2 Tawarikh 29:1--31:1
Konteks29:1 Hezekiah was twenty-five years old when he began to reign, and he reigned twenty-nine years in Jerusalem. 1 His mother was Abijah, 2 the daughter of Zechariah. 29:2 He did what the Lord approved, just as his ancestor David had done. 3
29:3 In the first month of the first year of his reign, he opened the doors of the Lord’s temple and repaired them. 29:4 He brought in the priests and Levites and assembled them in the square on the east side. 29:5 He said to them: “Listen to me, you Levites! Now consecrate yourselves, so you can consecrate the temple of the Lord God of your ancestors! 4 Remove from the sanctuary what is ceremonially unclean! 29:6 For our fathers were unfaithful; they did what is evil in the sight of 5 the Lord our God and abandoned him! They turned 6 away from the Lord’s dwelling place and rejected him. 7 29:7 They closed the doors of the temple porch and put out the lamps; they did not offer incense or burnt sacrifices in the sanctuary of the God of Israel. 29:8 The Lord was angry at Judah and Jerusalem and made them an appalling object of horror at which people hiss out their scorn, 8 as you can see with your own eyes. 29:9 Look, our fathers died violently 9 and our sons, daughters, and wives were carried off 10 because of this. 29:10 Now I intend 11 to make a covenant with the Lord God of Israel, so that he may relent from his raging anger. 12 29:11 My sons, do not be negligent now, for the Lord has chosen you to serve in his presence and offer sacrifices.” 13
29:12 The following Levites prepared to carry out the king’s orders: 14
From the Kohathites: Mahath son of Amasai and Joel son of Azariah;
from the Merarites: Kish son of Abdi and Azariah son of Jehallelel;
from the Gershonites: Joah son of Zimmah and Eden son of Joah;
29:13 from the descendants of Elizaphan: Shimri and Jeiel;
from the descendants of Asaph: Zechariah and Mattaniah;
29:14 from the descendants of Heman: Jehiel and Shimei;
from the descendants of Jeduthun: Shemaiah and Uzziel.
29:15 They assembled their brothers and consecrated themselves. Then they went in to purify the Lord’s temple, just as the king had ordered, in accordance with the word 15 of the Lord. 29:16 The priests then entered the Lord’s temple to purify it; they brought out to the courtyard of the Lord’s temple every ceremonially unclean thing they discovered inside. 16 The Levites took them out to the Kidron Valley. 29:17 On the first day of the first month they began consecrating; by the eighth day of the month they reached the porch of the Lord’s temple. 17 For eight more days they consecrated the Lord’s temple. On the sixteenth day of the first month they were finished. 29:18 They went to King Hezekiah and said: “We have purified the entire temple of the Lord, including the altar of burnt sacrifice and all its equipment, and the table for the Bread of the Presence and all its equipment. 29:19 We have prepared and consecrated all the items that King Ahaz removed during his reign when he acted unfaithfully. They are in front of the altar of the Lord.”
29:20 Early the next morning King Hezekiah assembled the city officials and went up to the Lord’s temple. 29:21 They brought seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs, and seven goats as a sin offering for the kingdom, the sanctuary, and Judah. 18 The king 19 told the priests, the descendants of Aaron, to offer burnt sacrifices on the altar of the Lord. 29:22 They slaughtered the bulls, and the priests took the blood and splashed it on the altar. Then they slaughtered the rams and splashed the blood on the altar; next they slaughtered the lambs and splashed the blood on the altar. 29:23 Finally they brought the goats for the sin offering before the king and the assembly, and they placed their hands on them. 29:24 Then the priests slaughtered them. They offered their blood as a sin offering on the altar to make atonement for all Israel, because the king had decreed 20 that the burnt sacrifice and sin offering were for all Israel.
29:25 King Hezekiah 21 stationed the Levites in the Lord’s temple with cymbals and stringed instruments, just as David, Gad the king’s prophet, 22 and Nathan the prophet had ordered. (The Lord had actually given these orders through his prophets.) 29:26 The Levites had 23 David’s musical instruments and the priests had trumpets. 29:27 Hezekiah ordered the burnt sacrifice to be offered on the altar. As they began to offer the sacrifice, they also began to sing to the Lord, accompanied by the trumpets and the musical instruments of King David of Israel. 29:28 The entire assembly worshiped, as the singers sang and the trumpeters played. They continued until the burnt sacrifice was completed.
29:29 When the sacrifices were completed, the king and all who were with him bowed down and worshiped. 29:30 King Hezekiah and the officials told the Levites to praise the Lord, using the psalms 24 of David and Asaph the prophet. 25 So they joyfully offered praise and bowed down and worshiped. 29:31 Hezekiah said, “Now you have consecrated yourselves 26 to the Lord. Come and bring sacrifices and thank offerings 27 to the Lord’s temple.” So the assembly brought sacrifices and thank offerings, and whoever desired to do so 28 brought burnt sacrifices.
29:32 The assembly brought a total of 70 bulls, 100 rams, and 200 lambs as burnt sacrifices to the Lord, 29 29:33 and 600 bulls and 3,000 sheep 30 were consecrated. 29:34 But there were not enough priests to skin all the animals, 31 so their brothers, the Levites, helped them until the work was finished and the priests could consecrate themselves. (The Levites had been more conscientious about consecrating themselves than the priests.) 32 29:35 There was a large number of burnt sacrifices, as well as fat from the peace offerings and drink offerings that accompanied the burnt sacrifices. So the service of the Lord’s temple was reinstituted. 33 29:36 Hezekiah and all the people were happy about what God had done 34 for them, 35 for it had been done quickly. 36
30:1 Hezekiah sent messages throughout Israel and Judah; he even wrote letters to Ephraim and Manasseh, summoning them to come to the Lord’s temple in Jerusalem 37 and observe a Passover celebration for the Lord God of Israel. 30:2 The king, his officials, and the entire assembly in Jerusalem decided to observe the Passover in the second month. 30:3 They were unable to observe it at the regular 38 time because not enough priests had consecrated themselves and the people had not assembled in Jerusalem. 30:4 The proposal seemed appropriate to 39 the king and the entire assembly. 30:5 So they sent an edict 40 throughout Israel from Beer Sheba to Dan, summoning the people 41 to come and observe a Passover for the Lord God of Israel in Jerusalem, for they had not observed it on a nationwide scale as prescribed in the law. 42 30:6 Messengers 43 delivered the letters from the king and his officials throughout Israel and Judah.
This royal edict read: 44 “O Israelites, return to the Lord God of Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, so he may return 45 to you who have been spared from the kings of Assyria. 46 30:7 Don’t be like your fathers and brothers who were unfaithful to the Lord God of their ancestors, 47 provoking him to destroy them, 48 as you can see. 30:8 Now, don’t be stubborn 49 like your fathers! Submit 50 to the Lord and come to his sanctuary which he has permanently consecrated. Serve the Lord your God so that he might relent from his raging anger. 51 30:9 For if you return to the Lord, your brothers and sons will be shown mercy by their captors and return to this land. The Lord your God is merciful and compassionate; he will not reject you 52 if you return to him.”
30:10 The messengers journeyed from city to city through the land of Ephraim and Manasseh as far as Zebulun, but people mocked and ridiculed them. 53 30:11 But some men from Asher, Manasseh, and Zebulun humbled themselves and came to Jerusalem. 30:12 In Judah God moved the people to unite and carry out the edict the king and the officers had issued at the Lord’s command. 54 30:13 A huge crowd assembled in Jerusalem to observe the Feast of Unleavened Bread in the second month. 55 30:14 They removed the altars in Jerusalem; they also removed all the incense altars and threw them into the Kidron Valley. 56
30:15 They slaughtered the Passover lamb on the fourteenth day of the second month. The priests and Levites were ashamed, so they consecrated themselves and brought burnt sacrifices to the Lord’s temple. 30:16 They stood at their posts according to the regulations outlined in the law of Moses, the man of God. The priests were splashing the blood as the Levites handed it to them. 57 30:17 Because many in the assembly had not consecrated themselves, the Levites slaughtered 58 the Passover lambs of all who were ceremonially unclean and could not consecrate their sacrifice to the Lord. 59 30:18 The majority of the many people from Ephraim, Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun were ceremonially unclean, yet they ate the Passover in violation of what is prescribed in the law. 60 For Hezekiah prayed for them, saying: “May the Lord, who is good, forgive 61 30:19 everyone who has determined to follow God, 62 the Lord God of his ancestors, even if he is not ceremonially clean according to the standards of the temple.” 63 30:20 The Lord responded favorably 64 to Hezekiah and forgave 65 the people.
30:21 The Israelites who were in Jerusalem observed the Feast of Unleavened Bread for seven days with great joy. The Levites and priests were praising the Lord every day with all their might. 66 30:22 Hezekiah expressed his appreciation to all the Levites, 67 who demonstrated great skill in serving the Lord. 68 They feasted for the seven days of the festival, 69 and were making peace offerings and giving thanks to the Lord God of their ancestors.
30:23 The entire assembly then decided to celebrate for seven more days; so they joyfully celebrated for seven more days. 30:24 King Hezekiah of Judah supplied 1,000 bulls and 7,000 sheep 70 for the assembly, while the officials supplied them 71 with 1,000 bulls and 10,000 sheep. Many priests consecrated themselves. 30:25 The celebration included 72 the entire assembly of Judah, the priests, the Levites, the entire assembly of those who came from Israel, the resident foreigners who came from the land of Israel, and the residents of Judah. 30:26 There was a great celebration in Jerusalem, unlike anything that had occurred in Jerusalem since the time of King Solomon son of David of Israel. 73 30:27 The priests and Levites got up and pronounced blessings on the people. The Lord responded favorably to them 74 as their prayers reached his holy dwelling place in heaven.
31:1 When all this was over, the Israelites 75 who were in the cities of Judah went out and smashed the sacred pillars, cut down the Asherah poles, and demolished 76 all the high places and altars throughout Judah, Benjamin, Ephraim, and Manasseh. 77 Then all the Israelites returned to their own homes in their cities. 78
Kisah Para Rasul 6:8--7:16
Konteks6:8 Now Stephen, full of grace and power, was performing great wonders and miraculous signs 79 among the people. 6:9 But some men from the Synagogue 80 of the Freedmen (as it was called), 81 both Cyrenians and Alexandrians, as well as some from Cilicia and the province of Asia, 82 stood up and argued with Stephen. 6:10 Yet 83 they were not able to resist 84 the wisdom and the Spirit with which he spoke. 6:11 Then they secretly instigated 85 some men to say, “We have heard this man 86 speaking blasphemous words against Moses and God.” 6:12 They incited the people, the 87 elders, and the experts in the law; 88 then they approached Stephen, 89 seized him, and brought him before the council. 90 6:13 They brought forward false witnesses who said, “This man does not stop saying things against this holy place 91 and the law. 92 6:14 For we have heard him saying that Jesus the Nazarene will destroy this place and change the customs 93 that Moses handed down to us.” 6:15 All 94 who were sitting in the council 95 looked intently at Stephen 96 and saw his face was like the face of an angel. 97
7:1 Then the high priest said, “Are these things true?” 98 7:2 So he replied, 99 “Brothers and fathers, listen to me. The God of glory appeared to our forefather 100 Abraham when he was in Mesopotamia, before he settled in Haran, 7:3 and said to him, ‘Go out from your country and from your relatives, and come to the land I will show you.’ 101 7:4 Then he went out from the country of the Chaldeans and settled in Haran. After his father died, God 102 made him move 103 to this country where you now live. 7:5 He 104 did not give any of it to him for an inheritance, 105 not even a foot of ground, 106 yet God 107 promised to give it to him as his possession, and to his descendants after him, 108 even though Abraham 109 as yet had no child. 7:6 But God spoke as follows: ‘Your 110 descendants will be foreigners 111 in a foreign country, whose citizens will enslave them and mistreat them for four hundred years. 112 7:7 But I will punish 113 the nation they serve as slaves,’ said God, ‘and after these things they will come out of there 114 and worship 115 me in this place.’ 116 7:8 Then God 117 gave Abraham 118 the covenant 119 of circumcision, and so he became the father of Isaac and circumcised him when he was eight days old, 120 and Isaac became the father of 121 Jacob, and Jacob of the twelve patriarchs. 122 7:9 The 123 patriarchs, because they were jealous of Joseph, sold 124 him into Egypt. But 125 God was with him, 7:10 and rescued him from all his troubles, and granted him favor and wisdom in the presence of Pharaoh, king of Egypt, who made 126 him ruler over Egypt and over all his household. 7:11 Then a famine occurred throughout 127 Egypt and Canaan, causing 128 great suffering, and our 129 ancestors 130 could not find food. 7:12 So when Jacob heard that there was grain 131 in Egypt, he sent our ancestors 132 there 133 the first time. 7:13 On their second visit Joseph made himself known to his brothers again, and Joseph’s family 134 became known to Pharaoh. 7:14 So Joseph sent a message 135 and invited 136 his father Jacob and all his relatives to come, seventy-five people 137 in all. 7:15 So Jacob went down to Egypt and died there, 138 along with our ancestors, 139 7:16 and their bones 140 were later moved to Shechem and placed in the tomb that Abraham had bought for a certain sum of money 141 from the sons of Hamor in Shechem.
[29:1] 1 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[29:1] 2 tn The parallel passage in 2 Kgs 18:2 has “Abi.”
[29:2] 3 tn Heb “he did what was proper in the eyes of the
[29:6] 5 tn Heb “in the eyes of.”
[29:6] 6 tn Heb “turned their faces.”
[29:6] 7 tn Heb “and turned the back.”
[29:8] 8 tn Heb “and he made them [an object] of dread and devastation and hissing.”
[29:9] 9 tn Heb “fell by the sword.”
[29:9] 10 tn Heb “are in captivity.”
[29:10] 11 tn Heb “now it is with my heart.”
[29:10] 12 tn Heb “so that the rage of his anger might turn from us.” The jussive with vav (ו) conjunctive indicates purpose/result after the preceding statement of intention.
[29:11] 13 tn Heb “to stand before him to serve him and to be his servants and sacrificers.”
[29:12] 14 tn Heb “and the Levites arose.”
[29:15] 15 tn Heb “words” (plural).
[29:16] 16 tn Heb “in the temple of the
[29:17] 17 tn Heb “porch of the
[29:21] 18 sn Perhaps these terms refer metonymically to the royal court, the priests and Levites, and the people, respectively.
[29:21] 19 tn Heb “he”; the referent (the king) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[29:25] 21 tn Heb “he”; the referent (King Hezekiah) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[29:26] 23 tn Heb “stood with” (i.e., stood holding).
[29:30] 24 tn Heb “with the words.”
[29:31] 26 tn Heb “filled your hand.”
[29:31] 27 tn Or “tokens of thanks.”
[29:31] 28 tn Heb “and all who were willing of heart.”
[29:32] 29 tn Heb “and the number of burnt sacrifices which the assembly brought was seventy bulls, one hundred rams, two hundred lambs; for a burnt sacrifice to the
[29:33] 30 tn The Hebrew term צֹאן (ts’on) denotes smaller livestock in general; depending on context it can refer to sheep only or goats only, but there is nothing in the immediate context here to specify one or the other.
[29:34] 31 tn Heb “the burnt sacrifices.”
[29:34] 32 tn Heb “for the Levites were more pure of heart to consecrate themselves than the priests.”
[29:35] 33 tn Or “established.”
[29:36] 35 tn Heb “the people.” The pronoun “they” has been used here for stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy.
[29:36] 36 tn Heb “for quickly was the matter.”
[30:1] 37 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[30:3] 38 tn Heb “at that time.”
[30:4] 39 tn Heb “and the thing was proper in the eyes of.”
[30:5] 40 tn Heb “and they caused to stand a word to cause a voice to pass through.”
[30:5] 41 tn The words “summoning the people” are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[30:5] 42 tn Heb “because not for abundance had they done as written.”
[30:6] 43 tn Heb “the runners.”
[30:6] 44 tn Heb “and according to the command of the king, saying.”
[30:6] 45 tn The jussive with vav conjunctive indicates purpose/result after the preceding imperative.
[30:6] 46 tn Heb “to the survivors who are left to you from the palm of the kings of Assyria.”
[30:7] 47 tn Heb “fathers” (also in vv. 19, 22).
[30:7] 48 tn Heb “and he made them a devastation” (or, perhaps, “an object of horror”).
[30:8] 49 tn Heb “don’t stiffen your neck” (a Hebrew idiom for being stubborn).
[30:8] 50 tn Heb “give a hand.” On the meaning of the idiom here, see HALOT 387 s.v. I יָד 2.
[30:8] 51 tn Heb “so that the rage of his anger might turn from you.” The jussive with vav conjunctive indicates purpose/result after the preceding imperative.
[30:9] 52 tn Heb “turn [his] face from you.”
[30:10] 53 tn Heb “and they were mocking them and ridiculing them.”
[30:12] 54 tn Heb “also in Judah the hand of God was to give to them one heart to do the command of the king and the officials by the word of the
[30:13] 55 tn The Hebrew text adds here, “a very large assembly.” This has not been translated to avoid redundancy with the expression “a huge crowd” at the beginning of the verse.
[30:14] 56 tn Heb “and they arose and removed the altars which were in Jerusalem, and all the incense altars they removed and threw into the Kidron Valley.”
[30:16] 57 tn Heb “from the hand of the Levites.”
[30:17] 58 tn Heb “were over the slaughter of.”
[30:17] 59 tn Heb “of everyone not pure to consecrate to the
[30:18] 60 tn Heb “without what is written.”
[30:18] 61 tn Heb “make atonement for.”
[30:19] 62 tn Heb “everyone [who] has prepared his heart to seek God.”
[30:19] 63 tn Heb “and not according to the purification of the holy place.”
[30:21] 66 tn Heb “and they were praising the
[30:22] 67 tn Heb “and Hezekiah spoke to the heart of all the Levites.” On the meaning of the idiom “speak to the heart of” here, see HALOT 210 s.v. II דבר 8.d.
[30:22] 68 tn Heb “who demonstrated skill [with] good skill for the
[30:22] 69 tn Heb “and they ate [during] the appointed time [for] seven days.” מוֹעֵד (mo’ed, “appointed time”) is probably an adverbial accusative of time referring to the festival. However, some understand it as metonymically referring to the food eaten during the festival. See BDB 417 s.v.
[30:24] 70 tn The Hebrew term צֹאן (ts’on, translated “sheep” twice in this verse) denotes smaller livestock in general; depending on context it can refer to sheep only or goats only, but their is nothing in the immediate context here to specify one or the other.
[30:24] 71 tn Heb “the assembly.” The pronoun “them” has been used in the translation for stylistic reasons, to avoid redundancy.
[30:25] 72 tn Heb “they rejoiced.”
[30:26] 73 tn Heb “and there was great joy in Jerusalem, for from the days of Solomon son of David, king of Israel, there was nothing like this in Jerusalem.”
[30:27] 74 tn Heb “and it was heard with their voice.” BDB 1034 s.v. שָׁמַע Niph.4 interprets this to mean “hearing was granted to their voice.” It is possible that the name יְהוָה (yÿhvah, “the
[31:1] 75 tn Heb “all Israel.”
[31:1] 77 tn Heb “the high places and the altars from all Judah and Benjamin and in Ephraim and in Manasseh until finished.”
[31:1] 78 tn Heb “and the sons of Israel returned, each to his possession to their cities.”
[6:8] 79 tn The miraculous nature of these signs is implied in the context. Here the work of miracles extends beyond the Twelve for the first time.
[6:9] 80 sn A synagogue was a place for Jewish prayer and worship, with recognized leadership (cf. Luke 8:41). Though the origin of the synagogue is not entirely clear, it seems to have arisen in the postexilic community during the intertestamental period. A town could establish a synagogue if there were at least ten men. In normative Judaism of the NT period, the OT scripture was read and discussed in the synagogue by the men who were present (see the Mishnah, m. Megillah 3-4; m. Berakhot 2).
[6:9] 81 tn Grk “the so-called Synagogue of the Freedmen.” The translation of the participle λεγομένης (legomenh") by the phrase “as it was called” is given by L&N 87.86. “Freedmen” would be slaves who had gained their freedom, or the descendants of such people (BDAG 594-95 s.v. Λιβερτῖνος).
[6:9] 82 tn Grk “Asia”; in the NT this always refers to the Roman province of Asia, made up of about one-third of the west and southwest end of modern Asia Minor. Asia lay to the west of the region of Phrygia and Galatia. The words “the province of” are supplied to indicate to the modern reader that this does not refer to the continent of Asia.
[6:10] 83 tn Grk “and.” The context, however, indicates that the conjunction carries an adversative force.
[6:10] 84 sn They were not able to resist. This represents another fulfillment of Luke 12:11-12; 21:15.
[6:11] 85 tn Another translation would be “they suborned” (but this term is not in common usage). “Instigate (secretly), suborn” is given by BDAG 1036 s.v. ὑποβάλλω.
[6:11] 86 tn Grk “heard him”; but since this is direct discourse, it is more natural (and clearer) to specify the referent (Stephen) as “this man.”
[6:12] 87 tn Grk “and the,” but καί (kai) has not been translated since English normally uses a coordinating conjunction only between the last two elements in a series of three or more.
[6:12] 88 tn Or “and the scribes.” See the note on the phrase “experts in the law” in 4:5.
[6:12] 89 tn Grk “approaching, they seized him”; the referent (Stephen) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[6:12] 90 tn Or “the Sanhedrin” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews). Stephen suffers just as Peter and John did.
[6:13] 91 sn This holy place is a reference to the temple.
[6:13] 92 sn The law refers to the law of Moses. It elaborates the nature of the blasphemy in v. 11. To speak against God’s law in Torah was to blaspheme God (Deut 28:15-19). On the Jewish view of false witnesses, see Exod 19:16-18; 20:16; m. Sanhedrin 3.6; 5.1-5. Stephen’s speech in Acts 7 may indicate why the temple was mentioned.
[6:14] sn Will destroy this place and change the customs. Stephen appears to view the temple as a less central place in light of Christ’s work, an important challenge to Jewish religion, since it was at this time a temple-centered state and religion. Unlike Acts 3-4, the issue here is more than Jesus and his resurrection. Now the impact of his resurrection and the temple’s centrality has also become an issue. The “falseness” of the charge may not be that the witnesses were lying, but that they falsely read the truth of Stephen’s remarks.
[6:15] 94 tn Grk “And all.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
[6:15] 95 tn Or “Sanhedrin” (the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).
[6:15] 96 tn Grk “at him”; the referent (Stephen) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[6:15] 97 sn His face was like the face of an angel. This narrative description of Stephen’s face adds to the mood of the passage. He had the appearance of a supernatural, heavenly messenger.
[7:1] 98 tn Grk “If it is so concerning these things” (see BDAG 422 s.v. ἔχω 10.a for this use).
[7:2] 100 tn Or “ancestor”; Grk “father.”
[7:3] 101 sn A quotation from Gen 12:1.
[7:4] 102 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:4] 103 tn The translation “made him move” for the verb μετοικίζω (metoikizw) is given by L&N 85.83. The verb has the idea of “resettling” someone (BDAG 643 s.v.); see v. 43, where it reappears.
[7:5] 104 tn Grk “And he.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
[7:5] 105 tn Grk “He did not give him an inheritance in it.” This could be understood to mean that God did not give something else to Abraham as an inheritance while he was living there. The point of the text is that God did not give any of the land to him as an inheritance, and the translation makes this clear.
[7:5] 106 tn Grk “a step of a foot” (cf. Deut 2:5).
[7:5] 107 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:5] 108 sn An allusion to Gen 12:7; 13:15; 15:2, 18; 17:8; 24:7; 48:4. On the theological importance of the promise and to his descendants after him, see Rom 4 and Gal 3.
[7:5] 109 tn Grk “he”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:6] 110 tn Grk “that his”; the discourse switches from indirect to direct with the following verbs. For consistency the entire quotation is treated as second person direct discourse in the translation.
[7:6] 111 tn Or “will be strangers,” that is, one who lives as a noncitizen of a foreign country.
[7:6] 112 sn A quotation from Gen 15:13. Exod 12:40 specifies the sojourn as 430 years.
[7:7] 113 tn BDAG 568 s.v. κρίνω 5.b.α states, “Oft. the emphasis is unmistakably laid upon that which follows the Divine Judge’s verdict, upon the condemnation or punishment: condemn, punish …Ac 7:7 (Gen 15:14).”
[7:7] 114 tn The words “of there” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.
[7:7] sn A quotation from Gen 15:14.
[7:7] 115 tn Or “and serve,” but with religious/cultic overtones (BDAG 587 s.v. λατρεύω).
[7:7] 116 sn An allusion to Exod 3:12.
[7:8] 117 tn Grk “he”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:8] 118 tn Grk “him”; the referent (Abraham) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[7:8] 119 sn God gave…the covenant. Note how the covenant of promise came before Abraham’s entry into the land and before the building of the temple.
[7:8] 120 tn Grk “circumcised him on the eighth day,” but many modern readers will not understand that this procedure was done on the eighth day after birth. The temporal clause “when he was eight days old” conveys this idea more clearly. See Gen 17:11-12.
[7:8] 121 tn The words “became the father of” are not in the Greek text due to an ellipsis, but must be supplied for the English translation. The ellipsis picks up the verb from the previous clause describing how Abraham fathered Isaac.
[7:8] 122 sn The twelve patriarchs refers to the twelve sons of Jacob, the famous ancestors of the Jewish race (see Gen 35:23-26).
[7:9] 123 tn Grk “And the.” Because of the difference between Greek style, which often begins sentences or clauses with “and,” and English style, which generally does not, καί (kai) has not been translated here.
[7:9] 124 tn The meaning “sell” for the middle voice of ἀποδίδωμι (apodidwmi) is given by BDAG 110 s.v. 5.a. See Gen 37:12-36, esp. v. 28.
[7:9] 125 tn Though the Greek term here is καί (kai), in context this remark is clearly contrastive: Despite the malicious act, God was present and protected Joseph.
[7:10] 126 tn Or “appointed.” See Gen 41:41-43.
[7:11] 127 tn Grk “came upon all Egypt.”
[7:11] 128 tn Grk “and,” but logically causal.
[7:11] 129 sn Our. Stephen spoke of “our” ancestors (Grk “fathers”) in an inclusive sense throughout the speech until his rebuke in v. 51, where the nation does what “your” ancestors did, at which point an exclusive pronoun is used. This serves to emphasize the rebuke.
[7:11] 130 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
[7:12] 131 tn Or possibly “food,” since in a number of extrabiblical contexts the phrase σιτία καὶ ποτά (sitia kai pota) means “food and drink,” where solid food is contrasted with liquid nourishment (L&N 3.42).
[7:12] 132 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
[7:12] 133 tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.
[7:13] 134 tn BDAG 194 s.v. γένος 2. gives “family, relatives” here; another alternative is “race” (see v. 19).
[7:14] 135 tn The words “a message” are not in the Greek text, but are implied.
[7:14] 136 tn Or “Joseph had his father summoned” (BDAG 121 s.v. ἀποστέλλω 2.b).
[7:14] 137 tn Grk “souls” (here an idiom for the whole person).
[7:15] 138 tn The word “there” is not in the Greek text. Direct objects were often omitted in Greek when clear from the context, but must be supplied for the modern English reader.
[7:15] 139 tn Or “forefathers”; Grk “fathers.”
[7:16] 141 sn See Gen 49:29-32.
