Isaiah 61:3

61:3 to strengthen those who mourn in Zion,

by giving them a turban, instead of ashes,

oil symbolizing joy, ¹  instead of mourning,

a garment symbolizing praise, ²  instead of discouragement. ³ 

They will be called oaks of righteousness, ⁴ 

trees planted by the Lord to reveal his splendor. ⁵ 

Matthew 7:19

7:19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.

Matthew 21:19

21:19 After noticing a fig tree ⁶  by the road he went to it, but found nothing on it except leaves. He said to it, “Never again will there be fruit from you!” And the fig tree withered at once.

Luke 13:6-9

Warning to Israel to Bear Fruit

13:6 Then ⁷  Jesus ⁸  told this parable: “A man had a fig tree ⁹  planted in his vineyard, and he came looking for fruit on it and found none. 13:7 So ¹⁰  he said to the worker who tended the vineyard, ‘For ¹¹  three years ¹²  now, I have come looking for fruit on this fig tree, and each time I inspect it ¹³  I find none. Cut ¹⁴  it down! Why ¹⁵  should it continue to deplete ¹⁶  the soil?’ 13:8 But the worker ¹⁷  answered him, ‘Sir, leave it alone this year too, until I dig around it and put fertilizer ¹⁸  on it. 13:9 Then if ¹⁹  it bears fruit next year, ²⁰  very well, ²¹  but if ²²  not, you can cut it down.’”

John 15:8

15:8 My Father is honored ²³  by this, that ²⁴  you bear ²⁵  much fruit and show that you are ²⁶  my disciples.

John 15:16

15:16 You did not choose me, but I chose you ²⁷  and appointed you to go and bear ²⁸  fruit, fruit that remains, ²⁹  so that whatever you ask the Father in my name he will give you.

Romans 15:28

15:28 Therefore after I have completed this and have safely delivered this bounty to them, ³⁰  I will set out for Spain by way of you,

Philippians 1:11

1:11 filled with the fruit of righteousness that comes through Jesus Christ to the glory and praise of God.

Philippians 4:17

4:17 I do not say this because I am seeking a gift. ³¹  Rather, I seek the credit that abounds to your account.

Colossians 1:10

1:10 so that you may live ³²  worthily of the Lord and please him in all respects ³³  – bearing fruit in every good deed, growing in the knowledge of God,

Hebrews 6:6-12

6:6 and then have committed apostasy, ³⁴  to renew them again to repentance, since ³⁵  they are crucifying the Son of God for themselves all over again ³⁶  and holding him up to contempt. 6:7 For the ground that has soaked up the rain that frequently falls on ³⁷  it and yields useful vegetation for those who tend it receives a blessing from God. 6:8 But if it produces thorns and thistles, it is useless and about to be cursed; ³⁸  its fate is to be burned. 6:9 But in your case, dear friends, even though we speak like this, we are convinced of better things relating to salvation. 6:10 For God is not unjust so as to forget your work and the love you have demonstrated for his name, in having served and continuing to serve the saints. 6:11 But we passionately want each of you to demonstrate the same eagerness for the fulfillment of your hope until the end, 6:12 so that you may not be sluggish, ³⁹  but imitators of those who through faith and perseverance inherit the promises.

Hebrews 6:2

6:2 teaching about baptisms, laying on of hands, resurrection of the dead, and eternal judgment.

Hebrews 1:8

1:8 but of ⁴⁰  the Son he says, ⁴¹ 

“Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, ⁴² 

and a righteous scepter ⁴³  is the scepter of your kingdom.

[61:3]  ¹ tn Heb “oil of joy” (KJV, ASV); NASB, NIV, NRSV “the oil of gladness.”

[61:3]  ² tn Heb “garment of praise.”

[61:3]  ³ tn Heb “a faint spirit” (so NRSV); KJV, ASV “the spirit of heaviness”; NASB “a spirit of fainting.”

[61:3]  ⁴ tn Rather than referring to the character of the people, צֶדֶק (tsedeq) may carry the nuance “vindication” here, suggesting that God’s restored people are a testimony to his justice. See v. 2, which alludes to the fact that God will take vengeance against the enemies of his people. Cf. NAB “oaks of justice.”

[61:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “a planting of the Lord to reveal splendor.”

[21:19]  ⁶ tn Grk “one fig tree.”

[13:6]  ⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[13:6]  ⁸ tn Grk “he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:6]  ⁹ sn The fig tree is a variation on the picture of a vine as representing the nation; see Isa 5:1-7.

[13:7]  ¹⁰ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate the man’s response as a result of the lack of figs in the preceding clause.

[13:7]  ¹¹ tn Grk “Behold, for.”

[13:7]  ¹² sn The elapsed time could be six years total since planting, since often a fig was given three years before one even started to look for fruit. The point in any case is that enough time had been given to expect fruit.

[13:7]  ¹³ tn The phrase “each time I inspect it” is not in the Greek text but has been supplied to indicate the customary nature of the man’s search for fruit.

[13:7]  ¹⁴ tc ‡ Several witnesses (Ì⁷⁵ A L Θ Ψ 070 ˹³ 33 579 892 al lat co) have “therefore” (οὖν, oun) here. This conjunction has the effect of strengthening the logical connection with the preceding statement but also of reducing the rhetorical power and urgency of the imperative. In light of the slightly greater internal probability of adding a conjunction to an otherwise asyndetic sentence, as well as significant external support for the omission (א B D W ˹ Ï), the shorter reading appears to be more likely as the original wording here. NA²⁷ puts the conjunction in brackets, indicating some doubts as to its authenticity.

[13:7]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “Why indeed.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[13:7]  ¹⁶ sn Such fig trees would deplete the soil, robbing it of nutrients needed by other trees and plants.

[13:8]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (the worker who tended the vineyard) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:8]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “toss manure [on it].” This is a reference to manure used as fertilizer.

[13:9]  ¹⁹ tn This is a third class condition in the Greek text. The conjunction καί (kai, a component of κάν [kan]) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[13:9]  ²⁰ tn Grk “the coming [season].”

[13:9]  ²¹ tn The phrase “very well” is supplied in the translation to complete the elided idea, but its absence is telling.

[13:9]  ²² tn This is a first class condition in the Greek text, showing which of the options is assumed.

[15:8]  ²³ tn Grk “glorified.”

[15:8]  ²⁴ tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause is best taken as substantival in apposition to ἐν τούτῳ (en toutw) at the beginning of the verse. The Father is glorified when the disciples bring forth abundant fruit. Just as Jesus has done the works which he has seen his Father doing (5:19-29) so also will his disciples.

[15:8]  ²⁵ tn Or “yield.”

[15:8]  ²⁶ tc Most mss (א A Ψ Ë¹³ 33 Ï) read the future indicative γενήσεσθε (genhsesqe; perhaps best rendered as “[and show that] you will become”), while some early and good witnesses (Ì^66vid B D L Θ 0250 1 565 al) have the aorist subjunctive γένησθε (genhsqe; “[and show that] you are”). The original reading is difficult to determine because the external evidence is fairly evenly divided. On the basis of the external evidence alone the first reading has some credibility because of א and 33, but it is not enough to overthrow the Alexandrian and Western witnesses for the aorist. Some who accept the future indicative see a consecutive (or resultative) sequence between φέρητε (ferhte) in the ἵνα (Jina) clause and γενήσεσθε, so that the disciples’ bearing much fruit results in their becoming disciples. This alleviates the problem of reading a future indicative within a ἵνα clause (a grammatical solecism that is virtually unattested in Attic Greek), although such infrequently occurs in the NT, particularly in the Apocalypse (cf. Gal 2:4; Rev 3:9; 6:4, 11; 8:3; 9:4, 5, 20; 13:12; 14:13; 22:14; even here, however, the Byzantine mss, with א occasionally by their side, almost always change the future indicative to an aorist subjunctive). It seems more likely, however, that the second verb (regardless of whether it is read as aorist or future) is to be understood as coordinate in meaning with the previous verb φέρητε (So M. Zerwick, Biblical Greek §342). Thus the two actions are really one and the same: Bearing fruit and being Jesus’ disciple are not two different actions, but a single action. The first is the outward sign or proof of the second – in bearing fruit the disciples show themselves to be disciples indeed (cf. 15:5). Thus the translation followed here is, “that you bear much fruit and show that you are my disciples.” As far as the textual reading is concerned, it appears somewhat preferable to accept the aorist subjunctive reading (γένησθε) on the basis of better external testimony.

[15:16]  ²⁷ sn You did not choose me, but I chose you. If the disciples are now elevated in status from slaves to friends, they are friends who have been chosen by Jesus, rather than the opposite way round. Again this is true of all Christians, not just the twelve, and the theme that Christians are “chosen” by God appears frequently in other NT texts (e.g., Rom 8:33; Eph 1:4ff.; Col 3:12; and 1 Pet 2:4). Putting this together with the comments on 15:14 one may ask whether the author sees any special significance at all for the twelve. Jesus said in John 6:70 and 13:18 that he chose them, and 15:27 makes clear that Jesus in the immediate context is addressing those who have been with him from the beginning. In the Fourth Gospel the twelve, as the most intimate and most committed followers of Jesus, are presented as the models for all Christians, both in terms of their election and in terms of their mission.

[15:16]  ²⁸ tn Or “and yield.”

[15:16]  ²⁹ sn The purpose for which the disciples were appointed (“commissioned”) is to go and bear fruit, fruit that remains. The introduction of the idea of “going” at this point suggests that the fruit is something more than just character qualities in the disciples’ own lives, but rather involves fruit in the lives of others, i.e., Christian converts. There is a mission involved (cf. John 4:36). The idea that their fruit is permanent, however, relates back to vv. 7-8, as does the reference to asking the Father in Jesus’ name. It appears that as the imagery of the vine and the branches develops, the “fruit” which the branches produce shifts in emphasis from qualities in the disciples’ own lives in John 15:2, 4, 5 to the idea of a mission which affects the lives of others in John 15:16. The point of transition would be the reference to fruit in 15:8.

[15:28]  ³⁰ tn Grk “have sealed this fruit to them.”

[4:17]  ³¹ tn Grk “Not that I am seeking the gift.” The phrase “I do not say this…” has been supplied in the translation to complete the thought for the modern reader.

[1:10]  ³² tn The infinitive περιπατῆσαι (peripathsai, “to walk, to live, to live one’s life”) is best taken as an infinitive of purpose related to “praying” (προσευχόμενοι, proseucomenoi) and “asking” (αἰτούμενοι, aitoumenoi) in v. 9 and is thus translated as “that you may live.”

[1:10]  ³³ tn BDAG 129 s.v. ἀρεσκεία states that ἀρεσκείαν (areskeian) refers to a “desire to please εἰς πᾶσαν ἀ. to please (the Lord) in all respects Col 1:10.”

[6:6]  ³⁴ tn Or “have fallen away.”

[6:6]  ³⁵ tn Or “while”; Grk “crucifying…and holding.” The Greek participles here (“crucifying…and holding”) can be understood as either causal (“since”) or temporal (“while”).

[6:6]  ³⁶ tn Grk “recrucifying the son of God for themselves.”

[6:7]  ³⁷ tn Grk “comes upon.”

[6:8]  ³⁸ tn Grk “near to a curse.”

[6:12]  ³⁹ tn Or “dull.”

[1:8]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “to.”

[1:8]  ⁴¹ tn The verb “he says” (λέγει, legei) is implied from the λέγει of v. 7.

[1:8]  ⁴² tn Or possibly, “Your throne is God forever and ever.” This translation is quite doubtful, however, since (1) in the context the Son is being contrasted to the angels and is presented as far better than they. The imagery of God being the Son’s throne would seem to be of God being his authority. If so, in what sense could this not be said of the angels? In what sense is the Son thus contrasted with the angels? (2) The μέν…δέ (men…de) construction that connects v. 7 with v. 8 clearly lays out this contrast: “On the one hand, he says of the angels…on the other hand, he says of the Son.” Thus, although it is grammatically possible that θεός (qeos) in v. 8 should be taken as a predicate nominative, the context and the correlative conjunctions are decidedly against it. Hebrews 1:8 is thus a strong affirmation of the deity of Christ.

[1:8]  ⁴³ tn Grk “the righteous scepter,” but used generically.