Hebrews 10:31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
2006-12-20 14:52:08 · 23 answers · asked by ? 7 in Society & Culture ➔ Religion & Spirituality
And this is the reason:
Mat 10:28 And do not fear those who kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul. But rather fear Him who can destroy both soul and body in hell.
2006-12-20 14:56:00 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
Hebrews 10:30-31 For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense, saith the Lord. And again, The Lord shall judge his people.
31 It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.
When you question any scripture in the bible, you need to go to the scripture or several ones prior to the one in question and you will find the answer.
In this case the answer is.. those who God will place His wrath/anger upon need to be fearful of what God will choose to do to them when He avenges those who were wronged by them, and will judge them accordingly.
It's just like trying to read a book backwards. You will never understand what the contents is about unless you read it from the beginning. Each book in the bible has a beginning and an end. Always start at the beginning. Not the middle and not at the end, but at the beginning.
2006-12-20 22:59:27 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
We should not take one text out of context from the whole passage. We might end up reading a text like: "Judas went and hang himself on a tree" and followed by: "Go and do likewise!" The whole chapter 10 of Hebrews is talking about the sacrifice of Jesus which is better than the animal sacrifices as a means for the remission of their sins made by the Jews during the time of Moses. then on the 31 verse the writer says that It is a fearul thing to fall into the hands of the living God, if we despise His sacrifice in giving His Son as our Redeemer instead of animals.
Thus he is referring to verses 26,27 : "For if we sin wilfully after we have received the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a certain fearful expectation of judgment, and the fiery indignation which will devour the adversaries."
Then in in verses 28-31 he describes that if during the time of Moses those who rejected the Law of Moses faced death punishment, how much more those who trampled the mercy of God and insulted the Spirit of grace. To them, it would be terrible.
But to us who accept that grace, in verses 35 and 36, we are going to receive the "great reward" and "receive the promise".
Compare this to 2 Peter 3:10-13, we are told that the great reward and promise is the new heaven and new earth where righteousness dwells after the destruction by fire to this world marred by sin:
10 But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night, in which the heavens will pass away with a great noise, and the elements will melt with fervent heat; both the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up.[c] 11 Therefore, since all these things will be dissolved, what manner of persons ought you to be in holy conduct and godliness, 12 looking for and hastening the coming of the day of God, because of which the heavens will be dissolved, being on fire, and the elements will melt with fervent heat? 13 Nevertheless we, according to His promise, look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells.
So we should not be falling into the hands of the avenging God, after it is too late, but to accept His offer or grace and received His great reward and promise.
2006-12-20 23:22:56 · answer #3 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋
It helps if you consider the previous verse:
Heb 10:30 For we know Him who has said, "Vengeance belongs to Me; I will repay," says the Lord. And again, "The Lord will judge His people." Deut. 32:35, 36
It should be very frightening to the unbeliever to be in the hands of a vengeful God, one who judges sin and dispenses punishment.
For the believer, it is likewise a fearful thing to be under His hand of discipline, He disciplines His children for good and punishes those who oppose Him.
2006-12-20 23:01:37 · answer #4 · answered by BrotherMichael 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
go back to verse 29 and read.God said in verse 30 "Vengeance is mine saith the Lord God. and finish with the rest of the chapter.This explains it all.29 How much sorer punishment,suppose ye,shall be worthy,who hath trodden under foot the Son of God.In other words I wouldn`t want to be one of those who treated Jesus as if he was nothing.It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God.Even today there are those who speak of the Savior as nothing and blasphemy his name. and unless they ask forgiveness their punishment will be strong.
2006-12-20 23:07:12 · answer #5 · answered by greenstateresearcher 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Interestingly this verse is spoken to Christians about God's discipline of His children who disobey Him. There are many Christians today who have adopted the idea that because
God is a God of love you can just sin and God will forgive you. This is God's answer to that issue and He clearly warns believers not to test His patience and kindness or it will be disasterous for them.
2006-12-20 22:59:53 · answer #6 · answered by oldguy63 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
When one goes into the presence of the Lord they recognize his most awsome Holy power, they recognize that he could destroy you in an instant, that is a fearful thing and it is wise to be fearful but yet at the same time one knows the magnitude of his love which exceeds love as we know it here on earth.
2006-12-20 22:59:50 · answer #7 · answered by Angelz 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
If we truly have an accurate picture of how high and mighty that our God is, we must recognize that we are merely as dust at his feet and it is only out of love and undeserved kindness that he ever considers us at all. We should show him respect and honor at all times and realize that if he stopped thinking about us, we would cease to exist. He sustains our every waking second by the love and consideration he has for us.
2006-12-21 00:25:38 · answer #8 · answered by Sparkle1 6 · 1⤊ 0⤋
Referance this to Luke 12:5.... God can cast those who have rejected him into hell... those who are unsure of their fate need to fear... and even those who are assured of their Salvation will be fearfull in the presence of the full power of God... like going to the principle to the thousandth power X 10
2006-12-20 22:58:28 · answer #9 · answered by idahomike2 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
Denotes the gravity of standing before God.
2006-12-20 22:55:49 · answer #10 · answered by ? 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋