Psalms 19:7-8

19:7 The law of the Lord is perfect

and preserves one’s life. ¹ 

The rules set down by the Lord ²  are reliable ³ 

and impart wisdom to the inexperienced. ⁴ 

19:8 The Lord’s precepts are fair ⁵ 

and make one joyful. ⁶ 

The Lord’s commands ⁷  are pure ⁸ 

and give insight for life. ⁹ 

Psalms 119:111

119:111 I claim your rules as my permanent possession,

for they give me joy. ¹⁰ 

Psalms 119:129

פ (Pe)

119:129 Your rules are marvelous.

Therefore I observe them.

Psalms 119:138

119:138 The rules you impose are just, ¹¹ 

and absolutely reliable.

Psalms 119:144

119:144 Your rules remain just. ¹² 

Give me insight so that I can live. ¹³ 

Isaiah 8:20

8:20 Then you must recall the Lord’s instructions and the prophetic testimony of what would happen. ¹⁴  Certainly they say such things because their minds are spiritually darkened. ¹⁵ 

Matthew 24:35

24:35 Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away. ¹⁶ 

Hebrews 6:17-18

6:17 In the same way ¹⁷  God wanted to demonstrate more clearly to the heirs of the promise that his purpose was unchangeable, ¹⁸  and so he intervened with an oath, 6:18 so that we who have found refuge in him ¹⁹  may find strong encouragement to hold fast to the hope set before us through two unchangeable things, since it is impossible for God to lie.

Hebrews 6:1

6:1 Therefore we must progress beyond ²⁰  the elementary ²¹  instructions about Christ ²²  and move on ²³  to maturity, not laying this foundation again: repentance from dead works and faith in God,

Hebrews 5:9-13

5:9 And by being perfected in this way, he became the source of eternal salvation to all who obey him, 5:10 and he was designated ²⁴  by God as high priest in the order of Melchizedek. ²⁵ 

The Need to Move on to Maturity

5:11 On this topic we have much to say ²⁶  and it is difficult to explain, since you have become sluggish ²⁷  in hearing. 5:12 For though you should in fact be teachers by this time, ²⁸  you need someone to teach you the beginning elements of God’s utterances. ²⁹  You have gone back to needing ³⁰  milk, not ³¹  solid food. 5:13 For everyone who lives on milk is inexperienced in the message of righteousness, because he is an infant.

[19:7]  ¹ tn Heb “[it] restores life.” Elsewhere the Hiphil of שׁוּב (shuv, “return”) when used with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “life”) as object, means to “rescue or preserve one’s life” (Job 33:30; Ps 35:17) or to “revive one’s strength” (emotionally or physically; cf. Ruth 4:15; Lam 1:11, 16, 19). Here the point seems to be that the law preserves the life of the one who studies it by making known God’s will. Those who know God’s will know how to please him and can avoid offending him. See v. 11a.

[19:7]  ² tn Traditionally, “the testimony of the Lord.” The noun עֵדוּת (’edut) refers here to the demands of God’s covenant law.

[19:7]  ³ tn God’s covenant contains a clear, reliable witness to his moral character and demands.

[19:7]  ⁴ tn Or “the [morally] naive,” that is, the one who is young and still in the process of learning right from wrong and distinguishing wisdom from folly.

[19:8]  ⁵ tn Or “just.” Perhaps the idea is that they impart a knowledge of what is just and right.

[19:8]  ⁶ tn Heb “[they] make happy [the] heart.” Perhaps the point is that they bring a sense of joyful satisfaction to the one who knows and keeps them, for those who obey God’s law are richly rewarded. See v. 11b.

[19:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “command.” The singular here refers to the law as a whole.

[19:8]  ⁸ tn Because they reflect God’s character, his commands provide a code of moral and ethical purity.

[19:8]  ⁹ tn Heb [they] enlighten [the] eyes.

[119:111]  ⁹ tn Heb “for the joy of my heart [are] they.”

[119:138]  ¹³ tn Heb “you commanded [in] justice your rules.”

[119:144]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “just are your rules forever.”

[119:144]  ¹⁸ tn The cohortative verbal form with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose/result after the preceding imperative.

[8:20]  ²¹ tn Heb “to [the] instruction and to [the] testimony.” The words “then you must recall” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons. In the Hebrew text vv. 19-20a are one long sentence, reading literally, “When they say to you…, to the instruction and to the testimony.” On the identity of the “instruction” and “testimony” see the notes at v. 16.

[8:20]  ²² tn Heb “If they do not speak according to this word, [it is] because it has no light of dawn.” The literal translation suggests that “this word” refers to the instruction/testimony. However, it is likely that אִם־לֹא (’im-lo’) is asseverative here, as in 5:9. In this case “this word” refers to the quotation recorded in v. 19. For a discussion of the problem see J. N. Oswalt, Isaiah (NICOT), 230, n. 9. The singular pronoun in the second half of the verse is collective, referring back to the nation (see v. 19b).

[24:35]  ²⁵ sn The words that Jesus predicts here will never pass away. They are more stable and lasting than creation itself. For this kind of image, see Isa 40:8; 55:10-11.

[6:17]  ²⁹ tn Grk “in which.”

[6:17]  ³⁰ tn Or “immutable” (here and in v. 18); Grk “the unchangeableness of his purpose.”

[6:18]  ³³ tn Grk “have taken refuge”; the basis of that refuge is implied in the preceding verse.

[6:1]  ³⁷ tn Grk “Therefore leaving behind.” The implication is not of abandoning this elementary information, but of building on it.

[6:1]  ³⁸ tn Or “basic.”

[6:1]  ³⁹ tn Grk “the message of the beginning of Christ.”

[6:1]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “leaving behind…let us move on.”

[5:10]  ⁴¹ tn Grk “having been designated,” continuing the thought of Heb 5:9.

[5:10]  ⁴² sn The phrase in the order of Melchizedek picks up the quotation from Ps 110:4 in Heb 5:6.

[5:11]  ⁴⁵ tn Grk “concerning which the message for us is great.”

[5:11]  ⁴⁶ tn Or “dull.”

[5:12]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “because of the time.”

[5:12]  ⁵⁰ tn Grk “the elements of the beginning of the oracles of God.”

[5:12]  ⁵¹ tn Grk “you have come to have a need for.”

[5:12]  ⁵² tc ‡ Most texts, including some early and important ones (א² A B* D Ψ 0122 0278 1881 Ï sy Cl), have καί (kai, “and”) immediately preceding οὐ (ou, “not”), but other equally significant witnesses (Ì⁴⁶ א* B² C 33 81 1739 lat Or Did) lack the conjunction. As it was a natural tendency for scribes to add a coordinating conjunction, the καί appears to be a motivated reading. On balance, it is probably best to regard the shorter reading as authentic. NA²⁷ has καί in brackets, indicating doubts as to its authenticity.