Mark 10:14-15

10:14 But when Jesus saw this, he was indignant and said to them, “Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. ¹  10:15 I tell you the truth, ²  whoever does not receive ³  the kingdom of God like a child ⁴  will never ⁵  enter it.”

Luke 18:16-17

18:16 But Jesus called for the children, ⁶  saying, “Let the little children come to me and do not try to stop them, for the kingdom of God ⁷  belongs to such as these. ⁸  18:17 I tell you the truth, ⁹  whoever does not receive ¹⁰  the kingdom of God like a child ¹¹  will never ¹²  enter it.”

Luke 18:1

Prayer and the Parable of the Persistent Widow

18:1 Then ¹³  Jesus ¹⁴  told them a parable to show them they should always ¹⁵  pray and not lose heart. ¹⁶ 

Colossians 1:20

1:20 and through him to reconcile all things to himself by making peace through the blood of his cross – through him, ¹⁷  whether things on earth or things in heaven.

Colossians 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul, ¹⁸  an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

Colossians 2:2

2:2 My goal is that ¹⁹  their hearts, having been knit together ²⁰  in love, may be encouraged, and that ²¹  they may have all the riches that assurance brings in their understanding of the knowledge of the mystery of God, namely, Christ, ²² 

[10:14]  ¹ sn The kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Children are a picture of those whose simple trust illustrates what faith is all about. The remark illustrates how everyone is important to God, even those whom others regard as insignificant.

[10:15]  ² tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[10:15]  ³ sn On receive see John 1:12.

[10:15]  ⁴ sn The point of the comparison receive the kingdom of God like a child has more to do with a child’s trusting spirit and willingness to be dependent and receive from others than any inherent humility the child might possess.

[10:15]  ⁵ tn The negation in Greek (οὐ μή, ou mh) is very strong here.

[18:16]  ⁶ tn Grk “summoned them”; the referent (the children) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:16]  ⁷ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21.

[18:16]  ⁸ sn The kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Children are a picture of those whose simple trust illustrates what faith is all about. The remark illustrates how everyone is important to God, even those whom others regard as insignificant.

[18:17]  ⁹ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[18:17]  ¹⁰ sn On receive see John 1:12.

[18:17]  ¹¹ sn The point of the comparison receive the kingdom of God like a child has more to do with a child’s trusting spirit and willingness to be dependent and receive from others than any inherent humility the child might possess.

[18:17]  ¹² tn The negation in Greek used here (οὐ μή, ou mh) is very strong.

[18:1]  ¹³ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the narrative.

[18:1]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[18:1]  ¹⁵ tn Or “should pray at all times” (L&N 67.88).

[18:1]  ¹⁶ sn This is one of the few parables that comes with an explanation at the start: …they should always pray and not lose heart. It is part of Luke’s goal in encouraging Theophilus (1:4).

[1:20]  ¹⁷ tc The presence or absence of the second occurrence of the phrase δι᾿ αὐτοῦ (di’ autou, “through him”) is a difficult textual problem to solve. External evidence is fairly evenly divided. Many ancient and excellent witnesses lack the phrase (B D* F G I 0278 81 1175 1739 1881 2464 al latt sa), but equally important witnesses have it (Ì⁴⁶ א A C D¹ Ψ 048^vid 33 Ï). Both readings have strong Alexandrian support, which makes the problem difficult to decide on external evidence alone. Internal evidence points to the inclusion of the phrase as original. The word immediately preceding the phrase is the masculine pronoun αὐτοῦ (autou); thus the possibility of omission through homoioteleuton in various witnesses is likely. Scribes might have deleted the phrase because of perceived redundancy or awkwardness in the sense: The shorter reading is smoother and more elegant, so scribes would be prone to correct the text in that direction. As far as style is concerned, repetition of key words and phrases for emphasis is not foreign to the corpus Paulinum (see, e.g., Rom 8:23, Eph 1:13, 2 Cor 12:7). In short, it is easier to account for the shorter reading arising from the longer reading than vice versa, so the longer reading is more likely original.

[1:1]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[2:2]  ¹⁹ tn Verse two begins a subordinate ἵνα (Jina) clause which was divided up into two sentences for the sake of clarity in English. Thus the phrase “My goal is that” is an attempt to reflect in the translation the purpose expressed through the ἵνα clauses.

[2:2]  ²⁰ tn BDAG 956 s.v. συμβιβάζω 1.b reads “unite, knit together.” Some commentators take the verb as a reference to instruction, “instructed in love.” See P. T. O’Brien, Colossians, Philemon (WBC), 93.

[2:2]  ²¹ tn The phrase “and that” translates the first εἰς (eis) clause of v. 2 and reflects the second goal of Paul’s striving and struggle for the Colossians – the first is “encouragement” and the second is “full assurance.”

[2:2]  ²² tc There are at least a dozen variants here, almost surely generated by the unusual wording τοῦ θεοῦ, Χριστοῦ (tou qeou, Cristou, “of God, Christ”; so Ì⁴⁶ B Hil). Scribes would be prone to conform this to more common Pauline expressions such as “of God, who is in Christ” (33), “of God, the Father of Christ” (א* A C 048^vid 1175 bo), and “of the God and Father of Christ” (א² Ψ 075 0278 365 1505 pc). Even though the external support for the wording τοῦ θεοῦ, Χριστοῦ is hardly overwhelming, it clearly best explains the rise of the other readings and should thus be regarded as authentic.