Zechariah 2:12

2:12 The Lord will take possession of ¹  Judah as his portion in the holy land and he will choose Jerusalem once again.

Zechariah 3:2

3:2 The Lord ²  said to Satan, “May the Lord rebuke you, Satan! May the Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, ³  rebuke you! Isn’t this man like a burning stick snatched from the fire?”

Zechariah 3:2

3:2 The Lord ⁴  said to Satan, “May the Lord rebuke you, Satan! May the Lord, who has chosen Jerusalem, ⁵  rebuke you! Isn’t this man like a burning stick snatched from the fire?”

Zechariah 6:6

6:6 The chariot with the black horses is going to the north country and the white ones are going after them, but the spotted ones are going to the south country.

Psalms 132:13-14

132:13 Certainly ⁶  the Lord has chosen Zion;

he decided to make it his home. ⁷ 

132:14 He said, ⁸  “This will be my resting place forever;

I will live here, for I have chosen it. ⁹ 

Isaiah 14:1

14:1 The Lord will certainly have compassion on Jacob; ¹⁰  he will again choose Israel as his special people ¹¹  and restore ¹²  them to their land. Resident foreigners will join them and unite with the family ¹³  of Jacob.

Isaiah 41:8-9

The Lord Encourages His People

41:8 “You, my servant Israel,

Jacob whom I have chosen,

offspring of Abraham my friend, ¹⁴ 

41:9 you whom I am bringing back ¹⁵  from the earth’s extremities,

and have summoned from the remote regions –

I told you, “You are my servant.”

I have chosen you and not rejected you.

Romans 11:28-29

11:28 In regard to the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but in regard to election they are dearly loved for the sake of the fathers. 11:29 For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable.

Ephesians 1:4

1:4 For ¹⁶  he chose us in Christ ¹⁷  before the foundation of the world that we may be holy and unblemished ¹⁸  in his sight ¹⁹  in love. ²⁰ 

[2:12]  ¹ tn Heb “will inherit” (so NIV, NRSV).

[3:2]  ² sn The juxtaposition of the messenger of the Lord in v. 1 and the Lord in v. 2 shows that here, at least, they are one and the same. See Zech 1:11, 12 where they are distinguished from each other.

[3:2]  ³ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[3:2]  ⁴ sn The juxtaposition of the messenger of the Lord in v. 1 and the Lord in v. 2 shows that here, at least, they are one and the same. See Zech 1:11, 12 where they are distinguished from each other.

[3:2]  ⁵ map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.

[132:13]  ⁶ tn Or “for.”

[132:13]  ⁷ tn Heb “he desired it for his dwelling place.”

[132:14]  ⁸ tn The words “he said” are added in the translation to clarify that what follows are the Lord’s words.

[132:14]  ⁹ tn Heb “for I desired it.”

[14:1]  ¹⁰ tn The sentence begins with כִּי (ki), which is understood as asseverative (“certainly”) in the translation. Another option is to translate, “For the Lord will have compassion.” In this case one of the reasons for Babylon’s coming demise (13:22b) is the Lord’s desire to restore his people.

[14:1]  ¹¹ tn The words “as his special people” are supplied in the translation for clarification.

[14:1]  ¹² tn Or “settle” (NASB, NIV, NCV, NLT).

[14:1]  ¹³ tn Heb “house.”

[41:8]  ¹⁴ tn Or perhaps, “covenantal partner” (see 1 Kgs 5:15 HT [5:1 ET]; 2 Chr 20:7).

[41:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “whom I have taken hold of [i.e., to lead back].”

[1:4]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “just as.” Eph 1:3-14 are one long sentence in Greek that must be broken up in English translation. Verse 4 expresses the reason why God the Father is blessed (cf. BDAG 494 s.v. καθώς 3).

[1:4]  ¹⁷ tn Grk “in him.”

[1:4]  ¹⁸ sn The Greek word translated unblemished (ἀμώμους, amwmous) is often used of an acceptable paschal lamb. Christ, as our paschal lamb, is also said to be unblemished (Heb 9:14; 1 Pet 1:19). Since believers are in Christ, God views them positionally and will make them ultimately without blemish as well (Jude 24; Eph 5:27; Col 1:22).

[1:4]  ¹⁹ tn Grk “before him.”

[1:4]  ²⁰ tn The prepositional phrase ἐν ἀγάπῃ (en agaph, “in love”) may modify one of three words or phrases: (1) “chose,” (2) “holy and unblemished,” both in v. 4, or (3) “by predestining” in v. 5. If it modifies “chose,” it refers to God’s motivation in that election, but this option is unlikely because of the placement of the prepositional phrase far away from the verb. The other two options are more likely. If it modifies “holy and unblemished,” it specifies that our holiness cannot be divorced from love. This view is in keeping with the author’s use of ἀγάπη to refer often to human love in Ephesians, but the placement of the prepositional phrase not immediately following the words it modifies would be slightly awkward. If it modifies “by predestining” (v. 5), again the motivation of God’s choice is love. This would fit the focus of the passage on God’s gracious actions toward believers, but it could be considered slightly redundant in that God’s predestination itself proves his love.