Matthew 12:14

12:14 But the Pharisees went out and plotted against him, as to how they could assassinate ¹  him.

Matthew 25:3-5

25:3 When ²  the foolish ones took their lamps, they did not take extra ³  olive oil ⁴  with them. 25:4 But the wise ones took flasks of olive oil with their lamps. 25:5 When ⁵  the bridegroom was delayed a long time, they all became drowsy and fell asleep.

Isaiah 41:5-7

41:5 The coastlands ⁶  see and are afraid;

the whole earth ⁷  trembles;

they approach and come.

41:6 They help one another; ⁸ 

one says to the other, ‘Be strong!’

41:7 The craftsman encourages the metalsmith,

the one who wields the hammer encourages ⁹  the one who pounds on the anvil.

He approves the quality of the welding, ¹⁰ 

and nails it down so it won’t fall over.”

John 11:47-50

11:47 So the chief priests and the Pharisees ¹¹  called the council ¹²  together and said, “What are we doing? For this man is performing many miraculous signs. 11:48 If we allow him to go on in this way, ¹³  everyone will believe in him, and the Romans will come and take away our sanctuary ¹⁴  and our nation.”

11:49 Then one of them, Caiaphas, who was high priest that year, said, ¹⁵  “You know nothing at all! 11:50 You do not realize ¹⁶  that it is more to your advantage to have one man ¹⁷  die for the people than for the whole nation to perish.” ¹⁸ 

Acts 5:24-28

5:24 Now when the commander ¹⁹  of the temple guard ²⁰  and the chief priests heard this report, ²¹  they were greatly puzzled concerning it, ²²  wondering what this could ²³  be. 5:25 But someone came and reported to them, “Look! The men you put in prison are standing in the temple courts ²⁴  and teaching ²⁵  the people!” 5:26 Then the commander ²⁶  of the temple guard ²⁷  went with the officers ²⁸  and brought the apostles ²⁹  without the use of force ³⁰  (for they were afraid of being stoned by the people). ³¹ 

5:27 When they had brought them, they stood them before the council, ³²  and the high priest questioned ³³  them, 5:28 saying, “We gave ³⁴  you strict orders ³⁵  not to teach in this name. ³⁶  Look, ³⁷  you have filled Jerusalem ³⁸  with your teaching, and you intend to bring this man’s blood ³⁹  on us!”

Acts 19:23-28

19:23 At ⁴⁰  that time ⁴¹  a great disturbance ⁴²  took place concerning the Way. ⁴³  19:24 For a man named Demetrius, a silversmith who made silver shrines ⁴⁴  of Artemis, ⁴⁵  brought a great deal ⁴⁶  of business ⁴⁷  to the craftsmen. 19:25 He gathered ⁴⁸  these ⁴⁹  together, along with the workmen in similar trades, ⁵⁰  and said, “Men, you know that our prosperity ⁵¹  comes from this business. 19:26 And you see and hear that this Paul has persuaded ⁵²  and turned away ⁵³  a large crowd, ⁵⁴  not only in Ephesus ⁵⁵  but in practically all of the province of Asia, ⁵⁶  by saying ⁵⁷  that gods made by hands are not gods at all. ⁵⁸  19:27 There is danger not only that this business of ours will come into disrepute, ⁵⁹  but also that the temple of the great goddess Artemis ⁶⁰  will be regarded as nothing, ⁶¹  and she whom all the province of Asia ⁶²  and the world worship will suffer the loss of her greatness.” ⁶³ 

19:28 When ⁶⁴  they heard ⁶⁵  this they became enraged ⁶⁶  and began to shout, ⁶⁷  “Great is Artemis ⁶⁸  of the Ephesians!”

Acts 21:28-30

21:28 shouting, “Men of Israel, ⁶⁹  help! This is the man who teaches everyone everywhere against our people, our law, ⁷⁰  and this sanctuary! ⁷¹  Furthermore ⁷²  he has brought Greeks into the inner courts of the temple ⁷³  and made this holy place ritually unclean!” ⁷⁴  21:29 (For they had seen Trophimus the Ephesian in the city with him previously, and ⁷⁵  they assumed Paul had brought him into the inner temple courts.) ⁷⁶  21:30 The whole city was stirred up, ⁷⁷  and the people rushed together. ⁷⁸  They seized ⁷⁹  Paul and dragged him out of the temple courts, ⁸⁰  and immediately the doors were shut.

[12:14]  ¹ tn Grk “destroy.”

[25:3]  ² tn Grk “For when.” Here γάρ (gar) has not been translated.

[25:3]  ³ tn The word “extra” is not in the Greek text but is implied. The point is that the five foolish virgins had only the oil in their lamps, but took along no extra supply from which to replenish them. This is clear from v. 8, where the lamps of the foolish virgins are going out because they are running out of oil.

[25:3]  ⁴ tn On the use of olive oil in lamps, see L&N 6.202.

[25:5]  ³ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[41:5]  ⁴ tn Or “islands” (NIV, CEV); NCV “faraway places”; NLT “lands beyond the sea.”

[41:5]  ⁵ tn Heb “the ends of the earth,” but this is a merism, where the earth’s extremities stand for its entirety, i.e., the extremities and everything in between them.

[41:6]  ⁵ tn Heb “each his neighbor helps”; NCV “The workers help each other.”

[41:7]  ⁶ tn The verb “encourages” is understood by ellipsis (note the preceding line).

[41:7]  ⁷ tn Heb “saying of the welding, ‘It is good.’”

[11:47]  ⁷ tn The phrase “chief priests and Pharisees” is a comprehensive name for the groups represented in the ruling council (the Sanhedrin) as in John 7:45; 18:3; Acts 5:22, 26.

[11:47]  ⁸ tn Or “Sanhedrin” (the Sanhedrin was the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews). The συνέδριον (sunedrion) which they gathered was probably an informal meeting rather than the official Sanhedrin. This is the only occurrence of the word συνέδριον in the Gospel of John, and the only anarthrous singular use in the NT. There are other plural anarthrous uses which have the general meaning “councils.” The fact that Caiaphas in 11:49 is referred to as “one of them” supports the unofficial nature of the meeting; in the official Sanhedrin he, being high priest that year, would have presided over the assembly. Thus it appears that an informal council was called to discuss what to do about Jesus and his activities.

[11:48]  ⁸ tn Grk “If we let him do thus.”

[11:48]  ⁹ tn Or “holy place”; Grk “our place” (a reference to the temple in Jerusalem).

[11:49]  ⁹ tn Grk “said to them.” The indirect object αὐτοῖς (autois) has not been translated for stylistic reasons.

[11:50]  ¹⁰ tn Or “you are not considering.”

[11:50]  ¹¹ tn Although it is possible to argue that ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo") should be translated “person” here since it is not necessarily masculinity that is in view in Caiaphas’ statement, “man” was retained in the translation because in 11:47 “this man” (οὗτος ὁ ἄνθρωπος, outo" Jo anqrwpo") has as its referent a specific individual, Jesus, and it was felt this connection should be maintained.

[11:50]  ¹² sn In his own mind Caiaphas was no doubt giving voice to a common-sense statement of political expediency. Yet he was unconsciously echoing a saying of Jesus himself (cf. Mark 10:45). Caiaphas was right; the death of Jesus would save the nation from destruction. Yet Caiaphas could not suspect that Jesus would die, not in place of the political nation Israel, but on behalf of the true people of God; and he would save them, not from physical destruction, but from eternal destruction (cf. 3:16-17). The understanding of Caiaphas’ words in a sense that Caiaphas could not possibly have imagined at the time he uttered them serves as a clear example of the way in which the author understood that words and actions could be invested retrospectively with a meaning not consciously intended or understood by those present at the time.

[5:24]  ¹¹ tn Or “captain.”

[5:24]  ¹² tn Grk “the official of the temple,” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.

[5:24]  ¹³ tn Grk “heard these words.”

[5:24]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “concerning them,” agreeing with the plural antecedent “these words.” Since the phrase “these words” was translated as the singular “this report,” the singular “concerning it” is used here.

[5:24]  ¹⁵ tn The optative verb here expresses confused uncertainty.

[5:25]  ¹² tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

[5:25]  ¹³ sn Obeying God (see v. 29), the apostles were teaching again (4:18-20; 5:20). They did so despite the risk.

[5:26]  ¹³ tn Or “captain.”

[5:26]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “the official [of the temple],” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.

[5:26]  ¹⁵ tn The Greek term ὑπηρέτης (Juphreth") generally means “servant,” but in the NT is used for many different types of servants. See the note on the word “officers” in v. 22.

[5:26]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “brought them”; the referent (the apostles) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:26]  ¹⁷ tn Or “without violence.” It is clear, as well, that the apostles did not resist arrest.

[5:26]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “for they feared lest they be stoned by the people.” The translation uses a less awkward English equivalent. This is an explanatory note by the author.

[5:27]  ¹⁴ tn Or “the Sanhedrin” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[5:27]  ¹⁵ tn Or “interrogated,” “asked.”

[5:28]  ¹⁵ tc ‡ The majority of mss, including a few important witnesses (א² D E [Ψ] 1739 Ï sy sa), have the negative particle οὐ (ou) here, effectively turning the high priest’s words into a question: “Did we not give you strict orders not to teach in this name?” But the earliest and most important mss, along with some others (Ì⁷⁴ א* A B 1175 lat bo), lack the particle, making this a strong statement rather than a question. Scribes may have been tempted to omit the particle to strengthen the contrast between official Judaism and the new faith, but the fact that v. 27 introduces the quotation with ἐπηρώτησεν (ephrwthsen, “he questioned”) may well have prompted scribes to add οὐ to convert the rebuke into a question. Further, that excellent witnesses affirm the shorter reading is sufficient ground for accepting it as most probably authentic. NA²⁷ includes the particle in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.

[5:28]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “We commanded you with a commandment” (a Semitic idiom that is emphatic).

[5:28]  ¹⁷ sn The name (i.e., person) of Jesus is the constant issue of debate.

[5:28]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “And behold.” Because of the length of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English style to use shorter sentences, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[5:28]  ¹⁹ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[5:28]  ²⁰ sn To bring this man’s blood on us is an idiom meaning “you intend to make us guilty of this man’s death.”

[19:23]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “There happened at that time.” The introductory phrase ἐγένετο (egeneto, “it happened that”), common in Luke (69 times) and Acts (54 times), is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. Instead the verb “took place” has been supplied in the translation.

[19:23]  ¹⁷ tn BDAG 512 s.v. κατά B.2.a, “in definite indications of time…Of the past: κ. ἐκεῖνον τὸν καιρόν at that time, then…Ac 12:1; 19:23.”

[19:23]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “no little disturbance” (an idiom; see BDAG 991 s.v. τάραχος 2).

[19:23]  ¹⁹ sn The Way refers to the Christian movement (Christianity).

[19:24]  ¹⁷ tn BDAG 665 s.v. ναός 1.a states, “Specif. of temples: of replicas of the temple of Artemis at Ephesus 19:24…but here, near ἱερόν vs. 27…ναός can be understood in the more restricted sense shrine, where the image of the goddess stood.”

[19:24]  ¹⁸ sn Artemis was the name of a Greek goddess worshiped particularly in Asia Minor, whose temple, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was located just outside the city of Ephesus.

[19:24]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “brought not a little business” (an idiom).

[19:24]  ²⁰ sn A great deal of business. The charge that Christianity brought economic and/or social upheaval was made a number of times in Acts: 16:20-21; 17:6-7; 18:13.

[19:25]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “gathering.” The participle συναθροίσας (sunaqroisa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[19:25]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “whom”; because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, the relative pronoun (“whom”) has been replaced with a pronoun (“these”) and a new sentence begun in the translation.

[19:25]  ²⁰ sn Workmen in similar trades. In effect, Demetrius gathered the Ephesian chamber of commerce together to hear about the threat to their prosperity.

[19:25]  ²¹ tn Another possible meaning is “that this business is an easy way for us to earn a living.”

[19:26]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “persuading.” The participle πείσας (peisa") has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[19:26]  ²⁰ tn Or “misled.”

[19:26]  ²¹ tn BDAG 472 s.v. ἱκανός 3.a has “of pers. ὄχλος a large crowd…Ac 11:24, 26; 19:26.”

[19:26]  ²² map For location see JP1 D2; JP2 D2; JP3 D2; JP4 D2.

[19:26]  ²³ tn Grk “Asia”; see the note on this word in v. 22.

[19:26]  ²⁴ tn The participle λέγων (legwn) has been regarded as indicating instrumentality.

[19:26]  ²⁵ tn The words “at all” are not in the Greek text but are implied.

[19:27]  ²⁰ tn Or “come under public criticism.” BDAG 101 s.v. ἀπελεγμός has “come into disrepute Ac 19:27.”

[19:27]  ²¹ sn Artemis was the name of a Greek goddess worshiped particularly in Asia Minor, whose temple, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was located just outside the city of Ephesus.

[19:27]  ²² tn BDAG 597 s.v. λογίζομαι 1.b has “εἰς οὐθὲν λογισθῆναι be looked upon as nothing…Ac 19:27.”

[19:27]  ²³ tn Grk “Asia”; see the note on this word in v. 22.

[19:27]  ²⁴ tn Or “her magnificence.” BDAG 488 s.v. καθαιρέω 2.b has “καθαιρεῖσθαι τῆς μεγαλειότητος αὐτῆς suffer the loss of her magnificence Ac 19:27”; L&N 13.38 has “‘and to have her greatness done away with’ Ac 19:27.”

[19:28]  ²¹ tn Grk “And when.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[19:28]  ²² tn Grk “And hearing.” The participle ἀκούσαντες (akousante") has been taken temporally.

[19:28]  ²³ tn Grk “they became filled with rage” (an idiom). The reaction of the Ephesians here is like that of the Jews earlier, though Luke referred to “zeal” or “jealousy” in the former case (Acts 7:54).

[19:28]  ²⁴ tn Grk “and began shouting, saying.” The imperfect verb ἔκραζον (ekrazon) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect. The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in English and has not been translated.

[19:28]  ²⁵ sn Artemis was a Greek goddess worshiped particularly in Asia Minor, whose temple, one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, was located just outside the city of Ephesus.

[21:28]  ²² tn Or “Israelite men,” although this is less natural English. The Greek term here is ἀνήρ (anhr), which only exceptionally is used in a generic sense of both males and females. In this context, it is conceivable that this is a generic usage since “the whole crowd” is mentioned in v. 27, although it can also be argued that these remarks were addressed primarily to the men present, even if women were there.

[21:28]  ²³ sn The law refers to the law of Moses.

[21:28]  ²⁴ tn Grk “this place.”

[21:28]  ²⁵ tn BDAG 400 s.v. ἔτι 2.b has “ἔ. δὲ καί furthermore…al. ἔ. τε καί…Lk 14:26; Ac 21:28.” This is a continuation of the same sentence in Greek, but due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences, a new sentence was begun here in the translation.

[21:28]  ²⁶ tn Grk “into the temple.” The specific reference is to the Court of the Sons of Israel (see the note following the term “unclean” at the end of this verse). To avoid giving the modern reader the impression that they entered the temple building itself, the phrase “the inner courts of the temple” has been used in the translation.

[21:28]  ²⁷ tn Or “and has defiled this holy place.”

[21:29]  ²³ tn Grk “whom.”

[21:29]  ²⁴ tn On the phrase “inner temple courts” see the note on the word “temple” in v. 28.

[21:30]  ²⁴ tn On this term see BDAG 545 s.v. κινέω 2.b.

[21:30]  ²⁵ tn Or “the people formed a mob.” BDAG 967 s.v. συνδρομή has “formation of a mob by pers. running together, running together…ἐγένετο σ. τοῦ λαοῦ the people rushed together Ac 21:30.”

[21:30]  ²⁶ tn Grk “and seizing.” The participle ἐπιλαβόμενοι (epilabomenoi) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was begun in the translation, and καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[21:30]  ²⁷ tn Grk “out of the temple.” See the note on the word “temple” in v. 28.