Deuteronomy 6:2

6:2 and that you may so revere the Lord your God that you will keep all his statutes and commandments ¹  that I am giving ²  you – you, your children, and your grandchildren – all your lives, to prolong your days.

Psalms 105:44-45

105:44 He handed the territory of nations over to them,

and they took possession of what other peoples had produced, ³ 

105:45 so that they might keep his commands

and obey ⁴  his laws.

Praise the Lord!

Jeremiah 31:33-34

31:33 “But I will make a new covenant with the whole nation of Israel ⁵  after I plant them back in the land,” ⁶  says the Lord. ⁷  “I will ⁸  put my law within them ⁹  and write it on their hearts and minds. ¹⁰  I will be their God and they will be my people. ¹¹ 

31:34 “People will no longer need to teach their neighbors and relatives to know me. ¹²  For all of them, from the least important to the most important, will know me,” ¹³  says the Lord. “For ¹⁴  I will forgive their sin and will no longer call to mind the wrong they have done.”

Jeremiah 32:39-40

32:39 I will give them a single-minded purpose to live in a way that always shows respect for me. They will want to do that for ¹⁵  their own good and the good of the children who descend from them. 32:40 I will make a lasting covenant ¹⁶  with them that I will never stop doing good to them. ¹⁷  I will fill their hearts and minds with respect for me so that ¹⁸  they will never again turn ¹⁹  away from me.

Ezekiel 36:24-27

36:24 “‘I will take you from the nations and gather you from all the countries; then I will bring you to your land. 36:25 I will sprinkle you with pure water ²⁰  and you will be clean from all your impurities. I will purify you from all your idols. 36:26 I will give you a new heart, and I will put a new spirit within you. I will remove the heart of stone ²¹  from your body and give you a heart of flesh. ²²  36:27 I will put my Spirit within you; ²³  I will take the initiative and you will obey my statutes ²⁴  and carefully observe my regulations. ²⁵ 

Matthew 1:21

1:21 She will give birth to a son and you will name him ²⁶  Jesus, ²⁷  because he will save his people from their sins.”

Ephesians 1:4

1:4 For ²⁸  he chose us in Christ ²⁹  before the foundation of the world that we may be holy and unblemished ³⁰  in his sight ³¹  in love. ³² 

Ephesians 2:10

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. ³³ 

Ephesians 4:24

4:24 and to put on the new man who has been created in God’s image ³⁴  – in righteousness and holiness that comes from truth. ³⁵ 

Ephesians 4:1

Live in Unity

4:1 I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, ³⁶  urge you to live ³⁷  worthily of the calling with which you have been called, ³⁸ 

Ephesians 4:1

Live in Unity

4:1 I, therefore, the prisoner for the Lord, ³⁹  urge you to live ⁴⁰  worthily of the calling with which you have been called, ⁴¹ 

Ephesians 4:7

4:7 But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of the gift of Christ.

Ephesians 4:2

4:2 with all humility and gentleness, ⁴²  with patience, bearing with ⁴³  one another in love,

Ephesians 2:13

2:13 But now in Christ Jesus you who used to be far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ. ⁴⁴ 

Ephesians 2:2

2:2 in which ⁴⁵  you formerly lived ⁴⁶  according to this world’s present path, ⁴⁷  according to the ruler of the kingdom ⁴⁸  of the air, the ruler of ⁴⁹  the spirit ⁵⁰  that is now energizing ⁵¹  the sons of disobedience, ⁵² 

Ephesians 1:9

1:9 He did this when he revealed ⁵³  to us the secret ⁵⁴  of his will, according to his good pleasure that he set forth ⁵⁵  in Christ, ⁵⁶ 

Titus 2:11-14

2:11 For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation to all people. ⁵⁷  2:12 It trains us ⁵⁸  to reject godless ways ⁵⁹  and worldly desires and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives in the present age, 2:13 as we wait for the happy fulfillment of our hope in the glorious appearing ⁶⁰  of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ. ⁶¹  2:14 He ⁶²  gave himself for us to set us free from every kind of lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are truly his, ⁶³  who are eager to do good. ⁶⁴ 

Titus 2:1

Conduct Consistent with Sound Teaching

2:1 But as for you, communicate the behavior that goes with ⁶⁵  sound teaching.

Titus 1:14-16

1:14 and not pay attention to Jewish myths ⁶⁶  and commands of people who reject the truth. 1:15 All is pure to those who are pure. But to those who are corrupt and unbelieving, nothing is pure, but both their minds and consciences are corrupted. 1:16 They profess to know God but with their deeds they deny him, since they are detestable, disobedient, and unfit for any good deed.

Titus 1:2

1:2 in hope of eternal life, which God, who does not lie, promised before the ages began. ⁶⁷ 

Titus 1:4-8

1:4 To Titus, my genuine son in a common faith. Grace and peace from God the Father and Christ Jesus our Savior!

Titus’ Task on Crete

1:5 The reason I left you in Crete was to set in order the remaining matters and to appoint elders in every town, as I directed you. 1:6 An elder must be blameless, ⁶⁸  the husband of one wife, ⁶⁹  with faithful children ⁷⁰  who cannot be charged with dissipation or rebellion. 1:7 For the overseer ⁷¹  must be blameless as one entrusted with God’s work, ⁷²  not arrogant, not prone to anger, not a drunkard, not violent, not greedy for gain. 1:8 Instead he must be hospitable, devoted to what is good, sensible, upright, devout, and self-controlled.

[6:2]  ¹ tn Here the terms are not the usual חֻקִּים (khuqqim) and מִשְׁפָּטִים (mishpatim; as in v. 1) but חֻקֹּת (khuqqot, “statutes”) and מִצְוֹת (mitsot, “commandments”). It is clear that these terms are used interchangeably and that their technical precision ought not be overly stressed.

[6:2]  ² tn Heb “commanding.” For stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy, “giving” has been used in the translation.

[105:44]  ³ tn Heb “and the [product of the] work of peoples they possessed.”

[105:45]  ⁴ tn Heb “guard.”

[31:33]  ⁵ tn Heb “with the house of Israel.” All commentators agree that the term here refers to both the whole nation which was divided into the house of Israel and the house of Judah in v. 30.

[31:33]  ⁶ tn Heb “after those days.” Commentators are generally agreed that this refers to the return from exile and the repopulation of the land referred to in vv. 27-28 and not to something subsequent to the time mentioned in v. 30. This is the sequencing that is also presupposed in other new covenant passages such as Deut 30:1-6; Ezek 11:17-20; 36:24-28.

[31:33]  ⁷ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[31:33]  ⁸ tn Heb “‘But this is the covenant that I will make with the house of Israel after these days:’ says the Lord, ‘I will….’” The sentence has been reworded and restructured to avoid the awkwardness of the original style.

[31:33]  ⁹ tn Heb “in their inward parts.” The Hebrew word here refers to the seat of the thoughts, emotions, and decisions (Jer 9:8 [9:7 HT]). It is essentially synonymous with “heart” in Hebrew psychological terms.

[31:33]  ¹⁰ tn The words “and minds” is not in the text but is supplied in the translation to bring the English psychology more into line with the Hebrew where the “heart” is the center both of knowing/thinking/reflecting and deciding/willing.

[31:33]  ¹¹ sn Compare Jer 24:7; 30:22; 31:1 and see the study note on 30:2.

[31:34]  ¹² tn Heb “teach…, saying, ‘Know the Lord.’” The indirect quote has been chosen for stylistic reasons, i.e., to better parallel the following line.

[31:34]  ¹³ sn This statement should be understood against the background of Jer 8:8-9 where class distinctions were drawn and certain people were considered to have more awareness and responsibility for knowing the law and also Jer 5:1-5 and 9:3-9 where the sinfulness of Israel was seen to be universal across these class distinctions and no trust was to be placed in friends, neighbors, or relatives because all without distinction had cast off God’s yoke (i.e., refused to submit themselves to his authority).

[31:34]  ¹⁴ tn The Hebrew particle כִּי (ki) that introduces this clause refers to more than just the preceding clause (i.e., that all will know the Lord) but to all of vv. 31-34a (See BDB 474 s.v. כִּי 3.c).

[32:39]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “I will give to them one heart and one way to [= in order that they may] fear me all the days for good to them.” The phrase “one heart” refers both to unanimity of will and accord (cf. 1 Chr 12:38 [12:39 HT]; 2 Chr 30:12) and to singleness of purpose or intent (cf. Ezek 11:19 and see BDB 525 s.v. ֵלב 4 where reference is made to “inclinations, resolutions, and determinations of the will”). The phrase “one way” refers to one way of life or conduct (cf. BDB 203 s.v. דֶּרֶךְ 6.a where reference is made to moral action and character), a way of life that is further qualified by the goal of showing “fear, reverence, respect” for the Lord. The Hebrew sentence has been broken up to avoid a long complex sentence in English which is contrary to contemporary English style. However, an attempt has been made to preserve all the connections of the original.

[32:40]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “an everlasting covenant.” For the rationale for the rendering “agreement” and the nature of the biblical covenants see the study note on 11:2.

[32:40]  ¹⁷ tn Or “stop being gracious to them” or “stop blessing them with good”; Heb “turn back from them to do good to them.”

[32:40]  ¹⁸ tn Or “I will make them want to fear and respect me so much that”; Heb “I will put the fear of me in their hearts.” However, as has been noted several times, “heart” in Hebrew is more the center of the volition (and intellect) than the center of emotions as it is in English. Both translations are intended to reflect the difference in psychology.

[32:40]  ¹⁹ tn The words “never again” are not in the text but are implicit from the context and are supplied not only by this translation but by a number of others.

[36:25]  ²⁰ sn The Lord here uses a metaphor from the realm of ritual purification. For the use of water in ritual cleansing, see Exod 30:19-20; Lev 14:51; Num 19:18; Heb 10:22.

[36:26]  ²¹ sn That is, a heart which symbolizes a will that is stubborn and unresponsive (see 1 Sam 25:37). In Rabbinic literature a “stone” was associated with an evil inclination (b. Sukkah 52a).

[36:26]  ²² sn That is, a heart which symbolizes a will that is responsive and obedient to God.

[36:27]  ²³ tn Or “in the midst of you.” The word “you” is plural.

[36:27]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and I will do that which in my statutes you will walk.” The awkward syntax (verb “to do, act” + accusative sign + relative clause + prepositional phrase + second person verb) is unique, though Eccl 3:14 contains a similar construction. In the last line of that verse we read that “God acts so that (relative pronoun) they fear before him.” However, unlike Ezek 36:27, the statement has no accusative sign before the relative pronoun.

[36:27]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and my laws you will guard and you will do them.” Jer 31:31-34 is parallel to this passage.

[1:21]  ²⁶ tn Grk “you will call his name.”

[1:21]  ²⁷ sn The Greek form of the name Ihsous, which was translated into Latin as Jesus, is the same as the Hebrew Yeshua (Joshua), which means “Yahweh saves” (Yahweh is typically rendered as “Lord” in the OT). It was a fairly common name among Jews in 1st century Palestine, as references to a number of people by this name in the LXX and Josephus indicate.

[1:4]  ²⁸ tn Grk “just as.” Eph 1:3-14 are one long sentence in Greek that must be broken up in English translation. Verse 4 expresses the reason why God the Father is blessed (cf. BDAG 494 s.v. καθώς 3).

[1:4]  ²⁹ tn Grk “in him.”

[1:4]  ³⁰ sn The Greek word translated unblemished (ἀμώμους, amwmous) is often used of an acceptable paschal lamb. Christ, as our paschal lamb, is also said to be unblemished (Heb 9:14; 1 Pet 1:19). Since believers are in Christ, God views them positionally and will make them ultimately without blemish as well (Jude 24; Eph 5:27; Col 1:22).

[1:4]  ³¹ tn Grk “before him.”

[1:4]  ³² tn The prepositional phrase ἐν ἀγάπῃ (en agaph, “in love”) may modify one of three words or phrases: (1) “chose,” (2) “holy and unblemished,” both in v. 4, or (3) “by predestining” in v. 5. If it modifies “chose,” it refers to God’s motivation in that election, but this option is unlikely because of the placement of the prepositional phrase far away from the verb. The other two options are more likely. If it modifies “holy and unblemished,” it specifies that our holiness cannot be divorced from love. This view is in keeping with the author’s use of ἀγάπη to refer often to human love in Ephesians, but the placement of the prepositional phrase not immediately following the words it modifies would be slightly awkward. If it modifies “by predestining” (v. 5), again the motivation of God’s choice is love. This would fit the focus of the passage on God’s gracious actions toward believers, but it could be considered slightly redundant in that God’s predestination itself proves his love.

[2:10]  ³³ tn Grk “so that we might walk in them” (or “by them”).

[4:24]  ³⁴ tn Or “in God’s likeness.” Grk “according to God.” The preposition κατά used here denotes a measure of similarity or equality (BDAG 513 s.v. B.5.b.α).

[4:24]  ³⁵ tn Or “in righteousness and holiness which is based on truth” or “originated from truth.”

[4:1]  ³⁶ tn Grk “prisoner in the Lord.”

[4:1]  ³⁷ tn Grk “walk.” The verb “walk” in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking.

[4:1]  ³⁸ 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.

[4:1]  ³⁹ tn Grk “prisoner in the Lord.”

[4:1]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “walk.” The verb “walk” in the NT letters refers to the conduct of one’s life, not to physical walking.

[4:1]  ⁴¹ 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.

[4:2]  ⁴² tn Or “meekness.” The word is often used in Hellenistic Greek of the merciful execution of justice on behalf of those who have no voice by those who are in a position of authority (Matt 11:29; 21:5).

[4:2]  ⁴³ tn Or “putting up with”; or “forbearing.”

[2:13]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “have come near in the blood of Christ.”

[2:2]  ⁴⁵ sn The relative pronoun which is feminine as is sins, indicating that sins is the antecedent.

[2:2]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “walked.”

[2:2]  ⁴⁷ tn Or possibly “Aeon.”

[2:2]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “domain, [place of] authority.”

[2:2]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “of” (but see the note on the word “spirit” later in this verse).

[2:2]  ⁵⁰ sn The ruler of the kingdom of the air is also the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience. Although several translations regard the ruler to be the same as the spirit, this is unlikely since the cases in Greek are different (ruler is accusative and spirit is genitive). To get around this, some have suggested that the genitive for spirit is a genitive of apposition. However, the semantics of the genitive of apposition are against such an interpretation (cf. ExSyn 100).

[2:2]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “working in.”

[2:2]  ⁵² sn Sons of disobedience is a Semitic idiom that means “people characterized by disobedience.” However, it also contains a subtle allusion to vv. 4-10: Some of those sons of disobedience have become sons of God.

[1:9]  ⁵³ tn Or “He did this by revealing”; Grk “making known, revealing.” Verse 9 begins with a participle dependent on “lavished” in v. 8; the adverbial participle could be understood as temporal (“when he revealed”), which would be contemporaneous to the action of the finite verb “lavished,” or as means (“by revealing”). The participle has been translated here with the temporal nuance to allow for means to also be a possible interpretation. If the translation focused instead upon means, the temporal nuance would be lost as the time frame for the action of the participle would become indistinct.

[1:9]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “mystery.” In the NT μυστήριον (musthrion) refers to a divine secret previously undisclosed.

[1:9]  ⁵⁵ tn Or “purposed,” “publicly displayed.” Cf. Rom 3:25.

[1:9]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “in him”; the referent (Christ) has been specified in the translation for the sake of clarity.

[2:11]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “all men”; but ἀνθρώποις (anqrwpois) is generic here, referring to both men and women.

[2:12]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “training us” (as a continuation of the previous clause). Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started at the beginning of v. 12 by translating the participle παιδεύουσα (paideuousa) as a finite verb and supplying the pronoun “it” as subject.

[2:12]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “ungodliness.”

[2:13]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “the blessed hope and glorious appearing.”

[2:13]  ⁶¹ 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.

[2:14]  ⁶² tn Grk “who” (as a continuation of the previous clause).

[2:14]  ⁶³ tn Or “a people who are his very own.”

[2:14]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “for good works.”

[2:1]  ⁶⁵ tn Grk “say what is fitting for sound teaching” (introducing the behavior called for in this chapter.).

[1:14]  ⁶⁶ sn Jewish myths were legendary tales characteristic of the false teachers in Ephesus and Crete. See parallels in 1 Tim 1:4; 4:7; and 2 Tim 4:4.

[1:2]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “before eternal ages.”

[1:6]  ⁶⁸ tn Grk “if anyone is blameless…” as a continuation of v. 5b, beginning to describe the elder’s character.

[1:6]  ⁶⁹ tn Or “married only once,” “devoted solely to his wife.” See the note on “wife” in 1 Tim 3:2; also 1 Tim 3:12; 5:9.

[1:6]  ⁷⁰ tn Or “believing children.” The phrase could be translated “believing children,” but the parallel with 1 Tim 3:4 (“keeping his children in control”) argues for the sense given in the translation.

[1:7]  ⁷¹ sn The overseer is another term for the same official position of leadership as the “elder.” This is seen in the interchange of the two terms in this passage and in Acts 20:17, 28, as well as in the parallels between these verses and 1 Tim 3:1-7.

[1:7]  ⁷² tn Grk “as God’s steward.”