Psalms 16:11

16:11 You lead me in ¹  the path of life; ² 

I experience absolute joy in your presence; ³ 

you always give me sheer delight. ⁴ 

Psalms 21:4

21:4 He asked you to sustain his life, ⁵ 

and you have granted him long life and an enduring dynasty. ⁶ 

Psalms 25:4

25:4 Make me understand your ways, O Lord!

Teach me your paths! ⁷ 

Proverbs 2:19

2:19 None who go in to her will return, ⁸ 

nor will they reach the paths of life. ⁹ 

Proverbs 8:20

8:20 I walk in the path of righteousness,

in the pathway of justice,

John 11:25-26

11:25 Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live ¹⁰  even if he dies, 11:26 and the one who lives and believes in me will never die. ¹¹  Do you believe this?”

John 14:6

14:6 Jesus replied, ¹²  “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. ¹³  No one comes to the Father except through me.

¹ tn Heb “cause me to know”; or “cause me to experience.”

² tn This is a metaphorical way of saying, “you preserve my life.” The phrase “path of life” stands in contrast to death/Sheol in Prov 2:18-19; 5:5-6; 15:24.

³ tn Heb “abundance of joy [is] with your face.” The plural form of the noun שִׂמְחָה (simkhah, “joy”) occurs only here and in Ps 45:15. It may emphasize the degree of joy experienced.

⁴ tn Heb “delight [is] in your right hand forever.” The plural form of the adjective נָעִים (na’im, “pleasant, delightful”) may here emphasize the degree of delight experienced (see Job 36:11).

⁵ tn Heb “life he asked from you.” Another option is to translate the perfect verbal forms in v. 4 with the present tense, “he asks…you grant.”

⁶ tn Heb “you have granted him length of days forever and ever.” The phrase “length of days,” when used of human beings, usually refers to a lengthy period of time (such as one’s lifetime). See, for example, Deut 30:20; Job 12:12; Ps 91:16; Prov 3:2, 16; Lam 5:20. The additional phrase “forever and ever” is hyperbolic. While it seems to attribute eternal life to the king (see Pss 61:6-7; 72:5 as well), the underlying reality is the king’s enduring dynasty. He will live on, as it were, through his descendants, who will continue to rule over his kingdom long after he has passed off the scene.

⁷ sn Teach me your paths. In this context the Lord’s “ways” and “paths” refer to the moral principles which the Lord prescribes for his followers. See vv. 8-10.

⁸ tn Heb “all who go in to her will not return.”

⁹ sn The phrase “reach the paths of life” is a figurative expression for experiencing joy and fullness of blessing (BDB 673 s.v. נָשַׂג 2.a).

¹⁰ tn That is, will come to life.

¹¹ tn Grk “will never die forever.”

¹² tn Grk “Jesus said to him.”

¹³ tn Or “I am the way, even the truth and the life.”