Early church apologist and anti-Marcionite writer TERTULLIAN
believed the "Letter" to the HEBREWS to be the work of Barnabas;
This translation of Chapter 12: 1 - 24 is from NRSVupdatedEdition
published 2021.
Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of
witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight and the sin
that clings so closely / that so easily distracts, and let us
run with perseverance the race that is set before us,
looking to Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith, who
for the sake of / who instead of the joy that was set
before him endured the cross, disregarding its shame,
and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne
of God.
Consider him who endured such hostility against
himself from sinners / such hostility from sinners
against themselves, so that you may not grow weary
in your souls or lose heart. In your struggle against
sin you have not yet resisted to the point of shedding
your blood. And you have forgotten the exhortation
that addresses you as children --
My child, do not regard lightly the
discipline of the Lord
or lose heart when you are punished
by him,
for the Lord disciplines those whom
he loves and chastises every child
whom he accepts" [PROVERBS
3: 11 - 12 in LXX/Septuagint transl.]
Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is
treating you as children, for what child is there
whom a parent does not discipline? If you do not
have that discipline in which all children share,
then you are illegitimate and not his children.
Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us
and we respected them. Should we not be even
more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits
and live? For they discipline us for a short time
as seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for
our good, in order that we may share his holiness.
Now discipline always seems painful rather than
pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful
fruit of righteousness to those who have been
trained by it.
Therefore lift your drooping hands and strengthen
your weak knees and make straight paths for
your feet, so that what is lame may not be put
out of joint but rather be healed.
Pursue peace with everyone and the holiness
without which no one will see the Lord. See to
it that no one fails to obtain the grace of God,
that no root of bitterness springs up and causes
trouble and through it many become defiled.
See to it that no one becomes an immoral and
godless person, as Esau was, who sold his
birthright for a single meal [Genesis 25: 29 - 34].
You know that later, when he wanted to inherit
the blessing, he was rejected for he found no
chance to repent, even though he sought the
blessing with tears.
You have not come to something / a mountain
that can be touched, a blazing fire, and darkness,
and gloom, and a tempest, and the sound of a
trumpet, and a voice whose words made the
hearers beg that not another word be spoken
to them. (For they could not endure the order
that was given, "If even an animal touches
the mountain, it shall be stoned to death"
[Exodus 19: 9 - 20] Indeed, so terrifying
was the sight that Moses said, "I tremble
with fear"). But you have come to
Mount Zion and to the city of the living
God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to
innumerable angels in festal gathering,
and to the assembly of the firstborn who
are enrolled in heaven, and to God the
judge of all, and to the spirits of the
righteous made perfect, and to Jesus,
the mediator of a new covenant, and to
the sprinkled blood that speaks a better
word than the blood of Abel [Genesis
4:10].
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