“Therefore, since a promise remains of entering His rest, let us fear lest any of you seem to have come short of it…There remains therefore a rest for the people of God…Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience” (Hebrews 4:1, 9, 11).
Because of the inspired Scriptures’ depth and profundity, several important truths can be gleaned from a single passage of God’s word. This fact is well illustrated in Hebrews, most notably in chapters 5-7 with its use of Psalm 110:4.
Prior to this, however—in chapters 3 and 4—the words of David in Psalm 95:7-11 are considered from two different perspectives.
First, there is the invaluable lesson of the importance of living today in obedience to God (Hebrews 3:6-19). After this, David’s words are probed from the perspective of God’s promised rest (Hebrews 4:1-11). Implicit in David’s words—spoken centuries after Moses’ generation had died in the wilderness and Joshua’s generation had conquered the land of Canaan—is there is a rest from God which His people had not yet entered (Hebrews 4:9).
This second consideration ferrets out the truth that there remains a rest for the people of God living in the first century (and beyond). Because of this, “Let us therefore be diligent to enter that rest, lest anyone fall according to the same example of disobedience” (Hebrews 4:11).
