Matthew 2:16

2:16 When Herod ¹  saw that he had been tricked by the wise men, he became enraged. He sent men ²  to kill all the children in Bethlehem ³  and throughout the surrounding region from the age of two and under, according to the time he had learned from the wise men.

Matthew 5:22

5:22 But I say to you that anyone who is angry with a brother ⁴  will be subjected to judgment. And whoever insults ⁵  a brother will be brought before ⁶  the council, ⁷  and whoever says ‘Fool’ ⁸  will be sent ⁹  to fiery hell. ¹⁰ 

Matthew 15:32

The Feeding of the Four Thousand

15:32 Then Jesus called the ¹¹  disciples and said, “I have compassion on the crowd, because they have already been here with me three days and they have nothing to eat. I don’t want to send them away hungry since they may faint on the way.”

Matthew 19:28

19:28 Jesus ¹²  said to them, “I tell you the truth: ¹³  In the age when all things are renewed, ¹⁴  when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging ¹⁵  the twelve tribes of Israel.

Matthew 21:31

21:31 Which of the two did his father’s will?” They said, “The first.” ¹⁶  Jesus said to them, “I tell you the truth, ¹⁷  tax collectors ¹⁸  and prostitutes will go ahead of you into the kingdom of God!

Matthew 22:16

22:16 They sent to him their disciples along with the Herodians, ¹⁹  saying, “Teacher, we know that you are truthful, and teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. ²⁰  You do not court anyone’s favor because you show no partiality. ²¹ 

Matthew 23:23

23:23 “Woe to you, experts in the law ²²  and you Pharisees, hypocrites! You give a tenth ²³  of mint, dill, and cumin, ²⁴  yet you neglect what is more important in the law – justice, mercy, and faithfulness! You ²⁵  should have done these things without neglecting the others.

[2:16]  ¹ sn See the note on King Herod in 2:1. Note the fulfillment of the prophecy given by the angel in 2:13.

[2:16]  ² tn Or “soldiers.”

[2:16]  ³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.

[5:22]  ⁴ tc The majority of mss read the word εἰκῇ (eikh, “without cause”) here after “brother.” This insertion has support from א² D L W Θ 0233 Ë^1,13 33 Ï it sy co Ir^lat Or^mss Cyp Cyr. Thus the Western, Caesarean, and Byzantine texttypes all include the word, while the best Alexandrian and some other witnesses (Ì⁶⁴ א* B 1424^mg pc aur vg Or Hier^mss) lack it. The ms evidence favors its exclusion, though there is a remote possibility that εἰκῇ could have been accidentally omitted from these witnesses by way of homoioarcton (the next word, ἔνοχος [enocos, “guilty”], begins with the same letter). An intentional change would likely arise from the desire to qualify “angry,” especially in light of the absolute tone of Jesus’ words. While “without cause” makes good practical sense in this context, and must surely be a true interpretation of Jesus’ meaning (cf. Mark 3:5), it does not commend itself as original.

[5:22]  ⁵ tn Grk “whoever says to his brother ‘Raca,’” an Aramaic word of contempt or abuse meaning “fool” or “empty head.”

[5:22]  ⁶ tn Grk “subjected,” “guilty,” “liable.”

[5:22]  ⁷ tn Grk “the Sanhedrin.”

[5:22]  ⁸ tn The meaning of the term μωρός (mwros) is somewhat disputed. Most take it to mean, following the Syriac versions, “you fool,” although some have argued that it represents a transliteration into Greek of the Hebrew term מוֹרֵה (moreh) “rebel” (Deut 21:18, 20; cf. BDAG 663 s.v. μωρός c).

[5:22]  ⁹ tn Grk “subjected,” “guilty,” “liable.”

[5:22]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “the Gehenna of fire.”

[15:32]  ⁷ tc ‡ Although the external evidence is not great (א W Θ 700 pc), the internal evidence for the omission of αὐτοῦ (autou, “his”) after “disciples” is fairly strong. The pronoun may have been added by way of clarification. NA²⁷, however, includes the pronoun, on the basis of the much stronger external evidence.

[19:28]  ¹⁰ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[19:28]  ¹¹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[19:28]  ¹² sn The Greek term translated the age when all things are renewed (παλιγγενεσία, palingenesia) is understood as a reference to the Messianic age, the time when all things are renewed and restored (cf. Rev 21:5).

[19:28]  ¹³ sn The statement you…will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel looks at the future authority the Twelve will have when Jesus returns. They will share in Israel’s judgment.

[21:31]  ¹³ tc Verses 29-31 involve a rather complex and difficult textual problem. The variants cluster into three different groups: (1) The first son says “no” and later has a change of heart, and the second son says “yes” but does not go. The second son is called the one who does his father’s will. This reading is found in the Western mss (D it). But the reading is so hard as to be nearly impossible. One can only suspect some tampering with the text, extreme carelessness on the part of the scribe, or possibly a recognition of the importance of not shaming one’s parent in public. (Any of these reasons is not improbable with this texttype, and with codex D in particular.) The other two major variants are more difficult to assess. Essentially, the responses make sense (the son who does his father’s will is the one who changes his mind after saying “no”): (2) The first son says “no” and later has a change of heart, and the second son says “yes” but does not go. But here, the first son is called the one who does his father’s will (unlike the Western reading). This is the reading found in (א) C L W (Z) 0102 0281 ˹ 33 Ï and several versional witnesses. (3) The first son says “yes” but does not go, and the second son says “no” but later has a change of heart. This is the reading found in B Θ Ë¹³ 700 and several versional witnesses. Both of these latter two readings make good sense and have significantly better textual support than the first reading. The real question, then, is this: Is the first son or the second the obedient one? If one were to argue simply from the parabolic logic, the second son would be seen as the obedient one (hence, the third reading). The first son would represent the Pharisees (or Jews) who claim to obey God, but do not (cf. Matt 23:3). This accords well with the parable of the prodigal son (in which the oldest son represents the unbelieving Jews). Further, the chronological sequence of the second son being obedient fits well with the real scene: Gentiles and tax collectors and prostitutes were not, collectively, God’s chosen people, but they did repent and come to God, while the Jewish leaders claimed to be obedient to God but did nothing. At the same time, the external evidence is weaker for this reading (though stronger than the first reading), not as widespread, and certainly suspect because of how neatly it fits. One suspects scribal manipulation at this point. Thus the second reading looks to be superior to the other two on both external and transcriptional grounds. But what about intrinsic evidence? One can surmise that Jesus didn’t always give predictable responses. In this instance, he may well have painted a picture in which the Pharisees saw themselves as the first son, only to stun them with his application (v. 32).

[21:31]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[21:31]  ¹⁵ sn See the note on tax collectors in 5:46.

[22:16]  ¹⁶ sn The Herodians are mentioned in the NT only once in Matt (22:16 = Mark 12:13) and twice in Mark (3:6; 12:13; some mss also read “Herodians” instead of “Herod” in Mark 8:15). It is generally assumed that as a group the Herodians were Jewish supporters of the Herodian dynasty (or of Herod Antipas in particular). In every instance they are linked with the Pharisees. This probably reflects agreement regarding political objectives (nationalism as opposed to submission to the yoke of Roman oppression) rather than philosophy or religious beliefs.

[22:16]  ¹⁷ sn Teach the way of God in accordance with the truth. Very few comments are as deceitful as this one; they did not really believe this at all. The question of the Pharisees and Herodians was specifically designed to trap Jesus.

[22:16]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “And it is not a concern to you about anyone because you do not see the face of men.”

[23:23]  ¹⁹ tn Or “scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 2:4.

[23:23]  ²⁰ tn Or “you tithe mint.”

[23:23]  ²¹ sn Cumin (alternately spelled cummin) was an aromatic herb native to the Mediterranean region. Its seeds were used for seasoning.

[23:23]  ²² tc ‡ Many witnesses (B C K L W Δ 0102 33 565 892 pm) have δέ (de, “but”) after ταῦτα (tauta, “these things”), while many others lack it (א D Γ Θ Ë^1,13 579 700 1241 1424 pm). Since asyndeton was relatively rare in Koine Greek, the conjunction may be an intentional alteration, and is thus omitted from the present translation. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.