Matthew 21:2-6

21:2 telling them, “Go to the village ahead of you. ¹  Right away you will find a donkey tied there, and a colt with her. Untie them and bring them to me. 21:3 If anyone says anything to you, you are to say, ‘The Lord needs them,’ ²  and he will send them at once.” 21:4 This ³  took place to fulfill what was spoken by the prophet: ⁴ 

21:5 “Tell the people of Zion, ⁵ 

‘Look, your king is coming to you,

unassuming and seated on a donkey,

and on a colt, the foal of a donkey.’” ⁶ 

21:6 So ⁷  the disciples went and did as Jesus had instructed them.

Mark 14:13-16

14:13 He sent two of his disciples and told them, “Go into the city, and a man carrying a jar ⁸  of water will meet you. Follow him. 14:14 Wherever he enters, tell the owner of the house, ‘The Teacher says, “Where is my guest room where I may eat the Passover with my disciples?”’ 14:15 He will show you a large room upstairs, furnished and ready. Make preparations for us there.” 14:16 So ⁹  the disciples left, went ¹⁰  into the city, and found things just as he had told them, ¹¹  and they prepared the Passover.

John 2:5-8

2:5 His mother told the servants, “Whatever he tells you, do it.” ¹² 

2:6 Now there were six stone water jars there for Jewish ceremonial washing, ¹³  each holding twenty or thirty gallons. ¹⁴  2:7 Jesus told the servants, ¹⁵  “Fill the water jars with water.” So they filled them up to the very top. 2:8 Then he told them, “Now draw some out and take it to the head steward,” ¹⁶  and they did.

Hebrews 11:8

11:8 By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to a place he would later receive as an inheritance, and he went out without understanding where he was going.

¹ tn Grk “the village lying before you” (BDAG 530 s.v. κατέναντι 2.b).

² sn The custom called angaria allowed the impressment of animals for service to a significant figure.

³ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

⁴ tn Grk “what was spoken by the prophet, saying.” The present participle λέγοντος (legontos) is redundant and has not been translated.

⁵ tn Grk “Tell the daughter of Zion” (the phrase “daughter of Zion” is an idiom for the inhabitants of Jerusalem: “people of Zion”). The idiom “daughter of Zion” has been translated as “people of Zion” because the original idiom, while firmly embedded in the Christian tradition, is not understandable to most modern English readers.

⁶ tn Grk “the foal of an animal under the yoke,” i.e., a hard-working animal. This is a quotation from Zech 9:9.

⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of Jesus’ instructions in vv. 2-3.

⁸ sn Since women usually carried these jars, it would have been no problem for the two disciples (Luke 22:8 states that they were Peter and John) to recognize the man Jesus was referring to.

⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the flow within the narrative.

¹⁰ tn Grk “and came.”

¹¹ sn The author’s note that the disciples found things just as he had told them shows that Jesus’ word could be trusted.

¹² tn The pronoun “it” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied. Direct objects in Greek were often omitted when clear from the context.

¹³ tn Grk “for the purification of the Jews.”

¹⁴ tn Grk “holding two or three metretes” (about 75 to 115 liters). Each of the pots held 2 or 3 μετρηταί (metrhtai). A μετρητῆς (metrhths) was about 9 gallons (40 liters); thus each jar held 18-27 gallons (80-120 liters) and the total volume of liquid involved was 108-162 gallons (480-720 liters).

¹⁵ tn Grk “them” (it is clear from the context that the servants are addressed).

¹⁶ tn Or “the master of ceremonies.”