Psalms 98:1-3

Psalm 98 ¹ 

A psalm.

98:1 Sing to the Lord a new song, ² 

for he performs ³  amazing deeds!

His right hand and his mighty arm

accomplish deliverance. ⁴ 

98:2 The Lord demonstrates his power to deliver; ⁵ 

in the sight of the nations he reveals his justice.

98:3 He remains loyal and faithful to the family of Israel. ⁶ 

All the ends of the earth see our God deliver us. ⁷ 

Isaiah 42:3-4

42:3 A crushed reed he will not break,

a dim wick he will not extinguish; ⁸ 

he will faithfully make just decrees. ⁹ 

42:4 He will not grow dim or be crushed ¹⁰ 

before establishing justice on the earth;

the coastlands ¹¹  will wait in anticipation for his decrees.” ¹² 

Romans 15:17-19

15:17 So I boast ¹³  in Christ Jesus about the things that pertain to God. 15:18 For I will not dare to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me in order to bring about the obedience ¹⁴  of the Gentiles, by word and deed, 15:19 in the power of signs and wonders, in the power of the Spirit of God. So from Jerusalem even as far as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ.

Romans 15:2

15:2 Let each of us please his neighbor for his good to build him up.

Colossians 2:14

2:14 He has destroyed ¹⁵  what was against us, a certificate of indebtedness ¹⁶  expressed in decrees opposed to us. He has taken it away by nailing it to the cross.

Colossians 1:3-5

Paul’s Thanksgiving and Prayer for the Church

1:3 We always ¹⁷  give thanks to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, 1:4 since ¹⁸  we heard about your faith in Christ Jesus and the love that you have for all the saints. 1:5 Your faith and love have arisen ¹⁹  from the hope laid up ²⁰  for you in heaven, which you have heard about in the message of truth, the gospel ²¹ 

Revelation 6:2

6:2 So ²²  I looked, ²³  and here came ²⁴  a white horse! The ²⁵  one who rode it ²⁶  had a bow, and he was given a crown, ²⁷  and as a conqueror ²⁸  he rode out to conquer.

Revelation 19:11-21

The Son of God Goes to War

19:11 Then ²⁹  I saw heaven opened and here came ³⁰  a white horse! The ³¹  one riding it was called “Faithful” and “True,” and with justice ³²  he judges and goes to war. 19:12 His eyes are like a fiery ³³  flame and there are many diadem crowns ³⁴  on his head. He has ³⁵  a name written ³⁶  that no one knows except himself. 19:13 He is dressed in clothing dipped ³⁷  in blood, and he is called ³⁸  the Word of God. 19:14 The ³⁹  armies that are in heaven, dressed in white, clean, fine linen, ⁴⁰  were following him on white horses. 19:15 From his mouth extends a sharp sword, so that with it he can strike the nations. ⁴¹  He ⁴²  will rule ⁴³  them with an iron rod, ⁴⁴  and he stomps the winepress ⁴⁵  of the furious ⁴⁶  wrath of God, the All-Powerful. ⁴⁷  19:16 He has a name written on his clothing and on his thigh: “King of kings and Lord of lords.”

19:17 Then ⁴⁸  I saw one angel standing in ⁴⁹  the sun, and he shouted in a loud voice to all the birds flying high in the sky: ⁵⁰ 

“Come, gather around for the great banquet ⁵¹  of God,

19:18 to eat ⁵²  your fill ⁵³  of the flesh of kings,

the flesh of generals, ⁵⁴ 

the flesh of powerful people,

the flesh of horses and those who ride them,

and the flesh of all people, both free and slave, ⁵⁵ 

and small and great!”

19:19 Then ⁵⁶  I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to do battle with the one who rode the horse and with his army. 19:20 Now ⁵⁷  the beast was seized, and along with him the false prophet who had performed the signs on his behalf ⁵⁸  – signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. Both of them were thrown alive into the lake of fire burning with sulfur. ⁵⁹  19:21 The ⁶⁰  others were killed by the sword that extended from the mouth of the one who rode the horse, and all the birds gorged ⁶¹  themselves with their flesh.

[98:1]  ¹ sn Psalm 98. The psalmist summons the whole earth to praise God because he reveals his justice and delivers Israel.

[98:1]  ² sn A new song is appropriate because the Lord is constantly intervening in the world as its just king. See Ps 96:1.

[98:1]  ³ tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 1-3 are understood here as describing characteristic divine activities. Another option is to translate them as present perfects, “has performed…has accomplished deliverance, etc.” referring to completed actions that have continuing results.

[98:1]  ⁴ tn Heb “his right hand delivers for him and his holy arm.” The right hand and arm symbolize his power as a warrior-king (see Isa 52:10). His arm is “holy” in the sense that it is in a category of its own; God’s power is incomparable.

[98:2]  ⁵ tn Heb “makes known his deliverance.”

[98:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “he remembers his loyal love and his faithfulness to the house of Israel.”

[98:3]  ⁷ tn Heb “the deliverance of our God,” with “God” being a subjective genitive (= God delivers).

[42:3]  ⁸ sn The “crushed reed” and “dim wick” symbolize the weak and oppressed who are on the verge of extinction.

[42:3]  ⁹ tn Heb “faithfully he will bring out justice” (cf. NASB, NRSV).

[42:4]  ¹⁰ tn For rhetorical effect the terms used to describe the “crushed (רָצַץ, ratsats) reed” and “dim (כָּהָה, kahah) wick” in v. 3 are repeated here.

[42:4]  ¹¹ tn Or “islands” (NIV); NLT “distant lands beyond the sea.”

[42:4]  ¹² tn Or “his law” (KJV, ASV, NASB, NIV) or “his instruction” (NLT).

[15:17]  ¹³ tc ‡ After οὖν (oun), several important Alexandrian and Western mss (B C D F G 81 365 pc) have τήν (thn). The article is lacking in א A Ψ 33 1739 1881 Ï however. Ì⁴⁶ supplies a relative pronoun and has a different reading entirely (“which I have [as a] boast”). Articles were frequently introduced to clarify the meaning of the text. In this instance, since the word modified (καύχησιν, kauchsin) is third declension, a visual oversight (resulting in omission) is less likely. Hence, the shorter reading is probably original. The difference in translation between these first two options is negligible (“I have the boast” or “I have a boast”). NA²⁷ puts the article in brackets, indicating some doubt as to its authenticity.

[15:18]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “unto obedience.”

[2:14]  ¹⁵ tn The participle ἐξαλείψας (exaleiyas) is a temporal adverbial participle of contemporaneous time related to the previous verb συνεζωοποίησεν (sunezwopoihsen), but has been translated as a finite verb because of the complexity of the Greek sentence and the tendency of contemporary English to use shorter sentences. For the meaning “destroy” see BDAG 344-45 s.v. ἐξαλείφω 2.

[2:14]  ¹⁶ tn On the translation of χειρόγραφον (ceirografon), see BDAG 1083 s.v. which refers to it as “a certificate of indebtedness.”

[1:3]  ¹⁷ tn The adverb πάντοτε (pantote) is understood to modify the indicative εὐχαριστοῦμεν (eucaristoumen) because it precedes περὶ ὑμῶν (peri Jumwn) which probably modifies the indicative and not the participle προσευχόμενοι (proseucomenoi). But see 1:9 where the same expression occurs and περὶ ὑμῶν modifies the participle “praying” (προσευχόμενοι).

[1:4]  ¹⁸ tn The adverbial participle ἀκούσαντες (akousante") is understood to be temporal and translated with “since.” A causal idea may also be in the apostle’s mind, but the context emphasizes temporal ideas, e.g., “from the day” (v. 6).

[1:5]  ¹⁹ 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]  ²⁰ tn BDAG 113 s.v. ἀπόκειμαι 2 renders ἀποκειμένην (apokeimenhn) with the expression “reserved” in this verse.

[1:5]  ²¹ 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.

[6:2]  ²² tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of hearing the voice summon the first rider.

[6:2]  ²³ tc The reading “and I looked” (καὶ εἶδον, kai eidon) or some slight variation (e.g., ἶδον, idon) has excellent ms support ({א A C P 1611}) and its omission seems to come through the mss that have already placed “and look” (καὶ ἴδε or καὶ βλέπε [kai ide or kai blepe]) after the verb “come” (ἔρχου, ercou) as mentioned in the text-critical note on 6:1. Thus, for these copyists it was redundant to add “and I looked” again.

[6:2]  ²⁴ tn The phrase “and here came” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).

[6:2]  ²⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[6:2]  ²⁶ tn Grk “the one sitting on it.”

[6:2]  ²⁷ sn See the note on the word crown in Rev 3:11.

[6:2]  ²⁸ tn The participle νικῶν (nikwn) has been translated as substantival, the subject of the verb ἐξῆλθεν (exhlqen). Otherwise, as an adverbial participle of manner, it is somewhat redundant: “he rode out conquering and to conquer.”

[19:11]  ²⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[19:11]  ³⁰ tn The phrase “and here came” expresses the sense of καὶ ἰδού (kai idou).

[19:11]  ³¹ tn A new sentence was started in the translation at this point and καί (kai) was not translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[19:11]  ³² tn Or “in righteousness,” but since the context here involves the punishment of the wicked and the vindication of the saints, “justice” was preferred.

[19:12]  ³³ tn The genitive noun πυρός (puros) has been translated as an attributive genitive (see also Rev 1:14).

[19:12]  ³⁴ tn For the translation of διάδημα (diadhma) as “diadem crown” see L&N 6.196.

[19:12]  ³⁵ tn Grk “head, having.” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[19:12]  ³⁶ tn Although many translations supply a prepositional phrase to specify what the name was written on (“upon Him,” NASB; “on him,” NIV), there is no location for the name specified in the Greek text.

[19:13]  ³⁷ tc It appears that “dipped” (βεβαμμένον, bebammenon), supported by several uncials and other witnesses (A 051 Ï), is the original reading. Due to the lack of the preposition “in” (ἐν, en) after the verb (βεβαμμένον αἵματι, bebammenon {aimati), and also probably because of literary allusions to Isa 63:3, several mss and versions seem to have changed the text to “sprinkled” (either ῥεραντισμένον [rJerantismenon] in P 2329 al; ἐρραντισμένον [errantismenon] in 1006 1841; ἐρραμμένον [errammenon] in 2053 2062; or ῥεραμμένον [rJerammenon] in 1611; or in one case περιρεραμμένον [perirerammenon] in א^[2]). The reading most likely to give rise to the others is “dipped.”

[19:13]  ³⁸ tn Grk “the name of him is called.”

[19:14]  ³⁹ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[19:14]  ⁴⁰ tn On the term translated “fine linen,” BDAG 185 s.v. βύσσινος states, “made of fine linen, subst. τὸ β. fine linen, linen garment…Rv 18:12, 16; 19:8, 14.”

[19:15]  ⁴¹ tn Or “the Gentiles” (the same Greek word may be translated “Gentiles” or “nations”).

[19:15]  ⁴² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[19:15]  ⁴³ tn Grk “will shepherd.”

[19:15]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “scepter.” The Greek term ῥάβδος (rJabdo") can mean either “rod” or “scepter.”

[19:15]  ⁴⁵ sn He stomps the winepress. See Isa 63:3, where Messiah does this alone (usually several individuals would join in the process), and Rev 14:20.

[19:15]  ⁴⁶ tn The genitive θυμοῦ (qumou) has been translated as an attributed genitive. Following BDAG 461 s.v. θυμός 2, the combination of the genitives of θυμός (qumos) and ὀργή (orgh) in Rev 16:19 and 19:15 are taken to be a strengthening of the thought as in the OT and Qumran literature (Exod 32:12; Jer 32:37; Lam 2:3; CD 10:9).

[19:15]  ⁴⁷ tn On this word BDAG 755 s.v. παντοκράτωρ states, “the Almighty, All-Powerful, Omnipotent (One) only of God…(ὁ) κύριος ὁ θεὸς ὁ π. …Rv 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7; 21:22.”

[19:17]  ⁴⁸ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[19:17]  ⁴⁹ tn The precise significance of ἐν (en) here is difficult to determine.

[19:17]  ⁵⁰ tn On μεσουρανήματι (mesouranhmati) here see L&N 1.10: “high in the sky, midpoint in the sky, directly overhead, straight above in the sky.” The birds mentioned here are carrion birds like vultures, circling high overhead, and now being summoned to feast on the corpses.

[19:17]  ⁵¹ tn This is the same Greek word (δεῖπνον, deipnon) used in 19:9.

[19:18]  ⁵² tn The ἵνα (Jina) clause, insofar as it is related to the first imperative, has the force of an imperative.

[19:18]  ⁵³ tn The idea of eating “your fill” is evident in the context with the use of χορτάζω (cortazw) in v. 21.

[19:18]  ⁵⁴ tn Grk “chiliarchs”; normally a chiliarch was a military officer commanding a thousand soldiers, but here probably used of higher-ranking commanders like generals (see L&N 55.15; cf. Rev 6:15).

[19:18]  ⁵⁵ tn See the note on the word “servants” in 1:1.

[19:19]  ⁵⁶ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.

[19:20]  ⁵⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of an unexpected development in the account: The opposing armies do not come together in battle; rather the leader of one side is captured.

[19:20]  ⁵⁸ tn For this meaning see BDAG 342 s.v. ἐνώπιον 4.b, “by the authority of, on behalf of Rv 13:12, 14; 19:20.”

[19:20]  ⁵⁹ tn Traditionally, “brimstone.”

[19:21]  ⁶⁰ tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.

[19:21]  ⁶¹ tn On the translation of ἐχορτάσθησαν (ecortasqhsan) BDAG 1087 s.v. χορτάζω 1.a states, “of animals, pass. in act. sense πάντα τὰ ὄρνεα ἐχορτάσθησαν ἐκ τῶν σαρκῶν αὐτῶν all the birds gorged themselves with their flesh Rv 19:21 (cp. TestJud. 21:8).”