Hebrews 11:32 (DBY)

Passage

And what more do I say? For the time would fail me telling of Gideon, and Barak, and Samson, and Jephthah, and David and Samuel, and of the prophets:

Nearby Context

Hebrews 11:30 By faith the walls of Jericho fell, having been encircled for seven days.

Hebrews 11:31 By faith Rahab the harlot did not perish along with the unbelieving, having received the spies in peace.

Hebrews 11:32 And what more do I say? For the time would fail me telling of Gideon, and Barak, and Samson, and Jephthah, and David and Samuel, and of the prophets:

Hebrews 11:33 who by faith overcame kingdoms, wrought righteousness, obtained promises, stopped lions' mouths,

Hebrews 11:34 quenched [the] power of fire, escaped [the] edge of the sword, became strong out of weakness, became mighty in war, made [the] armies of strangers give way.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "time", "fail", "telling", "gideon", "barak", "samson", "jephthah", and "david". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "time" and "fail", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 31's "By faith Rahab the harlot did not..." into verse 33's "who by faith overcame kingdoms wrought righteousness...", so "time" and "fail" 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 "time" and "fail" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.