18:23 A poor person makes supplications, 1
but a rich man answers harshly. 2
2:1 My brothers and sisters, 5 do not show prejudice 6 if you possess faith 7 in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ. 8
1 tn Heb “speaks supplications”; NIV “pleads for mercy.” The poor man has to ask for help because he has no choice (cf. CEV). The Hebrew term תַּחֲנוּן (takhanun) is a “supplication for favor” (related to the verb חָנַן [khanan], “to be gracious; to show favor”). So the poor man speaks, but what he speaks is a request for favor.
2 sn The rich person responds harshly to the request. He has hardened himself against such appeals because of relentless demands. The proverb is an observation saying; it simply describes the way the world generally works, rather than setting this out as the ideal.
3 tn It is important to note that the words ἀδελφός (adelfos) and ἀδελφή (adelfh) both occur in the Greek text at this point, confirming that the author intended to refer to both men and women. See the note on “someone” in 2:2.
4 tn Grk “what is necessary for the body.”
5 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.
6 tn Or “partiality.”
7 tn Grk “do not have faith with personal prejudice,” with emphasis on the last phrase.
8 tn Grk “our Lord Jesus Christ of glory.” Here δόξης (doxhs) has been translated as an attributive genitive.
9 tn Or “willing to yield,” “open to persuasion.”
10 tn Grk “fruits.” The plural Greek term καρπούς has been translated with the collective singular “fruit.”
11 tn Or “sincere.”
12 tn Grk “the fruit of righteousness,” meaning righteous living as a fruit, as the thing produced.
13 tn Grk “is sown.”
14 tn Or “for,” or possibly “by.”