Hebrews 4:7 (ASV)

Passage

he again defineth a certain day, To-day, saying in David so long a time afterward (even as hath been said before), To-day if ye shall hear his voice, Harden not your hearts.

Nearby Context

Hebrews 4:5 and in this [place] again, They shall not enter into my rest.

Hebrews 4:6 Seeing therefore it remaineth that some should enter thereinto, and they to whom the good tidings were before preached failed to enter in because of disobedience,

Hebrews 4:7 he again defineth a certain day, To-day, saying in David so long a time afterward (even as hath been said before), To-day if ye shall hear his voice, Harden not your hearts.

Hebrews 4:8 For if Joshua had given them rest, he would not have spoken afterward of another day.

Hebrews 4:9 There remaineth therefore a sabbath rest for the people of God.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "again", "defineth", "certain", "to-day", "saying", "david", "long", and "time". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "again" and "defineth", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 6's "Seeing therefore it remaineth that some should..." into verse 8's "For if Joshua had given them rest...", so "again" and "defineth" belong inside that flow. In Hebrews context, the local focus is Christ, faith, and discipleship.

A plain takeaway is to answer the verse's own emphasis on "again" and "defineth" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.