1 Thessalonians 3:13

3:13 so that your hearts are strengthened in holiness to be blameless before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints. ¹ 

1 Thessalonians 5:23

Conclusion

5:23 Now may the God of peace himself make you completely holy and may your spirit and soul and body be kept entirely blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Thessalonians 5:1

The Day of the Lord

5:1 Now on the topic of times and seasons, ²  brothers and sisters, ³  you have no need for anything to be written to you.

Colossians 4:5

4:5 Conduct yourselves ⁴  with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunities.

Colossians 1:23

1:23 if indeed you remain in the faith, established and firm, ⁵  without shifting ⁶  from the hope of the gospel that you heard. This gospel has also been preached in all creation under heaven, and I, Paul, have become its servant.

Colossians 1:2

1:2 to the saints, the faithful ⁷  brothers and sisters ⁸  in Christ, at Colossae. Grace and peace to you ⁹  from God our Father! ¹⁰ 

Colossians 1:14

1:14 in whom we have redemption, ¹¹  the forgiveness of sins.

Philippians 2:16

2:16 by holding on to ¹²  the word of life so that on the day of Christ I will have a reason to boast that I did not run in vain nor labor in vain.

Philippians 4:1-2

Christian Practices

4:1 So then, my brothers and sisters, ¹³  dear friends whom I long to see, my joy and crown, stand in the Lord in this way, my dear friends!

4:2 I appeal to Euodia and to Syntyche to agree in the Lord.

Philippians 1:7-12

1:7 For ¹⁴  it is right for me to think this about all of you, because I have you in my heart, ¹⁵  since both in my imprisonment ¹⁶  and in the defense and confirmation of the gospel all of you became partners in God’s grace ¹⁷  together with me. 1:8 For God is my witness that I long for all of you with the affection of Christ Jesus. 1:9 And I pray this, that your love may abound even more and more in knowledge and every kind of insight 1:10 so that you can decide what is best, and thus be sincere and blameless for the day of Christ, 1:11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

Ministry as a Prisoner

1:12 I want you to know, brothers and sisters, ¹⁸  that my situation has actually turned out to advance the gospel: ¹⁹ 

Philippians 2:1

Christian Unity and Christ’s Humility

2:1 Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit, ²⁰  any affection or mercy, ²¹ 

Philippians 2:1

Christian Unity and Christ’s Humility

2:1 Therefore, if there is any encouragement in Christ, any comfort provided by love, any fellowship in the Spirit, ²²  any affection or mercy, ²³ 

Philippians 1:14-15

1:14 and most of the brothers and sisters, ²⁴  having confidence in the Lord ²⁵  because of my imprisonment, now more than ever ²⁶  dare to speak the word ²⁷  fearlessly.

1:15 Some, to be sure, are preaching Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from goodwill.

Philippians 1:2

1:2 Grace and peace to you ²⁸  from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ!

Philippians 4:1-2

Christian Practices

4:1 So then, my brothers and sisters, ²⁹  dear friends whom I long to see, my joy and crown, stand in the Lord in this way, my dear friends!

4:2 I appeal to Euodia and to Syntyche to agree in the Lord.

Titus 2:13

2:13 as we wait for the happy fulfillment of our hope in the glorious appearing ³⁰  of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. ³¹ 

Titus 2:1

Conduct Consistent with Sound Teaching

2:1 But as for you, communicate the behavior that goes with ³²  sound teaching.

Titus 2:1

Conduct Consistent with Sound Teaching

2:1 But as for you, communicate the behavior that goes with ³³  sound teaching.

[3:13]  ¹ tc ‡ Important and early witnesses (א* A D* 81 629 lat) have ἀμήν (amhn, “amen”) at the end of this benediction, while the majority of mss, including several excellent witnesses (א² B D² F G Ψ 0278 1739 1881 Ï it sy sa), lack the particle. A decision is difficult, but in light of Paul’s habit of adding the ἀμήν to his notes of praise, even in the middle of his letters (cf. Rom 9:5; 11:36; 15:33; Gal 1:5), one might expect scribes to emulate this practice. Although a decision is difficult, it is probably best to follow the shorter reading. NA²⁷ has the particle in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

[5:1]  ² tn Grk “concerning the times and the seasons,” a reference to future periods of eschatological fulfillment (cf. Acts 1:7).

[5:1]  ³ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:4.

[4:5]  ⁴ tn Grk “walk.” The verb περιπατέω (peripatew) is a common NT idiom for one’s lifestyle, behavior, or manner of conduct (L&N 41.11).

[1:23]  ⁵ tn BDAG 276 s.v. ἑδραῖος suggests “firm, steadfast.”

[1:23]  ⁶ tn BDAG 639 s.v. μετακινέω suggests “without shifting from the hope” here.

[1:2]  ⁷ tn Grk “and faithful.” The construction in Greek (as well as Paul’s style) suggests that the saints are identical to the faithful; hence, the καί (kai) is best left untranslated (cf. Eph 1:1). See ExSyn 281-82.

[1:2]  ⁸ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).

[1:2]  ⁹ tn Or “Grace to you and peace.”

[1:2]  ¹⁰ tc Most witnesses, including some important ones (א A C F G I [P] 075 Ï it bo), read “and the Lord Jesus Christ” at the end of this verse, no doubt to conform the wording to the typical Pauline salutation. However, excellent and early witnesses (B D K L Ψ 33 81 1175 1505 1739 1881 al sa) lack this phrase. Since the omission is inexplicable as arising from the longer reading (otherwise, these mss would surely have deleted the phrase in the rest of the corpus Paulinum), it is surely authentic.

[1:14]  ¹¹ tc διὰ τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ (dia tou {aimato" autou, “through his blood”) is read at this juncture by several minuscule mss (614 630 1505 2464 al) as well as a few, mostly secondary, versional and patristic witnesses. But the reading was prompted by the parallel in Eph 1:7 where the wording is solid. If these words had been in the original of Colossians, why would scribes omit them here but not in Eph 1:7? Further, the testimony on behalf of the shorter reading is quite overwhelming: {א A B C D F G Ψ 075 0150 6 33 1739 1881 Ï latt co as well as several other versions and fathers}. The conviction that “through his blood” is not authentic in Col 1:14 is as strong as the conviction that these words are authentic in Eph 1:7.

[2:16]  ¹² tn Or “holding out, holding forth.”

[4:1]  ¹³ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.

[1:7]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “Just as.” The sense here is probably, “So I give thanks (v. 3) just as it is right for me…”

[1:7]  ¹⁵ tn Or possibly “because you have me in your heart.”

[1:7]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “in my bonds.” The meaning “imprisonment” derives from a figurative extension of the literal meaning (“bonds,” “fetters,” “chains”), L&N 37.115.

[1:7]  ¹⁷ tn The word “God’s” is supplied from the context (v. 2) to clarify the meaning.

[1:12]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).

[1:12]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “for the advance of the gospel.” The genitive εὐαγγελίου (euangeliou) is taken as objective.

[2:1]  ²⁰ tn Or “spiritual fellowship” if πνεύματος (pneumato") is an attributive genitive; or “fellowship brought about by the Spirit” if πνεύματος is a genitive of source or production.

[2:1]  ²¹ tn Grk “and any affection and mercy.” The Greek idea, however, is best expressed by “or” in English.

[2:1]  ²² tn Or “spiritual fellowship” if πνεύματος (pneumato") is an attributive genitive; or “fellowship brought about by the Spirit” if πνεύματος is a genitive of source or production.

[2:1]  ²³ tn Grk “and any affection and mercy.” The Greek idea, however, is best expressed by “or” in English.

[1:14]  ²⁴ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.

[1:14]  ²⁵ tn Or “most of the brothers and sisters in the Lord, having confidence.”

[1:14]  ²⁶ tn Grk “even more so.”

[1:14]  ²⁷ tc A number of significant mss have “of God” after “word.” Although τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou) is amply supported in the Alexandrian and Western texts (א A B [D*] P Ψ 048^vid 075 0278 33 81 1175 al lat co), the omission is difficult to explain as either an intentional deletion or unintentional oversight. To be sure, the pedigree of the witnesses is not nearly as great for the shorter reading (Ì⁴⁶ D² 1739 1881 Ï), but it explains well the rise of the other reading. Further, it explains the rise of κυρίου (kuriou, “of the Lord”), the reading of F and G (for if these mss had followed a Vorlage with τοῦ θεοῦ, κυρίου would not have been expected). Further, τοῦ θεοῦ is in different locations among the mss; such dislocations are usually signs of scribal additions to the text. Thus, the Byzantine text and a few other witnesses here have the superior reading, and it should be accepted as the original.

[1:2]  ²⁸ tn Grk “Grace to you and peace.”

[4:1]  ²⁹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.

[2:13]  ³⁰ tn Grk “the blessed hope and glorious appearing.”

[2:13]  ³¹ tn The terms “God and Savior” both refer to the same person, Jesus Christ. This is one of the clearest statements in the NT concerning the deity of Christ. The construction in Greek is known as the Granville Sharp rule, named after the English philanthropist-linguist who first clearly articulated the rule in 1798. Sharp pointed out that in the construction article-noun-καί-noun (where καί [kai] = “and”), when two nouns are singular, personal, and common (i.e., not proper names), they always had the same referent. Illustrations such as “the friend and brother,” “the God and Father,” etc. abound in the NT to prove Sharp’s point. The only issue is whether terms such as “God” and “Savior” could be considered common nouns as opposed to proper names. Sharp and others who followed (such as T. F. Middleton in his masterful The Doctrine of the Greek Article) demonstrated that a proper name in Greek was one that could not be pluralized. Since both “God” (θεός, qeos) and “savior” (σωτήρ, swthr) were occasionally found in the plural, they did not constitute proper names, and hence, do fit Sharp’s rule. Although there have been 200 years of attempts to dislodge Sharp’s rule, all attempts have been futile. Sharp’s rule stands vindicated after all the dust has settled. For more information on Sharp’s rule see ExSyn 270-78, esp. 276. See also 2 Pet 1:1 and Jude 4.

[2:1]  ³² tn Grk “say what is fitting for sound teaching” (introducing the behavior called for in this chapter.).

[2:1]  ³³ tn Grk “say what is fitting for sound teaching” (introducing the behavior called for in this chapter.).