15:1 Then the Lord said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for 1 these people, I would not feel pity for them! 2 Get them away from me! Tell them to go away! 3
15:1 Then the Lord said to me, “Even if Moses and Samuel stood before me pleading for 4 these people, I would not feel pity for them! 5 Get them away from me! Tell them to go away! 6
17:1 7 The sin of Judah is engraved with an iron chisel
on their stone-hard 8 hearts.
It is inscribed with a diamond 9 point
on the horns of their altars. 10
22:29 Do you see a person skilled 11 in his work?
He will take his position before kings;
he will not take his position 12 before obscure people. 13
1:24 Now to the one who is able to keep you from falling, 21 and to cause you to stand, rejoicing, 22 without blemish 23 before his glorious presence, 24
1 tn The words “pleading for” have been supplied in the translation to explain the idiom (a metonymy). For parallel usage see BDB 763 s.v. עָמַד Qal.1.a and compare usage in Gen 19:27, Deut 4:10.
2 tn Heb “my soul would not be toward them.” For the usage of “soul” presupposed here see BDB 660 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 6 in the light of the complaints and petitions in Jeremiah’s prayer in 14:19, 21.
3 tn Heb “Send them away from my presence and let them go away.”
4 tn The words “pleading for” have been supplied in the translation to explain the idiom (a metonymy). For parallel usage see BDB 763 s.v. עָמַד Qal.1.a and compare usage in Gen 19:27, Deut 4:10.
5 tn Heb “my soul would not be toward them.” For the usage of “soul” presupposed here see BDB 660 s.v. נֶפֶשׁ 6 in the light of the complaints and petitions in Jeremiah’s prayer in 14:19, 21.
6 tn Heb “Send them away from my presence and let them go away.”
7 tn The chapter division which was not a part of the original text but was added in the middle ages obscures the fact that there is no new speech here. The division may have resulted from the faulty identification of the “them” in the preceding verse. See the translator’s note on that verse.
8 tn The adjective “stone-hard” is not in the Hebrew text. It is implicit in the metaphor and is supplied in the translation for clarity. Cf. Ezek 11:19; 36:26; and Job 19:24 for the figure.
9 tn Heb “adamant.” The word “diamond” is an accommodation to modern times. There is no evidence that diamond was known in ancient times. This hard stone (perhaps emery) became metaphorical for hardness; see Ezek 3:9 and Zech 7:12. For discussion see W. E. Staples, “Adamant,” IDB 1:45.
10 tn This verse has been restructured for the sake of the English poetry: Heb “The sin of Judah is engraved [or written] with an iron pen, inscribed with a point of a diamond [or adamant] upon the tablet of their hearts and on the horns of their altars.”
11 sn The word translated “skilled” is general enough to apply to any crafts; but it may refer to a scribe or an official (R. N. Whybray, Proverbs [CBC], 134).
12 tn The verb form used twice here is יִתְיַצֵּב (yityatsev), the Hitpael imperfect of יָצַב (yatsav), which means “to set or station oneself; to take one’s stand” in this stem. With the form לִפְנֵי (life) it means “to present oneself before” someone; so here it has the idea of serving as a courtier in the presence of a king.
13 sn The fifth saying affirms that true skill earns recognition and advancement (cf. Instruction of Amenemope, chap. 30, 27:16-17 [ANET 424]).
14 tn Heb “walk,” a frequent biblical metaphor for lifestyle or conduct; TEV “If you [+ truly CEV] obey.” To “walk” in the ways of the
15 sn The statement you will be able to preside over my temple (Heb “house,” a reference to the Jerusalem temple) is a hint of the increasingly important role the high priest played in the postexilic Jewish community, especially in the absence of a monarchy. It also suggests the messianic character of the eschatological priesthood in which the priest would have royal prerogatives.
16 tn Grk “And the.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
17 tn Grk “the one who is standing before God.”
18 tn Grk “to announce these things of good news to you.”
19 sn The call to be alert at all times is a call to remain faithful in looking for the Lord’s return.
20 tn For the translation of μέλλω (mellw) as “must,” see L&N 71.36.
21 tn The construction in Greek is a double accusative object-complement. “You” is the object and “free from falling” is the adjectival complement.
22 tn Grk “with rejoicing.” The prepositional clause is placed after “his glorious presence” in Greek, but most likely goes with “cause you to stand.”
23 tn The construction in Greek is a double accusative object-complement. “You” is the object and “without blemish” is the adjectival complement.
24 tn Or “in the presence of his glory,” “before his glory.”