Philippians 3:3

3:3 For we are the circumcision, ¹  the ones who worship by the Spirit of God, ²  exult in Christ Jesus, and do not rely on human credentials ³ 

Romans 2:28

2:28 For a person is not a Jew who is one outwardly, nor is circumcision something that is outward in the flesh,

Galatians 2:3-4

2:3 Yet ⁴  not even Titus, who was with me, was compelled to be circumcised, although he was a Greek. 2:4 Now this matter arose ⁵  because of the false brothers with false pretenses ⁶  who slipped in unnoticed to spy on ⁷  our freedom that we have in Christ Jesus, to make us slaves. ⁸ 

Galatians 5:1-3

Freedom of the Believer

5:1 For freedom ⁹  Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke ¹⁰  of slavery. 5:2 Listen! I, Paul, tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you at all! 5:3 And I testify again to every man who lets himself be circumcised that he is obligated to obey ¹¹  the whole law.

Galatians 5:6

5:6 For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision carries any weight – the only thing that matters is faith working through love. ¹² 

Revelation 2:9

2:9 ‘I know the distress you are suffering ¹³  and your poverty (but you are rich). I also know ¹⁴  the slander against you ¹⁵  by those who call themselves Jews and really are not, but are a synagogue ¹⁶  of Satan.

Revelation 3:9

3:9 Listen! ¹⁷  I am going to make those people from the synagogue ¹⁸  of Satan – who say they are Jews yet ¹⁹  are not, but are lying – Look, I will make ²⁰  them come and bow down ²¹  at your feet and acknowledge ²²  that I have loved you.

[3:3]  ¹ tn There is a significant wordplay here in the Greek text. In v. 2 a rare, strong word is used to describe those who were pro-circumcision (κατατομή, katatomh, “mutilation”; see BDAG 528 s.v.), while in v. 3 the normal word for circumcision is used (περιτομή, peritomh; see BDAG 807 s.v.). Both have τομή (the feminine form of the adjective τομός [tomo"], meaning “cutting, sharp”) as their root; the direction of the action of the former is down or off (from κατά, kata), hence the implication of mutilation or emasculation, while the direction of the action of the latter is around (from περί, peri). The similarity in sound yet wide divergence of meaning between the two words highlights in no uncertain terms the differences between Paul and his opponents.

[3:3]  ² tc The verb λατρεύω (latreuw; here the participial form, λατρεύοντες [latreuonte"]) either takes a dative direct object or no object at all, bearing virtually a technical nuance of “worshiping God” (see BDAG 587 s.v.). In this text, πνεύματι (pneumati) takes an instrumental force (“by the Spirit”) rather than functioning as object of λατρεύοντες. However, the word after πνεύματι is in question, no doubt because of the collocation with λατρεύοντες. Most witnesses, including some of the earliest and best representatives of the Alexandrian, Western, and Byzantine texts (א* A B C D² F G 0278^vid 33 1739 1881 Ï co Ambr), read θεοῦ (qeou; thus, “worship by the Spirit of God”). But several other important witnesses (א² D* P Ψ 075 365 1175 lat sy Chr) have the dative θεῷ (qew) here (“worship God by the Spirit”). Ì⁴⁶ is virtually alone in its omission of the divine name, probably due to an unintentional oversight. The dative θεῷ was most likely a scribal emendation intended to give the participle its proper object, and thus avoid confusion about the force of πνεύματι. Although the Church came to embrace the full deity of the Spirit, the NT does not seem to speak of worshiping the Spirit explicitly. The reading θεῷ thus appears to be a clarifying reading. On external and internal grounds, then, θεοῦ is the preferred reading.

[3:3]  ³ tn Grk “have no confidence in the flesh.”

[2:3]  ⁴ tn Grk “But,” translated here as “Yet” for stylistic reasons (note the use of “but” in v. 2).

[2:4]  ⁵ tn No subject and verb are expressed in vv. 4-5, but the phrase “Now this matter arose,” implied from v. 3, was supplied to make a complete English sentence.

[2:4]  ⁶ tn The adjective παρεισάκτους (pareisaktou"), which relates to someone joining a group with false motives or false pretenses, applies to the “false brothers.” Although the expression “false brothers with false pretenses” is somewhat redundant, it captures the emphatic force of Paul’s expression, which labels both these “brothers” as false (ψευδαδέλφους, yeudadelfou") as well as their motives. See L&N 34.29 for more information.

[2:4]  ⁷ tn The verb translated here as “spy on” (κατασκοπέω, kataskopew) can have a neutral nuance, but here the connotation is certainly negative (so F. F. Bruce, Galatians [NIGTC], 112-13, and E. Burton, Galatians [ICC], 83).

[2:4]  ⁸ tn Grk “in order that they might enslave us.” The ἵνα (Jina) clause with the subjunctive verb καταδουλώσουσιν (katadoulwsousin) has been translated as an English infinitival clause.

[5:1]  ⁹ tn Translating the dative as “For freedom” shows the purpose for Christ setting us free; however, it is also possible to take the phrase in the sense of means or instrument (“with [or by] freedom”), referring to the freedom mentioned in 4:31 and implied throughout the letter.

[5:1]  ¹⁰ sn Here the yoke figuratively represents the burdensome nature of slavery.

[5:3]  ¹¹ tn Or “keep”; or “carry out”; Grk “do.”

[5:6]  ¹² tn Grk “but faith working through love.”

[2:9]  ¹³ tn Or “know your suffering.” This could refer to suffering or distress caused by persecution (see L&N 22.2).

[2:9]  ¹⁴ tn Because of the length and complexity of this Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation by supplying the phrase “I also know” to link this English sentence back to “I know” at the beginning of the verse.

[2:9]  ¹⁵ tn The words “against you” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.

[2:9]  ¹⁶ sn A synagogue was a place for Jewish prayer and worship, with recognized leadership (e.g., Mt 4:23, Mk 1:21, Lk 4:15, Jn 6:59).

[3:9]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “behold” (L&N 91.13).

[3:9]  ¹⁸ sn See the note on synagogue in 2:9.

[3:9]  ¹⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “yet” to indicate the contrast between what these people claimed and what they were.

[3:9]  ²⁰ tn The verb here is ποιέω (poiew), but in this context it has virtually the same meaning as δίδωμι (didwmi) used at the beginning of the verse. Stylistic variation like this is typical of Johannine literature.

[3:9]  ²¹ tn The verb here is προσκυνήσουσιν (proskunhsousin), normally used to refer to worship.

[3:9]  ²² tn Or “and know,” “and recognize.”