Lose heart (1590) (ekluo from ek = out or intensifier + luo = to loose) means literally to loosen out and to to untie, to dissolve, to release. To be unstrung. To relax effort. Figuratively ekluo means to give up. To be without strength (Mt 15:32, Mark 8:3). Ekluo was used to describe reapers who had been overcome by heat and toil.
Since ekluo means to unloose, the opposite idea is to gird up (Greek anazonnumi) as used figuratively in first Peter...
Therefore, gird (gird up - anazonnumi) your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope (aorist imperative - command to do this now) completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. (1Pe 1:13-note)
In the passive voice ekluo means to to become slack or so tired and weary as to give out and possibly even to faint from exhaustion. To be exhausted as a result of giving in to evil. To be physically or morally weak.
To become disheartened or discouraged, losing the motivation to accomplish a valid goal (as in Gal 6:9).
In the Gospels ekluo speaks of those who become physically weak and faint from lack of food.
Ekluo was used in a number of contexts such as to spill water; to be physically weak (described as having limp, soft, or lifeless hands), to have a weak heart; or to be morally lax. Here in Hebrews, the writer uses ekluo to encourage his readers to “not slacken” when they undergo trials. We all need to remember that whatever trials we are going trough, God allows (or sometimes sends) and thus we are ultimately in our Father's hands. Such providential training through correction or discipline (which is expounded on in the following passages - see note Hebrews 12:5) and is always Divinely designed for our good.
They are the words which Aristotle uses of an athlete who collapses on the ground after he has surged past the finish line. So the writer of Hebrews is in effect saying
"Don't give up too soon. Don't collapse until you break the finish line."
Ekluo is found 5 times in the NT...
Matthew 15:32 And Jesus called His disciples to Him, and said, "I feel compassion for the multitude, because they have remained with Me now three days and have nothing to eat; and I do not wish to send them away hungry, lest they faint on the way."
Mark 8:3 and if I send them away hungry to their home, they will faint (be exhausted) on the way; and some of them have come from a distance."
Galatians 6:9 And let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary.
Hebrews 12:3 For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you may not grow weary and lose heart.
Hebrews 12:5 (note) and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, "My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by Him
Ekluo is used 45 times in the Septuagint (LXX) (Ge 27:40; 49:24; Deut 20:3; Jos 10:6; 18:3; 14.28" class="scriptRef">1 Sa 14:28; 30:21; 2 Sa 4:1; 16:2, 14; 17:2, 29; 21:11, 15; 1 Ki 20:43; 2 Chr. 15:7; Ezra 4:4; Neh. 6:9; 19.25" class="scriptRef">Job 19:25; Pr 3:11; 6:3; Isa 13:7; 29:9; 46:2; 51:20; Jer 4:31; 12:5; 38:4; 49:24; Lam 2:12, 19; Ezek 7:17; 31:15; Da 8:27)
Deuteronomy 20:3 "And he shall say to them, 'Hear, O Israel, you are approaching the battle against your enemies today. Do not be fainthearted (Hebrew = rakak = to be tender, weak, soft. Lxx = ekluo). Do not be afraid, or panic, or tremble before them,
2 Samuel 21:15 Now when the Philistines were at war again with Israel, David went down and his servants with him; and as they fought against the Philistines, David became weary (Hebrew = iph = to be faint; Lxx = ekluo)
2 Chronicles 15:7 "But you (the Spirit of God came upon Azariah who said to Asa) , be strong and do not lose courage (Hebrew is literally "let not your hands be weak"; Lxx = ekluo), for there is reward for your work."
Ezra 4:4 Then the people of the land discouraged (KJV is more literal = "weakened the hands"; Lxx = ekluo) the people of Judah, and frightened them from building,
Nehemiah 6:9 For all of them were trying to frighten us, thinking, "They will become discouraged (Hebrew = raphah = sink, relax + yad = hand - literally "relax the hand"; Lxx = ekluo) with the work and it will not be done." But now, O God, strengthen my hands (Comment: A good prayer for all of us who may letting our hands "relax" and be becoming weary in the Lord's work! It is His work you are doing isn't it? Remember, He initiates and enables all His ministry through us. There is much being done today in the church ostensibly in His Name, but is initiated and empowered by the fallen flesh, which is especially deceptive and subtle when it puts on an external cloak of religious garb and speech!)
Proverbs 3:11 (KJV) My son, despise not the chastening of the LORD; neither be weary (Hebrew = quwts = to be grieved, loathe, abhor; Lxx = ekluo) of his correction:
Isaiah 13:7 Therefore all hands will fall limp (Hebrew = raphah = sink, relax ; Lxx = ekluo) and every man's heart will melt. (Comment: When will this occur? The context explains that this will come about in the Day of the Lord)
Jeremiah 12:5 "If you have run with footmen and they have tired you out (Hebrew = laah = to become weary or tired; Lxx = ekluo), Then how can you compete with horses? If you fall down in a land of peace, How will you do in the thicket of the Jordan?
Ezekiel 7:17 '(Context is the destruction of Jerusalem) All hands will hang limp (Hebrew = raphah = sink, relax ; Lxx = ekluo), and all knees will become like water.
It is normal for Christians to have experiences of stress and suffering that threaten their faith and press too hard or last too long and feel almost intolerable - we've all experienced this sense of despair. Losing heart is always a great spiritual danger. And the readers were in that danger, as are many believers today in our society which is adrift morally and ethically. Contemplation of Christ, His sufferings and His reward, is the great preventative of such weariness and loss of heart.
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Our Daily Bread - A Hole in the Head. - Hebrews 12:3 - Private Raymond Cote was in Germany with the 12th Infantry after World War II. During maneuvers, he was put on sentry duty to guard some pontoons on the banks of the Rhine. Because of an oversight, he was not relieved for 6 days. He knew the general order that states: "To quit my post only when properly relieved." So he stayed on duty day and night even when it rained heavily. Sympathetic farmers gave him food and milk. When he finally was relieved and got back to his outfit, his commanding officer praised his "strong sense of duty." But some of his buddies wisecracked that Cote had "a hole in his head."
Followers of the Savior also need a strong determination to carry out faithfully whatever duty the Commanding Officer may assign. It may involve much discomfort, perhaps causing people to regard us as having a hole in the head. But our faithful Commander, whose head was lacerated by a crown of thorns, also had holes in His hands, feet, and side because He did His Father's will.
What will strengthen us to remain faithful when tempted to quit some God-assigned post before our Lord properly relieves us? It is the thought of "Him who endures such hostility from sinners against Himself" (Heb. 12:3). - V C Grounds (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
I would be true, for there are those who trust me;
I would be pure, for there are those who care.
I would be strong, for there is much to suffer;
I would be brave, for there is much to dare.--Walter
To remain faithful where God has placed you, give God first place in your heart.
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Our Daily Bread - A Sacrifice Remembered - A white wall in the Veterans Memorial Museum in Branson, Missouri, bears the names of 406,000 US soldiers who died in World War II. Each name points beyond itself to the larger cause for which they died.
Nearly every nation has monuments to its fallen soldiers and a day to remember those who died fighting for their country. Whether or not we agree with their ideals, we do well to ponder their courage and sacrifice.
Hebrews 11 lists a number of heroes who lived and died courageously "by faith." Near the end of the chapter, the list changes from the names of individuals to groups of believers whose experiences ranged from miraculous deliverance to torture and death because they refused to compromise their faith in God.
Individually and collectively, they remind us that the spiritual battle is not over. One paraphrase of Hebrews 12:1 says, "Do you see what this means—all these pioneers who blazed the way, all these veterans cheering us on? It means we'd better get on with it" (The Message by Eugene Peterson).
As we recall every sacrifice made on our behalf and every example of spiritual courage, let's determine to keep our eyes on Jesus and to join the parade of faithful veterans of the faith. —David C. McCasland (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
As we remember those who've gone before
And think about the sacrifice they made,
We cannot help but think about our Lord,
Who gave His life—our ransom fully paid. —Hess
Let's never forget that others have died so that we might live.
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Our Daily Bread - Roughed Up To Grow Up - Many Christians have to be lovingly roughed up before they will grow up. Although the heavenly Father never allows His children to suffer needlessly, sometimes He lets them experience hard knocks so they'll become mature believers.
The need for "bad weather" to stimulate growth can be seen in nature. Scientists say that the seeds of some desert bushes must be damaged by a storm before they will germinate. They are covered with hard shells that keep out water. This allows them to lie dormant on the sand for several seasons until conditions are right for growth.
When heavy rains finally come, the little seeds are carried away in a flash flood. They are banged against sand, gravel, and rocks as they rush down the slopes. Eventually they settle in a depression where the soil has become damp to a depth of several feet. Only then do they begin to grow, for moisture is absorbed through the nicks and scratches they picked up on their downhill plunge.
Similarly, difficulties may be needed to wake up a sleeping saint. This may hurt for a while, but if we yield to the Lord we will find that life's bruises can mark the beginning of spiritual advances. We may prefer to remain "seeds," but He wants us to become "fruitful trees." —Mart De Haan (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
Should Thy mercy send me sorrow, toil, and woe,
Or should pain attend me on my path below,
Grant that I may never fail Thy hand to see,
Grant that I may ever cast my care on Thee. —Montgomery
There are no gains without pains
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Our Daily Bread - Are You Struggling? - I was in my second year of widowhood and I was struggling. Morning after morning my prayer-life consisted of one daily sigh: "Lord, I shouldn't be struggling like this!" "And why not?" His still, small voice asked me from within one morning.
Then the answer came—unrecognized pride! Somehow I had thought that a person of my spiritual maturity should be beyond such struggle. What a ridiculous thought! I had never been a widow before and needed the freedom to be a true learner—even a struggling learner.
At the same time, I was reminded of the story of a man who took home a cocoon so he could watch the emperor moth emerge. As the moth struggled to get through the tiny opening, the man enlarged it with a snip of his scissors. The moth emerged easily—but its wings were shriveled. The struggle through the narrow opening is God's way to force fluid from its body into its wings. The "merciful" snip, in reality, was cruel.
Hebrews 12 describes the Christian life as a race that involves endurance, discipline, and correction. We never get beyond the need of a holy striving against self and sin. Sometimes the struggle is exactly what we need to become what God intends us to be.—Joanie Yoder (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
When God allows His chastening hand
To give us little rest,
His only purpose is our good—
He wants for us His best. —D. De Haan
We experience God's strength in the strain of our struggle
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Our Daily Bread - Remembrance Day - I was in London’s Heathrow Airport waiting for a connecting flight to the US. An announcement came over the public address system stating that it was “Remembrance Day” in the UK, the day on which people honored those who had died for their country in times of war. The announcement further said that at 11:00 a.m. there would be 2 minutes of silence and that it would be appreciated if everyone kept that in mind. Thousands of people from all over the world stood in silence as a tribute to the fallen soldiers, sailors, marines, and airmen of the UK.
The desire to remember those who gave their lives for their country is noble. Yet, as meaningful as that is, it cannot compare to the privilege that belongs to us when we approach the Lord’s Table. As we celebrate Communion, we are obeying Christ’s command that we remember His death (Luke 22:19) and to do it “till He comes” (1 Cor. 11:26). When He sacrificed His life for us, He provided the forgiveness of sins that sets us free and secures for us an eternal home in heaven.
Rather than letting the Lord’s Supper become routine, make every opportunity at the Table a true “Remembrance Day” by honoring Him till He comes. —Bill Crowder (Our Daily Bread, Copyright RBC Ministries, Grand Rapids, MI. Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved)
Thank You, Lord, for dying for me
On the cross of Calvary;
Help me always to remember
What You did to set me free. —Sper
Remembering Christ’s death for us should cause us to live for Him
Hebrews 12:4 You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin; (NASB: Lockman)
Greek: Houpo mechris haimatos antikatestete (2PAAI) pros ten hamartian antagonizomenoi, (PMPMPN)
Amplified: You have not yet struggled and fought agonizingly against sin, nor have you yet resisted and withstood to the point of pouring out your [own] blood. (Amplified Bible - Lockman)
NLT: After all, you have not yet given your lives in your struggle against sin. (NLT - Tyndale House)
Phillips: After all, your fight against sin has not yet meant the shedding of blood, (Phillips: Touchstone)
TLB: After all, you have never yet struggled against sin and temptation until you sweat great drops of blood.
Weymouth: In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted so as to endanger your lives;
Wuest: Not yet have you withstood to the extent of blood, struggling against sin. (Eerdmans)
Young's Literal: Not yet unto blood did ye resist -- with the sin striving;
YOU HAVE NOT YET RESISTED TO THE POINT OF SHEDDING BLOOD: Oupo mechris haimatos antikatestete (2PAAI): (Heb 12:2; 10:32, 33, 34; Mt 24:9; 1Cor 10:13; 2Ti 4:6,7; Rev 2:13; 6:9, 10, 11; 12:11; Rev 17:6; 18:24)
Paul records a parallel truth in his first letter to the saints at Corinth declaring that...
No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it. (1Co 10:13-see in depth discussion)
Not yet - What does this contrasting time phrase imply? While their intense struggle had not yet resulted in death, the implication is that they must be prepared for a deadly encounter. We know from Heb 10:34 10:34 (note) that some had been imprisoned and some had been plundered.
We must never forget the axiom that while there certainly is a restful side to the Christian life (Mt 11:28, Php 4:6, 7-see notes Php 4:6; 4:7), on the other hand there is also a wrestling side to the Christian life. This latter is a struggling, striving, fighting of the good fight (cp Paul's testimony - 2Ti 4:7note)
John Piper explains that...
These two sides are not related in such a way that you rest one day and wrestle the next. They are interwoven in two ways. 1) First, the main aim of our wrestling is to rest—in God and not in money or position or looks or achievement; the aim of our wrestling is to rest in the promises of God and not the promises of sin. 2) Second, all our wrestling and fighting and running are done with a deep restfulness of spirit that Christ Himself has already won the decisive victory for us and is sovereignly working in us and will bring us to glory. (Read the full sermon The Painful Discipline of our Heavenly Father)
Resisted (478) (antikathistemi from antí = against + kata = opposition against + histemi = place, stand) literally pictures one standing (histemi) face to face (anti) against (kata). Speaking of the disposition of troops, antikathistemi meant to stand in opposition against in a line of battle. In secular writings it has the meaning in of passive “holding out” rather than that of active aggression.
Your strife against sin has not entailed the shedding of your blood, as did that of many of the OT saints (heroes of faith in Heb 11:1ff, 11:35, 37) and of Jesus himself. Of Jesus Php 2:8, Heb 10:32ff. Heb 13:13 None of the readers of this book had yet been martyred (if they had been, they would not be reading the epistle!)
The point here is that things are bad, but not as bad as they could be. There is hostility and trouble and stress and suffering, but evidently no martyrs yet. We know from Heb 10:34 that some had been imprisoned and some had been plundered. But it is not yet martyrdom, though that could come. The stress level here is huge. How do you sleep at night when being a Christian may result in mob violence?
Jesus, the ultimate hero of their faith, had shed His blood (12:2,3; cf. Heb 9:12) and His followers have to be prepared to do the same. The ultimate test of Greek athletic contests (Heb 12:1-3) was boxing, which often drew blood; but the language here indicates the ultimate test is martyrdom which Jesus portrayed as an expected part of Christian discipleship (Mk 8:34, 35, 36, 37, 38).
When the writer to the Hebrews says that his people have not yet resisted to the point of blood, as Moffatt puts it, "he is not blaming them, he is shaming them. When they think of what the heroes of the past went through to make their faith possible, surely they cannot drift into lethargy or flinch from conflict.
The point of shedding blood - The secular Roman author Seneca wrote that...
The athlete who hath seen his own blood, and who, though cast down by his opponent, does not let his spirits be cast down, who as often as he hath fallen hath risen the more determined, goes down to the encounter with great hope
IN YOUR STRIVING AGAINST SIN: pros ten hamartian antagonizomenoi (PMPMPN):
Striving against (464) (antagonizomai from anti = against, face to face is the idea in this context + agonizomai [word study] [English word - antagonist] = to fight, labor fervently, strive - a picture of an intense contest for victory as in Olympic games) means to contend with an adversary or to engage in an intense struggle against something or someone, in this case sin. The picture is of one who fights agonizingly against an adversary and thus speaks of a terrific fight.
The metaphor is still that of the athletic contest, but now shifts from the race track to the boxing ring (both being part of the national Greek games), but will then shift again to that of a family (every son whom He disciplines).
Note the present tense indicates a continual struggle and the middle voice signifies their personal involvement (reflexive - "you yourselves" is the idea)
Robertson observes that they are...
Face to face with sin as in Hebrews 12:1 (note).
Against the Sin (rather than the hostility of sinners as in Hebrews 12:3) where sin is personified. "The Sin" emphasizes it's essential character for even believers are still sinners. They are just saved sinners. What was "the sin" (cp Heb 12:1)? Was it the sin of falling away, willfully sinning, shrinking back, etc?
Jamieson, et al write that here
Sin is personified as an adversary; sin, whether within you, leading you to spare your blood, or in our adversaries, leading them to shed it, if they cannot through your faithfulness even unto blood, induce you to apostatize.
BKC writes that...
By “sin” the author probably primarily meant that of “sinful men” who opposed them, but doubtless also had their own sin in mind, which they had to resist in order to maintain a steadfast Christian profession. (Walvoord, J. F., Zuck, R. B., et al: The Bible Knowledge Commentary. 1985. Victor or Logos)
Constable writes that...
Their striving against sin probably refers to both resisting sinful opponents and resisting temptations to sin in their own lives (see note Hebrews 12:1). (Hebrews 12)
Wuest explains it this way...
Their striving against sin was their battle against the temptation of renouncing their professed faith in Messiah in order that they might be relieved of the persecution which they were enduring. His striving against sin was His submitting to the death of the Cross, with all that that involved, His becoming sin for us, the breaking for the time of the fellowship between the Father and the Son, and all the intense and awful physical agony of crucifixion. (Wuest, K. S. Wuest's Word Studies from the Greek New Testament: Eerdmans or Logos)
Westcott comments that...
Christians had to contend primarily with open enemies whose assaults seem to be contemplated here... At the same time there is an inward struggle which cannot be wholly overlooked, though this did not involve literally ‘a resistance to blood.’ (Ibid)
Spurgeon Exposition...
Hebrews 12:3, 4 - Jesus is here delightfully called “ the author and finisher of our faith.” In most of the arts, there is a division of labor, one man begins, and another completes; there is scarcely anything that is completed by one man; but the stupendous work of our salvation was not only commenced but it was also completed by the Lord Jesus Christ alone. Let us look unto him then. This will help us to persevere unto the end because he persevered to the end.
Think how he wrestled, think how he ran; and let your consideration of him nerve you for your struggle, and brace up every muscle of your spirit so that you will be determined that, as he won, so Will you by the divine help of him who is “the Author and Finisher of our faith.”
It has not come to that yet with any of you who are now here; you have not shed your blood for Christ yet, for these are not martyr days, so can you be wearied and faint? If you run with the footmen, and they weary you how will you contend with horses? We ought to be ashamed of ourselves if we grow weary in a race that is so easy compared with that of the men and women who laid down their lives for Christ’s sake
It has never come to a bloody sweat with you as with him, nor to death upon a cross, as in his case. Shall the disciple be above his master or the servant above his lord?
Our trials are little compared with those of the martyrs of the olden times. Courage, brethren, these are small matters to faint about! Moreover, our chastenings are love tokens from God, let us not be alarmed at them.
Steven Cole explains striving against sin this way...
The author personifies sin as our opponent. It opposes us in two ways:
A. Sometimes the enemy is the evil in the world, opposed to the people of God. The author has just chronicled some of the terrible things that happened to God’s Old Testament saints: mockings, scourgings, chains, imprisonment, being stoned, sawn in two, and put to death with the sword (Heb 11:35, 36, 37). All of these things happened because evil men hated those who lived and proclaimed God’s righteousness.
As John (John 3:20) explained,
For everyone who does evil hates the Light, and does not come to the Light, for fear that his deeds will be exposed.
If you live in obedience to God, your life reflects the light of Christ onto others’ sinful lives. You will not be Mr. or Ms. Popular! Jesus plainly warned (John 15:19)
If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you.
B. Sometimes the enemy is the evil in me, opposed to the holiness of God.
Paul explained (Gal 5;17-note)
For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please.”
Peter exhorts us,
Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul” (
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