John 5:18

5:18 For this reason the Jewish leaders ¹  were trying even harder to kill him, because not only was he breaking the Sabbath, but he was also calling God his own Father, thus making himself equal with God.

John 10:30

10:30 The Father and I ²  are one.” ³ 

John 10:38

10:38 But if I do them, even if you do not believe me, believe the deeds, ⁴  so that you may come to know ⁵  and understand that I am in the Father and the Father is in me.”

John 13:16

13:16 I tell you the solemn truth, ⁶  the slave ⁷  is not greater than his master, nor is the one who is sent as a messenger ⁸  greater than the one who sent him.

John 20:21

20:21 So Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. Just as the Father has sent me, I also send you.”

Isaiah 42:1

The Lord Commissions His Special Servant

42:1 ⁹ “Here is my servant whom I support,

my chosen one in whom I take pleasure.

I have placed my spirit on him;

he will make just decrees ¹⁰  for the nations. ¹¹ 

Isaiah 49:5-7

49:5 So now the Lord says,

the one who formed me from birth ¹²  to be his servant –

he did this ¹³  to restore Jacob to himself,

so that Israel might be gathered to him;

and I will be honored ¹⁴  in the Lord’s sight,

for my God is my source of strength ¹⁵  –

49:6 he says, “Is it too insignificant a task for you to be my servant,

to reestablish the tribes of Jacob,

and restore the remnant ¹⁶  of Israel? ¹⁷ 

I will make you a light to the nations, ¹⁸ 

so you can bring ¹⁹  my deliverance to the remote regions of the earth.”

49:7 This is what the Lord,

the protector ²⁰  of Israel, their Holy One, ²¹  says

to the one who is despised ²²  and rejected ²³  by nations, ²⁴ 

a servant of rulers:

“Kings will see and rise in respect, ²⁵ 

princes will bow down,

because of the faithful Lord,

the Holy One of Israel who has chosen you.”

Isaiah 53:11

53:11 Having suffered, he will reflect on his work,

he will be satisfied when he understands what he has done. ²⁶ 

“My servant ²⁷  will acquit many, ²⁸ 

for he carried their sins. ²⁹ 

Matthew 12:18

12:18 “Here is ³⁰  my servant whom I have chosen,

the one I love, in whom I take great delight. ³¹ 

I will put my Spirit on him, and he will proclaim justice to the nations.

Matthew 12:1

Lord of the Sabbath

12:1 At that time Jesus went through the grain fields on a Sabbath. His ³²  disciples were hungry, and they began to pick heads of wheat ³³  and eat them.

Colossians 1:3

Paul’s Thanksgiving and Prayer for the Church

1:3 We always ³⁴  give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you,

Colossians 1:24-28

1:24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for you, and I fill up in my physical body – for the sake of his body, the church – what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ. 1:25 I became a servant of the church according to the stewardship ³⁵  from God – given to me for you – in order to complete ³⁶  the word of God, 1:26 that is, the mystery that has been kept hidden from ages and generations, but has now been revealed to his saints. 1:27 God wanted to make known to them the glorious ³⁷  riches of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. 1:28 We proclaim him by instructing ³⁸  and teaching ³⁹  all people ⁴⁰  with all wisdom so that we may present every person mature ⁴¹  in Christ.

Philippians 2:6-11

2:6 ⁴² who though he existed in the form of God ⁴³ 

did not regard equality with God

as something to be grasped,

2:7 but emptied himself

by taking on the form of a slave, ⁴⁴ 

by looking like other men, ⁴⁵ 

and by sharing in human nature. ⁴⁶ 

2:8 He humbled himself,

by becoming obedient to the point of death

– even death on a cross!

2:9 As a result God exalted him

and gave him the name

that is above every name,

2:10 so that at the name of Jesus

every knee will bow

– in heaven and on earth and under the earth –

2:11 and every tongue confess

that Jesus Christ is Lord

to the glory of God the Father.

Hebrews 1:2-3

1:2 in these last days he has spoken to us in a son, ⁴⁷  whom he appointed heir of all things, and through whom he created the world. ⁴⁸  1:3 The Son is ⁴⁹  the radiance of his glory and the representation of his essence, and he sustains all things by his powerful word, ⁵⁰  and so when he had accomplished cleansing for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. ⁵¹ 

Hebrews 2:9-15

2:9 but we see Jesus, who was made lower than the angels for a little while, ⁵²  now crowned with glory and honor because he suffered death, ⁵³  so that by God’s grace he would experience ⁵⁴  death on behalf of everyone. 2:10 For it was fitting for him, for whom and through whom all things exist, ⁵⁵  in bringing many sons to glory, to make the pioneer ⁵⁶  of their salvation perfect through sufferings. 2:11 For indeed he who makes holy and those being made holy all have the same origin, ⁵⁷  and so ⁵⁸  he is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters, ⁵⁹  2:12 saying, “I will proclaim your name to my brothers; ⁶⁰  in the midst of the assembly I will praise you.” ⁶¹  2:13 Again he says, ⁶²  “I will be confident in him,” and again, “Here I am, ⁶³  with ⁶⁴  the children God has given me.” ⁶⁵  2:14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he likewise shared in ⁶⁶  their humanity, ⁶⁷  so that through death he could destroy ⁶⁸  the one who holds the power of death (that is, the devil), 2:15 and set free those who were held in slavery all their lives by their fear of death.

Hebrews 3:1-4

Jesus and Moses

3:1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, ⁶⁹  partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess, ⁷⁰  3:2 who is faithful to the one who appointed him, as Moses was also in God’s ⁷¹  house. ⁷²  3:3 For he has come to deserve greater glory than Moses, just as the builder of a house deserves greater honor than the house itself! 3:4 For every house is built by someone, but the builder of all things is God.

Revelation 1:11

1:11 saying: “Write in a book what you see and send it to the seven churches – to Ephesus, ⁷³  Smyrna, ⁷⁴  Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia, and Laodicea.”

Revelation 1:17-18

1:17 When ⁷⁵  I saw him I fell down at his feet as though I were dead, but ⁷⁶  he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid! I am the first and the last, 1:18 and the one who lives! I ⁷⁷  was dead, but look, now I am alive – forever and ever – and I hold the keys of death and of Hades! ⁷⁸ 

[5:18]  ¹ tn Or “the Jewish authorities”; Grk “the Jews.” See the note on the phrase “Jewish leaders” in v. 10.

[10:30]  ² tn Grk “I and the Father.” The order has been reversed to reflect English style.

[10:30]  ³ tn The phrase ἕν ἐσμεν ({en esmen) is a significant assertion with trinitarian implications. ἕν is neuter, not masculine, so the assertion is not that Jesus and the Father are one person, but one “thing.” Identity of the two persons is not what is asserted, but essential unity (unity of essence).

[10:38]  ⁴ tn Or “works.”

[10:38]  ⁵ tn Or “so that you may learn.”

[13:16]  ⁶ tn Grk “Truly, truly, I say to you.”

[13:16]  ⁷ tn See the note on the word “slaves” in 4:51.

[13:16]  ⁸ tn Or “nor is the apostle” (“apostle” means “one who is sent” in Greek).

[42:1]  ⁹ sn Verses 1-7 contain the first of Isaiah’s “servant songs,” which describe the ministry of a special, ideal servant who accomplishes God’s purposes for Israel and the nations. This song depicts the servant as a just king who brings justice to the earth and relief for the oppressed. The other songs appear in 49:1-13; 50:4-11; and 52:13-53:12.

[42:1]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “he will bring out justice” (cf. ASV, NASB, NRSV).

[42:1]  ¹¹ sn Like the ideal king portrayed in Isa 11:1-9, the servant is energized by the divine spirit and establishes justice on the earth.

[49:5]  ¹² tn Heb “from the womb” (so KJV, NASB).

[49:5]  ¹³ tn The words “he did this” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text the infinitive construct of purpose is subordinated to the previous statement.

[49:5]  ¹⁴ tn The vav (ו) + imperfect is translated here as a result clause; one might interpret it as indicating purpose, “and so I might be honored.”

[49:5]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and my God is [perhaps, “having been”] my strength.” The disjunctive structure (vav [ו] + subject + verb) is interpreted here as indicating a causal circumstantial clause.

[49:6]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “the protected [or “preserved”] ones.”

[49:6]  ¹⁷ sn The question is purely rhetorical; it does not imply that the servant was dissatisfied with his commission or that he minimized the restoration of Israel.

[49:6]  ¹⁸ tn See the note at 42:6.

[49:6]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “be” (so KJV, ASV); CEV “you must take.”

[49:7]  ²⁰ tn Heb “redeemer.” See the note at 41:14.

[49:7]  ²¹ sn See the note on the phrase “the Holy One of Israel” in 1:4.

[49:7]  ²² tc The Hebrew text reads literally “to [one who] despises life.” It is preferable to read with the Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a לבזוי, which should be vocalized as a passive participle, לִבְזוּי (livzuy, “to the one despised with respect to life” [נֶפֶשׁ is a genitive of specification]). The consonantal sequence וי was probably misread as ה in the MT tradition. The contextual argument favors the 1QIsa^a reading. As J. N. Oswalt (Isaiah [NICOT], 2:294) points out, the three terse phrases “convey a picture of lowliness, worthlessness, and helplessness.”

[49:7]  ²³ tn MT’s Piel participle (“to the one who rejects”) does not fit contextually. The form should be revocalized as a Pual, “to the one rejected.”

[49:7]  ²⁴ tn Parallelism (see “rulers,” “kings,” “princes”) suggests that the singular גּוֹי (goy) be emended to a plural or understood in a collective sense (see 55:5).

[49:7]  ²⁵ tn For this sense of קוּם (qum), see Gen 19:1; 23:7; 33:10; Lev 19:32; 1 Sam 20:41; 25:41; 1 Kgs 2:19; Job 29:8.

[53:11]  ²⁶ tn Heb “he will be satisfied by his knowledge,” i.e., “when he knows.” The preposition is understood as temporal and the suffix as a subjective genitive. Some take בְּדַעְתּוֹ (bÿda’to, “by his knowledge”) with what follows and translate “by knowledge of him,” understanding the preposition as instrumental and the suffix as objective.

[53:11]  ²⁷ sn The song ends as it began (cf. 52:13-15), with the Lord announcing the servant’s vindication and exaltation.

[53:11]  ²⁸ tn Heb “he will acquit, a righteous one, my servant, many.” צַדִּיק (tsadiq) may refer to the servant, but more likely it is dittographic (note the preceding verb יַצְדִּיק, yatsdiq). The precise meaning of the verb (the Hiphil of צָדַק, tsadaq) is debated. Elsewhere the Hiphil is used at least six times in the sense of “make righteous” in a legal sense, i.e., “pronounce innocent, acquit” (see Exod 23:7; Deut 25:1; 1 Kgs 8:32 = 2 Chr 6:23; Prov 17:15; Isa 5:23). It can also mean “render justice” (as a royal function, see 2 Sam 15:4; Ps 82:3), “concede” (Job 27:5), “vindicate” (Isa 50:8), and “lead to righteousness” (by teaching and example, Dan 12:3). The preceding context and the next line suggest a legal sense here. Because of his willingness to carry the people’s sins, the servant is able to “acquit” them.

[53:11]  ²⁹ tn The circumstantial clause (note the vav [ו] + object + subject + verb pattern) is understood as causal here. The prefixed verb form is either a preterite or an imperfect used in a customary manner.

[12:18]  ³⁰ tn Grk “Behold my servant.”

[12:18]  ³¹ tn Grk “in whom my soul is well pleased.”

[12:1]  ³² tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[12:1]  ³³ tn Or “heads of grain.” While the generic term στάχυς (stacus) can refer to the cluster of seeds at the top of grain such as barley or wheat, in the NT the term is restricted to wheat (L&N 3.40; BDAG 941 s.v. 1).

[1:3]  ³⁴ tn The adverb πάντοτε (pantote) is understood to modify the indicative εὐχαριστοῦμεν (eucaristoumen) because it precedes περὶ ὑμῶν (peri Jumwn) which probably modifies the indicative and not the participle προσευχόμενοι (proseucomenoi). But see 1:9 where the same expression occurs and περὶ ὑμῶν modifies the participle “praying” (προσευχόμενοι).

[1:25]  ³⁵ tn BDAG 697 s.v. οἰκονομία 1.b renders the term here as “divine office.”

[1:25]  ³⁶ tn See BDAG 828 s.v. πληρόω 3. The idea here seems to be that the apostle wants to “complete the word of God” in that he wants to preach it to every person in the known world (cf. Rom 15:19). See P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 82.

[1:27]  ³⁷ tn The genitive noun τῆς δόξης (ths doxhs) is an attributive genitive and has therefore been translated as “glorious riches.”

[1:28]  ³⁸ tn Or “admonishing,” or “warning.” BDAG 679 s.v. νουθετέω states, “to counsel about avoidance or cessation of an improper course of conduct,, admonish, warn, instruct.” After the participle νουθετοῦντες (nouqetounte", “instructing”) the words πάντα ἄνθρωπον (panta anqrwpon, “all men”) occur in the Greek text, but since the same phrase appears again after διδάσκοντες (didaskontes) it was omitted in translation to avoid redundancy in English.

[1:28]  ³⁹ tn The two participles “instructing” (νουθετοῦντες, nouqetounte") and “teaching” (διδάσκοντες, didaskonte") are translated as participles of means (“by”) related to the finite verb “we proclaim” (καταγγέλλομεν, katangellomen).

[1:28]  ⁴⁰ tn Here ἄνθρωπον (anqrwpon) is twice translated as a generic (“people” and “person”) since both men and women are clearly intended in this context.

[1:28]  ⁴¹ tn Since Paul’s focus is on the present experience of the Colossians, “mature” is a better translation of τέλειον (teleion) than “perfect,” since the latter implies a future, eschatological focus.

[2:6]  ⁴² sn This passage has been typeset as poetry because many scholars regard this passage as poetic or hymnic. These terms are used broadly to refer to the genre of writing, not to the content. There are two broad criteria for determining if a passage is poetic or hymnic: “(a) stylistic: a certain rhythmical lilt when the passages are read aloud, the presence of parallelismus membrorum (i.e., an arrangement into couplets), the semblance of some metre, and the presence of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, chiasmus, and antithesis; and (b) linguistic: an unusual vocabulary, particularly the presence of theological terms, which is different from the surrounding context” (P. T. O’Brien, Philippians [NIGTC], 188-89). Classifying a passage as hymnic or poetic is important because understanding this genre can provide keys to interpretation. However, not all scholars agree that the above criteria are present in this passage, so the decision to typeset it as poetry should be viewed as a tentative decision about its genre.

[2:6]  ⁴³ sn The Greek term translated form indicates a correspondence with reality. Thus the meaning of this phrase is that Christ was truly God.

[2:7]  ⁴⁴ tn See the note on the word “slaves” in 1:1.

[2:7]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “by coming in the likeness of people.”

[2:7]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “and by being found in form as a man.” The versification of vv. 7 and 8 (so also NRSV) is according to the versification in the NA²⁷ and UBS⁴ editions of the Greek text. Some translations, however, break the verses in front of this phrase (NKJV, NASB, NIV, NLT). The same material has been translated in each case; the only difference is the versification of that material.

[1:2]  ⁴⁷ tn The Greek puts an emphasis on the quality of God’s final revelation. As such, it is more than an indefinite notion (“a son”) though less than a definite one (“the son”), for this final revelation is not just through any son of God, nor is the emphasis specifically on the person himself. Rather, the focus here is on the nature of the vehicle of God’s revelation: He is no mere spokesman (or prophet) for God, nor is he merely a heavenly messenger (or angel); instead, this final revelation comes through one who is intimately acquainted with the heavenly Father in a way that only a family member could be. There is, however, no exact equivalent in English (“in son” is hardly good English style).

[1:2]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “the ages.” The temporal (ages) came to be used of the spatial (what exists in those time periods). See Heb 11:3 for the same usage.

[1:3]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “who being…and sustaining.” Heb 1:1-4 form one skillfully composed sentence in Greek, but it must be broken into shorter segments to correspond to contemporary English usage, which does not allow for sentences of this length and complexity.

[1:3]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “by the word of his power.”

[1:3]  ⁵¹ sn An allusion to Ps 110:1, quoted often in Hebrews.

[2:9]  ⁵² tn Or “who was made a little lower than the angels.”

[2:9]  ⁵³ tn Grk “because of the suffering of death.”

[2:9]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “would taste.” Here the Greek verb does not mean “sample a small amount” (as a typical English reader might infer from the word “taste”), but “experience something cognitively or emotionally; come to know something” (cf. BDAG 195 s.v. γεύομαι 2).

[2:10]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “for whom are all things and through whom are all things.”

[2:10]  ⁵⁶ sn The Greek word translated pioneer is used of a “prince” or leader, the representative head of a family. It also carries nuances of “trailblazer,” one who breaks through to new ground for those who follow him. It is used some thirty-five times in the Greek OT and four times in the NT, always of Christ (Acts 3:15; 5:31; Heb 2:10; 12:2).

[2:11]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “are all from one.”

[2:11]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “for which reason.”

[2:11]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited). The context here also indicates both men and women are in view; note especially the collective τὰ παιδία (ta paidia) in v. 14.

[2:12]  ⁶⁰ tn Here, because of its occurrence in an OT quotation, τοῖς ἀδελφοῖς (tois adelfois) has been translated simply as “brothers” rather than “brothers and sisters” (see the note on the latter phrase in the previous verse).

[2:12]  ⁶¹ sn A quotation from Ps 22:22.

[2:13]  ⁶² tn Grk “and again,” as a continuation of the preceding.

[2:13]  ⁶³ tn Grk “behold, I,” but this construction often means “here is/there is” (cf. BDAG 468 s.v. ἰδού 2).

[2:13]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “and.”

[2:13]  ⁶⁵ sn A quotation from Isa 8:17-18.

[2:14]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “partook of” (this is a different word than the one in v. 14a).

[2:14]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “the same.”

[2:14]  ⁶⁸ tn Or “break the power of,” “reduce to nothing.”

[3:1]  ⁶⁹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.

[3:1]  ⁷⁰ tn Grk “of our confession.”

[3:2]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “his”; in the translation the referent (God) has been specified for clarity.

[3:2]  ⁷² tc ‡ The reading adopted by the translation follows a few early mss and some versions (Ì^13,46vid B vg^ms co Ambr). The majority of mss (א A C D Ψ 0243 0278 33 1739 1881 Ï lat sy) insert “all” (“in all his house”), apparently in anticipation of Heb 3:5 which quotes directly from Num 12:7. On balance, the omission better explains the rise of ὅλῳ ({olw, “all”) than vice versa. NA²⁷ puts ὅλῳ in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[1:11]  ⁷³ map For location see JP1 D2; JP2 D2; JP3 D2; JP4 D2.

[1:11]  ⁷⁴ tn Grk “and to Smyrna.” For stylistic reasons the conjunction καί (kai) and the preposition εἰς (eis) have not been translated before the remaining elements of the list. In lists with more than two elements contemporary English generally does not repeat the conjunction except between the next to last and last elements.

[1:17]  ⁷⁵ tn Grk “And when.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[1:17]  ⁷⁶ tn Here the Greek conjunction καί (kai) has been translated as a contrastive (“but”) due to the contrast between the two clauses.

[1:18]  ⁷⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[1:18]  ⁷⁸ tn Concerning “Hades” BDAG 19 s.v. ᾅδης 1 and 2 states: “Orig. proper noun, god of the nether world, ‘Hades’, then the nether world, Hades as place of the dead, Ac 2:27, 31 (Ps 15:10; Eccl 9:10; PGM 1, 179; 16, 8; Philo, Mos. 1, 195; Jos., Bell. 1, 596, Ant. 6, 332). Of Jonah’s fish ἐκ τοῦ κατωτάτου ᾅδου. In the depths, contrasted w. heaven ἕως (τοῦ) ᾅδου Mt 11:23; Lk 10:15 (PsSol 15:10; cp.; Is 14:11, 15); ἐν τῷ ᾅδῃ 16:23; ἐν ῝Αιδου ApcPt Rainer. Accessible by gates (but the pl. is also used [e.g. Hom., X., Ael. Aristid. 47, 20 K.=23 p. 450 D.] when only one gate is meant), hence πύλαι ᾅδου (Il. 5, 646; Is 38:10; Wsd 16:13; 3 Macc 5:51; Pss. Sol. 16:2. – Lucian, Menipp. 6 the magicians can open τοῦ ῝Αιδου τὰς πύλας and conduct people in and out safely) Mt 16:18…locked ἔχω τὰς κλεῖς τοῦ θανάτου καὶ τοῦ ᾅδου Rv 1:18 (the genitives are either obj. [Ps.-Apollod. 3, 12, 6, 10 Aeacus, the son of Zeus holds the κλεῖς τοῦ ῝Αιδου; SEG VIII, 574, 3 (III ad) τῷ τὰς κλεῖδας ἔχοντι τῶν καθ᾿ ῝Αιδου (restored)] or possess.; in the latter case death and Hades are personif.; s. 2)…Hades personif.…w. θάνατος (cp. Is 28:15; Job 38:17…) Rv 6:8; 20:13f.”