3:7 Therefore, as the Holy Spirit says, 1
“Oh, that today you would listen as he speaks! 2
63:11 His people remembered the ancient times. 4
Where is the one who brought them up out of the sea,
along with the shepherd of 5 his flock?
Where is the one who placed his holy Spirit among them, 6
7:51 “You stubborn 7 people, with uncircumcised 8 hearts and ears! 9 You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors 10 did! 7:52 Which of the prophets did your ancestors 11 not persecute? 12 They 13 killed those who foretold long ago the coming of the Righteous One, 14 whose betrayers and murderers you have now become! 15
1 sn The following quotation is from Ps 95:7b-11.
2 tn Grk “today if you hear his voice.”
3 tn Grk “after having said,” emphasizing the present impact of this utterance.
4 tn Heb “and he remembered the days of antiquity, Moses, his people.” The syntax of the statement is unclear. The translation assumes that “his people” is the subject of the verb “remembered.” If original, “Moses” is in apposition to “the days of antiquity,” more precisely identifying the time period referred to. However, the syntactical awkwardness suggests that “Moses” may have been an early marginal note (perhaps identifying “the shepherd of his flock” two lines later) that has worked its way into the text.
5 tn The Hebrew text has a plural form, which if retained and taken as a numerical plural, would probably refer to Moses, Aaron, and the Israelite tribal leaders at the time of the Exodus. Most prefer to emend the form to the singular (רָעָה, ra’ah) and understand this as a reference just to Moses.
6 sn See the note at v. 10.
7 sn Traditionally, “stiff-necked people.” Now the critique begins in earnest.
8 tn The term ἀπερίτμητοι (aperitmhtoi, “uncircumcised”) is a NT hapax legomenon (occurs only once). See BDAG 101-2 s.v. ἀπερίτμητος and Isa 52:1.
9 tn Or “You stubborn and obstinate people!” (The phrase “uncircumcised hearts and ears” is another figure for stubbornness.)
10 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
11 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
12 sn Which…persecute. The rhetorical question suggests they persecuted them all.
13 tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
14 sn The Righteous One is a reference to Jesus Christ.
15 sn Whose betrayers and murderers you have now become. The harsh critique has OT precedent (1 Kgs 19:10-14; Neh 9:26; 2 Chr 36:16).
16 tn The imperfect verb ἀπελύοντο (apeluonto) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.
17 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
18 tn For the Greek verb προευαγγελίζομαι (proeuangelizomai) translated as “proclaim the gospel ahead of time,” compare L&N 33.216.
19 tn The same plural Greek word, τὰ ἔθνη (ta eqnh), can be translated as “nations” or “Gentiles.”
20 sn A quotation from Gen 12:3; 18:18.
21 tn Grk “by [the] works of [the] law,” a reference to observing the Mosaic law.
22 tn Grk “by [the] hearing of faith.”