2 Samuel 6:7

6:7 The Lord was so furious with Uzzah, ¹  he ²  killed him on the spot ³  for his negligence. ⁴  He died right there beside the ark of God.

2 Samuel 6:1

David Brings the Ark to Jerusalem

6:1 David again assembled ⁵  all the best ⁶  men in Israel, thirty thousand in number.

2 Samuel 11:9

11:9 But Uriah stayed at the door of the palace with all ⁷  the servants of his lord. He did not go down to his house.

2 Samuel 11:1

David Commits Adultery with Bathsheba

11:1 In the spring of the year, at the time when kings ⁸  normally conduct wars, ⁹  David sent out Joab with his officers ¹⁰  and the entire Israelite army. ¹¹  They defeated the Ammonites and besieged Rabbah. But David stayed behind in Jerusalem. ¹² 

2 Samuel 21:7

21:7 The king had mercy on Mephibosheth son of Jonathan, the son of Saul, in light of the Lord’s oath that had been taken between David and Jonathan son of Saul.

Luke 9:59-60

9:59 Jesus ¹³  said to another, “Follow me.” But he replied, ¹⁴  “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 9:60 But Jesus ¹⁵  said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, ¹⁶  but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” ¹⁷ 

Acts 15:28

15:28 For it seemed best to the Holy Spirit and to us ¹⁸  not to place any greater burden on you than these necessary rules: ¹⁹ 

Philippians 2:21

2:21 Others are busy with their own concerns, not those of Jesus Christ.

¹ tn Heb “and the anger of the Lord burned against Uzzah.”

² tn Heb “God.”

³ tc Heb “there.” Since this same term occurs later in the verse it is translated “on the spot” here for stylistic reasons.

⁴ tc The phrase “his negligence” is absent from the LXX.

⁵ tn The translation understands the verb to be a defective spelling of וַיְּאֱסֹף (vayyÿ’esof) due to quiescence of the letter א (alef). The root therefore is אסף (’sf, “to gather”). The Masoretes, however, pointed the verb as וַיֹּסֶף (vayyosef), understanding it to be a form of יָסַף (yasaf, “to add”). This does not fit the context, which calls for a verb of gathering.

⁶ tn Or “chosen.”

⁷ tc The Lucianic recension of the Old Greek translation lacks the word “all.”

⁸ tc Codex Leningrad (B19A), on which BHS is based, has here “messengers” (הַמַּלְאכִים, hammal’khim), probably as the result of contamination from the occurrence of that word in v. 4. The present translation follows most Hebrew mss and the ancient versions, which read “kings” (הַמֶּלָאכִים, hammela’kim).

⁹ tn Heb “go out.”

¹⁰ tn Heb “and his servants with him.”

¹¹ tn Heb “all Israel.”

¹² tn The disjunctive clause contrasts David’s inactivity with the army’s activity.

¹³ tn Grk “And he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

¹⁴ tn Grk “said.”

¹⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

¹⁶ sn There are several options for the meaning of Jesus’ reply Leave the dead to bury their own dead: (1) Recent research suggests that burial customs in the vicinity of Jerusalem from about 20 b.c. to a.d. 70 involved a reinterment of the bones a year after the initial burial, once the flesh had rotted away. At that point the son would have placed his father’s bones in a special box known as an ossuary to be set into the wall of the tomb. Thus Jesus could well be rebuking the man for wanting to wait around for as much as a year before making a commitment to follow him. In 1st century Jewish culture, to have followed Jesus rather than burying one’s father would have seriously dishonored one’s father (cf. Tobit 4:3-4). (2) The remark is an idiom (possibly a proverbial saying) that means, “The matter in question is not the real issue,” in which case Jesus was making a wordplay on the wording of the man’s (literal) request (see L&N 33.137). (3) This remark could be a figurative reference to various kinds of people, meaning, “Let the spiritually dead bury the dead.” (4) It could also be literal and designed to shock the hearer by the surprise of the contrast. Whichever option is preferred, it is clear that the most important priority is to preach the gospel (proclaim the kingdom of God).

¹⁷ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

¹⁸ tn This is the same expression translated “decided” in Acts 15:22, 25. BDAG 255 s.v. δοκέω 2.b.β lists “decide” as a possible gloss for this verse, and this translation would be consistent with the translation of the same expression in Acts 15:22, 25. However, the unusually awkward “the Holy Spirit and we have decided” would result. Given this approach, it would be more natural in English to say “We and the Holy Spirit have decided,” but changing the order removes the emphasis the Greek text gives to the Holy Spirit. Thus, although the similarity to the phrases in 15:22, 25 is obscured, it is better to use the alternate translation “it seems best to me” (also given by BDAG): “it seemed best to the Holy Spirit and to us.” Again the scope of agreement is highlighted.

¹⁹ tn L&N 71.39 translates “indispensable (rules)” while BDAG 358 s.v. ἐπάναγκες has “the necessary things.”