Hebrews 3:12Meaning & Commentary from the Church Fathers

Unbelief comes from hardness. Just as hardened and coarse bodies do not yield to the efforts of physicians, so hardened souls do not obey the word of God. There were probably some among them who did not believe the truth of what had been said. Therefore he says, "Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil and unbelieving heart, in departing from the living God." Since speech about the future is not received with the same conviction as speech about the past, he reminds them of historical events in which faith was also lacking. If your fathers, he says, failed to hope as they ought and suffered such calamities, much more will you suffer. For what was said also applies to them.

"Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil and unbelieving heart." This is said to frighten them. There were probably some who did not believe the truth of what had been said about recompense. Therefore they wished to test God's power and His care for them in the temptations that befell them. For this reason he guards them by reminding them of what those who did not believe suffered in former times. Future terrors do not restrain many people as strongly as past events known to all. Notice also that from unbelief everyone passes over to evil thoughts and like deeds. "In departing from the living God." Unbelief finds no other outcome than that each person falls away from God. As long as a man holds fast to God and hopes in Him as almighty, he counts nothing impossible.

Our faith is in Christ, and for it gifts and endless life are assigned to the saints. Teaching us this, He Himself says somewhere, "He who believes in Me has eternal life." Therefore, if one who denies faith in Him and acquires an evil heart departs from the living God, how is the Son not God by nature? Or how, being the same as the Father whose Son He is, will He be a created thing or a creature? He bears in Himself all the distinctive and exclusive properties of Him who begot Him. For the Father is the living God. In like manner, the Son also is the living God.

Therefore watch and take care, lest there be in any of you an evil heart, as there was in those who did not enter the promised land. Do not depart from the living God through your unbelief.

You must have much care and diligence, so as to preserve the faith and not receive within yourselves the ruin of unbelief. For unbelief separates from the living God.

"Take heed, brethren." Since speech about the future is not as persuasive as speech about the past, he reminded them of a historical event. From it one sees that their forefathers lacked faith. Then he earnestly persuades them to be attentive. "Lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief." What he earlier called a hardened heart, he now calls evil. A heart of unbelief means an unbelieving heart, one that does not receive the words of God. It is a soul that regards the hope of the future with distrust. "In departing from the living God." The soul becomes hardened and estranged from faith because it departs from the true God. As long as it obeys Him, it does not lose faith. But as soon as it begins to treat Him with contempt, it falls into unbelief.

The discourse just completed above concerning Moses' apostleship gives the Apostle occasion to draw several strong moral exhortations for his readers from the history of that same ministry of Moses. Having become partakers of the heavenly calling and having yielded themselves to Christ's guidance, Christians must firmly preserve their boldness and hope to the end. They must do this despite every temptation from Christ's enemies. In this matter the New Testament Israel should take as an example those Israelites of Moses' time who were steadfast and strong in spirit. Throughout the forty years of wandering, they did not lose their faith and kept themselves from murmuring. Such were Joshua and Caleb, despite all the temptations and calamities in the wilderness.

The Apostle advises his readers to take the psalmist's words more deeply to heart. As a remedy against hardness of heart, he points to mutual strengthening, which must continue as long as it is possible to receive forgiveness of sins and grace.