Psalms 41:1-3

Psalm 41 ¹ 

For the music director; a psalm of David.

41:1 How blessed ²  is the one who treats the poor properly! ³ 

When trouble comes, ⁴  the Lord delivers him. ⁵ 

41:2 May the Lord protect him and save his life! ⁶ 

May he be blessed ⁷  in the land!

Do not turn him over ⁸  to his enemies! ⁹ 

41:3 The Lord supports ¹⁰  him on his sickbed;

you completely heal him from his illness. ¹¹ 

Isaiah 58:5-7

58:5 Is this really the kind of fasting I want? ¹² 

Do I want a day when people merely humble themselves, ¹³ 

bowing their heads like a reed

and stretching out ¹⁴  on sackcloth and ashes?

Is this really what you call a fast,

a day that is pleasing to the Lord?

58:6 No, this is the kind of fast I want. ¹⁵ 

I want you ¹⁶  to remove the sinful chains,

to tear away the ropes of the burdensome yoke,

to set free the oppressed, ¹⁷ 

and to break every burdensome yoke.

58:7 I want you ¹⁸  to share your food with the hungry

and to provide shelter for homeless, oppressed people. ¹⁹ 

When you see someone naked, clothe him!

Don’t turn your back on your own flesh and blood! ²⁰ 

Isaiah 58:10-12

58:10 You must ²¹  actively help the hungry

and feed the oppressed. ²² 

Then your light will dispel the darkness, ²³ 

and your darkness will be transformed into noonday. ²⁴ 

58:11 The Lord will continually lead you;

he will feed you even in parched regions. ²⁵ 

He will give you renewed strength, ²⁶ 

and you will be like a well-watered garden,

like a spring that continually produces water.

58:12 Your perpetual ruins will be rebuilt; ²⁷ 

you will reestablish the ancient foundations.

You will be called, ‘The one who repairs broken walls,

the one who makes the streets inhabitable again.’ ²⁸ 

Ezekiel 18:7

18:7 does not oppress anyone, but gives the debtor back whatever was given in pledge, ²⁹  does not commit robbery, ³⁰  but gives his bread to the hungry and clothes the naked,

Luke 11:41

11:41 But give from your heart to those in need, ³¹  and ³²  then everything will be clean for you. ³³ 

Acts 10:2-4

10:2 He ³⁴  was a devout, God-fearing man, ³⁵  as was all his household; he did many acts of charity for the people ³⁶  and prayed to God regularly. 10:3 About three o’clock one afternoon ³⁷  he saw clearly in a vision an angel of God ³⁸  who came in ³⁹  and said to him, “Cornelius.” 10:4 Staring at him and becoming greatly afraid, Cornelius ⁴⁰  replied, ⁴¹  “What is it, Lord?” The angel ⁴²  said to him, “Your prayers and your acts of charity ⁴³  have gone up as a memorial ⁴⁴  before God.

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. ⁴⁵ 

Galatians 5:13

Practice Love

5:13 For you were called to freedom, brothers and sisters; ⁴⁶  only do not use your freedom as an opportunity to indulge your flesh, ⁴⁷  but through love serve one another. ⁴⁸ 

Galatians 5:22

5:22 But the fruit of the Spirit ⁴⁹  is love, ⁵⁰  joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, ⁵¹ 

Ephesians 4:28

4:28 The one who steals must steal no longer; rather he must labor, doing good with his own hands, so that he may have something to share with the one who has need.

[41:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 41. The psalmist is confident (vv. 11-12) that the Lord has heard his request to be healed (vv. 4-10), and he anticipates the joy he will experience when the Lord intervenes (vv. 1-3). One must assume that the psalmist is responding to a divine oracle of assurance (see P. C. Craigie, Psalms 1-50 [WBC], 319-20). The final verse is a fitting conclusion to this psalm, but it is also serves as a fitting conclusion to the first “book” (or major editorial division) of the Psalter. Similar statements appear at or near the end of each of the second, third, and fourth “books” of the Psalter (see Pss 72:19, 89:52, and 106:48 respectively).

[41:1]  ² tn The Hebrew noun is an abstract plural. The word often refers metonymically to the happiness that God-given security and prosperity produce (see Pss 1:1, 3; 2:12; 34:9; 65:4; 84:12; 89:15; 106:3; 112:1; 127:5; 128:1; 144:15).

[41:1]  ³ sn One who treats the poor properly. The psalmist is characterizing himself as such an individual and supplying a reason why God has responded favorably to his prayer. The Lord’s attitude toward the merciful mirrors their treatment of the poor.

[41:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “in the day of trouble” (see Ps 27:5).

[41:1]  ⁵ tn That is, the one who has been kind to the poor. The prefixed verbal form could be taken as jussive of prayer (“may the Lord deliver,” see v. 2), but the preceding parallel line is a declaration of fact, not a prayer per se. The imperfect can be taken here as future (“will deliver,” cf. NEB, NASB) or as generalizing (“delivers,” cf. NIV, NRSV). The parallel line, which has a generalizing tone, favors the latter. At the same time, though the psalmist uses a generalizing style here, he clearly has himself primarily in view.

[41:2]  ⁶ tn The prefixed verbal forms are taken as jussives in the translation because the jussive is clearly used in the final line of the verse, suggesting that this is a prayer. The psalmist stops to pronounce a prayer of blessing on the godly individual envisioned in v. 1. Of course, he actually has himself primarily in view. He mixes confidence (vv. 1, 3) with petition (v. 2) because he stands in the interval between the word of assurance and the actual intervention by God.

[41:2]  ⁷ tc The translation follows the consonantal Hebrew text (Kethib), which has a Pual (passive) prefixed form, regarded here as a jussive. The Pual of the verb אָשַׁר (’ashar) also appears in Prov 3:18. The marginal reading (Qere) assumes a vav (ו) consecutive and Pual perfect. Some, with the support of the LXX, change the verb to a Piel (active) form with an objective pronominal suffix, “and may he bless him,” or “and he will bless him” (cf. NIV).

[41:2]  ⁸ tn The negative particle אַל (’al) before the prefixed verbal form indicates the verb is a jussive and the statement a prayer. Those who want to take v. 2 as a statement of confidence suggest emending the negative particle to לֹא (lo’), which is used with the imperfect. See the earlier note on the verbal forms in line one of this verse. According to GKC 322 §109.e, this is a case where the jussive is used rhetorically to “express that something cannot or should not happen.” In this case one might translate, “you will not turn him over to his enemies,” and take the preceding verbal forms as indicative in mood.

[41:2]  ⁹ tn Heb “do not give him over to the desire of his enemies” (see Ps 27:12).

[41:3]  ¹⁰ tn The prefixed verbal form could be taken as jussive, continuing the prayer of v. 2, but the parallel line in v. 3b employs the perfect, suggesting that the psalmist is again speaking in the indicative mood (see v. 1b). The imperfect can be understood as future or as generalizing (see v. 1).

[41:3]  ¹¹ tn Heb “all his bed you turn in his illness.” The perfect is used here in a generalizing sense (see v. 1) or in a rhetorical manner to emphasize that the healing is as good as done.

[58:5]  ¹² tn Heb “choose” (so NASB, NRSV); NAB “wish.”

[58:5]  ¹³ tn Heb “a day when man humbles himself.” The words “Do I want” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[58:5]  ¹⁴ tn Or “making [their] bed.”

[58:6]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “Is this not a fast I choose?” “No” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[58:6]  ¹⁶ tn The words “I want you” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[58:6]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “crushed.”

[58:7]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “Is it not?” The rhetorical question here expects a positive answer, “It is!”

[58:7]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “and afflicted [ones], homeless [ones] you should bring [into] a house.” On the meaning of מְרוּדִים (mÿrudim, “homeless”) see HALOT 633 s.v. *מָרוּד.

[58:7]  ²⁰ tn Heb “and from your flesh do not hide yourself.”

[58:10]  ²¹ tn Heb “if you.” See the note on “you must” in v. 9b.

[58:10]  ²² tn Heb “If you furnish for the hungry [with] your being, and the appetite of the oppressed you satisfy.”

[58:10]  ²³ tn Heb “will rise in the darkness.”

[58:10]  ²⁴ tn Heb “and your darkness [will be] like noonday.”

[58:11]  ²⁵ tn Heb “he will satisfy in parched regions your appetite.”

[58:11]  ²⁶ tn Heb “and your bones he will strengthen.”

[58:12]  ²⁷ tn Heb “and they will build from you ancient ruins.”

[58:12]  ²⁸ tc The Hebrew text has “the one who restores paths for dwelling.” The idea of “paths to dwell in” is not a common notion. Some have proposed emending נְתִיבוֹת (nÿtivot, “paths”) to נְתִיצוֹת (nÿtitsot, “ruins”), a passive participle from נָתַץ (natats, “tear down”; see HALOT 732 s.v. *נְתִיצָה), because tighter parallelism with the preceding line is achieved. However, none of the textual sources support this emendation. The line may mean that paths must be repaired in order to dwell in the land.

[18:7]  ²⁹ tn Heb “restores to the debtor his pledge.” The root occurs in Exod 22:25 in reference to restoring a man’s garment as a pledge before nightfall.

[18:7]  ³⁰ tn The Hebrew term refers to seizure of property, usually by the rich (Isa 3:14; 10:2; Mic 2:2 [see Lev 5:21, 22]).

[11:41]  ³¹ tn Grk “Give the things inside as alms.” Three different approaches have been taken to the syntax and meaning of this phrase: (1) τὰ ἐνόντα (ta enonta, “the things inside”) is an accusative of respect (“give alms with respect to the things inside”); (2) τὰ ἐνόντα is an adverbial accusative (“give alms inwardly,” i.e., from the heart); (3) the word translated “alms” represents a mistranslation of the original Aramaic term “cleanse,” so the statement urges the hearers to “cleanse the things inside.” According to D. L. Bock (Luke [BECNT], 2:1115) the latter meaning is unlikely because the present verse is independent of Matt 23:26, not parallel to it, and makes good sense as it stands.

[11:41]  ³² tn Grk “and behold.” The Greek word ἰδού (idou) at the beginning of this clause has not been translated because it has no exact English equivalent here, but adds interest and emphasis (BDAG 468 s.v. 1).

[11:41]  ³³ sn The expression everything will be clean for you refers to the agreement that should exist between the overt practice of one’s religious duties, such as almsgiving, and the inner condition of one’s heart, including true love for God and the poor; one is not only to wash the outside of the cup and plate, but the inside as well, since as Jesus said, God created the inside too. Religious duties are not to be performed hypocritically, i.e., for the applause and esteem of people, but rather they are to be done out of a deep love for God and a sensitivity to and concern for the needs of others. Then, everything will be clean, both hearts and lives.

[10:2]  ³⁴ tn In the Greek text this represents a continuation of the previous sentence. Because of the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences, a new sentence was begun here in the translation.

[10:2]  ³⁵ sn The description of Cornelius as a devout, God-fearing man probably means that he belonged to the category called “God-fearers,” Gentiles who worshiped the God of Israel and in many cases kept the Mosaic law, but did not take the final step of circumcision necessary to become a proselyte to Judaism. See further K. G. Kuhn, TDNT 6:732-34, 43-44, and Sir 11:17; 27:11; 39:27.

[10:2]  ³⁶ tn Or “gave many gifts to the poor.” This was known as “giving alms,” or acts of mercy (Sir 7:10; BDAG 315-16 s.v. ἐλεημοσύνη).

[10:3]  ³⁷ tn Grk “at about the ninth hour of the day.” This would be the time for afternoon prayer.

[10:3]  ³⁸ tn Or “the angel of God.” Linguistically, “angel of God” is the same in both testaments (and thus, he is either “an angel of God” or “the angel of God” in both testaments). For arguments and implications, see ExSyn 252; M. J. Davidson, “Angels,” DJG, 9; W. G. MacDonald argues for “an angel” in both testaments: “Christology and ‘The Angel of the Lord’,” Current Issues in Biblical and Patristic Interpretation, 324-35.

[10:3]  ³⁹ tn The participles εἰσελθόντα (eiselqonta) and εἰπόντα (eiponta) are accusative, and thus best taken as adjectival participles modifying ἄγγελον (angelon): “an angel who came in and said.”

[10:4]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Cornelius) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[10:4]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “said,” but in response to the angel’s address, “replied” is better English style.

[10:4]  ⁴² tn Grk “he”; the referent (the angel) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[10:4]  ⁴³ tn Or “your gifts to the needy.”

[10:4]  ⁴⁴ sn The language used in the expression gone up as a memorial before God parallels what one would say of acceptable sacrifices (Ps 141:2; Sir 35:6; 50:16).

[5:6]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “but faith working through love.”

[5:13]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:11.

[5:13]  ⁴⁷ tn Grk “as an opportunity for the flesh”; BDAG 915 s.v. σάρξ 2.c.α states: “In Paul’s thought esp., all parts of the body constitute a totality known as σ. or flesh, which is dominated by sin to such a degree that wherever flesh is, all forms of sin are likew. present, and no good thing can live in the σάρξ…Gal 5:13, 24;…Opp. τὸ πνεῦμα…Gal 3:3; 5:16, 17ab; 6:8ab.”

[5:13]  ⁴⁸ tn It is possible that the verb δουλεύετε (douleuete) should be translated “serve one another in a humble manner” here, referring to the way in which slaves serve their masters (see L&N 35.27).

[5:22]  ⁴⁹ tn That is, the fruit the Spirit produces.

[5:22]  ⁵⁰ sn Another way to punctuate this is “love” followed by a colon (love: joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control). It is thus possible to read the eight characteristics following “love” as defining love.

[5:22]  ⁵¹ tn Or “reliability”; see BDAG 818 s.v. πίστις 1.a.