Let’s read through the book of Hebrews one verse at a time in 2023. Every day explore a single verse and its cross references. AI-generated text draws the passages together. RSS feed.
And what more shall I say? For time would fail me to tell of Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, of David and Samuel and the prophets—
These cross references all relate to the theme of faith in Hebrews 11:32. They demonstrate how the heroes of the Bible had faith in God and acted on it. Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, and Samuel all showed faith in God and took action to fulfill His will. They all trusted in God's promises. This is the same faith that is encouraged in Hebrews 11:32.
| Passage | How It’s Related (AI-Generated) |
|---|---|
| Judges 11:1-12: Now Jephthah the Gileadite was a mighty warrior, but he was the son of a prostitute. Gilead was the father of Jephthah. And Gilead's wife also bore him sons. And when his wife's sons grew up, they drove Jephthah out and said to him, “You shall not have an inheritance in our father's house, for you are the son of another woman.” Then Jephthah fled from his brothers and lived in the land of Tob, and worthless fellows collected around Jephthah and went out with him. After a time the Ammonites made war against Israel. And when the Ammonites made war against Israel, the elders of Gilead went to bring Jephthah from the land of Tob. | Both passages refer to Jephthah, a mighty warrior and son of Gilead. Hebrews 11:32 lists Jephthah as one of the heroes of faith from the Old Testament, while Judges 11:1-12 provides further detail on his background and his accomplishments. Jephthah was the son of a prostitute and was driven out by his brothers, but he eventually returned to lead the Israelites against the Ammonites in battle. |
| Judges 13:1-16: And the people of Israel again did what was evil in the sight of the Lord, so the Lord gave them into the hand of the Philistines for forty years. There was a certain man of Zorah, of the tribe of the Danites, whose name was Manoah. And his wife was barren and had no children. And the angel of the Lord appeared to the woman and said to her, “Behold, you are barren and have not borne children, but you shall conceive and bear a son. Therefore be careful and drink no wine or strong drink, and eat nothing unclean, for behold, you shall conceive and bear a son. No razor shall come upon his head, for the child shall be a Nazirite to God from the womb, and he shall begin to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines.” | Both passages refer to the same individual, Samson. Hebrews 11:32 briefly mentions Samson among a list of other Old Testament figures who demonstrate faith in God. Judges 13:1-16 provides the full story of Samson's birth and the special instructions given to his mother by an angel of the Lord. This passage explains how Samson was chosen to be a Nazirite, set apart to God from the womb, and how he was to save Israel from the hand of the Philistines. |
| 1 Samuel 1:20: And in due time Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Samuel, for she said, “I have asked for him from the Lord.” | Both passages refer to the prophet Samuel. Hebrews 11:32 briefly mentions him among a list of other Old Testament heroes of faith. 1 Samuel 1:20 is the story of his birth, which was the result of his mother Hannah's faithful prayer to God. Hannah had been barren for many years, but through her faith and prayer, God answered her plea and she was able to give birth to Samuel. |
| 1 Samuel 16:1: The Lord said to Samuel, “How long will you grieve over Saul, since I have rejected him from being king over Israel? Fill your horn with oil, and go. I will send you to Jesse the Bethlehemite, for I have provided for myself a king among his sons.” | Both passages refer to the life of David, the King of Israel. Hebrews 11:32 speaks of David as one of the great figures of faith in the Old Testament. 1 Samuel 16:1 tells the story of how God chose David to be the next King of Israel. In this passage, God instructs Samuel to anoint David as the new king, which marks the beginning of David's rise to power. |
| 1 Samuel 16:13: Then Samuel took the horn of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers. And the Spirit of the Lord rushed upon David from that day forward. And Samuel rose up and went to Ramah. | Both passages discuss the anointing of David by Samuel. Hebrews 11:32 is a reference to the many heroes of faith, including David, who were anointed by Samuel. 1 Samuel 16:13 describes the actual event of Samuel anointing David with oil and the Spirit of the Lord coming upon him. This anointing made David the chosen king of Israel, a role that he would fulfill with great faithfulness. |
Heavenly Father, we thank You for the examples of faith and courage that Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, David, Samuel, and the prophets have shown us. We thank You for their willingness to trust You and follow Your will. We thank You for their faithfulness to You and for the ways that their stories continue to inspire us today.
We ask that You would help us to have faith like theirs, to trust You even when it is difficult, and to be willing to stand up for what is right. Give us strength to follow Your will and courage to stand firm in our faith. Help us to remember that You are always with us and that You will never leave us. In Jesus' name, Amen.
This reading plan reads through a single verse each day, six days a week, paired with the most-popular cross references for the verse. AI-generated (and human-reviewed) text provides an opening thought and concluding prayer along with an explanation for how each cross reference relates to the verse. In 2023, this reading plan works through Hebrews one verse at a time. Every seventh day is a catchup day. Want more info? Try this blog post.
Unless otherwise indicated, all content is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution License. All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. Copyright ©2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers. Contact me: openbibleinfo (at) gmail.com.