1 Kings 6:7

6:7 As the temple was being built, only stones shaped at the quarry ¹  were used; the sound of hammers, pickaxes, or any other iron tool was not heard at the temple while it was being built.

1 Kings 7:9

7:9 All of these were built with the best ²  stones, chiseled to the right size ³  and cut with a saw on all sides, ⁴  from the foundation to the edge of the roof ⁵  and from the outside to the great courtyard.

1 Kings 7:1

The Building of the Royal Palace

7:1 Solomon took thirteen years to build his palace. ⁶ 

1 Kings 22:2

22:2 In the third year King Jehoshaphat of Judah came down to visit ⁷  the king of Israel.

Isaiah 28:16

28:16 Therefore, this is what the sovereign master, the Lord, says:

“Look, I am laying ⁸  a stone in Zion,

an approved ⁹  stone,

set in place as a precious cornerstone for the foundation. ¹⁰ 

The one who maintains his faith will not panic. ¹¹ 

Isaiah 28:1

The Lord Will Judge Samaria

28:1 The splendid crown of Ephraim’s drunkards is doomed, ¹² 

the withering flower, its beautiful splendor, ¹³ 

situated ¹⁴  at the head of a rich valley,

the crown of those overcome with wine. ¹⁵ 

Colossians 3:11-12

3:11 Here there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave ¹⁶  or free, but Christ is all and in all.

Exhortation to Unity and Love

3:12 Therefore, as the elect of God, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with a heart of mercy, ¹⁷  kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience,

Colossians 3:1

Exhortations to Seek the Things Above

3:1 Therefore, if you have been raised with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.

Colossians 2:6-7

Warnings Against the Adoption of False Philosophies

2:6 Therefore, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, ¹⁸  continue to live your lives ¹⁹  in him, 2:7 rooted ²⁰  and built up in him and firm ²¹  in your ²²  faith just as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.

Revelation 21:14-21

21:14 The ²³  wall of the city has twelve foundations, and on them are the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

21:15 The angel ²⁴  who spoke to me had a golden measuring rod with which to measure the city and its foundation stones and wall. 21:16 Now ²⁵  the city is laid out as a square, ²⁶  its length and width the same. He ²⁷  measured the city with the measuring rod ²⁸  at fourteen hundred miles ²⁹  (its length and width and height are equal). 21:17 He also measured its wall, one hundred forty-four cubits ³⁰  according to human measurement, which is also the angel’s. ³¹  21:18 The city’s ³²  wall is made ³³  of jasper and the city is pure gold, like transparent glass. ³⁴  21:19 The foundations of the city’s wall are decorated ³⁵  with every kind of precious stone. The first foundation is jasper, the second sapphire, the third agate, ³⁶  the fourth emerald, 21:20 the fifth onyx, ³⁷  the sixth carnelian, ³⁸  the seventh chrysolite, ³⁹  the eighth beryl, ⁴⁰  the ninth topaz, the tenth chrysoprase, ⁴¹  the eleventh jacinth, ⁴²  and the twelfth amethyst. 21:21 And the twelve gates are twelve pearls – each one of the gates is made from just one pearl! The ⁴³  main street ⁴⁴  of the city is pure gold, like transparent glass.

[6:7]  ¹ tn Heb “finished stone of the quarry,” i.e., stones chiseled and shaped at the time they were taken out of the quarry.

[7:9]  ² tn Or “valuable” (see 5:17).

[7:9]  ³ tn Heb “according to the measurement of chiseled [stone].”

[7:9]  ⁴ tn Heb “inside and out.”

[7:9]  ⁵ tn The precise meaning of the Hebrew word טְפָחוֹת (tÿfakhot) is uncertain, but it is clear that the referent stands in opposition to the foundation.

[7:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “His house Solomon built in thirteen years and he completed all his house.”

[22:2]  ⁷ tn The word “visit” is supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[28:16]  ⁸ tc The Hebrew text has a third person verb form, which does not agree with the first person suffix that precedes. The form should be emended to יֹסֵד (yosed), a Qal active participle used in a present progressive or imminent future sense.

[28:16]  ⁹ tn Traditionally “tested,” but the implication is that it has passed the test and stands approved.

[28:16]  ¹⁰ sn The reality behind the metaphor is not entirely clear from the context. The stone appears to represent someone or something that gives Zion stability. Perhaps the ideal Davidic ruler is in view (see 32:1). Another option is that the image of beginning a building project by laying a precious cornerstone suggests that God is about to transform Zion through judgment and begin a new covenant community that will experience his protection (see 4:3-6; 31:5; 33:20-24; 35:10).

[28:16]  ¹¹ tn Heb “will not hurry,” i.e., act in panic.

[28:1]  ¹² tn Heb “Woe [to] the crown [or “wreath”] of the splendor [or “pride”] of the drunkards of Ephraim.” The “crown” is Samaria, the capital city of the northern kingdom (Ephraim). Priests and prophets are included among these drunkards in v. 7.

[28:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “the beauty of his splendor.” In the translation the masculine pronoun (“his”) has been replaced by “its” because the referent (the “crown”) is the city of Samaria.

[28:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “which [is].”

[28:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “ones overcome with wine.” The words “the crown of” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The syntactical relationship of the final phrase to what precedes is uncertain. הֲלוּמֵי יָיִן (halume yayin, “ones overcome with wine”) seems to correspond to שִׁכֹּרֵי אֶפְרַיִם (shikkore ’efrayim, “drunkards of Ephraim”) in line 1. The translation assumes that the phrase “the splendid crown” is to be understood in the final line as well.

[3:11]  ¹⁶ tn See the note on “fellow slave” in 1:7.

[3:12]  ¹⁷ tn If the genitive construct σπλάγχνα οἰκτιρμοῦ (splancna oiktirmou) is a hendiadys then it would be “compassion” or “tenderheartedness.” See M. J. Harris, Colossians and Philemon (EGGNT), 161.

[2:6]  ¹⁸ tn Though the verb παρελάβετε (parelabete) does not often take a double accusative, here it seems to do so. Both τὸν Χριστὸν ᾿Ιησοῦν (ton Criston Ihsoun) and τὸν κύριον (ton kurion) are equally definite insofar as they both have an article, but both the word order and the use of “Christ Jesus” as a proper name suggest that it is the object (cf. Rom 10:9, 10). Thus Paul is affirming that the tradition that was delivered to the Colossians by Epaphras was Christ-centered and focused on him as Lord.

[2:6]  ¹⁹ tn The present imperative περιπατεῖτε (peripateite) implies, in this context, a continuation of something already begun. This is evidenced by the fact that Paul has already referred to their faith as “orderly” and “firm” (2:5), despite the struggles of some of them with this deceptive heresy (cf. 2:16-23). The verb is used literally to refer to a person “walking” and is thus used metaphorically (i.e., ethically) to refer to the way a person lives his or her life.

[2:7]  ²⁰ tn Or “having been rooted.”

[2:7]  ²¹ sn The three participles rooted, built up, and firm belong together and reflect three different metaphors. The first participle “rooted” (perfect tense) indicates a settled condition on the part of the Colossian believers and refers to horticulture. The second participle “built up” (present passive) comes from the world of architecture. The third participle “firm [established]” (present passive) comes from the law courts. With these three metaphors (as well as the following comment on thankfulness) Paul explains what he means when he commands them to continue to live their lives in Christ. The use of the passive probably reflects God’s activity among them. It was he who had rooted them, had been building them up, and had established them in the faith (cf. 1 Cor 3:5-15 for the use of mixed metaphors).

[2:7]  ²² tn The Greek text has the article τῇ (th), not the possessive pronoun ὑμῶν (Jumwn), but the article often functions as a possessive pronoun and was translated as such here (ExSyn 215).

[21:14]  ²³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:15]  ²⁴ tn Grk “the one”; the referent (the angel of v. 9) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:16]  ²⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the somewhat parenthetical nature of the description of the city.

[21:16]  ²⁶ tn Or “the city lies square.” On κεῖμαι (keimai) in this context, BDAG 537 s.v. 2 states, “lie, of things…ἡ πόλις τετράγωνος κεῖται is laid out as a square Rv 21:16.”

[21:16]  ²⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:16]  ²⁸ tn Grk “with the rod”; the word “measuring” is supplied from the description in v. 15.

[21:16]  ²⁹ tn Or “two thousand two hundred kilometers,” Grk “12,000 stades.” A stade was a measure of length about 607 ft (185 m).

[21:17]  ³⁰ tn Here the measurement was kept in cubits in the translation because of the possible symbolic significance of the number 144 (12 times 12). This is about 216 ft (65 m).

[21:17]  ³¹ tn Here L&N 81.1 translate the phrase μέτρον ἀνθρώπου, ὅ ἐστιν ἀγγέλου (metron anqrwpou, {o estin angelou) “‘the unit of measurement used by a person, that is, by an angel’ Re 21:17.” It is more likely that μέτρον is an accusative of respect or reference.

[21:18]  ³² tn Grk “and its wall”; the referent of the pronoun (the city) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:18]  ³³ tn The phrase ἡ ἐνδώμησις τοῦ τείχους (Jh endwmhsi" tou teicou") is difficult to translate precisely. BDAG 334 s.v. ἐνδώμησις states, “primary mng. ‘interior structure’; in our lit. prob.=construction, hence material τοῦ τείχους Rv 21:18.” The phrase could then be translated, “the foundation of the city wall was jasper” or “the material used for the wall of the city was jasper.” The latter alternative has been used in the translation because the text goes on to discuss the foundation in 21:19 (using the term θεμέλιος [qemelios]), which is somewhat redundant if the foundation is mentioned here.

[21:18]  ³⁴ tn Or “transparent crystal.” See L&N 6.222, which notes the emphasis is on transparency here. The same Greek word, καθαρός (kaqaros), means both “pure” (referring to the gold) and “transparent” (referring to the glass).

[21:19]  ³⁵ tn The perfect participle here has been translated as an intensive (resultative) perfect.

[21:19]  ³⁶ sn Agate (also called chalcedony) is a semiprecious stone usually milky or gray in color (L&N 2.32).

[21:20]  ³⁷ sn Onyx (also called sardonyx) is a semiprecious stone that comes in various colors (L&N 2.35).

[21:20]  ³⁸ sn Carnelian is a semiprecious gemstone, usually red in color (L&N 2.36).

[21:20]  ³⁹ sn Chrysolite refers to either quartz or topaz, golden yellow in color (L&N 2.37).

[21:20]  ⁴⁰ sn Beryl is a semiprecious stone, usually blue-green or green in color (L&N 2.38).

[21:20]  ⁴¹ sn Chrysoprase is a greenish type of quartz (L&N 2.40).

[21:20]  ⁴² sn Jacinth is a semiprecious stone, probably blue in color (also called “hyacinth,” but that translation is not used here because of possible confusion with the flower of the same name). See L&N 2.41.

[21:21]  ⁴³ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[21:21]  ⁴⁴ tn The Greek word πλατεῖα (plateia) refers to a major (broad) street (L&N 1.103).