Hebrews 6:15
in Hebrews 6And so Abraham, after waiting patiently, obtained the promise.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
And thus, having patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
KJV
And so, after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise.
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This verse in Hebrews 6
Commentary
11 notes on this verseAnd so, after he had patiently endured,.... He waited long for a son, from whom the Messiah was to spring, after he had had the promise of one; and he endured many afflictions with patience, in his journeys from place to place, throughout his life to the end: he obtained the promise; he was greatly blessed in temporal things; he lived to see the son of the promise, and his sons; he saw the day of Christ by faith, and now inherits the heavenly glory, which is the thing chiefly designed.
This site's exposition
He swore by Himself
on Hebrews 6:13-15
The oath is Genesis 22:16 to 17: since He had no one greater to swear by, He swore by Himself. The words I will surely bless you keep the doubled Hebrew verb. Abraham obtained the promise after waiting patiently, makrothumesas, the long wait for Isaac.
This site's exposition
after waiting patiently
John Wesley counts thirty years of waiting and names Isaac as the promise obtained, the pledge of all the promises. Jamieson, Fausset and Brown call this the patient endurance of faith. They set it beside the patience of love at 1 Corinthians 13:4.
The record, by era
The Church Fathers3 voices
"And so, having patiently." You see that the patience of Abraham accomplished something? He said that by being patient he obtained the promise, in order to show the great power of patience, and that it was not the promise alone that accomplished everything; but also …
Yet though making a promise and doing it with an oath, he did not immediately fulfill the promise; instead, the patriarch needed great patience, and only with the passage of a great length of time did he thus see the realization of the promise.
Having boldly reflected on the faults of the Hebrews, and sufficiently alarmed them, he consoles them, first, by praises, and secondly (which also is the stronger ground), by the thought that they would certainly attain the object of their hope. Moreover he draws his consolation, not from things future, but again from the past, which indeed would the rather persuade them. For as in the case of punishment, he alarms them rather by those things future, so also in the case of the prizes set before them, he encourages them by these things past, showing herein God's way of dealing. And that is, not to bring in what has been promised immediately, but after a long time. And this He does, both to present the greatest proof of His power, and also to lead us to Faith, that they who are living in tribulation without having received the promises, or the rewards, may not faint under their troubles. And omitting all the rest, though he had many whom he might have mentioned, he brought forward Abraham both on account of the dignity of his person, and because this had occurred in a special way in his case. And yet at the end of the Epistle he says, that "all these, having seen the promises afar off, and having embraced them, received them not, that they without us should not be made perfect." "For when God made promise to Abraham" (he says) "because He could swear by no greater, He sware by Himself, saying, Surely blessing I will bless thee, and multiplying I will multiply thee. And so after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise." How then does he say at the end of the Epistle that "he received not the promises," and here, that "after he had patiently endured he obtained the promise"? How did he not receive? How did he obtain? He is not speaking of the same things in this place and in the other, but makes the consolation twofold. […]
The Medieval Church2 voices
In what way does he say at the end of the epistle that they "saw them only from afar" and "rejoiced" at the fulfillment of the promises (Heb. 11:13), yet now says that Abraham "received what was promised"? He is not speaking of the same …
316. – The effect of the promise was that Abraham, having patiently endured, obtained the promise. For patient endurance consists not only in doing something great, but also in waiting a long time. But Abraham had the promise, although he never possessed the pace of …
3 more voices on this verse
The Puritans and the Awakening1 voice
After he had waited - Thirty years. He obtained the promise - Isaac, the pledge of all the promises. Men generally swear by him who is infinitely greater than themselves, and an oath for confirmation, to confirm what is promised or asserted, usually puts an end to all contradiction.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
And so, after he had patiently endured - After he had waited for a long time. He did not faint or grow weary, but he persevered in a confident expectation of the fulfillment of what God had so solemnly promised. He obtained the promise - Evidently the promise referred to in the oath - that he would have a numerous posterity. The apostle intimates that he had waited for that a long time; that his faith did not waver, and that in due season the object of his wishes was granted.
He obtained the promise - Isaac was supernaturally born; and in his birth God began to fulfill the promise: while he lived, he saw a provision made for the multiplication of his seed; and, having continued steadfast in the faith, he received the end of all the promises in the enjoyment of an eternal glory. And the inference from this is: If we believe and prove faithful unto death, we shall also inherit the promises; and this is what is implied in the apostle’s exhortation, Heb 6:12: Be not slothful, but followers of them, etc.
The words behind it
6 Greek wordsEvery Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Greek | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| καὶ | kai | And | G2532 → | 9120 times |
| οὕτως | houtos | thus | G3779 → | 208 times |
| μακροθυμήσας | makrothumesas | having waited patiently | G3114 → | |
| ἐπέτυχεν | epetuchen | he obtained | G2013 → | |
| τῆς | tes | the | G3588 → | 19766 times |
| ἐπαγγελίας. | epangelias | promise. | G1860 → | 52 times |
καὶAnd
kaiG2532 →9120 times
οὕτωςthus
houtosG3779 →208 times
μακροθυμήσαςhaving waited patiently
makrothumesasG3114 →
ἐπέτυχενhe obtained
epetuchenG2013 →
τῆςthe
tesG3588 →19766 times
ἐπαγγελίας.promise.
epangeliasG1860 →52 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
5 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Hebrews 6:12Then you will not be sluggish, but will imitate those who through faith and patience inherit what has been promised.
it leads to
- Hebrews 13:7
Remember your leaders who spoke the word of God to you. Consider the outcome of their way of life and imitate their faith.
- Hebrews 10:36
You need to persevere, so that after you have done the will of God, you will receive what He has promised.
- Romans 12:11
Do not let your zeal subside; keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord.
- 1 John 2:25
And this is the promise that He Himself made to us: eternal life.
- Romans 2:7
To those who by perseverance in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality, He will give eternal life.
- Hebrews 13:7
Where this verse is studied
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1 name in this verse with a page on the site.
This page draws on 12 works. Open the list of works
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory; John Calvin, Commentary on Hebrews; John Chrysostom, Homily on Hebrews 11; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes Upon the New Testament; John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Oecumenius, The Pseudo-Oecumenian Catena on Hebrews; Theodoret of Cyrus, INTERPRETATION OF HEBREWS 6; Theophylact of Ohrid, Commentary on Hebrews and Thomas Aquinas, Commentary on Hebrews.