Genesis 3:3

3:3 but concerning the fruit of the tree that is in the middle of the orchard God said, ‘You must not eat from it, and you must not touch it, ¹  or else you will die.’” ² 

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! ³ 

Isaiah 52:2

52:2 Shake off the dirt! ⁴ 

Get up, captive ⁵  Jerusalem!

Take off the iron chains around your neck,

O captive daughter Zion!

Colossians 1:17

1:17 He himself is before all things and all things are held together ⁶  in him.

Colossians 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul, ⁷  an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

Colossians 4:3

4:3 At the same time pray ⁸  for us too, that ⁹  God may open a door for the message ¹⁰  so that we may proclaim ¹¹  the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. ¹² 

[3:3]  ¹ sn And you must not touch it. The woman adds to God’s prohibition, making it say more than God expressed. G. von Rad observes that it is as though she wanted to set a law for herself by means of this exaggeration (Genesis [OTL], 86).

[3:3]  ² tn The Hebrew construction is פֶּן (pen) with the imperfect tense, which conveys a negative purpose: “lest you die” = “in order that you not die.” By stating the warning in this way, the woman omits the emphatic infinitive used by God (“you shall surely die,” see 2:17).

[52:11]  ³ tn Heb “the vessels of the Lord” (so KJV, NAB).

[52:2]  ⁴ tn Heb “Shake yourself free from the dirt.”

[52:2]  ⁵ 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.

[1:17]  ⁶ tn BDAG 973 s.v. συνίστημι B.3 suggests “continue, endure, exist, hold together” here.

[1:1]  ⁷ tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[4:3]  ⁸ tn Though προσευχόμενοι (proseucomenoi) is an adverbial participle related to the previous imperative, προσκαρτερεῖτε (proskartereite), it is here translated as an independent clause due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[4:3]  ⁹ tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause has been rendered as substantival here, indicating the content of the prayer rather than the purpose for it. These two ideas are very similar and difficult to differentiate in this passage, but the conjunction ἵνα following a verb of praying is generally regarded as giving the content of the prayer.

[4:3]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “that God may open for us a door of the word to speak the mystery of Christ.” The construction in Greek is somewhat awkward in this clause. The translation attempts to simplify this structure somewhat and yet communicate exactly what Paul is asking for.

[4:3]  ¹¹ tn Or “so that we may speak.”

[4:3]  ¹² tn Or “in prison.”