Isaiah 30:10

30:10 They ¹  say to the visionaries, “See no more visions!”

and to the seers, “Don’t relate messages to us about what is right! ² 

Tell us nice things,

relate deceptive messages. ³ 

Jeremiah 26:8-9

26:8 Jeremiah had just barely finished saying all the Lord had commanded him to say to all the people. All at once some ⁴  of the priests, the prophets, and the people grabbed him and shouted, “You deserve to die! ⁵  26:9 How dare you claim the Lord’s authority to prophesy such things! How dare you claim his authority to prophesy that this temple will become like Shiloh and that this city will become an uninhabited ruin!” ⁶  Then all the people crowded around Jeremiah.

Jeremiah 26:20-23

26:20 Now there was another man ⁷  who prophesied as the Lord’s representative ⁸  against this city and this land just as Jeremiah did. His name was Uriah son of Shemaiah from Kiriath Jearim. ⁹  26:21 When the king and all his bodyguards ¹⁰  and officials heard what he was prophesying, ¹¹  the king sought to have him executed. But Uriah found out about it and fled to Egypt out of fear. ¹²  26:22 However, King Jehoiakim sent some men to Egypt, including Elnathan son of Achbor, ¹³  26:23 and they brought Uriah back from there. ¹⁴  They took him to King Jehoiakim, who had him executed and had his body thrown into the burial place of the common people. ¹⁵ 

Ezekiel 20:46

20:46 “Son of man, turn toward ¹⁶  the south, ¹⁷  and speak out against the south. ¹⁸  Prophesy against the open scrub ¹⁹  land of the Negev,

Ezekiel 21:2

21:2 “Son of man, turn toward ²⁰  Jerusalem ²¹  and speak out against the sanctuaries. Prophesy against the land of Israel

Amos 2:12

2:12 “But you made the Nazirites drink wine; ²² 

you commanded the prophets, ‘Do not prophesy!’

Amos 7:13

7:13 Don’t prophesy at Bethel ²³  any longer, for a royal temple and palace are here!” ²⁴ 

Acts 4:17

4:17 But to keep this matter from spreading any further among the people, let us warn them to speak no more ²⁵  to anyone in this name.”

Acts 5:28

5:28 saying, “We gave ²⁶  you strict orders ²⁷  not to teach in this name. ²⁸  Look, ²⁹  you have filled Jerusalem ³⁰  with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood ³¹  on us!”

Acts 5:40

5:40 and they summoned the apostles and had them beaten. ³²  Then ³³  they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus and released them.

Acts 7:51

7:51 “You stubborn ³⁴  people, with uncircumcised ³⁵  hearts and ears! ³⁶  You are always resisting the Holy Spirit, like your ancestors ³⁷  did!

Acts 7:1

Stephen’s Defense Before the Council

7:1 Then the high priest said, “Are these things true?” ³⁸ 

Acts 2:15-16

2:15 In spite of what you think, these men are not drunk, ³⁹  for it is only nine o’clock in the morning. ⁴⁰  2:16 But this is what was spoken about through the prophet Joel: ⁴¹ 

[30:10]  ¹ tn Heb “who” (so NASB, NRSV). A new sentence was started here in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[30:10]  ² tn Heb “Do not see for us right things.”

[30:10]  ³ tn Heb “Tell us smooth things, see deceptive things.”

[26:8]  ⁴ tn The translation again represents an attempt to break up a long complex Hebrew sentence into equivalent English ones that conform more to contemporary English style: Heb “And as soon as Jeremiah finished saying all that…the priests…grabbed him and said…” The word “some” has been supplied in the translation, because obviously it was not all the priests, the prophets, and all the people, but only some of them. There is, of course, rhetorical intent here to show that all were implicated, although all may not have actually participated. (This is a common figure called synecdoche where all is put for a part – all for all kinds or representatives of all kinds. See E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 614-19, and compare usage in Acts 10:12; Matt 3:5.)

[26:8]  ⁵ tn Or “You must certainly die!” The construction here is again emphatic with the infinitive preceding the finite verb (cf. Joüon 2:423 §123.h, and compare usage in Exod 21:28).

[26:9]  ⁶ tn Heb “Why have you prophesied in the Lord’s name, saying, ‘This house will become like Shiloh and this city will become a ruin without inhabitant?’” It is clear from the context here and in 7:1-15 that the emphasis is on “in the Lord’s name” and that the question is rhetorical. The question is not a quest for information but an accusation, a remonstrance. (For this figure see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 953-54, who calls a question like this a rhetorical question of remonstrance or expostulation. For good examples see Pss 11:1; 50:16.) For the significance of “prophesying in the Lord’s name” see the study note on 14:14. The translation again utilizes the indirect quote to eliminate one level of embedded quotation.

[26:20]  ⁷ sn This is a brief parenthetical narrative about an otherwise unknown prophet who was executed for saying the same things Jeremiah did. It is put here to show the real danger that Jeremiah faced for saying what he did. There is nothing in the narrative here to show any involvement by Jehoiakim. This was a “lynch mob” instigated by the priests and false prophets which was stymied by the royal officials supported by some of the elders of Judah. Since it is disjunctive or parenthetical it is unclear whether this incident happened before or after that in the main narrative being reported.

[26:20]  ⁸ tn Heb “in the name of the Lord,” i.e., as his representative and claiming his authority. See the study note on v. 16.

[26:20]  ⁹ tn Heb “Now also a man was prophesying in the name of the Lord, Uriah son of…, and he prophesied against this city and against this land according to all the words of Jeremiah.” The long Hebrew sentence has been broken up in conformity with contemporary English style and the major emphasis brought out by putting his prophesying first, then identifying him.

[26:21]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “all his mighty men/soldiers.” It is unlikely that this included all the army. It more likely was the palace guards or royal bodyguards (see 2 Sam 23 where the same word is used of David’s elite corps).

[26:21]  ¹¹ tn Heb “his words.”

[26:21]  ¹² tn Heb “But Uriah heard and feared and fled and entered Egypt.”

[26:22]  ¹³ sn Elnathan son of Achbor was one of the officials who urged Jeremiah and Baruch to hide after they heard Jeremiah’s prophecies read before them (Jer 36:11-19). He was also one of the officials who urged Jehoiakim not to burn the scroll containing Jeremiah’s prophecies (Jer 36:25). He may have been Jehoiakim’s father-in-law (2 Kgs 24:6, 8).

[26:23]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “from Egypt.”

[26:23]  ¹⁵ sn The burial place of the common people was the public burial grounds, distinct from the family tombs, where poor people without any distinction were buried. It was in the Kidron Valley east of Jerusalem (2 Kgs 23:6). The intent of reporting this is to show the ruthlessness of Jehoiakim.

[20:46]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “set your face toward.” This expression occurs as well in Ezek 6:2; 13:17.

[20:46]  ¹⁷ tn Or “the way toward the south,” or “the way toward Teman.” Teman is in the south and may be a location or the direction.

[20:46]  ¹⁸ tn Or “toward Darom.” Darom may mean the south or a region just north of southern city of Beer Sheba. See M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 2:417-18.

[20:46]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew term can also mean “forest,” but a meaning of uncultivated wasteland fits the Negev region far better. See M. Greenberg, Ezekiel (AB), 2:418.

[21:2]  ²⁰ tn Heb “set your face toward.”

[21:2]  ²¹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[2:12]  ²² sn Nazirites were strictly forbidden to drink wine (Num 6:2-3).

[7:13]  ²³ map For location see Map4 G4; Map5 C1; Map6 E3; Map7 D1; Map8 G3.

[7:13]  ²⁴ tn Heb “for it is a temple of a king and it is a royal house.” It is possible that the phrase “royal house” refers to a temple rather than a palace. See S. M. Paul, Amos (Hermeneia), 243.

[4:17]  ²⁵ tn Or “speak no longer.”

[5:28]  ²⁶ tc ‡ The majority of mss, including a few important witnesses (א² D E [Ψ] 1739 Ï sy sa), have the negative particle οὐ (ou) here, effectively turning the high priest’s words into a question: “Did we not give you strict orders not to teach in this name?” But the earliest and most important mss, along with some others (Ì⁷⁴ א* A B 1175 lat bo), lack the particle, making this a strong statement rather than a question. Scribes may have been tempted to omit the particle to strengthen the contrast between official Judaism and the new faith, but the fact that v. 27 introduces the quotation with ἐπηρώτησεν (ephrwthsen, “he questioned”) may well have prompted scribes to add οὐ to convert the rebuke into a question. Further, that excellent witnesses affirm the shorter reading is sufficient ground for accepting it as most probably authentic. NA²⁷ includes the particle in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.

[5:28]  ²⁷ tn Grk “We commanded you with a commandment” (a Semitic idiom that is emphatic).

[5:28]  ²⁸ sn The name (i.e., person) of Jesus is the constant issue of debate.

[5:28]  ²⁹ tn Grk “And behold.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[5:28]  ³⁰ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[5:28]  ³¹ sn To bring this man’s blood on us is an idiom meaning “you intend to make us guilty of this man’s death.”

[5:40]  ³² sn Had them beaten. The punishment was the “forty lashes minus one,” see also Acts 22:19; 2 Cor 11:24; Mark 13:9. The apostles had disobeyed the religious authorities and took their punishment for their “disobedience” (Deut 25:2-3; m. Makkot 3:10-14). In Acts 4:18 they were warned. Now they are beaten. The hostility is rising as the narrative unfolds.

[5:40]  ³³ tn The word “Then” is supplied as the beginning of a new sentence in the translation. The construction in Greek has so many clauses (most of them made up of participles) that a continuous English sentence would be very awkward.

[7:51]  ³⁴ sn Traditionally, “stiff-necked people.” Now the critique begins in earnest.

[7:51]  ³⁵ tn The term ἀπερίτμητοι (aperitmhtoi, “uncircumcised”) is a NT hapax legomenon (occurs only once). See BDAG 101-2 s.v. ἀπερίτμητος and Isa 52:1.

[7:51]  ³⁶ tn Or “You stubborn and obstinate people!” (The phrase “uncircumcised hearts and ears” is another figure for stubbornness.)

[7:51]  ³⁷ tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”

[7:1]  ³⁸ tn Grk “If it is so concerning these things” (see BDAG 422 s.v. ἔχω 10.a for this use).

[2:15]  ³⁹ tn Grk “These men are not drunk, as you suppose.”

[2:15]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “only the third hour.”

[2:16]  ⁴¹ sn Note how in the quotation that follows all genders, ages, and classes are included. The event is like a hope Moses expressed in Num 11:29.