2 Corinthians 12:9-10

12:9 But ¹  he said to me, “My grace is enough ²  for you, for my ³  power is made perfect ⁴  in weakness.” So then, I will boast most gladly ⁵  about my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may reside in ⁶  me. 12:10 Therefore I am content with ⁷  weaknesses, with insults, with troubles, with persecutions and difficulties ⁸  for the sake of Christ, for whenever I am weak, then I am strong.

Ephesians 3:16

3:16 I pray that ⁹  according to the wealth of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in the inner person,

Philippians 4:13

4:13 I am able to do all things ¹⁰  through the one ¹¹  who strengthens me.

Colossians 1:11

1:11 being strengthened with all power according to his glorious might for the display of ¹²  all patience and steadfastness, joyfully

Exodus 4:11

4:11 The Lord said to him, “Who gave ¹³  a mouth to man, or who makes a person mute or deaf or seeing or blind? Is it not I, the Lord? ¹⁴ 

Proverbs 2:6

2:6 For ¹⁵  the Lord gives ¹⁶  wisdom,

and from his mouth ¹⁷  comes ¹⁸  knowledge and understanding.

¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” because of the contrast implicit in the context.

² tn Or “is sufficient.”

³ tc The majority of later mss (א² A^c D¹ Ψ 0243 0278 33 1739 1881 Ï) as well as some versional witnesses include the pronoun “my” here, but the omission of the pronoun has excellent external support (Ì^46vid א* A* B D* F G latt). Scribes probably added the pronoun for clarity, making the obvious referent explicit. This would also make “power” more parallel with “my grace.” Though the original text probably did not include “my,” scribes who added the word were following the sense of Paul’s statement.

⁴ tn Or “my power comes to full strength.”

⁵ tn “Most gladly,” a comparative form used with superlative meaning and translated as such.

⁶ tn Or “may rest on.”

⁷ tn Or “I take delight in.”

⁸ tn Or “calamities.”

⁹ tn Grk “that.” In Greek v. 16 is a subordinate clause to vv. 14-15.

¹⁰ tn The Greek word translated “all things” is in emphatic position at the beginning of the Greek sentence.

¹¹ tc Although some excellent witnesses lack explicit reference to the one strengthening Paul (so א* A B D* I 33 1739 lat co Cl), the majority of witnesses (א² D² [F G] Ψ 075 1881 Ï sy) add Χριστῷ (Cristw) here (thus, “through Christ who strengthens me”). But this kind of reading is patently secondary, and is a predictable variant. Further, the shorter reading is much harder, for it leaves the agent unspecified.

¹² tn The expression “for the display of” is an attempt to convey in English the force of the Greek preposition εἰς (eis) in this context.

¹³ tn The verb שִׂים (sim) means “to place, put, set”; the sentence here more precisely says, “Who put a mouth into a man?”

¹⁴ sn The final question obviously demands a positive answer. But the clause is worded in such a way as to return to the theme of “I AM.” Isaiah 45:5-7 developed this same idea of God’s control over life. Moses protests that he is not an eloquent speaker, and the Lord replies with reminders about himself and promises, “I will be with your mouth,” an assertion that repeats the verb he used four times in 3:12 and 14 and in promises to Isaac and Jacob (Gen 26:3; 31:3).

¹⁵ tn This is a causal clause. The reason one must fear and know the Lord is that he is the source of true, effectual wisdom.

¹⁶ tn The verb is an imperfect tense which probably functions as a habitual imperfect describing a universal truth in the past, present and future.

¹⁷ sn This expression is an anthropomorphism; it indicates that the Lord is the immediate source or author of the wisdom. It is worth noting that in the incarnation many of these “anthropomorphisms” become literal in the person of the Logos, the Word, Jesus, who reveals the Father.

¹⁸ tn The verb “comes” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity and smoothness.