“You are worthy to take the scroll
and to open its seals
because you were killed, 2
and at the cost of your own blood 3 you have purchased 4 for God
persons 5 from every tribe, language, 6 people, and nation.
12:11 But 7 they overcame him
by the blood of the Lamb
and by the word of their testimony,
and they did not love their lives 8 so much that they were afraid to die.
13:1 Brotherly love must continue.
1:1 After God spoke long ago 9 in various portions 10 and in various ways 11 to our ancestors 12 through the prophets,
1 tn The redundant participle λέγοντες (legontes) has not been translated here.
2 tn Or “slaughtered”; traditionally, “slain.”
3 tn The preposition ἐν (en) is taken to indicate price here, like the Hebrew preposition ב (bet) does at times. BDAG 329 s.v. ἐν 5.b states, “The ἐν which takes the place of the gen. of price is also instrumental ἠγόρασας ἐν τῷ αἵματί σου Rv 5:9 (cp. 1 Ch 21:24 ἀγοράζω ἐν ἀργυρίῳ).”
4 tc The Greek text as it stands above (i.e., the reading τῷ θεῷ [tw qew] alone) is found in codex A. א 2050 2344 Ï sy add the term “us” (ἡμᾶς, Jhmas), either before or after τῷ θεῷ, as an attempt to clarify the object of “purchased” (ἠγόρασας, hgorasa"). A few
5 tn The word “persons” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.
6 tn Grk “and language,” but καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.
7 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast.
8 sn They did not love their lives. See Matt 16:25; Luke 17:33; John 12:25.
9 tn Or “spoke formerly.”
10 tn Or “parts.” The idea is that God’s previous revelation came in many parts and was therefore fragmentary or partial (L&N 63.19), in comparison with the final and complete revelation contained in God’s Son. However, some interpret πολυμερῶς (polumerw") in Heb 1:1 to mean “on many different occasions” and would thus translate “many times” (L&N 67.11). This is the option followed by the NIV: “at many times and in various ways.” Finally, this word is also understood to refer to the different manners in which something may be done, and would then be translated “in many different ways” (L&N 89.81). In this last case, the two words πολυμερῶς and πολυτρόπως (polutropw") mutually reinforce one another (“in many and various ways,” NRSV).
11 tn These two phrases are emphasized in Greek by being placed at the beginning of the sentence and by alliteration.
12 tn Grk “to the fathers.”