29 By faith they crossed the Red Sea as though they were on dry land. When the Egyptians attempted to do this, they were drowned. g

30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell down after being encircled by the Israelites for seven days. 31 By faith Rahab the prostitute received the spies in peace and didn’t perish with those who disobeyed. h

32 And what more can I say? Time is too short for me to tell about Gideon, Barak, Samson, Jephthah, i David, Samuel, and the prophets, j 33 who by faith conquered kingdoms, k administered justice, obtained promises, shut the mouths of lions, l 34 quenched the raging of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, gained strength after being weak, became mighty in battle, and put foreign armies to flight. m 35 Women received their dead—they were raised to life again. Some men were tortured, not accepting release, so that they might gain a better resurrection, 36 and others experienced mockings and scourgings, as well as bonds and imprisonment. n 37 They were stoned, o p they were sawed in two, they died by the sword, they wandered about in sheepskins, in goatskins, q destitute, afflicted, and mistreated. 38 The * world was not worthy of them. They wandered in deserts and on mountains, hiding in caves and holes in the ground.

39 All these were approved through their faith, but they did not receive what was promised, 40 since God had provided something better for us, so that they would not be made perfect without us. r

The Call to Endurance

12 Therefore, since we also have such a large cloud of witnesses s surrounding us, let us lay aside every weight and the sin that so easily ensnares us. Let us run with endurance t the race that lies before us, 2 keeping our eyes on Jesus, u the source and perfecter v of our faith, who for the joy that lay before Him w endured a cross and despised the shame x and has sat down at the right hand of God’s throne.

Fatherly Discipline

3 For consider Him who endured such hostility from sinners against Himself, so that you won’t grow weary and lose heart. y