Hebrews 6:13

For--confirming the reasonableness of resting on "the promises" as infallibly sure, resting as they do on God's oath, by the instance of Abraham. "He now gives consolation, by the oath of God's grace, to those whom, in the second, third, and fourth chapters, he had warned by the oath of God's 'wrath.' The oath of wrath did not primarily extend its force beyond the wilderness; but the oath of grace is in force for ever" [BENGEL].

In this chapter the apostle proceeds to persuade the Hebrews to make a better proficiency in religion than they had done, as the best way to prevent apostasy, the dreadful nature and consequences of which sin he sets forth in a serious manner (Heb 6:1-8), and then expresses his good hopes concerning them, that they would persevere in faith and holiness, to which he exhorts them, and sets before them the great encouragement they had from God, both with respect to their duty and happiness (Heb 6:9 to the end).

6:13-20 This passage focuses on the reliability of God’s faithfulness to his promises. The theme of God’s oath is developed with an illustration (6:13-15), followed by a general principle (6:16), followed by the main point: God has sworn a significant oath (6:17-18), which gives us hope because it shows that Jesus is our permanent High Priest (6:19-20). 6:13-14 Abraham was the premier exemplar of faith: He continued to believe that God would give him a son, then was willing to sacrifice that son in obedience to God (11:17-19; Gen 15:1-5; 22:1-14). In response to Abraham’s faith, God took an oath, assuring Abraham that he would bless him and multiply his descendants.