Matthew 7:20-21

7:20 So then, you will recognize them by their fruit.

Judgment of Pretenders

7:21 “Not everyone who says to me, ‘Lord, Lord,’ ¹  will enter into the kingdom of heaven – only the one who does the will of my Father in heaven.

Matthew 17:5

17:5 While he was still speaking, a ²  bright cloud ³  overshadowed ⁴  them, and a voice from the cloud said, ⁵  “This is my one dear Son, ⁶  in whom I take great delight. Listen to him!” ⁷ 

Mark 3:35

3:35 For whoever does the will of God is ⁸  my brother and sister and mother.”

Luke 8:21

8:21 But he replied ⁹  to them, “My mother and my brothers are those ¹⁰  who hear the word of God and do it.” ¹¹ 

Luke 11:27-28

11:27 As ¹²  he said these things, a woman in the crowd spoke out ¹³  to him, “Blessed is the womb ¹⁴  that bore you and the breasts at which you nursed!” ¹⁵  11:28 But he replied, ¹⁶  “Blessed rather are those who hear the word of God and obey ¹⁷  it!”

John 6:29

6:29 Jesus replied, ¹⁸  “This is the deed ¹⁹  God requires ²⁰  – to believe in the one whom he ²¹  sent.”

John 6:40

6:40 For this is the will of my Father – for everyone who looks on the Son and believes in him to have eternal life, and I will raise him up ²²  at the last day.” ²³ 

John 15:14

15:14 You are my friends ²⁴  if you do what I command you.

Acts 3:22-23

3:22 Moses said, ‘The Lord your God will raise up for you a prophet like me from among your brothers. You must obey ²⁵  him in everything he tells you. ²⁶  3:23 Every person ²⁷  who does not obey that prophet will be destroyed and thus removed ²⁸  from the people.’ ²⁹ 

Acts 16:30-31

16:30 Then he brought them outside ³⁰  and asked, “Sirs, what must ³¹  I do to be saved?” 16:31 They replied, ³²  “Believe ³³  in the Lord Jesus ³⁴  and you will be saved, you and your household.”

Acts 17:30

17:30 Therefore, although God has overlooked ³⁵  such times of ignorance, ³⁶  he now commands all people ³⁷  everywhere to repent, ³⁸ 

Acts 26:20

26:20 but I declared to those in Damascus first, and then to those in Jerusalem and in all Judea, ³⁹  and to the Gentiles, that they should repent and turn to God, ⁴⁰  performing deeds consistent with ⁴¹  repentance.

Galatians 5:6

5:6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision carries any weight – the only thing that matters is faith working through love. ⁴² 

Galatians 6:15

6:15 For ⁴³  neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for ⁴⁴  anything; the only thing that matters is a new creation! ⁴⁵ 

Colossians 3:11

3:11 Here there is neither Greek nor Jew, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbarian, Scythian, slave ⁴⁶  or free, but Christ is all and in all.

Hebrews 5:9

5:9 And by being perfected in this way, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him,

James 1:21-22

1:21 So put away all filth and evil excess and humbly ⁴⁷  welcome the message implanted within you, which is able to save your souls. 1:22 But be sure you live out the message and do not merely listen to it and so deceive yourselves.

James 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From James, ⁴⁸  a slave ⁴⁹  of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes dispersed abroad. ⁵⁰  Greetings!

James 4:2

4:2 You desire and you do not have; you murder and envy and you cannot obtain; you quarrel and fight. You do not have because you do not ask;

James 4:1

Passions and Pride

4:1 Where do the conflicts and where ⁵¹  do the quarrels among you come from? Is it not from this, ⁵²  from your passions that battle inside you? ⁵³ 

James 2:17

2:17 So also faith, if it does not have works, is dead being by itself.

James 3:1

The Power of the Tongue

3:1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, ⁵⁴  because you know that we will be judged more strictly. ⁵⁵ 

James 3:1

The Power of the Tongue

3:1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers and sisters, ⁵⁶  because you know that we will be judged more strictly. ⁵⁷ 

Revelation 22:14

22:14 Blessed are those who wash their robes so they can have access ⁵⁸  to the tree of life and can enter into the city by the gates.

[7:21]  ¹ sn The double use of the vocative is normally used in situations of high emotion or emphasis. Even an emphatic confession without action means little.

[17:5]  ² tn Grk “behold, a.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has not been translated here or in the following clause because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[17:5]  ³ sn This cloud is the cloud of God’s presence and the voice is his as well.

[17:5]  ⁴ tn Or “surrounded.”

[17:5]  ⁵ tn Grk “behold, a voice from the cloud, saying.” This is an incomplete sentence in Greek which portrays intensity and emotion. The participle λέγουσα (legousa) was translated as a finite verb in keeping with English style.

[17:5]  ⁶ tn Grk “my beloved Son,” or “my Son, the beloved [one].” The force of ἀγαπητός (agaphtos) is often “pertaining to one who is the only one of his or her class, but at the same time is particularly loved and cherished” (L&N 58.53; cf. also BDAG 7 s.v. 1).

[17:5]  ⁷ sn The expression listen to him comes from Deut 18:15 and makes two points: 1) Jesus is a prophet like Moses, a leader-prophet, and 2) they have much yet to learn from him.

[3:35]  ⁸ tn The pleonastic pronoun οὗτος (Jouto", “this one”) which precedes this verb has not been translated.

[8:21]  ⁹ tn Grk “answering, he said.” This is redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified to “he replied.”

[8:21]  ¹⁰ tn There is some discussion about the grammar of this verse in Greek. If “these” is the subject, then it reads, “These are my mother and brothers, those who.” If “these” is a nominative absolute, which is slightly more likely, then the verse more literally reads, “So my mother and brothers, they are those who.” The sense in either case is the same.

[8:21]  ¹¹ sn Hearing and doing the word of God is another important NT theme: Luke 6:47-49; Jas 1:22-25.

[11:27]  ¹² tn Grk “And it happened that as.” 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. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[11:27]  ¹³ tn Grk “lifted up her voice and said.” This idiom is somewhat redundant in contemporary English and has been simplified to “spoke out.”

[11:27]  ¹⁴ tn For this term see L&N 8.69.

[11:27]  ¹⁵ sn Both the reference to the womb and the breasts form a figure of speech called metonymy. In this case the parts are mentioned instead of the whole; the meaning is “Blessed is your mother!” The warnings seem to have sparked a little nervousness that brought forth this response. In the culture a mother was valued for the accomplishments of her son. So this amounts to a compliment to Jesus.

[11:28]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “said.”

[11:28]  ¹⁷ sn This is another reference to hearing and doing the word of God, which here describes Jesus’ teaching; see Luke 8:21.

[6:29]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “answered and said to them.”

[6:29]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “the work.”

[6:29]  ²⁰ tn Grk “This is the work of God.”

[6:29]  ²¹ tn Grk “that one” (i.e., God).

[6:40]  ²² tn Or “resurrect him,” or “make him live again.”

[6:40]  ²³ sn Notice that here the result (having eternal life and being raised up at the last day) is produced by looking on the Son and believing in him. Compare John 6:54 where the same result is produced by eating Jesus’ flesh and drinking his blood. This suggests that the phrase in 6:54 (eats my flesh and drinks my blood) is to be understood in terms of the phrase here (looks on the Son and believes in him).

[15:14]  ²⁴ sn This verse really explains John 15:10 in another way. Those who keep Jesus’ commandments are called his friends, those friends for whom he lays down his life (v. 13). It is possible to understand this verse as referring to a smaller group within Christianity as a whole, perhaps only the apostles who were present when Jesus spoke these words. Some have supported this by comparing it to the small group of associates and advisers to the Roman Emperor who were called “Friends of the Emperor.” Others would see these words as addressed only to those Christians who as disciples were obedient to Jesus. In either case the result would be to create a sort of “inner circle” of Christians who are more privileged than mere “believers” or average Christians. In context, it seems clear that Jesus’ words must be addressed to all true Christians, not just some narrower category of believers, because Jesus’ sacrificial death, which is his act of love toward his friends (v. 13) applies to all Christians equally (cf. John 13:1).

[3:22]  ²⁵ tn Grk “hear,” but the idea of “hear and obey” or simply “obey” is frequently contained in the Greek verb ἀκούω (akouw; see L&N 36.14) and the following context (v. 23) makes it clear that failure to “obey” the words of this “prophet like Moses” will result in complete destruction.

[3:22]  ²⁶ sn A quotation from Deut 18:15. By quoting Deut 18:15 Peter declared that Jesus was the eschatological “prophet like [Moses]” mentioned in that passage, who reveals the plan of God and the way of God.

[3:23]  ²⁷ tn Grk “every soul” (here “soul” is an idiom for the whole person).

[3:23]  ²⁸ tn Or “will be completely destroyed.” In Acts 3:23 the verb ἐξολεθρεύω (exoleqreuw) is translated “destroy and remove” by L&N 20.35.

[3:23]  ²⁹ sn A quotation from Deut 18:19, also Lev 23:29. The OT context of Lev 23:29 discusses what happened when one failed to honor atonement. One ignored the required sacrifice of God at one’s peril.

[16:30]  ³⁰ tn Grk “And bringing them outside, he asked.” The participle προαγαγών (proagagwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style. Because of the length of the Greek sentence, the conjunction καί (kai) has not been translated here. Instead a new English sentence is begun by supplying the conjunction “then” to indicate the logical sequence.

[16:30]  ³¹ tn The Greek term (δεῖ, dei) is used by Luke to represent divine necessity.

[16:31]  ³² tn Grk “said.”

[16:31]  ³³ sn Here the summary term of response is a call to believe. In this context it refers to trusting the sovereign God’s power to deliver, which events had just pictured for the jailer.

[16:31]  ³⁴ tc The majority of mss add Χριστόν (Criston, “Christ”) here (C D E Ψ 1739 Ï sy sa), but the best and earliest witnesses read simply τὸν κύριον ᾿Ιησοῦν (ton kurion Ihsoun, “the Lord Jesus”; Ì^74vid א A B 33 81 pc bo). The addition of “Christ” to “Lord Jesus” is an obviously motivated reading. Thus on both external and internal grounds, the shorter reading is strongly preferred.

[17:30]  ³⁵ tn Or “has deliberately paid no attention to.”

[17:30]  ³⁶ tn Or “times when people did not know.”

[17:30]  ³⁷ tn Here ἀνθρώποις (anqrwpoi") has been translated as a generic noun (“people”).

[17:30]  ³⁸ sn He now commands all people everywhere to repent. God was now asking all mankind to turn to him. No nation or race was excluded.

[26:20]  ³⁹ tn BDAG 1093-94 s.v. χώρα 2.b states, “of the provincial name (1 Macc 8:3) ἡ χώρα τῆς ᾿Ιουδαίας Ac 26:20.”

[26:20]  ⁴⁰ sn That they should repent and turn to God. This is the shortest summary of Paul’s message that he preached.

[26:20]  ⁴¹ tn BDAG 93 s.v. ἄξιος 1.b, “καρποὶ ἄ. τῆς μετανοίας fruits in keeping with your repentance…Lk 3:8; Mt 3:8. For this ἄ. τῆς μετανοίας ἔργα Ac 26:20.” Note how Paul preached the gospel offer and the issue of response together, side by side.

[5:6]  ⁴² tn Grk “but faith working through love.”

[6:15]  ⁴³ tc The phrase “in Christ Jesus” is found after “For” in some mss (א A C D F G 0278 1881 Ï lat bo), but lacking in Ì⁴⁶ B Ψ 33 1175 1505 1739* and several fathers. The longer reading probably represents a harmonization to Gal 5:6.

[6:15]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “is.”

[6:15]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “but a new creation”; the words “the only thing that matters” have been supplied to reflect the implied contrast with the previous clause (see also Gal 5:6).

[3:11]  ⁴⁶ tn See the note on “fellow slave” in 1:7.

[1:21]  ⁴⁷ tn Or “with meekness.”

[1:1]  ⁴⁸ tn Grk “James.” The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ⁴⁹ tn Traditionally, “servant” or “bondservant.” Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “to the twelve tribes in the Diaspora.” The Greek term διασπορά (diaspora, “dispersion”) refers to Jews not living in Palestine but “dispersed” or scattered among the Gentiles.

[4:1]  ⁵¹ tn The word “where” is repeated in Greek for emphasis.

[4:1]  ⁵² tn Grk “from here.”

[4:1]  ⁵³ tn Grk “in your members [i.e., parts of the body].”

[3:1]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.

[3:1]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “will receive a greater judgment.”

[3:1]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:2.

[3:1]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “will receive a greater judgment.”

[22:14]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “so that there will be to them authority over the tree of life.”