1Therefore, leaving behind the elementary message about Christ, let us move on to maturity, not laying again a foundation of repentance from dead works and faith in God, 2teaching about baptisms and laying on of hands, and resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment. 3And this we will do, if God permits. 4For it is impossible concerning those who have once been enlightened, and have tasted the heavenly gift, and become sharers of the Holy Spirit, 5and have tasted the good word of God and the powers of the coming age, 6and having fallen away, to renew them again to repentence, because they have crucified again for themselves the Son of God and held him up to contempt. 7For ground that drinks the rain that comes often upon it, and brings forth vegetation usable to those people˻for whose sake˼it is also cultivated, shares a blessing from God. 8But if it produces thorns and thistles, it is worthless and near to a curse, whose end is for burning. 9But even if we are speaking in this way, dear friends, we are convinced of better things concerning you, and belonging to salvation. 10For God is not unjust, so as to forget your work and the love which you demonstrated for his name by having served the saints, and continuing to serve them. 11And we desire each one of you to demonstrate the same diligence for the full assurance of your hope until the end, 12in order that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who inherit the promises through faith and patience. 13For when God made a promise to Abraham, since he had no one greater to swear by, he swore by himself, 14saying,“Surely ˻I will greatly bless˼ you, and ˻I will greatly multiply˼ you.” 15And so, by persevering, he obtained the promise. 16For people swear by what is greater than themselves, and the oath for confirmation is the end of all dispute for them. 17In the same way God, because he wanted to show even more to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of his resolve, guaranteed it with an oath, 18in order that through two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge may have powerful encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us, 19which we have like an anchor of the soul, both firm and steadfast, and entering into the inside of the curtain, 20where Jesus, the forerunner for us, entered, because he became a high priest ˻forever˼ according to the order of Melchizedek.