Matthew 3:16

3:16 After ¹  Jesus was baptized, just as he was coming up out of the water, the ²  heavens ³  opened ⁴  and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove ⁵  and coming on him.

Matthew 4:6

4:6 and said to him, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down. For it is written, ‘He will command his angels concerning you’ ⁶  and ‘with their hands they will lift you up, so that you will not strike your foot against a stone.’” ⁷ 

Matthew 12:4

12:4 how he entered the house of God and they ate ⁸  the sacred bread, ⁹  which was against the law ¹⁰  for him or his companions to eat, but only for the priests? ¹¹ 

Matthew 16:23

16:23 But he turned and said to Peter, “Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, because you are not setting your mind on God’s interests, but on man’s.” ¹² 

Matthew 27:40

27:40 and saying, “You who can destroy the temple and rebuild it in three days, save yourself! ¹³  If you are God’s Son, come down ¹⁴  from the cross!”

Matthew 27:54

27:54 Now when the centurion ¹⁵  and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and what took place, they were extremely terrified and said, “Truly this one was God’s Son!”

[3:16]  ¹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[3:16]  ² tn Grk “behold the heavens.” 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).

[3:16]  ³ tn Or “sky.” The Greek word οὐρανός (ourano") may be translated “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The same word is used in v. 17.

[3:16]  ⁴ tc ‡ αὐτῷ (autw, “to/before him”) is found in the majority of witnesses (א¹ C D^s L W 0233 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat), perhaps added as a point of clarification or emphasis. NA²⁷ includes the word in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[3:16]  ⁵ sn The phrase like a dove is a descriptive comparison. The Spirit is not a dove, but descended like one in some sort of bodily representation.

[4:6]  ⁶ sn A quotation from Ps 91:11. This was not so much an incorrect citation as a use in a wrong context (a misapplication of the passage).

[4:6]  ⁷ sn A quotation from Ps 91:12.

[12:4]  ¹¹ tc The Greek verb ἔφαγεν (efagen, “he ate”) is found in a majority of witnesses (Ì⁷⁰ C D L W Θ Ë^1,13 33 Ï latt sy co) in place of ἔφαγον (efagon, “they ate”), the wording found in א B pc. ἔφαγεν is most likely motivated by the parallels in Mark and Luke (both of which have the singular).

[12:4]  ¹² tn Grk “the bread of presentation.”

[12:4]  ¹³ sn Jesus’ response to the charge that what his disciples were doing was against the law is one of analogy: “If David did it for his troops in a time of need, then so can I with my disciples.” Jesus is clear that on the surface there was a violation here. What is not as clear is whether he is arguing a “greater need” makes this permissible or that this was within the intention of the law all along.

[12:4]  ¹⁴ sn See 1 Sam 21:1-6.

[16:23]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “people.”

[27:40]  ²¹ sn There is rich irony in the statements of those who were passing by, “save yourself!” and “come down from the cross!” In summary, they wanted Jesus to come down from the cross and save his physical life, but it was indeed his staying on the cross and giving his physical life that led to the fact that they could experience a resurrection from death to life.

[27:40]  ²² tc ‡ Many important witnesses (א* A D pc it sy^[s],p) read καί (kai, here with the force of “then”) before κατάβηθι (katabhqi, “come down”). The shorter reading may well be due to homoioarcton, but judging by the diverse external evidence (א² B L W Θ 0250 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat) it is equally possible that the shorter reading is original (and is so considered for this translation). NA²⁷ puts the καί in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.

[27:54]  ²⁶ sn See the note on the word centurion in Matt 8:5.