Hebrews 12:1 NRSVUE
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us,
Since I wrote the piece on humanity’s destiny being permanently tied to the earth, I have decided to keep putting out short posts to address the conceivable whatabouts bound to emerge. In this piece, I want to address the famous text above.
Hebrews has a long history of torturing exegetes, especially those who come to it with unyielding preconceived notions. This work is full of warnings and encouragements to believing Christians facing severe hardship. The author draws copiously on the Hebrew Bible to encourage believers. For instance:
Hebrews 2:1-3 NRSVUE
[1] Therefore we must pay greater attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. [2] For if the message declared through angels proved valid, and every transgression or disobedience received a just penalty, [3] how will we escape if we neglect so great a salvation? It was declared at first through the Lord, and it was confirmed for us by those who heard him,
The contrast here is that just as unbelieving Israelites perished in the Hebrew Bible, so will believers perish, even more severely, if they “neglect so great a salvation.” Of course, much of Western Christianity has strongly disagreed on the question of the perseverance of the saint – whether a believer can forfeit salvation. I’m not going to rehash the points, but I will include links to my entries on the various positions below. But if we read Hebrews on its own terms, there is no escaping the fact that the author believed and argued that a Christian can forfeit salvation. But that does not have to happen precisely because of Jesus. The first 10 chapters detail Christ’s priestly work, established on firmer grounds than the Levites’. Jesus has opened access to God in ways the old order of priestly functions only dreamt of. Indeed, Jesus is right now functioning as a priest on humanity’s behalf as he intercedes for us:
Hebrews 7:25 NRSVUE
Consequently, he is able for all time to save those who approach God through him, since he always lives to make intercession for them.
Because he has an indestructible life, he can do what the high priests of the past could not do. He lives forever as a priest.
Hebrews 11 lists people who endured much but remained faithful to God’s plan. None of the people was perfect, but neither was perfection required. So, we have David who obtained the promise of an everlasting kingdom (11:33); Barak who, however imperfectly, carried out divine instructions with Deborah; Abraham, the man with whom the salvific plans were set in motion, even if his momentary unbelief complicated the plans; Moses, the first prophet to lead God’s people out of oppression and thereby foreshadowing the last Exodus; and many others. Quite interestingly, the author of Hebrews says two crucial things necessary for understanding the logic of his narrative. First,
Hebrews 11:6 NRSVUE
And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would approach God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him.
God’s people must exercise faith; there is no alternative. But this kind of faith has two essential elements: it professes that God exists – we cannot have faith in a nonentity – and that God delivers what he promises. Second,
Hebrews 11:39-40 NRSVUE
[39] Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised, [40] since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect.
Abraham, Jacob, David, Jephthah, Samson, Moses, Barak, and all others in the Hebrew Bible “did not receive what was promised.” So, a key element of their faith in God remains to be fulfilled. And the author of Hebrews says God has determined to combine that former group with believers in Christ to whom he wrote to perfect them all together. And this is one reason the suffering Christians must endeavor to endure:
Hebrews 12:1 NRSVUE
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and let us run with perseverance the race that is set before us,
This text links chapter 12 to chapter 11 with “therefore.” There is a cloud of witnesses metaphorically waiting and rooting for Christians to finish well. Now, notice that nothing in chapter 11 says the people went to heaven when they died. Even Enoch, who is said not to have experienced death, is not said to be in heaven: “he was not found, because God had taken him.” Where to? It does not say. And, concerning Abraham (and Isaac and Jacob), we read: “For he looked forward to the city that has foundations, whose architect and builder is God” (11:10). This city, as Revelation makes clear, is not heaven. It is made in heaven for the earth (Revelation 21:2). The point of Hebrews 12:1 is to encourage Christians through the testimony of those who went before them.
In old Greek idioms, a “cloud” refers to a dense multitude, as in “a cloud of birds” or “a cloud of dust.” The author of Hebrews uses “cloud” to unite past and present believers in one unfinished story of faith. The verse does not depict humans in heaven, but a community still journeying toward consummation. Hebrews 12:1 calls readers to inhabit the same narrative of perseverance that began with the ancients and culminates in Christ. This is a serious call:
Hebrews 12:25 NRSVUE
See that you do not refuse the one who is speaking, for if they did not escape when they refused the one who warned them on earth, how much less will we escape if we reject the one who warns from heaven!
If the covenant people who rejected Moses got punished, it is not going to look good for those who reject Jesus either. And yes, it is possible for a believer to reject Jesus.
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Below are the links to entries on the various ways people have tried to understand the warning passage in Hebrews 6:
https://decolonizedchristianity.org/exploring-different-christian-perspectives-part-1/
https://decolonizedchristianity.org/exploring-different-perspectives-part-2-a-middling-approach/
https://decolonizedchristianity.org/exploring-different-perspectives-part-3/
https://decolonizedchristianity.org/part-4-free-grace-view-and-life-applications/
