Hebrews 11:14 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

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Hebrews 11:14

Comments

In calling themselves strangers and pilgrims or sojourners, the patriarchs used language which indicated that they believed they were living away from their true home. Canaan was not the country they considered that they belonged to – the word ‘country’ means fatherland. They were aliens in that land, foreigners, and they did not wish to be regarded as anything else: this was an essential part of their testimony. They dwelt in tabernacles (verse 9), that is, in tents, and did not build themselves permanent solid houses as anyone would who regarded this as their own country – Ur, from which Abraham had come, had solid brick buildings. God had called Abraham to leave Ur and to go into the land of Canaan and had promised him that land as an inheritance, but when he got there he had to live as a foreigner, as only a temporary resident, as someone who was moving on to their true permanent home, their true country of residence, would do. He did not regard himself as having arrived in his own country even though God had promised it to him. Abraham therefore did two things at once. He was the receiver of the promise of an earthly land and believed God would make good that promise, but at the same time he lived in such a way that he made plain that Canaan was not really the land he was seeking. Yes, he lived in such a way as to relate to those around him, and he was kind and did good to all he related to in that foreign land, but he was not settled there.

Application

We too live as believers in such a way that we could be called out of this world at any time. When God calls us, we will have to answer the question, ‘What did you do there?’ May we not have to answer, ‘I am afraid I enjoyed it too much; I put down roots there so that I found it very difficult to leave, and I was indistinguishable from those who belonged to the world.’ We need a pilgrim spirit. If Abraham had a raw deal, he did not stand on his rights and complain. We may have a short life but we want to have a useful life for the Lord.

Abraham deliberately put out of his mind the remembrance of Ur; he did not rehearse in his mind what it was like. This harking back to the old life is always antagonistic to faith. The devil says, ‘Engage in some nostalgia about the past. Remember how much you enjoyed your life as an unbeliever.’ Abraham could have traded back there and enjoyed the comforts, ease, security, and riches. There have never been so many enticements as there are today. Aren’t you tempted every time they invent something new? Doesn’t the devil tempt you to buy the latest gadget? Don’t do it. Abraham was not in love with life in a tent or in a foreign country; what kept him was that God had called him to be there. God is our strength whenever we are weak or low. We experience blessing in times of loss, calm, the peace of God passing understanding. When all is turbulent, he makes you feel calm and give you his stabilising influence. Why should we go back to the old, when we have such a wonderful future inheritance?

Questions

Was it a failure on Abraham’s part that he did not take the promise of the land seriously? No, it was something much more profound than that. It was his recognition of the fact that the earthly land that he had been promised was not the ultimate fulfilment of the promise. It was a pledge, a token, an earnest, of something much greater – his heavenly inheritance. The land was a beautiful picture of heaven, a kingdom with its own borders, its own government, its own laws, its own King, but ultimately Abraham was not content with any such earthly land, where he would continue to live as a mortal man facing death and expecting to leave all behind at the end of life. He sought a permanent home for body and soul, where he could be forever with the Lord, his ‘exceeding great reward’ (Genesis 15:1). That could not be an earthly city, but only a heavenly one.

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Hebrews 11:14 Commentary and Bible Study