Hebrews 11:29 (GNV)

Passage

By faith they passed through the red sea as by drie land, which when the Egyptians had assayed to doe, they were swallowed vp.

Nearby Context

Hebrews 11:27 By faith he forsooke Egypt, and feared not the fiercenes of the king: for he endured, as he that sawe him which is inuisible.

Hebrews 11:28 Through faith he ordeined the Passeouer and the effusion of blood, least he that destroyed the first borne, should touche them.

Hebrews 11:29 By faith they passed through the red sea as by drie land, which when the Egyptians had assayed to doe, they were swallowed vp.

Hebrews 11:30 By faith the walles of Iericho fell downe after they were copassed about seue dayes.

Hebrews 11:31 By faith the harlot Rahab perished not with them which obeyed not, when she had receiued the spies peaceably.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "faith", "passed", "through", "drie", "land", "egyptians", "assayed", and "swallowed". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "faith" and "passed", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 28's "Through faith he ordeined the Passeouer and..." into verse 30's "By faith the walles of Iericho fell...", so "faith" and "passed" 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 "faith" and "passed" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.