Hebrews 11:37 Commentary - Dr Peter Masters

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Hebrews 11:37

Comments

1 Kings 21 records the stoning of Naboth following fabricated accusations of blasphemy. What terrifying hypocrisy Jezebel was capable of! One modern Bible dictionary says that Naboth was very churlish and unreasonable for not being willing to negotiate with King Ahab and sell him his vineyard. No, Naboth was a man of faith, and he refused to sell his inheritance in obedience to the Lord’s commandment, and Ahab had no right to ask for it, he too being under the same law of God. Jewish tradition says that Isaiah was sawn asunder by Manasseh and martyred that way. Whether that is true or not we do not know. They were tempted – this seems out of place. It probably refers to the possibility of having the punishment averted by denying the Lord – they were tempted to be unfaithful to him who has said, ‘fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell’ (Matthew 10:28).‘Slain with the sword’: Elijah says this happened to the prophets in his day. They ‘wandered, afflicted, tormented’ – Elijah was very poor, and wore rough garments. John the Baptist adopted these clothes to show he stood in the line of the prophets and called the people to repentance. God’s prophets were not supported by the Jews, but persecuted for the unwelcome message they brought.

Application

The Pilgrim Church by EH Broadbent traces in a wonderful and thrilling way the sufferings and the witness of the people of God down the centuries. It is a humbling account of church history that moves you to greater commitment to Christ. It is just like this passage here: they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, they were tempted, they were slain with the sword, they wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, thrown out of homes being destitute, afflicted, tormented of whom the world was not worthy. The world will still act against us even when we try to help them. The world is not worthy of Christians. Even though the world is only kept in existence because of God’s purpose to call out his elect people, and even though it is due to the unfathomable patience of God that he bears with its rebellion, the world still persecutes believers in various ways.

Naboth, the one in the right, was condemned as a wrongdoer. The same happens today when on the basis of God’s word we declare something to be wrong – we are described as narrowminded. An EU directive from 2000 outlaws discrimination against homosexuals and so we will be criminalised if we fail to give them a job.

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Hebrews 11:37 Commentary and Bible Study