1 Kings 2:22

2:22 King Solomon answered his mother, “Why just request Abishag the Shunammite for him? ¹  Since he is my older brother, you should also request the kingdom for him, for Abiathar the priest, and for Joab son of Zeruiah!”

Jeremiah 45:5

45:5 Are you looking for great things for yourself? Do not look for such things. For I, the Lord, affirm ²  that I am about to bring disaster on all humanity. ³  But I will allow you to escape with your life ⁴  wherever you go.”’”

Matthew 20:21-22

20:21 He said to her, “What do you want?” She replied, ⁵  “Permit ⁶  these two sons of mine to sit, one at your ⁷  right hand and one at your left, in your kingdom.” 20:22 Jesus ⁸  answered, “You don’t know what you are asking! ⁹  Are you able to drink the cup I am about to drink?” ¹⁰  They said to him, “We are able.” ¹¹ 

Romans 8:26

8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray, ¹²  but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings.

James 4:3

4:3 you ask and do not receive because you ask wrongly, so you can spend it on your passions.

¹ tn Heb “for Adonijah.”

² tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

³ sn Compare Jer 25:31, 33. The reference here to universal judgment also forms a nice transition to the judgments on the nations that follow in Jer 46-51 which may be another reason for the placement of this chapter here, out of its normal chronological order (see also the study note on v. 1).

⁴ tn Heb “I will give you your life for a spoil.” For this idiom see the translator’s note on 21:9 and compare the usage in 21:9; 38:2; 39:18.

⁵ tn Grk “said to him.”

⁶ tn Grk “Say that.”

⁷ tc A majority of witnesses read σου (sou, “your”) here, perhaps for clarification. At the same time, it is possible that the pronoun dropped out through haplography or was excised because of perceived redundancy (there are two other such pronouns in the verse) by א B. Either way, the translation adds it due to the requirements of English style. NA²⁷ includes σου here.

⁸ tn Grk “And answering, Jesus said.” This is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

⁹ tn The verbs in Greek are plural here, indicating that Jesus is not answering the mother but has turned his attention directly to the two disciples.

¹⁰ tc Most mss (C W 33 Ï, as well as some versional and patristic authorities) in addition have “or to be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized?” But this is surely due to a recollection of the fuller version of this dominical saying found in Mark 10:38. The same mss also have the Lord’s response, “and you will be baptized with the baptism with which I am baptized” in v. 23, again due to the parallel in Mark 10:39. The shorter reading, in both v. 22 and v. 23, is to be preferred both because it better explains the rise of the other reading and is found in superior witnesses (א B D L Z Θ 085 Ë^1,13 pc lat, as well as other versional and patristic authorities).

¹¹ sn No more naïve words have ever been spoken as those found here coming from James and John, “We are able.” They said it with such confidence and ease, yet they had little clue as to what they were affirming. In the next sentence Jesus confirms that they will indeed suffer for his name.

¹² tn Or “for we do not know what we ought to pray for.”