NOTES for Heb 10:32-39
Continuing the discussion of faithfulness to the once-established covenant-union, which is inseparable from faithfulness to the Church, the author of the letter reminds his readers of the persecutions they had endured before, apparently even before the catastrophe of AD 70 (vv. 32-34). This reminder is clearly not accidental: faithfulness during persecutions is possible only when the Kingdom is an obvious and immediate reality of life for those who are persecuted, so obvious that even physical death does not frighten them. The life of the Kingdom is greater than the physical life that can be taken from a person in our world, which is not yet transformed. And now the author clearly wants to remind his addressees of the times when the Kingdom was so evident to them that no one even thought of doubting its nearness. The main source of doubt for the faithful was evidently the fact that even now, after the catastrophe of which the Savior had spoken as an event immediately preceding His return in glory, the complete and final triumph of the Kingdom was being delayed, and delayed for an indefinite time: Jesus had left His disciples no other landmarks on this matter.
Such a situation did not so much frighten many people as cool them off, so that the author of the letter had to remind them that the history of the Kingdom's formation and its revelation in our transforming, but not yet transformed, world is still far from complete. That is why he calls the faithful not to give in to despondency and disappointment, assuring them that the Savior's return is near (vv. 35-37). Of course, in this case he is not speaking about any specific dates, since even Jesus Himself refused to speak about them. The point is something else: now that what He said concerning Jerusalem and the Temple has been fulfilled, history has entered the final stretch that leads straight to the threshold of the Kingdom. Precisely now, when it seems there is nothing more to wait for, the possibility of the Savior's return is higher than ever before. And precisely now the faithful need spiritual readiness more than ever, and therefore a resolve that knows no wavering (vv. 38-39). Indeed, it would be foolish and painful to lose the Kingdom because of disappointment, cooling, and indecision at the very time when every day and every hour one can expect its complete and final triumph.