1 John 3:21

3:21 Dear friends, if our conscience does not condemn us, we have confidence in the presence of God,

Ephesians 3:12

3:12 in whom we have boldness and confident access ¹  to God ²  because of ³  Christ’s ⁴  faithfulness. ⁵ 

Hebrews 3:6

3:6 But Christ ⁶  is faithful as a son over God’s ⁷  house. We are of his house, ⁸  if in fact we hold firmly ⁹  to our confidence and the hope we take pride in. ¹⁰ 

Hebrews 3:14

3:14 For we have become partners with Christ, if in fact we hold our initial confidence ¹¹  firm until the end.

Hebrews 10:35

10:35 So do not throw away your confidence, because it ¹²  has great reward.

¹ tn Grk “access in confidence.”

² tn The phrase “to God” is not in the text, but is clearly implied by the preceding, “access.”

³ tn Grk “through,” “by way of.”

⁴ tn Grk “his.”

⁵ tn Or “faith in him.” A decision is difficult here. Though traditionally translated “faith in Jesus Christ,” an increasing number of NT scholars are arguing that πίστις Χριστοῦ (pisti" Cristou) and similar phrases in Paul (here and in Rom 3:22, 26; Gal 2:16, 20; 3:22; Phil 3:9) involve a subjective genitive and mean “Christ’s faith” or “Christ’s faithfulness” (cf., e.g., G. Howard, “The ‘Faith of Christ’,” ExpTim 85 [1974]: 212-15; R. B. Hays, The Faith of Jesus Christ [SBLDS]; Morna D. Hooker, “Πίστις Χριστοῦ,” NTS 35 [1989]: 321-42). Noteworthy among the arguments for the subjective genitive view is that when πίστις takes a personal genitive it is almost never an objective genitive (cf. Matt 9:2, 22, 29; Mark 2:5; 5:34; 10:52; Luke 5:20; 7:50; 8:25, 48; 17:19; 18:42; 22:32; Rom 1:8; 12; 3:3; 4:5, 12, 16; 1 Cor 2:5; 15:14, 17; 2 Cor 10:15; Phil 2:17; Col 1:4; 2:5; 1 Thess 1:8; 3:2, 5, 10; 2 Thess 1:3; Titus 1:1; Phlm 6; 1 Pet 1:9, 21; 2 Pet 1:5). On the other hand, the objective genitive view has its adherents: A. Hultgren, “The Pistis Christou Formulations in Paul,” NovT 22 (1980): 248-63; J. D. G. Dunn, “Once More, ΠΙΣΤΙΣ ΧΡΙΣΤΟΥ,” SBL Seminar Papers, 1991, 730-44. Most commentaries on Romans and Galatians usually side with the objective view.

¹ sn The Greek makes the contrast between v. 5 and v. 6a more emphatic and explicit than is easily done in English.

² tn Grk “his”; in the translation the referent (God) has been specified for clarity.

³ tn Grk “whose house we are,” continuing the previous sentence.

⁴ tc The reading adopted by the translation is found in Ì^13,46 B sa, while the vast majority of mss (א A C D Ψ 0243 0278 33 1739 1881 Ï latt) add μέχρι τέλους βεβαίαν (mecri telou" bebaian, “secure until the end”). The external evidence for the omission, though minimal, has excellent credentials. Considering the internal factors, B. M. Metzger (TCGNT 595) finds it surprising that the feminine adjective βεβαίαν should modify the neuter noun καύχημα (kauchma, here translated “we take pride”), a fact that suggests that even the form of the word was borrowed from another place. Since the same phrase occurs at Heb 3:14, it is likely that later scribes added it here at Heb 3:6 in anticipation of Heb 3:14. While these words belong at 3:14, they seem foreign to 3:6.

⁵ tn Grk “the pride of our hope.”

¹ tn Grk “the beginning of the confidence.”

¹ tn Grk “which,” but showing the reason.