Genesis 39:8-12

39:8 But he refused, saying ¹  to his master’s wife, “Look, my master does not give any thought ²  to his household with me here, ³  and everything that he owns he has put into my care. ⁴  39:9 There is no one greater in this household than I am. He has withheld nothing from me except you because you are his wife. So how could I do ⁵  such a great evil and sin against God?” 39:10 Even though she continued to speak ⁶  to Joseph day after day, he did not respond ⁷  to her invitation to have sex with her. ⁸ 

39:11 One day ⁹  he went into the house to do his work when none of the household servants ¹⁰  were there in the house. 39:12 She grabbed him by his outer garment, saying, “Have sex with me!” But he left his outer garment in her hand and ran ¹¹  outside. ¹² 

Genesis 39:20

39:20 Joseph’s master took him and threw him into the prison, ¹³  the place where the king’s prisoners were confined. So he was there in the prison. ¹⁴ 

Genesis 39:1

Joseph and Potiphar’s Wife

39:1 Now Joseph had been brought down to Egypt. ¹⁵  An Egyptian named Potiphar, an official of Pharaoh and the captain of the guard, ¹⁶  purchased him from ¹⁷  the Ishmaelites who had brought him there.

Genesis 24:11

24:11 He made the camels kneel down by the well ¹⁸  outside the city. It was evening, ¹⁹  the time when the women would go out to draw water.

Psalms 59:3-4

59:3 For look, they wait to ambush me; ²⁰ 

powerful men stalk ²¹  me,

but not because I have rebelled or sinned, O Lord. ²² 

59:4 Though I have done nothing wrong, ²³  they are anxious to attack. ²⁴ 

Spring into action and help me! Take notice of me! ²⁵ 

Daniel 6:22

6:22 My God sent his angel and closed the lions’ mouths so that they have not harmed me, because I was found to be innocent before him. Nor have I done any harm to you, O king.”

John 10:32

10:32 Jesus said to them, ²⁶  “I have shown you many good deeds ²⁷  from the Father. For which one of them are you going to stone me?”

John 15:25

15:25 Now this happened ²⁸  to fulfill the word that is written in their law, ‘They hated me without reason.’ ²⁹ 

Acts 24:12-21

24:12 They did not find me arguing ³⁰  with anyone or stirring up a crowd ³¹  in the temple courts ³²  or in the synagogues ³³  or throughout the city, ³⁴  24:13 nor can they prove ³⁵  to you the things ³⁶  they are accusing me of doing. ³⁷  24:14 But I confess this to you, that I worship ³⁸  the God of our ancestors ³⁹  according to the Way (which they call a sect), believing everything that is according to the law ⁴⁰  and that is written in the prophets. 24:15 I have ⁴¹  a hope in God (a hope ⁴²  that ⁴³  these men ⁴⁴  themselves accept too) that there is going to be a resurrection of both the righteous and the unrighteous. ⁴⁵  24:16 This is the reason ⁴⁶  I do my best to always ⁴⁷  have a clear ⁴⁸  conscience toward God and toward people. ⁴⁹  24:17 After several years ⁵⁰  I came to bring to my people gifts for the poor ⁵¹  and to present offerings, ⁵²  24:18 which I was doing when they found me in the temple, ritually purified, ⁵³  without a crowd or a disturbance. ⁵⁴  24:19 But there are some Jews from the province of Asia ⁵⁵  who should be here before you and bring charges, ⁵⁶  if they have anything against me. 24:20 Or these men here ⁵⁷  should tell what crime ⁵⁸  they found me guilty of ⁵⁹  when I stood before the council, ⁶⁰  24:21 other than ⁶¹  this one thing ⁶²  I shouted out while I stood before ⁶³  them: ‘I am on trial before you today concerning the resurrection of the dead.’” ⁶⁴ 

Acts 25:10-11

25:10 Paul replied, ⁶⁵  “I am standing before Caesar’s ⁶⁶  judgment seat, ⁶⁷  where I should be tried. ⁶⁸  I have done nothing wrong ⁶⁹  to the Jews, as you also know very well. ⁷⁰  25:11 If then I am in the wrong ⁷¹  and have done anything that deserves death, I am not trying to escape dying, ⁷²  but if not one of their charges against me is true, ⁷³  no one can hand me over to them. ⁷⁴  I appeal to Caesar!” ⁷⁵ 

Acts 25:1

Paul Appeals to Caesar

25:1 Now ⁷⁶  three days after Festus ⁷⁷  arrived in the province, he went up to Jerusalem ⁷⁸  from Caesarea. ⁷⁹ 

Acts 3:17-18

3:17 And now, brothers, I know you acted in ignorance, ⁸⁰  as your rulers did too. 3:18 But the things God foretold ⁸¹  long ago through ⁸²  all the prophets – that his Christ ⁸³  would suffer – he has fulfilled in this way.

[39:8]  ¹ tn Heb “and he said.”

[39:8]  ² tn Heb “know.”

[39:8]  ³ tn The word “here” has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[39:8]  ⁴ tn Heb “hand.” This is a metonymy for being under the control or care of Joseph.

[39:9]  ⁵ tn The nuance of potential imperfect fits this context.

[39:10]  ⁶ tn The verse begins with the temporal indicator, followed by the infinitive construct with the preposition כְּ (kÿ). This clause could therefore be taken as temporal.

[39:10]  ⁷ tn Heb “listen to.”

[39:10]  ⁸ tn Heb “to lie beside her to be with her.” Here the expression “to lie beside” is a euphemism for sexual intercourse.

[39:11]  ⁹ tn Heb “and it was about this day.”

[39:11]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the men of the house.”

[39:12]  ¹¹ tn Heb “he fled and he went out.” The construction emphasizes the point that Joseph got out of there quickly.

[39:12]  ¹² sn For discussion of this episode, see A. M. Honeyman, “The Occasion of Joseph’s Temptation,” VT 2 (1952): 85-87.

[39:20]  ¹³ tn Heb “the house of roundness,” suggesting that the prison might have been a fortress or citadel.

[39:20]  ¹⁴ sn The story of Joseph is filled with cycles and repetition: He has two dreams (chap. 37), he interprets two dreams in prison (chap. 40) and the two dreams of Pharaoh (chap. 41), his brothers make two trips to see him (chaps. 42-43), and here, for the second time (see 37:24), he is imprisoned for no good reason, with only his coat being used as evidence. For further discussion see H. Jacobsen, “A Legal Note on Potiphar’s Wife,” HTR 69 (1976): 177.

[39:1]  ¹⁵ tn The disjunctive clause resumes the earlier narrative pertaining to Joseph by recapitulating the event described in 37:36. The perfect verbal form is given a past perfect translation to restore the sequence of the narrative for the reader.

[39:1]  ¹⁶ sn Captain of the guard. See the note on this phrase in Gen 37:36.

[39:1]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “from the hand of.”

[24:11]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “well of water.”

[24:11]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “at the time of evening.”

[59:3]  ²⁰ tn Heb “my life.”

[59:3]  ²¹ tn The Hebrew verb is from the root גּוּר (gur), which means “to challenge, attack” in Isa 54:15 and “to stalk” (with hostile intent) in Ps 56:8.

[59:3]  ²² sn The point is that the psalmist’s enemies have no justifiable reason for attacking him. He has neither rebelled or sinned against the Lord.

[59:4]  ²³ tn Heb “without sin.”

[59:4]  ²⁴ tn Heb “they run and they are determined.”

[59:4]  ²⁵ tn Heb “arise to meet me and see.” The Hebrew verb קָרָא (qara’, “to meet; to encounter”) here carries the nuance of “to help.”

[10:32]  ²⁶ tn Grk “Jesus answered them.”

[10:32]  ²⁷ tn Or “good works.”

[15:25]  ²⁸ tn The words “this happened” are not in the Greek text but are supplied to complete an ellipsis.

[15:25]  ²⁹ sn A quotation from Ps 35:19 and Ps 69:4. As a technical term law (νόμος, nomos) is usually restricted to the Pentateuch (the first five books of the OT), but here it must have a broader reference, since the quotation is from Ps 35:19 or Ps 69:4. The latter is the more likely source for the quoted words, since it is cited elsewhere in John’s Gospel (2:17 and 19:29, in both instances in contexts associated with Jesus’ suffering and death).

[24:12]  ³⁰ tn Or “disputing,” “conducting a heated discussion.”

[24:12]  ³¹ tn BDAG 381 s.v. ἐπίστασις 2 has “ἐ. ποιεῖν ὄχλου to cause a crowd to gather Ac 24:12.” Roman authorities would not allow a mob to gather and threaten the peace, and anyone suspected of instigating a mob would certainly be arrested.

[24:12]  ³² tn Grk “in the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

[24:12]  ³³ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[24:12]  ³⁴ sn A second part of Paul’s defense is that he did nothing while he was in Jerusalem to cause unrest, neither arguing nor stirring up a crowd in the temple courts or in the synagogues or throughout the city.

[24:13]  ³⁵ tn BDAG 778 s.v. παρίστημι/παριστάνω 1.f has “οὐδὲ παραστῆσαι δύνανταί σοι περὶ ὧν νυνὶ κατηγοροῦσίν μου nor can they prove to you the accusations they are now making against me Ac 24:13.”

[24:13]  ³⁶ tn The words “the things” are not in the Greek text but are implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.

[24:13]  ³⁷ tn Grk “nor can they prove to you [the things] about which they are now accusing me.” This has been simplified to eliminate the relative pronoun (“which”) in the translation.

[24:14]  ³⁸ tn Or “serve.”

[24:14]  ³⁹ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[24:14]  ⁴⁰ sn That is, the law of Moses. Paul was claiming that he legitimately worshiped the God of Israel. He was arguing that this amounted to a religious dispute rather than a political one, so that the Roman authorities need not concern themselves with it.

[24:15]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “having.” The participle ἔχων (ecwn) has been translated as a finite verb and a new sentence begun at this point in the translation because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence.

[24:15]  ⁴² sn This mention of Paul’s hope sets up his appeal to the resurrection of the dead. At this point Paul was ignoring the internal Jewish dispute between the Pharisees (to which he had belonged) and the Sadducees (who denied there would be a resurrection of the dead).

[24:15]  ⁴³ tn Grk “a hope in God (which these [men] themselves accept too).” Because the antecedent of the relative pronoun “which” is somewhat unclear in English, the words “a hope” have been repeated at the beginning of the parenthesis for clarity.

[24:15]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “that they”; the referent (these men, Paul’s accusers) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[24:15]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “the unjust.”

[24:16]  ⁴⁶ tn BDAG 329 s.v. ἐν 9.a, “ἐν τούτῳ πιστεύομεν this is the reason why we believe Jn 16:30; cp. Ac 24:16.”

[24:16]  ⁴⁷ tn BDAG 224 s.v. διά 2.a, “διὰ παντός…always, continually, constantly…Ac 2:25 (Ps 15:8); 10:2; 24:16.” However, the positioning of the adverb “always” in the English translation is difficult; the position used is one of the least awkward.

[24:16]  ⁴⁸ tn BDAG 125 s.v. ἀπρόσκοπος 1 has “ἀ. συνείδησις a clear conscience Ac 24:16.”

[24:16]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “men,” but this is a generic use (Paul does not have only males in view).

[24:17]  ⁵⁰ tn BDAG 401 s.v. ἔτος has “δι᾿ ἐ. πλειόνων after several years 24:17.”

[24:17]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “to bring alms,” but the term “alms” is not in common use today, so the closest modern equivalent, “gifts for the poor,” is used instead.

[24:17]  ⁵² tn Or “sacrifices.” BDAG 887 s.v. προσφορά 1 has “προσφοράς ποιεῖν have sacrifices made Ac 24:17,” but this may be overly specific. It is not clear from the immediate context whether the offering of sacrificial animals (so BDAG assumes) or offerings of some other sort (such as financial gifts) are in view. The combination with ἐλεημοσύνας (elehmosuna") in the preceding clause may suggest monetary offerings. Some have suggested this is an allusion to the payments made by Paul on behalf of the four other men mentioned in Acts 21:23-26, but the text here seems to suggest something Paul had planned to do before he came, while the decision to pay for the expenses of the men in 21:23ff. was made at the suggestion of the Jerusalem leadership after he arrived. In either case, Paul was portraying himself as a pious worshiper of his God.

[24:18]  ⁵³ sn Ritually purified. Paul’s claim here is that he was honoring the holiness of God by being sensitive to issues of ritual purity. Not only was he not guilty of the charges against him, but he was thoroughly devout.

[24:18]  ⁵⁴ tn BDAG 458 s.v. θόρυβος 3.b has “μετὰ θορύβου…with a disturbance Ac 24:18.”

[24:19]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “Asia”; in the NT this always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia.

[24:19]  ⁵⁶ tn BDAG 533 s.v. κατηγορέω 1 states, “nearly always as legal t.t.: bring charges in court.” L&N 33.427 states for κατηγορέω (kathgorew), “to bring serious charges or accusations against someone, with the possible connotation of a legal or court context – ‘to accuse, to bring charges.’”

[24:20]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “these [men] themselves.”

[24:20]  ⁵⁸ tn Or “unrighteous act.”

[24:20]  ⁵⁹ tn The words “me guilty of” are not in the Greek text, but are implied. L&N 88.23 has “αὐτοὶ οὗτοι εἰπάτωσαν τί εὗρον ἀδίκημα στάντος μου ‘let these men themselves tell what unrighteous act they found me guilty of’ Ac 24:20.”

[24:20]  ⁶⁰ tn Grk “the Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[24:21]  ⁶¹ tn BDAG 433 s.v. ἤ 2.c has “οὐδὲν ἕτερον ἤ nothing else than…Ac 17:21. τί…ἤ what other…than…24:21.”

[24:21]  ⁶² tn Grk “one utterance.”

[24:21]  ⁶³ tn Cf. BDAG 327 s.v. ἐν 1.e, which has “before, in the presence of, etc.”

[24:21]  ⁶⁴ sn The resurrection of the dead. Paul’s point was, what crime was there in holding this religious belief?

[25:10]  ⁶⁵ tn Grk “said.”

[25:10]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “before the emperor’s” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[25:10]  ⁶⁷ tn Although BDAG 175 s.v. βῆμα 3 gives the meaning “tribunal” for this verse, and a number of modern translations use similar terms (“court,” NIV; “tribunal,” NRSV), since the bema was a standard feature in Greco-Roman cities of the time, there is no need for an alternative translation here. Here of course Paul’s reference to “Caesar’s judgment seat” is a form of metonymy; since Festus is Caesar’s representative, Festus’ judgment seat represents Caesar’s own.

[25:10]  ⁶⁸ tn That is, tried by an imperial representative and subject to Roman law.

[25:10]  ⁶⁹ sn “I have done nothing wrong.” Here is yet another declaration of total innocence on Paul’s part.

[25:10]  ⁷⁰ tn BDAG 506 s.v. καλῶς 7 states, “comp. κάλλιον (for the superl., as Galen, Protr. 8 p. 24, 19J.=p. 10, 31 Kaibel; s. B-D-F §244, 2) ὡς καί σὺ κ. ἐπιγινώσκεις as also you know very well Ac 25:10.”

[25:11]  ⁷¹ tn BDAG 20 s.v. ἀδικέω 1.b has “intr. be in the wrong (Ex 2:13) εἰ ἀδικῶ Ac 25:11.”

[25:11]  ⁷² tn BDAG 764 s.v. παραιτέομαι 2.b.β, “οὐ παραιτοῦμαι τὸ ἀποθανεῖν I am not trying to escape death Ac 25:11 (cp. Jos., Vi. 141).” To avoid redundancy in the translation, the English gerund “dying” is used to translate the Greek infinitive ἀποθανεῖν (apoqanein).

[25:11]  ⁷³ tn Or “but if there is nothing to their charges against me.” Both “if” clauses in this verse are first class conditions. Paul stated the options without prejudice, assuming in turn the reality of each for the sake of the argument.

[25:11]  ⁷⁴ sn That is, no one can hand me over to them lawfully. Paul was aware of the dangers of a return to Jerusalem.

[25:11]  ⁷⁵ tn Or “to the emperor” (“Caesar” is a title for the Roman emperor).

[25:1]  ⁷⁶ tn BDAG 736-37 s.v. οὖν 2.b states, “οὖν serves to indicate a transition to someth. new…now, then, well…Ac 25:1.”

[25:1]  ⁷⁷ sn See the note on Porcius Festus in 24:27.

[25:1]  ⁷⁸ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[25:1]  ⁷⁹ sn Caesarea was a city on the coast of Palestine south of Mount Carmel (not Caesarea Philippi). See the note on Caesarea in Acts 10:1. This was a journey of 65 mi (just over 100 km).

[3:17]  ⁸⁰ sn The ignorance Peter mentions here does not excuse them from culpability. It was simply a way to say “you did not realize the great mistake you made.”

[3:18]  ⁸¹ sn God foretold. Peter’s topic is the working out of God’s plan and promise through events the scriptures also note.

[3:18]  ⁸² tn Grk “by the mouth of” (an idiom).

[3:18]  ⁸³ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”