Disciples Digital Library

After expounding on the “ household of God ” and demonstrating the superiority of the Son over Moses,  Hebrews  continues with a lesson drawn from the history of Israel. During its sojourn in the wilderness, the Israelites complained bitterly against the “ servant of God ,” for leading them to a place with insufficient water supplies. Consequently, God decreed that the generation of Israelites freed from Egyptian bondage would not enter the Promised Land.

The Letter continues with its analogy to  Israel’s rebellion  in the wilderness, thereby summoning believers not to make the same error of unbelief and fail to enter God’s “ rest .” In the desert, Yahweh decreed that the generation of Israelites that fled from Egypt would not enter the Promised Land. And so, disciples of Jesus who fail to “ hold fast the beginning of their confidence firm unto the end ” will face a similar fate. They will not inherit the promises of God.

The first chapter of  Hebrews  emphasizes the supremacy of the High Priest who now sits at the “ right hand of the Majesty on High .” In the chapter’s second half, the eternal sovereignty of God is described (“ Your throne, O God, is to times everlasting ”), then the qualifications of the Son for the priesthood are stated (“ You loved righteousness and hated lawlessness ”). This leads to the exhortation at the beginning of Chapter 2.

Mark highlights the unbelief behind the inability of both his opponents and the disciples to perceive exactly who Jesus was  -  Mark 8:1-21 .  Despite all they had seen, the disciples remained dull of hearing and ran the risk of submitting to the same unbelief that characterized the opponents of Jesus, especially the unbelief and hostility of the Pharisees. Regardless of his many miracles, they still could not comprehend who he was, the Messiah of Israel and the savior of the world.