The Reproach of Christ: The Greater Reward
Hebrews 11:23-28
Why do you do what you?
Audio from the author
#truepleasure
Published April 8th, 2021
Main point summary
English Diagram
Diagram
Phrase
Arc
Commentary Notes
Devotional
notes
Main point summary
How trusting in God empowers Moses to think, choose, and act in a way that enables him to endure suffering for the sake of enduring joy
English Diagram
NT
Hebrews 11:23-28
esv
vsnum
Hebrews 11:23
subjectverb
Moses
solid
drop
equal
revrocket
line
pred
was
hidden
prepphrase
pstack
cword
he
when
By
faith
for
months
three
by
parents
his
they
saw
shelf
the
child
vertical
predicate
beautiful
that
because
born
text
and
were
afraid
of
not
directobject
edict
king’s
Hebrews 11:24
infinitive
to
be
called
son
daughter
Pharaoh’s
Hebrews 11:25
grown
up
refused
participle
choosing
rocketship
mistreated
with
people
God
rather
than
enjoy
pleasures
fleeting
sin
Hebrews 11:26
He
considered
reproach
Christ
wealth
greater
treasures
Egypt
looking
reward
Hebrews 11:27
left
being
anger
king
endured
seeing
him
as
who
is
invisible
smartline
dashed
free
ttext
Hebrews 11:28
kept
sprinkled
Passover
blood
Destroyer
firstborn
so
might
touch
them
diagram
Diagram
Hebrews 11:23-28
na28
Hebrews 11:23
Μωϋσῆς
ἐκρύβη
τρίμηνον
γεννηθεὶς
Πίστει
ὑπὸ
τῶν
πατέρων
αὐτοῦ
διότι
εἶδον
τὸ
παιδίον
ἀστεῖον
καὶ
ἐφοβήθησαν
οὐκ
τὸ
διάταγμα
τοῦ
βασιλέως
Hebrews 11:24
Μωϋσῆς
ἠρνήσατο
γενόμενος
μέγας
ἑλόμενος
ἡγησάμενος
τὸν
ὀνειδισμὸν
τοῦ
Χριστοῦ
πλοῦτον
μείζονα
τῶν
θησαυρῶν
Αἰγύπτου
Πίστει
λέγεσθαι
υἱὸς
θυγατρὸς
Φαραώ
συγκακουχεῖσθαι
τῷ
λαῷ
τοῦ
θεοῦ
μᾶλλον
ἢ
ἔχειν
πρόσκαιρον
ἀπόλαυσιν
ἁμαρτίας
Hebrews 11:26
γὰρ
ἀπέβλεπεν
εἰς
τὴν
μισθαποδοσίαν
Hebrews 11:27
κατέλιπεν
Αἴγυπτον
Πίστει
φοβηθεὶς
μὴ
τὸν
θυμὸν
τοῦ
βασιλέως
γὰρ
ἐκαρτέρησεν
ὁρῶν
τὸν
ἀόρατον
ὡς
Hebrews 11:28
πεποίηκεν
τὸ
πάσχα
τὴν
πρόσχυσιν
τοῦ
αἵματος
καὶ
ὁ
ὀλοθρεύων
τὰ
πρωτότοκα
ἵνα
θίγῃ
μὴ
αὐτῶν
Phrase
Hebrews 11:23-28
na28
Πίστει Μωϋσῆς γεννηθεὶς ἐκρύβη τρίμηνον ὑπὸ τῶν πατέρων αὐτοῦ, διότι εἶδον ἀστεῖον τὸ παιδίον καὶ οὐκ ἐφοβήθησαν τὸ διάταγμα τοῦ βασιλέως.
By faith Moses was hidden for three months by his parents,
when he was born,
temporal
because they saw that the child was beautiful,
causal
and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.
series
Πίστει Μωϋσῆς μέγας γενόμενος ἠρνήσατο λέγεσθαι υἱὸς θυγατρὸς Φαραώ,
By faith Moses refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,
Progression #1
when he was grown up,
μᾶλλον ἑλόμενος συγκακουχεῖσθαι τῷ λαῷ τοῦ θεοῦ ἢ πρόσκαιρον ἔχειν ἁμαρτίας ἀπόλαυσιν,
choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God
than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin.
μείζονα πλοῦτον ἡγησάμενος τῶν Αἰγύπτου θησαυρῶν τὸν ὀνειδισμὸν τοῦ Χριστοῦ• ἀπέβλεπεν γὰρ εἰς τὴν μισθαποδοσίαν.
He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt,
ground for his choice
for he was looking to the reward.
ground for his consideration
Πίστει κατέλιπεν Αἴγυπτον μὴ φοβηθεὶς τὸν θυμὸν τοῦ βασιλέως• τὸν γὰρ ἀόρατον ὡς ὁρῶν ἐκαρτέρησεν.
By faith he left Egypt,
Progression #2
not being afraid of the anger of the king,
manner
for he endured as seeing him who is invisible.
ground for his fearlessness
Πίστει πεποίηκεν τὸ πάσχα καὶ τὴν πρόσχυσιν τοῦ αἵματος, ἵνα μὴ ὁ ὀλοθρεύων τὰ πρωτότοκα θίγῃ αὐτῶν.
By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood,
Progression #3
so that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them.
purpose of 28a
Πίστει Μωϋσῆς γεννηθεὶς ἐκρύβη τρίμηνον ὑπὸ τῶν πατέρων αὐτοῦ, διότι εἶδον ἀστεῖον τὸ παιδίον καὶ οὐκ ἐφοβήθησαν τὸ διάταγμα τοῦ βασιλέως.
Πίστει Μωϋσῆς μέγας γενόμενος ἠρνήσατο λέγεσθαι υἱὸς θυγατρὸς Φαραώ,
μᾶλλον ἑλόμενος συγκακουχεῖσθαι τῷ λαῷ τοῦ θεοῦ ἢ πρόσκαιρον ἔχειν ἁμαρτίας ἀπόλαυσιν,
μείζονα πλοῦτον ἡγησάμενος τῶν Αἰγύπτου θησαυρῶν τὸν ὀνειδισμὸν τοῦ Χριστοῦ• ἀπέβλεπεν γὰρ εἰς τὴν μισθαποδοσίαν.
Πίστει κατέλιπεν Αἴγυπτον μὴ φοβηθεὶς τὸν θυμὸν τοῦ βασιλέως• τὸν γὰρ ἀόρατον ὡς ὁρῶν ἐκαρτέρησεν.
Πίστει πεποίηκεν τὸ πάσχα καὶ τὴν πρόσχυσιν τοῦ αἵματος, ἵνα μὴ ὁ ὀλοθρεύων τὰ πρωτότοκα θίγῃ αὐτῶν.
phrasing
Arc
editing
Hebrews 11:23-28
na28
By faith Moses , when he was born,
Πίστει Μωϋσῆς γεννηθεὶς
was hidden for three months by his parents,
ἐκρύβη τρίμηνον ὑπὸ τῶν πατέρων αὐτοῦ,
because they saw that the child was beautiful,
διότι εἶδον ἀστεῖον τὸ παιδίον
and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.
καὶ οὐκ ἐφοβήθησαν τὸ διάταγμα τοῦ βασιλέως.
ground
By faith Moses , when he was grown up,
Πίστει Μωϋσῆς μέγας γενόμενος
refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,
ἠρνήσατο λέγεσθαι υἱὸς θυγατρὸς Φαραώ,
( positively he was) choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God
μᾶλλον ἑλόμενος συγκακουχεῖσθαι τῷ λαῷ τοῦ θεοῦ
than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin.
ἢ πρόσκαιρον ἔχειν ἁμαρτίας ἀπόλαυσιν,
negativepositive
( for ) He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt,
μείζονα πλοῦτον ἡγησάμενος τῶν Αἰγύπτου θησαυρῶν τὸν ὀνειδισμὸν τοῦ Χριστοῦ•
f or he was looking to the reward.
ἀπέβλεπεν γὰρ εἰς τὴν μισθαποδοσίαν.
By faith he left Egypt,
Πίστει κατέλιπεν Αἴγυπτον
(the manner in which he left was by) not being afraid of the anger of the king,
μὴ φοβηθεὶς τὸν θυμὸν τοῦ βασιλέως•
actionmanner
for ( since he was ) seeing him who is invisible
τὸν γὰρ ἀόρατον ὡς ὁρῶν
( therefore )) he endured
ἐκαρτέρησεν.
inference
By faith he kept the Passover and sprinkled the blood,
Πίστει πεποίηκεν τὸ πάσχα καὶ τὴν πρόσχυσιν τοῦ αἵματος,
s o that the Destroyer of the firstborn might not touch them.
ἵνα μὴ ὁ ὀλοθρεύων τὰ πρωτότοκα θίγῃ αὐτῶν.
actionpurpose
progression
na28
discourse
Commentary Notes
11:23 The parents of Moses preserved his life in hope. beautiful. Cf. Ex. 2:2; Acts 7:20. they directly disregarded the king’s command to drown the boy in the Nile (Ex. 1:22). George Guthrie, Hebrews (The NIV Application Commentary; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1998), 380. the author of Hebrews follows the LXX in using the word asteion, a word meaning “beautiful, attractive.” The only other New Testament text to use the word is Acts 7:20, where we are told that Moses was “beautiful before God.” This probably communicates a superior quality about the child. Thus, the NIV translates Hebrews 11:23 with the phrase “no ordinary child.” The writer, therefore, depicts the parents as having spiritual insight into his significance. George Guthrie, Hebrews (The NIV Application Commentary; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1998), 380. 11:24–26 Moses refused the sinful privileges of Egypt, including those of being the son of Pharaoh’s daughter (Ex. 2:10). Instead he identified with God’s people (Ex. 2:11–12) and thus sought God’s reward (Heb. 10:35; 11:6). fleeting pleasures of sin. Contrasted with eternal reward (cf. Ps. 16:11). reproach of Christ. As Christ (the true Israel, e.g., Matt. 2:15) truly suffered on behalf of the people of God, so too Moses, who similarly suffered on behalf of the people, is said to bear Christ’s reproach. Hence Moses serves as a model for Christians to endure such reproach (Heb. 10:33; 13:13). ESV The author already has made much of the virtue of standing with those under duress because of their commitment to God (e.g., 10:32–34). Moses chose his biological family over his adoptive family at great personal cost: loss of wealth, relinquishment of status, and intense mistreatment. The author explains that he “regarded disgrace for the sake of Christ as of greater value than the treasures of Egypt.” ... the sense of this phrase may be understood more accurately as “the disgrace experienced by Christ.” P. E. Hughes comments: [This disgrace] was not simply the reproach accepted by identifying himself with the people of God but, more precisely, the reproach of the coming Messiah with whom he was united by faith. Hence (as Stephen reminded his accusers) his assurance to the Israelites: “God will raise up for you a prophet from your brethren as he raised me up” (Acts 7:37; cf. Deut. 18:15); and hence, also, the rebuke of Jesus Christ to his adversaries: “If you believed Moses, you would believe me, for he wrote of me” (John 5:46). Thus Moses experienced the same kind of reproach experienced later by Christ—rejection faced by a prophet standing on the side of God, proclaiming the word of the Lord in boldness against an ungodly generation. George Guthrie, Hebrews (The NIV Application Commentary; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1998), 381. 11:27 By faith he left Egypt could refer to the exodus (though it would then not be in chronological order with v. 28), which would explain the reference to Moses’ seeing him who is invisible (i.e., in the burning bush, Ex. 3:1–4:17; cf. Heb. 11:1). Or it could refer to Moses’ earlier escape from Pharaoh (Ex. 2:14–15). cf. This verse seems to discount Exodus 2:14, which says that Moses was afraid concerning the consequences of his act of killing the Egyptian. But the author of Hebrews wishes to emphasize the boldness of Moses’ actions rather than his negative emotion of dread. He made a decision to leave Egypt, and that step the writer understands as a step of faith. George Guthrie, Hebrews (The NIV Application Commentary; Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1998), 381. 11:28 By faith he kept the Passover. Moses celebrated Passover before seeing the deliverance it would bring (Ex. 12:1–32). Crossway Bibles, The ESV Study Bible (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2008), 2381.
Devotional
Verses 24-26 give us a good look at how Moses, an exemplary person of faith, lives. The curtain is pulled back and we are invited into his inner life to see the thinking and choosing that under girds his actions. Fundamentally, he is a person who trusts that God is for him and his enduring future is absolutely bright (see Heb. 11:1 and Heb. 11:6). Moses eyes were fixed on the glorious future that God promised him. He was "looking unto the reward." Because his eyes were fixed on the reward it radically changed his thinking about what really mattered in this life. He didn't have his head in the sand. He realized that if he put his hope in the coming Messiah and acted accordingly it would bring reproach (and all the sufferings of that reproach). But as he "considered" the reproach which included not only immediate suffering but also future glory beyond all comparison, then the treasures of Egypt (wealth, sex, and power) paled in comparison. This careful thinking and evaluating freed and compelled him to make the best choice. This choice was surprising on the surface because it involved choosing the pathway of suffering over the pathway of ease. But he realized that the treasures of Egypt only afforded "fleeting pleasures" that wouldn't last. Instead he chose the reproach of Christ and the mistreatment that's an inevitable part of being associated with the people of God which lead to an eternally happy future. It was this choice that grounded his life-changing, career ending decision that he would once and for all give up all the privileges and security of being the son of Pharaoh's daughter.
Comments
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