Keluaran 14:1--15:27
Konteks14:1 1 The Lord spoke to Moses: 14:2 “Tell the Israelites that they must turn and camp 2 before Pi-hahiroth, between Migdol and the sea; you are to camp by the sea before Baal Zephon opposite it. 3 14:3 Pharaoh will think 4 regarding the Israelites, ‘They are wandering around confused 5 in the land – the desert has closed in on them.’ 6 14:4 I will harden 7 Pharaoh’s heart, and he will chase after them. I will gain honor 8 because of Pharaoh and because of all his army, and the Egyptians will know 9 that I am the Lord.” So this is what they did. 10
14:5 When it was reported 11 to the king of Egypt that the people had fled, 12 the heart of Pharaoh and his servants was turned against the people, and the king and his servants said, 13 “What in the world have we done? 14 For we have released the people of Israel 15 from serving us!” 14:6 Then he prepared 16 his chariots and took his army 17 with him. 14:7 He took six hundred select 18 chariots, and all the rest of the chariots of Egypt, 19 and officers 20 on all of them.
14:8 But the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh king of Egypt, and he chased after the Israelites. Now the Israelites were going out defiantly. 21 14:9 The Egyptians chased after them, and all the horses and chariots of Pharaoh and his horsemen and his army overtook them camping by the sea, beside Pi-hahiroth, before Baal-Zephon. 14:10 When 22 Pharaoh got closer, 23 the Israelites looked up, 24 and there were the Egyptians marching after them, 25 and they were terrified. 26 The Israelites cried out to the Lord, 27 14:11 and they said to Moses, “Is it because there are no graves in Egypt that you have taken us away to die in the desert? 28 What in the world 29 have you done to us by bringing 30 us out of Egypt? 14:12 Isn’t this what we told you 31 in Egypt, ‘Leave us alone so that we can serve the Egyptians, 32 because it is better for us to serve 33 the Egyptians than to die in the desert!’” 34
14:13 Moses said to the people, “Do not fear! 35 Stand firm 36 and see 37 the salvation 38 of the Lord that he will provide 39 for you today; for the Egyptians that you see today you will never, ever see again. 40 14:14 The Lord 41 will fight for you, and you can be still.” 42
14:15 The Lord said to Moses, “Why do you cry out to me? Tell the Israelites to move on. 43 14:16 And as for you, 44 lift up your staff and extend your hand toward the sea and divide it, so that 45 the Israelites may go through the middle of the sea on dry ground. 14:17 And as for me, I am going to harden 46 the hearts of the Egyptians so that 47 they will come after them, that I may be honored 48 because 49 of Pharaoh and his army and his chariots and his horsemen. 14:18 And the Egyptians will know 50 that I am the Lord when I have gained my honor 51 because of Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”
14:19 The angel of God, who was going before the camp of Israel, moved and went behind them, and the pillar 52 of cloud moved from before them and stood behind them. 14:20 It came between the Egyptian camp and the Israelite camp; it was a dark cloud 53 and it lit up the night so that one camp did not come near the other 54 the whole night. 55 14:21 Moses stretched out his hand toward the sea, and the Lord drove the sea apart 56 by a strong east wind all that night, and he made the sea into dry land, and the water was divided. 14:22 So the Israelites went through the middle of the sea on dry ground, the water forming a wall 57 for them on their right and on their left.
14:23 The Egyptians chased them and followed them into the middle of the sea – all the horses of Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen. 14:24 In the morning watch 58 the Lord looked down 59 on the Egyptian army 60 through the pillar of fire and cloud, and he threw the Egyptian army 61 into a panic. 62 14:25 He jammed 63 the wheels of their chariots so that they had difficulty driving, 64 and the Egyptians said, “Let’s flee 65 from Israel, for the Lord fights 66 for them against Egypt!”
14:26 The Lord said to Moses, “Extend your hand toward the sea, so that the waters may flow 67 back on the Egyptians, on their chariots, and on their horsemen!” 14:27 So Moses extended his hand toward the sea, and the sea returned to its normal state 68 when the sun began to rise. 69 Now the Egyptians were fleeing 70 before it, but the Lord overthrew 71 the Egyptians in the middle of the sea. 14:28 The water returned and covered the chariots and the horsemen and all the army of Pharaoh that was coming after the Israelites into the sea 72 – not so much as one of them survived! 73 14:29 But the Israelites walked on dry ground in the middle of the sea, the water forming a wall for them on their right and on their left. 14:30 So the Lord saved 74 Israel on that day from the power 75 of the Egyptians, and Israel saw the Egyptians dead 76 on the shore of the sea. 14:31 When Israel saw 77 the great power 78 that the Lord had exercised 79 over the Egyptians, they 80 feared the Lord, and they believed in 81 the Lord and in his servant Moses. 82
15:1 83 Then Moses and the Israelites sang 84 this song to the Lord. They said, 85
“I will sing 86 to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously, 87
the horse and its rider 88 he has thrown into the sea.
15:2 The Lord 89 is my strength and my song, 90
and he has become my salvation.
This is my God, and I will praise him, 91
my father’s God, and I will exalt him.
15:3 The Lord is a warrior, 92
the Lord is his name. 93
15:4 The chariots of Pharaoh 94 and his army he has thrown into the sea,
and his chosen 95 officers were drowned 96 in the Red Sea.
15:5 The depths have covered them, 97
they went down to the bottom 98 like a stone.
15:6 Your right hand, O Lord, was majestic 99 in power,
your right hand, O Lord, shattered the enemy.
15:7 In the abundance of your majesty 100 you have overthrown 101
those who rise up against you. 102
You sent forth 103 your wrath; 104
it consumed them 105 like stubble.
15:8 By the blast of your nostrils 106 the waters were piled up,
the flowing water stood upright like a heap, 107
and the deep waters were solidified in the heart of the sea.
15:9 The enemy said, ‘I will chase, 108 I will overtake,
I will divide the spoil;
my desire 109 will be satisfied on them.
I will draw 110 my sword, my hand will destroy them.’ 111
15:10 But 112 you blew with your breath, and 113 the sea covered them.
They sank 114 like lead in the mighty waters.
15:11 Who is like you, 115 O Lord, among the gods? 116
Who is like you? – majestic in holiness, fearful in praises, 117 working wonders?
15:12 You stretched out your right hand,
the earth swallowed them. 118
15:13 By your loyal love you will lead 119 the people whom 120 you have redeemed;
you will guide 121 them by your strength to your holy dwelling place.
15:14 The nations will hear 122 and tremble;
anguish 123 will seize 124 the inhabitants of Philistia.
15:15 Then the chiefs of Edom will be terrified, 125
trembling will seize 126 the leaders of Moab,
and the inhabitants of Canaan will shake.
15:16 Fear and dread 127 will fall 128 on them;
by the greatness 129 of your arm they will be as still as stone 130
until 131 your people pass by, O Lord,
until the people whom you have bought 132 pass by.
15:17 You will bring them in 133 and plant them in the mountain 134 of your inheritance,
in the place you made 135 for your residence, O Lord,
the sanctuary, O Lord, that your hands have established.
15:18 The Lord will reign forever and ever!
15:19 For the horses of Pharaoh came with his chariots and his footmen into the sea,
and the Lord brought back the waters of the sea on them,
but the Israelites walked on dry land in the middle of the sea.”
15:20 Miriam the prophetess, the sister of Aaron, took a hand-drum in her hand, and all the women went out after her with hand-drums and with dances. 136 15:21 Miriam sang in response 137 to them, “Sing to the Lord, for he has triumphed gloriously; the horse and its rider he has thrown into the sea.” 138
15:22 139 Then Moses led Israel to journey 140 away from the Red Sea. They went out to the Desert of Shur, walked for three days 141 into the desert, and found no water. 15:23 Then they came to Marah, 142 but they were not able to drink 143 the waters of Marah, because 144 they were bitter. 145 (That is 146 why its name was 147 Marah.)
15:24 So the people murmured 148 against Moses, saying, “What can 149 we drink?” 15:25 He cried out to the Lord, and the Lord showed him 150 a tree. 151 When Moses 152 threw it into the water, the water became safe to drink. There the Lord 153 made for them 154 a binding ordinance, 155 and there he tested 156 them. 15:26 He said, “If you will diligently obey 157 the Lord your God, and do what is right 158 in his sight, and pay attention 159 to his commandments, and keep all his statutes, then all 160 the diseases 161 that I brought on the Egyptians I will not bring on you, for I, the Lord, am your healer.” 162
15:27 Then they came to Elim, 163 where there were twelve wells of water and seventy palm trees, and they camped there by the water.
Yosua 10:1--11:23
Konteks10:1 Adoni-Zedek, king of Jerusalem, 164 heard how Joshua captured Ai and annihilated it and its king as he did Jericho 165 and its king. 166 He also heard how 167 the people of Gibeon made peace with Israel and lived among them. 10:2 All Jerusalem was terrified 168 because Gibeon was a large city, like one of the royal cities. It was larger than Ai and all its men were warriors. 10:3 So King Adoni-Zedek of Jerusalem sent this message to King Hoham of Hebron, King Piram of Jarmuth, King Japhia of Lachish, and King Debir of Eglon: 10:4 “Come to my aid 169 so we can attack Gibeon, for it has made peace with Joshua and the Israelites.” 10:5 So the five Amorite kings (the kings of Jerusalem, Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon) and all their troops gathered together and advanced. They deployed their troops and fought against Gibeon. 170
10:6 The men of Gibeon sent this message to Joshua at the camp in Gilgal, “Do not abandon 171 your subjects! 172 Rescue us! Help us! For all the Amorite kings living in the hill country are attacking us.” 173 10:7 So Joshua and his whole army, including the bravest warriors, marched up from Gilgal. 174 10:8 The Lord told Joshua, “Don’t be afraid of them, for I am handing them over to you. 175 Not one of them can resist you.” 176 10:9 Joshua attacked them by surprise after marching all night from Gilgal. 177 10:10 The Lord routed 178 them before Israel. Israel 179 thoroughly defeated them 180 at Gibeon. They chased them up the road to the pass 181 of Beth Horon and struck them down all the way to Azekah and Makkedah. 10:11 As they fled from Israel on the slope leading down from 182 Beth Horon, the Lord threw down on them large hailstones from the sky, 183 all the way to Azekah. They died – in fact, more died from the hailstones than the Israelites killed with the sword.
10:12 The day the Lord delivered the Amorites over to the Israelites, Joshua prayed to the Lord before Israel: 184
“O sun, stand still over Gibeon!
O moon, over the Valley of Aijalon!”
10:13 The sun stood still and the moon stood motionless while the nation took vengeance on its enemies. The event is recorded in the Scroll of the Upright One. 185 The sun stood motionless in the middle of the sky and did not set for about a full day. 186 10:14 There has not been a day like it before or since. The Lord obeyed 187 a man, for the Lord fought for Israel! 10:15 Then Joshua and all Israel returned to the camp at Gilgal.
10:16 The five Amorite kings 188 ran away and hid in the cave at Makkedah. 10:17 Joshua was told, “The five kings have been found hiding in the cave at Makkedah.” 10:18 Joshua said, “Roll large stones over the mouth of the cave and post guards in front of it. 189 10:19 But don’t you delay! Chase your enemies and catch them! 190 Don’t allow them to retreat to 191 their cities, for the Lord your God is handing them over to you.” 192 10:20 Joshua and the Israelites almost totally wiped them out, but some survivors did escape to the fortified cities. 193 10:21 Then the whole army safely returned to Joshua at the camp in Makkedah. 194 No one 195 dared threaten the Israelites. 196 10:22 Joshua said, “Open the cave’s mouth and bring the five kings 197 out of the cave to me.” 10:23 They did as ordered; 198 they brought the five kings 199 out of the cave to him – the kings of Jerusalem, 200 Hebron, Jarmuth, Lachish, and Eglon. 10:24 When they brought the kings out to Joshua, he 201 summoned all the men of Israel and said to the commanders of the troops who accompanied him, “Come here 202 and put your feet on the necks of these kings.” So they came up 203 and put their feet on their necks. 10:25 Then Joshua said to them, “Don’t be afraid and don’t panic! 204 Be strong and brave, for the Lord will do the same thing to all your enemies you fight. 10:26 Then Joshua executed them 205 and hung them on five trees. They were left hanging on the trees until evening. 10:27 At sunset Joshua ordered his men to take them down from the trees. 206 They threw them into the cave where they had hidden and piled large stones over the mouth of the cave. (They remain to this very day.) 207
10:28 That day Joshua captured Makkedah and put the sword to it and its king. He annihilated everyone who lived in it; he left no survivors. He did to its king what he had done to the king of Jericho. 208
10:29 Joshua and all Israel marched from Makkedah to Libnah and fought against it. 209 10:30 The Lord handed it and its king over to Israel, and Israel 210 put the sword to all who lived there; they 211 left no survivors. They 212 did to its king what they 213 had done to the king of Jericho. 214
10:31 Joshua and all Israel marched from Libnah to Lachish. He deployed his troops 215 and fought against it. 10:32 The Lord handed Lachish over to Israel and they 216 captured it on the second day. They put the sword to all who lived there, just as they had done to Libnah. 10:33 Then King Horam of Gezer came up to help Lachish, but Joshua struck down him and his army 217 until no survivors remained.
10:34 Joshua and all Israel marched from Lachish to Eglon. They deployed troops 218 and fought against it. 10:35 That day they captured it and put the sword to all who lived there. That day they 219 annihilated it just as they 220 had done to Lachish.
10:36 Joshua and all Israel marched up from Eglon to Hebron and fought against it. 10:37 They captured it and put the sword to its king, all its surrounding cities, and all who lived in it; they 221 left no survivors. As they 222 had done at Eglon, they 223 annihilated it and all who lived there.
10:38 Joshua and all Israel turned to Debir and fought against it. 10:39 They 224 captured it, its king, and all its surrounding cities and put the sword to them. They annihilated everyone who lived there; they 225 left no survivors. They 226 did to Debir and its king what they 227 had done to Libnah and its king and to Hebron. 228
10:40 Joshua defeated the whole land, including the hill country, the Negev, the lowlands, 229 the slopes, and all their kings. He left no survivors. He annihilated everything that breathed, just as the Lord God of Israel had commanded. 10:41 Joshua conquered the area between Kadesh Barnea and Gaza and the whole region of Goshen, all the way to Gibeon. 230 10:42 Joshua captured in one campaign 231 all these kings and their lands, for the Lord God of Israel fought for Israel. 10:43 Then Joshua and all Israel returned to the camp at Gilgal.
11:1 When King Jabin of Hazor 232 heard the news, he organized a coalition, including 233 King Jobab of Madon, the king of Shimron, the king of Acshaph, 11:2 and the northern kings who ruled in 234 the hill country, the Arabah south of Kinnereth, 235 the lowlands, and the heights of Dor to the west. 11:3 Canaanites came 236 from the east and west; Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, and Jebusites from the hill country; and Hivites from below Hermon in the area 237 of Mizpah. 11:4 These kings came out with their armies; they were as numerous as the sand on the seashore and had a large number of horses and chariots. 238 11:5 All these kings gathered and joined forces 239 at the Waters of Merom to fight Israel.
11:6 The Lord told Joshua, “Don’t be afraid of them, for about this time tomorrow I will cause all of them to lie dead before Israel. You must hamstring their horses and burn 240 their chariots.” 11:7 Joshua and his whole army caught them by surprise at the Waters of Merom and attacked them. 241 11:8 The Lord handed them over to Israel and they struck them down and chased them all the way to Greater Sidon, 242 Misrephoth Maim, 243 and the Mizpah Valley to the east. They struck them down until no survivors remained. 11:9 Joshua did to them as the Lord had commanded him; he hamstrung their horses and burned 244 their chariots.
11:10 At that time Joshua turned, captured Hazor, 245 and struck down its king with the sword, for Hazor was at that time 246 the leader of all these kingdoms. 11:11 They annihilated everyone who lived there with the sword 247 – no one who breathed remained – and burned 248 Hazor.
11:12 Joshua captured all these royal cities and all their kings and annihilated them with the sword, 249 as Moses the Lord’s servant had commanded. 11:13 But Israel did not burn any of the cities located on mounds, 250 except for Hazor; 251 it was the only one Joshua burned. 11:14 The Israelites plundered all the goods of these cities and the cattle, but they totally destroyed all the people 252 and allowed no one who breathed to live. 11:15 Moses the Lord’s servant passed on the Lord’s commands to Joshua, and Joshua did as he was told. He did not ignore any of the commands the Lord had given Moses. 253
11:16 Joshua conquered the whole land, 254 including the hill country, all the Negev, all the land of Goshen, the lowlands, 255 the Arabah, the hill country of Israel and its lowlands, 11:17 from Mount Halak on up to Seir, as far as Baal Gad in the Lebanon Valley below Mount Hermon. He captured all their kings and executed them. 256 11:18 Joshua campaigned against 257 these kings for quite some time. 258 11:19 No city made peace with the Israelites (except the Hivites living in Gibeon); 259 they had to conquer all of them, 260 11:20 for the Lord determined to make them obstinate so they would attack Israel. He wanted Israel to annihilate them without mercy, as he had instructed Moses. 261
11:21 At that time Joshua attacked and eliminated the Anakites from the hill country 262 – from Hebron, Debir, Anab, and all the hill country of Judah and Israel. 263 Joshua annihilated them and their cities. 11:22 No Anakites were left in Israelite territory, though some remained in Gaza, Gath, and Ashdod. 11:23 Joshua conquered 264 the whole land, just as the Lord had promised Moses, 265 and he assigned Israel their tribal portions. 266 Then the land was free of war.
Yudas 1:1-25
Konteks1:1 From Jude, 267 a slave 268 of Jesus Christ and brother of James, 269 to those who are called, wrapped in the love of 270 God the Father and kept for 271 Jesus Christ. 1:2 May mercy, peace, and love be lavished on you! 272
1:3 Dear friends, although I have been eager to write to you 273 about our common salvation, I now feel compelled 274 instead to write to encourage 275 you to contend earnestly 276 for the faith 277 that was once for all 278 entrusted to the saints. 279 1:4 For certain men 280 have secretly slipped in among you 281 – men who long ago 282 were marked out 283 for the condemnation I am about to describe 284 – ungodly men who have turned the grace of our God into a license for evil 285 and who deny our only Master 286 and Lord, 287 Jesus Christ.
1:5 Now I desire to remind you (even though you have been fully informed of these facts 288 once for all 289 ) that Jesus, 290 having saved the 291 people out of the land of Egypt, later 292 destroyed those who did not believe. 1:6 You also know that 293 the angels who did not keep within their proper domain 294 but abandoned their own place of residence, he has kept 295 in eternal chains 296 in utter 297 darkness, locked up 298 for the judgment of the great Day. 1:7 So also 299 Sodom and Gomorrah and the neighboring towns, 300 since they indulged in sexual immorality and pursued unnatural desire 301 in a way similar to 302 these angels, 303 are now displayed as an example by suffering the punishment of eternal fire.
1:8 Yet these men, 304 as a result of their dreams, 305 defile the flesh, reject authority, 306 and insult 307 the glorious ones. 308 1:9 But even 309 when Michael the archangel 310 was arguing with the devil and debating with him 311 concerning Moses’ body, he did not dare to bring a slanderous judgment, but said, “May the Lord rebuke you!” 1:10 But these men do not understand the things they slander, and they are being destroyed by the very things that, like irrational animals, they instinctively comprehend. 312 1:11 Woe to them! For they have traveled down Cain’s path, 313 and because of greed 314 have abandoned themselves 315 to 316 Balaam’s error; hence, 317 they will certainly perish 318 in Korah’s rebellion. 1:12 These men are 319 dangerous reefs 320 at your love feasts, 321 feasting without reverence, 322 feeding only themselves. 323 They are 324 waterless 325 clouds, carried along by the winds; autumn trees without fruit 326 – twice dead, 327 uprooted; 1:13 wild sea waves, 328 spewing out the foam of 329 their shame; 330 wayward stars 331 for whom the utter depths of eternal darkness 332 have been reserved.
1:14 Now Enoch, the seventh in descent beginning with Adam, 333 even prophesied of them, 334 saying, “Look! The Lord is coming 335 with thousands and thousands 336 of his holy ones, 1:15 to execute judgment on 337 all, and to convict every person 338 of all their thoroughly ungodly deeds 339 that they have committed, 340 and of all the harsh words that ungodly sinners have spoken against him.” 341 1:16 These people are grumblers and 342 fault-finders who go 343 wherever their desires lead them, 344 and they give bombastic speeches, 345 enchanting folks 346 for their own gain. 347
1:17 But you, dear friends – recall the predictions 348 foretold by the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ. 349 1:18 For they said to you, “In the end time there will come 350 scoffers, propelled by their own ungodly desires.” 351 1:19 These people are divisive, 352 worldly, 353 devoid of the Spirit. 354 1:20 But you, dear friends, by building yourselves up in your most holy faith, by praying in the Holy Spirit, 355 1:21 maintain 356 yourselves in the love of God, while anticipating 357 the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ that brings eternal life. 358 1:22 And have mercy on those who waver; 1:23 save 359 others by snatching them out of the fire; have mercy 360 on others, coupled with a fear of God, 361 hating even the clothes stained 362 by the flesh. 363
1:24 Now to the one who is able to keep you from falling, 364 and to cause you to stand, rejoicing, 365 without blemish 366 before his glorious presence, 367 1:25 to the only God our Savior through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, power, and authority, before all time, and now, and for all eternity. Amen.
Yudas 1:1
Konteks1:1 From Jude, 368 a slave 369 of Jesus Christ and brother of James, 370 to those who are called, wrapped in the love of 371 God the Father and kept for 372 Jesus Christ.
Yudas 1:1
Konteks1:1 From Jude, 373 a slave 374 of Jesus Christ and brother of James, 375 to those who are called, wrapped in the love of 376 God the Father and kept for 377 Jesus Christ.
1 Samuel 7:10-12
Konteks7:10 As Samuel was offering burnt offerings, the Philistines approached to do battle with Israel. 378 But on that day the Lord thundered loudly against the Philistines. He caused them to panic, and they were defeated by 379 Israel. 7:11 Then the men of Israel left Mizpah and chased the Philistines, striking them down all the way to an area below Beth Car.
7:12 Samuel took a stone and placed it between Mizpah and Shen. 380 He named it Ebenezer, 381 saying, “Up to here the Lord has helped us.”
1 Samuel 14:6-14
Konteks14:6 Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come on, let’s go over to the garrison of these uncircumcised men. Perhaps the Lord will intervene 382 for us. Nothing can prevent the Lord from delivering, whether by many or by a few.” 14:7 His armor bearer said to him, “Do everything that is on your mind. 383 Do as you’re inclined. I’m with you all the way!” 384
14:8 Jonathan replied, “All right! 385 We’ll go over to these men and fight them. 14:9 If they say to us, ‘Stay put until we approach you,’ we will stay 386 right there and not go up to them. 14:10 But if they say, ‘Come up against us,’ we will go up. For in that case the Lord has given them into our hand – it will be a sign to us.”
14:11 When they 387 made themselves known to the Philistine garrison, the Philistines said, “Look! The Hebrews are coming out of the holes in which they hid themselves.” 14:12 Then the men of the garrison said to Jonathan and his armor bearer, “Come on up to us so we can teach you a thing or two!” 388 Then Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come up behind me, for the Lord has given 389 them into the hand of Israel!”
14:13 Jonathan crawled up on his hands and feet, with his armor bearer following behind him. Jonathan struck down the Philistines, 390 while his armor bearer came along behind him and killed them. 391 14:14 In this initial skirmish Jonathan and his armor bearer struck down about twenty men in an area that measured half an acre.
1 Samuel 14:1
Konteks14:1 Then one day Jonathan son of Saul said to his armor bearer, 392 “Come on, let’s go over to the Philistine garrison that is opposite us.” But he did not let his father know.
1 Samuel 17:45-50
Konteks17:45 But David replied to the Philistine, “You are coming against me with sword and spear and javelin. But I am coming against you in the name of the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel’s armies, whom you have defied! 17:46 This very day the Lord will deliver you into my hand! I will strike you down and cut off your head. This day I will give the corpses of the Philistine army to the birds of the sky and the wild animals of the land. Then all the land will realize that Israel has a God 17:47 and all this assembly will know that it is not by sword or spear that the Lord saves! For the battle is the Lord’s, and he will deliver you into our hand.”
17:48 The Philistine drew steadily closer to David to attack him, while David quickly ran toward the battle line to attack the Philistine. 393 17:49 David reached his hand into the bag and took out a stone. He slung it, striking the Philistine on the forehead. The stone sank deeply into his forehead, and he fell down with his face to the ground.
17:50 394 David prevailed over the Philistine with just the sling and the stone. He struck down the Philistine and killed him. David did not even have a sword in his hand. 395
1 Samuel 17:2
Konteks17:2 Saul and the Israelite army 396 assembled and camped in the valley of Elah, where they arranged their battle lines to fight against 397 the Philistines.
1 Samuel 14:9-13
Konteks14:9 If they say to us, ‘Stay put until we approach you,’ we will stay 398 right there and not go up to them. 14:10 But if they say, ‘Come up against us,’ we will go up. For in that case the Lord has given them into our hand – it will be a sign to us.”
14:11 When they 399 made themselves known to the Philistine garrison, the Philistines said, “Look! The Hebrews are coming out of the holes in which they hid themselves.” 14:12 Then the men of the garrison said to Jonathan and his armor bearer, “Come on up to us so we can teach you a thing or two!” 400 Then Jonathan said to his armor bearer, “Come up behind me, for the Lord has given 401 them into the hand of Israel!”
14:13 Jonathan crawled up on his hands and feet, with his armor bearer following behind him. Jonathan struck down the Philistines, 402 while his armor bearer came along behind him and killed them. 403
1 Samuel 20:1-30
Konteks20:1 David fled from Naioth in Ramah. He came to Jonathan and asked, 404 “What have I done? What is my offense? 405 How have I sinned before your father? For he is seeking my life!”
20:2 Jonathan 406 said to him, “By no means are you going to die! My father does nothing 407 large or small without making me aware of it. 408 Why would my father hide this matter from me? It just won’t happen!”
20:3 Taking an oath, David again 409 said, “Your father is very much aware of the fact 410 that I have found favor with you, and he has thought, 411 ‘Don’t let Jonathan know about this, or he will be upset.’ But as surely as the Lord lives and you live, there is about one step between me and death!” 20:4 Jonathan replied to David, “Tell me what I can do for you.” 412
20:5 David said to Jonathan, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and I am certainly expected to join the king for a meal. 413 You must send me away so I can hide in the field until the third evening from now. 20:6 If your father happens to miss me, you should say, ‘David urgently requested me to let him go 414 to his city Bethlehem, 415 for there is an annual sacrifice there for his entire family.’ 20:7 If he should then say, ‘That’s fine,’ 416 then your servant is safe. But if he becomes very angry, be assured that he has decided to harm me. 417 20:8 You must be loyal 418 to your servant, for you have made a covenant with your servant in the Lord’s name. 419 If I am guilty, 420 you yourself kill me! Why bother taking me to your father?”
20:9 Jonathan said, “Far be it from you to suggest this! If I were at all aware that my father had decided to harm you, wouldn’t I tell you about it?” 20:10 David said to Jonathan, “Who will tell me if your father answers you harshly?” 20:11 Jonathan said to David, “Come on. Let’s go out to the field.”
When the two of them had gone out into the field, 20:12 Jonathan said to David, “The Lord God of Israel is my witness. 421 I will feel out my father about this time the day after tomorrow. If he is favorably inclined toward David, will I not then send word to you and let you know? 422 20:13 But if my father intends to do you harm, may the Lord do all this and more to Jonathan, if I don’t let you know 423 and send word to you so you can go safely on your way. 424 May the Lord be with you, as he was with my father. 20:14 While I am still alive, extend to me the loyalty of the Lord, or else I will die! 20:15 Don’t ever cut off your loyalty to my family, not even when the Lord has cut off every one of David’s enemies from the face of the earth 20:16 and called David’s enemies to account.” So Jonathan made a covenant 425 with the house of David. 426 20:17 Jonathan once again took an oath with David, because he loved him. In fact Jonathan loved him as much as he did his own life. 427 20:18 Jonathan said to him, “Tomorrow is the new moon, and you will be missed, for your seat will be empty. 20:19 On the third day 428 you should go down quickly 429 and come to the place where you hid yourself the day this all started. 430 Stay near the stone Ezel. 20:20 I will shoot three arrows near it, as though I were shooting at a target. 20:21 When I send a boy after them, I will say, “Go and find the arrows.” If I say to the boy, ‘Look, the arrows are on this side of you; 431 get them,’ then come back. For as surely as the Lord lives, you will be safe and there will no problem. 20:22 But if I say to the boy, “Look, the arrows are on the other side of you,’ 432 get away. For in that case the Lord has sent you away. 20:23 With regard to the matter that you and I discussed, the Lord is the witness between us forever!” 433
20:24 So David hid in the field. When the new moon came, the king sat down to eat his meal. 20:25 The king sat down in his usual place by the wall, with Jonathan opposite him 434 and Abner at his side. 435 But David’s place was vacant. 20:26 However, Saul said nothing about it 436 that day, for he thought, 437 “Something has happened to make him ceremonially unclean. Yes, he must be unclean.” 20:27 But the next morning, the second day of the new moon, David’s place was still vacant. So Saul said to his son Jonathan, “Why has Jesse’s son not come to the meal yesterday or today?”
20:28 Jonathan replied to Saul, “David urgently requested that he be allowed to go to Bethlehem. 20:29 He said, ‘Permit me to go, 438 for we are having a family sacrifice in the city, and my brother urged 439 me to be there. So now, if I have found favor with you, let me go 440 to see my brothers.’ For that reason he has not come to the king’s table.”
20:30 Saul became angry with Jonathan 441 and said to him, “You stupid traitor! 442 Don’t I realize that to your own disgrace and to the disgrace of your mother’s nakedness you have chosen this son of Jesse?
1 Samuel 1:21
Konteks1:21 This man Elkanah went up with all his family to make the yearly sacrifice to the Lord and to keep his vow,
Mazmur 44:1-4
KonteksFor the music director; by the Korahites, a well-written song. 444
44:1 O God, we have clearly heard; 445
our ancestors 446 have told us
what you did 447 in their days,
in ancient times. 448
44:2 You, by your power, 449 defeated nations and settled our fathers on their land; 450
you crushed 451 the people living there 452 and enabled our ancestors to occupy it. 453
44:3 For they did not conquer 454 the land by their swords,
and they did not prevail by their strength, 455
but rather by your power, 456 strength 457 and good favor, 458
for you were partial to 459 them.
44:4 You are my 460 king, O God!
Decree 461 Jacob’s 462 deliverance!
Mazmur 46:8-11
Konteks46:8 Come! Witness the exploits 463 of the Lord,
who brings devastation to the earth! 464
46:9 He brings an end to wars throughout the earth; 465
he shatters 466 the bow and breaks 467 the spear;
he burns 468 the shields with fire. 469
46:10 He says, 470 “Stop your striving and recognize 471 that I am God!
I will be exalted 472 over 473 the nations! I will be exalted over 474 the earth!”
46:11 The Lord who commands armies is on our side! 475
The God of Jacob 476 is our protector! 477 (Selah)
Mazmur 48:4-8
Konteks48:4 For 478 look, the kings assemble; 479
they advance together.
48:5 As soon as they see, 480 they are shocked; 481
they are terrified, they quickly retreat. 482
48:6 Look at them shake uncontrollably, 483
like a woman writhing in childbirth. 484
48:7 With an east wind
you shatter 485 the large ships. 486
48:8 We heard about God’s mighty deeds, now we have seen them, 487
in the city of the Lord, the invincible Warrior, 488
in the city of our God.
God makes it permanently secure. 489 (Selah)
Mazmur 105:5-45
Konteks105:5 Recall the miraculous deeds he performed,
his mighty acts and the judgments he decreed, 490
105:6 O children 491 of Abraham, 492 God’s 493 servant,
you descendants 494 of Jacob, God’s 495 chosen ones!
105:7 He is the Lord our God;
he carries out judgment throughout the earth. 496
105:8 He always remembers his covenantal decree,
the promise he made 497 to a thousand generations –
105:9 the promise 498 he made to Abraham,
the promise he made by oath to Isaac!
105:10 He gave it to Jacob as a decree,
to Israel as a lasting promise, 499
105:11 saying, “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as the portion of your inheritance.”
105:12 When they were few in number,
just a very few, and resident aliens within it,
105:13 they wandered from nation to nation,
and from one kingdom to another. 500
105:14 He let no one oppress them;
he disciplined kings for their sake,
105:15 saying, 501 “Don’t touch my chosen 502 ones!
Don’t harm my prophets!”
105:16 He called down a famine upon the earth;
he cut off all the food supply. 503
105:17 He sent a man ahead of them 504 –
Joseph was sold as a servant.
105:18 The shackles hurt his feet; 505
his neck was placed in an iron collar, 506
105:19 until the time when his prediction 507 came true.
The Lord’s word 508 proved him right. 509
105:20 The king authorized his release; 510
the ruler of nations set him free.
105:21 He put him in charge of his palace, 511
and made him manager of all his property,
105:22 giving him authority to imprison his officials 512
and to teach his advisers. 513
105:23 Israel moved to 514 Egypt;
Jacob lived for a time 515 in the land of Ham.
105:24 The Lord 516 made his people very fruitful,
and made them 517 more numerous than their 518 enemies.
105:25 He caused them 519 to hate his people,
and to mistreat 520 his servants.
105:26 He sent his servant Moses,
and Aaron, whom he had chosen.
105:27 They executed his miraculous signs among them, 521
and his amazing deeds in the land of Ham.
they did not disobey his orders. 523
105:29 He turned their water into blood,
and killed their fish.
105:30 Their land was overrun by frogs,
which even got into the rooms of their kings.
105:31 He ordered flies to come; 524
gnats invaded their whole territory.
105:32 He sent hail along with the rain; 525
there was lightning in their land. 526
105:33 He destroyed their vines and fig trees,
and broke the trees throughout their territory.
105:34 He ordered locusts to come, 527
innumerable grasshoppers.
105:35 They ate all the vegetation in their land,
and devoured the crops of their fields. 528
105:36 He struck down all the firstborn in their land,
the firstfruits of their reproductive power. 529
105:37 He brought his people 530 out enriched 531 with silver and gold;
none of his tribes stumbled.
105:38 Egypt was happy when they left,
for they were afraid of them. 532
105:39 He spread out a cloud for a cover, 533
and provided a fire to light up the night.
105:40 They asked for food, 534 and he sent quails;
he satisfied them with food from the sky. 535
105:41 He opened up a rock and water flowed out;
a river ran through dry regions.
105:42 Yes, 536 he remembered the sacred promise 537
he made to Abraham his servant.
105:43 When he led his people out, they rejoiced;
his chosen ones shouted with joy. 538
105:44 He handed the territory of nations over to them,
and they took possession of what other peoples had produced, 539
105:45 so that they might keep his commands
and obey 540 his laws.
Praise the Lord!
Mazmur 136:1-26
Konteks136:1 Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good,
for his loyal love endures. 542
136:2 Give thanks to the God of gods,
for his loyal love endures.
136:3 Give thanks to the Lord of lords,
for his loyal love endures,
136:4 to the one who performs magnificent, amazing deeds all by himself,
for his loyal love endures,
136:5 to the one who used wisdom to make the heavens,
for his loyal love endures,
136:6 to the one who spread out the earth over the water,
for his loyal love endures,
136:7 to the one who made the great lights,
for his loyal love endures,
136:8 the sun to rule by day,
for his loyal love endures,
136:9 the moon and stars to rule by night,
for his loyal love endures,
136:10 to the one who struck down the firstborn of Egypt,
for his loyal love endures,
136:11 and led Israel out from their midst,
for his loyal love endures,
136:12 with a strong hand and an outstretched arm,
for his loyal love endures,
136:13 to the one who divided 543 the Red Sea 544 in two, 545
for his loyal love endures,
136:14 and led Israel through its midst,
for his loyal love endures,
136:15 and tossed 546 Pharaoh and his army into the Red Sea,
for his loyal love endures,
136:16 to the one who led his people through the wilderness,
for his loyal love endures,
136:17 to the one who struck down great kings,
for his loyal love endures,
136:18 and killed powerful kings,
for his loyal love endures,
136:19 Sihon, king of the Amorites,
for his loyal love endures,
136:20 Og, king of Bashan,
for his loyal love endures,
136:21 and gave their land as an inheritance,
for his loyal love endures,
136:22 as an inheritance to Israel his servant,
for his loyal love endures,
136:23 to the one who remembered us when we were down, 547
for his loyal love endures,
136:24 and snatched us away from our enemies,
for his loyal love endures,
136:25 to the one who gives food to all living things, 548
for his loyal love endures.
136:26 Give thanks to the God of heaven,
for his loyal love endures!
Yesaya 59:1-2
Konteks59:1 Look, the Lord’s hand is not too weak 549 to deliver you;
his ear is not too deaf to hear you. 550
59:2 But your sinful acts have alienated you from your God;
your sins have caused him to reject you and not listen to your prayers. 551
[14:1] 1 sn The account recorded in this chapter is one of the best known events in all of Scripture. In the argument of the book it marks the division between the bondage in Egypt and the establishment of the people as a nation. Here is the deliverance from Egypt. The chapter divides simply in two, vv. 1-14 giving the instructions, and vv. 15-31 reporting the victory. See among others, G. Coats, “History and Theology in the Sea Tradition,” ST 29 (1975): 53-62); A. J. Ehlen, “Deliverance at the Sea: Diversity and Unity in a Biblical Theme,” CTM 44 (1973): 168-91; J. B. Scott, “God’s Saving Acts,” The Presbyterian Journal 38 (1979): 12-14; W. Wifall, “The Sea of Reeds as Sheol,” ZAW 92 (1980): 325-32.
[14:2] 2 tn The two imperfects follow the imperative and therefore express purpose. The point in the verses is that Yahweh was giving the orders for the direction of the march and the encampment by the sea.
[14:2] 3 sn The places have been tentatively identified. W. C. Kaiser summarizes the suggestions that Pi-Hahiroth as an Egyptian word may mean “temple of the [Syrian god] Hrt” or “The Hir waters of the canal” or “The Dwelling of Hator” (“Exodus,” EBC 2:387; see the literature on these names, including C. DeWit, The Date and Route of the Exodus, 17).
[14:3] 4 tn Heb “and Pharaoh will say.”
[14:3] 5 sn The word translated “wandering around confused” indicates that Pharaoh thought the Israelites would be so perplexed and confused that they would not know which way to turn in order to escape – and they would never dream of crossing the sea (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 115).
[14:3] 6 tn The expression has also been translated “the desert has shut [the way] for them,” and more freely “[the Israelites are] hemmed in by the desert.”
[14:4] 7 tn In this place the verb חָזַק (hazaq) is used; it indicates that God would make Pharaoh’s will strong or firm.
[14:4] 8 tn The form is וְאִכָּבְדָה (vÿ’ikkavÿda), the Niphal cohortative; coming after the perfect tenses with vav (ו) consecutives expressing the future, this cohortative indicates the purpose of the hardening and chasing. Yahweh intended to gain glory by this final and great victory over the strength of Pharaoh. There is irony in this expression since a different form of the word was used frequently to describe Pharaoh’s hard heart. So judgment will not only destroy the wicked – it will reveal the glory and majesty of the sovereignty of God.
[14:4] 9 tn This is the perfect tense with the vav (ו) consecutive. But it announces the fulfillment of an long standing purpose – that they might know.
[14:4] 10 tn Heb “and they did so.”
[14:5] 11 tn Heb “and it was told.” The present translation uses “reported,” since this involves information given to a superior.
[14:5] 12 tn The verb must be given a past perfect translation because the fleeing occurred before the telling.
[14:5] 13 tn Heb “and they said.” The referent (the king and his servants) is supplied for clarity.
[14:5] 14 tn The question literally is “What is this we have done?” The demonstrative pronoun is used as an enclitic particle for emphasis (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 24, §118).
[14:5] 15 tn Heb “released Israel.” By metonymy the name of the nation is used collectively for the people who constitute it (the Israelites).
[14:6] 17 tn Heb “his people.”
[14:7] 18 tn The passive participle of the verb “to choose” means that these were “choice” or superb chariots.
[14:7] 19 tn Heb “every chariot of Egypt.” After the mention of the best chariots, the meaning of this description is “all the other chariots.”
[14:7] 20 tn The word שָׁלִשִׁם (shalishim) means “officers” or some special kind of military personnel. At one time it was taken to mean a “three man chariot,” but the pictures of Egyptian chariots only show two in a chariot. It may mean officers near the king, “men of the third rank” (B. Jacob, Exodus, 394). So the chariots and the crew represented the elite. See the old view by A. E. Cowley that linked it to a Hittite word (“A Hittite Word in Hebrew,” JTS 21 [1920]: 326), and the more recent work by P. C. Craigie connecting it to Egyptian “commander” (“An Egyptian Expression in the Song of the Sea: Exodus XV.4,” VT 20 [1970]: 85).
[14:8] 21 tn Heb “with a high hand”; the expression means “defiantly,” “boldly,” or “with confidence.” The phrase is usually used for arrogant sin and pride, the defiant fist, as it were. The image of the high hand can also mean the hand raised to deliver a blow (Job 38:15). So the narrative here builds tension between these two resolute forces.
[14:10] 22 tn The disjunctive vav introduces a circumstantial clause here.
[14:10] 23 tn Heb “drew near.”
[14:10] 24 tn Heb “lifted up their eyes,” an expression that indicates an intentional and careful looking – they looked up and fixed their sights on the distance.
[14:10] 25 tn The construction uses הִנֵּה (hinneh) with the participle, traditionally rendered “and behold, the Egyptians were marching after them.” The deictic particle calls attention in a dramatic way to what was being seen. It captures the surprise and the sudden realization of the people.
[14:10] 26 tn The verb “feared” is intensified by the adverb מְאֹד (mÿ’od): “they feared greatly” or “were terrified.” In one look their defiant boldness seems to have evaporated.
[14:10] 27 sn Their cry to the
[14:11] 28 sn B. Jacob (Exodus, 396-97) notes how the speech is overly dramatic and came from a people given to using such exaggerations (Num 16:14), even using a double negative. The challenge to Moses brings a double irony. To die in the desert would be without proper burial, but in Egypt there were graves – it was a land of tombs and graves! Gesenius notes that two negatives in the sentence do not nullify each other but make the sentence all the more emphatic: “Is it because there were no graves…?” (GKC 483 §152.y).
[14:11] 29 tn The demonstrative pronoun has the enclitic use again, giving a special emphasis to the question (R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 24, §118).
[14:11] 30 tn The Hebrew term לְהוֹצִּיאָנוּ (lÿhotsi’anu) is the Hiphil infinitive construct with a suffix, “to bring us out.” It is used epexegetically here, explaining the previous question.
[14:12] 31 tn Heb “Is not this the word that we spoke to you.”
[14:12] 32 sn U. Cassuto (Exodus, 164) explains this statement by the people as follows: “The question appears surprising at first, for we have not read previously that such words were spoken to Moses. Nor is the purport of the protest of the Israelite foremen (v 21 [5:21]) identical with that of the words uttered now. However, from a psychological standpoint the matter can be easily explained. In the hour of peril the children of Israel remember that remonstrance, and now it seems to them that it was of a sharper character and flowed from their foresight, and that the present situation justifies it, for death awaits them at this moment in the desert.” This declaration that “we told you so,” born of fright, need not have been strictly accurate or logical.
[14:12] 33 tn Heb “better for us to serve.”
[14:12] 34 tn Since Hebrew does not use quotation marks to indicate the boundaries of quotations, there is uncertainty about whether the Israelites’ statement in Egypt includes the end of v. 12 or consists solely of “leave us alone so that we can serve the Egyptians.” In either case, the command to Moses to leave them alone rested on the assumption, spoken or unspoken, that serving Egypt would be less risky than what Moses was proposing. Now with the Egyptian army on the horizon, the Israelites are sure that their worst predictions are about to take place.
[14:13] 35 tn The use of אַל (’al) with the jussive has the force of “stop fearing.” It is a more immediate negative command than לֹא (lo’) with the imperfect (as in the Decalogue).
[14:13] 36 tn The force of this verb in the Hitpael is “to station oneself” or “stand firm” without fleeing.
[14:13] 37 tn The form is an imperative with a vav (ו). It could also be rendered “stand firm and you will see” meaning the result, or “stand firm that you may see” meaning the purpose.
[14:13] 38 tn Or “victory” (NAB) or “deliverance” (NIV, NRSV).
[14:13] 39 tn Heb “do,” i.e., perform or accomplish.
[14:13] 40 tn The construction uses a verbal hendiadys consisting of a Hiphil imperfect (“you will not add”) and a Qal infinitive construct with a suffix (“to see them”) – “you will no longer see them.” Then the clause adds “again, for ever.”
[14:13] sn U. Cassuto (Exodus, 164) notes that the antithetical parallelism between seeing salvation and seeing the Egyptians, as well as the threefold repetition of the word “see” cannot be accidental; so too the alliteration of the last three words beginning with ayin (ע).
[14:14] 41 tn The word order places emphasis on “the
[14:14] 42 tn The imperfect tense needs to be interpreted in contrast to all that Yahweh will be doing. It may be given a potential imperfect nuance (as here), or it may be obligatory to follow the command to stand firm: “you must be still.”
[14:15] 43 tn The text literally says, “speak to the Israelites that they may journey.” The intent of the line, using the imperative with the subordinate jussive or imperfect expressing purpose is that the speaking is the command to move.
[14:16] 44 tn The conjunction plus pronoun (“and you”) is emphatic – “and as for you” – before the imperative “lift up.” In contrast, v. 17 begins with “and as for me, I….”
[14:16] 45 tn The imperfect (or jussive) with the vav (ו) is sequential, coming after the series of imperatives instructing Moses to divide the sea; the form then gives the purpose (or result) of the activity – “that they may go.”
[14:17] 46 tn הִנְנִי (hinni) before the participle gives it the force of a futur instans participle, meaning “I am about to harden” or “I am going to harden” their heart.
[14:17] 47 tn The form again is the imperfect tense with vav (ו) to express the purpose or the result of the hardening. The repetition of the verb translated “come” is interesting: Moses is to divide the sea in order that the people may cross, but God will harden the Egyptians’ hearts in order that they may follow.
[14:17] 48 tn For the comments on this verb see the discussion in v. 4. God would get glory by defeating Egypt.
[14:17] 49 tn Or “I will get glory over.”
[14:18] 50 tn The construction is unusual in that it says, “And Egypt will know.” The verb is plural, and so “Egypt” must mean “the Egyptians.” The verb is the perfect tense with the vav consecutive, showing that this recognition or acknowledgment by Egypt will be the result or purpose of the defeat of them by God.
[14:18] 51 tn The form is בְּהִכָּבְדִי (bÿhikkavÿdi), the Niphal infinitive construct with a preposition and a suffix. For the suffix on a Niphal, see GKC 162-63 §61.c. The word forms a temporal clause in the line.
[14:19] 52 sn B. Jacob (Exodus, 400-401) makes a good case that there may have been only one pillar, one cloud; it would have been a dark cloud behind it, but in front of it, shining the way, a pillar of fire. He compares the manifestation on Sinai, when the mountain was on fire but veiled by a dark cloud (Deut 4:11; 5:22). See also Exod 13:21; Num 14:14; Deut 1:33; Neh 9:12, 19; Josh 24:7; Pss 78:14; 105:39.
[14:20] 53 tn The two nouns “cloud” and “darkness” form a nominal hendiadys: “and it was the cloud and the darkness” means “and it was the dark cloud.” Perhaps this is what the Egyptians saw, preventing them from observing Moses and the Israelites.
[14:20] 54 tn Heb “this to this”; for the use of the pronouns in this reciprocal sense of “the one to the other,” see GKC 448 §139.e, n. 3.
[14:20] 55 tc The LXX reads very differently at the end of this verse: “and there was darkness and blackness and the night passed.” B. S. Childs (Exodus [OTL], 218) summarizes three proposals: (1) One takes the MT as it stands and explains it along the lines of the Targum and Jewish exegesis, that there was one cloud that was dark to one group and light to the other. (2) Another tries to reconstruct a verb from the noun “darkness” or make some use of the Greek verb. (3) A third seeks a different meaning for the verb “lit,” “gave light” by comparative philology, but no consensus has been reached. Given that there is no easy solution apart from reconstructing the text, and given that the MT can be interpreted as it is, the present translation follows the MT.
[14:21] 56 tn Or “drove the sea back” (NIV, NCV, NRSV, TEV). The verb is simply the Hiphil of הָלַךְ (halakh, “to walk, go”). The context requires that it be interpreted along the lines of “go back, go apart.”
[14:22] 57 tn The clause literally reads, “and the waters [were] for them a wall.” The word order in Hebrew is disjunctive, with the vav (ו) on the noun introducing a circumstantial clause.
[14:22] sn S. R. Driver (Exodus, 119), still trying to explain things with natural explanations, suggests that a northeast wind is to be thought of (an east wind would be directly in their face he says), such as a shallow ford might cooperate with an ebb tide in keeping a passage clear. He then quotes Dillmann about the “wall” of water: “A very summary poetical and hyperbolical (xv. 8) description of the occurrence, which at most can be pictured as the drying up of a shallow ford, on both sides of which the basin of the sea was much deeper, and remained filled with water.” There is no way to “water down” the text to fit natural explanations; the report clearly shows a miraculous work of God making a path through the sea – a path that had to be as wide as half a mile in order for the many people and their animals to cross between about 2:00 a.m. and 6:00 a.m. (W. C. Kaiser, Jr., “Exodus,” EBC 2:389). The text does not say that they actually only started across in the morning watch, however.
[14:24] 58 tn The night was divided into three watches of about four hours each, making the morning watch about 2:00-6:00 a.m. The text has this as “the watch of the morning,” the genitive qualifying which of the night watches was meant.
[14:24] 59 tn This particular verb, שָׁקַף (shaqaf) is a bold anthropomorphism: Yahweh looked down. But its usage is always with some demonstration of mercy or wrath. S. R. Driver (Exodus, 120) suggests that the look might be with fiery flashes to startle the Egyptians, throwing them into a panic. Ps 77:17-19 pictures torrents of rain with lightning and thunder.
[14:24] 60 tn Heb “camp.” The same Hebrew word is used in Exod 14:20. Unlike the English word “camp,” it can be used of a body of people at rest (encamped) or on the move.
[14:24] 62 tn The verb הָמַם (hamam) means “throw into confusion.” It is used in the Bible for the panic and disarray of an army before a superior force (Josh 10:10; Judg 4:15).
[14:25] 63 tn The word in the text is וַיָּסַר (vayyasar), which would be translated “and he turned aside” with the sense perhaps of removing the wheels. The reading in the LXX, Smr, and Syriac suggests a root אָסַר (’asar, “to bind”). The sense here might be “clogged – presumably by their sinking in the wet sand” (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 120).
[14:25] 64 tn The clause is וַיְנַהֲגֵהוּ בִּכְבֵדֻת (vaynahagehu bikhvedut). The verb means “to drive a chariot”; here in the Piel it means “cause to drive.” The suffix is collective, and so the verbal form can be translated “and caused them to drive.” The idea of the next word is “heaviness” or “hardship”; it recalls the previous uses of related words to describe Pharaoh’s heart. Here it indicates that the driving of the crippled chariots was with difficulty.
[14:25] 65 tn The cohortative has the hortatory use here, “Let’s flee.” Although the form is singular, the sense of it is plural and so hortatory can be used. The form is singular to agree with the singular subject, “Egypt,” which obviously means the Egyptian army. The word for “flee” is used when someone runs from fear of immanent danger and is a different word than the one used in 14:5.
[14:25] 66 tn The form is the Niphal participle; it is used as the predicate here, that is, the verbal use: “the
[14:26] 67 tn The verb, “and they will return,” is here subordinated to the imperative preceding it, showing the purpose of that act.
[14:27] 68 tn The Hebrew term לְאֵיתָנוֹ (lÿ’etano) means “to its place,” or better, “to its perennial state.” The point is that the sea here had a normal level, and now when the Egyptians were in the sea on the dry ground the water would return to that level.
[14:27] 69 tn Heb “at the turning of the morning”; NASB, NIV, TEV, CEV “at daybreak.”
[14:27] 70 tn The clause begins with the disjunctive vav (ו) on the noun, signaling either a circumstantial clause or a new beginning. It could be rendered, “Although the Egyptians…Yahweh…” or “as the Egyptians….”
[14:27] 71 tn The verb means “shake out” or “shaking off.” It has the significance of “throw downward.” See Neh 5:13 or Job 38:13.
[14:28] 72 tn Heb “that was coming after them into the sea.” The referent of “them” (the Israelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[14:28] 73 tn Heb “not was left among them as much as one.”
[14:30] 74 tn The Hebrew term וַיּוֹשַׁע (vayyosha’) is the key summation of the chapter, and this part of the book: “So Yahweh saved Israel.” This is the culmination of all the powerful works of God through these chapters.
[14:30] 75 tn Heb “the hand,” with “hand” being a metonymy for power.
[14:30] 76 tn The participle “dead” is singular, agreeing in form with “Egypt.”
[14:31] 77 tn The preterite with the vav (ו) consecutive introduces a clause that is subordinate to the main points that the verse is making.
[14:31] 78 tn Heb “the great hand,” with “hand” being a metonymy for work or power. The word play using “hand” contrasts the Lord’s hand/power at work on behalf of the Israelites with the hand/power of Egypt that would have killed them.
[14:31] 79 tn Heb “did, made.”
[14:31] 80 tn Heb “and the people feared.”
[14:31] 81 tn The verb is the Hiphil preterite of אָמַן (’aman).
[14:31] sn S. R. Driver says that the belief intended here is not simply a crediting of a testimony concerning a person or a thing, but a laying firm hold morally on a person or a thing (Exodus, 122). Others take the Hiphil sense to be declarative, and that would indicate a considering of the object of faith trustworthy or dependable, and therefore to be acted on. In this passage it does not mean that here they came to faith, but that they became convinced that he would save them in the future.
[14:31] 82 sn Here the title of “servant” is given to Moses. This is the highest title a mortal can have in the OT – the “servant of Yahweh.” It signifies more than a believer; it describes the individual as acting on behalf of God. For example, when Moses stretched out his hand, God used it as his own (Isa 63:12). Moses was God’s personal representative. The chapter records both a message of salvation and of judgment. Like the earlier account of deliverance at the Passover, this chapter can be a lesson on deliverance from present troubles – if God could do this for Israel, there is no trouble too great for him to overcome. The passage can also be understood as a picture (at least) of the deliverance at the final judgment on the world. But the Israelites used this account for a paradigm of the power of God: namely, God is able to deliver his people from danger because he is the sovereign Lord of creation. His people must learn to trust him, even in desperate situations; they must fear him and not the situation. God can bring any threat to an end by bringing his power to bear in judgment on the wicked.
[15:1] 83 sn This chapter is a song of praise sung by Moses and the people right after the deliverance from the Sea. The song itself is vv. 1b-18; it falls into three sections – praise to God (1b-3), the cause for the praise (4-13), and the conclusion (14-18). The point of the first section is that God’s saving acts inspire praise from his people; the second is that God’s powerful acts deliver his people from the forces of evil; and the third section is that God’s demonstrations of his sovereignty inspire confidence in him by his people. So the Victory Song is very much like the other declarative praise psalms – the resolve to praise, the power of God, the victory over the enemies, the incomparability of God in his redemption, and the fear of the people. See also C. Cohen, “Studies in Early Israelite Poetry I: An Unrecognized Case of Three Line Staircase Parallelism in the Song of the Sea,” JANESCU 7 (1975): 13-17; D. N. Freedman, “Strophe and Meter in Exodus 15,” A Light unto My Path, 163-203; E. Levine, “Neofiti I: A Study of Exodus 15,” Bib 54 (1973): 301-30; T. C. Butler, “‘The Song of the Sea’: Exodus 15:1-18: A Study in the Exegesis of Hebrew Poetry,” DissAb 32 (1971): 2782-A.
[15:1] 84 tn The verb is יָשִׁיר (yashir), a normal imperfect tense form. But after the adverb “then” this form is to be treated as a preterite (see GKC 314-15 §107.c).
[15:1] 85 tn Heb “and they said, saying.” This has been simplified in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[15:1] 86 tn The form is the singular cohortative, expressing the resolution of Moses to sing the song of praise (“I will” being stronger than “I shall”).
[15:1] 87 tn This causal clause gives the reason for and summary of the praise. The Hebrew expression has כִּי־גָּאֹה גָּאָה (ki ga’oh ga’ah). The basic idea of the verb is “rise up loftily” or “proudly.” But derivatives of the root carry the nuance of majesty or pride (S. R. Driver, Exodus, 132). So the idea of the perfect tense with its infinitive absolute may mean “he is highly exalted” or “he has done majestically” or “he is gloriously glorious.”
[15:1] 88 sn The common understanding is that Egypt did not have people riding horses at this time, and so the phrase the horse and its rider is either viewed as an anachronism or is interpreted to mean charioteers. The word “to ride” can mean on a horse or in a chariot. Some have suggested changing “rider” to “chariot” (re-vocalization) to read “the horse and its chariot.”
[15:2] 89 tn Heb “Yah.” Moses’ poem here uses a short form of the name Yahweh, traditionally rendered in English by “the LORD.”
[15:2] 90 tn The word וְזִמְרָת (vÿzimrat) is problematic. It probably had a suffix yod (י) that was accidentally dropped because of the yod (י) on the divine name following. Most scholars posit another meaning for the word. A meaning of “power” fits the line fairly well, forming a hendiadys with strength – “strength and power” becoming “strong power.” Similar lines are in Isa 12:2 and Ps 118:14. Others suggest “protection” or “glory.” However, there is nothing substantially wrong with “my song” in the line – only that it would be a nicer match if it had something to do with strength.
[15:2] 91 tn The word נָוָה (navah) occurs only here. It may mean “beautify, adorn” with praises (see BDB 627 s.v.). See also M. Dahood, “Exodus 15:2: ‘anwehu and Ugaritic snwt,” Bib 59 (1979): 260-61; and M. Klein, “The Targumic Tosefta to Exodus 15:2,” JJS 26 (1975): 61-67; and S. B. Parker, “Exodus 15:2 Again,” VT 21 (1971): 373-79.
[15:3] 92 tn Heb “man of war” (so KJV, ASV). “Warrior” is now the preferred translation since “man of war” is more commonly known today as a warship. The expression indicates that Yahweh is one who understands how to fight and defeat the enemy. The word “war” modifies “man” to reveal that Yahweh is a warrior. Other passages use similar descriptions: Isa 42:13 has “man of wars”; Ps 24:8 has “mighty man of battle.” See F. Cross, “The Divine Warrior in Israel’s Early Cult,” Biblical Motifs, 11-30.
[15:3] 93 tn Heb “Yahweh is his name.” As throughout, the name “Yahweh” is rendered as “the
[15:4] 94 tn Gesenius notes that the sign of the accusative, often omitted in poetry, is not found in this entire song (GKC 363 §117.b).
[15:4] 95 tn The word is a substantive, “choice, selection”; it is here used in the construct state to convey an attribute before a partitive genitive – “the choice of his officers” means his “choice officers” (see GKC 417 §128.r).
[15:4] 96 tn The form is a Qal passive rather than a Pual, for there is not Piel form or meaning.
[15:5] 97 tn The verb form is יְכַסְיֻמוּ (yÿkhasyumu) is the Piel preterite. Normally a vav (ו) consecutive is used with the preterite, but in some ancient poems the form without the vav appears, as is the case frequently in this poem. That such an archaic form is used should come as no surprise, because the word also uses the yod (י) of the root (GKC 214 §75.dd), and the archaic suffix form (GKC 258 §91.l). These all indicate the antiquity of the poem.
[15:5] 98 tn The parasynonyms here are תְּהֹמֹת (tÿhomot, “deep, ocean depths, deep waters”) and מְצוֹלֹת (mÿtsolot, “the depths”); S. R. Driver says properly the “gurgling places” (Exodus, 134).
[15:6] 99 tn The form נֶאְדָּרִי (ne’dari) may be an archaic infinitive with the old ending i, used in place of the verb and meaning “awesome.” Gesenius says that the vowel ending may be an old case ending, especially when a preposition is inserted between the word and its genitive (GKC 253 §90.l), but he suggests a reconstruction of the form.
[15:7] 100 sn This expression is cognate with words in v. 1. Here that same greatness or majesty is extolled as in abundance.
[15:7] 101 tn Here, and throughout the song, these verbs are the prefixed conjugation that may look like the imperfect but are actually historic preterites. This verb is to “overthrow” or “throw down” – like a wall, leaving it in shattered pieces.
[15:7] 102 tn The form קָמֶיךָ (qamekha) is the active participle with a pronominal suffix. The participle is accusative, the object of the verb, but the suffix is the genitive of nearer definition (see GKC 358 §116.i).
[15:7] 103 sn The verb is the Piel of שָׁלַח (shalakh), the same verb used throughout for the demand on Pharaoh to release Israel. Here, in some irony, God released his wrath on them.
[15:7] 104 sn The word wrath is a metonymy of cause; the effect – the judgment – is what is meant.
[15:7] 105 tn The verb is the prefixed conjugation, the preterite, without the consecutive vav (ו).
[15:8] 106 sn The phrase “the blast of your nostrils” is a bold anthropomorphic expression for the wind that came in and dried up the water.
[15:8] 107 tn The word “heap” describes the walls of water. The waters, which are naturally fluid, stood up as though they were a heap, a mound of earth. Likewise, the flowing waters deep in the ocean solidified – as though they were turned to ice (U. Cassuto, Exodus, 175).
[15:9] 108 sn W. C. Kaiser observes the staccato phrases that almost imitate the heavy, breathless heaving of the Egyptians as, with what reserve of strength they have left, they vow, “I will…, I will…, I will…” (“Exodus,” EBC 2:395).
[15:9] 109 tn The form is נַפְשִׁי (nafshi, “my soul”). But this word refers to the whole person, the body and the soul, or better, a bundle of appetites in a body. It therefore can figuratively refer to the desires or appetites (Deut 12:15; 14:26; 23:24). Here, with the verb “to be full” means “to be satisfied”; the whole expression might indicate “I will be sated with them” or “I will gorge myself.” The greedy appetite was to destroy.
[15:9] 110 tn The verb רִיק (riq) means “to be empty” in the Qal, and in the Hiphil “to empty.” Here the idea is to unsheathe a sword.
[15:9] 111 tn The verb is יָרַשׁ (yarash), which in the Hiphil means “to dispossess” or “root out.” The meaning “destroy” is a general interpretation.
[15:10] 112 tn “But” has been supplied here.
[15:10] 113 tn Here “and” has been supplied.
[15:10] 114 tn The verb may have the idea of sinking with a gurgling sound, like water going into a whirlpool (R. A. Cole, Exodus [TOTC], 124; S. R. Driver, Exodus, 136). See F. M. Cross and D. N. Freedman, “The Song of Miriam,” JNES 14 (1955): 243-47.
[15:11] 115 tn The question is of course rhetorical; it is a way of affirming that no one is comparable to God. See C. J. Labuschagne, The Incomparability of Yahweh in the Old Testament, 22, 66-67, and 94-97.
[15:11] 116 sn Verses 11-17 will now focus on Yahweh as the incomparable one who was able to save Israel from their foes and afterward lead them to the promised land.
[15:11] 117 tn S. R. Driver suggests “praiseworthy acts” as the translation (Exodus, 137).
[15:12] 118 tn The verb is the prefixed conjugation, the preterite without the vav consecutive. The subject, the “earth,” must be inclusive of the sea, or it may indicate the grave or Sheol; the sea drowned them. Some scholars wish to see this as a reference to Dathan and Abiram, and therefore evidence of a later addition or compilation. It fits this passage well, however.
[15:13] 119 tn The verbs in the next two verses are perfect tenses, but can be interpreted as a prophetic perfect, looking to the future.
[15:13] 120 tn The particle זוּ (zu) is a relative pronoun, subordinating the next verb to the preceding.
[15:13] 121 tn This verb seems to mean “to guide to a watering-place” (See Ps 23:2).
[15:14] 122 tn This verb is a prophetic perfect, assuming that the text means what it said and this song was sung at the Sea. So all these countries were yet to hear of the victory.
[15:14] 123 tn The word properly refers to “pangs” of childbirth. When the nations hear, they will be terrified.
[15:14] 124 tn The verb is again a prophetic perfect.
[15:15] 125 tn This is a prophetic perfect.
[15:15] 126 tn This verb is imperfect tense.
[15:16] 127 tn The two words can form a nominal hendiadys, “a dreadful fear,” though most English versions retain the two separate terms.
[15:16] 128 tn The form is an imperfect.
[15:16] 129 tn The adjective is in construct form and governs the noun “arm” (“arm” being the anthropomorphic expression for what God did). See GKC 428 §132.c.
[15:16] 130 sn For a study of the words for fear, see N. Waldman, “A Comparative Note on Exodus 15:14-16,” JQR 66 (1976): 189-92.
[15:16] 131 tn Clauses beginning with עַד (’ad) express a limit that is not absolute, but only relative, beyond which the action continues (GKC 446-47 §138.g).
[15:16] 132 tn The verb קָנָה (qanah) here is the verb “acquire, purchase,” and probably not the homonym “to create, make” (see Gen 4:1; Deut 32:6; and Prov 8:22).
[15:17] 133 tn The verb is imperfect.
[15:17] 134 sn The “mountain” and the “place” would be wherever Yahweh met with his people. It here refers to Canaan, the land promised to the patriarchs.
[15:17] 135 tn The verb is perfect tense, referring to Yahweh’s previous choice of the holy place.
[15:20] 136 sn See J. N. Easton, “Dancing in the Old Testament,” ExpTim 86 (1975): 136-40.
[15:21] 137 tn The verb עָנָה (’ana) normally means “to answer,” but it can be used more technically to describe antiphonal singing in Hebrew and in Ugaritic.
[15:21] 138 sn This song of the sea is, then, a great song of praise for Yahweh’s deliverance of Israel at the Sea, and his preparation to lead them to the promised land, much to the (anticipated) dread of the nations. The principle here, and elsewhere in Scripture, is that the people of God naturally respond to God in praise for his great acts of deliverance. Few will match the powerful acts that were exhibited in Egypt, but these nonetheless set the tone. The song is certainly typological of the song of the saints in heaven who praise God for delivering them from the bondage of this world by judging the world. The focus of the praise, though, still is on the person (attributes) and works of God.
[15:22] 139 sn The first event of the Israelites’ desert experience is a failure, for they murmur against Yahweh and are given a stern warning – and the provision of sweet water. The event teaches that God is able to turn bitter water into sweet water for his people, and he promises to do such things if they obey. He can provide for them in the desert – he did not bring them into the desert to let them die. But there is a deeper level to this story – the healing of the water is incidental to the healing of the people, their lack of trust. The passage is arranged in a neat chiasm, starting with a journey (A), ending with the culmination of the journey (A'); developing to bitter water (B), resolving to sweet water (B'); complaints by the people (C), leading to to the instructions for the people (C'); and the central turning point is the wonder miracle (D).
[15:22] 140 tn The verb form is unusual; the normal expression is with the Qal, which expresses that they journeyed. But here the Hiphil is used to underscore that Moses caused them to journey – and he is following God. So the point is that God was leading Israel to the bitter water.
[15:22] 141 sn The mention that they travelled for three days into the desert is deliberately intended to recall Moses’ demand that they go three days into the wilderness to worship. Here, three days in, they find bitter water and complain – not worship.
[15:23] 142 sn The Hebrew word “Marah” means “bitter.” This motif will be repeated four times in this passage to mark the central problem. Earlier in the book the word had been used for the “bitter herbs” in the Passover, recalling the bitter labor in bondage. So there may be a double reference here – to the bitter waters and to Egypt itself – God can deliver from either.
[15:23] 143 tn The infinitive construct here provides the direct object for the verb “to be able,” answering the question of what they were not able to do.
[15:23] 144 tn The causal clause here provides the reason for their being unable to drink the water, as well as a clear motivation for the name.
[15:23] 145 sn Many scholars have attempted to explain these things with natural phenomena. Here Marah is identified with Ain Hawarah. It is said that the waters of this well are notoriously salty and brackish; Robinson said it was six to eight feet in diameter and the water about two feet deep; the water is unpleasant, salty, and somewhat bitter. As a result the Arabs say it is the worst tasting water in the area (W. C. Kaiser, Jr., “Exodus,” EBC 2:398). But that would not be a sufficient amount of water for the number of Israelites in the first place, and in the second, they could not drink it at all. But third, how did Moses change it?
[15:23] 146 tn The עַל־כֵּן (’al-ken) formula in the Pentateuch serves to explain to the reader the reason for the way things were. It does not necessarily mean here that Israel named the place – but they certainly could have.
[15:23] 147 tn Heb “one called its name,” the expression can be translated as a passive verb if the subject is not expressed.
[15:24] 148 tn The verb וַיִּלֹנוּ (vayyillonu) from לוּן (lun) is a much stronger word than “to grumble” or “to complain.” It is used almost exclusively in the wilderness wandering stories, to describe the rebellion of the Israelites against God (see also Ps 59:14-15). They were not merely complaining – they were questioning God’s abilities and motives. The action is something like a parliamentary vote of no confidence.
[15:24] 149 tn The imperfect tense here should be given a potential nuance: “What can we drink?” since the previous verse reports that they were not able to drink the water.
[15:24] sn It is likely that Moses used words very much like this when he prayed. The difference seems to lie in the prepositions – he cried “to” Yahweh, but the people murmured “against” Moses.
[15:25] 150 tn The verb is וַיּוֹרֵהוּ (vayyorehu, “and he showed him”). It is the Hiphil preterite from יָרָה (yarah), which has a basic meaning of “to point, show, direct.” It then came to mean “to teach”; it is the verb behind the noun “Law” (תּוֹרָה, torah).
[15:25] sn U. Cassuto notes that here is the clue to the direction of the narrative: Israel needed God’s instruction, the Law, if they were going to enjoy his provisions (Exodus, 184).
[15:25] 151 tn Or “a [piece of] wood” (cf. NAB, NIV, NRSV, TEV, CEV); NLT “a branch.”
[15:25] sn S. R. Driver (Exodus, 143) follows some local legends in identifying this tree as one that is supposed to have – even to this day – the properties necessary for making bitter water sweet. B. Jacob (Exodus, 436) reports that no such tree has ever been found, but then he adds that this does not mean there was not such a bush in the earlier days. He believes that here God used a natural means (“showed, instructed”) to sweeten the water. He quotes Ben Sira as saying God had created these things with healing properties in them.
[15:25] 152 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[15:25] 153 tn Heb “there he”; the referent (the Lord) is supplied for clarity.
[15:25] 154 tn Heb “for him” (referring to Israel as a whole).
[15:25] 155 tn This translation interprets the two nouns as a hendiadys: “a statute and an ordinance” becomes “a binding ordinance.”
[15:25] 156 tn The verb נִסָּהוּ (nissahu, “and he tested him [them]”) is from the root נָסָה (nasah). The use of this word in the Bible indicates that there is question, doubt, or uncertainty about the object being tested.
[15:25] sn The whole episode was a test from God. He led them there through Moses and let them go hungry and thirsty. He wanted to see how great their faith was.
[15:26] 157 tn The construction uses the infinitive absolute and the imperfect tense of שָׁמַע (shama’). The meaning of the verb is idiomatic here because it is followed by “to the voice of Yahweh your God.” When this is present, the verb is translated “obey.” The construction is in a causal clause. It reads, “If you will diligently obey.” Gesenius points out that the infinitive absolute in a conditional clause also emphasizes the importance of the condition on which the consequence depends (GKC 342-43 §113.o).
[15:26] 158 tn The word order is reversed in the text: “and the right in his eyes you do,” or, “[if] you do what is right in his eyes.” The conditional idea in the first clause is continued in this clause.
[15:26] 159 tn Heb “give ear.” This verb and the next are both perfect tenses with the vav (ו) consecutive; they continue the sequence of the original conditional clause.
[15:26] 160 tn The substantive כָּל־ (kol, “all of”) in a negative clause can be translated “none of.”
[15:26] 161 sn The reference is no doubt to the plagues that Yahweh has just put on them. These will not come on God’s true people. But the interesting thing about a conditional clause like this is that the opposite is also true – “if you do not obey, then I will bring these diseases.”
[15:26] 162 tn The form is רֹפְאֶךָ (rofÿ’ekha), a participle with a pronominal suffix. The word is the predicate after the pronoun “I”: “I [am] your healer.” The suffix is an objective genitive – the
[15:26] sn The name I Yahweh am your healer comes as a bit of a surprise. One might expect, “I am Yahweh who heals your water,” but it was the people he came to heal because their faith was weak. God lets Israel know here that he can control the elements of nature to bring about a spiritual response in Israel (see Deut 8).
[15:27] 163 sn Judging from the way the story is told they were not far from the oasis. But God had other plans for them, to see if they would trust him wholeheartedly and obey. They did not do very well this first time, and they will have to learn how to obey. The lesson is clear: God uses adversity to test his people’s loyalty. The response to adversity must be prayer to God, for he can turn the bitter into the sweet, the bad into the good, and the prospect of death into life.
[10:1] 164 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[10:1] 165 map For location see Map5 B2; Map6 E1; Map7 E1; Map8 E3; Map10 A2; Map11 A1.
[10:1] 166 tn Heb “as he had done to Jericho and to its king, so he did to Ai and to its king.”
[10:2] 168 tn This statement is subordinated to v. 1 in the Hebrew text, which reads literally, “When Adoni-Zedek…they feared greatly.” The subject of the plural verb at the beginning of v. 2 is probably the residents of Jerusalem.
[10:4] 169 tn Heb “Come up to me and help me.”
[10:5] 170 tn Heb “and they camped against Gibeon and fought against it.”
[10:6] 171 tn Heb “do not let your hand drop from us.”
[10:6] 172 tn Heb “your servants!”
[10:6] 173 tn Heb “have gathered against us.”
[10:7] 174 tn Heb “And Joshua went up from Gilgal, he and all the people of war with him, and all the brave warriors.”
[10:8] 175 tn Heb “I have given them into your hand.” The verbal form is a perfect of certitude, emphasizing the certainty of the action.
[10:8] 176 tn Heb “and not a man [or “one”] of them will stand before you.”
[10:9] 177 tn Heb “Joshua came upon them suddenly, all the night he went up from Gilgal.”
[10:10] 178 tn Or “caused to panic.”
[10:10] 179 tn Heb “he.” The referent is probably Israel (mentioned at the end of the previous sentence in the verse; cf. NIV, NRSV), but it is also possible that the
[10:10] 180 tn Heb “struck them down with a great striking down.”
[10:11] 182 tn Heb “on the descent of.”
[10:11] 183 tn Or “heaven” (also in v. 13). The Hebrew term שָׁמַיִם (shamayim) may be translated “heaven(s)” or “sky” depending on the context.
[10:12] 184 tn Heb “Then Joshua spoke to the
[10:13] 185 tn Heb “Is it not written down in the Scroll of the Upright One.” Many modern translations render, “the Scroll [or Book] of Jashar,” leaving the Hebrew name “Jashar” (which means “Upright One”) untranslated.
[10:13] sn The Scroll of the Upright One was apparently an ancient Israelite collection of songs and prayers (see also 2 Sam 1:18).
[10:13] 186 tn Heb “and did not hurry to set [for] about a full day.”
[10:14] 187 tn Heb “listened to the voice of.”
[10:16] 188 tn Heb “these five kings.”
[10:18] 189 tn Heb “and appoint by it men to guard them.”
[10:19] 190 tn Heb “But [as for] you, don’t stand still, chase after your enemies and attack them from the rear.”
[10:19] 191 tn Or “enter into.”
[10:19] 192 tn Heb “has given them into your hand.” The verbal form is a perfect of certitude, emphasizing the certainty of the action.
[10:20] 193 tn Heb “When Joshua and the sons of Israel finished defeating them with a very great defeat until they were destroyed (now the survivors escaped to the fortified cities).” In the Hebrew text the initial temporal clause (“when Joshua…finished”) is subordinated to v. 21 (“the whole army returned”).
[10:21] 194 tn Heb “all the people returned to the camp, to Joshua [at] Makkedah [in] peace.”
[10:21] 195 tc Heb “No man.” The lamed (ל) prefixed to אִישׁ (’ish, “man”) is probably dittographic (note the immediately preceding יִשְׂרָאֵל [isra’el] which ends in lamed, ל); cf. the LXX.
[10:21] 196 tn Heb “no man sharpened [or perhaps, “pointed”] his tongue against the sons of Israel.” Cf. NEB “not a man of the Israelites suffered so much as a scratch on his tongue,” which understands “sharpened” as “scratched” (referring to a minor wound). Most modern translations understand the Hebrew expression “sharpened his tongue” figuratively for opposition or threats against the Israelites.
[10:22] 197 tn Heb “these five kings.”
[10:23] 198 tn Heb “they did so.”
[10:23] 199 tn Heb “these five kings.”
[10:23] 200 map For location see Map5 B1; Map6 F3; Map7 E2; Map8 F2; Map10 B3; JP1 F4; JP2 F4; JP3 F4; JP4 F4.
[10:24] 201 tn Heb “Joshua.” The translation has replaced the proper name with the pronoun (“he”) because a repetition of the proper name here would be redundant according to English style.
[10:24] 202 tn Or “Draw near.”
[10:24] 203 tn Or “drew near.”
[10:25] 204 tn Or perhaps “and don’t get discouraged!”
[10:26] 205 tn Heb “struck them down and killed them.”
[10:27] 206 sn For the legal background of the removal of the corpses before sundown, see Deut 21:22-23.
[10:27] 207 tn Heb “to this very day.” The words “They remain” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[10:28] 208 map For location see Map5 B2; Map6 E1; Map7 E1; Map8 E3; Map10 A2; Map11 A1.
[10:29] 209 tn Heb “Libnah.” Repetition of the proper name here would be redundant according to English style, so the pronoun (“it”) has been employed in the translation.
[10:30] 210 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:30] 211 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:30] 212 tn Heb “He”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:30] 213 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:30] 214 map For location see Map5 B2; Map6 E1; Map7 E1; Map8 E3; Map10 A2; Map11 A1.
[10:31] 215 tn Heb “encamped against it.”
[10:32] 216 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:34] 218 tn Heb “they encamped against it.”
[10:35] 219 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:35] 220 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:37] 221 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:37] 222 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:37] 223 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:39] 224 tn Heb “He”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:39] 225 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:39] 226 tn Heb “He”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:39] 227 tn Heb “he”; the implied subject may be Israel, or Joshua (as the commanding general of the army).
[10:39] 228 tn Heb “as he did to Hebron, so he did to Debir and its king, and as he did to Libnah and its king.” The clauses have been rearranged in the translation for stylistic reasons.
[10:40] 229 tn Or “foothills”; Heb “the Shephelah.”
[10:41] 230 tn Heb “and Joshua struck them down, from Kadesh Barnea even to Gaza, and all the land of Goshen, even to Gibeon.”
[10:42] 231 tn Heb “at one time.”
[11:1] 232 map For location see Map1 D2; Map2 D3; Map3 A2; Map4 C1.
[11:1] 233 tn Heb “he sent to.”
[11:2] 234 tn Heb “and to the kings who [are] from the north in.”
[11:2] 235 tn Heb “Chinneroth,” a city and plain located in the territory of Naphtali in Galilee (BDB 490 s.v. כִּנֶּרֶת, כִּנֲרוֹת).
[11:2] sn Kinnereth was a city in Galilee located near the Sea of Galilee (Deut 3:17). The surrounding region also became known by this name (1 Kgs 15:20; cf. Matt 14:34), and eventually even the lake itself (Josh 12:3; cf. Luke 5:1).
[11:3] 236 tn The verb “came” is supplied in the translation (see v. 4).
[11:4] 238 tn Heb “They and all their camps with them came out, a people as numerous as the sand which is on the edge of the sea in multitude, and [with] horses and chariots very numerous.”
[11:5] 239 tn Heb “and came and camped together.”
[11:6] 240 tn Heb “burn with fire”; the words “with fire” are redundant in English and have not been included in the translation.
[11:7] 241 tn Heb “Joshua and all the people of war with him came upon them at the Waters of Merom suddenly and fell upon them.”
[11:8] 242 map For location see Map1 A1; JP3 F3; JP4 F3.
[11:8] 243 tn The meaning of the Hebrew name “Misrephoth Maim” is perhaps “lime-kilns by the water” (see HALOT 2:641).
[11:9] 244 tn Heb “burned with fire”; the words “with fire” are redundant in English and have not been included in the translation.
[11:10] 245 map For location see Map1 D2; Map2 D3; Map3 A2; Map4 C1.
[11:11] 247 tn Heb “and they struck down all life which was in it with the edge of the sword, annihilating.”
[11:11] 248 tn Heb “burned with fire”; the words “with fire” are redundant in English and have not been included in the translation.
[11:12] 249 tn Heb “and he struck them down with the edge of the sword, he annihilated them.”
[11:13] 250 tn Heb “standing on their mounds.”
[11:13] 251 map For location see Map1 D2; Map2 D3; Map3 A2; Map4 C1.
[11:14] 252 tn Heb “but all the people they struck down with the edge of the sword until they destroyed them.”
[11:15] 253 tn Heb “As the
[11:16] 254 tn Heb “Joshua took all this land.”
[11:16] 255 tn Or “foothills”; Heb “the Shephelah.”
[11:17] 256 tn Heb “and struck them down and killed them.”
[11:18] 257 tn Heb “made war with.”
[11:18] 258 tn Heb “for many days.”
[11:19] 259 tn The LXX omits this parenthetical note, which may represent a later scribal addition.
[11:19] 260 tn Heb “the whole they took in battle.”
[11:20] 261 tn Heb “for from the
[11:21] 262 tn Heb “went and cut off the Anakites from the hill country.”
[11:21] 263 tn Heb “and from all the hill country of Israel.”
[11:23] 265 tn Heb “according to all which the
[11:23] 266 tn Heb “and Joshua gave it for an inheritance to Israel according to their allotted portions by their tribes.”
[1:1] 267 tn Grk “Judas,” traditionally “Jude” in English versions to distinguish him from the one who betrayed Jesus. The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.
[1:1] 268 tn 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.). At the same time, perhaps “servant” is apt in that the δοῦλος of Jesus Christ took on that role voluntarily, unlike a slave. 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] 269 sn Although Jude was half-brother of Jesus, he humbly associates himself with James, his full brother. By first calling himself a slave of Jesus Christ, it is evident that he wants no one to place stock in his physical connections. At the same time, he must identify himself further: Since Jude was a common name in the 1st century (two of Jesus’ disciples were so named, including his betrayer), more information was needed, that is to say, brother of James.
[1:1] 270 tn Grk “loved in.” The perfect passive participle suggests that the audience’s relationship to God is not recent; the preposition ἐν (en) before πατρί (patri) could be taken as sphere or instrument (agency is unlikely, however). Another possible translation would be “dear to God.”
[1:1] 271 tn Or “by.” Datives of agency are quite rare in the NT (and other ancient Greek), almost always found with a perfect verb. Although this text qualifies, in light of the well-worn idiom of τηρέω (threw) in eschatological contexts, in which God or Christ keeps the believer safe until the parousia (cf. 1 Thess 5:23; 1 Pet 1:4; Rev 3:10; other terms meaning “to guard,” “to keep” are also found in similar eschatological contexts [cf. 2 Thess 3:3; 2 Tim 1:12; 1 Pet 1:5; Jude 24]), it is probably better to understand this verse as having such an eschatological tinge. It is at the same time possible that Jude’s language was intentionally ambiguous, implying both ideas (“kept by Jesus Christ [so that they might be] kept for Jesus Christ”). Elsewhere he displays a certain fondness for wordplays; this may be a hint of things to come.
[1:2] 272 tn Grk “may mercy and peace and love be multiplied to you.”
[1:3] 273 tn Grk “while being quite diligent to write to you,” or “while making all haste to write to you.” Two issues are at stake: (1) whether σπουδή (spoudh) here means diligence, eagerness, or haste; (2) whether ποιούμενος γράφειν (poioumeno" grafein) is to be taken conatively (“I was about to write”) or progressively (“I was writing”). Without knowing more of the background, it is difficult to tell which option is to be preferred.
[1:3] 274 tn Grk “I had the necessity.” The term ἀνάγκη (anankh, “necessity”) often connotes urgency or distress. In this context, Jude is indicating that the more comprehensive treatment about the faith shared between himself and his readers was not nearly as urgent as the letter he found it now necessary to write.
[1:3] 275 tn Grk “encouraging.” Παρακαλῶν (parakalwn) is most likely a telic participle. In keeping with other participles of purpose, it is present tense and occurs after the main verb.
[1:3] 276 tn the verb ἐπαγωνίζομαι (epagwnizomai) is an intensive form of ἀγωνίζομαι (agwnizomai). As such, the notion of struggling, fighting, contending, etc. is heightened.
[1:3] 277 tn Τῇ πίστει (th pistei) here is taken as a dative of advantage (“on behalf of the faith”). Though rare (see BDAG 820 s.v. 3), it is not unexampled and must have this meaning here.
[1:3] sn The term “faith” has a variety of meanings in the NT. Here, the faith refers to the doctrinal content embraced by believers rather than the act of believing. Rather than discuss the points of agreement that Jude would have with these believers, because of the urgency of the present situation he must assume that these believers were well grounded and press on to encourage them to fight for this common belief.
[1:3] 278 sn The adverb once for all (ἅπαξ, Japax) seems to indicate that the doctrinal convictions of the early church had been substantially codified. That is to say, Jude could appeal to written documents of the Christian faith in his arguments with the false teachers. Most likely, these documents were the letters of Paul and perhaps one or more gospels. First and Second Peter may also have been among the documents Jude has in mind (see also the note on the phrase entrusted to the saints in this verse).
[1:3] 279 sn I now feel compelled instead…saints. Apparently news of some crisis has reached Jude, prompting him to write a different letter than what he had originally planned. A plausible scenario (assuming authenticity of 2 Peter or at least that there are authentic Petrine snippets in it) is that after Peter’s death, Jude intended to write to the same Gentile readers that Peter had written to (essentially, Paul’s churches). Jude starts by affirming that the gospel the Gentiles had received from Paul was the same as the one the Jewish Christians had received from the other apostles (our common salvation). But in the midst of writing this letter, Jude felt that the present crisis deserved another, shorter piece. The crisis, as the letter reveals, is that the false teachers whom Peter prophesied have now infiltrated the church. The letter of Jude is thus an ad hoc letter, intended to confirm the truth of Peter’s letter and encourage the saints to ground their faith in the written documents of the nascent church, rather than listen to the twisted gospel of the false teachers. In large measure, the letter of Jude illustrates the necessity of clinging to the authority of scripture as opposed to those who claim to be prophets.
[1:4] 280 tn Grk “people.” However, if Jude is indeed arguing that Peter’s prophecy about false teachers has come true, these are most likely men in the original historical and cultural setting. See discussion of this point in the note on the phrase “these men” in 2 Pet 2:12.
[1:4] 281 tn “Among you” is not in the Greek text, but is obviously implied.
[1:4] sn The infiltration referred to by the phrase slipped in among you was predicted by Peter (2 Pet 2:1), Paul (e.g., Acts 20:29-30), and OT prophets.
[1:4] 282 tn Or “in the past.” The adverb πάλαι (palai) can refer to either, though the meaning “long ago” is more common.
[1:4] 283 tn Grk “written about.”
[1:4] 284 tn Grk “for this condemnation.” τοῦτο (touto) is almost surely a kataphoric demonstrative pronoun, pointing to what follows in vv. 5-18. Otherwise, the condemnation is only implied (in v. 3b) or is merely a statement of their sinfulness (“ungodly” in v. 4b), not a judgment of it.
[1:4] 285 tn Grk “debauchery.” This is the same word Peter uses to predict what the false teachers will be like (2 Pet 2:2, 7, 18).
[1:4] sn Turned the grace of our God into a license for evil. One of the implications that the gospel in the apostolic period was truly a gospel of grace was the fact that the enemies of the gospel could pervert it into license. If it were a gospel of works, no such abuse could be imagined. Along these lines, note Rom 6:1 – “Are we to remain in sin so that grace may increase?” This question could not have even been asked had the gospel been one of works. But grace is easily misunderstood by those who would abuse it.
[1:4] 286 tc Most later witnesses (P Ψ Ï sy) have θεόν (qeon, “God”) after δεσπότην (despothn, “master”), which appears to be a motivated reading in that it explicitly links “Master” to “God” in keeping with the normal NT pattern (see Luke 2:29; Acts 4:24; 2 Tim 2:21; Rev 6:10). In patristic Greek, δεσπότης (despoth") was used especially of God (cf. BDAG 220 s.v. 1.b.). The earlier and better witnesses (Ì72,78 א A B C 0251 33 81 323 1241 1739 al co) lack θεόν; the shorter reading is thus preferred on both internal and external grounds.
[1:4] sn The Greek term for Master (δεσπότης, despoths) is the same term the author of 2 Peter used (2 Pet 2:1) to describe his Lord when he prophesied about these false teachers. Since δεσπότης is used only ten times in the NT, the verbal connection between these two books at this juncture is striking. This is especially so since both Peter and Jude speak of these false teachers as denying the Master (both using the same verb). The basic difference is that Peter is looking to the future, while Jude is arguing that these false teachers are here now.
[1:4] 287 tn The terms “Master and Lord” both refer to the same person. The construction in Greek is known as the Granville Sharp rule, named after the English philanthropist-linguist who first clearly articulated the rule in 1798. Sharp pointed out that in the construction article-noun-καί-noun (where καί [kai] = “and”), when two nouns are singular, personal, and common (i.e., not proper names), they always had the same referent. Illustrations such as “the friend and brother,” “the God and Father,” etc. abound in the NT to prove Sharp’s point. For more discussion see ExSyn 270-78. See also Titus 2:13 and 2 Pet 1:1
[1:5] 288 tn Grk “knowing all things.” The subject of the participle “knowing” (εἰδότας, eidota") is an implied ὑμᾶς (Jumas), though several ancient witnesses actually add it. The πάντα (panta) takes on an adverbial force in this context (“fully”), intensifying how acquainted the readers are with the following points.
[1:5] sn That Jude comments on his audience’s prior knowledge of what he is about to tell them (you have been fully informed of these facts) may imply that they were familiar with 2 Peter. In 2 Pet 2:4ff., the same illustrations from the OT are drawn. See the note on the following phrase once for all.
[1:5] 289 tc ‡ Some translations take ἅπαξ (Japax) with the following clause (thus, “[Jesus,] having saved the people once for all”). Such a translation presupposes that ἅπαξ is a part of the ὅτι (Joti) clause. The reading of NA27, πάντα ὅτι [ὁ] κύριος ἅπαξ (panta {oti [Jo] kurio" {apax), suggests this interpretation (though with “Lord” instead of “Jesus”). This particle is found before λαόν (laon) in the ὅτι clause in א C* Ψ 630 1241 1243 1505 1739 1846 1881 pc co. But ἅπαξ is found before the ὅτι clause in most witnesses, including several important ones (Ì72 A B C2 33 81 623 2344 Ï vg). What seems best able to explain the various placements of the adverb is that scribes were uncomfortable with ἅπαξ referring to the readers’ knowledge, feeling it was more appropriate to the theological significance of “saved” (σώσας, swsas).
[1:5] sn In this translation, Jude is stressing that the readers have been informed once for all of the OT illustrations he is about to mention. Where would they get this information? Most likely from having read 2 Peter. Earlier Jude used the same adverb to indicate that these believers had a written record of the faith. This seems to be his implication here, too. Thus, for the second time Jude is appealing to the written documents of the early church as authoritative as opposed to the messages of the false teachers. As the 1st century began to draw to a close, the early church found itself increasingly dependent on the letters and gospels of the apostles and their associates. Once those apostles died, false apostles and false teachers sprang up, like wolves in sheep’s clothing (cf. Acts 20:29-30). To combat this, some of the latest books of the NT stressed the authority of what had been written (so Hebrews, Jude, Ephesians, 1 John). Although these writers anticipated the return of the Lord, they also braced their audiences for a delay of the parousia (the second coming of Christ) by suggesting that when they were gone the NT documents should guide them.
[1:5] 290 tc ‡ The reading ᾿Ιησοῦς (Ihsous, “Jesus”) is deemed too hard by several scholars, since it involves the notion of Jesus acting in the early history of the nation Israel. However, not only does this reading enjoy the strongest support from a variety of early witnesses (e.g., A B 33 81 1241 1739 1881 2344 pc vg co Or1739mg), but the plethora of variants demonstrate that scribes were uncomfortable with it, for they seemed to exchange κύριος (kurios, “Lord”) or θεός (qeos, “God”) for ᾿Ιησοῦς (though Ì72 has the intriguing reading θεὸς Χριστός [qeos Cristos, “God Christ”] for ᾿Ιησοῦς). In addition to the evidence supplied in NA27 for this reading, note also {88 322 323 424c 665 915 2298 eth Cyr Hier Bede}. As difficult as the reading ᾿Ιησοῦς is, in light of v. 4 and in light of the progress of revelation (Jude being one of the last books in the NT to be composed), it is wholly appropriate.
[1:5] sn The construction our Master and Lord, Jesus Christ in v. 4 follows Granville Sharp’s rule (see note on Lord). The construction strongly implies the deity of Christ. This is followed by a statement that Jesus was involved in the salvation (and later judgment) of the Hebrews. He is thus to be identified with the Lord God, Yahweh. Verse 5, then, simply fleshes out what is implicit in v. 4.
[1:5] 291 tn Or perhaps “a,” though this is less likely.
[1:5] 292 tn Grk “the second time.”
[1:6] 293 tn Grk “and.” Verse 6 is a continuation of the same sentence begun in v. 5. Due to the length and complexity of the Greek sentence, a new sentence was started here in the translation.
[1:6] 294 tn Grk “who did not keep their own domain.”
[1:6] sn The idea is that certain angels acted improperly, going outside the bounds prescribed by God (their proper domain).
[1:6] 295 sn There is an interesting play on words used in this verse. Because the angels did not keep their proper place, Jesus has kept them chained up in another place. The same verb keep is used in v. 1 to describe believers’ status before God and Christ.
[1:6] 296 sn In 2 Pet 2:4 a less common word for chains is used.
[1:6] 297 tn The word ζόφος (zofos, “utter, deepest darkness”) is used only five times in the NT: two in 2 Peter, two in Jude, and one in Hebrews. Jude 6 parallels 2 Pet 2:4; Jude 13 parallels 2 Pet 2:17.
[1:6] 298 tn The words “locked up” are not in Greek, but is expressed in English as a resumptive point after the double prepositional phrase (“in eternal chains in utter darkness”).
[1:7] 300 tn Grk “the towns [or cities] surrounding them.”
[1:7] 301 tn Grk “strange flesh.” This phrase has been variously interpreted. It could refer to flesh of another species (such as angels lusting after human flesh). This would aptly describe the sin of the angels, but not easily explain the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah. It could refer to the homosexual practices of the Sodomites, but a difficulty arises from the use of ἕτερος ({etero"; “strange,” “other”). When this is to be distinguished from ἄλλος (allos, “another”) it suggests “another of a different kind.” If so, would that properly describe homosexual behavior? In response, the language could easily be compact: “pursued flesh other than what was normally pursued.” However, would this find an analogy in the lust of angels (such would imply that angels normally had sexual relations of some sort, but cf. Matt 22:30)? Another alternative is that the focus of the parallel is on the activity of the surrounding cities and the activity of the angels. This is especially plausible since the participles ἐκπορνεύσασαι (ekporneusasai, “having indulged in sexual immorality”) and ἀπελθοῦσαι (apelqousai, “having pursued”) have concord with “cities” (πόλεις, poleis), a feminine plural noun, rather than with Sodom and Gomorrah (both masculine nouns). If so, then their sin would not necessarily have to be homosexuality. However, most likely the feminine participles are used because of constructio ad sensum (construction according to sense). That is, since both Sodom and Gomorrah are cities, the feminine is used to imply that all the cities are involved. The connection with angels thus seems to be somewhat loose: Both angels and Sodom and Gomorrah indulged in heinous sexual immorality. Thus, whether the false teachers indulge in homosexual activity is not the point; mere sexual immorality is enough to condemn them.
[1:7] 302 tn Or “in the same way as.”
[1:7] 303 tn “Angels” is not in the Greek text; but the masculine demonstrative pronoun most likely refers back to the angels of v. 6.
[1:8] 304 tn The reference is now to the false teachers.
[1:8] 305 tn Grk “dreaming.” The participle ἐνυπνιαζόμενοι (enupniazomenoi, “dreaming”) is adverbial to the pronoun οὗτοι (|outoi, “these”), though the particular relationship is not clear. It could mean, “while dreaming,” “by dreaming,” or “because of dreaming.” This translation has adopted the last option as Jude’s meaning, partially for syntactical reasons (the causal participle usually precedes the main verb) and partially for contextual reasons (these false teachers must derive their authority from some source, and the dreams provide the most obvious base). The participle ἐνυπνιαζόμενοι was sometimes used of apocalyptic visions, both of true and false prophets. This seems to be the meaning here.
[1:8] 306 tn Most likely, the authority of the Lord is in view. This verse, then, echoes the indictment of v. 4: “they deny our Master and Lord, Jesus Christ.”
[1:8] 307 tn The construction with the three verbs (“defile, “reject,” and “insult”) involves the particles μέν, δέ, δέ (men, de, de). A more literal (and pedantic) translation would be: “on the one hand, they defile the flesh, on the other hand, they reject authority, and on another hand, they insult the glorious ones.”
[1:8] 308 sn The glorious ones refers to angelic beings rather than mere human beings, just as in 2 Pet 2:10 (on which this passage apparently depends). Whether the angelic beings are good or evil, however, is difficult to tell (hence, the translation is left ambiguous). However, both in 2 Pet 2:11 and here, in Jude 9, the wicked angels seem to be in view (for not even Michael insults them).
[1:9] 309 tn The word “even” is not in Greek; it is implied by the height of the contrast.
[1:9] 310 sn According to Jewish intertestamental literature (such as 1 En. 20), Michael was one of seven archangels.
[1:9] 311 tn The sentence structure is a bit different in Greek. Literally it reads: “But Michael the archangel, when arguing with the devil and disputing.”
[1:10] 312 tn Or “they should naturally comprehend.” The present tense in this context may have a conative force.
[1:10] sn They instinctively comprehend. Like irrational animals, these false teachers do grasp one thing – the instinctive behavior of animals in heat. R. Bauckham (Jude, 2 Peter [WBC], 63) notes that “Though they claim to be guided by special spiritual insight gained in heavenly revelations, they are in fact following the sexual instincts which they share with the animals.” Jude’s focus is somewhat different from Peter’s: Peter argued that, like irrational animals who are born to be caught and killed, these men will be destroyed when destroying others (2 Pet 2:12). Jude, however, does not mention the destruction of animals, just that these false teachers will be destroyed for mimicking them.
[1:11] 313 tn Or “they have gone the way of Cain.”
[1:11] 314 tn Grk “for wages.”
[1:11] 315 tn The verb ἐκχέω (ekcew) normally means “pour out.” Here, in the passive, it occasionally has a reflexive idea, as BDAG 312 s.v. 3. suggests (with extra-biblical examples).
[1:11] 317 tn Grk “and.” See note on “perish” later in this verse.
[1:11] 318 tn The three verbs in this verse are all aorist indicative (“have gone down,” “have abandoned,” “have perished”). Although the first and second could be considered constative or ingressive, the last is almost surely proleptic (referring to the certainty of their future judgment). Although it may seem odd that a proleptic aorist is so casually connected to other aorists with a different syntactical force, it is not unparalleled (cf. Rom 8:30).
[1:12] 319 tn Grk “these are the men who are.”
[1:12] 320 tn Though σπιλάδες (spilades) is frequently translated “blemishes” or “stains,” such is actually a translation of the Greek word σπίλοι (spiloi). The two words are quite similar, especially in their root or lexical forms (σπιλάς [spila"] and σπίλος [spilos] respectively). Some scholars have suggested that σπιλάδες in this context means the same thing as σπίλοι. But such could be the case only by a stretch of the imagination (see BDAG 938 s.v. σπιλάς for discussion). Others suggest that Jude’s spelling was in error (which also is doubtful). One reason for the tension is that in the parallel passage, 2 Pet 2:13, the term used is indeed σπίλος. And if either Jude used 2 Peter or 2 Peter used Jude, one would expect to see the same word. Jude, however, may have changed the wording for the sake of a subtle wordplay. The word σπιλάς was often used of a mere rock, though it normally was associated with a rock along the shore or one jutting out in the water. Thus, the false teachers would appear as “rocks” – as pillars in the community (cf. Matt 16:18; Gal 2:9), when in reality if a believer got too close to them his faith would get shipwrecked. Some suggest that σπιλάδες here means “hidden rocks.” Though this meaning is attested for the word, it is inappropriate in this context, since these false teachers are anything but hidden. They are dangerous because undiscerning folks get close to them, thinking they are rocks and pillars, when they are really dangerous reefs.
[1:12] 321 tc Several witnesses (A Cvid 1243 1846 al), influenced by the parallel in 2 Pet 2:13, read ἀπάταις (apatai", “deceptions”) for ἀγάπαις (agapai", “love-feasts”) in v. 12. However, ἀγάπαις has much stronger and earlier support and should therefore be considered original.
[1:12] sn The danger of the false teachers at the love feasts would be especially pernicious, for the love feasts of the early church involved the Lord’s Supper, worship, and instruction.
[1:12] 322 tn Or “fearlessly.” The term in this context, however, is decidedly negative. The implication is that these false teachers ate the Lord’s Supper without regarding the sanctity of the meal. Cf. 1 Cor 11:17-22.
[1:12] 323 tn Grk “shepherding themselves.” The verb ποιμαίνω (poimainw) means “shepherd, nurture [the flock].” But these men, rather than tending to the flock of God, nurture only themselves. They thus fall under the condemnation Paul uttered when writing to the Corinthians: “For when it comes time to eat [the Lord’s Supper,] each one goes ahead with his own meal” (1 Cor 11:21). Above all, the love-feast was intended to be a shared meal in which all ate and all felt welcome.
[1:12] 324 tn “They are” is not in Greek, but resumes the thought begun at the front of v. 12. There is no period before “They are.” English usage requires breaking this into more than one sentence.
[1:12] 325 tn Cf. 2 Pet 2:17. Jude’s emphasis is slightly different (instead of waterless springs, they are waterless clouds).
[1:12] 326 sn The imagery portraying the false teachers as autumn trees without fruit has to do with their lack of productivity. Recall the statement to the same effect by Jesus in Matt 7:16-20, in which false prophets will be known by their fruits. Like waterless clouds full of false hope, these trees do not yield any harvest even though it is expected.
[1:12] 327 tn Grk “having died twice.”
[1:12] sn Twice dead probably has no relevance to the tree metaphor, but has great applicability to these false teachers. As in Rev 20:6, those who die twice are those who die physically and spiritually. The aphorism is true: “born once, die twice; born twice, die once” (cf. Rev 20:5; John 3, 11).
[1:13] 328 tn Grk “wild waves of the sea.”
[1:13] 329 tn Grk “foaming, causing to foam.” The verb form is intensive and causative. BDAG 360 s.v. ἐπαφρίζω suggests the meaning “to cause to splash up like froth, cause to foam,” or, in this context, “waves casting up their own shameless deeds like (dirty) foam.”
[1:13] 330 tn Grk “shames, shameful things.” It is uncertain whether shameful deeds or shameful words are in view. Either way, the picture has taken a decided turn: Though waterless clouds and fruitless trees may promise good things, but deliver nothing, wild sea-waves are portents of filth spewed forth from the belly of the sea.
[1:13] 331 sn The imagery of a star seems to fit the nautical theme that Jude is developing. Stars were of course the guides to sailors at night, just as teachers are responsible to lead the flock through a benighted world. But false teachers, as wayward stars, are not fixed and hence offer unreliable, even disastrous guidance. They are thus both the dangerous reefs on which the ships could be destroyed and the false guides, leading them into these rocks. There is a special irony that these lights will be snuffed out, reserved for the darkest depths of eternal darkness.
[1:13] 332 tn Grk “utter darkness of darkness for eternity.” See note on the word “utter” in v. 6.
[1:14] 333 tn Grk “the seventh from Adam.”
[1:14] sn The genealogical count is inclusive, counting Adam as the first, for Enoch is really the sixth in descent from Adam (Adam, Seth, Enosh, Cainan, Mahalalel, Jared, Enoch). In this way, the picture of perfection/completion was retained (for the number seven is often used for perfection or completion in the Bible) starting with Adam and concluding with Enoch.
[1:14] 334 tn Grk “against them.” The dative τούτοις (toutois) is a dativus incommodi (dative of disadvantage).
[1:14] 335 tn Grk “has come,” a proleptic aorist.
[1:14] 336 tn Grk “ten thousands.” The word μυριάς (muria"), from which the English myriad is derived, means “ten thousand.” In the plural it means “ten thousands.” This would mean, minimally, 20,000 (a multiple of ten thousand). At the same time, the term was often used in apocalyptic literature to represent simply a rather large number, without any attempt to be specific.
[1:15] 337 tn Grk “against” (κατά [kata] + genitive). English usage is satisfied with “on” at this point, but the parallel is lost in the translation to some degree, for the end of v. 15 says that this judgment is meted out on these sinners because they spoke against him (κατά + genitive).
[1:15] 339 tn Grk “of all their works of ungodliness.” The adverb “thoroughly” is part of the following verb “have committed.” See note on verb “committed” later in this verse.
[1:15] 340 tn The verb in Greek does not simply mean “have committed,” but “have committed in an ungodly way.” The verb ἀσεβέω (asebew) is cognate to the noun ἀσέβεια (asebeia, “ungodliness”). There is no easy way to express this in English, since English does not have a single word that means the same thing. Nevertheless, the tenor of v. 15 is plainly seen, regardless of the translation.
[1:15] 341 sn An apparent quotation from 1 En. 1:9. There is some doubt as to whether Jude is actually quoting from the text of 1 Enoch; the text here in Jude differs in some respects from the extant text of this pseudepigraphic book. It is sometimes suggested that Jude may instead have been quoting from oral tradition which had roots older than the written text.
[1:16] 342 tn “And” is not in Greek, but is supplied for the sake of English style.
[1:16] 343 tn Or “going.” Though the participle is anarthrous, so also is the subject. Thus, the participle could be either adverbial or adjectival.
[1:16] 344 tn Grk “(who go/going) according to their own lusts.”
[1:16] 345 tn Grk “and their mouth speaks bombastic things.”
[1:16] sn They give bombastic speeches. The idiom of opening one’s mouth in the NT often implied a public oration from a teacher or one in authority. Cf. Matt 5:2; Luke 4:22; Acts 1:16; 3:18; 10:34; Eph 6:19; Rev 13:5-6.
[1:16] 346 sn Enchanting folks (Grk “awing faces”) refers to the fact that the speeches of these false teachers are powerful and seductive.
[1:16] 347 tn Or “to their own advantage.”
[1:17] 348 tn Grk “words.” In conjunction with προεῖπον (proeipon), however, the meaning of the construction is that the apostles uttered prophecies.
[1:17] 349 sn This verse parallels 2 Pet 3:2 both conceptually and in much of the verbiage. There is one important difference, however: In 2 Pet 3:2 the prophets and apostles speak; here, just the apostles speak. This makes good sense if Jude is using 2 Peter as his main source and is urging his readers to go back to the authoritative writings, both OT and now especially NT.
[1:18] 351 tn Grk “going according to their own desires of ungodliness.”
[1:18] sn Jude cites 2 Pet 3:3, changing a few of the words among other things, cleaning up the syntax, conforming it to Hellenistic style.
[1:19] 352 tn Grk “these are the ones who cause divisions.”
[1:19] 353 tn Or “natural,” that is, living on the level of instincts, not on a spiritual level (the same word occurs in 1 Cor 2:14 as a description of nonbelievers).
[1:19] 354 tn Grk “not having [the] Spirit.”
[1:19] sn The phrase devoid of the Spirit may well indicate Jude’s and Peter’s assessment of the spiritual status of the false teachers. Those who do not have the Spirit are clearly not saved.
[1:20] 355 tn The participles in v. 20 have been variously interpreted. Some treat them imperativally or as attendant circumstance to the imperative in v. 21 (“maintain”): “build yourselves up…pray.” But they do not follow the normal contours of either the imperatival or attendant circumstance participles, rendering this unlikely. A better option is to treat them as the means by which the readers are to maintain themselves in the love of God. This both makes eminently good sense and fits the structural patterns of instrumental participles elsewhere.
[1:21] 357 tn Or “waiting for.”
[1:21] 358 tn Grk “unto eternal life.”
[1:23] 360 tn Grk “and have mercy.”
[1:23] 361 tn Grk “with fear.” But as this contrasts with ἀφόβως (afobw") in v. 12 (without reverence), the posture of the false teachers, it most likely refers to reverence for God.
[1:23] sn Joining a fear of God to mercy is an important balance when involved in disciplinary action. On the one hand, being merciful without fear can turn to unwarranted sympathy for the individual, absolving him of personal responsibility; but fearing God without showing mercy can turn into personal judgment and condemnation.
[1:23] 362 sn The imagery here suggests that the things close to the sinners are contaminated by them, presumably during the process of sinning.
[1:23] 363 tn Grk “hating even the tunic spotted by the flesh.” The “flesh” in this instance could refer to the body or to the sin nature. It makes little difference in one sense: Jude is thinking primarily of sexual sins, which are borne of the sin nature and manifest themselves in inappropriate deeds done with the body. At the same time, he is not saying that the body is intrinsically bad, a view held by the opponents of Christianity. Hence, it is best to see “flesh” as referring to the sin nature here and the language as metaphorical.
[1:24] 364 tn The construction in Greek is a double accusative object-complement. “You” is the object and “free from falling” is the adjectival complement.
[1:24] 365 tn Grk “with rejoicing.” The prepositional clause is placed after “his glorious presence” in Greek, but most likely goes with “cause you to stand.”
[1:24] 366 tn The construction in Greek is a double accusative object-complement. “You” is the object and “without blemish” is the adjectival complement.
[1:24] 367 tn Or “in the presence of his glory,” “before his glory.”
[1:1] 368 tn Grk “Judas,” traditionally “Jude” in English versions to distinguish him from the one who betrayed Jesus. The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.
[1:1] 369 tn 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.). At the same time, perhaps “servant” is apt in that the δοῦλος of Jesus Christ took on that role voluntarily, unlike a slave. 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] 370 sn Although Jude was half-brother of Jesus, he humbly associates himself with James, his full brother. By first calling himself a slave of Jesus Christ, it is evident that he wants no one to place stock in his physical connections. At the same time, he must identify himself further: Since Jude was a common name in the 1st century (two of Jesus’ disciples were so named, including his betrayer), more information was needed, that is to say, brother of James.
[1:1] 371 tn Grk “loved in.” The perfect passive participle suggests that the audience’s relationship to God is not recent; the preposition ἐν (en) before πατρί (patri) could be taken as sphere or instrument (agency is unlikely, however). Another possible translation would be “dear to God.”
[1:1] 372 tn Or “by.” Datives of agency are quite rare in the NT (and other ancient Greek), almost always found with a perfect verb. Although this text qualifies, in light of the well-worn idiom of τηρέω (threw) in eschatological contexts, in which God or Christ keeps the believer safe until the parousia (cf. 1 Thess 5:23; 1 Pet 1:4; Rev 3:10; other terms meaning “to guard,” “to keep” are also found in similar eschatological contexts [cf. 2 Thess 3:3; 2 Tim 1:12; 1 Pet 1:5; Jude 24]), it is probably better to understand this verse as having such an eschatological tinge. It is at the same time possible that Jude’s language was intentionally ambiguous, implying both ideas (“kept by Jesus Christ [so that they might be] kept for Jesus Christ”). Elsewhere he displays a certain fondness for wordplays; this may be a hint of things to come.
[1:1] 373 tn Grk “Judas,” traditionally “Jude” in English versions to distinguish him from the one who betrayed Jesus. The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.
[1:1] 374 tn 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.). At the same time, perhaps “servant” is apt in that the δοῦλος of Jesus Christ took on that role voluntarily, unlike a slave. 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] 375 sn Although Jude was half-brother of Jesus, he humbly associates himself with James, his full brother. By first calling himself a slave of Jesus Christ, it is evident that he wants no one to place stock in his physical connections. At the same time, he must identify himself further: Since Jude was a common name in the 1st century (two of Jesus’ disciples were so named, including his betrayer), more information was needed, that is to say, brother of James.
[1:1] 376 tn Grk “loved in.” The perfect passive participle suggests that the audience’s relationship to God is not recent; the preposition ἐν (en) before πατρί (patri) could be taken as sphere or instrument (agency is unlikely, however). Another possible translation would be “dear to God.”
[1:1] 377 tn Or “by.” Datives of agency are quite rare in the NT (and other ancient Greek), almost always found with a perfect verb. Although this text qualifies, in light of the well-worn idiom of τηρέω (threw) in eschatological contexts, in which God or Christ keeps the believer safe until the parousia (cf. 1 Thess 5:23; 1 Pet 1:4; Rev 3:10; other terms meaning “to guard,” “to keep” are also found in similar eschatological contexts [cf. 2 Thess 3:3; 2 Tim 1:12; 1 Pet 1:5; Jude 24]), it is probably better to understand this verse as having such an eschatological tinge. It is at the same time possible that Jude’s language was intentionally ambiguous, implying both ideas (“kept by Jesus Christ [so that they might be] kept for Jesus Christ”). Elsewhere he displays a certain fondness for wordplays; this may be a hint of things to come.
[7:10] 378 tn Heb “approached for battle against Israel.”
[7:12] 380 tn Cf. NAB, NRSV, NLT “Jeshanah.”
[7:12] 381 sn The name Ebenezer (אֶבֶן הָעָזֶר) means “stone of help” in Hebrew (cf. TEV); NLT adds the meaning parenthetically after the name.
[14:7] 383 tn Heb “in your heart.”
[14:7] 384 tn Heb “Look, I am with you, according to your heart.” See the note at 13:14.
[14:11] 387 tn Heb “the two of them.”
[14:12] 389 tn The perfect verbal form is used rhetorically here to express Jonathan’s certitude. As far as he is concerned, the victory is as good as won and can be described as such.
[14:13] 390 tn Heb “and they fell before Jonathan.”
[14:13] 391 tn Heb “and the one carrying his equipment was killing after him.”
[14:1] 392 tn Or “the servant who was carrying his military equipment” (likewise in vv. 6, 7, 12, 13, 14).
[17:48] 393 tc Most LXX
[17:50] 394 tc Most LXX
[17:50] 395 tn Verse 50 is a summary statement; v. 51 gives a more detailed account of how David killed the Philistine.
[17:2] 396 tn Heb “the men of Israel” (so KJV, NASB); NAB, NIV, NRSV “the Israelites.”
[14:11] 399 tn Heb “the two of them.”
[14:12] 401 tn The perfect verbal form is used rhetorically here to express Jonathan’s certitude. As far as he is concerned, the victory is as good as won and can be described as such.
[14:13] 402 tn Heb “and they fell before Jonathan.”
[14:13] 403 tn Heb “and the one carrying his equipment was killing after him.”
[20:1] 404 tn Heb “and he came and said before Jonathan.”
[20:1] 405 tn Heb “What is my guilt?”
[20:2] 406 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Jonathan) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[20:2] 407 tc The translation follows the Qere, many medieval Hebrew
[20:2] 408 tn Heb “without uncovering my ear.”
[20:3] 409 tc The LXX and the Syriac Peshitta lack the word “again.”
[20:3] 410 tn The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
[20:3] 411 tn Heb “said,” that is, to himself. So also in v. 25.
[20:4] 412 tn Heb “whatever your soul says, I will do for you.”
[20:5] 413 tn Heb “and I must surely sit with the king to eat.” The infinitive absolute appears before the finite verb for emphasis.
[20:6] 415 map For location see Map5 B1; Map7 E2; Map8 E2; Map10 B4.
[20:7] 417 tn Heb “know that the evil is completed from with him.”
[20:8] 418 tn Heb “and you must do loyalty.”
[20:8] 419 tn Heb “for into a covenant of the
[20:8] 420 tn Heb “and if there is in me guilt.”
[20:12] 421 tc The Hebrew text has simply “the
[20:12] 422 tn Heb “and uncover your ear.”
[20:13] 423 tn Heb “uncover your ear.”
[20:13] 424 tn Heb “in peace.”
[20:16] 425 tn Heb “cut.” The object of the verb (“covenant”) must be supplied.
[20:16] 426 tn The word order is different in the Hebrew text, which reads “and Jonathan cut with the house of David, and the
[20:17] 427 tn Heb “for [with] the love of his [own] life he loved him.”
[20:19] 428 tc Heb “you will do [something] a third time.” The translation assumes an emendation of the verb from שִׁלַּשְׁתָּ (shillashta, “to do a third time”) to שִׁלִּישִׁית (shillishit, “[on the] third [day]”).
[20:19] 429 tn Heb “you must go down greatly.” See Judg 19:11 for the same idiom.
[20:19] 430 tn Heb “on the day of the deed.” This probably refers to the incident recorded in 19:2.
[20:21] 431 tn Heb “from you and here.”
[20:22] 432 tn Heb “from you and onward.”
[20:23] 433 tc Heb “the
[20:25] 434 tc Heb “and Jonathan arose.” Instead of MT’s וַיָּקָם (vayyaqam, “and he arose”; from the hollow verbal root קוּם, qum), the translation assumes a reading וַיִּקַדֵּם (vayyiqaddem, “and he was in front of”; from the verbal root קדם, qdm). See P. K. McCarter, I Samuel (AB), 338.
[20:25] 435 tn Heb “and Abner sat at the side of Saul.”
[20:26] 436 tn The words “about it” are not present in the Hebrew text, although they are implied.
[20:26] 437 tn Heb “said,” that is, to himself.
[20:29] 439 tn Heb “commanded.”
[20:29] 440 tn Heb “be released [from duty].”
[20:30] 441 tc Many medieval Hebrew
[20:30] 442 tn Heb “son of a perverse woman of rebelliousness.” But such an overly literal and domesticated translation of the Hebrew expression fails to capture the force of Saul’s unrestrained reaction. Saul, now incensed and enraged over Jonathan’s liaison with David, is actually hurling very coarse and emotionally charged words at his son. The translation of this phrase suggested by Koehler and Baumgartner is “bastard of a wayward woman” (HALOT 796 s.v. עוה), but this is not an expression commonly used in English. A better English approximation of the sentiments expressed here by the Hebrew phrase would be “You stupid son of a bitch!” However, sensitivity to the various public formats in which the Bible is read aloud has led to a less startling English rendering which focuses on the semantic value of Saul’s utterance (i.e., the behavior of his own son Jonathan, which he viewed as both a personal and a political betrayal [= “traitor”]). But this concession should not obscure the fact that Saul is full of bitterness and frustration. That he would address his son Jonathan with such language, not to mention his apparent readiness even to kill his own son over this friendship with David (v. 33), indicates something of the extreme depth of Saul’s jealousy and hatred of David.
[44:1] 443 sn Psalm 44. The speakers in this psalm (the worshiping community within the nation Israel) were disappointed with God. The psalm begins on a positive note, praising God for leading Israel to past military victories. Verses 1-8 appear to be a song of confidence and petition which the people recited prior to battle. But suddenly the mood changes as the nation laments a recent defeat. The stark contrast between the present and the past only heightens the nation’s confusion. Israel trusted in God for victory, but the Lord rejected them and allowed them to be humiliated in battle. If Israel had been unfaithful to God, their defeat would make sense, but the nation was loyal to the Lord. Comparing the Lord to a careless shepherd, the nation urges God to wake up and to extend his compassion to his suffering people.
[44:1] 444 tn The meaning of the Hebrew term מַשְׂכִּיל (maskil) is uncertain. See the note on the phrase “well-written song” in the superscription of Ps 42.
[44:1] 445 tn Heb “with our ears we have heard.”
[44:1] 446 tn Heb “fathers” (also in v. 2; the same Hebrew word may be translated either “fathers” or “ancestors” depending on the context.
[44:1] 447 tn Heb “the work you worked.”
[44:1] 448 tn Heb “in the days of old.” This refers specifically to the days of Joshua, during Israel’s conquest of the land, as vv. 2-3 indicate.
[44:2] 449 tn Heb “you, your hand.”
[44:2] 450 tn Heb “dispossessed nations and planted them.” The third masculine plural pronoun “them” refers to the fathers (v. 1). See Ps 80:8, 15.
[44:2] 451 tn The verb form in the Hebrew text is a Hiphil preterite (without vav [ו] consecutive) from רָעַע (ra’a’, “be evil; be bad”). If retained it apparently means, “you injured; harmed.” Some prefer to derive the verb from רָעַע (“break”; cf. NEB “breaking up the peoples”), in which case the form must be revocalized as Qal (since this verb is unattested in the Hiphil).
[44:2] 453 tn Heb “and you sent them out.” The translation assumes that the third masculine plural pronoun “them” refers to the fathers (v. 1), as in the preceding parallel line. See Ps 80:11, where Israel, likened to a vine, “spreads out” its tendrils to the west and east. Another option is to take the “peoples” as the referent of the pronoun and translate, “and you sent them away,” though this does not provide as tight a parallel with the corresponding line.
[44:3] 454 tn Or “take possession of.”
[44:3] 455 tn Heb “and their arm did not save them.” The “arm” here symbolizes military strength.
[44:3] 456 tn Heb “your right hand.” The
[44:3] 458 tn Heb “light of your face.” The idiom “light of your face” probably refers to a smile (see Eccl 8:1), which in turn suggests favor and blessing (see Num 6:25; Pss 4:6; 31:16; 67:1; 80:3, 7, 19; 89:15; Dan 9:17).
[44:3] 459 tn Or “favorable toward.”
[44:4] 460 sn The speaker changes here to an individual, perhaps the worship leader or the king. The oscillation between singular (vv. 4, 6) and plural (vv. 1-3, 5, 7-8) in vv. 1-8 may reflect an antiphonal ceremony.
[44:4] 461 tc The LXX assumes a participle here (מְצַוֶּה [mÿtsavveh], “the one who commands/decrees”) which would stand in apposition to “my God.” It is possible that the MT, which has the imperative (צַוֵּה, tsavveh) form, has suffered haplography of the letter mem (ם). Note that the preceding word (אֱלֹהִים, ’elohim) ends in mem. Another option is that the MT is divided in the wrong place; perhaps one could move the final mem from אֱלֹהִים to the beginning of the next word and read מְצַוֶּה אֱלֹהָי (’elohay mÿtsavveh, “[You are my king,] my God, the one who decrees”).
[44:4] tn Or “command.” This may be the Israelites’ petition prior to the battle. See the introductory note to the psalm.
[44:4] 462 tn That is, Israel. See Pss 14:7; 22:23.
[46:8] 463 sn In this context the Lord’s exploits are military in nature (see vv. 8b-9).
[46:8] 464 tn Heb “who sets desolations in the earth” (see Isa 13:9). The active participle describes God’s characteristic activity as a warrior.
[46:9] 465 tn Heb “[the] one who causes wars to cease unto the end of the earth.” The participle continues the description begun in v. 8b and indicates that this is the
[46:9] 466 tn The verb שָׁבַר (shavar, “break”) appears in the Piel here (see Ps 29:5). In the OT it occurs thirty-six times in the Piel, always with multiple objects (the object is either a collective singular or grammatically plural or dual form). The Piel may highlight the repetition of the pluralative action, or it may suggest an intensification of action, indicating repeated action comprising a whole, perhaps with the nuance “break again and again, break in pieces.” Another option is to understand the form as resultative: “make broken” (see IBHS 404-7 §24.3). The imperfect verbal form carries on and emphasizes the generalizing nature of the description.
[46:9] 467 tn The perfect verbal form with vav (ו) consecutive carries along the generalizing emphasis of the preceding imperfect.
[46:9] 468 tn The imperfect verbal form carries on and emphasizes the generalizing nature of the description.
[46:9] 469 tn Heb “wagons he burns with fire.” Some read “chariots” here (cf. NASB), but the Hebrew word refers to wagons or carts, not chariots, elsewhere in the OT. In this context, where military weapons are mentioned, it is better to revocalize the form as עֲגִלוֹת (’agilot, “round shields”), a word which occurs only here in the OT, but is attested in later Hebrew and Aramaic.
[46:10] 470 tn The words “he says” are supplied in the translation for clarification.
[46:10] 471 tn Heb “do nothing/be quiet (see 1 Sam 15:16) and know.” This statement may be addressed to the hostile nations, indicating they should cease their efforts to destroy God’s people, or to Judah, indicating they should rest secure in God’s protection. Since the psalm is an expression of Judah’s trust and confidence, it is more likely that the words are directed to the nations, who are actively promoting chaos and are in need of a rebuke.
[46:10] 472 tn Elsewhere in the psalms the verb רוּם (rum, “be exalted”) when used of God, refers to his exalted position as king (Pss 18:46; 99:2; 113:4; 138:6) and/or his self-revelation as king through his mighty deeds of deliverance (Pss 21:13; 57:5, 11).
[46:11] 475 tn Heb “the
[46:11] 476 tn That is, Israel, or Judah (see Ps 20:1).
[46:11] 477 tn Heb “our elevated place” (see Pss 9:9; 18:2).
[48:4] 478 tn The logical connection between vv. 3-4 seems to be this: God is the protector of Zion and reveals himself as the city’s defender – this is necessary because hostile armies threaten the city.
[48:4] 479 tn The perfect verbal forms in vv. 4-6 are understood as descriptive. In dramatic style (note הִנֵּה, hinneh, “look”) the psalm describes an enemy attack against the city as if it were occurring at this very moment. Another option is to take the perfects as narrational (“the kings assembled, they advanced”), referring to a particular historical event, such as Sennacherib’s siege of the city in 701
[48:5] 480 tn The object of “see” is omitted, but v. 3b suggests that the
[48:5] 481 tn Heb “they look, so they are shocked.” Here כֵּן (ken, “so”) has the force of “in the same measure.”
[48:5] 482 tn The translation attempts to reflect the staccato style of the Hebrew text, where the main clauses of vv. 4-6 are simply juxtaposed without connectives.
[48:6] 483 tn Heb “trembling seizes them there.” The adverb שָׁם (sham, “there”) is used here, as often in poetic texts, to point “to a spot in which a scene is localized vividly in the imagination” (BDB 1027 s.v.).
[48:6] 484 tn Heb “[with] writhing like one giving birth.”
[48:6] sn The language of vv. 5-6 is reminiscent of Exod 15:15.
[48:7] 485 tn The switch to the imperfect, as well as the introduction of the ship metaphor, perhaps signals a change to a generalizing tone; the
[48:7] 486 tn Heb “the ships of Tarshish.” This probably refers to large ships either made in or capable of traveling to and from the distant western port of Tarshish. These ships, which were the best of their class, here symbolize the mere human strength of hostile armies, which are incapable of withstanding the
[48:8] 487 tn Heb “As we have heard, so we have seen.” The community had heard about God’s mighty deeds in the nation’s history. Having personally witnessed his saving power with their own eyes, they could now affirm that the tradition was not exaggerated or inaccurate.
[48:8] 488 tn Heb “the
[48:8] 489 tn Or “God makes it secure forever.” The imperfect highlights the characteristic nature of the generalizing statement.
[105:5] 490 tn Heb “and the judgments of his mouth.”
[105:6] 491 tn Or “offspring”; Heb “seed.”
[105:6] 492 tc Some
[105:6] 493 tn Heb “his”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[105:6] 495 tn Heb “his”; the referent (God) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[105:7] 496 tn Heb “in all the earth [are] his judgments.”
[105:8] 497 tn Heb “[the] word he commanded.” The text refers here to God’s unconditional covenantal promise to Abraham and the patriarchs, as vv. 10-12 make clear.
[105:10] 499 tn Or “eternal covenant.”
[105:13] 500 tn Heb “and from a kingdom to another nation.”
[105:15] 501 tn The word “saying” is supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
[105:15] 502 tn Heb “anointed.”
[105:16] 503 tn Heb “and every staff of food he broke.” The psalmist refers to the famine that occurred in Joseph’s time (see v. 17 and Gen 41:53-57).
[105:17] 504 tn After the reference to the famine in v. 16, v. 17 flashes back to events that preceded the famine (see Gen 37).
[105:18] 505 tn Heb “they afflicted his feet with shackles.”
[105:18] 506 tn Heb “his neck came [into] iron.” The Hebrew term נֶפֶשׁ (nefesh) with the suffix could mean simply “he” or “his life.” But the nuance “neck” makes good sense here (note the reference to his “feet” in the preceding line). See L. C. Allen, Psalms 101-150 (WBC), 38.
[105:19] 507 tn Heb “word,” probably referring to Joseph’s prediction about the fate of Pharaoh’s cupbearer and baker (see Gen 41:9-14).
[105:19] 508 tn This line may refer to Joseph’s prediction of the famine in response to Pharaoh’s dream. Joseph emphasized to Pharaoh that the interpretation of the dream came from God (see Gen 41:16, 25, 28, 32, 39).
[105:19] 509 tn Heb “refined him.”
[105:20] 510 tn Heb “[the] king sent and set him free.”
[105:21] 511 tn Heb “he made him master of his house.”
[105:22] 512 tn Heb “to bind his officials by his will.”
[105:22] 513 tn Heb “and his elders he taught wisdom.”
[105:23] 514 tn Heb “entered.”
[105:23] 515 tn Heb “lived as a resident alien.”
[105:24] 516 tn Heb “and he”; the referent (the
[105:24] 517 tn Heb “him,” referring to “his people.”
[105:24] 518 tn Heb “his,” referring to “his people.”
[105:25] 519 tn Heb “their heart.”
[105:25] 520 tn Or “to deal deceptively.” The Hitpael of נָכַל (nakhal) occurs only here and in Gen 37:18, where it is used of Joseph’s brothers “plotting” to kill him.
[105:27] 521 tn Apparently the pronoun refers to “his servants” (i.e., the Israelites, see v. 25).
[105:28] 522 tn Heb “he sent darkness and made it dark.”
[105:28] sn He made it dark. The psalmist begins with the ninth plague (see Exod 10:21-29).
[105:28] 523 tn Heb “they did not rebel against his words.” Apparently this refers to Moses and Aaron, who obediently carried out God’s orders.
[105:31] 524 tn Heb “he spoke and flies came.”
[105:32] 525 tn Heb “he gave their rains hail.”
[105:32] 526 tn Heb “fire of flames [was] in their land.”
[105:34] 527 tn Heb “he spoke and locusts came.”
[105:35] 528 tn Heb “the fruit of their ground.”
[105:36] 529 tn Heb “the beginning of all their strength,” that is, reproductive power (see Ps 78:51).
[105:36] sn Verses 28-36 recall the plagues in a different order than the one presented in Exodus: v. 28 (plague 9), v. 29 (plague 1), v. 30 (plague 2), v. 31a (plague 4), v. 31b (plague 3), vv. 32-33 (plague 7), vv. 34-35 (plague 8), v. 36 (plague 10). No reference is made in Ps 105 to plagues 5 and 6.
[105:37] 530 tn Heb “them”; the referent (the
[105:37] 531 tn The word “enriched” is supplied in the translation for clarification and for stylistic reasons.
[105:38] 532 tn Heb “for fear of them had fallen upon them.”
[105:40] 534 tn Heb “he [i.e., his people] asked.” The singular form should probably be emended to a plural שָׁאֲלוּ (sha’alu, “they asked”), the vav (ו) having fallen off by haplography (note the vav at the beginning of the following form).
[105:40] 535 tn Or “bread of heaven.” The reference is to manna (see Exod 16:4, 13-15).
[105:42] 537 tn Heb “his holy word.”
[105:43] 538 tn Heb “and he led his people out with joy, with a ringing cry, his chosen ones.”
[105:44] 539 tn Heb “and the [product of the] work of peoples they possessed.”
[136:1] 541 sn Psalm 136. In this hymn the psalmist affirms that God is praiseworthy because of his enduring loyal love, sovereign authority, and compassion. Each verse of the psalm concludes with the refrain “for his loyal love endures.”
[136:1] 542 tn Or “is forever.”
[136:13] 544 tn Heb “Reed Sea” (also in v. 15). “Reed Sea” (or “Sea of Reeds”) is a more accurate rendering of the Hebrew expression יָם סוּף (yam suf), traditionally translated “Red Sea.” See the note on the term “Red Sea” in Exod 13:18.
[136:13] 545 tn Heb “into pieces.”
[136:15] 546 tn Or “shook off.”
[136:23] 547 tn Heb “who, in our low condition, remembered us.”
[136:25] 548 tn Heb “to all flesh,” which can refer to all people (see Pss 65:2; 145:21) or more broadly to mankind and animals. Elsewhere the psalms view God as the provider for all living things (see Pss 104:27-28; 145:15).
[59:1] 549 tn Heb “short” (so NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV).
[59:1] 550 tn Heb “or his ear too heavy [i.e., “dull”] to hear.”
[59:2] 551 tn Heb “and your sins have caused [his] face to be hidden from you so as not to hear.”
