Deuteronomy 5:27

5:27 You go near so that you can hear everything the Lord our God is saying and then you can tell us whatever he ¹  says to you; then we will pay attention and do it.”

Genesis 18:22

18:22 The two men turned ²  and headed ³  toward Sodom, but Abraham was still standing before the Lord. ⁴ 

Exodus 19:16

19:16 On ⁵  the third day in the morning there was thunder and lightning and a dense ⁶  cloud on the mountain, and the sound of a very loud ⁷  horn; ⁸  all the people who were in the camp trembled.

Exodus 20:18-21

20:18 All the people were seeing ⁹  the thundering and the lightning, and heard ¹⁰  the sound of the horn, and saw ¹¹  the mountain smoking – and when ¹²  the people saw it they trembled with fear ¹³  and kept their distance. ¹⁴  20:19 They said to Moses, “You speak ¹⁵  to us and we will listen, but do not let God speak with us, lest we die.” 20:20 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear, for God has come to test you, ¹⁶  that the fear of him ¹⁷  may be before you so that you do not ¹⁸  sin.” 20:21 The people kept ¹⁹  their distance, but Moses drew near the thick darkness ²⁰  where God was. ²¹ 

Exodus 24:2-3

24:2 Moses alone may come ²²  near the Lord, but the others ²³  must not come near, ²⁴  nor may the people go up with him.”

24:3 Moses came ²⁵  and told the people all the Lord’s words ²⁶  and all the decisions. All the people answered together, ²⁷  “We are willing to do ²⁸  all the words that the Lord has said,”

Numbers 16:48

16:48 He stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stopped.

Psalms 106:23

106:23 He threatened ²⁹  to destroy them,

but ³⁰  Moses, his chosen one, interceded with him ³¹ 

and turned back his destructive anger. ³² 

Jeremiah 30:21

30:21 One of their own people will be their leader.

Their ruler will come from their own number. ³³ 

I will invite him to approach me, and he will do so. ³⁴ 

For no one would dare approach me on his own. ³⁵ 

I, the Lord, affirm it! ³⁶ 

Zechariah 3:1-5

Vision Four: The Priest

3:1 Next I saw Joshua the high priest ³⁷  standing before the angel of the Lord, with Satan ³⁸  standing at his right hand to accuse him. 3:2 The Lord ³⁹  said to Satan, “May the Lord rebuke you, Satan! May the Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, ⁴⁰  rebuke you! Isn’t this man like a burning stick snatched from the fire?” 3:3 Now Joshua was dressed in filthy clothes ⁴¹  as he stood there before the angel. 3:4 The angel ⁴²  spoke up to those standing all around, “Remove his filthy clothes.” Then he said to Joshua, “I have freely forgiven your iniquity and will dress you ⁴³  in fine clothing.” 3:5 Then I spoke up, “Let a clean turban be put on his head.” So they put a clean turban on his head and clothed him, while the angel of the Lord stood nearby.

Galatians 3:19

3:19 Why then was the law given? ⁴⁴  It was added ⁴⁵  because of transgressions, ⁴⁶  until the arrival of the descendant ⁴⁷  to whom the promise had been made. It was administered ⁴⁸  through angels by an intermediary. ⁴⁹ 

Hebrews 9:24

9:24 For Christ did not enter a sanctuary made with hands – the representation ⁵⁰  of the true sanctuary ⁵¹  – but into heaven itself, and he appears now in God’s presence for us.

Hebrews 12:18-24

12:18 For you have not come to something that can be touched, ⁵²  to a burning fire and darkness and gloom and a whirlwind 12:19 and the blast of a trumpet and a voice uttering words ⁵³  such that those who heard begged to hear no more. ⁵⁴  12:20 For they could not bear what was commanded: “If even an animal touches the mountain, it must be stoned.” ⁵⁵  12:21 In fact, the scene ⁵⁶  was so terrifying that Moses said, “I shudder with fear.” ⁵⁷  12:22 But you have come to Mount Zion, the city ⁵⁸  of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to myriads of angels, to the assembly 12:23 and congregation of the firstborn, who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous, who have been made perfect, 12:24 and to Jesus, the mediator ⁵⁹  of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks of something better than Abel’s does. ⁶⁰ 

[5:27]  ¹ tn Heb “the Lord our God.” See note on “He” in 5:3.

[18:22]  ² tn Heb “And the men turned from there.” The word “two” is not in the Hebrew text, but is supplied here for clarity. Gen 19:1 mentions only two individuals (described as “angels”), while Abraham had entertained three visitors (18:2). The implication is that the Lord was the third visitor, who remained behind with Abraham here. The words “from there” are not included in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[18:22]  ³ tn Heb “went.”

[18:22]  ⁴ tc An ancient Hebrew scribal tradition reads “but the Lord remained standing before Abraham.” This reading is problematic because the phrase “standing before” typically indicates intercession, but the Lord would certainly not be interceding before Abraham.

[19:16]  ⁵ tn Heb “and it was on.”

[19:16]  ⁶ tn Heb “heavy” (כָּבֵד, kaved).

[19:16]  ⁷ tn Literally “strong” (חָזָק, khazaq).

[19:16]  ⁸ tn The word here is שֹׁפָר (shofar), the normal word for “horn.” This word is used especially to announce something important in a public event (see 1 Kgs 1:34; 2 Sam 6:15). The previous word used in the context (v. 16) was יֹבֵל (yovel, “ram’s horn”).

[20:18]  ⁹ tn The participle is used here for durative action in the past time (GKC 359 §116.o).

[20:18]  ¹⁰ tn The verb “to see” (רָאָה, ra’ah) refers to seeing with all the senses, or perceiving. W. C. Kaiser suggests that this is an example of the figure of speech called zeugma because the verb “saw” yokes together two objects, one that suits the verb and the other that does not. So, the verb “heard” is inserted here to clarify (“Exodus,” EBC 2:427).

[20:18]  ¹¹ tn The verb “saw” is supplied here because it is expected in English (see the previous note on “heard”).

[20:18]  ¹² tn The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive is here subordinated as a temporal clause to the following clause, which receives the prominence.

[20:18]  ¹³ tn The meaning of נוּעַ (nua’) is “to shake, sway to and fro” in fear. Compare Isa 7:2 – “and his heart shook…as the trees of the forest shake with the wind.”

[20:18]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “and they stood from/at a distance.”

[20:19]  ¹⁵ tn The verb is a Piel imperative. In this context it has more of the sense of a request than a command. The independent personal pronoun “you” emphasizes the subject and forms the contrast with God’s speaking.

[20:20]  ¹⁶ tn נַסּוֹת (nassot) is the Piel infinitive construct; it forms the purpose of God’s coming with all the accompanying phenomena. The verb can mean “to try, test, prove.” The sense of “prove” fits this context best because the terrifying phenomena were intended to put the fear of God in their hearts so that they would obey. In other words, God was inspiring them to obey, not simply testing to see if they would.

[20:20]  ¹⁷ tn The suffix on the noun is an objective genitive, referring to the fear that the people would have of God (GKC 439 §135.m).

[20:20]  ¹⁸ tn The negative form לְבִלְתִּי (lÿvilti) is used here with the imperfect tense (see for other examples GKC 483 §152.x). This gives the imperfect the nuance of a final imperfect: that you might not sin. Others: to keep you from sin.

[20:21]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and they stood”; the referent (the people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[20:21]  ²⁰ sn The word עֲרָפֶל (’arafel) is used in poetry in Ps 18:9 and 1 Kgs 8:12; and it is used in Deut 4:11, 5:22 [19].

[20:21]  ²¹ sn It will not be hard to expound the passage on the Ten Commandments once their place in scripture has been determined. They, for the most part, are reiterated in the NT, in one way or another, usually with a much higher standard that requires attention to the spirit of the laws. Thus, these laws reveal God’s standard of righteousness by revealing sin. No wonder the Israelites were afraid when they saw the manifestation of God and heard his laws. When the whole covenant is considered, preamble and all, then it becomes clear that the motivation for obeying the commands is the person and the work of the covenant God – the one who redeemed his people. Obedience then becomes a response of devotion and adoration to the Redeemer who set them free. It becomes loyal service, not enslavement to laws. The point could be worded this way: God requires that his covenant people, whom he has redeemed, and to whom he has revealed himself, give their absolute allegiance and obedience to him. This means they will worship and serve him and safeguard the well-being of each other.

[24:2]  ²² tn The verb is a perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive; it and the preceding perfect tense follow the imperative, and so have either a force of instruction, or, as taken here, are the equivalent of an imperfect tense (of permission).

[24:2]  ²³ tn Heb “they.”

[24:2]  ²⁴ tn Now the imperfect tense negated is used; here the prohibition would fit (“they will not come near”), or the obligatory (“they must not”) in which the subjects are obliged to act – or not act in this case.

[24:3]  ²⁵ sn The general consensus among commentators is that this refers to Moses’ coming from the mountain after he made the ascent in 20:21. Here he came and told them the laws (written in 20:22-23:33), and of the call to come up to Yahweh.

[24:3]  ²⁶ sn The Decalogue may not be included here because the people had heard those commands themselves earlier.

[24:3]  ²⁷ tn The text simply has “one voice” (קוֹל אֶחָד, qol ’ekhad); this is an adverbial accusative of manner, telling how the people answered – “in one voice,” or unanimously (see GKC 375 §118.q).

[24:3]  ²⁸ tn The verb is the imperfect tense (נַעֲשֶׂה, na’aseh), although the form could be classified as a cohortative. If the latter, they would be saying that they are resolved to do what God said. If it is an imperfect, then the desiderative would make the most sense: “we are willing to do.” They are not presumptuously saying they are going to do all these things.

[106:23]  ²⁹ tn Heb “and he said.”

[106:23]  ³⁰ tn Heb “if not,” that is, “[and would have] if [Moses] had not.”

[106:23]  ³¹ tn Heb “stood in the gap before him.”

[106:23]  ³² tn Heb “to turn back his anger from destroying.”

[30:21]  ³³ sn The statement their ruler will come from their own number accords with the regulation in Deut 17:15. They would not be ruled by a foreign leader but by one of their own people. In v. 9 he is specifically said to come from the Davidic line. See the study note there.

[30:21]  ³⁴ sn Ordinarily this prerogative was confined to the priests and the Levites and even then under strict regulations (cf., e.g., Num 8:19; 16:10; Lev 16:10; 21:17; 22:3). Uzziah king of Judah violated this and suffered leprosy for having done so (2 Chr 26:16-20). It is clear, however, that both David and Solomon on occasion exercised priestly functions in the presence of the ark or the altar which it was normally lawful for only the priests to approach (cf., e.g., 2 Sam 6:13-14; 1 Kgs 8:22, 54-55). Here reference is probably not to the normal prerogatives of offering sacrifice or burning incense but access to God’s special presence at special times for the purpose of consultation.

[30:21]  ³⁵ tn Heb “For who is he who would pledge his heart to draw near to me.” The question is a rhetorical one expecting the answer “no one” and is a way of expressing an emphatic negative (see BDB 566 s.v. מִי f[c]). The concept of “pledging” something refers to putting up security in guarantee of payment. Here the word is used figuratively of “putting up one’s heart [i.e., his very being (cf. BDB 524 s.v. לֵב 7 and Ps 22:26)]” for the privilege of access to God. The rhetorical question denies that any one would do that if he were not bidden by God to do so.

[30:21]  ³⁶ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[3:1]  ³⁷ sn Joshua the high priest mentioned here is the son of the priest Jehozadak, mentioned also in Hag 1:1 (cf. Ezra 2:2; 3:2, 8; 4:3; 5:2; 10:18; Neh 7:7; 12:1, 7, 10, 26). He also appears to have been the grandfather of the high priest contemporary with Nehemiah ca. 445 b.c. (Neh 12:10).

[3:1]  ³⁸ tn The Hebrew term הַשָּׂטָן (hassatan, “the satan”) suggests not so much a personal name (as in almost all English translations) but an epithet, namely, “the adversary.” This evil being is otherwise thus described in Job 1 and 2 and 1 Chr 21:1. In this last passage the article is dropped and “the satan” becomes “Satan,” a personal name.

[3:2]  ³⁹ sn The juxtaposition of the messenger of the Lord in v. 1 and the Lord in v. 2 shows that here, at least, they are one and the same. See Zech 1:11, 12 where they are distinguished from each other.

[3:2]  ⁴⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:3]  ⁴¹ sn The Hebrew word צוֹאִים (tso’im) means “excrement.” This disgusting figure of speech suggests Joshua’s absolute disqualification for priestly service in the flesh, but v. 2 speaks of his having been rescued from that deplorable state by God’s grace. He is like a burning stick pulled out of the fire before it is consumed. This is a picture of cleansing, saving grace.

[3:4]  ⁴² tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the angel, cf. v. 1) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[3:4]  ⁴³ tn The occurrence of the infinitive absolute here for an expected imperfect 1st person common singular (or even imperative 2nd person masculine plural or preterite 3rd person masculine plural) is well-attested elsewhere. Most English translations render this as 1st person singular (“and I will clothe”), but cf. NAB “Take off…and clothe him.”

[3:19]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “Why then the law?”

[3:19]  ⁴⁵ tc For προσετέθη (proseteqh) several Western mss have ἐτέθη (eteqh, “it was established”; so D* F G it Ir^lat Ambst Spec). The net effect of this reading, in conjunction with the largely Western reading of πράξεων (praxewn) for παραβάσεων (parabasewn), seems to be a very positive assessment of the law. But there are compelling reasons for rejecting this reading: (1) externally, it is provincial and relatively late; (2) internally: (a) transcriptionally, there seems to be a much higher transcriptional probability that a scribe would try to smooth over Paul’s harsh saying here about the law than vice versa; (b) intrinsically: [1] Paul has already argued that the law came after the promise (vv. 15-18), indicating, more than likely, its temporary nature; [2] the verb “was added” in v. 19 (προσετέθη) is different from the verb in v. 15 (ἐπιδιατάσσεται, epidiatassetai); virtually all exegetes recognize this as an intentional linguistic shift on Paul’s part in order not to contradict his statement in v. 15; [3] the temper of 3:1–4:7 is decidedly against a positive statement about the Torah’s role in Heilsgeschichte.

[3:19]  ⁴⁶ tc παραδόσεων (paradosewn; “traditions, commandments”) is read by D*, while the vast majority of witnesses read παραβάσεων (parabasewn, “transgressions”). D’s reading makes little sense in this context. πράξεων (praxewn, “of deeds”) replaces παραβάσεων in Ì⁴⁶ F G it Ir^lat Ambst Spec. The wording is best taken as going with νόμος (nomo"; “Why then the law of deeds?”), as is evident by the consistent punctuation in the later witnesses. But such an expression is unpauline and superfluous; it was almost certainly added by some early scribe(s) to soften the blow of Paul’s statement.

[3:19]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “the seed.” See the note on the first occurrence of the word “descendant” in 3:16.

[3:19]  ⁴⁸ tn Or “was ordered.” L&N 31.22 has “was put into effect” here.

[3:19]  ⁴⁹ tn Many modern translations (NASB, NIV, NRSV) render this word (μεσίτης, mesith"; here and in v. 20) as “mediator,” but this conveys a wrong impression in contemporary English. If this is referring to Moses, he certainly did not “mediate” between God and Israel but was an intermediary on God’s behalf. Moses was not a mediator, for example, who worked for compromise between opposing parties. He instead was God’s representative to his people who enabled them to have a relationship, but entirely on God’s terms.

[9:24]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “prefiguration.”

[9:24]  ⁵¹ tn The word “sanctuary” is not in the Greek text at this point, but has been supplied for clarity.

[12:18]  ⁵² tn This describes the nation of Israel approaching God on Mt. Sinai (Exod 19). There is a clear contrast with the reference to Mount Zion in v. 22, so this could be translated “a mountain that can be touched.” But the word “mountain” does not occur here and the more vague description seems to be deliberate.

[12:19]  ⁵³ tn Grk “a voice of words.”

[12:19]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “a voice…from which those who heard begged that a word not be added to them.”

[12:20]  ⁵⁵ sn A quotation from Exod 19:12-13.

[12:21]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “that which appeared.”

[12:21]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “I am terrified and trembling.”

[12:22]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “and the city”; the conjunction is omitted in translation since it seems to be functioning epexegetically – that is, explaining further what is meant by “Mount Zion.”

[12:24]  ⁵⁹ tn The Greek word μεσίτης (mesith", “mediator”) in this context does not imply that Jesus was a mediator in the contemporary sense of the word, i.e., he worked for compromise between opposing parties. Here the term describes his function as the one who was used by God to enact a new covenant which established a new relationship between God and his people, but entirely on God’s terms.

[12:24]  ⁶⁰ sn Abel’s shed blood cried out to the Lord for justice and judgment, but Jesus’ blood speaks of redemption and forgiveness, something better than Abel’s does (Gen 4:10; Heb 9:11-14; 11:4).