Genesis 30:8

30:8 Then Rachel said, “I have fought a desperate struggle with my sister, but I have won.” ¹  So she named him Naphtali. ² 

Luke 13:24

13:24 “Exert every effort ³  to enter through the narrow door, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to.

Luke 22:44

22:44 And in his anguish ⁴  he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.] ⁵ 

Romans 8:26-27

8:26 In the same way, the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how we should pray, ⁶  but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with inexpressible groanings. 8:27 And he ⁷  who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit ⁸  intercedes on behalf of the saints according to God’s will.

Romans 15:30

15:30 Now I urge you, brothers and sisters, ⁹  through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit, to join fervently with me in prayer to God on my behalf.

Ephesians 6:12

6:12 For our struggle ¹⁰  is not against flesh and blood, ¹¹  but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, ¹²  against the spiritual forces ¹³  of evil in the heavens. ¹⁴ 

Ephesians 6:18

6:18 With every prayer and petition, pray ¹⁵  at all times in the Spirit, and to this end ¹⁶  be alert, with all perseverance and requests for all the saints.

Colossians 2:1

2:1 For I want you to know how great a struggle I have for you, ¹⁷  and for those in Laodicea, and for those who have not met me face to face. ¹⁸ 

Colossians 4:12

4:12 Epaphras, who is one of you and a slave ¹⁹  of Christ, ²⁰  greets you. He is always struggling in prayer on your behalf, so that you may stand mature and fully assured ²¹  in all the will of God.

Hebrews 5:7

5:7 During his earthly life ²²  Christ ²³  offered ²⁴  both requests and supplications, with loud cries and tears, to the one who was able to save him from death and he was heard because of his devotion.

[30:8]  ¹ tn Heb “[with] a mighty struggle I have struggled with my sister, also I have prevailed.” The phrase “mighty struggle” reads literally “struggles of God.” The plural participle “struggles” reflects the ongoing nature of the struggle, while the divine name is used here idiomatically to emphasize the intensity of the struggle. See J. Skinner, Genesis (ICC), 387.

[30:8]  ² sn The name Naphtali (נַפְתָּלִי, naftali) must mean something like “my struggle” in view of the statement Rachel made in the preceding clause. The name plays on this earlier statement, “[with] a mighty struggle I have struggled with my sister.”

[13:24]  ³ tn Or “Make every effort” (L&N 68.74; cf. NIV); “Do your best” (TEV); “Work hard” (NLT); Grk “Struggle.” The idea is to exert one’s maximum effort (cf. BDAG 17 s.v. ἀγωνίζομαι 2.b, “strain every nerve to enter”) because of the supreme importance of attaining entry into the kingdom of God.

[22:44]  ⁴ tn Grk “And being in anguish.”

[22:44]  ⁵ tc Several important Greek mss (Ì⁷⁵ א¹ A B N T W 579 1071*) along with diverse and widespread versional witnesses lack 22:43-44. In addition, the verses are placed after Matt 26:39 by ˹³. Floating texts typically suggest both spuriousness and early scribal impulses to regard the verses as historically authentic. These verses are included in א*^,2 D L Θ Ψ 0171 ˹ Ï lat Ju Ir Hipp Eus. However, a number of mss mark the text with an asterisk or obelisk, indicating the scribe’s assessment of the verses as inauthentic. At the same time, these verses generally fit Luke’s style. Arguments can be given on both sides about whether scribes would tend to include or omit such comments about Jesus’ humanity and an angel’s help. But even if the verses are not literarily authentic, they are probably historically authentic. This is due to the fact that this text was well known in several different locales from a very early period. Since there are no synoptic parallels to this account and since there is no obvious reason for adding these words here, it is very likely that such verses recount a part of the actual suffering of our Lord. Nevertheless, because of the serious doubts as to these verses’ authenticity, they have been put in brackets. For an important discussion of this problem, see B. D. Ehrman and M. A. Plunkett, “The Angel and the Agony: The Textual Problem of Luke 22:43-44,” CBQ 45 (1983): 401-16.

[8:26]  ⁶ tn Or “for we do not know what we ought to pray for.”

[8:27]  ⁷ sn He refers to God here; Paul has not specifically identified him for the sake of rhetorical power (for by leaving the subject slightly ambiguous, he draws his audience into seeing God’s hand in places where he is not explicitly mentioned).

[8:27]  ⁸ tn Grk “he,” or “it”; the referent (the Spirit) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:30]  ⁹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:13.

[6:12]  ¹⁰ tn BDAG 752 s.v. πάλη says, “struggle against…the opponent is introduced by πρός w. the acc.”

[6:12]  ¹¹ tn Grk “blood and flesh.”

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

[6:12]  ¹³ tn BDAG 837 s.v. πνευματικός 3 suggests “the spirit-forces of evil” in Ephesians 6:12.

[6:12]  ¹⁴ 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.

[6:18]  ¹⁵ tn Both “pray” and “be alert” are participles in the Greek text (“praying…being alert”). Both are probably instrumental, loosely connected with all of the preceding instructions. As such, they are not additional commands to do but instead are the means through which the prior instructions are accomplished.

[6:18]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “and toward it.”

[2:1]  ¹⁷ tn Or “I want you to know how hard I am working for you…”

[2:1]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “as many as have not seen my face in the flesh.”

[4:12]  ¹⁹ tn See the note on “fellow slave” in 1:7.

[4:12]  ²⁰ tc ‡ Strong Alexandrian testimony, along with some other witnesses, suggests that ᾿Ιησοῦ (Ihsou, “Jesus”) follows Χριστοῦ (Cristou, “Christ”; so א A B C I L 0278 33 81 365 629 1175 2464 al lat), but the evidence for the shorter reading is diverse (Ì⁴⁶ D F G Ψ 075 1739 1881 Ï it sy Hier), cutting across all major texttypes. There can be little motivation for omitting the name of Jesus; hence, the shorter reading is judged to be original. NA²⁷ has ᾿Ιησοῦ in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

[4:12]  ²¹ tn Or “filled.”

[5:7]  ²² tn Grk “in the days of his flesh.”

[5:7]  ²³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Christ) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:7]  ²⁴ tn Grk “who…having offered,” continuing the description of Christ from Heb 5:5-6.