Ulangan 4:6-8

4:6 So be sure to do them, because this will testify of your wise understanding ¹  to the people who will learn of all these statutes and say, “Indeed, this great nation is a very wise ²  people.” 4:7 In fact, what other great nation has a god so near to them like the Lord our God whenever we call on him? 4:8 And what other great nation has statutes and ordinances as just ³  as this whole law ⁴  that I am about to share with ⁵  you today?

Nehemia 9:13

9:13 “You came down on Mount Sinai and spoke with them from heaven. You provided them with just judgments, true laws, and good statutes and commandments.

Mazmur 19:7-10

19:7 The law of the Lord is perfect

and preserves one’s life. ⁶ 

The rules set down by the Lord ⁷  are reliable ⁸ 

and impart wisdom to the inexperienced. ⁹ 

19:8 The Lord’s precepts are fair ¹⁰ 

and make one joyful. ¹¹ 

The Lord’s commands ¹²  are pure ¹³ 

and give insight for life. ¹⁴ 

19:9 The commands to fear the Lord are right ¹⁵ 

and endure forever. ¹⁶ 

The judgments given by the Lord are trustworthy

and absolutely just. ¹⁷ 

19:10 They are of greater value ¹⁸  than gold,

than even a great amount of pure gold;

they bring greater delight ¹⁹  than honey,

than even the sweetest honey from a honeycomb.

Mazmur 119:96-105

119:96 I realize that everything has its limits,

but your commands are beyond full comprehension. ²⁰ 

מ (Mem)

119:97 O how I love your law!

All day long I meditate on it.

119:98 Your commandments ²¹  make me wiser than my enemies,

for I am always aware of them.

119:99 I have more insight than all my teachers,

for I meditate on your rules.

119:100 I am more discerning than those older than I,

for I observe your precepts.

119:101 I stay away ²²  from the evil path,

so that I might keep your instructions. ²³ 

119:102 I do not turn aside from your regulations,

for you teach me.

119:103 Your words are sweeter

in my mouth than honey! ²⁴ 

119:104 Your precepts give me discernment.

Therefore I hate all deceitful actions. ²⁵ 

נ (Nun)

119:105 Your word ²⁶  is a lamp to walk by,

and a light to illumine my path. ²⁷ 

Mazmur 119:127-128

119:127 For this reason ²⁸  I love your commands

more than gold, even purest gold.

119:128 For this reason I carefully follow all your precepts. ²⁹ 

I hate all deceitful actions. ³⁰ 

Roma 7:12-13

7:12 So then, the law is holy, and the commandment is holy, righteous, and good.

7:13 Did that which is good, then, become death to me? Absolutely not! But sin, so that it would be shown to be sin, produced death in me through what is good, so that through the commandment sin would become utterly sinful.

Roma 7:16

7:16 But if I do what I don’t want, I agree that the law is good. ³¹ 

Roma 7:18

7:18 For I know that nothing good lives in me, that is, in my flesh. For I want to do the good, but I cannot do it. ³² 

Roma 7:22

7:22 For I delight in the law of God in my inner being.

Roma 12:2

12:2 Do not be conformed ³³  to this present world, ³⁴  but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may test and approve ³⁵  what is the will of God – what is good and well-pleasing and perfect.

Galatia 3:21

3:21 Is the law therefore opposed to the promises of God? ³⁶  Absolutely not! For if a law had been given that was able to give life, then righteousness would certainly have come by the law. ³⁷ 

[4:6]  ¹ tn Heb “it is wisdom and understanding.”

[4:6]  ² tn Heb “wise and understanding.”

[4:8]  ³ tn Or “pure”; or “fair”; Heb “righteous.”

[4:8]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew phrase הַתּוֹרָה הַזֹּאת (hattorah hazzo’t), in this context, refers specifically to the Book of Deuteronomy. That is, it is the collection of all the חֻקִּים (khuqqim, “statutes,” 4:1) and מִשְׁפָּטִים (mishpatim, “ordinances,” 4:1) to be included in the covenant text. In a full canonical sense, of course, it pertains to the entire Pentateuch or Torah.

[4:8]  ⁵ tn Heb “place before.”

[19:7]  ⁶ tn Heb “[it] restores life.” Elsewhere the Hiphil of שׁוּב (shuv, “return”) when used with נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh, “life”) as object, means to “rescue or preserve one’s life” (Job 33:30; Ps 35:17) or to “revive one’s strength” (emotionally or physically; cf. Ruth 4:15; Lam 1:11, 16, 19). Here the point seems to be that the law preserves the life of the one who studies it by making known God’s will. Those who know God’s will know how to please him and can avoid offending him. See v. 11a.

[19:7]  ⁷ tn Traditionally, “the testimony of the Lord.” The noun עֵדוּת (’edut) refers here to the demands of God’s covenant law.

[19:7]  ⁸ tn God’s covenant contains a clear, reliable witness to his moral character and demands.

[19:7]  ⁹ tn Or “the [morally] naive,” that is, the one who is young and still in the process of learning right from wrong and distinguishing wisdom from folly.

[19:8]  ¹⁰ tn Or “just.” Perhaps the idea is that they impart a knowledge of what is just and right.

[19:8]  ¹¹ tn Heb “[they] make happy [the] heart.” Perhaps the point is that they bring a sense of joyful satisfaction to the one who knows and keeps them, for those who obey God’s law are richly rewarded. See v. 11b.

[19:8]  ¹² tn Heb “command.” The singular here refers to the law as a whole.

[19:8]  ¹³ tn Because they reflect God’s character, his commands provide a code of moral and ethical purity.

[19:8]  ¹⁴ tn Heb [they] enlighten [the] eyes.

[19:9]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “the fear of the Lord is clean.” The phrase “fear of the Lord” probably refers here to the law, which teaches one how to demonstrate proper reverence for the Lord. See Ps 111:10 for another possible use of the phrase in this sense.

[19:9]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “[it] stands permanently.”

[19:9]  ¹⁷ sn Trustworthy and absolutely just. The Lord’s commands accurately reflect God’s moral will for his people and are an expression of his just character.

[19:10]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “more desirable.”

[19:10]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “are sweeter.” God’s law is “sweet’ in the sense that, when obeyed, it brings a great reward (see v. 11b).

[119:96]  ²⁰ tn Heb “to every perfection I have seen an end, your command is very wide.” God’s law is beyond full comprehension, which is why the psalmist continually studies it (vv. 95, 97).

[119:98]  ²¹ tn The plural form needs to be revocalized as a singular in order to agree with the preceding singular verb and the singular pronoun in the next line. The Lord’s “command” refers here to the law (see Ps 19:8).

[119:101]  ²² tn Heb “I hold back my feet.”

[119:101]  ²³ tn Heb “your word.” Many medieval Hebrew mss read the plural.

[119:103]  ²⁴ tn Heb “How smooth they are to my palate, your word, more than honey to my mouth.” A few medieval Hebrew mss, as well as several other ancient witnesses, read the plural “your words,” which can then be understood as the subject of the plural verb “they are smooth.”

[119:104]  ²⁵ tn Heb “every false path.”

[119:105]  ²⁶ tn Many medieval Hebrew mss read the plural (“words”).

[119:105]  ²⁷ tn Heb “[is] a lamp for my foot and a light for my path.”

[119:127]  ²⁸ tn “For this reason” connects logically with the statement made in v. 126. Because the judgment the psalmist fears (see vv. 119-120) is imminent, he remains loyal to God’s law.

[119:128]  ²⁹ tn Heb “for this reason all the precepts of everything I regard as right.” The phrase “precepts of everything” is odd. It is preferable to take the kaf (כ) on כֹּל (kol, “everything) with the preceding form as a pronominal suffix, “your precepts,” and the lamed (ל) with the following verb as an emphatic particle. See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 138.

[119:128]  ³⁰ tn Heb “every false path.”

[7:16]  ³¹ tn Grk “I agree with the law that it is good.”

[7:18]  ³² tn Grk “For to wish is present in/with me, but not to do it.”

[12:2]  ³³ tn Although συσχηματίζεσθε (suschmatizesqe) could be either a passive or middle, the passive is more likely since it would otherwise have to be a direct middle (“conform yourselves”) and, as such, would be quite rare for NT Greek. It is very telling that being “conformed” to the present world is viewed as a passive notion, for it may suggest that it happens, in part, subconsciously. At the same time, the passive could well be a “permissive passive,” suggesting that there may be some consciousness of the conformity taking place. Most likely, it is a combination of both.

[12:2]  ³⁴ tn Grk “to this age.”

[12:2]  ³⁵ sn The verb translated test and approve (δοκιμάζω, dokimazw) carries the sense of “test with a positive outcome,” “test so as to approve.”

[3:21]  ³⁶ tc The reading τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou, “of God”) is well attested in א A C D (F G read θεοῦ without the article) Ψ 0278 33 1739 1881 Ï lat sy co. However, Ì⁴⁶ B d Ambst lack the words. Ì⁴⁶ and B perhaps should not to be given as much weight as they normally are, since the combination of these two witnesses often produces a secondary shorter reading against all others. In addition, one might expect that if the shorter reading were original other variants would have crept into the textual tradition early on. But 104 (a.d. 1087) virtually stands alone with the variant τοῦ Χριστοῦ (tou Cristou, “of Christ”). Nevertheless, if τοῦ θεοῦ were not part of the original text, it is the kind of variant that would be expected to show up early and often, especially in light of Paul’s usage elsewhere (Rom 4:20; 2 Cor 1:20). A slight preference should be given to the τοῦ θεοῦ over the omission. NA²⁷ rightly places the words in brackets, indicating doubts as to their authenticity.

[3:21]  ³⁷ tn Or “have been based on the law.”