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the "heavenly calling" is the "heavenly country" or "heavenly Jerusalem" which filled the
vision of Abraham, and for which those who walked by faith in the O.T. days suffered
the loss of all things.
"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen . . . . .
These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off,
and were persuaded of them, and embraced them, and confessed that they were strangers
and pilgrims on the earth . . . . . Wherefore God . . . . . hath prepared for them a city"
(Heb. 11: 1, 13, 16).
This calling differs from the one that is associated with Mount Sinai. Abraham, Isaac
and Jacob were all "before the law" (see Gal. 3: 17, 18), and the inclusion of Abel, Noah
and Enoch shows that it is not essentially connected with the Abrahamic covenant.
Moreover the inclusion of Rahab, after the law, reveals that it is of wider scope than the
covenant of Sinai, and the presence of such names as Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephtha,
David and Samuel (Heb. 11: 32) shows that after the law of Moses had been given, there
were still those who reached out for this higher and heavenly sphere.
In contrast with Sinai and its terrors, we have Sion with its blessings.
"Ye are come unto Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,
and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly, and to a church of
firstborn ones, which are written in heaven, and to God the judge of all, and to the spirits
of perfected righteous ones, and to Jesus the Mediator of the new covenant, and to the
blood of sprinkling that speaketh better things than Abel" (Heb. 12: 22-24).
The reader will notice a slight departure from the A.V. here. The "general assembly"
should be linked, not with the "church of the firstborn", but with the "innumerable
company". The church of the firstborn is made up of "the spirits of perfected righteous
ones" (Heb. 12: 23)--or "the spirits of righteous ones having been perfected". This
"perfecting" is the key to Hebrews, and is the basis of its exhortation. Either those to
whom the Apostle wrote would leave the things that were connected with the beginning
and go on unto perfection (Heb. 6: 1) or, failing to endure, would draw back unto "loss"
and "waste" (Heb. 10: 32-39). The word "perdition" is translated "destruction" in
Phil. 3: 19, and is put in contrast there, as in Hebrews, with "attaining" and a "better
resurrection" (Phil. 3: 11; Heb. 11: 35). The primary meaning of the word is seen in
Matt. 26: 8, where it is translated "waste".
We would mention here in passing, the important principle that what constitutes the
initial calling of one company (e.g. the Galatian converts) may also be the added "prize"
of another company (e.g. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, who had already received the "land"
and the "nation" in their initial calling). A further example of the same principle is
provided by the fact that "eternal life", which is a "gift" in Romans, is spoken of as an
"award" in Matt. 25: We will not however, pursue this matter further, as it is not
essential to our present purpose.
It is clear from Heb. 11: and 12: that the sphere of blessing there in view is that of the
city which will at the last come down from God out of heaven. This reference takes us to