1 Peter 3:2

3:2 when they see your pure and reverent conduct. ¹ 

Psalms 37:14

37:14 Evil men draw their swords

and prepare their bows,

to bring down ²  the oppressed and needy,

and to slaughter those who are godly. ³ 

Psalms 50:23

50:23 Whoever presents a thank-offering honors me. ⁴ 

To whoever obeys my commands, I will reveal my power to deliver.” ⁵ 

Psalms 50:2

50:2 From Zion, the most beautiful of all places, ⁶ 

God comes in splendor. ⁷ 

Colossians 1:12

1:12 giving thanks to the Father who has qualified you to share ⁸  in the saints’ ⁹  inheritance in the light.

Ephesians 2:3

2:3 among whom ¹⁰  all of us ¹¹  also ¹²  formerly lived out our lives in the cravings of our flesh, indulging the desires of the flesh and the mind, and were by nature children of wrath ¹³  even as the rest… ¹⁴ 

Ephesians 4:22

4:22 You were taught with reference to your former way of life to lay aside ¹⁵  the old man who is being corrupted in accordance with deceitful desires,

Philippians 1:27

1:27 Only conduct yourselves ¹⁶  in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ so that – whether I come and see you or whether I remain absent – I should hear that ¹⁷  you are standing firm in one spirit, with one mind, by contending side by side for the faith of the gospel, ¹⁸ 

Philippians 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul ¹⁹  and Timothy, slaves ²⁰  of Christ Jesus, to all the saints in Christ Jesus who are in Philippi, ²¹  with the overseers ²²  and deacons.

Philippians 4:12

4:12 I have experienced times of need and times of abundance. In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of contentment, ²³  whether I go satisfied or hungry, have plenty or nothing.

Hebrews 13:5

13:5 Your conduct must be free from the love of money and you must be content with what you have, for he has said, “I will never leave you and I will never abandon you.” ²⁴ 

James 3:13

True Wisdom

3:13 Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct he should show his works done in the gentleness that wisdom brings. ²⁵ 

James 3:2

3:2 For we all stumble ²⁶  in many ways. If someone does not stumble ²⁷  in what he says, ²⁸  he is a perfect individual, ²⁹  able to control the entire body as well.

James 3:11

3:11 A spring does not pour out fresh water and bitter water from the same opening, does it?

[3:2]  ¹ tn Grk “behavior,” the same word translated “the way you live” in vs. 1.

[37:14]  ² tn Heb “to cause to fall.”

[37:14]  ³ tn Heb “the upright in way,” i.e., those who lead godly lives.

[50:23]  ⁴ sn The reference to a thank-offering recalls the earlier statement made in v. 14. Gratitude characterizes genuine worship.

[50:23]  ⁵ tn Heb “and [to one who] sets a way I will show the deliverance of God.” Elsewhere the phrase “set a way” simply means “to travel” (see Gen 30:36; cf. NRSV). The present translation assumes an emendation of וְשָׂם דֶּרֶךְ (vÿsam derekh) to וְשֹׁמֵר דְּרָכַּי (vÿshomer dÿrakhay, “and [the one who] keeps my ways” [i.e., commands, see Pss 18:21; 37:34). Another option is to read וְשֹׁמֵר דַּרְכּוֹ (vÿshomer darko, “and [the one who] guards his way,” i.e., “the one who is careful to follow a godly lifestyle”; see Ps 39:1).

[50:2]  ⁶ tn Heb “the perfection of beauty.”

[50:2]  ⁷ tn Or “shines forth.”

[1:12]  ⁸ tn BDAG 473 s.v. ἱκανόω states, “τινὰ εἴς τι someone for someth. Col 1:12.” The point of the text is that God has qualified the saints for a “share” or “portion” in the inheritance of the saints.

[1:12]  ⁹ tn Grk “the inheritance of the saints.” The genitive noun τῶν ἁγίων (twn Jagiwn) is a possessive genitive: “the saints’ inheritance.”

[2:3]  ¹⁰ sn Among whom. The relative pronoun phrase that begins v. 3 is identical, except for gender, to the one that begins v. 2 (ἐν αἵς [en Jais], ἐν οἵς [en Jois]). By the structure, the author is building an argument for our hopeless condition: We lived in sin and we lived among sinful people. Our doom looked to be sealed as well in v. 2: Both the external environment (kingdom of the air) and our internal motivation and attitude (the spirit that is now energizing) were under the devil’s thumb (cf. 2 Cor 4:4).

[2:3]  ¹¹ tn Grk “we all.”

[2:3]  ¹² tn Or “even.”

[2:3]  ¹³ sn Children of wrath is a Semitic idiom which may mean either “people characterized by wrath” or “people destined for wrath.”

[2:3]  ¹⁴ sn Eph 2:1-3. The translation of vv. 1-3 is very literal, even to the point of retaining the awkward syntax of the original. See note on the word dead in 2:1.

[4:22]  ¹⁵ tn An alternative rendering for the infinitives in vv. 22-24 (“to lay aside… to be renewed… to put on”) is “that you have laid aside… that you are being renewed… that you have put on.” The three infinitives of vv. 22 (ἀποθέσθαι, apoqesqai), 23 (ἀνανεοῦσθαι, ananeousqai), and 24 (ἐνδύσασθαι, endusasqai), form part of an indirect discourse clause; they constitute the teaching given to the believers addressed in the letter. The problem in translation is that one cannot be absolutely certain whether they go back to indicatives in the original statement (i.e., “you have put off”) or imperatives (i.e., “put off!”). Every other occurrence of an aorist infinitive in indirect discourse in the NT goes back to an imperative, but in all of these examples the indirect discourse is introduced by a verb that implies a command. The verb διδάσκω (didaskw) in the corpus Paulinum may be used to relate the indicatives of the faith as well as the imperatives. This translation implies that the infinitives go back to imperatives, though the alternate view that they refer back to indicatives is also a plausible interpretation. For further discussion, see ExSyn 605.

[1:27]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “live as citizens.” The verb πολιτεύεσθε (politeuesqe) connotes the life of a freeman in a free Roman colony.

[1:27]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “the things concerning you, [namely,] that.” The ὅτι (Joti) clause is appositional to τὰ περὶ ὑμῶν (ta peri Jumwn) and therefore “the things concerning you” was not translated.

[1:27]  ¹⁸ tn The phrase “the faith of the gospel” could mean one of three things: “the faith that is the gospel” (genitive of apposition), “the faith that originates from the gospel” (genitive of source), or “faith in the gospel” (objective genitive).

[1:1]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ²⁰ tn Traditionally, “servants” or “bondservants.” Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  ²¹ map For location see JP1 C1; JP2 C1; JP3 C1; JP4 C1.

[1:1]  ²² sn The overseers (or “church leaders,” L&N 53.71) is another term for the same official position of leadership as the “elder.” This is seen in the interchange of the two terms in Titus 1:6-7 and in Acts 20:17, 28, as well as in the parallels between Titus 1:6-7 and 1 Tim 3:1-7.

[4:12]  ²³ tn The words “of contentment” are not in the Greek text, but are implied by Paul’s remarks at the end of v. 11.

[13:5]  ²⁴ sn A quotation from Deut 31:6, 8.

[3:13]  ²⁵ tn Grk “works in the gentleness of wisdom.”

[3:2]  ²⁶ tn Or “fail.”

[3:2]  ²⁷ tn Or “fail.”

[3:2]  ²⁸ tn Grk “in speech.”

[3:2]  ²⁹ tn The word for “man” or “individual” is ἀνήρ (anhr), which often means “male” or “man (as opposed to woman).” But it sometimes is used generically to mean “anyone,” “a person,” as here (cf. BDAG 79 s.v. 2).