Psalms 138:8

138:8 The Lord avenges me. ¹ 

O Lord, your loyal love endures.

Do not abandon those whom you have made! ² 

Ephesians 3:17-20

3:17 that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith, so that, because you have been rooted and grounded in love, 3:18 you may be able to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, ³  3:19 and thus to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, so that you may be filled up to ⁴  all the fullness of God.

3:20 Now to him who by the power that is working within us ⁵  is able to do far beyond ⁶  all that we ask or think,

Philippians 1:6

1:6 For I am sure of this very thing, ⁷  that the one ⁸  who began a good work in ⁹  you will perfect it ¹⁰  until the day of Christ Jesus.

Philippians 1:2

1:2 Grace and peace to you ¹¹  from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

Philippians 1:11

1:11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

¹ tn Heb “avenges on my behalf.” For the meaning “to avenge” for the verb גָּמַר (gamar), see HALOT 197-98 s.v. גמר.

² tn Heb “the works of your hands.” Many medieval Hebrew mss read the singular, “work of your hands.”

³ sn The object of these dimensions is not stated in the text. Interpreters have suggested a variety of referents for this unstated object, including the cross of Christ, the heavenly Jerusalem (which is then sometimes linked to the Church), God’s power, the fullness of salvation given in Christ, the Wisdom of God, and the love of Christ. Of these interpretations, the last two are the most plausible. Associations from Wisdom literature favor the Wisdom of God, but the immediate context favors the love of Christ. For detailed discussion of these interpretive options, see A. T. Lincoln, Ephesians (WBC), 207-13, who ultimately favors the love of Christ.

⁵ tn Or “with.”

⁷ sn On the power that is working within us see 1:19-20.

⁸ tn Or “infinitely beyond,” “far more abundantly than.”

⁹ tn Grk “since I am sure of this very thing.” The verse begins with an adverbial participle that is dependent on the main verb in v. 3 (“I thank”). Paul here gives one reason for his thankfulness.

¹⁰ tn The referent is clearly God from the overall context of the paragraph and the mention of “the day of Christ Jesus” at the end, which would be redundant if Christ were referred to here.

¹¹ tn Or “among.”

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

¹¹ tn Grk “Grace to you and peace.”