12:1 Therefore I exhort you, brothers and sisters, 9 by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a sacrifice – alive, holy, and pleasing to God 10 – which is your reasonable service.
3:1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, 15 because you know that we will be judged more strictly. 16
1 tc Many important
2 tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
3 tn Grk “cast lots” (probably by using marked pebbles or broken pieces of pottery). A modern equivalent “threw dice” was chosen here because of its association with gambling.
4 sn An allusion to Ps 22:18, which identifies Jesus as the suffering innocent one.
5 tn Grk “Then falling to his knees he cried out.” The participle θείς (qeis) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.
6 sn The remarks Lord Jesus, receive my spirit and Lord, do not hold this sin against them recall statements Jesus made on the cross (Luke 23:34, 46).
7 tn Grk “And when.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here; a new sentence is begun instead.
8 tn The verb κοιμάω (koimaw) literally means “sleep,” but it is often used in the Bible as a euphemism for the death of a believer.
9 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.
10 tn The participle and two adjectives “alive, holy, and pleasing to God” are taken as predicates in relation to “sacrifice,” making the exhortation more emphatic. See ExSyn 618-19.
11 tn See the note on “fellow slave” in 1:7.
12 tc ‡ Strong Alexandrian testimony, along with some other witnesses, suggests that ᾿Ιησοῦ (Ihsou, “Jesus”) follows Χριστοῦ (Cristou, “Christ”; so א A B C I L 0278 33 81 365 629 1175 2464 al lat), but the evidence for the shorter reading is diverse (Ì46 D F G Ψ 075 1739 1881 Ï it sy Hier), cutting across all major texttypes. There can be little motivation for omitting the name of Jesus; hence, the shorter reading is judged to be original. NA27 has ᾿Ιησοῦ in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.
13 tn Or “filled.”
14 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.
15 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.
16 tn Grk “will receive a greater judgment.”
17 tc Most later
18 tn Grk “men”; but here ἀνθρώπους (anqrwpous) has generic force, referring to both men and women.