Ezra 6:21-22

6:21 The Israelites who were returning from the exile ate it, along with all those who had joined them ¹  in separating themselves from the uncleanness of the nations of the land to seek the Lord God of Israel. 6:22 They observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with joy, for the Lord had given them joy and had changed the opinion ²  of the king of Assyria ³  toward them, so that he assisted ⁴  them in the work on the temple of God, the God of Israel.

Ezra 10:10-11

10:10 Then Ezra the priest stood up and said to them, “You have behaved in an unfaithful manner by taking foreign wives! This has contributed to the guilt of Israel. 10:11 Now give praise to the Lord God of your fathers, and do his will. Separate yourselves from the local residents ⁵  and from these foreign wives.”

Exodus 33:16

33:16 For how will it be known then that I have found favor in your sight, I and your people? Is it not by your going with us, so that we will be distinguished, I and your people, from all the people who are on the face of the earth?” ⁶ 

Numbers 23:9

23:9 For from the top of the rocks I see them; ⁷ 

from the hills I watch them. ⁸ 

Indeed, a nation that lives alone,

and it will not be reckoned ⁹  among the nations.

Nehemiah 9:2

9:2 Those truly of Israelite descent ¹⁰  separated from all the foreigners, ¹¹  standing and confessing their sins and the iniquities of their ancestors. ¹² 

Nehemiah 13:3

13:3 When they heard the law, they removed from Israel all who were of mixed ancestry.

Isaiah 52:11

52:11 Leave! Leave! Get out of there!

Don’t touch anything unclean!

Get out of it!

Stay pure, you who carry the Lord’s holy items! ¹³ 

Isaiah 52:2

52:2 Shake off the dirt! ¹⁴ 

Get up, captive ¹⁵  Jerusalem!

Take off the iron chains around your neck,

O captive daughter Zion!

Colossians 1:14-18

1:14 in whom we have redemption, ¹⁶  the forgiveness of sins.

The Supremacy of Christ

1:15 ¹⁷ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn ¹⁸  over all creation, ¹⁹ 

1:16 for all things in heaven and on earth were created by him – all things, whether visible or invisible, whether thrones or dominions, ²⁰  whether principalities or powers – all things were created through him and for him.

1:17 He himself is before all things and all things are held together ²¹  in him.

1:18 He is the head of the body, the church, as well as the beginning, the firstborn ²²  from among the dead, so that he himself may become first in all things. ²³ 

[6:21]  ¹ tn Heb “who had separated from the uncleanness of the nations of the land to them.”

[6:22]  ² tn Heb “heart.”

[6:22]  ³ sn The expression “king of Assyria” is anachronistic, since Assyria fell in 612 b.c., long before the events of this chapter. Perhaps the expression is intended subtly to contrast earlier kings of Assyria who were hostile toward Israel with this Persian king who showed them favor.

[6:22]  ⁴ tn Heb “to strengthen their hands.”

[10:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “the peoples of the land.”

[33:16]  ⁶ sn See W. Brueggemann, “The Crisis and Promise of Presence in Israel,” HBT 1 (1979): 47-86; and N. M. Waldman, “God’s Ways – A Comparative Note,” JQR 70 (1979): 67-70.

[23:9]  ⁷ tn Heb “him,” but here it refers to the Israelites (Israel).

[23:9]  ⁸ sn Balaam reports his observation of the nation of Israel spread out below him in the valley. Based on that vision, and the Lord’s word, he announces the uniqueness of Israel – they are not just like one of the other nations. He was correct, of course; they were the only people linked with the living God by covenant.

[23:9]  ⁹ tn The verb could also be taken as a reflexive – Israel does not consider itself as among the nations, meaning, they consider themselves to be unique.

[9:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the seed of Israel.”

[9:2]  ¹¹ tn Heb “sons of a foreigner.”

[9:2]  ¹² tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 9, 16, 23, 32, 34, 36).

[52:11]  ¹³ tn Heb “the vessels of the Lord” (so KJV, NAB).

[52:2]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “Shake yourself free from the dirt.”

[52:2]  ¹⁵ tc The Hebrew text has שְּׂבִי (shÿvi), which some understand as a feminine singular imperative from יָשַׁב (yashav, “sit”). The LXX, Vulgate, Syriac, and the Targum support the MT reading (the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a does indirectly). Some interpret this to mean “take your throne”: The Lord exhorts Jerusalem to get up from the dirt and sit, probably with the idea of sitting in a place of honor (J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah [NICOT], 2:361). However, the form is likely a corruption of שְׁבִיָּה (shÿviyyah, “captive”), which appears in the parallel line.

[1:14]  ¹⁶ tc διὰ τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ (dia tou {aimato" autou, “through his blood”) is read at this juncture by several minuscule mss (614 630 1505 2464 al) as well as a few, mostly secondary, versional and patristic witnesses. But the reading was prompted by the parallel in Eph 1:7 where the wording is solid. If these words had been in the original of Colossians, why would scribes omit them here but not in Eph 1:7? Further, the testimony on behalf of the shorter reading is quite overwhelming: {א A B C D F G Ψ 075 0150 6 33 1739 1881 Ï latt co as well as several other versions and fathers}. The conviction that “through his blood” is not authentic in Col 1:14 is as strong as the conviction that these words are authentic in Eph 1:7.

[1:15]  ¹⁷ sn This 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.

[1:15]  ¹⁸ tn The Greek term πρωτότοκος (prwtotokos) could refer either to first in order of time, such as a first born child, or it could refer to one who is preeminent in rank. M. J. Harris, Colossians and Philemon (EGGNT), 43, expresses the meaning of the word well: “The ‘firstborn’ was either the eldest child in a family or a person of preeminent rank. The use of this term to describe the Davidic king in Ps 88:28 LXX (=Ps 89:27 EVV), ‘I will also appoint him my firstborn (πρωτότοκον), the most exalted of the kings of the earth,’ indicates that it can denote supremacy in rank as well as priority in time. But whether the πρωτό- element in the word denotes time, rank, or both, the significance of the -τοκος element as indicating birth or origin (from τίκτω, give birth to) has been virtually lost except in ref. to lit. birth.” In Col 1:15 the emphasis is on the priority of Jesus’ rank as over and above creation (cf. 1:16 and the “for” clause referring to Jesus as Creator).

[1:15]  ¹⁹ tn The genitive construction πάσης κτίσεως (pash" ktisew") is a genitive of subordination and is therefore translated as “over all creation.” See ExSyn 103-4.

[1:16]  ²⁰ tn BDAG 579 s.v. κυριότης 3 suggests “bearers of the ruling powers, dominions” here.

[1:17]  ²¹ tn BDAG 973 s.v. συνίστημι B.3 suggests “continue, endure, exist, hold together” here.

[1:18]  ²² tn See the note on the term “firstborn” in 1:15. Here the reference to Jesus as the “firstborn from among the dead” seems to be arguing for a chronological priority, i.e., Jesus was the first to rise from the dead.

[1:18]  ²³ tn Grk “in order that he may become in all things, himself, first.”