When Faith Doesn’t Look Like Victory – Hebrews 11:32-40
Dec 5, 2025 302
[32] 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—[33] who through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, [34] quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. [35] Women received back their dead by resurrection. Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life. [36] Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. [37] They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated—[38] of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.
[39] And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, [40] since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect. (ESV)
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Time Would Fail
Verse 32 says, “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.”
The author is running out of time. So he shifts from detailed stories to rapid-fire summaries: judges, kings, prophets – all examples of faith.
Two Kinds of Faith
Then comes a striking contrast.
First, the victories. Verses 33-35a describe those who, “through faith conquered kingdoms, enforced justice, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions, quenched the power of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, were made strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, put foreign armies to flight. Women received back their dead by resurrection.”
Faith that conquers. Faith that delivers. Faith that rescues.
But then verse 35b pivots: “Some were tortured, refusing to accept release, so that they might rise again to a better life.”
A better resurrection. Not escape from death, but resurrection beyond death.
Verses 36-38 continue the listing: “Others suffered mocking and flogging, and even chains and imprisonment. They were stoned, they were sawn in two, they were killed with the sword. They went about in skins of sheep and goats, destitute, afflicted, mistreated—of whom the world was not worthy—wandering about in deserts and mountains, and in dens and caves of the earth.”
The world wasn’t worthy of them. That’s a radical reversal. The world despised them, cast them out, killed them. But they were too valuable for this world.
They Didn’t Receive It
Here’s the conclusion. Verses 39-40: “And all these, though commended through their faith, did not receive what was promised, since God had provided something better for us, that apart from us they should not be made perfect.”
None of them – not the conquerors, not the martyrs – received what God promised. They all died in faith, waiting.
The Good News Is…
The good news is that what they waited for has arrived.
Jesus came. He died. He rose. He reigns.
Through his death and resurrection, these Old Testament saints have been perfected – not apart from us, but together with us. They’ve been brought into God’s presence. They’re home now.
Not because they conquered. Not because they escaped. But because Jesus died and rose.
Some believers get deliverance from difficult situations in this life. Others must endure through fiery trials and suffering in this life. All who hold fast to Jesus receive resurrection because Jesus has come.
Reflection
How does knowing that faith sometimes means suffering – not rescue – change your expectations of God?
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