Matthew 1:1

The Genealogy of Jesus Christ

1:1 This is the record of the genealogy ¹  of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham.

Acts 2:30

2:30 So then, because ²  he was a prophet and knew that God had sworn to him with an oath to seat one of his descendants ³  on his throne, ⁴ 

Acts 13:23

13:23 From the descendants ⁵  of this man ⁶  God brought to Israel a Savior, Jesus, just as he promised. ⁷ 

Romans 1:3-4

1:3 concerning his Son who was a descendant ⁸  of David with reference to the flesh, ⁹  1:4 who was appointed the Son-of-God-in-power ¹⁰  according to the Holy Spirit ¹¹  by the resurrection ¹²  from the dead, Jesus Christ our Lord.

Revelation 5:5

5:5 Then ¹³  one of the elders said ¹⁴  to me, “Stop weeping! ¹⁵  Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered; ¹⁶  thus he can open ¹⁷  the scroll and its seven seals.”

¹ tn Grk “the book of the genealogy.” The noun βίβλος (biblo"), though it is without the article, is to be translated as definite due to Apollonius’ corollary and the normal use of anarthrous nouns in titles.

² tn The participles ὑπάρχων (Juparcwn) and εἰδώς (eidw") are translated as causal adverbial participles.

³ tn Grk “one from the fruit of his loins.” “Loins” is the traditional translation of ὀσφῦς (osfu"), referring to the male genital organs. A literal rendering like “one who came from his genital organs” would be regarded as too specific and perhaps even vulgar by many contemporary readers. Most modern translations thus render the phrase “one of his descendants.”

⁴ sn An allusion to Ps 132:11 and 2 Sam 7:12-13, the promise in the Davidic covenant.

⁵ tn Or “From the offspring”; Grk “From the seed.”

⁶ sn The phrase this man is in emphatic position in the Greek text.

⁷ tn Grk “according to [his] promise.” The comparative clause “just as he promised” is less awkward in English.

⁸ tn Grk “born of the seed” (an idiom).

⁹ tn Grk “according to the flesh,” indicating Jesus’ earthly life, a reference to its weakness. This phrase implies that Jesus was more than human; otherwise it would have been sufficient to say that he was a descendant of David, cf. L. Morris, Romans, 44.

¹⁰ sn Appointed the Son-of-God-in-power. Most translations render the Greek participle ὁρισθέντος (Jorisqentos, from ὁρίζω, Jorizw) “declared” or “designated” in order to avoid the possible interpretation that Jesus was appointed the Son of God by the resurrection. However, the Greek term ὁρίζω is used eight times in the NT, and it always has the meaning “to determine, appoint.” Paul is not saying that Jesus was appointed the “Son of God by the resurrection” but “Son-of-God-in-power by the resurrection,” as indicated by the hyphenation. He was born in weakness in human flesh (with respect to the flesh, v. 3) and he was raised with power. This is similar to Matt 28:18 where Jesus told his disciples after the resurrection, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.”

¹¹ tn Grk “spirit of holiness.” Some interpreters take the phrase to refer to Christ’s own inner spirit, which was characterized by holiness.

¹² tn Or “by his resurrection.” Most interpreters see this as a reference to Jesus’ own resurrection, although some take it to refer to the general resurrection at the end of the age, of which Jesus’ resurrection is the first installment (cf. 1 Cor 15:23).

¹³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

¹⁴ tn Grk “says” (a historical present).

¹⁵ tn The present imperative with μή (mh) is used here to command cessation of an action in progress (ExSyn 724 lists this verse as an example).

¹⁶ tn Or “has been victorious”; traditionally, “has overcome.”

¹⁷ tn The infinitive has been translated as an infinitive of result here.