What is the meaning of Hebrews 11:10? For he was looking forward •The “he” is Abraham (Hebrews 11:8-9), the man who left Ur “without knowing where he was going,” yet kept his eyes on God’s promise. •Looking forward speaks of active, eager expectation—not wishful thinking. It mirrors Romans 8:24-25, where hope patiently waits for what is unseen. •Abraham’s gaze was fixed beyond Canaan’s tents, echoing 2 Corinthians 4:18: “So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen.” •In John 8:56 Jesus told the Jews, “Abraham rejoiced that he would see My day; he saw it and was glad,” underscoring that Abraham’s faith stretched all the way to Christ. to the city •This city is a real, prepared place—“the heavenly Jerusalem” (Hebrews 12:22) and “the city that is to come” (Hebrews 13:14). •It contrasts with the nomadic life of tents (Genesis 12:8; Hebrews 11:9); earthly dwellings are temporary, God’s city eternal. •Revelation 21:2-3 pictures the same city, descending “out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.” •Philippians 3:20 reminds believers, “Our citizenship is in heaven,” tying us to the same destination Abraham awaited. with foundations •Tents have no foundations, but God’s city rests on unshakable ones, signifying permanence and security (Psalm 46:4-5). •Israel’s prophets linked foundations with the sure promises of God: “Behold, I lay a stone in Zion, a tested stone, a precious cornerstone” (Isaiah 28:16). •Christ Himself is the only true foundation (1 Corinthians 3:11); believers are “built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets, with Christ Jesus Himself as the cornerstone” (Ephesians 2:20). •The picture contrasts the shifting sands of man-made kingdoms (Matthew 7:24-27) with the rock-solid stability of God’s realm. whose architect and builder is God •God both designs and constructs; nothing about this city is humanly engineered. Psalm 127:1 affirms, “Unless the LORD builds the house, its builders labor in vain.” •In John 14:2-3 Jesus said, “In My Father’s house are many rooms… I go to prepare a place for you,” linking His work to the same divine construction project. •2 Corinthians 5:1 contrasts “an earthly tent” with “a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.” •Revelation 21:14 shows the finished product: foundations bearing the apostles’ names, displaying God’s perfect craftsmanship from blueprint to completion. summary Abraham’s faith did more than secure a homeland in Canaan; it fixed on a literal, everlasting city crafted by God Himself. Tents reminded him that life here is temporary, but foundations spoke of the unshakeable future God promised. That same city—planned, built, and guaranteed by the Lord—awaits every believer who, like Abraham, looks beyond the seen to the eternal. |
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