14:37 If anyone considers himself a prophet or spiritual person, he should acknowledge that what I write to you is the Lord’s command.
1 tn Grk “who,” referring to Christ. Because of the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
2 tn Or “combining spiritual things with spiritual words” (i.e., words the Spirit gives, as just described).
3 sn A quotation from Isa 40:13.
4 tn Grk “the one who is weak…the brother for whom Christ died,” but see note on the word “Christian” in 5:11.
5 tn This may be an indirect middle, “destroys himself.”
6 tn Grk “brothers.” See note on the phrase “brothers and sisters” in 1:10.
7 tn Grk “most of whom remain until now.”
8 tn The verb κοιμάω (koimaw) literally means “sleep,” but it is often used in the Bible as a euphemism for death when speaking of believers. This metaphorical usage by its very nature emphasizes the hope of resurrection: Believers will one day “wake up” out of death. Here the term refers to death, but “sleep” was used in the translation to emphasize the metaphorical, rhetorical usage of the term.
9 tn Or, more literally, “I swear by the boasting in you.”
10 tc ‡ Although the witnesses for the shorter reading (Ì46 D F G Ψ 075 0243 1739 1881 Ï) are not as strong as for the addition of ἀδελφοί (adelfoi, “brothers”) at this juncture (א A B K P 33 81 104 365 1175 2464 lat sy co), it is difficult to find a reason why scribes would either intentionally or unintentionally drop the address here. Thus, the shorter reading is slightly preferred.
11 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.