Roma 9:11

9:11 even before they were born or had done anything good or bad (so that God’s purpose in election ¹  would stand, not by works but by ²  his calling) ³  –

Kejadian 27:1-4

Jacob Cheats Esau out of the Blessing

27:1 When ⁴  Isaac was old and his eyes were so weak that he was almost blind, ⁵  he called his older ⁶  son Esau and said to him, “My son!” “Here I am!” Esau ⁷  replied. 27:2 Isaac ⁸  said, “Since ⁹  I am so old, I could die at any time. ¹⁰  27:3 Therefore, take your weapons – your quiver and your bow – and go out into the open fields and hunt down some wild game ¹¹  for me. 27:4 Then prepare for me some tasty food, the kind I love, and bring it to me. Then ¹²  I will eat it so that I may bless you ¹³  before I die.”

Kejadian 27:9-14

27:9 Go to the flock and get me two of the best young goats. I’ll prepare ¹⁴  them in a tasty way for your father, just the way he loves them. 27:10 Then you will take ¹⁵  it to your father. Thus he will eat it ¹⁶  and ¹⁷  bless you before he dies.”

27:11 “But Esau my brother is a hairy man,” Jacob protested to his mother Rebekah, “and I have smooth skin! ¹⁸  27:12 My father may touch me! Then he’ll think I’m mocking him ¹⁹  and I’ll bring a curse on myself instead of a blessing.” 27:13 So his mother told him, “Any curse against you will fall on me, ²⁰  my son! Just obey me! ²¹  Go and get them for me!”

27:14 So he went and got the goats ²²  and brought them to his mother. She ²³  prepared some tasty food, just the way his father loved it.

Mazmur 110:3

110:3 Your people willingly follow you ²⁴  when you go into battle. ²⁵ 

On the holy hills ²⁶  at sunrise ²⁷  the dew of your youth ²⁸  belongs to you. ²⁹ 

Yesaya 65:1

The Lord Will Distinguish Between Sinners and the Godly

65:1 “I made myself available to those who did not ask for me; ³⁰ 

I appeared to those who did not look for me. ³¹ 

I said, ‘Here I am! Here I am!’

to a nation that did not invoke ³²  my name.

Matius 11:25-26

Jesus’ Invitation

11:25 At that time Jesus said, ³³  “I praise ³⁴  you, Father, Lord ³⁵  of heaven and earth, because ³⁶  you have hidden these things from the wise ³⁷  and intelligent, and revealed them to little children. 11:26 Yes, Father, for this was your gracious will. ³⁸ 

Lukas 10:21

10:21 On that same occasion ³⁹  Jesus ⁴⁰  rejoiced ⁴¹  in the Holy Spirit and said, “I praise ⁴²  you, Father, Lord ⁴³  of heaven and earth, because ⁴⁴  you have hidden these things from the wise ⁴⁵  and intelligent, and revealed them to little children. Yes, Father, for this was your gracious will. ⁴⁶ 

Yohanes 1:12-13

1:12 But to all who have received him – those who believe in his name ⁴⁷  – he has given the right to become God’s children 1:13 – children not born ⁴⁸  by human parents ⁴⁹  or by human desire ⁵⁰  or a husband’s ⁵¹  decision, ⁵²  but by God.

Yohanes 3:8

3:8 The wind ⁵³  blows wherever it will, and you hear the sound it makes, but do not know where it comes from and where it is going. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” ⁵⁴ 

Yohanes 3:1

Conversation with Nicodemus

3:1 Now a certain man, a Pharisee ⁵⁵  named Nicodemus, who was a member of the Jewish ruling council, ⁵⁶ 

Kolose 1:26

1:26 that is, the mystery that has been kept hidden from ages and generations, but has now been revealed to his saints.

Efesus 2:4-5

2:4 But God, being rich in mercy, because of his great love with which he loved us, 2:5 even though we were dead in transgressions, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you are saved! ⁵⁷  –

Filipi 2:13

2:13 for the one bringing forth in you both the desire and the effort – for the sake of his good pleasure – is God.

Filipi 2:2

2:2 complete my joy and be of the same mind, ⁵⁸  by having the same love, being united in spirit, ⁵⁹  and having one purpose.

Filipi 2:13-14

2:13 for the one bringing forth in you both the desire and the effort – for the sake of his good pleasure – is God. 2:14 Do everything without grumbling or arguing,

Titus 3:3-5

3:3 For we too were once foolish, disobedient, misled, enslaved to various passions and desires, spending our lives in evil and envy, hateful and hating one another. 3:4 ⁶⁰  But “when the kindness of God our Savior and his love for mankind appeared, 3:5 he saved us not by works of righteousness that we have done but on the basis of his mercy, through the washing of the new birth and the renewing of the Holy Spirit,

Yakobus 1:18

1:18 By his sovereign plan he gave us birth ⁶¹  through the message of truth, that we would be a kind of firstfruits of all he created.

Yakobus 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From James, ⁶²  a slave ⁶³  of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes dispersed abroad. ⁶⁴  Greetings!

Pengkhotbah 2:9-10

2:9 So ⁶⁵  I was far wealthier ⁶⁶  than all my predecessors in Jerusalem,

yet I maintained my objectivity: ⁶⁷ 

2:10 I did not restrain myself from getting whatever I wanted; ⁶⁸ 

I did not deny myself anything that would bring me pleasure. ⁶⁹ 

So all my accomplishments gave me joy; ⁷⁰ 

this was my reward for all my effort. ⁷¹ 

[9:11]  ¹ tn Grk “God’s purpose according to election.”

[9:11]  ² tn Or “not based on works but based on…”

[9:11]  ³ tn Grk “by the one who calls.”

[9:11]  sn The entire clause is something of a parenthetical remark.

[27:1]  ⁴ tn The clause begins with the temporal indicator (“and it happened”), making it subordinate to the main clause that follows later in the sentence.

[27:1]  ⁵ tn Heb “and his eyes were weak from seeing.”

[27:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “greater” (in terms of age).

[27:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Esau) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:2]  ⁸ tn Heb “he”; the referent (Isaac) is specified in the translation for clarity.

[27:2]  ⁹ tn The particle הִנֵּה (hinneh, “look”) here introduces a logically foundational statement, upon which the coming instruction will be based.

[27:2]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “I do not know the day of my death.”

[27:3]  ¹¹ tn The Hebrew word is to be spelled either צַיִד (tsayid) following the marginal reading (Qere), or צֵידָה (tsedah) following the consonantal text (Kethib). Either way it is from the same root as the imperative צוּדָה (tsudah, “hunt down”).

[27:4]  ¹² tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:4]  ¹³ tn Heb “so that my soul may bless you.” The use of נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”) as the subject emphasizes that the blessing will be made with all Isaac’s desire and vitality. The conjunction “so that” closely relates the meal to the blessing, suggesting that this will be a ritual meal in conjunction with the giving of a formal blessing.

[27:9]  ¹⁴ tn Following the imperative, the cohortative (with the prefixed conjunction) indicates purpose or result.

[27:10]  ¹⁵ tn The form is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive. It carries forward the tone of instruction initiated by the command to “go…and get” in the preceding verse.

[27:10]  ¹⁶ tn The form is the perfect with the vav (ו) consecutive; it carries the future nuance of the preceding verbs of instruction, but by switching the subject to Jacob, indicates the expected result of the subterfuge.

[27:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “so that.” The conjunction indicates purpose or result.

[27:11]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “And Jacob said to Rebekah his mother, ‘Look, Esau my brother is a hairy man, but I am a smooth [skinned] man.’” The order of the introductory clause and the direct discourse has been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:12]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “Perhaps my father will feel me and I will be in his eyes like a mocker.” The Hebrew expression “I will be in his eyes like” means “I would appear to him as.”

[27:13]  ²⁰ tn Heb “upon me your curse.”

[27:13]  ²¹ tn Heb “only listen to my voice.”

[27:14]  ²² tn The words “the goats” are not in the Hebrew text, but are supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[27:14]  ²³ tn Heb “his mother.” This has been replaced by the pronoun “she” in the translation for stylistic reasons.

[110:3]  ²⁴ tn Heb “your people, free will offerings.” Perhaps the people, in their willingness to volunteer, are compared metaphorically to freewill offerings. Following the LXX, some revocalize the text and read “with you is nobility.”

[110:3]  ²⁵ tn Heb “in the day of your power.”

[110:3]  ²⁶ tc Heb “in splendor of holiness.” The plural construct form הַדְרֵי (hadrey, from הָדַר, hadar, “splendor”) occurs only here; it may indicate degree or perhaps refer by metonymy to garments (see Pss 29:2 and 96:9, where the phrase הַדְרַת קֹדֶשׁ [hadrat qodesh] refers to “holy attire”). If one retains the reading of the MT, this phrase should probably be taken with the preceding line. However, because of the subsequent references to “dawn” and to “dew,” it is better to emend the text to הַרְרֵי קֹדֶשׁ (harrey qodesh, “mountains of holiness”), a reading found in many medieval Hebrew mss and in some other ancient witnesses (see Joel 2:2; Ps 133:3, as well as L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 [WBC], 80). The “mountains of holiness” are probably the hills surrounding Zion (see Ps 87:1; 125:2; 133:3).

[110:3]  ²⁷ tn Heb “from the womb of dawn.” The Hebrew noun רֶחֶם (rekhem, “womb”) is probably used here metonymically for “birth.” The form מִשְׁחָר (mishkhar) occurs only here and should be emended to שַׁחַר (shakhar, “dawn”) with the mem (מ) being understood as dittographic (note the final mem [ם] on the preceding word). The phrase “womb [i.e., “birth”] of dawn” refers to sunrise.

[110:3]  ²⁸ sn The point of the metaphor is not entirely clear. The dew may symbolize the king’s youthful vitality or, more likely (note the parallelism), may refer to his army of strong, youthful warriors.

[110:3]  ²⁹ tn Heb “to you [is].”

[65:1]  ³⁰ tn Heb “I allowed myself to be sought by those who did not ask.”

[65:1]  ³¹ tn Heb “I allowed myself to be found by those who did not seek.”

[65:1]  ³² tn Heb “call out in”; NASB, NIV, NRSV “call on.”

[11:25]  ³³ tn Grk “At that time, answering, Jesus said.” This construction is somewhat redundant in English and has been simplified in the translation.

[11:25]  ³⁴ tn Or “thank.”

[11:25]  ³⁵ sn The title Lord is an important name for God, showing his sovereignty, but it is interesting that it comes next to a reference to the Father, a term indicative of God’s care. The two concepts are often related in the NT; see Eph 1:3-6.

[11:25]  ³⁶ tn Or “that.”

[11:25]  ³⁷ sn See 1 Cor 1:26-31.

[11:26]  ³⁸ tn Grk “for (to do) thus was well-pleasing before you,” BDAG 325 s.v. ἔμπροσθεν 1.b.δ; speaking of something taking place “before” God is a reverential way of avoiding direct connection of the action to him.

[10:21]  ³⁹ tn Grk “In that same hour” (L&N 67.1).

[10:21]  ⁴⁰ tn Grk “he”; the referent (Jesus) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[10:21]  ⁴¹ sn Jesus rejoiced. The account of the mission in 10:1-24 ends with several remarks about joy.

[10:21]  ⁴² tn Or “thank.”

[10:21]  ⁴³ sn The title Lord is an important name for God, showing his sovereignty, but it is interesting that it comes next to a reference to the Father, a term indicative of God’s care. The two concepts are often related in the NT; see Eph 1:3-6.

[10:21]  ⁴⁴ tn Or “that.”

[10:21]  ⁴⁵ sn See 1 Cor 1:26-31.

[10:21]  ⁴⁶ tn Grk “for (to do) thus was well pleasing before you,” BDAG 325 s.v. ἔμπροσθεν 1.δ; speaking of something taking place “before” God is a reverential way of avoiding direct connection of the action to him.

[1:12]  ⁴⁷ tn On the use of the πιστεύω + εἰς (pisteuw + ei") construction in John: The verb πιστεύω occurs 98 times in John (compared to 11 times in Matthew, 14 times in Mark [including the longer ending], and 9 times in Luke). One of the unsolved mysteries is why the corresponding noun form πίστις (pistis) is never used at all. Many have held the noun was in use in some pre-Gnostic sects and this rendered it suspect for John. It might also be that for John, faith was an activity, something that men do (cf. W. Turner, “Believing and Everlasting Life – A Johannine Inquiry,” ExpTim 64 [1952/53]: 50-52). John uses πιστεύω in 4 major ways: (1) of believing facts, reports, etc., 12 times; (2) of believing people (or the scriptures), 19 times; (3) of believing “in” Christ” (πιστεύω + εἰς + acc.), 36 times; (4) used absolutely without any person or object specified, 30 times (the one remaining passage is 2:24, where Jesus refused to “trust” himself to certain individuals). Of these, the most significant is the use of πιστεύω with εἰς + accusative. It is not unlike the Pauline ἐν Χριστῷ (en Cristw) formula. Some have argued that this points to a Hebrew (more likely Aramaic) original behind the Fourth Gospel. But it probably indicates something else, as C. H. Dodd observed: “πιστεύειν with the dative so inevitably connoted simple credence, in the sense of an intellectual judgment, that the moral element of personal trust or reliance inherent in the Hebrew or Aramaic phrase – an element integral to the primitive Christian conception of faith in Christ – needed to be otherwise expressed” (The Interpretation of the Fourth Gospel, 183).

[1:13]  ⁴⁸ tn The Greek term translated “born” here also involves conception.

[1:13]  ⁴⁹ tn Grk “of blood(s).” The plural αἱμάτων (Jaimatwn) has seemed a problem to many interpreters. At least some sources in antiquity imply that blood was thought of as being important in the development of the fetus during its time in the womb: thus Wis 7:1: “in the womb of a mother I was molded into flesh, within the period of 10 months, compacted with blood, from the seed of a man and the pleasure of marriage.” In John 1:13, the plural αἱμάτων may imply the action of both parents. It may also refer to the “genetic” contribution of both parents, and so be equivalent to “human descent” (see BDAG 26 s.v. αἷμα 1.a). E. C. Hoskyns thinks John could not have used the singular here because Christians are in fact ‘begotten’ by the blood of Christ (The Fourth Gospel, 143), although the context would seem to make it clear that the blood in question is something other than the blood of Christ.

[1:13]  ⁵⁰ tn Or “of the will of the flesh.” The phrase οὐδὲ ἐκ θελήματος σαρκός (oude ek qelhmato" sarko") is more clearly a reference to sexual desire, but it should be noted that σάρξ (sarx) in John does not convey the evil sense common in Pauline usage. For John it refers to the physical nature in its weakness rather than in its sinfulness. There is no clearer confirmation of this than the immediately following verse, where the λόγος (logos) became σάρξ.

[1:13]  ⁵¹ tn Or “man’s.”

[1:13]  ⁵² tn The third phrase, οὐδὲ ἐκ θελήματος ἀνδρός (oude ek qelhmato" andros), means much the same as the second one. The word here (ἀνηρ, anhr) is often used for a husband, resulting in the translation “or a husband’s decision,” or more generally, “or of any human volition whatsoever.” L. Morris may be right when he sees here an emphasis directed at the Jewish pride in race and patriarchal ancestry, although such a specific reference is difficult to prove (John [NICNT], 101).

[3:8]  ⁵³ tn The same Greek word, πνεύματος (pneumatos), may be translated “wind” or “spirit.”

[3:8]  ⁵⁴ sn Again, the physical illustrates the spiritual, although the force is heightened by the word-play here on wind-spirit (see the note on wind at the beginning of this verse). By the end of the verse, however, the final usage of πνεύματος (pneumatos) refers to the Holy Spirit.

[3:1]  ⁵⁵ sn See the note on Pharisees in 1:24.

[3:1]  ⁵⁶ tn Grk “a ruler of the Jews” (denoting a member of the Sanhedrin, the highest legal, legislative, and judicial body among the Jews).

[2:5]  ⁵⁷ tn Or “by grace you have been saved.” The perfect tense in Greek connotes both completed action (“you have been saved”) and continuing results (“you are saved”).

[2:2]  ⁵⁸ tn Or “and feel the same way,” “and think the same thoughts.” The ἵνα (Jina) clause has been translated “and be of the same mind” to reflect its epexegetical force to the imperative “complete my joy.”

[2:2]  ⁵⁹ tn The Greek word here is σύμψυχοι (sumyucoi, literally “fellow souled”).

[3:4]  ⁶⁰ tn Verses 4-7 are set as poetry in NA²⁶/NA²⁷. These verses probably constitute the referent of the expression “this saying” in v. 8.

[1:18]  ⁶¹ tn Grk “Having willed, he gave us birth.”

[1:1]  ⁶² tn Grk “James.” The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ⁶³ tn Traditionally, “servant” or “bondservant.” Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  sn Undoubtedly the background for the concept of being the Lord’s slave or servant is to be found in the Old Testament scriptures. For a Jew this concept did not connote drudgery, but honor and privilege. It was used of national Israel at times (Isa 43:10), but was especially associated with famous OT personalities, including such great men as Moses (Josh 14:7), David (Ps 89:3; cf. 2 Sam 7:5, 8) and Elijah (2 Kgs 10:10); all these men were “servants (or slaves) of the Lord.”

[1:1]  ⁶⁴ tn Grk “to the twelve tribes in the Diaspora.” The Greek term διασπορά (diaspora, “dispersion”) refers to Jews not living in Palestine but “dispersed” or scattered among the Gentiles.

[2:9]  ⁶⁵ tn The vav prefixed to וְגָדַלְתִּי (vÿgadalti, vav + Qal perfect first common singular from גָּדַל, gadal, “to be great; to increase”) functions in a final summarizing sense, that is, it introduces the concluding summary of 2:4-9.

[2:9]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb “I became great and I surpassed” (וְהוֹסַפְתִּי וְגָדַלְתִּי, vÿgadalti vÿhosafti). This is a verbal hendiadys in which the second verb functions adverbially, modifying the first: “I became far greater.” Most translations miss the hendiadys and render the line in a woodenly literal sense (KJV, ASV, RSV, NEB, NRSV, NAB, NASB, MLB, Moffatt), while only a few recognize the presence of hendiadys here: “I became greater by far” (NIV) and “I gained more” (NJPS).

[2:9]  ⁶⁷ tn Heb “yet my wisdom stood for me,” meaning he retained his wise perspective despite his great wealth.

[2:10]  ⁶⁸ tn Heb “all which my eyes asked for, I did not withhold from them.”

[2:10]  ⁶⁹ tn Heb “I did not refuse my heart any pleasure.” The term לִבִּי (libbi, “my heart”) is a synecdoche of part (i.e., heart) for the whole (i.e., whole person); see E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 648. The term is repeated twice in 2:10 for emphasis.

[2:10]  ⁷⁰ tn Heb “So my heart was joyful from all my toil.”

[2:10]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “and this was my portion from all my toil.”