Nehemiah 6:11

6:11 But I replied, “Should a man like me run away? Would someone like me flee to the temple in order to save his life? ¹  I will not go!”

Psalms 11:1-2

Psalm 11 ² 

For the music director; by David.

11:1 In the Lord I have taken shelter. ³ 

How can you say to me, ⁴ 

“Flee to a mountain like a bird! ⁵ 

11:2 For look, the wicked ⁶  prepare ⁷  their bows, ⁸ 

they put their arrows on the strings,

to shoot in the darkness ⁹  at the morally upright. ¹⁰ 

Matthew 10:28-33

10:28 Do ¹¹  not be afraid of those who kill the body ¹²  but cannot kill the soul. Instead, fear the one who is able to destroy both soul and body in hell. ¹³  10:29 Aren’t two sparrows sold for a penny? ¹⁴  Yet not one of them falls to the ground apart from your Father’s will. ¹⁵  10:30 Even all the hairs on your head are numbered. 10:31 So do not be afraid; ¹⁶  you are more valuable than many sparrows.

10:32 “Whoever, then, acknowledges ¹⁷  me before people, I will acknowledge ¹⁸  before my Father in heaven. 10:33 But whoever denies me before people, I will deny him also before my Father in heaven.

Luke 12:4-9

12:4 “I ¹⁹  tell you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body, ²⁰  and after that have nothing more they can do. 12:5 But I will warn ²¹  you whom you should fear: Fear the one who, after the killing, ²²  has authority to throw you ²³  into hell. ²⁴  Yes, I tell you, fear him! 12:6 Aren’t five sparrows sold for two pennies? ²⁵  Yet not one of them is forgotten before God. 12:7 In fact, even the hairs on your head are all numbered. Do not be afraid; ²⁶  you are more valuable than many sparrows.

12:8 “I ²⁷  tell you, whoever acknowledges ²⁸  me before men, ²⁹  the Son of Man will also acknowledge ³⁰  before God’s angels. 12:9 But the one who denies me before men will be denied before God’s angels.

Acts 4:18-19

4:18 And they called them in and ordered ³¹  them not to speak or teach at all in the name ³²  of Jesus. 4:19 But Peter and John replied, ³³  “Whether it is right before God to obey ³⁴  you rather than God, you decide,

Acts 4:29

4:29 And now, Lord, pay attention to ³⁵  their threats, and grant ³⁶  to your servants ³⁷  to speak your message ³⁸  with great courage, ³⁹ 

Acts 5:20

5:20 “Go and stand in the temple courts ⁴⁰  and proclaim ⁴¹  to the people all the words of this life.”

Acts 5:29

5:29 But Peter and the apostles replied, ⁴²  “We must obey ⁴³  God rather than people. ⁴⁴ 

Acts 5:40-42

5:40 and they summoned the apostles and had them beaten. ⁴⁵  Then ⁴⁶  they ordered them not to speak in the name of Jesus and released them. 5:41 So they left the council rejoicing because they had been considered worthy ⁴⁷  to suffer dishonor for the sake of the name. ⁴⁸  5:42 And every day both in the temple courts ⁴⁹  and from house to house, they did not stop teaching and proclaiming the good news ⁵⁰  that Jesus was the Christ. ⁵¹ 

Acts 20:24

20:24 But I do not consider my life ⁵²  worth anything ⁵³  to myself, so that ⁵⁴  I may finish my task ⁵⁵  and the ministry that I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify to the good news ⁵⁶  of God’s grace.

Philippians 1:14

1:14 and most of the brothers and sisters, ⁵⁷  having confidence in the Lord ⁵⁸  because of my imprisonment, now more than ever ⁵⁹  dare to speak the word ⁶⁰  fearlessly.

Philippians 1:20

1:20 My confident hope ⁶¹  is that I will in no way be ashamed ⁶²  but that with complete boldness, even now as always, Christ will be exalted in my body, whether I live or die. ⁶³ 

Revelation 2:10

2:10 Do not be afraid of the things you are about to suffer. The devil is about to have some of you thrown ⁶⁴  into prison so you may be tested, ⁶⁵  and you will experience suffering ⁶⁶  for ten days. Remain faithful even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown that is life itself. ⁶⁷ 

Revelation 2:13

2:13 ‘I know ⁶⁸  where you live – where Satan’s throne is. Yet ⁶⁹  you continue to cling ⁷⁰  to my name and you have not denied your ⁷¹  faith in me, ⁷²  even in the days of Antipas, my faithful witness, ⁷³  who was killed in your city ⁷⁴  where Satan lives.

[6:11]  ¹ tn Heb “go into the temple and live.”

[11:1]  ² sn Psalm 11. The psalmist rejects the advice to flee from his dangerous enemies. Instead he affirms his confidence in God’s just character and calls down judgment on evildoers.

[11:1]  ³ tn The Hebrew perfect verbal form probably refers here to a completed action with continuing results.

[11:1]  ⁴ tn The pronominal suffix attached to נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) is equivalent to a personal pronoun. See Ps 6:3.

[11:1]  ⁵ tc The MT is corrupt here. The Kethib (consonantal text) reads: “flee [masculine plural!] to your [masculine plural!] mountain, bird.” The Qere (marginal reading) has “flee” in a feminine singular form, agreeing grammatically with the addressee, the feminine noun “bird.” Rather than being a second masculine plural pronominal suffix, the ending כֶם- (-khem) attached to “mountain” is better interpreted as a second feminine singular pronominal suffix followed by an enclitic mem (ם). “Bird” may be taken as vocative (“O bird”) or as an adverbial accusative of manner (“like a bird”). Either way, the psalmist’s advisers compare him to a helpless bird whose only option in the face of danger is to fly away to an inaccessible place.

[11:2]  ⁶ tn In the psalms the “wicked” (רְשָׁעִים, rÿsha’im) are typically proud, practical atheists (Ps 10:2, 4, 11) who hate God’s commands, commit sinful deeds, speak lies and slander (Ps 50:16-20), and cheat others (Ps 37:21). They oppose God and threaten his people (Ps 3:8).

[11:2]  ⁷ tn The Hebrew imperfect verbal form depicts the enemies’ hostile action as underway.

[11:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “a bow.”

[11:2]  ⁹ sn In the darkness. The enemies’ attack, the precise form of which is not indicated, is compared here to a night ambush by archers; the psalmist is defenseless against this deadly attack.

[11:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “pure of heart.” The “heart” is here viewed as the seat of one’s moral character and motives. The “pure of heart” are God’s faithful followers who trust in and love the Lord and, as a result, experience his deliverance (see Pss 7:10; 32:11; 36:10; 64:10; 94:15; 97:11).

[10:28]  ¹¹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated.

[10:28]  ¹² sn Judaism had a similar exhortation in 4 Macc 13:14-15.

[10:28]  ¹³ sn See the note on the word hell in 5:22.

[10:29]  ¹⁴ sn The penny refers to an assarion, a small Roman copper coin. One of them was worth one-sixteenth of a denarius or less than a half hour’s average wage. Sparrows were the cheapest items sold in the market. God knows about even the most financially insignificant things; see Isa 49:15.

[10:29]  ¹⁵ tn Or “to the ground without the knowledge and consent of your Father.”

[10:31]  ¹⁶ sn Do not be afraid. One should respect and show reverence to God, but need not fear his tender care.

[10:32]  ¹⁷ tn Or “confesses.”

[10:32]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “I will acknowledge him also.”

[12:4]  ¹⁹ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[12:4]  ²⁰ sn Judaism had a similar exhortation in 4 Macc 13:14-15.

[12:5]  ²¹ tn Grk “will show,” but in this reflective context such a demonstration is a warning or exhortation.

[12:5]  ²² sn The actual performer of the killing is not here specified. It could be understood to be God (so NASB, NRSV) but it could simply emphasize that, after a killing has taken place, it is God who casts the person into hell.

[12:5]  ²³ tn The direct object (“you”) is understood.

[12:5]  ²⁴ sn The word translated hell is “Gehenna” (γέεννα, geenna), a Greek transliteration of the Hebrew words ge hinnom (“Valley of Hinnom”). This was the valley along the south side of Jerusalem. In OT times it was used for human sacrifices to the pagan god Molech (cf. Jer 7:31; 19:5-6; 32:35), and it came to be used as a place where human excrement and rubbish were disposed of and burned. In the intertestamental period, it came to be used symbolically as the place of divine punishment (cf. 1 En. 27:2, 90:26; 4 Ezra 7:36).

[12:6]  ²⁵ sn The pennies refer to the assarion, a small Roman copper coin. One of them was worth one sixteenth of a denarius or less than a half hour’s average wage. Sparrows were the cheapest thing sold in the market. God knows about even the most financially insignificant things; see Isa 49:15.

[12:7]  ²⁶ sn Do not be afraid. One should respect and show reverence to God (v. 5), but need not fear his tender care.

[12:8]  ²⁷ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[12:8]  ²⁸ tn Or “confesses.”

[12:8]  ²⁹ tn Although this is a generic reference and includes both males and females, in this context “men” has been retained because of the wordplay with the Son of Man and the contrast with the angels. The same is true of the occurrence of “men” in v. 9.

[12:8]  ³⁰ sn This acknowledgment will take place at the judgment. Of course, the Son of Man is a reference to Jesus as it has been throughout the Gospel. On Jesus and judgment, see 22:69; Acts 10:42-43; 17:31.

[4:18]  ³¹ tn Or “commanded.”

[4:18]  ³² sn In the name of Jesus. Once again, the “name” reflects the person. The person of Jesus and his authority is the “troubling” topic that, as far as the Jewish leadership is concerned, needs controlling.

[4:19]  ³³ tn Grk “answered and said to them.”

[4:19]  ³⁴ 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).

[4:29]  ³⁵ tn Or “Lord, take notice of.”

[4:29]  ³⁶ sn Grant to your servants to speak your message with great courage. The request is not for a stop to persecution or revenge on the opponents, but for boldness (great courage) to carry out the mission of proclaiming the message of what God is doing through Jesus.

[4:29]  ³⁷ tn Grk “slaves.” See the note on the word “servants” in 2:18.

[4:29]  ³⁸ tn Grk “word.”

[4:29]  ³⁹ tn Or “with all boldness.”

[5:20]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “the temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper, and has been translated accordingly.

[5:20]  ⁴¹ tn Or “speak.”

[5:29]  ⁴² tn Grk “apostles answered and said.”

[5:29]  ⁴³ sn Obey. See 4:19. This response has Jewish roots (Dan 3:16-18; 2 Macc 7:2; Josephus, Ant. 17.6.3 [17.159].

[5:29]  ⁴⁴ tn Here ἀνθρώποις (anqrwpoi") has been translated as a generic noun (“people”).

[5:40]  ⁴⁵ sn Had them beaten. The punishment was the “forty lashes minus one,” see also Acts 22:19; 2 Cor 11:24; Mark 13:9. The apostles had disobeyed the religious authorities and took their punishment for their “disobedience” (Deut 25:2-3; m. Makkot 3:10-14). In Acts 4:18 they were warned. Now they are beaten. The hostility is rising as the narrative unfolds.

[5:40]  ⁴⁶ tn The word “Then” is supplied as the beginning of a new sentence in the translation. The construction in Greek has so many clauses (most of them made up of participles) that a continuous English sentence would be very awkward.

[5:41]  ⁴⁷ sn That is, considered worthy by God. They “gloried in their shame” of honoring Jesus with their testimony (Luke 6:22-23; 2 Macc 6:30).

[5:41]  ⁴⁸ sn The name refers to the name of Jesus (cf. 3 John 7).

[5:42]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “temple.” This is actually a reference to the courts surrounding the temple proper and has been translated accordingly.

[5:42]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “teaching and evangelizing.” They were still obeying God, not men (see 4:18-20; 5:29).

[5:42]  ⁵¹ tn Or “Messiah”; both “Christ” (Greek) and “Messiah” (Hebrew and Aramaic) mean “one who has been anointed.”

[20:24]  ⁵² tn Grk “soul.”

[20:24]  ⁵³ tn Or “I do not consider my life worth a single word.” According to BDAG 599 s.v. λόγος 1.a.α, “In the textually uncertain pass. Ac 20:24 the text as it stands in N., οὐδενὸς λόγου (v.l. λόγον) ποιοῦμαι τὴν ψυχὴν τιμίαν, may well mean: I do not consider my life worth a single word (cp. λόγου ἄξιον [ἄξιος 1a] and our ‘worth mention’).”

[20:24]  ⁵⁴ tn BDAG 1106 s.v. ὡς 9 describes this use as “a final particle, expressing intention/purpose, with a view to, in order to.”

[20:24]  ⁵⁵ tn Grk “course.” See L&N 42.26, “(a figurative extension of meaning of δρόμος ‘race’) a task or function involving continuity, serious, effort, and possibly obligation – ‘task, mission’…Ac 20:24.” On this Pauline theme see also Phil 1:19-26; Col 1:24; 2 Tim 4:6-7.

[20:24]  ⁵⁶ tn Or “to the gospel.”

[1:14]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:12.

[1:14]  ⁵⁸ tn Or “most of the brothers and sisters in the Lord, having confidence.”

[1:14]  ⁵⁹ tn Grk “even more so.”

[1:14]  ⁶⁰ tc A number of significant mss have “of God” after “word.” Although τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou) is amply supported in the Alexandrian and Western texts (א A B [D*] P Ψ 048^vid 075 0278 33 81 1175 al lat co), the omission is difficult to explain as either an intentional deletion or unintentional oversight. To be sure, the pedigree of the witnesses is not nearly as great for the shorter reading (Ì⁴⁶ D² 1739 1881 Ï), but it explains well the rise of the other reading. Further, it explains the rise of κυρίου (kuriou, “of the Lord”), the reading of F and G (for if these mss had followed a Vorlage with τοῦ θεοῦ, κυρίου would not have been expected). Further, τοῦ θεοῦ is in different locations among the mss; such dislocations are usually signs of scribal additions to the text. Thus, the Byzantine text and a few other witnesses here have the superior reading, and it should be accepted as the original.

[1:20]  ⁶¹ tn Grk “according to my eager expectation and hope.” The κατά (kata) phrase is taken as governing the following ὅτι (Joti) clause (“that I will not be ashamed…”); the idea could be expressed more verbally as “I confidently hope that I will not be ashamed…”

[1:20]  ⁶² tn Or possibly, “be intimidated, be put to shame.”

[1:20]  ⁶³ tn Grk “whether by life or by death.”

[2:10]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “is about to throw some of you,” but the force is causative in context.

[2:10]  ⁶⁵ tn Or “tempted.”

[2:10]  ⁶⁶ tn Or “experience persecution,” “will be in distress” (see L&N 22.2).

[2:10]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “crown of life,” with the genitive “of life” (τῆς ζωῆς, th" zwh") functioning in apposition to “crown” (στέφανον, stefanon): “the crown that consists of life.”

[2:13]  ⁶⁸ tc The shorter reading adopted here has superior ms support (א A C P 2053 al latt co), while the inclusion of “your works and” (τὰ ἔργα σου καί, ta erga sou kai) before “where you reside” is supported by the Byzantine witnesses and is evidently a secondary attempt to harmonize the passage with 2:2, 19; 3:1, 8, 15.

[2:13]  ⁶⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “Yet” to indicate the contrast between their location and their faithful behavior.

[2:13]  ⁷⁰ tn The present indicative verb κρατεῖς (kratei") has been translated as a progressive present.

[2:13]  ⁷¹ tn Grk “the faith”; here the Greek article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[2:13]  ⁷² tn Grk “the faith of me” (τὴν πίστιν μου, thn pistin mou) with the genitive “of me” (μου) functioning objectively.

[2:13]  ⁷³ tn Or “martyr.” The Greek word μάρτυς can mean either “witness” or “martyr.”

[2:13]  ⁷⁴ tn Grk “killed among you.” The term “city” does not occur in the Greek text of course, but the expression παρ᾿ ὑμῖν, ὅπου ὁ σατανᾶς κατοικεῖ (par’ Jumin, {opou Jo satana" katoikei) seems to indicate that this is what is meant. See G. B. Caird, Revelation (HNTC), 36-38.