Acts 14:3

14:3 So they stayed there ¹  for a considerable time, speaking out courageously for the Lord, who testified ²  to the message ³  of his grace, granting miraculous signs ⁴  and wonders to be performed through their hands.

Luke 2:10-11

2:10 But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid! Listen carefully, ⁵  for I proclaim to you good news ⁶  that brings great joy to all the people: 2:11 Today ⁷  your Savior is born in the city ⁸  of David. ⁹  He is Christ ¹⁰  the Lord.

Romans 3:24-26

3:24 But they are justified ¹¹  freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus. 3:25 God publicly displayed ¹²  him ¹³  at his death ¹⁴  as the mercy seat ¹⁵  accessible through faith. ¹⁶  This was to demonstrate ¹⁷  his righteousness, because God in his forbearance had passed over the sins previously committed. ¹⁸  3:26 This was ¹⁹  also to demonstrate ²⁰  his righteousness in the present time, so that he would be just ²¹  and the justifier of the one who lives because of Jesus’ faithfulness. ²² 

Romans 4:4

4:4 Now to the one who works, his pay is not credited due to grace but due to obligation. ²³ 

Romans 5:20-21

5:20 Now the law came in ²⁴  so that the transgression ²⁵  may increase, but where sin increased, grace multiplied all the more, 5:21 so that just as sin reigned in death, so also grace will reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Romans 11:6

11:6 And if it is by grace, it is no longer by works, otherwise grace would no longer be grace.

Ephesians 1:6

1:6 to the praise of the glory of his grace ²⁶  that he has freely bestowed on us in his dearly loved Son. ²⁷ 

Ephesians 2:4-10

2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, 2:5 even though we were dead in transgressions, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you are saved! ²⁸  – 2:6 and he raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 2:7 to demonstrate in the coming ages ²⁹  the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward ³⁰  us in Christ Jesus. 2:8 For by grace you are saved ³¹  through faith, ³²  and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God; 2:9 it is not from ³³  works, so that no one can boast. ³⁴  2:10 For we are his workmanship, having been created in Christ Jesus for good works that God prepared beforehand so we may do them. ³⁵ 

Titus 2:11

2:11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people. ³⁶ 

Titus 3:4-7

3:4 ³⁷  But “when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for mankind appeared, 3:5 he saved us not by works of righteousness that we have done but on the basis of his mercy, through the washing of the new birth and the renewing of the Holy Spirit, 3:6 whom he poured out on us in full measure ³⁸  through Jesus Christ our Savior. 3:7 And so, ³⁹  since we have been justified by his grace, we become heirs with the confident expectation of eternal life.” ⁴⁰ 

Titus 3:1

Conduct Toward Those Outside the Church

3:1 Remind them to be subject to rulers and ⁴¹  authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work.

Titus 1:12

1:12 A certain one of them, in fact, one of their own prophets, said, “Cretans are always liars, evil beasts, lazy gluttons.” ⁴² 

[14:3]  ¹ tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text, but is implied.

[14:3]  ² sn The Lord testified to the message by granting the signs described in the following clause.

[14:3]  ³ tn Grk “word.”

[14:3]  ⁴ tn Here the context indicates the miraculous nature of the signs mentioned.

[2:10]  ⁵ tn Grk “behold.”

[2:10]  ⁶ tn Grk “I evangelize to you great joy.”

[2:11]  ⁷ sn The Greek word for today (σήμερον, shmeron) occurs eleven times in the Gospel of Luke (2:11; 4:21; 5:26; 12:28; 13:32-33; 19:5, 9; 22:34, 61; 23:43) and nine times in Acts. Its use, especially in passages such as 2:11, 4:21, 5:26; 19:5, 9, signifies the dawning of the era of messianic salvation and the fulfillment of the plan of God. Not only does it underscore the idea of present fulfillment in Jesus’ ministry, but it also indicates salvific fulfillment present in the church (cf. Acts 1:6; 3:18; D. L. Bock, Luke [BECNT], 1:412; I. H. Marshall, Luke, [NIGTC], 873).

[2:11]  ⁸ tn Or “town.” See the note on “city” in v. 4.

[2:11]  ⁹ tn This is another indication of a royal, messianic connection.

[2:11]  ¹⁰ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[3:24]  ¹¹ tn Or “declared righteous.” Grk “being justified,” as a continuation of the preceding clause. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:25]  ¹² tn Or “purposed, intended.”

[3:25]  ¹³ tn Grk “whom God publicly displayed.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:25]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “in his blood.” The prepositional phrase ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι (ejn tw aujtou {aimati) is difficult to interpret. It is traditionally understood to refer to the atoning sacrifice Jesus made when he shed his blood on the cross, and as a modifier of ἱλαστήριον (Jilasthrion). This interpretation fits if ἱλαστήριον is taken to refer to a sacrifice. But if ἱλαστήριον is taken to refer to the place where atonement is made as this translation has done (see note on the phrase “mercy seat”), this interpretation of ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι creates a violent mixed metaphor. Within a few words Paul would switch from referring to Jesus as the place where atonement was made to referring to Jesus as the atoning sacrifice itself. A viable option which resolves this problem is to see ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι as modifying the verb προέθετο (proeqeto). If it modifies the verb, it would explain the time or place in which God publicly displayed Jesus as the mercy seat; the reference to blood would be a metaphorical way of speaking of Jesus’ death. This is supported by the placement of ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι in the Greek text (it follows the noun, separated from it by another prepositional phrase) and by stylistic parallels with Rom 1:4. This is the interpretation the translation has followed, although it is recognized that many interpreters favor different options and translations. The prepositional phrase has been moved forward in the sentence to emphasize its connection with the verb, and the referent of the metaphorical language has been specified in the translation. For a detailed discussion of this interpretation, see D. P. Bailey, “Jesus As the Mercy Seat: The Semantics and Theology of Paul’s Use of Hilasterion in Romans 3:25” (Ph.D. diss., University of Cambridge, 1999).

[3:25]  ¹⁵ tn The word ἱλαστήριον (Jilasthrion) may carry the general sense “place of satisfaction,” referring to the place where God’s wrath toward sin is satisfied. More likely, though, it refers specifically to the “mercy seat,” i.e., the covering of the ark where the blood was sprinkled in the OT ritual on the Day of Atonement (Yom Kippur). This term is used only one other time in the NT: Heb 9:5, where it is rendered “mercy seat.” There it describes the altar in the most holy place (holy of holies). Thus Paul is saying that God displayed Jesus as the “mercy seat,” the place where propitiation was accomplished. See N. S. L. Fryer, “The Meaning and Translation of Hilasterion in Romans 3:25,” EvQ 59 (1987): 99-116, who concludes the term is a neuter accusative substantive best translated “mercy seat” or “propitiatory covering,” and D. P. Bailey, “Jesus As the Mercy Seat: The Semantics and Theology of Paul’s Use of Hilasterion in Romans 3:25” (Ph.D. diss., University of Cambridge, 1999), who argues that this is a direct reference to the mercy seat which covered the ark of the covenant.

[3:25]  ¹⁶ tn The prepositional phrase διὰ πίστεως (dia pistew") here modifies the noun ἱλαστήριον (Jilasthrion). As such it forms a complete noun phrase and could be written as “mercy-seat-accessible-through-faith” to emphasize the singular idea. See Rom 1:4 for a similar construction. The word “accessible” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied to clarify the idea expressed by the prepositional phrase (cf. NRSV: “effective through faith”).

[3:25]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “for a demonstration,” giving the purpose of God’s action in v. 25a. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:25]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “because of the passing over of sins previously committed in the forbearance of God.”

[3:26]  ¹⁹ tn The words “This was” have been repeated from the previous verse to clarify that this is a continuation of that thought. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[3:26]  ²⁰ tn Grk “toward a demonstration,” repeating and expanding the purpose of God’s action in v. 25a.

[3:26]  ²¹ tn Or “righteous.”

[3:26]  ²² tn Or “of the one who has faith in Jesus.” See note on “faithfulness of Jesus Christ” in v. 22 for the rationale behind the translation “Jesus’ faithfulness.”

[4:4]  ²³ tn Grk “not according to grace but according to obligation.”

[5:20]  ²⁴ tn Grk “slipped in.”

[5:20]  ²⁵ tn Or “trespass.”

[1:6]  ²⁶ tn Or “to the praise of his glorious grace.” Many translations translate δόξης τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ (doxh" th" carito" autou, literally “of the glory of his grace”) with τῆς χάριτος as an attributed genitive (cf., e.g., NIV, NRSV, ESV). The translation above has retained a literal rendering in order to make clear the relationship of this phrase to the other two similar phrases in v. 12 and 14, which affect the way one divides the material in the passage.

[1:6]  ²⁷ tn Grk “the beloved.” The term ἠγαπημένῳ (hgaphmenw) means “beloved,” but often bears connotations of “only beloved” in an exclusive sense. “His dearly loved Son” picks up this connotation.

[2:5]  ²⁸ tn Or “by grace you have been saved.” The perfect tense in Greek connotes both completed action (“you have been saved”) and continuing results (“you are saved”).

[2:7]  ²⁹ tn Or possibly “to the Aeons who are about to come.”

[2:7]  ³⁰ tn Or “upon.”

[2:8]  ³¹ tn See note on the same expression in v. 5.

[2:8]  ³² tc The feminine article is found before πίστεως (pistews, “faith”) in the Byzantine text as well as in A Ψ 1881 pc. Perhaps for some scribes the article was intended to imply creedal fidelity as a necessary condition of salvation (“you are saved through the faith”), although elsewhere in the corpus Paulinum the phrase διὰ τῆς πίστεως (dia th" pistew") is used for the act of believing rather than the content of faith (cf. Rom 3:30, 31; Gal 3:14; Eph 3:17; Col 2:12). On the other side, strong representatives of the Alexandrian and Western texts (א B D* F G P 0278 6 33 1739 al bo) lack the article. Hence, both text-critically and exegetically, the meaning of the text here is most likely “saved through faith” as opposed to “saved through the faith.” Regarding the textual problem, the lack of the article is the preferred reading.

[2:9]  ³³ tn Or “not as a result of.”

[2:9]  ³⁴ tn Grk “lest anyone should boast.”

[2:10]  ³⁵ tn Grk “so that we might walk in them” (or “by them”).

[2:11]  ³⁶ tn Grk “all men”; but ἀνθρώποις (anqrwpois) is generic here, referring to both men and women.

[3:4]  ³⁷ tn Verses 4-7 are set as poetry in NA²⁶/NA²⁷. These verses probably constitute the referent of the expression “this saying” in v. 8.

[3:6]  ³⁸ tn Or “on us richly.”

[3:7]  ³⁹ tn This is the conclusion of a single, skillfully composed sentence in Greek encompassing Titus 3:4-7. Showing the goal of God’s merciful salvation, v. 7 begins literally, “in order that, being justified…we might become heirs…”

[3:7]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “heirs according to the hope of eternal life.”

[3:1]  ⁴¹ tc Most later witnesses (D² 0278 Ï lat sy) have καί (kai, “and”) after ἀρχαῖς (arcai", “rulers”), though the earliest and best witnesses (א A C D* F G Ψ 33 104 1739 1881) lack the conjunction. Although the καί is most likely not authentic, it has been added in translation due to the requirements of English style. For more discussion, see TCGNT 586.

[1:12]  ⁴² sn A saying attributed to the poet Epimenides of Crete (6th century b.c.).