Chapter 4

The Believer’s Rest

1 Therefore, let us fear if, while a promise remains of entering His rest, any one of you may seem to have acome short of it.

2 For indeed we have had good news preached to us, just as they also; but athe word 1they heard did not profit them, because 2it was not united by faith in those who heard.

3 For we who have believed enter that rest, just as He has said,

“aAs I swore in My wrath,

They shall not enter My rest,”

although His works were finished bfrom the foundation of the world.

4 For He has said asomewhere concerning the seventh day: “bAnd God crested on the seventh day from all His works”;

5 and again in this passage, “aThey shall not enter My rest.”

6 Therefore, since it remains for some to enter it, and those who formerly had good news preached to them failed to enter because of adisobedience,

7 He again fixes a certain day, “Today,” saying 1through David after so long a time just aas has been said before,

“bToday if you hear His voice,

Do not harden your hearts.”

8 For aif 1Joshua had given them rest, He would not have spoken of another day after that.

9 So there remains a Sabbath rest for the people of God.

10 For the one who has entered His rest has himself also arested from his works, as bGod did from His.

11 Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same aexample of bdisobedience.

12 For athe word of God is bliving and cactive and sharper than any two-edged dsword, and piercing as far as the division of esoul and espirit, of both joints and marrow, and fable to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

13 And athere is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are bopen and laid bare to the eyes of Him with whom we have to do.

14 Therefore, since we have a great ahigh priest who has bpassed through the heavens, Jesus cthe Son of God, let us hold fast our dconfession.

15 For we do not have aa high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One who has been btempted in all things as we are, yet cwithout sin.

16 Therefore let us adraw near with bconfidence to the throne of grace, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.

Chapter 5

The Perfect High Priest

1 For every high priest ataken from among men is appointed on behalf of men in bthings pertaining to God, in order to coffer both gifts and sacrifices dfor sins;

2 1ahe can deal gently with the bignorant and cmisguided, since he himself also is 2dbeset with weakness;

3 and because of it he is obligated to offer sacrifices afor sins, bas for the people, so also for himself.

4 And ano one takes the honor to himself, but receives it when he is called by God, even bas Aaron was.

5 So also Christ adid not glorify Himself so as to become a bhigh priest, but He who csaid to Him,

“dYou are My Son,

Today I have begotten You”;

6 just as He says also in another passage,

“aYou are a priest forever

According to bthe order of Melchizedek.”

7 1In the days of His flesh, 2aHe offered up both prayers and supplications with bloud crying and tears to the One cable to save Him 3from death, and He 4was heard because of His dpiety.

8 Although He was aa Son, He learned bobedience from the things which He suffered.

9 And having been made aperfect, He became to all those who obey Him the source of eternal salvation,

10 being designated by God as aa high priest according to bthe order of Melchizedek.

11 Concerning 1him we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.

12 For though 1by this time you ought to be teachers, you have need again for someone to teach you athe 2belementary principles of the coracles of God, and you have come to need dmilk and not solid food.

13 For everyone who partakes only of milk is not accustomed to the word of righteousness, for he is an ainfant.

14 But solid food is for athe mature, who because of practice have their senses btrained to cdiscern good and evil.

Chapter 6

The Peril of Falling Away

1 Therefore aleaving bthe 1elementary teaching about the 2Christ, let us press on to 3cmaturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from ddead works and of faith toward God,

2 of ainstruction about washings and blaying on of hands, and the cresurrection of the dead and ceternal judgment.

3 And this we will do, aif God permits.

4 For in the case of those who have once been aenlightened and have tasted of bthe heavenly gift and have been made cpartakers of the Holy Spirit,

5 and ahave tasted the good bword of God and the powers of cthe age to come,

6 and then have fallen away, it is aimpossible to renew them again to repentance, 1bsince they again crucify to themselves the Son of God and put Him to open shame.

7 For ground that drinks the rain which often 1falls on it and brings forth vegetation useful to those afor whose sake it is also tilled, receives a blessing from God;

8 but if it yields thorns and thistles, it is worthless and aclose 1to being cursed, and 2it ends up being burned.

Better Things for You

9 But, abeloved, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and things that 1accompany salvation, though we are speaking in this way.

10 For aGod is not unjust so as to forget byour work and the love which you have shown toward His name, in having cministered and in still ministering to the 1saints.

11 And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence 1so as to realize the afull assurance of bhope until the end,

12 so that you will not be sluggish, but aimitators of those who through bfaith and patience cinherit the promises.

13 For awhen God made the promise to Abraham, since He could swear by no one greater, He bswore by Himself,

14 saying, “aI will surely bless you and I will surely multiply you.”

15 And so, ahaving patiently waited, he obtained the promise.

16 aFor men swear by 1one greater than themselves, and with them ban oath given as confirmation is an end of every dispute.

17 1In the same way God, desiring even more to show to athe heirs of the promise bthe unchangeableness of His purpose, 2interposed with an oath,

18 so that by two unchangeable things in which ait is impossible for God to lie, we who have 1taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of bthe hope set before us.

19 1This ahope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast and one which benters 2within the veil,

20 awhere Jesus has entered as a forerunner for us, having become a bhigh priest forever according to the order of Melchizedek.