. 6:18; Heb. 13:25).

God is holy; holiness is His nature. Whatever does not correspond with His holy nature, He, as the consuming fire, will consume. If the Hebrew believers had turned aside to Judaism, which was common (unholy) in the sight of God, they would have become unholy, and the holy God as the consuming fire would consume them. God is not only righteous but also holy. To satisfy God's righteousness we need to be justified through the redemption of Christ. To meet the demands of His holiness we need to be sanctified, to be made holy by the heavenly, present, and living Christ. Romans stresses more the matter of justification (Rom. 3:24) for God's righteousness (Rom. 3:25-26), whereas Hebrews emphasizes more the matter of sanctification (Heb. 2:11; 10:10, 14, 29; 13:12) for God's holiness (v. 14). For their sanctification, it was necessary that the Hebrew believers separate themselves from the unholy Judaism unto the holy God, who has fully expressed Himself in the Son under the new covenant; otherwise, they would have defiled themselves with their old, profane religion and would be dealt with by the holy God as the consuming fire. That would be fearsome (Heb. 10:31)! It is no wonder that Paul was very concerned about the fear of the Lord (2 Cor. 5:11).