Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Hebrews 13:6

"So that with good courage we say, The Lord is my helper; I will not fear: What shall man do unto me?" — Hebrews 13:6 (ASV)

Despondency is foreign to Christians. They can speak “with confidence” (GK 2509), i.e., with an attitude of courage and trust. “We” once more links the writer with his readers; he sees his lot as bound up with theirs. The quotation from Ps 118:6 has three points in this confidence. (1) The Lord is the psalmist’s (and our) “helper.” This carries on the argument of the previous verse, sharpening a little the thought of the assistance that the believer may count on. (2) There is the ringing declaration of confidence as the psalmist renounces fear. With the Helper at his side, there is no reason to “be afraid.” (3) The rhetorical question underlies one’s insignificance. The question is “What will man do to me?” not “What can man do to me?” The psalmist is not thinking theoretically but of what will happen. No one will succeed in anything he or she attempts to do against one who trusts in God.