Mark 16:19

16:19 After the Lord Jesus had spoken to them, he was taken up into heaven and sat down at the right hand of God.

Luke 24:51

24:51 Now ¹  during the blessing ²  he departed ³  and was taken up into heaven. ⁴ 

John 6:62

6:62 Then what if you see the Son of Man ascending where he was before? ⁵ 

John 13:3

13:3 Because Jesus ⁶  knew that the Father had handed all things over to him, ⁷  and that he had come from God and was going back to God,

John 16:28

16:28 I came from the Father and entered into the world, but in turn, ⁸  I am leaving the world and going back to the Father.” ⁹ 

John 17:5

17:5 And now, Father, glorify me at your side ¹⁰  with the glory I had with you before the world was created. ¹¹ 

Acts 1:1-9

Jesus Ascends to Heaven

1:1 I wrote ¹²  the former ¹³  account, ¹⁴  Theophilus, ¹⁵  about all that Jesus began to do and teach 1:2 until the day he was taken up to heaven, ¹⁶  after he had given orders ¹⁷  by ¹⁸  the Holy Spirit to the apostles he had chosen. 1:3 To the same apostles ¹⁹  also, after his suffering, ²⁰  he presented himself alive with many convincing proofs. He was seen by them over a forty-day period ²¹  and spoke about matters concerning the kingdom of God. 1:4 While he was with them, ²²  he declared, ²³  “Do not leave Jerusalem, ²⁴  but wait there ²⁵  for what my ²⁶  Father promised, ²⁷  which you heard about from me. ²⁸  1:5 For ²⁹  John baptized with water, but you ³⁰  will be baptized with the Holy Spirit not many days from now.”

1:6 So when they had gathered together, they began to ask him, ³¹  “Lord, is this the time when you are restoring the kingdom to Israel?” 1:7 He told them, “You are not permitted to know ³²  the times or periods that the Father has set by his own authority. 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the farthest parts ³³  of the earth.” 1:9 After ³⁴  he had said this, while they were watching, he was lifted up and a cloud hid him from their sight.

Acts 1:19

1:19 This ³⁵  became known to all who lived in Jerusalem, so that in their own language ³⁶  they called that field ³⁷  Hakeldama, that is, “Field of Blood.”)

Ephesians 4:8-10

4:8 Therefore it says, “When he ascended on high he captured ³⁸  captives; he gave gifts to men.” ³⁹  4:9 Now what is the meaning of “he ascended,” except that he also descended ⁴⁰  to the lower regions, ⁴¹  namely, the earth? ⁴²  4:10 He, the very one ⁴³  who descended, is also the one who ascended above all the heavens, in order to fill all things.

Hebrews 1:3

1:3 The Son is ⁴⁴  the radiance of his glory and the representation of his essence, and he sustains all things by his powerful word, ⁴⁵  and so when he had accomplished cleansing for sins, he sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high. ⁴⁶ 

Hebrews 8:1

The High Priest of a Better Covenant

8:1 Now the main point of what we are saying is this: ⁴⁷  We have such a high priest, one who sat down at the right hand of the throne of the Majesty in heaven, ⁴⁸ 

Hebrews 12:2

12:2 keeping our eyes fixed on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of our faith. For the joy set out for him he endured the cross, disregarding its shame, and has taken his seat at the right hand of the throne of God. ⁴⁹ 

Hebrews 12:1

The Lord’s Discipline

12:1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, ⁵⁰  we must get rid of every weight and the sin that clings so closely, and run with endurance the race set out for us,

Hebrews 3:1

Jesus and Moses

3:1 Therefore, holy brothers and sisters, ⁵¹  partners in a heavenly calling, take note of Jesus, the apostle and high priest whom we confess, ⁵² 

[24:51]  ¹ tn Grk “And it happened that while.” 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.

[24:51]  ² tn Grk “while he blessed them.”

[24:51]  ³ tn Grk “he departed from them.”

[24:51]  ⁴ tc The reference to the ascension (“and was taken up into heaven”) is lacking in א* D it sy^s, but it is found in Ì⁷⁵ and the rest of the ms tradition. The authenticity of the statement here seems to be presupposed in Acts 1:2, for otherwise it is difficult to account for Luke’s reference to the ascension there. For a helpful discussion, see TCGNT 162-63.

[6:62]  ⁵ tn Or “he was formerly?”

[13:3]  ⁶ tn Grk “Because he knew”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[13:3]  ⁷ tn Grk “had given all things into his hands.”

[16:28]  ⁸ tn Or “into the world; again.” Here πάλιν (palin) functions as a marker of contrast, with the implication of a sequence.

[16:28]  ⁹ sn The statement I am leaving the world and going to the Father is a summary of the entire Gospel of John. It summarizes the earthly career of the Word made flesh, Jesus of Nazareth, on his mission from the Father to be the Savior of the world, beginning with his entry into the world as he came forth from God and concluding with his departure from the world as he returned to the Father.

[17:5]  ¹⁰ tn Or “in your presence”; Grk “with yourself.” The use of παρά (para) twice in this verse looks back to the assertion in John 1:1 that the Word (the Λόγος [Logos], who became Jesus of Nazareth in 1:14) was with God (πρὸς τὸν θεόν, pro" ton qeon). Whatever else may be said, the statement in 17:5 strongly asserts the preexistence of Jesus Christ.

[17:5]  ¹¹ tn Grk “before the world was.” The word “created” is not in the Greek text but is implied.

[1:1]  ¹² tn Or “produced,” Grk “made.”

[1:1]  ¹³ tn Or “first.” The translation “former” is preferred because “first” could imply to the modern English reader that the author means that his previous account was the first one to be written down. The Greek term πρῶτος (prwtos) does not necessarily mean “first” in an absolute sense, but can refer to the first in a set or series. That is what is intended here – the first account (known as the Gospel of Luke) as compared to the second one (known as Acts).

[1:1]  ¹⁴ tn The Greek word λόγος (logos) is sometimes translated “book” (NRSV, NIV) or “treatise” (KJV). A formal, systematic treatment of a subject is implied, but the word “book” may be too specific and slightly misleading to the modern reader, so “account” has been used.

[1:1]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “O Theophilus,” but the usage of the vocative in Acts with ὦ (w) is unemphatic, following more the classical idiom (see ExSyn 69).

[1:2]  ¹⁶ tn The words “to heaven” are not in the Greek text, but are supplied from v. 11. Several modern translations (NIV, NRSV) supply the words “to heaven” after “taken up” to specify the destination explicitly mentioned later in 1:11.

[1:2]  ¹⁷ tn Or “commands.” Although some modern translations render ἐντειλάμενος (enteilameno") as “instructions” (NIV, NRSV), the word implies authority or official sanction (G. Schrenk, TDNT 2:545), so that a word like “orders” conveys the idea more effectively. The action of the temporal participle is antecedent (prior) to the action of the verb it modifies (“taken up”).

[1:2]  ¹⁸ tn Or “through.”

[1:3]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “to them”; the referent (the apostles) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[1:3]  ²⁰ sn After his suffering is a reference to Jesus’ crucifixion and the abuse which preceded it.

[1:3]  ²¹ tn Grk “during forty days.” The phrase “over a forty-day period” is used rather than “during forty days” because (as the other NT accounts of Jesus’ appearances make clear) Jesus was not continually visible to the apostles during the forty days, but appeared to them on various occasions.

[1:4]  ²² tn Or “While he was assembling with them,” or “while he was sharing a meal with them.” There are three basic options for translating the verb συναλίζω (sunalizw): (1) “Eat (salt) with, share a meal with”; (2) “bring together, assemble”; (3) “spend the night with, stay with” (see BDAG 964 s.v.). The difficulty with the first option is that it does not fit the context, and this meaning is not found elsewhere. The second option is difficult because of the singular number and the present tense. The third option is based on a spelling variation of συναυλιζόμενος (sunaulizomeno"), which some minuscules actually read here. The difference in meaning between (2) and (3) is not great, but (3) seems to fit the context somewhat better here.

[1:4]  ²³ tn Grk “ordered them”; the command “Do not leave” is not in Greek but is an indirect quotation in the original (see note at end of the verse for explanation).

[1:4]  ²⁴ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[1:4]  ²⁵ tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text (direct objects in Greek were frequently omitted when clear from the context).

[1:4]  ²⁶ tn Grk “the,” with the article used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[1:4]  ²⁷ tn Grk “for the promise of the Father.” Jesus is referring to the promised gift of the Holy Spirit (see the following verse).

[1:4]  ²⁸ tn Grk “While he was with them, he ordered them not to leave Jerusalem, but to wait there for ‘what my Father promised, which you heard about from me.’” This verse moves from indirect to direct discourse. This abrupt change is very awkward, so the entire quotation has been rendered as direct discourse in the translation.

[1:5]  ²⁹ tn In the Greek text v. 5 is a continuation of the previous sentence, which is long and complicated. In keeping with the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[1:5]  ³⁰ tn The pronoun is plural in Greek.

[1:6]  ³¹ tn Grk “they began to ask him, saying.” The participle λέγοντες (legontes) is redundant in contemporary English and has not been translated. The imperfect tense of the Greek verb ἠρώτων (hrwtwn) has been translated as an ingressive imperfect.

[1:7]  ³² tn Grk “It is not for you to know.”

[1:8]  ³³ tn Or “to the ends.”

[1:9]  ³⁴ tn Grk “And after.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[1:19]  ³⁵ tn Grk “And this.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[1:19]  ³⁶ sn Their own language refers to Aramaic, the primary language spoken in Palestine in Jesus’ day.

[1:19]  ³⁷ tn Grk “that field was called.” The passive voice has been converted to active in the translation in keeping with contemporary English style.

[4:8]  ³⁸ tn Grk “he led captive captivity.”

[4:8]  ³⁹ sn A quotation which is perhaps ultimately derived from Ps 68:18. However, the wording here differs from that of Ps 68 in both the Hebrew text and the LXX in a few places, the most significant of which is reading “gave gifts to” in place of “received gifts from” as in HT and LXX. It has sometimes been suggested that the author of Ephesians modified the text he was citing in order to better support what he wanted to say here. Such modifications are sometimes found in rabbinic exegesis from this and later periods, but it is also possible that the author was simply citing a variant of Ps 68 known to him but which has not survived outside its quotation here (W. H. Harris, The Descent of Christ [AGJU 32], 104). Another possibility is that the words here, which strongly resemble Ps 68:19 HT and LXX (68:18 ET), are actually part of an early Christian hymn quoted by the author.

[4:9]  ⁴⁰ tc The majority of mss (א² B C³ Ψ Ï) read πρῶτον (prwton, “first”) here in conjunction with this verb: “he first descended.” The shorter reading, which lacks πρῶτον, should be considered original on the basis of both external and internal evidence: It has strong external support from the Alexandrian and Western texttypes (Ì⁴⁶ א* A C* D F G I^vid 082 6 33 81 1739 1881 pc); internally, the inclusion of πρῶτον is most likely an addition to clarify the sense of the passage.

[4:9]  ⁴¹ tc The Western texttype (D* F G it) lacks the plural noun μέρη (merh, “regions”); the shorter reading cannot be dismissed out of hand since it is also supported by Ì⁴⁶ (which often has strong affinities, however, with the Western text). The inclusion of the word has strong external support from important, early mss as well as the majority of Byzantine cursives (א A B C D² I Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï). Certain scribes may have deleted the word, thinking it superfluous; in addition, if the shorter reading were original one would expect to see at least a little variation in clarifying additions to the text. For these reasons the inclusion of μέρη should be regarded as original.

[4:9]  ⁴² tn Grk “to the lower parts of the earth.” This phrase has been variously interpreted: (1) The traditional view understands it as a reference to the underworld (hell), where Jesus is thought to have descended in the three days between his death and resurrection. In this case, “of the earth” would be a partitive genitive. (2) A second option is to translate the phrase “of the earth” as a genitive of apposition: “to the lower parts, namely, the earth” (as in the present translation). Many recent scholars hold this view and argue that it is a reference to the incarnation. (3) A third option, which also sees the phrase “of the earth” as a genitive of apposition, is that the descent in the passage occurs after the ascent rather than before it, and refers to the descent of the Spirit at Pentecost (cf. Acts 4:11-16). Support for this latter view is found in the intertestamental and rabbinic use of Ps 68:18 (quoted in v. 8), which is consistently and solely interpreted as a reference to Moses’ ascent of Mt. Sinai to “capture” the words of the law. The probability, therefore, is that the comments here in v. 9 reflect a polemic against the interpretation of Ps 68:18 in certain circles as a reference to Moses. See W. H. Harris, The Descent of Christ (AGJU 32), 46-54; 171-204.

[4:10]  ⁴³ tn The Greek text lays specific emphasis on “He” through the use of the intensive pronoun, αὐτός (autos). This is reflected in the English translation through the use of “the very one.”

[1:3]  ⁴⁴ tn Grk “who being…and sustaining.” Heb 1:1-4 form one skillfully composed sentence in Greek, but it must be broken into shorter segments to correspond to contemporary English usage, which does not allow for sentences of this length and complexity.

[1:3]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “by the word of his power.”

[1:3]  ⁴⁶ sn An allusion to Ps 110:1, quoted often in Hebrews.

[8:1]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “the main point of the things being said.”

[8:1]  ⁴⁸ sn An allusion to Ps 110:1; see Heb 1:3, 13.

[12:2]  ⁴⁹ sn An allusion to Ps 110:1.

[12:1]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “having such a great cloud of witnesses surrounding us.”

[3:1]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 2:11.

[3:1]  ⁵² tn Grk “of our confession.”