Nehemiah 8:4-8

8:4 Ezra the scribe stood on a towering wooden platform ¹  constructed for this purpose. Standing near him on his right were Mattithiah, Shema, Anaiah, Uriah, Hilkiah, and Masseiah. On his left were Pedaiah, Mishael, Malkijah, Hashum, Hashbaddanah, Zechariah, and Meshullam. 8:5 Ezra opened the book in plain view ²  of all the people, for he was elevated above all the people. When he opened the book, ³  all the people stood up. 8:6 Ezra blessed the LORD, the great God, and all the people replied “Amen! Amen!” as they lifted their hands. Then they bowed down and worshiped the LORD with their faces to the ground.

8:7 Jeshua, Bani, Sherebiah, Jamin, Akkub, Shabbethai, Hodiah, Maaseiah, Kelita, Azariah, Jozabad, Hanan, and Pelaiah – all of whom were Levites ⁴  – were teaching the people the law, as the people remained standing. 8:8 They read from the book of God’s law, explaining it ⁵  and imparting insight. Thus the people ⁶  gained understanding from what was read.

Malachi 2:7

2:7 For the lips of a priest should preserve knowledge of sacred things, and people should seek instruction from him ⁷  because he is the messenger of the Lord who rules over all.

Mark 12:38

Warnings About Experts in the Law

12:38 In his teaching Jesus ⁸  also said, “Watch out for the experts in the law. ⁹  They like walking ¹⁰  around in long robes and elaborate greetings ¹¹  in the marketplaces,

Luke 20:46

20:46 “Beware ¹²  of the experts in the law. ¹³  They ¹⁴  like walking around in long robes, and they love elaborate greetings ¹⁵  in the marketplaces and the best seats ¹⁶  in the synagogues ¹⁷  and the places of honor at banquets.

[8:4]  ¹ tn Heb “a tower of wood.”

[8:5]  ² tn Heb “to the eyes.”

[8:5]  ³ tn Heb “it”; the referent (the book) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[8:7]  ⁴ tc The MT reads “and the Levites.” The conjunction (“and”) should be deleted, following the LXX, Aquila, and the Vulgate. That the vav (ו) of the MT is the vav explicativum (“even the Levites”) is unlikely here.

[8:8]  ⁵ tn The exact meaning of the pual participle מְפֹרָשׁ (mÿforash) in this verse is uncertain. The basic sense of the Hebrew word seems to be “to make distinct.” The word may also have the sense of “to divide in parts,” “to interpret,” or “to translate.” The context of Neh 8:8 does not decisively clarify how the participle is to be understood here. It probably refers to the role of the Levites as those who explained or interpreted the portions of biblical text that had been publicly read on this occasion. A different option, however, is suggested by the translation distincte (“distinctly”) of the Vulgate (cf. KJV, ASV). If the Hebrew word means “distinctly” here, it would imply that the readers paid particular attention to such things as word-grouping and pronunciation so as to be sure that the listeners had every opportunity to understand the message that was being read. Yet another view is found in the Talmud, which understands translation of the Hebrew text into Aramaic to be what is in view here. The following explanation of Neh 8:8 is found in b. Megillah 3a: “‘And they read in the book, in the law of God’: this indicates the [Hebrew] text; ‘with an interpretation’: this indicates the targum; ‘and they gave the sense’: this indicates the verse stops; ‘and caused them to understand the reading’: this indicates the accentuation, or, according to another version, the Masoretic notes.” However, this ancient rabbinic view that the origins of the Targum are found in Neh 8:8 is debatable. It is not clear that the practice of paraphrasing the Hebrew biblical text into Aramaic in order to accommodate the needs of those Jews who were not at home in the Hebrew language developed this early. The translation of מְפֹרָשׁ adopted above (i.e., “explaining it”) understands the word to have in mind an explanatory function (cf. NAB, NCV, TEV, NLT) rather than one of translation.

[8:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the people) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[2:7]  ⁷ tn Heb “from his mouth” (so NAB, NASB, NRSV).

[12:38]  ⁸ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:38]  ⁹ tn Or “for the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 1:22.

[12:38]  ¹⁰ tn In Greek this is the only infinitive in vv. 38-39. It would be awkward in English to join an infinitive to the following noun clauses, so this has been translated as a gerund.

[12:38]  ¹¹ sn There is later Jewish material in the Talmud that spells out such greetings in detail. See H. Windisch, TDNT 1:498.

[20:46]  ¹² tn Or “Be on guard against.” This is a present imperative and indicates that pride is something to constantly be on the watch against.

[20:46]  ¹³ tn Or “of the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 5:21.

[20:46]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “who,” continuing the sentence begun by the prior phrase.

[20:46]  ¹⁵ sn There is later Jewish material in the Talmud that spells out such greetings in detail. See D. L. Bock, Luke (BECNT), 2:1642; H. Windisch, TDNT 1:498.

[20:46]  ¹⁶ sn See Luke 14:1-14.

[20:46]  ¹⁷ sn See the note on synagogues in 4:15.