Romans 1:32

1:32 Although they fully know ¹  God’s righteous decree that those who practice such things deserve to die, ²  they not only do them but also approve of those who practice them. ³ 

Psalms 56:7

56:7 Because they are bent on violence, do not let them escape! ⁴ 

In your anger ⁵  bring down the nations, ⁶  O God!

Proverbs 11:21

11:21 Be assured that ⁷  the evil person will certainly be punished, ⁸ 

but the descendants of the righteous ⁹  will not suffer unjust judgment. ¹⁰ 

Proverbs 16:5

16:5 The Lord abhors ¹¹  every arrogant person; ¹² 

rest assured ¹³  that they will not go unpunished. ¹⁴ 

Ezekiel 17:15

17:15 But this one from Israel’s royal family ¹⁵  rebelled against the king of Babylon ¹⁶  by sending his emissaries to Egypt to obtain horses and a large army. Will he prosper? Will the one doing these things escape? Can he break the covenant and escape?

Ezekiel 17:18

17:18 He despised the oath by breaking the covenant. Take note ¹⁷  – he gave his promise ¹⁸  and did all these things – he will not escape!

Matthew 23:33

23:33 You snakes, you offspring of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? ¹⁹ 

Matthew 23:1

Seven Woes

23:1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,

Matthew 5:3

5:3 “Blessed ²⁰  are the poor in spirit, ²¹  for the kingdom of heaven belongs ²²  to them.

Hebrews 2:3

2:3 how will we escape if we neglect such a great salvation? It was first communicated through the Lord and was confirmed to us by those who heard him,

Hebrews 12:25

12:25 Take care not to refuse the one who is speaking! For if they did not escape when they refused the one who warned them on earth, how much less shall we, if we reject the one who warns from heaven?

[1:32]  ¹ tn Grk “who, knowing…, not only do them but also approve…” Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.

[1:32]  ² tn Grk “are worthy of death.”

[1:32]  ³ sn “Vice lists” like vv. 28-32 can be found elsewhere in the NT in Matt 15:19; Gal 5:19-21; 1 Tim 1:9-10; and 1 Pet 4:3. An example from the intertestamental period can be found in Wis 14:25-26.

[56:7]  ⁴ tc Heb “because of wickedness, deliverance to them.” As it stands, the MT makes no sense. The negative particle אַיִן (’ayin, “there is not,” which is due to dittography of the immediately preceding אָוֶן, ’aven, “wickedness”), should probably be added before “deliverance” (see BHS, note a). The presence of an imperative in the next line (note “bring down”) suggests that this line should be translated as a prayer as well, “may there not be deliverance to them.”

[56:7]  ⁵ tn Heb “in anger.” The pronoun “your” is supplied in the translation for clarification.

[56:7]  ⁶ tn Or perhaps “people” in a general sense.

[11:21]  ⁷ tn The expression “hand to hand” refers the custom of striking hands to confirm an agreement (M. Anbar, “Proverbes 11:21; 16:15; יד ליד, «sur le champ»,” Bib 53 [1972]: 537-38). Tg. Prov 11:21 interprets it differently: “he who lifts up his hand against his neighbor will not go unpunished.”

[11:21]  ⁸ tn Heb “will not be free.” The verb נָקָה (naqah) means “to be clean; to be empty.” In the Niphal it means “to be free of guilt; to be clean; to be innocent,” and therefore “to be exempt from punishment” (BDB 667 s.v. Niph). The phrase “will not go unpunished” (cf. NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV) is an example of tapeinosis (a negative statement that emphasizes the positive opposite statement): “will certainly be punished” (cf. TEV, CEV, NLT).

[11:21]  ⁹ tn Heb “the seed of the righteous.” This is an idiom that describes a class of people who share the nature of righteousness (e.g., Isa 1:4; 65:23). The word “seed” (hypocatastasis) means “offspring.” Some take it literally, as if it meant that the children of the righteous will escape judgment (Saadia, a Jewish scholar who lived a.d. 882-942). The LXX translates it in a different sense: “he that sows righteousness will receive a faithful reward.”

[11:21]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “will be delivered” (so NASB). The phrase “from unjust judgment” does not appear in the Hebrew but is implied by the idiom.

[16:5]  ¹¹ tn Heb “an abomination of the Lord.” The term יְהוָה (yÿhvah, “the Lord”) is a subjective genitive: “the Lord abhors.”

[16:5]  ¹² tn Heb “every proud of heart”; NIV “all the proud of heart.” “Heart” is the genitive of specification; the phrase is talking about people who have proud hearts, whose ideas are arrogant. These are people who set themselves presumptuously against God (e.g., 2 Chr 26:16; Ps 131:1; Prov 18:12).

[16:5]  ¹³ tn Heb “hand to hand.” This idiom means “you can be assured” (e.g., Prov 11:21).

[16:5]  ¹⁴ tc The LXX has inserted two couplets here: “The beginning of a good way is to do justly, // and it is more acceptable with God than to do sacrifices; // he who seeks the Lord will find knowledge with righteousness, // and they who rightly seek him will find peace.” C. H. Toy reminds the reader that there were many proverbs in existence that sounded similar to those in the book of Proverbs; these lines are in the Greek OT as well as in Sirach (Proverbs [ICC], 321-22).

[17:15]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “he”; the referent (the member of the royal family, v. 13) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:15]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “him”; the referent (the king of Babylon) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[17:18]  ¹⁷ tn The word הִנֵּה (hinneh, traditionally “behold”) indicates being aware of or taking notice of something.

[17:18]  ¹⁸ sn Heb “hand.” “Giving one’s hand” is a gesture of promise (2 Kgs 10:15).

[23:33]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “the judgment of Gehenna.”

[5:3]  ²⁰ sn The term Blessed introduces the first of several beatitudes promising blessing to those whom God cares for. They serve as an invitation to come into the grace God offers.

[5:3]  ²¹ sn The poor in spirit is a reference to the “pious poor” for whom God especially cares. See Ps 14:6; 22:24; 25:16; 34:6; 40:17; 69:29.

[5:3]  ²² sn The present tense (belongs) here is significant. Jesus makes the kingdom and its blessings currently available. This phrase is unlike the others in the list with the possessive pronoun being emphasized.