Galatians 3:3

3:3 Are you so foolish? Although you began ¹  with ²  the Spirit, are you now trying to finish ³  by human effort? ⁴ 

Romans 8:3

8:3 For God achieved what the law could not do because ⁵  it was weakened through the flesh. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and concerning sin, he condemned sin in the flesh,

Colossians 2:20-23

2:20 If you have died with Christ to the elemental spirits ⁶  of the world, why do you submit to them as though you lived in the world? 2:21 “Do not handle! Do not taste! Do not touch!” 2:22 These are all destined to perish with use, founded as they are ⁷  on human commands and teachings. ⁸  2:23 Even though they have the appearance of wisdom ⁹  with their self-imposed worship and false humility ¹⁰  achieved by an ¹¹  unsparing treatment of the body – a wisdom with no true value – they in reality result in fleshly indulgence. ¹² 

Hebrews 7:18

7:18 On the one hand a former command is set aside ¹³  because it is weak and useless, ¹⁴ 

[3:3]  ¹ tn Grk “Having begun”; the participle ἐναρξάμενοι (enarxamenoi) has been translated concessively.

[3:3]  ² tn Or “by the Spirit.”

[3:3]  ³ tn The verb ἐπιτελεῖσθε (epiteleisqe) has been translated as a conative present (see ExSyn 534). This is something the Galatians were attempting to do, but could not accomplish successfully.

[3:3]  ⁴ tn Grk “in/by [the] flesh.”

[8:3]  ⁵ tn Grk “in that.”

[2:20]  ⁶ tn See the note on the phrase “elemental spirits” in 2:8.

[2:22]  ⁷ tn The expression “founded as they are” brings out the force of the Greek preposition κατά (kata).

[2:22]  ⁸ tn Grk “The commands and teachings of men.”

[2:23]  ⁹ tn Grk “having a word of wisdom.”

[2:23]  ¹⁰ tn Though the apostle uses the term ταπεινοφροσύνῃ (tapeinofrosunh) elsewhere in a positive sense (cf. 3:12), here the sense is negative and reflects the misguided thinking of Paul’s opponents.

[2:23]  ¹¹ tc ‡ The vast bulk of witnesses, including some important ones (א A C D F G H Ψ 075 0278 33 1881 Ï lat sy), have καί (kai) here, but the shorter reading is supported by some early and important witnesses (Ì⁴⁶ B 1739 b m Hil Ambst Spec). The καί looks to be a motivated reading in that it makes ἀφειδία (afeidia) “the third in a series of datives after ἐν, rather than an instrumental dative qualifying the previous prepositional phrase” (TCGNT 556). At the same time, the omission of καί could possibly have been unintentional. A decision is difficult, but the shorter reading is slightly preferred. NA²⁷ puts καί in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[2:23]  ¹² tn The translation understands this verse to contain a concessive subordinate clause within the main clause. The Greek particle μέν (men) is the second word of the embedded subordinate clause. The phrase οὐκ ἐν τιμῇ τινι (ouk en timh tini) modifies the subordinate clause, and the main clause resumes with the preposition πρός (pros). The translation has placed the subordinate clause first in order for clarity instead of retaining its embedded location. For a detailed discussion of this grammatical construction, see B. Hollenbach, “Col 2:23: Which Things Lead to the Fulfillment of the Flesh,” NTS 25 (1979): 254-61.

[7:18]  ¹³ tn Grk “the setting aside of a former command comes to pass.”

[7:18]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “because of its weakness and uselessness.”