The Hardness of Your Heart
Hebrews 3:7-12
Part i
Wherefore (as the Holy Ghost saith, To day if ye will hear his voice, (Hebrews 3:7)
Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: (Hebrews 3:8)
When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. (Hebrews 3:9)
Wherefore I was grieved with that generation, and said, They do alway err in their heart; and they have not known my ways. (Hebrews 3:10)
So I sware in my wrath, They shall not enter into my rest.) (Hebrews 3:11)
Take heed, brethren, lest there be in any of you an evil heart of unbelief, in departing from the living God. (Hebrews 3:12)
The ministry of the Holy Spirit is brought to light in verse 7. It is a reflection of His ministry to both the children of Israel and their wanderings, and to us who live by faith in this present dispensation in the fullness of time. The Holy Spirit declares in verse 8 that man has a hardened heart. The hardness of heart is a reality in man. It is fostered and nourished by man’s unbelief. As Nabal in the end of his ungodly life, his heart was turned to stone. And God brought him to the grave ten days later. Nabal’s name means ‘fool,’ or ‘foolish,’ and so he was — a foolish man. The fool has said in his heart ‘There is no God.’
<<To the chief Musician, A Psalm of David.>> The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. They are corrupt, they have done abominable works, there is none that doeth good. (Psalm 14:1)
<<To the chief Musician upon Mahalath, Maschil, A Psalm of David.>> The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good. (Psalm 33:1)
All who have tread this path of Nabal carry a wicked heart. And through their sin their heart is turned to stone with no life. Only if the fool in his ungodly condition could see his end.
Let not my lord, I pray thee, regard this man of Belial, even Nabal: for as his name is, so is he; Nabal is his name, and folly is with him: but I thine handmaid saw not the young men of my lord, whom thou didst send. (1 Samuel 25:25)
But it came to pass in the morning, when the wine was gone out of Nabal, and his wife had told him these things, that his heart died within him, and he became as a stone. (1 Samuel 25:37) And it came to pass about ten days after, that the LORD smote Nabal, that he died. (1 Samuel 25:38)
We learn the full character of Nabal, he was a man of Belial. Certain men, the children of Belial, are gone out from among you, and have withdrawn the inhabitants of their city, saying, Let us go and serve other gods, which ye have not known;. (Deuteronomy 13:13) (In the mystery of numbers we have the worshipers of false gods and devils, what a coincidence, Deuteronomy 13:13.) Nabal worshiped the gods of this world, who are in reality no gods; yet man in his blindness and unbelief remains at enmity against the true God of heaven and earth.
Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. (Romans 1: 21)
Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools, (Romans 1: 22)
And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things. (Romans 1: 23)
Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves: (Romans 1: 24)
Man in Adam stands on this earth with an evil heart of unbelief. The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise. (Proverbs 12:15)
In verse 7 of Hebrews 3, we have divine counsel, counsel from the Holy Spirit of God. This is counsel from the true God of heaven and earth. Even though Nabal lived in the days of David, Nabal is a prophetic picture of the world that we dwell in today among ungodly societies who deny the God of heaven, the Lord Jesus Christ. The result of unbelief is the same throughout the history of Adam. Now that we have established the ministry of the Spirit of God, and man in his unbelief, let’s begin our journey through the wilderness with the children of Israel.
We stand on the shores of the Red Sea, with a song in our hearts, the Lord has defeated all our enemies and Moses gives us a song. (Exodus 15) What a marvelous song, indeed, Moses puts our eyes on the Lord, and our hearts are singing because of our great deliverance. All had witnessed the overthrow of Pharaoh and his hosts in the sea of death. Not one in Israel is lost, all have been preserved in Israel and in the mixed multitude. Paul told us that the gospel of grace was given to both Jew and Greek (the Gentiles.) All are brought into the message of grace, that the Son of God has defeated death, hell and the devil; and whosoever believeth in the Lord Jesus shall be saved. We should stand still and see the salvation of the Lord. The children of Israel are rejoicing in the Lord; therefore, with a song in our hearts the day the veil of grace in Jesus Christ was spread over us as a cloak of salvation, we sang ‘ Happy day, happy day, when Jesus washed my sins away! He taught me how to watch and pray, and live rejoicing every day.’(Words by Philip Doddridge, from the hymn, ‘O Happy Day.’) Now let’s take a few minutes and rejoice, I say rejoice in the Lord.
The Israelites were a happy people, and on the shores of the Red Sea experienced the deliverance of Jehovah, but could this feeling of deliverance continue through the wilderness? Could they continue to trust in the song of Moses. (Exodus 15) The song was given for their hearts, it was a message from God to establish their faith, but they had to believe in Jehovah who had given the song. This was their stumbling stone of unbelief. They would continue in unbelief throughout their journey. In Hebrews 3:7-8 we have the warning from the Spirit of God, looking back on them in the wilderness to show us our present day. The Holy Ghost quotes Himself from Psalm 95:7-11.
For he is our God; and we are the people of his pasture, and the sheep of his hand. To day if ye will hear his voice, (Psalm 95:7)
Harden not your heart, as in the provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness: (Psalm 95:8)
When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my work. (Psalm 95:9)
Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said, It is a people that do err in their heart, and they have not known my ways: (Psalm 95:10)
Unto whom I sware in my wrath that they should not enter into my rest. (Psalm 95:11)
It is today that we must hear His voice, not the voice of another, not the voice of men, but the voice of Jesus Christ, ‘Hear ye Him.” The Son of God is the messenger of the covenant of grace. It is by belief in Him that the soul is pardoned from all sin. It is from His faith and His faith alone that we follow Him; for He has the words of eternal life.
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. (Psalm 91:1)
I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. (Psalm 91:2)
Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. (Psalm 91:3)
He shall cover thee with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be thy shield and buckler. (Psalm 91:4)
O come, let us sing unto the LORD: let us make a joyful noise to the rock of our salvation. (Psalm 95:1)
Let us come before his presence with thanksgiving, and make a joyful noise unto him with psalms. (Psalm 95:2)
For the LORD is a great God, and a great King above all gods. (Psalm 95:3)
In his hand are the deep places of the earth: the strength of the hills is his also. (Psalm 95:4)
The sea is his, and he made it: and his hands formed the dry land. (Psalm 95:5)
O come, let us worship and bow down: let us kneel before the LORD our maker. (Psalm 95:6)
The Spirit of God wanted the children of Israel to feel and believe in the experience that the psalmist wrote. They were to put their confidence in the Lord Jehovah, but the weakness of the heart of man, the heart of unbelief, the absence of faith, and the absence of the understanding of grace reveals to us that all that God was to them was only temporal deliverance. There was nothing in them to carry them through the wilderness; thus, they left their rejoicing on the banks of the Red Sea and began their journey in unbelief. They would travel that path of unbelief for forty years. Psalm 106 gives their history as they traveled through the wilderness in unbelief. (Please read Psalm 106.)
Our faith should be the reality of the grace that we have received. It should not be a fantasy, but a reality in our hearts. Paul told the Corinthians to examine themselves whether they be in Christ or not. It is not by the direction of others, or the acceptance of man, it is the voice of the Spirit of God in the heart and soul. Did they not see in the wilderness the salvation of Jehovah; yet, their hearts were closed to God’s word, and the Spirit of God again echoes out in Hebrews, Chapter 3, Harden not your hearts, as in the provocation, in the day of temptation in the wilderness: When your fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. They provoked the Lord to anger with their ungodly ways. Every step in their journey the Lord was proving them, He was proving their unbelief. Look around in the world today, is not God proving their unbelief? Has He not given them space to repent of their sins, and they will not! Does this sound any different than in the day of Israel when they provoked God? He might be proving you today. He might be witnessing to your heart. Will you receive this witness, or will you turn into the wilderness in unbelief?
God had testified to Israel in their great deliverance from Pharaoh. He also gave them a fire by night, and a cloud by day. There was not one Israelite who could not see the ever-present miracle from Jehovah. They left their song (they probably did not remember their song), but they still had the cloud by day and the fire by night. They went out into the wilderness guided by Jehovah.
Side Note: The Great Wall of Egypt. He first took them to the wilderness of Shur. (Shur — the way of the wall.) Not many know the meaning of Shur, for the Egyptians had named this part of Egypt because of the massive wall that they had built from the Red Sea to the Mediterranean. This wall was to keep invaders out of Egypt, it was their first line of defense of their northern frontier. There were always garrisons at the wall, and ramparts along the wall to see the approaching enemy and then disperse the army of Egypt that was stationed at the wall to drive their enemy off in defeat. It was also a border station to keep out undesirables, and to collect tariffs on goods coming and going from Egypt. This was a mammoth wall, although not as long as the Great Wall of China, it was one of the great undertakings of the ancient world. Unfortunately, it was built with a porous sandstone, and over the centuries between invaders and the elements of creation of both wind and storm it crumbled and disappeared as the Pharaoh (in the days of Moses) has disappeared from Egyptian history. All that remains today of this wall are the barely visible remnants of tower sand mounds. I will refer to study material on the Wall of Shur at the end of this article. ♦ End of Side Note.
A little insight, if God had led the children of Israel to the Great Wall of Shur they would have been sandwiched between two armies of Egypt. The one at the wall and the one pursuing them. Although God could easily defeat both armies, it was His divine decision to lead them to the Red Sea and show His great power to the Israelite and to the world. He prepared the Red Sea; it was to be His instrument of judgment against Pharaoh; just as He will prepare the great judgments in the days of tribulation. Pharaoh was ignorant of the God of heaven, for he worshiped the gods of Egypt. This was one of many divine judgments that God would use in the history of Israel to show the world His great power. We should remember throughout all history — it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. If all men would contemplate the judgment of God, and the judgments that are past (and those that are yet future) they would conduct their lives in an upright manner, but because of unbelief they crawl as beasts on the ground and feed with the swine.
Now into the wilderness, this must be a walk of faith, as Abraham had been called out, the children of Israel, also, had been called out of the land of idolatry. Jehovah will require them to walk by faith. For without faith, it is impossible to please Him.
Can they walk as Abraham had walked? For in the faith of Abraham he was called ‘Friend of God.’ (2 Chronicles 20:7; Isaiah 41:8; James 2:23) In the Book of Exodus, Abraham is mentioned seven times from Exodus 2:24 to Exodus 6:8 all seven times are related to the promises that God had made to Abraham that his seed would be as the stars of the sky and would be given the land of Canaan. After Exodus 6:8, Abraham’s name is not mentioned until Chapter 32:13, and the last mention of Abraham is in Exodus 33:1. What do we see with our spiritual eyes? Abraham’s walk of faith was not related to the walk of the children of Israel. Their walk through the wilderness was a walk of sight, unbelief, and flesh; thus, not connected at all to the walk of faith by Abraham; therefore, Abraham’s name would not be associated with the Israelites wandering in the wilderness. The Spirit of God was not in them because Egypt still had a hold on their hearts. It was not until the next generation was born that they began to walk by faith; consequently, God prepared this next generation to enter into the land.
Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. (Hebrews 11:1) Faith is a tangible substance that changes the heart of man. Faith is the evidence of that change; although unseen, the reality of a new heart, and a new spirit is evident in every believer in the Lord Jesus Christ. The world in unbelief labors night and day to overthrow the faith once delivered to the saints. It is unbelief that is the bitter enemy of God. God abhors unbelief, and those who walk in unbelief are enemies of God; therefore, because of unbelief God caused all who came out of Egypt to fall in the wilderness except Joshua and Caleb. These two men along with the children of Israel who were born in the wilderness would witness the parting of the Jordan, and by faith they entered into the land. If you would diligently follow the footsteps of the children of Israel over their forty years of wandering you would see all the perils of unbelief, and the judgment of Jehovah against that unbelief. It would truly take a book or books to unfold all the pits of sin that the children of Israel fell into; so, we will let the Holy Spirit bring forth a few lessons after the song of Moses on the banks of deliverance.
Marah
And when they came to Marah, they could not drink of the waters of Marah, for they were bitter: therefore the name of it was called Marah. (Exodus 15:23)
And the people murmured against Moses, saying, What shall we drink? (Exodus 15:24)
And he cried unto the LORD; and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet: there he made for them a statute and an ordinance, and there he proved them, (Exodus 15:25)
Jehovah had led them to the waters of Marah which means ‘bitterness.’ These waters were bitter, and Jehovah was to put His first test to their faith. He brought them to Marah to prove them, and there he proved them. This was their first test, and they failed it by murmuring against Moses in unbelief. Unbelief goes far deeper than any man wants to admit. In human terms of understanding, one would like to put a scale on unbelief to simplify, say one to one hundred, and man would put himself in that scale through his self-justification. We see this in all the religions of the world. Their works determine their amount of unbelief. Man will not accept that unbelief is an absolute. That unbelief in God determines their eternity in the lake of fire; however, faith is also an absolute. Man will not accept God’s terms of faith. Faith is a gift from God. We cannot acquire it by self, or by others. It is a divine proclamation, and substance that must come from God, and God alone.
The waters were made bitter by Jehovah to prove them. He desired them to come to the waters by faith knowing that He would heal the waters; yet, we have their unbelief. In their unbelief when they murmured against Moses, who was God’s advocate to the nation of Israel, they were murmuring against God Himself. But in the faithfulness of God, Moses cries unto God and God shows Moses the tree of life, and Moses cast that tree into the waters and the waters were healed. At the very first test, the nation of Israel failed. We are told in Hebrews 3, they failed it in unbelief. Remember, God had already ensured Moses of the promises of Abraham, and in turn, Moses had re-assured the people of Israel of these promises that God had given to Abraham; yet they began their journey in unbelief. Are there not terms in the dispensation of grace? Hath not God sent forth His Son to be the Savior of man — Christ, as the water of life, is given that man may drink freely from the fountain of salvation through the precious blood of the Lord Jesus Christ; yet man finds bitterness in the Person of Christ. Why? because of unbelief.
When looking on the multitude we see Israel and a mixed multitude, to this point at Marah, God was leading them in grace. He had not exercised any judgment against them for their unbelief. This was a place where He was proving them. He was looking in their hearts and souls for some light of faith; however, it was not in the multitude, but one man of faith who interceded for the multitude. Moses is a type of the Lord Jesus, Moses is the one responsible as a mediator between God and man, so it is Moses who will by faith cast the tree into the water. The Lord Jesus said, And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all [men] unto me. (John 12:32) Have not all heard the gospel for over two thousand years, man has been turning his back on God’s dear Son, they have continually mocked Him from the cross to our present day. How can such unbelief and hatred expect any mercy from Almighty God. Here at Marah, God shows mercy, and listens to the voice of His servant as Moses intercedes for the people. In Hebrews 3, verses 9 and 16 the Holy Spirit reminds us of proving Israel at Marah that God saw their unbelief.
And said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God, and wilt do that which is right in his sight, and wilt give ear to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, I will put none of these diseases upon thee, which I have brought upon the Egyptians: for I am the LORD that healeth thee. (Exodus 15:26) In this verse God sets up His first ordinance and commandments. They are basic: 1, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the LORD thy God. This is the first commandment given to Israel at the place of bitterness, if they were to expect blessings from Jehovah they would have to first hearken to His voice; and 2, as a nation, Jehovah declared in the 2nd ordinance that they should do what is right in his sight.
For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. Herein thou hast done foolishly: therefore from henceforth thou shalt have wars. (2 Chronicles 16:9) Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:13) In these verses we are reminded that God sees all, He sees the good in us, and He sees the bad, He sees our uprisings, and He sees us at our worst point; yet He gives the provision that those who have a true heart for Him He will bless and intercede on their behalf. Israel had the reminder of the cloud by day and the fire by night; they were continually exposed to the eyes of God, there was never a moment in their journey that the eyes of Jehovah were not on them. He, therefore, delivered His first commandment for the nation, and this was not the first time that He expressed Himself in that manner. Jehovah told Abraham, And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I [am] the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect. (Genesis 17:1) This was not a request as God desired Abraham to walk by faith and not by sight before Him as he rejoiced in the day of Christ. Your father Abraham rejoiced to see my day: and he saw [it], and was glad. (John 8:56)
We learn from Marah that bitter waters can be made sweet. We learn that although we are not worthy, the Almighty God has grace to shower upon His people. And although Israel continued in unbelief God did not withhold His grace from them. There were future judgments to come when many would perish because of their sin, but through all their sin the God of grace was there. He was willing to bless them, but they were not willing because of unbelief. In the dispensation of grace (that is our time) from the cross of Christ to this present day, God has not judged the world with the meter of judgment that the world deserves. He hath not dealt with us after our sins; nor rewarded us according to our iniquities. (Psalm 103:10) It is because of the death of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, that this grace is upon the entire world; therefore, judgment has not come upon an unrepentant world, men and women still wake up each and every day in unbelief. They have refused God’s grace, and yet He pours in more grace by allowing the populace of this world to continue on in their sin. Remember, all who came out of Egypt fell in the wilderness (except two) and were not allowed to enter into the promised land. Out of this ungodly world, God is picking precious souls each and every day from the fires of hell. He has given His grace in His beloved Son, the Lord Jesus Christ; yet many perish each and every day in unbelief. If you want to make the waters of Marah sweet, you must come by God’s plan of redemption in Jesus Christ His Son — and the LORD shewed him a tree, which when he had cast into the waters, the waters were made sweet. This is an absolute and there is no other salvation given to man. The Israelites refreshed themselves in the sweet waters that God gave them. How many times has the world dipped its hand in the sweet waters of grace, and when will grace come to an end? It must be soon, for God is watching the abominable things that man is committing each day in this evil world.
Jehovah in verse 26 of Exodus 15 stated for I am the LORD that healeth thee. This proclamation of Jehovah that He and He alone is the one that not only healed this water but will heal the nation if they would just trust in Him; therefore, we rest at Marah under the blessings of God. When we have rested, we will take up our journey once more. We will cross through the wilderness to Elim. Part 2 to follow. Amen.
This world is a wilderness wide!
We have nothing to see or to choose;
We’ve no thought in the waste to abide;
We’ve naught to regret nor to lose.
(John Nelson Darby, 1849)
♦ Reference to study material on the Great Wall of Shur.
TRUMBALL, H. CLAY, D.D.: Kadesh-Barnea, The importance and probable site with the story of a hunt for it including the studies of the route of the Exodus and the southern boundary of the holy land. New York, Scribner and Sons, 1884. (Excellent reference materials in the index.)
BIBLICAL MAPS, Copyright 1914 by A.J. Holman Co. (#2- The Isthmus of Suez, and the Route of the Exodus)
© Copyright 2016, Michael Haigh
Article may be used, but not for gain. Freely ye have received, freely give.
All Scripture references are from the King James Bible. (KJB)