Genesis 3:15

3:15 And I will put hostility ¹  between you and the woman

and between your offspring and her offspring; ² 

her offspring will attack ³  your head,

and ⁴  you ⁵  will attack her offspring’s heel.” ⁶ 

Psalms 8:6-8

8:6 you appoint them to rule over your creation; ⁷ 

you have placed ⁸  everything under their authority, ⁹ 

8:7 including all the sheep and cattle,

as well as the wild animals, ¹⁰ 

8:8 the birds in the sky, the fish in the sea

and everything that moves through the currents ¹¹  of the seas.

Psalms 91:13

91:13 You will subdue ¹²  a lion and a snake; ¹³ 

you will trample underfoot a young lion and a serpent.

Psalms 91:1

Psalm 91 ¹⁴ 

91:1 As for you, the one who lives ¹⁵  in the shelter of the sovereign One, ¹⁶ 

and resides in the protective shadow ¹⁷  of the mighty king ¹⁸  –

Colossians 1:25-27

1:25 I became a servant of the church according to the stewardship ¹⁹  from God – given to me for you – in order to complete ²⁰  the word of God, 1:26 that is, the mystery that has been kept hidden from ages and generations, but has now been revealed to his saints. 1:27 God wanted to make known to them the glorious ²¹  riches of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

Hebrews 2:8

2:8 You put all things under his control.” ²² 

For when he put all things under his control, he left nothing outside of his control. At present we do not yet see all things under his control, ²³ 

[3:15]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ 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]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ 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.

[8:6]  ⁷ tn Heb “you cause [i.e., “permit, allow”] him to rule over the works of your hands.”

[8:6]  ⁸ tn The perfect verbal form probably has a present perfect nuance here. It refers to the continuing effects of God’s original mandate (see Gen 1:26-30).

[8:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “under his feet.”

[8:7]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and also the beasts of the field.”

[8:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “paths.”

[91:13]  ¹² tn Heb “walk upon.”

[91:13]  ¹³ tn Or perhaps “cobra” (see Ps 58:4).

[91:1]  ¹⁴ sn Psalm 91. In this psalm an individual (perhaps a priest) addresses one who has sought shelter in the Lord and assures him that God will protect him from danger (vv. 1-13). In vv. 14-16 God himself promises to keep his loyal follower safe.

[91:1]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “[O] one who lives.”

[91:1]  ¹⁶ tn Traditionally “the Most High.”

[91:1]  ¹⁷ sn The Lord is compared here to a bird who protects its young under the shadow of its wings (see v. 4).

[91:1]  ¹⁸ sn The divine name used here is “Shaddai” (שַׁדַּי, shadday; see also Ps 68:14). Shaddai (or El Shaddai) is the mighty king (sovereign judge) of the world who grants life/blesses and kills/judges. In Genesis he blesses the patriarchs with fertility and promises numerous descendants. Outside Genesis he both blesses/protects and takes away life/happiness.

[1:25]  ¹⁹ tn BDAG 697 s.v. οἰκονομία 1.b renders the term here as “divine office.”

[1:25]  ²⁰ tn See BDAG 828 s.v. πληρόω 3. The idea here seems to be that the apostle wants to “complete the word of God” in that he wants to preach it to every person in the known world (cf. Rom 15:19). See P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 82.

[1:27]  ²¹ tn The genitive noun τῆς δόξης (ths doxhs) is an attributive genitive and has therefore been translated as “glorious riches.”

[2:8]  ²² tn Grk “you subjected all things under his feet.”

[2:8]  ²³ sn The expression all things under his control occurs three times in 2:8. The latter two occurrences are not exactly identical to the Greek text of Ps 8:6 quoted at the beginning of the verse, but have been adapted by the writer of Hebrews to fit his argument.