Hebrews 11:36

And others had trial of mockings and scourgings, yea, moreover of bonds and imprisonment: they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, they were tempted, they were slain with the sword: they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, (of whom the world was not worthy), wandering in deserts and mountains and caves, and holes of the earth.

The whole list of atrocities given here can be only a partial account of all the inhumanities and indignities heaped upon God's children by unbelievers through the long centuries during which the light shone in the darkness and the darkness overcame it not (John 1:5). Many whose names none shall ever know until the judgment have suffered these or similar trials. Some of the names of such persons are preserved in the Old Testament. Samson (Judges 16:25); Micaiah (1 Kings 22:27), Hanani (2 Chronicles 16:10), and Jeremiah (Jeremiah 22:2ff; 32:2ff) were all victims of such treatment. In the historical book of 2Maccabees are the accounts of many such things that doubtless happened; and it is possible that the author of Hebrews here has reference to such things which were so well known among all the Jews. There were terrible atrocities practiced against many faithful Jews during the long centuries between the Old Testament and New Testament; and through the apocryphal writings, the Jews who received Hebrews doubtless had great familiarity with all of them.

Zechariah was stoned (2 Chronicles 24:20); Isaiah was sawn asunder, being placed between two boards to expedite it, according to the Talmud; Urijah was slain by the sword (Jeremiah 26:23); Elijah wandered about in a sheepskin, this fact coming to light from the translation of the word "mantle" (2 Kings 2:13), used to describe Elijah's clothing.

Of whom the world was not worthy. This seems to be a proverbial expression thrown in here, parenthetically, to denote the holiness of the heroes of faith as contrasted with the godlessness of the vast majority of their contemporaries; and it has its application to the faithful children of God in every generation.

Wandering in deserts, mountains, caves, ... is a reference to the flight of the righteous from the normal habitations of people in order to avoid moral pollution of the age in which they lived; and the fact that many indeed did live as indicated here is proved by the discovery of the Dead Sea scrolls within our own times, and in just such a place as these described here.

THE FAITH OF THE PROPHETS

The prophets, being particularly mentioned in this chapter as outstanding examples of faith, it is appropriate to inquire more specifically into the manner of faith's exhibition by them. Their endurance of hardship, suffering, privation, persecution, trials, and martyrdom, they had in common with all the ancient worthies; but at one point their faith encountered a unique test, in that they did not always themselves understand the meaning of the words the Lord gave them to speak, although they exerted the greatest diligence to do so. Peter said of them,

Concerning which salvation the prophets sought and searched diligently, who prophesied of the grace that should come unto you: searching what time or what manner of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them did point unto, when it was testified beforehand the sufferings of Christ, and the glories that should follow them. To whom it was revealed, that not unto themselves, but unto you did they minister these things, which now have been announced unto you by the Holy Spirit sent forth from heaven; which things angels desire to look into (1 Peter 1:10-12).

In the light of this, the character of a prophet had to be of the most rugged and positive nature. There could be no going back to procure a softening or alteration of the message, as in the case of the guilty Balaam (Numbers 22:19). There was no choice on the prophet's part, permitting him to expound that part of God's word that he thought he understood, and omitting to proclaim what was arcane or not understood at all. The importance of these things lies in the fact that here is the answer to the question of whether God's word is verbally inspired or not; and it is evident that the only kind of inspiration there is is verbal; by that, it is meant that God actually gave the words to the prophets which they were commanded to speak. There is no example whatever of God's ever giving the prophets ideas, or thoughts, and trusting them to convey such in their own words. God gave the words; and the prophets delivered them, often not knowing, in any sense, what they meant. Nor was that phenomenon confined to the Old Testament seers. Peter himself uttered words on the Day of Pentecost which, if he had understood them, would have made it absolutely unnecessary for God, later on, to perform a miracle to reveal to Peter the truth of what Peter had already said. Thus, on Pentecost, Peter said the promise of God was to them "afar off," a manifest reference to the Gentiles; but it took the direct interposition of a vision from heaven to get him to go down to the house of Cornelius, a Gentile, years after he had so spoken.