2 Corinthians 12:1

Paul’s Thorn in the Flesh

12:1 It is necessary to go on boasting. ¹  Though it is not profitable, I will go on to visions and revelations from the Lord.

Proverbs 19:17

19:17 The one who is gracious ²  to the poor lends ³  to the Lord,

and the Lord ⁴  will repay him ⁵  for his good deed. ⁶ 

Matthew 10:42

10:42 And whoever gives only a cup of cold water to one of these little ones in the name of a disciple, I tell you the truth, ⁷  he will never lose his reward.”

John 11:50

11:50 You do not realize ⁸  that it is more to your advantage to have one man ⁹  die for the people than for the whole nation to perish.” ¹⁰ 

John 16:7

16:7 But I tell you the truth, it is to your advantage that I am going away. For if I do not go away, the Advocate ¹¹  will not come to you, but if I go, I will send him to you.

John 18:14

18:14 (Now it was Caiaphas who had advised ¹²  the Jewish leaders ¹³  that it was to their advantage that one man die for the people.) ¹⁴ 

John 18:1

Betrayal and Arrest

18:1 When he had said these things, ¹⁵  Jesus went out with his disciples across the Kidron Valley. ¹⁶  There was an orchard ¹⁷  there, and he and his disciples went into it.

Colossians 1:12

1:12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share ¹⁸  in the saints’ ¹⁹  inheritance in the light.

Colossians 1:23

1:23 if indeed you remain in the faith, established and firm, ²⁰  without shifting ²¹  from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has also been preached in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become its servant.

Philippians 4:17

4:17 I do not say this because I am seeking a gift. ²²  Rather, I seek the credit that abounds to your account.

Philippians 4:1

Christian Practices

4:1 So then, my brothers and sisters, ²³  dear friends whom I long to see, my joy and crown, stand in the Lord in this way, my dear friends!

Philippians 1:18-19

1:18 What is the result? Only that in every way, whether in pretense or in truth, Christ is being proclaimed, and in this I rejoice.

Yes, ²⁴  and I will continue to rejoice, 1:19 for I know that this will turn out for my deliverance ²⁵  through your prayers and the help of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 13:16

13:16 And do not neglect to do good and to share what you have, ²⁶  for God is pleased with such sacrifices.

James 2:15-16

2:15 If a brother or sister ²⁷  is poorly clothed and lacks daily food, 2:16 and one of you says to them, “Go in peace, keep warm and eat well,” but you do not give them what the body needs, ²⁸  what good is it?

[12:1]  ¹ tn Grk “Boasting is necessary.”

[19:17]  ² sn The participle חוֹנֵן (khonen, “shows favor to”) is related to the word for “grace.” The activity here is the kind favor shown poor people for no particular reason and with no hope of repayment. It is literally an act of grace.

[19:17]  ³ tn The form מַלְוֵה (malveh) is the Hiphil participle from לָוָה (lavah) in construct; it means “to cause to borrow; to lend.” The expression here is “lender of the Lord.” The person who helps the poor becomes the creditor of God.

[19:17]  ⁴ tn Heb “he.” The referent of the 3rd person masculine singular pronoun is “the Lord” in the preceding line, which has been supplied here in the translation for clarity.

[19:17]  ⁵ sn The promise of reward does not necessarily mean that the person who gives to the poor will get money back; the rewards in the book of Proverbs involve life and prosperity in general.

[19:17]  ⁶ tn Heb “and his good deed will repay him.” The word גְּמֻלוֹ (gÿmulo) could be (1) the subject or (2) part of a double accusative of the verb. Understanding it as part of the double accusative makes better sense, for then the subject of the verb is God. How “his deed” could repay him is not immediately obvious.

[10:42]  ⁷ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[11:50]  ⁸ tn Or “you are not considering.”

[11:50]  ⁹ tn Although it is possible to argue that ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") should be translated “person” here since it is not necessarily masculinity that is in view in Caiaphas’ statement, “man” was retained in the translation because in 11:47 “this man” (οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος, outo" Jo anqrwpo") has as its referent a specific individual, Jesus, and it was felt this connection should be maintained.

[11:50]  ¹⁰ sn In his own mind Caiaphas was no doubt giving voice to a common-sense statement of political expediency. Yet he was unconsciously echoing a saying of Jesus himself (cf. Mark 10:45). Caiaphas was right; the death of Jesus would save the nation from destruction. Yet Caiaphas could not suspect that Jesus would die, not in place of the political nation Israel, but on behalf of the true people of God; and he would save them, not from physical destruction, but from eternal destruction (cf. 3:16-17). The understanding of Caiaphas’ words in a sense that Caiaphas could not possibly have imagined at the time he uttered them serves as a clear example of the way in which the author understood that words and actions could be invested retrospectively with a meaning not consciously intended or understood by those present at the time.

[16:7]  ¹¹ tn Or “Helper” or “Counselor”; Grk “Paraclete,” from the Greek word παράκλητος (paraklhto"). See the note on the word “Advocate” in John 14:16 for a discussion of how this word is translated.

[18:14]  ¹² tn Or “counseled.”

[18:14]  ¹³ tn Grk “the Jews.” Here the phrase refers to the Jewish leaders, specifically members of the Sanhedrin (see John 11:49-50). See also the note on the phrase “Jewish leaders” in v. 12.

[18:14]  ¹⁴ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[18:1]  ¹⁵ sn When he had said these things appears to be a natural transition at the end of the Farewell Discourse (the farewell speech of Jesus to his disciples in John 13:31-17:26, including the final prayer in 17:1-26). The author states that Jesus went out with his disciples, a probable reference to their leaving the upper room where the meal and discourse described in chaps. 13-17 took place (although some have seen this only as a reference to their leaving the city, with the understanding that some of the Farewell Discourse, including the concluding prayer, was given en route, cf. 14:31). They crossed the Kidron Valley and came to a garden, or olive orchard, identified in Matt 26:36 and Mark 14:32 as Gethsemane. The name is not given in Luke’s or John’s Gospel, but the garden must have been located somewhere on the lower slopes of the Mount of Olives.

[18:1]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “the wadi of the Kidron,” or “the ravine of the Kidron” (a wadi is a stream that flows only during the rainy season and is dry during the dry season).

[18:1]  ¹⁷ tn Or “a garden.”

[1:12]  ¹⁸ tn BDAG 473 s.v. ἱκανόω states, “τινὰ εἴς τι someone for someth. Col 1:12.” The point of the text is that God has qualified the saints for a “share” or “portion” in the inheritance of the saints.

[1:12]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “the inheritance of the saints.” The genitive noun τῶν ἁγίων (twn Jagiwn) is a possessive genitive: “the saints’ inheritance.”

[1:23]  ²⁰ tn BDAG 276 s.v. ἑδραῖος suggests “firm, steadfast.”

[1:23]  ²¹ tn BDAG 639 s.v. μετακινέω suggests “without shifting from the hope” here.

[4:17]  ²² tn Grk “Not that I am seeking the gift.” The phrase “I do not say this…” has been supplied in the translation to complete the thought for the modern reader.

[4:1]  ²³ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.

[1:18]  ²⁴ tn Or “But.” The conjunction ἀλλά (alla) may be emphatic or contrastive. If the former, the idea may be that Paul will continue rejoicing because of the proclamation of the gospel or because of his imminent release from prison (v. 19); if the latter, Paul is now turning his attention solely to this second reason to rejoice, viz., that he will soon be released from prison. In this latter view the clause should be translated, “But I will also rejoice since I know…”

[1:19]  ²⁵ tn Or “salvation.” Deliverance from prison (i.e., release) is probably what Paul has in view here, although some take this as a reference to his ultimate release from the body, i.e., dying and being with Christ (v. 23).

[13:16]  ²⁶ tn Grk “neglect doing good and fellowship.”

[2:15]  ²⁷ tn It is important to note that the words ἀδελφός (adelfos) and ἀδελφή (adelfh) both occur in the Greek text at this point, confirming that the author intended to refer to both men and women. See the note on “someone” in 2:2.

[2:16]  ²⁸ tn Grk “what is necessary for the body.”