Matthew 3:8-10

3:8 Therefore produce fruit ¹  that proves your ²  repentance, 3:9 and don’t think you can say to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham as our father.’ For I tell you that God can raise up children for Abraham from these stones! 3:10 Even now the ax is laid at ³  the root of the trees, and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be cut down and thrown into the fire.

Matthew 7:16-20

7:16 You will recognize them by their fruit. Grapes are not gathered ⁴  from thorns or figs from thistles, are they? ⁵  7:17 In the same way, every good tree bears good fruit, but the bad ⁶  tree bears bad fruit. 7:18 A good tree is not able to bear bad fruit, nor a bad tree to bear good fruit. 7:19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 7:20 So then, you will recognize them by their fruit.

Luke 3:9

3:9 Even now the ax is laid at the root of the trees, ⁷  and every tree that does not produce good fruit will be ⁸  cut down and thrown into the fire.”

Luke 6:43-44

6:43 “For ⁹  no good tree bears bad ¹⁰  fruit, nor again ¹¹  does a bad tree bear good fruit, 6:44 for each tree is known ¹²  by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered ¹³  from thorns, nor are grapes picked ¹⁴  from brambles. ¹⁵ 

John 15:4-7

15:4 Remain ¹⁶  in me, and I will remain in you. ¹⁷  Just as the branch cannot bear fruit by itself, ¹⁸  unless it remains ¹⁹  in ²⁰  the vine, so neither can you unless you remain ²¹  in me.

15:5 “I am the vine; you are the branches. The one who remains ²²  in me – and I in him – bears ²³  much fruit, ²⁴  because apart from me you can accomplish ²⁵  nothing. 15:6 If anyone does not remain ²⁶  in me, he is thrown out like a branch, and dries up; and such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire, ²⁷  and are burned up. ²⁸  15:7 If you remain ²⁹  in me and my words remain ³⁰  in you, ask whatever you want, and it will be done for you. ³¹ 

James 3:12

3:12 Can a fig tree produce olives, my brothers and sisters, ³²  or a vine produce figs? Neither can a salt water spring produce fresh water.

[3:8]  ¹ sn Fruit worthy of repentance refers to the deeds that indicate a change of attitude (heart) on the part of John’s hearers.

[3:8]  ² tn Grk “fruit worthy of.”

[3:10]  ³ sn Laid at the root. That is, placed and aimed, ready to begin cutting.

[7:16]  ⁴ tn Grk “They do not gather.” This has been simplified to the passive voice in the translation since the subject “they” is not specified further in the context.

[7:16]  ⁵ sn The statement illustrates the principle: That which cannot produce fruit does not produce fruit.

[7:17]  ⁶ tn Grk “rotten.” The word σαπρός, modifying “tree” in both v. 17 and 18, can also mean “diseased” (L&N 65.28).

[3:9]  ⁷ sn Even now the ax is laid at the root of the trees. The imagery of an “ax already laid at the root of the trees” is vivid, connoting sudden and catastrophic judgment for the unrepentant and unfruitful. The image of “fire” serves to further heighten the intensity of the judgment referred to. It is John’s way of summoning all people to return to God with all their heart and avoid his unquenchable wrath soon to be poured out. John’s language and imagery is probably ultimately drawn from the OT where Israel is referred to as a fruitless vine (Hos 10:1-2; Jer 2:21-22) and the image of an “ax” is used to indicate God’s judgment (Ps 74:5-6; Jer 46:22).

[3:9]  ⁸ tn Grk “is”; the present tense (ἐκκόπτεται, ekkoptetai) has futuristic force here.

[6:43]  ⁹ tn The explanatory connective γάρ (gar) is often dropped from translations, but the point of the passage is that one should be self-corrective and be careful who one follows (vv. 41-42), because such choices also reflect what the nature of the tree is and its product.

[6:43]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “rotten.” The word σαπρός, modifying both “fruit” and “tree,” can also mean “diseased” (L&N 65.28).

[6:43]  ¹¹ tc Most mss, especially later ones (A C D Θ Ψ 33 Ï lat sy sa), lack the adverb πάλιν (palin, “again”) here. Its presence is attested, however, by several good witnesses (Ì⁷⁵ א B L W Ξ Ë^1,13 579 892 1241 2542).

[6:44]  ¹² sn The principle of the passage is that one produces what one is.

[6:44]  ¹³ tn Grk “they do not gather”; this has been simplified to the passive voice in the translation since the subject “they” is not specified further in the context.

[6:44]  ¹⁴ tn This is a different verb (τρυγῶσιν, trugwsin) for gathering from the previous one (συλλέγουσιν, sullegousin).

[6:44]  ¹⁵ tn This is a different term (βάτος, batos) for a thorn or bramble bush than the previous one (ἄκανθα, akanqa).

[15:4]  ¹⁶ tn Or “Reside.”

[15:4]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “and I in you.” The verb has been repeated for clarity and to conform to contemporary English style, which typically allows fewer ellipses (omitted or understood words) than Greek.

[15:4]  ¹⁸ sn The branch cannot bear fruit by itself unless it remains connected to the vine, from which its life and sustenance flows. As far as the disciples were concerned, they would produce no fruit from themselves if they did not remain in their relationship to Jesus, because the eternal life which a disciple must possess in order to bear fruit originates with Jesus; he is the source of all life and productivity for the disciple.

[15:4]  ¹⁹ tn Or “resides.”

[15:4]  ²⁰ tn While it would be more natural to say “on the vine” (so NAB), the English preposition “in” has been retained here to emphasize the parallelism with the following clause “unless you remain in me.” To speak of remaining “in” a person is not natural English either, but is nevertheless a biblical concept (cf. “in Christ” in Eph 1:3, 4, 6, 7, 11).

[15:4]  ²¹ tn Or “you reside.”

[15:5]  ²² tn Or “resides.”

[15:5]  ²³ tn Or “yields.”

[15:5]  ²⁴ tn Grk “in him, this one bears much fruit.” The pronoun “this one” has been omitted from the translation because it is redundant according to contemporary English style.

[15:5]  ²⁵ tn Or “do.”

[15:6]  ²⁶ tn Or “reside.”

[15:6]  ²⁷ sn Such branches are gathered up and thrown into the fire. The author does not tell who it is who does the gathering and throwing into the fire. Although some claim that realized eschatology is so prevalent in the Fourth Gospel that no references to final eschatology appear at all, the fate of these branches seems to point to the opposite. The imagery is almost certainly that of eschatological judgment, and recalls some of the OT vine imagery which involves divine rejection and judgment of disobedient Israel (Ezek 15:4-6, 19:12).

[15:6]  ²⁸ tn Grk “they gather them up and throw them into the fire, and they are burned.”

[15:7]  ²⁹ tn Or “reside.”

[15:7]  ³⁰ tn Or “reside.”

[15:7]  ³¹ sn Once again Jesus promises the disciples ask whatever you want, and it will be done for you. This recalls 14:13-14, where the disciples were promised that if they asked anything in Jesus’ name it would be done for them. The two thoughts are really quite similar, since here it is conditioned on the disciples’ remaining in Jesus and his words remaining in them. The first phrase relates to the genuineness of their relationship with Jesus. The second phrase relates to their obedience. When both of these qualifications are met, the disciples would in fact be asking in Jesus’ name and therefore according to his will.

[3:12]  ³² tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.