Philippians 2:4

2:4 Each of you should be concerned ¹  not only ²  about your own interests, but about the interests of others as well. ³ 

Isaiah 56:11

56:11 The dogs have big appetites;

they are never full. ⁴ 

They are shepherds who have no understanding;

they all go their own way,

each one looking for monetary gain. ⁵ 

Malachi 1:10

1:10 “I wish that one of you would close the temple doors, ⁶  so that you no longer would light useless fires on my altar. I am not pleased with you,” says the Lord who rules over all, “and I will no longer accept an offering from you.

Matthew 16:24

16:24 Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If anyone wants to become my follower, ⁷  he must deny ⁸  himself, take up his cross, ⁹  and follow me.

Luke 9:57-62

Challenging Professed Followers

9:57 As ¹⁰  they were walking ¹¹  along the road, someone said to him, “I will follow you wherever you go.” ¹²  9:58 Jesus said to him, “Foxes have dens and the birds in the sky ¹³  have nests, but the Son of Man has no place to lay his head.” ¹⁴  9:59 Jesus ¹⁵  said to another, “Follow me.” But he replied, ¹⁶  “Lord, first let me go and bury my father.” 9:60 But Jesus ¹⁷  said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, ¹⁸  but as for you, go and proclaim the kingdom of God.” ¹⁹  9:61 Yet ²⁰  another said, “I will follow you, Lord, but first let me say goodbye to my family.” ²¹  9:62 Jesus ²²  said to him, “No one who puts his ²³  hand to the plow and looks back ²⁴  is fit for the kingdom of God.” ²⁵ 

Luke 14:26

14:26 “If anyone comes to me and does not hate ²⁶  his own father and mother, and wife and children, and brothers and sisters, and even his own life, ²⁷  he cannot be my disciple.

Acts 13:13

Paul and Barnabas at Pisidian Antioch

13:13 Then Paul and his companions put out to sea ²⁸  from Paphos ²⁹  and came to Perga ³⁰  in Pamphylia, ³¹  but John ³²  left them and returned to Jerusalem. ³³ 

Acts 15:38

15:38 but Paul insisted ³⁴  that they should not take along this one who had left them in Pamphylia ³⁵  and had not accompanied them in the work.

Acts 15:1

The Jerusalem Council

15:1 Now some men came down from Judea ³⁶  and began to teach the brothers, “Unless you are circumcised ³⁷  according to the custom of Moses, you cannot be saved.”

Colossians 1:24

1:24 Now I rejoice in my sufferings for you, and I fill up in my physical body – for the sake of his body, the church – what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ.

Colossians 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From Paul, ³⁸  an apostle of Christ Jesus by the will of God, and Timothy our brother,

Colossians 1:5

1:5 Your faith and love have arisen ³⁹  from the hope laid up ⁴⁰  for you in heaven, which you have heard about in the message of truth, the gospel ⁴¹ 

Colossians 1:2

1:2 to the saints, the faithful ⁴²  brothers and sisters ⁴³  in Christ, at Colossae. Grace and peace to you ⁴⁴  from God our Father! ⁴⁵ 

Colossians 1:15

The Supremacy of Christ

1:15 ⁴⁶ He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn ⁴⁷  over all creation, ⁴⁸ 

Colossians 3:2

3:2 Keep thinking about things above, not things on the earth,

Colossians 4:10

4:10 Aristarchus, my fellow prisoner, sends you greetings, as does Mark, the cousin of Barnabas (about whom you received instructions; if he comes to you, welcome him).

Colossians 4:16

4:16 And after ⁴⁹  you have read this letter, have it read ⁵⁰  to the church of Laodicea. In turn, read the letter from Laodicea ⁵¹  as well.

[2:4]  ¹ tn On the meaning “be concerned about” for σκοπέω (skopew), see L&N 27.36.

[2:4]  ² tn The word “only” is not in the Greek text, but is implied by the ἀλλὰ καί (alla kai) in the second clause (“but…as well”). The bulk of the Western text dropped the καί, motivated most likely by ascetic concerns.

[2:4]  ³ tc The bulk of the Western text (D*^,c F G K it) dropped καί (kai) here, most likely due to ascetic concerns. Strong external attestation for its inclusion from excellent witnesses as well as the majority (Ì⁴⁶ א A B C D² 0278 33 1739 1881 Ï) also marks it as original.

[56:11]  ⁴ sn The phrase never full alludes to the greed of the leaders.

[56:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “for his gain from his end.”

[1:10]  ⁶ sn The rhetorical language suggests that as long as the priesthood and people remain disobedient, the temple doors may as well be closed because God is not “at home” to receive them or their worship there.

[16:24]  ⁷ tn Grk “to come after me.”

[16:24]  ⁸ tn This translation better expresses the force of the Greek third person imperative than the traditional “let him deny,” which could be understood as merely permissive.

[16:24]  ⁹ sn To bear the cross means to accept the rejection of the world for turning to Jesus and following him. Discipleship involves a death that is like a crucifixion; see Gal 6:14.

[9:57]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “And as.” Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[9:57]  ¹¹ tn Grk “going,” but “walking” is an accurate description of how they traveled about.

[9:57]  ¹² tc Most mss (A C W Θ Ψ Ë¹³ 33 Ï) add κύριε (kurie, “Lord”) here, but scribes were prone to add to the text, especially appellations for the Lord. The shorter reading also enjoys significant ms support (Ì^45,75 א B D L Ξ Ë¹ lat co).

[9:58]  ¹³ tn Grk “the birds of the sky” or “the birds of the heaven”; the Greek word οὐρανός (ouranos) may be translated either “sky” or “heaven,” depending on the context. The idiomatic expression “birds of the sky” refers to wild birds as opposed to domesticated fowl (cf. BDAG 809 s.v. πετεινόν).

[9:58]  ¹⁴ sn Jesus’ reply is simply this: Does the man understand the rejection he will be facing? Jesus has no home in the world (the Son of Man has no place to lay his head).

[9:59]  ¹⁵ tn Grk “And he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[9:59]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “said.”

[9:60]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[9:60]  ¹⁸ sn There are several options for the meaning of Jesus’ reply Leave the dead to bury their own dead: (1) Recent research suggests that burial customs in the vicinity of Jerusalem from about 20 b.c. to a.d. 70 involved a reinterment of the bones a year after the initial burial, once the flesh had rotted away. At that point the son would have placed his father’s bones in a special box known as an ossuary to be set into the wall of the tomb. Thus Jesus could well be rebuking the man for wanting to wait around for as much as a year before making a commitment to follow him. In 1st century Jewish culture, to have followed Jesus rather than burying one’s father would have seriously dishonored one’s father (cf. Tobit 4:3-4). (2) The remark is an idiom (possibly a proverbial saying) that means, “The matter in question is not the real issue,” in which case Jesus was making a wordplay on the wording of the man’s (literal) request (see L&N 33.137). (3) This remark could be a figurative reference to various kinds of people, meaning, “Let the spiritually dead bury the dead.” (4) It could also be literal and designed to shock the hearer by the surprise of the contrast. Whichever option is preferred, it is clear that the most important priority is to preach the gospel (proclaim the kingdom of God).

[9:60]  ¹⁹ 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.

[9:61]  ²⁰ tn Grk “And another also said.”

[9:61]  ²¹ tn Grk “to those in my house.”

[9:62]  ²² tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[9:62]  ²³ tn Grk “the”; in context the article is used as a possessive pronoun (ExSyn 215).

[9:62]  ²⁴ sn Jesus warns that excessive concern for family ties (looks back) will make the kingdom a lesser priority, which is not appropriate for discipleship. The image is graphic, for who can plow straight ahead toward a goal while looking back? Discipleship cannot be double-minded.

[9:62]  ²⁵ 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.

[14:26]  ²⁶ tn This figurative use operates on a relative scale. God is to be loved more than family or self.

[14:26]  ²⁷ tn Grk “his own soul,” but ψυχή (yuch) is frequently used of one’s physical life. It clearly has that meaning in this context.

[13:13]  ²⁸ tn BDAG 62 s.v. ἀνάγω 4, “as a nautical t.t. (ἀ. τὴν ναῦν put a ship to sea), mid. or pass. ἀνάγεσθαι to begin to go by boat, put out to sea.”

[13:13]  ²⁹ sn Paphos was a city on the southwestern coast of the island of Cyprus. See Acts 13:6.

[13:13]  ³⁰ sn Perga was a city in Pamphylia near the southern coast of Asia Minor. The journey from Paphos to Perga is about 105 mi (175 km).

[13:13]  ³¹ sn Pamphylia was a province in the southern part of Asia Minor.

[13:13]  ³² sn That is, John Mark.

[13:13]  ³³ sn Returned to Jerusalem. John Mark had originally accompanied them from Jerusalem (see Acts 12:25). John Mark’s decision to leave became an issue later for Barnabas and Paul (Acts 15:36-39).

[15:38]  ³⁴ tn BDAG 94 s.v. ἀξιόω 2.a has “he insisted (impf.) that they should not take him along” for this phrase.

[15:38]  ³⁵ sn Pamphylia was a province in the southern part of Asia Minor. See Acts 13:13, where it was mentioned previously.

[15:1]  ³⁶ sn That is, they came down from Judea to Antioch in Syria.

[15:1]  ³⁷ tc Codex Bezae (D) and a few other witnesses have “and walk” here (i.e., instead of τῷ ἔθει τῷ Μωϋσέως [tw eqei tw Mwu>sew"] they read καὶ τῷ ἔθει τῷ Μωϋσέως περιπατῆτε [kai tw eqei tw Mwu>sew" peripathte]). This is a decidedly stronger focus on obedience to the Law. As well, D expands vv. 1-5 in various places with the overall effect of being “more sympathetic to the local tradition of the church at Jerusalem” while the Alexandrian witnesses are more sympathetic to Paul (TCGNT 377). Codex D is well known for having a significantly longer text in Acts, but modern scholarship is generally of the opinion that the text of D expands on the original wording of Acts, with a theological viewpoint that especially puts Peter in a more authoritarian light. The expansion in these five verses is in keeping with that motif even though Peter is not explicitly in view.

[1:1]  ³⁸ tn Grk “Paul.” The word “from” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:5]  ³⁹ tn Col 1:3-8 form one long sentence in the Greek text and have been divided at the end of v. 4 and v. 6 and within v. 6 for clarity, in keeping with the tendency in contemporary English toward shorter sentences. Thus the phrase “Your faith and love have arisen from the hope” is literally “because of the hope.” The perfect tense “have arisen” was chosen in the English to reflect the fact that the recipients of the letter had acquired this hope at conversion in the past, but that it still remains and motivates them to trust in Christ and to love one another.

[1:5]  ⁴⁰ tn BDAG 113 s.v. ἀπόκειμαι 2 renders ἀποκειμένην (apokeimenhn) with the expression “reserved” in this verse.

[1:5]  ⁴¹ tn The term “the gospel” (τοῦ εὐαγγελίου, tou euangeliou) is in apposition to “the word of truth” (τῷ λόγῳ τῆς ἀληθείας, tw logw th" alhqeia") as indicated in the translation.

[1:2]  ⁴² tn Grk “and faithful.” The construction in Greek (as well as Paul’s style) suggests that the saints are identical to the faithful; hence, the καί (kai) is best left untranslated (cf. Eph 1:1). See ExSyn 281-82.

[1:2]  ⁴³ tn Grk “brothers,” but the Greek word may be used for “brothers and sisters” or “fellow Christians” as here (cf. BDAG 18 s.v. ἀδελφός 1, where considerable nonbiblical evidence for the plural ἀδελφοί [adelfoi] meaning “brothers and sisters” is cited).

[1:2]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “Grace to you and peace.”

[1:2]  ⁴⁵ tc Most witnesses, including some important ones (א A C F G I [P] 075 Ï it bo), read “and the Lord Jesus Christ” at the end of this verse, no doubt to conform the wording to the typical Pauline salutation. However, excellent and early witnesses (B D K L Ψ 33 81 1175 1505 1739 1881 al sa) lack this phrase. Since the omission is inexplicable as arising from the longer reading (otherwise, these mss would surely have deleted the phrase in the rest of the corpus Paulinum), it is surely authentic.

[1:15]  ⁴⁶ sn This passage has been typeset as poetry because many scholars regard this passage as poetic or hymnic. These terms are used broadly to refer to the genre of writing, not to the content. There are two broad criteria for determining if a passage is poetic or hymnic: “(a) stylistic: a certain rhythmical lilt when the passages are read aloud, the presence of parallelismus membrorum (i.e., an arrangement into couplets), the semblance of some metre, and the presence of rhetorical devices such as alliteration, chiasmus, and antithesis; and (b) linguistic: an unusual vocabulary, particularly the presence of theological terms, which is different from the surrounding context” (P. T. O’Brien, Philippians [NIGTC], 188-89). Classifying a passage as hymnic or poetic is important because understanding this genre can provide keys to interpretation. However, not all scholars agree that the above criteria are present in this passage, so the decision to typeset it as poetry should be viewed as a tentative decision about its genre.

[1:15]  ⁴⁷ tn The Greek term πρωτότοκος (prwtotokos) could refer either to first in order of time, such as a first born child, or it could refer to one who is preeminent in rank. M. J. Harris, Colossians and Philemon (EGGNT), 43, expresses the meaning of the word well: “The ‘firstborn’ was either the eldest child in a family or a person of preeminent rank. The use of this term to describe the Davidic king in Ps 88:28 LXX (=Ps 89:27 EVV), ‘I will also appoint him my firstborn (πρωτότοκον), the most exalted of the kings of the earth,’ indicates that it can denote supremacy in rank as well as priority in time. But whether the πρωτό- element in the word denotes time, rank, or both, the significance of the -τοκος element as indicating birth or origin (from τίκτω, give birth to) has been virtually lost except in ref. to lit. birth.” In Col 1:15 the emphasis is on the priority of Jesus’ rank as over and above creation (cf. 1:16 and the “for” clause referring to Jesus as Creator).

[1:15]  ⁴⁸ tn The genitive construction πάσης κτίσεως (pash" ktisew") is a genitive of subordination and is therefore translated as “over all creation.” See ExSyn 103-4.

[4:16]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “when.”

[4:16]  ⁵⁰ tn The construction beginning with the imperative ποιήσατε ἵνα…ἀναγνωσθῇ (poihsate Jina…anagnwsqh) should be translated as “have it read” where the conjunction ἵνα functions to mark off its clause as the direct object of the imperative ποιήσατε. The content of the clause (“reading the letter”) is what Paul commands with the imperative ποιήσατε. Thus the translation “have it read” has been used here.

[4:16]  ⁵¹ sn This letter is otherwise unknown, but some have suggested that it is the letter known today as Ephesians.