Hebrews Part Two Deep Dive

THE HALL OF FAITH | RYAN KERRISON

The unusual and enigmatic nature of the Book of Hebrews has caused it to yield more questions than answers. The issue of authorship, the recipient context, even the compositional date, as well as the letter’s dominating themes all coalesce to form an epistolary kaleidoscope of Jewish themes, Old Testament allusions, and Levitical overtones that the modern reader must wade through. One of these particular passages is located in the eleventh chapter of Hebrews and functions like traditional Greco-Roman texts, in that it is a more ‘complex characterization of figures and in relating them to a common principle, faith’. The function of this multidimensional hero list is ‘to explain and legitimate the existence of the community which is being addressed, by grounding the members of that community in a significant genealogical history’.  In normal person speech, this just means the author is writing concerning a myriad of religiously important and culturally familiar figures to bring legitimacy to the aim of the author – to explore the role of faith – within the community. The author does all of this heavy lifting to make a single monolithic argument that Jesus Christ is superior to all else before Him, all else after Him and all else within the cosmos.

This famous ‘Hall of Faith’ chapter begins with an exposition of the concept of faith, its nature and function as well as making a case for the necessity of faith in one’s life. It then turns its eye to people whose lives were exemplified by their faith, seeking to reiterate the previous chapter’s prophetic recall from Habakkuk, ‘the just shall live by faith’. The author expertly pulls a thread that began centuries ago in the Old Testament through into a prophetic and hope-filled understanding of faith and worship. He highlights figures from Jewish history, heralding their lives and decisions as examples to live by, particularly their faith and patience as they await the Day of the Lord. Moving through the figures of Abel, Enoch, Noah, The Patriarchs, Moses, Joshua, Rahab and an assortment of other figures, the author pulls together a menagerie of characters to tell the story of faith in action. In Abel, God is worshiped through faith. Calvin writes concerning Abel’s offering, ‘it relies on God’s promises, and thus it gains the value and worth which belongs to works from his grace alone’. In Noah’s life, his actions and faithfulness in the face of ridicule emphasize obedience and trust in God above circumstances. The Patriarchs are selected to show the promises of God, and their worthiness to be held to over time. The patience of these figures is unparalleled in scripture. Abraham, who is unquestionably the most highly regarded of characters in this list, is distinguished as one who had exemplary faith, and that the mark of those living in the promise or covenant made between Yahweh and Abraham is this mark of faith.

I could continue analyzing the rest of the ‘Hall of Faith’ forever, but I will not do this here. The overarching point is that the author does not select these people based on their meritorious efforts. The thrust of this passage is on the act, life and obedience of these individuals becoming purified by the gift of faith that generates within them a sense of value. This section urges its recipients to pursue life in a manner akin to those before them, while providing a bedrock for the following chapter to advocate for Christ as the Author and Perfecter of our faith, through whom one is made perfect in every way. This ‘Hall of Faith’ is not intended to be merely a smattering of ‘faith-trophies’ for the Jewish community to admire, nor to advocate for an other-worldly expression of perfect faith, in fact, this chapter intentionally excludes the sections of their lives in which they were not trusting God. However, the greater point is preserved – that the just shall live by faith and that in Christ, one’s faith is perfectly enabling us to be patient as we carry out our mission and await the final day of the Lord.

Ryan Kerrison, originally from Darwin, came to Sydney to study and hasn’t left. Ryan works at C3 College as the Head of Bible and Theology, and lectures in Advanced Theology, Creation to End Times and many more subjects. As one of the founding writers and team members of TYB, Ryan is one of the smartest people we know. He has his Masters in Theology and will no doubt have his Doctorate and running Academic Colleges around the world in no time!

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Hebrews part two

Hebrews part one