Discovery BoxIsaiah 40:19
Context40:19 A craftsman casts 1 an idol;
a metalsmith overlays it with gold
and forges silver chains for it.
Isaiah 46:6
Context46:6 Those who empty out gold from a purse
and weigh out silver on the scale 2
hire a metalsmith, who makes it into a god.
They then bow down and worship it.
Jeremiah 10:4
Context10:4 He decorates it with overlays of silver and gold.
He uses hammer and nails to fasten it 3 together
so that it will not fall over.
Jeremiah 10:9
Context10:9 Hammered-out silver is brought from Tarshish 4
and gold is brought from Uphaz 5 to cover those idols. 6
They are the handiwork of carpenters and goldsmiths. 7
They are clothed in blue and purple clothes. 8
They are all made by skillful workers. 9
Daniel 3:1
Context3:1 10 King Nebuchadnezzar had a golden 11 statue made. 12 It was ninety feet 13 tall and nine feet 14 wide. He erected it on the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.
Acts 17:29
Context17:29 So since we are God’s offspring, we should not think the deity 15 is like gold or silver or stone, an image 16 made by human 17 skill 18 and imagination. 19
Revelation 17:4
Context17:4 Now 20 the woman was dressed in purple and scarlet clothing, 21 and adorned with gold, 22 precious stones, and pearls. She held 23 in her hand a golden cup filled with detestable things and unclean things from her sexual immorality. 24
[40:19] 1 tn Heb “pours out”; KJV “melteth.”
[46:6] 2 tn Heb “the reed,” probably referring to the beam of a scales. See BDB 889 s.v. קָנֶה 4.c.
[10:4] 3 tn The pronoun is plural in Hebrew, referring to the parts.
[10:9] 4 tc Two Qumran scrolls of Jeremiah (4QJera and 4QJerb) reflect a Hebrew text that is very different than the traditional MT from which modern Bibles have been translated. The Hebrew text in these two manuscripts is similar to that from which LXX was translated. This is true both in small details and in major aspects where the LXX differs from MT. Most notably, 4QJera, 4QJerb and LXX present a version of Jeremiah about 13% shorter than the longer version found in MT. One example of this shorter text is Jer 10:3-11 in which MT and 4QJera both have all nine verses, while LXX and 4QJerb both lack vv. 6-8 and 10, which extol the greatness of God. In addition, the latter part of v. 9 is arranged differently in LXX and 4QJerb. The translation here follows MT which is supported by 4QJera.
[10:9] 5 tn This is a place of unknown location. It is mentioned again in Dan 10:5. Many emend the word to “Ophir” following the Syriac version and the Aramaic Targum. Ophir was famous for its gold (cf. 1 Kgs 9:28; Job 28:16).
[10:9] 6 tn The words “to cover those idols” are not in the text but are implicit from the context. They are supplied in the translation for clarity.
[10:9] 7 tn The words “They are” are not in the text. The text reads merely, “the work of the carpenter and of the hands of the goldsmith.” The words are supplied in the translation for clarity.
[10:9] 8 tn Heb “Blue and purple their clothing.”
[10:9] 9 sn There is an ironic pun in this last line. The Hebrew word translated “skillful workers” is the same word that is translated “wise people” in v. 7. The artisans do their work skillfully but they are not “wise.”
[3:1] 10 sn The LXX introduces this chapter with the following chronological note: “in the eighteenth year of.” Such a date would place these events at about the time of the destruction of Jerusalem in 586
[3:1] 11 sn There is no need to think of Nebuchadnezzar’s image as being solid gold. No doubt the sense is that it was overlaid with gold (cf. Isa 40:19; Jer 10:3-4), with the result that it presented a dazzling self-compliment to the greatness of Nebuchadnezzar’s achievements.
[3:1] 12 sn According to a number of patristic authors, the image represented a deification of Nebuchadnezzar himself. This is not clear from the biblical text, however.
[3:1] 13 tn Aram “sixty cubits.” Assuming a length of 18 inches for the standard cubit, the image would be 90 feet (27.4 m) high.
[3:1] 14 tn Aram “six cubits.” Assuming a length of 18 inches for the standard cubit, the image would be 9 feet (2.74 m) wide.
[17:29] 15 tn Or “the divine being.” BDAG 446 s.v. θεῖος 1.b has “divine being, divinity” here.
[17:29] 16 tn Or “a likeness.” Again idolatry is directly attacked as an affront to God and a devaluation of him.
[17:29] 17 tn Grk “by the skill and imagination of man,” but ἀνθρώπου (anqrwpou) has been translated as an attributive genitive.
[17:29] 18 tn Or “craftsmanship” (cf. BDAG 1001 s.v. τέχνη).
[17:29] 19 tn Or “thought.” BDAG 336 s.v. ἐνθύμησις has “thought, reflection, idea” as the category of meaning here, but in terms of creativity (as in the context) the imaginative faculty is in view.
[17:4] 20 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the detailed description of the woman, which is somewhat parenthetical in nature.
[17:4] 21 tn The word “clothing” is supplied to clarify that the words “purple” and “scarlet” refer to cloth or garments rather than colors.
[17:4] 22 tn Grk “gilded with gold” (an instance of semantic reinforcement, see L&N 49.29).
[17:4] 23 tn Grk “pearls, having in her hand.” Due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
[17:4] 24 tc Several
