
HEBREWS 13 – LIVING A
Instructions for body (
(1-3) Keep on loving one another as brothers and sisters. Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it. Continue to remember those in prison as if you were together with them in prison, and those who are mistreated as if you yourselves were suffering.
General love among believers: express (
Let brotherly love continue: The writer to the Hebrews used the ancient Greek word “Philia” here. He assumed there was brotherly love among Christians, and simply asked that it would continue among them.
In the ancient Greek language of the New Testament, there were four words at hand that we might translate love.
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(
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But the word for love used in Hebrews 13:1 is philadelphia, coming from the root philia. This ancient Greek word spoke of (
Do not forget to entertain strangers: This is a simple and practical way that brotherly love should continue among believers. (
Because of this command of hospitality, Christians had to watch out for people just (
The Didache was an early church “ministry manual,” written perhaps somewhere between A.D. 90 and 110. It had this to say about how to tell if a false prophet abused the hospitality of those in the church:
Let every apostle that comes to you be received as the Lord. But he shall not remain except one day; but if there be need, also the next; but if he remains three days, he is a false prophet. And when the apostle goes away, let him take nothing but bread… but if he asks for money, he is a false prophet. And every prophet that speaks in the Spirit you shall neither try nor judge; for every sin shall be forgiven, but this one sin shall not be forgiven. But not everyone that speaks in the Spirit is a prophet; but only if he holds the ways of the Lord. Therefore from their ways shall the false prophet and the true prophet be known. (From The Ante-Nicean Fathers, Volume 7, page 380)
Strangers: The point was that they were to do this for other Christians who are strangers to us. If you invite your best friends over for lunch, that is wonderful – but it doesn’t fulfill this command. A wonderful way to (
The ancient Greek word for hospitality (used in passages like Romans 12:13) is literally translated, “love for strangers.” Brotherly love means love for all our brothers and sisters in Jesus, not just those who are currently our friends.
For by so doing some have unwittingly entertained angels: When we are hospitable to others, we really welcome Jesus (Matthew 25:35), and perhaps angels. Abraham (Genesis 18:1-22) and Lot (Genesis 19:1-3) are examples of those who unwittingly entertained angels.
Remember the prisoners as if chained with them: Prisoners here probably has first reference to those imprisoned for the sake of the Gospel. But it can also be extended to all who are in prison. We must serve them with a (
We do this by doing what we call prison ministry, bringing the truth and love and hope of Jesus to those imprisoned.
We do this by remembering those who are imprisoned for the sake of the gospel, such as the many now imprisoned in the Middle East.
(4) Marriage should be honored by all, and the marriage bed kept pure, for God will judge the adulterer and all the sexually immoral.
Honor (
Marriage is honorable among all: The Bible holds high the ideal of (married) life and the institution of family.
This is difficult to speak about today, because many who aren’t married feel put off by an emphasis on marriage and family in the church.
This is difficult to speak about today, because this (marriage is honorable among all) is becoming less and less true in the society as a whole.
Marriage is dishonored by (
Marriage is dishonored by (
Marriage is dishonored by (
Marriage is dishonored by (
Marriage is dishonored by (re-
Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled: This is another place where the Bible celebrates sex as an expression of married love. This is the consistent teaching of the Bible, in such places as The Song of Solomon.
The Bible speaks powerfully about the purpose of sex.
Not just for (
Not just for (
The main purpose is to bond together a (
With this perspective, we see why God commands what He does in regard to sex and why God says, and the bed undefiled. It also explains why the enemy of our souls wants to do everything he can to encourage sex outside of the marriage bed and he wants to do everything he can to discourage sex inside the marriage bed. Christians must recognize this strategy and not give it a foothold.
Though God allows great freedom in the variety of sexual expression in marriage, all must be done with a concern for the needs of their spouse and in love (1 Corinthians 7:2-5 and Ephesians 5:21-33).
But fornicators and adulterers God will judge: As the Bible celebrates sexual expression in marriage, it also (
In this context, fornicators refers to those who have sex without the commitment of marriage.
In this context, adulterers refers to those who are not faithful to their marriage vows and have sex outside of their marriage vows.
“Fornication and adultery are not synonymous in the New Testament: adultery implies unfaithfulness by either party to the marriage vow, while the word translated ‘fornication’ covers a wide range of sexual irregularities.” (Bruce)
(5-6) Keep your lives free from the love of money and be content with what you have, because God has said, “Never will I leave you; never will I forsake you.” So we say with confidence, “The Lord is my helper; I will not be afraid. What can mere mortals do to me?”
Learn contentment (
Let your conduct be without covetousness; be content: Covetousness is the (
Be content with such things as you have: Contentment has much more to do with what you are on the (
The Apostle Paul had the right idea in Philippians 4:11-13: I am not saying this because I am in need, for I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry,whether living in plenty or in want. I can do all this through him who gives me strength.
Someone asked millionaire Bernard Baruch, “How much (
I will never leave you nor forsake you: This (
“You that are familiar with the Greek text know that there are five negatives here. We cannot manage five negatives in English, but the Greeks find them not too large a handful. Here the negatives have a fivefold force. It is as though it said, ‘I will not, not leave thee; I will never, no never, forsake thee.’” (Spurgeon)
“Here it is – ‘For he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’ This is the reason why we must not be covetous. There is no room to be covetous, no excuse for being covetous, for God hath said, ‘I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’ We ought to be content. If we are not content, we are acting insanely, seeing the Lord has said, ‘I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’” (Spurgeon)
“I cannot under the influence of this grand text find room for doubt or fear. I cannot stand here and be miserable to-night. I am not going to attempt such a thing; but I cannot be despondent with such a text as this, ‘I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.’ I defy the devil himself to mention circumstances under which I ought to be miserable if this text is true. Child of God, nothing ought to make you unhappy when you can realize this precious text.” (Spurgeon)
So we may boldly say: “The LORD is my helper; I will not fear. What can man do to me?” This quotation from Psalm 118:6 points to the truth that real contentment comes only when we (
(7) Remember your leaders, who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.
Follow (
Remember those who rule over you: We are told to recognize and follow (
Paul advised Timothy along the same lines: 1 Timothy 4:16 - Watch your life and doctrine closely. Persevere in them, because if you do, you will save both yourself and your hearers.
Whose faith follow: Such leaders should be recognized (remember those) and followed. Just as much as a church needs godly leaders, it also (
Considering the outcome of their conduct: Leaders don’t need to be perfect, but they should be able to show with their life that the power of Jesus is real as it impacts and (
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(8) Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.
The (
Jesus Christ is the same: The unchanging nature (which theologians call immutability) of Jesus Christ could be inferred from His deity, even if it were not explicitly stated. God doesn’t change over the ages, so neither does Jesus, who is God.
Yesterday, today, and forever: His unchanging nature provides a measure for all Christian conduct, particularly in the word and in worship. We should not expect something completely “new” as if it were from a “new Jesus.” The nature of Jesus as it is revealed in the Bible is the same nature of Jesus that should be seen in the church today.
(9-14) Do not be carried away by all kinds of strange teachings. It is good for our hearts to be strengthened by grace, not by eating ceremonial foods, which is of no benefit to those who do so. We have an altar from which those who minister at the tabernacle have no right to eat. The high priest carries the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies are burned outside the camp. And so Jesus also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood. Let us, then, go to him outside the camp, bearing the disgrace he bore. For here we do not have an enduring city, but we are looking for the city that is to come.
Following the (
Do not be carried about with various and strange doctrines: There is never a (
For it is good that the heart be established by grace: Our hearts will only be established by grace. We are established by an understanding and appropriation of God’s (
We have an altar from which those who serve the tabernacle have no right to eat: Their friends and relatives remaining in traditional Judaism labeled these Jewish Christians illegitimate because they did not continue the Levitical system. But the writer to the Hebrews insisted that we have an altar, and it is an altar that those who cling to the Levitical system have no right to.
Essentially, our (
Jesus… suffered outside the gate. Therefore let us go forth to Him, outside the camp, bearing His reproach: If our Savior was rejected and His sacrifice (performed at the cross, our altar) was considered illegitimate then we expect nothing better. Identifying with Jesus often means (
Outside the camp: The camp refers to (
“It means, first, let us have fellowship with him. He was despised; he had no credit for charity; he was mocked in the streets; he was hissed at; he was hounded from among society. If I take a smooth part, I can have no fellowship with him: fellowship requires a like experience.” (Spurgeon)
“A sorry life your Master had, you see. All the filth in earth’s kennels was thrown at him by sacrilegious hands. No epithet was thought coarse enough; no terms hard enough; he was the song of the drunkard, and they that sat in the gate spoke against him. This was the reproach of Christ; and we are not to marvel if we bear as much. ‘Well,’ says one, ‘I will not be a Christian if I am to bear that.’ Skulk back, then, you coward, to your own damnation; but oh! Men that love God, and who seek after the eternal reward, I pray you do not shrink from this cross. You must bear it.” (Spurgeon)
“If you can dwell with the wicked, if you can live as they live, and be ‘hail-fellow well met’ with the ungodly, if their practices are your practices, if their pleasures are your pleasures, then their god is your god, and you are one of them. There is no being a Christian without being shut out of the world’s camp.” (Spurgeon)
For here we have no continuing city, but we seek the one to come: The difficult job of bearing His reproach is easier when we remember that the city or society we are cast out from is (
In bearing His reproach we face great difficulty and suffering. The good news is that for those who bear His reproach, this world is the (
(15-16) Through Jesus, therefore, let us continually offer to God a sacrifice of praise—the fruit of lips that openly profess his name. And do not forget to do good and to share with others, for with such sacrificesGod is pleased.
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Therefore by Him let us continually offer the sacrifice of praise to God: Because we do have an altar (the cross) and we do have a High Priest (
The writer to the Hebrews explains several essentials for proper praise.
Praise that pleases God is offered by (
Praise that pleases God is offered (
Praise that pleases God is a (
Praise that pleases God is the (
“Loving hearts must speak. What would you think of a husband who never felt any impulse to tell his wife that she was dear to him; or a mother who never found it needful to unpack her heart of its tenderness, even in perhaps the inarticulate croonings over the little child that she pressed to her heart? It seems to me that a dumb Christian, a man who is thankful for Christ’s sacrifice and never feels the need to say so, is as great an anomaly as either of these I have described.” (Maclaren)
“So, then, we are to utter the praises of God, and it is not sufficient to feel adoring emotions.” (Spurgeon)
But do not forget to do good and to share, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased: Praise is not the only sacrifice that pleases God. We also please God with sacrifice when we (
(17) Have confidence in your leaders and submit to their authority, because they keep watch over you as those who must give an account. Do this so that their work will be a joy, not a burden, for that would be of no benefit to you.
Follow (
Obey those who rule over you, and be submissive: We are to be (
Sadly, some take the idea of submission to leaders in the church much too far. The “Shepherding Movement” was a clear example of this kind of abuse (which many seem to welcome, wanting someone else to be responsible for their lives). “A teacher should teach us to submit to God, not to himself.” (Chuck Smith)
As those who must give account: We obey and submit to our leaders because God put them in a place of responsibility and accountability over us. Of course, this does not relieve individual responsibility but it puts an (
Let them do so with joy and not with grief, for that would be unprofitable for you: Cooperative conduct is not only a joy to leaders, but it is profitable for the whole body. It is for our (
Concluding (
(18-19) Pray for us. We are sure that we have a clear conscience and desire to live honorably in every way. I particularly urge you to pray so that I may be restored to you soon.
A (
Pray for us: The writer to the Hebrews considered it important that others pray for him. We (
In the grammar of the ancient Greek language, pray is in the present imperative verb tense. It indicates continuous activity and implies that they were already praying for him.
That I may be restored to you the sooner: Obstacles prevented the writer from being reunited with his readers. He (
I especially urge you to do this: As far as the writer to the Hebrews was concerned, their prayers determined if and when he was reunited with them. This shows how seriously he regarded their prayers for him.
(20-21) Now may the God of peace, who through the blood of the eternal covenant brought back from the dead our Lord Jesus, that great Shepherd of the sheep, equip you with everything good for doing his will, and may he work in us what is pleasing to him, through Jesus Christ, to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
A (
Now may the God of peace: This is a blessing in the style of the priestly blessing of Numbers 6:22-27:
The LORD bless you and keep you; the LORD make His face shine upon you, and be gracious to you; the LORD lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace.
After asking his readers to pray for him, the writer to the Hebrews prays for his readers. “The apostle had exhorted the Hebrew believers to pray for him in the words, ‘Pray for us;’ and then, as if to show that he did not ask of them what he was not himself willing to give, he utters this most wonderful prayer for them. He may confidently say to his congregation, ‘Pray for me’ who does unfeignedly from his soul pray for them.” (Spurgeon)
Now may the God of peace: In this blessing God is first recognized in His attributes: (
Some take the idea of the everlasting covenant to express the covenant that existed before the foundation of the world between the Persons of the Godhead, working together for the salvation of man. Other passages which may speak to this everlasting covenant are Revelation 13:8, Ephesians 1:4, and 2 Timothy 1:9.
Some however simply take the everlasting covenant as another name for the New Covenant.
Make you complete in every good work: This expresses the desire for blessing, (
(22-25) Brothers and sisters, I urge you to bear with my word of exhortation, for in fact I have written to you quite briefly. I want you to know that our brother Timothy has been released. If he arrives soon, I will come with him to see you. Greet all your leaders and all the Lord’s people. Those from Italysend you their greetings. Grace be with you all.
Conclusion to the (
Bear with the word of exhortation, for I have written to you in few words: The writer to the Hebrews reminds us of his purpose. His desire was to write a word of exhortation to (
In Acts 13:15 the phrase word of exhortation refers to a sermon. Perhaps the writer to the Hebrews means in Hebrews 13:22 that he gives his readers a (written) sermon.
Know that our brother Timothy has been set free, with whom I shall see you if he comes shortly: These final words give us a few tantalizing hints of the writer’s identity. But these words only tell us that the writer knew Timothy and that he planned to visit his readers soon. It also tells us that his readers were based in Italy (Those from Italy greet you), probably in the (
Grace be with you all: This is a fitting end for a book that documents the passing of the Old Covenant and the institution of the New Covenant. Grace be with you all indeed, under what God has given through the superior Savior, Jesus Christ! (Amen)!
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Discussion Questions
Read Verses 1-6
How does this last chapter fit in with the rest of the book?
Is there a key theme in this passage?
Give some examples of hospitality. Do you normally show hospitality to friends or strangers? What are some ways we can show hospitality to strangers? Should we invite them to our home?
What does verse 2b mean? What can we learn from this verse about angels? And what does this teach us about how God is working in the world?
Should believers minister to prisoners? Why? How?
If the world was to apply this verse, how would it change the culture around us? What does this teach us about God’s design for marriage? Name some of the lies Satan is spreading to try to take away the honor of the institution of marriage. What is the result for those who don’t obey God in this area?
How can you test yourself to evaluate whether you love money or not? How can we train ourselves to NOT love money? What is the correct attitude? What reason does the author give for contentment?
How does verse 6 relate to the last verse?
Read Verses 7-8
What is the main idea of verse 7?
Why do you think Jesus modeled the mentor relationship?
Why is this such a powerful tool?
What components are necessary to have a truly effective mentoring/discipling relationship with someone?
Who should be discipling?
What is the difference between teaching someone a Bible lesson and discipling them?
What do we learn about Jesus in verse 8? What impact does this have on us?
What do you need to do based on what we have learned in this passage?