1 A ll these many people who have had faith in God are around us like a cloud. Let us put every thing out of our lives that keeps us from doing what we should. Let us keep running in the race that God has planned for us.

Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,

2 L et us keep looking to Jesus. Our faith comes from Him and He is the One Who makes it perfect. He did not give up when He had to suffer shame and die on a cross. He knew of the joy that would be His later. Now He is sitting at the right side of God.

fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.

3 S inful men spoke words of hate against Christ. He was willing to take such shame from sinners. Think of this so you will not get tired and give up.

For consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. A Father’s Discipline

4 I n your fight against sin, you have not yet had to stand against sin with your blood.

You have not yet resisted to the point of shedding blood in your striving against sin;

5 D o you remember what God said to you when He called you His sons? “My son, listen when the Lord punishes you. Do not give up when He tells you what you must do.

and you have forgotten the exhortation which is addressed to you as sons, “ My son, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord, Nor faint when you are reproved by Him;

6 T he Lord punishes everyone He loves. He whips every son He receives.”

For those whom the Lord loves He disciplines, And He scourges every son whom He receives.”

7 D o not give up when you are punished by God. Be willing to take it, knowing that God is teaching you as a son. Is there a father who does not punish his son sometimes?

It is for discipline that you endure; God deals with you as with sons; for what son is there whom his father does not discipline?

8 I f you are not punished as all sons are, it means that you are not a true son of God. You are not a part of His family and He is not your Father.

But if you are without discipline, of which all have become partakers, then you are illegitimate children and not sons.

9 R emember that our fathers on earth punished us. We had respect for them. How much more should we obey our Father in heaven and live?

Furthermore, we had earthly fathers to discipline us, and we respected them; shall we not much rather be subject to the Father of spirits, and live?

10 F or a little while our fathers on earth punished us when they thought they should. But God punishes us for our good so we will be holy as He is holy.

For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but He disciplines us for our good, so that we may share His holiness.

11 T here is no joy while we are being punished. It is hard to take, but later we can see that good came from it. And it gives us the peace of being right with God.

All discipline for the moment seems not to be joyful, but sorrowful; yet to those who have been trained by it, afterwards it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness.

12 S o lift up your hands that have been weak. Stand up on your weak legs.

Therefore, strengthen the hands that are weak and the knees that are feeble,

13 W alk straight ahead so the weak leg will not be turned aside, but will be healed.

and make straight paths for your feet, so that the limb which is lame may not be put out of joint, but rather be healed.

14 B e at peace with all men. Live a holy life. No one will see the Lord without having that kind of life.

Pursue peace with all men, and the sanctification without which no one will see the Lord.

15 S ee that no one misses God’s loving-favor. Do not let wrong thoughts about others get started among you. If you do, many people will be turned to a life of sin.

See to it that no one comes short of the grace of God; that no root of bitterness springing up causes trouble, and by it many be defiled;

16 N one of you should fall into sex sins or forget God like Esau did. He had a right to get all Isaac had because he was the oldest son. But for one plate of food he sold this right to his brother.

that there be no immoral or godless person like Esau, who sold his own birthright for a single meal.

17 Y ou know that later he would have received everything. But he did not get it even when he asked for it with tears. It was too late to make right the wrong he had done.

For you know that even afterwards, when he desired to inherit the blessing, he was rejected, for he found no place for repentance, though he sought for it with tears. Contrast of Sinai and Zion

18 F or you have not come close to a mountain that you can touch. You have not come to worship where there is burning fire and darkness and storm and wind.

For you have not come to a mountain that can be touched and to a blazing fire, and to darkness and gloom and whirlwind,

19 T he sound of a horn was heard and God’s voice spoke. The people cried out to Moses to have God stop speaking to them.

and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them.

20 T hey could not stand to listen to His strong words, “Even if an animal comes to the mountain, it must be killed.”

For they could not bear the command, “ If even a beast touches the mountain, it will be stoned.”

21 W hat Moses saw was so hard to look at that he said, “I am full of fear and am shaking.”

And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, “ I am full of fear and trembling.”

22 B ut instead, you have come to the mountain of Jerusalem. It is the city of the living God. It is the Jerusalem of heaven with its thousands of angels.

But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels,

23 Y ou have gathered there with God’s children who were born long ago. They are citizens of heaven. God is there. He will judge all men. The spirits of all those right with God are there. They have been made perfect.

to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the Judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect,

24 J esus is there. He has made a way for man to go to God. He gave His blood that men might worship God the New Way. The blood of Jesus tells of better things than that which Abel used.

and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood, which speaks better than the blood of Abel. The Unshaken Kingdom

25 B e sure you listen to the One Who is speaking to you. The Jews did not obey when God’s Law was given to them on earth. They did not go free. They were punished. We will be punished more if we do not listen to God as He speaks from heaven.

See to it that you do not refuse Him who is speaking. For if those did not escape when they refused him who warned them on earth, much less will we escape who turn away from Him who warns from heaven.

26 O n Mount Sinai, God’s voice shook the earth. But now He has promised, saying, “Once more I will shake the earth and the heavens.”

And His voice shook the earth then, but now He has promised, saying, “ Yet once more I will shake not only the earth, but also the heaven.”

27 W hen God says, “Once more,” He means He will take away everything of this world that can be shaken so the things that cannot be shaken will be left.

This expression, “Yet once more,” denotes the removing of those things which can be shaken, as of created things, so that those things which cannot be shaken may remain.

28 S ince we have received a holy nation that cannot be moved, let us be thankful. Let us please God and worship Him with honor and fear.

Therefore, since we receive a kingdom which cannot be shaken, let us show gratitude, by which we may offer to God an acceptable service with reverence and awe;

29 F or our God is a fire that destroys everything.

for our God is a consuming fire.