2:4 if 5 you seek 6 it like silver, 7
and search for it 8 like hidden treasure,
1 tn Grk “probing.” The participle continues the sentence from v. 10 but has been translated as an indicative for English style.
2 tn Or “time or circumstances,” focusing not on the person but on the timing and circumstances of the fulfillment.
3 tn Grk “the sufferings unto Christ,” i.e., sufferings directed toward him, what he was destined to suffer.
4 tn Grk “the glories after these things.”
5 tn The conditional particle now reiterates the initial conditional clause of this introductory section (1-4); the apodosis will follow in v. 5.
6 tn The verb בָּקַשׁ (baqash) means “to search for; to seek; to investigate” (BDB 134 s.v.). This calls for the same diligence one would have in looking for silver.
7 sn The two similes affirm that the value placed on the object will influence the eagerness and diligence in the pursuit and development of wisdom (e.g., Job 28:9-11). The point is not only that the object sought is valuable, but that the effort will be demanding but rewarding.
8 sn The verb חָפַשׂ (khafas) means “to dig; to search” (BDB 344 s.v.; cf. NCV “hunt for it”). The Arabic cognate means “to dig for water.” It is used literally of Joseph searching his brothers’ sacks (Gen 44:12) and figuratively for searching the soul (Ps 64:7). This is a more emphatic word than the one used in the first colon and again emphasizes that acquiring wisdom will be demanding.
9 tn Heb “face.”
10 tn The Hebrew phrase translated “Lord God” here is אֲדֹנָי הָאֱלֹהִים (’adonay ha’elohim).
11 sn When lamenting, ancient Israelites would fast, wear sackcloth, and put ashes on their heads to show their sorrow and contrition.
12 tn Or “Study the scriptures thoroughly” (an imperative). For the meaning of the verb see G. Delling, TDNT 2:655-57.
13 sn In them you possess eternal life. Note the following examples from the rabbinic tractate Pirqe Avot (“The Sayings of the Fathers”): Pirqe Avot 2:8, “He who has acquired the words of the law has acquired for himself the life of the world to come”; Pirqe Avot 6:7, “Great is the law for it gives to those who practice it life in this world and in the world to come.”
14 tn The words “same scriptures” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied to clarify the referent (“these”).
15 tn Grk “They answered and said to him.”
16 tn Questions prefaced with μή (mh) in Greek anticipate a negative answer. This can sometimes be indicated by using a “tag” at the end in English (here the tag is “are you?”).
17 tc At least one early and important ms (Ì66*) places the article before “prophet” (ὁ προφήτης, Jo profhths), making this a reference to the “prophet like Moses” mentioned in Deut 18:15.
18 tn Grk “These”; the referent (the Jews in the synagogue at Berea) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
19 tn Or “more willing to learn.” L&N 27.48 and BDAG 404 s.v. εὐγενής 2 both use the term “open-minded” here. The point is that they were more receptive to Paul’s message.
20 sn Thessalonica was a city in Macedonia (modern Salonica).
21 tn Or “willingly,” “readily”; Grk “with all eagerness.”
22 tn Grk “who received.” Here the relative pronoun (“who”) has been translated as a pronoun (“they”) preceded by a semicolon, which is less awkward in contemporary English than a relative clause at this point.
23 tn This verb (BDAG 66 s.v. ἀνακρίνω 1) refers to careful examination.
24 tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase in this verse.