Psalms 119:9-11

ב (Bet)

119:9 How can a young person ¹  maintain a pure life? ² 

By guarding it according to your instructions! ³ 

119:10 With all my heart I seek you.

Do not allow me to stray from your commands!

119:11 In my heart I store up ⁴  your words, ⁵ 

so I might not sin against you.

Deuteronomy 4:23

4:23 Be on guard so that you do not forget the covenant of the Lord your God that he has made with you, and that you do not make an image of any kind, just as he ⁶  has forbidden ⁷  you.

Deuteronomy 6:6-9

Exhortation to Teach the Covenant Principles

6:6 These words I am commanding you today must be kept in mind, 6:7 and you must teach ⁸  them to your children and speak of them as you sit in your house, as you walk along the road, ⁹  as you lie down, and as you get up. 6:8 You should tie them as a reminder on your forearm ¹⁰  and fasten them as symbols ¹¹  on your forehead. 6:9 Inscribe them on the doorframes of your houses and gates. ¹² 

Proverbs 3:1

Exhortations to Seek Wisdom and Walk with the Lord ¹³ 

3:1 My child, ¹⁴  do not forget my teaching,

but let your heart keep ¹⁵  my commandments,

Matthew 28:20

28:20 teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And remember, ¹⁶  I am with you ¹⁷  always, to the end of the age.” ¹⁸ 

Luke 1:6

1:6 They ¹⁹  were both righteous in the sight of God, following ²⁰  all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord blamelessly. ²¹ 

Acts 24:16

24:16 This is the reason ²²  I do my best to always ²³  have a clear ²⁴  conscience toward God and toward people. ²⁵ 

Acts 24:1

The Accusations Against Paul

24:1 After five days the high priest Ananias ²⁶  came down with some elders and an attorney ²⁷  named ²⁸  Tertullus, and they ²⁹  brought formal charges ³⁰  against Paul to the governor.

Acts 4:1

The Arrest and Trial of Peter and John

4:1 While Peter and John ³¹  were speaking to the people, the priests and the commander ³²  of the temple guard ³³  and the Sadducees ³⁴  came up ³⁵  to them,

[119:9]  ¹ tn Heb “young man.” Hebrew wisdom literature often assumes and reflects the male-oriented perspective of ancient Israelite society. The principle of the psalm is certainly applicable to all people, regardless of their gender or age. To facilitate modern application, the gender specific “young man” has been translated with the more neutral “young person.”

[119:9]  ² tn Heb “purify his path.”

[119:9]  ³ tn Heb “by keeping according to your word.” Many medieval Hebrew mss as well as the LXX read the plural, “your words.”

[119:11]  ⁴ tn Or “hide.”

[119:11]  ⁵ tn Heb “your word.” Some medieval Hebrew mss as well as the LXX read the plural, “your words.”

[4:23]  ⁶ tn Heb “the Lord your God.” See note on “he” in 4:3.

[4:23]  ⁷ tn Heb “commanded.”

[6:7]  ⁸ tn Heb “repeat” (so NLT). If from the root I שָׁנַן (shanan), the verb means essentially to “engrave,” that is, “to teach incisively” (Piel); note NAB “Drill them into your children.” Cf. BDB 1041-42 s.v.

[6:7]  ⁹ tn Or “as you are away on a journey” (cf. NRSV, TEV, NLT); NAB “at home and abroad.”

[6:8]  ¹⁰ sn Tie them as a sign on your forearm. Later Jewish tradition referred to the little leather containers tied to the forearms and foreheads as tefillin. They were to contain the following passages from the Torah: Exod 13:1-10, 11-16; Deut 6:5-9; 11:13-21. The purpose was to serve as a “sign” of covenant relationship and obedience.

[6:8]  ¹¹ sn Fasten them as symbols on your forehead. These were also known later as tefillin (see previous note) or phylacteries (from the Greek term). These box-like containers, like those on the forearms, held the same scraps of the Torah. It was the hypocritical practice of wearing these without heartfelt sincerity that caused Jesus to speak scathingly about them (cf. Matt 23:5).

[6:9]  ¹² sn The Hebrew term מְזוּזֹת (mÿzuzot) refers both to the door frames and to small cases attached on them containing scripture texts (always Deut 6:4-9 and 11:13-21; and sometimes the decalogue; Exod 13:1-10, 11-16; and Num 10:35-36). See J. H. Tigay, Deuteronomy (JPSTC), 443-44.

[3:1]  ¹³ sn The chapter begins with an introductory exhortation (1-4), followed by an admonition to be faithful to the Lord (5-12). Wisdom is commended as the most valuable possession (13-18), essential to creation (19-20), and the way to a long and safe life (21-26). There then follows a warning to avoid unneighborliness (27-30) and emulating the wicked (31-35).

[3:1]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “my son” (likewise in vv. 11, 21).

[3:1]  ¹⁵ tn The verb יִצֹּר (yitsor) is a Qal jussive and the noun לִבֶּךָ (libbekha, “your heart”) functions as the subject: “let your heart keep my commandments.”

[28:20]  ¹⁶ tn The Greek word ἰδού (idou) has been translated here as “remember” (BDAG 468 s.v. 1.c).

[28:20]  ¹⁷ sn I am with you. Matthew’s Gospel begins with the prophecy that the Savior’s name would be “Emmanuel, that is, ‘God with us,’” (1:23, in which the author has linked Isa 7:14 and 8:8, 10 together) and it ends with Jesus’ promise to be with his disciples forever. The Gospel of Matthew thus forms an inclusio about Jesus in his relationship to his people that suggests his deity.

[28:20]  ¹⁸ tc Most mss (A^c Θ Ë¹³ Ï it sy) have ἀμήν (amhn, “amen”) at the end of v. 20. Such a conclusion is routinely added by scribes to NT books because a few of these books originally had such an ending (cf. Rom 16:27; Gal 6:18; Jude 25). A majority of Greek witnesses have the concluding ἀμήν in every NT book except Acts, James, and 3 John (and even in these books, ἀμήν is found in some witnesses). It is thus a predictable variant. Further, no good reason exists for the omission of the particle in significant and early witnesses such as א A* B D W ˹ 33 al lat sa.

[1:6]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “And they.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.

[1:6]  ²⁰ tn Grk “walking in” (an idiom for one’s lifestyle).

[1:6]  ²¹ tn The predicate adjective has the effect of an adverb here (BDF §243).

[24:16]  ²² tn BDAG 329 s.v. ἐν 9.a, “ἐν τούτῳ πιστεύομεν this is the reason why we believe Jn 16:30; cp. Ac 24:16.”

[24:16]  ²³ tn BDAG 224 s.v. διά 2.a, “διὰ παντός…always, continually, constantly…Ac 2:25 (Ps 15:8); 10:2; 24:16.” However, the positioning of the adverb “always” in the English translation is difficult; the position used is one of the least awkward.

[24:16]  ²⁴ tn BDAG 125 s.v. ἀπρόσκοπος 1 has “ἀ. συνείδησις a clear conscience Ac 24:16.”

[24:16]  ²⁵ tn Grk “men,” but this is a generic use (Paul does not have only males in view).

[24:1]  ²⁶ sn Ananias was in office from a.d. 47-59.

[24:1]  ²⁷ tn The term refers to a professional advocate (BDAG 905 s.v. ῥήτωρ).

[24:1]  ²⁸ tn Grk “an attorney, a certain Tertullus.”

[24:1]  ²⁹ tn Grk “who” (plural). Because in English the relative pronoun “who” could be understood to refer only to the attorney Tertullus and not to the entire group, it has been replaced with the third person plural pronoun “they.” “And” has been supplied to provide the connection to the preceding clause.

[24:1]  ³⁰ tn BDAG 326 s.v. ἐμφανίζω 3 has “ἐ. τινὶ κατά τινος bring formal charges against someone…Ac 24:1; 25:2.”

[4:1]  ³¹ tn Grk “While they”; the referents (Peter and John) have been specified in the translation for clarity.

[4:1]  ³² tn Or “captain.”

[4:1]  ³³ tn Grk “the official of the temple,” a title for the commander of the Jewish soldiers guarding the temple (thus the translation, “the commander of the temple guard”). See L&N 37.91.

[4:1]  ³⁴ sn The Sadducees controlled the official political structures of Judaism at this time, being the majority members of the Sanhedrin. They were known as extremely strict on law and order issues (Josephus, J. W. 2.8.2 [2.119], 2.8.14 [2.164-166]; Ant. 13.5.9 [13.171-173], 13.10.6 [13.293-298], 18.1.2 [18.11], 18.1.4 [18.16-17], 20.9.1 [20.199]; Life 2 [10-11]). See also Matt 3:7; 16:1-12; 22:23-34; Mark 12:18-27; Luke 20:27-38; Acts 5:17; 23:6-8.

[4:1]  ³⁵ tn Or “approached.” This verb often denotes a sudden appearing (BDAG 418 s.v. ἐφίστημι 1).