Lukas 7:28

7:28 I tell you, among those born of women no one is greater ¹  than John. ²  Yet the one who is least ³  in the kingdom of God ⁴  is greater than he is.”

Lukas 14:11

14:11 For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, but ⁵  the one who humbles ⁶  himself will be exalted.”

Lukas 22:30

22:30 that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom, and you will sit ⁷  on thrones judging ⁸  the twelve tribes of Israel.

Amsal 18:12

18:12 Before destruction the heart ⁹  of a person is proud,

but humility comes ¹⁰  before honor. ¹¹ 

Matius 19:28

19:28 Jesus ¹²  said to them, “I tell you the truth: ¹³  In the age when all things are renewed, ¹⁴  when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging ¹⁵  the twelve tribes of Israel.

Matius 23:11-12

23:11 The ¹⁶  greatest among you will be your servant. 23:12 And whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted.

Matius 23:1

Seven Woes

23:1 Then Jesus said to the crowds and to his disciples,

Pengkhotbah 5:3-4

5:3 Just as dreams come when there are many cares, ¹⁷ 

so ¹⁸  the rash vow ¹⁹  of a fool occurs ²⁰  when there are many words.

5:4 When you make a vow ²¹  to God, do not delay in paying it. ²² 

For God ²³  takes no pleasure in fools:

Pay what you vow!

Pengkhotbah 5:6

5:6 Do not let your mouth cause you ²⁴  to sin,

and do not tell the priest, ²⁵  “It was a mistake!” ²⁶ 

Why make God angry at you ²⁷ 

so that he would destroy the work of your hands?”

Wahyu 3:21

3:21 I will grant the one ²⁸  who conquers ²⁹  permission ³⁰  to sit with me on my throne, just as I too conquered ³¹  and sat down with my Father on his throne.

Wahyu 21:14

21:14 The ³²  wall of the city has twelve foundations, and on them are the twelve names of the twelve apostles of the Lamb.

[7:28]  ¹ sn In the Greek text greater is at the beginning of the clause in the emphatic position. John the Baptist was the greatest man of the old era.

[7:28]  ² tc The earliest and best mss read simply ᾿Ιωάννου (Iwannou, “John”) here (Ì⁷⁵ א B L W Ξ Ë¹ 579 pc). Others turn this into “John the Baptist” (K 33 565 al it), “the prophet John the Baptist” (A [D] Θ Ë¹³ Ï lat), or “the prophet John” (Ψ 700 [892 1241] pc). “It appears that προφήτης was inserted by pedantic copyists who wished thereby to exclude Christ from the comparison, while others added τοῦ βαπτιστοῦ, assimilating the text to Mt 11.11” (TCGNT 119).

[7:28]  ³ sn After John comes a shift of eras. The new era is so great that the lowest member of it (the one who is least in the kingdom of God) is greater than the greatest one of the previous era.

[7:28]  ⁴ sn The kingdom of God is a major theme of Jesus’ proclamation. It is a realm in which Jesus rules and to which those who trust him belong. See Luke 6:20; 11:20; 17:20-21. It is not strictly future, though its full manifestation is yet to come. That is why membership in it starts right after John the Baptist.

[14:11]  ⁵ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “but” to indicate the contrast present in this context, which involves the reversal of expected roles.

[14:11]  ⁶ sn The point of the statement the one who humbles himself will be exalted is humility and the reversal imagery used to underline it is common: Luke 1:52-53; 6:21; 10:15; 18:14.

[22:30]  ⁷ tn This verb is future indicative, and thus not subordinate to “grant” (διατίθεμαι, diatiqemai) as part of the result clause beginning with ἵνα ἔσθητε ({ina esqhte) at the beginning of v. 30. It is better understood as a predictive future.

[22:30]  ⁸ sn The statement you will sit on thrones judging the twelve tribes of Israel looks at the future authority the Twelve will have when Jesus returns. They will share in Israel’s judgment.

[18:12]  ⁹ sn The term “heart” is a metonymy of subject, referring to the seat of the spiritual and intellectual capacities – the mind, the will, the motivations and intentions. Proud ambitions and intentions will lead to a fall.

[18:12]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “[is] before honor”; cf. CEV “humility leads to honor.”

[18:12]  ¹¹ sn The way to honor is through humility (e.g., Prov 11:2; 15:33; 16:18). The humility and exaltation of Jesus provides the classic example (Phil 2:1-10).

[19:28]  ¹² tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[19:28]  ¹³ tn Grk “Truly (ἀμήν, amhn), I say to you.”

[19:28]  ¹⁴ sn The Greek term translated the age when all things are renewed (παλιγγενεσία, palingenesia) is understood as a reference to the Messianic age, the time when all things are renewed and restored (cf. Rev 21:5).

[19:28]  ¹⁵ sn The statement you…will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel looks at the future authority the Twelve will have when Jesus returns. They will share in Israel’s judgment.

[23:11]  ¹⁶ tn Here δέ (de) has not been translated.

[5:3]  ¹⁷ tn The term עִנְיַן (’inyan) means “business; affair; task; occupation” (HALOT 857 s.v. עִנְיָן; BDB 775 s.v. עִנְיָן). HALOT nuances עִנְיַן בְּרֹב (bÿrov ‘inyan) as “excessive activity” (HALOT 857 s.v. עִנְיָן). Here, it is used as a metonymy of cause (i.e., tasks) for effect (i.e., cares). The term is nuanced variously: (1) literal sense: “business” (KJV, ASV, YLT, NEB, RSV) and “effort” (NASB), and (2) metonymical: “cares” (NAB, NIV, NRSV), “concerns” (MLB, Douay), “worries” (Moffatt) and “brooding” (NJPS). The LXX mistakenly related עִנְיַן to the root II עָנַה (’anah) “to afflict,” and rendered it as πειρασμοῦ (peirasmou, “trial”).

[5:3]  ¹⁸ tn The juxtaposition of the two lines joined by vav (“just as…so…”) suggests a comparison (BDB 253 s.v. ו 1.j); see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 71, §437.

[5:3]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “voice.” The Hebrew term קוֹל (qol, “voice”) is used as a metonymy of cause (i.e., voice) for the contents (i.e., the thing said), e.g., Gen 3:17; 4:23; Exod 3:18; 4:1, 9; Deut 1:45; 21:18, 20; 1 Sam 2:25; 8:7, 9; 2 Sam 12:18); see HALOT 1084 s.v. קוֹל 4.b; BDB 877 s.v. קוֹל 3.a; also E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 545–46. Contextually, this refers to a rash vow made by a fool who made a mistake in making it because he is unable to fulfill it.

[5:3]  ²⁰ tn The word “occurs” does not appear in the Hebrew text, but is supplied in the translation for clarity.

[5:4]  ²¹ tn Heb “vow a vow.” The phrase תִּדֹּר נֶדֶר (tiddor neder, “to vow a vow”) is a Hebrew idiom in which the root נדר is repeated for emphasis. The construction is a cognate accusative (see IBHS 166-67 §10.2.1f). The verb נָדַר (nadar, “to vow”) refers to the action of making a solemn promise to the Lord to perform an action or offer a sacrifice, e.g., Lev 27:8; Num 6:21; 30:11; Deut 23:23-24; Jonah 2:10; Mal 1:14; Pss 76:12; 132:2; see HALOT 674 s.v. נדר. The noun נֶדֶר (“vow”) was a gift or offering promised to be given to the Lord (Num 30:3; Deut 12:11; 23:19; Isa 19:12; Nah 2:1 [ET 1:15]; Ps 61:6, 9); see HALOT 674–75 s.v. נֵדֶר. It usually was a sacrifice or free-will offering (Deut 12:6; Ps 66:13) that was often promised during times of pressure (Judg 11:30; 1 Sam 1:11; 2 Sam 15:7-8; Pss 22:25; 66:13; 116:14, 18; Jonah 2:9).

[5:4]  ²² tn The term לְשַׁלְּמוֹ (lÿshallÿmo, preposition + Piel infinitive construct from שָׁלַם, shalam + 3rd person masculine singular suffix) is derived from the root שׁלם which is used in a general sense of paying a debt (2 Kgs 4:7; Ps 37:21; Prov 22:27; Job 41:3), and more specifically of fulfilling a vow to the Lord (Deut 23:22; 2 Sam 15:7; Pss 22:26; 50:14; 61:9; 66:13; 76:12; 116:14, 18; Prov 7:14; Job 22:27; Isa 19:21; Jonah 2:10; Nah 2:1); see HALOT 1535 s.v. שׁלם 3a; BDB 1022 s.v. שָׁלֵם 4. An Israelite was never required to make a vow, but once made, it had to be paid (Lev 22:18-25; 27:1-13; Num 15:2-10; Nah 1:15 [2:1 HT]).

[5:4]  ²³ tn Heb “he”; the referent (“God”) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[5:6]  ²⁴ tn Heb “your flesh.” The term בָּשָׂר (basar, “flesh”) is a synecdoche of part (i.e., flesh) for the whole (i.e., whole person), e.g., Gen 2:21; 6:12; Ps 56:4[5]; 65:2[3]; 145:21; Isa 40:5, 6; see HALOT 164 s.v. בָּשָׂר; E. W. Bullinger, Figures of Speech, 642.

[5:6]  ²⁵ tc The MT reads הַמַּלְאָךְ (hammal’akh, “messenger”), while the LXX reads τοῦ θεοῦ (tou qeou, “God”) which reflects an alternate textual tradition of הָאֱלֹהִים (ha’elohim, “God”). The textual problem was caused by orthographic confusion between similarly spelled words. The LXX might have been trying to make sense of a difficult expression. The MT is preferred as the original. All the major translations follow the MT except for Moffatt (“God”).

[5:6]  tn Heb “the messenger.” The term מַלְאָךְ (mal’akh, “messenger”) refers to a temple priest (e.g., Mal 2:7; cf. HALOT 585 s.v. מַלְאָךְ 2.b; BDB 521 s.v. מַלְאָךְ 1.c). The priests recorded what Israelite worshipers vowed (Lev 27:14-15). When an Israelite delayed in fulfilling a vow, a priest would remind him to pay what he had vowed. Although the traditional rabbinic view is that Qoheleth refers to an angelic superintendent over the temple, Rashi suggested that it is a temple-official. Translations reflect both views: “his representative” (NAB), “the temple messenger” (NIV), “the messenger” (RSV, NRSV, NASB, MLB, NJPS), “the angel” (KJV, ASV, Douay) and “the angel of God” (NEB).

[5:6]  ²⁶ tn The Hebrew noun שְׁגָגָה (shÿgagah) denotes “error; mistake” and refers to a sin of inadvertence or unintentional sin (e.g., Lev 4:2, 22, 27; 5:18; 22:14; Num 15:24-29; 35:11, 15; Josh 20:3, 9; Eccl 5:5; 10:5); see HALOT 1412 s.v. שְׁגָגָה; BDB 993 s.v. שְׁגָגָה. In this case, it refers to a rash vow thoughtlessly made, which the foolish worshiper claims was a mistake (e.g., Prov 20:25).

[5:6]  ²⁷ tn Heb “at your voice.” This is an example of metonymy (i.e., your voice) of association (i.e., you).

[3:21]  ²⁸ tn Grk “The one who conquers, to him I will grant.”

[3:21]  ²⁹ tn Or “who is victorious”; traditionally, “who overcomes.”

[3:21]  ³⁰ tn Grk “I will give [grant] to him.”

[3:21]  ³¹ tn Or “have been victorious”; traditionally, “have overcome.”

[21:14]  ³² tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.