These were all commended for their faith, yet they did not receive what was promised.
Parallel translations
- WEB These all, having had testimony given to them through their faith, didn’t receive the promise,
- KJV And these all, having obtained a good report through faith, received not the promise:
- ESV And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised,
- NKJV And all these, having obtained a good testimony through faith, did not receive the promise,
- NASB And all these, having gained approval through their faith, did not receive what was promised,
- NLT All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised.
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
All these were commended for their faith, yet none received the fullness of what was promised. They lived and died trusting in what was still to come.
Overview
Summing up the whole chapter, the author notes that every one of these saints "had testimony given" through faith, yet did not receive the promise in its fullness during their lifetimes. They looked ahead to a fulfillment they would not see until Christ came. Their faith was vindicated, but its consummation awaited the new covenant and its better hope.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 4
- Luke 10:23–24Then Jesus turned to the disciples and said privately, “Blessed are the eyes that see what you see.
- Heb 11:13All these people died in faith, without having received the things they were promised. However, they saw them and welcomed them from afar. And they acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.
- Heb 11:2This is why the ancients were commended.
- 1 Pet 1:12It was revealed to them that they were not serving themselves, but you, when they foretold the things now announced by those who preached the gospel to you by the Holy Spirit sent from heaven. Even angels long to look into these things.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
Hebrews is sustained worship of Christ: better than angels, Moses, and the priests; the great High Priest after Melchizedek who by one sacrifice perfects forever those he saves.
How Hebrews 11:39 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Greek word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.