Mark 9:32

9:32 But they did not understand this statement and were afraid to ask him.

Matthew 16:22

16:22 So Peter took him aside and began to rebuke him: ¹  “God forbid, ²  Lord! This must not happen to you!”

Luke 18:33-34

18:33 They will flog him severely ³  and kill him. Yet ⁴  on the third day he will rise again.” 18:34 But ⁵  the twelve ⁶  understood none of these things. This ⁷  saying was hidden from them, and they did not grasp ⁸  what Jesus meant. ⁹ 

Luke 24:25-27

24:25 So ¹⁰  he said to them, “You ¹¹  foolish people ¹²  – how slow of heart ¹³  to believe ¹⁴  all that the prophets have spoken! 24:26 Wasn’t ¹⁵  it necessary ¹⁶  for the Christ ¹⁷  to suffer these things and enter into his glory?” 24:27 Then ¹⁸  beginning with Moses and all the prophets, ¹⁹  he interpreted to them the things written about ²⁰  himself in all the scriptures.

John 2:19-22

2:19 Jesus replied, ²¹  “Destroy ²²  this temple and in three days I will raise it up again.” 2:20 Then the Jewish leaders ²³  said to him, “This temple has been under construction ²⁴  for forty-six years, ²⁵  and are you going to raise it up in three days?” 2:21 But Jesus ²⁶  was speaking about the temple of his body. ²⁷  2:22 So after he was raised from the dead, his disciples remembered that he had said this, and they believed the scripture ²⁸  and the saying ²⁹  that Jesus had spoken.

John 12:16

12:16 (His disciples did not understand these things when they first happened, ³⁰  but when Jesus was glorified, ³¹  then they remembered that these things were written about him and that these things had happened ³²  to him.) ³³ 

John 12:33-34

12:33 (Now he said this to indicate clearly what kind of death he was going to die.) ³⁴ 

12:34 Then the crowd responded, ³⁵  “We have heard from the law that the Christ ³⁶  will remain forever. ³⁷  How ³⁸  can you say, ‘The Son of Man must be lifted up’? Who is this Son of Man?”

John 16:29-30

16:29 His disciples said, “Look, now you are speaking plainly ³⁹  and not in obscure figures of speech! ⁴⁰  16:30 Now we know that you know everything ⁴¹  and do not need anyone ⁴²  to ask you anything. ⁴³  Because of this ⁴⁴  we believe that you have come from God.”

Acts 17:18

17:18 Also some of the Epicurean ⁴⁵  and Stoic ⁴⁶  philosophers were conversing ⁴⁷  with him, and some were asking, ⁴⁸  “What does this foolish babbler ⁴⁹  want to say?” Others said, “He seems to be a proclaimer of foreign gods.” ⁵⁰  (They said this because he was proclaiming the good news about Jesus and the resurrection.) ⁵¹ 

[16:22]  ¹ tn Grk “began to rebuke him, saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in English and has not been translated.

[16:22]  ² tn Grk “Merciful to you.” A highly elliptical expression: “May God be merciful to you in sparing you from having to undergo [some experience]” (L&N 88.78). A contemporary English equivalent is “God forbid!”

[18:33]  ³ tn Traditionally, “scourge” (the term means to beat severely with a whip, L&N 19.9). BDAG 620 s.v. μαστιγόω 1. states, “Of the beating (Lat. verberatio) given those condemned to death…J 19:1; cf. Mt 20:19; Mk 10:34; Lk 18:33.” Here the term has been translated “flog…severely” to distinguish it from the term φραγελλόω (fragellow) used in Matt 27:26; Mark 15:15.

[18:33]  ⁴ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast present in this context.

[18:34]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast.

[18:34]  ⁶ tn Grk “they”; the referent (the twelve, v. 31) has been specified in the context for clarity.

[18:34]  ⁷ tn Grk “And this.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[18:34]  ⁸ sn This failure of the Twelve to grasp what Jesus meant probably does not mean that they did not understand linguistically what Jesus said, but that they could not comprehend how this could happen to him, if he was really God’s agent. The saying being hidden probably refers to God’s sovereign timing.

[18:34]  ⁹ tn Grk “the things having been said.” The active agent, Jesus, has been specified for clarity, and “said” has been translated as “meant” to indicate that comprehension of the significance is really in view here.

[24:25]  ¹⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the disciples’ inability to believe in Jesus’ resurrection.

[24:25]  ¹¹ tn Grk “O,” an interjection used both in address and emotion (BDAG 1101 s.v. 1).

[24:25]  ¹² tn The word “people” is not in the Greek text, but is supplied to complete the interjection.

[24:25]  ¹³ sn The rebuke is for failure to believe the promise of scripture, a theme that will appear in vv. 43-47 as well.

[24:25]  ¹⁴ tn On the syntax of this infinitival construction, see BDAG 364-65 s.v. ἐπί 6.b.

[24:26]  ¹⁵ tn This Greek particle (οὐχί, ouci) expects a positive reply.

[24:26]  ¹⁶ sn The statement Wasn’t it necessary is a reference to the design of God’s plan (see Luke 24:7). Suffering must precede glory (see Luke 17:25).

[24:26]  ¹⁷ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[24:27]  ¹⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[24:27]  ¹⁹ sn The reference to Moses and all the prophets is a way to say the promise of Messiah runs throughout OT scripture from first to last.

[24:27]  ²⁰ tn Or “regarding,” “concerning.” “Written” is implied by the mention of the scriptures in context; “said” could also be used here, referring to the original utterances, but by now these things had been committed to writing.

[2:19]  ²¹ tn Grk “answered and said to them.”

[2:19]  ²² tn The imperative here is really more than a simple conditional imperative (= “if you destroy”); its semantic force here is more like the ironical imperative found in the prophets (Amos 4:4, Isa 8:9) = “Go ahead and do this and see what happens.”

[2:20]  ²³ tn See the note on this phrase in v. 18.

[2:20]  ²⁴ tn A close parallel to the aorist οἰκοδομήθη (oikodomhqh) can be found in Ezra 5:16 (LXX), where it is clear from the following verb that the construction had not yet been completed. Thus the phrase has been translated “This temple has been under construction for forty-six years.” Some, however, see the term ναός (naos) here as referring only to the sanctuary and the aorist verb as consummative, so that the meaning would be “this temple was built forty-six years ago” (so ExSyn 560-61). Ultimately in context the logic of the authorities’ reply appears to fit more naturally if it compares length of time for original construction with length of time to reconstruct it.

[2:20]  ²⁵ sn According to Josephus (Ant. 15.11.1 [15.380]), work on this temple was begun in the 18th year of Herod the Great’s reign, which would have been ca. 19 b.c. (The reference in the Ant. is probably more accurate than the date given in J. W. 1.21.1 [1.401]). Forty-six years later would be around the Passover of a.d. 27/28.

[2:21]  ²⁶ tn Grk “that one”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. This Greek term is frequently used as a way of referring to Jesus in the Johannine letters (cf. 1 John 2:6; 3:3, 5, 7, 16; 4:17).

[2:21]  ²⁷ tn The genitive “of his body” (τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ, tou swmato" autou) is a genitive of apposition, clarifying which temple Jesus was referring to. Thus, Jesus not only was referring to his physical resurrection, but also to his participation in the resurrection process. The New Testament thus records the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit as all performing the miracle of Christ's resurrection.

[2:22]  ²⁸ sn They believed the scripture is probably an anaphoric reference to Ps 69:9 (69:10 LXX), quoted in John 2:17 above. Presumably the disciples did not remember Ps 69:9 on the spot, but it was a later insight.

[2:22]  ²⁹ tn Or “statement”; Grk “word.”

[12:16]  ³⁰ tn Or “did not understand these things at first”; Grk “formerly.”

[12:16]  ³¹ sn When Jesus was glorified, that is, glorified through his resurrection, exaltation, and return to the Father. Jesus’ glorification is consistently portrayed this way in the Gospel of John.

[12:16]  ³² tn Grk “and that they had done these things,” though the referent is probably indefinite and not referring to the disciples; as such, the best rendering is as a passive (see ExSyn 402-3; R. E. Brown, John [AB], 1:458).

[12:16]  ³³ sn The comment His disciples did not understand these things when they first happened (a parenthetical note by the author) informs the reader that Jesus’ disciples did not at first associate the prophecy from Zechariah with the events as they happened. This came with the later (postresurrection) insight which the Holy Spirit would provide after Jesus’ resurrection and return to the Father. Note the similarity with John 2:22, which follows another allusion to a prophecy in Zechariah (14:21).

[12:33]  ³⁴ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.

[12:34]  ³⁵ tn Grk “Then the crowd answered him.”

[12:34]  ³⁶ tn Or “the Messiah” (Both Greek “Christ” and Hebrew and Aramaic “Messiah” mean “one who has been anointed”).

[12:34]  ³⁷ tn Probably an allusion to Ps 89:35-37. It is difficult to pinpoint the passage in the Mosaic law to which the crowd refers. The ones most often suggested are Ps 89:36-37, Ps 110:4, Isa 9:7, Ezek 37:25, and Dan 7:14. None of these passages are in the Pentateuch per se, but “law” could in common usage refer to the entire OT (compare Jesus’ use in John 10:34). Of the passages mentioned, Ps 89:36-37 is the most likely candidate. This verse speaks of David’s “seed” remaining forever. Later in the same psalm, v. 51 speaks of the “anointed” (Messiah), and the psalm was interpreted messianically in both the NT (Acts 13:22, Rev 1:5, 3:14) and in the rabbinic literature (Genesis Rabbah 97).

[12:34]  ³⁸ tn Grk “And how”; the conjunction καί (kai, “and”) has been left untranslated here for improved English style.

[16:29]  ³⁹ tn Or “openly.”

[16:29]  ⁴⁰ tn Or “not in parables.” or “not in metaphors.”

[16:30]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “all things.”

[16:30]  ⁴² tn Grk “and have no need of anyone.”

[16:30]  ⁴³ tn The word “anything” is not in the Greek text, but is implied. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context.

[16:30]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “By this.”

[17:18]  ⁴⁵ sn An Epicurean was a follower of the philosophy of Epicurus, who founded a school in Athens about 300 b.c. Although the Epicureans saw the aim of life as pleasure, they were not strictly hedonists, because they defined pleasure as the absence of pain. Along with this, they desired the avoidance of trouble and freedom from annoyances. They saw organized religion as evil, especially the belief that the gods punished evildoers in an afterlife. In keeping with this, they were unable to accept Paul’s teaching about the resurrection.

[17:18]  ⁴⁶ sn A Stoic was a follower of the philosophy founded by Zeno (342-270 b.c.), a Phoenician who came to Athens and modified the philosophical system of the Cynics he found there. The Stoics rejected the Epicurean ideal of pleasure, stressing virtue instead. The Stoics emphasized responsibility for voluntary actions and believed risks were worth taking, but thought the actual attainment of virtue was difficult. They also believed in providence.

[17:18]  ⁴⁷ tn BDAG 956 s.v. συμβάλλω 1 has “converse, confer” here.

[17:18]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “saying.”

[17:18]  ⁴⁹ tn Or “ignorant show-off.” The traditional English translation of σπερμολόγος (spermologo") is given in L&N 33.381 as “foolish babbler.” However, an alternate view is presented in L&N 27.19, “(a figurative extension of meaning of a term based on the practice of birds in picking up seeds) one who acquires bits and pieces of relatively extraneous information and proceeds to pass them off with pretense and show – ‘ignorant show-off, charlatan.’” A similar view is given in BDAG 937 s.v. σπερμολόγος: “in pejorative imagery of persons whose communication lacks sophistication and seems to pick up scraps of information here and there scrapmonger, scavenger…Engl. synonyms include ‘gossip’, ‘babbler’, chatterer’; but these terms miss the imagery of unsystematic gathering.”

[17:18]  ⁵⁰ tn The meaning of this phrase is not clear. Literally it reads “strange deities” (see BDAG 210 s.v. δαιμόνιον 1). The note of not being customary is important. In the ancient world what was new was suspicious. The plural δαιμονίων (daimoniwn, “deities”) shows the audience grappling with Paul’s teaching that God was working through Jesus.

[17:18]  ⁵¹ sn This is a parenthetical note by the author.