Genesis 3:13-17

3:13 So the Lord God said to the woman, “What is this ¹  you have done?” And the woman replied, “The serpent ²  tricked ³  me, and I ate.”

3:14 The Lord God said to the serpent, ⁴ 

“Because you have done this,

cursed ⁵  are you above all the wild beasts

and all the living creatures of the field!

On your belly you will crawl ⁶ 

and dust you will eat ⁷  all the days of your life.

3:15 And I will put hostility ⁸  between you and the woman

and between your offspring and her offspring; ⁹ 

her offspring will attack ¹⁰  your head,

and ¹¹  you ¹²  will attack her offspring’s heel.” ¹³ 

3:16 To the woman he said,

“I will greatly increase ¹⁴  your labor pains; ¹⁵ 

with pain you will give birth to children.

You will want to control your husband, ¹⁶ 

but he will dominate ¹⁷  you.”

3:17 But to Adam ¹⁸  he said,

“Because you obeyed ¹⁹  your wife

and ate from the tree about which I commanded you,

‘You must not eat from it,’

cursed is the ground ²⁰  thanks to you; ²¹ 

in painful toil you will eat ²²  of it all the days of your life.

Genesis 3:1

The Temptation and the Fall

3:1 Now ²³  the serpent ²⁴  was more shrewd ²⁵ 

than any of the wild animals ²⁶  that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Is it really true that ²⁷  God ²⁸  said, ‘You must not eat from any tree of the orchard’?” ²⁹ 

Genesis 22:21-22

22:21 Uz the firstborn, his brother Buz, Kemuel (the father of Aram), ³⁰  22:22 Kesed, Hazo, Pildash, Jidlaph, and Bethuel.”

Genesis 22:1

The Sacrifice of Isaac

22:1 Some time after these things God tested ³¹  Abraham. He said to him, “Abraham!” “Here I am!” Abraham ³²  replied.

Genesis 21:1-3

The Birth of Isaac

21:1 The Lord visited ³³  Sarah just as he had said he would and did ³⁴  for Sarah what he had promised. ³⁵  21:2 So Sarah became pregnant ³⁶  and bore Abraham a son in his old age at the appointed time that God had told him. 21:3 Abraham named his son – whom Sarah bore to him – Isaac. ³⁷ 

Matthew 4:3-11

4:3 The tempter came and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, command these stones to become bread.” ³⁸  4:4 But he answered, ³⁹  “It is written, ‘Man ⁴⁰  does not live ⁴¹  by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’” ⁴²  4:5 Then the devil took him to the holy city, ⁴³  had him stand ⁴⁴  on the highest point ⁴⁵  of the temple, 4:6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you’ ⁴⁶  and ‘with their hands they will lift you up, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” ⁴⁷  4:7 Jesus said to him, “Once again it is written: ‘You are not to put the Lord your God to the test.’” ⁴⁸  4:8 Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain, and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their grandeur. ⁴⁹  4:9 And he said to him, “I will give you all these things if you throw yourself to the ground and worship ⁵⁰  me.” 4:10 Then Jesus said to him, “Go away, ⁵¹  Satan! For it is written: ‘You are to worship the Lord your God and serve only him.’” ⁵²  4:11 Then the devil left him, and angels ⁵³  came and began ministering to his needs.

Matthew 13:19

13:19 When anyone hears the word about the kingdom and does not understand it, the evil one ⁵⁴  comes and snatches what was sown in his heart; ⁵⁵  this is the seed sown along the path.

Luke 22:3

22:3 Then ⁵⁶  Satan ⁵⁷  entered Judas, the one called Iscariot, who was one of the twelve. ⁵⁸ 

John 13:2

13:2 The evening meal ⁵⁹  was in progress, and the devil had already put into the heart ⁶⁰  of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, that he should betray ⁶¹  Jesus. ⁶² 

John 13:27

13:27 And after Judas ⁶³  took the piece of bread, Satan entered into him. ⁶⁴  Jesus said to him, ⁶⁵  “What you are about to do, do quickly.”

Ephesians 6:11-16

6:11 Clothe yourselves with the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand against the schemes ⁶⁶  of the devil. 6:12 For our struggle ⁶⁷  is not against flesh and blood, ⁶⁸  but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, ⁶⁹  against the spiritual forces ⁷⁰  of evil in the heavens. ⁷¹  6:13 For this reason, take up the full armor of God so that you may be able to stand your ground ⁷²  on the evil day, and having done everything, to stand. 6:14 Stand firm therefore, by fastening ⁷³  the belt of truth around your waist, ⁷⁴  by putting on the breastplate of righteousness, 6:15 by fitting your ⁷⁵  feet with the preparation that comes from the good news ⁷⁶  of peace, ⁷⁷  6:16 and in all of this, ⁷⁸  by taking up the shield ⁷⁹  of faith with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one.

James 4:7

4:7 So submit to God. But resist the devil and he will flee from you.

James 4:1

Passions and Pride

4:1 Where do the conflicts and where ⁸⁰  do the quarrels among you come from? Is it not from this, ⁸¹  from your passions that battle inside you? ⁸² 

James 5:8

5:8 You also be patient and strengthen your hearts, for the Lord’s return is near.

Revelation 12:9-11

12:9 So ⁸³  that huge dragon – the ancient serpent, the one called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world – was thrown down to the earth, and his angels along with him. 12:10 Then ⁸⁴  I heard a loud voice in heaven saying,

“The salvation and the power

and the kingdom of our God,

and the ruling authority ⁸⁵  of his Christ, ⁸⁶  have now come,

because the accuser of our brothers and sisters, ⁸⁷ 

the one who accuses them day and night ⁸⁸  before our God,

has been thrown down.

12:11 But ⁸⁹  they overcame him

by the blood of the Lamb

and by the word of their testimony,

and they did not love their lives ⁹⁰  so much that they were afraid to die.

[3:13]  ¹ tn The use of the demonstrative pronoun is enclitic, serving as an undeclined particle for emphasis. It gives the sense of “What in the world have you done?” (see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 24, §118).

[3:13]  ² sn The Hebrew word order puts the subject (“the serpent”) before the verb here, giving prominence to it.

[3:13]  ³ tn This verb (the Hiphil of נָשָׁא, nasha) is used elsewhere of a king or god misleading his people into false confidence (2 Kgs 18:29 = 2 Chr 32:15 = Isa 36:14; 2 Kgs 19:10 = Isa 37:10), of an ally deceiving a partner (Obad 7), of God deceiving his sinful people as a form of judgment (Jer 4:10), of false prophets instilling their audience with false hope (Jer 29:8), and of pride and false confidence producing self-deception (Jer 37:9; 49:16; Obad 3).

[3:14]  ⁴ sn Note that God asks no question of the serpent, does not call for confession, as he did to the man and the woman; there is only the announcement of the curse. The order in this section is chiastic: The man is questioned, the woman is questioned, the serpent is cursed, sentence is passed on the woman, sentence is passed on the man.

[3:14]  ⁵ tn The Hebrew word translated “cursed,” a passive participle from אָרָר (’arar), either means “punished” or “banished,” depending on how one interprets the following preposition. If the preposition is taken as comparative, then the idea is “cursed [i.e., punished] are you above [i.e., more than] all the wild beasts.” In this case the comparative preposition reflects the earlier comparison: The serpent was more shrewd than all others, and so more cursed than all others. If the preposition is taken as separative (see the note on the word “ground” in 4:11), then the idea is “cursed and banished from all the wild beasts.” In this case the serpent is condemned to isolation from all the other animals.

[3:14]  ⁶ tn Heb “go”; “walk,” but in English “crawl” or “slither” better describes a serpent’s movement.

[3:14]  ⁷ sn Dust you will eat. Being restricted to crawling on the ground would necessarily involve “eating dust,” although that is not the diet of the serpent. The idea of being brought low, of “eating dust” as it were, is a symbol of humiliation.

[3:15]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew word translated “hostility” is derived from the root אֵיב (’ev, “to be hostile, to be an adversary [or enemy]”). The curse announces that there will be continuing hostility between the serpent and the woman. The serpent will now live in a “battle zone,” as it were.

[3:15]  ⁹ sn The Hebrew word translated “offspring” is a collective singular. The text anticipates the ongoing struggle between human beings (the woman’s offspring) and deadly poisonous snakes (the serpent’s offspring). An ancient Jewish interpretation of the passage states: “He made the serpent, cause of the deceit, press the earth with belly and flank, having bitterly driven him out. He aroused a dire enmity between them. The one guards his head to save it, the other his heel, for death is at hand in the proximity of men and malignant poisonous snakes.” See Sib. Or. 1:59-64. For a similar interpretation see Josephus, Ant. 1.1.4 (1.50-51).

[3:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “he will attack [or “bruise”] you [on] the head.” The singular pronoun and verb agree grammatically with the collective singular noun “offspring.” For other examples of singular verb and pronominal forms being used with the collective singular “offspring,” see Gen 16:10; 22:17; 24:60. The word “head” is an adverbial accusative, locating the blow. A crushing blow to the head would be potentially fatal.

[3:15]  ¹¹ tn Or “but you will…”; or “as they attack your head, you will attack their heel.” The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) is understood as contrastive. Both clauses place the subject before the verb, a construction that is sometimes used to indicate synchronic action (see Judg 15:14).

[3:15]  ¹² sn You will attack her offspring’s heel. Though the conflict will actually involve the serpent’s offspring (snakes) and the woman’s offspring (human beings), v. 15b for rhetorical effect depicts the conflict as being between the serpent and the woman’s offspring, as if the serpent will outlive the woman. The statement is personalized for the sake of the addressee (the serpent) and reflects the ancient Semitic concept of corporate solidarity, which emphasizes the close relationship between a progenitor and his offspring. Note Gen 28:14, where the Lord says to Jacob, “Your offspring will be like the dust of the earth, and you [second masculine singular] will spread out in all directions.” Jacob will “spread out” in all directions through his offspring, but the text states the matter as if this will happen to him personally.

[3:15]  ¹³ tn Heb “you will attack him [on] the heel.” The verb (translated “attack”) is repeated here, a fact that is obscured by some translations (e.g., NIV “crush…strike”). The singular pronoun agrees grammatically with the collective singular noun “offspring.” For other examples of singular verb and pronominal forms being used with the collective singular “offspring,” see Gen 16:10; 22:17; 24:60. The word “heel” is an adverbial accusative, locating the blow. A bite on the heel from a poisonous serpent is potentially fatal.

[3:16]  ¹⁴ tn The imperfect verb form is emphasized and intensified by the infinitive absolute from the same verb.

[3:16]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “your pain and your conception,” suggesting to some interpreters that having a lot of children was a result of the judgment (probably to make up for the loss through death). But the next clause shows that the pain is associated with conception and childbirth. The two words form a hendiadys (where two words are joined to express one idea, like “good and angry” in English), the second explaining the first. “Conception,” if the correct meaning of the noun, must be figurative here since there is no pain in conception; it is a synecdoche, representing the entire process of childbirth and child rearing from the very start. However, recent etymological research suggests the noun is derived from a root הרר (hrr), not הרה (hrh), and means “trembling, pain” (see D. Tsumura, “A Note on הרוֹן (Gen 3,16),” Bib 75 [1994]: 398-400). In this case “pain and trembling” refers to the physical effects of childbirth. The word עִצְּבוֹן (’itsÿvon, “pain”), an abstract noun related to the verb (עָצַב, ’atsav), includes more than physical pain. It is emotional distress as well as physical pain. The same word is used in v. 17 for the man’s painful toil in the field.

[3:16]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “and toward your husband [will be] your desire.” The nominal sentence does not have a verb; a future verb must be supplied, because the focus of the oracle is on the future struggle. The precise meaning of the noun תְּשׁוּקָה (tÿshuqah, “desire”) is debated. Many interpreters conclude that it refers to sexual desire here, because the subject of the passage is the relationship between a wife and her husband, and because the word is used in a romantic sense in Song 7:11 HT (7:10 ET). However, this interpretation makes little sense in Gen 3:16. First, it does not fit well with the assertion “he will dominate you.” Second, it implies that sexual desire was not part of the original creation, even though the man and the woman were told to multiply. And third, it ignores the usage of the word in Gen 4:7 where it refers to sin’s desire to control and dominate Cain. (Even in Song of Songs it carries the basic idea of “control,” for it describes the young man’s desire to “have his way sexually” with the young woman.) In Gen 3:16 the Lord announces a struggle, a conflict between the man and the woman. She will desire to control him, but he will dominate her instead. This interpretation also fits the tone of the passage, which is a judgment oracle. See further Susan T. Foh, “What is the Woman’s Desire?” WTJ 37 (1975): 376-83.

[3:16]  ¹⁷ tn The Hebrew verb מָשַׁל (mashal) means “to rule over,” but in a way that emphasizes powerful control, domination, or mastery. This also is part of the baser human nature. The translation assumes the imperfect verb form has an objective/indicative sense here. Another option is to understand it as having a modal, desiderative nuance, “but he will want to dominate you.” In this case, the Lord simply announces the struggle without indicating who will emerge victorious.

[3:17]  ¹⁸ tn Since there is no article on the word, the personal name is used, rather than the generic “the man” (cf. NRSV).

[3:17]  ¹⁹ tn The idiom “listen to the voice of” often means “obey.” The man “obeyed” his wife and in the process disobeyed God.

[3:17]  ²⁰ sn For the ground to be cursed means that it will no longer yield its bounty as the blessing from God had promised. The whole creation, Paul writes in Rom 8:22, is still groaning under this curse, waiting for the day of redemption.

[3:17]  ²¹ tn The Hebrew phrase בַּעֲבוּרֶךָ (ba’avurekha) is more literally translated “on your account” or “because of you.” The idiomatic “thanks to you” in the translation tries to capture the point of this expression.

[3:17]  ²² sn In painful toil you will eat. The theme of eating is prominent throughout Gen 3. The prohibition was against eating from the tree of knowledge. The sin was in eating. The interrogation concerned the eating from the tree of knowledge. The serpent is condemned to eat the dust of the ground. The curse focuses on eating in a “measure for measure” justice. Because the man and the woman sinned by eating the forbidden fruit, God will forbid the ground to cooperate, and so it will be through painful toil that they will eat.

[3:1]  ²³ tn The chapter begins with a disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + predicate) that introduces a new character and a new scene in the story.

[3:1]  ²⁴ sn Many theologians identify or associate the serpent with Satan. In this view Satan comes in the disguise of a serpent or speaks through a serpent. This explains the serpent’s capacity to speak. While later passages in the Bible may indicate there was a satanic presence behind the serpent (see, for example, Rev 12:9), the immediate context pictures the serpent as simply one of the animals of the field created by God (see vv. 1, 14). An ancient Jewish interpretation explains the reference to the serpent in a literal manner, attributing the capacity to speak to all the animals in the orchard. This text (Jub. 3:28) states, “On that day [the day the man and woman were expelled from the orchard] the mouth of all the beasts and cattle and birds and whatever walked or moved was stopped from speaking because all of them used to speak to one another with one speech and one language [presumed to be Hebrew, see 12:26].” Josephus, Ant. 1.1.4 (1.41) attributes the serpent’s actions to jealousy. He writes that “the serpent, living in the company of Adam and his wife, grew jealous of the blessings which he supposed were destined for them if they obeyed God’s behests, and, believing that disobedience would bring trouble on them, he maliciously persuaded the woman to taste of the tree of wisdom.”

[3:1]  ²⁵ tn The Hebrew word עָרוּם (’arum) basically means “clever.” This idea then polarizes into the nuances “cunning” (in a negative sense, see Job 5:12; 15:5), and “prudent” in a positive sense (Prov 12:16, 23; 13:16; 14:8, 15, 18; 22:3; 27:12). This same polarization of meaning can be detected in related words derived from the same root (see Exod 21:14; Josh 9:4; 1 Sam 23:22; Job 5:13; Ps 83:3). The negative nuance obviously applies in Gen 3, where the snake attempts to talk the woman into disobeying God by using half-truths and lies.

[3:1]  ²⁶ tn Heb “animals of the field.”

[3:1]  ²⁷ tn Heb “Indeed that God said.” The beginning of the quotation is elliptical and therefore difficult to translate. One must supply a phrase like “is it true”: “Indeed, [is it true] that God said.”

[3:1]  ²⁸ sn God. The serpent does not use the expression “Yahweh God” [Lord God] because there is no covenant relationship involved between God and the serpent. He only speaks of “God.” In the process the serpent draws the woman into his manner of speech so that she too only speaks of “God.”

[3:1]  ²⁹ tn Heb “you must not eat from all the tree[s] of the orchard.” After the negated prohibitive verb, מִכֹּל (mikkol, “from all”) has the meaning “from any.” Note the construction in Lev 18:26, where the statement “you must not do from all these abominable things” means “you must not do any of these abominable things.” See Lev 22:25 and Deut 28:14 as well.

[22:21]  ³⁰ sn This parenthetical note about Kemuel’s descendant is probably a later insertion by the author/compiler of Genesis and not part of the original announcement.

[22:1]  ³¹ sn The Hebrew verb used here means “to test; to try; to prove.” In this passage God tests Abraham to see if he would be obedient. See T. W. Mann, The Book of the Torah, 44-48. See also J. L. Crenshaw, A Whirlpool of Torment (OBT), 9-30; and J. I. Lawlor, “The Test of Abraham,” GTJ 1 (1980): 19-35.

[22:1]  ³² tn Heb “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[21:1]  ³³ sn The Hebrew verb translated “visit” (פָּקַד, paqad ) often describes divine intervention for blessing or cursing; it indicates God’s special attention to an individual or a matter, always with respect to his people’s destiny. He may visit (that is, destroy) the Amalekites; he may visit (that is, deliver) his people in Egypt. Here he visits Sarah, to allow her to have the promised child. One’s destiny is changed when the Lord “visits.” For a more detailed study of the term, see G. André, Determining the Destiny (ConBOT).

[21:1]  ³⁴ tn Heb “and the Lord did.” The divine name has not been repeated here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[21:1]  ³⁵ tn Heb “spoken.”

[21:2]  ³⁶ tn Or “she conceived.”

[21:3]  ³⁷ tn Heb “the one born to him, whom Sarah bore to him, Isaac.” The two modifying clauses, the first introduced with an article and the second with the relative pronoun, are placed in the middle of the sentence, before the name Isaac is stated. They are meant to underscore that this was indeed an actual birth to Abraham and Sarah in fulfillment of the promise.

[4:3]  ³⁸ tn Grk “say that these stones should become bread.”

[4:4]  ³⁹ tn Grk “answering, he said.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (apokriqeis) is redundant, but the syntax of the phrase has been changed for clarity.

[4:4]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “a person.” Greek ὁ ἄνθρωπος (Jo anqrwpo") is used generically for humanity. The translation “man” is used because the emphasis in Jesus’ response seems to be on his dependence on God as a man.

[4:4]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “will not live.” The verb in Greek is a future tense, but it is unclear whether it is meant to be taken as a command (also known as an imperatival future) or as a statement of reality (predictive future).

[4:4]  ⁴² sn A quotation from Deut 8:3.

[4:5]  ⁴³ sn The order of the second and third temptations differs in Luke’s account (4:5-12) from the order given in Matthew.

[4:5]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “and he stood him.”

[4:5]  ⁴⁵ sn The highest point of the temple probably refers to the point on the temple’s southeast corner where it looms directly over a cliff some 450 ft (135 m) high. However, some have suggested the reference could be to the temple’s high gate.

[4:6]  ⁴⁶ sn A quotation from Ps 91:11. This was not so much an incorrect citation as a use in a wrong context (a misapplication of the passage).

[4:6]  ⁴⁷ sn A quotation from Ps 91:12.

[4:7]  ⁴⁸ sn A quotation from Deut 6:16.

[4:8]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “glory.”

[4:9]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “if, falling down, you will worship.” BDAG 815 s.v. πίπτω 1.b.α.ב has “fall down, throw oneself to the ground as a sign of devotion, before high-ranking persons or divine beings.”

[4:10]  ⁵¹ tc The majority of later witnesses (C² D L Z 33 Ï) have “behind me” (ὀπίσω μου; opisw mou) after “Go away.” But since this is the wording in Matt 16:23, where the text is certain, scribes most likely added the words here to conform to the later passage. Further, the shorter reading has superior support (א B C*^vid K P W Δ 0233 Ë^1,13 565 579* 700 al). Thus, both externally and internally, the shorter reading is strongly preferred.

[4:10]  ⁵² sn A quotation from Deut 6:13. The word “only” is an interpretive expansion not found in either the Hebrew or Greek (LXX) text of the OT.

[4:11]  ⁵³ tn Grk “and behold, angels.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[13:19]  ⁵⁴ sn Interestingly, the synoptic parallels each use a different word for Satan here: Mark 4:15 has “Satan,” while Luke 8:12 has “the devil.” This illustrates the fluidity of the gospel tradition in often using synonyms at the same point of the parallel tradition.

[13:19]  ⁵⁵ sn The word of Jesus has the potential to save if it germinates in a person’s heart, something the devil is very much against.

[22:3]  ⁵⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[22:3]  ⁵⁷ sn The cross is portrayed as part of the cosmic battle between Satan and God; see Luke 4:1-13; 11:14-23.

[22:3]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “Iscariot, being of the number of the twelve.”

[13:2]  ⁵⁹ tn Or “Supper.” To avoid possible confusion because of different regional English usage regarding the distinction between “dinner” and “supper” as an evening meal, the translation simply refers to “the evening meal.”

[13:2]  ⁶⁰ sn At this point the devil had already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, that he should betray Jesus. C. K. Barrett (St. John, 365) thought this was a reference to the idea entering the devil’s own heart, but this does not seem likely. It is more probable that Judas’ heart is meant, since the use of the Greek article (rather than a possessive pronoun) is a typical idiom when a part of one’s own body is indicated. Judas’ name is withheld until the end of the sentence for dramatic effect (emphasis). This action must be read in light of 13:27, and appears to refer to a preliminary idea or plan.

[13:2]  ⁶¹ tn Or “that he should hand over.”

[13:2]  ⁶² tn Grk “betray him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:27]  ⁶³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Judas) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:27]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “into that one”; the pronoun “he” is more natural English style here.

[13:27]  ⁶⁵ tn Grk “Then Jesus said to him.”

[6:11]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “craftiness.” See BDAG 625 s.v. μεθοδεία.

[6:12]  ⁶⁷ tn BDAG 752 s.v. πάλη says, “struggle against…the opponent is introduced by πρός w. the acc.”

[6:12]  ⁶⁸ tn Grk “blood and flesh.”

[6:12]  ⁶⁹ tn BDAG 561 s.v. κοσμοκράτωρ suggests “the rulers of this sinful world” as a gloss.

[6:12]  ⁷⁰ tn BDAG 837 s.v. πνευματικός 3 suggests “the spirit-forces of evil” in Ephesians 6:12.

[6:12]  ⁷¹ sn The phrase spiritual forces of evil in the heavens serves to emphasize the nature of the forces which oppose believers as well as to indicate the locality from which they originate.

[6:13]  ⁷² tn The term ἀνθίστημι (anqisthmi) carries the idea of resisting or opposing something or someone (BDAG 80 s.v.). In Eph 6:13, when used in combination with στῆναι (sthnai; cf. also στῆτε [sthte] in v. 14) and in a context of battle imagery, it seems to have the idea of resisting, standing firm, and being able to stand your ground.

[6:14]  ⁷³ sn The four participles fastening… putting on…fitting…taking up… indicate the means by which believers can take their stand against the devil and his schemes. The imperative take in v. 17 communicates another means by which to accomplish the standing, i.e., by the word of God.

[6:14]  ⁷⁴ tn Grk “girding your waist with truth.” In this entire section the author is painting a metaphor for his readers based on the attire of a Roman soldier prepared for battle and its similarity to the Christian prepared to do battle against spiritually evil forces. Behind the expression “with truth” is probably the genitive idea “belt of truth.” Since this is an appositional genitive (i.e., belt which is truth), the author simply left unsaid the idea of the belt and mentioned only his real focus, namely, the truth. (The analogy would have been completely understandable to his 1st century readers.) The idea of the belt is supplied in the translation to clarify the sense in English.

[6:15]  ⁷⁵ tn The definite article τοῖς (tois) was taken as a possessive pronoun, i.e., “your,” since it refers to a part of the physical body.

[6:15]  ⁷⁶ tn Grk “gospel.” However, this is not a technical term here.

[6:15]  ⁷⁷ tn Grk “in preparation of the gospel of peace.” The genitive τοῦ εὐαγγελίου (tou euangeliou) was taken as a genitive of source, i.e., “that comes from….”

[6:16]  ⁷⁸ tn Grk “in everything.”

[6:16]  ⁷⁹ sn The Greek word translated shield (θυρεός, qureos) refers to the Roman soldier’s large rectangular wooden shield, called in Latin scutum, about 4 ft (1.2 m) high, covered with leather on the outside. Before a battle in which flaming arrows might be shot at them, the soldiers wet the leather covering with water to extinguish the arrows. The Roman legionaries could close ranks with these shields, the first row holding theirs edge to edge in front, and the rows behind holding the shields above their heads. In this formation they were practically invulnerable to arrows, rocks, and even spears.

[4:1]  ⁸⁰ tn The word “where” is repeated in Greek for emphasis.

[4:1]  ⁸¹ tn Grk “from here.”

[4:1]  ⁸² tn Grk “in your members [i.e., parts of the body].”

[12:9]  ⁸³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the result of the war in heaven.

[12:10]  ⁸⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[12:10]  ⁸⁵ tn Or “the right of his Messiah to rule.” See L&N 37.35.

[12:10]  ⁸⁶ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[12:10]  ⁸⁷ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited). The translation “fellow believer” would normally apply (L&N 11.23), but since the speaker(s) are not specified in this context, it is not clear if such a translation would be appropriate here. The more generic “brothers and sisters” was chosen to emphasize the fact of a relationship without specifying its type.

[12:10]  ⁸⁸ tn Or “who accuses them continually.”

[12:11]  ⁸⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast.

[12:11]  ⁹⁰ sn They did not love their lives. See Matt 16:25; Luke 17:33; John 12:25.