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InterlinearVerse GEN EXO LEV NUM DEU JOB JOS JDG RUTH 1 SAM 2 SAM PSA AMOS HOS 1 KI 2 KI 1 CHR 2 CHR PROV ECC SNG JOEL MIC ISA ZEP HAB JER LAM YNA (JNA) NAH OBA DAN EZE EZRA EST NEH HAG ZEC MAL LAO GES LES ESG DNG 2 PS TOB JDT WIS SIR BAR LJE PAZ SUS BEL MAN 1 MAC 2 MAC 3 MAC 4 MAC YHN (JHN) MARK MAT LUKE ACTs YAC (JAM) GAL 1 TH 2 TH 1 COR 2 COR ROM COL PHM EPH PHP 1 TIM TIT 1 PET 2 PET 2 TIM HEB YUD (JUD) 1 YHN (1 JHN) 2 YHN (2 JHN) 3 YHN (3 JHN) REV
Heb C1 C2 C3 C4 C5 C6 C7 C8 C9 C10 C11 C12 C13
Heb 3 V1 V2 V3 V4 V5 V6 V7 V8 V9 V10 V11 V12 V13 V14 V16 V17 V18 V19
OET (OET-LV) At the time to_be_being_said:
Today if of_the voice of_him you_all_may_hear, not you_all_may_harden the hearts of_you_all, as in the rebellion.
OET (OET-RV) As it’s been said:
⇔ ‘Today if you all hear his voice,
⇔ don’t harden your hearts as you did when you rebelled.’
In the earlier sections of Hebrews the author showed that Jesus was greater than both the angels and Moses. In 2:1–4 he gave a first warning not to refuse the message which Jesus brought. Here in 3:7–19 he gave a second warning not to refuse Jesus’ message, especially the “rest” that God offers through Jesus. The author quoted from Psalm 95, which says that God wanted to give the people of Israel a land where they could have rest from their enemies. When they were slaves in Egypt, he sent Moses to lead them to that land, but they rebelled against God in the wilderness. Then God did not allow them to enter the land of rest.
It is often difficult to decide how to translate “rest” in this section and in chapter 4. Psalm 95 and Hebrews do refer to the time when Moses was alive and God promised to give the people of Israel land. However, King David was already in that land when he wrote the psalm, so the “rest” could not refer to the land. It refers to a different type of “rest.” That rest is a way of trusting God and depending on him for everything. We especially trust him to save us from our sins and give us eternal life. Because of the rest that God gives, we can have peace even when we suffer.
Be careful not to imply that the rest that God promises his people today is a certain place or land. Some scholars believe that the rest refers to heaven. It is true that we will have perfect rest in heaven, but Hebrews indicates that the rest that God provides for us begins on earth when we trust in Jesus.
Some other headings for this section are:
Rest for God’s People
Warning Against Unbelief (NIV)
We Must Continue to Follow/Obey God
Scholars differ about where to end this warning section. Some scholars end the warning at 3:19. Others make the warning section continue to 4:13. In these notes, 3:19 is the end of this second warning section, and the following section is 4:1–13.
In this paragraph the author told his readers and listeners how they should apply the quotation in 3:7b–11 to themselves. Just as God warned the people of Israel to be careful not to turn away from him, the Hebrews should also be careful. They should not refuse to believe what God said, as the Israelites did.
As it has been said:
Just as the Scripture already quoted said:
As it has been said: The words As it has been said is a way to introduce a quotation of Scripture. Here it introduces a verse in Psalm 95 that has already been quoted in 3:7b–8b. The words in the quotation are the same in both Hebrews and the Psalm, but they are introduced in different ways. Some other ways to introduce this scripture are:
As the scripture that was already quoted said
But never forget the warning (NLT96)
Always remember what is written in God’s book:
Introduce the quotation here in a natural way in your language.
“Today, if you hear His voice,
“Today as you(plur) hear his voice,
“Listen(plur) to what God says today:
“Be(plur) sure to listen to those words today.
do not harden your hearts,
do(plur) not become stubborn/disobedient,
‘Do(plur) not reject my words,
as you did in the rebellion.”
as you(plur) did when you rebelled.”
as your(plur) ancestors did when they refused to obey me.’ ”
Today, if you hear His voice, do not harden your hearts, as you did in the rebellion: Here the author referred back to the quotation in 3:7–11 to emphasize what he was saying. The quotation is exactly the same as the original in 3:7b–8b. It is important to translate it in exactly the same way here.
Note 1 topic: figures-of-speech / infostructure
ἐν τῷ λέγεσθαι
in the (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἐν τῷ λέγεσθαι Σήμερον ἐάν τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ ἀκούσητε μή σκληρύνητε τάς καρδίας ὑμῶν ὡς ἐν τῷ παραπικρασμῷ)
This verse could: (1) conclude the exhortations in [3:12–14](../03/12.md) by stating when the audience should follow these exhortations. If you use the following alternate translation, you may need to add a period before it. Alternate translation: [Do these things while it is said] (2) introduce what will be discussed in [3:16–19](../03/16.md). If you use the following alternate translation, you may need to add a period before it. Alternate translation: [Hear again what is said:]
Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / activepassive
λέγεσθαι
˓to_be_being˒_said
If your language does not use the passive form in this way, you could express the idea in active form or in another way that is natural in your language. The author uses the passive form here to focus on what is said rather than on the person doing the saying. If you must state who did the action, the author implies that the Holy Spirit did it (See: [3:7](../03/07.md). Alternate translation: [during the time when the Holy Spirit instructs]
Note 3 topic: writing-quotations
ἐν τῷ λέγεσθαι
in the (Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἐν τῷ λέγεσθαι Σήμερον ἐάν τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ ἀκούσητε μή σκληρύνητε τάς καρδίας ὑμῶν ὡς ἐν τῷ παραπικρασμῷ)
The author uses the phrase it is said to requote a part of the quotation that he introduced earlier (See: especially [3:7b–8a](../03/07.md)). If it would be helpful in your language, you could use a word or phrase that introduces something that has already been quoted. Alternate translation: [while the words I have already quoted are said]
σήμερον ἐὰν τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ ἀκούσητε, μὴ σκληρύνητε τὰς καρδίας ὑμῶν, ὡς ἐν τῷ παραπικρασμῷ
(Some words not found in SR-GNT: Ἐν τῷ λέγεσθαι Σήμερον ἐάν τῆς φωνῆς αὐτοῦ ἀκούσητε μή σκληρύνητε τάς καρδίας ὑμῶν ὡς ἐν τῷ παραπικρασμῷ)
Since the author repeats here the same words that he quoted in [3:7b–8a](../03/07.md), you should translate these words in exactly the same way as you did in those verses.
3:15 This verse again quotes Ps 95:7-8, the exhortation from that portion of the psalm. It sums up the author’s own exhortation in Heb 3:12-14, focusing on the importance of listening and responding favorably to God’s voice.
OET (OET-LV) At the time to_be_being_said:
Today if of_the voice of_him you_all_may_hear, not you_all_may_harden the hearts of_you_all, as in the rebellion.
OET (OET-RV) As it’s been said:
⇔ ‘Today if you all hear his voice,
⇔ don’t harden your hearts as you did when you rebelled.’
Note: The OET-RV is still only a first draft, and so far only a few words have been (mostly automatically) matched to the Hebrew or Greek words that they’re translated from.
Acknowledgements: The SR Greek text, lemmas, morphology, and VLT gloss are all thanks to the CNTR.
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