Psalms 101:3-4

101:3 I will not even consider doing what is dishonest.

I hate doing evil;

I will have no part of it.

101:4 I will have nothing to do with a perverse person;

I will not permit evil.

Psalms 101:8

101:8 Each morning I will destroy all the wicked people in the land,

and remove all evildoers from the city of the Lord.

Matthew 7:23

7:23 Then I will declare to them, ‘I never knew you. Go away from me, you lawbreakers!’

Luke 13:27

13:27 But he will reply, ‘I don’t know where you come from! Go away from me, all you evildoers!’ 10 

Revelation 21:27

21:27 but 11  nothing ritually unclean 12  will ever enter into it, nor anyone who does what is detestable 13  or practices falsehood, 14  but only those whose names 15  are written in the Lamb’s book of life.


tn Heb “I will not set before my eyes a thing of worthlessness.”

tn Heb “the doing of swerving [deeds] I hate.” The Hebrew term סֵטִים (setim) is probably an alternate spelling of שֵׂטִים (setim), which appears in many medieval Hebrew mss. The form appears to be derived from a verbal root שׂוּט (sut, “to fall away; to swerve”; see Ps 40:4).

tn Heb “it [i.e., the doing of evil deeds] does not cling to me.”

tn Heb “a perverse heart will turn aside from me.” The adjective עִקֵּשׁ (’iqqesh) has the basic nuance “twisted; crooked” and by extension refers to someone or something that is morally perverse (see Ps 18:26). It appears frequently in the Book of Proverbs, where it is used of evil people (22:5), speech (8:8; 19:1), thoughts (11:20; 17:20), and life styles (2:15; 28:6).

tn Heb “know.” The king will not willingly allow perverse individuals to remain in his royal court.

tn Grk “workers of lawlessness.”

tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

tc Most mss (Ì75* A D L W Θ Ψ 070 Ë1,13 Ï) have ἐρεῖ λέγω ὑμῖν (erei legw Jumin; “he will say, ‘I say to you’”) here, while some have only ἐρεῖ ὑμῖν (“he will say to you” in א 579 pc lat sa) or simply ἐρεῖ (“he will say” in 1195 pc). The variety of readings seems to have arisen from the somewhat unusual wording of the original, ἐρεῖ λέγων ὑμῖν (erei legwn Jumin; “he will say, saying to you” found in Ì75c B 892 pc). Given the indicative λέγω, it is difficult to explain how the other readings would have arisen. But if the participle λέγων were original, the other readings can more easily be explained as arising from it. Although the external evidence is significantly stronger in support of the indicative reading, the internal evidence is on the side of the participle.

sn The issue is not familiarity (with Jesus’ teaching) or even shared activity (eating and drinking with him), but knowing Jesus. Those who do not know him, he will not know where they come from (i.e., will not acknowledge) at the judgment.

10 tn Grk “all you workers of iniquity.” The phrase resembles Ps 6:8.

11 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

12 tn Here BDAG 552 s.v. κοινός 2 states, “pert. to being of little value because of being common, common, ordinary, profane…b. specifically, of that which is ceremonially impure: Rv 21:27.”

13 tn Or “what is abhorrent”; Grk “who practices abominations.”

14 tn Grk “practicing abomination or falsehood.” Because of the way βδέλυγμα (bdelugma) has been translated (“does what is detestable”) it was necessary to repeat the idea from the participle ποιῶν (poiwn, “practices”) before the term “falsehood.” On this term, BDAG 1097 s.v. ψεῦδος states, “ποιεῖν ψεῦδος practice (the things that go with) falsehood Rv 21:27; 22:15.” Cf. Rev 3:9.

15 tn Grk “those who are written”; the word “names” is implied.