1 John 5:16

5:16 If ¹  anyone sees his fellow Christian ²  committing a sin not resulting in death, ³  he should ask, and God ⁴  will grant ⁵  life to the person who commits a sin not resulting in death. ⁶  There is a sin resulting in death. ⁷  I do not say that he should ask about that.

Isaiah 1:18

1:18 ⁸ Come, let’s consider your options,” ⁹  says the Lord.

“Though your sins have stained you like the color red,

you can become ¹⁰  white like snow;

though they are as easy to see as the color scarlet,

you can become ¹¹  white like wool. ¹² 

Ezekiel 18:26-32

18:26 When a righteous person turns back from his righteousness and practices wrongdoing, he will die for it; ¹³  because of the wrongdoing he has done, he will die. 18:27 When a wicked person turns from the wickedness he has committed and does what is just and right, he will preserve his life. 18:28 Because he considered ¹⁴  and turned from all the sins he had done, he will surely live; he will not die. 18:29 Yet the house of Israel says, ‘The Lord’s conduct is unjust!’ Is my conduct unjust, O house of Israel? Is it not your conduct that is unjust?

18:30 “Therefore I will judge each person according to his conduct, ¹⁵  O house of Israel, declares the sovereign Lord. Repent ¹⁶  and turn from all your wickedness; then it will not be an obstacle leading to iniquity. ¹⁷  18:31 Throw away all your sins you have committed and fashion yourselves a new heart and a new spirit! ¹⁸  Why should you die, O house of Israel? 18:32 For I take no delight in the death of anyone, ¹⁹  declares the sovereign Lord. Repent and live!

Romans 5:20-21

5:20 Now the law came in ²⁰  so that the transgression ²¹  may increase, but where sin increased, grace multiplied all the more, 5:21 so that just as sin reigned in death, so also grace will reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

James 1:15

1:15 Then when desire conceives, it gives birth to sin, and when sin is full grown, it gives birth to death.

James 4:7-10

4:7 So submit to God. But resist the devil and he will flee from you. 4:8 Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and make your hearts pure, you double-minded. ²²  4:9 Grieve, mourn, ²³  and weep. Turn your laughter ²⁴  into mourning and your joy into despair. 4:10 Humble yourselves before the Lord and he will exalt you.

[5:16]  ¹ tn Again ἐάν (ean) in 5:16 introduces (as in 5:14) a third-class condition, but this time, with the future indicative (αἰτήσει, aithsei) in the apodosis, the condition is known as “more probable future.” As BDF §371.4 points out, such a condition describes what is to be expected under certain circumstances. If a person sees his Christian brother committing a sin not to death, it is expected that he will make intercession for the sinning brother (“he should ask…”), and that life will be granted to the sinner in answer to the request. The author has already pointed out in 5:14-15 that if believers make requests of God in accordance with his will they may have confidence that they will receive the requests they have asked for, and this is a specific instance.

[5:16]  ² tn See note on the phrase “fellow Christian” in 2:9.

[5:16]  ³ tn Grk “a sin not to death.”

[5:16]  ⁴ tn Grk “he” (see the note on the word “grant” later in this verse for discussion).

[5:16]  ⁵ tn The referent of the (understood) third person subject of δώσει (dwsei) in 5:16 is difficult to determine. Once again the author’s meaning is obscure. Several possibilities have been suggested for the referent of the subject of this verb: (1) From a grammatical and syntactical standpoint, it would be easiest to understand the subject of δώσει in 5:16 as the person who makes the request, since this person is the subject of the preceding verb αἰτήσει (aithsei) and the following verb ἐρωτήσῃ (erwthsh). From a theological standpoint this is extremely difficult, however, since it would make the person who prays for the sinner the giver of life, and it is questionable whether the author (for whom God is the ultimate source of life) would say that one believer could ‘give’ life to another. In this case the meaning would be: “he [the petitioner] should ask, and he [the petitioner] will grant life to him [the sinner], namely, to those who sin not to death.” (2) Another option is to see God as the subject of δώσει in 5:16 and the Giver of life to the sinner. This is far more consistent theologically with the author’s perspective on God as the Giver of life everywhere else, but it is awkward grammatically (as explained in reference to the previous position above) because it involves a shift in subjects for the three third-person verbs in the context from the person who makes the request (αἰτήσει) to God (δώσει) and back to the person who makes the request (ἐρωτήσῃ). In this case the meaning would be: “he [the petitioner] should ask, and he [God] will grant life to him [the sinner], namely, to those who sin not to death.” (3) A third possibility is to see God as the subject of δώσει in 5:16, but the person who makes the request (rather than the sinner) as the referent of the indirect object αὐτῷ (autw) in 5:16. This is possible because the indirect object αὐτῷ is singular, while the dative substantival participle τοῖς ἁμαρτάνουσιν (toi" Jamartanousin) which follows (which clearly refers to those who sin) is plural. Thus the meaning would be: “he [the petitioner] should ask, and he [God] will grant life to him [the petitioner], with reference to [his praying for] those who sin not to death.” Although this is a difficult and awkward construction no matter what solution one takes, on the whole the second alternative seems most probable. Even if option (1) is preferred it must be acknowledged that God is ultimately the source of life, although it is given as a result of the petitioner’s intercessory prayer and the petitioner becomes, in a sense, the intermediate agent. But in the preceding context (5:11) the author has emphasized that God is the Giver of life, and in spite of the awkwardness in the change of subjects, that would seem to be the most likely meaning here, so option (2) is preferred. Option (3) is improbable because it seems clear that it should be the sinner for whom intercession is made, rather than the petitioner, who is the recipient of life. The petitioner would be assumed to possess life already or he could not be making a request which God would hear. In this case the change from the singular dative indirect object (αὐτῷ) to the plural dative substantival participle (τοῖς ἁμαρτάνουσιν) is merely a loose construction (which by this time should come as no surprise from the author).

[5:16]  ⁶ tn Grk “a sin not to death.”

[5:16]  ⁷ tn Grk “a sin to death.”

[1:18]  ⁸ sn The Lord concludes his case against Israel by offering them the opportunity to be forgiven and by setting before them the alternatives of renewed blessing (as a reward for repentance) and final judgment (as punishment for persistence in sin).

[1:18]  ⁹ tn Traditionally, “let us reason together,” but the context suggests a judicial nuance. The Lord is giving the nation its options for the future.

[1:18]  ¹⁰ tn The imperfects must be translated as modal (indicating capability or possibility) to bring out the conditional nature of the offer. This purification will only occur if the people repent and change their ways.

[1:18]  ¹¹ tn The imperfects must be translated as modal (indicating capability or possibility) to bring out the conditional nature of the offer. This purification will only occur if the people repent and change their ways.

[1:18]  ¹² tn Heb “though your sins are like red, they will become white like snow; though they are red like scarlet, they will be like wool.” The point is not that the sins will be covered up, though still retained. The metaphorical language must be allowed some flexibility and should not be pressed into a rigid literalistic mold. The people’s sins will be removed and replaced by ethical purity. The sins that are now as obvious as the color red will be washed away and the ones who are sinful will be transformed.

[18:26]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “for them” or “because of them.”

[18:28]  ²² tn Heb “he saw.”

[18:30]  ²⁹ tn Heb “ways.”

[18:30]  ³⁰ tn The verbs and persons in this verse are plural whereas the individual has been the subject of the chapter.

[18:30]  ³¹ tn Or “leading to punishment.”

[18:31]  ³⁶ sn In Ezek 11:19, 36:26 the new heart and new spirit are promised as future blessings.

[18:32]  ⁴³ tn Heb “the death of the one dying.”

[5:20]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “slipped in.”

[5:20]  ⁵¹ tn Or “trespass.”

[4:8]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “two-minded” (the same description used in 1:8).

[4:9]  ⁶⁴ tn This term and the following one are preceded by καί (kai) in the Greek text, but contemporary English generally uses connectives only between the last two items in such a series.

[4:9]  ⁶⁵ tn Grk “let your laughter be turned.”