Hebrews 11

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Hebrews 11

The apostle having, in the close of the foregoing chapter, recommended the grace of faith and a life of faith as the best preservative against apostasy, he how enlarges upon the nature and fruits of this excellent grace. I. The nature of it, and the honour it reflects upon all who live in the exercise of it, Heb. 11:1-3. II. The great examples we have in the Old Testament of those who lived by faith, and died and suffered extraordinary things by the strength of his grace, Heb. 11:4-38. And,... read more

Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Hebrews 11:1-3

Here we have, I. A definition or description of the grace of faith in two parts. 1. It is the substance of things hoped for. Faith and hope go together; and the same things that are the object of our hope are the object of our faith. It is a firm persuasion and expectation that God will perform all that he has promised to us in Christ; and this persuasion is so strong that it gives the soul a kind of possession and present fruition of those things, gives them a subsistence in the soul, by the... read more

Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Hebrews 11:4-31

The apostle, having given us a more general account of the grace of faith, now proceeds to set before us some illustrious examples of it in the Old-Testament times, and these may be divided into two classes:?1. Those whose names are mentioned, and the particular exercise and actings of whose faith are specified. 2. Those whose names are barely mentioned, and an account given in general of the exploits of their faith, which it is left to the reader to accommodate, and apply to the particular... read more

Matthew Henry

Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary - Hebrews 11:32-40

The apostle having given us a classis of many eminent believers, whose names are mentioned and the particular trials and actings of their faith recorded, now concludes his narrative with a more summary account of another set of believers, where the particular acts are not ascribed to particular persons by name, but left to be applied by those who are well acquainted with the sacred story; and, like a divine orator, he prefaces his part of the narrative with an elegant expostulation: What shall... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Hebrews 11:1-3

11:1-3 Faith means that we are certain of the things we hope for, convinced of the thing we do not see. It was because of faith that the men of old time had their record attested. It is by faith that we understand that the world was fashioned by the word of God, so that what is seen came into being out of what is unseen. To the writer to the Hebrews faith is absolutely certain that what it believes is true and that what it expects will come. It is not the hope which looks forward with... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Hebrews 11:4

11:4 It was by faith that Abel offered to God a fuller sacrifice than Cain and so gained the verdict of being a just man, for God himself witnessed to that fact on the grounds of the gifts he brought: and although he died because of his faith, he is still speaking to us. The writer to the Hebrews begins his honour roll of faith with the name of Abel whose story is in Genesis 4:1-15 . Cain tilled the ground and brought to God an offering of the fruits of the ground; Abel was a... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Hebrews 11:5-6

11:5-6 It was by faith that Enoch was transferred from this to the other life so that he did not die but passed from men's sight, because God took him from one life to the other. For, before this change came to him it was testified that he pleased God. Apart from faith it is impossible to please God, for he who approaches God must believe that God is, and that he is the rewarder of those who spend their lives seeking him. In the Old Testament the life of Enoch is summed up in one sentence:... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Hebrews 11:7

11:7 It was by faith that Noah, when he had been informed by God about things that were still unseen, reverently accepted the message and built an ark to preserve his household in safety. Through that faith he passed judgment on the world and became an heir of the righteousness which is the result of faith. The Old Testament story of Noah is in Genesis 6:1-22 ; Genesis 7:1-24 ; Genesis 8:1-22 . The earth was so wicked that God decided that there remained nothing to do but destroy it.... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Hebrews 11:8-10

11:8-10 It was by faith that Abraham, when he was caned, showed his obedience by going out to a place which he was going to receive as an inheritance, and he went out not knowing where he was to go. It was by faith that he sojourned in the land that had been promised to him, as though it had been a foreign land, living in tents, in the same way as did Isaac and Jacob, who were his coheirs in the promise of it. For he was waiting for the city which has foundations, whose architect and builder... read more

William Barclay

William Barclay's Daily Study Bible - Hebrews 11:11-12

11:11-12 It was by faith that Sarah, too, received power to conceive and to bear a son, although she was beyond the age for it, for she believed that he who gave the promise could be absolutely relied upon. So from one man, and he a man whose body had lost its vitality, there were born descendants, as many as the stars of the sky in multitude, as countless as the sand upon the seashore. The story of the promise of a son to Abraham and Sarah is told in Genesis 17:15-22 ; Genesis 18:9-15 ... read more

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