经文研读
Hebrews 11:37 — Suffering and Faith of the Witnesses
Verse 37 lists the violent deaths and destitute wandering of unnamed faithful witnesses within the chapter's roll call of faith.
经文
- 37.被 石 頭 打 死 ， 被 鋸 鋸 死 ， 受 試 探 ， 被 刀 殺 ， 披 著 綿 羊 山 羊 的 皮 各 處 奔 跑 ， 受 窮 乏 、 患 難 、 苦 害 ，they were stoned, they were sawn asunder, they were tempted, they were slain with the sword: they went about in sheepskins, in goatskins; being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated
这段经文的意思
Hebrews 11:37 sits in the second half of the chapter, where the examples shift from victories through faith (11:33–34) to suffering endured through faith. The verse catalogs a series of violent ends — stoning, being sawn asunder, being tested/tempted, and being slain by the sword — and then pairs these deaths with a picture of destitute wandering: wearing sheepskins and goatskins, being deprived, afflicted, and ill-treated. The pairing shows that the writer sees faith expressed not only in triumph but also in endurance under hostility and loss.
The Greek construction stacks these items in a continuous list (the repeated aorist/passive forms, the layered participle phrases 'being destitute, afflicted, ill-treated'), producing a rhetorical accumulation that presses the reader to feel the weight of what these witnesses absorbed. The mention of sheepskins and goatskins — animal hides worn over the body — marks them as wandering, without proper clothing or shelter, set apart from the comforts of the society around them. The shift from being killed to being displaced shows that suffering for faith extended beyond a single moment of martyrdom into an ongoing life of deprivation.
No individuals are named in 11:37 itself; the writer deliberately leaves the list open so that the examples from Israel's history and from the broader tradition can fit inside it. The verse thus functions as a representative roster: whatever specific stories the audience knows, they belong to the same catalogue of those who held to faith under violence and want. The writer's purpose in 11:37 is to broaden the category of faith's fruit beyond visible victory to include faithful suffering.
背景
The chapter defines faith at the outset (11:1) and then moves through Abel, Enoch, Noah, the patriarchs, Moses, Rahab, and the judges and prophets (11:4–32), showing faith in action. From 11:33 the writer groups the achievements of faith — subduing kingdoms, obtaining promises, stopping lions' mouths, quenching fire — before pivoting in 11:35–38 to a contrasting list of those who suffered. Verse 37 is the climax of that suffering list, immediately followed by the editorial aside in 11:38 ('of whom the world was not worthy'), the summary that they did not receive the promise (11:39), and the theological conclusion that God has provided 'some better thing' for believers together with them (11:40).
The note attached to the chapter frames it as 'Heroes of faith, definition of faith.' Verse 37, by enumerating violent ends and deprived wandering without naming names, functions as the chapter's open register of faithful sufferers, leaving space for Israel's prophets and later witnesses alike.
原文关键词
- G4249 From πρίζω, 'to saw in two.' The passive ἐπρίσθησαν describes being cut apart by a saw — a death by execution. The writer places it in the same list as stoning and the sword, presenting faith witnessed through bodily destruction.
- G3985 From πειράζω, 'to test/try, to tempt.' The passive ἐπειράσθησαν appears alongside lethal forms in this verse, suggesting trials that pressed on the witnesses to the point of denying faith. The same Greek root covers both testing and temptation depending on the agent.
- G2558 From κακουχέω, 'to maltreat, to treat evilly.' The present participle κακουχούμενοι ('being ill-treated') joins ὑστερούμενοι ('being deprived') and θλιβόμενοι ('being afflicted') in a threefold participial chain that depicts continuing maltreatment, not a single blow.
- G3374 From μηλωτή, 'a sheepskin.' Combined with αἰγείοις δέρμασιν ('goatskins'), the noun marks the witnesses' clothing as rough animal hides — the garments of those who have left settled life and are wandering without proper provision.
常见问题
Why does the verse switch from being killed to wandering in sheepskins?
The verse lists faith's trials in two halves: violent death and ongoing deprivation. Stoning, sawing, and the sword describe how some died; sheepskins, goatskins, destitution, affliction, and ill-treatment describe how others lived. The writer pairs them so faith appears as faithful endurance, not only a single martyrdom.
Why are no names given in Hebrews 11:37?
The verse deliberately leaves the list anonymous. By not naming specific individuals, the writer keeps the catalogue open so that Israel's prophets (such as those traditionally remembered as sawn or killed) and other faithful witnesses can all fit inside the same description of suffering endured by faith.
How does Hebrews 11:37 fit within the whole chapter's argument?
Hebrews 11 begins by defining faith and then runs through examples of acting by faith. After 11:33–34 list faith's victories, 11:35–38 reverse course to list those who suffered for faith. Verse 37 is the heart of that suffering list, leading into 11:38's editorial 'the world was not worthy of them,' and the chapter's conclusion that these witnesses did not receive the promise apart from believers (11:39–40).