Genesis 11:4

11:4 Then they said, “Come, let’s build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens ¹  so that ²  we may make a name for ourselves. Otherwise ³  we will be scattered ⁴  across the face of the entire earth.”

Deuteronomy 1:28

1:28 What is going to happen to us? Our brothers have drained away our courage ⁵  by describing people who are more numerous ⁶  and taller than we are, and great cities whose defenses appear to be as high as heaven ⁷  itself! Moreover, they said they saw ⁸  Anakites ⁹  there.”

Isaiah 14:13-15

14:13 You said to yourself, ¹⁰ 

“I will climb up to the sky.

Above the stars of El ¹¹ 

I will set up my throne.

I will rule on the mountain of assembly

on the remote slopes of Zaphon. ¹² 

14:14 I will climb up to the tops ¹³  of the clouds;

I will make myself like the Most High!” ¹⁴ 

14:15 But you were brought down ¹⁵  to Sheol,

to the remote slopes of the pit. ¹⁶ 

Jeremiah 51:53

51:53 Even if Babylon climbs high into the sky ¹⁷ 

and fortifies her elevated stronghold, ¹⁸ 

I will send destroyers against her,” ¹⁹ 

says the Lord. ²⁰ 

Ezekiel 28:12-14

28:12 “Son of man, sing ²¹  a lament for the king of Tyre, and say to him, ‘This is what the sovereign Lord says:

“‘You were the sealer ²²  of perfection,

full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty.

28:13 You were in Eden, the garden of God. ²³ 

Every precious stone was your covering,

the ruby, topaz, and emerald,

the chrysolite, onyx, and jasper,

the sapphire, turquoise, and beryl; ²⁴ 

your settings and mounts were made of gold.

On the day you were created they were prepared.

28:14 I placed you there with an anointed ²⁵  guardian ²⁶  cherub; ²⁷ 

you were on the holy mountain of God;

you walked about amidst fiery stones.

Amos 9:2-3

9:2 Even if they could dig down into the netherworld, ²⁸ 

my hand would pull them up from there.

Even if they could climb up to heaven,

I would drag them down from there.

9:3 Even if they were to hide on the top of Mount Carmel,

I would hunt them down and take them from there.

Even if they tried to hide from me ²⁹  at the bottom of the sea,

from there ³⁰  I would command the Sea Serpent ³¹  to bite them.

Obadiah 1:4

1:4 Even if you were to soar high like an eagle, ³² 

even if you ³³  were to make your nest among the stars,

I can bring you down even from there!” says the Lord.

Matthew 11:23

11:23 And you, Capernaum, ³⁴  will you be exalted to heaven? ³⁵  No, you will be thrown down to Hades! ³⁶  For if the miracles done among you had been done in Sodom, it would have continued to this day.

[11:4]  ¹ tn A translation of “heavens” for שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) fits this context because the Babylonian ziggurats had temples at the top, suggesting they reached to the heavens, the dwelling place of the gods.

[11:4]  ² tn The form וְנַעֲשֶׂה (vÿna’aseh, from the verb עשׂה, “do, make”) could be either the imperfect or the cohortative with a vav (ו) conjunction (“and let us make…”). Coming after the previous cohortative, this form expresses purpose.

[11:4]  ³ tn The Hebrew particle פֶּן (pen) expresses a negative purpose; it means “that we be not scattered.”

[11:4]  ⁴ sn The Hebrew verb פָּוָץ (pavats, translated “scatter”) is a key term in this passage. The focal point of the account is the dispersion (“scattering”) of the nations rather than the Tower of Babel. But the passage also forms a polemic against Babylon, the pride of the east and a cosmopolitan center with a huge ziggurat. To the Hebrews it was a monument to the judgment of God on pride.

[1:28]  ⁵ tn Heb “have caused our hearts to melt.”

[1:28]  ⁶ tn Heb “greater.” Many English versions understand this to refer to physical size or strength rather than numbers (cf. “stronger,” NAB, NIV, NRSV; “bigger,” NASB).

[1:28]  ⁷ tn Or “as the sky.” The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.

[1:28]  ⁸ tn Heb “we have seen.”

[1:28]  ⁹ tn Heb “the sons of the Anakim.”

[14:13]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “you, you said in your heart.”

[14:13]  ¹¹ sn In Canaanite mythology the stars of El were astral deities under the authority of the high god El.

[14:13]  ¹² sn Zaphon, the Canaanite version of Olympus, was the “mountain of assembly” where the gods met.

[14:14]  ¹³ tn Heb “the high places.” This word often refers to the high places where pagan worship was conducted, but here it probably refers to the “backs” or tops of the clouds. See HALOT 136 s.v. בָּמָה.

[14:14]  ¹⁴ sn Normally in the OT the title “Most High” belongs to the God of Israel, but in this context, where the mythological overtones are so strong, it probably refers to the Canaanite high god El.

[14:15]  ¹⁵ tn The prefixed verb form is taken as a preterite. Note the use of perfects in v. 12 to describe the king’s downfall.

[14:15]  ¹⁶ tn The Hebrew term בּוּר (bor, “cistern”) is sometimes used metaphorically to refer to the place of the dead or the entrance to the underworld.

[51:53]  ¹⁷ tn Or “ascends [into] heaven.” Note the use of the phrase in Deut 30:12; 2 Kgs 2:11; and Amos 9:2.

[51:53]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “and even if she fortifies her strong elevated place.”

[51:53]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “from me destroyers will go against her.”

[51:53]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Oracle of the Lord.”

[28:12]  ²¹ tn Heb “lift up.”

[28:12]  ²² tn For a discussion of possible nuances of this phrase, see M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 2:580-81.

[28:13]  ²³ sn The imagery of the lament appears to draw upon an extrabiblical Eden tradition about the expulsion of the first man (see v. 14 and the note there) from the garden due to his pride. The biblical Eden tradition speaks of cherubs placed as guardians at the garden entrance following the sin of Adam and Eve (Gen 3:24), but no guardian cherub like the one described in verse 14 is depicted or mentioned in the biblical account. Ezekiel’s imagery also appears to reflect Mesopotamian and Canaanite mythology at certain points. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 2:119-20.

[28:13]  ²⁴ tn The exact identification of each gemstone is uncertain. The list should be compared to that of the priest in Exod 28:17-20, which lists twelve stones in rows of three. The LXX apparently imports the Exod 28 list. See reference to the types of stones in L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.

[28:14]  ²⁵ tn Or “winged”; see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.

[28:14]  ²⁶ tn The meaning of this phrase in Hebrew is uncertain. The word translated here “guards” occurs in Exod 25:20 in reference to the cherubim “covering” the ark.

[28:14]  ²⁷ tn Heb “you (were) an anointed cherub that covers and I placed you.” In the Hebrew text the ruler of Tyre is equated with a cherub, and the verb “I placed you” is taken with what follows (“on the holy mountain of God”). However, this reading is problematic. The pronoun “you” at the beginning of verse 14 is feminine singular in the Hebrew text; elsewhere in this passage the ruler of Tyre is addressed with masculine singular forms. It is possible that the pronoun is a rare (see Deut 5:24; Num 11:15) or defectively written (see 1 Sam 24:19; Neh 9:6; Job 1:10; Ps 6:3; Eccl 7:22) masculine form, but it is more likely that the form should be repointed as the preposition “with” (see the LXX). In this case the ruler of Tyre is compared to the first man, not to a cherub. If this emendation is accepted, then the verb “I placed you” belongs with what precedes and concludes the first sentence in the verse. It is noteworthy that the verbs in the second and third lines of the verse also appear at the end of the sentence in the Hebrew text. The presence of a conjunction at the beginning of “I placed you” is problematic for the proposal, but it may reflect a later misunderstanding of the syntax of the verse. For a defense of the proposed emendation, see L. C. Allen, Ezekiel (WBC), 2:91.

[9:2]  ²⁸ tn Heb “into Sheol” (so ASV, NASB, NRSV), that is, the land of the dead localized in Hebrew thought in the earth’s core or the grave. Cf. KJV “hell”; NCV, NLT “the place of the dead”; NIV “the depths of the grave.”

[9:3]  ²⁹ tn Heb “from before my eyes.”

[9:3]  ³⁰ tn Or perhaps simply, “there,” if the מ (mem) prefixed to the adverb is dittographic (note the preceding word ends in mem).

[9:3]  ³¹ sn If the article indicates a definite serpent, then the mythological Sea Serpent, symbolic of the world’s chaotic forces, is probably in view. See Job 26:13 and Isa 27:1 (where it is also called Leviathan). Elsewhere in the OT this serpent is depicted as opposing the Lord, but this text implies that even this powerful enemy of God is ultimately subject to his sovereign will.

[1:4]  ³² sn The eagle was often used in the ancient Near East as a symbol of strength and swiftness.

[1:4]  ³³ tc The present translation follows the reading תָּשִׂים (tasim; active) rather than שִׁים (sim; passive) of the MT (“and your nest be set among the stars,” NAB). Cf. LXX, Syriac, Vg.

[11:23]  ³⁴ sn Capernaum was a town on the northwest shore of the Sea of Galilee, 680 ft (204 m) below sea level. It was a major trade and economic center in the North Galilean region.

[11:23]  ³⁵ tn The interrogative particle introducing this question expects a negative reply.

[11:23]  ³⁶ sn In the OT, Hades was known as Sheol. It is the place where the unrighteous will reside (Luke 10:15; 16:23; Rev 20:13-14).