Isaiah 28:17

28:17 I will make justice the measuring line,

fairness the plumb line;

hail will sweep away the unreliable refuge, ¹ 

the floodwaters will overwhelm the hiding place.

Isaiah 29:10

29:10 For the Lord has poured out on you

a strong urge to sleep deeply. ² 

He has shut your eyes (the prophets),

and covered your heads (the seers).

Isaiah 29:1

Ariel is Besieged

29:1 Ariel is as good as dead ³  –

Ariel, the town David besieged! ⁴ 

Keep observing your annual rituals,

celebrate your festivals on schedule. ⁵ 

Isaiah 13:18

13:18 Their arrows will cut young men to ribbons; ⁶ 

they have no compassion on a person’s offspring, ⁷ 

they will not ⁸  look with pity on children.

Isaiah 22:22-24

22:22 I will place the key ⁹  to the house of David on his shoulder. When he opens the door, no one can close it; when he closes the door, no one can open it. 22:23 I will fasten him like a peg into a solid place; ¹⁰  he will bring honor and respect to his father’s family. ¹¹  22:24 His father’s family will gain increasing prominence because of him, ¹²  including the offspring and the offshoots. ¹³  All the small containers, including the bowls and all the jars will hang from this peg.’ ¹⁴ 

Jeremiah 5:31

5:31 The prophets prophesy lies.

The priests exercise power by their own authority. ¹⁵ 

And my people love to have it this way.

But they will not be able to help you when the time of judgment comes! ¹⁶ 

Jeremiah 14:14-15

14:14 Then the Lord said to me, “Those prophets are prophesying lies while claiming my authority! ¹⁷  I did not send them. I did not commission them. ¹⁸  I did not speak to them. They are prophesying to these people false visions, worthless predictions, ¹⁹  and the delusions of their own mind. 14:15 I did not send those prophets, though they claim to be prophesying in my name. They may be saying, ‘No war or famine will happen in this land.’ But I, the Lord, say this about ²⁰  them: ‘War and starvation will kill those prophets.’ ²¹ 

Jeremiah 23:9

Oracles Against the False Prophets ²² 

23:9 Here is what the Lord says concerning the false prophets: ²³ 

My heart and my mind are deeply disturbed.

I tremble all over. ²⁴ 

I am like a drunk person,

like a person who has had too much wine, ²⁵ 

because of the way the Lord

and his holy word are being mistreated. ²⁶ 

Jeremiah 23:14-15

23:14 But I see the prophets of Jerusalem ²⁷ 

doing something just as shocking.

They are unfaithful to me

and continually prophesy lies. ²⁸ 

So they give encouragement to people who are doing evil,

with the result that they do not stop their evildoing. ²⁹ 

I consider all of them as bad as the people of Sodom,

and the citizens of Jerusalem as bad as the people of Gomorrah. ³⁰ 

23:15 So then I, the Lord who rules over all, ³¹ 

have something to say concerning the prophets of Jerusalem: ³² 

‘I will make these prophets eat the bitter food of suffering

and drink the poison water of judgment. ³³ 

For the prophets of Jerusalem are the reason ³⁴ 

that ungodliness ³⁵  has spread throughout the land.’”

Jeremiah 23:25-27

23:25 The Lord says, ³⁶  “I have heard what those prophets who are prophesying lies in my name are saying. They are saying, ‘I have had a dream! I have had a dream!’ ³⁷  23:26 Those prophets are just prophesying lies. They are prophesying the delusions of their own minds. ³⁸  23:27 How long will they go on plotting ³⁹  to make my people forget who I am ⁴⁰  through the dreams they tell one another? That is just as bad as what their ancestors ⁴¹  did when they forgot who I am by worshiping the god Baal. ⁴² 

Jeremiah 27:9-10

27:9 So do not listen to your prophets or to those who claim to predict the future by divination, ⁴³  by dreams, by consulting the dead, ⁴⁴  or by practicing magic. They keep telling you, ‘You do not need to be ⁴⁵  subject to the king of Babylon.’ 27:10 Do not listen to them, ⁴⁶  because their prophecies are lies. ⁴⁷  Listening to them will only cause you ⁴⁸  to be taken far away from your native land. I will drive you out of your country and you will die in exile. ⁴⁹ 

Jeremiah 27:14-15

27:14 Do not listen to the prophets who are telling you that you do not need to serve ⁵⁰  the king of Babylon. For they are prophesying lies to you. 27:15 For I, the Lord, affirm ⁵¹  that I did not send them. They are prophesying lies to you. If you ⁵²  listen to them, I will drive you and the prophets who are prophesying lies out of the land and you will all die in exile.” ⁵³ 

Jeremiah 28:15-16

28:15 Then the prophet Jeremiah told the prophet Hananiah, “Listen, Hananiah! The Lord did not send you! You are making these people trust in a lie! ⁵⁴  28:16 So the Lord says, ‘I will most assuredly remove ⁵⁵  you from the face of the earth. You will die this very year because you have counseled rebellion against the Lord.’” ⁵⁶ 

Jeremiah 29:21-22

29:21 “The Lord God of Israel who rules over all ⁵⁷  also has something to say about Ahab son of Kolaiah and Zedekiah son of Maaseiah, who are prophesying lies to you and claiming my authority to do so. ⁵⁸  ‘I will hand them over to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon and he will execute them before your very eyes. 29:22 And all the exiles of Judah who are in Babylon will use them as examples when they put a curse on anyone. They will say, “May the Lord treat you like Zedekiah and Ahab whom the king of Babylon roasted to death in the fire!” ⁵⁹ 

Ezekiel 13:1-16

False Prophets Denounced

13:1 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 13:2 “Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel who are now prophesying. Say to the prophets who prophesy from their imagination: ⁶⁰  ‘Hear the word of the Lord! 13:3 This is what the sovereign Lord says: Woe to the foolish prophets who follow their own spirit but have seen nothing! 13:4 Your prophets have become like jackals among the ruins, O Israel. 13:5 You have not gone up in the breaks in the wall, nor repaired a wall for the house of Israel that it would stand strong in the battle on the day of the Lord. 13:6 They see delusion and their omens are a lie. ⁶¹  They say, “the Lord declares,” though the Lord has not sent them; ⁶²  yet they expect their word to be confirmed. ⁶³  13:7 Have you not seen a false vision and announced a lying omen when you say, “the Lord declares,” although I myself never spoke?

13:8 “‘Therefore, this is what the sovereign Lord says: Because you have spoken false words and forecast delusion, look, ⁶⁴  I am against you, ⁶⁵  declares the sovereign Lord. 13:9 My hand will be against the prophets who see delusion and announce lying omens. They will not be included in the council ⁶⁶  of my people, nor be written in the registry ⁶⁷  of the house of Israel, nor enter the land of Israel. Then you will know that I am the sovereign Lord.

13:10 “‘This is because they have led my people astray saying, “All is well,” ⁶⁸  when things are not well. When anyone builds a wall without mortar, ⁶⁹  they coat it with whitewash. 13:11 Tell the ones who coat it with whitewash that it will fall. When there is a deluge of rain, hailstones ⁷⁰  will fall and a violent wind will break out. ⁷¹  13:12 When the wall has collapsed, people will ask you, “Where is the whitewash you coated it with?”

13:13 “‘Therefore this is what the sovereign Lord says: In my rage I will make a violent wind break out. In my anger there will be a deluge of rain and hailstones in destructive fury. 13:14 I will break down the wall you coated with whitewash and knock it to the ground so that its foundation is exposed. When it falls you will be destroyed beneath it, ⁷²  and you will know that I am the Lord. 13:15 I will vent my rage against the wall, and against those who coated it with whitewash. Then I will say to you, “The wall is no more and those who whitewashed it are no more – 13:16 those prophets of Israel who would prophesy about Jerusalem ⁷³  and would see visions of peace for it, when there was no peace,” declares the sovereign Lord.’

Ezekiel 13:19

13:19 You have profaned me among my people for handfuls of barley and scraps of bread. You have put to death people ⁷⁴  who should not die and kept alive those who should not live by your lies to my people, who listen to lies!

Ezekiel 13:22

13:22 This is because you have disheartened the righteous person with lies (although I have not grieved him), and because you have encouraged the wicked person not to turn from his evil conduct and preserve his life.

Hosea 9:8

9:8 The prophet ⁷⁵  is a watchman ⁷⁶  over Ephraim ⁷⁷  on behalf of God, ⁷⁸ 

yet traps ⁷⁹  are laid for him along all of his paths; ⁸⁰ 

animosity rages against him in the land ⁸¹  of his God.

Malachi 2:9

2:9 “Therefore, I have caused you to be ignored and belittled before all people to the extent to which you are not following after me and are showing partiality in your ⁸²  instruction.”

Matthew 7:15

A Tree and Its Fruit

7:15 “Watch out for false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing but inwardly are voracious wolves. ⁸³ 

Matthew 24:24

24:24 For false messiahs ⁸⁴  and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect.

Matthew 24:2

24:2 And he said to them, ⁸⁵  “Do you see all these things? I tell you the truth, ⁸⁶  not one stone will be left on another. ⁸⁷  All will be torn down!” ⁸⁸ 

Colossians 1:13-15

1:13 He delivered us from the power of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of the Son he loves, ⁸⁹  1:14 in whom we have redemption, ⁹⁰  the forgiveness of sins.

The Supremacy of Christ

1:15 ⁹¹ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn ⁹²  over all creation, ⁹³ 

Galatians 1:8-9

1:8 But even if we (or an angel from heaven) should preach ⁹⁴  a gospel contrary to the one we preached to you, ⁹⁵  let him be condemned to hell! ⁹⁶  1:9 As we have said before, and now I say again, if any one is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, let him be condemned to hell! ⁹⁷ 

Galatians 1:2

1:2 and all the brothers with me, to the churches of Galatia.

Galatians 2:9-12

2:9 and when James, Cephas, ⁹⁸  and John, who had a reputation as ⁹⁹  pillars, ¹⁰⁰  recognized ¹⁰¹  the grace that had been given to me, they gave to Barnabas and me ¹⁰²  the right hand of fellowship, agreeing ¹⁰³  that we would go to the Gentiles and they to the circumcised. ¹⁰⁴  2:10 They requested ¹⁰⁵  only that we remember the poor, the very thing I also was eager to do.

Paul Rebukes Peter

2:11 But when Cephas ¹⁰⁶  came to Antioch, ¹⁰⁷  I opposed him to his face, because he had clearly done wrong. ¹⁰⁸  2:12 Until ¹⁰⁹  certain people came from James, he had been eating with the Gentiles. But when they arrived, he stopped doing this ¹¹⁰  and separated himself ¹¹¹  because he was afraid of those who were pro-circumcision. ¹¹² 

Galatians 2:2

2:2 I went there ¹¹³  because of ¹¹⁴  a revelation and presented ¹¹⁵  to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did so ¹¹⁶  only in a private meeting with the influential people, ¹¹⁷  to make sure that I was not running – or had not run ¹¹⁸  – in vain.

Galatians 4:2-3

4:2 But he is under guardians ¹¹⁹  and managers until the date set by his ¹²⁰  father. 4:3 So also we, when we were minors, ¹²¹  were enslaved under the basic forces ¹²²  of the world.

Galatians 4:2

4:2 But he is under guardians ¹²³  and managers until the date set by his ¹²⁴  father.

Galatians 2:1-3

Confirmation from the Jerusalem Apostles

2:1 Then after fourteen years I went up to Jerusalem ¹²⁵  again with Barnabas, taking Titus along too. 2:2 I went there ¹²⁶  because of ¹²⁷  a revelation and presented ¹²⁸  to them the gospel that I preach among the Gentiles. But I did so ¹²⁹  only in a private meeting with the influential people, ¹³⁰  to make sure that I was not running – or had not run ¹³¹  – in vain. 2:3 Yet ¹³²  not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, although he was a Greek.

Galatians 2:1

Confirmation from the Jerusalem Apostles

2:1 Then after fourteen years I went up to Jerusalem ¹³³  again with Barnabas, taking Titus along too.

Galatians 4:1

4:1 Now I mean that the heir, as long as he is a minor, ¹³⁴  is no different from a slave, though he is the owner ¹³⁵  of everything.

Revelation 19:20

19:20 Now ¹³⁶  the beast was seized, and along with him the false prophet who had performed the signs on his behalf ¹³⁷  – signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. Both of them were thrown alive into the lake of fire burning with sulfur. ¹³⁸ 

[28:17]  ¹ tn Heb “[the] refuge, [the] lie.” See v. 15.

[29:10]  ² tn Heb “a disposition [or “spirit”] of deep sleep.” Through this mixed metaphor (sleep is likened to a liquid which one pours and in turn symbolizes spiritual dullness) the prophet emphasizes that God himself has given the people over to their spiritual insensitivity as a form of judgment.

[29:1]  ³ tn Heb “Woe [to] Ariel.” The meaning of the name “Ariel” is uncertain. The name may mean “altar hearth” (see v. 2) or, if compound, “lion of God.” The name is used here as a title for Mount Zion/Jerusalem (see v. 8).

[29:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “the town where David camped.” The verb חָנָה (khanah, “camp”) probably has the nuance “lay siege to” here. See v. 3. Another option is to take the verb in the sense of “lived, settled.”

[29:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “Add year to year, let your festivals occur in cycles.” This is probably a sarcastic exhortation to the people to keep up their religious rituals, which will not prevent the coming judgment. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:527.

[13:18]  ⁶ tn Heb “and bows cut to bits young men.” “Bows” stands by metonymy for arrows.

[13:18]  ⁷ tn Heb “the fruit of the womb.”

[13:18]  ⁸ tn Heb “their eye does not.” Here “eye” is a metonymy for the whole person.

[22:22]  ⁹ sn This may refer to a literal insignia worn by the chief administrator. Even so, it would still symbolize the administrator’s authority to grant or exclude access to the king. See J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 1:422.

[22:23]  ¹⁰ sn The metaphor depicts how secure his position will be.

[22:23]  ¹¹ tn Heb “and he will become a glorious throne for the house of his father.”

[22:24]  ¹² tn Heb “and all the glory of the house of his father they will hang on him.” The Lord returns to the peg metaphor of v. 23a. Eliakim’s secure position of honor will bring benefits and jobs to many others in the family.

[22:24]  ¹³ tn The precise meaning and derivation of this word are uncertain. Cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV “the issue”; CEV “relatives.”

[22:24]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “all the small vessels, from the vessels that are bowls to all the vessels that are jars.” The picture is that of a single peg holding the weight of all kinds of containers hung from it.

[5:31]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “they shall rule at their hands.” Since the word “hand” can be used figuratively for authority or mean “side” and the pronoun “them” can refer to the priests themselves or the prophets, the following translations have also been suggested: “the priests rule under their [the prophets’] directions,” or “the priests rule in league with them [the prophets].” From the rest of the book it would appear that the prophets did not exercise authority over the priests nor did they exercise the same authority over the people that the priests did. Hence it probably mean “by their own hand/power/authority.”

[5:31]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “But what will you do at its end?” The rhetorical question implies a negative answer: “Nothing!”

[14:14]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “Falsehood those prophets are prophesying in my name.” In the OT, the “name” reflected the person’s character (cf. Gen 27:36; 1 Sam 25:25) or his reputation (Gen 11:4; 2 Sam 8:13). To speak in someone’s name was to act as his representative or carry his authority (1 Sam 25:9; 1 Kgs 21:8).

[14:14]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “I did not command them.” Compare 1 Chr 22:12 for usage.

[14:14]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “divination and worthlessness.” The noun “worthlessness” stands as a qualifying “of” phrase (= to an adjective; an attributive genitive in Hebrew) after a noun in Zech 11:17; Job 13:4. This is an example of hendiadys where two nouns are joined by “and” with one serving as the qualifier of the other.

[14:15]  ²⁰ tn Heb “Thus says the Lord about.” The first person construction has been used in the translation for better English style.

[14:15]  ²¹ tn Heb “Thus says the Lord concerning the prophets who are prophesying in my name and I did not send them [= whom I did not send] and they are saying [= who are saying], ‘Sword and famine…’, by sword and famine those prophets will be killed.” This sentence has been restructured to conform to contemporary English style.

[23:9]  ²² sn Jeremiah has already had a good deal to say about the false prophets and their fate. See 2:8, 26; 5:13, 31; 14:13-15. Here he parallels the condemnation of the wicked prophets and their fate (23:9-40) with that of the wicked kings (21:11-22:30).

[23:9]  ²³ tn The word “false” is not in the text, but it is clear from the context that these are whom the sayings are directed against. The words “Here is what the Lord says” are also not in the text. But comparison with 46:2; 48:1; 49:1, 7, 23, 28; and 21:11 will show that this is a heading. The words are supplied in the translation for clarity.

[23:9]  ²⁴ tn Heb “My heart is crushed within me. My bones tremble.” It has already been noted several times that the “heart” in ancient Hebrew psychology was the intellectual and volitional center of the person, the kidneys were the emotional center, and the bones the locus of strength and also the subject of joy, distress, and sorrow. Here Jeremiah is speaking of his distress of heart and mind in modern psychology, a distress that leads him to trembling of body which he compares to that of a drunken person staggering around under the influence of wine.

[23:9]  ²⁵ tn Heb “wine has passed over him.”

[23:9]  ²⁶ tn Heb “wine because of the Lord and because of his holy word.” The words that are supplied in the translation are implicit from the context and are added for clarity.

[23:14]  ²⁷ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[23:14]  ²⁸ tn Or “they commit adultery and deal falsely.” The word “shocking” only occurs here and in 5:30 where it is found in the context of prophesying lies. This almost assures that the reference to “walking in lies” (Heb “in the lie”) is referring to false prophesy. Moreover the references to the prophets in 5:13 and in 14:13-15 are all in the context of false prophesy as are the following references in this chapter in 23:24, 26, 32 and in 28:15. This appears to be the theme of this section. This also makes it likely that the reference to adultery is not literal adultery, though two of the false prophets in Babylon were guilty of this (29:23). The reference to “encouraging those who do evil” that follows also makes more sense if they were preaching messages of comfort rather than messages of doom. The verbs here are infinitive absolutes in place of the finite verb, probably used to place greater emphasis on the action (cf. Hos 4:2 in a comparable judgment speech.)

[23:14]  ²⁹ tn Heb “So they strengthen the hands of those doing evil so that they do not turn back from their evil.” For the use of the figure “strengthen the hands” meaning “encourage” see Judg 9:24; Ezek 13:22 (and cf. BDB 304 s.v. חָזַק Piel.2). The vav consecutive on the front of the form gives the logical consequence equivalent to “so” in the translation.

[23:14]  ³⁰ tn Heb “All of them are to me like Sodom and its [Jerusalem’s] inhabitants like Gomorrah.”

[23:15]  ³¹ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies.”

[23:15]  ³² tn Heb “Therefore, thus says the Lord…concerning the prophets.” The person is shifted to better conform with English style and the word “of Jerusalem” is supplied in the translation to avoid the possible misunderstanding that the judgment applies to the prophets of Samaria who had already been judged long before.

[23:15]  ³³ tn Heb “I will feed this people wormwood and make them drink poison water.” For these same words of judgment on another group see 9:15 (9:14 HT). “Wormwood” and “poison water” are not to be understood literally here but are symbolic of judgment and suffering. See, e.g., BDB 542 s.v. לַעֲנָה.

[23:15]  ³⁴ tn The compound preposition מֵאֵת (me’et) expresses source or origin (see BDB 86 s.v. אֵת 4.c). Context shows that the origin is in their false prophesying which encourages people in their evil behavior.

[23:15]  ³⁵ sn A word that derives from this same Hebrew word is used in v. 11 at the beginning of the Lord’s criticism of the prophet and priest. This is a common rhetorical device for bracketing material that belongs together. The criticism has, however, focused on the false prophets and the judgment due them.

[23:25]  ³⁶ tn The words, “The Lord says” are not in the text. They are supplied in the translation for clarity to show that the Lord continues speaking.

[23:25]  ³⁷ sn To have had a dream was not an illegitimate means of receiving divine revelation. God had revealed himself in the past to his servants through dreams (e.g., Jacob [Gen 31:10-11] and Joseph [Gen 37:6, 7, 9]) and God promised to reveal himself through dreams (Num 12:6; Joel 2:28 [3:1 HT]). What was illegitimate was to use the dream to lead people away from the Lord (Deut 13:1-5 [13:2-6 HT]). That was what the prophets were doing through their dreams which were “lies” and “the delusions of their own minds.” Through them they were making people forget who the Lord really was which was just like what their ancestors had done through worshiping Baal.

[23:26]  ³⁸ sn See the parallel passage in Jer 14:13-15.

[23:27]  ³⁹ tn The relation of the words to one another in v. 26 and the beginning of v. 27 has created difficulties for translators and commentators. The proper solution is reflected in the NJPS. Verses 26-27 read somewhat literally, “How long is there in the hearts of the prophets who are prophesying the lie and [in the hearts of] the prophets of the delusions of their [own] heart the plotting to cause my people to forget my name…” Most commentaries complain that the text is corrupt, that there is no subject for “is there.” However, the long construct qualification “in the hearts of” has led to the lack of observation that the proper subject is “the plotting to make my people forget.” There are no exact parallels but Jer 14:22; Neh 5:5 follow the same structure. The “How long” precedes the other means of asking a question for the purpose of emphasis (cf. BDB 210 s.v. הֲ 1.b and compare for example the usage in 2 Sam 7:7). There has also been a failure to see that “the prophets of the delusion of…” is a parallel construct noun after “heart of.” Stripping the syntax down to its barest minimum and translating literally, the sentence would read “How long will the plotting…continue in the hearts of the prophets who…and [in hearts of] the prophets of…” The sentence has been restructured in the translation to conform to contemporary English style but attempt has been made to maintain the same subordinations.

[23:27]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “my name.”

[23:27]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 39).

[23:27]  ⁴² tn Heb “through Baal.” This is an elliptical expression for the worship of Baal. See 11:17; 12:16; 19:5 for other references to their relation to Baal. There is a deliberate paralleling in the syntax here between “through their dreams” and “through Baal.”

[27:9]  ⁴³ sn Various means of divination are alluded to in the OT. For example, Ezek 21:26-27 alludes to throwing down arrows to see which way they fall and consulting the shape of the liver of slaughtered animals. Gen 44:5 alludes to reading the future through pouring liquid in a cup. The means alluded to in this verse were all classified as pagan and prohibited as illegitimate in Deut 18:10-14. The Lord had promised that he would speak to them through prophets like Moses (Deut 18:15, 18). But even prophets could lie. Hence, the Lord told them that the test of a true prophet was whether what he said came true or not (Deut 18:20-22). An example of false prophesying and the vindication of the true as opposed to the false will be given in the chapter that follows this.

[27:9]  ⁴⁴ sn An example of this is seen in 1 Sam 28.

[27:9]  ⁴⁵ tn The verb in this context is best taken as a negative obligatory imperfect. See IBHS 508-9 §31.4g for discussion and examples. See Exod 4:15 as an example of positive obligation.

[27:10]  ⁴⁶ tn The words “Don’t listen to them” have been repeated from v. 9a to pick up the causal connection between v. 9a and v. 10 that is formally introduced by a causal particle in v. 10 in the original text.

[27:10]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “they are prophesying a lie.”

[27:10]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “lies will result in your being taken far…” (לְמַעַן [lÿma’an] + infinitive). This is a rather clear case of the particle לְמַעַן introducing result (contra BDB 775 s.v. מַעַן note 1. There is no irony in this statement; it is a bold prediction).

[27:10]  ⁴⁹ tn The words “out of your country” are not in the text but are implicit in the meaning of the verb. The words “in exile” are also not in the text but are implicit in the context. These words have been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[27:14]  ⁵⁰ tn The verb in this context is best taken as a negative obligatory imperfect. See IBHS 508 §31.4g for discussion and examples. See Exod 4:15 as an example of positive obligation.

[27:15]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “oracle of the Lord.”

[27:15]  ⁵² sn The verbs are again plural referring to the king and his royal advisers.

[27:15]  ⁵³ tn Heb “…drive you out and you will perish, you and the prophets who are prophesying lies.”

[28:15]  ⁵⁴ tn Or “You are giving these people false assurances.”

[28:16]  ⁵⁵ sn There is a play on words here in Hebrew between “did not send you” and “will…remove you.” The two verbs are from the same root word in Hebrew. The first is the simple active and the second is the intensive.

[28:16]  ⁵⁶ sn In giving people false assurances of restoration when the Lord had already told them to submit to Babylon, Hananiah was really counseling rebellion against the Lord. What Hananiah had done was contrary to the law of Deut 13:6 and was punishable by death.

[29:21]  ⁵⁷ tn Heb “Yahweh of armies, the God of Israel.”

[29:21]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “prophesying lies in my name.” For an explanation of this idiom see the study notes on 14:14 and 23:27.

[29:22]  ⁵⁹ sn Being roasted to death in the fire appears to have been a common method of execution in Babylon. See Dan 3:6, 19-21. The famous law code of the Babylonian king Hammurabi also mandated this method of execution for various crimes a thousand years earlier. There is a satirical play on words involving their fate, “roasted them to death” (קָלָם, qalam), and the fact that that fate would become a common topic of curse (קְלָלָה, qÿlalah) pronounced on others in Babylon.

[13:2]  ⁶⁰ tn Heb “from their mind.”

[13:6]  ⁶¹ sn The same description of a false prophet is found in Micah 2:11.

[13:6]  ⁶² sn The Lord has not sent them. A similar concept is found in Jer 14:14; 23:21.

[13:6]  ⁶³ tn Or “confirmed”; NIV “to be fulfilled”; TEV “to come true.”

[13:8]  ⁶⁴ tn The word h!nn@h indicates becoming aware of something and has been translated here as a verb.

[13:8]  ⁶⁵ tn Or “I challenge you.” The phrase “I am against you” may be a formula for challenging someone to combat or a duel. See D. I. Block, Ezekiel (NICOT), 1:201-2, and P. Humbert, “Die Herausforderungsformel ‘h!nn#n' ?l?K>,’” ZAW 45 (1933): 101-8.

[13:9]  ⁶⁶ tn The Hebrew term may refer to the secret council of the Lord (Jer 23:18; Job 15:8), but here it more likely refers to a human council comprised of civic leaders (Gen 49:6; Jer 6:11; 15:17 Ps 64:3; 111:1).

[13:9]  ⁶⁷ tn The reference here is probably to a civil list (as in Ezra 2:16; Neh 7:64) rather than to a “book of life” (Exod 32:32; Isa 4:3; Ps 69:29; Dan 12:1). This registry may have been established at the making of David’s census (2 Sam 24:2, 9).

[13:10]  ⁶⁸ tn Or “peace.”

[13:10]  ⁶⁹ tn The Hebrew word only occurs here in the Bible. According to L. C. Allen (Ezekiel [WBC], 1:202-3) it is also used in the Mishnah of a wall of rough stones without mortar. This fits the context here comparing the false prophetic messages to a nice coat of whitewash on a structurally unstable wall.

[13:11]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “and you, O hailstones.”

[13:11]  ⁷¹ sn A violent wind will break out. God’s judgments are frequently described in storm imagery (Pss 18:7-15; 77:17-18; 83:15; Isa 28:17; 30:30; Jer 23:19; 30:23).

[13:14]  ⁷² tn Or “within it,” referring to the city of Jerusalem.

[13:16]  ⁷³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[13:19]  ⁷⁴ tn Heb “human lives” or “souls.”

[9:8]  ⁷⁵ tc The Leningrad Codex (the MT ms used for BHS) and Aleppo Codex both place the atnach (colon divider) after אלהי (“my God”) and connect נָבִיא (navi’, “prophet”) with the following colon. On the other hand, BHS suggests that נָבִיא (navi’, “prophet”) belongs with the first colon. For discussion of this syntactical problem, see F. I. Andersen and D. N. Freedman, Hosea (AB), 533-34.

[9:8]  ⁷⁶ tc The syntax of this line is difficult, and the text is questionable. The major options include: (1) Adopt the MT vocalization and BHS line division: צֹפֶה אֶפְרַיִם עִם־אֱלֹהָי נָבִיא (tsofeh ’efrayim ’im-elohay navi’, “The prophet is a watchman over Ephraim with my God [= on behalf of God]”). There are two problems with this: (a) Although BHS places נָבִיא (“prophet”) with this colon, the Aleppo Codex and Leningrad Codex both connect נָבִיא with the next colon (as do KJV, ASV). (b) The phrase עִם־אֱלֹהָי (“with my God”) is difficult to explain. (2) Adopt the MT vocalization and the MT line division: עִם־אֱלֹהָי צֹפֶה אֶפְרַיִם (“Ephraim is a watchman with my God,” cf. NASB). The problem with this, of course, is that Ephraim hardly fits the description of a prophetic watchman. (3) Revocalize the MT and adopt BHS line division: צֹפֶה אֶפְרַיִם עַם אֱלֹהָי נָבִיא (“Ephraim – the people of my God! – lies in ambush for the prophet”) This involves: (a) revocalization of the preposition עִם (’im, “with”) to the noun עַם (’am, “people”), (b) taking עַם־אֱלֹהָי (“people of my God”) in apposition to אֶפְרַיִם (“Ephraim”), and (c) nuancing צֹפֶה as “to lie in wait (=set ambush)” (e.g., Ps 37:32). This is contextually attractive and harmonizes well with the following line: “traps are laid along all of his paths.” However, it has two problems: (a) there is no textual evidence supporting the revocalization of עם as “people” and (b) the unusual nuance “to lie in wait” for צֹפֶה occurs only in Ps 37:32, where it takes the preposition לְ (lamed, i.e., “to lie in wait for the righteous”; HALOT 1044 s.v. צפה 4). (4) Emend אֱלֹהָי (“my God”) to אֹהֶל (’ohel, “tent”), as suggested in the BHS textual apparatus: אֶפְרַיִם עַם־אֹהֶל נָבִיא צֹפֶה (“Ephraim spies on the prophet’s tent”). The verb צָפָה may mean “to spy” (BDB 859 s.v. צָפָה; HALOT 1044 s.v. צפה 3); however, the preposition עִם (’im) does not normally mean “upon” and צָפָה is not used with עִם elsewhere.

[9:8]  ⁷⁷ tn Or “Ephraim is a watchman with my God”; cf. ASV, NASB.

[9:8]  ⁷⁸ tn Heb “with my God” (so ASV, NASB).

[9:8]  ⁷⁹ tn Heb “bird trap of a bird catcher” or “snare of a fowler” (so KJV).

[9:8]  ⁸⁰ tc Or “The prophet is like a trap along all of his paths.” The Aleppo Codex and Leningrad Codex (ms used in BHS) both connect נָבִיא (navi’, “prophet”) with this colon. On the other hand, BHS places נָבִיא (“prophet”) at the end of the preceding colon.

[9:8]  ⁸¹ tn Heb “house.” The term בַּיִת (bayit, “house”) is used as a figure of speech, referring to either (1) the temple or official sanctuaries (so TEV, CEV) or (2) the land of Israel (e.g., Hos 9:15).

[2:9]  ⁸² tn Heb “in the instruction” (so NASB). The Hebrew article is used here as a possessive pronoun (cf. NRSV, NLT).

[7:15]  ⁸³ sn Sheep’s clothing…voracious wolves. Jesus uses a metaphor here to point out that these false prophets appear to be one thing, but in reality they are something quite different and dangerous.

[24:24]  ⁸⁴ tn Or “false christs”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[24:2]  ⁸⁵ tn Grk “answering, he said to them.” The participle ἀποκριθείς (ajpokriqei") is redundant in English and has not been translated.

[24:2]  ⁸⁶ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[24:2]  ⁸⁷ sn With the statement not one stone will be left on another Jesus predicted the total destruction of the temple, something that did occur in a.d. 70.

[24:2]  ⁸⁸ tn Grk “not one stone will be left here on another which will not be thrown down.”

[1:13]  ⁸⁹ tn Here αὐτοῦ (autou) has been translated as a subjective genitive (“he loves”).

[1:14]  ⁹⁰ tc διὰ τοῦ αἵματος αὐτοῦ (dia tou {aimato" autou, “through his blood”) is read at this juncture by several minuscule mss (614 630 1505 2464 al) as well as a few, mostly secondary, versional and patristic witnesses. But the reading was prompted by the parallel in Eph 1:7 where the wording is solid. If these words had been in the original of Colossians, why would scribes omit them here but not in Eph 1:7? Further, the testimony on behalf of the shorter reading is quite overwhelming: {א A B C D F G Ψ 075 0150 6 33 1739 1881 Ï latt co as well as several other versions and fathers}. The conviction that “through his blood” is not authentic in Col 1:14 is as strong as the conviction that these words are authentic in Eph 1:7.

[1:15]  ⁹¹ sn This passage has been typeset as poetry because many scholars regard this passage as poetic or hymnic. These terms are used broadly to refer to the genre of writing, not to the content. There are two broad criteria for determining if a passage is poetic or hymnic: “(a) stylistic: a certain rhythmical lilt when the passages are read aloud, the presence of parallelismus membrorum (i.e., an arrangement into couplets), the semblance of some metre, and the presence of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, chiasmus, and antithesis; and (b) linguistic: an unusual vocabulary, particularly the presence of theological terms, which is different from the surrounding context” (P. T. O’Brien, Philippians [NIGTC], 188-89). Classifying a passage as hymnic or poetic is important because understanding this genre can provide keys to interpretation. However, not all scholars agree that the above criteria are present in this passage, so the decision to typeset it as poetry should be viewed as a tentative decision about its genre.

[1:15]  ⁹² tn The Greek term πρωτότοκος (prwtotokos) could refer either to first in order of time, such as a first born child, or it could refer to one who is preeminent in rank. M. J. Harris, Colossians and Philemon (EGGNT), 43, expresses the meaning of the word well: “The ‘firstborn’ was either the eldest child in a family or a person of preeminent rank. The use of this term to describe the Davidic king in Ps 88:28 LXX (=Ps 89:27 EVV), ‘I will also appoint him my firstborn (πρωτότοκον), the most exalted of the kings of the earth,’ indicates that it can denote supremacy in rank as well as priority in time. But whether the πρωτό- element in the word denotes time, rank, or both, the significance of the -τοκος element as indicating birth or origin (from τίκτω, give birth to) has been virtually lost except in ref. to lit. birth.” In Col 1:15 the emphasis is on the priority of Jesus’ rank as over and above creation (cf. 1:16 and the “for” clause referring to Jesus as Creator).

[1:15]  ⁹³ tn The genitive construction πάσης κτίσεως (pash" ktisew") is a genitive of subordination and is therefore translated as “over all creation.” See ExSyn 103-4.

[1:8]  ⁹⁴ tc ‡ Most witnesses have ὑμῖν (Jumin, “to you”) either after (א² A [D* ὑμᾶς] 6 33 326 614 945 1881 Ï Tert^pt Ambst) or before (Ì^51vid B H 0278 630 1175 [1739* ἡμῖν]) εὐαγγελίζηται (euaggelizhtai, “should preach” [or some variation on the form of this verb]). But the fact that it floats suggests its inauthenticity, especially since it appears to be a motivated reading for purposes of clarification. The following witnesses lack the pronoun: א* F G Ψ ar b g Cyp Mcion^T Tert^pt Lcf. The external evidence admittedly is not as weighty as evidence for the pronoun, but coupled with strong internal evidence the shorter reading should be considered original. Although it is possible that scribes may have deleted the pronoun to make Paul’s statement seem more universal, the fact that the pronoun floats suggests otherwise. NA²⁷ has the pronoun in brackets, indicating doubt as to its authenticity.

[1:8]  ⁹⁵ tn Or “other than the one we preached to you.”

[1:8]  ⁹⁶ tn Grk “let him be accursed” (ἀνάθεμα, anaqema). The translation gives the outcome which is implied by this dreadful curse.

[1:9]  ⁹⁷ tn See the note on this phrase in the previous verse.

[2:9]  ⁹⁸ sn Cephas. This individual is generally identified with the Apostle Peter (L&N 93.211).

[2:9]  ⁹⁹ tn Or “who were influential as,” or “who were reputed to be.” See also the note on the word “influential” in 2:6.

[2:9]  ¹⁰⁰ sn Pillars is figurative here for those like James, Peter, and John who were leaders in the Jerusalem church.

[2:9]  ¹⁰¹ tn The participle γνόντες (gnontes) has been taken temporally. It is structurally parallel to the participle translated “when they saw” in v. 7.

[2:9]  ¹⁰² tn Grk “me and Barnabas.”

[2:9]  ¹⁰³ tn Grk “so,” with the ἵνα (Jina) indicating the result of the “pillars” extending the “right hand of fellowship,” but the translation “they gave…the right hand of fellowship so that we would go” could be misunderstood as purpose here. The implication of the scene is that an agreement, outlined at the end of v. 10, was reached between Paul and Barnabas on the one hand and the “pillars” of the Jerusalem church on the other.

[2:9]  ¹⁰⁴ tn Grk “to the circumcision,” a collective reference to the Jewish people.

[2:10]  ¹⁰⁵ tn Grk “only that we remember the poor”; the words “They requested” have been supplied from the context to make a complete English sentence.

[2:11]  ¹⁰⁶ sn Cephas. This individual is generally identified with the Apostle Peter (L&N 93.211).

[2:11]  ¹⁰⁷ map For location see JP1 F2; JP2 F2; JP3 F2; JP4 F2.

[2:11]  ¹⁰⁸ tn Grk “because he stood condemned.”

[2:12]  ¹⁰⁹ tn The conjunction γάρ has not been translated here.

[2:12]  ¹¹⁰ tn Grk “he drew back.” If ἑαυτόν (Jeauton) goes with both ὑπέστελλεν (Jupestellen) and ἀφώριζεν (afwrizen) rather than only the latter, the meaning would be “he drew himself back” (see BDAG 1041 s.v. ὑποστέλλω 1.a).

[2:12]  ¹¹¹ tn Or “and held himself aloof.”

[2:12]  ¹¹² tn Grk “the [ones] of the circumcision,” that is, the group of Jewish Christians who insisted on circumcision of Gentiles before they could become Christians.

[2:2]  ¹¹³ tn Grk “I went up”; one always spoke idiomatically of going “up” to Jerusalem.

[2:2]  ¹¹⁴ tn Or “in accordance with.” According to BDAG 512 s.v. κατά B.5.a.δ, “Oft. the norm is at the same time the reason, so that in accordance with and because of are merged…Instead of ‘in accordance w.’ κ. can mean simply because of, as a result of, on the basis of…κ. ἀποκάλυψιν Gal 2:2.”

[2:2]  ¹¹⁵ tn Or “set before them.”

[2:2]  ¹¹⁶ tn Grk “Gentiles, but only privately…to make sure.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started with “But” and the words “I did so,” an implied repetition from the previous clause, were supplied to make a complete English sentence.

[2:2]  ¹¹⁷ tn L&N 87.42 has “important persons, influential persons, prominent persons” for οἱ δοκοῦντες and translates this phrase in Gal 2:2 as “in a private meeting with the prominent persons.” The “prominent people” referred to here are the leaders of the Jerusalem church.

[2:2]  ¹¹⁸ tn Here the first verb (τρέχω, trecw, “was not running”) is present subjunctive, while the second (ἔδραμον, edramon, “had not run”) is aorist indicative.

[4:2]  ¹¹⁹ tn The Greek term translated “guardians” here is ἐπίτροπος (epitropo"), whose semantic domain overlaps with that of παιδαγωγός (paidagwgo") according to L&N 36.5.

[4:2]  ¹²⁰ tn Grk “the,” but the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[4:3]  ¹²¹ tn See the note on the word “minor” in 4:1.

[4:3]  ¹²² tn Or “basic principles,” “elemental things,” or “elemental spirits.” Some interpreters take this as a reference to supernatural powers who controlled nature and/or human fate.

[4:2]  ¹²³ tn The Greek term translated “guardians” here is ἐπίτροπος (epitropo"), whose semantic domain overlaps with that of παιδαγωγός (paidagwgo") according to L&N 36.5.

[4:2]  ¹²⁴ tn Grk “the,” but the Greek article is used here as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[2:1]  ¹²⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[2:2]  ¹²⁶ tn Grk “I went up”; one always spoke idiomatically of going “up” to Jerusalem.

[2:2]  ¹²⁷ tn Or “in accordance with.” According to BDAG 512 s.v. κατά B.5.a.δ, “Oft. the norm is at the same time the reason, so that in accordance with and because of are merged…Instead of ‘in accordance w.’ κ. can mean simply because of, as a result of, on the basis of…κ. ἀποκάλυψιν Gal 2:2.”

[2:2]  ¹²⁸ tn Or “set before them.”

[2:2]  ¹²⁹ tn Grk “Gentiles, but only privately…to make sure.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started with “But” and the words “I did so,” an implied repetition from the previous clause, were supplied to make a complete English sentence.

[2:2]  ¹³⁰ tn L&N 87.42 has “important persons, influential persons, prominent persons” for οἱ δοκοῦντες and translates this phrase in Gal 2:2 as “in a private meeting with the prominent persons.” The “prominent people” referred to here are the leaders of the Jerusalem church.

[2:2]  ¹³¹ tn Here the first verb (τρέχω, trecw, “was not running”) is present subjunctive, while the second (ἔδραμον, edramon, “had not run”) is aorist indicative.

[2:3]  ¹³² tn Grk “But,” translated here as “Yet” for stylistic reasons (note the use of “but” in v. 2).

[2:1]  ¹³³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[4:1]  ¹³⁴ tn Grk “a small child.” The Greek term νήπιος (nhpios) refers to a young child, no longer a helpless infant but probably not more than three or four years old (L&N 9.43). The point in context, though, is that this child is too young to take any responsibility for the management of his assets.

[4:1]  ¹³⁵ tn Grk “master” or “lord” (κύριος, kurios).

[19:20]  ¹³⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of an unexpected development in the account: The opposing armies do not come together in battle; rather the leader of one side is captured.

[19:20]  ¹³⁷ tn For this meaning see BDAG 342 s.v. ἐνώπιον 4.b, “by the authority of, on behalf of Rv 13:12, 14; 19:20.”

[19:20]  ¹³⁸ tn Traditionally, “brimstone.”