Deuteronomy 6:5

6:5 You must love ¹  the Lord your God with your whole mind, ²  your whole being, ³  and all your strength. ⁴ 

Deuteronomy 11:13

11:13 Now, if you pay close attention ⁵  to my commandments that I am giving you today and love ⁶  the Lord your God and serve him with all your mind and being, ⁷ 

Deuteronomy 30:16

30:16 What ⁸  I am commanding you today is to love the Lord your God, to walk in his ways, and to obey his commandments, his statutes, and his ordinances. Then you will live and become numerous and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you are about to possess. ⁹ 

Deuteronomy 30:20

30:20 I also call on you ¹⁰  to love the Lord your God, to obey him and be loyal to him, for he gives you life and enables you to live continually ¹¹  in the land the Lord promised to give to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.”

Psalms 18:1

Psalm 18 ¹² 

For the music director; by the Lord’s servant David, who sang ¹³  to the Lord the words of this song when ¹⁴  the Lord rescued him from the power ¹⁵  of all his enemies, including Saul. ¹⁶ 

18:1 He said: ¹⁷ 

“I love ¹⁸  you, Lord, my source of strength! ¹⁹ 

Psalms 145:20

145:20 The Lord protects those who love him,

but he destroys all the wicked.

Matthew 22:37

22:37 Jesus ²⁰  said to him, “‘Love ²¹  the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ ²² 

Mark 12:29-33

12:29 Jesus answered, “The most important is: ‘Listen, Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. 12:30 Love ²³  the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ ²⁴  12:31 The second is: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ ²⁵  There is no other commandment greater than these.” 12:32 The expert in the law said to him, “That is true, Teacher; you are right to say that he is one, and there is no one else besides him. ²⁶  12:33 And to love him with all your heart, with all your mind, and with all your strength ²⁷  and to love your neighbor as yourself ²⁸  is more important than all burnt offerings and sacrifices.”

Luke 10:27

10:27 The expert ²⁹  answered, “Love ³⁰  the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind, ³¹  and love your neighbor as yourself.” ³² 

Luke 11:42

11:42 “But woe to you Pharisees! ³³  You give a tenth ³⁴  of your mint, ³⁵  rue, ³⁶  and every herb, yet you neglect justice ³⁷  and love for God! But you should have done these things without neglecting the others. ³⁸ 

Romans 8:28

8:28 And we know that all things work together ³⁹  for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose,

Romans 8:1

The Believer’s Relationship to the Holy Spirit

8:1 There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. ⁴⁰ 

Romans 2:15

2:15 They ⁴¹  show that the work of the law is written ⁴²  in their hearts, as their conscience bears witness and their conflicting thoughts accuse or else defend ⁴³  them, ⁴⁴ 

Romans 4:19-20

4:19 Without being weak in faith, he considered ⁴⁵  his own body as dead ⁴⁶  (because he was about one hundred years old) and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 4:20 He ⁴⁷  did not waver in unbelief about the promise of God but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God.

Romans 5:2

5:2 through whom we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice ⁴⁸  in the hope of God’s glory.

Romans 5:5

5:5 And hope does not disappoint, because the love of God ⁴⁹  has been poured out ⁵⁰  in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.

[6:5]  ¹ tn The verb אָהַב (’ahav, “to love”) in this setting communicates not so much an emotional idea as one of covenant commitment. To love the Lord is to be absolutely loyal and obedient to him in every respect, a truth Jesus himself taught (cf. John 14:15). See also the note on the word “loved” in Deut 4:37.

[6:5]  ² tn Heb “heart.” In OT physiology the heart (לֵב, לֵבָב; levav, lev) was considered the seat of the mind or intellect, so that one could think with one’s heart. See A. Luc, NIDOTTE 2:749-54.

[6:5]  ³ tn Heb “soul”; “being.” Contrary to Hellenistic ideas of a soul that is discrete and separate from the body and spirit, OT anthropology equated the “soul” (נֶפֶשׁ, nefesh) with the person himself. It is therefore best in most cases to translate נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) as “being” or the like. See H. W. Wolff, Anthropology of the Old Testament, 10-25; D. Fredericks, NIDOTTE 3:133-34.

[6:5]  ⁴ sn For NT variations on the Shema see Matt 22:37-39; Mark 12:29-30; Luke 10:27.

[11:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “if hearing, you will hear.” The Hebrew text uses the infinitive absolute to emphasize the verbal idea. The translation renders this emphasis with the word “close.”

[11:13]  ⁶ tn Again, the Hebrew term אָהַב (’ahav) draws attention to the reciprocation of divine love as a condition or sign of covenant loyalty (cf. Deut 6:5).

[11:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “heart and soul” or “heart and being.” See note on the word “being” in Deut 6:5.

[30:16]  ⁸ tc A number of LXX mss insert before this verse, “if you obey the commandments of the Lord your God,” thus translating אֲשֶׁר (’asher) as “which” and the rest as “I am commanding you today, to love,” etc., “then you will live,” etc.

[30:16]  ⁹ tn Heb “which you are going there to possess it.” This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:20]  ¹⁰ tn The words “I also call on you” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 19-20 are one long sentence, which the translation divides into two.

[30:20]  ¹¹ tn Heb “he is your life and the length of your days to live.”

[18:1]  ¹² sn Psalm 18. In this long song of thanks, the psalmist (a Davidic king, traditionally understood as David himself) affirms that God is his faithful protector. He recalls in highly poetic fashion how God intervened in awesome power and delivered him from death. The psalmist’s experience demonstrates that God vindicates those who are blameless and remain loyal to him. True to his promises, God gives the king victory on the battlefield and enables him to subdue nations. A parallel version of the psalm appears in 2 Sam 22:1-51.

[18:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “spoke.”

[18:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “in the day,” or “at the time.”

[18:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “hand.”

[18:1]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and from the hand of Saul.”

[18:1]  ¹⁷ tn A number of translations (e.g., NASB, NIV, NRSV) assign the words “he said” to the superscription, in which case the entire psalm is in first person. Other translations (e.g., NAB) include the introductory “he said” at the beginning of v. 1.

[18:1]  ¹⁸ tn The verb רָחַם (rakham) elsewhere appears in the Piel (or Pual) verbal stem with the basic meaning, “have compassion.” The verb occurs only here in the basic (Qal) stem. The basic stem of the verbal root also occurs in Aramaic with the meaning “love” (see DNWSI 2:1068-69; Jastrow 1467 s.v. רָחַם; G. Schmuttermayr, “rhm: eine lexikalische Studie,” Bib 51 [1970]: 515-21). Since this introductory statement does not appear in the parallel version in 2 Sam 22:1-51, it is possible that it is a later addition to the psalm, made when the poem was revised for use in worship.

[18:1]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “my strength.” “Strength” is metonymic here, referring to the Lord as the one who bestows strength to the psalmist; thus the translation “my source of strength.”

[22:37]  ²⁰ tn Grk “And he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[22:37]  ²¹ tn Grk “You will love.” The future indicative is used here with imperatival force (see ExSyn 452 and 569).

[22:37]  ²² sn A quotation from Deut 6:5. The threefold reference to different parts of the person says, in effect, that one should love God with all one’s being.

[12:30]  ²³ tn Grk “You will love.” The future indicative is used here with imperatival force (see ExSyn 452 and 569).

[12:30]  ²⁴ sn A quotation from Deut 6:4-5 and Josh 22:5 (LXX). The fourfold reference to different parts of the person says, in effect, that one should love God with all one’s being.

[12:31]  ²⁵ sn A quotation from Lev 19:18.

[12:32]  ²⁶ sn A quotation from Deut 4:35.

[12:33]  ²⁷ sn A quotation from Deut 6:5.

[12:33]  ²⁸ sn A quotation from Lev 19:18.

[10:27]  ²⁹ tn Grk “And he”; the referent (the expert in religious law, shortened here to “the expert”) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[10:27]  ³⁰ tn Grk “You will love.” The future indicative is used here with imperatival force (see ExSyn 452 and 569).

[10:27]  ³¹ sn A quotation from Deut 6:5. The fourfold reference to different parts of the person says, in effect, that one should love God with all one’s being.

[10:27]  ³² tn This portion of the reply is a quotation from Lev 19:18. The verb is repeated in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[11:42]  ³³ tn Grk “Woe to you…because you…” The causal particle ὅτι (Joti) has not been translated here for rhetorical effect (and so to the end of this chapter).

[11:42]  ³⁴ tn Or “you tithe mint.”

[11:42]  ³⁵ sn These small herbs were tithed with great care (Mishnah, m. Demai 2:1).

[11:42]  ³⁶ tn Grk “and rue.” Καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.

[11:42]  ³⁷ sn Justice was a major theme of OT ethics (Mic 6:8; Zech 7:8-10).

[11:42]  ³⁸ tn Grk “those”; but this has been translated as “the others” to clarify which are meant.

[8:28]  ³⁹ tc ὁ θεός (Jo qeos, “God”) is found after the verb συνεργεῖ (sunergei, “work”) in v. 28 by Ì⁴⁶ A B 81 sa; the shorter reading is found in א C D F G Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï latt sy bo. Although the inclusion is supported by a significant early papyrus, the alliance of significant Alexandrian and Western witnesses favors the shorter reading. As well, the longer reading is evidently motivated by a need for clarification. Since ὁ θεός is textually suspect, it is better to read the text without it. This leaves two good translational options: either “he works all things together for good” or “all things work together for good.” In the first instance the subject is embedded in the verb and “God” is clearly implied (as in v. 29). In the second instance, πάντα (panta) becomes the subject of an intransitive verb. In either case, “What is expressed is a truly biblical confidence in the sovereignty of God” (C. E. B. Cranfield, Romans [ICC], 1:427).

[8:1]  ⁴⁰ tc The earliest and best witnesses of the Alexandrian and Western texts, as well as a few others (א* B D* F G 6 1506 1739 1881 pc co), have no additional words for v. 1. Later scribes (A D¹ Ψ 81 365 629 pc vg) added the words μὴ κατὰ σάρκα περιπατοῦσιν (mh kata sarka peripatousin, “who do not walk according to the flesh”), while even later ones (א² D² 33^vid Ï) added ἀλλὰ κατὰ πνεῦμα (alla kata pneuma, “but [who do walk] according to the Spirit”). Both the external evidence and the internal evidence are compelling for the shortest reading. The scribes were evidently motivated to add such qualifications (interpolated from v. 4) to insulate Paul’s gospel from charges that it was characterized too much by grace. The KJV follows the longest reading found in Ï.

[2:15]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “who.” The relative pronoun was converted to a personal pronoun and, because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[2:15]  ⁴² tn Grk “show the work of the law [to be] written,” with the words in brackets implied by the Greek construction.

[2:15]  ⁴³ tn Or “excuse.”

[2:15]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “their conscience bearing witness and between the thoughts accusing or also defending one another.”

[4:19]  ⁴⁵ tc Most mss (D F G Ψ 33 1881 Ï it) read “he did not consider” by including the negative particle (οὐ, ou), but others (א A B C 6 81 365 1506 1739 pc co) lack οὐ. The reading which includes the negative particle probably represents a scribal attempt to exalt the faith of Abraham by making it appear that his faith was so strong that he did not even consider the physical facts. But “here Paul does not wish to imply that faith means closing one’s eyes to reality, but that Abraham was so strong in faith as to be undaunted by every consideration” (TCGNT 451). Both on external and internal grounds, the reading without the negative particle is preferred.

[4:19]  ⁴⁶ tc ‡ Most witnesses (א A C D Ψ 33 Ï bo) have ἤδη (hdh, “already”) at this point in v. 19. But B F G 630 1739 1881 pc lat sa lack it. Since it appears to heighten the style of the narrative and since there is no easy accounting for an accidental omission, it is best to regard the shorter text as original. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.

[4:20]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “And he.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, δέ (de) has not been translated here.

[5:2]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “exult, boast.”

[5:5]  ⁴⁹ tn The phrase ἡ ἀγάπη τοῦ θεοῦ (Jh agaph tou qeou, “the love of God”) could be interpreted as either an objective genitive (“our love for God”), subjective genitive (“God’s love for us”), or both (M. Zerwick’s “general” genitive [Biblical Greek, §§36-39]; D. B. Wallace’s “plenary” genitive [ExSyn 119-21]). The immediate context, which discusses what God has done for believers, favors a subjective genitive, but the fact that this love is poured out within the hearts of believers implies that it may be the source for believers’ love for God; consequently an objective genitive cannot be ruled out. It is possible that both these ideas are meant in the text and that this is a plenary genitive: “The love that comes from God and that produces our love for God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (ExSyn 121).

[5:5]  ⁵⁰ sn On the OT background of the Spirit being poured out, see Isa 32:15; Joel 2:28-29.