Lesson 20: Heroes of Faith in the Exodus and Beyond
Hebrews 11:23-40
By faith Moses was hidden by his parents for three months after his birth, because they saw that the child was beautiful; and they were not afraid of the king’s edict. By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called a son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to share ill-treatment with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered abuse suffered for the Christ to be greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to the reward. By faith he left Egypt, unafraid of the king’s anger; for he persevered as though he saw him who is invisible. By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.
By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as if it were dry land, but when the Egyptians attempted to do so they were drowned. By faith the walls of Jericho fell after they had been encircled for seven days. By faith Rahab the prostitute did not perish with those who were disobedient, because she had received the spies in peace.
And what more should I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, quenched raging fire, escaped the edge of the sword, won strength out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received their dead by resurrection. Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection. Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned to death, they were sawn in two, they were killed by the sword; they went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, persecuted, tormented—of whom the world was not worthy. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground.
Yet all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better so that they would not, apart from us, be made perfect.
Hebrews 11 begins with the confident assertion that faith is the assurance of the reality for which we hope. Faith embraces the unseen hope because faith trusts in the faithfulness of the God who promised. The preacher uses multiple examples of faith found within Scripture and some outside of Scripture. He begins the story with Abel and ends it with, at least, the Maccabean martyrs. Each hoped in a future they could not see, endured hostility and oppression, and trusted in God’s faithfulness. They persevered in faith so that they might receive what was promised with us who will also persevere in faith. Together–past, present, and future heirs–we will inherit the promise and be made perfect as one humanity before God through the high priesthood of Jesus the Messiah.
In the previous section (11:4-22), seven people were named: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and Joseph. In this next section (Hebrews 11:23-31), there are seven “by faith” statements concerning Moses’s parents, Moses, the people who crossed the Red Sea, the people who felled the walls of Jericho, and Rahab.
The first four “by faith” statements are about Moses (Hebrews 11:23-28). The first is the faith of his parents, the second notes his faith after he learns he is a Hebrew, the third is his flight from Egypt, and the fourth names the fact that he kept the Passover in Egypt.
- By faith Moses (11:23-28)
- By faith Moses was hidden by his parents (11:23)
- By faith Moses refused to be called a son of Pharaoh’s daughter (11:24-26)
- By faith Moses left Egypt unafraid of the king’s anger (11:27)
- By faith Moses kept the Passover (11:28)
Each act of faith trusts in a future based upon the promises of God. The parents hid Moses from Egyptian genocide. They acted out of faith rather than fear. Moses chose to share the suffering of his people rather than enjoy the privileges of Pharaoh’s house. He suffered abuse for the sake of the anointed one, who is the Messiah. He suffered in the hope of a better future. He left Egypt in faith rather than out of fear because he saw the one who is invisible. He kept the Passover in of deliverance from death and Egyptian enslavement.
In the example of Moses, faith and hope dispelled fear and despair. He trusted in the voice of God, served in the house of God, and led Israel out of Egyptian bondage. Faith shaped his life as one of God’s greatest servants in the history of Israel. Yet, this faith demanded perseverance as it struggled through the hostility of Egyptians, his own wilderness wandering, and the prospect of failure in his mission. The preacher knows his audience. They also struggle with their identity, the hostility that surrounds them, and internal discouragement. Moses knew this as well, and Moses persevered.
Three more “by faith” statements follow on the heels of Moses’ example (Hebrews 11:29-31). Each situation faces conflict and hostility, and faith triumphed in each situation.
- By faith Israel (11:29-31)
- By faith the people passed through the Red Sea (11:29)
- By faith the walls of Jericho fell (11:30)
- By faith Rahab received the spies in peace (11:31)
The preacher maps out the journey of Israel from the sea to the promised land. They crossed the sea and entered the land at Gilgal across from Jericho. Crossing the sea was a hazardous prospect—to drown in the sea, slaughtered by the Egyptians or enslaved them again. The walls of Jericho seemed impenetrable and the armies of the Canaanites too numerous for Israel. Hiding the spies was a dangerous move on the part of Rahab, yet by faith she received the spies despite the peril.
Once again, the presence of hostile forces and threats to life surrounded Israel, but they responded in faith. Indeed, faith is so powerful and so welcome (pleasing) in God’s sight, that “Rahab the prostitute” was accepted and delivered from destruction through faith. Instead of fear, Israel chose faith, which trusted in God’s promise of salvation through the sea and destruction of Jericho. Rahab, the Canaanite, also recognized God’s reality (“he is”) and the promise of a future with Israel (who rewards those who seek him), which is what faith does (Hebrews 11:6). Faith is open to all, not only Israel. The Gentiles, too, may believe and inherit that promise.
The next hero section of this chapter answers the question, “What more can I say?” (Hebrews 11:32-38). “Through faith,” these heroes accomplished much and suffered much. I think this list falls into those two categories: the feats of faith (actions) and the endurance of faith (suffering).
The feats of faith are found in Hebrews 11:32-34. Several are named, but the names are not exactly the best examples of faithful people in the Hebrew Bible. Gideon was flawed as he fleeced God. Barak was flawed as he would not trust the word of God from Deborah unless she went with him. Samson was flawed by his promiscuity. Jephthah apparently offered his daughter as a sacrifice in compliance to a rash vow. Even David was far from perfect as he raped Bathsheba and murdered her husband. Samuel did not lead a model family. So, this is not a perfect crew, and not every aspect of their lives are exemplary or good models of faith.
Yet, they are not named here because they were perfect or had no struggles. They are named here because they acted in faith in specific ways. They established political order, were delivered from death, and were mighty in war. They were empowered by God to act in faithful ways, and they obeyed. Even Jephthah, whose apparent abuse of his daughter outrages us, was nevertheless a man who spoke the words of the Lord to Israel and trusted in God’s work for victory over the Ammonites (Judges 11:5-33), and “the spirit of the Lord came upon Jephthah” (Judges 11:29).
Whatever else these named persons may have done that was out of sync with God’s will, they are named for their acts of faith and not because of everything they have done.
- Named Feats: Gideon (Judges 6-8), Barak (Judges 4-5), Samson (Judges 12-16), Jephthah (Judges 11-12; cf. 1 Samuel 12:11), David (1 Samuel 16–2 Samuel 24) and Samuel (1 Samuel 1-15), and the prophets (six names and a seventh as a category). Essentially, the first four are from the period of the Judges; David and Samuel function as a grouping that transitions from Judges to monarchy, and “the prophets” represents the rest of the history of Israel.
- Establishment of Political Order
- Conquered kingdoms
- Administered Justice
- Obtained promises
- Deliverance from Death
- Shut the mouths of Lions (Daniel 6:1-28)
- Quenched raging fire (Daniel 3:1-30)
- Escaped the edge of the sword (1 Samuel 17:45-47; 1 Kings 19:1-3; 2 Kings 6:26-32; Jeremiah 26:7-24).
- Empowerment
- Won strength out of weakness
- Became mighty in war,
- Put foreign armies to flight
- Women received their dead by resurrection (1 Kings 17:17-24; 2 Kings 4:18-37).
- Unnamed Suffering
- Persecuted (2 Maccabees 6:18-7:42; see the citation at the end of his blog):
- Others were tortured, refusing to accept release, to obtain a better resurrection.
- Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment.
- Killed:
- They were stoned to death (2 Chronicles 24:31; Jeremiah in Egypt).
- They were sawn in two (e.g., according to tradition, Isaiah).
- They were killed by the sword.
- Social Exclusion:
- They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, persecuted, tormented (1 Kings 7:2-16; 19:1-19; 2 Kings 1:3-15; 2:23; 4:1-2, 8-12, 38-43; 8:1-2; 2 Maccabees 5:27).
- Persecuted (2 Maccabees 6:18-7:42; see the citation at the end of his blog):
- Establishment of Political Order
Of whom the world was not worthy!
- They wandered in deserts and mountains, and in caves and holes in the ground (Judges 6:2; 1 Samuel 23:14; 1 Maccabees 2:28-31; 2 Maccabees 5:27; 10:6).
One gets the idea that suffering is the path faith must take. There are moments of triumph, and there are moments of despair, suffering, and ultimately death. Faith does not ensure prosperity. Sometimes faith means alienation from one’s culture, hatred from the world, and impoverishment. Faith is not an easy path.
Summary/Transition (11:39-40)
All of these faithful examples, the preacher says, were “commended for their faith” (Hebrews 11:39). They did not receive the promise, but they trusted in God who is faithful to keep covenant and do what is promised. They bore witness to the reality of faith—they were approved, or commended, or served as witnesses (martyrs from the Greek verb martureo).
More specifically, some did receive the promise in some sense. The Red Sea parted, Jericho fell, Rahab did not perish, etc. However, the “better” promise Hebrews consistently names as perfection. This is eschatological language; it is the language of the city of God, the heavenly Jerusalem inhabited by the resurrected faithful.
The better promise is the community of the faithful people of God that will surround the throne of God in the eschaton. This will happen as a people—together the people of God will be perfected through resurrection following Jesus through death into resurrection. Together, the people of God will share the inheritance of their Messianic high priest.
A Mother Encourages Her Sons in their Martyrdom (2 Maccabees 7:20-29, NRSV):
20 The mother was especially admirable and worthy of honorable memory. Although she saw her seven sons perish within a single day, she bore it with good courage because of her hope in the Lord. 21 She encouraged each of them in the language of their ancestors. Filled with a noble spirit, she reinforced her woman’s reasoning with a man’s courage, and said to them, 22 “I do not know how you came into being in my womb. It was not I who gave you life and breath, nor I who set in order the elements within each of you. 23 Therefore the Creator of the world, who shaped the beginning of humankind and devised the origin of all things, will in his mercy give life and breath back to you again, since you now forget yourselves for the sake of his laws.”
24 Antiochus felt that he was being treated with contempt, and he was suspicious of her reproachful tone. The youngest brother being still alive, Antiochus not only appealed to him in words, but promised with oaths that he would make him rich and enviable if he would turn from the ways of his ancestors, and that he would take him for his Friend and entrust him with public affairs. 25 Since the young man would not listen to him at all, the king called the mother to him and urged her to advise the youth to save himself. 26 After much urging on his part, she undertook to persuade her son. 27 But, leaning close to him, she spoke in their native language as follows, deriding the cruel tyrant: “My son, have pity on me. I carried you nine months in my womb, and nursed you for three years, and have reared you and brought you up to this point in your life, and have taken care of you. 28 I beg you, my child, to look at the heaven and the earth and see everything that is in them, and recognize that God did not make them out of things that existed. And in the same way the human race came into being. 29 Do not fear this butcher, but prove worthy of your brothers. Accept death, so that in God’s mercy I may get you back again along with your brothers.”