himself also rested from his works like as God did from

his own.

11. Therefore, let us diligently strive to enter into that glorious and perfect rest, which is promised to believers, lest any one should fall after the same example of unbelief which ancient Israel exhibited.

12. For the word of God, which he hath spoken by his Son, the Apostle of our profession, and by which we shall be judged at the last day (John xii. 48), is living and efficacious, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder both of soul and spirit, and also of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

13. And, as to the Judge himself, there is no creature unmanifest in his sight; but all things are naked and laid open to the eyes of him to whom we must give an account, Rom. ii. 16.

[Here the apostle returns to the subject of Christ's Priesthood, which he had briefly mentioned before, chap. i. 3, and ii. 17, 18, and recommended to their consideration, chap. iii. 1.]

14. Having therefore a great High Priest, who hath passed through the heavens, into the immediate presence of the Divine Majesty, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession.

15. For, as we have already hinted, (chap. ii. 17, 18), we have not an High Priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses; but has been himself tried in all points, like as we are (Gr. according to the likeness), yet without sin.

16. Let us therefore approach with boldness to the throne of grace, through his mediation, that we may receive mercy for the pardon of our sins, and find grace

for seasonable assistance under all our trials and afflic

tions.

COMMENTARY AND NOTES ON CHAP. IV.

Ver. 1. Let us therefore fear-] The apostle having shewn that unbelief was the cause why Israel in the wilderness could not enter into God's rest, in the land of Canaan, applies that awful example as a caution to the Hebrews, lest they, through unbelief, should come short of the rest proposed to them in the gospel; and he endeavours to awaken in them a deep concern and cautious fear on that head, Let us therefore fear, &c. The fear inculcated upon the Hebrews is not of a discouraging or desponding nature, nor is it a fear that anything which God hath promised can possibly fail on his part, for such a fear would defeat the design of the exhortation, and was the very sin of old Israel, who believed not God, nor trusted to his power and faithfulness to make good his promise to the seed of Abraham; but the fear which is here exhorted to, is a cautious and watchful fear.

-lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it.] That is, lest any of you, through your own unbelief, should fall short of obtaining the promise, which is made only to believers. Some render the words thus, lest, leaving the promise, &c. ; but the common translation agrees better with the verse immediately following, and, indeed, with the scope of the apostle's reasoning to ver. 10, which is to prove from Psal. xcv. 7, that besides the seventh-day rest, and the rest in the land of Canaan, there still is left, or there (apoleipetai) remaineth another rest to the people of God, ver. 9. Agreeably to this he here says, that the promise of this rest (kataleipomenes) being left, or remaining, they were to fear lest any of them should seem to come short of it. Some who are not reconciled to this awful caution,

take notice of the English word seem, in order to soften it, as if the apostle had meant to say, "You cannot indeed really come short of the heavenly rest, but you ought to be cautious lest any of you should have that appearance." But this destroys the force of the caution, which is urged from the example of Israel in the wilderness, who not only seemed, but actually came short of the rest promised them. The word doke, rendered should seem, is in many places of the New Testament redundant, or a mere expletive; but if it is otherwise here, it is seldom expressive of the mere appearance of a thing (see 1 Cor. vii. 40), and it can admit of no doubt that the apostle inculcates this fear upon them, that they might beware lest they should actually come short of God's rest. Besides, the word userekenai signifies to fall behind, to come short of, or fail of obtaining a thing; and it may also import here, that men may appear to be so far on the way to the promised rest, like Israel in the wilderness, and yet never come the full length, so as actually to enter into it.

Many have adopted a scheme of doctrine which tends to set believers free from every kind of fear, as being inconsistent with faith, which they think is a person's believing that he himself shall be saved at all events; and especially if he has been once enlightened, and has ever received the word with joy, it is supposed that he can never fall away. So that whatever present symptoms of apostacy may appear, he is to consider them only as the infirmities and failings of God's children, but has no cause to fear lest he should finally come short, which is looked upon as the great sin of unbelief.

But our apostle had no idea that a cautious fear of coming short through unbelief, was itself unbelief. On the contrary, it was to guard them against unbelief and its awful consequences that he inculcates this fear upon them. Faith, in general, is the belief of God's word, and respects his threatenings as well as promises; and so

gives credit to the motives of fear, as well as of hope, both of which are necessary to believers while in this world. Both believers and unbelievers have their fears; but they arise from very different sources, and have quite opposite effects. The fears of unbelievers arise from unworthy thoughts of God; a distrust of his power, faithfulness, and goodness; and also from a prevailing love of this present world and its enjoyments, which makes them more afraid of worldly losses and sufferings for righteousness sake, than of forfeiting the divine favour: such fears not only indispose the mind for obedience, but lead directly into sin. But that godly fear which is proper to believers, arises from a just view, reverence, and esteem of the character of God, and a supreme desire of his favour as their chief happiness; and is a fear lest they should offend him and incur his just displeasure; such a fear of him as outweighs all the allurements of sin on the one hand, and all the terrors of present sufferings for righteousness sake on the other. This is that fear which Christ inculcates upon his disciples, Luke xii. 4, 5, and this is to sanctify the Lord God in our hearts, and to let him be our fear and our dread, Isa. viii. 12, 13; 1 Pet. iii. 14, 15. Happy is the man that thus feareth alway, Prov. xxviii. 14. This pious fear, instead of dejecting and debasing the mind, like the abject fear of man that bringeth a snare, Prov. xxix. 25, inspires with a noble courage and freedom, by raising us above every other fear which might intimidate or discourage in the way of duty; and as it preserves us from slothful security, and checks self-confidence and highmindedness, Rom xi. 20, 21, so it makes us cautious and vigilant with respect to everything that may endanger the safety of our souls.

But as the apostle urges this cautious fear upon the Hebrews, from what befel their ancestors in the wilderness, who, though they had the promise of the earthly rest proposed to them, yet came short of it through unbelief; and as the Hebrews might perhaps object to this, that the

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cases were quite different, there being no mention made of any rest but that of the land of Canaan, in which they have now no concern, as no promise of entering into it remains to them; he therefore proceeds, ver. 3-10, to prove, that the promise of another and better rest still remains, and is proposed to Christians, who are in danger of coming short of it, even as old Israel did of theirs; and so he says,

Ver. 2. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them,-] This translation does not clearly convey the apostle's meaning. To say that the gospel was preached to the Hebrews, as well as it was to their ancestors in the wilderness, imports that what we commonly call the gospel, was equally preached to both; whereas there can be no just comparison: it being preached far more fully and clearly to the Hebrews and to Christians in general than ever it was to old Israel. The original is, "For we were (euaggelismenoi) evangelized even as they." The word euaggelizo signifies to bring good news or glad tidings of any kind; and here the context leads us to understand this good news to be the promise of a rest; for that is the subject of which the apostle is treating; so that the sense is, We, Christians, have been favoured with the good news or promise of a rest in the heavenly country, even as old Israel were with the good news of a rest in the land of Canaan.

-but the word preached] Gr. "the word of hearing," that is, the word which old Israel heard. This word contained not only a promise of the land, but a command to go up and possess it: "I said unto you, Ye are come unto the mountain of the Amorites, which the Lord our God doth give unto us. Behold the Lord thy God hath set the land before thee; go up and possess it, as the Lord God of thy fathers hath said unto thee. Fear not, neither be discouraged," Deut. i. 20, 21. But the word which they heard, and all the encouragements contained in it,

-did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them