to a trumpet blast or to a voice that made its hearers beg that no further word be spoken.
Parallel translations
- WEB the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which those who heard it begged that not one more word should be spoken to them,
- KJV And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more:
- NKJV and the sound of a trumpet and the voice of words, so that those who heard it begged that the word should not be spoken to them anymore.
- NASB and to the blast of a trumpet and the sound of words, which sound was such that those who heard begged that no further word be spoken to them.
- NLT For they heard an awesome trumpet blast and a voice so terrible that they begged God to stop speaking.
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
At Sinai there was a trumpet blast and a voice so terrifying that the people begged to hear no more. The old covenant inspired dread that drove people back from God.
Overview
Continuing the Sinai scene (Exodus 20:18–19), the author recalls the trumpet and the divine voice that so frightened Israel they pleaded for the speaking to stop. The terror of that encounter underscored the people's distance from a holy God under the law. This dreadful approach stands in deliberate contrast to the welcome believers have under Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 10
- Deut 18:16This is what you asked of the LORD your God at Horeb on the day of the assembly, when you said, “Let us not hear the voice of the LORD our God or see this great fire anymore, so that we will not die!”
- 1 Cor 15:52in an instant, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.
- Exod 20:1–19And God spoke all these words:
- Deut 4:12And the LORD spoke to you out of the fire. You heard the sound of the words, but saw no form; there was only a voice.
- Deut 5:3–22He did not make this covenant with our fathers, but with all of us who are alive here today.
- Exod 20:22Then the LORD said to Moses, “This is what you are to tell the Israelites: ‘You have seen for yourselves that I have spoken to you from heaven.
- Deut 4:33Has a people ever heard the voice of God speaking out of the fire, as you have, and lived?
- 1 Th 4:16For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a loud command, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will be the first to rise.
- Exod 19:16–19On the third day, when morning came, there was thunder and lightning. A thick cloud was upon the mountain, and a very loud blast of the ram’s horn went out, so that all the people in the camp trembled.
- Deut 5:24–27and you said, “Behold, the LORD our God has shown us His glory and greatness, and we have heard His voice out of the fire. Today we have seen that a man can live even if God speaks with him.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
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 12:19 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.