John 14:30

14:30 I will not speak with you much longer, ¹  for the ruler of this world is coming. ²  He has no power over me, ³ 

John 16:11

16:11 and concerning judgment, ⁴  because ⁵  the ruler of this world ⁶  has been condemned. ⁷ 

Genesis 3:15

3:15 And I will put hostility ⁸  between you and the woman

and between your offspring and her offspring; ⁹ 

her offspring will attack ¹⁰  your head,

and ¹¹  you ¹²  will attack her offspring’s heel.” ¹³ 

Isaiah 49:24

49:24 Can spoils be taken from a warrior,

or captives be rescued from a conqueror? ¹⁴ 

Matthew 12:28

12:28 But if I cast out demons by the Spirit of God, then the kingdom of God ¹⁵  has already overtaken ¹⁶  you.

Luke 10:17-19

10:17 Then ¹⁷  the seventy-two ¹⁸  returned with joy, saying, “Lord, even the demons submit to ¹⁹  us in your name!” ²⁰  10:18 So ²¹  he said to them, “I saw ²²  Satan fall ²³  like lightning ²⁴  from heaven. 10:19 Look, I have given you authority to tread ²⁵  on snakes and scorpions ²⁶  and on the full force of the enemy, ²⁷  and nothing will ²⁸  hurt you.

Acts 26:18

26:18 to open their eyes so that they turn ²⁹  from darkness to light and from the power ³⁰  of Satan to God, so that they may receive forgiveness of sins and a share ³¹  among those who are sanctified by faith in me.’

Acts 26:2

26:2 “Regarding all the things I have been accused of by the Jews, King Agrippa, ³²  I consider myself fortunate that I am about to make my defense before you today,

Colossians 4:4

4:4 Pray that I may make it known as I should. ³³ 

Ephesians 2:1-2

New Life Individually

2:1 And although you were ³⁴  dead ³⁵  in your transgressions and sins, 2:2 in which ³⁶  you formerly lived ³⁷  according to this world’s present path, ³⁸  according to the ruler of the kingdom ³⁹  of the air, the ruler of ⁴⁰  the spirit ⁴¹  that is now energizing ⁴²  the sons of disobedience, ⁴³ 

Ephesians 6:12

6:12 For our struggle ⁴⁴  is not against flesh and blood, ⁴⁵  but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, ⁴⁶  against the spiritual forces ⁴⁷  of evil in the heavens. ⁴⁸ 

Colossians 2:15

2:15 Disarming ⁴⁹  the rulers and authorities, he has made a public disgrace of them, triumphing over them by the cross. ⁵⁰ 

Hebrews 2:14

2:14 Therefore, since the children share in flesh and blood, he likewise shared in ⁵¹  their humanity, ⁵²  so that through death he could destroy ⁵³  the one who holds the power of death (that is, the devil),

Hebrews 2:1

Warning Against Drifting Away

2:1 Therefore we must pay closer attention to what we have heard, so that we do not drift away.

Hebrews 3:8

3:8 “Do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion, in the day of testing in the wilderness.

Revelation 12:9-11

12:9 So ⁵⁴  that huge dragon – the ancient serpent, the one called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world – was thrown down to the earth, and his angels along with him. 12:10 Then ⁵⁵  I heard a loud voice in heaven saying,

“The salvation and the power

and the kingdom of our God,

and the ruling authority ⁵⁶  of his Christ, ⁵⁷  have now come,

because the accuser of our brothers and sisters, ⁵⁸ 

the one who accuses them day and night ⁵⁹  before our God,

has been thrown down.

12:11 But ⁶⁰  they overcame him

by the blood of the Lamb

and by the word of their testimony,

and they did not love their lives ⁶¹  so much that they were afraid to die.

Revelation 20:2-3

20:2 He ⁶²  seized the dragon – the ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan – and tied him up for a thousand years. 20:3 The angel ⁶³  then ⁶⁴  threw him into the abyss and locked ⁶⁵  and sealed it so that he could not deceive the nations until the one thousand years were finished. (After these things he must be released for a brief period of time.)

[14:30]  ¹ tn Grk “I will no longer speak many things with you.”

[14:30]  ² sn The ruler of this world is a reference to Satan.

[14:30]  ³ tn Grk “in me he has nothing.”

[16:11]  ⁴ sn The world is proven wrong concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world has been judged. Jesus’ righteousness before the Father, as proven by his return to the Father, his glorification, constitutes a judgment against Satan. This is parallel to the judgment of the world which Jesus provokes in 3:19-21: Jesus’ presence in the world as the Light of the world provokes the judgment of those in the world, because as they respond to the light (either coming to Jesus or rejecting him) so are they judged. That judgment is in a sense already realized. So it is here, where the judgment of Satan is already realized in Jesus’ glorification. This does not mean that Satan does not continue to be active in the world, and to exercise some power over it, just as in 3:19-21 the people in the world who have rejected Jesus and thus incurred judgment continue on in their opposition to Jesus for a time. In both cases the judgment is not immediately executed. But it is certain.

[16:11]  ⁵ tn Or “that.”

[16:11]  ⁶ sn The ruler of this world is a reference to Satan.

[16:11]  ⁷ tn Or “judged.”

[3:15]  ⁸ tn The Hebrew word translated “hostility” is derived from the root אֵיב (’ev, “to be hostile, to be an adversary [or enemy]”). The curse announces that there will be continuing hostility between the serpent and the woman. The serpent will now live in a “battle zone,” as it were.

[3:15]  ⁹ sn The Hebrew word translated “offspring” is a collective singular. The text anticipates the ongoing struggle between human beings (the woman’s offspring) and deadly poisonous snakes (the serpent’s offspring). An ancient Jewish interpretation of the passage states: “He made the serpent, cause of the deceit, press the earth with belly and flank, having bitterly driven him out. He aroused a dire enmity between them. The one guards his head to save it, the other his heel, for death is at hand in the proximity of men and malignant poisonous snakes.” See Sib. Or. 1:59-64. For a similar interpretation see Josephus, Ant. 1.1.4 (1.50-51).

[3:15]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “he will attack [or “bruise”] you [on] the head.” The singular pronoun and verb agree grammatically with the collective singular noun “offspring.” For other examples of singular verb and pronominal forms being used with the collective singular “offspring,” see Gen 16:10; 22:17; 24:60. The word “head” is an adverbial accusative, locating the blow. A crushing blow to the head would be potentially fatal.

[3:15]  ¹¹ tn Or “but you will…”; or “as they attack your head, you will attack their heel.” The disjunctive clause (conjunction + subject + verb) is understood as contrastive. Both clauses place the subject before the verb, a construction that is sometimes used to indicate synchronic action (see Judg 15:14).

[3:15]  ¹² sn You will attack her offspring’s heel. Though the conflict will actually involve the serpent’s offspring (snakes) and the woman’s offspring (human beings), v. 15b for rhetorical effect depicts the conflict as being between the serpent and the woman’s offspring, as if the serpent will outlive the woman. The statement is personalized for the sake of the addressee (the serpent) and reflects the ancient Semitic concept of corporate solidarity, which emphasizes the close relationship between a progenitor and his offspring. Note Gen 28:14, where the Lord says to Jacob, “Your offspring will be like the dust of the earth, and you [second masculine singular] will spread out in all directions.” Jacob will “spread out” in all directions through his offspring, but the text states the matter as if this will happen to him personally.

[3:15]  ¹³ tn Heb “you will attack him [on] the heel.” The verb (translated “attack”) is repeated here, a fact that is obscured by some translations (e.g., NIV “crush…strike”). The singular pronoun agrees grammatically with the collective singular noun “offspring.” For other examples of singular verb and pronominal forms being used with the collective singular “offspring,” see Gen 16:10; 22:17; 24:60. The word “heel” is an adverbial accusative, locating the blow. A bite on the heel from a poisonous serpent is potentially fatal.

[49:24]  ¹⁴ tc The Hebrew text has צָדִיק (tsadiq, “a righteous [one]”), but this makes no sense in the parallelism. The Qumran scroll 1QIsa^a reads correctly עריץ (“violent [one], tyrant”; see v. 25).

[12:28]  ¹⁵ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong.

[12:28]  ¹⁶ tn The phrase ἔφθασεν ἐφ᾿ ὑμᾶς (efqasen ef’ Juma") is quite important. Does it mean merely “approach” (which would be reflected in a translation like “has come near to you”) or actually “come upon” (as in the translation given above, “has already overtaken you,” which has the added connotation of suddenness)? Is the arrival of the kingdom merely anticipated or already in process? Two factors favor arrival over anticipation here. First, the prepositional phrase ἐφ᾿ ὑμᾶς (ef’ Jumas, “upon you”) in the Greek text suggests arrival (Dan 4:24, 28 Theodotion). Second, the following illustration in v. 29 looks at the healing as portraying Satan being overrun. So the presence of God’s authority has arrived. See also L&N 13.123 for the translation of φθάνω (fqanw) as “to happen to already, to come upon, to come upon already.”

[10:17]  ¹⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[10:17]  ¹⁸ tc See the tc note on the number “seventy-two” in Luke 10:1.

[10:17]  ¹⁹ tn Or “the demons obey”; see L&N 36.18.

[10:17]  ²⁰ tn The prepositional phrase “in your name” indicates the sphere of authority for the messengers’ work of exorcism.

[10:18]  ²¹ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “so” to indicate that Jesus’ reply in vv. 18-20 follows from the positive report of the messengers in v. 17.

[10:18]  ²² tn This is an imperfect tense verb.

[10:18]  ²³ tn In Greek, this is a participle and comes at the end of the verse, making it somewhat emphatic.

[10:18]  ²⁴ tn This is probably best taken as allusion to Isa 14:12; the phrase in common is ἐκ τοῦ οὐρανοῦ (ek tou ouranou). These exorcisms in Jesus’ name are a picture of Satan’s greater defeat at Jesus’ hands (D. L. Bock, Luke [BECNT], 2:1006-7).

[10:19]  ²⁵ tn Or perhaps, “trample on” (which emphasizes the impact of the feet on the snakes). See L&N 15.226.

[10:19]  ²⁶ sn Snakes and scorpions are examples of the hostility in the creation that is defeated by Jesus. The use of battle imagery shows who the kingdom fights against. See Acts 28:3-6.

[10:19]  ²⁷ tn Or “I have given you authority to tread on snakes and scorpions, and [authority] over the full force of the enemy.” The second prepositional phrase can be taken either as modifying the infinitive πατεῖν (patein, “to tread”) or the noun ἐξουσίαν (exousian, “power”). The former is to be preferred and has been represented in the translation.

[10:19]  ²⁸ tn This is an emphatic double negative in the Greek text.

[26:18]  ²⁹ sn To open their eyes so that they turn… Here is Luke’s most comprehensive report of Paul’s divine calling. His role was to call humanity to change their position before God and experience God’s forgiveness as a part of God’s family. The image of turning is a key one in the NT: Luke 1:79; Rom 2:19; 13:12; 2 Cor 4:6; 6:14; Eph 5:8; Col 1:12; 1 Thess 5:5. See also Luke 1:77-79; 3:3; 24:47.

[26:18]  ³⁰ tn BDAG 352-53 s.v. ἐξουσία 2 states, “Also of Satan’s power Ac 26:18.” It is also possible to translate this “the domain of Satan” (cf. BDAG 353 s.v. 6)

[26:18]  ³¹ tn Or “and an inheritance.”

[26:2]  ³² sn See the note on King Agrippa in 25:13.

[4:4]  ³³ tn The phrase begins with the ἵνα (Jina) clause and is subordinate to the imperative προσκαρτερεῖτε (proskartereite) in v. 2. The reference to the idea that Paul must make it known indicates that this clause is probably best viewed as purpose and not content, like the ἵνα of v. 3. It is the second purpose stated in the context; the first is expressed through the infinitive λαλῆσαι (lalhsai) in v. 3. The term “pray” at the beginning of the sentence is intended to pick up the imperative of v. 3.

[2:1]  ³⁴ tn The adverbial participle “being” (ὄντας, ontas) is taken concessively.

[2:1]  ³⁵ sn Chapter 2 starts off with a participle, although you were dead, that is left dangling. The syntax in Greek for vv. 1-3 constitutes one incomplete sentence, though it seems to have been done intentionally. The dangling participle leaves the readers in suspense while they wait for the solution (in v. 4) to their spiritual dilemma.

[2:2]  ³⁶ sn The relative pronoun which is feminine as is sins, indicating that sins is the antecedent.

[2:2]  ³⁷ tn Grk “walked.”

[2:2]  ³⁸ tn Or possibly “Aeon.”

[2:2]  ³⁹ tn Grk “domain, [place of] authority.”

[2:2]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “of” (but see the note on the word “spirit” later in this verse).

[2:2]  ⁴¹ sn The ruler of the kingdom of the air is also the ruler of the spirit that is now energizing the sons of disobedience. Although several translations regard the ruler to be the same as the spirit, this is unlikely since the cases in Greek are different (ruler is accusative and spirit is genitive). To get around this, some have suggested that the genitive for spirit is a genitive of apposition. However, the semantics of the genitive of apposition are against such an interpretation (cf. ExSyn 100).

[2:2]  ⁴² tn Grk “working in.”

[2:2]  ⁴³ sn Sons of disobedience is a Semitic idiom that means “people characterized by disobedience.” However, it also contains a subtle allusion to vv. 4-10: Some of those sons of disobedience have become sons of God.

[6:12]  ⁴⁴ tn BDAG 752 s.v. πάλη says, “struggle against…the opponent is introduced by πρός w. the acc.”

[6:12]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “blood and flesh.”

[6:12]  ⁴⁶ tn BDAG 561 s.v. κοσμοκράτωρ suggests “the rulers of this sinful world” as a gloss.

[6:12]  ⁴⁷ tn BDAG 837 s.v. πνευματικός 3 suggests “the spirit-forces of evil” in Ephesians 6:12.

[6:12]  ⁴⁸ sn The phrase spiritual forces of evil in the heavens serves to emphasize the nature of the forces which oppose believers as well as to indicate the locality from which they originate.

[2:15]  ⁴⁹ tn See BDAG 100 s.v. ἀπεκδύομαι 2.

[2:15]  ⁵⁰ tn The antecedent of the Greek pronoun αὐτῷ (autw) could either be “Christ” or the “cross.” There are several reasons for choosing “the cross” as the antecedent for αὐτῷ in verse 15: (1) The nearest antecedent is τῷ σταυρῷ (tw staurw) in v. 14; (2) the idea of ἐδειγμάτισεν ἐν παρρησία (edeigmatisen en parrhsia, “made a public disgrace”) seems to be more in keeping with the idea of the cross; (3) a reference to Christ seems to miss the irony involved in the idea of triumph – the whole point is that where one would expect defeat, there came the victory; (4) if Christ is the subject of the participles in v. 15 then almost certainly the cross is the referent for αὐτῷ. Thus the best solution is to see αὐτῷ as a reference to the cross and the preposition ἐν (en) indicating “means” (i.e., by means of the cross) or possibly (though less likely) location (on the cross).

[2:14]  ⁵¹ tn Or “partook of” (this is a different word than the one in v. 14a).

[2:14]  ⁵² tn Grk “the same.”

[2:14]  ⁵³ tn Or “break the power of,” “reduce to nothing.”

[12:9]  ⁵⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the result of the war in heaven.

[12:10]  ⁵⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[12:10]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “the right of his Messiah to rule.” See L&N 37.35.

[12:10]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[12:10]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited). The translation “fellow believer” would normally apply (L&N 11.23), but since the speaker(s) are not specified in this context, it is not clear if such a translation would be appropriate here. The more generic “brothers and sisters” was chosen to emphasize the fact of a relationship without specifying its type.

[12:10]  ⁵⁹ tn Or “who accuses them continually.”

[12:11]  ⁶⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast.

[12:11]  ⁶¹ sn They did not love their lives. See Matt 16:25; Luke 17:33; John 12:25.

[20:2]  ⁶² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[20:3]  ⁶³ tn Grk “he”; the referent (the angel introduced in v. 1) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[20:3]  ⁶⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.

[20:3]  ⁶⁵ tn Or “and shut.” While the lexical force of the term is closer to “shut,” it is acceptable to render the verb ἔκλεισεν (ekleisen) as “locked” here in view of the mention of the key in the previous verse.