Those faithful believers who died in Old Testament times have not yet entered into their inheritances. This awaits the future, probably the Second Coming when Christ will judge Old Testament saints ( Daniel 12:1-2; cf. Isaiah 26:19). We will have some part in their reward. We will do so at least as Christ"s companions who will witness their award ceremony. Their perfection refers to their entering into their final rest (inheritance) and rests, as ours does, on the sacrificial death of Christ (cf. Hebrews 9:15). [source][source][source]
"God"s plan provided for "something better for us." The indefinite pronoun leaves the precise nature of the blessing undefined. The important thing is not exactly what it is but that God has not imparted it prematurely. "Us" means "us Christians" ..." [1][source]Hebrews 11:39-40 summarize the chapter by relating the list of exemplary witnesses to the audience"s experience, and they provide a transition to the argument of Hebrews 12:1-13. [source][source][source]
God intended this inspiring chapter to encourage us to continue to trust and obey Him in the midst of temptations to turn away from following Him faithfully. The implication is that our reward, as theirs, is eschatological. [source][source][source]
". . . it is the future, and not the past, that molds the present.... [source][source][source]
"The men and women celebrated in the catalogue of attested exemplars all directed the capacity of faith to realities which for them lay in the future (cf. Hebrews 11:7; Hebrews 11:10; Hebrews 11:13; Hebrews 11:27; Hebrews 11:31; Hebrews 11:35-38). They found in faith a reliable guide to the future, even though they died without experiencing the fulfillment of God"s promise ( Hebrews 11:23; Hebrews 11:39).... [source][source][source]
"The most distinctive aspect of the exposition is the development of the relation of faith to suffering and martyrdom." [2][source]