Hebrews 11:23-40
New Catholic Bible
23 By faith Moses[a] was hidden by his parents for three months after his birth, because they saw that he was a beautiful child, and they did not fear the king’s edict.
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be called a son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He preferred to be ill-treated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He considered that abuse suffered for the sake of the Messiah was a more precious gift than all the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to the final reward.
27 By faith Moses departed from Egypt, unafraid of the wrath of the king; he persevered as if he could see the one who is invisible.
28 By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood so that the Destroyer would not harm the firstborn of Israel.
29 The Faith of the Israelites and Rahab. By faith the people crossed the Red Sea as though it were dry land. However, when the Egyptians attempted to do so, they were drowned.
30 By faith the walls of Jericho[b] fell when the people had marched around them for seven days.
31 By faith Rahab[c] the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, for she had received the spies in peace.
32 The Faith of the Judges and Prophets. What more shall I say? Time is too short for me to speak of Gideon, Barak, Samson, and Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the Prophets,[d] 33 who by faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and obtained the promises. They closed the mouths of lions,[e] 34 quenched raging fires,[f] and escaped the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned into strength as they became mighty in battle and put foreign armies to flight.
35 Women received their dead[g] back through resurrection. Others who were tortured refused to accept release in order to obtain a better resurrection. 36 Still others were mocked and scourged, even to the point of enduring chains and imprisonment.
37 They were stoned,[h] or sawed in two, or put to death by the sword. They went about in skins of sheep or goats—destitute, persecuted, and tormented. 38 The world was not worthy of them. They wandered about in desert areas and on mountains, and they lived in dens and caves of the earth.
39 Yet all these, even though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised. 40 For God had made provision for us to have something better, and they were not to achieve perfection except with us.[i]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Hebrews 11:23 Moses: see Ex 1–15; Acts 7:17-36.
- Hebrews 11:30 Jericho: see Jos 6. The Israelites did not conquer the city through military action but merely followed God’s instructions in faith (see 2 Cor 10:4).
- Hebrews 11:31 Rahab: see Jos 2:1-24; 6:22-25; Mt 1:5; Jas 2:25.
- Hebrews 11:32 All those mentioned in this verse held positions of power (Judges, Prophets, and one King), but none is praised for anything but faith in God. They are given in pairs and out of chronological order, with the more important person mentioned first. Gideon: see Jdg 6–9; Barak: see Jdg 4–5. Samson: see Jdg 13–16; Jephthah: see Jdg 11–12. David: King (see 1 Sam 13:14; 16:1, 12; Acts 13:22) and Prophet (see Heb 4:7; 2 Sam 23:1-3; Mk 12:36); Samuel and the Prophets: Samuel was the last of the Judges and the first of the Prophets (see 1 Sam 7:15; Acts 3:24; 13:20); he anointed David as King (see 1 Sam 16:13) and was renowned as a man of intercessory prayer (see 1 Sam 12:19, 23; Jer 15:1).
- Hebrews 11:33 Mouths of lions: e.g., Daniel in the lions’ den (see Dan 6).
- Hebrews 11:34 Quenched raging fires: e.g., Daniel’s friends, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, in the fiery furnace (see Dan 3).
- Hebrews 11:35 Their dead: allusion to the two miracles worked by Elijah and Elisha (1 Ki 17:23; 2 Ki 4:36). Tortured: e.g., the Maccabean patriots of the second century B.C. (see 2 Mac 7).
- Hebrews 11:37 They were stoned: e.g., Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the priest, who was put to death for stating the truth (see 2 Chr 24:20-22; Lk 11:51). Sawed in two: an ancient Jewish tradition said that Isaiah was killed in this way by order of King Manasseh.
- Hebrews 11:40 The saints of the Old Testament were able to reach the perfection of life with God only through Christ, who is “the resurrection and the life” (Jn 11:25f).
