Job 18:19

18:19 He has neither children nor descendants ¹  among his people,

no survivor in those places he once stayed. ² 

Psalms 109:13

109:13 May his descendants ³  be cut off! ⁴ 

May the memory of them be wiped out by the time the next generation arrives! ⁵ 

Jeremiah 22:30

22:30 The Lord says,

“Enroll this man in the register as though he were childless. ⁶ 

Enroll him as a man who will not enjoy success during his lifetime.

For none of his sons will succeed in occupying the throne of David

or ever succeed in ruling over Judah.”

Luke 1:7

1:7 But they did not have a child, because Elizabeth was barren, ⁷  and they were both very old. ⁸ 

Luke 1:25

1:25 “This is what ⁹  the Lord has done for me at the time ¹⁰  when he has been gracious to me, ¹¹  to take away my disgrace ¹²  among people.” ¹³ 

Luke 23:29

23:29 For this is certain: ¹⁴  The days are coming when they will say, ‘Blessed are the barren, the wombs that never bore children, and the breasts that never nursed!’ ¹⁵ 

[18:19]  ¹ tn The two words נִין (nin, “offspring”) and נֶכֶד (nekhed, “posterity”) are always together and form an alliteration. This is hard to capture in English, but some have tried: Moffatt had “son and scion,” and Tur-Sinai had “breed or brood.” But the words are best simply translated as “lineage and posterity” or as in the NIV “offspring or descendants.”

[18:19]  ² tn Heb “in his sojournings.” The verb גּוּר (gur) means “to reside; to sojourn” temporarily, without land rights. Even this word has been selected to stress the temporary nature of his stay on earth.

[109:13]  ³ tn Or “offspring.”

[109:13]  ⁴ sn On the expression cut off see Ps 37:28.

[109:13]  ⁵ tn Heb “in another generation may their name be wiped out.”

[22:30]  ⁶ tn Heb “Write this man childless.” For the explanation see the study note. The word translated “childless” has spawned some debate because Jeconiah was in fact not childless. There is record from both the Bible and ancient Near Eastern texts that he had children (see, e.g., 1 Chr 3:17). G. R. Driver, “Linguistic and Textual Problems: Jeremiah,” JQR 28 (1937-38): 115, has suggested that the word both here and in Lev 20:20-21 should be translated “stripped of honor.” While that would relieve some of the difficulties here, the word definitely means “childless” in Gen 15:2 and also in Sir 16:3 where it is contrasted with having godless children. The issue is not one of childlessness but of having “one of his sons” succeed to the Davidic throne. The term for “one of his sons” is literally “from his seed a man” and the word “seed” is the same one that is used to refer to his “children” who were forced into exile with him (v. 28).

[1:7]  ⁷ sn Elizabeth was barren. Both Zechariah and Elizabeth are regarded by Luke as righteous in the sight of God, following all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly (v. 6). With this language, reminiscent of various passages in the OT, Luke is probably drawing implicit comparisons to the age and barrenness of such famous OT personalities as Abraham and Sarah (see, e.g., Gen 18:9-15), the mother of Samson (Judg 13:2-5), and Hannah, the mother of Samuel (1 Sam 1:1-20). And, as it was in the case of these OT saints, so it is with Elizabeth: After much anguish and seeking the Lord, she too is going to have a son in her barrenness. In that day it was a great reproach to be childless, for children were a sign of God’s blessing (cf. Gen 1:28; Lev 20:20-21; Pss 127 and 128; Jer 22:30). As the dawn of salvation draws near, however, God will change this elderly couple’s grief into great joy and grant them the one desire time had rendered impossible.

[1:7]  ⁸ tn Grk “were both advanced in days” (an idiom for old age).

[1:25]  ⁹ tn Grk “Thus.”

[1:25]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “in the days.”

[1:25]  ¹¹ tn Grk “has looked on me” (an idiom for taking favorable notice of someone).

[1:25]  ¹² sn Barrenness was often seen as a reproach or disgrace (Lev 20:20-21; Jer 22:30), but now at her late age (the exact age is never given in Luke’s account), God had miraculously removed it (see also Luke 1:7).

[1:25]  ¹³ tn Grk “among men”; but the context clearly indicates a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") here.

[23:29]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “For behold.”

[23:29]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “Blessed are the barren, and the wombs that have not borne, and the breasts that have not nursed!”