3:12 Not that I have already attained this – that is, I have not already been perfected – but I strive to lay hold of that for which Christ Jesus also laid hold of me. 6 3:13 Brothers and sisters, 7 I do not consider myself to have attained this. Instead I am single-minded: 8 Forgetting the things that are behind and reaching out for the things that are ahead, 3:14 with this goal in mind, 9 I strive toward the prize of the upward call of God 10 in Christ Jesus. 3:15 Therefore let those of us who are “perfect” embrace this point of view. 11 If you think otherwise, God will reveal to you the error of your ways. 12
3:1 Finally, my brothers and sisters, 13 rejoice in the Lord! To write this again is no trouble to me, and it is a safeguard for you.
12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, 17 we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us,
1 sn This remark echoes the more common OT statements like Lev 19:2 or Deut 18:13: “you must be holy as I am holy.”
2 tn On the translation of πρὸς τὸν καταρτισμὸν τῶν ἁγίων (pro" ton katartismon twn Jagiwn) as “to equip the saints” see BDAG 526 s.v. καταρτισμός. In this case the genitive is taken as objective and the direct object of the verbal idea implied in καταρτισμός (katartismo").
3 tn The εἰς (eis) clause is taken as epexegetical to the previous εἰς clause, namely, εἰς ἔργον διακονίας (ei" ergon diakonia").
4 tn The words “attaining to” were supplied in the translation to pick up the καταντήσωμεν (katanthswmen) mentioned earlier in the sentence and the εἰς (eis) which heads up this clause.
5 tn Grk “the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ.” On this translation of ἡλικία (Jhlikia, “stature”) see BDAG 436 s.v. 3.
6 tn Grk “that for which I also was laid hold of by Christ Jesus.” The passive has been translated as active in keeping with contemporary English style.
7 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.
8 tn Grk “But this one thing (I do).”
9 tn Grk “according to the goal.”
10 tn Grk “prize, namely, the heavenly calling of God.”
11 tn Grk “those of us who are ‘perfect’ should think this,” or possibly “those of us who are mature should think this.”
12 tn Grk “reveal this to you.” The referent of the pronoun “this” is the fact that the person is thinking differently than Paul does. This has been specified in the translation with the phrase “the error of your ways”; Paul is stating that God will make it known to these believers when they are not in agreement with Paul.
13 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.
14 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.
15 tn Grk “But this one thing (I do).”
16 tn Grk “will guard the hearts of you and the minds of you.” To improve the English style, the second occurrence of ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “of you”) has not been translated, since it is somewhat redundant in English.
17 tn Grk “having such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us.”
18 tn Grk “having been designated,” continuing the thought of Heb 5:9.
19 sn The phrase in the order of Melchizedek picks up the quotation from Ps 110:4 in Heb 5:6.