John 10:11

10:11 “I am the good ¹  shepherd. The good shepherd lays down his life ²  for the sheep.

John 10:17

10:17 This is why the Father loves me ³  – because I lay down my life, ⁴  so that I may take it back again.

John 15:13

15:13 No one has greater love than this – that one lays down his life ⁵  for his friends.

Isaiah 53:4-6

53:4 But he lifted up our illnesses,

he carried our pain; ⁶ 

even though we thought he was being punished,

attacked by God, and afflicted for something he had done. ⁷ 

53:5 He was wounded because of ⁸  our rebellious deeds,

crushed because of our sins;

he endured punishment that made us well; ⁹ 

because of his wounds we have been healed. ¹⁰ 

53:6 All of us had wandered off like sheep;

each of us had strayed off on his own path,

but the Lord caused the sin of all of us to attack him. ¹¹ 

Isaiah 53:8

53:8 He was led away after an unjust trial ¹²  –

but who even cared? ¹³ 

Indeed, he was cut off from the land of the living; ¹⁴ 

because of the rebellion of his own ¹⁵  people he was wounded.

Isaiah 53:10

53:10 Though the Lord desired to crush him and make him ill,

once restitution is made, ¹⁶ 

he will see descendants and enjoy long life, ¹⁷ 

and the Lord’s purpose will be accomplished through him.

Daniel 9:26

9:26 Now after the sixty-two weeks,

an anointed one will be cut off and have nothing. ¹⁸ 

As for the city and the sanctuary,

the people of the coming prince will destroy ¹⁹  them.

But his end will come speedily ²⁰  like a flood. ²¹ 

Until the end of the war that has been decreed

there will be destruction.

Zechariah 13:7

13:7 “Awake, sword, against my shepherd,

against the man who is my associate,”

says the Lord who rules over all.

Strike the shepherd that the flock may be scattered; ²² 

I will turn my hand against the insignificant ones.

Matthew 20:28

20:28 just as the Son of Man did not come to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom ²³  for many.”

Galatians 1:4

1:4 who gave himself for our sins to rescue us from this present evil age according to the will of our God and Father,

Galatians 3:13

3:13 Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law by becoming ²⁴  a curse for us (because it is written, “Cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree”) ²⁵ 

Ephesians 5:2

5:2 and live ²⁶  in love, just as Christ also loved us ²⁷  and gave himself for us, a sacrificial and fragrant offering ²⁸  to God.

Ephesians 5:1

Live in Love

5:1 Therefore, be ²⁹  imitators of God as dearly loved children

Ephesians 2:5-6

2:5 even though we were dead in transgressions, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you are saved! ³⁰  – 2:6 and he raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus,

Titus 2:14

2:14 He ³¹  gave himself for us to set us free from every kind of lawlessness and to purify for himself a people who are truly his, ³²  who are eager to do good. ³³ 

Titus 2:1

Conduct Consistent with Sound Teaching

2:1 But as for you, communicate the behavior that goes with ³⁴  sound teaching.

Titus 2:1

Conduct Consistent with Sound Teaching

2:1 But as for you, communicate the behavior that goes with ³⁵  sound teaching.

Titus 3:1

Conduct Toward Those Outside the Church

3:1 Remind them to be subject to rulers and ³⁶  authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work.

Titus 3:1

Conduct Toward Those Outside the Church

3:1 Remind them to be subject to rulers and ³⁷  authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work.

Titus 2:2

2:2 Older men are to be temperate, dignified, self-controlled, ³⁸  sound in faith, in love, and in endurance. ³⁹ 

Revelation 5:9

5:9 They were singing a new song: ⁴⁰ 

“You are worthy to take the scroll

and to open its seals

because you were killed, ⁴¹ 

and at the cost of your own blood ⁴²  you have purchased ⁴³  for God

persons ⁴⁴  from every tribe, language, ⁴⁵  people, and nation.

[10:11]  ¹ tn Or “model” (see R. E. Brown, John [AB], 1:386, who argues that “model” is a more exact translation of καλός [kalos] here).

[10:11]  ² tn Or “The good shepherd dies willingly.”

[10:17]  ³ tn Grk “Because of this the Father loves me.”

[10:17]  ⁴ tn Or “die willingly.”

[15:13]  ⁵ tn Or “one dies willingly.”

[53:4]  ⁶ sn Illness and pain stand by metonymy (or perhaps as metaphors) for sin and its effects, as vv. 11-12 make clear.

[53:4]  ⁷ tn The words “for something he had done” are supplied in the translation for clarification. The group now realizes he suffered because of his identification with them, not simply because he was a special target of divine anger.

[53:5]  ⁸ tn The preposition מִן (min) has a causal sense (translated “because of”) here and in the following clause.

[53:5]  ⁹ tn Heb “the punishment of our peace [was] on him.” שָׁלוֹם (shalom, “peace”) is here a genitive of result, i.e., “punishment that resulted in our peace.”

[53:5]  ¹⁰ sn Continuing to utilize the imagery of physical illness, the group acknowledges that the servant’s willingness to carry their illnesses (v. 4) resulted in their being healed. Healing is a metaphor for forgiveness here.

[53:6]  ¹¹ tn Elsewhere the Hiphil of פָגַע (paga’) means “to intercede verbally” (Jer 15:11; 36:25) or “to intervene militarily” (Isa 59:16), but neither nuance fits here. Apparently here the Hiphil is the causative of the normal Qal meaning, “encounter, meet, touch.” The Qal sometimes refers to a hostile encounter or attack; when used in this way the object is normally introduced by the preposition -בְּ (bet, see Josh 2:16; Judg 8:21; 15:12, etc.). Here the causative Hiphil has a double object – the Lord makes “sin” attack “him” (note that the object attacked is introduced by the preposition -בְּ. In their sin the group was like sheep who had wandered from God’s path. They were vulnerable to attack; the guilt of their sin was ready to attack and destroy them. But then the servant stepped in and took the full force of the attack.

[53:8]  ¹² tn The precise meaning of this line is uncertain. The present translation assumes that מִן (min) here has an instrumental sense (“by, through”) and understands עֹצֶר וּמִמִּשְׁפָּט (’otser umimmishpat, “coercion and legal decision”) as a hendiadys meaning “coercive legal decision,” thus “an unjust trial.” Other interpretive options include: (1) “without [for this sense of מִן, see BDB 578 s.v. 1.b] hindrance and proper judicial process,” i.e., “unfairly and with no one to defend him,” (2) “from [in the sense of “after,” see BDB 581 s.v. 4.b] arrest and judgment.”

[53:8]  ¹³ tn Heb “and his generation, who considers?” (NASB similar). Some understand “his generation” as a reference to descendants. In this case the question would suggest that he will have none. However, אֶת (’et) may be taken here as specifying a new subject (see BDB 85 s.v. I אֵת 3). If “his generation” refers to the servant’s contemporary generation, one may then translate, “As for his contemporary generation, who took note?” The point would be that few were concerned about the harsh treatment he received.

[53:8]  ¹⁴ sn The “land of the living” is an idiom for the sphere where people live, in contrast to the underworld realm of the dead. See, for example, Ezek 32:23-27.

[53:8]  ¹⁵ tn The Hebrew text reads “my people,” a reading followed by most English versions, but this is problematic in a context where the first person plural predominates, and where God does not appear to speak again until v. 11b. Therefore, it is preferable to read with the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a עמו (“his people”). In this case, the group speaking in these verses is identified as the servant’s people (compare פְּשָׁעֵנוּ [pÿsha’enu, “our rebellious deeds”] in v. 5 with פֶּשַׁע עַמִּי [pesha’ ’ammi, “the rebellion of his people”] in v. 8).

[53:10]  ¹⁶ tn The meaning of this line is uncertain. It reads literally, “if you/she makes, a reparation offering, his life.” The verb תָּשִׂים (tasim) could be second masculine singular,in which case it would have to be addressed to the servant or to God. However, the servant is only addressed once in this servant song (see 52:14a), and God either speaks or is spoken about in this servant song; he is never addressed. Furthermore, the idea of God himself making a reparation offering is odd. If the verb is taken as third feminine singular, then the feminine noun נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) at the end of the line is the likely subject. In this case one can take the suffixed form of the noun as equivalent to a pronoun and translate, “if he [literally, “his life”] makes a reparation offering.”

[53:10]  ¹⁷ sn The idiomatic and stereotypical language emphasizes the servant’s restoration to divine favor. Having numerous descendants and living a long life are standard signs of divine blessing. See Job 42:13-16.

[9:26]  ¹⁸ sn The expression have nothing is difficult. Presumably it refers to an absence of support or assistance for the anointed one at the time of his “cutting off.” The KJV rendering “but not for himself,” apparently suggesting a vicarious death, cannot be defended.

[9:26]  ¹⁹ tc Some witnesses (e.g., the Syriac) understand a passive verb and the preposition עִם (’im, “with) rather than the noun עַם (’am, “people”), thus reading “the city and the sanctuary will be destroyed with the coming prince.”

[9:26]  ²⁰ tn The words “will come speedily” are not in the Hebrew text but have been added in the translation for clarity.

[9:26]  ²¹ sn Flood here is a metaphor for sudden destruction.

[13:7]  ²² sn Despite the NT use of this text to speak of the scattering of the disciples following Jesus’ crucifixion (Matt 26:31; Mark 14:27), the immediate context of Zechariah suggests that unfaithful shepherds (kings) will be punished by the Lord precisely so their flocks (disobedient Israel) can be scattered (cf. Zech 11:6, 8, 9, 16). It is likely that Jesus drew on this passage merely to make the point that whenever shepherds are incapacitated, sheep will scatter. Thus he was not identifying himself with the shepherd in this text (the shepherd in the Zechariah text is a character who is portrayed negatively).

[20:28]  ²³ sn The Greek word for ransom (λύτρον, lutron) is found here and in Mark 10:45 and refers to the payment of a price in order to purchase the freedom of a slave. The idea of Jesus as the “ransom” is that he paid the price with his own life by standing in our place as a substitute, enduring the judgment that we deserved for sin.

[3:13]  ²⁴ tn Grk “having become”; the participle γενόμενος (genomenos) has been taken instrumentally.

[3:13]  ²⁵ sn A quotation from Deut 21:23. By figurative extension the Greek word translated tree (ζύλον, zulon) can also be used to refer to a cross (L&N 6.28), the Roman instrument of execution.

[5:2]  ²⁶ tn Grk “walk.” The NT writers often used the verb “walk” (περιπατέω, peripatew) to refer to ethical conduct (cf. Rom 8:4; Gal 5:16; Col 4:5).

[5:2]  ²⁷ tc A number of important witnesses have ὑμᾶς (Jumas, “you”; e.g., א* A B P 0159 81 1175 al it co as well as several fathers). Other, equally important witnesses read ἡμᾶς (Jhmas, “us”; Ì⁴⁶ א² D F G Ψ 0278 33 1739 1881 al lat sy). It is possible that ἡμᾶς was accidentally introduced via homoioarcton with the previous word (ἠγάπησεν, hgaphsen). On the other hand, ὑμᾶς may have been motivated by the preceding ὑμῖν (Jumin) in 4:32 and second person verbs in 5:1, 2. Further, the flow of argument seems to require the first person pronoun. A decision is difficult to make, but the first person pronoun has a slightly greater probability of being original.

[5:2]  ²⁸ tn Grk “an offering and sacrifice to God as a smell of fragrance.” The first expression, προσφορὰν καὶ θυσίαν (prosforan kai qusian), is probably a hendiadys and has been translated such that “sacrificial” modifies “offering.” The second expression, εἰς ὀσμὴν εὐωδίας (ei" osmhn euwdia", “as a smell of fragrance”) has been translated as “a fragrant offering”; see BDAG 728-29 s.v. ὀσμή 2. Putting these two together in a clear fashion in English yields the translation: “a sacrificial and fragrant offering to God.”

[5:1]  ²⁹ tn Or “become.”

[2:5]  ³⁰ tn Or “by grace you have been saved.” The perfect tense in Greek connotes both completed action (“you have been saved”) and continuing results (“you are saved”).

[2:14]  ³¹ tn Grk “who” (as a continuation of the previous clause).

[2:14]  ³² tn Or “a people who are his very own.”

[2:14]  ³³ tn Grk “for good works.”

[2:1]  ³⁴ tn Grk “say what is fitting for sound teaching” (introducing the behavior called for in this chapter.).

[2:1]  ³⁵ tn Grk “say what is fitting for sound teaching” (introducing the behavior called for in this chapter.).

[3:1]  ³⁶ tc Most later witnesses (D² 0278 Ï lat sy) have καί (kai, “and”) after ἀρχαῖς (arcai", “rulers”), though the earliest and best witnesses (א A C D* F G Ψ 33 104 1739 1881) lack the conjunction. Although the καί is most likely not authentic, it has been added in translation due to the requirements of English style. For more discussion, see TCGNT 586.

[3:1]  ³⁷ tc Most later witnesses (D² 0278 Ï lat sy) have καί (kai, “and”) after ἀρχαῖς (arcai", “rulers”), though the earliest and best witnesses (א A C D* F G Ψ 33 104 1739 1881) lack the conjunction. Although the καί is most likely not authentic, it has been added in translation due to the requirements of English style. For more discussion, see TCGNT 586.

[2:2]  ³⁸ tn Or “sensible.”

[2:2]  ³⁹ sn Temperate…in endurance. See the same cluster of virtues in 1 Thess 1:3 and 1 Cor 13:13.

[5:9]  ⁴⁰ tn The redundant participle λέγοντες (legontes) has not been translated here.

[5:9]  ⁴¹ tn Or “slaughtered”; traditionally, “slain.”

[5:9]  ⁴² tn The preposition ἐν (en) is taken to indicate price here, like the Hebrew preposition ב (bet) does at times. BDAG 329 s.v. ἐν 5.b states, “The ἐν which takes the place of the gen. of price is also instrumental ἠγόρασας ἐν τῷ αἵματί σου Rv 5:9 (cp. 1 Ch 21:24 ἀγοράζω ἐν ἀργυρίῳ).”

[5:9]  ⁴³ tc The Greek text as it stands above (i.e., the reading τῷ θεῷ [tw qew] alone) is found in codex A. א 2050 2344 Ï sy add the term “us” (ἡμᾶς, Jhmas), either before or after τῷ θεῷ, as an attempt to clarify the object of “purchased” (ἠγόρασας, hgorasa"). A few mss (1 vg^ms) delete the reference to God altogether and simply replace it with “us” (ἡμᾶς). This too is an attempt to remove ambiguity in the phrase and provide an object for “purchased.” The shorter reading, supported by the best witness for Revelation, best accounts for the other readings.

[5:9]  ⁴⁴ tn The word “persons” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[5:9]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “and language,” but καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.