Discovery Box1 Samuel 15:29
Context15:29 The Preeminent One 1 of Israel does not go back on his word 2 or change his mind, for he is not a human being who changes his mind.” 3
Psalms 89:35
Context89:35 Once and for all I have vowed by my own holiness,
I will never deceive 4 David.
Habakkuk 2:3
Context2:3 For the message is a witness to what is decreed; 5
it gives reliable testimony about how matters will turn out. 6
Even if the message 7 is not fulfilled right away, wait patiently; 8
for it will certainly come to pass – it will not arrive late.
Malachi 3:6
Context3:6 “Since, I, the Lord, do not go back on my promises, 9 you, sons of Jacob, have not perished.
Luke 21:33
Context21:33 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. 10
Romans 11:29
Context11:29 For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable.
Titus 1:2
Context1:2 in hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the ages began. 11
Hebrews 6:18
Context6:18 so that we who have found refuge in him 12 may find strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us through two unchangeable things, since it is impossible for God to lie.
James 1:17
Context1:17 All generous giving and every perfect gift 13 is from above, coming down 14 from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or the slightest hint of change. 15
[15:29] 1 tn Heb “splendor,” used here by metonymy as a title for the
[15:29] 2 tn Or perhaps “does not lie.”
[15:29] 3 sn This observation marks the preceding statement (v. 28) as an unconditional, unalterable decree. When God makes such a decree he will not alter it or change his mind. This does not mean that God never deviates from his stated intentions or changes his mind. On the contrary, several passages describe him as changing his mind. In fact, his willingness to do so is one of his fundamental divine attributes (see Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2). For a fuller discussion see R. B. Chisholm, Jr., “Does God Change His Mind?” BSac 152 (1995): 387-99.
[2:3] 5 tn Heb “For the vision is still for the appointed time.” The Hebrew word עוֹד (’od, “still”) is better emended to עֵד (’ed, “witness”) in light of the parallelism (see the note on the word “turn out” in the following line). The “appointed time” refers to the time when the divine judgment anticipated in vv. 6-20 will be realized.
[2:3] 6 tn Heb “and a witness to the end and it does not lie.” The Hebrew term יָפֵחַ (yafeakh) has been traditionally understood as a verb form from the root פּוּחַ (puakh, “puff, blow”; cf. NEB “it will come in breathless haste”; NASB “it hastens toward the goal”) but recent scholarship has demonstrated that it is actually a noun meaning “witness” (cf. NIV “it speaks of the end / and will not prove false”; NRSV “it speaks of the end, and does not lie”). See J. J. M. Roberts, Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah (OTL), 106. “The end” corresponds to “the appointed time” of the preceding line and refers to the time when the prophecy to follow will be fulfilled.
[2:3] 7 tn Heb “it”; the referent (the message) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[2:3] 8 tn Heb “If it should delay, wait for it.” The Hebrew word חָזוֹן (khazon, “vision, message”) is the subject of the third person verbs in v. 3 and the antecedent of the pronominal suffix in the phrase “for it.”
[3:6] 9 tn Heb “do not change.” This refers to God’s ongoing commitment to his covenant promises to Israel.
[21:33] 10 sn The words that Jesus predicts here will never pass away. They are more stable and lasting than creation itself. For this kind of image, see Isa 40:8; 55:10-11.
[1:2] 11 tn Grk “before eternal ages.”
[6:18] 12 tn Grk “have taken refuge”; the basis of that refuge is implied in the preceding verse.
[1:17] 13 tn The first phrase refers to the action of giving and the second to what is given.
[1:17] 14 tn Or “All generous giving and every perfect gift from above is coming down.”
[1:17] 15 tn Grk “variation or shadow of turning” (referring to the motions of heavenly bodies causing variations of light and darkness).
