Hebrews 12
12
Follow Jesus’ Example
1We are surrounded by a great cloud of people whose lives tell us what faith means. So let us run the race that is before us and never give up. We should remove from our lives anything that would get in the way and the sin that so easily holds us back. 2Let us look only to Jesus, the One who began our faith and who makes it perfect. He suffered death on the cross. But he accepted the shame as if it were nothing because of the joy that God put before him. And now he is sitting at the right side of God’s throne. 3Think about Jesus’ example. He held on while wicked people were doing evil things to him. So do not get tired and stop trying.
God Is like a Father
4You are struggling against sin, but your struggles have not yet caused you to be killed. 5You have forgotten the encouraging words that call you his children:
“My child, don’t think the Lord’s discipline is worth nothing,
and don’t stop trying when he corrects you.
6The Lord disciplines those he loves,
and he punishes everyone he accepts as his child.”#Proverbs 3:11–12
7So hold on through your sufferings, because they are like a father’s discipline. God is treating you as children. All children are disciplined by their fathers. 8If you are never disciplined (and every child must be disciplined), you are not true children. 9We have all had fathers here on earth who disciplined us, and we respected them. So it is even more important that we accept discipline from the Father of our spirits so we will have life. 10Our fathers on earth disciplined us for a short time in the way they thought was best. But God disciplines us to help us, so we can become holy as he is. 11We do not enjoy being disciplined. It is painful at the time, but later, after we have learned from it, we have peace, because we start living in the right way.
Be Careful How You Live
12You have become weak, so make yourselves strong again. 13Keep on the right path, so the weak will not stumble but rather be strengthened.
14Try to live in peace with all people, and try to live free from sin. Anyone whose life is not holy will never see the Lord. 15Be careful that no one fails to receive God’s grace and begins to cause trouble among you. A person like that can ruin many of you. 16Be careful that no one takes part in sexual sin or is like Esau and never thinks about God. As the oldest son, Esau would have received everything from his father, but he sold all that for a single meal. 17You remember that after Esau did this, he wanted to get his father’s blessing, but his father refused. Esau could find no way to change what he had done, even though he wanted the blessing so much that he cried.
18You have not come to a mountain that can be touched and that is burning with fire. You have not come to darkness, sadness, and storms. 19You have not come to the noise of a trumpet or to the sound of a voice like the one the people of Israel heard and begged not to hear another word. 20They did not want to hear the command: “If anything, even an animal, touches the mountain, it must be put to death with stones.” 21What they saw was so terrible that Moses said, “I am shaking with fear.”
22But you have come to Mount Zion, to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem. You have come to thousands of angels gathered together with joy. 23You have come to the meeting of God’s firstborn children whose names are written in heaven. You have come to God, the judge of all people, and to the spirits of good people who have been made perfect. 24You have come to Jesus, the One who brought the new agreement from God to his people, and you have come to the sprinkled blood that has a better message than the blood of Abel.
25So be careful and do not refuse to listen when God speaks. Others refused to listen to him when he warned them on earth, and they did not escape. So it will be worse for us if we refuse to listen to God who warns us from heaven. 26When he spoke before, his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once again I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27The words “once again” clearly show us that everything that was made—things that can be shaken—will be destroyed. Only the things that cannot be shaken will remain.
28So let us be thankful, because we have a kingdom that cannot be shaken. We should worship God in a way that pleases him with respect and fear, 29because our God is like a fire that burns things up.
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Hebrews 12: NCV
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The Holy Bible, New Century Version, Copyright © 2005 Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.
Hebrews 12
12
1So, therefore, als (since) we have surrounding us so great an Anan Edim (Cloud of Witnesses), let us also lay aside every weighty impediment and easily ensnaring averos, and let us run with endurance and savlanut the race set before us,
2Fixing our gaze on the Mekhonen (Founder) of our#12:2 Orthodox Messianic Jewish faith, and the One who makes it Shleimut — Yehoshua, who because of the simcha set before him, endured HaEtz HaMoshiach, disregarding its bushah (shame), and “sat down at the right hand of the throne of G-d.”#12:2 Ps 110:1
3Let your hitbonenut (meditation) be on the one who endured such opposition from chote'im (sinners), that you may not be weary in your neshamot, losing heart.
4For you have not yet resisted to the point of death al kiddush ha-Shem in your struggle against Chet;
5And you have let slip from zikaron (remembrance) the dvar haChizzuk which he speaks to you as banim, My son, do not despise the musar of Hashem, do not lose heart, resent when rebuked by Him;
6KI ES ASHER YE'EHAV HASHEM YOKHI'ACH (for whom Hashem loves he disciplines), and he punishes ES BEN YIRTZEH (every son he receives).#12:6 Prov 3:11-12; Job 5:17
7For you endure nisyonos for the sake of musar. And Hashem is dealing with you as banim. For what ben is there whom an Abba does not give musar?
8But if you are without musar, in which all the yeladim share, then you are not banim but mamzerim.
9Furthermore, we had Avot on HaAretz, who were morim that we reverenced and treated with kavod. Should we not even more subject ourselves to the Avi HaRuchot and live?
10For they disciplined us for a short time, as seemed tov to them, but Hashem disciplines us for tov lanu in order that we might share in his kedushah.
11All musar for the moment seems not to be na'im (pleasant), but seems to bring agmat nefesh; yet afterwards to those who have been taught by musar, it yields the p'ri haShalom and the p'ri haTzedek.
12Therefore, “Bring chizzuk to the weak hands and the feeble knees;”#12:12 Isa 35:3
13And make the drakhim straight for your feet, so that the ever (limb, member) which is lame may not be dislocated, but rather have refu'ah (healing).
14Pursue shalom with kol Bnei Adam, and the kedushah without which no one will see Hashem.
15See to it that no one fall short of the Chen v'Chesed Hashem; that no SHORESH#12:15 Isa 35:3 of merirut (bitterness) sprouting up may cause tzoros, and by it many be made teme'ot;
16Lest someone guilty of gilui arayot (sexual immorality) or some person who is mitnaged ladat (irreligious, opponent of religion) like Esav, who in exchange for one meal sold HaBechorah belonging to him.
17For you have da'as that even afterwards, when he desired to receive the nachalah of the bracha, he was rejected, for he found no place for teshuva, though he sought for it with tears.
18For you have not come to a Har that can be touched and to a blazing Eish and to choshech and gloom and storm,
19And to the blast of a shofar and the sound of devarim, which sound was such that the ones having heard begged that no further dvar be spoken to them.
20For they could not bear the mitzvah, “If even a BEHEMAH#12:20 Ex 19:13 (animal) should touch the Har, the punishment will be seqilah (stoning).”
21And so fearful was the sight that Moshe Rabbeinu said, “YAGORTI”#12:21 Dt 9:19 (I am afraid) with trembling.
22But you have come to Mount Tziyon, that is, HaIr HaElohim Chayyim, to the Yerushalayim in Shomayim and to myriads of malachim in a knesset innumerable,
23And to the Kehillat HaBechorim who are inscribed in Shomayim and to Hashem, the Shofet HaKol, and to the ruchot (spirits) of the tzaddikim made shleimim,
24And to Yehoshua, the Metavekh of a Brit Chadasha and to the dahm hahazzayah#12:24 Isa 52:15 (blood of sprinkling), which speaks better than the dahm haHevel (blood of Abel).
25See to it that you do not refuse the One speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused Him who gave them warning on ha'aretz, much less shall we escape who turn away from the One whose warning comes from Shomayim.
26And the bat kol of Hashem shook ha'aretz then, but now He has given havtachah (promise), saying, Yet once more V'ANI MARISH ES HASHOMAYIM V'ES HA'ARETZ#12:26 Hag 2:6 (And I will shake the heavens and the earth).
27Now the phrase, “Yet once more” denotes the removal of that which can be shaken, that is, created things, in order that the unshakeable may remain.
28Therefore, als (since) we are receiving a malchut unshakeable, let us hold on to the Chen v'Chesed Hashem through which we may offer to Hashem, an acceptable avodas kodesh, with yirat Shomayim and chasidus.
29For, indeed, Eloheinu is a consuming Eish.#12:29 Dt 4:24; 9:3; Isa 33:14
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