1 Samuel 2:8

2:8 He lifts the weak ¹  from the dust;

he raises ²  the poor from the ash heap

to seat them with princes

and to bestow on them an honored position. ³ 

The foundations of the earth belong to the Lord,

and he has placed the world on them.

Psalms 75:7

75:7 For God is the judge! ⁴ 

He brings one down and exalts another. ⁵ 

Psalms 113:7

113:7 He raises the poor from the dirt,

and lifts up the needy from the garbage pile, ⁶ 

Ezekiel 17:24

17:24 All the trees of the field will know that I am the Lord.

I make the high tree low; I raise up the low tree.

I make the green tree wither, and I make the dry tree sprout.

I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will do it!’”

Matthew 3:9

3:9 and don’t think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God can raise up children for Abraham from these stones!

¹ tn Or “lowly”; Heb “insignificant.”

² tn The imperfect verbal form, which is parallel to the participle in the preceding line, is best understood here as indicating what typically happens.

³ tn Heb “a seat of honor.”

⁴ tn Or “judges.”

⁵ tn The imperfects here emphasize the generalizing nature of the statement.

⁶ sn The language of v. 7 is almost identical to that of 1 Sam 2:8.