Mark 8:11

The Demand for a Sign

8:11 Then the Pharisees ¹  came and began to argue with Jesus, asking for ²  a sign from heaven ³  to test him.

Matthew 16:1

The Demand for a Sign

16:1 Now when the Pharisees ⁴  and Sadducees ⁵  came to test Jesus, ⁶  they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. ⁷ 

Matthew 22:35

22:35 And one of them, an expert in religious law, ⁸  asked him a question to test ⁹  him:

John 8:6

8:6 (Now they were asking this in an attempt to trap him, so that they could bring charges against ¹⁰  him.) ¹¹  Jesus bent down and wrote on the ground with his finger. ¹² 

John 8:1

8:1 But Jesus went to the Mount of Olives. ¹³ 

Colossians 1:9

Paul’s Prayer for the Growth of the Church

1:9 For this reason we also, from the day we heard about you, ¹⁴  have not ceased praying for you and asking God ¹⁵  to fill ¹⁶  you with the knowledge of his will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding,

[8:11]  ¹ sn See the note on Pharisees in 2:16.

[8:11]  ² tn Grk “seeking from him.” The participle ζητοῦντες (zhtountes) shows the means by which the Pharisees argued with Jesus.

[8:11]  ³ sn What exactly this sign would have been, given what Jesus was already doing, is not clear. But here is where the fence-sitters reside, refusing to commit to him.

[16:1]  ⁴ sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.

[16:1]  ⁵ sn See the note on Sadducees in 3:7.

[16:1]  ⁶ tn The object of the participle πειράζοντες (peirazontes) is not given in the Greek text but has been supplied here for clarity.

[16:1]  ⁷ sn What exactly this sign would have been, given what Jesus was already doing, is not clear. But here is where the fence-sitters reside, refusing to commit to him.

[22:35]  ⁸ tn Traditionally, “a lawyer.” This was an expert in the interpretation of the Mosaic law.

[22:35]  ⁹ tn Grk “testing.” The participle, however, is telic in force.

[8:6]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “so that they could accuse.”

[8:6]  ¹¹ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author of 7:53–8:11.

[8:6]  ¹² tn Or possibly “Jesus bent down and wrote an accusation on the ground with his finger.” The Greek verb καταγράφω (katagrafw) may indicate only the action of writing on the ground by Jesus, but in the overall context (Jesus’ response to the accusation against the woman) it can also be interpreted as implying that what Jesus wrote was a counteraccusation against the accusers (although there is no clue as to the actual content of what he wrote, some scribes added “the sins of each one of them” either here or at the end of v. 8 [U 264 700 al]).

[8:1]  ¹³ sn The Mount of Olives is a hill running north to south about 1.8 mi (3 km) long, lying east of Jerusalem across the Kidron Valley. It was named for the large number of olive trees that grew on it.

[1:9]  ¹⁴ tn Or “heard about it”; Grk “heard.” There is no direct object stated in the Greek (direct objects were frequently omitted in Greek when clear from the context). A direct object is expected by an English reader, however, so most translations supply one. Here, however, it is not entirely clear what the author “heard”: a number of translations supply “it” (so KJV, NASB, NRSV; NAB “this”), but this could refer back either to (1) “your love in the Spirit” at the end of v. 8, or (2) “your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints” (v. 4). In light of this uncertainty, other translations supply “about you” (TEV, NIV, CEV, NLT). This is preferred by the present translation since, while it does not resolve the ambiguity entirely, it does make it less easy for the English reader to limit the reference only to “your love in the Spirit” at the end of v. 8.

[1:9]  ¹⁵ tn The term “God” does not appear in the Greek text, but the following reference to “the knowledge of his will” makes it clear that “God” is in view as the object of the “praying and asking,” and should therefore be included in the English translation for clarity.

[1:9]  ¹⁶ tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause has been translated as substantival, indicating the content of the prayer and asking. The idea of purpose may also be present in this clause.