HEBREWS 11:35-40
A TESTED FAITH [LEAVING A LEGACY SERIES]
[Romans 8:35-38]
Many have been the triumphs faith has obtained against incredible odds and many have been the times when the faithful suffered because they chose to remain faithful. This section deals with many unknown men and women who were not delivered from difficult circumstances; yet God honored their faith. In fact, faith grows more when it endures than when it escapes. These verses show that faith produces worth and approval in those who undergo severe afflictions, adversity, and trials. Faithfulness in suffering produces character and virtue, and ultimately it produces a better resurrection (CIT).
In visiting these experiences of suffering we learn that trials should not nullify faith but rather strengthen faith. The reason for trials is because an untested faith is an unsure faith. The original renders were experiencing adversity for their faith. They needed to know this was nothing new but God’s way of purifying and strengthening faith down through the centuries. We also need this understanding.
The first four verses present a remarkable sample of spiritual stamina and endurance which proved the reality of faith. Verse 39 and 40 point to the future where tested faith will be rewarded.
I. TESTED FOR A BETTER RESURRECTION, 35.
II. TESTED TO PROVE WORTH, 36-38.
III. TESTED TO GAIN APPROVAL, 39-40.
In a swift transition of thought, the writer will move from faith’s obvious triumphs to what seemed to be its defeats in verse 35. But these seeming defeats were only temporal, not an eternal reality. “Women received back their dead by resurrection; and others were tortured, not accepting their release, so that they might obtain resurrection;”
Elijah brought back to life the child of the widow of Zarephath (1 Kings 17:8-23), and his successor, Elisha, did the same for a Shunammite woman’s son (2 Kings 4:18-37). These mothers and these prophets believed God for resurrection, and He performed it. (Today we distinguish between resurrection and resuscitation. The resurrection is of the dead to judgment and resuscitation is bringing the dead back to physical life.)
The women suffered for a while, but the pain was alleviated when their child was restored to life. God does not always work in this way however. Many of the afflictions mentioned in Hebrews 11:35-38 were long-term, some even lasting a lifetime. God gave power through faith to see some of His people through their problems, not to escape them. Just as it is sometimes God’s will for His people to conquer over a struggle, it is also sometimes His will for His people to continue in their suffering. He will give them victory too, and the greatest victory is spiritual - which is the only kind of victory He guarantees. It often takes more courage to hold on than to fight on and where there is need for more courage there is need for more faith.
Now our author moves on to his second topic about the great things that faith will enable believers to undergo and suffer. “Tortured” is from the Greek tumpanzo where our word tympani meaning kettle drum is derived. The torture referred to is stretching one over a wheel shaped rack of torture then beating one often to death.
There can be little doubt that the idol worshiping Kings of Israel and Judah tortured numerous people for their loyalty to the pure worship of YAHWEH [but this probably refers to the persecutions under Antiochis Epiphanes during the intertestmental period. 2 Maccabees 7:1-42 records a likely incident where a mother and her seven sons were martyred. “All eight endured barbarous torture because they refused to disobey God’s laws. One moving incident in the story occurred when the pagan king asked the mother to encourage the last of the seven sons to renounce his faith and eat swine’s flesh. The mother, who has seen six other sons die, said to her son, “Fear not this tormentor, but, being worthy of your brethren, take your death, that I may receive you again in mercy with your brothers.” The son refused to obey the king’s command, and the king treated him with greater rage than all the other sons.” (Lea, Thomas. Hebrews. Holman NT Commentary. Vol. 1999. Nashville. p. 205). God’s faithful are willing to be beaten to death rather than compromise their faith in Him.
Sometimes affliction is escapable; sometimes it is not. To the person of faith, no affliction is escapable that requires denial or compromise of God’s Word. What is easily escaped for the worldly person is not for the faithful. When it is suffered because of God’s Word and standing for Him, God’s people will take torture, “not accepting their release, in order that they might obtain a better resurrection.” Here is the pinnacle of faith, willingness to accept the worst the world has to offer, even death - because of trust in the best God has to offer which is a better resurrection. [MacArthur, John. Hebrews. Moody Press. Chicago.1983. p. 367]. Faith that is cruelly tested is supremely rewarded. Temporary affliction leads to eternal blessing (2 Cor. 5:17-18).
They would not accept release at the price of disloyalty to God. The encouragement of faith which refused disloyalty was that God would give them a better resurrection to new life if they remained loyal even to death. Faith in God carries no guarantees of comfort in this world, but it does carry with it great rewards in the only world that ultimately matters.
II. TESTED TO PROVE WORTH, 36-38.
Verse 36 continues to give various examples of sufferings which faith can enable us to endure victoriously. “and others experienced mockings and scourgings, yes, also chains and imprisonment.”
“Others” [alloi, heteroi, a different group or class from the preceding who were given earthy victories] of God’s faithful endured both mental and physical anguish; mockings as well as scourgings. Jeremiah was as emotionally abused as he was physically abused, and it is not strange that he is called the weeping prophet. He did not weep so much for himself as for the people, who rejected God by rejecting him. He endured, and continued to endure, all sorts of pain for the sake of God’s Word. Jeremiah also endured imprisonments whose form made them worse than scourging (Jer. 38:9, 20:2,20:7ff. 37:15, 38:6ff).
Great heroes of the faith have been cited, but here and following no names are given. A great company of anonymous men and women down through the centuries remained true to God through persecution and suffering. We won’t know who they are till we reach heaven, but God knows.
Two kinds of persecution are recorded in verse 37. One kind resulted in death, another persecuted group escaped death, but were exposed to all sorts of miseries. The same faith works in both examples. First in verse 37 are three of the ways the faithful were martyred. “They were stoned, they were sawn into, they were tempted, they were put to death with the sword.”
Stoning was the typical Jewish punishment. A prophet named Zechariah, son of Jehoiada (2 Ch 24:20–22; Mt 23:35) was stoned by his own people because he told them the truth about themselves, and they became angered over its conviction. This also happened to Stephen (Acts 7:55-56).
Sawing in two was a cruel Jewish punishment (Amos 1:3). Tradition holds that Isaiah was sawn in two by Manasseh when he refused to stop preaching the truth and bow to their idols. They were also “tempted” by physical-fleshly things to destroy their close walk with God or tempted with freedom if they would deny God’s truth.
The fate of particularity unpopular prophets is that “they were put to death with the sword.” (1 Kings 10:10, Jer. 26:23). The sword intended is either that of injustice by using political power or of violence and mere force. Many have been beheaded for the testimony of Jesus (Revelation 20:4), just as John the Baptist (Luke 9:9) and James the brother of John (Acts 12:2) were. Countless thousands have been killed both under pagan and anti-Christian tyranny with the sword.
Verse 37 continues by addressing their condition or manner of life as poor, distressed, and contemptible. “they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins, being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated”
Elijah, Elisha and Ezekiel (2 Kings 1:8) went about in sheepskins and goatskins, being destitute [?ste?e?, left behind, 2 Cor. 11: 9] indicating being poor and in need. They were also “afflicted”, meaning oppressed or hard pressed [by the great pressure brought about because of the great dangers that were brought on them] and “ill-treated” (1 Kings 18:13) by various more subtle cruelties.
The many kinds of suffering mentioned in these verses, just as the conquests mentioned in the preceding verses, apply generally to the faithful saints. They are a summary of the numerous and varied kinds of afflictions God’s people face and are often called to endure for Him. Whether they were killed or made outcasts, the point is the same–they courageously and uncompromisingly suffered for the Lord because of their faith. Whether for conquering in a struggle or continuing in a suffering, they trusted the Lord. There are many UNRECOGNIZED HEROES throughout history. On December 16, 1944, 18 members of a reconnaissance platoon held off a battalion of crack German storm troopers in the Belgian hamlet of Lanzerath. Few history books note that their gallant stand gave Allied forces time to begin mounting the defense that eventually won the famous Battle of the Bulge.
One of the platoon members was Will James, who after the war slipped into oblivion for nearly 4 decades. During that time he underwent numerous painful surgeries as a result of his war wounds. Not until 1981, through the efforts of U.S. House Speaker Thomas P. O’Neill and columnist Jack Anderson was he awarded, posthumously, the Distinguished Service Cross for extraordinary heroism.
Another class of heroes goes unnoticed by the world. They are Christians who live each day with pain and suffering, some struggling with handicaps that make daily tasks a challenge. They would be the last to claim heroism. And it’s not primarily their endurance that sets them apart. Rather, it’s that they have committed themselves and their destinies to God. They have staked their lives on His triumph over evil.
No one enjoys suffering, nor should we seek it. But if it comes, for the Christian who stays faithful to Christ it carries potential for great reward.
Many think that pain is the exception in the Christian life. When it occurs, they say “Why me?” They feel as if God deserted them or perhaps accuse God of not being as dependable as they thought. In reality, however, we live in an evil world filled with suffering. God is still in control, He allows some Christians to become martyrs for their faith, and He allows others to survive persecution. Rather than asking “Why me?” it is much more helpful to ask, “Why not me?” Our faith and the values of this world are on a collision course. If we know pain and suffering can come, we will not be shocked when it hits. Jesus, who also suffered according to the will of God, understands us and has promised never to leave us. He is interceding for you. In times of persecution or suffering, trust confidently in Christ.
Verse 38 gives us God’s assessment of those who endure such prolonged suffering for Him at the hands of men. “Those of whom the world was not worthy, wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.”
The parenthetical thought at the beginning of the sentence is of special beauty: people “of whom the world was not worthy.” Their persecutors thought them not worthy of the world, but God says the world is not worthy of them. In condemning them, the world condemned itself. The world drove them out thinking them unworthy to live with them while the truth is they were unworthy to have such saints living with them. Their character and value is elevated so far above the rest of humanity that mankind is not worthy of them. [The Greek could also be translated that they outweighed in value the whole world (see Prov. 8:11). [F. W. Farrar, The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews, With Notes and Introduction, Cambridge Greek Testament for Schools and Colleges (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1893), 150.] The world does not deserve to have such people in its midst’s just as these godly folk did not deserve the sufferings they received. Those inflicting the suffering will be judged and punish, those who endure suffering for the glory of God will be rewarded in the resurrection.
Many of God’s servants had to live like animals “wandering in deserts and mountains and caves and holes in the ground.” Faith in God does not guarantee comfort in this world. Such faith does promise plentiful reward in the only world that matters.
God does not promise to deliver His saints from all suffering. He promises that by faith in Him and His word that He would enable them to endure and grow through the suffering and then reward them in the resurrection. [We need to have the same confident disposition as Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego as they stood before the king of Babylon near His blazing furnace. “Our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the furnace of blazing fire; and He will deliver us out of your hand, O King” (Dan. 3:17). But their greatest faith was shown as they when on to say, “But even if He does not, let it be known to you, O King, that we are not going to serve your gods or worship the golden image that you have set up” (v. 18). Their primary concern was not for the safety of their lives but for the safety of their faith. With or without physical deliverance, they would not forsake their trust in God.]
III. TESTED TO GAIN APPROVAL, 39-40.
Though all these gain approval by their faith, it is not the greatest or final blessing of faith. Verse 39: “And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised,”
True faith enables one to depend on God for His salvation. The promises for which “all these” - the believers indicated in verses 2 through 38 - were eagerly waiting what was made manifest only in Christ. Old Testament saints did not experience the eternal inheritance “promised.” They had to live in hope. They knew little about God’s plan of a redemption for all the ages. But they believed it was coming and they trusted God’s promises. They had an abiding confidence that one day God would do whatever was necessary to redeem them and reward their faithfulness. They lived and died in the hope of a fulfillment which none of them saw on earth.
At one time or another, we all face disappointment. We get down and discouraged because our expectations are not fulfilled. When we do not receive what we feel was promised, we find it easy to feel sorry for ourselves.
In times of disappointment, our first instinct is to quit. Self-pity is a natural response when things don’t go our way. In many ways, though, true faith is persistence in the face of disappointment. The courage to carry on when promises seem unfulfilled is a hallmark of a person of faith.
Faith is saying yes to life when nothing seems to be going our way. Faith is keeping perspective and knowing that eventually disappointment will give way to an even greater blessing. The writer of Hebrews understood that while they “received not the promise” God had “provided some better things for us” (11:40). God will provide something far better. What we feel we have lost will not compare with what in faith we ultimately will receive.
We can live in faith–even in the face of great disappointment –because of the One to whom we are faithful. Ask the Lord to help you to stay with it even in the face of disappointment.
Thus they “did not receive what was promised” but they did “gain approval through their faith.” Because their faith rested in God and not in the immediate satisfaction of their belief, they obtain approval. Faith enables us to turn from the approval of the world and seek the approval of God. If God is glorified by deliverance, He will do it, if His plan does not include deliverance then He will not. But we must never conclude that the absence of deliverance means they were not worthy or that they lacked faith.
Faith looks to the future, for that is where the greatest rewards are found. The people named and unnamed in this chapter did not receive the promises on earth but they received something better. They had God’s witness in their inner being that one day their faith would be rewarded. The messianic promise of salvation was so real to them that it gave them power to press on up-stream against the currents of their environment and live as citizens of that kingdom whose foundations are firmly laid in the unseen eternal land. Remember, the righteous will live by faith.
In Robert Browning’s poem Rabbi Ben Ezra he uses the phrase, "The best is yet to be, the last of life for which the first was made. Our times are in His hand.” Robert Browning believed the future is always bright with possibilities because of Christ. For the Christian we know our future is better in heaven, but can we believe that our remaining days on earth will be better than the past? If our hope is centered in Christ, the answer is a resounding yes! Nothing can separate you from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord (Rom. 8:37- 39). Because we are held in God’s unchanging love, we can experience deeper fellowship with Him no matter what our future holds. He is the best the future holds both here below and in heaven above.
The faith of Arthur and Wilda Matthews, missionaries in northern China, was on the line. They had been taken captive by the communists, and they realized that this was their opportunity to put into practice what they had been telling the Chinese people for years - that God is faithful and can be trusted. They knew that how they responded during this ordeal would either confirm or deny their spoken testimony. After a time in captivity, they were freed. When they returned to their people, they discovered that their steadfastness in the midst of confinement and deprivation had borne an even more effective witness than all they had said and done. The Christians of that region of China saw clearly that the Matthews’ faith was real. What had come from their lips had been verified by their life under trial.
If you want to be a fruitful witness for God, it is vital to realize that you must not only talk about Jesus but also trust Him in life’s trials. Nothing demonstrates the truthfulness of our verbal witness for Christ more than a life in which the fruit of the Spirit - the very character of Jesus - can be seen. Even if you have very little opportunity to tell the gospel story, you can still be used. Your Christian behavior, your response to the problems that confront you, and your loving, caring concern can have an amazing impact on the people whose lives you touch. If a godly life backs up your words of witness, your faith will show. People may doubt what you say, but they will believe what you do and go through for your faith.
In a concluding summary the writer points out in verse 40 that neither the great heroes of faith he had spoken of nor those he is speaking to have realized their fullest eternal hopes (1 Jn 3:1-2). “Because God had provided something better for us, so that apart from us they would not be made perfect.”
What these heroes of faith never saw nor enjoyed, God now “has provided (aorist tense of problepo, “to see before - foreseen”) for us something better” or the New Covenant. God has provided the redemptive work of Christ which we by faith can now appropriate for our daily life. Until Jesus’ atoning work on the cross was accomplished, no faith no matter how great could lead to maturity, fulfillment or completion. “Be made perfect” translates a verb (teleloo) which means “to bring something to its intended end or goal.” A kindred verb (teleo) means to perform the act that achieves that end or goal. This is the verb Jesus used on the cross when He cried: “It is finished” (Jn. 19:30) - tetelestai. Jesus by faith died so that God might provide salvation to those who would receive it by grace through faith.
So that introduces God’s glorious purpose which involves Old Testament saints as well as New Testament saints. Ultimately God will sum up all things in Christ. He will gather all the redeemed of all the ages together in Christ and under Christ (Eph. 1:9-10). One day we who are waiting will be given our new bodies in our eternal home, and we will be perfected together. Then we will inherit the promise and experience so great a salvation.
[The perfecting of believers in title, and in respect to conscience, took place once for all, at the death of Christ, by virtue of His being made by death perfect as Savior. Their perfecting in soul at, and ever after Christ’s death, took place, and takes place at their death. But the universal and final perfecting will not take place till Christ’s coming.
Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible, vol. 2 (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997), 474–475.]
In CLOSING
[Without faith it is impossible to please God. This faith grows as we listen to the Word (Rom. 10:17), fellowship in worship and live daily for Christ.]
The writer to the Hebrews is seeking to inspire new courage and a new sense of understanding by helping his hearers remember the past. When we are discouraged and the odds seem against us we need to take courage and find faith knowing that God is victorious. Realize the victories God’s faithful servants won in the past can be won today for God’s arm of salvation has not been shortened nor His power dimmed. What He once did He can do again for the God of history is the same One we worship today!
Though many faithful have gone before us and died striving for, yet never obtaining, the blessed holy state of perfection on earth we know that God has so arranged things so that the full blaze of His glory should not be revealed until it can be enjoyed in unison together.
Come and follow Christ by faith, do great deeds and see the glory of the Lord, but also realize there is a cost that precedes the glory of the glorified.
When we believe God, we take Him at His word and walk with Him through whatever He places before us. With faith in God we can face sickness, loss of job, family difficulties, and uncertain futures. With faith in God we can glorify our Father in daily living, find and follow His will for our lives, and receive His commendation of “well done, good and faithful servant” (Mt. 25:21). Come, let us walk this journey of faith together in the hope of the perfecting of all things in Christ!
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