| Berean Study Bible | New Living Translation |
| 1Now faith is the assurance of what we hope for and the certainty of what we do not see. | 1Faith shows the reality of what we hope for; it is the evidence of things we cannot see. |
| 2This is why the ancients were commended. | 2Through their faith, the people in days of old earned a good reputation. |
| 3By faith we understand that the universe was formed at God’s command, so that what is seen was not made out of what was visible. | 3By faith we understand that the entire universe was formed at God’s command, that what we now see did not come from anything that can be seen. |
| 4By faith Abel offered God a better sacrifice than Cain did. By faith he was commended as righteous when God gave approval to his gifts. And by faith he still speaks, even though he is dead. | 4It was by faith that Abel brought a more acceptable offering to God than Cain did. Abel’s offering gave evidence that he was a righteous man, and God showed his approval of his gifts. Although Abel is long dead, he still speaks to us by his example of faith. |
| 5By faith Enoch was taken up so that he did not see death: “He could not be found, because God had taken him away.” For before he was taken, he was commended as one who pleased God. | 5It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying—“he disappeared, because God took him.” For before he was taken up, he was known as a person who pleased God. |
| 6And without faith it is impossible to please God, because anyone who approaches Him must believe that He exists and that He rewards those who earnestly seek Him. | 6And it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that God exists and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. |
| 7By faith Noah, when warned about things not yet seen, in godly fear built an ark to save his family. By faith he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness that comes by faith. | 7It was by faith that Noah built a large boat to save his family from the flood. He obeyed God, who warned him about things that had never happened before. By his faith Noah condemned the rest of the world, and he received the righteousness that comes by faith. |
| 8By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, without knowing where he was going. | 8It was by faith that Abraham obeyed when God called him to leave home and go to another land that God would give him as his inheritance. He went without knowing where he was going. |
| 9By faith he dwelt in the promised land as a stranger in a foreign country. He lived in tents, as did Isaac and Jacob, who were heirs with him of the same promise. | 9And even when he reached the land God promised him, he lived there by faith—for he was like a foreigner, living in tents. And so did Isaac and Jacob, who inherited the same promise. |
| 10For he was looking forward to the city with foundations, whose architect and builder is God. | 10Abraham was confidently looking forward to a city with eternal foundations, a city designed and built by God. |
| 11By faith Sarah, even though she was barren and beyond the proper age, was enabled to conceive a child, because she considered Him faithful who had promised. | 11It was by faith that even Sarah was able to have a child, though she was barren and was too old. She believed that God would keep his promise. |
| 12And so from one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore. | 12And so a whole nation came from this one man who was as good as dead—a nation with so many people that, like the stars in the sky and the sand on the seashore, there is no way to count them. |
| 13All these people died in faith, without having received the things they were promised. However, they saw them and welcomed them from afar. And they acknowledged that they were strangers and exiles on the earth. | 13All these people died still believing what God had promised them. They did not receive what was promised, but they saw it all from a distance and welcomed it. They agreed that they were foreigners and nomads here on earth. |
| 14Now those who say such things show that they are seeking a country of their own. | 14Obviously people who say such things are looking forward to a country they can call their own. |
| 15If they had been thinking of the country they had left, they would have had opportunity to return. | 15If they had longed for the country they came from, they could have gone back. |
| 16Instead, they were longing for a better country, a heavenly one. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them. | 16But they were looking for a better place, a heavenly homeland. That is why God is not ashamed to be called their God, for he has prepared a city for them. |
| 17By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac on the altar. He who had received the promises was ready to offer his one and only son, | 17It was by faith that Abraham offered Isaac as a sacrifice when God was testing him. Abraham, who had received God’s promises, was ready to sacrifice his only son, Isaac, |
| 18even though God had said to him, “Through Isaac your offspring will be reckoned.” | 18even though God had told him, “Isaac is the son through whom your descendants will be counted.” |
| 19Abraham reasoned that God could raise the dead, and in a sense, he did receive Isaac back from death. | 19Abraham reasoned that if Isaac died, God was able to bring him back to life again. And in a sense, Abraham did receive his son back from the dead. |
| 20By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau concerning the future. | 20It was by faith that Isaac promised blessings for the future to his sons, Jacob and Esau. |
| 21By faith Jacob, when he was dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons and worshiped as he leaned on the top of his staff. | 21It was by faith that Jacob, when he was old and dying, blessed each of Joseph’s sons and bowed in worship as he leaned on his staff. |
| 22By faith Joseph, when his end was near, spoke about the exodus of the Israelites and gave instructions about his bones. | 22It was by faith that Joseph, when he was about to die, said confidently that the people of Israel would leave Egypt. He even commanded them to take his bones with them when they left. |
| 23By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after his birth, because they saw that he was a beautiful child, and they were unafraid of the king’s edict. | 23It was by faith that Moses’ parents hid him for three months when he was born. They saw that God had given them an unusual child, and they were not afraid to disobey the king’s command. |
| 24By faith Moses, when he was grown, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. | 24It was by faith that Moses, when he grew up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter. |
| 25He chose to suffer oppression with God’s people rather than to experience the fleeting enjoyment of sin. | 25He chose to share the oppression of God’s people instead of enjoying the fleeting pleasures of sin. |
| 26He valued disgrace for Christ above the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his reward. | 26He thought it was better to suffer for the sake of Christ than to own the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking ahead to his great reward. |
| 27By faith Moses left Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger; he persevered because he saw Him who is invisible. | 27It was by faith that Moses left the land of Egypt, not fearing the king’s anger. He kept right on going because he kept his eyes on the one who is invisible. |
| 28By faith he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, so that the destroyer of the firstborn would not touch Israel’s own firstborn. | 28It was by faith that Moses commanded the people of Israel to keep the Passover and to sprinkle blood on the doorposts so that the angel of death would not kill their firstborn sons. |
| 29By faith the people passed through the Red Sea as on dry land; but when the Egyptians tried to follow, they were drowned. | 29It was by faith that the people of Israel went right through the Red Sea as though they were on dry ground. But when the Egyptians tried to follow, they were all drowned. |
| 30By faith the walls of Jericho fell, after the people had marched around them for seven days. | 30It was by faith that the people of Israel marched around Jericho for seven days, and the walls came crashing down. |
| 31By faith the prostitute Rahab, because she welcomed the spies in peace, did not perish with those who were disobedient. | 31It was by faith that Rahab the prostitute was not destroyed with the people in her city who refused to obey God. For she had given a friendly welcome to the spies. |
| 32And what more shall I say? Time will not allow me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets, | 32How much more do I need to say? It would take too long to recount the stories of the faith of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and all the prophets. |
| 33who through faith conquered kingdoms, administered justice, and gained what was promised; who shut the mouths of lions, | 33By faith these people overthrew kingdoms, ruled with justice, and received what God had promised them. They shut the mouths of lions, |
| 34quenched the raging fire, and escaped the edge of the sword; who gained strength from weakness, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight. | 34quenched the flames of fire, and escaped death by the edge of the sword. Their weakness was turned to strength. They became strong in battle and put whole armies to flight. |
| 35Women received back their dead, raised to life again. Others were tortured and refused their release, so that they might gain a better resurrection. | 35Women received their loved ones back again from death. But others were tortured, refusing to turn from God in order to be set free. They placed their hope in a better life after the resurrection. |
| 36Still others endured mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. | 36Some were jeered at, and their backs were cut open with whips. Others were chained in prisons. |
| 37They were stoned, they were sawed in two, they were put to death by the sword. They went around in sheepskins and goatskins, destitute, oppressed, and mistreated. | 37Some died by stoning, some were sawed in half, and others were killed with the sword. Some went about wearing skins of sheep and goats, destitute and oppressed and mistreated. |
| 38The world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and mountains, and hid in caves and holes in the ground. | 38They were too good for this world, wandering over deserts and mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground. |
| 39These were all commended for their faith, yet they did not receive what was promised. | 39All these people earned a good reputation because of their faith, yet none of them received all that God had promised. |
| 40God had planned something better for us, so that together with us they would be made perfect. | 40For God had something better in mind for us, so that they would not reach perfection without us. |
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