Matthew 17:3

17:3 Then Moses ¹  and Elijah ²  also appeared before them, talking with him.

Matthew 19:7

19:7 They said to him, “Why then did Moses command us to give a certificate of dismissal and to divorce her?” ³ 

Matthew 23:2

23:2 “The ⁴  experts in the law ⁵  and the Pharisees ⁶  sit on Moses’ seat.

[17:3]  ¹ tn Grk “And behold, Moses.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[17:3]  ² sn Commentators and scholars discuss why Moses and Elijah are present. The most likely explanation is that Moses represents the prophetic office (Acts 3:18-22) and Elijah pictures the presence of the last days (Mal 4:5-6), the prophet of the eschaton (the end times).

[19:7]  ³ tc ‡ Although the majority of witnesses (B C W 078 087 ˹³ 33 Ï sy^p,h) have αὐτήν (authn, “her”) after the infinitive ἀπολῦσαι (apolusai, “to divorce”), a variant lacks the αὐτήν. This shorter reading may be due to assimilation to the Markan parallel, but since it is attested in early and diverse witnesses (א D L Z Θ Ë¹ 579 700 pc lat) and since the parallel verse (Mark 10:4) already departs at many points, the shorter reading seems more likely to be original. The pronoun has been included in the translation, however, for clarity. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating reservations regarding its authenticity.

[23:2]  ⁵ tn Grk “saying.” The participle λέγων (legwn) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated.

[23:2]  ⁶ tn Or “The scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:2]  ⁷ sn See the note on Pharisees in 3:7.