Luke 16:15

16:15 But ¹  Jesus ²  said to them, “You are the ones who justify yourselves in men’s eyes, ³  but God knows your hearts. For what is highly prized ⁴  among men is utterly detestable ⁵  in God’s sight.

Genesis 6:5

6:5 But the Lord saw ⁶  that the wickedness of humankind had become great on the earth. Every inclination ⁷  of the thoughts ⁸  of their minds ⁹  was only evil ¹⁰  all the time. ¹¹ 

Genesis 6:2

6:2 the sons of God ¹²  saw that the daughters of humankind were beautiful. Thus they took wives for themselves from any they chose.

Genesis 25:2

25:2 She bore him Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Ishbak, and Shuah.

Genesis 31:20-21

31:20 Jacob also deceived ¹³  Laban the Aramean by not telling him that he was leaving. ¹⁴  31:21 He left ¹⁵  with all he owned. He quickly crossed ¹⁶  the Euphrates River ¹⁷  and headed for ¹⁸  the hill country of Gilead.

Proverbs 26:25

26:25 When ¹⁹  he speaks graciously, ²⁰  do not believe him, ²¹ 

for there are seven ²²  abominations ²³  within him.

Proverbs 30:12

30:12 There is a generation who are pure in their own eyes

and yet are not washed ²⁴  from their filthiness. ²⁵ 

Jeremiah 4:14

4:14 “Oh people of Jerusalem, purify your hearts from evil ²⁶ 

so that you may yet be delivered.

How long will you continue to harbor up

wicked schemes within you?

Matthew 12:33-35

Trees and Their Fruit

12:33 “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad ²⁷  and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is known by its fruit. 12:34 Offspring of vipers! How are you able to say anything good, since you are evil? For the mouth speaks from what fills the heart. 12:35 The good person ²⁸  brings good things out of his ²⁹  good treasury, ³⁰  and the evil person brings evil things out of his evil treasury.

Matthew 15:19

15:19 For out of the heart come evil ideas, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander.

John 12:6

12:6 (Now Judas ³¹  said this not because he was concerned about the poor, but because he was a thief. As keeper of the money box, ³²  he used to steal what was put into it.) ³³ 

John 13:2

13:2 The evening meal ³⁴  was in progress, and the devil had already put into the heart ³⁵  of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, that he should betray ³⁶  Jesus. ³⁷ 

Acts 5:3

5:3 But Peter said, “Ananias, why has Satan filled ³⁸  your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and keep back for yourself part of the proceeds from the sale of ³⁹  the land?

Acts 8:21-23

8:21 You have no share or part ⁴⁰  in this matter ⁴¹  because your heart is not right before God! 8:22 Therefore repent of this wickedness of yours, and pray to the Lord ⁴²  that he may perhaps forgive you for the intent of your heart. ⁴³  8:23 For I see that you are bitterly envious ⁴⁴  and in bondage to sin.”

James 4:8

4:8 Draw near to God and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and make your hearts pure, you double-minded. ⁴⁵ 

[16:15]  ¹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[16:15]  ² tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[16:15]  ³ tn Grk “before men.” The contrast is between outward appearance (“in people’s eyes”) and inward reality (“God knows your hearts”). Here the Greek term ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") is used twice in a generic sense, referring to both men and women, but “men” has been retained in the text to provide a strong verbal contrast with “God” in the second half of the verse.

[16:15]  ⁴ tn Or “exalted.” This refers to the pride that often comes with money and position.

[16:15]  ⁵ tn Or “is an abomination,” “is abhorrent” (L&N 25.187).

[6:5]  ⁶ sn The Hebrew verb translated “saw” (רָאָה, ra’ah), used here of God’s evaluation of humankind’s evil deeds, contrasts with God’s evaluation of creative work in Gen 1, when he observed that everything was good.

[6:5]  ⁷ tn The noun יֵצֶר (yetser) is related to the verb יָצָר (yatsar, “to form, to fashion [with a design]”). Here it refers to human plans or intentions (see Gen 8:21; 1 Chr 28:9; 29:18). People had taken their God-given capacities and used them to devise evil. The word יֵצֶר (yetser) became a significant theological term in Rabbinic literature for what might be called the sin nature – the evil inclination (see also R. E. Murphy, “Yeser in the Qumran Literature,” Bib 39 [1958]: 334-44).

[6:5]  ⁸ tn The related verb הָשָׁב (hashav) means “to think, to devise, to reckon.” The noun (here) refers to thoughts or considerations.

[6:5]  ⁹ tn Heb “his heart” (referring to collective “humankind”). The Hebrew term לֵב (lev, “heart”) frequently refers to the seat of one’s thoughts (see BDB 524 s.v. לֵב). In contemporary English this is typically referred to as the “mind.”

[6:5]  ¹⁰ sn Every inclination of the thoughts of their minds was only evil. There is hardly a stronger statement of the wickedness of the human race than this. Here is the result of falling into the “knowledge of good and evil”: Evil becomes dominant, and the good is ruined by the evil.

[6:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “all the day.”

[6:2]  ¹² sn The Hebrew phrase translated “sons of God” (בְנֵי־הָאֱלֹהִים, bÿne-ha’elohim) occurs only here (Gen 6:2, 4) and in Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7. There are three major interpretations of the phrase here. (1) In the Book of Job the phrase clearly refers to angelic beings. In Gen 6 the “sons of God” are distinct from “humankind,” suggesting they were not human. This is consistent with the use of the phrase in Job. Since the passage speaks of these beings cohabiting with women, they must have taken physical form or possessed the bodies of men. An early Jewish tradition preserved in 1 En. 6-7 elaborates on this angelic revolt and even names the ringleaders. (2) Not all scholars accept the angelic interpretation of the “sons of God,” however. Some argue that the “sons of God” were members of Seth’s line, traced back to God through Adam in Gen 5, while the “daughters of humankind” were descendants of Cain. But, as noted above, the text distinguishes the “sons of God” from humankind (which would include the Sethites as well as the Cainites) and suggests that the “daughters of humankind” are human women in general, not just Cainites. (3) Others identify the “sons of God” as powerful tyrants, perhaps demon-possessed, who viewed themselves as divine and, following the example of Lamech (see Gen 4:19), practiced polygamy. But usage of the phrase “sons of God” in Job militates against this view. For literature on the subject see G. J. Wenham, Genesis (WBC), 1:135.

[31:20]  ¹³ tn Heb “stole the heart of,” an expression which apparently means “to deceive.” The repetition of the verb “to steal” shows that Jacob and Rachel are kindred spirits. Any thought that Laban would have resigned himself to their departure was now out of the question.

[31:20]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “fleeing,” which reflects Jacob’s viewpoint.

[31:21]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “and he fled.”

[31:21]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “he arose and crossed.” The first verb emphasizes that he wasted no time in getting across.

[31:21]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “the river”; the referent (the Euphrates) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[31:21]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “he set his face.”

[26:25]  ¹⁹ tn The particle כִּי (ki) is here interpreted with a temporal nuance. It is also possible that it could be read as concessive (so NIV, NLT “Though”).

[26:25]  ²⁰ tn The meaning of the rare Piel form of חָנַן (khanan) is “to make gracious; to make favorable.” The subject is קוֹלוֹ (qolo, “his voice”), a metonymy of cause for what he says. The idea is that what he says is very gracious in its content and its effect.

[26:25]  ²¹ sn It may be that the placing of this proverb in this setting is designed to point out that the person speaking graciously is this wicked person who conceals an evil heart. Otherwise it may have in mind a person who has already proven untrustworthy but protests in order to conceal his plans. But even if that were not the connection, the proverb would still warn the disciple not to believe someone just because it sounded wonderful. It will take great discernment to know if there is sincerity behind the person’s words.

[26:25]  ²² sn The number “seven” is used in scripture as the complete number. In this passage it is not intended to be literally seven; rather, the expression means that there is complete or total abomination in his heart. Cf. TEV “his heart is filled to the brim with hate.”

[26:25]  ²³ sn “Abomination” means something that is loathed. This is a description applied by the writer, for the hypocritical person would not refer to his plans this way.

[30:12]  ²⁴ tn The verb רָחַץ (rakhats) means “to wash; to wash off; to wash away; to bathe.” It is used of physical washing, ceremonial washings, and hence figuratively of removing sin and guilt through confession (e.g., Isa 1:16). Here the form is the Pual perfect (unless it is a rare old Qal passive, since there is no Piel and no apparent change of meaning from the Qal).

[30:12]  ²⁵ sn Filthiness often refers to physical uncleanness, but here it refers to moral defilement. Zech 3:3-4 uses it metaphorically as well for the sin of the nation (e.g., Isa 36:12).

[4:14]  ²⁶ tn Heb “Oh, Jerusalem, wash your heart from evil.”

[12:33]  ²⁷ tn Grk “rotten.” The word σαπρός, modifying both “tree” and “fruit,” can also mean “diseased” (L&N 65.28).

[12:35]  ²⁸ tn The Greek text reads here ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpos). The term is generic referring to any person.

[12:35]  ²⁹ tn Grk “the”; the Greek article has been translated here and in the following clause (“his evil treasury”) as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[12:35]  ³⁰ sn The treasury here is a metaphorical reference to a person’s heart (cf. BDAG 456 s.v. θησαυρός 1.b and the parallel passage in Luke 6:45).

[12:6]  ³¹ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Judas) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:6]  ³² tn Grk “a thief, and having the money box.” Dividing the single Greek sentence improves the English style.

[12:6]  ³³ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author. This is one of the indications in the gospels that Judas was of bad character before the betrayal of Jesus. John states that he was a thief and had responsibility for the finances of the group. More than being simply a derogatory note about Judas’ character, the inclusion of the note at this particular point in the narrative may be intended to link the frustrated greed of Judas here with his subsequent decision to betray Jesus for money. The parallel accounts in Matthew and Mark seem to indicate that after this incident Judas went away immediately and made his deal with the Jewish authorities to deliver up Jesus. Losing out on one source of sordid gain, he immediately went out and set up another.

[13:2]  ³⁴ tn Or “Supper.” To avoid possible confusion because of different regional English usage regarding the distinction between “dinner” and “supper” as an evening meal, the translation simply refers to “the evening meal.”

[13:2]  ³⁵ sn At this point the devil had already put into the heart of Judas Iscariot, Simon’s son, that he should betray Jesus. C. K. Barrett (St. John, 365) thought this was a reference to the idea entering the devil’s own heart, but this does not seem likely. It is more probable that Judas’ heart is meant, since the use of the Greek article (rather than a possessive pronoun) is a typical idiom when a part of one’s own body is indicated. Judas’ name is withheld until the end of the sentence for dramatic effect (emphasis). This action must be read in light of 13:27, and appears to refer to a preliminary idea or plan.

[13:2]  ³⁶ tn Or “that he should hand over.”

[13:2]  ³⁷ tn Grk “betray him”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:3]  ³⁸ sn This is a good example of the Greek verb fill (πληρόω, plhrow) meaning “to exercise control over someone’s thought and action” (cf. Eph 5:18).

[5:3]  ³⁹ tn The words “from the sale of” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied to clarify the meaning, since the phrase “proceeds from the land” could possibly be understood as crops rather than money from the sale.

[8:21]  ⁴⁰ tn The translation “share or part” is given by L&N 63.13.

[8:21]  ⁴¹ tn Since the semantic range for λόγος (logos) is so broad, a number of different translations could be given for the prepositional phrase here. Something along the lines of “in this thing” would work well, but is too colloquial for the present translation.

[8:22]  ⁴² tn Or “and implore the Lord.”

[8:22]  ⁴³ tn Grk “that if possible the intent of your heart may be forgiven you.” The passive construction is somewhat awkward in contemporary English and has thus been converted to an active construction in the translation.

[8:23]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “in the gall of bitterness,” an idiom meaning to be particularly envious or resentful of someone. In this case Simon was jealous of the apostles’ power to bestow the Holy Spirit by the laying on of hands, and wanted that power for himself. The literal phrase does not convey this to the modern reader, and in fact some modern translations have simply rendered the phrase as involving bitterness, which misses the point of the envy on Simon’s part. See L&N 88.166. The OT images come from Deut 29:17-18 and Isa 58:6.

[4:8]  ⁴⁵ tn Or “two-minded” (the same description used in 1:8).