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Entering The Promised Rest
Entering The Promised Rest
Gave them rest from all their enemies... yet the book of Judges will show the troubled history of Israel as they live in this land. They received the land under the leadership of Joshua (cp. Josh., but there was something BETTER that awaited them.
Israel, under the leadership of Moses, refused to enter the land and thus, because of their disobedience, they did not enter into God's rest (Heb. 4-6). Under Joshua, they did enter the land, and at the end 'the land had rest from war' (Josh. 11:23; 14:15).
However, even that was NOT entering into God's promised rest! We learn this by noticing that long after Joshua, David yet spoke of them entering into God's rest (Heb. 4:7-8). Thus, the Hebrew writer concludes that 'there remains a 'Sabbath rest' for the people of God. He had earlier stated: "We who have believed are entering into that rest". "Are entering" is indicated by the present tense of the verb. It is also understood because we NOW are 'to labor to enter' that rest.
As great as the land promise was, it was NOT the end all of God's intention for His people. It provided a place for the nation to dwell in safety and thus bring forth the promised Messiah, Jesus. NOW, Jesus has prepared the eternal rest, a resting with God, a resting from our labors here (Heb. 4:10).
The warning is from the example of Israel who "failed to enter because of disobedience" (Heb. 4:6). The exhortation then is: "Therefore let us be diligent to enter that rest, so that no one will fall, through following the same example of disobedience" (Hebrews 4:11).
Hugh DeLong
