Introduction
Few know that “rest” is a major theme in the Bible, that runs from the Old Testament to the New Testament. In the Old Testament Rest is first seen in Genesis chapter two. In Genesis chapter one God creates the universe ex nihilo, “from nothing” in six literal days. Then, on the seventh day, in Genesis chapter two, God looks at his creation, declares that it is good and rests (Genesis 2:1-3, CSB). This theme is then developed throughout the Old Testament, then into the New Testament. According to J.C. Laansma this theme in the Old Testament is developed “in two main strands,” which are Sabbath rest and the promise of rest from wandering.[1] Sabbath rest was created and solidified in the Torah (the first five books of the Old Testament), and the theme of promise of rest from wandering is developed primarily in the books of Exodus, Leviticus, Deuteronomy, Numbers, and Joshua. In these books the history of the Israelite people is recorded, which follows their escape from Egyptian captivity and slavery, the giving of the Law by God, their wandering in the wilderness for forty years and eventually their entering into the promised land and rest in the book of Joshua (Joshua 1, CSB). This raises the important question; “What exactly was this rest from?” According to Laansma, Sabbath and promised rest were not rest from doing work but rest for “unhampered constructive activity.”[2] This was often due to God giving His people rest from their enemies, which was directly related to His people’s obedience and disobedience to Him. If they were obedient and thereby in right relationship with Him there would be rest, while if they were living in disobedience and unbelief there was not rest. The absence of rest in many ways pointed to God’s judgement on the people’s disobedience.
Interestingly, however, the biblical theme of rest takes on a new meaning in the New Testament, specifically in the letter of Hebrews. The letter of Hebrews is a general epistle written by an unknown author to a group of storm-tossed believers who are suffering under immense persecution (Hebrews 10:32-39, CSB). In this letter the author of Hebrews takes several Old Testament concepts, figures, and themes and demonstrates how Christ is their superior. The author of Hebrews changes the New Testament believer’s understanding of Angels, Joshua, Sacrifice, the High Priesthood, priestly ministry, and rest by demonstrating how in Christ and in the New Covenant these themes and figures take on a new dimension. This leads to the question, “How exactly does the letter of Hebrews change the believer’s understanding of Old Testament rest?” The answer to this question is found in the text of Hebrews itself. The letter to the Hebrews dramatically advances how biblical rest is to be understood, as the promised rest depicted in the Old Testament finds its final and fullest fulfilment in the New Covenant through Jesus Christ. Therefore, an exegetical survey of Hebrews chapters three and four and an analysis of its use of the Old Testament are required to grasp the full picture of biblical rest.
Biblical Rest in Hebrews
As mentioned above the letter of Hebrews was written by an unknown author to a group of storm-tossed believers. The letter was likely written in the late 60’s AD.[3] And is addressed to Jewish Christians, some of which may have been a part of the Qumran sect of Judaism.[4] These Jewish Christians were struggling under Neronian persecution to endure in the faith, which caused some of them to be tempted to abandon the faith and apostatize (Hebrews 3:7-9, 3:12, 4:11, 5:2, 2:1, 3:16, 4:1, 6:6, 10:35-39).[5] Due to their suffering and the potential of apostasy the author of Hebrews writes them to remind them of the superiority of Christ to Angels, Moses, Joshua, rest, the High Priesthood, and the High Priestly ministry to push them to lean into Christ rather than returning to Judaism and Judaic thought which Jesus Christ has surpassed through His High Priestly work on the cross on behalf of the world. Perhaps the key idea of the letter to the Hebrews could be summarized as; “endurance through persecution on the basis of and motivated by the reality that Jesus Christ is better.” This summary statement captures the letter’s primary themes of perseverance, endurance, faith, and the superiority of Christ over the devices of the Old Covenant and the Law.
The structure of Hebrews can be broken into two primary sections: Christ’s superiority (Hebrews 1:1-10:18, NASB) and exhortations to struggling believers (10:19-13:25). The first section speaks to Christ’s superior and exalted position (1:1-4), Christ’s superiority to the Angels (1:5-2:18), Christ’s superiority to Moses (3:1-19), Christ’s superior rest (4:1-13), Christ’s superior priesthood (4:14-7:28), and Christ’s superior priestly ministry (8:1-10:18). The second section includes: confidence in-light of Christ’s superiority (10:19-25), the terror of apostasy (10:26-31), enduring faith rooted in eschatological hope (10:32-39), premier examples of faith and God’s faithfulness (11:1-40), Jesus’ superior example of endurance (12:1-3), discipline from the Father (12:4-13), an exhortation to pursue peace (12:14-17), the superior Covenant and unshakable Kingdom (12: 18-29), an exhortation towards right behavior (13:1-17), and a concluding prayer and benediction (13:18-25). The structure of Hebrews helps highlight where the author was and where he is heading before and after he develops the theme of rest in Christ.
In the third chapter of Hebrews the author asserts the superiority of Christ to Moses (3:1-6). This is followed by a warning against disobedience and unbelief. The author roots this warning back into the central idea of the book, and uses it to push them away from abandoning the faith and towards encouraging one another daily so that no one falls into disobedience and unbelief which led to those who followed Moses wandering in the wilderness for forty years, rather than entering the promised rest. In Hebrews chapter four the author continues to build on this Old Testament concept and will eventually show how rest is ultimately found in Christ. Greek Scholar, author, pastor, and Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary Professor David Allen states, “Verse 1 is introduced by oun, indicating a conclusion based on the preceding verse. The events of the exodus generation are now applied to the readers’ present situation.”[6] That is, chapter four builds on the conclusion of the previous passage, by applying the concept of unbelief and rest to the New Covenant believers to which the author of Hebrews was writing to. Specifically, the author of Hebrews exegetes Psalms 95:7-11 and applies it to the New Testament believers, while also connecting promised rest (Hebrews 3, 4:3-7) with God’s rest on the seventh day or Sabbath rest (4:4).
The author of Hebrews then states that the opportunity to enter God’s rest is still open (6). Additionally, the author of Hebrews also states the insufficiency of Joshua’s leading of God’s people into rest then, by stating, “For if Joshua had given them rest, God would not have spoken later about another day” (8). This is in reference to God speaking through King David in Psalms 95:7-11. He then states, “Therefore, a Sabbath rest remains for God’s people. For the person who entered his rest has rested from his own works, just as God did from his” (9-10). Pastor and author Robert Kent Hughes summarizing these verses states, “When God finished the cosmos, he rested in the Sabbath-rest that works. When Christ cried, ‘It is finished,’ he forever rested from his atoning work, But the resting Christ works, even as the working God rests. Christ is the Lord of the Sabbath! When we believed, we finished our works-righteousness and entered God’s rest.”[7] That is the promised rest that Genesis 2, Psalm 95, and Hebrews 4 point forward, which depict spiritual rest in Christ Jesus through the Gospel This rest allows those who believe to share in the rest that God has offered through faith in His Son. The author of Hebrews concludes by stating, “Let us then make every effort to enter that rest, so that no one will fall into the same pattern of disobedience” (Hebrews 4:11, CSB). What an encouragement to storm-tossed believers who likely thought that rest had forever escaped them, as they heard that they could enter the rest of God (4:2-3).
Psalms 95:7-11
As mentioned above the author of Hebrews exegetes and applies Psalms 95 to the New Covenant believers to which he was writing to. He uses Psalm 95 and Genesis 2 to show how the concept of rest applies to Christians. Craig L. Blomberg, author and Bible scholar, summarizes this application stating, “It is appropriate, therefore, to speak of people who become Christians as entering into God’s rest as a kind of ‘Sabbath-rest” that is not tied to a particular day of the week or frequency of celebration but continues endlessly, even into the age to come.”[8] That is, in Christ there is rest unto eternity, and it is through the use of Psalms 95 that the author of Hebrews makes this typological point. Therefore, it is important to briefly analyze the content of Psalms 95:7-11. Psalms 95 is a warning hymn that exhorts its readers towards praise and worship of God while warning its readers to avoid hardening their hearts and failing like their ancestors did in the wilderness (Psalms 95:8-9, CSB). In Psalms 95, David specifically references events that were recorded first in Exodus 17 and later Numbers 20. These passages record the Israelites failure to trust and believe God, specifically in the area of provision for water (Numbers 20:1-5). God responds to the people’s unbelief, complaints, and rebellion by telling Moses to strike a rock with his staff to make water come out (7-8).
Moses, however, frustrated with the people strikes the rock twice and is consequently not allowed to lead the people into or enter himself the promised rest (9-13). It is in God’s response to Moses here that God’s response to the people’s initial rebellion is echoed, as in Numbers 14 the people refuse to take the city of Canaan under God’s command, and therefore he sentences them to wander for forty years so that they do not enter into the promised land, only their descendants. It is this disobedience and God’s response to their unbelief and disobedience that the author of Hebrews highlights in his exploration of Old Testament rest in Hebrews 4. Due to the people’s rebellion and the short coming of Israel’s Old Testament leaders rest was never totally grasped, instead the Israelites lived in a pattern of rebellion and unbelief that led them in and out of rest for the entirety of the Old Testament. The author of Hebrews then highlights Christ’s success in leading His people into a permanent rest offered only by His blood, which drives at the central theme of the letter of Hebrews; Christ’ superiority over all that Jewish Christians might be tempted to return to should they apostatize. Not only does the author highlight how promised rest finds its crescendo in Christ, while also connecting God’s Sabbath rest (Genesis 2:2, CSB) with promised rest and rest in Christ, to show his readers that ultimately Sabbath-rest and promised rest finds its fullest meaning in Christ and His glorious Gospel.
Theological Significance and Application
The theological significance then is the greatness and finality of rest in Christ over Sabbath-rest and promised-rest, which of course was the exact antidote that the storm-tossed believers to which Hebrews is addressed were in dire need of. How could one know the superiority of Christ and the rest He provides and turn back to something that is ultimately lesser? This is exactly the point the author of Hebrews was trying to make not only with how he developed the idea of rest in Hebrews 4 but in all that he wrote under the inspiration of the Spirit in the first section of Hebrews (Hebrews 1:1-10:18). In a phrase: “Endure because Jesus is better,” is the prevailing idea of the superiority section of Hebrews.
This applies not only to the persecuted audience of Hebrews but to all Christians who suffer daily from trials, sickness, suffering, persecutions, and the pressures of life. Hebrews 4 screams with the rest of the book, “you can endure because Jesus is better.” Believers can know that in Christ there is rest despite the restlessness of Christ, and that they can endure based on His exalted position over anything else that they could turn to in times of need. This is the beautiful message of not only Hebrews 4 but of the letter in its entirety.
Specifically, however, the rest found in Christ can and should be used as a tool by those in gospel ministry. In both Biblical Counseling and preaching this theology of rest provides an escape and hope for those in need and those who are struggling like the believers to which the letter of Hebrews was written. Additionally, the minister, who has busied himself with the ministry must be sure to remind himself of this truth as he teaches and preaches it, as he must rest in Christ himself. Ministerial burnout is a real risk for those who labor for the sake of the gospel. Therefore, both the Church member and the minister must seek rest that can only be found most fully in Christ alone.
Conclusion
The author of Hebrews dramatically advances the Biblical theme of rest by showing how promised rest and Sabbath rest find their fullest meaning in Christ. The author of Hebrews accomplishes this through a carful exposition of Psalms 95, Exodus 17, Numbers 20, and Genesis 2:2, through which He shows that Christ is the greater Moses and Joshua, and that through Him there is everlasting rest. This is applicable to all Christians, as every believer faces trials and struggles and seeks rest, that, ultimately, will only be fulfilled in Christ.
[1] T. Desmond Alexander and Brian S. Rosner eds., New Dictionary of Biblical Theology. (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 2000), 727. [2] Ibid, 730. [3] MacArthur, John, The MacArthur Bible Commentary, (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 2005), 1832-4. [4] Wilder, Terry. Faithful to the End: An Introduction to Hebrews through Revelation, (Nashville: Broadman and Holman, 2007), 12. [5] Ibid, 14-18. [6] Allen, David, Hebrews: New American Commentary, (Nashville: Broadman and Holman, 2010), 272. [7] Hughes, R. Kent, Hebrews: Preaching the Word, (Wheaton: Crossway, 2015), 115. [8] Blomberg, L. Craig, From Pentecost to Patmos: An Introduction to Acts Through Revelation, (Nashville: Broadman and Holman, 2006), 419.
