2 Chronicles 13:11

13:11 They offer burnt sacrifices to the Lord every morning and every evening, along with fragrant incense. They arrange the Bread of the Presence on a ritually clean table and light the lamps on the gold lampstand every evening. Certainly ¹  we are observing the Lord our God’s regulations, but you have rejected him.

Psalms 119:105

נ (Nun)

119:105 Your word ²  is a lamp to walk by,

and a light to illumine my path. ³ 

Psalms 119:130

119:130 Your instructions are a doorway through which light shines. ⁴ 

They give ⁵  insight to the untrained. ⁶ 

Proverbs 6:23

6:23 For the commandments ⁷  are like ⁸  a lamp, ⁹ 

instruction is like a light,

and rebukes of discipline are like ¹⁰  the road leading to life, ¹¹ 

Isaiah 8:20

8:20 Then you must recall the Lord’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. ¹²  Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened. ¹³ 

Isaiah 11:2

11:2 The Lord’s spirit will rest on him ¹⁴  –

a spirit that gives extraordinary wisdom, ¹⁵ 

a spirit that provides the ability to execute plans, ¹⁶ 

a spirit that produces absolute loyalty to the Lord. ¹⁷ 

Matthew 4:16

4:16 the people who sit in darkness have seen a great light,

and on those who sit in the region and shadow of death a light has dawned.” ¹⁸ 

Matthew 5:16

5:16 In the same way, let your light shine before people, so that they can see your good deeds and give honor to your Father in heaven.

Matthew 25:1-8

The Parable of the Ten Virgins

25:1 “At that time the kingdom of heaven will be like ten virgins who took their lamps and went out to meet the bridegroom. 25:2 Five ¹⁹  of the virgins ²⁰  were foolish, and five were wise. 25:3 When ²¹  the foolish ones took their lamps, they did not take extra ²²  olive oil ²³  with them. 25:4 But the wise ones took flasks of olive oil with their lamps. 25:5 When ²⁴  the bridegroom was delayed a long time, they all became drowsy and fell asleep. 25:6 But at midnight there was a shout, ‘Look, the bridegroom is here! Come out to meet him.’ ²⁵  25:7 Then all the virgins woke up and trimmed their lamps. 25:8 The ²⁶  foolish ones said to the wise, ‘Give us some of your oil, because our lamps are going out.’

Luke 1:79

1:79 to give light to those who sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, ²⁷ 

to guide our feet into the way ²⁸  of peace.”

Luke 12:35

Call to Faithful Stewardship

12:35 “Get dressed for service ²⁹  and keep your lamps burning; ³⁰ 

John 1:4

1:4 In him was life, ³¹  and the life was the light of mankind. ³² 

John 1:9

1:9 The true light, who gives light to everyone, ³³  was coming into the world. ³⁴ 

John 5:35

5:35 He was a lamp that was burning and shining, ³⁵  and you wanted to rejoice greatly for a short time ³⁶  in his light.

John 8:12

Jesus as the Light of the World

8:12 Then Jesus spoke out again, ³⁷  “I am the light of the world. ³⁸  The one who follows me will never ³⁹  walk in darkness, but will have the light of life.”

Acts 26:18

26:18 to open their eyes so that they turn ⁴⁰  from darkness to light and from the power ⁴¹  of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a share ⁴²  among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

Acts 26:2

26:2 “Regarding all the things I have been accused of by the Jews, King Agrippa, ⁴³  I consider myself fortunate that I am about to make my defense before you today,

Colossians 4:6

4:6 Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you should answer everyone.

Ephesians 1:17-18

1:17 I pray that ⁴⁴  the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, ⁴⁵  may give you spiritual wisdom and revelation ⁴⁶  in your growing knowledge of him, ⁴⁷  1:18 – since the eyes of your ⁴⁸  heart have been enlightened ⁴⁹  – so that you may know what is the hope of his calling, ⁵⁰  what is the wealth of his glorious ⁵¹  inheritance in the saints,

Ephesians 5:8-14

5:8 for you were at one time darkness, but now you are ⁵²  light in the Lord. Walk as children of the light – 5:9 for the fruit of the light ⁵³  consists in ⁵⁴  all goodness, righteousness, and truth – 5:10 trying to learn ⁵⁵  what is pleasing to the Lord. 5:11 Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather ⁵⁶  expose them. ⁵⁷  5:12 For the things they do ⁵⁸  in secret are shameful even to mention. 5:13 But all things being exposed by the light are made evident. 5:14 For everything made evident is light, and for this reason it says: ⁵⁹ 

“Awake, ⁶⁰  O sleeper! ⁶¹ 

Rise from the dead,

and Christ will shine on you!” ⁶² 

Philippians 2:15-16

2:15 so that you may be blameless and pure, children of God without blemish though you live in a crooked and perverse society, in which you shine as lights in the world ⁶³  2:16 by holding on to ⁶⁴  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.

[13:11]  ¹ tn Or “for.”

[119:105]  ² tn Many medieval Hebrew mss read the plural (“words”).

[119:105]  ³ tn Heb “[is] a lamp for my foot and a light for my path.”

[119:130]  ⁴ tn Heb “the doorway of your words gives light.” God’s “words” refer here to the instructions in his law (see vv. 9, 57).

[119:130]  ⁵ tn Heb “it [i.e., the doorway] gives.”

[119:130]  ⁶ tn Or “the [morally] naive,” that is, the one who is young and still in the process of learning right from wrong and distinguishing wisdom from folly. See Pss 19:7; 116:6.

[6:23]  ⁷ tn Heb “the commandment” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV).

[6:23]  ⁸ tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[6:23]  ⁹ sn The terms “lamp,” “light,” and “way” are all metaphors. The positive teachings and commandments will illumine or reveal to the disciple the way to life; the disciplinary correctives will provide guidance into fullness of life.

[6:23]  ¹⁰ tn The comparative “like” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is implied by the metaphor; it is supplied in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[6:23]  ¹¹ tn Heb “the way of life” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV); NIV, NLT “the way to life.” The noun “life” is a genitive following the construct “way.” It could be an attributive genitive modifying the kind of way/course of life that instruction provides, but it could also be objective in that the course of life followed would produce and lead to life.

[8:20]  ¹² tn Heb “to [the] instruction and to [the] testimony.” The words “then you must recall” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 19-20a are one long sentence, reading literally, “When they say to you…, to the instruction and to the testimony.” On the identity of the “instruction” and “testimony” see the notes at v. 16.

[8:20]  ¹³ tn Heb “If they do not speak according to this word, [it is] because it has no light of dawn.” The literal translation suggests that “this word” refers to the instruction/testimony. However, it is likely that אִם־לֹא (’im-lo’) is asseverative here, as in 5:9. In this case “this word” refers to the quotation recorded in v. 19. For a discussion of the problem see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 230, n. 9. The singular pronoun in the second half of the verse is collective, referring back to the nation (see v. 19b).

[11:2]  ¹⁴ sn Like David (1 Sam 16:13), this king will be energized by the Lord’s spirit.

[11:2]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “a spirit of wisdom and understanding.” The synonyms are joined here to emphasize the degree of wisdom he will possess. His wisdom will enable him to make just legal decisions (v. 3). A very similar phrase occurs in Eph 1:17.

[11:2]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “a spirit of counsel [or “strategy”] and strength.” The construction is a hendiadys; the point is that he will have the strength/ability to execute the plans/strategies he devises. This ability will enable him to suppress oppressors and implement just policies (v. 4).

[11:2]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “a spirit of knowledge and fear of the Lord.” “Knowledge” is used here in its covenantal sense and refers to a recognition of God’s authority and a willingness to submit to it. See Jer 22:16. “Fear” here refers to a healthy respect for God’s authority which produces obedience. Taken together the two terms emphasize the single quality of loyalty to the Lord. This loyalty guarantees that he will make just legal decisions and implement just policies (vv. 4-5).

[4:16]  ¹⁸ sn A quotation from Isa 9:1.

[25:2]  ¹⁹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[25:2]  ²⁰ tn Grk “Five of them.”

[25:3]  ²¹ tn Grk “For when.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.

[25:3]  ²² tn The word “extra” is not in the Greek text but is implied. The point is that the five foolish virgins had only the oil in their lamps, but took along no extra supply from which to replenish them. This is clear from v. 8, where the lamps of the foolish virgins are going out because they are running out of oil.

[25:3]  ²³ tn On the use of olive oil in lamps, see L&N 6.202.

[25:5]  ²⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[25:6]  ²⁵ tc ‡ Most witnesses have αὐτοῦ (autou, “[with] him”) after ἀπάντησιν (apanthsin, “meeting”), a reading which makes explicit what is already implied in the shorter text (as found in א B 700). The translation likewise adds “him” for clarity’s sake even though the word is not considered part of the original text. NA²⁷ has αὐτοῦ in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[25:8]  ²⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[1:79]  ²⁷ sn On the phrases who sit in darkness…and…death see Isa 9:1-2; 42:7; 49:9-10.

[1:79]  ²⁸ tn Or “the path.”

[12:35]  ²⁹ tn Grk “Let your loins be girded,” an idiom referring to the practice of tucking the ends of the long cloak (outer garment) into the belt to shorten it in preparation for activities like running, etc.

[12:35]  ³⁰ sn Keep your lamps burning means to be ready at all times.

[1:4]  ³¹ tn John uses ζωή (zwh) 37 times: 17 times it occurs with αἰώνιος (aiwnios), and in the remaining occurrences outside the prologue it is clear from context that “eternal” life is meant. The two uses in 1:4, if they do not refer to “eternal” life, would be the only exceptions. (Also 1 John uses ζωή 13 times, always of “eternal” life.)

[1:4]  ³² tn Or “humanity”; Grk “of men” (but ἄνθρωπος [anqrwpo"] is used in a generic sense here, not restricted to males only, thus “mankind,” “humanity”).

[1:9]  ³³ tn Grk “every man” (but in a generic sense, “every person,” or “every human being”).

[1:9]  ³⁴ tn Or “He was the true light, who gives light to everyone who comes into the world.” The participle ἐρχόμενον (ercomenon) may be either (1) neuter nominative, agreeing with τὸ φῶς (to fw"), or (2) masculine accusative, agreeing with ἄνθρωπον (anqrwpon). Option (1) results in a periphrastic imperfect with ἦν (hn), ἦν τὸ φῶς… ἐρχόμενον, referring to the incarnation. Option (2) would have the participle modifying ἄνθρωπον and referring to the true light as enlightening “every man who comes into the world.” Option (2) has some rabbinic parallels: The phrase “all who come into the world” is a fairly common expression for “every man” (cf. Leviticus Rabbah 31.6). But (1) must be preferred here, because: (a) In the next verse the light is in the world; it is logical for v. 9 to speak of its entering the world; (b) in other passages Jesus is described as “coming into the world” (6:14, 9:39, 11:27, 16:28) and in 12:46 Jesus says: ἐγὼ φῶς εἰς τὸν κόσμον ἐλήλυθα (egw fw" ei" ton kosmon elhluqa); (c) use of a periphrastic participle with the imperfect tense is typical Johannine style: 1:28, 2:6, 3:23, 10:40, 11:1, 13:23, 18:18 and 25. In every one of these except 13:23 the finite verb is first and separated by one or more intervening words from the participle.

[5:35]  ³⁵ sn He was a lamp that was burning and shining. Sir 48:1 states that the word of Elijah was “a flame like a torch.” Because of the connection of John the Baptist with Elijah (see John 1:21 and the note on John’s reply, “I am not”), it was natural for Jesus to apply this description to John.

[5:35]  ³⁶ tn Grk “for an hour.”

[8:12]  ³⁷ tn Grk “Then again Jesus spoke to them saying.”

[8:12]  ³⁸ sn The theory proposed by F. J. A. Hort (The New Testament in the Original Greek, vol. 2, Introduction; Appendix, 87-88), that the backdrop of 8:12 is the lighting of the candelabra in the court of women, may offer a plausible setting to the proclamation by Jesus that he is the light of the world. The last time that Jesus spoke in the narrative (assuming 7:53-8:11 is not part of the original text, as the textual evidence suggests) is in 7:38, where he was speaking to a crowd of pilgrims in the temple area. This is where he is found in the present verse, and he may be addressing the crowd again. Jesus’ remark has to be seen in view of both the prologue (John 1:4, 5) and the end of the discourse with Nicodemus (John 3:19-21). The coming of Jesus into the world provokes judgment: A choosing up of sides becomes necessary. The one who comes to the light, that is, who follows Jesus, will not walk in the darkness. The one who refuses to come, will walk in the darkness. In this contrast, there are only two alternatives. So it is with a person’s decision about Jesus. Furthermore, this serves as in implicit indictment of Jesus’ opponents, who still walk in the darkness, because they refuse to come to him. This sets up the contrast in chap. 9 between the man born blind, who receives both physical and spiritual sight, and the Pharisees (John 9:13, 15, 16) who have physical sight but remain in spiritual darkness.

[8:12]  ³⁹ tn The double negative οὐ μή (ou mh) is emphatic in 1st century Hellenistic Greek.

[26:18]  ⁴⁰ sn To open their eyes so that they turn… Here is Luke’s most comprehensive report of Paul’s divine calling. His role was to call humanity to change their position before God and experience God’s forgiveness as a part of God’s family. The image of turning is a key one in the NT: Luke 1:79; Rom 2:19; 13:12; 2 Cor 4:6; 6:14; Eph 5:8; Col 1:12; 1 Thess 5:5. See also Luke 1:77-79; 3:3; 24:47.

[26:18]  ⁴¹ tn BDAG 352-53 s.v. ἐξουσία 2 states, “Also of Satan’s power Ac 26:18.” It is also possible to translate this “the domain of Satan” (cf. BDAG 353 s.v. 6)

[26:18]  ⁴² tn Or “and an inheritance.”

[26:2]  ⁴³ sn See the note on King Agrippa in 25:13.

[1:17]  ⁴⁴ tn The words “I pray” are not in the Greek text, but have been supplied to clarify the meaning; v. 17 is a subordinate clause to v. 16 (“I pray” in v. 17 is implied from v. 16). Eph 1:15-23 constitutes one sentence in Greek, but a new sentence was started here in the translation in light of contemporary English usage.

[1:17]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “glorious Father.” The genitive phrase “of glory” is most likely an attributive genitive. The literal translation “Father of glory” has been retained because of the parallelism with the first line of the verse: “the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory.”

[1:17]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “the Spirit of wisdom and revelation,” or “a spirit of wisdom and revelation.” Verse 17 involves a complex exegetical problem revolving around the Greek term πνεῦμα (pneuma). Some take it to mean “the Spirit,” others “a spirit,” and still others “spiritual.” (1) If “the Spirit” is meant, the idea must be a metonymy of cause for effect, because the author had just indicated in vv. 13-14 that the Spirit was already given (hence, there is no need for him to pray that he be given again). But the effect of the Spirit is wisdom and revelation. (2) If “a spirit” is meant, the idea may be that the readers will have the ability to gain wisdom and insight as they read Paul’s letters, but the exact meaning of “a spirit” remains ambiguous. (3) To take the genitives following πνεῦμα as attributed genitives (see ExSyn 89-91), in which the head noun (“S/spirit”) functions semantically like an adjective (“spiritual”) is both grammatically probable and exegetically consistent.

[1:17]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “in the knowledge of him.”

[1:18]  ⁴⁸ tc ‡ Most witnesses, especially of the Byzantine and Western texttypes, though with a few important Alexandrian witnesses (א A D F G Ψ 0278 Ï latt sy), add ὑμῶν (Jumwn, “your”) after καρδίας (kardias, “heart”), though it is clearly implied in the shorter (Alexandrian) reading (found in Ì⁴⁶ B 6 33 1175 1739 1881 pc). The longer reading thus looks to be a clarifying gloss, as is frequently found in the Byzantine and Western traditions. The translation above also uses “your” because of English requirements, not because of textual basis.

[1:18]  ⁴⁹ tn The perfect participle πεφωτισμένους (pefwtismenou") may either be part of the prayer (“that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened”) or part of the basis of the prayer (“since the eyes of your heart have been enlightened”). Although the participle follows the ἵνα (Jina) of v. 17, it is awkward grammatically in the clause. Further, perfect adverbial participles are usually causal in NT Greek. Finally, the context both here and throughout Ephesians seems to emphasize the motif of light as a property belonging to believers. Thus, it seems that the author is saying, “I know that you are saved, that you have had the blinders of the devil removed; because of this, I can now pray that you will fully understand and see the light of God’s glorious revelation.” Hence, the translation takes the participle to form a part of the basis for the prayer.

[1:18]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “the hope to which he has called you.”

[1:18]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “of the glory of his inheritance.” Here “inheritance” is taken as an attributed genitive and the head noun, “glory,” is thus translated as an adjective, “glorious inheritance.”

[5:8]  ⁵² tn The verb “you are” is implied in the Greek text, but is supplied in the English translation to make it clear.

[5:9]  ⁵³ tc Several mss (Ì⁴⁶ D² Ψ Ï) have πνεύματος (pneumatos, “Spirit”) instead of φωτός (fwtos, “light”). Although most today regard φωτός as obviously original (UBS⁴ gives it an “A” rating), a case could be made that πνεύματος is what the author wrote. First, although this is largely a Byzantine reading (D² often, if not normally, assimilates to the Byzantine text), Ì⁴⁶ gives the reading much greater credibility. Internally, the φωτός at the end of v. 8 could have lined up above the πνεύματος in v. 9 in a scribe’s exemplar, thus occasioning dittography. (It is interesting to note that in both Ì⁴⁹ and א the two instances of φωτός line up.) However, written in a contracted form, as a nomen sacrum (pMnMs) – a practice found even in the earliest mss – πνεύματος would not have been easily confused with fwtos (there being only the last letter to occasion homoioteleuton rather than the last three). Further, the external evidence for φωτός is quite compelling (Ì⁴⁹ א A B D* F G P 33 81 1739 1881 2464 pc latt co); it is rather doubtful that the early and widespread witnesses all mistook πνεύματος for φωτός. In addition, πνεύματος can be readily explained as harking back to Gal 5:22 (“the fruit of the Spirit”). Thus, on balance, φωτός appears to be original, giving rise to the reading πνεύματος.

[5:9]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “in.” The idea is that the fruit of the light is “expressed in” or “consists of.”

[5:10]  ⁵⁵ tn BDAG 255 s.v. δοκιμάζω 1 translates δοκιμάζοντες (dokimazonte") in Eph 5:10 as “try to learn.”

[5:11]  ⁵⁶ tn The Greek conjunction καὶ (kai) seems to be functioning here ascensively, (i.e., “even”), but is difficult to render in this context using good English. It may read something like: “but rather even expose them!”

[5:11]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “rather even expose.”

[5:12]  ⁵⁸ tn The participle τὰ…γινόμενα (ta…ginomena) usually refers to “things happening” or “things which are,” but with the following genitive phrase ὑπ᾿ αὐτῶν (Jup’ autwn), which indicates agency, the idea seems to be “things being done.” This passive construction was translated as an active one to simplify the English style.

[5:14]  ⁵⁹ sn The following passage has been typeset as poetry because many scholars regard this passage as poetic or hymnic. These terms are used broadly to refer to the genre of writing, not to the content. There are two broad criteria for determining if a passage is poetic or hymnic: “(a) stylistic: a certain rhythmical lilt when the passages are read aloud, the presence of parallelismus membrorum (i.e., an arrangement into couplets), the semblance of some metre, and the presence of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, chiasmus, and antithesis; and (b) linguistic: an unusual vocabulary, particularly the presence of theological terms, which is different from the surrounding context” (P. T. O’Brien, Philippians [NIGTC], 188-89). Classifying a passage as hymnic or poetic is important because understanding this genre can provide keys to interpretation. However, not all scholars agree that the above criteria are present in this passage, so the decision to typeset it as poetry should be viewed as a tentative decision about its genre.

[5:14]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “Rise up.”

[5:14]  ⁶¹ tn The articular nominative participle ὁ καθεύδων (Jo kaqeudwn) is probably functioning as a nominative for vocative. Thus, it has been translated as “O sleeper.”

[5:14]  ⁶² sn A composite quotation, possibly from Isa 26:19, 51:17, 52:1, and 60:1.

[2:15]  ⁶³ tn Or “as stars in the universe.”

[2:16]  ⁶⁴ tn Or “holding out, holding forth.”