Faith and Hebrews 11:1
Once more, the subject is faith. In the past two blogs I have discussed “Saving Faith” and “Enduring Faith.” If you have not had the time to read them, allow me to encourage you to do so. In those writings I show that rather than being a monolithic entity, biblical faith is most accurately seen as being made up of two dimensions. Saving faith is that faith given to us by God and exercised by us that results in our being saved (cf. Ephesians 2:8, also John 20:31; Romans 3:28; 5:1, to name but a few). Enduring faith, on the other hand, may be described as the faith manifested subsequent to salvation that we are to exercise throughout our Christian lives on earth (cf. Acts 14:21-22; Rom 4:20; 1 Corinthians 13:13; 2 Corinthians 5:7; Galatians 2:20; 2 Peter 1:5-7). Saving faith is to result in enduring faith, which pleases God (Hebrews 11:6). When the New Testament is understood to mainly refer to the books between Acts 2 and Revelation (the Gospels, especially the Synoptics, being in great part transitional from the Old Testament), it is, I believe, evident that the word “faith” is most commonly seen as enduring faith, not saving faith.
Although the distinctions between “saving” and “enduring” are usually easily discerned, I feel compelled to acknowledge at the beginning here that this is not always the case. Hebrews 11:1 may be such an exception. I trust this admission will not lessen the beauty or importance of this study on this monumental verse for you.
The context of Hebrews 11:1, both previous to the verse and following it, is easy to see as enduring faith. For example, Hebrew 10:19-39 is a great section of Scripture where enduring faith may be clearly seen. Most scholars title this passage, “A Call to Persevere,” that is, persevere in faith, endure in faith. Since Hebrews 10 was the backdrop for most of the information given in last week’s blog, it seemed only natural to continue the discussion into chapter 11, the chapter known universally as the “Faith Chapter.” Thus, this week’s blog is entitled, “Faith and Hebrews 11:1.” Remarks on the context following Hebrews 11:1 will follow below.
The challenge to which I refer in distinguishing the kind of faith in view in Hebrews 11:1 is obvious in a comparison of the verse from our English translations, especially in the transposing of two of the key words in the NIV:
NAS Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. ESV Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. NKJ Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. NET Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is being sure of what we hope for, being convinced of what we do not see.
NIV Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see.
KJV Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.
NLT Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will actually happen; it gives us assurance about things we cannot see.
CSB Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the reality of what is hoped for, the proof of what is not seen.
Biblical hope, it must be understood, is not the same thing as the way we mostly use the word today in our culture. I believe you would agree that when hope is mentioned today, it carries the connotation of a wish. While it must be acknowledged that the distinction can be slight, biblical hope carries more weight. Instead of wishing for something to happen, biblical hope is having a confident trust that it will happen. The Complete Jewish Bible translation conveys this thought well:
CJB Hebrews 11:1 Trusting is being confident of what we hope for, convinced about things we do not see.
It may be seen in the N.T. that faith is closely connected to hope (e.g., Romans 8:24-25). While the New Covenant is not the focus of this particular blog (it will be in the near future), it is likely that the writer to the Hebrews is linking his words in chapter 11 to those in chapters 8 and 9, where the New Covenant is discussed in detail. This connection is most probably alluded to with the writer’s use of the words “not seen.” Whereas the Old Covenant was visible through its manifest glory and public ceremonies, the New Covenant is invisible (this statement needs clarification, but that will have to wait until my New Covent blog).
NAS 2 Corinthians 4:18 while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal.
Most people would probably think of Hebrews 11:1 as the Bible’s definition of faith. However, a number of leading scholars see v. 1 not as a definition of faith but as a description of faith. What’s the difference? My computer dictionary says a definition is an act of determining specifically, and by contrast a description is an act of describing specifically; discourse intended to give a mental image of something experienced. I wonder if you have often scratched your head over dictionary definitions as I have. Look again at that definition of “description”: “description is an act of describing.” Doesn’t that strike you as doubletalk? Description is describing. Huh? So you have to look up “describe.” Describe is defined: to represent by a figure, model, or picture. Understood this way, I can see where those scholars are coming from. When chapter 11 is thoughtfully read, I believe it can be seen correctly as a description. That’s the chapter, but I suggest that verse 1 can accurately be seen to be a definition. Confusing as that may at first sound, I think that makes sense: verse 1 gives a definition of faith and the rest of the chapter gives a description of that definition.
Verse 1 begins with the words “faith is….”; I think it’s hard, then, not to see it as a definition.
NAS Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.
Looking at this verse as a definition, and having already discussed “hope,” we note two key words: “assurance” and “conviction.” In order to understand what the writer is saying, we must study both.
After much reading and meditation, I believe George H. Guthrie (The NIV Application Commentary: Hebrews) has the best take on what the biblical text is saying in Hebrews 11 and how we should define enduring faith. Guthrie considers the opening verse to be a two-part definition of enduring faith, those two parts focusing on two words, assurance (or substance) and conviction (or confidence or even proof). Guthrie adds to the lexical definition of assurance given below with this comment: “It probably should be understood in 11:1, as in 3:14, in the sense of a ‘firm, solid confidence’ or a ‘calm courage’ with reference to things hoped for. The examples [note that word – TAR] that follow demonstrate a posture of firm confidence in the promises of God even though the believers had not yet received the fulfillment of those promises (cf. 11:39).”
One can easily see from Guthrie’s comments the absolute necessity of God’s Word, for how else can the knowledge of God’s promises specifically and reliably be discerned?
“Assurance” is the Greek word (hoo-pah-stah-sis); its literal meaning is, that which underlies; hence, objectively, (1) the substance, the reality underlying mere appearance; and subjectively, (2) confidence, assurance. Think of that for a moment: faith can be seen as that which underlies; it is the spiritual, invisible but true substance that underlies the seemingly more real visible things in this world. Or it can also accurately be defined as that subjective, personal conviction that connects us to God. The writer to the Hebrews used it in this subjective way in…
NAS Hebrews 3:14 For we have become partakers of Christ, if we hold fast the beginning of our assurance firm until the end;
That verse could also be termed as a clear definition of “enduring faith.” I also believe this verse demonstrates just how intimately saving faith and enduring faith are related. “The beginning of our assurance” seems to be referring to saving faith. At the risk of coming across as engaging in doubletalk myself, I confess that the line between the two is sometimes blurred. Without rationalizing my own struggle to be clear, I proffer the thought that ultimately, ideally the two dimensions of faith should be indistinguishable. Enduring faith should naturally and uninterruptedly follow from saving faith and the two should be close to impossible to distinguish. In spite of the context, which is one clearly of enduring faith, such could well be what’s happening in v. 1 of chapter 11: a “both/and,” rather than an “either/or.”
Regarding “assurance,” we may conclude from both the lexical and the contextual meanings that faith has a firmness, a solidness about it. “Substance” and “evidence” are solid things. So it is biblically accurate to think of faith as a foundation, something that solidly lies beneath a structure. A foundation is the most solid part of a structure. Our enduring faith is what we build upon that foundation, which itself may be seen to be built upon the Rock that is Christ.
NAS 1 Corinthians 3:11 For no man can lay a foundation other than the one which is laid, which is Jesus Christ.
Perhaps it could be said that enduring faith is not only the progressive building upon the foundation of saving faith but also the strengthening and developing of it.
We may think of faith as that spiritual reality given to us by God as a foundation to build upon through obedience to His Word. Faith is not given to us just to save us, as overwhelmingly wonderful as that is. God commands us to build upon that foundation. If we do what He tells us to do, we will mature (maturity being the result of enduring faith as well as the main purpose of the entire book of Hebrews). If we do not, we do not grow or mature and we can even forget the fact we have the foundation. That building upon our faith with good works pleasing to God results in a faith that endures (Hebrews 10:38). When Hebrews 11:1 is understood correctly, we see our faith is the solid reality of our life, rather than being something without substance, whereas all the stuff and glitter, the sound and fury of the world that is assumed by most all to be reality is unsubstantial.
“Faith” and “hope” are future words; both are principles that always look forward and are hence unseen.
“Conviction,” the second of the two key terms in Hebrews 11, is the Greek word (eh-leg- kos), meaning evidence or proof. After studying this verse for years, if I had to choose, I’d pick the latter. BDAG, the leading Greek lexicon, defines as: a matter of concern of any kind, thing, matter, affair. As I look at Hebrews 11:1 1 in the Greek text I think this word is further identifying what assurance is. Guthrie is surely correct when he says, “The word elenchus, used here, means a conviction [that] is not a static emotion of complacency but something lively and active, not just a state of immovable dogmatism but a vital certainty which impels the believer to stretch out his hand, as it were, and lay hold of those realities on which his hope is fixed and which, though unseen, are already his in Christ.” I believe you’ll agree from Guthrie’s comments that we cannot be talking primarily about saving faith here, but enduring faith. That the preceding verse bears this out can hardly be denied:
NAS Hebrews 10:39 But we are not of those who shrink back to destruction, but of those who have faith to the preserving of the soul.
Guthrie writes of the second part of the two-part definition in Hebrew 11:1, “This interpretation stands in parallel with the assertion in the second half of the verse: ‘and certain of what we do not see.’ The verse does not contain a conjunction, ‘and.’ perhaps lending support to the interpretation that the first and second halves of the verse are parallel thoughts.… Some realities are unseen because they belong to the spiritual realm and some because they lie in the future, when that realm will break into the earthly sphere. In either case, the person of faith lives out a bold confidence in God’s greater realities.”
Therefore, the enduring faith, as defined by the writer of Hebrews, is to be understood as consistently living in bold confidence of an unseen, futuristic reality that lies like a firm foundation beneath the empty, unsatisfying, and temporary system of disconnected events the world sadly recognizes as reality.
So, in conclusion, Hebrews 11:1 is best seen as a definition and not a description of faith. The multifaceted description of faith is seen in the verses that follow through the chapter. In writing this study I was struck by the thought that perhaps more accurate than “description” would be the word “example.” Rather than descriptions of faith, I suggest that verses 4-31 are better seen as examples of faith. With this in mind, I further suggest that the basic teaching of this great chapter is that faith gives substance, substantial weight, evidence, proof to the things hoped for in Christ, and that faith demonstrates true reality of future things, things unseen. Faith gives assurance that the other world, the unseen world, does exist. The life of the believer today is lived in the assurance of another reality; a reality outside the realm of the believer’s experience. The rest of chapter 11 supports and gives examples of this enduring faith from the lives of a number of unforgettable O.T. characters. This is the faith that pleases God.
NAS Hebrews 11:6 And without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who seek Him.
I humbly recognize how arduous this particular writing has surely been for many to follow, yet I feel I must not apologize. It is simply a fact that if we want to get to the bottom of the definition of biblical faith, we must be willing to investigate its complexities. I pray this investigation will prove beneficial to you in your walk of faith.
– Professor Thomas A. Rohm
