12. Take heed--to be joined with "wherefore,"
Heb 3:7.
lest there be--Greek (indicative), "lest there
shall be"; lest there be, as I fear there is; implying that it
is not merely a possible contingency, but that there is ground
for thinking it will be so.
in any--"in any one of you." Not merely ought all in general be
on their guard, but they ought to be so concerned for the safety of
each one member, as not to suffer any one to perish through
their negligence [CALVIN].
heart--The heart is not to be trusted. Compare
Heb 3:10,
"They do always err in their heart."
unbelief--faithlessness. Christ is faithful;
therefore, saith Paul to the Hebrews, we ought not to be
faithless as our fathers were under Moses.
departing--apostatizing. The opposite of "come unto" Him
(Heb 4:16).
God punishes such apostates in kind. He departs from them--the worst of
woes.
the living God--real: the distinctive characteristic of the God
of Israel, not like the lifeless gods of the heathen; therefore One
whose threats are awful realities. To apostatize from Christ is to
apostatize from the living God
(Heb 2:3).
JFB.
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