Luke 11:43

11:43 Woe to you Pharisees! You love the best seats ¹  in the synagogues ²  and elaborate greetings ³  in the marketplaces!

Luke 14:7

On Seeking Seats of Honor

14:7 Then ⁴  when Jesus ⁵  noticed how the guests ⁶  chose the places of honor, ⁷  he told them a parable. He said to them,

Proverbs 29:23

29:23 A person’s pride ⁸  will bring him low, ⁹ 

but one who has a lowly spirit ¹⁰  will gain honor.

Matthew 23:5-7

23:5 They ¹¹  do all their deeds to be seen by people, for they make their phylacteries ¹²  wide and their tassels ¹³  long. 23:6 They ¹⁴  love the place of honor at banquets and the best seats in the synagogues ¹⁵  23:7 and elaborate greetings ¹⁶  in the marketplaces, and to have people call them ‘Rabbi.’

Mark 12:38-39

Warnings About Experts in the Law

12:38 In his teaching Jesus ¹⁷  also said, “Watch out for the experts in the law. ¹⁸  They like walking ¹⁹  around in long robes and elaborate greetings ²⁰  in the marketplaces, 12:39 and the best seats in the synagogues ²¹  and the places of honor at banquets.

Romans 12:10

12:10 Be devoted to one another with mutual love, showing eagerness in honoring one another.

Philippians 2:3-5

2:3 Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition ²²  or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself. 2:4 Each of you should be concerned ²³  not only ²⁴  about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well. ²⁵  2:5 You should have the same attitude toward one another that Christ Jesus had, ²⁶ 

Philippians 2:3

2:3 Instead of being motivated by selfish ambition ²⁷  or vanity, each of you should, in humility, be moved to treat one another as more important than yourself.

Philippians 1:9

1:9 And I pray this, that your love may abound even more and more in knowledge and every kind of insight

[11:43]  ¹ tn Or “seats of honor.” The term here is plural and is not a reference only to the lead “seat of Moses” in the synagogue, but includes the front seats near the ark.

[11:43]  ² sn See the note on synagogues in 4:15.

[11:43]  ³ tn Grk “and the greetings.”

[14:7]  ⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[14:7]  ⁵ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[14:7]  ⁶ tn Grk “those who were invited.”

[14:7]  ⁷ tn Or “the best places.” The “places of honor” at the meal would be those closest to the host.

[29:23]  ⁸ tn Heb “pride of a man,” with “man” functioning as a possessive. There is no indication in the immediate context that this is restricted only to males.

[29:23]  ⁹ tn There is a wordplay here due to the repetition of the root שָׁפֵל (shafel). In the first line the verb תִּשְׁפִּילֶנּוּ (tishpilennu) is the Hiphil imperfect of the root, rendered “will bring him low.” In the second line the word is used in the description of the “lowly of spirit,” שְׁפַל־רוּחַ (shÿfal-ruakh). The contrast works well: The proud will be brought “low,” but the one who is “lowly” will be honored. In this instance the wordplay can be preserved in the translation.

[29:23]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “low in spirit”; KJV “humble in spirit.” This refers to an attitude of humility.

[23:5]  ¹¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[23:5]  ¹² sn Phylacteries were small leather cases containing OT scripture verses, worn on the arm and forehead by Jews, especially when praying. The custom was derived from such OT passages as Exod 13:9; 16; Deut 6:8; 11:18.

[23:5]  ¹³ tn The term κράσπεδον (kraspedon) in some contexts could refer to the outer fringe of the garment (possibly in Mark 6:56). This edge could have been plain or decorated. L&N 6.180 states, “In Mt 23:5 κράσπεδον denotes the tassels worn at the four corners of the outer garment (see 6.194).”

[23:6]  ¹⁴ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[23:6]  ¹⁵ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:23.

[23:7]  ¹⁶ sn There is later Jewish material in the Talmud that spells out such greetings in detail. See H. Windisch, TDNT 1:498.

[12:38]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:38]  ¹⁸ tn Or “for the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.

[12:38]  ¹⁹ tn In Greek this is the only infinitive in vv. 38-39. It would be awkward in English to join an infinitive to the following noun clauses, so this has been translated as a gerund.

[12:38]  ²⁰ sn There is later Jewish material in the Talmud that spells out such greetings in detail. See H. Windisch, TDNT 1:498.

[12:39]  ²¹ sn See the note on synagogue in 1:21.

[2:3]  ²² tn Grk “not according to selfish ambition.” There is no main verb in this verse; the subjunctive φρονῆτε (fronhte, “be of the same mind”) is implied here as well. Thus, although most translations supply the verb “do” at the beginning of v. 3 (e.g., “do nothing from selfish ambition”), the idea is even stronger than that: “Don’t even think any thoughts motivated by selfish ambition.”

[2:4]  ²³ tn On the meaning “be concerned about” for σκοπέω (skopew), see L&N 27.36.

[2:4]  ²⁴ tn The word “only” is not in the Greek text, but is implied by the ἀλλὰ καί (alla kai) in the second clause (“but…as well”). The bulk of the Western text dropped the καί, motivated most likely by ascetic concerns.

[2:4]  ²⁵ tc The bulk of the Western text (D*^,c F G K it) dropped καί (kai) here, most likely due to ascetic concerns. Strong external attestation for its inclusion from excellent witnesses as well as the majority (Ì⁴⁶ א A B C D² 0278 33 1739 1881 Ï) also marks it as original.

[2:5]  ²⁶ tn Grk “Have this attitude in/among yourselves which also [was] in Christ Jesus,” or “Have this attitude in/among yourselves which [you] also [have] in Christ Jesus.”

[2:3]  ²⁷ tn Grk “not according to selfish ambition.” There is no main verb in this verse; the subjunctive φρονῆτε (fronhte, “be of the same mind”) is implied here as well. Thus, although most translations supply the verb “do” at the beginning of v. 3 (e.g., “do nothing from selfish ambition”), the idea is even stronger than that: “Don’t even think any thoughts motivated by selfish ambition.”