To the People of the Tribes of Wrestles with Creator 11
11
BRAVE ONES WHO TRUSTED CREATOR
1Trusting Creator is the solid ground our hope rests on. It means we can be sure of the things we do not yet see. 2For it was this kind of trusting that brought honor to our tribal ancestors. 3By trusting, we understand that the Great Spirit, by his voice, created all that we can see. By trusting we understand that the things we see were brought into being by that which we cannot see.
4Because he trusted Creator, His Breath Goes Up (Abel) offered a ceremonial gift that was more acceptable to the Great Spirit than the offering of Spear Maker (Cain).#11:4 Genesis 4:4-5 Because he trusted, Creator was pleased with his gift, which gave him the reputation of being in good standing. So because he trusted, his voice still speaks to us today, even though he died long ago.
5Because he trusted the Great Spirit, Walks with Creator (Enoch) did not die. No one could find him because Creator took him.#11:5 Genesis 5:21-24 Before he was taken, he had the reputation of one who makes Creator’s heart glad. 6For no one can make Creator’s heart glad without trusting him. So then, those who draw near to the Great Spirit must believe that he is and that he honors all who truly seek him.
7Because he trusted the One Above Us All, One Who Rests (Noah) took to heart the warning given to him by the Great Spirit and made a great wooden canoe for the safety of his family. By trusting he showed the world how terrible their ways had become. By trusting he took his place among those who, by trusting, share in the blessing of good standing with Creator.
8Because he trusted the Great Mystery, Father of Many Nations (Abraham) left his homeland to go to another land that was promised to him and his descendants. He followed the voice of the Great Spirit even though he was going to a land he had never been before. 9By trusting in this way, he lived in the Land of Promise as a stranger in a strange land. Father of Many Nations (Abraham) settled his family in tents, along with his sons, He Made Us Laugh (Isaac) and Heel Grabber (Jacob), who would share with him in the same promise. 10There he waited, for he was looking for a village that would remain—one built on solid ground. A village whose maker and builder is the Great Spirit.
11Because he trusted the Maker of Life, Father of Many Nations (Abraham) was able to father a child, even though his wife Noble Woman (Sarah) was barren and they were both too old. For they were sure the Great Spirit could be trusted to keep the promise he made to them. 12So from this one man, his body as good as dead, many descendants were born, as many as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
LONGING FOR A BETTER LAND
13Every one of these people died still trusting in Creator. Even though they did not receive all that had been promised, they took the promises to heart and welcomed them from afar. They said of themselves, “We are strangers and wanderers on the land.” 14People who say things like this make it clear that they are looking for a land of their own. 15If they had been longing for the land from which they had come, they could have returned. 16But they are longing for a better land—one from the spirit-world above. That is why Creator is not ashamed to be called their Great Spirit and has prepared for them a village to live in.
MORE EXAMPLES OF TRUSTING
17-18Because he trusted the Giver of Breath, Father of Many Nations (Abraham), when he was tested by the Great Spirit, offered up He Made Us Laugh (Isaac) as a ceremonial sacrifice. For Creator had promised him, “It is through He Made Us Laugh (Isaac) that your descendants will be born.” But there he was, ready to offer up his only son! 19For he was sure that Creator had the power to raise him up, even from the dead. So in a spiritual way of thinking, he did receive He Made Us Laugh (Isaac) back from the dead.
20Because he trusted the Most Holy One, He Made Us Laugh (Isaac), when he spoke the family blessing over Heel Grabber (Jacob) and his brother Hairy Man (Esau), told them about things to come.
21Because he trusted the Great Spirit, Heel Grabber (Jacob), at the end of his days, blessed each of the sons of Creator Gives More (Joseph) as he leaned on his walking stick and humbled himself before Creator.
22Because he trusted the One Above Us All, Creator Gives More (Joseph), at the end of his days, spoke of the time when the children of the tribes of Wrestles with Creator (Israel) would go out from Black Land (Egypt), and he gave instructions about where to bury his bones.
23Because his parents trusted the Great Mystery, they hid Drawn from the Water (Moses) for three moons. They saw Creator’s beauty in the child and did not fear the instructions of the ruler of Black Land (Egypt).
24Because he trusted the Maker of Life, Drawn from the Water (Moses), as a full-grown man, refused to be called the son of the daughter of Great House (Pharaoh), the ruler of Black Land (Egypt). 25He chose to suffer with Creator’s people, rather than finding joy in the passing pleasures of the broken ways of Black Land (Egypt). 26He knew that the honor he would receive by suffering with the Chosen One was greater than all the treasures of Black Land (Egypt), because he kept his eyes on the honor that was to be his. 27By trusting he left Black Land (Egypt) without fear of its ruler. He kept walking forward, keeping his eyes on the one who cannot be seen.
28Because he trusted the Giver of Breath, Drawn from the Water (Moses) participated in the first Passover while he was still in Black Land (Egypt) when the blood of a lamb was sprinkled on the doorposts. This is how the firstborn sons of the tribes of Wrestles with Creator (Israel) were not killed by the spirit-messenger of death.#11:28 Exodus 12:21-30 29By trusting Creator, the people walked through the Red Sea as if they were on dry land. But when the soldiers of Black Land (Egypt) tried to cross, they were swallowed up by the sea.#11:29 Exodus 14:21-31
30Because the people trusted the Great Spirit, they walked around Moon Village (Jericho) for seven days, and the walls fell to the ground. 31Boastful Woman (Rahab), who lived in Moon Village (Jericho), made her living by trading her body for possessions. But because she trusted and welcomed the spies with peace, she did not die with the ones who refused to obey Creator.
SO MANY BRAVE ONES TO HONOR
32If I had more time, I would tell you about He Tears Down (Gideon), Lightning Flashing Across the Sky (Barak), Strength of the Sun (Samson), and He Breaks Out (Jephthah). I would also tell the stories of Chief Much Loved One (David), of Creator Hears Him (Samuel), and the prophets. 33Because men such as these trusted the Great Spirit, they won the victory over nations, made wrongs right again, took hold of promises, and closed the mouths of mountain lions. 34They defeated the power of fire and escaped the long knives of their enemies. The weak were made strong and became great warriors who drove their enemies away. 35Women received their loved ones back from the dead.
Others were tortured, refusing to be set free, knowing they would be honored when the dead are raised. 36Some were insulted and mocked, whipped with leather straps, or chained and thrown into prison. 37Some were killed with rocks. Others were cut in two. Others faced temptation. And some were cut down by long knives. They wandered about in sheepskins and goatskins, hunted down, mistreated, and in need of many things. 38They roamed aimlessly through deserts and mountains, living in caves and holes in the ground. The world is not worthy of people like this.
CREATOR PROVIDED SOMETHING BETTER
39Even though these faithful ones have been honored for showing what it means to trust Creator, they did not receive all that was promised. 40But the Great Spirit has provided something better for us who live in these last days. So now those who came before us can finally see Creator’s promise come to its full meaning and purpose. For without us they would not be complete in the Chosen One.
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To the People of the Tribes of Wrestles with Creator 11: FNVNT
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