Psalms 39:4

39:4 “O Lord, help me understand my mortality

and the brevity of life! ¹ 

Let me realize how quickly my life will pass! ² 

Deuteronomy 32:29

32:29 I wish that they were wise and could understand this,

and that they could comprehend what will happen to them.”

Ecclesiastes 9:10

9:10 Whatever you find to do with your hands, ³ 

do it with all your might,

because there is neither work nor planning nor knowledge nor wisdom in the grave, ⁴ 

the place where you will eventually go. ⁵ 

Luke 12:35-40

Call to Faithful Stewardship

12:35 “Get dressed for service ⁶  and keep your lamps burning; ⁷  12:36 be like people ⁸  waiting for their master to come back from the wedding celebration, ⁹  so that when he comes and knocks they can immediately open the door for him. 12:37 Blessed are those slaves ¹⁰  whom their master finds alert ¹¹  when he returns! I tell you the truth, ¹²  he will dress himself to serve, ¹³  have them take their place at the table, ¹⁴  and will come ¹⁵  and wait on them! ¹⁶  12:38 Even if he comes in the second or third watch of the night ¹⁷  and finds them alert, ¹⁸  blessed are those slaves! ¹⁹  12:39 But understand this: If the owner of the house had known at what hour the thief ²⁰  was coming, he would not have let ²¹  his house be broken into. 12:40 You also must be ready, because the Son of Man will come at an hour when you do not expect him.” ²² 

John 9:4

9:4 We must perform the deeds ²³  of the one who sent me ²⁴  as long as ²⁵  it is daytime. Night is coming when no one can work.

Ephesians 5:16-17

5:16 taking advantage of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 5:17 For this reason do not be foolish, but be wise ²⁶  by understanding ²⁷  what the Lord’s will is.

[39:4]  ¹ tn Heb “Cause me to know, O Lord, my end; and the measure of my days, what it is!”

[39:4]  ² tn Heb “Let me know how transient I am!”

[9:10]  ³ tn Heb “Whatever your hand finds to do.”

[9:10]  ⁴ tn Heb “Sheol.”

[9:10]  ⁵ tn Or “where you are about to go.”

[12:35]  ⁶ tn Grk “Let your loins be girded,” an idiom referring to the practice of tucking the ends of the long cloak (outer garment) into the belt to shorten it in preparation for activities like running, etc.

[12:35]  ⁷ sn Keep your lamps burning means to be ready at all times.

[12:36]  ⁸ tn That is, like slaves (who are mentioned later, vv. 37-38), although the term ἀνθρώποις (anqrwpoi") is used here. Since in this context it appears generic rather than gender-specific, the translation “people” is employed.

[12:36]  ⁹ sn An ancient wedding celebration could last for days (Tob 11:18).

[12:37]  ¹⁰ tn See the note on the word “slave” in 7:2.

[12:37]  ¹¹ tn Or “watching”; Grk “awake,” but in context this is not just being awake but alert and looking out.

[12:37]  ¹² tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[12:37]  ¹³ tn See v. 35 (same verb).

[12:37]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “have them recline at table,” as 1st century middle eastern meals were not eaten while sitting at a table, but while reclining on one’s side on the floor with the head closest to the low table and the feet farthest away.

[12:37]  ¹⁵ tn The participle παρελθών (parelqwn) has been translated as a finite verb due to requirements of contemporary English style.

[12:37]  ¹⁶ sn He…will come and wait on them is a reversal of expectation, but shows that what Jesus asks for he is willing to do as well; see John 13:5 and 15:18-27, although those instances merely foreshadow what is in view here.

[12:38]  ¹⁷ sn The second or third watch of the night would be between 9 p.m. and 3 a.m. on a Roman schedule and 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. on a Jewish schedule. Luke uses the four-watch schedule of the Romans in Acts 12:4, so that is more probable here. Regardless of the precise times of the watches, however, it is clear that the late-night watches when a person is least alert are in view here.

[12:38]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “finds (them) thus”; but this has been clarified in the translation by referring to the status (“alert”) mentioned in v. 37.

[12:38]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “blessed are they”; the referent (the watchful slaves, v. 37) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[12:39]  ²⁰ sn On Jesus pictured as a returning thief, see 1 Thess 5:2, 4; 2 Pet 3:10; Rev 3:3; 16:15.

[12:39]  ²¹ tc Most mss (א¹ A B L Q W Θ Ψ 070 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat sy^p,h sa^ms bo) read “he would have watched and not let” here, but this looks like an assimilation to Matt 24:43. The alliance of two important and early mss along with a few others (Ì⁷⁵ א* [D] e i sy^s,c sa^mss), coupled with much stronger internal evidence, suggests that the shorter reading is authentic.

[12:40]  ²² sn Jesus made clear that his coming could not be timed, and suggested it might take some time – so long, in fact, that some would not be looking for him any longer (at an hour when you do not expect him).

[9:4]  ²³ tn Grk “We must work the works.”

[9:4]  ²⁴ tn Or “of him who sent me” (God).

[9:4]  ²⁵ tn Or “while.”

[5:17]  ²⁶ tn “become wise by understanding”; Grk “understanding.” The imperative “be wise” is apparently implied by the construction of vv. 15-21. See the following text-critical note for discussion.

[5:17]  ²⁷ tc ‡ The best witnesses read the imperative here (so Ì⁴⁶ א A B P 0278 33 81 1739 pc). The participle is found primarily in the Western and Byzantine texttypes (D² Ψ 1881 Ï latt [D* F G are slightly different, but support the participial reading]). But the participle is superior on internal grounds: The structure of v. 17 almost requires an imperative after ἀλλά (alla), for this gives balance to the clause: “Do not become foolish, but understand…” If the participle is original, it may be imperatival (and thus should be translated just like an imperative), but such is quite rare in the NT. More likely, there is an implied imperative as follows: “Do not become foolish, but become wise, understanding what the will of the Lord is.” Either way, the participle is the harder reading and ought therefore to be considered original. It is significant that seeing an implied imperative in this verse affords a certain symmetry to the author’s thought in vv. 15-21: There are three main sections (vv. 15-16, v. 17, vv. 18-21), each of which provides a negative injunction, followed by a positive injunction, followed by a present adverbial participle. If συνίετε (suniete) is original, this symmetry is lost. Thus, even though the external evidence for συνιέντες (sunientes) is not nearly as weighty as for the imperative, both the transcriptional and intrinsic evidence support it.