Opening Prayer
Lord, I am amazed that you delight in me and am overwhelmed with gratitude that you rejoice over me with singing.
Read HEBREWS 11:23–31
For additional translations of the passage, use this link to Bible Gateway.
23 By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.
24 By faith Moses, when he had grown up, refused to be known as the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. 25 He chose to be mistreated along with the people of God rather than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. 26 He regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward. 27 By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw him who is invisible. 28 By faith he kept the Passover and the application of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch the firstborn of Israel.
29 By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to do so, they were drowned.
30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the army had marched around them for seven days.
31 By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies, was not killed with those who were disobedient.[a]
Footnotes
- Hebrews 11:31 Or unbelieving
New International Version (NIV)Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Meditate
Today’s reading considers events around the exodus and the conquest of Canaan. Two things seemed to be in the writer’s mind. He had already said that the wilderness generation was faithless and that Joshua did not give the people rest.1 Consequently, he now ignores the wilderness wanderings, jumping from the exodus to Jericho – and chooses to highlight Rahab over Joshua.
He deals with the faith of Moses’ parents and of Moses himself, who rejected association with Pharaoh’s court with all its pleasures, choosing instead mistreatment with God’s people and ‘disgrace for the sake of Christ’ (v. 26). By faith, Moses also left Egypt unafraid of the Pharaoh’s anger and he kept the Passover. Then, by faith, the people went through the Red Sea on dry land. The writer recalls how the walls of Jericho fell by faith (without saying that Joshua initiated this) and how Rahab saved her life when she received the spies in peace. The ultimate outcome of this faithful act is her inclusion in the genealogy of Jesus.2
Today’s highlight for me is the faith of Moses, who ‘regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt, because he was looking ahead to his reward’ (v. 26). That he identified with Jesus and chose disgrace for his sake sounds incongruous, given that Moses lived hundreds of years before Jesus but, as Harold Attridge suggests, as a prophet ‘Moses could have been understood to be aware of the … one who would bring God’s promises to reality.’3 With prophetic insight, Moses saw Jesus, ‘the pioneer and perfecter of faith’4 and chose to identify with him, whatever the cost. In Hebrews 13:13 the writer will also call us to be prepared to bear the reproach of Christ.
Think Further
Pray today for those called to suffer for Jesus. Ask God to hear their cries, to strengthen their faith, and to give them wisdom and boldness in their witness.
Closing prayer
Lord God, thank you for the privilege you offer me to serve you. As I ask you to help me to honor you, I also lift up those in the hard places – that you would give them all that they need to trust you as they witness for Christ.
Last Updated on August 9, 2024 by kingstar
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