2 Chronicles 33:12-13

33:12 In his pain¹ Manasseh² asked the Lord his God for mercy³ and truly⁴ humbled himself before the God of his ancestors.⁵ 33:13 When he prayed to the Lord,⁶ the Lord⁷ responded to him⁸ and answered favorably⁹ his cry for mercy. The Lord¹⁰ brought him back to Jerusalem to his kingdom. Then Manasseh realized that the Lord is the true God.

2 Chronicles 34:27

34:27 ‘You displayed a sensitive spirit¹¹ and humbled yourself before God when you heard his words concerning this place and its residents. You humbled yourself before me, tore your clothes and wept before me, and I have heard you,’ says the Lord.

Proverbs 15:8

15:8 The Lord abhors¹² the sacrifices¹³ of the wicked,¹⁴

but the prayer¹⁵ of the upright pleases him.¹⁶

Matthew 5:3

5:3 “Blessed¹⁷ are the poor in spirit,¹⁸ for the kingdom of heaven belongs¹⁹ to them.

Luke 18:13-14

18:13 The tax collector, however, stood²⁰ far off and would not even look up²¹ to heaven, but beat his breast and said, ‘God, be merciful²² to me, sinner that I am!’²³ 18:14 I tell you that this man went down to his home justified²⁴ rather than the Pharisee.²⁵ For everyone who exalts²⁶ himself will be humbled, but he who humbles himself will be exalted.”

James 4:6

4:6 But he gives greater grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but he gives grace to the humble.”²⁷

James 4:10

4:10 Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.

James 4:1

Passions and Pride

4:1 Where do the conflicts and where²⁸ do the quarrels among you come from? Is it not from this,²⁹ from your passions that battle inside you?³⁰

James 5:5

5:5 You have lived indulgently and luxuriously on the earth. You have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter.³¹

¹tn Or “distress.”

²tn Heb “he”; the referent (Manasseh) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

³tn Heb “appeased the face of the Lord his God.”

⁴tn Or “greatly.”

⁵tn Heb “fathers.”

⁶tn Heb “him”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁷tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

⁸tn Heb “was entreated by him,” or “allowed himself to be entreated by him.”

⁹tn Heb “heard.”

¹⁰tn Heb “he”; the referent (the Lord) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹¹tn Heb “Because your heart was tender.”

¹²tn Heb “an abomination of the Lord.” The term יְהוָה (yÿhvah, “the Lord”) functions as a subjective genitive: “the Lord abhors.” Cf. NIV “the Lord detests”; NCV, NLT “the Lord hates”; CEV “the Lord is disgusted.”

¹³tn Heb “sacrifice” (so many English versions).

¹⁴sn The sacrifices of the wicked are hated by the Lord because the worshipers are insincere and blasphemous (e.g., Prov 15:29; 21:3; 28:9; Ps 40:6-8; Isa 1:10-17). In other words, the spiritual condition of the worshiper determines whether or not the worship is acceptable to God.

¹⁵sn J. H. Greenstone notes that if God will accept the prayers of the upright, he will accept their sacrifices; for sacrifice is an outer ritual and easily performed even by the wicked, but prayer is a private and inward act and not usually fabricated by unbelievers (Proverbs, 162).

¹⁶tn Heb “[is] his pleasure.” The 3rd person masculine singular suffix functions as a subjective genitive: “he is pleased.” God is pleased with the prayers of the upright.

¹⁷sn The term Blessed introduces the first of several beatitudes promising blessing to those whom God cares for. They serve as an invitation to come into the grace God offers.

¹⁸sn The poor in spirit is a reference to the “pious poor” for whom God especially cares. See Ps 14:6; 22:24; 25:16; 34:6; 40:17; 69:29.

¹⁹sn The present tense (belongs) here is significant. Jesus makes the kingdom and its blessings currently available. This phrase is unlike the others in the list with the possessive pronoun being emphasized.

²⁰tn Grk “standing”; the Greek participle has been translated as a finite verb.

²¹tn Grk “even lift up his eyes” (an idiom).

²²tn The prayer is a humble call for forgiveness. The term for mercy (ἱλάσκομαι, Jilaskomai) is associated with the concept of a request for atonement (BDAG 473-74 s.v. 1; Ps 51:1, 3; 25:11; 34:6, 18).

²³tn Grk “the sinner.” The tax collector views himself not just as any sinner but as the worst of all sinners. See ExSyn 222-23.

²⁴sn The prayer that was heard and honored was the one given with humility; in a surprising reversal it was the tax collector who went down to his home justified.

²⁵tn Grk “the other”; the referent (the Pharisee, v. 10) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

²⁶sn Everyone who exalts himself. See Luke 14:11. Jesus often called for humility and condemned those who sought honor.

²⁷sn A quotation from Prov 3:34.

²⁸tn The word “where” is repeated in Greek for emphasis.

²⁹tn Grk “from here.”

³⁰tn Grk “in your members [i.e., parts of the body].”

³¹sn James’ point seems to be that instead of seeking deliverance from condemnation, they have defied God’s law (fattened your hearts) and made themselves more likely objects of his judgment (in a day of slaughter).