Hebrews 11:10 (KJV)

Passage

For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

Nearby Context

Hebrews 11:8 By faith Abraham, when he was called to go out into a place which he should after receive for an inheritance, obeyed; and he went out, not knowing whither he went.

Hebrews 11:9 By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, as in a strange country, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise:

Hebrews 11:10 For he looked for a city which hath foundations, whose builder and maker is God.

Hebrews 11:11 Through faith also Sara herself received strength to conceive seed, and was delivered of a child when she was past age, because she judged him faithful who had promised.

Hebrews 11:12 Therefore sprang there even of one, and him as good as dead, so many as the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable.

Study Lenses

The verse centers on "looked", "city", "hath", "foundations", "whose", "builder", and "maker". It is saying that the verse draws attention to "looked" and "city", so its meaning should be read from those terms before moving to application.

The nearby context moves from verse 9's "By faith he sojourned in the land..." into verse 11's "Through faith also Sara herself received strength...", so "looked" and "city" 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 "looked" and "city" with trust shaped by these words, not by a vague optimism outside the passage.