1 Kings 19:1-3

Elijah Runs for His Life

19:1 Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, including a detailed account of how he killed all the prophets with the sword. 19:2 Jezebel sent a messenger to Elijah with this warning, ¹  “May the gods judge me severely ²  if by this time tomorrow I do not take your life as you did theirs!” ³ 

19:3 Elijah was afraid, ⁴  so he got up and fled for his life to Beer Sheba in Judah. He left his servant there,

Proverbs 29:25

29:25 The fear of people ⁵  becomes ⁶  a snare, ⁷ 

but whoever trusts in the Lord will be set on high. ⁸ 

Matthew 10:23

10:23 Whenever ⁹  they persecute you in one place, ¹⁰  flee to another. I tell you the truth, ¹¹  you will not finish going through all the towns ¹²  of Israel before the Son of Man comes.

Matthew 10:28

10:28 Do ¹³  not be afraid of those who kill the body ¹⁴  but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. ¹⁵ 

Matthew 10:39

10:39 Whoever finds his life ¹⁶  will lose it, ¹⁷  and whoever loses his life because of me ¹⁸  will find it.

Matthew 16:25-26

16:25 For whoever wants to save his life ¹⁹  will lose it, ²⁰  but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it. 16:26 For what does it benefit a person ²¹  if he gains the whole world but forfeits his life? Or what can a person give in exchange for his life?

[19:2]  ¹ tn Heb “saying.”

[19:2]  ² tn Heb “So may the gods do to me, and so may they add.”

[19:2]  ³ tn Heb “I do not make your life like the life of one of them.”

[19:3]  ⁴ tc The MT has “and he saw,” but some medieval Hebrew mss as well as several ancient versions support the reading “he was afraid.” The consonantal text (וַיַּרְא, vayyar’) is ambiguous and can be vocalized וַיַּרְא (from רָאָה, ra’ah, “to see”) or וַיִּרָא (vayyira’, from יָרֵא, yare’, “to fear”).

[29:25]  ⁵ tn Heb “the fear of man.” This uses an objective genitive to describe a situation where fearing what people might do or think controls one’s life. There is no indication in the immediate context that this should be limited only to males, so the translation uses the more generic “people” here.

[29:25]  ⁶ tn Heb “gives [or yields, or produces]”; NIV “will prove to be.”

[29:25]  ⁷ sn “Snare” is an implied comparison; fearing people is like being in a trap – there is no freedom of movement or sense of security.

[29:25]  ⁸ sn The image of being set on high comes from the military experience of finding a defensible position, a place of safety and security, such as a high wall or a mountain. Trusting in the Lord sets people free and gives them a sense of safety and security (e.g, Prov 10:27; 12:2).

[10:23]  ⁹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[10:23]  ¹⁰ tn The Greek word here is πόλις (polis), which can mean either “town” or “city.”

[10:23]  ¹¹ tn Grk “For truly (ἀμήν, amhn) I say to you.” Here γάρ (gar, “for”) has not been translated.

[10:23]  ¹² tn The Greek word here is πόλις (polis), which can mean either “town” or “city.” “Town” was chosen here to emphasize the extensive nature of the disciples’ ministry. The same word is translated earlier in the verse as “place.”

[10:28]  ¹³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[10:28]  ¹⁴ sn Judaism had a similar exhortation in 4 Macc 13:14-15.

[10:28]  ¹⁵ sn See the note on the word hell in 5:22.

[10:39]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “his soul,” but ψυχή (yuch) is frequently used of one’s physical life. It clearly has that meaning in this context.

[10:39]  ¹⁷ sn If there is no willingness to suffer the world’s rejection at this point, then one will not respond to Jesus (which is trying to find life) and then will be subject to this judgment (which is losing it).

[10:39]  ¹⁸ tn Or “for my sake.” The traditional rendering “for my sake” can be understood in the sense of “for my benefit,” but the Greek term ἕνεκα indicates the cause or reason for something (BDAG 334 s.v. 1).

[16:25]  ¹⁹ tn Or “soul” (throughout vv. 25-26).

[16:25]  ²⁰ sn The point of the saying whoever wants to save his life will lose it is that if one comes to Jesus then rejection by many will certainly follow. If self-protection is a key motivation, then one will not respond to Jesus and will not be saved. One who is willing to risk rejection will respond and find true life.

[16:26]  ²¹ tn Grk “a man,” but ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used in a generic sense here to refer to both men and women.