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Hebrews

About this book
Chapter 12

1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us,⁠ 2 keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus,⁠ the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Think of him who endured such opposition against himself by sinners, so that you may not grow weary in your souls and give up. 4 You have not yet resisted to the point of bloodshed in your struggle against sin. 5 And have you forgotten the exhortation addressed to you as sons? “My son, do not scorn the Lord’s discipline or give up when he corrects you.⁠ 6 For the Lord disciplines the one he loves and chastises every son he accepts.”⁠ 7 Endure your suffering as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is there that a father does not discipline? 8 But if you do not experience discipline, something all sons have shared in, then you are illegitimate and are not sons. 9 Besides, we have experienced discipline from our earthly fathers and we respected them; shall we not submit ourselves all the more to the Father of spirits⁠ and receive life?⁠ 10 For they disciplined us for a little while as seemed good to them, but he does so for our benefit, that we may share his holiness. 11 Now all discipline seems painful at the time, not joyful. But later it produces the fruit of peace and righteousness for those trained by it. 12 Therefore, strengthen your listless hands and your weak knees,⁠ 13 and make straight paths for your feet,⁠ so that what is lame may not be put out of joint but be healed. 14 Pursue peace with everyone, and holiness, for without it no one will see the Lord.⁠ 15 See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God, that no one be like a bitter root springing up and causing trouble,⁠ and through it many become defiled. 16 And see to it that no one becomes an immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal. 17 For you know that later when he wanted to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no opportunity for repentance, although he sought the blessing with tears. 18 For you have not come to something that can be touched, to a burning fire and darkness and gloom and a whirlwind⁠ 19 and the blast of a trumpet and a voice uttering words such that those who heard begged to hear no more. 20 For they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.”⁠ 21 In fact, the scene was so terrifying that Moses said, “I shudder with fear.”⁠ 22 But you have come to Mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the assembly 23 and congregation of the firstborn, who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous, who have been made perfect,⁠ 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks of something better than Abel’s does. 25 Take care not to refuse the one who is speaking! For if they did not escape when they refused the one who warned them on earth, how much less shall we, if we reject the one who warns from heaven? 26 Then his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “I will once more shake not only the earth but heaven too.”⁠ 27 Now this phrase “once more” indicates the removal of what is shaken, that is, of created things, so that what is unshaken may remain. 28 So since we are receiving an unshakable kingdom, let us give thanks, and through this let us offer worship pleasing to God in devotion and awe. 29 For our God is indeed a devouring fire.⁠

Texts in conversation

Compare Exodus 19:12 and Hebrews 12:20

Hebrew Bible · New Testament

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Summary

Hebrews 12 adapts Exodus 19, where the Israelites are warned not to touch Mount Sinai during God's descent. The writer condenses and reshapes its meaning, contrasting the distance and fear of that moment with now being able to freely approach God.

Passages

Exodus 19:12

Hebrew Bible
10 The Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and sanctify them today and tomorrow, and make them wash their clothes 11 and be ready for the third day, for on the third day the Lord will come down on Mount Sinai in the sight of all the people. 12 You must set boundaries for the people all around, saying, ‘Take heed to yourselves not to go up on the mountain nor touch its edge. Whoever touches the mountain will surely be put to death! 13 No hand will touch him—but he will surely be stoned or shot through, whether a beast or a human being; he must not live.’ When the ram’s horn sounds a long blast they may go up on the mountain.” 14 Then Moses went down from the mountain to the people and sanctified the people, and they washed their clothes.
750–400 BCE (scholarly estimate) Read in Exodus

Hebrews 12:20

New Testament
18 For you have not come to something that can be touched, to a burning fire and darkness and gloom and a whirlwind 19 and the blast of a trumpet and a voice uttering words such that those who heard begged to hear no more. 20 For they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.” 21 In fact, the scene was so terrifying that Moses said, “I shudder with fear.” 22 But you have come to Mount Zion, the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the assembly 23 and congregation of the firstborn, who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous, who have been made perfect,
80–90 CE (scholarly estimate) Read in Hebrews

References

"... There are only two citations, or quotations, of Exodus in Hebrews that scholars agree upon: Exodus 25:40 in Hebrews 8:5 and of Exodus 24:8 in 9:20. In Hebrews 12:20 we find what I describe as a condensed paraphrase of Exodus 19:12-13, where a longer portion of text is condensed with close verbal similarity preserved and, for that reason, there is no debate as to whether Hebrews 12:20 references Exodus 19:12-13. There are many instances, however, in which Hebrews alludes to Exodus and, in those cases, Hays’ criteria are most relevant. Some of the most significant allusions I (and others) identify, for instance, include the “word spoken through angels” in 2:2 (angels at Sinai), the wilderness generation (thematic allusions) and the promise of rest (Exodus 33:14) in Hebrews 3-4. The reference to God’s rest after creation in relation to the Sabbath command in 4:4 may allude to Genesis but it may also (or instead) allude to the Decalogue in Exodus and/or Exodus 31:17. Hebrews 5:1, 4 allude to the call of Aaron from among the people to be a priest (Exodus 28:1) and Hebrews dialogues with the concept of Aarons’ perpetual priestly line throughout Hebrews 5-7, as well. A detailed description of the wilderness tabernacle in Heb 9 alludes very specifically to Exodus and references to both covenant and atoning rituals in Hebrews can easily be understood as alluding to Exodus and/or Leviticus ..."
Scott Ronald Moore, “A Conviction of Texts Not Seen: Perceiving Exodus as the Generative Text of Hebrews” (diss., University of Denver, 2017), 69–70.

References are not endorsements of their contents. Read each reference in full to understand its author's intentions in using these texts.

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Exodus 19:12 and Hebrews 12:20

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