Hebrews 3:7

7 So then, as the Holy Spirit says, 1 "If you hear God's voice today,

Hebrews 3:7 Meaning and Commentary

Hebrews 3:7

Wherefore, as the Holy Ghost saith
In ( Psalms 95:7 )

today if you will hear his voice;
either the precepts of Christ, to hear which is to obey them; and this is an acknowledgment to Christ as King of saints, and is a testimony of love to him, and is wellpleasing in his sight; and in which the saints find pleasure themselves, and profit also: or the Gospel of Christ, which is a voice of love, grace, and mercy; of peace and reconciliation; of pardon and righteousness; of liberty, redemption, and salvation by Christ; and to hear it, is not only to hear it externally, but internally, so as to understand it, and distinguish it from the voice of a stranger, and to approve of it, and believe it, and put in practice what is heard: and "today" may intend some festival day in David's time, when, and on account of which, this psalm was penned; as the feast of tabernacles, which was a type of Christ tabernacling in human nature; or it may regard the time of man's life, while it is day, or the present instant of life: or rather the whole Gospel dispensation. The psalm from whence these and some following words are taken, belongs to the Messiah; for the person the subject of it, is called the rock of our salvation; and every thing in it is applicable to him; as the ascription of deity, and divine worship; the creation and preservation of the universe; yea, he is represented as a shepherd, and the saints as his sheep; which plainly points at the office of Christ; and these very words are often made use of by the Jews, and applied to the Messiah, showing that if the Jews would repent but one day, or keep the sabbath but one day, the son of David, the Messiah, would come; since it is said, "today if you will hear his voice" F4; which the Chaldee paraphrase renders (hyrmym) , "his Word", his essential Word, the Lord Jesus Christ.


FOOTNOTES:

F4 T. Bab. Sanhedrin, fol. 98. 1. Shemot Rabba, sect. 25. fol. 109. 3. & Shirhashirim Rabba, fol. 19. 3.

Hebrews 3:7 In-Context

5 Moses was faithful in God's house as a servant, and he spoke of the things that God would say in the future.
6 But Christ is faithful as the Son in charge of God's house. We are his house if we keep up our courage and our confidence in what we hope for.
7 So then, as the Holy Spirit says, "If you hear God's voice today,
8 do not be stubborn, as your ancestors were when they rebelled against God, as they were that day in the desert when they put him to the test.
9 There they put me to the test and tried me, says God, although they had seen what I did for forty years.

Cross References 1

  • 1. 3.7-11Psalms 95.7-11 (LXX).
Scripture taken from the Good News Translation - Second Edition, Copyright 1992 by American Bible Society. Used by Permission.