2 Corinthians 1:22

1:22 who also sealed us and gave us the Spirit in our hearts as a down payment. ¹ 

Numbers 13:23-27

13:23 When they came to the valley of Eshcol, they cut down from there a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a staff ²  between two men, as well as some of the pomegranates and the figs. 13:24 That place was called ³  the Eshcol Valley, ⁴  because of the cluster ⁵  of grapes that the Israelites cut from there. 13:25 They returned from investigating the land after forty days.

The Spies’ Reports

13:26 They came back ⁶  to Moses and Aaron and to the whole community of the Israelites in the wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. ⁷  They reported ⁸  to the whole community and showed the fruit of the land. 13:27 They told Moses, ⁹  “We went to the land where you sent us. ¹⁰  It is indeed flowing with milk and honey, ¹¹  and this is its fruit.

Romans 8:23

8:23 Not only this, but we ourselves also, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, ¹²  groan inwardly as we eagerly await our adoption, ¹³  the redemption of our bodies. ¹⁴ 

Ephesians 1:13-14

1:13 And when ¹⁵  you heard the word of truth (the gospel of your salvation) – when you believed in Christ ¹⁶  – you were marked with the seal ¹⁷  of the promised Holy Spirit, ¹⁸  1:14 who is the down payment ¹⁹  of our inheritance, until the redemption of God’s own possession, ²⁰  to the praise of his glory.

Ephesians 4:30

4:30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

Ephesians 4:1

Live in Unity

4:1 I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, ²¹  urge you to live ²²  worthily of the calling with which you have been called, ²³ 

Ephesians 3:1

Paul's Relationship to the Divine Mystery

3:1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus ²⁴  for the sake of you Gentiles –

[1:22]  ¹ tn Or “first installment,” “pledge,” “deposit.”

[13:23]  ² tn The word is related etymologically to the verb for “slip, slide, bend, totter.” This would fit the use very well. A pole that would not bend would be hard to use to carry things, but a pole or stave that was flexible would serve well.

[13:24]  ³ tn The verb is rendered as a passive because there is no expressed subject.

[13:24]  ⁴ tn Or “Wadi Eshcol.” The translation “brook” is too generous; the Hebrew term refers to a river bed, a ravine or valley through which torrents of rain would rush in the rainy season; at other times it might be completely dry.

[13:24]  ⁵ tn The word “Eshcol” is drawn from the Hebrew expression concerning the “cluster of grapes.” The word is probably retained in the name Burj Haskeh, two miles north of Damascus.

[13:26]  ⁶ tn The construction literally has “and they went and they entered,” which may be smoothed out as a verbal hendiadys, the one verb modifying the other.

[13:26]  ⁷ sn Kadesh is Ain Qadeis, about 50 miles (83 km) south of Beer Sheba. It is called Kadesh-barnea in Num 32:8.

[13:26]  ⁸ tn Heb “They brought back word”; the verb is the Hiphil preterite of שׁוּב (shuv).

[13:27]  ⁹ tn Heb “told him and said.” The referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:27]  ¹⁰ tn The relative clause modifies “the land.” It is constructed with the relative and the verb: “where you sent us.”

[13:27]  ¹¹ sn This is the common expression for the material abundance of the land (see further, F. C. Fensham, “An Ancient Tradition of the Fertility of Palestine,” PEQ 98 [1966]: 166-67).

[8:23]  ¹² tn Or “who have the Spirit as firstfruits.” The genitive πνεύματος (pneumatos) can be understood here as possessive (“the firstfruits belonging to the Spirit”) although it is much more likely that this is a genitive of apposition (“the firstfruits, namely, the Spirit”); cf. TEV, NLT.

[8:23]  ¹³ tn See the note on “adoption” in v. 15.

[8:23]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “body.”

[1:13]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “in whom you also, when…” (continuing the sentence from v. 12).

[1:13]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “in whom also having believed.” The relative pronoun “whom” has been replaced in the translation with its antecedent (“Christ”) to improve the clarity.

[1:13]  ¹⁷ tn Or “you were sealed.”

[1:13]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “the Holy Spirit of promise.” Here ἐπαγγελίας (epangelias, “of promise”) has been translated as an attributive genitive.

[1:14]  ¹⁹ tn Or “first installment,” “pledge,” “deposit.”

[1:14]  ²⁰ tn Grk “the possession.”

[4:1]  ²¹ tn Grk “prisoner in the Lord.”

[4:1]  ²² tn Grk “walk.” The verb “walk” in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking.

[4:1]  ²³ sn With which you have been called. The calling refers to the Holy Spirit’s prompting that caused them to believe. The author is thus urging his readers to live a life that conforms to their saved status before God.

[3:1]  ²⁴ tc Several early and important witnesses, chiefly of the Western text (א* D* F G [365]), lack ᾿Ιησοῦ (Ihsou, “Jesus”) here, while most Alexandrian and Byzantine mss (Ì⁴⁶ א¹ A B [C] D¹ Ψ 33 1739 [1881] Ï lat sy bo) have the word. However, because of the Western text’s proclivities to add or delete to the text, seemingly at whim, serious doubts should be attached to the shorter reading. It is strengthened, however, by א’s support. Nevertheless, since both א and D were corrected with the addition of ᾿Ιησοῦ, their testimony might be questioned. Further, in uncial script the nomina sacra here could have led to missing a word by way of homoioteleuton (cMuiMu). At the same time, in light of the rarity of scribal omission of nomina sacra (see TCGNT 582, n. 1), a decision for inclusion of the word here must be tentative. NA²⁷ rightly places ᾿Ιησοῦ in brackets.