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Hebrews 3:17
ESV And with whom was he provoked for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?
NIV And with whom was he angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose bodies perished in the wilderness?
NASB And with whom was He angry for forty years? Was it not with those who sinned, whose dead bodies fell in the wilderness?
CSB With whom was God angry for forty years? Wasn't it with those who sinned, whose bodies fell in the wilderness?
NLT And who made God angry for forty years? Wasn’t it the people who sinned, whose corpses lay in the wilderness?
KJV But with whom was he grieved forty years? was it not with them that had sinned, whose carcases fell in the wilderness?

What does Hebrews 3:17 mean?

This verse, along with verses 16 and 18, uses rhetorical questions to close up the author's point about sin and discipline. Israel was forced to wander in the desert for forty years due to their sin. This caused an entire generation to lose out on entering the Promised Land. In this chapter, the author has made the argument that Christians are subject to the same dangers, if they fail to "hold fast," making the same errors as the people of Israel did. These verses remind the reader that it was due to Israel's sin that they were forced to wander.

The prior verse introduced the first of four ways in which our spiritual failures can disrupt our fellowship with God. The first was rebellion. Here, the main concern is simply referred to as "sin," from the Greek hamartēsasin. In this particular context, the term has more to do with our actions than anything else. The connection is fairly clear, as this verse connects "sin" with the death of the body—physical for physical. Of course, what we do with our bodies is a reflection of what we think and believe. And, it demonstrates the extent to which we see God as the ultimate authority in our lives.
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