Jesus, Founder and Perfecter of Our Faith

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and ^wsin which clings so closely, and ^xlet us run ^ywith endurance the race that is ^zset before us, 2 looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, ^awho for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising ^bthe shame, and ^cis seated at the right hand of the throne of God.

Do Not Grow Weary

3 ^dConsider him who endured from sinners such hostility against himself, so that you may not grow weary or ^efainthearted. 4 In your struggle against sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding your blood. 5 And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as sons?

7 It is for discipline that you have to endure. ⁱGod is treating you as sons. For what son is there whom his father does not discipline? 8 If you are left without discipline, ^jin which all have participated, then you are illegitimate children and not sons. 9 Besides this, we have had earthly fathers who disciplined us and we respected them. Shall we not much more be subject to ^kthe Father of spirits ^land live? 10 For they disciplined us for a short time as it seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good, ^mthat we may share his holiness. 11 ⁿFor the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant, but later it yields ^othe peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.

12 Therefore ^plift your drooping hands and strengthen your weak knees, 13 and ^qmake straight paths for your feet, so that what is lame may not be put out of joint ^rbut rather be healed. 14 ^sStrive for peace with everyone, and for the ^tholiness ^uwithout which no one will see the Lord. 15 See to it that no one ^vfails to obtain the grace of God; that no ^w“root of bitterness” springs up and causes trouble, and by it many become defiled; 16 that no one is ^xsexually immoral or unholy like Esau, who sold his birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that ^yafterward, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no chance to repent, though he sought it with tears.

A Kingdom That Cannot Be Shaken

18 For you have not come to ^zwhat may be touched, a blazing fire and darkness and gloom and a tempest 19 and ^athe sound of a trumpet and a voice whose words ^bmade the hearers beg that no further messages be spoken to them. 20 For they could not endure the order that was given, ^c“If even a beast touches the mountain, it shall be stoned.” 21 Indeed, ^dso terrifying was the sight that Moses said, “I tremble with fear.” 22 But you have come to ^eMount Zion and to the city of the living God, ^fthe heavenly Jerusalem, and to ^ginnumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to ^hthe assembly¹ of the firstborn who are ⁱenrolled in heaven, and to ^jGod, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, ^kthe mediator of a new covenant, and to ^lthe sprinkled blood ^mthat speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

25 See that you do not refuse him who is speaking. For ⁿif they did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape if we reject him who warns from heaven. 26 At that time ^ohis voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, ^p“Yet once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 This phrase, “Yet once more,” indicates ^qthe removal of things that are shaken—that is, things that have been made—in order that the things that cannot be shaken may remain. 28 Therefore let us be grateful for receiving ^ra kingdom that cannot be shaken, and thus ^slet us offer to God acceptable worship, with reverence and awe, 29 for our ^tGod is a consuming fire.

The Supremacy of God’s Son

1 Long ago, at many times and ^ain many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, 2 but ^bin these last days ^che has spoken to us by ^dhis Son, whom he appointed ^ethe heir of all things, ^fthrough whom also he created ^gthe world. 3 He is the radiance of the glory of God and ^hthe exact imprint of his nature, and he upholds the universe by the word of his power. ⁱAfter making purification for sins, ^jhe sat down ^kat the right hand of the Majesty on high, 4 having become as much superior to angels as the name ^lhe has inherited is more excellent than theirs.

5 For to which of the angels did God ever say,

Or again,

6 And again, when he brings ^othe firstborn into the world, he says,

7 Of the angels he says,

8 But of the Son he says,

10 And,

13 And to which of the angels has he ever said,

14 Are they not all ministering spirits ^ysent out to serve for the sake of those who are to ^zinherit salvation?

Warning Against Neglecting Salvation

1 Therefore we must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, lest we drift away from it. 2 For since ^athe message declared by angels proved to be reliable, and ^bevery transgression or disobedience received a just ^cretribution, 3 ^dhow shall we escape if we ^eneglect such a great salvation? It was ^fdeclared at first by the Lord, and it was ^gattested to us ^hby those who heard, 4 ^gwhile God also bore witness ⁱby signs and wonders and various miracles and by ^jgifts of the Holy Spirit ^kdistributed according to his will.

The Founder of Salvation

5 For it was not to angels that God subjected the world ^lto come, of which we are speaking. 6 It has been testified somewhere,

Now in putting everything in subjection to him, he left nothing outside his control. At present, ⁿwe do not yet see everything in subjection to him. 9 But we see him ^owho for a little while was made lower than the angels, namely Jesus, ^pcrowned with glory and honor ^qbecause of the suffering of death, so that by the grace of God he might ^rtaste death ^sfor everyone.

10 For it ^twas fitting that he, ^ufor whom and by whom all things exist, in bringing many sons ^vto glory, should make the ^wfounder of their salvation ^xperfect through suffering. 11 For ^yhe who sanctifies and ^zthose who are sanctified ^aall have one source.³ That is why he is not ashamed to call them ^bbrothers,⁴ 12 saying,

13 And again,

And again,

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise ^hpartook of the same things, that ⁱthrough death he might ^jdestroy ^kthe one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who ^lthrough fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he ^mhelps the offspring of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had ⁿto be made like his brothers in every respect, ^oso that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest ^pin the service of God, to make propitiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered ^qwhen tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.

Jesus Greater Than Moses

1 Therefore, holy brothers,⁵ you who share in ^ra heavenly calling, consider Jesus, ^sthe apostle and high priest of our confession, 2 who was faithful to him who appointed him, ^tjust as Moses also was faithful in all God’s⁶ house. 3 For Jesus has been counted worthy of more glory than Moses—as much more glory as the builder of a house has more honor than the house itself. 4 (For every house is built by someone, but ^uthe builder of all things is God.) 5 ^vNow Moses was faithful in all God’s house ^was a servant, ^xto testify to the things that were to be spoken later, 6 but Christ is faithful over God’s house as ^ya son. And ^zwe are his house, if indeed we ^ahold fast our confidence and our boasting in our hope.⁷

A Rest for the People of God

7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says,

12 Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from ^ethe living God. 13 But ^fexhort one another every day, as long as it is called “today,” that none of you may be hardened by ^gthe deceitfulness of sin. 14 For we have come to share in Christ, ^hif indeed we hold our original confidence firm to the end. 15 As it is said,

16 For ⁱwho were those who heard and yet rebelled? Was it not ^jall those who left Egypt led by Moses? 17 And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, ^kwhose bodies fell in the wilderness? 18 And to whom did he swear that ^lthey would not enter his rest, but to those who were disobedient? 19 So we see that ^mthey were unable to enter because of unbelief.