2 Samuel 15:6

15:6 Absalom acted this way toward everyone in Israel who came to the king for justice. In this way Absalom won the loyalty ¹  of the citizens ²  of Israel.

2 Samuel 15:13

David Flees from Jerusalem

15:13 Then a messenger came to David and reported, “The men of Israel are loyal to Absalom!” ³ 

Psalms 62:9

62:9 Men are nothing but a mere breath;

human beings are unreliable. ⁴ 

When they are weighed in the scales,

all of them together are lighter than air. ⁵ 

Mark 7:37

7:37 People were completely astounded and said, “He has done everything well. He even makes the deaf hear and the mute speak.”

Mark 15:11-13

15:11 But the chief priests stirred up the crowd to have him release ⁶  Barabbas instead. 15:12 So Pilate spoke to them again, ⁷  “Then what do you want me to do ⁸  with the one you call king of the Jews?” 15:13 They shouted back, “Crucify ⁹  him!”

¹ tn Heb “stole the heart.”

² tn Heb “the men.”

³ tn Heb “the heart of the men of Israel is with Absalom.”

⁴ tn Heb “only a breath [are] the sons of mankind, a lie [are] the sons of man.” The phrases “sons of mankind” and “sons of man” also appear together in Ps 49:2. Because of the parallel line there, where “rich and poor” are mentioned, a number of interpreters and translators treat these expressions as polar opposites, בְּנֵי אָדָם (bÿney ’adam) referring to the lower classes and בְּנֵי אִישׁ (bÿney ’ish) to higher classes. But usage does not support such a view. The rare phrase בְּנֵי אִישׁ (“sons of man”) appears to refer to human beings in general in its other uses (see Pss 4:2; Lam 3:33). It is better to understand the phrases as synonymous expressions.

⁵ tn The noun הֶבֶל (hevel), translated “a breath” earlier in the verse, appears again here.

⁶ tn Grk “to have him release for them.”

⁷ tn Grk “answering, Pilate spoke to them again.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (apokriqeis) is redundant and has not been translated.

⁸ tc Instead of “what do you want me to do” several witnesses, including the most important ones (א B C W Δ Ψ Ë^1,13 33 892 2427 pc), lack θέλετε (qelete, “you want”), turning the question into the more abrupt “what should I do?” Although the witnesses for the longer reading are not as significant (A D Θ 0250 Ï latt sy), the reading without θέλετε conforms to Matt 27:22 and thus is suspected of being a scribal emendation. The known scribal tendency to assimilate one synoptic passage to another parallel, coupled with the lack of such assimilation in mss that are otherwise known to do this most frequently (the Western and Byzantine texts), suggests that θέλετε is authentic. Further, Mark’s known style of being generally more verbose and redundant than Matthew’s argues that θέλετε is authentic here. That this is the longer reading, however, and that a good variety of witnesses omit the word, gives one pause. Perhaps the wording without θέλετε would have been perceived as having greater homiletical value, motivating scribes to move in this direction. A decision is difficult, but on the whole internal evidence leads toward regarding θέλετε as authentic.

⁹ sn Crucifixion was the cruelest form of punishment practiced by the Romans. Roman citizens could not normally undergo it. It was reserved for the worst crimes, like treason and evasion of due process in a capital case. The Roman historian Cicero called it “a cruel and disgusting penalty” (Against Verres 2.5.63-66 §§163-70); Josephus (J. W. 7.6.4 [7.203]) called it the worst of deaths.