3:12 See to it, 16 brothers and sisters, 17 that none of you has 18 an evil, unbelieving heart that forsakes 19 the living God. 20 3:13 But exhort one another each day, as long as it is called “Today,” that none of you may become hardened by sin’s deception. 3:14 For we have become partners with Christ, if in fact we hold our initial confidence 21 firm until the end. 3:15 As it says, 22 “Oh, that today you would listen as he speaks! 23 Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion.” 24 3:16 For which ones heard and rebelled? Was it not all who came out of Egypt under Moses’ leadership? 25 3:17 And against whom was God 26 provoked for forty years? Was it not those who sinned, whose dead bodies fell in the wilderness? 27 3:18 And to whom did he swear they would never enter into his rest, except those who were disobedient? 3:19 So 28 we see that they could not enter because of unbelief.
1 tn Grk “And.” Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.
2 sn Elijah’s days. Jesus, by discussing Elijah and Elisha, pictures one of the lowest periods in Israel’s history. These examples, along with v. 24, also show that Jesus is making prophetic claims as well as messianic ones. See 1 Kgs 17-18.
3 tn Or “the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. Since the context here refers to a drought (which produced the famine), “sky” is preferable.
4 tn Grk “as.” The particle ὡς can also function temporally (see BDAG 1105-6 s.v. 8).
5 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast.
6 sn Zarephath in Sidon was Gentile territory (see 1 Kgs 17:9-24). Jesus’ point was that he would be forced to minister elsewhere, and the implication is that this ministry would ultimately extend (through the work of his followers) to those outside the nation.
7 sn On Elisha see 2 Kgs 5:1-14.
8 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast.
9 sn The reference to Naaman the Syrian (see 2 Kgs 5:1-24) is another example where an outsider and Gentile was blessed. The stress in the example is the missed opportunity of the people to experience God’s work, but it will still go on without them.
10 tn The words “the people” are not in the Greek text but have been supplied.
11 tn Grk “cast.”
12 tn Or “city.”
13 tn The Greek conjunction ὥστε (Jwste) here indicates their purpose.
14 sn The attempt to throw him down the cliff looks like “lynch law,” but it may really be an indication that Jesus was regarded as a false prophet who was worthy of death (Deut 13:5). Such a sentence meant being thrown into a pit and then stoned.
15 tn Grk “well!”, an adverb used to affirm a statement. It means “very well,” “you are correct.”
16 tn Or “take care.”
17 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.
18 tn Grk “that there not be in any of you.”
19 tn Or “deserts,” “rebels against.”
20 tn Grk “in forsaking the living God.”
21 tn Grk “the beginning of the confidence.”
22 tn Grk “while it is said.”
23 tn Grk “today if you hear his voice.”
24 sn A quotation from Ps 95:7b-8.
25 tn Grk “through Moses.”
26 tn Grk “he”; in the translation the referent (God) has been specified for clarity.
27 sn An allusion to God’s judgment pronounced in Num 14:29, 32.
28 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “So” to indicate a summary or conclusion to the argument of the preceding paragraph.
29 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
30 sn Ps 95 does not mention David either in the text or the superscription. It is possible that the writer of Hebrews is attributing the entire collection of psalms to David (although some psalms are specifically attributed to other individuals or groups).
31 tn Grk “as it has been said before” (see Heb 3:7).
32 tn Grk “today if you hear his voice.”
33 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
34 tn Grk “his”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.