Hebrews 11

11 ¹Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen. ²For by it the people of old received their commendation. ³By faith we understand our Father's word formed the universe, so what is seen came not from the visible.

⁴By faith Abel brought our Father a better offering than Cain's, through which he was proven righteous, our Father commending him by accepting his gifts. Though he died, through his faith he still speaks.

⁵By faith Enoch was taken up, not seeing death, and was not found, because our Father had taken him. Before his taking, he was commended as pleasing to our Father. ⁶Without faith it's impossible to please him: whoever approaches our Father must believe he exists and rewards those who sincerely seek him.

⁷By faith Noah, warned about what wasn't yet visible, built an ark in reverence to save his household. By this he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes through faith.

⁸By faith Abraham obeyed the call to go to a place he'd receive as inheritance, leaving without knowing his destination. ⁹By faith he settled in the land of promise as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob, co-heirs of the same promise. ¹⁰For he was watching for the city with foundations, whose designer and builder is our Father.

¹¹By faith Sarah herself received power to conceive, though past age, since she trusted the one who promised was faithful. ¹²So from one man—as good as dead—were born as many descendants as the stars of the sky, as countless as sand on the seashore.

¹³All these died in faith, without receiving what was promised—yet seeing it from afar and welcoming it, admitting they were foreigners and exiles on earth. ¹⁴For those who say this show they are seeking a homeland of their own. ¹⁵If they had remembered the land they'd left, they'd have had a chance to return. ¹⁶But as it is, they desire a better country—a heavenly one. So our Father is not ashamed to be called their Father: he has prepared them a city. ^a a v16 Hebrews echoes the Old Testament's covenant formula — 'I will be their God, and they will be my people' — which our Father always meant in family terms: 'I will be their Father, and they will be my children.' He is not ashamed of the family name.

¹⁷By faith Abraham, being tested, offered Isaac; he who had received the promises was offering his only son,

¹⁸of whom it was said, "Through Isaac will your offspring be named."

¹⁹He reasoned our Father could raise him even from the dead—and, figuratively, he got him back from there.

²⁰By faith Isaac called down future blessings on Jacob and Esau.

²¹By faith Jacob, dying, blessed each of Joseph's sons and worshiped, leaning on the top of his staff.

²²By faith, dying, Joseph mentioned the exodus of Israel's sons and gave orders about his bones.

²³By faith Moses' parents hid him three months after his birth, seeing he was a beautiful child, unafraid of the king's edict.

²⁴By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh's daughter, ²⁵choosing mistreatment with our Father's people over sin's fleeting pleasures. ²⁶He considered the disgrace of Christ greater wealth than Egypt's treasures, since he looked toward the reward. ²⁷By faith he left Egypt, not fearing the king's anger, enduring as if seeing our Father, who is invisible. ²⁸By faith he kept the Passover and blood-sprinkling, so the destroyer of the firstborn wouldn't touch them.

²⁹By faith they crossed the Red Sea as on dry land; the Egyptians, trying the same, were swallowed up.

³⁰By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after they had been encircled for seven days.

³¹By faith Rahab the prostitute did not die with those who disobeyed, since she welcomed the spies in peace.

³²What more can I say? Time fails me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David and Samuel and the prophets, ³³who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, ³⁴put out fire's power, escaped the edge of the sword, grew strong from weakness, became mighty in war, and turned back foreign armies. ³⁵Women received their dead back by resurrection; others were tortured, refusing release, to gain a better resurrection. ³⁶Still others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. ³⁷They were stoned, sawn in two, killed by the sword. They wandered in sheepskins and goatskins—destitute, tormented, mistreated. ³⁸The world wasn't worthy of them—they wandered deserts, mountains, caves, and holes in the ground.

³⁹And all these, though they were commended for their faith, did not receive what was promised, ⁴⁰since our Father provided something better for us, so they would not be perfected without us.