Hebrews 3–4

Lessons from the Exodus

One of the most important and well-known stories in the Old Testament is the story of the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt and their journey toward the promised land. Like the Israelites of old, some of the Jewish Christians in Paul’s day thought that what God had asked of them was too difficult. In Hebrews 3–4, Paul used the story of the Exodus to encourage the Jewish converts to keep the faith and avoid repeating the mistakes made by their forefathers. Because the Hebrews in the days of Moses did not have enough faith in God to obey Him throughout the entire journey from Egypt, they were not allowed to enter into the promised land. Paul did not want the Hebrews in his day to be kept from entering into the rest of the Lord because of lack of faith. Paul testified that just as Moses had led their forefathers, Jesus Christ would lead them back into the presence of Heavenly Father.