John 1:47

1:47 Jesus saw Nathanael coming toward him and exclaimed, ¹  “Look, a true Israelite in whom there is no deceit!” ² 

John 5:39

5:39 You study the scriptures thoroughly ³  because you think in them you possess eternal life, ⁴  and it is these same scriptures ⁵  that testify about me,

Psalms 1:1-3

Book 1
(Psalms 1-41)

Psalm 1 ⁶ 

1:1 How blessed ⁷  is the one ⁸  who does not follow ⁹  the advice ¹⁰  of the wicked, ¹¹ 

or stand in the pathway ¹²  with sinners,

or sit in the assembly ¹³  of scoffers! ¹⁴ 

1:2 Instead ¹⁵  he finds pleasure in obeying the Lord’s commands; ¹⁶ 

he meditates on ¹⁷  his commands ¹⁸  day and night.

1:3 He is like ¹⁹  a tree planted by flowing streams; ²⁰ 

it ²¹  yields ²²  its fruit at the proper time, ²³ 

and its leaves never fall off. ²⁴ 

He succeeds in everything he attempts. ²⁵ 

Psalms 119:80

119:80 May I be fully committed to your statutes, ²⁶ 

so that I might not be ashamed.

Psalms 119:105

נ (Nun)

119:105 Your word ²⁷  is a lamp to walk by,

and a light to illumine my path. ²⁸ 

Psalms 139:23-24

139:23 Examine me, and probe my thoughts! ²⁹ 

Test me, and know my concerns! ³⁰ 

139:24 See if there is any idolatrous tendency ³¹  in me,

and lead me in the reliable ancient path! ³² 

Isaiah 8:20

8:20 Then you must recall the Lord’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. ³³  Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened. ³⁴ 

Acts 17:11-12

17:11 These Jews ³⁵  were more open-minded ³⁶  than those in Thessalonica, ³⁷  for they eagerly ³⁸  received ³⁹  the message, examining ⁴⁰  the scriptures carefully every day ⁴¹  to see if these things were so. 17:12 Therefore many of them believed, along with quite a few ⁴²  prominent ⁴³  Greek women and men.

Acts 17:1

Paul and Silas at Thessalonica

17:1 After they traveled through ⁴⁴  Amphipolis ⁴⁵  and Apollonia, ⁴⁶  they came to Thessalonica, ⁴⁷  where there was a Jewish synagogue. ⁴⁸ 

Acts 1:6

1:6 So when they had gathered together, they began to ask him, ⁴⁹  “Lord, is this the time when you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?”

[1:47]  ¹ tn Grk “said about him.”

[1:47]  ² tn Or “treachery.”

[5:39]  ³ tn Or “Study the scriptures thoroughly” (an imperative). For the meaning of the verb see G. Delling, TDNT 2:655-57.

[5:39]  ⁴ sn In them you possess eternal life. Note the following examples from the rabbinic tractate Pirqe Avot (“The Sayings of the Fathers”): Pirqe Avot 2:8, “He who has acquired the words of the law has acquired for himself the life of the world to come”; Pirqe Avot 6:7, “Great is the law for it gives to those who practice it life in this world and in the world to come.”

[5:39]  ⁵ tn The words “same scriptures” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied to clarify the referent (“these”).

[1:1]  ⁶ sn Psalm 1. In this wisdom psalm the author advises his audience to reject the lifestyle of the wicked and to be loyal to God. The psalmist contrasts the destiny of the wicked with that of the righteous, emphasizing that the wicked are eventually destroyed while the godly prosper under the Lord’s protective care.

[1:1]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see v. 3; Pss 2:12; 34:9; 41:1; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15).

[1:1]  ⁸ tn Heb “[Oh] the happiness [of] the man.” Hebrew wisdom literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age. To facilitate modern application, we translate the gender and age specific “man” with the more neutral “one.” (Generic “he” is employed in vv. 2-3). Since the godly man described in the psalm is representative of followers of God (note the plural form צַדִּיקִים [tsadiqim, “righteous, godly”] in vv. 5-6), one could translate the collective singular with the plural “those” both here and in vv. 2-3, where singular pronouns and verbal forms are utilized in the Hebrew text (cf. NRSV). However, here the singular form may emphasize that godly individuals are usually outnumbered by the wicked. Retaining the singular allows the translation to retain this emphasis.

[1:1]  ⁹ tn Heb “walk in.” The three perfect verbal forms in v. 1 refer in this context to characteristic behavior. The sequence “walk–stand–sit” envisions a progression from relatively casual association with the wicked to complete identification with them.

[1:1]  ¹⁰ tn The Hebrew noun translated “advice” most often refers to the “counsel” or “advice” one receives from others. To “walk in the advice of the wicked” means to allow their evil advice to impact and determine one’s behavior.

[1:1]  ¹¹ tn In the psalms the Hebrew term רְשָׁעִים (rÿsha’im, “wicked”) describes people who are proud, practical atheists (Ps 10:2, 4, 11) who hate God’s commands, commit sinful deeds, speak lies and slander (Ps 50:16-20), and cheat others (Ps 37:21).

[1:1]  ¹² tn “Pathway” here refers to the lifestyle of sinners. To “stand in the pathway of/with sinners” means to closely associate with them in their sinful behavior.

[1:1]  ¹³ tn Here the Hebrew term מוֹשַׁב (moshav), although often translated “seat” (cf. NEB, NIV), appears to refer to the whole assembly of evildoers. The word also carries the semantic nuance “assembly” in Ps 107:32, where it is in synonymous parallelism with קָהָל (qahal, “assembly”).

[1:1]  ¹⁴ tn The Hebrew word refers to arrogant individuals (Prov 21:24) who love conflict (Prov 22:10) and vociferously reject wisdom and correction (Prov 1:22; 9:7-8; 13:1; 15:12). To “sit in the assembly” of such people means to completely identify with them in their proud, sinful plans and behavior.

[1:2]  ¹⁵ tn Here the Hebrew expression כִּי־אִם (ki-’im, “instead”) introduces a contrast between the sinful behavior depicted in v. 1 and the godly lifestyle described in v. 2.

[1:2]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “his delight [is] in the law of the Lord.” In light of the following line, which focuses on studying the Lord’s law, one might translate, “he finds pleasure in studying the Lord’s commands.” However, even if one translates the line this way, it is important to recognize that mere study and intellectual awareness are not ultimately what bring divine favor. Study of the law is metonymic here for the correct attitudes and behavior that should result from an awareness of and commitment to God’s moral will; thus “obeying” has been used in the translation rather than “studying.”

[1:2]  ¹⁷ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form draws attention to the characteristic behavior described here and lends support to the hyperbolic adverbial phrase “day and night.” The verb הָגָה (hagag) means “to recite quietly; to meditate” and refers metonymically to intense study and reflection.

[1:2]  ¹⁸ tn Or “his law.”

[1:3]  ¹⁹ tn The Hebrew perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive here carries the same characteristic force as the imperfect in the preceding verse. According to the psalmist, the one who studies and obeys God’s commands typically prospers.

[1:3]  ²⁰ tn Heb “channels of water.”

[1:3]  ²¹ tn Heb “which.”

[1:3]  ²² tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal forms in v. 3 draw attention to the typical nature of the actions/states they describe.

[1:3]  ²³ tn Heb “in its season.”

[1:3]  ²⁴ tn Or “fade”; “wither.”

[1:3]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and all which he does prospers”; or “and all which he does he causes to prosper.” (The simile of the tree does not extend to this line.) It is not certain if the Hiphil verbal form (יַצְלִיחַ, yatsliakh) is intransitive-exhibitive (“prospers”) or causative (“causes to prosper”) here. If the verb is intransitive, then כֹּל (kol, “all, everything”) is the subject. If the verb is causative, then the godly individual or the Lord himself is the subject and כֹּל is the object. The wording is reminiscent of Josh 1:8, where the Lord tells Joshua: “This law scroll must not leave your lips! You must memorize it day and night so you can carefully obey all that is written in it. Then you will prosper (literally, “cause your way to prosper”) and be successful.”

[119:80]  ²⁶ tn Heb “may my heart be complete in your statutes.”

[119:105]  ²⁷ tn Many medieval Hebrew mss read the plural (“words”).

[119:105]  ²⁸ tn Heb “[is] a lamp for my foot and a light for my path.”

[139:23]  ²⁹ tn Heb “and know my heart.”

[139:23]  ³⁰ tn The Hebrew noun שַׂרְעַפַּי (sar’apay, “concerns”) is used of “worries” in Ps 94:19.

[139:24]  ³¹ tn Many understand the Hebrew term עֹצֶב (’otsev) as a noun meaning “pain,” and translate the phrase דֶּרֶךְ עֹצֶב (derekh ’otsev) as “of pain,” but this makes little sense here. (Some interpret it to refer to actions which bring pain to others.) It is preferable to take עֹצֶב as “idol” (see HALOT 865 s.v. I עֹצֶב) and understand “way of an idol” to refer to idolatrous actions or tendency. See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 253.

[139:24]  ³² tn Heb “in the path of antiquity.” This probably refers to the moral path prescribed by the Lord at the beginning of Israel’s history. See Jer 6:16; 18:15, as well as L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 253.

[8:20]  ³³ tn Heb “to [the] instruction and to [the] testimony.” The words “then you must recall” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 19-20a are one long sentence, reading literally, “When they say to you…, to the instruction and to the testimony.” On the identity of the “instruction” and “testimony” see the notes at v. 16.

[8:20]  ³⁴ tn Heb “If they do not speak according to this word, [it is] because it has no light of dawn.” The literal translation suggests that “this word” refers to the instruction/testimony. However, it is likely that אִם־לֹא (’im-lo’) is asseverative here, as in 5:9. In this case “this word” refers to the quotation recorded in v. 19. For a discussion of the problem see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 230, n. 9. The singular pronoun in the second half of the verse is collective, referring back to the nation (see v. 19b).

[17:11]  ³⁵ tn Grk “These”; the referent (the Jews in the synagogue at Berea) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:11]  ³⁶ tn Or “more willing to learn.” L&N 27.48 and BDAG 404 s.v. εὐγενής 2 both use the term “open-minded” here. The point is that they were more receptive to Paul’s message.

[17:11]  ³⁷ sn Thessalonica was a city in Macedonia (modern Salonica).

[17:11]  ³⁸ tn Or “willingly,” “readily”; Grk “with all eagerness.”

[17:11]  ³⁹ tn Grk “who received.” Here the relative pronoun (“who”) has been translated as a pronoun (“they”) preceded by a semicolon, which is less awkward in contemporary English than a relative clause at this point.

[17:11]  ⁴⁰ tn This verb (BDAG 66 s.v. ἀνακρίνω 1) refers to careful examination.

[17:11]  ⁴¹ tn BDAG 437 s.v. ἡμέρα 2.c has “every day” for this phrase in this verse.

[17:12]  ⁴² tn Grk “not a few”; this use of negation could be misleading to the modern English reader, however, and so has been translated as “quite a few” (which is the actual meaning of the expression).

[17:12]  ⁴³ tn Or “respected.”

[17:1]  ⁴⁴ tn BDAG 250 s.v. διοδεύω 1 has “go, travel through” for this verse.

[17:1]  ⁴⁵ sn Amphipolis. The capital city of the southeastern district of Macedonia (BDAG 55 s.v. ᾿Αμφίπολις). It was a military post. From Philippi this was about 33 mi (53 km).

[17:1]  ⁴⁶ sn Apollonia was a city in Macedonia about 27 mi (43 km) west southwest of Amphipolis.

[17:1]  ⁴⁷ sn Thessalonica (modern Salonica) was a city in Macedonia about 33 mi (53 km) west of Apollonia. It was the capital of Macedonia. The road they traveled over was called the Via Egnatia. It is likely they rode horses, given their condition in Philippi. The implication of v. 1 is that the two previously mentioned cities lacked a synagogue.

[17:1]  ⁴⁸ sn See the note on synagogue in 6:9.

[1:6]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “they began to ask him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. The imperfect tense of the Greek verb ἠρώτων (hrwtwn) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.