'Heb 11:1-22

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Examples of true faith (Heb 11:1-22)

In the previous chapter the writer asserted that people must join faith to perseverance if they are to enjoy the thing hoped for. He now supports this statement with illustrations from the Old Testament. If people have faith, it means they believe that things hoped for according to God’s promises will be achieved and that unseen powers of God are real. Those with faith look beyond what they see. They know that they cannot explain the existence of the world solely by reasoning from the things that can be seen (Heb 11:1-3).

Abel’s sacrifice, Enoch’s daily life and Noah’s obedience all pleased God because they arose out of faith. These men trusted in the unseen God and in his faithfulness to those who wholeheartedly sought him. God on his part rewarded them, but rejected those who showed no faith (Heb 11:4-7; cf. Gen 4:2-7; 5:21-24; 6:8-14).

Abraham’s faith caused him to set out for a promised, yet unknown, earthly inheritance. More than that, it caused him to remain patient when he did not experience the fulfilment of the promise in his lifetime. By faith he looked beyond to a higher fulfilment of the promise (Heb 11:8-10; cf. Gen 12:1-5).

His wife Sarah shared his faith. They trusted God’s promise that they would have a son and through him a multitude of descendants, even though they were both past the age when they might normally expect to have children (Heb 11:11-12; cf. Gen 15:5; 18:11-13).

Abraham and his family did not give up and go back to Abraham’s home in Mesopotamia as soon as difficulties arose. They looked beyond death for a greater fulfilment than they could experience in their earthly lives (Heb 11:13-16; cf. Gen 23:4).

When God told Abraham to offer up his son Isaac, Abraham’s faith was tested, because Isaac was the person through whom God promised to give Abraham a multitude of descendants. Abraham had faith to obey, believing that God could bring Isaac back to life. In his willingness to go ahead with the sacrifice, Abraham did, in effect, offer up Isaac, but God intervened and Abraham received his son back, so to speak, from death (Heb 11:17-19; cf. Gen 22:1-18).

Isaac, Jacob and Joseph were all certain that the promise to Abraham would be fulfilled. This was why Joseph left instructions about his burial. He knew he would die in Egypt, but he instructed that his bones be buried in Canaan. In this way he declared his faith that one day his people would inherit the land God promised them (Heb 11:20-22; cf. Gen 28:1-4; 47:29-31; 49:1; 50:24-25).