Just as short note about a Commentary written by James A. Fowler of "Christ In You Ministries" on this Epistle of Hebrews. It is a very well written Commentary and well worth the acquiring and study. It can be found in his web site, a link is provided on the front of this blog.
Hebrews 10:30a
"For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me,…"
Now, of course we do, as believers, know the God of glory. We know this Savior of mankind on a personal basis and so we can agree with Paul when he says, "For we know him that hath said, ‘Vengeance belongeth unto me.'" He’s God. He’s Sovereign. He can do whatever He wants. He doesn’t have to save anybody but He chooses to save as many as will come to Him, as Paul puts it in Romans and as Jesus has repeatedly said as quoted of Him in the four gospel accounts.
Hebrews 10:30
"For we know him that hath said, Vengeance belongeth unto me, I will recompense saith the Lord, And again, The Lord shall judge his people."
Before we talk about the Lord judging His people, the saved for rewards (and that will be later on), lets talk about how He is going to pour out His wrath on those who have rejected His offer of salvation. Now, let me show you a comparison. A lot of people don’t realize that the Lake of Fire is evidently going to have levels of punishment. Come back with me to Matthew chapters 10 and chapter 11. Let’s look at chapter 10 first because we have to understand that when I maintain that good people, church members, choir singers and deacons and yes, a lot of pastors are going to miss Heaven, because they have never believed in His vicarious death, burial, and resurrection for salvation, as Paul instructs us to do. They’ve tried to get to Heaven some other way. Through the auspicious of religion. Oh they’ve been good, so now are they going to suffer the same level of the Lake of Fire as a murderer? No. No, there’s going to be levels of punishment. Now, they’re still going to miss glory but they are not going to suffer to the extent that some wicked, lawless individual will. As those Paul here refers to as having tasted of the kingdom to come but who have fallen away of Christ, why do I claim a lesser punishment for them because they've never tasted the good things. Now, here’s my reasoning. Matthew chapter 10 verse 15. These are the words of the Lord Himself during His earthly ministry.
Matthew 10:15
"Verily I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable (or the punishment is going to be less severe) for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, than for that city."
Those wicked Sodomites are going to have an easier time of it in the eternal doom, than these Hebrews who listened to Christ’s earthly ministry. So, it’ll be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment, that’s the Great White Throne of Revelation 20, than for that city, Jerusalem and Judaism and the region around it. Why? Because it is the seat that rejected Jesus Christ the Messiah of God, God's Man among men.
Matthew 10:16a
Behold, (he says) I send you forth as sheep in the midst of wolves:..."
Well, who were the wolves? The Hebrews of Jesus’ day who would not respond to His ministry. All right, chapter 11 verse 20. Same kind of a concept. Again the Lord is speaking in His earthly ministry.
Matthew 11:20
"Then began he to upbraid the cities wherein most of his mighty works were done, (His miracles) because they repented not:"
In other words, the miracles never even phased their unbelief. They continued to scorn and reject Jesus of Nazareth. Just as they did Him as Yehovah through the covering of Moses as a prophet of God. For this was a theme of Paul here in this Epistle as well, as shown in chapters 2-3.
Matthew 11:21-22
"Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee Bethsaida! (now those were beautiful cities up in the Galilee.) for if (see, conditional) the mighty works, which were done in you, (that is His miracles. Feeding the five thousand and raising the dead at times, and healing the sick) had been done in Tyre and Sidon, (which were wicked Gentile cities on the Mediterranean seacoast.) they would have repented long ago in sackcloth and ashes. But I say unto you. It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment than for you." Tough isn’t it? That’s tough language.
Matthew 11:23a
"And thou, Capernaum, which are exalted unto heaven,…"
I don’t think anybody goes to Israel who does not visit Capernaum and think even in its ruins, it’s beautiful! A dear friend of Glenda and mine has visited the Holy Lands on numerous occasions and taken some awesome pictures of the lands and cities. And all you have to do is just close your eyes and imagine what a beautiful city that must have been on the north shore of the Galilee at the time of Christ. And they knew it. They were a puffed up city because of all that they had going for them. Why? Because they did not hear the spiritual side of God's word in the battles of Jacob and his sons and how they fought the enemies of the Hebrews in their day. For Hebrews of Jesus' time were as they are to-day a nationalized, higher than thou and holier than thou mindset because they're God's chosen people. But not in God's eyes for they failed to see things from God's perspective just as religion fails to see things.
Matthew 11:23
"And thou, Capernaum, which art exalted unto heaven, (because they were such a beautiful city) shalt be brought down to hell: for if the mighty works, which have been done in thee, had been done in Sodom, it would have remained until this day."
In other words, had Christ preformed the kind of miracles in Sodom and Gomorrah and preached the message that He preached in Israel, Sodom and Gomorrah would have repented and cleaned up their act. But Capernaum wouldn’t. You see the difference?
All right, now it’s the same way back here. When people are confronted with this glorious Gospel of Grace, and they can enter into salvation by trusting Him and His faith alone. Then they spurn it and walk it underfoot – can anybody blame God for casting His wrath upon them? Of course not. And the Scripture makes it so plain. Verse 31, as a warning to people then as well as now:
Hebrews 10:31
"It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God."
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