Romans 8:27

8:27 And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes on behalf of the saints according to God’s will.

Isaiah 53:12

53:12 So I will assign him a portion with the multitudes,

he will divide the spoils of victory with the powerful,

because he willingly submitted to death

and was numbered with the rebels,

when he lifted up the sin of many

and intervened on behalf of the rebels.”

John 16:23

16:23 At that time you will ask me nothing. I tell you the solemn truth, whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.

John 16:26-27

16:26 At that time 10  you will ask in my name, and I do not say 11  that I will ask the Father on your behalf. 16:27 For the Father himself loves you, because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God. 12 

John 17:20-24

Jesus Prays for Believers Everywhere

17:20 “I am not praying 13  only on their behalf, but also on behalf of those who believe 14  in me through their testimony, 15  17:21 that they will all be one, just as you, Father, are in me and I am in you. I pray 16  that they will be in us, so that the world will believe that you sent me. 17:22 The glory 17  you gave to me I have given to them, that they may be one just as we are one – 17:23 I in them and you in me – that they may be completely one, 18  so that the world will know that you sent me, and you have loved them just as you have loved me.

17:24 “Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am, 19  so that they can see my glory that you gave me because you loved me before the creation of the world 20 .

Hebrews 4:14-15

Jesus Our Compassionate High Priest

4:14 Therefore since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast to our confession. 4:15 For we do not have a high priest incapable of sympathizing with our weaknesses, but one who has been tempted in every way just as we are, yet without sin.

Hebrews 7:25

7:25 So he is able to save completely those who come to God through him, because he always lives to intercede for them.

Hebrews 9:24

9:24 For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with hands – the representation 21  of the true sanctuary 22  – but into heaven itself, and he appears now in God’s presence for us.

Hebrews 9:1

The Arrangement and Ritual of the Earthly Sanctuary

9:1 Now the first covenant, 23  in fact, had regulations for worship and its earthly sanctuary.

Hebrews 2:1-2

Warning Against Drifting Away

2:1 Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away. 2:2 For if the message spoken through angels 24  proved to be so firm that every violation 25  or disobedience received its just penalty,


sn He refers to God here; Paul has not specifically identified him for the sake of rhetorical power (for by leaving the subject slightly ambiguous, he draws his audience into seeing God’s hand in places where he is not explicitly mentioned).

tn Grk “he,” or “it”; the referent (the Spirit) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

tn Scholars have debated the precise meaning of the term רַבִּים (rabbim) that occurs five times in this passage (Isa 52:14, 15; 53:11, 12 [2x]). Its two broad categories of translation are “much”/“many” and “great” (HALOT 1171-72 s.v. I רַב). Unlike other Hebrew terms for might or strength, this term is linked with numbers or abundance. In all sixteen uses outside of Isaiah 52:13-53:12 (articular and plural) it signifies an inclusive meaning: “the majority” or “the multitude” (J. Jeremias, TDNT 6:536-37). This term occurs in parallelism with עֲצוּמִים (’atsumim), which normally signifies “numerous” or “large” or “powerful” (through large numbers). Like רַבִּים (rabbim), it refers to greatness in numbers (cf. Deut 4:38; 7:1; 9:1; 11:34). It emphasizes the multitudes with whom the Servant will share the spoil of his victory. As J. Olley wrote: “Yahweh has won the victory and vindicates his Servant, giving to him many subservient people, together with their spoils. These numerous peoples in turn receive blessing, sharing in the “peace” resulting from Yahweh’s victory and the Servant’s suffering” (John W. Olley, “‘The Many’: How Is Isa 53,12a to Be Understood,” Bib 68 [1987]: 330-56).

sn The servant is compared here to a warrior who will be richly rewarded for his effort and success in battle.

tn Heb “because he laid bare his life”; traditionally, ASV “because he (+ hath KJV) poured out his soul (life NIV) unto death.”

tn The Hiphil of פָּגַע (paga’) can mean “cause to attack” (v. 6), “urge, plead verbally” (Jer 15:11; 36:25), or “intervene militarily” (Isa 59:16). Perhaps the third nuance fits best here, for military imagery is employed in the first two lines of the verse.

tn Grk “And in that day.”

tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

sn This statement is also found in John 15:16.

10 tn Grk “In that day.”

11 tn Grk “I do not say to you.”

12 tc A number of early mss (א1 B C* D L pc co) read πατρός (patros, “Father”) here instead of θεοῦ (qeou, “God”; found in Ì5 א*,2 A C3 W Θ Ψ 33 Ë1,13 Ï). Although externally πατρός has relatively strong support, it is evidently an assimilation to “I came from the Father” at the beginning of v. 28, or more generally to the consistent mention of God as Father throughout this chapter (πατήρ [pathr, “Father”] occurs eleven times in this chapter, while θεός [qeos, “God”] occurs only two other times [16:2, 30]).

13 tn Or “I do not pray.”

14 tn Although πιστευόντων (pisteuontwn) is a present participle, it must in context carry futuristic force. The disciples whom Jesus is leaving behind will carry on his ministry and in doing so will see others come to trust in him. This will include not only Jewish Christians, but other Gentile Christians who are “not of this fold” (10:16), and thus Jesus’ prayer for unity is especially appropriate in light of the probability that most of the readers of the Gospel are Gentiles (much as Paul stresses unity between Jewish and Gentile Christians in Eph 2:10-22).

15 tn Grk “their word.”

16 tn The words “I pray” are repeated from the first part of v. 20 for clarity.

17 tn Grk And the glory.” The conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has not been translated here in keeping with the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences.

18 tn Or “completely unified.”

19 tn Grk “the ones you have given me, I want these to be where I am with me.”

20 tn Grk “before the foundation of the world.”

21 tn Or “prefiguration.”

22 tn The word “sanctuary” is not in the Greek text at this point, but has been supplied for clarity.

23 tn Grk “the first” (referring to the covenant described in Heb 8:7, 13). In the translation the referent (covenant) has been specified for clarity.

24 sn The message spoken through angels refers to the OT law, which according to Jewish tradition was mediated to Moses through angels (cf. Deut 33:2; Ps 68:17-18; Acts 7:38, 53; Gal 3:19; and Jub. 1:27, 29; Josephus, Ant. 15.5.3 [15.136]).

25 tn Grk “through angels became valid and every violation.”