Genesis 4:10-11

4:10 But the Lord said, “What have you done? ¹  The voice ²  of your brother’s blood is crying out to me from the ground! 4:11 So now, you are banished ³  from the ground, which has opened its mouth to receive your brother’s blood from your hand.

Numbers 35:32-33

35:32 And you must not accept a ransom for anyone who has fled to a town of refuge, to allow him to return home and live on his own land before the death of the high priest. ⁴ 

35:33 “You must not pollute the land where you live, for blood defiles the land, and the land cannot be cleansed of the blood that is shed there, except by the blood of the person who shed it.

Job 16:18

An Appeal to God as Witness

16:18 “O earth, do not cover my blood, ⁵ 

nor let there be a secret ⁶  place for my cry.

Ezekiel 24:7-8

24:7 For her blood was in it;

she poured it on an exposed rock;

she did not pour it on the ground to cover it up with dust.

24:8 To arouse anger, to take vengeance,

I have placed her blood on an exposed rock so that it cannot be covered up.

Luke 11:40

11:40 You fools! ⁷  Didn’t the one who made the outside make the inside as well? ⁸ 

Revelation 6:9-11

6:9 Now ⁹  when the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been violently killed ¹⁰  because of the word of God and because of the testimony they had given. 6:10 They ¹¹  cried out with a loud voice, ¹²  “How long, ¹³  Sovereign Master, ¹⁴  holy and true, before you judge those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?” 6:11 Each ¹⁵  of them was given a long white robe and they were told to rest for a little longer, until the full number was reached ¹⁶  of both their fellow servants ¹⁷  and their brothers who were going to be killed just as they had been.

Revelation 16:6

16:6 because they poured out the blood of your saints and prophets,

so ¹⁸  you have given them blood to drink. They got what they deserved!” ¹⁹ 

Revelation 18:24

18:24 The ²⁰  blood of the saints and prophets was found in her, ²¹ 

along with the blood ²²  of all those who had been killed on the earth.”

[4:10]  ¹ sn What have you done? Again the Lord’s question is rhetorical (see Gen 3:13), condemning Cain for his sin.

[4:10]  ² tn The word “voice” is a personification; the evidence of Abel’s shed blood condemns Cain, just as a human eyewitness would testify in court. For helpful insights, see G. von Rad, Biblical Interpretations in Preaching; and L. Morris, “The Biblical Use of the Term ‘Blood,’” JTS 6 (1955/56): 77-82.

[4:11]  ³ tn Heb “cursed are you from the ground.” As in Gen 3:14, the word “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 indicating source, then the idea is “cursed (i.e., punished) are you from [i.e., “through the agency of”] the ground” (see v. 12a). If the preposition is taken as separative, then the idea is “cursed and banished from the ground.” In this case the ground rejects Cain’s efforts in such a way that he is banished from the ground and forced to become a fugitive out in the earth (see vv. 12b, 14).

[35:32]  ⁴ tn Heb “the priest.” The Greek and the Syriac have “high priest.” The present translation, along with many English versions, uses “high priest” as a clarification.

[16:18]  ⁵ sn Job knows that he will die, and that his death, signified here by blood on the ground, will cry out for vindication.

[16:18]  ⁶ tn The word is simply “a place,” but in the context it surely means a hidden place, a secret place that would never be discovered (see 18:21).

[11:40]  ⁷ sn You fools is a rebuke which in the OT refers to someone who is blind to God (Ps 14:1, 53:1; 92:6; Prov 6:12).

[11:40]  ⁸ tn The question includes a Greek particle, οὐ (ou), that expects a positive reply. God, the maker of both, is concerned for what is both inside and outside.

[6:9]  ⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of a new and somewhat different topic after the introduction of the four riders.

[6:9]  ¹⁰ tn Or “murdered.” See the note on the word “butcher” in 6:4.

[6:10]  ¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:10]  ¹² tn Grk “voice, saying”; the participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated here.

[6:10]  ¹³ tn The expression ἕως πότε (ews pote) was translated “how long.” Cf. BDAG 423 s.v. ἕως 1.b.γ.

[6:10]  ¹⁴ tn The Greek term here is δεσπότης (despoths; see L&N 37.63).

[6:11]  ¹⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:11]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “until they had been completed.” The idea of a certain “number” of people is implied by the subject of πληρωθῶσιν (plhrwqwsin).

[6:11]  ¹⁷ tn Though σύνδουλος (sundoulos) has been translated “fellow servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.

[16:6]  ¹⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate that this judgment is the result of what these wicked people did to the saints and prophets.

[16:6]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “They are worthy”; i.e., of this kind of punishment. By extension, “they got what they deserve.”

[18:24]  ²⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[18:24]  ²¹ tn The shift in pronouns from second to third person corresponds to the Greek text.

[18:24]  ²² tn Grk “and of all.” The phrase “along with the blood” has been repeated from the previous clause for stylistic reasons.