"Today, if you hear his voice,
8 do not harden your hearts
as you did in the rebellion,
during the time of testing in the wilderness,
9 where your ancestors tested and tried me,
though for forty years they saw what I did.
10 That is why I was angry with that generation;
I said, 'Their hearts are always going astray,
and they have not known my ways.'
11 So I declared on oath in my anger,
'They shall never enter my rest.' "
12 See to it, brothers and sisters, that none of you has a sinful, unbelieving heart that turns away from the living God.
Questions to consider:
- Determine the meaning of God’s rest for the children of Israel.
- What about the nature of God is revealed here?
- What causes hardness of heart?
- What can you do to prevent such hardness in your heart?
- What is God’s feeling toward you now? Why?
- In what ways is a return to Judaism a falling away from the living God?
Possibilities for prayer:
I think that the author of Hebrews gives us a pretty clear point about which we can be praying today: that our hearts would not be unbelieving or turn away from God. So let’s take some time to pray for the condition of our hearts, that they would be ready to hear God’s voice and receive the Holy Spirit. Let’s pray against hardened hearts toward God.
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