Through faith...we understand that the worlds were framed
by the word of God
By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice
than Cain
By faith Enoch was translated
By faith Noah… prepared an ark
By faith Abraham… obeyed, and went out, not knowing whither
he went.
By faith he sojourned in the land of promise
Through faith Sara received strength to conceive seed
By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offer up Isaac
By faith Isaac blessed Jacob and Esau
By faith Jacob blessed both the sons of Joseph
By faith Jacob made mention of the departing of the children
of Israel
By faith Moses was hid three months of his parents
By faith Moses refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s
daughter
By faith he forsook Egypt
Through faith he kept the Passover
By faith they passed through the Red Sea
By faith the walls of Jericho fell down
By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them that
believed not
And many others.
-Hebrews 11
This is another excellent example of anaphora. Repetition of this type places increasing
emphasis on faith. Not only does it
emphasize faith, it amplifies it. For
example, if only one instance of faith were given, it may be taken lightly,
seen only as chance that something miraculous occurred. However, with each successive instance
thereafter mentioned, a more profound effect is induced. In addition, this text demonstrates repotia. A few of the verses begin with slightly different
wording, such as “Through faith” instead of “By faith.” This can have a powerful effect as well,
breaking up any monotony putting a slight twist on the meaning of faith. Some things can be done by faith, while other things are done through faith.
I agree with your analysis of this verse, but when I read it I feel that the writer of hebrews might have done a bit of overkill on the faith. I think 5 or 6 faiths would have driven home the message quite nicely.
ReplyDeleteI suppose his audience was different then than it is today. At the time this was written these events were a pretty big deal. Everyone knew about the fall of Jericho, everyone knew and loved Abraham Isaiac and Jacob. Moses was a huge deal to the israelites, so I think it would be like saying "the declaration of independance was written by faith, or the Americans gained independance by FAITH, it was by faith that WWll was won" big, world shaping events were wrought by faith. To them that would have been a very powerful message
I feel like with the words right before "faith" (by or through) it also gives another definition of faith. Faith isn't just something that is in your mind, it is an action that has POWER behind it. If those words would have been left out, the later mentioned events could seem less attainable; Those events seem near impossible, when faith isn't as hard. With faith, a lot can be done.
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