Chapter
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Verse
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16

Hebrews 4:10
ESV for whoever has entered God’s rest has also rested from his works as God did from his.
NIV for anyone who enters God's rest also rests from their works, just as God did from his.
NASB For the one who has entered His rest has himself also rested from his works, as God did from His.
CSB For the person who has entered his rest has rested from his own works, just as God did from his.
NLT For all who have entered into God’s rest have rested from their labors, just as God did after creating the world.
KJV For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his.

What does Hebrews 4:10 mean?

This verse completes the argument begun in the early part of chapter 4. The point here is that those who desire the ultimate blessings of God, meaning our spiritual inheritance, or our "rest," can only obtain this rest in a particular way. In fact, this verse helps to explain the use and meaning of the word "rest" in this entire passage. God "rested" when He completed His creative work (Genesis 2:2; Hebrews 4:3–4). Israel was denied their "rest" in Canaan because they refused to complete their God-ordained work (Hebrews 3:16–19). This rest, then, is not the end of activity, or the beginning of relaxation. It's a completion of a task.

As this verse summarizes, those who enter into the "rest" offered by God are those who have completed the works He has given them. This is why the writer of Hebrews insists that we "hold fast" to our faith, unlike the nation of Israel at the borders of Canaan (Psalm 95:7–11). What is at stake is not our eternal salvation (John 6:39–40), but our eternal rewards (Revelation 2:26–27). This is similar to the sense in which finding peace with God (Romans 5:1) is permanent for the saved believer, but finding the peace of God during our lives is dependent on our faithful obedience (Philippians 4:6–8).

Verses 11 through 13 will explain how this truth ought to motivate us. Since all things are clear to God and nothing can be hidden from Him (Hebrews 4:13), we ought to make every effort to "enter that rest" by completing all that He has asked of us (Hebrews 4:11). Ultimately, the judge of our hearts will be the very word of God (Hebrews 4:12).
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