Hebrews 4:10

KJV

For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God [did] from his.

KJV (with Strong's)

For {G1063} he that is entered {G1525} into {G1519} his {G846} rest {G2663}, he {G846} also {G2532} hath ceased {G2664} from {G575} his own {G846} works {G2041}, as {G5618} God {G2316} did from {G575} his {G2398}.

Complete Jewish Bible

For the one who has entered God’s rest has also rested from his own works, as God did from his.

Berean Standard Bible

For whoever enters God’s rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from His.

American Standard Version

For he that is entered into his rest hath himself also rested from his works, as God did from his.

Commentary

### SUMMARY
Hebrews 4:10 articulates a profound spiritual truth: those who genuinely enter into God's promised rest cease from their own efforts to achieve righteousness or salvation, mirroring God's cessation from His creative work. This verse underscores that true spiritual peace and security are found not in human striving or self-justification, but in the finished work of God, inviting believers into a state of trust and reliance on divine provision.

### CONTEXT
* **Literary Context:** Hebrews 4:10 is embedded within a larger theological argument spanning [Hebrews 3](/hebrews/3 "Hebrews 3 - The Warning Against Unbelief") and [Hebrews 4](/hebrews/4 "Hebrews 4 - The Promise of Rest"). The author's primary concern is to warn his readers against the danger of unbelief, drawing a stark parallel with the generation of Israelites who failed to enter God's promised land (Canaan) due to their disobedience and lack of faith, as recounted in [Numbers 13-14](/numbers/13-14 "Numbers 13-14 - The Spies and Israel's Rebellion"). The "rest" in view transitions from the physical land of Canaan (a type) to a deeper, spiritual reality available to God's people. Verses [Hebrews 4:1-9](/hebrews/4-1-9 "Hebrews 4:1-9 - The Enduring Promise of Rest") establish that the promise of rest remains open, distinguishing it from the Sabbath rest and Joshua's leading into Canaan, thereby pointing to a future, ultimate rest. Verse 10 specifically defines the nature of this rest for the individual who enters it.

* **Historical & Cultural Context:** The original audience of the Epistle to the Hebrews was likely a community of Jewish Christians, possibly in Rome, who were facing persecution and temptation to revert to Judaism, with its emphasis on the Law, temple rituals, and ancestral traditions. The author uses the Old Testament narrative of the wilderness generation's failure to enter Canaan as a powerful cautionary tale, familiar to his Jewish readers. The concept of "rest" would resonate deeply with a people whose history included periods of exile and longing for a secure homeland. Furthermore, the idea of God resting after creation ([Genesis 2:2](/genesis/2-2 "Genesis 2:2 - God Rests on the Seventh Day")) was foundational to Jewish understanding of the Sabbath, and the author skillfully reinterprets this concept to point to a greater, spiritual rest in Christ, contrasting it with the burdensome "works" (ἔργα) of the Law that could not bring true peace or righteousness.

* **Key Themes:** The verse significantly contributes to several overarching themes in Hebrews. The central theme is the **superiority of Christ** over Old Testament figures and institutions (angels, Moses, the Levitical priesthood, the Law). The "rest" offered through Christ is superior to the physical rest of Canaan. Another key theme is **faith versus unbelief**, with the author continually urging his readers to "hold fast" to their confession and not harden their hearts, lest they miss out on God's promise, as seen in [Hebrews 3:12-19](/hebrews/3-12-19 "Hebrews 3:12-19 - The Danger of Unbelief"). This leads directly to the theme of **divine rest and human cessation**, where entering God's rest implies a cessation from self-effort, mirroring God's perfect, completed work. This concept is foundational to the New Testament understanding of **salvation by grace through faith**, not by works, as articulated in passages like [Ephesians 2:8-9](/ephesians/2-8-9 "Ephesians 2:8-9 - Salvation by Grace Through Faith").

### EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS

#### Key Word Analysis
* **entered (Greek, _eisérchomai'_):** This word (G1525) means "to enter (literally or figuratively)." In this context, it signifies a decisive act of coming into or arriving at a state of being. It's not a passive reception but an active, though faith-based, engagement with the promise. The perfect tense implies a completed action with ongoing results, indicating a settled state of rest.
* **rest (Greek, _katápausis'_):** Derived from G2663, this term means "reposing down, i.e. (by Hebraism) abode." It conveys a sense of settled, permanent cessation from labor or trouble, not merely a temporary break. It's the state of being at peace, having found a secure dwelling or completion. This is the ultimate goal of the believer's journey.
* **ceased (Greek, _katapaúō'_):** From G2664, meaning "to settle down, i.e. (literally) to colonize, or (figuratively) to (cause to) desist." This verb strongly emphasizes the act of stopping or desisting from activity. The perfect active indicative form here denotes a completed action with continuing results, mirroring the perfect rest of God. It's a definitive halt to one's own efforts.
* **works (Greek, _érgon'_):** This word (G2041) refers to "toil (as an effort or occupation); by implication, an act." In this theological context, "works" refers to human efforts, particularly those aimed at self-justification, earning merit, or achieving righteousness through adherence to the Law or personal performance. It stands in contrast to the divine work of salvation.

#### Verse Breakdown
* **"For he that is entered into his rest":** This clause introduces the subject of the verse – the individual who has, by faith, embraced and experienced the promised divine rest. The "rest" here is not merely physical repose but a spiritual state of peace and security found in God, a state that the author has been arguing for throughout the preceding verses. It implies a transition from a state of striving and uncertainty to one of settled tranquility.
* **"he also hath ceased from his own works":** This is the crucial explanatory phrase, defining what it means to enter God's rest. It signifies a complete cessation from "his own works" (ἴδιος ἔργον), meaning human efforts, self-reliance, and any attempt to achieve righteousness or salvation through personal merit, religious performance, or adherence to the Law. It is a surrender of self-striving and a recognition that one's own efforts are insufficient.
* **"as God [did] from his":** This final clause provides the ultimate analogy and justification for the believer's cessation from works. Just as God, after completing His perfect work of creation, "rested" on the seventh day ([Genesis 2:2](/genesis/2-2 "Genesis 2:2 - God Rests on the Seventh Day")), so too the believer, having entered God's rest, ceases from their own works because God's work of salvation is complete and perfect. This comparison highlights the divine origin and perfect sufficiency of the rest offered.

#### Literary Devices
The author employs several literary devices to convey his message. **Analogy** is central, drawing a direct parallel between God's resting from His creative work and the believer's resting from their own works. This analogy serves to legitimize and explain the nature of the promised spiritual rest. **Contrast** is also evident, implicitly contrasting the futile "works" of self-effort with the perfect, completed "work" of God (and by extension, Christ). This highlights the shift from human striving to divine provision. Furthermore, the concept of "rest" functions as **Symbolism**, representing not just physical cessation but a profound spiritual state of salvation, peace, and security found in Christ, which is far superior to the temporary rest of Canaan. The use of the perfect tense for "entered" and "ceased" emphasizes the **Completed Action with Continuing Results**, underscoring the permanent and settled nature of this spiritual state.

### THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Hebrews 4:10 profoundly connects the believer's experience of rest to the very nature of God's completed work. It reveals that the ultimate "rest" is not a place or a day, but a spiritual state of ceasing from all self-effort and trusting completely in God's finished work of salvation through Christ. This aligns with the New Testament's emphasis on grace over law, where righteousness is imputed by faith, not achieved by human performance. It underscores that God's plan for humanity has always involved a Sabbath rest, a cessation from striving, which finds its ultimate fulfillment in the New Covenant through Jesus Christ. This rest is a present reality for those who believe, offering peace and security in the midst of life's trials.

* [Genesis 2:2](/genesis/2-2 "Genesis 2:2 - God Rests on the Seventh Day")
* [Ephesians 2:8-9](/ephesians/2-8-9 "Ephesians 2:8-9 - Salvation by Grace Through Faith")
* [Matthew 11:28-30](/matthew/11-28-30 "Matthew 11:28-30 - Jesus' Invitation to Rest")

### REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Hebrews 4:10 offers profound comfort and a significant challenge to every believer. In a world that constantly pressures us to perform, achieve, and earn our worth, this verse invites us to lay down the heavy burden of self-justification. It calls us to recognize that our spiritual security and peace are not dependent on our own "works" – whether they be religious rituals, moral efforts, or striving for human approval – but entirely on the perfect, completed work of Jesus Christ. To enter this rest means to trust fully in His finished work on the cross, allowing His righteousness to cover us and His peace to fill us. It's an invitation to release anxiety, cease striving for perfection in our own strength, and instead find our identity and rest in Him. This doesn't mean passive inactivity, but rather a shift from anxious self-reliance to Spirit-empowered obedience that flows from a place of rest, not striving.

#### Questions for Reflection
* **What "works" or efforts am I still relying on to feel righteous or acceptable before God?**
* **How does the concept of "ceasing from my own works" impact my understanding of daily Christian living and service?**
* **In what areas of my life do I struggle to find true rest, and how might trusting in Christ's finished work bring peace to those areas?**
* **What practical steps can I take to more fully embrace the spiritual rest offered in Christ?**

### FAQ

**What does "his own works" refer to in this verse?**

Answer: "His own works" refers to human efforts, particularly those aimed at achieving righteousness, salvation, or acceptance by God through personal performance, religious rituals, or adherence to the Law. It stands in contrast to the divine work of God and Christ. The author of Hebrews is warning against the kind of self-reliance and legalism that characterized the unbelieving Israelites in the wilderness, who failed to enter God's rest because they trusted in their own efforts rather than God's promise. This concept is central to the New Testament's teaching on salvation by grace through faith, as seen in [Romans 3:20-28](/romans/3-20-28 "Romans 3:20-28 - Righteousness Through Faith").

**Is this "rest" a future event or something we experience now?**

Answer: The "rest" in Hebrews 4 is both a present reality and a future hope. For those who believe, there is a present spiritual rest experienced now – a cessation from the burden of trying to earn salvation, finding peace and security in Christ's finished work. This is the "rest" that the author says "remains for the people of God" ([Hebrews 4:9](/hebrews/4-9 "Hebrews 4:9 - The Remaining Rest")). However, it also points to a future, ultimate rest that will be fully realized in eternity, when believers will fully enter God's presence and experience complete cessation from all struggle and sin, a rest that awaits us in the new heavens and new earth ([Revelation 21:4](/revelation/21-4 "Revelation 21:4 - No More Tears or Pain")).

**How does this verse relate to the Sabbath?**

Answer: Hebrews 4:10 builds upon the Old Testament concept of the Sabbath rest, but it transcends it. The Sabbath (the seventh day of creation, and the command to rest on the seventh day) was a shadow or a type of the greater spiritual rest that God intended for humanity. The author argues that neither the physical Sabbath nor the entry into the land of Canaan under Joshua was the ultimate rest God promised ([Hebrews 4:8](/hebrews/4-8 "Hebrews 4:8 - Joshua Did Not Give True Rest")). Instead, these pointed to a deeper, spiritual rest found in Christ. So, while the Sabbath was a weekly reminder of God's completed work and an invitation to rest, Hebrews 4:10 reveals that the true, enduring rest is found in ceasing from our own works and trusting in the perfectly completed work of God through Jesus Christ.

### CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Hebrews 4:10 finds its ultimate and profound fulfillment in Jesus Christ. He is the very embodiment and purveyor of the divine rest. Just as God completed His work of creation and rested, so Christ, through His perfect life, atoning death, and glorious resurrection, has completed the work of salvation. His cry from the cross, "It is finished!" ([John 19:30](/john/19-30 "John 19:30 - Jesus' Final Words")), echoes the divine cessation from work, signifying that the ultimate sacrifice for sin has been made, and the path to righteousness and rest is eternally secured. Therefore, for us to "enter into his rest" and "cease from his own works" means to abandon all self-effort and legalistic striving, placing our complete trust in Christ's finished work. He is our true Sabbath, our High Priest who has entered the heavenly sanctuary on our behalf ([Hebrews 4:14](/hebrews/4-14 "Hebrews 4:14 - Jesus, Our Great High Priest")), and the one who invites all who are weary and burdened to come to Him for true rest for their souls ([Matthew 11:28-30](/matthew/11-28-30 "Matthew 11:28-30 - Jesus' Invitation to Rest")). In Him, we find not merely a temporary respite, but an eternal, settled peace that flows from His perfect accomplishment.

Note: Commentary is generated by AI with a directive for Biblical fidelity. Always rely on the Holy Spirit for discernment. The Scripture text and cross-references are from verified, non-AI sources.

Cross-References

Revelation 14:13

¶ And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed [are] the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.

Hebrews 4:3

For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world.

Hebrews 4:4

For he spake in a certain place of the seventh [day] on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works.

1 Peter 4:1

¶ Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;

1 Peter 4:2

That he no longer should live the rest of [his] time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

Hebrews 10:12

But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God;

John 19:30

When Jesus therefore had received the vinegar, he said, It is finished: and he bowed his head, and gave up the ghost.