Ezekiel 18:24

18:24 “But if a righteous man turns away from his righteousness and practices wrongdoing according to all the abominable practices the wicked carry out, will he live? All his righteous acts will not be remembered; because of the unfaithful acts he has done and the sin he has committed, he will die.

Matthew 3:15

3:15 So Jesus replied to him, “Let it happen now, for it is right for us to fulfill all righteousness.” Then John yielded to him.

Matthew 24:13

24:13 But the person who endures to the end will be saved.

John 8:29-31

8:29 And the one who sent me is with me. He has not left me alone, because I always do those things that please him.” 8:30 While he was saying these things, many people believed in him.

Abraham’s Children and the Devil’s Children

8:31 Then Jesus said to those Judeans who had believed him, “If you continue to follow my teaching, 10  you are really 11  my disciples

James 2:10

2:10 For the one who obeys the whole law but fails 12  in one point has become guilty of all of it. 13 

James 2:2

2:2 For if someone 14  comes into your assembly 15  wearing a gold ring and fine clothing, and a poor person enters in filthy clothes,

James 1:8

1:8 since he is a double-minded individual, 16  unstable in all his ways.


tn Heb “because of them he will die.”

tn Grk “but Jesus, answering, said.” This construction with passive participle and finite verb is pleonastic (redundant) and has been simplified in the translation to “replied to him.”

tn Grk “Permit now.”

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

tn Or “permitted him.”

sn But the person who endures to the end will be saved. Jesus was not claiming here that salvation is by works. He was simply arguing that genuine faith evidences itself in persistence through even the worst of trials.

tn That is, “he has not abandoned me.”

tn The word “people” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied for clarity and smoothness in the translation.

tn Grk “to the Jews.” In NT usage the term ᾿Ιουδαῖοι (Ioudaioi) may refer to the entire Jewish people, the residents of Jerusalem and surrounding territory (i.e., “Judeans”), the authorities in Jerusalem, or merely those who were hostile to Jesus. (For further information see R. G. Bratcher, “‘The Jews’ in the Gospel of John,” BT 26 [1975]: 401-9; also BDAG 479 s.v. ᾿Ιουδαῖος 2.e.) Here the phrase refers to the Jewish people in Jerusalem who had been listening to Jesus’ teaching in the temple and had believed his claim to be the Messiah, hence, “those Judeans who had believed him.” The term “Judeans” is preferred here to the more general “people” because the debate concerns descent from Abraham (v. 33).

10 tn Grk “If you continue in my word.”

11 tn Or “truly.”

12 tn Or “stumbles.”

13 tn Grk “guilty of all.”

14 tn The word for “man” or “individual” here is ἀνήρ (anhr), which often means “male” or “man (as opposed to woman).” But as BDAG 79 s.v. 2 says, “equivalent to τὶς someone.”

15 tn Grk “synagogue.” Usually συναγωγή refers to Jewish places of worship (e.g., Matt 4:23, Mark 1:21, Luke 4:15, John 6:59). The word can be used generally to refer to a place of assembly, and here it refers specifically to a Christian assembly (BDAG 963 s.v. 2.b.).

16 tn Grk “a man of two minds,” continuing the description of the person in v. 7, giving the reason that he cannot expect to receive anything. The word for “man” or “individual” is ἀνήρ (anhr), which often means “male” or “man (as opposed to woman).” But it sometimes is used generically to mean “anyone,” “a person,” as here (cf. BDAG 79 s.v. 2).