Hebrews 6:13-20: The Promise of God’s Word and God’s Oath

Introduction

Scripture

Hebrews 6:13–20 ESV

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” 15 And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise. 16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us. 19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

Outline

Hebrews 1-2 - Jesus is Greater Than the Angels

Hebrews 1:1-4 - God has Spoken

Hebrews 1:5-14 - The Son is Superior to the Angels

Hebrews 2:1-4 - A Warning

Hebrews 2:5-9 - Lowliness to Crowning Glory

Hebrews 2:10-18 - Jesus has Delivered His Brothers

Hebrews 3:1-4:13 - Jesus is a Greater Rest

Hebrews 3:1-6 - Jesus is Worthy of More Glory Than Moses

Hebrews 3:7-19 - Disobedience After the Exodus

Hebrews 4:1-13 - A Sabbath Rest for God’s People

Hebrews 4:14-7:26 - Jesus is Greater than Melchizedek

Hebrews 4:14-16 - Jesus is the Great High Priest

Hebrews 5:1-10 - Jesus is the High Priest After the Order of Melchizedek

Hebrews 5:11-6:20 - Warning and Exhortation

Hebrews 5:11-14 - Failure to Mature

Hebrews 6:1-8 - Pursue Maturity

Hebrews 6:9-12 - Loving Motivation

Hebrews 6:13-20 - The Promise of God’s Word and God’s Oath

Hebrews 6:13-15 - God’s Promise to Abraham

Hebrews 6:16-18 - God’s Promise to Abraham’s Heirs

Hebrews 6:19-20 - God’s Promise of the Heavenly Sanctuary

Purpose of Book

Christ, who has accomplished salvation through His atoning sacrifice, is greater than all things; therefore, persevere in true faith and encourage others to do likewise

Main Point

God is still faithful to His word and His oath as He was with Abraham. We must hold fast to our hope and great high priest who leads us to the heavenly sanctuary.

Hebrews 6:13-15 - God’s Promise to Abraham

Hebrews 6:13–15 ESV

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself, 14 saying, “Surely I will bless you and multiply you.” 15 And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise.

***The author changes tone from exhortation to an exposition of God’s faithfulness starting with the example of Abraham***

For when God made a promise to Abraham,

For

Conjunction that continues the thought from vss. 11-12 that a better future rests solely on God’s faithfulness to His promises

God’s promise to Abraham

Sets up the entire course of Scripture

Adam and Eve’s Rebellion - Genesis 3

Sons of God Rebellion - Genesis 6:1-4

All of humanity’s Rebellion - Genesis 11:1-9

Abrahamic Covenant

Genesis 12:1–3 ESV

1 Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. 2 And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonors you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”

Genesis 15:1–6 ESV

1 After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” 2 But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” 4 And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” 5 And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” 6 And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.

Genesis 16:1–4 ESV

1 Now Sarai, Abram’s wife, had borne him no children. She had a female Egyptian servant whose name was Hagar. 2 And Sarai said to Abram, “Behold now, the Lord has prevented me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; it may be that I shall obtain children by her.” And Abram listened to the voice of Sarai. 3 So, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, and gave her to Abram her husband as a wife. 4 And he went in to Hagar, and she conceived. And when she saw that she had conceived, she looked with contempt on her mistress.

Genesis 17:15–16 ESV

15 And God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name. 16 I will bless her, and moreover, I will give you a son by her. I will bless her, and she shall become nations; kings of peoples shall come from her.”

Genesis 21:1–7 ESV

1 The Lord visited Sarah as he had said, and the Lord did to Sarah as he had promised. 2 And Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the time of which God had spoken to him. 3 Abraham called the name of his son who was born to him, whom Sarah bore him, Isaac. 4 And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. 5 Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him. 6 And Sarah said, “God has made laughter for me; everyone who hears will laugh over me.” 7 And she said, “Who would have said to Abraham that Sarah would nurse children? Yet I have borne him a son in his old age.”

Reference to the sacrifice of Isaac

Genesis 22:9–18 ESV

9 When they came to the place of which God had told him, Abraham built the altar there and laid the wood in order and bound Isaac his son and laid him on the altar, on top of the wood. 10 Then Abraham reached out his hand and took the knife to slaughter his son. 11 But the angel of the Lord called to him from heaven and said, “Abraham, Abraham!” And he said, “Here I am.” 12 He said, “Do not lay your hand on the boy or do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son, from me.” 13 And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him was a ram, caught in a thicket by his horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up as a burnt offering instead of his son. 14 So Abraham called the name of that place, “The Lord will provide”; as it is said to this day, “On the mount of the Lord it shall be provided.” 15 And the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from heaven 16 and said, “By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, 17 I will surely bless you, and I will surely multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is on the seashore. And your offspring shall possess the gate of his enemies, 18 and in your offspring shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed my voice.”

Since he had no one greater by whom to swear,

No one greater

Humans swore an oath to their gods

Followers of Yahweh would swear an oath to Him

He swore by himself, saying,

Swore by himself

If the oath was unfilled, God would impose the death penalty upon Himself!!

God’s character ensures that He will not simply keep an oath, BUT he MUST keep the oath

Exodus 13:5 ESV

5 And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month.

Exodus 32:13 ESV

13 Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, your servants, to whom you swore by your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your offspring as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have promised I will give to your offspring, and they shall inherit it forever.’ ”

Deuteronomy 1:8 ESV

8 See, I have set the land before you. Go in and take possession of the land that the Lord swore to your fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob, to give to them and to their offspring after them.’

“Surely I will bless you and multiply you.”

I will surely/greatly bless you and will surely/greatly multiply you

And thus Abraham, having patiently waited, obtained the promise.

Patiently waited

Abraham waited 25 years for the birth of Isaac

Obtained the promise

Isaac

Back from the dead

Multiplied descendants

The author wants the congregation to imitate the faithful patience of Abraham

Why does the author want the readers to be patient like Abraham? The promises made to Abraham also apply to them!

Hebrews 2:14–16 ESV

14 Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same things, that through death he might destroy the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil, 15 and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong slavery. 16 For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham.

The offspring of Abraham are those in Christ Jesus and therefore the promises made to Abraham are their’s as well

Hebrews 6:16-18 - God’s Promise to Abraham’s Heirs

Hebrews 6:16–18 ESV

16 For people swear by something greater than themselves, and in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation. 17 So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise the unchangeable character of his purpose, he guaranteed it with an oath, 18 so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.

***Lesser to greater argument couched in a legal context***

For people swear by something greater than themselves,

For

The author uses this conjunction to support his point made in vs. 13

Hebrews 6:13 ESV

13 For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater by whom to swear, he swore by himself,

Greater than themselves

Judgment would fall upon those who did not keep the oath by the higher power

And in all their disputes an oath is final for confirmation.

The use of an oath settles the argument and provides validity to the debated matter

So when God desired to show more convincingly to the heirs of the promise

Show

Establish the validity of something

Heirs of the promise

What is the promise? Descendants and land

Who are the heirs?

Galatians 3:29 ESV

29 And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.

The unchangeable character of his promise,

He guaranteed it with an oath,

Guaranteed

God promises to fulfill what He’s said and acts as a mediator

Act between two parties in order to reconcile

So that by two unchangeable things,

Two unchangeable facts

God’s word and God’s oath

In which it is impossible for God to lie,

God is unable to lie thus he is trustworthy

Numbers 23:19 ESV

19 God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?

We who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us.

Fled for refuge

Imagery drawing us back to Hebrews 3-4 and the exodus generation

The congregation has run towards the hope that is otherworldly

Strong encouragement to hold fast

Due to God’s promise in His word and oath the congregation should press on and persevere until the eschatological age has arrived

Hope set before us

The hope speaks to the heavenly sanctuary

Hebrews 9:11–15 ESV

11 But when Christ appeared as a high priest of the good things that have come, then through the greater and more perfect tent (not made with hands, that is, not of this creation) 12 he entered once for all into the holy places, not by means of the blood of goats and calves but by means of his own blood, thus securing an eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the sprinkling of defiled persons with the ashes of a heifer, sanctify for the purification of the flesh, 14 how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without blemish to God, purify our conscience from dead works to serve the living God. 15 Therefore he is the mediator of a new covenant, so that those who are called may receive the promised eternal inheritance, since a death has occurred that redeems them from the transgressions committed under the first covenant.

The Kingdom is both now and not yet

Hebrews 6:19-20 - God’s Promise of the Heavenly Sanctuary

Hebrews 6:19–20 ESV

19 We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain, 20 where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf, having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

We have this as a sure and steadfast anchor of the soul,

The hope we have is as stable/secure as an anchor which ensures we do not drift away from the faith

Safe and steadfast are used together for emphasis

A hope that enters into the inner place behind the curtain,

Behind the curtain

Holy of holies

Only the high priest could enter this area and only on the Day of Atonement

Leviticus 16:1–10 ESV

1 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they drew near before the Lord and died, 2 and the Lord said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at any time into the Holy Place inside the veil, before the mercy seat that is on the ark, so that he may not die. For I will appear in the cloud over the mercy seat. 3 But in this way Aaron shall come into the Holy Place: with a bull from the herd for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. 4 He shall put on the holy linen coat and shall have the linen undergarment on his body, and he shall tie the linen sash around his waist, and wear the linen turban; these are the holy garments. He shall bathe his body in water and then put them on. 5 And he shall take from the congregation of the people of Israel two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering. 6 “Aaron shall offer the bull as a sin offering for himself and shall make atonement for himself and for his house. 7 Then he shall take the two goats and set them before the Lord at the entrance of the tent of meeting. 8 And Aaron shall cast lots over the two goats, one lot for the Lord and the other lot for Azazel. 9 And Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for the Lord and use it as a sin offering, 10 but the goat on which the lot fell for Azazel shall be presented alive before the Lord to make atonement over it, that it may be sent away into the wilderness to Azazel.

Our hope anchors us to the heavenly temple

Where Jesus has gone as a forerunner on our behalf,

Forerunner

Matthew 27:51 ESV

51 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split.

Believers will follow him into a special communion with God the Father

Having become a high priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.

Psalm 110:4 ESV

4 The Lord has sworn and will not change his mind, “You are a priest forever after the order of Melchizedek.”

Christ is the high priest who takes us into the Most Holy area of the heavenly sanctuary

***With this last note, the author is ready to return to the word that is hard to explain***

Hebrews 5:5–11 ESV

5 So also Christ did not exalt himself to be made a high priest, but was appointed by him who said to him, “You are my Son, today I have begotten you”; 6 as he says also in another place, “You are a priest forever, after the order of Melchizedek.” 7 In the days of his flesh, Jesus offered up prayers and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to him who was able to save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverence. 8 Although he was a son, he learned obedience through what he suffered. 9 And being made perfect, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, 10 being designated by God a high priest after the order of Melchizedek. 11 About this we have much to say, and it is hard to explain, since you have become dull of hearing.

Reflection

Where is your anchor placed? Is it secure in the heavenly sanctuary as a result of the work of Christ?

Application

Follow the example of Abraham - patiently endure until we receive the promise that God has given to us

Main Point

God is still faithful to His word and His oath as He was with Abraham. We must hold fast to our hope and great high priest who leads us to the heavenly sanctuary.