10:1 Then Samuel took a small container of olive oil and poured it on Saul’s 1 head. Samuel 2 kissed him and said, “The Lord has chosen you 3 to lead his people Israel! You will rule over the Lord’s people and you will deliver them from the power of the enemies who surround them. This will be your sign that the Lord has chosen 4 you as leader over his inheritance. 5
1:1 6 In the first 7 year of King Cyrus of Persia, in order to fulfill the Lord’s message 8 spoken through 9 Jeremiah, 10 the Lord stirred the mind 11 of King Cyrus of Persia. He disseminated 12 a proclamation 13 throughout his entire kingdom, announcing in a written edict 14 the following: 15
1:5 Then the leaders 16 of Judah and Benjamin, along with the priests and the Levites – all those whose mind God had stirred – got ready 17 to go up in order to build the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem. 18
7:27 19 Blessed be the Lord God of our fathers, who so moved in the heart of the king to so honor the temple of the Lord which is in Jerusalem!
1:1 From Paul, 20 an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother, 1:2 to the saints, the faithful 21 brothers and sisters 22 in Christ, at Colossae. Grace and peace to you 23 from God our Father! 24
1:16 for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him – all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, 25 whether principalities or powers – all things were created through him and for him.
1 tn Heb “his”; the referent (Saul) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
2 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Samuel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
3 tn Heb “Is it not that the
4 tn That is, “anointed.”
5 tc The MT reads simply “Is it not that the
6 sn In addition to the canonical books of Ezra and Nehemiah, there are two deuterocanonical books that are also called “Ezra.” Exactly how these books are designated varies in ancient literature. In the Septuagint (LXX) canonical Ezra is called Second Esdras, but in the Latin Vulgate it is called First Esdras. Our Nehemiah is called Third Esdras in some manuscripts of the LXX, but it is known as Second Esdras in the Latin Vulgate. (In the earliest LXX manuscripts Ezra and Nehemiah were regarded as one book, as they were in some Hebrew manuscripts.) The deuterocanonical books of Ezra are called First and Fourth Esdras in the LXX, but Third and Fourth Esdras in the Latin Vulgate. The titles for the so-called books of Ezra are thus rather confusing, a fact that one must keep in mind when consulting this material.
7 sn The first year of Cyrus would be ca. 539
8 tn Heb “the word of the Lord.”
9 tc The MT reads מִפִּי (mippi, “from the mouth of”), but this should probably be emended to בְּפִי (bÿfi, “by the mouth of”), which is the way the parallel passage in 2 Chr 36:22 reads. This is also reflected in the LXX, which is either reflecting an alternate textual tradition of בְּפִי or is attempting to harmonize Ezra 1:1 in light of 2 Chronicles.
10 sn Cf. Jer 29:10; 25:11-14. Jeremiah had prophesied that after a time of seventy years the Jews would return “to this place.” How these seventy years are to be reckoned is a matter of debate among scholars. Some understand the period to refer to the approximate length of Babylon’s ascendancy as a world power, beginning either with the fall of Nineveh (612
11 tn Heb “spirit.” The Hebrew noun רוּחַ (ruakh, “spirit”) has a broad range of meanings (see BDB 924-26 s.v.). Here, it probably refers to (1) “mind” as the seat of mental acts (e.g., Exod 28:3; Deut 34:9; Isa 29:24; 40:13; Ezek 11:5; 20:32; 1 Chr 28:12; cf. BDB 925 s.v. 6) or (2) “will” as the seat of volitional decisions (e.g., Exod 35:5, 22; Pss 51:12, 14; 57:8; 2 Chr 29:31; cf. BDB 925 s.v. 7). So also in v. 5.
12 tn Heb “caused to pass.”
13 tn Heb “a voice.” The Hebrew noun קוֹל (qol, “voice, sound”) has a broad range of meanings, including the metonymical (cause – effect) nuance “proclamation” (e.g., Exod 36:6; 2 Chr 24:9; 30:5; 36:22; Ezra 1:1; 10:7; Neh 8:15). See BDB 877 s.v. 3.a.2.
14 sn For an interesting extrabiblical parallel to this edict see the Cyrus cylinder (ANET 315-16).
15 tn Heb “in writing, saying.”
16 tn Heb “the heads of the fathers.”
17 tn Heb “arose.”
18 map For location see Map5-B1; Map6-F3; Map7-E2; Map8-F2; Map10-B3; JP1-F4; JP2-F4; JP3-F4; JP4-F4.
19 sn At this point the language of the book reverts from Aramaic (7:12-26) back to Hebrew.
20 tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.
21 tn Grk “and faithful.” The construction in Greek (as well as Paul’s style) suggests that the saints are identical to the faithful; hence, the καί (kai) is best left untranslated (cf. Eph 1:1). See ExSyn 281-82.
22 tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).
23 tn Or “Grace to you and peace.”
24 tc Most witnesses, including some important ones (א A C F G I [P] 075 Ï it bo), read “and the Lord Jesus Christ” at the end of this verse, no doubt to conform the wording to the typical Pauline salutation. However, excellent and early witnesses (B D K L Ψ 33 81 1175 1505 1739 1881 al sa) lack this phrase. Since the omission is inexplicable as arising from the longer reading (otherwise, these
25 tn BDAG 579 s.v. κυριότης 3 suggests “bearers of the ruling powers, dominions” here.
26 tn The first phrase refers to the action of giving and the second to what is given.
27 tn Or “All generous giving and every perfect gift from above is coming down.”
28 tn Grk “variation or shadow of turning” (referring to the motions of heavenly bodies causing variations of light and darkness).